Testing, Testing

Hello, this is just a test of the Blogger for Word operating system.  Do not be alarmed that this post seems to be devoid of any rational thought or meaning.  Simply accept that it is here and there is nothing that can be done about it…at least not without my user name and password, which I store safe in the vault I installed underneath the dungeon where I keep all those who attempt to tamper with my posts without permission.  Consider yourself forewarned.

Meaning from Despair

Finishing up the book Anna Karenina today, I read the final pages in which Levin, one of the main characters of the story, comes to grips with his belief in God. Later on, I was watching an episode of the television show Family Ties in which Alex Keaton has to grapple with the same subject. Both characters' defining moments come as a result of the death of a loved one and the resulting meaninglessness of life. Alex Keaton and Levin are both men who are very analytical and down to earth, believing only in the things they can see, feel, and analyze. They bury themselves in their work. For Levin it is in managing a farm and caring for his family that he spends his time and energy, while Alex's work is his economics, business, and all around financial studies. It isn't until they see through the deaths of their brother and best friend, respectively, that the tangible things that are the center of their lives are devoid of ultimate meaning. The resulting despair and depression causes them both to admit that there is a miraculous aspect to the world and a being higher than themselves looking out for things. A god who is good. It is through this realization that their lives take on new meaning and hope.

Working for the sake of work itself and survival in life is utterly meaningless as it all ends the same: in death. In Ecclesiastes it says, "Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun." What has been done once will be done again. The technology may change, but it is all basically the same and nothing is accomplished that will remove the fact that, one of these days, each and every person, no matter what their status or accomplishments in life, will meet there end in some way. To merely go through the motions of life can be very depressing if one stops to think about what it all means.

God is the one thing that can give life complete purpose. He is the hope that there is more than just working day in and day out, with that work ultimately resulting in nothing. If death is indeed the end and the natural world is all there is, what is the purpose of life?

Coke, Pepsi, or Homer?

Parisian bibliophiles now have another outlet to help satisfy their book cravings: vending machines. Each machine contains 25 titles to choose from, each of which costs a mere $2.45. The books range from long time classics like The Odyssey to more practical selections such as cookbooks and a French-English dictionary (one of the best sellers). With the installation of the machines, the French can now easily access their books 24 hours a day. What more could a person ask for?

Sky Watch

Laying on one's back at the top of the hill gazing up at the myriads of specks of light sprinkled all over the sky can be so peaceful, yet at the same time a little disconcerting. The sky is beautiful on a crisp, clear night. Stars, meteors, satellites, and even the blinking airplanes fill the vast space with interest. Each constellation tells story of its own that has been passed down from generation to generation since antiquity. There is such beauty and history etched all over the sky that it enchants the on-looker over and over again. Yet, it is an eye-opener in more ways than just that. Staring up into the atmosphere gives one a sense of just how small that person is. One begins to imagine being just a small member of a town, which is just a small part of a country, which in turn is just a small piece of the world, which is just one small planet among those orbiting a relatively small and insignificant star in a single galaxy in a neverending universe. When a person is put into a perspective like that, they can't help but be awed.

Tomorrow morning, Friday, August 12, there will be a great opportunity for doing a little sky watching as the heavens put on a show. The 2005 showing of the Perseid meteor shower will be visible around 2 o'clock tomorrow morning and run until just around sunrise. Unfortunately, we may be scheduled for a little rain shower so the view here may be obscured by clouds. For those who are able to see the show, it comes with the bonus feature of a preview of the upcoming Mars blockbuster, which should be at its height on October 30 when it comes close to Earth. Happy sky watching!

Fast Track to an English Degree

I just thought that I would share this awesome web site link with anyone who may be out there. Just in case you don't have the time to soak up a few classics in their entirety, Book-a-Minute Classics is the place for you. It isn't quite the same as reading the books themselves, but you do get the gist of them in much less time. Of course, if you have absorbed a few, the experience of re-reading them in their condenced ( and they are extremely so) version is quite entertaining. Well, just thought that I would share the joy.

Defining the Heavens

It seems that scientists may have now found a tenth planet to our solar system beyond Pluto. However, before the object, known affectionately as UB313, can be called a planet they have to figure out what exactly makes a celestial body worthy of that classification. Is it size? If so, then the object would definitely meet the criterion since it is in fact bigger in size than our little Pluto. There are some scientists, though, who say that this new discovery should confirm that Pluto should be stripped of its planetary status and be reduced to being merely another small numbered body among many others in the solar system. That would leave us with only the eight that we had back in the 1800's. Is a planet any object that orbits the sun? That would make all of the astroids planets, which is a rather ridiculous proposition considering how small and numerous they are. Is it based upon composition? Jupiter is a ball of gas while the earth is made up of firmer materials. Is it an object that is not on fire with it's light coming from the sun's reflection? Is it the ofject's shape? All of the planets that we have right now are, for the most part, round. Would this new discovery fit into that category? The article from National Geographic mentions that if UB313 is worthy of planetary distinction then there are several other objects out there that must be considered for the same honor. Should there be a limit as to how many planets we have in our solar system? I am glad that there are astromony experts out there to make those decisions for us.

However, as I see it, there is one other thing that the scientists should take into consideration as they make their decision. Can you imagine how just adding this one planet would upset teachers and students the world over as the study astronomy? Instead of the traditional mnemonic of "My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nine Pickles (or Pizzas)" for remembering the planets names, they would have to come up with something new. Imagine the chaos that would result!