I’ll start by saying, I watched the Vikings game last night and I was into it. I’ve watched a few games this season, urged on by the throngs of die-hard vikings fans around me, and some old nostalgia toward Favre.  That being said, I haven’t been able to watch a sports event recently without this line from Noam Chomsky coming to mind regarding professional sports:
“It offers people something to pay attention to, that’s of no importance. That keeps them from worrying about things that matter to their lives that they …

Last spring, the church we go to was been doing a series on finances (Full disclosure: I’ve only heard two of the sermons in the series).
In all my time of attending church and listening to sermons (about 1997 till today), I’ve rarely heard a sermon that really lays out practical thoughts or ideas about money. It always boils down to being a “heart issue”, that is, it’s basically between you and God and that your heart is in the right place. Even if there is mention of the “tithe 10%” …

Once a week I’d like to post an image or infographic, without much commentary from myself, in hopes of evoking some discussion. I post lots of the random images and graphics and things I come across on my tumblr, but that’s not as conducive to discussion. I’ve seen this thing called “Wordless Wednesday” around the blogosphere, but I’ll probably be posting things with words usually. So, without further ado, here’s the first open discussion…
(From National Geographic, click to enlarge)

Kicking off 2010 right with the return of YouTubesday. No promises it’ll be weekly, but I couldn’t help posting this sweet video of Jyoti Raju.
“A man who taught himself rock climbing and acrobatics to escape poverty in India as become so accomplished he’s been given the title “The Monkey King.” -Reuters

See Reuters video (couldn’t embed) for more details on the story

No good blog would be complete without a year end review (or year beginning, I guess). Probably the best way to jump back on the blogging bandwagon is to reflect on where I’ve been the past year. Mid-2009 saw my blogging taper off quite a bit, but not before we had a few great discussions. Here’s a quick list of the Most Commented Posts (written in 2009, starting with most commented):

Open Thread: Why Is This Image So Popular? (Note to self: apparently open threads and Titles that are questions are …

I never intended to completely stop blogging, though the sporadic posting and long absences the last few months might indicate such. I just planned on slowing down, and I have, but somewhere along the way I’ve lost my rhythm too. I used to, and I intend to continue, journal my thoughts on any subject that would pass through my mind. As blogging gained momentum, it became the primary avenue for that flow of thought, and when I cut back a little, I found my consistency in writing disappeared. I don’t …

A couple months ago I shared this small vision of making sure every kid in my neighborhood that wanted a bike and a lock could have one. I really appreciated the overwhelming support and realized I hadn’t updated everyone on the progress. It’s been a fun ride.
September
At the beginning of September, Eli (my bike partner-in-crime) and I went to a small grassroots conference called BikeBike. It’s a very cool eclectic bunch of folks from all over the country who come together to talk about running community bike shops. We had …