Yesterday, I heard a challenging message on lessons from Martin Luther’s life by John Piper. Perhaps you’ll want to take some time for it this weekend.
Luther said, “Let the man who would hear God speak, read Holy Scripture.” Amen.
W.H. Auden on the Talentless Wanting to Write
“Among this host of would-be writers, the majority have no literary gift. This is not surprising in itself. A marked gift for anything is not very common. What is surprising is that such a high percentage of those without a marked talent for any particular profession should think of writing as the solution.” Read on. [by way of Books, Inq.]
Can I make this title shorter?
The amusing Dr. Luther at Luther at the Movies was playing with an aristocratic title generator yesterday. I went over and checked it out, and frankly it didn’t amuse me much. Too easy.
But at that site I noticed a link to this site, where you can purchase an official Scottish lairdship. Or so they claim.
Don’t say I never did anything to improve your quality of life.
How am I today? Much better, thanks. I went to bed about 9:00 last night, and slept till 6:00 a.m., and I woke up much improved.
My working hypothesis on what happened to me is that my body was overwhelmed by the unprecedented amount of sound sleep it’s been getting lately. It had to shut down for a while to recalibrate.
I was listening to talk radio today in the car, and when I got where I was going I turned it off. I noticed immediately how much more pleasant the silence was than the preceding discussion had been.
That put me in mind of a saying attributed to Calvin Coolidge (which means somebody else probably actually said it): “I try never to say anything that won’t improve on silence.”
Those words have been guiding lights to me all my life.
You might not realize it, knowing me only from these posts, but I’m known as a man of few words. Partly because I grew up in a situation where saying the wrong thing was physically dangerous, I learned to keep my own counsel and save my fire for the moment when I can drop one pithy, memorable, and possibly funny statement into the mix.
Because of this policy I have a reputation for being smarter than I am.
I’m perfectly OK with that, by the way.
But I think it might be a help to me in writing too. Less isn’t always more, in spite of the cliché, but in modern writing it definitely helps.
An example comes from one of my favorite books, Heimskringla, (or The Sagas of the Kings of Norway) by the Icelander Snorri Sturlusson—the most exciting and readable history book written in the Middle Ages.
There’s a scene in the saga of King Harald Hardrada (who deserves to be much better known than he is). Harald has come into open conflict with one of his jarls (earls), a man named Haakon. who spared an enemy of Harald’s against his orders. Harald goes out to attack Haakon with an army. He defeats him, but it’s uncertain whether the jarl survived or not. As the king’s army is going home, a man suddenly leaps from the forest into the path, grabs the jarl’s captured standard, kills the man carrying it, and disappears into the trees again.
In the earlier versions of the saga that Snorri used for sources, Harald replies with a fairly long speech about how dangerous an enemy Haakon is, and how everyone should be on guard.
In Snorri’s version, Harald just says, “The jarl is alive. Bring me my armor.”
Think of the impression Clint Eastwood made by doing the Man With No Name westerns almost entirely without lines.
Writers do well to remember how powerful a few, well-chosen words can be.
Wow! It’s snowing hard out there.
Winter is alive. Bring me my sweater.
To Everything, Spin, Spin, Spin
Off the cuff, I can’t whole-heartedly recommend a new encyclopedia from an American conservative viewpoint even though they may be onto something. This is their aim:
Conservapedia is an online resource and meeting place where we give full credit to Christianity and America. Conservapedia is student-friendly. You will much prefer using Conservapedia compared to Wikipedia if you want concise, clean answers free of “political correctness”.
I guess the proof will be in the pudding no matter what the authors’ intent, but being styled a conservative encyclopedia gives the immediate impression of political slant, don’t you think?
Come by to be cheered up? Too bad.
I’m beat. I’m washed out. Judging by the energy I’ve lost, I have to assume somebody implemented the Kyoto Accords on my behalf.
Up to now, it’s been a good week. The CPAP machine seems to be doing its job. I’ve been waking up refreshed, sharper of mind and with a better attitude. The effect generally faded in the afternoons, but the time I hit the wall seemed to be later each day.
Yesterday I felt like I didn’t hit the wall at all.
Alas, the wall was just changing tactics. I woke up early this morning, and was unable to get back to sleep, for the first time since I started using the breathing prosthetic.
And all day I’ve been Grandpa Sloth, the sloth all the other sloths have to wait for. I’m weak. I’m tired. I’d close my mouth when I chew, but that takes so much effort.
And the Black Dog of Depression has his big Labrador paws on my shoulders and is drooling down my neck.
It wasn’t even a bad day. I got started on a project I’ve been dreading and putting off, so my guilt should be lower. My new library assistant seems to be catching on to the basics of the cataloging system. And I got a line on a new agent, thanks to the good offices of Ed Veith (I’ll let you know if any contracts get signed).
Fortunately the day will end, and tomorrow will likely be better. I’ll be sorry I even wrote this post.
So forget all about it, please.
Taking on Moby Dick
I can sympathize with these men. If I knew a whale was stranded in the harbor nearby, I would want to urge him out to the ocean too. But this is a sperm whale, and I’ve read Moby Dick. In this case, I’m not sure I would actually try to do anything at all, at least not anything in a boat.
Soon I’ll be in my 60s too
Today the temperature topped 60. We’re not fooled, mind you. We’re Minnesotans. We’ve been deceived too many times by Madame March to put any trust in her fickle promises. Tomorrow will be cooler (though not bad) and there’s a chance of some snow over the next few days.
But today it was possible to pretend the whole thing was over.
As I took my constitutional, I saw two people I also saw last night. Last night I took them for a mother and her little boy.
Today I got closer and realized the mother was a young guy. And the little boy was his girlfriend.
That’s pretty much all the proof I need, isn’t it? I’m officially a codger.
Movie advice (from a guy who almost never goes to them anymore): If you enjoyed 300 and want to find more of the same, and if you check out movies starring Gerard Butler on Netflix, and you see that he did one called Beowulf, and you think, “Hey, another great action movie with swords, starring the same guy!”—take it from me. Don’t waste your money.
My review of Beowulf is here.
I’m considering devoting the rest of my life to destroying the market for that particular irritating piece of political correctness.
Being a codger now, I have to take my pleasures where I can.
Soon I'll be in my 60s too
Today the temperature topped 60. We’re not fooled, mind you. We’re Minnesotans. We’ve been deceived too many times by Madame March to put any trust in her fickle promises. Tomorrow will be cooler (though not bad) and there’s a chance of some snow over the next few days.
But today it was possible to pretend the whole thing was over.
As I took my constitutional, I saw two people I also saw last night. Last night I took them for a mother and her little boy.
Today I got closer and realized the mother was a young guy. And the little boy was his girlfriend.
That’s pretty much all the proof I need, isn’t it? I’m officially a codger.
Movie advice (from a guy who almost never goes to them anymore): If you enjoyed 300 and want to find more of the same, and if you check out movies starring Gerard Butler on Netflix, and you see that he did one called Beowulf, and you think, “Hey, another great action movie with swords, starring the same guy!”—take it from me. Don’t waste your money.
My review of Beowulf is here.
I’m considering devoting the rest of my life to destroying the market for that particular irritating piece of political correctness.
Being a codger now, I have to take my pleasures where I can.
There May Be a Lutheran Near You
I see that Lars has noticed this discussion, but I’ll spare him from linking to it. Luther at the Movies notes, “There are as many Lutherans in the United States today as there are Swedes in Sweden—9,000,000;” so why aren’t they more visible in the public square? Rev. McCain of Cyberbrethren says:
The very things that Lutheranism have that make it stand out in the crowded “marketplace” of American denominationalism are the very things that so many non-Lutherans find attractive, while cradle Lutherans sometimes seem determined to minimize or ignore them! What are we so embarassed about? The incessant self-loathing and self-depricating attitudes we display toward the treasure of doctrine and practice that is historic, Biblical and faithful Lutheranism is truly distressing to observe.
Dr. Veith explains that Lutherans still have an immigrant mindset, “grateful for this country, but they really didn’t think of it as ‘theirs’ in the same sense that those who were here before them could.”
Honestly, this discussion makes me curious about Lutheran distinctives. I need to look them up. Should I go somewhere other than the Book of Concord?
Spiritually Sufficient Enough to Coast
Andree Seu has a beautiful essay on her desire to be a little independent of the Lord who sustains her.