Exciting Job Opportunities

Today, a friend of mine is upgrading the sound system at our church. That's good news, but here's something even more remarkable: his employer is paying him to do it! Turns out his employer supports volunteering ... and they put their money where their mouth is. All employees are paid one full day's salary to volunteer in the community. It's a great idea, and not because our church got free labour.

When I walked into the church today, I noticed a poster on our bulletin board: "Exciting Job Opportunities". The poster is advertising exactly what people want: opportunity. They want more than a salary and benefit package. They want a chance to make a difference ... or maybe even make a different world. (BTW, the poster isn't false advertising: the organization that distributed the poster really does give people an incredible opportunity to make the world a better place.)

But it was the poster's unintended double entendre that really caught my eye. What if we put a long "o" on the word "job"? Then, "job" as in work becomes "Job" as in Bible character. This year, my life has been more like exciting Job opportunities than exciting job opportunities. Job had everything. Then he lost it all. For me, it's been bad ministry plans ($5000 loss), bad stock trades ($8000 loss), and -- just today -- my wife lost her $21.00/hr job as a chaplain (too scary to put a price on that one). Exciting Job opportunities indeed.

I won't philosophize on the blessings of suffering. We live in a broken world. Things go wrong. People suffer. I've been lucky compared to most. I will say this: change is tumultuous. When our world destabilizes, we lose our bearings. Confusion, disorientation, and panic set in. Then something strange occurs. The process reverses. At some point we discover the loss of many/all things has focused our field of vision and we see Jesus more clearly. A new sense of direction emerges. Hope returns. Confidence builds.

Suffering feels like God is punishing us. That notion is off by two letters. Drop the "ni". Suffering is God's way of pushing us forward ... into new and better things. Most of us resist change. Exciting Job opportunities set us free to find our future.

A really big favour?

This week, Dave Balzer (my radio show co-host) introduced me to Mr. Deity, one of the funniest and smartest series I've seen in a long time. The cast of characters on this YouTube sitcom is The Holy Trinity and Satan. Think Friends ... on a cosmological scale!

Brian Dalton is the series' creator. Dalton, who is an actor, filmmaker, musician, writer, and graphic artist, also plays the title role (with a Woody Allen kind of vibe) and writes the scripts. Some have branded Mr. Deity as religious parody, but Dalton's stories really come across as humorous backgrounders on theological paradoxes. No harm, no foul. Maybe that's why my defenses stayed down. Dalton gives me permission to put the conundrums of faith on the table ... and laugh.

Dalton calls himself a "forman", or former Mormon. "I was very religious for about 10 years, and also at the time really studied Christianity pretty hard-core," he says. "So much of this is based on what I've been debating in my head for 20 years. I still love religion. I love the fact that people are concerned about these bigger issues."

For Holy Week, I really enjoyed the second episode from Season 1, called "Mr. Deity and the Really Big Favor". Check it out on YouTube. You can also subscribe in iTunes. Enjoy!

Happy Easter!

Bigger is better!

Size matters when it comes to technology ... and I've got the evidence to prove it. 

This week, the Wall Street Journal reported on a study funded by NEC (which happens to manufacture computer monitors) and conducted by the University of Utah. The findings? People using 24-inch monitors completed tasks 52% faster than people who used 18-inch monitors; and people who used two 20-inch monitors were 44% faster than those with 18-inch monitors. (There is an upper limit: productivity dropped off when people used a 26-inch screen.

The study concluded that someone using a larger monitor could save 2.5 hours a day!

Recently, I brought home a beautiful 24-inch Hewlett Packard monitor from FutureShop. I've had it out on long-term loan. I was thinking I should take it back. But now, with this research in hand, how can I?  Countless hours of productivity are at stake! 

Fastest ever!

Yesterday, I ordered a 4GB RAM kit for my MacBook Pro. I placed the order with NCIX.com (I'm a first-time customer). My order went through about 4:30 in the afternoon. NCIX said it would take 1-2 days for processing and 1-4 days for delivery. Standard fare for Canada.

So ... I was totally shocked when my RAM arrived today at 1:00 p.m. Amazing. Even more amazing: as I was driving away from the house, the Purolator driver recognized me, waved me down, and delivered the package to my car. Wow.

Tonight, I'm playing with the Royal Unruh Band at the Caboto Centre on Wilkes Ave. My friend, Tim Thiessen, is turning 50 today. He doesn't look a day over 69.

After the gig, I'm doing a RAM swap. A new 4GB setup for the MacBook Pro. The old 2GB setup (2 x 1GB) moves over to the iMac.

More speed is what I need.

Or ... maybe not.

Stay tuned for a post on David Allen's Getting Things Done. I've been a Stephen Covey disciple for years. Allen's "getting things done" (GTD) brings some missing ingredients to the mix. Maybe GTD can help my OCD!

Recycling. Going too far?

Recycling is a great idea (along with reduce and reuse). But can recycling go too far? It can when your wife puts your MacBook Air in the recycling bin with the week's old newspapers. Yep, it happened ... to one of my favorite writers.

Gone, Without a Trace

Oh my!