Friday, March 23, 2007

The "Catch Me If You Can" pen

The local Staples store had these nice-looking pens on clearance this week. (...they gleam so ... but I don't really need another pen -- oh look, only 50 cents for a 3-pack...) Just as I was about to be reasonable and walk away, I saw that they were billed as somehow resistant to check fraud. And I spotted an ornate seal of approval on the back of the package: ... Abagnale .. A mouthful of a name ... Frank W. Abagnale ... Waitaminute ... That rings a bell ... Yes! This is the guy from "Catch Me If You Can," who singlehandedly invented dozens of tricks to forge documents, con people, and steal a few million dollars. At first I didn't get it: would we want Ronald McDonald certifying our filets mignons? But further study showed that Abagnale & Associates are a bona fide business -- lucrative enough, in fact, to pay back all the money he swindled. (Good thing he didn't pay them back four times over -- preachers everywhere would've made him a sermon illustration.) Among many other things, A&A helped formulate the Uni-Ball 207's special ink that sinks deeply into paper fibers and can't be washed out.

On the company Website, Abagnale comments on the book and movie and how he's changed since then. And Wikiquote has some juicy quips:

  • "If my forgeries looked as bad as the CBS documents, it would have been 'Catch Me In Two Days'."
  • "Remember what being an adult is: It has nothing to do with money or awards."
    • Frank Abagnale, speaking to high-school students in Highland Park, Texas [4]
  • I had no fear -- like a kid driving down the freeway at 100 miles an hour.
    • Frank Abagnale [6]

  • I did not make this film about Frank Abagnale because of what he did . . but because of what he has done with his life the past 30 years.
    • Steven Spielberg. [9]
I bought nine pens. I think I've already lost two.

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

Jonny Baker in Lancaster, PA

Jonny Baker (a creative force in UK "Alternative Worship" and co-author of the rather unique book by that name) is giving a workshop series this week, entitled "Faithful Improvisation: Worship and Mission in Post-modern Times" in Lancaster, PA. Lancaster's closer than London; but still two hours away; so I can't be there myself, but hopefully I'm only a couple degrees of separation from someone who can. (It's all free and open to the public.)

I've never met Mr. Baker, but his blog and other writings (including his "worship tricks" series and Flickr photo collection) have been an inspiration to many, and a source of highly creative thinking about Christian worship, theology, and culture. And for me and presumably others, he was the first link to the outstanding work of Andrew Jones, Pete Rollins, Kester Brewin, Roger von Oech, et al. Here he is (above right) mowing a prayer labyrinth -- one of many concepts he's catalyzed in the UK emerging church scene.

Monday, March 12, 2007

The Man Lift

I often wonder whether I've run out of things to blog about -- but something noteworthy usually comes up amidst the impenetrable blandness [blindness?] of my days. Last Saturday I joined my church's Men's Ministry work crew. At left is the late-afternoon money shot -- too bad all that gossamer structure will have to disappear under walls and roof. Reminds me of the balsa gliders of my youth.

My highlight was operating the manlift pictured here for most of the morning. Gotta love the name; though there's nothing "manly" about operating it -- a joystick rotates the boom horizontally and vertically, and a toggle switch telescopes you in & out. So it's like a 3D video game (at a snail's pace). In my groggy Saturday-morning state of mind I found myself wondering what combinations of longitude, latitude, and radius adjustments would let me move parallel to the x, y, and z axes relative to the ground. Fortunately I kept this powerful conversation killer to myself. Just call me Mr. Cross-Cultural.

Saturday, March 03, 2007

Curse your blessings

Nearly all the things I complain about -- lousy job, cranky kids, ragged yard, squeaky bicycle, etc. -- are closely tied to rich blessings: gainful employment, a loving family, a nice home on a lovely cycling road, etc. Some years ago I coined a snide little hymn: "Count your blessings, Curse them one by one / And it will surprise you what the Lord has done..."

So, amidst the tempest 'n' tumult described earlier, it's been interesting to review the good things that were happening. Here's a list (call it "Ebenezer" if you will):

  • Little T.Mo (8 months old yesterday) is learning to (a) sit up and (b) hold his own bottle. This is not just cute: it frees up Mom & Dad to do other things, like sweep or eat or sometimes even think.
  • I finally dejunked the garage -- so thoroughly that it's sheltering not one but both cars (they'd been out in the rain / sun / hail / snow for months, maybe years). Our second car (... motor vehicle ... ok, minivan) has about 3" clearance front and back, and 1/64" (really!) under the tandem bicycle. It's a beautiful sight.
  • My lovely Quicken Queen (and brand-new blogger) wrestled our taxes into submission: we're expecting a refund worth about a month's wages. (Note to self: revisit withholding.)
  • Several geeky-glee moments: I finally downloaded the latest Fedora Core (6) Linux and installed it on our Frankensteinian kitchen computer. (*) I also snagged a Handera 330 (the nec plus ultra of handhelds) on eBay. And, thanks to a work-related visit to George Mason University, I got to shop at Micro Center (supermarket for geeks) in far-off Fairfax, VA.
... I'm sure several more items will occur to me as soon as I click "Publish." So ... to be continued, probably.

(*) This computer deserves its own blog. Starting with a motherboard and CPU from an office trash-heap, and a wood gift box at home; inspired by the world-famous Humidor PC; I got to tinkering. I'll post pictures when it's finished (... in 2010).