kmoney

Doing okay, thanks. Life's been kinda crazy but isn't it for everyone in one way or another?

I hope you and yours are all well and healthy. :cheers:

kmo! Happy to see you too! How are you?

I haven't seen the Tolkien movie or read any of The New International Commentary on the New Testament I'm afraid. Though I know the author of the volume on Luke, Joel B. Green. He is a good scholar.

Just ordered a massive study Quran. Been wanting to do a bit of more thorough studying of Islamic theology to get a better understanding. Also ordered a sermon collection by George Macdonald. An important inspiration for Lewis and Tolkien and a famous apokatastasis believer. David Bentley Hart is coming with a new book on apokatastasis in september. Stumbled over this interesting article on the topic of classical universalism from Gregory of Nyssa recently: https://churchlifejournal.nd.edu/articles/the-severity-of-universal-salvation/?fbclid=IwAR1re2FNC0y_3WPoc2WuVhhX6xrs0Wj3mN7dlFZGP7tfwCu5AscHj6glePw

Wow, kmo. I just logged on because I had a few minutes before I had to get going with my day, and you'd literally just posted this in the same minute.

Stuff like that happens to me all the time... I was going to post a different coincidence on the music thread when I came on today. :chuckle:

It was a tough time, but I'm glad to be able to say my mom had the best of care from her kids to her very last moment.

As for Fox... it's another thing I'd left behind, I'd been a Fox viewer from the very beginning, back in the E.D. Hill days, do you remember her? And that too... going to mom's and having to sit through what's now nothing more than Trump propaganda, it was hard to do - very hard. :chuckle: I think there was a time when it was something closer to fair and balanced, but there's good reason to see why they dropped that logo.

I think Randy Rainbow's extremely talented and he really has a great voice - but the way he fits his lyrics to the song lyrics? Nothing short of brilliant. One of my all time faves is his Very Stable Genius... it never gets old. :chuckle:

RE: your gf... have to chuckle at the thought of her seeing real, tangible evidence just like, right there... :chuckle:

I can totally relate - my mom passed away last year, I've mentioned it here but I don't know if you happened across that post. But going over to her house and having to listen to Fox News - at high volume - was rather excruciating. Let's just say I did it for mom...

:chuckle: You'd be the only one...

But you know, I was reading an article about Randy Rainbow (do you know who that is?) and there were six adult siblings who were interviewed while waiting to see his show, and they said how much they loved him (I do too) but that their mom didn't share their progressive views and they didn't share Randy Rainbow with her. :chuckle: I only have one sibling who I think would appreciate Randy Rainbow and I definitely wouldn't have shown my mom and dad. :chuckle:

It's true. I have come a long way. I could write a book. :chuckle:

Good thing... :sibbie: :chuckle:

I mean that I've come so far away from the far right that it's only now I can look back and see just how radically right I was. I'd swallowed it all, because I thought "our side" could be trusted. I'm ashamed to say I was a birther at that time, and lord only knows what other conspiracies I might've gotten sucked into if I'd stayed in it. Now, on the rare time I go back to look (like literally only once a year or so) they all seem crazy. Bonkers.

Im only halfway into the second book so far, and Im enjoying it. He is a good efficient writer, but not as poetic and lush as Tolkien. But his characters are deep and well written, and the interesting part is that the story is completely told from the point of view of different characters, not an omnipresent storyteller.

I think he will finish them. Understandably it takes some time, the next volume "Winds of Winter" is approximated to be around 1500 pages :chuckle:

Aren't you forgetting someone? https://imgur.com/gallery/kDDvYF7 :chuckle:

I've been good. No major differences. No heresy tribunals yet :eek: Reading this and that myself, but don't have the time to read at the same capacity as before. Right now Im actually reading fiction, plowing through the A Song of Ice and Fire series.

:e4e:

Jack is growing like a weed. I'm taking him to Atlanta tomorrow to the aquarium. We'll catch a Braves game, eventually. Once he understands that winning isn't everything. lain:

Enjoy Fenway. :cheers: And the summer writ large.

I couldn't read with a TV on, but even without it I can tell my attention span is damaged. It makes sense to me that we're used to and expect instant gratification now. Heck, if I don't know a word I don't even have to pick up a dictionary, I just press the word and the definition pops right up on my screen - and yes, I've caught myself starting to reach to press a word in a book. Yep. I did that. lain: One of the biggest stories of our time is going to be how the internet changed our brains, and every aspect of our human life. Every single one of us.

I'm reading Octavia E. Butler right now, plus a neat book called Compassion's Way that I first saw on my doctor's bookshelf, believe it or not. :chuckle:

2/2

:shocked: If you have antics to tell about then, um, no. That's not going to happen... :chuckle:

Seriously though... I've lived another lifetime online. I joined my first online forum shortly after 9/11, a very right-wing site, was on there quite a long time before coming across TOL. In those years so much converged to change my perspective on so many things. It's quite clear what a huge role the internet played in all of it. Now when I go back to that old site, I'm appalled by it, appalled that I actually enjoyed swimming in that cesspool... I know now why I didn't know how bad the water was, it was because it was all I knew. It seemed... normal.

Hah! I'm also on Twitter, although in two years I've only tweeted a couple of times and even then only in the last month. It's my go-to place for news these days, useful as a news/commentary reader only, though, not as social media. So I'm reading more by using it to connect with some really great links for long reads.

1/2

:wave2: How are you? lain:

Revenge year. Our qb was hobbled against that remarkably good Clemson team and got embarrassed on the biggest stage. I'm looking forward to the response. How are you kmo? Having a great summer? :cheers:

It's comic alright...:chuckle:

Don't be overworked where your life goes by dude, not worth it. A mix of not being the job I signed up for and the company possibly going under before long...

:chuckle: You're so NOT lame. You also SO remind me of my son who has your same name. Maybe next time you'll get over there, it'll be worth it if you can add an extra day.

Well, I think it's somewhat true. I'll bet the 40-50-60 yr. olds way outnumber the 20-30 yr. olds. What do you think? I had to rip that bandaid too, and while it was likely more difficult for me, I was pleasantly surprised to find out how much more productive my days were. Also, and this is a big one for you as a reader as it is for me; did you find your attention span damaged, such that it was harder to concentrate on a book? I've heard that the linear process of reading a book is being damaged by our online time, since it's not at all linear, your eyes move all over the page because of how the pages are set up, and the information is in short blocks and it's changing the way our brains work when we read...

I missed the friendships too, very much.

Oh yes, it;s brilliant! I love that it's got a mobile phone in hand and in some ways it's hilarious but also very sad...

Tough, he's yours Yank. lain:

You've been missed but glad to hear things are alright and hope you're not being overworked? I'm working part time as a home carer although not sure how long that's gonna last.

Were you really! A bit north of me, but hey, you were still in the Great State of. So close to SF, too bad you didn't get a day to do some sightseeing.

I've only been here in the recent weeks myself after being gone for 9 months. Posted some, but really don't have much desire to say a whole lot, plus it seems to me that forums these days are where old people go to die.

I'm trying to just ignore it...

And no, not a chance, you can have him back ASAP!!!!

How are you doing Count?

:cheers: