The Eyes of the Enemy

The disgustingly holy light had finally faded.  Unblessed darkness returned and shadows fell across the field.  The pitiful ones to whom the message had been given had all gone.  Only I had remained.  I had stayed in the corner of the field, hidden in those shadows.  I had to think this out.

I thought I knew how my Enemy worked.  This war had gone on long enough and the plans were always the same.  But this message was something different.  Uncertain, I began to walk toward the place, the little town referred to in the message.  It wasn't far.

How was this time going to be different?  What was His plan this time?

Up ahead, I saw the place.  It was just a cave, used to keep the animals out of the weather.  A dirty, wet cave.  Could I have heard the message wrong?  No, I could see the guard standing next to the cave's mouth.  This was definitely the place.  Inside that cave was the One the Enemy had promised so long ago that He would send.  At least, that's what the message had stated.  I left the shadows and walked toward the cave.  Immediately, the guard saw me.  He chuckled as he said, "I was wondering if you would show up.  Go on in."

This had to be a joke.  The One that I had been warned about for millennia was in this cave and now I was being invited in to see him, as if I was there to enjoy a cup of coffee with my neighbor.  I must have had an incredulous look on my face, because the guard laughed.

"We have no worries about you any more.  You have no power here.  There's nothing you can do."

We'll see about that.  I knew I still had my power.  I've had it since the beginning of time.  I will always have it.

I walked into the cave and the stench of animal dung hit me in the face like a brick wall.  Again, I thought this had to be a joke.  Why would the Enemy send His warrior here?  A smelly, dirty animal pen.  And send him as a human baby?  Ridiculous!  I'd kill him before he could take his first step.  I'd kill him tonight.  They never should have allowed me to find out where he was.  Making that announcement in public was a big mistake.

My eyes adjusted to the dark and I looked around.  I saw them at the back of the cave.  There were two more guards, unseen by the others, standing next to the trough where the animals would feed.  In front of them knelt a number of people, the shepherds that had been in the field I had just left.  Also, there was a man and a woman, obviously the brat's parents.

I entered, unseen by the humans, but noticed by the guards.  They looked at each other, grinned as if enjoying a joke, and looked back to me.  One nodded, acknowledging my presence, and invited me closer.

I approached and saw the baby.  He was asleep.  He looked just like any other child of a human.  Nothing spectacular.  Extremely fragile.  This was going to be easy.  None of the guards had any weapons that could harm me.  I knew this as fact.  I was once one of them, the greatest of their number.  Only the Enemy alone could defeat me.  He couldn't stand the fact that I wanted and deserved to have a share of the glory and power.  So I was banished, myself and my followers, a third of His army.

"We were told you might show up.", said one of the guards.  "Come and see.  You'll be surprised."

"I am surprised.", I said.  "I'm surprised that He's done this.  I thought He didn't make mistakes.  No human can beat me.  Not even Michael, the greatest of your warriors could.  If I wanted to destroy that baby, there's nothing either of you could do to stop me.  That's why I'm here.  Stand back."

I reached down into the feeding trough to grab the child when he awoke.  Good.  I wanted to hear his cries when I allowed him to see me.  But he didn't cry.  The child actually laughed when he saw me.  It was then that I looked into his eyes and saw my doom.  I looked and saw the eyes of the One who had banished me, the eyes of the only One who could defeat me.  I knew then what my Enemy's plan was.  I had no way of stopping Him.

My scream could be heard from my realm all the way to the Enemy's throne.

*****

Merry Christmas

1984

Recently, I was rereading George Orwell's classic 1984. I say rereading because it's not the first time I've read it. I don't remember how many times I've read it, but I do remember not reading it in school, when I was supposed to read it. Yep. I'm a scholar and a rebel.

Even if you've never read 1984, I'm sure you have heard something about it. Even if you only have heard the phrase "Big Brother is watching you". Basically, it's the story of one Winston Smith, a member of the Party living in London, Oceania. (Oceania consists of North and South America, England, Australia and part of Africa.). The Party (the government or Big Brother) controls every aspect of life. Citizens are continually watched. Even their very thoughts are monitored. Winston meets up with Julia, a girl in the Anti-Sex League and they both decide to join a movement against Big Brother. Antics ensue (and not funny antics).

This time while reading, I paid more attention to the technology behind the world Winston inhabits. I wondered how easy it would be (now 30 years after the books setting and 66 years after it was written) for the government to do the things mentioned in the book. 

Now, before I go on, I want it made known that I don't believe in conspiracy theories that the government is doing all these things. Anyway, this article isn't about whether or not it's truly doing these things, only if these things are possible. No conspiracies, only possibilities. 

Winston works in the Ministry of Truth, which is what could be called the media of Oceania. His job is to rewrite news articles which are found to be in error by the government. For example, at the beginning of the book, Oceania is at war with Eurasia and allied with Eastasia. During the story, the alliances change and Oceania is at war with Eastasia and allied with Eurasia. Winston's job is to rewrite every article and book written since the war began, changing "Eurasia" to "Eastasia" and vice versa. Then all "incorrect" copies of the books and newspapers are destroyed and reprinted with the "corrected" information. 

Would this be possible today?  The answer is turning more and more closer to yes every day. 

At one time, even during the writing of 1984, this would have been near impossible. It would have meant collecting and destroying every copy of every book ever printed, millions of books per year. However, with the invention of the e-book, it becomes much easier. Your average person does not have a physical copy of the book, just downloads the information, which is stored in a single computer server. That info can be easily edited, so that those who read it will download the updated, "correct" version. 

Another item I noticed was that citizens in Winston's world were under constant surveillance. There are cameras everywhere in his world. How about ours?  

It depends on where exactly you live.  In larger cities you're on camera quite often  I've recently read an article that states we are seen on camera more than 75 times per day.  And that was written 7 years ago.  I'm sure the number has risen since then.  There are cameras at street lights, on buildings, at ATM's, on buses, in taxis. Everywhere.

And those of us who live in smaller towns aren't safe from scrutiny either. The next time you're at the grocery store, look around at how many security cameras are attached to the ceiling. You may be surprised. 

Continuing with that idea, in Winston's apartment, he has what's called a telescreen. It's like a television, except it broadcasts, as well as receives signals. During morning exercises, Winston is yelled at by the instructor on screen because he isn't touching his toes. She sees him as well as he sees her. Do we have this?

Yes. We do. 

Sitting on top of my computer monitor, there is a camera, no larger than a postage stamp. While I have control of when that camera turns on, all one would have to do to control it would be to bypass my system firewall (which really isn't a difficult task).  Even my phone has a camera.  Two cameras, if you want to be specific: one in front and one in back.  If a government were to mandate that I give it control of my computer or my phone, they could very easily turn my webcam on and find out what I'm doing. (No one really wants to know that.)

I mean it.  You really don't.

I have one more item to mention.  However, it's not mentioned in the book, but I thought about this and I think it's worth mentioning here.  In the book, Winston and Julia leave the city and go out into the country in order to be able to get away from the all-seeing cameras and from having their every movement scrutinized.  Today, it's getting harder and harder to do that.

On my phone, I have an app I use when I run.  It tracks my movements and tells me, down to the closest meter (or yard for you American readers), where exactly on the planet I am.  If I can use this to find out where I am, I'm sure Winston's Big Brother would use this technology to track its Party members movements.

My latest run.

Again, I'm not writing all this in order to say "The Government's watching us!  We're living in the world of 1984!"  I'm just writing this as a thought exercise.  Could the world of 1984 be possible?  I think that's a strong YES.  We need not be worried about it, though.  Alert, but not worried.

Just Keep Moving

This past weekend, I ran in the Grand Rapids Foster Swift Half Marathon.  For those of you who may not know, a half marathon is 13.1 miles or 21.1 kilometers.

The reason I was running was that I needed confidence about my speed.  In January, I'll be running in a half marathon in Disney World.  For that race, I have to stay at a speed of 16 minutes per mile.  If I can't keep that speed, I'll be pulled off the course and driven to the finish line (and I won't get my medal).  So, by running in Grand Rapids, which has no time limit, I'm able to get a good view of my speed.  As long as I can run it in under 3 1/2 hours, I'm good.

A Little History

It was a cool October Saturday morning in 2013.  I was awake and sitting in front of my computer, probably on Reddit or playing a game.  My wife came into the room and asked a question.  "How long is a half marathon?"

My brain works like this: question in, answer out.  No thought behind it.  So I say, "13.1 miles."

"Thanks" and she goes back into the living room.  It was a couple of minutes before the meaning of that exchange clicked.  I ran into the other room.

"What are you doing?"  I know my wife much too well.

"There's a half marathon tomorrow and I'm thinking of running it.  My friends think I'm crazy because they've been training for 6 months for it and I'm just now thinking of doing it."

Her friends are right.  But when she gets it in her mind to do something, it's near impossible to talk her out of it.  So the next morning, I found myself in a crowd of people, waiting for my wife to finish running.  Her goal was to finish in under 3 hours.  She did it in 2 hours 53 minutes.

Back To The Present

So this year, It's me who is running and she's on the sidelines, cheering me on.

The sun hasn't risen when we get to the YMCA, where the race begins (and will end).  I haven't been feeling good for the past week.  I'm coming down with the flu.  Great.  The most difficult race in my life and I'm sick.  If I was well, I'd really push myself and try to beat my wife's time.  But since I'm not, I'm just going to try to beat the 16 minute per mile mark.  I hope.

Yes, I was thinking "What am I doing here?"

The race began and over 4000 of us idiots are running.  It's chilly, so I have on a long sleeve shirt, a jacket and gloves.  I'll be glad for those gloves later.

 I had set up my phone to play music while I was running, along with my voice every couple of minutes, telling me to run or walk.  Pacing myself.  That went out the window.  I tried running when it said to run, but I skipped quite a bit and extended my walks quite a bit.  Eventually, I just ended up ignoring it completely and ran when I felt like it.

About 4 miles in, I started getting warm.  The sun was now up and it was going to be a bright, shiny day.  I pulled off my jacket and tied it around my waist.  I took off my gloves, so I could repin my number onto my shirt, since it was first on my jacket.  I stuck the gloves in my pocket.  I guess one fell out, because about a mile later, a guy came up to me and said I'd dropped it.  I wasn't about to go back to get it now.  Just keep one glove and keep moving.

That became my mantra throughout the race:  Just Keep Moving.  When I crossed the 7 mile check point, I was at 1 hour 40 minutes.  At that pace, I'd finish in 3 hour 10 minutes.  Mentally, I wanted to push and go faster, but physically?  Nope.

The first 7 miles are in town.  From mile 7 to about 11, it's out in the middle of nowhere.  Nothing to see, except corn fields, and trees.  Oh, there's the water treatment plant.  Don't step on that dead skunk.  Grab a water and Gatorade at each aid station.  Ooh, this aid station also has gummy bears!  Get some of those, too.

At about mile 9, my body decided it was done.  I went to begin running, and almost ended up on the ground.  So I kept walking.  While I was tripping, I'd hurt my leg.  I had pain in my left leg from my hip to my ankle.  It was only through strength of mind that I stayed up.  (Strength of mind?  I have a mind?)  Just Keep Moving.  Just Keep Moving.

I don't remember passing the signs for miles 10 and 11.  I kept my eyes on the ground ahead of me and kept moving.  As I went, there were more and more people on the side of the road, cheering us runners on.

Finally, I turned a corner and there it was in the distance: the finish line.  I had to cross that line, no matter what.  After I crossed, I could collapse and it would all be over, but first I had to cross that line.  Just Keep Moving.

My mind was so focused on the finish line, that I went into tunnel vision.  I really couldn't see anyone on the side of the road, even my mother or my wife.  (That's fine:  my mother didn't see me run by either.  Don't worry about it, mom.)  I found the strength to run those few hundred feet or so.

After I crossed the line, I got my medal, got a foil blanket to get warm and went through the line to pick up some after race snacks: banana, orange, yogurt.  I didn't realize just how cold I'd gotten during the race, until I noticed I was shaking.  Not just shivering, but a full out shake.  And I still had to find my family and get back to the car.

I pulled out my phone and texted my wife, telling her where I was.  (Not an easy feat, considering how much food I was holding.)  She came and got me and we walked (very slowly) back to the car.

In the end, my official time was 3 hours, 13 minutes, 22 seconds.  Slower than I'd wanted, but faster than my goal for Disney.  And any way you slice it, I'd finished.

Disney World, here I come.

Machete Order

SPOILER ALERT:  This is where I'd normally say there are spoilers of a movie or TV show, but the newest of these films I'll be discussing is almost a decade old and the oldest is almost as old as I am.  I'm saying this stuff anyway.  You got a problem with that?  Tough!

------------

I'm watching the Star Wars movies (again) and have come to a problem: what order to watch them. Should I watch them in episode order or chronological order?

Episode order is starting with Episode 1 and following with 2, 3, 4, 5, and (wait for it) 6. The problem with this order is that it removes the suspense of the biggest cliffhanger (and also the most misquoted line) in movie history: "No, I am your father."

Chronological order is the order in which they were released: 4, 5, 6, then 1, 2, and 3.  The issue with this order is there is no tension in the newer trilogy.  We already know how the story ends.

Now, before I go further, it should be noted that I am a fan of the original trilogy, but not so much of the newer.  Too much CGI, too much love story, too much Hayden Christensen.  Yet, the new trilogy is a part of George Lucas' vision for the story, so as a true Star Wars fan, I put up with it.  But back to my original question:  viewing order.

I've recently found online an order which disposes with the problems stated above, and highlights a few items that are not apparent with the other viewing orders.  It's called "Machete Order".  The reason for the name will become apparent in a moment.

Machete Order is this: Episode 4, 5, 2, 3, and 6.  No, I haven't missed anything.  Read that order again.  I repeat, I haven't missed anything.  Episode 1 is not there.  It's been cut out (like with a machete... get it?)  Why?

Episode I: The Phantom Menace tells of Jedi knight Qui-Gon Jinn and his padawan Obi-Wan Kinobi discovering a young Anakin Skywalker.  They also meet up with Padme Amidala, queen of Naboo.  They also find out along the way that the Sith (the ancient bad guys who practice the dark side of the Force) have returned.  So how can I just get rid of this film?

None of the plot points in Phantom Menace are necessary to the overall plot of the series.  Anything that is important is introduced again (sometimes even better) in the other films.  We don't need to know that Qui-Gon Jinn was Obi-Wan's master.  We don't need a love story between a 14 year old and a 9 year old.  We don't need to have a half hour of pod racing.  We don't need Jake Lloyd.  (Don't know who that is?  Google is your friend.)  We don't need Jar Jar Binks.

George's biggest mistake.

Now, you can watch Phantom Menace after you've watched the others.  See it as bonus material: cool, but not necessary to the story.

So, now that we've cut out over 2 hours of movie to watch, that leaves us with the order of the others.  George had it right when he filmed Episode 4: A New Hope first.  It's has the strongest story that is able to introduce the characters.  In my opinion, Episode 5: Empire Strikes Back is stronger, but would be a difficult place to start.  So, you watch them back-to-back, which then ends with the infamous cliffhanger.  Where to go from here?

To a flashback, of course.  To Episode 2: Attack of the Clones.  It introduces us to Anakin as a cocky, whiny teenager (much like Luke in Episode 4).  Also, we see Padme as an old friend of Anakin's.  Their age difference isn't as shocking here as it was in Episode 1, so the thought of them being an item isn't creepy.

This leads directly to Episode 3: Revenge of the Sith.  We see Anakin fall to the dark side.  Luke and Leia are born, which is a big reveal in itself.  Padme dies.  Yoda fails to defeat Emperor Palpatine.  Obi-Wan goes into exile in order to protect the children of Anakin.

So, now we finish to story with the film that ties everything together: Episode 6: The Return of the Jedi.  We see Luke as a fully-trained Jedi, dressed in black, just as his father had.  In his dealings with Jabba the Hutt, Luke seems a bit ruthless, as if he is using the dark side of the Force.  In fact, that possibility is made stronger now when the Emperor urges Luke to use his anger to kill.  Yoda also tells Luke "do not underestimate the Emperor."  Now that we've seen Yoda fail in his fight with Palpatine, this statement has more meaning.

I could get deeper into this topic and go longer (a lot longer), but I'll just stop here.  Are there problems with this order?  Sure.  But there are more positives here than negatives, which can be passed by with little effect on the story.  Let's just say that this seems like a much better order for the story than either chronological or episodal.

Now, where do I fit my copy of the Holiday Special?

The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year

It's that time of year again. No, not Christmas. Time to buy cereal. A certain special cereal.

Yeah, Count Chocula's open.  I couldn't help myself.

It's become a tradition around my home to buy a box of each of the Monster cereals each year.  When my daughter went off to college, we bought her a box of each and shipped them off to her dorm.  She later told me she used a measuring cup to ration out servings to each of her friends.

That was also the year the decided to rerelease two other Monster cereals: Yummy Mummy and Frute Brute.

I hadn't heard of them before, either.

Halloween is my favorite holiday.  You get to dress up as something completely different, eat candy until you barf and then, for food that's good for you (relatively), you have the Monster cereals.

I've already sent three boxes to my son, who is now in college himself.

Now, my daughter tells me she mixes all three flavors together and eats them all at once.  I think I hear my cereal bowl calling me...

Differing views

The Bible tells us that Jesus had 12 disciples. If you know the stories, I'm sure you've heard about Peter, James and John. You've probably heard of Judas Iscariot. You may have heard of Andrew or "doubting" Thomas. But the other half, most people don't know much about. I'd like to talk about two of those: Simon and Matthew.

Photo in public domain

Simon was a Zealot. The Zealots were a group of Jews that wanted freedom from the Roman government. They were known to be among those starting revolts and today would be considered terrorists. One faction of the group, the Sicarii, even went as far as to murder fellow Jews who collaborated with the Roman authorities.

Matthew was a tax collector. He worked for the Roman government, collecting money from the Jews to pay the soldiers who were occupying their land. It is very possible that Matthew became very rich, taking extra tax money from his fellow Jews.

You couldn't find two people in the Bible with more opposite views in the politics of the day.  Yet something happened which brought them together.

Some traditions hold that it was at Simon's wedding that Jesus performed his first miracle, turning water into wine.  Of course, he would wonder, "Who is this man who could do such a thing?  What can I learn from him?"

Jesus called Matthew while Matthew was at work, sitting at his table.  Capernaum was a small town, population of about 1500.  Everyone knew everyone.  Matthew would know about Jesus and had heard the stories of his miracles.  So when Jesus came to him and said, "Follow me", He got up and left his job behind to follow.

Jesus brought these two men together.  Working together in peace.  To spread the good news of Jesus Christ.

Today's Church is riddled with factions, each one declaring they are the correct one and the others are wrong.  There are some groups of people who have been excluded from the Church simply because their political beliefs are not in line with the mainstream Christian thought.  Many different Christian denominations refuse to fellowship with those of other denominations, simply because of these differences.

Do you remember these?

Photo by CrazyLegsKC

What Would Jesus Do?

It didn't matter to Jesus what political views his disciples held.  He just asked them to follow.  He brought them together, government official and terrorist, in order to spread the news that Jesus is alive.  Their beliefs had no bearing in that fact.

The Church is called for one thing: to spread that news.  Over the past 2000 years, we have lost that call and have gone our own way, going on witch-hunt after witch-hunt.  Over the years, the Church has demonized many different groups.  Instead of being a place for all to come to God, the Church has become an exclusive club for those who think the same way.  I don't think Jesus is pleased by this.

We need to open our doors, open our arms and invite everyone in.  Don't tell them their lifestyle is wrong.  Tell them Jesus loves them.  Don't say their beliefs are too far to the left (or right) for them to be Christians.  Tell them Jesus loves them.

Jesus called together people from both sides of the political spectrum and started a phenomenon that changed the world.  We can continue that, if we simply follow Christ.

Color Run 2014

Yesterday, my wife and I ran the Color Run in Grand Rapids, Michigan. For those who don't know, the Color Run is a 5K race where they throw different colored paint at you each kilometer. It's really fun and you end up covered with purple, blue, pink and other colors.

Before the race.  When we're still clean.

This was our third year running this race, so there were no real surprises in the course or anything. The biggest surprise for me was how fast I was able to run it. I've never trained for a race before, but since I've been training for the Disney World half marathon in January, I've gotten quite a bit faster than previous years.

The purple area, sponsored by a cancer research hospital.

Running into the pink area.

About to get the blues.

Hey, what are ya?  Yellow?

Finally!  The Finish!

During the race, and after, there is a DJ playing music and a mosh pit for you to dance and have fun.

The Color Run mascot is a dancing unicorn.  Don't ask me why.

In the mosh pit, they pass out hundreds of packages of paint.  About every 15 minutes or so, they have everyone throw the paint up into the air.

Get ready to hold your breath.

Let the party commence!

You begin wearing white.  You end covered in paint.

Picture taken after wiping the paint off the camera lens.

I've taken 4 showers and I still have paint in places I can't mention.