davidgordo's Xanga

Who Killed Nuclear Energy?

Fri, 23 May 2008 04:48:54 GMT

http://www.21stcenturysciencetech.com/articles/spring01/nuclear_power.html

Sure, maybe there's a little bias here, but there are some certainly eyebrow-raising facts too.

Too bad. Too bad.

A great weather site

Tue, 20 May 2008 06:40:27 GMT

http://www.weather.gov

I don't know why, but no one ever showed me this site! No ads, very quick to load, and the source from whence all the other "weather" websites get their info! I especially enjoy the forecast discussion.

An interesting article

Tue, 01 Jan 2008 18:54:59 GMT

http://epw.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Minority.Blogs&ContentRecord_id=f80a6386-802a-23ad-40c8-3c63dc2d02cb

Hawaii

Tue, 25 Dec 2007 07:37:54 GMT

Thus far, this break is going quite well! Hawaii is gorgeous. I have a nice minor sunburn on my back, but that's my own fault for falling asleep without reapplying all over my body (you can even see the finger marks where I stopped reapplying!). Mom is doing well, considering she just took a triple dose of chemo a week ago. She's been walking all around.

It's weird having all the family together again on a big vacation. We haven't done this in about 6 years, so it's interesting getting all caught back up.

Question: Why do gals wear bikinis? Any ideas? Is walking around in underwear that fun?

I miss my college friends, especially those that I haven't seen in quite a while.

The cheesy hotel music here in the lobby is driving me a little crazy. Unfortunately, this is the only place with free internet access. In the room it is $15 a day, which is just outrageous if you ask me! At least they have it available.

Snorkeling is so much fun. It is much easier than expected due to the greatly increased buoyancy of my body in salt water. It takes practically no energy!

Kuai is present location, and don't let anyone kid you: there are mosquitoes! Even now they are attempting to suck my blood, as this room is entirely open to the air (as most large rooms are here, in fact; it must save greatly on heating/cooling).

Beaches are very pretty at night.

May Jesus, the Messiah reveal Himself anew to you this day!
Shalom in Him

Why does cancer have to be so bad?

Sat, 08 Sep 2007 04:41:09 GMT

Hello all,

Mom's cancer has returned in force. Basically it is in her lungs, bones, lymph system, etc. She started chemotherapy about a month ago. The form of chemotherapy she was on helped take down the cancer in her bones, but it didn't do anything for the rest. She'll be starting two different forms of chemo concurrently soon. These will most likely take down her immune system as well.

Please pray for my mom (Brenda), my dad (Rob), my brothers (Mark and Brad), and me.

It is hard being away from home right now.

Something I heard today

Thu, 30 Aug 2007 04:03:58 GMT

I heard a guy say today, "That was bad. But it was so hilarious!"

How many actions are justified today by humor? How many people are hurt for the sole purpose that some may have a laugh? So much humor these days seems to be grounded in dis-truth. From sarcasm to entirely exaggerated, inappropriate comments leading to awkward situations (such as those commonly found on a popular TV program supposedly depicting a workplace). Simple, pure humor in the form of puns and corny jokes seem to have somehow lost their popularity. Perhaps they are too pure, too innocent for a culture that seems to have an insatiable appetite for the corrupt. How I long to hear more truth and encouragement than lies! I've never been good at encouragement. Perhaps it is time I begin to work on that.

Real truth is undervalued. (or even non-existent in some people's world views!)

May the Lord of Truth guide our speech this day and all days we have breath pouring out of our mouths!

Shalom

The Power of Self-Forgetfulness

Wed, 29 Aug 2007 01:58:56 GMT

I found this in "Quests and Conquests", a very old book that I found in my Grandma's house, and I thought I would pass it along!

The Power of Self-Forgetfulness
By Francois Fenelon

Simplicity is an uprightness of soul that has no reference to self; it is different from sincerity, and it is a still higher virtue. We see many people who are sincere, without being simple; they only wish to pass for what they are, and they are unwilling to appear what they are not; they are always thinking of themselves measuring their words, and recalling their thoughts, and reviewing their actions, from the fear that they have done too much or too little. These persons are sincere, but they are not simple; they are not at ease with others, and others are not at ease with them; they are not free, ingenuous, natural; we prefer people who are less correct, less perfect, and who are less artificial. This is the decision of man, and it is the judgment of God, who would not have us so occupied with ourselves, and thus, as it were, always arranging our features in a mirror.

My brain

Fri, 25 May 2007 17:55:03 GMT

I found this hanging around the house too!

An old journal entry

Mon, 21 May 2007 00:49:17 GMT

What a delight it was to find the following journal entry as a I was cleaning out the garage! Very encouraging for me now that I'm back in the public academic scene. It is good to remember...

3/26/01

I am writing you tonight as a teen in the era just after several school shootings. (Quite Post-Columbine) George W. Bush is president, and I am deeply involved with Pit Orchestra for the Spring Musical ! Guys and Dolls.
I do not want to write a letter of discouragement. Instead, I would like to encourage and inspire from my own experiences. This will be hard for me to do, so please bear with me. With God's help I will succeed.
God has been speaking volumes to me lately, and I never want to forget. I am awestruck by the number of drug users surrounding me at school. It is easy to get drugs in, and they are being talked about nonchalantly.
There are so many kids with divorced/separated parents. I am very lucky. I feel sometimes as though I am on another planet with my beliefs in God. Other believers I know are beginning to let down their guard, and are being sucked into The World. The World wants to fit into the puzzle like a pre-punched piece. The puzzle pieces think they must transform to fit into the giant puzzle. What they don't realize is that they fit into a seemingly smaller puzzle perfectly, without the need to act to be some other shape.
The seemingly smaller puzzle isn't that fun. The pieces who decide to be themselves are ridiculed because they don't fit into the larger puzzle. Maybe ridiculed is too harsh a word. It turns out, though, that everyone in their very being wants to join the smaller puzzle, but they don't want to have to leave the "benefits" of the large puzzle behind. It also turns out that the smaller puzzle is God's plan. You are the puzzle piece.
You have a part in God's puzzle, now are you going to leave it? Sure, there aren't many popularity benefits in the smaller puzzle, but what if the smaller puzzle survived forever with God, while the large puzzle of The World was tossed into the fire. Which would you choose?
The World: What seems to govern the action of many teens today? Is it God? Are the current teenage Christians going to school and "accidentally" forgetting their beliefs so that they may fit in? If they are forgetting their beliefs, then are they also forgetting their morals and values in the process?
The Earth was created by God to serve as a companion. The Universe, physically, did not meet God's requirement as a friend companion. He then created animals, which were as good of companions as the Universe. God created Man in his own image, male and female he created them. They had the ability to love. God is love. We were created to be able to love as God is love.
His companions weren't perfect, though. There are not force controlled by God, so the Devil used this to his advantage. The Devil convinced Man that his way was better. It offered more instant, worldly results. In the end, though, it caused eternal damnation.
People see the possibilities with the Devil and are quick to respond because our society, our World, is one that exonerates power and wealth. It also doesn't care about religion or God. In fact, in the World we live in today, God is trying to be controlled by governments and people. But I assure you, there will never come a day when God is restricted or controlled by human means. I assure you God's Will will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven when Jesus Christ comes again to set up his kingdom on Earth. What a glorious day that will be.

Monday, April 09, 2007

Mon, 09 Apr 2007 16:56:05 GMT

Soon, my undergraduate career will be over. That sounds good. I wonder, though, if there will be the same sort of focus difference in graduate school as there was between high school and college. It certainly is possible, and I sure didn't miss all the busy work. Maybe now there will be even less busy work (if that's possible). I have a feeling that the responsibility level will increase dramatically, and perhaps there will be fewer "quizzes" and graded homeworks to keep me studying regularly.

The tulips in the engineering quad appeared today as though they had been drawn prostrate by some invisible smashing board from the sky. Mr. BelowThirtyTwo is a dangerous enemy for them. Their flower petals still held on, though. The hostas were not happy with the situation either.

Shalom!