Monthly Archives: January 2006

I’m Impressed by Bloggers

I’m developing some blogs for denominational use, and they’ll be unveiled in the coming months. I’m pretty excited about it.

As I’ve been working on this, I’ve been visiting scores of blogs to get ideas, particularly regarding graphic design. And I’ve been impressed by how many people out there can write well. I thought writing had gone down the tubes. But at least in blogdom, there are lots of really great wordsmiths out there, lurking amidst the huddles masses. Ordinary blokes and housewives and students and what-have-you who decided they wanted an outlet for their thoughts, and phooey on whether or not anyone cares to read their stuff.

Because of my training and experience in writing, I tend to be much more critical of writing. But I tell you–there are a lot of good writers out there. They put words together well, and they even get punctuation right. Many of these are people whose careers do not involve writing; they aren’t professionals. But blogs give them an outlet for developing their writing ability, and in the process they get good practice in organizing and articulating ideas. It’s certainly good practice for me, even though I write stuff as part of my work every day. Blogs give me a chance to be creative, something which a news report doesn’t always provide.

Many bloggers are way to wordy to hold my attention–I prefer shorter entries (a standard I don’t impose on myself, obviously!). And some, rather than creating new content, merely reference stuff they find elsewhere (which bores me). But there are plenty of creative types out there who churn out interesting new content, even if it’s merely describing what they did the day before. A growing number seem to be learning HTML, too, so they can also be creative with their blog design.

Anyway, just thought I’d mention that.

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My Own “Farris Hassan” Moment

Hurray for Farris Hassan! I think it’s marvelous that this young man was so zealous about nabbing a story that he made his way to Iraq. Yeah, it was dumb. Yeah, I’d be horrified if I was one of his parents. But I find his journalistic enthusiasm and initiative to be energizing. Plus, it reminds me of a very stupid thing I did when I was only a few years older than him.

I guess I was 20. It was my junior year of college, and I was taking the January Term off (you only needed to take 3 of the 4). I spent January working in a grocery store during the day, and then doing layout for the local newspaper in the evening. It was great fun. However, I’d been taking journalism classes at college, had just read “All the President’s Men,” and figured I would become a newspaper reporter. And so, I yearned to get “out in the field.” And that’s a very appropriate term in the San Juaquin Valley of California.

Migrant worker camps, peopled mostly by illegal aliens, could be found in various places around us. Maria, one of our favorite patrons at the grocery store, came every few weeks and loaded up with hundreds and hundreds of tortillas, plus several 100-pound bags of flour. She was a cook in one of the camps.

Anyway, I decided to go “investigate” one of the camps, see what kind of story I could roust up. And so one day I drove my parents’ car many miles through cotton fields and vineyards until I found a camp. I parked by the road, crossed a field, gently scaled the small barbed- wire fence which ringed the camp, and began walking down the dirt paths of the camp. Most of the people lived in shacks of indeterminate age. A woman stood in front of one. I approached, talked to her with highly broken Spanish, and peered through the screen door to find kids playing on the all-dirt floor. She didn’t say anything back.

Meanwhile, a number of Hispanic guys were watching me closely, and others kept joining them. I waved, and continued walking through the camp. It began dawning on me how stupid I was. I didn’t see any stories in sight. I couldn’t converse with the people. And I was beginning to feel a bit afraid. I hadn’t told anybody where I went. I could disappear without a trace. So I turned around, headed back over the barbed-wire fence, across the field, and to the car. I could see camp folks watching me as I drove away.

I don’t think I ever told my parents about that.

Yes, it was stupid. But it was industrious! Like Farris! He’ll be a great journalist someday. If he doesn’t get himself killed first.

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New Years Eve, 1974

Pam and I had a very uneventful New Year’s Eve this year. We just stayed home and did nothing. No parties. No stepping outside to watch the fireworks downtown. Pretty boring. Part of the problem is that I’m still (still!) sick, this time with what seems to be bronchitis. The other issue is that nobody invited us anywhere, and we didn’t invite anyone over.

I was trying to remember memorable New Year’s Eve parties I’ve attended. Last year’s comes to mind, because a good friend came over during the party at our house with the news that he and his wife were done (her doing). I ended up talking to him a long time about that. I remember a few others that were nothing special. But the one that stands out goes clear back to my junior year in high school, in 1974.

At the beginning of the school year, we moved to Pixley, Calif., where Dad began pastoring his first church. I had left a dynamic youth group where kids were getting saved right and left; that was in Lake Havasu City, Ariz. At Pixley, I found a much smaller youth group which was characterized by established relationships and pretty much no spiritual spark. I found it very difficult to “break in,” and that’s a big issue when you’re a self-conscious teen.

The youth group leader, Wayne, hosted a New Year’s Eve party at the church. And that night, especially as we played game after game of Tripoley, I laughed and laughed and mixed it up with the others in the group. And that night, for the first time, I felt like I was accepted into their circles. I went on to develop some really good relationships with those teens, and things of a spiritual nature happened.

Also things of a not-so-spiritual nature, like the kick-butt basketball team we formed for the summer park league–the only church team, and I think we took second place. One night, after I severely outplayed the guy guarding me on an all-black team, mainly because he was half drunk, that guy came at me with a crowbar after the game. He felt like he had been humiliated in front of his friends, even though I was smart enough to avoid any trash talking with this particular fellow. Something kept him from swinging, and considering his rage at me, I’ve always marveled that I got away unscathed. He did kick my car as I finally made my escape. Ah, those were good times!

Anyway, that party was a breakthrough in helping me feel “included.” And that was a really big deal.

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