May 2008
Our Heritage - Rock Skipping Photo
2008/05/15 18:10 Filed in: Journal
| Art and
Designs
The first installment in my series "Our Heritage"
appears in the June 3ABN World magazine. I
wanted a creative introduction to this first story,
and this is what I came up with:
I stand at the edge of a small lake. It’s quiet here—a good place to meditate, to think. As I skip a rock across the water, I notice the ripples. At each point where the stone strikes the surface of the lake, waves radiate outward. Together they look like a series of points, each sending out signal waves in every direction. In a sense, that’s what this series is about. Our Christian heritage is a string of pivotal events, each with its own lasting repercussions in the stream of time. It’s a story that inspires me every time I think of it.
I thought it would be cool to add a little thumbnail illustration. I tried to look for stock photos of a rock skipping across a pond, but couldn't find any. So Adam and I headed down to the nearest little pond, and this is what we got:
The original photo:
Unfortunately, despite numerous attempts, we couldn't quite capture the feel of skipping stones. The surface of the water was really icky. We did get some nice splashes, but they just didn't look like what I wanted to convey.
Add "Pond-Scum-Be-Gone" (aka, Photoshop):
Ripples:
A nice reflection:
Some nice early morning mist, and we're done!
I stand at the edge of a small lake. It’s quiet here—a good place to meditate, to think. As I skip a rock across the water, I notice the ripples. At each point where the stone strikes the surface of the lake, waves radiate outward. Together they look like a series of points, each sending out signal waves in every direction. In a sense, that’s what this series is about. Our Christian heritage is a string of pivotal events, each with its own lasting repercussions in the stream of time. It’s a story that inspires me every time I think of it.
I thought it would be cool to add a little thumbnail illustration. I tried to look for stock photos of a rock skipping across a pond, but couldn't find any. So Adam and I headed down to the nearest little pond, and this is what we got:
The original photo:
Unfortunately, despite numerous attempts, we couldn't quite capture the feel of skipping stones. The surface of the water was really icky. We did get some nice splashes, but they just didn't look like what I wanted to convey.
Add "Pond-Scum-Be-Gone" (aka, Photoshop):
Ripples:
A nice reflection:
Some nice early morning mist, and we're done!
|
Chris and Erin's Wedding
2008/05/12 23:15 Filed in: Journal
On May 11, after leaving my mom's place, I headed to
the Indian Creek Camp for the wedding of Erin Worf
and Chris White. Erin was one of my regular weekend
buddies when she was living in this area for a while.
Her dad works at 3ABN.
The hall was decorated really nice. Lots of lights, candles, lanterns, and greenery. There was beautiful music playing too; I later learned the album is called "Celtic Wedding."
Two bridesmaids; two groomsmen. One of the bridesmaids sang I song a really like, "Bless the Broken Road."
The sermon:
The kiss:
The cake (decorated with rose petals):
A special presentation in honor of the mothers (it was Mothers Day):
Happily ever after:
The hall was decorated really nice. Lots of lights, candles, lanterns, and greenery. There was beautiful music playing too; I later learned the album is called "Celtic Wedding."
Two bridesmaids; two groomsmen. One of the bridesmaids sang I song a really like, "Bless the Broken Road."
The sermon:
The kiss:
The cake (decorated with rose petals):
A special presentation in honor of the mothers (it was Mothers Day):
Happily ever after:
Mothers Day
2008/05/12 22:59 Filed in: Journal
This past weekend, April 9-11, I went to Tennessee to
visit my mom for Mothers Day. We had a nice time. We
went for a walk Sabbath afternoon. In the evening I
presented her some small gifts I had bought while in
Sweden, and then we played two 3-round games of
Boggle. (I won both times. Sorry, Mom!) Sunday we
went to Wal-Mart and bought some mulch and flowers
(creeping phlox), and I helped her mulch around her
house. I had to leave at around 11:15 a.m., to make
it to the wedding.
This is Violet, about one year old now. My mom has been babysitting her occasionally for some months now. My mom purchased this dress for her, so she would have something special to wear to church.
Tishka:
This is Violet, about one year old now. My mom has been babysitting her occasionally for some months now. My mom purchased this dress for her, so she would have something special to wear to church.
Tishka:
Toyota Prius
2008/05/12 22:44 Filed in: Journal
As I mentioned on April 30, I am now the happy owner
of a 2005 Prius. I have never had so many people
asking me about my car. Once even a stranger at a gas
station asked me about it (and I've only been to a
gas station about five times since I've owned it!).
One of the most common questions is what kind of mileage I'm getting. So far it is about 45-50 mpg. But on a recent trip, there were 15 miles of mostly downhill driving in which I was getting 75-100 mpg. (You can watch a running mpg meter while driving.)
The built in GPS navigation works well, but is not perfect. It successfully got me to the wedding this past Sunday, even showing me all the little back roads at the private SDA campground where the wedding was. On the other hand, it gave me wrong or confusing directions later, causing me to miss an exit that I wouldn't have missed if I had simply followed the handwritten directions I had with me. (In my experience, this seems to be the case with any GPS navigator. You're always better off if you start out knowing where you are going. But in a pinch the instrument can be very handy.)
Here she is:
Pretty roomy for a car this size:
The white box on the left is the battery box:
One of the most common questions is what kind of mileage I'm getting. So far it is about 45-50 mpg. But on a recent trip, there were 15 miles of mostly downhill driving in which I was getting 75-100 mpg. (You can watch a running mpg meter while driving.)
The built in GPS navigation works well, but is not perfect. It successfully got me to the wedding this past Sunday, even showing me all the little back roads at the private SDA campground where the wedding was. On the other hand, it gave me wrong or confusing directions later, causing me to miss an exit that I wouldn't have missed if I had simply followed the handwritten directions I had with me. (In my experience, this seems to be the case with any GPS navigator. You're always better off if you start out knowing where you are going. But in a pinch the instrument can be very handy.)
Here she is:
Pretty roomy for a car this size:
The white box on the left is the battery box:
Loma Linda in the News
2008/05/09 14:03 Filed in: Journal
Loma Linda gets a passing (1 second or so) appearance
in a CNN video about coyotes attacking small
children.
Although it is not named in the news commentary, the above picture comes on for a brief moment while talking about a girl who was taken to the emergency room after a coyote attack.
Although it is not named in the news commentary, the above picture comes on for a brief moment while talking about a girl who was taken to the emergency room after a coyote attack.
3ABN's Facebook Page Art
2008/05/08 15:49 Filed in: Art and
Designs
I recently created a page for 3ABN on Facebook. I
needed something for the picture, so after a
little brainstorming and experimentation, I
created this:
It was created with a combination of SketchUp, Swift3D, and Photoshop.
One trick was to create a picture in which 3ABN's logo would look OK, once automatically scaled down and cropped by Facebook's software. This was part of the inspiration for having a screen with the logo in the center, surrounded by other screens. To be cropped correctly, the logo must fit within a space defined by a perfect square with a width and height less than the smallest dimension of the image.
It was created with a combination of SketchUp, Swift3D, and Photoshop.
One trick was to create a picture in which 3ABN's logo would look OK, once automatically scaled down and cropped by Facebook's software. This was part of the inspiration for having a screen with the logo in the center, surrounded by other screens. To be cropped correctly, the logo must fit within a space defined by a perfect square with a width and height less than the smallest dimension of the image.
Sweden
2008/05/01 19:49 Filed in: Journal
I recently returned from a weeklong vacation to
Sweden, April 20-28. Although it was a bit tiring at
times, it was a great experience. It was awesome to
see my friends at LifeStyleTV — the Nybos,
Pedleys, and Ramonts — as well as my friend Ellen in
Stockholm. And I also made some new friends whom I
hope to see again some day.
* * *
My flight departed on Sunday, April 20. It was a long flight, but mostly uneventful. I traveled from a regional airport in Marion on a small plane (18 seats or so), to St. Louis where I caught a larger plane (an MD-80, I think) to Atlanta, where I caught an even larger plane (a 767 I think) to Copenhagen. I managed to sleep quite a bit, and this seemed to help me adjust to the time zone change, which was 7 hours.
Flying over Denmark was quite interesting. Looking down I could see all these little farms, bunched together in oddly-angled shapes, not like the large one-mile square tiles you may see in the western U.S., but not too different perhaps than the smaller farms in New England. Denmark and Sweden are both covered in farmland.
My flight arrived in Copenhagen the next morning, Monday, April 21. Theresa Nybo was there to meet me at the airport. She had brought her dog Max along, and this was my first time meeting him. He is a big fluffy white dog (there is a picture of him below). After a little shopping in Malmö, we were on our way to LifeStyleTV.
I have several longtime friends working at LifeStyleTV: Claus and Theresa Nybo, Daniel and Antonella Pedley, and Richard and Roxana Ramont. It was great to see all of them again. It was also neat to see their facilities — which are extremely modest compared to what we have at 3ABN. Still, what they do with what they have is quite amazing.
Daniel at his workstation:
Claus:
The LifeStyleTV master control:
Their cool OS X based server rack:
Dan and Jennica:
Torleif:
Huldah:
Andrea:
Max — always ready to play:
The guys' "dorm" — where I stayed:
My room:
A couple times a day I walked this 10-15 minute journey from the dorm to the LifeStyleTV center (the Nybos' home):
On Tuesday I worked in the Nybos' garden, mulching the berry bushes and other things. I miss the garden I had at my previous residence, so it was a fine way to spend the morning. Later I went with a group to a place called the Hallesberg Stones. These are statues and carved stones created in the 1800s by a Swedish farmer. One set of stones contains writing and pictures related to the Bible, including Old Testament chronology, the Fall, and prophetic symbols with interpretations. LifeStyleTV was planning to use these as a springboard for doctrinal presentations.
The badly eroded mountain of sculpture at the Hallesberg farm:
This stone depicts Bible chronology:
This one depicts the Fall:
This one shows the crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension:
This one is full of prophetic symbols — the Lamb on Mount Zion, the King on the white horse, the woman riding the beast — along with dates and explanations:
A stone face:
On Wednesday I led morning worship for the group, in which I talked about how God has led all types of people into the unity of the Adventist message, and how that unity in the truth is so important for a ministry such as LifeStyleTV. Later Theresa took me to look at a castle in the area. Later I helped prepare lunch (tofu squares with tartar sauce), which I didn't get to eat. Instead, I had lunch with the Pedleys. Their children are so cute!
A Swedish castle — this one remains a private residence:
The Pedleys:
Thursday I flew to Stockholm, where I met up with my good friend Ellen. That evening we visited the Vasa Museum, where a large warship that was raised from where it sank, is on display. It was really fascinating. Later we walked around the downtown area called Gamla Stan, ate out at a Korean restaurant, and had some sorbet and oat-based "ice cream" for dessert. On the way back we stopped by the Royal Palace. I spent the night at the church headquarters, in an apartment shared by a new friend, Ronnie.
A church in Stockholm:
The warship at the Vasa Museum (photo: Ellen Kim):
Ellen:
One of the many canals in Stockholm — it's built on a series of islands (photo: Ellen Kim):
Ellen and me:
A street:
Moi (photo: Ellen Kim):
On Friday Ellen and I visited some shops in the morning, and then I was on my way back to Malmö. But the bus that was taking me to the airport kept crashing! Computer crashing, that is. The monitors were locked in an endless cycle of Windows XP booting and crashing with an error message. Tsk, tsk. If only they had Mac OS X.
Windows XP: Where do you want to go today?
Back in Malmö, I enjoyed a tasty haystack lunch at the church. Then I joined other workers from LifeStyleTV handing out fliers in the community, inviting them to an upcoming event with Louis Torres. Later, back at the Nybos' home, we had a tasty fruit smoothie supper. And then we discussed Bible verses related to baptism, which Claus was gathering for his sermon the next day in Malmö.
Saturday morning found us at the Malmö church. The program was good. Theresa interpreted the sermon in English for several of us. After the very nice fellowship lunch, I joined the Ramonts and Pedleys for a walk in the park with their families and some friends. Later, back at LifeStyleTV, we had a birthday supper for Andrea, and then played a fun game, "Four on the Couch," that I had never played before (the guys won, haha!).
On Sunday the Nybos took me for a little drive to the beach. On the way we saw a sheepdog herding competition. It was quite fascinating to watch. The dogs did such a good job, but the sheep were just a little too stubborn. We had a great time at the beach. The Nybos' dog Max met some new friends. It was a beautiful beach, with white sand. There were swans out swimming on the water.
Sheepdog competition (the dog is crouched to the right of the sheep pen):
Another Swedish castle:
I thought this was funny — the "Badhotell" (it actually translates to the "bath hotel" — it's near the beach):
Claus and Theresa, with Max:
The beach is lined with these concrete bunkers from WWII:
White sand:
A creek flowing into the ocean:
Flowers at the beach:
Later I traveled with some of the other workers at LifeStyleTV back to Malmö. Jonathan, Jennica, and Huldah gave me a tour around the city. In the evening a couple of us watched a David Asscherick training video that had been taped at the Bible Institute in Norway. This was my last full day in Sweden.
Banner at the church advertising the meetings with Louis Torres:
Jonathan, Jennica, and Huldah enjoying their falafels:
The Turning Tower in Malmö:
This is a small dam in a park area; the small black things are faucets — quite clever:
On Monday I took a bus, and then a train, which took me to the airport in Copenhagen. With the benefit of the reverse time zone changes, I arrived home the same day, at around 9:00 pm. It was great to be home again!
* * *
My flight departed on Sunday, April 20. It was a long flight, but mostly uneventful. I traveled from a regional airport in Marion on a small plane (18 seats or so), to St. Louis where I caught a larger plane (an MD-80, I think) to Atlanta, where I caught an even larger plane (a 767 I think) to Copenhagen. I managed to sleep quite a bit, and this seemed to help me adjust to the time zone change, which was 7 hours.
Flying over Denmark was quite interesting. Looking down I could see all these little farms, bunched together in oddly-angled shapes, not like the large one-mile square tiles you may see in the western U.S., but not too different perhaps than the smaller farms in New England. Denmark and Sweden are both covered in farmland.
My flight arrived in Copenhagen the next morning, Monday, April 21. Theresa Nybo was there to meet me at the airport. She had brought her dog Max along, and this was my first time meeting him. He is a big fluffy white dog (there is a picture of him below). After a little shopping in Malmö, we were on our way to LifeStyleTV.
I have several longtime friends working at LifeStyleTV: Claus and Theresa Nybo, Daniel and Antonella Pedley, and Richard and Roxana Ramont. It was great to see all of them again. It was also neat to see their facilities — which are extremely modest compared to what we have at 3ABN. Still, what they do with what they have is quite amazing.
Daniel at his workstation:
Claus:
The LifeStyleTV master control:
Their cool OS X based server rack:
Dan and Jennica:
Torleif:
Huldah:
Andrea:
Max — always ready to play:
The guys' "dorm" — where I stayed:
My room:
A couple times a day I walked this 10-15 minute journey from the dorm to the LifeStyleTV center (the Nybos' home):
On Tuesday I worked in the Nybos' garden, mulching the berry bushes and other things. I miss the garden I had at my previous residence, so it was a fine way to spend the morning. Later I went with a group to a place called the Hallesberg Stones. These are statues and carved stones created in the 1800s by a Swedish farmer. One set of stones contains writing and pictures related to the Bible, including Old Testament chronology, the Fall, and prophetic symbols with interpretations. LifeStyleTV was planning to use these as a springboard for doctrinal presentations.
The badly eroded mountain of sculpture at the Hallesberg farm:
This stone depicts Bible chronology:
This one depicts the Fall:
This one shows the crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension:
This one is full of prophetic symbols — the Lamb on Mount Zion, the King on the white horse, the woman riding the beast — along with dates and explanations:
A stone face:
On Wednesday I led morning worship for the group, in which I talked about how God has led all types of people into the unity of the Adventist message, and how that unity in the truth is so important for a ministry such as LifeStyleTV. Later Theresa took me to look at a castle in the area. Later I helped prepare lunch (tofu squares with tartar sauce), which I didn't get to eat. Instead, I had lunch with the Pedleys. Their children are so cute!
A Swedish castle — this one remains a private residence:
The Pedleys:
Thursday I flew to Stockholm, where I met up with my good friend Ellen. That evening we visited the Vasa Museum, where a large warship that was raised from where it sank, is on display. It was really fascinating. Later we walked around the downtown area called Gamla Stan, ate out at a Korean restaurant, and had some sorbet and oat-based "ice cream" for dessert. On the way back we stopped by the Royal Palace. I spent the night at the church headquarters, in an apartment shared by a new friend, Ronnie.
A church in Stockholm:
The warship at the Vasa Museum (photo: Ellen Kim):
Ellen:
One of the many canals in Stockholm — it's built on a series of islands (photo: Ellen Kim):
Ellen and me:
A street:
Moi (photo: Ellen Kim):
On Friday Ellen and I visited some shops in the morning, and then I was on my way back to Malmö. But the bus that was taking me to the airport kept crashing! Computer crashing, that is. The monitors were locked in an endless cycle of Windows XP booting and crashing with an error message. Tsk, tsk. If only they had Mac OS X.
Windows XP: Where do you want to go today?
Back in Malmö, I enjoyed a tasty haystack lunch at the church. Then I joined other workers from LifeStyleTV handing out fliers in the community, inviting them to an upcoming event with Louis Torres. Later, back at the Nybos' home, we had a tasty fruit smoothie supper. And then we discussed Bible verses related to baptism, which Claus was gathering for his sermon the next day in Malmö.
Saturday morning found us at the Malmö church. The program was good. Theresa interpreted the sermon in English for several of us. After the very nice fellowship lunch, I joined the Ramonts and Pedleys for a walk in the park with their families and some friends. Later, back at LifeStyleTV, we had a birthday supper for Andrea, and then played a fun game, "Four on the Couch," that I had never played before (the guys won, haha!).
On Sunday the Nybos took me for a little drive to the beach. On the way we saw a sheepdog herding competition. It was quite fascinating to watch. The dogs did such a good job, but the sheep were just a little too stubborn. We had a great time at the beach. The Nybos' dog Max met some new friends. It was a beautiful beach, with white sand. There were swans out swimming on the water.
Sheepdog competition (the dog is crouched to the right of the sheep pen):
Another Swedish castle:
I thought this was funny — the "Badhotell" (it actually translates to the "bath hotel" — it's near the beach):
Claus and Theresa, with Max:
The beach is lined with these concrete bunkers from WWII:
White sand:
A creek flowing into the ocean:
Flowers at the beach:
Later I traveled with some of the other workers at LifeStyleTV back to Malmö. Jonathan, Jennica, and Huldah gave me a tour around the city. In the evening a couple of us watched a David Asscherick training video that had been taped at the Bible Institute in Norway. This was my last full day in Sweden.
Banner at the church advertising the meetings with Louis Torres:
Jonathan, Jennica, and Huldah enjoying their falafels:
The Turning Tower in Malmö:
This is a small dam in a park area; the small black things are faucets — quite clever:
On Monday I took a bus, and then a train, which took me to the airport in Copenhagen. With the benefit of the reverse time zone changes, I arrived home the same day, at around 9:00 pm. It was great to be home again!
What Happens When You're Away
2008/05/01 05:24 Filed in: Journal
When I returned from Sweden, I had two shocks:
First, I learned the sad news that my friend and coworker Kenton Rogers had turned in his resignation. His last day will be May 9, I believe. His family is moving back to the West Coast, to be closer to their relatives. Kenton is a very talented and spiritual person, and will be greatly missed at 3ABN. He plans to start a small publishing house at a location yet to be announced.
That means we are looking for someone to replace him in my department. You can read the job posting announcement on my Xanga blog. If you know of any qualified individuals, please pass the word along. We are looking for people who are professionally employed in graphic design, not hobbyists or persons wanting to enter the field (although we make exception for college graduates with no employment history).
The second news is happier: Another friend and coworker, Connie Kuehn, got engaged and will be married this month. Unfortunately, there is a sad side to that story as well: She will be moving away to be with her future husband in Mississippi. We will all miss Connie's bubbly personality and valuable marketing skills. Congratulations, Connie!
First, I learned the sad news that my friend and coworker Kenton Rogers had turned in his resignation. His last day will be May 9, I believe. His family is moving back to the West Coast, to be closer to their relatives. Kenton is a very talented and spiritual person, and will be greatly missed at 3ABN. He plans to start a small publishing house at a location yet to be announced.
That means we are looking for someone to replace him in my department. You can read the job posting announcement on my Xanga blog. If you know of any qualified individuals, please pass the word along. We are looking for people who are professionally employed in graphic design, not hobbyists or persons wanting to enter the field (although we make exception for college graduates with no employment history).
The second news is happier: Another friend and coworker, Connie Kuehn, got engaged and will be married this month. Unfortunately, there is a sad side to that story as well: She will be moving away to be with her future husband in Mississippi. We will all miss Connie's bubbly personality and valuable marketing skills. Congratulations, Connie!