Category Archives: My Thoughts

Remember when SunChips bags were deafeningly loud?

sunchips-bag-deafening
SunChips are delicious. This is an opinion that I share with many. I’m grateful that SunChips exist. They contribute to society. But remember when they tried to contribute to ecology?

In 2008, SunChips tried to be the first snack maker to save the planet by using biodegradable, compostable bags. These bags would fully breakdown within 14 weeks of being in a compost pile.

The idea was, SunChips would win the “green” war by packaging their delicious chips in bags that would biodegrade significantly faster than traditional chip bags. “Smart move”, we would all think years later. Except that “No!!!”. America wasn’t ready for a planet-friendly chip bag yet. Instead of accepting this forward-thinking plan, Americans collectively vetoed the new SunChips bags and demanded the return of the old bags. But why? Continue reading →

I can’t grow hair on my philtrum :(

my-naked-philtrum

My downturned lips convey the sorrow that my hairless philtrum brings me daily

At present, I have a full beard. It’s a mess, a complete disaster really, but it’s full. Full, that is except for one place, right in the middle of my upper lip. Hair grows freely everywhere else, cheeks, chin, sideburns, even neck. But I lack the ability to grow hair directly in the middle of my face, just below my nose. The most front and center portion of my countenance has nary a hair. Right in the middle of my would-be-grand mustache, lies naked skin. Continue reading →

Jesus Fish

What’s wrong with kneeling during the National Anthem?

Updated 9/25/2017 This post was originally about Colin Kaepernick, but has since grown into a national phenomenon. Players and coaches are kneeling to send a message. I’ve updated the end of this post with more current commentary and news.

Kneeling, sitting, lying down, these are normal body positions unless the National Anthem is playing, then they are displays of protest and “unpatriotic offense”. This is how it would seem based on all of the commentary I’ve been hearing from those in sports media, morning radio, Facebook. Most people have heard by now that San Francisco 49er quarterback Colin Kaepernick has made sitting or kneeling during the playing of the National Anthem his sign of protest. Most people who know this know that Kaepernick is protesting because he feels the United States of America doesn’t treat all citizens equally. Stating,

I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color…

I get why he feels that way, and people are allowed to disagree, it’s their right to do so. But it’s also Kaepernick’s right to sit, or kneel, or play hopscotch, or whatever during the playing of the Anthem. Continue reading →

Is RouteNote a Scam?

routenote logo

Is RouteNote a Scam?

This is a reasonable question. We want to be careful when handing over control to any service we haven’t dealt with before. In my RouteNote Review, I noticed a trend in the comments section. People were coming in droves and posting horrendous claims of injustice, perpetrated by RouteNote. I allowed them for a while, until I noticed a pattern. Most of these comments would make the same basic claims. They would use strong language and angry speech. And they all had similar email address formats (i.e. SomeAngryGuy89@gmail.com)

I’m all for speaking up when you feel a company has wronged you. It helps others to avoid the same traps and it’s good to keep companies on their toes. What I’m not for is concerted efforts to bring down a companies reputation based on lies. I vet the comments more thoroughly now. As you can read in my review of my experience with RouteNote, they haven’t been perfect, but they have been honest and I’m pleased with my experience.

You can choose another music distribution service if you like. Just because I’m ok with RouteNote doesn’t mean you have to be. But let’s be honest in our evaluations of other companies. Is RouteNote a scam? No! The commenters that trash companies without justification (probably paid to do so) are the scammers. And no, I don’t mean if you have had a negative experience with RouteNote that you don’t get to share that. You can share it in my comments section, as long as I don’t detect that you are a paid shill.

New Sermon – The Highest Calling

I was given the opportunity to speak again at Harbor Chapel on July 31, 2016. I titled it “The Highest Calling”. It’s about how, as Christians, we’re called to live outstanding lives and I wanted to encourage others to aim for that goal. I also believe that we should hold each other accountable for our behavior, uncomfortable as that may be. Here is the audio:

And here is a meager powerpoint presentation I made to go along with it:

The Highest Calling