This should be an introductory paragraph about how I’m going to make a list to remember the year 2008. I feel as if I am pressed for time, so this will have to do. This year was pretty swell and the following list are things that I have done, or things that I have witnessed first hand within the past year.
(This list is in no order whatsoever.)
Started a blog
Made a youtube account
Started a webcomic
Made 25 comics
“Retired” the webcomic
Had a truck
Drove the truck through water
Fixed the truck
Sold the truck
Got a car
Started my final quarter at Rhodes State College
Finished my last quarter at Rhodes
Graduated with an Associates Degree in Computer Networking
Finished college
Applied to Mount Vernon Nazarene University
Started my first semester at MVNU
Finished my first semester at MVNU
Lived away from home for the first time
Gained about 20 lbs
Quit World of Warcraft
Lost a little over 30 lbs
Attended my sister’s graduation
Attended a friend’s funeral
Learned how to solve a Rubik’s cube
Threw a Rubik’s cube at a tree out of anger
Started watching The Office
Stopped being a pirate
Went to summer camp
Attended fall retreat
District B.L.A.S.T.
Regional B.L.A.S.T.
Paid over $4.00 for a gallon of gas
Paid under $1.50 for a gallon of gas
Acquired a taste for The Grateful Dead
Was a youth pastor and a college student
Now just a student
Faced at least one tough decision and survived
Left home church because of move/college
Found a new church while at college
Left a lot of friends
Made a lot of friends
Consumed at least one banana
Started taking vitamins
Gave myself a bedtime
Purchased my first piece of furniture
Wondered how I would get the chair home at the end of the year
The problem solved itself
Bumped my head into something
Tried growing a beard
Got glasses again
Started a countdown to November 11, 2011
Played only one game of Monopoly
Helped piece together a 3-D Puzzle
Had the nation’s best pizza
I’m sure I’ve done more things, but it looks like time has ran out this year.
--John D.
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Super Tire
Bennett and I were instant messaging each other. All that was said is lost in history. Bennett was going to go to sleep. He let me know just as much.
"I'm super tire."
(Click ^ to enlarge)
Thank you Bennett for being sleep deprived and having this wonderful typo.
--John D.
"I'm super tire."
(Click ^ to enlarge)Thank you Bennett for being sleep deprived and having this wonderful typo.
--John D.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Questions and Realizations
Some questions that should never be asked. If such questions are asked, they should not be thought about for prolonged periods of time. These are short snippets of such conversations.
If batman would fight Darth Vader, who would win?
Star Wars fans versus DC fans. Personally, I think that Darth Vader would win. A friend of mine claims that Batman would win because “he is a stud.” I think Vader would win because he uses the force, and technology and strength alone cannot defeat the force. Can Batman escape from a force choke hold? I don’t think so. Darth Vader has survived lava burns. For those who say that Batman would win, I disagree. What it simply comes down to is this: If both people were real, then they would never meet without both a time and space traveling device. Because we all know that Darth Vader has died... a long long time ago... somewhere very far away. Needless to say for this argument, both have style for dressing in black and having a cape. Also, they are both awesome.
Is there a fourth dimension?
This is not as much an argument as much as a theory. A friend and I were walking across campus and we came to these conclusions. People cannot see the fourth dimension, 3D is enough for us. Time is usually considered the fourth dimension. Then this question evolved.
If we cannot see the fourth dimension, can cartoons see the third dimension?
The conclusions my friends and I ended up with are as follows. Cartoons would not have concept of the third dimension since they are two dimensional beings. Said cartoons would then have no concept of time, because if time is in fact the fourth dimension, it would only make sense that they could not fathom a dimension past one that is already out of their abilities to know. The cartoon would not have time. Which makes perfect sense because a cartoon is not a being. A cartoon is something made from many single images over time. This ended up making a lot of sense and disproving itself by making the original question invalid.
Although it seems like this last question was all for naught, it did give me a splendid idea. Picture if you will, a cartoon character being in deep thought. Asking many of the same questions to himself, aside from Batman vs. Darth Vader. “Is there a third dimension?” and then, “Is there such a thing as time for me.” The two dimensional being would them realize what he is asking, “How can I ask if there is time, if I do not know about time, since time would be too advanced for my two dimensional knowledge.” The character would then realize what he is saying. “How can I know about all of these things that I shouldn’t know about?” Reality would set in. Because, you see, the cartoon we are talking about is a mere figment of the creators imagination. Since I am the creator of this cartoon person, I will be a mean creator and let him continue to ask himself questions.
“Are my actions my own?” No, they aren’t.
“Can I think on my own?” No, he can’t.
“Do I have a purpose?” Not really.
He would realize that he has absolutely no purpose, and his world is imaginary. Poor little cartoon character didn’t have a chance with my imagination. This is truly a more depressing story than that part in Bambi when his mother gets shot by a hunter. I blame finals week for my depressing imagination.
Unlike the little cartoon character in my imagination, I know my life is not so purposeless. I believe that my God has personally created me. He has knit me in my mothers womb (Ps. 139). If I didn’t have the relationship I do with God and if I did not know Christ, then my life would.
Ecclesiastes 1:2b-11
"Utterly meaningless!
Everything is meaningless."
3 What does man gain from all his labor
at which he toils under the sun?
4 Generations come and generations go,
but the earth remains forever.
5 The sun rises and the sun sets,
and hurries back to where it rises.
6 The wind blows to the south
and turns to the north;
round and round it goes,
ever returning on its course.
7 All streams flow into the sea,
yet the sea is never full.
To the place the streams come from,
there they return again.
8 All things are wearisome,
more than one can say.
The eye never has enough of seeing,
nor the ear its fill of hearing.
9 What has been will be again,
what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun.
10 Is there anything of which one can say,
"Look! This is something new"?
It was here already, long ago;
it was here before our time.
11 There is no remembrance of men of old,
and even those who are yet to come
will not be remembered
by those who follow.
But there is good news! Aside from everything that seems meaningless, we can have purpose in life.
Ecclesiastes 5:4-7
4 When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow. 5 It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfill it. 6 Do not let your mouth lead you into sin. And do not protest to the temple messenger, "My vow was a mistake." Why should God be angry at what you say and destroy the work of your hands? 7 Much dreaming and many words are meaningless. Therefore stand in awe of God.
But what do we need to do to keep our vow with God? One guy once asked Jesus, “What do I need to do to live forever in heaven?”
Matthew 19:16-19
16Now a man came up to Jesus and asked, "Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?"
17"Why do you ask me about what is good?" Jesus replied. "There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, obey the commandments."
18"Which ones?" the man inquired.
Jesus replied, " 'Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, 19honor your father and mother,' and 'love your neighbor as yourself.'"
Love your neighbor as yourself. My neighbors don’t deserve my love. People I barely know don’t deserve my love. People who have hurt me don’t deserve my love. People who have destroyed my property and then laughed at it don’t deserve my love. Past friends who have hurt me more than they know don’t deserve my love. Ny neighbors don’t deserve my love.
But you see, I don’t deserve God’s love. He loves me more than I can ever know and more than I will ever be able to love anyone.
1 John 4:7-10;16b-19
7Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.
10This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.
God is love.
Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. 17In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. 18There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
19We love because he first loved us.
Lets face it. We don’t deserve the love that God gives us, we don’t deserve it one bit. He loves us anyway.
The best thing we can do is love God totally, and share the love that God has given us with everyone we meet.
36"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" 37Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' 40All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
We love because he first loved us.
--John D.
If batman would fight Darth Vader, who would win?
Star Wars fans versus DC fans. Personally, I think that Darth Vader would win. A friend of mine claims that Batman would win because “he is a stud.” I think Vader would win because he uses the force, and technology and strength alone cannot defeat the force. Can Batman escape from a force choke hold? I don’t think so. Darth Vader has survived lava burns. For those who say that Batman would win, I disagree. What it simply comes down to is this: If both people were real, then they would never meet without both a time and space traveling device. Because we all know that Darth Vader has died... a long long time ago... somewhere very far away. Needless to say for this argument, both have style for dressing in black and having a cape. Also, they are both awesome.
Is there a fourth dimension?
This is not as much an argument as much as a theory. A friend and I were walking across campus and we came to these conclusions. People cannot see the fourth dimension, 3D is enough for us. Time is usually considered the fourth dimension. Then this question evolved.
If we cannot see the fourth dimension, can cartoons see the third dimension?
The conclusions my friends and I ended up with are as follows. Cartoons would not have concept of the third dimension since they are two dimensional beings. Said cartoons would then have no concept of time, because if time is in fact the fourth dimension, it would only make sense that they could not fathom a dimension past one that is already out of their abilities to know. The cartoon would not have time. Which makes perfect sense because a cartoon is not a being. A cartoon is something made from many single images over time. This ended up making a lot of sense and disproving itself by making the original question invalid.
Although it seems like this last question was all for naught, it did give me a splendid idea. Picture if you will, a cartoon character being in deep thought. Asking many of the same questions to himself, aside from Batman vs. Darth Vader. “Is there a third dimension?” and then, “Is there such a thing as time for me.” The two dimensional being would them realize what he is asking, “How can I ask if there is time, if I do not know about time, since time would be too advanced for my two dimensional knowledge.” The character would then realize what he is saying. “How can I know about all of these things that I shouldn’t know about?” Reality would set in. Because, you see, the cartoon we are talking about is a mere figment of the creators imagination. Since I am the creator of this cartoon person, I will be a mean creator and let him continue to ask himself questions.
“Are my actions my own?” No, they aren’t.
“Can I think on my own?” No, he can’t.
“Do I have a purpose?” Not really.
He would realize that he has absolutely no purpose, and his world is imaginary. Poor little cartoon character didn’t have a chance with my imagination. This is truly a more depressing story than that part in Bambi when his mother gets shot by a hunter. I blame finals week for my depressing imagination.
Unlike the little cartoon character in my imagination, I know my life is not so purposeless. I believe that my God has personally created me. He has knit me in my mothers womb (Ps. 139). If I didn’t have the relationship I do with God and if I did not know Christ, then my life would.
Ecclesiastes 1:2b-11
"Utterly meaningless!
Everything is meaningless."
3 What does man gain from all his labor
at which he toils under the sun?
4 Generations come and generations go,
but the earth remains forever.
5 The sun rises and the sun sets,
and hurries back to where it rises.
6 The wind blows to the south
and turns to the north;
round and round it goes,
ever returning on its course.
7 All streams flow into the sea,
yet the sea is never full.
To the place the streams come from,
there they return again.
8 All things are wearisome,
more than one can say.
The eye never has enough of seeing,
nor the ear its fill of hearing.
9 What has been will be again,
what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun.
10 Is there anything of which one can say,
"Look! This is something new"?
It was here already, long ago;
it was here before our time.
11 There is no remembrance of men of old,
and even those who are yet to come
will not be remembered
by those who follow.
But there is good news! Aside from everything that seems meaningless, we can have purpose in life.
Ecclesiastes 5:4-7
4 When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow. 5 It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfill it. 6 Do not let your mouth lead you into sin. And do not protest to the temple messenger, "My vow was a mistake." Why should God be angry at what you say and destroy the work of your hands? 7 Much dreaming and many words are meaningless. Therefore stand in awe of God.
But what do we need to do to keep our vow with God? One guy once asked Jesus, “What do I need to do to live forever in heaven?”
Matthew 19:16-19
16Now a man came up to Jesus and asked, "Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?"
17"Why do you ask me about what is good?" Jesus replied. "There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, obey the commandments."
18"Which ones?" the man inquired.
Jesus replied, " 'Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, 19honor your father and mother,' and 'love your neighbor as yourself.'"
Love your neighbor as yourself. My neighbors don’t deserve my love. People I barely know don’t deserve my love. People who have hurt me don’t deserve my love. People who have destroyed my property and then laughed at it don’t deserve my love. Past friends who have hurt me more than they know don’t deserve my love. Ny neighbors don’t deserve my love.
But you see, I don’t deserve God’s love. He loves me more than I can ever know and more than I will ever be able to love anyone.
1 John 4:7-10;16b-19
7Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.
10This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.
God is love.
Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. 17In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. 18There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
19We love because he first loved us.
Lets face it. We don’t deserve the love that God gives us, we don’t deserve it one bit. He loves us anyway.
The best thing we can do is love God totally, and share the love that God has given us with everyone we meet.
36"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" 37Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' 40All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
We love because he first loved us.
--John D.
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