Elves, buttercups, etc

It all depends on your point of view

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 05:35:10 GMT

Once again I encountered an attitude that always surprises me. I was accused of attacking the Bible when I said that it contains events that, from my external point of view, can only be described as deity approved horrors. Yet this same individual did not consider it an attack when they said that someday I would be forced to kneel before God and would go to hell or when they said that loving, committed, same-sex relationships are an affront on morality.

To some degree, all humans fall prey to the bias of their own perspective. Both of us considered ourselves to be making statements which, from our own point of view, fall under the category of painful truths, not attacks.

Yet I have found that some Christians (not all) quickly jump to the conclusion that atheists are on the offensive when they say anything less than complimentary about religion. They assume that a very specific comment has a very general meaning. Often, these same Christians then go on to say things as bad or worse than what was said to them, but they do not see themselves as attacking and claim innocence if their statements are pointed out.

An much smaller subset turns this into a persecution complex. These are people who really believe there is a war on Christmas. They truly believe that they are like the early Christians and society is trying to crush them out of existence. When you point out that Christians are the vast majority in this nation, they claim that most of those people are not "real Christians" (I always imagine that followed by a trademark symbol). Fortunately, these people, despite their prevalence on the internet, are a small group.

In the end, this biased perspective no longer makes me feel angry or hurt or insulted. But it has become tiresome.

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 21:11:44 GMT

Game day is next Saturday, November 14! Please let us know if you think you might make it.

Within the next couple weeks we'll start organizing Thanksmas. Mark your calendars!

Finished "Some Place LIke Home", 3/5

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 18:45:52 GMT

Finished Some Place Like Home: Using Design Psychology to Create Ideal Places by Toby Israel. In this book Israel lays out the ideas beyond what she calls Design Psychology. Design psychology investigates the connection between your past experiences of place and your present experiences of place (note that there are other uses and definitions of the phrase).

The book was divided into four parts: the past, the present, the future, and case studies. Each of the first three sections was divided into three parts: a general discussion of some aspect of design psychology, three interviews (the same three people interviewed for the theme of each chapter), and a list of design psychology exercises related to each section.

I personally found the interviews to be somewhat tedious. One of the interviewees was a post-modernist architect and architectural critic, and he was just as determined to conclude that his architecture had nothing to do with his past as the author was determined to conclude that there was a deep connection.

The exercises and their explanations were by far the most useful part of the book. The exercises helped clarify the different ways that people can come to their preferences for place. I think that these exercises are actually more valid for folks without architectural training than for the architects interviewed. Architects have formal training, so it makes sense that many factors, including the past, training, experience, art, influence their sense of place. For the rest of us, our sense of place builds mainly from the places we have experienced in the past and present.

A brief description of each exercise:

Past, Environmental Family Tree: List and reflect upon the type of places your extended family has lived in. E.g., urban, rural, suburban, poverty, riches, middle class, strong community, isolated, etc.

Past, Environmental Time Line: List and reflect upon the large scale places you have lived during your own life. Categorize them using your own sense of place as cities, towns, villages, suburbs, or countryside. Determine which type of setting you lived in the most as a child and as an adult.

Past, Mental Map: Draw a detailed map of one setting that was memorable for you before age 18. It need not be technically correct; it should reflect what you remember. Consider what made the setting distinctive and memorable.

Past, Favorite Childhood Place Visualization: Take a detailed mental tour of your favorite childhood place; try to engage all your senses. This place is likely to be at a smaller scale than the last exercise. E.g., if your mental map was of a town, this may be of a house or a playground. What made this place special? What qualities from this place do you or do you want to capture in your present?

Present, Personality and Place: Take some personality test of your choice. Reflect on how your personality reflects your sense of place. If you feel your current space does not align with your personality, how can you change it?

Present, Environmental Sociogram: If you live with others, do a rough sketch of your current home. Mark each space as individual space, shared space, or public space. Is there a good balance of each type of space? How could you change this to fit the balance you desire?

Future, Special Objects Inventory: List the objects that are most special in your life and what they mean to you. E.g., photographs might represent a love of family or a connection to tradition. Consider whether or not these objects actually reflect you. What values do you have that are not represented in your special objects?

Future, Homestyle: Analyze your past and present sense of home style according to the following categories: high culture, upper middle culture, lower middle culture, low culture, quasi-folk culture, fringe cultures. Consider the similarities and differences between the style categorization of your past and your present.

Future, Creating Some Place Like Home: Consider how well your home setting, home, and special objects satisfy the different levels in the following pyramid of needs (listed from base to top): home as shelter (safety, protection), home as place of psychological satisfaction (self-expression, love, and belonging), home as place of social satisfaction (privacy, community), home as place of aesthetic satisfaction (pleasure of beauty).

I found going through these exercises to be useful. They did not reveal any profound truths, but they did help me understand some aspects of my taste. For example, none of my childhood homes had attached garages; this may influence why I think attached garages are so ugly. Two of my childhood homes had attic spaces where I had a bed room; this may be part of the reason why I find attics to be such cozy, private spaces. Nothing earth shattering, but these are still useful things to understand.

Overall, I recommend the book. I believe that I will eventually buy a copy of my own to have access to the exercises.

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:06:58 GMT

You know you've forgotten high school/early college when you are reading a resume and see reference to a scholarship and think, "That looks kind of familiar. Did I get that scholarship?"

Sat, 31 Oct 2009 14:59:20 GMT

Health insurance claim summary:

Amount billed: $34.00
Amount we paid: $4.72
Patient responsibility: $0.52

I wonder if this claim cost more to administrate than the actual amount charged.

Sat, 31 Oct 2009 04:03:10 GMT

Note to self, in retrospect these two ways of phrasing a TODO item do not mean the same thing:

Buy 2 D batteries.

Buy 2D batteries.

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 20:24:17 GMT

I keep trying to add Joel on Software to my RSS queue, partially because I disagree with him a lot of the time. However, it seems like every time I subscribe to the blog, I see another article on how standard university CS education is useless. I then unsubscribe, not because his views are not worth discussing, but because it makes him seem so repetitive that I just assume he has nothing new to say.

So I ask the rest of you, have I just had an unlucky set of samples or is Joel On Software really just the type of blog that keeps repeating the same few topics over and over again?

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 14:48:00 GMT

I just have to reshare this link from iris_of_ether

What happens when two gamer anime fans get married? Awesomeness!

More details.

Toward a New Regionalism: 3/5

Sat, 24 Oct 2009 17:37:11 GMT

Finished Toward a New Regionalism: Environmental Architecture in the Pacific Northwest by David E. Miller. This book describes Pacific Northwest regional architecture and its connections the environment and sustainability. The author's thesis is that PNW regional architecture has always had an aspect of environmental responsibility because of the region's strong connection to the natural world. This historic connection has expressed itself in homes that use local materials, orient themselves with respect to light and wind, and take advantage of the relatively mild northwest climate.

Stylistically, Pacific Northwest regionalism has its roots in modernism, but it eschews the extreme minimalism of modernism for a closer integration with the natural world. Thus, while you will see post and beam construction and large expanses of glass in our regional architecture, you will also see use of natural materials and buildings that try to blend with the natural environment. My non-architecturally educated intuition is that Pacific Northwest regionalism takes more after the styles of Frank Lloyd Wright than more stark modernists such as Le Corbusier.

What I appreciated most about this book was the discussion of sustainable building technologies that are applicable to the region. For example, partial earth sheltering is an effective strategy in the NW because our geography is rather hilly. Our mild climates and low light levels both contribute to making passive solar strategies more effective than active solar strategies. Bioswales and rain gardens are particularly effective in the area for obvious reasons.

What made the book less appealing to me was that it focused on non-residential buildings. I did enjoyed learning about applying sustainable strategies to all building types, but my main interest lies the architecture of the home, and I would have appreciated if there had been at least one case study which discussed how regional design strategies can influence homes.

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 02:39:58 GMT

The heater in my hotel room seems to be unable to actually, you know, heat my room. Pity.

Real game day reminder!

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 00:28:58 GMT

Don't forget that next Saturday, Oct 17 is Game Day!

Finished "test-driven development: A Practical Guide", 2/5

Sun, 04 Oct 2009 05:31:53 GMT

Finished test-driven development: A Practical Guide by David Astels. The book contains three parts. Part 1 introduces the reader to test-driven development. Part 2 discusses various tools and techniques for doing TDD. Part 3 presents an extended example by going through the test-driven development of a movie rating application.

Test-driven development builds on the principle that developers should write tests before they write code. The tests determine the code that needs to be written. As a side effect, this results in a suite of programmer tests. However, the book stresses that TDD primarily exists as a development methodology, not a testing methodology. The test suite produced by this methodology should not be considered a replacement for through testing by those who have testing as their primary goal.

My detailed impressions of the book and test-driven development.

test-driven development: A Practical Guide provides a good introduction to test-driven development. It contains many useful insights and practical tips. However, I suspect that you can find more focused, up-to-date introductions to the topic than the one found in this book.

Sun, 04 Oct 2009 00:20:01 GMT

Finished A Pattern Language by Christopher Alexander, Sara Ishikawa, and Murray Silverstein. For anyone interested in urban design, place making, or the design of interior spaces, this book is a must read, or at least a must skim.

A Pattern Language is a catalog of 253 patterns that cover everything from the layout of cities down to the layout of rooms. Some of the patterns have been criticized, particularly those dealing with the layout of cities and towns, but overall, the patterns provide a rich guide to what makes a place feel good.

Especially with regard to designing homes, A Pattern Language stands out from other books because it does not suggest one size sets all rules. A design can combine patterns in different ways depending on the specific constraints. No "look" or "style" defines a pattern built home. The authors consider some patterns fundamental enough that they should always be used (e.g. light on at least two sides of every room), but ultimately patterns define the essence of those factors which have made for good places across different eras, styles, and locales.

An online catalog of the pattners.

Game day delayed

Sat, 03 Oct 2009 23:51:13 GMT

Game day is NOT next week. Instead, we are delaying Game Day until Saturday 17 October at 2:00pm.

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 17:51:59 GMT

I have learned from Bad Machinery that puberty causes girls' hair to acquire volume.

Sun, 20 Sep 2009 18:22:22 GMT

Does anyone collect word magnets and want some? We acquired some we will just be throwing away if no one else claims them.

Sun, 20 Sep 2009 17:55:27 GMT

A year ago today, we brought Kageneko from the home of his temporary owners to our home. He resented the change at first, but he quickly adapted to his position as the most important kitty in the world (as far as he can tell).

Kage limited his initial explorations to the upstairs. He spent many of his hours on our bed and my sister's bed. My sister's bed was an especial favorite because it got the daytime sun.

Eventually, he started exploring downstairs. At first, he would only visit briefly, but overtime he has come to the point where he prefers to be where we are, wherever that may be. Lately, he has been so bold as to come down stairs during anime night, when there are lots of people around.

The price to pay for having an unbelievably soft kitty is that we end up with nice soft kitty fur all over. We keep things reasonable with frequent vacuuming and not quite frequent enough brushing. Things have been better since Kage shed his long winter coat for a slightly less long summer coat. He shed his winter coat while we visited Greece; there was so much fur on the furniture that we could have made a sweater!

He is an indoor cat, but he retains his hunter's instincts. He plays frequently with his favorite toys, the feather stick and the catnip mouse, and play, for Kage, means destruction. We recently had to retire the mouse because it was too holey to hold catnip anymore. His feather stick (actually, his second feather stick) is nearly down to a plastic nub and will have to be replaced soon too. Kage takes his play seriously.

Happy homecoming day Kage!

Finished "The Separation of Church and State" - 3/5

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 01:30:01 GMT

Finished The Separation of Church and State: Writings on a Fundamental Freedom by America's Founders edited by Forrest Church. This short book contains extracts of revolutionary era writings about the separation of church and and state. Favorites such as Thomas Jefferson and George Washington make an appearance as do less well known writers such as Isaac Backus and Oliver Ellsworth.

"Separation of church and state" is a phrase that is bandied around without knowledge of its historical origins. First, as I hope we all know, the phrase itself does not appear in the Constitution or the Declaration of Independence. Instead, it first appeared in a letter written by Thomas Jefferson (Ch. 14 in the book):

Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legislative powers of government reach actions only, and not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature would "make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof," thus building a wall of separation between church and state.

One common disagreement in modern discussion is whether we should aim for freedom from religion or freedom for religion. Both threads find expression in the writings in the book. As the author says in the introduction:

As was true of the broader American struggle for freedom, the revolution that led to religious liberty was powered by two very different engines: one driven by eighteenth-century Enlightenment values, the other guided by Christian imperatives that grew out of the Great Awakening, a spiritual movement that spread like wildfire across the American colonies throughout the middle decades of that same century. The former movement, emphasizing freedom of conscience as both a political and a philosophical virtue, stressed freedom from the dictates of organized religion. The later, stemming from a devout reading of the gospels (especially their proclamation of spiritual liberty from bondage to the world's principalities and powers), demanded freedom for religion.

I feel that freedom of conscience suffers from poor health in modern America. Not just with respect to religion but, in general, Americans are quick to judge someone based only on what they believe, not on their actions. I see this, of course, in debates about religion and its proper role in a secular society. But I also see it more widely. I see it in the fact that some said Larry Summers should not be an economic advisor to the President because of what he had said about gender at Harvard (how is that relevant to being an economic advisor?). I see this in the very current debates about race in this country where we are obsessed with whether or not people think racist thoughts, not whether or not they act on them.

I do not want to imply that people's opinions are irrelevant, but we have come to a place in American society where beliefs are often considered more important than actions. That is sad and destructive. Reading books like this remind us about the fundamental debates that define our country have, at their core, something much deeper than superficial displays of religiousity.

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 20:53:53 GMT

Public domain books printed on demand. As a reader of obscure books, I as super excited about this.

List of locations, including an upcoming location at Third Place Books!

Google Web Toolkit Applications, 2/5

Sun, 13 Sep 2009 21:11:52 GMT

Finished Google Web Toolkit Applications by Ryan Dewsbury. We read this book as part of a reading group at work. In this book Dewsbury goes over the basics of using the Google Web Toolkit (GWT) and discusses a number of sample applications that show how GWT can be used in projects that are slightly larger than your standard example project.

Like most books on a specific technology, this book is not destined to be a classic. When this book was written the current version of GWT was 1.4. Since then there have been some major changes to GWT. That said, Google Web Toolkit Applications does a fine job of introducing developers to the basics of GWT, and if a newer version existed, I would recommend it to anyone wanting to learn GWT. Given only the current version, I still recommend the book to anyone willing to read through the release notes of all the versions since 1.4. I would also caution that this book introduces you to writing GWT applications. It does not necessarily introduce you to the art of writing high performance GWT applications.

The full summary which goes into detail about the contents of the book.

This book provides a good introduction to GWT, but, despite the author's claims to greater generality, it really is an introduction to GWT and web development for Java desktop developers rather than an introduction to GWT for developers already familiar with web development and who, therefore, really want an in depth explanation of GWT with respect to the many well known pitfalls of web apps.

Game day warning

Sat, 12 Sep 2009 00:19:44 GMT

They will be painting our front porch tomorrow. For reals! So come in the garage when you arrive. The door bell is flaky so if we don't answer the door try yelling (since the deck door will probably be open) or calling.

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 04:20:12 GMT

It hardly seems worth writing to my senators when the replies I get are always obviously form letters. Even though I understand the practical need for having canned responses on popular subjects, it still serves to leave me unmotivated to communicate with them in the future.

Life update!

Mon, 07 Sep 2009 19:01:56 GMT

Now that summer is pretty much over, I figure I should get around to updating the world about what we have been up to lately.

Jeff and I joined a CSA this summer. In addition to having an excess of delicious veggies, we have been trying new things. My favorite is kohlrabi, but I have also developed quite a fondness for beets. As you can see, red beets make a brilliantly colored sauce.

In July, I splashed oil on my arm and burned it. This resulted in a trip to the emergency room where I discovered that, fortunately, my burn was large but not deep enough to be really worrisome. I had to keep my arm wrapped up for two weeks. I have some scarring, but surprisingly little considering how extensive it was initially.

At the end of July, we finally got the MINI back. McLeod Autobody is Kirkland did a great job of repairing the damage from the accident. The bill was higher than predicted, but it all worked out in the end. (And in case you don't remember, the damage was extensive.)

We spent a lot of time with the family this summer including dinners with Grandma, birthday parties at Dad's, and a baseball game with Jeff's family.

We filled August with great food. We made homemade sushi with CSA cucumber and farmer's market tuna. Delicious! The pieces did lack structural integrity; clearly, I need to practice by making more sushi. For the record, Eden Food's wasabi powder does not make very good wasabi.

The other great August food event was dinner at the Herb farm. Jeff and I had a wonderful 9 course dinner made with ingredients from within 100 miles of the restaurant (all the ingredients, including the salt). Everything was good, but the corn soup and the best salmon were the best I have tasted.

Jeff and I finally bought a queen sized bed. The bed is composed of a latex core wrapped in wool. We decided to get an espresso finished pedestal with built in drawers and beech sheets. I sleep better on this bed than I have slept on any I have every owned. It was worth the 6 week wait.

Of course, we have still be having our regular game days and anime nights, and have started attending the new tradition of a movie night at a friend's house. Now we hope to have a somewhat relaxed fall before we get into the busy holiday season.

Game day!

Mon, 07 Sep 2009 17:00:21 GMT

Next Saturday (9/12) is game day! We'll start at 2-3pm, as usual.

Let us know if you can make it!

Reflections on "Caritas in veritate" -- Conclusion

Sat, 05 Sep 2009 15:06:31 GMT

The growth of for-profit non-profit-maximizing businesses must be encouraged both by friendly regulatory environments and consumer support. Business owners should be given the opportunity to build businesses that are in line with their long term values without suffering due to regulations that favor investors over other stake holders. There should be a focus on providing work that is decent.

This is a lot to ask. No group can make change happen on its own. However, there are some promising signs. The variety of business is growing. Businesses are finding ways to be innovative even now. Consumers are starting to care about more than just cost in some areas. The growth of the sustainability and fair trade movements illustrates this. Now we need to keep up the momentum both as individuals and as a society.

The encyclical explores many other topics that I have neglected. Essays I considered adding to this series but didn't include reflections on the environment, food and agriculture, energy, economic aid, immigration and migrant workers, and technology. Given the amount I had to say about the things I do agree with, I chose not to discuss the areas where I disagree with the Pope's evaluation.

Even without those additions, the key theme of the encyclical, "charity in truth" still shines through. Many of the global systems that developed to make life better for individuals now makes life worse for many (sometimes most) of the people on the planet. These systems have reduced the human element to models and facts which, while useful as tools, prove harmful when they replace the consideration of individuals and their needs. Charity should not be limited to personal interactions. It must, hand in hand with truth, provide the basis of all interactions at all levels.

Links to the encyclical and all of my essays: