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Bread – Seasons
June 30, 2015
Readings for Tuesday, June 30, 2015, designated by the 1979 Book of Common Prayer: 1 Sam. 11:1-15; Acts 8:1-13; Luke 22:63-71; Psalms 120-127
I hesitated to write Bread today because (a) I did not know what Scriptures the Lord would provide today through the Book of Common Prayer and (b) I was afraid that I might have to write about the events of the last week, where five members of the United States Supreme Court elevated themselves over God to redefine what the word "marriage" means for society. Although they did not say (yet) that this definition applies to people of faith, it probably will because, although we are citizens of the Kingdom of God, we live in Rome.
The three readings today illustrate three responses to the actions of the world. Which one is right for today?
In the first reading, a group of Israelites is overrun by pagans and wants to give up, but when they hear the terms of surrender (gouge out their right eye), they ask for help from the rest of Israel. "And the Spirit of God rushed upon Saul when he heard these words, and his anger was greatly kindled…Then the dread of the Lord fell upon the people, and they came out as one man…And the next day … they [Saul and the Israelites] came into the midst of the camp [of the Ammorites, the pagans] … and struck down the Ammorites …" 1 Sam. 11:6-11. Here, the men of God were called to war against evil by the Spirit of God. There is a time and place historically for war with the weapons of war, but we need to remember that this is Old Testament teaching and Christ has advised us to forgive first and, when struck, to turn the other cheek. So holy war is probably not the appropriate response unless and until we as Christians hear the clarion call of the Holy Spirit. When (and if) that happens, it will not be subject to debate because "the dread of the Lord" will fall upon "the people" and it will be obvious.
In the second reading from Acts, Saul (another one, later to be renamed Paul), has authorized the killing of Stephen, a Christian. "And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered … But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison. Now those who were scattered went about preaching the Word." Acts 8:1-4. Here we see that, notwithstanding exile and other bad consequences, Christians continued to live as Christians, "preaching the Word" where they ended up. Stephen's death did not affect them, exile did not affect them, imprisonment did not affect them – their belief was solid and continued through adversity, and by their lives and proclamation of the Word they did not flinch from letting it be known who and whose they were. This is Christian living, citizens of the Kingdom of God living in Rome. It is unapologetic and unrelenting. During this time, while under direct and consistent attack, the Christian community gets stronger, not weaker, and the proclamation of Christ becomes bolder, not softer. Elsewhere in Scripture, this form of living is called "standing" ("Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil…Therefore, take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm." Eph. 6:10-13).
The third reading is from Luke, where Jesus has been taken, held, ridiculed, set for trial and, as we know, destined for death on the cross. Lk. 22:63-71. As followers of Christ, should we expect better?
In the seasons of our life as a Christian, we may be called to fight, to stand, and/or to die. Which one will it be in this season of the exaltation of man's thought over God's Word?
I don't know, but I do know this. In season or out of season, God is sovereign, His Word is the touchstone for how I and His people should live their lives, and Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the life, and that there are no other ways to eternal life but with, in and through Him. And that is true whether we are in the season of war, of standing, or of imprisonment and death. And that is true whether Caesar, the Supreme Court, or the majority of the people agree or not.
Bread — Fear
June 23, 2015
Readings for Tuesday, June 23, 2015, designated by the 1979 Book of Common Prayer: 1 Sam. 6:1-16; Acts 5:27-42; Luke 21:37-22:13; Psalms 94, 95, 97, 99, 100
Who do you fear?
This is actually a more profound question than may first appear. In fact, it is the topic of all three of our readings today.
In Samuel, the infidel Philistines feared God and so did what was right before God, even though their religious system did not recognize Him, and they returned the stolen ark to Israel, along with a "guilt offering" for their trespass.
In Acts, Gamaliel, "a teacher of the law held in honor by all the people," sort of fears God and so he counsels the Jewish council to release the apostles from capture because "if this [the apostles'/Jesus'] plan or this undertaking is of man, it will fail; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You might even be found opposing God!" Acts 5:34,38-39. Gamaliel knew God well enough and feared Him enough that he knew that God was in control of the outcome and to avoid being opposed to God's work. Here, Gamaliel did not necessarily "help" God by returning the ark (the apostles) but feared God enough to not oppose Him by keeping the apostles either.
And then, finally, there is our reading from Luke where "the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how to put Him [Jesus] to death, for they feared the people." Lk. 22:2. The people were following Jesus rather than them, they feared "the people" and their loss of power and position, and they struck back against God to protect themselves.
In these three readings we are confronted with a certain reality. Those of us who claim Christ, may attend church from time to time, may participate in a "Bible study" as much for its social benefit as its revelation of the Word, and believe that "fundamentalism" is dead or dying because the church needs to "change" to reflect "reality," really do take Him for granted. Those of us in that category are more afraid of what people may think of us than what God thinks of us; we are more afraid of disgrace, condemnation, death and imprisonment at the hands of man rather than eternal damnation at the hand of God.
Do we, so-called Christians, really fear God. How is it that the unbeliever (the Philistines) and the works-believer (Gamaliel) fear our God more than we do, we who claim to know Him and worship Him and love Him?
We don't like to use the word "fear" because it is a negative word. If we fear God, the thinking goes, then we will want to run away from Him and not run toward Him. I suggest that the opposite is true. When we truly fear God, what is brought home is the grace-mercy by which we have been saved. When we truly fear God, the enormity of what God did for us on the cross is brought home. When we truly fear God, we have faith in our future because we know that a fearsome God fights for us and will deliver us. A so-so God may not keep His promise; a strong, fearsome God will always keep His promise because it is His nature. The very things which make God fearsome are those things which make Him Lord, Savior, and Redeemer.
So, who do we fear? Man or God.
Choose wisely.
Bread – Poverty
June 19, 2015
Readings for Thursday, June 18, 2015, designated by the 1979 Book of Common Prayer: 1 Sam. 2:27-36; Acts 2:22-36; Luke 20:41-21:4; Psalms 34, 85, 86
There was a boy, about seven or eight years old, who had nothing. He received a cookie as a gift and immediately proceeded to break it apart and give the pieces to other children around him who also had nothing until he had one small piece left for himself. Seeing me sitting on a rock close by, he came toward me, broke his little piece even further in half, and gave me the piece and smiled.
That, my friends and readers, is a true story and it happened to me on a mission trip in Peru. In that one instant I saw our Lord's instruction regarding the widow and her gift to the Lord contained in our reading today from Luke in its full reality. Out of his poverty the boy gave generously to me, a person who has everything. In that place in Peru, my wealth, which is average in the United States, would be staggering … and I was proud to give chump change to God's work in Peru.
In another reading which was in Bread earlier this year, Jesus says of people like me, with many possessions, "How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God." Mk. 10:23. In response to Jesus' description of the almost impossibility of such, the disciples as Him "Then who can be saved?" And Jesus answers "With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God." Mk. 10:27
As I meditated on this today, it struck me that those who have wealth can certainly drive themselves to poverty, but is that what Jesus is really saying in today's reading and from the reading in Mark? I don't think so, but the widow giving out of poverty is more important to God than giving out of wealth.
So where does that leave us? Well, there is more than one kind of wealth and more than one kind of poverty. When Jesus talks about "poor in spirit," isn't he really talking about a poverty in spirit? And don't we have wealth in spirit, called "self," "selfish," "self-reliant" and the like?
And we can achieve poverty in spirit. How? By recognizing that everything we have is from God, that all of our works which proceed from sin are filthy rags before God, that we have no power to save ourselves by choice or otherwise. Maybe driving us to poverty in spirit is what is meant in part by "repentance."
And once we have reached the bottom of our spirit, when we have realized that strength in self is an illusion, at that point we can throw ourselves in the offering plate and say "Jesus, take me, poor though I am." And at that point He will, because He honors the widow's mite, He honors the poor in spirit who offer themselves as a living sacrifice.
How do we get to this point? With man it is impossible, but not with God – for all things are possible with God.
Come Holy Spirit and fill us with a spirit of poverty so that we may be ready and willing to receive the gifts of love, of power, of self-control, of life which You have ready for us when we are ready.
Bread – Lent
June 16, 2015
Readings for Tuesday, June 16, 2015, designated by the 1979 Book of Common Prayer: 1 Sam. 1:21-2:11; Acts 1:15-26; Luke 20:19-26; Psalm 78
In today's reading from 1 Samuel, we find Hannah with the child Samuel who has not yet been weaned. Hannah was barren, but the Lord heard her prayer and brought her Samuel. "Samuel" means "I have asked for him from the Lord." 1 Sam. 1:20
This is where our reading begins. Hannah is breast-feeding her baby and tells her husband that she will to up to the house of the Lord (then at Shiloh) once he is weaned.
At Shiloh, she (with baby Samuel) go to the chief priest Eli and says "For this child I prayed, and the Lord has granted me my petition that I made to Him. Therefore, I have lent him (Samuel) to the Lord. As long as he lives, he is lent to the Lord." 1 Sam. 1:27-28
Before we move on, let's think for a minute about what happened. There is a tendency with these shorter narratives to burn right through them. In literally a few sentences, Hannah went from barren to bearing a male child, her first, to letting him breast feed from her (firmly establishing the mother-son relationship if it wasn't before), and then "lending" him to the Lord. We know that Samuel stayed with Eli and became a prophet of God; therefore, the "loan" has more elements of permanency than a "loan" would typically imply.
What a tremendous sacrifice! How heartbroken must she have been to give up her just weaned son for the Lord! Most people would have been broken, but she was not. Immediately following her "loan" she begins a prayer with this – "My heart exults in the Lord; my strength is exalted in the Lord …" 1 Sam. 2:1
Now I started this Bread off with the word "sacrifice" but changed it to "lent" for a reason. I was impressed by how sacrificial her gift was compared to my meager, self-centered, leftover offerings to God, and I was ready to talk about that, but something bothered me about the word "lent." I could have sworn that that was not the word I had seen in earlier readings. So I looked at an NASB Bible, and sure enough the word used was "dedicate," which is what I remembered and is what made sense to me. "Dedication" has a more permanent air to it than "lent" and therefore "fits" the passage better. However, the word "dedicate" was footnoted in my NASB and the footnote said "Literally, 'lent'." So the direct and best translation is "lent" and not "dedicate."
This got me more curious so I looked up the Hebrew definition. The Hebrew word in its primary sense means "To inquire, to ask, to entreat, to beg, to borrow, to ask for oneself, to consult." (OT word definition 7592 as referenced in Hebrew-Greek Study Bible, NASB, Ed. Zodhiates (AMG 1990)).
So the "lending" of Samuel to the Lord by Hannah is a form of inquiry prayer, of asking God for help or wisdom or knowledge.
How the Word ties together! We cannot effectively pray until we are ready to sacrifice ourselves by "lending" ourselves to God's will and His work. We cannot effectively worship until we have first "lent" ourselves to God. In order to receive answer to prayer, we need to be ready to give up those things which bind us – wealth, power, position, self.
When we are ready to give up what we most want, we are ready to receive what we most need.
Hannah did that. Will we?
Bread – Sinewave
June 12, 2015
Readings for Thursday, June 11, 2015, designated by the 1979 Book of Common Prayer: *; 2 Cor. 12:1-10; Luke 19:28-40; Psalms 70, 71, 74
I don't know if "sine" and "wave" can be combined to form a single word, "sinewave," but I did it anyway for today's Bread.
When I was first introduced to sine waves in college, I always thought they were neat. There is the curve which goes up to the top, beginning slowly and then speeding up at first and then slower, followed by the crash to the bottom, slow at first and then faster – only to reach the bottom and repeat the process. There was always a middle point, a line, around which the sinewave would go up and down.
In our readings today from both Luke and 2 Corinthians, both Paul and Luke report the existence of lives lived around the cycle of ups and downs, where the ups are really high and the downs are really low.
In Paul's second letter to the church in Corinth, he describes the height of being caught up in the third heaven, into paradise, where he experience things and heard things which were too wonderful and powerful to be repeated. He then goes on to describe the valley which followed, where he was given a "thorn .. in the flesh," which was so bad that he prayed three times to be relieved from it, only to hear from God …"No."
In Luke's gospel, Luke recounts Jesus' grand entry into Jerusalem where he was given a king's reception by the crowd, throwing their cloaks on the road and proclaiming "Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!" Lk. 19:38. Of course we know that from this high point on the sine wave of life, Jesus crashes to the lowest point on the cross, abandoned by all after having been praised by all.
There are some who believe that the Christian life involves the leveling out of the sinewave of experience, putting us into a warm soup of friendship, joy, hope, blessing, and love. Instead the exact opposite is true. The Christian life accentuates the sinewave, taking us to unimaginable heights of revelation and glory and bringing us back to the crassness of our own sin and the sorrowful state of the world around us. The Christian whom God has freed from death to live now lives on the edge because, in his or her ability to love mightily, he or she has the opportunity to ascend to greatest heights and to descend to the greatest depths.
But as I mentioned before, the sinewave operates around a center point, a line. If that line is Christ, the highs may be higher and the lows may be lower, but the sinewave itself is stable because it is rotating around a stable center, a sure promise. In fact, if one were to stand off from our lives in Christ and look at them in time, one would realize that the line around which the highs and lows of life operates is actually ascending. From beginning to end that line runs toward that place of the saints, from dust to eternal life. The lows of the valleys may be low, but they are never quite as low as they were before Christ. The elevator so to speak is going up, so that maybe all we can see is that particular place on the sinewave we are (going up either slow or fast or going down either slow or fast), but what we cannot see but sense is that the center line is rising.
On the other hand, if we do not have Christ as our center line, we are still rotating around a center, but our highs are lower and our lows are lower still until we hit bottom – judgment and eternal death.
We may want to level out the highs and the lows because both are scary places to be for different reasons, but the fact is that God the Father even today in His Word shows us that neither Paul, His apostle, nor Jesus, His Son, were spared the sinewave of life. So our life will have its ups and downs no matter what.
The question is not whether we will have highs and lows. The question is the direction of the line around which the sinewave moves. Is it going up, down, or nowhere?
In our reading from Psalm 70 today, the psalmist says "Make haste, O God, to deliver me! O Lord, make haste to help me!" Ps. 70:1 How often have we said that when we are so high up on the top of the sinewave that we are fearful of crashing? How often have we said that when we are so low at the bottom of the sinewave that we despair of ever returning to normal?
At that time, at the time of crying out to the Lord "Make haste," is the center line going up, down, or nowhere? The subjective evidence is that it is going down or nowhere.
The objective evidence is that it is going up. Why? Look who you are praying to; look who you are relying upon.
Our feelings about whether we are going up or down in life are merely based upon where on the particular sine wave we are today and are therefore untrustworthy measures of our real direction.
The only real measure of our real direction is who we are asking to "make haste" to help us.
I can say "O Lord, make haste to help me!" because I am on the up escalator cycling up or down depending upon where on the sinewave of my life I am, but pressing forward to the top floor from whence cometh my help.
Bread — Weak
June 9, 2015
Readings for Tuesday, June 9, 2015, designated by the 1979 Book of Common Prayer: Deut. 30:11-20; 2 Cor. 11:1-21a; Luke 19:1-10; Psalms 61, 62, 68
From our reading today in Paul's second letter to the church in Corinth: "For you gladly bear with fools, being wise yourselves! For you bear it if someone makes slaves of you, or devours you, or takes advantage of you, or puts on airs, or strikes you in the face. To my shame, I must say, we were too weak for that!" 2 Cor. 11:19-21a.
When I was in school, we had many, many debates going late into the night about politics, various courses and professors, sports, and religion. Side by side with debates over whether we should be in Vietnam (today, that would be Iraq), we had debates over whether the "Virgin Mary" had to be a virgin when she bore Jesus.
We who were full of our education and full of ourselves readily argued like we knew what we were talking about. We were "wise" ourselves.
How much of that still goes on? Don't we consider ourselves smart (wise, educated, knowledgeable) about science, literature, the nature of man, psychology, medicine, computers, technology, and, yes, religion? And because we are wise in the say the world is wise, we listen to other people who also sound wise to our ears. We listen to the great philosophers, the politicians, the experts, the professionals, the consultants, the salesmen, the people in authority, the people who speak authoritatively.
We listen to all of these people. We listen to fools.
And because we can rationalize, because we are on first, because we are pumped up with ourselves, we put up with the dictates of society – we let ourselves be enslaved (by television, by Apple, by government, by scientists, by the academy, by books, by music, by what other [more respected] people say); we put up with being consumed (devoured) by busyness and the commands of culture and business; we love to be around people who put on airs and we like to dress up for the occasion too, showing the world that we too have a suit or maybe even a tuxedo, wearing our fine clothes and finer jewelry; and we put up with people assaulting us with their advertising and their demands.
Why do we let these things happen? Paul's answer is that it begins with us thinking ourselves as wise and therefore discerning and therefore capable of fighting the world on its terms.
What is the antidote to this misery? "I am too weak for that." The strength we have from God is multiplied in our weakness and set aside when we are acting in our own strength.
The Bible is clear that when we are weak we are strong in Christ. We do not choose Christ, but He chose us (which when you think about it is the weakest thing we could ever say…that we had nothing to do with our salvation).
When we are weak we talk to God in prayer because we need Him for everything. When we are wise we get to ask the question "What is truth?" and miss the answer which is right before us but which we cannot see because at the very moment we are most wise in the world, we are most foolish for Godly things.
When we are weak we rest in the Almighty; when we are wise we rest in the newspaper, in our beds.
So we are beset on every side, worn down, beaten by the world. What is the solution? The world says be strong. Christ says be weak.
Who are you going to listen to?
Bread – Lord
June 5, 2015
Readings for Friday, June 5, 2015, designated by the 1979 Book of Common Prayer: Deut. 26:1-11; 2 Cor. 8:16-24; Luke 18:9-14; Psalms 40, 51, 54
Recently I have been confronted with taking the Bible translation (in my case today, the ESV), reading it in its plain meaning, adopting the meaning of the word used which I understand the meaning today to be in present English (or in my assumptions), thinking that I know what I am talking about, and then researching the word in its Greek or Hebrew form and realizing that I was losing much of the meaning because I thought I understood what the English word meant.
Something like that happened today in our reading from 2 Corinthians. In this reading, Paul writes "…for we aim for what is honorable not only in the Lord's sight but also in the sight of man" [ESV translation] and "…for we have regard for what is honorable, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men. " [NASB translation].
Now, reading this, I was going to write on the fact that honorable behavior can be seen as such by both the Lord and by man and that when we behave in a way which is honorable to the Lord it is likely also to be considered honorable by man (remembering that just because behavior is considered honorable by man does not mean that it is appreciated or recognized by man; you can be honorable and still in jail because as a Christian you are adverse to the purveyors of lies).
So in preparation for that I started looking words up which were underlined in my study bible and which were in this phrase, and lo and behold I found out that the word translated "Lord" is not what I thought it was.
When I see the word "Lord," I think of position and not character; I think of Lord as Jesus Christ and not standing for a particular aspect of Jesus' character. And yet in the use of the underlying Greek word translated to "Lord," there is an implicit recognition of a particular character which is good for us to remember in our walk with Christ.
See, the word translated "Lord" in our reading today is the Greek word "Kurlos" which means the "lord" wielding power and authority for good. The direct opposite in the Greek is "Despotēs" which means a lord [despot] wielding authority over slaves. The word used for "Lord" in today's reading conveys so much about our relationship with Christ and who He is. We obey Him because we want to, not because we have to. We follow His path because we believe in His promise that it is the right path, not because we are whipped mercilessly if we disobey. When our Lord corrects us, it is for our good end; when the despot correct his slaves, it is for his good end. Our Lord gives His power to us for daily living; the despot takes power from us to use in his daily living. Our Lord gives us talents and tells us to work the fields because the harvest is ripe; the despot takes our talents and forces us to work the fields. In Christ and beneath Christ and through Christ, we are to live freely and with hope. Beneath a despot, we live as slaves with no hope. Beneath Christ as our Lord, as our "Kurlos," we will live forever. Under the despot Satan, as our "Despotēs," we will die.
All this from one word.
What treasures await us in God's Word if we will but stop from time to time on a single word, in a single phrase, and ask ourselves simply "What does this really mean."
What does the word "Lord" really mean?
To many, it would seem that bowing the knee to God in submission is a step toward slavery. Because Christ is "Kurlos," it actually means a step toward goodness and freedom. Knowing that, why would anyone choose to be slave to the despot?
I think it is because the despot speaks to our mind, saying "Why subject yourself to the Lord who wields power for good when you are good yourself?"
But as Jesus reminds us in today's reading, "No one is good except God alone." Lk. 18:19
Now, just stop for a minute and marvel at the unity of God's Word. In the translation, "good" is mentioned only In today's reading from Luke, when Christ reminds us that only God is good. In the middle of literally nowhere in Corinthians, when Paul is talking about honesty with handling money, the translated word "Lord" really means a Lord who wields authority power for good. Only God is good. The Lord who wields power for good can do so because He is God. Christ is God.
And, now, based upon just a few minutes of investigation into God's Word, I now see that, everywhere I see the word "Lord" in a translation, I need to think "Lord wielding power for good."
Leaves you with a good feeling for this weekend, doesn't it?
Bread – Says
June 1, 2015
Readings for Monday, June 1, 2015, designated by the 1979 Book of Common Prayer: Deut. 11:13-19; 2 Cor. 5:11-6:2; Luke 17:1-10; Psalms 41.44,52
In today's reading from Luke, Christ says "If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him, and if he sins against you seven times in the day, and turns to you seven times, saying 'I repent,' you must forgive him." Luke 17:3b-4
This is a familiar saying and so when I read it, I almost moved on, but then my eyes caught the word "saying." To paraphrase, it appears that if my brothers says "I repent," then I am commanded to forgive him ("you must forgive him").
My grandson the other day tried to hit me in the head with a hard toy. His mother said to my grandson, "tell him [me] you are sorry." He came over and gave me a big hug, but he would not say that he was sorry. At the second instruction from his mother to tell me that he was sorry for trying to hit me with a toy, he came over, gave me a big hug, and kissed me, but he still did not say he was sorry. On the third instruction, he came up to me and muttered 'Sorry,' quickly spun around, and ran off.
Now he said he was 'sorry,' but did he mean it? He hugged me because he loved me and he kissed me for the same reason. But he deliberately through the hard toy at my head to see if he could hit me and he was not in the least sorry that he had thrown it, although I suspect he was sorry he had missed. Did he "repent" of his "sin?" No, but he said "Sorry" (in religious terms he said "I repent") and, because he said it (and not because he actually was sorry), I am commanded by Christ to forgive him.
We say things all the time we don't mean. We say "I'm sorry" when we are not sorry. We say "I'm fine" when we are not fine at all. We smile at someone while saying the nicest things, while thinking the exact opposite.
Just because we say we repent of our offense does not mean that we have repented, intend to repent, or ever will repent. We know this and we can see it in actual tone of voice, body position, and by what is done later by the same person. When a person says "I repent" of doing a bad thing and then repeats that bad thing ten minutes later, it is probably fair to say that they have not repented (acknowledged sin and turned away from that sin) but have only said so.
But even if they are just "saying" "I repent," we are commanded to forgive them. Jesus in this passage does not say to judge the truthfulness of the statement or inspect the fruit of repentance to see if the deeds line up with the statement. If he (or she) simply says "I repent," we are to forgive him.
Why? One answer might be that we are not to judge the motives or reality of what is said, but merely to take it at face value. This objection against judging is the world speaking, but maybe God is saying that we should just take the truth of what we are told at face value. Another answer might be along the same lines, which is that we should leave judging the heart to God and, therefore, take everything at face value. In the first explanation, if a person says "I repent," but does not, that is on him and not us – we are to forgive and forget because we are not to judge. In the second explanation, if a person says "I repent," but does not, that is on him and not us – we are to forgive and forget because God is the judge. The first alternative absolves us of all responsibility for judging; the second alternative passes that responsibility to God.
But there is a third answer to the question which is contained in the passage quoted. Jesus begins this way – "If your brother sins, rebuke him …" Wait a minutes! Isn't that judging? Yes, it is, but it is a particular kind of judging. It is not the kind of judging that judges and sits but the kind that judges and does. It is the kind of judging which requires engagement by us. We cannot just say "that is a bad person" and stop, but we must (a) identify what exact action or statement, behavior or character, that was "sinful" and (b) physically go to that person, talk to them, "rebuke" them (pointing out the sin and why it is a sin), and call them up into repentance.
The pattern which Jesus lays before us is one of constant engagement with others, where we are rebuking them and then accepting them immediately upon their mere statement of repentance. In this form of engagement, there is no room for hiding because in rebuking you for your sin I might well find myself rebuking myself for mine; there is no room for bitterness or anger because we are confronted immediately with the consequence of our rebuke (whether or not there is repentance); there is no room for loss of relationship because I am commanded to forgive immediately upon a statement of repentance. The pattern which Jesus lays out before us maximizes honesty in relationship, maximizes healthy relationships, maximizes healthy self-examination, and maximizes freedom from bondage to what each other think or what we think they may think.
We have another name for this kind of engagement – it is called "love."
And we have an adjective for this kind of engagement – "rare."
Why is it so rare? Maybe it is because we are afraid. We are afraid of what people will think of us when we confront, speak the truth in love, and rebuke. And we are afraid of what we will think of ourselves when we just accept people's "I'm sorry" at face value, when we forgive them automatically upon their "saying" of repentance. Both of these are forms of hurt, and what Jesus tells us to do we will not do because we are afraid of getting hurt.
But there is really more here than just the avoidance of hurt. Why would we not confront people of their sin and rebuke them if we loved them – after all, isn't it better for them they hear the truth when stated by someone with no agenda except the highest and best good for the hearer? Why would we not forgive someone automatically who has said that they are sorry – after all, isn't it a true act of love that we say to them that we believe them, that we trust them, and that we accept them?
When we say that we do not judge what we are really saying is that we do not want to be engaged. When we say that we do not accept the "I'm sorry" at face value without accompanying deeds, what we are really saying is that we do not want to be exposed.
And yet Jesus commands us to be both engaged and exposed. So who will we rebuke and whose statement of repentance will we accept by forgiveness? Let's begin with the guy or gal in the mirror and see where else it leads!


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Learn HTMl5: Usiing Modernizr for Backwards Compatibility
Although this looks like a monster problem to fix, it's not actually that bad. The reason that this doesn't work is that IE8 doesn't recognize the new HTML5 elements that I'm using, so it doesn't add them to the DOM, so you can't style them using CSS.
However, just adding a reference to Modernizr (without making any other code changes!) will brute-force these elements into the DOM. Download it from http://www.modernizr.com/download/ and add a reference in the <head> section like so:
<head> <meta charset="utf-8" /> <title>Title</title> <link href="css/html5reset.css" rel="stylesheet" /> <link href="css/style.css" rel="stylesheet" /> <script src="script/jquery-1.6.2.min.js" type="text/javascript"></script> <script src="script/modernizr-2.0.6.js" type="text/javascript"></script> </head>
I added two script references, one to jQuery and one to Modernizr. I don't actually need the jQuery reference at this point, but we will need it for the next script, so I'm adding it now.
Just this simple change now gets my site to this state in Internet Explorer 8:
It's not perfect, but that is pretty close to the original version that we see in Internet Explorer 9. Modernizr added these new HTML5 elements that IE8 didn't understand into the DOM, and since they were in the DOM, we could style them using CSS.
But Modernizr does more than that! Notice that one of the differences between our IE8 and IE9 versions of the webpage is that the IE9 version has nice rounded corners on the two articles and the figure, and the IE8 version doesn't. We can also use Modernizr to fix this.
<script type="text/javascript"> if (!Modernizr.borderradius) { $.getScript("script/jquery.corner.js", function() { $("article").corner(); $("figure").corner(); }); } </script>
In this script, we're checking the Modernizr object to see if there is support for "borderradius" (a CSS3 feature). If not, I use a jQuery script called jquery.corner.js (which is available for download at http://jquery.malsup.com/corner/ and requires that extra reference to jQuery which I made earlier). Then I simply call the corner method from that script on my articles and figures to give them rounded corners.
Or, you can do this a slightly different way. Modernizr has an optional (not included) conditional resource loader called Modernizr.load(), based on Yepnope.js. This allows you to load only the polyfilling scripts that your users need, and it loads scripts asynchronously and in parallel which can sometimes offer a performance boost. To get Modernizr.load, you have to include it in a custom build of Modernizr which you have to create at http://www.modernizr.com/download/; it is not included in the Development version. With Modernizr.load, we can write a script like this:
<script type="text/javascript"> Modernizr.load({ test: Modernizr.borderradius, nope: 'script/jquery.corner.js', callback: function () { $('article').corner(); $('figure').corner(); } }); </script>
In short, this implements the same functionality as our previous script. Modernizr.load first tests the Boolean property "Modernizr.borderradius" to see if it is supported. Then, nope defines the resources to load if test is false. Since IE8 doesn't support the CSS3 property "borderradius", it will load the jquery.corner.js script. Finally, the callback specifies a function to run whenever the script is done loading, so we will call the "corner" method on my articles and figures as we did before. There is a brief tutorial on Modernizr.load at http://www.modernizr.com/docs/#load if you want to dive deeper.
Now, by using either of those scripts, our Internet Explorer 8 version (which doesn't support HTML5) looks like this:
Therefore, using polyfills and tools like Modernizr allow you to utilize new HTML5 functionality and still provide a good experience on older browsers as well. For more information, check out http://www.diveintohtml5.org/detect.html which describes in detail how Modernizr detects HTML5 features.
In this introduction to HTML5, we covered semantic markup, canvas, audio and video, and using HTML5 while retaining support for older browsers. But also note that there's a lot we didn't cover: microdata, storage, CSS3, etc. Here are a few resources to continue learning about HTML5:
- IE Test Drive – even if you don't use Internet Explorer, this is an awesome site. It contains a ton of demos: Speed Demos, HTML5 Demos, Graphics Demos, and Browser Demos. Try them in your favorite browser! This site also has links to other resources, too.
- Beauty of the Web – showcases the best sites on the web that take advantage of HTML5 hardware acceleration and pinning features with Internet Explorer 9
- BuildMyPinnedSite – all the code, ideas, and samples you need to use pinning and Windows integration
- HTML5 Labs – This site is where Microsoft prototypes early and unstable specifications from web standards bodies such as W3C. You can play with prototypes like IndexedDB, WebSockets, FileAPI, and Media Capture API.
- Brandon Satrom's "Application Development with HTML5" talk at TechEd 2011 – this is a fabulous hour-long talk that nails what you need to know to do HTML5 development
- HTML5 talks from MIX 2011 – a wealth of HTML5 sessions
Many development tools support HTML5 already. Try these:
Visual Studio 2010 SP1 – SP1 adds basic HTML5 and CSS3 IntelliSense and validation. For more information, see http://blogs.msdn.com/b/webdevtools/archive/2011/01/27/html5-amp-css3-in-visual-studio-2010-sp1.aspx.
Web Standards Update for Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 SP1 – this is a Visual Studio extension that adds updated HTML5 and CSS3 IntelliSense and validation to Visual Studio 2010 SP1, based on the current W3C specification.
WebMatrix – HTML5 is supported by default out of the box (adding a new HTML page uses the HTML5 default doctype and template code)
The New Project dialog includes a checkbox-enabled HTML5 version of project templates.
These templates leverage Modernizr 1.7 to provide compatibility support for HTML5 and CSS3 in down-level browsers.
HTML5 IntelliSense and support in the Code Editor and the Design View
Richer CSS3 style editing and IntelliSense
SuperPreview Page Interaction Mode and Online Service (remote browsers include Chrome, IE8, IE9, and Safari 4 and 5 on Windows and Mac)
Besides development tools, don't forget:
Windows Phone "Mango" contains Internet Explorer 9, which supports HTML5 sites.
Internet Explorer 10 Platform Previews has support for many new CSS3 and HTML5 features; the full list is at http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/ie/gg192966.aspx.
HTML5 is here. Go forth and develop amazing websites!
This article was reprinted with permission from Microsoft Corporation. This site does business with Microsoft Corporation.
Jennifer Marsman is a Developer Evangelist in Microsoft's Developer and Platform Evangelism group, where she educates developers on Microsoft's new technologies. Prior to becoming a Developer Evangelist, Jennifer was a software developer in Microsoft's Natural Interactive Services division. In this role, she received two patents for her work in search and data mining algorithms. Jennifer has also held positions with Ford Motor Company, National Instruments, and Soar Technology.
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We saw some details on the NVIDIA Tegra Tab as the tablet was spotted in an NCC filing earlier in the month. For those not familiar, the NCC is similar to the FCC, but for Taiwan. Regardless though, because the tablet has now been spotted in an FCC filing. And this time around we are getting some additional images of the tablet as well as some detail of the features.
For the most part the images were your standard FCC filing type. Basically, that is to say the images had the tablet sitting alongside a ruler to show size. More of the details in terms of features came by way of the user manual. The manual is 33 pages long and for the most part, contains details about how to use the tablet.
Needless to say, seeing that before the actual release of the tablet means a feature leak. In this case the user manual makes mention of a "Premium Model" of the tablet. In this case that model will have a stylus, rear-facing camera, HDMI and microSD memory card slot. Other goodies specifically mentioned include the basics such as USB and audio jack. Aside from a little bit about the hardware, the manual also touched on the software.
To begin with, the tablet will be running Jelly Bean. But perhaps more interesting at the time, there will also be some pre-loaded apps. Some of these include Sketchbook Express, Stylus Mobile by Vision Objects, Write by Stylus Labs, Camera Awesome and Pen Application Launcher. Of course, we are also expecting to see a Tegra 4 processor. Lastly, some of the other specs look to include a 7-inch 1280 x 800 IPS display, front-facing HD camera and either a 3200 or 4100 mAh battery.
That all being said, while we are beginning to get a clear understanding of the device in terms of looks, specs and features — we have yet to hear anything from NVIDIA.
VIA: Engadget


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Which Kreg Pocket Hole Jig to Buy
Here's the best kreg pocket hole jigs for different projects with our reviews and recommendations.
Welcome to Wood Tools Guide! Our team of experts researches, reviews and recommends various woodworking tools including the best routers, planers, circular saws, laser levels and more. We do the homework to find the best woodworking tools so you don't have to.
Thanks for visiting our site. If you have any questions, suggestions or woodworking product review requests, please make sure to contact us.
From beginner to expert, you need some basic tools to really have the freedom to do anything you want when working with wood and general carpentry as well. Let's talk about some essential tools that any woodworker or carpenter needs.
There's no doubt that you need a good measuring tape for almost any project. Whether that's cutting wood to length or hanging a bookshelf or mounting a TV to the wall.
If you think that there's not much difference between measuring tapes, you're sorely mistaken. Everything from the measuring tape metal tab to the tape itself makes a HUGE difference in terms of accuracy.
Given the importance of measuring tape, it seems pretty reasonable to spend a little bit more money on a good one. The measuring tape that I always recommend is the Stanley FatMax 25′ Tape Measure. It's relatively cheap, it is probably the highest quality tape measure that I've ever used in over 25 years of woodworking and it's built like a tank and can take quite a few drops.
Whether you're drilling into studs on a wall or using a hole saw bit, a good cordless drill is very important. Get yourself a high-quality drill with a good clutch and powerful battery and you've got a winner.
I really like the Ridgid R9600 x4 drill and driver kit running on 18 volts. The drill is perfect for when you need to be precise and the drill driver is super powerful for when you need to quickly put a couple screws into a stud or drill into concrete or other hard surfaces. This drill/driver combo kit is built like a tank and has served me well over the past 5 years without issue.
We recently wrote a guide to the best wood chisel sets so I'll let you check that out. A good, sharp chisel is almost worth its weight in gold as far as I'm concerned. Chisels are great for sharpening up the edges of dado cuts, chipping out recesses for door hinges and even for when using a wood lathe.
Another absolute woodworking essential is a good miter saw. I recommend going with a 12″ miter saw with a laser line and if you can afford it, go with a compound sliding miter saw. The laser line is very useful for quickly lining up your cuts and miters and the sliding feature is great for cutting larger pieces of lumber.
As far as miter saws go, choose one from a trusted name brand rather than the cheapo Chinese stuff. By all means, if you know that you'll never use a miter saw more than 10 times in your life, go and buy a cheap one at Harbor Freight. However, if you're going to be using your miter saw for a large project like cutting wood flooring or continuous little projects like building a workbench, go with a quality miter saw.
I really am a big fan of Hitachi miter saws for the money and the quality. One of my favorite bang-for-your-buck miter saws is the Hitachi C12RSH2 12″ Sliding Compound Miter Saw. For the money, you probably won't find a better value in miter saws for the casual woodworker or weekend warrior.
Here's the best kreg pocket hole jigs for different projects with our reviews and recommendations.
Feel like there's too much information online? Here's a list of the best first tools for beginners.
Getting started? Here's all that you need at your workstation.
Looking for the best apron for woodworkers? We've got all the facts and features behind each of our favorites.
Miter saw stands. Simple, yet vital. Learn more about our top picks here.
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Program Description
MSc in Electrical Power Engineering
Location: Abu Dhabi
Electrical Power Engineering is an important and vital discipline for paving the way to wide-spread integration of renewable and sustainable technologies. The Electrical Power Engineering Program covers a broad range of activities and evolving issues that are of great importance in the field of sustainable and smart power systems.
Electrical Power Engineering covers subjects related to the integration of renewable energy to power systems, power electronics applications and experimental design, power system stability and control, dynamic systems, control and optimization techniques in power systems. The program has been designed to provide students with technical knowledge in the area of power systems, in addition to mathematical tools that are necessary for developing new innovative solutions.
The mission of the Electrical Power Engineering Program at Masdar Institute is to provide students with the fundamental knowledge, skills, and professional experience necessary for successful careers in industrial or academic roles that involve alternative energy and sustainable technologies. Graduates of the Electrical Power Engineering Program at Masdar Institute will be able to work collaboratively, conduct independent and multidisciplinary research, communicate effectively and recognize their role in solving global challenges, while simultaneously promoting sustainable engineering principles.
Program Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of the Electrical Power Engineering Master of Science program, graduates are expected to attain the following outcomes:
- Successfully apply advanced concepts of fundamental sciences and engineering to identify, formulate and solve complex electrical power engineering problems.
- Successfully apply advanced concepts of electrical power engineering to the analysis, design, and development of electric systems, components, equipment or applications to meet desired needs of society professionally and ethically.
- Use advanced techniques, skills, and modern scientific and engineering software tools for professional practice.
- Successfully apply advanced concepts of electrical and power electronics engineering to design and develop electric/electronic hardware systems for effective renewable energy conversion, control, and power delivery.
- Use an advanced approach to design and conduct experiments, and to analyze and interpret data.
- Communicate effectively in written and oral form, both, individually and as a member of a multidisciplinary team, and thus to put forward the scientific findings at national and international levels successfully.
Electrical Power Engineering research at Masdar Institute is aimed at providing major advancements in key areas of electrical design and operation of renewable energy systems and sustainable technology. Specific research topics include, but are not limited to, smart grids, modeling and control of inverters for renewable energy sources, innovative protection and control techniques in power systems and electric machine design. Examples of ongoing Electrical Power Engineering research activities at Masdar Institute are as follows:
- Smart grid control and protection
- Impacts of renewable energy on power systems
- Electricity market operation with stochastic sources
- Demand side management
- Renewable generation modeling
- Power electronic converters for renewable energy sources
All students for all programs are required to take four program core courses. In addition, each student must complete the following:
- Three elective courses from any program with the approval of advisor
- One university core course – Sustainable Energy
- 24 credits of thesis work (3 for 1st year Fall; 3 for 1st year Spring; 6 for Summer; 6 for 2nd year Fall; 6 for 2nd year Spring)
Entry requirements
- A relevant undergraduate degree - undergraduate degrees must be in the fields of science, engineering or information technology
- CGPA - The minimum required for consideration for admissions is 3.0 on a scale of 4.0
- GRE scores - The minimum score required on the GRE Quantitative is 700 (or 155 on the new scale). There is no cut-off score for the Verbal and Analytical but these scores are also important and evaluated. The GRE exam cannot be waived.
- TOEFL (or academic IELTS) - The minimum TOEFL score required is 91 (Internet-based) on the international TOEFL. Equivalent paper/computer-based TOEFL is also accepted. The TOEFL can only be waived for native English speakers. The minimum academic IELTS score required is 6.5.
- High grades and scores are a prerequisite but are no guarantee of admission. Admission standards are in accordance with those of MIT.
About the School
Masdar Institute of Science and Technology is the world's first graduate-level university dedicated to providing real-world solutions to issues of sustainability. A world-class research-driven univers ... Read More


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Even though I don't have a 9-5, Mon-Fri job, the weekend still brings with it a certain joy. Saturday morning cartoons, my daughter off at her friends' house... a chance to catch up on everything I haven't done because I was out of town for a week.
I was going to blog about my search for a new coffee shop today (in fact, as soon as I'm done here, I'm going to take a quick shower and head into Royal Oak for the first shop up on my list of potential new haunts), but I while I was eating breakfast, I was surfing the web, hoping to come up with some new marketing strategies for my book. Alas, there is nothing new under the sun.
What I did see in one thread annoyed me a bit, so it is the topic of this morning's blog. See, I'm an introvert. What that means is that I "recharge my internal batteries" by being quietly all by myself. Being alone makes me very happy--sure, once in a while it's good to go out with friends, but I am happiest when I'm not directly engaging with people. That doesn't mean I don't like people, and it does NOT mean I'm shy. And that is the crux of my point. Introvert does not equal shy any more than extrovert equals gregarious. An extrovert simply recharges their inner batteries by being around people. Extroverts tend to focus outwardly; introverts tend to focus inwardly.
The article I was reading about self-promotion made it sound like all introverts were shy, almost timid, people who have a hard time approaching strangers. This is SO not true. Yes, sometimes I have to steel myself a little to walk into a store and pitch my book, but that's more fear of rejection (and a determination to maintain a professional persona when it comes) than fear of talking to a stranger.
Why is this such a big deal to me? Because for years (frigging decades) one message was hammered home to me by family and even sometimes friends: Introvert=shy and shy is Bad. First off, that's just not true, there's nothing "bad" about being shy, as long as you're okay with not having a sea of "friends". If you're both an introvert and shy, and working in a field where you can do that, why try to change?
But see, my family (and sometimes friends) often did try to change me--and because I believed that I was shy, and that being shy was Bad, I bought into it for years. Decades. And I was miserable. For one, I couldn't reconcile my own knowledge of myself (someone who has no problem talking to strangers) with other peoples' perception of me ("oh, she's such a wallflower")--I was looking at myself through others' lenses rather than my own and it was confusing. People would constantly push me to "get out more", "go talk to him/her/them"--and not understand that not wanting to talk to "him/her/them" wasn't the result of fear or insecurity, I just wasn't in the mood for people, I'd been around people all day at work or school and I needed some time to recharge. But being the sort of person who likes to make other people happy, I had a bad habit of going along with it... that eventually changed (and pissed a few people off along the way).
Sometimes family and friends mistook general politeness (that thing family had instilled in me early on) for "shy"--because really, it's not very polite to charge some celebrity at convention full tilt, crashing through the crowd to get to him. It seemed a better tactic to not step on the big Klingon's toes (literally) in order to get to my "target"--but there was my friend, shoving me forward, telling me not to be shy. I may not actually be shy, but even if I were, I don't think the opposite of "shy" is "asshat"--or at least it shouldn't be.
What am I actually getting at? I have no idea. Maybe just this: if you're shy, it's OKAY. Shy isn't Bad, it is what it is. Introvert isn't bad, either. And neither is extrovert. Asshat...now that's bad, that's not something anybody should want to be, even if we do all go there sometimes!
If you're an introvert and not shy, don't let yourself get stuck with somebody else's labels (seriously, don't let yourself get stuck with somebody else's labels no matter who or what you are). Just be you and be happy with you.
And now, I'm off to the Bean and Leaf in Royal Oak, to see if they might be able to meet my needs: a quiet place to work, and a staff that knows how to acknowledge regular customers (because I've been going into the Caribou near my house I moved here 4 years ago, sometimes as often as twice a week, and only *one* barista ever figured out that I was there all the time. I don't want the royal treatment, but seriously, if I practically live there, you'd think they'd notice me. I'm not some kind of wallflower, you know.... ;-)


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Clue: Bit of fish food
We have 1 answer for the clue Bit of fish food. See the results below.
Possible Answers:
Related Clues:
- Tiny aquatic plant
- Foot of a food chain
- Chlorophyta bit
- Stonewort, e.g.
- Marine ___
- Water growth
- Bit of plankton
- Microscopic organism
- Pond dweller
- Bit of ocean flora
Last Seen In:
- New York Times - October 07, 2015
Found an answer for the clue Bit of fish food that we don't have? Then please submit it to us so we can make the clue database even better!


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Welcome to the Flagstaff-Grand Canyon Ale Trail! Visit our website and Facebook page for the latest updates and everything related to the craft beer hub of the Southwest!
For your Grand Canyon trip, stop by Cruiser's Rt. 66 Cafe in Williams, Arizona
The Flagstaff-Grand Canyon Ale Trail features discounts on the best craft beer in the Southwest. Cruiser's Rt. 66 Cafe in downtown Williams, Arizona — a Grand Canyon gateway community — is a fun place for the entire family, it's a stop on the Ale Trail and features the many fine craft beers from the Grand Canyon Brewing Company.
Cruiser's has a nice patio right on Route 66, there's sometimes live music, good food and many outstanding beer choices to awaken any palate, with a full spectrum of hand- crafted-beer styles to appeal to any taste.
Here's a cold pint of a tasty Grand Canyon Brewing I.P.A. — well deserved after a hike on the Bill Williams Mountain trails.
At Cruiser's Route 66 Cafe, there's plenty to see, tasty barbeque and Mother Road memorabilia surrounds you! Hey, how about daydreaming about a time when gas was that price and you filled up from this beauty of a pump!
The Best Beer & BBQ Pairings
We might be packing away our swimsuits and white pants, but it's not cold enough for your grease-stained tongs to hibernate. But if you're going to throw a piece of meat onto the grill, stay away from drinking watery brews that might as well be melted ice. Fill your growler with some Flagstaff-Grand Canyon Ale Trail beer that pairs well with your BBQ.
A thick burger on a soft bun deserves the right kind of beer to complement its juicy flavors. The best beer to pair with your BBQ steak is a gently hopped pale ale or a lager with a hint of caramel like a Vienna Lager.
What pairs best with a medium-rare steak? Set down your steak knife for a pint of a rich, malty Belgian brew like a Dubbel style beer.
BBQ Ribs
When your ribs are dripping with sauce, your meal is best paired with a beer that pulls out the best flavors of the tender meat and the sauce. Try beers with caramel, toast, and dark fruit aromas like Doppelbocks and dark German lagers like Dunkels.
Pulled Pork
Smoked pork meat means beer that takes risks with its flavor. Serve yourself a pale lager like helles or a hoppy bitter brew like an IPA that pairs well with bold BBQ sauce and pulled pork.
Bratwurst or Kielbasa
IPAs are too much for these subtly flavored meats. As your bratwurst or kielbasa sizzles on the grill, drink a dark, crisp lager like a Munich Dunkel Lager style beer or a full-bodied, amber-hued brews like a Bock style beer.
Seafood is a lighter-tasting meat, so choose a beer that's not so heavy. Saisons, especially farmhouse ales, complement grilled fish. If grilled veggies and shrimp are on the menu, pour yourself a wheat beer like a white ale or a cloudy Hefeweizen.
What Flagstaff-Grand Canyon Ale Trail beers pair well with your BBQ? Share your favorite brews below.
Ale vs. Lager: The Difference
Ales have been around thousands of years, as far back as the Sumerians and Egyptians, while lagers came about around the mid-nineteenth century.
But that's not the only reason why these two beer styles are so different.
The main difference between lagers and ales come down to the type of yeast used in the brewing process. It's because this yeast determines what ingredients and brewing techniques can be used during the brewing process.
Ales, fermented at warm temperatures, are made with a top-fermenting yeast, meaning that the yeast rises to the top of the brew during fermentation. Ales usually have a stronger taste than lagers due to fast fermentation. That's because ales can be brewed in as little as 7 days. Many countries even serve their ales at cellar temperature.
Lagers, fermented at cold temperatures, are made with a bottom-fermenting yeast, meaning that the yeast sinks to the bottom of the brew during fermentation. Lagers need at least a month to ferment in order to age properly. This longer, colder process produces esters, giving the lager a more fruity taste. Lagers tend to be cleaner, crisper, smoother and more mellow in taste. Lagers should always be served cold.
Can you remember all that? Here's a chart that breaks down the difference between lagers and ales:
|Fermented warm
|Fermented cold
|Top-fermenting yeast
|Bottom-fermenting yeast
|Quick brewing cycle
|Long brewing cycle
|Served at cellar temperature(50-55 degrees Fahrenheit)
|Served cold(40-45 degrees Fahrenheit)
Do you prefer ales or lagers? Share your preference below.
Is Beer Really A Recovery Drink?
Cyclists, runners, climbers, hikers, yoga buffs—all of us love a pint or two along the Flagstaff-Grand Canyon Ale Trail. But can we really drink a pint shortly after a good workout?
In other words, can beer really be a recovery drink?
Intense exercise depletes your body of a lot of important vitamins, electrolytes and carbs. That's why athletes choose sports drinks and coconut water. They're full of the good sugar and nutrients that replenish the body after a hard workout.
Beer has some of that good stuff too that's important for muscle recovery including sugary carbs, some electrolytes, and plant-based nutrients from the hops, yeast and barley.
So, what's the catch? The alcohol in beer screws up everything.
Drinking alcohol leaves you dehydrated, making you feel even more depleted after running those miles or lifting those weights. Plus alcohol hinders the muscle recovery process after your workout.
To make beer an ideal recovery drink, alcohol needs to be eliminated from the beer. That's right, the good stuff.
So, is beer really a recovery drink? The simple answer: not really.
Our suggestion? Stick to sports drinks, coconut water and H2O as your go-to recovery drink. Drink beer an hour or two later when you can enjoy it with friends along the Flagstaff-Grand Canyon Ale Trail. What's the fun in drinking beer when you're chugging it down while still panting for air?
3 Steps To Cleaning Your Growler
Breweries along the Flagstaff-Grand Canyon Ale Trail welcome you to bring your growler and have it filled with any beer on tap.
But first it must be cleaned.
Drinking from a dirty growler affects the quality taste of the beer filled inside of it. Plus, a bartender will not fill your growler if it is not cleaned properly—or at all.
We don't want you to walk away from your favorite Flagstaff brewery with an empty growler. Make sure you follow these three easy steps to cleaning your growler so that you're never refused service—or a quality beer drinking experience.
First, rinse your growler numerous times with very hot water. If possible, avoid using any bleach or detergents. When rinsing, swirl the water around the growler. Shake it to get as much water out as possible.
Second, turn your growler upside down and let it dry completely, preferably in a place where air still gets up in the growler's tight spots where water can often linger.
Third, take it back to a brewery along the Flagstaff-Grand Canyon Ale Trail and refill it with a seasonal brew or with your favorite beer.
Rinse, dry, refill (and repeat). That's it.
How often do you need to clean your growler? Tell us in the comments section below.
Why Beer Makes For A Great Marinade
Summer is the perfect time to pop open a beer from your favorite Flagstaff brewery and barbeque some brats, burgers, ribs, and pork chops. But before you throw your meat onto the fire, how about soaking it in some beer?
Beer is both a delicious beverage and an excellent way to marinade your meat. So instead of brushing some store-bought sauce, consider glazing your meat with your brew.
Here's why:
Beer Marinades Are Excellent Meat Tenderizers
Beer is slightly acidic. This helps soften the meat fibers and lets you enjoy leaner cuts that are often too tough to eat.
Beer Marinades Don't Alter the Meat's Flavor
Wine and vinegar-based marinades don't do the trick. Beer complements and even enhances the natural flavors of the meat.
Beer Marinades Fight Off Cancer
Cooking raw meat at high temps develops cancer-causing chemicals called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) on the meat, hiding within the juices and fat that drip down the meat while grilling. When you marinade your meat with beer, the antioxidants and polyphenols in beer target the PAHs. In other words, marinading your meat in beer releases the good substances to fight off the bad substances. That's why if you marinade with beer, it's important to soak your meat for at least four hours.
Here's How To Marinade With Beer
- Poke a few holes in the meat, preferably on both sides.
- Put the raw meat in a sealable container or resealable bag before pouring in your favorite beer.
- Seal the container or bag and store in the refrigerator for at least four hours, overnight for best results.
- Take out of the fridge and throw the meat onto the grill.
- Discard the beer marinade properly. Don't drink or taste the beer marinade where raw meat has been soaking.
For what meats do you apply beer marinade? Share your recipes below.


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Get A Enterprise Homeowners Insurance Coverage Quote
10/07/2017 | business insurance | No Comments
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* please note: there are TWO versions of this work.
The first version, written in 2013, is for string quartet only (ca. 19 mins).
The second version, written in 2015, is for string quartet with Hindustani vocals (ca. 25 mins).
Each has a separate score and parts.
I. Intro – Fantasie (Bihag Overlay)
II. Intro – Scherzo (Malkauns)
III. Intro – Recitativo (Basant)
IV. Intro – Rondo (Jog)
Melanie Clapies, violin
Jessica Oddie, violin
Ksenia Zhuleva, viola
Chang Pan, cello
Program Notes:
During the year I spent in India, I began to notice a beautiful thing that would happen at concerts. When the artist would announce the raag to be sung or played that evening, immediately, and almost subconsciously, many of the cognoscenti in the audience would begin humming the characteristic phrases or 'pakads' of that raag quietly to themselves, intoning with the drone that was already sounding on stage. It had a magical feeling – as if that raag was present in the air, and tiny wisps of it were already starting to precipitate into the audible world in anticipation of the performance. It felt like a connection between the audience and the performer, as they prepared themselves to enjoy what was to come. Each movement of this quartet opens in exactly the same way, and it is inspired by those quiet intonations.
After the opening phrases, each movement diverges into its own distinct character. The first movement is a Fantasie inspired by the beautiful raag Bihag which layers phrases over one another to create large shapes separateed by the silence of pure drones. The second movement is a vivacious and rhythmic setting of a Malkauns taan, which to the western ear, always seems to be pulling to a dominant rather than a tonic. The third movement is in the contemplative Basant – a raag that signifies the season of spring in Hindustani music. And the fourth movement is in the complex and multi-faceted Jog, a simgle raag which seems to contain western notions of both 'major' and 'minor' within it.
In Hindustani music, the elaboration of a single raag can often take an hour. I didn't mean for this piece to exhaust these raags, but rather provide little snapshots of particular features and characters of each raag that I find beautiful and special about each one.
This String Quartet was commissioned by the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, where it was premiered on July 26, 2013 by the FLUX Quartet.
A video of a 2015 performance of Movement I of the quartet by Salastina Chamber Music Society, in a new version with me singing:


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Non-Fiction: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Heaven: (Or, How I Made Peace with the Paranormal and Stigmatized Zealots and Cynics in the Process) by Corey Taylor
We already knew Taylor could write. Back in 2011 he wowed his fans with Seven Deadly Sins: Settling the Argument Between Born Bad and Damaged Good. Yes, that book was memoir. But it was more, as well. This new book takes that original concept and amps it up. Way up, in fact. Here again, Taylor himself is the lens, but we're looking way beyond the man and his music now. In fact, we're looking beyond this very life.
In A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Heaven, Taylor takes us on a tour of his personal paranormal: the oddities he's encountered, some unexplained things that have happened near him and how, in many ways, he's made peace with the bizarre and unknown. Taylor's view is beyond religion. As he points out:
Is is now 2013. I am here to tell you that if you still need a guidebook that was written when people were still trying to marry camels, you have bigger issues than how to live your life. The human race has been gifted over the centuries with fantastic minds: philosophers of such extraordinary knack that we have thrived in leaps and bounds with each generation …. But it is almost always the elders of our race who cling to this horseshit like flies at an outhouse, and those same people are almost always in positions of power, using the "good word" to control the minds -- and the votes -- of the flock.A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Heaven is an odd book to try and categorize or even talk about. In fact, I'm having a problem thinking about where we might catalog it on January. It could, in a way, be considered Art & Culture as the author's background certainly warrants it. I toyed with the thought of Biography, but really, the book is so much beyond that. We don't have a Self-Help section, but if we did, this book wouldn't really belong there.
Like Taylor himself, the book is different and unique. Not one thing but many. It might uplift you. It might nudge at your worldview. But it will certainly engage you and strike you once again at the odd wit and wisdom of this deeply talented man. ◊
Labels: Lincoln Cho, non-fiction


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Spider-Man by Jakarta, Indonesia-based Iqnatius Budi
Interview: Bob Mankoff Thinks Cats Are Funnier Than Dogs
Interview: Charged Malaysian cartoonist Zunar vows to fight on as he receives CPJ Press Freedom Award
Interview: Gorillaz artist Jamie Hewlett unveils his first exhibition
Interview: Jessica Abel on Intersection of Comics and and the Limitations of Art
News: Japanese Manga Artist Shigeru Mizuki Dies at 93
News: Tintin expert named Britain's first professor of comics
Reviews: Brandon Mulholand on Robin #6. Brittany Anne on Justice League 3001 #6.
5 Hunger Games Stories Perfect for Comics
5 Reasons That "The Walking Dead" Will Be Better in the Spring
6 Things That Bugged Me About Marvel's Jessica Jones
Batman visualized in the style of B. Kliban.
CBS' Supergirl Is a Rare, Well-Done Maternal Narrative
Is Hollywood Producing too Many Comic Book Movies?
Jared Gardner writes about comics and medical issues, suggesting that comics offers narrative connections that might be very insightful into the process of healing.
Jessica Jones' Lesbian Divorce Storyline Is Fabulous, Frustrating
Marvel vs. DC: Which 2016 Superhero vs. Superhero Movie Will Triumph?
New Batman comic opens with superhero saving young black man from police
Spider-Man: Why Chris Hemsworth Thought Tom Holland Was Perfect For the Role
The Walking Dead: How Does Deanna Die In The Comics?
When Comic Art Meets Fine Art
Why I switched to reading comic books on my phone after a lifetime of buying in stores


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Are distracted pedestrians a potential crosswalk hazard?
Next time you're about to cross a street, you might want to think twice about texting -- and definitely take those buds out of your ears. Music may be even more dangerous than texting, according to one researcher.
David Schwebel, a professor of psychology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, runs one of a small but growing number of laboratories where scientists analyze pedestrian behavior. The labs create virtual reality scenarios similar to those used to study driver behavior. Drivers and walkers, it turns out, are often distracted by the same things -- but not always.
Schwebel's lab features three very large screens arranged in a half circle that show a street scene with traffic. Speakers pipe in road noise. Once volunteers signal their decision to step off a simulated curb, their avatar starts crossing the street at their ordinary walking speed.
Schwebel asked college volunteers to cross a virtual intersection 10 times each. Those with no distractions failed to make it across the street only 6 percent of the time. That rose to 12 percent for students talking on cellphones, and 25 percent for those texting.
But volunteers listening to music were flattened by virtual cars on one out of every three crossings. That was a surprise, since some types of music improve driver performance. Schwebel speculates that pedestrians, more than drivers, use the sound of oncoming vehicles to judge safety.
The simulated traffic was not especially challenging. Rather than a chaotic scene of darting high-speed vehicles, Schwebel created a two-lane road with vehicles moving at 30 mph in both directions.
"I'd like to see our findings replicated, but we had more than 125 people in the study. These were college students on urban campus who cross the street every day to get to class. Imagine if we tried the same experiment with 10 to 12-year-olds," Schwebel said.
Schwebel is the first to admit the shortcomings of his experiments. After all, if one out of three pedestrians listening to music really got hit crossing the street, there would be body bags at every school crossing in America.
Even so, distractions do cause accidents.
Jack Nasar, a professor of city and regional planning at Ohio State University in Columbus, analyzed 2008 Consumer Product Safety Commission data. He found that more than 1,000 pedestrians had cellphone-related falls, collisions, and other accidents that sent them to the emergency room.
"The numbers are low, but the trajectory of pedestrian injuries has been doubling every year," Nasar noted. That trend is likely to continue.
Since 2008, the number of smartphones that let users talk, text, email, and surf the Web has nearly tripled, to 72.5 million, in the United States, according to market researcher comScore Inc.
Schwebel can explain why his lab has an unrealistically high kill rate. Volunteers might take more risks in a simulation. They cross alone at mid-block rather than at corners, so are not guided by other pedestrians or lights and stop signs. Perhaps most important of all, his simulated vehicles and avatars do not speed up or slow down, something real people and cars do all the time.
Still, the new labs let researchers investigate the fundamentals.
"We're trying to understand what questions an adult would ask when deciding to cross a road or not," said Tal Oron-Gilad, a professor of human factors engineering who runs a similar pedestrian lab at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel.
To understand how texting or talking affect behavior, it's essential to know how people act when they are not distracted, she added. Oron-Gilad outfitted children and adults with headsets that track eye movement. She found that adults and older children first look where they are going, then look left and right. Younger children look straight ahead and rarely to the side.
Both Schwebel and Oron-Gilad plan to use their findings to develop lessons to teach young children to cross more safely.
Not all labs rely on simulated reality. One is the Pedestrian Accessibility and Movement Environment laboratory at University College London.
The lab's centerpiece is a 600-square-foot modular platform divided into 36 adjustable segments. Researchers can transform it into an uneven sidewalk with potholes, a slope, or even a staircase, said Nick Tyler, who heads the school's civil engineering department.
The lab lets researchers evaluate how different surfaces, lighting, and sounds affect pedestrians, including those who are blind, deaf, or use walkers or wheelchairs.
Last year, Tyler ran several distraction experiments. He created three routes, each 180 feet long, and peppered them with colored spots and signs at eye, waist, and ground level. After sending 12 volunteers on their way, he distracted them with phone calls and text messages. The distracted walkers could not recall 60 percent of the information on the route.
"But the interesting thing is that they remembered more of what was on the ground, less at waist level, and almost no information at eye level," Tyler said.
More intriguingly, he added, they recalled the most relevant information.
"At one point, we had two waist-high signs next to each other. No one remembered the keep off the grass sign because there was no grass, but all of them remembered the turn right sign," Tyler said.
Tyler speculates that the subconscious notices relevant information even when distracted. He plans further tests to measure this, as well as sign placement.
Maybe in a world of surfing and texting pedestrians, the best directions would be on the sidewalk.
Of course, they should still look both ways when they cross a street.
Explore further


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Objective: To describe the course of recent onset rheumatoidarthritis (RA) and to compare consequences of the disease inmen and women.
Methods: 284 patients with recent onset RA were followed upprospectively for two years from the time of diagnosis. Measuresof disease activity (for example, 28 joint disease activityscore (DAS28), C reactive protein, morning stiffness, physician'sglobal assessment) and function outcome (for example, rangeof movement, hand function, walking time) were determined. Thepatients' self reported assessment of functional capacity(Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ)) and grading of wellbeingand pain (visual analogue scale) were registered. Changes overtime and differences between men and women were evaluated.
Results: Improvements were seen for all variables within thefirst three months. Disease activity then remained unchanged.Function variables followed the same pattern during the firstyear, but then tended to worsen. HAQ scores were similar atbaseline, but significantly worse in women than in men at theone and two year follow ups.
Conclusions: Disease activity was well managed and had improvedsubstantially after two years, whereas function seemed slowlyto deteriorate. Although disease variables were similar formen and women, functional ability (HAQ) had a less favourablecourse in women.
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a major cause of progressive joint damage and disability, and is associated with decline in quality of life, reduced ability to work and increased health care utilisation. The economic consequences of the disease are substantial for the individuals and their families and for the society as a whole. This thesis describes a 5-year follow up of 320 patients with early RA, enrolled between January 1996 and April 1998 in the Swedish multi-centre inception cohort TIRA (early interventions in rheumatoid arthritis). Health status, function and costs were investigated. Predictors of high costs were calculated, and an algorithm was constructed to predict future need for TNFinhibitor treatment in patients not responding to traditional disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs). Clinical and laboratory data, measures of functional capacity and self-reported assessments were collected regularly. In addition, patients completed biannual/annual questionnaires concerning all health care utilisation and days lost from work due to the disease. Within 3 months, improvements were seen regarding all variables assessing disease activity and functional ability, but 15% of the patients had sustained high or moderate disease activity throughout the study period. The scores of 'health assessment questionnaire' (HAQ) were similar for men and women at baseline, but had a less favourable course in women, who also had DMARDs more frequently prescribed.
Ambulatory care accounted for 76% of the direct costs during the first year. Women had more ambulatory care visits and higher usage of complementary medicine compared to men. Men ≥65 years had low costs compared to younger men and compared to women of all ages. In multiple logistic regression tests, HAQ, high levels of IgM-class rheumatoid factor (RF), and poor hand function increased the odds of incurring high direct costs. Poor hand function and pain increased the odds of incurring high indirect costs.
Indirect costs exceeded direct costs all three years. The average direct costs were €3,704 (US$ 3,297) year 1 and €2,652 (US$ 2,360) year 3. All costs decreased over the years, except those for medication and surgery. The indirect costs were €8,871 (US$ 7,895) year 1 and remained essentially unchanged, similarly for both sexes. More than 50% were on sick leave or early retirement at inclusion. Sick leave decreased but was offset by increase in early retirement. 14 patients (5%) were prescribed TNF-inhibitors at the 3- year follow up, thus increasing drug costs substantially. However, they incurred higher costs even before prescription of anti-TNF therapy.
At the 5-year follow-up (2001-2003), 31 patients (12%) were prescribed TNFinhibitors. Baseline values of erythrocyte sedimentation rate, C-reactive protein, anti-CCP antibodies and morning stiffness were significantly higher in this group. These patients were also to a larger extent RF-positive and carriers of the 'shared epitope' (SE). Anti-TNF treated patients were significantly younger and more often women. For men, a predictive model was constructed using baseline data including SE+ and IgA-RF >100 U/L and anti-CCP >240 U/L yielding a specificity of 98% and a sensitivity of 71%. For women, disease activity score (DAS28) at the 3-month follow-up proved to be a better predictor, and the final model comprised SE+ and 3-month DAS28>5.2, giving a specificity of 95% and a sensitivity of 59%.


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Over the summer, Arts & Sciences departments hosted various summer camps for kids in middle and high schools. These include two camps from the Appleseed Writing Project and two from the Department of Physics.
The Appleseed Writing Project is held at IPFW and two of the directors are involved in the Department of English and Linguistics: Karol Dehr (continuing lecturer, English and linguistics) and Terry Springer (limited term lecturer, English and linguistics). The Appleseed Writing Project holds two camps, an elementary camp open to students entering grades 4, 5, or 6 and a middle school camp open to students entering grades 7, 8, or 9. Both camps explore writing in a variety of genres, including poetry, story writing, and narratives, while engaging in a variety of activities that will help them better understand the writing process.
For more information on the Appleseed Writing Project, see their website.
The Department of Physics also hosts two summer camps, the Math and Science Exploration (for middle school children) and the Physics Research Camp (for high school children). The Physics Research Camp introduces campers to a variety of topics in experimental physics. They learn about and perform experiments related to astronomy, LASER physics, quantum optics, and surface science. Campers work in small groups with physics professors and senior physics majors.
The most popular camp, Math & Science Exploration, engages campers in hands-on science and problem solving. The camp consists of a primary activity (in the past this has included water-rockets, hot air balloons, and pine wood derby) and smaller daily activities (Lego robots, logic puzzles, and creative mathematical games). This year, there was a new primary activity: creating, testing, and flying cardboard gliders. The 2016 summer camp attracted media attention. The News Sentinel published an article on the camp entitled, "Math and Science Campers Create Unique Planes at IPFW," and the Journal Gazette produced a video on the camp, found here.
To learn more about the Physics Research Camp or Math & Science Exploration, contact Barb Biedermann at 260-481-6306.


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Lieutenant Uhura herself - Nichelle Nichols - spoke over the phone to me on 7th February 1997. Bizarrely, the interview wasn't because of anything to do with Star Trek - it was to promote a CD reissue of an old album of hers! A version of this interview was published in SFX.
"I don't know. I have no feeling about it. It's an original album that I did years ago and I'm delighted that they want to put it out, but whatever their reasonings are, only God and they know. I had no idea that they were doing that."
What do you think of the singing talents of your co-stars?
"They're entitled."
Do you consider yourself a singer or an actress?
"I started my whole career in musical theatre which means I was a dancer, I was a singer, I was an actress, I built sets, I directed! And it's just coincidental that the acting took off first over everything else. So I'm not a singer or an actress first. I'm just what I am. I'm a singer, I'm an actress, I'm a dancer, I'm a writer. That's what I do. And I'm very, very glad that people care enough about it to send me thousands of fan letters and to allow me to live as well as I do. And that's what I've always been all my life."
Touring with Duke Ellington must have been a big thrill.
"It was incredible. I was 14 years old and in a big musical in my home town, Chicago. And Mr Ellington came to see the show and asked to meet me. Two years later, when I was 16, he came back to town and asked me to create a ballet for one of his musical suites and to perform it. I did, and I toured with him for that American tour. And at the end of the tour, the band singer got sick and I went on a couple of times for her. It was totally incredible."
"No. I was very blessed in always knowing what I wanted to do and what I wanted it to be, and by the grace of God I've been able to succeed in my chosen career."
You're obviously identified with the character of Uhura.
"Yes. Isn't that great?"
Has that been a help or a hindrance to your career, to be identified with one character?
"It's not a help or a hindrance to anyone. It's what you do with it. I think all the people in the show will always be known as those characters. And what characters to have attached to your name in life! The show is such a phenomenon all over the world. It's simply been an incredible experience."
At what stage in the '60s did you start to realise that Star Trek was becoming a phenomenon?
"Almost immediately, I realised that the scripts were marvellous, and above the average of anything that was on television at that time, and probably since. That did not mean that you realised this is going to be a big hit. As a matter of fact, we were concerned for it immediately, because it was too good. Good stuff was getting cancelled all the time, and a lot of tripe was still on."
It was cancelled after three years...
"Then its great popularity came in the re-runs."
Did you enjoy the films?
"Oh, I enjoyed the films immensely. We did six major motion pictures of a television series that we'd done ten years before."
Which is your favourite of the films?
"Two, four and six in that order."
"Exactly. They should skip seven and go directly to eight."
What do you think of First Contact?
"I haven't seen it but I understand it's very good."
You're the only one of the original main cast who hasn't appeared in a spin-off series. Have you been asked? Would you like to?
"I was asked and turned it down. I just didn't like what they were doing with Uhura, so I decided not to do it."
If the right script came up, would you do it?
"I'm an actress. I'm available for work, if the role is right."
The episode 'Plato's Stepchildren' had that notorious, ground-breaking kiss, the first inter-racial kiss on American television.
"Seems silly now, doesn't it?"
Was there a lot of opposition from the network?
"The network were very concerned about it, but to their credit, they went ahead with it. We got some of the largest fan-mail, and all of it was wonderful."
The irony is that it was banned for about 20 years in this country.
"You're kidding? You guys were further behind than we were!"
Over here Star Trek is still seen as a children's series.
"I don't get fan mail from children, from England. I think anybody with any intelligence sits down and sees the show, sees it's not a kids' show."
But we're talking about TV networks.
"Oh, well I was saying 'people with intelligence'! I thought we were talking about people with intelligence! Oh, no, that's not fair."
Apparently there are two schools of thought on Uhura's first name. Has it been clarified?
"It's been clarified. Uhura never had another name during the series. One of the fan writers wrote 'Upenda' - which means 'peace' in Swahili, I understand - not officially, but in some of their fan writings. And it sort of took hold. But when they were going to do the official history of Star Trek in a published book, the writer called Gene and asked him was 'Uhura' her first name or her last name? Gene said, 'Well, Nichelle and I never decided.' We always leaned towards it being her last name because it's taken from the Swahili 'uhuru' which means freedom. So it would sort of be like the same as 'Freeman.' So he said, 'You can make it her last name.'
"The writer said, 'What about her first name? I've come up with one in Swahili. It's Nyota.' Gene said, 'I can't give you that permission because Nichelle and I named her together, and she has rights to that, so you'll have to call her and get her permission.' So he gave him my number, and he called me and I laughed and was delighted. He said, 'I have a name and it's Nyota.' I said, 'That's quite beautiful. What does it mean?' He said, 'It means "star".' I said, 'You can have my permission!' So I have since said that her name is Nyota Upenda Uhura, which would mean a free-floating star: 'star of freedom and peace'. I like that."
Star Trek wasn't the first show you did with Gene Roddenberry, was it?
"No, he had a series called The Lieutenant, and he gave me my first guest star role in episodic TV."
Was that a cop show?
"No, it was the marines. Gary Lockwood was the Lieutenant and he was in the Marine Corps. In this particular episode, I come with my boyfriend who is a marine and has been transferred down South, and we're not thrilled about that. When he gets there, the first thing he sees - and he's a very intelligent, highly rated marine, and highly respected, and so is the other guy, the white guy. And the moment they see each other, they try to kill each other, which is totally against their nature. So the Lieutenant forces them to work together and to solve their problems. And I was in the middle of the whole thing."
"Yes, I did. In '78-'79 I recruited the first women and minority astronauts for the space shuttle programme. So that was historic and that was just great."
Do you follow the space programme?
"Yes I do. Not as they're sort of an everyday occurrence now. We adjust to magnificence and greatness so easily! And we take it for granted. Yes, especially if someone I know is on, or if it's a special mission."
I guess a lot of your time must be spent at conventions.
"There are quite a few. Last year I didn't do so many because I was busy with my career. But I'm remounting my one-woman show, Reflections, in which I become twelve legendary woman entertainers. I'm doing several concerts and I've agreed to do several Star Trek conventions this coming year, to work them into my schedule."
Are any of the women in Reflections people that you met?
"Reflections is my reflection on the women I grew up respecting and who influenced my artistry and my life. And yes, many of them I met. And some of them became friends, like Pearl Bailey and Sarah Vaughan. And I had met the great Josephine Baker when I was just a kid. It was when I was at Chicago doing that show, when I was 14, her show came to town. And Lena Horne and Eartha Kitt - who's a dear friend of mine - and Ella Fitzgerald. My mother babysat for her son when we first moved to California. These are just amazing. And then of course, the great Billy Holiday, who I never met but I love her music. And of course Mahalia Jackson who I grew up around the corner from in Chicago. I used to hear her before and after she was Mahalia Jackson."
"My company, Always Productions has put out two, three CDs but they were fan-oriented. Then I signed with Crescendo Records a year or so ago. They put out a CD, a really nice one, and it's still doing well."
Finally, you were also in The Adventures of Captain Zoom in Outer Space.
"Oh, that was wonderful! It was such a tongue-in-cheek, dear thing. They're still talking about it might go to a series. That would be wonderful. It was so much fun doing."
How did you get involved?
"They called my manager to see about my availability and tell us about the role. At first I turned it down, and they said, 'Well, can we send her the script?' My manager brought the script over to me and said, 'I think you'd better read this.' I read and I just loved it. I couldn't stop laughing. It was wonderful."
website: www.uhura.com


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It seems like I've been a mom forever. I believe it was my calling; out of all of the many adventures and roads I've taken in my life, being a mom to Aaron, James and Daniel has been my greatest passion. They are always on my mind and in my heart.
Creativity, music, and artistic expression are essential to my well-being. I've always got a project in the works; I love working with color, photography, fabrics, drawing, scrapbooking, building altars, writing, and so much more.
Life in its most simple and pure form is what works best for me. The oceans, lakes, mountains, fresh air, and basic human and animal connections nurture me in a way that nothing else can.
I am a Hospice volunteer in grief support, and actively involved in our community. I currently serve on the board of the Carousel Fund, a non-profit organization that helps families of children with life-threatening illnesses. As an Altar maker, I have easily gravitated toward our town's annual El Dia de los Muertos celebration, coordinating the numerous altar placements in our downtown area each fall.
My personal philosophy is this: Choose love, take the high road, have a sense of humor, and meet others where they're at. It's not all about me, it's about all of us.