DISQUS

Oh, I'm in for the Squanto Dance video. Totally in. Not to dance, but to watch.

Your thought about dancing in the leaves with a general thanks-for-it-all reminds me of Ann's Thanksgiving reflection today. Great minds... : )

And just generally (hah!) I loved this post. The images, the language, the honesty... yeah, call this part of the comment my dance in the cyberleaves at GoodWord.

Boy, that Jesus guy was more unorthodox than I thought! But then, I've been thinking recently that he's more unorthodox than most people have probably thought...

Great title, btw.

Always inspired by your words... real words... not blankety cushy syrupy words.

Jandy, I really liked the third observation... about blogging being a place where one could experiment with and shape identity. Maybe it's a little like improv... taking roles and seeing which ones ultimately fit.

That stuff about the Roman ships and their relationship to the word "government" is simply fascinating. (What can I say... I love words, history, and the history of words.)

And in our government, there are really multiple pilots. Which, in a way, is both comforting and scary. Comforting because it differs from a dictatorship or even a kingship where one person really does exert excessive control and vision. Scary because it means that when we get ourselves onto the rocks, it means that a whole lot of prominent people pitched in to steer us that way.

Still, the "common people" have a lot of power when it comes to how we're ultimately steered. Yes, I even consider the economic crisis when I say this. In other words, maybe when we embrace the thought that we can live on the edge of our finances and buy more than we could ever pay for on credit, maybe we too have created part of the problem.

!!!!!!!!!!

: )

[I'm sure I speak for others here too.]

In other words, does this mean you're back?

Lijit's free reign concerning use of content?! What's that? Sounds scarier than a man in lederhosen.

Okay, I found a way around it, though it's not transparent....

... if one clicks very determinedly on the link and ignores the pop-up box, one can pass GO, collect $200, or at least get to the desired site in a single, very firm click.

I like experimenting. I'm assuming that you're accepting this, or that your lederhosen have cut off the circulation enough that perhaps you're not really noticing what's going on.

[from one who has possibly lost her mind]

Um, yeah, MG, I know. But it's too much work. Too many choices. I don't want a life history (a life stream?) when I mouseover the cute faces or the icky grey faces. I just want a hot-link right where I want to go. You know?

Sometimes simple is just right.

Egads. Not only did I have to put on a grey smiley with DISQUS, but I lost the link to my own site. The DISQUS gods appear to take over and direct traffic to themselves if a person goes so far as to "register" and "login" and all that jazz.

[I am going to assume that if a guy wears lederhosen then he might be the kind of guy who won't mind that I'm experimenting here in the comments.]

If nothing else, it will be a grand experiment. But as with all experiments, maybe the expectation that it MIGHT NOT WORK OUT should be set at the start. Or maybe it should be bounded by a time frame from the outset.

Will he do a "Works for Me Wednesday"? Will he accept memes and share with the world his 10 most annoying habits? I can see this will be wonderful grist for a whole lot of blog posts across the blogosphere!!

Okay, I was very obedient. Well maybe not VERY. But I did a few of the suggested things. Oh, and I watched the video (which I liked... nice spirit).

Enjoy. I'd love to be there, but I think I've used up my conference quota for the year. : )

RLP, that was funny too.

Wow. I clicked over to the preview. It was breathtakingly beautiful. Especially from a visual art perspective.

I'm not a horror fan, but I occasionally like a good suspense tale. Oh, and I love everything M Night Shyamalan does. He can make even the empty corner of a room so scary!

Why do we like to be scared? It's a good question. Or perhaps it is better put like this... why do YOU like to be scared?

RLP, that was funny.

And, btw, your book was not a failure in my house. I love it. I tend to read it when I'm feeling down. Or when I want to hear a real voice.

L.L. Barkats last blog post..Arguing with Lauren Winner

Seems to me that people on both sides of the God question often suffer from this kind of thing-- thinking that someone else is ridiculous for their honest struggles to come to real conclusions. It bothers me.

Is that you... with... a ... beard?

Yes, btw, your family is great.

God is not great? Who can look at the face of a child, or even a violet, and say this?

(But thanks for telling us about the debate, for those who feel like participating.)

Craver. Thank you. That is a wonderful compliment (and now I know I can never meet you in person, because I am more exemplary in print than I am in sandals.)

Okay, I distinctly remember Riess, Crouch, Winner and Crosby answering this question (can you live as a writer?) at the Calvin Festival...

You can get their answer here (it is both less hopeful and more hopeful than one might expect)...

http://llbarkat.com/justsayno.html

Mark, loved that link about prophets!

And, Craver, I think I struggle with that line. Somehow my particular writing gifts take me in the direction of "prophet," yet my audiences seem to stay with me because I can also be diplomatic (oh, not in real life... just in my writing!)... am I sometimes too diplomatic? Maybe. Does that make me a hypocrite? Maybe. Or maybe it just makes me a coward or a sloth.

I like your last point. I think that we writers can face a subtle form of "cheating." And that's to write what we believe an audience wants to hear, rather than being prophetic. Or it's to write in a style we think an audience will be comfortable with, rather than stepping out and experimenting. I'm not saying we writers are always called to be non-conventional, but sometimes we surely are... and the question is whether or not we will cheat in that moment, that season.