Good words for a T-shirt:


Fidelity
Non-sequitur
Meniscus
Mellifluous

Negative Space?

        A man that I know was teaching some high school kids to play together in a band. He told me afterwards that each kid was thrilled to be able to play in an actual band, and was determined to do exactly that: play. This guy had to go to great lengths to get them to stop; explaining to me that "the essence of music is NOT playing." When everyone plays simultaneously, it is less like music and more like noise.
        As I began to roll that idea around, it struck me that this thought has application everywhere in life. In the print advertising industry, the term "negative space" is used to describe the empty page around the dominant element of an ad. More of that emptiness is better; when I have a page that's full, it takes away from what I'm selling. Absolut Vodka is iconic in its use of understatement...who would argue that they need more artwork on their page? In conversation, the best ones are defined by someone who is willing to listen to you. Their use of verbal "negative space" gives your words more impact. If everyone were talking to your audience simultaneously, how much less would your words mean? In sports, the phrase "play your position" is painfully cliche', but only because we believe that we are ubiquitous. We have to be taught that we cannot play everywhere. Our application of negative space on the court provides someone else the opportunity to execute. (The best example of the converse of that principle is a six-year-old's soccer game: ten kids packed tightly around a single ball, all kicking furiously.)
        It is this principle that explains why micromanagement isn't leadership. A micro-manager believes that his hand; his impact must be felt in every decision. A leader understands that the best music is created with the judicious use of silence. Rather than insisting on playing every measure of the song, a strong leader is willing to let other people play. A micro-manager is revealed as a weak leader by their unwillingness (their fear of) letting others pick up an instrument. Shut up, let go, relax and give someone else a turn. Our fear of their screw-ups keep us from really good music.
        

       Crocs are quantitatively not as good as Birkenstocks. While Crocodiles are certainly wide enough in the toe to accommodate human feet, this is a design cue taken from Birkenstock (the original "Gesundheit Schuh"). The originality they bring is in their material choice: petroleum products. Although I'm a big fan of plastics, let's be honest: they go badly with flesh. Anyone remember their yellow raincoat from grade school? After a twenty-five minute bus ride you were as wet from sweat as you would have been from the rain. My Crocs have the same issue. I can never wear them without socks because they don't (can't) breathe.


Birks, on the other hand are made from cow. Their new slogan should be: "From animals. By animals. For animals." There is no substitute for the magic of leather. Birks breathe, allowing my feet to do the same. So I lose a little bit of versatility (I don't like to wear my Birks at the sandy beach) but I gain both traction and fashion. (Crocs are slippery as well.) 


In conclusion: Birks breathe and aren't slippery. Crocs make noise when I wear them without socks. Cork soles are cooler than foam rubber. Birks are German, Crocs are Chinese. Crocs are better at the beach or poolside, but Birks are better everywhere else.


Birkenstocks win.

Good grief.

"I will do anything you ask the Father in my name, so that the Father will be given glory because of the Son."

I love to listen to people pray, and then slap a little "...in Jesus' name, Amen" on the end of whatever they asked for. I love it because it's clearly what Jesus was talking about. His comments recorded in John could probably be paraphrased like this: "Make sure that you get the appropriate tag-line on your prayers; the closing sentence is like a secret code to unlock all of the wealth of the nations to flow into your checking account. I have a secret handshake too. I'll tell you about that one later."

I believe completely that Jesus meant exactly what he said when he said, "anything." I think he meant that he would give me a car, or make me able to fly, or magically fill my freezer with chocolate ice cream. I believe that because during his ministry, Jesus was in the habit of doing crazy stuff just like that. So why aren't Christians all around the world just majicking up fabulous new lives for themselves? Didn't Jesus say that was cool?

The secret key to the ability to fly and riches untold is this: only ask for things the same way that Jesus did. Last I checked, Jesus always had other people's welfare in mind when he did something nutty. And, he never got any credit for what he did. He always split the scene if it looked like people were going to praise him. God the Father always was the object of Jesus' activity; the Father's glory and other peoples' needs were what moved him.

So drop the "in Jesus' name" off your praying. It ain't doing anything, anyhow. Try implementing Jesus' attitude and lifestyle; then ask for crazy stuff.

Help, I can't see!

Justice is invisible. Mercy is invisible. Neither can we see selflessness, kindness, or honesty. I think it's interesting that when the prophet Isaiah talks about the Messiah, he says: "He will not judge by what his eyes see or decide by what his ears hear."



The only way I can make that jive, is to think that this Messiah must operate on a framework of invisible qualities, not on the visible soap-opera drama that surrounds humanity.



What if every candidate in our election focused on advancing an agenda of selflessness, justice, and honesty? For that matter, what if every voter tried implementing selflessness in their day-to-day activities?



Most people will, as long as they can see a postive result in the offing. I think what we need to right our culture is a population willing to engage in the invisible with their eyes closed.

How To Fix Iraq

The problem in Iraq is not one of ability. We can catch or kill more of theirs than they can of ours. We have more soldiers under arms and our arms are qualitatively better.

The problem is one of leadership.

The leadership in the U.S. has not clearly articulated the goals. Without clear goals, everything feels like a quagmire. The American people can't get behind the thing when it feels like we're just flailing around killing bad guys.

We can win. Just tell us what we're trying to win.

How to Read French:

French is a language for illiterates. I say this because the letters are almost meaningless. Rather than learning that each symbol represents a sound, we find in our study of the language, that letters serve only to keep print shops in business. I think it's pride; you know, the French people would feel awkward if everyone else in the world could write things down, Frenchmen could only protest that they didn't really need to.

You can approach the reading of French armed with only a few simple rules, and do just fine. Like this one for example: All words end with one of three sounds. Long A, as in Chevrolet; Wa, as in Roy or Francois; and long O, as in "Git some, breaux!" Note that none of those letters resemble the sounds coming out of your mouth. Who needs phonetics?

I think that "reading" French could probably be boiled down to 4 or 5 rules; as I discover the rest, I'll publish them.