Geek in Heels - Page 131

Jul 30, 2010 • In Christianity, Personal

My Response to Anne Rice Leaving Christianity

Yesterday, author Anne Rice caused quite a stir when she publicly announced on her Facebook page that she has decided to “quit” Christianity.

For those who care, and I understand if you don’t: Today I quit being a Christian. I’m out. I remain committed to Christ as always but not to being “Christian” or to being part of Christianity. It’s simply impossible for me to “belong” to this quarrelsome, hostile, disputatious, and deservedly infamous group. For ten years, I’ve tried. I’ve failed. I’m an outsider. My conscience will allow nothing else.

In the name of Christ, I refuse to be anti-gay. I refuse to be anti-feminist. I refuse to be anti-artificial birth control. I refuse to be anti-Democrat. I refuse to be anti-secular humanism. I refuse to be anti-science. I refuse to be anti-life. In the name of Christ, I quit Christianity and being Christian. Amen.

The news saddened me because Anne Rice was one of my favorite authors when I was a teenager, and I had embraced her newfound faith when she first announced her return to Christianity a few years ago (she had been raised a Catholic but left the church while in college).

I am saddened because Rice seems like one of the many people who have turned away from Christianity for the faults of its believers;

For the people who attempt to conform others to become more like them, or at least the “socially acceptable” version of a Christian, rather than to help others become more like the person God created them to be and to become more like Jesus.

For institutions like the Westboro Baptist Church who, in my humble opinion, seek to spread the Gospel through hate rather than love.

For everyone throughout history who have (many times, wrongfully) used the name of Jesus to further their own agendas. For those who stand on the fringe, shouting the loudest and most vociferously, leading the public to believe that all Christians are like this.

I am saddened because many of Rice’s statements about Christianity are false. (Would she have had the same reaction if she attended another church? Another denomination?) I am saddened because being a Christian has become so “uncool” and politically incorrect in our society. But unfortunately, this is the viewpoint that the general public seems to have on Christians as a whole and there isn’t much that I can do about it.

I am saddened because despite what many non-Christians claim, the percentage of Christians continue to decrease as the years go by…just as the Bible predicts. I know that I will continue to be ostracized for my beliefs (and this has certainly been increasing in the past few years), and that one day, I might even need to choose between Christ and everything else in my life.

I am not perfect. Heck, I have broken all Ten Commandments (because Christ says that even having thoughts that go against a commandment is breaking it) over and over in my lifetime. I have done many many things that I am too embarrassed to write on this public blog.

However, I am a Christian.

And I accept that not everyone is perfect, the least of whom are Christians because we are all convicted in faith.

So many people I know are dead-set against Christianity for the wrongdoings of the Church and of its members. They ask how I can align myself with an institution that is so close-minded, so hateful, and have made so many mistakes.

To them I ask: We are all human. God may be the focus of the Church, but He has still given us free will. We can do the best we can, but we are still bound to make mistakes. Is there any religion out there that is perfect? Can you honestly expect any religion, affiliation, group, or institution to be perfect? So why do you demand this from Christianity?

Christians are taught to hate evil, not people. Reading stories like the so-called Christians who advocate for the execution of gays makes me weep for their misinterpretation of the Bible.

The Christian Church is not about a group of like-minded people living in a storybook world. To me, the Church is about imperfect people living in an imperfect world, seeking to be like Jesus. (And still failing! But we continue to try!)

Now I am not one to say that Christianity is all about rainbows and unicorns. It is anything but, as a matter of fact. Christians are constantly in battle — with spiritual forces, with our innate evil, and with the evils of the world. It is quite tiresome and discouraging at times. And as the popularity of Christianity decreases, we are ridiculed and mocked for our faith.

But what keeps me coming back to Christ is grace. Knowing that we are all imperfect, and by God’s grace we are saved.

Heineken R2-D2

Have I mentioned that I’ve been having dreams of drinking a cold, frothy beer? And I wake up happy and thirsty for more, only to realize that I still have at least 2 more months to go before I can indulge in my beer cravings?

(Yes, I’ve tried non-alcoholic beer. And yes, they suck donkey balls.)

Now I am convinced that designer Lockwasher has set out to tease me…

I wonder if I can convince J to smuggle a Guinness into the hospital so I can have a celebratory drink right after delivery….?

Via Design Bloom.

30 Weeks

I now have less than 10 weeks left until my due date! But when you think about it, I’m only 3/4 of the way done, which makes me think with an exasperated sigh, “That’s it??”

The impatient side of me wants this baby out NOW. The discomforts of the third trimester continue, and I really really envy friends like Shortie who went into labor yesterday (and probably had her baby by now!), or Sara who is now full-term. I even envy those like Creature Gorgeous who is simply GLOWING and basking in all the comforts of the second trimester.

Then the good, motherly instincts kick in and I try to persuade myself that the longer she cooks in there — up to 42 weeks — the healthier she will be when she is born. I read an article the other day that the majority of advanced prenatal brain development occurs between weeks 35-40…and we want a smart baby, y’all!

Earlier this week the baby’s crib was finally delivered. We had forked over an extra $130 for delivery, and while we had been questioning whether we could’ve just rented an SUV or a truck to pick it up ourselves, I’m ultimately glad that we decided to go the delivery route — the box is HUGE!

As ugly and intimidating as the big-ass box may be, it still sits unopened and untouched in our foyer because I have yet to start cleaning out the guest room. Sigh. I keep seeing pictures of fully-prepared nurseries in my pregnancy boards, even by women who are due months later than me, and I feel so unprepared and guilty that I’m soooo not looking forward to decorating our daughter’s room. I guess I just don’t have that gene in me? I would rather keep it bare and sparse and let her decorate it the way she likes as she gets older.

There continues to be no more major milestones on the baby’s development front. At this point, all she needs to do is continue to build up fat and make those bones stronger. I read that starting in the third trimester, 200 milligrams of calcium are deposited into the baby’s skeleton each day. Now I’m not sure if this is psychosomatic, but I almost feel like she’s taking some of that extra calcium from my own deposits. Because for the first time since finding out that I was pregnant, I broke a few nails in the past week. Super-strong nails was one of the things I actually loved about being pregnant, but now it seems that my nails are starting to go back to their usual weak, brittle state.

As for the minor developments, the baby’s fingernails and toenails are now fully finished. Her bone marrow is completely in charge of red-blood-cell production now, and she is starting to shed her lanugo — the downy hair that was covering her skin — as she’s chubbier and better able to regulate her body temperature.

I read today in one of the many pregnancy e-newsletters I receive that at 30 weeks, my baby is now the size of a chihuahua. I burst out laughing as soon as I read that, because I couldn’t help but picture myself giving birth to one of the toy breeds that Comang seems to be so terrified of.

North Korea is Strong…Oh So Very Strong!

Don’t believe me? Just take a look at the source code of the official webpage of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea:

Via The Daily What.

The Longest Photographic Exposures in History

German photographer Michael Wesely specializes in long exposure photography. Using a self-built pinhole camera, his photographs have captured the light of its subjects for up to three years.

In 2001, he was invited by the Museum of Modern Art in New York to capture the re-development of their building. He set up four cameras in four different corners and proceeded to record the destruction and re-building of the MoMA until 2004 — that’s an exposure of 34 months!

With a surreal and almost eery quality about them, I find these photos to be hauntingly beautiful and ghost-like. I feel inspired to take some extremely long exposure shots myself, but I’m pretty sure that J would have a cow if I were to leave the camera out for months (or even years) in the same exact place.

Link, via Neatorama.

Videogame WebMD

Via Dorkly.

What to Search When You’re Expecting [Google Search Story]

This video seems particularly fitting for our life at the moment. Although I have to admit that I’m the one doing most of the reading and researching…J’s attitude seems to be more along the lines of, “Just tell me what I need to pay for, where I need to be, and how to not hold the baby like a football.”

Via The Official Google Blog.

Circle Lenses

Circle Lenses are special contact lenses that are designed to make the wearer’s irises appear larger, creating a doe-eyed, anime-like appearance. Many in the western world first became acquainted with them when the NYTimes and The Inquisitr recently ran pieces warning consumers of their potential dangers.

The fact of the matter is, Circle Lenses have been around in Asia for years now and are just as safe as regular contact lenses (provided that you purchase them from a reputable dealer). Just as long as you take care to clean and store them properly, do not wear them for extended periods of time, never wear them past their expiration dates, do not share them with friends, and wear the correct prescription strength (if needed) — which are all precautions you must take with regular contact lenses — they are perfectly safe.

I had dying to try them for a long time before the Times and Inquisitr articles ran, so seeing them in print made me take the leap.

After doing some research on popular brands and reputable dealers, I placed an order for Magic Color Geo Fresh Brown lenses for $15.99 ($19.49 with shipping) from TokioShine, taking care to get my prescription strength correct. They arrived in true Asian fashion, complete with a pink Hello Kitty contact lens case.

Here are my before and after shots, taken with my webcam because I’m not skilled enough to take self-portraits on my DSLR.

Before:

After:

The lenses are pretty comfortable and I didn’t have a problem with them at all. I would say that they seem to be slightly more flimsy (and by that, I mean more thin and flexible) than my regular contacts, but this is expected of all disposable contacts.

You wouldn’t be able to notice that I’m wearing contacts at first glance. However, if you peer at my eyes closely, you can definitely tell. If you want a clear picture of what the Geo Fresh Brown lenses look like, take a look at the first picture here.

My verdict? I personally wouldn’t use them for everyday wear, but I would definitely try them for a night out. I wouldn’t try different colors or crazy patterns because that’s just my personal preference, but they are widely available and I can see the appeal.

Have you, or would you ever try Circle Lenses?

An Easy Beef & Mushroom Dish

My mother “invented” this dish one night and it has since become one of my favorites to make on lazy summer evenings. The best part? It is so easy that anyone can make it.

Ingredients:

thinly sliced beef, sukiyaki-style
mushrooms (I used king oyster, portobello, shiitake, and enoki mushrooms in this example but feel free to use your favorites)
soy sauce
wasabi

Instructions:

Wash and tear/chop all mushrooms into bite-sized pieces. Throw them into a pan and sautee on medium heat. (You may want to wait a couple of minutes to include the smaller mushrooms, like enoki, so that they don’t become too soggy.)

There is no need to add any oils — the natural juices from the mushrooms will suffice.

As the mushrooms are cooking, prepare to add your beef. I bought these packages of sukiyaki-style beef from our local Asian market. If you don’t have an Asian market nearby, just ask your butcher for the tender part of beef in very thin slices.

Just as the largest pieces of the mushroom are just starting to get soft, throw in the beef. Continue to sautee everything on medium heat.

Again, you do not need to add anything — the natural juices from the beef and the mushrooms will prevent the ingredients from sticking to the pan. If you wish, you can add a tablespoon or two of soy sauce, but it is not necessary.

When the beef becomes brown, you are done! Turn off the heat and transfer onto a serving plate.

Serve the dish with a side of sushi-style soy sauce and wasabi. In other words, mix the soy sauce and wasabi in a small bowl just as you would when eating sushi. Dip the beef and mushroom into the sauce before eating, exactly as you would with sushi.

Total preparation time is about 15 minutes. And I guarantee that the end result is delicious!

Inception Timeline [Infographic]

Have you watched Inception yet? J and I still discuss the film from time to time and plan on watching it a second time just to catch notice of all the finer points of the movie (as well as additional evidence to support our theories).

For those, like me, who are still pondering the movie, here is a great infographic from deviantART user ~dehahs which beautifully explains the timeline of the story: