Moving On Up

I went almost a week without being able to post to my blogspot. So, I am moving up and heading out. My new blog can be found at:

http://www.kevinleggett.com/blog/

I can hear all the disgruntled linkage. Sorry. Just has to be done.

Sex God: A Book Review

Rob Bell's latest book is "provocative" to say the least. I read it in

two settings, because I couldn't set the book down. Chapter after

chapter, Bell presented many truths into our sexuality as humans that

is often tabooed by a sex crazed society and shunned by the Church. It

was something I needed to hear.



The underlying premise of the

books is "about how sexuality is the 'this' and spirituality is the

'that'."  Rob Bell challenges our definition of sexuality, changing it

from just mere physical intercourse to passion and excitement that God

placed within each of us, since we were made in His image. In the

opening chapter, "God Wears Lipstick" Bell powerfully illustrates how

we are all human and that position deserves respect and dignity. He

invites us to start acting like humans when it comes to sexuality. We

are not animals that have sex because of instinct (which seems to be a

secular stance). Nor are we angels, denying that sexuality exists

(which is the stance most churches take). We shouldn’t deny our

sexuality, but embrace it because God designed sexuality and it

perfectly correlates with spirituality. The whole Bible is a love

affair between Jesus, the Groom, and the Church, His Bride, filled to

the brim with love, passion, excitement, and yes, even sexuality.

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Favorite Fantastic Firefox Freebies

Nice use of alliteration on my part. Firefox is by far my favorite internet browser. Jam packed with goodies liked tabbed browsing and a variety of extensions to cover a multitude of needs, this little guy is awesome. Wrap it up in a portable edition, throw it on your jump drive and you will have the web organized just the way you like it, no matter where you go. All of that to give you my fabulous readership a glimpse inside my life as a web developer and internet addict. Without further adieu, here's what I use:

G-mail Manager
If you don't have a Google Mail account, let me know. I have 50 invites to share. Basically, this add on will give you updates on your Gmail account right inside your browser. Works similar to the way Yahoo Instant Messenger alerts you when you have new email.

Greasemonkey
This tiny little extension has a lot of power. It gives users the ability to write customized scripts for their browsing needs. I know sounds way too geeky for you. Never fear, there is a whole community that has already compiled some great scripts for you. I love it!

Highlighter
This is a must if you are doing research on the net. It allows you to highlight different sections of text. Extremely useful if you are reading a long article and want to take notes.

IE Tab
This sweet little add on allows you to view web pages as if you were using Internet Explorer. Very useful to web developers who want to see how the page renders using different browsers. Also useful if you come across those annoying sites that only let you use Internet Explorer.

Inline Blocked Image View
A little shout out to all of you dial up users. I fortunately have a T1 connection at work. But when I come home, the dial up is my friend because it is free. I usually turn off all my images for home web browsing. This extension lets you see a specific picture that didn't load because your images where turned off.

MeasureIt
An invaluable tool to a web designer. Ever wanted to know how far something is from the left of the screen or how big that header is, this is the tool for you. I don't see any practical use for those who don't design web sites. Sorry.

NoScript
I love this one. It helps keep you safe from pop ups and other scripts that could potentially harm your computer. NoScript allows you to customize which sites you permit to use javascripts, etc. with a click of the button.

StumbleUpon
Ok, ok. Here's a secret. I get a lot of my stuff for Fantastic Fridays through this nifty little add on. It allows you to dynamically surf the net based on user suggested sites. Then you give it a thumbs up or a thumbs down. Using your preferences, it will show you more sites based on previous ratings. Very cool, very addictive.

Christianity and Culture

First my humble apologies for not giving you a FF last week. On second thought, I don't apologize. That's right. I had the day off and spent it with my family. I love hanging out with them. Who wouldn't want to hang out with a hottie, a mohawking 5 year old, and a precious little one year old?

At any rate, I was thinking about a statement one of the pastors said at my church. He said that when you bring culture, the gospel, and community together, the end result is the mission field. As simple as it sounds, not everyone agrees with this statement. There are those who are almost sectarian in nature. To them, culture is nothing short of tainting your faith with filth. On the opposite extreme of the spectrum, you have those who dive so deep into culture, they begin to justify controversial behaviors such as homosexuality. I am somewhere in the middle.

I think the Apostle Paul was too. He, along with the other first century Christians, found himself submersed in a struggle of cultures as he sought to do God's will in the Church. First, there was a collision of Jewish and Gentile cultures, as the Jews followed their own personal convictions expecting the Gentile men to cut a little off below the belt. This naturally freaked the Gentiles out. And Paul reconciled them to say that the Holy Spirit came with a new circumcision, this time of the heart. The Jews were able to keep chopping and the Gentiles lost all fear of any would be Lorena Bobbits.

Similarly, as Paul walked the streets of Athens, he was assaulted by pagan culture and imagery. Coming across the statue of an unknown god, Paul used that part of the pagan culture as a viable argument for the truth of Christ.

As the face of worship changes in this post-modern age, we too are faced with such decisions. Where are you on the spectrum?

Turtle Power

The crazy, cool, little guy and myself hit the theatre Sunday afternoon for a little one-on-one with daddy time. The object of our viewing pleasure was the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle movie. Admittedly, I am reliving my childhood vicariously through my 5 year old son. My pride swells up when he finds Spider-man, Jedi, and the awesome foursome that is the Ninja turtles.



What's In It: Overall, the movie brought me back to the past. I remember collecting all the green dudes and their crime fighting buddies like Casey Jones and that gecko. However, I wasn't too impressed when I saw the darker, anime styled series that has currently hit the Saturday morning market. For this reason, I was hesitant to see the latest movie. In the end, my fears subsided as my inner connected with the awe Caedmon displayed in the high action going on the big screen.

Visually, the movie is stunning. They cram a lot of action without losing too much of the plot. The movies picks up from the TMNT 3 (thankfully they ignored TMNT 4. That was a disaster). Leonardo has gone on a mission to train, and the other three have picked up random jobs just to make a living. Leo comes back to find Mikey doing party gigs, Donnie is working as tech support, and Raphael has just as much anger as before. The animosity between Ralph and Leo climaxes at an all out battle between the brothers, only to leave Leo at the mercy of the foot. Then there is a whole new set of ancient villains for the turtles to slice and dice.

Family Force: There were a few things that should be noted before watching the action packed quartet. First, there is animated violence. Even Tom and Jerry has that. One thing I didn't like though, was the implication of Casey Jones and April O'neil living together unmarried. There was no sex scenes or anything remotely close to it. But still, its worth noting the subtleties.

Spiritual Makeover: As usual, I try to gleam some spiritual allegory from what I watch. I definitely think this is up there with the whole unity thing. Each turtle has their own unique gifts and personalities to add to the team. And it isn't until they learn to work as a team that they reach their full potential. Need I say more about the spiritual condition of the church?

The First Year

I know...Kevin is posting on a Saturday, something is up. And it is my friends. We have all gathered around our monitors to celebrate the cruelty of God. If He had one flaw in His design, this would be my pick: Presley Claire turned 1 today.

And as much as I try to ignore it, she's growing up. It all started one year ago yesterday, with my wife in the living room sitting in a birthing tub (read all about it here). Friends, family, and a dirty hose. I was in here on the computer trying to stay awake playing Oblivion. At the time, it seemed like it would be days before Presley would make her appearance. In retrospect, it was in the blink of an eye. At 4:50 in the morning, her perfect little body breathed its first breath.

I still like to pretend it happened yesterday. I can't believe that it has been an entire year and I honestly feel cheated out of something. It really sucks that I spent a good portion of her first year of life working two jobs. I think I will carry that scar with me for the rest of my life.

But, love heals. And I do love that little girl with every beat of my heart. I can't get over her marvelous beauty. I love coming home to her giggles and sheer excitement to see me coming through the door (followed shortly by her older brother).

So to all the would be parents out there, take every moment to cherish that first year. God has chosen not to let it last for very long.

To Presley Claire: Daddy loves you sweetheart. Happy Birthday!

Fantastic Fridays

Christian Exodus
You all can thank Adam for this entry. Unbeknownst to me, the Christians are all rallying together to infiltrate South Carolina, succeed from the States, and become our own nation altogether.

Desktopography
Tired of looking at the same desktop on your computer. I found some fantastic desktop wallpapers over at desktopography, designed by some of the best. This year's theme is the outdoors.

Jason Johnson (website | blog)
My daughter is of course fantastic. She turns 1 tomorrow (post soon to follow). But what makes this entry fantastic that we had her pictures taken by our favorite photographer, Jason Johnson.



How to Infuriate Someone
LOL!

Bubbles
Another way to waste your time. I like to click until they are completely off the screen and let them fall.

Safe2Pee
Your online directory with Google Map access to the worlds greatest and safest cross-gender restrooms. You know you its awesome.

Bruce Lee Theme Park
The psychotic karate nerd in me is speechless.

CelebriMiis
These Nintendo wiis and their look alikes are cool.

USPS gone Jedi?
The United States Postal System has embraced one of America's greatest icons. Vote on the next set of stamps they are putting. Thanks to my gorgeous wife for this one.

Power of the Stick Figure

Sorry for the lack of postage. Just had a terribly busy week. We launched an "Ask A Librarian" campaign this semester. To kick things off, we performed Monty Python's "Black Knight" in chapel. Then we designed a couple of posters. And to finish things off, we did some class tours this week, passing out business cards with our contact information on it. You'd be surprised how impressive our stick figures are.