Store Wars

Store Wars
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

Okay, so I know I said that I wasn't going to post for a while, but this was too good to pass up! Check out this short little flick. If you like Star Wars, or organic foods, or just need a good laugh, this is right up your alley!

Crazy busy

You know those times in your life that are so busy that, well, you're just constantly busy? These next couple weeks are like that for me. All of our hosts (interns) at work arrived in the last few days, and we started training with them yesterday. For much of the next two weeks or so, we'll be working with them on how to work with the groups that come to serve in San Francisco--both practically (like navigating through the city) and spiritually (helping the groups process what they are learning). (Click here for more info on CSM and what we do.)

All that to say that I doubt if I will update this blog in the next week or two. But thanks to all who have been checking it out, and I'll check back in with you as soon as I can. Pray for our sanity and rest--I was at work last night until 10:30 p.m. and am going in this morning at 7 a.m.

Digital v. Film

Check out this article in today's San Francisco Chronicle.

I have been debating for several months--probably almost a year now--whether or not to purchase a digital camera. I have a little bit of money (thanks to some donors) put away for an out-of-the-ordinary purchase, and have reallly been leaning toward buying one. At Target last week (killing time waiting for my brother's flight to arrive at SFO), I was able to hold a couple models and liked the feel of them, and I love the concept. Being able to do whatever you want with a picture so easily, instead of being limited to paper and scanning. Plus, it's so much cheaper. I haven't taken many pictures since living in SF, largely because of film and processing costs.

But this article brings up the cons--yes, there actually are some--of digital photography. None of which are really making me think twice about buying a new digital, but definitely thought provoking. What will digital storage be like in 20 or 30 years? Will we even be able to access our pictures from 2005 at that time, if they're not in a hard-copy form? As is the human way, we're always going to be finding something bigger and better, but at the same time, it forces out our old stand-by options.

Any thoughts on this phenomenon, or recommendations on how/what to buy when it comes to digital cameras? :-)

What do Santa, Cookie Monster and Harry Potter Have in Common?

David, Chris and Cookie Monster
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

Well, in this instance, they're all in the same photo.

Bay to Breakers is an annual San Francisco tradition. It's the largest foot race in the country (70,000+ participants) and certainly the craziest.

Traditions include the throwing of tortillas through the air (their flight is remarkably similar to ultimate discs) at the start line, hundreds of naked runners, rolling kegs and/or full wet bars, centipedes (teams of runners roped together), and thousands of costumed runners.

After running it in running clothes last year, I wanted to go with some sort of costume in 2005. So, my roommate David and I were off to the thrift store, in search of the perfect outfit. David found a nice floral shirt and some hideous red corduroys, which he turned into court jester shorts. Fellow roommate Jim's Santa hat topped off his outfit, seen in this picture. My "costume" consisted of a borrowed "horn" hat (thanks to our fourth roommate, Ryan), a thrift store Hawaiian shirt and Harry Potter glasses. (We don't know the Cookie Monster seen in this picture.)

The 12K run was great (it's like one big party, so it doesn't even feel like you're running that far) and the company was better. Our entire house ran, along with my brother Bradley from Michigan, my friend Jarrett from Chicago, and Ryan's friend Michael from Seattle. As always, it was a great experience!

Knowledge...or lack thereof

A few weeks ago, I took the Bible Knowledge Assessment for Wycliffe Bible Translators. I'm in the application process to join the organization, and the BKA is a part of the large amount of information that they glean from prospective members. I can't talk about the specifics of the test (for legal reasons), but I learned something from it that I wanted to write about.

The test was difficult. In all honesty, I'm not sure if I've ever taken a test where I felt as though I knew so little of the material. I've been a Christian and going to church all my life, but this test really made clear to me that my study (including memorization) of the Bible has sorely been lacking for most of my life. All those Bible stories and whatnot from Sunday school and youth group were important, but in my mind, it wasn't deep enough to understand all that I could about Christ and life with Him.

My personal devotions have never amounted to much, at least in terms of the Bible. My personal prayer life has really been strengthened in recent years (largely due to my lonliness), but scripture has usually been limited to reading a few verses in Our Daily Bread, and that never goes deep enough for me to learn--ODB is more about being inspired.

When have I gone the deepest in my study of Scripture? Ironically, when I'm preparing to teach from the Bible. For a few months last year--and February of this year--I taught Sunday school at Promised Land Fellowship. It was in preparation for those lessons that I had multiple Bibles, a concordance, and a Bible dictionary spread out on my bed and I was really digging in, praying for divine guidance and enjoying it! Interestingly enough, there were questions that I answered correctly on the BKA that I know came as a result of those times of teaching.

I just found out that the results of my BKA are in and I will not need to pursue further Bible study in order to join Wycliffe. This is a good thing (I'm still planning on joining WBT full-time in January). The better thing is that it has brought to the forefront of my mind that I need to be studying the Bible. If for no other reason, my stress over the BKA was good for that!

Rain, rain, go away!

For those of you not from the Bay Area, here's a rough summary of how SF weather works:

November through March: Rainy season, temps between 55 and 75.
April through August: No rain, temps between 55 and 75.
September/October: Hot (relatively speaking, of course), temps between 60 and (on a rare day) 90

Unfortunately, today (May 4), we're getting rain again. Just when we were looking forward to summer! There's an interesting article in the Chronicle today about the weird West Coast winter. More rain in LA than in Seattle!

Bizarre...

The Last (Fell Street) Supper

The Last (Fell Street) Supper
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

I couldn't resist posting this fun picture! From August of 2003 through July of 2004, I lived in a great house on Fell Street with a fun Christian community. The house was sold and we all moved on from the house, but not out of contact.

Last month, we hosted a gathering at our new house for people who had at one point lived in the "Fell Street House." This picture shows just some of the fun from that night!

Thanks to Jim for the picture!

Church Satire

I've added a new link at the right--Lark News. It's a hilarious website, updated once a month, with satirical "news" on life in the North American church. Whether you attend church or not, this site is worth checking out. Especially funny are the "ads."

By the way, I'm working on getting some pictures up, so you can visually see what life is like out here in SF. (The fact that I don't own a digital camera is slowing down this process a bit.)

Please feel free to leave a comment using the link below. I'd love to hear from you!