I have started a story tradition in my family. It was somewhat inadvertantly. It all started when we had a power outage at the house several months ago. I told the kids a story before bedtime. It was a story about the little old man. His name is unspellable (I'll explain later). I had no idea the story would be so popular though. The next night they demanded another story. Specifically they demanded a little old man story. The Little Old Man, it seemed, was a hit. The plots are simple ones. Most of them are about everyday things but with a twist. Things like washing the car, going grocery shopping, or getting a haircut (last nights plot) form the kernel of the story. I don't tell them every night anymore. Mostly because I can't come up with enough ideas for an everynight occurence. The stories are one of the most sought after rewards for our kids. Oh yeah, I promised an explanation about his name. His Name is the musical note middle C. His whole family has musical notes for names. Don't ask me why. It just came to me when I started the story.
Last night they demanded another Little Old Man Story. The kids have a cousin visiting and they wanted the cousin to hear one of the stories. So I set them all down in the living room.
"What are the rules for the Little Old Man Story", I asked. My children know the Rules by Heart and follow them faithfully. If they don't then they wont hear the whole story. Like a chorus. My Two oldest shout out. "Be Still and Be Quiet during the story unless you ask us a question, or helping you make sound effects." My stories are interactive. Lots of sound effects and I ask the kids questions all through the story. Their answers can even affect the story in some pretty strange ways.
Then the story began. For roughly 20 minutes I had a rapt audience. The end result of the night? I have a new fan of the Little Old Man Stories.
the top entries drop off.
sorry about that folks been pretty busy lately. Lots of stuff on the plate and all that. combined with a disproportionate amount of stress. I'll be back to updating soon though so don't stop checking :-)
One of the really cool things about the cross is what it demonstrates about the nature of love.
"For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." - John 3:16Do you ever wonder what kind of love that was? Did God's love for us happen to Him? Was it the kind of love you see in books and movies and tv shows, Love at First Sight? The Answer is no. God's love was a decision. It was a choice, a conscious act of the will. God doesn't change you see. When he decides to do something he does it. He doesn't suffer from indecion or a change of heart. He decided to love Mankind. That decision required certain actions on His part. Before He even created the universe he had decided he was going to make Man and love him. God is also a Righteous and Just god though. He couldn't ignore Man's sin. The consequences of that Sin could not be avoided. On the one hand God had to have our Sin balanced and canceled out. On the other hand God had to love us. God's decision to love us required Him to give his life for us.
Take a look at the first truly mass market Open Source Desktiop machine being sold.
The only question I have is are we locked into that particular desktop system are are the others available as an option. At least we should be able to run Gnome and KDE apps inside it. The best part? Look at that price!!! No WinTel machine can compete with that price without being sold at a loss.
It would be a good machine for any home user and could even serve as a cheap server box for numerous geeks out there. On the other hand if you want a little more power under the hood This one is a pretty good bargain too. MAN I wish I had some cash on me.!!!