I got out of the lineup and drove the final mile back to where I was staying and got in side just as the rain started to fall in earnest. I’ve lived through one direct hurricane hit (hurricane Georges, 1998) and numerous other near misses. But, hurricanes are, relatively, predictable. You know where the storm is headed, you know what to expect. This thunderstorm was the exact opposite of that. As I talked with my wife on the phone, watching the storm (I know, I know, don’t watch the storm, get somewhere safe), it changed directions at least three times. It was wild. It was unpredictable. It was powerful.

After about an hour, things had calmed down. I got dinner, even. The next day, I flew out, apparently just a few hours before another set of storms hit the area. But, I’m fairly certain that I’ll retain the memory of the first time I heard a tornado siren. I’m pretty sure I violated a speed limit on the way to safety.

Everyone is controlled by fear. Whether it is imagined or actual, the fear is real to them and controls every aspect of their lives.

- Debby Shoun (a stage actress with a penchant for overstatement?)

I’ve been thinking a lot about the way fear impacts behavior. While I think this quote is definitely hyperbole, there seems to be, perhaps, an element of truth to it.

Thankfully, Ligonier ministries just had a (pre)conference that dealt with the issue, featuring guys like Al Mohler and Tim Challies. You can find the audio here: http://www.christianity.com/ligonier/. It’s not all posted yet, and I haven’t made it all the way through yet, but I’m excited to get some help developing exactly how I ought to think about the internet and all these new methods of communication that we have available to us. Check it out.

While you might think that’s a little bit overboard, it made sense to me. It works for him. It’s like a lot of things in a writer’s life (platform/marketing, developing ideas), you have to figure out what works for you.

Theme for a weekend.

3. The Twinkie-fingered gloves goalkeepers wear. No wonder the English goalkeeper allowed that easy shot to give America a 1-1 tie in the Group C opener. You couldn’t stop a beach ball with those big goofy things. What, is Hamburger Helper a sponsor? Why must they be so huge? Doesn’t Roger Rabbit need them back? And where do the batteries go? How are goalkeepers expected to hang on to the ball with them on? And is it difficult to play goalie while also taking things out of the oven?

Too funny. Are you watching the world cup? Anything you’d like to see changed?

Of the many influences on emerging adults, “One of the most powerful factors was the religious lives of their parents-how often they attended religious services, how important religious faith was in their own lives, and so on”

That’s the sort of thing that makes me want to redouble my efforts with my child. Every little thing you do as a parent has an impact. That should be every bit as scary as it sounds.

See, right there, I got to the end of a thought, and the easy thing to do would’ve been to check my email, facebook, and twitter. I would’ve found a link that lead to three more and then I would’ve been back to writing this in 20 minutes. Which means that, to write 200 words, I would take 40 minutes. That’s inSANE.

Did it again. Anyway, there’s a book called Switch: How to Change Things When Change is Hard. They explain that sometimes we search for the wrong type of solution — it’s easier to change situations than motivations. So in this example, the key is to change the situation in which I’m writing. Some of the solutions available include: switching to a typewriter (blech), switching to a pen and paper (no one can read my handwriting, not even me), or figuring out a way to effectively close myself off from the easy distractions.

Looking over the options, since I haven’t been able to find a great typewriter like Meg Ryan’s boyfriend in You’ve Got Mail, I’m going to have to figure out the latter. I’ll let you know what I’ve come up with. The reality is that nothing has worked yet. So, anything will be an improvement.

The cost of a thing is the amount of what I call life which is required to be exchanged for it, immediately or in the long run.

Henry David Thoreau