Virtual Hilarity - [Etcetera]

Sharon and I ventured back to the real world for today's show. It was hard to leave the wonders of Second Life, but for you...anything. Click here to hear about it.

Also, from the wonderful world of Matt, we played a new game today...don't miss it.

Subscribe to our podcast, then get set up in Second Life and we'll party.

Now, back to SL. Pass the virtual magic mushrooms.

Mini-Me's Thai Tour (Part 2) - [F'ing Andrew]

We made it safely back home to the good ol' U.S. of A. The little guy had quite a
ride the past two weeks bathing in the unique culture of this beautiful country. The people are very polite and friendly almost constantly smiling to put everyone at ease. The delicious food brings tears to the eyes - depending on how many peppers are used.




We learned that two hours of full-body massage is only 400 baht (roughly ten bucks) and I can say from personal experience that it's very relaxing with the added bonus of no souvenir bruises. Those little Thai gals can really throw you around into some weird positions to crack your back at the end. The masseuses gossiped and chatted with each other a little and Jon - the friend that I went with - speaks some Thai but he says it's much more fun if you don't let on at first that you can understand what they're saying.



We checked out some religious culture with stops at a few wats (temples) and spirit houses. Most Thai are only nominal Buddhist. You see little houses everywhere for spirits to live in. People often leave offerings of food and incense at these miniature shrines. There are even times you'll see Thai directly worshiping and giving offerings to plants and trees.



Mini-Me is confident that these mini-spirits don't mind if he eats their wafer snacks and even if they do he's pretty sure that he can take them in a fight.

VVVVVideo!

There was an actual healing on today's show. Hey...it's good to be one with the universe. What's more, we got the whole thing on video. Matt's experimenting with the video podcast deal. Click here for the audio version.

Click here to subscribe to the podcast and be on the look out for vvvvvideo!

Have You Hugged Your Atmosphere Today? - [Sharon]

I love the sky. I love its vastness. I love the way it can be any number of colors: blue, grey, white, black, or even during various sunsets or storms, it can be purple and pink.

In truth, the sky never really changes colors. What we see when we look up at it are really only variations in a host of different factors, including pressure, temperature, precipitation, you name it. But it is certainly awe inspiring to see it at its most beautiful, with a veritable pallet on display. I guess mostly I love the way, when you see the sky, it is comforting, because no matter how it appears, it is always there. It is consistent. You may forget it for a moment, and take for granted that it is there, but it has not gone away. And until the world ends, it will not.

Weirdly, “the sky” as we call it, is not really an entity in and of itself. It is the name we have given our atmosphere, made up of trillions and trillions of particles, that fills in all the space left by absence of mass here on this planet. The sky is, truly, everywhere that objects including us, are not. But we have put a name on it, and made it a singular name at that. The sky. I guess it makes it seem more comprehensible to think of it that way. I mean, what if we were to think of it as it really is: seven miles of troposphere, thirty-one miles of stratosphere, fifty-three miles of mesosphere, seventy-five miles of thermosphere, merging into exosphere, and becoming one with space, then outer space, etcetera, etcetera, ad infinitum? Wow. How much easier to say “the sky.”

In addition, we usually don’t think about the fact that we are indeed walking around in “the sky,” every time we are outside. I remember in grammar school, when I was first drawing pictures, I would always depict the sky as a blue line, about and inch and a half thick, straight across the top of the page. It wasn’t until I was older that I started grasping the concept of the sky being all the way down in the background of the whole picture. And then it was a real eye-opening experiment for me to haltingly spread the crayon down, all the way behind the house, and tree, and grass, and flowers in my picture. It seemed scary to me. Is this even possible? Won’t it look crazy? But it didn’t. It looked more real. And then I was glad I had stepped out and given it a shot. I breathed a sigh of relief. The sky really was all around us, and my understanding of it had grown to be able to depict it as it really was. I did not have to keep it way up above, safely detached from everything below it.

So, I guess the analogy is as clear as can be. He has so many facets, but He is always the same loving Father. His colors really only change as we experience different things here in this life. We are viewing Him through a vast array of atmospheric conditions. But He is never a different God. He encompasses every attribute of the Person He is, at all times, and He will never leave us nor forsake us.

It is easier for us to see Him as “God,” a name which helps us understand how we can relate to Him. He is made up of three distinct Persons, which we can only spend so much time trying to grasp, before it is easier to just refer to Him as “God,” and vaguely know on an intellectual level that there is much, much more to Him than that.

Every once in a while, we put our finger on the fact that we are walking around in His Spirit at all times. This can be alternately comforting and frightening. After all, He is “God.” We can certainly never fully comprehend this, but occasionally, as with rain or humidity, we can feel Him. His Presence becomes truly palpable, and with our limited sensory perception, we awaken to the fact that He is with us. At those times, we realize that it is safe to experience Him in this way. He is good, and the fact that He surrounds us, and we are actually in Him, only makes this life more real. And the more we invite Him into every minute of our lives, the more we will not desire to go back. We like the way He makes our lives more multi-dimensional. Even if it takes more time, and a bit more input from us, we want to include Him in all aspects of our lives.

Like I said, I love the sky. It may not always do what I want it to do, and I may take its beauty for granted more often than I’d like, but its richness is undeniable. My life is made possible by it’s very existence. Every bit of it, as far as my reasoning mind can travel.

It is good.

Nostalgia Is A Cancer - [Matthew]

Nostalgia is a sickness, a cancer slowly and invisibly tapping your energy.

In fantasizing about your glory days, you hold your hands over your ears, telling yourself ‘I’m not here. I’m in my happy place. I’m not in my crummy, can’t-make-the-mortgage world of today. I’m back in my early post-college days where things were good and simple.’

Miserable fool. The passing of time gilds memories with a golden veneer that tells you ‘things were better then.’

Let’s time travel back to those magical days of yesteryear. In the midst of wondering if you would be single the rest of your life, wondering if you would ever use your degree, wondering how you’d make the rent... what were you thinking then?

Were you daydreaming about floating in the dreamy amniotic fluid of academia? Because in college, if you’ll recall, you were obsessed with classes, exams, dating, and various other natural disasters.

Why so strident on this? Because I’m an addict, too. I think this dawned on me sometime after purchasing VHS copies (mint!) of Pee Wee’s Playhouse and Beakman’s World online.

With the advent of Ebay, we can all become pop culture archeologists, piecing together the fragmented memories of our childhoods, auction by auction. Videos, first generation Nintendo games, the Garbage Pail Kids cards I wasn’t allowed to have back in elementary school (who’s laughing now, Mom?).

What are these artifacts ultimately? Trophies. Trophies that announce to the world ‘Look everybody, this person is the big winner in the I’m-having-trouble-living-in-the-present Olympics.’

The draw of longing for the past is a siren song, escapism dressed up like an old friend.

Can’t you see that in dreaming about Then, you’re robbing yourself of Now? Yeah, you may have some nice memories, but life was tough back then, too. Probably things are tougher now. In the future, God only knows.

So stop it. Just stop it. Step away. Stop dosing on the nostalgia Novocain.

Pull your hands down from your ears. Open your eyes. This is your life. Your life is right now. Plant your feet. Stare at your world without blinking. And consider this: everything you’ve ever been through, every mistake you’ve made and subsequent lesson you’ve learned, has led you to this. Very. Moment.

The good old days? Baby, you’re living them. Get on with it.


[end ping]

Fantastic Voyage - [Etcetera]

Today was laid back...pretty mellow...but good. Click here to come along and ride on a fantastic voyage.

After the credits roll, click here to subscribe to the podcast and keep on truckin' with us.

The 411 on 666 - [Matthew]

If you’re familiar with the ‘Mark of the Beast’ and the ‘Number of the Beast’, you should also be aware of these little known facts…

















6.66% - Interest Rate of the Beast

666.blogspot.com - Blog of the Beast

.666 - Batting Average of the Beast

001101100011011000110110 – Number of the Beast in Binary Code

0.0666 - Blood Alcohol Level of the Beast

-…-…-… Number of the Beast in Morse Code

6.66 seconds – 40-Yard Dash Personal Best Record of the Beast

121984165619666 - Online Payment Confirmation Number of the Beast

12 – 44 – 7 – 9 – 666 – 28 - Lotto Numbers of the Beast


[end ping]

Easter Haiku - [Erik]

This post is now found here.

Yeah Yeah Yeah - [Etcetera]

I've undocked from the universe. That has pretty much nothing to do with this week's show, but I feel compelled to force the details of my life on you. Not that you know what "undocked from the universe" means. I've basically resorted to having inside jokes with myself. It makes me feel hip. How sad.

Anyway, join me, Matt, and Sharon as we float around looking for a place to land (and have a damn good time doing so).

Click here for the show.

Click here for the podcast...bisque!