I heard a great interview early this morning on NPR’s Weekend Edition Sunday. NPR’s Liane Hansen interviewed Charlie Hunter, a jazz musician who plays an instrument unlike any I’ve ever heard of before, a modified eight-string guitar. I’m given to understand an eight-string guitar is usually nothing more than a regular guitar with a slightly extended range, adding one string to the top and one to the bottom. However, Hunter has his guitar modified and tuned in such a way that his three bottom strings are genuine bass guitar strings and the other five are regular guitar strings, though he notes in the interview that he’s recently removed his top string and prefers to play without it since he felt it got in his way. Eight strings or seven, though, what’s fascinating is this guy is simultaneously playing the bass guitar, rhythm guitar, and solo guitar parts in real time! My dad plays both guitar and bass (though not simultaneously, of course), so I thought he especially would get a kick out Hunter’s unique instrument and style.

Hunter’s latest record has a nice jazzy, upbeat feel with the 7-string guitar plus a couple trombones, a trumpet, and drums. The few song clips they aired during the interview were really fun to listen to. Besides talking about his unique instrument and playing style, they also discussed his practice regiment, why he chose to record the album in mono instead of stereo, and how he is learning to play the drums because it informs the way he plays the guitar, so the interview was generally entertaining for all these reasons. I’m going to be looking around online for Hunter’s albums now.

You can listen to the article on NPR’s website: “Charlie Hunter Has ‘Neglected To Inform You’” (listen).

Right now I only have three contacts with Wave accounts, none of whom I really collaborate with much, so I don’t know if I’ll get much use out of the system early on. If anybody out there has a Google Wave account and wants to chat, click here to see my address. Oh, and you, my dear readers, will be the first to know if/when I’m allowed to invite other people to the party. Stay tuned.

I just finished reading God’s Passion for His Glory, which is not a new book, but a reprint of a book by 18th-century philosopher and theologian Jonathan Edwards called The End for Which God Created the World, with a new (nearly book-length) foreword by John Piper. I greatly enjoyed this book. It has challenged and even reshaped my perceptions about God, the world, and scripture. I recommend this book to every reader. If you’d prefer not to read Piper’s foreword, at least pick up some edition of Edwards’ book and give his claims the careful consideration they are due.

An aside about old and new books

I’ve all but given up on new books lately. Several months ago I found myself in a rut of always looking for something to read among the latest releases and current bestsellers. The problem is that’s a total crap shoot. The overwhelming majority of new books aren’t any good, and, as the old adage goes, you can’t judge a book by it’s cover, so you never know which ones are good before you spend (or, as the case may be, waste) the money and time to read them.

The great thing about old books is they’ve already stood up under scrutiny. If something’s called a classic, it means lots of people have read it and enjoyed it and continue reading it and recommending it to others. Also, many older books are in the public domain and therefore free to download as ebooks and generally cheaper to buy in print. So, in a quest to read more old, good books, I have recently read Edwards’ Freedom of the Will, and I plan to read his Religious Affections soon. I’ve also heard good things about, and plan to read, John Owen’s The Death of Death in the Death of Christ. I’d also like to read many of the classic novels—e.g., Dickens’ David Copperfield is first on my list in that category.

Piper actually discusses the value of old books in his foreword. He echoes the following recommendation from C.S. Lewis:

“It is a good rule, after reading a new book, never to allow yourself another new one till you have read an old one in between. If that is too much for you, you should at least read one old one to every three new ones.” —C.S. Lewis, “On the Reading of Old Books,” in God on the Dock, 1970

I fully intend to follow this advice from now on.

My review of God’s Passion for His Glory

The End for Which God Created the World, (and by extension God’s Passion for His Glory) is about exactly what the title implies, viz., the reason God created the world (or universe, if you prefer). It answers the question, “Why are we here?”. Edwards’ answer—and I believe, the Bible’s answer, since that is Edwards’ proof-text—is surprisingly straightforward and simple: God esteems himself as the ultimate end for which he made the world. The world was (and we were) created for God, or, to put it a different way, for God’s glory.

One thing that stood out to me early in the book is Edwards’ simple yet profound interpretation of a few verses I had seen a million times before, but had never considered in the context of this question. Edwards cites verses like Isaiah 48:12 and Revelation 22:13, where God calls himself the first and the last, and interprets this to mean that God is not only the first cause but also the last end or purpose of all creation. He similarly cites verses such as Romans 11:36, Colossians 1:16, and Hebrews 2:10, where all things are said to be from God, for God, and to God, to show that all things proceed from God as their creator and flow back to God as their ultimate end or reason for existence, and that all glory will ultimate flow back to God, so that the glory of God is the last end and final consummation of the existence of the world.

In fact, I’ve never seen so much scriptural support for any belief as Edwards provides for his claim that God makes himself his purpose in the creation of the world. Many times in the book Edwards lists off a half dozen passages and then says something like, “but places to this purpose are too numerous to be particularly recited; see them in the margin,” and if you follow the footnote you’re presented with a list of two or three dozen passages that are similar to the five or six already given.

I have been blessed by this book. I will never think about God’s purposes and intentions in quite the same way again, nor will I read or understand many passages of scripture in the same way. I’m overwhelmed by how great God is and how insignificant I am in the scheme of things, and yet how significant I am to God in fulfilling his own purposes because I have the capacity (albeit only as the Holy Spirit works in me) to recognize God for who he is, to take my delight in him, and enjoy him forever, thereby giving him the honor, praise, and glory he alone is due. As Piper has said elsewhere many times, “God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him,” and, “the chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying him forever.”

One last thing is worth mentioning. Consequent to my reading this book, I have added some new text to the footer of every page of my blog. The first part is the Greek from the last verse of Paul’s epistle to the Romans, “μόνῳ σοφῷ θεῷ, διὰ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ᾧ ἡ δόξα εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας, ἀμήν,” which translated means, “to the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ, Amen.” The second is the Latin, “Soli Deo gloria!”, which is one of the five solas of the reformation, and which translated means, “glory to God alone!” I will strive for the rest of my life to live out this creed and make the highest end in everything I do the same as God’s highest end in everything he does.

After using my Kindle for four days, one (admittedly small) thing is already bugging me. There is a feature of the Kindle store called “Save for Later”. As I’m browsing the store on my Kindle device and see something I might want to buy later, I can save it. Later, I can access my list of saved items and easily purchase any of them right from that list. Sounds generally useful, right?

The problem I have with this “feature” is that it doesn’t integrate in any way with Amazon’s already existing Wishlist feature. Items I add to my Save for Later list do not appear on my Amazon Wishlist and vice versa. Consequently, there’s no way to access or add items to my Amazon Wishlist from my Kindle, and no way to access or add items to my Save for Later list from Amazon’s website on my computer. This is frustrating for a number of obvious reasons, and I can’t help but feel that Amazon has made a major marketing blunder here. By not allowing me to see my own Wishlist on my Kindle or my Save for Later list on my computer, they’re actually decreasing my access to the things I’ve already decided I eventually want to buy from them. It’s as if the grocery store were to search my pockets at the door and steal any grocery lists they find. That’s an extreme analogy, to be fair, but not entirely far from the reality here.

Now, to cut Amazon some slack, a Kindle book is different from a physical book, and physical books and other items that exist on my Amazon Wishlist would not be very useful to me if I attempted to download them to my Kindle device, so I can see some rationale behind keeping the regular Amazon store and the Kindle store separate from one another. However, since I can browse the Kindle store on my computer and even purchase items and send samples to my Kindle device from my computer, is it really too much to ask for me to be able to add items to my Save for Later list and view that list on my computer?

Update: In December 2009 Amazon enabled support for adding books to an Amazon Wishlist from the Kindle device, effectively merging the “Save for Later” feature with the true Wishlist feature on Amazon.com. I still cannot view non-Kindle items on my Kindle, but I can now view my Kindle book wishlist either on my Kindle or on my Macbook and add/remove items from either place. This is of course much better than before, though I still question the marketing wisdom of not allowing a user to purchase physical items for shipping right from their Kindle. My credit card is on file, Amazon. Why not let me shop your entire catalog from wherever I am using a device I purchased from you?

• You may download the plugin here: lds-linker.2.5.zip
• For additional information, frequently asked questions, and a complete change log, see the LDS Linker page at the WordPress Plugin Directory.

Here’s some background for those who don’t know what I’m talking about: the LDS Linker plugin for WordPress changes any Latter-day Saint scripture reference in a blog post into a hyperlink pointing to the appropriate passage in the Internet Edition of the LDS Scriptures. It recognizes references whether the book name is written out or shortened using the standard abbreviations.

Here are some examples:

Moro 10:3–5 is a scripture mastery verse. Other scripture mastery verses include Mosiah 4:30, D&C 130:22–23, and JS-H 1:15–20. I have Articles of Faith 1:1–13 memorized—how ’bout you?

A big thanks goes out to those who’ve helped me improve the code. Are you using LDS Linker? Please let me know what you think.

My lovely wife, with help from my parents, her parents, and her Granny, bought me an Amazon Kindle 2 for my birthday. This is the best gift I’ve received in a long time (which is what Janene was going for, since, after all, this was a milestone birthday). Thanks, everybody!

One aspect of the unboxing experience impressed me. You know how most electronic devices come with a thin clear plastic film over the screen to protect it in transit? And you know how sometimes the manufacturer prints something on that film that approximates what the display might look like when turned on, or includes instructions for using the device the first time? Well, keep that in mind and check out this picture of a Kindle 2 fresh in the box (this is not my photo, just a random one I found so I could show you what I’m talking about).

Well, I started peeling the film off and noticed right away these helpful directions weren’t printed on that film! This gave me pause for a moment, wondering if there was a second film I needed to remove, or if Amazon had done something really stupid and printed permanent ink on my device before applying the film, but then I remembered an interesting aspect of e-ink displays: they don’t have to be continuously powered to keep something visible on the screen. Power is only needed to place the ink; whether the device is powered or not, the ink will remain until you replace it or clear it away. As a subtle but impressive touch, Amazon had placed these getting started instructions on the display before it was powered down in the factory. Brilliant!

To that end, here is a link to the series: The Gospel of John. I’d love to chat with you about these sermons, so please please leave a comment if you do check them out.

My mother-in-law gave me $20 in nickels for my birthday (that’s 400 nickels if you’re counting with me at home), along with a jar that counts coins as you drop them in through a slot in the top. If the jar is accurate, I have 490 nickels in there currently. Add to that the 21 nickels I have in my PayPal account, and I’m up to 511. Only 31,489 nickels to go. Sweet!

If you’re paying attention, the number of nickels in my PayPal account hasn’t changed at all since my last update. Is a nickel too much to ask? Come on all you PayPal users out there! Click the button. I dare you!

What’s all this about, you ask? Check out the original post for details.

Aaron asks:

And what’s the head count (no pun intended) so far? How many nickels?

Well, it’s rather depressing, actually. I really need to start spreading the word a bit further than just my little circle of influence. I’ve got some ideas for making this little project go viral, but it’s all a matter of working up the time and energy required to put those ideas into action.

The grand total right now is 59 actual physical nickels in a cup in my desk drawer and 21 virtual nickels in my PayPal account. That’s 80 nickels all together, making the grand total $4.00 even—one four-hundredth or 0.25% of my goal. Another 31,920 nickels to go, and I’ll have my MacBook. Things are looking up!

What’s all this about, you ask? Check out the original post for details.

I accompanied Janene to the endodontist on Monday to get a root canal (she tells the story here). As they prepped her for the procedure, she eagerly inquired about sedation options. They offered her a little something called Versed. I don’t know if you know anything about Versed (I didn’t until Monday), but it’s an awfully potent drug with some rather remarkable effects.

The endodontist’s assistant explained that Versed induces a conscious sedation. Janene would be awake through the entire procedure, able to follow instructions and answer questions, but she would have no memory of the whole experience. As far as she was concerned, it would feel as if she just took a little nap.

Another assistant briefed us on the up-front costs, and, rather than pay right then, Janene and I agreed it would be easier for me to make the payment at the front desk while she was having the procedure.

As they were about to administer the magical sedative, there was a moment where we were alone in the room, so I took the opportunity to initiate a little experiment. “Honey,” I said, “let’s see if you can remember the phrase ‘green elephants’ when this is all over.” She chuckled and agreed to my little game. Then, the endodontist showed up and stuck her with a big needle and I was ushered out to the waiting area so he could get to work.

After about an hour, one of the assistants came out and let me know they were finished and I could come back and see her. As I walked in, Janene was awake and alert and asked if I had remembered to pay the bill. I answered in the affirmative, and then listened intently as they explained what they had done, went over a few post-operative instructions, and gave me a couple of prescriptions for her. They had printed the post-op instructions on a sheet of paper, and the first item on the list was “Patient will be forgetful for a few hours.” Boy, would she. As they finished up the instruction, the assistant asked me to pull the car around and she would bring Janene out to meet me (one effect of the Versed is total body weakness, so Janene couldn’t really walk on her own). As I was leaving the room, Janene asked if I had remembered to pay the bill. The assistant winked at me, and so began an adventure I won’t soon forget.

Shortly after getting in the car, Janene asked me if I’d called her mom yet. Oh, that’s a good idea, I thought, so I called her mom and let her know Janene was okay and that we’d be at their house soon. The plan was to drive back to our apartment and pick up our laundry, then head over to the in-laws’ place where I could do the laundry and Janene could take a long nap. They had explained that she would be very sleepy after the procedure and would probably take the best nap in her life.

When I got off the phone with her mom, Janene started firing off other questions, and it soon became apparent that she wasn’t remembering the answers, or, for that matter, the fact that she had ever asked any of the questions in the first place. For example, she asked me several times if her purse was in the car, and inquired several additional times about whether I had called her mom. She also asked me a few times what the endodontist had said about the procedure and what I had done while I was out there waiting for the whole hour. And the one question she really wanted to know the answer to was whether or not I had paid that darn bill.

They had explained that she needed to drink a lot of fluids and provided a bottle of red Gatorade, which Janene had set in the cup holder next to her. Every few minutes, she would look down, notice the Gatorade, pick it up, study it as if it was the first time she’d ever seen it in her life—hm, I wonder if it’s strawberry or cherry; oh, strawberry, I guess I’ll try some—take a sip, and then return it to the cup holder. This never failed to crack me up each of the half a dozen times I watched her do it.

When we arrived at the apartment, she was starting to get a little sleepy, so I helped her get her seat reclined, and she asked me if I would grab her a pillow from the couch in the front room. Sure, I said, realizing that by the time I got back out to the car she would forget having ever asked for the pillow. I brought all the laundry out and grabbed the pillow. When I asked her if she wanted the pillow, sure enough, she stared at me blankly as if the very idea of it was absurd, so I tossed it in the back seat and we hit the road again.

As we were approaching the in-laws’ place, I asked Janene where we should go to fill her prescription. Now, this illustrates a bit more of the wacky effect of Versed. You see, Janene was still Janene. She had every memory up to the point the endodontist stuck her with that big needle, and she was conscious and rational, though a bit sleepy, the whole time she was under the drug’s effects. She calmly explained that she always fills her prescriptions at Smith’s and that there was a Smith’s up ahead a little past her parents’ house. As we approached the intersection, though, not even 30 seconds later, she asked me why I was going straight instead of turning left!

The funniest part of this whole story is that every time I tried to explain to Janene that she had already told me this or already asked me that question, she would very matter-of-factly reply that she remembered “green elephants”, as if there was absolutely nothing wrong with her memory and that she was perfectly fine. She probably said the phrase “green elephants” to me ten or fifteen times in the car on the way home! I could’ve died laughing.

Anyway, the sad news (which I had to explain to her about four times that morning) is that they weren’t able to finish the procedure and we may have to go through this whole adventure again in about a month. I think next time I’ll bring the camera along and try to capture some of these antics on video. Stay tuned.