Day 3 video
Here’s a video of a quick snorkeling trip in between work and dinner. I spent only about 15 minutes in the water. The water was a bit murky, but it was still decent.
Update from Hawaii Day 2
Thanks to jetlag, I’m going to keep this short, as I’m going to bed very soon. Today was spent at the a beach a short walk from our apartments. It’s not a “real” beach, as the sand is just brought in from somewhere else. Since Kona is frequented by cruise ships (one stops in every Wednesday), I suppose somebody had the bright idea to dump some sand so that tourists would have somewhere play in the water. Wednesday is not the day to be down by the water.
Today, though, was much nicer than yesterday. We went snorkeling in the bay, which is a 10 or 15 minute walk from our apartments. It’s been cloudy, so the water was a little chillier. So far, I’m beginning to think that the whole “the water is warmer in Hawaii” statement is just a big conspiracy. Even still, Josh and I spent at least an hour in the water snorkeling while Megan swam laps past us at breakneck speed. The water was really murky in the first spot, but then we moved to the other side of a pier where the water as much clearer. Instead of the one fish we saw at the first location, this area was teeming with coral, fish, and urchins. I took way too much video, although I’m not really able to do much editing while I’m away from my desktop. So that’ll wait until I get home. The next time I snorkel, though, I’ll make sure that I take some short videos I can post. The next trip will probably be Saturday.
Work starts tomorrow, and I’m going to be working on the grounds. I really wanted outside work, so I’m looking forward to it.
Off to sleep now. Zero-five is going to come much faster than I’d like it to.
Update from Hawaii
Well, we made it! In order to save money we flew out of Phoenix instead of Tucson, and had a direct flight to Kona International. We (Josh, Kaiti, Megan, and I) are working at the University of the Nations Kona Campus as short-term staff. We don’t get paid, but our room and board does. So it’s a relatively cheap way to be in Hawaii, because after work’s finished for each day we’re free to explore the island.
We flew in last night, start work Friday, so today is a free day. We’re going to take the trolley down to the beach to hopefully go snorkeling.
Here’s Josh’s blog and Youtube.
More to come!
Growing up Christian in a Secular World
Remaining Christian while growing up in a secular world necessitates difficult decisions from parents and child alike, as no exact paradigm guides them. Among the Christian community, many families disagree on how to raise their children. Some follow a very conservative model and prohibit their child from seeing any movies with crude language or violence. Others opt to allow their children to watch movies or play video games—with little content discretion—thinking the exposure will prepare them for life. Neither extreme can truly benefit a boy as he grows into manhood. So what is the healthy balance between the two?
Sheltering a child from every possible evil may seem like a wise choice to the parents at the time, but eventually can lead to the spiritual and moral demise of the individual. Overprotection of children has not only led to the downfall of people, but of empires. Shortly prior to and during the decline of the Ottoman Empire, princes lacked the freedom to roam the kingdom learning politics and military strategy before the king selected a successor. Consequently, they became lethargic and unmotivated, causing them to rule weakly. Improper preparation leads to failure. If someone who spent their entire life lazing about playing video games attempted to climb Mt. Everest, they would fail miserably. To conquer a peak as formidable as Mt. Everest, a person must train intensively and consistently.
What happens when a child who has been sheltered his whole life goes out into the “real” world? Sometimes they will cling to what they have learned. But many times they lose sight of their previous morals and beliefs. In fact, they may not even realize their morals have vanished. Indeed, as the demon Screwtape says in C.S. Lewis’s The Screwtape Letters, “The safest road to hell is the gradual one.”
Just as an extremely conservative criterion of rearing children has disadvantages, so does a liberal one. Many families let children not even nine years old play M-rated video games or watch R-rated movies, both with content deemed for those ages 17 and up. How can seeing graphically violent or sexually explicit material benefit a child? In other cases, children are given free roam of the internet, which can prove equally dangerous. Too many children or young teens are given more than enough figurative slack to hang themselves.
Pressure to grow up faster and faster envelops children in today’s world. Looking back, many adults yearn for childhood’s bliss. Why rob children of their naivety, implanting ideas they cannot purge from their mind? However, just as too much freedom proves detrimental, so does too little. Battles must be fought; and battles will be fought. Fighting them while still living at home greatly increases the chance of success. Planning strategically at what point in their life a child will have certain freedoms can help ensure the healthy balance is achieved. The presence of intentional decisions about a child’s freedoms will build them up without breaking them down in the process.
How to Activate Windows 7 Godmode
Tired of digging around in your control panel for an obscure window you clicked the “Remember This Setting” check box? Enabling Godmode will assist users in finding those settings.
To enable, create a new folder in the directory of your choice. Rename the folder with the following text: GodMode.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}
Done!
Windows 7 Godmode enabled
Windows 7
Brainchild of Bill Gates, Microsoft dominates the world of operating systems, with versions of Windows running on around 90% of all computers. Windows XP improved on previous versions of Windows on the NT platform such as Windows 1998 and 2000. After Windows XP, Microsoft introduced Windows Vista, which changed the user interface and added a number of new features. In addition to the new features, Vista also heralded new bugs such as some detriments to speed and performance. Microsoft listened to user’s comments and complaints about its previous operating systems and developed one of the fastest, most secure and most stable operating systems to date, called Windows 7. Standing on the shoulders of previous operating systems, Windows XP came first in the line of Microsoft’s modern operating systems.
Released in 2001, Windows XP quickly became the industry standard for operating systems. As time passed, Microsoft released updates to fix the bugs that inhabited the original versions of XP. Originally codenamed Longhorn, Microsoft developed Windows Vista. Subsequently following favorable reviews from a limited number of beta testers, the public opinion of Vista plummeted. Computer manufacturers installed Vista on computers greatly lacking the capability needed to run the new visual effects and features included in Vista. Beta testers typically use more powerful computers than the general public. Coupled with bugs expected in a new operating system, Microsoft’s reputation plunged. While Windows Vista did not fail completely as some critics think, Microsoft still needed a turnaround fast.
From the beginning of Blackcomb—more commonly known as Windows 7—reviews have contained chiefly positive elements. In late December of 2008, illegal copies of early beta versions started circulating on the internet via peer-to-peer file sharing methods, called torrents. When Microsoft attempted to release the beta to the public in early January, the throngs of people attempting to download it overwhelmed Microsoft’s servers, who delayed the official download from Microsoft servers over a month. Once succeeding in downloading the beta, users began to notice that Windows 7 beat Vista and even XP in many areas. Windows 7 improves on features found in Vista and XP, greatly improving the public reception of the operating system.
Following the rather disappointing reception of Vista, Microsoft knew it needed to boost its next operating system. Most obvious of all, Windows 7 uses a differently themed graphical user interface, or GUI. Some users accustomed to the snappiness of Windows XP may find that the smooth effects in Windows 7 give it the appearance of lagging, when in reality it performs much faster than Vista. Instead of using the “My Documents” and “My Pictures” style of file management found in XP, Windows 7 incorporates a system known as the “Library” system. Many users find this system much easier to navigate than Windows XP and Vista. Finding misplaced files often can morph into a time consuming rescue mission in Windows XP. Created in Windows Vista and retouched for Windows 7, the search tool incorporated in the search bar as well as many locations locates files leaps and bounds faster than in XP. Not only did Microsoft add obvious improvements to its new flagship operating system, but also made minor tweaks which in turn greatly influence everyday use for some users.
If not for the “under-the-hood” features that Microsoft included, Windows 7 would sit in the background while users employed Windows XP as their operating system of choice. As hardware and software manufacturers strive to develop high quality audio experiences, the popularity of USB devices, specifically headsets and microphones, continues to grow. When using a standard 3.5mm audio jack, all audio signals automatically redirect to that jack the moment the computer detects the device. In Windows XP and Vista, a USB audio device often requires reconfiguring of default audio devices in the control panel as well as usually restarting any program currently using audio. Windows 7 reverses this handicap completely by making the reconfiguration of audio devices nearly instantaneous, requiring no restarting of programs. After using Windows 7 since its initial release in beta stages, many users agree that it will replace Windows XP as the standard operating system due to its many innovative features and major improvements.
Operating at a much faster speed than Windows Vista, Windows 7 has received excellent reviews. Windows 7 experiences less crashes, freezes and blue-screens-of-death. Since people watch new software with adept vigilance, the first impression plays a large role in determining the success of the software as a whole. Microsoft learned this with the release of Windows Vista and presented users with an operating system garnering ample initial praise. Released on October 22nd, Windows 7 incorporates fixes to bugs of previous operating systems as well as new features that will revolutionize the computing world.
