This Is Just To Say

I thought I might try to start regularly picking out bits of poetry and commenting on them here. Here's a fun one I haven't read for awhile, “This Is Just To Say:”

I have eaten
the plums
that were in
the icebox

and which
you were probably
saving
for breakfast.

Forgive me
they were delicious
so sweet
and so cold.

— William Carlos Williams

I think Williams had a unique gift for “picturesque poetry,” or, more properly, “Imagist poetry.” Unlike much of the poetry of the last century that aimed more at painting a scene than telling a story or arguing a point, but failed to do much of anything at all, Williams's works actually seemed to succeed in being primarily a sensory experience. This one always makes my mouth water as if I really have missed out on a cold, sweet plum.

Thoughts?

Spam Wars

A couple of days ago, I noted an increase in blog spamming on asisaid. Now, generally speaking, asisaid was ignored by blog spammers in the past, so I'm not sure how long it has been broken, but I've discovered the blacklists I checked against were no longer in service. No wonder the filter wasn't blocking spammers!

I've switched my filters around and merged in more of Brad Choate's SpamLookup (the official spam filter for MT, which, since it is written in Perl, can be easily integrated with SAFARI) so that I check not only the links but also the IP address of the poster. Hopefully this will work. If not, I plan on requiring authentication for commenting (e.g. you'll link your e-mail address with a password and verify that e-mail address), unless any of my regular readers object to that.

Geeky Bible Jokes

OK, these two jokes were passed along to me this week, so I figured I'd share them.

• Abraham decided to upgrade his computer to Windows Vista. As he headed to the computer store with Isaac, Isaac asked his dad, “Father, how are we going to upgrade such an old computer?” Abraham looked at his son and replied, “Don't worry son, the Lord will provide the RAM.”
• Jesus is talking with his disciples. He tells them, “The Kingdom of God is like x² = y + 2.” One disciple leans over to another and says, “there he goes with another one of his parabolas.”

Thank you, thank you very much. Yes, I'll be here all week.

The Slippage...

The meaning of this post was lost from the slippage of the signified from the signifier. That's all.

Early Mornings

I have early morning commitments three days, but as someone who is somewhat of a night owl (though not to an extreme, I usually go to bed between 12 and 1), I find it hard to actually fall asleep earlier every other night or so.

Now, I must go try, at least.

Spam Increases?

Has anyone else noticed increased blog spam? My filters, here-to-fore, were doing a good job of protecting me, but now I'm getting hit numerous times per day. I'm wondering if they've figured out how to get around my blockades or if there are simply more spammers trying to spam me.

Really Cold, Even When Its Warm

I realized how cold it was today when it went above freezing and I felt warm. But, perhaps more revealing would be the rivers. Both the Missouri and the Mississippi have major pieces of ice in them for the first time I can remember in years. It's probably easy been five years since I've seen that, only it is frozen far more than normal. Up by Alton, the majority of the extra wide portion of the Mississippi right before the dam is just a giant sheet of waves frozen into ice.

Very pretty.

I got some great eagle pictures today. If I get some time, I'll upload some of them.

Incidentally, I see I received a lot of response to my last post. I spent the night doing technical support (heh) so reading the thread will have to wait until tomorrow.

The Worst Part About Being a Techie

You know, I think the worst part about being a techie is that everyone expects you to fix their computer problems. I like helping, but some now expect it, rather than just hoping I'll be of help. Worse, if I cannot help for awhile, I get the sense that the same people become more than just a bit irritated with me.

Sometimes I wish I had not bothered to learn IT stuff at all.

Wittenberg, Part 3

Continuing from here the series started here.

Father Thomas sat at his kitchen table, drinking his coffee as he waited for the police to arrive. He let his head rest in his hands as the aroma of the coffee tried — but failed — to make him feel any better. “Think Scott, think, who would possibly attack your church?” The thought whirled around in his mind, much faster than the lazy ticking of the clock in the background.

Tick, tock. Tick, tock. Tick, tock. Twelve fifteen. Tick, tock. Tick, tock. The sound lulled him for a moment, before a firm knock on the parsonage's front door brought him to and he lurched up and towards the door. He reached the door and it opened after a slight complaint. Two stern people stood at the door, a rather short man and a somewhat taller woman. The woman spoke first, “Hi, you must be Father Thomas. Agent Cassandra Myers and this” she motioned toward the man, “is Agent Mark Douglas.”

“Come in, come in.” Thomas motioned in and toward warm light that spilled down the hall from the kitchen. “Would you like a cup of coffee? I had just poured myself a cup before you knocked.”

Douglas nodded. “If it wouldn't be too much trouble, sure. We saw the door, or I should say, the remains of the door, on the way in. You say you heard a chain saw?”

“Yes, I had just crossed through the passageway — you see, we have a passageway that connects the chapel to the parsonage — and was preparing to make my evening coffee when I heard this noise. I'm not sure what I was going to do — I'm really not sure at all! — but I heard this saw like noise and took off for the chapel. It didn't take me long to figure out where it was coming from.”

Myers frowned. “Mmhmm. But, you didn't see the perpetrator?”

“No, by the time I reached the narthex —”

“The north what,” Douglas asked.

“The narthex. The lobby, if you will.”

“Ah, ok. So right by the door.”

“That's right. Anyway, by the time I reached the door, it wasn't really there to reach.” Thomas chuckled wearily. “I must say, for all the things I feared might be stolen out of the chapel, the front door was never really one of them.”

“What kind of door was it? Was it of any value?”

Thomas poured two more cups of coffee and set them down by the agents' places at the table. “Uh, well, really nothing special. It was wood. I guess it could have been worth something — it was, as far as I know original to the chapel, which would make it about seventy five years old. But, other than a little carving, it really wasn't anything special.”

The three puzzled over the situation, each staring at the warm coffee as if searching for some answer written in it. Thomas sighed. So much for peacefulness. He looked around the kitchen and as his eyes surveyed the contours of the molding around the cabinets he was further reminded of how dear this little, typically unexciting parish was to him. This little dose of excitement was already more than he was ever really hoping for.

The silence drifted around, all but palpable until the agents' walkie-talkies interrupted. “Agents Myers and Douglas, please respond. We have a third reported church vandalization.” Thomas glanced up at the two agents incredulously. “Third?”

“This is Agent Myers. What is it this time?”

The walkie-talkie phone emitted its signature beep. “Uh, according to the call we received, it's another door.”

Father Thomas let his head again rest in his hands. Someone is going around stealing church doors? This was going to be a long night.

Hopefully, I'll Be Around Tomorrow

I feel rather bad — I've not had time for much blog reading lately. I'm hoping to maybe spend some time catching up with y'all tomorrow. It just seems like time flies really fast at the moment. Tonight, though, I think it is time for bed.