Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts from August, 2014

More Christian, Indeed

Recently, one of my friends was given the following request: stay away from our church until he could be/act "more Christian". Gads, such statements frustrate me. Really, what is that supposed to mean? I expect this is about being more cheerful, dopey happy, carefree nonsense. Bleh! People of faith wrestle with pain, sadness, depression, anger and anguish. God meets us where we are, not in this fantasy la-la land. Yeah, we're supposed to be battering the world with our hammers of righteousness, rubbing those wretched sinners noses in how revolting we sanctimonious babblers find them. Bah, I say; refusing that path as empty and vacuous, ultimately destructive. I stand with the broken, the sinner, the struggling, as best as I'm able, for that's me, too. 

Thoughts on James Foley

Hearing the horrific news about ISIS' murder of journalist James Foley gives me pause. What do these folks hope to accomplish? Do they really believe they instill terror in us? Perhaps they're deluded such. If so, they really are pitiful. No, our collective response is one of horror and repulsion. I don't know. Madness.  Ultimately, it'll solely serve to deepen our focus, our resolve. Sadly, it will also serve as fuel for those who vilify all Muslims, painting the entire faith with the broadest of brushes. I guess, ultimately, it will serve to delude these thugs, this taste of power. They'll feel their power flutter behind the cowardly masks. And they will vanish, empty save for the horrors within their souls. 

Future think

It's quite easy, in this age, to pooh-pooh the wisdom of time's past. To laugh at the myths, history's weak attempts at knowledge. Yet, we must be humble. We must wonder what elements of our "now" that the future will consider childishly superstitious. For there will be something, if not many things, perhaps nearly everything, will certainly seem foolish and naive. My hope is that the future will see us as sincere, just naive, lacking understanding that they will take for granted. That our knowledge will grow exponentially, that we will put aside petty power and grasp the hope science offers. That humans will dance amongst the stars. As I stare up to the stars, I'm inspired. The potential is immense. May we expand beyond narrow self interest, embrace our potential, and soar

Don't use the Internet to deal with wakefulness

I woke about an hour ago; mostly feeling a warm, semi-wakefulness. Then I ruined it. Checked email, found something to post to my Not Just Seattle blog (just re-purposing a press-release, easy!). Noticed that this site got nearly 2000 views yesterday, and tried to figure out why. Then started reading old posts. And, here I am. Reminded, yet again, that the Internet is NOT the way to deal with early morning wakefulness.

More of my websites

I started a WordPress site some time ago in order to explore the platform. Recently, I relaunched it as my poetry site. I've heard so very much about focusing your sites. So, I'm trying to do something with that. Besides that one, I also have NotJustSeattle . com , where I focus on the local. Soon, I'm going to port my tech writing to its own site. This will also, then, be my professional/business presence. I'll move my portfolio there, too. Trying to find another name besides "Setzer Consulting". Feels too bidding. I'll try to have the URL for in to that. So, please check out my other sites and stay tuned to see how things change.

Page One Google Ranking

I'm quite pleased we were able to pull off hitting page one of "Marysville WA Realtors" again. The market is highly competitive right now, so having high ranking is powerful. Anyway, this was squeal-worthy to me.

T-Mobile: Agitator Extrordinaire

Reading this piece about John Legere and T-Mobile's marketing drove home several thoughts that have been lurking in my mind. First, creating a unique brand presence in a saturated/commodified market is very, very hard. How do we make these boring items sexy? Working in real estate, I've been struggling with that for some time. Having a flamboyant leader, one who doesn't shrink from the limelight nor controversy is critical. How does one rise to front of mind in today's media landscape? Uniqueness is key. A certain eccentricity, and self-love of that, really helps. It also helps having gobs of cash to spend. I think the next wireless sector winner will be a fierce competitor. T-Mobile matches that.

Being there

3:00 am, I receive a text, and slept through it. Logical, acceptable, and yet still painful. A friend hurting, and I wasn't able to be there. She worked her way through, so no guilt on that. No, it's deeper.  I value my friends, my family. I value helping, to be present when needed. Thus, one of my core values failed. That is, and should be, painful. It's not about effectiveness, or any of that.  I know that these sorts of things will happen again and again. Failures of theses elements should cause discomfort, and reflection. That's different than guilt. More akin to sadness. Which is fair to feel.  I hope that feeling remains. Keeps me striving, pushing, growing. Another thing I value.