The Alan Zone

Not to be negative, but… P.S. I’ve got quite a few Bibles in my Logos electronic collection.

Happy New Year! May 2023 be the best year ever for you and yours. Right or wrong, illogical or not, New Year’s Day is a good time to make resolutions. Yeah, maybe it is an excuse to procrastinate (e.g. Why didn’t you start doing X or Y months ago?) Maybe we are setting ourselves up...

If I keep posting like this, you’ll think I am just a marketing arm for The Athlete District, but… Late May of 2021, I snapped the patella tendon on my left knee. Since then, shoveling snow wasn’t a possibility…and probably on the dangerous side. Until recently, after being a member of The Athlete District and...

Today’s Bible reading (2 Chronicles 12-34) had, within it, a study in contrasts. First, a king of Judah dies: 18 After all this, the LORD afflicted Jehoram with an incurable disease of the bowels. 19 In the course of time, at the end of the second year, his bowels came out because of the disease, and he...

“Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.” Jude 24-25 (ESV)

What this article suggests wouldn’t be so sad if it wasn’t so true: The point of Mefferd’s article is that when big name evangelical leaders fall, they (through multiple machinations) are not truly held accountable and often stay in the pulpit (or return quickly). God can forgive anything. However, if you are a minister (or Christian… Read

If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. (Romans 12:18, ESV)

I just posted this on my sister blog, AI: Alan Intelligence: “Why We Love the Church” Slides with verses from a recent sermon by Steve Camp.

A friend of mine (who is also a pastor in Florida), Steve Camp, posted six images of “Why We Love the Church.” I asked permission to repost them, and he said yes. So, here are the slides along with the Scripture references as a bonus. 🙂 (All Bible quotations from the English Standard Version.) Firstly,...

As I suggest in “And It Begins…,” you and I can do anything for 30 days. Although I’ve already missed a couple days (once because I forgot on a day I just couldn’t get a Mastodon server set-up…and once ’cause I was staying up late already making sure I didn’t fail again :-)), back on Saturday,...

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. – Romans 8:38-39 (ESV)

Although I would put this “happiness formula” first… But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well (Matthew 6:33, NIV). …this one from Scott Adams (in How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big) seems pretty good: Recapping the happiness formula: Eat right....

Short version… In my group circuit class, Wednesdays used to be recover day. They stopped that last week. So, as a result, I now wear Protest Pink each Wednesday. 🙂 The owners of The Athlete District took this photo of me this morning: (Cross-posted on my Nibbles Ninja blog.)

I completed The Athlete District‘s 6 Week Challenge, ending up 7.7 pounds down, and in better shape. These before and after pictures don’t do justice to what their challenge accomplished (especially since the side shot wasn’t at the same angle): It may not be obvious, but the belly is smaller. 🙂 (And, my muscles are...

I started a weight loss program with The Athlete District today. Six weeks of exercise, macro-focused dieting, and ample rest. Sadly, I am at 251.1 lbs to start. We’ll see where we are in six weeks. Oh, and I have to say their example recipes are pretty darn good. 🙂 Finally, these are my “before”...

UPDATE: 30 Day Quest was originally a separate web site, now merged into AI: Alan Intelligence. Why “30 Day Quest?” Where do I start? In May of last year (2021), I snapped the Patellar Tendon on my left knee, clumsily falling down some stairs while traveling. After surgery, my recovery was delayed by some massive...

Note: This post appears to have been stuck in draft mode…not sure when I originally composed it. The article below is worth a read. Mentally, I think we tie “religion” to systems of belief hinging on the supernatural, but the Merriam-Webster definition shows it is far more inclusive: “a cause, principle, or system of beliefs… Read

This is day 2 of “30 Days of Cycling,” and I headed north on Strasburg Road to record my though for today. Just after I got off my bicycle, this neat thing came along: And today’s thought for today will give a bit more of an idea of what it is like north of the… Read

I am a minister, with a small congregation (the Strasburg Church of Christ). We are part of the Churches of Christ, an affiliation of churches with similar beliefs, versus a denomination. God blessed my family and me by first introducing us to them at the Antrim Church of Christ in Antrim, New Hampshire. Either way,… Read

Tom Cruise is my favorite actor. I don’t exactly know why, but he is. And that’s why I am looking forward to this: And, “Top Gun: Maverick” is coming out this week: I only saw the first movie recently, because… 🙂

(This is a cross-post of an article from 2012 on Traditores.org. It is one of my most regularly viewed posts on that site. The kindness that the Texas Hippie Coalitiion showed me reminded me of it.) Although I can appreciate almost any style of music that includes a melody, I am especially drawn to tunes… Read

Yesterday, I had the honor of meeting, and listening to, the Texas Hippie Coalition. All I can tell you is that they were the nicest bunch of guys (band and their supporting cast), and that Big Dad Rich provided a prayer before the concert that was an incredible testimony to Jesus. Big Dad Rich’s brother,… Read

Who did it better, Sean Feucht or the Texas Hippie Coalition? By “it,” I mean: Give God credit. Exhibit A, a screenshot of the “About” page on seanfeucht.com, searching for all references to “God”: Exhibit B, the liner notes from the Texas Hippie Coalition’s latest album, “High in the Saddle”: So, who did it better?… Read

Ready for my next Power BI Nibble? #5 shows how gloriously abusing the DAX SWITCH statement is better than deeply nested IF statements. Documentation, links, etc.: https://dataguy.it/pbinibble5

It’s been a while, but Power BI Nibbles are back! #4 is a “how to” video for a quick tool I built to make it easier to compare two versions of a Power BI solution or help document code in a single one. Documentation: https://dataguy.it/pbinibble4 More Power BI Nibbles coming…

A little while back Augie and I had a hankerin’ for pizza, but wanted to try something new. We drove a bit, only to discover our destination was take out only. So, we went next door to Dickey’s Barbecue Pit. It. Was. Great! As I put in the Google review: Although a bit more expensive… Read

This is a repost of a Traditores.org article from about a decade ago. As Jeremy passed the deteriorating wood-tiled church on North Main Street, he tried to remember just how long ago its large doors had been locked for the last time. Was it ten years? Longer? Shorter? However far back it was, the doors… Read

I said, more than a few times, that I prefer non-fiction books over fiction ones. Why? Because with non-fiction, if you get 100 pages in and realize you don’t like it, you can just stop reading it and move on. Not so with fiction. If you are 100 pages in, even if the writing is

Great video. You should also grab “The Brave” by MacDonald and Calhoun, released digitally today. (This song is on it.)

Update (and this belongs at the top, so you read it first): Hi Alan. We don't have any way to block images based on their content, so no, we're not doing this. If an image on your site isn't loading via the CDN, please contact our support team at https://t.co/ANGtVS4PDJ with more details so they… Read

Update (video from earlier today):

Listening to Jordan Peterson’s 12 Rules for Life this morning (while exercising), I was hit by the punchline of an experience he shared. As a teenager, he convinced small-town friends to travel with him to Edmonton, 800 miles away. We spent the weekend drinking in the hotel room. Although we had travelled a long distance, we… Read

I’m a member of the Why Would Anyone Follow Jesus? launch team. Nothin’ special other than me preordering the book by Ray Comfort and then asking to join. 🙂 As part of it it, I get access through NetGallery to a pre-release version. Great stuff already, and this really jumped out at me: Here’s the...

Although I have a huge desk (that can be a normal or standing one), it gets cluttered quickly. So, I went on Amazon.com, hoping to find shelves I could put on top of the monitors to get certain, extremely important items off my desk: I am very impressed with the “[2 Pack] Monitor Top Shelf

Okay, what I really should have said is, “I paid somebody to publish me, and it’s only a tract…” But I am still pretty excited that this arrived from the printer today!: You can read essentially the same text as a single web page on the front page of Gospel.Claims. I don’t have a ton… Read

This blog is of my musings…my “nibbles and bits.” As such, it’ll sometimes touch on “third rail” topics. I ask for your charity and forgiveness if ever I offend you (or worse). No matter what subjects inspire my posts, in the end, you matter more to me…and love matters most: 1 Corinthians 13:4–8, 13 (NIV):… Read

A Twitter thread about perspectives (sorry, I don’t know a good way not to have it show the previous tweet in the thread each time): A short thread about perspectives and charity. Recently, @seanonolennon showed me some kindness in replying to my tweet. It made me feel a connection, like he suddenly became a friend.… Read

Politicians, police officers, and soldier take an oath to uphold the Constitution. Doctors take the Hippocratic Oath to stay true to certain ethics (e.g. “do no harm”). Christians, at baptism, implicitly take an oath to follow Jesus as Lord. How are we doing? Cursed with human nature, I believe we all fail to varying degrees.… Read

Just posted this review on Google Maps Reviews: We were a hike from home, and wanted to grab lunch before returning. From the moment we walked in, we knew we made the right decision choosing Rosie’s Diner. Awesome food, atmosphere, and prices! Not to mention, our server, Mimi, was the icing on the cake. It’s… Read

Credit to Ace of Spades HQ for pointing to this beautiful, thoughtful blessing in SQLite’s GitHub repository’s main.c: ** The author disclaims copyright to this source code. In place of ** a legal notice, here is a blessing: ** ** May you do good and not evil. ** May you find forgiveness for yourself and… Read

As I pondered the incivility the pandemic has brought to on-line dialogue, Romans 12:18 came to mind today: “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” (NIV) As Christians, I would argue that probably includes “giving in” more than our natures might desire. Not giving into sin…but not being… Read

I am not prude, but I would argue the image in this Twitter ad was inappropriate: No, what popped up on my timeline did not include the blurring. It’s a beautiful painting, but they could have chosen plenty of other famous pieces of artwork. There was only one reason they chose this one. And, yes, it… Read

I’m reading through the Bible again this year, and am in Genesis. Previously, I’ve seen Abraham, to protect himself, pretend his wife is his sister. (Clearly, “courting” back then could involve murdering your competition, the existing husband.) You can find those instances in Genesis 12:14-20 and Genesis 20. This morning (and I was a day...

Okay, first a disclaimer: the Bible is not exhaustive, so you have to be careful about making an argument from silence. Having said that, please consider how the prohibition against eating from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil is given in Genesis 2:15-17 (NIV): The LORD God took the man and put...

Was 2021 a hard year for you? I suspect for most, even if it wasn’t “hard,” it at least had a downward slope. Thus, why I like this humorous graphic from Clipart.com: 🙂 Personally, other than the sense of malaise that COVID-19, politics, and the economy provided, I cannot complain. I remained employed in a...

What did I learn (again) this year? Don’t treat people as instrumental means to my predetermined end. This is particularly true of people with whom I may think I disagree. It’s highly probable that I don’t understand where they are coming from, what they mean, or anything about the particulars of our disagreement. If I… Read

The Socratic method doesn’t replace your current opinions with better ones. It changes your relationship to your opinions. It replaces the love of holding them with the love of testing them. – Ward Farnsworth, The Socratic Method: A Practitioner’s Handbook

This day marks three weeks of being on Nutrisystem and applying Strong Advice: Zuby’s Guide to Fitness for Everybody. Result: 10.4 lbs lost (now at 242 lbs). I should note that’s with the second week including Thanksgiving, resulting in a 0.2 lb gain. My hope is to lose 2 lbs a week…and it sure seems doable… Read

Answering the questions that need to be asked… “Is my cat Turing-complete?” As humorous as the article is, it does so to make a legit point at the end: Jokes aside, cat-computing is the name I give to this generalized practice. In my experience, it happens quite often that when someone discovers a new feature

This is a great video, not only because of delving into this: Only by abandoning math’s connection to realty, could we discover reality’s true nature. But, because it discusses some really intriguing history (e.g. math duels, with you job on the line) and how folks went about certain problems totally differently than we do today

My wife and visited Ichiban Buffet for the first time today and were truly amazed. Our expectations were for a “normal” buffet-level atmosphere and quality. Ichiban delivered something many times better. The selection was incredible (the quick snapshots attached don’t do it justice), the food was fresh and delicious, and the service was impeccable (with

Amazon tells me this review just went live: I had knee surgery last month, and have been using a walking stick to provide stability while walking during my recovery. However, at physical therapy [this week], I tried a cane. It seemed to work better. So, I did a bunch of research on Amazon and settled

Please note: The original draft of this was created late yesterday afternoon. Given what I say below, you can see why I waited until today to proof and post it. 🙂 One of my favorite books from last year was Creativity: A Short and Cheerful Guide, by John Cleese. It comes to mind quite often,

One of the benefits of knee surgery is ample time to read during recovery. Now, I’ll admit that I spent most of the first week of medical leave just entertaining myself with movies, YouTube videos, and web surfing…but today I finally finished a stimulating book, Fooled by Randomness: The Hidden Role of Chance in Life

I’ll admit, I “ugh” every time I am served up a CAPTCHA. Is this the CAPTCHA killer that will rid the word of my “ughs?” Well, at least those “ughs?” 🙂

Last year I had some trouble with a web hosting provider. Although I paid for their more (I think most) expensive shared hosting plan, the kept complaining I was hitting limits. I did everything I could to reduce resource usage (and did bring it down by turning off back-ups, blocking IPs, and even removing at

This week’s Power BI Nibble is about showing a refresh date/time, with the bonus of how to control the time zone it is shown for. Plus, some advice on its usage (e.g. generally you shouldn’t). Although you can watch the video below, please visit it on the Nibbles Wiki for more written advice, code samples,

CSV files are a great way to get data, but there are a couple gotchas to watch out for. I talk about them (and more) in Power BI Nibble #2:

I am a big fan of Microsoft’s Power BI. Last night I recorded my first Power BI Nibble, this one about using parameters. If you use Power BI you need to use parameters! 🙂 I am working through some lighting…err…opportunities. 🙂 #LetsLearnTogether