ira glass cares about you

sometimes, when i am going on long-ish drives, i like to listen to podcasts of 'this american life.' so yesterday, as i was getting ready to take off for a couple of hours on the road, i made sure to have a new one on my phone. i was thirty seconds into it when i was hit with a question that i never expected to encounter as a result of radio fundraising:

"Who do you want to be?"

And Ira, in all his Ira-ness, said this a couple of times. He probably said something like this: "Really. Who do you want to be? I mean, think about it. You could be the person who just listens to this podcast every week, who never contributes to their local radio station, who assumes other people will just step in and cover for them. And you know what? You're right. We'll never start charging for this podcast. Your neighbor or teacher or colleague will pay, and you'll get to keep on listening. But again, let me ask: Is that who you want to be?"

I want to hear from Anna again about this one, since she can analyze media content and culture with the best of them. But I really want to hear from everyone, and to express my surprise. How should I feel about this? Should I be glad that this radio program has decided to integrate fundraising and integrity? Or is it scraping the barrel, guilt-inducing stuff? I can't decide. Ira sounded so earnest. Then again, when does he not . . . I just don't know.

on aging

I literally have to roll over my 401(k).


When did I turn fifty??????

advertising by mark driscoll?

has anyone else seen the new Dockers ads? i was reading the sunday paper yesterday and came across a full page of Modern Man.

the full text of the ad is below. i would love to know what your reaction is to this:

Once upon a time, men wore the pants, and wore them well. Women rarely had to open doors and little old ladies never crossed the street alone. Men took charge because that’s what they did. But somewhere along the way, the world decided it no longer needed men. Disco by disco, latte by foamy non-fat latte, men were stripped of their khakis and left stranded on the road between boyhood and androgyny. But today, there are questions our genderless society has no answers for. The world sits idly by as cities crumble, children misbehave and those little old ladies remain on one side of the street. For the first time since bad guys, we need heroes. We need grown-ups. We need men to put down the plastic fork, step away from the salad bar and untie the world from the tracks of complacency. It’s time to get your hands dirty. It’s time to answer the call of manhood. It’s time to WEAR THE PANTS.


Last time I checked, Dockers also sold pants to women. Additionally, if you're going to sell something to a man, tell him to walk away from foamy lattes and salad bars, something that will make him a MAN, don't you think it should be something other than pleated trousers?

It seems like the Dockers marketing team lifted copy straight from Mark Driscoll's blog - especially when you read what he has to say about biblical masculinity:
"latte-sipping Cabriolet drivers do not represent biblical masculinity, because 'real men'—like Jesus, Paul, and John the Baptist— are "dudes: heterosexual, win-a-fight, punch-you-in-the-nose dudes."

But would dudes wear Dockers?

Really would love to hear what all of you think about this. Especially you, Anna Jordan...

if i could be anywhere in the world right now . . .

well, this is usually my answer. what i would do for a slice of chocolate cake, two hot dogs with ketchup and mustard, and a medium iced tea with lemon. maybe some fries. preferably some good company to go with the food, in a corner booth, playing truth or dare and mixing condiments together even though we're 25 and should be respectable.

but, i'd take just the food, too. in case you're offering.

today

my boss told me:

"don't put all this pressure on yourself. you are doing an incredible job so far. i don't work off of the assumption that you will impress me. you already have. if i put this kind of pressure on you, you would never enjoy working here. so enjoy it."

i think i will. what a gift.

there will always be surprises along the way

"Don't worry about the future-worry quenches the work of grace within you. The future belongs to God. He is in charge of all things. Never second-guess him." 

-Francois Fenelon, as read in The Will of God as a Way of Life

i've been reading a fair amount on worry lately.  worry is based on 'unreality,' it strips us of our trust in God, and it creates a cycle of anxiety and restlessness that spin into an illusion of control.

first things worry me, and bring out anxiety in me.  i woke up in the middle of the night on friday, my chest squeezing like my heart was in a vise. a panic attack. a new marriage, a new home, a new job, a new lifestyle, a new financial responsibility. 

worry quenches the work of grace within you.  God, that is so completely true.  when i worry, i think i lose my capacity for grace. my capacity to receive it and recognize it from the Lord, and my capacity to give it openly to others. i lose flexibility in my time, and lean into my plans and ideas and timelines. 

"Whatever we decide," says jerry sittser, "there will always be surprises along the way. Worrying about our future will not change it, nor will it help us make good choices." He goes on to talk about how worry causes distraction, and (ironically) robs us of the ability to prepare for the future. 

i think part of this involves removing some of my own self-inflicted pressure to do things perfectly, to be the best wife, the most innovative employee, the kindest neighbor that there ever was.  i want to be good, innovative, and kind.  but i need most to be myself, i suppose, because if God meets me where i am and i am not there, i will probably not listen to him.

like damien rice says: time, always time.  some things just can't be rushed. and there will always be surprises along the way.

firsts

firsts are hard. but you don't ever get to the sweetness of flow without the first. so today, i'm grateful for a first. for a new start and for freshness, and for an office where i can see outside.