Friday, 20 May 2011
I had a meeting to attend at my employer’s Arden Hills location at 9:00 this morning. Since I didn’t want to drive to my usual location, then have to retrace my steps back to Arden Hill and back, I just showed up for work at Arden Hills. This, of course, meant I started work about two hours later than I usually do, so I had to stay late, too. Ugh. I hate staying at work late.
In other news: Owen’s bike is finally in working order. He and I had to stop at Target yesterday evening to swap out a defective horn for an operative one. I also had to readjust his training wheels since I had originally positioned them too high. Training wheels are a delicate balance in more ways than one: if their situated too high, the inexperienced rider will lean too heavily. If they’re situated too low, the rider risks getting the back tire stuck in potholes or cracks – it just hovers there, suspended by the two training wheels – and there’s no way to move forward.
Owen rode to a nearby grocery store and back. He did very well. He had to stop three times to get off his bike, open up the pouch, take out his water and drink it. He claimed he was very thirsty, I think he just wanted to stop and play with the new pouch and water bottle. He also had a habit of stopping right before he ascends onto a sidewalk. This prevents him from garnering the inertia needed to drive up the slope. I gave him a little push on his back a couple of times to get him going, but he appears adverse to such assistance.
Saturday, 21 May 2011
This evening, I attended the Blasphemer’s Ball, a concert held at Hell’s Kitchen in Minneapolis and featuring four local bands. In celebration of what must be the 23,401,996th failed predication in the annals of Christianity, Harold Camping’s prediction of the rapture failed to materialize, so a bunch of blasphemers got together and decided to celebrate. The bartenders even created a new drink for the occasion, calling it “Rapture’s Delight.”
Really, though, the concert wasn’t about the rapture, initially. The organizer had considered a few dates in May to hold a benefit concert of non-believing local rockers, and I wrote to him suggesting this date as it coincided with the rapture prediction. Back then (February), Camping’s prediction wasn’t a big deal. Apart from one billboard new my home, it wasn’t getting any attention. But, if you Google around a little bit, you’ll see it became a bigger deal as it got closer. The Blasphemer’s Ball was even promoted in the local papers and WCCO TV as a fun event for people who know the rapture isn’t coming (i.e., anyone who’s not an idiot).
Concerts aren’t really my thing, neither is Minnecrapolis, but I managed to hitch a ride with a friend, so he and I dropped in and stayed for about an hour and a half. The place was packed. The venue was good, though. I hope this becomes a repeat performance, as I’d like to attend again.
In other news: my Uncle’s funeral was today. I decided not to attend as, from what I could deduce, neither of the two purposes of a funeral would be served by my attendance. Here’s his online obituary. If you knew him, feel free to leave a comment.
Sunday, 22 May 2011
This morning I was interviewed on the Atheists Talk radio show. In case you missed it (and didn’t mean to miss it), here’s the Quicktime file: CLICK HERE.
It was a difficult format for me. The headphones were awkward, and the announcer kept holding up fingers to indicate how many minutes we had remaining until the next commercial break. This made me constantly nervous because I didn’t know if I could proceed with my comment or if I should stop and left the interviewer (named Mike) wrap things up.
I think it’s nearly impossible in 45 minutes to give a good account of the basic beliefs of a religion, why I left that religion, and what the ramifications for doing so are. Maybe that kept it moving along well, I don’t know. In the future, I’d rather just discuss one aspect, such as just talking about what Witnesses believe and why, or detailing their love of shunning.
Either way, it was an enjoyable experience. I hadn’t heard my name on the radio since my KQRS myTunes playlist last October.