whyismarko

two sentence book reviews, part 2 (young adult fiction)

April 30, 2013

getting caught up on book reviews. i allow myself two sentences: one for summary and one for my review. Young Adult Fiction That’s Not a Feeling, by Dan Josefson 4 stars a teenage boy is sent to a residential school for troubled teens, where the strange systems and burned-out staff do little to help him. [...]

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two sentence book reviews, part 1 (fiction and graphic novels)

April 29, 2013

getting caught up on book reviews. i allow myself two sentences: one for summary and one for my review. Fiction Gone Girl: A Novel, by Gillian Flynn 5 stars a formerly blissful married couple systematically dismantel each other with deception, spite and calculation. brilliantly written and often surprising, this personal saga hides around the next [...]

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photo in need of a caption

April 24, 2013

ok, i’ve been a good boy and posted a bunch of meatier blog content in the last two weeks. so it’s time for some frivolity. with spring strongly present here in san diego, and my friends in other parts of the country still dealing with late spring snow storms, let’s go with this little fella. [...]

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unity through diversity

April 22, 2013

yesterday at my church, the worship pastor preached on the idea of unity through diversity (based on 1 corinthians 12:12-20). it was probably about the best sermon i’ve heard in the last six months (partially, to be sure, because the preacher is really an artist, not an orator or expositor; so it had a wonderfully [...]

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Orbiting the Hairball: Innovation without Disconnection (part 3 of 3)

April 19, 2013

(part 1 of this series explored the need for most of us, despite the desire to be innovators, to stay connected to our organizations via the gravitational pull of orbiting. part 2 looked at forces that corrode innovation.) Two Essential Thrusters for Sustaining Orbit Spaceships and Large Ocean Vessels share a technology that helps them [...]

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Orbiting the Hairball: Innovation without Disconnection (part 2 of 3)

April 17, 2013

(part 1 of this series explored the need for most of us, despite the desire to be innovators, to stay connected to our organizations via the gravitational pull of orbiting.) Forces that Corrode Innovation Even in the orbit, I have to be intentional about resisting the hairball’s pull. I’ve noticed a handful of things I [...]

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Orbiting the Hairball: Innovation without Disconnection (part 1 of 3)

April 16, 2013

Here’s a tension I live with: I’m passionate about innovation in youth ministry, but—if I’m really honest—I’m not a true entrepreneur. I want to stir up change. I love hearing about bold and risky youth workers who are experimenting. I often scramble up on my little soapbox and rant about this or that perspective or [...]

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random thoughts about dying churches

April 15, 2013

every time i drive to adam’s house from mine, i pass this shuttered church as i turn into his neighborhood. it’s a fairly good-sized building, on a fairly prime piece of land, with thousands of people who see it every single day. every time i see this sign, i experience a jumble of thoughts and [...]

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Plagues of Egypt That Did Not Make The God of Abraham’s Final Cut (a mcsweeney’s list)

April 11, 2013

love me some mcsweeney’s lists. this one totally brought audible chortling noises from me whilst reading it. PLAGUES OF EGYPT THAT DID NOT MAKE THE GOD OF ABRAHAM’S FINAL CUT. BY DAVID BAILEY – – – - Plague of athlete’s foot. Plague of Band-Aids in everyone’s salad. Plague of leaky pens in shirt pockets. Plague [...]

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