What surprised me most about this book is that it has something equally important to say to atheists, agnostics, christians, muslims, buddhists, hindus...just about everyone really. And that important thing is this: Religion and Faith should be held up to scrutiny, and should not be set apart as unquestionable.

Of course, most of us believe this anyway, and most of us are all too eager to hold up OTHER people's faith/religion to scrutiny. But we have a harder time holding our own up to such rigorous testing.

Much of this book examines the muslim faith, and shows how unquestioning adherence to it can lead to such tragic events as the September 11 terrorist attacks. Harris doesn't stop at the muslims, though. He goes on to show what can happen when unquestioning adherence to the christian faith can lead to it's own atrocities.

I think the thing I liked most about this book is that it doesn't require a reader to "convert" to atheism to appreciate it. While Harris himself is an avowed atheist, his points are well taken from any angle.

This is one of those books I think we should all read to help sharpen our minds and see the insanity inherent in extreme fundamentalism.

For all the raving about this book, and for it's popularity, I expected this would be a four or five star review. But it's not. It's not that Dawkins doesn't make some excellent points, because he does. He knows his subject matter well, and he can talk about science with all the wonder and awe that a new convert can bring to a conversation about God.

What knocks it down a couple of stars is the way, in some parts of the book, I get the feeling that Dawkins is finishing arguments that he had in real life, but couldn't think of an answer quickly enough. We've all had those moments where a few minutes, or days or weeks, after a conversation we think, "Oh, I should have said..." Those are fine in life, but they don't come across so well in a book.

That said, I still found this an enjoyable and insightful read. I found his description of the Cargo Ship Cults particularly intriguing as a way to see a traceable way that a population can build a religion.

While I'm not sure whether or not this book would actually change someone's mind, it would certainly give that mind some food for thought. Overall, I'd recommend it to those who are would rather hear from the atheists themselves what they believe, instead of reading their beliefs second hand.

This falls under "The Greatest Thing Since Sliced Bread" category. How many times have I been halfway through the long Tim Horton's drive-thru line only to suddenly wonder if I had any change? I check the cup holder, and find I only have a dollar 36...several cents short of an extra-large-two-cream-one-sugar and not even enough for a large. (And what's the point of anything smaller?).

On the way through the drive-thru line a few weeks back, what to my wondering eyes did appear, but an advertisement for a Tim Horton's Reloadable card. With this little wonder, I can be forever at peace with whether or not I have enough change for a Timmies' Coffee. I just pull up, hand the card over to the sullen teenager in the window, and get my coffee. When the card balance comes down to under $5.00, it will automatically re-top itself on my Mastercard.

This loses a star for two reasons. One, it takes a little longer than I expected for them to swipe the card and wait for the receipt showing my current balance. Two, I imagine once I see how much goes off my Mastercard to Tim Horton's, I'll likely be forced to quit my Tim Horton's habit out of guilt.

Until then, swipe away!

I don't usually review my social life, but our visit to Scott and Lori's place on Saturday was definitely a FIVE STAR visit.

The Food
The lasagna was sublime, and I wish that I'd brought along a tupperware container to sneak a second helping out to my van so I could have eaten it today. I was too full to have a second helping when I was there, because it is the DEEPEST lasagna I have ever seen! Now, I've noticed that with plain ol' regular lasagna, when it's deep it means that several layers are bland. Not so with Scott's lasagna. Each layer was a treat, cheesy, garlicy, spinachy, meaty...mmmm. I could go on, I really could. I could talk about the Feta touch and the fact that the longer the lasagna was in my mouth the more the flavours danced on my tongue. Heavenly, for sure.

I'm not sure what desert was called, but it was also tupperware-smuggle-worthy. Lori apologized that it was a little too frozen, but if it was it didn't affect the joy I got from it. It was chocolaty, wafery, and creamy and I wish I could eat some more of it right now!

The Setting
The setting of our visit was Scott and Lori's new house in Courtice. The first thing I noticed when I walked in was that the kitchen had an Island! I love kitchen Islands anywhere, but THIS one was basking in the light of a skylight. If I lived there, that is where I would sit, crunching my morning cereal as I read the daily funnies.

The decore was flawless (despite Lori trying to point out flaws). Most impressive was the artistic renderings of Sting and Tina Turner in the "Fan Room" (otherwise known as the downstairs washroom). A far cry from the old days when we'd have to cut out magazine pictures and stick them to the wall, these pictures looked like paintings, and were artistically placed in matching frames around the room.

Other notable touches were Lori's sunflower painting ("it's not done yet!"), the book displays, and of course, Scott's cool toys!

The Company
The company was wonderful, of course. Conversation and laughter flow easily when we hang out with Scott and Lori. David was there too, so it was almost the whole gang (Ted and Lisa didn't make it down for this visit).

Before the Big Move to Ontario, we were all worried that when The Boy and The Boy got together that the universe might implode or something. They've played with each other twice now without any dire consequences. Both boys shared their toys pretty easily, which surpised me because Elijah isn't exactly a 'sharer' much at home...he's been known to insist that even certain words and sounds belong to him. The girls had quite a bit of fun too, and played together well.

Just as we were about to go, Scott had to show me the Lego Star Wars video game, which is the most fun I've had playing a game in quite some time. I decided to immediately buy myself a copy for the Wii, and would be playing it right now if not for the discovery that it isn't out until sometime in NOVEMBER (Grrr)!!

Thanks, Scott and Lori, for such a great day!

I started reading Anne Lamott about a year ago, before my devastating loss of faith. The first book I read was Traveling Mercies and I was thrilled to find a book that preached grace written by someone who sounds like she really needs it. Including the occasional F-word made me realize that this isn't a person who is trying very hard to keep up appearances. And that was refreshing.

I wasn't sure how I'd take to Grace (Eventually), coming at it with a spirit crushed into virtual non-existence and all. But I discovered that Lamott seems to write for people like me--not to convert or cajole, but to include me, and all of us, in this big mess of life. If I could sum up what I've gotten so far from this book it would be this: We are all in the same boat. Filled with dirt and beauty, we skip and scrape our way along the path and hope for something 'more' along the way.

I'm not finished the book yet, but almost. Out of the two, I think I preferred Traveling Mercies slightly, but Grace (Eventually) is a worthy follow-up.

As I was reading this book, the first thing that impressed me about Marcus Borg is that he wasn't out to smash to smithereens anyone's beliefs about whether or not things in the Bible really happened. He repeatedly encourages readers to believe whatever they want about the factuality of the event, and then encourages us to look at the 'more than literal, more than factual" meanings. While Borg clearly has his own beliefs about whether or not events happened, he writes in a way that doesn't demand we share those beliefs in order to delve into the historical-metaphorical meanings that may be present in a text.

Borg does address a problem of belief, however, and points out that the meaning of the term "belief" has changed over time. For example, "believing in" Jesus or God used to carry a meaning of trust and love, where in modern times, "believing in" tends to mean believing that God and Jesus exist. The problem, he says, is that by getting caught up in the questions of factuality, our faith becomes more about whether or not events really happened and less about experiencing God in a meaningful, trust-building, love-building way.

The discussions about belief and factuality are peppered throughout the book, but they are not what the book is about. The title does a pretty good job of describing the contents of the book, and that is "uncovering the life, teachings, and relevance of a religious revolutionary". Borg is a "historical Jesus Scholar". This means, to quote Wikipedia: "The historical Jesus is Jesus of Nazareth as reconstructed by historians using historical methods. These methods do not include theological or religious axioms, such as biblical infallibility."

The benefit to the modern Christian, whether or not a fundamentalist, is that we can learn much about what the sayings of Jesus meant in his culture. Where this really struck me was in Borg's treatment of what I'll refer to as the "Christian Doormat" texts. I use such a term only because I have heard the question in many discussions, "Does God want us to be a doormat?". The sayings he addresses are some of the most famous of Jesus:

"But I say to you, Do not resist one who is evil. But if any one strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also; and if any one would sue you and take your coat, let him have your cloak as well; and if any one forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles."

Borg comes to the conclusion that instead of promoting any kind of 'doormatism' here, Jesus is actually advocating passive resistance. He explains how in the culture of the time, a superior would strike his inferior by backhanding him across the face, thus the phrase, "the right cheek" since most people are right handed, that is where a backhanded strike would fall. Turning the other cheek, then, would require the superior to strike as he would strike someone that was his equal, rather than backhand him. I won't delve into "walking the extra mile" or "giving the cloak as well", you'll just have to read the book to find out how such things could be 'passive resistance'.

The best thing about the book, for me, is that at a time when I've lost church beliefs that I have tried to hang onto for so long, I can look at the familiar in a different way and still find meaning. Looking at Jesus, and the Bible as well, in a historical-metaphorical context can touch the heart in ways that a literal-factual reading often misses, and that is something I think can be helpful to anyone, regardless of their take on biblical writings.

I haven't written a review since May. It's time, even though it's too late at night to think a coherent thought. So I'll pick something easy: My left thumb.

My thumb is opposable, as it should be. It's certainly adequate in that regard. It does a good job of leveraging objects between itself and my other fingers. It would be better if it was stretchy, like the fantastic four guy's body, but overall I'm satisfied with it as it is.

It's appearance is pretty bland, if not ugly. As part of the whole body, it's not so bad, but on it's own, it's pretty wrinkly and gross. The nail is cut too short, necessarily because there is a continuing split if it gets longer that causes more pain than a thumb should bear.

While I could ask for a better looking thumb, the functionality here makes it a solid possession that I should be able to enjoy for years to come.

I'm hooked. Over a year after this show debuted I finally got around to watching it. I had planned on checking it out when it started, but then I missed the first couple. From what I had read about it, I decided there wasn't much point in starting halfway in, and I was right. The series builds on itself, each episode adding to the last--Or, frustratingly, NOT advancing the parts of the story I want to find out about.

Having finished season 1, the mystery set up at the beginning is still very much intact. The first few episodes of season 2 have advanced the story, but left the mystery intact. Each episode seems to raise more questions than it answers.

The characters are well-written and likeable. John Locke at first seems like a bad guy, then a good guy, then a bad guy, then a good guy. You start to realize that he is really neither. Or both. That he is a complex character with good intentions that are at times self-serving.

A lot of the show so far is about secrets. Everyone has their secret to keep hidden. The island itself seems to have its own secret to hide as well. And as usual, the secrets usually cause more harm than good.

If you don't watch this show regularly, I would not suggest starting mid-season. It really needs to be watched from season 1 episode 1...I believe you can rent it on DVD, but make sure you give yourself plenty of time. And if you don't drink coffee you'd better start--you are going to be up late!

Outside of The Superior Person's Book of Words, Calvin and Hobbes is the only place I've seen someone use the word "defenestration". That would almost be enough on its own to put this strip on top, but Bill Watterson consistently surprised, delighted and challenged us during the 10 years of Calvin and Hobbes.

This collection comes in a three volume set. They must have learned from The Complete Far Side collection that splitting it into only two books made each book too heavy to read comfortably in bed. Each page contains either 3 daily strips or 1 Sunday strip, making it so the entire book preserves the order the comics would have appeared in the newspaper.

If you are a Calvin and Hobbes fan, and want a collection that not only has everything, but is presented in a format that will last, The Complete Calvin and Hobbes is for you.

Nothing compares to a steaming mug of anything when it is drunk from my Kokopelli mug. Designed and created in Mexico, this stoneware mug makes any drink better, if not in taste, in ambience.

One might think it dangerous for me, a man with 4 children, to be drinking out of mug emblazoned with a symbol of fertility (and, some say, trickery). I place my faith in the scalpel of Dr. Love, however, and have no worries of any trickery or fertility coming as a result of sipping from this mug.

This mug gets 5 stars simply for being what it is.

In the far back corner, underneath the Christmas tree an hidden in a basket of socks and a tie I found a 60 Gb iPod. I had lost hope in getting one, since I thought there was nothing left to open, so I was pretty surprised.

Before hinting around for an iPod, I did my research. I discovered that the iPod really is just a well-marketed MP3 player. When I had a look at other players, however, I found them less intuitive to operate. Furthermore, they had about half the space for the same price.

The iPod has adequate sound, though I don't like the braggy white earbuds (that scream out to everyone, "Hey Look, *I* have an iPod!"). The menus and the player and volume controls are easy to use, and it's easy to find your music if you have it tagged properly.

Here is where I run into problems. What I wanted was an MP3 player that allowed me to take all of my music folders from my computer, which are already organized exactly how I want them, and drop them directly onto the player. I wanted to be able to navigate through those folders the same way I do on my computer, and find the same songs in each folder as I would on my computer. Instead, the iPod organizes the music in several ways based on the MP3 tags. So I can find it by artist, album, song title, genre, etc. This sounds fine, but becomes a problem when an artist I listen to has several songs from the same album. Instead of finding them in my "non-album" folder like I do on my computer, I find an album name listed with one song in it. So for someone like Sting, who has maybe 10 albums, I might have 25 albums listed under his name--one for each soundtrack he has been on. If I change the way I tag my MP3's, I can work around this, but I shouldn't have to.

The other problem is the software that comes with the iPod that lets you transfer music. iTunes makes you jump through hoops to use it, but It's not as clunky as the Sony MiniDisc software that made you convert everything to Sony's proprietary format. Allegedly, iTunes will not allow you to upload from other computers either, which is unacceptable to me, since half my music is at work.

I ended up buying the Anapod software to circumvent the hoops iTunes requires. I had a hard time getting it to work at first, until I completely removed iTunes from my computer. After that Anapod worked wonderfully, and I've tried it both at work AND at home with great success.

This iPod also plays video. On such a small screen I didn't think it would be worth it, but the picture is crisp and clear. I was very impressed!

Speaking of the screen, I've already noticed SEVERAL tiny scratches showing up on mine, so I'm not sure how long it will remain clear. And I've only had it two days. Tomorrow I'll be out looking for some kind of iPod condom to protect it from further damage.

The best thing about this, other than the easy of use, is the huge song capacity. 60 Gb fits an awful lot of music...about 12,000 songs. So on this tiny little machine (about the size of a cassette), I can fit all of the music I have. That makes it worth some of the hassle that Apple has built into this machine.

Lauper's "The Body Acoustic" is a rare find. It's an acoustic retelling of some of the defining music of her career, but instead of recording virtual copies of the originals using acoustic guitars instead of electric, Lauper has reinterpreted her own work as if she was writing it anew.

Although often considered an 80's icon, Lauper's music has remained fresh throughout the 90's and into the 00's, even if radio has not played along. That is good for this album, because some re-interpretations of fan's favourite songs will not have been heard before by many who listen to this album. "Water's Edge", "Fearless", and "Sister's of Avalon" are good examples. "Shine" sounds less retro than her original version from 2001.

My favourite re-interpretation on here is "Money Changes Everything". Lauper uses a raw voice overtop of a mellencampish accompaniment to create a toe-tapping, hand-clapping rendition. Fans of the harder 'rockin'' version of this may not be pleased, but I loved it. (Check out the music page for a listen).

The two new songs, "I'll Be Your River" and "Above The Clouds" are beautiful new compositions. 'I'll Be Your River" is a gospel influenced ballad with beautiful backing vocals by Viviene Green. "Above The Clouds" is co-written with Jeff Beck who also plays on the track. Just try not to hold your head up high when listening to this song when she sings, "I try to tell you to keep your head upright/don't swing your sword and shield against the night/don't block your blessings boy, you don't have to fight, you don't have to fight".

Over all a great album, brought down to 4 stars only because it's not all new material AND because of the inclusion of the awful re-interpretation of Girls Just Want To Have Fun. Lauper re-interpreted this song well on 12 Deadly Cyns, but this version should never have been made.