Friday, February 16, 2018

Weekend Links 2-16-18

A weekly roundup of links of interest. Commentary included at no extra charge.

Pitchers and catchers report this week which means baseball season is right around the corner. The big story this offseason has been the extremely cold free agent market. George Will offers some very sensible analysis why teams aren't going to spend money on expensive free agents. I have a sneaking suspicion that this is the start of new trend.

This interview with Roy and Karen Prior on marriage is well worth reading. I found myself thinking a lot about how I met my wife and how much God has blessed our family in reading their story.

Some helpful advice here on how to become a morning person.

This is interesting: The Phantom Tollbooth and the Redeeming Power of Words.

This sounds like a dream job to me!

An important article from Russell Moore: How to Teach Boys to Respect Women.

Now we know the origin of "Who's On First?"
More productivity advice: why your phone's airplane mode is not just for flying. Because I use my cell phone as my work phone it's hard for me to disconnect at times. But this is a terrific idea.

Fun fact of the week:

A post shared by Mental Floss (@mental_floss) on

Friday, February 09, 2018

Weekend Links 2-9-18

It's a cornucopia of interesting links this week.

This is interesting: 16 facts about Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451. This makes me want to go read the book.

Articles like this make it harder to enjoy football. There was a time when I was truly interesting in watching it. Not anymore.

If you are a football fan enjoy it while you can because the sport is doomed.

Thomas Boswell was right - baseball is better than football. There's also this from George Carlin.

Spring training starts next week. Here are the report dates for every team.

One of the best shows currently on television is the Inspector Morse prequel Endeavour (shown on PBS here in the United States). This is a fascinating interview with Russell Lewis, the series creator and sole writer.

America is at her greatest when she accomplishes great things. Just ask Elon Musk. (As a side note, I am currently reading a second book on the Apollo space program and find myself longing for the days when we dared to do difficult things).

This seems to fall more in the category of "don't try this at home". However, I know of at least one person who does one of the things on this list regularly.

How Groundhog Day (released 25 years ago!) shows we are "stuck with virtue".

Quote of the week:

Abide is an old fashioned word. It simply means remain, stay, or dwell.  The challenge is for us to continue to be immersed in, satisfied by, surrounded by, empowered by, protected by, and infused with Jesus.
Read the whole thing.

Some interesting thoughts on The Post and the current state of the press. Lots of stuff here to think about.

This is an amazing article written by a long-time photojournalist. The story - about one man and a photograph - is pretty remarkable.

This article from WORLD Magazine on the current turmoil at Moody Bible Institute is incredibly detailed and provides a pretty comprehensive account of the challenges facing the college.

Recommended reading: The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown.
This book wasn't on my to be read list at the beginning of the year but I ran across it a library book sale and couldn't resist. I had seen it recommended several places and now I understand why it was getting such tremendous endorsements. It's an amazing account of a group of working-class boys who fought theri way through the Great Depression to defeat the heavily favored German team in the 1936 Berlin Olympics. It's a terrific read and well worth your time.

Incidentally, pay particular attention to the prologue of the book. I love the story of how the author stumbled onto this tale. It made reading the book even more enjoyable.

Friday, February 02, 2018

Weekend Links 2-2-18

A few links of interest for your weekend reading:

Brad Meltzer is one of my favorite authors. His political thrillers helped get me interested in reading fiction again. But he also has written a series of children's books entitled Ordinary People Change the World. In this wide-ranging interview he discusses the latest entry in the series as well as what inspired him to write the books in the first place.

The gentle - and radical - faith of Mister Rogers. In related news, Tom Hanks will portray Mister Rogers in an upcoming film.

Last week we had the class of 2018 for the Baseball Hall of Fame announced. The election results refueled the debate over whether Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens (among other steroid users) should be allowed induction into the Hall of Fame. Don Yaeger makes the compelling case against their election (which I also wholeheartedly agree with).

This is something I honestly had not considered: 4 ways that Netflix perpetuates modern anxieties.

I try to shy away from political commentary with the exception of a small handful of writers. David French is one that I make a point to read pretty much everything he writes. In this column he manages to sum up perfectly the issue that is at the heart of the culture wars: masculinity.

Tweet of the week (this video gave me chills):