So the building I’m working in now is lovely. It looks out over the river in Austin, and from the top of the parking garage you can see miles of water, trees, and limestone. But it has one odd feature: a plexiglass enclosed tunnel that leads from the parking garage to the building proper. Now, I’m no architect, but it seems to me fairly obvious that building what is in effect a 60 foot long greenhouse is not the ideal solution to the shelter problem in a city that sports temperatures well above 100° on a regular basis. Already the ominous creak of the thermal stresses adds to the discomfort of being baked on your way in or out, and the temperature has yet to reach 90°. Perhaps I could leave a lunch of raw meat in there in the morning and have it cooked by noon.

My friend Mark Morgan, an atheist who lives out west, has been asking some great questions lately about the Bible in an attempt to learn more about Christianity. Mark’s an excellent practitioner of the fine art of thinking, and discussing issues with him always gives me a bit of the thrill I experience when listening to transcripts of the Supreme Court on NPR: “Man, do those people know how to have a good, pointed argument! Nothing but the issues, baby!” Our discussion begins here, and you can visit Mark’s site for writers here.

I finally invested in a ping pong paddle yesterday, and christened it Mjöllnir as per Jason’s suggestion. It’s a Harvard Tournament Series 50, which only set me back about $14. It’s proving a worthwhile investment already, as my control is much improved, and I can get about 70% more spin with it than with the cheap plywood pips-out house paddles I’ve been using up to now. Beware the mighty hammer of Thor!

I haven’t posted for the last couple of days, not because there hasn’t been much going on to write about, but because there’s been too much keeping me from the keyboard. My brother Adam married his long-time lady love Celeste over the weekend. My other brother Chris is in from his medical residency for a visit. Our health insurance finally kicked in, so we’ve been catching up on doctor visits. The selling and buying of houses old and new is still eating up more time and money than I’d like. And, of course, there’s the day job. A full account will eventually come, but things may be slow here in the meantime.