Abstract Ideas for Futuristic Educational Learning

This will be a mere stab into the futuristic darkness. I am not sure whether to give my doomsday prophecy which ends with a nuclear war with N. Korea and Iran and ends the civilization of the world, ok just kidding. We will keep civilization from having a meltdown.

I believe that in the next 10-20 years.....

A cell phone will be a compilation of the following: TV, computer, checkbook, library, video phone, GPS tracker, and gaming device. It will cost very little and be available to every citizen. Those who are not able to purchase one, will have one provided to them by the government. You will use it to buy food,clothes, lumber, or even a car. In it will be the technology to track your every movement and spending. Technology will be so common that everything will be computerized. Everyone will have a computer on their wrist or in their pocket. They will be able to watch the news, listen to the radio, movies, and even advance their education.

The American dollar will have become the Amero and will be used in Mexico, Canada, and the United States. The economy of the United States will become equal to all the countries in the world. This in turn will affect governments ability to spend excess monies on any governmental department with the exception of the military. All government agencies will have their fiscal budget cut drastically.

As a result of the lack of money for education and the ease and availability of computers and computer related technology, schools will be run predominantly like a cyber classroom. The cheap price of the computers will offset and save over the cost of textbooks, curriculum materials and teachers salaries. Intelligent design software will readily access and teach students without the mess of paper and pencil. Teachers will no longer need to lecture and teach, but rather monitor, monitor behavior, and provide technical assistance. In each classroom the students will have their own personal computer that will work with them one on one. It will access and analyze their speech, writing, logic, and knowledge. All work is recorded on the school main frame which is networked to a government Education platform. This will make it easier for the NCLB of 2001.

Curriculum specialists will become the eyes and ears for educational software developers. No longer will they have to research what text book will fit the needs of their district to help failing grades. They will only have to rely on the computer to asses what the students learning needs are.

The biggest problem is not preparing students for high stakes tests, but rather to foster 21st century learning skills and knowledge in learners so that they are prepared to participate in our global knowledge based civilization.(Dede, 2005)

Names Please

We will now have another walking steak to name. We are open to suggestions. Something tasty is preferable. Names of presently living steaks: T-Bone, Dell (Delmonico), and Porter (Porterhouse). I am thinking of even names like - Medium Rare.

Disclaimer: To all of you who are concerned that we cannot eat our pets....You are right!!! We are not planning on eating any walking steaks. They must be processed first. LOL!

My Backpack Man

Vincent loves his new backpack. In fact he likes any backpack. He can be seen wandering through our house with just his underwear and a backpack on. It makes it very convenient when we need to "pack mule" stuff from the house to the church. Here he is just leaving after packing over my lasagna and salad.

Someday you may pass him on the Appalachian Trail.

Love you Bud!!! Thanks for the awesome picture you drew for me!!

A Halibut from Alaska.

Muslims more numerous than Catholics

VATICAN CITY - Islam has surpassed Roman Catholicism as the world's largest religion, the Vatican newspaper said Sunday.

"For the first time in history, we are no longer at the top: Muslims have overtaken us," Monsignor Vittorio Formenti said in an interview with the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano. Formenti compiles the Vatican's yearbook.

He said that Catholics accounted for 17.4 percent of the world population — a stable percentage — while Muslims were at 19.2 percent.

"It is true that while Muslim families, as is well known, continue to make a lot of children, Christian ones on the contrary tend to have fewer and fewer," the monsignor said. Formenti said that the data refer to 2006. The figures on Muslims were put together by Muslim countries and then provided to the United Nations, he said, adding that the Vatican could only vouch for its own data.

When considering all Christians and not just Catholics, Christians make up 33 percent of the world population, Formenti said. Spokesmen for the Vatican and the United Nations did not immediately return phone calls seeking comment Sunday

PVBI Ministers to the Congregation at Keepville

We had a group from Penn View Bible Institute minister to us this morning. Pictured below is: Kimberley Sigouin (British Columbia), Greg Miller, and Jaylena Mowery. It was a great service. God really helped them as they sang.

Velma Ninjipa

A display set up in the vestibule area.

Tim Calhoun and his family traveled with the group. Pam helped with dishes after dinner. It was great to have them in our home.

Velma playing with the kids.
We also had Andy Crouch, Becky, Ravhel, and Lauren Grate over for dinner.
A privilege to be in person with the legend - Tim Calhoun .
Even legends need sleep.

Prayer Request

David Cope, a friend of mine and a pastor out in Montana accidentally backed his van over his 2 year old son Tyler. Pray for Tyler and the Copes during this time. As far as we know he only had his pelvic broke in two places.

Spring 2008 Church Clean Up Day.

There were 13 that showed up for Spring Cleaning 2008. We got allot accomplished. Thanks to everyone that helped out. Of course there were some that came to sleep on the job. Rod Shumate, Paul Klien, Cheryl Colby, George and Ilene Randall, Buddy and Lisa Carr, Blaine and Dixie Cosner, Tom and Connie Rodgers, and my wife and I. Julia made dinner for us.

Tom Rodgers working on the heaters in the restroom.
Ilene, Julie, and Rod worked and cleaning the chandeliers

Me fixing the furnace - the problem...a 3 amp fuse down on the circuit board. I wonder how that happened? :)

Dixie cleaning the walls.

Ilene was cleaning windows.

Lisa was dusting the trees that were donated in memory of her mother.

Buddy was hauling extra trim to the attic.

Paul was our floor man.

Cheryl gave the wainscotings a nice shine.

Dixie and Connie discussing what they need to do next.

George cleaned out the winter freeze proof room.

OK...Tom actually did more than lay and sleep.

Blaine wondering what to do next.

Stopped by to see T-Bone....

...and scratch his head. He loves having his ears and chin scratched. He is a 1300lb baby. When he hears my voice he starts running my way. Kendra enjoyed the trip and gave him a pat on the nose. The reason why we were down there is because we were delivering Porter and Delmonico to their new homes. Porter (short for Porterhouse) now lives with T-bone. Dell (short for Delmonico) went to another farm to be raised for eating as well.

Prayer Update - Tom Mooney

Please Pray....
He was just taken into the ICU at St. Vincent Hospital with heart problems.

More snow on the way....

...about 3 to 5 inches. I say enough winter and on with the summer!! On our way home from the hospital tonight from seeing Tom Mooney...the snow started falling. I saw this sign and at this point....even though I love snow...I have to agree.

Mornings Work...

This A.M. I helped Tom Rodgers and Merle Cole cut down a tree on Furnace Road in Conneaut. After we dropped it, we cut it up and it got it ready to haul away.

Wow a Tic Tac Toe Game....

I could not beat!!! This computer is very smart.


Hat tip Jon Earls.

A Good Post from a Baptist Pastor

You gotta just shake your head and wonder about people who consistently show up at church a minute or two before a service begins and have this puzzled look as to why all the seats in the back are taken! Especially on a day like Easter!!

Read the full article here....
http://nagsheader.blogspot.com/2008/03/grin-and-bear-it.html

An Elephant Memory

In 1986, Dan Harrison (see picture above ) was on holiday in Kenya after graduating from Northwestern University ... On a hike through the bush, he came across a young bull elephant standing with one leg raised in the air. The elephant seemed distressed, so Dan approached it very carefully. He got down on one knee and inspected the elephant's foot and found a large piece of wood deeply embedded in it. As carefully and as gently as he could, Dan worked the wood out with his hunting knife, after which the elephant gingerly put down its foot. The elephant turned to face the man, and with a rather curious look on its face, stared at him for several tense moments. Dan stood frozen, thinking of nothing else but being trampled. Eventually the elephant trumpeted loudly, turned, and walked away. Dan never forgot that elephant or the events of that day.

Twenty years later, Dan was walking through the Chicago Zoo with his teenage son. As they approached the elephant enclosure, one of the creatures turned and walked over to near where Dan and his son Dan Jr. were standing. The large bull elephant stared at Dan, lifted its front foot off the ground, and then put it down. The elephant did that several times then trumpeted loudly, all the while staring at the man. Remembering the encounter in 1986, Dan couldn't help wondering if this was the same elephant. Dan summoned up his courage, climbed over the railing and made his way into the enclosure.

He walked right up to the elephant and stared back in wonder. The elephant trumpeted again, wrapped its trunk around one of Dan's legs and slammed him against the railing, killing him instantly.

Probably wasn't the same elephant . . .

Thanks to Rod Shumate for sending this to me.

The Tractor Moves One Step Closer To Home...

I think it is safe to say I was very "elated". I had hoped that my wifes father or uncle would have driven it home form the dealer, but it worked out nice that I was the one that got to drive it (a mile) to the farm. While waiting for the key and other miscelaneous items the phone rang at the dealer and somebody asked about the tractor. The salesman was glad to get it off his lot. He said that every day he got about 4-5 calls about it.

An extra step for the elderly gentleman that had owned it.

Everything was in almost showroom condition. It has 2400+ hours.There are no dents and the paint job looks good for being almost 30 years old.

Tom, Derek, Jason, and Kenton checked under the hood at the 175 c.i. deisel motor. It is rated around 45 horsepower. It will arrive at Keepville April 11th around 5:30 p.m.

Another Big Clinton Lie

Easter Snow

Standing in front of a pile of snow on Easter 2008.

I LOVE snow, but I wish it would go away for awhile.

Prayer Update

...for the week of March 23, 2008

Jerry Dalrymple - home after a succesful neck surgery.

Matt Nichols - Danville Correctional Facility

Tom Mooney - still in St. Vincent Hospital

Marge English - Still home bound.

Catherine Mason - Health

Rose Shumate - Health

John - Health

I Serve a Risen Savior!

I was at my office this morning ta the usual time of 5:00. At 27 degrees it is colder than I would like. At about sunrise I shut off the lights in my office and just stood by the window watching it get light out and rejoicing that this day commemorates our Lord's Resurrection from the grave. How eternally we would be lost without this wondreful event. God paid the price for our sins. We have the promise of eternal life!

The Eight Most Fattening Easter Candies

The first one on the list happens to be my wifes favorite and eaten in large quantities year round.

1. Peeps. A few of these fluffy, sugar-filled treats can add up quickly. Go through a row of four bunnies and you're at 130 calories. Peeps are fat-free but do weigh in heavy on the carb count--each little rabbit has 8 grams of sugar alone, adding up to 32 grams in a serving of four.

2. Jelly Beans. These can be your worst foe or your best friend in the Easter basket, depending on how many you eat. Each individual bean is pretty low in calorie count, with usually around 5 or 6 calories, but munching through a handful or worse, an entire bagful, of Jelly Bellys adds up quickly. The recommended 35-bean serving comes in at 140 calories from 37 grams of sugar. To avoid jelly-bean overdose, it's probably best to grab a handful and then keep the Easter basket out of reach.

3. Cadbury Chocolate Eggs. These eggs may look tiny, but their calorie count is anything but. A handful of 12 eggs comes with 190 calories and 8 grams of fat. You might want to skip over these high-cal eggs if you come across them on the hunt.

4. Cadbury Creme Egg. It's possibly the quintessential Easter treat, but most people won't be surprised to find out that the creamy egg packs in the calories. The 1.2-ounce egg comes with 150 calories, 5 grams of fat and 25 grams of carbs. If you're looking for an excuse to indulge, there is a slight silver lining: the tasty milk chocolate comes with 40mg of calcium, which is about 5 percent of the recommended daily value.

5. Reese's Peanut Butter Egg. This egg slightly edges out its creme-filled rival in the unhealthy Easter-egg competition. All three varieties of the Reese's egg--milk chocolate, fudge and white chocolate--have a calorie count of 180. The fat content weighs in around 10 grams, double that of the Cadbury Creme Egg, with the white-chocolate egg the worst, at 11 grams. Stick to the traditional Reese's Peanut Butter Cup, which, though it lacks the festive Easter element, has nearly half the calories of its egg-shaped relatives.

6. Lindt Chocolate Carrots. In a sea of eggs and bunnies, chocolate carrots are one of the more unusual Easter candy options--Lindt only started offering them seven years ago. Sadly, they have little nutritional value in common with their vegetable counterparts: a box of four carrot-shaped chocolates has 210 calories.

7. Hershey's Hollow Milk Chocolate Egg. This might come as the biggest surprise: one hollow Hershey's egg (4.65 ounces) has more than three times as many calories as the Cadbury Creme Egg. The shell alone has 570 calories. Start munching on the four Hershey's kisses included inside and you're up to a whooping 660 calories and 41 grams of fat. This may be one of the few Easter offerings that makes a Reese's Peanut Butter Egg look like health food.

8. Large Chocolate Bunny. Not surprisingly, the bunny reigns as king when it comes to Easter calories. But the calorie count may still raise a few eyebrows: the average seven-ounce rabbit clocks an impressive 1,050 calories. Smaller bunnies are better--rabbits of the one-ounce variety only rack up 140 calories.

Men's Prayer Breakfast

A a couple of the men met for a breakfast at the parsonage. The others did not know that the Pastor is the best Omelet Cook in Keepville. We met for prayer for our Easter Service Sunday.

George Randall, Tom Misch, and Tom Rodgers are now part of the Pastor's Omelet Fan Club.

Working on the whopper omelet.

Loaded with onions, peppers, mushrooms, bacon, and two kinds of cheese (Cheddar and Monterey Jack). The skillet was seasoned well with bacon grease and a drizzle of some more bfore it got folded. It is the best tasting and most unhealthy omlet in the world.