Monday, December 31, 2012

When will the end be according to Jesus? Not when you've been told...and yes, it really is specified


When will the end come according to Jesus' speech in Matthew 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21?  The prophesy in those scriptures is often quoted.  Jesus tells of earthquakes, wars, famine, etc as happening right before the end.  When did he prophesy the end would be?  In that speech, he states, 
But of that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.
So far, that's a good argument for saying that we don't know when the end will come.  Except, it's taken out of context of the prophesy.  A few versus prior, Jesus states,
Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.
Who is this generation?  Well, we get all kinds of arguments about "which" generation is being spoken about.  But, in context of the scripture itself, we know which generation.  It was the small group of people to which Jesus was speaking.  That group was his disciples who asked him privately about when the end would come.  (Actually, technically, according to Mark, they asked Jesus about the destruction of Jerusalem that he previously mentioned, but Jesus used the opportunity to talk about the end of everything, implying the destruction of Jerusalem was linked to the end of everything; in Matthew, they asked about the end and return of Jesus.)

How do we know that "this generation" applies to the one of which the disciples where apart?  Even within the same speech, Jesus is imploring his disciples to be watchful, that the end could come at any moment.  He doesn't say, "When that generation sees these things, then they should be watchful."  He tells his disciples that he's putting them in charge, and for them to keep alert.
Take heed, keep on the alert; for you do not know when the appointed time will come. It is like a man away on a journey, who upon leaving his house and putting his slaves in charge, assigning to each one his task, also commanded the doorkeeper to stay on the alert.  Therefore, be on the alert--for you do not know when the master of the house is coming, whether in the evening, at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning-- in case he should come suddenly and find you asleep.
Then Jesus says that all of his followers should be alert.  None of these statements were meant for some future unknown and unspecified generation.  It was a message intended for the disciples to which Jesus was directly speaking.  This prophesy was intended to be fulfilled before their generation passed on.  This means, according to his prophesy (taken in context), the world should have ended sometime in what we now call the 1st Century, just over 1900 years ago.  Well, Jerusalem was sacked (not really destroyed, though the Second Temple was destroyed) in 70 C.E., and the rest of the world is still here.  This isn't a prophesy about the future.  It is a failed prophesy about a time in ancient past.

All scripture quotes in this article are from Mark 13 of the New American Standard Bible via The Unbound Bible.

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Poll link: What do you preferred to be called as a person of Earth?

I created a poll on my CAD website for a little fun today, called:

Which do you prefer to be called as a person of Earth?


Choices include Earthling, Earthmen, Earthers and several others!  You decide!  Vote now!

Sunday, December 16, 2012

Soccer Mom talks about Mental Illness in US

Here is a very touching and poignant telling of one mother's fears about her own child and how mental illness is being mishandling in America with our skewed sense of priorities.

In the wake of another horrific national tragedy, it’s easy to talk about guns. But it’s time to talk about mental illness....A few weeks ago, Michael pulled a knife and threatened to kill me and then himself after I asked him to return his overdue library books. His 7 and 9 year old siblings knew the safety plan—they ran to the car and locked the doors before I even asked them to. I managed to get the knife from Michael..." con't to read whole article here.

Saturday, December 08, 2012

Live Oaks Homes of Rivermark

On a recent and brief (mostly business) trip back to California, I was able to stop by my old community and take a photo of the Live Oaks homes within Rivermark.  I think these homes are iconic, representing a well  planned group of neighborhoods at the heart of Silicon Valley.


Many more great photos may be found on Flickr in the Rivermark group.

Related silly questions


1) They call them spiders, but what do they spide?  I originally asked this here, funny answers...



2) They are called fingers, but what so they fing?

3) What exactly do hammers ham?

4) When's the last time you've seen a grocer groce?

Update: This link wasn't the inspiration of my quick article, but something funny I found soon after: Do fingers fing?  And then Urban Dictionary has a say: fing (nsfw).


Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Driving to work this morning, saved by the bell and other things

Commute today was very light into work. Of course, all the time I saved this morning will be taken back in holiday traffic on the drive home.

On a lighter side, since the traffic was so light, cars were moving above the speed limit.  Waze proved to be very valuable in noting locations where cops were waiting to catch speeders.

Monday, November 19, 2012

Quite Possibly the last PB and J I'll ever make with Wonder Bread

I'm about to make with the quite possibly be my last peanut butter jelly sandwich made with Wonder Bread

Possibly my last #sandwich made with #WonderBread with #PeanutButter and jelly piled high. I debated using the #Nutella but I decided with using peanut butter and #jelly instead for tradition sake.

R.I.P., Hostess

Thursday, November 15, 2012

I've only been gone 18 months! #49ers Stadium

OK, so I've only been gone like 18 months!  The house that we owned is in the Rivermark area, practically in the shadow of the future home of the San Francisco 49ers in Santa Clara, CA.  When we sold the home, there was nothing more than a proud sign and a parking lot at the site of the planned stadium.



Eighteen months later?

Future home of the 49ers (wide)

Untitled

49ers new home under construction II

49ers new home under construction I 
I don't think I've ever seen this much progress on a project in California in such a short time! Supposedly, the stadium is scheduled to be completed in time for the 2014 season, followed by opportunities for Super Bowls and other events.

Parking is a big weakness for this stadium.  There is almost no parking on the stadium property.  But let's not bother with details right now.

The jury is still out as to whether this will improve home values near the stadium.  Some say it will bolster values, and other say it will drag them down.  If this project is handled like AT&T Ballpark by the San Francisco Giants, values will soar due to ongoing redevelopment efforts nearby.  If the project is handled like the Oakland Colosseum, eh, watchout!  I already know the 49ers wanted to avoid the AT&T Ballpark model, so a bit of concern is appropriate.  It all depends on how Santa Clara City itself handles things.

Breakfast with my Father-in-law, and this giant donut

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Friday, November 09, 2012

Praying Mantis

Found this little guy on top of a trashcan in Wellesley.  Didn't seem to be doing much, but it did take notice when my wife and I took a few shots.  It's kinda creepy to have a bug watch you while you are watching it.


Sunday, November 04, 2012

Grist Mill

A few weeks ago, Allie and I spent an afternoon on a short drive around the area to catch Autumn near its peak in MetroWest.  It's a beauty place near Wayland Inn just off of Highway 20.  It was just past peak, but still very beautiful.














Friday, November 02, 2012

Kimball Farm in Littleton, PA

A popular attraction just outside of the MetroWest area is Kimball Farm.  It's an outdoor family entertainment place with great seafood, driving range, batting cages, famous miniature golf (designed by some Hollywood types, so I hear), arcade, bumper boats, and even more famous ice cream, oh and a few farm animals too...and don't forget the iconic weather vane.  My wife and I had a chance to enjoy the "farm" several times this summer, but only really explored it at a company event held there.  The miniature gold course is one of the best I've seen in terms of creativity.  There's even one hole that pretty much requires you to float your ball down a stream in order to have a chance at getting a hole-in-one.



Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Walking around Philidelphia

On a recent trip to Pennsylvania, I had a chance to briefly explore Philidelphia.  The day I was there, it happened to be some celebration as taking place in front of the First Bank of the United States



Merchants' Exchange Building was kinda strange.  It is a bit boring on the front ,but the back is round.  Or is that the other way round? :)


Independence Hall from the backside (again, really, is this the back?).


Manhole cover in front of the Independence Hall...wait, I mean, to the building's rear...oh never mind.  I thought this would make for an interesting angle of a shot.


Maybe I'll get more time to explore this city and its long history at some later date.

Sunday, October 28, 2012

Recent trip to Lancaster, PA

Well, of all the things not on my bucket list that I got to experience anyway, I woulda never have guessed that I'd passing an Amish horse-and-buggy on state and city roads.  Yet, there I was in Lancaster, PA, the heart of Amish Country. 

At Hersey Restaurant and Inn (no where near Hersey, PA)

I was in Lancaster, PA for a SolidWorks 2013 rollout event to show off the newest version of SolidWorks to our customers.  I don't normally talk about SolidWorks on this blog too much because it's a bit specific to my career, but this story would be incomplete without mentioning it.




SolidWorks 2013 rollout event

Fun in our downtime

On some roads in Amish Country, there are special lanes where trails of horse "exhaust" mark the way, showing clearly which lanes are for cars, and which are for carriages.  There was a lively conversation on a my Facebook posting about driving through Intercourse, PA.

Amish horse and buggy

A funny thing about the Lancaster area are the references to Dutch culture.  This is a bit odd since Dutch influence on Pennsylvania is a bit light.  There is a substantial German population in the Lancaster region who are sometimes referred to as Pennsylvania Dutch, but this is a misnomer that comes from the archaic term that refers to people from Germany.  They aren't Dutch we know from the Netherlands.  Even still, images of old fashion windmills are invoked.  Maybe I'm missing something here.

Another thing that impressed me about this region as its beauty.  I took no pictures to demonstrate this beauty, unfortunately.  Rolling hills of farms and trees and rustic buildings meld together like a series of landscape paintings I've only seen in books.  Words (and even simple photographs) could not due it justice.

Would I go back to this region?  Prolly not going out of my way to visit it again.  I am glad I got a chance to see it, though.

Wednesday, October 17, 2012