Below are the most recent 4 friends' journal entries.

Monday, December 21st, 2009
chronarchy	2:07p	ADF elections fun. . . I just did some of the numbers on the nomination process for Archdruid for the Clergy Council's nomination. It's been awesome to see us talk about the process and who we'd like to see, and I've enjoyed seeing all the names that have come up in all the places I've seen them, too. The thing is, three bodies can nominate an AD: the Mother Grove (our Board of Directors), the Clergy Council, and the Council of Senior Druids (elected SD's from Groves). What's gotten complicated is trying to figure out who has voted on which nomination so that duplicates don't happen. I think that my recent count is pretty accurate, with 11 clergy not on one of the other two bodies, or not voting on them both (like myself). To make things more complicated, clergy who are among the nominating group who voted on the CoSD to nominate a candidate are allowed to vote for a CC candidate, and vice versa. The clergy, however, seem to be sticking to a notion that it's not proper to vote in both nominations, which is pleasant to see, even if it's not required, so no duplicate nomination voting is taking place. Add to this that I can't see the Mother Grove's voting record until it gets posted, and it's been a wonderful maze of guessing. I suppose I could ask, but what's the fun in that? Elections in ADF can be alternately stressful and wonderful, I tend to think. I enjoy watching them go by with very little participation from myself other than casting my votes. I've gotten pretty deft at avoiding elections over the past 10 years I've been in ADF (as have a few other people, I'm noticing), though I admit that my nomination as "Site of the Annual Membership Meeting" a few years ago was pretty tempting. I am very pleased to see that James "Seamus" Dillard (seamus_mcnasty) has accepted his nomination for Vice Archdruid. After watching what he has managed to do with one tiny local Grove (not so tiny anymore, are we, Three Cranes?), I know that, if he wins, he will have an even greater positive impact on ADF as a whole. His work as Senior Druid of this Grove led us to surpassing even my most ambitious dreams of what a Grove could be like. I cannot wait to see what ADF could be like with him as VAD. Current Mood: cheerful Current Music: "Such a Long Haul, Such a Short Fall", -JB (12 Comments |Comment on this)
Thursday, December 17th, 2009
chronarchy	1:41p	Weird Things In My Life #1 Today I wondered: do all priests in fire religions have the same weirdness where the hair on the back of the hand they most often sacrifice with, where the hair has been singed and re-singed so many times that it grows at distinctly odd angles? The hair on the back of my left hand lays down, but the hair on my right hand stands up and is all mussed-up, constantly. Weird. Current Mood: calm Current Music: "Tampico Trauma", -JB (9 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, December 15th, 2009
chronarchy	6:29a	CTP 3 Progress For those who didn't see, I've got a new plan for completion of CTP 3. I wanted to give a bit of an update on that plan. At the moment, I'm done with Leadership Development 2, and I've got Ethics 2 in for review. I'm one question away from completing Crisis Response (I'm just missing my First Link directory, which must be around here somewhere!), so I should be ready to submit that when Ethics 2 is approved. Theatre for Ritual 1 is the next big course to complete, and I think it'll be an enjoyable one: I get to make a movie (sorta)! (Kirk kind of set the bar high on that, so I need to rock it out.) I'm most of the way done with Liturgy Writing 2 and Special Occasion Rituals, and am involved in the Liturgy Practicum 2 journal process. You know, when I write all that up, it doesn't seem like I'm so far from done. I might actually manage it before Summerland, as originally planned. Maybe folks who want to see an ADF Ordination should think about travel plans, though that may be optimistic. :) I have found it rather appropriate (and helpful) to set goals for myself to work through the courses. Doing that immediately upon finishing a circle has been good for me, and when I miss a deadline (I blew by my CTP 2 deadlines last year, missing them by a mile), re-setting that deadline is helpful. The process of submit/review/return/resubmit/review/approve is sometimes tedious, but generally it is working out fine. We've been working with a new system for reviewing work in CTP2 and the IP, and I've set a personal goal of a 1-week turn-around with clear communication of those expectations for courses that I work on. I hope that, at some point, all CTP work (regardless of reviewer) will have that expectation. Fortunately, I only have a couple of students in CTP 2, and those working through the IP aren't submitting much at the moment, so this goal is pretty easy now. I sometimes wonder what I'll do when I finish CTP 3: we have a few CTP courses that are currently optional, and I will need to do some continuing education, but I'm not a huge fan of the "merit badge collection," despite the number of SP's I've finished in my time in ADF; I don't climb mountains "because they're there" (though I suppose I do occasionally climb them to pee on them). I wonder, sometimes, if I'll just make time for other ADF projects (like checking and answering personal e-mail, something I suck at recently), or if I'll hit the end and find myself wondering what more there is. I think I love to learn a bit too much. I suspect that I'll spend time doing what I have always done: building bridges for the next person who comes this way. Current Mood: awake Current Music: "Good Guys Win", -JB (8 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, December 14th, 2009
chronarchy	4:28p	News and a new Buffett album First, an awesome spiral light appeared in Norway the other night, causing panic and awesomeness. (Thanks to myrch, who observed that Odinists figured the gates of Valhalla were opening.) Second, Buffett has a new album out. This is generally good, and it means that it's time to update the Jimmy Buffett Oracle with new lyrics. There are some particularly good lines that lend themselves very well to oracles. I am also thinking about ways to make the Oracle better: it's so simple that it's not complicated to make a better product. Still, I'm thinking about a variety of different little things that could make the Oracle that much better. Suggestions are always welcome, of course. As to the album itself? It's not stellar, but it's not bad. I suspect I'll wear the disk out, but I won't recommend it to a casual fan (then again, I'd really only recommend a couple of disks to a "casual" fan). I've also been enjoying the HBO series Rome, which I once watched a couple of episodes of with romandruid. It's a good series, and the production values are startling. I caught it on an Amazon sale about two weeks ago for 60% off and couldn't resist. I'm glad I picked it up, but I do wish I could hang out with romandruid again to watch it: it was nice sitting with someone who got the history like I do (though with a slightly different focus, making the experience that much more rich: I know a lot about the military side, she knows a lot about the religious side, and so watching it was an excellent exercise in learning and enjoying history). Today, though, has been a rather fine day. After last night's ritual, I found myself relaxed and grinning like a fool as I drove home, windows down and the new Buffett album playing loudly. Today, I've been driving software releases out the door like mad, catching up on products and setting up meetings for others. It's been extremely productive, even if I haven't gotten everything I wanted to finished. But then, when do I? Current Mood: busy Current Music: "I Will Play for Gumbo", -JB (5 Comments |Comment on this)