TimSisk.com

A Re-opening of Sorts

I've decided to re-open this blog. Gradually I'm going to edit the form of this blog and update some of the information. My last post was 10 months ago and quite a lot has changed in my life. The most significant thing that has changed is that I've moved to a new appointment. I'm now serving St. Andrews United Methodist Church in Amory, MS. Amory is a little over an hour from Starkville (my hometown and last appointment that I served).

I'm going to try and put some stuff up "pre-move", pictures and the like to catch up this site's post (and what readers that happen to drop by).

I've not really decided what this blog should be. Readers might remember that this started out as one of the earlier "Metho-blogs" (as a child of sorts of the now defunct Wesleyblog). But I grew disinteresting in talking about church all the time. I already do that during the day as it is. I also discovered that blogging is work (duh!) but took a lot of time away from the work I get paid to do.

I imagine that I'll post about whatever random stuff floating around in my head. And if their is an audience for that, well, come on aboard. This is after all, an eponymous blog. Which means it'll probably be a lot about me. I'm aware there is a limited number of people truly interested in me, not many as interested as I am. But there it is.

LATER: Updated my Prooftext side bar.

Per the earlier going to catch the blog up on where I am right now comment, I'm posting a video of my girls (Lorie, Miriam, and Mary-Elizabeth), singing at the piano as the moving boxes grow higher and higher behind them. This was taken about six weeks before our move.

Rev. Fife has moved

Physically and Metaphysically (new web address).

Stephen, I would like for you to write more extensively about the Order of Saint Luke and sacramental worship.  I'm curious about the whole emerging thing, but not enough to actually study it.  Look forward to your new blog efforts. Post more, please!  (And would you add trackbacks to your site?)

Redesigns

As someone who is unhappy with his own site design and tinkers with it from time to time, I understand that redesigning websites is more an art than a science.

That said, I like the New York Times front page redesign and hate Slate's. 

Odd Search Term to Find This Blog (TimSisk.com edition)

Unlike John, no one has ever found this blog by searching for Osteen naked or the digestive habits of rabbits (or frankly any other NSFW subject) but someone did find this blog today by doing a Yahoo search of nazarenes women ministry debate blog (of which I'm result number 11). 

Not sure that merits some award, but does seem to be some sort of achievement. 

Feedburner and Feedflare

I have now syndicated this blog to Feedburner and have activated the Feedflare features. 

Thanks Typepad!

A random thought from a humble blogger

***Update:  Welcome Locusts and Honey readers!  In addition to the posts John pointed to this week, I have discussed "What Would Mary Do?", the Folgers Experience, and, of course, added a new entry to Monday Music.  Make yourself at home.  End Update***

I remember an old Friends episode where one of the characters calls someone (an old flame, I think) and unexpectly gets an answering machine.  Not prepared to leave a message, they bumble through an embarassing message which said in part, "I'm just being breezy".  There was a big conversation as to whether you can actually be breezy if you are telling people you are breezy.

I read a lot of blogs and I'm struck by how many say something like "I'm just a humble person..." or "this is a humble blog".  So I pose the question: Can you actually be humble while at the same time telling people you are humble? 

I know what they are trying to do.  Especially as pastors, we are concerned that a blog can be viewed as being a vehicle of self-promotion and none of us want to do that with our blogs.  So allow me to make this humble (ha ha) suggestion as to how we might view our blogging.  By blogging, we are joining a conversation.  And while our blogs are about us, they really represent a decision to contribute: our thoughts and views, our interests, even our idiosyncrasies.  While we often talk about ourselves, we are also revealing who we are to people who don't know us and finding points of similiarity and differences.  And when you contribute anything, particularly as I describe this process of blogging, I don't think blogging is egocentric--even if it feels like it is. 

The next hard decision I made after I decided to blog was what to name my blog.  Ultimately I decided to name it after myself.  It felt wrong (self-promoting), but I made this decision because a) I couldn't think of a cool name (Dean cornered the cool name for Methodist blogging with Untied Methodist), b) I didn't want to limit my subject material to just Methodist issues (like Wesleyblog which is a very cool name for a blog but intentionally constrains Shane's subject material), and c) I realized that while my subject might include a lot of different things that ultimately I would be blogging about myself and who I am.  To be authentic (authentic to me) meant I could not adopt a pseudonymn or contrive an alter-ego. 

So let's not take this blogging thing too seriously.  Sometimes we'll agree.  Often we will disagree.  Usually the most vigorous conversation will happen when we are hammering out our differences.  We should be respectful (and be careful of our judgements of others).  And yes, we should be careful to balance out the times when we take issue with something someone wrote on another blog by saying, from time to time, "Hey, you're right, I agree with you" or "Great post" or "Thanks for sharing your thoughts".  But, frankly, if we did that all the time, it would be completely boring. 

So don't tell us you are humble.  You are already showing us you are even when you aren't.  But then again, no one ever accused me of being humble. 

Bishops and Blogging

Speaking of bishops, don't you think bishops should blog?  By my count, there is only one bishop on the Methodist blogroll maintained by Shane Raynor (Soaring, by Bishop James Swanson).  And that blog is part of the Holston Conference website. 

Bishops are already so corporate and institutional, that I really wish they would break out of the role as conference executives and start a blog over on blogger or typepad or something.  Of course, Bishop Will Willimon had a blog until it was hacked, so he took it down.  Now he has some sort of weekly column on the conference website.  While I've only read this weeks column, I'm sorry, that isn't good enough.  Weekly columns on the conference website are the places where bishop put their official statements, particularly responding to current events.  It isn't blogging.  It's so managerial.  And  Bishop Willimon has famously argued we need more leading (not managers) in the United Methodist Church.  Bishop Willimon seems particularly suited for the bishop blogging endeavor. 

I don't want Bishops to drop their hats (miters?) as bishops [United Methodist bishops don't wear miters. --ed.  They should, hats are cool.]  But I do want them to engage the world on a different level.  (Wouldn't it be great for a bishop to link to a Wesleyblog post and respond to Shane or John or how much is too much elk for dogs?)

I'm just saying.

Update: Cross-posted at Wesley Daily

Update (2):  Commentor LGS at Wesley Daily points to Bishop Hopkins' blog (of the East Ohio Conference).  The first three posts seem awfully promising (and he even has enabled comments!) 

Moving

Well, we started our move over into the new parsonage Thursday afternoon.  Usually when I move, someone is moving behind us into the house we are leaving and we are moving into a house someone has just vacated.  And since we are moving just a few blocks we've been doing it Beverly Hillbillies style. Which has been a mistake, I think.  Because now half of my stuff is at one house (I've been side-lined all week with a kidney stone) and the other half is at this house and I have marginal internet service.

Then I find out I've been taken off the Wesleyblog Methodist Bloggers blog roll.  I've petitioned for reinstatement, we'll see if Shane is merciful. 

I hope to be back to a normal schedule of blogging (and working) sometime next week.

Update:  Shane is merciful.

A quick post to let you know I'm still around

Still spending a lot of time in renovation and church activities.  But here's a quick quiz I took today:

I'm a Ferrari 360 Modena!

You've got it all.  Power, passion, precision, and style. You're sensuous, exotic, and temperamental.  Sure, you're expensive and high-maintenance, but you're worth it.

Take the Which Sports Car Are You? quiz.

Hat tip: Althouse

Is Typepad down?

I can't seem to bring my blog up.  Is there a problem?