Over the past few months in fact, Humble Bundles have been popping up all over the place (well, they’re all at the website, but you get my drift).  Rather than a collection of indie games, they’re usually collections by developers, or even one game (i.e. – the Humble Voxatron Debut).  And now I’m left hoping that the Humble Bundle concept isn’t being subverted.

I love the idea of getting some awareness for indie game developers while helping out charity.  The charity side is what makes it unique as opposed to an indie bundle on Steam or the site Indie Royale.  So if it looks like someone’s using the Humble Bundle just to promote themselves, I’m walking away.  And I’m not trying to accuse anyone of doing that.  I can’t judge what someone’s intentions are.  I’d just hate to see an amazing concept that’s making a difference for others get bogged down in self-promotion.

That’s why I get more excited about the numbered Humble Indie Bundles as opposed to developer bundles.  I suppose everyone’s hearts could be in the wrong place, but it’s easier for me to believe 5-7 developers coming together have the best in mind as opposed to one developer with 3-5 games.  That’s likely an unfair assumption, but that doesn’t change the fact that it’s how I feel.

So, feel free to release more single developer or pre-release bundles if you wish.  But more than likely, I’ll be holding onto my money until Humble Indie Bundle 5 comes around.

For now, check out the trailer for the latest Humble Indie Bundle:

It seems like computers and I are not getting along lately.  But I’d better start from the beginning…

WARNING: Non-computer geeks, feel free to turn back now.

A few months back, a friend of mine gave me some old PC components of his (case, motherboard, CPU, video card, hard drive, and power supply).  They were old for him, but blew any PC I had out of the water.  So I assembled them, and upon plugging it in, the PC booted right up.  Using a copy of Ubuntu on disc, we discovered that the hard drive was bad.

This part is kind of fuzzy for me: I got it shut down somehow.  I can’t remember if I got it to shut down through the OS, or if it locked up and I had to “hard” shut it down (holding the power button for 5 seconds).  I’m leaning towards the second, but that may be based on recent experience.

Regardless, it wouldnt’ start back up.  We tried swapping out the hard drive, but no matter how many times I pressed the power button, it wouldn’t boot back up.  I could see a green LED lit up on the motherboard though, so I could see that there was power getting there, and my brother-in-law used the power supply to boot up his computer and it seemed to work fine.  But I never got it back up and running.

Fast forward to this week.  I got some more old (new to me) components from my brother-in-law.  Operating under the assumption that the motherboard or CPU may have gone bad, I replaced those, and plugged the rest of the components in.  Voila!  It worked!  I had an awesome computer…for a week.

I’ve been having some issues with hard locks in the last week, and I thought that an update on the video driver had solved the problem, but then yesterday afternoon, it locked up on my wife.  I didn’t know this until I got home last night around 10pm.  I went upstairs and found it hard locked, and I thought “Well, I was going to shut it down anyway”, so I pushed the power button for 5 seconds, walked downstairs, and went to bed.

This morning, I got up, went upstairs to get some things done, and the computer won’t boot.  It’s the same thing as a few months ago.  I can see a green light on the motherboard, but the power button has no effect.  I can hear a high pitched noise (seemingly from the power supply) when I turn it on, but I’m not totally confident that wasn’t there before.  I tried turning off the power supply and unplugging the computer for about 90 minutes this morning, but after putting it back together, it’s still the same song and dance.

At this point, I’ll probably start by trying to boot the computer using the power supply from last PC (an Antec I purchased within the last two years), and if that has no effect, I may try to see if I can get the motherboard into my old case to make sure it’s not the case.  But other than that, I’m perplexed.  Surely I can’t have burned out two motherboards in the exact same way: just by being forced to shut the computer down.  At this point, I’m wondering if the old motherboard was even bad.

So, computer geeks, I ask for your assistance.  Any ideas?  Have you heard of this before?  Anything I should have tried that I haven’t?

You know who I’m talking about: the senile grandpa, the cranky aunt, or fill in your own relative here.  And yet we tolerate them and try to make the best of it because, hey, they’re family, right?  So, why can’t we do that with the church?

In the book John, he refers to us as “children of God.”  Since we’re all  children of the same Father, that’s makes us family.  Paul talks in 1 Corinthians 12 about the church being one body in Christ.  I think there are few lessons the church could learn from the family.

1. In the family, not everyone gets what they want.  At some point, two sides will collide, and when that happens, both sides can’t get what they want.  It’s an impossibility.  If Jimmy wants to go to Applebee’s for dinner and Sally wants to go to HuHot, one of them will get what they want, and the other won’t (unless Mom wants to go to Chipotle, in which case they both lose).  The point is, we have to compromise with each other to make things work.
2. You can’t quit your family.  While there are times we have those monumental fights with our family and don’t talk to each other for long stretches, that doesn’t change the fact that we’re still family.  I can’t be un-born; my parents will always be my parents and my siblings will always be my siblings.  I don’t get the convenience of walking away; it’s in my best interest to work it out.
3. The “love them even if you don’t like them” rule applies here.  Did you ever remember hearing that from your mom or a teacher growing up?  The problem as a kid was, no one explained what that was supposed to mean.  Do I just say, “I love you, but I don’t like you”, or did you just try to fill in a check box called “Love” in your head?  Now that I’m older, I have this (honestly kind of scary) thought on how it works.  It’s like love in a marriage: you have to put the other person’s needs ahead of yours.  So we have to do music I don’t like on Sunday because it meets someone else’s needs? Yep!

And this is where the rubber really meets the road.  ”They will know we are Christians by our love” the hymn says.  But what does it look like if we can’t even live that out to each other.  Anyone can take care of and live with someone they like.  It’s how you interact with those that get under your skin that shows a deeper level of who you are.

As members of a church (and the Church), are we ready to put our needs behind us and instead care for those around us?  Can we stop nagging and arguing, put aside our differences, and be part of a community that truly demonstrates what love is?  Or are we going to be just like every other family that starts Thanksgiving dinner with a prayer and ends it with shouting matches and slammed doors?

And then there are times where the two combine.  If you work in a creative field, you might be asked to do something new in the exact same context every day.  Your repetition involves having to come up with a new idea, and that can be hard.

While I’m not writing a blog post every day, I have been trying to put one out each week.  So I thought that today, I’d give you insight into how I develop a blog post each week.  Hopefully, seeing my process can help you.

Step 1: It’s Monday and I have to write a post sometime this week.  I make a mental note to myself that I should come up with a topic for a post.

(Optional Step 2: On Tuesday I have a great idea for a post I’d like to write and I jot down some ideas in Evernote and start to flesh it out.)

More Likely Step 2:  It’s Thursday and I realize I haven’t written a thing.  I pick through my brain until I think of something that seems like it might work (like a blog post on how I write blog posts) and feverishly type.

Step 3: On Friday I forget that I’ve started a blog post and that I need to post something before the week is out.

Step 4: On Saturday afternoon, I sit down while everyone else in the house rests and prepare to relax myself.  Then I remember that I haven’t posted a blog yet, pull up my previous draft, throw in some new ideas, re-write a quarter of it, and hope that’s good enough.

Step 5: I post to my blog, and breathe a sigh of relief hoping that someone finds it entertaining at least.

Step 6:  See Step 1.

And it starts all over.  So as you look over my process I hope you feel encouraged and inspired, knowing that you’re not alone in your procrastination and filled with hope that maybe someday you’ll be able to come with a better process than me.

Look at your Facebook page.  How many friends do you have?  Out of those people, how many of them would classify as more than a friendly acquaintance, that you keep up with on a regular basis?  I’m sure the number has gotten smaller.  Now, here’s the rub.  Boil that number down to true friends.  Not just the people you laugh with, or have small talk with.  I’m talking about the few (maybe only one?) you have real conversations with: those you can be real and honest with.

That was the question I posed myself the other day, and I had a hard time coming up with some answers (other than my wife of course).  Maybe I’m just being too hard on myself, but it made me think about how much I invest in relationships.  I’ve had some real friendships in the past, but I’ve been horrible about keeping up with them.

And that’s what made me realize that despite the fact that friendships involve two people, I have to be a good friend if I want a good friend.  (Michael Hyatt recently wrote a blog post on that exact topic.)  It’s easy to fall into a self-pity mentality: “No one wants to be my friend.”  That’s too easy; it removes the blame from myself.  Instead, I have to remember two things.

1. In conversation, it’s not about me.  When I’m having a conversation with a friend, I should work hard not to overtake it.  I should be interested in what’s happening in their life and what they’re looking to share.

2. In life, it’s not about me.  If I want the kind of friends who have a listening ear, who help me when I’m in need, and who I can just relax and de-stress with, I need to do that first.  When they have needs, I should be there to meet them.  When they’re going through tough times, I should be there to help.

In summary, it’s not about me.  If I can keep that in mind, putting my friends needs before mine (but after my wife’s) I could become a good friend, and in the process, make some strong friendships.

So I decided this week to just let you know about two websites I enjoy that have in big or small ways, changed my life. First up?

1. Lifehacker - I can’t remember how I originally found this site. It may have been while searching for a guide on how to build your own DVR. Regardless, I was sucked in quickly. Lifehacker shares tips and tricks for being more productive and finding some of the coolest websites and software out there. But where Lifehacker really changed my life was by introducing me to “Getting Things Done” by David Allen or the GTD philosophy.

I’ve spent a good amount of my life a disorganized mess. And I probably still am a good amount of the time. But I never really understood or appreciated the benefits of cleanliness and organization before I found Lifehacker. Now a clean desk actually makes me feel relaxed, and I find a geeky pleasure out of emptying my email inbox.

2. Nerd Fitness – A little over a year ago, a friend and I discussed getting together to work out a little. It sounded like it might not be too bad. I’ve always been a scrawny guy who’d love to put on some muscle. And right around that time, another of my favorite sites The Art of Manliness linked an article from Steve Kamb from nerdfitness.com. I checked out his site, and was blown away.

Here’s a guy who loves RPGs, video games, and all that is geeky in life, yet understands the importance of being in shape and carving out time to work out. Though I’m not yet where I’d like to be in terms of workouts and body shape, this site continues to give me motivation to keep trying different things, and does it in a way that’s clever, funny, and speaks the geek language. A year ago, I’d never have considered running on a regular basis. But recently I’ve spent three mornings a week on the elliptical machine. If you’re a video gamer who thinks “I could never work out and get fit”, check out Nerd Fitness. It might change your life too.

So those are two sites I’ve really enjoyed and have made an impact for me. What sites have changed or impacted your life in some way?

But I’m still not sure if it’s me.  A little over a week ago, I was talking with a friend about it, and she asked, “So are you a runner?” The thing is, I have no idea.

If being a runner is merely defined as someone who runs, then I’m guilty as charged.  I spend 3 mornings a week on a treadmill.  But I feel like taking on a label implies a desire. And I don’t necessarily think I have that kind of drive.

I want to complete the program. I’d love to run a 5k for that sense of accomplishment and ability to say I’ve done it. But beyond that?  I don’t feel consumed by this burning desire to run.

Maybe by the time I finish the program that will change.  Perhaps I will be transformed.  But if not, I won’t lose sleep over it. I’ll just continue on my search to find a way to stay fit and have fun doing it.

How do you stay fit?  Do you enjoy it?

Perhaps I’m still too young to appreciate aging.  I’m working through a Couch to 5K, my only child is two, I haven’t hit thirty yet, and I still get excited for my birthday because it means I get gifts.  Maybe I shouldn’t be so excited about gifts, but why not?

Is there something extremely magical about your birthday?  I mean, it’s a great day to celebrate being alive, but without the gifts and the cake and the smiles and the fun, what’s the point?  That’s just another day.  News Flash: I am older today than I was yesterday, and so are you.  The world has not ended in that time.  Though it might tomorrow; you never know.

People who hate birthdays often complain about getting older, and how much of a drag that is.  There’s odd pains, and gray hairs, and you can’t move as fast as you used to.  That’s forgetting the fact that age has allowed numerous experiences, some of which I’m sure that person quite enjoyed.  Or the fact that, at the end of the day, they’re still alive.

So don’t be that guy.  Seriously, it’s not that big of a deal.  We’d all rather celebrate your life with you, give you a slap on the back, maybe a quick jab in the ribs about how old you are, and have a good time.

Now, where’s the cake?

Luckily, my daughter often comes to the rescue in this situation.  She’s just over two years old now, and is running, talking, and playing.  Plus, her imagination has already kicked in full force.

For example, just the other night she spread out a blanket on the floor and invited me to a picnic.  She brought clothes hangers to the “picmic” for food.  That is until I pretended my hangar was a hook and said I was a pirate.  Then, her hat become a pirate hat, because, naturally, pirate hats have three points on them just like hangers.

Other times she’ll wonder around the house with one of our old dead cell phones and call various people like “Grammy” or “Mommy”.  And if we start doing something else she’ll say, “Ok, we’re going to play now. Bye!” and hang up.

Her love of life and imagination are infectious.  I seriously wish there was a way to bottle it up, and bring it with me to work. Then I’d have something to get me through my low points.

I think learning becomes more awesome once you’re not constrained by tests and papers for one simple reason:  because you want to!  When you want to learn something, you pursue it, and the more you want to learn it, the more passionate and dedicated about it you’ll be.  And without all those tests, etc., you’re free to learn as much as you want without the stress.

So get out and learn something!  Here are your first three steps:

1. Pick something to learn. Decide on a topic.  It could be something you’re really excited about or something you’re just curious about.  It doesn’t matter what it is, because if you find it boring, you can just learn something else.
2. Find resources on your topic. Check out the library.  It’s not as scary as you think.  Of course, the internet is a great place to go.  You never know what kind of free resources there are out there.  Which leads me to…
3. Connect with others who have a passion for that topic. One of the best ways to learn is from or with someone else. Getting together with a group not only improves your ability to learn, but it adds motivation as well.

Right now, I’m tackling HTML and CSS, then it’ll be PHP, maybe Javascript, and then who knows?  I’m a geek, so looking at web development sounds fun to me.  And I have friends who know more about it then I do who can help me learn as well.

What do you have a passion for? Cooking? Running? Civil War Era history?  Learn about it.  I’ve just handed you your course schedule for life; now fill it out.   And there won’t be a test.