Day 7

This morning, I went to a church here with a couple of others. It was Presbyterian I think, but sounded a lot like Crossway, though the music was more sedate and the pastor more interactive. (i.e. he would ask questions from the pulpit and expect us to answer). I almost didn't go, thinking it would be awkward, but I think I'm glad I did. Note: I learned that one of my friends here, Matt, actually used to go to Kingsway, a Soveriegn Grace church.

After that, I went for a walk to a Sonic with some others. It was a lot longer walk than any of us anticipated :-). Especially since we got lost on the way back :-). Oh well-it was good exercise! And a memory, of course. Now I shall occupy myself somehow...most of the civilized world is whitewater rafting; the rest are watching the World Cup (and as for the uncivilized world... why would I want to be with them??? :-)) Perhaps some reading time!

It has been interesting to note which speakers are the most popular a) with the general public and b) with me. Rarely do these correlate :-). Often, my friends here share my opinions, but not always. Here is what the popular speakers have in common, as far as I can tell:
1) They're really, really funny. Or at least that's what everyone thinks.
2) They're accessible. What they talk about is easy to understand.
3) They're chatty. Instead of a professorial diction and organization, they just sort of... well... talk to you.
4) (my opinion) They're less effective. Their silliness causes distraction as well as enjoyment, most can't stay on one topic to save their lives :-), and I never learn as much from these types of speakers. Which is not to say that all should be like the philosophy professor we heard, who talked fast and low and never took a break. The most effective speakers were able to explain somewhat complicated topics reasonably, while interspersing an occasional joke or cool Powerpoint animation to keep people with less attention span interested :-). Note: if you want to be a good speaker, either a) use the Powerpoint effectively to highlight main points, change slides only when you need to, and use a lot of visuals, or b) just don't use it at all. :-)

FYI, a great deal of the speakers have been really good, in my opinion, just two or three have gravitated to extremes. But I thought you might be interested in hearing about it.