Currently Reading:
Flickr Photos
Author Archives: awtraughber
Parks and Remembrance: Final Shots
NBC’s Parks & Recreation came to a heartfelt ending this past Tuesday evening. It had everything a fan of such a show could hope for. The episode took good risks while also working in the (literal) framing sequence format from … Continue reading
Posted in Internet, Television
Leave a comment
Religion, Relationship, Reductionism
I heard it again recently: the assertion that the Christian faith is a relationship and not a religion. And while I totally get what those who say such a thing are “going for,” I can’t help but feel like there’s … Continue reading
Posted in Faith, Teaching
Leave a comment
Good News, Not Good Advice
From N. T. Wright’s Simply Good News: In many churches, the good news has subtly changed to good advice: Here’s how to live, they say. Here’s how to pray. Here are techniques for helping you become a better Christian, a … Continue reading
Posted in Commonplace Book
Leave a comment
Parks and Remembrance: 5,000 Candles
In honor of tonight’s finale to NBC’s Parks & Recreation, here’s the big finale to the show’s sixth season. It was a perfect ending to the series, bringing together lots of little things from the show’s history: in this case, … Continue reading
Posted in Internet, Music, Television
Leave a comment
Parks and Remembrance: At Its Commercial Best
This last week’s “Johnny Karate” episode of Parks & Recreation was a nice opportunity to take a different route with the cast and storyline. One of the nice touches were the commercials used as “nods” to the show’s deeper bench … Continue reading
Posted in Internet, Television
Leave a comment
Parks and Remembrance: Catching Your Dream
Leslie Knopes’ 2012 campaign was one of the storyline highlights for Parks & Recreation. Thankfully, Andy’s band, Mouse Rat, was there to write and perform the campaign anthem. Here’s the video for the song, which includes some nice moments from … Continue reading
Posted in Internet, Television
Leave a comment
Parks and Remembrance: Relational at the Core
A few weeks ago I mentioned a moment from this season of Parks & Recreation that captured something vital to understanding culture, community, and relationships. NBC made that particular scene available on YouTube. I thought I’d share it in light … Continue reading
Posted in Internet, Television
Leave a comment
Saturday Song: “We are people born of sound . . .”
I recently started a reread of Tolkien’s Silmarillion. The first section, which recounts the creation of the world, is beautiful. It involves the creation of all things through music. Genesis 1 also speaks of the creation of the world, this … Continue reading
Posted in Books, Faith, Music
Leave a comment
Your Friday Afternoon Moment of Culinary Zen
I’m a sucker for the Muppets and things connected with Jim Henson, so I was intrigued by a recent post to Relevant Magazine concerning Cookie Monster and “food epiphanies.” It was put together with Mashable and reddit. As the title … Continue reading
Posted in Internet, Television
Leave a comment
Holding It Together
It can be a strange thing, being a Christian among Christians. Christianity seems to mean something different to everyone I meet these days. And if it means something similar, there’s no guarantee that similar meaning will also have similar expression. This … Continue reading
Posted in Reading Scary Close
Leave a comment
Space Enough, and Time 