In this video, Hitler learns of the Apple iPad from his officers, and says what many of thought and felt at the news of Apple’s latest Überdevice!

Here’s a little reflection from Richard Rohr, a Franciscan priest who is known for his inspirational talks and writings.  Paula D’Arcy is a writer, grief therapist, and motivational speaker.

Our faith is not in words.  Our faith is in a person and a real relationship.  Our faith is in God, who is revealing the divine self to us in everything that happens to us.  As Paula D’Arcy says, “God comes to us disguised as our life.”  Mature faith calls us into a personal dialogue with Life as it is, not a slavish attachment to ideas or words. … Faith is not just another competing ideology with other world views or religions.  It is more a process than a conclusion, more a way of relating than a way of explaining, more a wrestling match than a classroom lesson.  More love and acceptance than a demand for answers.

Mark reminded me today of my experience in On Faith: My First Session of Inquiry into RCIA.  I may have been going about trying to find my faith in a less-than-ideal way.  In trying to quantify my beliefs and assign reason, I did think of it “just another competing ideology with other world views and religions.” I still have a personal desire that demands answers (or, at least, reason), but  I’m trying to be more open-minded about experience and my dialogue with life.

I’m looking forward to my next Inquiry into RCIA.

Dear Apple:

Sadly, many of the online comments and criticism about the iPad echo my own thoughts.  I really was expecting a tablet running Mac OS X 10.6, not a tablet running iPhoneOS 3.2.  Here’s to hoping that the OS release in March bridges that gap between OSX and iPhoneOS 3.x.  As I said in my earlier post of Whither 64GB iPad with WiFi, I still think the iPad has great potential to replace the netbook market.

Of all the devices I currently own, I use my 32GB iPhone 3GS the heaviest.  I use it for reading (Kindle, Barnes & Noble, eReader).  I use it for email, web, note-taking, and gaming.  It keeps me busy during my commute to/from work on the DC Metro.  It keeps me busy during the evenings as I read, web-surf, or game.

So what does the 64GB iPad offer me that the iPhone 3GS doesn’t?  I hardly use my Fujitsu Lifebook U820.  My netbook falls in the sad in-between place where it’s too small to be an effective laptop (I usually end up borrowing Vicky’s HP laptop) and too big to carry as a dedicated internet device (like my iPhone).  I thought the physical keyboard would be a great thing when I got it, but I end up hardly typing on it since the keys are too small for writing documents and hardly necessary in jotting short emails or surfing the web.

The iPad as it is now is a “large iPhone 3GS”.  It’s got more memory, a much faster processor, and much more screen real-estate than my iPhone 3GS.  But the potential is there for it to be much more.  The iPad is what my Fujitsu Lifebook U820 should have been:  a larger, more-capable web-enabled device for email, web, gaming, and note-taking.  If and when I get an iPad, it will most definitely replace my Fujitsu Lifebook U820.

So what is the iPad?  Where does it fit in the current iPhone/netbook/tablet/laptop market? …it’s not a laptop replacement, it doesn’t have the OS or the horsepower to do that.  It is a netbook and tablet replacement.  Out of the box, running iPhoneOS 3.2, it can already do anything a current netbook or tablet running Linux or Windows can do.  It has the benefit of iPhone apps plus the larger apps still to come.  In short, it either is (or may become) the ideal netbook/tablet.

In other interviews, Steve Jobs has said that he hopes the iPad will be his legacy.  While I thought the iPod and iPhone were more revolutionary, defining whole markets and causing other companies to catch up and compete, I think the iPad has great potential.  I hope that we see great things from the iPad in the months to come.

For the rest of the pictures from this set, see:

• flickr: Kiyomi on Facebook & Twitter (Then & Now) [21 pics]

Our Family: Vicky, Ken & Kiyomi

On Tuesday, January 26th, 2010, I met with a group of people at St. John Neumann Church in Reston, VA.  With introductions, prayers, a tour of the church, and a first Q&A session, I began my Inquiry into the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA).

For as talkative as I am online and when you get to know me, I am very quiet when you first meet me.  Until I get to know you and feel comfortable, I’m not very at-ease in new situations.  So it was in my first Inquiry session.  Others in the group talked slowly, easily, and were filled with questions that got very good answers.  I was captivated by the answers and found them very enlightening, but I was not very social during our first gathering.

For the first 20 minutes, I was questioning myself and my presence there.  It wasn’t until Mark said “being Catholic and going through RCIA isn’t about memorizing facts. You can study everything and become a walking Catholic Encyclopedia, but you still wouldn’t be Catholic, you would understand Catholics. Being Catholic is an outlook on life, how you approach situations like having a loved one in the hospital or handling a crisis.  Being a Catholic is knowing that you don’t always have the answers, but having faith in God and community in helping you live your life and being there for others as they are for you.”

And with that, I had an “A-ha!” moment.  My heart and mind were at ease and I knew I was exactly where I should be.  I truly enjoyed my first session as my Inquiry into RCIA.  I think I am entering at a great time with a good group of people, and I look forward on beginning my journey with them.  I look forward to my next session!

Stained Glass depiction of the Holy Family

And in despair I bowed my head;
‘There is no peace on earth,’ I said;
‘For hate is strong,
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!’

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
‘God is not dead; nor doth he sleep!
The Wrong shall fail,
The Right prevail,
With peace on earth, good-will to men!’

Christmas Bells
by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

In a departure from my usual chatter about whatever technology or gadget is currently occupying my time, I thought I’d take a moment to talk about my own struggle with faith.  My mother’s side of the family is Hungarian Reformed Protestant.  My father’s side of the family was relapsed Roman Catholic.  Since my dad had no real strong feelings about faith, my mom tried bringing my brothers & I to Lutheran church with her and raising us in the Lutheran faith.

Mike, Jim, and I were all baptised in the Lutheran faith by my uncle, an ordained Reverend of the Hungarian Reformed Protestant Church.  Mike went on to become confirmed in the Lutheran faith and served as an altar boy for a couple years.  I went to church irregularly through junior high and high school.  Once I joined the Air Force, I went a little more often, but not by much.

Over the years, I’ve subscribed to the The Lutheran, gone to services, read the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) and New American Bible (NAB) and read various Christian fiction authors such as Frank Peretti.  As an adult, I attempted to make up for my shortcomings as a young Lutheran by reading and studying the bible and the Reformation.  Due to my nature as a “Doubting Thomas”, I found it very difficult to commit to being a true Lutheran or taking the plunge and becoming a Roman Catholic along side my wife.

Victoria and I met in 1998. We married on September 16th, 2000 in a Roman Catholic wedding in the Filipino tradition (barong tagalog, “candle, cord & veil”) at St. John Neumann Church in Reston, VA. Since 1998/1999, I have been attending services regularly at St. John Neumann Church by my wife’s side, but unable to participate in Holy Communion.  When Vicky and her family rise to walk down the aisle and receive the Eucharist from the priest, I usually remain seated.  On Holy Days and days where I am praying for family or issues, I usually walk the aisle but stand before the priest with my arms crossed, instead asking for Christ’s Blessing.

Over the years, I have struggled with faith.  I have repeatedly asked myself what it means to be Christian, what it means to be Lutheran, and what my feelings are about the Roman Catholic Church.  I have spoken with many priests at St John Neumann over the years.  I have attended services at many Catholic Churches throughout the Atlantic seaboard as Vicky & I have travelled from Maryland, Virginia, Georgia, and Florida.

I’ve written about my struggle with faith before when I wrote “In Memory of Who’d I Like to Be” (August 19th, 2008). Since I wrote that entry, I have continued to struggle with my faith.  As I said then, it remains true now: “The bread and wine remain uneaten. I remain that boy.”

Since Thanksgiving 2009, I have had a “Crisis of Faith.”  Throughout Advent, I struggled with my faith and asked God for guidance.  I was repeatedly reminded of St Augustine’s Confessions (Lib 1,1-2,2.5,5: CSEL 33, 1-5) in which Saint Augustine states “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it rests in you.” I now understood that I had a “God-sized hole” in my heart.

I spoke with Father Tom Murphy and Mary Lyons of St. John Neumann Church about my Inquiry into the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA) and explained my history to them. As a baptised Lutheran with a fair understanding of Christianity and the Reformation, both Father Tom and Mary Lyons agreed that I would be a good Candidate for RCIA once I had completed the Inquiry.

…and so I hope to find rest soon. I am still struggling, but I want to make room for the Holy Spirit in my life and in my heart. I want to find rest and salvation in the Lord.

This morning’s commute from my home in Sterling, VA, to the bus station in Herndon, VA, was mapped using MotionX GPS on my iPhone 3GS.
(click image below to enlarge)

Screenshots from MotionX GPS on my iPhone 3GS:
(click any image below to enlarge)

My trip summary for Commute via Car from Sterling to Herndon, VA: