Podcast Ramblings

Over the course of the last 7 days, I've been exclusively in two locations -- church and hospital. I've also found myself awake quite a bit in the middle of the night (rarely by choice). The wee small hours of the morning are the perfect time to dial up a podcast or three. It's like having another person to make small-talk with when the rest of the world is sleeping. Or, if I'm trying to get work done, I turn the volume down almost so low that I can't hear anything, and I pretend that I'm working at a coffee shop during the daytime. I'm not really trying to overhear the conversation going on at the table next to me...but, when I do, it's often a helpful distraction.

Here are a few things I found interesting...

• 57% of Americans have high-speed Internet
• 3 billion people have access to the Internet
• Adam Corolla left "LoveLine" because he got paid 1/3 what Dr. Drew did
• Jesus' three-year ministry was mostly to, for, with, and about religious people
• "What happens when Christianity isn't big enough for God?" ~ Rob Bell
• Mysticism and awe are central to orthodox Christianity
• "If everyone lived the American Dream, we'd need 4 more planets." ~ Shane Claiborne
• The U.S. consumes 50% of the world's resources with 6% of the world's population
• 1 in 8 African-American men will be in prison at some point in their lives
• Philadelphia is preparing for welfare cuts by building 5 new prisons
• Lazarus is the only person mentioned by name in Jesus' parables
• "The U.S. is the wealthiest country in the world, but also the most lonely, medicated, and depressed." ~ Claiborne, again
• Michael Jackson is doing a series of concerts in London this summer
• The Dallas Cowboys took a $9,000,000 salary cap hit to get rid of Terrell Owens