HIV/AIDS

(RED) has caught my attention. December 1 was World AIDS Day . What I thought was going to be just an interactive game that I was making up for my co-workers to raise awareness - well, I’m the one who actually has become aware and very convicted to do something. The statistics are heart breaking - and I have been saying, “Someone needs to do something. Someone needs to go!” And… the finger was pointing back at me. This summer I’ll hopefully be heading to Malawi. An old acquaintance of mine runs the GAIA where he has focused on the stigma of HIV/AIDS specifically in Malawi. I can’t imagine the burden that one has to carry who has HIV/AIDS in Malawi and surrounding countries. I’ve always had a heart for children - and learning that 15 million children have been orphaned by AIDS - I just can’t get my head around that. It’s overwhelming! The UN has put out their 2006 Report On The Global Aids Epidemic and the statistics are sobering. *South Africa remains one of the worst - 5.5 million people living with AIDS *An estimated 38.6 million people are living with AIDS worldwide by the end of 2005

There is also progress being made in many areas. *The number of people using HIV testing and counselling service has quadrupled in the past 5 yrs. in over 70 countries *In 58 countries that reported - 74% of primary schools and 81% of secondary schools now provide HIV/AIDS education *6 of 11 African countries heavily affected by HIV reported a decline of 25% or more in HIV cases among 15-24 yr. olds in capital cities.

This is good news — and yet there is still a lot more to be done. Get involved!

Benefit Humanity Without Really Doing Anything

You can take a part in the fight against muscular distrophy, cancer, and AIDS with the help of the World Community Grid. Well, more accurately, your computer can take part in the fight. World Community Grid allows you to volunteer your computer’s down time, when it’s just sitting there idle, to compute data for the cause of your choice. Each computation that your computer performs provides scientists with critical information that accelerates the pace of research.

It’s really very simple. You just download the software, choose a project, and then do nothing! The available projects are: Help Defeat Cancer, FightAIDS@Home, Human Proteome Folding - Phase 2, Genome Comparison, Help Cure Muscular Dystrophy.

Customizing WordPress Templates

I’ve been doing a bunch of work with WordPress lately, mostly customizing templates and writing plugins to make it work more like a “real” content management system (CMS), rather than just a simple blogging platform.

Rather than try to explain all the technical details of what I did (I hate doing documentation), I thought I’d just show some examples from two sites that I recently worked on, GraceDC and Langham Partnership International. In this post, I’ll focus on some of the design and template related modifications I made to WordPress’ templating system to make the sites look and behave like the way they do.
Read more >>

Devotionals 12/18/2006

Merry Christmas! Today is Luke 2: 1-20, from the King James Version

“And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed.

(And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)

And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.

And Joseph also went up from Galilee, Read more >>

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas, from Silas Partners.

Expanding Table

No, no.  I’m not talking about AJAX, CSS, or even HTML.  I’m talking about an expanding table.  A circular one.

Devotionals 12/9/2006

We’re continuing with passages usually read during Advent. This is Malachi 3: 1-6 from the English Standard Version:

“Behold, I send my messenger and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts. But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the LORD. Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the LORD as in the days of old and as in former years.

Then I will draw near to you for judgement. I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, against the adulterers, against those who swear falsely, against those who oppress the hired worked in his wages, the widow and the fatherless, against those who thrust aside the sojourner, and do not fear me, says the LORD of hosts. For I the LORD do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed.”

Malachi 3: 1-6 (ESV)

Devotionals 11/27 & 12/4 2006

This is the devotional reading from 11/27, from the New Revised Standard Version:
“John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood, and made us to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. Look! He is coming with the clouds; every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and on his account all the tribes of the earth will wail. So it is to be. Amen. ‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty. (Revelation 1:4-8, NRSV)

This is the reading for December 4th, from the New International Version:
” ‘The days are coming,’ declares the LORD, ‘when I will fulfill the gracious promise I made to the house of Israel and to the house of Judah.
‘In those days and at that time
I will make a righteous Branch sprout from David’s line;
he will do what is just and right in the land.

In those days Judah will be saved
and Jerusalem will live in safety.
This is the name by which it will be called:
The LORD Our Righteousness.’ ” (Jeremiah 33:14-16 - NIV)