In many ways, the signal to noise ratio, as it pertains to relationships, is often easy to recognize.  In my marriage, for example, it’s not uncommon for my wife and I to find ourselves in a place where we’re saying, “We just seem to be missing each other lately.” Or,  “I would have done that if I had any idea you wanted that done. You just had to come right out and ask.” (that last one is usually me not picking up on “hints” that my wife would argue should have been pretty obvious).  The disconnection, or static, is easy enough to spot but the causes can sometimes be subtle and sneaky.  So, with fair warning about my stream of mixed up consciousness, I will now get into first main area (Part 2a) that I think plays a part in busying up the signal. 

a.   the meaning of words

The quest for the knowledge of good and evil (the original curse and the one from which so many others are born) rubs up against the virtue of having an open mind and this is the battle that often renders me unproductive.  William Young, in his novel The Shack, frames these often opposing forces as such: expectation versus expectancy. 

Here’s an example: we recently moved into a new home.  The garage, up until last weekend, was an absolute disaster.  Standard stuff really – boxes, gear, bags, equipment and so on  – general mayhem.  For some reason I have a goal to park cars in garages.  So the gauntlet was laid down.  And here’s what my “attack” looked like.  I got out there in clothes I predicted would get dirty and torn and shoes that would be sturdy yet comfortable for the many trips up a ladder.  Then I got right to it!  I started staring.  Just looking at it all.  Not doing much.  Just looking.  But from all sorts of angles mind you.  Just to be sure.  Sure of what I’m not sure but sure enough I was doing it.  Staring.  Unproductively. 

From time to time I read Seth Godin's blog.  He's considered to be a venerable expert in the field of marketing. He also happens to be a prolific blogger, a propensity for which I am lacking.  I respect his ability to write concise, clever, and adaptable ideas.  By "adaptable", I mean his thoughts, while clearly intended for a marketing and business savvy audience, can often be useful for everyday living.  His blog from a few weeks ago was titled "signal to noise".  In it he takes a dynamic common in radio transmission and relates it to the distribution of information on the internet and concludes that the web is in danger of being disproportionately noisy.  

Wikipedia defines signal to noise ratio as such: Signal-to-noise ratio (often abbreviated SNR or S/N) is an electrical engineering concept, also used in other fields (such as scientific measurements, biological cell signaling), defined as the ratio of a signal power to the noise power corrupting the signal. In less technical terms, signal-to-noise ratio compares the level of a desired signal (such as music) to the level of background noise. The higher the ratio, the less obtrusive the background noise is.

I know, don't be nervous. By it's title, this blog might seem like another en vogue, trendy, and tired "go green" campaign. But this is not that blog. However, having said that, the premise proposed in this blog would support such a campaign, the virtue of which would not require us to wear birkenstocks and patchouli oil, but instead hold our ideas (light bulbs) loosely and change them when they burn out, which may be more often than we realize.  

The header for my blog page is "Moving the Swing". I chose this because it seemed to fit a posture of learning that I believe is crucial to our growth in any category of life: spiritual, physical, emotional. To move a swing, we pump our legs back and forth until we get some motion going. It's certainly more interesting than sitting idle and lazily hoping someone will come around and give us a boost. That does and should happen and is a great case for building a life sustaining community around you, but hasn't God called us to more initiative when it comes to our own extensions and contractions on our swing of life?  

"What can we gain by sailing to the moon if we are not able to cross the abyss that separates us from ourselves?  This is the most important of all voyages of discovery, and without it, all the rest are not only useless, but disastrous." - Thomas Merton. 

Thomas Merton is, without a doubt, my deserted island writer. You know the question: If you only had one album to take with you to a deserted island, what would it be? My answer: Kind of Blue, Miles Davis.  I can listen to it on repeat for years and still find new conversations within it. Its layers and textures of extraordinary improvisation force you to listen and give, not take. Give it your attention, ask it your questions, and draw your conclusions.  Then do it again.  And that just gets you through the first Coltrane solo.  There's so much more to come!