Everyone, meet Molly.
Lately, my brother and sister in law’s two-year old pup has spent a lot of time in Fort Worth, and to explain her in a single word, she is, passionate. She doesn’t jump if she can pounce. Never trots when she can sprint. And doesn’t see the point of a squeaky toy when she can have the pleasure of ripping the squeak out. She has a penchant for paper products – from Kleenex and paper towels to toilet paper and envelopes. I even caught her this morning devouring a faux-feather hand-band from an old dance costume.
More than anything, she loves to be around people. When you put her outside, she wants you to come too. And if you happen to say something like, No, Molly. I can’t spend twenty minutes outside with you for the third time this hour, she’ll sit at the back door and give you the saddest face you’ve ever seen until you relent. And once you’re out there, she’s perfectly content to sit right next to you. She’s wired for companionship.
But when she does frolic outside, inevitably, she winds her long leash around trees, rocks, lawn furniture and sometimes even around herself. It’s only when the tangle gets so knotted that she can’t go another step that she finally notices there’s a problem. And I’ll admit, after the 84th time of unwinding her, I want to tell her to figure it out on her own, especially since it’s her own fault. She wound herself up, she can retrace her steps – it’s really not that hard.
Oh but it is.
Somewhere about the 54th time that I untangled her, I realized that I am a lot like Molly. I have bad habits (not including paper products), I want to live life with a voracious appetite and I was made for relationships. I also have my own penchant for twisting and tangling myself up.
As Sir Walter Scott wrote, What a tangled web we weave. Yes, what a tangled web we weave when we step away from God’s side and run towards anything that glimmers or dances. I run towards easy outs, quick-fixes, imagined possibilities, tangle myself around expectations – both the world’s and my own – and get caught on comparisons and timelines.
Despite my grumbling, I always get up to untangle Molly from under the chair… and around the rock… and in between the legs of the table, because she’s small and she didn’t really mean to and I really just want her to run and be happy and live life to her very best doggy delights. I’m humbled when I think about how God has never looked up at me, stuck in a new, unfortuante situation and told me to figure it out on my own. No, He comes to me and leads me back, all the while straightening my path because how much more does He want me to live this life abudant and free?
He continues to untangle me from all the ways I’ve tied myself to the world, separating me from all of its expectations for me and reminding me that this thing that I’m in the middle of, my life, is not about who they think I should be, but who He’s making me to be. In some ways, I think our whole lives as Christians is an untangling process as God continually unwinds our thinking and acting from the world around us.
I’m so thankful He always gets up to untangle me – and that He’s an exponentially better master than I.
This is getting a bit more subjective, but I much prefer the Zune Marketplace. The interface is colorful, has more flair, and some cool features like ‘Mixview’ that let you quickly see related albums, songs, or other users related to what you’re listening to. Clicking on one of those will center on that item, and another set of “neighbors” will come into view, allowing you to navigate around exploring by similar artists, songs, or users. Speaking of users, the Zune “Social” is also great fun, letting you find others with shared tastes and becoming friends with them. You then can listen to a playlist created based on an amalgamation of what all your friends are listening to, which is also enjoyable. Those concerned with privacy will be relieved to know you can prevent the public from seeing your personal listening habits if you so choose.
If you’re still on the fence: grab your favorite earphones, head down to a Best Buy and ask to plug them into a Zune then an iPod and see which one sounds better to you, and which interface makes you smile more. Then you’ll know which is right for you.
Hands down, Apple’s app store wins by a mile. It’s a huge selection of all sorts of apps vs a rather sad selection of a handful for Zune. Microsoft has plans, especially in the realm of games, but I’m not sure I’d want to bet on the future if this aspect is important to you. The iPod is a much better choice in that case.
Zune and iPod: Most people compare the Zune to the Touch, but after seeing how slim and surprisingly small and light it is, I consider it to be a rather unique hybrid that combines qualities of both the Touch and the Nano. It’s very colorful and lovely OLED screen is slightly smaller than the touch screen, but the player itself feels quite a bit smaller and lighter. It weighs about 2/3 as much, and is noticeably smaller in width and height, while being just a hair thicker.
The Zune concentrates on being a Portable Media Player. Not a web browser. Not a game machine. Maybe in the future it’ll do even better in those areas, but for now it’s a fantastic way to organize and listen to your music and videos, and is without peer in that regard. The iPod’s strengths are its web browsing and apps. If those sound more compelling, perhaps it is your best choice.
Between me and my husband we’ve owned more MP3 players over the years than I can count, including Sansas, iRivers, iPods (classic & touch), the Ibiza Rhapsody, etc. But, the last few years I’ve settled down to one line of players. Why? Because I was happy to discover how well-designed and fun to use the underappreciated (and widely mocked) Zunes are.
I just want to mention I am all new to blogging and really savored your web-site. More than likely I’m going to bookmark your site . You definitely come with fabulous articles. With thanks for revealing your web site.
The Zune concentrates on being a Portable Media Player. Not a web browser. Not a game machine. Maybe in the future it’ll do even better in those areas, but for now it’s a fantastic way to organize and listen to your music and videos, and is without peer in that regard. The iPod’s strengths are its web browsing and apps. If those sound more compelling, perhaps it is your best choice.
Between me and my husband we’ve owned more MP3 players over the years than I can count, including Sansas, iRivers, iPods (classic & touch), the Ibiza Rhapsody, etc. But, the last few years I’ve settled down to one line of players. Why? Because I was happy to discover how well-designed and fun to use the underappreciated (and widely mocked) Zunes are.
If you’re still on the fence: grab your favorite earphones, head down to a Best Buy and ask to plug them into a Zune then an iPod and see which one sounds better to you, and which interface makes you smile more. Then you’ll know which is right for you.
I just want to say I am just beginner to blogging and honestly enjoyed you’re blog. Probably I’m planning to bookmark your blog post . You amazingly have exceptional articles and reviews. Many thanks for sharing your website.