I've had this concept in my head for quite awhile, but I finally got around to figuring out how to do it in Photoshop.  It's a combination of the iconic "I amsterdam" PR campaign, with an obvious change in locality (from Amsterdam to America), but also with a play on my name in particular.

What do you think?  Are all three levels of significance (Amsterdam, America, and me) equally clear?  Is it cool?  Or cheesy?

There are just three more days until the beginning of my Proverbs 365 project (as previously announced).  Have you added http://proverbs365.ericasp.com to your bookmarks yet?  Are you subsribed to the RSS feed yet?  The new posts will NOT be automatically appearing on my Facebook page, so those of you who follow my regular blogging through this medium may need to consider this.  I'll likely be cross-referencing to Proverbs 365 sometimes, from within this space (my regular blog) -- but the Proverbs study is really designed to be its own thing, running its own course throughout 2010.  I've been working a month ahead on this project (basically following some advice that I learned from Proverbs 21!), and I have to say that it's already turning out to be a very worthwhile experience.

Anyway -- I'd love to have you join me on my journey into the wisdom of the Proverbs... starting in just three days!

Our family is having a lovely last week in Ohio.  We're staying out on Marci's parents' farm, surrounded by drifting snow and extreme cold -- but we are warmed by furnace burning the wood we helped to stockpile in the cellar just two days ago. :-)  The internet connection out here is not the most ideal for blogging, so it may well be the New Year before I'm back to posting.  But stay tuned:  there are interesting stories and images to share from the holidays in Ohio, too...

I am about to embark on a new blogging project, and I want to let you know about it.

I know, I know... some of you are probably thinking that I need a new blogging project just about as much as I need another hole in my head.  "Don't you already have enough on your hands?" would be a pretty logical question.  And yes, it's true that my life is plenty full.  But here's how it works in my mind:  I'm considering this project as much of a spiritual discipline as it is an electronic writing project.

So this is the project.  You could say that it's something of a new blog within my existing blog.  Starting with the new year (1 January 2010), I am going to be initiating this project that I'm calling "Proverbs 365" -- in which I will be going through one chapter of the Biblical Proverbs each day, choosing a single verse (or small cluster of verses) as a source of meditation and reflection, and then writing a short piece aimed at making one particular Proverb applicable and relevant to my daily life, living in 21st Century Western Culture.  As the name of the project suggests, I'm planning to do this not just one day -- but 365 days in a row.  One whole year of soaking in the Proverbs.

If you've read much in the way of Christian literature, you might be familiar with a devotional book by Oswald Chambers, entitled "My Utmost For His Highest."  Basically, this project is like that -- except electronic and purely based on the Proverbs. :-)

I'm actually really excited about the project, and while I realize thatit's a bit ambitious I also feel like it's really do-able andbeneficial for my own life.  I've actually already been following thisrhythm since the beginning of December (partly to evaluate itsdo-ability and partly to work one month ahead of my blogging"deadlines," allowing for regular posting even when I may fall behind acouple of days in my own reading and inevitably need to catch-up) --and I'm really excited about what's coming out of my readings already!

So anyway, if you're interested in learning more about this project -- and hopefully even following along a bit -- I would encourage you to visit the new Proverbs 365 section of my website.   I think it would be cool if you told others about the project as well (since part of my idea is to maybe turn this into a real book someday), so the website to pass along is http://proverbs365.ericasp.com.  Also, if you use an RSS feed reader, you can plug in the following URL to your feed-reader:  http://proverbs365.ericasp.com/?tempskin=_rss2 -- and on the first of January, the fun will begin!

Any feedback on these ideas would also be welcome!

I've gotten some very interesting feedback on yesterday's post, in which I was kind of "Scrooging" on the Dutch celebration of Sinterklaas.  You'll have to read the comments, if you're interested in tuning into the whole dialogue.  But the most interesting feedback of all, I think, came from my friend Tori, who referred me to a YouTube video of David Sedaris (an American writer, often featured on National Public Radio) sharing some of his reflections on Sinterklaas.  I think the video does a tremendous job of pointing out the oddities and irregularities of both Dutch culture and American culture... And it's just plain hilarious.

So as a Sinterklaas present to all of you, I present David Sedaris and "Six to Eight Black Men"...

As a general rule, young Amsterdammers are independent thinkers, fiercely committed to fair trade, generally ideologically opposed to "globalization," and by most all accounts quite liberal.  Yes, I'm trucking in stereotypes a bit here -- but I think most would agree that Dutch young people are generally the type of people who would show up wherever the G8 Summit might be taking place and protest the "Evil Capitalist Elite."  You know the type that I'm talking about, don't you?  They are politically active, they think green, and they are almost categorically against any sense of "The Man."

So I think it's ironic -- and a little bit funny -- that young Amsterdammers also seem to be crazy about Starbucks.

I find it ironic because Starbucks seems to epitomize globalization (with hundreds of franchise locations around the world -- and an almost inescapable corporate presence in so many cities)... they seem to serve as something of a poster child for American Capitalism (with large amounts of liquid being sold at hefty prices)... and -- while they do seem to be more committed to social responsibility and ethical business practices than many other world-wide businesses -- everyone still knows (deep down, though they don't always like to admit it) that Starbucks is the personification of the "evil mega-corporation" that could very well serve as the front for Dr. Evil's quest for world domination.

I don't know why it's taken Starbucks this long to make any significant inroads within the Netherlands (rumors abound on this subject) -- but a couple of years ago, a Starbucks appeared on the inside ("for passengers only") part of Schiphol Airport.  A year later, a Starbucks popped up outside of the gated area, where anyone could access the establishment (presumably while picking someone up or dropping someone off).  And now, within the last couple of months, Starbucks seems to have struck a deal with the Dutch National Railroad, putting Starbucks stores within several of the main train stations throughout the country (including Amsterdam Centraal Station).  And now, there are long lines of young Amsterdammers lining up to spend their €6 for a small cup of espresso-based beverage... while still holding fiercely to their anti-global, anti-corporate, anti-American sentiments.

Doesn't this seem ironic and incongruent to anyone else?

I don't understand it.  I don't condemn any position on the spectrum, given that I, too, don't want to have anything to do with promoting slavery or injustice in the developing world -- but I do enjoy a good Caramel Macchiato whenever I can get one. :-)  But I am fascinated by the apparent contradiction and subtle hypocrisy that creeps into the picture in situations like this.  How does Starbucks do it?  I think they have to be geniuses!  They trade with the best of the mega-corporations on Wall Street, but they simultaneously find friends among the protesters and progressives in the Pacific Northwest and beyond.  How do they do it?  They're geniuses, I'm telling you.  Either that, or we're all dupes...