Thinking About Solving Problems

I think I know when creating problems is a useful task for the thinking person. 

I believe that figuring out the best, most succinct way of stating a problem requires skillful thinking.  This season of the year I can envision this sequence of problem statements:

Problem statements:

·      I don’t know how to get accepted into the program of (college of my choice). 

·      How can I gain acceptance by the administration of  (college of my choice)?

·      What must I demonstrate to gain acceptance at (college of my choice)?

·      Who must I talk to in order to determine what I must demonstrate to gain acceptance at (college of my choice)? 

·      When must I begin preparing to be accepted by (college of my choice)? 

·      My goal is to be accepted into the (college of my choice). 

If only I can state the problem clearly, then I can begin thinking, researching, asking questions and plotting methods to solving the problem.  The more clear I can be in stating the problem, the better my solution to the problem will be.

Thus, I will be a better thinking if I can create, or state, problems clearly and helpfuly. 

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What Might The Change In Music Mean? - part 2

Singing mostly, or only, in unison occupies my thinking a bit.  I wonder if it's part of the push in the church for uniformity.  Uniform theology, uniform sexual preferences, uniform follower-ship of the uniform evangelical leaders.  I wonder. . .

My wife wonders if it has more to do with the lack of singing in our childhood.  Singing in schools seems to be reserved for the choir or glee club.  Or, in early grades, for singing in unison mostly of songs that are not very tuneful and not much fun. 

She commented that when we were going to grade school we sang.  We sang parts, we learned to sing, we had singing time pretty much through grade school.  Then came the folk craze and we sang around campfires, we learned to sing with three chords on the guitar, we seldom had a gathering without singing.  Yes, we sang multi-part songs. 

Nowadays we listen to music.  Much music is not particularly singable.  Screechable, screamable, yes.  Not terribly singable, and if you try you are more likely to feel angry that happy,  Or so it seems to me. 

What do you think?

What Might The Change In Music Mean?

One of the things I was taught in the late 1950's was that singing harmony represented the church at it's best.  Just as there were many parts, so church people came in various sizes, shapes and belief systems.  Yet we in the church could find harmony, and the harmony enriched us all.  I learned to sing multi-part harmony in part because I wanted to be part of something where you could be yourself, and yet belong to others being themselves.

Lately I have noticed in many settings the trend toward singing ONLY the melody.  Unison.  All on the same note.  This trend seems to have calcified about the same time the evangelical right, the TV preachers and the religious radio stations were all ranting about the need for us to all be the same morally, theologically and sexually.  Could the trend in music be part of the trend demanding uniformity?

My wife has another idea.  My next post will share that.