I LOVE this place!

no real computer access until next week or so, but things here are good, I'm alive and well and enjoying everything here. I'll hopefully get more things written here later on :)

and I'm off

flight's in two hours. next time I write, I'm in israel :)

I hope I didn't forget anything

in some strange, bizarre way, we (read: mom) managed to pack everything into one suitcase. I do have a backpack and a small bag with me too as carry-ons, but that suitcase is massive. it weighs 31kgs (limit is 20kg...), but I hope it'll be okay. it's almost my whole life there, so hopefully they'll be kind and realize that I'll be gone for quite some time. otherwise I guess I'll have to empty a bit of stuff... we'll see.

I'm gonna hit the bed, at least get a little bit of sleep.

I'm a collector

ok, I've started packing, and I've realized that I'm very bad at this kinda stuff. going away somewhere for just a week or so is no problem, because then I only need to bring clothes and some extra things. but going away for a long time...

I've spent half the weekend looking at things, and throwing some out. (the other half was spent with sports-related stuff, most notably squash.) and no matter how much "junk" I throw (I mean, come on, boarding passes for flight tickets 5-6 years back?), there's still a whole lot of I-don't-know-what left. I would say it's quite a relief to be able to finally look at things and say "I don't think I'll ever have any use for this" and then throw it in the bin. needless to say, I haven't been good at that at all previously.

now I've pretty much put down everything that's not clothes in a suitcase. and I almost filled it up... I think it's going to be very difficult to get it all under 20kg (which is what I have), but I hope to be able to sweet talk my way into getting at least a little bit more. (and by "sweet talk" I mean telling them I'm going to be a religious volunteer and be away for 2.5 years.) we'll see how that goes...

tomorrow's going to be insane. I have badminton at 7.30 in the morning, and then I'm going to drop by work to see my mates there. afterwards I'll probably head back home, try to take care of stuff (not sure exactly what), and then I have squash again at 4.30 in the afternoon... got one, possibly two, friends coming over tomorrow evening, going to visit my 2nd mom, and then probably staying up all night with my brother to watch nfl before he takes me to the airport. that's packed!

but now, bed.

the most random drink ever

had a dinner at a friend's place yesterday, and was told to bring something to drink. figured we'd bring something normal (coke zero) and something completely random, and this is what we found:


don't know if you can see properly what it says on the bottle about the taste (quite a bad picture), but it's a mixture of chocolate and banana. now, the color doesn't help much to enhance the taste.

after a few sips and tastes, we still couldn't figure out which taste was the most dominant of the two, and it was indeed a very strange feeling. but it was a lot of fun to try it out, and definitely an odd experience.

not to mention that the dinner and evening was a lot of fun and pleasure too. have said good bye to more and more people, time is really flying by quickly!

hugs!

another half-random poem:

There's something in a simple hug
That always warms the heart;
It welcomes us back home
And makes it easier to part.

A hug's a way to share the joy
And sad times we go through,
Or just a way for friends to say
They like you 'cause you're you.

Hugs are meant for anyone
For who we really care,
From your grandma to your neighbor -
Or a cuddly teddy bear.

A hug is an amazing thing -
It's just the perfect way
To show the love we're feeling
But can't find the words to say.

It's funny how a little hug
Makes everyone feel good;
In every place and language,
It's always understood.

And hugs don't need equipment,
Special batteries or parts -
Just open up your arms
And open up your hearts.

- Jill Wolf

the day that never happened

today never happened. there. done. good.

birthdays galore!

today is the birthday of six (!) of my friends. tomorrow three more, and on friday yet another two. you might wonder what the odds are for two people to have a birthday on the same day? well, let me tell you the answer: it's enough to gather a group of 23 people, and you'll have a 50% chance that any two of them will have a birthday on the same day.

does that seem counter-intuitive? I agree. that's why it's called the birthday paradox. but the maths prove that it is actually true, and a little bit of probabibility theory will do it for you.

we start off by seeing that with 23 people, you can form 23*22/2 = 253 pairs, which is more than half the number of days in a year. (with 28 people you get 378 pairs...) so already there we might suspect something.

to attack the problem, we first start out by finding out what the probability is that for each person we add to the group, that one doesn't have a birthday in common with someone already there. the formula for that is (365 - n)/365 for n being the number of people already in the group (starts out with 0). these separate probabilities are then multiplied, for the n amount of people we want to have. despite each probability being quite high (for n = 23 it's still ~0.9397), multiplying all of these brings the number quite far down, actually all the way to 0.4927, meaning there's a 49.3% chance that our 23rd person doesn't have a birthday already taken. if we then subtract this, we see that we get a 50.7% chance of two people having the same birthdays. done!

if you have 30 people, there's a 70% chance, and with 50 people, you're up to 97% chance to have two people with the same birthday. quite amazing, huh?


in other news, going to the gym is a lot more fun nowadays. a friend of mine suggested that I change the way I do my routines, and pretty much do maximum every time. only 2 sets, and quite few reps. it's a lot more intense, and takes a lot less time. I only do about 3-4 muscle groups, so all in all it's over in about 15-20 minutes. gonna keep this up and do it every day before I leave, and then probably rest a week or so. and then I'll see how it feels, probably going to try and keep it up. it's fun!

*looks to the right*

Days left in Sweden: 7

that feels quite amazing. I told the football people today that I'm leaving, and they were quite surprised to say the least, hehe...

my days are currently spent with sports, meeting ppl, and some other stuff. I think I need to start packing soon, but that'll probably take until weekend or so. not a day too late...

and yes, I became top scorer. my competitor "only" scored three goals today, so he ended two behind me. here are the final results. yay!

capocannoniere?

yesterday was our last game of the season, and we needed a win to make it through to the playoffs. it didn't start well at all, with a 0-2 deficit in halftime, despite having about 5-10 clear goalscoring opportunities (I missed about 3-4).

the second half turned out to be pretty much the same. an abundance of missed opportunities, and spirits were sinking. however, two quick goals, one of them by me, meant that we needed only one more goal to go through. and with 5 minutes left it came, and it felt gooooood. the last few minutes we were just playing possession game, even though we did have a few more chances to score. (and yes, I missed some there too.)

my one goal of the game meant that my total tally came to 23 goals in 18 games, of which I think I missed four or so. 23/14 = 1.64, which is quite a good average. the remaining games are played today, and there's one person with 18 goals scored, which can equal me. they're playing against quite an easy team, but the rules only allow you to score 5 goals per game. which means I'll at least be shared top scorer, if not alone. the award ceremony is the 30th of october, which means I'll miss it...

shamim, we'll always remember you...

today would've been shamim's 30th birthday. unfortunately he passed away about a year and a half ago, after an epileptic seizure. he was a wonderful guy, that always made sure everyone was well and happy. you never had a dull time with him, a joke here, some seriousness there... it was always great.

I remember him specifically from one of our youth conferences here in sweden, in the summer of 2003, when he was literally helping out with anything and everything, even though he wasn't one of the organizers. and he did it cheerfully, without even saying a single word about it. he was always there to help.

we have made it a tradition to meet up on the day of his birthday and say a few prayers for the progress of his soul. we know he's happy and well up there, and hope that he's thinking of us too :)

here's a picture taken almost three years ago:



"... the soul, after its separation from the body, will continue to progress until it attaineth the presence of God..."

- Bahá'u'lláh -

peace and climate change?

I know I shouldn't, but now that al gore and ipcc are awarded the nobel peace prize for 2007, I think there's something strange going on... not so much because environmental changes have nothing to do with peace, because they do (read collapse by jared diamond for more about that), but mostly because human-caused (anthropogenic) global warming is far from certain, and especially not when it comes to al gore's movie an inconvenient truth. here's a report about a high court judge in the uk that ruled that the movie can only be distributed to schools in the country together "only if it was accompanied by new guidlines [sic] to balance the former US vice-president’s “one-sided” views". they found nine inconvenient (pun intended) faults in gore's movie:

Error one

Al Gore: A sea-level rise of up to 20 feet would be caused by melting of either West Antarctica or Greenland “in the near future”.

The judge’s finding: “This is distinctly alarmist and part of Mr. Gore’s “wake-up call”. It was common ground that if Greenland melted it would release this amount of water — “but only after, and over, millennia.”

Error two

Gore: Low-lying inhabited Pacific atolls are already “being inundated because of anthropogenic global warming.”

Judge: There was no evidence of any evacuation having yet happened.

Error three

Gore: The documentary described global warming potentially “shutting down the Ocean Conveyor” — the process by which the Gulf Stream is carried over the North Atlantic to western Europe.

Judge: According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), it was “very unlikely” it would be shut down, though it might slow down.

Error four

Gore: He asserted — by ridiculing the opposite view — that two graphs, one plotting a rise in CO2 and the other the rise in temperature over a period of 650,000 years, showed “an exact fit”.

Judge: Although there was general scientific agreement that there was a connection, “the two graphs do not establish what Mr Gore asserts”.

Error five

Gore: The disappearance of snow on Mt Kilimanjaro was expressly attributable to global warming.

Judge: This “specifically impressed” David Miliband, the Environment Secretary, but the scientific consensus was that it cannot be established that the recession of snows on Mt Kilimanjaro is mainly attributable to human-induced climate change.

Error six

Gore: The drying up of Lake Chad was used in the film as a prime example of a catastrophic result of global warming, said the judge.

Judge: “It is generally accepted that the evidence remains insufficient to establish such an attribution. It is apparently considered to be far more likely to result from other factors, such as population increase and over-grazing, and regional climate variability.”

Error seven

Gore: Hurricane Katrina and the consequent devastation in New Orleans to global warming.

Judge: There is “insufficient evidence to show that”.

Error eight

Gore: Referred to a new scientific study showing that, for the first time, polar bears were being found that had actually drowned “swimming long distances — up to 60 miles — to find the ice”.

Judge: “The only scientific study that either side before me can find is one which indicates that four polar bears have recently been found drowned because of a storm.” That was not to say there might not in future be drowning-related deaths of bears if the trend of regression of pack ice continued — “but it plainly does not support Mr Gore’s description”.

Error nine

Gore: Coral reefs all over the world were bleaching because of global warming and other factors.

Judge: The IPCC had reported that, if temperatures were to rise by 1-3 degrees centigrade, there would be increased coral bleaching and mortality, unless the coral could adapt. But separating the impacts of stresses due to climate change from other stresses, such as over-fishing, and pollution was difficult.


interesting, huh? there's more about it... three links:

Al Gore told there are nine inconvenient truths in his film - the article about the court ruling

One Man Challenges the World According to Gore - a blog post commenting it

Climate Change Hysteria and Al Gore’s “Chicken Little” Scare Tactics - a long but interesting note about the whole climate change question. read especially the section entitled "Is the Science Certain? Is the Debate Over?" whether there really is global consensus among the scientists or not.


I'll leave it at that for now.

stretching

I think stretching is one of the most underrated things among people who do any sort of sport. I had a period of time where I used to stretch every night before I went to bed, and it helped me so much. thighs (back and front), calves and groin. about 20 seconds on each muscle and leg, so a procedure that takes less than 5 minutes. and what's the benefit? no pain the day after... it's so worth it.

beautiful poem

I got a lovely card with a beautiful poem from my third (or so) mom for my birthday... here's the poem:

Our lives have taken us
in so m any different directions
since we first became friends,
and yet our friendship
has always remained a lasting bond
that keeps us from drifting
too far apart.

We've been there for each other
in good times and bad,
with support and sympathy,
laughter and love.

As I think about our friendship,
I realize it is one of the things
I cherish the most about my life...

... and today, I just wanted
to be sure you knew it, too.

(by Dorothy R. Colgan)


love it!

I need to shave

check out my picture from the site of our football series:


scored three goals yesterday, and barring a miracle, I'll hopefully be the top scorer. one game to go...

a scientific proof of the existence of God

this is taken from the law of love enshrined by hatcher and hatcher, and is one of the most amazing things I've ever read.

first of all, they start by elaborating a bit on the scientific method. the scientific method consists of first observing things in the world and then formulating theories or hypotheses about them. the theory uses abstract terms, whereas our statement about the observations are concrete. due to human limitations, our observations will never be absolutely perfect. this is especially so for extremely small or big phenomena, but is equally true for general, everyday phenomena. what we conceive to be scientifically true/proven is when our observations have shown our theory to be more plausible than any other outcome. however, this can always be disproven by just one observed occurance of another outcome. in other words, there is nothing in science which can be called absolute truth. as our methods of observation improve, so do our theories and predictions about reality - there is always room for improvement. something that is scientifically proven is then just one outcome that seems more likely than any other known possible outcome. proving the existence of God thus means that we prove that it is more plausible that there is a God than any other alternative (and more precisely, that He does not exist).

we start out by observing that there is a part of reality which is not visible, ie that there is an invisible part of reality. there are forces in this world which we do not see, but act upon us.
simple proof: take a pen, hold it in the air and let it go. what do we observe? it falls down. even though we don't see anything pulling it down, we say that the unseen force of gravity acts upon it, and it falls to the floor.
based on the configuration of our system, there is nothing in the visible world that suggests that downwards is the most probable outcome. the observations we do show a distinct deviation from randomness though. the fact that we do see a consistent deviation from randomness leads us to believe that there is indeed a cause, an invisible force, behind this behavior. we are logically justified in our assertion that there indeed is a force, which we call gravity, that acts upon the pencil. believing otherwise is indeed possible (it can be an extreme case of incredible coincidences that all loose objects have fallen down), but it would be neither scientific nor rational to claim so.

we have now managed to "prove" (or at least claim that it makes sense) that there are invisible forces in the world that act upon observed reality. whenever we see any observable, persistent deviation from randomness that does not have an observable cause, we are justified in inferring that there is an invisible force acting upon it.

the theory of entropy (second law of thermo-dynamics) explains that random, disorderly states are more probable. the improbable, orderly states require some sort of force, invisible when there are no observable causes.
to show that this makes sense: compare a pile of bricks (disorder, probable) to a well-built brick house (order, improbable). to transform the brick house into a pile of bricks, we can take any brick in any order to create a pile. however, going from disorder to order, were we to transform the pile of bricks into a well-built brick house, there is a certain order we must follow - we can't put the top bricks before we have laid the foundation of the house.
to take it to the extreme: if you left a brick house in the woods and came back a long time later (say 50 years), you would not be surprised to see the forces of nature turn it into a brick pile. if you were to leave a brick of piles in the woods and come back to see a well-built brick house, you would be quite surprised to say the least...

a system left to itself, an isolated system with no incoming energy, will degenerate by itself until it reaches a state of maximum disorder, which is its stable state. so any process that goes from randomness/chaos (probable) to order (improbable) needs an external source of energy that is applied in the right amount and way. (why? look at the growth of plants - they need the heat of the sun to grow; but they won't grow if you bring them too close to the sun - or if you simply put them in front of a fire, it has to be the right type of energy too.)

now let's have a look at the physical world and the most complex, the most highly ordered, the most structured system. which one is that?
the answer is quite simple: the human being, and more specifically, the brain and the nervous system. so by what we have just stated, we can conclude that we human beings are the most improbable of all physical systems, and thus it's very unlikely that we have been produced by a random process. we call this process evolution.

we know from fossil records that this process was not just randomly happening, but that it was a quite clear of complexification, species evolving from simple and disordered to complex and higher-ordered. it all started as some sort of blue-green algae, the first invertebrate animals appeared about 600 million years ago, and the mature human being emerged about 50000 years ago. this relatively short timespan means that there was no time for experimentation in this process of evolution. in addition to that, it is estimated that about a thousand species intervened between the first algae and the mature human being, each step from a lower to a higher order. and finally, the steps were not gradual and smooth, but rather stable, plateau-like for a while, and then with sudden jumps.

so clearly, this process of evolution is exhibiting significant, persistent deviations from randomness. therefore it would be unscientific and irrational to claim that this was due to simple chance. the step from one species to another could, if left to itself, take a lifetime to occur. now multiply that by the thousand of intermediate steps that we have, and the process would take ages if left to itself. so we have not only the right, but we are compelled if we are to adhere to the scientific method, to deduce that the process of evolution is the result of an invisible, unobservable force, and we humans have reason to believe that we are the end product of it. we can reasonably call this force 'God', or if that's uncomfortable, 'the evolutionary force'/'the force that produced evolution and thus produced the human being'. beyond that, this force of evolution is unlike any other force we have seen, since none of the forces that we know of has the capability to produce the phenomenon of evolution.

in the same way that a skeptic would refute the theory of gravity, he could claim that the process of evolution is random and nothing but a series of coincidental steps. but that, again, would be neither logical, rational, nor scientific. according to the scientific method, we are bound to choose the most likely among the known, logically possible alternatives. it is logically possible that evolution is a completely random process, but it is not the most likely or logical possibility. so if we are practicing the scientific method, and have no trouble to believe in gravity or the strong nuclear force, why refute a belief in the force of evolution? that seems highly irrational...

finally, why do we call this force of evolution God? are we justified in doing this? does it not seem a bit arbitrary to do so?

let's begin by establishing that this force has the capability of bringing into being a being with all the capabilities that we human beings have. (read that sentence again.) we do not call the strong nuclear force or gravity 'God', because they don't have those same capabilities. would it not then seem reasonable that this evolutionary force that has created us has these same qualities that we do, and quite possibly to an even greater degree?

we know for sure that this force has one quality that we don't: bringing into being of the human race. this force was behind everything that drove the process of evolution forward - we owe our existence to it. we have previously established that invisible reality produces visible reality and that it encompasses and even surpasses it. so this evolutionary force might very well surpass us human beings in the qualities we have. look for example at our free will and conscious intellect - would it not be reasonable to assume that the evolutionary force possesses these qualities to an even greater degree than us? or does it seem more plausible that a blind, unconscious force without any sort of intelligence has created us?

if we know anything, we know that we have a conscious subjectivity, as our knowledge of anything is mediated through this subjectivity. it is the most basic condition of our existence, and we know that it is produced by the results and actions of this force of evolution. so the best way of exploring and knowing this very force, is by simply gaining a deeper knowledge of that which is closest to us: our inmost selves.

"He hath known God who hath known himself."

- Bahá'u'lláh -

how to do this? it is best done through the teachings of the Manifestations of God.

good bye party!

had my little good bye party on saturday evening, and it turned out really well. there were about 40 people there, of varying ages and that I knew from different places. we had some lovely food and cakes and sweets (thank you mom!), and no planned program at all. there simply wasn't room for it, the best thing was to just let people talk and mingle. and I would say it turned out quite well...

here's a picture of how we had set the table:


as you can see there wasn't space for more than about 20 people to sit at a time, so some people were standing and talking/eating, and some even went outside (mainly the kids to play football... ;))

the evening went on well, some people brought me gifts (thank you!), and some didn't (thank you!). those who had asked, I had told I didn't want anything, mainly because there's so little space to bring extra stuff with me, so those who brought me presents were all very thoughtful. small things, a few books, some chocolate (yummy!) and then the best gift I could ever wish for:


an argentinean football shirt with the signature of the love of my life, lionel messi, on the back, and javier saviola on the front. I was unbelievably happy when I got it, never thought my friend would give this one away...

too bad for everyone else, this was pretty much the first gift I got, so they didn't really have too much of a chance in the competition for best present ;)

to everyone that came: thank you very much for your presence! I really appreciated it a lot, and I hope you had a good time too!

click for the gallery

quite good turnout...

this doesn't happen quite often... highest league in holland, and afonso alves scores 7 goals!

red eye reduction, anyone?

this is what my eyes look like right now:


hmmm...

a lovely dinner and good bye

so yesterday it was time for the official good bye with my dear friends from work. we went for a dinner, to little persia, so they got to taste some classic persian food. the dishes were quite good, and they seemed to enjoy the food.

what was the most enjoyable though, was of course the company of them all. there were moments of serious conversations, and times of great laughter. my stomach hurt, a couple of people had tears in their eyes, and everyone was smiling and laughing and really having a good time. and that's probably what I'll be remembering the most - the great atmosphere and the fun we had in the group, while at the same time doing a great job.

as a parting gift, I got this lovely sportbladet bag:


and here are the contents in it:


the white box contains a thermos bottle, and in the black thingie there's a (very pink) umbrella. other than that, there's a bathing ball, two pens, a t-shirt, a cap, a deck of cards, a usb memory stick and a book about zlatan. not sure if I'll be able to use them all, but I'm sure gonna try. I promised to bring it all with me to israel, so now there's even more to try to fit in my bag, in addition to my clothes and books and whatnot. it's gonna be a challenge!

but all in all, it was a great evening, I'm really happy I got the opportunity to work with all those wonderful people. and I promised to drop by at least once or twice more before I go... so it's not really good bye just yet :)

oreo madness!

had a lovely dinner with a great friend today. lots of fun and laughter, good food, and a lovely desert... oreo madness:


it's as every bit good as it looks... oreo with vanilla ice cream in between, and caramel and chocolate sauce on top of it. oh yay!

what is really freedom?

a lot of people feel that joining or adhering to the beliefs of a religion will restrict or inhibit them and their freedom. it won't let them do this or that, and they want to be free to do whatever they want. but what is really true freedom? I will start with three quotations, the first two from Bahá'u'lláh, and the last one from 'Abdu'l-Bahá:

"Say: True liberty consisteth in man's submission unto My commandments, little as ye know it. Were men to observe that which We have sent down unto them from the Heaven of Revelation, they would, of a certainty, attain unto perfect liberty. Happy is the man that hath apprehended the Purpose of God in whatever He hath revealed from the Heaven of His Will, that pervadeth all created things. Say: The liberty that profiteth you is to be found nowhere except in complete servitude unto God, the Eternal Truth. Whoso hath tasted of its sweetness will refuse to barter it for all the dominion of earth and heaven."

Know ye that the embodiment of liberty and its symbol is the animal. That which beseemeth man is submission unto such restraints as will protect him from his own ignorance, and guard him against the harm of the mischief-maker. Liberty causeth man to overstep the bounds of propriety, and to infringe on the dignity of his station. It debaseth him to the level of extreme depravity and wickedness.

...with regard to the peoples who clamour for freedom: the moderate freedom which guarantees the welfare of the world of mankind and maintains and preserves the universal relationships, is found in its fullest power and extension in the teachings of Bahá'u'lláh.


isn't it so that our Creator knows us best and what is best for us? consider a painter - only he can know exactly using what and how he made his painting, which colors, in what order, and what he was thinking as he painted. anyone else can only second guess, at best.

since God has created us, He naturally knows what's best for us. wouldn't it then be better to follow the commandments we receive therefrom? isn't it better to already from the beginning know what's good and bad, instead of all the time trying to figure it out, testing back and forth, risking getting burned all the time? where is the freedom in all the time being afraid that something bad might happen to us?

I think it's better to have the map in hand, knowing where all the dangers lie. this is the true freedom, then we can spend all our time exploring and learning from everything there. if there's a cliff somewhere, I definitely wouldn't want to walk right next to it - I'd rather stay a couple of meters away from it. why risk it when you don't have to?

an inconvenient truth banned?

cnn reported this:

funny, eh? :)

notice also how the weatherman notes that global warming and hurricanes seem to have no correlation at all. read here for more.

cool feature

play.blogger.com is a site that shows all pictures that get uploaded to blogger/blogspot, in real time. kinda fun slideshow to see what other people are up to. it lets you click the picture to go to the blog and actual post, or to see some more info already there. here's the faq, it would be cool to have this as a screensaver...

faith in america: diversity and division

cool video about religion in the us with a short clip from the temple in chicago.

gotta hand it to them

not too big a fan of commercial, especially not when it happens as often as it does in the us. watching nfl is just a nightmare, with three-second plays being surrounded by commercials (no joke) - that's just too much. however, this commercial cracked me up:

wii, waffles and weee!

went to a friend yesterday (I invited myself ;)) for my second wii experience, and it was as fun this time! we played some tennis, boxing, baseball from the wii sports, some shufflepuck, a duck hunt-similar game, zelda and some small games from rayman raving rabbids. some of those games are absolutely insane as you have to move the controls as quickly as possible up and down. I really wish I would've taken pictures of us doing that, because we looked crazy. but it was sure a lot of fun, 5 hours just fleeeeew by!

on top of that, I got served some delicious waffles:


a perfect evening! :)

home, sweet home...

after a hectic, cleaningful (that's not a word...) weekend, I have finally managed to stuff all my stuff (haha!) and move it back home. it's all a big mess though, books, clothes and other random objects filling my room and bed, as well as another storage room. needless to say, it's time to start thinking about what I need and want to bring to israel, and what gets to stay at home. and a bunch of it will probably also find its way into the trash bin. stay tuned for updates... ;)