flux and rambling feed

I’m in love

Posted on by Nicolai Gideon
Martin S-O Uke
Martin J-40

I have recently bought some cheap ukuleles for Pavle and Sara. They are actually not so bad, but they’re not exactly brilliant either. They’re just good enough for playing – in the broadest sense of the word – when you’re 4 years old and want to learn to handle an instrument.

I, however, cannot find peace with an instrument that only almost is in tune. I need something more. Having a Martin J-40 has spoiled my ears and my fingers too much to be satisfied with only almost an instrument. Now I have found something, I think I’ll like: The Martin S-O Uke! I have searched for testimonials on YouTube, and the message is quite clear: Martin is always a good choice!

I did hear something about Pono Ukuleles too! Lanikai was mentioned. However, I am biased! I have already made the purchase of my life in terms of 6-string indulgence – my Martin J-40.

I have already asked my favorite guitar pusher, Akustikken in Aarhus, Denmark, to fix something for me… We’ll see how it goes.

Below I’ve added a collection of videos featuring the ukulele:

CHRIST IS BORN!

Posted on by Nicolai Gideon

Glorify Him!

Troparion, Tone IV —

Thy nativity, O Christ our God,
hath shone forth the light of knowledge upon the world;
for therein those who worship the stars
have been taught by a star to worship Thee,
the Sun of righteousness,
and to know Thee the Orient from on high.
O Lord, glory be to Thee!

Kontakion, Tone III idiomelon —

Today the Virgin giveth birth unto the Transcendent One,
and the earth offereth a cave to the unapproachable One.
Angels and shepherds give glory,
the magi journey with the star.
For unto us a Child is born, the preeternal God.

KRISTUS FØDES!

Lovpris Ham!

Troparion, 5. tone:

Din fødsel, Kristus, vor Gud,
har fremskinnet kundskabens lys over verden;
thi derved har de, som tilbeder stjerner,
af en stjerne lært at tilbede Dig,
retfærdigheds Sol,
og at kende Dig, Solopgang fra det høje.
Herre, ære være Dig!

Kontakion, 3. tone:

I dag føder Jomfruen den Transcendente,
og jorden byder den Utilnærmelige en grotte.
Engle og hyrder giver ære,
de vise mænd rejser med stjernen.
Thi os er et Barn født – Gud før al evighed.

For more texts on the feast, go to Holy Trinity Russian Orthodox Church’s Calendar page.

Music taken from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D50-8JlcwSg

Pictures from the day

Badnji Dan – Christmas Eve

Posted on by Nicolai Gideon

It’s Badnji Dan, Christmas Eve, according to our orthodox calendar, and I am going to go out with my brother and friend Miša to fell the young oak for tonight.

Grant, O God, that there be health and joy in this home, that our grain and grapevines yield well, that children be born healthy to us, that our property increase in the field, pen, and barn!

Those who want to read more about Serbian customs when celebrating the Nativity of our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ, are welcome to do so in a very standardized version on WikiPedia.

Pictures from the day

Navn til salg

Posted on by Nicolai Gideon

På Maczonen.dk kan man 30/12/09 læse, at Apple har søgt om beskyttelse af et par nye varemærker, nemlig hhv. iGuide og iSlate. Hvad disse skal bruges til, kan man kun gisne om på nuværende tidspunkt, og det bliver der så på allerlystigste vis ude i æteren.

Det giver mig pludselig en ubændig lyst til, at jeg kunne beskytte navnet iOrden – ikke fordi jeg har noget særligt på tapetet, jeg kunne bruge det til, men bare fordi jeg tænker, at det måske kunne blive en givtig forretning at ligge inde med sådan et moderigtigt og nütidigt varemærke™. Continue reading “Navn til salg”

These are a few of my favorite things

Posted on by Nicolai Gideon

There are so many good reasons for using Firefox, I think (get it in Danish or in Serbian). One being the ability to install add-ons, plugins and themes at will, adding functionality and appearance to your browser. I’ve made a list of my own favorite add-ons (and one single theme that I use), which I’ll post here:

  • Boox (adds functionality to your bookmarks)
  • Cooliris 1.11.6a (changes the way you browse media)
  • DictionaryFox 0.11 (looks up words in your dictionary on Mac)
  • Download Manager Tweak 0.8.6 (gives you more control over your downloads)
  • DownloadHelper 4.6.5 (lets you download embedded media from pages)
  • Easy Youtube Video Downloader 2.1 (lets you do what it says)
  • FireFTP 1.0.7 (gives you ftp access in your browser)
  • FireFTP button 1.1.1d (lets you launch FireFTP from your toolbar)
  • Firefox PDF Plugin for Mac OS X 1.1.2 (for viewing pdf-files in your browser on Mac)
  • Flagfox 3.3.19 (lets you see where the current page is located)
  • Friendbar 4.0.3 (shows you updates from Facebook and Twitter)
  • Go Parent Folder 2.1 (lets you move up one level when handling bookmarks)
  • History Submenus 1.04 (adds extra functionality to your history)
  • ImTranslator 3.2.9 (gives easy access to Google Translate-like features)
  • ScrapBook 1.3.6 (lets you freeze and save any given page)
  • Show Parent Folder 1.6 (shows you previous level when handling bookmarks)
  • GrApple Yummy 2.0.5 (adds Safari look to your browser)

The add-ons and themes can be found at https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox

Happy 2010

Posted on by Nicolai Gideon

Happy 2010 with the following podcast of fr. John Finley – a poetic collection of dictums of late Fr. Alexander Schmemann, all describing the orthodox vision of the Holy Eucharist, from which we draw our life:

Way of the Ascetics

Posted on by Nicolai Gideon
Monastery of Meteora
Monastery of Meteora

The “Way of the Ascetics” is an introduction to the narrow way that leads to life. It is a simple yet profound exposition of the spiritual life taught by the Orthodox Church for two thousand years. It is a portal to the vast spiritual experience of the desert fathers, and an insight into the spiritual lives of the saints. Reminiscent of the Ladder of St. John Climacus, “Way of the Ascetics” compells us to again begin the struggle to climb away from the world to the Kingdom of Heaven

In our era of new-age spirituality and homemade religion, the simple patristic style of this work is consoling. In our age of spiritual naivet.

Get the book from here!