Wow, What a Wild Ride!
It is now 10 years later, and I sit here typing this very relaxed and unburdened. I just completed a year of serving as the Most Illustrious Grand Master of the Grand Council of Royal and Select Masters of South Carolina, the fourth year as a Grand Officer in the Grand Council. This year caps…
Musical Chairs!
At our December business meeting, we elected and appointed the new officers for 2009, and I was elected into the Junior Warden seat. It is quite an honor, as in doing so, I unexpectedly skipped a couple seats. For 2008, I was appointed as a Steward. The natural progression is to move the Junior Deacon…
Faster, faster, faster!?!
I had the opportunity to attend the Order of the Temple work at another local lodge, and I must say that I was very impressed. There were about 25 people with three candidates, and the work was done very well. One of the older men had been doing his part for many years, and he…
York Rite Degree Work – Some ponderings
The local York Rite membership is a very dedicated group of Masons, but like so many Masonic groups, it tends to be somewhat “older-leaning” in its membership. The group that with which I went through the degree work is a bit younger than most of the membership (though I don’t know if my age of…
Seeking More Light – Part Two
After completing the Royal Arch and Cryptic Masonry degrees, the final steps on the path of the York Rite are the “Chivalric Orders”. These Degrees (called Orders in this group) include the the “Illustrious Order of the Red Cross” which is an Order that emphasizes the lesson of truth; the “Order of Malta” which emphasizes…
Seeking More Light – Part One
Since my journey in Freemasonry began, I have always been interested in Freemasonry’s Appendant Bodies, specifically the York Rite. My father was a Master Mason, went through the Scottish Rite, and eventually became a Shriner. (In his day, it was a requirement that to become a Shriner, you had to go through either the Scottish…
The York Rite Background
The York Rite, like the Scottish, is one of Freemasonry’s Appendant Bodies which is open to a Master Mason to join to further his knowledge of Freemasonry. While Freemasonry officially culminates with the third degree of the Blue Lodge, the nine additional degrees of the the York Rite are considered to expand upon and complete…
Brother, take a seat!
Less than three weeks after being raised to the degree of Master Mason, I was installed as one of the Stewards of our Lodge. The new Junior Warden-Elect appointed me and the other brother who was raised with me as the new Stewards for 2008. I’m honored that the opportunity to begin moving through the…
Raised to Master Mason!
This past Saturday, another Masonic brother and I were raised to the degree of Master Mason, the Third Degree in the Blue Lodge. It was an interesting, informative, and certainly memorable degree. We had our Fellowcraft examination, followed by the Third Degree work. Our Fellowcraft examination went very smoothly despite not having spent any time…
I Think I “Get It”
Obviously I still have a lot to learn about Freemasonry having only recently been passed to the second degree. So until I progress further, I can really only comment on my current knowledge and exposure to Freemasonry as a Fellow Craft. But of what I do understand now, I think I “get it” concerning just…
Gmail Tip #19: Advanced Search – Query Words
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One of Gmail’s excellent features is its Search function. Searching can be as simple as entering a keyword or two into the Search field at the top of any page to very complex using Gmail’s advanced “Query Words” to better constrain searches. Read more to better understand how “Query Words” can help you with your…
ReplayTV Tip #6-Multiple Belkin F5D7230-4 Setup HOWTO
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After purchasing a new house, I needed to set up a network. An 802.11g wireless solution seemed to be the best choice, so after lots of research and planning, I purchased three Belkin F5D7230-4 routers and configured them to provide wireless routing, bridging, and access. Read on for what I did, how I did it,…
Gmail Tip #18: Some Forwarding Idiosyncracies
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One very important note to Gmail users: Gmail’s “Forward” function only forwards plain text. While this doesn’t affect most messages, this behavior can mangle HTML-formatted messages, dropping important formatting, images, and data. Read on for more information… If you receive a message that has fancy formatting and/or includes inline graphics, when you click on Forward,…
What if Gmail was a PC-based Email Client?
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ATTENTION REGISTERED USERS!! It’s time to turn the tables a bit here. Here’s a chance for Registered Users to give your opinion! I’m interested to know your opinion if Gmail, instead of being an online service, was a PC-based email client that you downloaded onto your PC that worked either standalone or in conjunction with…
Gmail Tip #17: Advanced Search – View Multiple Labels
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Gmail has some advanced searching capabilities that, if you take the time to learn, enables you drill down to very specific information. In future tips, you’ll learn many of the advanced searching functions, but in this tip, (sent in by “Juan Valera”) you’ll learn how to search for specific messages based on their Labels including…
Gmail Tip #16: New feature – View or Download for attached images
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Looks like Gmail added another new feature! You now have the option of viewing or downloading image attachments! Read on for details… When you receive an image file as an attachment (like .jpg, .gif, or .bmp) Gmail now displays two links for each attachment: One is the filename, and the other says “Download”. Clicking on…
Gmail Tip #15: New feature – Highlighting on/off!
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Looks like Gmail added a new feature! You can now control “highlighting” of searched words in Search results! When you initiate a Search, Gmail returns a list of any messages and conversations matching the Search criteria. You can select any of these messages or conversations to view, and Gmail automatically highlights the word(s) you searched…
Gmail Tip #14: What Happens To Sent Messages?
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When you “send” a message, two things happen to it: 1. it gets copied into your “All Mail” view, and 2. it is visible in the “Sent Mail” view. Many email clients and Webmail services let you optionally delete all sent messages by default, but Gmail doesn’t offer this feature. Here’s why… One of Gmail’s…
Gmail Tip #13: Some More About Conversations
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I covered this partially in another tip, but I feel it is important to repeat it. One of Gmail’s excellent features is its “Conversations”. Conversations conveniently organize related messages, but this can be potentially dangerous if you don’t understand how to manage both conversations and individual messages. If you aren’t paying attention, you can inadvertently…
Gmail Tip #12: Archiving Explained
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One concept that’s sometimes a bit unclear to new Gmail users is that of “Archiving” messages. I’m not refering to the hype and false assertions of pundits who claim things like “Gmail keeps everything you ever send and receive!” and “Gmail archives your messages forever!” No, I’m refering to the “Archive” button in your Inbox…