I realize that my blog is somewhat a hodge podge. I tend to write about whatever is on my mind which sometimes really really deep and sometimes humorous(at least that is the intention).
The thing that has always amazed me is that regularly, the most popular post I've ever done was done not long after I started the blog. In November of 2007 I wrote about an experience that I had with Sonic Coffee. I looked at the year-to-date statistics for this blog and found that post was the #2 most read post so far this year.
That's funny....
Here's the post.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Sunday, February 22, 2009
The trouble with wisdom....
Yesterday was a good day....I finished moving everything around...everything that I own is in the zip code that it needs to be in. It was a long hard day, but a very good one.
It was also a good day, because I was able to spend time with two people that I consider to be very wise. My belief is that wisdom is very important, and should be pursued. As far as I know, there are really only two ways to gain wisdom: life experiences and spending time with wise people. Spending time with wise people includes reading the writings of wise people. The ultimate source of this being the scriptures.
Here's the trouble with wisdom as I see it, wisdom doesn't come when life goes the right way, wisdom comes from trouble. With wisdom, comes scars.
My son is a very good athlete. Like most athletes, he is very competitive...he hates losing (very much). My advice to him has always been.....you learn nothing when you win, the only time you learning anything is when you lose. Losing is tough, but if used correctly, it can be the best thing that can happen to you.
If you have studied the scriptures, wisdom is usually associated with one person...Solomon.
I Kings 3 contains the famous story where God grants Solomon a wish...Solomon asks for wisdom...God is impressed and gives him wisdom and much much more. The next story is the famous story where two women are arguing over a baby. Solomon makes a very wise decision, and determines the true mother of the child.
Since these two stories are back to back, I grew up with the notion that God granted Solomon's wish miraculously...I believed (wrongly, in my opinion) that God gave Solomon that Wisdom immediately.
It is my belief that the book of Ecclesiastes should be inserted between these two stories. I do not believe that God gave Solomon that Wisdom by some miraculous means....it is my belief that Solomon gained that wisdom the same way we do today....through trouble.
In many ways, Ecclesiastes sounds like the writing of a bitter old man....just look at the first thing he says:
Ecclesiastes 1:2
"Meaningless! Meaningless!"
says the Teacher.
"Utterly meaningless!
Everything is meaningless."
Sounds like there may be some scars there....How about this one?
Ecclesiastes 1:18
For with much wisdom comes much sorrow;
the more knowledge, the more grief.
Ultimately, however, though wisdom comes through difficulty....It is the most important thing that one can have.
Proverbs 3
13 Blessed is the man who finds wisdom,
the man who gains understanding,
14 for she is more profitable than silver
and yields better returns than gold.
15 She is more precious than rubies;
nothing you desire can compare with her.
16 Long life is in her right hand;
in her left hand are riches and honor.
17 Her ways are pleasant ways,
and all her paths are peace.
18 She is a tree of life to those who embrace her;
those who lay hold of her will be blessed.
It was also a good day, because I was able to spend time with two people that I consider to be very wise. My belief is that wisdom is very important, and should be pursued. As far as I know, there are really only two ways to gain wisdom: life experiences and spending time with wise people. Spending time with wise people includes reading the writings of wise people. The ultimate source of this being the scriptures.
Here's the trouble with wisdom as I see it, wisdom doesn't come when life goes the right way, wisdom comes from trouble. With wisdom, comes scars.
My son is a very good athlete. Like most athletes, he is very competitive...he hates losing (very much). My advice to him has always been.....you learn nothing when you win, the only time you learning anything is when you lose. Losing is tough, but if used correctly, it can be the best thing that can happen to you.
If you have studied the scriptures, wisdom is usually associated with one person...Solomon.
I Kings 3 contains the famous story where God grants Solomon a wish...Solomon asks for wisdom...God is impressed and gives him wisdom and much much more. The next story is the famous story where two women are arguing over a baby. Solomon makes a very wise decision, and determines the true mother of the child.
Since these two stories are back to back, I grew up with the notion that God granted Solomon's wish miraculously...I believed (wrongly, in my opinion) that God gave Solomon that Wisdom immediately.
It is my belief that the book of Ecclesiastes should be inserted between these two stories. I do not believe that God gave Solomon that Wisdom by some miraculous means....it is my belief that Solomon gained that wisdom the same way we do today....through trouble.
In many ways, Ecclesiastes sounds like the writing of a bitter old man....just look at the first thing he says:
Ecclesiastes 1:2
"Meaningless! Meaningless!"
says the Teacher.
"Utterly meaningless!
Everything is meaningless."
Sounds like there may be some scars there....How about this one?
Ecclesiastes 1:18
For with much wisdom comes much sorrow;
the more knowledge, the more grief.
Ultimately, however, though wisdom comes through difficulty....It is the most important thing that one can have.
Proverbs 3
13 Blessed is the man who finds wisdom,
the man who gains understanding,
14 for she is more profitable than silver
and yields better returns than gold.
15 She is more precious than rubies;
nothing you desire can compare with her.
16 Long life is in her right hand;
in her left hand are riches and honor.
17 Her ways are pleasant ways,
and all her paths are peace.
18 She is a tree of life to those who embrace her;
those who lay hold of her will be blessed.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
The scary things that sometimes go through my mind....
A few months ago, I did a post about relativity, the unified field theory and the theory of everything (look here, here and finally here) For some reason, sometimes I just think about that stuff while I'm driving.....my mind just wanders.
Yesterday, I did a lot of driving and got to thinking about the article mentioned in the third post that said Einstein's E=mC^2 equation had been validated. The most amazing part of that (in my mind) is the statement that 95% of everything we see is 'relatavistic mass' (increased mass due to the speed of sub-nuclear particles)
Then, here is where my mind went...
From this, I came up with these questions...
I'd really like to talk to a physicist about this stuff. I know someone out there that could probably shed some light on this. Is Mr. Happy out there?
most
Yesterday, I did a lot of driving and got to thinking about the article mentioned in the third post that said Einstein's E=mC^2 equation had been validated. The most amazing part of that (in my mind) is the statement that 95% of everything we see is 'relatavistic mass' (increased mass due to the speed of sub-nuclear particles)
Then, here is where my mind went...
- cold slows motion down, heat increases motion
- most things, when frozen, contract and expand when heated
- dihydrogen monoxide (aka water) does the opposite, it expands when frozen, and contracts when it heats up
- the definition of absolute zero (0 Kelvin) is that all molecular motion stops
From this, I came up with these questions...
- is the contraction/expansion of most materials due to temperature changes related to the slowing down/speeding up of sub-nuclear particles?
- if so, why is water different?
- Based on what we know, absolute zero is unacheivable (just like the speed of light) but if all molecular motion stopped at that point, would a material be reduced to 5% of it original mass?
I'd really like to talk to a physicist about this stuff. I know someone out there that could probably shed some light on this. Is Mr. Happy out there?
most
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Sunday, February 15, 2009
An amazing turnaround.....
For some reason, particular dates have coinciding events and have a special meaning to me. For instance, I have a niece Christi, who was born on February 19, 1985. That day.....that very day....would have been my paternal grandmother's 100th birthday. Her name was Donnie Mae Jackson Hall. In 1885, the feminine form of Donald, was Donnie. Over the years it changed to Donna. When I was born my parents named me Donald but called me Donnie after her. Early in my career, I had a boss tell me that 'Don' sounded more professional. I used to go by Don at work and Donnie everywhere else. At some point, I decided that I really didn't care about having a professional sounding name, I wanted to be called by the same name everywhere I went. Therefore, please call me Donnie. But I digress...
Another date that is important, though sad, is February 7. February 7 was my brother Steve's birthday. I've written about Steve several times on here, (see Missing the Rodeo...) I had two brothers, Randy was the oldest, Steve was younger. Both have passed on....but February 7 is my 'Dark Day', because Randy passed away on Steve's birthday. It is a day that I miss them both.
However, February now has another special day to add to its list. February 6. Here's the story. If you've kept up with my blog, you can probably surmise that the year 2008 was terrible for me personally (as well as many others) For me it was divorce...shrinking investments....job loss.....ugh. I was laid off at the worst possible time for someone in the software industry, mid-November. Late in the year, companies in the software industry basically hunker down for the holidays. Annual budgets are at their end, annual projects are coming to a close, nothing new will be started until after the holidays are over. No one is hiring, or even wants to talk about hiring until after New Year's Day. By the Grace of God, I was able to find enough short term contract work to keep my head above water. I did the work that I could find, and worked on promoting myself, networking, rewriting resumes....etc. etc. etc.
Some time in mid to late January, calls started to come. I spent a lot of time on the phone (I dread that bill) and chased every lead I had. They all seemed to lead to dead ends. Finally, finally, finally on February 6, I got a call from someone that I had worked with many years ago. She was in a hiring position, had an opening, and found out that I was available. We met on that day, talked about the position and one week later, I accepted a formal offer. More details to come on that.
The coinciding event that makes that day special, however, was a conversation that I had with another friend from days gone by. We had recently reconnected and was catching up on the previous 25 years or so. She mentioned that she and some friends from the past were meeting for an impromptu reunion. I asked who she was meeting because we went to school together and I probably knew some of the folks she was meeting. As she was listing the names, I knew most of the folks she was meeting...then....lightning struck, she mentioned a name that I hadn't heard or thought of in years.
Hopefully, you are old enough to remember the Donnie Osmond song 'Puppy Love'. One of the things that I can remember my mom saying was "It may be puppy love....but it's real to the puppies". Many years ago, when I was in the 5th or 6th grade, I became infatuated with someone. She was in a grade below me, but she was the most beautiful thing that my eyes had ever seen. Curly blond hair, an infectious smile, she lit up the lunchroom ;-)
At the time, I was scared to death of girls. That is a very scary time in a boy's life, you have no idea how the whole relationship thing works, or at least I didn't. I don't know that I ever spoke to her in those days. Much to my chagrin, I recently found out that she had no idea who I was, but that's ok.
As it turns out....the girl with the curly blond hair and the infectious smile, is single now. One evening, we met at a restaurant, we wound up talking for about 3 hours. As we were talking, I experienced what I refer to as an emotional sneak attack. It was unbelievable, some of those emotions that I felt in the lunchroom 35 years ago came back....I remembered that feeling....in some small way...I healed that night.
Divorce is tough in every way. I can remember thinking, "I will NEVER EVER put myself in a position to be hurt that way again" Along the way, someone told me, "You will know that you have healed when you realize that you COULD fall in love again, because there is nothing like being in love".I didn't fall in love mind you...but...I remembered the feeling....and in some small way began to see the glimmer of a hope....that some day....I would be able to fall in love again.....for that.....I am grateful...
Another date that is important, though sad, is February 7. February 7 was my brother Steve's birthday. I've written about Steve several times on here, (see Missing the Rodeo...) I had two brothers, Randy was the oldest, Steve was younger. Both have passed on....but February 7 is my 'Dark Day', because Randy passed away on Steve's birthday. It is a day that I miss them both.
However, February now has another special day to add to its list. February 6. Here's the story. If you've kept up with my blog, you can probably surmise that the year 2008 was terrible for me personally (as well as many others) For me it was divorce...shrinking investments....job loss.....ugh. I was laid off at the worst possible time for someone in the software industry, mid-November. Late in the year, companies in the software industry basically hunker down for the holidays. Annual budgets are at their end, annual projects are coming to a close, nothing new will be started until after the holidays are over. No one is hiring, or even wants to talk about hiring until after New Year's Day. By the Grace of God, I was able to find enough short term contract work to keep my head above water. I did the work that I could find, and worked on promoting myself, networking, rewriting resumes....etc. etc. etc.
Some time in mid to late January, calls started to come. I spent a lot of time on the phone (I dread that bill) and chased every lead I had. They all seemed to lead to dead ends. Finally, finally, finally on February 6, I got a call from someone that I had worked with many years ago. She was in a hiring position, had an opening, and found out that I was available. We met on that day, talked about the position and one week later, I accepted a formal offer. More details to come on that.
The coinciding event that makes that day special, however, was a conversation that I had with another friend from days gone by. We had recently reconnected and was catching up on the previous 25 years or so. She mentioned that she and some friends from the past were meeting for an impromptu reunion. I asked who she was meeting because we went to school together and I probably knew some of the folks she was meeting. As she was listing the names, I knew most of the folks she was meeting...then....lightning struck, she mentioned a name that I hadn't heard or thought of in years.
Hopefully, you are old enough to remember the Donnie Osmond song 'Puppy Love'. One of the things that I can remember my mom saying was "It may be puppy love....but it's real to the puppies". Many years ago, when I was in the 5th or 6th grade, I became infatuated with someone. She was in a grade below me, but she was the most beautiful thing that my eyes had ever seen. Curly blond hair, an infectious smile, she lit up the lunchroom ;-)
At the time, I was scared to death of girls. That is a very scary time in a boy's life, you have no idea how the whole relationship thing works, or at least I didn't. I don't know that I ever spoke to her in those days. Much to my chagrin, I recently found out that she had no idea who I was, but that's ok.
As it turns out....the girl with the curly blond hair and the infectious smile, is single now. One evening, we met at a restaurant, we wound up talking for about 3 hours. As we were talking, I experienced what I refer to as an emotional sneak attack. It was unbelievable, some of those emotions that I felt in the lunchroom 35 years ago came back....I remembered that feeling....in some small way...I healed that night.
Divorce is tough in every way. I can remember thinking, "I will NEVER EVER put myself in a position to be hurt that way again" Along the way, someone told me, "You will know that you have healed when you realize that you COULD fall in love again, because there is nothing like being in love".I didn't fall in love mind you...but...I remembered the feeling....and in some small way began to see the glimmer of a hope....that some day....I would be able to fall in love again.....for that.....I am grateful...
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Something I'm struggling with....
Ever since the photo of Micheal Phelps taking a hit off of a bong surfaced, I've been struggling with how I feel about it. The parental side of me tends to be angry because I know that so many young people look up to him and his achievements. Now, seeing him 'take a hit', sends a terrible message.
Another side of me is sympathetic, how many of us at 23 years old could handle the fame, money and scrutiny that Mr. Phelps has been handed by his success? Could any of be put in that sort of situation without making some error in judgment?
Much of the problem, I believe, is in our expectations. Micheal Phelps went from a little know athlete in a sport that most people watch once every 4 years to a household name and larger than life 'hero'. If you think about it, he didn't ask to be a role model, he simply did his best at a sport he loves. It was the media and the public at large that placed the 'role model' tag on him and placed him under the glare of public scrutiny.
Most people love a 'rags to riches' story....unfortunately, my fear is that the 'riches to rags' story has more appeal for some. As soon as someone becomes a household name, there are those that immediately look to find something to tear them down. The real question becomes the motivation. Is the publicity around this photograph motivated by the media's desire to 'protect America's youth from the influence of a bad guy' or, is their motivation to sell magazines/commercials/advertisements. I know my opinion...you can decide for yourself. I take some comfort in the fact that a poll indicated that most American's opinion of Micheal Phelps hasn't changed much. The penalty to him so far has been the loss of a cereal box endorsement and a suspension from competition for a while. There should be consequences for bad behavior, this is enough in my opinion.
Please understand, I'm not defending the behavior, I'm saying look at the circumstances, put yourself in his shoes, and ask yourself if you could withstand the scrutiny that he is put under.
The other thing this brought to mind is how violations are handled between the different sports. I don't remember the tournament, or the golfer, but there was a situation several years ago where a golfer had put himself in a bad situation. As I remember it, his stance was on a creek bed or some other surface with small rocks. As he was preparing to make he shot, he was shifting his feet and 'digging in' as golfers tend to do. During this preparation, one of the rocks beneath his feet moved. He took the shot, finished the hole and the round, signed the score card and was done for the day. Some time later, a viewer called the PGA and mentioned that the rock had moved during his preparation and that he should have taken a penalty stroke on the hole. Since he didn't, and had signed the scorecard for the round, he was disqualified from the tournament for signing an incorrect scorecard.
Compare this to the NFL, who has a strict policy on what can and cannot be reviewed after a play has completed. When a call is made, it is possible for it to be challenged. However, if no call is made, it isn't possible to go back and say that the play included a violation and assess any penalty for it. It is fairly common for flagrant violations to be displayed on the jumbotron after a play and yet no one can go back and change the result.
Every sport has the right to set its own standards for on the field rules and off the field expectations. The differences are sometimes interesting to look at from a distance. In my opinion, I think we should all lighten up on our expectations of the personal conduct of our heroes.
I wonder if there is someone out there trying to dig up some dirt on Captain Sullenburger?
Another side of me is sympathetic, how many of us at 23 years old could handle the fame, money and scrutiny that Mr. Phelps has been handed by his success? Could any of be put in that sort of situation without making some error in judgment?
Much of the problem, I believe, is in our expectations. Micheal Phelps went from a little know athlete in a sport that most people watch once every 4 years to a household name and larger than life 'hero'. If you think about it, he didn't ask to be a role model, he simply did his best at a sport he loves. It was the media and the public at large that placed the 'role model' tag on him and placed him under the glare of public scrutiny.
Most people love a 'rags to riches' story....unfortunately, my fear is that the 'riches to rags' story has more appeal for some. As soon as someone becomes a household name, there are those that immediately look to find something to tear them down. The real question becomes the motivation. Is the publicity around this photograph motivated by the media's desire to 'protect America's youth from the influence of a bad guy' or, is their motivation to sell magazines/commercials/advertisements. I know my opinion...you can decide for yourself. I take some comfort in the fact that a poll indicated that most American's opinion of Micheal Phelps hasn't changed much. The penalty to him so far has been the loss of a cereal box endorsement and a suspension from competition for a while. There should be consequences for bad behavior, this is enough in my opinion.
Please understand, I'm not defending the behavior, I'm saying look at the circumstances, put yourself in his shoes, and ask yourself if you could withstand the scrutiny that he is put under.
The other thing this brought to mind is how violations are handled between the different sports. I don't remember the tournament, or the golfer, but there was a situation several years ago where a golfer had put himself in a bad situation. As I remember it, his stance was on a creek bed or some other surface with small rocks. As he was preparing to make he shot, he was shifting his feet and 'digging in' as golfers tend to do. During this preparation, one of the rocks beneath his feet moved. He took the shot, finished the hole and the round, signed the score card and was done for the day. Some time later, a viewer called the PGA and mentioned that the rock had moved during his preparation and that he should have taken a penalty stroke on the hole. Since he didn't, and had signed the scorecard for the round, he was disqualified from the tournament for signing an incorrect scorecard.
Compare this to the NFL, who has a strict policy on what can and cannot be reviewed after a play has completed. When a call is made, it is possible for it to be challenged. However, if no call is made, it isn't possible to go back and say that the play included a violation and assess any penalty for it. It is fairly common for flagrant violations to be displayed on the jumbotron after a play and yet no one can go back and change the result.
Every sport has the right to set its own standards for on the field rules and off the field expectations. The differences are sometimes interesting to look at from a distance. In my opinion, I think we should all lighten up on our expectations of the personal conduct of our heroes.
I wonder if there is someone out there trying to dig up some dirt on Captain Sullenburger?
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