My Life in the Dark

Moving Day!

2009-07-10T08:14:00.001-04:00

I'm moving this blog over to my business web site... All the old posts have been imported... check it out!

The Elephant in the Room

2009-07-06T13:50:00.002-04:00

Here's rule 5:

5. It there's an 'elephant in the room' talk about it.

How many times have you had a conversation with someone while being really careful not to mention the elephant in the room? Think of all the energy it takes to walk that mine field. Really, it's energy that could be used for something else... Like having an honest, open relationship with someone maybe? The next time this happens, try saying the words: The 'elephant in the room is...' then talk about whatever awkward subject needs to be spoken about.

Rule Number Four

2009-06-29T08:34:00.000-04:00

Rule four is a flip of the biblical commandment: You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

4. Speak the truth.

I like mine better, of course! Here's why: It's positive. It says what to do instead of what NOT to do. As humans we always seem to respond better to positives. I've spent three days trying to think up wise things about rule four that you don't already know and can't come up with anything. Just speak the truth, to yourself, to others.

The Science of Happiness

2009-06-27T17:39:00.002-04:00

Selections from an interview with Barbara Fredrickson. The Sun, May 2009

In general the epidemiological data show that only 20 percent of Americans are flourishing. The rest are either languishing or just getting by. Maybe they remember a time in their lives when things were coming together easily; there wasn't a lot of self-concern, self-scrutiny, or self-loathing because they were focused outward and contributing ot the world. But now they're just doing the minimum necessary to get by. This "just getting by" mode is not depression or mental illness. It's mere ly lpeople lifing lives of quiet despair. Upwards of 60 percent of the adult population feel like they're going through the motions.

~~~~~

Nobody in positive psychology is advocating full-time, 100 percent happiness. The people who do beest in life don't have zero negative emotions. In the wake of traumas and difficulties, the people who are most resilient have a complex emotional reaction in which they're able to hold the negative and the positive side by side. Say you're in mourning for a spouse, but you're still able to laugh or feel blessed when you appreciate the deceased's good qualities, or to appreciate that your neighbors are taking such good care of you. It doesn't mean that you're not deeply pained by the death. And the positive emotions you feel are quiet, more reverent. Denying the negative and painting on thpositive is unhealthy, and nobody who makes it their goal never to express a negative emotion quickly drives everyone away from them, because we know their positivity isn't real. And the reason we know it's not real is that emotions should reflect our circumstances, and nobody goes through life with 100 percent good circumstances. There's no escaping loss, grief, trauma and insult.

~~~~~

Negativity doesn't always feel like a choice; it feels like it just lands on you , and you have to deal with it. Positive emotions, I think, are more of a choice.

~~~~~

(On ways to increase one's positivity) One way is to be aware of the present moment, because, again, most moments are positive. We miss many opportunities to experience positive emotions now by thinking too much about the past or worrying about the future, rather than being open to what is.

Another way is to pay attention to human kindness - not only what other have done for you, which helps unlock feelings of gratitude, but also what you can do for other people, how you can make somebody's day. We found that even just paying attention to when you are kind - not necessarily increasing how often you're kind, but just paying attention to the times when you are - can make you more positive.

Another simple technique is going outside in good weather. One of my former students, Matt Keller, who's not on the faculty at the University of Colorado at Boulder, found that people who spend even just thirty minutes outisde when the weather is good show an improvement in their mood. There are more-involved ways to increase your positive emotions, such as to practice either mindfulness meditation of lovingkindness meditation. You can also rearrange your life around your strengths. Ask yourself: Am I really doing what I do best? Being employed in a job that uses your skills is a great source of enduring positive emotions.

The Secret / Rule #3

2009-06-23T10:09:00.004-04:00

The third rule was borrowed from the book No More Mr. Nice Guy. It's a simple rule that comes in handy for a handful of situations. I'll tell you about a few of them.

3. Do nothing in secret.

I like to use this rule when I have an agenda. Getting the agenda out in the open frees me to be completely in the moment with another person. I'm also a fan of admitting mistakes, even if no one knows about them, by turning myself in. Do this, too, when you've broken an agreement, turn yourself in and make a new agreement. Try keeping everything in the open by doing nothing in secret. Speaking my agendas, turning myself in, and owning my mistakes has fundamentally changed my intimate relationships for the better.

Who's in the Driver's Seat?

2009-06-22T07:21:00.001-04:00

My head has a way of really fucking things up sometimes. I call it the 'mind fuck.' Remember those old cars with carburetors? Some of them, when they got too hot, would get a vapor lock. It's when the gasoline would change to gaseous state in the fuel line. The car would quit until it cooled down. That's the way my brain can work if I'm not careful. I'll over think something until it locks up. I went into a mind fuck a few weeks ago during a piece of personal turmoil. Then I wondered, 'what does my heart say?' My heart had the clear answer for the next action. That's when I adopted my second rule:

2. Listen to your heart, then do what it says.

When I operate from a heart space there's no deliberation, only one clear answer. That one answer is always compassionate, loving and the right answer for the situation. It's important to remember that this rule has two parts. Knowing what my heart says isn't enough, I must take action. Without action, it's just masturbation, just for myself.

Give this rule a try the next time a decision looms ahead. Give your brain a vacation. Listen to your heart, do what it says.

The 10 Commandments

2009-06-21T09:37:00.002-04:00

The big beef that I have with the 10 commandments, other than their age, is that they're nearly all negative. The recurring theme is DON'T DO THAT! I guess it's a good way to live a life void of creating any of the big evil acts like murder. For me, knowing what NOT to do isn't enough. I need a yardstick of what to do, how to act and interact with the world. Since I'm a spiritual freelancer, I compiled a list of the rules, commandments if you will, that I live my life by. Am I always successful at this? No, I'm a human. For me, these rules provide guidance and inspiration.

The rules are in a somewhat random order, except for the first one. It's the most important and every other rule is a subset of it:

1. Love ruthlessly.

It's one thing to love, it's completely different to love ruthlessly! To love ruthlessly is to love with complete abandon, getting vulnerable and staying there. It's loving people on their terms while avoiding thought of what I want it to look like. It's putting my heart in the driver's seat and giving my brain the day off. When I love ruthlessly my life gets better, my decisions are from the heart and I'm more compassionate and caring toward everyone, including myself.

That's the first commandment, love ruthlessly. It's easy and it's hard, just like everything else. What does ruthless love look like to you?

Brother Cesare Bonizzi

2009-03-24T07:35:00.003-04:00

I've been thinking about Brother Cesare Bonizzi, the heavy metal monk, since yesterday's blog post. Yesterday's post was titled 'Mentoring' for a reason. There's a laundry list of things I'd like to learn from him. He's fearless. Oh, I'm sure he has some fear. But how much fear can a 62 year old monk who performs heavy metal music ON STAGE have? He's ageless. In our culture, most 62 year olds have bought the recliner that they intend to die in. Not only is Cesare listening to a genre of music that is almost exclusively enjoyed by youth... he's SINGING it! He's in integrity. Cesare's work as a brother and his passion for metal seem to be in integrity. Here's a type of music that is often judged to be evil, and he's incorporating it into his life and work, making it holy.

"I do it to convert people to life, to understand life, to grab hold of life, to savour it and enjoy it. Full stop"

I want to be just like Brother Cesare when I grow up!

Found Images: From absurd to delightful.

2009-03-24T07:06:00.005-04:00

I found these gems here.

Mentoring

2009-03-23T09:41:00.000-04:00

When I grow up, I want to be just like Brother Bonizzi!

Compassion

2009-03-18T10:04:00.001-04:00

My mission is to 'Create a world of safety and wholeness with my loving compassion.' This video makes me wonder if I'm doing enough.

Morning Poem

2009-03-18T09:55:00.001-04:00

FIND A BETTER JOB

Now

That

All your worry

Has proved such an

Unlucrative

Business,

Why

Not

Find a better

Job.

The Gift: Poems by Hafiz, The Great Sufi Master, Translations by Daniel Landinsky

Poem

2009-03-17T07:10:00.002-04:00

Civilization

by Carl Phillips March 23, 2009

There’s an art

to everything. How

the rain means

April and an ongoing-ness like

that of song until at last

it ends. A centuries-old

set of silver handbells that

once an altar boy swung,

processing . . . You’re the same

wilderness you’ve always

been, slashing through briars,

the bracken

of your invasive

self. So he said,

in a dream. But

the rest of it—all the rest—

was waking: more often

than not, to the next

extravagance. Two blackamoor

statues, each mirroring

the other, each hoisting

forever upward his burden of

hand-painted, carved-by-hand

peacock feathers. Don’t

you know it, don’t you know

I love you, he said. He was

shaking. He said,

I love you. There’s an art

to everything. What I’ve

done with this life,

what I’d meant not to do,

or would have meant, maybe, had I

understood, though I have

no regrets. Not the broken but

still flowering dogwood. Not

the honey locust, either. Not even

the ghost walnut with its

non-branches whose

every shadow is memory,

memory . . . As he said to me

once, That’s all garbage

down the river, now. Turning,

but as the utterly lost—

because addicted—do:

resigned all over again. It

only looked, it—

It must only look

like leaving. There’s an art

to everything. Even

turning away. How

eventually even hunger

can become a space

to live in. How they made

out of shamelessness something

beautiful, for as long as they could.

I found the poem here.

Poem

2009-02-24T07:52:00.002-05:00

Sometimes a poem grabs me by the shoulders and shakes me awake. This is one of them.

Repost - After you watch/read the news... Read This!

2009-02-22T15:37:00.000-05:00

"We are experiencing the initiation of the human race into a new level of consciousness, and that is a very terrifying experience. It does no good to turn and run from the terror of our darkness into light; we must sit it out: zazen.

"We must take our counsel from The Tibetan Book of the Dead and realize that these frightening projections of famines, economic disasters, ecological catastrophes, floods, earthquakes, and wars are all only the malevolent aspects of beneficent deities. If we sit and observe them, do not identify with them, but remember our Buddha-nature, we will not be dragged down by them into an incarnation of the hell they prefigure.

"If we run from them, we validate them; we give the projections the very psychic energy they need to overtake us. Then, as Jung has pointed out, the situation will happen outside as fate."

- William Irwin Thompson, Evil and World Order

Deadwood - Visual Pacing

2008-12-16T07:28:00.005-05:00

I've been enjoying Deadwood, the HBO series via Netflix. I was watching the last few moments of a season two episode when I was taken by surprise the closing sequence. The sequence seems fat with dialogue and emotion while being entirely wordless. The pacing is boldly slow and deliberate. What I enjoy the most is that the sequence seems to be cut entirely visually, without regard to the music.

Gotta Love the WOW!

2008-11-21T13:06:00.000-05:00

Research

2008-11-17T11:34:00.011-05:00

I'm doing research for a video project. Here are some videos to take a peek at:

Photo Essay: Advanced Style

2008-11-12T10:55:00.002-05:00

Face it, we live in a culture that is afraid of aging and death. I know a few elders that model aging in a beautiful way. This blog, Advanced Style, is full of them. Enjoy.

Pent Up Blogging: Found Images 13/13

2008-11-12T10:51:00.003-05:00

Pent Up Blogging: Found Images 12/13

2008-11-12T10:51:00.002-05:00

Pent Up Blogging: Found Images 11/13

2008-11-12T10:50:00.004-05:00

Pent Up Blogging: Found Images 10/13

2008-11-12T10:50:00.002-05:00

Pent Up Blogging: Found Images 9/13

2008-11-12T10:49:00.002-05:00

Pent Up Blogging: Found Images 8/13

2008-11-12T10:48:00.005-05:00

Pent Up Blogging: Found Images 7/13

2008-11-12T10:48:00.002-05:00

I really dig the hair!

Pent Up Blogging: Found Images 6/13

2008-11-12T10:47:00.002-05:00

Pent Up Blogging: Found Images 5/13

2008-11-12T10:46:00.002-05:00

Pent Up Blogging: Found Images 4/13

2008-11-12T10:45:00.001-05:00

Pent Up Blogging: Found Images 3/13

2008-11-12T10:44:00.003-05:00

I remember the "Indian Head" test pattern when I was kid...
This one would have scared the crap out of me.

Pent Up Blogging: Found Images 2/13

2008-11-12T10:43:00.002-05:00

Pent Up Blogging: Found Images 1/13

2008-11-12T10:41:00.001-05:00

I like this because I'm at that point right now!

2008-10-24T12:55:00.003-04:00

I'm working with Larry Ladig to produce a demo. We made a intro piece that illustrates his ability to make beautiful, thought provoking images in still and moving images. I'm pleased with the result.

Game of Change

2008-10-17T14:57:00.003-04:00

A documentary I worked on, 'Game of Change' has been accepted as a selection in the Heartland Film Festival. Producer, Jerald Harkness, and I were pretty happy with this moment in the piece when the two team captains met at center court for the start of the historic game.

The documentary was produced by Pathway Productions for the NCAA.

Photo Essay

2008-10-07T13:02:00.002-04:00

Great photo essay here on distressing jeans.

Palin

2008-10-07T07:23:00.000-04:00

This is worth a look. I'd like to see the facts checked though.

All the good projects...

2008-09-18T06:52:00.002-04:00

Damn! It seems like I never get the groovy projects... like this one!

It's all Projection, Baby!

2008-09-10T07:50:00.001-04:00

"If we run from them, we validate them; we give the projections the very psychic energy they need to overtake us. Then, as Jung has pointed out, the situation will happen outside as fate."

- William Irwin Thompson, Evil and World Order

Talking Stick

2008-09-07T10:52:00.004-04:00

In August, my daughter, Sarah and I helped to create the recent Father / Daughter weekend for MKP Indiana. I was the 'man on point.' Sarah was on the leader team. Part of the weekend included a talking stick exchange. It went something like this: The daughter gives her dad a talking stick that she created and says this: "When I bring you this talking stick, I want to talk and want you to listen" The dad replies: "When you bring this talking stick to me, I will listen and not talk." Then the roles are reversed so that both dad and daughter agree to listening and NOT SPEAKING when the other person holds the talking stick.

Fast forward to last Friday night. When I came home, Sarah was watching TV. I went upstairs to change clothes and brought the talking stick downstairs with me. Sarah took one look at the stick and turned the TV off. What was said was private. We both took a turn with the stick. I felt I was heard. I judge that I heard Sarah. I hope that the talking stick remains a part of our relationship for a long time.

My Favorite Breakup Line of ALL TIME!

2008-09-07T08:32:00.004-04:00

This made me laugh out loud! I found it here.
I've got to get the shirt. Thank GOD I'm not dating!

'Nuff Said

2008-09-01T17:10:00.000-04:00

I found this here.

One Poem before I start my day...

2008-08-30T09:48:00.002-04:00

We Did Not Make Ourselves
by Michael Dickman September 1, 2008

We did not make ourselves is one thing
I keep singing into my hands
while falling
asleep

for just a second

before I have to get up and turn on all the lights in the house, one after the
other, like opening an Advent calendar

My brain opening
the chemical miracles in my brain
switching on

I can hear

dogs barking
some trees
last stars

You think you’ll be missed
it won’t last long
I promise

I’m not dead but I am
standing very still
in the back yard
staring up at the maple
thirty years ago
a tiny kid waiting on the ground
alone in heaven
in the world
in white sneakers

I’m having a good time humming along to everything I can still remember
back there

How we’re born

Made to look up at everything we didn’t make

We didn’t
make grass, mosquitoes
or breast cancer

We didn’t make yellow jackets

or sunlight

either

I didn’t make my brain
but I’m helping
to finish it

Carefully stacking up everything I made next to everything I ruined in broad
daylight in bright
brainlight

This morning I killed a fly
and didn’t lie down
next to the body
like we’re supposed to

We’re supposed to

Soon I’m going to wake up

Dogs
Trees
Stars

There is only this world and this world

What a relief

created

over and over

Don't tell anybody...

2008-08-19T19:17:00.002-04:00

It's really like this!

Progress Bar...

2008-08-19T19:07:00.005-04:00

These are the things that caught my eye while I was capturing video today...

Farts

2008-08-18T10:15:00.004-04:00

After living alone for two years, I've returned to my natural state... I'm not ashamed that I think this is funny! As Benjamin Franklin said... "Fart Proudly!"

Tunes

2008-08-18T09:01:00.003-04:00

Listening to Everything that Happens will Happen Today.

2008-08-13T16:39:00.001-04:00

2008-08-12T07:36:00.001-04:00

2008-08-11T14:40:00.001-04:00

The Devil Dances

2008-08-11T09:06:00.003-04:00

The edit room is a cozy creative space. Clients and producers often 'open up' and it seems like I should be charging a therapy fee on top of my normal day rate. The Four Agreements states that words are magic, they can do great good or great harm. The words of a producer popped into my head yesterday as I drove home from the grocery store with the week's load of bachelor chow. He said that 'every time there is a divorce, the devil dances with joy.'

Back then, married, I thought it was an odd belief. Now, divorced for a year and a half, I strongly disagree. These words of belief could do incredible harm to those in a flock who need to leave a failed marriage. I think that living in a bad situation is so spiritually harmful that a higher power would HAVE to support ending it. I simply don't understand the 'stay together at all costs' believers. My guess is that if someone believes that 'my reward will be in heaven' then a lifetime of sucking it up is a good trade off. That just dosn't work for me.

So, once again, I'll have to disagree with conservatives. The producer that told me that God hates divorce would not be surprised, he knows that I'm a spiritual liberal. The statement that works within my spiritual framework is: 'The God of my understanding, my higher power, smiles when I take action to heal and grow.'

2008-08-11T08:41:00.000-04:00

I thought this was a cool idea... I got it here.

Tunes

2008-08-10T10:43:00.000-04:00

Listening to: My Morning Jacket, Evil Urges.

More Sunday Morning

2008-08-10T10:40:00.003-04:00

I got this from here. It's a awesome image blog.

Sunday Morning

2008-08-10T09:29:00.003-04:00

The NYTimes has a cool piece on how computer passwords aren't working.

The underlying problem, however, isn’t their simplicity. It’s the log-on procedure itself, in which we land on a Web page, which may or may not be what it says it is, and type in a string of characters to authenticate our identity (or have our password manager insert the expected string on our behalf).

The solution urged by the experts is to abandon passwords — and to move to a fundamentally different model, one in which humans play little or no part in logging on.

Read more here.

I'm listening to Jakob Dylan's new disk, Seeing Things. A review I read compares the disk to Bruce Springsteen's Nebraska. It's good Sunday morning disk.

Jeeze, this is great!

I found it here.

Packers

2008-08-07T15:15:00.002-04:00

Last season I applauded Bret Favre for graciously ending his career. I take if all back.

Progress Bar...

2008-08-07T14:30:00.006-04:00

I watching the progress bar on this edit system, when it reaches 100% I get to leave... I often catch up on my RSS feeds while exporting. Here's what catches my eye...

A suburban DC SWAT team raided the house of it's mayor and killed his two retrievers in the process, even though they didn't have a 'no knock' warrant. The last line raises an interesting point.

This also raises an interesting question: If this illegal raid had been visited on someone other than a white mayor, would it be receiving the scrutiny it deserves?

A good reason to keep an eye on our rights during our government's 'wars on terror/drugs.'

Also, there's an 'instructable' on how do give yourself elf ears. Explain THAT to your kid's kindergarten teacher! A sleezy back tatoo is one thing but elf ears?

Freelance Freedom

2008-07-07T11:53:00.002-04:00

This is the downside to freelancing... the up side?
Working less for more! It's an even swap.

I got the cartoon from here.

Poem

2008-07-02T18:25:00.002-04:00

From the New Yorker

Time Waster

2008-07-02T10:33:00.003-04:00

http://www.warninglabelgenerator.com/

Use at your own risk!

Buddy Christ

2008-07-02T09:48:00.003-04:00

I had never heard of Buddy Christ before. I saw this image and decided to do a little research. I'm just enamored with the image for some reason.

Numb Nut?

2008-07-02T08:34:00.001-04:00

This is worth a look... I actually LOL'ed.

Poem

2008-07-02T08:22:00.000-04:00

Buddha in Glory

Center of all centers, core of cores,
almond, that closes tightly in and sweetens,--
this entire world out to all the stars
is your fruit-flesh: we greet you.

Look, you feel how nothing any longer
clings to you; your husk is in infinity,
and there the strong juice stands and crowds.
And from outside a radiance assists it,

for high above, your suns in full splendor
have wheeled blazingly around.
Yet already there's begun inside you
what lasts beyond the suns.

—Ranier Maria Rilke,
translated by Edward Snow from New Poems

FCP: Duplicate Frames

2008-07-01T07:22:00.001-04:00

I think I like the way Final Cut Pro handles duplicate frames better than Avid.

Impeccability of My Words

2008-07-01T06:59:00.002-04:00

In the book, The Four Agreements, Miguel Ruiz, outlines four simple agreements that can transform your life. The first of those agreements is to be impeccable with my word. Words are magic. They can do incredible good or incredible harm. They can heal and bless, or maim and cripple.

Gary van Warmerdam at Pathways to Happiness has written a great essay about being impeccable with words. The video is powerful and shows how a group of teens explored the power of words in their lives.

Poem

2008-06-27T07:26:00.003-04:00

Sometimes, when I read a poem or see a piece of art, something touches me in a way words can't express. This is one of those times.

The Evening Is Tranquil, and Dawn Is a Thousand Miles Away

by Charles Wright

The mares go down for their evening feed

into the meadow grass.

Two pine trees sway the invisible wind—

some sway, some don’t sway.

The heart of the world lies open, leached and ticking with sunlight

For just a minute or so.

The mares have their heads on the ground,

the trees have their heads on the blue sky.

Two ravens circle and twist.

On the borders of Heaven the river flows clear a bit longer.

From: The New Yorker

China

2008-06-22T11:13:00.002-04:00

I usually don't read articles about the global economy... This article about Chin a caught my eye:

Back in 2001 when the International Olympic Committee chose Beijing as the site of this summer’s games, the event was meant to mark China’s debut as a player on the global economic stage. But a recent study by the economist Angus Maddison projects that China will become the world’s dominant economic superpower much sooner than expected - not in 2050, but in 2015.

I had long since known that China holds a lot of Treasury Bills and that roughly coincides with the U.S. turning a blind 'civil rights' eye toward them but the idea of China being the next economic super power is a surprise to me. Perhaps I need to read more current events...

Charlie Brown Revised

2008-06-17T07:43:00.002-04:00

My daughter sent me this...

Should I be alarmed?

Website Revisions

2008-06-13T09:13:00.003-04:00

I just finished the revamp of my editing website. Janet Brown made a great logo for me and now it's public. I might even have business cards some day! Adulthood is creeping up on me. Speaking of adulthood, quarterly taxes are due Tuesday. Are you ready?

Playground Rules

2008-06-13T08:33:00.002-04:00

Sara over at Dumb Little Man has written about the 5 playground rules that still apply:

No takebacks.

No cutting.

Take turns.

No do-overs.

When it's time to go home, find a partner to cross the street with.

And she's got a good point. It's not the lessons or the rules that change, but the context. As we get older, things make sense in a different way. It's good to be reminded that the rules of life don't change when we get older and that like the Robert Fulghum's book said, All I really needed to know, I learned in Kindergarten.

Stuff

2008-06-11T08:55:00.002-04:00

Get Rich Slowly has a great post about the story of stuff.

The Story of Stuff is an interesting short film, particularly in its last half. Writer and narrator Annie Leonard explains that the “golden arrow of consumption” is the heart of the modern economic system, a system that’s really only existed since the 1950s.

The excerpt makes an interesting point tying planned/perceived obsolescence and the general happiness decline since the 50's.

Quotation

2008-06-11T08:40:00.001-04:00

"The Hindu teacher Swami Muktananda was once asked why he didn't work miracles. He replied, 'I have no need to work miracles. The circulation of blood through my body is enough.'"
- Wes Nisker, The Essential Crazy Wisdom

World of World of Warcraft!

2008-06-11T08:38:00.000-04:00

When will it stop?

'Warcraft' Sequel Lets Gamers Play A Character Playing 'Warcraft'

FCP

2008-06-09T07:49:00.001-04:00

Free FCP Plugins here.

Reading List

2008-06-09T07:42:00.003-04:00

I almost put this book on my reading list:

SNUFF
By Chuck Palahniuk.

I like Palahniuk's work, even though I've never mastered pronouncing his last name. I'm not often swayed by book reviews. I made an exception for this one.

Something to Give a Damn About

2008-06-05T09:18:00.002-04:00

I ran across this image the other day... it got me thinking about my actions and what they say about me and my values. Am I in integrity? Are my words and actions congruent?

Photo from: http://www.thingsihavelearnedinmylife.com

Poem

2008-06-04T08:19:00.001-04:00

Hafiz is one of my favorites...

MANIC SCREAMING

We should make all spiritual talk
Simple today:

God is trying to sell you something,
But you don't want to buy.

That is what your suffering is:

Your fantastic haggling,
Your manic screaming over the price.

- Hafiz, translated by Daniel Ladinsky, I Heard God Laughing

Blog Meat

2008-06-03T08:45:00.002-04:00

My favorite fitness writer, Lou Schuller, has an interesting bit in his blog:

* Scientists believe that Americans have screwed the pooch when it comes to our international reputation, primarily because of "a perceived high-level disdain for science." So there's a downside to promoting intelligent design and abstinence-only sex education while suppressing evidence of climate change? Damn! Who saw that coming?

Reading List

2008-06-03T08:39:00.002-04:00

Recently added to my reading list:

RED SUMMER
The Danger, Madness, and Exaltation of Salmon Fishing in a Remote Alaskan Village.
By Bill Carter

Good Morning!

2008-05-15T07:13:00.002-04:00

I subscribe to the RSS feed for the New Yorker Cartoons.
Here's one that was a bit TOO close for comfort.

Procrastination

2008-05-13T08:41:00.002-04:00

I'm procrastinating before I tackle my to-do list. This is my last day off until after the Indy 500. Here's what I using as procrastination fodder:

Rocket Pictures
New Yorker Cartoons

This picture is from the caption contest... My caption would read "I think it's time for you to start dating again."

Stop it!

2008-05-04T08:07:00.002-04:00

I wish that self improvement was just this easy... Say 'Stop It' to myself over and over until it goes away. Unfortunately, it seems that I need to peel back the onion until I find out the 'why' or the 'how does it serve me?' Only then can I both rid myself of the unwanted action and heal the part that was served.

Lunch Reading

2008-03-23T12:06:00.002-04:00

Lou Schuler at Male Pattern Fitness has a great post about human evolution:

Human Evolution: The Few, the Proud, the Really Persistent

I love looking at the New Yorker Cartoons. I'd get the magazine but they would just stack up and I'd feel guilty for not reading them!

Now... Back to work!

Easter

2008-03-23T09:27:00.002-04:00

Driving to work
Mini-Vans full of
shiny suits and dresses
pass on both sides

Wal-Mart and church
parking lots are both
half full

Andrew Birkhead
3/23/08

Bunny Contest

2008-03-23T08:00:00.002-04:00

Happy Easter!

2008-03-22T07:35:00.001-04:00

I need to write more... In the meantime, Happy Easter!

Ready for Change

2008-02-11T09:37:00.000-05:00

By all appearances, February is winter. It's cold, it snows, and in central Indiana, the sun rarely makes an appearance. I prefer to think of February as 'pre-spring.' If you spend a little time outside you might notice things are starting to happen. The buds on the trees are getting fatter, geese are gathering for migration, and the birds are beginning to sing more. It's still winter AND the natural world is waking up, brewing coffee and getting ready for change.

Spring is the season of change, for the natural world and for us. What are you dissatisfied with in your life? What needs to change? Look at the natural world, and follow the examples you see. Wake up, gather support, communicate. Get ready for the change you will create in the springtime of your life!

Name Change

2008-02-07T12:56:00.001-05:00

I was opening coupons at lunch today. You know, those envelopes full of helpful coupons that come in the mail? I was amused by the last one in the envelope... Smart Smoker.com! I mean, really! Isn't that like military intelligence? Jeeze... I gotta get back to work.

2008-02-07T07:09:00.000-05:00

I saw this in the New Yorker RSS feed:

A Measuring Worm

by Richard Wilbur February 11, 2008

This yellow striped green

Caterpillar, climbing up

The steep window screen,

Constantly (for lack

Of a full set of legs) keeps

Humping up his back.

It’s as if he sent

By a sort of semaphore

Dark omegas meant

To warn of Last Things.

Although he doesn’t know it,

He will soon have wings,

And I, too, don’t know

Toward what undreamt condition

Inch by inch I go.

ChChCh Changes!

2008-01-31T08:19:00.000-05:00

I wish I had edited this!

Divorce Shadow

2008-01-29T06:45:00.001-05:00

The shortcut to understanding Jung's concept of shadow is anything I hide, repress or deny. I saved this New Yorker cartoon without thinking. As with most things that I do without thinking... THERE'S A REASON FOR IT! The reason is that I've been keeping my sadness around my divorce safely tucked away so it would be invisible to myself and the world. Did I already mention, hide, repress and deny?

I hid my sadness to stay safe and to appear strong to myself and others. It served me well by keeping me employed and alive. There is little room in society or business for someone who is perpetually unable to function because of sadness. The problem with many coping mechanisms is that they can turn from useful tool to debilitating shadow when their usefulness expires.

That's what happed with my divorce sadness. After I no longer needed to 'tuck away (repress) my sadness' to function, I continued to hide it. Now it likes to surprise me from time to time. It seems to enjoy hiding behind trees and walloping me upside the head as I stroll by. Then it giggles and runs away while I reach for my big assed bottle of ibuprofen.

How do I deal with a shadow? My first step is to name it: "I know you, you're my Divorce Grief." Naming a shadow takes away some of it's power. The next step is harder. To keep a shadow from walloping me, I must drag it forcibly into the light of day, the light of my awareness. If I'm aware of something, I can make conscious decisions around it. The best way that I know to keep a shadow in the spotlight is to talk about it. If it's not a SECRET to others, it's not a SECRET to me!

Happy shadow hunting!

Tuesday Blog Meat

The Daily Saint has a cool post on how to easily live a more spiritual life.

I've been meaning to read this post on Freelance Switch about Freelance Accounting for quite awhile. Now that I have, I'm happy to report that I already do most of these.

Freelance Freedom

2008-01-27T10:31:00.000-05:00

These cartoons do a great job of illustrating why I switched from 'freelancing because I was laid off' to being a 'freelancer by choice.' I'd take a good full time position if it was offered, but I'd miss the thrill of the hunt.

The comic is from here, this guy does come cool artwork!

Drive By Shootings

2008-01-27T09:58:00.000-05:00

I often carry a camera in my bag. It's a laptop bag, but lets be real, it's my purse. I keep all the crap in there that I need during the day.

Back to the camera. I've taken a lot of pictures that I call 'Drive By Shootings.' As an American, I see a lot of the world from the inside of my car and I try to show that through the pictures. I made this picture on the way to my daughter's school for a meeting. The sky was clear but it was snowing! I grabbed the camera to try to capture the snow and the light turned green. I quickly snapped the photo without composing the shot. I should take more pictures with my eyes closed!

Best Editing 2008

2008-01-22T12:09:00.000-05:00

View the complete list here.

Catching a Mouse

2008-01-22T11:25:00.001-05:00

I saw this cool post on how to catch a mouse using a toilet paper tube! I thought it was clever. Of course if you don't really care about being humane, you could always drown the little bastard!

Teenage Angst

2008-01-22T09:02:00.000-05:00

I'm the parent of a delightful 14 year old young woman. The good news is that she talks to me. She still tells her dad the important things in her life. It's amazing! The bad news is that these things are often very negative. Sometimes it bums me out and I just can't take it anymore.

This happened again this morning. I drove her to the bus stop and waited with her. It gave us about 10 minutes to talk. I got to hear about how crappy school is, how people mistreat her, and how the best part of the day is going home. My answer to the blessing of her sharing her life with me? Shaming messages about how she should be more positive! My fear is that if I continue this behavior, she may stop sharing her life with me.

What I want, and hold on it's not healthy, is to have it both ways! I want a daughter who shares with me AND I want her to be like me, trying really hard to be positive!

With that said, my parenting work is to welcome her connection and EVERYTHING that comes with it. My vow is that when I take on negative messages, to examine why I'm taking them on instead of telling her to stop.

Feelings

2008-01-21T08:01:00.000-05:00

After being involved in Men's Work for three years and our emphasis on emotional literacy, I found this cartoon to be pretty damn funny.

Try one of of the big five: mad, sad, glad, fear, shame!

Here we go again!

2008-01-21T07:40:00.000-05:00

Inspired by my friends, Josh and Brian, I've decided to start blogging again. Do I think I have anything earth shattering to share with the world? No. For me, it's a way to practice writing and creativity when I'm not working. Another way to 'put myself out there.'

Cover me, I'm going in!