Cynical Lens

I’m jaded. The lens I look through is clouded by a haze of cynicism. I’m working for a new company starting on Friday. Yesterday we had a day long training, complete with customer service videos. The first video delineated the wonderful aspects of the company with real employees expressing how this company is the best one they have ever worked for. The phrase we are like family kept coming up. My place of employment seems to always be changing and I have sat through many of these videos. At first they inspired me and idealistically I expected the wonders that were expressed, but over time, poor work environments and broken ideals I no longer believe anything in these orientation videos.

I’m jaded. I’m a year and a half into my masters program and I’m fighting apathy. A couple months ago I started the important classes for my profession, the basic classes out of the way, but I find little interest in them. Every time I turn in a paper that I know isn’t very good and lose only a quarter of a point, I lose faith in the quality expected of me. Why should I put in the effort and time to write a great paper if a mediocre paper gets me an A?

This is the way I have lived most of my life. I do what needs doing to get by. When my idealism is stripped away I lose the incentives to put forth my best effort. The sermon my pastor preached today seemed to be made just for me. He talked about how work is important for us, not just to make money and survive, but to thrive. It is part of who we are. He pointed out many proverbs that tell of the foolishness of the sluggard. I would not say I’m a sluggard. I always get to work on time, I always turn in my homework on time, and eventually I get around to washing those dishes. I don’t necessarily do these things well or cheerfully. What would happen if instead of expecting my new company not to live up to what it says it is, I went to work on Friday looking to serve and bless those around me? How would I feel about myself if I took the extra half an hour to proof read my paper and make sure it was great instead of reading a book or watching a movie? How much happier would me and my roommate be if we came home from work and didn’t have to clean the kitchen or vacuum the living room because I did it the day before? How different would my life be if I didn’t allow myself to be a partial sluggard? How would your life change if you chose to live well regardless of your boss, your crappy job, your huge paper, or your complicated relationships?

Bees, Goblins, and the Ding-Dang

I went on a camping trip this weekend with some friends to San Rafael Swell in the middle of Utah. Because of some company issues I was unable to use my vacation days. I worked 7 shifts in 6 days in order to have three days off for my camping trip. It was so worth it.
We set up camp in a nice place with a designated direction for bathroom use along with a bright orange horseshoe that you can carry with you so that everyone knows that you are watering the desert. We went on a short hike to hang out in a large cavern like overhang with a fabulous echo. Later that afternoon while some of us were playing bocce ball, we discovered that we set up our kitchen in and around 3 cottonwood trees that housed a bee hive. We courted danger, deciding it wasn't worth moving our kitchen unless the bees really became a problem. The bees buzzed overhead and sometimes came down to visit us, but for the most part left us alone.

On Sunday the wind blew gustily all day. The plan was to hike Little Wild Horse canyon. Potential thunderstorms were in the forecast and we decided that we would rather live than risk facing a flash flood in a slot canyon. Instead we played in Goblin Valley. Goblin Valley is filled with hundreds of sandstone formations that resemble goblins. We frolicked like children, impatiently demanding picture opportunities.

On Monday we hiked the Ding and Dang Canyons. We took the recommended route going up the Ding and down the Dang. The Ding was a pleasant hike with a few difficult scrambles and many picture moments. We resolved to do the Dang faster because we did need to drive back home, hopefully getting back before dark. We soon discovered why you descend the Dang. There are four or five tricky spots requiring shimming down between the walls of the canyon with a helpful friend below saying reach your left foot down just a foot farther while your right foot wobbling on a finger width foothold. You finally take a deep breath when you are through that spot and hip deep in water. It contained all of the fun of a slot canyon without facing near death experiences.

Hearing about my adventures is never complete until you know what we had to eat. The first night we had biscuits and stew made in a dutch oven, truly amazing. The second night we had mashed potatoes, steak, and corn. We also had an apple cobbler and smores. Yummy yummy yummy! For lunch we had chicken salad sandwiches and carrot sticks. One night we got to try homemade apple wine that some of my friends had made. If you have a couple of days go camping and sing some Disney songs around the campfire. It refreshes the soul

Recognition

We all want recognition of some kind. When you spend hours working on a project at work, you really want your boss or at least a coworker tell you what a wonderful job you did. If you show up on time for every class with your homework completed well, it sure is nice when someone notices and comments about it. Children often beg for recognition. they may call your name repeatedly until you praise the picture that they have worked so hard on or the ball of play do they carefully rolled. Besides big projects and hard work we like recognition for other things as well.
On Friday a friend of mine who is a cosmetologist put red highlights in my hair. I stipulated that I wanted them to be visible, but fairly natural and I didn't want them to stand out too much. And that is what I got. Indoors it is difficult to see the highlights, however in the sun they look coppery. Most people have not noticed my highlights. But that is not good enough for me. I find myself resisting the desire to tell everyone about my highlights. I want the recognition for the difference in my look. I really dislike being fussed over and I don't like being the center of attention, but I still desire recognition and attention for things I have accomplished or that I have changed. I think we all desire this. It is confirmation that we have value to other people and that we are noticed by others.

Cherry Orchard

Cherry Orchard

Cherries tremble in the wind

Dry eyes blink

Eighth notes dance with sixteenth notes

On background of white, taking rests as the music dictates

Slender fingers stroke keys of ivory and ebony

Delicate beauty gives birth

A vicious tortured sound

Tears glisten against pale cheeks stark against black gown

Stinging eyes blur

Strong blast of air assaults the orchard

Broken cherries bleed into the parched earth

I wrote this poem while I was in college. I still really like, but my poetry professor didn't have anything to say about it. What do you think?

Moments of AWESOME

Neil Pasricha has written two books: The Book of AWESOME and The Book of Even More AWESOME. In these two books he writes short paragraphs about life's pleasures which are AWESOME. I get awesome updates sent to my email. Check out his website: http://www.1000awesomethings.com/ My favorite one for this week talked about the point in a book, where you can no longer put it down. I like to call it the point of no return. I love books that have this point. The bad part is that I inevitably hit it around midnight and have to stay up past two in order to finish the book.

In the last several days I have had several moments of AWESOME. This weekend I had many moments that were AWESOME. I went to CONduit 21 which is a fantasy/scifi convention held yearly. Many authors attended including Tracy Hickman and L. E. Modesitt Jr. I sat in on several panels discussing things such as writing a great villain, women characters in fantasy, and streamlining your writing. One of my favorite lectures was given by Tracy Hickman. He talked about the 8 archtypical characters and how in good movies and books you can always these 8 characters. I also went to Tracy Hickman's Killer Breakfast. No food was involved. It was a role playing game with audience participation required. It was a mix of improv, the whim of the Dungeon Master, a musical, and the inevitable death of your character. It was a rolicking good time. I enjoyed seeing all of the interesting costumes wandering around. There were elves of all kinds, pirates, caped individuals, Star Wars characters and other characters of the imagination. AWESOME!

My other AWESOME moment happened yesterday evening. I just got off of work. It was misting with a glow of sun. A double rainbow arched in front of the mountains. Scientifically you can explain a rainbow as the reflection of light off of droplets of water. This to me is a sterile view of a rainbow. A rainbow is made up of 7 translucent colors. It gives the appearance of being solid, but at the same time is ephemeral. I don't want to look away because it may be gone in a moment. The remarkable aspect of this rainbow was the snow on the mountains visible through the rainbow. The snow and rainbow merged together creating what I imagine a portal into fluffy heavenly realms would look like. I could almost see winged unicorns appearing and sliding down the rainbow. The Biblical explanation for the rainbow resonates more with me than the scientific. According to the Bible a rainbow is a symbol of God's promise to humankind that he will never send a worldwide flood, wiping out all the peoples of the earth again. The rainbow as a promise describes to me more of the essence of a rainbow than the clinically scientific one. AWESOME!

What are some of your moments of AWESOME!

Laugh: quotes and jokes

"The human race has only one really effective weapon and that is laughter." Mark Twain


"The person who knows how to laugh at himself will never ceases to be amused." Shirley MacLaine


For those of you who like philosophy:
Rene Descartes walks into a resturant and sits down for dinner. The waiter comes over and asks if he'd like an appetizer
"No thank you" says Descartes, "I'd just like to order dinner"
"Would you like to hear our daily specials?" asks the waiter
"No" says Descartes, getting impatient
"Would you like a drink before dinner?" the waiter asks
Descartes is insulted, since he's a tee-totaler
"I think not!" he says indignantly, and POOF! he disappeared.


For those of you who speak Spanish, this is one my sister sent me:
En una panaderia habia un bolillo y una concha que iban a tener una competencia para ver quien vendia mas, el primer dia la concha desperto temprano y estaba bailando y cantando "la concha, la cocha". Y gano la concha el primer dia. El bolillo dijo que el siguente dia se iba a ganr. El siguente dia la concha desperto temprano y bailaba y cantaba "la concha, la concha" y gano la concha. El bolillo se enojo y disparo a la concha. La concha empezo a cantar y bailar "la dona, la dona"


For those who have strong opinions about Guiness:

After the Great Britain Beer Festival, in London, all the brewery presidents decided to go out for a beer.

The guy from Corona sits down and says, "Hey Senor, I would like the world's best beer, a Corona." The bartender dusts off a bottle from the shelf and gives it to him.
The guy from Budweiser says, "I'd like the best beer in the world, give me 'The King Of Beers', a Budweiser." The bartender gives him one.
The guy from Coors says, "I'd like the only beer made with Rocky Mountain spring water, give me a Coors." He gets it.
The guy from Guinness sits down and says, "Give me a Coke." The bartender is a little taken aback, but gives him what he ordered.
The other brewery presidents look over at him and ask "Why aren't you drinking a Guinness?" and the Guinness president replies, "Well, I figured if you guys aren't drinking beer, neither would I."


Cannibal Jokes
Did you hear about the cannibal who dumped his girlfriend? He also passed his friends.
What did the cannibal's wife give him when he came home late for dinner? The cold shoulder.
Do you know why cannibals don't eat charismatic Christians? They keep throwing up their hands.


A joke that always amuses me
So there are two muffins in the oven. One muffin says, "it sure is getting hot in hear." The other muffin yells, "Ahhh a talking muffin."


I hope you all got a couple of laughs. If you have a favorite joke post it so we can all enjoy it.

From Adam to Noah

Disclaimer: My math might not be entirely correct, but you get the idea.

I'm reading Genesis and in the 5th chapter I came across the genealogy of Adam through his son Seth. I have always found genealogies boring to read. This one drew my attention in an interesting way. The basic structure is Adam was 130 when Seth was born. He lived 800 years after that and had more sons and daughters and he died at age 930. No one lives to 900 these days. Most are lucky if they make it to 100. For 10 generations people lived close to one thousand years. You only find this in books. Elves are notorious for living thousands of years. Dwarfs are usually a long lived race, but seldom do you find books where humans live for such long periods of time.

Here are the highlights of what I found out according to Bible. Adam was alive to see 8 generations of descendants. Lamech, the father of Noah, was 56 when Adam died. Methusaleh lived the longest out of all of these men to a ripe old age of 969 years old. He is the only one to outlive his son, Lamech, who died quite young at 777. Only two others lived less than 900 years. Mahalel died at 895 and Enoch please God and was taken away at age 365.

None of these men except maybe Adam had sons before they were 50 years old. Seth is the third son of Adam. Cain killed Abel and that took both of them out of this lineage. They might have had daughters but the Bible doesn't say. Noah had three sons Shem, Ham, and Japheth. The Bible lumps them all together. Maybe they were triplets who knows. All it says is that when Noah was 500 he had three sons, and it lists them. The flood happened the same year as Methusaleh died and when Noah was 600. After the flood Noah lived 350 more years and died at 950. Noah is the last of these men with uber long lives. From the time Adam was created to Noah's death 1977 years passed.

Can you imagine what it would be like to live so long? Think of how different the world was 900 years ago. It is mind blowing to think of it. When 9 years is equivalent to 1% of your life, can you imagine how fast the days must have gone by? Some numbers and food for thought as you slide over hump day.