Happy New Year!

http://youtu.be/jr-htpPV_Z0

Resolved

I love the idea of New Year's Resolutions. The idea that you would examine your life, resolve to make some changes and then tack the starting point onto January 1st is just great.

There are people out there who pooh-pooh the idea so I suppose it's not for everyone. "You should always be trying your best - not just on January 1st" they say. Well, okay. You could also give up chocolate for 40 days anytime of the year but it helps during Lent to know that millions are doing something similar. Anyone with the ability can go out and run 26.2 miles all on their own any day of the year - you don't need to spend $100 on an official marathon race but there is something about the solidarity of running with thousands of others that makes it a special experience. The thought of millions of people resolving to "do better" all at the same time puts a smile on my face.

Of course, I didn't make any resolutions this year - mostly because I am already doing everything I can to "do better". I am working almost daily on a writing project as well as job hunting as well as visiting the gym. I recently spent weeks going through the entire house on a "pitch it or organize it" crusade and the vegetable garden is in the best shape ever. There is a lot of room for improvement but I am feel like I am pretty much running on all cylinders right now. Maybe my resolution should be to "keep-on-keepin'-on".

I have come across a couple of interesting ideas though:

There is the month-by-month challenge

Or the One Word Challenge

If all else fails, there is the Shoot Up Kittens with Heroine Challenge

Maybe I will stick with "Keep-on-Keepin'-on"

New Year's Day

So. It begins.

I am actually beginning my new year with a trip to a fogged-in dawg beach followed by breakfast within earshot of the ocean. The entire world seems to be asleep and the only sound other than the waves upon the shore is a fog-horn in the distance . . . Not too shabby I suppose.

Just for kicks, I took a look at my New Year's Resolutions from last year:

1) Slim down. This time last year I was weighing in at 193 lbs. This morning I tipped the scale at 197 lbs. A gain of 5 lbs. I actually dropped to 185 at one point this past year only to jump up to 210. I have a tendency to eat when stressed and this past year was one for the record books in terms of stress. So a gain of 5 lbs isn't the end of the world. I am going to give myself an honorary mention on that one and renew the resolution for 2009.

2) Run. I had hoped to run a marathon this past fall but the job changes, the cratering of the industry I am in and the pregnancy sort of put my daily schedule into a tailspin. However . . . I have been running pretty regularly lately in conditions that would have kept me in bed during previous attempts (rain, snow, ice, sub-freezing temperatures, sickness . . .) So I am going to give myself an "atta-boy" on that one and renew the resolution for 2009 as well.

3) Read through the Bible. I actually got about 85% of the way through. I have actually read through the Bible 3 or 4 times in the past so it's not like I don't know how it all ends . . . So I am going to give myself another honorable mention on that one and resolve to finish the remaining 15% during the course of 2009 . . .

But all that is last year's news . . . New for 2009?

1) One year break from news and politics. I have always been fascinated by politics and something of a news hound but I have had my fill. I am no longer interested in political parties or politicians - pop culture does nothing for me. In 2009, news is going to have to find me because I am not going to go looking for it (If anyone hears of any recalls on baby formula in the SD area, please let me know . . .). Oh sure, I will always be up for a good political debate, but from now on, I am going to try to confine my opinions to concepts, principles and ideals instead of debating the merits of this party or that politician (we'll see how successful I am . . .)

2) Break the mold. This is a complicated one. I think that as we build relationships with others, we tend to get categorized within a group. For instance, "John" may be the quiet and thoughtful one of the group while "Bill" may be known as the loud obnoxious one and so on. Whenever their friends get together, John and Bill are expected to fill their roles and are treated accordingly. The trouble is, none of us are the same person we were 3, 2 or even 1 year ago and yet, there is the subtle pressure of the group dynamic to fill that spot you have always occupied . . . Maybe I am the only one who feels this way . . . So in 2009, I resolve to be more the me that I am than the me that someone may remember me being in the past. I know, sort of philosophical here, but there it is.

I think that will about do it:

1) Shed some pounds
2) Run
3) Finish the Bible
4) Drop news and politics
5) To thine own self be true

You know, it's funny . . . 2006 was a very hard year . . . but it wasn't anywhere near as hard as 2007 . . . at the dawning of 2008 a number of people that I know were bound and determined to make the new year a good one. "Everything's great in 2008!" was the cry . . . well . . . "it was the best of times, it was the worst of times" as the saying goes.

My slogan for the New Year? "I will settle for "fine" in 2009 . . ."

Yeah, "fine" would be good.

"Fine" would be enough . . .

Quote of the Day

Let us not be content to wait and see what will happen, but give us the determination to make the right things happen.

- Peter Marshall

Weight and See

185 lbs

2 less than last week

8 less for the year

I was 185 when I got married 15 years ago. Of course, I was also going to the gym 2 hours a day. It is amazing how 185 can look so different 15 years later.

I have lost some muscle and apparently what muscle I do have has been covered by a soft protective coating.

I am going to have to lose at least 5 - maybe 10 - more pounds.

i protest . . . i protest . . *sniffle*

The conference went just fine yesterday. Since I am on the skinny-down after New Years, I only ate half the lunch provided and excused myself to make some phone calls.

I could not reach any of the people I had to reach and I found myself at the Marriott with 45 minutes to kill.

I retrieved a book from the car a retreated to a corner of the bar and had a Black & Tan. First Black & Tan I have had in probably more than a decade. Delicious.

Made even more so by the fact that I was 1/2 way through a mandatory business conference.

I am stalling this morning. I need to go into the office early (again) to try and clean up whatever needs to be cleaned up after missing a day (I did get at least one panicked vm after 5pm yesterday).

Ugh. At least it's Thursday.

Thanks to Instapundit, I offer the following video I light of my lunch-time sneakyness yesterday.

MY GOODNESS.


Guinness: Tipping Point
Uploaded by Razorbuzz

Quote of the Day

The Principle is competing against yourself. It's about self-improvement, about being better than you were the day before.

- Steve Young, hall of fame NFL quaterback

Weight and See

190 lbs.

6 lbs down from last week.

Net drop of 3lbs for the year.

2 for 3 on the resolutions this week!

Everything's Grrrrrrrreat in 2008

I am not posting this – at least not right now. All the cable is out at the house. No internet, no phone, no television. How does the Gilligan’s Island song go? “No phone! No lights! No motorcars! – not a single luxury . . .”

Okay, it’s not that bad. I am actually typing this in word format which will then be saved to a thumb drive, taken to the office, converted to an e-mail and then sent in to the super secret DawgRun blogger account for posting.

Because lawd knows all America’s peace and harmony hinges on whether or not I get my posting done!

Whenever I do that though, the posting fonts etc. get all whacked. So my apologies if this is appearing in 10pt font instead of 11pt font or whatever.

I took a sick day yesterday. I wasn’t feeling well, my ankle was throbbing, it was still pouring rain and I did not want to leave the dawg to his own devices in a muddy yard, I had a bunch of bill-paying / household budgeting to do and I needed a day spent in silence.

So what did I do? Watched Pirates 2 and 3 of course! I was halfway through Pirates 2 when the Dawg came barreling into the house huffing and puffing and covered in mud from doing laps through the swamp that has replaced our back yard.

I never did get the bill-paying stuff done.

I did manage to have a good breakfast, elevensies, luncheon, mid-afternoon snack, tea etc. a la Hobbit-style. I think the only thing I really did accomplish was keeping my ankle elevated and spending the day relatively mute. And that did help.

I don’t know what it is. I have heard that women speak 3 times as many words as men do. So what’s a man to do when he has spoken his allotment? Lately I find myself running out of words. It’s not that I don’t have anything to say (this post a case in point) it’s that I can’t get my mouth to move.

Imagine if every time you used up all your cellular minutes, you had to hook the phone to a stationary bike and power it via pedal-power for the rest of the month – you can do it but it ain’t gonna’ easy and it’s almost impossible to hold a decent conversation (I am positive someone has invented a goofy contraption like that – but the internet is down so I can’t look it up).

No matter, I set the ol’ alarm for 4am – ready to tackle the bill-paying and budgeting and then head to work bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. Did I mention that the internet is down?

I pay all my bills on the internet.

And no, I don’t have any stamps.

I called the cable company and they confirmed that my internet was not working. I informed them that the phone and TV were not working either. They could not confirm that there was an outage because their server was down. You don’t say?

I don’t know anything about these things but it seems to me that when the cable company’s server goes kaput. That’s an outage, my friend.

Everything’s great in 2008 . . . Everything’s great in 2008 . . .

I cannot remember a January when so many people close to me were absolutely determined to make it a great year. There is almost a teeth-gritting desperation in the air about it. Grr - Everything’s – Grrrrrrreat – Grrr – in – Grrr – 2008 – Grrrrr.

The report from The Most Significant Thing is that the year has begun with “fits and starts”.

Well hang in there everybody! It IS going to be great!

We may not have all the material things we want or even need - There may be mental, emotional, relational or physical stresses that are uncontrollable – but we can do it!

Slap a smile on and try and slap a smile on the person next to you (even if all you really want to do is slap them)

“When God closes a door, he opens a window” – my usual response is try and throw myself out of it – but not this year! I am going to stand at the window and breathe deeply. I can always throw myself through it in 2009 . . . (it will be an odd-numbered year, after all)

Everything’s GRRRRREAT in 2008! Grrrrrrrrrrrr . . . .

The Weakly Sherpa - 1/5/8

I am nursing a twisted ankle and I gained three pounds last week so we are one for three on the New Year's Resolutions. I am glad to now focus on the one resolution I am almost guaranteed to accomplish today!

I don't plan on doing much commentary throughout this reading plan. I think the text can speak for itself. But for the uninitiated, Genesis and Job can seem like a real trip through the looking glass.

So a few words about last week's reading are probably in order (forgive me if I am pointing out a bunch of stuff you already know):

The first five books of the Bible (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy) are commonly thought to have been written down at the direction of Moses during the Exodus which occurred, as best as we can tell, around 1450BC.

It is thought that, up until that point in time, the stories in Genesis and Job were part of the oral tradition of storytelling passed down through the centuries. When reading through Genesis and Job, it is important to discern the difference between the literal and the truthful.

For instance, Genesis 1 says that God created the world in seven days. The point is not the time-frame. The point is that God created, with a purpose, saw that it was all very good and that we should all take a break once a week.

The point of the Garden of Eden story is not two people and a snake - it is that sin enters the world when we have the knowledge of right and wrong and we choose the wrong.

The point of the Job story is not that he was an unwitting pawn in a supernatural dare between God and the devil. It's that bad things sometimes happen to good people. It doesn't mean that the people deserve it and it doesn't mean that God doesn't care. At times God's purposes are beyond our understanding.

You get the point.

=Begin Artistic Aside=

When I was writing, this piece of art came to mind. It is a fresco on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, painted by Michelangelo in 1511. It is entitled, "The Creation of Adam". Look at how all of heaven is rushing into the frame. God himself is reaching, straining, to give Adam his touch, his supernatural breath of life. Now look at Adam - it's like God is interrupting him from a television show with another one of God's "lame miracles of creation". You can almost hear the irritation in his voice, "Oh God, what is it NOW?" We really are pathetic wretches sometimes.

=End artistic aside=

Things start to get a little more "factual" (for lack of a better word) once we get to Exodus. I'm not saying Adam and Eve and Noah etc. did not exist as factual persons so let's not get our theological jockey shorts in a twist.

I am saying that Genesis and Job are about eternal truths - if you focus your energy on figuring out what parts are literal - you miss the truth that is the point of the story.

As has already been mentioned this morning, its: "Like walking into a cloud of gnats at the mountaintop, we get too busy swatting to see the view."

On that note, here's is next week's plan:

January 07, 2008 --- Job 14-16
January 08, 2008 --- Job 17-20
January 09, 2008 --- Job 21-23
January 10, 2008 --- Job 24-28
January 11, 2008 --- Job 29-31
January 12, 2008 --- Job 32-34
January 13, 2008 --- Job 35-37

Don't Spend All Your Time Swatting the Gnats

From TMST this morning:

"Well, what would you say? Life moves ever forward, grows and stretches, bends, breaks, and finishes. All the significance of it gets sidelined by unfinished projects, cluttered desktops, worldly distractions, and the ever-present minutiae of a seemingly endless line of mild disappointments which build on each other if we let them. Like walking into a cloud of gnats at the mountaintop, we get too busy swatting to see the view, but in our own small ways we lift each other above it."

Weight and See - 1/5/8

196 lbs

3 pounds in the wrong direction. Huh.

I don't suppose sitting with my feet up and my mouth open all weekend is going to help matters . . .

On the other hand, I already started the pot roast!

Oops, I Did It Again

I may be the only person alive who knows next to nothing about the lady pictured above. The title of the post came to me as it will make perfect sense once I get to the actual subject matter (below).

I thought it would be funny to post her picture as this is probably the last place on earth you would expect to see it. I initially did a google search for "Britney Houston" and ended up with a variety of results. I was also reminded that it is "Whitney Houston" and "Britney Speares" and they are two totally different people. I knew that. Really.

I don't know what has been going on with this gal, but judging from the photos that popped up in google images, there has been some troubled waters - something about a guy named Kevin, a baby, a bad haircut and some truly sleazy outfits. I actually had to crop the photo above to make it a little more family-dawg friendly.

Now that I think about it, I hope the quote in my blog title refers to something relatively innocent and isn't lifted from the middle of a song that encourages all sorts of personal and societal destruction. It's the only line of hers I know . . .

But I digress . . . .

The wife and I were watching a movie last night and I heaved my carcass out of the chair by the fireplace, stepped on the dawg's bed and went DOWN! Like a ton of bricks - my right ankle swelling up to a truly impressive size.

That's when the shivers hit. Uncontrollable, body-wrenching, spasms. To a lessor degree, the same thing happened on Halloween when I rolled the same ankle. I asked someone about it and they said it was a form of shock. Your body freaks out to deal with the sudden rush of pain.

So there I lay, uncontrollably convulsing in agony. The wife got the ice pack and spent the rest of the night playing wet-nurse. It is totally infuriating (for me) I can only imagine how frustrating it is for the wife.

Oops, I did it again.

It's no wonder I find running so difficult I can't even navigate my own home at walking speed . . . .

Soul Food - 1/4/8

". . . 'Are you still holding on to your integrity? Curse God and die!'

"He replied, ' . . . Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?'"

- Job 2:9-10

Here's to 2009!

What we should have made New Year's Eve.

What we actually made New Year's Eve:

Yeah, we smurfed it allright.

At least no one got their ribs broken.

Soul Food - 1/3/8

"I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth."

- Genesis 9:13

Soul Food - 1/2/8

"Then the Lord said, 'My Spirit will not contend with man forever, for he is mortal . . .'"

- Genesis 6:3

Everythings Great in 2008!

The wife, dawg and I drove north to meet up with friends to ring in the new year and a great time was had by all. Our circle of friends is beginning to reach the point where the children comprise more than 1/3 of the people present. Presently, the adults can still double-team the wee-ones but I imagine there will come a day when we have to go to a man-to-man defense.

Finger foods and wine and beer and wine were served and people shared their year-in-review videos which is always a treat.

At a quarter till, we realized that no one had made the new year's eve toasting-punch. We whipped out some sugar, brandy, lemons, champagne and blue curacao and poured it over a block of ice with some strawberries and oranges for garnish. I don't know if we actually toasted at the exact right moment or not (I was transfixed by the blue champagne) but by that point in the evening, no one really cared.

Some of us stayed up as late (or early) as 2:45am and every time someone got up, you would hear - "Hey, smurf me another glass of champagne, will ya?" We all had a good laugh.

15 of us spent the night, if you count the dawg. Being the only non-child couple, the wife and I were in sleeping bags in the living room. Normally at home, the dawg sleeps on his dawg-bed on the floor on my wife's side. Since all three of us were on the floor, he decided to join us on the sleeping bags in the middle of the night and ended up crowding out the wife who spent the rest of the night on the couch.

We all got up nursing our hangovers and passed the morning away chatting quietly and moving slowly. Most everyone was gone by noon or so and the wife and I stayed and started 2008 off by doing. absolutely. nothing. With dear friends. What a blessing.

Plans were made to get together more often, to hike more often, to boat and camp and backpack more often - plans were even discussed for a guys / gals weekend where the ladies go one way the the guys another.

We spent the afternoon breathing deeply and discussing what external things have, are or will change to make 2008 a great year. We also discussed some of the internal things that have, are or need to change in terms of attitudes and perspectives to make 2008 a great year.

It's early morning.

Still dark outside.

I started the day with prayers and 4 chapters in Genesis.

I am now at the computer in pj's, slippers and robe.

I can smell the coffee brewing in the kitchen.

It's first working day of the year.

Everything's great in 2008.

Soul Food - 1/1/8

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth
day
night
sky
land
seas
vegetation
sun
moon
stars
fish
birds
mammals
man
woman

God saw all that he had made and it was very good."

- Genesis 1

Happy Anniversary Wes and Heather!