Nov 05

Make a Choice to NOT Complain

110514_1700_MakeaChoice1.jpgYesterday on Facebook I shared a message about not complaining for 24 hours. I went on his blog and found people still complain, saying that if you don’t complain you will get walked all over.

Dictionary.com give us this definition of complain [kuh m-pleyn] verb (used without object) 1. To express dissatisfaction, pain, uneasiness, censure, resentment, or grief; find fault: He complained constantly about the noise in the corridor. 2. To tell of one’s pains, ailments, etc.: to complain of a backache. 3. To make a formal accusation: If you think you’ve been swindled, complain to the police.

Instead of just complaining; offer a solution to the problem that you are wanting to complain on. Offer it up as an educational experience. Today after the midterm elections I am sure there will be some that will not like the outcome. Ask yourself did I do all that was within my influence to help achieve the outcome that I truly wanted? In the United States in November we celebrate a day of Thanksgiving. I would like to encourage each of you to just for the next 24 hours don’t complain, if you feel compelled to attempt to complain offer a solution to the problem that will make both parties happy. If you are successful for the next 24 hours take another step and do it for another 24 hours.

Lao Tzu states that “A journey of a thousand miles begins with just one step,” if 24 hours seems to long focus on just 1 hour, if one hour seems to long focus on just the next 30 minutes. Let us work together to change the energy of this world, complaints generate tons of negative energy let us work together to move the energy to a more positive flow and see how the world reacts.

Oct 22

Take time to press the Pause Button on Life

There never seems to be enough time in the day. We rush here we rush there and for what? Higher blood pressure, greater stress lower melatonin in our hair it is time to hit pause. So many burn the candle on both ends, press pause. Take time for you. Reflect on where you have been are you moving in the direction that you want? If you are not then perhaps you should ask yourself where I want to be. Then look into the ultimate life map it is a Book I Believe Lives for Everyone. There is a life plan for each of us some of us are able to move in a fairly straight line while most of us look like the map in Family Circus. Life is about learning experiences, when the lesson is done move on, unless you don’t believe you learned enough then repeat but if you are repeating a lesson ask yourself why it needed to be repeated. We get stuck in patterns and the only way out is to ask for help.

Sep 11

I remember …

Today marks the 12th Anniversary of the attack on United States soil that I will never forget. It was my day off. I thought I’d clean the house had the TV on for a little extra noise when the alert went off for Breaking News that is when I rushed to the screen to see what was going on …. I watched in horror as what unfurled in front of me… This wasn’t some cinematic effect this was real this was now this was live… I fell to my knees in front of the television in tears … This is the United States of America … why…. I know other countries have had more experience with this … We are young, of course I also remember where I was April 19th with an earlier attack but that was a domestic issue …. To tell the truth I didn’t get done what I had set out to accomplish when I clean I pull everything out to clean all the crevices …. I had everything pulled out…. The house was a mess but the country was In a worse mess. This is probably the worst thing that has happened to this country since December 1945 with Pearl Harbor.

Today we have given up so much of our freedom in the name of security… we have the TSA HSA NSA and more alphabet soup trying to make us feel safer…. But are we…. We must not profile so we will search Grandma we will check the baby but we may not look at the ones who even resemble those who attacked us…. Does that make us safer? We talk about defending our borders but everyday hundreds come through unchecked…

Today is the 1 million Muslim march to DC hmmm wasn’t it a group of Muslims that put a plane into the Pentagon… We give money to people who hate us… Why?

The question I guess I should ask is what are the lessons we have learned from this? Are we setting ourselves up to have another learning experience?

I will never forget the scenes of that day… I just wish the alleged leadership of this country would learn the lessons so the people who make up this great country will not have to suffer again, due to leadership failure.

 

It is time for the people of the United States of America to wake up and understand “Government is not the solution to the problem it is the problem…let’s resolve as a whole people to remedy this issue… the leaders of this country are placed there to represent the people…. Ask yourself are you being represented? If not plan on making a change this November….

Sep 06

It’s Time

It’s time. I kept hearing that in the back of my mind. It’s time. It’s time for what? Oh, I know! What’s coming up? Football! No, that’s not what it’s time about. Oh yeah, the dreaded event. The Humorous speech contest. That’s not funny.

It’s time to become proactive. Proactive for what? Getting ready for a contest? It’s time to go see a movie. What is it time for? I got thinking, why do I keep getting this feeling it’s time? I got thinking, and then I got stuck. I got lost in my thoughts.

Then it started nagging at me again. It’s time. It’s time. I found out, at that moment, I looked at my watch. “Oh! Yes! It’s time! To go get the kids.” No! I was a little bit late, but no, that wasn’t the real reason. I kept getting this, “It’s time.” I looked at a calendar, I’m going, “You know, it’s 120 plus days till the end of the year. What have I done this year?”

I caught some great movies. I took my eldest son to school. That, in itself was very interesting.. We took three other boys with him. It was fun. There were five cars, and we got to see almost every parking lot there at OSU.

It’s time. It’s time to maybe start letting go of my oldest son. I can’t always be there to protect him. Can I? I remember the day he was born; he could not wait to get into the world; he came into the world like a cannon ball over a month early he was skinny but he was long. I stayed with him; they took him to the nursery I went with him. He was my first. He was small we had to get the preemie clothes for him [more like doll clothes] He grew he was always on the move we lived in a second floor apartment I was coming back from walking the dog; here he comes down the stairs with his ball cap on and his diaper always on the go. I remember the first day I took him to school kindergarten he really didn’t want to go we had to drag him a little, but he made some new friends and off he went.

It’s time August 11 I get up early we get the van going and he gets in his car we go to another parents house they are the staging area for the 4 boys to load the caravan we have 2 vans 2 cars and a truck.  The van at the parents’ house was loaded and ready to go; problem the battery was flat and did not even wanted to be jumped so we unload the van and divide it out amongst other vehicles.

Did you know that when you have all these boys moving into a dorm, and they only have four elevators, it is a very long wait for a sixteen-floor building? I’m feeling young. I’m only not-quite-50 yet. I can do the stairs! (a few times).  Now the wife and I have been going on long walks just about every night and I told my wife, “I did my walking for today, tomorrow, the next day, and two weeks from now.” Because I kept going up these stairs.

Maybe I need to schedule a few more road trips to OSU. Make surprise visits. I found out his class schedule and go, Hmmmm I’m off on Wednesday his first class isn’t till 9:30. If I get up there real early, I can wake him up. Would I be able to get in the dorm? That’s not important now.         We can’t pound on doors, can we? Yeah we can. Sometimes it works, sometimes they don’t open. It’s also time to open new doors.

Think about a time when you’re wanting to accomplish something. Are you along that process? Where are you in that process of … where you want to go?  Are you there yet? Have you even made that first step? Are you still in that planning stage?

I love setting goals. I get lost in that, “If I do this, do that, do this, do that, do that,” it’ll happen. Problem is, I forget to do the one crucial thing. That first step. Then, sometimes, you get so excited about something, “I can do this, I can do this,” you’re making a giant leap. Guess what? You miss that cliff that was right there.

You get yourself up, dust yourself off. “What did I get myself into?” Then you start going, “Okay, what can I do better? What lessons did I learn from this?” If you never ask yourself what lessons you’ve learned from an event. History has this nasty little habit. It likes to repeat itself. If you didn’t learn from the lesson, you’re going to repeat it.

Speaking of lessons learned in time, I ask my son the other day, “Which is the better way to learn? Is it better to learn from other people’s mistakes or from your own?” “From my own.” “You mean you’d rather do everyone else’s mistakes and not learn from them?” It’s time to keep track of your mistakes, make a list of your lessons learned, and learn from it, and grow from it, and make yourself a better person. It’s time to do that now.

Sep 06

It is a Matter of Faith

Thursday I had an interesting experience. For those that don’t know I am a certified Residential Broadband Premise Specialist (I am the cable guy). Occasionally we run cable under the house to keep a good exterior appearance. The customer didn’t speak English my Spanish really wasn’t that good so I used a friend of mine as a translator. I told I could do the job and it would look very clean and wouldn’t see much of the cable.  From the outside I see I can use the crawl space to minimize the cable on the outside. I drill my holes and start running the cable.  I open the crawl space door, right next to where I was making the wall connection. I peer in there is a concrete wall going back to my left a concrete wall going back to my right waste pipes to my front and the duct work for the AC.  Holes already drilled cable started, I am all in for this project I can’t stop. I am looking forward wondering what have I got myself into. Then the words come “I can do  all things through him who gives me strength” I move forward I maneuver myself around the wall it was a very tight fit (wasn’t thinking how will I get out) I got the cable ran through to the other hole fantastic all I have to do now is to get out.

Uh oh, I spend 15 minutes trying to maneuver myself to get out of this mess.  Finally I have to stop and say “Father I trusted you to get me in to here and I know your word does not come back void; I know you will give me the ability to get out of this…. I decide I have to get out of here; I don’t care about the duct work I want out. I get my two arms around the corner and am working on getting the lower half straightened when all of a sudden I feel a strong tug on my shoulders and I feel myself moving rapidly around this corner and halfway down this tunnel.  No one is around it is just me. I want to think that God told his angels to come and give me a hand. After I finished the job and just praised him for helping set me free and for always being there for me.

Sep 06

Inch by Inch

I remember when a friend sent me an email wanting me to check out her new calendar on decluttering. I was between gigs at the time so I downloaded the calendar and in 2 days I knocked out the first quarter of the year. I came up with all sorts of excess I wanted to get rid of. Had a yard sale and was selling by the box load (didn’t check all the boxes; wife still gets upset sometimes).

When you are working on simplifying things in your life keep in mind what works for one might not work right for you; there is no hard and fast rule.  At one time I thought life would be so simple once I had everything on my smart phone… I am working on scaling some items back. In the coming months I will be getting a regular cell phone (phone calls and text), moving more items over to a tablet (easier to read and work with)… Keeping a few composition note books around with pens (you never know when the power might go out and for how long; batteries only last so long)

Remember don’t go overboard on reducing clutter, it may cause a vacuum void and you will find what you got rid of has doubled in its place.

Sep 06

In Order to Have It You Have to Own It

The thought kept going through my mind; “In order to have it, you have to own it”.  What does it mean? I just finished a discussion with my eldest son on responsibility or more like it is someone else’s fault. Ahh the light of the 100 watt bulb comes on; to teach responsibility and accountability you have to own up to the issue and not shift the blame.  How often have we blamed outside influences for our lack of action.  What excuses have you used?  The economy is often cited; “The devil made me do it” often cited by Flip Wilson [ok that dates me a little] until you own up to your role you will not have what you seek. Instead of blaming other influences accept the circumstance of where you are and say to yourself “The buck stops here” and then identify ways that you could resolve the issue.

 

Sep 05

Distraction

DistractionsHave you ever had something you really needed to get done but things just seem to keep happening to prevent you from getting things done? This has been me for the past few weeks knowing that there were events that I needed to get done but still having problems getting er done.  Articles need to be written, product needing to be developed. Phone call about an armed robbery (big distraction) Ok calm the child down get child to counseling 14 hour work days the next 2 days OK we can do this I am off on Wednesday I will get this all done by the Thursday deadline I am sitting at the computer getting ready to write; I hear the wind pick up, the dogs are out; I call the dogs in as the last dog gets in the house a large limb comes flying across the yard and wipes out the storage shed. Just then the lights go out then back on off on off on please please off almost 24 hours later and still off. Picked up lots of limbs and debris from the yard while there was light but there is still work that needs to be done.

Here I am at McDonalds trying to crank out work and really going nowhere fast.

Lessons learned:

Do not put off for tomorrow what should have been done today for tomorrow the power may not be back on.

Create a list of ideas and put them on paper (in case you don’t have power you can reference the notes; also don’t count solely on electronics after a few hours the batteries will die)…

The bright point of the storm was I was already planning on getting rid of the shed I had been putting energy on simplifying life by getting rid of clutter the shed was empty except for the bikes so now I won’t have to worry about having to cart of the shed the city will carry it off for me in the debris.