What do you Stand For?

The other day an advertisement for Doc Marten shoes played before a movie trailer that I was trying to watch, and I couldn't help but think about it.  Here is the ad, along with another similar one for their campaign.

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKaac3zLE1c
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTXmlDzpba8

Their question and ad slogan is "What do you Stand for?"  Here are the answers given in the above videos.  I stand for...

• distortion
• the crowd
• making classic contemporary
• punk rock
• youth frustration
• rising against conformity
• keeping things simple
• the youth
• being unique
• getting shit done
• putting myself out there
• keeping people guessing
  

Some of the above answers are silly, or even pathetic (distortion, really?).  Many of them though are at least admirable character traits that I try to portray myself, especially the last four, or even five.  But to "stand for" something implies not just a personal characteristic, but a statement about what is the #1 most important thing to you.

For those of you who know me, or even if you've just been reading my blog for a while, hopefully my answer to the question of "What do you stand for?" is obvious:  I stand for the almighty God of the universe, and His son Jesus Christ.  They not only make life much more enjoyable (providing peace, love, joy, strength, depth, meaning, contentment), but they are the only things that truly have eternal implications.  Therefore everything else pales in comparison.

What about you?  What do you stand for?

The Mind or the Multitasking - ADHD version of "The Chicken or the Egg"

I read an article last week (see link) that talked about the negative effects of multitasking on the human brain.

Unfortunately for me though, my current job requires multitasking, to a large extent.  I have somewhere between six and ten tasks to accomplish at any given time, and the urgency of a particular task varies based on external events and who is making the request.  Often times I find that just when I start to focus on a specific task I get interrupted by a new request or question about the product I'm responsible for, or something related to it.  If not that, then it's a co-worker discussion around me, a phone call from my wife, or a random email.  Most of the time this doesn't bother me much - I'm pretty used to it and it keeps me from getting bored.

Lately though, I feel like I've been having a harder time staying focused on just one work task.  At home too, I have so many projects and things to get done that I find myself often challenged to decide which one to work on and then once I'm engaged it's not uncommon for me to get distracted by someone or by another priority that I want/need to make progress on.  I even had a hard time the other day sitting down to read the Bible and write in my journal, as I was thinking about various reasons to get up and get other things done.  I don't recall having this problem nearly as much before though, and after reading the article I couldn't help but wonder if maybe my brain has been adapting to the continuous multitasking that work and/or life has required of me.

Younger generations probably have it even worse, since they are inundated with multimedia and multitasking for the majority of their life. I know there are other factors to consider, but how much impact does this have on the increased diagnosis of mental disorders such as ADHD.  I'm not the only one to notice this coincidence either.

So how should we address this modern problem then?  If our minds are being forced to adapt to constantly switching between tasks and doing multiple things at once, then would it help to force ourselves to at least periodically and purposefully pursue behavior to combat this?  Here are some ideas of activities for this:

• Meditation
• Prolonged prayer (including not just talking, but also listening)
• Writing
• Turning off multimedia

Maybe I'm mistaken though, and it's all just genetic.  And perhaps the only thing that will help an excessively restless mind is to keep it engaged, active, and/or medicated.  I can't help but want to err on the side of discipline, determination, and deliberate behavioral modification though.

We All Want to be Remembered

I read this article (link) earlier in the week about a college student named Kendall Wernet who died while on a cruise ship.

Before that fateful day, Kendall had some great questions and introspective statements on his company's website when reflecting on the death of Robin Williams:

This got me thinking: How will the world react when I die? Will my face be on the news? Will people say it was a terrible occurrence? What will they remember about me?

Ask yourself these same questions.

Suddenly, you start to get this weird feeling inside of you that makes you question what you are doing with your life. Because, the truth is that we all want to make a difference and leave a mark on this world. We want to be remembered.

From the article it appears that Kendall Wernet was hoping/trying to make his mark on the world and to be remembered by (a) being successful at work and (b) helping others to do so also.  Now that he's gone though, and his face is on the news, is financial and occupational success what really matters?  If there is indeed an afterlife, then the answer is "not a damned bit".  Because right now the only thing that really matters to Kendall, and Robin Williams too, is whether or not they made it into heaven.  In addition to that #1 priority, here are the most important questions to me, regarding how I impact the world before I die:

1. Did I make it to heaven?
2. Did I help others to make it there (to heaven)?
3. How much spiritual impact did I have on the world (encourage others, speak truth, etc)?
4. Did I leave a memorable legacy for my family?
• Remain true to my wife.
• Raise my kids with all of the skills and knowledge that they need.
• Have a solid, loving relationship with all of the above.
• Provide a good (as close to ideal as possible) example of what/who a man should be?
5. Was I a good friend to those around me?

All of the other things that the world looks at as successful are mostly useless.  Because all of the other "marks" you can make on the world won't last very long after you're gone from it.  And since none of us know when we're going to die (on a weird cruise ship accident, or when you're 100 years old), isn't the smartest approach to first address priority #1 in the list above?  If so then the way to do this is by turning your attention and affection to Jesus, who is the key to getting to heaven.  That way no matter when you die you'll meet this objective.

Luke 23:32-43 mentions two thieves on the crosses next to Jesus - one on each side.  One of them said "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."  Jesus assured the thief that he would indeed make it to heaven.  And that is how we should all hope to be best remembered.

Weekend Update for Sept 19-21

I know very few people would care to read the following long post about my weekend escapades, but I still want to blog about it anyway, just for the sake of posterity.

FRIDAY NIGHT
Friday night I had just gotten home from a bonzai trip to Ft. Wayne Indiana.  I had driven up on Thursday evening, visited our supplier on Friday, the driven back Friday night.  I have no idea what Amanda and I did that evening and neither does she. It's not too surprising for me to forget, but it's unusual for both of us to have no recollection.  We might have watched a South Park episode.  Before bed though I got to play the tooth fairy for Emily, who lost one of her front teeth that day.

LITTLE GREY MOUSE?

Saturday morning I got a couple things done around the house before Lucas' soccer game.  Just before we were ready to leave for the game, the kids and I were waiting in the car for Amanda to come out of the house.  Then Emily yelled "look, a little grey mouse!".  I thought she might have seen it scuttle somewhere, never to be seen again, but she could still see it so we all got out of the car to have a look.  Sure enough, there it was roaming around in the mulch area near out garage door.  Then I realized and proclaimed "That's not a mouse, it's a mole!" We have been encountering a few piles of dirt in our yard and we had suspected it was due to moles.  When it ran onto the cement and started heading toward the opened garage door I instinctively stepped on it.  I had only meant to trap it though, until I could figure out what to do with it, but when I lifted my foot it looked like I had squished it dead.  

Well, the kids started freaking out.  Emily started crying (she's and Lucas was definitely upset too).  I really didn't think I had stepped on it that hard (I was surprised at the results), and if it was only injured then I didn't want it to be suffering with internal bleeding and pain.  So I decided in all my brilliance to fetch a machete with the intent to chop off its head.  When the kids realized what I was doing, then started freaking out more.  Amanda came out of the house at that moment and convinced me not to continue with my plan of mercy.  So instead I simply scooped it up with a small shovel, placed it in a ziplok back, and threw it in the trash.  Needless to say, the kids were still upset in the car, but I apologized and explained that I didn't want to hear it anymore and that's just the way the world works sometimes.  It probably wasn't the best reasoning, but it surprisingly seemed to help.

LUCAS SOCCER GAME

I insisted on bringing our dog Hope to the game with us, and she did pretty good for the most part.  I kept her leash reigned in close, but I'm glad she got to get out of the house a bit.  The weather was great for Lucas' soccer game too, and the coach kept him in it for ~3/4 of the game.  He's definitely getting better.  Amanda's parents joined us there and also to Penn Station for lunch (yum!).

WRETCHED FAN PROJECT

I worked on Emily's ceiling fan project for the rest of the day, and found yet another unexpected obstacle in the wiring.   This project has been taking me months to complete, and now it will be at least another week or two.  Ugh.

AWESOME DATE NIGHT

That evening was awesome!  Our friends, the Tipton family, watched the kids so Amanda and I could go on a date.  We take turns returning the favor for them also.  We started our date with dinner at a restaurant that was part of a hotel.  We never would have chosen it, except for a gift certificate that we had for restaurant.com (I think).  We had to pick from their selection of restaurants, and this place sounded OK.  Well, it turned out to be way better than we expected.  The food (and glass of wine) was uniquely flavored, very tasty, and mostly healthy too.   The ambiance was ok (nothing exciting, but clean and pleasing), and the service was great also.  Overall we were very pleased.  We followed that up with dessert and tasty decaf coffee at Starbucks (pumpkin spice latte and salted caramel mocha).  Then lastly we went to play outdoor putt-putt at Fairfield Fun Center.  Finding an outdoor place was harder than you'd think here, presumably because no one would want to play outside during the winter season.  We were the last people on the course before they closed.  Between the good food, perfect weather, and deep and thoughtful conversations it was a perfect date night.

SUNDAY'S BEAUTIFUL WEATHER, FAMILY RUN
Sunday morning we attended church as usual.  Then after lunch I got to watch the Bengals stomp Tennessee (33 to 7), and Amanda went climbing with Clara at Lifetime Fitness.  Clara did much better than we expected, considering how little she is!  Before dinner, we went for a jog as a family, stopping halfway at a small pond in the adjacent neighborhood..  Well, Amanda and I jogged, the big kids rode their bikes, and Clara rode in the stroller.  But it was still good exercise and we took our lazy dog along too - she surprisingly ran for almost the entire way!

When we returned home from the run, Clara wanted to stay outside and enjoy the weather.  So I grabbed a baseball and a small kid-sized glove and we both played catch for a while.

ULTIMATE FRISBEE
Finally, after dinner I went to church to help out with the high school youth group (like most Sunday evenings).  Before the worship/talk/small groups though we played Ultimate Frisbee.  More outdoor exercise is just fine for me!

It was a fantastic and memorable weekend.

Dart Board Project

I bought an electronic dart board shortly after college, when I was living in an apartment with my brother, who was in high school at the time (how we ended up living together is a long story).  Since those apartment days I've lived in four houses before this one, and have mounted it somewhere on the walls of all of them.

In this current house though, the room I really wanted to place it in is a 3-season room that's attached to the back of the house, in which 3 of the walls are all windows.  Placing the dart board on a windowed wall would not only block the view, but also risk a window breakage if a dart should miss the board.  The fourth wall is made of brick and is actually the back of the house (from before they added this room) and also has one window and a sliding glass door.  Mounting the board on the brick would require making holes in it, as well as ruining the tips of any darts that might miss the board.

So the solution I came up with is to make the dart board mount in the window that's in the brick wall, but also make it removable.  It could slide in and out of the mounting brackets that were previously used for the screen (when the window was exposed to the outside).  The end result can be seen in the pictures below.

This allows the walls to remain unmarred, but we can also still use the dart board (with minimal effort).  The height is regulation, and it's in a location that suits the room perfectly, both functionally and aesthetically.

Spiritually Speaking

Last Sunday evening I had the opportunity to speak to the high school youth group at our church.  I've done it quite a few times before at Horizon church (in Roseville, CA), but it has been several years since then.

I could probably spend a couple hours on a lesson/discussion and put a decent one together that way, but I can't help but try my best to pursue perfection with it.  I pontificate and pray over which topic to pursue.  When I finally make a decision about a topic then I write a basic outline.  Next comes collecting information and researching Bible verses.  Then reorganizing and rewriting several times.  For this topic I also put together slides and downloaded video clips to include with them.  At Horizon we didn't have a projector or computer in the youth room, so this is the first time I was able to make slides to go with the discussion.  While I love the extra dimension that multimedia provides, it also adds additional preparation time, especially since I reorganized and edited the slides as much or more than I did the verbal portion of the presentation.  When taking all of the steps and also my perfectionism into consideration, it becomes a long and painful preparation process.

In the end though, I was pretty happy with the result.  I think/hope the topic was interesting and relevant, and I felt comfortable with the presentation.  I think I spoke loudly enough, moved around a bit while I was speaking, hopefully avoided the ugly filler words (um, uh, etc.), and I issued a challenge for the kids that can not only grow their faith further but also impact the world more.  My biggest self-criticism is that it may have gone a little long in duration (although I'm not sure what I would have eliminated from it).

I still need to get feedback from Brian, the youth leader, but overall I think it went well.  It took a lot of time and effort, but between this speaking experience and the other ones that I've had, I would venture to say that public speaking may be one of my favorite things to do in life, especially when I have a topic/idea that I am passionate about (which is always the case with my faith) and a presentation that I'm happy with.  I absolutely love the feeling of imparting a new perspective and having the potential to positively influence people spiritually.

Special thanks goes to Brian Rogers for trusting me enough to speak to the 2-3 dozen kids at our church, and to God for giving me the topic/ideas to speak about.

Unexpected Date Night

The original plan on June 3rd was for me to attend a Reds game with a co-worker.  He volunteered to be a solicitor for ArtsWave, which is a charity organization dedicated to local artistic events and causes, and this was GE's demonstration of appreciation for his participation (say that three times fast).  It was supposed to be for GE employees only, since they were providing the tickets, which is why he invited me to go instead of his wife.  

The game was at 7pm, so I brought a change of clothes to work and was looking forward to going straight there after my workday was done.  However, at around 4:30pm, my co-worker informed me that he wasn't feeling well and was going to have to skip the game.  He was going to give me the tickets so I could still attend with someone else though.  I tried to find someone at work to go with me, but most everyone I knew was either gone for the day or unavailable, especially since it was so last minute.  So I called Amanda to see if she wanted to go and whether she could arrange for a babysitter.  

Her mom didn't want to give up taking her class at the gym, so Amanda called a few kids in our neighborhood.  Meanwhile, I drove to John's house to get the tickets from him.  He was kind enough to meet me at Kroger to reduce the drive time, but now it was 6:30pm.  I had the tickets in hand, but no sitter and no plans to actually attend the game.  I headed home to enjoy a normal night with my family.  

About halfway home, Amanda called my cell phone to inform me that someone just returned her call saying they were able to watch the kids.  We ended up getting to the game around 1/2 hour after it started, but we had free entrance, drink tickets, and great company.  

A couple of bonuses for the evening were (1) the team we played against was The San Francisco Giants, which was one of the closest teams to Sacramento (where we moved here from), and (2) the Reds won 8 to 3.