Honestly, I think my mind must be a little fried or something because I haven't been able to come up with much to write about lately. Yet, I miss writing, and so tonight I'm just going to write about August Sundays.
August Sundays are probably some of my most favorite days in the year. Today, for example, started out by waking up and reading. (I'm reading Reliquary, the sequel to Preston and Child's Relic. These guys are amazing!) Then, it was time for some coffee. Typically, I would take my blanket and pillows out to the porch and bask in the sun on Sunday morning. However, it was hazy and not too sunny. So I took the coffee and went back to my bed. I learned that if the pillows are all propped up just right, it is possible to read in bed and drink coffee. It doesn't get much better than that. (By the way, I have settled on 2 cups of coffee a day. A lone cup a day just wasn't working out.)
Around 11:30, I packed my back-pack, filled my water bottle, grabbed my bike helmet, and road out to Mom and Dad's. Now some of you might think it is way too hot to ride bike. However, I have been waiting all summer for heat like this. (I think this probably comes from my Grandpa Wise. He likes the heat, too.) Post-lunch included basking in the sun and reading while the food digested. After an essential pit stop, I headed out on a 10 mile run. It probably sounds kind of gross, but I just feel really alive running out in the hot weather with the sweat seeping out. This afternoon's winds interacted with the sweat to provide some welcome relief.
After biking back into town, I read some more, did some dishes, and even cleaned (crazy, I know).
Then, I headed into work to finish cleaning out my cubicle for Matt (most likely, there will be more to come on this tomorrow).
So all-in-all nothing earth-shattering or even that exciting. However, it certainly is wonderful to just bask in the glory of a wonderful August Sunday.
Take care,
Todd
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Locked In
Tonight, my extreme strength (right) got a little out of control. The high temperature as of late have caused my front door to warp. Unfortunately, it warped in such a way that the deadbolt would not slide open when I turned the twist knob. This evening, I wanted to open the door to go onto the front porch, and when I turned the twist knob, it sheared right off the deadbolt. So for now, I can only use the side door. Of course, I tried a few things and then decided my time would be better spent running. Maybe D.J., one of the maintenance guys at work, will have a strategy for getting this door open!
Sunday, August 9, 2009
I Cannot Find the Way Alone
Last week, Trent sent me an email inquiring about a hymn that his grandma was trying to find. The song he asked about was I Cannot Find the Way Alone. Well, I have played most of the songs in the UMC and Celebration hymnals and was pretty confident this song was not in either of those books. However, at lunch-time one day last week, I checked out the index of each book and could not find anything that matched. So when all else fails, Google it. Sure enough, within moments, I was reading the lyrics and even listening to the song on Youtube.
As I journey through this vale of sorrow
The way seems so strange and unknown
Lord, I need a helping hand to borrow
For I cannot find the way alone
I cannot find the way without You
Dear Lord, look down from Thy throne
And make Thy light to shine around me
For I cannot find the way alone
When the raging storms of life confound me
Dear Lord, wilt Thou keep me Thine own?
Let me feel Thy precious arms around me
For I cannot find the way alone
And make Thy light to shine around me
For I cannot find the way alone
Tonight, I pulled up the lyrics again to read them over again. The first line struck me. What is a "vale of sorrow?" Onward to m-w.com and the definition of vale:
Main Entry: vale
Pronunciation: \ˈvāl\
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French val, from Latin valles, vallis; perhaps akin to Latin volvere to roll — more at voluble
Date: 14th century
Pronunciation: \ˈvāl\
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French val, from Latin valles, vallis; perhaps akin to Latin volvere to roll — more at voluble
Date: 14th century
We live in a world of incredible pain, death, and sickness - a vale of sorrow. A lot of times things just don't seem to make much sense. Maybe it is death, a troubled economy, depression, sickness. Whatever it is, it can settle in like an oppressive fog making the next steps unclear. It can be paralyzing. Yet, this simple song reminds of someone who guides through the storms.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Saul's Mishap: All or Nothing
As I continue to slowly work my way through 1 Samuel, I have been pretty fascinated by some of the stories. The most recent story to catch my attention involves Saul and his disobedience. In 1 Samuel 15:2-3, God gives Saul some very clear instructions:
"'I'm about to get even with Amalek for ambushing Israel when Israel came up out of Egypt. Here's what you are to do: Go to war against Amalek. Put everything connected with Amalek under a holy ban. And no exceptions! This is to be total destruction—men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys—the works.'"
God says, "No exceptions."
So, of course, like any good subject, Saul makes some exceptions in verses 7-9:
Then Saul went after Amalek, from the canyon all the way to Shur near the Egyptian border. He captured Agag, king of Amalek, alive. Everyone else was killed under the terms of the holy ban. Saul and the army made an exception for Agag, and for the choice sheep and cattle. They didn't include them under the terms of the holy ban. But all the rest, which nobody wanted anyway, they destroyed as decreed by the holy ban.
God was not very happy with Saul. In fact, God rejected Saul as king of Israel.
Saul decided not to listen completely listen to God. Sure, he listened to most of what God had to say. He had the idea, but he failed to listen completely to what God had to say.
Last night, Trent and I were riding bike and I mentioned this story. Trent said that this is pretty much how a lot of us our with God. We tend to hold back a little bit - save just a little bit for ourselves.
In my life, this has been a pretty common theme. I have always tried to have a back-up plan. The most significant example involves work. Because I have a teaching license, there is always just this little piece of me lingering back and wondering about teaching. Lately, I have been wondering what it would be to let go of this and just dive fully into my work in technical services at Coleman. Well, let's just say it has evolved from wondering about to acting upon these thoughts. Honestly, I can say that the last few weeks have turned into some of the most enjoyable days of my tenure at Copperfield-Coleman Cable. Sure it is stressful and I still have problems with anger. Yet, it is also exciting and even interesting again. In a lot of ways, I feel more relaxed and am grasping the importance of relationships and building bridges. I'm pretty interested to see what the next weeks and months have in store.
Take care,
Todd
"'I'm about to get even with Amalek for ambushing Israel when Israel came up out of Egypt. Here's what you are to do: Go to war against Amalek. Put everything connected with Amalek under a holy ban. And no exceptions! This is to be total destruction—men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys—the works.'"
God says, "No exceptions."
So, of course, like any good subject, Saul makes some exceptions in verses 7-9:
Then Saul went after Amalek, from the canyon all the way to Shur near the Egyptian border. He captured Agag, king of Amalek, alive. Everyone else was killed under the terms of the holy ban. Saul and the army made an exception for Agag, and for the choice sheep and cattle. They didn't include them under the terms of the holy ban. But all the rest, which nobody wanted anyway, they destroyed as decreed by the holy ban.
God was not very happy with Saul. In fact, God rejected Saul as king of Israel.
Saul decided not to listen completely listen to God. Sure, he listened to most of what God had to say. He had the idea, but he failed to listen completely to what God had to say.
Last night, Trent and I were riding bike and I mentioned this story. Trent said that this is pretty much how a lot of us our with God. We tend to hold back a little bit - save just a little bit for ourselves.
In my life, this has been a pretty common theme. I have always tried to have a back-up plan. The most significant example involves work. Because I have a teaching license, there is always just this little piece of me lingering back and wondering about teaching. Lately, I have been wondering what it would be to let go of this and just dive fully into my work in technical services at Coleman. Well, let's just say it has evolved from wondering about to acting upon these thoughts. Honestly, I can say that the last few weeks have turned into some of the most enjoyable days of my tenure at Copperfield-Coleman Cable. Sure it is stressful and I still have problems with anger. Yet, it is also exciting and even interesting again. In a lot of ways, I feel more relaxed and am grasping the importance of relationships and building bridges. I'm pretty interested to see what the next weeks and months have in store.
Take care,
Todd
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Weaner
Okay, so this week I'm a weaner. Please note the spelling! I just thought it would be humorous to have the title of the blog post be weaner because of my experiment to wean down my coffee consumption.
Last week, I decided that it would be a good idea to start backing off on my coffee consumption. (This idea was not mine. I heard about it from someone else and it sounded like a good idea.) My consumption level had climbed to 4-5 cups in the morning and an occasional cup in the afternoon on particularly tiresome days. This just seemed like too much. I started needing to have that cup with me just to get through the mornings. So last week, I backed down to strictly two cups a day. After a week at two cups, I felt like a conqueror. It was no problem! In fact, on Sunday, I went without coffee for the entire day.
Then, Monday.
1 cup a day.
Not good.
My typical routine in the morning is to stop by my desk for a few minutes and then head out to get that first cup of coffee from the break room. Only on Monday, the first cup was also the last cup. I really couldn't believe how much I longed for that second cup of coffee. Unfortunately, the situation did not improve on Tuesday or Wednesday. In fact, today, I almost poured a second cup in the early afternoon.
This has proven to be a much more difficult project than anticipated. There is just something about drinking that warm liquid. I enjoy the Starbucks experience and making French pressed coffee to drink with Jenn.
What will the the future hold? I'm not sure. However, it is still a goal to get through this week drinking 1 cup a day.
Later,
Todd
Last week, I decided that it would be a good idea to start backing off on my coffee consumption. (This idea was not mine. I heard about it from someone else and it sounded like a good idea.) My consumption level had climbed to 4-5 cups in the morning and an occasional cup in the afternoon on particularly tiresome days. This just seemed like too much. I started needing to have that cup with me just to get through the mornings. So last week, I backed down to strictly two cups a day. After a week at two cups, I felt like a conqueror. It was no problem! In fact, on Sunday, I went without coffee for the entire day.
Then, Monday.
1 cup a day.
Not good.
My typical routine in the morning is to stop by my desk for a few minutes and then head out to get that first cup of coffee from the break room. Only on Monday, the first cup was also the last cup. I really couldn't believe how much I longed for that second cup of coffee. Unfortunately, the situation did not improve on Tuesday or Wednesday. In fact, today, I almost poured a second cup in the early afternoon.
This has proven to be a much more difficult project than anticipated. There is just something about drinking that warm liquid. I enjoy the Starbucks experience and making French pressed coffee to drink with Jenn.
What will the the future hold? I'm not sure. However, it is still a goal to get through this week drinking 1 cup a day.
Later,
Todd
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Continuing from Previous Post
So I'm back to blogging after abandoning Thursday's post.
Today was just a beautiful day and a much needed break for me. The day consisted of a lot of reading, bike riding, and walking. Sometimes the pace of life just gets too intense and it is essential to just unplug for a day. You might be saying something about me just getting back from two retreats and a camping weekend. But a day like today is just different - no agenda, mostly alone, a time to simply be, a time to decompress, a time to just enjoy life.
On Friday night, I headed down to Rensselaer to visit Jenn. I did not sleep great the previous night so was in need of a coffee to keep me awake on the drive down. For quite some time, I have known that there is a Starbucks at the Martins in Plymouth. However, I just could not remember the location of the Martins. However, on Friday evening, the light bulb went on and I knew exactly the location of the Martins and sure enough there was a Starbucks. Well, on Saturday morning, I woke up with a sore throat and ear ache so was really in need of a warm beverage on my throat. So I went to the Starbucks at the Plymouth Martins again on my way to Bremen. As the lady handed me the coffee she asked if I was interested in the free donut that they were offering.
"Free donut. Are you serious?" I exclaimed. (I'm not exaggerating, this was a major exclamation.)
"Sure," she replied, "a free donut with every grande or larger beverage compliments of Martins."
So I thanked her and grabbed a delicious donut with apples in it. (The apples made it healthy, of course.) She knew I was pretty excited and said that she was glad to make my day. (She really did make my day.) This turned into a Starbucks-Martins Experience.
Well, honestly, I can't figure out how to segue back into my other post from Thursday. But I wanted to return back to this whole idea of appointing a king. On the surface, the request seems somewhat innocuous. Yet, it was far from harmless. By asking for a king, the Israelites turned down the King, God. Just like everyone else, they wanted a mortal to be their king.
This story applies to every day life. How many times do I deny God and appoint other things or people as kings in my life? How many times do we all do this?
Some kings in my life...
Coffee - it might seem goofy but a friend recently backed down coffee consumption and it kind of dawned on me that my coffee consumption was getting kind of out of hand. So this week I'm hoping to be down to a cup a day. (Last week was two cups a day.)
The opinions of others - a lot of the time I'm way to concerned about what others think instead of thinking about what God thinks of me.
Fear - I struggle with fear and it is easy to let this take control of life. Yet, trusting in God vanquishes those fears.
The list of potential "kings" in our lives is endless...
Money
Name brands
The most recent fads
Cars
The "American Dream" (it has become more than little warped)
TV shows
Facebook
Alcohol
_______________ (fill in the blank)
So I guess this is something that I'm hoping to think about more on the daily journey. Who is really the king in my life?
In closing, tonight I would just like to remember the ill, the suffering, and the grieving. Maybe you can do this, too.
Take care,
Todd
Today was just a beautiful day and a much needed break for me. The day consisted of a lot of reading, bike riding, and walking. Sometimes the pace of life just gets too intense and it is essential to just unplug for a day. You might be saying something about me just getting back from two retreats and a camping weekend. But a day like today is just different - no agenda, mostly alone, a time to simply be, a time to decompress, a time to just enjoy life.
On Friday night, I headed down to Rensselaer to visit Jenn. I did not sleep great the previous night so was in need of a coffee to keep me awake on the drive down. For quite some time, I have known that there is a Starbucks at the Martins in Plymouth. However, I just could not remember the location of the Martins. However, on Friday evening, the light bulb went on and I knew exactly the location of the Martins and sure enough there was a Starbucks. Well, on Saturday morning, I woke up with a sore throat and ear ache so was really in need of a warm beverage on my throat. So I went to the Starbucks at the Plymouth Martins again on my way to Bremen. As the lady handed me the coffee she asked if I was interested in the free donut that they were offering.
"Free donut. Are you serious?" I exclaimed. (I'm not exaggerating, this was a major exclamation.)
"Sure," she replied, "a free donut with every grande or larger beverage compliments of Martins."
So I thanked her and grabbed a delicious donut with apples in it. (The apples made it healthy, of course.) She knew I was pretty excited and said that she was glad to make my day. (She really did make my day.) This turned into a Starbucks-Martins Experience.
Well, honestly, I can't figure out how to segue back into my other post from Thursday. But I wanted to return back to this whole idea of appointing a king. On the surface, the request seems somewhat innocuous. Yet, it was far from harmless. By asking for a king, the Israelites turned down the King, God. Just like everyone else, they wanted a mortal to be their king.
This story applies to every day life. How many times do I deny God and appoint other things or people as kings in my life? How many times do we all do this?
Some kings in my life...
Coffee - it might seem goofy but a friend recently backed down coffee consumption and it kind of dawned on me that my coffee consumption was getting kind of out of hand. So this week I'm hoping to be down to a cup a day. (Last week was two cups a day.)
The opinions of others - a lot of the time I'm way to concerned about what others think instead of thinking about what God thinks of me.
Fear - I struggle with fear and it is easy to let this take control of life. Yet, trusting in God vanquishes those fears.
The list of potential "kings" in our lives is endless...
Money
Name brands
The most recent fads
Cars
The "American Dream" (it has become more than little warped)
TV shows
Alcohol
_______________ (fill in the blank)
So I guess this is something that I'm hoping to think about more on the daily journey. Who is really the king in my life?
In closing, tonight I would just like to remember the ill, the suffering, and the grieving. Maybe you can do this, too.
Take care,
Todd
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