Sunday, February 26, 2012

A day with Nick

     So my friend Nick came into town to hang out for a bit and see some old friends.

In the car heading to see some friends.
 
Stopped st Target for a card .

Stopped off to surprise the mother to be and drop off some gifts.
 Amber wasnt able to make it because she was stuck at home with this.  Poor Penny got spayed so she has to wear a cone for a week.
Posed for a photo with some of the old gang from high school. Good to see them again even though it was a short visit.
Then it was off to see the father to be.
Had a few beers and some food.
Chris was kind enough to lend me his hoodie because it was cold in the bar.
Quick stop by the Shoe for a photo.
Finished the evening playing Mad Gab and having a few drinks. 

Man it was great to see Nick again everyone was excited to see him.  Penny is doing well, she was a bit out of it yesterday but woke up this morning back to her old rowdy self again. 

Thursday, February 16, 2012

News

            Recently I decided to take a look at the newspaper, so I went to the newspaper.  Well, actually I saved a $1.50 and looked at the Columbus Dispatch online and with no surprise the first head line was a political one.  The next story had to do with college construction, then a murder story, a very short article about the losing Blue Jackets (hockey team), and so on and so on.  As I “clicked” through the pages I discovered more and more negative type stories through out the paper.  So I moved on to another, the Chicago tribune, and it continued with more negative stories over positive.  So I was intrigued to see if this negative news trend was the same in other papers, so to the LA Times, then the Oregonian, Atlanta Journal, and a few others that I could look at without having to subscribe.   It was all pretty much the same pattern more negative then positive.  I can say I wasn’t that surprised.  But then I started thinking, “is it just the news or are people truly negative more so than positive?”  For the most part, yes.  I work in a medical field where I am in contact with anywhere from 5 to 40 different people a day, and amidst the polite small chatter there is usually a negative spurt of words that are said.  Most recently it has been about the weather too cold, too wet, or just not perfect for someone to be out in.  Now I'm not one to say anything because I complain about the weather myself, but some people just go off about it.  Really I have no reason to complain, I live in the north, its February, and its 45 degrees out, at least I’m not piled up to my knees in snow with temps at negative 10.  Another obvious is gas prices, I hear that quite a bit.  Since I work at a major medical center we see patients from all over the state of Ohio and some from out of state, but it’s the people that live within a 5 mile radius that complain the most.  Come on people if you are that upset buy a car that gets 30 miles to the gallon or buy a bike, Denmark is one of the happiest places on earth and almost everyone rides a bike and their economy isn’t crap, I see a pattern (love them Danish).  The list goes on about what people have to complain or be negative about and I feel that just brings me down to a negative slump sop by the time I get off work I’m grouchy and tired of hearing it. Then amber has to deal with me being crabby and that’s no fun for her or me. 
            So I have decided to fight back, that’s right I’m going on an anti-negativity campaign.  For every negative thing someone says to me whether it is a complaint about the weather or whatever, I will spout back a positive. This will be more of an experiment then a challenge and the judge is my wife since she gets to deal with me everyday.  “Experts” say that when you feel positive you tend to be healthier so I plan on seeing if it helps.  I will give my self a month to see if things change for the better.  I will take a weekly set of vitals weight, blood pressure, pulse rate, and a few others then after a month see if things change.  Maybe even get amber to chime in on my attitude to see if she says there is an improvement.  
            So until next time, have a nice day (positive).


 Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions.”
                                                                                    -Dalai Lama

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Chris and abandoned people

A good friend of mine, Chris, recently started a blog, http://whatisityousay.blogspot.com/, which I was happy about because I like hearing him talk especially the stories. I think it’s because he can be so detailed when he describes objects in his stories that you almost say to him, “ yea, I remember that place,” when in all actuality you have never been there.  Anyway, he wrote about his dream job which is a music producer/record label owner, providing the world with new and wonderful sounds. Well it got me thinking, what my dream job would be?  Over the years I have gone back and forth on what would be awesome to do for a living, super hero, doctor, racecar driver, and every other boys dream, but there is one job that has never escaped me as being one of the most extraordinary jobs.  I don’t know what to call it and it’s something that no one really thinks about but sees it every day.  There is a job where movie production companies pay a person to travel the globe searching for places to film movies.  Think about it, all expenses paid to where ever you want to go.  It could be just the next town over or across the globe.  You could be spending time on a beach in a paradise type-setting, strolling down the Great Wall of China, or creeping around corners of an abandoned town trying to avoid rats and tetanus.  Where ever you were or are going you know that even if you had seen that place a thousand times or if it was a new one to you, millions of people would get to see it when that movie hit the big screen. 
Talking about abandoned towns and dream jobs, another job I would be happy to do is free lance photographer.  Again, you would get to travel the globe taking pictures of whatever you wanted and selling them to magazines or to the public for them to decorate their houses or offices.   I am always looking at photographer’s web sites and blogs just to see what’s out there.  I have been really intrigued by photographs of abandon towns, amusement parks, buildings and even people.  “Abandoned people?”  Well kind of.   There have been a few sites where people take pictures of homeless people, a kind of socially abandoned person, someone people tend to avoid on the streets or struggle not to look at while you’re in your car and they’re standing there with a sign asking for help.   One name of photographer that sticks out is Lee Jeffries.  When looking at his photos of people, just like Chris’ stories, there is so much detail.  You can see not only the person but the emotion they have, pain, sorrow, regret, sometimes even happiness.   It’s compelling, surreal, amazing, and awe inspiring all at the same time.  Anyway all you have to do is Google Lee Jeffries and you will see what I’m talking about.
So, check out Chris’ blog and lee Jefferies, they may inspire you.  So until next time, Paul is the walrus.  

“You must do the thing you think you cannot do.”    -Eleanor Roosevelt