Update

It’s been nine days since I last posted. Let’s see what’s been happening.

-I finally found the missing left lens of my glasses. Today. After nine days of walking around with one lens in my frames. It was behind my recliner where I looked everyday and hadn’t found it. Funny how that works out.

– I finished watching West Wing. Tanner and I began watching the DVD seasons during school and became terribly addicted to it. There were many a nights where we’d have Hot Wok Chinese takeout while viewing the events behind the Bartlet Administration. There was even one Memorial Day in ’06 when we and the Benders attempted to spend the whole day watching season six. I fell asleep during the first episode but woke up again and made it through the next seven, I think. We shared breakfast, lunch and a lot of TV. I don’t remember much else of that day, though.
I never finished the seventh season. Only recently I found all seven season on sale at Best Buy, so I, uh, bought em. And now the show is complete. It was sad, really. I almost shed a tear during the last episode.

-I’m now playing Smallville in the background while I do other stuff. It is a completely different show than West Wing.

-In my attempt to clean my room I’ve uncovered a number of forgotten artifacts from high school. I just may share a few soon.

-I had some extra training to do for work last week. It was a nice change of pace to be in a classroom again but it was a bummer to drive the 2.5 hours each day getting there and back.

-I’m realizing more everyday that I’m a pretty calm person – except when I’m driving. I wouldn’t exactly call it road rage, but while on the road at work I find myself constantly berating other drivers (to myself, of course). It’s amazing how careless/bad some drivers are. So, each weeknight from about 3-7, my truck is filled with some laughter, some quiet, and a whole lot of shouting and grumbling in annoyance and frustration. Look out!

-It’s almost Friday. And that is a very good thing.

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Big Surprise: I’m a Joke.

In my rush to get out of bed and get dressed for church this past Sunday I hastily threw on my glasses only to have the left lens pop out of the frame. The left lens has been loose in my frames for months now and continues to pop out at unexpected and unprovoked times. Well, considering it was Sunday morning and I had slept myself into a corner with only 8 minutes to get completely ready, I decided then wasn’t the time to look for my long lost left lens. It’s now Monday night/Tuesday morning and I still can’t find it. I’ve taken out my contacts in preparation for bed and I still have just one lens in my glasses. This is just one of many, many things I do to myself to cause me utter frustration.

This is ridiculous. I’m a walking one-man slapstick comedy troupe with no audience.

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Compassion

It’s nearly 3 a.m. and I need to be in bed but I somehow can’t sleep yet.

There are a few other blogs that I read on a consistent basis, one of which belongs to artist Shaun Groves. He and 14 other bloggers have been sent to Uganda on a blogging mission by Compassion International. They’re getting an up-close look at the work Compassion is doing in this country for those people, seeing what the $32 a month sponsors give really provides.

It sounds like it’s been an eye-opening experience for them. Reading the stories helps me realize how valuable my “very little” is, how a small amount can go such a terribly long way.

Sometimes seeing need from a distance numbs the sting. It’s easier to remove myself from my responsibility when all I have to do is simply look in a different direction and, thus, stop seeing the need. I think the bloggers for Compassion have nowhere left to turn their heads. Poverty surrounds them. Lack surrounds them. Ugandans are just one of a number of people on this earth who don’t always have the basic means to survive. They struggle with limited resources and knowledge that affect their chances of seeing tomorrow while I, thousands of miles away, struggle to decide where to eat out for lunch.

Thanks to organizations like Compassion some Ugandans see brighter days. They’re not completely free from poverty. They haven’t completely rid themselves of all disease. But what they do have now that they did not before is this priceless gift called hope. Read about the hope that Shaun has seen. If you get a chance, check out some of the other bloggers on the Compassion trip here.

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Over My Head

Okay, so, I’ve been getting a lot of spam in my email account for the past several months – nothing too strange, just the Greatest Hits of spam: pills, pills, pills, debt reduction, mortgage quotes, I’ve won the lottery in Britain, I’ve inherited millions in Nigeria, etc.

But today I received this and it’s blowing my mind:

Subject: borrow

It said baa loudly and began to graze. The rider walked over and stoodand addressed my pinkie. Jim calling Madonette. Are you on-line? Now hear this. All Stainless Steel Rats will assemble at debarkatio

Umm, is there a cryptologist in the house?

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The Best Part

The best (and only good) part of Valentine’s Day is the great sale on candy afterwards. Half price on M&Ms, people! M&Ms!

People!

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Continued…

Cleaning your room while watching TV makes the whole process a lot more enjoyable (and quite a bit slower). I’ve now gone through Shaun of the Dead and a couple of episodes of West Wing. It’s been good.

I have these giant Rubbermaid tubs filled with odd papers, notebooks and scraps from about 1992-2002. I confess, I’m nostalgic. Or an obsessive pack-rat. There’s a lot of interesting things I’ve been finding that I’ve long forgotten about. Here’s one quick tidbit: I did horribly in school. It makes me laugh to think how I’ve gotten as far as I have. With no intent to brag, I can say that I’m a decently bright guy. But if all you saw were my grades from middle school through 9th grade 10th grade college grad school you too would question how I’m now able to function in society, or, like, walk up straight.

I’ve eliminated a lot of trash but I’m finding myself wanting to still save a lot of my school papers. I have discovered, though, the longer I spend on this the more willing I am to throw stuff out without feeling guilty. Bring on the next episode!

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It’s Time

It’s time for the inevitable room-clean. My room isn’t very large but I sure have taken advantage of nearly all available space. It’s now getting ridiculous and, thus, it’s time for the room-clean. While I have an idea where everything is (sorta), I would never be able to find any specific thing in this room when the time called for it, say, a pair of socks or a working pen. It’s starting to bug me. I know there’s going to come a time when I’m going to have a stack of papers that I’ll receive and a week later I’m going to need them again and I won’t be able to remember where it’s been buried. Maybe if I call this preventive maintenance I’ll feel better than admitting my room is in shambles.

This is going to take some time. I have school work from elementary school tucked away in giant tubs in my closet that I don’t believe I’m ready to part with. Anyone have any organizational advice for a guy with clinging tendencies and a very limited space?

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What the…

What’s going on?

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