Last Monday was the observed date celebrating the birth of Dr. Martin Luther King. The accolades and kind words offered up to his memory were testimony to the level of sacrifice Dr. King offered on behalf of all Americans.
I was in elementary school when he was murdered. I do remember hearing bits and pieces of his speeches in class, and even as a small kid being captivated by his command of language & his passion when preaching.
When I think back to speeches like the "I've Been to the Mountaintop" the night of 3 April 1968 at Mason Temple, three questions constantly come to mind.
One, what would Dr. King say today if he were living among us? On many levels, progress has been made. Multitudes of Americans benefit from his efforts to further equality among all of us. However, that journey isn't completely done. There are still areas where any of us are unfairly judged "by the color of our skin rather than the content of our character".
Two, would Dr. King be dismayed by the complacency and frivolity so evident in American culture? Our educational system isn't anywhere near where it needs to be - that means student commitment as well as system effectiveness. Too many of us worship at the altar of conspicuous consumption. Too few of us adhere to the Godly principle of "treat others as you'd want to be treated".
Three, would we as a nation be willing to listen to his advice? As a nation, we are more fractured than we were then. Individual desire seems to have trumped action for the common good.
On one level, Dr. King was just a man. Many today would probably say "who is this guy trampling on my freedom, trying to tell me how to live?" On a different level, he was one of a number of people in our shared history who have pushed our society forward, even despite active societal resistance.
For me, his message resonates just as strong today as it did back in the 60s. Can you identify what oppresses you today? Are you willing to confront it?
Monday, January 28, 2013
"A Man's Gotta Eat" - Baked Trout
I like to eat. Being divorced, I get to be responsible for whatever grub I cook & eat (for good or ill). From time to time, I will post here recipes I've learned, places I've dined, or things I've tried that leave me saying "never again". The stuff I try is usually simple. Maybe some of these would work for you as well.
I may even post insights from the "Cheeseburgers Across America Tour".
I'm not a great cook, but two key things I've learned are 1) have your ingredients near before starting, and 2) whenever possible, slow-cooking is best.
Anyway, last week, a friend gave me some fresh trout. Her brother got a string of fish from a friend who'd caught them in a stream not far from here. I got four that were already cleaned, but not de-boned. Bone removal was simple, though. Each fish was about 10 inches long (excluding the head, of course), and about 4 inches wide at the widest point.
The friend suggested this prep:
Turned out fine. The fish was delicate, not very oily/fishy.
I may even post insights from the "Cheeseburgers Across America Tour".
I'm not a great cook, but two key things I've learned are 1) have your ingredients near before starting, and 2) whenever possible, slow-cooking is best.
Anyway, last week, a friend gave me some fresh trout. Her brother got a string of fish from a friend who'd caught them in a stream not far from here. I got four that were already cleaned, but not de-boned. Bone removal was simple, though. Each fish was about 10 inches long (excluding the head, of course), and about 4 inches wide at the widest point.
The friend suggested this prep:
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees
- Slice a lemon, and put half a slice inside each cavity
- Add a small pat of butter
- Sprinkle a a dash or two of paprika
- Wrap securely in aluminium foil
- Place on the middle rack in the oven
- Cook for 30 minutes
Turned out fine. The fish was delicate, not very oily/fishy.
In Dreams - Here comes the game
Had a dream a few hours ago. Figure I'd better jot it down here.
I show up at a gym to participate in an "intramural reunion basketball game". Why a reunion, I have no idea. Anyway, I go into the locker room, and it's cluttered. Spare equipment is scattered about. Some of the lockers look dusty and stale, like they haven't been used in years. At the end of each aisle, there are sinks and urinals, and I have an insistent urge to go...
Other guys start filing in. Some players look like they just finished a workout. They are supremely fit, and eager for competition. Some dudes look like they've been sitting on couches the last few decades. Overweight, unshaven, but confident they can keep up in the upcoming game.
I'm somewhere in the middle. Not as fit as I was 30 years ago, but not completely out of shape. As guys tend to do, I find myself sizing up the other guys. Which will be on my team & which will be opponents? Which guy might I have to cover?
There is a sub-plot about my ordering pizza for the neighborhood surrounding the gym, except the pizza company failed to deliver the pizzas on time. So, as I'm walking around the gym to find out more about the upcoming game, there is some young guy in my ear complaining about the pizzas not being delivered.
I always end up waking from the dream before the game actually starts. I never find out the makeup of the teams or the result of the match up.
I've had parts of this dream recently, the parts about being in the dusty locker room & the feeling of something impending. Maybe something big is coming, but I have no idea what.
I show up at a gym to participate in an "intramural reunion basketball game". Why a reunion, I have no idea. Anyway, I go into the locker room, and it's cluttered. Spare equipment is scattered about. Some of the lockers look dusty and stale, like they haven't been used in years. At the end of each aisle, there are sinks and urinals, and I have an insistent urge to go...
Other guys start filing in. Some players look like they just finished a workout. They are supremely fit, and eager for competition. Some dudes look like they've been sitting on couches the last few decades. Overweight, unshaven, but confident they can keep up in the upcoming game.
I'm somewhere in the middle. Not as fit as I was 30 years ago, but not completely out of shape. As guys tend to do, I find myself sizing up the other guys. Which will be on my team & which will be opponents? Which guy might I have to cover?
There is a sub-plot about my ordering pizza for the neighborhood surrounding the gym, except the pizza company failed to deliver the pizzas on time. So, as I'm walking around the gym to find out more about the upcoming game, there is some young guy in my ear complaining about the pizzas not being delivered.
I always end up waking from the dream before the game actually starts. I never find out the makeup of the teams or the result of the match up.
I've had parts of this dream recently, the parts about being in the dusty locker room & the feeling of something impending. Maybe something big is coming, but I have no idea what.
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
"Black Monday" was a "Blue Monday"
(with apologies to the National Football League and Fats Domino)
I am a football fan. Admittedly, I love baseball more, but I enjoy a good football game as much as anyone. Now that the regular season is over, the season of change for non-playoff teams begins in earnest.
The phrase "Black Monday" was used quite a bit yesterday as seven coaches and five general managers got "released" from their duties (don't you just love euphemisms?). I don't take lightly coaches and staffs losing their jobs, whether it's during a holiday season or any other time. For anyone who's been fired, it can be profoundly difficult to process.
As a San Diego Chargers fan, I saw the two-fer - the coach and GM of my favorite team were dismissed. Almost immediately, a couple of possible successors were identified. Interestingly, those same proposed candidates were suggested for other jobs. Some of those open jobs are gonna be filled by men who weren't the first choice of the hiring team.
That got me thinking - how does one do the best possible job of identifying the right candidate who has the necessary mix of job knowledge, leadership, poise under pressure, attention to detail and big-picture perspective?
It's not just sports, obviously. In business, government, religion, the military and other places where large numbers of people are subordinate to one/a few key leaders, it appears there are more opportunities to lead than there are leaders who are the right fit and possess the needed qualities.
I'll watch with keen interest the NFL coaching carousel process, watching as much or maybe more than the upcoming playoffs.
I am a football fan. Admittedly, I love baseball more, but I enjoy a good football game as much as anyone. Now that the regular season is over, the season of change for non-playoff teams begins in earnest.
The phrase "Black Monday" was used quite a bit yesterday as seven coaches and five general managers got "released" from their duties (don't you just love euphemisms?). I don't take lightly coaches and staffs losing their jobs, whether it's during a holiday season or any other time. For anyone who's been fired, it can be profoundly difficult to process.
As a San Diego Chargers fan, I saw the two-fer - the coach and GM of my favorite team were dismissed. Almost immediately, a couple of possible successors were identified. Interestingly, those same proposed candidates were suggested for other jobs. Some of those open jobs are gonna be filled by men who weren't the first choice of the hiring team.
That got me thinking - how does one do the best possible job of identifying the right candidate who has the necessary mix of job knowledge, leadership, poise under pressure, attention to detail and big-picture perspective?
It's not just sports, obviously. In business, government, religion, the military and other places where large numbers of people are subordinate to one/a few key leaders, it appears there are more opportunities to lead than there are leaders who are the right fit and possess the needed qualities.
I'll watch with keen interest the NFL coaching carousel process, watching as much or maybe more than the upcoming playoffs.
CTD3
"Happy New Year". There, that's said & done.
Like more than a few veterans, I still have a bit of wanderlust deep in my soul. One of the best things about being in uniform was the concept of waking up in one place, doing your duty, and ending up in a totally different place at the end of the mission. I don't get nearly enough of that these days. Another was, you knew that in a few years, you would be expected to pack up and move to a new duty location. Didn't like the weather or the culture? In three or four years, you'd be in a different part of the country or even a different part of the world.
Anyway, for many months now I've had the ol' desire kick in. The town where I live is a nice place, scenic & relatively peaceful. I want something different. That's where the acronym started.
Counting The Days - in the military, one thing you could count on was most members didn't keep the same job/duties throughout their careers. About the time you got proficient at your specific duties, it was time to move on to bigger challenges, greater responsibilities. Also, the change could help you compete for higher skill qualification, promotion, further increased responsibility, etc..
That feeling gets ingrained in your system, to the point where I find myself many days looking for something new & uplifting. I'm definitely ready for change. I find myself counting the days until I can change location and take on the new challenges that result.
Last Saturday while running errands, I found myself thinking about New Year's Day. I wondered about the concept of resolutions and how for a change I actually maintained a few throughout the last year. I was able keep active physically. I did take the time to read a bit more than most years. I did a bit more community service than previous years. None of this is meant as a brag, but acknowledgement that every day doesn't have to be a compromise of "I didn't do X because I was obligated to do Y".
In the midst of the out-and-about, a couple of other thoughts popped up.
Close The Door - In previous years, I beat myself up relentlessly when I failed to maintain a resolution past mid-January. So, it finally hit me that I could close the door on the past. For decades, I'd been taught not to dwell on the past. For those same decades, I'd rationalize that away by convincing myself "I don't want to repeat the mistakes of the past". It's finally hit me that I can close the door on my past. While those experiences are part of me, I don't have to make them an active part of today's decision-making. Better late than not at all, I guess.
Clear The Decks - I'd guess most of us are surrounded by nonsense, compassed about by the madness of the world. I have allowed myself to be dragged into it from time to time. I found myself aggravated by so many of life's inconveniences, where I found myself in a constant state of agitation. And for what? What do I actually gain by cultivating such agitation? Yep, it was a classic what-was-I-thinking moment. So, a goal is to clear the decks, sweep away those minor aggravations that take away my joy.
As I mulled over these thoughts, I realized the clichés could share the same acronym. Elementary, to be sure, but I got a chuckle out of it. Since I found it somewhat funny, I figured I'd better write it down so I didn't forget it. (Yeah, I'm easily entertained.)
I've heard of folk writing affirmations & taping them to a bathroom mirror or some other place where they'd be seen regularly. I used to think that was a bunch of hokum, that I was too smart and sophisticated to resort to such.
This time, I did it. This acronym is taped on my bathroom mirror. It still seems like hokum, but now I'm enjoying the hokum instead of mocking it.
Let's see how funny it seems as the months roll by...
Like more than a few veterans, I still have a bit of wanderlust deep in my soul. One of the best things about being in uniform was the concept of waking up in one place, doing your duty, and ending up in a totally different place at the end of the mission. I don't get nearly enough of that these days. Another was, you knew that in a few years, you would be expected to pack up and move to a new duty location. Didn't like the weather or the culture? In three or four years, you'd be in a different part of the country or even a different part of the world.
Anyway, for many months now I've had the ol' desire kick in. The town where I live is a nice place, scenic & relatively peaceful. I want something different. That's where the acronym started.
Counting The Days - in the military, one thing you could count on was most members didn't keep the same job/duties throughout their careers. About the time you got proficient at your specific duties, it was time to move on to bigger challenges, greater responsibilities. Also, the change could help you compete for higher skill qualification, promotion, further increased responsibility, etc..
That feeling gets ingrained in your system, to the point where I find myself many days looking for something new & uplifting. I'm definitely ready for change. I find myself counting the days until I can change location and take on the new challenges that result.
Last Saturday while running errands, I found myself thinking about New Year's Day. I wondered about the concept of resolutions and how for a change I actually maintained a few throughout the last year. I was able keep active physically. I did take the time to read a bit more than most years. I did a bit more community service than previous years. None of this is meant as a brag, but acknowledgement that every day doesn't have to be a compromise of "I didn't do X because I was obligated to do Y".
In the midst of the out-and-about, a couple of other thoughts popped up.
Close The Door - In previous years, I beat myself up relentlessly when I failed to maintain a resolution past mid-January. So, it finally hit me that I could close the door on the past. For decades, I'd been taught not to dwell on the past. For those same decades, I'd rationalize that away by convincing myself "I don't want to repeat the mistakes of the past". It's finally hit me that I can close the door on my past. While those experiences are part of me, I don't have to make them an active part of today's decision-making. Better late than not at all, I guess.
Clear The Decks - I'd guess most of us are surrounded by nonsense, compassed about by the madness of the world. I have allowed myself to be dragged into it from time to time. I found myself aggravated by so many of life's inconveniences, where I found myself in a constant state of agitation. And for what? What do I actually gain by cultivating such agitation? Yep, it was a classic what-was-I-thinking moment. So, a goal is to clear the decks, sweep away those minor aggravations that take away my joy.
As I mulled over these thoughts, I realized the clichés could share the same acronym. Elementary, to be sure, but I got a chuckle out of it. Since I found it somewhat funny, I figured I'd better write it down so I didn't forget it. (Yeah, I'm easily entertained.)
I've heard of folk writing affirmations & taping them to a bathroom mirror or some other place where they'd be seen regularly. I used to think that was a bunch of hokum, that I was too smart and sophisticated to resort to such.
This time, I did it. This acronym is taped on my bathroom mirror. It still seems like hokum, but now I'm enjoying the hokum instead of mocking it.
Let's see how funny it seems as the months roll by...
Friday, December 28, 2012
For the Lonely at Christmastime
Commercials showing happy couples may be enjoyable to most, but to some those ads sting. TV or movie scenes of people coming home to appreciative family and friends can warm the heart, unless you don't have that in your particular life. The classic cliché of kissing a loved one at the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve is sweet, unless you don't have that special someone who'll let you kiss 'em.
For those who are lonely throughout the year, this season only sharpens the pain. What to do about it? Here are a few suggestions for your consideration:
First, God loves you, regardless of who you are or what you've done. That's not the same as His being your vending machine (which is a great topic for another time).
Second, you already have permission to love yourself. That's not to say you have clearance to do self-destructive things for your enjoyment. For example, I love to eat. If I eat a large pizza each day as part of "loving myself", that ain't love.
Third, I'd suspect each of us has something we like to do that is uplifting, that clears our heads, that has a positive effect in our lives. For me, getting outside in fresh air always clears my head. Going for a long drive can be exhilarating as well.
In any event, making active choices can lift one from those holiday doldrums. That act of choosing an uplifting opportunity doesn't depend on anyone else being around. Yep, you can choose a different path.
How do I know all this to be effective and true? Let's "ask" the late Levi Stubbs...
For those who are lonely throughout the year, this season only sharpens the pain. What to do about it? Here are a few suggestions for your consideration:
First, God loves you, regardless of who you are or what you've done. That's not the same as His being your vending machine (which is a great topic for another time).
Second, you already have permission to love yourself. That's not to say you have clearance to do self-destructive things for your enjoyment. For example, I love to eat. If I eat a large pizza each day as part of "loving myself", that ain't love.
Third, I'd suspect each of us has something we like to do that is uplifting, that clears our heads, that has a positive effect in our lives. For me, getting outside in fresh air always clears my head. Going for a long drive can be exhilarating as well.
In any event, making active choices can lift one from those holiday doldrums. That act of choosing an uplifting opportunity doesn't depend on anyone else being around. Yep, you can choose a different path.
How do I know all this to be effective and true? Let's "ask" the late Levi Stubbs...
Friday, December 21, 2012
The Longest Night
No, this isn't the title of some comic book miniseries. Tonight, somewhere downtown, a bunch of folk will gather to remember the homeless who have passed away in 2012. It's a yearly observance. Other cities do similar:
http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_22227633/family-and-friends-remember-147-homeless-deaths-denver?IADID=Search-www.denverpost.com-www.denverpost.com
I'm not saying this is a God-sent calling for my life. I do admit, I seem to relate to some on the street better than the "haves" I encounter.
Somebody should remember them.
http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_22227633/family-and-friends-remember-147-homeless-deaths-denver?IADID=Search-www.denverpost.com-www.denverpost.com
I'm not saying this is a God-sent calling for my life. I do admit, I seem to relate to some on the street better than the "haves" I encounter.
Somebody should remember them.
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