Dang, I’m hooked.

My buddy Brandon Bohling recently sent out a message telling a bunch of his friends that we should all start using Twitter to keep in touch.  Well I grudgingly gave it a try.  Now I’m hooked.  It’s like social networking meth.  Go ahead, try it. I dare you.

Posted by Mark Wallace Posted in: Hobbies, Useful Info No Comments » March 2008

What’s your “big distraction”?

I’m still inspired by Zach Braff’s movie GardenState.  I was recently reading his blog. It’s funny, you should check it out.  He made an off handed comment, “Why do you always have to do things with other people; being alone is refreshing.” 

It reminded me of something I wrote in a journal about 12 years ago.  Yes - I think everyone should keep a journal of some sort.  Write in it everyday if you can.  Journaling helps you work through things, it also keeps you objective.  You can read it later and see how crazy you were when you wrote it. It also helps chart your growth.  You can see how your opinions change and grow. It’s very cool.  If you have to you can call it a diary.

Back to the topic at hand, the journal entry.  I’ll just copy it for your consumption:

A man who has not visited and analyzed himself has nothing to offer.  H.D.Thoreau makes this point saying, “When our life ceases to be inward and private, conversation degenerates into mere gossip.  We rarely meet a man who can tell us any news which he has not read in a newspaper, or been told by his neighbor; and for the most part, the only difference between us and our fellow is that he has seen the newspaper, or been out to tea, and we have not.  In proportion as our inward life fails, we go more constantly and desperately to the post office.  You may depend on it, that the poor fellow who walks away with the greatest number of letters proud of his extensive correspondence has not heard from himself this long while.”

Ask yourself a question, how often do you check e-mail, look for another IM, pickup another magazine, do some task just to fill time?  I’m not saying these things are necessarily bad, but if you constantly neglect looking inward you will wake up one day and wonder who you are.

Another great author, Henri Nouwen, puts it like this, “When I have to write an article and face a white empty sheet of paper I nearly have to tie myself to the chair to keep from consulting one more book before putting my own words on paper.  When, after a busy day, I am alone and free I have to fight the urge to make one more phone call, one more trip to the mailbox or one more visit to friends who will entertain me for the last few hours of the day.  And when I think about the busy day I sometimes wonder if the educational enterprise so filled with lectures, seminars, conferences, requirements to make up and to fulfill, papers to write and read, examinations to undergo and to go to, has, in fact, not become one big distraction - once in a while entertaining- but mostly preventing me from facing my lonely self which should be my first source of search and research.” - from the book Reaching Out: The Three Movements of the Spiritual Life, P.18

So what is your “big distraction”?  Is it your job, your hobbies, your relationships? Take some time, take a look inside, journal a bit.  Let me know what you discover.

Now playing: FrouFrou - OnlyGot One

Posted by admin Posted in: God, Hobbies, Random Stuff No Comments » September 2004

Photography Blog

I just stumbled onto a site that is just great.  It’s called PhotographyBlog andit’s just great.  It has a lot of information, portfolios, etc.  Just thething for photographers wanting a lot of current information.Click here to go to the PhotographyBlogsite.

Posted by admin Posted in: Hobbies, Photography No Comments » July 2004

Sail away!

I’ve always thought it would be cool to build a sail boat.  So I started lookingaround and found this very cool site.  This guy actually built a boat and documentedthe whole thing.  It’s pretty amazing stuff.  I might have to try this oneday…

I’m actually looking for plans to build a model boat.  Does anyone have any goodinformation about building a small sail boat?  I’m thinking a 2 foot boat orclose to it.  I think it would be challenging, but something really fun to do.

Click here to see Glenn’s BackyardBoat Building Page.

Posted by admin Posted in: Hobbies No Comments » May 2004