This May Be Who You Are...

"This may be who you are, but it is not who you will become." - Sha'ira

If I want to push a heavy box across the floor, it requires more force to get the box into motion than the force required to keep the box in motion. In other words, it requires less force to keep the box in motion than it does to get the box moving. It is simple physics: static friction is always greater than kinetic friction. It takes a lot more force to get something to move, but once you have it moving, it is much easier.

What am I trying to get at here. Well, I think this applies to more than just physics.

If I look back at my life (thus far), it seemed easy. I do not recall working hard in middle school, but I know I did; I don't remember stressing out over some report in high school, but I know I did. But I do remember breaking down in college and wanting to change majors. Engineering was tough, but I was 4 semesters away from graduation and I thought it would be a waste to change now...er then. I remember pulling all-nighters and finishing papers 5 minutes before they were due. Looking back on it, it just seemed easy. But I know it took a lot of work.

Still, what am I trying to get at.

I am still trying to figure out what to do with my life (and I will probably spend my entire life trying to figure it out). But I am trying to at least figure out what I would like to do for the next three to five years. I have been exploring my options on what to do and where to go. It is just like pushing that box across the floor. It is always tough starting out. But once I get to where I am going, it will be a little easier.

But I know that no matter where I go, I might be somewhere that I never intended to be, but might love where it is.

November's Letter

November's Letter

Well, October went by fast. Not much to report on other than I finished painting…the walls at least. I still have some window trim and my bathroom trim to paint. Now to clean the garage and keep going through all our stuff that has accumulated over the years.

I donated all my late Dad's suits and trousers to the Men's Wearhouse National Suit Drive. I tried every single one of his suits and trousers seeing if any of them would fit. Only two out of the twelve items fit well on me.

My cousin, Reuben, came up to help around with the house. However, duties were cut short when Mom hurt her back by doing a little too much work. She is supposed to rest for two weeks (at the time of this writing, she is feeling much better now). We kept trying to stain the front door but the weather did not really cooperate.

I went to a rock concert the last Tuesday of October. I was supposed to take my friend, Helen, but she became ill and could not go. My aforementioned cousin, Reuben, was here so I asked if he wanted to go. It turns out, that every concert that he has attempted to attend, something occurred that prevented him from attending. So, this was his chance to go. We saw the band Paramore (And yes, I know what paramour means). They are a band from Franklin, TN. I did not realize that the tickets I purchased were General Admission. Which means that we were on the floor right in front of the stage. We were approximately 30ft from the stage. There were two opening bands and then Paramore played. People jumped during the concert and it felt like the floor was going to cave in. Paramore did great, but the sound man did not know what he was doing. The sound was not mixed very well. But it was fun and my cousin's first concert. Speaking of concerts, I've been to about ten (10). Including concertos, operas, and rock bands.

On a similar note, I remember listening to some soft rock/pop and Dad asked what the name of the band was. They were called Savage Garden. Dad commented that you cannot judge a band by their name. He also told me one day that the band Barenaked Ladies played on the NBC Morning Show. Mom commented that there was not even a girl in their band.

In one of my previous letters, I mentioned that I have been watching TV shows on the internet. There is one problem in common when watching TV shows on a normal TV or on the internet: The advertisements are still louder than the actual show. Yay.

So, I was ill for two days. Slight fever, aches, chills. I had gastroenteritis; otherwise known as "stomach flu". Although, that name is a misnomer for it does not affect the stomach nor is it influenza. But rather it attacks the cells of the small intestine. I will spare you the details on what happens when your small intestine is damaged but I had to stick to a liquid diet for two weeks and avoid dairy. At least I could eat toast. I believe I contracted this illness due to food poisoning at a local Huddle House.

I find it strange that in winter I wear more dark clothes and in summer I wear lighter clothes. 'Lighter' as in shade, not weight.


Until next time.

I Am Not A Superhero...

...just trying to do little things that might make the world a bit better.

During my life thus far, I will try to help people when it seems safe and within my ability to assist them. When I was in college, if I saw someone with their vehicle's hood open, I would drive by and ask if they needed help. This one particular time, I saw a group of kids trying to push start a manual car. I drove by and said I have some jumper cables if you need some help. They accepted my offer and we got this stranger's jeep up and running.

Another time, I was just getting off work at student orientation. I was walking to my car and this woman came up to me and asked if I had any jumper cables. She mentioned that this was her daughter's car and she did not know how it worked. But I tried starting the car and it was dead. I cannot recall what car she had but I had to pull out the manual to figure out how to open the hood. The lever was not in the usual place or it was unmarked. Nevertheless, she and I had a small conversation about college. Soon her daughter showed up and I recognized her from the orientation. We talked for a while as I worked on the car. To jump her car it was a little tough. Mostly because both our car batteries were on the drivers side and I could not park in front of her due to a sidewalk and drop off. I had to park as close as I could to her to jump the car but we got it up and running. They both thanked me and the mother wanted to give me some money. I stepped back with my hands up "Oh no ma'am, I don't ... " as she shoved the money in my front shirt pocket (I knew I did not like shirts with pockets. Although my Dad liked shirts with pockets) "... but I appreciate it."

My cousin and I were painting the living room this summer. It was a hot summer day and this young man came knocking at the door asking for some tools to work on his truck and some water. I asked if he knew what tools he needed and he was not sure about exact wrench sizes, but he said I could come with him if he was afraid that he was going to steal my tools. I was not sure what to do. The risk of going off with a stranger or the risk of letting him borrow tools that he may not return. So, I took a chance. I gave him a glass of water and grabbed my tools. We only went down the road near the next house where his friend was looking at the engine. I gave him my tool box and I stood by my truck away from them while they worked on their truck. It took them about ten minutes to get their truck running and they asked if they could stop by the house and get more water. They had bottles they gave me and I went inside to fill up their bottles. They thanked me and we had a small chat about what was up the road and how long we have lived here.

At the wonderful world of Wal-Mart, I was at the checkout line while the clerk was bagging my items. As she would rotate the carousel, I would remove my bag and pull open the new bag ready for use. She noticed this and commented that she appreciated me helping her out, how much trouble they have with those bags, and asked if I had worked at a Wal-Mart before. If you are wondering, no, I have never worked at a Wal-Mart.

People are lazy and leave their shopping carts where ever they feel like putting them. If I see a stray cart as I am going into a store, I will grab it and either drop it off at the area where you normally pick up a cart or I will use it myself. And as I leave, if I see a stray cart, I will grab one and take it to the cart return not to mention that I will straighten out the carts and push them together if required. Not only are there lazy people, but there are one-uppers. I saw this guy going around collecting ALL the carts and taking them up to the store. I assumed he was not an employee because he was not wearing an orange vest or any uniform of any kind. However, he did have to chase a cart across the parking lot. I found that humorous.

There was this girl I knew when I attended community college. She was in my sophomore level Chemistry lab. I never really talked to her much until my lab partner and her lab partner dropped out of the class. So, one day when we were in lab, I motioned to her to partner up with me since our original partners went AWOL. She attended a different lecture for Chemistry but we had the same teacher. It was the week of final exams and I had already taken my chemistry final. She mentioned that she had to make a certain grade on the final exam to receive a C in the class so that she can get into nursing school. I told her that I would help her study if she wanted some help.
"You'd help me study even though you've already taken your final exam?" She asked.
"Yes" I replied.
Throwing her arms around me she exclaimed "I love you!"
We exchanged numbers and set aside a time us to meet at the library for the next day.
I remember that she brought animal cookies even though food was not allowed in the library. I knew some tricks about chemistry that she did not know about. I cannot recall how long we studied but her test was the next day.
Two weeks later I received a call from Beka stating that she indeed made a C in chemistry and was accepted into nursing school. Who knows, maybe some day she will be treating me. It is a small world after all.


I live by the "Pay it Forward" mantra.

Just be sure to tell Lois that I'm always around.