Monthly Archives: January 2012

Read or Die

Posted by Tim on

I could tell you everything will be fine. I could tell you that if we elect a new president our country will turn around. I could tell you that with only a few more laws, a few more restrictions and regulations, our lives would be pain free. But I’d be lying. And I don’t like to lie, especially not to my loyal blog readers. (*Wink*)

The fact of the matter is that our country is not doing well from a cultural point of view. We’re more violent, more materialistic, more polarized, than ever before. And we’re dumber… much dumber. It’s sad, but pushing reality under the rug won’t do us any good. We need to face our problems and deal with them. There’s no cure for life. Here’s some pain for you -

  • In 1982, 18-24 year olds  formed the second strongest reading group. In 2002 they were the weakest.
  • In 2003, the average amount of time read per day for people over 15 years old was 22 minutes. 15-24 year olds averaged only 8 minutes per day.
  • 1/3 of high school graduates haven’t read a book since high school.
  • 70% of US adults haven’t been in a bookstore in the last 5 years.
  • 80% of US families did not buy or read a book last year.

Oh my Lord….

Sorry, guys. I’m the bearer of bad news, but it comes with a bit of encouragement. While I find all of these statistics startling, frightening, and somewhat depressing, I also see them as motivation to set myself above the rest. I’m not talking about “being better” than other people. I’m not a competitive person in most regards. However, when I read disturbing statistics like those above (and they’re just the tip of the iceberg, by the way) it makes me want to prove the statistics wrong. My generation is the dumbest generation, but I’ll make sure that I’m not contributing to the negative traits of the 18-24 year old bracket.

I encourage you all to do the same. Pick up a book. No – don’t read an online newspaper, or flip through a magazine. Actually read a book. A book teaches your brain to focus; something that a website can’t do. So, get a book. Another thing – (and I have a feeling many of you are already doing this) write. Write in a journal, write short stories, or start a blog. There’s no better way to learn what you’re thinking, than to write your thoughts down.

Please, don’t be part of the decline of America. Read, write, learn. Educate yourselves! Go to the library. Take a class at the community college one day a week. Do SOMETHING!

But it doesn’t stop there. At some point, we have to take what we’ve learned and pass it on to those younger than us. If you are already a book worm, nerd, or pencil pusher – pass it on to young people you know. Being smart doesn’t have to be lame. Talk with your kids, with your nieces and nephews, with your little brothers and sisters. Mentor someone. The future of our country and our society depends on it. If you can teach someone to think, you’ve taught them the most important thing of all.

More reading -

  • Distracted: The Erosion of Our Attention and the Coming Dark Age by Maggie Jackson
  • The Dumbest Generation: How the Digital Age Stupefies Young Americans and Jeopardizes Our Future by Mark Bauerlein
  • The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains by Nicholas Carr

Training With a Goal In Mind (Part I)

Posted by Tim on

It’s the beginning of a new year. (Yay, Captain Obvious!) People from all walks of life are making their “New Year’s resolutions”. Some people are looking to break into a new career, or just to find a job (Thank you, Mr President). Some people are planning on getting out of debt, or planning on reading a book a month. All of these are great goals, but perhaps the most popular goal is to “get in shape”.

In America, “getting in shape” is a popular New Years resolution, but obviously it isn’t achieved nearly as often. And perhaps there’s a reason for that – people set bad goals. No, I’m not saying getting into shape is a bad goal. I’m saying that the goal is too vague. It makes more sense to have a specific goal in mind. “Lose weight” doesn’t even make sense to me. Lose weight? Like… muscle? fat? water? Saying “I want to lose weight” is like going to the grocery store and saying “I’d like 5 pounds”. 5 pounds of what? Goals need to be specific.

I also found that having a visual goal is important. Find a celebrity who has the body you want. Don’t go nuts and think that you need to look exactly like them, but find someone your height, your frame, and imagine having their body. It helps a lot if you have an image in your mind  of what you want to look like. It keeps you motivated, and allows you to mark your progress against where you’re going, instead of where you’re coming from.

For me this was a little different. I never set a new year’s resolution; I just made a conscious decision that I was going to (note: not wanted to – going to) gain a lot of muscle. My end goal was Vin Diesel. We’re about the same height, same frame, but he was a lot bigger than I was. So, I set that goal in my mind, and after a couple years and 50 lbs of muscle I achieved my goal. I was the size of Vin Diesel.

Part II (on specifics goals for weight training) coming soon.

Standing by Santorum

Posted by Tim on

Well, the Florida primary is right around the corner, and from the looks of things, Mitt Romney will earn his second win. While I’m disappointed, I’m not terribly surprised. Romney has outspent Newt Gingrich by nearly $12 million. Constant ads on TV, the airwaves, and across the internet are sure to make an impact, and if you and your super-pac friends have the money, why not? This is an election everyone wants to win.

But it’s not over yet – not even close. As of right now there’s a three way tie. In case you didn’t hear the news – the numbers were recounted in Iowa and Rick Santorum was declared the winner. Romney easily won the New Hampshire primary, and with a couple of outstanding debate performances, Newt took South Carolina.

I remember the media saying that whoever wins Iowa is set to be the nominee. Then, when Romney won New Hampshire with such a strong lead, everyone declared him the nominee. But only a little while later we’d caught Newt fever and suddenly South Carolina was the end-all be-all of primaries. With all that in mind, why not just throw away your TVs. These pundits, analysts, and so-called “experts” are in the dark as much as you or I.

To me, that’s a breath of good news. Right now, Rick Santorum is at home doing his taxes. He doesn’t have the money to continue campaigning in a state he isn’t likely to win. Despite two strong debate performances (where he was more than strong – he won them, actually), Santorum is still showing third place in most the Florida polls, and the primary is on Tuesday. Depending on when I publish this, that’s 24-48 hours away. He’s not going to win. Sorry, Rick.

But like I said, it’s not the end of the world. Santorum just opened his Nevada campaign office, so he’s still in this. Newt is known to blow off his mouth and piss a lot of people off, and by and large, people still don’t want Romney as their candidate. Ron Paul… well. Yeah, Ron Paul would be lucky to win a single state, let alone the nomination.

So, is this another endorsement post? Well,  yeah, it is. Let’s review this one more time. Gingrich and Romney were both FOR government run healthcare. Santorum wasn’t. Gingrich and Romney were both FOR the TARP bailouts. Santorum wasn’t. Gingrich and Romney are both flip-floppers on issues of global warming. Gingrich is a slease ball in his personal life, and called Paul Ryan’s medicare reform “social engineering”. Romney was  pro-choice, and pro gun control. The red flags are standing all around Gingrich and Romney. Santorum is the clear conservative alternative to Romney. Santorum is Gingrich with a backbone. Santorum is Romney without the east coast moderate flip-floppery nonsense.

You may have noticed that I put a Santorum ad on this site. He didn’t pay me, I didn’t contact his campaign for it. I copied and edited an ad I saw on some other website and pasted it into my sidebar, hoping to give a little extra word-of-mouth to team Santorum, and in tern help give him a little extra cash. (*Cough* Get the idea?) It’s not over yet, folks.

A Good Day

Posted by Tim on

Well, that was a good day. It’s 3:00 AM, and after spending my day working, going to church, opening up for a buddy’s band, and meeting some new friends, I’m just yearning for a little blogging.

Work is great. I get to spend time with great people, some of whom I consider good friends. 99% of us get along, and we all share a common interest – music. After being with the same company for almost 6 years it’s really rewarding to see the relationships I’ve built. There isn’t a more diverse group of people to be around on a day to day basis than musicians. Every religion, every political belief, every musical taste. It’s like a great big melting pot. (Kind of like what America used to be like.) I love my job, I love my coworkers, and a pay increase wouldn’t make me switch jobs. Well, unless it was a MASSIVE pay increase. But you get the point.

Getting back into the church routine has been awesome too. It’s cool going to church with friends instead of family, especially when they’re friends that are awesome. Religion had nothing to do with our friendship, but it’s helping us grow together. Since I’ve started going again I’ve also started running into familiar faces. Jeez – my church has a bunch of people I know going there, and I didn’t realize it until recently. We’re building a new family of church-going friends, without even planning it. I’m sure I’ll talk to some of these people later in the week about the sermon, the dancing, the music. That’s super cool.

And then there’s the music part of my life. Gigging is a ton of fun. Making music, and having an audience that appreciates it – nothing like it. Tonight wasn’t a regular gig though. It was a group put together a week in advance – a singer/guitarist, a bass player (me), and a violinist. We practices once beforehand for about 20 minutes, and that was it. Virtually no preparation, but we pulled it off, and the crowd loved us. Haha – there’s something cool about music being so spontaneous like that. Maybe it’s the goofy songs we played, or maybe it’s that I wasn’t playing with my normal group – I was playing with an old guy and a gay guy. Life’s interesting, huh?

And then I got to meet a few new friends. I buddy of mine brought his new girlfriend out to the show, and she brought one of her friends. All around pretty cool people. We left the bar we were at and sat down and just talked about random stuff for a couple hours. I had a few drinks in me by this point, so I was probably the most talkative one in the group, but I feel like I made a good first impression. I’m a fun guy, a good guy, and sometimes not a very politically correct guy. Good times, good times.

All in all, today was awesome. It’s days like this that I feel truly blessed. I’m surrounded with so many amazing people. I’m not the richest by any means, but I feel very rich when nights like tonight are over.

The Bible is Alive

Posted by Tim on

Ever since I started reading, or more so studying, the Bible I’ve had a few profound moments. It’s like whenever you pick it up, no matter what page you turn to you’ll find something that pertains to whatever is happening in your life. It’s kind of a mysterious book that way. It’s more than a book – it’s spiritual.

The most recent odd Bible reading experience happened a few nights ago. I usually go to church on Saturdays, but this Saturday I’m working until 5:00 – exactly when the service starts. I usually get there 10-15 minutes early too, so this kind of put a fold in my plans. I also have a gig this Saturday about 45 minutes away. I have to get off work, shower, and head up north. So, I thought I had a legitimate excuse to skip church this week.

It just so happens that I was reading Hebrews later that night. A lot of the book has to do with Christianity breaking many of the old Jewish traditions, rituals, and rules. However, Hebrews makes a point of saying that church is still very important, whether you’re a Jew or a Christian. In the notes section below, the book explained that we should try harder to go to church when it’s inconvenient. How weird is that? I think about skipping church, and then I read that verse. So, that settles it. I’ll leave work a little early, make it to church, and just hustle to get to the gig.

I was talking about this with a coworker and he shared a weird Bible experience with me. One day he was talking to his wife on the phone and she was having some troubles. He told her to pick up her Bible, and he picked up his. When he asked what chapter she turned to she told him and he said…. seriously? That’s the exact same chapter I just turned to! How does stuff like that happen? Two people open their Bibles to the exact same book and chapter while on the phone. Kinda creepy, almost.

It’s just a little way of knowing that there is really something special about the Bible. It’s like it has a mind of it’s own. God works in mysterious ways…

 

A Nation In Decline

Posted by Tim on

As I watched Barack Obama’s State of the Union address the other night, I couldn’t help but think – wow, this guy is saying some things that really sound good. Wait! What did I just say?! That’s right – Obama said a few things that I agree with. He talked about reigning in regulations, lowering corporate tax rates, and even stated that he agreed with Abraham Lincoln, that the government should only do what the people cannot do for themselves.

Yeah… that’s right. He said all of that. Now, his actions over the last 3 years are a completely different story. Barack Obama has continually stressed the importance of evil corporations paying their “fair share”. He’s continued to add more and more regulations to nearly every sector of our lives. And of course, him saying that government should only do for the people what they can’t do themselves… well… I can’t think of anything more absurd. He’s the direct opposite of that. From parts of his speech you’d think he’s a libertarian. Who knew Gary Johnson and Barack Obama were so close on the political spectrum.

But perhaps the biggest gaff of the speech was Obama stating that anyone who says that America is in decline “doesn’t know what they’re talking about.” Wow. Well, I guess a lot of Americans don’t know what they’re talking about when they see their country going down the drain. Of course, people like Obama also think that Europe is doing well, and we all know that two minutes of news coverage of Greece will tell a frighteningly different story. America IS in decline, Barry.

It’s easy to look at how we’re doing economically. Job growth is stagnant, energy costs are up. Our national debt is now equal to our GDP, and if Obama gets the debt ceiling raise he’s been asking for, it’ll be MORE than our GDP. Countries don’t “come back” from that kind of debt. But the real teller for how America is doing isn’t economics – it’s morale. Does America feel like it’s growing? Or does it feel like it’s in decline. I’m sorry to say it, but to me (and a whole lot of other Americans) it feels like it’s in decline. But what do we know, right? We’re not intellectuals like Barry Obama. We’re not the anointed.

Take a look around though. I hate to be the pessimist, (I lied. I LOVE being the pessimist.) but just look at our schools. Failing miserably. I just watched a movie a few days ago called Waiting For Superman and it tells the sad story of how failing schools are dragging down entire communities. When kids don’t get good education they drop out and end up in jail or in the welfare line. It’s gotten so bad that it’s hard to see a clear path out of it. Even if we turn things around now, we still have a generation of people coming out of college who could name all the dolts on Jersey Shore, but not a single presidential candidate.

Our country is in decline. Barry Hussein Obamanation can say that I “don’t know what I’m talking about”, but the fact of the matter is that he doesn’t know what he’s talking about. I live in the real world. He’s isolated from reality. He’s surrounded by a bunch of yes-men. This man-child has no place telling the American people that they “don’t know what they’re talking about”. For a president to say that is disgusting.

Get By (With a Little Help From My Friends)

Posted by Tim on

Remember the Beatles song, “With A Little Help From My Friends”. Man, that song sounds good right now. Sometimes we just need a little help from our friends. I don’t really need “help” per se, but I’m just missing a few friends. Don’t get me wrong; I’ve got plenty of great people around me as it is, but being around the same people all the time sometimes just gets boring. I love talking about politics, news, and all that, but sometimes I need a little variety to make my life go a little better.

It’s strange feeling this way. I’m usually pretty relaxed with how things are going, but recently I’ve just had a yearning for a couple people to be back in my neck of the woods. Just good friends that I seriously miss. Three of em – all of whom will probably read this eventually.

But on the bright side, two of them will be back soon enough. One friend has been gone for a few years off in the Navy. We knew each other all throughout high school, and bonded over common musical interests. He’s been the person who pushed me towards Apple, Punk Goes Pop, and Chuck Taylors. Over the years we’ve also been able to mature together, and when he’s back in town from Japan we’ll hang out a lot, talk politics, life, and just laugh a lot.

Another friend isn’t far – he’s just off to college an hour away. He’s back in town every once in a while, and when we get together we usually share some pretty meaningful conversations. I knew him in elementary school, but we didn’t become good friends until the last couple years or so. At the time he was still living here in town, but he’s usually gone now. Bettering his future, for sure – I just wish he was a little closer.

And the final friend, well he’s down in Florida right now. He’s busy taking care of some business, tying some loose ends up, and will hopefully be moving back soon. We hung out a little bit in high school, and he moved to Florida a few years back. Recently he was visiting family up here and I made it my mission to convince him to move back permanently. I hope I did that, because I could really go for a ponza when he gets back.

A coworker was once talking to a customer – a little kid – at the store. The kid asked him, “Are you rich?”. My coworker responded, “Not in money, but I’m rich in friends.” That’s been an insiring moment for me because I realized that being rich doesn’t have to do with the things you surround yourself with – it has to do with the friends you surround yourself with.

Hope to see you all soon. – Tim

Survey – Male Body Types

Posted by Tim on

So many young, single guys are constantly asking themselves the question – what do women want? The real phrasing of the question (at least as it pertains to immature males) is “what are women looking for?” That’s the thing – we assume they “look” for something. There’s an age old saying – men choose with their eyes, women choose with their ears. But let’s be realistic here, women choose with their eyes too. And with that in mind – I’ve got a question for girls.

Let’s assume for the moment that there are only two male body types out there. Of course there are countless shapes of guys, but I’m only going to focus on two. Let’s also assume that each type has the same face, hair, height, and skin tone.

Type A is thin. Narrow shoulders, skinny legs. I know, doesn’t sound good so far. BUT – he’s got a six pack. He may be skinny, but he’s lean.

Type B is bigger. Broad shoulders, adult-esk body. Better? Maybe. He doesn’t have the six pack of Type A. In fact, he’s actually a little pudgy around the stomach. Not a beer belly, but not even close to a six pack.

So, ladies, which would you chose? Does the six pack make up for the smaller body? Does the bit of fat ruin the more masculine physique?

Comment.