Another good get to know you question

In a previous post I shared my take on the sorts of questions people ought to ask each other when they meet rather than the standard "what do you do for a living" sorts of questions.

Here's an opinion piece from the WSJ on Obama titled "What Would Obama Die For?" I'm not that interested in the content of the piece but I think it's a great question to ask people in an effort to really understand what they're all about and whether you could be friends with them.

Yes, it's a bit ghoulish and I'm not advocating whipping that one out right out of the gate. But, in the end, it may be the best way to demonstrate our essence. That which we prefer or value a lot could, arguably, be considered merely instrumental to our own well-being. But that for which we would sacrifice our life to protect, is our highest ideal and it is our lives that are mere instruments thereof.

I don't think people ought to spend too much time contemplating what they would die for. But I think some amount of introspection on this important question is a good idea. Making it up as you go along is not an intelligent way to live life. And having some sense of what you stand for (and, therefore, what you do not stand for) is an enviable position to be in.

Oh and by the way, dying for anything when you could serve it just as well by losing an eyelash or even a finger is just plain stupid.

A rare sweet moment

I went for a walk in the country with my 15 year old son yesterday. It was such a beautiful day. Crisp air. Clear blue sky. Not a sound other than those produced by nature.

We were walking to an overlook point with a beautiful view of the
countryside. Just as we reached the point where we could see the view
(a few hundred feet from the lookout point), my son exclaimed what a
beautiful view it was. He broke into a run and said "let's run and get
there quickly". I was about to take the opportunity to remind him that
the journey is as important as the destination... But I stopped
myself.

I hadn't seen him run in an awfully long time. My sullen moody
teenager was reacting to natural beauty with all the glee and
wonderment of an unsullied child.

It was so sweet.

I have arrived!

I check out the Google Analytics report on this blog from time to time. Just to see how many people visit, what they read, etc.

Apparently, I am doing a great job! Check out this part of the Google report. It shows the network locations of people who visit this blog. That's right folks. Not some also-ran internet service provider. The largest!! Oh, I can see the money coming in now.

A new rule

I just read an op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal by L. Gordon Crovitz.

Here's the deal folks: You can't have a letter or initial as your first name. It's just not allowed. Honestly, enough with the nonsense. I'm not even going to go into all the reasons why this is absurd. I'm just telling you that it is and ordering you to cut it out!

This rule applies to you even if you are an artist of some sort. It applies to you even if you are very wealthy or occupy a position of considerable power in government, business or religion. It applies to you no matter what language you speak, what ethnic background you claim as your own or what country you live in. The only exceptions are for people who live in countries that have no diplomatic relations with the U.S. and do not aspire to such or for people who's native language includes those clicking sounds or any sound that might reasonably make an American want to hand that person a tissue or point them in the direction of the closest spittoon.

If you really enjoy the simplicity of a single letter or are just too lazy, you may have a letter as your middle name or use an initial as your middle name.

But that's it.

[Note: I liked the op-ed piece. But that's not the point. Rules still have to be followed.]

Emotional littering

I just came back from a hike in a state park that has become, over the years, a sort of sacred haven for me and a place to experience nature's quiet beauty.

As I got in my car after the three hour hike, I realized that I had not experienced the serenity and the connection to the eternal that I usually do when I hike.

Rather than letting the beauty of this place impress itself upon me, I had brought my thoughts and troubles into the park and, in a way, challenged nature to rid me of them. This was a violation of the peacefulness of the place.

We all know not to drop our physical garbage in the park (although not everyone is so enamored of that rule either). But do we think enough about ridding ourselves of emotional garbage before we encounter nature?

This was a wasted opportunity to experience the divine and I have really disappointed myself.

Movie review: Batman

This movie has been talked about as the third coming (too many other things have already been compared to the second coming).

Sorry folks. I just don't agree. It was a blur. Too much plot. I felt like there were two good movies in there. But they were smashed together as if to make me feel like I got my money's worth.

If I want War and Peace, I know where to get it.

And yes, Heath Ledger was brilliant. But the movie wasn't.

A great morning

Got to bed early last night. And was wide awake at 4am. Not my thing and I don't recommend it. But there was no point in fighting reality so I got out of bed and headed to the office.

My local Starbucks was not yet open. When the institution that is supposed to fuel your morning has not yet opened for business, you know something is wrong. Mildly annoying.

But as I was driving to work, I saw the deep blue sky bravely trying to maintain the peacefulness of nighttime before yielding to the sun. And I thought there are much worse things than starting off the day with such beauty.

Note: Lightning rarely strikes the same spot twice. If tomorrow as I am grumbling about being awake at the bright and early hour of 10am, you remind me of today's morning glee, I will hit you. (Don't worry too much. My aim sucks in the morning.)