I despise Licorice! Twizzlers or any other kind. The smell/taste is despicable.
Someone, who shall remain nameless, would love to snack on nibs. When she would open the bag, the smell would drive me nuts. It’s a horrible plastic smell that for the love me, I can’t figure out how and why people could eat them.
... my kid has some really hairy legs!
That is all. Go about the rest of your weekend.
Just a friendly reminder to let you know that this here blog that you are reading is property of yours truly. What does that mean to you, the casual frequent reader? Well, it means that I reserve the right to not only to speak my mind but to allow/disallow who post comments and what is found within them.
I welcome your comments. I really do. I just want you to think twice before posting them. Ask yourself, ‘Self, is this appropriate?’ If the answer is “yes” you are not only guilty of talking to yourself but you are also more than welcome to post that comment you have been so inspired to leave.
I too must think of what I write so I leave you to those same rules.
Thank you for shopping. Please come again soon.
No one told me
The right way
The right way to go about this
So I’ll figure it out for myself
Cuz how much
Is too much
To give you
Well I may never know
So I’ll just give until there’s nothing else
Yeah I’ll give give give (until there’s nothing else)
Give my life (until it all runs out)
Give give (and I’ll have no regrets)
I’ll give until there’s nothing left
I’ll give
No one told me
How bad I need you (need you)
But I somehow arrived
To that conclusion all by myself (all by myself)
And I want
All you have to offer (to offer)
So I offer myself and I’ll just give until there’s nothing else
And I’ll give give give (until there’s nothing else)
Give my life (until it all runs out)
Give give (and I’ll have no regrets)
I’ll give until there’s nothing left to
Give give give (until there’s nothing else)
Give my life (until it all runs out)
Give give (and I’ll have no regrets)
I’ll give until there’s nothing left
Sometimes I think
Like all I ever do
Is ask for things
Until I ask too much of you
But that’s not the way (that’s not the way)
I wanna live (I wanna live)
I need to change (I need to change)
But something’s got to give
Yeah something’s got to
Give give give (until there’s nothing left)
Give my life (until it all runs out)
Give give (and I’ll have no regrets)
I’ll give until there’s nothing left to give
Give give give (until there’s nothing left)
Give my life (until it all runs out)
Give give
Give until there’s nothing left
I’ll give
Give Until There’s Nothing Left - Relient K
My morning routine consists of waking up (duh), finding my way to the office to play some tunes while I attempt to start my day. One morning, the above song came on and the words immediately grabbed my attention.
For the past week, I have not been able to let go of this song, and as I have been put into the state of deep thought thanks to my trip last weekend, my thoughts lead me to what is giving..
Do we give enough in our lives? Do we truly know the meaning of what it is to give everything? Do we give only in order to receive something in return? The movie “Pay it Forward” was good, but are there some “Paying it Forward” only because they’re expecting something? How wrong that truly is?
We are a flawed society. We expect too much from people and when those conditions are not met we shut down and turn our pack on what’s important. We retaliate by shutting that person out. We no longer want to give to those because we feel justified because they were never truly giving in the first place. What if we lived by the “Give All / Expect Nothing” model? This basically means that we should be willing to give our all. This is an unconditional type of giving. If you say you love/cherish value someone you should be willing to lay everything at their feet. If you love/cherish/value someone you should expect nothing. You should be willing to say to that person who just laid out everything, “Thank you, but no thanks, your willingness is all I wanted”.
How I have struggled with that theory during my years.
When I was married, I failed miserably at this. I was selfish in my approach. I was unwilling to give. I held grudges. I even would argue if she told me the sky was blue. I did not want to give her the benefit of the doubt. I let the small things build into big things and then I did bigger things to try and compete with the big thing that I was up against. This was clearly not the way things should be handled. It’s easy to admit to these things today because hindsight is 20-20. As I move from this experience, what do I want to take away from it? I am still sifting through the debris and pulling out evidence of what I did and didn’t do.
“Sometimes I think like all I ever do
Is ask for things until I ask too much of you
But that’s not the way (that’s not the way)
I wanna live (I wanna live)
I need to change (I need to change)
But something’s got to give”
I hear that. Something’s got to give. What are you willing to give?
"I come here to find myself. It is so easy to get lost in the world”.
22 years ago a 13 year old boy found out where that place is. On Sunday, I went back for the first time in almost 15 years.
For years, Star Lake Musicamp, located in Northern New Jersey was a mainstay in my life. It was the focal point of my calendar year. It was a way to wrap up the old year and get the new year off to a good start. It was not only an opportunity to grow as a musician, but a chance to find the spiritual center in my life.
Music has always had a very spiritual meaning to me. For some people it is the words, for others it is just listening to the melodies. For me, being immersed into the music, actively participating did it for me. It moved me to new places in my life. I know that I had my problems, but for those moments I was in a place that brought peace to my life. I knew I was supposed to be there. It was a healing.
Sitting there during morning worship with Mo on my lap brought my past and my future on a collision course. It made me wonder wonder where my life has gone. It made me wonder about the choices and decisions I have made. 22 years ago would that boy imagine his life in this way? I honestly don’t know. As much as we try to plan out the future God has plans of is own. I know that you can never go back and fix the things that were lost or broken; it just doens’t work that way. Maybe we’re supposed to learn from those lessons and build a better tomorrow.
As I said goodbye to Star Lake I realized that I am not that 13 year old boy anymore. Heck, I am not the same person I was 14 months ago. We learn, we grow, we evolve. It may not always be under the nicest of terms, but it happens. There have been wonderful memories over the years. I have done things and been places that most people would love to have been a part of. I am the father to the most beautiful girl in the world. All lessons from the past to help shape the future. I have also caused some pain and frustration in people as well. Again, lessons from the past to help shape the future.
Star Lake Musicamp in itself is like one of those lessons. I know I cannot live in the past. I cannot lean on the rich memories to carry me through the rest of my life. I can however, use the experience of that special place to set a defining point and use that to guide me in what I do.
That simple sign that hung in the Tabernacle still stands true today. It is easy to get lost in the chaos of the world. It is easy to lose sight of what is important.
I went there to find myself. I come home with a new perspective.
TMP here once again bringing you music that I find unique and interesting. Well, I’m not sure you will find it that but I know ONE PERSON who is gonna like this. Enjoy.
It’s summertime. It’s hotter then a monkey’s butt and what better way to spend the night is to go walking. Well, not for some, but for me and Mo we love it. Armed with a water bottle and a camera we braved the heat.
Enjoy the dog days of Summer!
When you shake out your keyboard and you take a trip down memory lane trying to figure out what the crumbs are.
THIS RIGHT HERE IS WHY I DON’T WANT MY CHILD EATING AT McDONALDS!!!
Click on the above to read more.
Back in 2001, MG and went to see They Might Be Giants at The Electric Factory in Philly. It was around Halloween and the opening acts were Afroman and The Moldy Peaches. I would have to say that see The Moldy Peaches was an experience (Afroman was quite unique too), but the Peaches were just plain quirky an odd.
This morning on the radio, I heard one of their songs and I can’t get it out of my head. Here it is. I’d like to dedicate this song to my brother because if anyone has the crack it’ll probably be him.
There is a place where people believe that there is good in everyone, that people do make mistakes but there is all hope that they can and will be a better person.
There is a place where people believe that once you do something bad or have had a history of past mistakes, you are determined to set that course from here on out.
Where do you stand?
This is not the place to discuss this matter. This is a question that I want you to ponder within yourself. What kind of person are you? What kind of person do you want others to see? This has nothing to do with the wrong that you may or may not have done. This is a matter of how you view others.
We all have done wrong. We have made mistakes that will be with us for the rest of our lives. We have paid the price for our mistakes. Once we have paid the price, we take ownership of those mistakes. No one can EVER take that away . Part of that payment is knowing what was done and how it impacted others, knowing what is truly important and being appreciative for the smallest thing. During that learning process, it is like a jail sentence. When a criminal goes to jail, they are paying the price for what they have done. You would think that the record should be wiped clean, but in the eyes of some it is not. There are some out there that are so insecure of themselves that they must bring up the crimes of others to divert attention from their own shortcomings.
The old saying is “those that forget the past are condemned to repeat it”. I’m not advocating forgetting that things have happened. I am just saying that people CAN learn and should be given that opportunity to show it. If you are not willing to do that then you are no better than the person who made the mistake; because you are guilty of holding someone back from their true potential.
Again, I ask, where do you stand?
Is it too much to ask to be happy for more than 5 minutes without someone or something ruining it?
Is it too much to have a feeling of peace deep down inside without it being ripped out and stomped on?
Is this my punishment for my un-stellar past? Is this the fate that will be with me for the rest of my life?
If that is the case, consider me lucky.
For those of you that know me, you’ll know the mood I’m in when I play the following song.
I was just about ready to sit down and write about something wonderful and happy. That was before the dark cloud of fate decided to impale with me a dose of reality. Now excuse me while I go cry.
Mo has this new fascination with going for walks. I can only guess that this latest interest comes from her mother. This is a great thing. It provides her with exercise while also taking a break from the countless episodes of Dora that I am faced to watch over and over.
Last night, on our walk, I decided to bring my camera along. My job on the walk was to catch up to Mo (she says “I will run, you will walk), take pictures and carry the water bottle (Daddy pack mule service).
We had a blast and I got lots of great pictures. Click on the picture of Mo to see more.
OH YEAH!! I almost forgot! It’s my Mom’s Birthday! Go on over to her new page and wish her a Happy Birthday.. Chronicles of Niagara. Happy Birthday Mom!
