Category: Outside the Box

Non-mainstream thoughts and musings

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Hawaiian Shirt Fridays

One of the few things that makes my job worthwhile is getting to chill on Fridays. I always wear a bright Hawaiian shirt on Fridays, just to remind myself that I’m supposed to be relaxing at work. Not going to let people demanding things I can’t do ruin my day.

This week, pick a day to relax where you’re most stressed… get a tiny little fountain, or put on some soothing music (I really like Franz Liszt) or something whimsical (Bob Marley?) or just do like I do, and declare “Vacation at your desk” day every Friday, complete with Hawaiian shirt.

I need to get some little paper umbrellas to put in my coffee cup on Fridays.

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Frugal Living Challenge Day 1

Something that’s become sort of a dirty world lately is “Frugal.” What exactly does it mean to live frugally? Wiktionary defines it as “Avoiding unnecessary expenditure either of money or of anything else which is to be used or consumed; avoiding waste.” So much of what we do today is wasteful. When I say “frugal” I’m not talking about throwing away everything you own, that would be even more wasteful! In a nutshell, being frugal is making the most of what you already have, so that you don’t need to buy more.

One of the blogs I’ve stumbled on recently is Frugally Sustainable. I can identify with much of what Andrea writes, as it echoes my sentiments almost exactly. She’s started something called the 23 Day Frugal Living Challenge, and it’s quite a challenge indeed! Start with Day 1, and go from there. Continue reading “Frugal Living Challenge Day 1”

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The Cake Is A Lie

The unspoken rules of conspicuous consumption (ripped off from bikesnobnyc):

1) You are what you “own” (or, as is more often the case, lease from a bank)
2) The more money you spend on a vehicle the more human rights you have
3) Anybody smaller and smarter than you deserves to be punished

And there you have it. Anyone still wondering why Occupy Wall Street is happening? This is why. The affluent are taught that anybody who isn’t buying the most expensive stuff they can afford isn’t “successful.” Never mind the fact that there are people who don’t want the most expensive cars and houses they can afford, or the headaches and horrendous work hours and/or ethics required to make that much money. Yes, those people exist.

What if your goal in life wasn’t to make as much money as possible? What if you simply wanted to be the best writer, or musician, or artist, or teacher you could be? What if living within your means makes you happy? What if being a “good businessman” means your family goes neglected, you compromise your beliefs daily for the sake of profit, and you think anybody else who doesn’t is stupid? If that’s success, then count me out.  What is wrong with not wanting to be rich and powerful?

Sadly, with today’s America being what it is, people aren’t being taught to be the best at what they love. They are being taught to obey, submit, conform, and surrender, and maybe someday if they’re good at bootlicking, they can achieve “success.” Sorry, but I’m not interested in that definition of success.

I read a story (in “The 4-Hour Work Week” by Timothy Ferriss) about a businessman who went to Mexico on vacation. He met a local who sat on the beach most of the day playing music with his friends, and occasionally would go fishing to earn just enough money to feed his family for a while.
The businessman told him “You should fish all day, every day, to make more money.”
“Why?” replied the local.
“So you can buy more boats, and hire people to work for you,” the businessman answered.
“Why?” replied the local.
“So you can grow a huge business, take over the market, and earn enough money to retire,” the businessman answered.
“Why?” he asked yet again.
“So you can sit on the beach all day and play music with your friends, and go fishing every now and then…”

Sadly, this is the world we live in now. It’s funny, but only because we know it’s true. What is the purpose of killing yourself trying to achieve the unachievable? What does it profit a man to gain the whole world, but lose his own soul? (I should do a review of The 4-Hour Work Week, there are some good tips there, but I think Ferriss misses the point)

By the same token, we aren’t called to hate the wealthy. Unlike most Americans, I am not envious of them, nor do I want to be like them. I feel sorry for them, because the real enemy is affluency itself. Jesus Christ himself put it this way: “It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.”

We are taught self-indulgence, when we should be practicing self-denial.

Oh yeah; Merry Christmas.

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How Your Life Changes In Two Seconds

Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Got up at 5:00 and packed the bike with a day’s change of clothes, lunch, and ate breakfast.

5:50 I jump on the bike and head down my street. I’m wearing reflective ankle bands, a reflective vest, and my bike has reflective tape on the frame, as does my helmet with mirror. I have a 4-watt led headlight in front, a solid and a blinking tail light, the big ones powered by a special front wheel I built using a generator in the hub, never needs changing batteries.

I decide to ride to work through Nicholls State, crossing Bayou Lafourche at the Audubon street bridge. All is quiet, no traffic, making good time. I haven’t been pushing myself hard today because I was trying a new higher handle bar setup, and wanted to see if it was more comfortable.

There’s a short stretch where the shoulder runs out just as you get to Rosedown off of 308. Up to there, you get 20 miles of a huge shoulder, which isn’t bad, until you pass Reienzi and the shoulder narrows down to nothing, essentially forcing bike traffic and pedestrians into 45MPH 2-lane traffic. This is called a “pinch point” and it is very dangerous, so I either go into the lane early to force people to slow down, or I am forced to wait.

Today there is little traffic so I go into the lane, causing a car to have to slow a little to get around me, only for 50 feet or so. I then ride up Rue Loudon to cross Canal street at a “safe” intersection, traffic signal, etc. I wait till the light turns green for me (yes, bikes can trigger most light sensors) and when it changes, I stand and take off across the intersection.

Within the space of about 2 seconds, I get hit by a car, I end up laying in a twisted heap on the side of the road, my bike was thrown into the middle of the intersection. My left leg is pointing in the wrong direction. Time to stop and rethink life.

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Words Cannot Describe

I’ve pretty much been out of the loop for a while. I’ve got a good excuse, however: last week, while riding my bike to work, I got hit by a car. The impact shattered my left femur in pieces, and I had to be transported to a trauma specialty hospital in N.O. because of the damage.

I just got home yesterday from the hospital after they rebuilt my leg. Things are different… it seriously winds me to walk on a walker around the room. Going to the bathroom is a major ordeal that takes planning. Just getting dressed could take half the morning if you include medicines, changing bandages, etc. and nothing is really simple.

And yet, I see things more clearly now. I could easily have died being hit like that. I’ve always had a lot to be thankful for, and now, I’ve got even more.

Still hurts like crazy, though… but at least I’m alive.

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My First 200K Rando Report

Well, some of you know I’m somewhat of a bike nut. Some of you may even know that I’m a little on the crazy side. That’s why, when I discovered the “sport” of Randonneuring, and I saw how crazy the people are, I had to get in on some of that action.

Randonneuring, or “rando” for short, is basically slower paced long-distance cycling. The official rules have options for 200K, 300K, 400K, 600K, and 1200K rides, all basically without support, and without stopping for any real length of time. You’re basically riding around the clock, and the 1200K rides are known to stretch into 3+ days.

I figured I would hook up with the New Orleans chapter of RUSA and see what the fuss was about. Now, to most people, I’m a pretty accomplished rider. I log about 3000 miles a year commuting, and I’ve done several 75-mile-a-day charity rides. I don’t think twice about knocking out 50 miles. How hard could it be to do 125 miles, right?

Hah. Continue reading “My First 200K Rando Report”

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Non-Comformist, Just Like Everybody Else

I was reading a blog post this morning about Ralph Waldo Emerson’s essay “Self Reliance” and it got me thinking. Anybody who knows me can verify that I’m a non-conformist in the purest sense of the word. I have this compelling urge to do things differently, sometimes for no good reason. It’s gotten me in a lot of trouble, but has also provided experiences I would never have been able to see if I had been “normal.” This particular morning, however, I was brought to the realization that much of my non-conformism is a form of selfish idolatry.. for me to simply exercise my right to be different without any goal is simply selfishness.

What then is the good of being a non-conformist? Emerson seems to think the act of following your own will is the ultimate expression of individuality, but all too often, my will has led me astray. The only direction I have that has any meaning is that direction I receieve from God, for I know it’s true, it’s pure, and it is selfless. Only then, when I am bucking the system for the sake of loving and serving others, does my role as a non-conformist become truly satisfying and complete. Everything is justified, and I need not answer to anyone but God.

A lot of misguided people have been led astray by their own will, claiming it was the will of God. I can see in Emerson’s writings how following what you feel can end up that way. Possibly he assumed everyone listening to his voice was a follower of God, and reading the essay, it seems that’s the case. One thing is for sure: God will not give you a vision that does not accomplish His goals, nor will he give you a mission that tarnishes His perfect image. I am tempted to back away from the ledge, and for fear of going outside of God’s will, do nothing radical at all. But I still hear the call to go and serve, and I can’t ignore it. It drives me, it was in my blood even before I knew God, because He had put it there for me to use to serve Him.

Non-conformism for the sake of serving and loving people as an example of God’s love is a worthy and noble cause. Non-conformism for the sake of getting attention and thrills will only end in disappointment and spiral into more grandiose acts of rebellion, none of which will satisfy the itch that God has placed in you.

So in your non-comformism, whom are you serving?

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Working On Relaxing

For the last few months, I’ve been busy with trying to eliminate my non-essential time commitments. It’s been rather hard, especially when people you know are always asking for favors, asking you to fix things, and dropping broken stuff at your desk to fix. For free.

I’ve gotten to the point where in order for me to be able to finish the music projects I want to do, I’ve had to put everything else on a back burner. The good news is I’ve got a new laptop and mixer to work with! It should speed things up considerably. I’ll post up some bits of it in action when I work on it this weekend.

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My Weight Loss

Most of you know, I’ve been losing weight for the last four months or so. Since I had Salmonella poisoning last November (which took six weeks to recover from) I hadn’t exercised much at all. Earlier this year, my weight was hovering above 205 pounds, probably closer to 210.  At my heaviest, I weighed 225, which was several years ago, so I was proud that I had gotten down to 205. However, I knew my ideal weight was much less than that. I still had a paunch gut, and lacked energy to do anything.

Somewhere around this time, I started working with Mike. He got me turned on to healthy eating, and got me started reading up on food in general. Up until then, I never really thought about what I ate. I mean, I live in Cajun Country, we eat everything! Sadly, it had taken its toll on my body, and I wasn’t feeling too good about it. At Mike’s urging, I decided to eliminate all artificial ingredients from my diet. I switched to organic, whole foods as much as possible. At the same time, I decided I was going to start riding my bike again, at least 10 miles a day.

The key to my losing weight was controlling not just what I ate, but how much. I went from eating 3000+ calories a day to less than 2000. I felt better, I had more energy, and lost weight. I found out that if you eat healthier foods, you don’t need as much to nourish your body. That, combined with some moderate exercise was all it took. Trust me, I was not killing myself on the bike… about an hour of medium effort was all I needed. I lost a total of 35 pounds in 3 months, and have kept it off, even though I’ve increased my food intake and don’t ride as much. Even if I start to creep upward, I know how to take it off again. For the last month, I’ve been hovering between 170 and 175.

The main keys are: eat healthier (this doesn’t mean diet foods! Think “natural”) eat less, and exercise a little more. That’s it.

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Times They Are A’ Changin

Okay, first off, I’m not a huge Bob Dylan fan. I just like the name of the song.

Secondly, I’m in a quandry. Most of you know I’ve been commuting to work on my bike (pedal powered, not a motorcycle, it always irritates me when people call their motorcycles “bikes”).  In a word, it’s fantastic. I’ve lost weight, gotten healthier, and I actually enjoy the trip to work and back (being at work is a different story entirely). Most of you also know I’m a huge car nut… I love fast cars. I own a sports compact car, which I love to bring to the track and abuse. It’s somewhat of a drama queen, as nothing on it is cheap to fix, and it is rather fickle. And did I mention it’s ridiculously fun to drive? However, it’s paid for, and I’m not really tempted to sell it.

Except that I am really tempted to sell it. Less than a year ago, I was at the point of almost having to sell it, because we just couldn’t afford the cost of owning it for very long… however, we managed to pay it off, and our monthly bills dropped more than $300. I was ecstatic. I didn’t have to sell my fast car. My dream didn’t die. Continue reading “Times They Are A’ Changin”