Category: Outside the Box

Non-mainstream thoughts and musings

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Living Life With Significance

Have you ever thought about what separates great people from ordinary people in history? It’s more than being rich. They were remembered through time because they impacted enough people to make a difference. They lived their lives with meaning, with significance.

I have been wanting to have more of an impact on the world around me for years. But as most of you know, corporate America doesn’t care about innovation or impacting people’s lives if there’s no money involved. I can see myself in the near future breaking out of the corporate mold that has held me in prison for so long. It has provided a living for my family, yes, but has stripped me of the ability to do anything but work 8 to 5.

For me to make an impact with my life, I am going to have to step out on faith, and find a way to make a living doing something more than paperwork. We will see, in the near future, how successful it will be. Wish me luck.

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Hurricane Musings

Yeah, it’s that time again. Holiday time? No, Hurricane Season! You know, the time of year where the local weather media goes nuts talking about every rainstorm as if it could be the next “Big One.” You know, there’s only so many times I can hear that on TV and get concerned. I mean, we lived in N.O. before and after Katrina (we were smart enough to get out during the storm). We saw what happened, we know the consequences. There are some things in life that you just have to accept a certain level of risk for. In fact, when you know God is in control of everything, you pretty much don’t have a say in the matter, anyway.

Still, in my life, it’s time to minimize. No, not getting rid of old clothes, I’m talking about my life. “But you’re not that busy,” you say. Well, that’s not entirely true. I’m too busy to do the things I really want to do, long-term. I’m not too busy to play a game every now and then, and I’m not too busy to have fun with the family.

So I’m going to cut down on the amount of time I spend doing nothing. What am I going to fill it with? I need to find activities that will help me become a better person… not just a better video game player, or bulletin board poster. Something with eternal value.

This will be an interesting adventure, and by no means do I know how it will turn out… but anything worth having is worth sacrificing for.

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Friends Are All Over The World

I was digging through my regular internet forums lately, and realized just how much the internet has removed physical boundries. I watch dance troupes from Korea. Talk to computer modders from Israel, the UK, Australia, and more. Share car information with people in South America. Talk about music to people all over the world.

Some of these friends I’d call “acquaintances” because I’ve never actually met them in person. Some of them I’ve only met once, but I talk to on a weekly basis, and I know more about their lives than I know about my own extended family. Why is that?

It’s because we share some sort of passion. And life is all about passion. What makes you passionate? What are you willing to sacrifice for? What do people say you eat, sleep, and breathe for? Who are you most readily associated with? What about people that don’t know you personally? What part of you do they see first?

Find your passions. Pursue them. Chase them. Don’t be afraid to dream about them. They define who you are.

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Birthdays, And A Cry For Help

Birthdays ain’t what they used to be. I even tried to play mine down this year, because every year my parents and kids go nuts trying to do something crazy for me. I like the attention, but man, they didn’t let me get away with jack. So now I’m 34. I’m working on a holiday, it’s my birthday, and I’ve got a cold.

Life is awesome. Prayers go out to all the people in China who have lost loved ones. If we hadn’t gotten prior warning about Katrina, we’d have been in the same boat. If you want to help, go visit the American Red Cross and see what you can do.

(Way-Back Machine found this: the 2008 Sichuan Earthquake)