Unconditionally Yours

I recently read somewhere about just putting an idea out there and seeing what happens. I can’t remember if it was Leo Babauta, Everett Bogue, Chris Guillebeau or who specifically said it. I suppose who said it doesn’t matter. I suppose what matters is that I am taking a leap. I’m seeing if an idea such as this could take root somewhere for someone.

 
Unconditionality


When we are looking for people’s acceptance, what we are really hoping for is an unconditional love although we probably don’t realize it. We keep trying to get someone’s approval thinking that this is the time when they will realize our worth. This is when they will take us for who we are. Love us no matter what. This is what people are after.

So many people are constantly striving for complete acceptance. Yearning to end the fear of being left alone. We are looking for an unconditional love that we are taught from birth is hard to get. Even in the Bible, it says we need to do certain things to be loved by G-d. As we are being raised and into adulthood, we have to do various things to please our parents, family members, teachers, bosses and mentors. If we don’t, they will be unpleased and we will suffer. They will take away the love is doled out as a reward. We must jump through the hoops they put forth to feel their love. If we don’t, punishment.

Maybe that is why we have the addictions and over indulgences we do. Seeking that comfort that is so hard to find. Our parents gave it in limited quantities. So do many of our friends and lovers at some point. If individuals felt unconditional love and support from the people in their lives, if they felt able to be who they really are… how different would this world be?

October 4, 2010 by Uncategorized 1

The Search is Over


Back in 1996 I read an article in GQ Magazine by Tom Junod about tips that his father had taught him. I loved that article. It really had an impact on my then young, just finishing college, twenty-something mindset. I remember telling a friend about it. I even cut it out of the magazine so he could borrow it to see what impressed me so much. I never got that article back. 

Over the years I found myself trying to recall the lessons in those torn out pages. I often thought to myself I wish I could re-read it. Silly as it may sound, in the past I had done searches to see if I could locate it online without much luck. This morning, somehow, I stumbled upon it that article nearly a decade and a half later.

In some small way this might have been the piece that started the process of creating my little rule lists I’ve recently posted here. I hope you enjoy this article as I did so many years ago. My Father’s Fashion Tips by Tom Junod.

September 25, 2010 by Uncategorized 0

Metric System in the United States


Once upon a time, I remember hearing people talk about how the United States of America would be on the metric system someday. It seems like that day may never come, at least not in my lifetime. However if the powers that decide these things really want to make the switch, there is a way to acclimate the majority of the country in about four months time.

Massive campaigns spending money on educational programs would not be needed. It is simple really. It’s football. Change all the football fields from yards to meters. That is it. Starting with pee wee football teams all the way on up to the NFL. In one season, most everyone would completely understand meters. Well maybe it isn’t that simple. You need to get buy in from a lot of people ahead of time. Perhaps we just need to remind the team owners it is for the greater good of the country and they will go down in history as visionaries.

And if you are thinking that this only helps us understand distance not volume, I think the beverage companies of the world are already on that. Companies like Coca-Cola and Pepsi have already made sure people know what two liters look like. They are doing a pretty good conversion with half liters too, after all charging about the same amount for 16.9 ounces instead of 20 ounces is a pretty solid profit move.

So who’s in? Are you ready for some football? Hmmm… maybe I should grab a couple of pints first.

September 10, 2010 by Uncategorized 0

A few of my favorite things…

A few of the things I am feeling thankful for this morning:

Cast iron pans and glass canning jars
Hot tea and wonderfully roasted coffee
Old houses that make you feel warm and safe
Great friends and acquaintances from all parts and times of my life
Being fortunate enough to have Thanksgiving leftovers
candles and incense
music and books
hoodies and warm slippers
earthenware mugs and purified water
remembering to breathe

There are so many more things…

November 26, 2009 by Uncategorized 0

Let the shopping begin.

On your mark, get set, go! The shopping deals have started today instead of tomorrow… online. Some of the sale items in today’s paper for Black Friday specials you can get right now. Sure you may have to pay a little for shipping. But that is a small price to pay when you consider sleep deprivation, fighting for parking, waiting in lines. You can keep up with all of the deals at BlackFriday.info.

November 22, 2007 by Uncategorized 0

Wanting a new toy

I went over to Best Buy last night. I found myself playing with the iPod Touch for a while. That thing is great! It was nice to be able to check Best Buy’s DVD prices against Amazon.  I wish I could find a Nokia N800 to get my hands on so I could see which I preferred. I think the N800 is the better device for me but I need to physically see the size. Well that and find some extra cash… after I pay off my debts…

November 16, 2007 by Uncategorized 0

First post… again

I just ported my blog entries from my domain YippieShow.com over to here. Hopefully over the next bit I can tweak things here to get them the way I want. Trying to figure out how to mod my RSS feeds properly so I don’t disturb anyone. I would like to get my PermaLinks reformated out of that ugly form into something easier to deal with too. Eventually I will be forwarding the YippieShow.com to this site.

November 12, 2007 by Uncategorized 0

Dare to dream

Imagine this… Living on less than what you make and not having any debt.

I think I have a new goal for myself. If I could do those two things it would allow me to live like no one else. I could save more for retirement. I could afford more things because not only would I save wasted money on interest, I wouldn’t have monthly payments. It seems like a big goal and I realize I don’t have as much debt as some people. But it would enable a level of freedom for myself I have never known. Hmmm… saving up for something before I buy it. That is something I learned growing up but I seem to have forgotten it along the way

I would like to thank Neal Campbell, Cali Lewis and Dave Ramsey for getting me to think a little.

November 12, 2007 by Uncategorized 0

Vent Session!

I don’t understand people that complain all the time. An occasional gripe is one thing but lately it seems like I have been surrounded by people who do nothing but complain. It doesn’t seem to matter if I am at work, after work or online. I call it the “poor me” syndrome. The cliche is that “misery loves company,” but I think people just do not want to take responsibility for their actions.

If you do not like how much money you make, make more. Take a second or third job. Start a business. Sell all of the extra stuff you have around your place. Be creative.

If you do not like how you are physically, do something about it. Eat less or more or more healthily. Exercise more or less. You are what you eat. What you ingest affects your skin, your hair, your energy level and many other things. What you put into your body effects much more than you think it does.

If you are unhappy with your mind set, change it. Read a book. Use the library. Take a class. Talk to people you don’t normally talk with. Find a role model or mentor, alive or dead, and learn from them.

If you do not like your living conditions, move. A great example would be this country from its small beginnings to its continued growth. That is why my ancestors came to America, for a better life. If you don’t like what your neighbors do or who they allow over, change neighborhoods. If your city’s economy is depressed, find a new city.

If you don’t like your family, friends or coworkers, associate with them less. You can’t change the family you are born into but you can control how much time you spend with them. You can also probably find another family to spend more time with. You are in complete control of everyone else you spend time with. If your work place is full of spiteful people, you can leave that situation or you can try to change it. If your old friends bring you down, find new ones.

The only thing I can think of that you don’t have immediate control over is illness. And the brutally honest truth is, with many illnesses, chances are you created that for yourself too. I am sure you didn’t do it consciously but you did do it. Just like getting into debt or becoming overweight, these things don’t happen overnight. Slowly over time, perhaps by what you ate, where you lived, what you drank or what you breathed in, you did it to yourself.

If you don’t like something about a certain condition, you have the power to change it. You create the conditions in which you live. If someone truly wants change badly enough, they will find a way. I think for most people it is just easier to whine about it than to try to change the situation.

October 21, 2007 by Uncategorized 0

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