At college career fairs I preach “passion” to the students. I want my passion back. How I get it back is the $64 Question.
Read Along With Me
Today’s passage from Notes To Myself.
My experience indicates that blunt honesty with my feelings gives me greater empathy with other people’s feelings. My feelings appear to be a truer register of another person’s feelings than my intellect. To better get at what is going on in him I sometimes ask myself not, “What is happening in him?” but “What do I feel is happening in him?” In order to see more clearly what he is feeling I at times have to stop listening to what he is saying, and what I am thinking, and look inside myself. Then if I speak from this feeling within, and tell him what I understand him to be saying, he will usually set me straight if I have not got it right.
To all who have helped me — Thanks.
Getting One Book Closer To A Kindle
I’m about two-thirds through reading Nick Hornby’s Slam. So far the book has been engaging, but I couldn’t have less of a connection with the main character if I tried. The story is about a teenager from a broken marriage, who was conceived when his mother was sixteen, and who subsequently knocks up his girlfriend at sixteen. Currently they’ve not had the child yet, nor have they told anyone that she is pregnant, so I’ve not learned what is to become of this.
I think Hornby’s High Fidelity “spoke” to me more…
ITP Flickr Pic
Sometimes getting to your goals seems incredibly obvious. However, as this photo illustrates, you can always be certain.
How are we certain that the edges not included in the frame provide us the direction necessary to make to the center? How’s that for some obtuse thinking for a Friday?
The Numbers Go Up, The Numbers Go Down
Unlike many of the social networks, Twitter has stuck. Even with its numerous outages (and I nearly registered www.TwitterIsAtCapacity.com yesterday) I return daily. As you may read along the right-hand galley of this blog, my Tweets (Twitter postings) rarely relate to anything — they are simply off-the-cuff thoughts which occur in my twisted mind.
What’s really odd about Twitter is watching the number of people “Following” me go up and down like the tide. Are these people judging me? Were these people expecting something greater out of me? It’s rather odd. It’s even odder (juggle that juxtaposition of words for a moment) that I care.
More Than Likely My Weekend Commitments Will Be Non-Existent
With the exception of running Black Sheep on Sunday afternoon I have committed to making no commitments. There are things which may, or may not, occur and I’m okay with that right now.
Many options exist, few will be executed…
Ezekiel, Make Me Some Goddamn Bread!
On Wednesday I received the gift of an Amish Friendship bread started from Martha (aka Laura). Even though I failed to stir it with a wooden spoon as directed (I believe that I understand why I am more passionate for “cooking” as opposed to “baking”), I will be attempting to “Amish the hizzie” by baking the bread tonight.
Here are the ingredients that will go into my bun in the oven…
- 2 cups flour
- 1 cup sugar
- 1-1/2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 – (5.1 oz) box instant vanilla pudding
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup nuts
Bun in the oven? Maybe I have more in common with Slam than I realized?
Of course my house contains everything except instant vanilla pudding, so I’ll be making a pit stop on my way home tonight. With any luck neither my lack of direction following nor my lack of baking skill will result in me producing a paperweight.
And now for some ideas stolen from LiveJournal…
Current Mood – somewhat lost
Current Music – Sirius Satellite Radio, Channel 26 playing The National — “Fake Empire”
Website Of The Day – Pet Peeves sells dog chew toys, but also appears to be so much more. Since I am not a dog owner I will leave it up to the reader to determine this site’s worth.
Exercise (b)Log – nothing
Monthly Foot Mileage – 18.75 miles
Monthly Wheel Mileage – 38 miles
Mode Of Transportation To Work – Marta
Monthly Marta Rides – 21
Consecutive Days Of Bed-Making (Longest Streak) – 78 (78)
Books To Read To Earn Kindle – 5
June Goals
1) Run no fewer than 75 miles
2) Ride no fewer than 100 road miles
3) Ride Marta no fewer than twenty times (ten round-trips)
4) Read at least one book
5) Make my bed every day
6) Eat out at a bar/restaurant no more than twice in one week
Cheers,
Paulie [eatl/ga]
After reading the post from you and Bill I’m not sure about tasting what you make, maybe you guys should just stick to buying beer.
If you can make it tomorrow and it isn’t raining the SC should be a nice bike ride. I’m ready for something flat, my legs felt like lead yesterday on the ride home.
Silver Comet tomorrow morning – all we need is a time, and which parking lot.
Paulie, here’s some peer pressure – if you don’t ride, then you might not make your 100 mile goal for the month. And, Allan is even going with us (to make me feel slow as always).
Martha – how did your bread come out?
Skipping out on the ride. I’ve committed to a sunrise photoshoot tomorrow.
My breadmaking should be entertaing at least. Fear not, I will be the first to taste and won’t subject any one else to it if it’s shitty.
There are a lot of myths associated with the Amish Bread….you don’t need to use a wooden spoon for one. Eventually you have to quit making it because you end up throwing away a lot of starter and baking bread every 10 days (and eating it).
Would love to join the bike ride but I’ll be at Lake Oconee this week-end.
Amish Bread reminds me of the ginger beer plant my brother and I used to “grow” when we were little. I need to find a recipe for that again sometime. I hate ginger ale, it cannot compare to lashings and lashings of ginger beer.
Everyday we would feed the “plant” a teaspoon of ground ginger and a teaspoon of sugar and watch it bubble and burp happily until it was time to brew up a good batch.
Which leads me to something probably a little closer to your heart. To bottle the drink we had to use plastic bottles that would withstand the pressure as it ferments. Normal carbonated drink bottles a la Coke wouldn’t really do as every so often a bottle would get out of hand you see and likely explode while it was maturing. Adds an element of excitement! The bottles of choice would therefore be the huge plastic bottles of beer or cider that are commonplace in the UK. No sign of any over here though. 🙁 What’s that all about?! Another silly American alcohol law?
I’m going to try to freeze part of my next starter, some say you can, some say you can’t, I just need to know for myself. I’ve also heard you don’t need to stick to the 10 day schedule, I see some experiments in my future.
I call Amish bread the chain letter of baking…I don’t have that many friends to do this for too long.
Kay, I should have a starter for you this weekend (I just need to do get to the store for some milk).
I’d call the Amish to ask them, but I don’t think that they are allowed to own phones. 🙂
I can lend you a horse if you want to visit in person. 😉
Are you sure the Amish are allowed to use instant pudding?
Not really, but probably if they ride in a horse-and-buggy to buy it.