Time

I think most people generally wear watches. We are consumed with time. "Time to make the donuts." They were funny ads in my youth, mostly because I could see how that was my future at the time. Eventually meeting myself walking in the door as I was walking out the door.

Time. It leaves us always wanting more. Often we find ourselves racing a clock. Cram more in, get to that meeting, race off to accomplish X by such a time.

A little over a month ago I took my watch off. I'm no longer consumed by time. This is not to say that I've forgotten time. But, time has much less pull on me that it has in the past. At first it felt weird at work not to have the heavy metal of my watch dragging on my arm. I've worn the same watch for about 10 years. A thick heavy chronograph. It's solid weight a comfort of the constant. Almost as a companion.

Time is something we inflict on ourselves. We lose patience and become angry over time. What time is it? Questing for that optimum balance. Some for me, some for you, some for the man, some for our friends in low places. Perhaps we even leave a few for father time as we get a few winks in. The human body requires eight hours of sleep a night. Most people average six. We don't leave enough time to renew ourselves. We wear down. We break down. We fail.

Join me in my experiment. Leave your watch on the nightstand for a few weeks. See how the quality of time changes in your life. Schedule less and do more. Be, instead of being on time. You are where you are, embrace it.

Things that make you think

l almost got killed by a wave yesterday on Ipanema Beach. I was trying to get back in through 6-7 foot waves and miscalculated the set. A huge wave came in out of nowhere and I was completely pummeled. I ended up summersaulting under water at least once and was pulled in multiple directions by the undertow. Heeding the advice of a surfer friend, I remained calm and relaxed 'til I felt myself floating upwards then kicked for the surface and broke through to get some air. Needless to say, I was a bit shaky after that, but a friend got a funny picture of me walking out of the water like I owned the beach Carioca style. Right in front of me was a Warning Undertow sign. I had drifted in the current to the very worst place to try to get out of the water.

I hear I'm getting a nice tan, and I'm not the palest gringo on the beach anymore. hehe More sun, more sun.

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Next time you go to the supermarket take a look at the produce. Specifically, the apples and the bananas. They are probably nearly perfect. Almost as though they are illustrated. No (or very few) bruises and sleek lines. As you can see I'm in South America where much of our fruit is produced. While most of it tastes better here, the appearance is not nearly what we see in the states. Bananas are especially non-appetizing in appearance. However the flavor is much richer. Almost like a banana liqour. Makes me wonder what exactly has been done to the produce that comes to the US. Perfect in appearance, but low on flavor.

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The last few books I've read were light on content but had great covers too. I've read many success stories in many industries where people got fed up with the quality of merchandise that was available and decided to simply create their own. Small furniture designers, writers, magazine publishers, eetc... I wonder when I'm finally gonna get fed up enough start my own thing and what exactly it will be. Hmmm...

A good day?

For most people, a good day is waking up, going to work, coming home, and not having any hassles on the way. We'll call it Gliding Through. Then there is my life. I hate gliding. I like the ripples and swirls that come through the course of the day. Ups downs and all arounds. It's what makes life interesting. I couldn't do the rote 9-5 thing any more than I could be a ditch digger as a profession. Not that there is anything wrong with those jobs, we need ditch diggers, we need 9-5ers. I just can't be one of them.

I do my best work late at night. I solve the most complex problems while I'm doing something other than focusing on them. My mind is a virtual playground. It requires a daily influx of NEW. Gimme something to think about. To ponder. To question. You've made my day.

Toilette por favor?

I'm declaring a new universal bathroom sign. It looks like this.




















As I've traveled the world, there is no place so familiar, so ready to offer up it's porcelain goddess for our use than McDonald's. Now, you might think this is funny, but the world over, there is one place you can count on for a clean toilet and a friendly smile at the counter to go with it. Yep. The golden arches. I mean, if you really think about it, the arches are nothing but an ass upside down. Think about it. lol

So, whatever you burger joint of choice is, always remember that McDs is in the real estate business and that real estate means a place to relieve yourself no matter where you are.

Live wire

The first thing you do when you are going to remove and replace a light fixture would be to cut power from the fuse box to that particular area of the house. I did that. Then undid it. And forgot.

Yesterday I rewired a new kitchen light fixture. As I finished I realized that I'd forgotten to turn the power back off after a trip to Home Depot for a pair of machine screws. I finished wiring the job with live power. doh

As I do these small projects, I'm quickly reminded that the scale of project doesn't matter. There is almost always scope creep. It's a good reminder as I contemplate larger scale projects and potential remodeling of complete portions of my condo.

These little projects are empowering though. Despite setbacks and the problems that occur, there is a great sense of achievement as I finish each of these little problems. Just remember to disconnect the power before you start.

Random act of kindness

Soooo... As I re-org my house and get more settled in I'm eliminating stuff. I decided to Craig's list a a couple of chairs. I got a response to a Poang Ikea chair this morning from a college student. Poor and pathetic he practically begged for the chair. OK, i'm only asking $25 for a chair and ottoman (I just wanted it gone). So, he comes to pick it up and is so excited over the chair I thought he was going to have an accident.

I then asked if they had any art on the walls. "No..."

"Do you like this?" I showed him an old print that I'd gotten years ago in a inexpensive frame (nice piece, but hardly upscale).

"I love it," he says.

Me - "Take it - on the house."

He almost cried. "Man, I'm gonna study hard for you."

Gotta love foreign exchange students.

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There is something cathartic about getting rid of the old. I've blogged about this before, but the further along I go, I seem to have less and less of what I was. New images, new stuff, new place, new life. Hmmm. I think that was one of my very first blog posts. The Reason. Check it out. Let me know if I've accomplished any of that.