Sometimes when I can't think of a title, I just look at the keyboard until I find a particular letter I like. Then I'll try out the first few words that come to my mind that start with that letter. Today: Potomac.
What's the deal? There's ups and downs and confusing middles. Life, like we've discussed earlier, always comes at me in cycles.
One cycle that I've played through a few times is the Ultimate cycle. I traverse the amplitude between wanting to be super competitive about it all, or just keeping it relaxed and fun on Friday nights.
Most of this week I wanted to push the limits and be competitive. I wanted to play other high schools, maybe do summer or fall city league.
But I think we're now on the backswing of that cycle. Right now I'm thinking that we should appreciate Ultimate for what it is and use it as we've got it. Why do we need to blow Murray out of the water? Wouldn't we rather chill on a clear Friday night?
Odd mood tonight. Something's a little off. This summer, so far, has been less than what I wanted it to be. There have been some extremely excellent moments though. PLC was amazing. There's something glorious about the whole week. I have nothing but love for PLC. I've been on a few really cool dates, run a few great runs, and started moving forward on council stuff, which I absolutely love.
And, thinking about those things, summer's been alright.
The only reason that I am not enamored with this summer like I want to be is because I'm doing less work than I usually am. During school I'm constantly required to progress. I've got to learn something or complete a project or do whatever. Today, not so much.
Another factor, the human factor, plays a large role in summer. I just don't see people as often as I do during the school year. I know that this is partly (largely) my fault. I'm not quite sure why I'm like that though. I love to be with people. Somedays, for whatever reasons, I don't make a great effort to pull it off though. Those are disappointing days.
So how do I fix the problem? There's no use in having a problem if one is not going to make an effort to fix it. What's the key?
Obviously, be with people more. Work. Then work harder.
There are things going for me right now. I love those, and I'm going to work hard on those.
I need to go running more. Running makes my life better. I'm gonna do that.
I need to be around people more. Maybe I'll start taking people up on offers. Maybe I'll start making my own offers.
Tonight is a night. There's no question about it. And, as such, I am inhabiting tonight. The feelings of tonight, just like the feelings of last night, are important and real. I have a healthy respect for tonight.
But what about tomorrow night? Do I respect tomorrow night's feelings? Maybe I fear tomorrow night's feelings, because they will invariably be different than tonight's.
The question then, is whether or not these are good feelings. Are they productive? Do they serve a purpose? More importantly, what do they move me to do? Do they make me want to do good things, or bad things, or no things? What's the point behind them?
This post is sort of like all those other deep posts. Except that this one just isn't as cool. Which is alright. Because that's not the point of it.
Which, once again, begs the question: what's the point?
I want some rain. And I want to go downtown. I think I'd like some rain while I'm downtown.
I also want my AP scores. Ah, those were the days.
I think I want to just dig a hole. There's something extremely satisfying about using that shovel and creating a massless gap in the crust. The trouble is that I've never really had a good reason to dig a hole. Maybe if I had a reason to dig the hole...
So.... what's the news? Hmm, that's odd. I think I'm smiling a little bit. Yeah. Huh. And I don't really know why. But I am, as a passive sort of deal. Puzzling, yet not unwelcome.
I wouldn't mind a broadsword right about now. You know, for a quest and all that.
It's 1:50 right now. There's still a little time left to save it. It was good to see people tonight. Good to hang out with my family a bit. Tomorrow looks like a pretty decent day. I'm really excited for Sunday, that's going to be an even better day.
I wish that there was a pandora for moods instead of musical genres.
After all, at least we'll be safe from bears.
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Thursday, June 28, 2007
259
Remember how I used to say I've got a bad case of Ultimate dreaming?
It's now been replaced with Ultimate frothing at the mouth.
Carry on.
It's now been replaced with Ultimate frothing at the mouth.
Carry on.
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Time (Kill it!)
So, I got a few minutes. Well, really, I've had most of the day. But since I want to post more, I've decided that I'm probably going to have to start posting at times of the day that aren't 1 am.
So, here we are, at an unprecedented 5:57 PM.
Since it's not the end of the day I'm not in my usual pondering mood. I am, however, in my music listening to mood. Without further ado, me spouting random stuff about bands and songs I like.
Super good bands:
Goo Goo Dolls are pro because they've got good songs. Very respectable songs. Whenever one of their songs comes on, it's like "Bam, good song." Example: Iris. Real good song. It's more downbeat though. They've got some up stuff, like slide. That's a good one too. Important to mention is "Better days." One of the more powerful songs I've heard in a while. That's the one I listen to when I want to cry. Haha, just kidding about that last one.
Matchbox 20 is sort of like Isaac Halliday. When everything else lets you down, matchbox will always be there. Super dependable. Always pulling through with a good song. 2 AM, (or is it 3, I don't even know) Real World (one of my favorites) push, all that other good stuff. Yeah, always pulling through with a good song. I dig.
BNL (you all know what the acronym means) are fully clothed canadian men. Not only that, but they're really good at that whole music thing. I haven't heard too much of their recent stuff, but their old school music is primo. What I really like is that they've got their super popular songs, and then their other stuff that isn't as popular but that I really like as well. They've got good music, it's just fun to listen to. Some good messages. I like.
Insideout, obviously the least popular band here, started out local at BYU. They're acapella. If you ever hear me or kyle running around singing something odd, we're probably singing insideout. Right now me, kyle, austin, P-thor, Rick, and Brad are working on learning one of their songs that they offer sheet music for. They're super talented, and their music just makes you feel good. Mmm mmm.
The four bands I wanted to talk about---> talked about.
On to random songs I really like.
First on the list is drops of jupiter, by train. Just a good song.
Someday, by Sugar Ray. That's a good one too.
Hmm. Different writing style. Not something I usually write about. I say "Good song" a lot. But you know what, it's 6:07, I'm allowed to write different.
Ha!
So, here we are, at an unprecedented 5:57 PM.
Since it's not the end of the day I'm not in my usual pondering mood. I am, however, in my music listening to mood. Without further ado, me spouting random stuff about bands and songs I like.
Super good bands:
- Goo Goo Dolls
- Matchbox 20
- BNL
- Insideout
Goo Goo Dolls are pro because they've got good songs. Very respectable songs. Whenever one of their songs comes on, it's like "Bam, good song." Example: Iris. Real good song. It's more downbeat though. They've got some up stuff, like slide. That's a good one too. Important to mention is "Better days." One of the more powerful songs I've heard in a while. That's the one I listen to when I want to cry. Haha, just kidding about that last one.
Matchbox 20 is sort of like Isaac Halliday. When everything else lets you down, matchbox will always be there. Super dependable. Always pulling through with a good song. 2 AM, (or is it 3, I don't even know) Real World (one of my favorites) push, all that other good stuff. Yeah, always pulling through with a good song. I dig.
BNL (you all know what the acronym means) are fully clothed canadian men. Not only that, but they're really good at that whole music thing. I haven't heard too much of their recent stuff, but their old school music is primo. What I really like is that they've got their super popular songs, and then their other stuff that isn't as popular but that I really like as well. They've got good music, it's just fun to listen to. Some good messages. I like.
Insideout, obviously the least popular band here, started out local at BYU. They're acapella. If you ever hear me or kyle running around singing something odd, we're probably singing insideout. Right now me, kyle, austin, P-thor, Rick, and Brad are working on learning one of their songs that they offer sheet music for. They're super talented, and their music just makes you feel good. Mmm mmm.
The four bands I wanted to talk about---> talked about.
On to random songs I really like.
First on the list is drops of jupiter, by train. Just a good song.
Someday, by Sugar Ray. That's a good one too.
Hmm. Different writing style. Not something I usually write about. I say "Good song" a lot. But you know what, it's 6:07, I'm allowed to write different.
Ha!
Sunday, June 24, 2007
The Ok Alarm
It's a new kind of alarm. It'll beep loudly once every three seconds if everything is ok. If it's not beeping, things aren't ok.
The good news---> it's beeping.
The good news---> it's beeping.
Saturday, June 23, 2007
Friday, June 22, 2007
Outcome
The plan, so far, hasn't been working like I want it to.
For various reasons, there have been no super awesome posts. I do wish to remedy this.
Summer is an interesting time of year. Right now there is very little structure to the way my life is. I am essentially free to make almost all my own choices. There's no school, no practices, no job, not much of anything.
It's puts me in a very enlightening phase of my life.
For all my life I've wanted sink or swim. I've always wanted to prove that when it was all up to me, I could pull it off and make it happen.
We all know that it's not up to me. I've got my family, my friends, and, if you believe it like I do, heavenly forces helping me out.
This week hasn't been the greatest week of my life. But it's Thursday night. There's time yet to turn it around.
This time, right now, it's time to make it happen. Nobody's going to make it happen for me. If I'm going to go, I gotta go.
Where do the answers lie?
The genuine truth, the answers, they're going to lie in hard work. Nothing else will get you or I what we want.
It's summer, and the ball is in my court. What I do with it will determine the outcome. It's not all about me, I'm not the only one playing right now. But nobody else can make it happen for me. Nobody's gonna change my life, nobody's gonna make me jump higher but me.
The choice is mine. The power to choose my own destiny is mine, right here and now.
The past has gotten me as far as I am today. The choices of today will determine the launchpad of tomorrow.
Maybe June 21 didn't get me anywhere.
But here's to you, June 22. Let's make it happen.
For various reasons, there have been no super awesome posts. I do wish to remedy this.
Summer is an interesting time of year. Right now there is very little structure to the way my life is. I am essentially free to make almost all my own choices. There's no school, no practices, no job, not much of anything.
It's puts me in a very enlightening phase of my life.
For all my life I've wanted sink or swim. I've always wanted to prove that when it was all up to me, I could pull it off and make it happen.
We all know that it's not up to me. I've got my family, my friends, and, if you believe it like I do, heavenly forces helping me out.
This week hasn't been the greatest week of my life. But it's Thursday night. There's time yet to turn it around.
This time, right now, it's time to make it happen. Nobody's going to make it happen for me. If I'm going to go, I gotta go.
Where do the answers lie?
The genuine truth, the answers, they're going to lie in hard work. Nothing else will get you or I what we want.
It's summer, and the ball is in my court. What I do with it will determine the outcome. It's not all about me, I'm not the only one playing right now. But nobody else can make it happen for me. Nobody's gonna change my life, nobody's gonna make me jump higher but me.
The choice is mine. The power to choose my own destiny is mine, right here and now.
The past has gotten me as far as I am today. The choices of today will determine the launchpad of tomorrow.
Maybe June 21 didn't get me anywhere.
But here's to you, June 22. Let's make it happen.
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
11 Minutes, Go!
I have 11 minutes, what am I going to talk about?
I don't know, but I haven't posted as much as I'd like to lately, so I'm just going to fly with it.
As many of you know, I recently decided to not participate in the 2007 Warrior Cross Country team. I understand that a lot of people aren't super excited about this decision. The truth is that I know it's the right thing for me to do. It's not easy for me to walk, and I'm sure it's not easy on the team to have me jump out on them. There's a lot of reasons for me doing it.
I don't have much time now, but I'll probably explain it more later. Just know that it's the right thing for me to do, and that things are going to be dandy for everybody. The team will survive and do awesome this season. I'll survive, stay in shape, and do awesome as well. Life is going to be good, it's just going to be a little different.
625 baby. I can't wait for mid july. Yumm, food time.
I don't know, but I haven't posted as much as I'd like to lately, so I'm just going to fly with it.
As many of you know, I recently decided to not participate in the 2007 Warrior Cross Country team. I understand that a lot of people aren't super excited about this decision. The truth is that I know it's the right thing for me to do. It's not easy for me to walk, and I'm sure it's not easy on the team to have me jump out on them. There's a lot of reasons for me doing it.
I don't have much time now, but I'll probably explain it more later. Just know that it's the right thing for me to do, and that things are going to be dandy for everybody. The team will survive and do awesome this season. I'll survive, stay in shape, and do awesome as well. Life is going to be good, it's just going to be a little different.
625 baby. I can't wait for mid july. Yumm, food time.
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Handprint
I don't have too much to say tonight. Just a quiet night, the inevitable crash after endorphin-land.But there are some times when all I really want to do is put my hand up against the computer monitor and have that make sense. While I don't appreciate the oil on the glass, it seems like it's a decent way to get the message across.
So far it's never worked. Last time I tried it I had to paint my hand with messengers drawing function. This time I tried a picture. What's it mean? It doesn't really matter, and I couldn't really explain anyways. It's a hand, c'mon.
There it is. Keep up the good work Taylorsville. I think we're moving forward. We've got our ups and downs, but we're getting there. There's work to be done. I think I missed some opportunities this week, and that hurts a little bit.
Here's to you Friday night. Don't stop believin'
Friday, June 15, 2007
Manly
This morning I had the opportunity to cover for my mom at work while she helped my sister with her bridal pictures. My mom, who I love dearly, works in a little girls dress store. The dresses are made in San Francisco then shipped her to be sold in malls. Not too hard of a job, all I really had to do was run the sales. Somebody wants to buy a dress, I step in and make it happen. In theory.
Here's the transcript from the journal I kept. Hope you enjoy.
~
10:06 Am - Just got started, reviewed all the stuff I've got to do. Clear as mud. I hope no one comes in. I'm currently being paid to sit in a chair and write in my notebook. Two old ladies just passed by. I panicked, I thought they'd come in. But they didn't. Whew.
10:09 Am - Good some on B98.7. Makes me wonder why I only wanna listen to love songs after dark after frisbee friday... still a good song.
10:10 Am - I think I'll paint something for mom sometime today. I'm gonna sketch some ideas first though.
10:12 Am - A guy with a hat that says "Terminator just walked by... gasp! A lady just walked in mid write, and is like "Do you sell only girls?" and I'm like "As far as I know... wait! There's a tuxedo over there, in white!" then she left. 2 more customers. Woman and man. Man wants to be here as much as I do. Deep breaths. Oooh, another good song. They're gonna buy something. Deep breaths.
10:37 Am - Oh man, I survived. She was so nice, best customer ever. She was super friendly, and helped me out everywhere I needed help. I had to call for a dress check, and then I'm like, uhh, I don't know how to describe it... so she takes the phone and describes it for me, that was nice. She was patient, and totally reminded me when I needed it in a super nice way. I wanna be like her when I grow up. Yay for nice people!
10:44 Am - Just called my mom to tell her how good I did, yay! Man, another good song on the radio! I think it's five for fighting, so freaking good. "There's a reason for the world --> You and I." So good! Five for fighting - the riddle.
10:55 Am - I just got a fax from David (The Asian in San Francisco), saying he couldn't read the fax I sent him, so I redid it. Nice david, sending me the note and all. This job makes me feel important/special. Still really liking B98.7, pretty good. Gonna make it a preset once I hit the van.
11:19 Am - A lady just came in, doesn't look too serious. Just wrote out a TON of awesome ideas for heroes* (That means water). So excited about that, i've got some epic ideas. I almost wanna hire a professional writer to do this, I don't feel like I can do it justice. I'll try though, so cool.
11:24 Am - She was nice, just left. No complaints.
11:37 Am - Believe by cher is on. One of my favorite songs of the month. New lady in here, w/ kids. She snuck in while I was writing. Mmm, just left, new ones. Left, new lady. They come in waves. "How cute!" .... "You would." So freakin' excited about these water ideas. Rascal flats, what hurts the most? Yep.
12:32 Pm - Just made another sale, woot. Mom gets here in 15 minutes. Another frendly lady, from Idaho. Feeling pretty good about how today has been. No big mistakes, Hooray!
12:47 Pm - She's here! Hooray! Off to the barbecue
And there you have it, my day selling dresses. I was real successful, which was way cool. No complaints there. I did have to call my mom on the first sale I made to figure out how to do a credit card, but after that I had it down.
I spent a lot of time brainstorming and writing stuff for Water. I don't want to get anybody's hopes up, but it was looking really nice. I've got awesome and strong ideas up there, now it's just a matter of sharing. I almost wish I could just tell the story without having to write it down, all the details. I just want to ruin the ending right now. It was cool to notebook it though, getting all the characters down. All the sudden it changed from just an awesome scenario with cool play-outs to a genuine struggle with personal people that I started to care about. The characters started to gain a little bit of complexity, it was cool. The whole concept just makes me way happy. If it never gets written down, I want to explain it all to somebody one day so they can write it, it just makes me happy.
It's funny how many transformations the whole idea has gone through though. It initially started as something totally different. Every time I mow the lawn the thing changes. I think it's pretty stable right now though, considering I've got ideas on paper now. It makes me happy. Maybe I'll write something next week, I hope so.
In any event it's been a pretty good day. I made some money and had some fun. I hope I can keep moving ahead like this, it's feeling pretty good. There's still a lot of work to be done, but with a little help I think it can be handled. Here's to you summer~
Here's the transcript from the journal I kept. Hope you enjoy.
~
10:06 Am - Just got started, reviewed all the stuff I've got to do. Clear as mud. I hope no one comes in. I'm currently being paid to sit in a chair and write in my notebook. Two old ladies just passed by. I panicked, I thought they'd come in. But they didn't. Whew.
10:09 Am - Good some on B98.7. Makes me wonder why I only wanna listen to love songs after dark after frisbee friday... still a good song.
10:10 Am - I think I'll paint something for mom sometime today. I'm gonna sketch some ideas first though.
10:12 Am - A guy with a hat that says "Terminator just walked by... gasp! A lady just walked in mid write, and is like "Do you sell only girls?" and I'm like "As far as I know... wait! There's a tuxedo over there, in white!" then she left. 2 more customers. Woman and man. Man wants to be here as much as I do. Deep breaths. Oooh, another good song. They're gonna buy something. Deep breaths.
10:37 Am - Oh man, I survived. She was so nice, best customer ever. She was super friendly, and helped me out everywhere I needed help. I had to call for a dress check, and then I'm like, uhh, I don't know how to describe it... so she takes the phone and describes it for me, that was nice. She was patient, and totally reminded me when I needed it in a super nice way. I wanna be like her when I grow up. Yay for nice people!
10:44 Am - Just called my mom to tell her how good I did, yay! Man, another good song on the radio! I think it's five for fighting, so freaking good. "There's a reason for the world --> You and I." So good! Five for fighting - the riddle.
10:55 Am - I just got a fax from David (The Asian in San Francisco), saying he couldn't read the fax I sent him, so I redid it. Nice david, sending me the note and all. This job makes me feel important/special. Still really liking B98.7, pretty good. Gonna make it a preset once I hit the van.
11:19 Am - A lady just came in, doesn't look too serious. Just wrote out a TON of awesome ideas for heroes* (That means water). So excited about that, i've got some epic ideas. I almost wanna hire a professional writer to do this, I don't feel like I can do it justice. I'll try though, so cool.
11:24 Am - She was nice, just left. No complaints.
11:37 Am - Believe by cher is on. One of my favorite songs of the month. New lady in here, w/ kids. She snuck in while I was writing. Mmm, just left, new ones. Left, new lady. They come in waves. "How cute!" .... "You would." So freakin' excited about these water ideas. Rascal flats, what hurts the most? Yep.
12:32 Pm - Just made another sale, woot. Mom gets here in 15 minutes. Another frendly lady, from Idaho. Feeling pretty good about how today has been. No big mistakes, Hooray!
12:47 Pm - She's here! Hooray! Off to the barbecue
And there you have it, my day selling dresses. I was real successful, which was way cool. No complaints there. I did have to call my mom on the first sale I made to figure out how to do a credit card, but after that I had it down.
I spent a lot of time brainstorming and writing stuff for Water. I don't want to get anybody's hopes up, but it was looking really nice. I've got awesome and strong ideas up there, now it's just a matter of sharing. I almost wish I could just tell the story without having to write it down, all the details. I just want to ruin the ending right now. It was cool to notebook it though, getting all the characters down. All the sudden it changed from just an awesome scenario with cool play-outs to a genuine struggle with personal people that I started to care about. The characters started to gain a little bit of complexity, it was cool. The whole concept just makes me way happy. If it never gets written down, I want to explain it all to somebody one day so they can write it, it just makes me happy.
It's funny how many transformations the whole idea has gone through though. It initially started as something totally different. Every time I mow the lawn the thing changes. I think it's pretty stable right now though, considering I've got ideas on paper now. It makes me happy. Maybe I'll write something next week, I hope so.
In any event it's been a pretty good day. I made some money and had some fun. I hope I can keep moving ahead like this, it's feeling pretty good. There's still a lot of work to be done, but with a little help I think it can be handled. Here's to you summer~
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Scoober
Post 250, hooray! Here's to a million more.
As I sat this evening and looked at the clock, I realized that it was very late and that I hadn't really done anything with my day. I decided to re-check wikipedia's list of Ultimate throws, to see if there were any new ones I could work on. Our little group has got quite a few throws down, and our creative juices have worked hard to make sure that there's no possible way to accelerate a disk that we haven't thought of.
Lo and behold, there were at least three that I'd never seen before. The scoober, the thumber, and the viggiano. While we did have throws that we called the scoober and the thumber, those aren't the same throws that wikipedia talks about. I was super curious to figure out what they were all about, so I read up on them. It was pretty confusing because of all the lingo, and trying to visualize what they were talking about was nearly impossible. They had a few pictures, but nothing that helped. I really wanted to get it through, so I kept pounding on it.
Eventually I just had to stand up, grab a disc, and try it out myself. Step by step I read the lines and followed the instructions. After a few tries it finally made sense. I actually got it, I made it work, and I've got a new trick to show everybody come Friday night.
Finally getting the idea behind the throw was such a good feeling. It's one of those feelings that only comes around once a month. I call it my "C-Two-H-Two-Oooooooooooh!" feeling. You know that feeling where you stare at that chemistry problem for half an hour, knowing that there's an answer but being unable to find it? You stand up, get a drink, and come back to staring. 22 minutes later you find a trail, and excitedly you rush to follow it. Calculation after calculation follows. It fills up half the page, your TI-86 is on fire with more decimals than any chemist would ever need. Sweating from excitement and number-crashing you hit enter the last time, and there, standing before you in beautiful black pixels is the answer. You check to make sure it's reasonable, and bam, there it is. The number, the answer, the key. You pulled it off, against the odds. You slew the giant. 52 minutes, all but eight of them spent scraping and scraping to find a hole. You pulled it off, you're amazing.
It was that rush. I was so excited, I ran to tell my big brother. He was asleep, so I told my sister. It didn't matter though, I was giddy as a school girl. I figured it out.
A little while later I had a thought. It was quite the thought, if I do say so myself.
I thought to myself, "why not make an Ultimate knowledge base? You know, a website of sorts that shows step by step how to throw, with pictures and video, so nobody else has to fight through so much jargon on wikipedia?"
And then I thought, "Yeah, that's an excellent idea."
So that's my proposition of the day. I could make an Ultimate knowledge base, and share all the stuff that we've figured out. It'd be just like Kyle or I standing there next to you teaching you how to do stuff, but it'd be online, so you could check it out from the comfort of your chair, and you wouldn't even have to smell me or Kyle.
It'd be a good project for me this summer, and I could get everybody to help with it. The site could be pretty extensive; there's a lot to cover. Because I feel like a list, here's a list.
That's probably not all, but that's what I can think of right now. It'd be pretty easy to pull off, I could even make it happen with a new blog or freewebs. I know a lot of you are thinking that stuff like this is already out there. You're totally right, it is. It's just not out there done by me. There's stuff like this that's probably better than what I can do, but that's not the point. The point is that I have a knowledge base here, and I want to share it. I have the resources to do so. I will phrase my stuff differently than the next guy. It's that difference that will help people. Maybe one guy can learn great from wikipedia, and maybe the next guy will learn great from me once he can't understand the wikipedia.
Basically: I want an excuse to talk a little bit more about Ultimate.
I don't know, I think it could be a cool deal. If nothing else it'd give me a chance to get a little bit more into it. It could help people, if it got traffic. It doesn't really matter if it doesn't though, as long as I know that it's there. Could be a cool deal.
I'm in quite the ultimate mood lately. Been thinking about it a lot, how I want to be a better player and all. That's one thing that I'd really love. I know that I'm decent right now, maybe even good. But I'd love to just dominate. I'd love to transition well and run faster and jump higher. It's something that I'm going to work on, because I really want to be better. I am happy with the progress I've made so far, it makes me really excited. But wow, I'm going to push the limits.
I think tomorrow I'll post my official run down on Frisbee Friday. The pros, the cons, all that. Nick did something similar, but I want to go a little deeper on it. It's an evaluation, something that they talk about at PLC. By sitting down and evaluating stuff, you can find out how to make it better. If one never sits down to think about what just happened, one can never really make any progress on it.
Sitting down and thinking about stuff is brilliant. I love doing it. So much good always comes from it. Maybe that's why I love meetings so much. You take the combined wisdom of everybody involved and figure out what you can do better. Oh yeah, it's good stuff.
Super super, it's time for bed. Maybe this Ultimate knowledge base will fly, maybe it won't. Either way, I'm really looking forward to Friday night: I got a new throw to show off.
As I sat this evening and looked at the clock, I realized that it was very late and that I hadn't really done anything with my day. I decided to re-check wikipedia's list of Ultimate throws, to see if there were any new ones I could work on. Our little group has got quite a few throws down, and our creative juices have worked hard to make sure that there's no possible way to accelerate a disk that we haven't thought of.
Lo and behold, there were at least three that I'd never seen before. The scoober, the thumber, and the viggiano. While we did have throws that we called the scoober and the thumber, those aren't the same throws that wikipedia talks about. I was super curious to figure out what they were all about, so I read up on them. It was pretty confusing because of all the lingo, and trying to visualize what they were talking about was nearly impossible. They had a few pictures, but nothing that helped. I really wanted to get it through, so I kept pounding on it.
Eventually I just had to stand up, grab a disc, and try it out myself. Step by step I read the lines and followed the instructions. After a few tries it finally made sense. I actually got it, I made it work, and I've got a new trick to show everybody come Friday night.
Finally getting the idea behind the throw was such a good feeling. It's one of those feelings that only comes around once a month. I call it my "C-Two-H-Two-Oooooooooooh!" feeling. You know that feeling where you stare at that chemistry problem for half an hour, knowing that there's an answer but being unable to find it? You stand up, get a drink, and come back to staring. 22 minutes later you find a trail, and excitedly you rush to follow it. Calculation after calculation follows. It fills up half the page, your TI-86 is on fire with more decimals than any chemist would ever need. Sweating from excitement and number-crashing you hit enter the last time, and there, standing before you in beautiful black pixels is the answer. You check to make sure it's reasonable, and bam, there it is. The number, the answer, the key. You pulled it off, against the odds. You slew the giant. 52 minutes, all but eight of them spent scraping and scraping to find a hole. You pulled it off, you're amazing.
It was that rush. I was so excited, I ran to tell my big brother. He was asleep, so I told my sister. It didn't matter though, I was giddy as a school girl. I figured it out.
A little while later I had a thought. It was quite the thought, if I do say so myself.
I thought to myself, "why not make an Ultimate knowledge base? You know, a website of sorts that shows step by step how to throw, with pictures and video, so nobody else has to fight through so much jargon on wikipedia?"
And then I thought, "Yeah, that's an excellent idea."
So that's my proposition of the day. I could make an Ultimate knowledge base, and share all the stuff that we've figured out. It'd be just like Kyle or I standing there next to you teaching you how to do stuff, but it'd be online, so you could check it out from the comfort of your chair, and you wouldn't even have to smell me or Kyle.
It'd be a good project for me this summer, and I could get everybody to help with it. The site could be pretty extensive; there's a lot to cover. Because I feel like a list, here's a list.
- Throws section. This is where we'd show how to pull off every throw that we know. As we learn more, we'd add more. They'd be seperated into game-time throws and novelty throws. There'd be step by step instructions, with pictures every single step of the way, and then in-depth video at the end showing it done in its entirety. It'd be explained a million different ways, to make sure it'd be impossible to not get it. Oh yeah, it'd be a pretty in depth throw section.
- Catches. This would obviously be smaller, but it's important to have its own section. We'd talk about the pancake, and have pictures and video of how to pull that off. We'd explain why it's so important to do it that way. Then we'd show how to catch high ones and low ones. Then we'd cover novelty catches. Same basic concept as above.
- Gameplay. We'd have an easy run down of the rules, along with visuals. We'd talk a little bit about spirit of the game, and then we'd show people how to make gameplay work. Some strategies, the stack (if we choose to figure it out) and some other stuff like that. Make it understandable to new people.
- Discs. This will be a cool part, because it'd just be a link repository of where to get good discs for cheap. We'd recommend the flashflight and the ultrastar. We'd explain why you need those discs.
- Drills. This is one thing we'd have to work on, but we'd have some programs (once we figure them out) of how to make people better Ultimate players. We'd really have two different kinds, the game play kind, and the athletic kind. We'd show people how to cut, and give them a cutting drill. We'd give people a workout to make them jump higher, and we'd have video explaining everything. Step by step, easy easy.
- Physics. This is probably my favorite part. My theory is that if people understand the physics behind the disc, they can make the disc do what they want. In order to throw well, you've got to be able to understand why the disc flies. This satisfies the nerdy demands that I have. It starts with T, and rhymes with dork.
That's probably not all, but that's what I can think of right now. It'd be pretty easy to pull off, I could even make it happen with a new blog or freewebs. I know a lot of you are thinking that stuff like this is already out there. You're totally right, it is. It's just not out there done by me. There's stuff like this that's probably better than what I can do, but that's not the point. The point is that I have a knowledge base here, and I want to share it. I have the resources to do so. I will phrase my stuff differently than the next guy. It's that difference that will help people. Maybe one guy can learn great from wikipedia, and maybe the next guy will learn great from me once he can't understand the wikipedia.
Basically: I want an excuse to talk a little bit more about Ultimate.
I don't know, I think it could be a cool deal. If nothing else it'd give me a chance to get a little bit more into it. It could help people, if it got traffic. It doesn't really matter if it doesn't though, as long as I know that it's there. Could be a cool deal.
I'm in quite the ultimate mood lately. Been thinking about it a lot, how I want to be a better player and all. That's one thing that I'd really love. I know that I'm decent right now, maybe even good. But I'd love to just dominate. I'd love to transition well and run faster and jump higher. It's something that I'm going to work on, because I really want to be better. I am happy with the progress I've made so far, it makes me really excited. But wow, I'm going to push the limits.
I think tomorrow I'll post my official run down on Frisbee Friday. The pros, the cons, all that. Nick did something similar, but I want to go a little deeper on it. It's an evaluation, something that they talk about at PLC. By sitting down and evaluating stuff, you can find out how to make it better. If one never sits down to think about what just happened, one can never really make any progress on it.
Sitting down and thinking about stuff is brilliant. I love doing it. So much good always comes from it. Maybe that's why I love meetings so much. You take the combined wisdom of everybody involved and figure out what you can do better. Oh yeah, it's good stuff.
Super super, it's time for bed. Maybe this Ultimate knowledge base will fly, maybe it won't. Either way, I'm really looking forward to Friday night: I got a new throw to show off.
Monday, June 11, 2007
Stalwart
Happy Sunday evening everybody. Just a few random thoughts for tonight.
I'm very bad at complimenting girls. I know there's so much to compliment, and I always want to express my great respect for them when they do awesome things. Problem is, I'm so conditioned to complimenting guys that I end up telling the girls that their throw was manly, or that they're a stud. I figure they know what I mean, but I got to work on that.
Paint is really really cool. I'm way happy with how my flying man turned out. Yeah, it does look like the flying peter petrelli picture from heroes. It's not a rip off though, it's just what came out. I can't really paint all that well, but it does always make me happy. I like it.
Just a thought-> I'm looking at my options for employment this summer, and right now things are wide open. If any of you know of anywhere that's hiring, or anybody that wants a good able-bodied manly man to work for them, let me know, eh? If where you work is looking for somebody, I'd love to check out the option. I'm open to pretty much anything, so let me know if you want.
Mr. Rogers was a very impressive guy. Whenever I think about him or read about him I can't help but admire the person that he was. I have absolutely nothing but love and respect for him. If the world had a little bit more Mr. Rogers in it, we'd all be doing a little bit better. Don't forget the gentle guy.
There's something super awesome about having something waiting for you. At PLC, I smiled a ton because I knew that once I got home I had a nice clean room waiting for me. It seems small and stupid, but it was a big deal to me. It was so nice to have that little poster waiting for me too, that made me pretty happy.
I'm going to work on taking it to the limits. You've all heard me talk about it, and chances are I'll just keep talking about it. You know the plan, it's going to be intense.
I think I'm also gonna work on some more water. It's been forever, and I've had some cool ideas. No promises, but it's something I'd like to pursue.
This cat is headed to bed, I hope you're all doing well. Good luck in your various pursuits, I'll catch you all later.
I'm very bad at complimenting girls. I know there's so much to compliment, and I always want to express my great respect for them when they do awesome things. Problem is, I'm so conditioned to complimenting guys that I end up telling the girls that their throw was manly, or that they're a stud. I figure they know what I mean, but I got to work on that.
Paint is really really cool. I'm way happy with how my flying man turned out. Yeah, it does look like the flying peter petrelli picture from heroes. It's not a rip off though, it's just what came out. I can't really paint all that well, but it does always make me happy. I like it.
Just a thought-> I'm looking at my options for employment this summer, and right now things are wide open. If any of you know of anywhere that's hiring, or anybody that wants a good able-bodied manly man to work for them, let me know, eh? If where you work is looking for somebody, I'd love to check out the option. I'm open to pretty much anything, so let me know if you want.
Mr. Rogers was a very impressive guy. Whenever I think about him or read about him I can't help but admire the person that he was. I have absolutely nothing but love and respect for him. If the world had a little bit more Mr. Rogers in it, we'd all be doing a little bit better. Don't forget the gentle guy.
There's something super awesome about having something waiting for you. At PLC, I smiled a ton because I knew that once I got home I had a nice clean room waiting for me. It seems small and stupid, but it was a big deal to me. It was so nice to have that little poster waiting for me too, that made me pretty happy.
I'm going to work on taking it to the limits. You've all heard me talk about it, and chances are I'll just keep talking about it. You know the plan, it's going to be intense.
I think I'm also gonna work on some more water. It's been forever, and I've had some cool ideas. No promises, but it's something I'd like to pursue.
This cat is headed to bed, I hope you're all doing well. Good luck in your various pursuits, I'll catch you all later.
Leg Shaving - The End of the World
This was my final project for my junior English class. I edited it all during one day, spent a few days filming before that. It was a rush job, but I'm proud of how it turned out. Science, once again, was on my side for this one.
I hope you enjoy.
Sunday, June 10, 2007
The Start of Something Good
Hey mystery blank, I'm back.
Life has been pretty intense lately. I've been hustling. There's been a lot to do, a bunch of stuff on my end game list.
See, I made this list of things I'd have to do in order to get out of school alive this year. As I finished them I'd check them off. After school came PLC.
I just checked PLC off the list, and now here I am.
Without a list.
So I made a new list. Not a list of things I've got to do, but a list of things I want to do. It's not like I didn't want to do the things that were on my other list, because I did. It's just that this list is going to be things that I'm pushing for. I've got some genuine free time on my hands here, and I'm gonna take it and run with it.
What's on my list of things to do? I'm gonna put a fire pit in the backyard. Me and my dad have talked about it, and I think we're gonna make it happen. It'll be fun and useful. We've got a never ending supply of fire wood and all sorts of occasions to start fires. I love to engineer and build a one-match-wonder. I tried up at PLC, totally failed. But it's something I like to do, and having a fire pit has social advantages. We've got the location, we've got the desire, now all we need is a day to do it. Whoosh.
You know, I didn't write much this past month. I could throw excuses around like so much dollar menu food, but that's not the point. It's in the past. I didn't take the chance I had to write.
But I'm going to start taking that chance. I'm going to write more. The honest truth here is that no matter what I say, whether or not posts show up will speak for itself. Will I really write? You'll see.
My life is moving along. There's a lot of work to be done, but I'm excited to go tackle it. I cleaned my room, it's so awesome. I've got a ton more room now, and that means I can get genuine whiteboard space on the wall now. Whiteboards make everything more efficient. I'm ready to make a list, look at me go.
Good things are on the horizon. I feel like I'm starting a new life. Things are so fresh. For so long I was searching for fresh. The latter end of school got monotonous, the weather was the same, everything was the same. Fresh things kept popping in, but never the whole picture.
Now, at the edge of summer, things are fresh. My room is clean, and there's no school on Monday. I'm going to go running, and I'm going to work out for me. Not for anybody else. This one's for me. I'm going to breathe, I'm going to write. I'm gonna make it happen.
There are three ways to live your life I figure. There's the crappy way, that most people don't choose. There's the neutral way, and that's the way that 98 percent of the world is. The neutral way is where you let your natural talents and abilities and circumstances take you where they will. You roll with the punches, you roll with what's given you. Some people are more gifted than others, so some guys excel with the neutral path.
But then there's the excellent path. The path where you take what you're given and you work to make it better. The path where you sit down and think what you can do to maximize your excellence today.
We've got talents. It seems the people I associate with are really talented people. I, just like everybody else, have talents too.
And so far the talents have been working pretty well for us all. We're moving along.
But I think that neutrality has taken us just about as far as it's going to. It's time to make a choice, and I'm choosing to be excellent. I'm choosing to maximize. I'm going to work. Not in short bursts, but all day long at a respectable pace. I'm going to take it to the limit. I don't want to just be mediocre. I don't want to just take the opportunities handed to me. I'm going to get up every morning and fight for excellence.
Oh yeah, it's a new day, and that new day better watch out. I'm ready to roll.
For all the talk and big words, it's going to come down to what I actually do.
Just you wait and see.
Life has been pretty intense lately. I've been hustling. There's been a lot to do, a bunch of stuff on my end game list.
See, I made this list of things I'd have to do in order to get out of school alive this year. As I finished them I'd check them off. After school came PLC.
I just checked PLC off the list, and now here I am.
Without a list.
So I made a new list. Not a list of things I've got to do, but a list of things I want to do. It's not like I didn't want to do the things that were on my other list, because I did. It's just that this list is going to be things that I'm pushing for. I've got some genuine free time on my hands here, and I'm gonna take it and run with it.
What's on my list of things to do? I'm gonna put a fire pit in the backyard. Me and my dad have talked about it, and I think we're gonna make it happen. It'll be fun and useful. We've got a never ending supply of fire wood and all sorts of occasions to start fires. I love to engineer and build a one-match-wonder. I tried up at PLC, totally failed. But it's something I like to do, and having a fire pit has social advantages. We've got the location, we've got the desire, now all we need is a day to do it. Whoosh.
You know, I didn't write much this past month. I could throw excuses around like so much dollar menu food, but that's not the point. It's in the past. I didn't take the chance I had to write.
But I'm going to start taking that chance. I'm going to write more. The honest truth here is that no matter what I say, whether or not posts show up will speak for itself. Will I really write? You'll see.
My life is moving along. There's a lot of work to be done, but I'm excited to go tackle it. I cleaned my room, it's so awesome. I've got a ton more room now, and that means I can get genuine whiteboard space on the wall now. Whiteboards make everything more efficient. I'm ready to make a list, look at me go.
Good things are on the horizon. I feel like I'm starting a new life. Things are so fresh. For so long I was searching for fresh. The latter end of school got monotonous, the weather was the same, everything was the same. Fresh things kept popping in, but never the whole picture.
Now, at the edge of summer, things are fresh. My room is clean, and there's no school on Monday. I'm going to go running, and I'm going to work out for me. Not for anybody else. This one's for me. I'm going to breathe, I'm going to write. I'm gonna make it happen.
There are three ways to live your life I figure. There's the crappy way, that most people don't choose. There's the neutral way, and that's the way that 98 percent of the world is. The neutral way is where you let your natural talents and abilities and circumstances take you where they will. You roll with the punches, you roll with what's given you. Some people are more gifted than others, so some guys excel with the neutral path.
But then there's the excellent path. The path where you take what you're given and you work to make it better. The path where you sit down and think what you can do to maximize your excellence today.
We've got talents. It seems the people I associate with are really talented people. I, just like everybody else, have talents too.
And so far the talents have been working pretty well for us all. We're moving along.
But I think that neutrality has taken us just about as far as it's going to. It's time to make a choice, and I'm choosing to be excellent. I'm choosing to maximize. I'm going to work. Not in short bursts, but all day long at a respectable pace. I'm going to take it to the limit. I don't want to just be mediocre. I don't want to just take the opportunities handed to me. I'm going to get up every morning and fight for excellence.
Oh yeah, it's a new day, and that new day better watch out. I'm ready to roll.
For all the talk and big words, it's going to come down to what I actually do.
Just you wait and see.
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Humble Return
It's been a while since I've been excited about running.
But it seems like the dental plaque that was growing on my hippocampus is finally receding. The 2007 Cross Country season is dawning, and with it comes the athletically motivated version of yours truly that we've all been missing.
I went running tonight with Kyle and James. Both of them are talking about running with the team as often as possible. Do you know how sick that'd be?
We've had a ton of girls sign on. Some of the best girls in the school are talking about running for us. Our team is not only going to be bigger than last year, it's going to be the very best team I've ever been a part of.
When I say best, I'm not talking about competition. I'm just talking about my team. Cross Country brings out the very best in the world. It's wholesome. There's so much love and power out there on those blessed mornings.
I've been thinking tonight about some things the past few days to make CC amazing this year. First and foremost will be team unity. I've got some cool ideas. There's definitely going to be a resurgence of the Tville CC Album. We're gonna be so ripped, it's going to be amazing.
I'm shedding the fat kid right now. I'm turning over a new leaf. It's time to improve. It's time to go out there and become the best me that I can become. It's not about times and performances: It's about me.
This team is going to take me to the tip of my existence. I honestly believe that through Cross Country, Seminary Council, Mads, and rigorous study next year, I can reach heights I've never dreamed of before.
The key is work. It's persistence. Not short bursts of work, but an over-riding theme: a habit of work and progress.
Here's to you, 2007 Cross Country. Let's take it to the stars.
-And now, a genuine decision by yours truly->
Friday night. I will play harder Ultimate than I've ever played before. I will tire myself out twice as fast as usual. I will sweat like Andrew. I will play both sides of the field one hundred percent. I will blend every part of my brain with my instincts and physical prowess. I will flow on that field like I've never flown before. All the beauty and simplicity of flow with an added touch of "Ohmygosh-how-did-he-do-that?!".
When 10 o'clock rolls around I will be drained and spent. I will play heart and soul from seven to 10. Substitutions are for squares. Iron man.
Will I be unstoppable? That's up to the opposing team. But know this, I'm gonna give them the most frightening night of Ultimate they've ever seen.
But it seems like the dental plaque that was growing on my hippocampus is finally receding. The 2007 Cross Country season is dawning, and with it comes the athletically motivated version of yours truly that we've all been missing.
I went running tonight with Kyle and James. Both of them are talking about running with the team as often as possible. Do you know how sick that'd be?
We've had a ton of girls sign on. Some of the best girls in the school are talking about running for us. Our team is not only going to be bigger than last year, it's going to be the very best team I've ever been a part of.
When I say best, I'm not talking about competition. I'm just talking about my team. Cross Country brings out the very best in the world. It's wholesome. There's so much love and power out there on those blessed mornings.
I've been thinking tonight about some things the past few days to make CC amazing this year. First and foremost will be team unity. I've got some cool ideas. There's definitely going to be a resurgence of the Tville CC Album. We're gonna be so ripped, it's going to be amazing.
I'm shedding the fat kid right now. I'm turning over a new leaf. It's time to improve. It's time to go out there and become the best me that I can become. It's not about times and performances: It's about me.
This team is going to take me to the tip of my existence. I honestly believe that through Cross Country, Seminary Council, Mads, and rigorous study next year, I can reach heights I've never dreamed of before.
The key is work. It's persistence. Not short bursts of work, but an over-riding theme: a habit of work and progress.
Here's to you, 2007 Cross Country. Let's take it to the stars.
-And now, a genuine decision by yours truly->
Friday night. I will play harder Ultimate than I've ever played before. I will tire myself out twice as fast as usual. I will sweat like Andrew. I will play both sides of the field one hundred percent. I will blend every part of my brain with my instincts and physical prowess. I will flow on that field like I've never flown before. All the beauty and simplicity of flow with an added touch of "Ohmygosh-how-did-he-do-that?!".
When 10 o'clock rolls around I will be drained and spent. I will play heart and soul from seven to 10. Substitutions are for squares. Iron man.
Will I be unstoppable? That's up to the opposing team. But know this, I'm gonna give them the most frightening night of Ultimate they've ever seen.
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Engage
I don't generally mind having a song stuck in my head. I never really understand people when they freak out about me singing something because they're going to get it stuck in their head. The only reason I'm singing it is because it's in my head and I like it.
Generally I love songs in my head. Not tonight though.
Because every time I try to think of something to start the post with, all I get is "Doooo dooo doooo, Doo Dooo do doooooo"
It's not even that cool of a song.
But it's alright. Because in the process of complaining about it, I've start the post.
So on we roll. Not because we must, but because we feel like it's the right thing to do.
I'm amazed at the power of cross country. Track officially ended a few days ago. We had the region meet, and that's the last meet of the season. Once that's over everything for me shifts to cross country. Training essentially starts as soon as track is over.
And boy oh boy, I can already feel the difference.
I didn't write much at all about track this year. I haven't written much of anything for a long time, actually. But that's not the point. Last year I talked about track a lot. I wrote about how I wanted to do, how I actually did, and why I loved it. I wrote about the charms and the discouragements, everything that made me think.
This year I couldn't really do that. Track and I didn't get along this year.
And maybe that's a story for another day. It's something I'm not really too proud of. I made a decision back in junior high that goes against the actions I took with track.
See, we're always in a process of shaping the people that we are going to be. Always changing, making small adjustments. We're finding ourselves. In the process of finding ourselves, we are truly making ourselves. There's nothing out there to find, there's only something to create on this path of 'finding ourselves'.
In junior high I saw some things that disappointed me. I decided that if I was going to do anything, I was going to do it well. I said that if I truly made the decision to pursue something, I was going to pursue it wholeheartedly. I was going to give it my all, not hold anything back.
That decision has brought me a lot of happiness since I made it. I do not follow it as often as I should. I love times when I make that decision though. I can see the difference, and I can still feel the difference weeks later.
On nights that I play Ultimate or basketball, you can always tell whether I've decided to go for it or not. When I make the decision that I'm going to give it my all, there's very little that can be done to stop me. That doesn't mean I'm going to win, it doesn't mean that I'm even going to play well.
But you can see it. I run faster, I jump higher. I literally try harder. It's not a psychological thing, and it's not a physical thing. It is everything rolled into one. My entire being is thrown into whatever I'm working at.
Oh yeah, it's good stuff. When I decide to truly pursue something, I pursue it pretty nice.
I did that with a lot of cross country last year. I know that I didn't do it with all of it, but for a large portion I did. I remember mornings when I woke up at 6:59, thinking that there was no way I could make it to practice in less than 60 seconds. I remember going back to bed, laying there and realizing that I was letting everybody and myself down. I remember that awesome feeling when I rolled out of bed at 7:03, knowing full well that I was three minutes late already. I booked it to school so fast that day.
I had slept too late to make it realistically, I knew that. I had a perfect excuse to go back to bed and miss that whole day of work. But I refused to. I got up and booked it to school. I made it right as they were leaving on the run. I got out and ran with them.
I was successful, and it was because of the choices I made that day. I made the right choice. I dedicated myself to it and I made it there.
It's like that. I made a goal last year to make it to every summer CC practice I could. I knew that it'd be hard; I knew what was on the line. But I made the goal, and I fulfilled. I think I slept through two practices on my own free will. Two out of about a million.
I am proud of how I worked during CC last summer. It's something that I can honestly take pride in. There's no question about it. I made good decisions last summer.
And that's what I want to shoot for in my life. If I'm going to do something, I'm going to do it well. I'm going to do it all the way. No compromises, no slacking.
Madrigals is one thing I want to apply this to. I am so excited to have made the group. It's an awesome opportunity. It's going to be so much fun.
But, straight off the bat I know I'm probably the weakest singer in there right now. That's not a bad thing, and I don't feel crappy about it. All it means is that I'm going to have to put more work into it.
And you know what? I'm going to. I'm going to bust it in there. I'm going to bring myself up to everybody else's level. I'm going to practice the songs. I'm going to stop chronically swallowing all my notes. With everybody else's help, I'm going to make myself a better singer. I can already see some results. I've been working these past few weeks, and I've been getting a bit of help from Levi and Kyle. I've got an honest desire to become better. It's already happening.
It's easy to talk big like that, sitting in the comfort of my office chair. My office chair doesn't ask me to exit my comfort zone. I'm not as consistent as I'd like to be. I see myself going through cycles of motivation and hard work to cycles of just getting by.
I've thought about that a little bit. What's the solution? Do I just try to maximize the accomplishments of my motivated times and minimize the time I spend lazy?
I don't think that's the answer. I think the answer is going to lie in changing the little things. I've tried the giant life altering approaches. When I'm motivated I'm really good at making plans and following through for a few weeks.
But those weeks eventually end, and I'm back to square one. So I'm trying something different. I'm making it a gradual, day by day thing.
I once had the plan to walk around everywhere on my tip-toes. The concept was that doing so would greatly improve my calf strength, and that'd increase my vertical jump by about a million. I'd finally be able to dunk.
I eventually developed shin-splints and stopped, but the concept is something that I want to apply everywhere. I thought of the plan like this: since I'm always walking, if I could change my walk just a little bit so that walking would help me improve, I'd always be improving. If I was always improving, my life would just keep getting better and better.
The plan wasn't to go do a raging calf workout every day. I wasn't going to hit the gym or power through an insane jump-rope workout. I was just going to walk around on my tip toes.
And that's how I've got to approach life. Yeah, the big stuff is important. But it's the day to day that makes us who we are. It's the day to day that changes the results in the long run. Sure, you can buy your mom a car once you're thirty, but being nice to her every day of your life is going to mean a whole lot more to her than the automobile.
So that's the plan. Make every day mean something. Make it make me a better person. It doesn't have to be big. Most days it probably won't be. But if I can make a real small difference in the world every day, after a while I've suddenly made a crater of goodness.
This theory of life goes along great with flow theory.
Unfortunately, I seem to have forgotten the intricacies of flow theory. I never did write it all down. I have the main concept behind it, and I do remember what taught it to me. I'll have to go on a quest this week to rediscover it. It was a good one, and although I didn't apply it as far as I would have liked to, it worked well.
I've often thought about what I could do to make something better. What I could to do to make the blog better, what I could do to become a better ultimate player.
I have a strong belief that desire is the key factor in everything that we do. The scriptures talk about it as it relates to faith, and the application spreads to everything else that we do. Once we have a desire to do anything, we can let that desire work within us to make it happen.
Which, really, is totally awesome.
Because simply by desiring to become a better Ultimate player, I firmly believe that that in itself makes me just a little bit better. Whether or not I end up leveraging that desire to find a way to become better, the simple desire completes half the task for me.
Desire is critical in everything that we do.
You can change days and you can change hours, but in the end its your life that's going to matter. The little things are the real variables here.
I think the key to really figuring the little things out is to consciously evaluate your day. Evaluate your decisions as you make them. Too often I find myself in auto-pilot, doing things just because. Not really for any reason, and not because I want to do them, but just because that's the way that I do things.
But if we'll stop and consider what's happening, if we'll give honest thought to what we're doing, we're gonna find things going a lot better for us. We're going to be happier, and people around us are going to be happier as well. We're going to be more successful.
I subscribe to the concept of individualism. I believe that we make the choice between greatness and mediocrity.
Everybody has natural talents that can take them to mediocrity. Everybody, I think, will default to neutral if they let themselves live long enough.
But it takes something extra on the person's part to truly reach greatness. The person cannot simply live life because there is nothing else to do. That person must rise up and make good decisions. That person must work and toil and become all that they can become.
That's the kicker. Are we waking up because we stopped sleeping, or are we waking up because there's something waiting for us out there? I'm ready to stop just letting life happen, and I'm ready to go face the world with a purpose.
I want to be great. I want to take it to the top. I'm going to do it with singing. I'm going to do it with school. I'm ready to do it with Cross Country. Yeah, I'm gonna start walking around on my toes. Maybe it'll tear my feet up, maybe it'll screw up some tendons. I don't really know, but I'm willing to give it a shot for a while. If problems develop I'll stop.
The point is, I'm setting out. Not on an epic quest. But rather on a slight course adjustment. I'm going to live my life, but I'm going to maximize the progress I make by doing so. When I go on a walk, I'm going to go on a walk to get somewhere.
"We're taking this thing to the moon!" -Strongbad
Generally I love songs in my head. Not tonight though.
Because every time I try to think of something to start the post with, all I get is "Doooo dooo doooo, Doo Dooo do doooooo"
It's not even that cool of a song.
But it's alright. Because in the process of complaining about it, I've start the post.
So on we roll. Not because we must, but because we feel like it's the right thing to do.
I'm amazed at the power of cross country. Track officially ended a few days ago. We had the region meet, and that's the last meet of the season. Once that's over everything for me shifts to cross country. Training essentially starts as soon as track is over.
And boy oh boy, I can already feel the difference.
I didn't write much at all about track this year. I haven't written much of anything for a long time, actually. But that's not the point. Last year I talked about track a lot. I wrote about how I wanted to do, how I actually did, and why I loved it. I wrote about the charms and the discouragements, everything that made me think.
This year I couldn't really do that. Track and I didn't get along this year.
And maybe that's a story for another day. It's something I'm not really too proud of. I made a decision back in junior high that goes against the actions I took with track.
See, we're always in a process of shaping the people that we are going to be. Always changing, making small adjustments. We're finding ourselves. In the process of finding ourselves, we are truly making ourselves. There's nothing out there to find, there's only something to create on this path of 'finding ourselves'.
In junior high I saw some things that disappointed me. I decided that if I was going to do anything, I was going to do it well. I said that if I truly made the decision to pursue something, I was going to pursue it wholeheartedly. I was going to give it my all, not hold anything back.
That decision has brought me a lot of happiness since I made it. I do not follow it as often as I should. I love times when I make that decision though. I can see the difference, and I can still feel the difference weeks later.
On nights that I play Ultimate or basketball, you can always tell whether I've decided to go for it or not. When I make the decision that I'm going to give it my all, there's very little that can be done to stop me. That doesn't mean I'm going to win, it doesn't mean that I'm even going to play well.
But you can see it. I run faster, I jump higher. I literally try harder. It's not a psychological thing, and it's not a physical thing. It is everything rolled into one. My entire being is thrown into whatever I'm working at.
Oh yeah, it's good stuff. When I decide to truly pursue something, I pursue it pretty nice.
I did that with a lot of cross country last year. I know that I didn't do it with all of it, but for a large portion I did. I remember mornings when I woke up at 6:59, thinking that there was no way I could make it to practice in less than 60 seconds. I remember going back to bed, laying there and realizing that I was letting everybody and myself down. I remember that awesome feeling when I rolled out of bed at 7:03, knowing full well that I was three minutes late already. I booked it to school so fast that day.
I had slept too late to make it realistically, I knew that. I had a perfect excuse to go back to bed and miss that whole day of work. But I refused to. I got up and booked it to school. I made it right as they were leaving on the run. I got out and ran with them.
I was successful, and it was because of the choices I made that day. I made the right choice. I dedicated myself to it and I made it there.
It's like that. I made a goal last year to make it to every summer CC practice I could. I knew that it'd be hard; I knew what was on the line. But I made the goal, and I fulfilled. I think I slept through two practices on my own free will. Two out of about a million.
I am proud of how I worked during CC last summer. It's something that I can honestly take pride in. There's no question about it. I made good decisions last summer.
And that's what I want to shoot for in my life. If I'm going to do something, I'm going to do it well. I'm going to do it all the way. No compromises, no slacking.
Madrigals is one thing I want to apply this to. I am so excited to have made the group. It's an awesome opportunity. It's going to be so much fun.
But, straight off the bat I know I'm probably the weakest singer in there right now. That's not a bad thing, and I don't feel crappy about it. All it means is that I'm going to have to put more work into it.
And you know what? I'm going to. I'm going to bust it in there. I'm going to bring myself up to everybody else's level. I'm going to practice the songs. I'm going to stop chronically swallowing all my notes. With everybody else's help, I'm going to make myself a better singer. I can already see some results. I've been working these past few weeks, and I've been getting a bit of help from Levi and Kyle. I've got an honest desire to become better. It's already happening.
It's easy to talk big like that, sitting in the comfort of my office chair. My office chair doesn't ask me to exit my comfort zone. I'm not as consistent as I'd like to be. I see myself going through cycles of motivation and hard work to cycles of just getting by.
I've thought about that a little bit. What's the solution? Do I just try to maximize the accomplishments of my motivated times and minimize the time I spend lazy?
I don't think that's the answer. I think the answer is going to lie in changing the little things. I've tried the giant life altering approaches. When I'm motivated I'm really good at making plans and following through for a few weeks.
But those weeks eventually end, and I'm back to square one. So I'm trying something different. I'm making it a gradual, day by day thing.
I once had the plan to walk around everywhere on my tip-toes. The concept was that doing so would greatly improve my calf strength, and that'd increase my vertical jump by about a million. I'd finally be able to dunk.
I eventually developed shin-splints and stopped, but the concept is something that I want to apply everywhere. I thought of the plan like this: since I'm always walking, if I could change my walk just a little bit so that walking would help me improve, I'd always be improving. If I was always improving, my life would just keep getting better and better.
The plan wasn't to go do a raging calf workout every day. I wasn't going to hit the gym or power through an insane jump-rope workout. I was just going to walk around on my tip toes.
And that's how I've got to approach life. Yeah, the big stuff is important. But it's the day to day that makes us who we are. It's the day to day that changes the results in the long run. Sure, you can buy your mom a car once you're thirty, but being nice to her every day of your life is going to mean a whole lot more to her than the automobile.
So that's the plan. Make every day mean something. Make it make me a better person. It doesn't have to be big. Most days it probably won't be. But if I can make a real small difference in the world every day, after a while I've suddenly made a crater of goodness.
This theory of life goes along great with flow theory.
Unfortunately, I seem to have forgotten the intricacies of flow theory. I never did write it all down. I have the main concept behind it, and I do remember what taught it to me. I'll have to go on a quest this week to rediscover it. It was a good one, and although I didn't apply it as far as I would have liked to, it worked well.
I've often thought about what I could do to make something better. What I could to do to make the blog better, what I could do to become a better ultimate player.
I have a strong belief that desire is the key factor in everything that we do. The scriptures talk about it as it relates to faith, and the application spreads to everything else that we do. Once we have a desire to do anything, we can let that desire work within us to make it happen.
Which, really, is totally awesome.
Because simply by desiring to become a better Ultimate player, I firmly believe that that in itself makes me just a little bit better. Whether or not I end up leveraging that desire to find a way to become better, the simple desire completes half the task for me.
Desire is critical in everything that we do.
You can change days and you can change hours, but in the end its your life that's going to matter. The little things are the real variables here.
I think the key to really figuring the little things out is to consciously evaluate your day. Evaluate your decisions as you make them. Too often I find myself in auto-pilot, doing things just because. Not really for any reason, and not because I want to do them, but just because that's the way that I do things.
But if we'll stop and consider what's happening, if we'll give honest thought to what we're doing, we're gonna find things going a lot better for us. We're going to be happier, and people around us are going to be happier as well. We're going to be more successful.
I subscribe to the concept of individualism. I believe that we make the choice between greatness and mediocrity.
Everybody has natural talents that can take them to mediocrity. Everybody, I think, will default to neutral if they let themselves live long enough.
But it takes something extra on the person's part to truly reach greatness. The person cannot simply live life because there is nothing else to do. That person must rise up and make good decisions. That person must work and toil and become all that they can become.
That's the kicker. Are we waking up because we stopped sleeping, or are we waking up because there's something waiting for us out there? I'm ready to stop just letting life happen, and I'm ready to go face the world with a purpose.
I want to be great. I want to take it to the top. I'm going to do it with singing. I'm going to do it with school. I'm ready to do it with Cross Country. Yeah, I'm gonna start walking around on my toes. Maybe it'll tear my feet up, maybe it'll screw up some tendons. I don't really know, but I'm willing to give it a shot for a while. If problems develop I'll stop.
The point is, I'm setting out. Not on an epic quest. But rather on a slight course adjustment. I'm going to live my life, but I'm going to maximize the progress I make by doing so. When I go on a walk, I'm going to go on a walk to get somewhere.
"We're taking this thing to the moon!" -Strongbad
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Fighting for the Post
I feel like a sports star sitting on the bench because of a broken ankle. I want to get out there and play so bad, but I'm restricted by a giant plaster boot around my favorite limb.
I want to sit and post and run forever. But there's an AP history test tomorrow, and I'm going to bank on this one and take myself a good full night's rest.
It's like I've been away for a long time. I'm trying to come back to camp, but conflicts keep getting in my way. One more battle to fight, one more river to cross.
One day I'm going to get there. One day I'm going to sit down and run forever. One night, soon, I'll let myself out onto this pixelated parchment, and for just a moment the post and I will be totally aligned. There will be no question about where I stand or how I feel that night. The purity and essence of the thoughts I have will be, for a brief moment, synchronized in two separate locations. The feeling of being entirely and unequivocably correct at two distinct geographies is one of the better feelings ever.
What's the news? I'm searching for Fresh. It's close. I'm trying to remember to quest and flow and be strong. I'm trying to make the best decisions. I'm trying to excel and make the most of the gifts and opportunities I have.
How is it coming? It's a never ending battle. The question isn't with ability or power or resolve. It's a matter of desire and consciousness.
We all have the power to make good decisions when we think about it. When we want to do what's right, we're given divine liberty to do so with greater power than we ever have otherwise. The desire to dominate, the desire to take ourselves to the next level, that's what it's going to take.
What's the news?
The news is up to you. Your news; your life. You are making the calls. You're the only thing making the difference between you and the next level. Where are you gonna stand?
Who are you gonna be?
I want to sit and post and run forever. But there's an AP history test tomorrow, and I'm going to bank on this one and take myself a good full night's rest.
It's like I've been away for a long time. I'm trying to come back to camp, but conflicts keep getting in my way. One more battle to fight, one more river to cross.
One day I'm going to get there. One day I'm going to sit down and run forever. One night, soon, I'll let myself out onto this pixelated parchment, and for just a moment the post and I will be totally aligned. There will be no question about where I stand or how I feel that night. The purity and essence of the thoughts I have will be, for a brief moment, synchronized in two separate locations. The feeling of being entirely and unequivocably correct at two distinct geographies is one of the better feelings ever.
What's the news? I'm searching for Fresh. It's close. I'm trying to remember to quest and flow and be strong. I'm trying to make the best decisions. I'm trying to excel and make the most of the gifts and opportunities I have.
How is it coming? It's a never ending battle. The question isn't with ability or power or resolve. It's a matter of desire and consciousness.
We all have the power to make good decisions when we think about it. When we want to do what's right, we're given divine liberty to do so with greater power than we ever have otherwise. The desire to dominate, the desire to take ourselves to the next level, that's what it's going to take.
What's the news?
The news is up to you. Your news; your life. You are making the calls. You're the only thing making the difference between you and the next level. Where are you gonna stand?
Who are you gonna be?
Saturday, May 05, 2007
Amateur-crastinate
Foiled again.But worry not, I shall emerge victorious at last.
Why? Because that's how I roll.
I've got 11 minutes to write before Noakesy gets here so we can go down to the BYU invitational. I'm actually pretty excited for it. I'm only running one event, and I don't have to help put anything away afterwards. It's a win-win situation.
So, you'll notice that I promised a good post. I hold by my promises, even if they have to be delayed a little bit. There will be a good post. If not today, then tomorrow. If not tomorrow, sometime in the relatively near future.
But in order to make that good post happen, I'm going to need a little help. If there are any questions out there, anything you guys really want to see me write about, let me know. I'm not going to say that this will be a questions post, because I'm going to write something awesome whether or not you actually leave any questions or comments, I'm just opening up in the event that anybody has anything in particular they want to read about.
Predictions for tonight's game: Jazz by Four.
Predictions for tonight's other game: Me by a million.
Literary Magazine is essentially finished. That's a big sigh of relief right there. It's going to be really awesome this year, I think we did an excellent job on production. It looks pretty professional. Buying one would be a good idea, but if you don't have 20 dollars to throw at a book then don't.
The whole concept behind the literary magazine is awesome. Collecting all the best writing and artwork of the students of Taylorsville high into one awesome compilation? It's essentially a portrait of what Taylorsville thinks about during '06 and '07.
I'm in love with the idea of collecting awesome writing and ideas. That was essentially the idea behind the Taylorsville Alliance from who-knows-how-many months ago.
I think the Literary Magazine is going to be good, but not as good as it should be. No matter how awesome we do on production, we still rely entirely upon the writing of the students. It's not that good writing isn't out there, and it's not like we don't have amazing writing in the book. We've got some excellent work in there, we just don't know enough.
Next year I'm going to spam the .... Noakes is here. Cya later tonight.
Friday, May 04, 2007
Integrate Force on a Spring
*edit*
Good post coming tomorrow morning:D. It's 2:59 AM. So, no writing tonight. Tomorrow morning I hope.
In addition, I kicked Michael's butt at soul calibur.
And you'll get potential energy.
Good post coming tomorrow. In the meantime, my ceiling fan.
Good post coming tomorrow morning:D. It's 2:59 AM. So, no writing tonight. Tomorrow morning I hope.
In addition, I kicked Michael's butt at soul calibur.
And you'll get potential energy.
Good post coming tomorrow. In the meantime, my ceiling fan.
Friday, April 27, 2007
Conservation
*note-> I wrote this a little while ago, but hesitated to post it. I think it's fine to post now. However, don't be getting any ideas. I liked it though, so here you go.
A few bits and pieces because I haven't been here too often.
~There's a law of conservation. Many laws of conservation actually. You can't create matter, you can just change it. You can't create energy, you can just change it. Unless you move things really really fast. But that's a story for another day.
Many things are conserved. More than you'd think, it appears.
~This is 4th quarter. The beginning is going to be the hardest part of the year for me. Not because the work is the hardest, but simply because I'm tired of work and want to stop doing my English. I just don't want to write that argumentative paper.
But this is the 4th term, this is crucial. If I screw up now, I screw everything up. After all, heroes aren't made in the first 47 minutes of the game. It's only the last minute that really counts.
~I have been romantically inactive for a little more than a year now. Am I ready to actually talk about that now? I don't know.
But if there's one thing I do truly miss about the romantic chase, it's the freshness of it all.
You wake up in the mornings with a plan to woo the lady. When you do your hair, you do your hair so you can look dang good to impress the girl. You go to school with a mission. There are no questions as to what your purpose is. You're on the chase.
It's a bold world out there. One with obstacles and troubles, but nothing you can't overcome. It's a world rife with accomplishment and failure.
In short, it's life in a nutshell.
I miss the quick success or quick failure. You know if one of your jokes worked or not. There are tangible results to your efforts.
I could get all mooshy here.
But you know how in Ultimate, how it feels so great to jump up and get a swat, or run so hard to get the catch? That exhilarating feeling of success, the great accomplishment. It's the same for basketball, hitting that three and jogging back to play defense, huge grin on your face. Or maybe getting the test passed back, and seeing the big 100 circled in red.
It's that wonderful feeling. That big rush, the one that makes you want to stand up on the chair and reach your arms toward the heavens and just feel how good it is to be alive. You're the man, you did it.
It's the same when the girl smiles at you. Not a pity smile, not the polite you-made-a-joke-now-I-have-to-smile smile, but a genuine smile. My oh my, that's a good feeling.
What's the point of it all? I've been pretty anti-sentimentatily for a long time. Maybe I don't think it's all a bunch of crap anymore. Something made me remember. Nothing anybody did, just some old documents. No old fires rekindled, just a nice reminder of a nice smile that made a crappy situation not quite so crappy.
So hey, smile at random guys. Maybe it'll make them not quite so scared of dying while Sharpe is laughing and there's a horrible drop curtain tearing your hand off.
Unless you're a dude. Then smiling at guys would be weird.
That's all.
A few bits and pieces because I haven't been here too often.
~There's a law of conservation. Many laws of conservation actually. You can't create matter, you can just change it. You can't create energy, you can just change it. Unless you move things really really fast. But that's a story for another day.
Many things are conserved. More than you'd think, it appears.
~This is 4th quarter. The beginning is going to be the hardest part of the year for me. Not because the work is the hardest, but simply because I'm tired of work and want to stop doing my English. I just don't want to write that argumentative paper.
But this is the 4th term, this is crucial. If I screw up now, I screw everything up. After all, heroes aren't made in the first 47 minutes of the game. It's only the last minute that really counts.
~I have been romantically inactive for a little more than a year now. Am I ready to actually talk about that now? I don't know.
But if there's one thing I do truly miss about the romantic chase, it's the freshness of it all.
You wake up in the mornings with a plan to woo the lady. When you do your hair, you do your hair so you can look dang good to impress the girl. You go to school with a mission. There are no questions as to what your purpose is. You're on the chase.
It's a bold world out there. One with obstacles and troubles, but nothing you can't overcome. It's a world rife with accomplishment and failure.
In short, it's life in a nutshell.
I miss the quick success or quick failure. You know if one of your jokes worked or not. There are tangible results to your efforts.
I could get all mooshy here.
But you know how in Ultimate, how it feels so great to jump up and get a swat, or run so hard to get the catch? That exhilarating feeling of success, the great accomplishment. It's the same for basketball, hitting that three and jogging back to play defense, huge grin on your face. Or maybe getting the test passed back, and seeing the big 100 circled in red.
It's that wonderful feeling. That big rush, the one that makes you want to stand up on the chair and reach your arms toward the heavens and just feel how good it is to be alive. You're the man, you did it.
It's the same when the girl smiles at you. Not a pity smile, not the polite you-made-a-joke-now-I-have-to-smile smile, but a genuine smile. My oh my, that's a good feeling.
What's the point of it all? I've been pretty anti-sentimentatily for a long time. Maybe I don't think it's all a bunch of crap anymore. Something made me remember. Nothing anybody did, just some old documents. No old fires rekindled, just a nice reminder of a nice smile that made a crappy situation not quite so crappy.
So hey, smile at random guys. Maybe it'll make them not quite so scared of dying while Sharpe is laughing and there's a horrible drop curtain tearing your hand off.
Unless you're a dude. Then smiling at guys would be weird.
That's all.
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