Next Step New Plan

 

I got my first WordPress website started. It’s funny how people talk about it like it’s easy to use, clean and effortless. Those are people who build web pages and work with content all day. To them it is easy, for me the process of picking themes and trying out new looks it tedious. There is also the awkward amount of fiddling with colors and fonts to make it look right that adds too much time wasting. Before you realize it you’ve burned 4 hours clicking and unclicking. The fact that I paid good money for the hosting makes me take it a little more seriously. But I have zero knowledge about these types of web based tools. It’s just going to take longer than I’d like. That’s true of anything new I guess.

I began this whole idea because I wasn’t selling enough of my posts on the third party platform. I’ll explain: I do a little bit of writing through a company that hires writers for short assignments. It doesn’t pay well but it keeps my skills sharp and provides an easy way to make a few bucks. But lately I’ve been getting stepped over by other writers and rejected altogether. It’s not my writing they don’t like, usually it’s just too competitive. Some companies decided they want a different feature after they’ve already listed instructions. It’s frustrating because of the hours I’ve spent writing to their specs. This is part of the deal with writing anything for customers though, sometimes they dump you. The problem is the money isn’t good enough to risk waiting on flaky customers.

I’ll keep driving for Uber instead. Unless...

If I can get my own customers, even if just once in a while I’d make more money. So that’s the idea for the WordPress site. Another issue is the lack of actual work to show. Most WP sites are beautifully displayed with corporate logos of companies the writers have worked with, their pages laid out like trophies in a case. Or the sites are stuffed with information like a Wikipedia page. Mine is basically a digital business card. I’m OK with that for now. It will develop over time as more options become available and the work increases. I’m learning a lot of new terms as well as how the plugins work. It’s a lot of information all at once.

I have to remind myself that this is really new territory for me. I don’t like graphic design and having to size and re-size images. I don’t like sorting through themes and colors and options for every inch of the site. I probably could have stuck to a basic layout on blogger but I wanted the best. So I have to learn it. Knowing how to get through some basics of WordPress page building is for the best. This is actually something I need to do. I considered not doing a page until I got a little bit more established. But I wanted something to point people to and my personal blog (first principles) covers opinion stuff. It’s not exactly business friendly.

So for now I’ll be content with my digital business card and build the site like I build everything else, one brick at a time.

Spring Into Fit

 

I love this time of year. After a cold winter a warming spring is just the break I need. It hasn’t really been a cold winter since I left Illinois. We had a few record breaking weeks in the middle part of February but basically it was manageable. When I talk about running the weather is always the main component because so much depends on where to run and what to wear. The low 40’s are a great temperature for running and if you can catch a non-rainy day, all the better. I need to get them in before the warmth really ramps up. I think I mentioned in my last post that I’m back to running alone. It seems strange to think of group training as too much pressure, but I didn’t want to start a third session and quit if my foot started acting up. So I set my own schedule, which is probably less aggressive and doesn’t have the really long runs.

There isn’t much point in doing really long runs. I’m not training for a marathon so I’m not killing myself on the consistent over ten miles. I do miss the company though. Now though, if I’m having a particularly painful day with my foot I just won’t run. It seems simple but when I’m committed to a group I grit my teeth and push through the pain. No more of that, at least for now. I go two days per week. Once in the morning, at the gym and once on the weekend. That usually means Saturday morning but if it rains I’ll do Sunday.

This is the first time in my life that I’ve dedicated the first 30 minutes of a workout to cardio. I’m talking strictly about daily A.M. workouts at the gym. The idea is to keep my weight even and build strong legs, so I use the stair climber or the stationary bike. I don’t like to lift heavy weights anymore; my legs used to be sore for days afterward. So I stopped doing it and decided to focus on cardio only. I do a little jump rope as well, anything to make jogging a little less exhausting. Weak muscles cause injury and I’m trying to avoid it as much as possible. I’m also putting more attention into stretching which can feel like its own little workout.

I don’t believe I’d ever give up weights for jogging though. I won’t say never, but I have changed the type of exercise that works best for me over the last 20 years. In college I went heavy on all the typical stuff, bench press, shoulder press, lat pulldowns. Cardio was an afterthought. Today it’s the opposite. The transition happened slowly but after a few straining injuries the heavy and the big don’t appeal as much. A lot of the shift is driven by excess fat and the need to keep it under control. Once you realize that it gets exponentially more difficult to lose pounds it forces a rethink about exercise.

I’m all for sports too. I know a lot of guys in basketball and soccer leagues that stay fit going up and down the court for an hour. I guess I’m a more solitary type. I haven’t been in a sport’s leagues, softball being the last one, since a decade. It’s OK though. I don’t feel like I’m missing it either. I guess that’s just another transition for me, like the weather in the spring.

 

Collective Irresponsibility

 

Ever see a sign or an ad on a webpage that didn’t look quite right. The words are correct but the statement sounds awkward. We can read something fast and process the meaning later. The agreement between what we saw and what the message means is a little off.  

This isn’t just true of words on a screen. If you’ve ever driven a car in a foreign country you’ll understand this feeling. A few years ago I rented a car in Ireland and drove around the country stopping at bars, hotels and touristy landscapes. There were three of us, my brother included, that shared the driving. The roads are smaller, you drive on the left side and through a lot of roundabouts. Once you break the instinct to drive on the right, it isn’t too bad. There were a few close calls. As an American the driving is familiar but not quite right. My baseline for traffic is wide streets that go forever and too many lights.

When something isn't quite right it’s because our familiarity is affected by slight changes in the logical ordering.

 I watched a discussion recently with a couple of Christian leaders talking about their views on the vaccine. The older one, mid 40s, wasn’t going to take it. He reasoned that the survivability rate was so low it wasn’t worth getting an extra injection. I’ll call this the pragmatic view- the reasoning being that the vaccine is not necessary for a disease that amounts to a bad Flu virus.

The second leader, 30ish, was going to take it because as a Christian it’s the helpful thing to do for the elderly and the susceptible. I’ll call this the collectivist view-as it’s about the general health of the overall population. The first view makes sense to me and second one doesn’t. There is something a little off about the second argument. Whether used in the context of Christian or not, it sounds wise and selfless at first but a closer look reveals the anti-free nature of it.

America is a country built on the value of the individual; a worth that is tied to the nature's God, born with inherent rights and decision making ability. American law is rooted in individual sovereignty that can’t be removed by men (government and business) because it is central to how we are created. We make decisions for ourselves and we live with the consequences.

But don’t Christians care about the poor and the needy? Doesn’t Jesus clearly state in Mathew to “…love your neighbor as yourself”? Yes, but the command is given to the person not the group. Here is what Paul says in Galatians 6:4-5: “But let each one examine his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another. For each one shall bear his own load (NKJV)

And here is another thing, Americans are generous people when we donate to causes. That’s the power of individual concern for collective groups. There are countless aid organizations (NGOs) that raise private money from individuals because FEMA couldn’t do it alone.

Collectivist thinking reduces the importance of individual rights. Individual rights are a lot like vacation days at work--use them or lose them. We may find them missing when we need them. It’s why I’m not anti-vaccine generally, but side with people who are because it should remain a choice.

The reason this last year has been so frustrating to me is I don’t recognize the arguments for lockdowns. It isn’t just about the lack of freedom, it’s the artificial displays of ‘selflessness’ that are hard to take. Here I’m talking about mayors, city councilors and governors that assumed the right to impose mask mandates and shut down what they wanted. The actions beg the question “who are you exactly?”  

Do you also eat healthy foods and limit calories for your fellow man? Medicaid is hospital money for the poor that’s funded by taxpayers. In other words it’s a collective fund that depends on the clean living of its members. How is it working?

 Giving up personal choice for the collective doesn’t help anyone. It hurts the principle of self-determination, the very thing our Deceleration was written to defend. We make food choices for ourselves and reap the consequences. It’s how we are designed.

We all have different reasons for taking the vaccine or refusing to take it. For Christians though, understand that your decision is about you and only you. The logic of collective responsibility is like the poor grammar on the sign--it’s not quite right.

 

Be Grateful for Work

 

Someone congratulated me today. I’ve been with the same company for 13 years this month. They must have scrolled through a notification for the update. On LinkedIn no doubt, the social media page with spiffed up profiles (Oh he's wearing a tie!) where we're all fluent in business jargon. Nothing wrong with it of course; those anniversaries are consistent reminders of steady progress. But depending on your idea of the professional choices you’ve made it might leave a sour taste. Don’t let it. 

 There are two ways to look at work anniversaries. One, complain that life is unfair and your real gifts are being underutilized. Two, be thankful that in a time when a lot of Americans see their jobs disappear, yours is still here. I’m still working, making money, saving and paying bills. I’m still learning new ways to bring business to my store. I’m still improving old methods and sharpening up sloppy habits that cut into my performance. I’m still learning to adjust to the realities of Covid and get through the day without cursing the restrictions, most of the time.

Work anniversaries can be depressing if your vision is too narrow. Like looking through the wide end of the telescope, it appears small and insignificant. We miss a lot of personal and professional development along the periphery when we stare into the glass with an intense focus. Why do we do this? Why do we focus so hard on the faraway, the distant and the exotic? Probably because reliable, steady work habits aren’t the stuff of Champaign toasts and fancy dinners. There is no adventure in the consistent, no legend in the ordinary. There is no party for the reliable.

Personal growth and maturity come from consistency whether at work or in the gym. Feelings don’t matter. If there is one thing I’ve picked up it’s that habits breed habits. It works for positives and negatives. It’s that inner voice telling you that your regular, boring habits aren’t leading to anything better. But if the slow churn of life creates calluses for the next phase you’ll appreciate the pain. For a lot of us that means promotions and more money. It could mean a new business opportunity or the chance to go it alone and self-employ with all the risk and rewards.

We all love the consummate winner. Tom Brady and Michael Jordan made it look easy but their drive to win was built by consistent habits and boring daily churn. We all know this right? Competitors understand how good habits over long periods of time lead to success. But we need to hear it repeated until the notion of success as work sticks to us like lint on a wool jacket. If we don’t evaluate our lives periodically we risk losing our passion for better. Evaluation gets us back to goal seeking. Keep asking yourself what that looks like. Keep redirecting and trying new things.

I guess that’s the real value of a work anniversary, the ability to self-evaluate. You might not like what you see at first. But by now you’ve probably discovered a few things about yourself that should help with the directional goals. If you hate the idea of talking to customers on any level, stay out of the service industry PLEASE! Maybe you’re a competent teacher. You’re patient with tech dopes like me, go with that.  There are so many ways to make money aside from punching a clock. Teach an online class, write marketing pitches, answer phones and sell vacations. These are all ways to start from home.

Somewhere along the way we made “work” into something otherworldly—a journey toward self-fulfillment and ideal scenarios. That’s a heavy load to bear for any career, and it’s terribly un-realistic. I’m not sure where it came from but I always had a dose of it as well. Thankfully “work” sorted me out.     

The telescope is for dreaming. It’s not detrimental to look up to the stars unless our work ethic is nonexistent. But we need to pull back from the eyeglass on occasion and see our own growth. Look at what’s around you that needs attention before squinting one eye and star gazing. Develop those skills and gifts that are in front of you first, then move on. The good news is that progress isn’t a straight line up and to the right for anyone. We all need to grind a little.

 We all need to feel earned success from working away in obscurity for a while.

So don’t complain about the trials or the unfairness or the difficulty. It’s necessary for everyone. Celebrate the long and short term successes. Remember the sacrifices and the victories, no matter how small. 

When someone congratulates you for 13 years with the same company, smile and say “Has it been that long?”

Chump Change

 

I need to make some money quick. Every week is a close to call to see if I can get to the next pay period without having some issue funding issue come up. It’s a stressful feeling for anyone who’s had financial issues at all. Not that my shortage every week is the same as someone in record debt, paying exorbitant penalties, but it’s still tough. Financial burdens are one of those loads that don’t lift until you make serious choices to change it. For me it means starting a part time job. I applied with a company that does ride serving for older couples (mostly) that need additional help to and from the car. This means a lot of grocery stops and hospital visits but the work is pretty steady, I guess. I haven’t started yet because my driver’s license is expired and I didn’t find out about it until I started doing the paperwork.

That’s on me. But getting a new one isn’t as easy as it used to be. None of the tag agencies I normally go to had any available slots and some even had appointment setting. I hate Covid so much! It’s one giant excuse to tell customers to F-off while they take it easy. I’m not picking on the Tag agencies; we’ve done this at my store too. It’s an excuse to be mediocre and the rest of the world is taking advantage! Sorry. . . a little put off.

I can’t go to the place and sit for 3 hours, hoping to be seen between Monday and Friday. I have to work the same hours and I’m not taking any more time off, it’s getting expensive. If I can't do it over lunch then forget it. So my paperwork with the rideshare company is on hold until I get a proper license. I ordered and paid for a replacement already but without the actual plastic I’m just SOL. I found out another aspect of the job that makes me think it won’t work anyway. Most of the pickups are between the hours of 8 and 5, better known as the time I work a regular job! No weekends and no evenings. So the best I could do is shuttle some early birds around before the sun is up. That takes care of what? 2 hours max? So I opted for Uber Eats as a second choice.

They’re app is easy to use I’ll give them that. I uploaded all but one of the required documents. Guess which one? 

I called them and asked if I could use my temporary proof of payment on a new license until the physical thing comes in. They didn’t like the idea anymore than the other service. So I’m stuck waiting for the square plastic card with my mug on it to arrive. Until the mopes at the Oklahoma Safety department cut and paste my image I’m just kind of in limbo. I’ve not had the best attitude about the whole process, I know you’re shocked.

I do have one option available to me, writing for chump change. I’ve done so the last 4 nights. It’s been a while and I’m a little rusty, but I do remember most of how to research and write little tid-bit blogs and customize them to certain businesses. It might take me a month or so to get into a comfortable rhythm and churn out copy, enough to call it a part time job. It’s always been less than that because the money isn’t great ($23) for roughly 2.5 hours of work but I’ve never really went after it either. You aren’t guaranteed a sale, so that time you spent studying up on different kinds of leathers for a handbag retailer could all be for naught if they buy from another blogger. It’s never a good feeling when they like your piece but won’t purchase because some schmuck beat you to it. Well good for them I guess, they found a way to get it first.

For now I’ll set a goal of 4 blog entries per week and if I sell them all I’ll be happy. Or I’ll split time dropping off Taco Bell orders and writing about software viruses for third party sellers.

Good night.

Nomadland--A Review

 

Director Cloe Zhao shows us our beautiful country through a traveler’s lens and asks us to see life a little differently. Some critics think Nomadland is a mild rebuke to materialism. Others, a tribute of sorts to nomads that live off the grid and travel across the country taking odd jobs and sleeping in their cars. Everyone seems to like it though and I have to agree. Francis McDormand (Fern) plays a widow looking to belong and connect without the stability of a house and career.

The film begins with Fern packing her van for a stint at Amazon as a seasonal worker. Her belongings are in a storage unit. Her company town in Nevada shut down after the gypsum plant closed. Her husband died as well leaving her without either a home or companionship. She finds both as she travels across the country taking odd jobs with fellow travelers and other people cast adrift.

There is a cyclical aspect to this story. From the temporary jobs to the familiar faces and locations they drift in and out like the tide. We see the pull between the stable life of Fern’s sister and the fluid life of campgrounds and parking lots. Dave (David Strathairn) is a fellow traveler who clearly likes her and wants her to settle down with him. But she isn’t sure how she feels about him.

If there is any criticism it has to be that Nomadland romanticizes just a bit, the idea of pitching it all for an 80’s Econoline panel van and making it into a camper. It doesn’t make the life look easy but it doesn’t express the dangers of being alone and vulnerable. For most people sleeping in your car is a last resort even if some make a life out of it. But the movie is too subtle to encourage such a dramatic change in behavior. It doesn't really take a side. It just shows you the characters as they are.  

Fern runs out of money for van repairs and sheepishly tells the mechanic that it is her home when he suggests she junk it and get a car. Her sister lends her money to replace the engine. She visits for a short time and we find out that Fern left home long before she married.

Maybe this transient spirit is in her blood after all?  

 It’s beautifully shot too, lots of sunsets and landscapes that show the grandeur of America’s West. I could tell right away that most of the cast are real life nomads or just non-professional actors. They’re just too perfect in their natural habitat and the movie doesn’t attempt to clean them up either. The Bob Wells character is a real life promoter of camper life. He has YouTube videos on cheap RV living. Linda May is another friend that Fern meets at Camperforce, which is a program by Amazon to employ strictly van and camper dwellers during the holidays.   

The message that comes for me in the film is how people adapt to grief. The loss of a loved one is (I’m told) almost too painful to bear and it makes life’s other problems, mortgage/bills seem unimportant. So much so, that life away from it all can sound appealing-if not literally than at least emotionally. Grief isn’t always about losing a loved one, it can be about sadness over a disease or the end of a promising future due to bankruptcy. Anything that disrupts can be grief inducing. Nomadland shows the loneliness of grief through McDormand’s superb acting, but manages to be hopeful about friendship and support.  

I didn’t feel like this movie was heavy handed in any way. It didn’t force blame on any one system that created an impossible situation for broke and homeless retirees. It deals gently with its characters, they are neither sages nor dopes.    

Everyone has a different takeaway about what the movie is trying to say.

 If you hate banks and capitalism you’ll find the exchange where Fern criticizes a banker forcing people into mortgages they can’t pay just perfect. But her views reflect her lived experience more than anything. She just came from a town that literally closed. It’s clear about one thing, people have a myriad of reasons for living this way. Some are dying and hope to see the great big country before they go. Some, like Fern and Bob, deal with grief by being alone and making friends along the way.

Others like the Camperforce employees too old to buy a home, make the best of it without pensions or 401Ks or savings accounts. This is the forgotten man aspect of the movie, the ones who lost jobs and homes during the great recession. Whatever the takeaway, it’s a story about nomad living without a lot of explanation. 

Chloe Zhao presents a straightforward picture of the life in all its colors.   

 

Psalm 135: The 3 Times Principle

 

Psalm 135

I tried something with this chapter that I haven’t done in a while, I read it out loud. Reading anything out loud forces you to focus on what you’re reading better. I guess it’s because you are reading it and hearing yourself say it. The speech somehow reinforces the truth and it becomes more real. It also makes the reader feel confident in the power of the words.

Ever heard those annoying TV and radio ads where they say the name of product 3 times consecutive?

Actor: “So where can I get this incredibly effective hemorrhoid crème?”                                   Pitchman: “Oh that’s easy just go to sitcrème.com and make the pain go away; that’s sitcreme.com…sitcreme.com to start feeling relief again.”

Maybe it’s not the best example but you get the point. Humans don’t retain information that well unless we’re overwhelmed with it. Three must be the magic number.

In a sense I think this Psalm was written for the idea of restating certain truths. It begins with a call to worship for the One Who is worthy. “Praise Him, O you servants of the Lord! You who stand in the house of the Lord, In the courts of the house of our God, Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good” (verse 1-2)

 It spends the next third talking about the works of the Lord and the victories over Israel’s enemies, and their heritage in the land.

“He destroyed the firstborn of Egypt, both of man and beast. He sent signs and wonders into the midst of you, O Egypt, Upon Pharaoh and all his servants. He defeated many nations and slew mighty kings—Sihon king of the Amorites, Og king of Bahan, and all the kingdoms of Canaan—and gave their land as a heritage, a heritage to Israel His people.”(verse 8-12)

Why is this important? It’s on the writer’s heart (likely a respectable leader) and needs to be shared because we forget. The children of Israel were just like us, in need of reminders of Yahweh’s deeds. When left alone we drift from important truths and God’s central role in our lives gets replaced in small moves. We let work or family or hobbies take the place of our meditation time with the Father. Our peace starts to drain out like a leak in an oil pan just dripping slowly on the concrete. When we do recognize it our car needs repair to prevent further problems. Sometimes we don’t catch our mistake until the car seizes up, destroying the whole engine. This is a life in freefall, one that’s ignored the warning lights for some time and is comfortable heading into the abyss.  

After reading it out loud I’m convinced that this is like a pep talk before a big game. It’s not written to the Lord, as some are, it’s written to the people to get them to appreciate again the significance of their Redemption. We can only speculate about the real world implications. Maybe a sense of apathy is infecting leaders or a feeling of hopelessness in an upcoming battle. Possibly this is a warning about the proverbial oil leak. Some Psalms are contemplative and some, designed to offer thanks to God. This one is thankful with the intention of motivating a group to action. Of course this is just my opinion but it sounds a lot to me like a coach reminding his team of their greatness in Christ. It’s a bold letter.

The Chapter finishes with a demand and an example of the 3 times principle. “Bless the Lord, O house of Israel! Bless the Lord, O house of Aaron! Bless the Lord, O house of Levi! You who fear the Lord, bless the Lord!” (verse 19-20).

Just to broaden it out, all the scripture works like this. It’s critical for Christians to understand how to remind themselves and each other in good times. Most would say it’s critical is tough times, but the trick is to maintain a close relationship when everything around you is prosperous, healthy and peaceful. When we’ve seized up the engine it’s easy to turn to God for direction. What else can we do? We messed up and we know it. But remembering His goodness in the good times is where the challenge lies-when the car is humming along and the weather is clear.

Fortunately we have hope. It’s a book, a promise, a record. Read it out loud. Read it three times and remember it.