Christmas Eve

The past few days I’ve been out of sorts mentally, just feeling down in the dumps. Today, when I walked outside, the sun was coming up over the trees and it totally changed my mindset. Once again, I realized just how much the sun affects my happiness level. I guess I should probably look into having my next move be in a place with a lot of sun.

I found a toothpaste that I have been looking for for over a year now. Not sure why it was so hard to find, considering K-mart carries it. It’s listorine toothpaste, that my dentist recommended as the best there is. We’ll see what happens.

Wild At Heart

I finished the book “Wild at Heart” for the 3rd time.  The book tugs at me, and it’s a book I definitely need to read every so often in order to not forget it’s ideals. I read it when i was 25, and it encouraged me to venture away from Indiana and stop being complacent with myself. Ever since then, it’s sorta shaped decisions i’ve made in my life that may or may not of worked out. I obviously haven’t followed it all to perfection….but it is a good reminder on how to live a happy life. Here are some of my favorite lines in the book.

“I don’t trust a man who hasn’t suffered”

“A man’s addictions are the result of refusing his strengths”

“Let people feel the weight of who you are, and let them deal with it”

“Choose the path of humility; don’t be a self promoter, a glad-hander, a poser.”

“Say what you think, stand up for the underdog, challenge foolish policies.”

“All men die, very few men ever really live”

“When a man withholds himself from his woman, he leaves her without the life only he can bring”

“I want to love with much more abandon and stop waiting for others to love me first”

“Life is not a problem to be solved, it is an adventure to be lived.”

“A man just won’t be happy until he’s got adventure in his work, in his love and in his spiritual life”

“Don’t ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and go do that, because what the world needs is people who have come alive”

I have studied many times
The marble which was chiseled for me-
A boat with a furled sail at rest in a harbor.
In truth it pictures not my destination
But my life
For love was offered me, and I shrank from its disillusionment,
Sorrow knocked at my door, but I was afraid
Ambition called to me, But I dreaded the chances.
Yet all the while I hungered for meaning in my life
And now I know that we must lift the sail
And catch the winds of destiny
Wherever they drive the boat.
To put meaning in one’s life may end in madness,
But life without meaning is the torture
Of restlessness and vague desire-
It is a boat longing for the sea and yet afraid.

(Edgar Lee Masters)

Everything Is Illuminated

I’m watching the movie “Everything Is Illuminated” for the second time, this time while not half asleep. It’s a pretty interesting movie, and quite funny as well. The Ukranian translators dog is named Sammy Davis Jr, Jr. Hilarious.

I hate getting my hopes up. I really do. Typically it leads to disapointment, which is why I try to be more cautiously optimistic than anything. I like having a view point of even steven, not too high and not too low. It makes for the exciting things that happen to be even more exciting, and the not so exciting things that happen to not be too bad. I would really love to have some excitement happen in my life, and it might, but I don’t want to get my hopes up.

Sometimes you meet people, and you just know they are on your same wavelength. You can tell they think the same things in certain situations. Tonight at dinner, there was 6 of us eating, and we had about 3 different wavelengths going. I felt 3 of us were on the same one, then another 2 were on one, and then one guy was on his own. You sit back and listen to people communicate, and you realize that even though they are engaging in conversation about the same topic, that because of life experience that how they process information in their head and react to a statement is totally different. This also goes hand in hand when dating. You have to find somebody on your wavelength, who gets what you area saying, who reads your body language and who see the world with a similar view. When I meet a girl for the first time, regardless of how pretty she is or smart, I try and figure out if we are on the same wavelength.

Sing me to sleep

It’s just weird to me that in this day and age that cheesy singing has become one of the most popular things to watch on tv. With all the rough and tough happenings in this world, the craziness that is the USA, the “war”, and our love of watching violence on tv…..it’s bizarre to me that people love watching young people try their hand at being a good singer. People are obsessed with American Idol, which has created shows like “Glee” and “the Sing Off”. I remember thinking my grandparents were so weird for loving to watch these old show with these old people just singing. But now, it’s like our generation is doing the same thing. I guess there is just something about hearing and watching people attempt to entertain us for the first time that is exciting. We like feeling we are a part of discovering something for the first time.

I dunno, it’s just kinda weird to me that singing is now so popular.

Continues to be my favorite song this year

Sunday

I went for a hike up Angle Mountain yesterday. The weather finally warmed into the 20’s, so it was a great day to hike. I made it probably halfway up the mountain, before realizing it was going to be near impossible to go further unless I had better footing, meaning snow shoes. It was a beautiful hike though, partially through a forest of pine trees and snow. I was happy with my endurance, especially at that altitude. It got really windy and cold though, the higher I went, which made it tough.  Going down was fun, almost skiing in my boots. Amazingly i didn’t fall down.

I’ve come to realize that I probably won’t have much of a social life here in wyoming. Definitely don’t forsee meeting any ladies, considering it’s mostly dudes who come here to snowmobile. But that’s ok, i’m enjoying a lot of time to clear my mind, figure out life, and not have many distractions other than snowmobiles buzzing past my apartment. I just hope I don’t have too much time to think, which typically causes me to drive myself crazy over thinking things.

I’m looking forward to figuring out where I’ll be moving next. A lot could change in the next few months, but it seems I’ll have some good opportunities at different locations. Everybody keeps bringing up Alaska, which would be awesome i’m sure, but I’m just not sure I want to spend the summer in more isolation. We’ll see what happens.

It’s gonna suck to not be spending Christmas with the family. The only thing I can really do is just put it out of my mind. I’m already so used to snow here, that I actually do forget that Christmas is approaching.  I think I might be super busy with work here anyway, so that will keep me occupied.

Tiger, Tiger, Tiger

I guess I’m sorta surprised at how much coverage the Tiger Woods saga is getting. Since when is it a shocker that a pro athlete cheats on his wife? I can’t believe for the life of me that his wife wouldn’t know that he had other ladies scattered around the world. While I do feel bad for her, she has to know it comes with the territory of marrying one of the most famous athletes in the world. An athlete who parties with Charles Barkley and Michael Jordan.

I personally am more intrigued by what caused him to wreck. Hearing of his infidelities, that’s boring after about 2 minutes. Of course he is. If you have the prettiest women in the world throwing themselves at your everywhere you go, is it really surprising a guy turns into a cheater? I’m not condoning it, but until you walk in his shoes, I think it’s pretty absurd to judge him for giving into such temptation. I’m guessing quite a few of us would.

Which leads me to….why in the world would a guy like Tiger or Lebron or Kobe get married in the first place? Is it just a cover to the general public? Seems to me that would be the most logical explanation. Why not save yourself the money you will have to give up in the future divorce?

His wife should definitely take the money and run at this point. He’s always gonna be traveling and golfing, while she’s home with the kids. I’m guessing they rarely see each other, so why not after finding out (or at least now that the public has found out), take the opportunity to be set for life and find somebody who actually cares about you? I’d run if I were her.

I’m guessing Tiger is a control freak, judging by how careful he is about his image, and how much of a perfectionist he is about his golf game.  But now, the only control he has over his life is his golf  game.

When it’s all said and done, if he handles it correctly and keeps winning golf tournaments, the media and general public will stop caring about his personal life….just like what happened with Kobe, Jordan, Ali….and many more.

Getting Cold

I’ve now been here in Wyoming almost 4 weeks. I’m starting to feel more comfortable here, getting to know people and getting used to my job. Living out here is obviously different than many places you might spend a winter. I’m used to cold weather, but not used to negative temperatures on a consistent basis. Today when I walked to my office, it was -23 degrees.

It’s obviously different out here. A few days ago, I had to stop for a minute while driving because a herd of buffalo was crossing the road. Unfortunately I didn’t have my camera. I need to carry it at all times.

Hoping to get out and hike this weekend if it’s not too cold.

I guess that is about all I have to say right now.

week 2

Well, i’m quickly adapting to life here in wyoming. My first week of work went pretty well. It’s a pretty laid back atmosphere around here, something I’m trying to get used to. I was told by my boss to pace myself. I guess i will do my best with that.

I haven’t really been able to be active yet. I did a little hiking the first day i was here, but after realizing i was pretty sick, i stopped that. I need to figure out something, otherwise i’m gonna get a pretty severe case of cabin fever by the time it’s all said and done. It hasn’t snowed much since the first day i was here. But everybody keeps saying enjoy it while it lasts, because pretty soon there will be more snow than you can imagine. The lodge is still a few weeks away from being open, which means it will be pretty slow around here until then. Not many workers are here yet. I haven’t really met anybody to hang out with, but that’s ok. I’m in no hurry.

It’s about an hour into Jackson, where I have to buy groceries. The drive isn’t bad because it’s through the national park. However, when it starts to snow pretty good, that road won’t be much fun because it’s windy and hilly. I ten to just wonder around the grocery store, as i want to make the most of my time in town. There are a lot of restaurants that look pretty good, but so far i’ve only tried out a few sandwich places.

I was moved into an office all by myself. It’s actually an old little cabin, which has been used as a storage place. While it’s not your typical office, it is pretty cool and a quiet little place. I’m excited i won’t have to share with anybody else.

Anyway, not a whole lot to report at this point.

Wyoming, Day 1

I arrived here at the Lodge last night to a lot of snow. It’s probably not much to the locals. but 7-8 inches for me is a lot. It didn’t stop until this afternoon. Today was good. I met a lot of the managers and got the tour. The property isn’t very big, but it gets the job done for people looking to snowmobile and play in the snow.

I picked a bad time to get rid of my SUV. While it’s nice to save gas, it would have been nice to have it on these snowy roads! But, so far the Corolla is doing just fine. Today was snowy and foggy. Not a good combo for picture taking. After spending the first part of the day seeing the area and grocery shopping, I came back to my apartment to relax. Just before sunset, i looked outside and realized the skies had clear and the scenery was totally different. I could see mountains and the sky was a bluish pink. So realizing it had dropped 20 degrees, i threw on my new snow gear as quickly as possible and ran outside to take some pics. It was too late though…I got maybe one that was decent.

I don’t start work for a few days, so I’m definitely going to explore if the weather cooperates. Jackson Hole looked awesome, especially if you are a girl and like to shop. I might try and hike the nearby mountain area outside my apartment…get a different view of the area, as well as some much needed exercise. Being sick and having much thinner air up here isn’t a good combo right now. I found it difficult to sleep last night because of it.

Being an hour from the nearest town means i had to do some serious grocery shopping today. Their is no food available at the Lodge for a few more weeks when it opens, so I’ll be living off a simple diet. Hopefully it breaks me out of the fast food diet.

Overall, day one was pretty good, but I think day 2 will be better.