Category: Random Stuff (Misc.)

“Let’s start with a premise that I don’t think a lot of Americans are aware of. We have five percent of the world’s population; we have 25 percent of the world’s known prison population. There are only two possibilities here: either we have the most evil people on earth living in the United States; or we are doing something dramatically wrong in terms of how we approach the issue of criminal justice,”

Source: http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/

I have this photo hanging in my house, love it for some reason.  This presentation reviews some of the historical photographs captured by Charles Ebbets in the early 1930’s.  Most of them depict daily scenes of the workers who participated in the construction of the skyscrapers between 1920 and 1935.  As you will see, the safety measures were somewhat peculiar and the photos were done trying to play down that situation.

I was cleaning up the house over the weekend and found a piece of paper taped to the back of a picture which I think was given to us during pre-marriage counseling with the church we were going to.  Today is my parent’s wedding anniversary so it is especially timely.  For those of you getting married (you know who you are), hope you find this helpful.  Marriage is like fuel you put in your car, every now and then you have to fill it up before the tank empties for it to keep going.

1. We will do our best not to go to sleep while we are still angry with each other.  We will work hard to achieve peace before shutting our eyes.
2. We will not add a burden to our relationship by living beyond our means.  It only creates chronic discomfort and triggers an argument.
3. We will try hard to respect each other’s different way of being in the world.  We will allow that there is not just one way of doing something.
4. We will each take responsibility for our own contributions to the problem we have, rather than point a finger at our partner.
5. We will remember to celebrate our strengths as a couple.  These are easy to forget when we are locked in conflict.
6. We will agree that violence can never be a part of our relationship.
7. We will accept each other as wonderful, flawed human beings with limits.
8. We will expand our support system so that our relationship does not carry the entire burden when we are under stress.
9. We will each take the risk of reaching beyond old, familiar ways of relating and discover a new mutually-rewarding way of experiencing the love that brought us together.
10. We will become skilled in the art of forgiving each other.
11. We will listen respectfully to each other.  We need not agree, but we do need to be heard – and to hear.
12. We will commit ourselves to maintaining a healthy partnership knowing that it takes work to create a rewarding life together.

Think you are web 2.0 savvy?  Yeah I thought I was too until I took this quiz which was pretty fun.  I scored 19 out of 34.  My question is how do you get the answers to the ones you don’t know?  Maybe I missed that?

There is a saying that life emulates art, but being a self-proclaimed geek and knowing next to nothing about art, my life has always seemed to emulate technology.  Have you ever stopped and thought about how great it would be to have a TiVo for your life?  Do you buy cable TV and get all that life has to offer, or are you satisfied with what life gives you over the airwaves?  If you have a TiVo would you fast-forward ahead to see what happens, or would you wait patiently through the commercials of life?  Would you maybe rewind and do something over again?  Maybe something in life is going really well, and you want it to last, so you put life into slow motion.  Perhaps something is not going well and you want it to stop.  Then there are times in life where you say you know what, I think this show looks good, I think I’ll hit play and give it a shot.  Sometimes life goes too fast, and you want to hit the pause button to get caught up on other things or do something else.  Do you listen to TiVo’s recommendations or decide what is right for your own life?  At the end of the day, our TiVo can only hold so many hours, so make the most of it, as hard drives don’t last forever and neither do our lives.  Get busy living or get busy dying, but promise me you’ll TiVo it for me, so I can see what happens.  🙂

We went to a new Safeway in downtown Portland’s Pearl District this morning.  It is literally right across the street from Bridgeport Brewing which is pretty cool.  They have a parking garage above the store and a stairwell down from the garage gives you a nice view of the store (pictured above).  It was actually pretty fun because I ran into two people I used to work with almost three years ago now in the store (Kathy Tribe and Melanie Carrol).  >> More on the store

“When a man opens a car door for his wife, it’s either a new car or a new wife.” — unknown

If you are in a relationship, here are some tips to staying in that relationship:

1. Always put her first — before work, friends, even basketball. Act as if she’s the best thing that ever happened to you, because we all know she is.
2. Keep no secrets. Pool your money. Allow nothing and no one to come between you.
3. Pick your fights with care. Play fair. Show some class. Hurtful words can be forgiven, but they’re hard to forget.
4. Fall in love again every day. Kiss her in taxis. Flirt with her at parties. Tell her she’s beautiful. Then tell her again.
5. Never miss an anniversary or a birthday or a chance to make a memory. Memories may not seem important now, but one day they’ll be gold.
6. Never give her a practical gift. If she really wants a Shop-Vac, let her pick it out herself.
7. Go to church together, and pray every day for each other and your marriage.
8. Pay your bills on time and make sure you each have a living will, a durable power of attorney and life insurance, lest, God forbid, you need them.
9. Love her parents as your own, but don’t ask them for money. Never criticize her family or friends. On her birthday, send flowers to her mother with a note saying, “Thank you for giving birth to the love of my life.”
10. Always listen to her heart. If you’re wrong, say you’re sorry; if you’re right, shut up.
11. Don’t half-tie the knot; plan to stay married forever.
12. Never go to bed mad; talk until you’re over it, or you forget why you were mad.
13. Laugh together a lot. If you can laugh at yourselves, you’ll have plenty to laugh about.
14. Never criticize, correct or interrupt her in public; try not to do it in private, either.
15. Remember that people are the least lovable when they are most in need of love.
16. Never fall for the myth of perfectionism; it’s a lie.
17. When you don’t like each other, remember that you love each other; pray for the “good days” to return and they will.
18. Tell the truth, only the truth, with great kindness.
19. Kiss at least 10 seconds a day, all at once or spread out.
20. Memorize all her favorite things and amaze her with how very well you know her.
21. Examine your relationship as often as you change the oil in your car; keep steering it on a path you both want it to go.
22. Be content with what you have materially, honest about where you are emotionally, and never stop growing spiritually.
23. Never raise your voice unless you’re on fire. Whisper when you argue.
24. Be both friends and lovers; in a blackout, light a candle, then make your own sparks.
25. Finally, be an interesting person, lead your own life. But always save your best for each other. In the end, you will know you were better together than you ever could’ve been apart.