the good in this world

Posted on by July 2, 2017

Something good is always happening to somebody.

That’s the way this world turns: somewhere on the planet, somewhere in my country, somewhere in my neighborhood, somewhere in my house…..something good is probably happening to somebody.

Good things happening make us happy.

It’s not a stretch to imagine that I’m happiest when good things are happening to me.

We like it when we get, or we do, or….we are.…something good.

I think that sometimes I like it when I’m (even) something better.

Something better than what I was the day or year before….and, maybe even more, when I’m something better than someone else.

I keep that smug happiness over supposed superiority under my hat.

That’s a pretty gross place to find happiness.

Last night, I was thinking about the joy we feel when something good happens to us, and I wondered how much better my life could be if I could figure out a way to feel that same kind of joy when good things happened to other people.

Not necessarily only the people in my small orb, either.

What if I could get that same pleasure out of everyone’s achievements and accomplishments?

(And, if the achievements are giving me pleasure, what if I could have some part in helping other people achieve? That would push my pleasure over the top! That would be a double dose of joy….aiding and abetting accomplishment…..and appreciating what I’d helped them achieve at the same time. How cool would that be? The least I could do is never be an impediment to anyone else’s achievement. Maybe that’s something to shoot for? I should guard myself against being a discourager or stumbling block…. )

Something good is always happening to somebody….and if something good is always happening, and I could celebrate the good that’s already happening around me all the time, I would never run out of joy.

And… good follows joy.

What I expect is usually what I get.

My life is better when I appreciate.

I don’t really know how to do that all the time, though.

Sometimes, the things that happen to other people that are good become a fulcrum for disappointment.

I see good things happen to other people and wonder, “why can’t I have….or be….that?”

That’s a joy killer.

You can’t compare and progress at the same time.

A person can’t be disappointed and feel joy simultaneously.

That sounds like one of those “oil and water” situations.

Good things are happening all around me.

When I notice them, I feel joy.

When I appreciate the good, I feel joy.

I want joy.

Maybe I should work at expanding my zone of appreciation….and get more joy?

What’s so hard to understand about that?

 

 

But where do you put the dog?

Posted on by June 30, 2017

We aren’t broke.

And, if we were broke, why would any of these countries want us to come around?

Doesn’t seem all that nice to have a bunch of broke people come to visit.

I don’t think that would be all that good.

But….it would be fun to go somewhere sometime…..somewhere different than up and down Miller Mountain everyday.

The best trip that I take (and I get to take it every evening) is the trip down our valley road to my family after I’ve finished running the mail again.

That’s a good feeling to see my house and Jenny and the kids (and the dog) after a long day.

Everybody travels.

Some people just think that they don’t get to go anywhere.

build and imprison

Posted on by June 29, 2017

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8R38OXzp88s

The past is a funny thing.

Funny strange, that is.

It builds who we are…and can imprison us at the same time.

That’s the “funny strange” part.

It makes us who we are….and, at the same time, can keep us from becoming who we can be….if we only focus on what provided pain.

How do you compile and collate a history….without getting bogged down with past failure and perceived betrayal?

How do you move on….and let the ghosts of the past be only the ineffectual spectres that they really are?

How do you do that?

Move on.

That’s the advice I’d give myself….if I was in the mood to really listen.

Move on.

Let the dead bury the dead.

creativity, courage….and curiosity

Posted on by June 28, 2017

People end up doing some interesting things with their lives if they have some curiosity and a little bit of vision.

That is for sure, you know?

Here’s a fellow from the Bronx….living out in the desert…off Grid….solo…living cheap.

Good video….and an interesting story.

Nate wants to Skate

Posted on by June 27, 2017

Nate wants a skateboard.

I bought him an old GT plastic skateboard (like one of those “Penny” boards) the other day at the thrift store, but so far the only thing the kids have done with it is throw it down the stairs or launch it towards the drywall.

I don’t know if I see any of these crazy tricks in the near future.

At least, I hope not.

Nate’s 7 and Sparrow is 3.

I don’t need any precocious shredders on my hands….or….maybe I do?

It’s not so bad to be crazy and creative, after all.

Crazy and creative are good things sometimes.

Some of the language in this video is typical of teenage skateboarders….so get ready….

grateful….grateful….grateful

Posted on by June 26, 2017

Some mornings, I need some motivation.

This morning, I ddn’t really need any.

It’s cool and dry outside, I woke up on time and rested….and….I’m grateful.

I have so much to be grateful for….and not only because things are rolling smoothly.

I see what I look for….and I look for opportunity to be grateful.

Grateful doesn’t mean “complacent”, though.

This motivational video touches on that.

Waking up “good” on a good morning with some good motivational input….is good.

Good for me.

Good morning…..indeed.

Off grid in Taos

Posted on by June 25, 2017

People sure do live in a lot of different ways, don’t they?

Here’s a profile of a bunch of folks living on the cheap out in the desert.

I could live in a cardboard box if the rain wasn’t too bad.

Give me some poly and a couple of 2×4’s and I could build a castle.

I like where I’m at a little bit better, though.

I like having some juice at my house.

Off grid is cool….but I like having some juice.

Dan Phillips….builder

Posted on by June 24, 2017

This guy is both an environmental and creative new hero…..and, he’s really funny.

In my book, smart and funny is the best combination.

Who else have you seen out there that is doing what this guy is doing (building with recycled materials at the commercial level….for rental and resale) and who is so good at explaining it all?

And, by “explaining it all”, I mean that he covers a lot of ground in this talk….explaining consumerism and the forces behind the housing decisions we make….and the waste that accompanies most of those decisions.

This is a great Ted talk…..and a short 18 minutes.

making a living, making a life

Posted on by June 23, 2017

If you had a choice between making a lot of money cranking out houses in the traditional manner and selling them at a high profit….or, like Dan Phillips, featured in this video, use recycled materials and a lot of skill and imagination to make houses that are both attractive and creative…but not make a big profit…..ummmmmm…..which would you choose?

I guess that we all have the choice….but, we don’t all have the skills this guy has.

Maybe “traditional” is so common because it doesn’t take the kind of imagination and time that this type of building takes?

Maybe status quo is an easier row to hoe?

Another great Kirsten Dirksen video…..one of the really cool ones this time.

It’s inspiring to see these.

Here’s the description from YouTube:

Transforming wine corks and bottle caps into flooring, cow bones into countertops, frame samples into ceilings and old deck boards into doors, Dan Phillips believes a second life is possible building refuse.

His company, Phoenix Commotion, turns trash into homes, employs “unskilled” workers and creates shelter for low-income families, but it’s not a non-profit. Instead, Phillips is trying to show that there are many good reasons to reuse construction waste (estimated as high as 10-15% of the materials that go into a building) and provide a whimsical alternative to mobile homes or other affordable housing.

With no formal training in architecture or construction, Phillips is a self-taught carpenter, plumber and electrician, but he has no problem complying with local building codes. “Every building code has a provision that alternative materials and strategies are allowable provided you fulfill the intent of the code. The only thing codes do is protect the public health and safety. So if there is nothing dangerous about it I can do whatever I want.”

He estimates his home are 75 to 85 percent salvaged material. He employs 5 minimum-wage workers, but also requires the home’s eventual owner (usually single mothers) to work on their future shelter. Since founding Phoenix Commotion with his wife 20 years ago, Phillips and his ever-rotating crews have built dozens of homes in Huntsville, Texas for low-income families and artists.

We visited his plumbed-and-wired treehouse home built in a bois d’arc tree (part of an artist’s compound with a 350-square-foot rental cottage and separate studio space), his “bone house” (made from donations from the “bone yards” of local ranchers) and his latest project, a home shaped like a cowboy boot.