Comings and Goings

I’ve been sick for over a week. I hate it. Now that I do not have to work this week, my body decides that this is a fantastic time to be sick. I guess that is what I get for working too much and not getting enough sleep. The week has been pretty uneventful, which is nice. I’ve spent a lot of time playing video games (which is something I rarely do) and watching movies. Fortunately, for Christmas I got Season 1 and 2 of one of the greatest TV shows ever, Sliders, and a collection of other movies Harry Potter 3, Blade I and II, Napoleon Dynamite (a present for me, from me). I’ve not gotten around to watching everything yet, but I am attempting to study for my comprehensive exam (or comps) that is in late January. It is scary to me that I do not graduate until May, but my comps are in January.

Christmas was good. Jenn and I spent it with our dog and cat here in Arkansas. We had a good time, although both of us were/are a little ill. It was nice and calm, which was good. Although we both definitely missed being in Colorado with our families.

I’ll write more later, but I am going to go tend to my cough.

A Passing

On Thursday December 16th 2004, my Grandmother won her battle with Parkinson's disease and left this world for a better one. She had been sick for about five years, and had not really been aware of anything for about four of those years. This was for the better as she is now no longer suffering in a frail body while lying in a nursing home bed unaware of anything around her.

Unfortunately I am unable to head back to Colorado for the service (as I am also unable to go back for Christmas). Thankfully I was able to write the eulogy that will be read by my brother and one of my cousin's at the memorial service.

I am so happy my grandmother now gets to be with her husband, my grandfather, again after fourteen years of separation. She gets to see her brother who died in the 1940's. She gets to be in the presence of Jesus and no longer suffer. My family and I are so thankful for that.

Alive
There is something about the cold weather that makes me feel alive. I enjoy cold weather. I am not a huge fan of snow, but cold weather can be quite nice. Especially days like today that remind me of many Colorado winter days. Its cold and clear and the sun is bright. I love those kind of days.

Last weekend Jenn and I rented Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. I absolutely loved the movie, so much so that I watched it twice in the same day. I am not sure why I loved it so much, but it was so unique, so vivid, so real...not your typically mushy love story, nor your typical romantic comedy.

Question
Leadership...now I work in a field where "leadership" is a big buzzword. There are tons of conferences, books, meetings, programs etc... on the topic. In my life I have been involved in multiple "leadership" experiences, but only one or two actual "leadership trainings". For folks my age in my field that is pretty uncommon. Most have been to multiple "leadership conferences", where in "leadership training" programs in college, etc... My questions then to anyone who wants to answer are this: 1)what does leadership mean to you? 2)Are leaders born or made?

I want to hear what real people think. Not just people in my field. Not just what the books have to say, but what actual breathing average yet unique citizens of the world have to say.

Follow the beat (read beaten)

Darkness moves swiftly through the hallways of my mind. It is not that I am depressed; rather it is that I am tired. I hate that I cannot tell some people (with whom I work with or for) how I feel. I have to always to check myself when I say something that could “go against the grain”. I have to be mindful that I do not commit career suicide. What scares me the most is that the questions I want to ask are the worst that could be asked. I just want to know the “why” of things. Why is person X treated differently than person Y? Why group O gets invited and group P does not? If it were simply an issue of policy, I’d shrug it off, but when it is an issue about respect and an issue about people, that is when my hide gets chapped. I guess that is the reason “why” is the most frightening question of all.

Now more than ever in my life I value the statement “question authority” but now more than ever in my life do I feel so strapped that I cannot do just that.

However, I am thankful that I have my job. I am thankful of the things it provides me. I am thankful of the lessons I have learned where I am. I am thankful that I do not have to be here forever.

A Quickie
It is the end of the semester here at the ol' blog. This means that work projects are nearing deadlines and school is coming to an end with finals and papers. While I surrender my worldy desires and focus on school and work I leave you with a very interesting article about an issue I have discussed before on this blog. This article is from The Nation and is entitled Democrats Should Fight for a Moral Minimum Wage .

"In Florida, where Bush beat John Kerry by 381,000 votes, voters favored the minimum wage increase by 3.1 million votes (a lopsided 71.3 percent to 28.7 percent), despite the opposition of the state's business community and Governor Jeb Bush. In Nevada, Bush narrowly beat Kerry by 21,500 votes, but voters backed the wage boost by 293,328 votes (68.3 percent to 31.6 percent)."

Click the link above to read the whole article.