Tag Archives: ramblings

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The Chameleon Affair Ramblings

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I originally posted this link last week, and to my friends who have already helped, thank you.  The campaign is over halfway to its goal.  To those of you who are on the fence or uncertain about this project, I’m appealing to you to please donate to this film.  Frank Fradella is a good man who I’ve met and gotten to know over the last year, and as a writer and former publisher myself, I know firsthand the struggles to launch a project from the ground floor.  It takes a lot of support from a lot of people, and it takes money.  You may not think that a $10 donation would do much, but I can promise you that even the smallest contribution means the world to a creative person trying to launch a project.  Please, help Frank out.

Let me also add two things.  I’m not part of this production and will receive no monetary compensation from the film.  I just want to help out a fellow creative person who has a vision.  Secondly, having met Frank and gotten to know him through interaction and mutual friends, I can vouch that every penny you donate will go solely into the production of this film.  Please, donate $10 now.

http://www.indiegogo.com/The-Chameleon-Affair

For Collin and Finn

Friday Morning Ramblings

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Dear sons, one of my hopes for you is that you learn to be self-sufficient.  There’s a freedom to knowing how to do things for yourself that’s invaluable.  Not needing someone else to wash and iron your clothes or tend your yard or patch your roof or cook your meals allows you to stand on your own and not be dependent on anyone.  I hope you learn all of the essential skills and grow into the kinds of men who don’t need a woman to survive and who don’t have to call a contractor every time a faucet starts dripping.  You will be much happier men if you develop these skills.

I’m fortunate that your great-grandfather and papaw taught me how to do the basics of most things.  I’m fortunate that I learned to cook and do laundry while in college.  There aren’t many things I can’t do for myself, and I feel confident that even if I don’t know how to do something, I can figure it out with a little trial and error.  Part of learning self-sufficiency is not fearing making mistakes.  We learn the most when we try something, fail, and then try again.  If you want to grow into strong, independent men, set aside the fear of failure and try to do things for yourselves.

Even though this hasn’t worked out for me yet, I also believe that having self-sufficiency will make you a better partner for whomever you end up with.  When you can help out with the dishes as well as mow the yard, you can share more of the daily chores that make life a grind.  Sharing the load goes a long way to reducing stress in a relationship and makes you more equal as partners.  Also, if you can do for yourself, you are less likely to end up trapped in a bad situation because you have the confidence that you can survive on your own.

So sons, learn as many skills as you can.  As you grow, I’ll try to teach you some of what I’ve learned, but the most important skill I hope you cultivate is to teach yourself how to learn new things.  If you can do this, you’ll learn independence, and with independence comes freedom.  One of my great hopes for both of you is that you never feel dependent on anyone for anything.  I love you, boys, and can’t wait to see you in a couple of months.

General Posts

Thursday Evening Ramblings

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What a two days!  I have a newly found respect for roofers because laying that tar for several hours on end was a lot more taxing than I realized.  I had done some small repairs previously, and the small jobs weren’t so bad, but this one took it out of me.  The good news is I got most of the hard stuff done.  The bad news is there’s still a lot more to go.  With the weather looking the way it is, I may put that off for a couple of weekends.  Hopefully, what I have finished will prevent any leaks until I can finish the rest.

Despite being a little sore and ragged, I love physical labor.  Nothing is quite as therapeutic for me as hard work.  It clears my mind and allows me to focus solely on the task at hand.  Even if just for a few hours, all of my problems vanish, and it’s just me and the job.  Those of you who enjoy working in your yards or building something by hand probably know what I’m talking about.  Those of you who don’t should try it.  There’s not much more relaxing, and the instant gratification of seeing the job complete satisfies you quite nicely.

There’s still much to be done.  I have to finish and organize the inside and clean up around the outside, but considering the condition when I started, I’m content with the progress so far.  If I can do a little each day, by the time the boys are here, it should be a safe, cozy little place for us to hang out and play in.  The last time they were here, they loved the motor home and thought it was the coolest place they’d ever been, so hopefully by the time I’m done, they’ll love it just as much this time.

That’s about all today.  Tonight, I need to rest my body.  Tomorrow, I’ll get back to work and hopefully make more progress, and I hope to write a much more entertaining entry.  Until then, I hope everyone has a wonderful evening.