So said my elderly neighbour last night, who lives in solitude with her small dog.  For a lot of people, it is absolutely essential to have some kind of meaning and purpose to being alive.  Every person on this planet, is motivated by certain needs.  The types of needs which are the motivating factors can be many.  Need for achievement, need for power, need for intimacy...  To live a life bereft of purpose, drive, and conviction, is to live a life of apathy and stagnation.

 

For many people, it is not one's own fault to be living a dreary life, since external factors of attribution are so powerful yet often overlooked.  Yet, there are those who are simply too lazy to get off their butts to do something.  They lack something...

 

The will to act.

 

Yesterday morning, I ran the full 26.2 miles of the Manitoba Marathon, and finished with a time of about 4:12.  What did I just do!?!  That was my first full marathon ever, and wow it was something!  The first half of the race went like clockwork, but the final third of the race... ouch!  Sufferfest all the way...

 

And what was my motivation for running in the full marathon?  Was it to run in memory of someone?  For personal retribution?  For charity?  For fun?  Well, basically...  I ran the full marathon because I got the wrong bib number in my race kit.  I had registered for the half marathon, since I've never before in my life ran more than 14 miles, and I got the race number of a full marathoner.  So, being too lazy to get the numbers switched, I figured, well what the heck.  Maybe it's a sign from above that I'm ready for the full 26.2 miles!

 

And I did it.  And my heart rate monitor says I burned 4614 calories.

 

And I might just do it again!

...with a low E flat.  It don't get any better (or lower)!

 

To me, this is one of the most impersonal dialogues ever.  Yes, it is good as an ice breaker just to get a conversation going, but other than that, it just seems so fake.  Most people don't really care how you are doing, but this dialogue is such a handy little device to fill in time, that it just doesn't matter.

 

So how are you today?

Well, it felt more like 1 minute since it flew by so fast, but hopefully now, all the early-risers who saw the short live segment on the Big Breakfast know a little more about running shoes!

 

a word used by white kids who try to be funny by imitating snoop dogg, or who are just stupid asses

white kid: f'shizzle my n'izzle
other: shut up f****n cracker

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A $200 bottle of champagne from Hooters and $300 worth of "Girls Gone Wild" videos were among items bought with debit cards handed out by FEMA to help hurricane victims, auditors probing $1 billion in potential waste and fraud have found.

 

 

Oh man, what an experience!  Imagine, being interviewed by 3 people you've never met before, who all are bombarding you with questions to which you are to come up with answers to on the spot!  Ouch!  Add to that the nerve-wracking experience of anticipation, waiting for your turn to go. 

 

I didn't know I could speak so well on the fly!  Thanks be to God!!!

 

More waiting now, to see if I get accepted... 

7.5 hours to go until my PT interview!

On the night of June 10th, what appeared to be a face appeared in the night sky.  It was positioned so perfectly by the moon that it was certainly something rarely seen.  See the June 10th photo album on the right...

Tonight, I came across a list of workshops offered by a catholic group.  This one particular workshop caught my eye.

 

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3-05 Transformative Power: The Gift of the Junior High Catechist 

Why do some catechists shy away from volunteering with junior high? Why does just the thought of teaching this age group send chills through their spines? Who is the person who dares to venture into the junior high classroom? What are the qualities of those catechists who are transforming these young people’s lives? Which strategies work? Which do not? Come see, rather participate! Who knows? You may even be transformed to go where few have gone before – into the junior high classroom!

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It's not as scary as you would think!  I've been there...

 

 

 

Here's a debate on whether or not he could exist:

 

 

And of course, the manual for anyone wanting to be the bat himself: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1594740232/scottbeattyco-20/104-2586296-3012708

...it's always fun when a car full of girls drives by and they all woo at you.  It only makes me run faster, so it's all good.

So what if today is 6/6/6, it's not the end of the world.  Today is also the 62nd anniversary of the D-Day landings in Normandy.  To those that landed on the beaches that day, it sure must have seemed like the end of the world.

 

It's amazing at how much you can really influence another's behaviour.  If you act nice to them, they reciprocate.  If you act smug, they reciprocate.  It's the self-fulfilling prophecy again!

 

I think I've had too much coffee again.