i am still looking for a job.
that is a somewhat depressing sentence to write. i have tried to fill my time each day with constructive activities, i.e. actually looking for said elusive job that is supposedly out there (at least that is what all the media outlets say about ATX), reading books i have come across, working on projects for a non-profit i am on the board of directors for, doing chores around the house, and running on some days. this is all great in theory, but these things become repetitive at best and teetering on boredom at worst. i am not sure it is a universal feeling (probably not, having at least some insight into human motivation from pastoral care work i have done), but any time that i am not looking for a job i get a twinge of guilt. i rationalize this to myself on almost a daily basis that you surely can't look for a job 24/7 or even 8/5.
what i do know is that this extended time seems to have slowly sucked the creativeness out of me. i have found that reading helps to provoke ideas in my head and running helps refresh my mind and soul for both motivation and the beauty of endorphin release. so, i try to be more disciplined about these things as the days pass.
update finished. on to a new idea:
i want to write about food. not only the importance of sustenance and what that means, but the connections to a life lived spiritually and how food plays a role in and impacts that life. but i want this to be communal. so what questions, ideas, quandaries, comments do you have? with questions i will do my best to answer. with ideas, quandaries, comments, i will do my best to respond. use the comment space below to participate.
sharing is fun; my mother taught me that. so share in this idea and exploration with me.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Thursday, July 1, 2010
vive le tour!
it is arguably my favorite time of year. as the july heat is ratcheted up in the lone star state, so the summer in france sizzles with excitement. it is time for the tour de france, or simply le tour.
as they hurl toward the prologue, riders from 22 teams will each take their turn to churn out 8.9km as fast as they can in an atmosphere of exhibition on saturday. to be sure this will be the beginning of a gut wrenching covering of 3,642km over 20 stages with a couple of rest days sprinkled in between. there will be big names who crash, big names who fail to live up to expectation, and big names who are disgraced - only adding to the blight and shadow that doping casts over the sport. but there will also be big names and unheralded names who conquer both mountain and flats to rise victorious, even if only for a day. and they will succeed on the backs of their teams as they pull them through stage after stage and only one man is left atop the podium donning the yellow jersey that is known the cycling world over.
dirty racing is something that we unfortunately come to expect in the cycling world. we wonder if humans are really capable of achieving the feats they seem to accomplish in the days leading up to failed tests. we know that it will be present this year, but we hope that it will be lessened in each of the successive races. whole teams are beginning to make efforts to clean up the sport (see team garmin-transitions). riders are tested more often, especially if your initials are la (just follow @lancearmstrong to find out just how often that is). as a devoted cycling fan i can only hope that this year will be cleaner than last and the next even more so.
despite all the dark publicity brought to the sport every year in doping scandals, i find myself excited and ready to watch the 22 teams begin a quest to accomplish their goals both as individuals and as cooperatives. it is compelling to think that no man can succeed in winning the tour on his own, he is constantly in debt and dependent upon the team whose colors he pulls on each morning. the cooperative nature of this type of sport reminds me time and time again that we are not alone. that in our greatest successes and failures there are others who celebrate and agonize with us. vive le tour!
as they hurl toward the prologue, riders from 22 teams will each take their turn to churn out 8.9km as fast as they can in an atmosphere of exhibition on saturday. to be sure this will be the beginning of a gut wrenching covering of 3,642km over 20 stages with a couple of rest days sprinkled in between. there will be big names who crash, big names who fail to live up to expectation, and big names who are disgraced - only adding to the blight and shadow that doping casts over the sport. but there will also be big names and unheralded names who conquer both mountain and flats to rise victorious, even if only for a day. and they will succeed on the backs of their teams as they pull them through stage after stage and only one man is left atop the podium donning the yellow jersey that is known the cycling world over.
dirty racing is something that we unfortunately come to expect in the cycling world. we wonder if humans are really capable of achieving the feats they seem to accomplish in the days leading up to failed tests. we know that it will be present this year, but we hope that it will be lessened in each of the successive races. whole teams are beginning to make efforts to clean up the sport (see team garmin-transitions). riders are tested more often, especially if your initials are la (just follow @lancearmstrong to find out just how often that is). as a devoted cycling fan i can only hope that this year will be cleaner than last and the next even more so.
despite all the dark publicity brought to the sport every year in doping scandals, i find myself excited and ready to watch the 22 teams begin a quest to accomplish their goals both as individuals and as cooperatives. it is compelling to think that no man can succeed in winning the tour on his own, he is constantly in debt and dependent upon the team whose colors he pulls on each morning. the cooperative nature of this type of sport reminds me time and time again that we are not alone. that in our greatest successes and failures there are others who celebrate and agonize with us. vive le tour!
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