Life Updates of a Larger Magnitude

Here's the second part of the entry a few weeks ago (regarding the recurring themes of life). I'm trying to figure out how I got to where I am, what it means, and where the heck am I going.... when I was younger I assumed (in the way that many teenagers do, I'm sure) that I was destined for great things. I mean, Congressional Page. Tell me that's not special! :) I think I followed the right path... I went to a good college on a full scholarship, got a degree in something useful, joined the Navy as an Officer, went to graduate school and then on to Flight School. I couldn't be a pilot, but I could have been an NFO (Navigator in non-mil terms)... and this is where I made the conscious choice to stray away from ambition. Because with ambition comes quite a bit of sacrifice. I'm pretty sure I can recreate the logic... Being an NFO would have meant 8-10 more years in the military. By the end of that time, I would have been a LCDR, 8 years away from a sweet r...

I guess we all have those moments where we realize that we are not as important to someone as they are to us. Or maybe we're just not as important to them at that moment and we mistake it as an all-the-time thing. I had one of those yesterday. About a month ago I sent out an email to my closest (and oldest) friends in the area to find a day when we were all free to hang out, BBQ, catch up. It was very important to me that they all be there, so I scoured the calendars and made sure to get everyones' buy-in... and I thought that they would be just as excited to have a dedicated night to hang out. Yesterday I sent out an evite and got a few "But that's TKE's Summer Party" or a few people that looked but didn't respond. And I guess (especially since I had planned this a month ago) I was looking for immediate "HELLS YEAH! No place I'd rather be!" (Cathe, you rock. And Naomi too although she's off the grid at the moment :)) As far as TK...

This is sorta tied into my last post, and this is definitely a rant. :) I'm just starting season 5 of Grey's Anatomy. Meredith is contemplating happily ever after with McDreamy. 3 women who have been married 40 years come in, then their husbands (ice storm. just go with it.) One woman just started sleeping with her best friend's husband. She gives this poignant little digression on how during her 40 years of marriage, little pieces of her got chipped away, and she shaved little pieces of herself away, in order to make it a perfect fit. Then one day she wakes up and doesn't recognize herself. Listen up chickie, as I see it there are 3 options in your pessimistic life (with regard to marriage). 1. You never get married. 40 years later you wonder why you never found someone even though you tried. 2. You get married and then divorce. 40 years later you are wondering why you couldn't make it work. 3. You get (and stay) married. 40 years later you are wonderin...

There are some themes that keep coming up that seem vitally important. But at the same time, I see these themes echoed all around me. How can it be vitally important if every person struggles with the same thing? Doesn't that just make it mundane? To touch on a few (first the one that is on my peripheral - doesn't feel right to bare your own soul from the outset) - the difference in life stages... Reading this blog means you're (hopefully!) a friend of mine, in the same age category, so this is either going to ring really true to you, or about someone you know. Let's assume life starts in High School. You really become self aware, you start to contemplate your future, and that contemplation usually includes greatness (this is key to a later digression). We'll assume that is Stage 1. Stage 2 is college and all the self discovery/realization that entails. Stage 3 is post college real world, jobs and bills and making it on your own. Not married. And a whole ...

My company has a firewall so that you can not do fun things on company time, like Facebook, Youtube, music streaming, etc... and I understand why. But I still want to stream Pandora's perfectly selected music delicacies while I'm working damnit. I contend that it makes me an even more productive worker! And today I am. That's because I'm at home and I've connected all my random little electronic things together to create a Frankenstonian masterpiece. First, I connected a dual KVM cable which allows me to operate both my home laptop and my work laptop with the same Keyboard, Video (monitor), and Mouse. (Hence the K-V-M acronym) It has a fantastic little button that let's me switch back and forth. So cool. Then I plugged in my little bean speakers to my home laptop, connected to Pandora, pushed the button and Voila! I'm doing work and listening to Pandora. Rock. I love technology.