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My dreams are teasing me

This morning, I woke up next to a beautiful woman.  I lay there for a moment admiring her.  She was just perfect.  She was beautiful.  She was just there so peacefully, still sleeping next to me.  I was happy and wondering how I got to be so lucky.  Then my alarm went off and I woke up. How disappointing.  Sigh... I mean really, how disappointing.  It's like my dreams are teasing me.  They are showing me the desires of my heart.  It's not like I don't know what I want or anything.  It's not that I don't wish my marriage would have been better.  It just didn't work out that way for me.   Back to life as normal, I guess.  Back to the fulfilling but somewhat lonely life of a single dad.  Back to being just a poor lost soul in a world of other poor lost souls.  I realize it will probably never happen for me again.  At 55, I'm just too old for the dating scene.  The women who have shown interest in me, are not what I want.  Not to mention that we live in the age

School Bus Didn't Get The Message

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It's going to be one of those days apparently.   The workers from the construction site, which has been the bane of my existence since the snow melted back in the spring, are tearing up the road again.  It's like the fourth time unannounced that they've done this.  It causes a real shit show as you will see from the video. I will complain about these people every chance I get for the following reason... Because I have to listen to this all day long.

A Rental Nightmare Story

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This morning, my thoughts turned to an event that happened a long time ago.  The ex and I rented an apartment on Grant St in Portland.  It was a really nice place, but the landlord decided he wanted to sell the building.  So we had to make the place presentable for whenever he wanted to show it.   This got really annoying.  People coming in and out, looking through our home.  If we weren't there, a real estate agent could just come in and show the place.   One time, my wife who was very pregnant and nearly ready to pop was sick and puking.  There was a scheduled showing that day, so I called the landlord and asked him to reschedule.  He refused, so I locked the deadbolt and nobody came in anyway.   He simply had no respect for our privacy.   Anyway, the baby was born and 4 days later we got a letter asking us to move out.  The letter said that he would give us $200 dollars on top of our security deposit back to help.  So I started looking for a new place.  When the first of the mon

Passing on my faith to my children

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Yesterday I had the opportunity to meet with my priest.  It was a good conversation for an hour.  It helped me to resolve a couple issues I was concerned about.  Mainly that I am on the right path with my daughter, helping her to receive her first communion.  Passing on my faith to her.  And secondly, that I'm not crazy. My ex-wife, aka the mother of my children is on a radically spiritual path.  It was the first time I actually sat down and talked to a priest in probably 25 years.   Passing on my faith to my children Passing on my faith to my children has become increasingly important for me.  It's what God wants me to do.  It is my responsibility as a parent.  The seed was planted a while ago.  It grew.  It became something I have to do.  So, I'm doing it.  I signed her up for the faith formation classes (what was called CCD back in my day) at my church.  I met with my priest to talk about it.  She seems to be enjoying it.  She is learning the prayers.  I'm proud of h

Proverbs chapter 13

13:1 A wise son heeds his father’s instruction, but a mocker does not respond to rebukes. A wise man is always willing to learn, a fool thinks he knows everything already. --------------------------------- 13:2 From the fruit of their lips people enjoy good things, but the unfaithful have an appetite for violence. The fool uses his mouth to condone violence, while the wise man uses his mouth to spread kindness, which in turn comes back to them both. --------------------------------- 13:3 Those who guard their lips preserve their lives, but those who speak rashly will come to ruin. Watch your mouth, and you will bring no trouble upon yourself.  Don't and you will pay the price for your hard words. --------------------------------- 13:4 A sluggard’s appetite is never filled, but the desires of the diligent are fully satisfied. A sluggard is a lazy man who always wants more but is never satisfied.   The diligent is a hard worker who gets what he needs by virtue of his hard work. -----

Beep Beep Beep

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This morning has been unusually peaceful.   I probably shouldn't say anything that would disrupt that.  You know, Murphy's Law. Here's the issue.  There is this construction site in my neighborhood.  It has been the bane of my existence since the spring.  I especially take issue with the reverse safety alarms on the backs of trucks and tractors.  They go "Beep!  Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!" all day long, every day since the snow melted back in the spring.   It is a ridiculous amount of torturous noise.  I even called the US OSHA to complain about it.  I honestly don't see why these things need to echo through the entire neighborhood so that you can hear them half a mile away.  It's torture.  It would be like being forced to listen to Baby Shark all day long, every day. I can't stand it.   The 2nd issue is the condition of the sidewalk near the entrance.  It is covered with mud and gravel and is caving in in one spot.  It gets worse every time it rains, the

On writing a blog like this

The book of Proverbs in the Bible is written in a genre known as Wisdom Literature.  My personal study of this particular book, although nothing formal, is what inspired me to start this blog about how to be a wise man.  I would love to grow it into something big that covers all aspects of life, but it will come along at its own pace.  I would like to produce one blog post a day for example, but in all honesty, I'm not sure that is possible.  Wisdom, you see, is not something that you can just pull out of your head at random to share with the world, especially for fools like me.   Becoming wise is always a work in progress.  There is always more to learn.  I have to do the work myself, it's something I have to seek.  Having wisdom comes with a great responsibility.  It's up to me to incorporate it into my life.  I have to act wisely, make good and responsible decisions, with fairness and kindness.  I have to know what I'm getting myself into.  I have to avoid the situat