Tag Archives: carpe diem

Lessons Learned From a Funeral

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Mixed Emotions

Mixed Emotions

I had this entire week mapped out in exact details as to what I was going to do!  Then it happened, I get a phone call telling me that an old friend’s dad had pasted away, and the calling hours was tonight!

Event though I haven’t seen my friend or his parents for years, I felt obligated to drive down and pay my respects…

Now I haven’t seen my old friend or his parents for a good many years!  I also haven’t seen any of my neighbors from the old neighborhood for years and years either!

So why this funeral turned into mixed emotions for me was because while standing in the long line, past friends and their parents keep stopping and talking to me all the way up to where the morning family were at the casket.  Heck, even my mourning friend broke rank and come over from the casket to shake my hand, and at that point I wasn’t even close to the casket.  We haven’t seen each other so long it was almost pleasant for the both of us.

While I was in line, I felt so sad for my friend’s mother and sister, especially  his mom.  But at the same time, so many people greeted me and talked with me, that I almost felt disrespectful towards the grieving family.  At times, the my odd neighborhood friends and I were almost laughing and having a good time catching up.  It was very confusing to say the least.

During the drive down, I was listening to “The Snowball” a biography about Warren Buffett (I only made it half way through the book in the past).  And of course, being financial sort of guy, I calculated how much the trip would cost me (I’ve done this before with trips to my parent’s house).  The entire trip cost me $20, but that wasn’t important (mostly), isn’t it funny that I calculated in my head while driving down?  I guess it’s now part of my being…

Last year, I would have tried to get out of this.  I had plenty of excuses, like I didn’t find out until it was too late (this is true to a degree, I rushed down and was their 1 hour after the funeral started!)  Or that I had to work that night…  Luckily, my New Year’s Resolution is be a better me (see my post called “Becoming Super?“), so I traveled down and did the right thing!

This funeral was a reminder to make the most of the journey through life, and to remember to visit old friends and their parents occasionally, because some day, sadly they will be gone.

-MR

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Starting the New Year Right!

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Starting the New Year Right

Often we start the new year slowly, sleeping in for the first day.  But a few days later, it’s time to get into the full swing of things and get to work on life!  Enjoy each new year as much as possible, because you never know what destiny has in store for you or your friends!

This leads me into the segue about my barber!  My barber was a thin man who liked sports and was always golfed with buddies when he wasn’t working.  Although he appeared fairly healthy overall, I believe that he smoked.  The problems with my barber is that he died this year a few months ago from a stroke (he was in his early 50s)!  I found out when I went to get my haircut, and as I drove up to the front windows of the barbershop, I noticed that it was empty inside the barbershop and there was a black wreath on a chair beside the door.

I asked the business owners beside the barbershop if she knew what happened, and she said he had a stroke.  She claimed that she heard he was watching a football game, smoking a cigarette and drinking a beer when he died so he went out doing what he loved (watching sports).  I believe his wife discovered something was wrong when she called him and he didn’t answer (she lives in a different state).

Gradual Carpe Diem

I know we all hear the Carpe Diem spill over and over (carpe diem is latin and means seize the day), but how does one start?  It’s very difficult and short-lived if one tried to go hog-wild one day trying to live the Carpe Diem philosophy.  So that’s why I’m going something different this year, I’m going to try to phase it into my life slowly!

My post called Holistic Approach to New Year Resolutions, is really about a slow, building approach toward trying to accomplish the Carpe Diem idea in my life!

This is what my New Year’s Resolution is really about!

-MR

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2010 Resolution #3, Maximizing Who I Am

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My last resolution is more of a stretch goal, and it won’t be easy…

What do I mean by “Maximizing Who I Am”?

My stretch goal

 

Ever since graduating from college, I started wondered what I would be like if I ate the perfect foods, slept and exercised the perfect amounts, developed my brain in a perfect way, etc.  I wondered what I would be like… would I be a few inches taller?  Would I be smarter than I am now, perhaps a little better looking too…  How different would the perfect version of me be?

It would be very fascinating to know!  Don’t get me wrong, I’m not faulting anybody (especially myself) for not being perfect.  After all, to be raised perfectly and do everything perfectly is practically impossible.  But what if I start trying for that elusive goal?  What would happen…?

Well, that’s what my final 2010 goal will be.  I’m going to try and maximize who and what I am.  I hope I finally be able to grow those few extra inches that I’m missing!  Okay, so that won’t happen, but perhaps I can improve other things to almost the perfect level…  That’s what I mean when I say “Maximizing Who I Am“, I can’t be the perfect me, but I can strive to be the best I can be.

This goal actually ties back into my first two goals, both are necessary steps to “Maximizing Who I Am”.

  1. 2010 Resolution #1, Losing Weight While Saving Money and
  2. 2010 Resolution #2, Stop Being a Pack Rat

What areas do I need to work at to be a better me?

  • Exercise.  Both aerobic and anaerobic.
  • Sleeping the proper amount of time.  I’ve been a “Night Owl” ever since my college days.
  • Organization Skills.  I’ll use a Planner, tasksheets, spreadsheets and calender programs.
  • Challenging my mental processes (reading, experiments, blogging, games, etc)
  • Spending more quality time with my Kids, and with patience!
  • Working more Effectively at whatever I’m doing (this could be when I’m at work, or at home).
  • Be more Sociable with my friends, neighbors, and countrymen (joking on that last one, although I could say community and that would be fair game).
  • Develop a greater sense of Humor.  Both laughing and making witty jokes (at least I hope they’ll be witty).
  • And lastly, Making Better use of my Time!  This would be the Carpe Diem thing…

How do I go about measuring these areas?

Well, that is a mixed bag!  I plan on measuring my weight loss and exercise routine in spreadsheets.  But how do I measure the other pieces of the puzzle I listed above?  Well, I’m thinking of keeping an written Daily Journal, then post my progress once a month on this blog.  During the post, this will force me to reviewing my performance to see if I’m accomplishing these personal mini goals or not.

And there you have it!  My New Year 2010 Resolution Goals are finally listed (I’m hearing the “Mission Impossible” theme song as I’m typing).

Let get it ON! 🙂