Watching: Disc one of BBC’s Planet Earth series that I rented from NetFlix. The cinematography is amazing and I’m learning alot, the earth is pretty amazing.
Thinking: I am enjoying my vacation from work, SO relaxing!
How to Annoy Me: People who stop in the aisle at the middle of the store and as soon as someone decides to go around them, they move again… getting in the way. LOL.
How to Make Me Laugh: Hmmmm… I dont’ know today.
Quote of the Day:“I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day.” – E. B. White
Today I was walking around the building, making my rounds and touching-base with my co-workers when my phone beeped. Typically when this happens, I pull it out, take a quick glance at the e-mail message and put it away. But this time was different, I pulled out the phone and the message had the words “Sad News for Our Community” in the subject line. Even then, I didn’t suspect anything was wrong, so I casually glanced over the e-mail until I read a line that stopped me in my tracks, “. . . . decided to take his own life on Friday night.”
Did I read that correctly? I sat down and read through the entire message. On Friday night, one of our group members from church took his own life. Sometimes I think things like this shock us because we almost assume that we’re going to see that person tomorrow, or the next week. And then it hits, “that person is no longer around.”
For some of us, we’re left wishing that we would’ve done something different… maybe we would’ve reached out more or noticed the signs. I noticed that he was acting differently when I saw him on Thursday, I regret that I didn’t say anything about his change in behavior. And then I wonder, would that have made a difference? The truth is, we’ll never know. And in my opinion, dwelling on those things won’t bring bring that person back.
Well, I don’t really know what else to say. I’ve walked alongside several people who have lost someone to suicide and rarely does it get any easier. My thoughts and prayers are with his family tonight.
So I’m sitting here at a conference in the Westin Hotel, I log into Facebook and see that I have three new friend requests. I think to myself, “woo hoo! Maybe it’s someone I’ve lost touch with!”
So I click on the little link and go to see who’s been looking for me. Out of the three people that requested to add me as a friend, I know one person. The other two? I may know OF that person, but I don’t KNOW that person.
Facebook, my friends, is not a popularity contest. Adding everyone in the world doesn’t make you more popular, nor does it create any real meaningful friendships.
So what are my criteria for adding you as a Facebook friend?
I must have met you in person at least once and have had some meaningful dialogue with you.
I will occasionally add you if you’re a friend of a friend… even then I’m still pretty picky.
I know that in the grand scheme of things, Facebook “friends” don’t really matter. But I use Facebook to stay in touch with people I know and to keep them posted on my life. If you don’t know me personally, then there’s really no benefit to being my friend on Facebook.
Who will I de-friend on Facebook? I have had to remove a couple people from my Facebook account, here’s my main reasons:
If you cuss entirely too much in your status. Seriously, there are various different words to express your frustration.
If you spam me with a bunch of garbage.
Okay, well, there you go. Now you know what grinds my gears today.
So after a month of trying some energy-saving methods, I have managed to reach my goal of 600 kWh. Pretty boring stuff, I know. But at least, I’m saving money! All that I really had to do was run my air conditioner less, turn off my computer when I’m not using it, run the dishwasher less, and use the compact fluorescent light bulbs. I can’t wait for it to cool down so I don’t have to run the air conditioner anymore.
So from time to time, I get tired of hearing about “going green” or “reducing your carbon footprint,” but I decided to be a little green. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for a better environment, but I’m doing it mostly because I’m cheap. Why am I cheap? Since living on my own, I have seen my power bill go higher and higher (see below).
My usage for the month of July went down a little, mostly from the shock of receiving my bill for the month of June… notice how it shot up? So I’m conducing a little experiment here:
- Change all light bulbs to Compact Fluorescent Lighting (CFL)
- Use my air conditioner only when I’m home
- Power off my computer when I’m not home and when asleep
- Use more fans and less air conditioner
I’m hoping that I can bring my usage down to 600 KWh by next month. So stay tuned!
So I’m sitting here at a conference in the Westin Hotel, I log into Facebook and see that I have three new friend requests. I think to myself, “woo hoo! Maybe it’s someone I’ve lost touch with!”
My usage for the month of July went down a little, mostly from the shock of receiving my bill for the month of June… notice how it shot up? So I’m conducing a little experiment here: