Top Ten Things I Do Instead of Studying...

I can't believe I can't be more disciplined!!! Here are the top ten things I do when I am procrastinating:

10. Write on my blog.
9. Check out facebook.
8. Go to Kakuro.com (Thankfully there's only one puzzle a day, so this is a brief distraction!)
7. Nap.
6. Eat...anything.
5. Brew green tea.
4. Drink green tea.
3. Sort drawers.
2. Watch THS or re-runs...of anything.

And the number one thing I do when I should be studying...

1. LAUNDRY!!!

I am obsessed with laundry!
Now...it's time to get back to studying.

Scrubs as Peanuts...

I know it's after the Christmas season, but I started thinking about this video again today and I thought "I ought to share it with others!"

If you love Scrubs as much as I do, you'll be rolling on the floor. (Caution: Peanuts purists may be offended, so use your best judgment--enjoy!)

Is it Groundhog Day?

It's one of those times when I feel unable to focus on anything that really needs it. Sure, I can spend time cleaning out my spare room, doing a little bit of reorganizing...but I can't seem to complete the task.

Laundry is the only thing I complete from beginning to end, but laundry just begins again the next day. Kind of like "Groundhog Day."

Maybe I'm like Bill Murray's character at the beginning of the movie. I'm still wasting my time, trying out things.

All I know is that it's very tiring, mentally and physically, to not be able to focus on things that need attention, like my final paper for grad school or my homework for next week. Or even dusting.

I'm sure it's just a phase, but I hope I push through it soon. Before I decide to stop grooming.

My name is...

HowManyOfMe.com

There are: 184 people with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?

I saw this on Matt's blog and thought it was fun! How many people share your name?

Strangely enough, my maiden name, which I thought was more uncommon, had 230 other owners. (And there are only 8 people with my husband's name! He's very uncommon!)

The Church and the Klan...

I watched the last fifteen minutes of "The Chamber" last night. It's a movie based on John Grisham's novel about a lawyer who ends up defending his grandfather, who is a member of the KKK. I haven't seen it before, and if I read the book it was years ago, so the only thing that stuck out about the last fifteen minutes (SPOILER ALERT) was the remorse for his KKK beliefs that the grandfather seemed to express during the last few moments of his life as he prepared for the gas chamber.

As I was sitting in church this morning listening to the sermon, my brain made an odd connection between this scene and the church. There is a segment of the Christian church, some might call it "fundamentalist," that believes in Christ to the exclusion of all other ideas or religions. The buck is passed to Jesus on this, often quoting the words he was purported to have said, "I am the way, the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father except through me." While Christianity is supposed to be a religion of love, I wonder about the effect of deeply held beliefs such as the interpretation of this verse from the gospel of John. I also wonder if other people ever question this...

My connection was this: I wonder if, at the end of their life, any deeply fundamentalist Christian--or Muslim, or Jew--who has believed strongly in their "rightness" over the "wrongness" of the others will experience the remorse that the fictional Klan member in "The Chamber" faced? Many would say that the Klan was all about hate--hate for those who are different. Though it is sugar-coated in love language, and it provides an exemption clause for anyone who is willing to convert, is fundamental Christianity (or any fundamental religious group) any different?

If a picture is worth a thousand words...

then I don't feel quite so bad about my blog right now.

I started a new blog, Margaret365, that is a picture blog. I am trying to take one picture a day and post it with a little blurb. I have never really been a picture person, but something about the challenge of a picture a day sounded appealing.

I have been surprised how much energy trying to see my life in pictures has given me. So far I've been really excited about it, and it has been meaningful. None of my pictures are visually stunning, or even that interesting, but it has been really fulfilling for me for some reason I can't put my finger on...

So the fact that I can't find words to write about much on this blog right now doesn't bother me as much as it has in the past. Maybe the five thousand words on my picture blog (as of January 5!) are enough right now.

And learning to be content with who I am is a great thing for me to be working on...

I'm not a nerd!

Okay, so maybe I'm a little bit nerdier than this...if I think real hard I might know my IP address by heart.

What about you?

(Thanks for the link, Matt!)

2007: The Year of the Do-Over…

The Do-Over: It’s a concept that my husband Robbie talks about a lot. As a guidance counselor and a general student of human nature, Robbie believes that people sometimes get to a place in life that is so difficult that they want a do-over.

I can remember the do-over from childhood. While playing a game with friends, if your first attempt at something was not so spectacular, you would call out “Do over!” And if your friends were kind—or if they owed you one—they might allow you to try it again without a penalty. (I have heard this called a “mulligan” in the world of golfers who are loose with the rules.)

And it was great to have the opportunity to do it again, to not have the first try count against your score. I don’t personally believe that we are keeping score in life, at least I’m not trying to keep score anymore; but it does seem that the do-over is a popular idea.

Divorce can be one example of the do-over for adults. Sometimes we get into such a challenging time in a relationship that we would rather not face it. It may be the consequences of our actions—perhaps we have cheated on our spouse, or our spouse has cheated on us, and we don’t want to have to deal with the hurt feelings. And maybe even more than the hurt feelings, we don’t want to have to deal with our memories.

We rarely forget things in life that are painful. Combine that with our human pride that may propel us to strive for the appearance of not being at fault and there you have it: the Do-Over. If we have caused another person pain that is not likely to be forgotten, rather than be reminded of our shortcomings (and dealing with the relationship-repair work) we may just decide to cry out “Do over!” and choose the divorce route.

This is not a commentary on divorce. Though I’m thankful to be happily married, I have no stones to throw in the divorce arena. I have watched friends and family struggle with the difficulties of life before, during and after divorce, and there seems to be joy and heartache on every road that people choose. I began thinking about the do-over today in the shower, after I realized that I had started a list of New Year’s Resolutions without even meaning to do so.

I am not even a New Year’s Resolution kind of girl. I think you can start a new habit any time you want. I have also seen a lot of well-intentioned resolution makers break their habits so quickly it would make your head spin, so I suppose I’m a little cynical about the effectiveness of the New Year Resolution. But for some reason, January 1, 2007, has brought to mind all kinds of habits I’d like to renew: I want to work out more. I want to eat better. This will be the year I write every day. On and on…

None of these habits are particularly new. They are just currently not habitual in my life. So maybe I’m looking for a do-over, some magical day when I can re-start all my habits and they will actually take root in my life as though I’ve always been a disciplined—and perfect—person.
What is it about the do-over? The appeal is certain, and even religion reflects it: Christianity in some of its present incarnations seems to be the ultimate do-over.

Many more thoughts on Christianity as the religion of the "do-over"...they'll have to wait until next time.