I have a plan …

Posted on February 21, 2012 by esteban

I know I run the risk of seeming prideful or otherwise lacking in humility, but this post is mostly for me, as we begin Lent.

I think I have a healthy appreciation for the opportunities the season of Lent offers us, but lately I haven’t really embraced those opportunities. Last year was particularly frustrating. I didn’t have any clear ideas of what I wanted to do. I vacillated so much that the season ended up being wasted.

So, to give myself some more concrete motivation, I’m going to post “my plan” for the world to see, or at least the 10 people who might actually read this. You get to keep me honest.

Spiritual / Emotional

Eucharistic Adoration – I’ve been a slacker at having and adhering to scheduled time for Adoration. A couple of years ago, I had a 4am time slot at the St. John Hospital’s perpetual adoration chapel. I let it go when my job situation changed but never took a new time. I’m going to try a few different times during Lent and hopefully find one that I can embrace going forward. My goal is one hour per week of Lent. Incidentally, I highly recommend those hours in the middle of the night.
Edifying Reading – I’ve been an avid reader since I was in elementary school. Unfortunately, like many people, I’ve let TV and the Internet encroach on that habit too much. Working from home has only made it worse as a constant temptation. In addition to some pleasure reading that I have right now, I have the goal to make it through the following books during Lent:

The Holy Longing – by Ronald Rolheiser. This is one of those books that I’ve started to read a couple of time, but never made it all the way through. My friend John White has invited me to join an email reading group that is making its way through it. I’m two chapters behind, so I have some catching up to do.
Walking with God – by Tim Gray and Jeff Cavins. I picked this book up in 2010 when it first came out. It’s been gathering dust, so it’s high time I cracked it open.
Understanding Exposure – by Bryan Peterson. As an avid amateur photographer, this book was recommended to me as the “bible” for understanding how to shoot great photos. With spring approaching, I’m hoping to have some time to experiment with some outdoor shooting in the coming months.

Three books seems ambitious to me, but I thought I would set a high mark. I’ll keep you posted.

Write Easter letters to my CFCA sponsored children in Guatemala. I always forget to do this in time for them to reach them before Easter. With it on the list, I should get it done.
Daily Lenten Reflection – I haven’t decided how I’ll approach this yet, but it will either be via the Liturgy of the Hours, the daily Mass readings, or some other guide that I find. Suggestions?

Physical / Emotional

Gym – I’d be the first one to admit that I need more exercise. The winter is always tough on me when it comes being active, but I really have let it go on too long. I signed up for a membership at the neighborhood YMCA and I anticipate using the pool there. My goal is exercising at the Y or the neighboring LaFortune Park three times a week, minimum. Gulp.
TV – As I mentioned above, TV has become too much of a distraction for me, so I’m going to limit myself to 1 hr a day. This doesn’t include catching the evening news when needed. I’m deleting some of the recording schedules from my DVR to reduce the temptation to gorge on TV on Sundays (not included in the days of Lent).
Facebook/WWF – Another temptation I face daily. It’s pretty much useless time and my recent introduction to Words With Friends has only made it worse. Away from me! I do have to get on FB occasionally for work purposes, so I will attempt to keep that to a minimum.
20 Bags – Spring cleaning is here and I have a goal to reduce the clutter in my home by 20 bags, boxes, or other donations to Catholic Charities and Goodwill. If I don’t write it here, it won’t happen.
Reduce Caffeine – I go through these periods of overindulging in caffeinated beverages – usually too much coffee in the morning, followed by a never-ending glass of iced tea throughout the day. I do well in avoiding soft drinks, but I can do better. I can’t put a goal on this one, because caffeine can be a bit hard to avoid sometimes.

Add a little fruit to my diet, and that’s the list. What do you think? If you know me, is this doable?

To me, this list is more of a spiritual exercise than it might seem to the casual visitor. Reducing meaningless distractions like Facebook and TV, and concentrating more on reading, prayer, and the work I need to do, will definitely help me focus on things better and to think through the decisions that I have to make this year.

What’s your plan? Care to share? Care to go on record for the world to see?

Soup

Posted on January 10, 2012 by esteban

I have to ask … which soup would you choose and why?

Yesterday, I went to my cupboard to get some soup for lunch. I found three cans of chicken soup. One “hearty chicken pot pie style” soup, and two that are basically “chicken with wild rice” soup (slightly different, but basically the same).

Most people probably have no problem just picking the soup that appeals to them the most. No worries.

I really wanted the chicken pot pie style soup, but I have to admit that I paused to consider that I had TWO chicken and rice soups and I ought to have one of those instead. Just to even up the numbers.

Do you ever have urges like this, or am I just being esteban about it?

I fought the compulsion and had chicken pot pie style soup. It was yummy. A solid 1 napkin experience.

So, it really isn’t magic.

Posted on May 17, 2011 by esteban

I love riding bikes. It’s true.

Having my own bike gave me the first true taste of independence as a child.

Countless miles have passed below my feet over the years, mostly as a kid, but continued up through my high school and college years.

If you’ve followed this blog in the past, you may have read this particular entry, where I describe the joy of discovering how to ride a bike (without training wheels, that is) on Christmas Day:

“We had this old bike from the ’50s with large balloon tires on it. It had been re-painted and passed down through all the kids. Kevin (my brother) would launch me down the sidewalk on this thing and I would invariably crash into a neighbor’s car, or my mom’s rose bushes. Neither was the preferred outcome.

But on this glorious Christmas Day, when it was about 70 degrees outside, I took my new Sting-Ray out to the street, kicked up the kickstand, climbed aboard, and gave the pedal a mighty push. I was off down the street like I had known how to ride all my life.

I rode up and down the street a few times, more than a little excited. I managed to get back to the house, ran inside and made my dad come out and watch, proof that I had finally managed the intricacies of bike riding.”

The truth is, I don’t know how to ride a bike. I just do. One day, I couldn’t keep my balance and would crash into things, and the next day, I could.

It’s always bothered me that I don’t understand the physics of bicycles. The analytical part of my brain has tried to find an obvious answer for how bikes work and how riders keep their balances. I haven’t found it, and apparently for good reason.

I ran across this article, “How Bikes Keep the Rubber on the Road“, and discovered that truly learned scientists don’t fully understand how bicycles work either. A team in The Netherlands has studied the factors that help keep a moving bike upright and have learned a few things:

“A conventional bicycle is remarkably stable when moving. Even without a rider, it can coast for long distances and catch itself from falling.” [...]

“Bicycles, the team suggests, are more complicated than previously thought. While gyro and trail effects can contribute to stability, other factors such as the distribution of mass and the bike’s moment of inertia can play a role as well.”

I knew it! I knew there was more to bikes than can be casually observed. These scientists hope that their experiments will lead to new and improved bicycle designs that will augment these natural factors. It will be fun to see what they come up with.

OK, so we really don’t know why bikes work, but I guess I can retire my earlier fall-back hypothesis in lieu of these new scientific findings:

“It’s magic!”