Adventure with Plants

I have never owned a plant.

That ‘s kind of scary, because I am the proud father of a little girl who is about to turn eight years old and I have never, ever had the responsibility of taking care of a real-life honest-to-goodness water-me-or-I-will-die plant. My wife has brought plants into our house and every single one (with one exception) has died.

The exception to that is this weird bamboo plant that is like the camel of the plant world…it never needs water. It never grows either, so I’m starting to wonder if its even real.

Anyway, we were at Ikea over the weekend and right before leaving the store we passed through a little section of plants. Out loud, I said that I would be interested in having a plant in my office at work. We ended up buying this little guy.

Well. I finally read the little sticker on his pot and found out that he is, in fact, a Madagascar Dragon Tree. Yes, you read that right – this thing is a TREE. As in 20 feet tall.

I have officially bitten off more than I can chew.

Fortunately, I also found out that these trees can grow without needing much water or maintenance and they survive in low to moderate light. So it’ll actually require some sort of effort to kill the thing.

Some other fun tidbits for you:

• Although species vary, this variety can grow as tall as 20 feet in height. But, when kept as a houseplant, it generally only reaches around 6 to 8 feet.
• One of the fun things about this plant is that you can control how it looks. You can either just let it grow naturally, or you can twist several stalks together. They can even be trained to grow in spirals and can easily be bent to grow in various ways. It’s sort of the alternative to a small bonsai tree!
• The name “Dracaena” comes from a Greek word meaning female dragon. The name was derived from a red gum that comes from the cut stem of the tree. When the gum is thickened, it is said that it closely resembles dragon blood. In ancient Roman and Medieval times the gum was used in alchemy and magic. Today, it is used in photo engraving and as a varnish.
• Dragon trees have been known to eat small animals and children!

Okay, so I made that last one up. But I’ve got my eye on the thing anyway…

Tags: adventure, dragon tree, gardening, madagascar, plants

Time for a Diet

Or perhaps I should say, time to fix my diet. I have a diet right now. It’s just not a very good one.

It’s worth noting that my diet as of late has been much better than in the past. Since reading books like Forks Over Knives, Born to Run, and In Defense of Food I have successfully eliminated many meat products and many processed foods. But I still indulge in an occasional ice cream, sugary treat, or extremely large portion. I’ve done well, but not well enough.

I currently weight 207 pounds. This is down from an all-time high of 226, which was over a year ago. At one point I was down to around 196 pounds but lost my momentum and wound up where I am now.

So, if I really want to make a lasting change that will help me live a long and healthy life, I need to fix my diet completely.

Numerous options have presented themselves…some diets focus on less calories, or less cholesterol, or less sugar, or “eat what you want and magically lose weight”. I am not looking for a fad. I am looking for results. To do this, I will need a diet that covers not just nutrition but also lifestyle and exercise. Fortunately, there is a diet that I have known about for many years that I simply haven’t taken the time to adhere to. It’s called the Word of Wisdom. Here’s what it says:

Behold, verily, thus saith the Lord unto you: In consequence of evils and designs which do and will exist in the hearts of conspiring men in the last days, I have warned you, and forewarn you, by giving unto you this word of wisdom by revelation—

That inasmuch as any man drinketh wine or strong drink among you, behold it is not good, neither meet in the sight of your Father, only in assembling yourselves together to offer up your sacraments before him.

And, behold, this should be wine, yea, pure wine of the grape of the vine, of your own make.

And, again, strong drinks are not for the belly, but for the washing of your bodies.

And again, tobacco is not for the body, neither for the belly, and is not good for man, but is an herb for bruises and all sick cattle, to be used with judgment and skill.

And again, hot drinks are not for the body or belly.

And again, verily I say unto you, all wholesome herbs God hath ordained for the constitution, nature, and use of man—

Every herb in the season thereof, and every fruit in the season thereof; all these to be used with prudence and thanksgiving.

Yea, flesh also of beasts and of the fowls of the air, I, the Lord, have ordained for the use of man with thanksgiving; nevertheless they are to be used sparingly;

And it is pleasing unto me that they should not be used, only in times of winter, or of cold, or famine.

All grain is ordained for the use of man and of beasts, to be the staff of life, not only for man but for the beasts of the field, and the fowls of heaven, and all wild animals that run or creep on the earth;

And these hath God made for the use of man only in times of famine and excess of hunger.

All grain is good for the food of man; as also the fruit of the vine; that which yieldeth fruit, whether in the ground or above the ground—

Nevertheless, wheat for man, and corn for the ox, and oats for the horse, and rye for the fowls and for swine, and for all beasts of the field, and barley for all useful animals, and for mild drinks, as also other grain.

And all saints who remember to keep and do these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments, shall receive health in their navel and marrow to their bones;

And shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures;

And shall run and not be weary, and shall walk and not faint.

So let’s break that down into some “do’s” and “don’ts”:

DO:

• eat wholesome herbs, preferably when they are in season
• eat meat SPARINGLY…only when necessary
• eat grain, which is the “staff of life”
• eat fruits and vegetables
• eat wheat, corn, oats, rye, barley
• drink “mild drinks”
• be thankful for everything that I consume

DON’T:

• drink wine, except of my own make for the sole purpose of the sacrament (communion)
• drink “strong drinks”, a.k.a. alcohol
• smoke or chew tobacco
• drink “hot drinks”, a.k.a. tea and coffee
• be fooled by “conspiring men”

And if I follow these guidelines, it is promised that I will be healthy and strong. I will gain knowledge. I will be full of energy.

Sounds pretty good, right?

So today is Day 1. I weigh 207 pounds and am generally unhealthy. Time for a change.

Tags: addiction, diet, gratitude, health, lds, meat, mormon, nutrition, self help, vegetarian, word of wisdom

The End of Facebook?

A friend of mine sent me a link to a thought-provoking article about the future of current web giants like Facebook and Google.  In that article, Eric Jackson claims that we are entering a third generation – call it Web 3.0, or whatever – in which we will see the aforementioned companies disappear like Yahoo or MySpace. To quote from the article:

The failed history of Web 1.0 companies adapting to the world of mobile suggests that Facebook will be as woeful at adapting to social mobile as Google has been with its “ghost town” Google+ initiative last year.

The organizational ecologists talked about the “liability of obsolescence” which is a growing mismatch between an organization’s inherent product strategy and its operating environment over time. This probably is a good explanation for what we’re seeing in the tech world today.

I think that Jackson’s focus on mobile isn’t quite accurate, as Facebook and Google have clearly done a good job of putting their sites and apps in the hands of cell and tablet users. But I do think he makes a valid point – we are indeed entering a new era of mobile computing, and companies like Facebook are somewhat stuck in their current niches. I replied back to my friend:

I think we’re getting to a point where we’ve kind of hit a ceiling in terms of what our current hardware and applications can do for us. All we’re seeing now is variations on the current theme – everyone is going to have social, everyone is going to have file storage, everyone is going to have voice and video chat, that sort of thing. What’s going to happen next is a massive hardware transformation, and I think that’s where this lady might be right about Facebook but wrong about Google.

Facebook is, in a way, trapped. They are trapped because you have to have a keyboard to use Facebook. Apple and Google are starting to move beyond that paradigm with products like Siri and Glass. The way I see it, all technological advances have been predicted by science fiction…think about Star Trek for a second. They walked around with handheld communicators (cell phones), used tablets (iPads), that sort of thing. Siri and IBM’s Watson technology are going to allow us to interact with our computers as if they were real people. That is going to fundamentally change things so that applications like Facebook that require a keyboard will be phased out. Google is going to allow us to wear glasses that completely change the way we see the world – think the Visor from Star Trek, or a heads-up display in other sci-fi movies. That’s going to be huge. You’ll be video chatting with your friends while you walk around town…they’ll be able to see the concert you’re at, that sort of thing.

Who’s going to need Facebook then?

What do you think?

Tags: apple, cell, facebook, generation, mobile, obsolete, progress, scifi, siri, star trek, tablet, watson, web

Football Season Begins in April

Yesterday’s NFL draft officially kicked off the 2012 football season. Although there are no games until September, fans are already talking about how their teams will fare. I guess its kind of like how the 2012 presidential election is in November, but we started talking about it in 2007.

The first round of the draft brought the usual mix of “we knew that would happen all along” and “OMGWTFJUSTHAPPENED”. Stanford QB Andrew Luck was selected first overall by the Colts. Luck is the Mitt Romney of football – everyone knew he would be the pick, so we all had to play the “what if” game to stay entertained. Robert Griffin III went to Washington with the second pick – again, no surprise there. Neither quarterback really impresses me – I mean, they both have amazing athletic ability, don’t get me wrong – but my gut says there’s something wrong here. Luck and Griffin are both going to start next year. That’s a great way to destroy a young and talented football player. Luck will spend most of the season on his back…maybe he should call up Sam Bradford and talk about what to expect. Griffin is more mobile but will be playing for the Redskins…I’m wary of his performance as well. These are teams that need to put a support structure in place before bringing in a franchise QB.

The rest of the draft was a whirlwind of trades. Kudos to Dallas for moving up and taking care of their secondary needs. I was impressed by the Rams’ wherewithal to trade some picks and load up in the second round, where many excellent players are still available.

The Lions addressed a clear need on the offensive line by picking up Riley Reiff in the 23rd spot. But I wonder if it wouldn’t have been more helpful to bolster the defensive secondary. The Lions should be getting Jahvid Best back in 2012 and their offense needs to add that second dimension, but the defensive secondary absolutely killed the Lions against teams like Green Bay and New Orleans. The Packers and Saints beat the Lions four times (three regular season, one post season) by attacking the corners and safeties. That has to be addressed for 2012 – scoring 30 points per game isn’t going to help when you’re giving up 40.

Tags: 2012, andrew luck, detroit lions, draft, football, indianapolis colts, nfl, rgIII, washington redskins

Life Without Facebook, Part 2

I have officially gone 90 days without Facebook – time to make some follow-up remarks!

As I wrote in my original post, Facebook had become a serious drain on my life. It had gotten so bad, in fact, that I was using Facebook to hide from my problems in real life. Any time that I felt overwhelmed I would pull out my phone and check Facebook. Sick, right?

Since deleting…er…suspending my account (there’s a difference) I have only looked at Facebook about a dozen times. Every now and then I log into my wife’s account to check up on a common friend or family member. Somehow my profile was reactivated about a month ago, but I shut it down again quickly. I haven’t missed Facebook at all. I also haven’t missed the endless debates and loony political posts that took up so much of my time.

It is worth noting, however, that my Twitter usage has increased since leaving Facebook behind. I have also started using Google+. I can justify my increased usage of those services by saying that they are ways for me to find information that I am interested in, not for mindless surfing like Facebook was. I think that is an important distinction.

My plan is to continue using social media wisely and in constructive ways. I also plan on engaging in more real-life volunteer opportunities – I’m scheduled to help out at the York County Food Bank this month. I’m hoping to use social media to enrich those real-life opportunities!

Tags: addiction, anxiety, digital, facebook, google+, internet, media, recovery, social network, stress, twitter

Self-Improvement Through Service

Ever since I was a young man I have been interested in self-improvement. There is something fascinating about the introspection and paradigm shifting that comes from a good honest period of study and searching in an effort to become a better person. But as I have grown, I have come to a better understanding of what self-improvement is all about.

There are many books, videos, etc. out there that promise to help you improve yourself by focusing inward in some way. Many of them focus on attitudes or behaviors that you should incorporate into your own being. And while there is nothing wrong with this kind of improvement, it does not seem to be a complete approach. Or, from a different perspective, it may be a backwards approach. Let me explain further.

I suppose there are two ways in which to improve yourself – one is to focus inwardly, which assumes that the manifestation of this change will be visible to others. But the other way – the way that seems better to me – is to focus outwardly. By focusing on others – not oneself – action will drive the inner changes. It is easy to read about self-improvement and believe that you can be a better person, but from personal experience I can say that it is extremely difficult to truly internalize those ideas. They sound good…they make you feel like a better person…but your outward behavior may not change. By changing the outward behavior – even if you don’t necessarily understand why or how it will benefit you – you might be able to come to a more full and personal understanding of the positive traits that you seek to attain.

This outward focus is what I would call service, which is action taken to improve someone else’s life. Building up others has an added benefit that does not exist with self-centered improvement; by building up others, they are often more inclined to build you up. This is a concept that many self-help manuals do not touch on, yet it is clearly a benefit that should not be missed out on. You want to lose weight? Instead of working out alone, become a partner for someone else who has the same goal – as you help them lose weight, you will most likely do the same. And, of course, they will help you. You want to become more financial secure? Again, don’t go it alone ESPECIALLY if you are married. Perhaps your spouse shares that same ambition and by assisting them in their goal you will reach yours. You want to develop leadership skills? Become a servant – find someone to help.

As I was preparing to write this post I did a quick Google search for “self-improvement through service” to see if anyone else had a similar idea. The results that I found were very interesting to me. The first result was an article about Booker T. Washington, the prominent African-American pioneer who spent his life building up his neighbors. It seems that he truly understood the idea that I was looking for – to quote from the article:

Washington became a national figure with his Atlanta speech. He urged African Americans to discard Reconstruction-era notions of social equality. Instead, he argued, most Southern blacks should pursue a modest, methodical program of self-improvement through service and labor. Washington beseeched whites to recognize how valuable this loyal and unresentful workforce could be. He climaxed the speech with a promise that many whites – uneasy about the threat that black ambitions posed to their supremacy – found appealing: whites and blacks could simultaneously live together and apart. “In all things that are purely social, we can be as separate as the fingers, yet one as the hand in all things essential to mutual progress.”

This had to be a ridiculous idea to many people on both sides of the debate.

The second result that I found was a link to a Sober Housing project in California. What says “self-improvement” more than a home where people can become whole again after struggling with a debilitating problem like alcoholism? Their website provides the following explanation:

If you’re ready to make a commitment to lasting recovery, allow us to be of assistance. We offer a safe and nurturing living environment where peer-to-peer networking is encouraged, as well as self-improvement through service and the adoption of a spiritual path.

Aren’t we all in that same boat to some extent? Perhaps we aren’t dealing with alcoholism, but we may be dealing with pride. Dishonesty. Addiction. Lethargy. Depression. We could all use an environment where we are encouraged to reach out to others through service instead of struggling to improve on our own.

Last, but certainly not least, was a result that took me to an article about Gandhi. Yes, that Gandhi. Again, a quote:

Gandhi’s goal, in a word, was self-realization, which he didn’t consider to be fulfillment or happiness, but self-improvement through service. He wanted people to know the freedom of self-reliance, which he called “the beauty self help.” He was entirely devoted to serving the poor. In his words, “I made the religion of service my own, as God could only be realized through service.” You could say he deprived himself of many material things, yet got something much greater in return.

As I continued reading I saw results about the Freemasons, religion, psychology…all pointing toward self-improvement through service. 5,570 results were found during my search, and I think it is interesting to point out that a search for just “self improvement” yields 29,100,000. So we can see that the idea of service is not a common one in the self-help industry, but it is a proven one.

Perhaps it’s a bit late to make a New Year’s Resolution for 2012, but I’m going to do it anyway. I want to make this year – and every year – a year of self-improvement through service. I am fortunate to be able-bodied and of sound mind…I have nothing holding me back from focusing on my neighbors and building them up.

Tags: booker, featured, gandhi, self, self help, self improvement, service, washington

My Adventure in Online Learning Continues!

Yesterday marked the beginning of my second term at University of the People, an online school that bills itself as the “world’s first tuition-free online university”. My first term, in which I took the two mandatory introductory courses, was a great experience and I’m excited to continue this adventure.

Just for some background, I’ll explain my journey up to this point. My higher learning experience has been a long and arduous one – I was accepted into Brigham Young University after graduating high school and only attended one semester in Provo before returning home to start a family. Several years went by before I enrolled in Penn State World Campus, a similar online learning program. I took classes at Penn State for three semesters before dropping out to run for public office. I don’t regret what I did, but it probably wasn’t the best decision and I wound up owing a lot of money. Then UoP entered the picture. The idea of free online education seemed to good to be true and, in some ways, it is. UoP is not accredited so there is a chance that by the time I’m done, this will have just been a fun exercise and nothing more. But as I’ve grown older I have realized that learning shouldn’t be all about getting that dream job or making more money – learning should be continual and fun, and that’s what UoP offers at an extremely low cost. There is no tuition, but there is a registration fee and testing fees for final exams. When all is said and done I will have spent about $3,600 for four years of education – about 1/2 of what one semester at Penn State costs.

Anyway, I filled out the application (which was actually quite extensive) and had to wait for several months before finding out that I had been accepted. Students are only accepted into UoP if they have adequate English language skills, so the acceptance rate is fairly low. During my first term I completed the two introductory courses – one in Online Learning, and another in English Composition. I passed both with an A, of course

During my second term I will be studying Principles of Business Management and Business English, both of which are required for the Business Management degree program. I logged in this morning and was amazed at the diversity of students in the classes. For example, students in my Principles of Business Management class hail from countries like Pakistan, Albania, Singapore, Laos, Ghana, Cameroon, Japan, Canada, Haiti, and the United States. The instructor lives in France. Interacting with people from all over the world only makes the education better, in my opinion, as you get so many different perspectives.

Here’s hoping for another great term, and maybe some accreditation!

Tags: diversity, education, future, higher learning, online, school, university, uop