The Attenborough Design Group from Tom Judd on Vimeo.

and

- the Santa Ana roast coffee from Topeca

- Topeca coffee (in general)

- Cherry St. Farmer’s Market

- the Cosby Show

- seeing Cafe Mosaic really taking shape

Margin mentioned that one of the hard parts about having a cell phone is being able to keep it charged. So, i think that if i ever live or have a business in an area where it makes sense i’m going to put a couple power outlets and a bench outside so people can charge there phones.

It’s kind of crazy, the things we never really think about that become hard when you don’t have a permanent roof over your head that is not a bridge.

*there may be some sarcasm in the above comments.

The other day I used a 3M Headlight Restoration Kit to polish the headlights on my car. It worked amazingly well:

So, if your headlights seem dim and the lenses are all foggy spend the $25 and 30 minutes it takes to restore them. It makes a big difference.

I was thinking this might be a business opportunity. What if you restored peoples headlights while they were at work? The system is completely portable, so you could go to the parking lot. It would only take a few hundred in start up cost, and some savvey marketing. You could probably charge $30, and I think it would take around 20 minutes to do the whole process once you got good at it. You would have to factor in some travel time as well…and of course all the normal business expenses like insurance, replacing worn out gear, etc.

I’m not sure the status of micro finance in the United States, but it seems like the amount of money it takes to impact an individuals ability to generate wealth is much higher here then, say, on the African continent (this is pure speculation). A business like this could be funded through some sort of micro finance or peer to peer set up, and might be a viable option for somebody looking to start a low cost business.

Lots of people have been posting lately about being more REAL. Less of the “this is how I want you to see me.” And more of “this is how I really am.” With the pictures we show of ourselves, the things we blog about, everything.  www.thereignofellen.blogspot.com & People of the Second Chance are the things that have inspired me to show this:

This is me running. In pain. And ready to collapse. After 3.1 miles. Not 26.2. After 3.1 and I had trained for this. I feel like I SHOULD like running. Like I SHOULD enjoy it & be good at it. But I don’t. It’s painful & frustrating.

and this:

Now even though I’m smiling, I’m trying to mask my utter frustration. This is me “skiing.” I spent most of my 1 run down the mountain like this. Without the smile. I don’t really like skiing. At all. It’s hard & scary & bring me to say things like “I hate this!” As we were trekking over to the actual ski lift. BEFORE we even got to the ski lift. But I feel like I SHOULD like skiing. But in all honesty, I don’t.

Now, I don’t want to live a truly comfortable life. I want to stretch myself & learn new things. And I’m not completely opposed to learning to ski or learning to run. But if we’re being REAL, then my motivation to do them right now is because for whatever reason I feel like I SHOULD want to do them.

This is Ben & I at the top of Mt. Huron. A 14er we summited last year when we were in Colorado. And I’m not sure that there is a way to convey to you just how much this picture means to me. Because from this picture, you can’t see the serious mental/emotional breakdown I went through on the way up. The tears and seriously negative self-thinking that was going on in my head. And I didn’t make it to the top b/c of anything I actually had in me. But I wanted to do it for me. Not for anyone else. I needed to make it to the top for ME. But I did NOT make it to the top alone.

That’s REAL.

How can you be more REAL today?

lights2:

white:

ice3:

eagle:

barn4:

ice2:

glow:

cows:

lake:

flower:

grinder:

color:

a great movie: God Grew Tired of Us You really should see it. It is the true story of a group of The Lost Boys of Sudan who come to America as refuges. I think what was most fascinating about it to me was the conflict between the comfort and safety they found in the united states, and the pain of being taken out of their community.

Here is an interesting article about urban decay and potential renewal: Detroit

This one is for Cass: xkcd

This week I: picked a project, talked to a guy who just got out of prison, was asked if i was Jesus or homeless, bought a christmas tree, painted a lot, ate a lot of cookies, didnt ride my bike, designed a bulletin, worked on the beginnings of a new web site for CQMissional (which could be really cool…watch for it…), watched It’s a Wonderful Life. More on some of those things later.

Well then, have I got the thing for you!

www.sharingseedsofhope.com

Or feel free to email me for a custom order!

1. walking to things
2. discovering new things
3. interesting buildings

Things i miss about living in the woods

1. wood stove
2. throwing leftovers outside
3. animals
4. trails outside my front door

things i dont like about living in the city

1. it’s never dark
2. it’s never quiet
3. to many people
4. people asking for money
5. locking doors