- “Patience is the companion of wisdom.” – Saint Augustine
Quote of the day 18 July 08
Death is more universal than life; everyone dies but not everyone lives. – A. Sachs
Different day different aquarium…
For those who enjoyed the Seven Nations video here is another good group Enter the Haggis. Listen while you read!
The sun rose this morning finding me at a different site and contained in a different aquarium. I hate these guardhouses! People drive by and look at you sitting in this thing like fish in a walmart aquarium. As long as no one taps on the glass or posts a don’t feed the guard sign I’ll be ok…
Life is hectic as usual and I’m trying to get alot done with to little time as always. My week of rest is coming soon though! On the 29th of July I head for Seattle, WA!!! I’m really looking forward to the trip as I’ve never been to the Northwest and the time away from school and work is well earned. As of right now I have only skeletal plans when I arrive. Those consist of a trip to the Cascades Volcano Observatory on the 1st of August and a few nights in Portland with my archeologist buddy Kelly who is flying up from San Diego. We are also planning to visit Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument so I’ll definately get to see alot. During my trip I’ll be posting a travel blog with pictures and reviews at http://www.travbuddy.com/nhces29 If you’re a traveler I would definately advise joining this free site. Not much else to report. I’ll be back to slinging books on
August 18th and then transferring to NCSU in the spring. Be good all!
Wondering…
After reading the post linked in my last post it made me wonder what my ending might look like. Will it be happy and fulfilled? Or will I be left sad and seeking? Being that I suffer the “hopeless romantic syndrome” I often wonder if I will find the right girl.
To start with I am terrible at dating. Girls scare the crap out of me. My best friend teases me about this. “You’ve been around the world, shot at, placed in dangerous situations and none of that bothers you. But a 5′4 blonde haired blue eyed beauty brings you to your knees.” he says. Yep thats about it. There is some thing about asking a girl out that is just terrifying and in that moment I’d rather be back in Kuwait facing down a batallion of insurgents than trying to ask her out. I dont know why that is but its true. Maybe its the fact that there is no sort of manual, no training and no rules when it comes to women. Maybe if I had some general guidelines to go by I’d have something to work with. if anyone has any guidelines I’d love to hear them.
Other problem is that its hard to find a good girl these days. For some reason I have no problem attracting the crazies. Fortunately I haven’t been stalked in a long time but I still manage to find every wack-job in cyberspace. Part of the curse of being a nice guy I suppose. I will say I have dated some good girls in my lifetime and I am grateful for the things I learned from each and every one of them. Maybe someday I’ll find one that I can keep and who might want whats left of me…
Some time to think…
It’s a little after 0200 on Saturday 12 July and this entry finds me sitting in a gatehouse just outside Mt. Gilead, NC. Over the last two weeks I’ve been spending alot of time in this “aquarium” of sorts. Though I dislike working third shift it has been mentally relaxing. So tonight I thought I would ponder a quote by Albert Einstein, “Try not to become a man of sucess but rather to become a man of value.”
There are many different thoughts on the meaning of sucess. Some measure sucess by fame and fortune. Others by happiness. I think the latter is more true. I think that a sucessful person is one that has lived they’re life on they’re own terms, lived with few regrets (as we all have at least one) and comes to the end of they’re life having completed everything they set out to do. The path is not an easy one. Mickey Rooney once said, “You pass failure on the way to sucess.” How true. The road of life is oft littered with the debris of good intentions gone awry. And though we may fail again and again we rise up once more and continue forward. Thats what a sucessful life really is, continuing to move forward despite the challenges and in the end even if we fail it is better than to “rankwith those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory or defeat.” (T. Roosevelt)
Addendum: After posting this entry I found a post that fits with it I think you guys should see:
http://dcubed09.wordpress.com/2008/07/12/endings-are-never-written/
One of my favorite poems…
DO NOT GO GENTLE INTO THAT GOOD NIGHT
Dylan Thomas
Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light. Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.And you, my father, there on the sad height,
Curse, bless me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Slow Saturday…
First off enjoy the music of Seven Nations “Up to me” It’s a very good song so I thought I’d post it here for all of you to hear. (You guys know how I am about my bagpipe music…)
Mostly I’m writing today about how happy I am today. A lot of my postings come out of the uncertainties and occasional difficulties I’ve been facing but its not all bad. I can actually say that I’m pleased with where I am in life and where it is going. It’s definitely had its rough patches but I’ve adjusted well and am currently enjoying my life as a full time student. I also picked up a good job which has been going well so far and where I will be tonight from 2200-0600. I also am fortunate to be taking classes at NC State this summer which I absolutely love. The campus is absolutely beautiful and just being there fills me with a sense of pride. I cannot wait until the day I transfer there for good. I’m currently taking Geology 101 and its lab. 101 is taught by Dr. Ron Fodor and I am excited to study under him. He has a real passion for the science and it is exuded from him when he teaches. The lab is taught by a grad student named Katie Singer. She is a nice young lady who’s interests lie in planetary geology. She is also passionate for the science and I enjoy her labs a lot. They are always fun and I have learned a lot in the last week. I dread the day I have to return to SCC as it won’t be the same but I know I’ll be there soon enough.
Thank you Lord for your blessings! I know I would not have these wonderful days without you!
Before I go I found this quote in a movie somewhere but I don’t remember where but seeing as this blog is called Wayward Traveler I think it’s appropriate: “We’re all travelers in this world. From the sweet grass to the packing house. Birth ’til death. We travel between the eternities. “
Complete?
As of 1400 today I’ve completed my training at my first site for FSI. Everything went well and I’m looking forward to what comes next.
This afternoon I decided to dwell on what it really means to be happy. Many in this day and age wander about looking for happiness. Some find it others die trying.
Is Thoreau correct in his view that, ” Man is the artificer of his own happiness.”?
Or what about Helen Keller who said, “Many persons have a wrong idea of what constitutes true happiness. It is not attained through self-gratification but through fidelity to a worthy purpose.”
- Which is it? I feel this also ties into the search for the secret of life. For that secret should be the thing that gives us the happiness we seek.
- In my wandering and pondering over this wide globe we call home I’ve found the true secret to life. I always thought I would learn this great truth on the top of a Himalayan mountain from a great wise man. However I never had to go that far. The answer came from an unexpected source in an unexpected place. The great secret to life was given to me by a balding mid-40’s Australian sitting in a green GP tent in the middle of the Kuwaiti desert. Not at all where/how I had in mind.
- He told me the secret is to live life on your own terms. To find what/who you love and to hold onto it. And when your life comes to an end to be satisfied with the way you live. I’ve never forgotten that to this day I try to live that. To have no regrets, to learn but not live the past. I struggle with this portion constantly as I do have some regrets and I tend to relish in certain areas that I shouldn’t. That struggle is a lot of what this blog is about. To gather the lessons of the past and look to the future. Perhaps someday I too will be complete… Have you found it?
No rest for the weary…
Tonight I write while thinking ahead to this coming week. This week will be my last one here in West End for the next month as I attend a class at NC State. During this week break I am starting my training for my new job. I got a job with Security Forces Inc. as a RDO (Roving District Officer) which basically means my job is to fill in at different locations as necessary to reduce overtime. I like this position as it allows me allot of freedom and movement not normally allowed to guards with this company. So for the next three days I will be training at the 7 Lakes West Gate. I should know my additional assignments starting tomorrow. I have also been assigned to the company’s Emergency Response Team and I should have more training coming for that soon.
I’ve also been a bit under the weather the last two weeks so I’m hoping to get cleared up soon. I am also doing some IT work for my parents church. It’s been a blessing to finally find a church I like and can serve in my own way. Maybe now I can finally get my life together!
Not much else to report other than on Monday the 19th I’ll be starting my class at NC State. I’ll only be back in West End on the weekends for about 5 weeks. I’m really looking forward to this class not only for what I’m going to learn but I’ll be living in Raleigh for that time and it will be nice to be back in the city for a bit.
Thats all for tonight but before I go here is a quote from my favorite president to consider:
“A man who has never gone to school may steal from a freight car; but if he has a university education, he may steal the whole railroad.” -Theodore Roosevelt
