Odds and Ends
Taking a page from the Book of Jen, I've also got a lot of unfinished blog posts. Maybe none of them is individually enough for a whole post, but together they make something. Or nothing. Whatever. Here we go.
_________________________________________________________________________________
04/14/17
I don't have time for a lot of hobbies. I figure that once you have kids you place most of your focus on them, and just try to have maybe one thing for yourself. Most of the time I consider running as my single hobby. But there are a couple other things I enjoy that could be considered a hobby. And I just realized that I don't always have someone close to me who shares in my interests. But let's see what I discover as I write this.
Running: I started this hobby because of a friend who wanted to do a triathlon. In the end I just wanted to run. I didn't care about the cycling or swimming. I haven't kept in touch with him much the last few years, and he hadn't been running too much because of some injuries. I do have one other friend who runs that I can talk to about it.
Jazz basketball: I grew up watching the Jazz, and got especially into basketball during their Finals years, then lost interest for about a decade.
Sci-fi/fantasy reading
I'm really not sure where I was going with this, except maybe wanting to have "not having anything in common with people" in common with someone.
_________________________________________________________________________________
05/11/17
I feel like I've posted on this before, but I don't want to go search.
I think I tend to like the underdog in a lot of ways.
The Addams Family instead of The Munsters
Pepsi instead of Coke
Aerosmith instead of The Rolling Stones
Also, I was thinking of the ways we are all unique when you look at the statistical improbability of your exact self existing. You just multiply the frequency of some factors in your life. Here are mine.
Born in 1980. Out of 108 billion total humans estimated to have ever lived, the odds of being born that year were 0.07%. The odds of being born in the US further reduce that to .0028%.
Other odds
Being left-handed: 10%
Green eyes: 2%
A- blood type: 7%
LDS family: 0.9%
So if we just count those few factors, there are 0.7 people out of the 108 billion who have ever been born who meet those criteria. Round that up to 1, and that's me I guess.
I've always liked this idea. When you take everything that sums us up, even mathematically, we are pretty unique.
_________________________________________________________________________________
06/27/17
Fashion designers are the cause of everything that is wrong with the world.
Okay, hear me out.
Women's clothing doesn't have pockets, because for sexist reasons we feel they have to meet some kind of aesthetic standard.
Because women's clothing doesn't have pockets, there is no convenient way for them to
Carry things, I guess. Something about female powerlessness in society. I still hate what women's clothing does to them, and how it plays into the sexism still so rampant in the world.
_________________________________________________________________________________
07/05/17
I've often said that Halloween is my favorite holiday, because it's just about having fun. There's no reason to feel guilty about not keeping the true spirit (Ha!) of Halloween.
But now I officially have a least favorite holiday: July 4th.
In a way it's the ultimate American holiday. Not because it's literally THE American holiday, but because it embodies so much of the stereotypical character of Americans. We aren't known for subtlety or consideration of others. I'm okay with fireworks shows, and setting off my own fireworks for the kids, but what frustrates me is the way people set them off until 2 in the morning with no regard for anyone else.
Ha! Just look at the date there and you'll see the genesis of this post.
_________________________________________________________________________________
07/24/17
Almost every morning when I drive to work I see this older gentleman out running. He's tall but a little hunched over with age, with a little weight on him, but his large frame carries it well. He always has a look of intense concentration on his face. I
I haven't seen that guy for a while. But I get to work a little later now that I have to get the kids off to school. I imagine he's still getting out there. I was going to talk about how I love seeing people out exercising when they are heavy, or older, or otherwise afflicted in a way such that their effort means more than it does for the young and fit. It's inspirational.
_________________________________________________________________________________
08/08/17
Another number-themed title. As another birthday has passed, I suppose I should reflect on the year that has been. Moving from 36 to 37 isn't much of a psychological impact, so I don't really have much to say about that. It was also on a Sunday, which if you are LDS means you'll go to church and probably steer clear of most recreational activities. And as my birthday is early in the month, that means it was what we call fast Sunday, which usually means you skip breakfast and lunch while focusing on a spiritual purpose such as a need for yourself or a loved one, and make a donation to the poor with the money you saved on those meals.
This year we were trying to be financially responsible, so I got myself a little something with money from my parents, but otherwise we didn't do gifts. Katie baked me a cake using a secret family recipe
Ginger crumb cake is the best.
_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
04/14/17
I don't have time for a lot of hobbies. I figure that once you have kids you place most of your focus on them, and just try to have maybe one thing for yourself. Most of the time I consider running as my single hobby. But there are a couple other things I enjoy that could be considered a hobby. And I just realized that I don't always have someone close to me who shares in my interests. But let's see what I discover as I write this.
Running: I started this hobby because of a friend who wanted to do a triathlon. In the end I just wanted to run. I didn't care about the cycling or swimming. I haven't kept in touch with him much the last few years, and he hadn't been running too much because of some injuries. I do have one other friend who runs that I can talk to about it.
Jazz basketball: I grew up watching the Jazz, and got especially into basketball during their Finals years, then lost interest for about a decade.
Sci-fi/fantasy reading
I'm really not sure where I was going with this, except maybe wanting to have "not having anything in common with people" in common with someone.
_________________________________________________________________________________
05/11/17
I feel like I've posted on this before, but I don't want to go search.
I think I tend to like the underdog in a lot of ways.
The Addams Family instead of The Munsters
Pepsi instead of Coke
Aerosmith instead of The Rolling Stones
Also, I was thinking of the ways we are all unique when you look at the statistical improbability of your exact self existing. You just multiply the frequency of some factors in your life. Here are mine.
Born in 1980. Out of 108 billion total humans estimated to have ever lived, the odds of being born that year were 0.07%. The odds of being born in the US further reduce that to .0028%.
Other odds
Being left-handed: 10%
Green eyes: 2%
A- blood type: 7%
LDS family: 0.9%
So if we just count those few factors, there are 0.7 people out of the 108 billion who have ever been born who meet those criteria. Round that up to 1, and that's me I guess.
I've always liked this idea. When you take everything that sums us up, even mathematically, we are pretty unique.
_________________________________________________________________________________
06/27/17
Fashion designers are the cause of everything that is wrong with the world.
Okay, hear me out.
Women's clothing doesn't have pockets, because for sexist reasons we feel they have to meet some kind of aesthetic standard.
Because women's clothing doesn't have pockets, there is no convenient way for them to
Carry things, I guess. Something about female powerlessness in society. I still hate what women's clothing does to them, and how it plays into the sexism still so rampant in the world.
_________________________________________________________________________________
07/05/17
I've often said that Halloween is my favorite holiday, because it's just about having fun. There's no reason to feel guilty about not keeping the true spirit (Ha!) of Halloween.
But now I officially have a least favorite holiday: July 4th.
In a way it's the ultimate American holiday. Not because it's literally THE American holiday, but because it embodies so much of the stereotypical character of Americans. We aren't known for subtlety or consideration of others. I'm okay with fireworks shows, and setting off my own fireworks for the kids, but what frustrates me is the way people set them off until 2 in the morning with no regard for anyone else.
Ha! Just look at the date there and you'll see the genesis of this post.
_________________________________________________________________________________
07/24/17
Almost every morning when I drive to work I see this older gentleman out running. He's tall but a little hunched over with age, with a little weight on him, but his large frame carries it well. He always has a look of intense concentration on his face. I
I haven't seen that guy for a while. But I get to work a little later now that I have to get the kids off to school. I imagine he's still getting out there. I was going to talk about how I love seeing people out exercising when they are heavy, or older, or otherwise afflicted in a way such that their effort means more than it does for the young and fit. It's inspirational.
_________________________________________________________________________________
08/08/17
Another number-themed title. As another birthday has passed, I suppose I should reflect on the year that has been. Moving from 36 to 37 isn't much of a psychological impact, so I don't really have much to say about that. It was also on a Sunday, which if you are LDS means you'll go to church and probably steer clear of most recreational activities. And as my birthday is early in the month, that means it was what we call fast Sunday, which usually means you skip breakfast and lunch while focusing on a spiritual purpose such as a need for yourself or a loved one, and make a donation to the poor with the money you saved on those meals.
This year we were trying to be financially responsible, so I got myself a little something with money from my parents, but otherwise we didn't do gifts. Katie baked me a cake using a secret family recipe
Ginger crumb cake is the best.
_________________________________________________________________________________
Comments