Guest Post for Real Men, Real Dads

Man Caves, Mini-vans, and Tree Marking

Real Men, Real Dads is a website that discusses all kinds of topics involving men and fathers. Operated by a former U. S. soldier, this is a great blog with several interesting articles, so I jumped at the chance to contribute to their site. I wrote an article called Man Caves: Best in Moderation. Here’s a sample:

Guys are wired to equate their own self-value with the amount of space they’re able to claim. We used to do it by marking trees. Now we just do that for fun.

Thanks again to RMRD for the opportunity. Be sure to visit their website to read all else they discuss.

My Guest Post – The Golden Rule

I was recently asked to contribute to the website Let’s Get Happy. I wrote a short article about an interaction I had a few years ago. It talks about snap-judgements and the Golden Rule.  Here’s a tidbit:

If you’re familiar with the scene where the narrator shows you how the Grinch’s heart suddenly grew, just picture that.

That line is a little random, but it fits in nicely. Read the entire post here. Thanks again to their website for the opportunity.

Southern Hospitality

I recently went to the beach with my family. It was the first vacation we’ve taken with our 11 month old and we were excited to watch his reaction to the ocean. As you can see, it wore him out.

Relaxin’ in the shade

But what you don’t see is the help given to us by a complete stranger. My wife’s friend gave us two beach umbrellas, but we didn’t have enough arms to carry them out to the water. Sawyer was getting a little restless and needed a nap. After seeing we had our hands full, the lady seated next to us on the beach offered up her family’s only umbrella. Within minutes he was knocked out by the sound of the waves hitting the shore. We used the umbrella for the majority of the day and thanked the lady for her kindness.  We never got her name or the opportunity to fully thank her but that really stuck with me.

Southern hospitality is something I’ve always enjoyed being around. Holding doors for strangers and saying “Thank you” when they do it for you. I’m very fortunate to have been raised by parents that made it a point to teach me how to behave in public. “Yes sir” & “no sir” was always the expected response at my house. And it’s not unusual to have someone comment when they notice it (mostly by those who migrated South).

I just wanted to say that we shouldn’t take these things for granted. Don’t let the only courteous thing people hear come from the cashier at Chic-Fil-A when she takes their order.  I really doubt it’s that much of a pleasure to serve us all.

Courtesy is as much of a mark of a gentleman as courage. -Theodore Roosevelt

My Guest Post for DIY Life

From Bi-fold to Bench

I wrote a post recently for DIY Life about a little project I did around the house. It really wasn’t much a project though. It was more of an attempt to do something with some old junk I had laying around. Either way it turned out pretty well.

I think it does emphasizes the point that before you go out and buy something, try to make it yourself. Get some scrap wood and a few tools and see what you can do. Chances are there is a video somewhere on the internet that can help. If it turns out badly, all you’ve wasted is your time. If it turns out well you’ve got something for nothing and a new sense of accomplishment.

Check out the full post here and see how it all came together. Here are some pictures of the final project.

The Finished Product

God Bless America: Psalms, Cake, & Quote from Kennedy

Courtesy of My Wife

Today is always one of my favorite times of year. Some people don’t care for Christmas music (especially me) and some people don’t care for Halloween, but everyone, everyone, gets pumped for the Fourth. There’s a quote I wanted to share today. It was  too long to fit in a tweet so I thought I’d post it here. It’s from a speech that was never delivered. Happy 4th of July everyone.

“We in this country, in this generation, are – by destiny rather than choice – the watchmen on the walls of the world freedom. We ask, therefore, that we may exercise our strength with wisdom and restraint, and that we may achieve in our time and for all time the ancient vision of ‘peace on earth, goodwill toward men’ . . .That must always be our goal, and the righteousness of our cause must always under lie our strength. For as was written long ago, ‘ . . . except the Lord keep the city, the watchmen waketh but in vain’ (Psalm 127)” – John F. Kennedy, the speech that was to be made on the day of his assassination

Make the Most of the Middle Mark

Today, July 1st, is the 183rd day in 2012. This marks the halfway point for the year. I’ve always tried to make it habit to take this time and look back at the resolutions I made at the beginning of the year. I made a previous post about one of them. I made the personal resolution to read at least one book per month. So far I’m glad to say I’ve done pretty well. I’ve read eight books so far, including one that had over 600 pages.

I’m sure not everyone made the same resolution as me, but it is important to think back to where you were 183 days ago. Are the things that were important to you then still at the top of your list? If so, what have you done towards them? How much time have you made for it? In another 183 days where will you be? I did well on this resolution, but I’m way off on a few others. Pray more. Listen harder.

Don’t let today pass you by. Stop. Take a minute. Ask if your middle mark puts you halfway finished or halfway behind.

Here’s what I’ve read so far this year:

• Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea – Jules Verne
• Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned – Wells Tower
• The Edge of Sadness – Edwin O’Connor
• Cowboys, Mountain Men, and Grizzly Bears – Matthew P. Mayo
• Through My Eyes – Tim Tebow
• The Girl That Played with Fire – Stieg Larson
• Dr. No – Ian Flemming
• Heart of Darkness – Joseph Conrad
• The Sun Also Rises – Ernest Hemingway (currently 52% completed)