a cure for what!? ails you

currently in bed with the croup, or at least that's what I've diagnosed it as. not having health insurance means becoming your own doctor with a degree from the world wide web. well, given my difficulty breathing and my barking seal of a cough, I have decided it must be laryngotracheobronchitis, then again, I am not between the ages of 3 months and 3 years, so maybe, it is something else...

I have deduced that I am suffering from a lower respiratory infection, rather than the more common upper respiratory variety. I also think it's more likely that the infection is in my bronchial tubes, than in my lungs, meaning I most likely have bronchitis and not pneumonia. according to web md, I should seek medical attention immediately. I think I'll just lay in bed and let bob ross soothe me with his landscapes. it's nothing a diet of generic drugs and green tea can't cure.

okay, I definitely have acute bronchitis, which is not to be confused with chronic bronchitis. no I did not get a chest x-ray, I simply did my research. the good news is that I'm not going to die, the bad news is that it generally takes several weeks, if not months, to clear up. so swollen bronchial tubes, excessive mucus, wheezing, difficulty breathing, hoarseness and a general state of pain and discomfort until march?, at least it's not SARS, or is it?...

better early than never

Each indecision brings its own delays and days are lost lamenting over lost days... What you can do or think you can do, begin it. For boldness has magic, power, and genius in it. ~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

how many times will we say that we want to do things differently until the sameness of our days is finally knocked off course enough to change? yesterday started off the same. slept in late enough to make my internal organs ache. went to the bean with my man to ride the brown serpent. but despite the predictability of the day, something was different--a friend, mr. ben pringle was there too. he was talking all about the allure of making a schedule and (here is the important part) sticking to it...for 30 days. doing something or somethings every day for 30 days and seeing where the magic carpet ride of dedication and persistence takes you. for me, a whole new world.

and then, later that night, the sealer of the deal, sara kaye, stopped by and we discussed the earlier discussion. it was clear, we are all very aware of the infinite potential lying within, and we also know that not nearly as much as could be accomplished, is. and we're also smart enough, thank big bearded guy in the sky, to know that no one is going to accomplish it for us. so... in enters the making of a list.

Reduce your plan to writing. The moment you complete this, you will have definitely given concrete form to the intangible desire. ~Napoleon Hill

ahh, intangible desires--a six pack, a best selling novel, your house on mtv cribs. the only thing standing in the way of today and our tomorrow dreams is time and action. get to work I say. make a list of the things you would like to commit to doing everyday for 30 days. do them, for 30 days. see what happens. exactly how many crunches stand between you and your abs of steel? helen keller said, "we can do anything we want as long as we stick to it long enough." I'm pretty sure she was an authority on the matter. imagine all the possibilities...

and who knows, maybe, just maybe, after the 30 days are up, you'll just keep on going.


Even if you are on the right track, you will get run over if you just sit there. ~Will Rogers

new year's evolutions

ev·o·lu·tion (ěv'ə-lōō'shən, ē'və-) n.

A gradual process in which something changes into a different and usually more complex or better form.

pa·tience (pā'shəns) n.

an ability or willingness to suppress restlessness or annoyance when confronted with delay.


There are no shortcuts in evolution. ~Louis D. Brandeis


instant gratification isn't all that gratifying when you think about it. the satisfaction of a moment is fleeting, but the gradual, arduous and oftentimes painful process of growth and change is the fat that really sticks to our bones. being able to look at our yearbooks and laugh means a great deal more than it did to get our prom pictures back in an hour. look how far we've come. look how much we've figured out. and then, of course, the realization that the fresh kicks on our feet now, will one day be as dismissible as the double-laced BK's of yore.

with the new year already shedding days, I find myself mixing a sense of satisfaction with a pinch of panic. I am pleased with who I have become and yet I am overwhelmed by my endless list of all that I have yet to. new year's resolutions are often whittled down to the peeps of easter, but they can be something much more lasting and profound. they can be an engagement ring of sorts we give to ourselves--a reminder that we are committed to a lasting relationship, one that strives to extract all the beauty and potential that made us fall in love in the first place. a catalog of yeses and no's. a record of failed successes and successful failures. a reminder of our all too oft forgotten raison d'être. a taking stock of what it is we intend to do with this whirling dervish of a life--reflecting on its progress and making plans for more.

I have always made lists of resolutions, not only at the first of the year, but throughout. more than anything, it is a progress report, a sign of awareness--both an acknowledgment of our faults and of our desire to evolve into a higher expression of being. this year I am resolving to be more patient in the endless process of evolution. looking back on the year and on a life lived thus far, I see that patience isn't so much about enduring as it is about believing that everything you need is happening all around you, you just might not know it for a while.

happy new year and every year thereafter.