Category Archives: Miscellany

What Are You Waiting For?

With time being such a precious resource any more, I’m becoming more and more sensitive to increasing demands for my time. Especially the demands that I put on myself, which I’m sure are the majority. Always has been.

So when I saw this post via Twitter this morning, it really stuck with me. Many of the points are things that have been on my mind for a while. Most are things that I’m at least trying to do with varying degrees of success.

But the truly important thing is to think about time and how it relates to what you state are your goals, wishes and desires. How much of your “happiness” relates to having or not having time? What choices do you make with your time, and where do you allocate your resources when it comes to happiness?

Hopefully this article, which summarizes learnings from a nurse who spent years caring for patients in their last weeks of life, can give you a little insight or incentive to really think about the time you have – and what you do with it.

1. I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.

This was the most common regret of all. When people realise that their life is almost over and look back clearly on it, it is easy to see how many dreams have gone unfulfilled. Most people had not honoured even a half of their dreams and had to die knowing that it was due to choices they had made, or not made.

It is very important to try and honour at least some of your dreams along the way. From the moment that you lose your health, it is too late. Health brings a freedom very few realise, until they no longer have it.

2. I wish I didn’t work so hard.

This came from every male patient that I nursed. They missed their children’s youth and their partner’s companionship. Women also spoke of this regret. But as most were from an older generation, many of the female patients had not been breadwinners. All of the men I nursed deeply regretted spending so much of their lives on the treadmill of a work existence.

By simplifying your lifestyle and making conscious choices along the way, it is possible to not need the income that you think you do. And by creating more space in your life, you become happier and more open to new opportunities, ones more suited to your new lifestyle.

3. I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.

Many people suppressed their feelings in order to keep peace with others. As a result, they settled for a mediocre existence and never became who they were truly capable of becoming. Many developed illnesses relating to the bitterness and resentment they carried as a result.

We cannot control the reactions of others. However, although people may initially react when you change the way you are by speaking honestly, in the end it raises the relationship to a whole new and healthier level. Either that or it releases the unhealthy relationship from your life. Either way, you win.

4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.

Often they would not truly realise the full benefits of old friends until their dying weeks and it was not always possible to track them down. Many had become so caught up in their own lives that they had let golden friendships slip by over the years. There were many deep regrets about not giving friendships the time and effort that they deserved. Everyone misses their friends when they are dying.

It is common for anyone in a busy lifestyle to let friendships slip. But when you are faced with your approaching death, the physical details of life fall away. People do want to get their financial affairs in order if possible. But it is not money or status that holds the true importance for them. They want to get things in order more for the benefit of those they love. Usually though, they are too ill and weary to ever manage this task. It is all comes down to love and relationships in the end. That is all that remains in the final weeks, love and relationships.

5. I wish that I had let myself be happier.

This is a surprisingly common one. Many did not realise until the end that happiness is a choice. They had stayed stuck in old patterns and habits. The so-called ‘comfort’ of familiarity overflowed into their emotions, as well as their physical lives. Fear of change had them pretending to others, and to their selves, that they were content. When deep within, they longed to laugh properly and have silliness in their life again.

When you are on your deathbed, what others think of you is a long way from your mind. How wonderful to be able to let go and smile again, long before you are dying.

 

via:
http://www.inspirationandchai.com/Regrets-of-the-Dying.html
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2012/feb/01/top-five-regrets-of-the-dying
http://thinkingalaud.posterous.com/no-regrets 

Weekly Link-O-Rama

It’s time to start doing a more formalized roundup of the links found/received throughout the past week. If for no other reason than a means or archiving stuff going around on the Internet at the time. To the links…

The Post-Resolution

It’s that time again – the time when everyone makes and then breaks their New Years resolutions. I’m continuously reminded of the things I’ve not followed through with in the past as I see more and more people publicly declare their intents on social media channels. Facebook profiles and Twitter statuses have been ripe with commitments sure to be broken.

But it sure sounds good and looks good to tell everyone what it is that you’re going to try and follow through on.

I think that’s a big part of the whole resolution thing. Tell people that you’re going to do something so that there’s some sort of outward pressure on you to follow through. The problem is, when it’s a resolution to do something for yourself (lose weight, go vegetarian, exercise more, watch less TV, etc.) then the third party doesn’t actually care beyond a slight curious interest at how it’s going. And that wanes quickly.

So this year I propose to anyone out there that you embrace the post-resolution. Make a commitment to yourself, but don’t tell anyone about it until AFTER you’ve accomplished it. Focus on the doing part of the resolution instead of the telling part. Show progress and follow-through. Actually make it happen.

I’ve got my list. I’m going to work on it. Once any of the things are done or to the point at which they signify an accomplishment, I’ll tell ya about it. Until then, though – it’s up to me to not disappoint myself and to follow through.

Enough talking. More doing.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Speed Trap Fundraiser

Police Speed Traps Are Not Fun

For the past few weeks, we’ve been noticing a speed trap right down the block from our office. The fuzz sets up a motorcycle unit with a radar unit on it and snatches people as they drive down the 25mph street right outside our office downtown.

It’s a wide street, and most downtown streets are typically 30mph. But this one has residential units across from the other zones, so I’m guessing why it’s such a honeypot for catching speeders. Well, people going over 25. Not sure if I’d call that “speeding” per se.

So anyway. I got to thinking. First, I remembered an old story I heard about some college kids in the mountains who got caught in a speed trap. After being released, the story goes on to explain that they drove back up the road and set up a sign that said, “Caution – Speed Trap Ahead!” They also set up a ways past the speed trap with a sign that said, “Donations.”

Now, I don’t know if that story is true or not, but after seeing the speed trap down the street from us for a third time in the past month, this story popped into my head again. What if our office made a big sign and warned drivers? Is it illegal to do so? What would happen, besides saving some people a bunch of money, time and effort? It would likely piss the police off.

Then I had an extension of the idea that could possibly help alleviate some of the concerns over police retribution.

What if a charitable or helpful organization set up the sign, and also set up the “donation” station past the speed trap? The first sign could say something like, “WARNING! SPEED TRAP AHEAD!” with smaller text like, “From your friends at The Omaha Children’s Shelter.) (I’m making the organization’s name up.)

Then, down the road, there could be a similar sign that says, “NOT CAUGHT SPEEDING? DONATIONS ACCEPTED.” This sign could have a more official call-out as to who the organization is that’s helping out.

A whole strategic effort could be made by various charitable organizations to take advantage of police speed traps in order to warn drivers and then collect donations. I’m sure that local attorneys across the nation could help determine what is within the law as far as warning drivers of traffic enforcement actions. Where it wouldn’t work, or be too much of a risk, the effort could be avoided. Where it could work, the local organizations would have a low-cost way to get their message out and raise some additional funds at the same time. The added benefit would be that traffic would be slowed down and the message of driving an appropriate speed would still be reinforced.

 

Listo Ipsums

There seems to be a growing trend of slapping together a bunch of related words and calling it an alternative to the classic Lorem Ipsum text. With the tweet I saw today from Jason Fried, I thought it would be a good opportunity to compile several of the Lorem Ipsum alternatives that I’ve seen into one list. So here you go.

Do you have any others? Leave them in the comments section.