Theme of the Year

I told you earlier that I think of New Years as a time to set your theme for the next year. It only seems smart then to think about the “theme” of last year, 2010 then.

In some ways, 2010 was a “down to earth” year. I spent time discovering that areas in which I told myself I would be skilled in were areas that I even struggled with competency. For example:

• · Discovering that I’m not the perfect husband I always imagined I would be (I hurt my wife a lot more than I imagined, sometimes knowingly so)
• · Learning that I still struggle at being a good employee (I still have trouble putting forth a 5/5 effort)
• · Figuring out that I like being a writer much more than I like writing (I wrote very little of significance this year – my blog totals were skewed because of Lost recaps and NFL picks)
• · Realizing that there are consequences to not being in a church (the few times I’ve lead devotions this year haven’t exactly been successful)
• · Seeing that I like to talk about new experience more than do them (I sure like to just go to the same restaurants over and over)
• · Heck, I didn’t even master Warhammer in the way I imagined (I took 5^th out of an 12 player tournament, which isn’t that impressive)

So these are expectations I had for 2010, and ways in which I came short. There are two components to any sort of ‘failure’ in goal setting –

1. 1. The Goal – did I set my expectations too high?
2. 2. The Performance – did I put forth my best effort?

I don’t think any of the goals I set were poor. They are all good things to aspire to. But I struggled with reaching them. I struggled with an image I set for myself that I didn’t reach.

In some ways, the struggles of 2010 have resulted in the most aimless year of my life. I couldn’t hit my goals, and thus the idea of setting goals beyond those seemed like madness. There were literal parts of my life this year where I was looking forward to something coming that was many weeks away. I couldn’t enjoy the moments I was in.

There was no build to my life last year. I was in a stalling flight pattern, waiting for orders to land. A great movie or book builds the tension; each chapter further tightens and changes the narrative to come.

So this year, here to the build. Here’s to seeing progress. Here’s to being in a different place a year from now. I set 35 resolutions the other day, and it is my hope that these resolutions will help me to be the person I thought I was. I hope to be here in a year saying that I met each and every one of those resolutions (and more), but more than that, I hope to say in a year that I’m a better:

· Husband

· Employee

· Writer

· Christian

· Lover of life

· Gamer

New Years Resolutions

Somebody told me they don't believe in New Years Resolutions today, because they are concerned about being saddled with unnecessary guilt.

I believe a New Year is an opportunity to set the tone for the next year. It's not about saying "I will lose 10 pounds." It's about saying "This year, I want to be a better person." "This year, I'm going to focus on being holistic."

It's not about specific goals, but about ideas.

So in that vein, here are my specific goals for the year. I'm intentionally aiming high.

1. Lose 50 pounds.

2. Rewrite Ashram.

3. Complete a new book/project.

4. Take a ferry.

5. Go to an NFL game in person.

6. Beat my record of blog posts (109).

7. Complete my Space Marine and Lizardmen armies.

8. Win a tournament with one of those armies.

9. Get 3 Stars on all Angry Bird levels.

10. Surprise my wife with flowers at least 1/2 dozen times.

11. Visit the Space Needle.
12. Run a 5k.

13. Get less holes in my socks.

14. Pay off our PT Cruiser.

15. Be published on a website (not blog).

16. Triple my monthly blog visits.

17. Create a 5 year plan for my life.

18. Move into a new apartment/space.

19. Engage better at work.

20. Rewrite the instruction manual at work.

21. Create a home budget.

22. Get a desktop computer.

23. Win a fantasy football league.

24. Improve my NFL picks.

25. Listen to more sermons.

26. Get internet for my home.

27. Try a new restaurant every other month.

28. Create a list of movies/books that I own.

29. Create a list of movies/books that I want to own.

30. Create a list of movies/books that I've seen/read.

31. Own all the Animorphs books.

32. Create 2 short films.

33. Write 3 sermons/devotionals (that aren't for anything specific).

34. Get Ashram printed/published (self publish if necessary).

35. Own a sportcoat.

That's good enough. We'll start there!

Merry Christmas

"I Celebrate The Day"

by Relient K

And with this Christmas wish is missed
The point I could convey
If only I could find the words to say to let You know how much You've touched my life
Because here is where You're finding me, in the exact same place as New Year's eve
And from a lack of my persistency
We're less than half as close as I want to be

And the first time
That You opened Your eyes did You realize that You would be my Savior
And the first breath that left Your lips
Did You know that it would change this world forever

And so this Christmas I'll compare the things I felt in prior years
To what this midnight made so clear
That You have come to meet me here

To look back and think that
This baby would one day save me
In the hope that what You did
That you were born so I might live
To look back and think that
This baby would one day save me

And I, I celebrate the day
That You were born to die
So I could one day pray for You to save my life

The Holidays

Merry Christmas (Eve)!

I hope you enjoy the holidays and spend time with the ones you love. I figured I'd share a few things...

My Favorite Memory: My mom once tried to convince me that I should open one of my Christmas presents early, because she was so excited to see me open it.

Random Christmas Fact: I had my first live Christmas tree last year.

My Favorite Christmas Gift I've Received: 24 Christmas's so far. I think my favorite gift was still when I was a kid (first or second grade I think). I received the Jurassic Park Tyrannosaur Rex (with realistic dinosaur skin!):

My Favorite Christmas Movie: What was the one with Arnold Schwarzenegger? Jingle All the Way! That was always an absurd favorite. Or catching a Home Alone on TV.

Another Random Christmas Fact: I just got rid of last years live tree two weeks ago.

My Favorite Christmas Tradition: Waking up super early, and making (probably horrible) coffee for my parents. That was always their condition - we could wake them up super early, but there had better be some coffee ready.

Dumbest Thing I've Given (or Tried to Give): Well, I tried to give my alcoholic great grandfather a pack of beer once. Turns out seven year olds aren't allowed to buy beer.

My Favorite Christmas Song: I do enjoy Feliz Navidad, only because it may be the most annoying song in the history of the world, and thus I have come to enjoy it. But alas, that is not my favorite. I'll post my favorite song tomorrow, with lyrics. Until then, have a Merry Christmas!

What about You?

Thanksgiving Time

This is from last year, but still appropriate - 101 (plus a few bonus!)

1. My beautiful wife.
2. Mountain Dew.
3. Jesus (I feel a responsibility to say that these are not in order).
4. A good job.
5. Dave Morgan Haikus.
6. The color blue.
7. Comfortable shoes.
8. Minesweeper.
9. A beautiful apartment.
10. Clean socks.
11. My freaking awesome wife
12. Letter openers that really work.
13. Stand up comedians.
14. Family.
15. Friends across the country.
16. My time in the "man house."
17. Contact lens.
18. Uncertainty of the plural spelling of lens.
19. Coffee.
20. Cool coffee cups.
21. Lost.
22. The Office.
23. An ability to grow facial hair.
24. Naps.
25. Raspberries. The fruit, not the tongue thing.
26. Raspberries. The tongue thing, not the fruit.
27. Kisses.
28. A good pen.
29. A sense of accomplishment.
30. That I don't go to High School anymore.
31. Rewriting stories to make myself look good.
32. A good shave.
33. The letter "A."
34. A nameplate that looks different than everyone elses.
35. Legos.
35. Eggo waffles.
36. Thanksgiving.
37. The Ballance's opening their home to us.
39. God providing in amazing ways as we moved out west.
40. Staple removers.
41. Zombies, in fiction and in real life.
42. The numbers!!! 4 8 15 16 23 42
43. When people write on my facebook.
44. Scratching a good itch.
45. Sleeping in.
46. Any day I don't receive a stupid text message forward.
47. Stanley cup victories for the Detroit Red Wings.
48. A good hockey fight.
49. Youtube clips of Patrick Roy getting humiliated.
50. The grin I get when noone realizes until now that I skipped #38.
51. Remembering serenading my wedding, and Geoff's wedding.
52. Hitting John Lotterhos's car that one time.
53. Crazy Trinidadians going the wrong way in go-karts.
54. Winning free stuff.
55. John Jurries proclaiming my post = win.
56. Jessica Notenbaum yelling at me for not posting.
57. When I beat the Fantasy Guru's predicted score by 60 points.
58. Spring.
59. Flip flops.
60. Bonfires.
61. New groups of friends who haven't heard my jokes 30 times.
62. Friends that don't know I stole a joke from someone else.
63. Moes Burritos.
64. A good yawn.
65. Coffee. Again.
66. Monday Midnight Prayer.
67. Trendy glasses.
68. Small groups.
69. Not using the word "moist."
70. Ipods.
71. My stunning wife.
72. The Sports Guy.
73. Tuesday Morning Quarterback.
74. Sunflower Seeds.
75. Cholula Sauce.
76. Wolfgangs.
77. DVD's.
78. Youth group memories.
79. Power tools.
80. Growing up.
81. Black olives.
82. Digiornios pizza.
83. Scott Adams.
84. An empty inbox.
85. Days off.
86. Presents.
87. Automatic doors that make me feel like a Jedi.
88. Lord of the Rings being better than Star Wars.
89. Surprises.
90. The time I put jolly ranchers in Jamison's shower.
91. The time I drunk wrestled Steve and won.
92. Proposing.
93. Making our wedding our wedding.
94. My groomsmen.
95. Hookahs.
96. My gorgeous wife.
97. That this list is almost over.
98. That 101 is more catchy than 201.
99. That M&M's melt in your mouth, not in your hand.
100. That's what she said.
101. Your name here!

BONUS TIME!!!

102. Cooking Turkey - I really enjoy it!

103. Snow days at the age of 24.
104. Fantasy football being based on luck, not strategy.

105. New cars.

106. Post-it notes.

107. Movie Theaters.

108. Fun board games.

109. A job that is challenging and rewarding.

110. Microsoft Word's "Search and Replace" feature.

111. Detroit Lions playing the part of Turkey every year.

112. The ability to make people laugh.

113. Arrested Development!!! Maybe the funniest show in history?

114. Tuna steaks.

115. Portabella mushrooms.

116. Strategy games.

117. Ordo Ludus.

118. Sabbath Group

119. The Baergens

120. Quelf.

121. New Music.

122. A new laptop!

123. Starcraft. What a great game.

124. Flashbang - an amazing book.

125. Relient K's Christmas albums - making Christmas music bearable.

126. Phone calls from friends.

127. Emails from friends.

128. Pageviews or comments on my blog.

129. My friends Rick and Natalie.

130. A great supervisor at work.

131. Facial hair.

132. The potential of a new house in February.

133. Smartphones. So neat.

134. Angry Birds finally coming to Palm Pre.

135. That one time I got to play a little of Starcraft 2.

136. Having hobbies I enjoy.

137. The Wii my wife gave me for my Birthday.

138. Football season.

139. Haircuts.

140.Eggnog latte's.

141.Sarcasm.

142. Converse All Star Shoes.

143. Funny bumper stickers (on other peoples cars).

144. My coworkers.

145. Secret Santa gift exchanges.

146. A working car heater this winter!

147. New sweaters.

148. Aprons, for cooking.

149. My amazing and thoughtful wife.

150. You!

20.10

20 Memories of the Decade

20. Climbing Mount Gerard
19. High School Open House
18. Hamster Fighting Machine
17. Finishing a first draft of Ashram
16. Getting a car.
15. Catching a Shark
14. Every Tuesday Finale
13. Fusion - "Welcome, to Jurassic Park."
12. Baptizing Steve
11. Red Wings Spanking Patrick Roy 7-0
10. India
09. "I love you."
08. The Black Fork Club
07. Friday Nights at the Muffins
06. Singing at my Wedding
05. 22nd Birthday Party
04. Monday Midnight Prayer
03. The Man House
02. My First Kiss
01. Watching my Beautiful Bride Come Down the Aisle

10 Movies/Books/CD's of the Decade:

10. Tropic Thunder
09. The Dark Knight
08. Miracle
07. The Irresistable Revolution by Shane Claiborne
06. Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell
05. Mmhmm by Relient K
04. Wall-E
03. Signs
02. Lost Seasons 1,3,4,5
01. Lord of the Rings Trilogy

Give This Christmas Away Review

101 Simple & Thoughtful Ways to Give This Christmas Away by Matthew West

This was an interesting little book. I picked it up having low expectations, at best. Thoughtful little Christmas books tend to be just that - thoughtful, not practical. I hoped that this book by singer Matthew West might be more practical than most other little Christian "stocking stuffer" books.
Thankfully, "Give This Christmas Away" met me halfway. The book is just what it says - 101 simple ways to make someone else's Christmas. It's an extraordinarily quick book to read through, because each idea takes one page (and is sometimes a single paragraph).
West balances out thoughtful (if generally vague) suggestions (for example - #21 Comfort the Brokenhearted") with the practical ideas. #83, Donating to the Salvation Army Angel Tree, and #38, pick up random trash, are examples of some of the more thoroughly practical ideas.
All in all, it's a nice stocking stuffer. This would probably be a great thing to give to kids in whom you're trying to instill a spirit of giving during this Christmas Season. I give it a 4/5 - neat little stocking stuffer.

This review has been posted on andyszymas.blogspot.com and barnesannoble.com; thanks to Tyndale House for providing a review copy.

Turkey Update

I kicked that turkey's butt.
Juiciest, tastiest, turkey ever to live.
Boo ya.

Quote of the day:
"It's probably north of the breast, where you've been for the last twenty minutes."

101 Things I'm Thankful For

1. My beautiful wife.
2. Mountain Dew.
3. Jesus (I feel a responsibility to say that these are not in order).
4. A good job.
5. Dave Morgan Haikus.
6. The color blue.
7. Comfortable shoes.
8. Minesweeper.
9. A beautiful apartment.
10. Clean socks.
11. My freaking awesome wife
12. Letter openers that really work.
13. Stand up comedians.
14. Family.
15. Friends across the country.
16. My time in the "man house."
17. Contact lens.
18. Uncertainty of the plural spelling of lens.
19. Coffee.
20. Cool coffee cups.
21. Lost.
22. The Office.
23. An ability to grow facial hair.
24. Naps.
25. Raspberries. The fruit, not the tongue thing.
26. Raspberries. The tongue thing, not the fruit.
27. Kisses.
28. A good pen.
29. A sense of accomplishment.
30. That I don't go to High School anymore.
31. Rewriting stories to make myself look good.
32. A good shave.
33. The letter "A."
34. A nameplate that looks different than everyone elses.
35. Legos.
35. Eggo waffles.
36. Thanksgiving.
37. The Ballance's opening their home to us.
39. God providing in amazing ways as we moved out west.
40. Staple removers.
41. Zombies, in fiction and in real life.
42. The numbers!!! 4 8 15 16 23 42
43. When people write on my facebook.
44. Scratching a good itch.
45. Sleeping in.
46. Any day I don't receive a stupid text message forward.
47. Stanley cup victories for the Detroit Red Wings.
48. A good hockey fight.
49. Youtube clips of Patrick Roy getting humiliated.
50. The grin I get when noone realizes until now that I skipped #38.
51. Remembering serenading my wedding, and Geoff's wedding.
52. Hitting John Lotterhos's car that one time.
53. Crazy Trinidadians going the wrong way in go-karts.
54. Winning free stuff.
55. John Jurries proclaiming my post = win.
56. Jessica Notenbaum yelling at me for not posting.
57. When I beat the Fantasy Guru's predicted score by 60 points.
58. Spring.
59. Flip flops.
60. Bonfires.
61. New groups of friends who haven't heard my jokes 30 times.
62. Friends that don't know I stole a joke from someone else.
63. Moes Burritos.
64. A good yawn.
65. Coffee. Again.
66. Monday Midnight Prayer.
67. Trendy glasses.
68. Small groups.
69. Not using the word "moist."
70. Ipods.
71. My stunning wife.
72. The Sports Guy.
73. Tuesday Morning Quarterback.
74. Sunflower Seeds.
75. Cholula Sauce.
76. Wolfgangs.
77. DVD's.
78. Youth group memories.
79. Power tools.
80. Growing up.
81. Black olives.
82. Digiornios pizza.
83. Scott Adams.
84. An empty inbox.
85. Days off.
86. Presents.
87. Automatic doors that make me feel like a Jedi.
88. Lord of the Rings being better than Star Wars.
89. Surprises.
90. The time I put jolly ranchers in Jamison's shower.
91. The time I drunk wrestled Steve and won.
92. Proposing.
93. Making our wedding our wedding.
94. My groomsmen.
95. Hookahs.
96. My gorgeous wife.
97. That this list is almost over.
98. That 101 is more catchy than 201.
99. That M&M's melt in your mouth, not in your hand.
100. That's what she said.
101. Your name here!

Random Thoughts - 14

Maybe growing up has to do with learning how to cook your own turkey.
(THATS WHAT SHE SAID)

Carrying on, I'm cooking a 20 pound turkey this week. 20 pounds of turkey, according to the USDA, should feed about 20 people. That means, according to my calculation, that me, my wife, and my wifes friend must eat 7 shares of turkey a piece.

But I'm thinking about how strange it is that I'm cooking a turkey. After all, my dad does that. And here I am, about to cook it in four days.

And here's the crazy thing - I sort of know how to. And I don't mean just "throw it in the oven," but real tips - like rubbing herbs between the skin and the meat, and cooking the turkey upside down, and in a bag.

I think I picked it up by osmosis from my dad. I used to watch him and help him on Thanksgiving, and now I know how to cook a turkey.

So here's the takeaway - I picked up information/facts/truth from a relationship, not in the context of a lesson or teaching.

Maybe the best way to learn about God is the same way - in the context of a relationship, being close and watching Him. I grow more and more doubts about learning about God in a classroom setting where God doesn't seem to be moving very much.

Now watch me set the turkey on fire and invalidate this whole post.