Forgiveness

It is a secret that is hidden in plain sight. It costs nothing and is worth millions. It is available to everyone and used by few. If you harness the power of forgiveness, you will be revered, sought after, and wealthy. And not coincidentally, you will also be forgiven by others.

Most people do not ask for forgiveness. Amazingly, many of these people who dare to occupy our minds with angry thoughts are actually wandering about in life without any knowledge of our feelings or any conviction that they have done anything wrong.

For many years, I thought that forgiveness was akin to a knighthood - something I bestowed upon some poor wretch who groveled at my feet and begged my blessings. But as I matured and observed successful people, I gained a new perspective on forgiveness.

I cannot recall a single book, including the Bible, that says in order for you to forgive someone, he or she has to ask for it. Think about this concept! Where is the rule written that before I forgive people, they have to deserve it? Where is it written that to be forgiven by me, you must have wronged me no more than three times? Or seven? Or seventeen?

The unmistakable truth about forgiveness is that it is not a reward that must be earned; forgiveness is a gift to be given. When I give forgiveness, I free my own spirit to release the anger and hatred harbored in my heart. By granting forgiveness, I free my spirit to pursue my future happily and unencumbered by the anchors of my past. And forgiveness, when granted to others, becomes a gift to myself.

Now I must warn you that without a forgiving spirit, your effectiveness as a husband, wife, father, mother, son, daughter, boss, or leader of people will be at an end. The key to everything your future holds, the touchstone that will, for you, bring dreams into reality, is forgiveness.

Faith vs. Fear

Faith vs. Fear. It was an interesting thought that just popped into my mind. I started thinking about how different they are. But then I realized, they're not very different at all. All men are guided by faith or fear-one or the other-for both are the same. Faith or fear is the expectation of an event that hasn't came to pass or the belief in something that cannot be seen or touched. A man of fear lives always on the edge of insanity. A man of faith lives in perpetual reward.

Faith is to believe what one has not seen. The reward of faith is to see what one has believed.

Many men do not consider themselves men of faith nor of fear. Instead they consider themselves men of reason. Reason can only be stretched so far, but faith has no limits. The only limit to your realization of tomorrow is the doubt to which you hold fast today.

It is a fact that great leaders-great achievers-are rarely realistic by other people's standards. Somehow, these successful people often considered strange, pick their way through life ignoring or nor hearing negative expectations and emotions. Consequently, they accomplish one great thing after another, never having heard what cannot be done. That is precisely why one should never tell a young person that something cannot be done. God may have been waiting centuries for someone ignorant enough of the impossible to do that very thing.

Awesome recipe!

Hey yall, it's make and bake time with Wesley! Okay, so some of you may not have the run-around-the-house-screaming-and-yanking-curtains excitement that I  do for baking and cooking. But the thrilling excitement that comes with seeing a job well done is equatable to finding a $20 bill in your pocket that you didn't know that you had. That's the shizzles. Almost as good as a cup of tea. But anyways, the recipe. And the name of the recipe is...drumroll please...PUMPKIN GINGERSNAP CHEESECAKE! Non-salivation is not an option.

I'm supposed to write a description of this cheesecake. It's good. Really tasty and luscious. Oooo! I like that word! Luscious. Luuuuuscious. Lusciouuussss. It's a very round and orbicular word that just seems to roll out of your mouth. Say it. Was that not the most funnest word to say? RECIPE INGREDIENTS For the Crust: 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs 3/4 cup gingersnap crumbs 2 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar 1 teaspoon ground ginger 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted 1 egg white, well beaten For the Filling: 2 cups (16 ounces) cream cheese 1 cup sour cream 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar 1/2 cup granulated sugar 4 large eggs, separated 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon canned unsweetened pumpkin puree 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 3 tablespoons cornstarch 1 teaspoon ground ginger 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon Pinch of ground nutmeg Pinch of ground cloves For the Topping: 2/3 cup coarsely chopped toasted walnuts (see Note) 2 teaspoons ground ginger 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar 1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

DIRECTIONS Preheat an oven to 325 degrees F. Position a rack in the center of the oven. Position a second rack directly below it. FOR THE CRUST: In a large bowl, combine the graham cracker and gingersnap crumbs, sugar, and ginger. Stir in the melted butter. Firmly press the crumbs into the bottom of a 9 1/2-inch springform pan. Brush the crust lightly with the egg white and chill for at least 15 minutes before filling and baking. FOR THE FILLING: In a large bowl, beat together the cream cheese, sour cream, and brown and granulated sugars, using an electric mixer, until smooth. Gently beat in the egg yolks, then the pumpkin puree, vanilla, cornstarch, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. In a large bowl, beat the egg whites, with a whisk or an electric mixer, until stiff peaks are formed. Fold the egg whites into the cream cheese mixture. Pour the filling into the prepared pan and place in the oven. Set an 8-inch-square baking pan filled halfway with hot water on the rack below the cheesecake (this helps prevent the top of the cheesecake from cracking). Bake until the center does not tremble when the cake is gently shaken, about 45 minutes to an hour. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for several minutes. Place a rack 4 to 5 inches from the heat source of a broiler. Preheat the broiler. FOR THE TOPPING: in a small bowl, combine the walnuts, ginger, and sugar. Add the butter and mix together with a fork or clean fingers until crumbly. Sprinkle over the warm cheesecake and place in the broiler to melt the sugar and caramelize the topping, 30 to 40 seconds. Watch carefully so that the topping does not burn. Remove the cheesecake from the broiler and let cool to room temperature. Cover and chill for at least 6 hours or as long as overnight. When it is chilled, run a knife around the edge of the cheesecake and remove the pan rim. Set the cheesecake on a serving plate without removing the pan bottom. Note: To toast walnuts, spread shelled nuts in a shallow pan. Toast in an oven preheated to 350 degrees F, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Enjoy this...luscious...cheesecake with whipped cream (none of this fakey whipped topping stuff) and a cup of tea. And save a slice for me.

Sweet Video!

Hey yall, I just found an awesome new video for the video of the week type thing. Pretty stinkin awesome. The guys name is Michael Winslow, and he makes "noises"! Enjoy, or laugh. One or the other.

Totally wicked.
Wes

The Truths of Life

Thanks to Peter being the 3rd person to follow me, he chose the subject of humor. So I pondered this for a long time, because after all, I usually try to make my posts at least fairly entertaining. So a couple of days ago, I was eating a chimi-changa for my lunch, when suddenly came a wave of (ahem) bowel discomfort. Stupid mexican food. So off to el baño went I, with much discomfort. Relief soon came like a massive tidal wave, after which I started thinking. (FYI to those who aren't my family, sitting on the toilet is one of two places where I get most of my brilliant ideas.) Anyway, as I flushed away that mexican stomach chaos,  I thought one of my brilliant thoughts just then. "Why does everyone HAVE to be so quiet in a library?" says I. "Me," I says to myself, "this could be the start of something really good." So maybe that mexican gastric content helped after all! Who woulda known....

So anyway, I thought to myself "self, why don't I think of a bunch of other truths of life, carve them on a big statue, and put them in the middle of chicago!" But then my lazy side kicked in, and decided to underachieve by putting them on my blog. So here goes.

1. Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level, then beat you with experience.
2. Indecision is the key to flexibility.
3. No matter how hard you try, you can never predict when the toaster will pop, and it will scare you (or at least me) every time.
4. Jonny Depp is about as old as all the other actors his age.
5. Never wrestle with a pig: You both get all dirty, and the pig likes it.
6. Approximately one-seventh of your life is spent on Monday.
7. How can a life without a just, righteous and loving God ever have any meaning? If a person does not believe in God, then life has no meaning. You are born, you grow up, if you are lucky, then you become famous, you get old, and you die. Nothing more. Big whoop. But when you have Christ in your life, not only does he make it challenging and ever interesting, He gives life meaning and purpose. What stems from that is true happiness. The key to true happiness is found when we sacrifice our wants and desires for something greater in life. And in order to get that something greater, we must give up what we treasure the most. That is the key to true happiness, and true happiness can only be found in God. Salvation is God's marriage proposal to the soul.
8. Money cannot buy happiness, but it will make misery easier to live with
9. 9 of 10 people suffer from diarrhea. The truth is, the tenth guy enjoys it.
10. Supplemental poker rule: Colt 45 magnum beats ace of spades.
11. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say will be misquoted, then used against you. 
12. Nothing is fool proof to a sufficiently talented fool.
13. No matter how hard you try, you can't baptize cats.
14. Growing up is mandatory; growing old is optional.
15. Morality is not defined by individual choice.
16. No matter how hard I try, I can not figure out which way the train went by looking at the tracks.
17. Eschew obfuscation, and everything will be simpler.


Cheers
Wes

The Stuff of Life

This is a very good short story about life.  Thought you might like to read it.

 

Lisa Beamer on Good Morning America - If you remember, she's the wife of Todd Beamer who said 'Let's Roll!' and helped take down the plane that was heading for Washington D.C.

 

She said it's the little things that she misses most about Todd, such as hearing the garage door open as he came home, and her children running to meet him. She's now the Mom of a beautiful little girl, Mary.

Lisa recalled this story:

"I had a very special teacher in high school many years ago whose husband died suddenly of a heart attack.  About a week after his death, she shared some of her insight with a classroom of students.  As the late afternoon sunlight came streaming in through the classroom windows and the class was nearly over, she moved a few things aside on the edge of her desk and sat down there.

With a gentle look of reflection on her face, she paused and said, 'Class is over, I would like to share with all of you, a thought that is unrelated to class, but which I feel is very important.  Each of us is put here on earth to learn, share, love, appreciate and give of ourselves.  None of us knows when this fantastic experience will end.  It can be taken away at any moment. 

 

Perhaps this is God's way of telling us that we must make the most out of every single day.  Her eyes, beginning to water, she went on, 'So I would like you all to make me a promise.  From now on, on your way to school, or on your way home, find something beautiful to notice.  

 

It doesn't have to be something you see, it could be a scent, perhaps of freshly baked bread wafting out of someone's house, or it could be the sound of the breeze slightly rustling the leaves in the trees, or the way the morning light catches one autumn leaf as it falls gently to the ground.  Please look for these things, and cherish them.  For, although it may sound trite to some, these things are the "stuff" of life.  The little things we are put here on earth to enjoy.  The things we often take for granted.

 

The class was completely quiet.  We all picked up our books and filed out of the room silently.  That afternoon, I noticed more things on my way home from school than I had that whole semester.  Every once in a while, I think of that teacher and remember what an impression she made on all of us, and I try to appreciate all of those things that sometimes we all overlook.

Take notice of something special you see on your lunch hour today.  Go barefoot.  Or walk on the beach at sunset.  Stop off on the way home tonight to get a double dip ice cream cone.  For as we get older, it is not the things we did that we often regret, but the things we didn't do. 

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away."

Invictus

My favorite poem, since like, ever.

Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds and shall find me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.

~Invictus

Wes

Insanity=Pure Awesomeness

Well, almost. Usually. I can't always agree with the subject of my post, but I try to make it a point to. 

Insanity is usually fun. Have you ever tried to walk into wal-mart and act loony? Yeah, those looks on peoples faces are priceless, especially when the mothers start telling their kids to stop staring. But that's a story for another time. What I'm going to blog about is, at Elizabeth's request (since she was one of the winners), about insanity. And yes, you already guessed that.

I've always believed that it's good to have a certain amount of insanity in your life to keep things leveled out. So I'm going to outline the basic types of insanity that relates to humor.

Brother/12 year old humor: My older bro and I are pretty tight. Especially when we were kids. We constantly tested and refined the art of "ding-dong ditching". For example, we sometimes saved up enough dog doo to spread around the drivers side door of any given car, spread so far around the car door that the person would have to step in the doo to get into the car.

Random humor: The following is an excerpt of the adventures of the Myers boys:

Wesley (after knocking on strangers door): umm hello?

Stranger: uh hi

Wesley: *looks oddly at person* hi....

Wary stranger: yes?

Wes: what do you mean yes?

Even warier stranger: you knocked on my door?

Wes: umm, no, you knocked on my door.

Confused stranger: no, this is my door, you knocked on my door. What do you want?

Wes: no, I swear you knocked on my door. Why did you knock if you didn't need anything?
Peeved stranger: NO! YOU knocked on MY door!! DON'T knock on MY door if you don't need anything!
Wes: Haha, I'm afraid the joke's on you ma'am. Because, after all, this is my door.
Ticked stranger: *slams door in face*
Wes: *knock knock*
Now pretty-much-a-hater stranger: STOP KNOCKING ON MY DOOR!
Wes: no, this would be my...*door slams*...
Quentin talking to Wes one minute later, and across the street: Wow! New record! A total of 1 minute, and 36 seconds! Good job!

And finally, humor that leads to insanity: I know a man. He loves puns. Too much. To the extent of over-using-the-same-pun-to-the-point-of-total-insanity. Examples (with the name changed to protect the innocent):

Family member: Hey Fenwick, can you pass the grapes?
Fenwick: would that be just...grape?!?!?! Get it?!?!? It sounds JUST like the word "great"! HAHA! HAHA! ha! haaaaaaaaa....

Family member: Hey Fenwick, can you put some sloppy joe meat on that bun?
Fenwick: Ok, just don't get too sloppy with it! *starts grinning real big and looking at the faces of family members for reactions*


Cheers until next time
Wes

The Zombie Apocalypse: My Thoughts

When I started my blog, I said that the first three people to follow my blog get to choose a topic for me to blog about. Based on a first-come first-serve basis, I guess that the first topic I blog about will be Tyler's request: my thoughts on the zombie apocalypse, or anything biblical.

I was lost when he said "zombie apocalypse". I had never heard of such a thing (the sheltered child that I am). So I turned to a trusted friend, a help in the times of need, one called "Wikipedia". According to the all-knowing web-site, a zombie apocalypse is described as " In a zombie apocalypse, a widespread rise of zombies hostile to human life engages in a general assault on civilization. In some mythologies, victims of zombies may become zombies themselves if they are bitten by zombies; in others, everyone who dies, whatever the cause, becomes one of the undead. In either scenario, this causes the outbreak to become an exponentially growing crisis: the spreading "zombie plague" swamps normal military and law enforcement organizations, leading to the panicked collapse of civilian society until only isolated pockets of survivors remain, scavenging for food and supplies in a world reduced to a pre-industrial hostile wilderness. The day that the zombie apocalypse begins is sometimes known...as Z-Day."

Quite shocking I say, but let not your heart be troubled. Because according to several sources, the possibility of anything like that happening is actually fairly great. Wait a minute, did I just say "let not your heart be troubled"? Oh, woops, my bad. The world as we know it will come to an end. Doom, despair, dejection, discouragement, and sorrow (I also broke the grammar law of alliteration in that sentence, so that has to count for extra emphasis). 

*Editors note: in the preceding silence, yours truly was nonchalantly using the john and getting some iced tea, apparently undisturbed by the previous writings. 

Anyway, quite shocking I say (*echo echo echo*). But as I sipped that wonderful tea, I started thinking about it, and noticed many allegories between this possible tragedy, and us as Christians. I thought about how we as Christians, living our normal lives have to start fighting the "undead", or our sins. Once one sin starts, it multiplies, infecting other areas of our life. Before you know it, you are faced with more sins than you can take. It wears on you, beating you down. 

And it all started with that first sin that wasn't taken care of. 

I have always thought of this subject. I realized that your spiritual life directly affects your physical life. I have read many testimonies in which people said "my life came to the tragic shape it is in right now, all because of that first sin I never took care of". Murderers. Drunks. Thieves. History's halls are carved with the names of too many of these people whose failed lives were a direct result of that "first sin". Romans 6:21 says "what fruit had ye then in those thing of which ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death." That first sin can ruin your life in more ways than you can imagine.

I found a very interesting poem that goes very well with this. It says:

"Isn't it strange that Princes and Kings
And clowns that caper in sawdust rings,
And just plain folks like you and me,
Are builders for Eternity?

To each is given a bag of tools,
A shapeless mass and a book of rules,
And each must make ere life is flown,
A stumbling block, or a stepping stone."

It's your life for Christ. What are you going to make with it?

The beginning of...the beginning...

So here I am. A new blog on the block is what I am told. You know what I say? Hot dogs are sinful. Like sinfully delicious. And I want one. In fact I want more than one. What about that automated hot dog-bringer tray on a zip-line? Wow. That would be awesome! Hot dogs anywhere in the house!...

Sorry.

So anyway, a new blog, and here's how it's gonna go. At least once per week (preferably more) I will post random thoughts, opinions, favorite videos, pictures, and all around random stuff, finished with a random despair poster. To start, I'm putting onto my new blog "comments from the peanut gallery" some descriptions that someone sent me from...(how ironic)...a peanuts bag.

To ensure freshness, arrogant scientists recommend storing nuts in abandoned tree stumps, the jowls of soft-toothed bears, or empty cassette cases. Ignore illegitimate science advice with today's Groupon: for $10, you get $25 worth of nuts, dried fruit, and more from Nutty Guys. Your order can be placed online or by phone and must be redeemed in one transaction. Shipping is not included with this deal.

You're Nuts

"Nuts" is a derogatory term for insanity and should not be used to describe a person who is actually suffering from a mental illness. Here's a look at some of the least-often diagnosed emotional disorders:

• Grand Canyon–related depression
• Maniac Mondays
• Inability to eat apple pie in the presence of Charlize Theron
• Algoraphobia (fear that Al Gore will come to your house and lick you)
• False belief that you are comedic actor Rip Taylor (only diagnosed once, incorrectly)

Be watching for more!

Wes

Summer?

First days of school have come. TV ads joyfully celebrate this dreaded occasion. Newspaper ad inserts go crazy over what they think is a big opportunity for them, touting such mad phrases as "Mattress World: your back to school headquarters!" and "go back to school on an egg!". Such joyfulness is expected to be passed on to the consumers, which actually consist of highly-annoyed-at-stupid-back-to-school-ads moms who are in any mood other than those happy-go-lucky moody mothers depicted in cheesy advertising campaigns. And I doubt that the child is half as excited as the mother, unless you're a total school freak, aka "show-off" aka "one-upper", and pretty much aka "loser".

Nonetheless, though our desire to avoid school at all costs is more rampant than ever, it is practically stuffed down our throats. Many people go into the school year saying "well, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade". But by the end of the semester they end up saying "and then the lemonade becomes bitter and hard and turns to pigswill". This however, is only the first semester. The terrible feeling that accompanies the second semester is likened to one who has drunk this terrible disaster of a drink called "lemonade" that they first concocted when the school year started, after the lemons were thrown at them.

Surprised and completely unprepared teachers come, seemingly in a daze. This is apparent by some of the assignments given at the beginning of the semester, including writing essays on "what I didn't do over the summer". Wow. What a question. For the overachievers, the answer would be "I didn't sit around all summer watching TV, posting facebook updates, playing video games, and drinking something that gave me tongue hives". For the lazy, the answer could be "I didn't become a teacher suck-up by overachieving my tush all summer with no time for fun." And for the adventurous, the answer could be "I didn't discover that if you mix clorox and brake fluid it will make a lot of smoke. At the same time, I didn't discover that it takes the local fire department four minutes and thirty-nine seconds to get to our house. But don't take my word for it."

Which brings me to an interesting question: what didn't you do this summer? Whether it's not getting to go to the beach, or not testing what appeared to be fuzzy chocolate cheesecake on steroids, I still want to know. Leave a comment, and describe in as many as three sentences what you didn't do this summer. And if you happen to be an overachiever, then don't let what I said earlier get to you, us normal people are probably just jealous.

Maybe.

First Post

Wow. First post. What an honor. What should i do with my next post?