feeding the hungry

I think I want to help solve the problem of world hunger. So I am looking into opportunities to get involved with City Harvest.

It seems silly that people would go hungry in a country with so much food.

nature

An earthquake and hurricane in NYC in the same week. I wonder what the city did to piss off Mother Nature. We survived the quake with minimal disruption but Hurricane Irene appears to be bringing more inconvenience and destruction.

We live in lower Manhattan in Zone A which has been given a mandatory evacuation order. Although we are nervous we have decided to stay home and wait out the storm. Our neighbors are also hunkering down so we'll be able to stick together if things get particularly bad.

We have plenty of food, water, candles, batteries, flashlights and are ready to deal with a power outage. We have taped up our windows and are filling up our tub for flushing the toilet. We checked in with our family and friends and are watching the latest developments on the news. Our Go Bag is packed and ready.

This morning I took my doggie for one last walk to Battery Park - the area that they think will surely flood as soon as we begin to feel the beginning of the storm. It was empty, the only people I saw were news casters and tourists who obviously still didn't understand what was coming. I experienced a strange sense of peace while walking along the water - perhaps this is what they refer to as the calm before the storm?

NYC is experiencing an unprecedented preparedness for Irene. Subways, buses, and trains are about to be shut down citywide. Mayor Bloomberg ordered the first ever city evacuation for a hurricane. Evacuations for hospitals in the low lying areas were completed yesterday.

I am about to bake some chocolate chip cookies so we have some freshly baked goodies to provide some comfort during the storm.

I know we will survive this but I expect to feel the normal range of emotions that one experiences during natural disasters. Throughout the last day or so, I can't help remembering the Northridge Earthquake of 1994 in Southern California that I lived through when I was almost 10 years old.

To everyone on the eastern coastline, be safe and stay indoors and we'll all come out OK on the other side of this.

timing

We all know the phrase timing is everything. The reason we all know it, is because it is true.

Today I witnessed the results of ill timed actions, rather, no action until it was too late. We all experience this in one way or another, big and small. in our personal lives and at our jobs. I don't want to go into details but this is the reason that this topic is on my mind.

My impatience sometimes overrides my desire to pose questions at the right time (in the right tone) and the art of waiting for the right moment to ask for (and get) what you want.

I strive to be the right mix of sensitive, inquisitive, persuasive and kind when I converse and interact with people . I have to work on my timing. I often feel like I interrupt and am too quick to answer. I am working on being a better listener and more patient and wait for just the right moment.

success

Everyone wants to be successful right? Well, maybe not everyone, but I do. But, I couldn't tell you why exactly but I think it is important. Maybe I only think I want to be successful? How do you tell the difference?

Sometimes I feel that other people can say things more eloquently than I so this post will affectionately be referred to as "a quote post" where I lean on the brilliance of others to enhance my own writing.

A discovery is said to be an accident meeting a prepared mind.

Albert Szent-Gyorgyi (1893 - 1986)

This quote makes me feel good because I am always prepared so perhaps primed for discovery as well? Discovery of my purpose?

To follow, without halt, one aim: There's the secret of success.

Anna Pavlova (1885 - 1931)

I agree. I want one singular driving passion - but if I don't have it now, is it likely to dawn on me in the future? I am afraid if I don't have it yet, I may never discover it...

Of course there is no formula for success except perhaps an unconditional acceptance of life and what it brings.

Arthur Rubinstein (1886 - 1982)

Wow. OK, well if being successful means accepting life as it is, I could do that. I am trying to enjoy life each day. Maybe enjoying life is my life's purpose? Seems a little shallow...but perhaps the key to happiness?

I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody.

Bill Cosby (1937 - )

I often feel the need to please people and I also often act on it. I need to continue to live for myself first and then for others and recognize life isn't ab

The person who makes a success of living is the one who see his goal steadily and aims for it unswervingly. That is dedication.

Cecil B. DeMille (1881 - 1959)

I want to be a success at living. I need to work on living better.

There is only one success - to be able to spend your life in your own way.

Christopher Morley (1890 - 1957)

What is my own way?

jericho

I just finished watching the short lived TV series, Jericho. I highly recommend watching the 29 episodes on Netflix streaming - I can't believe I didn't watch this show when it was on. The show is about what happens to the USA after nuclear bombs take out 23 major cities, killing over 10 million people and destroying most of the land. The series revolves around a fictional small town in Kansas, called Jericho, where the residents witness the mushroom cloud of the Denver, CO nuke and have to deal with the aftermath of these attacks.

Those who survived are forced to rebuild from scratch, finding food, energy and water and battling against enemies to protect what's left of their homes. At the core of this show is the notion that catastrophes can bring out the best or worst in people. When I watch stuff like this, I can't help but wonder how I would react in these types of situations. Would I be courageous and act with honesty and integrity or would I let my fear get the best of me and make the wrong choices? I'd like to think I would do the right thing, but I believe that we really don't know how we will react until we are faced with disaster.

When certain events change the course of life as we know it, many things just no longer matter. If I survive a nuclear attack or some other apocalyptic disaster in my lifetime, I will strive to become a leader so I can help rebuild society. In fact, I would say this is the only way that I could possibly become President.

I'm glad that I know what I want to be if/when the world ends. Maybe it will be later this year, on October 21st, the date of the rescheduled Rapture.