Task: Go to a concert today! And listen to some bands you've never heard of before.
Okay, so I totally picked this task because it was the day of HeavenFest! For those of you who never heard of this, its a Christian music and worship festival that people from all walks of life go to and worship God. I haven't been to a lot of concerts before, but this was definitely the best concert I ever seen! I camped out the night before and after and I even volunteered to get a free ticket. Without much detail, I enjoyed the best day of the summer with some awesome friends! Here are some numbers you might find interesting to know about the concert and why it was so much fun:
Over 70 bands played in that one day on 7 different stages!
Over 35,000 people came out including over 150 people getting baptized.
There was also a worship tent that went for 40 hours long nonstop! Wow
And I got a great tan too! Haha overall, I give the day on a scale of one to 10 a 1,000 without exaggeration. Next year, I plan to bring my whole family there to see for themselves how awesome it was!
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Day 41
Task: Keeping too many material possessions can be a problem. Today throw something you like away.
This was quite a difficult task, I like all of my things... I wouldn't have gotten them if I felt otherwise. But I figure if they are really that important to me that I can't part with it, I must have a problem. Growing up in an upper-middle class home with two great parents has been nothing but a God given blessing. I did nothing to deserve any of the things I have, and I am completely aware of that. And after getting myself in this mindset, I decided that I was ready to throw away something that I have been clinging to for the past three years... the 1000+ songs I kept in my iPod. I have only truly liked about 300 of them and I decided that I was a different person after a point and those songs were of my past. So, I cleaned them all off and plan to start again with a clean slate. It felt really good and I'm excited to see the new songs that will eventually fill it to fit the new me. :)
This was quite a difficult task, I like all of my things... I wouldn't have gotten them if I felt otherwise. But I figure if they are really that important to me that I can't part with it, I must have a problem. Growing up in an upper-middle class home with two great parents has been nothing but a God given blessing. I did nothing to deserve any of the things I have, and I am completely aware of that. And after getting myself in this mindset, I decided that I was ready to throw away something that I have been clinging to for the past three years... the 1000+ songs I kept in my iPod. I have only truly liked about 300 of them and I decided that I was a different person after a point and those songs were of my past. So, I cleaned them all off and plan to start again with a clean slate. It felt really good and I'm excited to see the new songs that will eventually fill it to fit the new me. :)
Day 40
Task: Today write the opening sentence of your first bestselling novel.
This idea came to me when I went to a seminar for young writers. They talked about how much the first page, the first sentence even, can determine how popular your book will get. So, I thought to myself what my book would be about. And may I say, I had some crippling writer's block. It brought me back to the days of high school English when we had to write reports and essays and I never knew how to get started. I don't see myself as a writer even though I enjoy creative writing like poetry. This was a challenge. But I love a good challenge! So I kept pressing on. And here's the best one I came up with:
"There he stood, a shadow of the man he once was, a man he would never be again."
Whew! That was the product of over three hours in front of the comuputer and to be honest, I have no clue where I managed to dig it up in the first place. But hey, I found it interesting and am very proud of myself for coming up with this. This definitely opened my eyes to a tiny piece of what authors must go through when writing a novel. Now, I don't normally do this but I want to share my favorite opening sentences I've read in novels as a special sign-off. See if you know any of them yourself:
"Call me Ishmael."
"Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anybody else, these pages must show."
"124 was spiteful."
"Ships at a distance have every man's wish on board."
"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife."
This idea came to me when I went to a seminar for young writers. They talked about how much the first page, the first sentence even, can determine how popular your book will get. So, I thought to myself what my book would be about. And may I say, I had some crippling writer's block. It brought me back to the days of high school English when we had to write reports and essays and I never knew how to get started. I don't see myself as a writer even though I enjoy creative writing like poetry. This was a challenge. But I love a good challenge! So I kept pressing on. And here's the best one I came up with:
"There he stood, a shadow of the man he once was, a man he would never be again."
Whew! That was the product of over three hours in front of the comuputer and to be honest, I have no clue where I managed to dig it up in the first place. But hey, I found it interesting and am very proud of myself for coming up with this. This definitely opened my eyes to a tiny piece of what authors must go through when writing a novel. Now, I don't normally do this but I want to share my favorite opening sentences I've read in novels as a special sign-off. See if you know any of them yourself:
"Call me Ishmael."
"Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anybody else, these pages must show."
"124 was spiteful."
"Ships at a distance have every man's wish on board."
"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife."
Day 39
Task: Create and record an infomercial selling a product you made up!
For those of us who have stayed up past Letterman/Leno or any other late-night tv shows, we know what infomercials are. They are almost always setted in a kitchen or a gym and aim to sell you something you don't already have by convincing you that you need it. Take the ShamWow commercials, they take a rag and clean up 2 liters worth of soda out of a bowl. I admit its pretty cool, but I'm not that big of a klutz that I would spill an entire bottle of soda. And it seems that every single infomercial I watch formed an agreement that they will all sell their product for $19.95 +shipping and handling (usually around $8). Not that it matters but, why not just round up to $20? What are we gonna do with that nickel we save? Haha.
So I decided to create a product of my own! It's called Hottrod and its a mix between a spatula and a dumbbell! I figure that I would mix the two worlds together and do a kitchenware/fitness infomercial! So, half of the time, I was in the kitchen flipping stuff with one end of the Hottrod and the other half I spent in my homemade gym in my basement and lifting the other end of it with a weight! And what was the price? $20.05. Ha! I wonder if that price may catch on at some point. We had to run a lot of takes to get it right, because when I goof up on a line I make weird faces and can't use the footage. But in my opinion, the bloopers were the very best part of this task! I saved my blooper footage and plan to watch it next time I get down...
For those of us who have stayed up past Letterman/Leno or any other late-night tv shows, we know what infomercials are. They are almost always setted in a kitchen or a gym and aim to sell you something you don't already have by convincing you that you need it. Take the ShamWow commercials, they take a rag and clean up 2 liters worth of soda out of a bowl. I admit its pretty cool, but I'm not that big of a klutz that I would spill an entire bottle of soda. And it seems that every single infomercial I watch formed an agreement that they will all sell their product for $19.95 +shipping and handling (usually around $8). Not that it matters but, why not just round up to $20? What are we gonna do with that nickel we save? Haha.
So I decided to create a product of my own! It's called Hottrod and its a mix between a spatula and a dumbbell! I figure that I would mix the two worlds together and do a kitchenware/fitness infomercial! So, half of the time, I was in the kitchen flipping stuff with one end of the Hottrod and the other half I spent in my homemade gym in my basement and lifting the other end of it with a weight! And what was the price? $20.05. Ha! I wonder if that price may catch on at some point. We had to run a lot of takes to get it right, because when I goof up on a line I make weird faces and can't use the footage. But in my opinion, the bloopers were the very best part of this task! I saved my blooper footage and plan to watch it next time I get down...
Day 38
Task: Generosity day. Be generous to those around you.
We all have those days, when we feel so great that we do little things to make everyone else's day better. We tip the waitress more than 20%, we let every car pass in front of us on the highway, we give our loose change to the homeless man on the side of the street with the cardboard sign... basically, we try to be nice to other people in hopes that they will be happy and that we had something to do with it.
So here's what I did. It's kind of small, but I believe it may have had an impact on at least 3 people, and you'll see why. I went to the local fast food restaurant drive-thru to order some lunch for myself. I was just getting ready to pay for my food when I saw the minivan of screaming children in the backseat. And the mother had such a worn out look on her that I pulled a $20 bill out of my wallet and gave it to the cashier. "Tell the car behind me that I got this one", I said. She smiled and said, "I will." Now, I didn't wait around to see her face but somehow I knew that my little act probably made her day a little brighter.
If people were a bit more generous toward each other, we wouldn't have things like greed and hate or even war. Not saying my little act brought world peace, but everything we do has a domino effect. So go out and make someone's day a little brighter, and you'll soon find that when you make someone else happy... you become even more happy!
We all have those days, when we feel so great that we do little things to make everyone else's day better. We tip the waitress more than 20%, we let every car pass in front of us on the highway, we give our loose change to the homeless man on the side of the street with the cardboard sign... basically, we try to be nice to other people in hopes that they will be happy and that we had something to do with it.
So here's what I did. It's kind of small, but I believe it may have had an impact on at least 3 people, and you'll see why. I went to the local fast food restaurant drive-thru to order some lunch for myself. I was just getting ready to pay for my food when I saw the minivan of screaming children in the backseat. And the mother had such a worn out look on her that I pulled a $20 bill out of my wallet and gave it to the cashier. "Tell the car behind me that I got this one", I said. She smiled and said, "I will." Now, I didn't wait around to see her face but somehow I knew that my little act probably made her day a little brighter.
If people were a bit more generous toward each other, we wouldn't have things like greed and hate or even war. Not saying my little act brought world peace, but everything we do has a domino effect. So go out and make someone's day a little brighter, and you'll soon find that when you make someone else happy... you become even more happy!
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Day 37
Task: Tonight, try to control your dreams. Some people believe that our everyday thoughts can seep into our subconscious and in our dreams. It's your job to find out!
Okay, so I know I've been MIA with these blogs. I had some trouble accessing my page and posting. But no worries! I'll have them all for you to read now!
Dreams are a very strange state of being. I never really thought that you could possibly control them because I thought they were just your imagination gone wild. Mine certainly are. So I did a little research about what people do to control their dreams. Apparently, there is a name for the state of dreaming in your sleep when you can do it called lucid dreaming. And according to the lucid dreamers, its right when you enter the deepest sleep called REM sleep. It's also pretty easy to try and control your dreams and I found a few steps to achieving dream control:
1. Dream recall- you have to be able to remember what you dreamt.
2. Reality testing- try and look for parts in your dream that aren't normal.
3. Dreamsigns- ask yourself if there are any signs you're dreaming.
4. Test your powers- try and do something you normally wouldn't be able to do in real life.
So, with these four steps in mind, I went ahead and decided to take a nap so I could get some practice before tonight. I did actually have a dream and remembered most of it. But of course since my dreams don't make much sense, I have to say I couldn't remember the order in which they happened. But in my dream, I was still living in my old house where I grew up. I figured that was my reality test and it was also a sign I was dreaming because I haven't lived there in almost 5 years. So, my power test was pretty small but I tried to look at myself in the mirror. And no matter how much I tried, I couldn't look into my reflection's eyes. It was pretty cool and also weird at the same time. Now, I am not going to look in a dream dictionary and try to figure out what that means, mostly because I don't think most dreams can be interpreted. So, I woke up and wrote my dream down and went on with my day.
Later that night, I did this again, but this time I tried to push myself to think about a topic right before going to bed in hopes that it would appear in my dream. And it was my former classmate Jason*, who I was hoping to dream about. I promise it isn't what you're thinking, I didn't like him. He was one of those people who doesn't have a conscience or cares about anyone but himself. So, I thought really hard about him. And when I started dreaming, he actually showed up! But the strange part was, in my dream I was about to tell him off and say how much I didn't like him, when all of a sudden he started crying. It was beyond strange because I've never seen him show emotion that way. So, I went up to him and asked him why he was so sad and he told me his family kicked him out of the house and he was homeless. Now this is the strange part, in my dream I felt so bad that I offered him to come and stay in my house! I couldn't believe what I was saying because I came there to yell at him and now I was offering him to live with me!
Wow, my mind=blown. And I think once we got to my house and my parents put him in my basement, my brain couldn't take anymore and I woke up. Haha. I'd be lying if I told you I didn't go into my basement to check if he was there... he wasn't, of course.
Dreaming all day was a great way for me to relax and I seriously felt like I could focus more on what was going on in real life because of that. I think that eventually, I'm going to try and dream myself doing something out-of-this-world amazing! Like maybe I'll try to fly! That may take a while but if you ever wanted to be able to control what you dream about, go for it! It's tons of fun and you can do it in your sleep. Best of luck, readers!
Okay, so I know I've been MIA with these blogs. I had some trouble accessing my page and posting. But no worries! I'll have them all for you to read now!
Dreams are a very strange state of being. I never really thought that you could possibly control them because I thought they were just your imagination gone wild. Mine certainly are. So I did a little research about what people do to control their dreams. Apparently, there is a name for the state of dreaming in your sleep when you can do it called lucid dreaming. And according to the lucid dreamers, its right when you enter the deepest sleep called REM sleep. It's also pretty easy to try and control your dreams and I found a few steps to achieving dream control:
1. Dream recall- you have to be able to remember what you dreamt.
2. Reality testing- try and look for parts in your dream that aren't normal.
3. Dreamsigns- ask yourself if there are any signs you're dreaming.
4. Test your powers- try and do something you normally wouldn't be able to do in real life.
So, with these four steps in mind, I went ahead and decided to take a nap so I could get some practice before tonight. I did actually have a dream and remembered most of it. But of course since my dreams don't make much sense, I have to say I couldn't remember the order in which they happened. But in my dream, I was still living in my old house where I grew up. I figured that was my reality test and it was also a sign I was dreaming because I haven't lived there in almost 5 years. So, my power test was pretty small but I tried to look at myself in the mirror. And no matter how much I tried, I couldn't look into my reflection's eyes. It was pretty cool and also weird at the same time. Now, I am not going to look in a dream dictionary and try to figure out what that means, mostly because I don't think most dreams can be interpreted. So, I woke up and wrote my dream down and went on with my day.
Later that night, I did this again, but this time I tried to push myself to think about a topic right before going to bed in hopes that it would appear in my dream. And it was my former classmate Jason*, who I was hoping to dream about. I promise it isn't what you're thinking, I didn't like him. He was one of those people who doesn't have a conscience or cares about anyone but himself. So, I thought really hard about him. And when I started dreaming, he actually showed up! But the strange part was, in my dream I was about to tell him off and say how much I didn't like him, when all of a sudden he started crying. It was beyond strange because I've never seen him show emotion that way. So, I went up to him and asked him why he was so sad and he told me his family kicked him out of the house and he was homeless. Now this is the strange part, in my dream I felt so bad that I offered him to come and stay in my house! I couldn't believe what I was saying because I came there to yell at him and now I was offering him to live with me!
Wow, my mind=blown. And I think once we got to my house and my parents put him in my basement, my brain couldn't take anymore and I woke up. Haha. I'd be lying if I told you I didn't go into my basement to check if he was there... he wasn't, of course.
Dreaming all day was a great way for me to relax and I seriously felt like I could focus more on what was going on in real life because of that. I think that eventually, I'm going to try and dream myself doing something out-of-this-world amazing! Like maybe I'll try to fly! That may take a while but if you ever wanted to be able to control what you dream about, go for it! It's tons of fun and you can do it in your sleep. Best of luck, readers!
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Day 36
Task: Give up one electronic device for the entire day.
NOOOOOO!!!!!!! Please? Anything but that! I can't live without my computer or my cell phone!
Yeah, yeah, yeah I know what you're thinking. What's the big deal? Its only for a day and it only says one device. But here's the problem, I don't know which one is more important to me. Then, I decided when I woke up this morning that the first thing I go to check will be what I gave up for the day. And guess what? It was internet (facebook to be exact). But before I turned my laptop on, I realized what today was and forced myself to back away from the laptop. It was the hardest thing I ever had to do today. My younger sister joked that I must be addicted to the internet because I can honestly tell you I was facing withdrawal symptoms that I didn't know I could have. I was extremely jittery, anxious, and--to be perfectly honest-- I was kept having the itch to just give up and go back to the computer! Wow. Talk about crazy, huh? So, I mustered up enough strength to give it up for the rest of the day until around 10 o'clock... by then, I was on the verge of a mental breakdown!
Even though I was uncomfortable the whole day and didn't experience that much joy in giving up my internet, I realized that after the first few hours that it was very liberating to not have to check my email or facebook every twenty minutes (OK, that's an exaggeration but you know what I mean). So now its your turn! Turn off the television, leave behind your phone if you can... or be like me and step away from the computer so that you can experience life without them! Best of luck :)
NOOOOOO!!!!!!! Please? Anything but that! I can't live without my computer or my cell phone!
Yeah, yeah, yeah I know what you're thinking. What's the big deal? Its only for a day and it only says one device. But here's the problem, I don't know which one is more important to me. Then, I decided when I woke up this morning that the first thing I go to check will be what I gave up for the day. And guess what? It was internet (facebook to be exact). But before I turned my laptop on, I realized what today was and forced myself to back away from the laptop. It was the hardest thing I ever had to do today. My younger sister joked that I must be addicted to the internet because I can honestly tell you I was facing withdrawal symptoms that I didn't know I could have. I was extremely jittery, anxious, and--to be perfectly honest-- I was kept having the itch to just give up and go back to the computer! Wow. Talk about crazy, huh? So, I mustered up enough strength to give it up for the rest of the day until around 10 o'clock... by then, I was on the verge of a mental breakdown!
Even though I was uncomfortable the whole day and didn't experience that much joy in giving up my internet, I realized that after the first few hours that it was very liberating to not have to check my email or facebook every twenty minutes (OK, that's an exaggeration but you know what I mean). So now its your turn! Turn off the television, leave behind your phone if you can... or be like me and step away from the computer so that you can experience life without them! Best of luck :)
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)