family

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My Cell Phone Has Sent Me Into Depression

I’ve been getting a little depressed lately and the cause has to do with my cell phone. I’ve been thinking about getting a new phone but the thought of it has got me down because of what it’s going to cost me.

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To just purchase a new iPhone will cost me more money than I’ve spent on my last two iPhones put together. I realize I purchased my first iPhone 6 years ago and then my last one 3 years ago, but still! – to get a new one I will have to pay about $100 dollars more than my combined purchases so far!

That’s kind of ridiculous. And I just saw a statistic that Apple has sold 700,000 iPhones. I thought the whole idea of manufacturing was that it brings the cost down.

I’m sure there’s a good reason why the price is so high. It’s probably because they’re making the cell phones so thin now that it’s hard to get Siri to fit inside.

Somebody has to be in there to answer my questions.

But I could live with the increased cost of the phone if that was it. But no, there’s more cost involved. To get a new plan (which I have to do because they don’t offer my old plan any more), I’m going to have to pay more money and get less for it.

I’m sure they have a team of bald-headed, hairy eye-browed men wearing dark-rimmed glasses figuring out how to extract the most from us.

On a new contract, I’ll have to pay $10 more per month to get one twelfth the data that I presently have!

This is significant for me because that data is my internet connection when I’m at my cottage. If I buy a new phone I’m going to have to spend more money to get internet while I’m there.

But as bad as all this sounds, what makes it more depressing is seeing US cell phone commercials on TV.

In Canada our big phone companies pretty much own all the television networks in the country.  Instead of blocking Super Bowl commercials, they should block out those US cell phone company ads.

They are depressing the average Canadian, making us feel worse than we did from all the extreme cold and snow we faced this winter.

I don’t know if I can take it to watch another T-Mobile commercial offering unlimited talk and data to its costumers for the mere cost of $50 a month! … Our big companies don’t want to even sell you a smart phone unless your monthly plan will be at least $60 per month.

And my cell phone company wants me to share everything with other people, only I have no one to share with. My kids are on their own and my wife has a plan with her work.

Maybe Rogers would like me to adopt someone … but I looked on their website and didn’t see any profile pictures of Canadians looking to be sponsored on a monthly basis.

I’m too depressed to make a decision. I guess I’ll just keep using what I have for a while longer.

Here’s the thing: There is all kinds of pressure on you to get on board with some kind of plan for your life. God has a plan, but He won’t force you into it. Be sure that the loud voices out there, trying to sell you on their plans, don’t keep you ignoring the plan God has for you.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What pressure to conform have you found yourself under lately? Leave your comment below.

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The Cashier Read Me Like A Book

The cashier rang my purchase through and said “Cheerios and chocolate milk – nice.” I could tell by the look in her eyes that she was visualizing my breakfast meal for me.

checkout cashier

She was pretty much right on. Most days of the week my breakfast consists of a half a grapefruit and a small bowl of hot oat bran cereal. However, Saturdays I really go big with breakfast.

I indulge – I mean, I  splurge – and typically that entails my half a grapefruit, a small bowl of Chocolate Cheerios and a piece of toast with peanut butter.

The lady on the cash at Metro this morning was pretty sharp to connect the dots of my morning ritual, especially since it was still the early part of the day.

The chocolate milk was a random thing; it happened to be on sale and my wife, Lily had it on the list to buy for our son. I decided to take advantage of the sale myself, score a litre and use it with breakfast.

It’s quite possible from the way she said it that the clerk took the same combo of products home with her after her shift. Her comment had a, “hey that’s a good idea” kind of emotion to it.

And believe me, it is a great combo. The Chocolate Cheerios are a perfect balance of whole wheat goodness (I got that from a commercial, I think) and chocolatey sweetness. When you add a little chocolate milk into the mix, it enhances the flavour of the cereal, while providing a richer taste experience than just plain white milk.

I’d recommend it to you but only for occasional use. There is a sugar factor in this concoction that, by some means unknown to scientists or chemists, supercharges your blood stream with a high concentration of blood sugars.

For a lady who was going to be standing behind a cash register for several more hours, I wouldn’t be surprised if on her mid-morning break she cracked open a box of Chocolate Cheerios, drowned them in chocolate milk and allowed the energy high she got from her fix to carry her through the rest of her shift.

For me, I have to be careful that I don’t get a hypo-glycemic reaction where I get all weak and shaky when I come down from my sugar rush. Lily better have lunch planned for right at 12 noon because this morning I’m not going to last much past that time.

It’s the price I have to pay for the enjoyment of having a breakfast that tastes like something. My regular breakfast doesn’t taste like anything. The grapefruit is good and tasty, but the oat bran is on the bland side of bland.

That cashier had me all figured out with my purchases this morning … only she didn’t have a clue what my usual morning breakfast is like. It’s hardy and would keep her going throughout her whole shift, but satisfyingly tasty? – not a chance. She better choose the Cheerios.

Here’s the thing: We can read into people’s lives and guess what’s going on. Usually we don’t know if we are right or not. But we can know what God wants for us by reading His Word. We won’t be guessing what He’s thinking either; we will find His will and plans for us as we apply His scripture to our lives and circumstances.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What insight from God for your life have you discovered lately? Leave your comment below.

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A Flashback Memory

I had a flash back the other day to a memory about 30 years ago. To be fair, this memory has surfaced itself in my mind a few times over the years. But it’s still a special memory.

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Usually there is something that triggers the flashback. For me, that’s as easy as a song on the radio, or looking at an old picture.

It doesn’t take much to cause us to start to reminisce about the past. The older we get there is more to be reminded of, partly because we forget it so quickly, and partly because there are so many memories to catalogue in those brains of ours.

This memory I had the other day was definitely triggered by something. The night before I had taken my son, Mike, to a hockey game. We connect well over hockey and, being Leaf fans, there’s alway something to discuss on that front.

During the game, I mentioned that I was playing hockey in the morning and, to my surprise, he seemed a little interested. He asked me what time I played and I told him 6:30 am.

I think I saw him shutter when I said the time; let’s just say he’s not an early riser, though I remember going to 6 am midweek practices for him when he was young. I’d take him to practice and then straight to school in the morning.

To my shock, Mike said he’d come and play if there weren’t too many guys already. I checked the numbers and it worked that we could use another guy.

Now when he was a kid I would have to wake him up and get his hockey gear together. Now, however, Mike lives on his own … but that didn’t stop me from having to give him a wake up phone call, and gather his hockey bag together that he leaves at our house.

I even had to carry his gear into the arena just like way back when. But that’s not the memory.

The game was good; we made a couple of nice plays together; he scored a few pretty goals. I always had my eye on him even when I was on the ice. A couple of times I threw Mike a pass and then coasted up the ice as I watched him make a play on the net.

But that’s not when the memory came to me.

The 30 year old memory came after the game. I got home, walked through the living room, and as my feet hit the kitchen floor, I remembered thinking when I got married, “I sure hope I’m able to play hockey with my kids when they become adults.”

It was a concern of mine, a dream, a hope that has stayed with me all these years. Now he’s almost 24, I’m almost 59 and I’d say my hope and my dream is not a concern any more – it’s a reality!

Here’s the thing: My passion for hockey rubbed off on Mike, because I have consistently just kept playing the game all these years. What do you want your relationship with God to be like in five, ten years from now or even longer? May your passion for Christ keep you consistently meeting with Him so that one day your walk with Him will be what you’ve dreamed it would be … and may your passion for Christ rub off on those around you!

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What old memory or dream have you had that’s become a reality? Leave your comment below.

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Winter Time and Snow Tires

Today I’m appreciating a decision I made this winter. For the first time, I put snow tires on my car. Up to now I had no intention, no desire to do it, but circumstances helped me make the decision.

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A few years ago, I was given a set of old tires on rims but after time they were worn out.

So I had a set of good-for-nothing tires on rims just waiting to be used for something … I contemplated turning them into planters but I’m not the gardening type so I didn’t pursue that Idea.

The tires were no good but the rims were in decent shape. They were too good to use as a fire pit, so I just kept them in my garage … until this January.

Apparently, the farmers’ almanac said we were going to get lots of snow this year and I remembered that snow was in plenty supply last year as well. So I decided it was time to do what I had always been against … and that is to get snow tires.

I hadn’t driven a car with snow tires since they outlawed studs on tires back in the 70’s. I liked the clickity-clack of those studded tires as they danced along the 401, chewing up the asphalt in their wake.

Back then the answer to the removal of the studded tires was all-season radial tires. That’s what everyone bought for the longest time. I never heard of anyone putting winter tires on their car.

The only one who even advertised them was Canadian Tire and, with a name like that, you can understand why they would. But in the last ten years there has been a push to sell snow tires again.

It’s a pain because you have to store them somewhere. If you don’t have an extra set of rims you have to take them to a tire shop to have them put on and taken off.

My biggest complaint is, “What’s wrong all of a sudden with the all-season radials that we’ve used for so long?!”

I had noticed that the traction with my radials wasn’t what it used to be, but I drive a standard and the “slip-slidiness” only made driving a little more fun.

Still those rims were staring me in the face every time I entered my garage. So now I’ve been driving with snow tires on my car for the last month.

I’m not ruling out that the reason we have so much snow right now is because I got winter tires but I’m blaming the weather man – they’re used to taking the blame for every kind of inclement weather.

I have to say, I’ve been pleasantly surprised how well my car performs in the snow. I don’t spin my tires as much when the light turns green, and my car feels way more secure on the road.

And the bonus is I still have a little slip-slidiness to keep my driving interesting.

Here’s the thing: I resisted getting winter tires for years. I’ve had good excuses, like the cost, the storage, the hassle. But having snow tires is worth it. You may have some good excuses for keeping your devotional life the same, but things like making some changes, adding more time, changing up the questions you ask as you interact with scripture, will present you with a refreshed approach to meeting with God.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What changes could you make to your devotions? Leave your comment below.

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I Got Left Behind

No one likes to be left behind, to stay put while others go somewhere. It doesn’t even matter where someone is going or why; it’s the fact that they get to go while you remain that’s the issue.

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That’s what happened to me this weekend. Lily left town and I’m left to stay home.

In our relationship, I’ve mostly been the one who’s gone somewhere while Lily has been left behind.

Going anywhere has some adventure, some intrigue to it; staying home is nothing but familiar.

Sometimes we try to trick our mind so it sounds like it’s better to stay behind. We might say something like, “Oh I hear it’s really cold in Florida right now.”

That might give momentary relief, hopefully long enough until the person leaves so they don’t witness you begging to go along as their luggage.

The fact is, it doesn’t matter how rotten the temperature is in Florida, going there has two very big selling points. First, it’s adventure – you are the going person and not the left behind chump.

And secondly, it’s Florida, and we live in Canada. We have three feet of snow on our lawn … the best Florida could produce on its worst day would be something that looked like manna from Biblical times.

And that’s where Lily has gone. No, not to some Biblical times place; she’s gone to Florida.

Yes, she’s driven to Florida with her mother and sister. I saw inside the trunk and I would not want to be part of their luggage. Nor do I think I would fit in very well as a tag-a-long.

They’re better without me and I’m better to stay home. See how my mind is working hard to adjust to being left behind?

It won’t be too bad here for me. I’ll probably shovel snow a few times this week. They may only get a couple of beach days.

I get to go to work everyday this week and have some evening commitments, too. They won’t even have a schedule to keep. They may have a hard time remembering what time of day it is.

I will be eating some of the finest foods, made and cooked by Lily’s own hands, then frozen solid in the freezer, so I can easily slip them in the microwave and nuke them.

They’ll have to spend money and eat out at restaurants like Applebee’s, Bob Evans, and the Olive Garden. Well, maybe not them, but they will have to eat out.

Here in Kingston we’ve been having quite a bit of sunshine of late; you can almost feel its tanning effects on your face … or maybe that’s frostbite from the windchill effect.

It doesn’t matter. If I stay outside long enough while she is away, my skin will be just as red as hers … though I will have to be careful I’m not out too long so the tip of my nose doesn’t chip off!

Here’s the thing: God wants you to journey with Him. It is a daily invitation to walk with Him, not just on your own, and to experience your day with Him. Go with Him. The crazy thing is, you are going that way anyway. If you travel with Him, however, you’ll experience the adventure and not be left behind.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What trip do you long to take right about now? Leave your comment below.

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The World Just Got Small . . . er

 

They say the world’s a small place, that there’s not a lot of separation between all of us on this planet. I experienced this the other day.

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I now have under three hundred connections through “Linkedin” but they say that my network is over 5 million professionals. I’m not sure what that means or how that works, but just the other day I saw it in action.

Have you ever had a random encounter? I was once on a beach on Lake Huron (Sauble Beach), late in the afternoon when the normally packed beach had thinned out.

Sauntering up the beach towards us was a man who looked vaguely familiar. It turned out to be “The Great One’s” dad – that’s Wayne Gretzky’s dad, Walter, for those who don’t know hockey.

He stopped, and we chatted hockey in the middle of July on a hot, sunny day, on a beach half way up the coast of the third largest Great Lake.

But that’s nothing! I’m on my way to single-handedly prove the theory of “Six degrees of separation” to be true. The theory states that everyone is just six steps or fewer away from any other person in the world. And this is how it works …

I was out shovelling the other day with my wife. We stopped to talk to our next door neighbour at the bottom of our driveway.

Meanwhile, there was a man playing in the snow with his children, in this same neighbour’s yard, and I noted to myself that there was something familiar about him.

As we continued to talk with our neighbour, another woman came along. She and her family were staying with our neighbour for the weekend.

In our conversation, my wife, Lily, asked the visitor where she was from and she replied, “Toronto”.  Now Toronto is a big place – over 6 million people live in the GTA.

It’s not the kind of place you say, “Oh, I know someone from there. Do you know my cousin Vinny?” That’s ridiculous.

But Lily did ask another question, “What part of Toronto are you from?”  And the reply came “Etobicoke”.  That’s when I – a born and raised “Trontonian” – got into the conversation.

I casually said that I grew up in Etobicoke, more specifically Rexdale. At that a smile came over this woman’s face and she said, “We’re from Rexdale! What street did you live on?”

I was sure our game would end here. I said it was just a little, tiny dead end keyhole street …Restever Gate. Hearing that name, her eyes got really big and jumped out of her sockets about three inches before they snapped back into place.

When I saw her reaction, in a flash it all came back to me. I twirled around, pointed at the man in my neighbour’s front yard and shouted the man’s last name.

This guy grew up on the same street I did, just two doors down! Though I’m a lot older than he, I remember him as the little guy my brother and I would have fun conversations with at the end of our driveway.

Now he’s 45, and I haven’t seen him in about 38 years. We had a great chat and I can’t stop thinking about that encounter.

Here’s the thing: If you think that’s as wild a connection as I do, try this one:  you are only a prayer away from the Creator of the world, AND you can talk to Him every single day and He can be with you every moment of every day.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What amazing encounter have you had? Leave your comment below.

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What Your Freezer Reveals

Our freezer has gotten pretty full this week and it’s not that we have found all kinds of great deals on food. That would be a reasonable conclusion, but that’s slightly off the mark.

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My wife, Lily always looks for great deals on food. I’ve watched her comb the grocery store flyers that come to the house. If the flyer is from a grocery store it goes into one pile and the rest of the flyers get bunched together in another pile.

Sometimes I have to hunt for the Best Buy flyer amongst the hardware store, drug store and all the other random ads.

But not the grocery ads – they are all separated out, stacked together so that it is a smooth transition from one to the next.

Lily will shop at probably three or four grocery stores a week looking for the best deals on produce or meat or what have you.

I had a conversation once with a retired gentleman who now had some time on his hands and took on the task of shopping. He knew where I could get the best deal on grapes. I was amazed he knew that information. I just smiled and later passed the details on to Lil.

I don’t shop. Lily doesn’t even really like me to go with her. She finds things in the cart that she would never buy that adds to the bottom line and nullifies all the painstaking work of searching for deals in the flyers.

But still the freezer is getting quite full. It’s because Lily is making meals and freezing them. She’s pretty pleased about it too. You see, she’s going away for a week and she’s freezing these meals for me.

That’s right, me – the guy who’s not great with knives, nor does he work the stove or oven very well, either. However, I’m not too bad at making the microwave sizzle … thus the frozen meals.

Lily’s happy for a number of reasons. The first one being that she loves me and feels she’s taking care of her husband while being away. But close behind, on the heals of that reason, is that she doesn’t want me to eat out while she’s away.

And you might think she doesn’t want me to eat out because I’ll just be eating greasy food that’s bad for my health. No, the main reason is she doesn’t want me spending money while she’s away.

She’s making all these meals, and she’s hoping I will eat them.

You see, while she’s spending money, living it up in Florida with her mom and sister for a week, she doesn’t want me to be living it up, spending money and clogging up my arteries on some of my fast food favourites.

I realize that by writing about this I’ll have a few extra eyes on me and voices speaking her motto of “don’t eat out”.

Well, all I can say is my son is still around and he’ll probably need me to take him out for a few meals.

Here’s the thing: There is something about us that we can have what we need right before us but we still long for something else. It happens in many areas of our lives and it leads us to spend money on what we shouldn’t, expend time on the needless, commit sin that is harmful to our souls. Take stock of the resources you already have in Christ; build them up and keep your heart from wandering elsewhere.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What do you find yourself wandering to? Leave your comment below.

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Distracting Conversations

One of my weekly events this year is to take in a Kingston Frontenacs’ home game. I usually go on Friday nights; it’s mostly been a date night with my wife.

Kingston Fronts action

It’s been a pretty cheap date too … I get comp tickets because I’m the team chaplain and Lily doesn’t usually want many snacks. We park far enough away so I get a few steps in and there’s no cost for parking.

Man, I’m cheap! Most nights it doesn’t cost me a thing … I hope Lily likes the hockey and me pointing out the guys on the team who come out to chapel.

However, last night I couldn’t get complimentary tickets – the game was sold out. But I was able to pull some strings and pay for a couple of tickets they made available at the last minute.

And since our daughter, Karlie, was in town on a day off, I took her.

There was lots of hype for the game. The number one draft pick in this spring’s NHL draft was going to be on the ice. I guess this 18 year old is filling up rinks in every city he plays in.

The night before, his team, the Erie Otters, were in Peterborough and they had their biggest attendance all year.

It was going to be a good game; I was really looking forward to it. Our seats were at the top of the arena and there was standing room directly behind us.

During the first period there were two women and a man talking rather loudly, not about hockey, but about their work. Personnel issues seemed to be on the highlight reel of their conversation.

I didn’t look behind me but I sensed by the way they were talking, they weren’t even looking at the game. At one point I overheard the following:

“Who are you cheering for?”

“Who’s playing?”

“Kingston and some other team.”

“I guess I’ll cheer for the other team.”

Give me a break! They were standing so close to me and talking so loudly that I could keep up with their play-by-play better that the play that was on the ice.

Fortunately, after the first period the corporate firm moved somewhere else and we didn’t have to suffer through a second period of listening to their possible sales forecast for the next six months.

I’m not sure how they got tickets or why they were even at the game, but since tickets were so scarce, I know there were more deserving souls who would have appreciated what was happening on the ice.

At least for me, it was a good time with my daughter, and you have to take advantage of those times when you can.

In contrast to the first period business commentary, we got to chat between periods with an NHL scout, who kept the conversation about hockey.

Here’s the thing: Spending time with God is so important and we may, with good intentions, want to add to that time to make it even richer. However, we need to be careful that we don’t add things that will complicate or distract from our time with God. For the most part, we need a Bible and a journal to record what God tells us. Reading devotionals and other things, though they can help, can also distract us by getting us focussed on their commentary instead of God’s Word.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What commonly distracts you when you’re spending time with God? Leave your comment below.

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A Week Of Eating Out

I don’t know how single guys do it – I’d be broke and weigh about 500 pounds if I wasn’t married.  I’d never think about it though, if it wasn’t for a week like this past one.

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Reality set in Friday night. I don’t go away all that often, and Lily goes away on her own even less, but this past week we were both away … separately.

I had some meetings in the Toronto area Tuesday and Wednesday, and Lily had work meetings in Montreal Wednesday to Friday.

The hard part was figuring out our vehicle situation because number one son also needed a car for parts of the week. But once that was settled, we were all good.

… Except for the food thing.

While I was away, I was eating meals brought into our meetings and going out to restaurants. When I got home, Lily was gone so it was just eating out at restaurants for me.

Lil said something to Mike our son about checking in with Dad around dinner time and his comment was, “Ya, I guess he won’t be cooking”.

He had that right. I make a mean hot oat bran cereal in the morning, but past that my skills and desire fall pretty flat.

So over the week I had pizza twice, subs once, fajitas once, hamburgers twice, a hotdog, and of course, I had hot wings.

I almost fasted over lunch one day. I had played hockey at noon and missed lunch. I almost thought I didn’t need anything, but when I was nearing Harvey’s, I got a hankering for a hotdog.

So the craziest thing happened – the car just automatically turned into the parking lot and parked itself. It was just like one of those Ford car commercials where they let go of the steering wheel and the car takes over and parks.

I just had to go in then!

You can see that if this was a regular pattern of eating for me, my weight would skyrocket and I would be burning the strip right off my debit card.

Though I might not get that far, according to my doctor my cholesterol would soar, and my arteries would clog up like putting a drain stopper in a sink.

I have to be careful, and I’m glad that Lil’s now home and I’m getting good healthy meals … well except for tonight – it’s Saturday night and there’s a hockey game on.

You know what that means: it’s hot wings and a Dr. Pepper . . . mmm  . . .  I can feel by blood pressure on the rise just thinking about it.

I know what you’re thinking: Paul needs an intervention. But listen, it’s only one week, and I’ll be back to eating carrots, broccoli and almonds for lunches before you even get to read this.

That’s right, I’ll be back saving money and getting slim. I just have to finish off that darn candy sitting around the house from Christmas.

Here’s the thing: There are all kinds of interruptions that come into our day, our week, our life. They get us off track from taking time with God. Don’t let them permanently derail you. Don’t get down because you missed a few days. Just start today and get yourself back into the groove of taking that regular time with God. He’s waiting for you, and He’s not going to beat you up about missing some days. He’s happy to have you back spending time with Him.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What patterns do you fall into when you fall out of routine? Leave your comment below.

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I’m Not A Games Person

We have a cupboard in our family room that’s brimming with games, but my family is not a games family. We’ve tried to be a games family over the years …

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When our kids were little we played games. Everyone was happy when playing … except one family member if he wasn’t winning.

It never went well when that scenario was in play.

Every family has one person who has a tough time losing, or, in this day and age, we should probably say “underwhelming in his game potential”.

Well, we might not say that, but we have to use some term to avoid, not point out, or shed any light on the fact that someone lost. We wouldn’t want anyone to think that they didn’t win.

We’re not a games family because we only have one games person in the family and it’s Lily.

Lily is up for any kind of game: board games, tile games, activity games, even puzzles. Puzzles are her favourite. And puzzles are probably the least loved activity by the rest of the family.

She builds them alone.

So when we have company over, Lily usually suggests we play a game. Often I can talk her out of it. But the last time we had guests over she really pressed for us to play a game and, going against my better judgement, I conceded to her wishes.

It was like I lost the game of trying to get out of playing a game. So I knew that things would not go well.

We had several guests so we played an activity game – a game where you act out words for you team, and they have to guess what you are acting out. The game is called “Guesstures”.

Somehow the non-gamer got to bring the game out and set it up. At that point, I think Lil was just rubbing it in that she won and I … well, I don’t even want to say the word but I’ll tell you I sensed I had a large “L” on my forehead.

So we played, and it was the girls against the guys, which in my thinking sets up the girls to win in this kind of game. Women are more expressive and freer in their body movement than most men which gives them a decided advantage.

We are just not that flexible or demonstrative.

So we played the game and to my great surprise the guys were holding their own through the first three rounds. Then it was my turn.

With all the pressure on me, and feelings just below the surface of “I really don’t like playing these games”, I played to my underwhelmed potential. I got one point out of a possible 12.

Oh ya, that game isn’t coming out again for a long time!

The next few rounds went not too badly for the guys. They had to dig us out of the hole I got us into. In the end we pulled it off and beat the girls.

That’s right, we won. You can say you won, you just can’t say they lost. Oh, I guess I said that too. The girls lost.

Here’s the thing: When it comes to developing a relationship with God, if that’s not something you are good at, or have a hard time staying committed to, then get some help from a friend, or mentor. You’ll find that assistance can make developing a relationship with God a winning experience.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What could you use a little help in accomplishing? Leave your comment below.