The Hot Topic - Thoughts on the Zimmeman case

So It seems these days everyone is talking about the Trayvon Martin ruling.  I have really been listening and contemplating both sides of the argument and here is what I have decided.  Let me start by saying that no parent should ever have to lose their child.  I really cannot imagine the devastation that the parents feel.

There are 2 separate issues that I really see rearing their ugly head in this trial:  racism and gun control.  So I will spend the rest of the post examining why our country is so divided on both of these subject.  Now I am about as white as they come and I think that my viewpoint may not even matter to some based solely on that reasoning

Racism:  When I take race completely out of the equation and just think about a young man acting sketchy and place myself in the role of George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watchman, I think I too would be compelled to figure out what is going on with the young man.  If the man then struck me and proceeded to pummel me I too would be scared for my life and if I thought I was going to be harmed and possibly lose my life I too would stand my ground.  Now that is the premise that the courtroom has come to the decision that happened.  If this truly is what happened then I think there should be no argument on George Zimmerman's actions that night.  Some of the other arguments have been that there was racial profiling that happened that night.  Now without knowing the heart of the witnesses I cannot positively say that occurred or not.  I do know that if I was asked to describe a black man I would describe him as a black man.  Likewise if Trayvon Martin would have been white I would have described him as a white man.  That isn't racial profiling, that is just a description.  I heard one account from a protest of the Zimmerman trial where someone was quoted as saying "I'm here because our children can't even walk on the streets without fearing for their lives."  I don't think that Trayvon Martin was shot for walking down the streets or should have been scared to do so, but when you attack someone and don't expect them to stand their ground that is much different than just walking down the street.  I agree with the protesters quote that no child should have to fear for their lives while just walking down the street, but in the courtrooms assessment that is not what happened.  I am sure that racial profiling still does happen, but in this case the evidence doesn't seem to substantiate that claim.

Gun Control:  Now this is a bit more difficult to think about.  Where do we draw the line?  At what point am I in the right to act in self defense?  Do I really need to have my head bashed into the pavement before I can say I am getting my butt kicked, I need to do something about this or I might end up dead?  I have my conceal/carry license, but I would never once think about pulling out my firearm unless I felt a significant amount of fear for my life or for the life of those I love.  We just recently watched a story of a woman who had her child stolen out of her shopping basket and held at knife point.  This happened at a grocery store that my wife shops at frequently.    Eventually the man responsible was shot in the head by authorities.  I have pondered over the last few days what I would have done if I was the mother in the situation and if it were my child I would not have hesitated to put down the person threatening harm to my child with the weapon at the childs neck, regardless of their skin color.  I don't care if you are black, white, red, or yellow, the fact is no one is going to bring harm to my daughters.  I wonder if I had of done that what the media reaction would have been?  Could it have turned into another Trayvon Martin situation?  Who knows? 

I have no ill will for any race, but I think that sometimes we need to just look at situations without race being a factor and just look at the facts.  If the facts point towards someone being guilty they probably are and if the facts seem to indicate they are innocent they probably are.

Just my take.

More Social Experiments (5 &6)

So its been a while since I have done some social experiments or even thought about conducting a social experiment but I have thought of a few.  I am relatively sure that I will do the first one and I am not sure if I am mean enough to do the last one, but I would love to be there if someone wants to do the last one.

Experiment 5 - "The Poke Test"

The Test : So just today I was on my phone and admiring the new changes that have been to the facebook app and for some reason the "Poke" button seems to be much more evident than it has been in the past.  Now keep in mind I have been subscribed to Facebook since April 1, 2006 and never once have I ever Poked someone.  So rather than poke just a few people I think it would be funny to poke every single one of my 300 friends and record the results.  I would like to do this on 3 different intervals and just see what happens:

Expectations:  I think that about 1/3 will either poke back and/or make a comment somehow.  The second poke maybe a few more pokes/comment and by the third time I am pretty sure some will be asking me to stop.  Im laughing out loud just thinking about doing this.

Results:  TBD



Experiment 6 - "The Groceries Test"

The Test:  A few week back Amy had asked me to pick up some groceries at the store.  I agreed not knowing what I was getting myself into.  I filled up a grocery cart full of groceries.  The end receipt was around $220.   As I was taking my groceries out of the basket and placing them on the assembly line I kept thinking to myself wouldnt it be funny if I got to the very end of my groceries after I was almost checked out and just walked away?  Dont take the groceries or anything just walk away.  This would be an incredibly cruel joke to play and as a former cashier I am not sure I could do it, but I would love to see someone do it.

Expectations:  I would expect the cashier that is conducting the checkout would be very confused going as far as to look for the individual that left all the groceries on hand.  I am sure some would laugh it off, others might not be as happy about the joke  I wouldnt wanna hang around too much if you do this and I am not sure if I can even condone it, but t could be really funny.

Results:  TBD

My How Time Flies

Wow.  Cant believe that my last entry was so long ago.  I am pretty embarrassed to have not blogged in so long.  Honestly I have just been so incredibly busy that it has been hard to keep up with anything.  Here are a few thoughts to summarize my life at this moment:

1.  Amy and I are having another girl!!  I cant wait to see Kaitlyn get to see her baby sis for the very first time.  It has been a rough pregnancy for her, but she has handled it like a champ.  I am so blessed to have her in my life and so thankful for my (soon to be) 2 daughters that she has provided me with.

2.  Year 1 of youth ministry is in the books.  I always grew up with the desire to minister and spread the good news to everyone, but particularly to the youth.  We have some awesome kids at Ridgecrest and it has been wonderful to see the growing spiritually everyday.  I am working a full time job while working the youth ministry.  Although it is very time consuming, I really love the work and am trying to minister to the kids as best as I know how to.  

3.  I want a motorcycle.  I have always been infatuated with motorcycles.  I think the love for motorcycle started when I was about 10.  There was a show called Renegade and the star of the show drove a motorcycle everywhere he went and from then on I was hooked.

 I have never owned a motorcycle, but I think the desire to get one recently is brought on by a few factors.  No, its not a midlife crisis thing.  My father in law, Tony, rode motorcycles quite a bit before he found out that he had cancer.  Tony is one of the strongest guys I know.  The doctors told him that the cancer that he has usually has a low survivor rate and those do not survive usually pass away within the first 3-6 months.  We are 2 years removed from that statement and I would love to tell you that he is going to survive, but the unfortunate truth is I think that he will be passing away soon.  Tony is going to die much younger than he should have and it makes me pause and realize that this life is so short.  What am I doing with my life?  Am I really living?  It makes me sit back and ponder the questions like if I were to pass away in the next 5 years would I have done everything that I wanted in life?  I think for the most part I can answer yes to that question.  I got the girl I wanted, I have a gorgeous daughter, I even have 2 dogs that I wanted.  I have the job that i want and I get to spread the word of God every day.  I even get paid to do something I love to do in the first place!  Another thing that I always found fascinating was spreading the good word in new and unique ways.  If I ever were to buy a motorcycle I have talked to some brothers in Christ that have said they would want to ride too and I think it would just be a neat concept to have a "motorcycle ministry".   So if you  ever happen to catch me riding along on a 2 wheeler and wonder why I want to ride so bad I would say it boils down to a few things.  I ride to remember, I ride to live life to the fullest, and with everything I do, I ride to Serve.  

It feels good to sit and write for a while, been too long.  I guess ill update in another 2 years or so :).

My Name is Bill & I'm a Fantasy Football Owner

Recently I had a good friend point out the reasons that he chose not to play fantasy football. Check out the full article here: Finding Manhood

As soon as this article was written, another friend called me and asked if I had read M&M's blog and my thoughts. While I admit that fantasy football is by far not the coolest thing to do, I felt the need to explain why I play fantasy football. So here goes:

1.Camaraderie- Guys need to hang out with other guys. Typically I am not a guy that will just call up a friend just to chit chat, I need to have a reason. What better reason than to discuss last weeks fantasy football matchup which either you annihilated him or vice versa. Fantasy football is a great starting point for a conversation and a good reason to talk with friends. With that said I think there should be some guidelines for fantasy football, such as always play with people you know or have met personally. This will cut down on real trash talk when you have to see that person eye to eye.

2.It Keeps the Boring Games Interesting- I love football, my wife can attest to this. As soon as the season turns to fall I literally get giddy. There are some games that I just cannot get into. Unless you live in Jacksonville or Tampa Bay no one wants to see the Jags take on the Bucs. Its a boring matchup. Almost every week there is at least one stinker game that no one cares much about. Fantasy football gives me the opportunity to stayed tuned in somewhat to a game that I previously would have turned off. A good case and point of this would be a few years ago I drafted Marshawn Lynch. Since I grew up as a Cowboys fan I was already inclined to not like the Buffalo Bills. I started tuning into the games b/c of Lynch, but I kind of started to enjoy watching the Bills. Even if Lynch had an off game I still enjoyed watching the Bills try; they usually got beat but they always competed. To top it all off they have an awesome team name. Me and another guy named Bill could be their mascot.

3.Don't Knock it Until You've Tried it- I freely admit that fantasy football is not for everyone. I am not sure it is fair to say that you don't like it though without trying it. This would be the equivalent of me saying I don't like anchovy pizza without having ever tried the topping. Our natural predisposition is to say we don't like it b/c most all of us have heard anchovy pizza is disgusting. I had the same thought and never ordered the pizza. Recently the pizza guy delivered the wrong pizza to my house. He brought an anchovy pizza, so I ate it. I didn't like it at all, it was like drinking salt. Not tasty to me. But I tried it and so now I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that topping is not for me. Some people like anchovies though, why else would it be a topping?Fantasy football is an anchovy pizza, not all people are going to like it, but you'll never know if you do until you try it.

4. Football is a Team Sport but... Can you honestly tell me that the Vikings would be the same team without Adrian Peterson? Although this is one individual and I freely admit that no one person can do everything, there are certain individuals that a team cannot do without. Before the season even started this year the sports analysts were claiming that with Brett Favre on the Vikings squad they were a team that could be right back in the mix to be a Super Bowl contender. Without Favre the Vikes would be lucky to get to the playoffs. I agree that football is a team sport, but there are certain positions that you have to be good at. Just like real football I would much rather have Favre on my roster than Tavaris Jackson when it comes to fantasy football.

5. Fantasy Football Never Supersedes Real Football- Although some of my fantasy football brethren may argue with me on this point I think this is a major Fantasy no no. Being a Favre fan I want the Vikes to win every time they step on the football field. I don't care if the other team is chalked full of guys that are on my fantasy team. Fantasy football should always come in 2nd to real football. For me it just makes the tough losses a little less tough. As I stated before I grew up a Cowboys fan, therefore I could never wholeheartedly cheer for the Giants, Redskins, or Eagles. I drafted Desean Jackson this year. Chance are good that he will get in the end zone at some point. When this inevitably happens the first thought that will run through my head will be pure disgust followed by oh well at least I got points for that. Allegiances should never change with fantasy football

More to say on this topic coming soon....


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Social Experiments 3 & 4

Experiment 3: "The Superman Truck Test"

The Test: I have a toy Superman monster truck that a good friend gave me. I began working at my current occupation a year and a half ago. The day after I was hired I displayed this truck in an upper shelf by my desk. In that timeframe to my recollection not one time has anyone ever touched that truck. I moved the truck from its usual resting spot on my upper shelf to the side of my desk and wanted to see if there would be anyone who would play with the truck.

Expectations: I have a work friend who had conducted a similar test the week before, so I automatically expected the results to be skewed because some people would know exactly what I was up to. I expected 1 or 2 people to pick up the truck while discussing work matters with me.

The Results: Despite some of my colleagues being privy to what I was doing, I still had a solid showing. I expected for some to casually hold it but many of my colleagues started conversations centered around the truck. One colleague took a piece of paper and pretended to drive the truck up the paper. I definitely helped encourage the behavior. It was a fun and successful experiment.

Experiment 4: "The Hi Test"

The Test: Not too long ago a group of my colleagues and I decided to eat downtown in the underground tunnels. On the way there I was being myself and saying I am going to say hi to everyone and see how many people return the gesture and how many ignore the gesture. One of my colleagues suggested that I take it a step further and say hi the way I would normally say it (cheerfully) ten times and do it straight faced another ten times.

The Expectations: I expected for people to react to the cheerful response with courteous smiles and then to move on, maybe a few to say hello back.

The Results: When I said hello in my normal tone 7 out of 10 people said hello back. I was really happy with this number. When I said hello in a monotone and did not act happy to be saying hello 3 out of 10 people said hello back. This confirmed something that I always believed to be true. People react to your attitude, whether it is good or bad, and we have a lot of control on determining if someone is going to have a good or bad day. This is a test I would love to see conducted in different states to see what the different results would be

I am filling up the pipeline with ideas for my next social experiments, so if you have an idea shoot it my way and I'll see if I can accomplish it.

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Location:Red Oak Dr,Choctaw,United States

My Lawn (The Lighter Side)

The last 3 weeks or so I have been fertilizing like a mad man trying to get some green grass to grow. I am proud to report in most places of the yard my efforts have not been in vain. Dark green grass is starting to become evident all throughout my yard. There is one exception to this green grass taking hold and it has been driving me bonkers. All that changed Saturday.

I have a sprinkler system that has made by job much easier. I did start to notice that one place in my back yard was not getting any greener, as a matter of fact it was becoming more yellow. I started watching the spray patterns of my sprinkler and to my chagrin I realized that my entire right hand side of my yard was receiving no water. I started to hand water the area, but to be honest it was still not getting the water it needed in this crazy 100+ degree weather we have been having.

At some point last week my beautiful wife pointed out that there was a sprinkler head that didn't seem to be coming up. I was thrilled because I didn't even know there was a sprinkler there. I tried to see if I could fix it, but since I have no freaking clue what I was doing I was pretty useless. I called my dad and told him about the situation. In my head I theorized that this sprinkler head would hit the entire section that I had been missing. I asked him if he knew of anyone that may be able to fix the broken sprinkler head. He responded by saying he knew of two capable men that could fix it and wouldn't charge me a dime. That sounded too good to be true. It was. I soon realized he was talking about me and him.

We got to work on the project early on Saturday. I pointed out the sprinkler that was the problem to my dad. I thought if I could just get a new sprinkler head we would be good to go. Dad wanted to test out the sprinkler system though. When we arrived at the zone that the sprinkler resided at I noticed something interesting. I heard a gurgle sound directly across from the sprinkler. I walked across the yard and found that there was a hole that had become filled with water. My thought was that this hole was the result of water that could not flow to the sprinkler head because it was broken. My thought was also wrong and Dad knew it.

He said that we needed a new sprinkler head. I agreed and we headed off to get one. What was interesting to me was while we were there he was picking up supplies I wasn't sure what their use was for. He picked up some adhesive and an elbow of PVC pipe and a cap and some nylon string. At the point I am utterly confused about what is about to happen. We get back to my house and he goes to the hole that the gurgling noise came from earlier. By now evaporation has set in and there is no water left in the hole.
I can clearly see now there are 2 pipes. The bad news is that both pipes run directly into the cement that was laid when a fence post was dug out. Dad pointed out that whoever had my fence built broke the water line and knew it. Instead of fixing it or doing anything about it they just poured cement on the top of it. He gets out the nylon string and wraps it around the pipe and starts rubbing the pipe with the string until the pipe snaps clean across. At this point I still have no clue what my dad is thinking and now I am freaking out a little in my head. then he takes adhesive and starts rubbing it on the cut he just made in the pipe and asks for the sprinkler head. This whole time I was under the impression the sprinkler head was not for this hole, but instead to replace the sprinkler head that Amy discovered. I reluctantly handed him the sprinkler head and he glued it in place. After a few minutes he says OK lets go try it out.

My thought is if this works I will have 2 new sprinklers I did not have before, which I would have been more than please with. He turns the station on and both sprinklers started to work! Then I get another surprise. Three (yes I said 3) other sprinkler heads popped up and start hitting the areas that I was having trouble with. I had no idea they were even there! I was thrilled to say the least! So I started the day thinking I will have 1 more sprinkler at the end of the day and instead I ended up with 5! We still had to fix up the other pipe that was broken by capping it off, but it was great news all the way around. Just goes to prove you're never too old to learn something from your old man. Thanks Pop!!



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My Lawn

About a month ago I looked at my lawn and I realized I am not taking care of my lawn the way I should. As a matter of fact I realized that even though I thought I knew about keeping up a yard, I didn't know the first thing about lawn care. My grass was starting to turn yellow and it was crunchy, there were even ruts where no grass was growing at all. The last straw for me was when my niece came over and walked in our backyard barefooted. She questioned why our grass hurt her feet and was not soft like theirs was. I was distraught about the situation. A lawn is supposed to be the man's domain and he should be proud of it. Here I was purposely neglecting my lawn because I was too lazy to do anything about it. I started making changes. I started reading about lawn care. Turns out I didn't know the first thing about lawn care. For instance, I didn't know that lawn blades needed to be sharpened, I didn't even know that oil needed to be changed in a lawnmower. There were a lot of things I had no idea about. So I am starting over, Im mowing every week now. I read about and study how I can care for my lawn better than I used to. I am consulting with people that know much more about lawn than I ever could like my dad and my brother-in-law. I would love to say that now my lawn is a plush green, but changes like this take time. The good news is that even though I still feel places where my lawn is crunchy I can see patches of green coming in.

I think is symbolic of what has been going on in my personal life and my Christian walk. I had become consumed with selfishness and was just becoming lazy. Other than reading a powerpoint slide of scripture on Sunday I had neglected reading the Bible. I could see that my relationships with the people that meant the most to me were suffering as a result. Much like my lawn I could see the ruts and dead places, but I was too lazy to do anything about it. When I did things that were selfless it was usually not done with a cheerful heart, rather it was done with disgust. The crazy thing was, even though it was all out of selfishness and you would think I felt great, I was a mess. Im trying to make changes now. I have changed my daily routine, I wake at 4 rather than 6:30 as I used to. I read scriptures, pray, give thanks at what I have been blessed with rather than think about what I don't have like I used to . I take the dog for a walk in the morning and read stories that I would have previously done throughout the day. This gives me more time to concentrate on my family. Like my lawn, the ruts are still there but the green is starting to come through. I hope very soon to have a plush green lawn and a newfound love and apprection for what the Lord has given me. Next time you see me, ask how my lawn is.

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