Game Over, Man, Game Over! - And Other Marriage Advice

My baby-brother is getting married this weekend! Evidently in Georgia they allow 14-year-olds to get married.  What's that you say? My brother is 36? When the heck did that happen?

Oh, I guess about the time I turned 39...  Eeck.

We all had our doubts about whether QJ would ever take the plunge. Our confirmed bachelor, he is. Er... was. But then he found a gal who stole his heart and a mere five years later... poof: a wedding. (We tried to tell them to take it slowly, but young love... what can you do?)

My brother said an unmarried friend of his future father-in-law explained marriage like this:

All the unmarried guys are sitting on their tropical islands, sipping their umbrella drinks, having lots of fun, and looking out at the ocean...

Where all the married men are on a sinking ship, just trying not to drown. And the married men call to the single men and say, "Come join us! This is a great cruise!"

And the single men... well, the smart single men... just shake their heads and go back to their umbrella drinks.

But not my brother. He has put down his drink, and is swimming out to that sinking ship... er, wonderful institution, that is called marriage.

So, in light of the upcoming nuptials on Saturday, I thought I would post a few items to provide my brother with some advice regarding marriage.

That they totally crack me up is just a bonus. 

Best wishes, baby brother. May your marriage be full of blessings and laughter. May love and kindness always guide your actions. May you always love each other more tomorrow than you do today.

Game over, man. Game over.

Some Days the Dragon Wins

As much as I would like to take credit for this blog post, I can’t. It’s from Jon Acuff, author of the truly hilarious collection: Stuff Christians Like and the inspirational book Quitter: Closing the Gap Between Your Day Job and Your Dream Job. I love Jon’s writing style and his blog. Check out http://www.jonacuff.com/blog/ for more awesomeness.

His post “Some Days the Dragon Wins” from January 2012 is how I feel on occasion - the last couple of weeks especially. Sigh.

Everything seems overwhelming lately: I can't get the plot of my new story to come together... I'm on a six-week running sabbatical due to hip/lower back issues so I'm trying to find other ways to keep my fitness level... My students in my online classes wonder if I still exist I'm so behind in my grading...  My house looks like a tornado hit it...

Wait, scratch that. That's the way my house always looks. But the other stuff is true...

Analysis Paralysis: AKA my life...

My "getting nothing done" problem is partly procrastination. But it's mostly analysis paralysis: I over-think things to the point of not getting anything done. And it can be a vicious cycle. That's why I never scoff at those who make To-Do lists, nor do I scoff at those who put items they've already done on the list, just so they can immediately check them off. It's all about progress.

So yes, some days the dragon wins. Some weeks the dragon wins. But I try to remember: the battle the dragon will not win.


 Some Days the Dragon Wins by Jon Acuff

 I saw this bumper sticker a few weeks ago and wanted to share it with you because it’s true.



I like that.

Some days the dragon wins.

You work as hard as you can on a resolution or a goal or a dream and the day crumbles.

You tried your hardest, but for reasons in your control or out of your control, the day fell apart.

The dragon won.

Your manuscript was not written. Your miles were not run. Your dream was not dreamed.

But, and this is an awful big but, that was just today.

Tomorrow is a new day. Tomorrow is a new chance for you to beat back the dragon all over again. Tomorrow is a day you can win.

Don’t listen to the voice of fear that says, “Real writers never lose to the dragon some days. Real runners never miss a day of training. Real businesses never have down days.”

That’s a lie.

Some days the dragon wins.

And that’s OK. As long as tomorrow, you keep fighting.

http://www.jonacuff.com/blog/  (1/23/12)