When to Use a Cell Phone

My friend, Jeff, suggests the following:

Use of a cell phone and texting is appropriate only at times when you would feel comfortable pulling out a crossword puzzle and doing that.

If someone is talking to you, would you start doing a crossword puzzle in that middle of that conversation? Would you do a crossword puzzle while driving?

My Old Boss

Trish, from my Dancing Deer bakery days in Boston.... She, too, is involved in ending homelessness. Check out her very creative approach.

And you can click the "Donate" button to the right in my FirstGiving box to support my sleeping out in the Duke City Sleep Out. I will be sleeping out this Friday. If you are in town, join us at Menaul School. We will be featuring The Mad Kings live, showing "Skid Row" and "The Pursuit of Happiness," plus speakers and lots of activities!

Number Twenty-Five

My favorite author is Hermann Hesse. My favorite musician is Bob Dylan. My favorite movie is “Babette’s Feast.” My favorite color is purple. I don’t have a favorite number.

Number Twenty-Four

I try to live with what I call “travel mind.” You know that experience of being in another country and letting everything be, just as it is? Of having curiosity to see how it is that people do what they do? Of noticing conversations, buildings, the sound of crinkling paper as the grocer packages a purchase, the light, traditions, the flow of traffic…all without judgment? Travel does that for me. It allows me to be present in a different way, one that is really part of the moment without the need to control it. I try to live that way here at home in my day-to-day routines. I try to have “travel mind” always.

Number Twenty-Three

I am annoyed when people bounce one of their legs continuously in a nervous jitter while seated.

Number Twenty-Two

I prefer sunsets over sunrises.

Number Twenty-One

About one year after I moved to New Mexico, I learned the following within one week: My uncle died, my godson and his family (part of reason in my moving to NM) were moving to Boston and the job for which I had worked 12-hour days designing and pushing through both local and state government no longer existed. Two months earlier, my cousin, who lived in NM and with whom I enjoyed spending time, had also died.

I moved to the desert partly to encounter myself and explore my own, inner desert. This was a good beginning.

Number Twenty

I tend to fall in love with younger, straight men.

Number Nineteen

I once gave up all possessions in life. The process was extremely difficult at first. Getting rid of objects full of memories, such as family heirlooms and childhood souvenirs. But I had committed to a monastic life and persevered in the exercise. At one point in the de-accumulation, it all became very easy, and, in fact, fun! Who could I give this object to as a gift? What about that one? Who needed my car? I trusted that the meaning of the objects had already impacted me, were a part of my internal make-up; possessing them did not make me any closer to what they represented. Giving away my books was initially the hardest (I had over 400 at the time.) Now, instead of 400 books, I have thousands. So many, in fact, that I need multiple rooms to house them all and a staff dedicated just to watching over them for me for when I need one to read. I call my many of books public libraries. Such freedom!

Numer Eighteen

I do not understand people who are apathetic or closed-minded.

Number Seventeen

I wrote a charter for a private school, making it public, and saving $6,000 per child. With 150 kids each year in school…that equals $900,000 in savings per year. Since 2004, that is over 3.5 million dollars in savings to the American public. I didn’t stop then. With five others, I rewrote the Albuquerque public transit system regulation and, beginning in February 2009, we reduced nearly 6 million dollars of cost, per year, to the public for their transportation. I’m proud of these things.

Number Sixteen

My favorite flower is Indian Paintbrush.

Number Fifteen

I have been in seven countries other than the United States of America. I have been in 46 of the 50 states. Prague is my favorite city, thus far.

Number Fourteen

Most times, I think that only very young children and very old adults make sense. Because humans have the capacity of reasoning, we can also be irrational. By comparison, however, a bee doesn’t sting you just because it has had a bad day.

Number Thirteen

I have always wanted to have a chimpanzee as a pet and a lion to ride around on in my yard.

Number Twelve

If you watch the movie “Jesus Camp” you will have some idea of the culture in which I grew up. I still know all of the military “Christian” songs by heart. Bible school always included rousing choruses of “I may never march in the infantry, shoot the artillery, ride with the calvary…I may never fly o’er the enemy—but I’m in the Lord’s army.”

Number Eleven

I have bumped into a bear in the wild.

Number Ten

Sometimes I think that I look good in greens and oranges (although not necessarily together). Then I think I should only own all black clothes. I have never been able to pin down my fashion statement.

Number Nine

I have always wished that I had a twin.

Number Eight

Once, while living alone in the mountains in a cabin with no running water and with no electricity, I was investigated by a private detective. The next weekend, authorities discovered 8 thousand pounds of marijuana growing on a nearby ridge. They did not catch me doing bootleg runs of white lightning from North Carolina into Virginia. They did catch the fellows holding illegal cock fights nearby.

Number Seven

I really enjoy good wine and dancing until 4 AM in Greece.

Number Six

In college, I would hop the train to Chicago to volunteer on Thursdays as security at a men’s, overnight, emergency shelter. In the morning, I would train back in time to catch my morning psych class at 8 AM. Later, I went undercover as a person who was homeless to see how I would be treated. Now, I run a homeless services agency.

Number Five

I intend to read 500 books before I turn fifty.

Number Four

The trajectory of my social conscience can be traced by my political voting record: I worked at a Ronald Reagan for President rally (I was the guy who pulled the chord on the balloons which dropped at the end of his speech). Later I voted for Ross Perot. This year, I voted for Barack Obama.

Number Three

I don’t enjoy eating sea urchin.

Number Two

I have swallowed bits of paper containing contact information about the Czechoslovakian underground. This took place in eastern Europe, which, at the time, was still in communist control. I was being escorted to the east-west border from the eastern side and had no other option for concealing incriminating contraband.

25 Things

Just to make certain that we didn't all become doe-eyed naturalists, denounce all possessions and become monks (wait! that actually sounds familiar), the next night we went to Las Vegas, Nevada, and visited the Double Down Saloon--"Home of the Fabled Ass Juice and Birthplace of the Bacon Martini."





Leaving the journey behind and turning to April, I'm aware that I missed all the Facebook hub-bub about posting 25 things about one's self. I missed it there, so I'm posting my list here.

Let's begin with this one:

1. I’ve dreamed about people that I have never known…then met them the next day.