Giving up the Egg Hunt

Many "Christian" holidays have rooted themselves in American culture. Commercialism has embraced this since the advent of the printing press. And today there is a rise in non-traditional and unstructured religious beliefs among descendants of the last couple generations. So considering all that I'm not surprised at the congealed mess holidays have become. Most Christian holidays are now becoming more secular in celebration. However is there really validity to a secular Easter? Easter is a core Christian holiday, celebrating the resurrection of Jesus. How the heck did it go from that, to becoming a day praising an "Easter Bunny" that brings kids candy/toy filled baskets and hides candy filled eggs around the yard? Click here for some interesting info debating that issue. I especially love this quote:

The Pope suggests that converting heathens is easier if they are allowed to retain the outward forms of their traditional pagan practices and traditions, while recasting those traditions spiritually towards Christianity instead of to their indigenous gods.

-- Wikipedia Some people prefer not to analyze why these traditions exist and instead choose to go with the flow. Stating things like "Oh but it's so much fun for the children!", "I did it when I was a kid", etc ... Sounds like some good slogan's for commercial advertising. Think it'll help sell a million more Peeps? On top of that I'm not so sure I agree with the religious elements of the Easter celebration. I wasn't raised with Christian Easter celebrations, instead we observed the Christian Passover, referred to as "The Memorial". Since the purpose of Jesus' earthly service was to redeem mankind from the "perfect life lost" it seems the focus for remembrance and celebration should be on his act of sacrifice and not on the resurrection. Especially when biblically Jesus put emphasis on this himself with the events of the Last Supper.

Kiss Me I'm Irish

According to the genealogy info done by my Aunt, we're 5 generations away from the "Motherland" on our Cauley side. My Great-Great-Great Grandpa Patrick Henry Sr. Cawley born in County Mayo Ireland and came to the states sometime before 1866. So there's some genealogical history in case you doubted our family has Irish roots (should already be apparent by my red goatee). So I'm entitled to wear my "Kiss Me I'm Irish" button this coming Friday (St. Patrick's Day). And even though St. Patrick's day was originated and may still be recognized as being a Roman Catholic celebration in honor of their St. Patrick, in the US it has largely become a holiday celebrating Irish heritage for those that claim it, and an unofficial drinking holiday for the rest of the secular celebrating crowd. So I will be out this Friday night with friends celebrating my Irish heritage by smoking a good cigar, drinking a couple tumblers of a nice single malt scotch, and swilling a few gallons of Guinness and Killian's Irish Red.

A Healthier 2006

I've been smoke free since the 12/18. So that's a little over two weeks. Not that my intention was to quit, I just haven't been around smokers since then and I haven't had an uncontrollable urge. (For those who don't know I've been smoking for a long time, and in the last year I've cut back and now consider myself a social smoker. As I only smoke when around my smoker friends a couple times a week, amounting to approx ¼-½ pack/week). It's been a goal of mine to eventually quit completely, so I think I'm going to keep the good streak running and try to avoid smoking as much as possible. I'm not making any public claims to quitting, as I don't want the self appointed habit monitors. I'm just planning to cut back even more then I already have. This feeds into my goal to be healthier and get into better shape this winter. I suppose you could call it a new year's resolution, however it's been on my mind for far longer. I'm planning to cut back on the beer, eat healthier, start taking supplemental vitamins, do more physical activities, and start working out seriously.

New Years in Phoenix!

We're back! Man it's good to be home. Even through it was sunny and warm (70°-90°) all week, I really miss being home. I was starting to feel dried up with all the sun, sand, and lack of moisture in the air. It's nice to be back home and enjoy the 50° temps, lots of rain, and greenery. Our trip was a lot of fun, but it wore me out. I'm dead tired. We got in at 1am this morning (1/2), went to bed around 2am, and then I had to get up at 8am for work. That on top of already being sleep deprived, as I went to bed at 3am on 1/1 and got up at 8am to go golfing, and I've had a lot of late nights/early mornings the last few weeks with all the holiday activities. I think I need to crash early tonight to try to recoup some lost ZZZzzzz's. I'll be putting together a full write-up on our trip as well as numerous photo galleries of our adventures very soon. So check soon.

Secular Christmas

It's nearly Christmas time, as reportedly celebrated by 86% of Americans*. I've had a personal moral dilemna over this holiday for years, based an upbringing that is strictly against it due to the holidays origins. Regardless of what the holiday's religious connections or tainted origins are, it has since become a secular holiday for 24% of Americans*. It's about the excuse to have time off from work to spend with family/friends and join in a comradery of thanks and appreciation. Gifts are exchanged, meals are eaten, and love is shared. I don't find anything particularly wrong with those ideals. So I think I've finally come to terms with this holiday and have chosen to celebrate and express my feelings to others during this holiday season in the cause of a natural celebration, the Winter Solstice. I think the winter solstice is a better term for the holiday season for us secular celebrating folks. So this season I hope you all have a

Very Merry Winter Solstice!

For those of you that will be exchanging "winter solstice" presents with me, and need a few suggestions, take a look at my wish list. And make sure to wrap all my presents in Geeky Wrapping Paper. I also put together a wish list for Logan.