Pizza Break

Not me, but a guy I know... Being called, “handsome,” is like the ultimate, "mom" phrase in describing their sons, or the way my wife says I look when I dress in my "nice" clothes that albeit, are not the most appealing or trendy. Handsome is defined simply as, "good-looking." Though the act of looking has rarely anything to do with handsome as it applies. Typically, use of the word is in reference to anything but an action or a verb, despite the definition making it seem as though it is therefore an action. "My boys are soooo handsome." -Mom circa 2010 Handsome, as it is defined, refers to the superficial, and that is where it resides. Unfortunately, when you really know a person, calling them handsome, can be difficult, even when they might meet the criteria of being so. A handsome boy with a devilish grin might be more devious than handsome. A mirrored image of the other with a slight distortion. A homeless man, dressed in weathered ...

Wanting something, ferociously, it can be painful. It can be like an unfairness to not have the answer right now. Entitlement must be a cancer that inadequacy fuels. I know the people, the ones who are able to take uncertainty as the obvious part of life it truly is. After all, don’t we all like surprises? Isn’t life only worth living because of the unknown? On this one instance though, I want an answer now. There is a part of my mind that feels I cannot possibly go on, performing at my job, interacting with people without this result of this one question. What does waiting do for me anyway, build character? I think I am fully developed. Do I have to keep building? When is it ever enough? The anticipation is this mix of uncertainty, an excitement, along with anxiety, lack of control. I cannot control this situation, nor the result. Even if you asked me what I would have wanted from this, I can’t say that I would have chosen correctly. I want God himself to interrupt his schedule, make...

January can be such a dismal time of year. Sure, we convince ourselves on the renewal of self, that this year is anew and that our old behaviors will change. Sure we are fresh on our diets, new spending habits, new, more strict routines. We are probably at our most ideal intent at this time of year because the wear of the year and old behaviors resurfacing has not yet affected our score card. The Christmas Tree is now nothing but an inconvenient paperweight that has to be dealt with. It stands there in the corner of the living room, once prominently displayed, perfectly decorated, and in our house protected by two parents from the 2ft and lower range of a child. When the tree was adorned, we did so with pride. We anticipated the day when it was appropriate in our household to display out artificially, green representation of outdoor foliage, indoors. For those with the real trees your has not been up as long, but the scenario is still the same. The ornaments delicately placed the ...

While I was in the military, I was blessed to be part of the Honor Guard. It was a joint service detail where any person who had served in the military, whether it be combat or not, receives the entitled military funeral honors. I typically folded or presented the flag, sometimes both depending on the circumstances. Again, I say blessed for the duty was still to this day, one of the most fulfilling jobs I have ever had. One story sticks out more than the rest. On many occasions, the entire service was conducted at the graveside. This different than most where the graveside was a short ending to a longer service, typically indoors. On this particular day in early Spring, the weather was pleasant with a slight breeze that ran across the cemetery that produced a slight whistle. The grass was fresh and green, the trees swaying in the breeze with the gathered sounds of thousands of fresh leaves rustling. The cemetery was next to a semi-busy road, which the service was mid-morning so the...

Years ago in a mindset far far away... So I ate the oatmeal, that is about 300 calories. I had the yogurt too, that is about 110, about a hundred I guess. Then I ate the fish and the almonds, that was another 400. I'm not going to count the spinach leaves, I will leave those out, well, I did have some hummus with them, OK another 100. Now, the total is.... The mind races too quick to interpret, the numbers like a Rain Man example playing inside the mind. All numbers, their quantities, their times, their circumstances, the feeling afterwards, what I had last week, what I had before that, the last time I felt this way, all thoughts the mind is forced to remember. The mind can do all of this because it is sacred. It is sacred of losing. Losing control. Losing the competition of life. Losing this facade of self that only the same mind that controls, sees. "Hello, I am Luke and I enjoy reading books, writing, and I go to the gym a little bit." (insert awkward laugh) ...

Yes, Christmas is over and the insufferable forcing of Christmas nostalgia can be once again, allowed to rest. But, just one last time, "Baby it's Cold Outside." When a title rings true (and it is still within that week after Christmas), then it has to be repeated. Here in Nebraska (for those of you who do not know where these come from), it is very cold. Bitterly cold in fact. Another bitter fact, water freezes. Yes, at zero degrees Celsius the molecules in water slow enough to go from a liquid to a solid state. The solid state is larger in mass than the free-flowing liquid state and therefore the pipes that transfer the liquid state of water get clogged with a size too large to manage, and PPPsssshhhhhh (what I imagine spraying water sounds like). A resurfaced photo of our basement that one time. Dad swears I didn't take the hose off the spout.  Even in the gas state water can become problematic, (just watch the Festivus episode of Seinfeld). For my dad, he kno...