Christmas List and Yet More Life Questions.

Well, life is still swamped, but I do believe that things are getting much better. I know I “promised” I´d update things regularly, and I apologize that my “regular” updates are so sporadic.

That said.  Moving on.

We got a Christmas Tree on Sunday!  Our first real, live tree as a married couple, and that´s very exciting. One of our major goals this holiday season is to organize our lives and really make the holidays / Christmas OURS this year.  Note: I don´t mean excluding family or friends – I just mean taking charge of things and not letting the season slip away.

Towards this goal we slaved this past Sunday evening – which was 100% worth it.  We´re more organized than we´ve been since we got married just over 2 years ago.  We´ve still got a lot to do, but it´s definitely getting there.  It´s a really great feeling, too.

There will be some new features sometime, hopefully before Christmas but we´ll see.  Actually I may change blog software and actually look into a “real” package so that I don´t have to continue to develop this.  Otherwise, there will be some new blog features.  I´m also going to have to revamp the photo gallery software, which hit a wall real quick there a while ago and I haven´t had time to get back to it.  Paying customers who need technology I want to work on anyway seems a good enough excuse to get it developed.

So life has been, as always, quite interesting.  We have finished our season this year for Seasonal Essentials, at least as far as craft shows go.  It has been truly exciting to watch Seasonal Essentials grow this season.  As a result, I will be moving into doing SE as a full time job starting in January, which I´m actually quite thrilled about.  There´s a lot of things that we can do that will really help put some solid roots down for us, as a base to really grow from next year.  It should be a really exciting year from that standpoint.

As a result of my moving into Seasonal Essentials full time, I´ll not be seeking out new web contracts.  Actually, I´ll be very choosy about those contracts that I do choose to accept.  I´ve decided it´s time to stop juggling so much and really focus on one thing and make it go, and that´s Seasonal Essentials.  If A Higher Standard (known to many of you as NWChurches.com) gets funding, then we´ll continue to push and work on things.  If not, then it officially becomes a hobby and I´m not going to stress about it any more. I simply can´t take having so much on my plate, as my body has made quite clear this last year.

So in looking ahead in life, realizing that I´m currently 26 years old with a wife (but not yet any kids on the way…), I´ve been contemplating several “life changing” things.  Questions such as “What makes a man?”, “Who am I” and “Who do I want to be?”, and “How the heck do I get there?”  Questions that everybody asks themselves at least once in life (or in my case, once a week). 

So my first question to you, my dear readers (Holly and Luke), is this:  In your opinion, what makes a man?  What does a man look like to you?  What kinds of character and personality traits does a man have?  Not that the PERFECT man exists, short of Christ, but what should a person aspire to be (as a man)?  I´m very interested in responses on this, as I think that society has changed men into weak, whining shells from what we were meant to be. 

My second question, which is a big one (not that the first isn´t….) has more to do with life than with “man”.  What, in your opinion, is a “Life Well Lived”?  What do you want out of life?  I have my opinions on this as well, and they´ll come out in a subsequent posting sometime in the “near” future, but I´m curious as to what your thoughts are.

I will end this sporadic thought process now with a 100% selfish list.  This is a list of things that I, Chris Tindall, would love for gifts.  Not that I really expect people here to go out and purchase them, or even care, but since I had to write this list for a couple of other reasons I´m going to post it.  Feel free to post your lists in the comments section!  Merry Christmas!

  1. CD´s – Cranberries, Uncle Cracker, Lorena McKennit (not Mask and the Mirror, the Visit, or the Book of Secrets – there are three others)

  2. DVD´s – Gladiator, The Patriot, Braveheart, Gone in 60 Seconds, the Rock, Italian Job, Bourne Identity, XMen, X-2, Spiderman, Kill Bill 1 & 2, Return of the King Extended Ed, The Game, Fifth Element Superbit Edition, Usual Suspects, Face-off, Shrek, Rat Race, Oceans 11…

  3. Books – Terry Brooks newest Shanara series – “High Druid of Shanara” – Jarka Ruus / Tanequil; Lord of the Rings Trilogy, By Author: Robert Ludlum, Tom Clancy

  4. PC GamesCall of Duty Exp Pack (PC) (United Offensive)

  5. Board Games – Taboo / Risk

  6. Camping stuff – Sleeping Bag, Propane Lantern, Queen Size Air Mattress,

  7. One of those watches that looks like a wrist watch, but has a clip and is supposed to hang on your belt (pocket watch, but not…)

  8. Cash (he wants to save for a Digital Rebel camera, and a mountain bike.  and a house.)

  9. Digital Rebel Camera (or a step up with one of the Nikon Digital SLR cameras)

  10. Mountain Bike

  11. House (a REAL house. Preferably on several acres.)

  12. XBox Console (if console, which I don´t have, then games that are cool:  Dead or Alive 3, Halo 1 & 2…)
     

Stocking stuffer ideas are:

  1. Pizza cutter

  2. Pilot Precise Rolling Ball extra fine pens, any color

  3. Ritz Crackers

  4. Wheat Thins

  5. Hot chocolate, esp. the “fancy flavored kind”

  6. Brown Cow Ice Cream.  Probably shouldn´t wrap it and leave it under the tree, though.

  7. Esther Cunningham´s taco-mayo-salsa-sour cream dip – he LOVES that

  8. Jolly Time Popcorn Oil

  9. Popcorn Kernals (to pop in air popper)

  10. Those packets of ranch dip mix

  11. Glide floss

  12. Those tortilla chips from the shelton factory

  13. Thomas Kemper or IBC root beer

  14. Whoppers, Reeces Peanut Butter Cups (mini), mint M & Ms (you can only get these at Christmas, and Chris LOVES them!)

  15. Stud Finder

  16. Tools:  (Not – Screwdrivers)

  17. LED Flashlight