The news concerning the Chatham County Courthouse fire over in Pittsboro got me thinking about this picture I took sometime last year.  This structure not only serves a vital function for this community located 30 miles west of Raleigh, but is part of its identity as well.  To have a well-known landmark, which stood the test of time over the years,  suddenly destroyed isn’t just painful to watch.  It’s downright heartbreaking.

Which brings me back to the picture.  As an avid amateur photographer, I tend to view each one as a snapshot in time, a reminder of the way things were.  Whether the moment brings sorrow or joy,  hardship or blessing, these snapshots are meant to give us insight into the world around us and the things in life that matter.  Those people, places, and moments interconnect into the rich tapestry of life, regardless of its insignificance or appreciation.  And while those images may fade from our view over time, the memories can still live on.

Which is what the good people of Pittsboro and Chatham County hope to do as they attempt to rebuild a treasure inside the traffic circle.

Which leads me to wonder, “Is there anything I can easily sacrifice between now and Easter?”  Granted, I am a creature of convenience, and there are times when it’s too easy to focus on wants more than needs.  Add everyday stress along with my inwardly focused nature and my life ends up with more drama than Real Housewives or Jersey Shore.  And when I get stressed out or frustrated, I don’t always make the right decisions.  That’s when those voices call out to you and attempt to lead you astray.

Having to give up something can be a challenge in both good times and bad.  Forgoing luxuries such as buying a bigger house or splurging on a mocha latte at Starbucks  makes sense when it comes to cutting back on expenditures, especially during an economic downturn.  But giving up say, listening to your iPod or checking out Facebook or even watching TV during Lent?  Inconceivable!  Why, you must be out of your mind!

Okay, now I don’t plan on abandoning civilization by shedding all of my worldly goods and desires and moving out to the Yukon just yet.  However, I do feel it is important to at least give up something that’s been taking up too much space in my life.  Or in this case, money.  A few friends from my church are opting to “spend differently” during this Lenten season.  It does involve sacrifice, but in a concept that is revolutionary in scope.

“Spending Differently” involves cutting back on a certain expense (i.e. paying for that daily cup of joe at Starbucks) and using the money for a different purpose.  In this case, using the money to aid the earthquake victims in Haiti.  Sure, it would be easier to help those people out by giving a one time donation the Red Cross, downloading “We Are The World” on iTunes, or even sending a text message.  But the impact wouldn’t be nearly as great as having to actually give up a certain habit we take for granted and direct the proceeds to a relief organization assisting people in Haiti.  Giving support to those  caring for “the least of these” who were greatly affected by this tragedy is not designed to be a “feel good” proposition, but a way to identify with those in our world who have suffered in far greater measure that most of us could possibly imagine.  Even if your offering may not seem like much, it does matter when it is put to use for the greater good.

So I encourage you to use this time to consider if there is that one thing in life you’d be willing to part with.  Not necessarily an effort to make yourself  better by ridding yourself of a needless vice, but to take the time, money, and energy used that had been set aside for that and put it in a whole new direction.  Consider Lent a “second chance” at meeting a new year’s resolution.

Speaking of which, I need to get back to my list to see if there’s anything I haven’t checked off yet.

On the first day of twenty-ten, I managed to create a modified version of the traditional New Year’s Day meal.  Given that I live alone, I don’t get the opportunity to cook as much as I’d like.  Last thing I want to deal with is having a plastic container of last month’s forgotten leftovers turn into a ninth grade science project.  But since I was raised in the South, it would be a mortal sin for me not to partake of this offering. So I decided to take a crack at it, thinking “How hard can it be?”

I made a meal consisting of grilled pork lion, hoppin’ john (which includes the black-eyed peas that don’t sing back), mixed greens soaked in broth, a corn muffin, and a plastic cup of iced tea.  Usually, I make my own corn muffins (and people say it’s one of my specialties).  But since I couldn’t find my muffin pan anywhere, I made a quick trip to Harris Teeter to grab a corn muffin from the deli-bakery.   The hoppin’ john actually came out of a can I got at Food Lion the day before.  I made an attempt to cook a batch of black-eyed peas a month ago, but it didn’t turn out well.  Much of which was stored in separate containers in the back of the aforementioned fridge.  The mixed greens turned out well thanks to the broth I used, which is amazing since I don’t take too well to any sort of greens that come in a can or from the frozen food section.

All in all, it didn’t turn out too bad.  Not exactly something that would give Paula Deen a run for her money, but still digestible.  As for the NC State cup, I may have to explain that one someday.  Perhaps in a future blog post.

This observation made me wonder if purchasing the bigger container was better.  It occurred to me that, in order to finish up the milk in the plastic jugs, I’d have to drink at least one or two glasses a day, every day, in order to keep it from producing a foul stench past the due date.  At least with the quart, I can just take my time to drink my moo juice when needed and not worry about it.  I’d even get done long before the date imprinted on the carton itself!

So, what does all this mean?  Well, as buying milk in mass quantities makes good economical sense, it’s never a good idea to do so if you’re single or live alone (or both).  Unless you can’t seem to get enough of that good stuff.  Hopefully my decision to stick with the carton will keep me from either being more adventurous when the day comes or chucking half a jug down the drain.

Either way, that stuff still can make a body good.

I did check out two site on the web that deal with the subject.  The first one is an article by Craig Wilson of USA Today.  His “Final Word” column of the week brings up a childhood memory while plugging a book about annoyances.

There’s also a blog that features the overuse of “quotation marks”, which I am guilty of doing right now.

And if you want an example of both, there’s always a classic sketch from Saturday Night Live with the late Chris Farley as Weekend Update commentator Bennett Brauer.

Now if I can just find a new computer that could be annoyance-free, then I’d be set for life!  Or not …

We started the season okay, then struggled mightily in the middle, which resulted in a coaching change where the new coach was a former coach (even though it sounds like a classic song by The Who).  Towards the end of the season, the Canes really gained momentum and just shot themselves into the playoffs.  But what was most impressive was how competitive they were in their series with the Devils and Bruins.  It was the Penguins, however, who were the better team and showed it in their domineering style of play.  Sure, the Canes managed to carry themselves through on emotion and sheer determination, but sadly another trip to the Finals was not meant to be.  Instead, we have a repeat of last year.

Still, I can’t say that I’m terribly disappointed.  While I may not be a hardcore hockey fanatic like some of my buddies who attend the games at the RBC with regularity, at least I was able to get into this year now that I had a team to follow.   Normally, I’d lose interest in this sort of thing the moment I hear the Canes are eliminated.  But since we managed to get this far out, at least it wouldn’t be a bad idea to see how the Finals turn out for once.

And besides, I’d like to see the Pens get some retribution for what happened last year.  Or they can just get on their knees and pray that … well, you know.

I am talking about “Chuck”, a rather witty “actedy” (or an action/comedy hybrid, hence the name) that airs Monday nights on NBC.  The premise of the show centers around a rather nerdy twenty-something single guy with a hot girlfriend who works in an electronics store by day and helps the government infiltrate the bad guys at night.  Okay, so the whole thing might seem rather implausible to anyone who’s never tuned in to this gem of a show and would rather settle for something less esoteric like “Dancing With The Stars” or “How I Met Your Mother”.  Then again, “House” does air in that same time slot.  But at least Dr. House is not as quirky as Charles Carmichael.

Anyway, here is my attempt to offer a brief synopsis of the show.  In the first episode of Season One, Chuck Bartowski receives an e-mail attachment from his former college roommate Bryce Larkin, which turns out to be The Intersect.  Chuck ends up with a load of government data lodged well into the gray matter that is his brain, which attracts the attention of two government agents,  Agents Sarah Walker (the smokin’ hot chick) and John Casey (the gung-ho dude with serious personal issues) who attempt to retrieve the data.  However, when it’s discovered Chuck has intermittent “flashes” that cause him to recall pertinent information (i.e. when he encounters the bad guys or spots anything unusual), both Walker and Casey decide to put their “asset” (as is he referred to from time to time) to good use.  Of course, this unique arrangement poses problems with Chuck as he has to lead a double life, all the while letting his employer Buy More (which is a knock-off of Best Buy if there were one), his family (namely his sister Ellie and live-in boyfriend turned future-stepbrother “Captain Awesome”) and his friends (including best buddy/co-worker Morgan Grimes) to be none the wiser.  To make things even more complicated, Agents Walker and Casey have to take covers working nearby, both at the Buy More and the Weinerlicious/Orange Orange.  And get this, Agent Walker gets to be Chuck’s girlfriend as a means of keeping up appearances.

Okay, I’ve pretty much said a mouthful so far.  However, the events tend to get even more interesting as they progress.  During the first season, the government attempts to rebuild a new Intersect so that Chuck’s capabilities would be rendered useless.  Along the way, we find out why Chuck was expelled from Stanford with a semester left to go and why Bryce has a tendency to pop up when least expected.  That season was cut off unexpectedly due to the Writer’s Strike, so the supposed completion of the new Intersect wouldn’t take place until the beginning of Season 2.  As Agent Casey was about to do away with Chuck one and for all, a computer virus ends up destroying the new Intersect.  A rival agency named Fulcrum was responsible for the incident, and ends up going after the original which they believe belonged to Bryce.  When a criminal crashes into the Buy More on Christmas Eve and takes everyone hostage, Chuck has an encounter with a  Fulcrum agent named Mauser, who posed as a police negotiator that discovers his secret and attempts to exploit him to further the agency’s evil dilemma before Sarah shoots him dead.  Chuck and Sarah’s relationship, which was getting quite personal up to this point, end up being strained for a period of time.  However, both would end up being paired together for a mission where they would be a “married couple”.  The subdivision they move into to turns out to be a front for a Fulcrum operation which they use to test their version of the Intersect on unsuspecting neighbors before loading it into Chuck’s brain.

So now Chuck Bartowski has more info in this crainium that would make the average guy’s head explode.  Meanwhile, a mysterious character named Orion, who designed the original Intersect, makes contact with Chuck, giving our hero hope that he might get all that juicy material out of his brain.  Sarah ends up getting called out by her superior over her “personal” relationship with Chuck, who also assists him in locating his long-lost father that the two end up meeting and discover that he was indeed the mysterious Orion.

And that’s where the series is as of now.  As you could imagine, it’s one of those stories that just gets better as it goes along.  Season 1 was more of a general setup of the entire premise, while Season 2 really began to delve into the heart of the matter.  To end it abruptly would be disheartening since the likelihood of having all the loose ends put together by season’s end is remote at best.  And besides, the antics that take place within the Buy More (mainly the relationship between Big Mike and his subordinates) really do create a suspension of disbelief.  It serves as a reminder that our lives need not be as humdrum as they appear.  Even if you do work a rather dull, meaningless job at the lower rung of the corporate ladder with no hope of getting anywhere, it doesn’t hurt to daydream just a little.  Okay, so it doesn’t have to be a James Bond or Walter Mitty kind of experience, but hopefully you get the idea.

In the meantime, you might want to check out ChuckTV.net to find lots of stuff about the show, including potential spoilers, episode  photos, and info on how you can keep “Chuck” alive for Season 3.  Oh, and don’t forget to visit hulu.com to view any episodes you haven’t seen yet.  Trust me, this is a great show that’s worth checking out that deserves to continue.  Otherwise, I wouldn’t have much else to watch that night.  Unless, of course pro wrestling counts …

Now, as a die-hard true blue Duke fan, I have to admit this revelation was quite amuzing.  You’d be amazed to find out how easily names of cities and towns (even people) here in North Carolina can easily get mangled up in translation.  For the first few years he was coaching the Blue Devils, I had trouble attempting to spell and pronounce the name Krzyzewski.

Then again, I would never knowingly head down to HILLS-bro or BU-fort.  You’d imagine the crazy stares you’d get if you come down here and call it that way.  Hopefully if the Heels win it all, those sports broadcasters can finally put the whole “Hans-bor-ough” mess to rest.  Or not.

You can blame the folks at CBS on this one, given the need to chase down those precious ratings points the network so desires.  And yes, both games are expected to be covered by roughly 2/3 of the nation.  But having to start a game this late east of the Mississippi just makes no sense.  I can understand if one of my favorite pro sports teams on the East Coast can’t begin a game until 10:30 local time because they’re over in Californ-i-ay.

Problem is, most of us have to go to work early the next day, meaning we end up losing some precious Z’s just so we can follow our favorite team.  This can explain why I’ve often felt groggy or cranky the morning after a big game.   Extra caffeine might help pick me up, but the side effects just make me feel worse.

All I can say is, if you’re one of many who have to follow your team and still get up at the buttcrack of dawn, you might want to take a nap first.  Otherwise, you;ll end up looking like one of the extras from Dawn of the Dead.  And that’s even uglier than watching your team lose.

Reason being is that, here in central North Carolina, snowstorms tend to come with some level of irregularity.  Some years we get lucky and never see any of the white stuff, while other years we end up getting it at the worst possible time.  Yet, once in a blue moon we get the kind of storm that literally shuts everything down.  Which is why whenever the forecast calls for snow, we make a even bigger deal of the whole thing than we should.  The sudden absence of milk and bread at any local supermarket is proof we tend to err on the side of caution during the chilly months.

Needless to say, the nature of these events are two-sided.  If you’re a kid (or literally young at heart), it becomes a fun day free from responsibility and worry.  It’s a moment to enjoy carefree moments such as sledding down the hill, making snow creatures of every size imaginable, and sitting in front of a glowing fire sipping hot chocolate once we come in from the cold.  For those of us who have to brave the elements to get to work (especially if your job carries a certain degree of importance), having to traverse roads filled with ice and snow can be quite brutal.  Even so, the spectre of responsibility and worry envelops those who have a difficult time viewing snow as an enjoyable respite our Creator imbues upon the landscape.

As for today, I was glad to partake in this amazement of wonder and delight.  We all need moments in our lives to cast our worries and sorrows aside, event if it’s only for a day, to truly see the splendor and glory that lie ahead.  Only when we we choose to take a “time out” from the rat race and take in all the sights and sounds can we get a better perspective of what God’s trying to tell us.

Having spent so much time worrying about trying to get things done, it’s often too easy for me to lose focus on what’s really important.   And besides, without this much needed pause, I wouldn’t have given too much thought into the significance of this day for our country and our world.

Which is good enough for me, especially since I now have to travel those ice-slicked roads in the morning.  Too bad my tendency to either “get things done now” or procrastinate freely are always in conflict.