On my flight from Oklahoma City, OK, to Chicago, IL, it looked like the planet was blanketed in white. Thanks to the sun’s angle during the evening, the clouds displayed interesting textures, with some fluffy clouds larger than others.
It was a majestic sight worth remembering. At some points during the flight, it looked and felt like I was on another planet.
I’m in Chicago, IL where a thunderstorm is occurring and as I stare out the window at the sky, I notice the apartments across the street. It’s always interesting how windows in a big city like Chicago provide brief glimpses into people’s lives.
One person is working in the kitchen getting dinner ready. Someone else has a tripod setup and is cleaning the apartment possibly preparing to record a video. Other rooms are dark but you can tell the TV is on. Someone is texting as they browse on their Macbook Pro.
Each apartment is filled with different furniture helping to make the room unique. I wonder what these people do for a living. I also wonder why so many leave their blinds wide open, I certainly wouldn’t.
Next month marks three years of full-time employment contributing to WP Tavern
Three years later and I’m still having a difficult time molding myself into a (good) journalist from the shoot-from-the-hip way of writing I did a few years ago. I can’t just write stuff and hit publish. I have to check and double-check for accuracy and then get it checked again. Get quotes from people. Wait hours, or a day or two for a response back. Edit posts because I fail at grammar all the time.
The publishing process sucks and it’s not something I enjoy putting myself through every day. After three years of doing this thing full-time, the job should be easier but instead, it’s more difficult. I gotta use proper English, be professional, put quotes in the right places, start paragraphs in the right places, know when to use a block quote versus an inline quote. Fuck quotes.
The funny thing is, I did a lot of this stuff naturally in the early days of the Tavern (probably incorrectly) but for whatever reason, they’re pains in my ass now adays.
In the last three years, there are quite a few challenges I’ve worked through and ones I continue to struggle with on an every day basis while working from home. No need to get into those here but I’ve formed some pretty bad habits.
You know what, this post is just a stream of conscious thought and it’s beginning to ramble into different directions like my mind does all the time so I’ll end it here. Here’s to another year of figuring shit out, including quotes. On second thought, fuck quotes.
As I was working at the train restaurant yesterday, I saw The Katy (UP1988) heritage unit go by. One more Norfolk Southern heritage unit checked off my list!
UP 1988 Via Thelope.com http://www.thelope.com/2006/05/katy-days-in-parsons-kansas.html
When I worked at the grocery store, there was a gentleman older than me that I got along with and who I could tell anything too. He’s one of those individuals that are hard to find now a days. After years of friendship, he decided to take his own life.
I’ll never forget the day I went into work when it happened. People crowded around me as I punched into the time clock. You see, I’d hangout and work with this gentleman several hours a week.
First it was my best friend then it was my future wife who told me the news. My friend and co-worker had taken his life the night before with a shotgun. I attended his funeral wondering what signs I missed, what could I have done to prevent this tragedy?
Sometimes, I run what if scenarios through my head to try to bring him back but no matter what I do, he’s gone from this realm of existence. There will always be a bit of guilt on my part for not recognizing something that may have saved his life. At the time, everything seemed just fine and this individual was hard to get personal information out of.
If you know someone who’s committed suicide, please don’t feel guilty and put the burden on your shoulders. It’s a choice the individual made and it’s likely their mind was made up well in advance.
Society sometimes looks at suicide as a way out, an end to all that is shitty in their life. Some may also consider it a cop-out or a selfish act of desire. Unless you’ve been at the brink, that point where you decide if you live or die, who are you to judge?
I sometimes dream it, think it, wonder it, but it’s the same conclusion every time. My good friend is gone and there isn’t anything I can do about it. I’ve thought about it but have never reached the point of doing it.
Please don’t put yourself in a depressive state because someone you know has taken their life. It’s sad yes, but if you put guilt on your shoulders at the same time, it will likely drive you into an unhealthy state of mind. Be strong, support loved ones who cared for the individual, and be the light in a time of darkness.
I’ve forgotten how relaxing it is to lay back and watch puffy white clouds float by. 
My how things have changed.
I purchased a new domain through GoDaddy and have begun the process of hooking it up to a webhosting account. I haven’t gone through this process in a few years and I’m anxious to see if it’s any easier.
The domain is Buckeyerails.com and will feature my railroad journeys across Ohio. The site will also consist of videos of legitimate train rides, photographs, or videos of trains going by. This project primarily allows me to get back into the field of using WordPress as a user and customer.
Those who work with and build WordPress sites for a living end up with a ton of experience. As someone who writes about WordPress for a living outside of the agency space, I’m not afforded the same luxury.
Setting up the site gives me an opportunity to find themes, plugins, and solutions to problems I experience as a user. I haven’t gone through such an experience in years, so I’m looking forward to see if it’s any easier.
It’s the beginning of August when the angle of the sun, color of the clouds, and my garden signal the end of Summer. These summer nights are the last in which I’ll be able to enjoy the night sky in comfortable weather conditions.
One application on my iPhone that’s helped me enjoy the night sky even more this summer is Sky Guide. Using this app on my iPhone, I’m able to look at the night sky in a new way. It shows constellations and the orientation of the night sky in real-time.
I’m able to see constellations of stars I didn’t know existed. It’s a fantastic app I recommend to anyone who owns an iPhone and enjoys looking at the night sky.
Thoughts and Insanity From Jeff 