All These Things That I've Done

Thomas was having a rough go tonight because we made him stay up later than he wanted to in order not to disrupt his regular bedtime routine. As usual when this happens, we try to coax him with songs, happy faces, and the Superman game. Abby's tactic tonight was playing some music. One of the songs she chose was "All These Things That I've Done" by The Killers. No matter what mood I'm in, this song brightens it, and it seemed to do the same for Thomas...at least while it was playing.

I'm sure many of the good feelings this song produces are rooted in nostalgia and missing my college friends, but maybe it will brighten your mood as well. (Sorry, the music video is WEIRD. And I didn't really see it until I already loved the song.)

From the Archives: "Read All about It"

I was working on a different blog post--I promise!--which necessitated linking to a blog post I had written on my Xanga site. I didn't find what I was looking for, but I did find this post from two years ago. I'll try not to do this often, but in lieu of something "brand-new" to read, I present to you, from my blogging archives, "Read All about It."

A confluence of events in the last few weeks reminded me of a story I don't think I've told here before. In fact, I think I've been careful to this point not to tell it to people I went to college with (though a few--notably Erin--know), for their sakes and for mine. Ignorance breeds candor, on the one hand; and I was too embarrassed to share it, on the other. Still, this has had a major impression on me because it showed me in one instant the depths to which I could plummet and the heights to which I could ascend.

Book Clubs and Theories of Time

A useful tool of thought that I learned in one of my college classes is first-order and second-order desires. A first-order desire is a want ("I want pie"). A second-order desire is a wanting to want ("I want to want to go running"--a second-order desire I've expressed many, many times). What we say are first-order desires are often second-order ones, especially when it comes to things we think would be good for us. This has been a constant source of frustration in leading book clubs in the past. A lot more people say they are interested in reading books than actually read them. Being part of a book club requires foresight, and what potential members often indicate is a first-order desire ("I want to be in a book club!") is actually a second-order one ("I want to want to be in a book club, because I know it's good for me to read more books; but I don't really want it more than I want _____").

Another useful tool of thought I gained in college from my friend Dave, who helped me administer a campus book club. When we would work to recruit, it was usually an exercise in futility, and the result was a good cop/bad cop situation. I'd handle the pleasant invitation, and when (inevitably) excuses were given why the person couldn't join, bad cop stepped in. Here's how a conversation would go: