The Rogers News

Author: Chris

  • Movie: Marley and Me

    Be loyal.
    Be enthusiastic.
    Be happy.
    Be selfless.
    Be a dog to the people you love most.

  • Bravery in Love and Life

    I came across the following quote by Marianne Williamson, author of The Gift of Change, on Julia Allison’s tumblr. My response below was originally posted on my tumblr and I’ve copied it here for personal reference.

    I don’t look back on my earliest forays into romance and think, ‘Oh, but that was only puppy love.’ Rather, I look back and think how courageously we loved, before we knew what there was to be afraid of; how strong we were, before any other agendas stood in the way of our love; and how pure our hearts were, when they were not yet tainted by cynicism or doubt. The older we are, the more we know some things; the younger we are, the more we know others. Age only makes us smarter if we retain our bravery.

    I completely agree with this quote, but I think the concepts of “staying brave” and not letting age get in the way (or be an excuse) can be extrapolated beyond the reaches of romance.

    I am finding myself once again at a point in my life where I have to make some big decisions. E.g., where to take the bar, where to live, and where to work. These decisions are interdependent almost to the point that I only have one decision to make. If anyone of them falls into place, then the others are mostly irrelevant. That is the harsh downside to attempting to be a practicing lawyer.

    For whatever reason I am not drawn to a specific area of law or a specific area of the country. I am far from apathetic, and this relates closely to my first resolution of 2009 – too be more decisive and more critical. There should be a reason for what I want that outweighs my complacency. My life will live itself, but it won’t go as I wish if I don’t steer it.

    This is where being brave comes in. The decisions come at a cost and I am going to have to be brave – fearless at times – and go out and get what I want from this world. I’ve been incredibly fortunate thus far, but it is time to stake my claim on what exactly I want from life – to take up my space in this world – to breath deeply the air that is here for me to breath. (High five to self!)

    So, off I go into 2009 with a renewed approach. To be in the moment. To be willing to break out of my comfort-zone and to get going with my life. To love and live courageously every single day of 2009 and beyond.

    P.S. – Yes, this is cliche-ridden. I’m okay with that for now. Ha.

  • Photography: Prime Lense

    I was watching this video on Bruce Gilden’s take on street photography. He basically just jumps in front of people and takes their picture. No permission. No fair warning. Just a flash in their face.

    Anyway, this led me to investigate what kind of lens works best for “street photography.” As it turns out there are a lot of opinions on the matter. See here and here and here for opinions.

    The consensus beyond whatever works seems to be some sort of “prime lens,” which was a foreign term to me. It’s a lens with a fixed focal length. Thus, “prime” is the opposite of “zoom.”

    The advantage to using a prime lens is that it simplifies the picture-taking process. You can be quicker. You can become familiar with how best to shoot with that focal length.

    So, that’s that. I don’t know much. But I’m noting what I learn here so I can remember. Please feel free to comment, correct, or inform me.

  • Resolutions for 2009

    1. Be more critical. Be more inquisitive. Ask more questions. Have higher expectations. Dig down deeper. Frame things multiple times.

    2. Have more fun. Stop worrying. Live in the moment.

    3. Create something everyday.

    Goals like “passing the bar” and “getting a job” will come in a subsequent post. Despite being firmly determined to accomplish each of those things, they aren’t exactly resolutions to me.

  • My Year in Cities: 2008

    I spent one or more nights in each of the following cities in 2008. Looks like I didn’t get around much. Hopefully, 2009 will take me to many shiny new places.

    Traverse City, MI
    Ishpeming, MI
    Concord, NH
    Park City, UT
    Chicago, IL
    Rogers, CT
    Grand Canyon, AZ
    Las Vegas, NV
    Ann Arbor, MI
    Lansing, MI
    Grimsby, ON, Canada

  • OneWord: Glossy

    There’s a gloss on the two thin black stripes upon which I am driving too quickly for my own good. Or the good of others. So much for defensive driving. The lessons learned in those instructionals are long forgotten. I’m in a hurry.

    Me via oneword.

  • For Whom I Write

    Hemingway said once:

    I believe that basically you write for two people; yourself to try to make it absolutely perfect; or if not that then wonderful; Then you write for who you love whether she can read or write or not and whether she is alive or dead.

    I agree with this even if I don’t know who I love at the time or if I feel that no one is currently in love with me. If I am writing there must be someone out there who either loves me for what I write or loves the simple fact that I write.

    If I’m not writing for someone else – someone who loves me – then I am writing for myself. I am usually trying to perfect some distant memory or mash together what’s left over of my past to make sense of it. When I look back at my life most things that seemed complicated at the time are now decidedly straightforward – the slow fade of life. There is always more than I remember. The “more” is what I satisfy with my writing. Whether it is exact, perfect, non-fiction, or the exact opposite doesn’t matter. What matters is what I want to remember and how I choose to share it.

    So, yeah. I can agree with Hemingway. I write to perfect my life. I write for the woman I love. I may even be writing or you.