The Life and Ministry of: Julio C. Medina: 9/23/07

9/29/07

A personal wake up call...

These are from my accident in 03. I am not sure if I had them on an old post but I like to keep them in front of me to keep me humble.

9/28/07

One Semester of Spanish Love Song...

Ha ha ha ha....This made my night I had to share it...

It`s a good day to do absolulty NOTHING!

I am a subscriber to www.fineliving.com `s Newsletter and this month was about enjoying the fall etc...While I was reading I came across this article and list so I thought I would pass it along and find out what your best way to do"nothing" is. It does not have to come from the list below but if it does that`s fine too..So tell me...

140 Great Ways to Do Nothing

Don't know how to do "nothing?" Here are 140 ideas for de-stressing, relaxing, enjoying, appreciating and otherwise living like you mean it.

1. Make a date with nature once every week.
2. Brew a pot of sun tea and invite your neighbor over for a taste.
3. Invest in a hammock.
4. Spend an hour in the sunshine to boost your brain's "happiness" chemistry.
5. Grow an aloe vera plant to heal sunburns next summer.
6. Get conversations started at your next party by serving Popsicles as hors d'oeuvres.
7. Let your kids pick out your next outfit.
8. Hire a kid in the neighborhood to run your errands this week.
9. Think of a change as a workout for your creativity.
10. Burn off extra "worry" adrenaline by exercising.
11. Laugh 100 times to work out your abdomen, neck, back and even your legs.
12. Rent a comedy and invite over that friend with the great laugh.
13. Next time you buy groceries, get yourself something from the toy aisle.
14. Buy a postcard and mail yourself a compliment.
15. Memorize a new joke and try it on a complete stranger.
16. Make a list of your blessings and mail it to yourself.
17. Once a week, substitute the nightly news with recordings of your favorite comedians.
18. Give the universe time to answer all your questions.
19. On your next vacation, put down the camera and try sketching.
20. Have a family contest to see who can spot the most birds on your street.
21. Watch the sunset with your kids tonight.
22. Make a wish on the first star to come out.
23. Breathe deeply to reduce stress.
24. Take a deep breath and hold it until you think of five people who make you laugh.
25. Take a hike and shoot a whole roll of film on nothing but bugs.
26. Treat your best friend to a gourmet picnic.
27. Spend an afternoon kite racing.
28. Send yourself flowers, with a card.
29. Pick a mantra just for vacations.
30. Using Crayons, draw a picture of your pet.
31. Do nothing for an hour to replenish your brain chemistry.
32. Watch reruns of I Love Lucy for an hour to replenish your brain chemistry.
33. Mail a present to someone you love.
34. Cleanse your digestive system by eating a mango, which is loaded with antioxidants.
35. Make and drink a mango smoothie.
36. Sing your favorite Broadway musical hit out loud.
37. Add a dance routine.
38. Get your feet wet.
39. Make time each week to infuse your body with a wild setting.
40. Count your down time as real time.
41. Make a list of your top ten priorities; cut it down to five.
42. Play jacks.
43. See if you can skip for a block without giggling.
44. Go barefoot.
45. Help to prevent heart attacks, depression, arthritis and ulcers with a spoonful of fish oil.
46. Take a 15-minute catnap to recharge yourself for three hours.
47. Make a date with your inner artist.
48. Spend some of your home improvement budget on original art.
49. Frame your favorite travel photos.
50. Ask your houseplants how they feel today.
51. Build a bird feeder.
52. Blow a whole roll of film on flowers.
53. Have an ice cream cone today.
54. Throw a Frisbee.
55. Take a tango lesson with your sweetheart.
56. Make a CD of the songs you sang along with in high school, and play it in traffic.
57. Practice yoga by lying very still to calm the mind.
58. Pay extra for home delivery.
59. Ask a kid if you can play, too.
60. Keep Crayons at work.
61. Learn which part of your body tells you when you reach your stress limit.
62. Two more months before you have to, rake leaves again.
63. Book yourself some hammock time.
64. Make a date with your feet to take your toes for a wiggle in the sand.
65. Make optimism your mind's default setting.
66. Spend the day complimenting each person you meet.
67. Talk yourself into living in the moment.
68. "Present time" is the only place the universe can ship your presents.
69. Spend ten minutes eating a pear.
70. Make a Coral Rita: 1 part lime juice, six parts good tequila, 2 parts cointreau; blend with ice.
71. Let a friend take you for a walk blindfolded.
72. Learn the art of arranging flowers.
73. Keep a foot massage kit near the couch.
74. Make a CD of silly songs and play it on your way to work.
75. Make a Shark Bite: 1 part dark rum, 2 parts orange juice, a splash of sour mix; blend with ice.
76. Start a sketchbook. If you can't draw, use crayons.
77. Throw a party to invent a new cocktail. Name it after yourself.
78. Spend the day in your cutest pajamas.
79. Eat your dinner out of order.
80. Read a poem out loud to a friend.
81. Hire a musician to serenade your sweetie at work.
82. Have a happy "childhood" by eating an ice cream sundae.
83. Don't skimp on the whipped cream.
84. Learn to throw a boomerang.
85. Make sure you have your own superhero costume.
86. Buy and wear a dramatic hat.
87. Replace should with could for a week.
88. Treat yourself to lunch with that friend who always compliments you.
89. Learn to play your favorite song on the guitar.
90. Make a fruit salad entirely out of fruit you've never had before.
91. Boost your immune system by laughing a lot.
92. Have a bad joke tournament with your friends.
93. Make a list of things you've accomplished that you never thought you could do.
94. Have a sunset picnic.
95. Imagine the universe as a waiter ready to take your order. Make sure to order dessert.
96. Strand yourself on a desert island by unplugging your phone for an hour.
97. Hold a garage sale as an excuse to meet your neighbors.
98. Spend the profits on a Slip 'N Slide. (Yes, you can still get them and they're only about $14.)
99. Play Frisbee.
100. Design a bouquet out of wildflowers.
101. Have a family art show.
102. Dance the Calypso.
103. Let the kids plan your next adventure day.
104. Try juggling, starting with rolled-up socks.
105. Throw a sunset dinner party in a park.
106. Give your kids disposable cameras and have them shoot a day in their life.
107. See who in your family can invent the most ridiculous laugh.
108. E-mail a list of compliments to your sweetheart.
109. Spend five minutes today sitting perfectly still — it's harder than it sounds.
110. Make mud pies.
111. Make your own field guide to the wildlife in your city.
112. Invent the perfect salad.
113. Write a poem.
114. Take a nap with your dog — on the floor.
115. Make time in the morning to visualize your day.
116. Go skinny-dipping.
117. Put a basket of toys in the break room at work.
118. Blow a whole roll of film on the house from your dog's point of view.
119. Treat yourself to a sunrise.
120. Give the universe time to get back to you when you ask for something.
121. E-mail yourself 10 things you admire about you. Schedule it for delivery a week from now.
122. Grow a houseplant from a seed.
123. Read the biography of your favorite person in history.
124. Throw an ice cream sundae-building party.
125. Write your "to do" list for the week in crayon.
126. Stimulate your chi by eating fish.
127. Enjoy the moments in-between.
128. Skip rocks.
129. Embrace your animal qualities.
130. Give anger an expiration date.
131. Reduce stress by throwing a water balloon.
132. Spend your loose change at a batting cage.
133. Rub warm sesame oil on your feet before bedtime to cure insomnia.
134. Describe your favorite shining moment to someone in the third person.
135. Ask your inner child to write out a "to do" list for the week.
136. Stage a breakfast feast that lasts till well past noon.
137. Relish the things you are still learning to master.
138. Think of your name as a verb, not a noun.
139. Fish without a hook and just meditate. - This sounds really stupid. Use the hook!
140. Schedule a mud bath. - Ha ha I will have to pencil this one in LOL

9/26/07

Sporting Goods Store....

Hey Go check out BK Sporting Goods for all your Sporting Good Needs....It`s my buddy`s store they have good prices and everything you could imagine. He can probably find things and special order them if you don't see them in his store too....If your not gonna buy anything at least go check it it out.

Attention Don`t say you did`nt get the memo!

If you already signed up for the game which I saw like 5 people did...All you do is click the "rankings" tabs to see how you are doing against everyone else. Go ahead and start investing with whatever you want. You have 100,000 dollar to do whatever you want with... Feel free to come on here and post some stuff or any questions...This is new to me too so if you figure something out...share it. But start investing.

Side Note : You get paid interest on your money that have not used too!

If you want to join please refer to the post below or go to my labels and click investing.

9/25/07

Born to Die...

I found this post yesterday on the Wall Street Journal and I was very inspired by it so I decided why not blog it so I can look back in a couple weeks,months or years and get that same inspiration again...Why? Because stories like this need to be heard and read over and over. Watch the video after reading the actual story and it will sum it all up.

Story Courtesy of: http://online.wsj.com/public/article_print/SB119024238402033039.html

A Beloved Professor Delivers
The Lecture of a Lifetime
September 20, 2007

Randy Pausch, a Carnegie Mellon University computer-science professor, was about to give a lecture Tuesday afternoon, but before he said a word, he received a standing ovation from 400 students and colleagues.

He motioned to them to sit down. "Make me earn it," he said.

What wisdom would we impart to the world if we knew it was our last chance? For Carnegie Mellon professor Randy Pausch, the question isn't rhetorical -- he's dying of cancer. Jeff Zaslow narrates a video on Prof. Pausch's final lecture.
They had come to see him give what was billed as his "last lecture." This is a common title for talks on college campuses today. Schools such as Stanford and the University of Alabama have mounted "Last Lecture Series," in which top professors are asked to think deeply about what matters to them and to give hypothetical final talks. For the audience, the question to be mulled is this: What wisdom would we impart to the world if we knew it was our last chance?

It can be an intriguing hour, watching healthy professors consider their demise and ruminate over subjects dear to them. At the University of Northern Iowa, instructor Penny O'Connor recently titled her lecture "Get Over Yourself." At Cornell, Ellis Hanson, who teaches a course titled "Desire," spoke about sex and technology.

At Carnegie Mellon, however, Dr. Pausch's speech was more than just an academic exercise. The 46-year-old father of three has pancreatic cancer and expects to live for just a few months. His lecture, using images on a giant screen, turned out to be a rollicking and riveting journey through the lessons of his life.

He began by showing his CT scans, revealing 10 tumors on his liver. But after that, he talked about living. If anyone expected him to be morose, he said, "I'm sorry to disappoint you." He then dropped to the floor and did one-handed pushups.

Randy Pausch and his three children, ages 5, 2 and 1.
Clicking through photos of himself as a boy, he talked about his childhood dreams: to win giant stuffed animals at carnivals, to walk in zero gravity, to design Disney rides, to write a World Book entry. By adulthood, he had achieved each goal. As proof, he had students carry out all the huge stuffed animals he'd won in his life, which he gave to audience members. After all, he doesn't need them anymore.

He paid tribute to his techie background. "I've experienced a deathbed conversion," he said, smiling. "I just bought a Macintosh." Flashing his rejection letters on the screen, he talked about setbacks in his career, repeating: "Brick walls are there for a reason. They let us prove how badly we want things." He encouraged us to be patient with others. "Wait long enough, and people will surprise and impress you." After showing photos of his childhood bedroom, decorated with mathematical notations he'd drawn on the walls, he said: "If your kids want to paint their bedrooms, as a favor to me, let 'em do it."

While displaying photos of his bosses and students over the years, he said that helping others fulfill their dreams is even more fun than achieving your own. He talked of requiring his students to create videogames without sex and violence. "You'd be surprised how many 19-year-old boys run out of ideas when you take those possibilities away," he said, but they all rose to the challenge.

He also saluted his parents, who let him make his childhood bedroom his domain, even if his wall etchings hurt the home's resale value. He knew his mom was proud of him when he got his Ph.D, he said, despite how she'd introduce him: "This is my son. He's a doctor, but not the kind who helps people."

He then spoke about his legacy. Considered one of the nation's foremost teachers of videogame and virtual-reality technology, he helped develop "Alice," a Carnegie Mellon software project that allows people to easily create 3-D animations. It had one million downloads in the past year, and usage is expected to soar.

"Like Moses, I get to see the Promised Land, but I don't get to step foot in it," Dr. Pausch said. "That's OK. I will live on in Alice."

Plus, watch Dr. Pausch's full lecture3 at Carnegie Mellon's Web site.Many people have given last speeches without realizing it. The day before he was killed, Martin Luther King Jr. spoke prophetically: "Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place." He talked of how he had seen the Promised Land, even though "I may not get there with you."

Dr. Pausch's lecture, in the same way, became a call to his colleagues and students to go on without him and do great things. But he was also addressing those closer to his heart.

Near the end of his talk, he had a cake brought out for his wife, whose birthday was the day before. As she cried and they embraced on stage, the audience sang "Happy Birthday," many wiping away their own tears.

Dr. Pausch's speech was taped so his children, ages 5, 2 and 1, can watch it when they're older. His last words in his last lecture were simple: "This was for my kids." Then those of us in the audience rose for one last standing ovation.

My Question to you reader....What would you have to say for yourself? What advise can you give someone if you found out that you were dying of an incurable disease?Can you leave here with something we can learn from? Sounds cliche and maybe even "morbid" but it really is a great thought and something that should motivate you to think about how you go about your daily life. I am reminded of a quote I read once. "To the world you might just be one person but to one person, You might just be the world."

9/24/07

Grilled Cheese - A Simple Classic

I just got in from a 10.5 mile bike ride around the forest preserves in Willowbrook, IL and I decided that later this week I will have a cheat day from my new hardcore diet/training till I leave for basic and I am going to 'cook' for myself...Grilled cheese can definitely be a bachelors snack..It`s easy to make and great tasting. I am such a big fan I decided to blog it lol ;)

10 Tips For the Greatest Grilled Cheese

It's the childhood favorite you never outgrow, the most comforting comfort food of all time -- the grilled cheese sandwich. American, cheddar, gouda ... whatever your pleasure, follow these ten tips from Laura Werlin, author of Great Grilled Cheese, and have yourself a slice of melted cheese heaven.

1. Good to grate
Don't slice your cheese when you can grate it (the bigger the grater, the better). This ensures evenly melted, gooey cheese in every bite.

2. Get cheesy
Don't be shy -- plan on about two ounces of cheese per sandwich. Use your palm to press the grated cheese onto the bread so it doesn't fall out.

3. Embrace the ooze
Don't fret if the cheese oozes out of the sandwich. The toasty bits at the bottom of the pan are the best part!
Bread

4. No need to Wonder
Don't just assume that white is the only way. If you love focaccia or whole-wheat, go for it.

5. Size does matter
Don't slice your bread more than 1/4" thick or it'll overwhelm the cheese.

6. Smush your bread
Flatten sandwiches with a spatula or a heavy pan to ensure oozing cheese and crisp rather than doughy bread.
Butter

7. Butter le pain, not le pan
Spread room-temperature butter on the bread (on the side you're grilling, not the inside of the sandwich) before you grill. That way, you'll get evenly buttered, evenly browned bread with a little crunch.

8. Salted butter is best
Just trust me.
Cooking

9. Stick with nonstick
Although a cast-iron skillet is the traditional fave, a nonstick skillet is your best bet for easy flipping and no sticking.

10. Put a lid on it
Cover the skillet while cooking the first side of the sandwich for maximum cheese melting.
And now for the ultimate grilled cheese recipe, from Laura Werlin's Great Grilled Cheese:

The Best Grilled Cheese

8 slices sourdough bread (1/4 inch thick)

2 tablespoons butter, at room temperature

6 ounces best-quality cheddar cheese (orange or white), coarsely grated

To assemble: Butter one side of each slice of bread. Place 4 slices on your work surface, buttered side down. Distribute the cheese evenly over the 4 slices. Place the remaining 4 bread slices on top, buttered side up.

Stovetop method: Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat for 2 minutes. Put the sandwiches in the skillet (in batches if necessary), cover, and cook for 2 minutes, or until the undersides are golden brown and the cheese has begun to melt. Uncover, and turn the sandwiches with a spatula, pressing firmly to flatten them slightly. Cook for 1 minute, or until the undersides are golden brown. Turn the sandwiches again, press with the spatula, and cook for 30 seconds, or until the cheese has melted completely. Serve immediately.

Sandwich maker method: Preheat the sandwich maker. Follow directions for sandwich assembly, and cook according to the manufacturer's instructions.
Gas grill method: Brush the grill rack with oil and preheat the grill to medium-high. Follow directions for sandwich assembly. Put the sandwiches on the grill and follow directions for the stovetop method.

Makes 4 sandwiches.

If you are really good at making grilled cheese Virgin Mary might appear. ;)

Now the real important information....

Nutrition Facts

Amount Per 1 sandwich

Calories 291.51
Calories from Fat 143.43

% Daily Value *

Total Fat 15.94g		25%

	Saturated Fat 6.07g	30%

	Polyunsaturated Fat 3.13g

	Monounsaturated Fat 5.84g

Cholesterol 19.45mg		6%

Sodium 695.65mg		29%

Potassium 137.02mg		4%

Total Carbohydrate 27.07g		9%

	Dietary Fiber 1.17g	5%

Protein 9.8g		20%

Alcohol 0g

Vitamin A	12 %	Vitamin C	0 %

Calcium	22 %	Iron	10 %

Vitamin D	0 %	Vitamin E	3 %

Thiamin	9 %	Riboflavin	14 %

Niacin	9 %	Folate	8 %

Vitamin B-6	3 %	Vitamin B-12	3 %

Phosphorus	19 %	Magnesium	5 %

Zinc	8 %	Copper	4 %

*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

All in all its not great...But it`s not that BAD either...I think I might add some tomato soup to go along with it! Happy Monday Everyone...And join my stock game on the post below. :)