Catharsis of the Bogue

Oddities, Profundities, Profanities and Dad Stuff

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How to Traumatize the Kids Without Really Trying

First of all, I don’t set out to traumatize my kids.  It just happens.  Somewhere in the evil part of my brain, I kind of enjoy it.  It is some kind of karmic payback for poopy diapers and screaming in the middle of the night.  Truth: I love my kids and would do anything for them.  Poopy diapers are just part of being a DAD.

But I can traumatize my kids in their sleep without ever leaving the couch.  I like scary movies.  And action movies.  You know the ones with lots of shooting and or screaming.  The problem with relation to the kids, is my 9 year old has nightmares from the screaming.  She tells me when she goes to bed “Don’t watch any scary movies tonight”.  Sometimes she doesn’t notice, sometimes she gets mad at me.

Some days I don’t watch anything and she still complains.  I just keep telling them if they were alseep they wouldn’t notice. Lately I watch a lot of movies with headphones on.

So, how do you traumatize your kids, or how do you plan to?  Like I said sometimes it is fun to payback the kids.  You just have to remember, they are still kids.  You are the parent, the guardian.  You are the one who takes away the nightmares.  You have to be willing to change habits to keep them comfortable.

Take care of your kids, they are the greatest thing in the world.

Justin

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Poetry Tuesday: Agony’s Dictates

BATH, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 20: Chris Harris as ...

Image by Getty Images via @daylife

Good Last Day of November to you all!  Christmas is coming soon as is the 1 year anniversary of my online empire!  This blog officially started on Dec 14.  Self hosted took 2 more weeks but I was writing on the 14th so that is what I am going with.  I am excited!

****I really have no idea what the pic here has to do with anything in this post.  It came up in Zemanta and I am confused as well as amused.****

Today I bring you another poem that ended up in the finals of Poetry.com’s contest.  I still am skeptical of that, I suspect that if your poem is somewhat coherent and free of egregious errors you get in the finals so that they can sell you their compilation books.  It made me feel good at the time, until my sister got a similar letter for a huge piece of crap; and then she ordered the trophy for $50 or so.  I should run a contest like that.

Anywho….I wrote this way back in 2000 while my wife was pregnant with our first daughter.  I don’t remember much of the backstory so you can imagine your own!

Agony’s Dictates

By: Justin Matthews

Swimming and swooning,

Floating and Falling ,

All that is feel is Looming

High over my head.

Enticing me to life,

Unto my Feelings,

Unto my Eternal Soul.

I scream with great fervor to the sky:

“Sweet Agony!  Sweet Agony!

Why does’t thou torture me so?”

My life is simple, yet very complex.

All that I want and feel,

I cannot yet have.

Thus, Sweet Agony, you reign supreme,

Pulling me several directions at once,

Forcing me to be complacent.

Until the reckoning…..

I would love to read your comments!

have a great week.

Justin

Sleep Deprivation

Main health effects of sleep deprivation (See ...
Image via Wikipedia

Are you tired?  I mean really tired, the “if I sit too long in one spot I am going to fall asleep” kind of tired?  How are you sleeping?

As I write this, it is 1:30 am.  I should be in bed but the kids are finally all asleep (including the 3 month old) and I have time to write.  Wow, I really should be in bed.  I still have to get up and get the older kids to school at 8:00.

As you can see from the chart over there, several problems arise from sleep deprivation.  My favorite is hallucinations.  Have you ever been that tired, where you see things?

All of us miss some sleep now and again.  That is normal.  Sometimes, what difference does it make?  Stay up late on Saturday and still get to church on time.  Wake up every hour and a half with the new baby. (that ends thankfully.  Now at 3.5 months he sleeps 4+ hours at a time) The main point with most of these is that the cause goes away and you can get back to normal.

*Editors note: I gave up after falling asleep for the third time at my keyboard, roughly 2 am.  the rest of this post is written the next day in a tired but caffeine fueled state.**

Many things we do to ourselves.  As business owners who write blogs we force ourselves to work above and beyond, work late into the night and early in the morning.  We push harder than most people because we are not satisfied with working for other people and we want to make our business a success.  I know for a fact that there will be several more long nights and early mornings in my quest for financial independence.

I just keep in mind that this is what I want.  This business that I am building is that important to me.  It is also important for me to be able to stay home with my kids.  That makes the need to push this business even bigger.

Sleep when you can, work all of the time.  Dream about your business when awake and dream about being a success when asleep.  Just get SOME sleep every once in a while.  You don’t want to burn out.

What do you guys think?  Please join in on the comment section below!  Also, please digg, stumble, or RT as necessary!

Thanks for reading, you guys are why this blog endures.

-Justin

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