Your Humble Blogger Signing Off

      Well guys we've had a long run. The blog has evolved in many ways and become way greater than I ever expected it to. I've worked for So Danca for a long time now and though my time here has been one filled with good memories all good things must come to an end in order for new and better things to come about. I will be stepping down from my position here and therefore will no longer be posting articles in this blog. I have no idea if I'll start another blog yet or not but if I do it will no longer be under any company or sponsor and therefore it would have more freedom when it comes to articles and such. Don't know if that will occur yet or not but for now this is goodbye. As I planned this final post various ideas came to mind, but one stuck out the most, a last goodbye post featuring some things in my life that are going on. Alas we here we go.

     I've always had a dream about pursuing graduate school in the area of theology. Specifically I'll be attending a seminary program at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, well, I hope, I'll find out for sure if I'm accepted or not in November, hopefully I'll get some good news then. The blog will continue though so rest assured that there will be articles here in the days to come. Our company's very own Anne Polajenko will be taking over as author, she happens to be a pointe shoe expert and therefore the blog might start taking a more dance oriented turn. Change is good and I hope that under her care this blog will continue to flourish as it has over this past year and a half.

      Leaving a blog is a strange feeling. It's like breaking up with a girlfriend. You share good times with her and bad, you experience her grow and invest countless hours of your time making sure that she continues to be a success. Leaving a blog and giving it to someone else it like breaking up with someone and telling them that the next guy will make her just as happy as you did and that everything will be ok. I guess this feeling is the same for anyone who has worked on a project for a long time and then passed it on to someone else. In this case though I do feel a comfort in knowing that Anne will be taking this over and under her capable hands I am sure that this blog will grow in various ways.

    As for last recommendations, go watch "Seven Psychopaths", probably the best movie in theaters right now. This weekend "Wreck-It-Ralph" will be coming out and that also looks really good so keep that in mind, while not forgetting that in two weeks "Skyfall" (the new Bond movie) comes out and that definitely looks amazing. As for TV shows I recently got the chance to watch a BBC show "Misfits", seasons one and two being amazing and three and four losing it's stride significantly, but worth giving a look for sure. If you are an anime fan I would recommend "Sword Art Online" which happens to be amazing, best anime series I've seen in a while. As for games, I've not had a chance to play "Dishonored" yet but all that have played it love it, a fun one to check out it seems. I recently gave Hulu + a second chance, and honestly I fell in love with it, ads still get on my nerves but you can't have everything.

     If you are a book lover "Name of The Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss is still my favorite book, I recommend it over all others. If you read comic books and have not read "The Sandman" by Neil Gaiman then do yourself a kindness and read it, it's the best thing since ice cream. Disney bought Star Wars, random but I thought you should know, I wouldn't be surprised if the next movies are better than Episodes 1 through 3, but that could be just my fan boy hope speaking. On that topic "Empire Strikes Back" is my favorite movie of all time, another random fun fact but it seemed to fit the genre. A TV side note, "Once Upon A Time" has been amazing this season, way better than expected, I recommend you give this show a chance for sure.  And one last "Dr. Who" shout out is in order, I love this show, best show on TV, check it out if you have the chance.

    And so we've come to a close. This is goodbye folks,we've had quite a ride and I'll miss posting articles for you all. I will be publishing a book one day so look out for that. If you have facebook and want to add me feel free to do so, I mostly post memes on there but sometimes good relevant new projects pop up from time to time. I love you all and will miss being around, go and live a life worth reliving.

 See you around.

    Love from your humble blogger,

              Mario Ransan

On Going Shows To Watch Part 2

  Some of these shows have been going on for a while now and some have just started, but these are all shows worth investing your time in. Some of the shows covered today are a bit more mature than others so keep in mind that though I might rate a show as being good that this does not mean that you particularly will enjoy the show for some have more mature content than what you might be ok with. One of the shows is not in a new season yet but is one that I can't help but cover in this segment, sharing good shows is always a priority in my book and it still surprises me when people tell me they haven't heard of some of these. Anyway, here we go.

  Boardwalk Empire

   For some reason some people have a pretty negative view of this show. It's astounding being that this show is produced, directed and acted by some of the most brilliant men in the industry. If you haven't given this show a shot yet then please do so for it is definitely worth your time. The show is a bit mature featuring violence and explicit sexual scenes, so keep that in mind before checking it out. The show has a fantastic story arch so far, it's the type of show where every episode ties in to the whole of the story, in short no fillers. If you feel like adding a great show with a more mature theme to your life I recommend this show for sure.

   The League

  This is another more mature show but from a different angle, there's almost no violence and the show is pretty tame when it comes to nudity, but it is very explicit when it comes to language and sexual themes. This is an adult comedy show and should be known as such. If you are easily offended by coarse humor then please don't watch this show, if you love raunchy comedy than you'll love this show for sure. The League is the type of show where you gather various friends together and laugh till you cry due to how hilarious the show is, I can't help but recommend this show, though keep in mind the adult themes and remember that if you offend easy that you shouldn't watch this one, plenty of other shows out there besides this one that you can give your time to.

   30 Rock

   Here is a great show from start to end. Since the first season this show has got me hooked, and this season is no exception. This season started strong and has been filled with hilarious moments with the cast we have come to love. They are all still funny and the writers behind this show are still being brilliant. This is a good show for everyone. Anyone can just pick up and watch this one without needing too much of a back story, it's just a good old comedy. I've found that the characters have evolved a lot since their introduction and this season is just taking things to a higher level of maturity, not necessarily in a "growing up" sense, but mature in a "developing a personhood" way. If you are a fan of the show and haven't been keeping up with it then I recommend you get on board, this season is going to be a good one.

   Grimm

   Think "Supernatural" but less scary, a ton less scary. In fact I don't think that there has been even one episode that has made me jump or feel any kind of tension while watching it. With that said, Grimm might not be a scary show but it is a really fun show. First season was a little slow at first but the second season has been really good so far, with the exception of the lame "to be continued" opener (which is super tacky), this season has progressed the story along nicely and possibly might be leading us to a little more depth within the story. If you are into fantasy themes but not really into horror themes then I think this show is for you. The acting is not the best but also not the worst I've ever seen, plus in this season so far everyone has seemed to be more on point. I have high hopes for this series, a recommendation for sure.

    Game Of Thrones

  Now I know that season three of GoT is far away, but I can't help but mention this show here. Recently I've been running into people that have never heard of this show and that has astounded me, even made me a little sad, for this is "the" show that you should get into to. Keep in mind that this is an HBO show so expect, violence, sex and tons of cursing, but I value this show as being one of the best in television. The book series is fantastic, if you love a good fantasy novel and have not read this series yet then do yourself a kindness and give this a shot, it was a great read. Not only is this a great series, but this is the type of show you want to own. I don't generally buy any TV series, buying something I get for free just seems dumb but for some series that cannot be helped, GoT is one of those series.

Hope you all are having a great week, 

 Love from your humble blogger,

On Going Shows To Watch Part 1

     Besides the new shows that are airing right now there are also a ton of continuing shows on TV that are having great new seasons. This week we'll be talking about these new shows varying from more mature shows to just good funny shows that continue to air. Keep in mind that I am just a mere mortal so there is no way that I could watch every show that is on TV right now but I've attempted to stay in touch with a variety of shows going on in order to review something that a lot of you enjoy. This year has been a good year for television shows, one of the best in a while, let's hope that it continues this way till this year's conclusion.

  Once Upon A Time

     Season one was fun but it felt lacking until towards the end where it picked up hardcore and turns out the show had the potential to be awesome all along. So the fear on everyone's mind was that maybe season two would follow the same pattern but lo and behold season two has be amazing from the get go. So far every episode has been fun and full of surprises. The only issue that can become a problem is their insensate need to introduce new characters every episode, get us to like them and then kill them off, that is going to get old really quick. Besides this fact though the show has the potential to go for many more seasons, hopefully they will continue to wow us every episode, definitely a show that deserves your attention.

   Modern Family

   In the past not every episode in this series have been great, some suffer from a little to much cheese, just enough to turn some of us off from watching the series for a while. This season though has been awesome so far, every episode is filled with funny moments, and though I still think they push the "homosexual" element in the show a little to far at times I think this season might top all the others. Cameron is the one I think is over the top a little too much. It might just be me but I feel like his character just gets progressively more and more absurd with every season, and though I enjoy this character I hope that they tone him down a bit, just for the sake of not playing a stereotype on screen 24/7. This season has been really good though, another recommendation for sure.

   Supernatural

   So after I got a mean comment on one of my posts about how I never reviewed Supernatural I decided to give this show a shot and give a brief review of what I thought of the seasons. Season 1 through 5 are the best so far, with 4 and 5 being my favorite. Due to the writers strike season 3 was wounded a bit but not enough that it was bad, it did not suffer the same fate as "Heroes". After Kripke left though I felt the season went down hill a bit, seasons 6 and 7 were pretty weak and left us wanting more of the good old show, which I feel like that's what they are trying to come back to with Season 8. This latest season has been the best one in a long time, not better than 1 though 5 mind you, but way better than 6 and 7. It's difficult to recommend a show that isn't doing as well as it used to, I recommend watching some of the previous seasons before watching this new one. Season 1 was specifically good and spooky. I can't help but feel that they have progressively distanced themselves from the horror element from the first few seasons and are now doing more of a teenage horror thing, not really scary stuff anymore. Anyway, if you're an old fan of the series that got tired of how horrible the past two seasons were then fret not, season 8 seems to be trying to go back to the show roots, well, sort of.

   Sons Of Anarchy

    There is no show on television that has been able to capture what gang/club life feels like than "Sons Of Anarchy". No show has ever tried to go to such depths as they go and push the limits of what can be shown on television as they have, it's quite impressive. I recently heard about this show around May and finally caught up to the current episodes like two weeks back. Frankly, I've thoroughly enjoyed the emotional twists and turns this show has lead me on, this is a mature show for sure, not for everyone, but a guaranteed great show. This show is heavy to watch, and people that have experienced some of the things shown in the show might have a tough time watching it, again, this is not a show for everyone, but it is a great show. For the more mature readers that read this blog I recommend you give this show a shot, you won't regret it, it's heavy for sure, but definitely worth a watch.

   And there you have it, hope you all had a great weekend and hope this Monday will be a great one for you,

 Love from your humble blogger,

Fall Shows To Watch And To Avoid Part 3

     This last run of shows is pretty decent, well except for one, and for the most part have not disappointed yet. There is a problem here though, the issue is clear, a big mess up could still happen. You never know when CW is going to decide to ruin a show due to ratings being lower than they expect by adding High School teenage angst to the show, it has happened before and I'm sure it will happen again. During times like these the only thing one can do is cross their fingers and hope that the networks allow the writers to do their thing and make something that seems to be good become freaking awesome.

   Elementary

   I'll say this over and over, I was against this show from the beginning. The British show "Sherlock" is so good, like freaking brilliant. Why they had to copy that idea and make a butchered "American" version of the show is beyond me but alas they did. Even though I had a twisting sick feeling at the pit of my stomach as I watched the pilot I have to admit that "Elementary" was rather well done. There are some basic changes in the plot that will take some getting used too. If you are like me and read the books as well, the gender changes annoys you as much as it did me, but again, judging the show just by the pilot I think that there might be some hope here, nothing can be said for sure yet, we'll just have to wait and see.

    Arrow

   CW shows are a difficulty sometimes, no way around it. There is a framework that follows each show in their network, the teenage angst and love triangles always come into the picture. Some shows though have escaped the full explosion of horrible that CW can be and surprised everyone, I think "Arrow" has the potential to become one of those shows. The pilot was a lot of fun and though you could tell that CW included some of their "CW plot points" in there they were not overwhelming, allowing the story to progress well and be entertaining. This is another show that can be something great but there is no telling if it will be or not. As far as comic book accuracy, well, it's a CW show, brace yourself.

  Beauty And The Beast

    There's not much to say here. Even before this show was released everyone knew that this show was going to overflow with cheese and hit on every teenage stereotype in order to attempt to be popular. Even the trailer for the show was silly. I love the line in the trailer when she goes "Why did you save me?", he replies "You remind me of what I used to be", she counter replies sheepishly "a doctor?", and with a stern man voice he responds "No, human". I actually laughed when I saw that, it's so over the top it hurts. The pilot hurt to watch, I will never review this show again, I'm sorry if you are a fan but one episode was enough. I think this show will die after a season, or I guess I hope that it does, even the commercials annoy me.

   Last Resort

   This show was a mixed bag at first. I saw the pilot and was intrigued by it but didn't know how it would last in the long run. Now after a few weeks I think that this show has true promise, here is a show you should definitely give a chance to. I think "Last Resort" is right up there with all the other good new shows that were released. It's a challenging topic to bring up around times of war as well and I really love the cast involved with this project. The problem I foresee is how they will keep the series going for more than two seasons without losing their audience, there is only so much one can do within this plot. I predict that this season will be really good, and recommend this show for sure, but as for future seasons I think there is no way to tell. Let's just hope for the best I guess.

Hope you all had a good week and pray that this weekend might be a safe one for you, for those in school right now I hope you enjoy your fall break,  

Love from your humble blogger,

Fall Shows To Watch And To Avoid Part 2

     Next week I'll be reviewing some of the continued shows that are going on, keep in mind that I'm a mere human and cannot watch every show that exists and is doing well, but I promise to try my hardest to spread out the genres between shows I review. This entry covers two shows which I was impressed with and three shows that I'm not sure of. If you have a deferring opinion on any of these shows please let me know, I do so appreciate hearing different opinions.

  666 Park Avenue

    I loved watching this show. It has a great cast, it is very well written and it is well directed so far. The story is engaging and I feel like this particular show will go on for a few seasons, there is a lot that can be done here, many places the story can go and I got a good feeling about it. It's about time we get a new supernatural themed show that tries to push the limits a bit, playing on our emotions while being intelligent and giving us good plot lines. I truly look forward to what they will do next on this show, I recommend it, though keep in mind that this show does have adult themes throughout it, not like an HBO show does but still very much present.

   Emily Owens M.D.

   Here we have another High School themed series which takes place in a hospital, why they would do another hospital series I have no idea but the writing seems to be ok, and the story peaked my interest at some points. There is no telling if this show will survive more than a season but I can see the appeal to it if it does succeed. The show is well casted, though I can't help but think that there is more missing within it. The pilot was entertaining but not awe inspiring. The bottom line is that this show is not doing anything new, and I think they know that and make it obvious that they are self-aware about this fact, but still...I'm just unsure about it's possible future. Anyway, give it a watch if you find the time, but don't go out of your way to see this one, it's not worth it yet.

   Mob Doctor

    When I first saw this commercial I thought this was a joke, like a legit joke. I thought the network was just playing a prank on us by displaying a brash commercial about a doctor working for the mob, but alas it was a real show and I couldn't help but give it a shot. Now it could have been the fact that I expected this show to be horrible that made me love this show, or it could be that this show is just that good, but honestly I recommend this show to everyone. Out of all the new shows coming out I think this one has one of the strongest female leading roles out there, it's encouraging to see. There's no telling if this show is going to be good or not, or if it will survive or not but from what I've seen so far I can't help but to hope that they continue airing episodes. I definitely recommend this show.

   Guys With Kids

    I'm partial when it comes to this show for I love the cast. The guys they picked to be in this show are all really funny guys, and their significant others are amazing as well, all of which have been in great movies and know what they are doing. This does not mean that this show will have a future though, so far I've been underwhelmed by most of the episodes aired. This show has the potential to be something awesome, there really is a good chance that this show will pick up momentum and turn out to be one of the hottest shows in a little while. For now though they need to do some serious work on production and plot growth, I haven't fallen in love with the characters yet, this is an important thing. If you find the time give this a shot, but again, this isn't a show I would stay up for.

    Ben & Kate

    Underwhelming in every sense. Weak male role, weak female role, dumb best friends, just all out not impressive at all. I think someone could find enjoyment in this show if boredom was getting the best of them but when choosing what show to invest your time in if your time is limited I do not recommend this show. I also don't think this will last longer than a season, if it does I'll be very surprised. The cast is good, I like them, I just have a tough time with the story and the plot and the direction, basically everything it needs to be a good show. I don't recommend this show, skip it, I think that's the best course of action to take. 

   Love from your humble blogger,

Fall Shows To Watch And To Avoid Part 1

    There are a lot of new shows out this Fall. Some are very good and some have not yet had time to either blossom or show how truly terrible they really are. This week I'll be looking at various new shows that are out right now grading them according to how watchable they are. Keep in mind that this is only my opinion and thus I apologize if you like a show that I trash, such is the way of opinion. Please let me know in the comments section bellow if you have a deferring opinion on any of these shows, I always appreciate different perspectives. So without further ado here we go.

  Revolution

     Out of all the new shows out right now "Revolution" is the one with the most promise. The pilot captures you right away and invests you into it's winding story. There are many elements within the story so far that are confusing and though it seems like the show will continue to get better, there is always the possibility that the show might flop as well. I have high hopes for this show but we are talking about a big world here. There are a lot of variables at work and it would be easy to slip up somewhere making the story go from awesome to mediocre to lame. Let us hope that this does not happen. I recommend you give this show a try, it's a fun one for sure.

   The New Normal

    So we have had a sudden influx of homosexual centered "themes" going around in various sitcoms as of late. In some cases like "Modern Family" this has been a good thing, complementing the story in various ways, while in other shows this has started to become an overdone "ploy" for attention. "The New Normal" is exactly what we needed due to this phenomenon. Here is a show where we get a very real portrayal of the struggles people face, the real life struggles and the very real prejudice that exists within our society. At times the show will make you feel a little uncomfortable. This happens because it points out the very real weaknesses we have as a society. There is no telling if this show is going to end up good or not, but so far I've enjoyed what I've seen. It's a funny show with real life issues, taking a new perspective on society without apology, I've enjoyed it.

   The Mindy Project

   I'm going to be honest here, and please forgive me for my bluntness but I think this is important. When I first saw "The Mindy Project" I wasn't too impressed. Even though I loved the story, I thought the jokes were funny, and I liked the cast, there was still something keeping me from saying that I loved this show. After careful analysis of my own persona I've come to the realization that the only reason I have this opinion is because I'm not attracted to her and this made me sad. I wager here that this is the major reason why most guys will dislike the show, they might try to come up with excuses but in the end it all boils down to looks. But lo and behold I caught myself doing this and surpassed it, and now I have to admit that I love this show. "The Mindy Project" can be a really fun show, I really have high hopes for it, it's well written and really funny, I recommend it for sure.

    Go On

    Chandler being Chandler, this is the main hook for this show. The show itself hasn't impressed too much yet. Obviously Matthew Perry is funny and all but I'm not convinced that this show will last more than two seasons, not yet at least. The show right now lacks substance, and at times i felt like I was forcing myself to watch it just so I could write something about it instead of enjoying what I was seeing. There is still hope for the show, we are only a few episodes in and all but I'm having a hard time imagining it getting much better. Give this show a shot but don't expect too much from it, maybe low expectations is the best way to go when handling this show, at least so far.

    The Neighbors

     Out of all the new shows that have come out this one is my least favorite by far. The Neighbors has had the weakest presence out of all the shows to come out this fall. Even the pilot episode was weak. There are a lot of things that can still happen in this show and the story can surely turn around, going from lame to interesting. For right now though this is a show that I cannot recommend, it's an overdone concept being performed by an underwhelming cast. Put simply I would be surprised if they get a second season. It's going to take some very serious work to make this show into something that will capture our attention, specially after failing so hard in the first few episodes.

I hope you all have a great Monday and a blessed weak,

    Love from your humble blogger,

"Hey Ash, Whatcha Playin'" To Finish Off This week

   So so so, here we are, Friday at last. I am feeling much better and hopefully will have some articles coming to you next week. I've been working on trying to watch all the new shows that are coming out this fall, so expect to get some reviews next week. I did get to watch Taken 2 last week, but due to the flu was not able to write on it. To be frank, I didn't want to write about it. It just disappoints on so many levels. Just name it Taken 1.5 and I would appreciate it more. Anyway, here is the last YouTube talent for a little while, the great "Hey Ash, Whatcha Playin'?" , I hope your Friday has been going well and that you may escape the flu and get some laughs from these videos. For more videos follow this LINK.

   

   Hope you all have a great Friday,

  Love from your humble blogger

Featuring CommunityChannel Cause She's Awesome!

    Starting to feel much better, thank you for your patience. Continuing with the YouTube talent of the week here we have CommunityChannel with some pretty awesome vids for you, she's one of my favorite YouTube celebrities by far. Hope you enjoy it and that it might bring a smile to your face, making this Wednesday just that much better. Be sure to check out their page for more videos HERE lots of good stuff there. And if you have your own favorite YouTube star that has not been featured yet please let us know, we would love to feature them here. Spread of information is the name of the game, helping people out and encouraging talent, that's something everyone should participate in.

  

  Be sure to check out more of her videos, she's really funny and will def make your Wednesday a laughter filled one,

  Love from your humble blogger,

Flu Season is Here...5secondfilms Time!

    Oh guys, it's that time of the season where the cold flu is going around. I've become a victim of it, I am well but I fear that my writing is suffering and thus I'll have to forgo my original idea for this week and do a YouTube appreciation week again. Hopefully by next week I'll be on the up and up and ready to start writing again, for now though I hope you might find enjoyment in some of these fantastic artists populating YouTube, from well known to up and coming, I think we should support talent in any which way we find it, so here we go. Hopefully this might bring a smile to your face this Monday. So sit back and enjoy some great videos from 5secondfilms, a very talented crew with a simple yet brilliant concept. Be sure to check out their site at: http://5secondfilms.com/

                  

    have a great Monday! :) and stay away from the cold, not fun, not fun at all, for more videos go to http://5secondfilms.com/

  Love from your humble blogger,

Guest Writer Week: Nathan Biebel "Alternative Energy"

There are at least two things people quickly discover about us.

1.  We love to laugh and make fools out of ourselves, and

2.  We believe, in a very deep-seated way, that we are creative and witty

Because of these two things, we decided we didn’t really need an expensive camera, or a script writer….or talent.  We could make an advertisement for Prudent Living’s alternative energy solutions using only our stunning intellect.

So, us boys in, what the office has affectionately dubbed, the “think tank” put our heads together and after literally(and I mean LITERALLY) dozens of long, grueling, intense minutes of work, we were able to put something together that we are quite proud of.

Not bad for a budget of $0, don’t you think?

  -- Nathan Biebel of "Prudent Living Blog"

Guest Writer Week: Nathan Biebel with "Pestering Taylor"

 

       For quite a while we’ve warned you that we were planning on opening up an online store.  If you read the Fall Issue of our magazine you also know that Taylor Scully was recently hired to manage that store.

        Taylor is hard at work putting together a vast line of products and organizing them into categories that will make the store more user friendly.  This involves contacting various distributors and organizing each product into its proper category.  This might sound easy, and it would be if we only planned on offering just a few products in one or two categories.  However, we’ve got high hopes for the online store, and we want a wide range of products that will help our community meet a wide range of “prudence” based needs.

That being said, we bugged Taylor until he took a five minute break to tell us about the store.  He says that it will be organized into five basic categories when it goes live:

Conservation – This is our foundation as a company and we think it’s only proper that we provide our community with products that conserve energy on a small scale.  Even if you don’t think solar panels are right for you, I think we can all agree that using light bulbs that are up to 90% more energy efficient is the prudent thing to do.  If for no other reason than your energy bill.

Gardening – Growing your own garden is a great way to practice frugal living while also getting away from unhealthy processed food.  Many in our community prefer organic products, but buying organic is expensive, while growing it yourself can be cheaper and just as good.  We want to provide you with the tools to do that.

Home – Everything from Laundry detergents, to cleaners of all sorts, to food dehydrators, to hand operated grain mills.  Whatever need you have in the home, we want to make sure we have a product that meets it; all of which, by the way, are non-harmful, environmentally friendly solutions to your every day living needs.

Personal Care - Hair care, personal grooming, and skin care; these products are designed to be safe for both you and nature.

Recreation – We all like our recreation.  We want to make sure you have what you need to enjoy your time in the great outdoors.  Backpacks made from recycled materials, solar powered flashlights, and safety kits are just some of the options available in this category.

In the future there will be more categories, as things get going and Taylor gets in touch with more folks on the distributing end.  Until then, Taylor has already met our product goals for start-up (we already have close to 200 products and he’s adding more every day), and the store will be going live just as soon as our new website is complete!

We’ve been excited about this for a long time, and seeing it finally come together has given us a lot of hope about it’s success!

We’d love to pester Taylor about this some more, but he is already back to work.

---  Nathan Biebel

       For more information and more articles please look on their site HERE or go to http://blog.prudentliving.com/

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If you have an interest on being a guest writer for our blog please contact me at mransan@gmail.com, I would love to feature your articles!

Guest Writer Week: Paul And Nathan Biebel of "Prudent Living"!!

     At Prudent Living we encourage people to plan ahead–to prepare for life’s obstacles in advance so that when troubles arise you can look back and say “I sure am glad I was ready for that” instead of “I should have seen that coming.”

     Unfortunately life doesn’t always warn us ahead of time (actually, it seems like it almost never does).  While there are plenty of times we really should have planned ahead–times when we “should have seen it coming”– there are also times when it feels like you’ve been given a raw deal.  Like the little pine tree above, we might even ask “who put me here?!”

      Let’s pretend you are the little pine tree.  You begin life as a little seed that falls in a place that isn’t exactly perfect for growing.  Because you’re just a seed and you don’t know any different, you just do what little trees do…you grow.  When you become old enough and big enough, you look around and you notice that the other trees around you have it much easier than you, and only then do you begin to think “hey!  Who put me here?!”

       The thing is, you wouldn’t even know your situation wasn’t perfect if you didn’t compare yourself to the other trees.  So consider this question: what good does it do to compare where you’ve been planted to where others have been planted?  You’re just a little tree.  Little trees don’t complain; they grow.
Of course, little trees are not like people.  They don’t have the ability to look around and realize that they have it worse than the other trees.  People, on the other hand, can compare themselves to others.  That can be a good thing, especially when we use it to realize others have it worse than us.  We can use it to discern who needs our help, so that we might give it to those who truly need it.

       Unfortunately, the same ability that allows us to recognize (and sympathize with) those who are worse off than we are, also allows us to recognize when we are like the little tree.  We can tell when we’re the ones who have it rough.  But we need not let that realization inhibit our growth.

       Like the little tree in the photo, even in the most challenging of circumstances, you can grow.  So when life presents you with an obstacle, do you let it get the best of you?  Do you complain that others have it easier?  Do you say “HEY!  Who put me here?!” Or do you mutter “challenge accepted” and set your jaw with the unshakable determination to make the most of “where you’ve been planted?”

-by Paul and Nathan Biebel

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