Blog of Josh Hall

Well, some of you already knew, but now that it didn’t pan out, we’re allowed to talk about it.  Back in April, Chemistry.com (where Kallie and I met) contacted us and wanted us to be interviewed by a “national magazine” about our story.  Turns out it was People Magazine.  So they called Kallie, asked her a bunch of questions and asked for “our story” and I guess they interviewed a bunch of other people as well.  After a long waiting period, we were told we weren’t selected for the article, but it is cool just to be able to say we were interviewed by People Magazine.

I’ve also been selected by Pittsburgh City Living to be the Ambassador to the Hill District!  Not sure what that means exactly yet, but it’s a city program to showcase all the individual neighborhoods of the city.  Hopefully I’ll be able to contribute to the growth of the Hill!

This summer has been a whirlwind of activity.  We’ve been to California and back twice in July, a couple weddings around the state, heading to Canada/Yankanuck next week, went camping in Ohio and went to Cedar Point, back to Bedford for our 1 year anniversary, and just a bunch of other stuff that filled our calendars and put smiles on our faces.  I think next year we’re going to really protect our weekends and time together.  We had fun this year, but it was way too chaotic, and we even cut out a lot things as it was.

Back to real life, Kallie’s down to part-time work and full time student to get her NP license.  Since she’s doing that, I am also heading back to RMU for my masters in organizational studies.  We’re looking at 2-3 years for us to finish those up.  Work is reimbursing me as long as I get above a C, and I need above a 3.00 GPA to graduate, so I should have some motivation there.

I’m training for the urbanathlon again in October.  Probably doing a 5k in Charleroi and the Great Race 10k before then in preparation.  I’m going to try to fund-raise for the L.i.v.i.n.g. Ministry again this year too.  A lot going on with the ministry, and they could surely use the support!

I think after the race, I’m going to focus on music, playing out, writing songs, etc to carry me through the winter.  Hopefully I’ll be able to follow through on that one…I’ll keep you posted 😛

“A closed mind is like a closed book; just a block of wood.”

– Chinese Proverb

You’re considered family when you’re asked for help.  Think about it.  If you don’t feel comfortable asking someone for help, it’s probably because of a varying degree of either fearing their reaction, or not trusting them.  Neither are the traits that exist in a (healthy) family relationship.  It’s a form of flattery honestly.

Do you know what TED Talks are?  TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, and Design, but the topics that are covered in these talks are much broader and deeper than that.  Some of the most respected minds in the world take time to give a lecture on their expertise.  I know, I said the “L” word.  Honestly though, these are some of the most poignant monologues and engaging lectures I’ve ever listened to.  The topics span from world peace, to the social impacts of selling vs giving bug nets for people in Africa, from sound waves to what we perceive (or perceive incorrectly) with our eyes.  When you have people like Mike Rowe (of Dirty Jobs fame) giving lectures, it’s bound to be entertaining.  There are TED conferences happening all the time, and I’d love to go to one, but for now, these videos are awesome.

Calm down.  As my cousin nate might say, “Calm the eff down.”  I’m a firm believer that nothing constructive can come out of panic and discord.  Calm down, it will be alright.

Do binoculars let people with great vision see further than people with poor vision?  I guess it’s more a question of how they work.  When you adjust them, are you sacrificing distance for quality?  Do our eyes focus on the image way off in the distance, or an image that is contained within the binoculars?