Random Thoughts with Will

One of my favorite types of blog posts to do is a "Life Lessons" post at the end of the calendar year, a tradition that started in 2017 and continued in 2018 & 2019 . Ironically though, I never did do one for 2020, a year that had no shortage of life lessons learned. However, 2020 was a different year across the board (to say the least), so that is par for the course. With that in mind, I did want to bring back that tradition with Life Lessons Learned from 2021. Without further ado, here they are... Enjoy the ride: okay, so I may be ripping off a previous blog post that I wrote earlier in the year, so bear with me on this one. In the past, I've heard that mantra that it's not about the destination, but the journey. While that can be easy to write off as a cliché, I've started to understand the significance of that. This past January, as the Green Bay Packers postseason, I remember a beat writer for the Packers tweeting that no matter what the outcome of the ...

          This weekend, NASCAR returns to one of my favorite tracks on the schedule: the Charlotte Roval (Road Course + Oval). This race has become a personal favorite of mine for multiple reasons - and not just because it utilizes chicanes . One, Charlotte Motor Speedway holds a special place in my heart given that it's a few miles away from family members, and that it is a track my Dad and I have been to for races before (in the "normal" track layout). Two, while the Roval is fairly new to the NASCAR schedule, the races run there have been memorable ones and fun to watch. With that in mind, I wanted to reminisce about the finish of the inaugual race in 2018, one of the most memorable race finishes for me as a NASCAR fan.          To set the stage, the 2018 race was a part of NASCAR's postseason and was an "elimination" race, meaning that the 4 lowest drivers in points would be eliminated from racing for the championship. Going in ...

          Although 2021 has been an improvement from the odd, unpredictable year that was 2020, this year has had its share of ups and downs, particularly given the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the rise of the Delta Variant. As I look at the ups and downs for me personally, I know of them has been this: I haven't published a blog post in over 8 months. In fact, I didn't even due a "Life Lessons Learned" post at year's end -- and 2020 certainly had many of those.            A lot has (obviously) been going on, and there were times that I started to write a post, but never finished or published it. In my life, I've often found that writing truly is a muscle - the more you use it, the stronger you'll get. Conversely, when you get out of the habit of doing it, you "lose" that muscle and it becomes harder to do. Another thing that I have found is that over time, one's priorities can change. While my Saturday mornings still do ...

     At the end of the 2000 movie Cast Away , Chuck Noland (portrayed by Tom Hanks), finds himself at a crossroads. For over 4 years, he was stranded on an island and presumed dead by his family and friends. As he returns to civilization, he returns the last unopened FedEx package he has (imagine having a package returned to you 4 years later!). After returning the package, he ends up at a crossroads - figuratively and literally. Where does he go from here in his life? Which road should he take? Which road will he choose? While the movie ends before he goes down a path, it does hint at a particular path that he'll take.      Sometimes in life, we find ourselves at a crossroads like Chuck Noland did. We may have finished one journey or task, but aren't exactly sure where to go next or how to move forward. Crossroads can be a critical juncture in our lives because they offer multiple paths with completely different destinations. The choice is up to us with ho...

      One Sunday afternoon fifteen and a half years ago, I stumbled across a NASCAR race on television. I'm not sure what it was, but there was just something about watching that race that got me hooked and interested in the sport. Not too long after, I settled on Rusty Wallace as the driver that I'd root for. My Mom and I even got to meet him at an autograph signing a few months later (thanks Mom!). That being said, as I started following NASCAR, little did I know that the sport was about to dominated by one driver: Jimmie Johnson.     Tomorrow, the 2020 NASCAR season will come to an end at Phoenix Raceway in Arizona. While 4 drivers will be battling for the championship, tomorrow will also be Jimmie Johnson's final race. As a NASCAR fan, it's bittersweet to say goodbye to Jimmie Johnson. Johnson's career in NASCAR has spanned 20 years, over 600 starts, 83 wins, and 7 championships. Johnson's 7 NASCAR Cup Series championships are tied for first all-time with NA...

      This past Friday, I celebrated my 26th birthday. While I wish some of the circumstances surrounding it had been different (you know, being in a pandemic), it was a nice day filled with typical Will-things such as walking, good food, good friends, and of course cake. When I turned 25 last year, I wrote a blog post with quarter century reflections. In honor of turning 26 this year, I thought I'd do a blog post with...26 reflections (this time in number form, as opposed to paragraph form). I'm all about being consistent with blog posts. Well, here we go! Speaking of consistency, that truly has been a lesson I've been learning; consistency is key. In all that we do, being consistent is one of the best attributes we can have. It provides a sense of stability to ourselves and for others. You can depend and rely on consistent, faithful people. We all need people like that in our lives, especially right now. Ecclesiastes 3:1 says that "For everything there is a season, a...

    18 years ago, VeggieTales made the jump from direct-to-home videos to the big screen, releasing Jonah: A VeggieTales Movie. G iven that Jonah's story ends on a unique, not-so-uplifting note, it was interesting that  VeggieTales chose to make this Bible story into a full-length movie. That said, the movie  does end on a positive note with a musical number about Jonah's story and the lessons we can learn from it. Recently, I read through the Book of Jonah (both with friends at church and on my own) and I wanted to share my takeaways from reading through Jonah. Here we go: God Uses Us in Spite of Ourselves       Last year, I heard a sermon where the overall message was that God will use us in spite of ourselves and our actions. While the sermon itself focused on Samson and his life, Jonah is another good example of God using someone in spite of one's actions. When Jonah was instructed by the Lord to go to Ninevah, he went the exact opposite direction ...

     A little over a month ago, longtime television personality Regis Philbin passed away. While Philbin holds the world record for most hours on U.S. television, there is one particular game show that I most fondly remember him for: Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (as a fun throwback, my family had a CD Rom of the game that we'd sometimes play). Over the course of Philbin's tenure as the host, there was one trademark phrase he'd ask contestants as they made a decision: "Is that your final answer?" The question would often be asked for clarification or as time ran down. Nonetheless, once the contestant said "final answer", their decision had been made -- good or bad.     While Regis Philbin never asked me that question, I have certainly asked myself that question countless times. A lot of times, that has occurred (but is not limited to) taking tests and exams. Before I'd turn in or submit a test, I would often review my answers (time permitting) to dou...

           There's no way around: this past week was a stressful one here in Houston. As one tropical storm (Marco) started dissipating in the Gulf, another storm (Laura) was strengthening and headed for Texas and Louisiana. Forecasts on Monday and Tuesday had Houston in the dreaded "cone of uncertainty", meaning that Hurricane Laura could make landfall near Houston. After a stressful few days leading up to Wednesday night/Thursday morning, when Hurricane Laura made landfall, Houston ended up being fine. However, this meant that East Texas and West Louisiana got hit incredibly hard by Hurricane Laura. Seeing pictures of the damage from Laura in places such as Lake Charles or Cameron, LA have been absolutely devastating. I can't imagine what so many families just a few hours east of here are going through right now. My heart goes out to them and I will be praying for them as they rebuild from Hurricane Laura.      As Hurricane Laura was in the...

     Today's calendar reads August 15 - and Houston's temperatures would certainly agree with that. Warm temperatures aside, there's a different date that's been on my mind for the past few weeks months: February 2, a day more commonly known as "Groundhog Day".     Groundhog Day is synonymous with the 1991 comedy film of the same title   starring Bill Murray. In Groundhog Day, Phil Connors (portrayed by Murray) finds himself reliving the same exact day over and over again: stuck in Punxsutawney, PA covering festivities for Groundhog Day. Although it is not clear how long Phil Connors is in this time loop, it is estimated by some that he was in it for 30-40 years.     Think about that: Phil Connors was stuck in a time loop reliving the same exact day for over 30 years . Everything around Phil unfolded the same way each day -- the only difference between each day was dependent upon how Phil acted and behaved himself. When Phil realizes that his acti...

     Nearly 10 years ago, a high school teenager in Virginia wanted to create a blog filled with song parodies, including ones of John Lennon's "Imagine" or "A Whole New World" from Aladdin . The blog was titled "Bringing the Wheat", as Wheat is said blogger's middle name. After a few posts though, the blog fizzled out and became mostly forgotten. Flash forward to a few years ago, and that blog was resurrected and re-branded into "Random Thoughts with Will". Flash forward to today, and here I am writing my 100th post for that blog. What a ride it has been!      For today's post, I wanted to do a tribute "100th Post". After all, the 100th Day of school was a day we celebrated in elementary school and TV shows celebrate their 100th episode with entering syndication reruns. In addition to that, this can serve as an early celebration of the blog's 10 Year Anniversary. Feel free to call this post "Random thoughts with Wi...