Tag: Lane 8

jeff noel Aggressively Unfancy?

Is jeff noel aggressively unfancy?  Well, one thing for certain, I’m certainly not too funny when I blog.  But I sure do try to be aggressively unfancy.

And the concept of being unfancy is one most of us have never heard of. We have, but not in those exact words.

Aggressively unfancy means, to me, a person who is not focused on looking smart or sexy.  Sort of an ordinary person who deep down inside understands that they are blessed beyond measure simply by being alive.  And that that is more than enough.

Having a roof over your head, food on your plate, someone to love and someone to love you back.  Ya with me?  (this one’s for you MDJ)

Having a car that starts every time, someone in your life who is more important than you, a clean shirt and indoor plumbing – these things make us rich.  And potentially, aggressively unfancy. But certainly not funny.  Ya with me?  (this one’s for everyone)

Why Isn’t jeff noel Funnier?

Why?  Because becoming hysterically funny (in addition to being uncommonly insightful and off the hook fast), would only lead to fame and fortune.  While this would appear, to most people, to be a good thing, it’s actually a catch-22.

Jimmy Buffett, in one of his clever songs, sings, “I don’t want the fame that brings confusion. Where people recognize you on a plane“.

Tiger Woods responded this way when I asked him last year, “Do you ever get tired of being famous”?  – “Since day one”, he answered, matter-of-factly.

But the other day, a seed was planted fertilized when a Google Alert for “Mid Life” led me to this funny blog by Tia – Clever Girl Gone Blog.

Just Sunday, at a meeting, I mentioned that my blog posts (1,300–ish in six months) aren’t particularly funny, even though in real life, I am.  Inspiring?  Fairly.  Funny?  Not so much.  I’ll work on it as time permits.  Ok?

Meanwhile, just wanted to say thanks for following.  Carpe diem.

jeff noel Burning The Candle?

jeff noel Burning The Candle?

A friend recently asked, “So how has writing five daily blogs affected you. What have you given up”?

I’ve given up:

  • Watching TV
  • Walking our Dog
  • Yard word, particularly our perennial gardens
  • Reading the (online) Orlando Sentinel, CNN, etc
  • Spending time with Family
  • Cut back on exercise (believe it or not)
  • Cut back on sleep (yawn)
  • And a few other things

It struck me later that night, while reflecting on his question and the answers.  Cutting back on work, or anything remotely related to cutting back on work, wasn’t mentioned.

I am addicted to work.  Many people are and simply don’t know it because they associate with others who are the same.

Nevertheless, I’m driven to create something bigger than myself, to help raise money until a cure is found for Crohns disease.  What are you sacrificing?  What are you sacrificing it for?

jeff noel and Search Engines

jeff noel and Search Engines.  SEO. Search engine optimization.  Google. Yahoo, Bing. Safari. Firefox. Internet Explorer. Mozilla.  There are a ton of search engines out there.

Mostly, I use Google.  Why?  Google is the most recognized, and Google dominates search engine traffic.

Meeting with a fellow writer yesterday, he was using Yahoo. He told me that jungle jeff and Lane 8 we’re number one on the Yahoo search engine.  I didn’t believe him until he did the jungle jeff and lane 8 Yahoo searches.

Amazing.  Even more amazing, or maybe more interesting, was that on Yahoo, jeffnoel.org ranked higher than jeffnoel.com.  Not sure how that is possible.  And at this point in the journey, there are bigger challenges to worry about.

Do you have a decent prioritization matrix to handle cool distractions?  I do, but it only works about half the time.  🙂

North, To Alaska?

North, to Alaska? Soon. But not today.

Today, we’ll enjoy the warm Central Florida sunshine and a high temperature of 86 degrees.

Yesterday, we visited the Walt Disney World Resort’s Magic Kingdom.

Today starts with Church, where my wife and I will lead Children’s Liturgy of the Word for our Church’s elementary school children.  Then I have a meeting with a writer.

Then south, back home.  Enjoy your day.  And keep an eye on the future.  It’s just around the corner, a little north of today.