How to contact me

First off there is email:
max.h.malcolm@gmail.com

That is the first line of getting ahold of me. I check it 1-3 times a day, and it is hot-linked to my mobile. You can email me 24/7

Which brings me to my personal phone. At the moment I am only running the single line. That being the case and as it is my work phone, it's available by request.
If you need to get me on the line quickly email me with Phone emergency in the subject. Put the reason you need to talk to me right away in the body and if you need me to get right to you then include where you can be reached, and your name of course.

Here are the general rules for my personal phone:
If in doubt about timing, text first.
If my phone rings without a text I will assume it's an emergency.
Here are the phone hours and time specific rules:
Monday-Saturday Midnight to 6 PM: Work/occupied hours. Text if you need help soon, but know I won't drop everything that moment. Call if it is an emergency. Keep conversations short.
All other times: Text if you can chat whenever, call if you need an answer on a timetable or if I have told you to call.
Abuse of the system will result in your number being blocked and returning to the email system for a month. Then you'll have to remind me to unblock you. I don't want to do any of that. This is on the honor system, so if we all play by the rules then it will work.
To be clear this is a clean number, and I don't even have the need to install blocking software. I will not be friendly at all to the person that makes it necessary. I will of course forgive, but you can expect me to be more ticked than normal if you are the first.

Thank you for reading,
Max

Well, what if there is no tomorrow? There wasn't one today.

Phil: What would you do if you were stuck in one place and every day was exactly the same, and nothing that you did mattered?

Ralph: That about sums it up for me.

Dream Quest:Normandy

How much do you know about history?

I'm going to assume none, and even if you do know about history you may not know an excessive amount about philosophy and motivation psychology. Since all three are required to explain my decisions, I will continue. It should be noted I am not what I would call an expert on any of this.

A moderate amount of time ago there was a major war that almost everyone has romanticized the hell out of. I'm talking about World War 2. I'm not going to delve into the horrors that would destroy your romantic vision of the second great war because it would be counterproductive to explaining my historical basis for my decision.

In World War 2 the continental European powers had no choice in involving themselves in the war. I have always seen myself more as England in this analogy. For the last decade like England I have been repelling invaders from my shores. Yet like the Allies in general defense is just a short term solution.

In the present:
I have been made aware that my direct actions do not always line up with long term goals. In fact my long term goal being freedom from the money trap, why do I have to go deeper into it.

Which is where the parallel with Normandy appears.

See at Normandy the combined allied forces (USA and UK) combined their forces for a massive counter strike. At stake was the free world. In essence the problem was that Hitler had demonstrated that he would not stop grabbing land until he died. Of course multiple attempts were made to hurry that decision along for him. In the end however it would appear the only way to defeat Hitler is to make him feel helpless. In that cases he will solve the problem of his legacy himself.

I would like to point out that I understand Hitler if only on the grounds that like him I have a vision that I feel I will stop at nothing to bring to the fore. The difference of course is that I have limiting factors to prevent me from going off the rails and just eliminating those who I don't care for. I still have that German style problem solving, yet like German auto makers I have to learn to play by the rules.

So the problem is that I despise capitalism in general and money specifically. It should be noted that I understand perfectly their function in modern society. In our post modern philosophical environment the strong man approach doesn't work since strong men can just be murdered. Ideas are much harder to kill. Hence we have elected the idea of wealth as ruler of our land. It's a stupid idea because it says that those who possess more are ipso facto superior. They are obviously not that way.

Yet like Normandy I must play by the arbitrary rules of engagement and engage the enemy on his soil. I have strong allies. This current quest for capital to purchase a better life for my family and I is not intended to be long term. It isn't just a capital quest either, I am on a knowledge and skills quest as well. These combined facts will increase my earning power and in the long term help me free myself to only have to earn money a few months a year.

That is a part of my dream by the by: to be able to work minimally and receive satisfactory results so that I can spend more time with those I care about. One of those I care about is myself. That's a notable fact.

So onward into the breach. It is a terrible and messy way to go about things. It is also a place I can go and theoretically get what needs to be done completed. If not in this battle, then one step closer.

Rereading my past work and how it reflects on the present

Have I mentioned lately how fully I came into understanding of myself?
Yet there is still a huge area for improvement. I found it by rereading my early blog posts.

In the beginning I used this blog as I should: as an analytical tool. It matters not what is read or not read. I shouldn't care a bit how many page views I get.

So, that being said, here is where I am:

Stressed but walking on water. What do I mean by that? I mean to say that I have the faith that God will do what he needs to. Right now.... I haven't a clue. In the past that has been a point of contention between God and myself. It is no longer as large a point of contention. Knowledge itself is not evil, however the wrong knowledge at the wrong time can destroy as efficiently as a lie. Whatever it is I don't know it is essential I don't know it to proceed with the correct attitude into the next stage.

I of course long for times of peace, but they lay on the other side of times of strife. Strife itself isn't evil, and this distinction also eluded me for years. Things being hard are part of the noble nature of existence. If it was easy.... how could we ever create grand schemes and astounding solutions? Astounding solutions require astounding problems.
We would never have cured Polio if there had never been a Polio. Which isn't to say the world needs Polio. It is to say that society used Polio to revitalize itself. Same thing in every great war a country has ever fought.

The tiring thing is doing this all without anger. When I do feel anger it is at evil, not people. I hate the fear that has prevented our country from moving on. I hate the complacency that led previous generations to slack in their duty of teaching the next. I hate being one man, with one mouth and only two hands.


Yet of all these obstacles and frustrations the Lord is aware. I cannot say how he will answer. However in this I am sure: He will answer.


My mouth will go dry lifting my joys and sorrows to him before he abandons me, and even then he will walk with me. My limbs can lock, my muscles cramp and I may suffer all manner of challenges, yet he dwells in me. He dwells in the truth and wisdom I know, not just in my brain but in my very muscles.

Today we must thank him. Every day, I have to thank him. Not because he needs validation and not because of magical thinking. I must thank him for myself, for my eyes to see the beauty he has put in this world. I must thank him for this challenge. How awesome is it that he thinks me up to this resistance?

God does give you more than you can handle. He does it every day if you let him. He does it because he wants us to deal with things using his strength. Sometimes he needs us weak so that we can lay back on his strength. He is so very strong. I am so very hard to kill. 

back to the road

I have finally relented to the pressure and am allowing myself to be sucked into the next adventure. It's not so much that I want to go.... I just don't want to settle here. We're still in the gathering phase of our harvest. It's going to be a very busy project, because they have some serious needs.

I've never been afraid of hard work. I will however have to put it out there that there is a line. I won't call in if I can possibly help it. If I am sick I'm going to try to recover. Family is important, but I am in a time period of my life where taking care of my family means riding myself harder than I would care to.

I'm praying for wisdom and courage as I master another skill and put in my time in grade on another notch in my belt.

A note on the political figure of which I have yet to speak

I think some attention must be paid to the elephant in the room, by which I mean the current Republican front runner. I do not care for the man. I didn't care for him when I bought a crappy tie from his collection a few years ago. I didn't care for him when he was on network television. I didn't care for him when he was a so called success yet no one could point to a positive thing he had done. In short I have been aware of said man for nigh on two decades and not once have I found it within me to care.

I am aware he is running for the highest office in the land. That is unfortunate. However the opposite of love is not hate, it is apathy. Those of you who violently dislike the man will have to come to terms with that. It is my personal belief that the only way to combat his nonsense is to pay no attention to the useless man-child.

If he becomes president I will call him the president. I will avoid referring to his name in public, not because I am afraid of him, just because he doesn't deserve publicity. I would like to believe that I live in a country smart enough not to elect such a silly person to the presidency.

As a final note I would be joining the cheers if anything at all removed him from the presidential race. I would not object to something unfortunate happening to this individual that would not only impede him from running, but impede his further ability to function normally.

Why do I feel this way? The reason is that he appears to thrive on people hating him. If he were attacked for that reason he would be asking for it. I only think it unfortunate that we live in a time period where a kangaroo court or a witch trial is an unrealistic possibility because I can say with some accuracy that said person would likely be found to be a witch. Which is not to run down Wicca or people in the spiritual practices associated with the word witch. It is to say that public distaste for this man is at the point that could we put him on trial he would be instantly guilty.

That's one to grow on.