Unavailing Logic

The end of another calendar year is upon us. Social media feeds are filling up with "year in review" posts. People look forward to a new year, a new start, a fresh beginning. Many make resolutions and have hopes for a better year than the one they just had. 2014 has been quite an experience for me. It started off really well. I'd just completed one year at a new job. The goals and objectives I'd set for myself and my team were making good progress. I was working in a role that was both rewarding and challenging. My career goal of becoming a Chief Information Officer (CIO) was within reach and times were good as far as I was concerned. I'd relocated to Alabama to have the opportunity of achieving my career goal and had met new friends and was adjusting to life in my new home. In March, a member of my team lost her husband. While attending the visitation, I had an opportunity to meet her two sons. They were very polite young men, and the emotion of losing my fat...

When asked what surprised him about humanity the most, the Dalai Lama replied, “Man. Because he sacrifices his health in order to make money. Then he sacrifices money to recuperate his health. And then he is so anxious about the future that he does not enjoy the present; the result being that he does not live in the present or the future; he lives as if he is never going to die, and then dies having never really lived.” Truer words have never been spoken. People get so caught up in "checking boxes". Living life from one task to the next causing their life to become regimented, predictable, and mundane. It's a wonderful thing to set goals and look to the future, but some get so focused on where they are going they don't stop to enjoy where they are now. One of the reasons we end up as box checkers is because it's comfortable. We fall into that familiar rut, and we can zone out on life. I find I don't do well in this mode. I become devoid of joy, happi...

Throughout my life I've always enjoyed being challenged and learning new skills. From the time I was 7  years old and tried to learn how to ride my bicycle with no hands (resulting in a broken left arm) up till today, I'm never afraid to try something new. To set a goal. To challenge myself. To make no excuses. It's occurred to me that society is one giant excuse making machine. It seems there aren't many people who want to take personal responsibility for their lives. They become victims. They worry about all the bad that will happen, spew forth negativity, and when something bad does occur, they are almost happy as they exclaim, "I knew this would happen". There are several things I've done because I wanted to challenge myself. In 2001 I bought a motorcycle. Not long afterward, I crashed and ended up sliding 150ft down asphalt. I had some road rash, but thanks to safety gear, was mostly unhurt. This did not stop me. Shortly thereafter I became an Motor...

  Return to ChadHargis.com Written 2001 Most people have a certain degree of tact. When you tell them you bought a motorcycle, they usually go into some story about their friend who had a dirtbike when they were kids or how Uncle Bob took them for a ride when they were 5. They smile and seem happy for you, but you know deep down, they are thinking, “Why on Earth would you buy a motorcycle?” You can see it in their eyes, like they think you’re going to be dead in a few days. Can you blame them? Motorcycles get a lot of bad press. There are several automobile fatalities each day, but let one motorcyclist get plowed down by a careless cell phone talking SUV pilot and it’s all over the news like another Presidential scandal. Then there’s the “Motorcycle Gangster” image. Nasty men donning black leather terrorizing small town U.S.A. with their loud pipes and drunken brawls. Let’s not forget the sportbiking squid blazing down back roads and byways with little regard ...