the other side of nowhere

how did i get here?

ryan started a discussion about urban tribes and why people in our generation don't grow up. While the theoretical arguments about what constitutes being "grown up" are very interesting to me, I think it's in my best interest to stick mostly to my own experience.

As abe so eloquently put it (by the way, thanks abe), I have gone, in a relatively short time, from a disheveled box-throwing samurai-driving student to a fully-employed husband (and soon-to-be father). Maybe not a good definition of being grownup, but definitely I've added more responsibility. And most of the time I feel like I've reached adulthood and put childish ways behind me, The Simpsons and good music notwithstanding.

By the standards of my parent's generation, I waited a long time to get married. They had been married 5 years and had 2 kids by the time they were my age now. On the other hand, my older sister has already been married 10 years and has 3 kids. Same model as our folks.

But I really don't feel like I was "waiting to get married." Or to grow up. It just happened that, due to life experiences, I didn't get married "right out of college." (Come to think of it, I didn't even finish college until a few years after "right out of college.") I took my time in college and did a lot of cool things that others might have missed. Although, compared to a lot of people in my generation, I'm way ahead in the marriage department. I have a number of friends who are older than me (some in their mid 30's) who aren't married. I wonder how many of them are fighting against growing up, or have other reasons, like a fear of not being in God's will if they don't marry the right person. Or maybe, God has called them to be single right now. Or whatever.

Anyway, I think my point is that in my experience, marriage or any other increase in responsibility (like career or parenthood or spiritual growth) leads to a feeling of being grown up. I think I might say that being grown up is less about what you're doing than about who you're focused on. Now I have to love my wife (and child) as myself. The Peter Pan complex is that we just want to play and do the things that bring us pleasure more than we want to serve or love or be known.

As I grow up in the Lord, maybe I just have to learn that I'm not the center of the universe and the things I'm doing (like my job or my marriage) are ways of honoring God and serving others.

this is not my beautiful wife

oh wait, yes it is:

Ashley Malone Levy
26
5'4"
dunwoody
married
administrator --> mom
reading/writing
left side
O neg

this is me

alright abe,

here it is

Jon S. Levy
26
dunwoody
married
project administrator
biking
sneakers
wednesdays @ 745 am
have to find out before my wife's next dr's appointment

this is not my beautiful house

After the last couple of weeks, I realize how lucky I was to grow up in the midwest. We just had a tornado every now and then. They usually just destroy the occasional double wide, not multiple towns.

The power in nature is incredible. Good thing God is bigger.

26.

happy birthday to me

i do not envy you the headache you will have when you awake...

this may be the funniest video clip i've seen in at least 2 days
-sent in by alert reader dave barry

the reading rainbow

Now that I've moved into the world of "expecting", I'm learning that there's more to learn about "babies" than I ever imagined

The most amazing thing to me is the number of books that have been published on the subject. Not just on being a parent, but getting ready to be a parent. I could literally spend the nine months of my wife's pregancy doing nothing but reading about pregnancy. The first thing they should tell you to expect in the industry leader "Que Puede Esperar Cuando Esta Esperando" is to get ready for the incredible amount of literature about to be thrown your way. I think we probably have 6 books on how to be a good pregnant person (this includes fathers) that are more than 500 pages each. The good news is that Ashley likes to read and wants to know every detail.

So far my favorite book is "Babyhood" by Paul Reiser, which really offers no practical advice but is quite hilarious.

The interesting thing about pregnancy information is the comparison of the baby to food. Every single book says things like, "At this stage your growing little one is the size of a peanut, or a ripe green olive (not to be confuesd with the size of an unripe black olive), or a small slice of pepperoni pizza." Ashley's not really looking forward to giving birth to a large pineapple.

The cool thing is that at the size of a grape, babies have fingernails. Now that's amazing. God did a great job when he came up with procreation.

Anyway, things are progressing well. At least that's what the book says.

my dad

And sometimes it's better not to think about the things our parents have done...

history

Thinking about being a parent makes me think about my parents. And their parents. Sometimes I forget what cool things they've seen and done...

My grandfather grew up in Iowa during the Great Depression. (That's a Zoloft commercial just waiting to happen.) When he was 18 he left home, hopped on a freight train, and headed west. He tells stories about the police in each town along the way, arresting all the stowaways. They would give them a meal, offer them a shower, and put them back on the train. "No jobs here," they'd say.

He made it all the way to California and worked for the Civilian Conservation Corps. Good ol' New Deal.

Then he went to college and joined the army. Later he ended up in Oklahoma City as an engineer with the FAA. He was also a pilot and flew with Wiley Post.

Grandpa Levy, for whom I'm named (Levy) lied about his age to join the Navy. He was on Iwo Jima when they raised the flag.

Now in their 70's and 80's, they're both married to their first wives and live very active lives. Grandpa Levy still works the night shift at a training school for troubled kids. By the way, you don't really want to mess with Grandpa Levy.

It looks like our kids have a pretty good chance of living a long time - Ashley's great-grandmother turns 100 next May.

That's a lot of history.