2011 Books I Listened To

The introduction of downloadable audio books from the local library makes for nerd-fun.

• My Favorite: Golden Ocean - a non-Aubrey O'Brian
• Unexpectedly Good: the Cadfael series, which I have another dozen to enjoy.
• Unexpectedly Bad: World is Flat - when reading, I was able to skim through the endless repetition; I was not afforded the same when listening in the car. The book is excellent, and twice the length it deserves.

1. Fellowship of the Ring (dramatized) - JRR Tolkien
2. The House on the Strand - Daphne Du Maurier
3. Ben Hur - Lew Wallace
4. The Black Cauldron - Lloyd Alexander
5. Moneyball - Michael Lewis
6. The Wild Things - Dave Eggers
7. The Heretic's Apprentice - Ellis Peters
8. Doctor No - Ian Fleming
9. Monk's Hood - Ellis Peters
10. In a Sunburned Country - Bill Bryson
11. A Short History of Nearly Everything - Bill Bryson
12. Brother Cadfael's Penance - Ellis Peters
13. Unnatural Causes - P.D. James
14. All Creatures Great and Small - James Herriot
15. In the Garden of Beasts - Erik Larson
16. The Broken Gun - Louis L'Amour
17. Isaac's Storm - Erik Larson
18. Red Badge of Courage - Stephen Crane
19. Surgeon's Mate - Patrick O'Brian
20. The Golden Ocean - Patrick O'Brian
21. A Treasury of Foolishly Forgotten Americans - Michael Farquhar
22. The World is Flat - Thomas Friedman
23. Genghis: Lords of the Bow - C. Iggulden
24. The American presidency: from Theodore Roosevelt to Ronald Reagan

2011 Books I Read

My 2011 reading list in reverse order...

A couple of these were not completely finished, either because the point was overdrawn (1434) or the writing just short of terrible (Templar, a vacation book, and O, a gimmick).

• My Favorite: Born to Run
• Unexpectedly Good: Freakonomic series
• Unexpectedly Bad: 1434, a follow up to 1421, was a 200 page book, stretched to 350, full of salesmanship of his theory of Admiral He's sole-source cause of the European Renaissance. 

1. Wanderings - Chaim Potak
2. Liar's Poker - Michael Lewis
3. 1434 - Gavin Menzies
4. The Big Short - Michael Lewis
5. Foundation - Isaac Asimov
6. Ordeal of Innocence - Agatha Christie
7. War - Sebastian Junger
8. The Burden of Southern History - C. Vann Woodward
9. The Legacy of Atlanta - Webb Garrison
10. When Character was King - Peggy Noonan
11. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin
12. Fair Tax: The Truth - Neal Boortz
13. The Fair Tax Book - Neal Boortz
14. Thunderball - Ian Fleming
15. A Mysterious Affair at Styles - Agatha Christie
16. Whose Body - Dorothy Sayers
17. Our Kind of Traitor - John LeCarre
18. The Templar Legacy - Steve Berry
19. O: A Presidential Novel - anonymous (didn't finish)
20. When Helping Hurts - Brian Fikkert
21. Leading on Empty - Wayne Cordiero
22. Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior - Ori Brafman
23. The Secret Pilgrim - John LeCarre
24. The Spy Who Came in from the Cold - John LeCarre
25. True Grit - Charles Portis
26. Strengthfinder 2.0 - Tom Rath
27. Good to Great - Jim Collins
28. SuperFreakonomics - Levitt/Dubner
29. Freakonomics - Levitt/Dubner
30. The Complete Tales of Sherlock Holmes, vol. 1 - Conan Doyle
31. Born to Run - Chris McDougall

What I want for Christmas. (Eliza)

These Christmas wishes are as follow, consisting of mostly dolls and Barbies.
1. A Rapunzel Doll, (Not Barbie.)
2. Ariel Polly Pocket Water slide.
3. A Jasmine Barbie.
4. A Dry Erase board with a black marker.
5. An Ariel Barbie.
6. A proper coronation ceremony
I want all of these things, and will only like these things. Give me all of them please.

What I want for Christmas, by Garrett

These wishes by Garrett Bowling are as follows:

1. Mater Pillow Pet
2. Blay-blay. (Beyblade)
3. Mack, the Lego tracker trailer
4. Ninja Legos
5. Things requiring batteries

What I want for Christmas. (Louise)

My Christmas Wishes are as follow:

1: My siblings to not argue, 
2: The privilege to wear makeup. 
3: To be taller, 
4: That no one would tease me.
5: So that no one would call me as follows: Weezer, Squeeze, Captain Squeezo, Tweezer and Beezer. 

These are the wishes of Miss Louise Bowling, the second oldest of the Bowling children. 

A Ten year old's view of Christmas

FYI: this Christmas is my tenth one in MY LIFE.
This Christmas the requests are as follow:

        I.            A Kindle (or any other portable electronic reading source.)

      II.            Harry Potter Lego Hogwarts:  (See the following link) http://shop.lego.com/enUS/catalog/quickViewProduct.jsp?productCode=4867

    III.            New DSi games. (NO STAR WARS!)

    IV.            To paint my bedroom Mint Green ( A request of both the Bowling Girls)
  V:     A Cell Phone.
  VI:    To not go to Middle School. (I've heard stories about Middle School, Bad stories.)

Splinters

Took Garrett and Eliza to Kaleo the other day to celebrate its 25th anniversary. Started the afternoon with a walk of the property with Rush, Remus and Dozer, telling stories of days gone by. Crossing the foot-bridge as we headed back to main camp, Garrett did what all kids do: run his hand along the length of the bridge until a sizable splinter set in. Splinters create more fear than pain. A truly painful event overwhelms fear, while splinters are defined by fear. 

"Show him," Eliza begins the conversation. Garrett hesitates; finally revealing a sizable piece of Kaleo history embedded in his palm. "No stress, kid. We'll get it out," as we head up the steps past the Worship Center and towards the Nurse's Quarters, as I did countless times throughout the summers of 1995-1997. 

Every few steps we stop to talk through the process: Yes, it's going to hurt a little bit. No, it will not hurt a lot. Yes, I can get the splinter out. No, I won't cut your hand off in the process. Repeat.

We enter the infirmary, and while I search through last summer's supplies for tweezers and wet-wipes, Garrett is hunched in a chair, continuing through the same questions. "It'll be alright," I comfort him, letting him know what I'm about to, am doing, just did. "Here is is," I surprise Garrett as I hand him the splinter in all its faded glory.

I hate confession. It is healthy, wise, necessary... but I avoid it if at all possible and let the shards of sin fester. Is it going to hurt? Yes. A lot? No. Can you heal and forgive? Yes. Will you cut me off? No. Repeat. I hesitate, and slowly climb up on the infirmary chair to let God heal and change me through confession, finding that the fear was greater than the pain, and grateful for God's patient response to my reluctance.

sok

Is it focus, or lack thereof

After a late night adventure with Dad and Eliza (in the car at 10:30pm, asleep at 10:45, in bed at midnight), and the morning spent at church, Garrett was burnt, just barley functioning, ready for a nap.
"Upstairs, and directly to bed," mom ventures, in what seems to be clear instructions.
Twenty minutes later, as we hear a door open and close, Maggie finds him in his floor playing with Legos. "To bed with you," she shoos him under the covers, head on pillow, lights out.
Ten minutes later, finding him up again, Maggie's patience begins to get tested. But as evolving parents, we try reason, "Garrett, you are very tired, you are grumpy and are crying too much. You need to go to bed. Garrett, (we assume that starting every sentence with his name helps Garrett realize that we are specifically talking to him), you went to bed late last night, were up early this morning, and will be up late tonight. Tomorrow is a school day, and you need some rest. I want you to get in your bed and go to sleep. Do you understand?"
"Uhm, yes."
Three seconds pass.
"Mommy, I have a question." 
"Yes"
"Can I get up and play?"

Focused Prayer

Evening hours and dark. Emily, Louise and Bowling-mom are readying themselves for prayer. Various requests are presented, but the ideas quickly run dry. "Mom, I don't know what to pray for," Louise states.
"Well, this is Christmas time, and there are lots of people who don't have family to spend time with, or who are struggling with money and cannot buy their kids presents. You can pray for them," mom leads.
"And you can pray Nathan Musgrove. He looked sick today at the Nutcracker," Emily adds.
So the prayers begin, and the three girls in turn beseech.
Upon completion, Louise adds as an afterthought, "Jesus, please take care of Nathan Musgrove." At which point, Emily responds, "What's wrong with Nathan Musgrove?" Apparently, not enough to remember.

The Conclusion

This post is tied directly to The bottom of the lists, which may be worth reading for point of context.

After spending an inordinate amount of time Facebooking and emailing people who are my friends, people who I barely know, and people who are not my friends but who may be willing to vote for me anyway (and the best of all, people who I do not even know, but love the FB community well enough to 'like' me sight unseen), I pulled ahead of my competition, 220 to 170, which is pretty good given that my enemy combatant had 70 'likes' before I got started.
I'm sitting at church and thinking that I might actually win this thing (between announcements, of course; I'm sure I was listening the rest of the time), that I might actually be given the gift of LASIK (forget Jared). 

That was until I checked the tallies around 4pm, whereby my 50 vote advantage devolved into 90 person hole, 225 to 315. Turns out this part-time fire fighter is also a youth minister. How can one compete against such reckless connections? I can see it now: two dozen teen-churched facebookers granted permission (nay, asked) to whip out their device of choice and spread 'likes' amongst their web of friends. 

"You've got to know when to fold them."

Magic Skills

Sitting at the breakfast table this morning, trying to estimate if it was time to head to church.
Bowling dad, "Garrett, go tell me what the clock says."
Garrett heads over to the microwave, "eight, dot-dot, twenty-six."
Eliza chimes in, "Is that a five or a two, because they look the same."
Garrett responds before anyone can interject, "It's a two. I can tell, because I have Magic Skills."

Mind over Matter

A shout out to Garrett and Eliza for learning to ride their bikes on Tuesday. Bowling dad took Garrett's training wheels off this past summer, hoping to spur him on; he just used the scooter instead. But with a bit of Emily encouragement and a helping of his own machismo, G-man picked up the bike, walked to the top of the driveway, and made it happen.

Eliza, distinctly not content at letting her bigger little brother bask in his own glory, quickly followed suit.

By Thanksgiving day, they were twirling through the streets, driveway and garage like a pair of pros.

Bowling Parents are once again grateful to check one more "too young to do this" item off of the list.

A glimpse of things to come...

The Bowling house is blessed with dozens of mature oaks, shading us from the summer heat and establishing an adventurous childhood setting. While the beauty is idyllic, the constant encroachment of nature unites Bowling dad with suburbanites across this great nation in the trench warfare of grass-growing.

In our sixth season, the movement of fallen leaves from green to brown areas of the property has been effectively mastered, spurred on by Bowling mom's desire for order, dad's desire to be outside away from the noise of the kids, and the children's desire to make leaf piles. A solid 6-hour day (replete with Waffle House and Target toy section bribery) cleanses the yard of its accumulated debris... almost.

For while we have historically had squirrels living in every part and parcel of our land (a bit on this matter found here), they do not care for our acorns. The tiny little buggers escape the rakes, ignore the blowers, and are too many to count. At the end of clean-up day, you are too tired to care about such trivialities, allowing nature to outflank Bowling dad and sow the seeds to next Spring's patchy-grass.

While the property's rodents have proven uninterested in these acorns, the children proved otherwise, spurred on by a simple "Penny an Acorn" trade in program, modeled off of the questionably successful city's Anonymous Gun Buy Back Program the family volunteers at each year.

In the one hour program window, Emily and Louise partnered with the neighborhood Huck Finn to collect 1,100 acorns, split 3 ways, walking away with $4.00 each (I rounded up). Elizabeth and Garrett (and let me be clear who was in charge of this venture) continued working while Bowling dad counted the other team's earnings, and then begged for an extension. After two hours of collection, they turned in 2,200 acorns ($12 for Eliza, $10 for Garrett (don't ask)). Bowling mom was not pleased with Bowling dad. Bowling dad sees this as an investment in next year's greenery.

The bottom of the lists

An unexpected email yesterday from the Thomas Eye Group, a rather large outfit here in Atlanta. Maggie had nominated me as one worthy of free LASIK surgery, writing a short essay of my general contributions to life (taking her cue from the political establishment, the writing exaggerates the reality). Worthy or not, it is a generous gesture. The trick, for myself and the two other finalists, was to convince the Facebook world to 'like' one of us the most.

Somehow I am expected to branch out and ask friends, Romans, countrymen to do the great favor of "liking" me, crossing all sorts of indeterminate lines in my life. But if Maggie has gone out on this limb to honor me, and Thomas Eye has taken a step of faith that this gift of theirs will gain some sort of advertisement medium, I need to swallow my introverted pride and get bawdy.

In a moment of appropriate irony, LASIK is something I would love to have, but will never likely put on the top of the list of financial expenditures ("Sorry, kids. No Disney this year. Dad doesn't like his glasses."). I am now being asked to win a LASIK contest to move this dream-ticket to the top of the heap, as long as I engage in self-promotion, distinctly at the bottom of my activity-list.

     "Uhmmm, excuse me, but would you mind clicking this link and 'liking' me?" - too pitiful.

     "My wife really wants you to..." - don't hide behind Maggie; be a man.

     "This is SO CRAZY! I cannot believe that this once in a lifetime opportunity has landed on my lap. I'm just hoping you want to join me in this." - too bobble-headed.

Time to start begging...

The Effects...

See posts What He Says and What He Did for the first portions of this line of thought.

Jesus' resurrection is a key point in both the Christian faith and Christian living. From 1 Corinthians, Chapter 15:

• The Jesus story, condensed: 
• verses 3-4 - Jesus died for our sins, was buried, and was raised from the dead
• Resurrection as a Key Component of the Christian Faith
• vs 12-14 - if Jesus hasn't been raised from the dead, then our faith is in vain
• vs 17-19 - if Jesus hasn't been raised from the dead, our faith is worthless, and we are stuck in our sins; we put our hope in the wrong source, and are to be most pitied
• vs 32 - if the dead are not raised, "let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die"
• What Jesus' Resurrection does:
• vs 21-22 - Adam, the first man, brought death; Jesus, the Messiah/Christ, brought resurrection from the dead.
• vs 45-47 - "The first man, Adam, became a living soul. The last Adam [Jesus] became a life-giving spirit."
• Resurrection in its Importance to the Individual
• vs 26 - "The last enemy that will be abolished is death."
• vs 51-57 - Mystery... dead will be raised, imperishable... this mortal will put on immortality... "Death is swallowed up in victory"... thanks be to God, who gives the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ
• vs 35-38 - the seed is sown and dies before it comes to fruition
• vs 42-44 - our body is sown perishable, dishonor, weakness, natural... then raised imperishable, in glory, in power, spiritual

My Birthday Wish

A truly valuable portion of our congregation’s liturgy (if I may modernize said term) is the request for each participant to share their birthday wish at the commencement of each month. A noble experiment: What do you want from God this year?
What do we want? Healing, or shoes? Reconnection with a loved one, or a new job? The answers vary by the person, the year, the life circumstances... the trivial, the eternal and everything in between. Upon sharing our desire, we gather and pray for the birthday-folks, and seek God’s blessings for the big and small alike.

35th birthday, 2011: My wish: for me to experience enduring grace, to let go of my guilt, regardless.

I seek this, ask it, and need the faith, courage and presence of mind to receive this gift from God. Theologically, this grace, freedom, resurrection, and redemption has already taken place. The stumbling block is me, my mind, my lack of acceptance. I understand that; but I want/need more help – I need the breakthrough of understanding, receiving the tangible reality of grace.

My Mentor

After an unreasonable battle with an unreasonable illness, my mentor left this earth a few days past. His mind was willing, body weak. Distinctly successful in the world's eyes, his influence spread throughout our town, this state, and in various corners of the world. 

We each have a number of qualities, talents and strengths afforded us, which with a certain combination of work ethic and favor propel us forward. His was a special mixture, and I am grateful for his influence on me. I do believe he was my favorite leader, one of the very few my independent self purposefully sought to emulate. While I have not worked directly with him for five years, I continue to hear his voice in my mind as I approach my professional life, just as I hear my high school coach push me each time I go for a run. "Work smart not hard", he would say, which of course meant "Work smart, and hard". We aspire to the character and actions of Jesus; but it is helpful to have folks on the ground we can look up to as well.

Faith is tangible here; it was for him, his family in mourning, and for me; he was humble in the midst of life's success, inviting God's activity in his life; this helped prepare him for life's inevitable end. I trust that he has been healed in the presence of God.

I attempt to balance my appreciation and honor of him with the God who molded him, taught, shaped and inspired him. It is appropriate to admire the creation as well as the Creator.

We lost a good man

Johnny Gaskins passed away 3 days ago, the first person in my daily life to have died (all before have been on my life’s periphery).

He was suffering, and is no more. Brenda and the family were suffering, tired; and while they are in a period of distinct mourning, they may soon find God’s peace and rest.

Johnny loved God. I believe God loves him, and has brought about his eternal healing. We mourn the loss of a truly great man whom we loved and admired. We rejoice in his personal deliverance.

I’ve had very few people I have allowed to mentor me. I am so fortunate and grateful of my time with Johnny. I am a better man for his presence in my life, as a man, a believer in Jesus, and engineer, and a business leader.

Guilty until proven Innocent

I sat next to a very nice and distinctly talkative lady on the flight down here. She was fulfilling her daily verbiage quota, and I was doing my best to be a gentleman. A Belizian expat returning home to visit family, she knew everyone in this small country, and dropped names and titles beyond my memory capacity.
"If you ever need anything, have any problems getting something done, you just give me a call and I will call my (insert name) , who is (insert title), and we'll get it cleared up." Then she gave me her card, which I directly put in my pocket.
I am now returning home; as I pack I find the card, a very dangerous card, which yields a corona of guilt around all who carry it, regardless of their intent. Scripture teaches that what comes out of a person determines their guilt, not what they carry with them. I do believe this card is an implied exception: "Julia Torres, Divorce Specialist"

Choosing between having a potential helper in our work here and having my wife find the card, I do what we learned in basic training: tore it into little pieces and sent it to separate trash bins in the four corners of the airport.

When I was a kid... (part 1)

When I was a kid, "Jinx" meant something. You might be chatting with a group of friends, and two of you innocently slip the same word out. There's a pause, pregnant, broken by panicked "JINX!". Crap! Both yelled out at the same moment; time for plan 'B': "one-two-three-four-fi-si-sevn-eigh-ni-ten, JINX!" Got 'em.
Or you might be on the prowl, listening to your rambling friend with one ear while patiently anticipating his every word, until at just the right moment you double him up, followed immediately by "JINX!". The slower responder man'd up, and stayed silent until their name was spoken aloud, and the sacred spell was broken.

This is lost on my youngest two. Jinx has devolved into a community activity, announced to one another, where we repeat "Jinx" over and over while giggling and not succumbing to its inherent powers. Once it is revealed that "Jinx" has no control over the mutual participants, we start calling out "Peanuts", hoping that word conjures some additional humor.

When I was a kid...

What He did...

What Jesus did:

• Crucifixion - Mark 15
• Resurrection - Matthew 28

 Why He did it ('four spiritual laws'):

• God has intentions
• John 3:16: For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
• John 10:10: “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
• We don't meet His expectations
• Romans 3:23: All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God
• Romans 6:23: The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
• Jesus repairs the relationship
• Romans 5:8: God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
• 1 Corinthians 15:3-6: For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time
• John 14:6: Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
• Through Jesus, we have the life God intended
• John 1:12: To all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God
• Ephesians 2:8-9: For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.
• Revelation 3:20: “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.”
• Romans 10:9-10: If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.

What He says...

What Jesus says about himself, grouped together in the Book of John, written by John the Disciple, who was with Jesus during his time of ministry:
  
Book of John

• Bread of Life - you will not hunger or thirst
• 6:35: Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”
• 6:48: “I am the bread of life.”
• Light of the World - you will not walk in darkness
• 8:12: When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
• 9:5: “While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”
• Door (Gate) - enter and you will be saved
• 10:7-9: Jesus said again, “Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved.”
• Shepherd - lay down my life for my sheep, who know my voice
• 10:11-15: “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep.”
• Resurrection and Life - I will (and you will) live, even though I (and you) die
• 11:25-26: Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
• Way, Truth & Life - through me to God the Father
• 14:6: “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
• True Vine - connected to me, you will bear fruit
• 15:1- 5: “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”

 

 

 

Hi-Ya!

It is that time of year again where American middle class suburb parents unite for the purpose of enhancing our children's lives by cluttering the family schedule with some form of paid, organized activity.

Soccer: let's twirl in the backfield or run as close as possible with the other players in a blob.

Basketball: run, pass, dribble, miss; repeat.

Maggie decided it was time to stretch the girls horizons once again, "How about we sign you up for tennis?" she brought up in the car tonight.

"I don't want to do tennis, I want to do Kung-Fu."

It sounds as if the girls were together on this one.

Not Right

I happened a reason to take my glasses off for a moment tonight, sticking the temple in my mouth for barely a moment.

What concerned me is that the end of the glasses tasted good, a sweet honey flavor. I cannot begin to justify this reality or properly determine how I ought to have handled the situation.

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip – Day 12: Daily Notables

Pikes Peak – 14,110 feet, 18 mile drive each way, including slight altitude sickness, being on level with the clouds, donuts made ‘World Famous’ by their retail location (not their flavor), Bighorn Sheep with little horns, potential Saskwatch sighting, brakes clocking in at 470°F at the check-station on way down (slightly exceeding their 300°F recommended limit).
Cliff Dwellings – where the kids climbed in, out, over and around an Anasazi Indian homesite circa 1,200 B.C., or maybe a Pueblo Indian homesite circa 1,400 A.D., or possibly a European Capitalistic Colonist’s recreation of one of the above circa 1890’s; I am honestly not sure which. I am happy it was available for some major games of hide-n-seek.

La Junta, Colorado KOA (aka La Junta Hertz Car Rental, aka La Junta Christmas Store), located halfway between here and there, where one wonders what possible reason the other nightly visitors are here, and where we are staying in a Kamper Kabin next to the path to Walmart.

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip – Day 11: Daily Notable

We have 413 books in the car, because apparently we don’t have much else to do on this trip. One of the books in Eliza’s bag is "100 Days of School", centered on the first 100 days of school.

Today, Eliza used this book to practice counting to 100.

“... forty-eight, forty-nine, fivey, fivey-one, fivey-two, fivey-three...”

Should we correct her, or enjoy the cute?

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip – Day 11: Cave Man

Manitou Springs, CO is the same tourist trap as Helen, GA, except that it is located in Colorado, which makes all the difference. Today we traversed a small section of Cave of the Wind, named for the sound wind made over its entrance, attune to blowing over the top of a Coke bottle. They built the Visitor Center over the top of said entrance, and now it doesn’t make any sound; but I digress.

Halfway through the cave tour (after I had stopped to take a picture, lost sight of the people in front of me – including two of my children – and rushed to catch up only to find that I had missed a turn and was now in a different tour group, sans children), Garrett reached in and pulled out a tooth, which surely is one of the more unique forms of voluntary enamel extraction.

Flat broke after spending all of his cash on very high quality trappings, Garrett realized that the Tooth Fairy was his very own Payday Loan store. He doesn’t like dollar bills, as they fail to bling, and we were out of quarters, owing to our washing machine habit. Maggie resorted to covertly exchanging six nickels for each quarter from the kids before bed to get the needed change to make the appropriate transfer.

FYI, the going rate in the Bowling house is a dollar, owing to the weakness of the US currency and flattening markets.

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip – Day 11: Accolades

A quick word of pride for my daughter Louise, who has the same fears we each face, but does so with greater resolve than anyone her age I have ever known, including myself. She emulates the family saying: “Fear on the inside, Courage on the outside.”

Today, she practically begged for the opportunity to climb a high ropes course and traverse its limits. The leader encouraged me to follow Louise to make sure everything went well (as she was only ½” over the minimum height). After the second element, she turned to me and told me to stay back, “I do better when you are not near me.”

I realize her independence will cause her (and me) some heartburn and unnecessary failures, but I am impressed by her all the same.

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip – Day 11: The Line

At 11:00pm tonight, as I headed to the bathhouse of our campground to brush my teeth, I happened upon a couple (the wife holding a flashlight and the husband a wet-nap), as they were wiping the derriere of their Shitzu.
I’m not sure what to say.
I realize that pets have increased their individual value in modern days, and I don’t want to open an avenue of discussion on the appropriateness of $X000s surgeries to extend the life of a pet who is more at peace with their death than we are, but at some point, if you are on vacation in your motor home, and are forced to get out of bed to manually wipe you dog’s ass…
There must be a line somewhere, somewhere very near here.

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip – Day 9: Best Party EVER

A scheduled highlight of our trip was to be in Denver this weekend for Maggie’s Aunt Kathy’s 30th birthday party / reunion. Children generally suffer during adult birthday parties, and fare much worse at family reunions, either being relegated to the “BE QUIET!” zone or subjected to endless strings of irrelevant comments (“look how big she’s gotten”, or “the last time I saw you, you were in diapers”).

Props to Great Aunt Kathy however, as this party was packaged with six 9th cousins (3rd removed), a large cake, negligible parental oversight (as we each assumed the other parent was acting as the responsible party) and a huge pool. What put the party’s status over the top was a water slide. Three lifeguards made it all possible, ensuring that 10 kids running in and out of the pool and slide were safe and cared for.

The Bowling kids were in an exhausted bliss at midnight, when we finally drug them into the car and to Cousin Kelly’s house for R and R.

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip - Day 7: Daily Notable

In preparation of our death-defying journey up the tramway and down the alpine slide (run by those who originated such adventures in Gatlinburg, Tn) in Keystone, SD (where they make beer for cool rednecks), Garrett turns to Mags, “Are you going to duct tape us on the slides?” Pause. It’s been a long time since we duct taped Garrett to anything for an extended period of time; why did this come up now? Pause, observing our surroundings, “Video tape, Garrett. No, we are not going to VIDEO tape you on the slide today.”

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip – Day 7: Forget the Teepee

In a half-planned change of plans, we set off after spending the afternoon tubing in the local creek and eating supper along its banks to Cheyenne, WY. It was determined that losing the $35 pre-payment for the 2nd night at the teepee was not a sufficient deterrent to our heading to our next destination. We weren’t sure where that destination would be, and had to wait through a 2-hour drive into Wyoming before cell coverage allowed us to reserve our next KOA Kamper Kabin, but it was pretty clear from more than one family member that the teepee wasn’t the bedding of choice – something to do with the ratio of spiders to wife.

The kids have been pretty remarkable through seven days of travel; but to give all of us a treat, we let the kids watch a movie during the car-ride.

As it finished, and the sun finally set over the eternal skyline, it was time for the kids to sleep through the final 1.5 hour drive. As soon as it was announced that it was bedtime, Garrett started grunting… a mixture of a mild gasp for air and a forced growl… what you would hear from a USA Up-All-Night movie actor.

“Go to sleep!”… 5 minutes of grunting. Upon questioning him, “It started hurting at the end of the movie”… I’m not buying it. Five more minutes of grunting and I give him a placebo and water. Realizing he isn’t getting the desired results, Garrett begins to go into labor. A Rest Area presented itself, and it seemed the wise thing to stop.

Upon parking, Eliza perks up, “Are we there!”
“No, we’re stopping to let Garrett poop. He’s going to poop or throw up, one of the other.”

“He can do both of them.” I suppose she’s right, although I haven’t seen that one done before.


Postscript – he pooped plenty, and skipped merrily back to the car.

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip - Day 7: Daily Notables

Eliza: “Mom, why does a skeleton have holes in its head?”
Garrett, interrupting before mom can answer, “Because it’s missing its eyeballs!”
Eliza, elated at this answer, “Get it!?!”
Not yet.

Eliza: “Mommy, what comes out of a Wazoo?”

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip - Day 7: Welcome to America

Walking stride in stride down the thoroughfare of Mt Rushmore’s viewing area with a Japanese couple. He is speaking in rhythmic tones, rather interesting to listen to, which is why I am eavesdropping. Every 5-10 seconds, the cadenced Japanese is interrupted with “Crazy Horse” (a similar sculpture to Mt. Rushmore not far down the tracks). The tone is not “Crazy Horse”, as in “Hey, Crazy Horse, come on over for a Sunday lunch” or “You know Crazy Horse, he’s crazy.” But rather, “CRAZY HORSE, you b*st*rd! I will get even if it is the last thing I do.”
This continues for 4-5 repetitions, while the wife listens quietly to her husband’s obvious disagreement with this long-dead Sioux, until the next discernable statement is “Water Slide”, said without the same vigor, at which point two random Japanese children come out of the woodwork yelling “Yeah!” It is like a scene from a Miyazaki film.

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip - Day 6 – Wall Drug

Wall Drug.
What do you say about Wall Drug?
It is Wall Drug, the original tourist trap, serving free ice water since 1931. A series of separate looking stores all contained within one establishment, including boot store, gold jewelry store, t-shirt shop and chapel.
We got the patches, the free bumper sticker, 4 bottles of wine, 5¢ coffee, a coffee mug, and half-dozen donuts good enough to slap your momma.

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip - Day 5 Daily Notables

Bought two game-piece boards of Interstate Bingo at the Corn Palace; you mark off objects as you see them (overpass, tractor, 18-wheeler mud-flaps with the women silhouettes). With the kids in the back and the parents not paying attention, the child most willing to create their own truth has the best chance of yelling 'BINGO'.

Congratulations Louise for your 5-game winning streak.

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip - Day 6: Irony

Emily to Louise, “I’ve decided our special power is going to be mind-reading.”
Louise, “What?”
Emily, “Mind-reading.”
Louise, “What?”
Emily, “Mind-reading. Our special power is that we can read people’s minds.”
Louise, “What?”
Emily, “Never mind.”

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip - Day 6: Don’t be a Poser

Tonight was the 2nd time I have been fooled by the promise of sweet tea. One should know that foreigners do not know how to make sweet tea, and that when you leave the homeland, you must make do with unsweet or whiskey.
I blame myself: I know the rules and had every logical reason to question my ears, but when a restaurant claims they serve sweet tea, and you’ve driven a long way with four kids, you get weak-minded, and make mistakes that would embarrass your forefathers.
I also blame the communists who invented Gold Peak products, developing their syrup-based ‘tea-beverage’ in a Siberian industrial lab and distributing their non-carbonated soft drink to unknowing restaurateurs around America. I give the Frenchies a pass; no one is gullible enough to pass off Nestea as anything other than what it is.
I realize the temptation to drink non-brewed tea; your tea-fast has weakened you, and the waitress smiles so nice, and it seems rude to ask if the tea is brewed or some hostile upstart; I implore you to hold strong and stay faithful to the Luzianne of our parents, grandparents, and the Disciples.

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip – Day 6: South Dakota, You Are Welcome

In typical Bowling-fashion, we bypassed the Rapid City metropolis with its two modern hotels for Hot Springs, town of 891 people on the far end of Mt Rushmore. We also decided a Teepee would be an adventure within an adventure. Allen Guest Ranch was happy to oblige.
It is safe to say that Allen’s website was a bit misleading. Clocked at 0.43 miles from the cinder-block bathhouse (measured via the car odometer by my wife), the teepees where not exactly what one would call ‘clean’, ‘not-musty’ or ‘infestation-free’. I spent the first 20 minutes grabbing and tossing grand-daddy long-legs from the inner walls; an activity repeated every two hours throughout the night.
And since we decided to camp in a tube with a hole in the roof and another on its side, it rained 1.5” as soon as we unpacked and began to set up. I suppose if we had washed our car, a monsoon would have happened upon us. For a high desert town that receives 14” of rain per year, I do believe we deserve your thanks.

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip, Day 4 - Monday, Aug 1: The Big Road

"Mom, you said we're done driving"

It is 2pm, and we're turning right at Topeka and heading north. Topeka isn't on our scheduled route, but this abstract news item from the previous 3 months has revealed its relevance: the Missouri River is at record flood levels. The Interstate is closed, State Routes are closed, County Roads are closed... with a quick prayer of Google-Map thankfulness, we wind our way onwards.

It is 5pm, and we pull into Platte River State Park, somewhere near Lincoln. The temp gauge on the car read 105°F for the previous four hours, but surely it exaggerates. Besides, tonight is 'skip the A/C'd cabin and sleep like the natives night'... in a teepee, the teepee that Eliza and Garrett came just short of peeing themselves over. Unsure what to do, tired from the unexpected driving, and just-plain-hot, we send the kids to the pool while we mull it over. The kids swim until the pool closes, we feed them at the picnic table, swing by the bathhouse for a quick shower, and head north out of the park. It is 8pm, and the temp has dropped to 98°F.

"Mom, we're on the big road! Where's the teepee?"

Delay while we try and get further up the road ("Should we tell them?" "Might as well"). We're heading further north. Forget the fees we've paid; forget that we don't know where we're going; forget that the obvious roads are closed. We are driving north into the night and we'll figure it out when we get there.

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip - Day 5 It’s like Candyland

“Whatever,” she responds when I explain that our next stop is the Corn Palace, a building made out of corn.
“Do you remember Hansel and Gretel, who ate their way out of the witch’s gingerbread home to escape? This is the same, except we have to eat our way into the building.”
She doesn’t buy it.
And in reality, while the Mitchell, South Dakota Corn Palace is worth the stop, it isn’t actually made of corn. Put away your visions of the Norwegian Ice Palaces being created each winter by European’s finest ice-sculpture artists. The Corn Palace is the local High School basketball gym, with the inside and outside walls covered with corn cobs in various murals, like a stucco job gone awry.
We did get a 12-gallon bag of popcorn covered in Cheeto cheese for $4.

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip - Day 5 Daily Notables

Garrett to Eliza, explaining his superhero powers: “I’ve got Waterpoo Power in my hands to keep my body from getting hurt.” I’m just proud he’s added this clearly valuable power to the superhero compendium.

Eliza, opening her duffle bag, “Hey, Emily put her jammies in my bag!”
Garrett, “Yeah, Emily is a sneaker.”

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip - Day 5: Being an Artist Comes at a Price

Salem, South Dakota

There are certain advantages to one's choice of residence. A New Yorker gains first access to the world: Broadway, music, fashion… but must live in close proximity with the masses of humanity. A Cajun’s taste buds live in the luxury of Po Boys, etouffee, boudin, Tabasco… but must live with other Cajuns and an unreal quantity of bugs. And if you choose the Great Plain States, you embrace Americana, with open skies, the world’s food supply at your feet, and distance everywhere you turn.
This distance has its own price, impressing itself on each resident, molding them in both subtle and distinct ways. For the artist Porter, political science major turned sheep farmer turned metal sculpture artist living in a trailer amidst his work (searching for something), 28 years of the Great Plains has made its mark on both him and the landscape.
(insert link to picassa album of photos)

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip - Day 4: Underwater Jazz Hands

2011 is the Year of the Fish.

The Bowling children can now be brought to the pool without a parent in the water with them, and possibly without a parent paying full attention to them (not that such would occur; especially not in the world of the Kindle, the iTouch or the other poolside mom-talks).

A year of freedom, of being able to swim when you want to, and take a break when you don't, without fear of impending death as soon as you take your eyes off of the brood.

Emily and Louise participated in Swim Team, learned to dive, and are experimenting with gill-transference.

Garrett has added 'ability to swim' to his historical 'not afraid to swim'.

Eliza has bowed to sibling peer-pressure, let go of the side of the pool, and found that she can flounder with the best of them.

Proud parents we are. And this pride has been deepened by Garrett's latest show of aquatic skillz. While holding his breath and going underwater, in the deep end, he sinks to the bottom of the pool, suctions his feet to the pool floor, raises his arms in the air, and gives us all the Jazz Hands. Words do not translate the joyful pride G-man has in this feat. He is already discussing his next move, which apparently he is practicing in his spare time and plans on unveiling any day now.

We'll keep you informed of its development, as well as his.

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip, Day 4: KC

Props to Kansas City for recovering from the St. Louis fiasco. Whereas St. Louis reminded me of ATL in 1988, KC was a modern Columbus, GA, clean, vibrant, interesting. I wish the Royals had been on a homestand.

And while I do not care to make a habit of it, KC pulled off gourmet BBQ. As a proper Southerner, I don't see the point in getting all uppity about comfort food. But when in Rome...

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip - Day 3: St. Louis is a Hoax

We’ll do our best to keep positive. Left Land Between the Lakes, enjoyed a drive through Paducah, KY (birthplace of Stephen Curtis Chapman and Jim Gregory), downed a dozen wonderful homemade donuts, and headed to St. Louis.

Before climbing the Arch, we stop by Pappy’s Smokehouse, made famous by Man-v-Food. Yes, it is Sunday lunch, in a town where EVERY OTHER restaurant in a ten mile radius is closed for the Sabbath, which has been shown on Travel Channel for dozens of marathons… surely the line out the door is an allusion. After learning that the line represented a one hour wait to get inside, but before learning that EVERY OTHER restaurant in a ten mile radius is closed for the Sabbath, we decide to look for another establishment.

It did not go so well. At some point, Louise is quietly crying in the back of the van. “What’s the matter?” “I’m hot, I’m tired, and I’m hungry.”

Finally have to leave the city, drive to the suburbs and eat a Qdoba. Forget the Arch – just a stupid American treasure and structural engineering wonder.

Night spent at the Oak Grove KOA in Mo. Two room cabin with A/C and a pool full of old people.

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip - Day 2: Kid listens to his Mom

A late addition to the previous edition: while walking Garrett to the bathhouse for him to take a shower before bed, he explained the rules: “If a man goes into a woman’s bathroom, he’s damn. If a woman goes into a man’s bathroom, she’s damn.” “Umm, Garrett… where’d you learn that word?” “Uhhh, I don’t know. I made it up.”

Works for me.

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip - Day 2: Redneck Homeschool Day

Spent the morning swimming in Kentucky Lake on the Tennessee River. Mags asks after an hour wading in the roped off swimming area, “Why is it that people think that swimming in lakes is redneck?” I’m not sure how to begin:

• the rules about who can wear bikinis is different on lakes, 
• the group buffet table consists of white bread, bologna, and Miller Lite, 
• there’s no salt in the water to filter the urine, 
• the cumulative weight of our 6-person family is well below average.

After a lunch of sliced cucumbers and Buddig ham, we showered the kids and ventured over to Home Place, a well-done mock vintage village. Maggie reminded the kids freshly returned from Roanoke Island, “We’ve gone from the 1580s to the 1850s”. I had to be talked out of buying Garrett a 4’ long wooden rifle. Maggie was right; he would likely knock Eliza into next week before we made it home. Staying with some friends in Colorado Springs next week, so in appreciation, we bought Blackberry Jam and Chow Chow; you’re welcome.

After chasing sheep and asking why people grow tobacco, we headed to the planetarium, where Garrett used his $2 entry fee into the star chart movie to take a solid snore-filled nap. As we walked the museum to learn the local history, our refreshed son cleared up one of American history’s longest running errors: “Mom, that’s not a bison, that’s a buffalo.” Yet another misinformed generation.

To close it out, upon arrival at dinner, a rather fabulous fried catfish affair, Eliza asked at volume 8.5, “Mom, can we have Appletizers?”

Off to bed…

Bowling 2011 Roadtrip, Friday 7/29, Day 1

We begin the trip with a half-day of work, a quick show of the kids to my coworkers, and a traverse of Cobb County. Emily and Louise read their way through the 6 hour drive, feasting on HP Book 4 and 1 respectively. Garrett and Eliza… not so much.
Highlights of the day pretty much begin and end with our first ever White Castle experience in Clarksville, Tn. I’ve spent my adult life listening to the longings of the Carpetbaggers who have populated Atlanta and their pretentious comparison to Krystal. I don’t like Krystal, but I feel a responsibility to defend it for the sake of the South.
Alas, the Yankees are correct. White Castle is solidly better than Krystal; even a White Castle located in small-town Tennessee. To bring proper clarity to my perspective, however, WC’s score of 2/10 doubles Krystal’s 1/10, an intentional back-handed compliment.
A few comments along the way:

• Eliza, trying to break Garrett’s concentration during a coloring competition: “Garrett, look at my belly.”
• When that didn’t work, and he was pulling away, she goes for the potty-humor jugular, “Get your BOOTY out of my face!”
• Eliza: “Mom, you bemember in Princess Bride, the bold guys says 'Hoist the fingy, and othe fingy, and thurd fingy!'”
• Garrett, staying true to his roots, “Liza, smell this napkin. You can still smell the crumbs.”
• Upon arrival to our camper cabin at Piney Camp Ground at Land Between the Lakes, Eliza “LOOK! They [the cabins] are made out of Lincoln Logs!”

Nights One and Two: Stay at a National Recreation Area. Why are there so many different land designations?

Johnny-cake, Johnny-cake, Johnny-cake Roll

That is the title of a old book my dad gave me when I was a kid. I can remember him reading it to me once or twice, and me reading it in my room many times. A country boy named Johnny whose biscuit fell off the table and rolled across the rural landscape, meeting and greeting the old-South along the way. Maybe the cake was named "Johnny"? I loved that book...

... and had forgotten it until yesterday when I see a menu item, "Journey Cake", which my Belizian friend re-pronounced "Johnny Cake", explaining it was like a flat round flour-based item, not sweet, that you eat a breakfast. Sounds familiar.
I ate two Johnny-cakes for breakfast and grabbed two for the plane ride home. There is nothing new under the sun, and the connections between us all are endless.

Hat's Off to the Redneck Riviera

I have the hardship assignment of putting together a Feasibility Study and Conceptual Design for a Wastewater Collection and Treatment system on the Placencia Peninsula, Belize. This 15 mile stretch of beach along the east coast of Central America is considered one of the most pristine of beaches in the region, and it is undoubtedly nice, beautiful, culturally interesting, relaxing...

But for one who grew up a 6 hr drive (plus 30 minutes stop in Dothan to pick up a speeding ticket) up the highway from the Redneck Riviera, generally every other beach in the world pales in comparison. I'm only speaking of the quality of the sand and water; the scenery is pure bonus.

"Climate Change" Covers It All

Attended a community meeting tonight hosted by the Belize Sustainable Tourism Board. In 1999, in grad-school, we had an entire course dedicated to defining what 'sustainability' was, as it was a word no one knew, explicitly understood, or could use in a sentence. Times have changed, and the word, once inserted in any topic, under any circumstance, can bolster your chances at people agreeing with you. As in, "I know we want to win at the meet tonight, but we really need to be thinking about the sustainability of the swim team program." It is the modern 'smurf'.

The pièce de résistance, however, is everyone's concern: Climate Change. As in (and I quote from tonight): "It is important that the Peninsula have a Community Disaster Response Plan in case of Natural Disasters like earthquakes, hurricanes, and climate change."

A quick note: (1) the meeting was very well done, very professional, and successful, and (2) I am a climate change agnostic, neither bowing to it or blowharding it. I do, however, enjoy its amazing abilities.

Miscommunication at its Finest

It is 10:00, Wednesday morning, and I am standing with my Manager and the Country Water Representative at the door to the Town Meeting hall. The closed door. The one with no one except us on either side of it. And while the lack of people milling around the hall may be normal on a typical day, it started to concern us, as we were to facilitate a community meeting, at 10:00am, Wednesday morning, at this very hall.

The Water Rep dives into the topic we were all contemplating: "I do not believe you asked me to set this meeting up. I did not do so; I assumed you set this meeting up." At which point my Manager replies, "Do not look to me," turning his head in my direction, "you need to ask him who set it up."

In the second of pause I have trained myself to take before responding to these situations, I recalled (1) I am not the project manager, (2) I have been told that all official cross-country communications were to go through my Manager, and (3)(most importantly) I had ignored (1) & (2) and had asked the Belize Government Official not present to set the meeting up via a confirmed email weeks before. "I am not positive, but I believe I asked for this to be set up."

I can 'believe' all I want, but I am the junior member of the group, and the ship is going down around me. My Manager flew down specifically for this meeting, and was leaving the next morning. "Maybe we can spread the word and have the meeting later this week with Alan." Not a bad idea, but certainly not a good show for me.

So, we linger a bit, then drive over to the local Water Office, where we see a prominent town citizen, who immediately states, "I'm coming. I'll be there in 2 minutes." It is 10:20am, and as she doesn't seem in a hurry to get out of her chair any time soon, I learn in a slightly more victorious moment of silence that (1) the meeting had indeed been set up, (2) I was not going to lose my job and (3) one must remember to account for Belize time.

The meeting started at 10:50am, and was a general success.

On my Birthday...

Needless to say (except in this circumstance, of course), Garrett has used this term in the upper 1000s of times in the past couple of weeks. One cannot accuse him of not being singularly focused.

And yes, in two days, this classic gooberhead will turn 6 years old. It was touch and go for a while, not sure if he was going to pull it out and actually turn six. A rash outbreak of bed-wetting in April put it in peril, "Garrett, if you do this again, I am not going to let you turn six." I'm not sure if the random nature of such reversions to infancy or my clearly articulated position on his ability to grow up motivated him, but the bed's been dry.

Garrett's social circle is rather limited, hampered by him being the only son with three sisters, Maggie play-dating with mostly girl-oriented families, Alex being out of town this weekend, as well as his age. But we pulled out a rather enjoyable McD hang with dad and kindergarten friend Noble. He got an hour on the indoor playground, a Kung Fu Panda 2 shooting object (made in his hometown, about his hometown), and a Cars 2 lego set (again, made in his hometown, while set in a neighbor historically pivoted as a rival state, but which has shown a general cooling of tensions in recent decades). All in all, not bad.

This preliminary event is merely the lead up to Monday night, where Garrett has requested a birthday dinner at IHOP, "my favorite place." I would wait to write then, so as to be able to capture the full nature of this event; but I fear that I will be exhausted by both experiencing and discussing his birthday.

My own personal Theory of Relativity

It is 7:27am.

No it isn't.

Yes it is.

Well, which is it?

I'll give you a hint. If it was actually 7:3oam, I would be getting ready for the day rather than blogging. So, it must be two hours earlier, just like it was yesterday when I performed this same stunt.

Yesterday morning I and my boss had a 9am meeting 5 minutes from our hotel. The last thing he said the night before, "I will see you at 8:15 at the front desk," implying that we would grab a quick breaky before heading out. I set my Droid Tablet clock to the revised time after traveling, then an alarm, and head to sleep. The next morning, I wake up moments before the alarm, and get myself ready to go.

8am - take my packed bags and walk to the front lobby / restaurant, where the doors are locked. Walk around to the main entrance, where they are locked as well. This is a casual culture. Back to the room.

8:15am - check back, doors still locked. Head to my deck and read.

8:45am - Why hasn't Elio called on me yet? I'll go check on him. Knock-Knock

6:45am - Elio opens the doors, sees me dressed and my bags with me, "Well, it is a quarter to seven, so you have some time."

Apparently, my Droid Tablet found out it was in the Central American Timezone on its own, and reset its clock. A good start to the career, eh?

And here we are again today, where it is 7:38am according to my laptop, which means absolutely nothing, since I cannot trust electronic devises. After checking multiple sources, I determine that in fact, I do have time to blog, and probably take a short nap, seeing as though I don't need to get up until 7:30am local time, which is another 1h 52m from now.

Feeling Young Again

Well, here I am. After many months of searching for the next stage of life, I have landed at a new job in a new role without a strong sense of what it is I am doing.

Things are good. Started out pretty slow, but getting better. Some definite culture shock - going from big fish/small pond, to small sardine/atlantic ocean. Going from 10 years of relational leadership, positional leadership, to being the newbie. Going from a role where I juggle 10-20 jobs in any given week to one where I work on 1-2 per month. Going from clients walking in the door for unannounced meetings to international, see each other each quarter...

AND I sit at a desk. My previous talents for multi-tasking need to be replaced with the forgotten skill of long-term concentration. These are not complaints - they are the reality of the transition that I am in. Fortunately, Maggie encouraged me to remember my life the first few weeks at Gaskins in 2001 - and also, a wise Ozzie once told me to "not overestimate what you can do in one year and underestimate what you can do in ten."

I'm getting there, and I am confident that 'there' is going to be good. If you are going to be in a transition time, it is much nicer to be on this end of it.

A Better Baseball Schedule

We have a sacred right to 162 games, so let's not start this venture with any heresy to the contrary. But we are stuck in a historical rut, and have a simple opportunity to invigorate the schedule and bring an increase of interest to the fans. (I only ask for a small percentage of the increase of ticket sales and Neilson ratings)

I will use America's team, the Braves, to lay out this plan. Differences in the leagues and divisions should find their individual solutions.

Division Play:

4 teams - 4 series (two home and two away) - 3 games per series: 48 games

League Play:

9 teams - 2 series (one home and one away) - 3 games per series: 54 games

Interleague Play:

14 American League Teams

2 series against each team (one home and one away) - 2 games per series: 56 games

This is a decrease in Division games to create opportunity across the remainder of the sport. In league and interleague play, each team plays one home series and one away series against every other team, an opportunity to provide a balanced strength of schedule with fans lining up to see new teams in town.

Play outside the Division is completely unbalanced, playing teams anywhere from 3 to 8 games, while your Division rival is playing the same teams anywhere from 8 to 3 games. Depending on who you are playing, one team receives an inappropriate soft-spot in the strength of schedule.

Interleague Play is currently based upon anticipated popularity and regional hoped-for rivalries. The result is a biased system - some teams Interleague battling against Yankees, while others get to feast on the Mets. The Win-Loss column is damaged and teams head into September with different strength of schedules even within their own Division.

Total 158 games - I suppose the 162 game schedule isn't so sacred after all. I believe the additional interest of the interleague games replacing the 24 yearly games between Milwaukee and Houston will cover the loss of the four games, as well as pave the time needed for Selig's 4th playoff round he's aiming for.

Balanced Schedule - Variety in Schedule - Opportunity for Fans to see Each Team

Make it happen.