Friday, May 23, 2008

Surviving the "Friendly" Skies

Flying really isn't that much fun anymore: passengers are irritable; airline staff are cranky; and cute kids in normal circumstances turn into kids-on-flights. I have noticed this more acutely over the recent months. Here are a couple of possible reasons:

  • The airlines are charging for everything! ¢50 per toilet paper square
  • We have begun our descent into [fill in city], please begin turning off your iPod, laptop, DVD player, cell phone, satellite radio, sound canceling head phones, washing machine, dryer, refrigerator (which would actually come in handy since they don't feed you anymore).
  • Planes are packed. I'm sorry, isn't that my lap?
  • Place the mask over your nose and mouth before helping others. The bag may not inflate, but oxygen will be "flowing" through the mask.
  • You will not make your connection and the two later flights are each oversold; you're thirteenth on the list
  • "No really, it's okay, let me get up" before you crawl from the window to the aisle...for the fifth time
  • Chatty Charlie
  • I think Aunt Jemima was my flight attendant
  • My luggage is in Siberia (again?)
  • On take off, the kid in front of me is repeatedly saying loudly, "we're going to crash; we're going to crash" and the kid behind me is saying, "the plane is broken" & "when are we going to land?"
  • $5 for peanuts? Really, but this is a round-the-world flight.
  • In case of a water landing... (do I really have to say more?)

Monday, May 12, 2008

Humbled

I went about today complaining about the rain; that we couldn't golf on Saturday; that the charity golf tournament was canceled today; that I wore my golf outfit to the office, because I didn't know the tournament status before leaving the house; that lunch was never delivered; that my students didn't show up for tutoring; and I'm sure the list is even more extensive.

I return to the office to a message from a friend that has recently found out she was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer called Fibrosarcoma. There is news of many deaths and recent destruction from the cyclone in Myanmar, tornadoes in the Midwest, earthquake in China, and of course that doesn't include many other world events that go unreported, or under-reported.

As always, I'm humbled by my trivial and minor inconveniences. I thank God for my health, my family and friends, and the reminder of what's really important in life.

Saturday, May 10, 2008

Actual Nature

As you may know, I enjoy photography. Part of that enjoyment comes from having your ego crushed when you lose yet another photography contest. So, I've started to regularly participate in some of these free, nothing to lose, online photography contests.

Right now, I'm contemplating competing in one contest that has a particular theme - Landscapes. You know the type - like the images that 'Ansel Adams' photographed of nature and stuff.

Here is their rule about what may be included - "Landscapes shots are self explanatory, architecture doesn't count!"

Immediately, I notice something funny about their rule. No architecture, no buildings! This means that I would have to go out to ... nature. Actual nature!

Before I mention my concerns, let me clarify that I'm not saying there is anything wrong with nature. My wife and I are very pro-nature. For example, my wife buys specially formulated bird food to put in the the 7 to 10 bird feeders located around our house. We do this so we can regularly feed our slightly obese squirrels. As a matter of fact, we feel that our resident family of fat little squirrels would probably go hungry if we didn't give them this specially formulated bird food.

Plus I think it's kinda' cute the way the squirrels wait to be feed. They sit back on their hind legs and rest their front paws on their little pudgy bellies - very cute - they look like tiny NASCAR fans waiting for more beer. So, you can see, we are pro-nature.

At this point, you may conclude that I have a lawn, that I must tend to the lawn, and some consider lawns to be natural. You are half correct. I do have a lawn, but I believe we have undocumented workers tending to the lawn. However, I'm not really sure, 'cause we contract with the lawn service through the internet. We find it's cheaper to hire them, than pay for the gas to put in my lawnmower.

Also, as you know, the rule clearly stated no architecture - so a panoramic of my dandelion garden with my house in the background isn't appropriate. (My lawn service is very good at cultivating dandelion lawn cover.)


Anyway, I mention all of this because ... um..... it's that I'm a bit nervous about going out into actual nature.
Here are just a few of my questions and concerns:

  • How long can I be exposed to actual nature before something happens to me? Will my blackberry have a signal?
  • If I were to get over exposed to actual nature, are there readily available antidotes?
  • Do these natural places have the good Starbucks with wi-fi hotspots? Or, do they have just the small Starbucks, the ones with out the wi-fi hotspots?
  • Importantly, do any of these natural places have partnerships with any airlines? I want to, at least, get some airline miles out of this endeavor.

Thursday, May 08, 2008

Twittering

We (I) finally took the Twitter plunge. After much contemplation for at least 12938570139487 seconds, we Twitter. You can see the updates on the right navigation bar.

What is Twitter?

Twitter is a service for friends, family, and co–workers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent answers to one simple question: What are you doing?

You can Twitter from your computer, IM or cell phone. Each Twitter is limited to 140 characters, so it takes less than one minute to send a Twitter.

Tuesday, May 06, 2008

A Real Packer Fan

And you thought I was a big Packer fan...

David Witthoft, the 12-year-old Ridgefield, Conn. boy wore the No. 4 jersey every day since receiving it as a gift for Christmas in 2003. That's 1581 days.
"David's father, Chuck Witthoft, says Monday that his son's last day wearing the jersey was April 23 on his 12th birthday. Witthoft conceded his son was starting to become more concerned about his appearance after the jersey barely came down to his belt line."

Don't worry, the article said that, "His mother, Carolyn, had washed the jersey every other day and mended it when needed."

Sunday, May 04, 2008

A Surprising Finish

We were guests of The Home Depot for Saturday's race at Richmond International Raceway. We cheered on Tony Stewart who had a strong 4th finish. The garage and pit road tour were definitely great additions this year. And, although there was a slight rain threat, no drops fell.

The hometown favorite, Denny Hamlin, also a Joe Gibbs driver, was on the poll and led 381 of 400 laps, but it was not to be. On lap 382, his tire developed a leak that resulted in a 24th place finish, three laps down. It was a very exciting finish as Dale Earnhardt Jr and Kyle Busch duked it out with some exciting side-by-side racing. There will be some debate this week about whether Kyle got loose underneath or if Dale Jr slipped down a bit, which resulted in Dale Jr wrecking in turn 4. Being in the right place at the right time, Clint Bowyer secured his first win of the season and the second win of his career.