Hi all:
Thanks for your patience....June got busy with the launch of the Transformers movie (we handle the marketing of the toys for the movie). I have a lot of pent up things to write about -- including my review of the movie -- but alas, I have been a slaggard.
We leave on vacation to San Diego tomorrow afternoon. But I'm leaving Kathryn and the kids out west and returning to work, so when I do, I'll plan to do a better job of updating my blog site -- including (gasp!) perhaps postings every few days! So please make sure you come back and visit when I return from vacation. And thanks for visiting!
Mark
Friday, July 6, 2007
Monday, June 11, 2007
Baseball
I've decided that baseball is definitely the best sport. That's surprising, because growing up, baseball was my least favorite sport -- it was all about football, and basketball if it involved the Jazz.
So what makes baseball so great? Here are a few reasons.
1. It's perfectly made for TV. There's already built-in time for commercials, so the game isn't unnecessarily stopped for a commercial break, breaking up the flow.
2. The last 60 seconds of the game (in terms of the clock) don't last for 60 minutes. Sure, there are a couple of things that prolong the game at the conclusion, such as bringing in new pitchers, but for the most part, the game can't drag out at the end simply by calling time outs, fouling, or throwing the ball out of bounds.
3. On that same front, my complaint about basketball is that you can be up by 12 with one minute to go, and then it's foul, foul, foul and the whole game is decided by sloppy hitting of opponents and by shooting foul shots.
4. Baseball is smart enough to realize that there are times when it's not nice enough outside to play. Football players must be tough and play in tornadoes. Baseball has the good sense to head inside if it rains.
5. You get souvenirs. If the ball goes into the crowd, it's yours to keep.
6. Even if you're getting creamed, you have to keep playing. In basketball or football, you just run out the clock. In baseball, you still have to get through several more innnings.
7. When a player comes out, he's out for the game. Makes for great strategy.
8. Except for the Pitcher and the DH, you have to play offense and defense.
9. The playoffs are a fair representation of the actual season. You never play a team 7 times in a row in basketball, but in the playoffs, you do. But in baseball, you regularly play a team multiple times right in a row, just like the playoffs.
10. Baseball commentators actually have interesting things to say. I actually ask Josh to be quiet during the broadcasts and miss the commentary when I go to the stadium because it's so fascinating to learn the strategy and hear the rationale behind things.
11. Each game is SO different based on who the pitcher is. It completely changes the complexion of the game.
12. The final score is so interesting. Soccer is always like 1 to 1. Basketball is like 100 to 98. But baseball could be 1-0, 6-3, 10-2, 10-9, etc, and it is so telling. In other words, each game is so fascinating.
I could go on, but we've already written into extra innings. Go Yankees! (They're only 9.5 back now!)
Mark
PS -- Here's the plus one for the night. We got some Monopoly game pieces on the Space Shuttle and two of my team members got to go watch the launch last week. Guess what the area code is for the area in Florida with the Space Center? 3-2-1. Cool!
So what makes baseball so great? Here are a few reasons.
1. It's perfectly made for TV. There's already built-in time for commercials, so the game isn't unnecessarily stopped for a commercial break, breaking up the flow.
2. The last 60 seconds of the game (in terms of the clock) don't last for 60 minutes. Sure, there are a couple of things that prolong the game at the conclusion, such as bringing in new pitchers, but for the most part, the game can't drag out at the end simply by calling time outs, fouling, or throwing the ball out of bounds.
3. On that same front, my complaint about basketball is that you can be up by 12 with one minute to go, and then it's foul, foul, foul and the whole game is decided by sloppy hitting of opponents and by shooting foul shots.
4. Baseball is smart enough to realize that there are times when it's not nice enough outside to play. Football players must be tough and play in tornadoes. Baseball has the good sense to head inside if it rains.
5. You get souvenirs. If the ball goes into the crowd, it's yours to keep.
6. Even if you're getting creamed, you have to keep playing. In basketball or football, you just run out the clock. In baseball, you still have to get through several more innnings.
7. When a player comes out, he's out for the game. Makes for great strategy.
8. Except for the Pitcher and the DH, you have to play offense and defense.
9. The playoffs are a fair representation of the actual season. You never play a team 7 times in a row in basketball, but in the playoffs, you do. But in baseball, you regularly play a team multiple times right in a row, just like the playoffs.
10. Baseball commentators actually have interesting things to say. I actually ask Josh to be quiet during the broadcasts and miss the commentary when I go to the stadium because it's so fascinating to learn the strategy and hear the rationale behind things.
11. Each game is SO different based on who the pitcher is. It completely changes the complexion of the game.
12. The final score is so interesting. Soccer is always like 1 to 1. Basketball is like 100 to 98. But baseball could be 1-0, 6-3, 10-2, 10-9, etc, and it is so telling. In other words, each game is so fascinating.
I could go on, but we've already written into extra innings. Go Yankees! (They're only 9.5 back now!)
Mark
PS -- Here's the plus one for the night. We got some Monopoly game pieces on the Space Shuttle and two of my team members got to go watch the launch last week. Guess what the area code is for the area in Florida with the Space Center? 3-2-1. Cool!
Sunday, May 27, 2007
Dis & Dat
1. This weekend was the Father's & Son's campout. I look forward to camping experiences about as much as I look forward to being shot out of a cannon. But I must guardingly say it was a non-horrible time. In fact, it was kind of OK.
2. I asked Josh ahead of time who he was most excited to spend time with at the campout. He said "you, Daddy." I said, "That nice, but which FRIEND are you most excited about seeing up there." He said "You, daddy."
3. Matthew was playing doctor last week and I was the patient. I let him check me out with the doctor tools. I told him my ear was sore and asked if he could give me some medicine. He said, "No" and then put his hands on my head and gave me a blessing, saying "bless daddy to have a good day at school in the name of Jesus Christ Amen."
4. Josh had a good baseball game experience this weekend. He played 1st at one point, and caught a throw that got the runner out. But then the runner tripped on Josh and he got just a little hurt. He called out to his coach and said (because he'd been hurt) that'd he wanted to be the DH. The other coach responded by saying...."Sorry kid, this is the NL".
5. Josh played a ton of baseball at the father's & son's. I actually left him in a ball-playing area to take Matthew to the lake, and didn't tell Josh. He said he was scared, but said "I started looking for you, and then I said a little prayer, and then you were right there!"
6. While driving to the camp-out, I saw a sign for a weigh station that made me think of the old Johnny Carson routine when he would discern the answer from a sealed envelope, and then read the question. In that spirit, the Great Carnac would have said: "What does an exhibitionist instructor teach his students?" The answer (and the sign): "Open When Flashing"
7. Our sacrament meetings often have all three speakers speaking on the same topic. Today's HC speakers were assigned the topic reverence, and so the other speakers were assigned the same. As she was setting up for her class, the Sunday School teacher said that she was a little disappointed as she had non-member friends, and had hoped it would have been a more "uplifting" or "Christian" talk. It got me thinking...themes and such are fine, but it's probably a smart policy if bishoprics always ensure at least one talk is a "Jesus" talk....something about the atonement, his life, why we love him, etc. Can you imagine a non-member coming on "tithing" Sunday? "Gee, not only are those Mormons non-Christian because they don't talk about Jesus in their meetings, but all they want is for their members to pay money". We should always plan sacrament meetings with an eye to a non-member attending for the first time.
8. I was reminded of the following in HP meeting today. Elder Christiansen, an Area Authority 70 from Boston, taught us that we always think the way to convert is to serve our neighbors. He said it's the opposite. Most people in the world want to serve others. It's part of their DNA. It makes them feel good. But they don't know how, when, or where to serve, and deep down, they're wanting that experience. So rather than dropping off a casserole to the neighbor, it would be better to say: "This neighbor just had a baby. Some of us from church are taking turns bringing in meals for the family. Would you like to have a turn?" What converts, too, is the feelings of the spirit, and having a positive service experience does that.
GO JAZZ!
Mark
2. I asked Josh ahead of time who he was most excited to spend time with at the campout. He said "you, Daddy." I said, "That nice, but which FRIEND are you most excited about seeing up there." He said "You, daddy."
3. Matthew was playing doctor last week and I was the patient. I let him check me out with the doctor tools. I told him my ear was sore and asked if he could give me some medicine. He said, "No" and then put his hands on my head and gave me a blessing, saying "bless daddy to have a good day at school in the name of Jesus Christ Amen."
4. Josh had a good baseball game experience this weekend. He played 1st at one point, and caught a throw that got the runner out. But then the runner tripped on Josh and he got just a little hurt. He called out to his coach and said (because he'd been hurt) that'd he wanted to be the DH. The other coach responded by saying...."Sorry kid, this is the NL".
5. Josh played a ton of baseball at the father's & son's. I actually left him in a ball-playing area to take Matthew to the lake, and didn't tell Josh. He said he was scared, but said "I started looking for you, and then I said a little prayer, and then you were right there!"
6. While driving to the camp-out, I saw a sign for a weigh station that made me think of the old Johnny Carson routine when he would discern the answer from a sealed envelope, and then read the question. In that spirit, the Great Carnac would have said: "What does an exhibitionist instructor teach his students?" The answer (and the sign): "Open When Flashing"
7. Our sacrament meetings often have all three speakers speaking on the same topic. Today's HC speakers were assigned the topic reverence, and so the other speakers were assigned the same. As she was setting up for her class, the Sunday School teacher said that she was a little disappointed as she had non-member friends, and had hoped it would have been a more "uplifting" or "Christian" talk. It got me thinking...themes and such are fine, but it's probably a smart policy if bishoprics always ensure at least one talk is a "Jesus" talk....something about the atonement, his life, why we love him, etc. Can you imagine a non-member coming on "tithing" Sunday? "Gee, not only are those Mormons non-Christian because they don't talk about Jesus in their meetings, but all they want is for their members to pay money". We should always plan sacrament meetings with an eye to a non-member attending for the first time.
8. I was reminded of the following in HP meeting today. Elder Christiansen, an Area Authority 70 from Boston, taught us that we always think the way to convert is to serve our neighbors. He said it's the opposite. Most people in the world want to serve others. It's part of their DNA. It makes them feel good. But they don't know how, when, or where to serve, and deep down, they're wanting that experience. So rather than dropping off a casserole to the neighbor, it would be better to say: "This neighbor just had a baby. Some of us from church are taking turns bringing in meals for the family. Would you like to have a turn?" What converts, too, is the feelings of the spirit, and having a positive service experience does that.
GO JAZZ!
Mark
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Let's Go, Yankees!
Our family are big-time Yankees fans. We're not having the best season this year, but we're having a lot of fun, and it's amazing how much revolves around the Yankees in our household.
I've been meaning to write this for the past two weeks, but two weeks ago, Josh and I went to a game at Yankees Stadium on an absolutely beautiful Saturday afternoon.
I've gone to many Yankees games since moving to NYC and I always love them. But I never really converted to being a Yankees fan until early last year. I think it's my tendency to root for the underdog and hope for a "good story"....along with liking to swim against the current and not appear to be a bandwagon jumper-on-er. After all, I cheered for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for years as a kid when they literally couldn't win a game or two a season. (And I still have what some have called that hideous orange Tampa Bay jersey from high school....which I wear on occasion).
Secretly, I was kind of happy when the Yankees blew a 3-0 lead in the best of 7 with Boston a couple of years ago and Boston went on to win the World Series. It just seemed like such a great story. And did the Yankees really need another championship?
I tried to be a Mets fan...because that's kind of different and they aren't traditionally all that great (though this year they are). But they're just so flippin' boring! Their games -- even when they win -- are just ho hum. Win, lose or called on account of rain, Yankees games are the greatest.
Josh and I's game together was against Seattle. The game started at 3:55 p.m., and we left home at 3:10 p.m. because he had a baseball game earlier in the afternoon. That's what's great...even on a weekend game, you don't have to leave too early to make it to the game. We just cruise down the Bronx River Parkway, take Exit 6, and there's a lot right there waiting for us. Boom!
Parking is now up to $14, but we still think that's a bargain as parking in Manhattan is easily $25 or more. (Even our cheapo lot we used for the temple has tacked on a $5 surcharge for minivans making that around $13...guess they see an opportunity to "tax" just the Mormons by going after mini vans).
I was the second to last car to get into the lot before it was full. They made me park in a very odd little diagonal spot that required tricky backing in (good thing Kathryn encourages that on our home driveway).
Then it's a short walk through an overpass that has a homeless guy playing tunes on a piccolo or flute or something like that. Josh asked if we could toss in some coins on the way home. Sure, why not?
We found a mostly overlooked entrance, which was great because they still had caps to give away, even though it was now 3:45 p.m. Yea! Free Yankees cap (with a Hess gas company logo on the back).
We ran and made it through the worn down and crumbling stadium and got to our seats before the first pitch. These tickets are courtesy of work, so they're better than what I pay for....which means they are lower, but we're in the right field outfield.
Josh and I of course wore our Yankees jerseys...I have one for Marino Rivera and Josh wore A-Rod. The stands are filled with people wearing their favorite jerseys, including legends like Thurman Munson. When you arrive, you're with family.
Wang was pitching and he's one of Josh's favorite pitchers. He pitched a PERFECT game into the 8th inning (that means no hits, errors or walks) which is super rare. Had he made it a perfect game, it would have been like only the 4th or 5th in the 100 plus year history of the Yankees. So every pitch from the 5th inning on was exciting. Everyone applauded every strike. We all knew we could possibly be viewing history.
Alas, Wang gave up a home run in the 8th. But the Yankees won 8 to 1 so it didn't matter.
Josh was the expert of our area. When fans around us would ask questions to themselves about things they had missed, Josh would turn around and explain why so-and-so was in, or what had led to the person getting on base, etc.
What makes the atmosphere so great?
• they have a "subway race" on the video scoreboard between one of the innings which is worth the price of admission, in my book. Though it's gotten less cool and now Dunkin Donuts sponsors it and it's cheesy. The race has gone commercial. Bah!
• 7th Inning Stretch: They sing God Bless America before Take Me Out to the Ballpark.
• The announcer. Can't remember his name, but his voice is legendary. He feels like Baseball.
• YMCA! When the grounds crew comes out to rake the field in the 6th inning or so, they do it to the tune of the Village People's YMCA. You don't expect that at something as large as the Yankees. But it's tradition! And the grounds crew drop their ranks at the YMCA part to lead the crowd through that. Everyone dances. It's so hokey yet because it's the Yankees, it's not hokey, and it, too, is worth the price of the ticket. Even during the sacred World Series, they still do YMCA.
• Best tradition? When the Yankees win, they cue up "New York New York" by Frank Sinatra. The first few notes chime in about 3 seconds after the final out or game winning run. It's the sound of victory and accompanies you all the way back out to the car. (When they lose, they play "New York New York" by Liza Minelli.) I rank hearing Frank Sinatra at Yankee Stadium as one of the top 10 best things in New York City. It really almost brings tears to the eyes.
Let's hope the Yankees can turn this season around. At 10 games out, they now are underdogs, which makes me even a bigger fan than before! I hope the new stadium -- opening in 2009 -- will keep the same feeling and traditions.
I've been meaning to write this for the past two weeks, but two weeks ago, Josh and I went to a game at Yankees Stadium on an absolutely beautiful Saturday afternoon.
I've gone to many Yankees games since moving to NYC and I always love them. But I never really converted to being a Yankees fan until early last year. I think it's my tendency to root for the underdog and hope for a "good story"....along with liking to swim against the current and not appear to be a bandwagon jumper-on-er. After all, I cheered for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for years as a kid when they literally couldn't win a game or two a season. (And I still have what some have called that hideous orange Tampa Bay jersey from high school....which I wear on occasion).
Secretly, I was kind of happy when the Yankees blew a 3-0 lead in the best of 7 with Boston a couple of years ago and Boston went on to win the World Series. It just seemed like such a great story. And did the Yankees really need another championship?
I tried to be a Mets fan...because that's kind of different and they aren't traditionally all that great (though this year they are). But they're just so flippin' boring! Their games -- even when they win -- are just ho hum. Win, lose or called on account of rain, Yankees games are the greatest.
Josh and I's game together was against Seattle. The game started at 3:55 p.m., and we left home at 3:10 p.m. because he had a baseball game earlier in the afternoon. That's what's great...even on a weekend game, you don't have to leave too early to make it to the game. We just cruise down the Bronx River Parkway, take Exit 6, and there's a lot right there waiting for us. Boom!
Parking is now up to $14, but we still think that's a bargain as parking in Manhattan is easily $25 or more. (Even our cheapo lot we used for the temple has tacked on a $5 surcharge for minivans making that around $13...guess they see an opportunity to "tax" just the Mormons by going after mini vans).
I was the second to last car to get into the lot before it was full. They made me park in a very odd little diagonal spot that required tricky backing in (good thing Kathryn encourages that on our home driveway).
Then it's a short walk through an overpass that has a homeless guy playing tunes on a piccolo or flute or something like that. Josh asked if we could toss in some coins on the way home. Sure, why not?
We found a mostly overlooked entrance, which was great because they still had caps to give away, even though it was now 3:45 p.m. Yea! Free Yankees cap (with a Hess gas company logo on the back).
We ran and made it through the worn down and crumbling stadium and got to our seats before the first pitch. These tickets are courtesy of work, so they're better than what I pay for....which means they are lower, but we're in the right field outfield.
Josh and I of course wore our Yankees jerseys...I have one for Marino Rivera and Josh wore A-Rod. The stands are filled with people wearing their favorite jerseys, including legends like Thurman Munson. When you arrive, you're with family.
Wang was pitching and he's one of Josh's favorite pitchers. He pitched a PERFECT game into the 8th inning (that means no hits, errors or walks) which is super rare. Had he made it a perfect game, it would have been like only the 4th or 5th in the 100 plus year history of the Yankees. So every pitch from the 5th inning on was exciting. Everyone applauded every strike. We all knew we could possibly be viewing history.
Alas, Wang gave up a home run in the 8th. But the Yankees won 8 to 1 so it didn't matter.
Josh was the expert of our area. When fans around us would ask questions to themselves about things they had missed, Josh would turn around and explain why so-and-so was in, or what had led to the person getting on base, etc.
What makes the atmosphere so great?
• they have a "subway race" on the video scoreboard between one of the innings which is worth the price of admission, in my book. Though it's gotten less cool and now Dunkin Donuts sponsors it and it's cheesy. The race has gone commercial. Bah!
• 7th Inning Stretch: They sing God Bless America before Take Me Out to the Ballpark.
• The announcer. Can't remember his name, but his voice is legendary. He feels like Baseball.
• YMCA! When the grounds crew comes out to rake the field in the 6th inning or so, they do it to the tune of the Village People's YMCA. You don't expect that at something as large as the Yankees. But it's tradition! And the grounds crew drop their ranks at the YMCA part to lead the crowd through that. Everyone dances. It's so hokey yet because it's the Yankees, it's not hokey, and it, too, is worth the price of the ticket. Even during the sacred World Series, they still do YMCA.
• Best tradition? When the Yankees win, they cue up "New York New York" by Frank Sinatra. The first few notes chime in about 3 seconds after the final out or game winning run. It's the sound of victory and accompanies you all the way back out to the car. (When they lose, they play "New York New York" by Liza Minelli.) I rank hearing Frank Sinatra at Yankee Stadium as one of the top 10 best things in New York City. It really almost brings tears to the eyes.
Let's hope the Yankees can turn this season around. At 10 games out, they now are underdogs, which makes me even a bigger fan than before! I hope the new stadium -- opening in 2009 -- will keep the same feeling and traditions.
Thursday, May 3, 2007
In no particular order....
1. I spent the day up at Hasbro's Games division on Tuesday, which is just over the border from Connecticut in Western Mass. On the drive up, there is a sign for "Margate Prison (Seasonal)". What happens to the prisoners when the season ends? I guess I wouldn't fear a 12 year sentence as it's more like "12 years....or until the first snowfall"
2. Someday I will make a list of what are the greatest 'access perks' that I have enjoyed while working at my PR firm in Manhattan. High on the list would be getting to go on a factory tour of Hasbro games where they make all the great games. It's nothing fancy in terms of presentation, but it's just really cool.
3. I'm all about loyalty....or perhaps misplaced loyalty. I've been going to the same dry cleaners for the past 7 years. I don't know the employees' names, but I feel committed to them. I act as if my small amount of money I spend with them is essential for their survival. If I go away, they'll be short on their earnings.
But by moving, they're just a tad too inconvenient now. Especially because Kathryn drives me to the station, and she lets me off right in front of another dry cleaners. Couldn't be more convenient. I felt "dirty" patronizing them yesterday for the first time. Who knows if it'll continue....they are a whopping $0.35 more per shirt. (But, I don't have to plug a parking meter, so maybe that should be factored in....)
4. Speaking of loyalty without knowing names, next door to the new dry cleaners is our barbershop. I've been going there for 7 years. There are two barbers. Never once have I found out their names. When I went on Saturday, I think I heard someone call them Louie and Tom, but I can't verify that. Lame on my part!
5. While at Hasbro, I asked them to bring back "EMERGENCY!", a great board game from the 70s. My friend Mark and I played it a lot. My mom sent it out to me a while ago and the kids like to play it. It was based on that great 70s TV show of the same name. I don't remember much about it, but I remember we loved the show. Kind of the ER of its day.
6. During my client meetings, we started discussing favorite old-time TV shows, etc. It was a tad embarrassing how many specific details I remember about all these shows. But I realized a fellow participant in the room was cool when SHE brought up a favorite show of mine: "It's Your Move". It starred Jason Bateman after he left Silver Spoons and lasted only 1 season. We taped all the reruns that summer, but I have no idea where they are now. Anyone else remember that show? It was really clever.
7. Turns out my former HT here in New York served in the same mission as I did, under the same president (I at the first of my president's tenure, and my HT at the end). We've known each other for years and never connected that. Even though he came to our house monthly and sat in our living room with a Table Mountain picture, he never connected the dots. Funny.
8. Josh and I watched Field of Dreams together on Monday night. He's so in to baseball that I knew he would love it. Some may say it's hokey, but I honestly think it's one of my favorite films. Such great lessons illustrated in it. Can't believe that I first saw that movie "half my life ago". I was 18 when it came out (or younger, maybe) and now I'm 36. Such an inspiring film.
2. Someday I will make a list of what are the greatest 'access perks' that I have enjoyed while working at my PR firm in Manhattan. High on the list would be getting to go on a factory tour of Hasbro games where they make all the great games. It's nothing fancy in terms of presentation, but it's just really cool.
3. I'm all about loyalty....or perhaps misplaced loyalty. I've been going to the same dry cleaners for the past 7 years. I don't know the employees' names, but I feel committed to them. I act as if my small amount of money I spend with them is essential for their survival. If I go away, they'll be short on their earnings.
But by moving, they're just a tad too inconvenient now. Especially because Kathryn drives me to the station, and she lets me off right in front of another dry cleaners. Couldn't be more convenient. I felt "dirty" patronizing them yesterday for the first time. Who knows if it'll continue....they are a whopping $0.35 more per shirt. (But, I don't have to plug a parking meter, so maybe that should be factored in....)
4. Speaking of loyalty without knowing names, next door to the new dry cleaners is our barbershop. I've been going there for 7 years. There are two barbers. Never once have I found out their names. When I went on Saturday, I think I heard someone call them Louie and Tom, but I can't verify that. Lame on my part!
5. While at Hasbro, I asked them to bring back "EMERGENCY!", a great board game from the 70s. My friend Mark and I played it a lot. My mom sent it out to me a while ago and the kids like to play it. It was based on that great 70s TV show of the same name. I don't remember much about it, but I remember we loved the show. Kind of the ER of its day.
6. During my client meetings, we started discussing favorite old-time TV shows, etc. It was a tad embarrassing how many specific details I remember about all these shows. But I realized a fellow participant in the room was cool when SHE brought up a favorite show of mine: "It's Your Move". It starred Jason Bateman after he left Silver Spoons and lasted only 1 season. We taped all the reruns that summer, but I have no idea where they are now. Anyone else remember that show? It was really clever.
7. Turns out my former HT here in New York served in the same mission as I did, under the same president (I at the first of my president's tenure, and my HT at the end). We've known each other for years and never connected that. Even though he came to our house monthly and sat in our living room with a Table Mountain picture, he never connected the dots. Funny.
8. Josh and I watched Field of Dreams together on Monday night. He's so in to baseball that I knew he would love it. Some may say it's hokey, but I honestly think it's one of my favorite films. Such great lessons illustrated in it. Can't believe that I first saw that movie "half my life ago". I was 18 when it came out (or younger, maybe) and now I'm 36. Such an inspiring film.
Monday, April 23, 2007
What's New?
It's been a couple of weeks since I wrote....my apologies. Some top of mind thoughts tonight:
1. Out here in the East, attending a Good Friday service is a big deal. It's funny how I'm considered to be so non-religious because us Mormons don't go to church on that day. A couple of colleagues were a bit taken back that we went to IKEA on that day. But we more than make up for it 52 Sundays a year!
2. Speaking of IKEA, I'm writing on this great little two-seater couch in our playroom. It was around $151 and the best find from IKEA in a while. Very comfortable and just the right touch for this room.
3. Our neighborhood has a little bunny rabbit that hops around the area lawns. For those who know me well, they know that's a huge plus for me as I have always had a thing for baby rabbits. The kids call him Cottontail. (I wanted to call him Carmel after my pet rabbit from when I was in first grade, but I was overruled.) He just sits on our lawn quietly, though we haven't been able to get up close enough to pet him yet.
4. The Yankees need some pitchers in the worst way!!! They're letting all of A-Rod's homers go to waste. And why were we ever crying for A-Rod to be traded? I can't remember....
5. I walked to the train station this morning. I forgot how much I missed that since we moved. It is now a 1.25 mile walk, which is about 1.16 miles further than at our old house. But I left at 5:30 to catch a 5:59 a.m. train. It was very pleasant. I forgot that the walk to the train served as my morning prayer time.
6. I have a new plan for keeping the Sabbath. Too often, I let work hang over me during the full weekend as I plan to "log on" Sunday night and finish my Friday afternoon work that didn't get done or make a jump for the next week. And it really ruins the whole weekend for me. So now I'm attempting to avoid that...and when I do, it makes a huge difference for me.
My solution: I plan to get to work on Mondays super early (hence my 5:30 a.m. walk to the train this morning). Then I have about 1.5 hours to get stuff done before clients get to their offices. It also means I have to go to bed early on Sunday night....which I don't do often enough.
A side benefit: I feel OK leaving work "one train earlier" to come home on Monday night, which lets us start family home evening before all the kids unravel.
One simple thing -- honoring the Sabbath -- with a lot of side benefits. Let's see if I can keep it up.
7. The annual merit badge seminar was this weekend. I always kind of dread it, but I lucked out with a good group of boys. My best teaching idea: they have to teach a technique or skill to the class. I printed up some of the "Worst Case Scenario" items from the internet, and had them teach how to fight off an alligator, jump from a building into a Dumpster, escape from a car submerged in a lake. Bizarre enough that they liked it.
8. By moving from our old house, I no longer have to master parallel parking. But now Kathryn is forcing me to do a different parking skill: back in to the driveway. She likes to do it and by default, I kind of have to do it, too. I kind of thing it's rather pretencious (I can't spell tonight) to back in, but I suppose the neighbors won't run us out of town for that.
Mark
1. Out here in the East, attending a Good Friday service is a big deal. It's funny how I'm considered to be so non-religious because us Mormons don't go to church on that day. A couple of colleagues were a bit taken back that we went to IKEA on that day. But we more than make up for it 52 Sundays a year!
2. Speaking of IKEA, I'm writing on this great little two-seater couch in our playroom. It was around $151 and the best find from IKEA in a while. Very comfortable and just the right touch for this room.
3. Our neighborhood has a little bunny rabbit that hops around the area lawns. For those who know me well, they know that's a huge plus for me as I have always had a thing for baby rabbits. The kids call him Cottontail. (I wanted to call him Carmel after my pet rabbit from when I was in first grade, but I was overruled.) He just sits on our lawn quietly, though we haven't been able to get up close enough to pet him yet.
4. The Yankees need some pitchers in the worst way!!! They're letting all of A-Rod's homers go to waste. And why were we ever crying for A-Rod to be traded? I can't remember....
5. I walked to the train station this morning. I forgot how much I missed that since we moved. It is now a 1.25 mile walk, which is about 1.16 miles further than at our old house. But I left at 5:30 to catch a 5:59 a.m. train. It was very pleasant. I forgot that the walk to the train served as my morning prayer time.
6. I have a new plan for keeping the Sabbath. Too often, I let work hang over me during the full weekend as I plan to "log on" Sunday night and finish my Friday afternoon work that didn't get done or make a jump for the next week. And it really ruins the whole weekend for me. So now I'm attempting to avoid that...and when I do, it makes a huge difference for me.
My solution: I plan to get to work on Mondays super early (hence my 5:30 a.m. walk to the train this morning). Then I have about 1.5 hours to get stuff done before clients get to their offices. It also means I have to go to bed early on Sunday night....which I don't do often enough.
A side benefit: I feel OK leaving work "one train earlier" to come home on Monday night, which lets us start family home evening before all the kids unravel.
One simple thing -- honoring the Sabbath -- with a lot of side benefits. Let's see if I can keep it up.
7. The annual merit badge seminar was this weekend. I always kind of dread it, but I lucked out with a good group of boys. My best teaching idea: they have to teach a technique or skill to the class. I printed up some of the "Worst Case Scenario" items from the internet, and had them teach how to fight off an alligator, jump from a building into a Dumpster, escape from a car submerged in a lake. Bizarre enough that they liked it.
8. By moving from our old house, I no longer have to master parallel parking. But now Kathryn is forcing me to do a different parking skill: back in to the driveway. She likes to do it and by default, I kind of have to do it, too. I kind of thing it's rather pretencious (I can't spell tonight) to back in, but I suppose the neighbors won't run us out of town for that.
Mark
Sunday, April 8, 2007
Blogging from the New House
1. We've decided to decorate our house in a Scandanavian motif. More specifically, we bought more stuff from IKEA. For those from Utah (which is getting an IKEA soon): Warning! IKEA is a bit like a drug. I think their big catalogue is actually a form of Home Furnishing Porn.
I continue to have a love/hate relationship with IKEA. Nothing is more fun than shopping there. But the do-it-yourself portion isn't always the easiest thing in the world. Fortunately, this latest venture resulted in extremely limited pain in relation to assembly...but that's not often the case.
I wish someone would invent an electric allen wrench, which is the the major source of sore hands.
2. Fuddruckers and Newman women (or soon-to-be Newmans) don't seem to mix well. We always stop there on our way home from IKEA. Once again, Caroline spilled her milk shake creating a chocolate river under the table. Happened last time, too. When Kathryn and I dated, we went to the one in Baltimore and she spilled a couple of water glasses on the table. And yet we keep returning.
3. Is there such a thing as "sick days" anymore? Seems like for me and my clients, rather than taking a sick day where we turn off the phone and computers and rest, we simply say: "I'm not feeling so good today...I'm actually going to stay at home today, but will be on email and am accessible by cell phone." The electronic age has made it harder for us to completely "turn off" work when we are sick, on vacation, etc.
4. It's a mild form of self control, but I'm pleased nonetheless. I have a Dilbert daily calendar on my desk at my office. Most years, I skip ahead at some point when I'm bored to see future cartoons. But this year, I vowed not to look ahead. It's a mild form of self control, but I'm proud to say I've withstood the impulse to 'read ahead' this year.
5. I think someone was taking flash pictures during sacrament meeting today. Seriously. I thought I saw a flash go off once and then heard what sounded like a one-time use camera being wound. Then it happened again, and the winding sound. Can't imagine why anyone would want to record our sacrament meetings...they're barely worth noting in a blog.
6. Things I miss about our old house: disposal, walking to the train, feeling more comfortable in my kitchen, having toilet paper roll holders installed (that's this week's project), my little "mail slot" on the stair well, a fridge with a higher "fridge to freezer" ratio than what we have now, a bigger dishwasher. Also, the old house was an attached home, which is another way of saying it was like a duplex....meaning someone owned the other half of the house. When I heard strange sounds, I just assumed it was the neighbors and didn't investigate. Now, when I hear sounds that scare me (footprints upstairs, pipes hissing, etc.) I can't igmore and most investigate. I liked just assuming it was an easily explained sound vs. thinking there's a monster upstairs.
7. What is nice about the new house: having a doorbell that works, heat that is non-radiator, dimmer switches already installed where we want, a shower that is only a shower and not also a bath, double-paned windows to make the house warmer. a huge walk-in closet for me that fits my dresser and filing cabinet, too.
8. Last week during the move, I didn't shave for more than a week because I couldn't find my razor. I'm pleased to say that it was to the point that the BYU Testing Center would not have let me in. But that was about the extent of it.
9. I'm still not fully feeling like I'm in my routine. I think part of it is that I've been out of my office for 5 of the past 10 business days. (3 when we closed, one for Good Friday, and one for a trip outside the office). Plus, we have General Conference last week, so even the Sunday didn't feel like a Sunday. I'm a routine guy and I'm still feeling a bit discombobulated.
10. "The Office" returned to high form this week. "Why do I have to bring Toby? He's like the worst person on the planet." "Michael, are you wearing a woman's suit....you look like Hillary Clinton." "I am not a real hero. The real hero are those who put on costumes and fly around with capes."
11. Joke of the night from Josh: How do you get a tissue to dance? Just put a little boogie in it.
12. Yankees update: so far, they've played pretty stinky. But Saturday's game was very memorable. Josh had been watching it off and on throughout the day. The Yankees clawed back into the game. In bottom of the 9th, Yankees down by one, 2 outs, bases loaded, 2 strikes, A-Rod at the plate. SLAM!!! Home run! A-Rod gets a lot of grief from NYC fans, but for one moment, he was quite the hero. It was cool to watch it live.
I continue to have a love/hate relationship with IKEA. Nothing is more fun than shopping there. But the do-it-yourself portion isn't always the easiest thing in the world. Fortunately, this latest venture resulted in extremely limited pain in relation to assembly...but that's not often the case.
I wish someone would invent an electric allen wrench, which is the the major source of sore hands.
2. Fuddruckers and Newman women (or soon-to-be Newmans) don't seem to mix well. We always stop there on our way home from IKEA. Once again, Caroline spilled her milk shake creating a chocolate river under the table. Happened last time, too. When Kathryn and I dated, we went to the one in Baltimore and she spilled a couple of water glasses on the table. And yet we keep returning.
3. Is there such a thing as "sick days" anymore? Seems like for me and my clients, rather than taking a sick day where we turn off the phone and computers and rest, we simply say: "I'm not feeling so good today...I'm actually going to stay at home today, but will be on email and am accessible by cell phone." The electronic age has made it harder for us to completely "turn off" work when we are sick, on vacation, etc.
4. It's a mild form of self control, but I'm pleased nonetheless. I have a Dilbert daily calendar on my desk at my office. Most years, I skip ahead at some point when I'm bored to see future cartoons. But this year, I vowed not to look ahead. It's a mild form of self control, but I'm proud to say I've withstood the impulse to 'read ahead' this year.
5. I think someone was taking flash pictures during sacrament meeting today. Seriously. I thought I saw a flash go off once and then heard what sounded like a one-time use camera being wound. Then it happened again, and the winding sound. Can't imagine why anyone would want to record our sacrament meetings...they're barely worth noting in a blog.
6. Things I miss about our old house: disposal, walking to the train, feeling more comfortable in my kitchen, having toilet paper roll holders installed (that's this week's project), my little "mail slot" on the stair well, a fridge with a higher "fridge to freezer" ratio than what we have now, a bigger dishwasher. Also, the old house was an attached home, which is another way of saying it was like a duplex....meaning someone owned the other half of the house. When I heard strange sounds, I just assumed it was the neighbors and didn't investigate. Now, when I hear sounds that scare me (footprints upstairs, pipes hissing, etc.) I can't igmore and most investigate. I liked just assuming it was an easily explained sound vs. thinking there's a monster upstairs.
7. What is nice about the new house: having a doorbell that works, heat that is non-radiator, dimmer switches already installed where we want, a shower that is only a shower and not also a bath, double-paned windows to make the house warmer. a huge walk-in closet for me that fits my dresser and filing cabinet, too.
8. Last week during the move, I didn't shave for more than a week because I couldn't find my razor. I'm pleased to say that it was to the point that the BYU Testing Center would not have let me in. But that was about the extent of it.
9. I'm still not fully feeling like I'm in my routine. I think part of it is that I've been out of my office for 5 of the past 10 business days. (3 when we closed, one for Good Friday, and one for a trip outside the office). Plus, we have General Conference last week, so even the Sunday didn't feel like a Sunday. I'm a routine guy and I'm still feeling a bit discombobulated.
10. "The Office" returned to high form this week. "Why do I have to bring Toby? He's like the worst person on the planet." "Michael, are you wearing a woman's suit....you look like Hillary Clinton." "I am not a real hero. The real hero are those who put on costumes and fly around with capes."
11. Joke of the night from Josh: How do you get a tissue to dance? Just put a little boogie in it.
12. Yankees update: so far, they've played pretty stinky. But Saturday's game was very memorable. Josh had been watching it off and on throughout the day. The Yankees clawed back into the game. In bottom of the 9th, Yankees down by one, 2 outs, bases loaded, 2 strikes, A-Rod at the plate. SLAM!!! Home run! A-Rod gets a lot of grief from NYC fans, but for one moment, he was quite the hero. It was cool to watch it live.
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