The Sheltered Path

From the Japanese Tea Garden located inside the Golden Gate park comes today's photograph. This path circles behind the pagodas and just at the end you can catch a glimpse of the zen garden located there off to the left. The weather this day was gorgeous and will always be remembered for our extensive use of public transportation!

The Vacation Hangover

After any spectacular holiday it's quite easy to suffer from 'vacation hangover', the condition where one's return to reality is constantly compared to what one was doing the week prior while on vacation. (Like many comparisons sometimes the current situation is better; for example, I was on an airplane in coach class this time last week. Sitting here, writing this, is immeasurably better.) However, around noon I would have been sitting down to lunch at the Neiman Marcus Rotunda and a Croque Monsieur with a glass of red wine. Win some, lose some. More updates as the week progresses.

Oatmeal and Legitimacy

During Thursday night's 2b meeting I took lots of notes, not something I typically do. While the attempt originally was to keep in mind what others were thinking it wasn't long before it became only what I was thinking. And, to that point, many ideas started to slowly generate other ideas and this kept up until the ideas were jumping out onto the notebook.

One thing I specifically mentioned was my need to understand what type of leadership structure others had in mind or were currently using as a frame of reference. If I'm interested in leadership via the Friends Society model and someone else is interested in leadership via papal authority it makes for a tough conversation. I firmly desire and egalitarian model where each of us is equal in leadership; this isn't helpful, though, if others have a different model in mind.

Here is a link to a wikipedia article on the Friends Society. There's a lot here and please don't think this is 'who I am or what I want'; I just want you to read section 2.0, 'Quaker Worship' and have an idea of what's appealing to me. (And, if we all learn something new about our extended network of believers, that's good, too.)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friends_Society#Quaker_worship

The second thing I wanted to mention, and this might cause some head shaking, is my preoccupation with the legitimacy of many of current churches we consider to be in our movement and, specifically, the legitimacy of those churches' pastors. It is very difficult to ascertain the accreditation of colleges producing these wonderful people. So, the question is: Are they legitimate? How does one define legitimacy? I can't answer this now but what I mean to say is thousands of years of tradition and practice mean a lot to me right now and that we shouldn't expect that the gospel has only been revealed in all its truth over the past 100 years.

Straight from the Louvre

Comes today's Fine Arts quiz. What's the name of the painting depicted above?

Wedding at Cana -- Amy got it. (Fact is, I'd completely forgotten what the name was.)

Spring, I Think

Spring would be nice right now; the remnants of the Valentine's Day snow are fading fast and the seed catalogs clog the mailbox on a daily basis. (Garrison Keillor says these are equivalent to porn for Midwestern farmers.) In addition, the fever bug has paid a visit to our house and chose to spend time with Hayes. And poor Jezzy really is looking forward to taking walks again without stepping through the snow.

Es regnet in Heidelberg

And, it appears it will keep raining through the end of the week. At least it's not snowing!

Finally, A Step in the Right Direction

Here's a major advance in US and world relations with North Korea. This must be a first for the Bush administration. NY Times article here.

Wie viel Uhr ist es?

All attempts at smoothly transitioning into local time vanished today courtesy of a large breakfast and rainy weather. I tried to lie down for an hour nap and wound up asleep for 3 1/2 hours. I'm still yawning so there's a good chance I'll sleep well tonight.

On the flight to Frankfurt I was seated next to four US soldiers on their way to Manheim. I thought about starting a conversation with them but they were pretty tight knit and, for that matter, terribly loud and obnoxious. There's a lot to say about that but I think I'll wait until there's something valuable there.

Oklahoma!, Oklahoma!, Oklahoma!

Sorry, I watched 'Dirty Rotten Scoundrels' the other night and the Ruprecht scene with Steve Martin just popped into my head. What a classic.

Bloggen von Deutschland

I'm headed to Walldorf for five days of customer acceptance testing and all the schnitzel I can eat. It's a bit of a last minute call but should be good for everyone involved and it'll be nice to see what's going on with the new product. I had hoped to snag a ticket to a Bundesliga matchup but I'll arrive too late on Sunday and leave too early the following Saturday to catch the usual weekend games. Eintracht Frankfurt does play at home on Friday night (16 Feb) but I can't imagine taking a cab into Frankfurt and back plus watching the game alone. There's always TV and a nice pub in Heidelberg, though.

A new home team?

On a recent flight to Chicago I had the opportunity to talk to a Bears fan on his way home after Superbowl XLI. We had a nice 45 minute conversation about the NFL, the dearth of quality QBs in the league, how the Superbowl is so much *not* like a football game, the power the media has over the players, his Bears, and my Colts?/Ravens?/Other?
I've always been lukewarm regarding my current home team, the Colts, based on my childhood in Baltimore. After moving to Indianapolis in 2000, I took great pleasure in the Ravens' Superbowl win that year. And although I pass the Colts complex practically every day it's been hard to switch allegiances to this team. If you look at it from a dispassionate view, the Colts are far better in terms of community impact, storyline, approach towards life, etc. and the Ravens are a smash-mouth defensive treat. I could go on forever but, perhaps, it's time to root for two teams or leave the Ravens behind.

Ten tiny marbles in my mind

These are the things I'm thinking about today:

1. Hayes and his school. Are we expecting too much from the boy? No, I think not. (Please see this post.)
2. Why is my wife so excited about the Colts? (Refer to the link in 1 and check out the avatar.)
3. You realize, of course, that growing up in Baltimore and watching the Lucky Charms evacuation in 1984 precludes me from visibly rooting for Dungy, Manning, Harrison & Co. on Sunday. Nonetheless, I'd like to see them win.
4. A new TV. (Here's the one I bought; I highly recommend it and, let me tell you, I researched the hell out of TVs over the past 2 months.)
5. Pitchers and catchers report in only two weeks!
6. Clinton vs. Obama; Obama vs. Clinton.
7. Looks like the Terrapins are going to miss the dance this year.
8. The food at El Morocco (Indianapolis at 86th and Ditch RD.) is fabulous. I'm looking forward to a repeat visit with a dear friend on Monday.
9. Revisiting item #3, seven points is a pretty big spread and a sure-fire recipe for disaster.
10. I hate snow. (So does someone else I know. I wonder why he couldn't put two cheeks into it?)

A new photo blog

Here's something you might like to look at.

My Disney World Photo Blog

Thankful for the Little Things

It's easy to be overwhelmed; it's part of our modern culture. So, in the midst of the rain and snow it's good to think about the little things I grateful for, such as:

1. Grace
2. My wife and son
3. Hearing from Brett
4. Good people to work with and a great company to work for
5. Not needing to be nervous for the Baltimore Ravens
6. Music
7. A new laptop in the household (not mine) that should reduce my role as 'Geek Squad'
8. 'Battlestar Galactica'
9. More books in print than I could ever read and friends to recommend good ones to me.

So much to talk about and no time right now.

I've waited for this for a few years. While working as a consultant in downtown Chicago I witnessed the amazing run for Senate that Barack Obama put into effect and wondered if he could ever be elected President. I wonder what his exploratory committee will say.

Sweet Lou

Who doesn't love Lou Rawls?

Law & Order, 24x7

In this season of bleak weather and television re-runs, 'Law & Order' has become a staple in our household. While I enjoy the quirkiness Vincent D'Onofrio (CI) brings to the role of Detective Robert Goren and the nostalgia Richard Belzer (SVU) as Dectective Munch adds based on the reprisal of his role in 'Homicide: Life on the Streets', it's Sam Waterston, cast as Executive Assistant District Attorney Jack McCoy, our family seems to enjoy the most.

In an episode that ran in syndication a couple of days ago this line was delivered by Waterston's character: "We are responsible for the consequences of our convictions". The episode focused on a former nun who kills a child while performing an exorcism rite. Waterston's character is a Catholic who, while vigorously prosecuting the defendant, wrestles with the legal issue of 'depraved indifference' and whether or not the nun actually heard the voice of Saint Michael during the rite and if somehow that partially exonerates her in the death of the child.

Once Waterston delivered that line I stopped watching the show and started thinking about what consequences, if any, I've faced as a result of my convictions. I'm still thinking.

How on earth did I miss this?

Apparently tributes to 2006 are not complete without a look at the year in 'popular science'. I am looking forward to trying this with Hayes at home. Wow; good clean (but sticky) fun. This must have been a newsworthy development because NPR picked up on it as well. Last, but not least, here's what happens when you get the backing of the commercial entities involved.

Taken and Missed

It can be overwhelming to think of a year that's passed so I won't. I will, however, think about the promise of another 365 days and the joys and sorrows it will bring. I've been thinking about the trajectory of my life and the opportunities taken and missed: are we remembered mostly for the ones we take or the ones we miss? I'm led to think of Jonah and the fantastic story of the opportunity intentionally avoided and then the one taken as a result. (After thinking of this, I hope I'm not in the belly of the whale and I'll be on the lookout for vegetables growing over my head.)

Regardless of the actions taken by Jonah I choose to focus, instead, on the prayer Jonah offers: (chapter 4, verse 2) ". . .that I have known that you are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger, abundant in kindness, and repenting of evil". Grace and mercy, the best double play in the Word; this is a great prayer to offer. I hope to use it frequently this year as I miss opportunities.

Stranger Than Fiction? Possibly.

Circumstances led us to see Stranger Than Fiction last night at the Landmark Keystone Art theater. About 3 or 4 minutes into the film, which was enjoyable but managed by the end to just miss the mark, I found myself listening more than watching. Towards the middle of the film I thought: "I need to buy this soundtrack ". Sure enough, as the credits began to roll, I saw Brain Reitzell listed as the musical producer for the film. Reitzell, who was the drummer for the band Red Kross, worked with artists Roger Manning Jr., Kevin Shields, and the French band Air and began his career as a film music producer for Sophia Coppola's The Virgin Suicides. Coppola's smash hit, Lost in Translation, happens to be my favorite film soundtrack so it was with great haste I went to iTunes to download the soundtrack for Stranger Than Fiction. Strangely enough, I can't bring myself to buy it.