Busy, busy, busier

Life really has sped up during the past couple of weeks.

And I mean in both my personal and professional life.

It is almost like someone is trying to get everything done before I leave (in 36 days) for my Florida vacation get away.

It seems there is something to do every minute of every day--and the projects only get more and more important.

But . . .

I can smell the humid, salty air blowing off the ocean in my mind, and as I check into my happy place--the stress of the last hour melts away. And I reconnect with what really matters.

Another day--another mini-crisis, another opportunity to excel.

I think I see light at the end of the tunnel and I'm pretty sure it's not the headlamp of the on-coming train.

It's Friday party time. Yeah. And I know it's five o'clock somewhere.

A Week to Go!

The wedding is getting closer and the plans are becoming more and more specific as we move from concept to implementation.

The panic is gearing up to a high level.

It will all work out, I am sure--but the planning to make it all come together is extensive.

One of my areas of concern is logistics--the movement of people and material from multiple points to the ceremony and then back again.

And so the count down is under way.

Of course, I can take a timeout for a baseball game tonight (I hope the O's win!)

Take a deep breath--and keep my eyes open.

Let's have fun!

Jax--Another Update

Miracles do happen.

I have called Jax our miracle baby since he survived heart surgery at 6 days old.

And Jax continues to demonstrate that miracles happen--and we believe they happen as a direct result of prayer.

Jax has been undergoing a new round of health problems which proved to be extremely elusive. You can read the saga on Nicole's Blog--but most recently, he was hospitalized as many of you know, for some really deep and often uncomfortable (downright painful) tests.

Here is an excerpt from Nicole's Blog regarding some of the most recent testing:

Update 5-26-10: Jax had what I am calling the last round of blood work done last Friday, the test results should be in on the 28th. It was to test to see if his body responded to the new Prevnar vaccine. I am not holding my breath, but you never know. We did go 5 days (a new record) with no fevers, but sadly he was running one last night.

And now for the rest of the story, and the miracle.

After months of testing and looking at an under performing immune system--everything is normal. His body created the required antibodies for the Prevnar vaccine, and his levels are normal.

Every other test that has been run is negative. AND I can tell you, they were looking for some really scary things--we became experts at trying to decipher medical-speak while reading some very in depth Internet articles.

So we are claiming a victory and a miracle of the triumph of prayer!

Again!

Jax continues to be a witness to all of us of the power of prayer and how when believers pray together that prayer changes things!

We continue to ask for prayer for Jax to overcome the fevers--but the miraculous change in his immune system is something we need to celebrate and thank God for.

And so for all of you who read my blog--either in its native form at A Bob's Life, or on Facebook where I have it automatically linked; and took action by praying, Thank you!

Your prayers have been answered, as have ours.

Speak, I'm Listening

I am a terrible listener.

People who know me know that this is true. When I am in a conversation, I want to guide where we are headed and even when others speak, I am trying to complete their thoughts. Sometimes, I don't complete their thoughts correctly and I hear something they didn't intend.

It's hard. In my job I spend a lot of time filling in the blanks and figuring out how to bridge the holes in information, and so when people speak to me, I do much the same thing--my mind is racing so fast to understand that I miss nuances in the conversations. Sometimes, I miss whole conversations.

This whole idea is a carry over from church this past Sunday. One of the readings was from 1 Samuel. I know, 1 Samuel is not one of those books a lot of us spend much time studying--but i actually remembered this passage and as it was being discussed, I tuned out and had my own bit of reflection on the verse:

3:10 Then the Lord came and stood nearby, calling as he had previously done, “Samuel! Samuel!” Samuel replied, “Speak, for your servant is listening!” - NET Bible

The cool part about this is that the Lord had called Samuel three previous times and Samuel had run to his mentor, Eli, responding that he was here because he did not recognize that it was the Lord, God who was calling to him and thought it was Eli. After the third time, Eli figured out what was occurring and told Samuel to say simply, "Speak Lord, for your servant is listening."

Here is the take away that I got. Even God waits for us to acknowledge Him and to tell him that we are ready to listen. It was not until Samuel was ready to listen that God proceeded to tell Samuel what he had on His mind.

When I give, even silently in my mind, the go ahead for someone to speak because I am listening then I am a better listener because I am ready to receive and process what the speaker is saying--without having my mind racing ahead and filling in holes that don't yet exist.

So to become a better listener when engaging in conversation, I need to take a breath and mentally prepare for the conversation by saying to myself: speak, I'm listening.

Monday Musings - June 7, 2010

1. Yesterday was the 66th anniversary of D-Day and the Normandy Landings of WWII.

2. I went to the Orioles-Red Sox game yesterday. A 4h20m 11-inning game in which the O's broke their 10-game losing streak by winning. Yay. Sadly, the O's are on track to tie or beat the 1961 Mets as the losing-est baseball team in MLB history. Not too sure I really want that record!

3. The hot weather has many people in the sweltering. But as a crazy that vacations in Florida in the summer, I say, bring it on!

4. I ran across this quote:

In every age 'the good old days' were a myth. No one ever thought they were good at the time. For every age has consisted of crises that seemed intolerable to the people who lived through them.

Brooks Atkinson, Once Around the Sun (1951)
(1894 - 1984)

5. Some days seem better than others, but I am convinced that those days are better because of the effort we put into them.

6. Did you ever wonder where you left your keys, only to find them where you thought you left them? Think about it.

7. Things are always in the last place we look for them--because we stop looking after we find them!

The Ringbearer

The wedding is closing in and in a scoop here is a shot of the
ringbearer.

Yeah. He is a cutie and if he looks like this, what must the groom

and the bride look like?

Less than two weeks away. But who is counting?

I guess everyone is.

Sleep--Why is it Elusive Sometimes?

The alarm woke me this morning. That doesn't usually happen. Most often I'm already awake waiting for the alarm to signal the start of the day.

But this morning--the alarm had to do its duty and wake me from a restful slumber.

I usually sleep pretty well--only occasional bouts with mid-night insomnia. Sometimes the animals--cat or dog, wake me for some need or as they shift around in the bed. And then there is Chris--yes she snores, and when she has a bad night I often wake up.

But last night--the stars aligned and once my eyes closed, they did not open again until the alarm informed me that my allotted time in bed had ended.

And when I woke up--I realized that something really special had happened. I slept all night.

Wow.

Did I feel great? No, actually I was a bit groggy and would have stayed in bed had it been a weekend.

So I'm grumbling that I had a great night's sleep and had to get up?

Isn't that just like a guy--unhappy that something good happened.

I don't know why a full night's sleep is elusive, but I know I should appreciate a good one when I experience it.

And so, I will and I do.

Maybe a repeat performance tonight when I can sleep until 9 AM rather than 5:10 AM?? (Yes, my alarm goes off at 5:10 AM on mornings I do not play racquetball)

Do you think there is a chance?

There I go again--grumbling about something special that happened today.

OK--thanks for a great night sleep. May you all have one, too.

Thursday Party

Mid-week, pick-up parties have become a way of life around the house lately. And I must say they can be a lot of fun.

Tegan and her friends have brought a new sense of relaxation to the place and on almost any night there may be people around the pool with the heater going discussing the happenings of the day or the deep political crises of our nation.

Equipped with the new rope lights around the pool area, the whole place really becomes like a Key West bar after dark--ant that is exactly what we a trying to achieve.

The pool is open, the lights are on, the alcohol may be flowing--or not. But the laughter and talking and discussions which happen often go on right until bedtime. And since most of us have to get up early--the place shuts down almost exactly at 9:30 pm.

Memories--that's what we are making. Something to reach back for during a future time and recall friends, family, deep thoughts, and cool nights around the pool.

You Believe Them Why?

So the continuing saga of the Gulf oil spill and BP and the Federal government has become like a bad movie.

In this movie there are two bank robbers and they are constantly bickering about what they are going to do and how best to rob the bank.

But they continually bungle the job and escape only barely to try to rob another bank.

I was reminded of the movie Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid with the exception that they actually successfully made a living off of robbing banks.

And how can you tell that they are lying? Their lips are moving.

And why do we keep hearing about the next plan to stem that flow of oil which will likely fail? Because if they keep talking we can't really take the time to understand how bad it is.

And it is pretty bad. And getting worse.

And there isn't a viable plan except to drill another well to intersect the one that's there--and that won't happen until August.

They will keep talking and planning until August--because they know they just can't sit there and wait--but nothing seems like it is going to work.


And so we must wait and more oil will pollute the Gulf of Mexico and the beaches and kill the creatures of the sea and the birds of the air--


and our government will wring its hands and point its finger at BP.

And BP will point its finger at the government,


and nothing will get done, but we will feel better because of all the finger pointing.

Dawn of the New Day

I let Makayla out this morning for her usual walk around the yard to relieve herself and I noticed something in the sky. The colors of the morning were pushing away the darkness and bringing dawn to the slumbering world.

And so I looked it up in the official tables for sunrise and sunset and found that 5:11 am was the predicted time for dawn and that is almost exactly when I let Makayla out the door for her morning activity. Sunrise was slated for 5:42 am. We are should see 15 hours and 48 minutes (dawn to dusk) of daylight today--over 5 hours more than the 10 hours 37 minutes we will experience on December 1st.

And as I looked into the brightening sky, I thought about the promise of this Tuesday--the first day of June 2010 and all of my plans and activities.

Life is so busy--especially coming out of a three-day (or in my case four-day) weekend.

I am looking forward to Florida in July! A mere 47 days away.

But I don't want to get there so fast that I miss the joy in between which will include a wedding and the Independence Day celebration, the end of the school year for Chris, and so many other events and happenings.

It is similar to when I get behind in a racquetball game (which seems to be happening more than less lately). The key to success is not scoring all the points needed to win on one serve--it can't be done; but in racquetball, much like life, the key to happiness and success is to play one point, or one day, at a time and to give the best possible effort in every situation.