Depressing News Day

Why is it that the news does not get any better form day to day? I go to sleep at night hoping that something good will happen, but it seems that only more bad news is being reported. The new year is not off to a great start.

This morning I was greeted to:

Here’s where the deadly wildfires are burning.

U.S. and Iran Exchange Threats as Democrats Question Timing of Strike

American Killing of Iranian Commander Rattles Markets and Capitol Hill

In Miami Speech, Trump Tells Evangelical Base: God Is ‘on Our Side’

Trump endorses tweet comparing top Senate Democrat to Iranians

At Baghdad funeral procession for Qasim Soleimani, calls for retaliation against the United States

Railroads are slashing workers, cheered on by Wall Street to stay profitable amid Trump’s trade war

U.S. Senate in stalemate over how to proceed with Trump impeachment trial

Thousands march in Baghdad to mourn Soleimani, others killed in U.S. air strike

To skirt police restrictions, some Indian protesters take a page from Hong Kong and beyond

'They told people not to come': Australia's bushfires ravage tourism industry


-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Pup Chillin'

Why do I like dogs? 

Finnegan with his Flamingo
Relaxing
Elkridge, MD
January 2, 2020

I often wonder about that when I am walking them or cleaning up the yard--and especially after I step into a pile of poop that I missed.

Dogs are an extension of who we are--they are what we make and mold them to become. If they are ignored, they can become wild and unruly--but with training and care they become our best friends and provide companionship and humor.

Last evening, Finnegan took a break from the activity around the house and was chilling with his toy flamingo. It was cute to see him in his bed with his toy. Hmmmm, perhaps that is what I would have rather been doing instead of taking down the Christmas decorations and putting them away in the attic. 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Sliding into 2020

The new year brings challenges. One of the biggest challenges is writing the date correctly--it never seems to be too big a problem to change the month and day, but the year is the big problem. I suppose that I will write 2019 for at least half the month of January until I actually get used to the new year and new decade. 

I was reading an article about 20 things to look forward to in 2020 and found an interesting set of historical events. At number 9 were the following historical events:

• January 10 marks the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the Treaty of Versailles, which officially ended World War 1. 
• September 6 will mark 400 years since the sailing of the Mayflower.
• November 28, 500 years ago, Ferdinand Magellan became the first European to cross from the Atlantic to the Pacific through the Strait of Magellan. 
• December will mark the 250th anniversary of the birth of legendary German composer Ludwig van Beethoven.

Of course the new year also brings the bevy of resolutions. The "I will . . ." or "I resolve to . . . " Most of the resolutions will not make it past the second week. I must confess--I did not make any resolution for this coming year. That written, I hope to be more in the moment and not so distracted about things coming or things in the past. 

And then there are vacations! I am already planning vacations and there are already two significant trips on the docket with a third looming. There will be a 2-week trip to Italy, a 1-week trip to Cooperstown with the baseball team and we are also looking at a cruise later in the year. 

Before I know it, I will be writing about new year 2021! 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

And so it begins, or does it?

The new decade has arrived with the new year. Well, I know there is some discussion about whether the new decade begins this year or next--but does it really matter? We are in the 20's. 

There is an interesting discussion about how the calendar was created and that the new decade technically begins with the arrival of 2021 in an article titled, When does the new decade begin and end anyway?  

Regardless of the scientific discussion, the new year is underway, of that we can all agree! Who knew that the monks who created the calendar forgot to number the first year, "0"? So for the discussion about whether a new decade has started, here is a quote from the article I referenced: "In terms of counting millennia or centuries or decades, it doesn't really matter," Bikos told CNN. "It's a man-made system. It matters in terms of categorizing time spans and talking about time spans. But the 203rd decade is, in astronomical terms, no different than the decade before or after."

So let the party continue and enjoy the day. It really does not matter whether the new decade begins today or a year from now. 

Happy New Year! 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

New Year's Eve

Happy New Year's Eve

End of a year and the beginning of a new decade

The day for which we have been working towards since when the year began has arrived. 

I am amazed at how quickly the end of the year, well even the end of the decade,  seems to have arrived. It seems like just yesterday . . . 

It is an old phrase that we always use when the passage of time seems to have happened so quickly. 

As the new year and the new decade approaches (will it be the roaring 20's?), my hope is that your memories of 2019 are more good than bad. That you were fulfilled in some way during the year and that your hope for the year ahead is positive. 

Happy New Year!

May God bless you and your family and friends.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Monday Musings - December 30, 2019

1. Welcome to the last Monday of 2019 and the next to last day. The year ends tomorrow night, which appropriately is know as New Year's Eve.

2. It was a great weekend with the weather being mild, although rainy yesterday. I got to play golf to celebrate the end of the year.

Axis and Allies 1942
December 27, 2019
Elkridge, MD

3. The guys in the family reenacted WW2 on Friday.  It was a "do over" from Black 
Friday. In the end, the Axis again scored a "probable" victory. We classify it as probable because we only played for 5 instead of 12 hours and had to make an assessment when time expired. 

4. Family NFL results for the last week of the regular season. There were only two games as the family teams played each other.

  Ravens defeat Steelers 28-10. Ravens are the #1 seed in the AFC. The Steelers miss the playoffs because the Titans defeated the Texans.

  Cowboys defeat Redskins 47-16. Cowboys miss playoffs because the Eagles defeated the Giants. 

5. In the in-between Christmas and New Year's period, it is hard to keep focused on the task at hand and not what the New Year's Eve plans are. 

6. In just less than two months, I will be in Sarasota attending some Baltimore Orioles Spring Training games. And playing golf.

7. Rainy days are dark and dreary. Yesterday was an example.

8. I have completed watching the first season of The Mandalorian. It was excellent and I was shocked that it had only 8 episodes. Here is a shout-out for Baby Yoda!

9. Today in History, 1922. In post-revolutionary Russia, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) is established, comprising a confederation of Russia, Belorussia, Ukraine, and the Transcaucasian Federation (divided in 1936 into the Georgian, Azerbaijan, and Armenian republics). Also known as the Soviet Union, the new communist state was the successor to the Russian Empire and the first country in the world to be based on Marxist socialism.

During the Russian Revolution of 1917 and subsequent three-year Russian Civil War, the Bolshevik Party under Vladimir Lenin dominated the soviet forces, a coalition of workers’ and soldiers’ committees that called for the establishment of a socialist state in the former Russian Empire. In the USSR, all levels of government were controlled by the Communist Party, and the party’s politburo, with its increasingly powerful general secretary, effectively ruled the country. Soviet industry was owned and managed by the state, and agricultural land was divided into state-run collective farms.

Headlines

California Is Booming. Why Are So Many Residents Unhappy? - The New York Times

U.S. Attacks Iranian-Backed Forces in Iraq and SyriaU.S. Attacks Iranian-Backed Forces in Iraq and Syria - The New York Times

For China’s Pickup Artists, Sex Is the Goal, Urging Suicide Is a Tactic - The New York Times

North Korea's Kim urges 'positive and offensive' security measures at key party meeting - Reuters

Evacuation order in Australia's south-east as bushfires rage and temperatures soar - Reuters

Ronald Reagan Quote for the Week

This year, the future of the nation and the world is particularly on our minds. We are thinking of our nation because, in the year ahead, we Americans will choose our next President. Every adult citizen has a role to play in the making of this decision. We will listen to what the candidates say. We will debate their views and our own. And in November, we will vote. I'll still be President next January, but soon after that, the man or woman leading our country will be the one the American people pick this coming November. 
 - Transcripts of New Year's Greetings From Reagan and Gorbachev on TV published in The New York Times, January 2, 1988


-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Last Sunday 2019

The last Sunday of 2019 is here and the new year is only a short few days away. While the news media and many people are looking to the past to characterize 2019, I am looking forward--bring on 2020 and let's get the party started. 

2nd Tee Box
Timbers at Troy
Elkridge, MD
December 28, 2019

Yesterday, while much of the country was suffering through bad weather, it was a great day here. The sun was shining and the temperature made it into the 60's--even though officially at the airport the high was 57 degrees. AND I was able to get in 9 holes of golf during the afternoon. It was definitely winter conditions, but the course was well maintained and it was great to be out in the sunshine. I played in my shirt sleeves with my push cart and walked the course. I thoroughly enjoyed that for those in golf carts it was cart path only, whereas I was able to walk right up to my ball with my clubs and enjoy the day. I think I am beginning to really enjoy walking the course with my push cart a lot more.

Today, Chris and I expect to get more outdoors work accomplished. She did a lot while I went off and played yesterday, but there is always more that needs to be done. 

I note that it is also the last Sunday of the NFL season. Next week the playoffs begin and I am happy to say that the Ravens will not be playing next weekend because they have a bye! That is really cool as it has not happened before that the Ravens get to sit out the Wild Card Weekend of playoffs. 

Enjoy your day! Prepare for the new year.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Titanic Mystery Murder

Last evening, Chris and I enjoyed one of our Christmas gifts by attending a Titanic-themed Mystery-Murder event in Baltimore. The hardest part of the evening was actually finding the theater as it is inside of the Lord Baltimore Hotel, but nothing in the directions suggests thsat it is nested in the hotel. After successfully locating the theater we were ready for an enjoyable evening. The murder-mystery was designed for audience participation, but it also began very late--at 8:30PM. I was surprised how deserted the area of Baltimore was at 8PM on a Friday evening. I had expected traffic and vibrant activity, but there was none. That turned out to be a blessing because I drove around the block about three times before we were able to ascertain that the theater was inside of the hotel.

The event began with the explanation of the mystery at hand. A mystery in that five Titanic survivors died within two days of each other in Baltimore. Four men and one woman were involved and through the evening clues were given to help the audience solve the crime. Along the way there were some magic tricks which related to solving the crime. The tricks were very interesting and did add to the ambiance of the show. The show lasted just about two hours and the audience detectives solved the crime--the answer which I will not reveal. It was a good detective experience in putting clues together. The time passed quickly and there evening was soon over. One of the upsides--we were lucky in finding inexpensive parking in Baltimore. 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Axis and Allies Redux

Today is the day that the world gets to see if it can survive World War 2 all over again.

Axis and Allies Board, Ready for Battle
November 29, 2019

The results after Thanksgiving were not so good--the Axis won a convincing victory after the Allied fleet was sunk in the South China Sea in an engagement with the German fleet. 

Today, a rematch is planned. The family will gather and see how history is changed or not.

Will the war end as history records or will there be a new reality? Time will tell.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

The Joy Remains

Jax at Christmas 2019
December 25, 2019
Odenton, MD

The celebration may be over, but the joy remains. 

The day has passed, but a new one is dawning outside of my window.

Memories of the day will be kept forever in my mind. The family, the food, the gathering, the conversation, the game we played and the presents exchanged. 

Christmas is not over, because it is a season and we are children of Christmas! The joy of the season lives within us and we are fulfilled when we share the joy. Christmas is not about the gifts, or the food, or the activity--it is about people and and how we each touch each other.

We improve the world, one person at a time when we share our inner joy with others that we meet and know just by doing our everyday tasks.

Merry Christmas, may your joy fill others with hope.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD