Labor Day walk after breakfast

What happens after a huge breakfast? 

A walk. Especially on a beautiful day with cooler temperatures and bright sunshine.

What could be better?

Maybe a nap?

But the dogs enjoyed the long-ish walk to the playground.

On the way back Jax and I looked for acorns. And we found a lot.

I finally had to convince Jax to leave some for the squirrels.

Standing at the Door--Please Don't Knock, It's Open for a Reason

I work with some people who just cannot get used to informality.

They insist on knocking on my open office door before entering or even then wait to be invited to enter.

It really bugs me--because I do not like separating myself from my team with such trappings of either authority or power.

My boss does not require such from me--why should I retain psychological power holdovers from a previous era?

I want to be a member of the "team" and not just the coach/manager/leader.

That I am "management" should not be reinforced by holding on to the trappings of percieved power that separate us--but one of the strengths of a well functioning team is seeing that everyone has a job or position, they do it and they do it together.

I know when I hear some of the team some talk about "management" (or "them") they are referring to me and the office area I sit in, but still--I want them to know that when they say these things I understand that they feel disenfranchised and not part of the solution to the problem they are complaining about.

Teams are about shared responsibility and effort.

Some need to have the authority and responsibility to make decisions--but all should be invested in the outcome--personally.

Teams really work best when the team members care. One way everyone cares is if the barriers that separate team members are reduced.

If the leadership provides the general guidance and support that the team needs then there is a good chance the team will be efficient and adaptable to the changing stress of the moment.

If the door is open--come on in! We are all in this together.

Saturday at the fair

Hurricane? What hurricane.

It is a beautiful day.

Seeing the Fair

What is the best way to enjoy the Maryland State Fair on a beautiful Saturday morning?

Ask Lucas.

The Hunter Returns

There he was the other morning. Right there in the 5AM sky for me to see.



My old friend Orion has returned to guide me through another winter season and then to hopefully let me loose to enjoy another summer.

I have written before about my love-hate affair with the winter sky.

But it is Orion that is my guide in the stars.

He starts out in the early morning sky in the autumn, and during the winter becomes prominent in the evening and nighttime sky.

Low now on the morning horizon, but soon he will fill the evening sky.

Another of those signs that summer is passing into autumn and all that goes with the season.

Harvest, pumpkins, feasts, trees adorning themselves in colorful robes, and frost are but a few of the signs of the trasition.

It is good and useful that we have signposts to guide us across the seasons. As well, to guide us through life. Inanimate friends who make the big places familiar and comfort us--even in the night.

Hurricanes and Labor Day

I've spent most of the week watching Hurricane Earl and trying to determine if the weekend is going to be a wash out or not.


It appears as if we are going to be OK for the weekend.

Funny, how I was concerned about such mundane things as going with the entire "fam" to the Maryland State Fair--which is fast becoming an annual tradition.

Now with three grandsons it promises to be an interesting event to attend. I still love the cows!

I probably should've been a farmer, although I'm sure I'd have been bankrupt and out of business by now. I have no business sense and I do love my toys--the latest tractor or manure spreader probably would have broken the bank.

But at least I do get up early in the morning. I love seeing the dawn break. When we were driving to and from Florida this year I was reminded of how I love to see the first signs of the dawning day on the horizon. It lifts my spirits.

For me still--new days dawn full of hope and promise.

Opportunities to succeed, things to do and people to meet and be with.

They remain full of promise.

I know some don't look at new days that way, and it is sad. Depressing even and I truly hope that I do not become one of those people for whom all hope seems lost.

I want each new day to be full of hope and adventure. The joy of discovering something new or looking at something old and familiar in a new way.

Like Hurricane Earl. Could have provided rain on my parade--but I still would have smiled. Why? Ask Chris. She knows that the reason I don't carry or use an umbrella is because I love to walk in the rain! So even in the midst of the rains from a hurricane, I can find something to enjoy.

Enjoy your Labor Day weekend. Don't drive too far and remember: even in a traffic jam, fun things happen!