It is only Tuesday and already the week has charged off like a run away train similar to the one in the movie Unstoppable which starred Denzel Washington and Chris Pine.
Unfortunately, the only way this week is going to end is to crash into Saturday.
It is not that I don't like being busy--not at all. But I do appreciate some time to think in-between meetings to keep from providing a knee-jerk response to items that really deserve some application of gray matter to them.
And it is only Tuesday morning.
Well, better busy than not.
I believe it is going to be an interesting couple of weeks ahead as the Republican controlled House and the Democratic controlled Senate attempt to keep the country functioning when the new fiscal year begins on October 1.
To everyone on Social Security or other government programs, like military medical and retirement, we need to be very cautious. From the tones of the spending reduction plans all of the promises we based our futures upon may be nothing more than dry grasses waving in the wind.
And so the week will rocket on.
We can only hope that the Congress and the President come to their collective senses and begin trying to lead the country in a bipartisan manner.
And I hope that the week slows a bit--that said it is just after 5am and I'm heading out the door to play racquetball followed by a match tonight.
But then, I love racquetball--it makes my headache go away.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Monday, September 19, 2011
Monday Musings - September 19, 2011
1. Grandsons, one at a time, are not so bad.
2. Windshield wipers are an essential part of an automobile--it is really hard to drive when they don't remove rain from the windshield. I finally replaced the ones on my truck which were pretty rough and long past their prime.
3. Flying antique and historic airplanes is an inherently dangerous activity. My prayers go out to the families of the victims of the Reno air show crash.
4. It is amazing how the yearly television season kickoff season has changed. I really am not interested in too many of the new shows.
5. I was amazed at the number of projects I was able to knock out this week end. I guess it is good to hang around the house on weekends occasionally.
6. The movie Contagion did contain one interesting quote: Dr. Ian Sussman: Blogging is not writing. It's just graffiti with punctuation. -- IMDb Quotes: Contagion (2011)
7. I am spending time with my pair of Kees (pair-o-kees) again as we are watching Ben while Nicole and Jeremy are away. It is amazing how much time we have spend trying to figure out where that dog is hiding--we finally found him in the closet with the door closed, not once but three times. I had to convince him to "come out of the closet."
8. Pool closing day has been set--it is next Saturday, September 24th. Volunteers will be appreciated. No prior experience required.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
2. Windshield wipers are an essential part of an automobile--it is really hard to drive when they don't remove rain from the windshield. I finally replaced the ones on my truck which were pretty rough and long past their prime.
3. Flying antique and historic airplanes is an inherently dangerous activity. My prayers go out to the families of the victims of the Reno air show crash.
4. It is amazing how the yearly television season kickoff season has changed. I really am not interested in too many of the new shows.
5. I was amazed at the number of projects I was able to knock out this week end. I guess it is good to hang around the house on weekends occasionally.
6. The movie Contagion did contain one interesting quote: Dr. Ian Sussman: Blogging is not writing. It's just graffiti with punctuation. -- IMDb Quotes: Contagion (2011)
7. I am spending time with my pair of Kees (pair-o-kees) again as we are watching Ben while Nicole and Jeremy are away. It is amazing how much time we have spend trying to figure out where that dog is hiding--we finally found him in the closet with the door closed, not once but three times. I had to convince him to "come out of the closet."
8. Pool closing day has been set--it is next Saturday, September 24th. Volunteers will be appreciated. No prior experience required.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Sunday, September 18, 2011
A Saturday Flurry of Activity
What a day.
Amazingly, it was an incredibly productive day which also saw me do something for the first time.
Lots of projects around the house were accomplished. Lights changed, crown moulding installed and the general Saturday activity that we can do when we are actually home. I even went to the mall and we had batteries installed in four, yes count them four, watches. Two each for Chris and I. Somewhere in there I even had time to shop for some wine at a local wine store.
During the middle part of the day, Chris coerced me into getting a massage that she scheduled for me without my knowledge in an effort to help me deal with my persistent headaches. I admit--the massage was way outside of my comfort zone, but I did it. And it was OK. I'm not sure it helped my headache too much, but it sure helped my racquetball strained shoulder and back.
So, I will be getting more massages to see if they can really improve the way my shoulder, back and head feel.
All in all--the day didn't end until 9pm when I drove the last nail into the crown moulding. It still needs to be painted, but it has already changed the appearance of the room for the better.
Well it definitely wasn't a Renaissance Festival day, but it was a festival of activity.
And I collapsed into bed after seeing that the Orioles had won again feeling fulfilled and with that feeling of accomplishment.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Amazingly, it was an incredibly productive day which also saw me do something for the first time.
Lots of projects around the house were accomplished. Lights changed, crown moulding installed and the general Saturday activity that we can do when we are actually home. I even went to the mall and we had batteries installed in four, yes count them four, watches. Two each for Chris and I. Somewhere in there I even had time to shop for some wine at a local wine store.
During the middle part of the day, Chris coerced me into getting a massage that she scheduled for me without my knowledge in an effort to help me deal with my persistent headaches. I admit--the massage was way outside of my comfort zone, but I did it. And it was OK. I'm not sure it helped my headache too much, but it sure helped my racquetball strained shoulder and back.
So, I will be getting more massages to see if they can really improve the way my shoulder, back and head feel.
All in all--the day didn't end until 9pm when I drove the last nail into the crown moulding. It still needs to be painted, but it has already changed the appearance of the room for the better.
Well it definitely wasn't a Renaissance Festival day, but it was a festival of activity.
And I collapsed into bed after seeing that the Orioles had won again feeling fulfilled and with that feeling of accomplishment.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Contagion - Movie Review
I finally got out to a movie the other night and decided to see the movie with the blockbuster cast and which had done so well at the box office. I was disappointed with what I found in the movie Contagion.
Steven Soderberg directed the movie and Scott Burns wrote the script. Despite the great cast, the plot is predictable and the suspense isn't suspenseful. The acting was very perfunctory and with the exception of Jude Law and Laurence Fishburne, the characters just did not generate any interest or creativity. Matt Damon was especially uninspiring in his role, which, was an extremely predictable role as he loses his wife who he later finds was cheating on him and is stepson as some of the first victims only to find out that he is immune to the virus. His subsequent portrayal as a single father of a high schooler--his daughter by a previous marriage, is equally predictable, uninspiring and somewhat thuggish.
The story is simple--a new virus, the combination of two species DNA through a unique and hopefully improbable event, gets started in China and rapidly spreads around the globe through the wonders of the interconnected nature of our world. The Centers for Disease Control, CDC, play a central role in defining and developing the vaccine to counter the breakout. There is the typical bureaucratic and governmental slams highlighting the inefficiencies of the system and of course it all works and we are saved through the actions of a renegade hero doctor who finds, tests and gets the vaccine deployed in record time. Yawn!
The character development is very weak and the movie never develops the relationships between the characters nor provides a reason for me to care about the characters even when they contract the virus and die. It is almost as if, since they we going to die, the editors carved out any scenes devoted to character development to shorten the movie.
Fortunately, the movie is only 1h46m long--even though it seemed like it would never end.
Recommendation--MUST MISS! I cannot recommend this movie unless you need some dark, alone time for a nap.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Steven Soderberg directed the movie and Scott Burns wrote the script. Despite the great cast, the plot is predictable and the suspense isn't suspenseful. The acting was very perfunctory and with the exception of Jude Law and Laurence Fishburne, the characters just did not generate any interest or creativity. Matt Damon was especially uninspiring in his role, which, was an extremely predictable role as he loses his wife who he later finds was cheating on him and is stepson as some of the first victims only to find out that he is immune to the virus. His subsequent portrayal as a single father of a high schooler--his daughter by a previous marriage, is equally predictable, uninspiring and somewhat thuggish.
The story is simple--a new virus, the combination of two species DNA through a unique and hopefully improbable event, gets started in China and rapidly spreads around the globe through the wonders of the interconnected nature of our world. The Centers for Disease Control, CDC, play a central role in defining and developing the vaccine to counter the breakout. There is the typical bureaucratic and governmental slams highlighting the inefficiencies of the system and of course it all works and we are saved through the actions of a renegade hero doctor who finds, tests and gets the vaccine deployed in record time. Yawn!
The character development is very weak and the movie never develops the relationships between the characters nor provides a reason for me to care about the characters even when they contract the virus and die. It is almost as if, since they we going to die, the editors carved out any scenes devoted to character development to shorten the movie.
Fortunately, the movie is only 1h46m long--even though it seemed like it would never end.
Recommendation--MUST MISS! I cannot recommend this movie unless you need some dark, alone time for a nap.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Friday, September 16, 2011
Moon over the Roof
I noticed the moon, full and bright
hanging in the predawn sky
while I was walking Makayla.
It was casting faint shadows on the ground
blotting out the stars in its immediate vicinity
in the still dark sky.
Hanging there.
The light given for the night.
I remember,
not too many weeks ago,
when it was light as I walked
Makayla this early in the morning.
Yet today,
it was 45 degrees outside.
Cold.
I am going to have to wear a jacket
ver my Aloha shirt
when I head off to work.
September is full of seasonal changes.
I guess swimming season in the pool is over
and I need to begin planning for that saddest day of the year
when I give in to the changing seasons
and close the pool.
I do not enjoy looking at the green mesh covered pool
during the months from late-September until late-April.
It is as if the fun
has been taken from the world.
But the moon shines bright
on my rooftop. Bathing my world
in the cold light that it provides.
Whispering into my ear
that change is near.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
hanging in the predawn sky
while I was walking Makayla.
It was casting faint shadows on the ground
blotting out the stars in its immediate vicinity
in the still dark sky.
Hanging there.
The light given for the night.
I remember,
not too many weeks ago,
when it was light as I walked
Makayla this early in the morning.
Yet today,
it was 45 degrees outside.
Cold.
I am going to have to wear a jacket
ver my Aloha shirt
when I head off to work.
September is full of seasonal changes.
I guess swimming season in the pool is over
and I need to begin planning for that saddest day of the year
when I give in to the changing seasons
and close the pool.
I do not enjoy looking at the green mesh covered pool
during the months from late-September until late-April.
It is as if the fun
has been taken from the world.
But the moon shines bright
on my rooftop. Bathing my world
in the cold light that it provides.
Whispering into my ear
that change is near.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Flowers in the Setting Sun
I was reviewing some of the images from August and ran across this one of Brown-eyed Susan's illuminated by a setting sun.
I was walking around Newport, RI with the camera and spied this clump of flows in the golden light that happens as the sun heads towards the horizon at the end of the day.
Right there, in a garden in the middle of the main shopping area of Newport. Sandwiched between the shops and the harbor.
They caught my eye with the sun behind them giving them a bit of a halo appearance. A small spot of solitude in the center of a busy area to soothe the soul.
I need to grasp these moments more and struggle to remember them when I get too intensely focused on the crisis du jour.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
I was walking around Newport, RI with the camera and spied this clump of flows in the golden light that happens as the sun heads towards the horizon at the end of the day.
Right there, in a garden in the middle of the main shopping area of Newport. Sandwiched between the shops and the harbor.
They caught my eye with the sun behind them giving them a bit of a halo appearance. A small spot of solitude in the center of a busy area to soothe the soul.
I need to grasp these moments more and struggle to remember them when I get too intensely focused on the crisis du jour.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
10 Reasons why Men don't Willingly seek Medical Help
As I wrote about two weeks ago, I have been experiencing some medical issues during the past few weeks which have caused me to visit doctors of various professions on four occasions. During this time, it has become clear to me that the medical professions really cater to women. The whole experience is set up to cause women to feel comfortable. Men on the other hand appear to be after thoughts in the patient care arena.
Men want answers--and then results. I am a "do this and then . . . " kind of guy. My recent experience has been anything but definitive.
So I think I have discovered some reasons why men do not like to seek medical treatment, unless we are unconscious and being taken for medical treatment in an ambulance after some horrific accident.
1. Usually, the symptoms go away before I can get an appointment. And then I feel stupid going to the doctor.
2. I am feeling so much better by the time I get an appointment that I should have canceled the appointment, but I didn't have the time to call and cancel or it was too close to the appointment and I didn't want to pay the cancellation fee.
3. There is almost never a definitive answer--just more referrals and more tests.
4. "Take two aspirin and call me if you don't get better," is a real treatment plan.
5. The doctor tells me: "Don't laugh when I tell you what you have, it is real."
6. My reaction when receiving the name for my diagnosis is "No kidding, did someone get their doctoral thesis coming up with that?"
7. The is such a treatment plan as, "Well there really isn't anything to help, it will either go away on its own and not return, or go away and return, or not go away." I needed four doctors and 45 minutes alone with my thoughts in a really noisy MRI to get that?
8. I get stuck in a small room or 30 minutes waiting for a doctor to see me, armed with only my iPhone are really lousy reception. And I am watching the clock tick closer to my scheduled racquetball match time getting stressed about being late--and then they come to take my blood pressure!
9. I'd say I'd rather have a root canal than go to the doctor--but wait, dentists are doctors, too!
10. In the end, I am expected to feel better because what I have has a name, there isn't any effective treatment, and it will either go away or not on its own. And I saw four doctors to tell me that, why?
So my recent experience left me less than fulfilled.
Face it, I'm a guy! I guess that is why they call it medical practice and not medical science.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Men want answers--and then results. I am a "do this and then . . . " kind of guy. My recent experience has been anything but definitive.
So I think I have discovered some reasons why men do not like to seek medical treatment, unless we are unconscious and being taken for medical treatment in an ambulance after some horrific accident.
1. Usually, the symptoms go away before I can get an appointment. And then I feel stupid going to the doctor.
2. I am feeling so much better by the time I get an appointment that I should have canceled the appointment, but I didn't have the time to call and cancel or it was too close to the appointment and I didn't want to pay the cancellation fee.
3. There is almost never a definitive answer--just more referrals and more tests.
4. "Take two aspirin and call me if you don't get better," is a real treatment plan.
5. The doctor tells me: "Don't laugh when I tell you what you have, it is real."
6. My reaction when receiving the name for my diagnosis is "No kidding, did someone get their doctoral thesis coming up with that?"
7. The is such a treatment plan as, "Well there really isn't anything to help, it will either go away on its own and not return, or go away and return, or not go away." I needed four doctors and 45 minutes alone with my thoughts in a really noisy MRI to get that?
8. I get stuck in a small room or 30 minutes waiting for a doctor to see me, armed with only my iPhone are really lousy reception. And I am watching the clock tick closer to my scheduled racquetball match time getting stressed about being late--and then they come to take my blood pressure!
9. I'd say I'd rather have a root canal than go to the doctor--but wait, dentists are doctors, too!
10. In the end, I am expected to feel better because what I have has a name, there isn't any effective treatment, and it will either go away or not on its own. And I saw four doctors to tell me that, why?
So my recent experience left me less than fulfilled.
Face it, I'm a guy! I guess that is why they call it medical practice and not medical science.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Wet Earth
I love the smell of wet earth. The smell of the ground after the rain, while it is still damp and rich with the smells of life.
I mowed my lawn last evening and it was still not completely dry after the tropical storm induced rains of the past weeks. The smell of the new mowed grass combined with the damp earth--there was standing water in some places, created a combination of intoxicating odors for my nose to enjoy as I rode the John Deere around the yard.
I marveled at how there could still be so much water in my lawn and rejoiced that I was not being covered in the dust cloud that mowing my lawn usually creates. The thick cloud envelopes me, the tractor, and the pool causing me to wonder how the simple act of mowing could produce so much dust.
Not yesterday! The earth was damp and in places soggy. I could see the out lines of the tractor tires in some parts of the lawn.
But I got the job done.
Not too many more times I expect I'll be mowing the yard before the seasons change and the grass no longer grows.
But yesterday, the sun was beating down on me as I reveled in the warm day and the rich of odors. Sometimes, I think I can catch scents of the earth in some of the wines I drink.
I enjoy those wines.
I enjoyed being alone on the tractor yesterday, too. I looked at the house, the yard, the gardens and the area around the house marveling at the blessings that have been given to me. I vowed to notice them more and appreciate them more rather than letting them become a dim addition to the crowded landscape that is my life.
And then, almost too soon, it was over. I dumped the last of the clippings from the bagger and drove the tractor into the garage. Funny, I keep the tractor in the garage, but only one of my cars. Someone told me it was a two car garage. I guess it is a one car garage plus workshop/tractor shed/storage area.
I walked back to the center of the yard to enjoy that scent one more time. The wet earth and mowed grass.
Savoring the memory for a time, not too far away, when I will long to be mowing the yard on my John Deere.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
I mowed my lawn last evening and it was still not completely dry after the tropical storm induced rains of the past weeks. The smell of the new mowed grass combined with the damp earth--there was standing water in some places, created a combination of intoxicating odors for my nose to enjoy as I rode the John Deere around the yard.
I marveled at how there could still be so much water in my lawn and rejoiced that I was not being covered in the dust cloud that mowing my lawn usually creates. The thick cloud envelopes me, the tractor, and the pool causing me to wonder how the simple act of mowing could produce so much dust.
Not yesterday! The earth was damp and in places soggy. I could see the out lines of the tractor tires in some parts of the lawn.
But I got the job done.
Not too many more times I expect I'll be mowing the yard before the seasons change and the grass no longer grows.
But yesterday, the sun was beating down on me as I reveled in the warm day and the rich of odors. Sometimes, I think I can catch scents of the earth in some of the wines I drink.
I enjoy those wines.
I enjoyed being alone on the tractor yesterday, too. I looked at the house, the yard, the gardens and the area around the house marveling at the blessings that have been given to me. I vowed to notice them more and appreciate them more rather than letting them become a dim addition to the crowded landscape that is my life.
And then, almost too soon, it was over. I dumped the last of the clippings from the bagger and drove the tractor into the garage. Funny, I keep the tractor in the garage, but only one of my cars. Someone told me it was a two car garage. I guess it is a one car garage plus workshop/tractor shed/storage area.
I walked back to the center of the yard to enjoy that scent one more time. The wet earth and mowed grass.
Savoring the memory for a time, not too far away, when I will long to be mowing the yard on my John Deere.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Location:Rainbow Dr,Elkridge,United States
Monday, September 12, 2011
Monday Musings - September 12, 2011
1. In reflecting on the ten years since 9/11/2001, it was interesting to note the number of changes the we have experienced: weddings, births, deaths, and other changes. I'm not sure they are more than any other decade--but are they really more than any other decade?
2. I reflected on the events of 9/11 and I realized that we are a changed people. We view the world very differently and we, as a people, have dedicated our talent and treasure to fighting the forces of evil wherever they are in the world.
3. NFL Football is back--and so are the crazy Sunday's of massive family gatherings to scream at the television together.
4. Our local paper raised its daily rate from $1.00 per day to $1.50 per day. I'm not sure given its reduced size that it is worth the cost anymore.
5. One of the wines I tasted at Sheldrake Point last weekend was rated a 88 by Wine Enthusiast in the October 2011 issue. It was the 2009 Dry Riesling--and we though it was very good, too.
6. I watched the movie PT-109 the other night and during the breaks the skipper of the USS Samuel B Roberts was interviewed about how that ship was saved after it hit a mine in the Persian Gulf during 1988. It was a fascinating bit of history that I only vaguely remembered.
7. Makayla is very perceptive at determining when we are leaving the house and picks her moment to try to be included in the trip. It is very comical sometimes.
8. Weekday mornings around the house have returned to their school-year routine. I'm not sure that is necessarily a good thing.
9. I was reminded of an important concept during church yesterday. Paul writes of it to the Philippians in 3:13 where he states that he is "forgetting the things that are behind and reaching out to the things that are ahead." We can't live our lives looking behind us--we must move forward to affect the future because the past is already done.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
2. I reflected on the events of 9/11 and I realized that we are a changed people. We view the world very differently and we, as a people, have dedicated our talent and treasure to fighting the forces of evil wherever they are in the world.
3. NFL Football is back--and so are the crazy Sunday's of massive family gatherings to scream at the television together.
4. Our local paper raised its daily rate from $1.00 per day to $1.50 per day. I'm not sure given its reduced size that it is worth the cost anymore.
5. One of the wines I tasted at Sheldrake Point last weekend was rated a 88 by Wine Enthusiast in the October 2011 issue. It was the 2009 Dry Riesling--and we though it was very good, too.
6. I watched the movie PT-109 the other night and during the breaks the skipper of the USS Samuel B Roberts was interviewed about how that ship was saved after it hit a mine in the Persian Gulf during 1988. It was a fascinating bit of history that I only vaguely remembered.
7. Makayla is very perceptive at determining when we are leaving the house and picks her moment to try to be included in the trip. It is very comical sometimes.
8. Weekday mornings around the house have returned to their school-year routine. I'm not sure that is necessarily a good thing.
9. I was reminded of an important concept during church yesterday. Paul writes of it to the Philippians in 3:13 where he states that he is "forgetting the things that are behind and reaching out to the things that are ahead." We can't live our lives looking behind us--we must move forward to affect the future because the past is already done.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Maryland Renaissance Festival 2011 - Review
Quite suddenly, a day can turn. Yesterday, for instance, I had planned a day of working around the house and recovering from the almost 12 inches of rain we had experienced during the past week.
And then, in what seemed like only a moment, I was at the Maryland Renaissance Festival with Chris, Patrick and Tina.
It turned out to be an exciting and interesting day. It had been about 10 years since I last visited the festival, and I remembered that I enjoyed it then.
We started by renting some costumes to get in character. I was a knight and Chris a pretty maid--and she is pretty, too.
There was plenty to do and to shop for. The number of people in character exceeded those who were just visiting--and the costumes were really very impressive. It was a lot of fun to look at the wide variety of costumes and the people wearing them during the day.
It is a full day adventure with shows to see and many different things to experience. We even got the opportunity to experience some of the ambiance of medieval times as we toured the grounds and interacted with the vendors and actors. The king, Henry VIII was in attendance yesterday and of course was a curiosity wherever he went with his attendants. .
We had a fun day and I even tried on my first kilt--did't buy it, but tried it on for some fun. There is so much to do and see within the confines of the festival. I especially enjoyed the jousting events--they fascinate me and they were very well done.
Entertainment was everywhere--and not in just the acts on the stages. Chris tried on some period clothes to see how they might help her to experience life in medieval times a bit more authentically.
All in all, I highly recommend the Maryland Renaissance Festival--go check it out and have some fun. Plan a whole day and it is definitely suitable for children.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
And then, in what seemed like only a moment, I was at the Maryland Renaissance Festival with Chris, Patrick and Tina.
It turned out to be an exciting and interesting day. It had been about 10 years since I last visited the festival, and I remembered that I enjoyed it then.
We started by renting some costumes to get in character. I was a knight and Chris a pretty maid--and she is pretty, too.
There was plenty to do and to shop for. The number of people in character exceeded those who were just visiting--and the costumes were really very impressive. It was a lot of fun to look at the wide variety of costumes and the people wearing them during the day.
It is a full day adventure with shows to see and many different things to experience. We even got the opportunity to experience some of the ambiance of medieval times as we toured the grounds and interacted with the vendors and actors. The king, Henry VIII was in attendance yesterday and of course was a curiosity wherever he went with his attendants. .
We had a fun day and I even tried on my first kilt--did't buy it, but tried it on for some fun. There is so much to do and see within the confines of the festival. I especially enjoyed the jousting events--they fascinate me and they were very well done.
Entertainment was everywhere--and not in just the acts on the stages. Chris tried on some period clothes to see how they might help her to experience life in medieval times a bit more authentically.
All in all, I highly recommend the Maryland Renaissance Festival--go check it out and have some fun. Plan a whole day and it is definitely suitable for children.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
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