National Champion

The college football season has finally ended with the crowning of the national champion last night--it was actually very early this morning. Congratulations to the Clemson Tigers for becoming the kings of the college football world with a last second touchdown winning the game 35-31 over the seemingly invincible Alabama Crimson Tide 

As a society, we seem to be fascinated champions especially when they are national or world champions. Team and their fans will relish in the spotlight of being the national champions, whether the sport be football, basketball, baseball, lacrosse, or hockey. 

In the professional sports world, we tend to elevate the championship level from national to world, for instance the World Series for baseball and the Super Bowl Champs for football. We love a winner.  

Patton

General George S. Patton summed it up when he said "America loves a winner, and will not tolerate a loser . . ."

Vince Lombardi made the following famous statement about winning: "Winning is not a sometime thing; it's an all the time thing. You don't win once in a while; you don't do things right once in a while; you do them right all of the time. Winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing."

The road to becoming a champion is paved by the losses of the other teams. For every team that wins a game, another team has lost. True champions understand losing, because they have been there. Clemson, for instance, lost earlier in the season and had also lost the College Football National Championship game last year to Alabama by 5 points. Understanding the sting of losing helps champions to be graceful on their victory. 

I always learn more from losing than I do from winning. To quote Patton again, "Success is how high you bounce when you hit bottom."

It is fun to celebrate the champion and the victor in the struggle.

“For over a thousand years Roman conquerors returning from the wars enjoyed the honor of triumph, a tumultuous parade. In the procession came trumpeteers, musicians and strange animals from conquered territories, together with carts laden with treasure and captured armaments. The conquerors rode in a triumphal chariot, the dazed prisoners walking in chains before him. Sometimes his children robed in white stood with him in the chariot or rode the trace horses. A slave stood behind the conqueror holding a golden crown and whispering in his ear a warning: that all glory is fleeting.” - Patton

Enjoy the moment, because when the sun still comes up tomorrow and the new day dawns it will be time do it all over again.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Monday Musings - January 9, 2017

1. The second Monday, and the second week of the new year is upon us. I hope there is some warmer weather in sight.

Headlines

2. D.C.-area forecast: Very cold today, but we welcome a January thaw midweek, from the Washington Post.

3. Russia-Turkey Alliance Grows in Syria, as U.S. Relations Strain, from the New York Times

Kin Jong-un

4. North Korea sends message to Trump amid threat to fire missile 'at any time', from CNN

Musings

5. Said about someone, They sleep so lightly that they could hear a flea jumping off a cat an be awakened.

6. Marriage is more than two people living together. Marriage is a team sport where both people are working towards the same goal.

7. The art of driving is becoming lost, there are too many people on the roads who are oblivious about how their actions will affect others. 

8. Spring is just two months away.

9. It is 13 degrees outside this morning. That is too cold to think!

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

It looks Cold

Driving across the hills outside Ithaca last evening, I came upon a scene that beautifully portrayed the weather of the day. It was cold and clear. The sunset in the west reflecting off the high clouds provided a perfect frame for the gathering nightfall.

I had just carefully passed a herd of deer. I had to be certain that they had all crossed the road and that none were lurking ready to run into the side of my vehicle.

As I reflected on the sky, it just looked cold. And it was cold. The temperature was already falling into the low teens.

Although it was snowy and cold, I could still enjoy the scene painted out before me.

And then I wished I was on a warm sandy beach somewhere.

-- Bob Doan, writing from Ithaca, NY

Kitty in a Basket

Cats are amazing animals. They find some creative places to hide and rest. Yesterday, I came across a cat, not mine, relaxing in a basket atop a refrigerator. It was a cute image.

I wrote just the other day about my own cats and the strange places they hide. It makes me feel a bit better to find that they are not unique, but their actions are common across the feline social structure.

They make me smile. That is a good thing.

-- Bob Doan, writing from Ithaca, NY

First Friday

The first Friday of the new year is here. Just last week we were preparing to celebrate the arrival of the new year and I was enjoying a vacation day.

Today, I am back at work wading through the myriad of actions which populate my life. It is almost as if the holiday weekend never happened. Sadly. 

I am amazed how quickly the pace of life resumes.

Racking my First Batch of Wine

I am looking forward to the Springtime! In a short 74 days springtime will be here. Between now and then I expect at least one blizzard and a couple of major snow events. So far, however, the region has escaped the wrath of snow. Even last night's snow event petered out and because a dusting.

Yesterday, I was able to rack my first batch of wine. I had my first taste and I was pleasantly surprised. The wine had some nice tones and character. I hope it continues to develop as it still has a few weeks to develop. 

So the first Friday of 2017 will soon be in the books. It looks like it is going to be an interesting year.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Almost Members of the Family

Riordin at Christmas

I was going through the Christmas images and I found one that made me smile all over again. I published it in my November 27th blog, but I like the image so much that it made think about how the animals in my house are more than just pets or animals, but rather they are members of the family.

During the Christmas decorating process Riordin, one of our cats, wanted to participate in the process and he got into the middle of nearly everything happening. 

Some cats, and dogs, are like that. They become almost all members of the family and they want to be involved in everything. It does get a bit tiring. 

Makayla, for instance, wants to join me on every trip I take outside the home. She does understand in some way, that she is not going to work with me in the morning, but every other journey is up for discussion. And she makes her desires known. The winter is a good time because I can run to the store and leave her in the car, unlike the hot days of summer. She has been making more short trips with me lately.

Riordin is part of everything we do. Seriously! When friends come to visit we have to lock him up or he finds a way to become the centerpiece of the conversation. While his ubiquitous presence is fine when Chris and I are home alone, it can be a bit much when friends or family are around.

Louis, the other cat, likes to reserve more cat-like activities for himself. He is around but not in the center of the action. He seems to understand that he is a cat and I'm not.

I love my pets and admit that I have enabled their behavior. But, for the majority of the time when Chris and I are the only ones home, it works.

They are not just pets, but they are members of the family. 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Fire Sank the Titanic?

The conspiracy theorists continue to be alive and well even over 100 years after the tragic sinking of the Titanic.

A new article posits that a coal fire in three-story high bunker next to the boilers and in the vicinity of where the iceberg collided with the ship may have weakened the hull and contributed, or caused, the vessel to sink.


Wow. 

An article in the New York Times yesterday titled Coal Fire, Not Just Iceberg, Doomed the Titanic a Journalist Claims. 

The article presents an interesting view of the cause of the disaster. The coal fire allegedly began three weeks before the ship departed on its fateful maiden voyage. 

David Hill, a former honorary secretary of the British Titanic Society, who has been studying the cause of the sinking since the 1950s . . . “It amazes me how this ship still captures the global imagination. It was not the worst-ever catastrophe at sea. But it is the one everyone remembers.”

There have been many theories about the titanic, including one that maintains that it wasn't the Titanic which sank, but its sister ship the Olympic. 

Well, there probably isn't any possibility of proving one way or the other whether the coal fire, who knew, contributed significantly to the tragedy. I do find it interesting that the ship sailed with a coal fire raging--but, it was a different time.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Back to the Grind

My 10-day Christmas break is over. I have enjoyed being away from work and attending to the needs the family and myself while enjoying the holidays.

Today is my first workday of 2017 and I am sure I will be behind already as soon as I arrive. It will be a bit tough getting back into the swing of things.

Un-decorating the Christmas Tree

We live in a tumultuous time. There seems to be something new in the news every day. The new Congress is seated today and the biggest business for the next few weeks we will be preparing for the new administration and impending change in our political operations.

And writing of change, the Christmas Tree is no longer gracing the family room in my house. Christmas is apparently over even though the colorful lights on my back deck still illuminate every evening. It rained yesterday and I was unable to get the exterior lights down and stored. I will have to wait for a dry day.

The new year is off to a rapid start. Come this time in 2018, I wonder how we will characterize this year.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Monday Musings - January 2, 2016

1. Happy January 2, 2017. There are 51 Monday's left in the year.

The Christmas Tree

2. My idea of a White Christmas involves white sand on a sunny warm beach somewhere with palm trees.

3. One of the great questions of the holiday season is, "When should the Christmas Tree come down?"

4. A new subway line opened in New York City yesterday and everyone is very excited according to the New York Times. It is the Second Avenue Subway.

5. Queen Elizabeth is still feeling under the weather and missed church again. I'm not sure why that is news, but it is being widely reported. I have been watching the Netflix channel program The Crown with great interest especially for its historical views of Queen Elizabeth's early years as the Queen of England.

6. I have a holiday today! It is New Year's Day Observed!

7. The neighborhood is growing darker at night as people turn off their Christmas lights. It is a bit sad that the festivity of the holiday season has ended so abruptly.

8. With my football team out of the playoffs, it is now baseball season! Although the Orioles have not announced the date for pitchers and catchers to report it is likely to be February 12-14, about 41 days away.

9. There is snow in the forecast for the next ten days, complete with some accumulation.

10. We are less than three weeks from Inauguration Day! Hopefully the animosity between the outgoing and incoming administrations will settle down a bit

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

2017 Dawns

The first morning of 2017 has dawned with cloudy skies, but no snow. It was a pleasant 40 degrees! OK, how can 40 degrees be pleasant? Well, it isn't 17 degrees! It is all relative.

Celebrating the Last Night of Hanukkah
and New Year's Eve

Chris and I gathered with friends last evening to celebrate the arrival of 2017 and the last night of Hanukkah. It was great to be with friends enjoying great wines and food as the calendar changed. 

Many people will be writing the history of the past year and the changes we may/will see as a result of what transpired. Of course, one of the biggest question marks out there is what will the 45th President of the U.S. really do once he is inaugurated and how will the Congress and the country respond?

I am hoping that the divisions in our country can be repaired and we can begin to move forward. 

For the year ahead, I intend to be more aware of the blessings that I have received and try not to focus on the bad at the expense of the good. 

There is a lot more good out there than bad--it is just that the bad gets reported more.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD