Transition

I'm in an interim weekend where I'm not technically employed by anyone, except the Lord and my wife. As mentioned before, the change in employers is on the anticipation that I'll be able to spend more time at home with my family and be more directly involved in raising my daughter. The professional side should also provide me with some new experiences and challenges.
Got the rest of the grass mowed - first cut of the year (yeah the weeds were pretty high) - and I'm just hanging out with our ol' faithful dog as Jadyn naps and Mommy's at a baby shower for a good friend.
Supposed to have some bad weather rolling in but nothing but a few slightly swaying limbs outside at this writing.
So far I haven't made this blog very exciting, but I hope this little slice of Internet real estate sheds some insights on my heart, my life and my hopes and ultimately leads people to know Jesus Christ.
Somehow.

Blogging from the hospital

I have a big spot on most of my left calf. It's called cellulitis.
I may be in the hospital for a couple of days while they give me antibotics to fight off the infection.
The infection can be from diabetes-related problems with sores not healing, but not always. The docs are having me change some dietary things and encourging me to exercise more to prevent the actual onset of diabetes.
This took place as we've started a transition to another employer. I'm hoping to be able to spend more time with my family in this new position.

'Enjoy in moderation'

Disclaimers
This is not a joke. I saw an ad tonight for Hershey's dark chocolate. Fine print during the ad said something pretty close to "Enjoy in moderation."
Maybe those folks who said the next thing the "we know what's best for you" police will go after are right - regulating food intake.
Yes, I've eaten way more than I should of chocolate and all kinds of stuff, but I don't think regulation would ever cure people of being overweight.
The quote at the top is from my latest favorite show - "My Name is Earl."
It sometimes has the IQ of one my socks with holes in it, but it's also endearing. If you're easily offended, I wouldn't watch it.

I heart my extended family!

Just a real quick to note to express my gratitude for my extended family. As I've probably mentioned before, when I was growing up, those close to my immediate family didn't include those necessarily closest in kin. In fact, some of our closest "family" wasn't even related by blood or marriage.
That's still true today, though some second cousins on both sides of my parents' family and non-related people have truly stepped in where aunts, uncles and even my parents would be.
And Amanda and I have added to the folks who've been there for my family for decades with our own little hodge-podge of people we consider actual family - even though they're simply good friends.
Thank the Lord that he surrounds us with love, and may we be gracious enough to extend it to others.

P.S. - It must be noted that my in-laws love me as if I was their own and have stood beside us in times of difficulty, uncertainty and transition.

Gel shoes and other stuff

Gel shoes
A few weeks back, my wife and a shoe store sales clerk convinced me to buy some of those "gel" shoes. I'm not sure what else to call them, except that they feel like foam insulation to the touch.
A friend didn't seem to think a guy wearing such shoes was a good idea.
I have no intention of wearing them outside of around the house, so I think it's OK. I wore them for a lengthy period for the first time today and I like them. They're comfortable and they're a step up from the ordinary household slipper. They provide support similar shoes don't usually offer.
So this time there aren't any hairline cracks in the fragile male ego - at least not over this subject.

Mike Wallace retires (sort of)
Dude, the man doesn't look 87, or even act it.
They played an interview Harry Smith did with him and he looks maybe 75ish. Wish him well in the semi-retirement.

Gotta go. Jadyn's up and hollering after an hour nap. Bye!

Wheezing like a chain smoker

Those who know me have heard me tell the story of how I once tried smoking.
Back in Alabama, spring break in my day was called "AEA week," even at private schools. (I attended private school growing up then graduated from a public high school.) AEA stands for the Alabama Education Association and spring break usually coincided with AEA's annual convention. I think now most schools and districts just pick a week at random in the latter part of March.
Anyway, I think it was the spring of either '82 or '83. I was at home, Mom and Dad were at work. Dad smoked Pall-Malls and I decided I would try it. (I already messed around with chewing tobacco and snuff to "fit in" with a group of kids at the private school.)
I did not see the attraction, but I'm sure it's probably a habit he picked up in the military and never could shake.
I don't remember how many I tried - probably just one. He didn't miss it (them), or if he did, he didn't say anything.
As you are well aware from my wife's blog, she was sick last week. This week, it was my turn, and whatever I have has me wheezing like I'm a lifetime chain smoker.
So far, the baby's been coughing a little today but hopefully she hasn't picked up any of our crud. I didn't like having to stay out an extra day after taking some comp days from work, but I don't think I could function in the shape I was in this morning.
Hopefully the meds our wonderful nurse practitioner gave me will start to work. (Thanks to our friend Amy for hooking us up with the CNP.)
I think I'm going to re-joining the family nap time already in progress after posting something quick on Jadyn's blog.
Post script: I slept in another room to keep from waking everybody up with the coughing. And, I forgot to mention I got my first dose of medicine from a breathing machine. I forgot what they gave me, but it was kind of strange to see the smoky stuff come out of the end of the tube. I'm using an albuterol inhaler too. First time for everything.

"They’ll never see the likes of us again"

Tom Brokaw immortalized the "Greatest Generation" with his book, and the men and women who stuggled so intently to get us through World War II are most certainly deserving of our thanks.
My late parents came of age in the 1940s, with my father doing so as a soldier in the 84th Infantry Division and my mother, eventually, as an employee of the Veterans Administration in Montgomery, Ala.
Dad suffered wounds in the Battle of the Bulge likely somewhere in Belgium Jan. 3, 1945. He returned home and started working at what was then the L(ouisville) and N(ashville) railroad, now a part of CSX Corporation.
A song by Genesis reminds me of Dad. It's called "Driving the Last Spike" and was released on "We Can't Dance" in 1991. It's the story of the development of the railway in England and the human cost, arguably one of the best songs they've done that didn't receive popular acclaim. Of course, there's the connection with the railroad. The hours were sometimes tough on us and him, and he certainly gave his all at his work but to my knowledge it was nothing compared to the loss of life and suffering the men who built the railroads endured.
The line that most reminds me of Dad, Mom and everyone from the "Greatest Generation" is this: "They’ll never see the likes of us again." And, I believe that's true. I hope that my generation can at least raise children comparable to that of the men and women who kept us safe during and after World War II.

Blog o' da month

I'm home for the first night since Friday and finally have a moment to write my first (but hopefully not last) blog of February.
We have been working out at the local hospital's wellness center (Baby and her Mama more than me) but it certainly has helped my stamina and outlook. Hopefully we'll all get some rest tonight after going hard for several days.
Yes, Jadyn's is going to water classes already. (There's one picture on a picture page accessible from her blog). I hope I don't wake up one day in front the man asking for her hand in marriage and wonder where the time went. Anyway, I'm off to change clothes and possibly go to the gym later. And, of course, see my daughter before she's a teenager or older.
P.S. - I didn't make it to the gym but I probably needed a night off of nothing but taking care of a few things around here and veggin' in front of "Lost" and "Invasion." ("E-Ring" will not be seen tonight so we can offer you something that will compete better with the Grammys.)

Music appreciation

Maybe it's a sign of maturity (I said maybe), but within the last few years, I've been appreciating what some would call older people's music.
This morning, I sang out loud (I don't think anyone heard, thankfully) "Mamas, Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to be Cowboys."
And, since Low Rawls' death, the line from one of his songs that goes "You'll never find ..." loops over and over in my head.
It wasn't really until just before his death that I started enjoying Johnny Cash. What pulled me in was the Trent Reznor song "Hurt" he re-did.
Often, I've been a fan of the big rock chords. Still am. I also enjoy much of the Christian music scene. But maybe I'm seeing a side of myself I haven't seen before and translate this willingness to branch out into other areas of life and do more risky things than simply listen to older people's music.

Attempting to change

I think I'm seeing the early stages of change in mental shifts toward healthier things in regard to work, physical condition and other topics. Sure, sometimes I still forget to put up things I'm supposed to and I think somehow I got the idea that worrying is a hobby (NOT!). But it's not meant to serve as a resolution thing. It's meant to stand as permanent changes toward - ultimately - the best.
Wow, I'm tired. Gotta hit the hay. Good night!

Next year

I hope to have a better blog, better relationships with those around me and drop some weight.

New Year's Brain Dump

I'm trying to come up with somethig witty and interesting for the blog to lure back my millions of readers.
Maybe this could be a "blog about nothing." Hey - it worked for some guy named Jerry.
My mind is fried and temporarily on pause after a series after a few sleep-deprived nights and long days. Jadyn hasn't really been an insomnia cause for some number of weeks and we're very grateful.
Well, it's off to the big"ger" city for a shopping excursion with relatives. More later.
Y'all come back now, ya hear?

We didn't see 'Eva,' but ...

We couldn't pass this one up - This is the Arby's on U.S. 280 in front of Wal-Mart in Alexander City, Ala. Usually I cringe at horrid misspellings or misuse of the English language, but somehow this was endearing. Maybe they ran out of "e's." Maybe the manager's name is Eva. But somehow it conveyed the spirit of the holiday in a warm, welcoming, although imperfect way.
It's been a wonderful holiday for us and we're sad it's coming to a close. We thank the Lord for our blessings - the greatest of which is His love for us through His son. Our most precious gift is our sweet Jadyn who we treasure so much. Thank you for sending her to us. She is truly our Christmas miracle.

Creativity vacuum in Hollywood

Maybe it's just taken me awhile to notice, but it seems the decision-makers in the traditional movie industry have lost interest and drive to develop fresh, new movie concepts.
The one notable exception appears in the animation arena - no overt duplication of ideas there.
I'm just growing weary of modern remakes of old movies.Normally, I try not to complain without having a solution. I do have a suggestion - that the major film studios develop teams, to include regular old Joes and Marys, to develop new ideas. Sure, someone would need to get creativity and writing credit, but if you have a "thinktank" generating fresh concepts, more people might actually show up to watch movies.
I don't have any ideas for a script myself. If I do, I think it needs to become a book first. :)

Been too long!

I probably have lost my entire fan base (made up largely of long-standing friends, family and a few recent arrivals to the fold).
I'm flying solo with Jadyn tonight so I might need to run back in to where she is (also because the first episode of "E-Ring" is on and I got hooked on the show after the first episode aired).
Got to work on the shopping for Amanda too along with a whole host of stuff to do before Christmas.
OK, more soon. I hope.
Fading out to my version of an old Van Halen song:
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, Jadyn's crying... ."

Space: Above and Beyond

Amanda has a knack at finding out what I like and doing something about it, something I need to get better at myself.
She bought me the DVD set for the television series, "Space: Above and Beyond." I loved it and was slightly jealous of it because it's close in general theory to many daydreams I've had over the years about an ideal futuristic story, especially as it pertains to the combat aspect. Nahh, I don't think they stole it from me. :)
The series, from the brains behind "The X Files," revolves around a squadron of Marine space aviators who are thrust into the front lines of a war which resulted from a hostile attack on Earth colonies out in space.
For the most part, it came on at 7 p.m. Eastern time Sunday in the U.S. in the 1995-96 TV season on the Fox network. Apparently, the network never explained why they canceled it but word was at the time it cost them $1 million an episode, probably a lot at the time but certainly paled by the reported $1 million per episode per main actor the cast of "Friends" was getting when that series ended.
Over the past two weeks, Amanda and I watched the entire "Space" series, and finished it last night.
The final episode leaves one feeling deprived, left hanging and helpless. I'm perplexed as to why they chose to abandon the series completely.
The show "Firefly" was recently revived with a film called "Serenity." Amanda and I have started enjoying this show and are glad someone had the sense to bring it back to life.
"Space" is probably too far gone to be brought back to life, but it lives on in the DVD collection and in my opinion was one of the best shows ever on television.
Fortunately, some of the main actors in the show have enjoyed some moderate success since. (I found the information on these folks at imdb.com.)
Joel de la Fuente ("Wang") is a regular guest on "Law and Order: SVU" as a lab tech.
James Morrison ("Lt. Col. McQueen") has a regular guest spot on "24" as "Bill Buchanan."
Kristen Cloke was in the movie "Final Destination" as "Valerie Lewton."
Lanei Chapman is probably best known post-show for her performance as Whoopi Goldberg's estranged daughter in "Rat Race."
Morgan Weisser ("West"), Rodney Rowland ("Hawkes") and Tucker Smallwood ("Commodore Ross") have made various appearances in TV and film since the show.
It wouldn't hurt my feelings if one day somebody thought about picking up where the show left off, although that would be difficult with the original cast now nearly 10 years older.
For now, "Semper Fi."

"Helping white people dance"

One of the funniest songs I think I've heard in quite some time is "Alcohol" by Brad Paisley. Through exposure and the sheer fact that some "country" sounds oddly like palatable light to moderate rock these days, I've started getting into some of it.
In fact, "Alcohol" may be funniest song I've heard since "Celebrity," the song that put Paisley on the map a couple of years back.
Now, the song is in no way an endorsement for inebriation. "I got you in trouble in high school ... ."

The computer version of camping
Thursday morning, I got up to find a message on our desktop computer saying something like "boot disk failure; insert boot disk." I knew it was bad.
An IT guy attends our church. He already had our laptop, repairing it after I hit it with my fist. (real smart)
So we swapped him and we're hoping that he can salvage the important stuff on the hard drive, most particularly our pictures of Jadyn. We have a few on her blog.
In the future, we must find a way to back up the hard drive on a regular basis.
However, please don't take what I'm saying to in any way compare to the losses sustained by the folks who lost everything - some 1,000 or so who even lost their lives - on the Coast.
Meanwhile, the laptop is serving as our connection to the Internet.

Cookie dough
Yeah I need to lose weight for sure, but we bought several batches of cookie dough from a teenage friend of the family who was selling it and I wanted to at least eat some of the stuff we bought raw. Just this once. Hopefully.

Rough night
Any parents out there with suggestions on how to make the transition from a smaller bed or swing to a crib without anyone losing sleep, please pass it along. :)

Where has the indignation gone?

It's buried under time, and certainly under the numbers of war dead, but there was a moment when this nation clamored to set the scales right by the imbalance created by Sept. 11, 2001.
Decisions were made on faulty intelligence - hopefully flawed by miscalulation than by intentional deceit - to unseat Saddam.
Sure, the protracted nature of things in Iraq give us a sense that we shouldn't have done anything.
Where would be now if we hadn't? Sure it sounds jingoistic to some ears, but should we have taken the passive approach and wait 'til someone struck again before going forward?
To second-guess the current situation in Iraq, in my view, is to Monday-morning-quarterback decisions which are three years old, and undermine the sacrifices our men and women have made.

Blogger's Block

I'm off work sick today and I haven't been blogging much because I really haven't thought about how to use this blog as an outlet without venting about work or other stuff that just wouldn't be appropriate for this forum.
So that's why you haven't heard from me lately. We also do our baby updates on another Web site and I like to keep them there.
I also wanted to let some time go by after Rina passed away. While she wasn't someone we were in touch with every day (she resided in the western United States), she checked in with us frequently during Amanda's pregnancy and some afterward. Her death was just so shocking because of her age and we simply just didn't see her as someone who was sickly. I guess it's your time when it's your time.

Christmas list
She's one of four people who would normally get a Christmas letter from us this year who won't be there to get one.
We haven't contacted everyone about Jadyn's birth on our normal Christmas list because we simply haven't had time to generate all the letters needed.
We try to send the letters to people we probably won't see at Christmas, although at least one person who we do see at Christmas has told us to send one anyway. We'll see as we get it together this year.

Treating the ills
I visited a neat practice today to get my medications. A Nigerian-born physician and a nurse practitioner (from the Southeast) have a great little clinic here. They take some different approaches to things and I think it'll actually be fun to go to the doctor. At least it was today.

Yes I AM sick so I'm going to lay down next to the swing (see Jadyn's blog) and keep an ear for her. More later maybe.

Bobby ...

Is doing much better and we're greatful that he's up, around and OK.