Investing in Happiness

I was talking with Ed about a few stresses in my life right now, and the conversation jogged a memory of an article I really like. Journalist Jonathan Clements wrote a weekly piece for the Wall Street Journal for several years as a personal finance columnist. There was a particular piece that I really enjoyed, and it is a list of 9 items for investing in happiness. They are...

1. Make time for friends.
2. Forget the pay raise.
3. Don’t trade up.
4. Keep your commute short.
5. Count your blessings.
6. Enjoy a good meal.
7. Challenge yourself.
8. Volunteer.
9. Give it time.

I keep this list on my bulletin board near my computer as a reminder of what really makes me happy. Some of them are self explanatory, but you can find the full article here.

Thoughts, opinions?

Poking the Badger

So now your concern about the Dalai Lama has expanded to him being responsible for what the President of the University decided to step to the podium and discuss? So your expectation is that he reviews the comments of everyone that speaks at an engagement where he does? Perhaps it boils down to my willingness to take the commentary at face value and the cynical badger not being willing to do so. I'll bet you disagree...

Apparently I misread your original commentary. While I didn't think the badger had authored those comments, it appeared from my vantage point you were agreeing with them. If that was off, that's my mistake. Regardless I can't speak to, nor am I willing to be lumped in with the opinions of other Americans in regards to Christianity and money. I don't harbor those concerns, criticisms, or beliefs.

I also don't make a habit of criticizing religious figures, mostly because I'm about as religion stupid as they come. That being said, any criticism I would levy against religious figures or those with devout religious beliefs would be the "do as I say, not as I do" criticism. Just like most public figures, religious leaders are held to a much higher standard than the average joe. And in my opinion, since they are advising and guiding average joe, I think the higher standard is appropriate.

Poking the badger...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARC!

More Marc, More Dalai Lama

First off, the cynical comments that I made were not my own, but some that I had seen in the press in recent weeks since he's been touring the United States. That's why I started out by saying that I myself did not intend to be so cynical, which I felt like I wasn't.

Regarding money... I'm always interested to see the great lengths taken to defend spiritual leaders of every religion OTHER than Christianity in regards to money. In fact, the NUMBER ONE complaint about Christianity that I've heard during my life time from people who don't attend church is that it's just a money machine... that churches just want your money. However, someone lobs a similar accusation in the direction of the Dalai Lama and millions of people will come rushing to his defense. Christian pastors are apparently stealing your money if they have a nice house or fly first class. I bet the Dalai was avoiding those accusations by flying coach and staying at the Motel 8, right? If there weren't so many questions about it, why did the President of the University, hosting one of the world's most well-known spiritual and political leaders in front of "7500 people and gobs of media" feel the need to talk about money?

The ornate throne and people sitting at his feet... You make it sound as if the Dalai Lama doesn't ever know what he walks in to, and that New York is to blame for him sitting on a throne with people at his feet. It's the same argument Al Gore used when he said he didn't know he was doing a fund raising event in a Buddhist temple. If I'm preaching at a church and they want me to wear a white robe and stand in a pillar 40 feet above a kneeling congregation, I'm going to say, "Uh, no." Look, I have no problem with people having great respect for a spiritual leader and sitting at his feet, I really don't. I couldn't care less. But don't blame New York. As far as I can tell, the Dalai Lama is not stupid. If he was, I don't think you would have gone to hear him. I don't know if you know this or not, but if you look at pics from all the universities he speaks at, he's always wearing a visor. I guess that's his signature "Look at me, I'm just like you" move. I hope that doesn't disappoint the UNI peeps.

I whole-heartedly agree with you and am surprised that YOU are surprised by people putting everything a spiritual leader says into a religious context. One of my (many) frustrations with our current political system is that the general public believes that if you are a Christian, you have no right to speak or participate in the political process. Many believe that this somehow "taints" your thinking and therefore disqualifies from speaking rationally on any issue. The Dalai Lama, on the other hand, is praised for integrating his faith into every aspect of his life, including his political views. He is praised for "living his faith". Christians are expected to confine their faith to Sunday morning within the walls of the church and leave it there when they head out for lunch. Speaking generally, of course, no one likes a Christian who integrates their faith into every aspect of their life. Pick any political hot potato as of late and you can probably use it as an example: same-sex marriage, homosexuality in the military, abortion, prayer at public events, Christmas decorations in public buildings, ten commandments in court houses, etc. No one wants to hear a Christian's views on these subjects if they are trying to integrate their faith into their political views. As a side note, I would venture a guess and say that if Billy Graham was going to speak at UNI, there would be protests going on. Even if it was Jerry Falwell, Jr., who is in fact the President and Chancellor of Liberty University (education) there would also be protests, based primarily on the fact that they are Christians who's faith permeates every aspect of their lives. That is what bothers me the most: the double standard that exists for CHRISTIANS seeking to live out a faith according to ancient scriptures. That's admirable for any other religion in America, but not for Christians.

I thought my last post was fairly "level-headed" (you know, since I am the level-headed one!) but you had to go and poke the badger didn't ya?!

Brad on Dalai Lama

The cynic strikes again!

I was surprised by a couple of accusations (for lack of a better word) made about the Dalai Lama. The most interesting was the apparent belief that his effort is at some level about money. Speaking from my experience of seeing him at UNI, the President of the University announced prior to him speaking that all proceeds of the event were going to a scholarship fund at the University, about $25,000. To break it down, the event was attended by about 7,500 people and at $17 a ticket that is about $125,000 in revenue. The facility would be rented at a significant expense, there were entertainment acts that were likely paid, and security measures and costs were expensive (metal detectors, armed security), since someone wants to kill most religious leaders. Put all that stuff together and I doubt the money motivation is a reality. If money was a motivator ticket prices would have been $150 each like a Metallica concert, and they still would have sold 7,500. And if it was about money, would the President of the University stand at the podium in front of 7.500 people and gobs of media and lie?

The other issue with your post is the commentary about his ornate throne and people at his feet. When I saw him he sat on a black leather couch, next to the President of the University, with a UNI visor on. I would guess the Madison Square Garden version of his appearance is likely driven by New York theatrics and the need for pomp and circumstance in that culture(New York culture, not Tibetan culture) rather than a requirement of the Dalai Lama. If it is a requirement, he must have relaxed his high standards for us poor farmers in Iowa.

As far as your religious assertions, I am about as ignorant as they come on that subject. I would take you at your word on the hardcore adherent beliefs in their religion being the right one. This topic is far more than there is room for on this blog. I agree with your concern about that leading to violence, and have never understood the concept of killing in the name of a God, any God.

Why is it that religious leaders are viewed so myopically that their opinions, visits, and speeches are distilled to exclusively a religious context? As I have said before, his visit was not to espouse or even discuss his religious beliefs but to speak about "The Power of Education" and its ability to cultivate socially responsible global citizens.

Marc on the Dalai Lama

I made a post on Facebook a couple of weeks ago that I thought I was a little too cynical and that I was going to try to change that. It's reached a point where I don't think it's all that healthy, and although it may be entertaining (especially for a blog like this!) I really AM trying to steer away from it.

The Dalai Lama is an easy target for a cynic. He made the news today because he declared that he's a Marxist monk, but then praised capitalism for opening up China and helping millions of people improve their lives. He says that all human beings are the same but is referred to as his Holiness and speaks on an ornate throne with people sitting on the floor at his feet. He says that Marxism has "moral ethics" and that capitalism only seeks profits, but then charges hundreds of dollars to hear him speak (he claims that it his "organization" and that he has nothing to do with that money).

Does that mean that he doesn't have anything good to say or that we can't learn from him? No, absolutely not. Wisdom can come from just about anywhere, and the Dalai Lama is no exception. I fully agree with Eddie on his point about this.

Religious harmony is certainly a lofty goal, but I personally don't think that it's really possible. It would be possible if all of the adherents of the various religions were what I would call "moderate" followers. What I mean by that is when you look at the claims of some of the major world religions as declared in what each of them calls their sacred texts, hardcore adherents will never ascent to religious harmony. I don't believe a person who makes a serious exegetical study of the Bible can argue with the exclusivity of Jesus Christ. There are, of course, several books about the subject. Two that I would recommend are "Jesus Among Other Gods" by Ravi Zacharias and "Christ Among Other Gods" by Erwin Lutzer. I'm certainly no expert, but based on my time in seminary that is what I believe. I'm also no expert in Islam, but in the bit of research that I've done, "true followers" of Islam have no doubts about the salvific exclusivity of their religion. They believe that Islam is "the only acceptable religion and the sole legitimate path to His pleasure." As a result, the hardcore adherents will never agree with the Dalai Lama that all the world's major religions are important. They are an aberration. I cannot speak to the other religions like Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, etc.

Having said that, I do NOT believe that the result has to be wars or outright intolerance of one another. I remember back in 1992 when I was on a port visit in Naples, Italy. We did a "comrel" (community relations) event at a local soup kitchen. It was run by a Catholic church, but we (a bunch of protestants) were helping serve and so were the local Mormons. Granted, this is more like divisions within what many would call "Christianity", but still, we all came together for the good of the local homeless populace. It was a good thing. Could the Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, and Hindus work a soup kitchen together? I don't know.

The Dalai Lama is the leader of Tibet. As a result, at any time he could face the accusation that everything he is doing has an ulterior motive in regards to the land of Tibet. But that comes with the territory of leadership. The United States has been facing that charge for at least the last 100 years. Welcome to the club Mr. Lama!

Compassion, forgiveness, tolerance, contentment, and self-discipline... I think we can all get behind that. It's certainly an uphill battle, on all five of them! On the one hand, there is plenty of "religious" history that has been completely contrary to these values. You don't have to look far: Bosnia (Orthodoxy/Catholicism/Islam), the Gaza Strip (Judaism/Islam), Baghdad (Sunni/Shiite), Ireland (Protestantism/Catholicism), etc. But I tend to believe that the ANSWER can still be found in those same religions. Again, I can't speak to all of the religions, but the Bible certainly teaches all of those things, and that's where you have to start. You have to look at your own beliefs and seek to live those values every day. To steal a line from Michael Jackson, "I'm starting with the man in the mirror; I'm asking him to make a change."

By the way Ed, I'm not sure that your "heat" (45 mph) actually qualifies as a fastball. If your three-base pitching was any indication, we would both shell you like Dresden in WWII. Please tell me that we can find some time for 3-base the next time we're all together???

Ed on Baseball and the Dalai Lama

I appreciate our collective passion (see prior blog) on the topic of baseball, and the Dalai Lama opens up a lot of doors for further blog posts. As I stack myself up against the items listed in Brad's post:

Compassion - occasional, but definitely room for improvement
Forgiveness - pretty decent at this, but the literal definition is tough to achieve
Tolerance - wow, as much room for improvement here as exists on a baseball field, which by the way, is approximately 100,00 square feet right Marc?
Contentment - again, improving with time but this scares me; dangerously close to one of my biggest fears, complacent
Self-discipline - oh boy, as if the baseball field wasn't a big enough area for improvement. I'm slowly improving here but this represents my largest "developmental opportunity"

I love simple and powerful messages and the Dalai Lama's message really delivers on this. In the complex and complicated world we live in it's wonderful to get some soulful advice. Most religions of the world deliver on this also, and I believe this is one of the primary needs that is fulfilled by them.

Baseball is great, and so is Da Lama. So much so that I couldn't keep myself from wondering, what would Da Lama have to say about baseball? And, could he it a Lintecum slider or return a Federer serve? Which do you think he would find to me a greater feat?

My guess is he wouldn't give a damn, and would suggest that high degrees of capability at the five qualities above would prove far more challenging than either!

Love the debate boys, but it's time to call a truce. None of us could touch Lintecum's fastball, nor return Federer's serve. Heck, neither of you could touch even my fastball or return one of my first serves! Best start with me and move on to Tim and Roger.

Lets get it on!

180

Nice. Here I am hacking on baseball, and my brother follows it with a Dalai Lama post. If only I had a pitch fork in my hand when I was cracking those jokes!

Dalai Lama - The flowing robes, the grace...striking

Sheila and I went to the UNI campus yesterday to see the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet. It was quite an amazing experience, and his message of non-violence, the promotion of secular ethics, and compassion and kindness towards all people is in my opinion undeniable.

I would encourage everyone to take a few minutes to read about this man. UNI has a nice link with some basic information here, you can go to his website here, or I'm sure you can get a truckload of information about him from the normal world wide web (thank you Al Gore) searches like Google and Wikipedia. I've included below his three main commitments. Sheila and I discussed on the way home yesterday what his message said to us about how we live and what we hold dear to us. I look forward to using this experience to continue to attempt to be a better husband, father, friend, and person.

(Sorry for the grainy picture, we were a ways away and this is the best my camera phone could do!)

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Three Main Commitments
His Holiness has three main commitments in life.

Firstly, on the level of a human being, His Holiness’ first commitment is the promotion of human values such as compassion, forgiveness, tolerance, contentment and self-discipline. All human beings are the same. We all want happiness and do not want suffering. Even people who do not believe in religion recognize the importance of these human values in making their life happier. His Holiness refers to these human values as secular ethics. He remains committed to talk about the importance of these human values and share them with everyone he meets.

Secondly, on the level of a religious practitioner, His Holiness’ second commitment is the promotion of religious harmony and understanding among the world’s major religious traditions. Despite philosophical differences, all major world religions have the same potential to create good human beings. It is therefore important for all religious traditions to respect one another and recognize the value of each other’s respective traditions. As far as one truth, one religion is concerned, this is relevant on an individual level. However, for the community at large, several truths, several religions are necessary.

Thirdly, His Holiness is a Tibetan and carries the name of the ‘Dalai Lama’. Tibetans place their trust in him. Therefore, his third commitment is to the Tibetan issue. His Holiness’ has a responsibility to act as the free spokesperson of the Tibetans in their struggle for justice. As far as this third commitment is concerned, it will cease to exist once a mutually beneficial solution is reached between the Tibetans and Chinese.

However, His Holiness will carry on with the first two commitments till his last breath.

Baseball still sucks

Okay, so the prosecution claims that baseball is boring. Defense offers rebuttal testimony. Let me summarize the defense as presented by the law firm of Baldwin and Baldwin:

1. Other sports are lame, too.
2. A guy wrote a poem about baseball in 1888.
3. Other people are overpaid too.
4. People in other sports get fat too.
5. If you go to a baseball game, you don't HAVE to watch it because there is other stuff to do instead.
6. Baseball is really old.

Wow, nice defense fellas. With those six powerhouse arguments, how could anyone say baseball is boring (insert facetiousness here)???

I would gladly take you up on the Federer/Lintecum challenge!

The "in play" area for a professional baseball field would be right around 100,000 square feet. Now, you even tried to restrict me by saying that I have to get the ball into the outfield (nice ploy by the way) but even then, I've probably still got about 85,000 square feet to work with. To my benefit, I will be standing in a batter's box and Timmy boy has to throw the ball over the 17" wide piece of rubber in front of me, and he must throw it somewhere in between my knees and my elbows. How fast can he throw? 100 mph? That's pretty fast. The good news is that I don't have much space to cover with my bat. Looking at the odds, if I just do a half swing every pitch I'll hit the ball occasionally.

Now let's consider your task: returning a Federer serve "in play". Let's start with the service box. Roger has a lot more room to work with in chucking a ball at you. All he has to do is make the ball land somewhere within a 21' x 13' 6" box. You're probably not very good with math, so I'll help you out. You need to cover 280+ square feet if you're looking to get a whack at that green fuzzy. To complicate matters, Mr. Federer has 13' 6" of side to side space to choose his service spot. That's a lot of angles. Oooooh, did I mention that his average serve speed is 120mph? Oh gosh, I'm so sorry… just one more thing. If you do manage to get a racket on it, you will need to return it somewhere in the 1053 square feet of court on Federer's side as opposed to the roughly 100,000 square feet that I have to work with.

Back to your little ploy of requiring that I hit to the outfield. I assume that you mentioned that because any infield ball would be a definite out. If that's the standard you would like to use, then I would like to simply ask that your return of Federer's service be of a sufficient speed and placement so that his subsequent hit doesn't knock you unconscious. Fair enough?

What's next? Hockey? Bring it on boys. I'll be here all week.

Ed on America's Game!

Just two men playing catch? Are you kidding me? Rather than attempt some eloquent verbiage to suggest otherwise, I've included a poem which depicts an account of only three pitches in a baseball game when only the pitcher and catcher did anything. Not exciting? C'mon!

I love baseball, hot dogs and apple pie! And my middle brother must be a Nazi. What's the next post Marc? ... "Grandmas, hot dogs, apple pie and freedom suck". Nice!

Baseball is history and history is baseball. From a poem published in 1888, to the 1919 Chicago Black Sox, to the 27 time World Champion New York Yankees ... all profoundly American.

Pick up any of these movies: The Natural, Major League, Bull Durham and you will realize the game is bigger than just sport, money or fame. It's the very fabric of our country!

_______________________

Casey at the Bat
by Ernest Lawrence Thayer ©
Published: The Examiner (06-03-1888)

The Outlook wasn't brilliant for the Mudville nine that day:
The score stood four to two, with but one inning more to play.
And then when Cooney died at first, and Barrows did the same,
A sickly silence fell upon the patrons of the game.

A straggling few got up to go in deep despair. The rest
Clung to that hope which springs eternal in the human breast;
They thought, if only Casey could get but a whack at that -
We'd put up even money, now, with Casey at the bat.

But Flynn preceded Casey, as did also Jimmy Blake,
And the former was a lulu and the latter was a cake;
So upon that stricken multitude grim melancholy sat,
For there seemed but little chance of Casey's getting to the bat.

But Flynn let drive a single, to the wonderment of all,
And Blake, the much despis-ed, tore the cover off the ball;
And when the dust had lifted, and the men saw what had occurred,
There was Jimmy safe at second and Flynn a-hugging third.

Then from 5,000 throats and more there rose a lusty yell;
It rumbled through the valley, it rattled in the dell;
It knocked upon the mountain and recoiled upon the flat,
For Casey, mighty Casey, was advancing to the bat.

There was ease in Casey's manner as he stepped into his place;
There was pride in Casey's bearing and a smile on Casey's face.
And when, responding to the cheers, he lightly doffed his hat,
No stranger in the crowd could doubt 'twas Casey at the bat.

Ten thousand eyes were on him as he rubbed his hands with dirt;
Five thousand tongues applauded when he wiped them on his shirt.
Then while the writhing pitcher ground the ball into his hip,
Defiance gleamed in Casey's eye, a sneer curled Casey's lip.

And now the leather-covered sphere came hurtling through the air,
And Casey stood a-watching it in haughty grandeur there.
Close by the sturdy batsman the ball unheeded sped-
"That ain't my style," said Casey. "Strike one," the umpire said.

From the benches, black with people, there went up a muffled roar,
Like the beating of the storm-waves on a stern and distant shore.
"Kill him! Kill the umpire!" shouted someone on the stand;
And its likely they'd a-killed him had not Casey raised his hand.

With a smile of Christian charity great Casey's visage shone;
He stilled the rising tumult; he bade the game go on;
He signaled to the pitcher, and once more the spheroid flew;
But Casey still ignored it, and the umpire said, "Strike two."

"Fraud!" cried the maddened thousands, and echo answered fraud;
But one scornful look from Casey and the audience was awed.
They saw his face grow stern and cold, they saw his muscles strain,
And they knew that Casey wouldn't let that ball go by again.

The sneer is gone from Casey's lip, his teeth are clenched in hate;
He pounds with cruel violence his bat upon the plate.
And now the pitcher holds the ball, and now he lets it go,
And now the air is shattered by the force of Casey's blow.

Oh, somewhere in this favored land the sun is shining bright;
The band is playing somewhere, and somewhere hearts are light,
And somewhere men are laughing, and somewhere children shout;
But there is no joy in Mudville - mighty Casey has struck out.

Brad on Baseball

Marc’s had his panties in a bunch about baseball since he played on King’s Knights when he was 12 years old. Here are my top 10 reasons why baseball is awesome:

10. Okay baseball can be a bit boring, but not only is it a sport, it is a difficult sport. They, in this case ESPN, ranked baseball ninth in degree of difficulty. Of note boxing was ranked the most difficult and fishing the least difficult. Ironic Dad’s favorite sport the most difficult, and Ed’s the least…but that’s a whole other thread.

9. If scoring is a necessary requirement of sport, then you can throw out a number of fan favorites including the most popular sport in the world(soccer) and one of Marc’s loves hockey. Go FIFA World Cup, coming to a TV near you beginning June 11th!

8. If you did a comparison of TV time v. actual playing time I don’t think you would find the ratio to be drastically different from other sports such as golf or even hockey.

7. Talk about limited action, a hockey player typically can’t stay on the ice for more than 2 minutes at a time. If they get caught in a bad position and can’t execute a shift change they start to wilt. People think hockey players are tough, what a bunch of sissies.

6. There are guys in every team sport that make millions and rarely if ever play. That’s not unique to baseball.

5. The highest paid people in any organization are “overpaid” relative to each pitch they throw, home run they hit, touchdown they score, or decision they make. The reason they get paid so much is if you put any normal individual in their role you would get no hits, no touchdowns, and a company in financial ruin almost immediately. The bottom line is, take a deep breath…they deserve it! How many people would buy that Yankees jersey or tune into the Cubs game then?

4. If you want to read an interesting perspective about highly paid people, read Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell. A unique perspective on what makes a person an expert.

3. That hot dog isn’t $7 because of the highly paid athletes, and hot dogs don’t pay their salaries. TV and radio broadcast rights and logo apparel and gear pay for salaries. The reason hot dogs are $7 is because parents can’t manage to tell their sniffling bratty kids no when they want to shove some processed meat in the piehole.

2. In baseball you gain weight as your career progresses, in other sports you get to be fat while you play. See football, golf, bowling, fishing, etc.

1. All that down time in baseball makes for incredible entertainment. Aside from the putt putt golf, restaurants, and shopping malls now found in many baseball stadiums, you also get awesome stuff like the sausage race in Milwaukee, the orange train in Houston, throwing the ball back in Chicago, the Shea apple, and the countless 7th inning stretches from LA to Boston.

In a case of Pros v. Joes, I’ll bet you I could return a Roger Federer serve back in play in less chances that you could hit a Tim Lintecum pitch out of the infield. Ed, can you work your connections and see if you can arrange that?

Baseball Sucks

Baseball is boring, and I don’t care what anybody says, it’s not a sport. I’m not saying that it doesn’t take tremendous skill to perform some of the tasks associated with baseball, but it’s not a sport. Even starters (perhaps with the exception of the pitcher and catcher) probably don’t have to shower after the game. They could wear the same uniform for a week straight and they wouldn’t stink!

So for me, we are drawing near to a very sad part of the year. When the Larry O’Brien trophy and the Stanley Cup have both been raised high by championship teams, we hit the Sahara Desert of the sports year. Baseball, baseball, and more baseball. ZZZZzzzzzz.

No hitters? Two guys playing catch for 3 hours. A “high scoring” game? 20 hits. The reality is that you’ve got a whole bunch of grown man doing a lot of standing around. If I was standing in right field, I’d be hoping that the pitcher gets shelled.

There was a news story recently about the release of DeMarcus Russel by the Oakland Raiders, primarily because of an analysis of his statistics compared to his pay. If you break it down, he made $5 million per win, $2 million per touchdown, and more than $100K per completion. Yes, the stats are pretty appalling because he was such a bust.

I’m no math major, but let’s take a look at some stats for some of the best, highest paid players in baseball who don’t risk much more than a twisted ankle going down the steps into the dugout.

Josh Beckett (Boston Red Sox) was the 2003 World Series MVP and 2007 ALCS MVP. He is considered one of the best, and his pay reflects that. He makes a measly $17 million per year. According to his 2009 stats, he threw 3367 pitches during the season. I didn’t break it all down to balls and strikes, but no matter where the ball went, his pay breaks down to $5050 for every pitch! Wow, I’m in the wrong business.

Hey, at least Josh Beckett is a starter. He takes his turn in the rotation and tries to get in a good 7 or 8 innings. How about Mariano Rivera? He’s a relief pitcher, which means he does even LESS work. He’s a ten-time all-star and has a full hand of World Series rings. Yeah, no doubt, he’s good. So good that last year the Yankees paid him $15 million. As a relief pitcher, he only threw 1028 pitches, which breaks down to $14,600 per pitch!!

Am I being too hard on the pitchers? $15 million? $19 million? That’s peanuts. Let’s take a look at the man who makes $27.5 million a year: Alex Rodriguez. He batted .286 in 2009 with 444 at bats. So if you do the math on that one, he actually managed a hit only 127 times. Are the Yankees getting their money’s worth? In 2009 Steinbrenner paid the famous ARod $216,535 for each trip to first base. And that’s without breaking a sweat!

Okay, last but not least, my favorite, the American League designated hitter (DH). Now, if I was going to be a pro, that would be the position that I would want. You don’t even have to go out on the field and stand around every half inning. You just have to saunter up to the plate 2 or 3 times a game a bat for that guy who’s getting paid $5k or $10k per pitch. Travis Hafner of the Cleveland Indians went to bat 338 times in 2009 and batted .272 which means that he managed 92 hits. The Indians are paying him $14,250,000 per year. As a DH?? Are you serious? At least ARod has to field a grounder occasionally. Hafner, on the other hand, was paid $155K for each hit. Must be nice.

These are the guys who are considered the best in the league, that get hits and pitch well. Can you imagine the break down on the guys that never even set foot on the field?? Think about that next time you’re enjoying a $7 hot dog at a baseball game.

Ahhh, I could go on and on. I’m just jealous because I didn’t play more baseball when I was a kid. It’s easy money. You don’t even have to be in shape! Tony Gwynn put on like 137 pounds during his career and it didn’t hurt him. How can that be?

I’ll leave you with a couple of good quotes that I like:

“I don't know whether you know it, but baseball's appeal is decimal points. No other sport relies as totally on continuity, statistics, orderliness of these. Baseball fans pay more attention to numbers than CPAs." - Sportswriter Jim Murray

"Statistics are about as interesting as first base coaches." - Pitcher Jim Bouton

The NFL preseason can't come soon enough!

Brad from Passion to Jack of All Trades

I like the wax and wane concept, however for me it applies not exclusively to a single subject but ever changing ones. Today it may be running, tomorrow it may be reading, the next day who knows? The passion for a huge number of things can be pivoted into another topic...

People describing someone positively would say "renaissance man". People describing negatively might say "jack of all trades, master of none". I'm a self-proclaimed expert in N-A-D-A (that's Spanish for nothing, one topic about which I know a little). I've always enjoyed being able to do about anything. In school I was proficient in English, math, science, history, physical education, etc. From a sporting perspective, I play just about every sport. I did the typical big sports - basketball, football, baseball. I've played league volleyball, racquetball, and darts. I can play pool and bowl reasonably well. I have done a good bit of running. I've done more than a couple triathlons. I like to hunt and fish (those are sports - different topic for a different time). In terms of my career I've done HR, sales, and now operations. Perhaps the three legged stool of business. I think I was reasonably successful in all of them.

But I have never been elite at anything, never been an expert. Never the best student. Never the best athlete. Never the best salesperson, HR person, or operations person. I've achieved a reasonable level of success but am constantly surrounded by experts. My management colleagues at PRS are experts: in sales and revenue cycle operations. When I did triathlons I trained with a professional triathlete. My wife is an expert having been in the non-profit development business for virtually her entire career. My brothers are experts in HR and counterintelligence and linguistics. My father is an expert welder. So what does that make me?

I like my varied background. I spin it that I am a chameleon where I can fit in about anywhere. But there are times when I can see people sizing me up with a good bit of doubt and discrimination as someone that isn't an expert in anything.

I think Marc's rambling is contagious...

Marc on Passion

Better late than never, so they say.

I've been putting this off, trying to balance what I realized was my very cynical view of passion. So I'll start there. I think it's become a buzzword and has lost its original meaning - just another two-cent word that gets tossed around a lot. Now that I've gotten that out of the way, I'll take this in a little bit of a different direction.

Usually conversations about passion revolve around either having it or not having it, and I don't think that's how passion works. I think it waxes and wanes; it's not necessarily there ALL the time or an apparent lack of it indicates that it's non-existent in someone. Hear me out on this one: I think people who are at the very top end of their professions have it mostly "on" all the time. It doesn't wane and that's why they are what they are. But for the more average person, passions come and go. For example, there are a lot of people passionate about golf right around the time that Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson are making charges for another green jacket, but come October the word "golf" hasn't escaped their lips for five months. On a more personal note, I am passionate about writing in general; I love to write. But I will be the first to tell you that there are stretches of time (sometimes weeks) when I just don't feel like plunking out anything on the keyboard. Other times I sit down and I don't know whether to write a blog, write some lyrics, or write a short story. I think professionals are the ones that can push through the times when they aren't "feeling it".

I think passion is given too much weight as far as a sort of qualification for work. After all, how do you measure it? Again, I'm speaking from the Navy perspective, but I know for a fact that in the military we don't give enough credit to the people that work hard, put in the time, and do their job well even if they don't have passion for what their doing. When we press the "passion principle" so hard, people feel somehow lesser qualified or less of an employee because they don't jump out of bed in the morning and skip breakfast to get to work. Every self-help book and article I've ever read tells me to "find something I'm passionate about and do it". But again, how do I know what I'm passionate about? How do I measure something on the passion scale? As a side note (you guys know this rant) it's just another contributing factor to the fattening of America, especially kids. If you're 10 and you just want to play baseball for a couple of hours a week, you can't do it. You either have to spend $200 on the uniforms, go to practice three times a week and travel to a game once or twice a week or you're not "committed" to the sport and you get spit out. There are no athletics without passion. But I say, who cares? I love to play tennis but I haven't played in about two years. I'm love being a Chief Petty Officer but I go home from work and often work doesn't cross my mind until I'm in the car on the way back the next day.

I guess what I'm wondering is whether or not we have to have passions in life. I'm all over the place. I've hardly stuck with anything for a long period of time in my adult life. I meddle in cycling, swimming, rapping, birdwatching, languages, theology, writing, and a million other things. I'm not sure I'm passionate about any of them.

Marc on 15 years ago...

Those were some good times! Other than those already mentioned, here are a few of my favorite memories from those trips…

- After spending a few days in the woods and being chased out by the snow flurries, we decided to go to the mall. We entered through Nordstrom looking like we just stepped out of a hee-haw episode! I bet someone was humming the dueling banjos song as we walked through…

- We spent one day in the mountains going up and up and up. We FINALLY got to a beautiful vista and sat down to enjoy the fruits of our labor – then noticed the paved road about 50 yards away that we could have driven up on.

- We dropped about $20 in the Galaga machine at the Laundromat… and it all ended with Ed being pissed off because he couldn’t beat Brad’s score.

- After giving Ed a ton of shit about how long it took to set up his $200 Coleman tent compared to Brad’s $25 Walmart tent, we crawled out one morning after a night of rain. Ed and I (in the Coleman tent) were rested and dry. Brad and Jamie were grumpy and wet as they turned the $25 tent upside down and dumped out about two gallons of water!

- I learned very quickly that it’s a bad idea to sleep while Ed and Brad make sleeping “arrangements” with the park ranger. I can still hear Ed saying, “It must be right around the next bend” (referring to the sleeping shelter that didn’t really exist).

- We were hiking down a path and Ed exclaimed, “Look, wolves!!” It was another hiker with two dogs.

Brad, it was actually you in the trunk holding onto that huge limb while I drove and we dragged it into the campground. It was down in the 20’s that night and you weren’t even allowed to “gather” wood in the campground. That’s why we went out to get that limb. Do you remember the jealous stares as we drove in with that thing? We had the biggest fire in the campground and had others coming over to warm up at our fire!

That Velveeta shells and cheese with summer sausage sure is good after a couple of days of hiking in the sticks. And don’t forget, I can smell deer before I see them!

We had a great time at the Cousins reunion a couple of years ago and have some great memories and laughs. I agree with Ed; so what’s next? RAGBRAI 2011??

Ed on 15 Years Ago ...

Yeah, it's hard to believe it has been that long. As you get older (not old) you realize that time indeed does fly. When you have youth on your side and someone says that to you, you tend to dismiss it.

Here are some more memories from the trips we took:

1. The Coleman stove we hauled hoping and believing that we would pack it into the woods, somehow. Didn't use it once during the trip.

2. The Pontiac Transport minivan and the route taken on the trip (via Chicago) to pick up Marc.

3. Jordan coming back during our hiking, and picking up a paper when we re-entered civilization and thought, "why is he wearing number 45?" Marc didn't believe it.

4. "There's trout in those waters." This is still spoken from time to time. I carried my fishing pole and a small tackle box throughout the first trip.

5. Crossing a small stream (that could be easily navigated when there wasn't a down pour the night before) by setting up a chain and passing cotton sleeping bags from one person to the other. Jamie's choice words upon a sleeping bag entering the frigid water, and his face!

6. The packs we used? A Blue Hawaii back pack with a motorcycle cargo net, a military rucksack, and an old external frame pack for you right Brad?

7. The commando saw ... enough said. This and the failure to bring a tent the first evening was what sent "the level headed one" off on two distinct tantrums.

There is nothing like these trips to make unforgettable memories, and nothing more enjoyable than re-telling them. But we all need to keep making new ones also, since that's what it is all about really.

Thanks for the post Brad. I know we have a couple of unforgettable memory trip ideas that we are bouncing around currently. Here's hoping they are equally fun, eventful, and story creating.

15 years ago...

Wow we are all getting old in a hurry. As I relayed, but am still in a bit of shock over, the initial hiking adventure occurred 15 years ago this Spring. Cades Cove in the Great Smoky Mountains. I remember...

1. Holly getting "lightheaded" after about 200 yards of walking with 4.5 pounds of sweatshirts in her pack.

2. The bear bag...I don't think a bear cub could get it...on the first try.

3. Carrying gallon jugs of water and gobs of canned food.

4. "I DON'T CARE, I DON'T CARE!!!" The level-headed one of the group becoming the first one to lose it.

Other trip memories include...

1. Duke the wonder puppy talking Marc into carrying his food. And me having to save him from a very cold and very extended dip in the river.

2. The night we almost got killed by the bear in our camp that turned out to be a racoon eating said dog food.

3. Dragging the tree limbs through the campground with Marc (is that right?) sitting in the trunk of the trusty camping vehicle...the Honda Accord.

4. Snow in Georgia.

5. It just goes on and on.

Man those were fun trips. I'd do them again in a heartbeat. What do you remember?