Attached is the content from a recent email Brad sent to Marc and me about Dad finding the infamous watch cap. It's the one he was issued upon entering the Navy circa 1960.
"I have some extraordinarily exciting news. I spoke with Mom today and she
relayed this news to me. She was cleaning the living room closet out this week
and found Dad’s missing watchcap. The one with the hole in it. The one that
Marc replaced with new ones which Dad didn’t like because they didn’t have a
hole. The one which Ed replaced with ones from his house that he didn’t like
because they didn’t have a hole in them.
And he wonders why we make fun of him."
Now this watchcap of Dad's truly does mean a lot to him. But it caused me to think about those things that each of us as brothers might consider among our dearest and most prized possessions. I'm particularly interested in those possessions which others might find a bit strange - like Dad's watch cap.
When I shared with Dad this morning that I planned to put this topic on the blog, he eagerly (not anxiously) responded by throwing Brad under the bus! He said, "hey, Brad gives me a hard time about my watch cap, my Sydney sweatshirt and other old things that I'm attached to, you might want to ask him about his raggety t-shirts which I wore out and he seems to think are perfect. You could read a paper through any of them"
Alright Dad! Hmmmm, even Dad makes characterizations that suggest Brad might be the most like Dad. Maybe Brad likes those t-shirts to do his crossfit training in ... you know, to go see Pukie the Clown!?
So what are my prized possessions that might stack up as a little weird? I struggle with answering but might say the number of hats I own? I don't like giving or throwing them away. And beyond that I think what I treasure the most are pretty typical ... memories.
So, what crazy prized possessions do my brothers have?
Sunday, October 27, 2013
Friday, October 25, 2013
Entitlement redux
Ed, really like your thoughts on entitlement as I agree it is a huge problem with our culture (a much more damaging one than the extremism of Crossfit, but that’s another post). The potential outcome of this American attitude that concerns me most is how my children will handle growing up with a silver spoon in their mouth.
My girls won’t be trust fund babies, but Sheila and I are fortunate enough to provide anything for them that they need, and much more. They’ve gone on 1-2 vacations across the US a year, they have trendy clothes, they get toys galore from Mom and Dad and generous family and friends. How in the world to you teach a child that all these gifts are luxuries, not expectations of a normal life.
Now that Sasha is getting older (5), we are starting to talk about chores, an allowance based on work at home, and discuss how she is going to distribute her birthday money. We go to church and learn lessons about the grace of God. We talk about our professional, philanthropic and volunteering activity with her and try to help her understand how many others aren’t as lucky as she is.
In the future we hope to volunteer as a family, Ed to your point providing direct interaction with others less fortunate than our family. We are adamant that our girls will work during college, and will come out of their education with debt. Not because we can’t pay for college, but because we believe that the development of having to juggle work and school and the financial control necessary to manage debt are good life lessons for them to learn while in college.
We have no idea whether or not these are the right answers. I’m hanging my hat on the same idea that I do with most of parenting: if you try hard and are thoughtful you won’t always get it right but you will most of the time and your kids will turn out just fine. We’ll see!
My girls won’t be trust fund babies, but Sheila and I are fortunate enough to provide anything for them that they need, and much more. They’ve gone on 1-2 vacations across the US a year, they have trendy clothes, they get toys galore from Mom and Dad and generous family and friends. How in the world to you teach a child that all these gifts are luxuries, not expectations of a normal life.
Now that Sasha is getting older (5), we are starting to talk about chores, an allowance based on work at home, and discuss how she is going to distribute her birthday money. We go to church and learn lessons about the grace of God. We talk about our professional, philanthropic and volunteering activity with her and try to help her understand how many others aren’t as lucky as she is.
In the future we hope to volunteer as a family, Ed to your point providing direct interaction with others less fortunate than our family. We are adamant that our girls will work during college, and will come out of their education with debt. Not because we can’t pay for college, but because we believe that the development of having to juggle work and school and the financial control necessary to manage debt are good life lessons for them to learn while in college.
We have no idea whether or not these are the right answers. I’m hanging my hat on the same idea that I do with most of parenting: if you try hard and are thoughtful you won’t always get it right but you will most of the time and your kids will turn out just fine. We’ll see!
Crossfit with a twist
Let me quote Marc…
…they are contributing to the American appetite for extremism and the “all or nothing” attitude that is killing our culture.
Marc, that sounds a little conspiracy theory-esque for me, but sounds right up your alley. Crossfit is killing American culture. Okay. It’s not political gridlock, rampant drug infiltration, and erosion of family values. Keep sellin’ crazy Marc!
…they are contributing to the American appetite for extremism and the “all or nothing” attitude that is killing our culture.
Marc, that sounds a little conspiracy theory-esque for me, but sounds right up your alley. Crossfit is killing American culture. Okay. It’s not political gridlock, rampant drug infiltration, and erosion of family values. Keep sellin’ crazy Marc!
Brad on prioritization of my time
I do like the discussion about how we prioritize our time. I didn’t want to provide information without being thoughtful so I spent some time going hour by hour through each day in a “typical” week. That is comical in itself since typical schedule happens about as often as typical weather. Here’s my commentary on my time priority (spreadsheet below, cause I know you all enjoy that):
Although I know I require a lot of sleep, putting in the perspective of 1/3 of my life is in bed seems excessive. I wish I could consistently function with 6 hours of sleep, oh what I could do with two extra hours! But I know that leads to bad habits such as napping, poor calorie consumption to overcome sleepiness, lack of energy for exercise, etc. Definitely not worth it!
I think I put in a large amount of time working, but I feel that I should considering the sizable compensation I receive from my employer. In addition to my salary, I have great discretion as to when I work so while the number of hours may seem like a lot to some, they don’t come directly at the expense of other priorities very often.
I like that I spend this much time with my family. Because we are busy during the week we tend to guard our weekends and spend lots of time together. That is the best. 1/4th of my life and over 1/3rd of my waking hours with my family feels like a good amount for me.
I am disappointed that the number of TV hours exceeds my exercise hours. That said it is a bit misleading due to TV being combined with other things. I rarely sit down and watch TV. But it is typically on in the evening after the girls are in bed. I may be working, or running on the treadmill, or folding laundry, but the TV is on. Of note, Sheila can read with the TV on and I cannot. To be able to read I have to be in a quiet environment with little distractions. Unfortunately that definitely limits my reading time.
I really like the lack of car time. .5 a day is probably too large of an estimate. It is about 6 minutes from home to office. I have dropoff duty at school for the girls all days once and a couple days twice. In that instance, my car time is lengthened to 12 minutes one way. Not to shabby, the only thing I miss about not being in the car more is the talk radio.
Although I know I require a lot of sleep, putting in the perspective of 1/3 of my life is in bed seems excessive. I wish I could consistently function with 6 hours of sleep, oh what I could do with two extra hours! But I know that leads to bad habits such as napping, poor calorie consumption to overcome sleepiness, lack of energy for exercise, etc. Definitely not worth it!
I think I put in a large amount of time working, but I feel that I should considering the sizable compensation I receive from my employer. In addition to my salary, I have great discretion as to when I work so while the number of hours may seem like a lot to some, they don’t come directly at the expense of other priorities very often.
I like that I spend this much time with my family. Because we are busy during the week we tend to guard our weekends and spend lots of time together. That is the best. 1/4th of my life and over 1/3rd of my waking hours with my family feels like a good amount for me.
I am disappointed that the number of TV hours exceeds my exercise hours. That said it is a bit misleading due to TV being combined with other things. I rarely sit down and watch TV. But it is typically on in the evening after the girls are in bed. I may be working, or running on the treadmill, or folding laundry, but the TV is on. Of note, Sheila can read with the TV on and I cannot. To be able to read I have to be in a quiet environment with little distractions. Unfortunately that definitely limits my reading time.
I really like the lack of car time. .5 a day is probably too large of an estimate. It is about 6 minutes from home to office. I have dropoff duty at school for the girls all days once and a couple days twice. In that instance, my car time is lengthened to 12 minutes one way. Not to shabby, the only thing I miss about not being in the car more is the talk radio.
Friday, October 18, 2013
Crossfit Revisited
I agree with both of your posts on Crossfit.
Brad, you brought up a good point about it being the latest in a LONG line of fitness crazes. If we took a couple of minutes, I'm sure we could fill in much of that list. The few that come immediately to my mind (from the recent past) are Taebo, P90X, Insanity, and kettleballs. We Americans are crazy for crazes. But Crossfit is a little TOO crazy for my palette.
Ed brought up a good point that it was strange for you to be surprised by my assertion that Crossfit would be most appealing to you. We had those blog discussions awhile back where you laid out a case for seeking out your mental and physical limits in the realm of physical fitness. That seems to be the drumbeat that Crossfit marches to.
I agree with Ed - I'm way past the idea of beating my body into submission. I'm afraid that it may not recover if I do! Unfortunately I've known more than one person that has been sucked into Crossfit and in short order are trying to nurse themselves back from injury. "Pace yourself" and "Be careful" are probably a couple of phrases that you'll never hear in a Crossfit gym!
I have no problem hurling stones at the Crossfitters... they are contributing to the American appetite for extremism and the "all or nothing" attitude that is killing our culture. You're going to have to dig back a year or two to review that classic MAB rant.
Brad, you brought up a good point about it being the latest in a LONG line of fitness crazes. If we took a couple of minutes, I'm sure we could fill in much of that list. The few that come immediately to my mind (from the recent past) are Taebo, P90X, Insanity, and kettleballs. We Americans are crazy for crazes. But Crossfit is a little TOO crazy for my palette.
Ed brought up a good point that it was strange for you to be surprised by my assertion that Crossfit would be most appealing to you. We had those blog discussions awhile back where you laid out a case for seeking out your mental and physical limits in the realm of physical fitness. That seems to be the drumbeat that Crossfit marches to.
I agree with Ed - I'm way past the idea of beating my body into submission. I'm afraid that it may not recover if I do! Unfortunately I've known more than one person that has been sucked into Crossfit and in short order are trying to nurse themselves back from injury. "Pace yourself" and "Be careful" are probably a couple of phrases that you'll never hear in a Crossfit gym!
I have no problem hurling stones at the Crossfitters... they are contributing to the American appetite for extremism and the "all or nothing" attitude that is killing our culture. You're going to have to dig back a year or two to review that classic MAB rant.
Time keeps on tickin' tickin' tickin'...
Ed, loved your post about time. It caused me to start thinking about what it would look like if I logged everything that I did for a week or two. The inconsistency of my life from week to week (or so it seems) means that it may look completely different from week to week, but I think the key is to gain some consistency in the stuff that is at the top of the priority list.
How long is your commute now? I'm not sure how much time I spend in the car, but I don't think it's close to 16 hours. My commuting time, depending on whether I drive all the way to work or take the ferry, is roughly 4-6 hours a week. We do drive to church, the grocery store, birding, etc. and I'm not sure how many more hours that would add, but my guess would be no more than five.
I'm not sure that I could call anything purely TV time. I'd probably have to call it multi-media time
instead. I tend to multi-task so I'm usually tinkering on my computer if the TV is on. It's not very often anymore that I give my full attention to TV, unless we happen to watch a movie. When I'm on the computer like I am right now, I'm usually doing something else as well. For example, I'm digitizing some cassette tapes as I type this.
I think five hours per week for working out is pretty good. I'm not much higher than that, perhaps at six or seven. I'd love to be at eight on a weekly basis, but I'm working on it. By the way, my scale says I'm down to 186. I haven't been weighing myself regularly, so all that I know for sure is that a couple of months ago I was at 196, so I'm pretty stoked about that. Okay, so it was 186 butt naked, butt I'll take it! (Pun intended)
Well, there's no avoiding the rap on the work hours. I'm VERY fortunate to be able to work out as part of my work day. Not counting those work out hours, I'm probably right around 35 hours a week at work. I've never put it in those terms, and when I think about how the tax-paying public compensates me, I'm a pretty lucky guy! I'll console myself with that fact after my six months of at-sea 14-hour days next year. I have NO DOUBT that both of you guys work a lot more than I do on a regular basis.
Family time is another sector that I'd have to do some figuring to get the right formula. Tonight is not unlike many nights in our house. I'm doing stuff on the computer, and Jennifer is sitting nearby doing stuff on her computer. We chat about stuff here and there, laugh at stuff on the TV, etc. Does that count as family time? When I'm not at work, I would venture a guess that over 90% of my time is spent with Jennifer. We may not necessarily be doing the same thing, or it might be sitting together at church or small group, etc., but we are almost always together.
I just might try journaling my time for awhile. It might be an eye opener!
How long is your commute now? I'm not sure how much time I spend in the car, but I don't think it's close to 16 hours. My commuting time, depending on whether I drive all the way to work or take the ferry, is roughly 4-6 hours a week. We do drive to church, the grocery store, birding, etc. and I'm not sure how many more hours that would add, but my guess would be no more than five.
I'm not sure that I could call anything purely TV time. I'd probably have to call it multi-media time
instead. I tend to multi-task so I'm usually tinkering on my computer if the TV is on. It's not very often anymore that I give my full attention to TV, unless we happen to watch a movie. When I'm on the computer like I am right now, I'm usually doing something else as well. For example, I'm digitizing some cassette tapes as I type this. I think five hours per week for working out is pretty good. I'm not much higher than that, perhaps at six or seven. I'd love to be at eight on a weekly basis, but I'm working on it. By the way, my scale says I'm down to 186. I haven't been weighing myself regularly, so all that I know for sure is that a couple of months ago I was at 196, so I'm pretty stoked about that. Okay, so it was 186 butt naked, butt I'll take it! (Pun intended)
Well, there's no avoiding the rap on the work hours. I'm VERY fortunate to be able to work out as part of my work day. Not counting those work out hours, I'm probably right around 35 hours a week at work. I've never put it in those terms, and when I think about how the tax-paying public compensates me, I'm a pretty lucky guy! I'll console myself with that fact after my six months of at-sea 14-hour days next year. I have NO DOUBT that both of you guys work a lot more than I do on a regular basis.
Family time is another sector that I'd have to do some figuring to get the right formula. Tonight is not unlike many nights in our house. I'm doing stuff on the computer, and Jennifer is sitting nearby doing stuff on her computer. We chat about stuff here and there, laugh at stuff on the TV, etc. Does that count as family time? When I'm not at work, I would venture a guess that over 90% of my time is spent with Jennifer. We may not necessarily be doing the same thing, or it might be sitting together at church or small group, etc., but we are almost always together.
I just might try journaling my time for awhile. It might be an eye opener!
One of many problems...
I'm a fan of term limits. Serving in congress should be exactly that - service. All of those cats are so far out of touch with reality that they are of no good to the American people. Show me where ANY congressman is suffering for their service. I'll be standing by.
I know it's a pipe dream, but maybe - just MAYBE - if you only got elected ONE time and served a four-year term (no chance for re-election) then people would vote for what is actually best for the country rather than for what they think will get them re-elected. There is only one motive in politics, and that is to keep your job.
And now they've done what they've been doing for years: they just delayed the problem. We have been operating for years on "continuing resolutions." When is the last time congress passed a budget? Anyone? Anyone? Oh yeah, 1997.
I hate to say it, but I'm starting to think that we need the same party to win the presidency, have a majority on the Supreme Court and a majority in both the House and the Senate to get anything done in this country, whether or not we agree with it. Right now congress is just wasting our time (and money).
I'm voting against the incumbent in the next election, regardless of their party affiliation. You failed. Time to go home.
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