Nose Hairs

Warning:  This post was not approved or proofread by my wife.  I am no longer responsible for any strange feelings you may have after reading it.  If you feel the need to try to understand how my mind works – good luck!  I invite you to offer constructive comments at the end of the post…I will probably ignore them, but you have been warned.

In the mid 90’s, we moved away from our family in Michigan to a very strange place called “Wisconsin“. This whole new world of fried cheese curds and Brat Fests  was exciting but the rabid Packer Fans made us nervous and often homesick. For the first several years, as we adjusted to being so far from family, we would make frequent trips back home.  The 8 hour trek through Chicagoland and then on through to the eastern side of Michigan would often begin at the end of the day.  Once the sun set, my wife and kids would soon fall asleep and I would be left “alone” to navigate through endless toll booths and dark highways.

Driving in the wee hours of the night, the mind and the body come together to do crazy things Continue reading

I’d Rather Die…

For the introduction to the Lessons From My Father Series – Click Here

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.”

“Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checked by failure…than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat.”

 –  Theodore Roosevelt, from a speech given in Paris at the Sorbonne in 1910

 

Dreams are amazing things! On the rare occasion that you are able to remember them, the opportunity to share it with someone else can be as entertaining as the dream itself.  Some time ago my wife asked me, “What were you dreaming about last night?Continue reading

Don’t Eat the Whole Buffet

For the introduction to the Lessons From My Father SeriesClick Here

LESSONS FROM MY FATHER #3

A silly idea is current that good people do not know what temptation means.  This is an obvious lie.  Only those who try to resist temptation know how strong it is….  A man who gives in to temptation after five minutes simply does not know what it would have been like an hour later.  That is why bad people, in one sense, know very little about badness.  They have lived a sheltered life by always giving in.  ~C.S. Lewis

I love going to restaurants, especially a fine restaurant.  I love the whole experience that comes from that brush with the “upper crust”, – escorted to a table especially reserved for me, “May I help you, Sir?”, cloth napkins, three forks, multiple plates,  words on the menu that I cannot pronounce – it is all an adventure that makes me wonder how many ways can I embarrass myself today.  Apparently, a Shrimp Cocktail does NOT contain alcohol and “creamy brulie” (Crème brûlée)  is spelled and pronounced very differently!

As a kid, however, it was only special occasions that would Continue reading

Rubber Band Man

RubberBand Ball

A rubber band is worthless until it is stretched.  As it turns out, so are we!

 

If life was always sunshine and roses, we’d already be in heaven – or Hawaii!  But the truth is, we all face the challenges of disappointment, regret and frustration.  It is because of these experiences that we develop an ability to be used by our Creator.  We’ve all heard the Potter and the clay analogy – and it is good!  But the truth is, I get tired of always being the clay!  I want simple problems and easy decisions.  Continue reading