Sunday, April 29, 2012
Hoopla
hoop·la [hoop-lah]
noun Informal .
1.bustling excitement or activity; commotion; hullabaloo; to-do.
2.sensational publicity; ballyhoo.
3.speech or writing intended to mislead or to obscure an issue.
There has been an amount of hoopla about a place known as the Melting Pot. My wife and I gather with two other couples on a regular basis. Each time one of the couples has the responsibility of finding a place for dinner, working the schedules and making the reservations. We've been to some really nice places. Regardless of where we go we always have a good time.
Back to hoopla. The melting pot is a hat and not many cattle. The food is nice, okay, but I don't think that you get bang for the buck. It's a fondue place. The appetizers were really good, the deserts were good. The main course, well it was ok. I don't expect anyone who reads this to be going there, but be forwarned. It is a unique experience, the service was some of the best I've ever had.
Monday, June 20, 2011
Are you looking at the problem, are you listening
The man is walking down a road out in the country one day and he sees a farmer out in an apple orchard The farmer is holding a large pig in his arms, and the pig is eating an apple from the tree. The man walks up to the farmer and says, “Wouldn’t it save time to pick the apple and let the pig eat it off the ground?”
The farmer says, “What’s time to a pig?”
I feel this way at work way to often. I ask a question and I get an answer, but not to the question. Reading it in the context of this joke, it is possible that I did not properly word the question. Wouldn't it save the Farmer time to pick the apple and let the pig eat it off the ground.
Guess I better take another look at my communications skill.
The farmer says, “What’s time to a pig?”
I feel this way at work way to often. I ask a question and I get an answer, but not to the question. Reading it in the context of this joke, it is possible that I did not properly word the question. Wouldn't it save the Farmer time to pick the apple and let the pig eat it off the ground.
Guess I better take another look at my communications skill.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Saturday, July 17, 2010
100 years of Scouting
....unimpeded by progress. It is the 16th of July and I'v made my way to Fort A.P. Hill near Bolling Green, Virginia. It is the 100th anniversary of the Boy Scouts of America. It is time for the Jamboree. I'm down here with my Wife and 6 other guys, we are known as the Gophers. We go for what ever, and we spend a majority of our time on the road between A.P. Hill and the airports that service the Jamboree - Dulles, Reagan National, and Richmond. On a given day we will cover 300-600 miles. We will spend a week getting all the staff in here, then we will instantly start taking people out for family emergencies, illness, etc. In the next 4 days we will bring in 1700 adult/staff, which help put this event together for about 30,000 youth. This is the last time we will be at AP Hill. Congress declared that if the US Army couldn't support all non-profit organizations, then they can't support the Boy Scouts.
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
I meet a New Friend Every Weekend
About 4 years ago My Father mentioned that he was having issues remembering things.
Dad was born on the 21st of June, 1924. His name is Delwin Leroy Goheen, he is the second of four children born to Maurice Sebastian and Clara Goheen. He was born in Osborne County Kansas. He was not born in a hospital, but in a house. Dad served in the US Navy during World War II, and his ship sailed the Yangtze river - an LSCL # 73. Dad exemplifies "The Greatest Generation". He was a philosopher in his own way. He set his standards high, and he always tried to exceed his standard.
In my teens I often helped Dad as he hired out at night an weekends to make enough money support a wife and five kids. Back then I expect the food bills were enormous. Dad wired houses, fixed swamp coolers, built things, painted things, fixed lights and more. Each time we went to someone's house Dad made sure we wiped our shoes, or removed them before we went in, and we cleaned up so it looked as good or better than when we started.
Dad is a Distinguished Rifleman, and in fact the Kansas State Rifle Association has a Trophy named in recognition of his accomplishments and support.
But, Dad doesn't remember any of that. At first I noticed his short term memory was not working. We could talk in our weekly phone calls about what he did years ago, but not about what happened the day before. Then that memory started disappearing. Now I call him on Sundays and each time I call it is a brand new conversation with a new person. I introduce myself, and he is polite, but he really doesn't know who I am. We chat about the weather, his health and what he's been doing. He is pretty good on the health part, at that moment in time, but everything else just happens.
I've talked to staff on may occasions and they say he is very helpful, quiet, and polite. When given an opportunity he likes to go for rides in the care center's limousine. They like Del. I enjoy meeting my new fried every weekend, I hope in enjoys the calls.
Dad was born on the 21st of June, 1924. His name is Delwin Leroy Goheen, he is the second of four children born to Maurice Sebastian and Clara Goheen. He was born in Osborne County Kansas. He was not born in a hospital, but in a house. Dad served in the US Navy during World War II, and his ship sailed the Yangtze river - an LSCL # 73. Dad exemplifies "The Greatest Generation". He was a philosopher in his own way. He set his standards high, and he always tried to exceed his standard.
In my teens I often helped Dad as he hired out at night an weekends to make enough money support a wife and five kids. Back then I expect the food bills were enormous. Dad wired houses, fixed swamp coolers, built things, painted things, fixed lights and more. Each time we went to someone's house Dad made sure we wiped our shoes, or removed them before we went in, and we cleaned up so it looked as good or better than when we started.
Dad is a Distinguished Rifleman, and in fact the Kansas State Rifle Association has a Trophy named in recognition of his accomplishments and support.
But, Dad doesn't remember any of that. At first I noticed his short term memory was not working. We could talk in our weekly phone calls about what he did years ago, but not about what happened the day before. Then that memory started disappearing. Now I call him on Sundays and each time I call it is a brand new conversation with a new person. I introduce myself, and he is polite, but he really doesn't know who I am. We chat about the weather, his health and what he's been doing. He is pretty good on the health part, at that moment in time, but everything else just happens.
I've talked to staff on may occasions and they say he is very helpful, quiet, and polite. When given an opportunity he likes to go for rides in the care center's limousine. They like Del. I enjoy meeting my new fried every weekend, I hope in enjoys the calls.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Yeah I understand - Climate Change
In the past 5 days I have spent over 16 hours shoveling snow. This winter has provided this area of Virginia the most snow in recorded history for a winter season.
Simultaneously, the paper no longer refers to it as "Global Warming". It is now climate change. Do I believe the climate is changing. Yes. Am I the cause. No! I'm sure there are lots of reasons for the climate change. If you put 60 people in a room, the room will get warmer. If you add a billion people to the population it probably will cause a change. The weight alone might change the orbit. And don't get me started on the hot air from capitol hill.
It isn't really cold, there's just lots of snow. For the first time in a week, a plow actually came through the neighborhood and, he did a nice job. Free coffee, Cheetos and a cold coke for the truck drive, and my thanks. He didn't plow it into my driveway. What a guy.
I started planning my next scuba trip. Back to Bahamas on Blackbeard's . Right now I can buy round trip airplane tickets to Nassau Bahamas for $285. Add that to the fact that I'm diving with Greg Justice and his GMU bunch, and it only gets better. Note to self, remember to take some bourbon, I'm not wild about rum, but the Red Stripe is always good at the end of the day.
Friday, February 6, 2009
Ceremony
Ceremonies seem to hold a key in our existence. Just recently we had the inauguration of the President of the United States. Lots of people stood in the cold to hear a few words repeated by an individual, it was a ceremony that signifies a change. Many of these ceremonies revolve around some type of religion, some around traditions and some around family. Think about all the ceremonies you have participated in.
Baptism
Graduation
Marriage
And of course Funerals, all of these are based in religion.
The military has some great ceremonies.
Enlistment
Promotion
Retirement
They are based on needs which turned into traditions.
Families have ceremonies.
Birthdays
Anniversaries
These are based on celebrations.
All these ceremonies have a role in different lives. Ceremonies Signify Change for a group of people. A beginning, a progression, an end. Ceremonies are the signposts for all that attend. Ceremonial sign post allow you to follow an individual’s life. Born, Baptized, Graduated, Married, and Retired.
There are ceremonies that I can watch over and over. A military change of command ceremony, with the parade, is magnificent. It is an old military method that tells the troops that they have a new commander. It is a type of Inauguration for military folks.
In this day and age of electronic communications, most of the troops got an email or an instant message saying they got a new commander, but before now, the change of command ceremony was key to getting out information. The change of command is still a reason for lots of people to gather.
In the Washington DC area, military retirement ceremonies not only inform the masses that someone is no longer in the chain-of-command, but is also advertises that the retiring individual is available to become a contractor.
But what if? What if we stood up and cast off any religious associations. That means we would do away with baptisms, weddings and funerals.
With technology we can get rid of a few more ceremonies. In this day and age, with all the electronic messaging, we could do away with lots of ceremonies. With all the SMS capability we can do away with marriages, and let us be honest, we didn’t need the baptism.
Hop on your Facebook page. Tell the world that you have a roommate/housemate/soul mate. Send me a video when there’s a birth. When the emails stop coming in, I’ll assume the inevitable.
BS! - It won’t work for me! Ceremonies signify magnificent changes. They also provide us time to reflect, to give praise, to gather and renew our ties. Ceremonies also tell you when something begins and something ends within the ceremony.
At a wedding, when a particular song is played – here comes the bride – everybody shuts up and pays attention to the event. And when the reverend says, I now pronounce you man and wife – you know you can go home, the event is over.
At military events you can tell it begins when someone says “Attention!” It usually ends when someone says “Dismissed!”
Think about it just for a minute…. How do you know when something begins and something ends? Is it a statement like “All rise” or “dearly beloved”, or perhaps it is the ringing of a bell, or starters pistol. Ceremonies guide us.
AND (This is pretty important) - In the case of retirements and funerals the ceremonies provide us that opportunity to honor the achievements of the individual. When formalized, these ceremonies mandate that someone spend time, conduct research, and talk about the individual who retires or dies. Some one stands up and reads the sports page of an individuals life – all their successes. Too often I’ve walked out of a retirement ceremony or a funeral hearing people comment “I didn’t know that about him/her.
Admittedly your life will probably not be affected by the fact that someone you know or touched rescued people from a burning building, or administered first aid, or provided mentor-ship to the next generation. But without the ceremonies, no one will take the time to write the best man’s toast, the citation for heroism or merit, or the eulogy. Without some formal ceremony the schedule is lost, the participants wander, the extensive achievements of an individual will only be known by a few and maybe those are the only folks that need to know. Without a ceremony how will we know where the butterfly effect began or transitioned.
Now, let’s look at the other side of the ceremony coin. No ceremony required.
After writing this I thought about some folks, who I consider close, that didn’t have a ceremony, or it wasn’t very big. My wedding was attended by a minister, his wife and two couples who were our friends. It was simple and quick, we had a beginning and end. It was inexpensive and no one had to get on an airplane or find a motel. The downside was that I found out that there were people that wanted to participate in this event. They wanted to gather and renew ties and develop new ones. They wanted to participate in change and help if they could.
So what is the Bottom Line: Every ceremony is a celebration. Even a funeral is a celebration. Celebrations and ceremonies are personal and you need to decide what you want. There aren’t any rules even though I’d like to see some. P.S. I’d like an invite – I might not make it, but I’d like an opportunity to gather, celebrate, and renew ties. With a little luck I’ll get my priorities straight and I’ll show up.
Baptism
Graduation
Marriage
And of course Funerals, all of these are based in religion.
The military has some great ceremonies.
Enlistment
Promotion
Retirement
They are based on needs which turned into traditions.
Families have ceremonies.
Birthdays
Anniversaries
These are based on celebrations.
All these ceremonies have a role in different lives. Ceremonies Signify Change for a group of people. A beginning, a progression, an end. Ceremonies are the signposts for all that attend. Ceremonial sign post allow you to follow an individual’s life. Born, Baptized, Graduated, Married, and Retired.
There are ceremonies that I can watch over and over. A military change of command ceremony, with the parade, is magnificent. It is an old military method that tells the troops that they have a new commander. It is a type of Inauguration for military folks.
In this day and age of electronic communications, most of the troops got an email or an instant message saying they got a new commander, but before now, the change of command ceremony was key to getting out information. The change of command is still a reason for lots of people to gather.
In the Washington DC area, military retirement ceremonies not only inform the masses that someone is no longer in the chain-of-command, but is also advertises that the retiring individual is available to become a contractor.
But what if? What if we stood up and cast off any religious associations. That means we would do away with baptisms, weddings and funerals.
With technology we can get rid of a few more ceremonies. In this day and age, with all the electronic messaging, we could do away with lots of ceremonies. With all the SMS capability we can do away with marriages, and let us be honest, we didn’t need the baptism.
Hop on your Facebook page. Tell the world that you have a roommate/housemate/soul mate. Send me a video when there’s a birth. When the emails stop coming in, I’ll assume the inevitable.
BS! - It won’t work for me! Ceremonies signify magnificent changes. They also provide us time to reflect, to give praise, to gather and renew our ties. Ceremonies also tell you when something begins and something ends within the ceremony.
At a wedding, when a particular song is played – here comes the bride – everybody shuts up and pays attention to the event. And when the reverend says, I now pronounce you man and wife – you know you can go home, the event is over.
At military events you can tell it begins when someone says “Attention!” It usually ends when someone says “Dismissed!”
Think about it just for a minute…. How do you know when something begins and something ends? Is it a statement like “All rise” or “dearly beloved”, or perhaps it is the ringing of a bell, or starters pistol. Ceremonies guide us.
AND (This is pretty important) - In the case of retirements and funerals the ceremonies provide us that opportunity to honor the achievements of the individual. When formalized, these ceremonies mandate that someone spend time, conduct research, and talk about the individual who retires or dies. Some one stands up and reads the sports page of an individuals life – all their successes. Too often I’ve walked out of a retirement ceremony or a funeral hearing people comment “I didn’t know that about him/her.
Admittedly your life will probably not be affected by the fact that someone you know or touched rescued people from a burning building, or administered first aid, or provided mentor-ship to the next generation. But without the ceremonies, no one will take the time to write the best man’s toast, the citation for heroism or merit, or the eulogy. Without some formal ceremony the schedule is lost, the participants wander, the extensive achievements of an individual will only be known by a few and maybe those are the only folks that need to know. Without a ceremony how will we know where the butterfly effect began or transitioned.
Now, let’s look at the other side of the ceremony coin. No ceremony required.
After writing this I thought about some folks, who I consider close, that didn’t have a ceremony, or it wasn’t very big. My wedding was attended by a minister, his wife and two couples who were our friends. It was simple and quick, we had a beginning and end. It was inexpensive and no one had to get on an airplane or find a motel. The downside was that I found out that there were people that wanted to participate in this event. They wanted to gather and renew ties and develop new ones. They wanted to participate in change and help if they could.
So what is the Bottom Line: Every ceremony is a celebration. Even a funeral is a celebration. Celebrations and ceremonies are personal and you need to decide what you want. There aren’t any rules even though I’d like to see some. P.S. I’d like an invite – I might not make it, but I’d like an opportunity to gather, celebrate, and renew ties. With a little luck I’ll get my priorities straight and I’ll show up.
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