Move to Ohio, and the first few weeks here...

So I haven't been near a high speed connection lately, and thus, have not been writing.

Sarah and I have made the move to Ohio from Colorado. It's been a short fuse, high-impact couple of weeks. We came down to the end of my training at the Hilton, and at the same time, our lease on the apartment came up. I had been in contact with a wonderful hotel in northwest Ohio for several months, and while they hadn't offered me a job yet, we were confident that after all the discussions I'd had with the upper management, and our all around positive-ness about me working there, they would be very likely to offer me a great job once they got to meet me. And if not, I'm very confident that I could get a job elsewhere.

Moving out seemed to be the best path. Mainly, getting to be with family, and having access to Chicago and our family and friends there. The only real tie to Colorado Springs was our fantastic church and the great friends we've made there. I enjoyed the Hilton, but the money just didn't seem to be there for what was going to be required of me. I turned down two offers in the last month, and it just didn't seem to be coming together. It was nice to be wanted, but it didn't turn out that they wanted to spend what we would need to stay. After all, we were figuring in what it would take to buy a house, settle down, and still be able to come visit family more... all in all, we ended up deciding to make the move out here.

My hotel was really cool about it. My GM even set up a free night's stay in the Omaha Hilton on our trip here. (BEAUTIFUL hotel, by the way...) The restaurants staff threw me a going away costume party, and the hotel as a whole signed a photo of the hotel for me to keep. It's a neat way to remember everybody, and I hope to soon be hanging it in an office.

Our small group in Colorado Springs threw us a going away party as well. It was awesome! They even took up a collection that enabled us to replace the tires on the Civic before the move. They were much needed, and I felt alot more secure taking them on the trip. We are going to miss everyone at the Vineyard soooooo much! We definitely made some friends for life there, and I truly hope to see them all again soon. Perhaps on vacation. :)

The trip out was anything but uneventful, and included getting a bit lost in Omaha, and a blown tire in Iowa (thanks to the rib of some unfortunate road-killed animal). I ended up getting the tire repaired in Iowa and replaced the next day in Illinois. I highly recommend Discount Tire. They are really nice, and totally took care of everything.

Upon arriving in Illinois, we loaded up our Budget rental truck (Awesome value!!! Very good truck.) with what we had left in Illinois several years before, and rested a day before heading on to Ohio. (So good to have the grill back!!!)

When we got to Ohio, we unloaded a bit into my parents' house. Mom, dad and the boys cleared a "suite" for us as the boys surrendered their room and its adjoining toy/junk room. We have Kiah all set up there, and he's been sleeping quite well. We took the rest of the stuff to a storage place, and honestly, it doesn't even fill a 10x10!

Returning the truck was an ordeal, as the Budget rental place in Toledo that we were supposed to return it to had closed two weeks before... Would've been nice had they told us... but after a bit of wandering around, and some angry calls on my part to Budget, we dropped it off at a different location.

On our first full day in Ohio, the hotel I've been looking into called me for an interview. The ops director asked me if I could come in sometime. When I said absolutely, he asked if a half hour from then was good! Why yes! The interview went well, and set up a second interview the following Monday. The second interview was with the Director of the property and the human resources director. We had a great time, and really enjoyed the discussion. Many good things came from it, and while we were completely unable to determine where I would be best used at the hotel (they're even considering me for sales/marketing! Must be my sparkling personality:) we did establish that we all want to work together. I left in high spirits.

The following day, I dropped off thank you cards to the three folks who took the time to speak with me. (A practice I've adapted. It seems to be an extra sign of hospitality, and shows gratefulness.) I took Kiah along. (Good to get cute kid brownie points!) The scheme worked perfectly, and everyone ooohd and ahhhhh'd at Kiah. It was all good.

Funny Story: To purchase the thank you notes, I stopped in at a local drug store. At the counter I was informed that unfortunately, they did not accept credit cards. Alright... well, I didn't have any cash, so where was I to find a place that did accept cards? "Well," said the cashier, "You should just charge it, and come in and pay it later." Matter of fact-like. Now I don't know about the rest of you, but I have never "charged" anything to myself before. I've worked with a business account to charge stuff at Kinkos, but the idea of simply coming back later to pay is an odd one to me. All the same, minutes later I walked out with a little yellow receipt with my signature on it, and I now owe them about $8. We are truly in a different land!

Today I heard back from the hotel, and I am to come in on Monday or Tuesday to solidify things. Something that will make Sarah and I very happy. We need $. However, we're staying rent free, and just got my last check from work... so while we need your prayers, we have high hopes that we'll soon be in a much better situation.

In addition to the above, it should also be noted that my Grammie Hutchins, now 91, is staying at my parents house as well. She is a joy, and is constantly reading and learning and talking. I hope to be half as lucid and amazing at her age. The boys have been awesome, and very helpful. We've been playing football at every available moment. Mom and dad have been great, and are extremely busy all the time. The whole family is gone from early morning until late afternoon every day. For me, not working is odd enough, but to be alone at someone else's home adds to it considerably. It has been nothing short of WONDERFUL to spend the time with Sarah and Kiah. I love them so.

Well, that's all I've got in me now. I love and miss you all. Hope to be back to write soon.

Jim/James

18 degrees of Jim and Sarah

So we went up to Pikes Peak earlier this week. The temperature at the top was 18˚. Brisk.

We had a great time, so here's a few pics to share. Peace!

Also included are a few pics of Sarah's birthday...

Gore wins Nobel Peace Prize

Yes. Yes. Yes. We are indeed moving to Ohio.
(Or Ohia as they say in many parts of that fine land.)

Sarah and I have been working on plans to rejoin our family in the Midwest for quite some time. We didn't want to say anything because we didn't want anyone to get their hopes all up in case it didn't work out, but now we have solid enough ground to stand on, and we are going to be moving on October 31st!

About seven months ago, I opened talks with a hotel in northwest Ohio, near my dad's hometown of Archbold. We hit it off immediately, and after several long calls, and after they checked out my references, they let me know that they would be looking for a way to fit me into their future. They simply didn't have anything yet. I have kept in contact, and we've continued to build our relationship.

At the same time, things at the Antlers have been winding down. I've been coming to the end of my "training" and as such, was expecting an offer. About 2 months ago, I was moved to the front desk to "temporarily" help out while they found a new asst. front office manager. Soon after I began my second stint at the front desk, they offered me the job. I turned it down. Partially because of the money offered, but mostly because I hate that department, and would not want to be miserable every day. It's the one place in the hotel I don't like working... complaints all night long... etc. (Ask Sarah...)

Needless to say, I'm still there, "helping out." A few weeks ago, the assistant restaurant manager left for Pittsburg, and that opened her position up. When she left, they decided to restructure her job into an assistant restaurants manager with responsibility over all beverage in the hotel. Alot of work. Especially in the beginning because our beverage control is pretty lousy right now. I was interested in the job, and it had alot of benefits, but like I said, alot of work. After several interviews and several days of getting approval on the offer from corporate, they offered me her job two days ago. But before we get to our decision regarding that job, let's step back a few weeks.

After turning down the FD job, Sarah and I got thinking seriously about moving to Ohio. Our thinking was that if the Antlers wasn't going to work out, and our lease on our apartment was up in October, we may as well make things work elsewhere. Near family. So we continued our research into the home market (which is great in Ohio!) and the job market there. The hotel in Ohio still had nothing, but vowed to look harder into positions that might work. Moving to Ohio without a job lined up wasn't impossible, because we can live rent free for a short time with my family in their farmhouse, but wasn't preferable at the time.

We decided then to plan for two contingencies. One of moving to Ohio and making things work with my family until we can buy our own house, and one of staying here, taking an Antlers job, and waiting till the Ohio job opened. We began praying heavily for answers regarding which path to take, and our small group began praying for the same. Around that time, in my personal prayer time, I became impressed with a specific number. A salary number, that would be the sign we were looking for in whether to stay or go. It was concrete, reasonable, and would enable us to be comfortable with either decision. If the Antlers offered me a job at that number or above, we stay until something opens up, if not, we head back to Ohio and figure things out. I've never had anything quite like this happen in my prayer life before. Usually God gives me a blank piece of paper and crayons, not a sheet with lines on it, but as we were asking for direction, He obliged in this case and gave us some.

Now moving also depended on having the money to do so, and since we didn't have it, we were viewing that also as "doors" God would need to open for us to go. In the last two weeks, over $1000 has come out of the woodwork, and we were able to get the moving truck at a fifth our expected price! My parents' advice was to move forward and God would shut the doors if it wasn't the right move. Well, the doors have been flying open, but the offer still hadn't been made. So we waited.

I think that waiting period was what was hardest on Sarah. Planning for two very different contingencies is difficult to wrap one's head around. We waited and prayed, and packed and planned, and the offer from the Antlers came on the same day a call from the hotel in Ohio came.

Actually, I called them to check in, and the HR director told me of a job opening that he thought I'd be great for. It's a general managership of the hotel's restaurant! The operations director is out on vacation, but once he gets back, we would start talks regarding that position.

So now we had an option. Something to go on, but still hadn't heard from the Antlers. My pastor was asking hard questions in the week before, like "What if they offer right below the number you think is right? What if your 'number' is just a ballpark?" That sort of thing. And I had to admit, it bothered me a bit. But I decided that the provision for us to move was twofold. It would depend on the Antlers failing to offer above the number, and us having the money to move. If they shot just short, and we didn't get the dough... well then, we'd stay. So I headed into work after getting the call from Ohio ready for anything.

The offer was low. I mean real low. Shocking even to me low. Not what I expected. Apparently, they felt they were really offering me something because the offer was approximately 10% of my current income. But it wasn't even up to what the last person in the job made, which with all the increased duties I expected them to excel her salary. But they didn't, and after talking to the management, they really expected me to fall over myself to say yes. They still have the utmost confidence in me. Obviously, if they keep offering me jobs... but it just isn't where we need to be if we're going to stay here. So I gave them my notice, and we're heading back to Ohio. We have the money to move. Jessica is flying out to help with the move and baby. We have tons of friends here to help with the lifting. And our family can help us with the transition.

The job offer isn't final out there, but I have faith that the hand that opened all these doors so far, is the hand in control of whether the job opens up or something else comes available. On the practical side, it makes alot of sense to leave when our lease is up, and Sarah mentioned that once we're out there, the hotel will feel a great deal better about making offers. With me still out here, and my hotel having an offer pending, they've probably been nervous.

So here goes. Another step of faith. But this one is stepping back to family, friends and a life we want for Kiah. I couldn't be more excited. Thank you all for your continued prayers and thoughts as we continue living as un-normal a life as possible! We love and appreciate you.

Poetry-shmoetry.

A poem I wrote a ways back for a friend. I like it, and so should you.

If you were an egg,
I'd tell you a yolk.

If you were Al Pacino,
I'd buy you some coke.

If you were a racecar,
I'd spell you both ways.

If you were an old friend,
I'd miss you all day.

-by me.

Kiah's finally earning his keep, the little slacker.

It's been such a busy and crazy couple months, I've neglected to mention several things on the blog. One such thing was the death of my iPod. My fourth gen iPod kicked the bucket approximately 3 months ago. Due to bigger things going on, I simply accepted this as its time to go, and moved on. While it was disappointing, Sarah let me use her iPod on my drives to work, and my workout sessions, so I wasn't music-less (A fate worse than death for me.).

Anyway, the iPod had been slow, and had been crashing occasionally, but one day, it just refused to start up, and showed the sad iPod face. I tried all I could, but was unable to do anything for it. Needless to say, it soon became a toy for Kiah who enjoyed full access to his own iPod which always made a funny (sad) face at him.

Yesterday, he was playing with it on the floor, and I suppose it still had a bit of battery charge to it, despite the fact that I charged it last 2 1/2 months ago in an attempt to revive it, because he was getting symbols on the screen. It looked strange, so I took it from him (which resulted in Kiah making a sad face) and saw a screen I've never seen before. It seems that whatever combination of key presses Kiah used activated some sort of programming screen. It had five options or so, one of which was resest. I tried it, and the iPod rebooted. I plugged it in to the mac and it ACTUALLY LOADED! I then wiped it clean, and reinstalled its OS, and loaded it with music again. It's been working perfectly for 2 days now!

I'm so happy, and to have Kiah be the one to fix it is hilarious. He's lost a toy, but earned my respect!

Here's a few recent pics. Enjoy!

Baby and Daddy Night

So last night, Sarah was babysitting, so that left Kiah and I home alone.
So I tattood his back.


So he tattood his front.


Which made him happy.


Which made him wanna kiss me.


Which made us both happy...


So we turned on some music and danced.


Which made us rock out.


An unedited version of rockin out, so you can see the nose wrinkles better.


And then we ran around.



Hope you enjoyed our night as much as we did.

America. Put DOWN the stupid juice, and back slowly away...

I AM SO FED UP I AM WRITING IN ALL CAPS...

I've reached my limit of tolerance for the rampant stupidity and distracted morality in this country. We have to pull ourselves together, and do it now. I'm at such a loss for words. I feel like the only sane person in the room some days. I see my coworkers watching mindless 24 hour "news" channels with mindless faces... constantly being spooned sugar-coated celebrity gossip followed closely by horrific stories of mass killings and tragic earthquake photos in crisp colors... 5.1 dolby... Soon I see my coworkers stop flinching when the scene shifts from Lindsay Lohan to a bloodied face of a carbombing victim in Iraq. Flies gathering around his eyes. My coworkers munch on their lunch and are immediately shifted to a fear story about identity theft which is followed by a commercial that says nothing but "Head on, apply directly to the forehead. Head on, apply directly to the forehead. Head on, apply directly to the forehead." For the morons who won't even question the idea that applying a glue-stick like device to their head isn't a bit strange, and certainly doesn't deserve an explanation... just obedience. We're a few steps from the government paid message coming up to tell us to take our afternoon medicine.

Have you noticed that with the exception of the Iraq war, CNN and Fox news cover American news? How do they fill 24 hours with American news? They can't. They have to over cover. They have to find news... even when it's not news. They will grab any survey or study statistic in hopes of filling several seconds of airtime before switching to a story on a brutal rape/murder. With photos of course.

The choices we make. The speech we use. All are effected by watching stupid people. Stupid news. Stupid leaders who tell us to obey without question. Don't think about it Joe and Jane... it'll just make your head hurt. If you get depressed, just switch to a sitcom, and listen for the crowd to laugh. That will let you know when a funny happened.

Even TV for the "intelligent" is dumb. Opinions all. C-span is nothing but a bunch of book authors reading their own work in monotone. History channel plays footage of long dead wars and gives us their opinion of whether Satan exists twice a month. Discovery channel provides some intelligent entertainment, but it's just a distraction from the dullness of life. There are a few channels that seem to promote "living"... the Travel channel and Food network seem to have a world view that promotes learning about "real" people in their "real" environment.

NPR provides stimulation on a near-dead media (Uh, what's FM?). Doing their best to raise questions, focus on the harsh realities of our shrinking global economy... but it's on the radio. Who's listening? Will it make a difference? I know it won't to my coworkers who trudge from work and climb into their cars and listen to nothing on their way home while they anticipate who is going to "get it" on tonight's episode of reality tv.

This all seems to take perfect form in the presidential race. I'm pretty unabashed about supporting Barack Obama, and I don't go a day without somebody asking me how I can trust a muslim... or why I'd support someone who doesn't think the war was a good idea... Last night, a valet that works for me looked at me and said "You'd vote for a black guy?" When I choked on my dinner and stared at him he explained that having a black president would "give the blacks momentum, and make them feel like they were in charge which is the last thing we need right now, right?" I was in shock. I don't know why though. Racism is obviously still alive and well. Both sides of every fence... but to hear it voiced, as if legitimate, was indeed shocking.

It's hard enough to explain that if you are going to believe any candidate when they say what their religious affiliation is, then you need to believe all of them. John McCain has declared in some meetings that he is Episcopalian, and in others that he is Baptist. Depending on the crowd, he gets to anger catholics in a totally different way! Giuliani had a blatant affair with his secretary and leaves his wife for her publicly. But I'm sure he's a wonderful spiritual role model for our children right? And that one candidate who's attended the same protestant church for years, has a healthy relationship with his wife and daughters, lives by what most would say are strong christian values? Nah. His name is Barack Hussien Obama. And he'd give blacks too much confidence. Make em feel like somebody in office wasn't going to screw them over... don't vote for him.

Things I love

Recently I heard this song off the not-too-old Danielson album "Ships."
I fell in love with it. One music critic I respect called this his favorite rock song of 2006.
The video is ridiculously awesome. They are so uncooly cool.

The song is called "Did I step on your trumpet?"

Enjoy.

Not to mention that blogger now supports video!

Awesomeninity.

More stuff you don't care about...

Using a new operating system theme called "Rhino." The desktop pic is made by the same designer to go with the theme.

Jim hearts this. The iTunes skin is beautiful, and really has a nice futuristic feel.

I think I can, I think I can, I think I can...

So my time at the front desk seems to be drawing to a close.

Thank the good sweet Lord Jesus.

I've written about 3 emails to my GM in the past few days that I've saved and won't send. But they make me feel better. I'm just furious with the way I've been treated. To a degree, I understand that I've been acting very entitled, and yet half of me feels justified in that entitlement. So I have to be careful that I don't assume everyone else feels as bad for me as I do. And that's what those emails have been about.

Needless to say, Sarah and I are still very up in the air about what the future holds, but we will see.

Keep us in your prayers and thoughts.

We love ya!

Love is a mix tape.

I said in the post below that I'm reading the book "love is a mix tape." It's really meant alot to me, and made me think a bit more about how integral mix tapes are to my life. I listen to my mixes that I've made for others all the time, due to the fact that they're still playlists in my iTunes. In a way I'm keeping a copy.

Of course, just handing a cd to someone doesn't cut it for me. I have to have a professional looking cover, along with a back page with the songlist on it. I've grown quite proud of the mounting collection of mixes and mix covers I've made over the past several years. So I thought, "Why not share some of these covers on the blog?" They're entertaining enough. While sometimes they include an inside joke, usually they simply embody the type of music on the mix or the mood I was in when I made it. So without further ado... well... some ado.












"Ugly" volume one. - I made this for my friend Kirsten I think. Right after I started at the Antlers.












"Pretty" volume one. - Why not?












"Flightless Birds" - I know it's odd to use flying birds for an album called flightless birds. So what?












"Rockness" - This has been easily one of my best mixes. It seems geared to a female audience, who seem to like it more than boys, but the songs rock 100%.












"Evan: Doorman mix" - Made this for Evan when he was a doorman. (It's not a pic of him.)












"Evan: Valet mix" - When he moved on up, I made him a new soundtrack.












"Honesty" - My most recent mix. I listen to this alot.












"Looking for Trouble" Jessie's version - This mix was made with my friends Chad, Joni and Jessica in mind. I then found a picture of a young Jessica on her myspace, and the cover was decided. This is Jessica's version.












"Looking for Trouble" Chad's version












"Looking for Trouble" Joni's version












"Dark Days" volume one - I haven't finished this one yet. It's been over a year since I started it. Sometimes the best things are worth waiting for. And this one is if the cover is any judge of character! I love it.












"Ezra Benjamin" - Made this for Ezra's birthday this year. 12 already! That's Kiah on the cover.












"Stephen Isaac" - Made this for Stephen's birthday. He's 14.












"Laura has the ring" - At the time this was a joke, but now it makes sense.


Well, that's it for now. Hope you enjoyed them!

Artsy

So I've had a creative spurt lately... here are a few sketches.

Waiting till the rain slows down only works if the rain slows down...

Asia's death, and the subsequent issues which surrounded and centered on this blog have left their marks, but little else. The current maelstrom of events has little to do with the events of last month, and more to do with day to day insanity. Therefore, I find little strength or desire to cover all the crap that took place last month.

All I can say is that it has become more and more difficult to remain positive and upbeat these last few weeks due to some turmoil at work. The fact that I'm even mentioning this shows that I've learned nothing regarding disclosure. So let me be as vague as humanly possible. I've rejoined a department I wished to leave behind, and done so against my will. Despite the wonderful news that we as a hotel achieved a long term goal, I have been very negative about my current situation. Hours, requirements, lack of purpose... all these things go into what I consider to be a highly undesirable position.

I plan on talking to my big boss tomorrow to see if I can exit this position asap. To add to my discomfort, my work bank of roughly $320 is missing. I cannot account for its disappearance, and I have the only key. It is unlikely that I will suffer any consequences other than a write up, which may not be fair if the money was stolen from my locked safe... but it has caused me a bit of frustration these past few days as I did not need this added to my plate.

On top of that, I got a traffic ticket the other day for not stopping completely at a stop sign. Traffic was turning left in the turn lane, and I slowed and turned right. $190. The cop told me immediately to go and appeal the ticket and they'd "decrease the fine and points"... well, if you're so danged compassionate, why not give me a warning?!?

I'm just really worn. Really tired of things sucking. I want everything we want and need, and I want it now. I don't want to wade through any more crap. I know it sounds wrong, but I feel that we've paid our dues and the good stuff is due now. It doesn't display maturity, growth, or a good world view to be upset by this, but I am.

Other things have gone well lately, and I'm thankful for them, I just want to live elsewhere, work elsewhere... etc.

Strangely enough, all this angst has spurred my creativity. I've been drawing and reading at a breakneck pace. Sarah and I are working through HP5 right now. I connect with Harry and his constant mood swings lately. I'm also reading a book right now that seems as though it were written by me. I hightly recommend it. It's called "Love is a mix tape." by Rob Sheffield.

In other news, new iPods and iMacs have come out. Go Apple stock.

Sarah and I had a date today. It was my 2nd day off, and we went to the $ theatre to see Pirates of the Carribean 3. It was awful. Pointless and rambling, the only thing worse than the overthought plot was the abysmal acting. It was the most expensive piece of crap I've seen since Waterworld. (Waterworld substituted a better plot for Dennis Hopper...) Johnny Depp even had moments of pointlessness. It was just BAD. Parents should not take their children to see it, as it was much more brutal than the previous 2 films. Bullets in the forehead, graphic hanging, impaling, decapitation... it's all over the place.

Anyway, I'm back and done ranting. Forgive me for the absence, but I've been waiting for the frogs to stop falling, and it hasn't happened, so I just bought a titanium umbrella.

I've taken down my life, and rebuilt it.

And quite frankly, it doesn't look the same. And the cupboards keep sticking...

Well, not really.

The blog's been down for a couple weeks. Due in large part by some naivety on my part, and devilish antics on the part of an enemy of mine. All the same, lessons were learned, and no lasting harm was done.

So, without further ado, WELCOME BACK.

I'll be writing again soon. (Probably something political... I've been on a rant lately.)

Jim

Picture

I took this tonight, and I think this is my favourite picture of me ever.

Yes. 

I believe it is...

I feel like starting over.

Let's begin again shall we?

Writing and reading and 'rithmatic. It all gets to me.
Work and home. Art and music. Baby and wife.

All my loves 'a jumbled. Some float, others sink.
Writing's gone down the tubes this last month or so, and readin's won.
Wife and son are doing great. It seems like we've caught a rhythm in this life thing. Job's a bear. I've simply come to the enigmatic spot that is the end of a training program. Do I have a great job here around the corner? Do I not? Is this something I should be terribly concerned about? Probably.

I've been interviewing around, and very honest about this with my current employer. They seem concerned. They have made it clear that when this training is done, they plan on keeping me. It's just that they don't have a job ready for me now, and we both know it. They're accepting that as a reality of the situation, and I simply cannot remain comfortable in that reality. We both understand eachother's predicaments, but really can't do anything to make the other feel any better.

I need to have stability for my family. Do we sign another lease? Leave this apartment for a larger space that we need but don't know if we can afford, because we have no idea what I'll be making in a few months. We don't want to bite off more than we can chew. So I have to explore other options. And the Antlers has nowhere to put me at that moment, and is praying that something falls into their lap. Otherwise, they have to get real creative real fast. They're stalling me, we both know it, and hoping for the best.

I've had several interesting job opportunities in the past several months, but the most promising is currently in the works. Met via conference call with the upper management last week. They also have no positions available right now, but they are very interested. They've checked out my references, and we've exchanged a dozen emails or so. They might be willing to create something that would fit my talents, or work me in some other way. I'd love to work there, and the area is nice.

Sarah and Kiah have been enjoying life lately, but feel the constraints of the apartment in ways that I don't due to the fact that I'm gone to work part of the day. I know that Kiah would love to be outdoors more. But our neighborhood isn't condusive to that.

Sarah has been reading a ton! Alot more than me, even though I'm going through a spurt at the moment. We've been reading the Harry Potter series together. It's her first time through it, and the books move quick.

Kiah's teething molars. Nuff said.

Our small group is doing well. Taking a bit of a break for the summer. We really love the group of people that we've got. If we move away we'll sure miss them.

Well, I'm done for now. Love you all. Peace.

P.S. By the way, I've redone my MySpace page, and added photos.
Here's a preview.

Wooden Desktop

My mac is running au naturale thanks to a gorgeous wooden staircase pic and the delightful wooden theme Moku.

Enjoy.

End of my era...

The reign of Jim has ended. Housekeeping now belongs to another, and I could not be happier.

That was one of the best learning experiences, and one of the most difficult periods of my professional career to date. While the supervisors and housekeepers were easily some of the best people I have ever worked with, the difficulties presented in managing a staff of that size, with the language barrier, and a minimal knowledge of the department... made for issues that I was simply unable to prepare for. But prepared or not, they came... and while in retrospect there were decisions I made that led to less than perfect outcomes, noone was expecting perfect, so I'm ok. In fact, they were just hoping that noone would walk out, and that they wouldn't want to kill me by the time I left.

In this case, I leave behind a department which is still exceeding company goals, has grown instead of shrinking, and has surprisingly maintained a somewhat solid morale despite the stress of losing their beloved manager and having an evil assistant manager... (not me! The other guy I talked about before!)

The new director is a good person, with a strong backbone and a vision for the department. She has treated me with respect, and values my assessments, and as far as I can tell will do a fantastic job.

At home, Sarah and Kiah have been struggling with his upcoming surgery. He's just been having a hard time lately. Being sick, bumping into stuff, and generally learning to walk, talk and exist without falling. Sarah's been dealing with the feelings associated with having your only child go into surgery for the first time, and the worries that come standard with every health insurance package. (The only thing they give you for free...)

I was finally able to go to church this week. It was SOOOOOOO nice to be back. It felt so good to be back in the fire... I've felt like such a grey coal. Nice to sit with Sarah and get to worship with a bunch of other believers. We have praise and worship at our small group, but as the name implies, it's much more intimate. We celebrated communion, which was something I haven't done since Easter, so that was great too. It's amazing how tied up in life one can get, and forget how short and small this life really is. I pull away at times from what's truly important. Distracted by the day to day. It's such an ultimate peace to pull away. Above the hustle and bustle, and just focus on the one who gives me life... real life. Honestly. I feel like my batteries have been charged.

Anyway, I need to hit the sack. Keep Sarah and Kiah in your prayers. They're heading in for the pre-op tomorrow. I'll continue my transition with the new HK director.

Peace out.

My head. Inside and out...

Things I find hilarious...

For Joni.

Jerry Falwell is dead...

And Tinky Winky breathes a sigh of relief...

Shaving my head.

I have just finished successfully building the San Diego Chargers into a decent team, washed the dishes, worked out, got a haircut, and I slept in this morning... how was I able to accomplish all this you ask? Sarah and Kiah are visiting the family in Illinois.

I am living the bachelor life for about 10 days or so, until I join them there for a week. Then I'll come back, and a few days later, so will they.

It's all centered around Kiah & Ezra's birthday on the 25th. Sarah made it out in time to celebrate her mom's first Mother's day as a grandma, and her first Mother's Day as an "out of the womb" mother.

I've been enjoying the peace and quiet, but I miss them already. I had a great "guys" night with my friends Dan and Chris the other night. We watched the Green Street Hooligans, a movie with Elijah Wood as a brawling "futbol" fanatic. Then we watched Casino Royale for a bit, and then decided to just play cards instead of watching people cooler and better than ourselves. We spent about 4-5 hours just chillin without our wives or babies. It was cool. Killian's Red stock rose dramatically as 2nd quarter sales boosted exponentially that night.

Today I've been rockin out with the music cranked. I'm off work today and tomorrow, and making the absolute most of it. Small Group from church is tonight, but other than that, I have no timeline to meet, or goals to accomplish. It's awesome!

Work's been a bit less stressful this week. Other than getting a frantic call in the middle of the night Friday, which I was able to handle the next day, things have been holding together. HR is putting the pressure on the General Manager to hire a new director of housekeeping asap. It's not that I'm doing bad, I'm doing very well... it's just tiring. Not to mention, I'm still working 2 days a week in Security, so that complicates the job. I am technically only in housekeeping 3 days a week... which are usually spent fixing the problems of the last 4 days.

A side note. At this moment, I am now rocking out to "Did I step on your trumpet?" by the Danielson Famile. It rules.

In other news, no news on the Seattle front. We're starting to feel like the offer was bogus. At least to a certain extent. I'm not one to burn bridges, so I'm not ranting... but it seems for now, that Washington will have to wait.

Oh. I shaved my head.

And things got weird, when I started growin' Bob Dylan's beard...

I was looking at pics of Kiah to do a pre-birthday card to folks... when I spotted this photo.

Well, I couldn't place it for awhile, but I finally figured out where I recognized that face he's making from... so here it is. Kiah's pre-birthday announcement. Rejoice.

Fallen friends

It's 10 o clock, and I'm nowhere near tired.
The sun set hours ago, but still the mountains are lit by the storm raging on the other side. Torrential rain to the south. Snow to the north. And a sweeping wind here, with a smell of rain on the air. I sit in a coffee house. Drinking a peaberry coffee from Tanzania. I love African coffee. Birthplace of a worldwide passion. My friend is dead. It hits me from time to time. I sit drinking and reading... listening to Mule Variations by Tom Waits. What a moving album. I so seldom sit and listen to a full work anymore. Very few of the destinations I'm required to visit are more than a half hour away. I don't use my headphones like I did in earlier years. I guess I'm required to participate in my world more now. This is how I want to write. This is how I want to think. I need this time. Time away. I think about Jim. How strong he was. I feel like giving a eulogy, but I know that there's no way to attend his funeral. And even if I could, I don't know that they'd let me talk. After all, I only knew him. Not his family. But all the same I wish I could stress how he died. How it was different than almost everyone else I see die. How he died on his feet. Jim died trying to live. Trying to regain a life that he let go of years before. He knew that Paula would've wanted him to drop his excuses, drop his fears, and make a mad dash for life with everything he had. And so he did. He committed. He went on a 30 day liquid diet, which had to have been one of the hardest things he's ever done. But the big thing that stands out to me is that he died standing up (figuratively of course). When he died, he fell. Like we refer to heroes. I'd never really thought about why heroes fall when they die. But it's because they were standing when they did. They had to be standing. Fighting. Forging. And Jim was. So many people die lying down. In many ways, Paula died lying down. And for that reason, I'm really glad that they died in the order they did. Paula would've been broken, and followed Jim into death. But Jim chose to honor Paula not with submission to death, but fighting for life. The life he knew she wanted him to have. And that is awesome. I have so much respect for the man, and I will miss him terribly. In many ways, I'm just starting to grieve. And in others, I feel as though I've reached a peace with what happened yesterday. It's just that I didn't want to see the story end this way. I wanted to see his new life. His new body. His new reality. But to ever see that, we'll have to watch it happen in our lives. His survivors. I would ask you to choose today to live your life like it matters. That change is not only possible, it's worth dying for. That if someone is willing to risk everything to make life count, it's impossible to simply muttle through another day aimlessly without insulting their memory. I sat in the coffee house reading "The seven habits of highly effective people" which, in my mind, has moved from self help book to recommended reading for anyone wanting to change their life. If you're having trouble even knowing where to start on the road to change, I recommend starting there. If you're a believer in Christ, I recommend the book "I really want to change, so help me God" by James MacDonald. They are both excellently written, and every page has value. Jim wrote something on his blog that really touched me last month. He said "If you are reading this, know that I love you." So on that note, I mirror his sentiments, and want you to know that I feel the same way toward you all. If this were my last post, I would want you to know. I would want to be standing. Fighting. Forging. I would want to "fall" in death. I'd want to be a hero like Jim.

In shock.

Jim Vanhorn died this morning at 6:30.