A Slower Pace

We weren't here in Kentucky 20 years ago, but tragedy struck in the form of the nation's worst drunk driving accident -- the Carrollton bus crash. An irresponsible drunk driving the wrong way on the freeway struck a busload full of kids and killed 27 people. Read about the details here. An even more incredible story is told here -- about one of the boys who survived, recovered from many burn surgeries, became a successful walkon football player at UK, married and raised a family, and is now giving back speaking to students about the dangers of drinking and driving. What an inspiration!

Say a prayer for all those involved -- for healing, recovery and forgiveness. I'm sure it is still needed 20 years later.

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

The last joke from my Dad -- the greener grass cows -- caused such a surge in traffic that I could not get through to the server at times. I hope this one below doesn't cause such a ruckus. Take a look at the pictures below.



This is India





IT'S WHERE YOU CALL WHEN YOU HAVE A TECHNICAL PROBLEM WITH YOUR COMPUTER

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

This evening while kicking the soccer ball around with the kids in the front yard, my daughter gave me a challenge.

K: "Dad, kick it as high as you can!"
Me: "I can't do that."
K: "Why not?"
Me: "Because I might break a cloud."

Of course, she gave me the look that my wife has perfected -- a combination of "give me a break" and "stop cracking yourself up".


And last week my wife told me a story that happened during one of their walks down the street. She said they were walking past the pond on the nearby farm and they heard something that sounded like a frog and a duck. My daughter, being creative, said "It's a drog".

Not to be outdone, my son said "No, it's a f*ck!" real loud as he rode away on his scooter. What's even funnier is that he doesn't know that it's a bad word. Of course my middle daughter has unfortunately been exposed to it and she knew better and just whispered to my wife that it was a bad word.

Pretty funny though. And I am glad that the first time my son used that profanity was unknowingly in describing a weird pond noise. That's living in the country for ya.

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

As I wind down the day, I can safely say that both the important Moms in my life - my wife and my Mom - had the day that this day was set aside for. I just got off the phone with my Mom and she, my Dad, and my sister's family all enjoyed themselves with a side trip to another island close to where they live. And while our family was shuttered in all day with rain and the fringe of severe weather that battered the southeast, we enjoyed it as a family and my wife commented that it was one of her best. Highlights were an impromptu 3D self portrait art project by all of us, a scavenger hunt Mother's Day card by me for my wife, and a delicious dinner of a roasted leg of lamb with rosemary red potatoes accompanied by a walnut apple vinagrette salad.

Below is the prayer my wife said at dinner and it really made me appreciate the fact that she is the Mother of my children.

Dear Gracious Lord,
I am honored that you have blessed me with my children and thank you that you have given me privilege of being a mother. Let us remember all the mothers in the world on this special day, protect and guide them. Let them teach and show their children love. It has been 32 years since my mom left this earth to join you in your mighty kingdom. Please let her know that I love her and miss her and thank her for always being my guardian Angel.

In Jesus' Name,
Amen

Happy Mother's Day!

Tonight we took some time out to not get anything done or go anywhere and instead opted for one of our good ol' traditional family movie nights. Because the kids are getting older, we opted for a great action classic -- Raiders of the Lost Ark. The new Indy movie is coming out soon and my wife wants to gear up for it. We popped some kettle corn and all huddled around the TV to watch some great action and point out some history too (Ark of the Covenant, 10 Commandments, pre-WWII, archeology as a science, etc).

It was a nice way to end the week. Tomorrow is supposed to be the only nice day of the weekend so we have some cool family stuff on tap. I'm gonna hit the men's breakfast and Bible study while my wife grabs some groceries. And later she will take our daughters to a mother-daughter tea at church while my son and I go fishing.....either that or we'll plant the garden. We'll see how it goes.

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

Every year my company gives out thousands of dollars to local science teachers who have a positive impact on their students and communities. We do this for every state we have a presence and facility in. For Kentucky, this means that four teachers are recognized for their contributions, creativity, and impact. They get a $5000 cash sum to spend any way they want and the school gets $5000 cash to spend any way it wants. It is a great way for the company to give back to the community and recognize excellence in teaching -- a nobel profession.

Tonight was our fourth time attending this genuine, feel good event. My wife looked beautiful and we enjoyed mingling with people from work who "clean up well" (myself included in that comment). My wife and I were lucky and honored to sit at the table of one of the four award recipients. Her name is Melissa Evans and she is a 7th grade teacher from Corbin, Kentucky. She and her husband are very friendly and down to earth and you can feel Melissa's teaching enthusiasm. We enjoyed their company and hearing about her experiences and classroom antics. We heard about the 5 "E"s -- (I'm going by memory here folks) enthusiasm, exploring, explaining, excitement, and experience. We saw a video of her, her school, her principal and her class. She uses many hands on experiments and one on one learning opportunities to connect with her students and fire their enthusiasm and zest for learning. It was the first time I had the opportunity to sit with one of the teachers receiving the awards and it was a pleasure getting to know them. Every time I attend one of these events, I leave inspired and hopeful.

It sure gives me hope for our future when I meet people like Melissa who are in contact with our next generation day to day. Why don't they put people like her on the evening news instead of all the downer stories?

We all should try to take the opportunity to thank a teacher around us. Melissa, thanks for all you do and have done for the students of Corbin, Kentucky.


2005 post -- Teacher Appreciation Award

2007 post -- Teacher Appreciation Award

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

I didn't plan on taking a blog vacation, but that's what has kinda happened. And it wasn't for the slower pace. My wife was gone to CA for family reasons and I had to attempt to show I could manage to keep the kids alive and not burn down the house. Mountains of laundry and dishes and three happy kids met her upon her return with one of them saying "We get real dinners again". And none too soon because we had company coming the next week. That didn't add anything to calm my wife's nerves as she got us all back in line and ready for company.

Our company, my aunt and uncle who I grew up with many, many years ago, had an enjoyable time meandering their way up from Alabama taking a detour through the Smokey Mtns. We thoroughly enjoyed sharing Kentucky with them and were sad they didn't stay longer. In fact, in our opinion, they left prematurely because just a few days later was the famous Kentucky Derby -- the highlight of everyone's year around here. It was an exciting event although the tragedy around Eight Belles was very sad. We had some church friends over for a nice long day and evening of conversation, food, and games.

Monday was my son's last soccer game. They were playing for the 6-8 year old championship. What a dramatic game for a small town. It was a nail biter -- 1-0 us; they tied 1-1; 2-1 us; they tied 2-2; 3-2 us; they tied 3-3 with under two minutes. It then went to sudden death overtime with no scores. Wow! 6-8 year old soccer shoot out; something that no one practices. They ended up taking it by a shot and won 1st place. Our little team did a great job and I think they were ok with walking away with 2nd place trophies. I hadn't seen a game that exciting -- small town 6-8 year old or pro -- in a long time.

And now we're halfway through with the week. Lots more to blog about but it hasn't exactly been fitting into my priorities lately. I don't know what's up about that.

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

Yesterday was my first full day of playing Mr. Mom without having to work my day job. And that was a good thing because the kids' schedules kept me busy enough.

We first took my oldest daughter into her school (we have a hybrid school with her attending 2 days a week and then being homeschooled the rest of the week). Upon returning home, I did a bit of homeschooling with the other two. While it wasn't as good as what my wife normally does, I viewed myself as the substitute teacher you had in school -- they were just there to keep the peace and maintain any momentum the teacher had going; you never actually learned something from a substitute, did you?

After I got them going on that, I dove into my ongoing tile job in the basement. As they finished their work and would come down to let me know, I drafted them for a "project management" crash course. As I troweled and measured and cut and laid tile, I discussed with them the order in which some things need to occur and how you can plan ahead and prepare things for ease of use. I told them this can apply to their desks and homeschooling as well as to their chores. (See below for a pic of my "to be grouted" floor.)



Towards the middle of the afternoon before we had to go back into town to pick up my oldest, we threw up a whole bunch of ideas for Earth Day. These were mini-projects or tasks we could do that would help our environment or nature. (Due to time constraints with taxi-ing all of them around and my tile job, I did not have the time to give them a full blown Earth Day project.) The kids came up with some very good ideas -- pick up trash along our road and in the local park, build and maintain a bird feeder, get compost for the garden and prep it for planting. Because we had a short time until we had to head back into town, we decided to get rid of a bag of cracked corn I have had in the garage for a while and toss it out for the deer, turkeys, squirrels, etc. Then when we got home, we'd take the trailer over to neighbor Jim's and load it with compost. If we had time after dinner, we'd swing by Lowes for a bird feeder.

I put the cracked corn bag into the back of my wife's Tahoe and left the liftgate up as the kids sat in the back throwing out the corn while I drove along the treeline. Just as we had finished up and were about to leave a huge tractor shows up and heads towards our back property. (See picture below.) It seems that it's that time and they are prepping the fields. The guy was nice enough to let my two little ones climb up and take a picture on it. Man those things are big. You can drive a car right underneath them.



Because of the tractor excitement, we arrived at my daughter's school about 5 minutes late -- no big deal because she wasn't out yet. She called me to let me know why she wasn't out -- somehow there was a miscommunication and she had drama practice and wouldn't be out for another hour and 45 minutes. Ugh! So being creative, I decided to drive down one of the main arteries that leads to downtown Louisville. This went through the Highland area -- an area of older homes that has also become a very eclectic part of Louisville. I would liken it to a mini SoHo or Frisco in Kentucky; kinda weird and not what you'd expect. But it is lively, creative, and interesting to people watch.

We drove that road all the way into downtown with all the high buildings. I then remembered that there is a nearby art museum at this historical water tower building right off the 71 freeway. We arrived around 4pm while it was still open. It is also right on the Ohio river so the kids and I sat on a picnic bench in the grassy area and enjoyed our beautiful weather while we watched some of the boats go by. After a half hour of relaxing, we headed inside to check out the art at the Louisville Visual Art Association who has set up shop at the historic Louisville Water Tower.


They had a display of local middle and high school student art. There were some very inspiring and beautiful wall paintings and drawings. check some of them out below. A few even had a creative technique of painting the scene on cardboard but then carefully cutting out sections to reveal the corrugated structure below and then painting that and incorporating it into the work itself. See if you can see it in the paintings below. It was very creative and made for some very texture rich pieces of work.









Finally, it was time for us to head back to pick up my oldest daughter from her drama class. We had enjoyed our nice little excursion and learned a bit about the historic building as well as got inspired by some creative works that were displayed. An overturned semi caused us much delay in our return and challenged my directional sense as I had to pull out the map and navigate through back roads I was unfamiliar with along with all the other traffic. We arrived about 45 minutes late and were all tired and hungry. A stop for dinner at one of our favorites -- Mark's Feed Store -- got us some good BBQ and such. There is a location close to the school in the Highland area which was a departure from our normal location. This allowed us to eat outside and watch all the people and cars go by. We had a very enjoyable meal and even commented on how you couldn't feel the air -- it wasn't hot and it wasn't cold; it was just perfect. While we were waiting, having been inspired by the art exhibit, I drew an art piece on the back of one of the kids' menus. I incorporated the corrugated pattern of the outdoor table we were sitting at into my work similar to how the artists used the cardboard texture in their works.
We had a great meal and truly enjoyed ourselves and the weather prior to heading home. It made for a longer than expected day, but we sure had fun and got some things done.

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

"We in Denmark cannot figure out why you in the USA are even bothering to hold an election.

On one side, you have a bitch who is a lawyer, married to a lawyer, and a lawyer who is married to a bitch who is a lawyer.

On the other side, you have a true war hero married to a woman with a huge chest who owns a beer distributorship.

Is there a contest here?"


.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

Many of my readers know that a lack of regular posting on this blog means that things are going on and family priorities have shifted blogging towards the bottom of the list. This time it is my wife heading out to CA for some family business related to her Dad (see previous post here).

I dropped her off at the airport at 6am Saturday morning which just happened to be our anniversary. At least I saw her for an hour. I then spent the rest of the weekend juggling the kids and all the events that revolve around a spring weekend -- a soccer game, a school play costume fitting in a completely different state, church service, Sunday school, a youth group spaghetti lunch fundraiser and the Cub Scouts Blue/Gold dinner (my son graduated from a Tiger Cub to a Wolf Scout). And that was just the weekend! I still have the whole week left. Luckily, today and Friday are the only days I need to "work" my day job. The rest of the time I will be working like my wife normally does -- without pay.

So don't expect too much in the next couple days. Plus, spring is here and it is absolutely gorgeous outside. 'Bout damn time!!!

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

While I was in the security line at the airport Friday coming home, I was able to enjoy one of my favorite government agencies -- the TSA. Today is a good day for this rant post because, being tax day, most people will probably fume at the IRS for sequestoring a big chunk of our hard earned money. However, while the IRS's mission isn't one of fun and joy, at least it is one that finances some of the great things about our country. We enjoy many of the freedoms, benefits, and services of this great country of ours because many hard working people pay their fair share. So while the IRS isn't great, may I also petition that they aren't that bad. At least, not as bad as the TSA.

The TSA is my least favorite gov't agency because of the utter lack of common sense these folks have. They have perfected political correctness while also abusing their power to harass perfectly normal everyday average American citizens. I'm sure you all have seen an instance or two where they have Grandma Marge or Aunt Ethyl pulled aside and spread-eagled as they wave the metal detecting wand around them. "Hey, buddy.....make sure you check her knitting bag because she could be carrying lethal amounts of Metamucil or killer macrame". Oh, and in addition to an utter lack of common sense, they also lack a complete sense of humor. I dare you to state that last quote the next time you are in line. You'll find yourself behind one of those petitions getting more seriously cavity strip searched than if you were on death row at a supermax prison.

Don't get me wrong -- I don't like paying taxes. But at least I pay my fair share and something good comes out of it.

So to summarize:

IRS = take our money = some good comes out of it = at least a chance of a sense of humor

TSA = take our dignity and common sense = complete waste time = should also be known as the "fun police"

Personally, I think that my local Boy and Girl Scout troops would do at least as good a job while being more effective and pleasant. And they have cooler uniforms.

End of rant.

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

If all you have is Jesus,
you have more than enough"

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

On my way to the airport Friday coming home from California to Kentucky, I was caught in traffic (surprise!) on the 101 freeway. It was 11:00am and way past rush hour however, the cars were stopped in all lanes and we slowed to a painful crawl. Luckily, knowing CA freeways, I had this planned into my travel time and had left extra early. I had one of the only country radio stations on (it still continues to amaze me that there are only two country music radio stations in the greater LA area and usually you can only get reception from one or the other) and a very familiar song came on that touched me and spoke to my heart. It was one of my favorites from Tim McGraw -- Where The Green Grass Grows.

It completely hit home to me because of several relevant points -- the traffic reference, the city concrete, the closing of hearts in the fast pace. I remember when I first heard this song many years ago while still living in California. I thought the song lyrics idylic but unattainable in today's day and age. The meaning of the song definitely wasn't on my radar as something a part of my life. It made for nice lyrics but that was about it. It was another nice country song I liked.

Now fast forward several years later and I was living that green grass dream. I was living where the green grass grows (it's green year round); I was watching my corn pop up in rows (in our garden); I was raising the kids where the good Lord's blessed. And, best of all, I was leaving the tail lights and city concrete of LA and heading back home.

It brought a tear to my eye as I rolled all the windows down and blasted the song from my rental car singing along to the true intent of the song. And even better -- I had found and was returning to a woman who could share this green grass song and life with me.

I will never forget that song, that drive to the airport, and that feeling of knowing I made the right decision to move to the country for the family many years ago. I felt like I had won the lottery.

Below are the song lyrics. Enjoy.

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com



Tim McGraw - Where The Green Grass Grows

Six lanes,
tail lights,
Red ants marchin' into the night
They disappear to the left and right again.
Another supper
From a sack
A 99 cent heart attack
I got a poundin' head and an achin' back
And the camels buried in a big straw stack.

Chorus:

I'm gonna live where the green grass grows
Watch my corn pop up in rows
Every night be tucked in close to you.
Raise our kids where the good Lord's blessed
Point our rockin' chairs towards the west
And plant our dreams where the peaceful river flows
Where the green grass grows.


Well I'm from
A map dot
A stop sign on a blacktop
I caught the first bus that I could hop from there.
But all of this glitter is gettin' dark
There's concrete growin' in the city park.
I don't know who my neighbors are
And there's bars on the corner and bars on my heart


Chorus:

I'm gonna live where the green grass grows
Watch my corn pop up in rows
Every night be tucked in close to you.
Raise our kids where the good Lord's blessed
Point our rockin' chairs towards the west
And plant our dreams where the peaceful river flows
Where the green grass grows.


Chorus:

I'm gonna live where the green grass grows
Watch my corn pop up in rows
Every night be tucked in close to you.
Raise our kids where the good Lord's blessed
Point our rockin' chairs towards the west
And plant our dreams where the peaceful river flows
Where the green grass grows.

This morning I decided to grab a light breakfast prior to my departure for the airport. Going against the southern California grain, I walked -- not drove -- over to the nearby Jamba Juice (another California fix I fit into my travel menu like In 'N' Out and Baja Fresh).

On the way there, I said hello to an apparently homeless guy standing outside the Vons grocery store. He sparked up a conversation and I asked him if he wanted to join me for a Jamba Juice. He agreed and grabbed his rolling luggage cart of stuff.

His name is Aaron and he was more verbose than Tom who I met earlier in the week. He proceeded to tell me his current affairs. He has been out this way for 2 months. He came out from New York. He has family along the east coast but is out here to take care of personal affairs and clean up an identify theft issue. He is working to start up an internet business. He was an out of work bookkeeper looking for a break.

Aaron ordered a strawberry nirvana and I followed with my standard strawberries wild with an immunity boost. He continued on with his current affairs and I began to wonder a few things. Were these all real? Was he trying a scam? Did he truly believe all of this or was he trying to convince himself?

Interruption ------ hey, while I am posting this and getting ready to leave, they are having Eli Estrada on Fox News live. I posted about him two days ago! And Fox News is just now picking up the story.
End of interruption ------

Aaron was a nice guy and did speak well (even if it was interspersed with slang "and what not"s). However, I got a different feeling throughout our interaction that reminded me of a cross post from a reader's blog -- Nicole from SAHM Ramblings. She posted yesterday an experience she had the other day where a homeless guy stepped away from his panhandling location so he could answer his cell phone. I got a similar feeling from Aaron who, after a time into our conversation, petitioned me if I "knew anyone" who could provide funds for a ticket to travel back east. I analyzed the request and politely sidestepped the answer, a little disappointed that this had now become like your standard panhandling interaction. He insisted he give me his email address and phone number in case I knew someone who could help him get back to the east coast. Next to his name and email address, he put "youth counselor" for some reason. Another weird piece to this nebulous story. Was he trying to convince me of something.....or himself?

We conversed for about 5 minutes while waiting for our Jamba Juices and then wrapped it up as we walked back to his spot in front of Vons. I thanked him for the conversation and he thanked me for the drink and wished me a safe trip back home. As I walked away and rounded the corner, he chased after me and petitioned me for a contribution so he could get his phone card reloaded. This was the final fact I needed to put him into the "opportunist/schemer" homeless group (as opposed to the "truly needy" homeless group). Both are folks that need assistance so they can get on their feet. But each group needs to be handled differently. Again, I don't have all the answers, but I sure can be a small part of the solution.

On a different note, go check out Nicole's website SAHM Ramblings. Her family moved from Iowa to Los Angeles and back to the slower pace of Iowa.

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

American Airlines has cancelled 595 flights today -- and normally I would be completely hosed because that is one of my airlines of choice. However, luckily I took Southwest for this business trip because of late travel arrangements. Unluckily, I needed to extend my trip by a day and now my normal return of Burbank to Phoenix to Louisville now will include a rerouted stop from Burbank to Vegas to Chicago to Louisville. I'll be home some time late tonight and fully looking forward to it.

In the meantime, I stumbled across this cool parent/kids site -- Born Learning. It parallels a nice article I recently read about 63 things to do with your kids. I'll scan the article and post that when I get home. Until then, go check out Born Learning.

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

Eli Estrada of Los Angeles stumbled across $140,000 of unmarked small bills. He ended up returning it to the rightful owner.

You find $140,000 in the street... what do you do next?
By Tracy Manzer, Staff Writer
Article Launched: 04/08/2008 09:36:50 PM PDT

Is Los Angeles resident Eli Estrada nuts?

Last month, Estrada found $140,000 in cash in a bank deposit bag on a street in Cerritos.

The money had been picked up by a Brinks Armored truck at the Bank of America in the parking lot of the Cerritos Center mall the morning of March 11.

Passers-by said it looked as though a guard left the bag on the truck's bumper.

It was a tempting sight, all those unmarked $20 bills bundled into wads of $20,000 and bound for ATMs. And all of it untraceable.

The 40-year-old has been working to keep his artificial grass and landscaping business afloat - he bought into the Tuff Turf franchise recently - and the money would have been a nice cushion considering the economic downturn hitting Southern California.

Estrada also has a cloud of credit-card debt over his head. And then there's his upcoming wedding and the associated costs.

But there is also the fear the money was part of a robbery gone wrong and that he could have some bad people on his case if he kept it. Plus, if he were caught with the cash, he would be guilty of stealing. The legal fallout could destroy his future dreams.

So Estrada and his business partner, who was with him when they found the bag, pondered their choices as they counted the bills.

"I'm not going to say it wasn't tough, but I know returning the money was the right thing," Estrada said with a small smile Tuesday.

The soft-spoken landscaper - dressed in a crisp short-sleeve T-shirt with his Tuff Turf business logo, spotless blue jeans and brown work boots - said he knows plenty of people who would smack him upside the head if they knew he passed on the money.

But the people who matter most, his fiancee and his mother, are proud of his choice, he added.

"The officer who responded was very impressed with Eli," added Sgt. Dina Zapalski, a Long Beach Police Department spokeswoman.

As soon as Estrada handed over the bagful of money, he began working on his client's yard - where the officer met him to take the report and the money, Zapalski said.

And although Estrada never asked for a reward, he was given $2,000 from Brinks, he and Zapalski said.

As to whether he's a good guy, or simply crazy, even Estrada admitted he can't say for sure.

"Some days, when things are hard, I think I was nuts," he said, laughing. "But they always say, `do what your gut tells you,' and I know in my gut that to keep that money would be wrong."

Check out the direct link here.

Way to go, Eli!

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

I am out in CA for business.....again. It was supposed to be a quick trip but will now take me all the way through the week. Hopefully that will be it for a while so I am looking forward to getting it behind me and getting back to the Spring that is in Kentucky.

Tonight I figured I would grab some Baja Fresh -- it's kinda like Mexican In 'N' Out in that we don't have them out in Kentucky so I have to get my fix while I'm out here. As I entered the strip mall I noticed a homeless guy sitting out front with a sign asking for help and handouts. I'm ashamed to say that I have seen him here before and never done anything about it. I pulled into the parking lot and felt a tug at my heart. I had a feeling that I must do something, even if it was small. However, I learned a long time ago to not just throw and give money. It means more to provide a meal and human interaction. It is also a lot harder to do. I said a small prayer as I turned around the car to go inquire as to whether he wanted to join me for dinner. I pulled up and he responded doubly surprised -- one that someone had stopped to pay him some attention and two that someone was asking him to dinner.

He jumped in the car. I introduced myself and found out his name was Tom. We headed over to Baja Fresh and proceeded to order our grub -- Tom a Baja Ensalada with chicken and me a Baja Steak burrito. I made sure he understood he was my guest as I held the door open, grabbed our drinks and plastic cutlery, and served our meal to the table. In my limited experience in these situations, I have learned that it is important to treat folks in this situation with dignity, concern, and consideration. Sometimes that is more important than money. That someone cares and doesn't look right through them.

We said a meal prayer and proceeded to chat over dinner. He has lived in the area for over 40 years. In fact, he was here before I had moved here back in 1977. We discussed all the changes that have occurred here in Thousand Oaks throughout the years and fondly looked back at some of the old times. The conversation flowed and ebbed with some quiet times between discussions but they weren't awkward. I've had other meals before with folks I have taken out that were much more awkward; luckily this meal and conversation were more enjoyable.

After a while we finished up, cleaned the table and headed out the door. I thanked Tom for the conversation and his time as we headed to the car. I offered him a ride back to his spot which he declined. Even more interesting, he declined my additional request if he needed anything else. We said goodbye and I got in the car with a contradictory feeling -- I felt good helping out someone in need however, I really didn't do that much and I should be doing much more. I should be getting him a heavier jacket for the chilly fog, cloud cover moving in. I should be setting him up with food for tomorrow. I should be taking him to a church or a homeless shelter so he can get on the path to recovery from whatever put him on the street. However, it isn't always that simple as I have found out in the past. I don't necessarily have the answer either. All I know is that I don't have to have the answer to be able to be a small part of the solution.

During our meal, I told Tom that I travel out here often and that I would stop by to see if he was occupying his spot and if he was, we could have dinner together. He thought that was a good idea and we called it a future dinner reservation. We'll see how that unfolds. All I know is that I am ashamed -- #1 because I had seen Tom at that spot before and done nothing. And #2 that I haven't done anything like this since last June when I met Mike.

Please say a prayer for Tom and Mike.

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

This blog is usually a backwater of the internet. My normal daily traffic is below modest. My previous high water mark was this post on the best hunting picture ever. (see below)



However, that funny picture only garnered me a couple of hundred daily hits (which I sure was thankful for given that it is much higher than my normal daily traffic). Not as many pix as the cow sex post a few days ago. As of a few moments ago, the 10,000 mark was passed for today's traffic. Quite interesting for a backwater blog like this one. I guess all it takes is one internet joke to spike the numbers.


On a more serious note, a family friend of ours that we just had dinner with Friday night was in a car accident and hit by a car that ran the red light. Please keep him and his family in your prayers and go hug a loved one today because things like that can happen to any one of us at any time.

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

This weekend has been very productive. Saturday was a bit overcast but tried to nicen up in the afternoon. Sunday was our first truly spectacular spring day and we used it to full advantage. Below is a list of my honey do's that get to be checked off.

• fixed the outside water pipe
  
• installed the LCD mount and flat panel on the wall in the workout area in the basement (I need a motivator to get my cardio done each day)
  
• prepped the backup sump pump and battery for install
  
• performed all the spring maintenance on the Scag mower
  
• spot seeded the front lawn area around the house
  
• washed the mower so it's all nice and shiney orange
  
• replaced the corroded burners on the BBQ with new stainless steel ones
  
• finished up my work presentation for this week

I didn't watch today's NASCAR Texas race live. It was too nice of a day and I had all the honey do's. In fact, I ended up zipping through it on the DVR in the afternoon and I only caught glimpses because, having had the live race on in the garage, I knew my driver's car wasn't doing well at all. Below are some very abbreviated observations.

• While they are saying the pledge of allegiance, why don't more folks follow Jeff Burton's (#31) lead and putting their right hand over their heart like they learned in school so many years ago. I might be a little more sensitized to this because of my involvement in scouts. If you are in uniform, salute; otherwise the rest of us put our right hand over our hearts. Way to go Jeff! Lead by example.
  
  
• I think it is lame every week where the CEO or political official or some famous person always gets to sing the national anthem or say the most famous words in racing, "Gentlemen, start your engines!". Those rich and famous folks already get enough perks in life. So how cool is it at the Samsung 500 at the Texas Motor Speedway where a regular Joe or (Joan) Schmoe gets the attention and spotlight. This week the "Gentlemen, start your engines!" was enthusiastically shouted out by a Samsung consumer and boy, did she do a great job at it. Way better than some of those lame corporate suits that say it like they are on a corporate conference call or Wall Street earnings meeting.
  
  
• How cool is it that the Pole award is an engraved Beretta over/under shotgun! That's true Texas for ya! If I recall correctly, the race trophy is a pair of engraved silver Colt .45 six shooters. Yeeeehaw!!!!!!
  
  
• I loved the satellite commercial (if I remember correctly) that had the corporate puds in a conference room talking and tweeking statistics.
  "90% of facts can be used to prove any point half of the time as long as the error rate is 25% of the average mean."
  
  
• And how 'bout Michael McDowell racing today after that horrific crash during qualifying on Friday. Safety sure has come a long way and he is a lucky man.

That's it because it is a gorgeous day out there and any more time spent inside is truly a waste.

UPDATE: congratulations to Carl Edwards for having a strong car and winning the race. I really like this kid. Plus, since my older daughter's driver, Dale Jarrett #44, retired she picked him as her new driver. I think she made a pretty good choice.

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

H/T to Theo who hat tips to Mark Scott

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

We kicked off this weekend with a very enjoyable evening with church friends. We had a nice meal and lots of conversation while the kids played well together. It sure is nice too, because neither my wife or I have family in Kentucky and our church friends sure help make up for that. And what can be better than having an informal dinner together with people you don't need to impress, you don't need to plan for, you don't need to dress for, and who can also balance you and lift you up. We all need friends who leave us better than who we were before.

If they are reading this, thanks for the nice evening. We look forward to more.

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

My Dad shared this with me this morning via email and I am passing it along. Happy Birthday, Dad!


It's important in life to reach out, to strive for greater achievements, to go for that greener grass that is on the other side of the fence.....



But one must also be careful……



Sometimes you can reach too far!



But when you find yourself overextended and you’re stuck in a situation that you can’t get out of, there is one thing that you should always remember.....














Not everyone who shows up is there to help you.




It kind of reminds me of Ronald Reagan's quote --
"The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, 'I'm from the government and I'm here to help.' "

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

Last night at Cub Scouts we practiced knot tieing. The den leader shared a great online web resource that I wish I had when I was a young scout learning my knots. I never learned them very well and will use this opportunity with my son to practice up on and learn all of the useful knots.

Check out the website -- Animated Knots

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

Regarding my "U-turn" previously today (below), please take a good look at the date.

April Fool's!

At least it was better than my 2005 attempt at a dihydrous monoxide warning. I also received about quadruple the traffic today. I'd like to think it was because of my April Fool's joke. But I know better. It is because Theo linked to me from one of his posts over at The Last of the Few. I am adding him as a sidebar link because of all the great pix he has (it's up to you to figure out which ones I am referring to -- planes, cars or ladies). Thanks Theo!

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

If you are a regular reader, you know that last week was the second trip out to corporate for me in March. You also know that the southern California rat race is where we had come from and were intent on raising our kids in "A Slower Pace".

Well, opportunity arises in interesting places. It seems that we are moving back there to corporate. That is why I have been spending so much time there recently -- interviewing and looking for a house. And it will be a very quick transition due to several key projects and efforts going on right now. Expect blogging to be light as we transition back to our old lives in CA. One question -- should I change the name of this blog to "Back to the Rat Race" or should we try to bring the slower pace Kentucky back to California.

UPDATE: Aprils Fool's! I hope this didn't cause too much commotion.

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

NASCAR great Junior Johnson, on whether it was more fun to race other NASCAR drivers or race against police who were trying to catch him during his moonshine running days:

"It was more thrilling to me to win a race because I was competing against people that were equal to me. A lot of them were bootleggers, so if you beat them, you beat (a) whole lot more capable people.''

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com

Go check out this great essay over at Maggie's Farm.....

Here's a quote from it.

"It’s difficult to understand why the average American does not grasp this. They favor human rights, civil rights, liberty and freedom, but evidently not for Iraqis.

“Peace Activists” always seem to demonstrate here in America, where it’s safe.

Why don’t we see Peace Activist demonstrating in Iran, Syria, Iraq, Sudan, North Korea, in the places that really need peace activism the most? I’ll tell you why! They would be killed!

The liberal mentality is supposed to favor human rights, civil rights, democracy, multiculturalism, diversity, etc., but if the Jihad wins, wherever the Jihad wins, it is the end of civil rights, human rights, democracy, multiculturalism, diversity, etc.

Americans who oppose the liberation of Iraq are coming down on the side of their own worst enemy!"

.....Dan at aslowerpace dot com