A new day.... November 4, 2008

To the people I love and value most in the world…

I was just listening to stories from the road; regular Americans talking about what this election, this historic event means to them. Many referred to parents, grandparents, struggle and surprise. Other talked about children and grand children to come, a day to remember and talk about and keep alive. One woman said she felt blessed, because she could share the…energy, the excitement, the passion (on both sides) with her children years from now. But right at this moment, I’m wondering what you all think. Tell me. Here are a few of my thoughts….

§ I’m happy… that my two boys were able to participate, directly. And that their first voting experience in a national election was one of real significance.

§ I’m proud… of my wife, doing her part, driving voters to the voting places yesterday. One of her ‘clients’ was a former neighbor of ours on Robbins Drive, an old lady who could not see well enough to read the ballot. This was one of those…”ask not what your country can do for you..” moments.

§ I’m apprehensive…about the tremendous array of challenges that will face Obama and Biden and all other elected officials, and whether they can bring about real change.

§ I’m excited…about the rebirth of passion for the political process, and the sense that ‘we’re all in this together, and we all need to continue to stay involved. We can’t stay on the sidelines as spectators, but must be part of the change.

§ I’m challenged….by a quote from Gandhi years ago, when he said, “Be the change you want to see in the world.” This is something that Dad would embrace, something that he worked towards, by filling his station wagon and driving leftover food to needy organizations around Fairfield, and by counseling kids in a Hartford school, and by leading songs around a camp fire.

§ I’m impressed, that McCain became human again (not my words; stole them from a commentator on Public Radio this afternoon…) and was eloquent himself in his conciliatory speech. If he spoke like that throughout the campaign, might be a different story today.

§ I’m proud…to be an American. OK, it’s a hokey country song, but Lisa and I were moved to see the democratic process in action.

Love to you all,

Scott

“I know you didn’t do this just to win an election, or just for me. We know the challenges of tomorrow are the greatest of our lifetime… The road ahead will be long, the climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year, or even in one term. But, my fellow Americans, we will get there. I promise you…we will get there.”

Barack Obama *

President Elect

* Add these names to your dictionary… they will be around.

Oh, Amelia...

Was it just a false alarm? Or...was it a fantastical week in the wind and waves and wilderness of northern Florida. Stay tuned...

Birthdays Come & Go...

But memories last forever.
What a month... almost makes it worth achieving a milestone. I"m going to start listing some activities, and then add more info and reflection later. The first first a-ha however, is that I really am a lucky guy, a man who can enter his sixth decade and feel blessed by the generosity of family and friends. Man oh man...

tbd later
Slopes in New Hampshire
A WRLX t-shirt for Leinenkugel
The Meeting House at Powder Forest
A full family drum jam
Ultimate karting and something explosive
Food, folks and fun...around the fire
Jazz in Miami: aka "Sam IS the man!"
What does Boca Raton really mean?
Can we climb on those rocks to see the lighthouse?
Joe and his trips to Starbucks
Gonna be a dental floss tycoon...
Back to Amelia... it was just a false alarm.
Jackson at his best... a happy idiot in the morning light.
Awakening your life's purpose

Time MARCHes on....

You look at your life, and what...have you done?
Well, right now the accomplishment of the week is surviving the blizzard at Cannon Mountain on Saturday. Benson and I grabbed our bacon, egg and cheese (thanks to Daisy's) and passed the pickup trucks that spun-out on Route 93 and hit the slopes. A great day plowing through powder, winning a WZLX t-shirt, searching for grey shirts, finding $20 for suds and much, much more.

But what I really want to know is this: will those kids learn their lesson about cleaning up the table after they finish eating? These are the big questions of life. Stay tuned for more slopeside picts when we return in April.

They say March does come in like a Lion, in this case, a power-crusted-carrot-laden one.
WTF-over?

February Freedom

A long, long time ago, I can still remember how the...thought of returning to an educator's schedule used to make me cry. Well, not really make me cry, but it did conjure up some images of additional time to rest and get back to those core life activities that make it all worthwhile. Things like sleeping late, playing around with new web cams, configuring roboform (?), shopping for a new stratocaster, seeking shelter from the wind on the slopes at Loon and chasing Bensen down the trail. You know, the important stuff.

Today I am slowly entering that space, the first day of February vacation week. A balmy 56 degrees in the metro Hartford area, it seems more like early April than February. So let's see if I can embed some fine avatar led video footage into this blog posting.

I also need to seriously consider the SNAP blog for COA; when will that become live? You really owe it to yourself to get that going. Create the vision, box out the time, and make it so. And remember, this really is no country for old men...
More later

Veterans Day 2007

Maple leaves, cloudy skies, parades and elections. All part of the November landscape in central Connecticut.

Read an interesting and somewhat unsettling article about a marine who has returned home to CT, and is struggling with the challenges of getting his medical needs addressed after being shot by a sniper in Iraq. And wouldn't you know it, it was the end of his tour. It was a different twist, spin on what a veteran is today. Not our fathers and grandfathers as they were when we were growing up. Escaping wars.

We had a few guys visit the Ch Oak school to help with Veteran's Day tribute, one from WWII and other other Vietnam. Made me realize that I should expect to be older and more gray than veterans I meet going forward. So now, I will pause...on my Veteran's Day holiday and say a prayer for those men and women. Those who choose to serve in that capacity. Thanks also to Frank and Oscar and Tony and Roy...and the thousands who have gone before.

See you...in September

September 2007
The month that will live...in infamy. What is infamy anyway? Look that one up in your funk & wagnalls. Guess I'm showing my age. So was the speaker at our 'back to school' training session who referenced Carl Yaztremski.... Think most of the teachers at Charter Oak Academy of Global Studies were born after 1980, so Yaz a part of history.

So much to say, so much to do...so little energy to write right now. Will do that later. These 3 things I know
1. Bouncing in ocean wave and getting tossed on the ocean (like the SS Minow...before the tiny ship was lost) is a blast and a great way to spend labor day
2. Parents, wives, children...they all undergo life's transitions...and we need eachother along the way. More about transitions later (maybe when I finish the book)
3. Charter Oak will be a life altering experience; feel more connected to IOL and the Bridge and the pscyh major that was than I have in years. So I have to wonder, "is this my beautiful house?"

In the words of the Signs singers, "thank you God for thinking about me, I'm alive and doing fine..."