Leaping the Gap

Obit

2008-03-20T11:36:00.001-04:00

I hate obituaries, the finality and the sadness of them. I pray not to read my own.

But I read the weekly obituary in the Economist. They are written with such grace and such compassion. They don't tell the story of the person who died; they tell the story of the person who lived.

This one, about the last French soldier, brought me to tears twice. The writer makes the person still seem alive. In a way, his thoughts and his humanity still are.

2008-03-13T22:01:00.001-04:00

The young woman at the center of the resignation of New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer is not a monster. She has some culpability, yes. But from what I've read about her, right now, she needs a hug and someone to tell her she is loved. It seems like her mom (!) is trying to do that. Good. It's a mighty hole she finds herself in, but she needs support to get out of it. Hopefully, she'll receive it.

Apologies

2008-03-12T06:19:00.001-04:00

I'm sorry for not posting much here lately. I've been pouring my energies here. Go on over; it's a good read.

La belle belgique

2008-03-12T06:12:00.001-04:00

This is why I love Belgium so much: It's utterly quirky...

(And the beer and frites are great, too...)

Joy

2008-03-10T10:09:00.001-04:00

Where a picture speaks louder than words….

Yum yum yum

2008-03-07T09:51:00.001-05:00

Dude, I am, like, so there….

http://www.dinnerinthesky.com/index.php

Look beyond the cover

2008-03-02T11:55:00.001-05:00

Take a look at the picture in the link. Is this man Superman? Doesn't look like he could be. But he was.

Bill Evans had Superman's power to move, but with a piano. His style was distinctive--introspective, but absolutely with emotions. His work with an orchestra was evocative and haunting (I'm listening to it play in my head, and I get goosebumps). And I defy you--no, I dare you--not to be moved as you listen to "Danny Boy." There is a gospel-like feel to that song. I listen to it, and I am almost back home in church on a Sunday morning. And "Blue in Green", from Kind of Blue, Miles Davis' seminal album--the goosebumps I get from that song are matched only by those you-know-whats.

Don't worry--he could swing as hard as anyone, like on "Israel" on Trio 65.

If you look at his catalog, the trio was his stock-in-trade. According to this NPR profile, he wanted to give the bass and drums enough room to talk, have a musical conversation with all the voices.

As someone in the program said of Evans, "The idea of insistently being a trio player is a fairly aggressive thing for a piano player. And I think that perhaps argues that beneath that mild-mannered, bespectacled Clark Kent exterior there was more of a self-aware Superman than we might have realized."

Adjust, adjust!

2008-03-02T11:20:00.000-05:00

The New England Patriots are a smart organization. But they are about to make a huge mistake in not resigning Randy Moss. He took a big pay cut to play for the team, had a huge season, and expects to be rewarded. The Patriots don't operate like that, however, and risk watching Moss leave.

You keep Moss on your team, pure and simple. As he showed last year, he can still operate at a high level. Whatever you have to pay him, pay him. In other words, the Pats need to adjust. Like all organizations should.

Word of the day--2

2008-02-29T09:36:00.000-05:00

Sesquipedalian.

Yes, it's a four-dollar word. But a cool four-dollar word. Probably spoken by a man who spoke those kinds of words with ease.

No, I rarely agreed with William F. Buckley. But the words he used with utter ease and that slight English/patrician accent was a joy to behold.

Oh by the way

2008-02-29T08:31:00.001-05:00

Happy Leap Year Day

Them changes

2008-02-28T13:57:00.000-05:00

Buddy Miles, drummer for Jimi Hendrix, died today. He was in Hendrix's Band of Gypsys in the late '60s, and had a hit of his own with 'Them Changes,' a great song.

I saw him and his band in the late '90s at the now-closed Chicago Blues in Greenwich Village. I still remember how fantastic, groovy and bluesy his set was. How he powered through and pretty much set the place on fire. I stayed for both sets that night, and I'm glad I did.

He and Jimi are back together again, jamming and burning guitars.

Oops

2008-02-27T09:12:00.002-05:00

Here’s a memo to pilots looking to buzz the airfield, a la Tom Cruise in “Top Gun”:

Make sure the chairman of the airline is NOT on board as you cruise that big Boeing 777 over the airfield.

Just a thought…

Hop aboard

2008-02-26T10:26:00.001-05:00

Here’s a good history lesson and a good life lesson wrapped into a good story. I won’t describe who the Pullman porters were—I’ll let you read about it. What I loved about porters was the way they handle the racism they faced on the rails—with aplomb, nimbleness, and, if I may add, a little subversiveness. The dual role they played as both servants and psychologists was standard for the age. They wore many hats, besides the blue caps on their heads. And I love how they handled difficult passengers—they’d “nice ‘em to death.”

One more thing…Look at the picture of the three gentleman. To me, they are the epitome of dignity, grace, style and elegance. When I look in the mirror, I hope to see these things.

No barriers

2008-02-22T08:53:00.002-05:00

What do barriers mean for a young man who is 17-9 this season as a wrestler? Who's blind, by the way? Not much. Not much at all.

Good for him.

Is Tiger Woods an underdog?

2008-02-21T10:38:00.001-05:00

Sometimes we put ourselves into holes. We never mean to, but it happens. We become an underdog. Then what?

Then, we become Tiger Woods. And get out of the hole we dug for ourselves. Like he did at the Accenture Match Play Championship. Three down with five holes to play, he summoned his indomitable will to win.

We can get in it, and we can get out. Sometimes all it takes it sheer force of will.

What is age?

2008-02-19T17:58:00.001-05:00

It ain't nuttin' but a number...

A little apple and cheese with your whine?

2008-02-16T10:22:00.003-05:00

I’ve been known to shed a tear or two, but man, not the way the Apple universe whines. I own an iPhone, an iPod (my third--hardly used now), I’m on my second laptop (MacBook), and I had a Mac mini. I've given someone an iPod mini. I’ve drank mightily from Steve Jobs’ Kool-Aid bowl, and loved every damn sip.

But I’ve never seen a more soft, preening, pretentious bunch of pansies than Apple fans. It would be nice if life were just so. But it’s not, which makes life more interesting. So you have to pay $20 more to upgrade your iPod Touch? Fine. Give up five lattes. Boom! You have your upgrade, Steve Jobs has his Andy Jackson, and everybody is happy.

Stop living the fairy tale of the Princess and the Pea.

Question/answer

2008-02-15T11:25:00.001-05:00

What makes a person (a man in most cases) reach the point where they need to reach for a gun to think they can solve their problems?

I don’t have an answer. I don’t know. I think, though, that we (the country) aren’t giving men the outlets they need to say, I need help. I need someone to talk to. Tangible outlets and intangible outlets.

What made the man in Illinois snap, get guns, walk into a classroom, and shoot people he doesn’t know? I fear I know this answer. And it saddens me.

A blast from the past

2008-02-13T20:47:00.002-05:00

The art of simplicity (after a fashion):

Remember this incident with former Virginia Gov. George Allen, as he campaigned for the Senate?

Virginia’s primary reminded me of this, and the videographer. H.R. Sidarth had that invective hurled at him, and became well-known via You Tube. That video pretty much killed Allen’s chances.

Sidarth was a student at the University of Virginia, and in the next semester, he tried to get into Prof. Larry Sabato’s popular politics class. To gain entry, you have to write an essay. Most write long and involved pieces. Sidarth wrote three words:

I am macaca.

Of course he got in. Simple as that.

This is cool...

2008-02-13T19:52:00.000-05:00

And this is why it's not too late...

At age 35, Harrison Ford was fitting a door for Francis Ford Coppola when a studio executive asked the handyman to take a break and read lines with actresses who were testing for a new film. The film was Star Wars.

I'm not as sweet

2008-02-13T19:49:00.001-05:00

As Sweetness himself, but yes, you keep running through...

Yes

2008-02-13T19:47:00.001-05:00

Misremember is a word. Roger Clemons didn't make it up.

Me likey

2008-02-12T19:23:00.000-05:00

Kanye West took this from Daft Punk....

and created this...

How? Discuss...

I like Kanye for this reason--He thinks outside the box. His look, his beats, his videos, all different from the standard run-of-the-mill hip-hop.

I've been always been drawn to different.

Ah, the French...

2008-02-12T12:03:00.000-05:00

I sang the praises of French style here. But, there's an enough, umm, side to things....

Here's what I call dodging a logistical bullet. I flew to Paris last Thursday night. The week before, there was a strike at de Gaulle Airport. Bullet 1...

At least the weather was great--stunning blue skies all weekend.

I left yesterday morning, cloudless blue skies greeting me.

I hear on the radio this morning of another strike hitting Orly and de Gaulle. I'm sitting in a cafe at home now. Bullet 2....

Ah, the French...

Icebreaker

2008-02-06T19:51:00.000-05:00

Here is a great story on the first black hockey player, Willie O'Ree. He didn't set out to be a pioneer, but to play the game. But he needed a certain, special toughness to make it through the thicket of racial slurs that came...

"I never fought one time because of racial remarks. I fought because guys butt-ended me and speared me and cross-checked me. But I said, 'If I'm going to leave the league, it's because I don't have the skills or the ability to play anymore. I'm not going to leave it 'cause some guy makes a threat or tries to get me off my game by making racial remarks towards me.'"

Border war

2008-02-05T06:17:00.001-05:00

Here is an interesting take on how international borders can get in the way of common sense and doing good...

Soccer mad

2008-02-05T06:15:00.000-05:00

I'm not the biggest soccer fan in the world, but the writing of the International Herald Tribune's Rob Hughes makes me care about the game. This rememberance of the 1958 plane crash that killed many members of the Manchester United team is a shining example of the quiet power and passion of Hughes' words and his love of the game.

Lessons of the heart

2008-02-02T09:00:00.000-05:00

A uncle of mine had a heart attack years ago. It drastically changed his life. He was a big guy, and he forced him to lose weight and change his habits.

I think about this because I read yesterday that a famous writer for the Washington Post had a heart attack Monday. It's a powerful column that must be read. Michael Wilbon understands that his life has to change. Give himself a little more slack. Eat smarter. Realize he is not indestructible. None of us are. We kid ourselves into that mindset, and then we are shocked that it's not true. You give yourself slack that you're human, your body will fail and let you down, your mind will stumble and let you down. Fine. See it for what they are.

Then live.

Interestingly, two guys who Wilbon had slammed in his writings gave him the greatest lesson. Adversaries make for great teachers.

One of those teachers told him this nugget. A good thing to just ponder....

"This is definitely manageable. And you'll do it. But it doesn't mean you're in total control. This whole thing should help you learn the difference."

Who we are

2008-01-31T17:09:00.001-05:00

No people on earth fascinate and exasperate like Americans. We are a breed apart of everyone else. I don't say this out of jingoism or arrogance. It comes from living overseas for three years, looking back over my shoulder and marveling and shaking my head at the place.

Here are two articles that point to the uniqueness of this place called America. Both revolve around the presidential race. This explores the myth of the presidency, and this looks are the primary season itself, and why it's never good to count the Leviathan out, even if it's a little wobbly.

A memo

2008-01-31T06:02:00.000-05:00

To: Britney Spears

I normally don't mention the goings on in Hollywood, but this whole Britney Spears thing is really bothering me. When is somebody going to tell her that she needs to get the hell out of Hollywood? Right now. I know she has kids, but at this moment, she is in the worst place in the world to be. A year away from the bright lights. Anything.

Scrambled eggs

2008-01-30T06:07:00.000-05:00

If you ever decide to run for office, say president of the United States, do not, under any circumstances whatsoever, put every single egg you have into one basket, like this guy. Rudy Guiliani ran quite possibly the dumbest campaign in memory. And for that, he gets to watch John McCain and Mitt Romney slug it out, and a speech at the convention. Congrats.

Not much

2008-01-28T06:09:00.000-05:00

I don't want much from life--to love, to be happy.

But a fast car would be nice, too.

Snow day

2008-01-25T06:27:00.000-05:00

Have you ever wanted to call the school superintendent, begging him or her to close school when the flakes started falling? One kid did, and the results landed on YouTube (unfortunately, the call got pulled.). Ah, kids today...

This is nuts

2008-01-25T06:23:00.000-05:00

I love my home state, but it's illegal to serve sangria there. I know, it's crazy--they're a little bit behind...

Back to school

2008-01-24T06:01:00.000-05:00

To paraphrase these guys...

Your own...personal...university. Right here

This is cool..

2008-01-24T06:00:00.000-05:00

Hat tip from here.

Labels suck

2008-01-21T15:26:00.000-05:00

I'm writing this on a Mac now. I love the thing. I like my iPhone a lot. But damn dude, do you really need to go here? Liberals love Macs, and conservatives love PCs? Do things always have to break down like that? Is it always that easy?

For the cool in you

2008-01-18T18:47:00.000-05:00

The crew of the British Airways 777 that crash-landed yesterday should be applauded for their cool and nerves of steel. A triple-7 is not a small plane. And to belly flop one after the engines died, and the only casualty was a broken leg? Whatever the crew wants, give it to them. But they, especially the pilot, seem too modest for that. Cheers to them.

I was wrong

2008-01-17T18:06:00.001-05:00

There's nothing wrong with Italy. It's as alive as ever.

I don't care

2008-01-17T18:05:00.001-05:00

I do not care if any child is a 'terror'. This little girl deserved a damn sight better than what her "parents" gave her.

What's going on?

2008-01-17T05:50:00.000-05:00

What is happening in Italy? Are things really that bad there?

A wing and a prayer, indeed

2008-01-17T05:47:00.000-05:00

I hope I see this guy flying my jetliner across the Atlantic. Or, commanding a shuttle mission.

Gamebreaker

2008-01-17T05:43:00.000-05:00

I've talked before about Richmond, Va., before. One of the things that drives me crazy about the place is its lack of ambition. The city can be so much more than what it is, but old money and old power hold it back. Here's someone trying to upset the apple cart.

Gamechanger

2008-01-15T20:35:00.001-05:00

Sexy's back.

Steve Jobs, impresario at Apple, did it again. Maybe not with the fanfare and hoopla of the iPhone, but it works for me. Take a look at the new laptop, the MacBook Air. Elegant, stylish, smart, sexy. All the things Apple is known for. Some of the Mac faithful will quibble about specs. But Jobs understands people are drawn to things, objects, people, by aesthetics, not specs. And the new laptop is the latest in a long line of what Jobs does best--take what others do badly, and do them well.

Think about it...

2008-01-15T20:18:00.000-05:00

How much more peaceful would life be if we were all a little more thoughtful? For most of us, we're already thoughtful. But a little refresher is always a good thing. It never hurts to give a little more.

It's a team game

2008-01-13T21:36:00.003-05:00

For a guy who once said, "I love me some me," it's good to see him stand by a teammate after a tough loss.

Bridging the Gap

2008-01-11T06:11:00.000-05:00

While I may have a thing about bridges, they are beautiful pieces of machinery...

Payment due

2008-01-10T20:24:00.000-05:00

If you've ever missed paying a bill, don't feel bad. It happens...

FBI Wiretaps Dropped Due to Unpaid Bills

Gamechanger

2008-01-10T06:13:00.000-05:00

Steve Jobs. Apple. IPhone. Enough has been said about all three to fill many books. Let me add some more.

You have an idea. You try one way, it doesn't work. You know where you what to be, but you're having trouble getting there. You build, rebuild, tweak, test, poke. Push the envelope.

And you get this.

Tears in heaven

2008-01-09T16:22:00.001-05:00

I get so damn sick of seeing these stories. Children are precious. They deserved to be treated better. This story makes me cry. It makes me angry. I get, as my dad calls it, disappointed, sometimes. But I pray I never become this angry. This breaks my heart. As a man, I want to treat the children and women in my life better than this guy. I can, and I do. It makes me angry that we men constantly do this. Why can't we control our egos better than this? I stumble, I fall short, but God, never, never like this. I just shake, wondering why we can't control ourselves better than this? This is why I want to be quiet sometimes. I refuse to give the impression that I can't control myself. I do, and I can. Why do men have to check their damn brains at the door all the damn time for the sake of some stupid concept called "machoness"? Damnit, why? I do not want to be like this. I am so much better than this. I cry for those children who will never be able to reach their potential.

Gephyrophobia

2008-01-08T16:36:00.000-05:00

Hi, I'm chehaw, and I'm afraid of high bridges.

I saw this story in the New York Times, and immediately thought of me. I can tick off the list of spans I won't cross--Delaware Memorial, the Tydings, Bay Bridge. I admire their shapes and their strength. But their height, plus my lack of swimming, leaves me less than enamored to cross them. I do try, but it's a struggle.

The power of persistance

2008-01-07T06:05:00.000-05:00

I love this story. A factory worker gives the local college $1 million. How? He had a good goal, a clear goal, and while it took him years to reach it, he never surrendered it. A nice point of light to reach for.

No beginning, no end

2008-01-01T09:43:00.000-05:00

Yesterday didn't feel right.

No, it wasn't because of "the late unpleasantness." Maybe because New Year's Eve fell on a Monday. Maybe, I have changed.

It didn't dawn on me until half an hour before midnight. This time represents neither a beginning, nor an end. It represents a bridge in the cycle. I'm not bashing the revelry--far from it. I enjoy champagne too.

But time is a continuum. It never stops. We may, but its march rolls on. It's one, a whole. An example for us.

Give 'em credit

2007-12-29T23:24:00.000-05:00

The New England Patriots have completed a perfect regular season, beating the New York Giants 38-35.

Give the Giants credit for not rolling over and playing dead to a team superior to them.

Give the Patriots credit for not giving up after being down 12 points.

On a cold night, both teams gave examples of how to live.

Let's go to the movies

2007-12-26T17:33:00.001-05:00

"The Bucket List" is a movie out in January with Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman. It's about two terminal cancer patients who travel around the world checking off their wish lists bbefore they die. My question is--why wait? I understand there may be tangible circumstances involved. But even then, what do you have in mind? And what are you doing to check off your bucket list before you kick the bucket?

Longevity, part II

2007-12-26T17:20:00.000-05:00

The writer of this story points out that famed Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer shouldn't tinker around with his Modernist masterpieces. But what should a 100-year-old man who still has so much life and creativity in him do? Just moulder until it's time for him to go? I don't know much about architecture, but Niemeyer's work, especially his cathedral in Brasilia, helped define the look of 1960s structures--stark, yet swoopy and somebody's vision of the future. Let a master tinker.

And check out the slideshow...

For 'Zo

2007-12-24T09:59:00.000-05:00

Alonzo Mourning has overcome such much in his career--two comebacks, one from a potentially fatal kidney ailment--that most of us don't have much of an excuse. After a bad knee injury last week, it looks like his career may be over. While he's accomplished a lot on the court, he's accomplished more off it, as an example of how to overcome adversity, and through his charitable works. He's come a long way from Indian River High School in Virginia, to Georgetown University, and the NBA. He's a tall light for the rest of us to be guided by. If there is a lesson in giving, and not giving in, it's in 'Zo. Thanks man.

The race is long

2007-12-22T10:25:00.000-05:00

When you turn 100 years old, what will you be doing? Playing jazz, like this man? Writing a book? Imparting knowledge to your great-grandchildren?

We're all living longer--we need to figure out how to adjust our quality of life to the fact that we'll be rolling right along into our 80s. I'm actually looking forward to having distinguished gray hair--just not yet, though.

I don't think I'll retire and play shuffleboard until they stick me in the ground. I want to write, travel, continue to seek. This rolling stone shouldn't gather moss.

Spread love

2007-12-21T17:39:00.000-05:00

There have been stories around Kansas City, Mo., about a man who gave away $100 bills to people he saw in need. He wanted nothing more than to simply--no publicity at all. A reporter discovered his identity last year, and decided to let the world in. Before he died of cancer this year, he spread his message of kindness to others, and sought others to carry on his deeds. Today, they carry on his legacy of helping others. And even if you don't have a spare $100, you can always give your heart, soul, spirit and time.

Home by the sea

2007-12-20T17:48:00.000-05:00

Years ago, I'd love to go out to Coney Island, have a Nathan's hot dog, walk the boardwalk, and watch the old guys fish from the pier.

In Jersey City, N.J., there's a pier jutting out into the Hudson, with a glorious view of lower Manhattan. Feeling the sun's rays in the morning was a treat, and the view at night was to die for.

So it saddened me to see this in the Economist. I hope piers don't disappear. It's a way for us landlubbers to touch the sea, feel its seeming infinity, dream of far-away lands, contemplate our place now. It's a home by the sea, so we can feel at one with it.

Who we are

2007-12-20T17:42:00.000-05:00

The Economist is a very well-written magazine, and this week's Lexington column shows why. It's about the pessimism that seems to be pervasive in the U.S. Yes, things seem kind of cloudy for us, but Americans, as is our nature, are an optimist breed. The first three paragraphs of the story explain why.

The start of something

2007-12-20T17:39:00.000-05:00

Every project starts with the germ of an idea. Something rattling around in your head, something you want to achieve, accomplish. You may put it aside, dismiss it as nonsense. But the idea never goes away. It's always ready to be picked up.

This is that sort of idea. What I am attempt to do is troll through the news, and find examples of personal development, as guideposts to light the way. This idea has been kicking around in me for a while, and I decided to give it a shot. I'll post infrequently, or whenever the spirit moves me. I'll still have my original blog, but that will be more personal, more me. This is another way to connect to the world, and draw strength from it.