Thursday 13: What I'll Remember about Tonight's Game

I visited Safeco Field for the first time this year to see the Yankees game. And here's what struck me...

1. However uncomfortable bleacher seats are, the view from center was awesome.
2. C.C. throwing a mid-90s fastball well into the eighth inning.
3. Alas, Seattle fans didn't boo A-Rod, but only because he wasn't playing.
4. Hideki Matsui's 2 homeruns to right. I'll come back to one of them in a moment.
5. Derek Jeter's HR blast to left.
6. Fireworks at Safeco for Wilson the SS after his HR. Note to Safeconians... Fireworks with the roof closed causes fits of coughing and eye irritations for anyone within the stands. Does anyone else light fireworks indoors?
7. Every person in the Yanks' initial lineup was on base at least once. Even Melky.
8. I attended with 2 brothers with whom I play softball. We call them the brothers Grimm.
9. The wafting smell of garlic. How much garlic do they put on those fries?
10. The 2 fathers with their kids in front of us (3 girls and a boy). All of them were wearing Yankees hats.
11. Watching the Yanks finish it off in the 9th and waiting for New York, New York. It didn't come, but I'll tell ya that there were certainly enough Yankees fans in the house to give a rousing rendition.
12. 11-1
13. A Mariners fan ensuring that Matsui's second HR was, in fact, a HR by sticking his glove out over Ichiro's perfectly timed reach to snag said homer from behind the wall. It would have been one of the best catches I'd ever seen. Instead, it's just another HR that barely cleared the wall.
    

Thursday 13: Leadership

I usually refrain from writing about work. And, as I think about it, this post isn't really about the work I do, per se. But it takes place at my workplace which I think qualifies.

Last week, the director of People and Training (Human Resources) approached me to find out if there might be anyone interested in attending a leadership training session. He explained that he was the only person who had signed up and that the session would not be as beneficial without a few more people in attendance. I knew that none of the IS managers could attend, so I volunteered myself. It soon slipped off my radar as I busied myself with other items.

The day before, the director of People and Training sent me the biography of the person who would be leading the two-day session. A former nun. Interestingly, this excited me since I had found most nuns I knew to be down-to-earth and fun to be around. And the next day, I discovered that Laurie was no exception. Boisterous and perhaps a bit loud, she engaged the four 'students' with her understanding of and excitement about the material she presented. I thoroughly enjoyed her.

As stated, the topic was leadership. How to, essentially. And the training hit a chord. What I was taught seemed at once both obvious and inspiringly foreign. I began to understand what it was leadership actually entails.

I give to you now material extracted directly from the material presented within the class:

13 Behaviors of High-Trust Leaders

1. Talk straight
2. Demonstrate respect
3. Create transparency
4. Right wrongs
5. Show loyalty
6. Deliver results
7. Get better
8. Confront reality
9. Clarify expectations
10. Practice accountability
11. Listen first
12. Keep commitments
13. Extend trust

Thursday 13: Places

In this Thursday 13 post I have decided to list those places that have special meaning to me. Perhaps I may even recall a memory in each of those places. I therefore give you - in no uncertain order - the favorite places of my life...

1. St. John's Seminary Chapel in Brighton, MA
   
2. The older white people's living room in West Haven. Always clean with comfortable couches. And an older white lady humming Lara's theme in the kitchen...
   
3. The backyard on Jeffrey Drive. We could have built a football field back there. Too bad Hurricane Gloria took down the apple tree.
4. Fitzgerald Field on a Thanksgiving morning against Sheehan
5. That rock that you can reach only at low tide out by Savin Rock
6. The mall at the University of Delaware on both sides of Memorial Hall
7. My office with all of my books here in Seattle when it's not 103 degrees
8. The old man's basement watching a Super Bowl - preferably one in which the Giants are playing. It happened once.
   
9. Back on Jeffrey Drive but in the living room on Christmas morning with a fire blazing and the snow falling furiously outside
   
10. The host stand in the Newark Outback on a Saturday at about 6 p.m. What a rush.
11. On the fields at North Seatac either playing with the Thrusters or coaching the Buzz
12. St. Peter's Square staring at the Basilica
13. Dino's in North Haven on a random summer afternoon eating one of their hot dogs
    

Thursday 13: An iTunes Journey

Shuffling songs was impossible with tapes. I mean, unless a person shuffled the songs themselves and created a mixed tape. It became easier with the advent of the compact disc. But only if you had a multiple disc changer. Now with iTunes and Pandora and the like, shuffling is rather commonplace. I personally love shuffling. And so, I have decided to use this post to list the first 13 songs that play on my iTunes. Any song, mind you. No special playlist. It could be anything...

1. The Hornburg - Howard Shore - The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
2. Andrew Lloyd Superstar - Forbidden Broadway - Forbidden Broadway Clean Up I
   
3. Meeting Tom Riddle - John Williams - Harry Potter & The Chamber of Secrets
4. Old Friends - Simon & Garfunkel - Concert in Central Park
5. Faithfully - Journey - Greatest Hits
6. Home for the Holidays - Perry Como - Christmas Spirit
7. Barber: Agnus Dei, Op. 11 - The Choir of New College Oxford - Agnus Dei: Music of Inner Harmony
8. Sacred Love - Sting - Sacred Love
9. Instant Karma! - John Lennon - The John Lennon Collection
10. Wild World - Cat Stevens - Tea for the Tillerman
11. The Actress Hasn't Learned the Lines - Antonio Banderas / Madonna - Evita
12. Call and Answer - Barenaked Ladies - Stunt
13. Joy to the World - Three Dog Night - Forrest Gump
    

Thursday 13: Things I Did as a Kid When I Was Sick

In honor of the fact that Joseph has infected me with whatever nonsense is brewing in my chest and throat, I think back on those times that I stayed home from school:

1. Wrapped myself in a blanket on the couch.
2. Imbibed far too much Robitussin. Hey, I liked it. Especially cherry.
3. Watched the People's Court with Judge Wapner and Doug Llewelyn. And didn't really enjoy it.
4. Ate my Lucky Charms by separating out the non-marshmallows from the marshmallows. One spoonful at a time. It took me 45 minutes to eat a bowl.
5. Slept. But only if I was really sick.
6. Wondered why I stayed home since I'd have to make up all that homework anyway.
7. Played the first Dragon Quest (released for Nintendo in 1986)

8. Watched Classic Concentration
   
9. Ate another bowl of Lucky Charms. Taking another 45 minutes.
10. Watched the Disney afternoon that included Gummi Bears, Duck Tales, Chip n Dale's Rescue Rangers, and Tale Spin. Dark Wing Duck came later, and I actually liked that. But I personally think it jumped the shark with Goof Troop.
11. Staying in my pajamas and not showering all day. Ick!
12. Played solitaire. With real cards.
    
13. Watched the Price Is Right...
    

Thursday 13 (On Friday): Seven Years Ago

On July 8, 2002 I departed West Haven, CT at approximately 5 a.m. in my 1996 Mitsubishi Galant. On July 10, 2002 I arrived in Seattle, WA at approximately 6:30 p.m. Here are some of the things I remember in no particular order...

1. Saying goodbye to my grandfather after he hugged me and stuffed money into my hand.
2. Heading down to the beach to watch the sun rise over the Atlantic. Well, for those who know CT, it was actually Long Island Sound.
   
3. Drinking / eating Ensure (supplied by my grandmother) in the car so that I didn't have to worry about stopping to eat.
4. Worrying about driving cross country with 90% of my worldly possessions.
5. Driving the winding roads from Coeur d'Alene, ID into Washington.
   
6. Watching a literal cloud blanket proceed west to east in central North Dakota. Not to mention the unbelievable bolts of lightning that seemed so close but that were actually miles and miles away.
   
7. Calling the old man from a rest stop in Montana and describing what can only be described as a magnificent blue sky dotted with clouds.
8. Staying in Glendive, MT. One of the eastern-most towns in Montana, I remember seeing multiple pickup trucks with gun racks, a saloon where half the town happened to be, and a small diner where the other half was.
9. Calling Joseph from the now non-existent pay phone on the corner of 8th and Olive.
10. Driving through Chicago at dusk through construction, seeing the Sears tower in all its gothic beauty, and wondering if I was actually going to make it to the hotel in Rockford.
11. Wondering how I was going to explain all of this to family and friends who, I was convinced, would not understand.
12. Seeing Touchdown Jesus and praying at Notre Dame's empty Grotto.
13. Witnessing Seattle in all its majesty and beauty for the first time as I ended my trip on I-90.
    

Thursday 13 (On Friday): Automobiles

With the purchase of a new car - that I have not yet driven - I consider 13 cars I have driven. Whether for years or minutes. Some of those cars, I can describe to a tee. Others, I barely remember. Never a Bentley. But also never a Yugo. I don't think I've driven anything that predates the 1980s. Nor any car made after 2006. I've driven friends' cars. And families' cars. I even tried stick shift once with Uncle Mark. Suffice it to say, I don't drive stick.

And so, in no particular order, I present the cars of my life...

1. I remember neither the make nor the model of the first car I drove. I do remember that it was an early 80s box car, that is it looked like a box. And it was a very unassuming tan. That car with automatic transmission was the car with which I learned to drive in driver's education. I remember taking the test in that car. And getting one minor demerit (not enough from keeping me from my license) for going over the railroad tracks too fast.
2. Silver 1984 Toyota Celica GT Hatchback with power doors, power windows, and a moon roof. Purchased that car for a buck from my Uncle Tom. Lasted me 4 years in high school. And then lasted my brother 3 additional years. I didn't actually fit in the car unless I opened the moon roof, which I did many a cold November night driving football teammates home from practice. Had an engine that didn't quit and a body that was rusting out from under me. Great car.
3. I know I drove at least one of the old man's many AstroVans. Medi-Ray's car of choice, I have many more memories in the passenger seats of those vans than in the driver's.
4. Light blue 1990 Mazda Protege. Given as a gift by my paternal grandparents, the Protege didn't have a lot of the fixins, but it did get me where I needed to go for quite a few years.
5. Green Honda CRV from the late 90s or early 00s. My stepmother's leased car was compact and easy to handle. I still like the look of the CRV and Rav 4.
6. Moving trucks. Whether from Delaware back to Connecticut or from our apartment on 12th Ave S to the house in which we now live, I've driven my fair share of U-Haul like trucks.
7. White 1987 Buick LeSabre. Memere's car for the longest time, I drove this car a few times back and forth to the seminary.
8. An Acura - I want to say Integra, though I can't remember. A seminarian named Ryan lent me his car to drive back to Connecticut for Jared's mother's wake and funeral. I remember being introduced to Andrea Bocelli on that trip (the only CD he had in the car).
9. An old blue boxish Volvo. I remember driving Cliff's car to various places in Boston and the surrounding area to fulfill my responsibilities for teaching catechism and ministering to prison inmates.
10. A champagne-colored Cadillac Deville. Fr. Gunnoud's car rode like a dream. And he let me drive everywhere.
11. A blue late 90s Chevy Cavalier that I drove while at Incarnation in Wethersfield. Plain but effective for that summer 'intership'.
12. Silver 1996 Mitsubishi Galant. Purchased from my sister, this was the car I half-packed and drove across the country. It did me well.
13. Light tan 2006 Subaru Forester. A lease - which I'll never make the mistake of doing again. But a very good car. Last winter, when life in Seattle was hell frozen over - literally - the Forester with its AWD got us everywhere with relative ease. Yes, it did come with a rather hefty repair bill since the ice and snow destroyed the car's alignment, but still, we weren't one of those cars stuck on hills in the Seattle area.

Oh, and the car we just purchased? A Cream-colored 2003 Chevrolet Impala. A good deal with a solid history. I'll tell you how this car rides sometime in the next few days...

Thursday 13: Surreal Moments

Have you ever had those moments when all you can say is, huh? Or you do a double-take to see if you saw what you just thought you saw? I devote this Thursday 13 to those moment in my life.

1. It is my first memory. And most of that is blurred by now. I was 3. Spending time over my maternal grandparents' house. As music went, I knew of only one musical group. The Fab Four was indellibly marked in my brain from before I came out of the womb. Well, on December 8, 1980 I called my Uncle Mark and said, 'I'm sorry about John Lemon.'
2. After the iron had hit my skull a quarter inch from my temple, my neighbor exclaimed, 'You have a hole in your head!' She was right.
3. In a kitchen with exceptionally ugly powder blue floral wallpaper, my parents sat us down for dinner. A rarity. 'We're getting divorced.'
4. I stepped onto the stage and walked to the microphone. The moderator said the word. I repeated it. 'S-E-C-R-A-T-A-R-Y'. 'I'm sorry, that is wrong.' That moment before I broke into tears.
5. I sat on the lower bunk in our apartment after having just moved from a significantly larger house. I realized I'd never see Clancy again. Clancy was the dog...
   
6. Playing at Doolittle Park with a friend and my brother, we ran up a shallow embankment. My brother fell, but it seemed no different than any other time he'd fallen. So I laughed at him. Until I realized that his arm was broken. Then I ran home to get my mother.
   
7. I tried to grab for his jersey as he flitted past me. It felt as though I barely grazed him. I fell. When I went to get up, one of my teammates exclaimed, 'Dude, your finger isn't supposed to point that way.' My right ring finger had dislocated at the second knuckle and was resting over my middle and index fingers.
8. I hit the telephone pole hard trying to turn around. In that lively game of Suicide all those years ago. I got out of the car, thinking the old man would kill me. There wasn't a scratch.
9. I handed her the diamond and ruby ring. 'Will you marry me?' Later, I tried to ask her father for his daughter's hand in marriage. I failed miserably. Mostly because he didn't speak English and my Spanish was questionable at best.
10. I stepped out of my room at the seminary with no place in particular to go. Dan Kennedy walked by and said, 'A plane just hit the World Trade Center.' I moved to the common room just in time to see the second plane hit.
11. I called Joseph from the corner of 8th and Olive and asked him where George, Washington was. He didn't get it.
    
12. I called a few of my friends who thought I had gone AWOL. 'Hi [insert name here] I'm in Seattle.'
13. I walked past the big screen television in the lobby today and saw the word 'Dead'. I thought it was another story about Farrah. Then, I saw the 'Michael Jackson' and thought, wha?
    

Thursday 13: Absurdities

Good evening all. Before I come to the absurdities section of our programming, I need to give the answers to last week's Thursday 13... The Hawaiian Alphabet. If you have forgotten - or if you didn't look in the first place - here's the link: Thursday 13: Hawaiian Alphabet.

1. W (Woodrow Wilson)
2. N (Nitrogen)
3. I
4. A
5. M
6. U
7. K
8. H (Herbert Hoover)
9. O
10. L
11. E
12. P
13. 'okina

Without further ado, I give you 13 absurd thoughts. If they don't make sense to you, don't worry too much because I most likely have no idea myself.

1. I vote to reinstate the Persians. Who ever heard of an Iranian rug?
   
2. I've never seen a Walloon with a balloon.
   
3. Does a cat that comes back as a cat after being reincarnated have another 9 lives?
   
4. The straightest distance between two points is a short line.
   
5. If God is all powerful, can He create a box from which he cannot escape?
   
6. A Few Good White Men Can't Jump
   
7. Yeah, I know a softball was actually soft at some point. But I have the bruises to prove it ain't so soft anymore. I propose 'large hard ball' or 'Lardball'.
   
8. Can someone please swat the PETA people upside their heads? All of them?
   
9. If I were a doctor and I had to examine a hockey player from the Czech Republic who had been slammed hard into the boards, would I have checked a checked Czech?
10. When I see blue, I know you see what I'd consider to be brick red. Except you know it as blue too.
    
11. I asked the Magic Eight Ball if it tells the truth. It said 'Outlook Not So Good'.
    
12. If you happen to know the history of the future, can you change it?
    
13. The Guinea pig is neither a pig nor is it from Guinea. Discuss.
    

Thursday 13: Hawaiian Alphabet

An interesting fact... The Hawaiian alphabet has 13 letters. What's that, you ask... what are those letters? (Okay, so I know none of you truly care that much, but play along anyway.) And therefore, in no particular order, I give you each letter. Well, not really. Just a hint at determining each letter. I'm not just going to cop out and list letters after all. That would be boring...

1. The only Democratic president that had first and last names beginning with the same letter. Name the letter.
2. The symbol of the chemical element with atomic number = 7. The chemical element is used to preserve the freshness of packaged foods, to reduce fire hazards in military aircraft fuel systems, and to pressurize kegs of some beers.
3. A 'y' is a Greek one.
4. The vitamin associated with retinas.
5. Bernard Lee, Robert Brown, and Judi Dench all have this letter in common. And I'm not talking about the respective letters in their names. In fact, this letter doesn't appear in any of their respective names.
6. A common modern abbreviation for a second-person personal pronoun.
7. The more senior agent, he read tabloids and spoke to Remoolian pugs.
8. One of two Republican presidents that had first and last names beginning with the same letter. Name the letter. (And it isn't the 'Silent' one.)
9. This magazine almost always has the same person on its cover. And all her life, she's had to fight.
10. The Super Bowl in 2017
11. A very irrational 2.71828182845904523536... according to Euler
12. While watching Wheel of Fortune one day, my grandmother exclaimed to one of the contestants, 'You shoulda took a _'. As small children, my brother and I thought it rather amusing.
13. Not to disappoint, but there is no clue for this last 'letter'. It is a glottal stop best represented by the dash in 'uh-oh!'. Or by the apostrophe in Hawai'i. Go figure...

Thursday 13: My Least Favorite Teams

Inspired by Facebook, I have decided to list those teams that land at the bottom of my list. I just can't, in good conscience, root for them...

1. In honor of the job they're doing this evening, I have decided to put the Los Angeles Lakers at the top of the list. Not because they're my absolute least favorite team (well, in the NBA they are), but because they come to mind first.
2. The Minnesota Wild because their name is stupid. I want the Minnesota North Stars back.
3. Cheshire High Football of the early to mid 90s. I suppose the dislike bordered on respect, similar to that I have for the Pittsburgh Steelers. But I still wanted to see them lose. I actually had a second’s hesitation when deciding whether to cheer for Cheshire or Sheehan. Only a moment’s…
4. The Baltimore Ravens. I don't have a great reason. Other than the fact they have a murderer playing for them. Or that Art Modell pulled the Browns out of Cleveland. Or that they're one of the dirtiest teams in football.
5. The Oklahoma City Thunder. As an almost 7-year Seattlite, I witnessed the ridiculousness and politics that spelled the end of the Seattle SuperSonics. And honestly, Seattle should still have a team but for Howard Schultz and Clay Bennett.
6. The Maloney Spartans to support most of my family.
7. The Philadelphia Eagles (qualified) with Buddy Ryan as head coach. I hated them more than I did the Cowboys growing up.
8. USC. Both because of the old man’s favorite Notre Dame and because I live in Washington.
9. The Oakland Raiders (qualified) while Al Davis remains the owner. I can't agree with a guy that almost intends his team to self destruct every year.
10. Duke. I'm a UCONN fan. Sue me.
11. The Sheehan Titans. No explanation needed.
12. The Boston Red Sox. Dogs and Red Sox fans, stay off the grass.
13. The Dallas Cowboys. Even when Parcells was the coach. Tuna, how could you?
    

Thursday 13: Meals

What would I choose to eat? I mean for meals. Ice cream doesn't count. Nor does my mother's cake or strawberry rhubarb pie. Beer ain't gonna cover it. This is all about real meals.

1. Any pasta and marinara sauce (my mother's specialty - she always claimed she could put sauce on dog food and I'd eat it)
   
2. Hot dogs (Preferably at the ballpark)
   
3. Kielbasa (yes, it's much different than hot dogs and best on my grandmother's table for the evening of Christmas/Easter, etc.)
4. Moo Goo Gai Pan (the only Asian [American] dish to make the list)
5. Lil's Mac & Cheese (Dunno why but that's some good stuff)
6. Joseph's chicken (No matter how he makes it, it's always the juiciest chicken I've ever tasted)
7. Sweet Steak (It's the old man's term. It's been too long since I've had that miraculous taste in my mouth)
8. Lamb Chops with Mint Jelly (Yumm)
9. The old man's 17 egg omelette with the works
10. Though only once a year, the provider should think twice before denying me turkey... with dressing/stuffing... and the newly added greens... and mashed potatoes... and yams... I just love Thanksgiving dinners
11. Louie's or Napoli's pizza in Wallingford... it's a tie
    
12. Louie's (of West Haven and may have changed names 17 times since I was a kid) blueberry pancakes after mass at Our Lady of Victory
13. Chicken or Veal Parm... doesn't matter where, though Mama Theresa's in Milford and that place in Southington beginning with an 'S' (I think) bring back memories
    

Thursday 13: Star Trek

In keeping with the Star Trek theme, I give to you 13 memorable quotations from the movies. See if you can guess which they're from:

1. McCoy: Green-blooded hobgoblin!
   
2. Kirk: How we deal with death is at least as important as how we deal with life, wouldn't you say?
   
3. Riker: Klingons never doing anything small, do you?
   
4. Scotty: The more they over think the plumbing, the easier it is to stop up the drain.
   
5. Spock: It only knows that it needs, Commander. But, like so many of us, it does not know what.
   
6. Worf: If you were any other man, I would kill you where you stand.
   
7. Kirk: Everybody remember where we parked.
   
8. Picard: You're a starfleet officer. You have a duty!
   
9. Spock: Please captain, not in front of the Klingons.
   
10. Data: I believe I speak for everyone here, sir, when I say to hell with our orders.
    
11. Kirk: I'll give him this, he's consistent.
    
12. Picard: You have the bridge Mr. Troi.
    
13. Spock: If I were human I believe my response would be 'go to hell'... if I were human.
    

(1) 11 (2) 2 (3) 9 (4) 3 (5) 1 (6) 8 (7) 4 (8) 7 (9) 5 (10) 8 (11) 2 (12) 10 (13) 6

Thursday 13: Favorite Books (thus far)

I admit I have not been reading as prolifically as I would like. It's a choice I make, i.e. making work, softball, and blogging a priority. I must therefore rely on my past favorites as I haven't come across a book that has wowed me in some time.

And thus, in no specific order, they are...

• The Promise - Chaim Potok
• The Alchemist - Paulo Coehlo
• Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card
• Narcissus and Goldmund - Hermann Hesse
• Fifth Business - Robertson Davies
• Sophie's World - Jostein Gaarder
• Life of Pi - Yann Martel
• The Lord of the Rings - J.R.R Tolkien (Yes, I know it's cheating. And not because it's 3 books but 6.)
• Magister Ludi (The Glass Bead Game) - Hermann Hesse
  
• Father Elijah - Michael D. O'Brien
• The Once and Future King - T.H. White
• A Tale of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
• My Name Is Asher Lev - Chaim Potok
  

Thursday 13: Future Vacations

As I settle back into the wonderful world of work, I consider future vacation spots...

1. London, England - Hey kids, Big Ben, Parliament...
2. Between Supai and Tuweep, Arizona AKA The Grand Canyon - One of the 7 Natural Wonders
   
3. Jerusalem, Israel - Jewish, Christian, and Muslim holy sites
   
4. Byzantium AKA Constantinople AKA Istanbul, Turkey - The Hagia Sophia for one
   
5. Lhasa, Tibet - Don't have a particularly good reason
   
6. Buenos Aires, Argentina - Para ver la Casa Rosada (to see the Pink House - the Argentinian presidential house)
7. Sydney, Australia - I'd rather go to Mardi Gras there.
8. Giza, Egypt - C'mon, who really built those things?
   
9. Athens, Greece - The home of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle
10. Shanhaiguan, China - The eastern most point of the Great Wall of China
11. Paris, France - I'll just visit briefly. I mean, there's always Notre Dame.
12. Philadelphia, PA - Yes, I know, I know. But would you believe I've still never set foot in Independence Hall? I grow up loving the Revolutionary War. Visited Concord and Lexington AND Yorkstown. But never saw the place where this country officially became treasonous from the top down.
13. The entirety of Spain. Yes, even Extremadura but especially Santiago, Barcelona, Asturias, Zaragoza, Valencia, Madrid, Cadiz, Granada, and Sevilla.
    

Thursday 13: Vacation

As I prepare to venture across the southern border with Joseph, I have decided to list 13 things to which I'm looking forward in Cancun:

1. Cab drivers who know no English until you realize you don't have enough money to pay them.
2. Blinding the others at the resort with my glow-in-the-dark white skin.
3. Sand everywhere.
   
4. The prediction that there will be scattered showers or isolated thunderstorms every day but May Day according to the Weather Channel's 10-day outlook.
5. Leaving just as the weather in Seattle becomes sunny and 70.
6. Swimming in the undertow at night with sharks and jellyfish.
7. Asking those involved in the drug war if they can't just get along.
8. Tap water, yum...
9. Reapplying SPF 75 every 15 minutes in the shade.
10. Speaking broken Spanish to natives who laugh at the funny tall white man who tries too hard.
11. Finding out the Mayan short calendar was even shorter than the Mayans expected.
12. Thinking about the 5 days of work I'll be making up when I return... over the next 6 months.
13. Flipping back and forth between CNN Mexico and Spanish voiced over episodes of Sanford and Son while recovering from Montezuma's revenge after drinking the tap water.

But honestly, this is our first real vacation in 7 years. It's about time.

That said, I have decided to take a break from all commitments during this week, including the blog (although I may post during the middle of the week to let you know how things are going). I shall therefore pick back up when I return next Monday evening for and 'It's Personal' entry.

Hasta luego!

Thursday 13: Movies I Won't Watch (Again)

I have decided to adopt the Thursday Thirteen as my Thursday writing.

In this installment, I take a look at a few movies I refuse to watch. Or those I refuse to watch again...

1. Waterworld (1995) - Kevin Costner in baseball movies, okay. Kevin Costner not in baseball movies, not so good.
2. Piranha (1978) - A fisherman dangles his feet into the water, fishing off a pier. His face suddenly contorts. He falls backward on the dock; the stumps that were once his legs droop bloodily into the water. Now imagine a six year old watching. Ugh...
3. Celtic Pride (1996) - Two Celtic fans kidnap an opposing player to guarantee a Celtics championship. Honestly, Dan Akroyd seems to spell flop if he's anywhere near being a main character in a movie. Well, since Blues Brother anyway.
4. From Justin to Kelly (2003) - Kelly has more than made up for this unfortunate contractual obligation with her music. Justin found his niche doing something...
5. Newsies (1992) - The old man brought home this movie one unfortunate evening. We barely made it through the opening sequence. And we've never let him forget it.
6. Catwoman (2004) - Joseph loved this movie. And I know it was just because Halle Berry was in it. Honestly, I'll take Eartha Kitt any day. Even from beyond the grave.
7. Schindler's List (1993) - Wouldn't think you'd see this one on here, huh? It put me in a funk for an entire week. I just can't fathom that a group of people would do such a thing to another group of people.
8. That Darn Cat (1965) - During the mid-1980s I attended Moses Yale Beach Elementary School in Wallingford, CT. We watched movies twice a year. That would entail herding all of the kids in the school into the gym to sit in unbelievably uncomfortable seats to watch one of two eight millimeter films the school owned. This was one.
9. The Apple Dumpling Gang (1975) - This was the other.
10. Toys (1992) - Didn't get it. Didn't want to get it. Watched it on New Years Eve of 1992 into New Years Day of 1993. Wish I had that one back. For sleep or something...
    
11. Saving Private Ryan (1998) - It is the only movie during which I closed my eyes multiple times. Like during the first 20 minutes of the film. Absolutely worth watching once. But I'd never voluntarily watch it again.
12. Gigli (2003) - Affleck and Lopez in the movie that promised to boost this Hollywood power couple to stardom. Neither have had critical successes in anything since. Nor are they still a couple. Good call.
13. The Passion of the Christ (2004) - For those who know me, this may seem an odd choice. But honestly, I've prayed the sorrowful mysteries and that's effective enough without having to see the blood splatter from the lashing Jesus took. Good to watch once? Yes. Twice, not for me.
    

Potluck: Thursday 13

I've recently added a new site to the list of blogs I read; it is called Thursday 13. The idea is to write a list of 13 things about anything. The list is usually a personal 13 things, like my 13 top favorite movies or 13 places I've visited. If this proves to suit my fancy, I may very well replace Potluck Thursdays with the Thursday 13.

Without further ado, I give you 13 things on my desk at work.

1. Post-its with varied notes like 'agenda for AIS call' and 'technical dox Claims tracking' written on them.
2. A jade plant
3. Two rather large monitors.
4. A tea-stained Starbucks cup with two Earl Grey tea bags in it
5. A picture of me and Joseph from the first time we visited the Puyallup Fair
6. A New York Giants calendar with the following trivia question: 'Tackle Adam Koets was a second-team All-Pac-10 choice as a senior in 2006. At what school did he earn that honor?'
7. The book: Implementing the IT Balanced Scorecard by Jessica Keyes
8. The book: Six Sigma for Everyone by George Eckes
9. A picture of Buddy
10. A picture of Cleo
11. A paperweight brought back from Egypt by our Senior Accountant, who is from Egypt
12. Three copies of Technology Road Map Meeting Minutes for a follow up meeting tomorrow
13. A Trick or Treat pencil from God knows which Fall Carnival (not allowed to call it Halloween) social event