It is Monday morning, and I’ve got a couple of things going on this 20th day of June. First, and most importantly, today is my son’s 21st birthday, and it is a partial prep/partial day off for me. In some parts of the country, it is a full national holiday, as we celebrate Juneteenth, the day we recognize the protracted announcement of the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. The Emancipation Proclamation was signed on September 22, 1862, but word did not reach enslaved Americans in Texas until June 19, 1865.

Texas has a tendency to take their sweet time recognizing some folk’s rights.

Apparently, the Texas GOP (Republican) party has established their party platform for the midterms, and it’s about as ass-backwards as you might expect.

First, they reject the election of Joe Biden as President of the United States. They have no evidence to support this position, no court cases, they merely desire it to be the truth, so they are believing it into existence, and it will be the truth just as soon as Tinkerbell sprinkles fairy dust on me so I can fly.

Second, the party also adopted the policy that “homosexuality is an abnormal lifestyle choice”. Once again, more backward-assery. I know enough from my gay friends and family to recognize is normal and not a choice. This type of hatred and prejudice is typical of the toxic masculinity I’ve witnessed on the far right. Being gay is not a choice. A choice would be something along the lines of, “Should I stay home and watch CSPAN, or should I dress up like in riot gear and try to overturn an election?”.

Obviously, many made the wrong choice on January 6th, 2021.

They’ve also established that all gun control legislation is in violation of the second amendment. This just a few scant weeks following the mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas. I guess prior rulings by the Supreme Court don’t have traction in Texas.

There are other issues that eliminate other’s rights as well. Reproductive rights are under assault, trying to make sure that men unable to control their penises can control every woman’s uterus instead.

I’m glad I don’t live in Texas.

To be frank, Texans are probably glad I don’t live there either.

I’m guessing there’s a fair number of Kansans that wished I didn’t live in Kansas.

There are probably some jackhammer macho men that wished I didn’t live at all.

Yay, me.

I hope the world is treating you better than you deserve.

Peace y’all.

Good morning! It is Sunday, June 19, 2022, and today is Fathers’ Day in the US. It’s going to be a good one, and it’s going o to be a hot one.

My wife and kids are going to spoil me today, and I’ll respectfully relish every moment. Lisa got up early and got some things done around the house, including some cleanup in the living room in anticipation of the new television arriving this morning (yeah, I’m a little excited about that… and I get to hear my wife say something like, “Bob, that thing is huge!” for the first time in my life). The delivery crew always calls before they deliver, so we’ll have a few minutes to get the dogs out in the backyard… but we might have to put Rosy and Lily in their kennel. Lily has figured out how to get out of the backyard, either by squirming through a hole in the fence or a hole under the deck.

I haven’t made coffee yet this morning… I should do something about that.

Lisa is planning a breakfast of corned beef hash and eggs, a longtime favorite. Lunch will be leftovers from last night – takeout from Jade Garden, and tonight, the grand finale of the day, filet mignon, potatoes, and bacon-wrapped asparagus on the grill.

I think the guys are getting together this afternoon for a little gaming, so I’ll jump in with them for a bit as well.

I’ll probably close out the day with a trip to the pool before bedtime. Sometimes it’s nice to go out and just float under a star-filled sky.

Tomorrow combines a couple of noteworthy dates – it’s a federal holiday with Juneteenth celebrations, and it is also the 21st birthday of my youngest, my son Dane. I think taking the afternoon off might be called for, and I’ve got the time off in the bank.

I hope the world is treating you better than you deserve.

Peace y’all.

It is Saturday morning, the day before Fathers’ Day, June 18 2022. I just finished a wonderful breakfast my spouse prepared, French toast and bacon, with a couple of cups of black coffee.

I am preparing for a day out in the yard for as long as I can stand it.

It’s 9:36 AM in the morning, and we expect the temperature to reach the high 90’s, but I’m guessing we’ll hit triple digits again…38 degrees for my friends that generally work with Celsius rather than Fahrenheit.

311 degrees for those that prefer Kelvin.

I’ve got trimming to do around the property, around the fence line. I probably ought to get a little mowing done there in the dog patch as well. Lisa already went out to the orchard to water our new fruit trees, and she did some spraying for pests (read “ticks”) around the pool and raised flower beds as well.

Dane and I will get some things squared away here in the living room in anticipation of arrival of the new television set tomorrow. Both Lisa and Dane have mentioned how quiet it has been without the television set running constantly. I even looked up from my laptop once to nod at them.

I will admit that the absence of the living room tv has been manageable. Lisa and I have spent more time out in the pool this week, and I’m better for it. I also worked with my daughter’s dog, Ruthie, to make sure she can get in and back out of the pool on her own. She’s half standard poodle, so she has a bit of a water affinity. Last thing I want to see is a drowned pet in the pool.

I could talk about stuff in the news, but just getting started on that will just get me depressed.

I hope the world is treating you better than you deserve.

Peace y’all.

It is Friday morning, and I’m pounding out a blog entry before my meetings start. This is the 17th day of June 2022.

I wrapped up my internal training yesterday, and I feel revived by the experience. One aspect of my career that I have always embraced is the occasion to recharge the batteries and polish the furniture. I am a pretty experienced technical trainer, going back to my first days of training back in 1993. I’ve had my ups and downs and certainly have had my fair share of self-doubt and bouts of imposter syndrome – yeah, I still get those. A week like the past one can be very fortifying.

The trainers running this course were complimentary – two voices, two different approaches to the content. One more therapist, one more coach. I like experiences such as this with a mix of perspectives and differing experiences.

Today is a meeting day, starting shortly. Team meetings, chats with folks I’m assisting, and some prep work to get my ducks in a row for my architecture class next week.

I’ll head into town later to grab a few things for Sunday, Fathers’ Day, and my son’s birthday on Monday. Plenty of other things to address around here, everything from sweeping and mopping to mowing and trimming.

In the meantime, I hope the world is treating you better than you deserve.

Peace y’all.

Hey folks! It’s Thursday morning, June 16, 2022. Life is pretty good, a little rain fell last night, the pool is in good shape, the water is warm, and the coffee is done brewing.

Today is my last day of internal training. I’ll admit that I didn’t know what to expect with this sort of training, “advanced presentation skills”, but I must admit, it was definitely beneficial and an eye-opener about things I do when I present, as well as some insight into things I can do a little better. After having been a professional technical trainer since 1993, I have likely become a little overconfident in my abilities without taking adequate time for self-analysis.

I’m going to be a better trainer thanks to this experience.

The world is still a sad place. Russia is still hurting people to placate Putin’s ego. Fortunately, it looks like ol’ Vlad is not in the best of health. Lots of rumors floating around about his state of being, both mental and physical. I think (hope?) that new leadership would be best for the Russian and Ukrainian people, and how that transition happens is in the hands of others. Read online yesterday that the 50th Russian colonel has fallen victim to that conflict. I don’t have much pity for him.

There’s always political stuff going on. The comments section is filled with nonsense from troll farms and gullible rubes. I do my best to keep scrolling. That said, the January 6th House Committee needs to get on the ball. If this whole mess continues after the November election cycle, it will all get swept under the rug by the Republicans as swiftly as possible.

Time for me to get on with my day.

I hope the world is treating you better than you deserve.

Peace y’all.

It is Wednesday morning, June 15, and, for many of us that receive our paychecks semi-monthly, it is payday. I am a fortunate man to work for a great company with solid benefits, and a culture that promotes well-being.

Seriously, when I talk with some of my peers, I am stunned by some of the stories I hear. So many workplaces these days have pretty toxic environments.

Today is the third day of our public speaking skills camp. I’ll put a little more polish on the presentation I gave Monday and see how it lands. There are a few things I want to take a second run at in the training environment.

Tonight I get to hang out with the guys online for a gaming session. I look forward to it, as I don’t believe we’ll be playing on Sunday this week – Father’s Day, and just about all of us are dads. Some of us are grandfathers (not me!), and that’s par of the course when you have a bunch of guys in their late 50’s through mid 60’s.

I probably ought to keep an eye on the availability of the washer and dryer today. I have some necessary articles of clothing in need of laundering.

To be frank, it’s been a pretty uneventful couple of days. When given a choice between “less drama” and “more drama”, I’m perfectly fine with my life having as much drama as a Wyndham Hill sampler or a “best of” album from Narada Lotus. I like the kind of music that one can meditate with, or simply cause me to relax and fall into a needed slumber.

Now, it is time to attend to coffee and breakfast.

I hope the world is treating you better than you deserve.

Peace y’all.

It is Tuesday morning, and I’m already wondering what we’re going to have for dinner, on this 14th day of June. Tuesdays have been a good day for tacos, and there’s a place on the edge of town with a dollar taco special. Gears are grinding.

I generally start off my blog posts by going out to check the number of days I’ve been alive on Rod Martin’s web site. A moment ago, the IP address wouldn’t resolve, but it appears to be fixed now. The average person lives somewhere between 28,500 and 30,000 days, and that’s the kind of thing I keep track of with my daily posts. Glad his site is OK, and you should go check it out if you like cool personal/professional web content – especially if you have an interest in Drupal.

TV situation is still unresolved until Sunday, but my tablet has a DISH app on it, so I was able to watch the Celtics-Warriors game last night. Golden State rode the roller coaster, up in the first half, down in the third quarter, and back up in the fourth. They take a 3-2 lead in the best of seven series, with two games to win one. History is on their side.

More internal training today. I look forward to it. I seem to be participating at a fairly high level, and I would encourage more of my peers to dig in a little deeper with their observations. I try to provide feedback on every participant and was a little disappointed that more of my peers didn’t provide a comment or two about my delivery.

Lean in.

It’s about that time for me to think about my workday, grab a cup of coffee, and get my breakfast squared away. Low-carb tortilla with American cheese going in the toaster oven, sausage and cheese scramble going in the microwave for an improvised breakfast burrito.

I hope the world is treating you better than you deserve.

Peace y’all.

It is Monday morning, and my internal training event starts in a couple of hours. It is the 13th of June, and a week away from my son’s 21st birthday.

These days, many Americans have familiarized themselves with the acronym, “RWNJ”… which stands for “Right-wing nut job”. Historically, they just stood around in wearing shirts that violated the flag code, yelled at people, and waved around sounds with poor spelling and punctuation. After January 6th, they proved to the world just how dangerous they can be. If the vocal minority doesn’t get their way, they’re more than happy to shoot a few people and twist up some pipe bombs to get their way.

This past weekend, a group organized as the “Patriotic Front” was arrested in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. There was a pride month celebration and march scheduled there in support of the Idaho LGBTQ+ community. This neo-Nazi pack decided they were going to don riot gear and cause trouble, but fortunately folks thought they looked suspicious in their riot gear. They arrested the lot of them.

Thank God.

It really pisses me off what assholes like this have done to twist and corrupt the word “patriot”. I love my country. I volunteered to serve my country, but was unable to pass the physical, but I know any number of good guys that have stood up, taken the oath, and vowed to fight and die for this country (and others as well – I have friends that have served in the armed forces of Australia, Canada, Israel, Sweden, Jordan… and probably a few others).

They think they get to own a term like “Patriot”, because they think they are on the right side of some vision for what they want this country to be.

I have a different vision. My vision is one of inclusion, diversity, and respect. My vision is one where people weigh the issues instead of placating a group that just happens to be loud. My vision is one of shared experiences, knowledge of the past, recognition of past mistakes, and steps together for a better future.

Maybe a future with fewer shootings as well.

I’ll choose that path. I’m not going to get suckered into some racist tribe that actively recruits the most gullible for a malevolent intent, seducing them with contorted advertising slogans that use the words, “Duty”, “Patriot”, and “Freedom” with as much integrity as a sandcastle during high tide.

I hope the world is treating you better than you deserve.

Peace y’all.

I hope you have been having a good weekend, if you are reading this in real time. If you are reading this at some point in the future, I hope your life is going well. Here it is Sunday evening, June the 12th, and I am pounding out a blog post.

A word that is becoming more popular in our 21st century culture is the word, “influencer”. I took a moment and looked up the root word, “influence”, and jotted down a few synonyms.

Some of the synonyms seem positive enough, with such words as, “leadership”, “character”, and “magnetism”. All to often, however, my mind is drawn to the other synonyms, like “force”, “impact”, “command”, and “dominion”. It strikes me that influence can be as subtle as a nudge, or as blatant as a shove.

I’m not an influencer.

In my role with my employer, I have taken on some mentorship responsibilities. I’ve been working directly with a younger trainer for almost a year now, and I believe we have made some progress. I hope other opportunities to mentor arise in the next fiscal year. That said, I don’t want to have an aggressive approach to the role – no “force”, no “command”.

I think I can be a good nudger, though.

I’ll make that my goal. Be a better nudger. Help the other trainers I find myself working with draw their own conclusions and find the right direction that fits them .

This next week I am partaking of some internal training to help me with my presentation skills. I look forward to the experience.

I hope the word is treating you better than you deserve.

Peace y’all.

It is Saturday night, a bit warmish late evening on this 11th day of June. It’s still 85 degrees outside at 9:33 PM.

It has been a day. So, as I mentioned yesterday, we are currently without television, but that’s certainly not to say that we’re without media. Lisa is back in our bedroom watching on our bedroom set, and earlier today I snuck in an episode of “Stranger Things” on the big desktop back in the sunroom. We tried to play a little card game tonight, but that didn’t go as well as we had hoped. I guess I copped a bit of an attitude, and that didn’t help.

I was reading a story earlier today about a guy that had a job interview, and they asked him to write an essay of at least two hundred words regarding his position on abortion. I would’ve had a heyday with such a task, but alas, I’m not out there filling out job applications such as the one this gentleman had to waste.

I likely would’ve gone into a diatribe about the necessary body parts that I did not have, therefore their likely would not be a need to ever make that decision. It could’ve been fun to take more of a victim role and assume ponder the prospect of infertility, and how their asking him to write a two hundred essay on the subject was a form of harassment and cruelty.

Or, I might’ve just flipped them off. It’s none of their f******g business what my position on abortion is, and wouldn’t ever need to be part of any conversation we would ever have.

I just don’t get people that think they have a right to control people’s reproductive lives. Contagious diseases are a different story… if I’m spreading a virus that can kill you or your loved ones, that’s a conversation worth having.

I’m just kind of pissed off at the world.

A couple of folowups… my west coast team lost in the championship round to the Latin American team. I lost twice on an architecture I like and won on an architecture I never played before. I salute the LA team for their knowledge and good fortune.

Regarding the new tv… it arrives a week from tomorrow. I ordered a heavy-duty wall mount, articulated unit that can handle stud mounts and up to 110 lbs. The new set should weigh about 85, and we’ll break out the stud finder to get this mounted appropriately. The delivery includes setup, but I don’t know if that includes sticking the wall mount on the wall. Dane and I can attend to that before the set arrives.

Next week I have an internal training event. I look forward to that sort of change in my routine. I love the chances I get to hang out with my teammates, whether in person or virtually.

Time to call it.

I hope the world is treating you better than you deserve.

Peace y’all.