Chewing On This

In the late 80’s and early 90’s it was Wheel of Fortune.  In the 00’s it was Jeopardy!  Now it is The Family Feud.  Prime time game shows helped our family wind down after some long work days.  The other day we looked at each other with the same thing in mind when, across the bottom of the tv screen scrolled this message,  “Auditions for The Family Feud are coming to Phoenix!”

How could we not?  It took a couple of days to see if our three very busy but fun-loving kids were available.  We also had to be sure the audition would take place while our daughter was still home over winter break.  The kids gave us the thumbs up.  Emails were traded with a mystery Feud employee.  We got the invite and the audition was scheduled.

Since we had a couple of weeks to wait for the scheduled audition I had time to take stock of just how significant game shows have been in my life.

• I reflected on the time I once thought about the possibility of becoming a tv weatherman and game show host.
• I reflected on how, during summer breaks, I would come home after morning swim practice and watch my favorite game shows.  (The lone  exception- 1973- when I sat fascinated as U.S. Senator Sam Ervin and the Senate Select Committee held hearings on the Watergate break-in.  At the time I didn’t understand the questions much less the answers, but I was pretty sure what was happening was important.)

  

• I reflected on my favorite 70’s game shows:  1- Hollywood Squares with Peter Marshall.  Paul Lynde was the center square and other regulars included Charley Weaver (a character played by Cliff Arquette- the grandfather of the Arquette kids, Rosanna, Patricia, and David), Wally Cox (the voice of Underdog), and the hilarious Rose Marie. (Among her other credits, I knew her as one of Rob Petrie’s writing partners on The Dick Van Dyke Show.)  2-The Newlywed Game with host Bob Eubanks.  Hard to share just how ridiculous those newlyweds looked.3- Let’s Make a Deal with host Monty Hall.  No one framed a curtain, door, or box better than Carol Merrill.  Jay (Stewart) was impressive both as Hall’s side-kick and as the wielder of the trays.

Finally, audition day was here.  It was a blast!   Over 700 families in the Phoenix area tried out.  You may know one or two.  The story is, if we make the cut, we will receive the coveted postcard in about three weeks.  I think we are in.  I will report in a future post whether or not our dedicated U.S. mail carrier misplaced our mail.

 

The sun set gracefully on 2015.   How will life be different when the sun rises on 2016?  Here are a few lessons I hope I have (finally) learned.

1. Write stuff down.    How do you keep track of stuff?  Calendars, agendas, phones, post-it-notes, and scraps from a recycle bin all seemed like nice ways to keep track of the day’s plans.   I have never really kept any kind of organizer.  “Let me check my calendar” really meant “I’m trying to remember why that date sounds familiar.”  I’ve already picked up a calendar to keep track of my stuff.  First entry: “Jan. 1- 9:00 AM- post your New Year’s blog.”  I am already behind, but at least there isn’t a scheduling conflict.

2.  Man, what blessings have been bestowed on me.   There was a whole lot of closure this past year.  The Trojan Soccer Silver Anniversary celebration, boarding up Room 209 after 30 years of doing business, and the retirement party were events in 2015 that gave me plenty to think about. Summer was the perfect time for reflecting on tons of quality moments.  In my new calendar: “Jan. 4- 6:00AM- back to work.”  Yes, I find my myself  in a school community to which I have become quite attached.  In 2016 I will give thanks everyday for what is and what is to be.

3. Maybe that wasn’t such a good idea, but how would I have known if I hadn’t taken the risk?  I haven’t always made the best decisions.  The particulars don’t need to be discussed.  (Did I really need that BMW?)  Fortunately, after most poor choices I kept my eyes open, my head up, and found doors opened I hadn’t seen before.  I have learned to better weigh the marginal benefits and costs. In my 2016 Calendar there is a page on the right for notes. Note to self: “This week I will greet opportunity with unbound courage.”   Feeling more together already.

4. The grass may not be greener, but it sure is a cool place to have a picnic!  Retiring wasn’t all that, but I’ve enjoyed some of the benefits.  Its unlikely I would have traveled to Europe or criss-crossed America.  Working at GLAAZ would never have happened.  I am too spirited to retire.  Second note to self: “Appreciate the opportunity to both nurture old friendships and to grow new relationships.”  I wonder why I didn’t write this stuff down before?

5. There is no time like the present, and the present is now!  2015 brought new challenges.  Parents continue to age and sadly, aunts and uncles, friends and students passed from this life much too young.  I must embrace the people who have a positive impact on my life.  I will remain a dreamer and do all I can to capture that dream.   I will work to be the best husband, father, brother, teacher, and friend that I can be.  I will do it now!

2016, here I am!   I look forward to your challenges.  No appointment necessary.

Clement Moore published T’was the Night Before Christmas in 1823. I’m not sure that he dreamed 192 years later it would be considered a Christmas classic.  You know how it starts:                                                                                                                                                                  “T’was the night before Christmas, when all through the house
not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
in hopes that St Nicholas soon would be there.”

So, what do you hope St. Nicholas will leave in your stocking tonight? Here are my 2015 top five stocking stuffer nominees.  Some might fit in a stocking, some might not.

1. A pair of tickets to anything would be cool to find in my stocking. Tickets to see the Arizona Coyotes, or the Motel 6 Cactus Bowl, or to attend a ballet or symphony, or concert tickets for Adele or Blink-182 or Christina Perry or for The Eagles 27th Final Farewell Tour.

2. Hershey’s Kisses. I am not a huge chocolate guy, but that little drop of milk chocolate wrapped in that little tin foil square with that little pull tab is a perfect portion. We found these in our stocking when we were little. Maybe Santa will drop them by again tonight.

3. A 2016 presidential race with a handful of candidates to make America proud. Just over eleven months to our next election.  Only time will tell, but I don’t think our next president, regardless of who wins, is going to earn a spot on Mt. Rushmore.

4. A winning Powerball ticket. I don’t mean the $3 winner I pick-up every once in a while. How about the full blown $225 million winner?  There will be plenty to share if Santa delivers, and I promise lots of stockings will be stuffed with “lots of toys and goodies!”

5. Faith, Hope, and Love. When I wake up Christmas morning I am going to search for these in my stocking.  I may find them there, but like the Tin Woodman in The Wizard of Oz, I will find them in the heart I have in my chest. I just need to keep things oiled to keep the rust away.  Keeping things oiled and staying optimistic always seems to make the day a little more pleasant.

Those are my five.  What are yours?  Now it is time to bake the Christmas cookies. They won’t be like the sugar cookies mom baked, but maybe they will be good enough for Santa.   I mean, look at him, he isn’t skipping too many plates of cookies.  So, “with mama in her ‘kerchief, and I in my cap,” we will “settle our brains for a long winter’s nap.” Hopefully, Lola the dog won’t spend the night barking at the eight tiny reindeer and in the morning I won’t find a lump of coal.

“Happy Christmas to all!”

Sorry, fellow procrastinators.   I will not be joining you at Target or Wal-Mart or Macy’s this Christmas Eve.  For years I have waited until the 24th to find gifts for family and friends that hopefully would be treasured.  No more!

This year, I will do it differently.  Today, I pledge to start my shopping “early.”  I have ten days, seemingly a lifetime.  I will move cautiously through the streets, shopping districts, and malls.  I will be patient, I will smile, and I will try to complete the task happily, merrily, joyfully. I will step up to the cash registers and credit card readers while crossing items off  a well thought out gift list.  And, just like years past, shopping bags will be full of shirts, books, gift cards, and boxes of golf balls

This is “out of the box” shopping.  Only ten days left?  I think I can easily manage the time.  The gift wrapping still may not be up to department store standards, and the presents still may not quite match what was on the “Santa list.”  But I will  take pride knowing I have spent days, not hours, on the prowl trying to find the gift that will delight.

The original Christmas story is about the perfect gift.  God’s gift of unconditional love shared with humanity through the birth of Jesus.  A gift given “with no strings attached.” This gift is the love that brings joy- that feeling of happiness and belonging that dwells deep within our souls- to people we encounter daily.  Some nice things about sharing the gift of love is that there are no waiting lines, no 800 numbers to speak to customer service representatives, and no need to find a parking spot.  It has the potential to be delivered more often than that subscription to the fruit-of-the-month club.  Love given without expectation, every day and with every breath, can be given all year long.  For me it will take practice and effort and way more than ten days to even hope to get right.  Good thing I decided to start early this year.

Peace and Joy to all.   Merry Christmas!

 

Thanksgiving Day is just around the corner.  I am so looking forward to  the football, the cooler weather, the time with family and friends, and most of all, dinner.  We like the traditional foods.  But, we often ask the kids for ways to improve our Turkey Day menu.  Here are a few of this year’s more interesting ideas.

Sushi.  Skyler requested it this year but the idea didn’t make the final cut.  I will eat sushi, but I don’t go looking for it.  The kids seek it out.   I offered to make a turkey roll made up of seaweed, rice, turkey, salt, pepper, and sriracha.  The idea didn’t fly, kind of like turkeys.

Disney’s turkey dinner.  Before traveling soccer overwhelmed our lives, we enjoyed long November weekends in Southern California.  When we made it to the Magic Kingdom we strolled across “New Orleans Square,” rode the “Pirates of the Caribbean,” and then ate the turkey dinner at “Cafe Orleans.”  There is still no where like the “happiest place on earth.”  It is a great place to share Thanksgiving dinner with thousands of your closest friends, just not this year.

Cereal.  Seems just like yesterday.  After a day at Sea World in San Diego our plans to enjoy dinner at a nice restaurant were thwarted.  My dress pants went unpacked, we ended up at Denny’s.  Meredith was four and enjoyed every spoonful of her frosted flakes.  I was the turkey that day.   Cereal just isn’t going to happen.

Fish eggs.  One holiday we made our way to NorCal.  Reservations were made for a classy Japanese buffet in San Francisco. (Yes, the dress pants were packed.)  Klayton filled his plate with turkey, stuffing, green beans, and cranberries.  Then he came face-to-face with fish eggs.  He wasn’t quite sure what to do with the caviar but he took the risk.  He liked it.  Maybe this was when the quest for sushi was born.  The pumpkin pie was pretty good, too.  Looking forward to the pie this year.

Oyster casserole.  So the kids never requested this side dish, I did.  I was never sure why it was always on my parent’s Thanksgiving table.  It grew on me.  Sadly, the idea was rejected out-right by my family.  No little oysters had to give up their shells to continue this family tradition.  Is it ironic that my family prefers raw seafood on Thanksgiving?

What will you be serving this year?  This afternoon we did the hunting and gathering.  21st century grocery getting is a bit different than what the Pilgrims experienced.  But like the Pilgrims, I am thankful for my family and friends.  I am thankful for the opportunities I had to travel to distant places and meet so many kind people.  I am also thankful for times with students past, students present, and students yet to come.  Hmmm, that sounds like a theme for a Christmas blog.

 Thanks to all of you for taking a little time to read these posts.  If you enjoy, sign up for notifications.  Happy Thanksgiving!

 

 

 

I don’t understand the whole hashtag thing.  I’m pretty sure it doesn’t take a super savvy techie to figure it out.  I have seen what people hashtag, it’s not rocket science.  I never MySpaced, Friendstered, Facebooked, Snapchated, or Instagramed.  Don’t have a Twitter account either.  For someone who attempts to write a blog, you’d think some of this social media would be helpful.  Maybe, someday.   For now, let me share a few #thoughts.

#98.    From day 1, the pool was my classroom.  Twenty-four seasons with high school swimmers and divers was extremely rewarding. The good news, the Trojans women won 98 swim meets, the bad news we placed lower than first 98 times.   Pretty middle of the Bell Curve results.  While coaching I never wore enough sunscreen.  Never put on a Speedo, either.  The fun was in challenging young minds to overcome self-imposed limitations and encouraging teamwork in an individualized environment.

#191.  Winning a game isn’t a prerequisite for being a champion in life.  However, competing and winning with integrity is a whole lot more fun than losing.  In the end, my goal was to win 200 high school soccer matches.  191 wins is close.  Thankfully, I was given 196 additional chances to get the other 9.  Instead, there were 188 losses and 8 ties.  Again, pretty much middle of the Bell Curve results.  If you add it all up, that was a lot of games.  There were thousands of practices and tens of thousands of hours of preparation and hundreds of thousands of super positive experiences with student-athletes who are champions.  We competed in soccer, but the lessons learned went far beyond the goals that lit up the scoreboard.

#warriors.  Since retiring I have spent time reflecting on my career. It took five months, but I am now ready to accept the change.  In July I went back to work teaching at Girls Leadership Academy of Arizona.  I have been back at it for nearly three months, but the time away traveling kept a true sense of being a part of the community on the horizon.   Today, I simply accept the past is in the past and that the future at GLAAZ offers incredible challenges and rewards.  It is time to revel in the opportunity to build relationships with colleagues and students that will be cherished as at GLAAZ, just like those I hold dear at my former school.   “Trojans Forever” wasn’t just a throw-away line.  Too much blood and sweat and too many tears were shared and shed for it to be forgotten.  That experience is my foundation.

#hashbrowns.  I love hash browns.  Those shredded spuds cooked up on the stovetop are awesome!  Please don’t confuse real hash browns with the glorified tater tot you get at the fast food restaurant.  Hash browns don’t come as a patty served in a wax-paper sleeve.   I prefer mine with rye toast and eggs over easy.  Nothing better than mixing in the runny, sunny, yellow yolk with every bite.

#purplereigns!  The 200th may still come as a Warrior.

 

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Halloween! It was always the best.  But, do the witches and ghosts, jack-o-lanterns and skeletons, bats and black cats, spread fear or joy?

Halloween served as a right of passage.  It starts out with families and friends trick or treating in groups.  For a time parents will travel with the pack.  But, then comes the All Hallow’s Eve when you strike out on your own.  No parental supervision required.  You and your friends handling the intricacies of  the “trick or treat” and “thank you.”   Kids trusted to safely cross streets at night, in the dark, on their own.  Halloween was the pre-teens Independence Day!

It is the one “school night” bedtime doesn’t seem to matter. It is also the one holiday when school was in session the next day.  Talk about the trailblazing and the costumes and the pranks and the loot is of primary concern.  The excitement hangs in the air from the past evening’s adventure.  Teachers hate it.

Today, some $6 billion is spent on Halloween, second only to Christmas.  That is a lot of orange and black.  Here are some of my favorite hauntings from October 31.  What are yours?

Favorite scary haunted house movie:  Forget all the blood and gore and fancy special effects that litter today’s movie landscape.  The best scary movie was 1966’s classic “The Ghost and Mr. Chicken.”  Don Knott’s can not be topped.

 

Scariest treat:  Apples.  Do you eat it or don’t you eat it?  Apples got a bad wrap in the seventies with the razor blade scare.  Some folks went so far as to have treats x-rayed before kids could dig in.  Of course, caramel apples and bobbing apples were always perfectly acceptable.  We always wondered,  “who would give a kid an apple on Halloween?”

Best spooky cookie:  The Halloween Oreo!  The black wafers with orange cream are awesome!  Doesn’t matter if they taste the same as the regular Oreos.  The orange and black are the best.

Best candy:  Candy corn is okay but the classic candy bar is the best.   The standard size candy bars might seem generous, but they interfere with  sampling three or four of the little ones.  Make mine mini’s, please.  Besides, little tummies need little candies.

The tricks on you:  Really, you just found what in your trick or treat bag?  Discovering a tooth-brush is the worst.  Why not throw some floss in, too?  The tooth fairy gets her own days.  Way to disappoint that little princess or ghoul!

The neighborhood get-together is nice and safe.  A beverage, bowl of chili, cornbread and a little salad are great ways to hang with the neighbors.  But, once the dining is done, let the kids roam (with reasonable parent supervision, of course).

The experience gained exploring our world Halloween night is a part of growing up in America.   If the next generation of Americans is too afraid to walk around the block, how will we ever make it to Mars?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are not too many celebrities that I hunger to meet.  Back in the day, my one true celeb crush was Olivia Newton John.  That was when she was just starting out as a country singer, before she starred in “Grease” or “Xanadu” or before she wanted to get “Physical.”

Having the chance to get to Europe, I hoped to come face to face with another star.  She is well known and her face is every where. She is on billboards, key chains, mugs, and tea towels.  She is a marketing machine.  I wondered what it would be like to have one moment to look into her eyes, say “hello,” and smile a little smile back at her.  If the opportunity presented itself, would I freeze up?  Could I find the words that would get her attention?  Would the moment pass without a glance?

There we were landing in Spain!  The plane touched down in Barcelona.  Unfortunately, so did the toy truck in the overhead bin.  It set down on my skull, splitting my forehead.  How embarrassing would that be, to meet her with a big bandage on my head.

Five days in Barcelona.  Awesome food!  The paella, the tapas, the fresh fish were delightful.  So were the fruits and vegetables that were abundant.    The trip to the 450 year old winery was fun as well as wandering around this remarkable city on the Mediterranean coast.  Not much of a chance of seeing her in Barcelona.  Chances of running into her in Paris were much more likely.  Thankfully the bandages came off.

So, to Paris we flew.  Flew, as in moving 300 km/hr on the railway!  I had a strong feeling the person I wanted to meet was there.  We arrived late in the afternoon.  We took a short cruise along the Seine and then spent a day at Versailles.  We wandered through the art district of Montmarte and then spent a day at the Louvre Museum.  So many nice people, so much art.

It was then off to London.  So much history and so many pubs!  The Tower of London, Buckingham Palace, St. Paul’s Cathedral.  Walks through St. James’s Park and Hyde Park.  A visit to Princess Diana’s Memorial Fountain.  It is a pretty incredible city.

So, did I ever meet her?  No.  She is big time.  She has a lot of fans.  It was hard to get close.

Maybe next time we will push our way through the paparazzi and her groupies to catch Mona Lisa’s attention.

 

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Labor Day weekend passed not long ago, and with it went summer.  No more white shoes, no more white belts, no more white hats, so I am told.  Put them away.  Autumn has arrived.  What is better than sitting out on a beautiful fall evening?

Back in the Midwest it is harvest season.  The corn and the beans have grown and ripened and are just about ready for picking.

Across this country it is football season.   Lights illuminate fields throughout the USA.  Thousands of high school teams in communities small and large have teams competing on the gridiron.  The NFL and NCAA put on a good show.  But neither compares to the raw emotion of high school football.

With Labor Day comes the sprint to the end of the marathon baseball season.  Sports writers suggest the team in Cleveland still has a shot at the playoffs.  Fans know better.  Summer is passing again on the Indians baseball club.   Thankfully, seasons do change.  Spring training is only 150 some days away.

With fall, the college soccer season begins.  This season surely captures our family’s attention!  There is so much joy in watching young adults, in the springtime of their lives, compete for their college with their teammates and friends.  Wins will be celebrated, losses will induce tears.  No matter the outcome, the life-long bonds that are formed are rock solid.  No loss on the field will ever take that way.

We are also in the midst of winter.  Some of us are fortunate to have seen our parents grow old.  Aging parents can present challenges for the next generation.   Whatever the hurdles the children face, this is the season, this is the time to pause and celebrate their parent’s lives, passions, and accomplishments.

What do you say?  Can’t wait for Halloween?  May I suggest we slow down and maybe even turn the clock back to summer and lick one more ice cream cone?  Enjoy!

 

 

At the end of May I had the honor of walking with Paradise Valley High School’s graduating class of 2015.  It was a very special night for each  young adult and their families.  Commencement took place in Trojan Stadium and 400 some students received diplomas that night.  At the time I didn’t realize that brief walk would be my final walk.

The field we walked upon that warm May night was the field Deanna and my kids grew up on.  Our oldest son, Klayton, was a member of the class of 2008.  Though most of his experiences took place on the baseball field next door, he spent a season playing center on the offensive line for the j.v. football team.

Our middle son Skyler, class of 2009, spent four years marching up and down the field playing his sax.

Our daughter Meredith played four years on the field with the Trojan Soccer team before graduating in 2012.

But, their time on the field wasn’t limited to the four years each of them studied, played, made friends, and competed as students.  They grew up on the field in Trojan Stadium.  In 1985, long before the kids were born, even before I had been introduced to Deanna, I went to work coaching on Trojan field.  At first, it was working with the PVHS boys soccer team.  For four seasons the team grew and learned how to win on and off the field.   In 1992, I returned to the field with the task of growing the girls soccer team.

As the soccer seasons came and went, our kids found the field was a great place to play.  They kicked and threw balls and ran around and kept everyone entertained.  It was their playground from age 3 through middle school.  The time flew by.  It wasn’t long before they were enrolled at PVHS, a community that valued, cared for, nurtured, and prepared them for adulthood.

Trojan Field was a second home.  Whether it was the dormant Bermuda grass that turned into a mud pit during the cold, windy, rainy nights when winter storms rolled through or the artificial turf that broiled player’s cleats when the sun was shining, the time spent on the field was magnificent.   Every student-athlete brought something unique and special to our program.

The plan was to spend one more winter on Trojan Field.  However, taking a position on a new campus meant it would simply be impossible to invest the time the Trojan Soccer girls deserved.  It was time to let go.

In a day or two I will be back to clean out my locker.  I’ll put my iPod on and listen to songs the team made their own; songs like “Dream Big,” “Nothing More,” and “I Won’t Back Down.”  On my way out, I will pass through the gate near the home concession stand.  There I will recall the passion and pride of the athletes who competed for the PVHS community.   I will quietly walk across the parking lot, appreciative of the encouragement and support of my fellow coaches, teachers, staff, and administrators.  I will shut the door and start up my Yukon with memories of the Trojan sisters who gave it their all on Trojan Field.  I will head the SUV north on 40th street knowing I have come to the end of a fantastic journey.

Trojans Forever!!!