Top Ten of Boston List

Published at March 4, 2010 in Personal Update, Manny Stuff, Marriage, Being a Man, Fun and Family. 3 Comments

Brooklynne & I are making preparations for her impending graduation in May. Anyone who has done this before knows that it can be a difficult process. However, it has given us the opportunity to see Boston again with fresh eyes. We have been upset by the cost of living, job market, relative unfriendliness of the citizens, living with no car, the healthcare system as a whole, & innumerable other little things. It was easy for us to be bogged down by all that negative energy for a year or so. Now that the end is in sight, we find ourselves making it a point to focus on the good things about Boston & resolving to take those memories with us when we go. So here is my top ten list, in no particular order, of things I will miss about Boston.

1. Our house church-

Love, love, love these people & they have made the last year much more bearable than the first one was.

2. The historical places you pass almost every other second-

You simply can’t walk 150 yards in Boston without passing another place of historical significance.

3. The skyline-

In my opinion, one of the best ever.

4. My current job-

Hands down, the most fun & emotionally & spiritually rewarding job I’ve ever had.

5. Darion & Jenny-

We met them when we were both young struggling couples in the North End. Our dogs are best friends, & they are just excellent, fun, giving, & lovely people.

6. The crazy people you encounter daily on the subway-

I think that the MBTA has an “at least one wild person per car” rule that seems to be strictly enforced. As an avid people watcher, I appreciate this policy.

7. The snow-

I know my wife won’t like this one, but I, for one, have enjoyed having a proper winter for at least a couple of years.

8. Walking with my wife through the city-

This is a good thing that has come from us not having cars for the past two years. We have to walk together a lot more & there’s no radio to get in the way of good old fashioned conversation.

9. The community of East Boston-

This is an amazing neighborhood, & if you’re moving up to Boston I’d highly recommend it to you. They are very well connected with one another & they step up to meet one another’s needs.

10. All the bad things I mentioned earlier-

Yeah, I know, they really are bad things. I guess it’s not so much the things themselves that I like. It’s the results of these things on our marriage. I can honestly say now that my wife & I have gone through Hell & high water this past couple of years. The result has been a daily confirmation that I married the most amazing woman in the world. No matter what kind of poo-poo we have or might encounter, my confidence in our relationship & love will not be shaken.

Tiger Woods

Published at February 19, 2010 in Woods, Tiger Woods, Tiger, Current Events, Being a Man and Uncategorized. 2 Comments


So, I watched Tiger Woods’ statement earlier today. I will give you my thoughts although (I must be honest here) they do not matter in the slightest.

I thought that it was obvious that he had put a good deal of thought into his statement. He struck me as sincere, but in control of his emotions. I dunno if that’s a good thing or not. People, in general, are slow to forgive. They are especially slow to forgive when an apology isn’t perceived as heartfelt. One indicator of heartfeltedness (I made that word up just now, by the way. I know, I’m intelligent & creative like that.) is the degree of emotion or passion with which the apology is made. I imagine that he wasn’t weepy & shaky enough for some. However, let’s think about this for a sec.

He became an international superstar by being the absolute, hands down, best golfer in the world. He accomplished this by being in almost complete control of his body & mind. Part of that is controlling your emotions. Note that I’m not saying that you don’t have emotions, merely that you don’t let them get out of control. Any good golfer will tell you that you can’t start getting emotionally out of control during a tournament. If you play that way, you usually make a lot more mistakes. So Tiger Woods has gotten where he is because he has spent his entire life, quite literally, turning himself into a golf machine. When you train & work as intensely & frequently as he has for the vast majority of his life, you don’t simply “turn it off” whenever you want.

When he makes a mistake on the golf course, he gets frustrated initially & then gets it back under control. He then assesses the situation, inputs the known & unknown data into his golf machine brain, & chooses the most likely path to success. He has worked insanely hard to make this process automatic. So, when he made a mistake in his personal life, he did the same thing. He got frustrated & withdrew for a few months & now he has made a move to get back on the road to success. Knowing this about him makes me believe he showed a great deal more emotion & passion in his statement than I was expecting & certainly more than he was comfortable with.

So I watch Tiger Woods’ statement & I see a man making a sincere, well thought out, & yes, a heartfelt apology. I also see a man who has an almost inhuman ability to control his emotions tearing up & speaking with a bit more passion than he ever has before. If you watch it again, you’ll notice that he still maintains almost complete control over his voice & body, but he tears up. All of this leads me to believe that he meant it & he meant it with all of his heart. But then again, I’m an insanely optimistic person.

Did you watch it? Do you even care? What do you think?

Milkshakes

Published at January 9, 2010 in Fun and Humor. 4 Comments

Alright folks, let’s talk about milkshakes today. I know, random, right? Well, not completely.

You see, my gorgeous wife Brooklynne has been quoting the magnificent film “There Will Be Blood” all morning. Her favorite line this morning has been “I drink your milkshake. I drink it up!” This made me start thinking about milkshakes, & I’m gonna tell you something people, I like milkshakes. Oh! I do. I do. As I started thinking about milkshakes, I realized I haven’t had one in a while. This makes me very sad because I like milkshakes, which I did already say before. A properly made milkshake is one of the best things in all of Christendom.

“But Sam, what constitutes a properly made milkshake?”

Well, I’ll tell you what constitutes a properly made milkshake.

“Good. Because that’s what I asked you to tell me.”

Ok now, imaginary guy who I’ve created to give a sense of dialogue & playful banter to my post, we can do without your imaginary sarcasm.

“Oh! I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt your insightful & poignant post about friggin’ milkshakes.”

Hey now! That’s out of line. You know I’ve been a little insecure lately about my blogging. You didn’t have to take it there.

“Now we’re getting somewhere. See Sam, that was an honest & real statement you just made. Thank you for sharing that. There there.”

*sniff* It’s just that I feel so much pressure to write deep & thoughtful posts like I used to. *sniff*

“And where is that pressure coming from Sam?”

I know, I know. It’s coming from myself.

“I’ll tell you what buddy. Why don’t we continue this later?”

*sniff* Buh, buh, but why?

“Well because I’m sure this has gotten very very weird for the people reading this. I mean you started talking & then brought me into it for some laughs, which was a great move, by the way,”

Thanks.

“and then you got real touchy about an obviously playful & harmless comment that I made. Now its gotten really serious & you started the whole thing talking about milkshakes for crying out loud. Not to mention you’re the one typing all this. These people know I don’t really exist & yet you’re having a pretty in depth conversation with me. Do you see why its probably gotten very odd for your readers out there?”

*sniff* *chuckle* *deep breath* Yeah, I guess you’re right. I should probably just tell what makes a proper milkshake, ask them to tell me what their idea of a perfect milkshake is, & then just get outta here. 

“Good call.”

 

A proper milkshake has dutch chocolate ice cream, 2% milk, & a whole lotta malt.

Charlie

Published at December 19, 2009 in Personal Update, Holidays and Humor. 0 Comments

I met the greatest guy yesterday on the train. His name was Charlie & he was about 85 years old. He approached me because he needed some help getting his things on the train. We were both a few minutes early & so we had a few moments to talk before the train came. Now, the first thing you should know about Charlie is that he talked very loudly. Think of someone shouting & then turn it down .0036 notches. That’s about what Charlie’s default volume was. Another thing you should know is that Charlie was compelled to tell everyone person that passed within earshot “Merry Christmas!” He was such a joyful guy. I asked him why he was out today with a bag full of treats & a bouquet of flowers. “I’m going to see a nun,” he said. I told him, no offense, but it might take a little more than candy & flowers to win the lady in this particular case. He thought that was really funny & had a good laugh about it. It just so happened Charlie ended up on the same train as me on our return trip as well. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen anyone as excited to see another person as Charlie got when I shook his hand & said, “hey Charlie!” He stood right up & gave me a big hug & laughed really loudly. He was way, way too happy to see a guy he had only met that morning. But you know me, I soaked it in with relish. He asked me if I could help him off the train when we got to the station which I was more than happy to do. On the train ride in I was able to sit & talk with Charlie for a while. He was just such a breath of fresh air & an amazing embodiment of the Christmas spirit. I was thankful for Charlie yesterday & I hope that we meet again someday. He gave me a fresh dose of Christmas cheer to make it down the stretch until Christmas. Thanks Charlie! Merry Christmas everybody!

The Future

Published at November 27, 2009 in Personal Update, Church, Marriage, Being a Man, Family, Holidays and Spirituality. 1 Comment

I’ve been thinking & praying a great deal about it lately.  For the first time, it’s been so hard to see.  I’ve always known the next step, but that’s been easy. It’s only ever affected me.  Now I am part of a “we,” & “we” have to make a decision based on what’s the best thing for us.  Brooklynne is done with graduate school in May, & it is time to start figuring out where to go from there.  It’s easy to say that we should make this decision based on the most important things for us. Where can we find a community of believers to plug into that we can “jive” with?  Where can we begin putting down roots to build a family?  These & other things are our top priorities, but when we try to lay out possibilities to meet those questions, they are endless.  It’s hard to narrow down from endless possibilities.  I hate to make a life decision based on career opportunities, but what else is there to do when that is the only variable that can be known?  I hate being in places like this, where the questions are far more numerous than the answers.  Any advice from those further along the path of life is very welcome right now. 

 

On a side note, Thanksgiving has been wonderful.  I can’t even begin to express how thankful I am to have amazing in-laws that I truly feel like family around.  It has been a very welcomed break from all the pressures of Boston.  I am so thankful for a job that I love going to every single day.  I can’t wait to get back to see my little buddy.  I am unbelievably blessed to have such an amazing, beautiful, & gifted wife.  I love being here to spend time with her while she doesn’t have 20 thousand things on her schedule.  So anyway, please let me know if you have any wisdom to impart upon our decision making process for the future.