31- Goodbye January 2011

Well one month of 2011 has passed... where did the the time go?

Accomplishments for 2011 so far:

exercised 25 times ... pretty good

lost 4 pounds... about a pound a week

blogged... 31 of 31 days

30- Last Night's Dream

I woke up at 522 am with my heart pounding. I had the most bizarre dream. I wouldn't normally write down my dream or blog it... but this was really weird.

I dreamed I was on a vacation in a city and was taking a walking tour. Suddenly one of my teeth fell out and I spit it into my hand. As we went from site to site it kept happening. Some were just the crowns (like your baby teeth) others were whole teeth roots and all.

We stopped by a dentist's office and he immediately identified me as another dentist then he disappeared so I took one of his forceps and removed a few more loose ones. I recall feeling very embarrassed and smacking my lips together like an old man. There was little to no bleeding from this. I tried eating steak and for some reason it wasn't that hard to chew.

I googled the meaning of this dream and saw that there could be many different interpretations:

• loss of confidence
• loss of power
• loss of good looks
• aging
• portends the loss of a loved one
• death and famine in the world
• personal sickness
• financial reversal
• loss of good health
• loss of mental balance

Well it all looks like bad news... no lottery winning for me!

29- New Slideshow Software

I've been trying to find a slideshow maker that will keep my photos intact and allow me to make mini photo albums of all the pictures and events we've had in our family. I saw one that looked promising at Fry's Electronics and brought it home. It's called Slideshow Expressions by Individual Software.

So far it's everything I had hoped. I can add an mp3 music file to it and it can pan and zoom in on your still photos. It will write to CD or DVD and you can play it on your TV. I haven't checked all these out yet- but that's what they say. So far I've made two albums.. errr slideshows. The first was Erin's graduation and the second was our trip to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley. Currently I am putting together our trip to France last summer.

I had tried Powerpoint from MS Office- but it messed up the jpeg photos. I had been using Flipalbum but it proved to be very finicky and when I loaded it on the new computer it didn't run well at all.

So for $19.99 I'll try this out and see how it goes. I'll let you know... supposedly I can upload them to you tube and if so I'll post the link.

28- Kudos and Classroom

Kudos to my son. Not the energy bar but congratulations on getting a promotion at work. Usually they reserve a promotion like that to someone who has been with the company at least a year. They waived that rule and made an exception in his case. Good job GMO!

Off to a CE course this morning in Escondido at the California Center for the Performing Arts... Dental Fest 2011 put on and hosted by the fine doctors at North County Oral Surgery. Breakfast, lectures lunch and more lectures. Hopefully it will be a fun day of learning and friendship with fellow dentists in the area.

27- Happy 5th Anniversary Brad and Sandy

My friend Brad and his wife celebrated their fifth anniversary of Brad's Periodontics practice today. I ran into a lot of old Navy friends and colleagues there and it was good to catch up. Most are still practicing dentistry and it was amazing to hear about how well all their families are doing, how they have grown and how their dental practice lives have gone as well.

I remembering jogging with Brad and talking about the practice deals he was investigating and the different pros and cons of each prospective buy in deal. He was really sweating ti out about if they would be a strong practice to partner into and if he would be able to get along with the senior partner or not. After plenty of discussion, he decided to open a brand new practice and build it from the ground up. It turned out to be the right decision for him. Even with the economy as terrible as it has been he proudly told me... I've paid off my loans, I've kept my head above water and I'm paying taxes.

Paying taxes... is the mark of success. Because that means you are making enough profit to pay the bills, pay the staff, pay the rest of the overhead expenses and still take money home to feed your family. I may whine and complain about it--- but I thank God everyday that I get to pay taxes... it means I'm successful.

Here's a happy wish to everyone (or anyone) out there reading this... I wish you lots of success and I hope you get to pay lots of taxes this year... here's to our success!

26- My Day

Here it is in a nutshell.

545am wake up. Red the email, shower, shave and shove off to work.

800am. time to punch the clock and begin. Highlights of the morning were a few gnarly teeth that had to be extracted, some crying kids, and a nice cup of coffee.

100pm LUNCHTIME... this is the adults version of recess. I rode the stationary bike for 20 minutes, showered again and ate leftover chicken and vegetable Bulgogi.

200pm back to work... and it was a little slow. highlight was a pulpotomy at 430pm and a discussion on why I should watch "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas".

500pm... pull the bird's tail... it's quitting time.

530-700pm. watched the Red Wings on the Internet... a sweet win over the New Jersey Devils 3-1.

705pm write a blog post.

25- What's in a number?

Then (1968)

Now (2008)

For a sports fan its's all about statistics and numbers. take for instance baseball. I grew up in suburban Detroit and 1968 was a great baseball year for me.

So what's with #25?

#25- that's my favorite Detroit Tiger ballplayer's number... Stormin' Norman Cash. As a kid I used to play fist base (I'm left handed) and he was the Tiger first baseman at the time. 1968 was the "Year of the Tiger" and it was the year I became a baseball fan.

That Tiger team had:

C- Bill Freehan (#11)

1b- Norm Cash (#25)

2b- Dick McAuliffe (#3)

3b- Don Wert (#8)

ss- Ray Oyler (#1)

LF- Willie Horton (#23)

CF- Mickey Stanley (#24)

RF- Al Kaline (#6)

C- Jim Price (#12)

1b-3b- Eddie Mathews (#7)

2b-ss- Tom Matchick (#2)

2b-ss- Dick Traczewski (#44)

of- Gates Brown (#26)

of- Jim Northrup (#5)

of- Wayne Comer (#27)

p- Denny McLain (#17)

p- Mickey Lolich (#29)

p- Joe Sparma (#21)

p- Earl Wilson (#16)

p- Pat Dobson (#22)

p- John Hiller (#18)

p- Darryl Patterson (#43)

p- Fred Lasher (#15)

p- Don McMahon (#47)

p- Jon Warden (#39)

p- Dennis Ribant (#14)

(Those names and uniform numbers were mostly from memory.)

24- Writers Group

One of our members is heading off to St. Louis. Amanda and her husband Marty are leaving for America's heartland. She has been an active and vital member of our writing group who added alto to its growth and success. Our "San Diego Literary Collective" met once a month to discuss writing and National Novel Writing Month (every November). Also we meet down at "The Living Room" each Saturday for breakfast and writing exercises.

We'll miss Amanda but she'll still be with us via the Cosmonicans Yahoo group through the wonders of Al Gore's Internet.

23- Clean Up!

It isn't the spring but I have been on a cleaning run as of late. I took my closet apart and donated a lot of the stuff that was just hanging around in my closet. Too many shirts and pants have been hanging there and not getting worn. Also neckties. When K and I went to Singapore and Hong Kong (over 23 years ago!) I found incredible tie bargains... 7 silk ties for $1.

Okay, looking back they probably weren't real silk- but that still didn't stop me from picking up 14 of them... all skinny ties. When was the last time you saw anyone wearing skinny ties? But still they've hung in my closet- cluttering up my limited tie collection. So last week --- out they went. On there way to the salvation army store. Perhaps I will see one of my old neckties adorning a man on the street and then I can smile to myself.

Yes- I did find opportunities to wear all the ties at least once... even the pink one!

22- Workouts

One of my goals this year was to workout more. Sort of a nebulous goal but I decided to track it on my phone using cardiotrainer. The phone tells me I've worked out 18 of 22 days so far this year. Not bad huh?

So what's a workout? Well GMO and I have been lifting weights on the bowflex, I'v been riding the stationary bike for 20-25 minutes over the lunch hour at work and I've been taking 75 minute walks with the dog that cover 3.25 miles.

I haven't seen much weight change yet- only about three pounds.. but we've still got 343 some days left in the year!

21- Funeral for a Friend

Funerals are a part of life, but I still don't like them. We celebrate their life.. but deep inside there is always that lingering thought... "Why didn't I spend more time with this friend and tell them again how much I cared"?

That's how it was today. Without getting into it too personally, we were acquainted through our children and our families were going to be joined. We spent holidays and good times together. When he got sick I had it in the back of my mind to get together more but always something came up. That's the problem with life... it gets in the way. He had that spark for life that made everyone feel good to be around. I'll miss that.

Rest in Peace JFK... you were a good friend and I will miss you. See you up in heaven.

P.S. Please put in a good word for me with the Lord!

20- Polka

From the Wikipedia:

"The actual dance and accompanying music called "Polka" are generally attributed to a girl, or young woman, Anna Slezakova of Labska Tynice, Bohemia, to accompany a local folk song called "Strycek Nimra koupil simla", or Uncle Nimra Brought a White Horse, in 1834 ^[3]. She is said to have called the dance Madera, simply meaning "quick".

By 1835, this dance had spread to the ballrooms of Prague, where it was called Pulka for its quick 2/4 step. From there, it spread to Vienna by 1839 ^[4], and in 1840 was introduced in Paris by Raab, a Prague dance instructor.

Apparently, it was so well-received that it became a sort of dance craze, spreading across all of Europe, and to the US within a decade. It remained a dominantly popular dance in these areas until the 20th century, when it was displaced by ragtime jazz, and the dance crazes of the Roaring Twenties.

Polka did enjoy a resurgence in popularity after World War II, when many Polish refugees moved to the US, adopting this Bohemian style as a cultural dance. Polka dances are still held on a weekly basis across many parts of the US with Central European heritage."

Question of the day... can you polka?

19- Connecting

Life can be funny sometimes. Thanks to facebook, I was able to connect with a friend from high school that I had not seen in over 30 years. It seems he has regular business that brings him out to Southern California several times a year and we were able to meet up for dinner tonight.

What makes this even odder is that we both went to school in Michigan and got together 2,000 miles away. Now that's one of the wonders of the Internet. Without it there is probably less than a 1% chance of this happening.

Thank you Al Gore!

18- Favorite Teams

"... brown paper packages, tied up with string... these are a few of my favorite teams."

Mostly they are teams from places I have lived. In no special order my top 25 teams:

1. Detroit Red Wings- NHL

2. San Diego Chargers- NFL

3. Detroit Lions- NFL

4. Detroit Tigers- MLB

5. San Diego Padres- MLB

6. San Diego Aztecs- NCAA Football

7. Michigan State Spartans- NCAA Football

8. Michigan State Spartans- NCAA Basketball

9. Michigan State Spartans- NCAA Hockey

10. San Diego Aztecs NCAA Basketball

11. San Diego State Aztecs- NCAA Basketball

12. Rancho Bernardo Broncos- High School Wrestling

13. Chicago Cubs- MLB

14. Riverview Pirates- High School Football

15. Poway Titans- High School Football

16. Green Bay Packers- NFL

17. Montreal Canadians- NHL

18- Toronto Maple Leafs- NHL

19- Northern Michigan University Wildcats- NCAA Football

20- Northern Michigan University Wildcats- NCAA Hockey

21- Ferris State Bulldogs- NCAA Football

22- Toledo Mudhens- Minor League Baseball

23- UCLA Bruins- NCAA Basketball

24- UCLA Bruins- NCAA football

25- University of Detroit-Mercy Titans- NCAA Basketball

17- Back to School

Well sort of.

I am watching a lecture series titled "The Foundations of Western Civilizations". Its 48 lectures (a half hour each) starting in Sumer and going through to the 1600s. Sorry no grades! I am finding it interesting to follow through the different cultures. After traveling the world with the US Navy and seeing the great museums of the world I now have a better appreciation for history. Here's the link to Great Courses.

I remember touring the British Museum in London with my family and having to ask "where are the Elgin Marbles" thinking they were large round balls of stone. Of course, after getting directed to their location I realized they were the marble friezes stolen by Elgin from the Parthenon in Athens Greece.

Also I'm taking a free writing creative writing course from WVU (Writer's Village University). My first assignment has been turned in and I'm putting in some B.I.C. writing. (B.I.C. = butt in chair). I don't know how this six week class will go but so far its been fun.

So as you can see learning doesn't have to end when you graduate from school... in fact it's lots more fun when you're older.

16- Walk the Dog

What a great workout today. Gizmo and I went out walking today... on the usual route. This was a good week for exercise. GMO and I did a 25 minute Bowflex routine three times and we are both a little stiff from it... another one is scheduled for today.

15- Sleeping In?

Wow, sleeping in... even if it's only until 630am... is under rated. I am not usually one to sleep in but today I did. I was up last night loading software on to the new family computer (which is much faster than the old one I might add) and had a mess of things I wanted to do before heading off to the writer's meeting this morning.

Well I slept in and got to the meeting late... I was still there before most of th group but I wanted to get some writing done and it didn't happen. Also wanted to walk the dog and that didn't happen either.

But the sleeping in part was great. I mean waking up to the sunshine was very good. No startling myself awake with an alarm clock. If it weren't for having to go to work I think I could make a habit of sleeping in until the sun woke me up every day.

How about you? Are you a slave to your alarm clock? Did you take the chance to sleep in this weekend?

14- Hot-hot-hot

While the majority of the country is busy digging out from the snow or shivering in cold I have a smile on my face. The weather report for today is warm and sunny with temperatures rising to near eighty at our house.

Wahoo!

Pull out the shorts and t-shirts.

We had been limping along with wet and cool weather since October in one of the coolest year's in San Diego history. I won't complain- it was actually a little nice to have a summer that wasn't so unbearably hot. We don't live along the coastline but about 7 miles inland and it's more of a desert climate than the coastal climate you see announced on the TV weather reports.

13- New Computer

We have retired the old Acer computer running on Windows XP and vaulted ourselves into the wild world of Windows 7 on a Gateway 8Gb, 3.2 Ghz with 1 TB of HDD storage.

GMO hooked it all up and loaded some freeware on it to get it going:

Avast vice Norton Antivirus and Open Office vice Microsoft Office to name a few.

I downloaded I-tunes and will copy my music over tomorrow... along with my documents and other essential programs.

I must say that so far I have been impressed with Windows 7--- it seems like Microsoft got it right.

12- Happy Birthday to my Dad

Today is my father's 81st birthday. Happy birthday pops!

Imagine how things have changed since he was born... air travel, radio, television, man on the moon, the Internet... Facebook!

In 1930 Herbert Hoover was the President, astronomers discovered Pluto, the best movie was "All Quiet on the Western Front", gasoline was priced at 17 cents a gallon and unemployment was 8.9%.

Today: Barrack Obama is President, Pluto got demoted from being a planet, the best movie in 2009 was "Slumdog Millionaire" , gasoline is over $3.00 a gallon and unemployment is over 9%.

Is that progress? you tell me!

A warm California Happy Birthday sent out to Snowy Michigan... we love you Dad.

11- Trying to hold off a cold

We've all been there. It starts off as a scratchy throat or maybe a tickle and then a cough. I started noticing it on Monday afternoon. I got that little cough... not really a cold... I thought it might be an allergy cough so I turned on the air cleaner and it got worse. I woke up at 2:30 am with a cough and a scratch in my throat.

I was going to try and hold this off... dammit!

I took some Emergen-C in a large glass of water. I noticed that it was pretty cold in the house so I put on a long sleeve sweatshirt and a beanie for my head, bundled up and went back to sleep.

Waking up it was still there. I didn't sleep well so I was slow to get out of bed- but sucked it up and trudged off to work. The morning was rough. I popped a Motrin after I noticed I was feeling as little warm... and the cough still was there. I napped for a 1/2 hour over lunch and although rested, I felt a little sluggish. I sucked on cough drops all afternoon... thank goodness for Hall's.

After getting home, I ate a small meal and then took some more Emergen-C. The nose has started to get stuffy, eyes are burning and I'm tired... oh hell let's just admit it... I've got a cold.

By the end of the tomorrow I'm going to officially be... SICK.

10- Off Day (update v3)

It's a day off for me but I've still got plenty to do. Here's my "To Do" list:

1- take out the trash..............done
2- Mail boxes........................done
3- Get the van smogged..............................done
----------3a. register van.............................done
4- put the Christmas gear up in the attic..........done
5- vacuum the house... not going to happen
6- Set up the new computer... sometime after 9pm
7- Workout........outlook not so good
8- trim the front bushes... postponed
----------8a. clean out closet.......done
----------8b. clean out medicine cabinet.......done
----------8c. clean out under bathroom sink.....done
9- take old books to the Salvation Army.............closed for donations.... postponed
10- Laundry (one load)..........done
11- Dinner......... cooking now.... done

Q: I wonder how much will get done?
A: so far (v2) it's a RED LETTER DAY

9- Amazon Buy Back Program

I got an e-mail from Amazon announcing that they will buy back used books. Here it is:

++++++++++
Dear Amazon.com Customer,

Customers who purchased books from Amazon.com may be interested in an easy way to get great prices for used titles through our Book Buyback Store.
++++++++++

So I took them up on that offer. I went to their site, clicked on:

shop books
then textbooks
then textbook buyback.

then I entered my books on the search line. they accepted 15 of our books and they'll send me $52 gift card and pay the shipping. These were books that were already in the "Donate to Salvation Army" box.

I had other books that they would not buy back. Either very popular one's or very old ones. This looks like a win-win deal for everyone. I guess I could have maybe gotten more for these if I were to have sold them on either e-bay or half.com but this worked out as a good, no hassles, ship-it-once deal. I guess the others will still get trucked down to the Salvation Army store to be sold to someone else and enjoyed.

8- Tum Ta Tum Tum...

I'm sitting here looking at a bottle of Tums. These are antacids for your for your stomach. We don't use these much but like to keep a small bottle in the house for the occasional heartburn. We picked up some new ones and out of curiosity I decided to read the label.

The Active ingredient is Calcium carbonate.750 mg worth. In active ingredients include: Sucrose (sugar) corn starch, talc, mineral oil, artificial flavors (and colors) and sodium polyphosphate.

Take 2-4 tablets as symptoms occur... but not more than 10 tablets over 24 hours.

In addition to using it as an antacid you can chew two tablets a day (with a meal) as a daily source of supplemental calcium. Each tablet contains 5 calories (from the 2 grams of sugar) and 30% of your RDA of calcium.

7- Getting Ahead

I did it... by packing six pounds f S*** into that five pound bag.

Today was ortho day today. A visiting orthodontist stops by and gives consultations on cases we need an opinion on. It was like a blitzkrieg event. Four rooms and walking the circuit until all 50 or so are seen. I learned a couple of things:

1- In a crowded, mixed dentition it is never too early to extract deciduous upper cuspids and first molars. In nearly every crowded mouth, that was the recommendation.
2- Most parents would like orthodontics to be done for free. Small revelation there. Its interesting to note that through the ages the cost of two years of braces equals out to the cost of a decent used car. That was $1,500 back in the eighties and$6,000 now-a-days.
3- If I think the case is complicated- the orthodontist does, too. (that actually made me feel good).

Ortho day ended at 1100 am so I had a choice to make... do I go home relax for a bit until leaving for a 3pm Scrivener tutorial or get-r-done. My choice git-r-done. So I headed off to MCAS Miramar, cashed my paycheck and went grocery shopping at the commissary. Yes it was crowded with slower moving retiree's than me but an hour and a half and $225 later it was mission accomplished .

So I sit here looking at the clock... (its not even 2 pm) with a smile of satisfaction on my face.... oh and my greatcourses DVDs arrived this afternoon.

Yesterday was a winner, too. Last evening I wrote and posted a short story online with WVU (writers village university). Then when g-man came home from work we used the bowflex and got in another strong workout... which I am pretty sore from again today. But thanks to a patient of mine (a fitness instructor and trainer) I have a new way to stretch out my muscles so they aren't so stiff and sore.

Three important facts:
1- cardio exercises are recommended to be done 4 times a week.
2- weight training is recommended three times a week.
3- stretching (15-20 minutes) is recommended SEVEN times a week.

So keep on stretching.

6- Cat Treats

Cat treats... what's in this stuff anyways?

The two boys just love their cat treats. In the morning when I wake up and head to the office to check email and the news there they are. As I fire up the CPU they sit patiently, looking me in the eye and "demanding " their cat treats. What had started off like a nice gesture on my part has turned into an expected ritual on theirs. They gotta have these and meow until I deliver two to each of them.

So what's in a Pounce Caribbean Catch Tuna flavored cat treat?

Wheat Flour
Animal Digest
Corn Gluten Meal
Beef
Water for processing
Glycerin
Chicken Byproduct meal
Torula dried yeast
Dried egg product
calcium sulfate
TUNA
Animal fat
fish protein concentrate
soy protein concentrate
potassium chloride
salt
phosphoric acid
dried cheese product
sorbic acid
natural flavor
fish oil
guar gum
titanium dioxide
soybean flour
red, yellow and blue dyes

I don't know what they see that's so good in these things... but I think I'll stick to oatmeal!

5- Falling to Pieces

Remember how in yesterday's blog post I was lamenting the little free time that was built into my average day? I think it totaled three hours or something like that. Well today I had 1.5 hours after it was all said and done. It's amazing how outside forces can steal your time... and these folks aren't at all ashamed to do it.

Take for instance the principal at my son's school. BMO graduates this spring and therefore the school put out a "mandatory registration" for all seniors and their parents... M-A-N-D-A-T-O-R-Y... meaning it's so important you HAVE TO BE THERE... but while we waited in the hundred person line for a half hour another parent came up to us and asked "why are you waiting in this line?"



It seems they found the school pencil neck who organized this event and found that it wasn't as "mandatory" as everyone was lead to believe. They just wanted to make sure everyone turned in their cap and gown measurements and deposits in a reasonable amount of time and that meant taking the filled out forms to school and turning them in. "you really don't haaaaave to be here". So in order to get the stupid parents knocked into line- they lied to everyone else. How about letting parents take some personal responsibility? We are, in fact, considered adults you know!!!

So the event organizer decided for me that I should spend two hours in the gym that night- but thanks to another concerned parent my "wasted time" was only 60 minutes (30 in line and 15 each way on the drive). But we had to fill in the forms at home. So of my 3 hours of free time they stole nearly a third of it.

So my day after working all day, going to school, cooking dinner , filling out forms, doing laundry, un-decorating the Christmas tree, fooling with the circuit breakers (power blew out from the dryer), yada, yada, yada... I have from 830-1000 pm to catch up on email, pay bills, write this blog, etc.

Now that it's 935 pm that leaves only 35 more minutes so good night!

And yes this will be my last post on the way I spend my 24 hours... or should I say "how others require me to spend my 24 hours".

4- My Five Biggest Time Hogs

Everyone has the same 24 hours... 1,440 minutes... 86,400 seconds... each day. Have you ever wondered where they all go? We all hope to get eight hours of sleep (but hardly ever do). That leaves 16 hours. If you take off eight for work that leaves eight. take off and hour for lunch and another hour for your commute and you're down to six. I get up 1.5 hours before I need to leave for work (breakfast, shower, shave, dress, pack a lunch and check e-mail)... so I'm down to 4.5 hours. take off another hour for making, eating and cleaning up after dinner and it's 3 hours of my own time from my 24 hour day.

What are my biggest time hogs?

1. Television. Sure I multi-task and do other things while watching. (Tonight its the Sugar Bowl Ohio St versus Arkansas and listening to Red Wings hockey on the radio- all while doing this blog post.)

2. Internet. Checking e-mail, reading the news and of course the ultimate time waster... Facebook.

3. Cooking, yard work, laundry and cleaning. One simple task can end up eating a huge chunk of time.

One that doesn't usually take all the time I think it will is cutting the grass.

4. Going shopping and gassing up the car. Yeah... it needs to be done but it's a real pain and does eat lots of time.

5. Looking for things... where did I put???? This is not only a time waster but it really ticks me off when I can't remember where I put something.

What are your time hogs?

3- Things I'll Do Less Of

There always seems to be plenty of things to do less of out there in life. Usually these type of resolutions are one's of deprivation. I guess mine are as well. (please notice all the links- I learned something new and am trying to use it to death)

1- Eat less food. It's interesting to see the difference between how much food we need and how much we actually eat. I guess that difference is called weight gain. I plan to eat less and the only way to do this is to watch what goes in. I've begun to notice calorie counts on food packaging... and it's amazing to see just how much punch gets packed into those bite sized treats. Here's a good site for those who are going to be more health conscious this coming year.

2- Eat less meat. Don't worry all these won't be about eating. But I've always thought that eating more vegetables and less meat is a good thing. Go here for Meatless Monday. This should be easy to do but in reality it's going to be hard. Especially when going out to eat. The vegetarian selection at most restaurants is usually rather thin.

3- Watch less television. The eternal time waster- the boob tube. I'd like eliminate the senseless watching in the evening to put that time to better use. I want to watch less news... seems that it's mostly bad news and usually irritating and upsetting. Non-stop news shows like CNN, ESPN and Fox serve up the same stuff hour after hour. I mean to stop watching the opinion shows that only serve to rile me up ... like the O'Reilly Factor, etc. Letting a TV show screw up your insides doesn't seem very productive.

4- Drive the car less. Try to consolidate trips a little better. That's the big thing. Walk to the store when possible. Maybe put off a trip downtown. Saving gas, saving money and polluting less.

5- Procrastinate less... I guess this also translates into "do things now". So with that I'll get on with my day.

2- Five Things I Will Do More Of

Every New year it's about resolutions to do better, more or less. So I'll start out by posting the five things I plan to do more of.

1- Exercise. I am an avid walker. On the days I am not working I take the dog for a 3.25 mile walk that usually takes a little over an hour. So I will try to do more of that along with using that expensive clothing rack called a bowflex. The G-man and I began in earnest yesterday and both of us found it a good workout.

2- Learning. When I was in school I couldn't wait to get out of school. Now as an adult things are different. There are so many things in the world to learn about and know. I routinely google things or words I don't know... probably from that old adage that teachers and parents give kids to "go look it up". In addition to that I went to www.greatcourses.com and signed up for the a DVD course called "The Foundations of Western Civilization" that includes 48 lectures of 30 minutes each.

3- Reading. I have always enjoyed a good book and you can see what I am reading if you go to www.goodreads.com and become a member. It's a great way to track your reading and get recommendations from others. The five books I plan to concentrate on this year are:

a. The Holy Bible. I purchased the Quest study bible (NIV) which includes commentary, maps and timelines in addition to the sacred text.
b. The First Five Pages by Noah Lukeman (A writers guide to staying out of the rejection pile)
c. The Weekend Novelist by Robert J. Ray (52 week program to produce a finished novel)
d. The Secrets of People Who Never Get Sick by Gene Stone
e. Absolute Power by David Baldacci

4- Writing. I intend to write everyday (hence this blog). I also have a few good ideas for a novel and will work toward the goal of a polished and complete novel by December 31. I am taking an online writing course beginning on Jan 5th at http://www.writersvillage.com

5- Focus on what's important. I'll try to use a critical eye and identify what's more important (God, family, friends, health, country, hobbies, etc) and what isn't (TV, busy work, things, etc). Hopefully I can make wiser choices this coming year.

1- Happy New Year to All

At our house we're tossing 2010 out on it's butt (good riddance) and welcoming 2011 in with open arms. 2010 was a roller coaster ride for a full 365 days. The family saw ups and downs job losses and new job opportunities. Graduations, broken engagements and varsity letters. Winning matches, drilled teeth, military duties, reserve mobilization orders and fun travels.

We're hoping that with the new year will come new opportunities and prosperity. We did our part for the country by buying American made stuff at every opportunity. We supported local business, conserved fuel/energy and did the 3 R's (reduce, reuse and recycle) to help old Mr. Planet.

Sitting here and looking forward I hope that our leaders (the movers and shakers who call the shots around the world and in Washington) can learn to "play well together". That's the term kindergarten teachers use to describe how well kids get along together.

You guys know who you are: Iran, North Korea, Iraq, Russia, Israel, etc... and you too President Obama, Mr. Reid, Ms. Pelosi and Mr. Boehner... Let's get along better shall we? Let's see a little more compromise and a lot more of putting the tax paying American people first- okay? A little less "me" and a lot more "us". Doing the right thing is more important than worrying about re-election.

Hopefully they can all put their party, personal and petty differences aside and work together for a better America and a safer world.

So let's give a round of applause in advance for the accomplishments in 2011:

1- Peace in the Middle East (and a safe return of our troops).
2- Putting enough food on everyone's table around the world. (Obesity problem in USA and starvation in Africa--- hmmmm can't we balance this out?)
3- The end to the "Great Recession" and increased employment (build American- buy American?)
4- Nuclear and solar power to supply our energy needs
5- Electric cars to end our dependence on expensive, polluting oil (Hydrogen fuel cells aren't the answer)

If only we can make serious progress on these items!

Happy New Year and God Bless America.