Author: fifteenkey (Page 85 of 95)

Every other year, we hold our annual customer conference in Las Vegas. On alternate years, it’s on a Disney property in Orlando. Here are some highlights (and lowlights) of last weekends get together:

• The Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art had 34 impressionist works from Boston’s MFA in a show they called, “The Impressionist Landscape from Corot to van Gogh.” Highlights for me were a couple paintings by my favorite of the Impressionists, Camille Pissarro, and this quote that ended the tour:

  “It must be good to die in the knowledge that one has done some truthful work and to know that, as a result, one will live on in the memory of at least a few and leave a good example for those who come after.” – Letter from Vincent van Gogh to Theo van Gogh Amsterdam, 3 March 1878

• Dining on Art – After the Impressionist show, we experienced the artistry of Picasso at the Bellagio. The Picasso’s hanging in the room were astonishingly alive.

• “Le Reve” at the Wynn – A very Cirque du Soleil show performed in an aquatic theatre in the round. “The Dream” opens with a red-clad man slipping into a floating bed that slowly circles the round pool until it disappears into the depths. The dream begins. Stunning. Oh, and the 12 of us were transported in a Hummer limo.

• “Hey, try some of this.” – When the new VP of Marketing says, “wanna grab lunch,” it’s a cool opportunity. When he offers you to try some of his sushi with eel, you just do it. Actually it was pretty good, and it didn’t taste like chicken.

• The Sharon Stone – At our Sunday night reception poolside at the MGM Grand, several Hollywood lookalikes roamed among us. Sharon Stone was my favorite. She looked just like the actress, but what really amazed me was that she sounded exactly like her.

• The Long Ball – After the reception I went up to my room to change and flipped on the TV. Game 5 of the NLCS was on and the Astros were up 4-2 with 2 outs in the ninth. After a single and a walk, Albert Pujols absolutely crushed a hanging 96mph slider for a 5-4 Cardinals win. It’s moments like those that make baseball the best game, period.

• The Brunch – I was invited to a Sunday morning session for a specific group of our customers and it was fabulous. Customers were greeted at the door with Mimosas or Bloody Marys and then enjoyed the best food I’ve ever had in the six years I’ve attended the conference.

• The Eight – I didn’t gamble a lick until the last night when I had no business doing so. When the dealer drew an 8 while holding a 13, my trip was over.

It’s been nearly ten years since Jeff and I toured New England four nights in a row to witness what survived from the inferno that was Uncle Tupelo. At that time, much of me was being consumed in a fire I chose to walk into. Unfortunately, anyone close to you during a fire is likely to suffer burns to some degree, and in my case, they did. I’ve spent most of the ten years since applying the salve of love to help heal their wounds, but memories of a fire can haunt survivors long after the flames are drowned. Recently on TV I saw images of people combing the burned-out shells of what once were their homes in Southern California. They slowly walk while looking downward, hoping to salvage a meaningful artifact from the ashes… a family photo… a childs toy… their heart. Hey, wasn’t that uplifting? Sorry, it’s just part of my personal exorcism to claw my way out of the hell of self-imposed misery and guilt. I think it’s going really well…

So this weekend Son Volt is back, but different than the band we saw back in ’95. All the faces have changed except that of Jay Farrar, the heart of the band. NPR’s show “All Songs Considered” has an article and audio of a full show played recently at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. Check it out. Jeff and I will be in Paradise again Sunday night, but different than we were in ’95. Hopefully, we’re better. Hey, I wonder if they’ll open with “Bandages & Scars?”

…is my favorite month of the year. The month of Halloween holds the day I was born that’s the same day as the Mick. Last year on that day, the Red Sox beat the Yankees in Game 7 of the ALCS. Sorry Mickey, but Happy Birthday anyway. I’ve fallen in love a few times in October and keep waiting for the next time… So this week I’m turning “37” (Well, that is if you agree with the premise 40 really is the new 30…), yet I don’t “feel” 47. I can still do everything I could when I was 37… Well, let me clarify that. I still exercise regularly, but I don’t run for cardio because it doesn’t seem to agree with one of my hips… Oh, and some things involving hips I haven’t done in a while, so I’m really not sure about that. So cardio is limited to the StairMaster and the elliptical thingy, but it’s all about elevating the heartrate, right? Anyway, what else… Oh, I still play golf at the same level of mediocrity that I did, hell, in my 20’s! See? I’m just as good! Uhhh, wait…another clarification… the mind is an entirely different story… What was I talking about again?

A recent caller to the Sean Hannity radio show made one of the best political points I’ve ever heard, but it seemed completely lost on Mr. Hannity and sadly, he did not engage the discussion. The caller said a fundamental problem in our country is that we were a nation “founded on principals and few laws,” but that due to the deluge of lawyers among us, those principals are drowning in a cesspool of laws and litigation.

In a related story, a new study indicates we Americans are ruder than ever. Go figure. One cited area was the increasingly bad behavior of our children and our reluctance to do anything about it. With so many lawyers looking for any and all areas to increase demand, it seems you’re risking “catching a case” if you correct your child, nevermind giving them a good kick in the ass, not that I’m advocating that…

Just this morning I discovered that one of the bast times to communicate with my daughter Megan is between 3:00am and 4:00am. We had one of the best conversations…EVER. She is so bright, beautiful and funny. She also has the ability to read people that seems way beyond her 16 years. Watching her growing is like watching a flower in springtime as it confronts the rain and glows in the sunshine. From my seat in the stands (a good one), there are many sunny days ahead.

I had an interesting couple days in Atlanta that paired play and work beautifully. On the flight down, I was amused seeing Boston Herald sportswriter Michael Felger reading the Boston Sunday Globe sports section. Is that irony or merely a humorous sight on a Sunday morning? He was heading to see the Patriots play a very tough Atlanta Falcons club, and so was I, but I probably had the better seat. My long-time pal Tommy “Tank” Kimmel has 4 season tickets on the 30 yard line, eleven rows from the field. Sweet! The Pats won a great game 31-28 with Adam Vinitieri having just another day at the office. I spent most of the game chatting with Tom’s 13 year old son, Jared. Jared is a very cool kid. He’s smart, well-mannered and he’s a catcher, proving those are not mutually exclusive. His Dad and mom Patty should be very proud.

After an exhilarating win (for me), we listened to about half the Braves-Astros game 4 tilt while waiting in the Georgia Dome parking lot traffic. The game turned into an epic 18 inning struggle finally won by the NLCS bound ‘stros. Tough day for Tommy and Jared in the sports department, but a great day otherwise for a son and his dad. From there it was on to the Emory Hotel and conference center…

This conference was a mix of corporate and field folks getting together to kickoff a new fiscal year. It’s a time of renewal and optimism. After seeing (4,352 powerpoints) and hearing presentations from our different groups, I’ve never been more confident about our future.* I am very fortunate to work for a truly great company. Not that we don’t have our challenges, but the people we have just always get it done. It’s fun to be part of that.

*Safe Harbor Statement
This blog contains forward-looking statements that are based solely on my expectations of future events as of the date of this posting, and I assume no obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of new information or future events or developments. Actual results could differ materially from my expectations, but I doubt it.

Megan loves “Everybody Loves Raymond.” I don’t love Raymond, but the show is a good segue into a discussion of cast member Peter Boyle. I guess he plays “Frank,” Ray’s cranky father, but man, he has played some real “characters” over the years. Last weekend I caught a bit of “Where the Buffalo Roam,” starring Billy Murray as “Gonzo” journalist Hunter S. Thompson. Boyle plays a liberal San Francisco defense attorney who gets kicked out of court and takes up with Thompson (Murray) to cover the 1972 Super…, uh, I mean the “big game.” As “Laslow,” Boyle’s hair is perfect. In “The Dream Team” from 1989, Boyle plays an ad exec who thinks he’s “the big guy.” Of course, his intimate portrayal of Gene Wilder’s creation in “Young Fronkensteen” is unparalleled in the annals of film and his greatest artistic achievment of splendidly playing whack jobs.

Today has been a bad day. Fortunately I didn’t realize the Sox (Red) game began at 4:00, so I didn’t tune in until I finished my last email at 6:43. So, it’s over. The magical mystery tour that began last October ended tonight with a loss to another very good Sox (White) team. With their pitching, defense and timely hitting, they’ll be tough to beat. They also own the home field advantage the rest of the playoffs. After skipping one year after 86 years, it’s time to say again: Wait till next year…

No Red Sox tonight. Come to think of it, not much Red Sox the last two nights either.

Recently a acquaintance wrote, “you are a pretty fair man, bro.” I think “fair” was meant as “of reasonable judgement,” as oppposed to “fair” on the Excellent / Good / Fair / Poor scale, but I could be wrong. I believe being “a pretty fair man” is a, uh, fair description, but not a complete one. My self-assessment includes descriptors such as honest, smart, quick, funny, giving, emotionally closed off, immature, judgemental and shallow. I think those all even out to a C, C-.

I like to think I’m always trying to improve as a person, but in the day to day blur of life, I can’t say it’s conscious decisions to improve, but more unconscious ones fueled by simply trying to do the right thing in life. Besides, I always have tomorrow to be better, right? Well, no. Eventually there will be no tomorrow for all of us except vampires, and we never know when today will be it. I don’t know where I’m going with this, except to say try to enjoy every day, smile, laugh and love one another. There are magic moments in each day, but usually we’re too busy to see them. I’m going to try to be more open to them…

Earlier today I noticed my Megan just had a glow about her, so I told her she looked good and that she was a beautiful young woman. She kinda blushed. Who knows how that simple thing will affect her?

“You know we just don’t recognize the most significant moments of our lives while they’re happening. Back then I thought, well, there’ll be other days. I didn’t realize that that was the only day.”

Friday was an interesting day. Waking up without an alarm at 4:40am was probably a good thing and an indication my “body clock” knew what the day held in store. The sunrise Friday morning painted a picture that whispered, “an interesting day is on the horizon.” The week was a blur, beginning with a visit to a soggy Fenway Park Monday night with good friend Jeff. We manuvered (and when I say “we,” I mean Jeff) through traffic, parked for $20.00, and waited with other hopeful Sox fans under a spitting sky seeking refuge in the old ballyard.

We arrived right at the start time of 7:05, and had time for two $6.75 Harp’s on draught and a couple $3.75 hot dogs before they announced the game was off and would be replayed Tuesday at 1:05. On the way out of the garage, Jeff asked me how Richard Nixon compared to George W. Bush. Jeff’s a student of history and I’m his living artifact. I think I said Nixon gets a bum rap because of Watergate, and that diminishes the accomplishments he made, starting both the end of the Cold War and the beginning of China as a world economic power. (Side note: If we handle the China relationship right, we become productive global partners. If not, WWIII likely destroys life as we know it.)

So it was Game, Rinse, Repeat and we both were able to make it back to Fenway for the Tuesday matinee, won by the Sox. There, I admired the artistry of the mobile hot-dog vendor. Sadly, a tough young Toronto club took the next two games of the series, essentially allowing the Bronx Bombers to win their 8th consecutive AL East title. On Friday morning I was presenting to 100 or so co-workers, and used some Sox-Yankee fodder as a light opening. I knew it would work on these members of Red Sox Nation and a few subversive embedded Yankee fans. Fear is often interrupted by nervous laughter. At five minutes to my 9:00 presentation, I got a call telling me I had to be at a very important, non-negotiable “meeting” with Megan that very same hour. Enter rush of adreneline. I saw my new boss looking at me and I know she was worried. I guess my face says quite a bit at times. Once the session began, there were no thoughts of the scheduling conflict. I’d simply do my job and then beam myself 30 miles in time for the appointment. Everything went well, but in the afternoon I just began to shut down. A lingering cold, fewer visits to the gym, and 24/7 stress are taking their toll, but I do feel things are turning. In that early morning sunshine, I lingered on my porch and soaked it in. Another new day. Another reason to believe the future will be bright…and colorful.

* Led Zeppelin – The Rain Song

According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), cigarette smoking remains the leading preventable cause of death in the United States, accounting for approximately 1 of every 5 deaths (440,000 people) each year.

It goes on to estimate that 22.5% of all adults (46 million people) in the United States smoke cigarettes. So, if 22.5% of adults smoke and 20% (1 in 5) of all deaths each year are attributable to smoking, then the math says that if you’re smoking, IT IS KILLING YOU.

Another set of statistics indicates it is either not smart, or it is stupid, depending on your perspective, to smoke:

So, I know you’re smart, so please try to quit.