Beth

A warming world

We were leaving the YMCA last night and I asked Beth how her first day of volunteering went. “Great!” she said. “Why did you decide to volunteer here?” I asked, thinking of yesterday’s post. “I wanted to give something back to the community and this was the first place I thought of since we come all the time.” My heart swelled. Later, she asked me an…
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Beth

Firsts

Today is the first day of school. Adam and Beth got out the uniforms this morning for the first time in almost three months, and started a new chapter in their lives. For Adam, it’s first grade. These days the jump from kindergarten to first grade isn’t much different from first to second. The era of standardized testing and school “accountability” has leached most of the…
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Family and Friends

That girl

I was working out at the Y this evening and Adam was spending the time in the play room. It’s a really big room. I thought you should know that, I don’t know why. I went to pick him up afterwards and he came storming out breathless, exclaiming “Man! There was this girl in there who was a beast and she was chasing me like I was her favorite food!” I laughed. He…
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Family and Friends

Home alone no more

Today my family is only a state away. Unfortunately, Florida is a really big state. Still, I woke up early this morning and a thought struck me: I could get in the car, leave right now and be with them by lunchtime. There were just a handful of problems with this plan. It was four-thirty in the morning. I’d slept about three and a half hours. They weren’t three and a half good hours.
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Family and Friends

John reads: "What writing means to me"

A few years ago I wrote what remains my most visited post – and my favorite post. I thought about it today, sitting at home sick. It’s about writing obviously, but it’s also about me and my wife. I haven’t felt like sitting in front of the iMac’s camera for another “Home Alone” video, but this seemed fitting. So here it is, just the audio this time…
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Family and Friends

Home Alone - Day Six

I’m sorry again kids. It’s going on 11pm and I’m just getting home. It wasn’t a bad day, just long… but way too long for a video. My hearings went well, if a little long. There’s some bleed over to tomorrow to finish things up, but that’s ok. Mom will be glad to know the bank got the appraisal back from the appraiser. It was more than we thought, so one…
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Family and Friends

Home Alone - Day Five

I’m really sorry kids, but no video tonight. I have it “in the can,” so to speak, but I found some things I have to take out – mostly work stuff I’m not really allowed to post in a public forum. It’s after bedtime, I just got back from dinner with Uncle Eric, Aunt Lisa, your cousins, and grandma/grandpa… so I don’t have the time or energy to do it…
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