WiFi And Other Ramblings

i am sitting at a local amusement park. myself and 4 other buses from our company picked up a middle school band for a fun day trip. i am sitting here on my bus surfing the internet. one of the best creations i have seen. i am amazed that technology has advanced so much. i mentioned earlier about my ideas on “roughing it” and i must add being in an area without wi-fi is near the top.

as i think about things i marvel over, the second one has to be those flashlights that don’t require batteries. just shake and turn on. i have had mine for about 2-3 years and carry it in my briefcase. as a matter of fact, i bought my children some to keep in their rooms. i had one of those big mag-lights with 4 “d” cell batteries. whenever the power would go out, it was usually dead because the kids played with it and ran the batteries down. not any more. just shake and now they have light. every time, just when they need it. and with my own, i don’t have to wonder if i will have light or not.

the future for our children is exciting to the point of being scary. new inventions and creations that seem “rocket science” will become a part of their daily routine just like cell phones with cameras and mp3 players in one package. the scary part is what direction will science go in their lifetime? cloning scares me. will my kids have the ability to re-create themselves just like their mother, me and God did? it scares me to think that our children of tomorrow may not actually be people but some new form of “test tube” baby. i also wonder if the morals we hold sacred in our “civilized” society will be replaced or relaxed to the point of no longer being anything close to what we hold dear.

as i said, exciting. really exciting. and scary. really scary

Until next time…

Home Run Queen

my 8 year old daughter amazes me. as a matter of fact, all of my children do. i was able to go to her softball game friday night. it was her first game i have been able to see this year. she hit a home run!!! in their league nobody hits over the fence. theirs are the hard way. the term “round tripper” is true. they hit the ball and keep running until they are out or “blue” calls “time” which is a nice way of staying stop or the play has ended. she has had one home run every year and i was so thankful she did it with me there to see it. God smile on drunks, idiots and bus drivers alike, i am glad i fit 2 of those categories (i don’t drink). she went 3-4 tonight and she had a great game defensively. no errors. to bad she can’t play in the majors. softball is her thing. every child has a thing. with my 14 year old it is her voice. i cried the first time i heard her sing to a crowd at a family event. her voice is incredible and i have no doubt she will sing professionally one day soon. if angels had voices, it would be hers. i will not tell you her name as i use no names so i can keep this anonymous. you will hear about her one day. my 8 year old is softball. my 9 year old is gifted athletically so i guess his thing will be basketball. his ball skills are amazing. as for my 20 year old, her thing is just being herself. she is going thru some life changing events and i know she will be an entirely different person on the other side. she has a long way to go but i know God is lifting her with some strong wings. as the eagle flies thru the storm with confidence, she will too. they are all different and unique and i love them so much. they will never do anything to make me stop loving them and praying for them.

i am proud of them all. equally and unconditionally.

until next time…

Back Home Again

arrived home about 0600 friday morning. while in manassas, my 9 year old called me and told me about tornadoes in our area. after checking and receiving another call from a friend, i found out that there was active tornadic activity in our area. i called the owner of the company and told him where i was and what my concerns were. he was going to watch the weather channel and get on his computer and let me know if anything serious was in my path. my phone never rang. i told my son not to worry, dad was coming home and i was bringing all my passengers home and i was going to do it safely. i have a healthy respect for life. i once had a flight instructor tell me from day one his plan was to go home to his family every night. i figured with that philosophy, i was going to go home too. in other words, he would do all he could to stay alive. some of my previous instructors attitudes were “we all gotta die sometime”. not very comforting your first time up.

anyway, he was concerned and told me he did not want to lose his dad. he wanted me to come home again. alive. he couldn’t say what he was feeling but i was able to figure it out. when your kids tell you that, it gets kinda sloppy if you know what i mean.

the trip back was fairly uneventful. we ran into some heavy rain but little wind. that prayer stuff works.

by the way, i saw geese earlier in the day!!!

until next time...

Thursday in Washington

it is thursday and we leave for home tonight. kinda sad, kinda glad. washington is a great place. i could easily get lost in history and time here. good thing i don’t have the time and money.

Today is like a day off. take my group into dc, drop them and return to the hotel. law says i must take 8 hours off and rest before i go pick them up and take them to manassas for dinner. going to stop by iwo jima on the way out.

funny thing i have noticed about washington. yes, i am about to get political here. it seems to me the debate of separation of church is dumb. the national cathedral and the basilica (largest roman catholic church in America) are here. when you look at our founding fathers, they founded this country using christian/biblical guidance. study them and you will find all but 2 or 3 were also leaders in their churches. as i look around at our monuments, the reference to God is written on them in some way. our currency says “in God we trust”. every time I find a penny, i get a reminder that truly in God i trust. our nation’s highest courts open with a prayer as well as the house and the senate. some even (still) have the ten commandments hanging on their walls. either the senate or the house has its own chaplain. when did we and where did we get the idea that God and country were separate. even the boy scouts have a reference (merit badge?) to God and country.

so, what happened? ever listen to the song by carman called “we need god in America again”? cool song, awesome lyrics. we truly do need god in America. anyway, bad weather is coming. the storm does have tornadic activity with heavy rainfall so the trip back tonight might be ugly. at least driving during the day you can see what is coming. at night, you can’t see the clouds or other weather events. may be a good thing after all.

until next time…

Back In Washington

today was day 2 of my trip back to washington, d.c. i like washington. it is a great place to visit. the biggest problem bus drivers have is bus drivers!!! that is a another story and when i find the driver who cut me off and forced me up on curb i am sure i will go to jail for assault and battery. hope there is some dna to identify the remains cause it will be ugly.
anyway, the group i am with is a good group. the kids are no problem (hats off) and the chaperones are alot of fun to be with so it makes for a great time.
weather here is incredible. today it was sunny and in the low 80's. washington has a no idle law which if i am lucky enough to find a place to park, i can't idle more than 5 minutes without shutting down. i even had a bean sprouts and tofu eater on a bicycle remind me of this. he pulled up to my open door and never made eye contact with me. about 15 minutes later, i shut down. this was after the encounter with the anchor trailways driver. the guy on the bicycle is #2 on my list.
i have no #3 but the day is not over. anyway, back to the story. if i can't idle, no air conditioning. i know what you are thinking and yes, i like my "comforts". i do not go camping. too hot, too many bugs. if i stay in a hotel without room service, that is my way of "roughing it". camping to me involves something with at least 6 wheels and a generator, but i am straying from the blog intent.
anyway, i will miss this group. we leave thursday night about 2100 and it is about 625 miles to get them home. another driver will take them the rest of they way so i should get in bed around 1000.
arlington was as usual. a very real, somber place. there were so many funerals today. i heard so many 21 gun salutes and cannons firing that i felt like it was a war going on. when i go there, i think about so many who fought for me to have the freedoms i enjoy today. if not for their sacrifices, you might not be reading this blog. as a matter, there might be no internet (al gore did not invent the internet). please, next time you meet a vet or have a family member who served, just tell him, or her, thanks. a simple thanks goes a long way. you may be the first person who ever did that. i remember several years ago i started doing this after witnessing something absolutely incredible. i was at the airport to pick up my ex who was not my ex at the time. during this time, i saw an older man and woman standing with a young (20's?) lady holding an infant. person after person came thru the secure area. i could tell they were getting anxious and finally i saw him. he was still dressed in his desert fatigues. he hugged everybody and then they sat down. the young lady handed him the infant and he held it so carefully. as i watched, he was embracing the child and heard the older woman say, "how do you like your daughter". it finally hit me that he was holding his child for the first time. a wave of emotion came over me. i stood there with tears streaming down my face thanking god for being able to witness this very emotional time. as i wiped my face, he looked at me with so much in his eyes; he was so proud and happy. i whispered a soft "thank you". he looked straight at me, knowing what i was trying to say. he nodded and went back to that moment. i looked up and saw my wife standing there. i hugged her and no more than 10 seconds later asked her if she saw the family on the bench. she said, "what family?". i looked and they were gone. i looked up and down the corridor and they were no where to be found.
until next time...

I Don't Need a 12 Step Program

okay, i have a problem. people you are in the counseling business and most say if the patient will admit to their addiction, treatment goes better and faster. well, i am in denial and i plan to stay that way.
tonight marks my 7 baseball game in 7 days and if there were anyway for me to be there tomorrow i would. i love being at the park. i love the smell of hot dogs cooking. i love the smell of the water while the field being prepped by the grounds crew. most of all, it is the sound a wooden bat makes at it makes contact with the ball. CRACK!!! in the last 7 days, my team has won 6 of 7 games, most by shutout. one of the assistant coaches tells me they win when i am there. it kinda looks that way. i have witnessed their record with me there go 8-4. that is a record any team should be proud of.
tomorrow i go back to washington. i am excited but i am sad to have to tell my daughter i won't be there for her softball game and my son his field trip to watch, you guessed it, my team play baseball. i will be back friday so i will get to see some of what i have been missing.
until next time...

Back Home

finally made it back home and it feels good. the road trip was incredible-we won 4 of 5 games and to do that on the road is quite remarkable. the "boys" are very respectful towards me and never cause me any problems. it would be so easy for this group of future major leaguers to be cocky and arrogant, but they are not. the are quite humble as a matter of fact.
as i write this, i have been talking to another one of our drivers who has become my best friend. jack is on his way to washington, d.c. and it is 0330. i have the weekend off and am going to watch a baseball game with my 2 youngest children. i sure wish i was taking all 4. maybe soon. you would think i would be tired of baseball but i am not. tomorrow, or actually today will be my 6th game in 6 days. if i could i would go sunday night but i have got to take advantage of being home and going to my home church. i am thirsty and need to drink deep from the well. i think the last time i went to my own church was sometime in march and will have been about 7-8 weeks since i was there. i am looking forward to it more than i can say.
monday morning i leave for 5 days in d.c. and i am looking forward to going. i like washington but i was really needing the 5 days off i was supposed to be taking. when i get back, i will have a few days off before i go back on an 11 day road trip. yes, it is baseball so i will get 11 games in 11 days. i just promised my kids i would be here. it kills me to tell them i am going to be here and then tell them i can't. i missed a lot of my 2 older children's lives. they moved about 3 hours way about 10 years ago. my time with them is very limited and i promised i would never become numb to the fact that they moved. i still try to call them most every night. i understand that with their ages, 20 and 14 that they have their own lives and friends and i try to make exceptions in visiting. never will i let got of them, never.
if you are reading this, please take the time to comment on this blog. i would appreciate any feedback about what this blog doing to other people. please, this is read by church, friends and family so keep that in mind as far as language.
until next time...

Correction and Apology, Game 4

today, a dear friend brought something to my attention and i must admit, i am embarrassed about it. typing letters in all lowercase has been a "trademark" of mine. even while working for fortune 500 companies. there was even one company where we turned the page sideways. it's one of those things that set us apart and in the business world you do things that set you apart. to put it simply, do what it takes so people will remember you. this is not something to remember me for anymore.
in earlier posts, i referred to God and Jesus in lower case. my friend, whom i do admire and respect, suggested to me it should be capitalized. once i heard him say this, i knew he was right and i must make apologies if i offended anyone and i apologize to him if i did offend him. he is right; God and Jesus should be capitalized and no justification will cover this. if i am who i say i am, then i must do all i can to show who i put first in my life with proper respect. dan, i am thankful for your attention and bringing this up. i value our friendship and look forward to more trips with you.
now, it's baseball time. tonight we lost a close game. one of our "big guns" cranked out his first home run of the season. it was a huge shot out of the park. in my estimation it went about 400'. i normally don't complain about calls that "blue" makes but our last 2 outs were way off base, the last one literally. our batter had already crossed first before the ball hit the first basemans glove. bad call but there is nothing you can do. no instant replay or challenges.
it has been a great trip as we have won 3 of 4 games with the 5th and last game tomorrow night. after the game we leave for home which is about a 2 hour drive putting me at home between 0200 and 0300.
until next time...

God Looks Like A Goose

well, no. scripture tells us we are made in his image. so hang on, stick with me here.
as i look around, i sometimes find it hard to believe god is anywhere around. sickness, war, people killing each other plus a whole lot of other stuff i don't understand. i am sure some are wondering where god was when all those students and teachers were being killed one by one at virginia tech. i don't know. i am sure he was there in some way and some how there will be stories that will surface that will show his hand some way.
being on the road as much as i am, i do not get to go to my home church very often.i miss that group of believers and there are times i really need a dose of god. his medicine is good for my soul. sometimes i get in situations while driving that scare me. it may be a new city, a way i have never gone or it could just be the moment i am in. regardless, i need god and i need him more at that moment. and then it happens. it is what i call a "god moment". it is where i am able to see god in a very real way. he lets me know that he is there with me and he is always right on time. how does he do it? geese. yep, the big bird that flies in the air. kinda odd, isn't it? god knows how i love his creation and i marvel at birds. hummingbirds and geese. nothing quite like a flock of geese flying over on a moonlit, fall evening.
the first time i drove a bus to washington, d.c., i was apprehensive which is nice word for scared. i was praying for god to show me the way and help me get my passengers there safely. just as soon as i was finished praying, a flock of geese flew very low over me. immediately i felt at peace and knew he was there with me. since then, this has happened many times over. i know it is kinda whacky. i have mentioned my god moments to other people and they have similar stories although theirs are not geese. it is very real to me and i can't describe the feeling. i just know it works.
will it work for you? i don't know. ask him, not me. next time you see a flock of geese, just know someone, somewhere, is having a god moment.
until next time...

Livin' A Dream in Chattanooga

well, i am back on the road with the "boys of summer" and it has been a great trip. 2 games, 2 wins over the #1 ranked team in their division standings. 2 games, 2 days, 2 wins!!! definately moves us up in the standings. we are now 5 and 5.
it is very cool to be with these guys. i am a "baseball junkie" and this is supporting my habit. it was a childhood dream of mine to play major league baseball as a kid. to be a part of this takes me back to my childhood. i was raised by "ward and june cleaver" for parents. dad worked, mom stayed at home and was she always there when i got home from school. what happened to the rest of my life is still a mystery. but i had a good start!!!
had a chance to try out for the cincinnati reds back in 1974 or 1975 just after graduating from high school. a man who ran our recreation league was a scout and was a very nice man. always fair and treated everybody with respect. his name was "dunk" and had a horrible speech impediment. kids made fun of him and it was not fair. they treated him very badly as kids do, but he loved them anyway. what a heart for kids and baseball he had. just before i was going to meet with him, i cut 2 fingers off my right hand. since i was a right handed pitcher, that was the end of that. although i had them re-attached, a dream was lost. now, through these guys, i get to live at least a part of it. i have always heard that if you aren't living your dreams, you aren't living.
until next time...

Back Home

wow, it is so good to be back home. as i sit here with my son, i am happy for the time with him but i sure do miss the other 3.
the trip to atlanta was great and i know the kids (and their parents) were happy to be back home and the dose of reality called school is only about 11 hours away as i write this. it was one of those trips that you just know will leave impressions on everyone. me included.
as i mentioned earlier, tomorrow i take the team to another city about 2 hours away. they will play a 5 game series and have the chance to improve their record to at least .500. their management team carries some impressive major league numbers as well as reputations with excellent standing. besides that, they all do great jobs teaching as well as coaching. reminds me of a local college coach i have had the pleasure of transporting. always teaching. anybody could coach with enough experience. take a special person to do both.
time for bed. it looks like i can get there before midnight for a change.
until next time...

Down Time

got in last night around 2200 and called an old friend who told me he always had a place for me to sleep. took him up on his offer and it was good to kick back with an old friend and just laugh and talk. today, i slept in and it felt sooooo good. went to have lunch at school with my 2 youngest children and it was very emotional just to spend some time with them. i have 2 older children for a total of 4 and i miss them all the time. tonight, i will have more time with my 2 youngest. it is my intention that every time i see my kids to embarass them as much as possible by picking them up and squeezing them to their eyeballs pop out. mix that in with a few kisses and you are guaranteed to embarass them in front of all their friends. outside of my relationship with christ, they are the most important things in my life. i have been blessed beyond measure to have the 4 children i have. they are so special to me.
today is the first day for quite some time i haven't driven. i was looking at my calendar and it looks like about another 2-3 weeks before i will see some more "kick back time". i love what i do but it is very exhausting at times and i would not trade it for any other job except maybe shooting pictures.
gotta go squeeze the kids some more. until next time.......

Back Home

got in from jacksonville early this morning and was tired after driving thru 4 states to get home. good trip and i am looking forward to making many more with these group of guys. it still leaves me asking the same questions as i said in the last post. i look and see opportunities and wonder what lies ahead for them in their careers as well as mine.

today is a much different day with a much different group of people. they are are from the midwest and are touring manufacturing facilities for some products they sell. pretty cut and dry; pick them up at point “a” and take them to point “b”. then reverse the process. not much time or opportunity to really bond with them or find out that much about them. these types of trips are some of the hardest. just faces sitting on my bus for about an hour and then they are gone. no getting to know them, their families or anything else. the only reward I get will be an addition to my paycheck. i started doing what i do and yes it was for the pay. somewhere along the way i realized that it’s not about the money if you are where god has placed you. the rewards are much greater than the pay. if the only reason you are doing what you do for the money then you are doing it for the wrong reasons. it took me a very long time to realize that when i die i’m dead and never have i seen a moving van behind a hearse. my rewards are stored up in heaven. the work i do is for god and not for any man or corporation. i have no glory and never will. it is all for him and his glory. i am not included. i do know the one who has gone before me and he is getting closer to finishing my mansion with streets paved with gold with every day that passes. it is for eternity and no matter how long i live here on earth, eternity will be significantly longer. that is the only final thing we will ever encounter. period. there were times in my life the only thing i had to look forward to in life was dying. now the thing i look forward to the most is dying but for different reasons .i will see the creator face to face and boy, do i have a few questions!!!! and, most all of them begin with “how” and not “why”.

tomorrow will be my first day off in quite some time and i am ready to start some “kick back” time.

until next time…..

Jacksonville

well, this is my last night in jacksonville. i am traveling with a professional baseball team and it has been a great trip. yesterday as i watched my team win, i was blindsided when one of the players asked me if i would take them to church (easter sunday). of course my answer was yes but only if i could go. we got up and hit the road about 0930 for a 1030 service. it was an amazing church (first baptist church-jacksonville). i have been in smaller coliseums!!! dr. mac brunson delivered a wonderful message but it just did not have the feel of my home church. there were four of us going to church and i was feeling some things that i was ambivalent about. let me explain. i have driven lots of commercial-type vehicles and it was only a boring job. one sunday morning as i was sitting in my old church parking lot, i saw our church bus and knew it was not being used on a regular basis. i thought, could i use this bus to further god's kingdom? the answer was a "fuzzy" yes. as some time went by, i met a man who was a retired methodist minister who was driving part-time for a local, well respected company. we struck up a friendship and talked about buses and some more of the puzzle started to fit. i had driven some private coaches and i thought i had a pretty good feel for what it would be like. i knew god was pointing me in a direction of buses and some type of ministry. how the two are connected, i still am not sure. now, back to this morning. has god put me here to be someone who finally starts a "bus ministry" or is it much more than that? am i here at this time and place by accident or did god put me here to be some sort of guide for these guys? i know all the things to say about my relationship with christ and how it keeps me grounded and how i can not imagine living a life without him but can i say it to them? will my life experiences be able to help them see that no matter how many millions of dollars they could make will ever matter until they find a god who loves them unconditionally and in no way dependent on how well they play, their bank accounts, or what they spend their money on? how do i tell them their lives will be okay if they never make it to the big leagues? as you can tell i have become very attached to these guys and i truly care about them. i only have this opportunity 'til the end of summer. am i living my life in a way that will show them the christ in me or will they see someone who still slips and falls just like the will slip and fall? is there any chance i can show them a better way? i must admit that right now as i write this, i am scared at all that could be at stake here. also, am i just here to plant seeds? i can't make them accept christ and i can't make them believe in something more than they are. there are times i wonder what people see in me let alone who. all i can do at this point is hope, trust and believe god's plan for me.