long day, big win

high school band competitions are becoming amazing productions. i had a weekend trip that took a large high school band from kingsport to murfreesboro. my day started by leaving home at 0400. i arrived in kingsport at 0700 and then drove to murfreesboro. all told, about 365 miles. we arrived about 1230 and we did not leave for another 12 hours. here is some info for you to think about:
* this is the largest high school band in tennessee-285 in the competition band and over 400 in the football band. there are only about 2000 students in the whole school. that means about 1 in 5 students are in the band.
* they are larger than the university of tennessee pride of the southland marching band.

* this was a "lite" trip-7 buses, 1 tractor trailer, another trailer pulled by a truck and appx 25 chaperone's and helpers.

* they travel extensively- they have played at the macy's thanksgiving day parade, tournament of roses parade and countless other programs.

* they are extremely talented, gifted and well led.

this group was a typical group who travels alot-polite but not really outgoing-until you got to know them. once they all got used to me, they were very polite and respectful. they were a fun group and very disciplined. watching them warm up was impressive. seeing them perform with such precision was inspiring. during their finals performance, there was a bassoon solo. bassoons are not your typical marching band instrument so it had to be "miked". it was so soft and such a pretty piece of music. it was the kind of piece that while he was starting, people stopped what they were doing just to listen. when they finished, they were shown what i think was ultimate respect-kids from other schools gave them a standing ovation!!! it was really cool to witness this event.
it was the kind of trip i ended up thanking them for allowing me to be a part of. it was a memorable experience and i am grateful i had they chance to not only meet some respectful and talented kids, it was a pleasure to meet so many chaperone's and parents who make all of this happen. without them, at best this would have been "organized chaos" at it's finest. by they way, they "earned" second place and the governors trophy!!!

until next time...

Navy SEAL Lt. Michael Murphy

i don't often write about individuals. most are about group or team players coming together for a win. in this case it is about one person.
Lt. Murphy was killed in afghanistan in june 2005. recently he was awarded the medal of honor, the highest medal given to anyone in the military. i went to the army's website to copy/paste a copy of the citation but it was not there.
why is this so important?
Lt. Murphy is the first medal of honor recipient killed in afghanistan. his honoring was propaganda on cnn, msnbc and cnbc. he did not receive any attention above the fold or below the fold in the new york times. fox news was the only one to give it a fair shake.
in researching this, here are some comments posted:

"Michael wasn't into medals and calling attention to himself," Daniel Murphy said. "But all these people are saying Michael's actions are so special he deserves the Medal of Honor."

Murphy, who was 29, was killed in a fierce firefight in mountainous terrain along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. He led a four-man special reconnaissance unit that was secreted into the Hindu Kush mountains along the border in June 2005.

The unit was reported to be trailing a high-ranking terror leader near 10,000-foot peaks when they were ambushed and overrun by scores of insurgent fighters on June 28, according to Newsday interviews and media reports. The newspaper Navy Times reported in October that Murphy's actions -- "far outnumbered and surrounded by enemy" -- were being reviewed for the U.S. Navy's first Medal of Honor awarded since the Vietnam War.

A troop transport helicopter that sped to their rescue with eight Navy SEALs and eight Army commandos aboard crashed after being hit by a rocket-propelled grenade. All aboard were killed. A single member of Murphy's team managed to elude capture, and eventually was reunited with U.S. forces.

Relatives of the SEALS have said the lone American survivor told them that Murphy came to his rescue when he was trapped by insurgents during the battle, according to the interviews and reports.

The survivor also told relatives that Murphy was shot when he climbed to higher ground and into the open to send an electronic call for help. Wounded, Murphy completed the call, then continued fighting. It is this action that is believed to be at the heart of his consideration for the Medal of Honor.
navyseals.com website

"At a White House ceremony Monday, Navy SEAL Michael Murphy's family received the Medal of Honor. The sacrifice Lt. Murphy made epitomizes the best of America, and that's why we are leading with the story.
billoreilly.com

of other notes, bill maher was heckled by far left wing extremists live on his hbo program. this received more attention than the medal of honor ceremony.

in Arlington National Cemetery, over 300,000 brave men and women are buried. as you enter, there is a sign reminding you that these are sacred grounds. i do not know where Lt. Murphy was laid to rest. i do know this, it is sacred as well.
i am adding a link to the Arlington website that features the video of trace adkins haunting song, "arlington". take a moment and listen.
http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/memorial-day-2006-video.htm

Lt.Murphy was a hero. he was my neighbor and yours. he was the kid up the street. he was an american. just like you and me.

never forget those who give, and gave, their lives for this country. mrs. murphy, god bless you and your children.

until next time...

whirlwind tour of the eastern u.s.

i love my job and i love my life. at times, i don't know where i will be the next day. i have the privilege of transporting anybody from young school-aged kids to our military. i go from large cities to cities that are not even on some of the best maps you can buy. i drive on roads 10 lanes wide and i drive on back country roads that require some "creative" maneuvering. this past week, i left on a tuesday about 1730 and drove to chattanooga, about 1 1/2 hours south. i picked up a group that was going to washington, dc. i was relaying them to another driver who was waiting about 2 hours south of dc. the lady who is the tour director, joy, is one of my favorite people. due to her personality and experience, all of her trips are well planned and executed. we left chattanooga about 2030 and arrived in raphine, va. about 0315. from there the other driver would take them the rest of the way. i was going to bed.
about 1100, i left raphine and headed home, about 325 miles south. i got to my office about 1500 and our administrative assistant came outside and said "don't leave, the boss wants to see you". i knew i was in trouble, was going to be fired, and be living under a bridge somewhere!!! when i got in, it was a whirlwind. i was not in trouble, but i was going to chicago and my flight was leaving in just over 3 hours!!! and, rushing home to pack, pick ups kids, eat dinner, take them to their mother and get to the airport. my flight was scheduled to leave at 1940 bound for charlotte, nc. i arrived about 1845, got checked in and went to a lounge beside my departure gate. long story short, my 1940 flight left at 1920!!! never had a flight leave that early. got to charlotte and due to high winds, my flight was almost 2 hours late. after a very turbulent flight, i arrived at o'hare about 0130 and got to my hotel about 0300 and asleep about 0500. i was back up at 1100 and went to mci to get a rental bus. this was a brand new, 2008 mci. 20 minutes later i was going thru a construction zone on i90 and got side-swiped by a RODEWAY (intentional caps, yes i am screaming) bob-tail. he hit my mirror so hard, it flipped around and was touching my windshield. he kept on going. never stopped. surely his mother was a dog or he had no father. it took me over a mile to get over and it took almost 30 minutes to fix the mirror. hat's off to those help trucks that patrol our inner-city interstates who help motorists. i arrived at our shop about 2230 and had 2 trips the next day. one to the airport with an sec football team and then to flat creek, nc. in 2 days, i had covered a lot of ground. knoxville-chattanooga-raphine, va-knoxville-charlotte-chicago-knoxville-flat creek, nc.-knoxville. while all this sounds wild, in reality it is "all in a days work" and i would not trade it for anything!!!
until next time...

young life

"objects in camera viewfinder are smaller than they appear"
sharp top-jasper, ga.


















































for the past 2 weekends, i have had the pleasure of taking 2 young life groups to "camp" for a weekend. when i was in high school, i was in young life. although now, i don't remember that much about it. recall is not what it used to be.
i love young life groups. i very much appreciate the time and energy the counselors put into the lives of our young people. as i posted earlier, our youth are not all bad. i honestly, truly believe if more of our youth were involved (with their hearts) in a young life group, our society would have far fewer problems. anything that takes kids out of their normal, peer-pressure filled lives and deposits good things in their hearts and minds is a good thing.
i don't normally promote websites. i don't normally promote "organizations". very rarely do i endorse all that much. i whole heartedly and without hesitation promote young life. their url is www.younglife.org and there is a lot of info there. copy/pasted from their website "what is young life" is the following:

"Picture a sea of teenage faces in a crowded school hallway. Some kids are trying to blend in; some are being carried along by the crowd; others are deliberately swimming against the tide. All of them are trying to find their way in a culture that is crowded with the noise and glare of media messages and peer expectations.

Young Life seeks to carry the message of Jesus Christ into that tumultuous tide and points teenagers toward life as they were created to live it. Since 1941, the dynamic that has characterized Young Life is its commitment to relationships — Young Life leaders meeting kids on their turf in the interest of friendship. As leaders get to know teenagers, they are able to share the love of Jesus Christ through platforms like Young Life club, Campaigners and trips to camp.

Whether kids are seeking answers or just acceptance, Young Life is there for them, armed with a desire for fun and the ultimate message of hope."

any time spent steering a young person in this direction is time well spent. plant some seeds today. you will see a bountiful harvest for generations to come.

until next time...

the competition

today i have the pleasure to be a part of a 3 bus caravan taking a high school band, color guard and drum line to a regional competition. i have taken these guys before and they are very talented and led by some gifted people. every time i have taken them somewhere, they always win. no, it's not because of me!!! they are consistently that good. their leadership is well qualified to lead. and they do it well.
i was able to take my son with me on this trip. most of my trips he wants to go. because of school, he obviously can't. being a saturday and his interest in music, i felt this would be a good time to show him an option he will have when he enters middle school next year.
when this group travels, it is a fairly large entourage. 3 buses, an equipment truck (mid-size with hydraulic lift), another truck to transport the kawasaki mule, another truck for equipment, and a host of parents and helpers dedicated to making sure all goes smoothly and bring along misc. supplies and needed items. they are well equipped and well prepared. i can not imagine the expense these parents go to. they perform quite a bit so the costs are several thousands of dollars. i took them last year part of the way to orlando. the results they get are well worth the expense.
when i played in my school band, we were lucky to play at football games. we did not compete. now kids perform all over the country. the experience they are getting will go with them for the rest of their lives. i am priveledged to be able to be a small part of this experience and thankful to have the opportunity to watch them receive their rewards.
we hear the news about kids involved in gang activity, drugs and lots of other things. we have become so used to what once was abnormal that we miss the goodness most of our youth display. not every kid is in a gang. not all of them do drugs. because of media we come to believe that if one is, they all are. this is a good group who chose a different path and even if you choose not to see the good, it still exists. you are missing something. these kids always are polite and respectful to me. they greet me with a sincere "hi" and as they get off they actually say "thank you". most of them will tell me they are glad i took them and they hope i take them again. goodness is out there and you may not have to look as hard as you think. take those jaded glasses off and look again. it's not as bad as you think.
until next time...

pics from louisiana to home

sugar cane field in la.
cotton harvest time
dust devil in "loozyanna"

high honor

tuesday i got a call from our general manager. another company needed 2 more drivers for a large troop movement from ft. cambell, ky. to ft. polk, la. for those of you familiar with this blog, you know my gratitude to every soldier for the job they do to keep us safe. being able to transport them would, and is, a high honor for me.
our trip started out with thirty buses picking them up and relaying them to a truckstop in west tennessee. from there me, as well as 30 fresh drivers were to take them the rest of the way, about 550 miles. i got a call from my partner that they would be meeting me in about one hour. so, i waited. after about 2 1/2 hours, i called him back. he told me they had been involved in a wreck and were waiting om law enforcement to finish their investigation. a big truck rear ended one of the buses on the interstate and pushed him into the bus in front . the bus in the middle has some serious damage and was out of service. a new bus was coming and they would soon be on their way. finally, they were released to continue their trip. all this being said, by the time they got to us, we had been waiting almost 4 hours. when they arrived, they had to eat. by the time we loaded, we were pulling out at 4pm. we were supposed to leave at 11am. 2 exits later, the transmission on one of the buses went out. those soldiers were divided and put on the other buses. by the time we got to ft. polk, la. at 345am, we were tired. especially the soldiers. when i was watching them unload their equipment, it occurred to me they not only had all of their equipment but their guns as well. i started talking to one of the leaders on my bus. nice guy. he was picking up the body armour vests and tossing them like it was nothing. as they hit the ground, it sounded like bricks falling. i picked it up and i was amazed at how heavy it was. i asked him and he said it was about 40-45lbs. and, it did not have the side plates in so add another 5-10 pounds. i asked him about their rucksacks and he said they were about 45lbs and their equipment/supply belts were another 10-15lbs. then, their helmets are made of kevlar. add another 5lbs. so, when these guys are training, they are carrying 100-120lbs. my 2 youngest children together don't weigh that much!!! i can not imagine going on a 5-10 mile hike with this stuff but they do. and then, i asked about their weapons. now, i have been raised with guns and have owned at least one since i was about knee high. he explained the features of his rifle and then he handed it to me. add another 5lbs.!!! it was heavy and just by the feel you could tell they had some of the best and most technologically advanced equipment in the world. it was incredible to hold this. as i got lost in the moment, i looked him in the eye to thank him for taking the time to show me this stuff. i was blind sided by the reality that of the 44 guys on my bus, some may not make it back from their next deployment. these were guys that could be our neighbors, our sons, daughters, or kids that grew up with my kids. the sting of reality brings a soberness that leads to the fact that these guys do what they do for me. and you. and this great country. they did it by choice. they chose to do all of this so i can breathe free air. they could be married, going to college or a host of other things. they chose to do this for me and you. next time you see a soldier, thank him for a job well done. you may not agree but he is fighting for you to maintain your right of voice. they fight so someone will not take that away. Sgt., thanks.
until next time...