The Experts Say (Only for the fathers of girls.)
(This is something I wrote for Kai, my ten year old daughter, while I was on my way to Israel…so guys who don’t have daughters, you’re dismissed until the next topic…) How long does it take to become an expert? The experts say it takes 7-10 years and 50,000 “chunks” of new knowledge. You can’t paint a picture in Sunday School class, sit around and in 7 years call yourself an expert. You have to gain new knowledge and continue to gather this new knowledge everyday for 7 years. Many of your friends will appear to be experts at many …
Love and Donuts
I went with my son Noah to Krispy Kreme donuts to grab some glazed donuts. We got to the counter and he asked me if he could have a chocolate milk. I thought to myself “Buddy, you are going to have a sugar overload…but okay.” I said “sure”. Then he asked me if he could have two donuts. My alarm went off “warning, warning…you are about to hit sugar coma…do not, I repeat, do not let him have another donut.” I said “sure”. The alarm came back on “hello? Is there a responsible parent …
The Smiles Get Wider…
Right after Christmas, I went with Noah, my son, to Holiday in the Park at Six Flags. We had a great time, but we froze our “youknowwhats”. Standing in lines is not my idea of fun and if you add cold, windy weather on top of that, I go negative on the “fun-o-meter”. But its always fun to watch people and I noticed something odd when we were standing in line for the La Vibora ride. The smiles get bigger the closer you are to the front of the line. Duh. I guess that’s to be …
Dog? God?
When I was 12, my parents bought me a cocker spaniel. His name was Bucky. I had begged for months to get a dog and finally they broke under the intense pressure of an unrelenting 12 year old boy. After the initial fun of the first few weeks of having a dog wore off, my mom and dad had to constantly remind me to feed Bucky, give him fresh water, give him baths and…pick up piles. Fun times. My dad finally got tired of having to remind me so he sat me down. He said “Eric, you’re the closest thing …
Avery's Song
About a year ago, I was driving in the truck with my kids and my daughter Avery said “Daddy, I want to sing you a song.”She started singing like only a 4 year old can and I listened to her serenade. About 30 seconds into the song, Kai, my oldest daughter, told her to stop because it didn’t sound good. I told Avery to keep on singing that I was enjoying her songs. Avery kept singing. About six months after that, Kai, Avery, Noah and I went to visit one of our friend’s church. It was a little more charismatic …
Work Life Balance
This weekend my son, Noah, was playing with some of his K’Nex (I think that is how you spell it.) After about 30 minutes he had to show me his contraption. He had made a spoke and wheel and then put it on an axle. He then began to spin its fast as he could. (Here is an example of the K’Nex Coaster that may help you visualize what I am saying: http://www.knex.com/Shop/media_viewer_2.php?n=Ferris%20Coaster%20Help% 202&v=ferrisCoaster2final.wmv ) I suggested that he take one of the spokes off of the wheel to see how it would spin. It didn’t really spin, but instead …
Shift Happens
After visiting Seoul, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing, after reading The World is Flat by Thomas L. Friedman and after watching the video below titled “Shift Happens”, I was trying to digest a paradigm shift that was happening in me. One afternoon, I was driving down the road with my family in my Suburban and while stopped at a traffic light, I turned to my three oldest children (Kai, Avery and Noah) who were sitting behind me and I said: “Guys, school is important. There are kids in India and China right now that are studying …
Life Plan
When I was in my late twenties, I almost ruined my life. No, I wasn’t on drugs. I didn’t have a drinking problem. I wasn’t addicted to golf. I was trying to do too much. I had just gotten out of law school, was practicing law, was an adjunct professor at several colleges, making major improvements on my first house, celebrating the arrival our first child, teaching Sunday School, serving on several committees at church and running for School Board. I was trying to live my life…in one year. My wife finally pulled me …
Touch Football Ruined My NFL Career
When I was a kid my parents always told me that I couldn’t play tackle football without pads. We always had to play two-hand touch. I think it ruined my potential NFL career. Not because I wasn’t used to getting hit. My older brother helped me with that. I just couldn’t run fast. Reason: Touch Football. I know this may sound odd, but when you play touch football, you aren’t scared of getting creamed. If you are slow, there is no oversized 8th grader breathing down your neck to prove he can flatten a 6 year old. Change that to …
Blocking Sled
When I was in 7th grade, I was a bit overweight so when it came to playing football, they put me on the offensive line. Actually, I was a left guard. I really didn’t think I belonged there. I hated blocking and playing “bit parts” in the success of the team. I also hated the blocking sled. Most people know what a blocking sled is, but if you don’t, its just a bunch of metal that is on a “skid” platform that lineman “hit” and push in order to practice their skill. (See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_YL0o-kjEGA) Notice I said skill because that’s …
