Tales of the Ordinary Days

It's 6:00 a.m. and I'm on a plane. Again. I feel like I was just here.Wait, I was...yesterday at 2:00 p.m.. But instead of a flight from Chicago to Omaha, I'm going back to Chicago. Do note that I am going to a different airport this time. Whew...almost ordinary if I didn't throw that one in. But this flight is different. I have the boys with me. Clarification...on the same plane, but not sitting by me. I am an A-Lister (Preferred!). They are not. I like to remind them of that fact. They retaliate by saying they like sitting in the back of the plane. I believe them. As for me, I like the front row and being able to stretch my braced leg out in the extra space. Some good conversation with familiar faces as the plane boarded. A little nap while the plane took off. Enjoyment of a small cup of coffee. And now a little blogging. Rally time. I feel much better now. Ready for a new adventure. The boys sure are...more to come soon :)

I thought it fitting to re-post my first blog entry to this site dated January 31, 2012. This gives a bit of background on the motivation behind my posts. Since I just started logging daily entries this year and only sporadically when I started (and since I am behind in my writing because I have spent half my waking hours in airports the last few days ;)), I am posting again......... _______________________________________________________________________ Inspiration comes in many forms.  For this blog it started with a random text from a co-worker, which lead me to a You Tube video, which resulted in a perceived compliment, and then an "aha moment" with this blog idea. The text came a couple of weeks ago from a co-worker who expressed to me that a video she just watched made her think of me.  This random text peaked my curiosity and led me to Google the noted video, "The Gift of an Ordinary Day".  After a bit of fumbling with my less-than-nimble ...

My window view from a pub on 7th Ave Colorado for the weekend, emergency room, knee brace and then a business trip to NYC. All in a days work. Yep...welcome to my life. Although it may sound like it, I'm really not complaining. I just shake my head at times and think "what world do I live in?" For the record, my knee still doesn't hurt. I do need to take it easy and the brace needs to be on tight for stability. But I am feeling pretty darn good. As I laid in the Vail ER, I couldn't help but hand-wring on how bad the timing was of my injury. This week is a busy week for me. A really busy week. I am a bit overbooked from the travel standpoint. Coming into my nine day road trip, I kept reminding myself that my organized self would conquer this travel quest of three states and three major cities in just over a week with a smile on my face. I didn't anticipate a blown ACL though. So now I am making lemonade. Airports seem much bigger and flights much long...

I was in a gang once. Clarification: I was a gang leader once. Technically we had a militia with our own gang names and we marched around Remsen patrolling our turf. The soundtrack to Les Miserables has been my Pandora favorite as of late. The song "Can you hear the people sing? Singing the song of angry men....we will not be slaves again?" has been resonating with me. Every time I hear this fight song, I want to join their militia and fight for the common man (would like a better result than my Les Mis comrades though). But it wasn't this song of the French Revolution that inspired me to start a gang. A fictional fantasy had me mesmerized at age twelve. It was the allure of being carried away by the written word. Although I knew little beyond the corn fields surrounding my small hometown, books took me on many adventures that spurred my young imagination. The library was as common a hangout then as Game Stop is for the child of today. Our adventures came f...

My view most of the day My entire day was spent indoors. With leg up and ice applied intermittently, I watched a snowstorm brew and take over Denver. A real snowstorm. They are up to about 10 inches now. As opposed to Omaha, school has yet to be called and businesses are still open. In fact Garrett went to play in a basketball tournament at his son's school this afternoon. The e-mail he received verifying that the fundraiser was still on commented that "come on...we live in Denver". No panic here. Regardless, I will still apply caution tomorrow morning to ensure that I get to the airport on time. Although Garrett will take good care of me if the weather and airport don't cooperate, I do need to get home. I was shocked at the reaction of my boys to my injury. They are truly concerned and a bit freaked out. I have been quizzed up and down on the surgery to come and the pain (or in my case, lack thereof...don't think they believe me). Specific questions rela...

That is Matt to the left and Kelsey to the right. My "ride" down the mountain Well I didn't break a leg (thank goodness), but I did completely tear my ACL. Yes, completely...meaning Level 3. A total detach. I spent some time in the Vail ER and in their attached physical therapy center. And it was quite the journey getting there. But thanks to my new friends, Matt and Kelsey, I made it safely. Seeing the beautiful Vail Ski Area and the Rockies from my back, head first down the mountain, on a sled, pulled by skiers was quite the experience. I now know what skiing rubber neckers look like from the vantage point of the casualty. Very interesting. I sure wish I had a camera on my helmet for the journey down. Let's start where it began, in the back bowls of Vail; specifically Blue Sky Basin. Note on the location (per Garrett); we couldn't have been any further out for a ground rescue. We spent the entire morning skiing across Vail to arrive at that destination...

Trouble was firmly the pointing toward the brother to the right With Day Two of house-bound status and memories flooding from yesterday's blizzard blog, I have to share a story about a fire-starter. Sorry for throwing you under the bus, Mark, but you sure didn't have my back on the day of the first incident. The fateful fire later was nothing short of karma (and not the good kind). We do all know that candles and fires are the ultimate temptation for young boys. My brothers were pretty much fascinated by anything with a fuse. They also liked naughty words, but knew better than to mutter them in front of my parents. On our big dining room table, black wrought iron, was a thick orange candle. It sat on a plate; displayed proudly by my mom in the middle of the table. She would light it when the mood struck her. On the day of incident #1, Mom went to light her candle. Her pleasure turned into shock as she was greeted with an act of vandalism. Unmistakably...