First Growth!

It's been one week since our garden was planted and already we are seeing some new growth. It's so exciting. I didn't mark where I planted things, so I can't remember what a lot of these will be.... I think this is the corn.
Tomatoes:
Green Beans:
Squash
Broccoli... or a weed?:

Garden 2009

Today I planted our vegetable garden. First stop was Lowe's to get the supplies:

A few weeks ago Jesse and Todd tilled the soil. Thanks Tim Geisland for the tiller. Thanks Todd Thurston for your back.

I had to prepare the soil by raking out all the grass, and mixing in some bone meal as an organic fertilizer. By noon it was 90-something out, so I took a 6 or 7 hour break until the sun went down. :) Here is the prepared plot for our garden:

Finally time to plant the seeds and put up a fence so the dogs won't run through it!


This year we have tomatoes, pole beans, zucchini, yellow squash, cucumber, carrots, sweet pepper, corn and lettuce. I hope they all produce.
We'll post updates as things start to grow!

Somethings I enjoy...

The people that live across the street from me have lived on my block since 1955. They know the history of our street. In late Spring through the end of Summer they sit on their porch for about 3 hours per night. They watch the younger people moving about, doing things that are "important"... I can remember thinking when i first moved in that it must get boring to sit on the porch for hours on end. However, now I wonder if Buck (guy across the street) has figured out what life is about. In fact, now that I think about it I can think of numerous occasions where elderly people spent hours sitting on a porch or in their yard. It appears to me that these people have figured out that life is worth enjoying with sustained sessions of sitting and enjoying the moment - living in the moment. It also occurs to me that it often takes getting older and realizing that what was once important doesn't really matter all that much. Life is better spent in community with people, enjoying conversation, and building memories that will last a lifetime. Buck has inspired me, as difficult as it is, to take time out to sit and enjoy the moment. Often times I realize after the fact that the things that are so important to me takes away from my time with Carrie. I'm not saying that I must get rid of anything that does not include Carrie, just that I need to have a more time for Carrie and other people in my life and a healthy amount of time for what I consider important. If I am not careful I will spend all my free time doing things that are typically fairly solitaire. Some of the photos below are things that I get enjoyment from... first and foremost is my beautiful bride, friend, wonderful life mate. Carrie is amazing!

Thinking about life...

So I am sitting on my deck listening to James Taylor's greatest hits and watching my dogs wander around the yard. The dogs just walk around sniffing things and taking the occasional break, i.e. lay down and look at nothing specifically. I get a sense of enjoyment watching my little friends enjoying themselves in the warm sun and cool grass. It makes me wonder if God watches me enjoy things simple. Does He find the same sense of enjoyment when I go hiking and enjoy His wonderful creation? Lately, I have felt stressing trying to focus on so many things at once without seeking guidance. What will I do for the rest of my life? So frequently I fill my time up with things that really don't matter at the expense of pursuits that have meaningful value... like spending time with Carrie and seeking God fully. Sometimes I feel like I spend 80% of my time on things of no consequence and 20% on things that mean the most to me. I am working to reverse that ratio - it is so hard to take myself out of the moment and see what is really important. "The secret of life is enjoying passing time." James Taylor - Funny, that line was just in a song that is playing in the background. I desire to have deeper relationships with fewer people as opposed to many surface deep relationships. Anyways...

Urban farming in Detroit.

BY JOHN GALLAGHER • FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER • April 2, 2009

Detroit could become a center of locally grown food and put large swaths of vacant land back on tax rolls under a proposal to create the city's first large commercial farm.

Businessman John Hantz of Detroit, in an exclusive interview with the Free Press, unveiled his plans for Hantz Farms -- a concept that would convert hundreds, even thousands, of vacant parcels in the city into urban agriculture.

Offering jobs and an ability to produce fresh fruits and vegetables locally, Hantz Farms could help Detroit "become a destination for fresh, local and natural foods and become a major part of the green movement," Hantz said.

Detroit already is home to hundreds of smaller community gardens. But Hantz's proposal is the first to envision large-scale commercial farming.

He said he could grow everything from Christmas trees to fruits and vegetables, with amenities such as a cider mill or horseback riding available.

With an estimated 40 square miles of vacant parcels, Detroit offers many sites where, in theory, a big farm operation might work. Hantz, a resident of Detroit's Indian Village district, is tentatively looking at a blighted area near Eastern Market, but exact boundaries would depend on whether he wins the city's cooperation.

A look at the plan

George Jackson, the city's chief development officer and president of the Detroit Economic Growth Corp., said he is evaluating Hantz's proposal.

"I'm going to look at this as I would any development deal," Jackson said.

Land assemblage remains a key question. Hantz owns several parcels in the city, but the vast majority of the acreage he needs for his project is

still either owned by private parties or is tax-foreclosed land owned by the city, county and state.

Hantz envisions the city, county and state donating the land to his project or selling it at a nominal cost. The payback would come in increase

d tax revenues once the farm is up and running.

Hantz is chief executive of Hantz Group, a network of financial services firms based in Southfield. He also owns the Detroit Ignition of the Xtreme Soccer League.

Vacant land solution?

Matt Allen, onetime press secretary to former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, manages the project as senior vice president of Hantz Farms.

Allen said Hantz Farms is a good solution for vacant land.

"What is it worth to the city just sitting there? Nothing," he said. "Part of the approach to this is that, the larger this becomes, the benefit gets greater and greater faster."

Even as a concept, the idea is controversial.

Jeffrey Armstrong, dean of the Michigan State University College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, called Hantz Farms "a challenging and exciting opportunity."

But Rebecca Salminen Witt, president of the nonprofit Greening of Detroit, said small community plots do more good for Detroiters, helping knit communities together.

"Folks are hoping for, wishing for, looking for a silver bullet to the vast expanses of vacant space that we see in the city," Witt said. "And because of that, they want to say, 'Great, we'll just plunk a couple-of-hundred-acre growing operations here a

nd there.' "

Allen responded that there ought to be a place for both community gardens and commercial farms in Detroit.

"There's more than enough land to go around," he said.

Strawberry Blonde?

For the past few months I have been thinking of coloring my hair strawberry blonde. It is naturally starting to turn reddish, so I thought I'd help it along. So today I went to Target and bought a box of L'oreal Superior Preference in Light Strawberry Blonde. I didn't quite get the results I was hoping for- it's not as strawberry as the girl on the box, but it is definitely warmer. At least it was only $10.00!

Before:After:

Rethink the simplistic moral outrage over AIG

Interesting article -

I remember the television series "West Wing" fondly. In addition to great performances and fun and compelling story lines, the show occasionally hit upon some fundamental truths about American politics. None truer than this - politicians win with 10 word answers. The American public, for whatever reason, seems to accept 10 word answers to complex problems as if their simplicity is a hallmark of truth.

As the situation with AIG demonstrates, they could not be more wrong. In recent days, as we search for people to point fingers at to mask our own complicity in the greed and deception of the past 20 years (yes, I think we should bail out the guy making $35,000 a year who bought a $600,000 house), I am amazed at how such complex matters are reduced to short, simple "truths" that are neither simple, nor are they truth. They are politics at their worst - playing to fear and the need of every person in
trouble to have someone else to blame.

Let's take a look:

Moral Outrage #1 - AIG took taxpayer money and paid out $160 million
in bonuses.

Complex Truth - Compensation structures in that industry call "bonuses" what most of us would call deferred compensation. As one commentator pointed out, "Jenny" gets hired for $300,000 - $100,000 in salary and $200,000 in a "bonus" if she meets certain personal performance standards that have nothing to do with company performance.

She is, for all intent and purpose, a $300,000 a year employee. She has a mortgage, credit card debt, and other obligations all consistent with being a $300,000 employee.

Now what happens if she suddenly has to give back $200,000? Simple, she
defaults on her mortgage, defaults on her other debt, and probably declares bankruptcy. Few people who work for a living (sorry, Mr. Obama, Jenny is not "rich") could take a 66% pay cut and survive. Jenny will become part of the financial problem instead of part of the solution. I would note that many UAW employees just voted against concessions that include giving up a mere $600 Christmas bonus.
So, let's take away all AIG bonuses, and watch more individuals collapse financially.

Moral Outrage #2 - Banks paid $17.1 billion in bonuses for 2008.

Complex Truth - A great whipping post, only everyone forgot until the mayor and governor of New York spoke up that the city and state collected nearly $1 billion in tax revenue from these bonuses. Pull on the bonus thread and the city and state of New York suddenly cannot pay their bills. Oops. Suddenly we begin to see that every financial decision has ripples. You cannot cast stones without creating them.

Moral Outrage #3 - Citigroup Ordered a Corporate Jet.

Complex Truth - This one irked me too until I read about Gulfstream starting to lay off employees. When we hold up things to moral outrage, we often forget that someone builds those corporate jets. If we make buying them our 10-word moral outrage for the day, the workers who build them lose jobs.

Moral Outrage #4 - People Making Over $200,000 a Year Should Pay More Taxes.

Complex Truth - Being wealthy at $200,000 or $250,000 a year is a fallacy. If these incomes come from salaries and bonuses (see above) these people work for a living. Moreover, making $200,000 a year in Montana is very, very different than making that same amount in New York or San Francisco. But most important, the less net income these people have, the less they buy. Ask the sales associate at Best Buy who loses his job in the big screen television area if he wants "rich" people to bring home less money.

I could go on and on, but you get the point. We have Detroiters marching against the Cobo Hall deal because they simply do not understand it, and have been whipped in to a frenzy by an equally ignorant group of council members.

A female in this state is incompetent to consent to sex before the age of 16, but if she kills someone at 13 she can be tried as an adult. Soldiers can fight and die at 18, but can't be trusted with a beer until 21.

So, before people express moral outrage because CNN or Carl Levin tells them to, they might want to think about the next 10 words in their thought on a subject. Too often, moral outrage ignores the complexities of our world, the consequences of that outrage, and the real reason for it - the need to blame someone else for our
circumstances.

Gary Bazydlois the general counsel for real estate development company Schostak Bros. Write to him at TalstonMorior@yahoo.com.

So what is the big deal with AIG bonuses...

Frankly, I don't see the big deal with AIG handing out $165,000,000 in bonuses. 73 people received bonuses over $1,000,000. If we are going to bail out a company that obviously has issues with their products and not give them some type of stipulation as to what may or may not be done with that money then they are entitled to spend it however they want. The initial bailout payment to AIG was $85,000,000,000. So the $165,000,000 is a little less than 2% of the total initial bailout. I expect that starting with the next chunk of money AIG gets there will certainly be measures in place to prevent them from dispursing another huge sum of money to employees.

Developing leaders in my FSA small group...

On Sunday morning's Carrie and I go to Brentwood Church (http://www.brentwoodchurch.org) and volunteer to help with students. I am a 3rd to 5th grade boys small group leader. It is really incredible to see how each of these kids has their own distinct personality. Even at 10 years old the leaders are leading and the other boys fall in line. Each kid I have is unique and a blessing to spend time with. I can remember when I was in 5th grade at church and how wide open I was... I can only imagine the teacher, Mr. Bishop, was irritated with the class. Though he may have been iritated he never neglected or lost sight of his reason for working with 5th grade boys. He is the person that initiated my accepting Christ and choosing to get baptized as an outward expressions of my faith. When I get irritated with my guys I remember my 5th grade teacher and relax. My group consists of Colin, Austin, Kyle, Cole, Devon, and others that don't attend as regularly as these guys.

ADD, ADHD, or whatever it is called now.

When I was roughly 18, I went for Attention Deficit Disorder testing at a very well respected research facility in Michigan. I put puzzles together while men with gray beards watched and made guttural sounds. I talked to psychiatrists and psychologists. It was a very interested process and in the end I was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder. My first recollection of having trouble in school was third grade. Then in fourth grade it was really apparent in hindsight that something was wrong. I nearly failed 5th grade and then DID fail 6th grade. Fast-forward 15 years or so... school is still difficult for me. But I want to finish and even go onto advanced degrees. I have this worry that due to ADD it will be nearly impossible for me to finish without medication. Most of the medication for ADD that is effective are stimulants aka amphetamines. The more I think about it the more I am resolute to the fact that I will NOT take a stimulant everyday to help me deal with my so-called disorder. Sometimes it is tuff doing things and staying on track... in fact most of the time it is. One of the things that helps me deal with ADD is exercise... I exercise a lot! Another thing that can be effective is time management. I say can because it is difficult to be disciplined in this area. It helps if I keep a calender or something similar. I will succeed in my desire to complete my undergrad and beyond. I like my disorder and frankly wouldn't have my mind any other way.

1987 Harley Sportster 1200cc

I like it a lot!

Rummy.

My dog Rummy.

5 days later...

It's gone. The snow is completely gone and it is 76 degrees out. I know I should be enjoying this, but it actually makes me a little sad.

SNOW!!!

This is the first time since we moved here, 4 1/2 years ago, that Lynchburg has gotten actual snow. Usually it's freezing rain, or a little bit of flurries. I'm so excited about this because it reminds me of home. One difference: if this were Michigan schools would still be open, and I would not be home from work with a delay. Here are some pictures I took of our house and street.



I wish I had the entire day off so I could go out and enjoy it!

Organic?

What exactly does it mean to be organic? Wikipedia has a good article on what it means to be organic here. I see labels all the time at the grocery store for organic vegetables, fruits, milk, cereals, meats, even popcorn and chips. It has seem to become so mainstream and commercialized now, I find it hard to believe that all these foods actually qualify as "organic." I wonder how much of it is a gimmick...
Last year, Jesse and I had a small garden. This year we are going to have a garden space probably 4 or 5 times the size of it. It's such a cost-saver. It's truly organic. We didn't use any chemical fertilizer or pesticides. The only method of pest-deterrent we used was planting a row of marigolds around the perimeter. It seemed to work really well, and it looked pretty. I'm really looking forward to this coming season of growing cucumbers, zucchini, squash, peppers, green beans, lettuce, and tomatoes (for Jesse).

Hello.

So I am back in Virginia. After spending 10 days in Utah I really didn't want to come back to Virginia. In fact, the only reason I did was for Carrie and my dog Rummy. This was my first visit to Utah. I was really surprised by the Wasatch National Forest... the mountains are absolutely huge! The terrain was incredible. One day I was walking on top of a mountain when out of the blue a dangerous pack of midgets showed up out of nowhere. We fought hard and in the end a bearcat saved me. I threw 6 midges off the side of the cliff. Anyways. I skied 7 days at Snowbird, Alta, Snowbasin, Solitude, and Brighton. We got a total of about 40 inches while I was out. Of all the resorts we skied I liked Alta the best. Alta is one of the few remaining ski hills in the country that does not allow snowboarders. I carry a knife in case I get into an altercation with a pack of wild snowboarders or midgets.

12 movies, 3 days

I'm having trouble sitting down and writing about my Sundance Film Festival experience.
Maybe it's because I am so tired and restless since I've returned. Seeing 12 films in 3 days will do that to you. It was worth it though and I can't wait to go back next year!
I wanted to write a brief synopsis on each movie I saw, but my mind is failing me at the moment. So a list is all I can come up with for now.

Victoria Day
The Yes Men Fix the World (Documentary)
Sin Nombre
Cold Souls
Shrink
An Education
Bronson
Over the Hills and Far Away (Documentary)
It May Get Loud (Documentary)
Mystery Team
Paper Heart
Push: Based on the Novel by Sapphire

I enjoyed them all. Some were difficult to watch at times (Sin Nombre, Bronson, Push), others really made you think (Yes Men), some were just entertaining without having to think at all (It May Get Loud, Mystery Team). My favorites were Shrink and An Education. I think both of these movies will end up in theater, so you'll have your chance to see them.
I only saw one "star" and I can't even think of his name or any movies he has been in. He hasn't been in anything in a long time. I know I'll see him in something one day and will be able to say "That's him! That's the actor that was one foot away from me!"
I did have a man on the bus ask me what movie I was in. He was old though and probably nearsighted.
Here is my favorite picture from my trip. I sadly forgot I had a camera and didn't take very many. This was my first morning in Utah on my drive to Park City. It is so beautiful there. Jesse told me I'd fall in love with it and he'd have to drag me back to Virginia. That didn't happen, but I really did enjoy the views.

5 days till Sundance....

I can't believe it's almost here! I thought about it last night and actually got butterflies in my stomach. On Thursday, I will be on my way to Park City, UT for the 2009 Sundance Film Festival! I've been working on my schedule and it was a bigger task than I had imagined. In my head, I always imagined the festival to take place in this enormous clearing with heated tents set up everywhere as makeshift theaters. The festival actually takes place between approximately 20 theaters in 3 different cities. So I also have to consider location when choosing the films I want to see. I want to waste as little time as possible going between cities (which are about 45 minutes apart). I think I've got it worked out. I'm planning to see 5 movies on Friday, 5 on Saturday, and 2 on Sunday. Sunday will also hold some award presentations. I'll let you know how it goes when I get back!

Our planet and the things that happen...

Carrie and I watched The Constant Gardner last night. As I was browsing the Netflix list of movies that you can watch instantly my interest was not drawn to the movie by the title... I thought it was a love story. Carrie picked it out. Having now watched the movie it was a gripping image of the plight of so many people in our world. People that don't have anything. While the story told in the movie may be fiction it is, in my opinion, an accurate representation of 3rd world living and the trials people face. I certainly look within myself and wonder if I am doing anything to effect change and help people. We sponsor a child... let me think... ok... so in an effort to help people that don't have anything my wife and I sponsor a child. For the longest time that seemed like enough. Naturally, "enough" is relative. For me it is not enough to sponsor 1,000 kids because when it is enough that means that I have made up in my mind that I have done my part and I can stop trying or try enough to sustain the kids that I sponsor. There will never be enough for me. By the grace of God I am going to find sustainable ways to provide food, clean water, and a place to live for many people. Each generation there are people that step forward and do something outstanding. I will be one of those people stepping forward in faith asking God to use me and those that partner with me to effect change in our environment and the people that inhabit it. If not me than who? If not now then when? If not you... why not? I can't sit idle and hope that someone takes up the cause of those that have no voice.


Our little girl Alma Patricia.

Sponsor a child. Take up a cause. Effect change in our world.

I choose to fight AIDS and the destruction of our natural environment.

Merry Christmas!