Been a while

I find it difficult to write this partly due to my long absence as an author, the other due to this annoying broken wrist and the subsequent cast. I have realized that although my mind says mid 20's, my body reminds me that I am early 40's and lacking in the grace needed to play a decent game of basketball.

I have started my store manager training program and find myself either very bored, moments of computer learning and note taking, followed by times of sitting around. I have been asked to continue to point out flaws in other peoples stores and clearly communicate my findings. It makes me wonder what kind of manager I will be and how will I take criticism when it comes. I guess time will tell.

Mike

The Gift that keeps on giving!

Well, it has been a while, and I am trying to refrain from complete political talk, but I can't help myself when it comes this easy. Here's the story..

As is common practice, when heads of state meet, they exchange gifts to honor their guests visit to their country. The Prime Minister of Great Britian had his first visit with president Obama this past week. The Prime Minister brought a pen and pencil set in a hand made wooden case. These were made from one of the oldest slave ships that were recovered in British territorial waters. They were made for President Obama specifically. This slave ship was the sister ship to the ship that was used to make the desk that has sat in the oval office for decades. Now the twist..

President Obama, with his obvious foreign policy experience, in consulting with his crack staff of advisors, bestowed on the Prime Minister of Great Britian, a colleciton of 25 all time greatest american movies on DVD. These included ET, Star Wars and Psycho.

For a president who has campaigned on restoring the image of the United States in Europe, we have gone from being the "bully in the Middle East" to the laughing stock of the world. Way to go!

For the love of it!

One of the unexpected things that I have found through acquaintances on Facebook, are the diverse opinions on everything from God to food and everything in between. One of the current, long running dialogues that I have been engaged in, is with a young woman that went to school with me some time ago. I felt that I need to vent, so bear with me on this one.

The subject is whether or not, a loving God, really meant that homosexuality is wrong, whether or not people can help themselves, and whether or not love should be the deciding factor on marriage and relationships. My friend believes that love in any form, is a beautiful thing. We should not ever speak against such a union whether in a relationship or in life. Her comment was this " if a person loves another person, loves a tree, loves any other created thing, it is to be celeb rated and not condemned". This may sound right to you, or it may sound absurd, but the truth is that in this post modern society, what is right or what is wrong has become irrelavent and only necessary on an individual basis. What is right for you is right for you and I can't say anything different, is the common plea. I hope this may clear up some thoughts of mine on this.

First, let me just say that I am the worst sinner I know. I, in know way, am condeming any person, but must speak against what I believe to be incorrect, no matter how painful it is to hear. I believe that homosexuality in any form is "sin" as described in Scripture.(Rom. 1)(1 Cor.). However, I also believe that cheating on one's wife is sin, promiscuity and sexual relations outside of marriage, lying, cheating, lust, etc. are all "sins" and equal in abomination to God. As humans, we find ways to justify all sorts of behaviors and blame all sources for the actions that we knowingly choose. There have been arguements for physiological, psychological, medical, sociological, ethnic and a host of other reasons why we are "programmed" to do the things we do. Does this mean that we can just throw our hands up and lose our responsibility for our actions? Absolutely not. I do believe that all of us have outside or inside forces that lend us to certain behaviors, but I refuse to let that be an excuse, but just a reason behind it.

We must first look at why we do what we do. Scripture tells us that all areas of creation are affected by years and years of sins inhabitation. Even in nature we see signs of breakdown in normal function and order. Certain animals becoming extinct, ozone depletion, earthquakes, floods etc. We have moved far from the "garden" described in Genesis. Our bodies are encountering new diseases, mental challenges, and viruses that are crossing from animals to men in an alarming rate. It is not hard to believe that even our genes, mental stability and structures are corrupted by sin over years of inhabitation. Because this may be the case, does not mean that we can excuse behavior does it? My father, an alcoholic for many years, has discovered some amazing realities during his sobriety. The front temporal lobe of the brain, responsible for reason, does not process information for people born with an alcoholic proclivity, than other people. Most people can take a single drink and maybe another. Using normal reason they can limit their intake and control their behavior. An alcoholics reason does not process correctly, one drink becomes 3, and 3 become 6 and so on. Also, the portion responsible for pleasure, release endorfins in an alcoholic that rival the feelings of having sex. This does not even begin to address the physical demands and need that the body craves for the alcohol. As a society, we don't throw our hands up and celebrate alcoholism. We dont create laws to allow alcoholics to have equal rights as those that dont abuse alcohol, do we? We dont let people drive drunk and say, "oh well" because they cant help themselves.

Homosexuality may be choice, it may be a "gene" and it may even be as a result of upbringing. We, as a society, have embraced this behavior and encouraged teaching "alternative lifestyles". Which one of us wouldn't be horrified by the pedfile that abuses children? Don't we hear some of the same excuses as we find with homosexual behavior, or heterosexuals that chose to engage in sin and then blame this or that? Are we going to go so far as to embrace the pedifile given enough time?

Love was used as the underlying reason for tolerance and acceptance. Love is given as the reason for all consenting people to be able to be married. Lets look at this as well. In the original language of scripture, there are four different words to describe the subtleties of love's use. In English, unfortunately, we have only one word with a variety of uses. Phileo, love for freinds, agape, a love that requires nothing in return and is unselfish completely, another form to describe the physical kind of love and the last form to describe a familial love. Is love enough to guide our marriage decisions, our actions and our acceptance of others? We must strive to have "agape" love towards all people, but cannot excuse behavior that is contrary to what is good, pure and right according to scripture. Which one of us doesnt love our children with every breath that we have, yet, when behaviors are contrary to what we have taught them to be acceptable, we are dissapointed, angry and certainly punish when punishment is required. Our love for them cannot excuse poor behaviors. We dont hug our children in the midst of their rotten behavior and make room for them to continue in the spirit of "love".

Love is not one of feelings and emotions and lust exclusively, rather, it is a decision that we make every day, that comes with feelings and emotions some of the time. When scripture tells us to 'love our enemies", we are not filled with euphoric feelings of love and an overwhelming sense of desire to be with them. We make a decision to obey the Word of God and with the Spirit of God guiding us, sacrifice self for the good of the other.


This rant needs to end, but I hope that it has not fallen on deaf ears. Love needs to be of the upmost importance in our day to day interaction with each other, but not all inclusive, and not all equal under that love. We cannot, for the sake of love, embrace all sorts of behavior and condone it for the sake of inclusion. We must speak truth when truth is attacked, loving the attacker but hating the sin. Thanks for reading... Mike

Joys of my 3 boys

As a small boy, I had dreams of playing shortstop for the Yankees, hitting game winning homeruns and buying my mom a new house. The day I turned 40, I assumed that dream had passed, however, if while reading this, you have pull in the Yankee front office, I will re-kindle the dream. Now my dreams are for my boys. One son that will be in college next year, playing volleyball and enjoying life, my second son playing sports and going into middel school and my youngest son reading of exciting worlds and playing piano, experiencing life on his terms. There are however, unique moments that come from 3 boys in over 18 years of raising them. Hope you enjoy the list.

1.) A king size waterbed holds enough water to fill a 2000 sq. Ft. House 4 inches deep.
2.) If you spray hair spray on dust bunnies and run over them with roller blades, they can ignite.
3.) A 3-year old Boy's voice is louder than 200 adults in a crowded restau rant.
4.) If you hook a dog leash over a ceiling fan, the motor is not St rong enough to rotate a 42 pound Boy wearing Batman underwear and a Superman cape. It is strong enough, however, if tied to a paint can, to spread paint on all four walls of a 20x20 ft. Room.
5.) You should not throw baseballs up when the ceiling fan is on. When using a ceiling fan as a bat, you have to throw the ball up a few times before you get a hit. A ceiling fan can hit a baseball a long way.
6.) The glass in windows (even double-pane) doesn't stop a baseball hit by a ceiling fan.
7.) When you hear the toilet flush and the words 'uh oh', it's already too late.
8.) Brake fluid mixed with Clorox makes smoke, and lots of it.
9.) A six-year old Boy can start a fire with a flint rock even though a 36- year old Man says they can only do it in the movies.
10.) Certain Lego's will pass through the dig estive tract of a 4-year old Boy.
11.) Play dough and microwave should not be used in the same sentence.
12.) Super glue is forever.
13.) No matter how much Jell-O you put in a swimming pool you still can't walk on water.
14.) Pool filters do not like Jell-O.
15.) VCR's do not eject 'PB & J' sandwiches even though TV commercials show they do.
16.) Garbage bags do not make good parachutes.
17.) Marbles in gas tanks make lots of noise when driving.
18.) You probably DO NOT want to know what that odor is.
19.) Always look in the oven before you turn it on; plastic toys do not like ovens.
20.) The fire department in Austin , TX has a 5-minute response time.
21.) The spin cycle on the washing machine does not make earthworms dizzy.
22.) It will, however, make cats dizzy.
23.) Cats throw up twice their body weight when dizzy.
24.) 80% of Women will pass this on to almost all of their friends, with or without kids. 25.) 80% of Men who read this will try mixing the Clorox and brake fluid.


Thanks for reading... Mike

A little taste of Florida

Well, while it is only 10 degrees F. here in Ohio, with snow falling outside to a couple of inches, I longed for the memories of warmer days and comfort food. In a desperate attempt to fill this desire, I decided to embark on some homemade Cuban food, food that reminded me of Stuart, Fl. and a little sandwich shop downtown. It was so good,( not my own opinion, but of the boys as well, who are hard to please), I wanted to share it with you. I call this the Cuban Dagwood.

I started with pork shoulder. Not the best cut of pork, but because it will slow cook, there is not a need for better.

Make a dry rub of equal parts of cumin and oregano with a couple of pinches of red pepper flakes to give it a little heat. Rub down the cut of pork, top and bottom. You can do this the day before, just place the seasoned pork into a ziplock with the remaining rub and place into the refrigerator.

Now, you can cook this with either a pressure cooker or crock pot. With a pressure cooker, 20 minutes is all it takes. If using a crock pot, which is my preferred method, 4 hours on high will be all it will need. If using a pressure cooker, use some extra virgin olive oil in the bottom with 4 cloves of garlic to flavor the oil. Let this simmer for 8 - 10 minutes before placing in the pork. If using a crock pot, follow the same procedure, however mince the garlic instead of using full cloves. After the pork is into the pot, surround the pork with 2 cups of orange juice and the juice of 1 whole lime. Let cook the full time as prescribed above.

The temptation will be to taste, re-taste and taste the pork again, resist the temptation. Before we assemble the sandwich, we have to start the black beans. I used 2 cans of black beans but if you are more cullinary savvy than I am, you can use dried beans as well. Finely chop 2 pickles and place the beans, pickles and a cup of the rederings of the pork into a pot and heat thoroughly.

Now for assembly of the cuban. Using a good sized loaf of soft, crusty bread, sliced in half lengthwise. Use whole grain, brown, dijon mustard and spread the bottom half of the bread with it. Cover the mustard with finely sliced pickles from side to side. Cover the pickles with creamy swiss cheese. Don't be stingy as this is the glue of the sandwich. Cover the swiss cheese with the warm shredded pork. On top of the pork, completely cover with sliced ham. Cover the ham with another layer of swiss cheese and the top of the bread. Hang on, almost there.

Using a grill pan or a griddle, place the sandwich on the pan after coating with a thin brushing of olive oil. On top of the sandwich, place another heavy pan on top, with a weight of some kind on top of that. A brick works well. This will compress the sandwich and give it that classic cuban look. It only takes 5-8 minutes per side, so don't walk away.

Anyway, slice the sandwich into manageable sizes and serve with a side of black beans. For a real treat, slice some bananas lenghtwise and deep fry as chips. Plantains work well. We served with sliced peaches, more to have the boys "buy in".

I hope you enjoy this as much as we did!

information highway

I realized this weekend just how much of a techno geek that I have become. As we are switching cable companies to gain better service, our existing company chose to cancel our phone and internet service to spite us. This happened on Thursday, so for 4 days we were without home phone, internet or other "necessary" technological distractions. I was having withdrawals from lack of emails by Friday, checking my Blackberry and trying to open every attachment on a small handheld screen to not miss anything. Needless to say, my Facebook status could not be changed and my many friends were probably wondering if they needed to put my face on a milk carton....... hardly. Well, Monday morning we had all televisions, computers and phones in full operating condition under the new company and I was finally able to join the 21st century world that I have come to love. I have truly left the information culdesac and have merged onto the information highway.- Mike

tough love

Hey gang, enjoy this post I found from a boss that is quite upset:


To All My Valued Employees, There have been some rumblings around the office about the future of this company, and more specifically, your job. As you know, the economy has changed for the worse and presents many challenges. However, the good news is this: The economy doesn't pose a threat to your job. What does threaten your job however, is the changing political landscape in this country.
However, let me tell you some little tidbits of fact which might help you decide what is in your best interests. First, while it is easy to spew rhetoric that casts employers against employees, you have to understand that for every business owner there is a back story. This back story is often neglected and overshadowed by what you see and hear. Sure, you see me park my Mercedes outside. You've seen my big home at last years Christmas party. I'm sure; all these flashy icons of luxury conjure up some idealized thoughts about my life. However, what you don't see is the back story. I started this compa ny 28 years ago. At that time, I lived in a 300 square foot studio apartment for 3 years. My entire living apartment was converted into an office so I could put forth 100% effort into building a company, which by the way, would eventually employ you. My diet consisted of Ramen Pride noodles because every dollar I spent went back into this company. I drove a rusty Toyota Corolla with a defective transmission. I didn't have time to date. Often times, I stayed home on weekends, while my friends went out drinking and partying. In fact, I was married to my business -- hard work, discipline, and sacrifice. Meanwhile, my friends got jobs. They worked 40 hours a week and made a modest $50K a year and spent every dime they earned. They drove flashy cars and lived in expensive homes and wore fancy designer clothes. Instead of hitting the Nordstrom's for the latest hot fashion item, I was trolling through the discount store extracting any clothing item that didn't look like it was birthed in the 70's. My friends refinanced their mortgages and lived a life of luxury. I, however, did not. I put my time, my money, and my life into a business with a vision that eventually, some day, I too, will be able to afford these luxuries my friends supposedly had. So, while you physically arrive at the office at 9am, mentally check in at about noon, and then leave at 5pm, I don't. There is no "off" button for me. When you leave the office, you are done and you have a weekend all to yourself. I unfortunately do not have the freedom. I eat, and breathe this company every minute of the day. There is no rest. There is no weekend. There is no happy hour. Every day this business is attached to my hip like a 1 year old special-needs child. You, of course, only see the fruits of that garden -- the nice house, the Mercedes, the vacations... you never realize the back story and the sacrifices I've made. Now, the economy is falling apart and I, the guy that made all the right decisions and saved his money, have to bail-out all the people who didn't. The people that overspent their paychecks suddenly feel entitled to the same luxuries that I earned and sacrificed a decade of my life for. Yes, business ownership has is benefits but the price I've paid is steep and not without wounds. Unfortunately, the cost of running this business, and employing you, is starting to eclipse the threshold of marginal benefit and let me tell you why: I am being taxed to death and the government thinks I don't pay enough . I have state taxes. Federal taxes. Property taxes. Sales and use taxes. Payroll taxes. Workers compensation taxes. Unemployment taxes. Taxes on taxes. I have to hire a tax man to manage all these taxes and then guess what? I have to pay taxes for employing him. Government mandates and regulations and all the accounting that goes with it, now occupy most of my time. On Oct 15th, I wrote a check to the US Treasury for $288,000 for quarterly taxes. You know what my "stimulus" check was? Zero. Nada. Zilch. The question I have is this: Who is stimulating the economy? Me, the guy who has provided 14 people good paying jobs and serves over 2,200,000 people per year with a flourishing business? Or, the single mother sitting at home pregnant with her fourth child waiting for her next welfare check? Obviously, government feels the latter is the economic stimulus of this country. The fact is, if I deducted (Read: Stole) 50% of your paycheck you'd quit and you wouldn't work here. I mean, why should you? That's nuts. Who wants to get rewarded only 50% of their hard work? Well, I agree which is why your job is in jeopardy. Here is what many of you don't understand ... to stimulate the economy you need to stimulate what runs the economy. Had suddenly government mandated to me that I didn't need to pay taxes, guess what? Instead of depositing that $288,000 into the Washington black-hole, I would have spent it, hired more employees, and generated substantial economic growth. My employees would have enjoyed the wealth of that tax cut in the form of promotions and better salaries. But you can forget it now. When you have a comatose man on the verge of death, you don't defibrillate and shock his thumb thinking that will bring him back to life, do you? Or, do you defibrillate his heart? Business is at the heart of America and always has been. To restart it, you must stimulate it, not kill it. Suddenly, the power brokers in Washington believe the poor of America are the essential drivers of the American economic engine. Nothing could be further from the truth and this is the type of change you can keep. So where am I going with all this? It's quite simple. If any new taxes are levied on me, or my company, my reaction will be swift and simple. I fire you. I fire your co-workers. You can then plead with the government to pay for your mortgage, your SUV, and your child's future. Frankly, it isn't my problem any more. Then, I will close this company down, move to another country, and retire. You see, I'm done. I'm done with a country that penalizes the productive and gives to the unproductive. My motivation to work and to provide jobs will be destroyed, and with it, will be my citizenship. So, if you lose your job, it won't be at the hands of the economy; it will be at the hands of a political hurricane that swept through this country, steamrolled the constitution, and will have changed its landscape forever. If that happens, you can find me sitting on a beach, retired, and with no employees to worry about.... Signed, Your boss