The Audiorium

The Fear Factor: Did we stop dreaming?

Sun, 27 May 2012 14:22:12 -0700

Our $850 billion bank bailout debacle was greater than the entire 50 year running budget of NASA. I can’t believe our government is saying to the greatest “dream creator” the world has ever known, “we don’t have the money.” Really? Did we stop dreaming? Neil deGrasse Tyson tells it like it is in this short video and his plea to increase NASA funding I hope will stir your hearts…

I would like to believe our Congress isn’t mortgaging our dreams.

How much would you pay for the universe?

Happy 50th! Seattle World's Fair

Sun, 27 May 2012 13:53:38 -0700

A keepsake given to me a few years back by my friend John. This is the original guidebook to the Seattle World’s Fair in 1962. Note the price, $1.

I was 12 years old when the Century 21 Exposition opened on April 21, 1962 and of course unaware it had been re-purposed to demonstrate we were in fact leading the way in science, technology, space, and the future.

Now looking back 50 years through the long lense of memories and life, it strikes me how this fair evoked such a powerful promise for the future. It presented a grand vision that through science and humanities we could live together, communicate, travel, learn, and enjoy life in the age of tomorrow.

It’s interesting to witness how this vision of the future played out. Though early computers existed and global networks conceived, little did we see their coming impact in our lives. I commend the vision creators who as inhabitants of their time conjured up quite a metaphor for the coming new age 38 years before its time.

Almost 10 million people attended the fair and it is still the only worlds fair to realise a profit! When it closed on October 21, 1962 President John F. Kennedy was to slated to attend and give the closing speech but he called in sick with a bad cold. Later we’d learn it wasn’t a cold, he was dealing with the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Three Womannequins

Mon, 21 May 2012 11:09:46 -0700

1000 Random Acts of Kindness

Wed, 16 May 2012 20:10:02 -0700

Sean O’Conner of Boston, Massachusetts has an uncle Scott Widak who’s 47 years old, has down syndrome and terminal liver disease. I heard an interview with Sean a few days ago on CBC’s radio show, As it Happens.

Currently Scott is bedridden and near the end of his days. He lives with Sean’s 85 year old Grandmother. One of Scott’s pleasures in life is opening the mail regardless if it’s a bill, junk mail, or whatever.

On March 29th Sean O’Conner posted a message on Reddit.com and in it he gave a brief explanation of Uncle Scott’s situation and added,

“Anyone feel like sending him mail or a card?”

As it turns out many did. In fact within a few hours people were responding on Reddit and a couple of days later 100’s of letters and packages began arriving. At first they started coming from close by then from Canada, Mexico, and the United Kingdom. Over the next few weeks mail started coming in from across the globe, from New Zealand, Japan, a few from Russia, one from Poland, and on and on.

There was no firm count but Sean estimated over 1000 people responded and sent something to his uncle. He mentioned how every letter and card was full of thoughtfulness and kindness.

“You can tell by looking at it that people put some real time and thought into it.”

In the beginning Uncle Scott didn’t understand what was going on and who these letters, cards, cd’s and dvd’s were coming from, but as they kept coming in it captured his attention. Scott hadn’t walked in a week but he was so excited when a box of letters was delivered to the door he got out of bed, made his way downstairs to receive them and brought them back up to his bed.

One of the letters, a very endearing one was from a girl in Sweden. It was addressed to Grandma and included a piece of custom jewelry she had handcrafted.

I’m so impressed with this whole story and I love Sean’s straightforward way of putting it. “I thought of Reddit as a way, hoping I could bring a little bit of joy into his life because he loves opening mail…

Why not ask my community at Reddit to send him mail because he loves opening it?”

Reddit has since taken Sean’s message off their boards because it violates their users agreement not to post too much personal information. Yet it was there long enough for over 1000 people to show up and respond in kind.

I caught the interview driving home after work. This to me, even on a Monday when I’d caught myself a couple of times a tad cynical, demonstrates the miracle of our times and especially the thoughtfulness, generosity, and kindness of many people in our world. Needless to say, I dropped my insignificant little whining and was overcome with a half laugh half cry that brought a liberating joy to my soul.

I think the universe was talking to me and I am grateful I was listening.

Click here, if you’d like to listen to the interview with Sean O’Conner: Random Acts of Kindness (and jump to minute 21:00).

Happy Mother's Day, Mom...

Sun, 13 May 2012 14:08:25 -0700

Happy Mothers Day, Mom…

When mom passed back in 1999 I was asked to give the eulogy. I was honored to accept but it threw me into a total panic; “What am I going to say?” After a few days of sheer fright obsessing over scribbled notes a phrase appeared that I clung to. “Mom was the keeper of culture in our family.”

Mary Lee Larson was the youngest daughter of three. The 3 M’s as she’d refer to it, Mildred, Marjorie, and Mary Lee. Their father Arvid (Harvey) Larson was born in Sundsvall, Sweden in 1874 and mother Edna Doyen was born in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan in 1880. She was as we say these days, an oops baby. Harvey and Edna were married 23 years when mom arrived one January 29th of 1924.

The Larson’s, Spokane 1940.

She grew up in Spokane in Hillyard and I enjoyed her stories about the depression days and how fortunate they felt. Harvey worked for the Great Northern Railroad as a cabinet maker and was one of the few with stable employment.

One of her chores as a kid was to find and erase the markings out front of their home left by the hobo’s to sign each other that you could get something good to eat here for a few chores. They fed many, yet they didn’t want to advertise it.

In her teens she loved to sing and won a scholarship to study music at Gonzaga University. Her passion was jazz and big band music. Mary Lee was a talented singer and soon had a following when success caught up to her and she got busted by her mom for covertly singing with popular ensembles around Spokane.

In her mid 20’s she moved to Seattle for wartime opportunities. Like an old Humphrey Bogart movie in one of those smoky nightclub scenes mom and dad met at the Sorrento Hotel, one of the hottest clubs in town. Dad, back from the war was a bright star on the Seattle music scene. Mom was working at the club as hostess, greeter, and hat check girl.

We moved to the Earlington neighborhood in Renton in 1958. Mom loved this home. For a small woman just barely 5 feet tall she was a giant force. She ran our home like the manager of a 5 star hotel and dinner was always served promptly at 6:00 pm.

My brothers and I were well trained. We always washed up, dressed for dinner, and (on most occasions) were well mannered with napkins on our laps, proper etiquette and use of utensils, and made civil conversation.

We were all expected to help and we did. I fondly remember an often used Auntie Mildred saying, “many hands make the task small.” Right after dinner dad would get ready for part two of his day and was soon off to work a gig at the clubs. Mom, like a great conductor, orchestrated everything.

Steve, Mom, Terry, and René, early 1970’s.

A voracious reader, there were always books, magazines, and the Reader’s Digest around and she was a great seamstress and loved making her own clothes and shirts for us boys. Mom was also one of the most awesome cooks on the planet!

I still dream about her potato salad and her awesome Italian meals. She adored my Grandpa George who always kept her in fresh supply with wonderful things from his garden.

Mary Lee was a Democrat through and through and a champion of causes, politics, loved John F. Kennedy, entertaining, and happy hour. Often on a Friday or Saturday night she’d go out on the town with friends to catch a few night club acts and if dad was playing nearby, stop in.

Mom was a great conversationalist and she persistently raised the bar on us to be better smarter inquisitive people who thought for themselves. She was not one to live nor dwell in the past. She honored it, but always embraced a path to the future. Nothing frustrated her more than people who wanted life to remain the same and resisted change.

She was never shy about sharing her opinions even when they weren’t so popular amongst the citizenry of our small town. She enjoyed singing in the church choir for many years, loved musicals, live theater, art, and new ideas. Around holidays when families spend time together she’d often invite an assemblage of our local lovable eccentrics who’d otherwise be alone.

You’d a thought the world came to an end around 1965 (according to dad) when mom decided to go to work for Sears Roebuck and Company. She wasn’t one to hook up with the women’s liberation movement but she was fiercely independent and wanted to pursue her own career, make her own money, and get out of the house more often.

She worked retail for the next 22 years. Her favorite job was women’s apparel and she did quite well at it. She worked a few stores then ended her sales career with a with long stint at Wilson’s Leather.

After retail she went to work for the Seattle Housing Authority and managed senior living apartments. She loved Seattle and living on Capitol Hill.

Mom finally retired at 72 and after waiting 2 years her name finally came up for housing in Ballard. She was so thrilled about the move and loved her new apartment. She had just moved in when it was discovered she had cancer. As it turned out the cure did her in and she passed within 6 months. Sometimes, when I reminisce, I can’t help but think what a totally crappy break in life that was. She deserved more.

But no ending on a down note, mom was always first to say, “Life is for the living!” Gone now 13 years I remember like yesterday her zest for life. I imagine a young energetic Swedish bombshell blazing a trail and singing her theme song:

Don’t Blame Me for falling in love with you.

And last but not least, my favorite memento, her coffee cup…
It say’s a lot about her and always brings a smile to my face.

Love you Mom.

Happy Mother’s Day!

What’s your latest hardware or software purchase?

Sun, 13 May 2012 14:08:18 -0700

What hardware or software have you recently purchased?

Is it changing the way you work?

Two years ago I asked the opposite question:
What was the very first piece of personal technology you owned?

That post was a fun project. I traced my personal technology all the way back to 1958 when I received the HearEver Germanium Crystal Rocket Radio for a Christmas present. I was just 8 years old then and to me it was an amazing mysterious piece of technology. How did it work with no batteries?

To surf the radio-sphere you’d push and pull the antenna. It wasn’t stereo, there was just one small earphone.

I spent many a night lying in bed listening to that little radio. My imagination soared and the world became a bigger place.

Fast forward to late 2011 and I’m at a conjuncture point where every piece of technology I own seems ancient. Yet, the stars align and like divine intervention a bunch of new technology suddenly shows up in my life.

Since the first of the year a new PC at work with Windows 7 Enterprise and MS Office 2010, then the iPad 2 and now my new iPhone 4s. Oh Baby, believe you me I’m not complaining! But I do admit to feeling a little slow in the head at times trying to figure out so much “new” at the same time.

What I’m curious about is your latest personal technology.

What’s the most recent hardware and/or software you’ve acquired? Does it simply fit into the way you already do things or is it changing the way you work?

For me I think it’s going to be a radical shift.

I’m still on a learning curve and figuring out something new every day, but I can tell you already the iPad 2 and especially the iPhone 4s are changing the way I do things.

For starters, I’ve lightened my load in the field. Now I rarely have the need to bring my laptop along.

We all know toys are toys and it’s not about the next shinny object.

But as my Grandpa often said… “You gotta have good tools!”

What’s your latest hardware or software purchase?

Is it changing the way you work?

Art for the People

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 19:37:29 -0700

The role of the artist is to connect with the human spirit. My favorite quote about that is from Pablo Picasso, “Art is the lie that tells the truth.” Richard ‘Rich’ Beyer was the embodiment of that ideal.

Richard Beyer

Master sculptor Richard S. Beyer passed this last Monday, April 9, 2012 in New York City at the age of 86. He was one of my artistic heroes and a genius at displaying subjects of the Pacific Northwest that typified our roots.

Without a doubt his most popular work is “Waiting for the Interurban” in the Fremont neighborhood of Seattle. This cast aluminum piece depicts 5 people and a dog waiting for a trolley that never comes. The irony being that the Interurban was a (once upon a time) rail system that connected downtown Seattle with its inner city neighborhoods to the surrounding areas and outlying towns. It was a great public transportation system.

Beyer’s sculptures are numerous around Washington. Often the critics deemed his work ‘populist’, but who cares what they think. His work was well liked by the people and he had a tremendous following.

Born in 1925, Beyer grew up in Roosevelt’s New Deal era and he maintained a caring and fondness for the common person throughout his life and work.

Beyer was brilliant at capturing the essence of place and presenting the wisdom and humor of the everyday people who inhabited the place. His work is often whimsical and never short on satire.

Waiting for the Interuban

Beyer was schooled in economics and moved to Seattle in 1957 to work on a Ph D at the University of Washington. As an artist he was mostly self taught. His love of carving and sculpture won over and he established himself as a master sculptor in 1978. His works always tell a story about real life or the myths and tall tales about the place where they reside.

Donkey Run Away From The Mines. Richard Beyer, 1984.

In my little burg of Renton at Tonkin Park just south of downtown is “Donkey Run Away From The Mines.” (1984) True to form, Renton was a coal mining town and donkeys were used for a time and there are a few local tall tales about them.

Rich, you will be missed. Thanks for leaving your smiles out there for all to see.

“Art is seeing common things transformed by love, and the best public art belongs to the story of a community.” ~ Rich Beyer.

Links to Richard Beyer’s life and work…

Richard Beyer - Seattle Times April 12, 2012

The Interurban Sculpture - Fremont, Seattle

Rich Beyer Sculpture - Art for the People

The Waterland Blog - Scott Schaefer

Richard Beyer - Wikipedia

A Pilgrim's Progress...

Sat, 14 Apr 2012 14:34:05 -0700

The Monaghan mansion has been in my heart for over 30 years. It’s where the Gonzaga Music Department resides. I was in Spokane teaching social media clock hour classes for local real estate agents. My hotel is only a few blocks from here by the Convention Center. I’ve been thinking about this pilgrimage for many years and I finally had the opportunity to drop by on Tuesday, March 27th after work. It was almost 5:00 pm and closing time but I had a few minutes to realize my long time quest and give quiet thanks to this wonderful place.

I’m delighted I remember this place so well and happy to see it in such a beautiful state of repair. I first came here in the summer of 1976. As a starving artist I needed to find a place where I could use a piano to practice and compose. It was providence I’m sure, for this was the first place I inquired. The faculty and students were truly wonderful and they graciously made me welcome. I was here almost every day after school hours, weekends, and often worked into the wee hours of the morning.

It was life changing, there were several rooms, each with a grand piano. I had a job at a local hotel restaurant washing dishes. Though the work was grueling and thankless I looked forward everyday to getting off shift and couldn’t wait to get here to sit down at one of these beautiful instruments.

You couldn’t ask for a better setting than this lovely old place with it’s grand staircase, high ceilings, and leaded glass windows. I can’t begin to express how important this was to me. My favorite room was up those two flights of stairs and to the left. It had a beautiful Steinway 6 foot grand.

The years have passed and I’ve forgotten the names of those individuals I am so eternally grateful to for this creative period in my life. Thank you Gonzaga, I’m glad I got to stop by and say hello.

Gonzaga University Music Department

John Robert Monaghan

USS Monaghan DD 354

Seattle's Smith Tower sells at auction for $36,795,000

Fri, 23 Mar 2012 13:05:40 -0700

The Smith Tower sold this morning at auction for $36,795,000. The sale concluded at 10:08 a.m. outside the King County Administration Building with only one minimum bid by Delaware Limited Liability Companies CPUSI Co-Investment Payment LLC and CPUSI Co-investment Payment Sub LLC. According to auctioneer T. J. Parkes, the current tenants will be able to stay.

More about the Smith Tower:

Smith Tower, The First Grande Dame of Seattle Skyscrapers

We Changed...

Tue, 06 Mar 2012 19:57:11 -0800

Clay Shirky gave the keynote address at the 2011 Penn State TLT Symposium (the symposium for teaching and learning with technology). I appreciate Clay for his keen insight and his ability to articulate how socially adopted advancements in technology change the social and economic landscape. Simply put, when we change the way we communicate we change the way we behave.

It’s a great conversation, I highly recommend it.

In the last few moments Clay sums it up with…
It’s not just about adding some new tools to an existing ecosystem.
It’s about building a new ecosystem.

And that’s exactly our challenge isn’t it? Many see the broken and wonder who’s going to fix it while others are relieved it’s finally broken and engage the possibility of a new opportunity and future. What is that? I’m not sure, yet the truth is we crossed the infamous bridge into the 21st Century and we now find ourselves in a new social context. The many to the many (and that never happened on a global scale before).

So now that we’re all here in the big 21 I wonder why some of us still act as if it’s going to remain the same, especially those that hold out for a return to the way it was. That ain’t possible. It can’t happen. Sometimes I think we accepted the technology (for the toys and fun we have with them), yet we’re a little slow accepting the responsibility that came with the gift.

We are now the purveyors of content, the creators, the agents of change, the authors, the producers, the entertainers, and the thought provokers. As amateurs I pray we do something quite different and better than the media we are often quick to judge.

They is now us.

I don’t pretend to have the answers (and that’s a total relief to me and I hope it is for you too!) but I suspect in 5 years we’ll be looking back at now as them olden days. We’re in the midst of a paradigm shift and it won’t be business as usual 5 years from now (expecting different results) with a few more gadgets, apps, and gizmo’s added on to make it a little more fun and entertaining.

We changed.

They called us, Snow Wimps!

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 13:00:00 -0800

It’s not like we’re suffering in quiet indignation or anything. But it’s been a while since I’ve witnessed the people of the great Pacific Northwest rally in spirit and come together in agreement about any one thing.

The catalyst was Wednesday afternoon’s blog headline from the Los Angeles Times…

Snow wimps: Seattle is shut down by first real snow of the season

Then add insult to injury…

“Color Seattle clueless. The city has always marched unarmed into its infrequent battles with snow, and Wednesday’s snowstorm was no exception.”

Wow, them’s fightin’ words! “Now don’t hold back L.A., tell us what you really think.”

Oh, and they didn’t hold back continuing with…

“The snowstorm had been forecast to be the worst to hit the Puget Sound region in 30 years, an ominous warning that scared easily scareable Seattleites. As a result — as is usually the case here when cold weather hits — the city collectively declared a snow day and gave up most thoughts of going to work.”

Snap!…

Thursday, January 19th… late afternoon, the hedge out in front of my deck looks kinda like ice worms.

KING 5’s Art Thiel made us proud yesterday when he defended our honor and returned fire with a quintessential Northwest canonical blast over the bow of their blog with:

Critics of Seattle in snow: Shut the hell up

“The incredibly shrinking newspaper has nothing to say to me about Seattle’s weather. Especially when a Southland sprinkle sends literally millions of Angelenos into freeway aqua-spasms. TV reporters there hold microphones next to curbs so viewers can hear water running.”

January 19th… Nobody’s getting out of here this morning. It’s like an ice cream sandwich.

Followed by another fine shot from Scott Sistek, meteorologist for KOMO News.

L.A. paper calls Seattle “snow wimps” as SoCal warns about 1/3” of rain

“Then, as if to prove my point, just hours later the National Weather Services in Los Angeles and San Diego each put out Special Weather Statements for an incoming weather system over the weekend that might bring a quarter to a third of an inch of rain to the coast.“

And you’re calling us wimps?

January 16th… pretty on Monday, but with snow and ice, that’s one hill you don’t want to go down.

I have to admit laughing over “snow wimps” has been a most welcome relief from this weeks politics, the usual bad news, SOPA & PIPA, being snowed in, and worrying about loved one’s and friends out there on snowy icy streets.

Thanks L.A. Times.

As of 9:00 am yesterday the Washington State Patrol had reported over 2,300 accidents. Later that afternoon over 300,000 people were without power and Gov. Chris Gregoire issued a State of Emergency so the National Guard could be mobilized in neccesary.

Originally posted on Activerain.com

So you're clear about SOPA & PIPA, right?

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 10:39:00 -0800

There’s something terribly wrong when our elected officials even contemplate the systematic dismantling of our citizens ability to freely share its own creativity with each other.

Scene 3 - (In the not so distant future): “I was so excited to share this really cool idea I had with y’all but I just got a DM from Congress.” The Committee on the Suppression of Creative Thought and Freely Sharing has determined I would be in direct violation of paragraphs 193, 206, 319, and 573 of the Amateur Citizens Open Thinking Reform Act of 2016.

Wherein it is clearly stated… No persons, citizens, nor foreigners within or outside our borders will posses any right to intellectual, artistic, or creative thought (no matter the origin) via the written word, image, audio, or video transmitted, conveyed, received, or otherwise consumed through any other means than those dictated by your benevolent government and its officially assigned expert dispensers of said content.

This is for your own protection as well as it is for the protection of all citizens young and old who may become influenced and thereby subject to your thoughts. Therefore, no said or implied creative thinking will be shared in any shape, form, or medium.

If you persist on having these thoughts and the ambition to share them, all evidence will be used against you in a court of law….

One of the best conversations I’ve listened to this week as to why we need to pay attention to SOPA and PIPA is from Clay Shirky.

12th and Jackson

Mon, 02 Jan 2012 15:34:19 -0800

On my way over to Capitol Hill on 12th Ave in the heart of the International District at Jackson St.

The Regina House, a day of good tidings.

Fri, 23 Dec 2011 17:51:00 -0800

I had a wonderful day yesterday, December 22, 2011. Our sales team at First American Title volunteered to help out at the Providence Regina House located in Seattle’s South Park Neighborhood. Among its many services the Regina House operates a food and clothing bank.

During the months of November and December the Regina House sponsors a holiday program that distributes baskets of food, clothing, and toys to families in need. Providence Regina House partners with several area community organizations on a wide range of topics including health and nutrition, cooking, seeds and plant starts, food stamp education, and they have a local garden.

It was a record day…
210 families went home with food for the holidays. I was so moved to see so many turkeys and chickens, fresh vegetables and fruits, bread, bagels, canned goods, and any family who wanted a fresh pumpkin pie got one. There was toys from Santa for the kids and clothes for anyone in need.

I had my Flip HD video camera with me and put this short video collage together last night.

Click the link if you’d like to know more about the Regina House. If you’d like to volunteer or make a donation contact Paige Collins and/or Robert Fix at 206-763-9204, or email:

Paige Collins
Manager

Robert Fix
Coordinator

Wishing you all a wonderful holiday.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Steve Jobs: 20 Life Lessons

Sun, 18 Dec 2011 15:12:29 -0800

Steve Jobs: 20 Life Lessons:

My feelings about Steve Jobs have always been a little mixed. I long admired his entrepreneurial spirit and business acumen and was in sheer awe of his natural instincts for what appeals to consumers. On the other hand I bristled at what I saw as his — and by extension Apple’s — occasionally …

Back in 1980-1983 on Capitol Hill in Seattle, Washington I was...

Fri, 16 Dec 2011 19:24:00 -0800

Back in 1980-1983 on Capitol Hill in Seattle, Washington I was at Soundwork Studio. This is the soundtrack I did for a lovely collaboration with Marc Smith-Slosky, dancer, choreographer, and visual artist Jon Gierlich. We did several performances in town and got a couple of good reviews in the local papers.

Jon passed recently (Oct 2011), he was a rare breed of artist with extraordinary conceptual skills. Marc too, she spent hours with me listening to my sketches and sharing ideas.

I wish I had video… Jon built a construct of woven tree limbs with braided tunnels and constructs. Marc had an amazing ensemble that moved, danced, and explored the space in dark muted colors. The performers almost glowing through the mist in the flickering light.

I’ve lost track of Marc… I hope she is well and happy. Grateful today for those wonderful days with great people…

Happy Holidays 2011

Fri, 09 Dec 2011 01:23:10 -0800

A long long time ago… In a galaxy far far away… I’m talkin’ Christmas here in the 1950’s. That was a time before time before time when we didn’t have high speed internet, social networks, or On Demand TV with a thousand channels to watch. (We only had 3 on a very very good day.)

René meets Santa Claus in person, 1955…

It was so long ago we used a rotary dial phone and competed for the party line and that is not a political statement! There was no digital anything, we were heathens living in a primitive analog world. Yet, even then, we were happy. We couldn’t blog, text, post, message, or fax. There was only us huddled in the frontroom around the stove or fireplace in winter. We were simply blessed with 4 warm walls, a roof, wonderful food, and love.

Mom’s started planning the holidays in August because we’d only be able to communicate a half dozen times or so before Christmas using snail mail.

Christmas trees had real aluminum foil called “tinsel”, not that plastic shinny crap we see now days that kinda sorta looks like shinny aluminum. Stuff was real, it was made in Japan! Tree lights got hot and you had to be careful how you placed them correctly so you didn’t set the tree on fire (and don’t forget to put water in the stand), and ornaments were made of glass, easily broken and potentially dangerous, and they came without a warning. And we survived.

And funny, it was such a mystery that near Christmas, after dad had a little holiday cheer with friends and neighbors, Santa would show up! OMG!, my dad knows Santa! How cool is that!

René acquires his first truck, Christmas 1955. Uncle George in the background.

René and brother Steve get Christmas pajamas from Grandma & Grandpa Larson (1958).

I want to wish you all a wonderful holiday… I’ll step out and say my holiday is Christmas, yet the season includes us all. We all believe what we do and I honor it and bless you and your loved ones for your faith. That’s what is most important. Faith, that is!

I am simply who I am… (as Popeye would say, “I am who I am who I am who I am.”) and it’s true, I am so very blessed and no matter how much I intentionally or not mess up my life on this planet because I have a thick skull or I’m a slow learner or I duke it out with my ego or I fail to recognize the real thing. I have so many wonderful friends from all over this planet of every faith, color, creed, sex, race, denomination, and persuasion… and they hug me, love me, include me… And it never could have happened in any other time quite like this one…

Truly, that’s a blessing.

Happy Holiday’s my Friends, my loved one’s, my kindred spirits! You are loved and appreciated! May every blessing be yours in 2012.

A keepsake from Mom… one of my most treasured possessions. A simple little cardboard decorated Christmas ornament. It has a round hole in back to stick a Christmas Tree light in so it lights up, from the early 1950’s. Somehow it survived all these years. To me, it’s priceless! On the back, it’s hand ink stamped, Made in Japan.

Taking it to the MAX... 737 that is!

Sat, 03 Dec 2011 15:19:00 -0800

I can’t think of better news for this holiday season than the announcement that the new Boeing 737 MAX is going to be built in Renton, Washington.

Boeing’s history in the Seattle area dates back to 1910 when William E. Boeing purchased the Heath shipyard on the Duwamish River. This would later become his first airplane factory in Seattle near the Museum of Flight. Boeing took his first airplane ride on July 4, 1914 with U.S. Navy Lieutenant Conrad Westervelt in a small seaplane piloted by barnstormer Terah Maroney.

According to legend he later told Westervelt “we could make a better one.” Bill was so enamored by the flying experience he built a hangar on the shores of Lake Union in the Eastlake neighborhood of Seattle to do just that and by June 1916 he built his first plane, the B & W. Soon after they incorporated and in July moved production to a new factory at the Duwamish location.

The rest was history! Boeing History

The Boeing 737 MAX… Photo Courtesy of The Boeing Company.

Renton has been home to Boeing for 70 years and when I was growing up our local paper, The Record Chronicle, proclaimed us “The Jet Capital of the World.” During World War II Renton’s population soared as workers from all over the country were moved here to build the B-29 Superfortress. As a kid growing up in Renton we witnessed the first 707 (1957), the 727 (1962), the 737 (1967), and the first (wide-body) jumbo jet the 747 (1968). The 747 was so big Boeing had to build the Everett plant. By volume it is the largest building in the world with a floor area of 398 million square feet.

Boeing has over 80,000 employees in Washington State, mostly at the Renton and Everett plants. It’s estimated that building the 737 MAX here will create 20,000 new jobs. That’s fabulous news for our local economy and the approximately 650 companies in the State of Washington that provide parts, materials, and services to Boeing.

Kudos to Governor Chris Gregoire for her work behind the scenes to help make this possible. Upon hearing the news, she commended Boeing and the union stating the agreement “shows a strong commitment by both sides to secure the future of aerospace in Washington state.” She was also quoted as saying, “At a time when I don’t get much good news, this couldn’t be better!”

Personally, I think Boeing’s 737 MAX and the 787 Dreamliner are two of coolest looking planes ever built. Just sayin’… I got to see both land and take off on several occasions commuting to Seattle during the week.

More on the 737 MAX.

Renton Reporter: Boeing to build the 737 MAX in Renton
RentonPatch: Renton Lands 737 MAX Production
The Seattle Times: Boeing, union seal deal for jets, jobs, peace
The Seattle PI: Boeing Machinists: 737 MAX to be built in Renton

Originally posted on the Activerain.com real estate network, December 1, 2011.

It's Popcorn Brain!

Fri, 25 Nov 2011 00:28:30 -0800

First it was, I’m going to go blind from staring into the glaring monitor, then it was carpal tunnel from too many keyboarding hours. Then, I’m going to get fat and flabby from too much sitting. Then, it was tendinitis in my thumbs from too much texting on my cell phone.

And now? It’s Popcorn Brain.
Doesn’t that bring up a lively assortment of images…

Man… I never knew Technology could be so dangerous!

I’m a little late to this party. CNN’s Elizabeth Cohen, did a post on Popcorn Brain
(June 23, 2011).

Popcorn Brain is a mental state happening to people who get so into the constant stimulation of the rapid multi-tasking online life they can’t function in the slower paced life offline. They choose the way of the net junkie over people, activities, or even having kids. It does give me pause to consider the behavior I see online sometimes though, especially Twitter, you know those dudes that are always in the stream every minute 24/7/365. When do they get anything else done?

I’m first to admit I get totally obsessed when an idea sets my brain on fire, but I always thought that was artistic temperament. The Center for Internet and Technology Addiction (yes, there really is one) has a test to help you determine if it’s time to logoff and shut down.

(I did think it was a little ironic however that the internet addiction test is online.)

Frankly I live for those days when I’m completely immersed in the creation zone. I can go all day hardly stopping to eat or pee. (Though I’ve been told by experts that’s unhealthy behavior.) But I do unplug. I love quiet time, a good book, music, staring at clouds rolling by on a blustery day, or having a conversation with one special person that no one else ever needs to hear.

I don’t think I have Popcorn Brain? Anyway, it certainly couldn’t happen to me at the speed I blog. (Oh, by the way… I didn’t take the test. There wasn’t time. I had to get over to Google+, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Posterous, Tumblr, Blogger, and check for alerts on my cell phone. Maybe somebody commented.)

You’d a Thought it was a Saturday Night Hootenanny.

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 19:38:04 -0800

AR, we’ve been hanging out now, steady like for 3 years. I spec’t some might be think’n we’re get’n serious or something. But I gotta admit, I like be’n round ya.

Funny… but, when we first met I wasn’t all too sure about it. I mean I like you n’ all, but it was a little intimidate’n. I kinda kept my distance. You were always attract’n so much attention.

All those flamboyant friends of yours, clamoring round all the time, talkin’ loud and proud like.

You’d a Thought it was a… Saturday Night Hootenanny or Something.

Well… finally, it came to me.

I weren’t gonna meet nobody round here stand’n in the corner.

I gotta get out there on the floor n’ join the dance!

So… I made up my mind 3 years ago this very day and started say’n hello and such to those kind folk around here.

I even scratched out my first little ditty back then about a Sunday kind of morning,
just for the occasion.

That’s when I kinda ‘dee-cided’ ta stick around a bit n’… take her for a whirl.

Hell, ya never know. Something might come of it.

But I gotta say to ya… I pologize.

You know back then…
Well, dang it. It was just like the fourth of July.

I started blabbin’ away and I know I wus talk’n way too much. But it was excite’n and when that happens, I just don’t know when to shut my trap sometimes.

Speak’n bout shut’n traps, I best be get’n on.

Ah shucks, AR … I gots ta tell ya.

It’s been fun…

Thanks for being there.

Thanks for being my friend.

Originally posted on the Activerain Network, November 23, 2011.