I’m giving finals, turning in final grades, and wrapping up the end of the semester, so it has been pretty crazy lately.  Because of this, there will not be a posting this week.  Give me a break – it’s my birthday!

This Thanksgiving was yet another gluttony-fest for my family.  When my oldest daughter became old enough to really get into Christmas a few years ago, we decided to stay home for Christmas.  This means that when we travel to see my family for Thanksgiving, we do Christmas in the same weekend.  That’s right, Thanksgiving on Thursday and Christmas on Friday.  Take that, marketing geniuses.

On Thanksgiving Day, we get up early embark on a 400 mile journey from Atlanta to West Tennessee.  We have dinner at my grandmother’s that consists of the typical Thanksgiving fare: turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, corn, peas, various casseroles, and enough desserts make the entire field of the Tour de France diabetic.

On the next night (our early Christmas) we have a tradition of having breakfast for dinner.  I’m not talking about bacon and eggs here.  We have a breakfast casserole that is filled with sausage, eggs, cheese, bread, and deliciousness, hash brown casserole, some sort of blueberry, buttery, sugary, bready thing, bacon, ham, and biscuits.  This is my favorite meal of the year.

The next night, we overeat for no particular reason: barbecue, beans, and potato salad – good Tennessee food.  It’s interesting that during the holiday season we hear a lot of people talking about how not to overdo it and how to counteract all of those additional calories consumed.  I say, who cares?  It’s a special time that only happens once a year.  So what if I gain a pound or two?  As long as overeating does not become a habit, there is no real harm done.

I generally eat well and have healthy habits.  I run 15 miles a week and lift weights 4 days a week.  Why should I get all bent out of shape over a weekend of eating like a Roman emperor?  I think this is a fallacy that we experience not only with regard to our physical well being, but in all aspects of life.  We focus too much on the rare occurrences (a weekend of overeating, a big presentation, an upcoming exam) while neglecting the daily habits that truly shape our lives.  If you want to make a change in your lifestyle, don’t go out and do something big once or twice a year, do something small every day.

I like muffins.  Who doesn’t?  When you think about it, the word “muffin” is really little more than a euphemism that makes us feel slightly less guilty about having cake for breakfast.  I made some muffins the other day, but rather than using our regular brand, I tried a Fiber One muffin mix.  I wanted to try the Fiber One mix because I am pretty health conscious and try to take care of myself (okay, I had a coupon).

After having my muffin breakfast, I soon realized that my stomach was making noises that sounded like a spirited debate between humpback whales. 

The debate escalated.

I checked the nutritional information on the muffin mix to learn that each muffing had 5 grams of fiber.  I ate three of them.  In case you’re wondering, this means that I had about 60% of the recommended daily fiber intake over a span of about 5 minutes.  Oh yeah, and that was followed by three cups of black coffee.

Normally this wouldn’t be too big of a deal, but I would soon be teaching a two-hour long class.  I made it through the class, but I had to time my voice inflections just right to drown out the cries of rage from inside my stomach.

We all know that fiber is a good thing, but get too much at once and… well you know how that sentence ends.  In fact, too much of anything (even if it is supposed to be good for you) is bad for you.  A little sunshine lifts your mood and provides a dose of vitamin D – too much and you get cancer.  If you hear Hanson’s Mmm Bop once (yeah, you remember that song) it can put a little pep in your step – hear it more than once and you become a threat to national security.  We’re supposed to drink a lot of water for numerous health reasons, but guess what – you can even die from drinking too much water!

The point is, just about anything taken too far is going to have some negative effects on you… and it doesn’t end with what we eat and drink.  Too much work, too much play, too many responsibilities, too many commitments – sometimes it’s best to just simplify.  I’m all for setting the bar high and striving for great achievements, but sometimes the act of pursuing an achievement can get in the way of that which we wish to achieve.

There was a time in my life when rewinding of the clocks by one hour in the fall represented an extra hour of sleep.  Unfortunately my two little girls can’t tell time.  I was up a little before 6 am this Sunday to put milk in a cup, a S’mores Pop Tart on a plate, and to turn on Little Einsteins. 

It was still dark.

That’s fine with me.  I’m usually an early riser and the whole getting an extra hour to get stuff done is fascinating to me.  I spent my hour making spreadsheets for one of my MBA classes… exciting, I know.

I don’t like the sun going down earlier, but I love the one 25 hour day of the year.  As I go through the house turning those clocks back, I feel like I have somehow cheated the space-time continuum.  I feel so much more efficient and wonder why every day can’t be 25 hours long.

Aside from the fact that this would require the rotation of the earth to slow substantially, I’m not sure if it would be such a good thing.  Although I got a lot done and felt great all day long, I woke myself with a loud snore in my chair at 9:15 that night.

Maybe more time isn’t the answer.  It seems that my mind and body can only take a 24 hour day.

I am now elbow deep in my MBA classes as well as teaching math at a nearby college.  It is becoming more and more obvious that academics is the place for me.  My job doesn’t feel like work at all.  I enjoy interacting with the students and am honored to have the opportunity to make a difference in their lives.  I don’t get up dreading the day.  I don’t spend my whole week yearning for the weekend to come.  I don’t feel like I am compromising my time and talents just to make a buck.

I spent most of my early career hating my job.  I just want everyone to know – it doesn’t have to be that way.  You can let your gifts, talents, and discernment offer some guidance, but you also have to rely on guidance that is not within yourself.  You have to take a chance.  You have to be “irresponsible” sometimes and give up the “security” of your current lifestyle.

I’ll have more on this later, but for now I have to do some studying.

Put away your white shoes, Labor Day has provided the unofficial closing of the summer season.  We look forward to summer every year, but by August, I’m usually ready for some cooler weather, fall colors, and football.  Then again, it seems like summer just got here.  I haven’t done a poll in a while, so I am curious to know your thoughts on the waning summer season.

This week’s posting has been cancelled on account of a stomach bug I am still trying to recover from.  It hit me first on Sunday night, then my wife in the middle of the night, then my oldest daughter yesterday.  We’re all doing much better today, but were pretty miserable yesterday.

I’ll spare you the details, but I’ll just say I’m not very good at being sick.  Sara said I sounded like a cat being strangled throughout the night.

This past weekend was perhaps the most beautiful weekend I have ever experienced in July. Typical summer days here in Hotlanta hover around 95 degrees and are humid enough to allow fish to breathe on land. This weekend; however, was more like October – 75 degrees, dry air, blue skies… the perfect weekend for a hike.

My family went to Raven Cliff Falls in northern GA for a nice little 5 mile hike. Amelia got a free ride in the backpack, but Olivia hiked the entire way – all 5 miles and she is only 3 years old!

Me and the girls

Sara and Olivia - I honestly don't know where Olivia got this new pose

Yeah, I’m a proud papa. The scary part is that we almost didn’t make the trip because I thought there was no way that both girls would be so good on a 3 hour hike. I fully expected to get to the falls and have to carry both girls back.

Cooling off the piggies in a mountain stream

Future Hiker

I know I will never forget this trip.  I think the girls will look back on it fondly as well (at least Olivia will).  Many of you are trying to figure out what to do in the face of reduced hours and layoffs.  Why not do something really important?  Take this economic turmoil and turn it into an opportunity to improve other areas of your life.  Spend time with your family, get in shape, volunteer, do the things that you always wanted to do but never had time for back when you had your nose to the grindstone.

Today only, Barnes & Noble is offering a 20% discount with this code:  P8R3B8C

You can buy my book for $10.78 with this discount, but it is for today only.  Just click on the link to the right for Barnes&Noble.com and enter the coupon code when you check out.

There are certain memories in a dad’s life that will always be locked away for safe keeping.  I had one of these last week when I took my 3-1/2 year old daughter on her first fishing trip.

Outfitted with a Scooby Doo fishing pole and a Mystery Machine tackle box (which was full of bubble-blowing toys), we went to Lake Lanier to seek out my little girl’s inner Bill Dance.    The area we went to consists of a parking area with a cove used for fishing on one side and a sandy beach for the sunbathers/swimmers on the other side.

Mom and baby sister went to the beach side while the little angler and I climbed down the bank to fish.  It was about 87 degrees, so I knew that I would not have much time before the fisher would become the fish.  Olivia watched intently as I tied a little jig head onto her line and was excited that she got to pick out the color jig she would use.  Her casting still needs some work, but she can reel in the line like a pro.  Every time her bait came back, she would say, “Hey, I didn’t catch a fish.”

Altogether, she probably did 10 or 15 minutes worth of fishing before she decided she wanted to go swimming on the other side.  She spent about an hour and half on the beach side building sand castles, picking up shells, and playing in the water.  Apparently beaches are more appealing than fishing to a 3-1/2 year old.

Later that evening, exhausted from the day’s events.  I asked Olivia what her favorite activity was.  Her reply was, “Going fishing with you, daddy.” 

Totally worth it.

I’m sure you did a lot of things last week.  I bet you completed a lot of tasks that were related to your career, furthered you education, improved your home, or allowed you unwind from the stresses of your life.  How many of you created a memory that will last a lifetime?

By the way, I have no idea who the kids portraying Napoleon and Pedro in the photo are.