Blast from the Past

I got an update on FaceBook a day or two ago that the Tallassee High football games were going to be streamed live on the internet by the local radio station. Pretty sophisticated, I thought - not like the Tallassee I remembered at all. I missed the game broadcast watching TV with the kids, but tuned in to the audio stream afterwards for a little bit of the postgame show. I also watched a part of a video on the web site. I was struck by something really odd.

I've been back to Tallassee many times since I left for college - I went back "home" for many weekends and breaks from school. Even when my brother and sister graduated and my parents moved (briefly) to Ohio, I still went to Tallassee every once in while for a wedding or funeral or to visit relatives who, ironically, moved there after I left. But from the summer of 1992 onward, Tuscaloosa gradually replaced Tallassee as my home, and the friendships and memories that I have from those days have largely faded over time. So what was odd about tonight?

First, in the snippet of video I watched, I saw five or six people who I knew from high school all hanging out together and having a good time. Then on the audio stream of the postgame show I heard other familiar names and voices, both in the studio and on the phone. The hosts were asking callers to answer a trivia question, and the names of coaches I remembered from years back - some still around and some who have passed on - were mentioned. And I thought about the two types of people I knew from those days. First, there were those, like me, who couldn't wait to leave town after we graduated. Maybe some thought they were bigger or wanted more than small-town life. A few probably wanted to escape memories, or who they were back there. Leaving allowed them to start over. Some appreciated the opportunity to be nurtured in a warm, close-knit community, but needed to spread their wings toward new horizons. Some were transplants to begin with, and never really felt like they fit in. Whatever the reason, many former classmates and Tallasseeans have moved on without looking back.

But there was another type of person. Many of these grew up in Tallassee - maybe their parents and grandparents did too. They enjoyed the small-town life and the close-knit community. And for whatever reason, they stayed. Some even went off to college and came back to make their life there. Tallassee will always be home to them.

I used to think this type of person - the kind who either grew up and never left or left briefly and came back - as inferior in a way. "Why would you want to live in Tallassee the rest of your life?" As I've gotten older and become a parent, I've begun to see the inherent value in a place where a kid could ride his bicycle to the library or play in someone else's field without fear; where our neighbors didn't even lock their doors when they went out; where life was slow and simple, even if it wasn't always easy.

This phenomenon of course isn't limited to my hometown. Everyone has a similar story - "I couldn't wait to leave" or "I wanted to live the rest of my life there." I have never regretted leaving my former hometown. Ours was always a love-hate relationship. But for a little while tonight I did find myself wondering what might have made that group of old friends live out their lives there, and, I admit, pondered wistfully what might have been.

Ten Predictions for the 2009 SEC Football Season

1. Ole Miss will be good this year, and perhaps beat a team they shouldn't, but they will not go to the SEC Championship Game.
2. Vanderbilt will return to a bowl game.
3. Of the three teams with a new coach (Auburn, Mississippi State and Tennessee), State will be the one that performs better than expected.
4. Les Miles (LSU) will be on the coaching hot seat by the end of the year.
5. Florida will beat Tennessee by at least 35 points.
6. Alabama will win the SEC West.
7. Florida will win the SEC East.
8. Florida will win the SEC.
9. Tim Tebow will win the Heisman Trophy.
10. The national champion will come from outside the SEC this year.

Arrrrggghhh! Painting!!

Painting the den this week. You'd think with all the practice I've had at this now I'd be better at it. Guess not.

Alabama Bloggers column

So, I may write a column covering Alabama football games for Alabama Bloggers. We'll see if that comes to fruition.

Man, I can't wait until football season...

http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D9955RMO0&show_article=1

Three characters

LJ tagged me for a meme. While this wouldn't normally compel me to blog, I will humor her just this once.

Name three characters (from books)...

1. You wish were real so you could meet them.
Aslan, from the Chronicles of Narnia (C.S. Lewis). Lions have always been my favorite animal anyway, and meeting Aslan would be wonderful and terrifying at the same time.

Gandalf, from The Lord of the Rings (J.R.R. Tolkein). Gandalf always intrigued me - he seems to know and understand more about what's happening in the story than almost anyone, as if he has insight into what's going to happen. Yet he has his blind spots as well, which make him rather more endearing. Frodo is a little too helpless; Aragorn, nearly inscrutable; and Sam, just a bit too one-dimensional. Gandalf is my favorite character from LOTR, and one it would be interesting to know.

John Clark, from the Jack Ryan novels (Tom Clancy). Clark is a mysterious and deadly CIA operative who is a patriot with his own moral code. He is completely loyal to his friends and his enemies? Well, they have a way of meeting their end with extreme prejudice. Don't mess with The Snake.

2. You would like to be.
It's probably not exactly abiding with the rules, but since I have lots of Star Wars books, I'm going to say a Jedi. Who wouldn't want to be able to sense others' thoughts, move objects with your mind, and fight with a lightsaber? "These are not the droids you're looking for."

Calvin, from Calvin and Hobbes (Bill Watterson). That counts as a character from a book, right? Calvin's smart-alecky attitude I have got down pat, but his absolute unwillingness to accept school/chores/girls/or anything else he doesn't like without a fight (usually in vain) I also can identify with. I like his imagination too.

Hmm, this is harder than I thought. Maybe Jack Hawkins in Treasure Island (Robert Louis Stevenson). Although the first part of the book doesn't go too well for him, being left a treasure and pretty much single-handedly rounding up a band of pirates is pretty sweet.

3. Scare You.

Captain Ahab, from Moby-Dick (Herman Melville) scares me, mainly because people with insane obsessions are scary.

I'm reading this series of Star Wars books called Legacy of the Force (only four of the nine books have yet been released). The main character, Jacen Solo, is the son of Han Solo and Leia Organa, and he's been one of my favorite characters over the last 15 years since he was created. He is a very powerful Jedi, but he is turning to the dark side, and he will become a Sith (I know this due to marketing for the books). The scary part is that his master has foretold that he will have to sacrifice (kill) someone precious to him to become a Sith lord. I am dreading who it is going to be. They've already killed off Chewbacca and Jacen's brother Anakin in the last few years, so I have a feeling that they're going with someone pretty important, especially because this storyline with Jacen has been building for several years now.

Mrs. Havisham from Great Expectations (Charles Dickens). That lady was creepy.

In putting together this little bit of nothing, I realized that I don't really read much fiction, or more accurately, I read a very narrow range of fiction. Most of my reading, other than Star Wars books, is history, biography, scientific or political. Now I am presumably supposed to pass this on to other bloggers, but since I don't often read blogs, other than LJ's, I don't guess I will.

This quiz tells me I'm smart...

You paid attention during 100% of high school!

85-100% You must be an autodidact, because American high schools don't get scores that high! Good show, old chap!

Do you deserve your high school diploma?
Create a Quiz

And although I did have a couple of good teachers in high school, the autodidact comment is on point. Most of the things I know about history, science, religion, politics, art, etc., were self-taught (or at least self-reinforced). Does it make me a better person? No, but it doesn't do much for humility.

24 fever

LJ and I are addicted to the Fox Television show "24." Interestingly, we don't have cable, satellite or even antenna television, so we have watched every episode through Netflix. This is great because you get the whole season one DVD after another with no commercials. The downside is that while everyone is talking about season 6, we won't have full-season DVDs to watch until (usually) November. Through the wonders of the Internet, however, LJ has met a blog friend who is also a big "24" fan. She has agreed to record the show for us, and two DVDs with the first four episodes (which aired earlier this week) arrived in the mail today!

Jenn, you are my new best friend!

Thursday Thirteen: Movie Lines

LJ and I are doing complementary themes today. She listed her 13 favorite lines from "Raising Arizona". So, for my Thursday Thirteen I'm going to list the 13 other favorite lines that she left out. There are just too many from this movie.

1. "Hurry't up, I'm in dutch with the wife."
2. "Never leave a man behind!"
3. "No one sleeps naked in this house!"
4. "I love him so much!" "I know you do honey. I know you do."
5. "Darn good cereal flakes you got here, Mrs. McDonough."
6. "Okay, then."
7. "Government do take a bite."
8. "The doctor told us her insides were a rocky place where my seed could find no purchase."
9. "We're set to pop here, honey."
10. "You want to find a man, you call a manhunter. You want to find a Dunkin' Donuts, call a cop."
11. "And when there was no crawdad to be found, we ate sand."
12. "I think I got the best one."
13. "I don't know. Maybe it was Utah."

Florida-Ohio State (BCS National Championship)

So although we don't have cable, I'm listening to the national championship game on the radio. It's 34-14 Florida at the half. I figured that Ohio State would be much more competitive, given the fact that Auburn beat Florida, and Alabama played Florida even for three quarters (28-13 final). Apparently the SEC really IS that much better than everybody else. I did have a feeling that there might be a little bit of the dynamic that occurred between Miami and Alabama in the 1992 National Championship. So many folks thought Miami was going to kill 'Bama and Miami had been number 1 all year, while Alabama sort of came out of nowhere. It seemed that Ohio State had that kind of deal going, although you should hear all the radio guys acting like they knew Florida was going to win all along. Puh-lease!

What would you do?

Let me draw you a picture.

Suppose you had a high-pressure, high-paying job at Company A. You took the job a couple of years ago, thinking it was your dream job. As it turns out, you really liked the place you worked previously better. You and your wife are both unhappy, and wish that you had never left your old position. Then one day Company B, a company very similar to the one you used to work for, comes calling. You aren't sure about this new company - you are quite familiar with them and know that they've had high turnover in the past. However, you think you might enjoy working there in a way that you don't enjoy your current job, so you entertain the idea.

The next day, you're at lunch with your boss at Company A. An acquaintance comes up to your table. You aren't really friendly with this person, but you know that he knows many of your friends and talks to them often. He comes out right in front of your bos and blurts out, "I hear you're considering a new job at company B." How do you respond?

a) Say "Yes, as a matter of fact I am." This would be the truth. However, this would ruin your relationship with your boss, putting you in jeopardy when you aren't at all sure about whether you will take the job at Company B.

b) Say "No comment." This seems like a safe answer, but at the very least, your boss will suspect that you are looking for other jobs. Your boss has a reputation as a cutthroat businessman, and this alone might induce him to begin looking for your replacement.

c) Say "No, that's not true." Obviously this is a false statement. You don't know where this acquaintance got that information and you can be pretty sure that your friends will feel betrayed if it turns out that you DO take the job at Company B. But you don't want to burn bridges at Company A should it turn out that the opportunity at Company B isn't the one you're looking for.

Can you honestly say you wouldn't choose option C? Assume further that this acquaintance won't let it go, but insists that he has heard you were looking strongly at Company B, that you are at the top of their list, and that he wants you to look him in the eye and tell him that you will never consider a job at Company B. Now what do you do?

I wish that all the folks in the Miami media and ESPN would put themselves in Nick Saban's position before calling him a liar when he was put in a difficult situation where they likely would have done the same thing. I'm convinced that most of the media is offended not because Saban was disingenuous (although in all honesty it's likely that none of them believed him anyway), but because he dared to be disingenuous with them. What a bunch of hypocrites.

That being said, I am excited about Saban at Alabama. I didn't hate Mike Shula, but he proved himself insufficient to the task of leading this team. It's unfortunate that all the folks who cry about giving Shula more time either ignored or were unaware of the discipline issues that led to the disintegration of this team. Shula expected the players to act like professionals rather than the immature 18-22 year olds they are. And as he demonstrated in every facet of his tenure at Alabama, he was unable or unwilling to adjust when circumstances dictated that he do so. What this program needs more than anything right now is a leader. Saban will be that leader. Mike Shula never was.

Where I been

create your own personalized map of the USA
or check out ourCalifornia travel guide

Humor Test

the Wit (57% dark, 38% spontaneous, 36% vulgar)

your humor style: CLEAN COMPLEX DARK You like things edgy, subtle, and smart. I guess that means you're probably an intellectual, but don't take that to mean pretentious. You realize 'dumb' can be witty--after all isn't that the Simpsons' philosophy?--but rudeness for its own sake, 'gross-out' humor and most other things found in a fraternity leave you totally flat. I guess you just have a more cerebral approach than most. You have the perfect mindset for a joke writer or staff writer. Your sense of humor takes the most thought to appreciate, but it's also the best, in my opinion. You probably loved the Office. If you don't know what I'm talking about, check it out here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/theoffice/. PEOPLE LIKE YOU: Jon Stewart - Woody Allen - Ricky Gervais The 3-Variable Funny Test! - it rules - If you're interested, try my best friend's best test: The Genghis Khan Genetic Fitness Masterpiece

My test tracked 3 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender: You scored higher than 61% on darkness You scored higher than 28% on spontaneity You scored higher than 46% on vulgarity

Link: The 3 Variable Funny Test written by jason_bateman on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the The Dating Persona Test

Mike Shula Watch

It sounds like he might be gone.

My Favorite Albums - Number 2

Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti (1975)


Physical Graffiti, a double album that appeared in the middle of Zeppelin's career, is arguably their best (supporters of Led Zeppelin II and the untitled fourth album are excused). Featuring some of their longest and most sonically dense tracks, Graffiti features several of the best Zep songs of all time ("Kashmir", "Custard Pie", "Trampled Underfoot", "In the Light"), but several underrated numbers like "In My Time of Dying", "Ten Years Gone" and "Night Flight". One of the best-selling musical acts of all time, Led Zeppelin did it without singles (they released only two) or much radio airplay at the time. If you had never heard any other music by them, listening to this album would show you why.

What a day!

I think almost every system we have went down today in some form. We had a motherboard die in a domain controller last night, and Doug and the technician replaced it, but the time for the server was set to PM not AM (it was after one in the morning). Turns out the domain controller was the time server for the network. When we changed it back to AM this morning, everything went haywire. Terminal servers stopped working, the e-mail cluster crashed, accounting systems inaccessible, web portals locked up, backup jobs failed - it was a mess. I got several of the more minor problems resolved, but Doug has been on the phone with tech support for over eight hours trying to resolve the e-mail problem. It's nasty stuff.

LJ just IM'ed me and asked me how the day has been. I told her that it's been terrible. She asked if I had gotten everything fixed, and I said yes, except for the e-mail, and she said, "why isn't that a good day?" I told her that in IT, a good day is when nothing unexpected happens. Sure it's challenging to solve problems, and rewarding to fix a system that lesser mortals would have given up for dead, but most IT folks (at least the ones I know) would rather have things peaceful and boring.

Well, looks like Doug's making progress. Talk to you later.

Christmas album reviews

Is it too early to start talking about Christmas? I realize that the Halloween "holiday" doesn't even take place until next week, but as we have not really spent any time focusing on or talking to the kids about Halloween, I keep thinking it has already passed. My Halloween plans typically revolve around not going to the office costume party and trying to figure out how not to be at home for the trick-or-treaters.

Anyway, every year I typically buy one or more new Christmas CDs. I call it a tradition, but the only one who really pays any attention to the tradition is me, so that's probably a stretch. The last month or so, I have gotten several e-mails from Third Day regarding their new Christmas album, Christmas Offerings. As I have stated before, Third Day is one of the few Christian groups that I listen to with any frequency, and since the other two albums in the "Offerings" series have been pretty good, I was looking forward to this one. I bought it online when it was released. I also saw a new James Taylor Christmas CD at Wal*Mart the other day and picked it up on a whim. This one is titled, very originally, James Taylor at Christmas.

I listened to the Third Day CD in the van for the first time last week, and I have to say I was disappointed. I generally expect Third Day to do some interesting things on several of the songs on any particular album, and to put together a real gem or two. The original Offerings album begins with "King of Glory," which is one of my all-time favorite songs. It rocks, it quotes directly from the Bible, and it builds from this low-key guitar and vocal piece to a powerful full-throated band and choir number that can bring tears to your eyes if you're not careful. Even Offerings II: All I Have to Give features a few rousing numbers like "Sing a Song," although overall it is inferior to the first. The source of my let-down on the Christmas album is that I expected at least a couple of tunes that Third Day really put their stamp on, maybe even a couple of rockers. The best song on the album is probably "Do You Hear What I Hear?" which is just a live version of a song that they did for one of those in-store promotional Christian CDs that we already had anyway. The sad thing about it is that every one of the tracks could have been done by just about anyone - nothing terrible, but just 'blah.' There are a few original songs scattered amongst the traditional ones, and while they are slightly more interesting musically, in my opinion they are all lyrically weak. Without Mac Powell's distinct voice, well, I'd probably never listen to it again.

So before I bought the JT album, I had this musical washout on my hands. I picked up the James Taylor disc mainly because his Greatest Hits CD is a perennial favorite of ours, and I know he still has the voice. This album, which turns out to be a re-packaging of a Hallmark exclusive album released in 2004, nevertheless turned out to be a surprise. The arrangements of the traditional songs are jazzy and interesting, and as I said before, JT still has the voice. I remember LJ coming into the room while I was listening to it and asking "Is that 'Jingle Bells'?" She wasn't sure, because it sounded different - i.e., not like every other version of "Jingle Bells" ever recorded. I mean, once you've heard Bing Crosby sing "White Christmas," is there ever a need to hear anyone else attempt it? Negatory, good buddy. Aside from "Baby, It's Cold Outside," which I got tired of years ago (no offense to JT or Natalie Cole) this is an album I can tell that I'm going to listen to again and again for years to come.

YEEEESSSSSS!

I have finally established my ownership of all things Oracle and have completed the never-ending Oracle project. I resolved the final outstanding issue with the poll, and everything is working at least as well as it did before I ran the upgrade. You don't have to know what this means to celebrate with me. Whoo-hoo!

Laundry time

I don't usually do a whole lot to keep the house clean (just ask LJ!). I have allergies to dust and mold and other things, and vacuuming or dusting just knocks me over. I hate washing dishes, partly because it's just nasty, but mostly because I am almost 6' 5", and I have to bend over the sink to do it and it makes my back hurt. So pretty much the only household task I don't mind doing is laundry. Since I was home today and didn't have anything I needed to do, I have been washing clothes all day, and I do mean all day. I think I have washed somewhere between 12-15 loads so far, and I still have at least three left.

Usually we don't have quite this much laundry, and LJ hasn't even been falling down on the job. We recently bought some winter clothes for HannahBanana and BenjiBoy. We also got last year's clothes down from the attic and closets and cleaned them for NoahKrakatoa and AbsCadabs. I just had a birthday, so there are some clothes from that. Plus, LJ got a bag of shirts from an aunt that she couldn't wear any more. Add it all up and you get a $90 water bill.

You know, while we were shopping for the kids, I looked around at dresses. For a seven-year-old and a three-year-old, there were dresses that were $60 and $70 and up. I guess that's a drop in the bucket for some people, but I'll bet there's not an article of clothing in my whole wardrobe that I spent $70 or more on. I just don't see the point of spending that much on an outfit that they are going to wear just one season. And we at least have the advantage of using everything twice!

The other thing that really aggravates me is the clothing for girls. Once you get past about two or three, the choices for girls are pretty slim. I don't mean that you can't find clothing, because there is obviously tons of it. But we have had a hard time finding clothing that is appropriate for a seven-year-old to wear that makes her look like a girl and not a hooker. We finally gave up on finding her a pair of jeans that fit modestly. I don't necessarily want her to look like she's Mennonite or anything, but you would think that there would be a few choices for people who don't want their daughters to dress like Eva Longoria. Is that too much to ask?

Well, back to work for me. Now I have to go fold 12-15 loads of laundry!

EC Concert

Tomorrow night LJ and I are going to hear Eric Clapton in concert in Birmingham. Two other folks from the IT department are going, so that should be pretty cool. I'm really looking forward to it. Mom and Dad are keeping the young'uns for us, and I'm taking the rest of the week off from work (icing on the cake). This will be the third time I've seen EC in concert. My brother and I went to see him in Birmingham in 1992, when concert tickets could still be had for under $30. LJ and I saw him for our anniversary in 2001 at the Pyramid in Memphis, which was a rocking show. Robert Cray is opening for him, and I'm excited about hearing him too. Should be fun!

I always enjoy talking with folks about concerts that they have attended in their lives, especially if they have seen a few. Here are some concert highlights and lowlights from my past:

• Best Performance - James Taylor, Coleman Coliseum, Tuscaloosa, AL
• Best Opening Act - Taj Mahal (opening for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers), Coleman Coliseum, Tuscaloosa, AL
• Best Venue - Alabama Theatre, Birmingham, AL (Bob Dylan)
• Most Sentimental Show - John Denver, BJCC Concert Hall, Birmingham, AL (just months before he died)
  
• Best Song in Concert - "River of Tears" - Eric Clapton, The Pyramid, Memphis, TN
• Worst Concert - Reba McEntire, BJCC Arena, Birmingham, AL
• Most Pot Smokers - Dave Matthews Band, Oak Mountain Amphitheatre, Pelham, AL
• Best Christian Concert - Third Day and Michael W. Smith, BJCC Arena, Birmingham, AL
• Biggest Letdown - Ray Charles, City Stages, Birmingham, AL (only played for 30 minutes)
• Biggest Surprise - Kool and the Gang, City Stages, Birmingham, AL
• Closest to Stage (Whole Concert) - Tie: Taj Mahal, City Stages, Birmingham, AL; B.B. King, CityFest, Tuscaloosa, AL
• Closest to Stage (End of Concert) - Bob Dylan, Alabama Theatre, Birmingham, AL
• Farthest from Stage - Bonnie Raitt, City Stages, Birmingham, AL
• Most Singalong-Friendly Show - Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Coleman Coliseum, Tuscaloosa, AL
  
• Most Enjoyable Show - Chris Isaak, City Stages, Birmingham, AL

Hope you enjoyed sharing some of my concert memories. Now, share some of yours!