Musings
You Don’t Get To Pick
I had the amazing opportunity to visit with a class of business students at Oklahoma Baptist University last Friday. I love talking with college students. They are intense, brave, curious, and not easy to impress. They will listen to what you have to say, but they will question you too and make up their own…
Read MoreWhat Could Be Sew Hard?
I and three dear friends of mine got a rare opportunity this weekend. We got to visit an artist’s studio and work under her direction in her medium and style. Irmgard Geul is from the Netherlands where she was born and raised not far from Amsterdam. Her art is both abstract and impressionistic and much…
Read MoreWhen A Win Isn’t
My youngest son and I went to the Big 12 Wrestling Championships this past weekend. We got to watch the best wrestlers in the Big 12 and we got to watch wrestlers from schools other than OSU also. If you are not from Oklahoma, then you probably don’t understand the rivalry between our two primary…
Read MoreIt’s The Real Thing
I have always been interested in branding and marketing. Done well, branding can create a recognizable identity that carries very complex messaging within very simple symbols and icons. I recently visited The World of Coca-Cola, a museum of sorts dedicated to the Coca-Cola brand. Asa Griggs Candler bought the formula and the brand for the…
Read MoreHeat Wave
“We’re having a heat wave” is a phrase I have heard several times recently as the plummeting temperatures and record snowfall we have experienced this past week begin to fade. One of the latest was a dear friend of mine, in response to reading that the high temp on Friday would be 33°. Something is wrong in…
Read MoreThe Flower Next To Me
“A flower does not think of competing to the flower next to it. It just blooms.” Zen Shin In 1724, a German physicist living in the Dutch Republic proposed a comparative scale for measuring temperature. He based his scale on three points: the low point as the freezing temperature of an ammonium salt brine solution…
Read MoreFinal Disposition
I attended the funeral of my friend’s father on Friday. Historically, I have not been a fan of funerals in general, but this one was really nice. My friend’s father had served in the military during the Vietnam war, so there was an honor guard present. One of them played “Taps” before they lifted the…
Read MoreWhen Practice Isn’t Practical
My son and I went to the gun range this weekend to practice. Some things are improved simply by repetition. Practicing or rehearsing increases skill and familiarity so that when the time comes to execute or perform, we are sharp and prepared. With shooting, we practice aiming and controlling our breathing by shooting single shots…
Read MorePyromaniacs
I love fireworks. I have always had a fascination with fire and explosions. So much so, that as a very young person I read everything I could find about pyrotechnics (fireworks) and started experimenting to make my own fireworks. My parents had given me a fairly extensive chemistry set for a Christmas present, and I…
Read MoreHarder Than It Looks
Sometimes things we think should be easy turn out to be quite difficult. At my age, this is a lesson I should be familiar with, yet I often forget it and end up where I ended up this weekend. My son and I were replacing the rotors and brake pads on his 2004 Ford F-150.…
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