Dad and Daughter Do DC!

In my new role I have responsibility for recruiting Full-time MBA students to the Graziadio School.  As this is an area I have very little exposure to as a faculty member, I’ve decided to join our Recruiting Director on a trip to DC.

Of course, the side benefit is that my folks still live nearby.  So I brought my daughter along to spend a few days with my family while I work.

Quick update on the MISERY of flying in today’s world…

• While a R/T non-stop airfare from LA to DC is only about $250, to get a similar ticket with frequent flier miles was 60K miles!  So, I went with a 20K mile award ticket instead.  Of course, this ticket has us departing and arriving from different airports in both LA (depart from BUR, return to LAX) and DC (arrive at DCA, depart from IAD).  Plus, it had a 90-minute layover in DFW on the way.  Ugh.
• The day we departed, there were morning storms in DFW, which delayed the plane’s arrival at BUR, so we were delayed by 1-hr from departure.
• It was 104 degrees in BUR when we left…which is apparently too hot for a fully-loaded plane to have sufficient lift to clear the San Gabriel mountains.  So, they drained the fuel on our plane, and flew over the mountains to the Ontario airport to refuel.  The total flight time was 19-minutes from ground to ground. 
• We stayed on the plane for another 30-minutes in Ontario while they refueled.
• By the time we arrived at DFW, we were about 2-hours late, so many passengers missed connecting flights.  And, they had run out of food on board. So, I had to go out and grab some food at the airport and bring it back to me and Madi.  Of course, if both of us went to get food, we would have had to take our luggage and everything with us, even though we were getting right back on the plane.  So, I left Madi on board and ran to grab some food.  Sadly, I didn’t know this was the case when I got up to ask the attendant about food availability.  Thus, i was gone for about 35 minutes without Madison (or the flight attendants) knowing where I was.  There was general panic that a parent had left a child unattended on the plane.  Madison’s helpful response to the crew members questions about her parent’s status was…  “I’m not alone. I’m with my Daddy.  He got up to ask a question, and didn’t come back.” :-)

Flight Attendant:  “Are you alone?  Where is your daddy?”

Daughter: '”I don’t know!  He got up to ask a question and never came back!”

• When we finally arrived at DCA, it was 1am.  Due to the late arrival, I had reserved a rental car rather than having family come pick us up.  Of course, the rental car counter closed at 12:30, even though they knew we were on flight 318 that was delayed.  So, we spent an hour at the airport trying to figure out a way to get a rental car or public transit.
• We finally took a $112 cab ride from DCA to my parent’s house and arrived at 3:00AM. 

Ugh…what a trip. 

But, when we arrived, it was wonderful to see my folks and my niece waiting for us.  Tiny and Bopper went right to sleep and got plenty of beauty rest before church.

Yes, I’m ignoring you!

 

Tonight as Michelle and I were downstairs reading the newspaper and relaxing, we called up to the kids…

Time to get ready for bed!

Of course, our perfect children all responded “OK” and we went back to reading and relaxing.  About 10 minutes later, we realized that we hadn’t seen any of them actually heading down to get ready for bed.

So, we repeated…

Time to get ready for bed.

And again, they replied with the familiar consent. 

But a few minutes later, there was still no movement towards the bedrooms.  So Michelle called up and asked…

Are you guys ignoring us? 

To which, our first born said, unsurprisingly, “No.  Sorry, Mom… I’m just finishing this level. (on the xbox, of course).

Our third-born, unsurprisingly said,

Yes.

But he said it in such a sweet, and kind way that we laughed rather than actually disciplining him or explaining that it was not OK to ignore instructions from Mom & Dad.

Ahhh… the life of the youngest…

Grand Teton, Day 2

Wow. What an amazingly beautiful place.  I can’t count the number of times I heard someone in our family say something like that today.  We started our day with a walk to the marina and visitor’s center to see what was going on in Colter Bay. 

Then after a quick walk around, we decided to rent canoes and spend the morning on the lake.

Oh my, the canoeing was incredibly beautiful.  The quiet bay, the beautiful vista, the clean, cold mountain water. None of the rest of the family had ever been in a canoe, but they learned quickly how to get around.  Matt took right to it anchoring one canoe with Michelle, and I anchored the second canoe with Madi in front and Marcus with a map as the navigator.

We landed a number of times to explore little islands out in the middle of Lake Jackson.  It was so neat to be the only humans on these islands full of so much life.  We saw a wide variety of squirrels, small animals, and birds. We found scat from several larger animals, but didn’t see anything very big out there. The wildlife viewing of the day was definitely the bald eagle.  Michelle spotted it and we rode right under it’s watchful eye in our canoes.  I don’t remember having seen one before, so it was truly magical.

After a while, the kids wanted to get in the water.  Rather than swim out from shore, they wanted to go off the boats.  Matt went first and swam about 20 feet to shore.  He did great, but said it was freezing. Then Marcus went about 15-feet to shore. Madi went last and went about 10 feet.  But she had a great time doing it while the boys were cold and done.  She kept getting back in the boat and going further out. Until she finally decided she wanted to swim across the entire bay. Here’s a picture of us paddling out to the other side of the bay.

When we finally got over there, she was a bit nervous and moved a bit too quickly towards the edge…SPLASH! Our canoe went right over!  Holy Moly the water was so freaking cold!  I immediately went into hypothermic shock.  Breathing so hard and fast and my heart rate went to about 130 BPM.

Madi was a total trooper and took instruction very well without any fear or freaking out.  She helped me to flip the canoe, but it was too full of water and started sinking.  So, we flipped it back upside down and pulled it back across the bay to the rest of the family.  Truth be told, she pretty much pulled it herself.  I was trying to gather the oars, cushions and so on that was floating in the water.  About 15 feet from shore, I caught up to her and helped her pull it in.  Of course, she was in her swimming gear, and I was in my clean clothes for the day!  Ughh… I was so wet and cold.  But it was certainly a lifetime memory.  Matt & Michelle loaded back into the canoe and paddled out to pick up the rest of the stuff.  Then we went to land and dried off a bit before paddling back to the marina. All in all we were out canoeing for about four hours.  It cost $120, which seems like a lot. Until Michelle said, “that’s the same as our family going to two movies.”.  In comparison, this was a much better way to spend a day.

When we landed at the marina, we went back to our cabin to change into dry clothes (at this point we were all grateful to be in a cabin, not a tent).

We ended the day with some fishing (though we  never even got a nibble!) and a cookout by the lake.  What a wonderful day.

 

Our cabin in Grand Teton

Of course, one of the things we heard from all of our friends when we told them we were going to Yellowstone was

“how did you find a place to stay? I thought you needed reservations a year in advance.?”

When we looked online we couldn’t find anything nearby that looked decent.  However, Michelle read in one of her books that there were frequently last-minute cancellations so we woke up early the day before we left and called the Grand Teton Lodge Company and asked about any last-minute openings.  Sure enough, they had a large cabin available both days in Colter Bay for only $155/night.  That’s less than a simple double room in nearby Jackson, WY Super 8!.

It’s absolutely adorable.

Here’s Madison in front of our cabin.  Michelle and my bed is just under the big window. 

 

The kids have a double bed for the boys and a single for Tiny.

 

We had similar luck with Yellowstone.  They had places available both nights, but in different locations.  The only spot with two nights back-to-back was the Old Faithful Inn, which looks amazing, but at $515/night it was not worth it. So we’re at the Lake Lodge Western Cabins one night and the Canyon Lodge Pioneer Cabins the next.  It should be wonderful.

Oh, and one more thing.  Because our cabin is literally adjacent to the Lounge, we have WiFi in our cabin!  WOOT!

Nashville with Matt for CSC

Last week I took at trip to Nashville for the Christian Scholars Conference.  I wasn’t planning on going since I have so many other travels this summer.  However, when Provost Tippens called with an opportunity to respond to a paper by David Miller, I knew it was an opportunity I shouldn’t pass up.

David Miller is on the faculty at Princeton University where he directs the Faith & Work Initiative.  David’s paper was a summary of his book God at Work along with an announcement of a new phase in his research where he is further refining “The Integration Box” model with an instrument development study.  I will be paying attention to his work over the next few months and would be interested in joining in the conversation.  If you are interested in the topics of faith/spirituality and work/life balance from an academic perspective, you should check out his blog…http://faithandworkblog.com/.  It’s not updated often enough, but it’s a good start.

The conference was engaging and enjoyable.  I always enjoy my visits to Lipscomb University.  It’s a beautiful campus in a lush, green, pastoral quarter of Nashville.  There are many things about Nashville that are appealing.  One of the highlights of the trip was seeing so many old friends.  I had lunch with Ted Thomas (formerly minister of the Silver Spring CoC in Silver Spring, MD) and Gayle Crowe (former minister of the Chatham CoC in Chatham, NJ…and father of one of my best friends DMC). 

 

These two guys are so special to me because it was in conversation with them many years ago that convinced me it was time for a career change.  I’m so grateful for their influence in my life.  Without them I would be Lord knows where… but almost certainly not here.

But the big highlight, was that Son #1 was able to come along for the trip.  We had a blast.  We spent the first night on the plane at DFW… and didn’t arrive in Nashville until nearly 1am.  But the second night we did a double-feature… Iron Man 2, followed by Prince of Persia.  What fun.  I preferred IM2, but he liked PoP better.  Both were fun. (Ironically, last time I attended CSC I took in a Double Feature at the same theater!)

We also made a stop by the Parthenon…

And then had the most amazing burgers at Five Guys…

Day 3 we had to fly back to LA.  But before leaving, we made a few stops.  Like at Krispy Kreme for some hot, fresh donuts.

 

On Legends Corner in downtown Nashville… 

I think Matt only recognized Johnny Cash from the guitar face.

Then we stopped by the Ryman Auditorium, home of the Grand Ole’ Opry…

And finally, we wondered by GameStops, Targets, Best Buys, and Walmarts looking for a PSP Bundle Pack.  With the bundle you save about $30, but Matt really wanted to buy a PSP for the plane ride home.  So, we finally picked up a new PSP and the Prince of Persia game and headed to the airport.  It was a terrific trip for both of us.  I really enjoyed having Matt with me.  I look forward to having him with me again.

Photos from San Francisco

Holy moly!  We had a great time in San Francisco this week.  We spent five days there... two nights at the Hyatt Regency, and two at the Hilton.  Both were wonderful hotels and we did so many fun things.  Here are some photos...

The plan was to stay in NorCal and head up to Redwood National Park.  But the weatherman called for severe rain the rest of the week and maybe hail in Redwood. So, we headed back to Cozy Malibu to sleep, refresh, and start over.  We may be heading to Joshua Tree National Park instead for some camping and outdoor recreation.  Or maybe to Long Beach for a few days... Stay tuned...

A whole lot of celebration going on!

Lots of news here lately...
First, last weekend I received this,

and this.

From Mobile Uploads

In case you can't read the small type they are letters from the Provost and President of Pepperdine congratulating me on receiving tenure and promotion to Associate Professor. :-) This is a significant milestone in a journey that began over 10-years ago when I looked frankly at my life as a consultant and decided "I do not want to be writing code ten years from now."


For the past year+ I've been thinking that if I received tenure, I would celebrate by purchasing a new, sportier motorcycle.  However, over the past year our family car has begun having some significant issues... some of them cosmetic (paint, electric windows, general signs of aging), and some more structural (hey, it's a Toyota!). So, I simply couldn't feel good about buying an NTT (New Tenure Toy) while the family was in an aging wagon.  With all of this on my mind, we went for a hike on Saturday afternoon on the Backbone Trail (which is literally minutes from our house).  Here's an picture from the trail...

After the hike we went shopping for geraniums at a local nursury.  However, we were too late and the nursury was closed.  Keyes Nissan, however, was still open.  One thing led to another, and before you know it, we were saying goodbye to our beloved 2001 Sienna (you can see Marcus wasn't quite ready to part with it).

From Mobile Uploads

And we were driving home in a beautiful 2006 Nissan Armada.  Michelle, being a Texan, has always had a thing for big trucks.  So, this is just up her alley.

From Mobile Uploads

To keep the celebration going, on Monday, Michelle drove up to her orthodontist and had her braces removed! Here's her new smile...

Having secured the new family wagon, and paid off the orthodontist I felt much better about heading out to the local Thousand Oaks Powersports on Tuesday and signing up for a 2009 Kawi Versys.  I rode the Green Lantern home on Tuesday night.

Now I just need a matching green jacket and helmet and I'll be set!  The bike is a great combination of sporty handling, but comfortable riding position.  It's got a much higher "fun factor" than my cruiser and with a few adjustments (lower foot pegs and a softer seat) I think it will be ready for long distance cruising.

One more thing to wind up a wonderful week.  Yesterday I was officially offered, and accepted, the position as Associate Dean of Full-Time Programs at the Graziadio School of Business here at Pepperdine! Beginning on Aug. 1, 2010, I'll leave the quality control & production line of higher ed, and move into the category of "overhead".  I'm excited about the opportunity to make a difference in an institution that I care deeply about.

After a week like that, we're ready to for some relaxing.  So, we leave today at noon for a week-long driving tour of the CA Coast.  We'll be in San Francisco Fri-Sun, then in Redwoods National Park, Crater Lake Oregon, Sacramento, CA and finally back in LA.  Of course, we'll be in the new Armada burning an amazing 12 MPG.  Oh well... March 2010 will go down as one of the best months so far.

Random Friday (on Tuesday!)

Sorry for the delay.  Last week was quite busy so my regular Friday column kept getting postponed until it became a Monday column. :-)

Why?  Why you ask? 

Well, of course, the big thing was Valentine's Day.  We've got a wonderful tradition going back about 12 years.  The tradition is to invite a couple of others to join us for a Valentine's Celebration.  We get a sitter, send the ladies out for a trip to the salon and the guys prepare a wonderful meal and evening at home.  We usually choose a couple of couples to celebrate with and over the years we've shared these evenings with some of our dearest friends. 

Highlights this year include...

• a gourmet italian feast with asparagus wrapped in crisp prosciutto, home made foccaccia, shrimp scampi, chopped salad, butternut squash soup, chicken parmiagiana, fresh marinara sauce, and chocolate mouse.
• A-Wall practically burned the house down while reaching for some Shrimp caused his napkin to go a bit too close to the flame...SHAZAM!!!  There was smoke, there was fire, there was stamping and screaming!  Finally the fire was put out and we all had a good laugh.
• The kids all slept over at a friend's house.  Next year, we may try to do Valentines with the friends who hosted the kids this year...
  

In other news...

• The Pepperdine community is saddened by the loss of Judge Kenneth Starr.  Kenn today announced that he is taking the presidency of Baylor University.  He will do very well there, and we will miss him here.  It's funny...when I tell people that I'm at Pepperdine they usually know only two things about it...1) it's got an amazingly beautiful campus, and 2) Ken Starr is here.  While his politics have been controversial over the past twenty years, his leadership as a dean has been truly impressive.  Our rankings, reputation, and funding at the law school have all improved considerably under his leadership. 
  

While my family is totally snowed in MD, we're enjoying a heat wave here in SoCal.  This weekend it was in the mid-70's and a perfect weekend for a long ride.  I rode up to Port Heuneme and enjoyed a few hours in the saddle.  Ahhh..  This photo is from a parking lot right out on the beach.  What a great day. 

• I've been shopping for a year or so for a new bike.  I'm planning on getting a new bike as a reward if I receive tenure this year.  If I don't receive tenure, I promise NOT to go postal like the lady at University of Alabama did this weekend.  I think I'm going to get a Kawi Versys if things go well.
  
• Gong Hay Fat Choy! (that's happy Chinese new year)!  
• Sunday we took breakfast in bed to Matt & Madison (Marcus woke up too early).  Such a fun day...

• I'm teaching the Jr. High at church and loving it.  I'm doing a series on the gospel.  Its a lot of fun.
• OK..that's all for this week.  I'll update again on Friday.
  

OKC Trip Slideshow

Here are some photos from our recent trip to OK to see relatives.

Photos are here.

Getting Started on Grandparent Trip

Mark and I are taking our annual Grandparents trip this weekend. I arrived at DFW about 5pm yesterday and he was supposed to arrive at 9pm. Due to weather in DC, he didn't pull in until about 1am.

After a few minutes of conversation about California bankruptcy and marijuana laws we were out. Of course, the Days Inn I reserved for $25 on Price Line is clean and functional, but not as nice as either of us are used to. The best part...they gave us a single queen sized bed rather than two twin beds.



Today, we head to see my paternal grandmother and father's brother. On the way we'll stop by a house where we lived in the early 1970's in Plano, TX.  This is the house I lived in second longest of any and the school I attended as long as any all the way through graduate school (K-3rd at Mendenhall Elementary).Technorati Tags: family, MLW, travel

2008 in 38 Questions…a new year’s meme

1. What did you do in 2008 that you'd never done before?

Flow Yoga at Pepperdine Rec…it was awesome! I'm definitely hoping to do more Yoga in 2009. Great exercise, terrific calming atmosphere, and low-impact. (I wish I could count the Rose Parade, but technically that was 2009).

2. Did you keep your new year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?

I'm not a resolutions kind of guy any more. However, I've been satisfied with the life I've lived in 2008 in all the usual resolution categories.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?

Hmmm…I don't think so. Lots of friends from church, but no family members (that I can remember!).

4. Did anyone close to you die?

Thankfully, no.

5. What countries did you visit?

Hungary, and the Czech Republic.

6. What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?

A new house with an ocean view. Seriously.

7. What dates from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?

Well… I can't think of any. Lots of special memories, but not date related.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

It's a tie between maintaining a healthy lifestyle for another year and finally resubmitting a journal article that's been on my desk for nearly a year.

9. What was your biggest failure?

Spending too much time on my teaching, and not enough on my research. I've enjoyed the teaching but more research for 2009…

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?

Nope! After some ear and dental issues in 2007, 2008 was free from injury and illness.

11. What was the best thing you bought?

A Yamaha V-Star 1100 (and of course, the road trip I took with Mark on it).

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?

So many people in my family…Matt, Madison, Marcus, Michelle. I'm so proud of Matt for learning C++, Madison for her amazing Viola skills, and Marcus for learning to read, write, and become and artist. Michelle deserves celebrating for dealing with a few very difficult situations with amazing grace and humility.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

W.

14. Where did most of your money go?

The downturn drain.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?

I think the Moto Tour with Mark was the most exciting thing I've done in a long time.

16. What song will always remind you of 2008?

This isn't really an answer to this question…but I think my favorite new artist of 2008 is Jamie Cullum. I know he's not new, but I just found him this year.

17. Compared to this time last year, are you: (a) happier or sadder? (b) thinner or fatter? (c) richer or poorer?

This year was ideal…I'm exactly the same in all three of these categories. J

18. What do you wish you'd done more of?

Quality time with my family (he says as he sits on the couch blogging rather than interacting with either of his boys who have asked him a dozen times this morning to play something else…)

19. What do you wish you'd done less of?

Reading the news. This is a total waste of time and I hope to do much less of it in 2009.

20. How did you spend Christmas?

With my beautiful family, getting fatter and happier. Although this was the first time in my life I've not been with my parents and siblings. That was a bit odd, but we had a good time anyway.

21. Did you fall in love in 2008?

I'm philosophically opposed to the expression "Fall In Love"…but I have had a rapid increase in positive affect towards my V-Star.

22. What was your favorite TV program?

I don't think I watched a single TV program in 2008. Unless you count a few NFL football games. If they count it had to be the first Redskins/Cowboys game this fall.

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?

Nope. Same hate list as last year. I'm not saying who's on it though. J

24. What was the best book you read?

Close call… I'd have to say it's a toss-up between Crime and Punishment and Moby Dick (both of which I listened to on Audio during our cross-state summer vacation).

25. What was your greatest musical discovery?

Jamie Cullum, and Simple Plan (which I actually "discovered" on a Scooby Doo episode Marcus watched).

26. What did you want and get?

The V-Star, time with Michelle in Europe, and a long family-vacation.

27. What did you want and not get?

A new iMac for the bedroom PC.

28. What was your favorite film of this year?

Ironman

29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?

I think we went out for Sushi for my 39^th bday. This year I'm hoping to do a bit more for the big day.

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

A yoga schedule that fit my schedule.

31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008?

In a word…transitional. I've had the opportunity to redo my wardrobe over the past 18-months.

32. What kept you sane?

Absolutely nothing.

33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?

Obama

34. What political issue stirred you the most?

Another toss-up…between Guantanamo Bay and the toothless SEC/Fed

35. Who did you miss?

All my family at Christmas.

36. Who was the best new person you met?

This is actually a tough question…I don't know that I've met many new people lately. I'm kind of in a "go deep and narrow" phase in my personal life. I don't have the time and space for many new people. That sounds awful, doesn't it?

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008.

Fiction is more fun (and instructive) than non-fiction.

38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.

After years of expensive education,

a car full of books and anticipation,

I'm an expert on Shakespeare and that's a hell of a lot

but the world don't need scholars as much as I thought.

Jamie Cullum-TwentySomething

2008 Holiday Card is posted...

Rather than mailing Holiday Cards this year, we posted a few pages on our website. If you have the time and desire, check out...

http://shortlinks.m5williams.info/2008XmasCard

Daddy, don't let your babies grow up to be Code Heads...

As I mentioned last week, Matt and I have started learning C++. Here we are working on our "Hello World" program (which is the first program you write when learning a new language).

So far we're having a blast. I guess this is a good time for me to explain to Matt that he should spend this time learning how to calculate derivatives and costs of capital rather than structured loops and object inheritance?

The DPW's Festival of Lights ended its pedestrian-friendly period today. We took it in on opening weekend. It's a good time. If you haven't made your way to Griffith Park to see the lights...it's a fun LA experience.

I guess I spoke too quickly...

Doh!  Michelle is officially down with the nasty stomach virus.  She's been sick a half-dozen times since midnight.  Ouch!

On the mend...

I think (cross-my-fingers) that everyone is through with this stomach virus now. No one has actually been sick in about 30-hours.  Michelle and I seem OK.  Thanks for your prayers and kind words.

Michelle and the kids are at PU's Christmas Concert while I'm at home getting Tater to bed so he can get enough rest to go to school for the first time all week tomorrow.

This weekend should be interesting.  I have a variety of graduation related events Fri & Sat, Michelle is camping with the Girl Scouts from 7am Sat to noon Sun, Madison has three soccer games in the Regional AYSO playoffs about an hour from here, and we have two or three Christmas events at church.  Whew...I'm tired already!

It's going around...

As you know...Tiny was sick on Thanksgiving.  Lame-O.  We thought that was the end of it, but Matt got sick on Sunday night.  This morning Tater came to our bed saying

"Daddy...I think I have some chemicals in my mouth!"

Who knows where he got that? Anyway, he proceeded to be sick seven-times before I left for work at 8:45. Yuck... Poor guy.

So, who's next? Michelle or me?

Happy Birthday, Tater Tot

We had a wonderful time celebrating Tater's Sixth Birthday this week.  Chuck E Cheese's and home for presents.  His "friend party" is next week.

Tiny's Donut Show

Yesterday we made the delicious 500-calorie Apple Strudel.  Before doing so, we watched several YouTube videos about how to prepare Apple Strudel.  Madison loved the shows, and as soon as we had a few minutes she asked if I would help her with something.  So, here is the beginning of the next "Rachel Ray"...

Tater's Theme

We had just seen Rocky 2 a few days earlier when I spied Tater performing this original composition on the stairwell...