Moving Day in Perspective...

A year ago today, I made the move to Lawrence.

The morning was a mix of last minute cancellations both in terms of packing and moving.  However, it ended up being a non-issue as we had things packed in about an hour's time* and a married couple from my time at K-State were willing to make the trip out to Lawrence and help me unload.

Paul and Haley, the married couple, returned with me to return the U-Haul and I treated them to lunch for their troubles.  The restaurant, a local favorite, was good as always.

And then we parted and returned "home"...

...and there I was.

Something about stepping into a silent structure with mountains of boxes and little organization.  It was eerie in many ways and I felt exposed and was a bit overwhelmed in my isolation.  Case in point, I had shades in one of the spare rooms, but the other rooms were fully exposed to all who passed on by.

The walls are still largely bare and one of the spare rooms is now empty (with everything that was in there no filing the carport storage area).  A year in, I'm beginning to think of it as "home" even if it doesn't fully look the part.

*I think it's worth noting that nearly all who showed up were shocked at how much I had packed.  None of them had experienced someone who had said to show up at "such and such time"and was actually ready to go.

2018 Pro Football HOF Class...

The Pro Football HOF 2018 Finalists list was released earlier today.  As always, there are a number of deserving names although space is limited to no more than 5 Modern-Era selections.  Since I have no strong opinions on this year's other candidates, space will be limited to a discussion of the Modern-Era candidates.

Last year, I wrote about the 3 categories I take into consideration when selecting someone for Canton.  In case you missed it, here it is:

Career*... Ex: Walter Payton, career leader in rushing yards when he retired.

Team Leader... Ex: Jerome Bettis, often thought of as a "locker room leader" for the Steelers.

Game Changer... Ex: Jan Stenerud, credited with introducing the soccer-style kick for field goals.

Also, I feel all positions deserve consideration and give quarterbacks only a slight edge (+.5), and a kickers a slight deduction (-.5), when compared to other positions.

*Career is not just stats for a given position (Bledsoe and Testaverde would both be HOF worthy in that case).  There's a need for a number of "great" seasons over the course of a career.

In general, I normally reserve 2 votes per position for a given decade (realizing most careers overlap decades).  Examples: I have Chuck Noll and Tom Landry as my coaching picks for the 1970s** and Joe Montana and Dan Marino as my QB picks for the 1980s.

I do, however, leave room for a 3rd vote if there is a "Game Changer" up for consideration.  With the above examples, I have Don Coryell for a coaching pick (see my comments on his coaching from a couple of years ago here) and Warren Moon for a QB (9 Pro Bowls selections even though he faced racial dissemination to the degree he did is impressive to say the least).

** Don Shula deserves mentioning for the 1970s, but I have him listed for the 1960s.

Having said that, keep in mind these are not hard-set rules, but rather guidelines.

So without further adieu, here's my breakdown:

CANTON WORTHY (no debate)
ALAN FANECA...This guy went to 9 straight Pro Bowls and was First Team All-Pro 6 times.  I don't care that he played guard and tackle, that's impressive!

STEVE HUTCHINSON...This guy was nearly as impressive: 7 straight Pro Bowls and First Team 5 times.

JOHN LYNCH...A force to be reckoned with during his career with 9 Pro Bowls and 2 All-Pro nods.  Would someone please explain to me how he has not been elected into the HOF?

KEVIN MAWAE...8 Pro Bowls and 3 All-Pro nods.  Even though he played center, I still catch references to his play from time-to-time.  He has my vote.


CANTON WORTH (...or so The Bearded says)
No unusual pics this year.


CANTON "GALE SAYERS WING" WORTHY (...or so The Bearded says)
As I wrote last year: "There needs to be a new wing added to Canton that takes into consideration NFL greats whose careers were cut short because of injuries.  Sayers was healthy in only 6 of his 8 seasons.  He was a great, but those career numbers were cut short."

TONY BOSELLI...A left tackle who was healthy 6 of his 7 years in the league.  Of those 6 seasons, he made 6 Pro Bowls and was selected All-Pro 3 times.


AM OPEN TO DISCUSSION
ISAAC BRUCE...He was a solid player through his career.  My argument against him is that he was "great" for 3 seasons and "good" or "ok" most of the others.  For comparison, Rod Smith had as many "great" seasons (possibly 4) even if his career numbers aren't as strong.

BRIAN DAWKINS...Last year, I had him on my "Canton" list, but this year he drops a notch due to the quality of some of the other candidates and that I have Lynch slightly above him in terms of impact (no pun intended).  I think he eventually gets in.

JOE JACOBY...His resume doesn't seem to stack up (4 Pro Bowls; 2 All-Pro), but he was a member of the fabled Hogs and I still hear references to his career on a regular basis.

EDGERRIN JAMES...He has over 12,000+ rushing yards and 15,000+ all-purpose yards over his career, but was only Pro Bowl material 4 times and All-Pro 1 time.  I see this as a solid career, but not a dominating one.

BRIAN URLACHER...With 8 Pro Bowls and 4 All-Pro selections, this may come as surprise.  However, the one (and only) knock I have against him is that he was regularly voted as one of the most over-rated players by his peers.  Even so, I'd likely vote for him at some point, just not this year.


CANTON "WHITE BRONCO WING" WORTHY
This special wing is reserved for players who statistically speaking should be a slam-dunk for the HOF, but there on-field and/or off-field antics keep them from receiving my vote.

RAY LEWIS...13 Pro Bowls, 7 All-Pro selections, and this (even if he has had a change of heart).

RANDY MOSS...ROY, 6 Pro Bowls, 4 All-Pro, 4th all-time for receiving yards as well as this and this.

TERRELL OWENS (T.O.)...T.O.'s career numbers suggest he should be in Canton: 6 Pro Bowls, 5 All-Pro, and 2nd all-time for receiving yards.  However, when one considers his antics and how he sunk several good teams, I leave him out.


NOPE: "W.T.H. WING!" WORTHY
Experience has taught me that emotions often play a role in the voting for the HOF.  Case in point, there are at least 3 QBs in Canton I would have never voted for: Terry Bradshaw, Troy Aikman, and Kurt Warner.  Of these, Aikman has the strongest argument for induction ranking 37th all-time for career passing yards (Note: he'll likely be passed by Alex Smith next year).  My counter argument is no one speaks of a QB being the "next Troy Aikman" or "plays like Troy Aikman".

TY LAW...Good, just not HOF good.

EVERSON WALLS...Not to take away from a solid career, but I'm not sure how he made it to the Finalists list.

A year living on New York...

It's been nearly a year since I moved into my humble abode located on New York St. in Lawrence.  To celebrate this milestone, I decided it was about time to share some photos.

Home...

Three major outdoor projects were undertaken in 2017: trees, rain garden, and carport.

TREES...this past spring, I had two large trees removed form my property.  One had a very large branch that loomed precariously over my home--not sure how I missed this in buying the house, but I did.  The second was removed in order to make room for a large carport.

Tree removed because I didn't want it in my living room

Tree removed to make room for a carport

RAIN GARDEN...the property has proved to be prone to flooding.  Being proactive, I installed a new sump pump (the old one was DOA) and had a French drain and rain garden installed.  For those of you unfamiliar with these items, a French drain is an underground perforated pipe that redirects water to another area while a rain garden is a space where water intensive plants are planted to alleviate excess water.

The rain garden is not quite complete as I will be planting a birch tree in the middle and ringing the garden with flagstone this coming spring.

Side yard before rain...

Side yard after rain...

French drain (scaring) and rain garden installed with firepit in the foreground

CARPORT...this one proved to be rather expensive as the initial estimate ended up being $10-15K short of the final cost.  However, it also ended up being one of the most rewarding since the contractor I ultimately ended up using is a childhood friend.  Normally, I am hesitant to use a close friend in a major business transaction, but this one was a treat as we went out nearly every night for BBQ.

Referring to this structure as a carport really doesn't do it justice.  It's more of an open garage.  By "open garage" I mean that there is a covered parking area ("carport") as well as a large enclosed workspace ("garage").  The enclosed area will be used for storing items such as the lawn mower, tools, bike, etc. as well as a future print shop that I hope to have up and running later this year.

A few minor additions to the open garage will be added this spring, but for all practical purposes this is it!

Before...

And after: carport area...

enclosed workspace

Dreaming insight on a life alone...

A friend of mine from Fort Collins visited this past weekend.  She's a musician at heart and has been blessed with a voice that instantly melts a hardened heart.  She's on a mini-tour and was hoping to play at a local venue while here, but when plans fell through, she requested a more local audience (ie "my backyard").

I had one of those dreams that didn't take long to interpret last night.  I normally dream of women, Star Wars, sports, exploring, or serving (not trying to be overly "spiritual", just being honest).  Last night, I dreamt of having friends.

Earlier this year, I shared thoughts on my isolation here in Kansas.  I may be quiet, but I am an extrovert and my life here resembles Hell.  There was a decent showing of a dozen or so Saturday night for my friend's performance and, oddly, a number of comments on what a good group of friends I have here.  But here's the catch: I invited nearly 40 "friends", most of whom didn't respond even with a follow-up, and with the notable exception of a local married couple, none of these friends reciprocate an invite on any kind of regular basis (once a year hardly counts).

My dream last night involved checking the mail and receiving a number of letters and small packages from friends and family.  The message: I do have friends and family who care for me...but they live in distant lands.

Granted, friendships take time to grow and evolve.  But two years in, I find myself reluctantly acknowledging the fact that if I were to move tomorrow, it is unlikely I would ever hear again from any of my new friends and equally so they from me.

Canadians vs Americans...

Canada beat the US in the Gold Medal Hockey Game in both men's and women's back in 2002.  I was living in Salt Lake City at that time and what I remember about the buildup to that game was walking around in my US jersey boldly stating "See you Sunday!" to any Canadian I stumbled across.    It was all in good fun and I shared a good laugh with many.  One Canadian, however, pulled me aside and said "5-2...remember that score."

Canada beat the US 5-2 that Sunday.

Yesterday, Canadians celebrated their country's 150th anniversary.  I made a quick trip across the border to enjoy some Tim Hortons' as well as a local Canada Day parade.  As I crossed into Canada, I wished the border guard a "Happy Canada Day!" and she responded by handing me a Canadian pin (pictured).

Last night, I was watching the CBC's coverage of celebrations across Canada.  One particular performance that stood out was Gordon Lightfoot's.  Prime Minister Troudeau commented afterwards that Lightfoot had performed on the same stage 50 years ago for Canada's 100th anniversary.  But a second item that stood out was Canadians saying "thanks".

The CBC went across the country and filmed people of various backgrounds saying "Thanks, Canada!" (or "Merci, Canada!" for the Francophones) as well as person after person commenting that what made Canada so great was "Canadians".  There were no "except(s)..." or "but(s)...", just "Thanks!"  We live in divisive times in this country and I wish we could simply say "Thanks, America!" or respond to what makes the USA so great is not "our freedom" or "our rights", but rather each other.

The latter is much harder to do, but I think, to steal a line from Red Green, there's much more wisdom in taking time out to say "we're all in this together."

Come dreams what may...

Once upon a time, I dreamt on a regular basis.

I still dream, don't get me wrong, but my dreams are more often than not "normal" or "realistic".  The fantastical dreams I had growing up have given way as the years have passed and the occasionally wild and vivid dream now tends to surface only under times of distress.

Last night, I awoke several times to the sharp memory of a reoccurring dream.  A mountainous setting, on the open road leaving town, only to be called to return to a local cafe by the Big Man Himself.  Dreams rarely make sense and this is more likely one of those times, but the fact that I awoke at the same point in the story each time, startled and disturbed, has me pondering the meaning of this vision.  The fact that I don't necessarily feel as if I'm under that much undo stress leaves me that much more perplexed.

This is likely one of those times when this particular story has no follow up.  I share, however, because of the haunting nature of this reoccurring dream as well as its markings as an unfinished thread.  Come dreams what may.

1-19...

My previous post is a bit of an exaggeration: I am 0-18 for Saturday (today) whereas I am 1-19, or maybe even 2-20, for the weekend.

Yesterday, a "friend" and I met for a late morning coffee.  I say friend in quotes because this is someone I was pursuing last year at this time, continued to pursue for another month, and then informed her that I would not be pursuing her anymore and found her, oddly enough, somewhat taken aback.  I say "oddly enough" because she had been very guarded and given very little evidence that she was interested in a relationship after initially starting the process.

I later learn that she had been sleeping with someone she works with the entire time I was getting to know her and even took a two-week journey to Europe to sleep with a former flame as the two of them traveled across several countries together.  There may have been others.

She's continued to flirt with me ever since.

That's the "2-20" as the "1-19" really comes into play last night.  A supervisor from my time at Africa Nazarene University wanted to introduce me to a young lady she knew in KC.  Long story short, I asked the girl out and we met for coffee at an art and music event last night.

Many of you are aware that I fell head-over-heals for someone last summer.  She ended the relationship last summer with a text and destroyed me in the process.  Since then, friends have introduced me to three women none of whom do I have the slightest interest in pursuing a relationship with.  The first was a bad enough match that I was actually a bit insulted.  The second comes from a Muslim background which makes me wonder what my friend was thinking.  And last night's match has a weight problem to a point where I'm not interested in a second date (hopefully I share that last one in a sensitive enough manner not to offend anyone).

The breakup last summer was crushing enough that I've started seeing a counselor recently.  I simply can not make sense of it.  And, yet, last night I may have had a breakthrough as I was sipping an Americano.

I was sharing how my current church is "ok"--lots of things I appreciate, but nothing that I truly "love" or am passionate about.  This is in stark contrast to my first stint in Salt Lake which was marked with a memorable experience at a church--a church and church body I truly loved.  On a related note, I will always be grateful that I recognized the moment for what it was, a season in which I had a church home as perfect as this one ("perfect for me").

My point being, maybe that's how I need to view my time last summer with Rebecca...a time in my life that will never be matched again.

But does that also mean that if I am ever to enter into another relationship that I will have to allow myself to accept someone I don't truly "love" nor am passionate about?  That's more of a rhetorical question, but I'm still open to comments here.

0-18...

For those of you familiar with the Myers-Briggs, I'm an ENFP *.  I enjoy some time alone, but not much...and definitely not as much as I'm given on a regular basis.

My time in Salt Lake is marked by two very different experiences:

University of Utah...I originally moved to SLC to pursue my master's degree in geography.  If I'm honest, I didn't take my studies that seriously and pursued personal relationships instead.  I have good memories of this time period.

SLCC...After two-and-a-half years of study, I left the Wasatch Front for Peace Corps Uzbekistan.  Because my stint was cut short (evacuated shortly after 9/11), I found myself in Utah once again this time teaching at SLCC.  Life was different as many of my friends had graduated during that time and I was no longer an active member of the student body.

I bring this up because there was a marked difference in the amount of social interaction I had pre and post Peace Corps.  Academia has not been kind to me in that sense.  K-State was a marked period of alone time (although it's tough to complete a PhD in 4.5 yrs without) with Wyoming only intensifying a feeling of being isolated to a point that my mom was concerned about my well being.

A move to Colorado helped, but proved to be a bandaid in the larger picture.

My return to Kansas has me concerned once again about my isolation.  Although I've had enjoyed as much people interaction living in Lawrence for 3 months as I did the previous 18 months in Johnson County (literally), I still spend far too many days alone with no one to talk to...and it's not for a lack of trying.  This week I was 0-18 in finding someone to spend time with.  With one exception (and maybe not even one), the reason was simple: family time.

Living in a city where one doesn't have family and doesn't know of anyone else who doesn't have family is rough...especially for an extrovert.

* The first link identifies Wash as an ENFP.  However, those of you who know me well know I am Malcolm Reynolds to a fault (minus the religion aspect).