predictions

What? You didn’t know I was in the prediction business? Indeed I am. Sit back and behold the magic:

1. A Western Conference team will win the NBA Finals. Okay, so that’s a soft prediction as the Eastern Conference is horrible. But hold on, there’s more.
2. The Yanks will go all the way. What? Did you expect me to choose the Mets? Laughable. The BoSox? C’mon. The Yanks pitching staff will come together and our big guys will start hitting. They’re hungry this year. It’s gonna happen. Tired of my sports predictions? Allow me to change gears.
3. Obama and Clinton will fight it out ’till the convention. This, of course, spells disaster for the Dems paving the way for McCain’s win over whoever the Dem candidate is. Yes, the sky is falling in my world. Politics makes your stomach turn? Okay, switching gears again.
4. The internet is here to stay. Seriously, people, I think the internet is for real. You want personal predictions? I won’t disappoint.
5. After the intensive feeding clinic that begins this next Monday (hello, commuting!) Ira will be getting most of his nutrition through food that is taken by mouth. His g-tube feedings will be minimal. By September, Ira will be getting one hundred percent of his nutrition through oral feedings.
6. Finally, I’m predicting the Summer of the Hayses. Do you remember the Summer of George? George got a severance package and declared that he was taking the summer off. Laura and I don’t have a severance package and we’re not taking the summer off but for the first time in years, we feel free to do things that were unimaginable three years ago. It will be the Summer of the Hayses. Bring it.

the latest

The hole in Ira’s neck still hasn’t closed. And so at the follow-up with the ENT today, Laura pressed the doc for answers. The doc said that it sometimes takes two to three months for those holes to close up and that we should give it more time.

Time? Who’s got time, doc? This kid is ready to experience a swimming pool and we’ve got big plans for the month of July!

And so we have a pending surgery date on June 25 to close up the hole. Thing is, it’s a tricky operation with several risks. I was not excited to hear about the procedure, the overnight stay in the hospital with a drainage tube in the back of Ira’s neck or the possibility of a punctured lung due to air moving in the wrong direction. Ugh.

And so we’re praying that the hole close up. According to Laura, the doc didn’t seem too optimistic that it would and honestly, I’m not either as it hasn’t made that much progress since the trach was taken out but I’ve seen weirder things happen.

athletic

Of the four major athletic leagues in the US (NBA, NFL, NHL and MLB), it is clear to me that basketball players are the most athletic of the bunch.

bring it

friday fun?

On Thursday nights friends come over for coffee, refreshments and thoughtful conversation. Last night, JTB led us in a discussion on the link and sometimes disconnect between contemplation and action. At one point in the discussion she read a quote to us that intrigued me:

In order to do good, you must be good.

What do you think about that quote? Is it right thinking? Or is it off? If it is off, then what is a more accurate way of saying that? If it is right thinking, why?

(JTB, could you supply us with the author and context of quote?)

crack

The wife and kids are out of town for a day and night. So what would you do with your Friday morning? Sleep in? I should but you see, basketball is my crack-cocaine. I love playing the sport. I can’t get enough of it. And so Friday morning I’ll awake at 5:45 a.m. just like I do every Monday, Wednesday and Friday in order to get my fix. I’m sick, I know. My wife thinks I have a problem. “For the sake of all parents of small children, sleep in!” she says. I just can’t do it. I just can’t. I think I need help.

sisters

I was in 8th grade science class. (Was it Earth Science or Life Science? Either way, it was science which automatically meant that I was uninterested. Not that there’s anything wrong with science…) It was a typical allergy season for me in that I was sneezing up a storm and my eyes produced more tears than when I realized Milli Vanilli was indeed lip syncing those awesomely rad songs. Within moments, though, my allergies worsened and my eyes swelled to the point of closing. My dad was working and my mom was, for some reason, unavailable. (I’m still in counseling about that.) So what did the school do with me? They called my sister who was a junior in high school. She came and got me out of science class (woo hoo!) and escorted me home. I’m not sure what happened after that but I vividly remember that walk home and her holding my arm guiding me the entire way. (Okay, so we only lived a block away from the school but it was still sweet.)

As a sophomore I was in Speech Club and channeled my efforts to reading prose. I wasn’t ever that good but hung around to take advantage of school road trips to places such as Abilene, Texas. (Hey, when you come from a town of 3,262 people, hitting a big metropolis like Abilene is a big stinkin’ deal!) To say the least, I was pretty psyched about the road trip to Abilene. What made it even more fun was that my oldest sister was in school there. I wasn’t sure if I was going to see her due to the fact that she was a cool college kid who was probably way too busy for her annoying high school sophomore of a brother but I was hoping that we might get to hang out. Sure enough, she came through for me. She picked me up at the hotel we were staying at and we cruised the streets of Abilene. Later on we tried to hook back up with my Speech Club friends. While looking for them we ended up at a dance party on another college campus. My sister begged me to get out and dance with her. I was too afraid and besides, dancing with your sister is just way too weird but deep down inside I was so excited to share this cool story with my friends. “Yeah, we didn’t do much of anything but we did crash this college dance party.”

These two stories pretty much sum up my sisters. One is a nurturer, the other is a welcomer, if you will. They are different in so many ways but because of their tendencies to nurture and welcome, both position themselves with the same posture - they both stand with arms wide open. And this is just one of the reasons that I love my sisters dearly. (Even if they did dress me up in girl outfits and make-up and parade me around the block when I was little.)

seder

I’m fairly certain I didn’t know what a Seder was ten years ago. Living in Texas, Passover Seder just wasn’t on my radar. So I was pretty excited when we were invited to share in our neighbor’s Seder this past Saturday.

Sitting around the table were twenty of us and I was fortunate to sit next to the matriarch of the family who was participating in her 92nd Seder. Next to her was her daughter, granddaughter, and great granddauther. Four generations passing on the story of the Exodus in a very real and meaningful way. The traditions, the prayers, the songs, the food - amazing.

The more I learn about this world, the more I’m able to genuinely love God and love others. The more I experience, the more I’m able to authentically appreciate the stories of others. I hope more of these experiences will come my way because I’m eager to learn more and experience more. It will make me much less judgmental, I’m sure.

ambiguity = good

I came across a great quote in the latest edition of Christian Century:

The rejection of paradox and ambiguity is the characteristic of heretics in all ages. Heresy is one-dimensional, narrow, over-simplified, and boring. It is straight-line thinking, preferring a pseudo-clarity to the many sidedness of truth, tidiness to the mess and complexity of reality. Orthodoxy by contrast is rooted in the unknowable.

- Kenneth Leech, British theologian

the buzz

After a warm afternoon at the park and watching her son sweat profusely Laura said, “What do you think about buzzing Ira’s head for the summer?” Ten minutes later and with clippers in hand, I had Ira in the bathroom ready for his buzz cut. This is the result:

good police

I’m immersed in season three of The Wire. (Yes, I realize I fall prey to number 85 on the list. Sue me.) Actually, I’m about to close out season three and get started on season four. And I can’t wait because I hear season four is the best season of The Wire there is.

Anyway, as I find myself watching these episodes I can’t help but think that I could be “good police.” In seeing myself in this role I would want to be a mix between McNulty and Freamon. McNulty in that he’s a go-getter and isn’t afraid to go above and beyond the chain of command for the sake of doing good police work. Freamon in that he’s cool and collected and realizes that one can be good police while also being a good person away from the job.

What show and/or movie do you find yourself immersed in these days? And are you like me in that you start to visualize yourself in the show? Or do I need to see a doctor?