Wedding Prep

We dropped Cathie off at the hotel to get ready with the rest of the bridal party while I took Nate and the girls over to our hotel room in East Lansing. Kasey and Michael came into town early so Kasey could do the girls hair, which she did, while Michael, Nate and I hung out in the room watching TV and playing Nintendo.

We've got pictures for a couple hours and I think the wedding starts at 6:30ish. We were given a VERY detailed itinerary for the whole day, so we all know where to be and when to be there. Nicki is taking the kids back tonight after hanging for a while at the reception, and Kasey is going to head back a little later and stay the night with the kids. Cathie and I will head back later tomorrow morning.

Last night of freedom

After the rehearsal dinner, Will, Kevin, Jon and I went out for a few beers (Will had a pint) and then to see the midnight showing of new Will Farrell movie Semi-Pro. The three of us sat down with Will and explained to him the birds and the bees and what to expect on his wedding night, including unspoken expectation of his bride to be that Will's body be completely shaven (if you don't know Will, he is the harryest man ever). After the movie, the four of us went out dancing. Ok, everything except for the last couple parts.

While looking for the pint post above, I came across this entry of the first time we met Monaca and the first double-date we ever went on with Will and Monaca.

ITunes Shuffle

I was tagged by Noel with with this iTunes Random Challange:

1. Here are the rules:
2. grab your preferred digital media player.
3. push play in shuffle mode.
4. report … the first 10 tunes that pop up.
5. cheating is prohibited, as it would be in poor taste.
6. this will decide whether you are a likable person or not.

Here were the results:

1. Hang Down Your Head - Tom Waits
2. Perfect Sense - Roger Waters
3. Prove Me Wrong - Caedmon's Call
4. Satellite - Dave Matthews Band
5. I Shall Be Released - Bob Dylan
6. Flying High Again - Ozzy Osbourne
7. Penis Song - Monty Python
8. Why Worry - Dire Straits
9. Hey Bub - David Bromberg
10. That's What Faith Must Be - Michael Card
    

I now tag:

• Ken Buck
• Jason Shinn
• Jon
• Eli
• Rich
• Ed/Stacy

Quick Thinking

Ever think about just the right line a while after you could have said it? This is proof that my wife is quick. We're ordering new blinds and had someone out for measurement. The guy came to the door, and Cathie came up with just the right line at just the right time:

Guy: "Hi, I'm the blind guy."
Cathie: "Wow. I'm glad you were able to find us."

Homeward Bound

I got in last night about 12:30 and had a long day of meetings today. I was able to bail on some of my meetings this evening and get out on a flight tonight - which is delayed. Doesn't matter - at least I'm getting home tonight.

I got an odd e-mail from a co-worker, Silas, who was in the meetings with me today which simply said, "Stay hydrated". I had no clue what he meant. I figured it out once I went through security. I began to pull my laptop out of my bag and saw my bag filled with trash. After putting my bag through the X-Ray machine, they pulled it off the belt and started searching it. Weird. They pulled out to bottles of juice - great hydrating juice, and explained to me that I can't have these in my bag. I explained what had happened and the TSA guy thought it was the funniest thing in the world. Silas will think it's hilarious when I put an APB out on Silas Bin Laden with homeland security.

My flight

The weather has sucked all over today, delaying flights everywhere. I'm sitting in the Delta Crown Room in Orlando, looking out at a nasty sky, continuing to hear that my flight is delayed. I have set my expectations so low to actually get out of here, that I'm pretty much good with whatever happens tonight. I fly into New York tonight for an all day meeting tomorrow, which I would have no problem missing - so either way, I'm good.

The Delta Crown Room (which have an arrangement with Northwest so NWA people can use the Delta and vice versa) has an unlimited bar and wireless, so I'm sitting here, catching up on e-mail, IMing and watching a movie while I wait. I guess there are worse ways to travel.

Orlando

I got up around 4:30 this morning to head to Orlando the HIMMS (Healthcare and IT Management) show in Orlando, FL. I arrived to a sunny, 70 degree day. Can't beat that. The show is huge and at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando. If you've ever been to Orlando, you've probably driven by this monstrosity. Imagine three football fields side-by-side and fifteen football fields end-to end. The place is ginormous.

I picked a hotel at random (in the Hilton family, of course) off of a list, and ended up at the Grand Vacation Club over by Sea World. They upgraded me to an 1,100 square foot suite like the one Cathie and the kids and I stayed at on our last Florida vacation, complete with a huge screened in porch over looking the pool.

I'm flying to New York tomorrow, back Thursday morning and then off to Lansing for Will and Monaca's rehersal dinner followed by the event of the year: The wedding! It's going to be amazing... I know, I know Brad - expetations are resentments waiting to happen. Not in this case. When you've been waiting for 15 years for your best friend to meet his soul-mate, when it finally happens and they join their lives together, it can only be awesome!

My family has been so honored to be invovled in the event - Cathie is the maid of honor, I am the a groomsman, Nate is a junior groomsman, Maddie is a junior bridesmaid and Em is a flower girl. It's going to be fun. I'm looking forward to the toast.

Uncle Will and Aunt Monaca-Eaton-Brown

Since the kids were born, they've known Will as Uncle Will. Our little Em had this conversation with them today when came over to hang out with us:

Emily (to Monaca): "Once you get married Monaca, I'll be able to call you Aunt Monaca"
Monaca: "That'll be nice."
Emily (to Will): "And I'll be able to call you Uncle Will."
Will: "But you've always called me Uncle Will."
Emily: "Oh. Then I'll guess I'll call you Grandpa."
Will: "Grandpa? Huh?"

No clue on where she came up with that one. I'm guessing that she thought that they would both get promoted to new positions: Monaca to an Aunt, Will to a Grandpa.

HD-DVD

As you may have read, Toshiba has announced they've lost the HD-DVD format war and they're end-of-life-ing the HD-DVD players and discs. Those of us who chose the HDDVD players basically chose BetaMax while those who chose Blue-Ray chose VHS. They've reduced the price of my XBOX HD-DVD player to $50, and the discs are darn cheap. The downside is that Netflix won't be getting any new HD-DVDs. Probably a good example why people shouldn't ask me advice on what technology to buy.

Em

Em (to her teacher): "I'm going to be barefeeted in a wedding next week."

Em was a flowergirl in Jess's wedding, and apparently (like many things they learned from Jess) the kids believe the odd is now the standard. We had to explain to her that she'll be wearing shoes in the Eaton-Brown wedding.

Em

Me:"Emily, why are you licking the cat's head?"
Emily: "So she'll think I'm her Mom."
Me: "Oh. Odd."

Interesting article

I just read this very interesting article by Frank Schaeffer, is the son of the late theologian Francis Schaeffer. The article is entitled Why I'm Pro-life and Pro-Obama. It caught my eye after Jon and I were talking about how we were brought up in a family that placed a huge value on life. My Mom would work to help Moms in needs and work hard politically to make sure that the unborn were valued and visible to politicians, and got the whole family involved. For whatever reason, I grew up with the idea that all real Christians were republicans, partly because all Christians must be pro-life. Don't get me wrong, I believe whole-heatedly in the sanctity of life - born and unborn. That hasn't changed. (I'm pretty sure that it ever did, my Mom would rise up from the grave and haunt me until I changed back).

This is a blanket generalization, but looking back on the past 24 years, I don't feel like much progress has been made in relation to the chest beating that occurred by the republicans and Evangelical organizations. I don't see things being much better in terms of the abortion issue, and other measurements one could use for valuing life.

This part of the article really hits home:

Regardless of the official position of the Supreme Court on abortion, a country in which all Americans are offered some sort of dignity and hopeful future would be a place conducive to the kind of optimism each of us must hold in our hearts if we are to welcome children into this world. But if our highest aspiration is to be a consumer with no thought or care for our neighbor, we will remain a culture in which abortion is not only inevitable but logical.

What we need in America is a spiritual rebirth, a turning away from the false value of consumerism and utilitarianism that have trumped every aspect of human life. To implement this vision we need leaders that inspire but to do so they have to be what they say they are. It's not about policy it's about character.

I'm not sure I agree with the last statement around all character and no policy, but there's some truth to that. I don't claim to know any of the candidates well enough yet to say which is the best fit.

Anyways, it was an interesting that made me think about all of the talk we've heard from republicans over the years about stopping abortion and the little progress that has really been made. Maybe there is a better way than just focusing on the legality of it, and focusing on changing the hearts and taking away the need for it. Maybe that will never be possible in the fallen world we live in. Meanwhile, I guess we can all do more to make sure that children and mothers are taken of so that abortion is no longer an attractive option.

Mismatched Friends

Today was "mismatched day" at school. The kids got to dress up in odd combinations of clothes. Here was Emily's take on this:

"Mom, this is going to be an easy day for me. I don't usually match anyways."

Hey Ya

I had lunch with Nigel today and he turned me on to this cover of Hey Ya:

Lunar Eclipse Last Night

The kids told us about the lunar eclipse last night, so we were watching it throughout the night until it peaked at 10. I had a tough time getting decent pictures of it that were as crisp as I wanted, but you get the gist of things from these.

Trying to figure this out

Based on recommendations from Raitz and Nigel, I started reading the book The Irresistible Revolution (You can read the book online for free here at Google Books). It's the story of Shane Claiborne's journey as a Christian and the transformation of his view of the church. His story includes his time working in leper colonies and side-by-side with Mother Teresa and in a commune type shelter in Phil.

Aside from being a good story and interesting to read, the book is pushing me and stretching me hard at a very deep level that I can't really articulate very well right now. It's challenging me around my stuff, my values and what incarnational ministry looks like for me, as opposed to just feeling bad about what I have and the fact that I live in the suburbs (which was my inital response). It ties into a larger struggle I've been wrestling with in terms of what it looks like to help people get health care even if it's at the expense of me paying more taxes, with the balance of knowing the government stinks at entitlement programs and creating institutional dependencies with them. I've been trying to challange my thinking around how would Jesus vote around issues in terms of war, immigration and health care. I've been thinking about how institutional sin plays into these areas, and how people voting and thinking around the issues pursuing the easy answers the feel good or don't impact their taxes, and not looking at the systemic impacts of the decisions to burden business and the rich with everything. There's a balance, and I'm wrestling with what that looks like. Sorry to ramble incoherently.

My friend Ken Buck has been a huge help as i'm wrestling this stuff, as he's been chewing on this stuff for a while. Ken's very good at not giving pat answers, but asking tough questions and sharing his own humble take on his own journey.

Emily

While watching American Idol, one of the singers was singing the Three Dog Night song One (as in One is the loneliest number).
This song doesn't make sense, Dad. Zero is really the loneliest number, because with one you can still have an imaginary friend.

Kind of a big deal...

I did an interview a while back with University Business magazine in conjunction with our Corporate PR. It looks like they published the article, entitled The ABCs of ECM (Electronic Content Management - what I do for Xerox) and the article had some quotes from me, most of which I probably even said. I got the magazine in the mail, opened it up, quickly looked at it, didn't see any reference to me and I threw it in the trash pile. Cathie hapened to grab it, looked at it (did I mention I'm not a detail person) and found my name, so I re-read it and found the following gems:

Most company representatives assure IHEs that enterprise content management is the right solution for any need and any size. Dave Kurt, a Managing Principal with Xerox's Business Process Services Division, knows better. He's found that very decentralized campuses where every department literally has its own budget wind up with disconnected components that make it tough to justify the overall picture.

Some university administrators still insist on paper trails, claiming that ECM is merely a way to manage scanned documents in a digital file room. "You really lose a lot of the benefits," Kurt insists, "so it's not a good fit." Ditto if other departments have no intention of adding anything to the file after a student enrolls.

"The people who were supposed to be approving the applications were spending their time telling students why their applications were late and when it would be done," says Dave Kurt, a managing principal in the business process services division at Xerox. At Park, its ECM solution reduced application time to an average of 2.5 days, put status reports online, and reduced phone call time from 17 minutes per application to 3 minutes when the student chose to pick up the phone instead of the keyboard. That, in turn, boosted class enrollment from 70 percent capacity to between 90 and 100 percent. According to Kurt, Park University ultimately added roughly $1 million in additional revenue streaming in every single term.

But before you finish the final tally, don't forget the cost avoidance factor. For instance, noncompliance in admissions for international students carries stiff penalties in an audit, Kurt points out. ECM is like an insurance policy to keep you right with the Patriot Act.

(Note that the article included more than just me, and my name was not bolded, but should have been. I would be glad to provide autographed copies to friends and family members)

Being a though leader is not an easy job, but one I take very seriously. As Spiderman says, “With great power comes great responsibility”.

No Surprise

Dan won't be surprised by this, but this article in today's USA today talks about how the 2nd born gets the shaft:

...new research on 21,000 people that finds firstborn children get more parental attention — 3,000 hours more — than their siblings. Not only that, but more quality time is spent with firstborns even as they get older.

Second children of the world unite... This would be much funnier if it wasn't likely true with my daughter as well - so now it's just ironic.

What I'm Chewing On....

"When I fed the hungry, they call me a saint. When I asked why people are hungry, they called me a communist."
-Catholic Bishop Dom Helder Camara