B'nai Mitzvah or Do You Need a Jacket?

B'nai Mitzvah
"Do you need a jacket?"
"Do you want a jacket?"
"Don't you want a jacket?"
"Aren't you cold?"
It was like no one in Virginia had seen weather below 50F in 3 years. Every time I happened to be outside or even near a door someone was concerned about the temperature's affect on me. I thought the 50F degree evenings were nice short sleeve weather. Apart from that, I had one great long weekend.
I was excited about seeing my buddy Ian's daughter Rachel becoming Bat Mitzvah. She was still cocooned inside of Nikki when we left VA for CO back in Jul1993. Thirteen years later, she's ready to be recognized as being responsible for the commandments. In the meantime, my own kids grew up.
The trip came together effortlessly. Erwin provided a crash pad, taxi & rent-a-car service & Betty provided a full-service Bed & Breakfast.
The morning of my trip saw me shovelling about 4 inches of snow off the driveway & sidewalks before I headed into work. It was one of those wet sloppy fall snows that Colorado is famous for around Hallowe'en. Tree branches were bent to the breaking point. I did notice the blue spruce in the back yard seemed to be 12 feet tall all of the sudden. I almost left the snow on to strengthen the limbs, but it was just a little to thick, so all the rabble got roused from the limbs.
Driving east to the airport later that afternoon, the roads got drier & drier, until 5 miles from the airport there was little evidence of snow. As I walked to my gate, I passed by a flight that would get into Dulles about 95 minutes earlier than my scheduled flight. I stepped up to the gate & 20 minutes later got an earlier flight & start to my vacation.
I got to my seat & was congratulating myself on being so ever crafty, when it dawned on me my checked luggage probably wasn't quite as crafty as me & that it would probably still be on the flight that got in at 1a. It mattered not. I walked out of the terminal at Dulles, Erwin was parked & waiting in front of the door. We hit a sports bar he knew nearby, caught the last part of a world series game, caught up & had a drink. 90 minutes later, we were relaxed & headed back to the airport. He pulled up to the same door, I walked right into baggage claim. None of the passengers was even to the terminal when the ramp started up & my bag came off first. I was headed back to the car before the second bag hit the carosel!
Friday, Erwin & I made it over to the new Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. What a great place! The myriad flying machines were amazing to behold, if not frightening. There was an SR-71 Blackbird (Yay, though I fly through the valley of the shadow of death, I am not afraid for I am at 80,000 feet & climbing! - Sign above the operational hanger of an SR-71) and the Enola McLuhan, er, Gay. There were biplanes, hang gliders and space capsules. The power of technology to serve man's inhumanity towards man was astounding. But the power of technology was also enough to suspend judgment while we watched an Imax movie about the Mars Rover program. We wrapped the day up with a boatload of sushi & a few brews back home from the keg-erator (Thanks Greg!)
Saturday, I headed towards the synagogue in Erwin's car, using the new Google Maps for Treo hand-held devices. The Palm app put me right on the synagogue, right on schedule. Of course, once I got there, I had no clue what to do. I finally approached the gentleman who had provided me with a program & asked about expectations regarding head coverings. He exclaimed they were a reformed congregation & only a third of the folks would be donning, so for once, I was relaxed to fit in with the majority. The service was interesting & inspiring mainly because it was let by the B'nai Mitzvah.
It was obvious Rachel & Chris had been well schooled in Hebrew, scriptural interpretation and the history of their religion. They both did a great job of reading the Torah & the prophets in Hebrew and commenting thereupon. I reflected on the 4000 year old traditions they were carrying forward. Beyond that, Rachel demonstrated grace, intelligence & wisdom. The whole time Ian & Nikki sat up on the dias & beamed. They were obviously & correctly proud. It was a moment that encompassed the future & the past with Rachel assuming responsibility for understanding both. To be honest, I think everyone was beaming!
That afternoon, I caught up with Mel, Ian's sister, Lee & finally got to meet Mort. That night, we were subjected to the manic energy of 40 or 50 12-14 year olds. I had forgotten how loud they can scream just for the heck of it! The best dancers that night were Bridget & Amy. They just appreciated a huge dance floor & couldn't care less about who was watching.
After a great party, we headed back to the hotel for good-byes. It had been a great day to celebrate friendship & history (both recent & ancient).
Erwin & I both got to the house after midnight (he had been at a jam) & slept late the following morning before heading out for a most excellent breakfast of bagels, lox, eggs & coffee. Erwin insisted throughout the entire weekend that he was picking up the tab & refused to listen to rhyme or reason. After a huge breakfast, we walked Odie again, then watched a little football. We shut the evening down with a wonderful home cooked meal with a couple of friends of his, Barbara & Steve. Barbara cooked a great spagetti meal! After dinner we started watching the Cowgirls actually win a game. I'll be glad when they get another coach & more glad when they get another owner!
Monday, I got up & headed out to see Cheryl's mother. Again with the trusty Treo Google Maps app. This time, it took me the back roads towards Charles Town WV, through Harper's Ferry & right through beautiful downtown Scrabble. I was at the river 90 minutes after leaving Reston & through some beautiful countryside to boot. Betty had lunch waiting for me. (Man! I was treated like a king this weekend!) We went for a walk at The Nature Conservancy Yankauer Preserve. We saw many birds, a tiny little field mouse, a wonderful view of the Potomac & an interesting little memorial to Zyp.
Lennie came by & we had a great visit. Just at sunset Jamie showed up! I was really happy to see him & the icing on the cake Kevin showing up a little later. We had a great dinner, talking about everything and catching up. The next morning I helped Betty with a little more work in the garage, then it was back down the back roads to civilization. Erwin & I hit a sushi buffet that made me rue the delicious breakfast Betty had cooked for me. There was a shelf with at least 30 little wooden trays of sushi! If only I had known, I would have allowed for more time to get to the airport!
I got back to Denver & was damn glad I had that big black leather jacket that hadn't been required once in Virginia! It was 30F degrees & very frosty. They laughed at my jacket in Virginia, but nodded appreciatively as we got of the jetway in Denver. I was home by 8p on Hallowe'en.
This was one of the best solo vacations I ever had! Five days of being treated like a king! Everyone I saw was glad to see me & said so! Most of them even hugged me! No schedules, no hurrying or worrying. Lots of good food, good times & most importantly good people with lots of love! It just doesn't get much better than this!
Thanks to everyone I saw in Virginia & West Virginia!

Wal-Mart Workers Walk Out

Wal-Mart Workers Walk Out
Many people ask me why I am so adamantly opposed to shopping at Wal-Mart. This article is just the tip of the iceberg!
If you're shopping at Wal-Mart, for any reason, at any time, you're part of the poverty problem in America!

Rich young ruler

Rich young ruler
Welcome to all of Martha's friends who might stumble upon this blog!
This looks like a pretty cool site comparing the three gospels that probably share a common source, commonly known as "Q".
I ask all visitors, when it comes to Iraq, What Would Jesus Do? Would he have done the same thing as HeBeGeeBeeToo? Before you charge to the doornail's defense, remember he doesn't think his policy in & on Iraq has been a mistake!
Too bad we can't put the ten commandments on every desk in Congress, I think they could use a little reminding! What do you think?

Alex Henes - Merely A Flesh Wound

Alex Henes - Merely A Flesh Wound
You've GOT to go check out my buddy Alex website! Not only is he an incredible person, he's got an incredible site, with incredible photos of the incredible things he's done.
OK, I think you get the point! Alex sucks the marrow out of live in a way that would humble Thoreau.
When I went to work at Level(3), I imposed upon Alex to let me rent out his basement, thinking I would be there a month or two. About 11 months later, I was finally gone. We both learned alot from each other, although I am sure I walked away the richer!
Looking at Alex' website immediately creates in me a sense of the possible. A feeling that life is incredible.
Thanks for everything, Alex!

Welcome to Dave & Jess' Big Day!

Welcome to Dave & Jess' Big Day!
d00d,

The wedding was perfect, actually, the entire day was perfect. From the minute I finally rolled out of bed, around 9a, until I fell into bed just before midnight, it was one of the most perfect days of my life.

The entire wedding party had spent Friday night in downtown Denver at the Adams' Mark Hotel. After a couple of quick run throughs of the ceremony with the dignitaries, we met up at the Spaghetti Factory. Almost 20 folks in the immediate family & wedding party, and every one thoroughly enjoyed each other's company at dinner. Jess & Dave showered everyone with thoughtful gifts. It was a perfect presage to the following day.

Later that night, I hung out with the friends of the bride & groom down at the bar. There was a pretty cool white funk band with a black lady lead singer. They were decent, but then I'm a sucker for live music. The best thing about hanging out with young folks is they haven't heard any of my jokes, so I can go on almost all night & seem really funny & cool. Or at least it seemed that way. I was in bed a little after midnight & slept like a rock, until the morning would no longer be stayed.

I went out on the 16th Street Mall for some breakfast & cash. I returned to an awakened queen with a present of her favorite Starbucks' drink: Venti Soy White Mocha, no whip. As I finished my morning ablutions, I began to sense that it was going to be a perfect day. There was no whiff of stress in the air. The day was cool & cloudy, but not cold. The air had a hint of humidity in it, unusual for Denver, but not uncommon. In fact it was a typical fall day, just 3 weeks early.

I had just finished with the monkey suit when Cheryl realized she had forgot the wine of which she wanted to share a glass with Jessica as they got ready for the wedding. It was a suggestion from a good friend of hers, who married her daughter off the year before. For a split second panic seemed ready to burst through the seams, but I remembered we were in a hotel & told Cheryl to just order room service & not worry about it. Swooooosh, serenity restored.

Chris & I met up in the hallway. He had picked out the tux style for us & the only person at the wedding that looked sharper than me was Chris. Damn fine suits! I kept flashing on Spike Lee & Denzel Washington strutin' down the street in their zoot suits at the beginning of Malcom X. I was totally jonesin' on a serious helmet, like 18 inch diameter brim, min! Man, we made those suits look good!

We went down to the lobby to direct the honored guests to the limousine. I asked Dave & his to be down ready to go by noon & they were there. You could tell there was a dog the previous night, but the dog just got a few nips in, no serious bites. After the second time the limo left without the boys, I was starting to feel bad. I peeled off a twenty & told the groomsmen to get a little hair of the dog that had bit them last night & they were gone like scalded cats. When Dave came back down, I told him they were in the bar & was kind enough to show him where it was. Dave ordered a short bloody mary & i ordered a single shot of my daily drinker, Maker's Mark. The bartender had already succumbed to the wiles of the groomsmen. She made Dave a 16oz bloody mary & poured me the stiffest 3-finger shot I ever saw. As the drinks came across the bar, the limo pulled up. Dave & I hit the drinks hard, but neither one of us made a dent. It was purely for show.

Chris had gone with the first load & was directing folks at the Denver Botanic Gardens. I took the next to last limo over & Cheryl made sure that all the girls were ready when the last run was made at 1:30 to bring Jess & her bridesmaids over. I tried to take pictures, be a gracious host & generally maintain. It seemed like I was maintaining, but I was sure that pretty soon folks were going to notice that my feet weren't touching the ground. No one ever said anything, so I guess no one noticed I was high! ;-)

Around 2p, I got the word that everyone was in place & Jessica was coming around the back of the venue. When I picked her up, I had a fleeting thought of meeting a blubbering, I mean a total, mascara dripping wreck. At least, I had steeled myself for that as one of several possibilities. What I found, back behind the wall, was a beautiful woman, totally in the moment. She was beaming like the sun & I suddenly understood why the sun had hidden behind the clouds that day, because Jessica could light up the world that day. I stole a quick peak at her feet & sure as shit, her feet weren't touching the ground either. I just smiled at her & she smiled at me, like so many times before, all the way back to when she smiled back up at me just 2 minutes old.

As we walked towards the venue, she observed that everyone would be looking at her. I told her that everyone would be looking at her with love & her challenge was to absorb all that love & channel it towards Dave. She hugged my arm & I walked her down the aisle & gave her away. Actually, the question was "Who presents this woman?" Which set a lot better with all three of us, Cheryl, Jess & me.

The ceremony was beautiful. Dave threw in a line that added a touch of silliness & romanticism. I thought to myself that poor Jess ended up loving most a man that had some of my strongest, yet most questionable traits. I was very proud of her. I really appreciate the man she has chosen. Not just for how he reminds me of me, but also for how different he is from me. Funny how that works.

After the ceremony, I knew I was gonna get ripped off, because like Colin, "I feel like I'm walking round, a ten feet tall". We did the picture thing & I flashed back on every wedding I had been in since Cheryl & I took each other's picture at her sister's wedding in 1976. Yeah, baby, we've been smoochin' for over 30 years! Dig that! Anyways, I followed the Higgins around & got some great shots, based on watching & mimicking the photographer. By 4p, they were exhausted & needed to catch the limo back to the hotel. They were really glad to get the F lenses out of their faces.

Chris, his friend Katherine & I rode the last ride back to the hotel & got there around 5p, just when the reception was supposed to start. Chris is an amazing man. He was totally engaged in the ceremony. He stepped up & helped where he saw opportunity. He had great ideas & he treated everyone with whom he came into contact with the greatest respect! You just can't imagine, unless you take the best of Cheryl & the best of me & mix it in with a totally repressible double dash of the weird, one dash from Cheryl & I respectively. He was totally zen-like, moving things along without pushing, making guests feel welcome effortlessly, totally surfing through the whole day. He was the essence of cool.

By the time I got to the hotel, the reception was underway. I could barely hug some of my friends, with the ten or so little details to wrap up. Nothing major, just details & I had a beer in my hand, so coo. The snackiepoos looked good, the few bites I got before I ran into the dinner room were tasty, but by then I was starvin', Marvin! We got everyone in the reception hall & seated for dinner & I realized that soon I was gonna have to grab part of my 15 minutes of fame in front of 100 of Jessica & Dave's favorite people. I was still maintaining, but my feet were back on the ground. The tux coat was starting to get a little heavy.

Dinner went well. The steak at the tasting, three weeks earlier, was not very tasty, nevertheless, when someone offers me a 2 inch thick chunk of dead kuh, I'm gonna eat it! The actual reception dinner was almost as good as a hundred dollar steak at Morton's. But as soon as I was done eating (& it didn't take long with that chunk of cow!), I knew that the toast I had been thinking about for over 2 months was about to come due. I knew I needed to come in under 5 minutes, so that ruled out any giving of advice in the toast. I avoided giving advice, but acknowledged that there just wasn't time for decent advice in the toast. All present were appreciative. I talked about the strong bond between a father & a daughter. How special it was. I recognized the ceremony we had just witnessed and encouraged the bride & groom to look to themselves, their new families, their wide group of friends to work through the years of bliss coming. Dave's parent's have been married 30 years & Cheryl & I coming up on 27. They have a powerful foundation upon which to build.

I managed to keep the toast short & then I relaxed. My responsibilities that day were done! I had a few tips in my pocket, but the ceremony was complete! Everything had been perfect, my beautiful wife, my cool son, my beaming daughter, her happy husband, his happy friends, the grandparents, the friends, the weather, the circumstances, everything was perfect. I finally got to do my thing & work the room. I got lots of hugs from folks I knew & loved & those I knew not before. Everyone had a great time, appreciated the ceremony, loved the bride & groom & expressed their happiness. I was starting to get high again! ;-)

The next thing I knew, it was 10:30 and almost everyone was gone. I realized there were still a few beers in the keg, so I ran outside, grabbed a bunch of (25-30yo) kids & said "Gitchyer ass back in there & kill that keg, goddammit! They did & I did. We shut down & by 11:30, Cheryl & I were falling back into the tiny little queen size bed. We were sated. The day had been perfect. We knew it was perfect. We knew while it was happening it was perfect. We talked about it being perfect while we watched it being perfect. Beyond expectations. The culmination of a quarter of a century of blood, sweat & tears. It was such a beautiful day that no one cried.

Well, Jess cried a couple of times at the reception. I heard Dave was close to tears once, but he maintained! ;-) Everyone else just radiated!

It was a perfect day.

Love,
Trent

BBC NEWS | US report says Iraq fuels terror

BBC NEWS | US report says Iraq fuels terror
First the UN says torture in Iraq is 'worse after Saddam', now the National Intelligence Estimate says that the so-called war on terror is actually increasing the threat of terror! So, HeBeGeeBee2 has actually created a war of terror and a war for terror! If our pitiful Congress goes ahead with proposed legisation to exempt government employees, e.g. HeBeGeeBee2, Rummikens, et al. from the War Crimes Act of 1996, then there is really no recourse from anywhere in the world for the heart-breaking tragedy HeBeGeeBee2 has wrought upon the world. It's a sad state of affairs. Never have so few been able to wreak such destruction on so many.

Mind Hacks: Brain dissection video tutorial

Mind Hacks: Brain dissection video tutorial
I kid you not! This link is a blog I follow on My Yahoo because they track lots of interesting things about the brain. Following the link on the Mind Hacks blog will take you right to the dissection videos which are linked via little pictures from the dissection videos. Note, this is not for the squeamish, weak of heart or those who might otherwise relate more to the cadaver than the information! :-)
On the otherhand, if you wish to see a real dissection, this is the link for you! I have only been able to watch one so far, the one about opening up the spinal column.
I'll watch the brain dissection video after I get over my cold & can have a nice stiff bourbon!
In the meantime, "Beware, your brain may no longer be the boss!"