Just A Robot

I Hate You...I Love You

2012-02-03T11:44:00.001-06:00

I Hate You...I Love You

Inner turmoil between a Hinter and his thoughts

I hate you...public bathroom Hand Dryer

I look at you with disgust. You represent all that is wrong with the world. I want my paper towel. With a paper towel I can receive instant gratification...one swipe...only damp. two swipes...dry. With this multi-purpose rectangular bastion of absorption, I can dry my hands, refresh my face, and, most importantly, open the exit door without actually touching the handle.

You? You 'save trees'. I've got plenty of trees on my land I'd gladly donate. Besides, what do you run on? Unicorn blood?

I hate you Hand Dryer

I shake my hands like a wet dog...knowing that whatever I shake away shortens the time I stand shivering while the initially cold air blows uselessly over my wet hands. I look left, then right...hoping I somehow missed the paper towel dispenser.

No. I must look straight ahead at the object of my derision.

I hate you Hand Dryer

I consider exiting with wet hands. Surely my jeans will dry, but my default drying location most likely will result in damp dollar bills in my pocket. I could use the cuff of my jeans...they're mostly wet anyway from the sloppy snow.

But then I remember the exit door handle. If my hands are wet, they'll pick up 45% more germs than if they are dry. Or will they? What if the germs are stuck in the viscosity of the water and then I wipe my hands on my pant cuff immediately after I leave? All germs would be gone from my hands! Ah, but then someone's icky-germs are now on my pant cuff all day.

I hate you Hand Dryer

I 'rub hands together vigorously' while scowling at your double-entendre-filled instructions. They're wet, and cold, and while the water seems to be evaporating, it's making my hands clammy. When will the torture end!?!

And then...

...the heating coils finally kick in...

Warmth emerges from your gaping maw...it is not wrong.

My hands are no longer clammy...in an instant they warm up...they become dry...not just dry...almost a silky dry.

I linger...no longer in a hurry.

I playfully rearrange the instructions' wording in my brain. I snicker. My arm-sleeves need warmth, too. They are lapping at the warmth...enticing the warmth up the arms.

I do not resist...

The warmth continues to my chest...down the neckline of my shirt...I am completely bathed in warmth...completely at peace with the world...

...and then you stop.

It seems you've made your point.

I stand back in utter conflict. These last moments of sheer bliss are not expected. The disdain beforehand has now turned into something else...a new-found emotion...no, it couldn't be...but it's true:

I Love You Hand Dryer!

No. I hate you. I must hate you. All the logic coursing through my brain requires I hate you.

But my heart...and the warmth...and the freezing car that I know awaits me...

I love you. I hate you.

Until next we meet, Hand Dryer.

Until next we meet.

The HINTERgarden: A Bountiful Harvest

2012-01-08T18:31:00.000-06:00

At the beginning of the summer, the missus stated her desireto have a garden. If memory serves, it went something like this:

HER: Honey, I think we should build a garden

ME: But...that's why God invented Aldi

HER: Do't get smart. I want a garden with the followingspecifications:

1. A decent sizedplot tilled with rich soil

2. A protectivemechanism to protect the veggies from the animals

3. Compost to addnutrients in the soil

4. Organic seeds

5. A bountifulharvest

ME: What do you want to harvest?

HER: Pumpkins. And tomatoes. And maybe some strawberries

ME (to self): Why is it every time I hear 'we should' itmeans 'I should'?

ME (to her): As you wish

----------

At summer's end, the dialog went something like this:

HER (to herself): I can't believe he didn't take the hint.What's with him?

HER (to me): I really wanted a garden. Maybe we can get ittogether next summer.

ME: But...it's done.

HER: Don't get smart.

ME: Come on! Let's harvest!

...we walk out...she slugs me in the arm...and walks backin.

ME: (to self) What's her problem? This garden meets orexceeds all design specifications!?! How can I figure out who is right? I KNOW,I will ask the Interweb to vote!

ME: (to you): Does this HINTERgarden meet the designspecifications given at the beginning of the summer?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The HINTERgarden - 2011 Requirements and Results

To accurately vote, you must first study the dramatically impressive results with a scientific eye. Here is the expert garden:

Now, realizing some of you may not be as skilled in the art of advanced gardening and botany as I am, I will go into specifics (with layman closeups) to bring to light these amazing results.

1) A decent sized plot, tilled with rich soil

I have labored over this garden plot for nine years.Honestly! The first step was to add minerals and nutrients to it. And, whatbetter way to do that than turn this into a rock quarry. I added limestone,lava rock, pea gravel, and basically any other icky-looking landscaping fromwhen we moved in. I then let it sit for 4 years, knowing that only suchdedication and patience would produce the kind of soil that is as rich innutrients as my heart is filled with the deepest love for my wife.

In 2009, I exposed the soil, letting the sun and elementsfuse the nutrients deep into the soil. Finally in 2010 I tilled the soil, andacting upon my ancestor from the year 1340 Rudolf Hintermeister and his practice of crop rotation...I let the soil sit fora year. Oh the anticipation!

2) A protective mechanism to protect the veggies from theanimals

In an effort to garden in a Godly way (as I attempt all myactivities in life), I crafted a "Hedge of Protection" around whatwould become our bountiful harvest. What better protection is there than nasty,pokey, itchy weeds! It was a perfect disguise not only to protect the veggiesfrom animals, but also poachers. I figured as soon as my Garden to God becameknown in the public ether (as tweeted under #gardenofgod), great effort wouldbe made to steal items from the garden in hopes of reproducing such magnificence.How foolish! Don't they know you can't fake Godliness!?! Losers.

3) Compost to add nutrients in the soil

"You...are...the compost of my life", is not onlythe title lyric of my future hit love song, it also reflects the feelings Ihave towards our compost pile. Where else can I walk through 90° heat and dumpthe sloppy remains of yesterday's salad into a splatter-producing,stink-generating, home-of-the-flies cube? It is an intense experience not to be underrated.

The fact that I use my grandpa's pitchfork from his farm(probably early 50's era) to stir this concoction of wonderment is a testamentnot only to my dedication as a husband, father, and gardener, but also astatement of honoring my heritage of sharp and dangerous tools.

4) Organic seeds

The seeds I used were not only organic, they came directlyfrom our home. The pumpkins from last Halloween produced these pumpkins, thetomatoes came from old tomatoes that grew moldy on our counter, and thestrawberries came from left-over fruit salad.

Further, the seeds were transported, by hand, and delicatelyplaced into the garden by Garden Nymphs (OK, our two 10 year oldgirls kinda look like nymphs...and while it was just a chore to empty the slopinto the compost pile, having them carry it over is far more delicate than ouroriginal transport idea: A deck-mounted slop cannon: simply fill the cannonwith slop, fire in the general direction of the compost bin (100 feet away),and hope that at least some slop ended up in the compost. Hmm...must archivethis idea for a future summer day project).

Finally, each organic seed was painstakingly placed into thegarden at the optimum location for growth. The fact that it looks like the veggies grew out of the compost pile haphazardly?SHEER COINCIDENCE!

5) Bountiful Harvest

In keeping with the original gaelic meaning, I focused on"bountiful" to simply mean a large amount of output compared to asmall amount of input (or is that the definition of a guitar amplifier?). Sincethe HINTERgarden required 0.045% of effort to produce six harvestable items (inaddition to strawberries that while ripe, grew directly IN the compost,resulting in a small dry heave at the thought of eating them), I conclude thisis INDEED a bountiful harvest!

Now is your chance for your voice to be heard! Comment belowto state your opinion if the garden did, indeed fulfill all designrequirements (correct and truthful), or if I deserve not only a slug in the arm, but an elbow in thegut (false and rather evil).

Vote now!

Song Insight: "Gonna Get High"

2011-12-30T17:41:00.002-06:00

Arranged: Greg Hintermeister

Performed by: Greg Hintermeister

Recorded: 2011 in Hint of Light Studios

Emotions: Passion, Love, Community, Magic of life!

Listen and Watch: Other song insights

Background:

It all started with an inside joke referenced in a post, "Just got pics of my new guitar from my PRS Supplier".

It ended with a surprisingly passionate and uplifting song.

Here are the pics I posted:

I assumed everyone in my friends list knew that I joke regularly about my "addiction" to my guitars...that, for me, my passion for my guitars, and the music/worship/relationships that resulted from playing them are so core to my life that I can't imagine living without their influence (you know, small things like meeting my wife, traveling the world, life-long friends, leading others in worship, ...all directly resulted from playing guitar)

Naturally, since I found a guitar dealer who over the years I've grown to fully trust, and who helps me build an outstanding specimen (he seems to have a secret tunnel into the PRS factory, where he sets out the best wood and chooses the best builders), I can honestly say I have a supplier for my PRS guitars. This dealer, Jack Gretz, knows the kind of music I play so he offers suggestions as to what options and wood choices I should make to get the most out of my guitar.

I have purchased three PRS guitars from him: My PRS Hollowbody II, my PRS Swamp Ash Special, and now my PRS Tonare Grand acoustic (I have a fourth PRS, a Starla, that I won at the PRS Experience event in 2008).

Surprisingly, some comments in that original post made it clear not everyone was 'in' on the inside joke. I actually removed the post since I started to get some concerning comments about how I shouldn't take a scourge on society like drug addiction so lightly.

My first thought?

Write a tounge-in-cheek song using all the drug-use metaphors I could think of about how I'm addicted to this new guitar (you know, lyrics about breathing deep, holding my breath, holding my addiction between my fingers, seeing places I've never been, and, of course throwing in the suggestive comment or two about gliding my fingers across a g-string).

What did I end up with?

A surprisingly passionate and uplifting song that I completely adore.

I think I found a way to communicate what I feel when I play guitar...a sense of wonder, passion, exploration, and excitement that fills every fibre in my being...especially when I'm playing a new, freshly written song.

I hope I can live up to these lyrics in songs to come. and I hope you get a glimpse into what it feels like for me to play my guitar.

Enjoy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Technical Specifics:

Recording Unit: Cakewalk MIDI software, Soundscape DAW

Drums: Roland XV-5080

Acoustic Guitar: Paul Reed Smith Tonare Grand Custom

Electric Guitar: Paul Reed Smith Hollowbody II

Guitar Amp: Fender Hot Rod Deluxe

Acoustic Guitar Mics: 12th fret: CAD E100, 3ft back: Rode NT1

Electric Guitar Mics: close: Shure SM57; 3ft back: Rode NT1

Keyboard pad: XV-5080

Bass: RD-500

Recording Specifics:

The first version, acoustic-only, was the first one I recorded so I could see how the guitar sounded on its own. Here's the acoustic-only YouTube video:

Once I recorded that, I felt there was a lot of un-tapped energy I could release if I added more instruments. The version at the top of this post is the full version with drums, bass, and electric guitar. I could have added even more vocal harmonies, guitar solos, but I think this is a great blend of instruments to squeegee out the passion I wanted to convey without making the song too hard-rock. I really wanted to keep the acoustic a driving instrument through the song.

The tuning of the guitars was unique: C# - G# - C# - F# - A - C#

However, this let me chord on the 3-5th strings with normal fingerings, yet have the 1, 2, 6 strings ring open for much of the song, which gave it the full acoustic sound I was looking for.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lyrics:

Verse 1:

Gonna breathe in

breathe deep

Slowly let out my breath

Go places I've never been

Gonna find love

Gonna find pain

Gonna find there's a secret for livin' this life

and I'm holding it in my hand

Chorus:

Gonna get high

High on this guitar

Gonna dig deeper

Down to the depths of who we really are

We'll play songs of laughter and tears

we'll play songs to lovers and friends we hold dear

and who knows what we'll find... when we're high

Verse 2:

Gonna sing out

Gonna sing loud

Sing with all my breath

with feelings I can't speak out

Sing about faith

Sing about peace

Sing from the depths of my inner most dreams

I might even have to scream

Chorus:

Gonna get high

High on this guitar

Gonna dig deeper

Down to the depths of who we really are

Lets touch our soul through these strings

Let this wood carry our heart when it rings

'Cause who knows what we'll find... when we're high

Let's close our eyes

Verse 3:

Gonna breathe in

breathe deep

Slowly let out my breath

See places I've never been

Gonna find truth

Gonna find grace

Gonna find we're all here for a reason tonight

Lets all raise our hands and say

Chorus:

We're gonna get high

High on this guitar

Gonna dig deeper

Down to the depths of who we really are

The thrill of a lifetime is here

It's you and it's me and what we believe

and Who knows what we'll find... when we're high

End:

Gonna get high

Song Insight: "Christmas Morn"

2011-12-22T11:05:00.000-06:00

Arranged: Greg Hintermeister

Performed by: Greg Hintermeister

Recorded: 1995 in my home studio

Emotions: Fond memories, regret, hope

Listen: Other song insights

Background:

I've received some amazing gifts on Christmas morn. Iremember early Christmases when our family of four would sit around the tree,play music from an old reel-to-reel, and share the time opening presents one atat time. The best part was watching my mom's reaction after opening a gift from my dad...who knew exactly what unexpected gift to give that perfectly showed his love for her.

Here's an early shot my Mom took of us boys. Sometimes we'dhave Christmas in our home, sometimes at Grandpa's farm, but we were alwaystogether. Sometimes we'd have our Christmas early since we were lucky enough totake some trips to Florida during the break.

Other Christmases were filled with pets. My dad grew up on afarm, so having a pet in the house was not his idea of fun (let alone 4 guineapigs!)...and the smell was not a fond memory-maker I'm sure. But manyChristmases included laying by the lights of the tree with my guinea pig,Snowball.

(I think he's excited about Christmas too! Oh, and look atthe wallpaper in the background...loved that pattern!) My brother's had onenamed Tippy, who, we later learned, was NOT a male since a few weeks after webrought him home we had baby guinea pigs!

I remember sledding on Christmas morn. A lot. Sometimes itwas on a hill near our home, and sometimes it was on a hill at the camp myuncle ran, but it was always with friends who was glad I was with them. I tellya, there's nothing like feeling wanted as a kid.

This is one Christmas morn a few years ago when my kiddoswent sledding (yep, on a sled that he got for Christmas.)

One Christmas in 1986 included spending time with a younglady I met over the summer.

This is from a party for our youth group. It was then Irealized the glitter of a Christmas tree can't compare at all to the sparklethis girl added to my life.

Yep, I've received some amazing gifts on Christmas morn.

But as I look back, the only gifts I remember, the giftsthat really meant something, weren't wrapped under the tree. Sure the presentsunder the tree added to the atmosphere, but the gifts I remember were farbetter:

My whole family being together, focusing on each other
Seeing my mom open a gift that my dad picked out...andseeing the love shown at that moment
Pets, who love no matter what
Exploring as a family on warm beaches
Friends who actually wanted me to sled with them
Sweet smells from the kitchen making the family know there'sa mom in the house who loves everyone enough to bake and cook.
A girl who added sparkle to my 17th Christmas morn and everyday since
Four children who continue to show me how magical life canbe

...and then there's the most important gift I've received.

I hesitate because I don't know if I've treated this giftwell. Sometimes I've left it outside while I went about my business. SometimesI embraced it in private only to tuck it snugly inside my pocket while out withfriends. Sometimes I misplaced it, sometimes it felt fake, and sometimes itseemed so out-of-date that I wondered if it's worth mentioning.

But, sometimes, I would pin this gift on my chest and shareit proudly with all who were curious.

In the end, the gift I received when I was seven by askingmy Savior, Jesus, to lead my life, has changed everything. This is the giftthat makes all Christmas mornings magical.

Merry Christmas. I hope you receive some amazing gifts thisyear, too.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Technical Specifics:

Recording Unit: Recording Unit: Yamaha MT1X cassette 4-trackAcoustic Guitar: Ovation 1712 Custom Balladeer

Acoustic Guitar Mics: Recorded directly into 4-track

Vocal Mic: Old Yamaha dynamic mic

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Recording Specifics:

I wrote and recorded this in 1995 in preparation for ourfirst 'real' album release called "A Hint of Christmas"

Karyn and I sang Christmas carols together (a pure andjoyful experience that we've let slip away in the chaos of life...need to getthat back). One year we sang during intermission of "A ChristmasCarol", and we kept hearing, "Where can I buy this music?". Sothe next year we decided to record a real album. We gathered the songs togetherin July (trips to the library), and we started arranging and recording thesongs. Some we recorded in our home studio (like "Christmas Morn"),but others we recorded at RP Recording Studios, a local recording studio intown.

I loved that experience of recording in a real studio,especially when we got to use $2500 microphones! (someday I'll get the courageto talk about when I borrowed one of his $1000 mics, I set it up and recordedonly to later discover that the mic was pointing the wrong direction!...stillembarrassing to think about)

The album was the first for many things, including gettingthe rights to the songs, working with duplication companies, graphic artists torender what Karyn created (isn't it a cool cover!?!)

This song was fairly straight forward to record and was alldone on my 4-track cassette recorder (hence the hiss in the background).

I am quite proud of this song, and frankly the wholeChristmas album.

I think it's time to record another one for next Christmas.

Question: What are your favorite Christmas songs?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Verse 1:

Last night I dreamed of Christmas Morn

The sun came through my window, I was four

I knew when the light came I would be

playing with my two guinea pigs by that tree

Chorus:

And I............loved, Christmas morn

And I wondered, who’s that present for

Verse 2:

That sun came through my window, I was ten

thoughts filled with snow men, hayrides, and my new sled

I’d go so fast down that hill

I must confess, I was sure that I could fly

I waved to my mom and dad as I flew by

Chorus:

And I............loved, Christmas morn

And I heard somewhere a little boy was born

Bridge:

I’d feel the sun on me like some one song to be sung

Every year the light would be there

Even when I didn’t care

My memories would play tricks on me

And I could see an echo of what used to be beside that tree

Verse 3:

Last night I dreamed of Christmas morn

The Son came into my heart, for that, He was born

I know now that when I wake, Christmas morn t’will be

I’ll that light on my window

And I’ll believe

Chorus:

And I............love Christmas morn

I can’t wait until I wake to see the break of dawn

And I............love Christmas morn

And I’ll be there.....on Christmas morn

Raising HINTERkids: Defending REAL Song Meanings

2011-12-20T08:22:00.001-06:00

Do you love a good rock song as much as I do? I simply love the energy, the guitars, and the memories that flourish when a favorite rock 'n roll song hits the radio (too 20th century? sorry...let me rephrase), ...when a favorite song appears in your playlist after a mathematical algorithm determines among the 13,437 songs that today, right now, this second, you should hear "Hot For Teacher" that was ripped from the vinyl record you purchased in 1984 and hid under your bed because the cover showing an angel smoking a cigarette was example #285 your dad would use as to why this music was "of the devil".

The problem?

The four kids in the back seat when the aforementioned song starts playing.

They're young but not stupid.

Given 45 seconds, they'll figure out what the song means and realize that you do NOT spend every waking moment focused on the finer points of Calvinistic Eschatology like you want them to believe.

The solution?

HINTER-apologetics!

Simply put, this is the ancient skill of defining and defending the HINTER-meaning of the songs you love so that the listener (your kids) hears long-lasting, valuable lessons, while you can rock out to "Ice-Cream Man".

Lets run through some recent examples of HINTER-apologetics so you can see how it works. In this case, hearing these songs while flying down the highway with the kids in the back seat...

"Back in Black", By: AC/DC (1980)

You see kids, the 1980's brought new fashion trends. The 70's were filled with bright colors and pastel shapes. AC/DC had great fashion insight, what with school uniforms and scottish caps. This was simply a cry for sensibility, formalism, and the color black. It just works for all occasions.

What's that? The lyric, "Of a Cadillac Number one with a bullet, I'm a power pack"? Why that merely a poet exploring the use of the sound "ack", which in 16th century Hedonic culture was a praise to the Lord.

In fact, some philosophers propose that Brian Johnson (lyric writer, lead singer) was the brother of C.S. Lewis who wanted to escape from his brother's stuffy persona, and who later regularly traded places with C.S. Lewis himself!

"Paradise By The Dashboard Lights", By: Meatloaf (1977)

Listen closely, my dear children, and learn the influence of corporate america. This song by Mr. Loaf (whose father was a farmer and the inventor of modern beef processing), was pure marketing genius! Unknown to most, Mr. Loaf spent his early years selling "Paradise", a line of all-weather sweaters...specifically meant to wear on summer nights. Unfortunately, he struggled to make a dent in the summer-sweater fashion market.

One day after the Paradise Sweater Inc. quarterly earnings meeting, he had a brainstorm. "What if I make an 8 minute commercial and disguised it as a real song!?!". The rest is history. Take a listen to some of the lyrics:

"Though it's cold and lonely in the deep, dark night, I can see Paradise by the dashboard light" - an obvious and blunt effort to market his Paradise sweaters to fashion-concious truck drivers (those tractor-trailor dashboards are lit up like a runway and made the Paradise sweater sparkle like a diamond!).

What's that? the lyric, "Ain't no doubt about it we were doubly blessed. 'Cause we were barely seventeen and barely dressed"? Why, that simply refers to the exquisite feel of the Paradise sweater...they felt smooth, they felt tight, they felt so good...they felt so right. This 8 minute commercial used metaphor to suggest a consumer could wear a Paradise sweater, feel young, and not worry about what else they wore because all attention would be on their Paradise sweater.

In a tragic turn of events, the week before the commercial's release, the Paradise Sweater Factory was overrun by bats...which was a rare occurrence in Hell, Michigan. The bats were transferred out of the city, but not before all sweaters were ruined.

"What Do You Do for Money Honey", By: AC/DC (1980)

Ah. A favorite from the Back in Black album, but not the most popular. You see kids, the Young brothers fore-saw the 'me' decade of the 80's coming, and deftly and introspectively asked the future graduates of 1987, "What, in fact, do you do for money? Is Money what you will focus on? Do you not see value in your relationships, serving society, and working for the greater good?" (HINTER paraphrase). Angus was Gandhi in knickers.

What's that? The lyric, "Never gonna give it for free"? Why, that is a scathing commentary on the lack of community service and volunteerism. The "IT" refers to your time, skills, values, and most searingly, your heart.

"Pour Some Sugar On Me", By: Def Leppard (1988)

You see kids, children's music comes in all forms. This song is the endearing story of a strawberry named Razzle and a raspberry named Dazzle who sneak into a candy factory to make their favorite dessert: Peaches and Cream. We soon learn that Razzle loves television because when it's turned off they can dance and see their reflection...like a mirror. While in the factory, Razzle sees a display and starts dancing, and rascly Dazzle sneaks up and pours sugar on Razzle!

Razzle decides that dancing while making their dessert was an improvement and throughout the song encourages Dazzle to pour all the dessert ingredients on top of her to optimize the mixing process.

What's that? The lyric, "Sometime, anytime, sugar me sweet; Little miss innocent sugar me; Take a bottle, shake it up; Break the bubble, break it up"? Why, that's recipie instructions for the parent to remake the Peaches and Cream treat after this sweet, innocent, song-for-the-ages story is over.

How lovely such a wholesome song can still be heard by youngsters today.

Congratulations! You are well on your way to becoming an expert in HINTER-apologetics. Next time we will cover advanced topics, including:

Adding illustrations to reinforce that "Love in an Elevator" by Aerosmith is really describing how the heart of a child has ups and downs and depends on his fathers sacrificial love to see them through the various floors of adolescence.
Hot for Teacher: Van Halen's tireless effort to improve education using allegory and acronyms
1999: The push for a capitalistic society by Prince, Warren Buffett's secret financial advisor

~~~~

Question: What rock song do you love? What HINTER-apologetics would you apply?

2011-11-27: George Winston

2011-12-10T21:54:00.001-06:00

11-27-2011: George Winston

Where: Mayo Civic Center, Rochester MN

Went with: Wife
Times: 4th

This concert was a "Full Circle" type of experience.

Here's my ticket stub to the 11-27-2011 George Winston concert:

And here's my program to the very first George Winston concert I attended:

For both of them, Karyn sat by my side.

It's just for the first one, it was the very first date Karyn and I went on.

Nearly 25 years ago to the day, I asked Karyn out for a date. We met earlier in May '86, and in what will have to be a deliciously fun future post, we had a VERY interesting summer of music, Valley Fair, relationship-drama, church, 4th of July poster-making, midnight excursions, and...the "other" boyfriend.

At her madrigals and choir Christmas concert in the Ridgedale center court, I asked Karyn to the George Winston show. My logic was that even if she was not sure, she'd probably say yes to an expensive concert so it would at minimum get me one date :-) (just enough to let her experience my HinterMOJO)

Luckily she said yes, and in Dec 23, 1986, we went to Orchestra Hall and listened to George. I sat on her right, and I remember holding her hand for the first time and putting my arm around her (which, I quickly learned, is NOT a comfortable position for your arm to be in on its own...but when it's surrounding a creature like Karyn, it becomes totally worth it)

From that first date, to now...25 years later, we have traveled on a crazy-lovely-dramatic-musical adventure, and I wouldn't trade a second with this lady.

The music that George played at this latest concert brought us back to our early dating. Funny how music can be such a potent memory and emotional amplifier. I probably hadn't heard some of that music by Karyn's side since the last George Winston concert.

His playing is so clear, crisp, and dynamic. Sometimes he play loud and it sounds like a guitar amp in over drive. His pianissimo is so quiet, but has complete clarity. When he needs it even softer, he reaches into the Steinway 9' grand, mutes the strings with his palm, and continues to play... evoking images of scampering autumn creatures. Sometimes he'll pluck the individual strings for a sitar effect.

Simply amazing. His playing seems to reflect the life Karyn and I have formed:

Sometimes we're snoopy-dancing...

Sometimes we're curled up in a cold December night listening to the wind...

Sometimes we're exploring the forest...sometimes lost and a little scared...sometimes in awe at the life that surrounds us...

...and sometimes we're emerging from winter into spring...and enjoying every essence of life.

But always she fills my life with beauty, wonder, and love.

I've said it many times before, but to sum up, she simply adds the sparkle to my life.

If you have never heard George Winston's music, take it for a spin. December is my favorite album (probably because it was our favorite) but he's got a lot of great work.

Thanks George, for a great concert, and great memories.

A Gymnast Dad

2011-11-30T07:41:00.000-06:00

My last post showed what I'm thinking when my girls are doing great in a gymnastics meet. This post shows the other side. I wrote this a month ago, after one girl qualified for the MN State Championships, and one did not...and after the daily early-morning training started to get to me...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I'm a gymnast dad...

I cheer, "Go! You can do it!" before their event

"Way to go!! Good job!!!" after

I keep quiet 'during' so I don't distract

I keep score...

I shout encouragement at event warm-up

If they're sitting by an exit door I'll walk to get a drink so I can whisper good vibes in their ear

But...

Inside I feel completely helpless

They bobble, I get worried

They fall, I wince, and hope the video doesn't pick up my whispered curses

My internal dialog constantly debates the cost/benefit analysis

...on family

...on income

...on free time

Is that cost worth this performance?

I second-guess the whole commitment

I want them to be rock-stars

...when they're not...when they struggle...I get mad

Not at them, but frustrated they didn't do better

Usually one does better than the other

...which is most of the time

I hate that

I feel great for one, terrible for the other

I end up falling into spiraling frustration

I don't push them

Quite the opposite: I ask if they want to quit...to their face

I ask if they love it

...because if they don't, well, it's back to the cost/benefit analysis

What do they say?

They LOVE it!

They love everything about it

"Gymnast" is their identity

They're working harder than I've seen anyone work at their skills and fitness

I'm amazed at their dedication of daily wake-up for 2 hour before-school training

Their time management for homework, fun, family, training is outstanding

They are becoming young women of character

I'm finding it is worth every penny for them

Me?

In theory the early wake-up is good

2 hours of uninterrupted focus on work

I just don't know if I can sustain it...

I'm so completely tired

Fatigue has set in

It affects my health, mood, outlook...temper

maybe there's something else lurking...

Midlife? Loss of purpose? Lack of worth?

(Maybe I should take up gymnastics)

I feel inadequate...especially at the meets

I'm bombarded by the constant noise of the crowd and floor music

I fumble through conversations

The parents around me seem so much more 'with it'

They're living their dream job, engaged in their kids, balancing it all

They talk, they laugh, they plan outings

Me?

I keep quiet...

I keep score...

I cheer for my girls...

I pray for their safety (oh God, I pray they don't fall on their neck)

I pray this is the right path for our family

We have a long road ahead...

...what will we say when we look back?

Will it have been worth it?

I pray...

HINTERgrams - 2011 Edition

2011-11-11T22:43:00.001-06:00

At our girlies latest gymnastics event, I heard a lot of "good luck" messages read over the PA just before our girls meet. These are personal messages parents write to their little competitors, then some lady shouts them into the microphone (in a surprising monotone delivery) in hopes that the gymnasts hear a spark of support. I suppose it's to encourage the young ladies to do the best they can.

Some examples:

"Good luck, Sally. We love you. Mom and dad"

"Brittany, you're a rock star! We know you'll do great. Grandpa"

Of course being a HINTER, I feel these messages should be more impacting...something to give these athletes real focus to give their routines something extra. Basically, to help them find their inner HINTERmojo.

Therefore, I give you:

HINTERgrams - 2011 Edition

First, I'd start off with the basics:

"Sally, Good luck! ...You'll need it. Dad"

"Lucy, let's hope that star in the East can pull off another miracle. Love Dad"

Then, I'd add some loving truth:

"Sally, you're just not that good. Get used to disappointment. Love Dad"

"Lucy, your dog just died. Just thought you should know. Good luck!"

Next, I'd add some positive motivational themes:

"Sally, if you ever want to see your hamster alive again, get a 9 on floor"

"Lucy, remember how sad I was when Nanna died? If you don't place in the top 3 the wounds will open again. Love you. Dad"

Finally, I'd wrap it up with a personal touch:

"Sally, while I'm still sober, I want to say good luck. I love you...at least today I do"

"Lucy, if it weren't for your 'competitive calling', I'd be whipping down the interstate in my Nissan Roadster. You'd better do well today. Love Dad"

Of course, it's not only the athletes that need motivation. It's the judges. First I'd start with the must-have-been-an-honest-mistake:

"Dear vault judge: did you write 6 while meaning 9, or are you taking out your lack of life-purpose on my 10 year old? "

Then I'd utilize peer-pressure:

"Dear beam judge: I just Googled it 5 minutes ago, and I can score better than you. Those toes were pointier than the hat you wear!"

Finally, I would compose a message hand-crafted utilizing the finest skills from my years of education, communication, writing experience:

"Dear floor judge: Bite Me"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There you go. Use just a few of these HINTERgrams and you will become a better parent-spectator at any sport. Soon the crowd will cheer louder for you than the athletes...which, of course...is the goal of any parent.

Song Insight: "Pocket Man"

2011-11-06T10:39:00.003-06:00

Composer: Greg Hintermeister, ©2011
Arranged: Greg Hintermeister
Performed by: Greg Hintermeister, Jaxon Hint
Recorded: 2011 in Hint of Light Studios
Emotions: Fun, Cute, Happy, Lovin' Life

Listen and Watch: Other song insights

Background:
To be honest, this song is a bit sobering to me.

Don't get me wrong. I love it. I enjoyed composing, recording it, and the images in the video are fantastic. I love how well my son played percussion and sang in it (more on that below). Most of all, I love how happy it makes me and my boy when we watch it.

But...

It also shows the amazing human I’m responsible for. This creature is creative. He loves exploring, loves experimenting, inventing, and loves collecting things (and, of course, putting them in his pockets). I've said before his brain is crazy smart, and his drive for immersed experiences, to passionately satisfy his curiosity, it all makes me worry:

1) That I'll suppress his true potential

2) That he'll rebel trying to show he's worth my praise

3) That I'll not guide him well enough to hone his skills/temper/passion towards his God-given purpose

When he was 3, I thought his smiles were because he LOVED pockets. He always stuffed his hands in his pockets and walk around. He loved stuffing whatever he found in them, and he especially loved pulling that stuff out to share what he collected.

Now, as he’s gotten older, his love for exploring, experimenting, collecting, and sharing has grown. I can't tell you how many times he walks through the kitchen matter-of-factly stating "I'm going to build a machine" or...even more scary...walks through with a hammer and saw without saying a word. His love for life, to find out how the world ticks, how so many amazing creatures and things can be discovered…well, it shows me that his love of pockets only represents his inner passion for life...and maybe his need to prove his worth to his dad.

I've said many times (thanks to Dennis Miller for the analogy) that my primary job in life is to guide my kids through the rocky shoals of youth...sometimes with firm direction...so that they can avoid the sharp rocks and hidden dangers that can wreck their life (but not too firm, lest they over-correct and slam into the far wall of rebellion). The goal? Get them to the open sea, watch their sails catch wind, and stand on the shore amazed as they maneuver through the rolling ocean with skill, passion, and success.

I only hope that with Jaxon...my very best is good enough. My fear is that while I'm guiding him through the sharp rocks of youth, and avoiding the under currents that could pull him under, he will see past the current to a unique adventure that, if navigated properly, will propel him past the dangerous passage and he will collect another life skill (and more character) that will be essential in the open ocean.

I love you, little man.

I will guide you through these narrow shoals of youth the best I can.

I know we will not see eye-to-eye all the time, but know that I love you deeply, and am already proud beyond words.

When the time comes, you will reach the open ocean. Your momentum from wise choices and experiences will propel you into deep waters. You will raise your sails, lower your rudder, and instantly cut into the wind to travel wherever you and your faith takes you.

I can’t wait to see what you’ll do…

…what you’ll discover

…what you’ll invent

…who you’ll love

...where you'll live

...what you'll collect

...and...of course...

...what you’ll pull out of your pockets to show me.

Whatever it is, I know I'll be amazed, impressed, proud, and filled with love.

And then?

We'll smi-----le. Because you ARE, and forever will be, a pocket man.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Technical Specifics:
Recording Unit: Cakewalk MIDI software, Soundscape DAW
Drums: Roland XV-5080
Percussion: Egg shaker, Tambourine, sticks (Performed by Jaxon)
Acoustic Guitar: Ovation 1712 Custom Balladeer
Piano: RD-500
Acoustic Guitar Mics: CAD E100, Rode NT1
Vocal Mic: CAD E100
Bass: Roland XV-5080

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Recording Specifics:
When I get the itch to record a song, it usually happens fairly quickly. That was the case for this song. I originally wrote the first verse in 2007 and in August 2011 decided I needed to record it. I spent a few days adding verse 2 and the bridge based on suggestions from Jaxon.

As I was mapping out the song, I had planned on a solo, but it didn't feel right (I guess that means I'm old enough to let the song tell me what it needs...rather than my ego to show off). With no solo, I needed a way to make the last chorus unique. In a brainstorm, I decided Jack needed to sing it. But would he? I didn't know. He is VERY shy when it comes to getting a lot of attention. But as you saw in the video, he was very happy to ham it up. We decided that what he doesn't like is attention he did not initiate or seek.

As you heard, he did great!

He then asked to play percussion. He found music sticks, egg shaker, and tambourine in my percussion shelf. He laid them out on a chair and said "I want to play sticks in the beginning, shaker in the bridge, and tambourine in the last chorus and end."

So...he did. In ONE TAKE he kept rhythm, switched instruments, and monitored his own volume by looking at the recording track to make sure he didn't go into the red too much.

The end 'banter' was another brainstorm. Jaxon and I poured through his room for things he found in his pocket over the months, then I wrote the script. Turns out it was too difficult putting the items in time with the music stand, so we recorded that part separately (and slower) then I synched the video with audio in post-production.

Not only am I happy with the song and video itself, but I'm thrilled with the time I got to spend with my little pocket man.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lyrics ©2011 Greg Hintermeister
Verse 1:
My name is Jack, and I got pockets in my pants
I put stuff in, into the pockets of my pants
I put my hands right into my pockets
and pull out whatever I can
I put my hands right into my pockets and smile...
'Cause I'm a Pocket Man

Verse 2:
Here's my toad, it's from a pocket in my pants
Next to the frog, and my sandwich, and some ants
I put my hands right into my pockets and pull out my gum and my sand
I put my hands right into my pockets and smile
'Cause I'm a Pocket Man

Bridge:
If it's shiny, Or slimy, Or sharp, round, fuzzy or tiny
I put them into my pockets, cause they're useful when I'm playing around
Some day I think I'll empty my pockets out
But right now I stuff more in to keep things from jumping out!

Verse 3:
My name is Jack, and I got pockets in my pants
I put stuff in, into the pockets of my pants
I put my hands right into my pockets
and pull out whatever I can
I put my hands right into my pockets and smile...
'Cause I'm a Pocket Man

Smokey Mountain Dream

2011-10-23T15:32:00.000-05:00

I just had the most vivid dream...

In this dream I took a risk and booked a vacation to Gatlinburg, TN. I'm sure it was a dream, since our last vacation was to Disney World, and in real life I would worry the family would find this vacation underwhelming.

In this dream we drove 16 hours over two days to get there.

On our way out we drove to Indianapolis on day 1 (took us 10 hours with a stop in Cincinnati), and finished the trip on day 2 (8 hours). I'm sure it was a dream since all 4 kids did not complain, had fun, and generally found things to do in those 18 hours.

In this dream we awoke to the Smoky Mountains and went horseback riding.

After, we got a treat, went exploring, and then hiked through the Roaring Fork trails. They all found hiking sticks to bring home. I'm sure it was a dream because my girl's dream is to go horseback riding and all the kids were loving every moment...and no technology was involved.

In this dream every morning greeted us with beautiful fall colors in the mountains.

We were able to truly relax, have morning tea, and gaze at the rainbow-colored mountains...and the occasional black bear (yup, curious and hungry creatures). We swam in an indoor/outdoor heated pool surrounded by colors and enjoyed the outdoor hot tub even in the rain. I'm sure it was a dream because the most expensive special effects team in Pixar could not have generated more brilliant colors in the mountain trees.

In this dream we went to Dollywood, a big amusement park filled with big coasters, great food, and fun music.

I'm sure it was a dream because one of the rides had disappearing people! We waited in a long line for Blazing Fury, then, when ride returned, one of our girlies blurted out, "Where are all the people"? Turns out a mechanical problem shut down the ride and they evacuated those in line. At least they let us finish our ride. Oh, and I'm also sure it was a dream because I don't think the kids will even remember the amusement park day unless asked. Sure they had fun on the coasters, cars, log ride, river raft, bird show, and ropes course, but all of that was overshadowed by the immersive experiences of the hiking, horses, and exploring

In this dream we had perfect weather.

When we walked the trails, the sun beamed through the tree canopy...creating highlights only found in the highest of budget movies. The leaves gently fell onto the trail like a movie set...after all dreams let you transport instantly. Even the storm covered the mountains in a mist more stunning than the latest cinematography could create. I'm sure it was a dream because even my oldest boy's favorite kind of weather showed up late in the week...cool, cloudy, and misty. Certainly no where in real life could this variety of sun, mist, warm, cool, breezy, calm be mixed with the variety of terrain it highlighted.

In this dream we drove 16 hours over two days to get home...with an amazing side stop in St. Louis.

We stopped in Nashville for an hour but was not impressed...which is kind of a nightmare for me as I've always wanted to roam Nashville. St. Louis, however, exceeded all expectations. I'm sure it was a dream because the weather was perfect, the arch was cheap to ride up, and the family got to relax in another beautiful american city.

In this dream the family machine ran smoothly, was highly refined, synchronized, supportive, and glitches were quickly fixed.

Certainly there were moments of bickering, but they usually resulted in finding a remedy that could be applied several times throughout the week. I'm sure it was a dream because on the drive home, after many miles, fatigue was getting the better of me...and my oldest, from his own inner core of discernment, came up from behind me and gave me a big hug. It moved me so much that he would make me feel better with a hug. Certainly only a dream would conjure up that life-long-I'll-never-forget-it kind of highlight.

In this dream I thought that this was one of the most fulfilling vacations our family ever had. But, of course, I'm sure it was a dream because everything was so perfect, our family was so engaged with each other, and our memories so rich that it was well beyond anything a real vacation could have ever offered.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Curious, though: If this were all a dream, how do I explain the hiking sticks in the back of the van? Or the photos? Or the sore muscles?

Who knows. I guess I'll just sip my Smoky Mountain Moonshine and ponder the mystery...

The Hike

2011-10-19T16:04:00.001-05:00

It was supposed to be a short jaunt to a waterfall inside the Smoky Mountain National Park.

The drive to the trail was breathtaking...

The kids were excited...even the oldest...as it reminded him of Canada. We jumped out of the car to hike to Rainbow Falls. I had packed 2 bottles of water. All 5 had their hiking sticks foraged from the last successful .75 mile hike 2 days before.

Just 5 minutes into it, I hear, "Hmm. I wonder if the whole trail is up hill?"

It never occurred to me that hiking to a waterfall would be up hill. After all, the point of a water fall is to see the water...falling. And to do that you want to be at the bottom of the falls.

So we hiked...

and hiked...

and hiked.

Now at this point you need to know we are not hikers. We love nature, love to explore, but we do not hike multi-hour trails. My past explorations took me to 5 different continents for work, but all walkabouts were within a city, and essentials like water, bathrooms, wifi, and coffee were all available at a moments notice.

Not so in the Smoky Mountains. Whoever runs them assumes you're playing iwth the big boys. If you're going to drive along the roads, there are no barriers between you and the 100' cliff...and if you're going to hike along the trails, there are no 'rest stops'.

It's you and nature. survival of the fittest. Did I say I am not among the fittest?

The first 30 minutes was really great. We followed the mountain stream and saw many stunning sites. All 6 of us were skipping along and taking some photos of the adventure.

The second 30 minutes...reality set in. It was constant effort to climb the trail up-up-up. To make the trail not as steep, the trail tacked back and forth. This was nice for keeping pace (set by our twin gymnasts...much more fit than the rest of us), but it also made the distance longer. I've explored cities and parks before, and always seem to make good time, and at the beginning of the hike when the sign said "2.6", we figured it was not going to take much time at all...maybe 40 minutes.

At the end of the first hour, we meet a couple going down and asked how much farther. Surely based on our estimates we had walked at least 2 miles.

Their response? "Well, you're about half way there".

Impossible. In suburban 'feels like over 2 miles'. But we were making about 1 mile an hour up the trail...traversing rocks, roots, and an occasional slip and fall. After we heard that, they must have seen despair because they said "but there's a couple of 'small' falls before you get there"

Third 30 minutes: youngest falls again and splays out yelling "I AM SO DONE!". We fell done, too. Hearts pounding, sweat pouring...I know it's only been 90 minutes but up hill the whole time not knowing how close the goal is...we became disheartened. The trail is tacking away from the stream so we know we are nowhere near our goal.

Another couple pass, and say there is a bridge with small falls 10 minutes up. We now have our goal. The last bit is hard until the trail tacks towards the distant stream.

Hope.

Then we hear water. Lots of it. Hitting rocks!

We come across a beautiful rocky falls and a small wooden bridge the crosses it.

We've made it!

Well, sort of. You see, Rainbow falls was another grueling 40 minutes up the mountain. We made a critical family decision...that has become a pattern for our lives:

We renamed the falls. "New Rainbow Falls".

Just like that, we reached our goal.

We played...

We climbed...

We rested...

and...we posed. (future band album)

We must have frolicked in New Rainbow Falls for an hour. The water was freezing but completely refreshing. The rocks were challenging, but the eddies and pools were fantastic to wade through.

After fully satiated, we gathered ourselves, and walked down.

Now we became the 'experienced'. Others asked us, "Are we at least 1/2 way there?". Our response? "You have another hour. However, we newly renamed the small bridge falls 'New Rainbow Falls', and we think you will enjoy that destination just as much as we did".

All that we encountered smiled. I think they, like us, got more than they bargained for with this hike, and having someone give them permission to set a realistic goal that wouldn't kill them was delightful to them.

As we reached the bottom, we were exhausted, but I felt extremely proud of our family. They pushed through some very tough moments, and got to enjoy a wonderful waterfall experience.

Oh, and just as we were leaving, we heard in the distance a comment from someone we met on the way down, "Yeah, ...we reached New Rainbow Falls...enjoyed it so much...then returned".

Looks like we put our mark on the Smoky Mountain lexicon.

I love this family.

~~~~~~~~~

How about you, have you encountered a challenge that ended wonderfully?

A REAL Hinter's "Ode to Children"

2011-09-22T15:18:00.000-05:00

I have four children, which makes me an expert on fathering (quick, read the next sentence before the flaw in that logic surfaces)

In addition, as a Hintermeister, I have an extra-special something that helps in my fathering...I call it the HINTERmojo. It would be a shame to keep this power a secret, so I'd like to give you my "Ode to Children" that you can use to become a HINTERfather on your own.

But be warned, we do NOT want this power to be released into the general population, so I have encrypted this "Ode". The normal text is what the 'masses' will hear you say...and the italicized text is said in your head, or under your breath preferably as you glare with your HINTEReyes at your kids. This will immerse you in the secret HINTERsauce that will truly make you a fathering expert.

~~~ Ode to My HINTERchildren ~~~

My Darling Children

...which right now stands for DARn-Louder-than-a-traIN-annoying-little-$*#%!-I-missed-what-captain-picard-was-sayinG!

I love you more than life

...Life cereal, that is. But, add fresh raspberries...and a drop of honey, Hmmm, I'd have to think on it

The moment I learned I would be a father, I cried tears of joy

...and fear, anguish, pity, and betrayal. I mean, the Health teacher explicitly said it only happens when Coke and kissing are mixed. I haven't had Coke in years!!! And the missus and I were just getting started in our travels. Lousy educators...I blame them (well, OK...and the jetlag...and the European air...and the gardens...and the 2 hour bullet train to Paris...and...)

When you arrived, you took my breath away

...mostly from nausea and light-headedness...you looked kinda gross. And what a grueling day! I had to sit in a hospital chair for 21 hours...STRAIGHT...and that was pre-iPhone. The anguish can not be compared! At least the missus got drugs and a bed...she was so lucky

As I watch you grow, my heart overflows

...but not my wallet. If I knew how much friggin' money you'd cost me, we might have turned to pet gerbils for love and purpose. They're .034% the cost to feed, they run around naked, and they don't take over my home theatre when I want to watch a movie. Sure they poop in my hands...but so did you until you were three.

I can't believe how blessed I am

...as in the wholesome replacement for a curse word. Example: "Where is that blessed kid!?!" or, "That was a blessed stupid stunt you tried to pull!", or, "These are marshmallows, not a blessed snack...nor ammo!"

What an amazing gift you are

...but a new Nissan 350z Roadster is an amazing gift too...and I could have bought six of them instead of what I spent for sports and braces and clothes and food. Oh, and the Roadster doesn't talk back...unless you count the sweet tones of open-road engine hum...which is quite different from anything that ends in "...hate you Dad!"

One day, you will be out in this world on your own

...Amen, but still sucking money from your patriarical teet, I'm sure

People will see a loving, happy, shining spirit

...which came entirely from your Mom. If they see a moody, shallow, "Nonsense...those shoes will last another year with the proper amount of duct tape!" spirit, that'd be from me

My hope is that the world will look upon you and smile

...cause that's what I'll be doing in MY home theatre

Throughout your life, a part of my heart will always be with you
...I just hope it grows back. I've heard the capacity to love grows, but my new guitar just arrived and I've got a lot of lovin' to do

As long as I am alive, I will always be proud of you. I love you
...which is sayin' something...especially after the "power drill incident" and the "nice chat with the police officer" episodes

Amen.
...Now, plug in that guitar, click 4, and lets rock this joint! There's always room for a metal family band, right?!?

Hospitals Been Beddy Beddy Good to Me

2011-09-19T07:29:00.000-05:00

I had just brought my oldest home from getting his appendix out. As usual, the outcome was great. My quippy comment to a friend was, "Hospitals been beddy beddy good to us" (thank you vintage SNL memory)

Then I stopped...this was nothing to take lightly.

Our hospital adventures have truly been good experiences, but they could just have as easily turned very bad. Case in point: While I was waiting for my boy to recover from surgery, a mere 10 feet away from me was a family waiting for an "end of life". The husband/father/grandfather had taken a turn for the worse, and the wife/grandmother was sitting with her daughter and son for the final word.

The nurse came rushing in, "Come now. He just stopped breathing...this might be it".

And they rushed away.

...just like that...for them, it turned very bad.

That was the closest I have come to a bad hospital experience...and I have to ask myself: Why do we seem to always have good hospital adventures, while others have had bad

Even the fact we call them "adventures" points to the positive outcomes.

Why? Is it to teach me a "Right-place-at-the-right-time" life lesson?

When our first-born was born in distress (that's medical-talk for NOT BREATHING), he was revived and spent the night in the NICU. The next day, as he was nicely recovering, they discovered Group B Strep, which resulted in a full 2 week stay at "Hotel Mayo" (complete with $1925/hour baby care). Later they would tell us how lucky we were that he was born in distress...because it forced a longer stay...which let them discover the Group B Strep. It could have been very bad if it was not diagnosed so early.

Why does it turn out well for us? Is it to teach me the "Thank God you live next to the best medical facility in the world" lesson?

When our twin girls were born, our li'l 4 pounder was put in a bun warmer her first day to keep her temp constant, then was diagnosed with a heart defect. After 2.5 months of not thriving she had open heart surgery (by a doctor who's done over 1000 of them). Now at 10, you'd never know...except a scar that I feel she wears as a "Don't MESS with me...I've already been through worse" attitude beacon.

Any possible answer comes up shallow...except, "I don't know, that's just how it turned out"...which is shallow.

Is it because I'm living such a righteous life? Hardly. I am a very poor example of living right.

Is it because of the awesome medical care? Definitely, but is that the only reason? I know the doctors are awesome, but I know they're NOT batting a thousand.

I know I'm supposed to say "It's because we've been very blessed", but I have a hard time with that answer. If I'm blessed with good, then does that mean someone else is cursed with bad? What about those that are better believers than me that have had to deal with the very bad? If they're cursed with bad, then it doesn't make sense at all that I'm blessed with good.

So I ask again, Why? Is it to teach me, "There are more important things in life than work" lesson?

When I was in Florida teaching at a conference for work...I got a call that the ultrasound docs wanted us to come in to discuss our yet-to-be-born 4th child. They saw something...a cyst, a something...and wanted a closer look. Oh, and they said that this raises the chances of a chromosomal defect (Downs Syndrome). After more tests, and knowing that regardless of the results we'd love him, we waited the last few months...and were introduced to a perfectly healthy, happy boy.

And now with my oldest, who was in the deep of Canada a few weeks before his appendix attack. That could have been very bad. But it wasn't. It was very good.

Why do we always have happy hospital visits?

And...

...and what happens when a visit goes bad?

...because at some point it will.

Is that the end of any residual of my happy persona? Am I strong enough to get through a bad visit?

I've heard all the sermons on "Why does God let bad things happen to me", but to be honest, they make it sound like I should look forward to bad things...that I should be more worried if nothing bad ever happens to me. Is God handling me with kid-gloves? Is my faith so fragile that Jesus doesn't dare allow a very bad? If so, I should write a book about it: "Fragile-ize Your Faith! The secret guide to long-lasting health of your loved ones".

Is it just dumb luck? That doesn't sound too Jesus-ly.

I don't really have a good answer. Just lots of questions.

Why?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

P.S. Throughout this writing, I've been tempted to knock on wood...or laminate...or any striped material. I guess that illustrates my see-through faith? I get this superstitious feeling that by even bringing this topic up, I risk backlash. Is that messed up or what?

The Hinter500 Raceway Championships

2011-08-30T19:52:00.001-05:00

My youngest gets a lot of leftovers: Clothes, toys, and too often...my leftover time. I feel bad about that so I try to specifically focus on him as much as I can.

Last month, when the girls were building a toy house on their own (very cool and another story involving wood they found, grownup tools, and custom paint), he asked if he could build a race-car track.

I instantly thought “hot-wheel” track. Honestly, I hate those little hot-wheel racecar tracks. They're tiny, warped, and rarely perform as promised. However, my youngest has an amazing mind, and was thinking FAR outside the box my mind was bouncing around in.

He took my hand and headed towards the outbuilding.

"That's what I want to build my racetrack out of. Can we cut it up?", as he pointed to an old piece of siding.

"No". I said immediately. You see, that's the default answer I give him...and it ticks me off every time I say it. This little man has a brain far superior to mine and I am constantly standing in his way to reaching his full potential.

Sidenote: I'm not talking all cute when I say his brain is smart. It's pure fact. It’s wicked smart. I've tried to put it in a way he'd understand: His brain learns at twice the speed of normal brains. It needs to be fed with much more brain food than our average brains. Part of the reason he gets into so much trouble is simply his brain trying to be fed...I can't wait to see what he does in his life!

But that day something in me snapped free...and I was able to break away from my "I'm-busy-and-it-sounds-like-a-lot-of-work-and-I'm-not-even-sure-if-it's-possible" box.

I quickly said, "But, we can use the whole thing as a track".

His eyes lit up.

We brought the siding to a tree limb, balanced it so the track would curve from the limb down to the grass.

He let the car go.

In 0.632 seconds the race was done. Not very satisfying.

Then, from what I can only describe as a son-to-dad mind-meld, I thought...why don't we just make the track longer?

And that's what we did. I climbed to the outbuilding rafters, found a bunch of our old siding, and got about 6 additional pieces down.

His brain was very pleased with me.

We discovered the grooves in the siding made perfect race-car tracks. The grooves even made it easy to connect one piece of track (er, siding) to the next.

Not only did we make the track well over 150 feet long, we added a starting gate that accelerated the cars, and a end-of-race jump to put an exclamation point on the finish line.

Now sit back and enjoy some brief highlights of the first annual Hinter500 International Raceway Championships!

Mr. Happy Goes To The Hospital

2011-08-13T09:52:00.001-05:00

Once upon a time there lived a young man. To his friends and family he was known as Mr. Happy.

Say hello, Mr. Happy!

One day, Mr. Happy was not so happy. His belly was sad, and that made Mr. Happy sad.

Well...sort of. You see, even when Mr. Happy's belly was sad, and he was sitting in Urology with an IV stuck in his arm from his blood work and CT scan to find out why his belly was sad, Mr. Happy was, well, Happy.

To Mr. Happy, there was nothing happier than an exciting adventure filled with new experiences...like nearly being swallowed by a large transformer and narrowly escaping! (at least that's what the CT scan was to the imagination of Mr. Happy)

The diagnosis? Mr. Happy's appendix was very, very sad. So sad that Li'l Appendix wanted to move away. Li'l Appendix had heard stories of a magical place where others like him could gather and have fun, and Li'l Appendix wanted that kind of experience.

However, Li'l Appendix was very attached to Mr. Happy. Li'l Appendix needed to stage a grand escape with a little help from Mr. Scalpel. But how to get Mr. Scalpel's attention? In the only way he knew how, by performing the "Grinch-heart"...growing 3x its normal size.

...and it worked!!!

Mr. Happy was quickly admitted and scheduled for a same-day surgery.

Even in the hospital bed, Mr. Happy was happy.

Mr. Happy was happy about the cozy electric bed, the warm blankets, the personal TV (complete with remote control that had a built-in speaker), and most of all, room service. He was very happy about being able to order anything he wanted.

Soon enough, the nurses and doctors were ready. It was time for Mr. Happy's surgery...and time for Li'l Appendix to stage his grand escape!

Wave goodbye, Mr. Happy!

Good job.

Mr. Happy had fun rolling down the hallway! Later, Mr. Happy would tell of how the nurses talked about how the carpet near the surgical rooms made it hard to roll the beds. That made Mr. Happy smile.

It should be noted, dear reader, that just before surgery, Mr. Happy was given some happy drugs to make anyone feel happy. Now, because Mr. Happy was normally happy, the happy drugs made Mr. Happy very, very, VERY happy.

Mr. Happy must be reminded in the future that only in very special cases are happy drugs acceptable.

After one hour, Mr. Happy was back.

Success!!

Mr. Happy's belly felt happy again. AND, Li'l Appendix was free!

Here is Li'l Appendix rejoicing:

Mr. Happy spent the night with personal assistants, room service, and an automatic foot massager that pulsed happiness all night.

Mr. Happy was very happy.

The next day it was time to leave. Mr. Happy dressed, was rolled down the hallway like royalty, and awaited his adventure beyond the elevator.

Whatever awaited beyond the elevator, Mr. Happy could be sure that it would be filled with big doses of love, laughter, and, of course...happiness.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What's that, you ask? Whatever happened to Li'l Appendix?

He did escape! He hitched a ride in the back of a pick-up and traveled all the way south of the border. Once there, he met up with Li'l Ms. Tonselita, and enjoyed a beach party with others like them:

Together they lived the rest of their days enjoying a grand adventure beach-combing, dancing the salsa, queso diving, and sharing happiness with their friends.

THE END

Omni-Tasking: An Amazing Experiment

2011-08-05T09:43:00.002-05:00

So...

I'm sitting down to watch the season finale of Glee with my wife...beautiful thing...Netflix ;-). I had timed it just right...kids were asleep, wife was on the couch, and my very yummy evening dessert was freshly dished (heated home-made berry crisp bar with some really great french vanilla ice cream).

But it wasn't just the 'together time' with the wife, the dessert, and Glee. I had my iPhone next to me, and even my laptop. I WAS SET! I clicked play, and my multi-sensory, multi-tasking late night experience started perfectly as planned.

And then the wife got up. WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING!?! I shout with my eyes (I'm good at that...especially when she's walking away from me). She just hears the clink of the spoon and the pause of the show.

Dang it! I was so frustrated!

The experience instantly changed from a synchronized multi-tastic media blitz, to a time-wasting "watch the dessert melt while waiting for the missus" disaster.

I stared at my dessert in despair.

It started melting. Sadness.

I stared closer...

...it continued to melt...Amazing! I had never noticed it before:

The top of the ice-cream was changing in real-time from a jagged mountain-scape into a smooth, soft pillowy cloud-scape. The berry crisp was causing the ice-cream bottom to melt faster and created tiny fjords ... ending in a micro sea of sweet deliciousness. The first spoonful was exhilarating! The textures I saw translated into a complex symphony playing across my tongue...complete with instruments of cold, warm, smooth, hard, sweet, tart...all within the first taste. The remaining bites were just as exhilarating...but different. As the melting continued, the texture changed, blending of sweet and tart increased, and each spoonful turned into a seamless tastexture that no amount of preparation could have produced.

I began to feel grateful for what I now refer to as wifus-interruptus. All I saw, felt, tasted, heard, smelled, savored...was all because I focused 100% on this one singular event. A multi-tasked version would have resulted in the dessert disappearing without barely tasting it, while at the same time a less enjoyable show with all the interruptions of glancing down at the dessert!

Then a sudden realization shook my core beliefs: Could my constant push to increase efficiency, experience, exposure, and excellence through multi-tasking actually be decreasing those very goals?

What if, instead, I focused 100% on one single thing at a time?

What if I took the time to dedicate all senses, all brain power, every curious and analytical fibre to experience everything that surrounds me like I just did eating that dessert?

What else would I notice that usually zips by without a neuron of recognition?

What delightful details evaporate before I can partake in their beauty?

What insight, skill, or invention escapes me because I constantly swap to the next of 18 things I'm trying to accomplish all at once?

I started to focus 100% on other things...

Did you know that the froth on a newly shaken glass of iced coffee bubbles like it's alive...only to settle into a delicate blanket of protection over the liquid...preserving it for the perfect first taste?

Did you know a glass filled with iced coffee contains 1000 micro waterfalls? At least that's what it looks like when the glass spontaneously starts sweating in the 90-degree summer air.

It was like I was given a sixth sense...focus. I wondered: Is omni-tasking the key to unlocking a deeper, fuller, more satisfying experience? In everything?

I continued...

How about the pond and crick burbling in our walkout? It's usually a background artifact filling the silent gaps between task switching. What if it was the foreground? The primary focal point? What would I absorb?

Did you know a chickadee stares at the water like it was the first time he'd seen such wonderful thing? Every time! "WOW! Look at that amazing, thirst-quenching river of life!"...he looks around...not frantic...looking for a friend? Lonely...he looks back: "WOW! Look at that amazing..."

Did you know that a yellow finch seems so afraid at being eaten that every time he takes a drink he quick looks all around assuming it's his last?

It was like I discovered a super-human power...

Did you know that 100% focus on your oldest son at the end of the day enables him to talk in a continual stream of consciousness? That through that kind of focus you can ask deeper questions, absorb his passions, likes, dislikes, and in the end show your love for him by just listening, reacting, and laughing?

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now I'm wondering: Could omni-tasking help in other areas?

What if I focused 100% on my girls gymnastics training? Could we have deeper discussions on what the ropes feel like as they climb, arms only, in a pike position? Could they convey the feel of chalk on their hands as they spin the bars? What do they see as they flip across the floor?

What if I focused 100%, even for 10 minutes, on reading the Bible? Not just read, but completely absorb? What would I discover? What would surprise me?

What if I listened to my youngest? 100% focus. What would I learn from his crazy-smart brain? What insight would a 7 year old not-yet-jaded-by-assumptions-and-rules child have on a 42 year old too-distracted-by-everything-all-at-once-to-appreciate-much-of-anything brain?

What if I scheduled dedicated time throughout the day for working on one work activity at a time? Would I marvel at what I accomplished? Would I find greater insight? Solve harder problems? Provide better leadership?

What if I omni-tasked while writing music? What hidden gem would I discover? What deeper emotion could I share? What funnier lyric could I write?

Would I discover that through the self-driven pressure to multi-task I'm cheating myself...and everyone around me...from a deeper, better, happier, appreciative, wonder-filled, higher skilled, more inventive, kinder, better playing, love-giving, attentive, listening man?

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Omni-tasking. I might just have to spend 30 days experimenting...

Anyone want to join me?

Technology That Matters - #0001

2011-07-31T22:48:00.001-05:00

My first experience with Technology That Matters…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When I was growing up, technology never really impressed me.

Walkman? I did appreciate portable music, but it wasn't a wondrous, amazing, "magical" experience. Mix tapes were a chore, pencils had to be angled ‘just right’ to wind them after tapes got eaten, and lyrics were sung at 1/2 speed as the batteries slowly died skiing down the diamond slopes (I know. Weird kid: Side A: Shooting Star. Side B: The Great White North, “Take Off”…Bob and Doug McKenzie! "Black Hole, eh?").

Computer? My dad’s PC did help me organize my ever-growing stamp and coin collection when I was 10. But hours vaporized making the computer do anything productive for me (although I did achieve a Zen-like relationship to a DOS-based database that cross-referenced 1,539 stamps from dozens of countries!)

MIDI? Even as I got into composing and recording, MIDI mapping, analog synth programming, and drum machine 'coding' took hours to make it work before creativity could flow. Once I did that, it did provide hours of awesomeness...but it didn't 'just work'. (Although, to be fair, the knowledge gained was pure gold in future Up With People tours)

None of the technology I encountered impressed me…

...Until that Blessed Day...

I remember it clearly. The sun was just a bit more sunnier, the roads were just a bit more road-trippy, and the angels were guest BGV's to my amazing car-karaoke vocal rendition of "Beautiful Girls".

I pulled into KwikTrip in my Dodge Daytona (T-Tops of course) to get my normal processed coffee, when in the distance I heard some excited whispering...

...then a bold statement:

"GOD BLESS TECHNOLOGY"

What could be the cause of such a grand statement? Could it be the iPhone? No, that wouldn't be invented for several years. The self-tuning guitar? No, Gibson will try but it’ll be put on a lame ax.

I walked towards the small crowd and stared in awe at the object of awesome – shimmering like a 24th century replicator:

The KwikTrip Smoothie Machine.

I know. I know. You had the same experience. We might as well refer to our lives as BESM and AESM (Before Encountering Smoothie Machine, After Encountering Smoothie Machine).

Let me take you to the moment of my conversion:

1) Choose
Reflecting Biblical-based free-choice doctrine, I can freely choose flavor and style: frozen cappuccino flavors, smoothie flavors, or milkshake flavors. My excitement grows...

2) Open
Uh-oh. Doubt sets in as I open the lid. Surely this bucket of hard-as-ice-frozen-potential isn't going to turn into anything but freezer-burn-sadness. I push through on the promise of what is foretold...

3) Blend
I put the bucket into the machine, and quickly discover a secret second choice: Consistency. Stunning. How can a mere machine automate how thick or smooth the frozen-yet-liquid perfection gets?

I push "Smooth": The magic machine raises the bucket and starts. I will someday learn more about the magical technology that at once heats, mixes, cools, and delivers the finished smoothie. For now I will assume it involves galloping hamsters, baby dragon’s breath, and diamond dust.

Then the machine stops.

I bathe in the glory of a perfect smoothie that was moments before a frozen cylinder in the freezer.

Not only is the consistency perfect, the flavor is exquisite. AND, there is no freezer burn (job well done, baby dragons!).

Yummy…

…and not a This-Is-Pretty-Good-I-Should-Maybe-Get-Another-Someday kind of YUMMY, but a This-Is-So-Good-I-Sure-Hope-The-Government-Doesn't-Force-Me-To-Choose-Between-This-Smoothie-And-My-Kids-Because-I’d-Sure-Miss-Them kind of YUMMY!

I leave a changed man. Soon after I, too, start inventing.

I only hope that one day I will give back to mankind a fraction of what mankind has given to me that day..

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So, have you encountered a technology that makes you stop in your tracks?

A Really Good Day: PRS Experience - September 22, 2008

2011-07-22T11:22:00.001-05:00

"Let's give away a guitar!", said Paul (owner/founder of Paul Reed Smith guitars)

Thus began the end of a really good day.

It actually started the day before where I had finished giving a rousing presentation and demo at the IBM Future Interfaces Conference at MIT in Cambridge, MA. Which, by the way, had the best science lab I’ve ever seen:

I would tell you all about my presentation, but then I'd have to answer to Watson, and he's really not happy with me after I made fun of him. But I can tell you that I was at an emotional high...at least at that time I thought it was my emotional high for the weekend.

Boy, was I wrong. :-)

The morning after my Future Interfaces success, I drove down from Boston to Stevensville Maryland (just next to Baltimore). Amazing drive! I fully under-appreciated how accessible the east coast is. Oh, and I had some quality time with my iPod :-)

My destination? The PRS Experience. Paul Reed Smith, founder of PRS Guitars, loves his customers and dealers so he puts on an "open house" with players (like me), artists (like Mark Tremonti, Johnny Hiland, and David Grissom:

I knew this was going to be a good day...

I knew my current emotional high would be carried through by what I was about to experience...

I didn't know just how good it would be...

I wake up and walk out of the hotel to wait for the PRS shuttle. 10 PRS fans await with me...the nicest group you could ever meet. Some have their own guitars to have artists and PRSh (Paul Reed Smith himself) sign. Some have shirts. All have a grateful attitude that this 2 day open house is free.

Amazingly, I meet a friend. I don't have good friends anywhere. I met one here. John. Older guy who's wife died and has always wanted to own a PRS, and who's daughter urged him to come to the PRS Experience. We form a bond that I'll never forget.

I get off the bus, and receive a crazy-cool packet of PRS stuff: hat, shirt, stickers, keychain. I walk up to a tent and see an intimate session where Johnny Hiland is talking about his guitar...and playing some of the most amazing guitar I've ever seen (Watch this)

I walk to the 'spin and win' wheel...where Mark Tremonti walks by...I shake his hand and personally thank him for redefining hard rock for me...from an angry, tense experience...into a beautiful soundscape of hope, melodic lyrics, and rockin guitar you could sing to.

Oh, and I spun and got some cool PRS guitar picks, and unfortunately get a lousy raffle ticket.

I spend the rest of the day amazed at how guitars are made, played, and got an education I’ll never forget.

Then the evening approaches.

The main show consists of stunning music. All 1400 of us are at the same time both inspired to practice more, and depressed at how we'll never be that good that we think we may never want to play again.

My emotional high has not wavered...it has been an outstanding day.

...It is about to change.

PRSh walks on stage...hushes the crowd. "This is the part of the the show that I am most excited about", he says with a big smile.

"Let's give away a guitar!", he shouts.

We shout in agreement! Most of us are excited for some lucky fan...because we know we never win anything.

...the mood of the night is the closest to Heaven I've been in...we're all rooting for each other...sharing the love of a common instrument...and talking about how grateful we are all to be there.

His assistant walks out with a big, black case.

Paul opens it up, and pulls out a real beauty. "This is our new Starla. Fresh from the factory". Now, we're talking really fresh...the factory is only 100 feet away. Bigsby tremolo...a rare thing on PRS guitars, Cherry red, and custom pickups that sound amazing.

"Someone here will win this guitar months before it even goes on sale. You'll be the first in the world to own one". We all look around for some other that will jump at their name.

He raises a bowl 1/2 full of raffle tickets....

...my mind snaps to attention...the raffle tickets couldn't be purchased...only won from that 'spin and win' wheel...the same raffle ticket I was disappointed in winning...mind spinning...spinning...

He pulls out a single ticket.

"Hmm", he mutters to his assistant...asking how to pronounce the name? Sweet! My name is hard to pronounce...

"OK! We have a winner..."

...spinning...spinning...

"Wow, all the way from..."

At this point my mind... my heart...stomach...eyes, my whole being is spinning...

"...Minnesota"

AAAAH! I can't get excited! CALM DOWN! YOU NEVER WIN UNLESS IT'S CRAPPY TRADE SHOW STUFF!

...but how many people traveled from Minnesota!?!

"The winner is... Gre..."

I don't fully recall when exactly I jumped up and shouted "YEAH!!!"...if I waited until my full name was said, but I truly only remember my first name announced...and the slow-motion jump that would have been perfect for an energy drink ad.

My new friend John was so happy for me.

Turns out, everyone was so happy for me! Again...like what I imagine Heaven being like. I walk towards the stage...I'm getting cheers, back slaps, hand shakes...the fellow PRS fans are truly happy. Not even teasing "in fun".

I get on stage and shake Paul's hand. He hands me the guitar. He asks, "You dig Bigsby!?!"

I say, "Yeah, I dig Bigsby!"

"What? You hate Bigsby!?" PRSh shouts...I hope he's joking...

"NO, I LOVE BIGSBY!". I shout back over the laughing crowd…He winks.

He puts the guitar in the case, hands me the case, and asks for another round of applause.

Now, in my dreams I would have either bowed, or pulled the guitar out and started to play "Garden of Eden" by John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band (Seriously. Listen to it. It rocks!) to the cheer of the crowd. Instead I just walk off stage with Paul's assistant...

...a huge smile...

...and my new guitar.

Later, I ask her how I should bring this on the plane for my trip home. She says, "Oh, heavens. Let us ship it using our secure shipping boxes". So nice.

I arrive home, await for my guitar (much like Doc Brown waiting for Marty McFly at the end of Back to the Future), and play it the next Sunday. The sound is truly amazing. Rich, thick, with what I can only describe as "Ballsy". It shimmers with the tremolo, and it tunes down to dropped-D wonderfully.

It is now my favorite guitar for hard rock songs.

~~~~~~

Someday I'll be asked what the best day of my life was...I'll probably answer with the words 'wedding' or 'birth of a child', but somewhere deep in my mind...I may just be thinking of this day.

The Lake Effect

2011-07-18T15:02:00.000-05:00

I don't own a cabin on a lake.

I don't own a boat.

I don't own a jet ski.

I don't even take my family to the river an hour away to 'get away' for the day...

...I think that might change.

We just finished a weekend at my brother's cabin on Long Lake in Wisconsin. It is a beautiful lake, pretty clear, deep, lots of room to swim, boat, tube, kneeboard, and have lots and lots of family fun.

But what surprises me is what effect the whole experience has on our family.

Wife:

She gets to enjoy the sun, relax, and let others take responsibility. Sure she 'owns' prepping one of the meals, but she doesn't have to handle the kids and the house. She can chat, play, ride, and swim when she wants. I think that's what she likes the most...doing what she wants on her own terms.

Oh, and she smiles. A lot.

Oldest:

He gets the best of what he loves most: Both laying around, and being extremely active tubing and knee boarding. On one hand he can sleep in, eat a fantastic breakfast (egg bake), play video games. He can take the time to learn magic tricks and try them out. You see, there's enough time in the adult's schedule to try out tricks and learn. Finally, he can exert every ounce of energy tubing and knee boarding on the boat. He loves that. I think it gives him a release from his normally deep-thinking brain. He can just focus on one thing: Staying above water!

Oh, and he smiles. A lot. And talks to me about all kinds of things.

Spitfire:

My oldest (by a minute) girl. She gets to test the limits of her capabilities. And she pushes herself to squeeze the most adventure out of her weekend. She likes to win, try new things, and take walkabouts. She got up on the kneeboard the first time she tried. She went canoeing, and loves her independence.

Oh, and she hugs me a lot. And congratulates me on my 360-kneeboard turn.

Pistol:

My youngest (by a minute) girl. She just soaks it all in. She loves to talk, laugh, find critters, fish (caught a nice sized perch), canoe, and bounce around on the tube. She was also up on the knee board the first time, but something about her just likes to experience it all, and not worry about excelling. However, that doesn't prevent her from doing just that...she is quite excellent at most things and is giving Spitfire a run for her money.

Oh, and she laughs. A lot.

Jaxon:

My young son. So much like me. So independent and wants to prove himself to his brother and sisters...and his father. He gets tired of me directing him and LOVES it when he can just be a boy: Catch crayfish, canoe, bring a clam home for a pet, use a small fish he caught as bait for the bigger fish he wants to catch. He is afraid to try new things because they sounds scary. Today he did NOT want to get catapulted out of the pontoon by me and my brother, but once he did...and flew several feet to a grand an glorious splash in the water, he said "THAT WAS GREAT! LET'S DO IT AGAIN!" (same experience with the kneeboard the next day). That's what I want him to bring home with him. The wisdom that most things worthwhile in life are scary when he first tries them, but once he does, he'll love it.

Oh, and he laughs a lot at the lake. His brain gets fed. He loves exploring, finding, adventuring on his terms. Basically he can finally do life at "The Speed Of Jaxon"...which is the way he loves it.

Me:

I get to loosen the reigns on the kids. They love it. I love it. Why don't I do it more? I get to do 360-degree turns on the knee board, and have my whole family clap for me. I think I gained more respect in that one moment than any amount of hours of accomplishments at work. I get to read, write, talk, listen to my dad, watch my mom and dad's still-as-70-somethings-obviously-in-love marriage. I get to hear my brother tell stories of when we were kids...to my kids. I get to spend time with my whole family (notice in this photo my dad, mom, brother...with a pontoon with our wives, kids/grandkids in the background).

Oh, and I smile a lot. I get to hug my kids a lot. I get to see my family smile, squeal, play hard, sleep hard, and become a tighter family.

That's why I think we might find ourselves at a lake more often.

How about you? Where do you and your family go to connect?

2011-07-05: Our U2 Adventure

2011-07-08T15:33:00.002-05:00

07-05-2011: U2

Where: Soldier Field, Chicago

Went with: Wife

"It was one, magnificent, beautiful day in the city of blinding lights. With pride, we were in the promised land. In mysterious ways we did go crazy tonight in the streets with no name. With or without you we got on our boots and walked on to one tree hill, and, at that elevation, was the moment of surrender."

If that's all you have time to read, it sums up the show...and our adventure. That, and this footage of my favorite song of the night from our seats (section 126, row 18, seats 17, 18...a mere 6 seats less and we would have had a spotlight tower blocking our view of The Edge...phew that was close!):

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Our U2 adventure was over two years in the making.

From the excellence of the show, I'm convinced U2 decided to practice just a little extra for us. 30 years of practice to be precise...each tour and album improving upon the last where they would be better than ever by the time they hit Chicago in 2011...just so we would have the show of a lifetime.

But that seems normal for what U2 does: They put every ounce of energy and creativity into every facet of the show so we could have a U2 adventure we'll never forget. The whole experience was like a masterclass in never letting up on being as excellent as you can.

Our adventure started when we tried to get tickets for the first "360" tour show in Chicago back in 2009. No luck. Sold out by the time general public tickets were on sale.

Solution? Join the U2 fan club for $50. We got pre-sale codes and an exclusive remix CD. We were ready in early 2010 to buy tickets and decided on spending $100 each vs. $250 each (reality has to seep in at some point), Reserved the hotel, and waited.

Then Bono had to hurt his back and the whole leg of the tour was rescheduled for 2011.

Fast forward a year...different hotel (Hilton Garden Inn...excellent price, location, and rooms!), same tickets, and we were off on our adventure!

On our way we stopped for Rocky Rococo pizza (the best pizza ever...partially because Rocky's is where we would go when we dated: Sunday night dinner, then a walk around Lake Calhoun...perfect combination for falling in love). Arriving at 4pm we had just enough time to relax and get ready for the show.

Nothing gets you familiar with a city like its subway system. We took the Red Line south to Roosevelt, then walked to Soldier Field.

But not before having a quick bite at a local sandwich shop, where we were entertained by a local singer...who performed a GREAT acoustic version of "Magnificent" (...and since Bono didn't sing it, we were glad we heard it live during dinner)

Our walk to Mecca, er, Soldier Field with 64,000 of our closest friends ended in some pretty good seats and a sense of wonder at the huge-ness of the facility and stage apparatus.

U2's attention to detail continued to amaze. For example, we were far enough away where the audio was 1/2 measure behind the guys on stage (I noticed this during sound check). But, the jumbo-tron was on beat. I thought it was great that they delayed the video feed to synch up with the audio coming at us. I suppose they figured those close enough to the band wouldn't hear delays and wouldn't bother with the jumbo-tron. Pretty cool. The band played wonderfully and the mix was great. Light show was spectacular and the whole spaceship-stage-thing had plenty of surprises. Again, it was like they said "This stage looks great. How can we make it excellent?"

Other observations: Bono and Edge seemed visibly moved when we all sang along. He thanked us. He could have said, "sing louder" or, "not as good as it could have been", but he just said, "Thank you"...with his hand on his heart.

During "Where The Streets Have No Name" when Bono sings about rain...it started to rain. Just a few drops for a couple minutes. Then when the song ended...so did the rain. I'm still wondering how Bono did that.

The last song of the show, not played live since 1987, was a tribute to a friend that died...25 years ago that week. Amazing song...I had never heard it before...but I'll add it to my playlist now (Take a listen to hear a great impromptu song from our show).

Last observation: My wife's iphone 4 takes great video. Take a look at the highlights of the show...

Once the show was done, we had a choice: follow 64,000 fans to the Red Line and wait an hour to get the train back to the hotel, or just walk.

We decided to walk.

Perfect decision. BEAUTIFUL summer night, walking with 1000 of our closest friends (including some Irish folks...did they fly here just for this show?). The lake was smooth, air was warm, and my concert companion was simply lovely.

The next day was just as beautiful. We found more adventure awaiting us in Chicago.

From the river

to Millenium Park's wildflower garden

to the Bean

After a great walk-about, we headed back home (with another stop for Rocky's), and returned to another 2 days of vacation. After all, I'm just following Bono's direction: He said he talked to the Mayor of Chicago and he extended Independence Day to Independence Week.

Thank you Bono, Edge, Larry, Adam. Thank you Chicago. Thank you Rocky's. You exceeded our expectations and gave us memories to last a lifetime.

Sunset Chair Adventures: Reservoir Hunt

2011-07-03T23:40:00.001-05:00

Let me take you on an adventure inspired from my Sunset Chair Clarity post.

The Reservoir hunt.

It started with a stated goal to “have a grand adventure and discover what’s out there”, and a hidden goal to create memories with my youngest three while my oldest was creating his own memories in Canada.

Here’s what we found:

Finding #1:
A fallen cottonwood tree is a perfect source of summertime snow. PLUS, it is soft and fluffy and very much feels like a tree-full of kittens (Now if I could only invent that, I’d be rich!)

Finding #2:
Meadow creek. Soft mud that oozes between your toes in a way that doesn’t feel icky…instead strangely comforting and therapeutic. Almost like we’re reconnecting with our love of nature (That, or we’re just a really weird family that likes to get dirty)

Finding #3:
Storms can bring down trees and leave quite a story. The evidence the littles gathered showed that the tree fell within the past few days (green leaves, freshly mowed path…under the tree) and lived a happy life with lots of friends (caterpillars). The imagination of the littles theorized that while happy, the end was abrupt and sad, when, upon falling, the tree realized that it did not, in fact, have 1000 little green wings that would lift it up, up, and away if only it could rid itself of its rooty prison chains.

Finding #4:
A rocky creek bed can be the foundation for adventure, creature habitat, and, of course, a make-shift fashion show catwalk.

Finding #5:
Money doesn’t grow on trees, but an organic gymnastic beam routine, squealy fun, and the thrill of watching water rushing under feet while suspended does. Oh, that and “weird mushroom thingys” (scientific name according to middle little).

Finding #6:
Time machines do exist. They’re called ‘watering holes’. Kids can step into one and travel back to experience how kids of all ages have been splashing, swimming, mudding, and all-out enjoying them since the year 37 AD. Of course we all know why…the year 36 AD was when the dinosaurs had enough of hiding from us humans and relocated to subterranean Antarctica…where they spend day after day basking in the 72 degree glow of the underground lava streams. Amazing what you learn from Wikipedia.

Finding #7:
The dirtier the fingernails, the happier the heart. The smaller the creature, the bigger the smile. The wigglier the tail, the gigglier the laughter.

Finding #8:
I love these littles (and their oldest) much more than I ever thought I could. Today I looked at them filled with love and full of pride as we walked home from our adventure. They really soaked it all in (figuratively and physically)!

I can’t wait to see what adventure awaits just around the bend…

God Moment #23: Up With People - May 2, 1990

2011-06-27T22:49:00.001-05:00

Have you ever had moments in your life where you think, "W

ow, what a coincidence!"? I sure have. Sometimes, though, I look back on the experience and the o

nly conclusion I can come to is that God chose that specific moment to show himself to me.

Here's God Moment #23...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I had just received my first F.

It was a big test in my 'Unix Programming' class towards the end of my 3rd year of university (To this day when I hear 'semiphore', 'symbolic link', or 'mutex' I break out in a cold sweat). I hated that class, but that wasn't why I got my bad test score.

I was burnt out.

For three years I had taken 16-20 credits per quarter, while working 16-32 hours a week at Dayton's. I loved that job: I spent hours at a time unloading trucks for a department store. My co-workers were great, hours were great, money was great, and it was highly physical...a well needed stress relief from classes.

But the pace was taking it's toll. More concerning, I was feeling stagnant in how my life was unfolding and what kind of impact I was having. I saw a well-worn (read: boring) pattern starting to unfold as to how my life would proceed, and I was not happy with what I was seeing.

That's when it happened...I remember as clearly as it was yesterday:

I was walking away from the Computer Science building after receiving that test score. It was bright and sunny out, but I was chilled...my mind was swirling with what the future held. In desperation I prayed, "God, I need something to change in my life. Please help me." (note: Don't EVER pray this unless you're serious about it)

35 minutes later I reached my dorm room (Centennial Hall...single occupancy dorm room...awesome digs). I was quite blue and dragged myself to the 3rd floor...feeling lost and defeated.

I opened the dorm door...

...and the phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hi. I'm calling for Greg Hintermeister? I got this number after calling your parents home."

"Yes, this is Greg", I said abruptly. I almost hung up thinking it was telemarketing.

"Hi. This is Up With People. If you recall, you auditioned over a year ago?"

Of course I remembered. My girlfriend, now wife, attended the show at Northrop Auditorium, and stayed after to be interviewed. I had been accepted, and thought I might travel after graduating. But after a year, the excitement had faded and I really had no intention to travel. After all, once I graduated, I would have job offers from well-paying tech companies and a whole year 'playing and traveling' would make any programming skills quite rusty.

"Yeah, I remember", I replied.

"Well, we are in need of musicians, and we are wondering if you would like to travel with us this coming year?"

...silence...

"We realize it is short notice, and you only have two months to raise the 12K required. Since we need your particular guitar skills, we are willing to give you a $3,000 scholarship"

...silence...with a big 'ol smile...

"Up With People plans on traveling all over the world, and you will have an adventure beyond your wildest expectations"

My response?

"YEEEE HAWWW!! I ACCEPT!!!"

...or maybe it was something a bit more professional...

"OK! Great. Well, we will mail you a packet on how to raise money, what to pack, when to arrive in Tucson, the guitar charts to practice with, and potential tour locations. See you in July!"

Just like that my life trajectory changed forever.

I'm not sure what exactly happened next, but my dorm speakers (2 3'x3' concert-grade speakers) were thumping celebration music (Prince's "Trust", if I recall) loud enough that when my friend opened the door to see what was wrong, he saw me doing an 'animal house' dance move on the floor as it was the only way the excitement I felt wouldn't physically burst through my chest.

"Dude, what's up? Hey! GREG!!!"

I looked up, stood and paused the music, straightened my shirt, and said (with accompanying fist-pump):

"I'M GOING TO TRAVEL THE WORLD!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It wasn't until a month later I remembered the prayer from earlier that morning.

This was God Moment #23: When God showed me he was real, he cared, and he loved me by giving me a year experiencing the world through Up With People...when I most needed it...and least expected it.

Now looking back, that year in Up With People impacted my life in so many ways. It gave me a travel bug, a thirst for adventure, a curiosity to try new things (food, experiences, points of view), a world wide perspective, and it gave me life-long friends.

And, it turns out that my UWP experience was more important than my coding skills in landing my first...and only...post-degree job (IBM).

Oh, and most of all, this moment set in stone my faith in a living, loving God.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Have you had any God Moments in your life?

Clarity...From The Sunset Chairs

2011-06-15T22:13:00.001-05:00

DId you ever have a brief moment of clarity?

That singular moment where you step out of your day-in, day-out routine to catch a rare glimpse at how your life is truly unfolding?

I had that on my birthday. May 15, 2011. The day I turned 42.

Surely this was a God-given gift where He showed with utmost clarity how my current life is way beyond what I could have ever dreamt for....how blessed my life really is...

...and that I am ignoring, and at risk of abandoning, all I have because I'm serving a vague notion of 'career advancement'...trying to impress important people with impressive titles.

Here's what I saw:

Our sunset chairs.

Empty.

Ready.

Waiting. (even the cat was waiting)

It was like the sunset chairs were speaking to me.

First they were blunt:

"Look at this beautiful patch of land, this home that you love! Listen to the music you create! Look at that amazing woman you married and those four terrific kids? Why are you ignoring all that?!? Why are they a 'distraction' to you? What about the reservoir behind those trees? Why haven't you had an adventure with your kids there lately? What's wrong with you!?!"

My response?

"I'm not happy. I'm worried about impressing people, fearing an uncertain future, and lost in a swirl of goals and aspirations that seem to be blocked by the current culture of our company. I've got a mortgage that won't quit, and I want to be accomplishing something important and I need to focus on that."

Then the sunset chairs sighed and used a more gentle voice.

"Sit down. Lets take a look at what's truly important that you're missing"

...and then I saw, clearly, like a film was lifted from my eyes, what I am missing that is truly important...

Sunsets with my wife...
Eagles soaring by...longing to be seen...
Fog caressing the valley...
Dew dropping from the leaves...
Secrets shared between me and my daughters...young son...teenage son...wife...
Hands held...
Hearts mended...
Family playing...
Frisbees thrown...
Baseballs caught...
Campfires lit...
Laughter echoing...
Stories told...
Devotions studied...
Prayers lifted...
Inspiration gained...
Adventures started....
Tears shed...and wiped...smiles returning...
Love given...received...surrounding...

Then I asked, "But what about that mortgage, cars to maintain, monthly bills to pay?"

Their response?

"They are not seen from the Sunset Chairs. All that is behind you could grow, shrink, burn, cease to exist, be sold, traded, or moved to another country. What is truly important...what you need to focus on...is what you see...who you see...

...from the Sunset Chairs."

~~~~~~

How about you? What do you see from your Sunset Chairs?

How Many People Does It Take to Make a Really Good Day?

2011-06-13T21:27:00.000-05:00

I just finished a REALLY GOOD DAY.

Here's what I experienced in the last 24 hours:

Flight #1 on Delta: Rochester - Detroit. Slept the whole way
Walked to connecting gate in Detroit...right into...FIRST CLASS SEAT
Flight #2 on Delta: Detroit - Raleigh. Read "Quitter"...inspiring book on how to make your dream job your day job
Landed in Raleigh...walked...without even slowing down...into the Hertz bus.
First stop was Gold member drop-off...into my car.
Drove to hotel and got a great room
GPS'd 'sushi' and found a wonderful sushi place
Slept for 10 hours!!!!
Woke up (no alarm needed) and had free breakfast
Practiced my presentation and ran through live demo system
Recorded my demo one time I ran through it
Drove to Raleigh site jamming to music
Noticed Jimmy Johns and had a quick (and tasty!) lunch
Ran into Tony, old colleague at Raleigh, who showed me where coffee bar was
Hooked up demo to iffy wireless and projector...both held through the demo
Showed demo to Sr. VP...flawless demo
Met with other UX colleagues for dinner
Had a fantastic conversation about work, life, and adventures with my UX friends
Had mexican dinner with beer...then margarita (with blood orange YUM!)
At hotel blogging after a hot tub

If I were asked what would my dream 'work week' day be like, this would be very close.

Then I got to thinking of how many people behind the scenes made this possible.

It makes me appreciate hundreds of people...and also makes me wonder if God uses the little things people do...or the little things that happen to them...for helping others well beyond what I (or they) can imagine.

Here's what I wonder:

Did the lady sitting next to me on flight #1 realize how helpful she was by not complaining that I closed the window shade so I could get a reprieve from my 6 month fatigue?
Did the grounds crew intern who made my first flight a tad late realize that he made my walk between gates time out perfectly so I could board the next plane without sitting around?
Did the Delta IT staffer who coded the 'who gets a free upgrade every blue moon' algorithm realize he would make my day by giving me a first class seat on my way to a big-deal demo?
Did Jon Acuff know that the chapter on "doing your best at your day job may in fact help your dream job" inspire me to really hit this demo out of the park?
Did the guy in Raleigh that cut the Hertz bus driver off...forcing him to stop at the red light...realize that the 3 minute delay made the Hertz bus roll up to the curb and open the door JUST as I was stepping off the curve? I mean you couldn't' have choreographed that better in a movie! (leave plane...walk out of airport...across heavy traffic with a perfectly timed gap...into awaiting bus)
Did the gal who assigned cars know I had an iPod aux cable and would be so happy listening to Ramble On on my way to my VP demo (with AC/DC t-shirt under my dress attire as my mojo)?
Did the guy who dropped his car keys between the door and the front seat...making him pull out 50 seconds later...which allowed me to sign out of the Hertz lot first...realize that his 50 seconds of frustration would make me hit every green light between the airport and the hotel?
Did the Google developer who got the address wrong for the first sushi place realize that the next-nearest sushi place would be oh-so-tastey that totally made my night?
Did the front desk clerk...who decided which room I was to stay in...a room away from the 'lift' and not facing sunrise...did he realize it would be the perfect environment for me to start catching up on badly needed rest?
Did the committee that decided against in-room wifi realize that I far prefer wired connections anyway...and that was really the only way I was able to make a backup movie using Camtasia?
Did Tony realize that when he left 5 minutes early from a meeting for lunch he would cross paths with me and help me find my coffee-pick-me-up that catapulted me to a great demo?
Did the buildings full of developers who implemented wireless, laptop projectors, not to mention the software I demoed...did they realize they were going to work in concert together to make a senior VP happy he invested in us?
Did the old lady who named her weird oranges "Blood Orange" because her oranges were a tad darker than others realize it would taste perfectly with agave nectar and tequila and that it would help me unwind from a long and satisfying day?
Did Mark and Jack...who joined me for dinner...realize how much it meant to me to have good conversation about life, work, and adventure? Do they realize their compliments mean the world to me and help fight back the feelings of doubt, failure, and loneliness?

Sometimes I stand amazed at how the world works.

...and how God works through the world.

...and sometimes, I deflate my ego long enough to recognize that really good days are possible not because of how good I am, but because of the good people around me.

Sure, sometimes a day bends my way because of strange circumstances...but sometimes a good day happens because of how productive, caring, and passionate a crazy amount of people are with what they do. And if they aren't passionate...at least they show up and do their job. And by just showing up...look what can happen?

To all those people who made my day a great one, I say:

Salud!

Here's to Life!

and...

Thank you.

I Love You THIS MUCH!

2011-05-29T14:30:00.001-05:00

It all started so innocently.

...an expression of love.

It ended up giving me the best from-the-gut laughter I've had in a long time.

It was just after dinner. I had a fairly decent evening with my youngest after he spent some time with me at work. I'd been kinda hard on him this winter so I've tried to spend more time with him, reinforce my interest in him, let him know he is deeply loved.

To communicate my feelings for him, I said, "Jaxon, I love you THIS MUCH" (illustrated by Figure 1)

Figure 1: My sign that expresses my love

"All around the world?", he asked? with a gleam in his eye.

"Yep!", I replied...frankly amazed at how quickly he caught on. From the tip of my finger, all around the world to the tip of my thumb (as illustrated by Figure 2)

Figure 2: Annotated sign that expresses my love

He understood. Understandably, he wanted to communicate it back.

"I love you THIS MUCH"! he responded.

Innocently...

With conviction...

...holding his finger and thumb just like I did...

...and then his middle finger popped up.

And in that micro moment all my cares in the world rolled off my back. I immediately covered my smiling mouth so as not to embarrass him. (Figure 3 illustrates resulting sign that Jaxon used to express his love)

Figure 3: Annotated example of how Jaxon shows his love :-)

Then the wife turns away from us. Jaxon thinks she's mad? Crying? Shocked at the offending hand gesture?

Nope. Shaking with laughter.

Not just laughter, but tear-rendering-there-IS-a-God-in-heaven-otherwise-gut-wrenching-funny-like-this-would-just-not-exist-but-if-I-make-a-sound-my-lovely-boy-might-be-terribly-embarrassed-and-we-don’t-need-an-outburst-13-years-from-now-starting-with-“This-is-just-like-that-time-you-laughed-at me-when-I-was-seven-for-not-having-double-jointed-finger-knuckles!” kind of laughter.

Finally, she can't keep quiet. She turns, and bursts out through her teary eyes:

"Good Morning, Ms. Carlson (teacher)! I love you THIS MUCH!"

I reply…

"Gramma, I love you THIS MUCH!"

…in unison…

“Honey, I Love You THIS MUCH!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now any normal parent would deliver a life lesson to educate the youngster that while this was a mistake, one must be careful with such displays of that particular finger…even if it was an accident.

What did I do?

I submitted an addendum to the ASL 3.0 adoption governance board to adopt “I Love You THIS MUCH'” as an official gesture in the American Sign Language lexicon.

With a bit of dedication, and a lot of work, in just a few short years you may be free to gesture:

Mr. President, I Love You THIS MUCH!

Ex-girlfriend, I Love You THIS MUCH!

Employer, I Love This Job THIS MUCH! (Notice the diversity and flexible nature of the new ASL gesture…applicable not only to people but to things)

…and that’s only when it’s used face to face. Imagine the improvement to humanity when the gesture is used:

…across streets at strangers
…towards policemen directing traffic
…towards fellow car drivers
…when signing off of Skype
…during worship services
…through emoticons when texting

Its uses are endless!

How 'bout it?

Are you with me?

Let's make this viral.

Let's change the world.

Let's take BACK the middle finger for good!!

Oh, and for any follow-up to the ASL governance board, how would YOU use this new gesture?

Funny? Cute? Dorky? or Lame?

2011-05-23T18:26:00.002-05:00

No, I’m not asking you to rank me personally. I’m not that desperate for validation.
…besides, I unfortunately know how many of you would vote :-)
I’m asking you to rank a portion of this How To video.
Here’s the story:
I recently repaired my Roland RD-500 digital piano, and I recorded video of my experience. It’s keyboard hammers have been breaking every so often over 2 years time, so after my 2nd visit to the ‘pro’ repair shop, I was told I should just get a new keyboard. Well, the HinterScrooge inside of me couldn’t accept that so I went about finding how to repair it.
Anyway, everything went well…well enough that I also repaired my church’s RD-600.
(Tip, always follow biblical teaching in these circumstances. Haggai 3:56 says “Better to learn how to repair your own electronic device rather than get all ‘know-it-all-y’ and completely break the holy keyboard of our Lord…lest you forfeit your first born…or your first guitar…whichever is more painful to part with” )
I digress.
My point: At about 8 minutes into the video, I must have been getting loopy, because I added a sub-plot to the how-to video.
Yes, a sub-plot.
I don’t mention it in the YouTube description because I thought it would be refreshing if someone was actually learning something through this video, then after 8 minutes they’d get a little scene change.
But my smile-o-meter must be broken because I can’t decide if it’s actually funny, just cute, kinda dorky, or just plain lame.
Here’s the video:

So, what is it?
Funny? Cute? Dorky? or just Lame?
Also, check back to see if any RD-500 user ‘in the wild’ comments on the video :-)
Happy voting!

Living the ST-EA-D-FAST Life

2011-05-09T11:23:00.001-05:00

Let us now begin lesson #1...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

ATTENTION! ACT NOW! TIME IS SHORT!

Is your life missing that special something? Have you been looking for the secret ingredient that will fill your life with purpose? More directly, have you been wondering how you can live like ME...filled with all the experiences and emotion I have soaked up these past months?

Have I got a program for you! I call it:

"Living The ST-EA-D-FAST Life!"

Yes, with zero up-front cost or obligation, and priceless rewards to look forward to, you can learn how to excel at achieving these life-changing milestones:

STress fEAr Doubt FAST-forward living

Sound too good to be true?!? Read on!

STress
This important first milestone can be achieved through one introductory exercise:

Focus on what others think you should be good at, not what you are actually good at.

Sound hard? Not at all! It's easy...here's how:

Write down who you are trying to impress
List the skills/activities they think you should be focusing on
Circle the activities you think will really impress them
Focus on those skills/activities
Ignore what you are actually really good at

You see kids, what I've learned is that if you find something you love...and you are really good at it...and then ignore it so you can focus on trying to do what others think you should be doing, you will quickly achieve high levels of STress that permeate through other areas of your life.

But wait, that's not all!

fEAr
This second milestone is really fun. It's like bathing in a bucket of looks-like-spa-quality-mud-but-doesn't-smell-quite-right. fEAr takes that enemy of ST-EA-D-FAST living, 'character' and 'hard work ethic', and drives a paralyzing stake through them. My personal experience is that the stake of fEAr also keeps unwanted pests away like positive attitude, compassion, and the worst pest of all, faith (Tip: I encourage you to increase your STress levels as much as possible, as it will make fEAr that much more achievable..and powerful).

What impresses me about fEAr is that it can increase through completely irrational thoughts:

I'm not hitting a home run at activity xyz!
Mr. ImpressMe must think I'm not good at that activity
That activity surely must reflect my core value to humanity
I can't simply work harder at activity xyz, the unknowns scare me too much. Better to just work on my e-mail.
I'm going to lose my job, home, and worst of all...my 'rock star' reputation

For those advanced students, add these quality measurements for more rapid fEAr achievements:

Put all your self-value into activity xyz, even though xyz doesn't even reflect your true talents
Don't have any other outlet that feeds your talents
Focus on the fEArful outcomes, not the tools to dig you out of the rut

Do you feel it? Surprisingly effective, isn't it!!

Doubt
You are well on your way! Keep striving! This third millstone, er, milestone, is Doubt...with a capital D. (I should really be a children's writer! Think how different the world would be with childhood education focused on ST-EA-D-FAST living!)

Doubt in your abilities is critical to ST-EA-D-FAST living. Without it you will be inclined to keep thinking of ways to change and adjust and reboot.

Nonsense! Changing your pattern is the worst thing for Doubt. What I've found is that Doubt feeds on itself. While it may take some effort to Doubt your life initially, once you do, it becomes easier and easier...and eventually you plan your life-direction knowing that Doubt will most likely succeed.

DO NOT WORRY that your doubt initially focuses on the activities you are not wired for...very soon Doubt will cover all activities...even those that you are actually really good at.

FAST-forward living
Now that you have a solid bedrock of STress, fEAr, and Doubt, you will find yourself careening headlong into FAST-forward living. Don't confuse this with 'life in the fast lane', or that crazy biblical self-reflection exercise of 'fasting'. FAST-forward living is quite unique.

Now pay attention...and repeat after me:

"Soon this will be done...and I can move on to the next thing"

I know. It sounds orthogonal to milestones 1 through 3. You want to say, "Dr. Rob, this doesn't sound like you. Isn't anticipation and looking forward to the joys in life the opposite of living a ST-EA-D-FAST life!?!"

Yes, dear student, it is. But the beauty of FAST-forward living is in its nuance. Try it once and you will discover: You are not anticipating the joys in life to arrive at all...you are simply avoiding living in the moment by distracting yourself with the next thing...avoiding any sliver joy now...by anticipating the END of the thing you are currently experiencing. Think of it as “Your Life – Powered By Impatience”.

This is truly the secret ingredient to ST-EA-D-FAST living.

With FAST-forward living, you can short-circuit any potential joy and satisfaction with every activity in your life. Let me repeat: EVERY activity in your life!

The latest work project? "Soon this will be done...and I can move on to the weekend"
Lazy blue-sky Saturday? "Soon this will be done...and I can focus on that next work project"
Quality family time? "Soon this will be done...and I can watch that recorded TV show"
Dream Disney vacation? "Soon this will be done and I can pay off the credit card"

Notice how it avoids immersion into any current activity! I know. Thank me later. Frankly, we all know that if we immersed ourselves into an activity, even a work activity, we might find some joy in it, and most likely come out with a successful result...and that in itself would reduce stress, fear and doubt. And that is simply unacceptable.

Of all milestones, FAST-forward living is by far the most critical to achieve. With it, a self-feeding cycle is achieved that will become the black hole center for your impatience-driven galaxy you call life.

Join Now!
I urge you to join now. What are you waiting for?

While you may just be having a 'Blue Monday' today, you could harness that emerging stress, hint of fear, glint of doubt...and with a little effort...achieve these milestones so that every single day, every lingering week, every fast-forward year can become...

your ST-EA-D-FAST life.

Start now!!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thus ends lesson one: "Using sarcasm to pull yourself out of a deep rut...and rebooting your work life where some joy can be found so you can focus on the rest of your life...and what is truly important".

Stay tuned next time for lesson two: "Using sacrilege to find a deeper connection to Jesus"

The End of Being Culturally Relevant

2011-04-30T14:57:00.001-05:00

It's over.

I was the guy who had all the film references. From "Game Over, Man!" to "Welcome to the party, pal!" to "Bring out yer dead!". Obscure Lyrics? Had 'em. Song recognition? Unbeatable, thanks to eight years of working on the loading docks at Dayton's Ridgedale with KQRS blairing 50 hours a week.

But it's now over. Why? I hit my limit. I had to put down one of the most popular books available today because I while I found it funny, it was too crass and vulgar for me to read on.

"In 50 Years We'll All Be Chicks", by Adam Corolla. A book with all the manly answers and opinions to life's current hot topics.

Me? I laughed all the way until the choice of words started burning my eyes (I'm not sure why he thought all the word choices were needed. His PG versions on the radio were just as, if not more, funny).

I'm just not able to deflect the constant barrage of language and word pictures described without it seeping into my every day thoughts. When my first thought response to a news story or co-workers opinion is lifted straight from the most colorful parts of the book, I know something needs to end.

I'm not sure if it's because I'm not as strong to compartmentalize my exposure to media like I was used to, or if I'm finally realizing I never was able to compartmentalize and I'm just now beginning to see what I read is lodged deep in my thoughts waiting to come out (By the way, do you find that what you read is lodged deeper than any visual? I sure do).

Music is the same way. I LOVE the Cee Lo Greene song. Yep...THAT song. But I listen to it once and it stays with me for days. Even the clean version. By the way, who was the snake who convinced the world that "clean" versions are, well, clean? Any eight year old with public bussing instinctively replaces the bleeps or "Forget You"s with the real thing. Maybe it was well-meaning parents like me? Well, it backfired.

Films? Ditto. I'm either more squeamish, more of a wuss, or less manly (probably all three). Or, maybe I'm finally tired of having a gory or titillating scene replay in my mind during my work day, family night, or in the middle of a worship service. Yep. It seems the most intense culture clips pop up most during a worship service.

What does all this mean? I don't know. But it make me sad.

I'm sure some would say...

..."You're growing as a Believer"
Maybe, but it still makes me sad. Which makes me doubt any growth.

..."You're nicely not loving the things of this world"
But it seems less fun. The alternatives seem more boring and less engaging. And for me there’s a lot to love in this world.

..."You now can fill your thought life on what really matters"
I don't know. I think my God-o-meter is broken. My faith is sound, but it just seems so dull right now.

..."The culture is trash, and you should be happy to be out of it"
I seem to find something meaningful and reflective in most everything I watch/listen/read. To me, the Truth can shine just as brightly in a Rolling Stones song as it can a Keith Green song (and sometimes be more effective because it’s less preachy). To just cut out current pop culture makes me less able to have open conversations with others and just isn't that appealing.

The problem is that the bad parts are cutting into me too deeply to continue to participate.

~~~~~

At this point, I'm supposed to have some inspirational twist that leaves me feeling good, and hopefully you, too. Not this time. I feel a loss...almost like a part of me died that I already miss. I should probably do something overt like start a side-blog called "365 days to find what really matters". Possibly. But I'm so weary I'm afraid it'll be day after day of "didn't find what matters today" "not today either" "nope" "Found despair today. I hope that's not what matters".

Can you relate? *

(*note: I was going to end with ‘Can you relate?’, in hopes to start a conversation…and all I ended up thinking of was that I’ve succeeded in referencing an obscure Prince lyric. Sometimes my mind plays some pretty cruel jokes on me.)

Technology That Matters - #32

2011-04-26T08:34:00.001-05:00

You already know that I'm an inventor. Having such a pulse on the edge of technology, I feel it is my duty and privilege to bring you up to speed on the latest technologies I come across that inspire me.

This one made me gasp…

So simple…

So elegant…

It is something I could have used every single day, no...several times a day, during my world travels last year (especially in Bangkok).

It is...

The toilet seat handle.

The Anti-bacterial coated toilet seat handle.

How could I have not thought of this pinnacle of technology? This should have had a "Powered by HinterVision" label on the side.

Admit it. How many times have you danced the one-footed I'm-at-the-airport-but-i-was-raised-to-raise-the-seat-when-I-pee-so-I'll-lift-the-toxic-coated-green-and-slimy-seat-with-my-foot-while-pondering-who-pees-green-and-what-country-did-that-guy-just-visit dance, only to find that the required agility can only be matched by Michael Flatley or Chris Angel...and lets face it, neither would put themselves in that position because while you're peeing with the commoners, they’re in the executive suite in the Admirals club complaining how Heathrow’s stalls have solid wooden doors and floor-to-ceiling walls compared to the "ridiculous" attempt at luxury found at Charles De Gaulle.

The caste system could be leveled, and courtesy preserved, with the world-wide adoption of this simple innovation.

MY conspiracy theory is that the anti-bacterial hand cleaner consortium are actually very much PRO-bacterial...otherwise they'd be out of a need for their product...so they suppress this toilet handle technology and force us coach-weary travelers to help the next stall occupier…resulting in either scrubbing our now leprociaic hands until they’re raw, or by attempting one-footed contortions that while a manly show of dexterity, usually ends with a deafening ‘spa-looshing’ sound of our iPhones spelunking to the depths of its watery grave.

Only the freedom fighters (bacterial insurgents to the aforementioned consortium) at the local Gymnastics club are bold and brave enough to flaunt this technology in the face of the evil suppressors and fly the handle high into the bold sweet night as an example of freedom that can be found if we…

Just…

Let …

Science …

Be …

Science.

If you truly care about freedom, post this on your status and share in the fight to liberate technology that matters!

What You See vs. What I'm Thinking

2011-04-23T15:06:00.001-05:00

I know what it looks like:

I walk on stage with confidence... Pick up my guitar and prepare for worship... Adeptly adjust the volume, tone, pedals... Glance at bassist, drummer and whisper encouragement... Wink at my singer wife... Nod with the 4 intro drumstick clicks...

...Slam into a clear, musical, rockin' solo to kick off a great morning of worship.

But did you ever wonder what I'm really thinking?

~~~~~

I walk on stage with confidence...
It's sure dark back here. I wonder where I put my guitar case? OW! There it is. That sure was a good cup of coffee. I hope the doughnut hole didn't leave goo on my playing hand. Picking hand would be fine...keep from dropping the pick. This black curtain would sure look nice in my studio. Sweet. The goo cleaned right off! Poor curtain. Next coffee is only 20 minutes away.

Pick up my guitar and prepare for worship...
Here's Commander Hinter mounting his 70mm Gatling gun preparing for battle! PEW PEW PEW. Out of the barrel shoots lasers right at the sound guy..."Don't make me sound sucky" bullets on their way! Hmm. Did I just mix 19th and 22nd century technology? Should I have thought a more manly sound than PEW? Maybe BLAM?

Adeptly adjust the volume, tone, pedals...
Uh oh. Singer isn't on stage yet. Time to pay homage to my "Tone for Jesus" Facebook fan page by fiddling with my perfectly working gear so it's not obvious we're waiting. Wow. This floor sure is dirty. Maybe I should bring a rug so my gear can rest on clean surfaces? Should I have washed my hands after that doughnut!?! Wait. I didn't have a doughnut. It was a doughnut HOLE. Big difference. But it’s not really a hole. It’s a sphere. A beautiful, sugary, tasty sphere of goodness. What if they sold Latte’s as spheres? Latte innards with doughnut outer shell? OK. Singer is ready.

Glance at bassist, drummer and whisper encouragement...
Wait. What? I don't recognize any of this music! I know we just rehearsed it 20 minutes ago...but this is the 2,637th song I've played at crossWinds and they ALL have G D C Am Em chords and an occasional Cm thrown in. Dude, telling me to read the lyrics doesn't help. They're filled with the same “God”, “Desperate”, “Wonder”, “Forever”, “Fall”, “Here I am” words as the other 2,636 songs! I AM GOING TO CRASH AND BURN!!!

Wink at my singer wife...
Maybe I can get my wife's attention. She can hum the melody in my ear like she does most other mornings. At least it's not like the evening worship where I start the song on acoustic with NO idea of tempo, time signature, nor melody, and the charts are actually laughing at me. Don't mock me, Mr. I'm-really-an-evil-upside-down-smile-not-a-sign-for-a-long-pause-Fermata. They need to invent a printer that adds a snippet of the song like the Hallmark cards so I press the paper and voilà…memory restored. DANG! Particles from the just-erected 15ft foam cross just lodged in my eye. Wife sees me in distress...she's mouthing the beat and lyrics but I can’t make it out…she looks funny… I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THIS SONG SOUNDS LIKE!!!

Nod with the 4 intro drumstick clicks...
"CLICK" OH SWEET LORD IN HEAVEN please help me remember how this song starts! "CLICK" Then again, Is this meant to be a life lesson? I see "Big Solo" scribbled at the top of the charts. Is God trying to teach me how to be humble and not show off in church? "CLICK" That serving in a band is all about helping those in the audience to connect with God during worship and not about personal fulfillment? That is profound and God driving this teaching momen… "CLICK" AHA!!! I GOT IT! HERE WE GO! YEEE HAW!!!

Slam into a clear, musical, rockin' solo to kick off a great morning of worship...
Ah....Jesus...so this is where we meet. Where we connect. I know it may look like I'm showboating to others, but I truly feel it is You and I dancing together on the fretboard...sharing private moments where any excellence I portray is clearly a gift from you…for the sole purpose of worshiping you through my playing. THIS IS SO MUCH FUN!!!

~~~~~

How about you? What goes through your mind when everyone is watching you?

Song Insight: “Hello, Happy!”

2011-04-09T22:33:00.001-05:00

Composer: Greg Hintermeister, ©2007
Arranged: Greg Hintermeister
Performed by: Greg Hintermeister
Recorded: 2007 in Hint of Light Studios
Emotions: Hope, Happy, Smiles, Anticipation, Summer Fun

Listen: Other song insights

Background:
Sometimes I'm happy.

Really happy.

Like an un-tethered burst of happy that celebrates everything around me. I love those times. Like today…or like the day I wrote this song.

Now, there are times when I’m sad, too. I honestly think my range of moods is a pre-requisite for being a Hinter. I also think it's a gift. When I'm blue, I get really down, but that’s when I get thoughtful and write a good blog post...or a good song. I also think that without the blue, I wouldn’t know the happy like I do.

When I do find Happy, happy songs come out...like this one. It's just piano, so don't get all distracted waiting for the guitars...There's enough of those in other songs. I find it a challenge to write for a single instrument so every note has to count.

To celebrate when I get to say hello to Happy, let's raise a mug and toast, in no particular order, to some things that make me happy:

Composing
The elation when it all comes together and I’m hearing music I love…and that I wrote. It’s jump up and fist-pump happy
My wife
She adds the sparkle to everything on this list
Guitars
Adventurous travel
Oceans
Lobster
Or any sea-faring food, really
Dark beer
More guitars
Lost
Especially season 1
Late night talks with my oldest son
Really dark beer
No, not a duplicate. this is a rare find.
Safaris
The real African kind
My youngest son
He's a lot like me. I’m so stinking proud and amazed at him. Also makes me sad because I fail him a lot, but that's for a later post
Playing piano
Especially my 'pretty' arrangement of Raiders of the Lost Ark during a wedding prelude. That was some serious Happy
Driving fast
Specifically, driving fast while listening to Eddie and the Cruisers II in my college-days sports car on my way to surprise my then-girlfriend now-wife in Eau Claire
My music collection
…See “driving fast”
Tequila
Reposado or Añejo preferably
My daughters
I call them Spitfire and Pistol. What a journey they’re taking me on!
Concerts
Actually depends on the performance. Always worthwhile, but sometimes I get blue because I’m not up there playing with them
Working outside
Mowing, gardening, trimming trees, love all of it
Campfires
Marshmallows wrapped in tortillas grilled in campfire pie-maker. Amazing!

I could put a hundred more items in the list.

Funny, but nothing in that list includes technology…something that I spend MOST of my time interacting with during work and while at home.

Maybe that should tell me something.

My faith isn't listed in there, either. But there's a reason for that.

I personally find that having a faith in Jesus makes everything in that list stay Happy. With my faith, I have an anchor, a sense of purpose (that I many times forget but eventually remember). That anchor makes the list fun! Without it, those things in my list would be potential sources of purpose…and would quickly be removed from my ‘fun’ list and move to my ‘obsessive’ or ‘destructive’ list.

So here’s to life, to fun, and to faith.

Here’s to Happy!

Oh, and enjoy the song :-)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Technical Specifics:
Recording Unit: Cakewalk MIDI software, Soundscape DAW
Piano: RD-500

I composed this for a live theatre production at the Rochester Community and Technical College called “Imperfect Apple”. It was the opening number where we see the young lead character for the first time giving her wonderful, and happy, outlook on life. We soon learn she faces cancer, and the rest of the play revolves around her thoughts and journey through her treatment.

It was an awesome show!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lost Vegas

2011-03-29T13:56:00.001-05:00

A few weeks ago I had my 4th business trip to Las Vegas. I've told my colleagues several times how I really don't like that city, but have never been able to articulate why until now...

...thanks to my youngest, his innocence, and his school journal entry:

"My dad went away. He went to lost vagas. I miss him. He is a nighs dad. I like him. He likes to play music.”

Lost Vegas.

That's exactly it. I feel lost when I'm in Vegas...and I'm guessing others feel lost there, too.

I lose my connection with nature
Maybe it's just me, but I don't see anything natural in Vegas. Sure there's a lot of pretty water fountains and flowers and trees, and the architecture mimics the greatest landmarks in the world.

But it’s all fake. Unnatural. Even the real trees are not naturally supposed to be there.

Nothing in Vegas is real…

…and something deep inside of me bridles against that.

I lose my moral compass
OK. I don't really lose it, but it sure has a hard time pointing me to safety while in Vegas. It tries to point me to Blue Man Group, an oasis of un-naked-entertainment, but the interference from everything else makes the needle spin and lose its way.

But I don't blame the city. So what if it caters to the care-free? The city is not is forcing me to walk slowly by the 'baseball cards' lying on the sidewalk, street, shrubs, and every other surface showing girls for hire.

I don't blame the workers in Vegas. 90% of them are just like me...doing honest work cooking, cleaning, maintenance, IT jobs...so they can support their family. It’s not their clean tables or good food forcing me to turn in my seat to watch while a volcano blows and “Lava Girls" slide out into a 30' Margarita mug.

I don't even blame the 90' billboards of showgirls pointing their bareness at me in glowing lights (although the Hot Girls ads on the trucks that constantly cruise the strip are a bit maddening).

At the end of the day I shake my moral compass and wonder why I didn't stop and wonder if my thoughts and subtle actions throughout the day honored my wife, my daughters, and my God.

I lose my joy
I think others do, too. All I need to hear is the 'ding ding ding" of the slot machines and my whole spirit drops (I'm convinced the gates to hell are lined with Wheel of Fortune slot machines). I walk around watching my peers play the slots, and there's no smiling, not even any conversation. Anywhere.

I really lose my joy (and a few tears) when casino after casino brings out the pole dancers. Mind you, they are not in some corner or secluded club…but in the smack middle of the casino along the walkway between the front door and the elevators. I first feel guilt at even a glance…then I feel shame. I start wondering what started that former 8 year old daughter, made in God’s image, hopefully loved by parents, down the path where she’s making ends meet by dancing for men in a casino.

…oh, and I notice she’s not smiling either.

But then I find...
But as I write this, I'm surprised to think there is something to find in Vegas.

I find a reflection of myself.

My own life is filled with normal, everyday activities that are neither good nor bad. I’m surrounded by temptations (just maybe not as obvious). I can choose to stare at those temptations or choose to follow my moral compass. I fail far more than I care to admit.

My life is also filled with normal, everyday people. Regardless of what they are doing, God loves them and He wants me to love them, too. Not mock them, not judge them, not use them, not ignore them.

God wants me to love them (that scares me more than the roller coaster at the top of the Stratosphere).

In the end, I’m surprised to find that maybe what I really don’t like about Vegas is exactly what I don’t like about myself…

…I can be fake

…I can be amoral

…I can be joyless (and bring others down)

…I can be unloving, uncaring, and use those who God loves.

But a reflection can work both ways…

Maybe next time I can reflect back the good that Jesus is slowly adding to my life. Maybe that will help my little corner of Vegas to become more real, moral, joyful…and loving.

The Dead Sea iScrolls

2011-03-22T22:20:00.001-05:00

When I come across the same topic over and over, I know it’s not coincidence…it’s a higher power urging me to write it down. Forgive me…and special thanks to Henry, Becky, and Mark for being sources of inspiration…I blame you as much as anyone.

The Gospel of Henry

Chapter 3
And then the scholar approached and proclaimed, “Teacher, I am hoping I have an iPhone in heaven....it sure will make eternity whiz by”.

A hush fell over the temple as the Pharisees and tax collectors awaited with bated breath for the teacher’s response. Would the implication of ‘boredom’ in the “house with many rooms” result in a thunderbolt deepening the scholar’s already red hair? Or maybe a remote wipe of all phone data?

“Of course there will be, my son”, said the Teacher with a wide smile. “…and the one in Heaven will run Flash!”

The disciples chuckled, but gasps spread quickly across the grumbling Pharisees and religious rulers. The Teacher chose not to pay attention…instead bending down and gesturing onto the responsive touch screen, fully engaged in the casual game-play of throwing exploding birds at pigs. But grumblings grew more and more intense. “Mine already runs Flash”, one said. “His doesn’t even run full multi-tasking”, said another.

Finally, out of the corner, tracing an apple-shaped logo over her Android, a faithful follower of the Teacher whispered to herself, “I hope we are not partitioned…between the sheep and the goats…between iPhone and Droid”.

“It doesn't look good, Becky”, replied the Teacher. Becky was surprised that the Teacher could hear her whisper while simultaneously attaining level 37.

“The scriptures clearly say”, as he rolled out the scrolls…

Becky hung her head in despair. “Then am I doomed? I hoped to have redeemed myself by having an iMac and an iPad.”

“Of course! Why didn’t you say so!”, said the Teacher. “Your redemption is clearly stated in Haggai 2:34, which talks of the ‘2/3’ rule”…

Convinced at the Teacher’s knowledge of the scriptures, and frankly surprised at how technically prophetic Haggai was…

…all who had white ear buds to hear

…all who had augmented reality apps to see

…and all who had FaceTime to tell loved ones the good news…

Believed.

Thus endeth the Gospel of Henry.

2011-02-13 Amy Grant & Michael W. Smith

2011-03-20T22:36:00.000-05:00

02-13-2011: Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith
Where: Orpheum, Minneapolis MN
Went with: Wife

What’s your sweet spot?

You know, that thing you are really good at? The one place you perform at your absolute best? That passion in your life God has gifted you to excel at?

Sometimes it’s hard to find, so you try a lot of different things to see what works out.

But sometimes you find your sweet spot early on because it’s so obvious. Yet eventually those around you encourage you to ‘try something new’, or ‘stretch yourself’, or say ‘a broad set of skills is critical to maintain a long career’. Or, other priorities get in the way and you just stop doing what you were made for, and end up losing impact, satisfaction, and all around joy in life.

You see, I lost my sweet spot, and I used to wonder if I’d ever find it again.

And then I went to the Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith show with my wife.
Mike and Amy were made to write songs and perform them on stage together. It was so amazing to watch. The comfort, intuition, and trust they have for each other is obvious.

While they’ve traveled many different paths in their musical lives, some being quite successful, when Mike and Amy get on the same stage and share the songs that define their career…

…they are definitely in their sweet spot.
The concert itself was filled with hit songs, beautiful lyrics, rocking musicians, life stories, and obvious shared emotion when they talk about the impact each has had on the other’s life. I think they realize they found their sweet spot again, too.

Of course, it didn’t hurt that we were able to get 2nd row seats!
And you know what?

…This show helped me find my sweet spot again.

My sweet spot is playing original music with my wife. We started when we were both 17, and while we are still deeply involved with music together, it’s just not the same as when we sing and play original music.

When we are playing and singing together to a receptive crowd, it is one of the best moments that we share. While I’m not much of a singer, our duets are quite effective. Maybe it’s my raw tones mixed with her perfect tones that blend into a real-world sound that all listeners can relate to. Maybe it’s the way that we can anticipate where we are going in a song based solely on a breath, a look, or a loving glance that makes the music so meaningful and powerful.

Or maybe it’s our comfort, intuition, and trust we have on stage that help communicate our love for each other…and our love for our Savior…which is what having a sweet spot is all about in the first place.

My hope? That I can readjust my priorities so we can use our sweet spot more. I need to write more songs with her as lead vocal. I’ve got one song written that I can’t wait to share…and I think there are some more that are on the tip of my fingers just waiting to come out.

Thank you, Mike and Amy, for helping me find my sweet spot again…and for reigniting a passion to create music with my wife.

My Secret Passion

2011-03-11T14:28:00.001-06:00

Shhh!

Don’t let anyone know…

…but there’s a certain part of IBM that I simply love.

No, this isn’t a blatant attempt at buttering up our new Watson overlord who is currently using his Jeopardy-winning skills to sniff the Internet to answer the $2000 question in the “Winning! Like Sheen” category, “Employees ranting about IBM”. If it were, this post would be filled with obvious, italically-texted fawning that Watson would pick up on. I’m just too mature for such juvenile antics.

If IBM were food it would be Ice Cream!

Nope. What I love about IBM is that it’s where I learned to thrive as an inventor…and for that I am truly grateful.

More than any label given to me by IBM, “Master Inventor” is the one I value the most. I don’t talk much about it because I fear it’s ‘bragging'. However, since I recently reached somewhat of a milestone: 30 issued US patents, in addition to 2 China, 1 Japan, and 1 Taiwan issued patents, I think it’s time to talk about it.

Meet my kids: Lou, Sam, and AS400 (pronounced “Az-far-ooo”)

I love the creativity of inventing…

I love exploring the endless possibilities of inventing…

I love the collaboration of inventing…

…and I love that IBM supports my inventing passion.

I don’t write about my day job much because while most of the time it’s really good, sometimes it’s tough. However, IBM offers me this creative outlet outside of my day job that consistently floats my boat.

IBM should stand for Incredibly Blessed Me!

If I were to dream up a program that twirls my whirl I couldn’t think of a program better than this. Let me describe how it works:

When I am frustrated with technology, have technical problems in my day job, hear my kids/wife ticked about their game/pc behavior, or hear news stories that catches my attention, I capture that nugget, then brainstorm on what IBM could build that would solve that problem. I then get to unleash all my creativity to design an elegant solution, all without worrying about how doable it is to code in a current release cycle. I write up the design in detail, submit it, and if it gets through several review processes, IBM files it with the government to obtain a patent.

It’s honestly one of the most satisfying activities I do at work.

You should see my “I ♥ IBM” tattoo

After it’s filed, if it’s truly a unique idea, the government issues a patent (usually one to nine years later).

Click Here to see my current list of issued US patents. Some are low level and very technical, but some you might like.

Here are a few of my favorites:

Pictorial-based user interface management of computer hardware components
Filed 9/11/2000
Issued 3/31/2009
We had to create an interactive picture-based UI to manage our IBM computers. Nobody had done it before do the depth we did.

Watson = “kind benefactor” in middle Germanic!

Synchronizing software between computers
Filed 5/19/1999
Issued 7/23/2002
This basically says that our team (read: IBM) has the patent on synchronizing software between any two computing devices.

Changing display of data based on a time-lapse widget
Filed 11/18/2004
Issued 4/21/2009
You ever watch American Idol and wonder, “Who wrote that song?”, “They just showed the guitar player…what kind of guitar is that?”, or “What records has Simon produced?”. Well I did, and this resulting patent provides a way to stream related links, videos, photos in a rolling timeline so while you watch American Idol you can view related content while it’s happening (a perfect iPad app!).

Manna from Heaven? Almost…IBM employment!

Relaying of Messages
Filed 9/11/2003
Issued 2/13/2007
I got this idea after boarding a plane and losing my cell connection. I just wanted to complete what I wanted to say and send it to the person I was talking to without having reconnect and start over. With this invention you can push a button, finish your thought, then put your phone away. As soon as signal reappears, it will auto-send the message to the person’s phone. Or just ‘call’ several people while on the plane, and when the phone gets a signal, the messages are auto-sent.

I’ve got other patents I’m happy with too, like this one that is pretty far from my day job: the Smart Occupant Alarm System. This is a car seat that responds when inside an over-heating car and calls 911 automatically, pinpointing its location. Or the China patent, which is a DVD that, instead of a plastic ring in the inner circle, has FLASH memory…so that my son can bring his PlayStation games to a friends house and his scores and preferences are still on the disk, not in the console at home (thanks for your frustration, son!).

My heart beats IBM in Morse Code!

As you can see, it takes a long time from initial write up to an issued patent. I hope you can also see that it’s a long journey I am loving and hope to continue for years to come. I’ve been blessed to have 34 issued patents, and there are 39 more filed in some government slot waiting for approval that I’d REALLY like to tell you about!

‘Course if I told you about those, I would hear my Watson over-lord respond, “What is ‘rust’, ‘lightning’, and ‘sack of crap’?” to the question, “name three things Watson likes more than Greg”.

6785 days working for IBM. That means 8,215 left. Sweet!

Of course, to think that Watson technology is used to monitor IBM employees is ridiculous.

Watson Rocks!!!

2011-01-29 Marc Cohn

2011-02-27T11:25:00.001-06:00

01-29-2011: Marc Cohn
Where: Burnsville Performing Art Center, Burnsville MN
Went with: Myself

On January 29, 2011, I had a busy evening:

Walked in Memphis
Took a ride on a Silver Thunderbird
Wondered about Heaven
Walked through the world
Found 29 ways to make it to my lovers door
Said goodbye to my Mom when I was 6
Saw the Day of The Dead parade just after the levees broke
Met my True Companion, got married, lived, and died

…at least that’s what my emotions went through at the Marc Cohn concert.

Marc Cohn’s songs impact me like no other singer/songwriter. I don’t know why he isn’t more well known. If I were to name my top 5 songs, I think 2 or 3 would be Marc Cohn songs.

I wish I could write songs like his. His vocal range is a perfect match, and our piano/guitar styles are similar. Maybe I haven’t tried because when I’m sad and blue, and I’m trying to convey how I feel, I hear a Marc Cohn song and think, “Yep, that’s it exactly”, and then move on since I can’t improve on what he captured.

The almost-idiotic thing is that I nearly decided not to go. I had traveled SO much in 2010 and I had barely set foot in the house when the pre-sale email appeared. I hadn’t listened to his music much lately, and I didn’t know if he was still relevant in my life. But, I did buy them and ended up getting a first row seat.

It wasn’t perfect, though. I only got one ticket and not two. I do remember asking my wife if she wanted to go, but it was in December and the last thing she wanted was another commitment. I should have just bought two tickets as the night was a journey I wish we could have shared.

From the first chord, the music filled the theatre, and my heart. Even the placement of the instruments was perfect. Notice how the guitar amp was pointing directly at me? The combination of clean electric and piano on these songs was breathtaking.

He is very much a musicians musician. He talked about his songs, how they were inspired, and how blessed he feels to still be doing this after 20 years. His first album (with Walking in Memphis and most of his other hits) was written in a 3 month period after his hero, James Taylor, said in an interview that when he has writers block, he physically relocates to another part of the country. Marc then took a 2 week trip to Memphis, soaked in the culture, people, places, then three months later returned with 6 hits.

Finally…I love this shot:The players were so good and loved the music so much that many times they just turned to each other and let the music pour out…and since this was his last show before returning home, they played for nearly 3 hours.

I think at times they forgot we were even there…which is fine with me.

Thank you Marc, for giving me music that captures my adventurer’s heart so well. You’ve inspired me to get back to writing songs on piano again…

…maybe there’s a song or two in me yet.

Read other robot concert thoughts

A REAL Hintermeister – Marriage Quiz

2011-02-19T22:19:00.001-06:00

If you look around the Hinterland, you may notice an extra dose of
affection in our marriages. While communication, hard work, and listening are common ingredients, there is also an extra "something" that makes a HinterMarriage work.

Take this quiz to see if you have a dose of HinterMojo in your marriage.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Scenario 1: Your wife is playing a timed game in her phone which requires all of her concentration.

Do you:

A) Wait to talk while while at the same time enjoying the beauty of her face. Additionally, you spend the time thinking how you can make her happier knowing as soon as she is able she will focus on you.

B) Tell her some bad news...most likely she won't hear it. But later,
you can truthfully say "but I told you last Sunday"

C) Ask permission to buy a new gadget (read: guitar). Most likely she'll just hear "can I... " and just say yes. Note: be sure to have your shopping cart full to the point of "confirm purchase". That way the time between her "Yes" and " Wait, what?” only needs to be 1.37 seconds long to finalize the purchase.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Scenario 2: You and the missus are deep inside Mayo Clinic on an all day adventure with your mended-heart girl, and there is NO SERVICE on either iPhone. Your wife pulls up a game to pass the time.

Do you:

A) Compliment her on her casual gaming skills

B) Pull up a fancier-dancier game because she inherited your old phone, and while it was cool in 2008, you almost feel sorry for her vintage technology as you pummel your virtual opponent.

C) After she starts her game, loudly state (so the echo tech can
hear), "Huh. No Internet connection. I guess I'll do what I always do: pull out my Bible app and read my off-line version of the New Living Translation. I wonder what Haggai can teach me today? Honey, do you want to read along? Well, maybe your heart will soften some day"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Scenario 3: Your Bride complains about all the laundry she has to do with 6 humans in the house.

Do you:

A) Offer to take over the laundry chores

B) Offer your kids as humble laundry servants. That's the second reason why you had 4 of them anyway. (The first being, of course, being that a family of 6 is the perfect fit for amusement park rides...whether the seats come in 2-2-2 or 3-3 configurations)

C) Embark on your one-man campaign to reduce laundry-ready clothes by wearing the same jeans, cozy shirt, and fleecy the whole week long...only putting on new undergarments each day...ok...once every two days.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Scenario 4: You're turning down the street with your blinker on, and you use your tongue-clicking skills to create a crazy complex rhythm that combines ethnic tribal beats with the turn signal. Your wife says to stop acting like your 7 year old and be quiet!

Do you:

A) Apologize and turn the radio back to “songs we thought were cool in the 80’s”

B) Feign shock at her dissing your new found gonna-retire-a-gojillionaire tongue-rhythm skills and vow to only let her visit you in your tongue-shaped mansion twice a month

C) Triple-down and add lip spurty razzberries, guinea-pig-throat-grunts, and perform your “Shower-stall symphonies” until she remembers she married you for richer and poorer, sickness and health, adolescent and mature.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

How did you score?

If you chose:
A) You will learn the hard way that women don’t really want sincerity and apologies. Good luck.

B) Your HinterMojo is brewing but still needs some time in the fire

C) HinterMojo is nicely adding fire to your marriage and you are closer than ever to her realizing you already ARE the perfect mate.

857,942nd Follower

2011-02-16T22:47:00.001-06:00

It’s dark

My pack is heavy

The path is narrow

I can see where I’m going by the light in the distance

Not doing a lot of talking

My head is down

I am (mostly) surefooted

I am focused on the journey

There’s excitement up at the front, but not back here

The One I’m following is up there

He called me to follow Him when I was young

I answered the call

I’ve been following ever since

At times I’ve been sold out

Other times not so much

But I know this is where I’m meant to be

I know to my core this is the Way, the Truth, the Life

There’s a long line behind me

There's an even longer line in front of me

I know people up front, excited, talking a lot

They’re really close to Him

They talk directly with Him

My Dad is way up there sharing wisdom

My Grandma smiles at His stories

My brother talks to strangers about Him

Me? I’m back here

I’m serving in the band

It’s what I’ve been called to do

I help create a ‘moment’ so He can call others

I think it helps open their ears to hear Him

Some answer His call and start their journey

Soon they pass me by

They join the excited up at the front

They celebrate their changed lives

Me?

I’m still following

At a distance

I’m following

But it’s a lot of work

Following

Not doing a lot of talking

I am a follower

But following doesn’t require conversation

Only obedience

I want something deeper

I want to join the excited at the front

I want to say hi to Him

Be passionate for Him

Be sold out again

Ask Him questions

And listen…

And understand…

And smile…

…and rest.

Are You a REAL Hintermeister?

2011-01-31T22:04:00.001-06:00

With all my attempts at trying to become less robot-y, I am concerned that I have mis-guided you to think incorrectly of the Hintermeister Brand. After all, we are a unique gene pool that dates back to the year 1370 in Gerlisberg, Switzerland. Here is our family crest:

Therefore, in order to gain full appreciation of all that is true Hintermeister spirit, I have created a self-guided test to determine if you can consider yourself a REAL Hintermeister.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Scenario 1: You are mowing your 5 acre yard and see a small furry critter running away from you in fear.

Do You:

A) Stop the mower until the critter is at a safe distance, then erect a small ‘animal-crossing’ picket fence to avoid future mower-induced fear that might shorten the life of your furry friend

B) Ignore the critter and continue to mow because, well, a straight-lined lawn is a Godly lawn. And, if God had meant for me to care for that creature He would have made it out of an iPhone, a guitar, or made it run a heckova lot faster

C) Swerve wildly in hot pursuit in hopes that you overtake the critter, see furry confetti fly out of the business end of the mower, and celebrate with the same gusto as one would celebrate your brother crashing his car into the family mailbox

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Scenario 2: You have 4 or more children. Off in the distance you hear one of them screaming.

Do You:

A) Drop everything you’re doing, find your precious off-spring and have a calm discussion with any oppressor of the benefits of verbal diplomacy

B) Drop everything you’re doing, find out if your precious off-spring’s pain is:

1) If self-inflicted: Tell him to grow a pair and learn to suffer because life is full of pain

2) If bully-inflicted: Declare that jail is going to be a tasty reward fo the pummeling you are about to give his offender

C) Drop another ice-cube into your drink and turn the music up louder. If they were really hurt someone would come running with blood on their hands to prove it. Besides, you are well stocked with extras

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Scenario 3: Your favorite band is coming to concert, but your wife is not a fan. Further, it’s on your anniversary.

Do You:

A) Spend quality time with your wife

B) Spend quality time with your wife before the concert. Suddenly complain of a headache…and go see the concert…return with medicine from the store and resume quality time after the concert

C) Inform your wife through her Google Calendar that you have a scheduling conflict from 7pm-10pm that night, and counter with several other nights during the rest of the month that work for you

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Scenario 4: You finally got the book/movie you’ve been waiting from the library for 3 months, but you just got back from two weeks of travel and your family wants “connect-with-daddy” time.

Do You:

A) Set aside the book/movie because you realize your family is far more entertaining and fulfilling than any book or movie

B) Set aside the book/movie while you arrange a ‘play-date’ for your kids…and wife…leaving you all alone. Creatively, you arrange to rid the house of your family without them knowing, thereby reflecting any guilt onto them

C) Declare that it’s “Healthy Family Month” and have them all in bed by 8PM…leaving the entire evening to you and the missus…and the fact that she just “doesn’t get” Clint Eastwood and leaves you alone…Well that’s just more chips and cheese for you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Scenario 5: You are at a family reunion and a new married-into-the-family relative-ette asks, “Why are only the women helping to get the reunion meal made!?!”

Do you:

A) Stand up and offer to help

B) Stand up and move out of ear-shot to a different chair

C) Reply “Because I’m not barefoot and can’t get pregnant. Oh, and while you’re helping, could you top off my drink?”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Scenario 6: Your in-laws are scheduled to come over for dinner on a perfect summer evening.

Do You:

A) Prepare the grill, cook the meat, enjoy their company

B) Prepare the grill, cook the meat, enjoy their company

C) Prepare the grill, cook the meat, enjoy their company

…because a Hintermeister just doesn’t mess with the in-laws. Not only is it good for marital bliss, ANY reason to cook meat over fire while drinking a fine porter is a good decision.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

How did you score?

If you chose:
A) You’d better get your DNA tested…I’m not sure HinterBlood runs through your veins.

B) You are a qualified Hintermeister. However, you could learn to unlock some more of the secret HinterMojo

C) HinterMojo runs wild in your blood and you are a honorable representative of the Hintermeister Brand.

Stay tuned for future tests to determine if you are a REAL Hintermeister not just at home, but also at work and while travelling.

Song Insight: “Everything’s Gold”

2011-01-08T11:34:00.001-06:00

Composer: Greg Hintermeister, ©1999
Arranged: Greg Hintermeister
Performed by: Greg Hintermeister
Recorded: 2011 in Hint of Light Studios
Emotions: Pride, Regret, Despair, Loss

Listen:
Other song insights

Background:
What’s your top priority in life?

This song is about a man whose top priority in life was his career. Somewhere far down the priority list were his friends, kids, wife, and eventually Jesus. We meet him as he reaches the apex of his career. He’s at the top. Everything around him is gold…hotels, money, power, frequent flyer status, prestige, perks.

…but he ends up filled with regret, loss, and loneliness.

I’ve met some people where I work like this. Some of their casual comments about the hours away from home…their “dedication”…it makes me sad.

This will be my 19th year at my career, and I’ve tried to balance this line between a job I really enjoy and the family I love. I think I’m doing OK since my kids still miss me and complain when I travel. But it is hard. I know there are times I am so focused on work that while physically home, I’m very far away. I also don’t think I take the kids on little ‘outings’ enough. I really need to look more at how my role model balanced his career and kept his priorities straight.

Who is my role model?
My Dad.

While he was very successful and sure seemed at the top of the rung in his career, I never felt like he was absent growing up. In fact, what I remember is how much we did together…

I remember our play wrestling (when we were both a lot younger)

I remember playing catch (and a wicked curve ball I could never hit)

I remember the Bible-study parties they’d throw with their friends (and the bursts of laughter as I was trying to sleep)

I remember Saturday fishing trips to catch crappies (Lake Clearwater…so much fun)

I remember the countless hours at his dad’s lake home helping maintain it (and his wonderful decision to stop raking the seaweed off the beach…since it was usually delegated to one of us boys)

I remember the trips he would take with his wife (and, the way-out-of-control parties I threw while they were gone…but that’s another story for another time…)

He always seemed to have his priorities straight.

Recently my dad wrote me that he felt at a loss for words and embarrassed when co-workers talked about hobbies because my dad didn’t have any.

Now that I think through this, I’m not so sure.

I define a hobby as something one spends time doing solely because he loves doing it and is passionate about it; not expecting any monetary reward.

I think his hobby was his relationships. His kids, friends, wife, and Jesus…

…and at the top of the list has always been his relationship with Jesus. I’ve never seen someone pour over the Bible the way he does (then and now).

Inspiring.

Thank you, Dad.

You showed by example how to love the challenges of a career, and how important it is to love what you do for a living. Yet you also showed by example that when you put your wife, kids, friends, and Jesus at the top of your priority list…

…that’s when everything truly is gold.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Technical Specifics:
Recording Unit: Cakewalk MIDI software, Soundscape DAW
Drums: Roland XV-5080
Percussion: Egg shaker, Tambourine
Acoustic Guitar: Ovation 1712 Custom Balladeer
Piano: RD-500
Electric Guitar: Paul Reed Smith Hollowbody II (rhythm)
Guitar Amp: Fender Hot Rod Deluxe
Electric Guitar Mics: close: Shure SM57; 3ft back: CAD E100
Acoustic Guitar Mics: CAD E100, Rode NT1
Bass: RD-500

Recording Specifics:
Since it had been 12 years since I composed and performed this song, I wanted a bit more modern feel to this song. I asked my oldest son to drum along to the chorus while I played. I recorded his drumming then recreated it on the XV-5080 unit. I’m so glad I did that as he provided a great kick-snare beat that I would have never thought of.

I then added piano, keyboard bass, acoustic guitar, then distorted electric guitar. I did record distorted electric for all of verse 3 and the B section but reduced it to just the B section in order for the dynamics of the song to keep growing.

Part of the song sound airy and open and I fought my instincts to fill it with little guitar or piano fills…I love doing those…but I felt the song needed to breathe since the character is really desperate and lost. I am VERY happy with how this turned out sonically. I finally have a decent mastering process using Audacity where I use the Leveller, EQ, Normalize functions, and then export to iTunes.

Composing Specifics:
This is the first song I wrote for a crossWinds church service. It was performed on January 17, 1999. The topic was “Intentional Living: People - priority #2”.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lyrics ©1999 Greg Hintermeister
Verse 1:
Look at me Look what I’ve done
I’m at the top of the ladder Top of the rung
Everywhere I go people say to me
hey, Everything’s Gold

Verse 2:
Look at me Look what I’ve done
I’ve spent a lifetime dreaming no time living
But everywhere I go people say to me
Everything’s Gold Everything’s Gold...

Verse 3:
Look at me What have I done
I’ve sacrificed my friends, my kids, the love of my life for the good of the selfish one
Still everywhere I go people say to me
hey, Everything’s Gold

B Section:
I’d trade it in a second for a trace of happiness
I’d give my entire world
for a glimpse of what I could have had
instead of loving all I’m worth

Verse 4:
Look at me Look what I’ve done
I’m at the top of the ladder it’s so dark and alone
Still everywhere I go People say to me
Everything’s Gold

End:
Everywhere I go I see it’s all worthless...
but Everything’s Gold
Everything’s Gold
Everything’s Gold

“Fun” Test + Fail = Peacemaker

2010-12-29T16:34:00.001-06:00

It all started with a test.

A test to see how much fun was I having in my life.

I Failed. Miserably.

But that very day God provided a solution…

…become a Peacemaker.

More specifically, become an international-traveling, life-loving, experience-embracing, concert-screaming, “Here’s To Life!”-saluting Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers fan.

Now, 3 years, 9 shows, 7,406 miles, 2 countries, 5 cities, dozens of shots of tequila, 9 albums, and 8 hotels later, I can truly say I am having more fun, soaking in better music, enjoying a better marriage, drinking better tequila, and am more energized to take a big bite out of this beautiful world than I ever thought possible.

How did this happen?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was May 6th, 2007. My wife was gone on a weekend getaway, and I was home in the middle of another “Hey I’m almost 38 and I need to behave like an adult with 4 kids and a mortgage that won’t quit so don’t tell me I need to squeeze fun into the middle of my busy, career-building, debt-soaked life” day.

Little did I know God had already put in motion a grand plan to put a smile back on my heart.

At church the topic was “God Loves Fun”. The main point was that God loves it when we have fun…good ol’ fashion barn-burning, doesn’t-have-to-be-spiritual-to-be-God-affirming fun. During the service we took a test to measure how much fun we were having in our lives.

I failed, and not just a “hey, maybe you should see an extra movie once in a while” kind of fail, but a “Sheesh, you’re stifling your life by taking it all way too seriously” kind of fail.

Then the cavalry rode in to rescue me…

…with my wife leading the charge, a glyph flag waving in the wind, and a rock n’ roll band singing about Mexican moonshine, contraband, hourglasses, grains of rice, and leaky little boats.

The wife pulled into the driveway happier than I’ve seen her in a long time. She had just experienced her first Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers (RCPM) concert the night before (Cinco de Mayo) with her friend Lisa and was already breathing in the good vibrations of life.

I then proceeded to tell her of my test…and how grandly I failed it. Within 2 minutes, the next 36 hours (and really the rest of my life) were set. It went something like this:

ME: …then it said I needed to find something fun. Something spontaneous.
HER: RCPM is playing tonight in Des Moines! LETS GO!
ME: You’re nuts.
HER: (eyes sparkling, smile gleaming, toes bouncing)
ME: What about the kids, catching up on work, and who would want to go with us?
HER: James and Lisa! I know she’ll call within 10 minutes saying that they’re going!
(seconds later)
HER: “Hello? Lisa! …Awesome! …working on him now. See you in 30 minutes”
ME: Ummm…
HER: “Hello? Mom, we need a favor…yes…20 minutes. Thank you!”
HER: All set. Lets Rock.
ME: But…
HER: COME ON!

30 minutes later we were fleeing our mundane home towards a temporary Sonoran oasis in Des Moines to see RCPM. During the trip we got a crash course in the history of RCPM, The Refreshments, someone named Buddy, and listened to as many songs as possible.

3.5 hours later RCPM took the stage.

The quick snare roll led into the infectious guitar riff that offered us a special kind of contraband. We were off on a journey led by an experienced troubadour through the adventures that life had in store for us if we just opened ourselves to the opportunities.

The Telecaster started the very next song with a perfect rhythmic riff offering us to go down together while the Les Paul blasted licks that sounded how red wine tastes..we liked that a lot.

By the end of the night, when the songs were mere echoes in our heads, the limes had been bitten, and our back-stage conversations with the band were over, my life-lens had been re-focused. I was given a musical medicine that could mend my attitude when it faltered.

I discovered it wasn’t a mundane home I was fleeing after all. It was a mundane attitude on life. I had everything one could hope for, except the ability to recognize it. The vibrations I heard that night brought me closer to God, my wife, music, and my kids. I began to remember what it felt like to compose a song. How a 2 line lyric backed by the right chords can melt a heart, unify a crowd, and make a soul come alive.

I remembered what it was like to have fun.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I realize now that while it’s hard work to live life with a passion, and that it takes energy to squeeze the most out of this world, the results are well worth it:

A far happier attitude
A marriage closer and lovelier than I could imagine
A domestic adventure worth cherishing (con quatro niños!)
An expectation that something great is about to happen every day

And here’s the best part: we don’t go to RCPM shows to escape our lives…instead we have infused this life-loving RCPM attitude into our daily living. Going to an RCPM show is our way to add fuel to our peace-and-love-through-rock-and-roll fire that burns in our hearts.

Thank you Roger, Jim, P.H., Nick, Steve for providing the contraband.

Thank you wife for sailing on this beautiful adventure by my side.

Thank you God for showing me how rich and textured a life can be.

Salud. Here’s to life!

My 2010 IBM World Tour – Highlights

2010-12-21T13:24:00.001-06:00

While the last post focused my year long “Customer Adoption” tour By The Numbers, this post highlights my favorite memories from my favorite cities.

Enjoy…

~ Highlights ~

4/15 Washington DC
Loved taking an intense walkabout across the mall, Smithsonian, US Capital, Library of Congress, Supreme Court, and metro. Ended up creating a movie with a surprising list of who's-who that really likes our product!

6/27-6/29 New York
I have two standing destinations when I visit NYC: Rudy’s Guitar Shop, which sells my dream guitar: Paul Reed Smith Tonare Grand acoustic guitar

…and The Iridium…where the best music is performed live in an intimate location with available front row tables: Read Detailed Memories of this night or just view the summary photo:

7/14-7/17 San Mateo
I got to visit the Golden Gate Bridge, Muir Woods and Muir Beach, and my childhood home. Amazing places.

8/12-8/22 Sydney
Stayed at the Intercontinental Sydney. Just off the harbor at Circular Quay. Blue Mountains, Manly and Bondi beaches, trains, harbors, and the nice people. Oh, and ‘Flat White’ coffee. “Have here or take-away?”

9/10-9/14 London/Warwick
The castles, history, fish and chips, hearing Big Ben strike 12, Warwick castle, and free golf at the Ardencote Manor. This place was on IBM’s approved list, and was a private country club. Stunning!

9/15-9/17 Budapest
I absolutely loved Budapest. Buda on one side of the Danube river, Pest on the other. Intercontinental Hotel was amazing and I got to play some guitar!

the guided tour through Budapest inspired me to show everyone what makes my life sparkle…

9/18-9/24 Johannesburg
Went on a real-life safari. Amazing. Oh, and that fence? That’s OUR cage to keep us safe during one of our breaks from the animals on the outside.

9/30-10/05 Singapore
Little India had authentic street-side curry. Wonderful tasting, and it didn’t kill us! Little China showed us an authentic fish market:

10/6-10/10 Bangkok
Messy, chaotic, lots of bugs, did I say chaotic? And HOT! We had to wear pants on our tourist day. No, as opposed to shorts, smart-aleck, in order to see the temples. Great scenery but I’m fine not going back.

11/09-11/11 Dallas
One word: Steak. Amazing steak. Oh, and we crashed an HP conference…a good topic for another blog :-)

12/05-12/09 Las Vegas
I Hate Vegas. There. I said it. Why? Because even when I try to capture something nice, like this Eiffel tower, Ms. “Hey-Look-At-My-Nakedness-On-This-90-Foot-Billboard” gets in my way.

The Work
I know what you’re thinking…and you’d be wrong :-) I actually DID work while on this world tour. I present these photos as evidence.

Those that travel like this can also confirm…while an amazing adventure teaching and communicating our product’s value, my ‘day’ job was still awaiting me when I got back to the hotel.

This resulted in a constant struggle between responsive emails or searching out a new adventure…

…I guess you know which won.

My 2010 IBM World Tour – By The Numbers

2010-12-20T13:44:00.001-06:00

This year I focused on “Customer Adoption” of our product at IBM. Besides the collateral I created while working in Rochester (Facebook page, YouTube movies), I traveled.

A lot.

To illustrate, here is a pin-map of the locations I visited. Want more? Visit my “World Tour Photo Album”

Here’s another way to look at it: By the numbers.

Days Traveled: 65
Tough on the family and personally, but not one regret – read why

Miles Flown: 77,280
Yes, I got to keep the frequent flyer miles and am now treated like all humans should but few are at Delta :-)

Bags Packed: 1
Yep, one small carry-on plus backpack that carried my laptop and other electronics. I stuffed 2 shirts, 2 show pants, lots of under garments, and toiletries. All of them rolled to maximize space and lasted up to two weeks. Oh, and one awesome pair of shoes I could wear as dress, casual, even with shorts.

Times I needed to do laundry: 1
But not for poor packing. In Bangkok the cab we took was filled with bugs. I had a choice: Burn the clothes and buy new ones (potentially filled with more bugs) or dry-clean the whole mess. I chose dry-clean. Thank you Finance Dudes for approving the laundry expense!

Gallons of Jet Fuel Used: 386,400
I know. I didn’t fly alone on the 757’s. Although I did have a great time in coach on all those international flights!

Hours of longest single flight: 15
This was to Sydney. Tip: take 2 Benadryl. I slept 7 hours. ‘course that left 8 more hours to eat and watch 4 movies

Hours of longest travel day: 31
9am Thursday – 4:00pm Friday (all CT) from Johannesburg South Africa to home (through London Heathrow). Crazy thing: 5 days later I flew from home to Singapore…another 23 hour travel day.

Continents Visited: 5
North America, Australia, Europe, Africa, Asia. Now to figure out how to get to South America. Or, I could honor my internationally educated peers who only recognize “America” as one continent, not two and I will only have one very hard-to-reach continent left to get to: Antarctica

Countries Visited: 8
USA, Canada, Australia, Great Britain, Hungary, South Africa, Singapore, Thailand

Cities Visited: 16
Ottawa, Calgary , Palisades, Washington DC, Toronto, New York, San Mateo, Sydney, London, Warwick, Budapest, Johannesburg, Singapore, Bangkok, Dallas, Las Vegas

Oceans and Rivers Touched: 7
Pacific Ocean (San Mateo), Atlantic Ocean (New York), South China Sea (Singapore), Coral Sea (Sydney), Thames River (London), Danube River (Budapest), Chao Phraya River (Bangkok)

Hours Taught: 150
This does not count the 49 hours of web conference education I gave this year to customers through the Internet.

IBM $$$ spent: $25,993.28
Not bad for the potential sales revenue! Although, this only includes my travel expenses, not the catering costs. Catered food costs a lot!

Customers Educated: 730
Some of the best customers in the world.

Meals Eaten: 195
One awesome perk I cannot deny. I tasted many, many new things and all were yummy! Of course many on-the-go breakfasts (favorite was flat-white coffee and egg sandwich in Sydney). Many lunches were just-OK catering. But the dinners. Ah the dinners. Sushi, seafood, steaks, curry, Thai, kangaroo, alligator, all you can imagine…

…and let’s not forget the local brews…

Days sick from local food and drink: 0
Someone was watching out for me.

Kids I grew to love even more: 4
It seemed that when I was on the other side of the world we could communicate more often…thank you Skype

Amazing Wife who ran the castle: 1
I don’t know how to repay her, but all of my free tickets are going towards her adventures. (like our recent trip to Phoenix for a tequila festival and RCPM show)

As I look back, I can’t believe where I’ve been. It’s been quite a year. I am truly blessed with this job (thank you IBM), these opportunities, my travel companions, my family. The world has become much smaller to me. God gave me the urge to travel the world when I was young, and has provided the means as well.

Amazing.

I think I’m going to take a long nap now.

Just A Robot

I Hate You...I Love You

The HINTERgarden: A Bountiful Harvest

Song Insight: "Gonna Get High"

Song Insight: "Christmas Morn"

Raising HINTERkids: Defending REAL Song Meanings

2011-11-27: George Winston

A Gymnast Dad

HINTERgrams - 2011 Edition

Song Insight: "Pocket Man"

Smokey Mountain Dream

The Hike

A REAL Hinter's "Ode to Children"

Hospitals Been Beddy Beddy Good to Me

The Hinter500 Raceway Championships

Mr. Happy Goes To The Hospital

Omni-Tasking: An Amazing Experiment

Technology That Matters - #0001

A Really Good Day: PRS Experience - September 22, 2008

The Lake Effect

2011-07-05: Our U2 Adventure

Sunset Chair Adventures: Reservoir Hunt

God Moment #23: Up With People - May 2, 1990

Clarity...From The Sunset Chairs

How Many People Does It Take to Make a Really Good Day?

I Love You THIS MUCH!

Funny? Cute? Dorky? or Lame?

Living the ST-EA-D-FAST Life

The End of Being Culturally Relevant

Technology That Matters - #32

What You See vs. What I'm Thinking

Song Insight: “Hello, Happy!”

Lost Vegas

The Dead Sea iScrolls

The Gospel of Henry

Thus endeth the Gospel of Henry.

2011-02-13 Amy Grant & Michael W. Smith

My Secret Passion

2011-01-29 Marc Cohn

A REAL Hintermeister – Marriage Quiz

857,942nd Follower

Are You a REAL Hintermeister?

Song Insight: “Everything’s Gold”

“Fun” Test + Fail = Peacemaker

My 2010 IBM World Tour – Highlights

~~~ Highlights ~~~

My 2010 IBM World Tour – By The Numbers

~ Highlights ~