Christmas morning....

Is there any day with more hope than Christmas? Christmas is a walk with your childhood. Christmas is about giving. Christmas seems to bring out the kid in all of us no matter what stage of life we are in. Its like a wedding day, and a funeral, and a birthday all at the same time. Like a wedding, things happen at Christmas you NEVER forget. Like a wedding, you have nerves and excitement. Like a wedding, somehow, something doesn't go exactly as it was planned, and its the imperfections that "make" days like Christmas so special. Like a wedding people laugh... and people cry. Like a wedding, Christmas is about family. The family that's there, the family you miss. Like a funeral, Christmas is a time when you look back and think about good times and bad. Like a funeral Christmas is a time for reflection. Like a birthday (and it IS a birthday, somehow this is forgotten sometimes) there are gifts, and there is celebration. Like a birthday, Christmas is one of those days where you really try to get the most out of the entire day, where throughout the day, something special is planned ....sharing gifts, and the meals are all special...like a birthday, everything is just THAT much better at Christmas. But... Like some birthdays, sometimes the entire day is a Huge disappointment. Like some Birthdays, they are not always so pleasant. And like a lousy birthday, you don't forget the lousy Christmas days. And I don't want to say they are a badge of honor or anything, but if you start sharing you "bad Christmas stories, everybody has them to share... But I don't want to end this on a sad note. Christmas is special. We celebrate the birth of our saviour, and we share gifts and time with those we care about. I wanted to share this special moment when my 4 year old came out to see what Santa left for her.... she counted every day leading up to Christmas, starting the day after Halloween (who needs Thanksgiving??? Kids don't get that day. For a kids calendar, its Halloween, then CHRISTMAS!!) She was so grateful for her gifts she wanted to go back to the Mall to see Santa on Christmas day to thank him.

I don't think there is anything to add to that. She gets it.

Merry Christmas!

Hope you had a great and special day.

The BIG DUMP of 2008

Snow Snow Snow... EVERYWHERE! It has fallen...and fallen... and it seemed like it would never stop. The big dump of Seattle, will be fondly remembered for how it kept our little family firmly planted in our house (like a mine version of "the shinning" except no one got crazy...yet. Even our uber expensive SUV got stuck in a snowbank right in front of our house (the snowbank showed up the next day after the trucks came to move snow to the side of the road, pretty much sticking us to the side of the road. (I couldn't park in the driveway because that little black gate in the picture...it locked up. I was pulled out of the snowbank by a friendly neighbor with a Hummer, who used winch ( I think that's what you call it) It was a thing of beauty. I cant remember a white Christmas THIS white, EVER. It snowed and snowed on Christmas. Very cool. So I guess be careful what you ask for. We got more than our share of the white stuff this year in Seattle.

Merry Christmas to all!

BE cool.

So long to the cool. As we say goodbye to 2008, it wouldn't be right if I didn't give props to one of the coolest guys EVER... Paul Newman. Mr Newman was a bad ass dude and sadly, he passsed away this year. He made some amazing movies. Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958). The Hustler (1961), Hud (1963) and Cool Hand Luke (1967). In 1968 his debut directorial effort Rachel, Rachel (1968) Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) The Sting (1973) The Towering Inferno (1974) The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean (1972) to a now cult classic Slap Shot (1977). The Verdict ( The Color of Money (1986). Besides all of these great movies, he was married to the same woman (Joanne Woodward) for over 50 years!! How cool is THAT??? Paul Newman started The Hole in the Wall Gang Camps, an organization for terminally ill children, and the guy gave and gave and gave some more with his famous salad dressings called "Newman's Own". Newman's Own (business) earned over a 100 Million dollars!!!!, and he gave away every penny to charity. He also raced cars, starting the famous Newman-Haas Racing team. Paul raced competitively up into his 80's. You can read more about his racing here http://blogs.courant.com/autoracing/2008/09/the-racing-passion-of-paul-new.html THIS is a role model in an age when there are not enough role models to go around. We could all learn from his phenomenal generosity.

2009 is going to be a tough year for a lot of people. Its going to be a rough. I think it would be wonderful if we (especially this year) try make our families a little bigger, and go out of our way to help those who are less fortunate. THAT would be cool, and I'm sure Paul Newman would would love it....For generous people I know like LR... he IS loving it.

Pass the cool around!

If four bucks is dumb....

McDonald's has put up 140 billboards in WA State, going after Starbucks in an UGLY way. The sign says "four bucks is dumb". They even put one up across the street from Starbucks HQ. About a month ago, 10,000 Starbucks (Employees) "Partners" they call them, went to New Orleans for their annual meeting. They also spent 50,000 man hours painting and fixing homes destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. Starbucks has no plans to play in any "Ad War" with McDonald's, and are choosing to take the high road.

However, I would like to make my own little billboard to counter the McDonald's message....

"Eating food from McDonald's is STUPID".

On 2nd thought.... NO!

2nd time around for the Big Three. A trip to D.C.

This time not in a private jet, but instead...they drove from Detroit to Washington in a Hybrid Ford no less. This time the CEO's brought a 30 page plan. Doing their own analysis, seems they need even MORE money than they originally requested a few weeks ago. 6 to 8 BILLION more! They even offered to reduce their CEO pay down to a dollar if they get these loans. The Unions have changed their tune, offering to let go of Billions, earmarked for a better healthcare plan ...again, contingent on a bailout.

All this makes me wonder. Why didn't they think about these critical measures in the first place?

It was almost like when were kids asking our parents for money ONLY because we saw our siblings getting some cash from them moments earlier. The thought wasn't about WHY we needed the money, the thought was only that Mommy and Daddy were GIVING it away.

So now the same CEO's are saying that if they don't get their money, this may be THE catalyst for another Great Depression.

I'm sorry, I am not buying. I'm not buying Detroit's new plan, and I'm not buying the Union's pitch...and worse, I am not buying Detroit's cars. (But I have tried several times to buy American) The only cars I wanted to buy, the dealerships wanted $25,000 OVER sticker for a Shelby Mustang (2005). new Dodge Challenger $10,000 over MSRP, and the Corvette ZO6, $15,000 over MSRP. This price gouging for "In demand" cars is a common practice with American dealerships. Ask anyone who has tried to buy these cars off the lot. PURE INSANITY! Porsche, BMW, Mercedes, they don't do this stuff. Few if any of the American Car dealers think about the lifetime relationship of the customer, instead, they are only thinking about now. Even "average" cars, Car salesmen try to game you. (No wonder people hate Car salespeople)

Folks, they are going out of business for a reason, they do LOUSY business!!! Most American cars are not what Americans want, and when they come up with a winner, they price gouge. Are these the type of Companies we want to SAVE? Detroit has been getting it mostly wrong since 1970. Wrong with Labor, Wrong with design, Wrong with the Sales process, and Terribly wrong wrong with service and warranties. I cant imagine wholesale changes in a matter of weeks. Bad business is bad business. Propping up a bad business IS Socialism. It certainly isn't Capitalism. So this is my revised answer to Detroit... NO!

No way we should keep these guys afloat. The Detroit model is BEYOND broken.

Bring back "The Little Drummer Boy"

If your four years old like my Daughter (Romi), these are great times. She is so PSYCHED for Christmas ...I mean she is about to explode with excitement. She is like a little jumping bean of anticipation right now. Although we read plenty of books every day, and we have been reading a few of the Christmas books over and over since October, its the Christmas cartoons that she is truly excited aboout (and didnt we all get excited about the Christmas cartoons?). The cartoons were a sure sign that Christmas was CLOSE! Tonight we saw "Santa Claus is coming to town", and I believe tomorrow we have another one. Next week we have the classic "A Charlie Brown Christmas" and then we see "The Grinch". (although Romi is not so sure about the Grinch, she say she doesn't like him because "he takes Christmas away". Taking REAL Christmas away is exactly what CBS did in taking "The Little Drummer Boy" of the air. In the wacky world we call "Political Correctness" they chose to take LDB off the air because it was about JESUS!!! Of all things silly, to NOT air this 23 minute classic is a CRIME! Its sad. The good thing is, its still available in DVD. Its also a pretty easy book to get. Too bad though, this classic, about a compassionate little Boy, unable to afford a gift for baby Jesus, plays his drum for him. I've tried (with some success) to make the connection between Jesus and Christmas with my Daughter, and its not as easy as you might think. She is dialed in on Santa, and you don't want to mess with that, yet trying to weave in the real meaning of the season with the focus around giving is a lot to take in when your four. This little gem of a show was a PERFECT companion to the other Christmas classics.

How about bringing it back?