Kettle Bell Photos - FAAFF

Position 1 of 7: Kettle Bell Behind the Back

Hey boo. It's Fit as a Fiddle Friday and I'm playing around with some images I plan to use in a work related blog post. I have a story I am writing titled, The Gift of a CC Sabbatical. My Rudy's buddies nicknamed me CC Sabbatical this summer, after New York Yankee's pitcher, CC Sabathia. CC is a Cy Young Award winner and six time All Star, plus all around good guy, so a fun nickname for the summer.

In my story, I will share a bit about Kettle Bell Walking and how a good fitness (body) program always starts from the core (the center) and builds outward. I want to compare that same idea to each of the other key life capacities (mind, heart, and spirit) as I think the same is true in each area. We start in the center and built outward. Don't you agree? Did you think about my four questions from yesterday's nugget?

Suitcase Carry (right & left)

Waiters Carry (right & left)

Rack Position (right & left)

Anything goes Thursday - Think about these four things

Good morning Lucy. It is anything goes Thursday and I don't have much, but I got this. When thinking about the Covey Whole-Person Mindset take some time to reflect on these four questions:

• For the body - Assume you have had a heart attack, now live accordingly.
• For the mind - Assume the half-life of your profession is two years, now prepare accordingly.
• For the heart - Assume everything you say about another, they can overhear, now speak accordingly.
• For the spirit - Assume you have a one-on-one visit with your maker every quarter, now live accordingly.

Here's a good piece referencing the Whole-Person Mindset and talking about leadership. Take a minute to at least read the first page.

Woman Power Wednesday - Bailey

She's driving us crazy, but she sure is cute!

Covey Whole Person Paradigm - Stay Whole Tuesday

Hey Lucy,

We've talked a lot about Stephen Covey and his concept around The Whole Person Paradigm, which ultimately is how you find balance in your life and your VOICE!

From Wikipedia: Stephen Richards Covey (October 24, 1932 – July 16, 2012) was an American educator, author, businessman, and keynote speaker. His most popular book is The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. His other books include First Things First, Principle-Centered Leadership, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families, The 8th Habit, and The Leader In Me — How Schools and Parents Around the World Are Inspiring Greatness, One Child at a Time. He was a professor at the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University at the time of his death.

I miss him! His book The 8th Habit - From Effectiveness to Greatness is one of my top five, and the reason why 'Stay whole' is one of my favorite slogans.

Must you develop all four capacities or intelligences? Covey says this: 

"Yes, because you won't really be able to develop any one of them to its mature, sustainable level without working on all four. This is what integrity means. It means the whole of our life is integrated around principles . . . This takes constant effort to develop the physical muscle fiber, the emotional/social muscle fiber, the mental muscle fiber and the spiritual muscle fiber by getting us out our comfort zones and doing those exercises that cause the fiber to break (pain); then it is repaired and enlarged and strengthened after a proper period of rest and relaxation."

Most people easily understand Covey's answer in the context of physical health or fitness. An intense workout that stretches your muscles, followed by a period of rest, will lead to a stronger and more flexible body, right? But the same is true for each of the other capacities. And learning to oscillate in and out of the different capacities each and every day, so that you grow and mature in each area is one of the most valuable life skills you can cultivate. Learning and practicing this at your age is something that will take you very far in life!

Stay whole,

Dad

Play Ball! and Make it a Great Monday

Lucy,

I love this print, which is a photo that either Sally sent me, or possibly taken at the SCAD bookstore or art store? I can't recall for sure. 'Play Ball!' being a metaphor for live life to the fullest each and every day. Along life's journey and certainly in the end, we all face pain and uncertainty and eventually we all die; but until that time comes, why not make the best of each and every situation.

I've been kicking around the idea of commissioning a piece of art with this baseball print as inspiration, perhaps from my buddy Vince Dattoli out in Sausalito, CA who does some cool things using old Porsche car hoods, as well as sticks. Check out some of his work below. 

And why not make it a great Monday?

Dad

P.S. Thanks everyone who contributed to my 2 for G Pa! I had a wonderful 59th birthday and my friend Hop pointed out that I was born in 1959. It will not be too many more years before I can start trying to shoot my age, right?

This piece made with two Porsche 911 hoods.

Also two car hoods (not sure what type) - the white space in the middle is really cool.

2 for G PA - Thanks Family

Sunday Nugget - Trends in your field

Lucy,

I was thinking about your question last night around trends in a field that you are passionate about and I stumbled into something you should find compelling.

Watch Video Here

I especially thought this might resonate after reading one of the answers to a question in your Gilbert Leadership Conference application. In your words: "I have a passion for service and I think that is something that I can both bring to and gain from GLC. My dream one day is to start my own global outreach non-profit in hopes of helping third world countries find practical and sustainable solutions by using their own resources. In my time in College Station, I am hoping to prioritize serving others both inside and outside of my community. Whether or not that is through GLC, I have a strong desire to be apart of something bigger than myself while I am here on campus."

For more on the Future of Making Things check out this link. Or, take a few minutes to read my thought-leadership reflection piece here, where I took a look back at my childhood. I'm going to find that transistor radio (that Poppy game me) one day, and put it right beside Granddaddy Singletary's typewriter!

Love you,

Dad

Month-of-Mentorship at Autodesk

Time Out founder and my friend
Eddie Williams is a Pika

Good Fit as a Fiddle Friday to you Lucy May. Guess where I am today? That's right, Time Out, bright and early and excited about spending 'time' with a special mentor of mine, as well as a mentor to many others here in Chapel Hill. We are celebrating 60 years of service to the Tau Chapter of Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity by Moyer 'Moe' Smith and formally naming the 'Tube Room' in his honor at our chapter house. You may remember I wrote about what Moyer meant to me in my Releasing the Churn self-discovery journal and blog. I referred to Moyer as one of my 'Cheeros'! Not the cereal, but a word I made up to mean someone who cheers you upward and onward in life.

In short, a little farm boy shows up in Chapel Hill from the one stop-light town of Ahoskie, NC and quickly realizes he is lost and in over his head. Everybody else seems smarter, wiser, better looking, and taller. I went from big fish in small pond, to small fish in big pond. But thanks to Moyer Smith, I learned to believe in myself and I found my path in life. Sound familiar Lucy?

Ironically, this is the Month of Mentorship at Autodesk. 

Great time in Chapel Hill celebrating Moyer (to my left) and hanging with other special PiKAs.

Who has mentored you Lucy? Who is out there in College Station who will be a mentor in the future? Pray about these things, think about these things, and since it is Friday . . . don't forget to Stay Fit! Love you. - Dad

"God had my back all along"

Good morning Lucy May. It is anything goes Thursday and I don't have much, but I have this . . .

Remember my post: A special Saturday Nugget: Curt Langford named CEO and President of Texas Tech Alumni Association? Well the process leading into that announcement at Texas Tech was a long and drawn out one. Curt was one of over 20 highly qualified applicants. From start to finish, it took six months of interviewing, whittling down the candidates, eventually narrowing the applicants down to five, and then three, and then just two. At that point, Curt had even more interviews with the selection committee, lunches and dinners with the Board Members and the President of the University. When he was finally selected as the next CEO and President, it was a great moment in his life and I am sure also quite a relief. When I called to congratulate him, he shared the below story, sent by text and in his words. Curt lives on a golf course.

Curt: So, last night on the green behind my house I made 5 straight putts from 45 feet out. Not straight, but curved and downhill. I stopped after five not wanting to break the streak. Still in shock as to how it happened but I have a theory. Remind me to share it when we next visit.  

To which I said: Universe (led by our good Lord) is lining up for you my friend. It happens. 

Curt: It was a God thing. I had long likened interviewing for this job to being on the 18th green having to sink a putt in front of a big crowd. Didn’t know if it would be a 3 footer or a 30 footer, but it’s an image I’ve long fretted in my mind. So last night, after the stress of it all, I’m convinced God was showing me he had my back. The first make felt good. The second one a surprise. Third was hard to believe. Fourth was shocking and the fifth was flat out miraculous. Went back to collect the balls (all in the cup) and called it for the night. It was my “walking on water” moment, much like Peter on the Sea of Galilee. Can’t take your eyes off the almighty!

Woman Power Wednesday - Beth Smith

Congrats Beth Smith for finishing her Yoga Teacher Certification. Photo above is from her five day retreat in Asheville, where Beth had to take an anatomy and yoga philosophy test, plus teach a 60 minute class. Beth also shared this: "We had to read a book called The Four Desires and go through a writing process to come up with our Dharma Code (reason for being on the planet, no biggie ha!!)...daunting and powerful all at once!"

We are super proud of you Ba! Wonder what your Dharma Code is LuLu?

One more anniversary post

Okay, so I know this anniversary celebration is going on for a while, but after 30 years we deserve it. It looks like the Jekyll Island Club thought our 'then and now' shots were fun. They posted this yesterday. And I have added one more at the bottom here. Shortly after mom zinged that garter into the crowd, we headed to the US Virgin Islands and kicked off our marriage in style! I can't seem to find any pictures from the honeymoon, but I remember your mom had a hard time keeping herself properly clothed. TMI! I'll get back to some goal setting stuff soon enough . . . Stay whole Lucy May and call me sometime.

First dance September 17, 1988 | Jekyll Island Club

Let's get out of here soon! Honeymoon!

The Stairs at Jekyll Island Club

30 Years Ago Today!

Good Morning Lucy. Thirty years ago today, your mom and I were married on Jekyll Island. With the possible exception of the birthdays of my three children, September 17, 1988 was truly the greatest day of my life. Here's a Nugget or two from our past anniversaries:

25 Years Ago Today!
26 years ago this week - "I do"
Best day ever - 27 years ago today!
28 Reasons to do it again

Make it a great Monday!

Anniversary Weekend @ Ranch 616 - Thanks Uncle Ricky

Our favorite table at our favorite restaurant - Ranch 616

A special friend paid for dinner! 30 years officially tomorrow!

Saturday Nuggets - Sam & Professor Sanchez

Sweet and incredibly touching story on Sam Ehlinger and his dad:

Link here.

Horns have USC tonight. Dawgs should take care of business against Middle Tennessee at noon ET; Aggies have Louisiana Monroe at 6:30 Central Time; Yale at Holy Cross at 1:05 ET; 0-2 UNC game canceled due to storm (how long 'til basketball?) . . .

Lucy, I went to class at Texas A&M this week when I stumbled into this: The relationship between video games and architecture. Jose Sanchez is an Architect / Programmer / Game Designer based in Los Angeles, California. He is partner at Bloom Games, start-up built upon the BLOOM project, winner of the WONDER SERIES hosted by the City of London for the London 2012 Olympics. He is the director of the Plethora Project , a research and learning project investing in the future of on-line open-source knowledge and the creator of Block'hood, a city simulator video game exploring notions of crowdsourced urbanism.

Today, he is an Assistant Professor at USC School of Architecture in Los Angeles. His research ‘Gamescapes’, explores generative interfaces in the form of video games, speculating in modes of intelligence augmentation, combinatorics and open systems as a design medium.

If you want to get a sense of the kind of things I am talking about with my clients at Electronic Arts, give it a go. The lecture in general is quite interesting. Go to the 33:40 mark to hear how he uses video games in his work.

Fit as a Fiddle Friday - Jimmy and Jay

Jimmy Buffet doing great at 70 plus years old!

Mom found this for Fit as a Fiddle Friday. "Jimmy Buffet doing great at 71 years old and ready to hang ten in the 'hurricane swell'. From Wikipedia: James William Buffett (born December 25, 1946) is an American musician, songwriter, author, actor, and businessman. He is best known for his music, which often portrays an "island escapism" lifestyle. Together with his Coral Reefer Band, Buffett has recorded hit songs including "Margaritaville" (ranked 234th on the Recording Industry Association of America's list of "Songs of the Century") and "Come Monday". He has a devoted base of fans known as "Parrotheads"."

And I just love this picture of Jay and his truck and his hat! Had to share it again. Jay looking great and we are proud of how fit he is post transplant!

Anything Goes Thursday

Nugget from Uncle Ricky

Good morning Lucy May. I'm up early out West, thinking about my day and praying for mom, you, your sisters and our family. I know BeBe is at peace now and has already signed up for some heavenly bridge tournaments or found an amazing fishing hole with Pop. 

The sign to the left is a Nugget from Ye Olde Waffle Shoppe on Franklin Street in Chapel Hill. Ricky sends these out occasionally. 

From Wikipedia:

Pablo Ruiz Picasso; (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist, stage designer, poet and playwright who spent most of his adult life in France. Regarded as one of the most influential artists of the 20th century, he is known for co-founding the Cubist movement, the invention of constructed sculpture, the co-invention of collage, and for the wide variety of styles that he helped develop and explore. Among his most famous works are the proto-Cubist Les Demoiselles d'Avignon (1907), and Guernica (1937), a dramatic portrayal of the bombing of Guernica by the German and Italian airforces during the Spanish Civil War.

I also have a few pictures of BeBe to share this morning and sometime soon I will try to compile all of my BeBe pictures in a photo essay. And a couple of other Nuggets: (1) A man and his truck and his Tilley! and (2) My colleague Erin Priest's Father-in-Law (Micael Priest) passed away in Austin yesterday - one of a kind original - made me think of Straw!

How's that for an Anything Goes Thursday?

A man and his truck and his Tilley!

Woman Power Wednesday #2 - Our love for BeBe from the grandkids!

Brett: I love BeBe's love for music and how she always hummed the same quiet, calming tune while working around the house. I’ll never forget the anniversary dance we did at our wedding that ended with just Pop and BeBe and how much she smiled and how proud she seemed. She is the best grandmother anyone could hope for and I thank her for always being there for me. I love her so much.

Drew: My grandmother was a true southern bell, inside and out. She’s gorgeous, witty and would never let you leave hungry. My grandmother always took the time to enjoy the details in the simple things in life. A beautiful sunset or a cool breeze were enough to make her day.

Sally: I love BeBe for many reasons. I love how great of a grandmother she was and how she always worked so hard to provide us with the best times together as a family. She always prepared food or an experience with the upmost care in the details. She had the best taste and understood how love can be shown through the little things. I hope one day I can do the same for my children and grandchildren. I love the way BeBe was always encouraging us to learn new things and took excitement in anything we were interested in - whether it was sewing, tap dancing, cooking, playing sports, make up, shopping, Broadway, Anne of Green Gables, anything! She could keep up with our ever changing hobbies and jump right in. I will always love how BeBe could fall in love with tv and movie characters and talk about them in a way that would make you think they were in her family. She loved the underdog and could empathize in the most sincere ways.

Emily: Bebe is the person who taught me how to sew and she was the first to inspire me to love New York City. She always had so much patience when doing any sewing project and I love thinking about Bebe’s humming in the kitchen or while doing a puzzle with me and how soothing those memories are. I love how Bebe is always well presented. She is the most beautiful grandmother and always looks gracious and put together. I’ll never forget the time she came with me and my Mom to Savannah for my recruiting visit and the driver of our car turned around and said, “Well look at that- you (pointing at Bebe) spit her out and you (pointing at Cathy) spit her out.” I was proud to be the spitting image of both of them. I will always be in awe of how she handles herself in all situations. Bebe loved the story about the time we danced and danced to rockin' reindeer at Christmas time one year and I loved to hear her tell it and how sweet of a memory that is.

Lucy: I love Bebe because she has been such an amazing grandma to all of her grand and great grand children. She always has everything ready for us and knew exactly how to take care of every child and their individual needs. I love how Bebe loved us to sleep with her in her room. Growing up, always sleeping in her room is one of my favorite childhood memories! I love you Bebe!!

Mike and Cali: I caught up with both Cali and Mike today. Cali loved BeBe's visits to Dallas and said she was a spirited and wonderful woman and she was grateful to have known her. Mike shared that he loved being at the Lake with BeBe and will always remember the food, the fishing, and the large family gatherings.

Woman Power Wednesday - Barbara Jean (Bowman) Malcom

BeBe (January 10, 1936 - September 12, 2018)

Goal Oriented Thinking - clarity, focus, and concentration

Mornin' Lu Lu. It's Stay Whole Tuesday and we are talking Goal Oriented Thinking versus Reaction Oriented Thinking from Brian Tracy's best seller Get Smart! I like the subtitle, which is How to Think and Act Like the Most Successful and Highest-Paid People in Every Field. Not a bad thing to spend some time on and especially at your young age. 

Yesterday, I wrote about turning points, financial success (don't lose money) and the importance of focus (don't lose time). Today, I want to touch on something Tracy calls the big three: clarity, focus, and concentration.

I try to always have specific, written, time-bound goals in each of the four areas of life we often discuss. I usually have 2-3 goals in each area. Some are long term goals, one year or longer and some are more immediate, between one and six months. I usually break them down this way, using Stephen Covey talk: 

• To leave a legacy (spiritual goals, community goals, St. Michael's)
• To live (wellness, fitness, golf goals)
• To love (family, friends, social goals)
• To learn (professional or intellectual development, career goals, financial)

It is important to write your goals using what Tracy calls the three p's: present tense, personal and positive. For example, "I am a top five Autodesk Named Accounts Sales Representative, a trusted technology and strategic advisor to three of the worlds largest companies (Google, Comcast, and EA) and I earn $X dollars by January 31, 2019."

When you set goals using the three p's and write them down, your mind starts to believe you can accomplish your goals. And when your mind starts to believe, you start to take actions that move you towards your goals. Tracy says, "When you write down a goal you take it out of the air and you make it clear and tangible. You can see it, touch it and read it. It now exists, whereas before it was only a figment of your imagination."

And that brings me back to clarity, focus, and concentration. Once you know where you are going, you have to learn to make your goals the highest priority each and every day. You have to be crystal clear about what is most important to you and then you have to take actions that move you in that direction. You also have to learn how not to be distracted by non-essential, unimportant interruptions. In today's world of texts and social media, it is easy to flounder around and spend time on things that really have no impact on your ability to accomplish your goals. Learn to block out time to be laser focused on your highest priority tasks - the tasks that move you toward your goals.

Get Smart: Goal Oriented Thinking vs Reaction Oriented Thinking

It's Make it a Great Monday, and we are all catching our breaths from the near big upset on Saturday in College Station. What a fun start to your college football career, Lucy. Loved your picture of 'J-i-m-b-o' with your Chi O buddies. Kathy Hopke thought you were doing that for her husband, Jim - Ha!

So I've been reading and listening to material by Brian Tracy, someone whom I used to pay a lot of attention to years ago when right out of college. Mainly a book titled, Get Smart, How to Think and Act Like the Most Successful and Highest-Paid People in Every Field. I plan to share some things from the book over the course of the next several weeks.

One of the chapters I have been thinking about quite a bit is titled, Goal Oriented Thinking vs Reaction Oriented Thinking. This is a good time in your life to think about setting goals. I am recalibrating some things as well in my life. 

Some of the key take-aways:

Turning Points - "Throughout your life, you will have a series of turning points. These are moments, insights, or experiences that can take a few seconds or a few months. But after one of these turning points, your life will never be the same. Sometimes you recognize these turning points when it takes place. In most cases, you only recognize that it was a turning point in retrospect." What turning points have you already had Lucy? Isn't it interesting to think about what lies ahead and how your professors, your mentors, and your friends will impact your life in the months and years ahead as an Aggie?

The key to financial success - "Did you know that the top 3 percent of income earners, earn and acquire, on average, ten times as much as the bottom 97 percent? And did you know that only about 3 percent of people have clear, specific, written goals and plans that they work on each day. The other 97 percent have hopes, dreams, wishes, and fantasies, but not goals. And the great tragedy is that they don't know the difference." I know in my life, I always accomplish more when I have clear, concise, time-bound, written goals.

Don't lose time - Financially successful people have a simple mantra, which is 'don't lose money'. But they also practice another key habit, which could be phrased 'don't lose time'. "The fact is that when you have clear, specific, written goals and clear plans to achieve those goals and you work on them every day, you save an enormous amount of time. You will accomplish more in a few months or a year than most people will accomplish in a lifetime!"

Here's a great quote from Thomas Carlyle:

"The person without goals makes no progress on even the smoothest road. The person with clear goals makes rapid progress on even the roughest road."

We all know the saying, 'If you don't know where you are going, any road will take you there." This is a great time in your life to think about and pray about where you are going and then start to define, in crystal clear written goals, how you are going to get there. You don't have to whip these out all at once, but I believe you should be thinking about, journaling about, and praying about your goals.

More on Goal Oriented Thinking coming soon.

Happy Sunday - a few photos from the weekend

Lucy and her Chi O pals spelling Jimbo!

First real game at Kyle Field: Aggies vs #2 Clemson Tigers

Rafferty's at first Westlake Game on Friday Night

Hanging with the Bench's on Saturday Night

A special Saturday Nugget: Curt Langford named CEO and President of Texas Tech Alumni Association

Curt Langford taking over as Alumni Director at Texas Tech

So incredibly proud of my good friend Curt Langford, who will take over as CEO and President of Texas Tech Alumni Association on October 1, 2018. Curt replaces legendary Alumni Director Dr. Bill Dean. 

I have always referred to Curt as the Mayor of Lubbock, TX. His father, Dr. Thomas A. Langford was an ordained minister, a Professor of English Literature at Texas Tech and an Associate Dean and Dean of the Graduate School at Texas Tech. This story about Dr. Langford, written by Austin writer Byron Browne made me think of Lucy's story this week about her professor and the unexpected pop quiz. I believe there were some kids walking into that class a tad late as well? I too have a book I treasure signed by Curt's father. The best line in the story is,  “That’s fine,” he began. “Do you have an excuse for the game the other night?” It reminds me so much of something Curt would say, or perhaps one of my other dear friend's Ricky May!

Curt literally grew up on the campus and his collection of 'Guns Up' photos with college mascots around the country says it all about his love for the University. If you are friends with Curt on Facebook, and I bet you are, send him a note wishing him the best from every Singletary one of us. Curt returning to his alma mater to lead the Alumni Association is akin to Uncle Ricky returning to Chapel Hill and starting the Carolina Blue Honors Foundation. It is the world working the way the world should work.

Here's the press release and also a fun post from Curt saying goodbye to all of his friends at Balfour.

Proximal stability leads to distal mobility

A walk in the park

Hey Lucy,

I hope your week has been a good one. It is Fit as a Fiddle Friday and I'm sharing a bit about Kettle Bell Walking. I recently took a couple of fitness classes from a guy named Jonathan Fleming. He is the primary strength and conditioning coach for Bud Norris, the closer for the St. Louis Cardinals. He also is TPI level three, which is as credentialed as you can get for golf fitness. TPI = Titleist Performance Institute. Side note, your mom took a TPI class a number of years ago as part of her professional development training for physical therapy. Cool!

Jonathan convinced me that in order to improve my golf game, I needed to rebuild my body from the center out. In his words, "Most of us over time develop movement asymmetries, deficiencies or dysfunction."

One of Jonathan's favorite sayings is proximal stability leads to distal mobility. That means your core has to be strong so that the rest of your body can function effectively as an athlete. I am sure you can relate to this as a life-long dancer. While important for all sports, it is especially important to have a strong core in rotational sports, like throwing a baseball or hitting a golf ball or a tennis ball.

So Mom and I have spent the past (nearly) three months doing a 20-minute kettlebell walk most mornings. We typically switch between seven positions, using just one 10-pound kettlebell: (1) suitcase carry (right & left); (2) rack position (right & left); (3) waiters carry (right & left); and (4) kettlebell behind the back with two hands. The goal is to walk with a normal stride and to walk as if you were not carrying any weight. In other words, use your core! Note that we are not using a very heavy weight and anybody trying this should certainly start with a small amount of weight in order to avoid injury.

The results have been outstanding. By combining these walks with other plank and core exercises, plus some flexibility and balance training, my golf game has improved and my low back does not have anywhere near the amount of soreness and fatigue that I had prior to this program. I am all in on the kettlebell walking.

Stay fit Lu,

Dad

P.S. Good luck Aggies vs Clemson Tigers and Game Day in College Station! Dawgs play on the road against 24th ranked South Carolina. Heels have ECU. Chaps have a good one tonight vs Cy-Ranch. Yale's opener is not until the 15th.

Another nugget for today - Cindy Fuller's birthday!

Love these paintings / special gifts from Aunt Cindy! She is so special and somehow puts up with Uncle Mark's shenanigans. Photo at the bottom I think is from our wedding, 30 years ago this month. (-;

Mark, Cindy and baby Mac Fuller