Emily's WPW Guest Post - Celebrating Judy

Hi Nugget Subscribers,

It's (WPW) Woman Power Wednesday and I want to spotlight one of my favorite hardworking ladies of all time, Judy!

The current state of NYC is not great for Judy and Michael's business. They need to be in their factory to make products and they need to make products to make money. Judy is a very determined worker and I am certain if the building had not locked them out, they would still be there working!

A little background on Judy and Michael. They married young and had a son. Michael decided he was going to risk everything and travel to America when their son was six years old. Michael worked hard in NYC and became a US citizen before bringing Judy and their son over. This was two years that they were apart! Michael could not travel back to China to visit during this time or he would not become a citizen. Finally, it was time for Judy to move with her son. Judy always makes it very clear that she did not want to leave her family but would say to me, "what could I do?"

Side story, when I told Judy that Kyle got a job in Austin and I was moving home, she said, "This hurts my heart but what can I do? You have to go with the man." Although, she also pointed out that I could wait two years like she did and that Kyle and I would be okay apart for a while! While this may make my female readers cringe a little, you have to remember this is all she knows.

Today, their son is a successful lawyer in NYC. He went to a great school and is married with a baby of his own! He takes care of his parents when they need it but they never let him give too much. I think their baby looks just like Michael!

Judy, who has worked long hours every day as a pattern-maker, is powering through quarantine by gardening! She reports they are "living the life" and are very happy to have some time off. Of course, they wish this was a chosen retirement situation, but I am glad she has found some peace in these crazy times. I know she is eager to get back to work but maybe this will allow them to see some more days off in their future!

Love to all,

Emily

Stay whole on WPW and use LinkedIn

Lucy,

Yesterday I forwarded you (through LinkedIn messenger) a nice post from Dr. Elizabeth Hausler and Build Change. I thought your sisters would enjoy it as well. Build Change has retrofitted 24,000 homes in Nepal over the last five years!

As for me, I brushed off an old article titled A Simpler Time: Self-reflection on The Future of Making. Check out the video at the bottom of the article to learn all about your Granddaddy's work in the peanut business. The first nugget-reader to tell me what the three sizes of peanuts are, after the nuts are separated by the 'sizing screens' wins a prize.

Love,

Dad

Let food be thy medicine

"Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food." - Hippocrates

Lucy made us a delicious plant-based dinner tonight: Corn tortillas with black beans, cauliflower, peppers, spices, and guacamole. Beautifully prepared and perfectly seasoned.

We are watching Forks over Knives on Netflix tonight. Might be cutting back a bit on animal protein around here!

Make it a great Monday evening peeps.

Can any of my fit friends do this?

New Bucs OT Tristan Wirfs is 6’5, 322 lbs'' and still did this 🤯

(tristan_wirfs74/Instagram) pic.twitter.com/GxEsXx6Ln9

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) April 24, 2020

Happy Fit as a Fiddle!

Lucy's Spring Break Video - Great stuff girls!

Spring Break '20 from Chase Tomson on Vimeo.

Wehman on self-evaluation

Sharing Wehman's latest on self-evaluation. Enjoy. - Dad

Humility on WPW (Plus two of my favorite gals on a walking mission)

These two are on some kind of walking roll. Five miles a day for two weeks. Both look amazing. Not only do they enjoy their walks, but they are great kitchen-mates, serving up some delicious and nutritious meals during this time of home-cooking only.

From 'Always We Begin Again' - The Benedictine Way of Living by John McQuiston II (page 35) on 'Humility' . . .

Cultivate humility.

To be exalted is to be in danger.

Pride is considered a sin because it warps our existence.

It establishes our lives on a false foundation.

No one can win all the time.

Therefore, a life based on bettering others

will always be unfulfilled.

The way to affiliation with the sublime

is not to add,

but is to take away more each day

until we have been freed,

even from desire for perfection.

Wabi-Sabi on Stay Whole Tuesday - guest post (Sally B.)

Hello family,

I have been spending my time studying the Japanese art of Wabi-Sabi and how it can relate to my design style. A perfectly imperfect topic for Stay Whole Tuesday.

For those of us who are visual learners, here are some examples of spaces that embrace the Wabi-Sabi principles.

What is Wabi-Sabi?

Wabi-Sabi: The Japanese philosophy for a perfectly imperfect life

Pared down to its barest essence, wabi-sabi is the Japanese art of finding beauty in imperfection and profundity in nature, of accepting the natural cycle of growth, decay, and death. It's simple, slow, and uncluttered-and it reveres authenticity above all. Wabi-sabi is flea markets, not warehouse stores; aged wood, not Pergo; rice paper, not glass. It celebrates cracks and crevices and all the other marks that time, weather, and loving use leave behind. It reminds us that we are all but transient beings on this planet-that our bodies as well as the material world around us are in the process of returning to the dust from which we came. Through wabi-sabi, we learn to embrace liver spots, rust, and frayed edges, and the march of time they represent.

Daisetz T. Suzuki, who was one of Japan's foremost English-speaking authorities on Zen Buddhism and one of the first scholars to interpret Japanese culture for Westerners, described wabi-sabi as "an active aesthetical appreciation of poverty." He was referring to poverty not as we in the West interpret (and fear) it but in the more romantic sense of removing the huge weight of material concerns from our lives. "Wabi is to be satisfied with a little hut, a room of two or three tatami mats, like the log cabin of Thoreau," he wrote, "and with a dish of vegetables picked in the neighboring fields, and perhaps to be listening to the pattering of a gentle spring rainfall."

Book recommendation here.

Love,

Sally

Shhhhhhhhh (and Make it a Great Monday)

Emma, Amy, Lucy - moving out day (in front of Chi O house)

So proud of these girls. They are healthy, vibrant, smart, strong young women. They have handled this disruption (of their sophomore year) as well as any parent could ever hope. 

Cathy and I enjoyed going to College Station yesterday to help Lucy get her things out of the Chi O house. It was also a chance to see the new rental house for next year, which we loved. It is only a couple of blocks from the stadium, so we look forward to some football and tailgates in the future!

For MIAGM, I'm offering this from 'Always We Begin Again' - The Benedictine Way of Living by John McQuiston II (page 35) on 'Silence' . . .

Remember the great value of silence. 

Each day there must be time for silence,

even in our prayers and meditation.

There must be time within which we

neither speak nor listen,

but simply are.

Consider the value of silence in community.

Our ability to listen should be our gift

to those around us.

Too much talk is a sign of self-centeredness

and insecurity.

If you hear yourself talking excessively,

take care.

Fit as a Fiddle Friday - Puzzles

Emily and Kyle have been on a puzzle binge of late, so I looked up how puzzles keep us fit and sane? One good read here: 7 Surprising Ways Puzzles Are Good for Your Brain.

• Puzzles exercise both sides of the brain
• They improve your memory
• They improve your problem-solving skills
• They improve visual and spatial reasoning
• They enhance your mood
• They lower your stress level
• They improve your IQ score

For more on the human brain, check out this Whoop conversation with Stanford neuroscientist Dr. Andrew Huberman. 

“The brain is by far, by far, the most important of all the organs we have because it’s the master organizer of all the other organs.”

Something for Thursday, Lucy May

From 'Always We Begin Again' - The Benedictine Way of Living by John McQuiston II:

What is wanted is not that we should find ultimate truth,

nor that we should become secure,

nor that we should have ease,

nor that we should be without hurt,

but that we should live fully.

Therefore we should not fear life,

nor anything in life,

we should not fear death,

nor anything in death,

we should live our lives

in love with life.

It is for us

to train our hearts

to live in grace,

to sacrifice our self-centered desires,

to find the peace without want

without seeking it ourselves,

and when we fail,

to begin again each day.

WPW - It takes good women to sort out this mess!

Hey Lucy and your sisters . . .

Check out this Forbes article on how women leaders are excelling during this time of global uncertainty:

"Looking for examples of true leadership in a crisis? From Iceland to Taiwan and from Germany to New Zealand, women are stepping up to show the world how to manage a messy patch for our human family. Add in Finland, Iceland and Denmark, and this pandemic is revealing that women have what it takes when the heat rises in our Houses of State. Many will say these are small countries, or islands, or other exceptions. But Germany is large and leading, and the UK is an island with very different outcomes. These leaders are gifting us an attractive alternative way of wielding power. What are they teaching us?"

• Truth
• Decisiveness
• Tech
• Love

WPW,

Dad

Easter Monday - Make it Great!

Hey Lu and family,

I looked up 'Easter Monday' on Wikipedia and found it interesting to see what parts of the world take this day off. In the US, this is what it says: 

In the United States, Easter Monday is not a federal holiday,and is not largely observed. Even so, the day remains informally observed in some areas such as the state of North Dakota, and some cities in New York, Michigan, and Indiana. Easter Monday was a public holiday in North Carolina from 1935 to 1987. Texas and Maryland schools often have two holidays on Good Friday and Easter Monday. In some states and districts, public schools and universities are closed on Easter Monday, often part of spring break.

Traditionally Polish areas of the country such as Chicago, and more recently Cleveland, observe Easter Monday as Dyngus Day. Dyngus Day celebrations are widespread and popular in Buffalo, New York; Wyandotte and Hamtramck in Michigan; South Bend and La Porte in Indiana; and Hanover, New Hampshire. Another important custom is the White House Easter egg roll.

I don't recall having Easter Monday as a holiday when growing up in North Carolina. Regardless, I'm back to work today and wishing all of you a 'Make it a great Monday.'

Love,

Dad

WPW - Emily and Kathryn M. Ireland

Good morning Lucy,

How goes your second semester, sophomore year? Hee! 

I stumbled upon the above note from Coach Workman to Emily after her Senior Year at SCAD. It warmed my heart, so Emily is WPW today!

Also, as I work through my Facebook Account Plan, I am listening to Sally's suggested podcast with Kathryn M. Ireland. 

"On this episode, Ireland spoke with host Dennis Scully about the role that serendipity has played in her career, how she turned the recession into an opportunity, and why being an interior designer is a lifestyle as much as it is a profession."

I wonder how serendipity will continue to work in the career and life of all three of my girls?

Love you,

Dad

Stay Whole Tuesday - Light bulbs

Lucy,

My friend Jim Blanchard recently gifted me with a copy of Richard Rohr's book: Falling Upward: A Spirituality for the Two Halves of Life. 

The above quote from the preface seems to fit for me these days. I feel a lot of anxiety and uncertainty about things and I keep telling myself, 'Just keep the light bulb screwed in buddy - you got this!' I know others feel this same way. 

I sure appreciate how well you are doing living back home with the parentals. I know it is not always easy and certainly not what you thought you would be doing. 

Thanks for being such an amazing young woman! 

Stay whole,

Dad

Vision and Mission - I've been thinking

Autodesk Vision (What inspires us?)

We help people imagine, design, and make a better world.

Autodesk Mission (What do we do?)

We automate our customers' design and make processes, so they can realize the Future of Making - which enables them to do more, with less negative impact, and create the opportunity for better.

Lucy,

I've been thinking about vision and mission at Autodesk, as well as the same for our clients: Google, EA, and Facebook. 

Google: Our mission is to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.

EA: We exist to inspire the world to play.

Facebook: Give people the power to build community and bring the world closer together.

I've also been thinking about my personal vision and mission. Did you further refine yours that we talked about a while back? Here's my vision, which is inspired primarily from Steven Covey's book The 8th Habit; followed by my mission, which is still a work-in-progress.

I help others find their best selves by understanding everyone has their own unique path to living as a whole person - to finding their voice, their soul's code.

I model, mentor and write about a whole person approach to life with a family-first mentality, faithful to a higher calling, mentally focused on my customers' aspirations and goals, while staying physically-aligned so as to have the energy and capacity to add value in all I do.

Okay, there it is . . .

Make it a great Monday,

Dad

A door by Cathy and a sermon by Kyle - Happy Palm Sunday

FaaFF - Check-in on my ten commandments

Lucy May,

Back on January 9th, I wrote my ten commandments for 2020 and called them 'My flat ass rules'. (The term 'flat ass rules' borrowed from General Jim Mattis, former Secretary of Defense.) For today's Fit as a Fiddle Friday, I thought I would do a quick check-in. 

Sort of a self-critiquing, "Okay gPage, How are doing?"

My flat ass rules (2020)

Succeed at home first

Seek and merit divine help

Seek wise counsel

Build and use a challenge network

Listen to my spouse (woman's intuition)

Live substantially below our income

Have courage and strength at work

Be kind and compassionate to others

Learn something new every day

Forgive and let go

I feel good about most of these. If I had to pick one area to improve, it would be number four: Build and use a challenge network. I've been thinking about who I would want to include in a challenge network at Autodesk, but I have not (as of yet) taken action. 

Adam Grant describes a challenge network this way: 

Your challenge network should be the people who will tell you that you’re not quite where you need to be. These are the people that will push you because they care about helping you get better.

Do you have people who play a role like this in your life?

Love,

Dad

Make this certain: "What impedes us can empower us"

From the Preface of The Obstacle is the Way:

In the year 170, at night in his tent on the front lines of the war in Germania, Marcus Aurelius, the emperor of the Roman Empire, sat down to write. Or perhaps it was before dawn at the palace in Rome. Or he stole a few seconds to himself during the games, ignoring the carnage on the floor of the colosseum below. The exact location is not important. What matters is that this man, known today as the last of the five good emperors, sat down to write. 

Not to an audience or for publication but to himself, for himself. And what he wrote is undoubtedly one of history’s most effective formulas for overcoming every negative situation we may encounter in life. A formula for thriving not just in spite of whatever happens but because of it. 

At that moment, he wrote only a paragraph. Only a little of it was original. Almost every thought could, in some form or another, be found in the writings of his mentors and idols. But in a scant eighty-five words Marcus Aurelius so clearly defined and articulated a timeless idea that he eclipses the great names of those who came before him: Chrysippus, Zeno, Cleanthes, Ariston, Apollonius, Junius Rusticus, Epictetus, Seneca, Musonius Rufus.

It is more than enough for us.

"Our actions may be impeded . . . but there can be no impeding our intentions or dispositions. Because we can accommodate and adapt. the mind adapts and converts to its own purposes the obstacle to our acting."

And then he concluded with powerful words destined for a maxim. 

"The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way."

In Marcus’s words is the secret to an art known as turning obstacles upside down. To act with “a reverse clause,” so there is always a way out or another route to get to where you need to go. So that setbacks or problems are always expected and never permanent. Making certain that what impedes us can empower us.

WPW #2 and our #1 birthday gal: Happy Birthday Sally!

Taylor:

1. Sally has an amazing balance of Confidence and Humility. She is so comfortable in her own skin and never takes life, or herself, too seriously. People gravitate to Sally because of this balance and they look to her for direction and advice for the same reasons. At work, she designs Million Dollar projects while managing her boss and her two minions, and juggles clients, budgets, and running a small business all at once. With her friends, she is the glue that holds everyone together and keeps them all sane. She does it all! 

2. I am ready to watch Sal as she moves on to the next phase. Sal is made for this - high class, petite, and expensive! I don't know what I am getting myself into, but it will be a joy to experience all of her growth. I am excited about our next adventure. 

Lucy:

1. I love how Sally is the fearless leader of our girl gang! She has done everything first with grace and ease and paved a beautiful way for Em and me to follow! I know Sal will always be there for us and take such good care of us while also teaching us the rules of life. She’s HBIC, we learn literally everything from her, and we love her!! 

2. I love how Sally is the most thoughtful giver I know. She is so good at thinking of others and creating gifts and experiences in making you feel known, seen, and loved. She will always put your needs before her own and cares so deeply about the people she loves! 

Emily:

1. I love Sally for so many reasons! She is a best friend and a role model. I look to her for so much and I appreciate how she is always there. It is so special to have an older sister that I relate so much to and that also has impeccable taste!

2. Sally is so hardworking and is always hustling. I can’t wait to see how her career grows! Her skills have no limits and I can’t wait for her and T to one day move to Austin and Sally will be the youngest most successful interior designer in Texas and I’ll be her right-hand woman!

Kyle:

1. I love that Sally shares a flair for the dramatic like me and can always keep a room laughing and happy.

2. I love how Sally loves being around her family so much. It’s only a matter of time before she’s back in Austin for good.

Mom:

1. Sally is always so intentional with her thoughts, words, and deeds. She gives her friends and family gifts that are individual and thoughtful. If going to a dinner party, she brings the perfect dish or hostess gift. At Christmas or birthdays, she searches for the perfect gift for each person. I’ll never forget the beautiful eulogy she gave for Bebe and now her newfound ability to write ditties. Sally, your heartfelt kindness is just one of your wonderful traits. Thank you for sharing it with all of those you love. You make us all feel so special!

2. I love Sally’s joy. She shares her love of life with everyone. Sally can make you laugh at yourself and sees the humor in most situations. When situations get tricky, Sally takes the time to sit back, assess them, seek council and then make good decisions on how to move forward. She does this with a pure heart. She laughs at crazy situations and keeps me laughing too. Thank you, Sally,  for bringing me so much joy for 28 years. 

Dad:

1. Wow! 28 years ago today God gave us a very special baby girl. It has been such a joy to watch Sally grow into such a confident, happy, inspiring young woman. Sally is such a great mix of girl-next-door, but don't make me put my boxing gloves on and take you to the mat! She's got some Linda Ronstadt in her. If you tell her she can't do something, look out, cause she is not afraid and can figure shit out and get stuff done, with alacrity, grace, and style!

2. I can't wait to see what daughter number one is going to do next. This is truly a breakthrough moment for Sal. Hang on for the ride T!

Woman Power Wednesday - Linda Ronstadt (The Sound of My Voice)

Hey LuLu - Mom and I watched Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice a couple of nights ago. So well done. Amazing talent. Linda now has Parkinson’s disease and sad that she lost her voice, so to speak. Super smart woman. A powerful message for living life from your heart and not letting others tell you it can’t be done. Also interesting to see how she grew up singing many different forms of music, instead of specializing in a specific genre. Must watch for all our girls! Love you - Dad