The Unstoppable Force: Defined!!

LIVING STRONG

This has been another amazing year of Cancer support and awareness. With the support of family, friends, and colleagues who share the recognition of what an important goal it is to rid the world of Cancer, we again raised over $5200 for the Lance Armstrong Foundation. All I can say to each and every one of you, is Thank You.

It will take more than one event each year to win this fight. In recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I encourage all of you to make the fight against Cancer a year long event. Promote awareness within your communities, and remember what it means to LIVESTRONG.

Consider riding along side me next year, and sharing in a life changing experience for yourself. LIVESTRONG means having the courage to try.

Bidding a Co-worker Farewell

Very few people working today will spend 20-30 years with the same company. Longevity is just not possible with the volatility present today in industries big and small. Those working today, myself included, feel lucky to get 5-7 years at a company before some inside or outside force induces a change. In addition, companies rarely put up permanent structural roots, with the moving of office space as frequent as the change over in employee base.

It was not always this way. Fresh faces from college would walk into the doors of a building for their first day on the job, and walk out 35 years later having lived their entire lives within the same corporate walls. My father spent his entire career with Kodak. 32 Years. Kodak brought him and my mother to Rochester from Maine to start their lives. All I have ever known is being a Kodak family. For 29 of his 32 years, my father was in Kodak bldgs 65 or 69. Starting in the Color Print Processing division of bldg 65, he was one of the first 4 people to move into bldg 69 when it opened in 1968. Beginning with bldg 69s Photographic Technology group, and ending with Marketing Technical Support, my father spent time on 7 out of 8 floors in bldg 69 throughout his career. Kodak was his employer, but bldg 69 was a trusted co-worker.
As with many industries these days, Kodak is changing. No more the film and photopaper giant, they are transforming into a Digital provider. With this change, comes the shedding of assets, both human, and physical. To dispose of some of their largest physical assets, Kodak has spent this summer imploding buildings around Kodak Park that are now vacant due to the downsizing and elimination of film and paper production. This morning, at 7:30am, I joined my father to watch buildings 65 and 69 come down.

Istood by my fathers side as he gathered with past co-workers to reminisce about their years in bldg 69. I heard the people around us discussing their offices, their favorite floors, how many years they spent in the building, and who was missing from the gathering. I was picturing all of the times growing when I would visit my father in his office. The semi-circle entrance drive. The guard station in the lobby. The marble floors, and the elevator ride up to his floor. The pictures on the walls. The table I would sit at in his office. Those who sat around him. I couldn't help but think that I will never know a co-worker as long and as well as my father knew bldg 69.

Then, with 8 quick bangs, my fathers buildings were gone. A trusted co-worker said good-bye, leaving all of us standing there with only our memories. My father has 29 years worth as one of the first and last in the history of bldg 69. And I have mine. From my days growing up, and of today and the experience I got to share with my father. Times change. Corporations change. And the Rochester skyline is again changed forever.

10/2

Today is 10/2. The eleventh anniversary of Lance Armstrong's cancer diagnosis. Imagine how many lives have been changed in the past eleven years.

Why not log on to www.livestrong.org and see what you can do in the fight against cancer.

The Good Stuff

A few years ago, I read the following quote by an anonymous author that literally provided the clarity of direction that I had not had before.

"One hundred years from now, it will not matter what kind of car I drove, what kind of house I lived in, how much money I had in my bank account, nor what my clothes looked like. But the world may be a little better because I was important in the life of a child."

It has since become the cornerstone for all that I do, and is my reference point whenever I feel I need a sanity check on my priorities. I grew up blessed with parents that were guided by similar priorities, and took time to make sure the family enjoyed the good stuff. I am filled with memories of family trips to Maine, Vermont, Tennessee, and countless camping trips to various states and parks. To them, I say thank you.

The world we spend our days in today is too connected. Whether we are in or out of an office, the stresses, requests, and temptations of our jobs can find us on our cell phones, Blackberry's, or Wi-Fi laptops, making finding time for the good stuff that much harder. That is why I am so incredibly thankful that Donna, Gavin, and Isabelle all enjoy camping as much as I do. Once we are in the campground, I have one request of my time, and one priority. To be Dad. Unplugged, unconnected, unwired, and so completed satisfied.

So, to anyone who feels they may have their priorities a little mis-aligned, I say grab a tent, borrow a camper, pack a cooler, and head into the woods. I promise you, it will be therapeutic, and contagious. And, I can bet, you to will find yourself looking at your kids across a campfire and thinking, ah.... the good stuff.......

My Generation

Gavin has started describing anything that is old, as having happened or been built "way back in the eighties". Of course, being a proud member of the Eighties generation, I take offense to my generation being used as the new, old. Especially when so many great things were brought about during this time. Lets look back, shall we?

I graduated with the Webster High School class of 1989. I have very fond memories of walking the halls of dear old Webster High in my acid washed jeans, Izod shirt, and my Swatch watch (complete with Swatch guard) on my way to band practice. Of course, the band I was in at the time was not playing any of the great songs by the timeless artists Flock of Seagulls, Culture Club, A-Ha, or Falco. I would have to wait until I was back in my car and could pop in a Memorex to listen to these greats.

Once I was home from school, I'd clear my sisters Cabbage Patch and Strawberry Shortcake dolls off the couch so I could catch the latest wisdom being sold by Bartles & James. Once into the latest episode of the A-Team, I would hate the frequent questioning of those wanting to know "where's the beef"?

Friday nights would always be something special, as my friends and I would put on our shiniest pair of parachute pants, comb back the mullet, throw on the Members Only jacket, and head over to the movies to check out what was showing. Ghostbusters, Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller, Caddyshack, and Valley Girl we always big hits.

Then, it would be back to the house to curl up for some quiet time with my Rubiks Cube (check out this cool online version).

With all of these great, lasting contributions from my generation, I still can't figure out how Gavin can think of any of it as old. Maybe I just need to get him some parachute pants....

Favorite Time of Year

Fall is my absolute favorite time of year. The sights, the sounds, the smell, and of course the leaves.