What a Car Wreck!!

This morning before Rachel and Jeff's wedding, we (me, Nancy, Kathy, and Mike Miller) went to the Petroglyph National Monument in Albuquerque. Below are some photos I took. However, the highlight of the day was the auto accident we witnessed on the way back from the Monument. We were sitting in my car at the gas station looking at a map. All of a sudden there was a large "CRASH" right next to us. A car had coasted down the hill and slammed into the truck next to us. A DOG WAS DRIVING IT!!! No kidding! I got out and took this photo. The owner of the errant vehicle was in the store buying something and his dog decided to go for a spin. We were most amused. The only thing we could figure was the dog knocked it out of gear.

Flower Girls

Today we went to the Cook's rehearsal dinner. The cutest character there was the flower girl. Her name is Sophia. Her parents are close friends of the Cooks. And Hunter, who is her father works for Ed. I think she liked me because she thought I was Donald Duck.

Another look at the weather

As you can see from the photo on my previous post, the weather is great today. Thanks to CDOT (Colorado Dept. of Transportation) for providing such great "real time" videos. Of course, today you can still see the snow on the hillsides.

Tomorrow we're going to Rachel Cook's wedding. I'm taking my camera so I hope to get some good photos to show you.

More Snow

If you've been following my blog, then you've probably noticed my obsession with the weather. Before you think I'm a little strange about this, you have to understand we've had over 70 inches of snow at our house since December 22nd. This is no small thing, and unusual even for Denver. The last two weeks, we've been up in the mid 70's for highs, so you would think winter is over, right? Nope!!

I got up this morning, put on a short sleeve shirt, and looked out the window at 6:00a only to see several inches of the white stuff all over. I changed my shirt and it's been snowing all day. This was my route this morning. The photo may change over time.

Sleep

One thing about growing older is the need to sleep. I've seen it in my dad in church. Of course he is just "resting his eyes" during the sermon. But I am finding that I want to go to work early and get home early. Otherwise, I might fall asleep in the car on the way home. This reminds me of an old story about Ronald Reagan. Perhaps you'll find it amusing.

You might remember the day when an American plane shot down two Libyan jets, and the White House was immediately engaged in controversy because Ronald Reagan's aids failed to wake the President up in the middle of the night. The next day, Reagan was at his best when he said, "I've laid down the law to everyone from now on about anything that happens that no matter what time it is I'm to be awakened, even if it's in the middle of a cabinet meeting."

Columbine

Today on my way home I saw a horrible accident on Wadsworth Blvd not too far from our house. Living in Denver brings many joys, lots of fun, and happiness. At the same time, I see the hard side of life. I frequently drive by Columbine High School, as it's only a few miles from my house. Both of our kids would have attended Columbine during the shooting, if we hadn't moved to Memphis. In fact, Tyler knew and went to school with Rachel Scott, one of the girls who was murdered on April 20, 1999. Her father published a book about Rachel called Rachel's Tears describing who she was and some of the things she wrote. Here is one of the poems she penned in her journal:

Jesus, break the strongholds
Tear down the strings of sin
Release me from my pride
Rescue me from these games
Restore me from the hurt
Renew my heart again
Tear down this bondage
Destroy this burden
Give me love, give me peace.
My life, my love, my wants,
My needs, my passion,
My strength, my faults,
My sin, my friends,
My foes, my family,
My all...is now yours.

Advice

Much of my job involves giving advice. As a consultant, I am expected to know a great deal, or at least be able to find the information quickly and apply it to the present circumstances. Most of the time it's well received and appreciated. However, it's not difficult to see when some of my franchise owners view it as something other than unwelcome. That's when I came across this quote from Dr. Johnson in a letter he wrote to Henry Thrale on May 30, 1780. Samuel Johnson wrote, "Advice, as it always gives the temporary appearance of superiority, can never be very grateful, even when it is most necessary or most judicious."

t-shirt, sunglasses, and a grandbaby

Today I went for a 45 minute walk wearing shorts, a T-shirt, and sunglasses of course. You would never know that there was rain mixed with snow all day yesterday in Denver. I'm guessing there will be at least one more big storm with some serious snow.

As I was walking around I was thinking about Seth Andrew. He is my future Grandchild, thanks to Seth and Noelle. I was thinking about them raising a child in a culture that's so screwed up. Parents will need lots of help and support. It reminded me about what Donald Miller talked about in his book, Searching for God Knows What. When talking about Shirley MacLaine and why she wanted to be God, he said, "I could see it in the people on television, I could see it in the people in the movies, I could see it in my friends and family, too. It seemed that every human being had this need for something outside himself to tell him who he was, and that whatever it was that did this was gone." I think the need to be loved and appreciated is enormous. Little Seth Andrew is going to need a lot of love from his family and friends. The self help version of Christianity doesn't meet this need. But, the God of the Bible seems to be brokenhearted over the separation in our relationship and downright obsessed with mending the tear. We're praying for you Seth Andrew.

By the way, the book, Searching for God Knows What is really good. I liked it as much as Blue Like Jazz. If you haven't read it, you should.

Rain, Rain, Rain and a little more

Yes, it's raining in Denver. Yesterday I would've said, "it's a little early for rain if you ask me." So then I look out the back window and it's rain mixed with snow. So, I go to the front door and look out the window at the hogback. There's a light blanket of fresh snow.

The rain is really needed. After all the snow we've had this year the streets are covered with dirt, mud, sand, and magnesium chloride. In fact the snow plows have left some grass and turf in the street after plowing and not looking where they're going. This rain is washing it all off and making everything green and lush. What a great spring we should have.

Leadership and Self Deception

Here is one of the best business books I've read in a long time. It's call Leadership and Self Deception. In fact, it could also be used as a marriage book, or even for raising kids. The book describes how to get out of the box with others. It says that we tend to see others as objects instead of people. As a result we betray ourselves and treat other people poorly. That book describes how we get to that point in our relationships with others and then how to get out of that box and stay out.

It's an excellent read and worth your time. I highly recommend it.

The Sale of ServiceMaster

According to bizjournals the deal for ServiceMaster was for $4.5 billion, however I think the buyer agreed to take over the ServiceMaster debt as I understand it, which would put the deal at about $5.5 billion. The article is located here. Take a look.

After Hours: 15.13 -0.02 / -0.13% Vol. 3,100
Previous Close	15.15	Bid	NA
Open	NA	Bid Size	NA
High	NA	Ask	NA
Low	NA	Ask Size	NA
Volume	25,500	52 Week Range	9.66-15.20

Here is what the buyer said, according to bizjournals.

"To us, ServiceMaster is the perfect private equity holding," Sam Darkatsh, an analyst with Raymond James & Associates Inc., wrote in a research note Monday. "Huge, low-risk cash flows, the ability to roll up a fragmented industry and/or sell existing business lines, no Asian import or technological obsolescence risk, terrific brand names, and large (read: deep-pocketed) strategic players who could ultimately present an end game (or IPO, of course)."

ServiceMaster Sold

Well the big news today was, ServiceMaster has been sold for $5.5 billion or a little over $15 per share to some investment group. They bought the whole thing, so we are no longer publicly held. We are private. They bought TrueGreen, Terminix, American Home Shield, ServiceMaster Clean, Merry Maids, everything. I think this is a good thing as long as the investors are patient and take a long term view of things. Having to get a double digit ROI on everything you do in one quarter is just a little unreasonable. They say they will be investing in each business unit. We'll wait and see.

This company owns Hertz, Jafra, Lexmark, and about 12 other notable companies. The good news about all this is, my stock will go up a couple of dollars to $15 a share. Whoopee! Before 9-11 it was over $30. We have a long way to go. But I am positive about it, and God is faithful in everything, so let's wait and see. I am thanking Him for this.

Iverson with 15 assist and 44 points meets Suns!

Need I say more than this?

Team Stat Comparison
	PHOENIX	DENVER
Points	107	131
FG Made-Attempted	40-90 (.444)	51-89 (.573)
3P Made-Attempted	9-27 (.333)	5-14 (.357)
FT Made-Attempted	18-22 (.818)	24-31 (.774)
Rebounds (Offensive-Total)	9-38	11-47
Assists	26	35
Turnovers	20	16
Steals	9	12
Blocks	4	8
Fast Break Points	34	24
Fouls (Tech/Flagrant)	20 (1/0)	18 (0/0)
Largest Lead	0	40

Top Performers
PHOENIX		DENVER
	L. Barbosa Points: 25 Reb: 4 Ast: 5 Stl: 2 Blk: 1		A. Iverson Points: 44 Reb: 5 Ast: 15 Stl: 0 Blk: 1

More NCAA and NBA

Okay, I missed 8 on round 1. That means I'm 24 and 8 in round one bracketology. Not bad. I remember picking them and thinking I need to pick an upset. So I picked Long Beach State over Tennessee. Tennessee was a number 5 seed and LB State was a 12 seed. Boy was I wrong on that one. The score was 12o something to 86 I think. It's doubtful Tennessee will get by Ohio State though. I also picked Texas A&M over Wisconsin. That was a mistake too, but if they played again, I'd still pick Texas A&M.

Tonight the Nuggets play the Phoenix Suns. We have a secret weapon now with Linus Klieza. I doubt it will help much since the Suns are playing so well, but you never know. Craig, if you're reading this, pay attention to Linus. While everyone double teams AI and Melo, Linus finds his way into the paint. And, he can score from outside the ring. He had 29 points against the Lakers the other night.

NCAA

I am pretty excited about the results yesterday. I got 16 out of 18 games right yesterday on my bracket. One of my losses was Duke. I had picked them to get by Virginian Commonwealth. Who would've thought? My only other loss was Gonzaga. I picked them to beat Indiana. Oh well. I don't think Indiana will go too far in this tournament.

Nancy must think I'm a little nuts. I call it bracketology. I could've put money on it at work, but I don't gamble. I just do it for the fun.

Saturdays

I've been meeting with some guys on Saturday mornings. John, Vernon, and Mike are good friends and the time is well spent. We've decided to read a book together called Leadership and self-deception. It's been a pretty good read so far. I will let you know what I think when I'm done.

Snow, Coyotes, and Basketball

The last bit of snow melted from our yard today. I got home from work and sure enough it was gone. I checked the temperature, it said 71, put on my shorts and tennis shoes and went for a fast 45 minute walk on the trail that goes up to the hogback. No knee problems today. I saw lots of prairie dogs and a couple of dead rabbits....coyotes have been dining near the house!

The Nuggets have won two straight games. The Phoenix game is coming up, so I don't know if this short streak will last. I picked my brackets for the NCAA tournament. I like Oregon and Mariland this year but I'm afraid Florida will take it all. That would be terrible.

Sin

I found a very nice quote from SK underlined in his Journals and Papers. Here it is: "That a person wants to sit and brood and stare at his sin and is unwilling to have faith that it is forgiven: is this also guilt in that it is a minimizing of what Christ has done?"

My Knee

Today We decided to go the YMCA after church to work out. On the way over we changed our minds because the weather was so nice (high 60's). We decided to go to Waterton Canyon instead and go for a walk up the canyon. When we arrived and walked about 100 yards up the canyon, it was covered with mud (over the asphalt road). There was no way we could get up the canyon without getting totally muddy. Where this mud came from is a mystery. Once again, we changed our minds and decided to go back home and walk around the neighborhood and get exercise there. Shortly after we left the house, I was admiring how one of our neighbors had chopped the ice away from the sidewalk behind his house. It was on the North side of his house and still in the shade, so there was lots of ice between the walk and his fence. The water was oozing out underneath the ice next to the sidewalk and freezing on the sidewalk, which only looked wet to me. I took a tumble, landed on my butt and twisted my knee. It's much better now. Below is a rendition of my tender knee

Prove God's Existence?

Many of you know, I was a philosophy major in college. One of my favorite philosophers was Blaise Pascal. He was really a French mathematician who did philosophy on the side. Here is a great quote from him about proving God's existence, or why he thinks it's a waste of time.

"Wherefore I shall not here undertake to prove by natural reasons either God's existence, or the Trinity, or the immortality of the soul, nor anything of the kind; not only because I cannot possibly feel competent to draw from nature arguments to convince the hardened atheist, but, further, because such knowledge without Jesus Christ is useless and sterile."

It's interesting that in Pascal's day, "reason" ruled the day. This day and age hundreds of years later, "reason" is not so important. Now you can believe anything you want, and no one cares if it's true. What matters now is, is it true for you? Or, does it make you feel good? Somehow I find it hard to believe that society is better off today than in Pascal's day. Just ask a Frenchman today what he believes.

One Good Reason To Live In Denver

Here is one good reason to live in Denver. Most of the snow we've had has melted, except on the North side of buildings and homes.

Denver, CO

• Local forecast
• Hourly
• Ten-day
• Maps
• Averages

Current Conditions (as of 1:55 PM)	Today's forecast		°F | °C
Mostly Cloudy 61°F Feels like: 61°F Barometer: 29.9 in Dewpoint: 21° Humidity: 20% Visibility: NA Wind: 5 mph SSE Sunrise: 6:21 AM Sunset: 6:00 PM Observed at Aurora, Buckley Air Force Base Airport. All times shown are local to Denver.	Today		Hi: 61° Lo: 30°
	PM Clouds
	6 PM		51°
	Cloudy
	9 PM		43°
	Cloudy
	Midnight		38°
	Cloudy

United Airlines

Describing this will be difficult but hang in there with me. The stewardess asked me if I wanted another cup of water. I said, "yes, please." She rolled her eyes and said, "okaaaay." The look on her face was so indifferent and made me feel like I put her out. She rolled her eyes about this and looked away with a frown on her face. This has to be more difficult than being nice. But SHE ASKED ME!! She asked me if I wanted another cup of water. I responded politely. Yet, she was put out. This is a common theme with this stupid airline. I can't tell you how many of their employees exhibit this kind of behavior. Do they screen for toxic people when they hire? I've had enough of them. One more flight and I'm back to Alaska Airlines. At least the people on Alaska are nice.

Seth Andrew

That's his name! Yes, it's true. Noelle called me today and told me it's a boy. And, they named him Seth Andrew. I am so completely honored by this you can't imagine how I feel. After I got the news I prayed for the youngster. I know God will honor my prayer.

Weight of Wings

I talked with my daughter today. She has a new website called Weight of Wings. You should check it out. Of course the big deal with her right now is the new baby on the way. Oh, did I forget to say it was a big deal with me? Yes, it is. I'm going to be a Grandfather (technically I am already).

One of my favorite things is visiting REI. I got a dividend check from them the other day and Nancy and I decided to spend it there. I had no idea; clearly half our time was spent in the children's area. It's a big deal.

Amazing Grace

Normally I don't like going to the movies. I've made some poor choices in the past and why repeat the mistakes? I would rather read a book. Nancy compelled me to go see Amazing Grace today. I was amazed. It was an excellent movie. I read the reviews before going and of course, they were negative. Too much political discussion, not enough action (what did they want to show, people dying and suffering in slave ships? I think we get it), and of course the movie was an evangelical Christian advertisement. Sorry, but I didn't see it that way at all. I saw an historical representation of William Wilberforce. I would recommend the movie to anyone.

Right before the movie started our friends Keith and Clare Dawson and family walked into the theatre and sat right next to us. That doesn't happen often in Denver. Somehow, it made the movie better. They are very special people.

Peace Like a River

I finished Leif Enger's book, Peace Like a River a couple of weeks ago. I am inclined to move it to my list of favorite reads. Without a doubt it's one of the best books I've ever read and ranks right up there with the Hobbit. Although completely different from the Hobbit, I would recommend it to anyone.

You can use my link to order it on Amazon.

Propelled by the Sensational?

Ravi Zacharias in his book Jesus Among Other Gods, quotes Elizabet Barrett Browning. Here is the poem. I think it's called Propelled by the Sensational:

Earth's crammed with heaven,
And every common bush afire with God;
But only he who sees takes off his shoes;
The rest sit round it and pluck blackberries.

Zacharias says this reminds him of Moses and the burning bush. He says, "God's inexhaustible presence graced those occasions with brilliant and awesome splendor. How inconceivable was the loss for the people when the signs became the ends in themselves and the One signified the means. The special effects became the attraction, and the central figure was obscured. The world of humanity has lived with such blindness, and the mistake has been repeated in virtually every life."

This reminds me of my backpacking trips into the wilderness. I get to play in God's back yard and explore his gardens, and every bush and tree is afire with God. My prayer is that I won't be blind to how and when he works in my life and the life of my family and friends.