update 2.9.06

Just a few short thoughts (in random order):

1. The Super Bowl is over, the Steelers are crowned NFL champs. For me, it was a bit anti-climatic. I think it was mostly due to the excitement of the 3 previous playoff victories. Also, the beloved black and gold were a bit flat for the SB. But it was great to see them beat another #1 seed and bring home the "one for the thumb". Matt and Sam stayed up to watch the whole thing. They had their steelers garb on that I had purchased on a recent trip to the 'burgh.

As an aside, how awesome is playoff and/or super bowl buzz? I remember the glory years in washington and how the city just buzzed with anticipation of a big skins vs cowboys games. Then the playoffs, the bandwagon etc... For the past few years in Pittsburgh we got to experience some of it and it was awesome. I was in the burgh two weeks ago, just after they won the AFC championship. I took a run in the strip district (not what you think) at 7 am and the vendors were already out doing a brisk crappy t-shirt business. There was an electric feeling and everyone seemed to have a little hop in their step. GOOD TIMES.

2. I've been burning the candle at both ends. It seems like I've been going 120 mph for a couple of months now. I'm hoping to find a time to recharge pretty soon. In the meantime, I have a call into Stan Conte.

3. kid update: Joe is having a pretty good stretch these days. He's learning his letters and numbers and has taken to his nursery school class. A couple of weeks ago, Kate took Matt and Sam to NYC overnight, so Joe and I had most of the weekend alone together. I had a great time eating candy, watching Power Ranger movies with a fire and popcorn, playing outside and building bionicles. And when Joe was awake, we had even more fun...

Sam continues to enjoy being the golden child. His basketball practices are going real well, he's learning all the fundamentals. He got a great report card, but his teacher mentioned that he has a hard time behaving in class (sound familiar mom/dad?).

Matt finishes his wrestling season tonight. He has been wrestling against more experienced wrestlers and has been frustrated with his lack of success. I'm proud of him and expect that he'll be very good if he decides to stick with it. Last week, he was matched against a kid that was obviously about 5 pounds heavier and was not a novice. Matt came out aggressively and was forcing the action. He made some nice moves in the first period but got caught in a bad spot which he escaped from as the period was ending. In the second period he again forced the action. This time however, he made a bad decision and ended up getting pinned. It's so hard watching your kid lose, especially something as punishing as wrestling. It's impossible to let him know how proud I am of him, but I try. Matt also had a superb report card.

Both Matt and Sam are listening to a lot of Christian music. They play it on their discman or portable cd player. So, while they are still open to it, they are hearing great positive messages and some pretty good music too. This is one interest that I have no problem funding.

I mentioned a NYC trip. Megan and my mom took Maddie up to the big apple to celebrate her birthday. Kate took Matt and Sam up via train and met them. I know the boys had a great time and Kate was very excited to visit the city that never sleeps. An appropriate name when you are sharing a hotel room with an 8 and a 6 year old.

4. grown ups: Kate and I actually have a date tomorrow night. We are LONG overdue.

5. Book report: I got a book for Christmas
The Grizzly Maze: Timothy Treadwell's Fatal Obsession with Alaskan Bears by Nick Jans. It's an easy read and an unapologetic account of "the grizzly man". Then I saw the PBS special on Tim Treadwell... My opinion is that he was certainly a compelling figure - a man that survived for thirteen seasons in and among gigantic predators. After seeing the documentary I am convinced that he was most probably insane and very lucky that he survived for as long as he did. The short story is that this guy drifted around California in search of himself, abusing drugs, drifting, acting etc... somehow he became enthralled with grizzly bears and found his muse. From then on, he became a bear activist - spending his summers amongst the wild grizzlies. He wintered in the lower 48 fundraising for "grizzly people" and visiting schools. No doubt, he became an artist - filming and photographing incredible natural scenes. But his half-baked assumptions about his abilities and the nature of bears eventually led to his demise. Then again, he frequently told his friends that if he were ever eaten by a bear, it would be okay and that is how he wanted to die. What I'm sure he didn't want was to have his girlfriend get eaten as well. And he also is responsible for the deaths of the two bears that ate them.

Whenever I read a book like this - (Krakauer's Into the Wild and Into Thin Air for starters) I am reminded of Blaise Pascal - yes the math guy - who said that "There is a God shaped vacuum in the heart of every man which cannot be filled by any created thing.." Obviously Treadwell was trying to find something to give his life a reason and meaning - to fill the "god shaped vacuum". He directed that searching and yearning towards grizzly bears. I'd say that he lived life on the edge, he experienced things that many people will never enjoy. In many ways I envy his life, where he was constantly in peril and could meet his demise at any moment. But was he fully alive? Was it just folly? What does he leave as a legacy? Read the book and let me know what you conclude.

This also is a good segue into my next book review (due in a couple of weeks):

Next book review:
Waking the Dead: The Glory of a Heart Fully Alive by John Eldredge

PEACE!!!