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10 Things I Think I Think – 2010 Style

January 2nd, 2010

I am totally borrowing this idea from Peter King’s Monday Morning Quarterback column. I have become a big fan of him and his columns and thought this would be a great way to add a little something to my blog. So…here it goes:

1. I think these are my quick-hit thoughts for the close of 2009:

A. Becoming a Husband & Dad in the last decade were the absolute highlights.

B. 2009 was not my favorite year. I’ve never before been more happier for a year & decade to come to a close.

C. This past decade was an absolute roller coaster. I’d prefer some gentle wave action this coming decade.

D. My friend, Bill Butler, is now living the life that everyone wishes they could live. Granted, pre-Hopetown wasn’t great – but he’s past that now. Salud my friend!

E. Companies…listen to me…the customer is now in charge of the transaction. Learn it, live it. We can buy from wherever we want, whenever we want. If it’s good, we might tell someone. If it’s bad we’ll tell everyone. If you go the social route take the good with the bad.

F. I am so tired of selective friendship. We’re either friends or we aren’t. Most people confuse friends with being an acquaintance. If you’re in Tucumcari, NM locked up for some crazy reason and you’re my friend – the phone will hit the floor before the call is done – period. I’m on my way.

2. I think my Internet prediction for 2010 is the decline of Facebook. I don’t know, I think it’s peaked here in the USA. My friend, Scott Gordon, said it best, “When my Grandma asks me about Facebook, I start looking for the next thing.”

3. I think I’d present these thoughts to you:

A. Football should be year round.

B. MLB plays WAY too many games. Same with the NHL.

C. Life in 140 characters…we’ll have to see where this goes. I’m @cgallent if you’re interested.

D. I love tech, but I am very concerned about my step-son’s inter-personal skills. He’s not learning to talk to people – they’re all texting. We’ll have to wait and see where this goes, too.

4. I think it’s a very long shot, but Q1 2010 is going to be a record quarter. I think a lot of people have been waiting to close out, write off and purge ‘09 and are going to start fresh in 2010 – with a bang.

5. I think as much as I’ve had my differences with the news media, it’s not going to change. Extremists on both sides are going monopolize the conversations. Thank God there’s sports talk!

6. I think this is what I liked about 2009:

A. I think 2009 taught us all that a job is not an entitlement. And, that’s a good thing.

B. “The Hangover” – what a great movie.

C. Thank goodness for savings accounts and a good financial planner! Regardless of your income level, you can get good financial advice – take it.

D. Radio on TV works. “Mike & Mike in the Morning” on ESPN2 and Dan Patrick are the best. I don’t have Direct TV, but from what I hear Dan and the Danette’s put on a solid TV show on the 101. I listen to them most every day on the radio.

E. Kindergarten rocks. I love seeing the world through the eyes of my 6 year old son. It’s the best cure for a bad day, grumpiness or anything else. Dylan, you better stay that way.

F. The turnaround of Vince Young was something to behold – it happened right in front of my eyes. It’s as American as it can get. Everyone, including me, thought his NFL days were over – but he overcame, learned and changed. That’s a lesson for us all. There are times when our talents will be equalized, that’s when the work begins.

G. Any LEGO game on the Xbox360 – great family fun! Still waiting to play Lego Rockband, though.

H. Best kid story – Dylan is 5 and sitting in preschool and they’re asked to go around the circle and sing their favorite song. So, it comes around to Dylan, and what does he sing…”Back in Black” – yeah, the AC/DC song. Needless to say we got a note home. But, I lifted the rock horns in the air and was a proud Dad that day.

I. Best cookbook I read in 2009, it’s a tie – John Besh’s “My New Orleans: The Cookbook” and “My Last Supper: 50 Great Chefs and Their Final Meals” (it was published in ‘07, but I just found it a few months ago – great stuff).

7. I think this is what I didn’t like about 2009:

A. All things financial.

B. Bailouts.

C. The fraternity that is comprised of chief executives in the finance world. Once you’re in, you’re in. You really have to screw up to be black balled from this fraternity. Hey, just a medium-sized screw up will net you $20 million.

D. Boards of Directors of Homeowner Associations. Get a life people.

8. I think this is what I am looking forward to in 2010:

A. The passion bucket filling back up. I can feel it coming.

B. Getting back to being proactive rather than reactive.

C. Toes in the sand.

D. Advancing – professionally, personally, intellectually, musically. 2009 really felt like a bad detour – time to get back on the road.

9. The three best shows on TV right now are Three Sheets, Spectacle and Pawn Stars.

10. I think these are my non-year-end thoughts of the New Year:

A. To my musician friends…here’s an observation: those musicians who are treating their fans like customers are winning. Those who are treating them like fans are gone.

B. Websites relied on the merger of the sales, marketing & IT departments. Social media is the merger of the PR and customer service departments. Ad people need to stay out of the social media thing – you don’t belong.

C. Rest in peace, Mac.

D. Caffeine Free Diet Sun Drop is the best diet drink on the planet.

E. What happened to hobbies? People…go out and find one. Facebook is not a hobby.

F. Sudoku – damn you! I hope everything they say about stimulating your brain cells is correct. This is supposed to be good for you, right?

G. There’s nothing more precious than a little boy waiting on the first snow fall of the year.

I’ll close with my all-time favorite toast from one of my favorite literary characters, Travis McGee, “Here’s to life, love and happiness; and time to enjoy them all!” Happy New Year everyone. <clink>

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Posted in Living, Random Thoughts

Yes, This Blog Needs an Update…

October 1st, 2009

Abject apologies I just remembered I have not updated this since long before Shakespeare wast a boy… You would not believe how hard it is being waited on hand and foot and generally lounging around thanks to my sweet wife. Stupid Global Warming!.

I am distracted with setting fire to people wearing Crocs, learning to speak Japanese, just generally being the life of the party to anyone unfortunate to cross my path, my day is filled with fluorescent light from midday to whenever. I am not complaining though. I need a nap.

I probably I will write something that makes sense soon. Seriously! I will write more to certain yous; but it might not be you in particular who I write to…

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Posted in Give Me a Break, Random Thoughts

It’s Pretty Cool Living in Franklin, TN

December 28th, 2008

For those who don’t know, Franklin, TN is a little town about 15 miles outside of Nashville. I’ve lived here for almost 3 years and me and my family just love it here. The schools are phenomenal and there is a ton of stuff to do. Plus, Franklin is a cool, trendy little town with a Rockwellian main street – lots of street fairs and things like that.

Franklin is also the place where most of the Tennessee Titans live and many of the music and other celebrities as well – Sheryl Crow, Keith and Nicole, etc… In fact, just last night we ran into Ashley Judd at the grocery store. This has been happening more and more and it’s really kind of cool to watch. Our little Publix is a popular spot – you never know who you’ll run into there. Even Santa Claus stopped by Publix last July while he was on summer vacation – really, my 5 year old Dylan got his card.

There’s an unwritten rule that you have to learn about living here and it’s this – this is home, leave them alone. People in Nashville don’t tolerate others being rude to our more well known residents. It’s not cool to go up to someone at dinner, while they’re out or while they’re with their families. They aren’t on stage or on TV while they’re home so we try and let them lead as normal a life as possible.

It’s not uncommon to be standing in line with someone famous or sitting next to them at dinner or at a bar or a party. It happens all the time. You just have to remember that they’re people, too. Just be nice, say hi and if they’re interested (just like anyone else), they’ll strike up a conversation. The best lesson I learned a long time ago is not to talk about their business at all. Based on my experience, they’re dying to be treated normally.

Anyway, I really have no idea what I’m trying to say here other than it’s pretty cool living in Franklin. Watch CMT sometime and you’ll see a lot of our town.

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Posted in Personal, Random Thoughts

My Responses to the Men’s Journal Exit Interview

October 8th, 2008

I was reading this month’s “Exit Interview” in Men’s Journal featuring Tim Robbins and thought I would answer the questions they posed to him:

What adventure most changed your life?
I’d have to say it was my honeymoon. I wanted to go somewhere a little out of the ordinary. It had to be a island, but not touristy. So, we settled on this little island in the Bahamas called Elbow Cay. We stayed at this great B&B on the island. The neat thing was that there were no cars allowed and only two telephones on the island. It was the first time in my life that I was really incommunicado and I loved it – but it took me about four days to settle into it. And, it took my wife a little longer. The interesting thing was when we flew back and laid over in Miami. After being away from the world for 10 days and walking back into that airport, you could just feel the tension and bad vibes in the place.

What skill should every man have?
Every man needs to know how to be an interpreter. There are so many things we deal with on a daily basis that require interpretation. What did the wife really say? What does my client really need versus what they want? What did my son mean by that? Why is that guy looking at me that way? Stuff like that.

Do you have a scar that tells a story?
Yes, there is a scar that runs from my mid forehead down my nose and under my right eye. My dad bought a ski boat right after I got out of high school. About 4-5 weeks after we bought it, the dealer came up to our house for a check-out ride – just to make sure everything was running properly. So, we went out skiing on this reservoir in Utah where I was living at the time. After skiing for a while, we were driving around and I sat up on the motor cover in the center of the boat. We’ll then we hit the sandbar doing about 30-35 mph. I flew forward and hit the windshield bracing after stopping dead cold. 200 stitches later – there’s my scar.

» Read more: My Responses to the Men’s Journal Exit Interview

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Posted in Random Thoughts

Why Do We Still Give Doctors and Their Staffs a Pass on Customer Service?

September 8th, 2008

I hate waiting – especially in a Doctor’s office. Where else in the real world would a professional get away with not holding up an appointment? I had an appointment this morning at 8:45 and waited for at least 20 minutes before going back to sit in another room for 10 more minutes. I finally walked out of this particular chiropractor’s office an hour and 15 minutes later. Completely unacceptable.

Why do we put up with this? Maybe I should send them a bill for my waiting time.

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Posted in Random Thoughts

The Snowman…In Memoriam

September 2nd, 2008

A man that touched my life, in many ways, passed away yesterday – Jerry Reed. He was 71 and died from complications with emphysema.

I first met Jerry when I was about five or six years old in Baton Rouge. You see, my Dad was a HUGE Jerry Reed fan and we were always listening to his albums when I was a kid, so I really knew his music. Dad also did some concert promoting on the side and would bring a few of his heroes into town for shows every once in a while. And, this led to me getting to meet Jerry for the first time. He and Dad kept up over the years off and on and I was able to meet him again a few times more. More on that in a sec.

Most people don’t have any idea how influential a guitar player Jerry was. Ask any guitar player in Nashville and he’ll be on their top 3 list. He built a style of his own based on the finger picking techniques of Merle Travis and Chet Atkins combined with banjo techniques from Earl Scruggs. He was also a great songwriter with numerous hits for both himself and others. It’s not too shabby of a career when Elvis records two of your songs!

Then we get to his movie career – where most people knew Jerry. His breakthrough role came opposite of Burt Reynolds in “Gator”. He was great in that movie - catch it if you haven’t seen it. And from there the world came to know “The Snowman” in “Smokey and the Bandit” for which he won a People’s Choice Award for his role. He made several movies over the years after and ended up in Adam Sandler’s “Waterboy” in the mid-90’s and was great opposite of Fonzie.

On a personal note I got to spend a little bit of time with Jerry when the last album that he and Chet Atkins came out called “Sneakin’ Around.” My Dad and I went to see him in Iowa at a show and ended up having dinner with he and his wife, Prissy, after the show. But it was on the bus that afternoon that I was fortunate to be part of something that Jerry didn’t do that often. He handed me his famous Baldwin guitar and asked me to play him something. I can’t remember what I played, but he corrected me on a few things and then gave me a lesson and some pointers. His wife later told me that she had never seen him give a guitar lesson before. So, I was pretty excited to learn from a master.

I got to tend his guitar a few more times, once at a show for the Chet Atkins Appreciation Society in Nashville. I even wrote an instrumental on that guitar – something I still play today.

I still listen to his music and wish that all of his catalog would resurface. You can find a few albums here and there. My favorite was a live album he recorded here in Nashville at the Exit/In. There’s a song on there called “I’m You Guitar” that is a masterpiece and then leads into a killer version of “Guitar Man.”

My hope is that he’ll one day make it into the Country Music Hall of Fame where he belongs. The things he’s done on stage, on screen, in the studio and in the writing room all add up to an amazing career as an entertainer. I remember seeing something a few years back that called him “The Entertainer” – very fitting.

Here’s the link to his obituary at Tennessean.com: Musician, actor Jerry Reed dies at 71

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Posted in Music, Random Thoughts