Life of Letter 10
marketing, design, travel, and my thoughtsGoodbye 2011…Happy New Year!
Well here we are…another year is going by. 2011 was kind of a hangover year for me. Still stuck in the shock of dealing with the loss of my son but we closed out the year with the excitement of Kami’s pregnancy with our second son, Ian. It has been a great second half of the year watching him grow on an ultrasound screen and letting myself hope and dream of sharing life with him come spring time. It has taken me a lot to get my head back around to the positive but I think I am there. Many thanks to wonderful friends for the support and encouragement along the way!
So in 2011 I also took a leap into a new career. Not a vastly different area from where I was for the previous 9 years and 11 months, but something new. I say vastly different mainly because it is still in the realm of marketing but it certainly is a different world than associations. I started at Pineapple Advertising a year ago in April and it has been somewhat of a whirlwind learning the style of a new company and figuring out where I fit in and how I can use my talents for this company. I still have my hands in some aspects of the association so I am not completely removed.
Until we found out Kami was pregnant again that was pretty much the highlight of our year. Kami is still happy in her nursing career, the pool was a nice addition to our summer and we remain on the hunt for a great deal on travel to a new beach (while that will certainly get more difficult, it will still be there). 2011 was the year Kami and I celebrated 10 years of marriage…she won the gift war when she surprised me with tickets to the Major League Baseball All-Star game in Phoenix. We had a wonderful time (thanks Mary!) and shortly after returning we learned of our greatest surprise, Ian. Of course at that time we didn’t know it was another boy, but that didn’t matter.
Now we just wait for the next week so we can get another glimpse of our son on that black and white screen to see him move, his heart beat and see how much he has grown. I know…seems like kind of a boring year. Well I hope that 2012 will more exciting and laughter filled than either of us can imagine.
So that is enough about that…hope that everyone has a great New Year celebration. Be safe and make the most of everyday in 2012!
Unchartered…at least for me
Well today we had another successful ultrasound and were able to see little Ian wiggle around on the screen. This week my wife heads into the 25th week of pregnancy. The furthest along we have gone since we lost our son Lukas at 24 weeks a little over a year ago.
I have not missed an appointment yet and our doctor has taken a look on ultrasound each time. I don’t take these glimpses for granted anymore. There is still a place in my head that tells me it could be the last time I get to see him move. I want desperately to eliminate that place in my head. I want to just push past it and look forward to the time when I get to hold him, hear him laugh (and even cry). We are still very much taking things a day at a time but this week marks a new week, and a new milestone that we haven’t gotten too before. I hope that this is just the first of many more to come, more than I can even imagine.
It is amazing to me how much of a personality you can get from ultrasounds and really paying attention to the movement of your child. A few nights ago my wife used a doppler that she brought home to listen to Ian’s heartbeat. Normally it is easy to find and this time was proving tricky. Then Ian proceeded to rub against the wand. And then he kicked it, or punched it, or head-butted it. Something hit it…directly. He continued to move around so much that we could only get glimpses of this heartbeat. Seemed like he was playing with us already. Again today on the ultrasound it seemed like he simply did not want to make it easy for us to get a good look at him…moving around all over the place. I will never forget one of the ultrasounds with Lukas…he was just sitting there…kicked back with his little feet crossed. Moving around a little bit but seemed very relaxed and just hanging out.
I can’t wait to see if Ian’s personality that he displays on screen comes through to real life.
Occupy…I just don’t get it
So I am fully aware that there is a need for some education on my part when it comes to the “Occupy” movement. I also see the point in a good protest on occasion but these are missing it for me. Sure, I’ll give credit to the folks out in Oakland that slowed down one of the nation’s top sea ports with their Occupy protest. And I bet the folks that are occupying Wall Street are opening some eyes as well.
But Occupy Tulsa? Really? What are you accomplishing by getting arrested for sleeping on the grass after the city curfew? The only thing you are doing is wasting tax dollars and police time by forcing them to show up and haul you away. You claim that you are the 99% but do you think the 1% cares? You say the 1% has the power…I am not seeing how your demonstration is impacting their world. Please educate me in the comments so that I can try to see your perspective on this one.
And another thing…the complaint is the “unequal” distribution of wealth and power. I have a hard time with this one. My whole life I was told to work hard, be smart and do everything I can to continue to get smarter and work harder so that I can be comfortable in life and not have to struggle. So I ask you this…can you not apply the “rich get richer” moniker to other areas in life? I think that if you really sit down and “occupy” some thought you will see that the “smart get smarter” and the “strong get stronger.” I am tired of the expected hand out. Why not go “occupy” a classroom? ”Occupy” whatever it takes to remedy your situation. You have the power to manage your own life…and really that is all the power you need.
I had a great professor compare our mood for each day with the weather. He pointed out that we often feel down and depressed when it is cloudy and rainy while we are more happy when the sun is shinning. He followed this illustration with a statement that left a mark on me. “Proactive people make their own weather.” So be proactive and do whatever it takes to make your day sunny.
Don’t look for the heads-up penny…kick the crap out of the tails-up one until it lands heads-up. Make your own luck.
