One of those days

Yesterday was a good one. I had a business lunch that I will just say I could do no wrong. It could have been a really bad situation but the planets were all aligned for me and everything went better than perfect.

And then there was last night. Wow. A few months ago hockey season started and to be nice the Thrashers werent doing well. 0-6 start lead to the firing of the coach. During the crappy start, I started thinking what would be something fun to do. A theme night seemed like something fun and so I started putting it together.

I thought why not celebrate the Thrashers' radio color guy, and former NHL'er Jeff Odgers. When Odgers played hockey he was known as "the Sheriff" because he was usually called upon to dispense justice on the ice. He rocked the foo-man-choo. So the thought was get an old Thrashers jersey, a badge and a fake mustache and you could show Odgers some love.

My original thought was there would be maybe 10 of us doing it, sitting together and having a great time. What we ended up with was 30+ people sitting in two areas of the arena, lots of time on the jumbotron and the mascot dressed up with us. After the game, Odgers' on-air partner donned the badge and 'Stache. When they interviewed Thrashers player Chris Thorburn, Thorburn was handed a 'Stache and even though he had no idea what was going on he was a good sport and put it on, too.

Odgers seemed to enjoy the love and posed for pictures and signed autographs.

Yeah, this actually happened.


The best mascot in the world gets in on the fun






Thrashers radio guy Dan Kamal getting in on the fun


Thorburn putting on his 'Stache


The Sheriff and his fans

Christmas comes Early[ier]

Last weekend I had to go to a meeting. I was running early so I stopped off at a local mall to kill some time. I am walking around and see Santa. 3 days into November and there is the jolly fat guy pushing parents to purchase some photos of their kids visiting him, as well as encouraging spending money at the mall. I check the local paper and see that this mall was the first this year to push Santa.

I remember a time, not that long ago mind you, when you didnt see Santa until the day after Thanksgiving. You had to wait for him to ride his sleigh down through downtown Manhattan on the Macy's parade and then the next day he would magically appear at your local mall. Next year you will see Santa in early October sporting a Halloween costume (no doubt pimping whatever kiddie movie is playing) and handing out candycorn and chocolate. My Grandkids will probably think that Santa and Uncle Sam are the same person. Fireworks that look like trees and snowflakes will be standard issue at your 4th of July celebration.

Sunday the wife and I had a great brunch and then went loafing around. This may come as a shock, but I wanted a pre-lit, artificial Christmas tree. Years of having sap and needles on the floor, I gave in and am going to have the fake tree. I will still miss the smell and will probably find some pine scented candles to help me cope.

Reality Isnt Always

This summer I happened to hear an interview with Corey Feldman and Corey Haim. They were talking about their "reality" program. In the interview they were on a roll talking about how they were directing, acting, producing and even writing the script. WHAT? They tried to correct their answer to say that they write the scripts but their reactions are real. Now, if you know what is coming up because you wrote a script, how can your reactions be real?

This got me thinking. How much reality entertainment is actually scripted? Less than you would think.

In the late 1980's, early 1990's record companies hire people to call radio stations and ask for certain songs to be played. Radio stations would think that a lot of people must like the song and artist so they would be added to the station's rotation. This would also help inflate album sales but the truth would be found out when some promoter would book the group to a local arena and nobody would be the tickets.

Reality TV was supposed to be different. The first season of Real World was different. They would just let real life happen and then show it on tv (of course it was edited to show whatever the desired outcome was but for the most part it was real). Suddenly it seemed every show on tv was a reality program. Scriptwriters were brought in to make the shows more lifelike. Casting was used to make sure certain things would happen when the cameras were rolling and producers make sure certain characters stay around for the show to ensure ratings.

Look at Bret Michaels and Flavor Flav dating shows. There would be someone as a potential suitor that would be just crazy. This person would be up for elimination several times but would make it almost to the end of the show not because Bret or Flav liked the person but because it made for good tv. Look at this season's Top Chef. Hung was up on the block several times and would usually tell the judges they just didnt understand good food but because he was good tv, he was kept around and eventually ended up winning.

Sometimes things happen off camera that the producers/directors want on camera so they get the cast to try to re-create it. Miami Ink when Kat was fired/quit is a good example. According to some internet reports, Kat quit the day before. The producers had her come in to the shop and had Ami tell her it wasnt working out. The reports claim that they were told to just go at it for as long as possible. The scene ended with Kat saying "whatever dude" and walking out of the shop.

With all of this manipulation of "reality" I cant help but wonder what other things might be manipulated. I am not saying the world is one big version of "Wag the Dog" but it makes you wonder.

Hot Date

Friday night I went out on a date. My wife knows and approves...

My nephew (just under 8 months old) had surgery Friday morning and I went up to see him, spend some time with my family, and also let my wife work in a quiet house on some stuff for her graduate classes. My sister called as I was driving to let me know the surgery went fine and to see if I wanted to take my niece to a minor league hockey game. Sure.

Last year she came here to a hockey game and it left a big impression on her. So we surprised her and the two of us went to the game, giving her parents and my parents a break from her energy and questions that are common to 5 year olds.

Minor league hockey is a little different than NHL hockey. The ice looked smaller. The players smaller. The arena smaller but the fans are passionate and loud. Tickets are cheaper, as are the refreshments.

My niece paid more attention to the game this time around and asked a lot of questions. Why did they take those two players over there to that box? They were bad and had to go sit in timeout. Why are the fans booing those men wearing stripes? That is just what you do at hockey games. Why does everyone have a stick? That is what they use to move the puck. Throughout the game she asked me questions but I didn't mind.

After the game, she made me promise that I would take her to another game, before she drifted off to sleep on the drive home. Of course I will.





Oh, my nephew is back to normal. He already had the tubes out from the surgery before I made it to the hospital Saturday morning and didnt seem to be that sore from the surgery.

One Year

I think most of you know the story, if not here is the quicky version. October 2004 I go to the Doctor and learn that my kidneys had failed thanks to a prescription that I was on. 2 years of dialysis follow (both hemo and PD) and Aug 17, 2006 I received a kidney transplant. The remarkable thing is that it came from someone who I had only met 4 months earlier, after she expressed an interest in possibly donating.

When you think about the odds of 2 strangers being a match for a transplant all I can say is that this was a miracle. Not like the miracle that will happen if the Braves make the playoffs this year but water into wine type of miracle.

What a year it has been. Numerous stories on TV, the internet, print, radio and even a podcast or two. I think it is important that people going through similar situations have stories like mine or like others to help give them hope and encouragement to get through the situation. I have heard from many people of how they were touched by the story, some of which are waiting for donors and others that have changed their opinion about being an organ donor themselves.

One of the biggest things that my wife and I have gotten out of the transplant (other than the obvious) is an extremely close friendship with people that were recently complete strangers. It is really strange of the similarities that we have with the Shaws and how well we get along. Even if we werent a match, the whole process has been worth it just to become friends.

Even though I live with the knowledge that today could be the day my body decides to reject the transplanted kidney, I hope that there are many more anniversaries to follow after today and I look forward to continuing the friendships that began 16 months and 4 days ago. Thanks Brandi (and Doug) for everything.





oh, and stay tuned as their is some continued interests in retelling the story maybe on a national level....

tipping

I am a great tipper at bars and restaurants but I will be honest I am unsure what is appropriate tips for other things.

One weekend in college my roommate asked what I normally tip after getting my hair cut. Zero, I said. I didnt know it was expected. When I was really young my dad cut my hair. At three was I supposed to give him a frog or a stick as a way of saying good job (even though it wasnt)? Then I went to barber shops for a while and although I didnt watch dad pay, I am confident he didnt tip the barber. High School I would cut the yard around the salon I got my hair cut as part of a barter system. In college I began tipping after my roommate told me that was expected.

What about valets? How much should they be tipped? I am really asking what is appropriate. Should I wait until I get in the vehicle and see if they moved my seat or changed my radio before handing them a tip? Should the tip be equal to or a portion of what the paid lots are charging nearby?

What about pet groomers? We take our dogs every couple of months to get washed and have their nails trimmed. It is a lot easier to have someone else cut their nails then for us to do it. Our older dog has some hip issues and our younger dog despises having her nails done (she is this close to being sedated to have her nails done) plus I dont have to worry about cutting them incorrectly or too short. After our most recent trip to the groomers, we get home and find out that the older dog only had about a third of his nails cut even though we paid for them to all be cut. In the future should I look over the dogs and make a big scene if it isnt done correct before tipping?

I remember years ago I was making a cross country flight. A buddy of mine worked for the airline and had given me some free drink coupons. Somewhere high over the heartland of America I decided to tip the flight attendant as I thought she was doing a great job. She became offended that I had offered her a tip. I asked some flight attendant friends about it and most said they would have taken it but that some attendants feel that if they are offered a tip you are thinking of them as a waitress in the sky which they feel is below their stature.

Whatever. So who should you tip and at what amounts?

Paired Donation Story

After One Kidney Was Incompatible, Eager Donor Found Recipient and Spurred More Transplants

By BARBARA PINTO
July 26, 2007

A domino-like series of kidney transplants across the country first started with Matt Jones, a 28-year-old father of four.

Last week, he made the unusual decision to donate his kidney to a complete stranger.

"You only need one to survive," Jones explained, "and there's a lot of other people out there who could use the other one you have."

After running his information through a nationwide database, doctors found a match for Matt's kidney in Barbara Bunnell -- a grandmother from Phoenix, Ariz., who has battled kidney disease her entire life. (For information on the database contact www.paireddonation.org)

The hereditary kidney disorder she suffered from claimed her mother and her grandmother in their mid 50s. Her husband, Ron, had hoped to donate his kidney to his wife, but tests showed he wasn't a good match.

"The fact that she gets this kidney, we'll grow old together," said Ron Bunnell. "We'll see our grandchildren grow up. It's just a miraculous gift."

Gift Keeps on Giving

His wife's gift has led Ron Bunnell to the University of Toledo Medical Center, where he sat in a hospital bed ready for surgery. "I've transcended the nervousness. I'm totally relaxed," he told ABC's Barbara Pinto while glancing over at the woman in the hospital bed across the room.

She is Angie Heckman -- a virtual stranger until a few weeks ago -- who was just hours away from receiving Ron's donated kidney.

Angie has spent most of her 32 years on dialysis. She was diagnosed with kidney disease at a young age, and spent 12 hours a week hooked to the blood-cleansing machinery to stay alive. She is also on drugs to control her blood pressure, which has skyrocketed as the result of her kidney disease. To Angie, Ron's gift is overwhelming.

"We don't know each other and he wants to help so his wife could be well. He's just passing it on," she said, her eyes welling with tears.

"This is the first day of the rest of her life," said Angie's mother, Laurie Sarvo, nervously pacing the room.

Computers Bring Donors Together

This first-ever chain of transplants is not only the result of amazing generosity -- but of something called paired donation. A potential donor who wants to give a kidney to a friend or loved one, but is not a biological match can now be paired with an appropriate recipient. A computer program connects donors and kidney patients nationwide.

In this case, the computer matched Matt, who lives in Michigan, with Barb, from Arizona. Her husband, Ron, who was not a suitable donor for his wife, was perfect for Angie in Toledo. And now, Angie's mother, Laurie Sarvo, who was not a match for her daughter, will soon give her kidney to another perfect stranger -- touching off a chain of six more transplants.

"The simplest way to explain it is 'paying it forward' when it comes to organ transplantation," said Dr. Michael Rees, medical director of the Alliance for Paired Donation.

"The future that I see in America is there will no longer be such a thing as a willing incompatible donor," added Dr Rees. "If you're willing, we're going to get you a transplant."

While a family member is usually best, doctors say in some cases a stranger can be an even better match. That means fewer life-threatening complications, and more lives saved.

And a kidney from a living donor, as opposed to a cadaver donor, will also last longer -- 16 years, as opposed to eight, according to Rees.

For Angie Heckman, this is a new beginning.

"There are not even words to say how thankful I am," she said to Ron -- the man she calls her "guardian angel."

"I don't want her to pay me back," Ron replied. "I just want to keep it going. Keep the chain going."

That is the hope among doctors and patients -- that this cascade of lifesaving miracles, sparked by one selfless act of kindness -- will continue indefinitely.

For more information on paired donors: http://www.paireddonation.org/

Copyright © 2007 ABC News Internet Ventures

Food

I love to eat. I guess most people enjoy eating but there is something about the way a nice Filet melts in your mouth like butter, or the crisp, crunch as you bite into an apple that I just truly enjoy. It can be at home or at a restaurant it doesnt matter as I love to cook, too.

I watch Food Network shows to get ideas. We have cookbooks from at least 3 Food Network chefs, too. Food Network has definitely helped me with my prep and cooking skills. I have a salt cellar filled with kosher salt thanks to Alton Brown's pimping of the products and I cant think of the last time I have used iodized salt. I can say "bam" while adding spices, I use EVOO, and I know that if make a Paula Deen recipe that I need to cut the butter in half or my arteries will be closed up.

One thing that bothers me immensely from Food TV is things that they forget to show; namely washing of hands. Seriously. How many times have you watched a cooking show and seen the host handle RAW meats (especially chicken) and not wash their hands before handling something else? Or they mention how they need to wash their hands and they turn on the water but dont use soap? Unfortunately people in their homes see this lack of common sense hygiene and dont do it either. People like me with weakened immune systems, thanks to post transplant prescriptions, would really appreciate this being corrected like yesterday.

And speaking of raw chicken... recently I was at a work related luncheon. One of those meetings where you have a set menu (usually poultry) to gobble down [pun intended] while listening to
a speaker/s discuss something for an hour or so. I cut into the chicken and see that is severely undercooked. I politely and quietly get the servers attention and ask for another plate. No problem. My next plate I cut into the thickest part of the chicken and see that it is cooked. I eat for a while until I noticed that at the thin end of the chicken breast it is raw. Not undercooked, but RAW. Not really something I wanted to see.

To me when dining out, the environment is sometimes just as important as the food. Can you go to a baseball game and not crave a hot dog? I smell kabobs with Mediterranean spices and I immediately start searching for the belly dancer. BBQ demands blues to be played in the background. A soft pretzel with cinnamon and sugar requires a group of people to yell "Hey Goalie you suck!"

Lastly, when dining out here is a lesson for current or potential waiters: learn to make change. Not just how to add and subtract but also to think while making change. Say my bill is $14.37 and I hand you a $20, dont give me a $5 bill and 63 cents unless you possess jedi skills that will force me to give you the $5 back as a tip (if you have jedi skills you shouldnt be wasting your powers waiting tables). I tip well but 30%+ is something that I, or most people, don't do. And if I decide to give you $5 it is just as easy for me to do it in 5 ones as it as a $5 with the above mentioned hypothetical dinner.

You Cant Go Home

Several months ago my parents realized that they weren't getting any younger and would prefer a smaller yard and a house with fewer steps. So they started looking around and found a house they liked and bought it. That was followed by putting there house up for sale. In less than a week of it being listed, my parents had an offer and closed on it in less than a month (who says the market is getting soft?).

We moved into that house when I was 5, maybe 6. Loading up the moving van, I was flooded with memories. I know it was bound to happen but it is kind a weird when it does happen.

Not long after my wife and I were engaged, I drove her by the area of where the first house I remember living in was. I lived there from when I was 2 until I was 5 or 6. It is now a parking lot for a strip mall. I couldn't show her where the swingset used to be or where I learned to ride a bike.

When we moved into my parents' last house the people that had built it were constantly driving by to see what we were doing to "their" house. They would slow down almost to a stop in front of our house, turn around and drive real slow past it again. They did this until several years ago when they moved a couple of states away. I now know how they felt... I just won't stop in the middle of the road.

Hockey Love

Thought I would answer a question that is often asked me (during the first intermission of Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Finals); "Why do you like hockey?" I will start with the obvious answer of it found me a kidney. But the hockey love goes deeper so I guess I should continue my answer.

I think my first hockey memory has to be 1980 and the Miracle USA team in the Olympics. I dont think I actually watched the game but I remember watching all of the media coverage of team USA beating the USSR and winning Olympic Gold. About this same time Atlanta lost its Hockey team. I had never been to a hockey game but I still felt a since of loss.

Fast forward a couple of years and I had a friend that had moved to rural Georgia where I lived (well it was rural then but not so now) from upstate NY. He played hockey. He would regularly wear hockey jerseys to school and I always thought they were cool.

High School and I had some AP classes with another hockey player. Although he was an honor student, his favorite part of hockey was the violent hitting and checking. I thought it weird to enjoy being hit but what the heck.

College comes around and I go to my first hockey game. Last weekend I was at my parents' house cleaning up some things in my old bedroom and ran across the ticket stub for this first game. The Birmingham Bulls were minor minor league hockey but I still remember my fascination with the speed and agility that the players had as they traversed the ice. Yes there was a fight or two that night but it didnt leave as much an impression on me as the finesse of the game. I went back a few more times to watch the Bulls.

After graduation I, like most recent college grads, turned to waiting tables while I was looking for a career. Atlanta had a very good minor league hockey team at that time and I would go to games with a group from the restaurant I worked at. We were frequently there. I didnt understand all of the rules but I enjoyed the fast paced excitement. I started thinking I needed to purchase my first jersey. I even thought that I should pick out a pro team to be "my team" but luckily I didnt as Atlanta soon got a pro team of their own. I kept going to games but honestly I didnt pay for many tickets at first. It seems that I had the luck of knowing people that were always giving away seats and most of those were in suites.

When my wife and I were dating I took her to a few games and she enjoyed it. After we got married I looked into buying tickets for a block of games but then I had my kidney problems and the NHL went on strike. The following year we bought tickets and as most of you know that is how I found my donor. This year we bought tickets for more games and watched our first (and the Thrashers' first) playoff hockey game.

The wife and I have had to teach ourselves the rules and we are quick to share our newfound wisdom with others, whether it is friends we take to the game or just people sitting near us that look clueless. Most people in the South can relate to football and if they go to a hockey game they can see a lot of similarities. Hockey is physical but it is also graceful. Watching a play develop into a goal is a beautiful thing to behold.

Anyway, I am sure the game is back underway and so I need to wrap things up here. If you have never been to a hockey game, please let me know. I would love to take you and get you hooked (no pun intended) on one of the best sports.

Music and memories

A long time ago when I was in college, the M in MTV stood for music. Most of their shows were around music. Sure they had the Real World and Comedy shows and Springer on Spring Break but you got to see a lot of music videos and shows about music (and yes we walked uphill in the snow, barefoot to our one room schoolhouse...). I think one of my favorite shows of this time on MTV was Unplugged. Musicians playing their hits stripped down and acoustic (the music was stripped down, not the musicians). You got to see and hear the music without the aide of audio production that turns mediocre singers into superstars (not naming any names here [cough, boy bands, cough]).

I saw Extreme live in this period of time in a small dive in Alabama and they played More than Words for what they said was the first time live. An acoustic song was a big hit for them due to the success of Unplugged. Other bands quickly rushed to the studio to record and sell their acoustic hits. I think some of my favorite stuff on Unplugged was the faster, upbeat stuff that you dont think of as traditional acoustic music.

If you were around Upper Alabama (and around the Southeast) in this time period you may remember seeing N-Dangered. Brad Cotter that won Nashville Star a few years ago was a member but I think all of the other members are still around playing (not neccessarily together). They played mostly the faster stuff from Unplugged along with calls from Tracey for a "Social" after every other song. These guys rocked and I miss seeing them live.

Why, you may ask, am I rambling about the good old days that happened over a decade ago? A few weeks ago, I went to see Brothers of a Feather. You may know them better as Chris and Rich Robinson from the Black Crowes. I have seen the Crowes several times and unfortunately they have become more of a hippie jam band live than playing the stuff that I like. As Brothers of a Feather, they play acoustic versions of their old (ie, good) stuff and throw in some covers, too. Loved it! I felt like I was back, sitting on a stump at Brothers listening to N-Dangered. If only Chris had screamed out "Social!!!!" at least once during the show.

Organ Donation

The last week or so have found me thinking about and talking about organ donation. A friend that is also a lobbyist is about to have his transplant (that will make 3 of us in 3 years... maybe we should start our own caucus). Last Friday I learned about an FBI agent in Chicago that gave a kidney to someone he didnt know (drop me a message and I will send you a link to his excellent blog). Saturday I was asked to speak at my old dialysis clinic about PD and transplant. While I was there I met a friend of a friend that is waiting on his transplant. We had emailed each other a few times but actually met for the first time last Saturday.

Yesterday I went to Organ Donor recognition day at the State Capitol. I have been the last 3 or 4 years and this year's event was the largest yet (and my first post transplant). Several donor families spoke about their experience, some living donors spoke, and a couple of recipiants also spoke.

One woman is a foster parent. Her foster son needed a transplant and she ended up being a perfect match. He is the cutest four year old you have ever met. The odds of the two of them being a match is so rare (kinda like being a match with someone you meet through a hockey message board) that it makes you really believe in fate/destiny.

Another woman lost one of her sons 2 years ago and 7 people were able to be helped through his death by receiving organs. I cant imagine the grief that this mother had to go through with the death of her young son but the fact that she was adament about helping others is something truly special. Last fall her older son learned that a friend of his needed a kidney and so he gave one of his. What an incredible story of an incredible family.

I remember being in 6th or 7th grade and somehow we began discussing being an organ donor. Most of my peers were adamantly opposed to it (at 12 or 13) but for some reason me and a couple of others were not. When I got my drivers license I also signed up to officially be an organ donor. I never knew that I would need an organ but I felt strongly about being a donor.

As National Organ and Tissue Donation Awareness month winds down, please take time out to seriously think about being an organ donor and signing the back of your drivers license (or downloading a card off the internet) and letting your family know your wishes. Almost 100,000 Americans need a transplant. Every 12 minutes, someone else is added to the transplant waiting list. 18 people die every day while waiting for a transplant. Please help them out.






Oh, thank you Brandi for helping me.

Good Day

Today was a good day. Not going to post many details other than saying that somethings are in play for 2 clients that are good for them and by extension, me.

Oh, and playoff hockey starts tonight in Atlanta. That is a good thing.

I have a couple of long blogs that I have been mentally writing and will try to get up soon. One is on music and memories, and the other is why would a good southern boy have like me have an interest in hockey (since I have been asked that hundreds of times).

Green Fog

The pollen count is ridiculously high. Everything is a nasty yellowish green. Monday I did a drive thru car wash after buying gas on my way to a meeting. Yesterday, my vehicle was back to being yellow-green in color. I could use the ice scraper to get the pollen off of the windows of my car.

How bad is the pollen? Yesterday I had to come home around lunchtime to get some things I had left here. Heading back downtown I decide to stop at a burger joint. The main exit with the most fastfood places between my house and downtown is also home to people selling drugs or their bodies. As I am waiting for my order, I notice a group of women working their particular area of sidewalk. One had on her booty shorts and a bare midriff top. As she was attempting to wave down cars with one hand, the other hand was holding up a surgical mask. I wish I had a camera on me to take a photo.

I assume that the surgical mask was to lessen the effects of the pollen but I could be wrong. Would it hinder her normal clientele to see her with a mask on? Would the johns even think that maybe she has some kind of communicable disease? I guess if they thought that they wouldnt be stopping to pick her or her coworkers up anyway.

Swimming

This past weekend the wife and I took a little trip. We went to south Florida. Although we did go to a hockey game, the trip was also a chance for us to get away for a while.

The Florida Panthers' arena is in the middle of nowhere which means there are no hotels close by (but it does mean free parking at the arena). We ended up staying about 10-15 minutes away at a nice hotel with a heated, rooftop pool. We checked into the hotel, ate lunch, and I got to swim for the first time in over two and a half years.

While I was on hemodialysis I had to be careful about getting my port wet (no showers and no swimming). When I was on peritonial dialysis I was told to avoid swimming, too. So the hotel having a heated pool meant swimming for me in early March. It was great.

And for those that may ask, yes anti-rejection drugs do raise your chances of getting skin cancer (of course having a fair complexion helps raise the chances too) and yes I was wearing waterproof sunscreen with an SPF of 5 million.

The Thrashers lost the game but swimming almost made up for that.

Who You Effect

About a month after my transplant my donor's husband's employer did a story on us and the transplant on their website. For some reason I printed out a handful of copies and left them at the transplant center's waiting area.

A couple of weeks go by and someone saw a copy, read it and contacted my donor's husband (since his email was listed in the story). This person was at the transplant clinic to find out if they were able to donate a kidney to a distant family member that they didnt know too well. This person had reservations about going through with it since they didnt know each other too well but after reading of the selflessness of my donor in giving to someone she didnt know, this person decided to go through with it.

Several days ago, my donor's husband was cleaning out his email inbox and found the original email that he and his wife had responded to. He wondered whatever happened to this person and sent them an email. He heard back from this person's spouse over the weekend. Last Friday, this person gave their distant relative a kidney. Both donor and recipient were doing fine.