Da Bears

As the air becomes cooler and the pages of the calendar for 2009 continue to disappear, the holidays are fast approaching. With those holidays come more constraints on time, more commitments to be either here or there, and more self-imposed obligations to take care of all those little responsibilities that seem to never end.

Frank truly enjoys this time of the year as the excitement builds to the big crescendo of Christmas morning. He especially enjoys the family (and extended family) and friends visits, seeing how the children have grown and matured, how new additions have come, and sadly, how some have gone on. This year will be especially fun as Kendall will be nearly three and will have a better idea of what's going on. She won't completely understand, but she'll be closer than she was last year.

The Luppe's have already participated in the Pleasant View Christmas Parade...driving the 2 or so miles of the route, throwing out candy and wishing the onlookers 'Merry Christmas.' Kendall and Allison sat in the back and threw out candy as well...and this year, Mrs. Carson rode along ...she probably won't admit it, but I think she truly enjoyed being in her first parade.

Kendall still doesn't have the knack of throwing candy out the window, but wait until next year!

Tammy and Frank went out Monday night and looked for a Christmas tree. After hitting 3-4 different stores, they finally settled on a 7.5 foot pre-lit artificial. Pretty routine as far as Christmas trees go. Got it home, set it up, lights work...Frank's job is done. Well, unless you count the need to move 22 years worth of Christmas decorations from the downstairs storage room up to the main floor...15 stairs away.

The decorations were relayed up the steps, one or two plastic containers at a time. Of course, Kendall had to look in each container, ask questions, check things out. Near the bottom of the stack in the storage room was the growing stash of bears. One stuffed, mostly white, plush bear for each year that Frank and Tammy have been married. Each bear has the year either embroidered on the foot, or a plastic tag hanging from its ear. Frank began buying these bears in 1988 and has just bought one every year since. The bears had become part of the Luppe holiday tradition.

As the bears made their annual trek up the stairs, Allison and Tammy would remove them from their protective white trash bags (Frank learned early on that white trash bags are better than black ones) and they were lined up on the steps and platform going to the second level of the house. All of this simply amazed Kendall. Allison, a stickler for detail, placed the bears in chronological order on the steps; Kendall placed them in, well, not chronological order. Memories were being made.

In the meantime, Frank and Tammy had moved on to unwrapping the more delicate decorations and placing them around the main floor. The home was transforming into a festive, holiday environment. This task continued on for a few more hours until all was in its place, Kendall was falling asleep in Dad's lap and Allison and Tammy were checking their e-mails and facebooks one more time. The holidays were one task closer.

After school on Tuesday, Allison and Tammy finished decorating the tree. Frank, in the meantime, made a quick trip to Clarksville for one last purchase...the 2009 bear. When Frank arrived home, the bear took its place on the stairs...the latest addition to the Luppe tradition

So, as the holidays quickly approach and each family prepares for this time of the year in their own unique way, enjoy the time with your family, continue those traditions, no matter how cumbersome, no matter how corny.

"The News, and Nothing but the News?"

Frank hasn't been sleeping well the past couple of nights, mostly related to work issues, bumps and noises in the night, etc, etc. This has led to Frank moving the the couch in an effort to find a different environment, hoping to find sleep. Good thought in theory, I suppose, but far from reality.

To add insult to injury, Frank started focusing on these same bumps and noises of the night. The on and off of the central heat and air unit; The gentle grind of the ceiling fan; the dog rolling over in the bedroom. All little nuances that generally go unnoticed during the night, but tonight, as loud as cannons. Frank remembered not too long ago hearing these same noises when he would get up with Kendall when she was on the "Dr. Pepper" schedule.
(For those of you that are asking, "what's the Dr. Pepper schedule," that's the schedule that newborns are on...every 2:00, 4:00, 6:00 during the night, the newborn wakes and needs something...a bottle, a clean diaper, a rocking chair...)
In any event, Frank tried to do his part to help with the new family addition, and he would get up with Kendall during those early weeks and months of her life. Pretty much non-eventful...change her bottom, get her a bottle and she would routinely drift back off to sleep while lying on Frank's chest in the recliner. But then after she drifted off, as was the case last night, Frank would find sleep difficult and focus on the bumps and noises of the night.

During those nights, he became accustomed to the scheduled rounds of the newspaper delivery guy. The carrier would drive through the subdivision between 4:30and 5:00 in a vehicle that was in definite need of a new muffler, if not a complete tune up. Frank would hear him slowly coming down the streets of the development, then speed up, then slow down as he made his deliveries. Frank remembers wondering why he didn't park at the end of the street and just walk his route, as practically every house received a paper.

Last night, while listening to the noises, Frank found a silence in place of the rumble of the newspaper delivery. No sound whatsoever. 'Perhaps there's a new delivery person,' or 'maybe he bought a new car with the 'cash for clunkers' program,' Frank thought as he laid on the couch. However, the more he thought about it, the more he realized, there was to be no delivery.

Frank and Tammy had cancelled their daily subscription sometime back, and soon after cancelled the Sunday subscription as well. The papers were just piling up as they were never read, so why pay for them just to pile them up in a landfill somewhere? Besides, the headlines and stories are posted online at the newspaper's free website, one can get the same news on the local television stations, and if there's something national, its on both the web and television as well, twenty-four (24) hours a day.

As he and Allison were driving out of the driveway on the way to school and the office, Frank made a point of looking at the ends of the driveways for newspapers...none to be found. Just three short years ago, every driveway would've had a newspaper in it...not today.

Frank was talking to a friend of his a couple of weeks ago, and the friend said he was reading the newspaper over coffee. Of course, Frank asked, "what, on the laptop?" to which the friend chuckled and replied, "no, I'm old school when it comes to my newspaper reading. I still like flipping the pages and getting a little ink on my fingertips."

Unfortunately, Frank thought, those days are probably on the way out. With the constant advances of technology, the newspaper will probably go the way of the dinosaur in a few short years, and quite frankly, that's sad. Do we really need to be checking the obituaries of our friends and families on a Blackberry (R)? Almost seems disrespectful in a way. Isn't there something wrong with news being available 24 hours a day on cable? How many stories, and we've all seen them, have ended up on these programs, that 20 years ago wouldn't have even made it to the trash bin in Dan Rather's office. Personal and private stories that are hurtful enough to those involved, and in all likelihood, those hurts are amplified by the added publicity.

One story that comes to mind is the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal of the 90's. Had it not been for the excessive news coverage of the day, this would've probably never been an issue. Its common knowledge that quite a few presidents had similar scandals, but you never had wall-to-wall coverage like we saw with Clinton. Let it be said here, that Frank doesn't agree with what Clinton did, but that was his personal business, not a national issue.

How much additional hurt was caused to the families of those involved by the overabundance of press coverage? How much more aggressive are reporters with the new "rules of engagement?"
Frank is reminded of a popular song from the 80's..."Dirty Laundry"...that touted the mindset of some less-than-scrupulous members of the press. Did the song unwillingly predict the norm of those in the press today?

Perhaps it would be better if we got the news in small doses, such as a newspaper once a day, an evening news report from a respected news person right before dinner, and the late news right before bed. Those are finite amounts of paper and time to be filled. Might bring back the talent of editing again, instead of just lining up the stories, one after the other.

Frank has to wonder if this constant barrage of news, mostly bad, isn't creating other problems. Think about it, if you didn't have the news telling you how bad the economy is, would you really know? Or, would you get up, go to work, and just follow your daily routine? Would you still enroll you children in the local soccer league, or little league, or basketball league? Of course you would.
But instead, we're told the economy is bad, we're told it may not get any better anytime soon. Is that affecting our routines and decision making? Probably. Are we spending less because of this constant bad news on the economy? Probably. Could it be argued we are taking less risks and purchasing fewer large purchases because of this? I think so.

The likelihood of the 24-hour news channel going away is pretty remote. The re-emergence of the daily newspaper probably isn't going to happen. And news alerts sent directly to your cell phone are just going to increase.

Kind of makes you long for a little ink on the fingertips, don't it?

47...are you kidding?!?!??!

Sometime on Friday afternoon, around 3:30 I think, Frank will officially turn 47. One might think, "ok, no big deal." And, truthfully speaking, it probably would not be considered one of the "biggies." The "biggies" being 16, when one is old enough to drive, 21, when one is legal to consume alcoholic beverages, 30, 40 or 50...those milestones that those Frank's age look at with a certain degree of chagrin.

This whole age thing has crept back into Frank's consciousness lately due to some changes and events in Frank's life. Frank has started noticing he can't sleep as well as he did not so many years ago. To compound this, he has noticed the ol' bladder just can't make it through the night like it used to. And finally, 10:00 at night, well, it just seems way too late to stay up and watch the news. He can find all that information in the morning on the 'net.

Frank was trimming around his beard this morning, and noticed that the majority of the hair in his beard is grey, instead of brown. We're not even going to talk about the bald spot on the crown of his head about the size of a cup saucer, let alone the receding hair line. And finally, the 17 inch collar seems way too small, not to mention the lovely Tammy has commented about his needing to schedule maternity leave in the Spring, as he looks like he's about 4 1/2 months pregnant. Thanks dear.

But the biggest issue that has brought the age thing to the forefront is the recent decision that the Luppe's made to join a local fitness center. Allison's golf coach wants her to strengthen her upper body muscles, Frank wants to lose the "spare tire" and Tammy has expressed an interest in a fitness routine.

Frank turned in the application Monday evening and immediately wanted to start working out...he wants to get his money's worth. So, after dinner, he and Allison returned to the center and Allison began working with the trainer, Pam.

Frank, in the meantime decided to work on his own. Probably not the smartest decision he made Monday, but a decision nonetheless. The only point of reference he had was the routine he did at the Y about 5 years ago. So, he used the numbers to set the treadmill, the weights on the Nautilus (R) machines, and the overall degree of difficulty of the workout. The only problem, he used the numbers he used when he stopped working out those five years ago, not the numbers he used when he started working out about six and a half years ago. Again, not the smartest decision he made this week. And, definitely proving there are some things that shouldn't be done without adult supervision, regardless of your own maturity...or lack thereof.

The results...well, let's put it this way...Today is Thursday, and even though he worked out again last night (using more realistic numbers this time), he has a great degree of difficulty lifting his arms above his head. His greatest joy...standing in the hot shower for 30 minutes at a time. Furthermore, he is beginning to regret having a 2 story house with a garage in the basement. Between getting from the vehicle in the evening to putting Kendall to bed at night...just getting around the house is proving to be a challenge. Those of you who have been in the Luppe home may ask why the jacuzzi isn't being used. Response...you have to be able to get into the jacuzzi before you can use it!

But, he has a good attitude about it...laughing at his own stupidity and realizing he's not thirty-something anymore. He knows the soreness will pass in a week or so, and life will resume and he can start enjoying the benefits of his efforts, such as added energy levels, as well as a sense of accomplishment.

So, as Frank closes the chapter on the past year and looks forward, the future is bright. He has a wonderful and loving family. The network of extended family and friends is broad, diverse and supportive. The business and its staff are growing and there are some interesting opportunities on the horizon. He compares that to the memories of his thirty-somethings, and he just doesn't remember it being quite so good.

Maybe turning another year older isn't so bad after all.

Thoughts on Daylight Savings Time

Frank's routine is slowing getting back to a kilter stage due to the recent time change associated with daylight savings time. Yesterday, Monday, was better than Sunday, and hopefully today will be better than Yesterday, but this would all could be easily avoided by one action . . . ELIMINATE DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME!

The concept of modern daylight savings time was conceived by an entomologist from New Zealand in the late 19th century. That in and of itself makes no sense whatsoever...why in the world would someone that studies bugs be tinkering with the whole concept of the amount of daylight enjoyed in a given day? Do the bugs wake up in late October and say, "nope, not going to be studied today, daylight savings time ended last night and I get to sleep an extra hour this morning?" Do these little bugs get up an hour early in the Spring and down a pot of bug coffee so they can be studied? I think not.

Daylight savings time creates a loss of productivity and loss of resources. All the clocks, and watches, and coffee pot timers, and stovetops have to be reset twice a year either the night before or the morning (or later) after. Come to think of it, that's probably why we don't see as many of those neat bank signs with the time on them...it probably cost a fortune to get a technician out twice a year to change the time.

Fortunately, the new computer operating systems have now built in the time changes automatically. It would be nice if the carmakers could make that magic happen. It takes longer to find the owner's manual than it does to change the time on the clock!

It takes at least the Sunday and Monday after to get the body clock adjusted to the new time. This happens twice a year, four days a year, at minimum. Suppose the average life expentancy is eighty-five (85) years old. That means one would spend three hundred forty days in a lifetime adjusting to time changes. Nearly a year lost in a lifetime because of a bug scientist in New Zealand.

If one more person tells Frank that he gets an extra hour of sleep because daylight savings time ended, he will probably scream. There are two elements in the Luppe household that negate what little bit of benefit that may be realized; one, Kendall...she's two...she doesn't know how to tell time, even with a digital clock. She doesn't understand that she should sleep an hour more. All she knows is that "Max and Ruby" isn't coming on the television when it should.

The other element, the family pet, Shay. She has a bladder that is over nine years old. Regardless of what the clock on the microwave reads, when its time for her to go outside, its time to go.

Now, Frank could rant and rave about this issue, and be long on problem and short on solution, but he has a plan.

Simply, make daylight savings time voluntary. If one choses to enjoy longer days, then get up an hour earlier and leave the rest of us alone. If you want to sleep in in the fall and winter and stay up later at night...knock yourself out. You don't have to change every single clock in the country just so there's another hour to play softball.

As far as government entities, such as schools, and courts, and the like, well, they would be prohibited from adopted daylight savings time. If a judge wants to go in early to work, that's his/her business. That doesn't mean the rest of us should have to go in early as well. If Congress wants to hold hearings on the snail darter salamander an hour early in the Spring, go right ahead. But don't expect the rest of us to be there bright-eyed at 7:00 in the morning.

Just some thoughts...