Soccer Season is Over (for now)

Yesterday was Max's last day of soccer season this year (and mine too). I was his coach at Goldstar Soccer Club for the fall season and we had a blast. I've posted some photos of Max and the rest of my team over at Flickr.

Indoor season starts January 4th!

My Group Hug with Craig Waibel

I went to MLS Cup 2006 over the weekend and had a great time. My morning started off photographing a couple of teams from the Raleigh area that were playing in a youth tournament in conjunction with the "super bowl of american soccer". My evening ended when Houston won the Cup on penalty kicks and Dynamo defenseman Craig Waibel was so excited that he ran and launched himself into the supporters section for a group hug. Above is a picture snapped just before Waibel jumped on top of me (in the red hoodie with a camera in my hand)!

My photographs from the game are available here. But here's my favorite, of Pat Onstad just after he saved the final penalty kick.

Off to GrandMott's

We're sending the kids to visit my mom this weekend and they are super excited about going to see their GrandMott. Earlier today, Max got his and Molly's suitcases out and started packing. So what does a 5 year old pack for a trip to grandma's?

• 7 t-shirts
• 3 pairs of pants
• 7 pairs of underwear
• 1 sock (note: note 1 pair of socks, just one single sock)

Molly on the other hand was more of a minimalist. First she packed her plush puppy, then she changed her mind and packed a bag of goldfish crackers instead.

Ed Bradley R.I.P.

I once flew on a plane with Ed Bradley, the 60 Minutes correspondent who passed away today. Ed was in first class; I was in coach!

I remember the woman beside me debating if would be okay to go "through the curtain" into first class to get his autograph. :)

Guess Who's Three!

Well, technically, not until tomorrow but we celebrated Molly's birthday a day early. Here's some pictures from her party.

Why I Still Livestrong

2 years ago, everywhere you looked, you saw folks wearing yellow rubber wristbands. The Lance Armstrong Foundation's LiveStrong bracelets were a huge fad and raised tens of millions of dollars for cancer survivorship. While the fad has faded, you still ocassionally see someone wearing a LiveStrong bracelet. To this day, you'll never see me without one on my left wrist.

I began wearing one in 2004 in honor of a dear friend of mine from Austin, D.J. Francis. This morning, I received the sad news that I will henceforth be wearing the bracelet in D.J.'s memory. We lost D.J. this morning after an amazingly spirited and fierce multi-year fight with cancer.

D.J. took me under her wing when I joined KLA-Tencor back in 2000. The one year that I spent at KLA was very tumultous due to an absurd legal dispute between my former employer and KLA-Tencor. While I was there, D.J. did everything from HR, project management, communications, to being a sympathetic shoulder to vent to. Although I lost contact with most of KLA-Tencor colleagues after I left, DJ became a lifelong friend.

I have never known someone so ALIVE as DJ. Her spirit was amazing. Even when struggling with her illness, I watched from afar as she constantly kicked cancer in the teeth and kept doing the things she loved -- travelling the world and seeing the amazing beauty that surrounds us everyday in even the smallest things. Many times I'd be completely frustrated with work, kids, health, etc. and then I get these brilliant emails from DJ that made me realize that I had things to do, places to go, and people to meet. These things that were distracting me were really petty in the grand scheme of things and I needed to focus on the things that really mattered in life.

A few months ago, another friend's wife paid me a wonderful compliment. She said, "Jarrett's a doer, not just a thinker." That's one of the nicest compliments anyone has ever given me and DJ regularly serves as my inspiration for getting things done.

Last year, I did something amazing that I've always wanted to do -- I rode 100 miles on my bike in a single day at the Lance Armstrong Foundation's Ride for the Roses. I dedicated my ride to DJ and her friends and families helped me raise over $3000 for cancer survivorship. The amount of money they contributed stunned me, but it shouldn't have. DJ touched their lives in the same way she did mine.

As I prepared for that ride all summer and suffered through endless training miles on the bike, I kept thinking of everything that DJ was going through fighting cancer. I'd think how the pain in my legs and lungs was nothing compared to what she was going through and still managing to smile and comfort those around her. I'll never forget that about DJ. She was one of the most amazing people I will ever know.

The following is an email she sent me last year and I think it truly captures her vitality even in the face of all that she was dealing with.

Sunday night, 10-23-05

Dear Friends,

For those who don’t know, my former co-worker, Jarrett Campbell flew in from North Carolina to compete in the Ride for the Roses (100 mile race) this weekend, in my honor. Yea, Jarrett!

Yesterday, I went to the Lance Armstrong Foundation’s Live Strong Village, in the Palmer Conference Center, at 5:30pm, before meeting Jarrett for dinner and just before closing time for the Ride for the Roses registration packet pick-up.

Approaching the building brought a rush of emotions. Walking from the parking garage, down the sidewalks filled with Lance Armstrong advocates, I kept wiping away my tears. I was surrounded by people who had lived through this crazy battle with cancer or were currently fighting for their lives. I tried to distance myself from the emotional wham by focusing on the building’s relief sculptures of sea urchins and shells. I told myself that it was just an event…

As I entered the exhibit area, my brain was saturated with the visual impact of very bright yellow. It was everywhere―jerseys, t-shirts, posters, wristbands, and booths. The air was filled with an energy that washed over me in waves. It was a crazy mixture of ingredients: anticipation; frustration; memories of loved ones now gone; hope for a cure. I would catch someone looking at me with sadness. My inch-long hair, scant eyelashes, and shadowy brows are a sure-fire giveaway that I am a cancer patient. I wondered as I walked past one woman whose eyes had connected and pushed us into one of those slow motion moments, did she lose someone she loved or is she thinking, “There, but by the grace of God go I.”

You see, I forget that I look like a cancer patient. When the pain or fatigue zaps my body, I remember. But so much of the time I find myself transported, in awe of life. It is so wonderful to focus on the clouds, delight in people-watching the arrogance and energy of youth, the beauty of the everyday, the humanity of my co-workers or those I meet in check-out lines and waiting rooms.

Today I was very tired. The housework and paperwork seemed to have consumed the day. I ignored my allergies and went for a walk in a beautifully breezy and sunny day. It took the last bit of my oomph. After showering, I didn’t feel that I had the energy to go to the Ride for the Roses, but then Jarrett called. He was at the 78 mile rest stop and the wind was taking its toll. In addition to starting 45 minutes later than planned, he was very tired and wanted to tell me that he would probably cross the finish line an hour later than planned.

I started sending him mental bursts of energy, through the ether. As I fought my computer crashing, trying to print out a map to the Travis County Exposition Center, I made a sign to hold up at the finish line. I grabbed a bottled green tea, rushed out the door with camera and sign in tow and drove to the race site. As I approached the grounds, the exiting traffic was amazingly repetitious. Car after car passed, with loaded bicycle racks, and front seats filled with yawning drivers and passengers.

I arrived 45 minutes before Jarrett’s expected finish, and raced across the field of the event grounds. Several times I had to stop and shake the pebbles from my Birkenstocks. Since the chemo zapped my toes, they are my standard shoes. I am so very Austintacious…

The finish line was congested. The local DJ, who had been announcing and congratulating finishers all day, soon shut down his sound system and the crowd took over hollering “good ride” and “you did it!” As I watched the survivors pass through their special chute and receive a yellow rose, it made my heart swell with hope, and again I was wiping away tears. I anxiously watched for Jarrett’s white jersey (donned by the Peleton Project riders) and his NC blue helmet. When he came whizzing through, I flashed a quick photo, then followed him to his turnaround, waving my wacky poster.

Another rider, pumped by adrenalin, chattered to Jarrett like a long time riding buddy. I asked his wife shoot our photo. When we walked away, Jarrett said he had never met the man. Oh well, this is Austin, and although it has grown into a very big city, folks are still friendly in this city full of soul…

Jarrett headed to the hotel, took a long hot bath and rehydrated a bit, then met Bobby and I for dinner at Curra’s Grill. What better way to resuscitate a worn cyclist than some authentic Tex-Mex.

Tomorrow will be here before I know it, so I am going to call it a day. Hopefully, I will receive the scan results tomorrow, and decide the next steps in my walk through cancer. Thanks for joining me for the journey.

Peace and Love,

D.J.

So next time you see me. Notice my LiveStrong bracelet, think of someone you know like DJ, and remind yourself to be a doer, not a thinker.

Jarrett
10/4/2006

Blogging From Space

Anousheh Ansari is a space tourist, currently on board the International Space Station. Check out her blog from space. It's fascinating to see space travel from a civilian's perspective.

Don Walser's Final Yodel

Don Walser, the Pavarotti of the Plains, died on Wednesday at age 72.

One of my first memories of Austin, Texas was, shortly after I moved there in 1995, heading down to 6th Street, stopping off in a little sports bar called "Babe's", having a terrific cheeseburger, and listening to Don Walser, the Yodeling Cowboy, play western swing from a barstool for tips.

I remember thinking to myself..."I can't believe I'm actually being paid to go to school in this town. This is amazing!" We spent 7 years in Austin and I saw Don a number of times in different venues, but I'll never forget that first night I heard him yodel. I knew then that I was (at least temporarily) a Texan.

No where else but Austin could a guy like Don Walser end up touring with both Johnny Cash and the Butthole Surfers! If you haven't heard Don Walser, check out Melissa Block's story on NPR about him and visit DonWalser.com.

Avast, me hearties!

Tomorrow (Sept 19th) is International Talk Like a Pirate Day. Are you ready? If you need to bone up on pirate, try this handy educational film. Afraid you might need a reference on the go? Check out this book.

Never Buy Music Again

Last week I discovered The Hype Machine, a daily music blog aggregator. Subscribe to their RSS feed in a podcatcher like iTunes and you'll never have to buy new music again...but you might have to buy a new hard drive to hold all the mp3s you're downloading.

In 7 days, I've received 1031 songs, 5.5 Gigabytes of free music through this aggregator. The music ranges all over the board -- from the Monkees to Public Enemy. There's truly something there to suit everyone's fancy...the only problem is deleting the stuff you don't like to save disk space!

She opened government to everyone

Former Gov. Ann Richards, the witty and flamboyant Democrat who went from homemaker to national political celebrity, died Wednesday night after a battle with cancer, a family spokeswoman said. She was 73.

She died at home surrounded by her family, the spokeswoman said. Richards was found to have esophageal cancer in March and underwent chemotherapy treatments.

The silver-haired, silver-tongued Richards said she entered politics to help others - especially women and minorities who were often ignored by Texas' male-dominated establishment.

"I did not want my tombstone to read, 'She kept a really clean house.' I think I'd like them to remember me by saying, 'She opened government to everyone,'" Richards said shortly before leaving office in January 1995.

I wonder what the world we live in today would have been like if Richards hadn't lost the Texas gubernatorial race to one George W. Bush.

Ridiculous Guitar Talent

My brother sent me a link to this amazing guitar player...

Tell ABC to Tell the Truth about 9/11

ABC is preparing to air a "docudrama" on Sept 10 & 11 that has serious distortions of the facts as reported by the 9/11 commission. While I appreciate that "storytelling" sometimes requires poetic license, I believe it is reckless for them to air this film in a way that many people will accept as fact without any acknowledgement that many of the scenes are contrary to undisputed facts. Click on the link below to find out more about the film and to let ABC know that they owe the public an accurate account of the "Path to 9/11".

Kirk Does Camelot

What if Star Trek characters could be 'beamed down" into the Camelot dance routine in Monty Python's Holy Grail?

Dictionaraoke

What happens when folks (with way too much time on their hands) combine Karaoke / MIDI files with the computerized pronunciation guides from various online dictionaries?

Dictionaraoke: The Singing Dictionary.

I think so far my favorite is the Ramones' I Wanna Be Sedated or perhaps Johnny Cash's Folsom Prison Blues.

Radio Clash 84: 1984 v2.0

An excellent episode of one of my favorite podcasts. Starting with a clip from V for Vendetta and, as the host Tim puts it...

This podcast is meant to be one long scream for equality and righteous justice. Yep I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore...

Click your mouse in the air peace sign yeah (50Mb, 85mins): http://www.mutantpop.net/go.php?url=165

Latest reads...

I may have called time on my 52 books in 52 weeks project, but I'm still reading when I get the chance. Here's the latest books I've been reading this summer.

• The Area of My Expertise (John Hodgeman)
• The Thinking Fan's Guide to the World Cup (edited by Weiland & Wilsey)
  
• One Stop Short of Barking (Mecca Ibrahim)
  
• Trainman (P.T. Deutermann)

Free business idea

If you own a hotel. Offer me a free toiletry kit with toothpaste, mouthwash, shaving cream, and any other "liquid or gel" you can think of that I can't carry-on a plane in my luggage. I'll pay a premium to stay at your hotel if I can get away with not checking my luggage!

Show me that smile again...

Check out this pilot (in 3 parts) for a new sitcom called "Nobody's Watching". Apparently, the WB canned it but when the developers released the pilot on YouTube, it was downloaded close to half a million times so NBC has decided to put it back in development. It will be interesting to see if this makes it onto TV.

The Premise: Two "old school" sitcom fans make their own sitcom as an homage to sitcoms past. Check out the sets of some of your old time favorites. Growing Pains fans should love this one.

Part 1:


Click here for Part 2 and Part 3.

V is for...

Very Good. We finally got to see V for Vendetta last night and loved it. One of the best sci-fi movies I've seen in a long time (since the original Matrix I suspect). I tried to read the original graphic novel the movie was based on back before the film came out but I just cannot deal with that format in print. Since I'm going to be working a trade show in Chicago on Halloween this year, perhaps I should pick up a Guy Fawkes mask to wear to the show.