Cody – One Great Dog

The past few months there has been talk from my parents that the end is looking near for our family dog. Cody has been with our family since 1996. I never had an issue of not having a dog growing up. It was not a big deal to me. Friends of mine and dogs and I thought every now and then it would be cool and sometimes would say something to my folks; however, nothing ever came of it. Then my brother came along.

He wanted a dog. He had to find a way to make it happen. My dad started to side with him and get a dog too. That left my mom to be the one to get on board. The only way that was happening as if both my dad and brother agreed to sign a contract to take care of the dog and my mom had very little to do with him. That worked out for maybe a week.

My dad and brother decided on a dog they wanted and drove to Kansas to get him. The picked the dog up from a breeder and made the journey back to St. Louis. He was an instant hit. I was at work when they got back to the house. Neighbors started to come up to work and ask if I had seen the dog because he was so cute. I FINALLY got off work and went home. The dog came running to me and was going crazy. Hyper dog!! And then, Cody made his mark: He peed on the kitchen floor. I laughed and my mom started 14 years of clean ups.

We do not have crazy stories about Cody from the book and movie “Marley and Me” like a dog attacking a training and humping them. He would always follow my mom around, especially the kitchen when she needed to get food on the table. He did that pretty much every day of his life. The big holidays were his favorite days. He would hang out, in the kitchen while the food was prepared. Mom would ask someone to move him to another room; yet, he would find his way back. And then when that food would go to the table, he would not hesitate to just sit down, many times between my mom  and me looking for food. When I would get up to go to the kitchen, he would follow me and of course, he got some good food. Not cheap tenderloin, but Cody was worth it.

My brother has since graduated from college and lives about five hours away now. He came in last weekend to see him as his health has gotten worse.  It was a chance to see him one last time before Cody’s time will come. We had a wedding to attend last weekend and my parents were watching our son during the reception. Cody has yet to take my son on as a member of this family and has made his disapproval clear; however, at one point, my son leaned over and began to pet Cameron on his ear. I wish I could have seen it and it must be a magical moment for my parents.

Cody is going through pain and I support this decision for this tough weekend ahead. I will say my goodbye’s to not just a good dog, but a great dog. A member of our immediate family is going to be leaving us and not hearing him come down the stairs or sitting in the kitchen while making a sandwich will be so difficult for all of us when we go over there now. But, we have great memories of our Cody. He was the greatest dog we could ever have. Goodbye my friend.

You can read my dad’s blog regarding Cody: Tough Decision Ahead.

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The Jobs I have worked – Tom Sawyer wannabe

This is the job I did not get paid for monetarily but man did it teach me some things.

It was during the summer between my sophomore and junior years of high school. I had applied for a job at a local grocery store; however, with the baseball demands I had, I could not commit to the time they required. Umpiring was not a real possibility anymore since I was playing more games than I had previous with playing JV and Varsity Legion baseball. So I would just relax around the house or hang with friends during the day. Well, to my parents, that was for some reason unacceptable.

Coincidentally during this time, my parents were starting to redo their white picket fence around the yard. So, before they were going to have it professionally painted, they needed to sand off the old paint and get it prepared. You see where this is going.

So I would go out there for several hours a day, never complaining and thanking God for such a great opportunity to learn the true meaning of working hard. Okay, so I may think that now, but not then. My mother and I would fight about this ALL the time. I am sure my father would attest to this simply because he I am sure got calls at work about me complaining. I still would go out there and do the work, even while friends gave me crap about it.

I always equated work with money growing up and that was it; however, this job taught me that when a job is completed and you might get a few bucks, there is a greater satisfaction in knowing YOU completed something. It took me awhile to see that but I look back on this experience and besides needing to apologize to my parents (especially my mother), it was something I NEEDED and appreciated.

Next time – Bag them groceries!!!

The Jobs I have worked - Photography

So during the school year of my sophomore year, a friend and myself worked for a guy who went to our church. What made it better was the fact he lived about 10 minutes walking from my parents so I did not need a ride over there. He was and still is a great photographer and was looking for a few assistants to help him get his photographs organized. The St. Louis Rams had just moved from Los Angeles and he got a job as being one of their photographers. I do not think I have seen so many pictures of football players in my life. From talking on the sideline to plays on the field to the fans.

He also would do events in St. Louis as well as college events. He worked with the Saint Louis University Women’s Basketball team. This was the one event that he took me out on the job for to see what he did and keep up with what he had to do. A 15 year old male going to watch women’s college basketball: TOUGH CALL. He was all over the place. Shooting from different angles from the court to the stands. Not many people attended the girls games in the mid 90’s as they played on campus in an OLD gymnasium so he could move around all over the place without interfering with anyone’s views.

It amazed me how the process worked. He would take the pictures to going into his dark room and develop them to cutting them to getting them into slides. Then after all this work, he would get a few pictures from the clients and the rest would be for him to keep. It was insane the work and dedication that he put into one event to get less than 25% of the pictures taken.

What David Preston showed me was that hard work and dedication to God and family through your work may not produce the big bucks all the time. But it sure earns you a lot of respect from people. I saw him about three weeks ago taking pictures for a big hospitality event in downtown St. Louis. He was taking pictures of the mayor of the city and county controller. He has garnered the respect of MANY organizations in this great town. He does something he loves and keeps pressing forward.

I would love to see his collection of slides now though. That was 15 years ago this fall!

To see more of David Preston, go to http://www.davidwpreston.com/

Next Job – Tom Sawyer Impersonator????

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The jobs I have worked – Soccer Referee

So the umpiring job only was during the spring/summer time and I needed something to do on weekends during the fall. I had played football my freshman year and right after I was named a captain for the next game, I tore my hamstring and football was done. Something was needed to fill the time.

I always loved soccer and played throughout grade school. St. Louis does have a fairly decent history of soccer and the love of the sport here. The high school I attended won the state title twice while I was there. I wanted to do something like umpiring and something I would not have to commit a lot of time to with still being in school. So I got into the world of CYC soccer referring.

Umpiring was one thing, soccer is a whole other story. Not just the running up and down the sidelines; however, the issues with the parents were a LOT worse and the things they would say. I usually worked with the same other guy on Saturday mornings about 5-10 minutes from where I grew up. The parents would be lined up all along one sideline because of how the field was situated. We would flip Saturdays on who would get the “special” sideline.

For the most part, things would roll off me when they were said. I understood they would be frustrated with their ten year old missing a shot and it only had to be because they were fouled. I was not one to just call the foul or penalty. I wanted to show them and the coaches what they were doing wrong and if they kept doing it, then I would call it.

One fall Saturday I got the “special” sideline. As we were going through the first game, I noticed that the coach was acting as if he was coaching in the World Cup. His team was not very good and continuously got called for offsides. Then, he screamed at me when I did not call it for the other side and they were scored upon. I pulled him aside and explained to him why it was not called. The parents were even getting embarrassed and were yelling at him. He shrugged it off and we moved on to halftime. I was talking to the other referee and I overheard him tell the kids to try and kick the ball “towards” me to see if I could get out of the way. His team was down a few goals at this point and seems as though he had given up on the game. The other referee and I talked and both agreed if this happened, the coach would be kicked out and I would have to report it to the league.

So, about five minutes in, the coaches son was going down the line and kicked it square at me as I was running in the out of bounds area. I caught the ball and stopped the game. I went to the coach and through him out. He exploded. The parents held him back and he told me he would be waiting for me in the parking lot. SERIOUSLY?? I went to the kid and looked at him. He said “I’m sorry sir but I have to listen to what he says.” Simply put: Sad.

My dad was waiting in the parking lot afterwards to pick me up and I was escorted to my car and we left. I am not sure if my dad remembers the event but it seems as though it happened yesterday. I drove by the field a few months back while we were looking at homes. I cringed.

Many who know me, know I am a sports nut. Now that I have a son, I would like to be involved in my son’s sports career, if he chooses to go that route. I pray I am not like that coach. He lost a lot of respect from many that day, possibly his son. That man showed me the father I do NOT want to be. I pray for that man that somehow, God has changed his heart. His son is probably in his mid 20’s now and may have a kid of his own. Weird to look at that situation now through a parent’s eyes.

Next job – Photography??????

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The jobs I have worked – Umpire

Just this past Wednesday, I attended an event in downtown St. Louis with many hotel associates. As I was walking around, I noticed a gentleman I used to worked for about 15 years ago. I was unable to talk to him as he was working and was far away from me when I recognized him. It got me thinking of all the jobs I have had so far in my life and what did I learn from them.

I had turned 15 years old when I began my career path and was an umpire for little league baseball. We had a local park in my hometown where I had played at just the previous year. It was an extremely flexible job because I was also playing baseball for my high school as well as Legion baseball during the summer. Even with all that going on, my parents wanted me to get my feet wet with a part-time job. So I did just that by umpiring. I would get to the park and work 1 or 2 games depending on the night. We got paid by how many games we worked. I worked as many as I could as it was something I loved doing. I was around baseball and I got to be involved in a different part of the game. It was a blast.

Two events I remember taught me about perseverance and patience in confrontation. Umpires deal with a lot of confrontation, that I have seen numerous times. What shocked me is that it happened as much as it did in 7th grade baseball! I made a call at first once that I will admit was wrong. I called the runner out when he was clearly safe. I looked at the play and did not listen for the ball to hit the glove. The coach came on to the field and I was ready to get screamed at as I was already beginning to second guess my call. The coach put his arm around me and simply said, “You got it wrong and I think you know it.” I told him I knew I missed it and he simply said, “Mistakes happen. But remember this Travis, keep having fun.” That was it. He walked away and the call did not play any call on the game. It showed me how to deal with a problem situation properly. Not lose it and scream at someone, that accomplishes zilch.

The second event was a game I was working with someone I saw at the event mentioned at the beginning. I did not talk with him as he was walking away at the end of the event, but I would like to get in touch with him to see how he is doing. Anyway, I digress. We were working a game one night that took forever. I was behind the plate and it was taking forever. That happens a lot in little league baseball with a lot of offense and not a lot of defense. The game was nearly at the automatic game stoppage with one team up by 10 in the fifth inning. The bases were loaded with two outs. The batter had two strikes on him and a pitch came that was right on the corner. I was about ready to call him out and the game would be over. Time to go home early!! Instead, I called it a ball. I was shocked I even called it a ball. This time, this call bit not only myself but my friend working in the field. Why did it bite you may ask? Well, the inning lasted about 40 minutes as they came back to take the lead in this one inning. The game ended up lasting until about 11:45 that night, about two hours later than expected. We were not even allowed to start and inning after 11pm. So guess what happened the last inning! I apologized to my buddy and he had forgotten about the call and told me that this was the greatest game he had ever been apart of before. It taught me this: Even through adversity, focus on the positive.

I only umpired for one spring/summer as baseball commitments controlled me more after that freshman summer. I still have to say I enjoyed that job and still look at it as a learning experience, even though with these two stories, I was not the greatest umpire. But hey, everyone makes mistakes, right?

Next time: The Jobs I have worked – Referring Soccer

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Still a Great Movie

I have always been an early riser. My parents can confirm this as they love telling the story of them coming into the living room and I am up watching golf at 6am when I am just a few years old. In college, I would sleep in a little bit but not that much consistently. Now that my son is trying to be like daddy, I rarely sleep past 5:30 in the morning. Stephanie is the complete opposite of me and loves to sleep so when I do get up early in the morning, I tend to have some peaceful moments in the day before Cameron wakes up and brings even more joy to my day.

This morning, I woke up around 5am and came out to the living room. I flip through some infomercials and sports highlights before I find one of my top five favorite movies of all-time. It is a movie of love lost deep sin committed and a chance of repentance. The movie is entitled The Mission starring Robert De Niro, Jeremy Irons and Liam Neeson. I saw this movie years ago and it was a movie my parents had watched and recommended. Robert De Niro plays a Spanish slave trader who finds out his wife does not love him anymore. He ends up killing her lover and is held in a jail. Meanwhile, a Jesuit priest, played by Jeremy Irons, takes him in and brings him to the a remote area which they are serving in the mountains. 

I will not give away what happens at the end of the movie, as I do encourage all reading to watch it or if you have seen it, watch it  again. The part of the movie that really hits me is the scene when they arrive in the mountains and meet up with the tribe they are assisting. Robert De Niro’s character, Rodrigo, is carrying a massive net filled with junk as his penalty for the murder of his wife’s lover. He struggles throughout the trip going through the jungle and is in a state of complete exhaustion. As he finally gets to the tribe, a member of the tribe runs at him with a knife. He is thinking his life is over as his stares at the knife to his throat. The tribal member then cuts the huge net and shoves it off a cliff and it lands in the water, which carries the netting away never to be scene again. Rodrigo then begins to sob as people come up and hug him. He realizes his burden is no more.

How many times have we been at a state of complete exhaustion? If I am guessing, we have all hit that proverbial brick wall. We want to just rest and sit down. We need a good nights’ sleep. We need to kick back after a busy week at work and watch a good movie and forget that we are having marital problems or that a financial burden is growing larger and larger.

However, we are taught to press on with our eyes focused on Him. In the book of Philippians, Paul says, “Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13-14). This is coming from someone who HATED Christians so having to forget that lifestyle and straining towards Christ must have been an incredible challenge for Paul. But he pressed on towards Heaven!

Next time you or I hit that brick wall, what will we do? Sit down and rest and relax? Or, will we press on knowing that we can do ANYTHING and get through ANYTHING if our eyes and hearts are focused on God?

Image from http://www.teachwithmovies.org/guides/mission.html

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What 9/11 means to me now

Has it really been nine years ago since 9/11 happened? Really? It seems like it was something that just happened yesterday and something that happened about 25 years ago. I can tell you exactly where I was throughout the entire day.

My roommate and I were heading to campus at the University of Missouri for classes for the day. As he drove, we heard on the radio that a plane had flown into a World Trade Center. They thought it was a small plane and that was all that they had heard. When we got to campus, I did not have class for a few hours so I went to Ellis library. As I got there, they had a small television with about 100 students watching. We watched as the second tower got hit and knew there was a major issue. We all tried to get to the computers to find out what was going happening. Remember, this was when high speed internet was only a few years old and it could not handle all of us going to the cnn.com’s of the web. I found a way around it by going to a more familiar site, www.espn.com. They were covering what was going on as well. The rest of the day turned into a blur. I hung out in Speaker’s Circle for awhile and watched adults sobbing, praying, holding each other; but most of us were just in shock.

Everything stopped in America. No flights for a few days, no sports, no other news other than all that was going on in New York, Washington D.C. and Shanksville, PA.

About a week later, baseball returned to a game with the Atlanta Braves and the New York Mets. It was the hardest I had ever cried watching a game. The reason I cried was two-fold I think. Remembering what had just happened was the obvious reason; however, it showed that we knew that as a country, we had to go forward and show we can come back from this. What is more American than a simple baseball game.

9/11 is my generation’s Pearl Harbor or Kennedy Assassination. You will never forget where you were and how things changed. Nine years later, things sure have changed. 9/11 will always be my son’s half birthday. 6 months ago, Cameron was born at 2:15am.

The following are two songs and two videos I watched or listened to a lot after 9/11. Never forget. To those who lost those on that day as well as those who have lost loved ones while fighting for freedom.