Planes, boats and automobiles

H and I have been busy motoring (actually flying) around the past few weeks.

We started out in Las Vegas, NV for the Kitchen & Bath Industry Show. H's company debuted their new product at the show. Attendee responses seemed to be very positive. H & I were excited to get to spend the week together and I really enjoyed getting to know all the folks she works with. We ate like kings and had the privilege of staying at the Bellagio which is a phenomenal hotel despite the fact that it is attached to a casino in the middle of the most deplorable city in the country.

The following week my company hosted us at the semi-annual meeting in Cancun, Mexico. H & I decided to make a vacation out of it and went down a few days early. We stayed at the Casa Magna Marriott and at Le Meridien. The service at the CMM was phenomenal and the LM had three pools with 3 different temperatures. Very nice. We also drank beer and froo-froo drinks on the beach. We had an amazing time and were more or less spoiled by getting to spend another week together. I'll try to post some pics soon.

I did some casual reading while in Cancun. John Grisham's Runaway Jury is set in Harrison County Mississippi where we now live. It was an interesting read made moreso by the fact that I knew most of the places described in the book. Especially if you're familiar with the Mississippi Gulf Coast, but even if you're not, I recommend the book as a fun, easy read.



This weekend (Memorial Day) was great as well. On Saturday, Bubba, Skip & I went fishing in Lafitte, LA at Griffin Fishing Charters courtesy of our wives (girlfriend in Skip's case). We caught lots and lots and lots and lots and lots and lots and lots and lots and lots of Speckled Trout and a few other species. I will post pics soon for this as well. We fried some up fresh Saturday and Sunday night. Too good for words. If you're looking for a great place to go on a chartered fishing trip we highly recommend Griffin.

In addition, my Mississippi State University Bulldogs defeated the University of Mississippi rebels to win the Southeastern Conference Tournament. It is nice to win the tourney... it is better to beat Ole Miss to do it. We play in the NCAA tournament this weekend as a #2 seed in the Miami Regional. Go Dawgs.

B

vaguely restless boredom

A few years ago I read The Money is the Gravy by John Clark. He's a former attorney who simplified his life, reduced his expenditures and began experimenting to find meaningful work that he enjoyed and at which he was skilled.



The book helped me categorize some of the notions that I had in my own mind about career/calling and pointed out many of the potential pitfalls of pursuing middleclassdom (living beyond your means and thus becoming trapped because of your lifestyle). If you're disturbed about the career choices you've made or unsettled regarding the direction your life is taking this is a pretty good read.

Anyhow, I subscribe to his 'e-zine' and from time to time he sends out stories or essays which reinforce the assertions in his book. Today he included the following quote from Adam Phillips (author of Going Sane):

What I would suggest is more time wasting, less stimulation. We need time to lie fallow like we did in childhood, so we can recuperate. Rather than be constantly told what we want and be pressurized to go after it, I think we would benefit greatly from spells of vaguely restless boredom in which desire can crystallize.

So what do you think? Do we need more 'spells of vaguely restless boredom'? Please comment.

B

Books

I just added a books section to the sidebar... basically stuff I've just finished reading, am currently reading or plan to start reading soon. I'll try to update it regularly.

I need to pick up the pace a little and add some more recreational stuff to the mix. The problem is basically that I quit any serious reading for about 15 years and have only recently rediscovered that passion (within the last year). The net effect is that I have alot of catching up to do. I also need to go back and read all of the stuff I should've read in high school and college (I relied on Cliffs Notes instead).

As best I can tell, education to me was merely a necessity... it was in my estimation a means to an end, something I had to do to get a 'good job' (HS leads to College which leads to a job which leads to $$$). I really didn't appreciate learning and basically squandered most of the educational opportunities of my youth, doing as little as possible but just enough to get a decent grade.

If you have any recommendations for good books, please post a comment. Ditto if you have any questions or comments on what I'm currently reading.

Thanks,

B