I'm in a world of Chuzzle, Roar!

Hello everyone, roar! At my house, all the monkeys play video games. It looks like waste of time to me, roar. Time you could spend sleeping or hunting, roar!

This picture is me in the game Chuzzle. It's like my own disco, roar! I could really pick up the lady lions if they saw me here. ROAR! I am disco dancer lion, roar.

All things are good with family, roar. You might have seen picture of me and my little sister Ren frolicking at her website. I know in that picture it looks like we're having fun together, but don't get the wrong idea, roar. Any second, I could tear her to little pieces because I am fierce lion, ROAR!

Actually we spend a lot of time together and I have been doing good job taking care of her. Roar. With the mice gone, I have had to hunt harder stuff. I caught this wolf in her crib and took care of it, roar. I will eat like a king (a lion king) for weeks. Roar!

That's about it. I hope all you monkeys are okay, and feel free to write anytime, roar. As for myself...well...sometimes even I fall victim to the video games. ROAR!

Cool Tech: Helmet Hack

I'm a tech geek guy, but I haven't yet posted anything about that. So this is my first Cool Tech article, in which I'll highlight neat tech and hacks I've found or done, which you can use. All of them will carry the Cool Tech label.

Check out this simple helmet hack. I bought a pair of LED mini-flashlights off Tanga and electric-taped them to my helmet. It's not car light bright, but now I've got a bright spot wherever I look.

You're probably aware that lights on bikes are for being seen, not for seeing. Well now if I'm alert about a car, I'm looking at them, so they certainly will be aware of me. Plus it's bitchin'-cool looking.

This gives me four lights on my bike. Anyway, I'm proud of myself.

Sheldon Brown has a lot to say about lights for commuting here.

NYT Article about Microsoft

The New York Times is running an extensive article about the current and future state of Microsoft. About half the article reads like a love letter to Steve Ballmer, but the beginning and ending are fairly insightful about some of Microsoft's previous and current market failures.

Registration required.

Goodbye Glendon

Hey, do you think Cubs pitching coach Larry Rothschild sucks? So does everyone else who doesn't directly work for the Cubs. Rothschild couldn't generate more injuries in his pitchers if he was taking a practice bat to their knees. But I can think of one guy he got really really right. Glendon Rusch.

I remember the moment I heard the Cubs were letting Rusch pitch in 2004. I thought the management had finally flown off the handle (it actually took them 2 more years). In 2002, Rusch had the most losses in baseball. The year before we signed him, he was one and twelve with an ERA of 6.42. Milwaukee was so bad they just let him pitch a whole season anyway.

I couldn't believe we offered him even a minor league contract. I wrote posts to all my friends about how the whole season was going to crash and burn because we let this loser pitch. But then...he was good. No, not good, great. I saw a lot of games that year, and he was masterful. He could pitch and pitch and pitch and never get tired, and his breaking stuff was fantastic. He was also a really nice guy.

This guy was done with baseball, and he turned it around and pitched really well for a couple years. And then all of a sudden it's all over. He was suddenly diagnosed with a blood clot in the middle of the 2006 season. And now, presumably, he'll never pitch again. What a shame.

Goodbye, Glendon.

Pretty Boy Floyd

Yesterday the Cubs signed Cliff Floyd to a 1-year, incentive laden contract. Last year was the year the Cubs had about 8 2nd basemen. This year in the outfield they have Murton, Floyd, Pagan, Soriano, Pie, Jones and Coats.

Nobody thinks Floyd will be as good as Jones would be, and he costs about as much. But the Cubs have been trying to seal this deal since October on the theory that they only need a 1-year veteran while they build up child phenom Felix Pie. So they're unwilling to give Jones the long-term contract he deserves, and will trade him instead before spring. Floyd needs a 1-year because he's coming off an injury season.

It's also sort of a sad day for Matt Murton, who's good enough to play all season. The Cubs are all agog because Floyd's a lefty, but frankly his numbers are no better than Murton, who comparatively plays for free.

Pros: He probably won't suck.
Cons: Any way you look at it, he's a wash-up or a never-was. Unremarkable in every way. He's a left-field warm body.
Wild Card: Grew up a White Sox fan on the south side. Which is cool for him, because on his off days he can go watch a team play that he cares about.

Tomorrow: Glendon Rusch.

The Route is Out!

The Ragbrai route is out! It's just the overnight towns, but it makes Ragbrai a little more real. Already my team (Brewhaha) is coming together and all the veterans will be there...Huffy, Papa T, Squirt, Stuck, Bullet, MamaDoc, Mullah, and of course myself, BuddhaBob.

We are gonna ride and ride and ride, and party and party and party.

I also can't wait to blog about it. Months of experience get packed into that week. But of course you won't hear every story. Because what goes on Ragbrai...stays on Ragbrai.

Dinner Party Story #2

This second Dinner Party Story is about how Hiroko and I met. Here's the first story, if you missed it.

You can't understand the story of Hiroko and I without understanding that we're both devoted Nichiren Buddhists. She's been a member for life, and was already very active as a local leader when I started going to meetings in 2002. In fact, she was at a couple of the very first meetings I went to, and we seemed to have a habit of running into each other.

But she pretty much disliked me. I don't blame her. I hadn't yet discovered and practiced the kind of self discipline this faith can provide. I thought my biggest problems were depression and aimlessness. Those masked more fundamental problems of distrust, doubt, and selfishness. I found Hiroko attractive, but only in the general sense that the despondent are attracted to anyone with a spark of life in them.

For two years I practiced Buddhism and had a lot of growth, but it was inconsistent. I was changing though, becoming generally more happy. I was starting to learn compassion and empathy as skills. I was starting to support those around me, really, listen and care.

At the end of 2003, I was doing a lot of Gajokai, but I wasn't yet in charge of the program. Since she was in the Byakuren, the equivalent young women's' program, we spent a fair amount of time together behind the desk. See this picture of her? Cuuuuuuuute!


I used to think she was quiet and reserved, since that's how she acted at the center. I teased her about it incessantly. It also meant she got to be witness to the big change Buddhism wrought in my life. She told me she was very glad to see an American so excited about the practice.

At the end of 2003, I went to the Florida Nature and Culture Center, a Buddhist weekend retreat and conservation site. It was a transformational experience, where I had a chance to meet hundreds of youths who all had the stand alone spirit to develop their compassion. I was witness to how Buddhism could be used to directly make the world better. I came back feeling responsible for my life and the lives of those I loved in a new way, and threw myself into my favorite activities. My entire life was very fit. My little brother David also began attending meetings at this time.

Hiroko noticed all these changes. One day when I was walking her to the train, she suddenly said, "You should call me up. I will come to your house if you make me dinner". She claims this wasn't an invitation to a date (yeah right) but the date was set for right after Thanksgiving.

Since I was (and am) a geek I knew nothing about inviting someone to dinner, so I spent an entire weekend quizzing my relatives (including my brother in law who loves to cook), buying new dishware and table settings, and cleaning house. The dinner (date?) went well and was soon repeated.

In March, we did a short tour of the Midwest including Kentucky's natural bridge park, and a John Mayer concert. Hiroko met my parents on this trip. On Memorial Day we went to Florida for my little brother's Gohonzon conferral, his formal induction into Buddhism. Here's a picture I love of us in a wharf restaurant:


On Labor Day, I asked Hiroko to marry me in the Signature Room of the John Hancock Building, during Navy Pier's last fireworks display of the season. The ring was inherited and Hiroko's the fourth generation of my family to wear it, so I purchased us a beautiful new altar instead. It better represents our relationship anyway.

It was a quick courting, but we both "just knew". And we were right. I didn't know it at the time, but we barely knew each other then. The real discoveries of marriage come well after the ceremony, and I'm definitely still learning. The deepening of trust and interdependence grows stronger all the time.

We got married in secret on April 28, in a short ceremony at the Chicago Culture Center. This was done to expedite Hiroko's visa. But the date was chosen because it was the first time Nichiren Daishonin chanted nam myoho renge kyo.

Our real marriage was on September 11 (yeah, I know, but it was cheaper), 2005. It's a long enough story to save for another time. It was a glory and a trial.

But one major challenge came between the betrothal and the marriage: meeting Hiroko's father. It's a story of epic proportions, and I will tell it next. Stay tuned.

Erstad

The White Sox announced today that their leadoff hittter, Podsednik, has a long-term injury. They reacted by quickly signing Darin Erstad. Erstad has previously played for four teams in 11 years: The California Angels, the Los Angeles Angels, the Anaheim Angels, and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

Erstad had a ridiculously good 2000 season, with 25 home runs, 28 stolen bases, .355 AVG, and a gold glove. No other season has come close. Last year he was injured and seriously overpaid, signaling it was time for the many Angels teams to drop him. He took a 2/3 pay cut for a 1-year contract with the Sox.

Pros: Can platoon in Center with the ridiculously sucky Brian Anderson, bringing the batting average of the position up about 200 points. Great on defense.
Cons: Overpaid, injury-ridden, with his best years behind him. Maybe he should be playing for the Cubs.
Wild Card: I noticed a lot of anagrams for his name. "Drain Trades", "Starred and I", "A Stair Dander" and my favorite, "Sadder At Rain".

My Dad's Photos

My dad's got some updates on his flickr website. It includes great pictures of the new stairs, and baby Ren pics. Check out this shot of Hiroko and I, which my dad calls "10 days and no sleep".

Chicago Bears, NFC Champs

TOUCHDOWN!!

What a game! If only there was some metaphor we could use for the way we absolutely destroyed New Orleans. You know...the way we stormed the field, wore down their defense, and flooded through their lines.

If only there was a metaphor...anyway...

See you in two weeks! Until then:

We are the Bears Shufflin' Crew
Shufflin' on down, doin' it for you.
We're so bad we know we're good.
Blowin' your mind like we knew we would.
You know we're just struttin' for fun
Struttin' our stuff for everyone.
We're not here to start no trouble.
We're just here to do the Super Bowl Shuffle.

Watching Da Bears

My parents came into town last weekend. It was their first chance to see Ren. Mom was very pleased with her ability to feed and play with a baby for a while. It was a whiplash-visit over the 3 day MLK weekend, cut off even more because they got worried about inclement weather and took off on Sunday afternoon. I figure they spent just a little more time in Chicago than they did driving back and forth from their home in Lexington.

One cool thing that went on was I got to actually go to a bar, and have a beer, which I haven't done in six months (as I was not drinking during the pregnancy). I took my Dad to hook up with some guy friends and watch the Bears/Seattle playoff game, which the Bears won in incredible fashion in overtime.

Here's a small picture set of the guys at the bar. Most everybody at the table is a Soka Gakkai youth leader.

I wrote a little more about my parents here at my blog for my daughter.

Corus 2007

Corus is on. It's one of the premier chess tournaments of the year. It's been held in the Netherlands for 70 years. One thing that makes this tournament awesome is that there are live webcasts every evening, which is daytime here, so you can keep one eye on the games from your desk.

If you care about chess. Which you probably don't. But anyway

coruschess.com -- Official Corus website

chessbase.com -- Great chess news site, with heavy coverage and next-day analysis.

playchess.com -- This popular chess server offers live audio commentary on the games with Yasser Seirawan for just over $1/day.

chessgames.com -- The chess database site also offers live coverage with attached forum postings.

Head Buried Deep

Hi,

Okay, I know it's been a week since I blogged. No excuse other than business when I'm busy, and lack of energy when I'm not. I've got a few things half-written. Lots of pictures taken which I ought to be showing to you rather than talking about them. But just so we're updated:

• The Chicago Bears won the first round of the playoffs. Normally I don't care that much about football, but it was a great game. And I do care about hanging out with the guys. Also I got to watch the game with my dad, which I liked.
  
• Speaking of which, my dad and mom were in town for about 24 hours. It was supposed to be longer, but Chicago's in a snowstorm so they bolted early. It was my parents' first chance to see my daughter Ren, which was cool.
• I've been really focused on Chess, for whatever reason, lately. My yahoo chess rating is the highest it's ever been.
  
• My kid is healthy, my wife is great. I've even lost a couple pounds. And there's been some nascent interest indicated in someone buying my house (finally). so things are going well. Yay me.
  

VASSAL

I added a link on my (also recently added) links list to VASSAL, an online game-playing engine. You can load separate modules for separate games, including a lot of very popular current geek games and old war games. I've used it to play a few different games, but recently they added a module for my favorite current game obsession, Battlelore.

The great thing about being able to play this via computer is that I can play without having to set up the board, which is disruptive in my current baby-intensive home. I can also play around the world. I just finished losing to someone in Germany while discussing the game with someone in France. Cool, eh? My geek-dom has reached global proportions.

I'm a Big Brother now, ROAR!

I know what you're thinking, roar. Which one is cuter!? I can't even decide myself, roar!

Hiroko and Bob finally had their baby monkey. We all went to some place I've never seen before where it was all white everywhere, and there were lots of monkeys in costumes, roar. Then I had to leave for a while, so I'm not sure what happened, but when I came back they had a tiny monkey! Monkey's name is Ren, and she is my little sister. ROAR!

I'm not sure what happened to the rest of Hiroko's litter. I'm gravely concerned, ROAR!! I can only assume there are wild animals in the hospital. I have therefore put myself on 24 hour watch, roar.

Ren is a really awesome baby. I look forward to knowing her as my sister, roar. I think I'm closer to her than anybody else in the house, roar. This is because I speak baby monkey, which I picked up in the jungle, roar. Cry of baby monkey is similar to roar of lion, after all. Unfortunately, all Ren really says is "I am hungry", "I am sleepy", and "I need to be changed", roar. But I already love her, because she is just so darn cute, roar! (Even for monkey, roar).

At first, Ren was in plastic bucket, and I wasn't allowed in, roar. This was a little like when you go to the zoo to see lion, except in reverse, roar. Here's a picture of me pressed up against the glass, roar:


Bob and Hiroko make Ren wear clothes and diaper, roar. I have explained that these would be unnecessary if we all moved to Africa and got a watering hole, roar. But you know these monkeys and their "houses", roar. So primitive!!

Eventually we were allowed to play together, roar. This was important so I could confirm that she had the proper number of body parts, roar. You never know when a cheetah or mongoose is going to eat your baby toes, roar. Here is a picture of me checking out Ren's toes, which, fortunately, were all there:


So as you can see, I am doing a good job, ROAAAR! Thank you for listening, roar. Send food, roar. Er...for the baby. If necessary. Roar!!

2007 Resolutions

I've got quite a backlog of blogging. I want to post a "how I blog" post with all my equipment, and get started on a FAQ. I've got more "dinner party" stories about my family to blog. I want to talk about my bicycles.

But when you spend four days in the hospital having a kid, everything else sort of gets put on the back burner.

That includes New Years' Resolutions. I always thought this tradition was hokey before I became a Buddhist, but a lot of Buddhists take it seriously. This is because we believe determination is a big part of faith. there's no point in daily practice to improve oneself if one doesn't know how they're trying to improve.

I figured I'd share with everybody, because making my resolutions public makes me more accountable. So I'll go over everything I resolved for 2006, and lay out for 2007. Pretty much categorically, my resolutions are about the same anyway.

• Maintain Health. Lose Weight. -- At the start of 2006, I weighed about 205. It swung slowly up and down until a summer effort, when I got myself down to 195. During that time I was also doing tons of cardio and some muscle work, and feeling quite strong. Then with work stress and needing to stay home for Hiroko's health (and...um...laziness) I started tanking up, to the tune of about a pound a week. So now unfortunately I'm about 208! Final call: on a scale of 1 to 5, this is a 1. Dang. 2007 resolution: Same. Exercise regularly in small amounts instead of big 4-6 week pushes.
  
• Job Success -- This resolution is very quantitatively detailed, but I won't share everything I wrote down. The first 6 months of the year were solid, and I got a great mid-year review. After that I continued to work pretty steadily, but was less effective. In particular my year-long projects kind of went south. I did hit my training goals, though. I don't yet know how it'll all shake out financially. Final call: 2 1/2 out of 5. 2007 resolution: Same. December was a good month, so when I'm back at work I should be chomping at the bit.
• Gajokai -- This is the Soka Gakkai program I ran until recently (back link). Before the pregnancy and Hiroko's health problems, I was very solid here. After that, there were a lot of troubles. I ended the year by pushing very hard to keep the program going without me, and new leaders are emerging. On a personal note, I benefited tremendously from my position, growing as a man. Final call: 3 out of 5. 2007 resolution: Succeed as a Men's Division, particularly in the areas of leading study and being a role model and supporter for YMD.
• Study -- I set out to read all of the Human Revolution, and succeeded right at the end of the year (back link). This was a huge success, and a big factor in my growth for the year. Final call: 5 out of 5! 2007 resolution: Keep up on the publications (World Tribune and Living Buddhism). Read 500 pages of the Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, and really study them. Take notes.
• Healthy Family -- No question here. We all stayed healthy despite big problems, and Ren is just fine. 5 out of 5. 2007 resolution: Do everything possible to raise Ren right.
• No Fights -- Hiroko and I both wanted to cut down on the amount of our fights. We also wanted to make the fights more productive/positive. We wanted to "practice the strategy of the Lotus Sutra", which is to say chant for change and life condition. We were very successful here. At the start of the year we were fighting constantly and nastily, but it's steadily shrank. Now we almost never fight, we usually get something positive out of it when we do, and we remember to chant. 4 out of 5. 2007 resolution: Keep up the good work.
  

So that's it. If you read this, make me stand up for it by asking me about it all the time. This is how I can become a better person, for myself, my family, and the world.

I'm a Daddy

I see trees of green
Red roses too I see 'em bloom
For me and for you And I think to myself
What a wonderful world.

This is the first song that came on the radio, how about that?

Ren Akiko Goodfriend, born 1pm today, 7lb3oz. Everything smooth and easy. More later.

You can call tonight but I might not answer...I'll try to answer tomorrow. You can _ask_ about visiting tomorrow afternoon.

Here Are The Pictures!!
Movie to follow at a later date.

There's an Enormous Hole in my Floor

If you've ever been to my house, you know that the stairs between my two floors are about 12" apart (versus the standard 7-8") and ugly as sin. When the previous owner self-finished the basement, he did virtually everything in a very half-ass style. The stairs, on the other hand, are fully ass. The seven million potential buyers who've come and decided not to buy the place have all mentioned it. Also Hiroko can't use them at all, and I don't think they're a walk in the park for Yasuko.

So they're going. Outta here. Gone. Ripped out by contractors. It's loud and dusty here, which is good for nobody, but it should only take a day.

Right now I'm off work indefinitely, waiting for Hiroko to give birth to Ren, which means I can take photos and blog about. So here you go. I'll keep adding to this photo set throughout the day.

Update: I added a bunch more pics. My whole house is really dusty now. Lots of cleaning to look forward to.

Fixed Gear Fun Video

If you didn't know, a fixed gear bicycle is a bike without a freewheel. Originally used primarily for track racing, they are also well-suited (with a front brake) for city and/or winter riding. My winter bike is a fixed gear.

There are a lot of tricks and stunts you can do only on a fixed gear bike, such as special braking techniques, cycling backwards, balancing without support (a "track stand") etc. Check out this video combining ballet techniques with fixed gear bike techniques. Cool!

New Year's 2007

"A person who celebrates this day will accumulate virtue and be loved by all" -- Nichiren, "New Year's Gosho"

New Year's Day is a big day for Soka Gakkai Buddhists. Other religions have the births (and rebirths) of their respective superstars and stuff, but we've got nothing like that. So there it is, we celebrate New Year's in style, with new resolutions, celebrations, experiences, and song.

Here's a picture set, including lots of pictures of the celebration. There are also some before/after shots. These include this great picture of Martin, the Region Young Men's Division leader, with myself and Yasuko. Martin's doing Gajokai today:


And this picture of my good friend Derek, heading Gajokai for the afternoon. Derek trained me to become Gajokai and still epitomizes for me what it is to be a Gajokai: responsible, reliable, supportive, attentive. Here you see him with the "fine sword" of Gajokai! "Iron, when heated in the flames and pounded, becomes a fine sword." -- Nichiren


And finally, an auspicious day. Today I "graduated" from the Young Men's Division to the Men's Division, in preparation for Ren's birth. This means I abdicated my Gajokai leadership position. Here is a picture of me turning over my keys to the center, which I have guarded for two years. I've opened and closed the center hundreds of times (including both of the last two New Years) and gained so much good fortune from doing so. I look forward to these keys going to the next young man -- may he grow into the program as much as I have!