Sunday, August 31, 2008

Back again...

So I took a few weeks off from this blog, but now that the summer is coming to an end, I am back...

I have spent the last week or so watching the Democratic convention, and I have to say it was quite well orchestrated. Perhaps I am a cynic, but I didn't buy a single bit of the drama over how well the Clinton's would come to support Senator Obama.

I am sure that some of Hillary's supporters genuinely were pushing for a larger role for their candidate, and were willing to follow where ever she lead. But I am convinced that the nature of both Hillary and Bill Clinton's speeches were determined well in advance of the convention. The drama was entirely manufactured for media consumption and distribution.

It sure worked -- you couldn't click a link on-line, change the channel on the TV, or turn the page on a newspaper without seeing dramatic speculation on what would occur... It certainly drew viewers to the convention coverage too... Based on the ratings that Senator Obama received for his speech, I think that the Democratic Party can crow "Mission Accomplished!"

All that said, I thought that Senator Obama delivered one heck of a speech on Thursday. The text was good, and the delivery was better. Even staunch Republican's admitted that Obama sounded like a statesman...

It will be interesting to see how the Republican Party does this week. Unfortunately hurricane Gustav seems fated to interfere with both the coverage, and with their speakers. To some degree, that may be a boon... With some notable exceptions, there is a dearth of moving speakers in the top tiers of the Republican party. It may be far more positive for Senator McCain to be seen going to the Gulf Coast. In many ways, Senator McCain's strength is at the individual level, so seeing him talking to and helping ordinary citizens does far more for him than giving a speech.

I am not sure what to make of his selection of Governor Palin as his running mate. From her record, it appears that she is a reformer, and a believer in small government, so that is a positive. On the other hand, the choice of a female governor in her first term, just looks a bit to calculated... Is her gender alone going to attract former Clinton voters? I am not sure that active democrats who supported Clinton will jump ship to vote for a strict pro-life Republican who strongly supports drilling in ANWAR...

Interesting times...

Saturday, June 21, 2008

Dance weekend...

This will be a dance-filled weekend. My daughter has her annual dance recital this weekend, which is always a lot of fun. She has been dancing for 3-4 years now, and at 7, is getting to the point where she and her fellow dancers are quite entertaining.

What is more fun for me is that when she started dancing, my wife went with her. She started with Tap Dancing, and this year she added Jazz dancing as well. She has her recital this weekend too.

I am so impressed with my wife. Over the past three years, she has become quite a good tap dancer, and based on how hard she has been working on her Jazz dancing, I expect to be impressed by that as well.

It is tough to try something new as a grown-up in our culture. There are always other responsibilities in our lives that keep us "too busy." For the most part, those other responsibilities are probably just excuses. Trying something new leaves one open to looking foolish, and honestly, that is the cardinal sin in our culture.

I wish I had my wife's courage.

Saturday, June 14, 2008

Changing names...

So I thought I was being clever with the name of my blog, but I just noticed that there is a comedian who uses Vague But True for his writings, including a book. His name is Tim Bedore, and he is very funny... so I am going to change the name of the blog as soon as I remember how...

In the meantime, you should check out his website: vague but true

He is a pretty funny guy...

Cheers,

Chance

Friday, June 13, 2008

Why am I doing this again?

So here I sit typing the first words of a blog, and the only thought in my head is "why the hell am I doing this?"

I am not sure I have an answer to that question, intelligent or otherwise...

That said, here is sit -- still typing.

I guess that is the point. I spend a reasonable amount of time reading on-line, and some of the most interesting writing that I have seen is on folks blogs. So I thought I would take some of that time and start writing -- contributing to the collection of written words, instead of just grazing on them.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," you say, "but what are you going to write about?"

Who knows... I'm guessing that some posts will be about work, some about politics, and some will be about the endless administrivia of everyday life...

So the trick is to see if any of it sticks, and if any of it is interesting... read at your own risk.

Cheers,

Chance