Catching Up On Correspondences

My lodge email has been rather active lately with correspondences not only from brothers from the lodge and the district but from Grand Lodge and potential candidates as well. This is in addition to what has become an abnormally busy beginning to the year more so than the previous two years. While I do my best to keep current with all inbound communications it has gotten to the point that there are moments when I find myself a few days behind and having to sit in front of the computer at night drafting email after email in the hope that I will be caught up by morning. Keep in mind that this is in addition to the calls and texts that I receive. 

However, given the nature of the letters and notes that I have received, I can’t really complain about the work that needs to be done on a regular basis. I wouldn’t be sifting through the digital pages were we not growing and increasing our activity. These are great signs for the future and speaks volumes of the present group of brothers that are active in the fraternity. With that in mind, keep the emails coming.

On the other hand, I know that many of the emails that I receive wouldn’t have even been sent if I were able to make it to the lodge every week so some of the clutter is completely on me. I simply can’t be two places at once and this is what I need to do to keep things going. Actually, come to think of it, I get more frustrated with the lack of communication from some people every now and again. This adds significantly to the work that I need to get done and the emails that need to be sent out as it is no longer a means of replying but reminding, starting, or restarting a conversation.

And the work continues to pile up on my virtual desk as there are a few other tasks that need to be completed this spring including various audits the biggest of which, for me, are going to be the membership and records audits ensuring that our numbers are accurate and all our information has been correctly migrated to the new site. This could possibly be the task that I am least looking forward to but I know that it has to be done by the spring. I expect many corrections, correspondences, and long nights to stem from this endeavor as well. But, right now, I am going to focus on projects that need to be taken care of before the meeting next week.

Merde!

While I usually have the news or some kind of talk radio playing in the car on my way home, for some reason I decided to flip through the music stations when I got in the car after work on Friday night. As Talking Heads fed their unique rhythm through my speakers the song cut out as a text message came through the speakers from a brother from the lodge. The first part of the message was making sure that we were prepared for the following week which was immediately followed by a simple phrase that caught me by surprise, “Check out FOX news terrorist attack in Paris”.

I didn’t even reply to his message before tuning the radio to FOX News. While there were grandiose statements and tenuous links trying to be made by the commentators to other attacks from the past, namely 9/11, this was completely different. However, I couldn’t help but think about that moment when I watched the second plane plunge into the tower. That is immediately where my mind went so I could understand the desire that the host had to make the connection.

These events are certainly linked by the fact that they are heinous acts by terrorists but there is little else that can be said that they have in common. While the magnitude of 9/11 is far greater than that which has just transpired in Europe there is also a part of me that looks at these calculated events as something possibly more sinister. The hijackers on 9/11 only saw the faces of the people on the plane while many of the evil doers in Paris could see the people that they killed. In some instances they probably looked them straight in the eye. I honestly don’t know which is worse or if either could be considered worse. These animals are evil. That is basically all I can say.   

In the days since it has been a different reality in France. Their perspective on the world and of the terrorist element that taints society has certainly changed. This is one of those events that changes how people view the world in general and the capacity of evil that certain individuals possess in particular. For many, this is a conflict from which they are no longer removed. It is a time for change. I don’t know what that change will be exactly but there are certain aspects of life that will never be the same for some people.

However, for now, all we can do is hope for some peace in Paris, France, Europe, Western Civilization, and the world as a whole. After all, while evil will always exist and these visceral events will surely happen again, those who ascribe to this immorality are the minority. We are stronger than evil and we will prevail both in France and throughout the world.

Wet And Stinky

It is safe to say that we did not have a relaxing start to the week. When my wife and I finally finished sorting and packing all the things that we wanted to store on Sunday night I made a big pile in front of the basement door. I was hoping that I could simply make a few trips up and down the stairs while sliding the boxes onto the shelves. There isn’t much room left but there was enough to accommodate our recent cleaning. This was the quick and easy plan when I first balanced those boxes and bins atop the stairs… sometimes plans just don’t work out.

It all got derailed during my first trip to the unfinished storage room. I opened the door, turned on the light, and squinted a bit as the glint reflected off the wet floor. Something was obviously wrong and I soon found the culprit in a leaking pipe coming out of the HVAC unit. After taking a quick picture and sending it to the maintenance guy for our house, I quickly stacked the shelves before calling to report what I had found. Thankfully, he was up at midnight and quickly got a plan together which had everything taken care of in a couple of days.

Stuff happens and things were taken care of quickly so no complaining on this one (unlike in the past). However, our fun didn’t stop there as when I got home from work on Monday I was welcomed with fumes filling the house and my wife, with a rather pissed look on her face, greeting me at the front door. As it turns out, our neighbor decided to refinish all of his hardwood floors next door and didn’t even think to let us know. By the time I got home they had just finished stripping the floors and the stink was permeating the walls.

While we can’t stop him from improving his property, it would have been nice to have had a heads up. After all, we spend a couple of hours going back and forth and double checking that our son would be okay sleeping in his own bed. This frustration could have easily been avoided.

The following days was met with more stink as the finish was applied. It wasn’t until I left for work this morning when the smell finally somewhat dissipated and the noxious wall finally fell (it still stinks but it isn't as bad as when it started). So hopefully this is the last of the leaks and soon to be the last of the smells for a while but one thing that this reinforced for us is the fact that we are definitely going to look for our own free standing home with a little bit of a buffer of land around us. Thankfully, that was already part of our list.

Quality Time Away From The Lodge

Already working on his degrees!

It should be no surprise that I wasn’t at the lodge last night. Instead we were still in the maternity ward with our son maintaining the annoying face mask boundary. While in the past I may have been annoyed that I wasn’t there to support my brothers in their education, I was much happier supporting my wife and son as they both recovered. And while I may not have been able to spend time with my lodge brothers last night, I was able to introduce my brother to his new nephew which proved to be one of the highlights of the day.

As soon as my wife woke me up early Sunday morning I knew that my schedule (in addition to our lives) would be just a little different this week so it didn’t take long before a sent a mass text to some of the usual attendees letting them know of my joyous absence. I wrote the following and sent it to about a dozen members of the lodge: “Due to the arrival of my future mason, I will be unable to attend lodge this week. Feel free to call if you need me for anything.”

Since sending that message I have received a flood of support from my fellow brothers. It was one congratulatory text after another to the point that my phone seems to be getting a little tired of having to chime and vibrate so often. Family comes first is not just something that we say because it sounds good, every brother in the lodge lives by that simple saying and supports those masons who also embrace that way of thinking and living.

These immediate gestures are what I hope to share with my son when he comes of age. It is a bond, a fellowship, and a true brotherly love that cannot be matched in any other civilian organization. It is something that I hope to share with my son as he gets older and now is the time that I am building the groundwork so that he can join the fraternity with a long standing connection with the brotherhood. After all, the next generation is reliant on the current generation especially when it comes to continuing a family legacy.

I may not have much to offer my son at this point but I am going to work hard each and every day so that he will look at me the same way that I see my own father. He will know from where he comes (both my family tree as well as my wife’s) and he will be able to build upon what has been achieved before him in every generation. This includes my duty as a mason and instilling in him the faith, character, and virtues that we all hold as brothers of the craft.

Draining My Patience

I know, your already jealous with anticipation.

With a busy day planned (as has been previously mentioned), I was up and out of the apartment early so that I could get to the office in time to pull some plans together an prep for a couple of calls. Nothing like a full day ahead of you to ensure that your entire morning routine is completed in about 15 or 20 minutes… showered, dressed, packed, and coffee poured. As is a known rarity lately, I was actually running on time and was on track to get everything accomplished on my list by the time I went back to sleep that night.

Just like the day before, Wednesday, my phone betrayed my progress at the office. As I read the text from my wife I knew that it wasn’t going to be an early evening. In my rush to get out of the apartment in the morning I didn’t notice the fact that the shower drain was completely blocked and so when my wife got home, looking forward to a relaxing shower, she found herself in anything but a relaxing situation as the water level was still a quarter of the way up the side of the tub. This wasn’t the first time so toward the end of the work day we agreed to meet out for dinner and I would pick up a couple of bottles of Drano on my way home.

When we got home, ceiling still in shambles by the way, I headed to the bathroom, made a quick and unsuccessful attempt to snake the drain, and poured about half a bottle of the clog dissolvent in the tub. Per the instructions I waited about thirty minutes and checked the progress. With the water level unchanged it as time to escalate the attack so I pulled off the plate below the spout and attempted to run the snake down the trap. Once again, unsuccessful. Finally, I poured the other half of the bottle directly down the trap and walked out of the bathroom to calm my exhausted wife while we waited the thirty additional minutes. These apartment issues have really been a drain on my patience (embrace the pun).  

Thankfully this final attempt was indeed successful and we were able to resume with our usual, but slightly adjusted, evening routine. An hour until midnight and I was finally sitting down at the computer to get some work done. Not a great end to the day especially given the number of things on my to do list and the fact that I have to crawl out of bed and be awake enough to participate in a conference call at 7am. I guess it is a good thing that I am able to function on four hours of sleep for an entire day. I am sure that skill acquired during college and, more recently, working the overnight shift will continue to pay dividends.  

Just Above Our Heads

I knew that yesterday was going to be a long day and a late night at the office. I could tell by the times reserved on my calendar and the work that needed to be done that I wouldn’t be getting home at the usual time. With this fact in the back of my mind, the day was already beginning to drag as midafternoon came around to smack me in the face. In a series of texts from my wife, it was made very clear that the refrigerator was not the biggest maintenance problem in the apartment. When my wife got home she noticed the same subtle noise that we heard last summer in the office… dripping.

Off in the corner of the living room, the saturated ceiling tile was now bathing our bookcases in a stale staccato of water coming from one of the many possible sources in the maze of pipes hidden by the flimsy barrier above. After notifying the front desk, maintenance was in the apartment to assess the mess created by one of their many predecessors. Essentially, what happened was that the many cans of spray foam encapsulating the pipe had given way and the bucket semi permanently secured below this quality piece of craftsmanship was overflowing into our living room.

A couple hours later nearly all the foam had been chipped away and the totality of the failed fix was revealed. While I am not certain as to the exact nature of the issue, it was very clear that cutting corners was made a priority in the past and we should, hopefully, have a proper remedy to the problem. But that is going to have to wait as the area needs to dry, parts need to be purchased, and our patience needs to be tested further. Fortunately, while they were in the apartment, they called a service company to come out and fix the fridge… a problem that was consciously being ignored by the new management company, Camco, for nearly two weeks. After phone, verbal, and written messages there is no doubt in my mind that we were ignored. At the opposite end of the service spectrum, as soon as maintenance found out that the issue wasn't resolved, they took care of it right away.

So now, as we wait for the leak to be fixed (not just a finger in the dike), we are left assessing what needs to be cleaned, what needs to be thrown away, and whether or not we want to keep the furniture in the same places knowing what problems keep surfacing just above our heads. More work that I really don’t have the time or energy to deal with at the end of the day. Needless to say, we will definitely be resuming our apartment search in the new year as the problems and inconveniences are beginning to outweigh the rent at this point.   

Perfect Weather For An Open House

Yes, I know, this is an old stock photo. I keep forgetting to take a picture.

Friday night, just like I did on Thursday evening, I headed over to the lodge as soon as my work day came to an end. It was a much more relaxed drive as I didn’t feel as though I had to rush to make before any given time. Despite our big clean out having yet to happen, it was Open House time when we swung the doors open, put and Alex’s Lemonade Stand on the corner, and chatted with every person with whom we crossed paths. This is the first time that I have done this with the lodge and it was a great experience socializing with the brethren and those from the community, greeting new petitioners, and generally getting to know each person a little bit better.

Of course, during the slow moments during the night I was able to get a few things done and discuss a few potential projects with the Worshipful Master. Might as well, we had the time and it saved us from having to circle up over the weekend. Every now and again, a few new faces would round the corner with a few old faces sporadically walking up the front steps as well. We gave a few tours, accommodating everyone that asked to see the building, and made sure to promote the two businesses in the basement owned by brothers from the lodge.

Up on the corner where better foot traffic prevailed, a few other brothers (of various experience and degrees) ran an Alex’s Lemonade Stand. While the weather was beautiful with calm and cool temperatures and a bright blue sky slowly fading to star speckled black, there wasn’t much of a crowd out on the streets of Ardmore that night. Maybe we were too early, maybe we were too late, maybe the fact that it was the last day of school had something to do with it. Regardless of the crowd, or lack thereof, it was a great night for us all to get out, open the lodge up, and bond as brothers.   
Of course, the night would have been a little nicer had we raised more than $200 selling lemonade. However, we do have the opportunity to rewrite memory. Our generosity does not have to be confined to one evening selling lemonade along Lancaster Avenue as there are still a couple of ways that we can contribute to the cause. You can visit the lodge’s Alex’s Lemonade Stand event webpage and contribute by clicking the donate button near the top right of the page. The other option available for those who would like to contribute is to text “Lemonade E1113739” to 85944 (this will be recorded as a $10 charge and will be listed on your bill from your wireless carrier). Obviously, please feel free to share this information with any friends or family that would like to donate.

So, that was my exciting Friday night at the lodge. While it was slow this first time around I am sure that we will improve upon this experience in the fall when we will, once again, open up the lodge doors and welcome you all to the lodge. I hope to see you this fall!

Fighting Against A Meandering Mind

Distractions have been an issue for me lately. All different kinds of things have pulled my attention away from the things that I should be focusing on including the daily duties that I have at work. Most of the time these things are out of my control and sometimes it leads to being productive in an entirely different area. Other times there are distractions that are once again out of my control and are detrimental to any productivity whatsoever. However, there are also moments when my mind simply wanders and before I realize that there are things that I am falling behind on the hands of the clock have made significant progress. Those are the moments when I can’t blame anyone but myself.

The past couple of weeks have been tough in this regard as I am constantly getting phone calls, text messages, Skype messages, and emails that are taking my attention always from the tasks at hand. Between the messages I receive from friends and family and the random short projects I’m brought into at the office, I have struggled to keep the usual tasks in motion and I have fallen behind on a few of the lodge items on my monthly check list. Some of the tasks or responses only take a minute or two but when your attention span is already suffering it can be a very long journey back to productivity when the distractions keep flipping like a shiny new quarter.

Even at night when I sit down at the computer to pull a couple of blogs together I find myself occasionally getting caught up in a website (not always social media) reading more about a subject than I need to for a casual reference in a post. The worst instances with regard to blog posts are the evenings when I have no idea what I am going to write about, which is becoming more and more prevalent these days, and I go from topic to topic, website to website, reading pages and pages of information just trying to pull together some kind of cohesive series of thoughts. While the writing may only take 20 or 30 minutes, it could take hours before I trip over an idea, opinion, or subject.

So, if I seem a little off or if my thoughts happen to come across as slightly disjointed understand that content is scarce at the moment and there are other things going on that I need to get caught up on. Hopefully this will only be a temporary state but you never know. Besides, I have a little more work ahead of me this week (as if last week wasn’t enough) as we close in on the blog anniversary. That’s right, it is approaching fast. Hopefully I can maintain my focus and find content. Might have to spend some time figuring out what will happen beyond that day too. I guess you will have to keep reading to find out.

Home Alone

Freaky Friday might be a more appropriate metaphor as I am usually the one out and about on the weekend but this time I am the one home alone as my wife is in California to attend her sister’s wedding. I would have gone with her but when the wedding was announced my schedule was still up in the air and, now, I don’t think I would be able to take the time off to fly over there and recover for a day after getting back.

While I enjoy traveling and seeing different places there are times when I am glad to just be at home and doing nothing, at least close to nothing. My weekend had actually freed up by Thursday night as my lodge commitment was moved to next weekend and I was looking forward to relaxing and taking care of a few projects that are particularly difficult to accomplish when my wife is around and studying in the office on the weekend. However, those plans, those plans which I had been looking forward to, changed this morning when my phone began to vibrate on my night stand.

It began with a text around 11 am as I was just lying in bed enjoying doing nothing. As soon as I saw the word tomorrow I knew that my weekend was going to end a bit early. Essentially, some issues that have manifested themselves over the last couple of weeks need to be addresses as soon as possible and that translates to a few of us meeting at the office tomorrow morning. I guess it is a good thing that I am home alone this weekend as I am sure that this development would not have made my wife happy.

Of course, this just goes to show how much things can snowball at the office if you let your guard down. In the end, this weekend, while productive and relaxing in some respects, is actually going to leave me even more tired than I usually am during the week and I am sure my mood for the next few days will reflect that. Hopefully a little time in the office, some relaxation hobby time at home, a trip to the airport, a couple blogs, and a glass of scotch won’t completely drain me. However, I doubt it and expect to be half dead and sick by the end of the week. It’s a vicious cycle but someone has to do it. Good night all.

Changing Things Up For The Holiday

It was an odd feeling today not going to work today. The past couple of years have always been ones that I knew I would have to be working in order to get the holiday pay. This year it was a great feeling to be back on a salary system. It was nice to get up and out of the apartment knowing that we could be out all day and not have to worry about getting back for a shift. Today made it clear how important it is to have the day off in order to really relax and enjoy the time with family.

While we changed up the usual annual plans, it was a good day all around and one that carried some extra importance as was mentioned in my previous post. Although, I admit it was a strange feeling knowing that I had gifts for my wife for Thanksgiving. Nothing much but still not something I am used to.

There were great moments during the holiday including some texts from my coworkers who seemed to be having a good time cleaning their plates. There were also some moments that I could have done without including a particular “conversation” with my mother-in-law that required some firm language and a courtesy warning for the future. Lastly, toward the end of the night, we heard that my nephew, who we usually see during the holiday, was looking for me all night. I kind of wish we were there for him.

But, good and bad, it was nice to change things up this year. It is a different year to begin with and one that has seen a lot of changes in our lives so why should this holiday be any different. While we have been thankful in the past it would take us a few extra seconds to pinpoint our gratitude. This year we have plenty to be thankful for and much to look forward to in the year to come. Maybe not as much as the friends on Facebook who have announced their pregnancy but great things to come nevertheless.

By the time we got home tonight I was exhausted. Actually, I was yawning for about half the drive back. So, I am going to close this post rather quickly and get to bed. No shopping for me this year just a slow trip to bed and a night full of snoring and not working while I enjoy being full, grateful, and hopeful for the future.