Working On My Masonic Calendar

It is that time of year when the calendar seems to scream at me begging for mercy as I strap its legs to a wooden block. It is a process that repeats every fall as we emerge from the ease of summer. And while there are already enough events, projects, and other commitments on my personal and work calendars, it is the lodge calendar that seems to put things over the edge every year. This year has proven to be a particularly difficult one to balance.

Even something as basic as the stated meeting schedule is already met with at least one conflict in December. That was discovered even before I took a closer look at some of other blocks on the calendar. At this point, and this is by no means the end of events coming to the fore, there are certainly going to be some difficult decisions that have to be made moving forward.

Extra meetings shouldn’t be an issue as the schedule someone worked out preventing too many commitments from stacking up in a single week. However, the weekly fellowship will continue to take a hit as I need to limit the nights that I am out of the house while also juggling other events on the calendar… usually I don’t like to be out twice in one week more than once a month (if I can help it). But there are some other events to which I will bring my family such as Autumn Day, the Open House (if it comes together), and the Blood Drive (although there is a conflict that day in December as well).

While I would like to attend meetings at other lodges, be present for appendant body gatherings, and enjoy the fellowship at other communications, it doesn’t seem like that is going to be a possibility this year. I can’t remember a time when my calendar was so overloaded and I am hoping that proves to be an outlier rather than the new normal. Hopefully, the schedule next year will be a little lighter or, at the very least, I am better prepared for the onslaught of commitments.

For now, with so many other obligations I am also having to scale back on my time at the lodge even further this fall as I need to spend time with my family. In the end, family is what has and always will take precedence. Everything else is secondary. And this is something that every brother understands and all of them have supported me in making this decision. After all, our fraternity should make our family stronger.

Fortunately And Unfortunately

Heading to the lodge this week I had a clear cut set of objectives that I needed to address with a number of the brothers who would be in attendance. There have been a few item that have come up over the last week that needed to be worked on immediately and a number of scheduling matters that had to be taken care of so nothing was overlooked heading into the summer. With these projects in place and the responsibilities coordinated, it would afford me the time to take care of a few other tasks so that we could have a clean slate after the stated meeting.

After sitting in an inordinate amount of traffic on my way down and saying goodnight to my son over the phone, I arrived at the lodge with a number of brothers already gathered around one of the dining tables taking care of business. Certainly a welcomed sight knowing all that needed to get done. While I did arrive a touch later than usual, by the time I set my bag down the necessary conversations had already begun. As soon as I sat at the table, I pulled out my laptop and we got to work.

Fortunately and unfortunately, some of the recent difficulties that we have faced earlier in the year have actually put us in a great position to fulfill some of the recent requests made of us by Grand Lodge. This is also why the work that we accomplished last night was quick and highly efficient. There are a few things that still need to be collected but we will certainly be able to submit all the necessary paperwork well before the 45 day deadline. It was actually rather surprised as well as appreciative and impressed by the organization demonstrated by the Trustees of the lodge. Everything was ready to go and transferred to me within minutes.

I had expected this first meeting to be much more drawn out than it was so all the other tasks for the night were handled in a much more casual and also thorough manner allowing me to check and double check regarding a variety of ongoing and new projects. By the time we locked the doors and headed back out to the parking lot I was feeling good about the upcoming meeting and looking forward to the long break over the summer. Hopefully, meetings like the ones I had tonight become more of the norm rather than the exception to the rule which has been the case in previous years.

Filling The Planner

It is amazing how fast my daily planner has filled up this year. As soon as I purchased the paper planner at the beginning of the year, I quickly started filling in the events and appointments that I had on hand at the time. This included work, lodge, personal and other reminders of what each day had in store for me. It has also served me well in scheduling different topics for the blog and had come in handing on a number of occasions both as a means to remind me of what I am writing about but, more importantly, of where I can move some topics when another blog needs to be written right away.

While some, many in fact, will see my bound paper planner as an antiquated form of organization, it still remains the most efficient form for me. Not only do I seem to do better when I am able to write things down, cross items off, and budget my time accordingly, it also forces me to slow down and remember what I am putting into my schedule. This is especially true for work engagements as it is too easy to simply accept a calendar invite. By pulling out my planner and recording the meeting, I tend to recall the commitment days earlier rather than fifteen minutes prior.

Of course, the most important part for me is the simplicity of this paper based system. I still enjoy writing many things by hand and editing documents by hand and having this out has allowed me to maintain my tactile focus without the constant windows and websites loading in the background just beyond the word document. It also eliminates the digital clutter that can become commonplace in an industry that relies so heavily on the digital world. Even when crossing off multiple items and shifting appointments around, the physical paper still seems cleaner than the digital jumble.

Another benefit of this ‘old school’ system has been the fact that I am able to schedule anything I need to without having to consult my computer or smart phone. It is a system that still transcends generations and given the frequent communication I have with many older generations, this can be a huge asset. Lastly, there is a sense of permanence and obligation when you write down a meeting in front of someone. The digital divide is still alive and well so appointments change regularly when simply typed into a computer or phone. Write down an appointment in front of someone and they tend to honor that arrangement more regularly.

In the end, I guess I am one of the few remaining that still prefers the physical planner over the digital calendar. In a sense, there is something a little out of touch about this method and I am okay with that. I don’t mind being ‘behind the times’ as it pertains to how I go about my day. There is a calmness to nostalgia and the simpler way of doing things that seems to be lost in most technology. All of these things are designed to make our lives easier but is that really what they are doing? For me, the pendulum swings both ways and sometimes it is nice to swing into the past.

Business Trip Recovery

One of the most difficult aspects of a business trip is the recovery afterward. Not only is it the work projects that, for the most part, were put on hold during my time out of the office but, more importantly, it is about making up the time with family and returning to our usual routine. No matter what I have tried it has yet to be made any easier.

What didn’t help this time around was the fact that I few down to Atlanta over the weekend not feeling well and after a few days of early mornings and late nights, I was really feeling like ‘crap on toast’ upon my return. Further complicating the matter was the fact that I had a lodge meeting on the schedule for the evening following my return and there was no possibility of staying home from work that day either. And because that wasn’t enough, both my wife and son were fighting off something.

Just one of these things would have kinked the works enough to make the simple task of getting work done even more difficult but having everything descend upon me all at one time has made the day less than fun. Makes me wish that I had caught up on everything else, the multitude of open projects, prior to my departure. I guess this is just one of those instances when you just put your head down and work until you can’t work anymore.

It really is astounding how much things have changed over the last few years. Walking out the door has become harder and harder with every tear and disappointed look on my son’s face and knowing that there is the possibility that I might miss something while I am gone is nearly an unbearable feeling to hold in throughout the day. And while I know that I am forgiven soon after returning home, the sadness that I have caused during the week is something that I wish I could take back.

Thankfully, this last trip concludes the bulk of my business travel for the year with only a few quick day trips that could pop up during the remainder of the year. I am hoping that my son will better understand the situation next year and that I might be able to have my family join me in the future. It would further complicate the travel but a complication that I welcome.

Delayed Notice

With all the preparations that I have had to work on the last couple of weeks for my business trip, the lodge notice kept getting pushed back further and further toward the time of departure. Of course, all of the car and insurance calls the past few weeks haven’t helped with my productivity either. However, while I was definitely cutting it close, the lodge notice will get done and sent out some time this week…. It may be really close to the time of my departure this weekend but they will be sent out.

So far, the main issue that I am having is the sheer volume of information that needs to be included on the two pages inside. Please note that adding pages is not something that can simply be done on a whim. There are new petitions, a transfer, two degrees, grand lodge communications, a busy calendar, and two deaths that need to me included on what is the equivalent of a single sheet of paper (one side). Add on top of this the attendance and membership tables as well as two messages from the Worshipful Master and myself, respectively, and there is an issue finding the space on the limited canvass.

As has been the case in previous months, it is a matter of finding the time to write, formatting, and making sure I have all the pieces of information necessary to complete the project. It has been a piecemeal effort thus far with a few minutes squirreled away here and there. Not the most efficient way to get it done but it is getting done nevertheless. Even with pouring so many hours into my annual business trip, I can see how this notice needs to be put together and sometimes that is the most difficult part of the process.

I know it is going to be long and there will be numerous complaints about the small font size but, in the end, I will gladly accept those small critiques knowing that the brethren are fully informed of all that is going on at the lodge. In the end, that is what really matters. There is always going to be something going on in life as you try to get projects done and the notice is no different. The important thing is that all of the information is in there, it is sent out in enough time, and it looks at least halfway decent. The situation in getting the notice done is rarely ideal but it will be done before my plane leaves this weekend!

Darting To The Lodge

That is not my car... but it is for now.

Given the conditions of the roads and still feeling stiff and sore from the accident, I hesitated heading over to the lodge last night. However, there were a multitude of meetings that I needed to take care of this week and driving to Ardmore was the most efficient means of getting everything done. So, while not the most comfortable option, I slowly navigated the bright white Dodge Dart rental around the suburban pothole minefield and made it to the lodge in plenty of time to check the mail and settle in before the next brother walked through the door.

As it turned out, I was not the only one having a bit of an off week as there were a couple of meetings that had to be postponed due to personal reasons. However, even with a few brothers having to miss the fellowship night, the lodge was still busy with nearly a dozen scattered throughout the building. Some of us were discussing various topics in the hall while others were practicing for the upcoming degree work. And, of course, we also had our new candidates in attendance nearing what they need to know before taking the next step.

Much of my night, without the aforementioned meetings, was regarding matters unrelated to the lodge. The first conversation I had was with a brother who will be helping me with some of the home renovation projects that I mentioned in a previous post. We also discussed my recent accident and reviewed some of the lessons that we each have learned over the years through personal experience as well as the accounts told by others. With books in hand it was also an opportunity to share with my brothers the work that has finally come to fruition in recent months (more about those later).

Finally, toward the end of the night, my cousin arrived to both take care of some replacement SAR paperwork and also to catch up a bit. It is great to have this common bond with him and have a space where we can meet and talk about our lodges, work, family, and anything else that may come to mind. It is also a great opportunity to introduce him to some of the brothers from the lodge in case he ever wanted to join us for a meeting. While not all of the meeting I had planned for took place, it was still a productive night and while I didn’t get home until much later than expected, at least I could relax knowing that a few things were crossed off my list for the week.

Maintaining The Brotherly Bonds

There is currently a vibrancy at the lodge that I haven’t seen for some time. I have been fielding emails and calls for weeks wanting more information about different programs, dates of when events are scheduled, offers to assist me with some of the initiatives underway, and some are just interested in meeting and learning more about the fraternity. Many of the brothers at the lodge are either active or looking for some way to increase their contributions. I can’t recall a time like this happening over the past few years but I am glad to be a part of it and fortunate enough to see the desire to contribute displayed by the brethren. And I have found that one of the best ways for those brothers to actively participate is to reach out to other brothers.

It is a given that this time of year will bring about names of those which we haven’t seen at lodge in months or years (NPD time) but that tally keeps getting smaller and smaller every time I check the mail and for every brother I find on that list, there are ten brothers willing to reach out to find out what is going on. And that is a big change from the last couple of years. Now we have brothers wanting to be active and wanting to share this masonic experience with other brothers that may have, for one reason or another, lost their connection with the fraternity.

This is a hugely important endeavor for any lodge as we should make sure that all of our brothers should experience the feeling of inclusion that many of us take away from our monthly and weekly gatherings. Furthermore, the effort should also be put forth in reconnecting with brothers that, for one reason or another, have been suspended in recent years. While there are explanations given at the time of suspension, we should never assume that we know the reasons behind our brother ceasing to be included in the membership rolls.

Lastly, and most importantly, we need to maintain constant contact will each and every member of the lodge. This is an undertaking too large for one brother to manage himself but, as a lodge, it can easy be accomplished. Whether a brother moved out of the jurisdiction or is simply of advanced age, they are still our brothers and members of the lodge, and they should be treated as such. The last thing that I ever want to see happen is a brother showing up to lodge and not know anyone. While I don’t expect them to have the same connection that many of the regular attendees enjoy, they are still our brother and they should be familiar as a member of our fraternal family.

Stacking Meetings

This is what needs to be done every night I go to the lodge...

At the last stated meeting I made arrangements with the new Treasurer that we would meet every third Tuesday of the month. It is a schedule that works out for both of us as I am usually able to make it to lodge on those days and he has greater flexibility during the second half of the month. So, being that yesterday was the third Tuesday, we were both there to have our monthly discussion. However, that was only one of the meetings that I scheduled.

Before any of the other brothers arrived in Ardmore, I met with a new CPA who is also a brother of the lodge and was recommended by another brother with whom I have conducted some personal business. Frankly, I have become fed up with the previous CPA firm that we have been using as their prices are astronomical and there is no regularity from year to year. Basically, I have no idea who will be preparing our taxes. The connection we once had with the firm is long gone and the time for change is long overdue.

As expected, the meeting went very well and I am happy to hand off our taxes this spring to someone I can trust. Of course, by the time we were wrapping up our conversation, there were a few others that had arrived and just as we were about to part ways my next meeting quickly started. Having gone through the requests for information that the lodge has received recently, I scheduled some time to meet with another prospective candidate (I was originally going to meet with two prospects but there was some unavoidable family matter that came up with one of them). I prefer meeting in person and actually having a conversation rather than relying on email or phone conversations.

He may have been the youngest prospect that I have corresponded with so far but he was actually very well informed and we were able to answer many of the initial questions that he had for us about the lodge in particular and Freemasonry in general. Honestly, I am just glad that I was able to answer his questions as, despite recent interest, I have been a little rusty in handing such questions. In the end, honesty never gets old, and that is how I respond to queries that I receive. After the great introductory meeting, I gave him a quick tour of the building, and we parted ways with a plan on meeting again for dinner before the March stated meeting.

By this time the evening was already getting a bit long and it was time to sit down with the Treasurer, and a past Treasurer, to review the books. This is an ongoing issue lately as we want to make sure everything is in line for the current year especially with the audit deadline rapidly approaching. There was some clear progress that has been made and, after our most recent meeting, I am both thankful for all the help that we are receiving and confident that everything will be ready for submission by the end of next month.

By the time that we were all walking back to our cars I was exhausted but also satisfied with the work that I was able to get done both during the day and while at the lodge. We have a great group of brothers that come out on Tuesday nights and there is a lot that is being accomplished during these meetings. Now more than ever, I am looking forward to the progress that will have achieved by the end of the year and the positive changes that will have taken place (more than what already has transpired). Until then, we just have to keep getting our work done.

Masonic Groundhog Day?

Many of the brothers with whom I speak on a regular basis see that there is a repetition at the lodge every month. When I look at my monthly duties I sometimes find myself using that poor choice of words. This usually happens when I am putting together the initial outlines for the notices or minutes and sometimes when I am filling in the ledger or stuffing envelopes. However, that misguided feeling is fleeting.

While I can see why those words are chosen, I tend to disagree with that Groundhog Day assertion and look at the same month over month consistency as the rhythm of the lodge. There are enough things that happen in our lives that come seemingly out of the blue, the same can be said of the lodge as well, that it is rather relaxing to have this annual pattern in place. Each month offers something a little different. Sometimes those differences are obvious while other times you really have to slow down and look at the details.

And that is sometimes what we have to do and what we should do every month… we need to slow down, look at the details, and enjoy the moments that we have together as brothers. Things are constantly changing around us and the slow progress can easily go unnoticed if we keep running through things as fast as we can and assume that every day, month, year is simply just another appearance by Phil. But, even if things stayed the same, it doesn’t mean that we should settle and go through the motions.

There are boundless opportunities for all brothers to enjoy different events, appendant bodies, or simply other lodges. When is the last time you visited another lodge in your district? Jurisdiction? Another state? Another country? And I don’t know about those reading this post but there are a hundred thousand masons in Pennsylvania alone and I certainly haven’t met all of them. I have met a lot of brothers since being raised but certainly not that many.

However, the main thing is that there are some brothers who get into a routine of simply showing up or not showing up. Don’t get me wrong, if you just want to be at the lodge and enjoy the fellowship that is fine but there are many such brothers that see the lodge as unmoving and sometimes stuck in a rut. Honestly, that thought crosses all of our minds at one point or another and I felt the same way at times before I decided to make a personal change and get involved.

That is what it takes. We should have a passion for our fraternity and enjoy our times of fellowship. No mason should feel unwelcomed and no one should be afraid to speak their mind or introduce something new to their fellow brothers. We learn from one another and this is the constant that I seek every month at the lodge. Know your brother as thy self; know your lodge as thy home. This is how we combat that sense of repetitiveness.

Filling The Masonic Calendar

One of the things that I have really been noticing as I have combed through the various emails and papers for the lodge summer newsletter is all the events that are taking place in the fall. While the lodge itself has a number of things on the schedule, there are a slew of other places where brethren will be congregating. From Grand Lodge to appendant bodies, there are countless dates and times that I am having to sift through… while I would like to include everything, it is becoming less and less likely that all of these events will be represented on the calendar.

So, with the long list in hand, I have had to figure out a means of prioritizing them. First, our lodge. This is pretty self-explanatory. We need to make sure that all the brethren are aware of all the events that we have planned for the remainder of the year. This includes an open house, blood drive, various programs, and all the usual meetings and fellowship nights that we have all become accustom to seeing on the calendar. While the last two aren’t really necessary (as we all know this part of our masonic schedule), it is a helpful reminder for all of us and it demonstrates the importance of these regular meetings.

Next on my list are the variety of events of which I have received notice from the Grand Lodge. In addition to the quarterly and annual meetings at the end of the year there are also other events such as a corner stone laying ceremony in September. Grand Lodge events are a great way to meet brethren from across the Commonwealth. I have enjoyed every one of them and always encourage new brothers to do so as well. Personally, I have not been able to attend a cornerstone ceremony so I will be sure to mark it on my personal calendar along with the others.

Things are already starting to fill up the remaining months of the year. Here is when I look to the other district and family events. They are both, theoretically, close to home and also provide each of us the opportunity to bring our families to dinners, picnics, Autumn Days in Elizabethtown, and other events. I always enjoy the opportunities to share these great times of fun and fellowship with my family.

Here is where things kind of go back and forth for me when working on the calendar. With hardly any space remaining, I have to be careful as to what I can fit on the page and what has to be disseminated by other means. There are youth events as well as other appendant body events that are vying for space. Generally, I usually select those with the closest ties to the lodge. If there is a brother being honored by an appendant body (i.e. Shriners, Scottish Rite, etc.) I put that event on the calendar. If there is a youth event beneficial to those pursuing the Master Builder Award, I include those events. Other Master Builder optional events follow.  

By this time the calendar is almost certainly full. If there is a space or two left I usually put in a couple of things that I am interested in attending. It is by no means a perfect system but it seems to have served me well and I have yet to field any complaints. After all, you can easily get caught up in all that is happening in the fraternity because, for some, freemasonry only requires one night… seven days a week. We have to keep our balance, measure our days, and choose wisely when it comes to creating our own masonic calendars.

A Long Day Away From Baby

Given how things played out last year, I expected things to be busy today at the trade show. What I didn’t expect was sheer volume of people that would be attending the show. What had taken me 20 minutes to go from getting on the bus to the booth, was now an hour voyage through the sea of attendees and exhibitors. Thankfully, I had left early enough that I still made it to the booth with plenty of time to spare before the first appointment that I had booked for the day.

As the day flew by you could tell who had been at the show for both days walking up and down the aisles. Sore feet and slow moving legs were apparent. And, of course, there was the larger than life crowd… the ones that made me look like the after picture from a weight loss commercial. It was a constant fluffy wave that made you think twice when you took a lunch break or went over to the cart to get a cup of coffee.

While our booth was busy throughout the day with only a handful of moments when we were left to ourselves, there were other companies when the exact opposite was true. It was rather odd to see the lack of interest that they were inciting especially in a room where there were more than a few niche companies and products that were constantly talking to customers all day. Makes me glad that some of our previous discussions never panned out but also make me wonder how we could have made the show different for them.

Even during the numerous humorous and busy moments, I couldn’t help but think about what I might be missing back home. I kept thinking about my wife and son and hoping that he wasn’t missing me too much. While he may not be aware of everything he does know when I am out late and I am certain that he knew I was gone.

Those times were tough but it was also nice getting those pictures and videos from my wife and sharing them with those around me. While I may not have been able to talk to him, I could at least talk about him. That was my way of getting through the times when I missed him most and the best way that I was able to relate to those around me who all had kids. That is how I got through today!

A Few Interesting Developments At Lodge

First the first time this year I was finally able to get to the lodge at my usual time last night and stay relatively ahead of schedule for the entire evening. By the time the candidates arrived I had already sifted through the incoming correspondences and fielded a couple of calls from the brethren. Because of this I was able to focus more on what was going on around me and truly appreciate the hard work that was being done more so than I have been able to do in previous weeks.

However it was before I even left the office when I received an email from a candidate that took me back for a second. Some will read the contents in a negative way but I see the words as a very positive understanding of the importance of advancing to the next degree. This candidate, having postponed his third degree once before, reached out and requested that it be pushed back another month as he didn’t feel he was prepared to take the next step.

While he had missed a number of training nights due to other obligations since receiving his last degree, he was still far enough along that it wouldn’t have prevented him taking the next step. This was evident last night as he struggled a bit but was definitely retaining what he needed to know. However, I completely understood his desire to be properly prepared and arranged for his degree to take place in March.

The rest of the night revolved around the dreaded discussions of the politics of the lodge as well as the initiatives that many of us would like to see take place in the coming months. In my position I do my best to remove myself from the former but eagerly embrace the latter when it makes sense and will continue to help the lodge grow and increase participation. Spearheaded by a newly raised brother, the ideas for the lodge, especially those regarding the education of new masons, are impressive and can ensure our continued success. I guess we will have to see how quickly we can implement those programs.

For now I am going to do my best to keep up and stay on schedule with the projects that keep flowing in. With everything going on just doing this has become difficult leaving me scrambling before most meetings to make sure everything is in order for the evening. Well, it could happen.

600 Really Sneaks Up On You!

Honestly, 600 is a number that I wasn’t even sure would be possible when I first started this blog in May 2013. My goal back then was to just get through the first year as I knew that the daily routine of writing is something that I had long forgotten about. My writing remained dormant and while this is vastly different to the daily work that I was producing a decade ago, it is still keeping me productive beyond the confines of the responsibilities and stresses of life.

I have shared more personal items as of late while still respecting the anonymity of those around me, I have written about some of the things that bother me and piss me off, and there have been other posts that I wrote because a topic or certain thing that I watched or read interested me. There have been moments, especially over the last few months when I have doubted my ability to continue writing every day and I seriously questioned whether I should continue committing the time to these words. Those moments continue to come and go but, in the end, I made a commitment to myself to keep writing so that is what I am going to continue doing.

The usual topics persist throughout these digital pages as my weekly lodge posts and frequent genealogy musings have been joined by the weekly firearms related material and frequent baby updates. Now more than ever, you can see the diversity in the topics that I write about and why I chose from the onset to not focus on any one subject. This may be the most important aspect in keeping this thing going as there are times when I come up with the most random thoughts for posts and I know that I don’t have to second guess as to whether they would fit.

There is tremendous freedom in not being limited in what I can say. Sure I keep names off the screen but I can still make my point without calling people out or making others uncomfortable (and, given some of the posts I have put up, I am sure that my writing wouldn’t help them with their friends or employers if their name was found on here). And where there is freedom there is also structure.

I have made it through 600 posts now and few people can find their name anywhere on the blog. Considering the fact that given the 400 word minimum for each post that is at least 240,000 places where their name doesn’t appear. Of course, if you have read this blog for any length of time you know that I seldom come close to the 400 so it is probably more along the lines of 300,000 words.

Well, here is to the next 300K with the hope that things smooth out a bit. There at least should be plenty of fodder that will keep me busy. I just don’t know if it will keep my too busy.

Donuts, Presents, and Dinner

Following my morning visit and photo session with my son, it was a rush to get to the office for a day full of internal meetings and conference calls. My calendar is full of such calls and meetings for the next week and a half due to the usual end of the year chaos and also the additional logistics required by account transitions. While I usually head into these meetings a little sluggish, the morning memories carried through and brought a different light to my day.

However, I had to make a quick stop along the way to pick up a “holiday treat” for the office so off to Wegmans for a box of donuts. With the detour behind me I got back on the road and made it to work just in time for my first meeting. Of course, now I had another errand that needed to get done but with little time to do it… I still had to pick up a “Secret Santa” gift which I needed to have in hand by the end of the day.

A few meetings into the day and I now found myself in the middle of the afternoon without a gift in hand and still a few other errands that needed to be taken care of since I was not going to get back to the apartment until late that evening. And then I thought of a gift that was both thoughtful and something that I could take care of in a few minutes. So I made the long trek to the internet and found exactly what I was looking for… a digital gift card to BedandBreakfast.com.

One item off the list and a couple more to go so I did something that I really hate to do during the week… I stepped out of the office. I was only going a few blocks away to the bank and Home Depot but it is still not something I enjoy as there are a bunch of other things that need to be taken care of at my desk. Thirty minutes later with a new debit card and a back seat full of packing boxes, I got back to the office with enough time to knock out a few items before my next marathon meeting.

By the time that we all walked out of the conference room nearly everything was checked off my list for the day with a few things added for Monday morning (I had to take Friday off). It seemed as though we were all relatively in sync as late in the afternoon, we all gathered around a table and signed our names to the holiday cards that would be going out the following week. 400 scribble signatures later and it was nearly time to head to dinner.

We all met down the road at Bar Louie for a company dinner and party. With drinks in hand and appetizers on the way, we all took turns revealing the name we pulled from the box and exchanging gifts. As it turns out the person whom I had gotten a gift also pulled my name and we both purchased perfect gifts for one another. She was excited to have an excuse to get away and I was happy to have a Phillies outfit for my son!

Everyone was happy with what they received and we all had a good time chatting and relaxing around the dinner table not thinking or talking about work. It was a great night that seemed to fly by and a good way to bookend a day that began with me being able to see my son again. However, this was just the beginning of a long night and a tiring weekend…

Ugly Sweater Breakfast

They have to specify Christmas or Bill Cosby would win every year!

Every once in a while everyone at the office we all go out and just enjoy ourselves away from work and the deadlines streaming through our email. Sometimes it is as simple as having lunch together in the conference room (although there is usually at least one computer out and everyone is checking their phones for emails and calls). Yesterday was completely different as we all got on the road a little early and met for breakfast at Cracker Barrel dressed in our finest ugly sweater.

The commute wasn’t bad even in the midst of the morning rush hour and I was able to get there just in time having given myself a bit of a buffer for the drive. Others we not so lucky as an accident and general congestion kept them from joining us and put them two cups of coffee behind. However, the important thing is that we all made it to the meal and filled the table with good, non-work, conversation and compliments on the classy designs adorning each of us.

We did the same thing earlier in the year minus the sweaters and with a slightly different crowd around the table. While one person has left, three great coworkers now joined us for the morning relaxation. It was a great time but, as is the case with the piles leaving this country kitchen, we were all left a little sluggish as we drove down the road and to the office.

The light morning was soon followed by round after round of meetings where we continued the transition process set in motion by the departure of one of my coworkers. It is a bit of an odd situation that I find myself in as she is the only one that started working at the office before me having assumed her role a day before I began coming to work. While I am no stranger to having outlasted people at certain jobs, it is weird to be the one with the longest tenure (albeit only by a few days).

Honestly, given all the perks and the family like environment in which I work, it is hard to think about leaving this company. I understood the need for change at previous employers but this is a completely different environment. It is safe to say that I am here for the long haul. I was hear during the chaos of the first few months and I look forward to being here as the company grows even though the faces around the breakfast table may change.

And The List Gets Longer…

With a variety of projects and tasks that are currently being worked on, I did my best to get to the lodge a little earlier than usual last night. Not an easy task with so much going on at the office at the same time. After cursing at a few “drivers” on my way to Ardmore and making a couple of calls along the way, I was finally able to make my way to the old building only a little bit later than expected and I wasn’t surprised to find that I was the third one there.

The leak in my basement office seems to have been fixed but the lovely aroma leaves a lot to be desired and the subsequent shifting of items around has set the organization thereof back at least a few weeks. I guess now is as good a time as any to sift through a few items before simply putting them back. But that is another project for another day.

I met with a couple of brothers to see about finding space for a new business venture. This is one that I am especially interested in making happen as it wouldn’t just bring new people into the lodge but there are a number of brothers (including myself) that would welcome the opportunity to participate. Other conversations later in the evening also revolved around the simple (not really) questions of what it is that we really do for a living. It’s funny, but if you take the time to ask the question, you might be surprised by how much your occupations overlap.

Those were just the ancillary items that we had to take care of. With a stated meeting only a couple days away and just over a month until our Red Cross Blood Drive (Saturday, December 6th for those in the area that are interested), there are still a lot of things that we need to prepare. It seems that most weeks, especially lately, I need at least an extra day or two just to keep things current. Thankfully, there are a lot of items ready to go and things should continue running smoothly through this week and the end of the year.

After our general meetings, unfortunately bills did not make up one of them, we all came together from the various corners of the lodge to both review what had been discussed and congratulate one of our brothers on his exemplification (that was happening concurrently with all the other tasks). Assignments were handed out and we all went our separate ways to reconvene tomorrow night when I hope to see both my brothers and a crowd of veterans honoring us with their presence. All in all, I guess you could say that it was just another Tuesday night at the lodge.

Technology Can Only Go So Far!

My job which is by no means critical to the security of the country requires me to get information as quickly and efficiently as possible and disseminate that information in a like manner. The majority of the time email will not deliver the results in a satisfactory manner as it does not permit immediate follow up and the process of obtaining all the necessary information can string across multiple correspondences. Even when a dialog has taken place over multiple emails, a call is sometimes still required. By this time, actionable items have passed and deadlines are sometimes pushed back to those projects with remaining viability.

Picking up the phone can cut out much of the time and get me the answers and information I need to take immediate action on a given topic. However, whenever possible, in person meetings are by far the best means by which to get a complete picture on a subject in an efficient manner. Whenever I am given the opportunity to meet with someone, I always make the time. Quality information and program efficiency are two of the keys to a successful PR campaign. Really, they are the drivers in any high volume industry that requires immediate decisions and actions.

There are times when in person briefings, meetings, and information sessions are not possible but I do everything I can to avoid missing the opportunity. This is why the recent report released by the Government Accountability Institute, a conservative watchdog group, were a little mystifying. In that report they report that President Obama has had in-person intelligence briefings during only 42% of his days in office which is slightly lower than the figure reported in 2012. Previously, the White House has addressed the subject saying that the President “doesn’t feel the need to have a daily in-person briefing, but that he reads his intelligence briefing daily on his secure iPad and often sends emails with follow up questions.”

At the very least he should have taken someone from the intelligence community with him golfing. Even if those were his only meetings he might still be over 42%. Heck, he could even have them get some intelligence on how to play particular holes. That could be a win-win scenario.

While I don’t know the statistics from previous administrations it seems that any executive that conducts his intelligence briefings in such a way would be hard pressed to be an effective, well informed, and overall decisive leader. I can’t effectively do my job without having all of the information in my hands as soon as possible. The percentage seems a little too low especially given how many events that have occurred (that we know about) over the past six years. But, let’s give him the benefit of the doubt, maybe all those golf outings are just a rouse and the real briefings occur at the third bunker to the right of the 17^th hole at precisely 10:54am.

Putting The Pieces Together

Welcome back from the dark months!

Not long after I arrived at the lodge last night, the windows began rattling and the clouds opened up pounding the pavement just beyond the basement wall with a late summer thunder storm. As the rhythm of the weather played loudly in the background, I sat at my makeshift desk and planned out several overdue tasks. Before long I was joined at the lodge by other brothers trying to get that last bit of work done before the meeting.

In just a couple of days, we will be sitting in the sweltering lodge room resuming our usual meeting schedule after a couple of dark months. Still being new to Freemasonry, I keep trying to think of the different things that I will have to do during the course of the meeting. Tonight was the final preparation before diving back in to the usual program.

The last week or so I have been scrambling to finish up a number of summer tasks and placing overdue orders that will, hopefully, last until this time next year. Actually, since much of the material I am ordering is for new masons, I hope that I have to receive another shipment sooner rather than later. Either way, this crop of invoices should be arriving in the mailbox soon.

Of course, that was only a small group of things that needed to get done. There are other items on my list that kept getting pushed further and further back until late last month and this past holiday weekend. Thankfully, part of the time that I took off from work I was able to dedicate to checking off those items including sending the notice and getting the minutes done from our previous meetings month ago… I really have to get a better routine together for knocking those out as I can’t keep pulling them together last minute.

Even with all the work that had to get done and a hint of uncertainty for this quickly approaching meeting, I am looking forward to seeing all the brothers coming together once again for a meeting. While there is a certain amount of stress leading up to each evening at the lodge, I still find the time within those walls to be a tremendous respite from the everyday grind. Maybe with a better schedule, I will be able to enjoy those nights even more.

So, the dark months have once again come and gone. A whole new set of tasks awaits us in the coming months as we push forward in an attempt to meet the goals we set forth at the beginning of the year. Hopefully, the momentum from late spring was not lost and new petitions will be waiting for me on my desk. It really is an exciting time of year and one that I am looking forward to (even if the lodge room feels like an oven).

Coming Out Of The Dark Months

While I have been going to the lodge every Tuesday evening throughout the summer, tonight was the official back to work night as training resumed and other projects began pouring in. Maybe it is because of my schedule, but it really doesn’t seem like I have had any time away from the business of the lodge. Of course, that might be because of the ongoing meetings, appointments, and other events that were spread throughout the dark months.

While I enjoyed the slower pace for a time, I have also gotten behind on a few things with forms that still need to be submitted, orders placed, and coordination in dire need of being figured out. These are the things that lead to my ever so slight ‘oh crap’ moment when the long list of things that needed to be handled was still hanging above my desk without any check marks having been placed beside the items. What can I say, slow months just don’t work for me as they inevitably lead to a bit of procrastination and disorganization.

Thankfully, the brothers will soon be filling in the rooms of the lodge and the additional push I needed has already begun. Schedules are beginning to fill up and meeting are already being planned. Things should return to some semblance of normalcy just in time for Grand Lodge to change the entire online system that we have all been struggling with as of late. While I am not looking forward to the long training sessions and change over, I am hopeful that the end result will be a much better system that will save a lot of time and effort.

All of those things will be taken care of in time… very soon as a matter of fact… but, right now, it was great seeing our new brothers once again walk through the door undeterred by the long summer respite and ready to take the next step. It makes me think of last summer when shortly after being made a mason the dark months descended upon us. I eagerly anticipated the fall when the meetings resumed. It is a moment of returning from a long vacation similar to when you come back to the comforts of home after a business trip.

Now, my business is at the lodge but I still look forward to that September meeting in the same way and I am excited to reconnect with all the brothers that have stepped away from the lodge for the summer. Yes, it is time to get back to work but it is the work that I enjoy. Maybe more importantly, it is time to continue the traditions and further the fellowship among brothers especially those who are new to our fraternity.

Extensive Meetings, Marathon Calls, And Early Mornings

It may be a bit crude but it fits and its funny.

In hind sight, the past few weeks have been a bit of a blur merging together into one continuous memory of a meeting. In addition to the usual daily duties and account work, a few of us would lock ourselves in the conference room and hash out, sometimes vigorously, a public relations plan for a new prospect. This was all stemming from my business day trip back in May.

For hours we would go back and forth starting with the high level view and basic outline. We would take a couple of days off to research and make our own suggestions (margin time as I like to call it) and finally we would come together for the detailed dive into what needs to be said, what needs to be reworded, and pull together what strategies would work best to achieve what the prospect thinks they want and what we know they should want. Fortunately, in this instance, there was a synchronicity to these objectives.

All told, we each spend approximately fifty hours in meeting over the past couple of months pulling all of these things together. This culminated in a conference call yesterday when we were finally able to present the results of our hard work. This is always a time of uncertainty but we present the plan with confidence and emphasize the process and experience that has brought us to our conclusions. However, you have to keep in mind, while this was a time consuming step it was only the first of many (second if you count the initial input).

While the prospect agreed with what we had presented, there were still a number of things discussed that we will have to incorporate and a few things that we will have to change. And, of course, every presentation has a speed bump here or there and this one certainly had a big one as the recent investors in the company have just now informed us of an open competition and that many other proposals have been received. With the only honest and realistic plan on the table I am confident in our future with this company but it still means that there is even more work that we are going to have to complete and more meetings that will keep us in the conference room for the next couple of weeks.

It looks like a few more long days at the office presenting me from arriving home before the summer dusk and probably at least one or two early morning conference calls like the one that was scheduled this morning for 7am. While I am undoubtedly biased, I know that we are the best firm for the business and I know that the long discussions and even longer hours will pay off in the end. But, for now, it is time to relax when I can, work when I am able, and sleep during those rare instances when the luxury of time is in my favor.