Update

Here we are in the month of June, '07. A little over three weeks ago I was informed that my position at Accenture @ Best Buy had been dissolved -- either by off-shoring, or by consolidation with another role. (Guess it doesn't really matter to me which one: I'm gone either way.)

Seems like they've done a lot to help: they gave me over four week's notice that my last day was 6/15, I get a severance package for an additional two months and my normal benefits through the end of September if I don't find a comparable job by 6/15.

And we've had a house on the market for the past year. Not so bad, right? Oh, wait: did I forget to mention we already had bought another house and moved into it? So, two mortgage payments. Jeez!

Well, yesterday things began an upturn: we have a good offer on the house and we've accepted it. They'll get it inspected and ask us to do a couple things (like fix the leaking valve in the downstairs toilet tank, I'm guessing). Then we have to bring several thousand $ to the table because the market hasn't been as good to us in the past two years as in the past.

But we sold the house. Only one mortgage payment. Hallelujah!

And I got a great lead on a job yesterday. Interviews follow, and I want it to be a great fit. And it's downtown Minneapolis, which I could do without, but oh well. I mean, I love working down there, but I hate the commute. I love having the Farmer's Market on Thursdays along the Nicollet Mall. Nothing like bring fresh fruits and vegetables home along with a big bunch of daffodils in the evening. And I'm guessing I'd commute either on the train or by bus -- parking rates downtown are outrageous. But I'm getting ahead of myself, aren't I?

Books: The 8th Habit is very good, and I'm excited about it. Here's what I've learned so far -- well, not learned exactly, but more been reminded: between something happening and my response to the thing that happened, there's a gap. How I choose to use that gap is my choice: positively or negatively.

Deep stuff, eh? It may have lost something in the translation between Dr Covey's writing and my interpretation...

I started working on John Maxwell's The Success Journey, too, and so far have learned about myself that:

• I have a passion for anticipating someone's needs and fulfilling them,
• I have the ability to identify and tap into people's best skills, and
• I am pretty darned good at writing and speaking -- I have what I like to call an "artful command" of the English language.

(I don't have too much life experience, though, so it's hard for me to relate to what others say on some planes of existence. Oh, I can talk vacation spots, limited financial conversations, TiVo and technology and the mundane stuff of life, but I'm talking about political unrest in the Middle East and stuff like that. That stuff comes up and I'm 98% uninformed.)

So, that's sort of an update. Hope it's interesting. I hope to have more soon.

Blessings and Regards,
Pablo

Here's a photo of The Fambly from a recent visit to my home town:

Life's Direction

So what's exciting me now?

Steven Covey's "The 8th Habit", that's what.

And "The Art of Getting Things Done" (a.k.a., GTD), by David Allen.

Really just starting reading the former, and have watched one of the short films included on the accompanying DVD. (BTW: Got this new book with still-sealed DVD for a grand total of $5.79, including s+h, on amazon.com. Goes right along with the "The 8th Habit" tab in my Franklin Planner.)

ANYway:

Things are not going well, to say the least, at my day job. I just can't get into all the forms and processes they put around putting in a new process and tool to get something done. Seems like we went through lots of forms in 2004, then again in 2005, and each time funding ran out, or was approved too late for us to complete the project before it was deployed into production.

Even so, we kept track of all the stuff we developed (hours of work by several people on a team and tracked by one person who gave it to us mid-2006 for the third go around with new meat -- er, I mean, PEOPLE -- involved in the project.

But apparently there was more to be done: A vision. A strategy. A grand set of ideas yet to be uncovered from the innermost regions of our individual and collective brains. The boss knew about them, but wanted us to draw them out. Everyone else on the team brought ideas to the boss, but I didn't because I'd been through two failed exercises in brainstorming for two consecutive years, wasting a total of perhaps a hundred hours on cancelled initiatives.

Pardon my cynicism, but I'm not really interested in wasting hundreds of hours of time. Again.

So I want to do something different; but what? Enter the 8th Habit. It wasn't like I didn't have enough self-help books in various stages of consumption (and bookmarked to show it) already; no: I needed another book. And I realized I already had not only the 8th Habit Audio CD and the 8th Habit workbook in my planner, so this seemed like a natural addition to my reading "to-do" list.

So the 8th Habit advocates that we "find our voice and inspire others to find theirs." But what's a "voice"?

Voice is where our passion, talent, conscience and need converge to define our unique, personal significance. Am I alone in getting a big charge out of this stuff? I mean, doesn't everyone want to know why they're here? Seems like this title will help put some meat on that bony framework.

So I'll keep you posted on my progress.

Next, GTD (or, Getting Things Done). This I've had for months but I'm only halfway through the book. It's a GREAT resource for organizing and setting up a system; it's just that every time I read two or three pages I get so excited I have to hurry and do what it suggest... before I continue reading.

Don't laugh: I've had people comment on my clean desk and productive time at the office (though not my boss, whose complaints have compelled me to begin reading the other title, above).

Gotta go. Stuff to do for work, still.

Back soon!

What to do, What to do?

When you're in a position that is not fulfilling, not what you want; one that is not pleasant and not rewarding, what do you do? If you have no friends, or your job is hanging by a thread, or the only people you're with all day are your kids or the people with whom you work and you're longing for someone (ANYone) else to relate to, what do you do? If you're in debt and it seems like no matter what you do there's more and more and more debt, what do you do?

You pray.

Pray for WHAT?

You pray for the ability to live with the consequence(s) of the choices you've made in your life until and unless God's unmerited favor (i.e., His grace) removes you from the consequence(s).

Then what?

Wait. You didn't get from where you were to where you are in one day or an hour; it took years. And moving from where you are to where you want to be, even with God's grace, can take years. Until you get there, it's a pretty sure bet that unless you thank God for what you have (a place to live, ability to see, hear, taste, smell and feel, great kids, working vehicles, a job, food on the table and, if you're reading this, a computer and Internet access), you'll be absolutely, unequivically, and continuously miserable.

And what if you don't want to wait? What if the thought of waiting is so unbearable that you want to take matters into your own hands and make changes now?

There are two things that can happen from wanting and forcing a change NOW: one, God will move from Grace to Miracle and release you miraculously from your situation, whatever that may be; or two, you'll again be making a choice to do things your way and in your time and there will be consequences. The consequenses may be easier or more difficult to live with, but there will be consequences. Making a move without God's direction or grace is NOT the way to remove yourself from whatever consequence you're facing right now.

I pray that whatever you're facing, whatever you're experiencing in this Easter season, that God's grace is extended to you and that you're given the patience to hold fast to the vision of what He has in store for you. Check Jeremiah 29:11 and believe that God has a way out, and that He will show you. And then, you wait for Him to show you and lead you out, and when He does, you follow Him.

Blessings, and Happy Easter!

Taxes

So, this is rarely read, and typically without comment. But I'm going to write this anyway, because it's tax "season" and I just finished spending hours last night preparing and filing my taxes.

Have you ever thought about how ridiculous it is to have to spend hours, sometimes days, collecting papers, many of which might be over a year old, records, files, putting them all in one spot, and then completing forms, doing calculations, checking your math, and so on, all for the sole purpose of collecting money you've already earned? Or worse, for the purpose of having to pay more money than you've already paid?!

A related question might be, "Why am I spending so much time filing forms with a medical savings account custodian, to get reimbursed by them for medical bills I've paid, from an account to which I've contributed the entire balance?" This is all so it's not figured into my income taxes. Of course, if I contribute more than I spend, I'm out the dough. And if I contribute less than I spend, I have to pay income tax on money I legitimately spent on medical expenses!

Why do you have a 401(k) plan with your employer? To avoid income tax. Why do you have a 529 plan for your kid's college fund? To avoid income tax. Why do you have a UGMA account for your kids? Why is it so important to have a will, and to have (to an extent) a living trust? All of this is to avoid having to pay income tax.

How in the world do we ever get out from having to pay the government, at the point of a gun, a portion of everything we earn??

Contact your congressperson and tell them you want them to investigate, get onboard with, support, and legislate The Fair Tax. Next, tell your friends about it and engage in discussion about it. Tell them about the benefits of:
- Eliminating the IRS
- Eliminating filing every year
- Receiving your entire paycheck (nothing withheld for Federal income tax or FICA)
- Retail prices going down
- Eliminating the need to establish special retirement plans, college funding plans, medical reimbursement plans, childcare reimbursement plans
- Saving for retirement on your own, tax free

But what if you don't know about any of this stuff? What if this is the first you've heard of it? Where do you find out more?

First, go to the Fair Tax web site (www.fairtax.org). Some areas have chapters specific to those areas: In my home state (Minnesota) there's a private group that hosts www.mnfairtax.org. Next, I encourage reading the "The Fair Tax Book" written by Neal Boortz and Representative John Linder. The paperback version is coming out beginning of May 2006 for under $10 through Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Whatever you do, do not sit back on your laurels and relax after taking the above steps. Continue learning and talking with people. And continue advocating for changing the system.

Let's get this thing done. Let's remove a government burden (no, not taxes; even Jesus said to render unto Ceaser what was Ceaser's): the requirement that we file and pay a portion of everything we earn. Instead, make it a requirement to pay a portion of everything we spend.

Good luck!

Brennan Photo

Really like this photo of Brennan, my youngest son. (My oldest, for the record, is 22 years and one day older than Brennan.)

Hope you enjoy it too. 

G'Day

Well, I've had this hankerin', this urge, this desire to begin this anew. So busy all the time, it's difficult to find time to be consistent. Perhaps the best I can offer in the way of consistency is to be consistently inconsistent!

So... Off we go.

We moved a few months ago into a larger square footage house with less storage space and a smaller kitchen-dining room-living room. More bedrooms, a huge master bedroom and a big ole family room take up all the extra space given up by the living areas. Lots to do in the house to fix it up and then sell it and move on: some electrical, some plumbing, some landscaping, some cabinetry. We replaced the garage door opener and some master bathroom plumbing already.

Katy has cut way back on her hours in the office, mostly because she spends so much time working with Brennan and preparing to work with Brennan that she doesn't have the time to spend in the office or on work-related tasks. Katy feels like I haven't really been a consistent source of support, and so she's had to pick up the slack, and so she's performed poorly, and so they're referring fewer patients to her. Regardless of accuracy or completeness of that feeling, she is receiving fewer referrals and has reduced her hours.

Brennan was diagnosed some time ago with high-functioning autism. Katy has been going gangbusters with therapy for him. It's called RDI (www.rdiconnect.com), and has been helping him in a way that is impossible to describe. Frequently (more frequently than in the past) we can't point to autistic behaviors or characteristics, and we often can readily identify behaviors that are less intense than even three months ago.

Maura is talking so well and so much that it's like she's two going on eight. Very precocious little girl, very bright. She gets jokes! She'll say, for example, while handing me her coat to help her put it on "Daddy, can you put on my coat?" I'll jokingly reply, "I can't: It's too small for me." She'll laugh and say, "No, put it on me!" Then she turns to Brennan and says, "Daddy and I were playing a game." Amazing.

Working hard at Best Buy (actually employed by Accenture, but assigned to the Best Buy account and working at the Best Buy headquarters campus in Richfield MN). Not really enjoying it, but it's better than begging, I suppose. Guess I'd much rather act. Lots of folks tell me I do a good job on the stage (course, they're all actors too, so I suppose they know that we all need accolades). Katy has said she thinks we should do more to market me -- there's an agency in town called N.U.T.S. (Non-Union Talent Search). They got me some auditions in the past, but nothing ever panned out. They didn't do much to assist with preparation. There are other agencies, but I've not really signed with them, so even when I go to their locations for auditions, my guess is they'll do their best to place their own actors before they place anyone else's talent.

Maybe I should follow up with NUTS to see if my agreement with them is still in effect. If not, maybe I should sign with another agency. I haven't heard from anyone at NUTS for years.....

I did audition for a stage presentation a couple years ago and was cast in the lead, but then had to withdraw because of adopting Maura. Well, that and the fact that the salary they said they'd be paying me was not going to come any time soon.

We (Katy and I) have been attending a financial management class at a church in Apple Valley. The class is called Financial Peace University, from Dave Ramsey (www.daveramsey.com). Very intense focus on getting out of and staying out of debt, and eliminating credit cards altogether, and going on a strictly cash basis. We've always had debt, some times more than others. Right now in addition to the mortgage, we have a 2nd mortgage (home equity line of credit), and a credit card. About $215,000 in debt altogether (the mortgage is about $190,000). Too much, by nearly any measure, so we have felt strongly that we have to make some drastic changes. Like, living on a budget, for one thing. (Yes, that's drastic for us. How do you think we got so far into debt?)

Well, it's time to close this entry. Don't want to spill my guts completely all at once. Believe me: I'd really like to make this consistent. It's therapeutic, if nothing else.

Blessings