Is That A Catapault in Your Backyard, Or Are You Just Happy to See Me?

Okay, so it wasn't really as big as all that - actually it was only about two and a half feet by six inches by maybe two feet - but it provided the boys and I with hours of fun - mostly in the build process.  The actual use phase wasn't so long, but more on that later.

You see, last night the Science rebroadcast their programming of the 2010 Punkin Chunkin World Championships.  Since the boys had seen all the commercials for the event they REALLY wanted to see it.  Well, being the educator that I am I said, "okay, but let's build our own too and get rid of these pumpkins that have been  hanging around since Halloween."  So we set out to build our Punkin' Chunker;

Okay, so it wasn't that big and it wasn't an air cannon, but how cool is that?  I mean chunkin' a pumpkin 4491 feet?  That's almost 15 football fields in length!  A mile is only 5280 feet!  That's insanity - but a challenge!

But no, we didn't build an air cannon (darn it all to heck!), nor did we build this amazing example of counterweight superiority;

No, unfortunately, ours was more of a "hey, I've got a barn, let's put on a show" variety.  I knew I had lots of bungee cords (and what self-respecting father doesn't?) so I scrounged around to figure out what pieces of wood I had around the house.  I thought I had lots of 2 x 4's but alas, no so I had to make due with some pieces of tongue and groove boards left over from the Smithtown house (yes, I'm a pack rat and I brought over leftover scraps of wood when we moved).

So, since I didn't have a REAL plan, the idea was to utilize what I had into some sort of throwing arm contraption with the goal of trying to shoot a small pumpkin (or a softball) at least 20 feet.  So the boys and I sawed (okay, I did the sawing with the chop box), drilled (William liked that part especially), screwed (both boys enjoy using the power drill for that as well), glued and put it all together.  Now, unfortunately I was a very bad father in that I didn't chronicle the step by step process.  As it was it took us three hours to get it all put together and workable.  Needless to say, the boys lost interest after about two hours and went inside telling me to "call us when it punkin' chunkin' time."

But eventually I got it constructed and firing on a decent trajectory.  It has to be mentioned here that James took the colored chalk and created a "castle" on the concrete wall to use as a target which was complete with towers and a drawbridge.  Finally I called the kids out.

The boys had their friend Sean over and all four kids took turns taking shots at the castle.  But, as I feared, the design was not as structurally sound as it could have been, due to my lack of planning and the fact I was simply using materials I had around the house.  After about ten shots the stopper arm started pulling away from the support arm causing a massive crack to run down the support arm.  So we decided to keep going until we suffered catastrophic failure.  We also found out that the current design works really well with softballs!  It's all on the video;




So, when people ask me, what did you do on your Thanksgiving break I get to tell them I went Punkin' Chunkin'!!!!!  Of course, it has now become a challenge and I am on a quest to create an even better version of this and I'll even go and buy three or four 2x4's and do it up right!  NEXT YEAR WE ARE GOING FOR MORE POWER!!!!!  I found a great plan for a catapault but its a little small for what I want - maybe I can supersize it!  Or I might go for a torsion catapault and get it a little bit bigger.  Maybe we can start our own little mini-Punkin' Chunkin and invite all the neighborhood kids!  We can set it up in the front yard and try to chuck them across the street at the big retaining wall there!

Now granted, I did get SOME ride time in as I went for an epic 25 mile ride up and down as many hills as I could get in during my alotted hour and a half ride time on Saturday!  I was facing headwind gusts of 15-20 miles an hour and climbing some steep hills but Betty handled it all in stride.  I was riding so well that I decided to drop my stem about 10 mm to see if I can start getting a little more aero in my ride!

Letter are also going out this week soliciting sponsors for the Cross Country ride.  I really am starting to get very nervous about this happening at all, much less this summer!  Aside from Smiles for Scott (http://www.smilesforscott.org/), we haven't really gotten much in the way of sponsorships and I really have to ask people what gives?  Someone can post on face book about eating turkey and get 50 comments but I post to my 700+ friends about needing sponsor contacts and only my sister Tamara and Sandie Ramos (from my Ansbach High School days) have answered.  It sometimes really gets me depressed about how I can do good in the world when the world doesn't seem to care?  I know there are an amazing number of people in my life that have business contacts but what do I have to do to get them to use them? Am I wrong?  Is anybody out there?  Can someone answer?  Please?

Oh well, so I'm riding Pearl in tomorrow.  I've converted her to a winter commuter bike with fenders and a rack, but she's still all black - why mess with perfection?   So I'll write tomorrow about how that works out and in the meantime  -- ride safe, AND GO CHUNK SOME PUNKIN'S!!!!!!

Stay well!

Happy Thanksgiving!

So the old, dead dude Plato once wrote, "‎A grateful mind is a great mind which eventually attracts great things."  Well, today is the day for all of us to attract great things to ourselves.   Today is the day that we should feel grateful for the things we have and I'm not just talking about the really cool bicycle you have in your garage/basement/specially-constructed, hermetically-sealed, climate-controlled "bicycle room";

(Priced at $102,417.60, is the limited edition bike from Aurumania - if you want to buy me one, I'd be grateful!)

Yes, I know some of you have one of those hidden away but today I'm talking about the other things to be grateful for, the intangibles, the things always around us but we get so caught up in our myopic "goggle vision induced existence by wearing things like this;



I admit, I'm as guilty of it as we all are.  We all get so wrapped up in the day to day survival that we forget the part about enjoying the jouney.  That's part of what got me back on the bicycle after so many years.  Once I was forced to ride my bike because of the accident that put my car out of commision for almost three weeks, I began to realize how much fun it was to commute by bike and actually enjoy the day and the time outside.  I still don't get to do it as much as I would like (as of right now, I have commuted only 2600 miles this year), there are sometimes too many circumstances (rehearsal over at 9 o'clock at night, picking up the kids, carrying things home, picking up dinner, etc.) that sometimes necessitate my driving instead of riding but I still manage to ride twice a week on average.

And it reminds me to enjoy the time.  There are days where I am just sucking wind because I'm so tired and I really ask myself what the hell I'm doing.  But then I think of the reason that I ride now.  Yes, I still do it because I enjoy it, but I also do it now becasue I'm trying to get used to riding even when I don't want to.  I ride because I want to use my two-wheeled descendent of the velocipede

(This is a Velocipede - literally meaning "fast foot")

to make a difference in other people's lives as it has made such a difference in mine.  You can read why I started to get the whole story but suffice it to say that I am glad that I did.  I have connected with so many people because of the mission of Connor's Army and I know that these connections have made a difference in my life.

But today has bee about the simple things.  For instance I sat watching THE parade today on TV and was amazing to actually relax and watch it with the kids instead of rushing around so we could get the car packed and be on the road to beat the parade traffic.  We just decided to leave later this year and as a result I got to watch a big chunk of the parade and really get to enjoy the squeals of glee as the kids responded to all the floats and balloons that came on the screen.  One of my favorites was the cast of American Idiot performing the curtain call of their show - "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)".  Now, unfortunately I don't have the actual clip from the parade but I have this - just imagine the cast all bundled up in flannels, scarves, hats and fingerless gloves with the wind whipping along the street;

Watching the kids dance around, William "playing" along with his guitar and listening to the words made me realize that this really is what today is about - having the time of your life, enjoying the day, enjoying being with your family and friends.

So we get in the car and the traffic forcast isn't good.  We seem to be making all the wrong turns and just as we're about to get on an incredibly crowded Harlem River Drive we decide to cross over on 125th street and up Broadway - AND WE CUT OFF ABOUT 20 - 30 MINUTES FROM OUR TRIP!  And you knwo what - we had a great time crossing over the top level of the George Washington - something we usually don't do because we go up the other way.  But we crossed over the top and the kids got to see up and down the Hudson river as they crossed in a way that they never had before.

Thanksgiving at Mark and Laura's (Amy's brother and sister-in-law) home in Verona was, as always, a warm and cozy affair - lots of family and the occasional friend.  The highlight of course was our niece Anika!  She's almost a year old now and walking while clutching on to things. It reminded me so much of our own children and how much they've grown and it reminded me that we need to spend more time together as a family doing things - which we will be doing in the next few days!

And you know what, it was the simple things.  It wasn't incredibly fancy, it wasn't a huge catered affair.  Just plenty of friends and plenty of food.  I of course tried to keep my indulgence to a minimum since I'm hoping to do my annual after-Thanksgiving AA club ride tomorrow but I was able to enjoy myself and watch my kids have a great time playing with their cousins.  We all said our "gratefuls" around the table and my big grateful was the health of my children.  After this summer I am so grateful every day that Sarah, William and James are healthy and curious and full of life.  I was reminded all day today of the parents of Stanley and how they must be feeling this day, their first without him. 

I also thought of Lou, Tamara and Alan and how they must be feeling today without David at the table.  I know I hardly got the chance to see him in the years we were reconnected but today was a day that I was overly conscious of his not being with us anymore and how that has left a large hole in our family.  And at the same time it made me even more grateful of my children and how I have them in my life right now.  And I also became doubly convinced that I have to raise this money for Sunrise - I have to do what I can to help other children have the opportunity to grow up and just be kids for as long as they can.

Indeed, the only low point of the day was the Cowboy's loss to the Saints - who could have seen that coming.  I am in mourning in perpetuity for the Cowboys this season but I still am enjoying the days - besides it just means I have to follow the  cyclocross season on Cycling News or over at http://www.cyclocrossworld.com/.  At least the Americans are doing well right now!

Okay, so I get out on the road tomorrow and I will be able to wish you all well from the road until then, one last chance to listen to the vibes of Green Day;

	Green Day - Time of Your Life .mp3
	Found at bee mp3 search engine

Stay Well and I'll See You on the Road!

Simple Gifts

A long time ago in a place called Southern Methodist University, a young dance major got involved with the SMU Catholic Campus Ministry.  Often, he and a few of his compatriots would dance at various mass services in a style of dance called "Liturgical Dance".  One of the staples of the repetoire as a Liturgical dance "company" was a tune called "Lord of the Dance".  And no, it has nothing to do with this guy:

(Notice Mr. Flateley's heavy use of mascara and orange self-tanning product)

Rather, it was a tune that is based on a much older Shaker hymn.  It sounds like this;

	Alton Thompson / Tao Yuan Symphonic Winds - Traditional USA: Lord of the Dance .mp3
	Found at bee mp3 search engine

It still never fails to bring a tear to my eye as I remember what it is about and how the words are all about the divinity of dancing.  It always makes me grateful for the opportunities and the gifts that I have been given in life becuase of dance.  But it in itself was inspired by a much older song, "Simple Gifts"

"Simple Gifts" was written by Shaker Elder Joseph Brackett, Jr. in 1848. It was first published in The Gift to be Simple: Shaker Rituals and Songs. "Simple Gifts" was a work song sung by the United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing (more commonly called the Shakers, an offshoot of the Quakers).

'Tis the gift to be simple,
'tis the gift to be free,
'tis the gift to come down where you ought to be,
And when we find ourselves in the place just right,
It will be in the valley of love and delight.

Refrain:

When true simplicity is gained,
To bow and to bend we shan't be ashamed.
To turn, turn will be our delight,
'Til by turning, turning we come round right

'Tis the gift to be loved and that love to return,
'Tis the gift to be taught and a richer gift to learn,
And when we expect of others what we try to live each day,
Then we'll all live together and we'll all learn to say,

Refrain:

'Tis the gift to have friends and a true friend to be,
'Tis the gift to think of others not to only think of "me",
And when we hear what others really think and really feel,
Then we'll all live together with a love that is real.

Refrain:

On Thursday night we open our production of Our Town with an incredibly talented cast of young actors.  They have been working amazingly hard and becuase of their efforts and the message of this show I am becoming more grateful each day for what I have been given in life.  I only wish I could hold on to these moments.

At the end of the play Emily asks the narrator, "Do any human beings ever realize life while they life it? -- every, every minute?"  To which the narrator replies, "No.  The saints and poets, maybe -- they do some."  And since we first began rehearsing this play I've been constantly reminded by those words, only the saints and poets really understand.  The rest of us often find ourselves drifting through this river of life trying to stay out of the rapids.

But in working with the actors on this show I've been more aware of what a blessing it is to be surrounded by young people who are so willing to make a difference in the world.  That is why I chose "Simple Gifts" (sans lyrics) as our curtain call song when they make their bows (and I have to here admit that it was my lovely wife Amy's idea) because of the idea of "'Tis the gift to be taught and a richer gift to learn".  Althought I am "the teacher" I learn so much about myself as a performer each day and though I long for it with a passion, I'm glad that I at least get to guide others as they create art through theatre and dance.

I've also tried to look at my quest to cycle cross country through the eyes of simplicity.  I have been sending out so many pleas to company and corporations and except for the grant from Smiles for Scott, we haven't received any offers of assistance.  I really, really don't understand this.  If all of those people could only see the difference this camp makes in the life of a child with cancer they would understand my need to give this gift.  I'm not asking for the funding to get a $6,000 carbon road bike, to stay in five star hotels, to rent a tour bus, to equip me in the latest cycling wear.  I'm truly asking for help funding me in getting just the basics (I'm using a fifteen-year-old steel frame that I found in the trash as my transportation on the trip) so we can make this a reality.

So, I know I have 44 followers.  I don't know how many of you read this on a consistent basis but for those of you who do, can you ALL help me with something.  Can EACH of us make the commitment to try to get three more people to sign up as followers?  THEN,   can we ALL make an effort to contact at least TWO businesses with a request that they become sponsors for the Cross Country Ride?  They don't have to sponsor much.  I don't need 88 $5,000 donors.  If we all could get ONE $350 each, that would be enough to make this a reality. 

What do you say?  Can you all help?  We are quickly running out of time to be able to give the simple gift of childhood to these wonderful kids.  I will be back on the bike this week pedaling away but I truly need your help, I really can't do it without you.
I thank you my friends.  I thank you for your support, your love, and the simple gift of your friendship.

Stay well and I'll see you on the road.

The Raisin is Drying Up

Last month I wrote about Lanford Wilson's poem "A Raisin in the Sun" and how it related to my life.  The whole idea of a dream deferred and what that would mean to the Connor's Army Cross Country (CAXC) dream.  Then we got the blessing of a sponsor to help us start underwriting the potential costs of the trip.  The folks from Smiles for Scott (http://www.smilesforscott.org/) came forward and offered to help us in our time of need.
Well right now we are at another plateau in our journey, from which I'm not sure we'll be able to move.  We've reached out to people as far away as California and there seems to be no one who is able or willing to step forward and help us any more in this.  We estimate we'll need at least $10,000 more to barely get by and $15,000 to make it a sure thing.

Now, realize my family would be going along as my support team but we would be paying for them out of our own pocket.  But there would still be the costs of a rental van for me and my equipment, hotel/hostel/campground fees for each night, fuel for the vehicle and costs for spare parts that I'll need to take along in case I'm in the middle of nowhere and I need to do repairs.

I am NOT planning on buying any new bikes for the trip or buying fancy gear.  I plan on doing all the bike work myself (except for that work which one of my sponsors, Adams Cyclery in Northport will be providing to help with the set up), and ALL sponsor monies left over after the trip that we don't use will go to Sunrise Day Camp.  So you see, we are not looking to scam people or rip people off or live it up with the high life on the way across country.  We are used to living extremely frugally (is that really a word) and we'll continue doing so.

And yet, we can't get anyone interested in this project.  I really have been working on this and e-mailing and facebooking and doing all I can but I need help.  Amy and I can't do this alone.  But the problem is, no one is helping us.  We are really starting to feel alone in the world, that there must be something wrong with us as people that no one will come forward and offer to help.  We know that there are people that we know (especially on facebook) that have business and know people in business but none of them offer to help. 

We're not doing this to get ourselves in the paper.  We're not doing this so people will look at us and say, "Wow, your family is so incredible, we want to do newspaper articles and a spread in Family Circle/Redbook/The New York Times Magazine on you!"  We just really feel that we need to give back to the world and these children at this camp are in need of help.  Yes, there are other donors out there that help them but of all the causes I have been involved with, none are as important as giving children the gift of hope.  Children who are struggling with one of the most frightening of all diseases and are asked to take on the same treatment and responsibility as people three, four, five times their age.  And yet they face it with all the strength and courage they can muster.  Its only right that they should be provided with a place in the summer where they can forget about the disease for a while and just be kids at camp.

But we can't help them because we can't get people interested in this cause.  At least not people we know or people that have connections.  And what happens to a dream deferred?

Will this dry up like a raisin in the sun?
Will it fester and die?
Will it explode?
Or, to quote another poet, will it exit with a whimper and not with a bang?

I don't know and I'm at my wits end.  I need help.  If anyone IS reading this, look into yourself and see if you believe in this cause.  If the answer is yes, please cast the net about you and see if there is anyone YOU know that might be able to financial help us make this dream a reality.

I hope I'll see you soon, on the road.

What Keeps Me Rolling - Or At Least Upright (most of the time)

So for those of you who know me, you know that  I converted to Catholicism in college.   Some of my big influences during the time of my coversion were one of my fellow RA's (whose name I can't remember but who who I used to tag along with every Sunday), John (the owner of Mustang Donuts where I worked part time)

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and my friend and fellow SMU dancer Michael Shef who faithfully attended with me as I was trying to figure out what all these words were about.  He was really a great example and one of the first New York Catholics I'd ever met - thanks for the guidance Mike!  These three were really the ones who encouraged me in my quest to become Catholic and this trio, along with Father Michael Duca of the SMU Catholic Campus Ministry, were intstrumental in my journey as a catechumen.

While at SMU at learned all about the Jesuit form of Catholicism and that philosphy, coupled with the all accepting college mentality, formed my ideas of my religion.  When I moved to New York City I was lucky to find a similar atmosphere when I joined the congregation of St. Malachy's otherwise known as "The Actor's Chapel".  Again, a community of people who believed in a liberal form of catholicism that encouraged love and acceptance.

However, when we moved out to Long Island we found that the Rockville Center Diocese was a little less than liberal and each of the various congregations I was able to find out here never has felt like home.  Although Father Kelly (the priest who baptised our daughter Sarah at St. Malachy's) also serves the community of Rocky Point, its a bit of a haul.  And its really sad because I have a Catholic church that is literally a baseball's throw (and for any of you that remember me from my Ansbach High School days, you'll remember that I had a pretty good arm as a center fielder so I can throw - I just couldn't hit worth beans, it was long before I realized I needed glasses, not that it would have likely made a difference, but I'm getting off task again aren't I?) from my front yard.  Yes, we go as a family on Christmas Eve and Easter but on a persoanl level I like to go to feel a connection with something bigger than myself but I never feel like the church is "Home".

So I have come to the conclusion that I am Spiritual but I'm not Religious.  I believe in ALMOST all of the precepts of Catholicism but I can't bring myself to doom people to an afterlife of purgatory becuase they love someone the church tells them they shouldn't.  Nor can I bring myself to condemn women for decisions they make with their own bodies or damn people that take precautions (whether married or unmarried) to ensure that women don't have to make those decisions in the first place.  If I blindly followed all the precepts of the church I wouldn't have my three incredibly bright, beautiful and intelligent children who were conceived with the aid of science - a science the church officially does not condone.

I'm reminded of the advice given to me by John who was one of my sponsors as I went through the catechumen process.  John had been educated at The University of Notre Dame and was one of the most religious adult catholics I knew (aside from my parents).  He and his wife Mary would almost never work on Sunday mornings unless they had gone to mass the night before.  Anyway, I voiced my concerns to John about a month before I was to be baptised and he shared with me advice that a Priest at Notre Dame had given him when he voiced similar concerns, "The Pope is the leader of the church but he is still human and he has to guide millions of people from hundreds of cultures and thousands of backgrounds.  All he can do is to give general guidance for the whole church.  The most important thing to do is to listen to that small quiet voice inside of you that will guide you to what is right and what is wrong.  If you listen to it and access it through your beliefs then everything will work out, its only when you no longer hear that small quiet voice that you need to worry."  It took me years to understand that accessing that small quiet voice is what we call prayer, honest true prayer not the bargaining with God prayer that is really just designed to get our butt out of a sling.  I try to do that on a daily basis, using prayer to ask for guidance, strength, wisdom, patience and occasionally to help me deal with the rest of the human race.

Yet sometimes that's not enough.  As my incredibly patient wife Amy (and now my children whom she encourages to poke fun at me) can attest, I have a variety of superstitions.  Many of them don't always work - my biggest being not washing my Dallas Cowboys jersey after they win a game until they lose one, needless to say my jersey has been incredibly clean this year - I may take to wearing all black instead every Sunday for all the good my jersey has done this year.

Of all my rituals perhaps some of my cycling rituals are the most laughable - at least from her standpoint.  I always put on my Lance Armstrong II cycling shoes on the same exact way - the right foot first becuase that's the one with the Texas flag.  I like my water bottles to match.  They don't have to be great ones, I just like them to match or I'll only use one.  And I have to wear my Madonna del Ghisallo medal.  One of the things that my spirituality gives me (you knew that whole preamble about religion had to somehow relate to cycling) is the belief that we can commune with the saints.  Many of the world religions believe in benevolent spirits of our ancestors that hear us and help us in times of need and many of them believe in the power of intercession with these spirits.  A large part of my spirituality truly believes that there are spirits amongst us that hear us and protect us from the stupid things we do in life.  I honestly believe there are guardian angels and others that divert really bad things from happening to us sometimes, at least to me.  I'm not sure why they keep saving my butt but I know beyond a doubt that they have on numerous occasions.

But back to the medal.  Who is the Madonna del Ghisallo?  She is the patron saint of cycling and I have a silver religious medal of her that I had blessed by a priest and I wear next to my crucifix every time I ride.  I had her with me the day of my accident on July 11th and I truly believe that without her I probably would have lost an arm or worse in that accident.

I always put her on around my neck when I get ready to go and she definitely saved my tail on numerous occasions, including TWICE today!  Once when I was in Huntington on my training ride and as I was riding "as far right as is practicable" on the side of the road past a long line of stopped cars when suddenly a car decided it needed to parallel park and turned right into my path.  Something in me allowed me to stop and he stopped his car and I rode on.

Then later, as I was almost home an elderly woman almost "t-boned" me as I was going through an intersection.  I guess she just decided she was faster than me (not to be confused with those who think they're cooler than me) and she was going to make that turn.  Fortunately I screamed loudly enough that it scared the bejeezus out of her (or maybe just soiled her Depends) and she stopped while I passed unscathed about two feet in front of her car.

And I owe it all to the medallion I wear around my neck, which looks like this;

I really believe (in my superstition addled mind) that it is becuase of this divine intervention that I have survived and stayed upright on my bicycle for as long as I have.  As I write this, I have logged a little over 2400 miles of riding this year and my goal is to get as close to 3600 as I can (the distance it would be if I could ever do my cross country ride for Sunrise).  With a little luck, health, and some more intercession, I may just make it!

And I will see you, my friends (and our blessed Madonna del Ghisallo), on the road!