Gabriel, a Kava proposal, and the Vikings stink again

Gabriel is running around the house with one of the old-school 35-mm cameras that we no longer use. Gabriel's photography subject is Heather. He pretends to take a picture, and tells his mom, "Say 'queso!' “as the camera flashes. Not bad for a two-year old, eh? Gabriel really is an entertainer. I will write about more of his antics when I get a chance.

Right now, I am working on the second of three papers that are a continuing series for my critical thinking class. I am examining the issues that would be required for my employer to establish a presence on the island of Kava. Each week, I take the examination to a deeper level. This week, I need to explain the decision-making model that will be used. Basically, the proposal involves a four-way joint venture between a gaming manufacturer, an entertainment company (such as Harrah's or Trump Entertainment), a cruise line like Carnival, and an airline (though I did not select an airline). There are three big issues, in my opinion. The biggest problem deals with a population that is 50 percent indigenous tribe members, and also the Muslims in significant numbers on the island. The second issue is the idea of having four companies in a joint venture, and actually managing to turn a profit. The third big issue is the idea of actually bringing tourists to an island that is 4,000 miles from a mainland nation, be it America or South America. That is, the island proposal seeks to develop a venture 4,000 miles from any large and modern land population. Pretty boring topic, isn’t it?

I see the Vikings are losing again. I have not bothered to climb on the Vikings bandwagon. I had a bit of hopefulness when the Vikings spanked the Cowboys in their preseason face-off. The Cowgirls were not using their marquee talent in that game, and the Vikings WERE using the best they had to offer. After that Vikings win, the wheels came off the bandwagon before it even got draft horses up to speed. Adrian Peterson is carrying the team, but not even he can win games all by himself. The Vikings are just terrible. Their defense is great, but the offense is so weak, the Springfield Tigers JV football team could beat 'em. The Vikings have several problems, not the least of which is the lousy offense and the lack of a talented quarterback. These guys just have no heart, and I really think that Brad Childress does not have a clear vision of where this team should be heading with his recruiting picks. I will give him kudos for Adrian Peterson, though... he is the one shining star on the Vikings team.

I predict that the Vikings will end the season with a 5 and 11 record, if they are very fortunate. The Vikings will finish in last place in the NFC North.

I need to get back to work on that business proposal, so I can do something besides working on assignments while there is time to do something else this weekend. I will post pictures of Jericho and Gabriel as soon as I can, in the next day or two. Thanks for reading.

Random Events of the Past Two Weeks

The last two weeks have been really busy. I spent the week of Labor Day in Grand Portage (working there, but stuck in a hotel in Grand Marais). The highlight of the week was the big storm that Thursday night, since the hotel was so close to the water of Lake Superior, only about fifty feet from the shoreline. There were some big waves and it was pretty interesting to watch the storm from that close perspective. We were installing a couple of new systems, and so I spent the whole week on the road. That is unusual lately, but it does happen from time to time. I missed seeing my family and coming home was as sweet as ever.

Last weekend was my parent’s 50th wedding anniversary and reception. Their anniversary was on the 7th, but we had a reception for them on the 9th. The reception was planned and coordinated by the adult kids, especially the oldest couple of my siblings. It went over really well, I think, with what I would guess were 200 to 300 people in attendance on Sunday. My assigned task was to take pictures of the guests. I walked around with my camera and took around 400 pictures. I ended up with about 300 photos of the guests, some candids, and a few posed pictures of the entire family and the individual family members of some of my sisters and brothers. The reason I take the pictures? I prefer to be on THAT side of the camera! In any case, I started with about 400 pictures, but ended with about 300 photos, after I dumped the pictures that I didn’t think lived up to what makes a picture noteworthy. My niece, Christina, plans to create a scrapbook for Mom and Dad using the pictures, in remembrance of that day. Guess I better get my behind in gear editing the photos and sending them on to my niece on a CD.

We actually traveled to see Mom and Dad on Saturday. We got together for a pizza buffet Saturday evening, with many family members. We stayed with my younger sister and her family (as we almost always do on holidays and for family events). Gabriel gets such a kick out of Deb’s kids, Matthew and Emily. We stayed at their home through Monday, and then I worked at the local casino before heading back home. I always look forward to the family gatherings, and this was no exception. My sisters, Sharon and Kathy, made it home from the Saint Louis metro for the reception. We don't get to see them often, so that was nice.

This week was busy. I started back in school again after taking two months off, for the birth of Jericho, and also because of traveling and training for work in Las Vegas and elsewhere. The class deals with critical thinking, and personally, I think it is a euphorian topic. Look up ‘Garage Logic’ on KSTP radio or http://www.am1500.com/gl/index.shtml , if you don't know what that means. After all, there are really no wrong answers in a class such as this one. I prefer a class that has absolute answers that can be measured, as opposed to the ‘feel good’ atmosphere of a class where the correct answers are based on your personal perspectives. When you think about a topic, whatever you do to consider all the pros and cons constitutes critical thinking. I still have about a year and a half of classes before I finish the bachelor’s program in Business. I am looking forward to that time, but I don't want to wish my life away. I will just take it one day at a time and we will see what comes next, very likely the master’s program. I figure that I will continue with my studies until I am satisfied. That may mean that I never quit school again… wait and see, I guess.