I Should . . .

Well it is autumn--best season of the year. Where the last of the harvest arrives and the colors change and thoughts turn to piles of leaves, stews, fires, jazz and red wine. Oh and all the $#%@# I have to get done. I have one day left of this weekend, here are all the things I should do.

• Harvest those last big basil plants, clean, dry and freeze pack it with parsley and oil for winter pesto.
• Move two smaller trees from backyard to front in place of the two saplings the deer have already eaten.
• Stake all (then) four smaller trees and net them to protect from the stupid deer (perhaps venison stew?).
• Change the header on this blog--I mean, c'mon it is really not summer now is it?
• Post something, anything, over on the family blog.
• Listen to that pile of new discs that just arrived--perhaps while getting the pile of uncased discs people have given me organized into cases with some art work.
• Mow the lawn (yeah, right).
• Continue to work on list of minor home repairs that need done--Spackle, touch up paint, order new front door hardware, etc.
• Call a variety of people back--all about the various upcoming visits that are scheduled.
• Try to ignore work.
• Review field assignments from The Engineer's baseball game yesterday (he and they rocked!) and put new assignments together for next two games.
• Watch final Tigers game of the season.
• Attend first play of the season at Imagination Stage with the family (pretty sure that will get done).
• Figure out a bit more about what Neats and I are going to do in Maine for our upcoming little get away (besides sleep).
• Oh, and of course obsess about the future!

Phew--better get another cup of coffee.

Theory vs. Practice

When I used to teach college courses--so long ago now it seems hard to remember when--I used to pride myself on facilitating really well-structured and productive group projects. Specifically, in the capstone course I taught on business and organizational communications, I helped students get over their loathing of the group project and see the strengths of collaborative work, not to mention the need for those skills in most workplaces. By the time I was done I had working strategies for all the personalities:

• The Neurotic type-A control freak who blamed everyone else for not working as hard or as well as him or her.
• The character-disorder-slacker who just blamed everyone else, but didn't do anything.
• The "delegater" who seemed to be engaged, but was really just about getting everyone else to do the work.
• The mouse who had many (good) ideas, but only did minutiae handed to him or her and never took a leadership role (and often ended up writing the final report).
• The blow-hard who had lots of (bad) ideas, but didn't have any ability to discern the good from the bad, but who cared at least he (usually he) got to hear himself speak.
• And even the well-balanced, smart collaborative types who helped everyone be better but had not idea they had that skill.

And so I now find it ironic to be in a group-type setting that is just about as dysfunctional as many a student group and, even worse, recognizing that I am playing a leading role! The real problem is that time has become an enemy and unlike a class where the learning process is just as important as the product, here it is all about the product.

Alas, I am left dreaming about the next time--no, no, let there never be another next time! But there will be. Consequently, I have been returning to my teaching days and trying to remember all the things I tried to help my students learn.

• The need for clear expectations up front for all group members. An agreement as to what happens when those expectations are not met.
• A recognition that there is more than one way to get to the end and that everyone has different skills in helping get there (but that it is also important to diversify those skills in the long run--it isn't all about the short run).
• That groups more often fail because of the interplay of personalities than because of the failure of an individual and so ongoing group and individual assessment are both critical.
• That groups can fail because of individuals and there needs to be a mechanism to let the group go on without the individual and not be penalized for that (the group that is).
• And ultimately, that failure and success are always both real possibilities and there is an ethical obligation for all to work toward success even if you aren't ultimately as successful as all wanted to be.

But for now, we press forward also knowing that you can get to the end even in a dysfunctional system--it just isn't fun (for everyone) despite the fact that it happens more often than not. Hence, the loathing of group projects and three-quarters of the books in the business management section at the local bookstore.

All of which is to say pity me forgive me if the music and more thoughtful (or at least semi-thoughtful) posting is thin and infrequent for the next month or so. I hope to be getting to a bunch of music and other stuff, but if not, please understand that you would really rather not know what I am thinking, because it might involve you being listed as an accessory in some official proceeding.

For the Record: I Am Out Shoveling

Lest anyone think I have been slacking in my blog maintenance--particularly those of you who might be thinking that the whole Washington, DC metro area has been shut down for snow so what else does a guy have to do other than write blog posts--let me set the record straight. Since I managed to arrive home from an insane trip to California an hour before the snow started, life has basically been about one thing: shoveling.

It started late Friday afternoon with the idea that I would shovel early and often to stay ahead and so I shoveled off the first wet inch of snow. I followed up with a little post-dinner shoveling which was followed by plopping on the couch exhausted from only 10 hours of sleep in 48 hours (4 in a plane seat) ready to listen to some music and chill. That was interrupted by some fine neighbors who thought they could drive their little sports car up the hills in our neighborhood and me donning my gear and going out to dig them out, er, back into their driveway. While I was out there, decided to shovel again.

Went to bed mistakenly feeling ahead of the game. Arose to find trees down, snow coming down in buckets and fresh foot of wet, heavy snow on the recently shoveled areas--and everywhere else. Out we went for a couple hours of shoveling and tree maintenance. Here I decided it is better to take a break given that it is going to be a long day--probably a mistake given how much snow came down during that break, but then again I am alive!

Back out for another few or five hours to reach the end of the driveway, dig a pathway around the back of the house to the side gate, clear more trees--looks like we lost at least two--and watch the boys try to walk around in three feet of freshly fallen snow. Arrive back in the house late afternoon to rest bones and eat good food--but that is a whole other post. Then sleep the sleep of the dead.

Next day--it is only Sunday at this point, but feels like a month has past--we get the big sun! We also get the report that our little neck of the woods had 40 inches! Oh my achin' bones. Head out to dig out the cars and shovel all the periphery snow around them (sounds simple, but when you are dealing with this much snow, figure another couple hours of shoveling). Get to watch the boys frolic in the snow and create trail system throughout the yard. Back in for more good food and reports that another major snow storm is on the way. You. Have. Got. To. Be. Joking!

Next morning everything, and I mean everything, is closed. Finally see a snow plow mid-Monday morning which means it is time to go out and shovel all the snow just deposited at the end of the driveway. Shoulders and back are now about to completely rebel and stage a coup to take over control of my body and force all other parts to accept their terms and conditions--laying down, anywhere, for a long time. Brain takes back over thinking about next storm.

Head out to the store to restock food and other supplies and upon return realize the roof really needs attention or that snow is going to be in our bedroom. Up on the ladder, on the roof, another couple hours of shoveling off the roof (just to make a dent) and clearing the eaves which are backing up with ice. Head back in for more good food--really, I need to write a post about that. Check the wires and nets--everything closed again on Tuesday because next storm set to begin midday.

Today--finally--get up and finally have some time to do a little work, but then back out for a few more hours of roof and eave maintenance--easily an inch and a half of ice build up under the snow pack on the roof. Get back in clean up and begin to--yes, cook more good food--and the snow begins. Just got back in from taking off the first three inches and probably need to go back out before sleep as the projections are for another 12-20 inches of snow by tomorrow night.

So good people, know that it is all my weary bones can do to type this post. Okay, there was also a bunch of fun family cabin fever activity including the cooking that I might get to between shoveling shifts tomorrow. And for those who do not believe, I provide you with some photos taken this weekend from the family blog.