I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: ‘If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?’ And whenever the answer has been ‘No’ for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something. Steve Jobs Every 6 or 9 or 12 months, my office puts on a User Conference. It’s a chance for our customers to get together and learn about our software. Not only new features, but how to better use the existing features and functions. This past week was the first time we did an entire week… Had…

There’s no fear like losing your dog. Second to that is seeing someone else lose their dog. As I turned off Santa Fe on my drive home from work today, around the corner comes a dog that I swear could have been Spike.  He was running as dogs run and mostly sticking to the sidewalk.  Not too far behind him was a boy.  What struck me most was I could clearly see his face.  Fear has big eyes, and his certainly were huge.  No tears, just eyes that could swallow one whole. The dog was loose and running towards one of the busiest streets with cars traveling over the 55…

Strong women need not declare they can carry all the burdens in life. They just quietly do it and survive with a smile. Princess Maleiha Bajunid Candao My Gram was a strong woman. I probably always knew this but recently I realized this more than ever. Never once do I remember her getting angry, or upset, or even annoyed. She was always matter fact… not unemotional or uncaring. She lived through a lot and never complained. She was always there, ready to understand, to give a helping hand or needed hug. She was my Gram. I can say the same for all my grandparents. They all had different styles, but…

Child, child, have patience and belief, for life is many days, and each present hour will pass away Thomas Wolfe My Gran, Granddad, and Uncle Ian built this place. A simple cabin in the woods. It’s up at Vallecito Lake in Colorado. It was always a treat to go up and spend a few days. It was just the perfect place. Uncle Ian’s room was downstairs, filled with many of his hunting trophies. Even after he died that room did not change. It was his room. Upstairs was the kids room with twin beds and an old army cot for me. I was the youngest, and the only boy, so…

It is our choices… that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities. J.K. Rowling I have a co-worker that works out of state. He comes back to Denver about once per month. I always try to send him home with some origami for the kids, Sydney and Alex. This trip, Sydney was lucky enough to travel with him, and I finally got to meet her. When she came into my office she noticed my pile of origami… I made her a deal: Pick your favorite. She chose my elephant. It’s quite a large origami, about 8 inches tall. I folded it out of thick heavy cardboard. It…

Is there such a thing as an over filtered photo? Perhaps. I am one of those that take pictures with my iPhone and think somehow they are the greatest. Photography was one of my best classes back in high school. Times change. With instant sharing it’s almost too easy. You don’t have to wait around to see your success, or failure. No more sending film off, to wait a week only to find out you really do suck at this. In high school, we got to develop our own. You learned to suck a little bit less, just because you were more part of the process. At least I did.…

Since I cannot redesign my life as easily, I fiddle with this site. Yet another redesign think… Move away from what it is and totally transform it. The site is rather static, and while I have enjoyed the designs over the years, it’s just… I don’t know, too not me. Looking back, it’s all about the form and not the content. Need to stop that. To that end, content and form. I need to focus on content, and strip the form. So here it goes. Take a look, and let me know what you think.

I’m on a quest to fold 1,000 cranes but it’s not the legend that’s driving the cause. Although I don’t think it will hurt. I met John Mandes shortly after I moved to Denver. It was more like he met me in all honesty. Introduced by my sister no less. John struck up a conversation with her after she had stopped by my place. I think John saw it as his “in.” Looking back, it was odd because he was never shy about saying hello to anyone. I never gave much thought at that first hello but we became quite good friends. I have to share somethings about John. John…

A few weeks or so ago my Mother broke her hip. She fell out of bed ending up head down, feet up, doing all kinds of unnatural splits. Brave woman. She had the sense to get up, recognize something wasn’t quite right, ignore the blood dripping from her ear where she smacked it, and pick up the phone to call my Father. He was out on his morning walk and just getting back home. An Ambulance was called for, no lights or sirens but still. No one needs to start their day that way. As my Mom said later, she got to meet 5 really hunky men and take them…