OK, the XM 70's radio channel is creating quite the debate lately. A few weeks back it had me discussing with my daughter the 5 best slow dance songs. Friday night, my 16 year old daughter was ridiculing the station from the back seat. And in the course of an hour, we heard five of the 15 worst songs of the 70's. (Too many to limit to 10)
15. You Light Up My Life - Debbie Boone
14. Candy Man - Sammy Davis , Jr.
13. Seasons in the Sun - Terry Jacks
12. The Night Chicago Died - Paper Lace
11. Bad Blood - Neil Sedaka and Elton John
IN THE ACTORS SHOULDN'T SING CATEGORY
10. Don't Give Up On Us Baby - David Soul
9. Let Her In - John Travolta
8. Kung Fu Fighting - Carl Douglass
7. Having My Baby - Paul Anka
6. Muskrat Love - Captain and Tennille
5. MacArthur Park - Donna Summer
THE WORST OF THE WORST
4. Convoy - CW McCall
3. Float On - Floaters
2. Billy Don't Be a Hero - Bo Donaldson and the Haywoods
1. Disco Duck - Reek Dees
February 20, 2011
February 9, 2011
Straight from My Rabbi
One of the great things in life is making new friends. Not the kind of Facebook click and accept friends, but real sit down over a meal and share friends. I hate that I don't get to see one of my old friends much anymore. Dan Nussbaum and I met several years ago. We are not necessarily what you would call a perfect match for being friends. Dan is from the academic world. My life has seemed to run and hide from all things academic. In other words don’t ask me about my SAT score! Dan is an ordained Rabbi and I grew up Southern Baptist. Dan’s life has been cemented in the culture of the Northeast and mine as a true Southern boy from the Carolinas. I tried to convert him to the joys of sweet tea and grits!
Our paths crossed in YMCA circles. Our friendship was planted in a soil of discussion around leadership and relationships. Our friendship soon grew among the fertilizer of discussion around Abraham, Isaac, and Moses. I once told him that I envied the Jewish faith with such beautiful customs that bring the family together within the household to worship. But my Rabbi soon counseled me that he envied the Christian Church and the sense of community within the church. “The grass is always greener,” he laughed.
One day when things were not going as planned and life seemed to throw me that curve ball away in the dirt, and of course I swung, Dan said, “Let me tell you a Midrash.” “A Midrash,” I replied? “Isn’t that something that I need to get a prescription for?” Dan just laughed. So my Rabbi taught me a new word. A Midrash is a story that contains extra material of anecdotal or allegorical nature, designed either to clarify historical material, or to teach a moral point.
When he told me the story I thought of all the times I could have used it with our staff and volunteers. Luckily our Y leaders didn’t give up when they were told that they couldn’t start a Y in Shelby. Or when we started the branch in Kings Mountain, people again questioned why. They laughed at us when we tried to raise $6.8 million dollars but we did that too!
Now it’s time to do it again. More money needs to be raised. New buildings need to be built, new programs created and more lives need to be changed. The naysayers will soon come out to slow us down, but I will call on my Rabbi to share his Midrash.
“A group of workers is asked to do something quite difficult and complicated. They protest, ‘the day is short’; ‘the work is hard’; ‘the project is too big’; ‘we do not have the right tools’; ‘and, anyway, we are too tired’; ‘we will never finish this job!’ Their teacher replies, ‘it is not for you to finish the task, but…you must start the task.”
We will never solve the problems of tomorrow unless we start on them today. Are you ready? I am, and that is your Midrash for the day. Straight from the Rabbi!
God Bless and Shalom!
Our paths crossed in YMCA circles. Our friendship was planted in a soil of discussion around leadership and relationships. Our friendship soon grew among the fertilizer of discussion around Abraham, Isaac, and Moses. I once told him that I envied the Jewish faith with such beautiful customs that bring the family together within the household to worship. But my Rabbi soon counseled me that he envied the Christian Church and the sense of community within the church. “The grass is always greener,” he laughed.
One day when things were not going as planned and life seemed to throw me that curve ball away in the dirt, and of course I swung, Dan said, “Let me tell you a Midrash.” “A Midrash,” I replied? “Isn’t that something that I need to get a prescription for?” Dan just laughed. So my Rabbi taught me a new word. A Midrash is a story that contains extra material of anecdotal or allegorical nature, designed either to clarify historical material, or to teach a moral point.
When he told me the story I thought of all the times I could have used it with our staff and volunteers. Luckily our Y leaders didn’t give up when they were told that they couldn’t start a Y in Shelby. Or when we started the branch in Kings Mountain, people again questioned why. They laughed at us when we tried to raise $6.8 million dollars but we did that too!
Now it’s time to do it again. More money needs to be raised. New buildings need to be built, new programs created and more lives need to be changed. The naysayers will soon come out to slow us down, but I will call on my Rabbi to share his Midrash.
“A group of workers is asked to do something quite difficult and complicated. They protest, ‘the day is short’; ‘the work is hard’; ‘the project is too big’; ‘we do not have the right tools’; ‘and, anyway, we are too tired’; ‘we will never finish this job!’ Their teacher replies, ‘it is not for you to finish the task, but…you must start the task.”
We will never solve the problems of tomorrow unless we start on them today. Are you ready? I am, and that is your Midrash for the day. Straight from the Rabbi!
God Bless and Shalom!
January 25, 2011
Smile, People are Watching
I will not go down any of those paths. I just want to say that Jay Cutler is his own worst enemy.
If you are a supervisor of staff for any significant period of time, you will have a Jay Cutler on your team. That is someone who is very talented, above average performer, probably opinionated about a wide variety of issues and also somewhat likeable by their peers. Yet they give off no warm fuzzies. They don't speak or engage with peers, supervisors, vendors, members or associates. Their body language screams, "I DO NOT WANT TO BE HERE!"
How do you supervise that? They perform and produce results but on the flip side they generate no excitement or loyalty. Everyone around them visibly cringes from their negative energy.
They will tell you in a coaching session, "Hey, I moved you from point A to B just like you asked." "My interceptions are down and touchdowns up." "I have won more this year than last year."
But I will challenge you that the issue is bigger than that. The Jay Cutler's of the world can hold you hostage. They can keep you in a false sense of success. In actuality they only will keep you mired in the muck of mediocrity.
I am not saying that we all need to walk around high fiving everyone or being "Miss Mary Sunshine." What I am saying is that you need to throw off some positive energy. If that is not in your DNA then you need to take up golf or tennis. You need to find the job that allows you to work from home. You need to find a job that doesn't require your skills to blend with others on the team.
Jay, next time your hurt, either go to the lockerroom and watch from the training room or pick up a headset or clipboard and help the next guy. Become a coach or a cheer leader.
Somebody tell the poor guy to smile everyonce in awhile. Smile Jay, smile!
January 17, 2011
Play Another Slow Jam
This weekend I spent a long time in the car and the XM radio got locked into 70's music. I was tapping the steering wheel to Steve Miller, The Allmon Brothers, Jim Morrison and the Doobie Brothers when all of a sudden Heatwave's Always and Forever came on. I told the kids to be quiet that this song was in my all time top 5 slow dance songs!!! And that led to a long discussion, laughter and this list.
Cam Corder's Top 5 Slow Dance Songs
#5. Too Hot - Kool and the Gang
#4. Commodores - Three Times A Lady
#3. Always and Forever - Heatwave (Luther Vandross re-made it!)
#2. Back at One - Brian McKnight
#1. Let's Get it On - Marvin Gaye
Time to re-sync the ipod, and I miss Luther!!
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