Greenville

Spent the last 2 days in Greenville, SC. Been talking to folks, and learning about the new "surf & turf" that the two companies have become.

It's amazing how companies can develop 600 miles apart, and still make others welcome and have similar experiences. Trying to figure out "what group would you prefer to be in" has been extremely difficult for me. I'm not one to make decisions easily, and definitely not ones that are as "life impacting" as these. I've been praying about the possibility of change for a while now, but now it comes down to figuring out what God really wants for me. Part of me is worried about making choices and upsetting folks, and part of me is worried about making the "wrong choice". I think, though, that the worst choice would be "not making a choice".

I've had a chance to meet and talk with a bunch of very great people. I'm genuinely excited to think that I will continue to be part of an organization that is providing services folks use every day, and we are "outperforming" the competition. While Mike has stated that "we are the winner", once you see the group of people that are all making things happen, you can sit in your own little world and wonder about it.

After what I've seen... we are the winner. A group this talents and this dedicated to providing a top notch solution will not fail to meet it's goals.

Fostering...

This was an interesting week, before it started. On Saturday we went out, and ended up signing up to foster a dog from one of the rescue organizations here in Orlando for a week. The intention was to make sure that the dog would acclimate properly to the environment and adopt, but by Sunday night we already had doubts that we were ready for the level of commitment and responsibility that it was going to entail.

The dog's name was "Dakota", and we ended up sending her back this morning to be with the shelter. She was a Shetland Sheepdog "mix", we think with a Japanese Shiba, and was an amazing animal. She had been rescued from a Georgia kill shelter, but she was young. It's amazing that a 5 month old animal would be put down, and couldn't get adopted. She was energetic and definitely adopted us as at least playmates for the little bit of time that we took care of her. For example - she didn't get taken on walks, she took you for runs. Her whole body would wag when she was excited, like when you got home...

We just didn't have the space she needed, and the kids weren't ready for the level of commitment it was going to take. They are used to a cat, and ours is the kind that you can do almost to and she doesn't go bananas to you. The kids are in many ways "spoiled" by that, and I think that Christy and I are as well. She was also a puppy, and even house-broken puppies need a lot of attention and a level of care that is "above and beyond" that an older dog needs or wants. Just to top it off, she was rescued from a kill shelter. I think given enough time, effort, commitment and love, she would have been incredible. Love alone just wouldn't have been enough.

I know that we will look at the "fostering/adopting" process again in the future, but right now I don't think I could. She's only been back at the rescue since around lunchtime, and I already miss her. I missed her before we took her back, but I also knew that it was definitely for the best that she went back. I know she'll make an amazing pet for someone, and someone will love her as much as we do and provide her the things we can. It doesn't mean that I won't miss the time that we had.

MLB vs Slingbox?

Okay, for the record I think that Major League Baseball jumped the shark a long time ago. This has to be a crowning achievement for them, though. To think, just because someone is watching a game that they didn't pay for on their subscription service (MLB.tv), they want to sue the people that make it possible.

Maybe they should sue Brighthouse or Comcast next. I mean, they are broadcasting the games into people's homes via a cable instead of over the airwaves! How many more people can Major League Baseball disenfranchise and drive away from their revenue stream?