Book Sales Are Dangerous

Stack of BooksOur library has a book sale annually where they weed out their own collection as well as receive hundreds of donations from generous library users and other friends of the library. It goes on for quite a while after the official sale portion. The starting price is $1.00 for a hardcover book and $0.50 for a paperback. A very enticing price for a book lover, to be sure.

But the most dangerous time on our library’s book sale is about one week after the sale starts, they lower the price to $2/bag of books. And that’s when they hook both Jen and me. We can’t resist! And even our kids are getting into it now! Emma (our two-year-old daughter) and I were out on an “OK Night” (One-Kid Night) tonight and we stopped to have a look at the sale and came away with many more treasures filling another bag of books! (Many of which she picked out!)

I say another because well… we just got five bags last weekend!

You can’t beat a good book sale—nor can we resist it, apparently—but there quickly arises the issue of where to store all these books once you bring them home…

Time for more bookshelves!


If you’re a book lover, too, there are still hundreds of books left to browse! Come have a look.

Library Books App for the Mac

Library Books App for the MacI have a quick software recommendation for you today. And, if you’re like me and love taking advantage of the great resource that is your public (and/or private) library system, you will really like this free application for the Mac!

It’s called Library Books App. It allows you to track all of the books you have currently checked out (on as many accounts as you might have, which can be a lot for bigger families!) and even better, it lets you very easily, through the app itself, renew books and place holds for new ones (also monitoring when holds are available).

Integration with iCal is one handy feature, among many other great features. There are hundreds of library systems built in, and they are always adding more. The app adds a tiny icon in your menu bar and will tell you how many books you have checked out, when it’s time to return books, and when you have holds to pick up!

We use this application every day. One of the best free apps for the Mac (for avid readers) and we in the Campbell home highly recommend!

www.librarybooksapp.com/

(PS… I was not paid to say all of this. We just love it!) 🙂

An Open Letter to One Bills Drive

To Whom It May Concern,

I am writing to you today on behalf of Bills fans everywhere. I feel both compelled and qualified to speak as a representative of this great collection of people scattered across the globe. First I am compelled by great frustration with what has now seemingly become the tradition of losing and mediocrity that surrounds and defines this once proud organization. The length of time that those under the Buffalo Bills’ banner have wallowed in this squaller of ineptitude, and a general mentality of losing has long since become too much for loyal fans to bear. Second, my qualification is simply that I have not met many other fans of any team quite as optimistically devoted to their home town team. (Though, admittedly, there are a good percentage more amongst Bills fans than any other team’s following.)

What is so perplexing to me is this annual routine that we seem to be mired in, which (understandably) produces the same results. First, following another below average (to downright dismal) season, we dip into the free agent market, but only manage to pull out a few lesser-known players whom you might designate “role players” on a team that already has its building blocks and stars. Then, as the draft approaches and all the professionals and amateurs discuss their various mock drafts, excitement builds for the possibility of landing even half of these future greats. Only, excitement wanes as the first pick is announced… then the second… then the third. And the draft comes and goes with questions like, “Why didn’t they trade up to get [insert great prospect name here],” or, “Who are these guys???”

Now, to be fair, there have been some gems in the past decade of drafts. (And some remain to be seen of course, since you really can’t fairly assess the success of players drafted until a few years into their professional career.) But overall, we still do not make a so-called “big splash” in free agency or the draft.

(Save the Terrell Owens experiment, of course. That was slightly out of character for our Buffalo Bills, and sadly, did not work out as hoped due to the previous methods for building the foundation of the team.)

And once the mediocre team is in place, Bills fans begin to see all the “up sides” of their new players. Certainly there are good things about each of these players, and they should be noticed. However, somewhere early in the regular seasons, our improperly inflated hopes surrounding these players that (rightfully) no one else in the NFL has heard of are quickly deflated … leaving us again in nearly utter sports-fan despair.

So this is my proposal. Please grab a pen and paper. (Or a laptop, or other note-taking device.) I will only say this once, so you must listen closely. And it can be completely trusted due to my impeccable record as a GM for two separate Buffalo Bills franchises in Madden ’08.

🙂

FIRST MOVE: Start at the top.
First, you need “football guys” running the show. You already did this! Good work! Buddy Nix has been a scout and an assistant GM and seems to know his stuff about football players. Chan Gailey has only been a winner everywhere he goes (though he’s slightly “off the radar” in terms of name recognition) and his toughness and hard work ethic will rub off on these young guys, as I believe it already is doing. So, nice job.

SECOND MOVE: Build the Foundations
The previous administration had begun doing some of this with the drafting of two rookie offensive linemen last year, but it is just not cutting it to have such inexperience in the most crucial part of the team. A great offensive line can make anyone a great running back, and even make an average QB look great. Right now we have a very poor (and porous) offensive line, and they are making our offensive play makers look, well… offensive.

Wood and Levitre may indeed be the answer on the interior of the line eventually, and I have no complaints about the center, Geoff Hangartner. But the cornerstones of an offensive line are its ends. Left and right tackle. You signed a RT in the offseason, Cornell Green, but I’m not seeing him as a brick wall, or a “House” (whom we Bills fans grew accustomed to seeing as a fixture during the 1990s in Howard “House” Ballard).

There are options. Bell may end up being a fantastic athlete and a great tackle. Why not move him to right tackle and make a trade for San Diego’s disgruntled LT, Marcus McNeill? McNeill was a Pro Bowl player last year, and is currently holding out. My proposal is that we trade Marshawn Lynch and either a draft pick or one of our generic wide receivers for Marcus McNeill, and immediately improve our offensive line.

Then, we need to deal another decent player for a first round draft pick in 2011 (so we have at least two 1st round picks) and grab a high-profile tackle in next year’s draft. The foundational piece of the offense is the line, and ours has way too many cracks and holes that need immediate attention.

On the defense, while all of our players have heart, it’s not clear that they have enough talent. Nearly every team that dictates play on defense has a play maker on the defensive line. If there is an option right now for a trade, make it. If not, then trade Chris Kelsay for as high a draft pick as possible. Then in 2011 or 2012 draft a play maker defensive end. Such as Mario Williams is becoming for the Houston Texans. (#1 overall pick a few years back.)

THIRD MOVE: Get Your Play Makers
Once the foundation is in place, then you add your stars. I believe that one was added this year in C. J. Spiller. That kid looks great. (Of course, no one can see how great he is, thanks to the defense being in the backfield with him when he gets the ball. See above.) And, Fred Jackson has proven to be quite a productive player as well. Nice job.

However, one position that once seemed a strength (if only due to the sheer number of roster spots taken by these players) is now currently a great liability. It is my belief that the Buffalo Bills have not only need for a #2 wide receiver, but also a #1 wide receiver. While I think that Lee Evans has incredible hands, and is equally incredibly fast, he can not dominate a game. He simply can not. He has had chances, and has never done it. Good teams have at least two threats, and we really have none. (Again, part of the blame must go to the lack of an offensive line—not giving Evans enough time to get open.) I’m not even sure that Evans is a good route runner. When there is any time for our QB to throw, the receivers are not open!

So starting right now, decide who you think are the top two game-breaking WRs in the game (pro or college level) and go get them. Spare no expense. Trade Lee Evans for a high draft pick if it’s a college player you want. Move Roscoe Parrish. Trade Brian Moorman if you think it will help! Great, game-changing WRs can make an offense unstoppable. And they need to be at least in pairs. Steve Johnson, David Nelson, and Donald Jones are all just fine. But that’s all they are. Fine. We need game breakers.

Then, I am sure you have noticed that other teams have game changers at the tight end position, right? How about last game’s performance by Jermichael Finley? Yes, you’re right. That was really good! Most good-to-great teams have a large, physical, fast, pass-catching TE who can change the game. Keep the chains moving, and put points on the board (to use a few football cliches…) Trade any or all of our current tight ends for one game-changing tight end. Throw in a few hundred chicken wings to sweeten the deal.

And lastly, quarterback.

I am actually a supporter of Trent Edwards. He is the best option on the roster currently, and he actually does (by my estimation) possess all the physical and mental skills of a good to even great quarterback in the NFL. He can make every throw. He is accurate. He has the strong arm. He is intelligent, and knows and understands football. He can even (most times) read defenses and make the right call.

Sadly… he is not he answer.

I have seen it all through the off-season, and during these past two regular season games. He does not want to win. The one piece he is missing is an intangible, that all great QBs have. The competitive drive/fire to win. Just win. No matter what it takes, and don’t ever settle for less. Anything less is a complete failure. (Granted, there will be clashes between two great teams where one team wins and one loses… and that can still be the bitter/sour taste of a loss, but the reality is that one team does lose.) The problem with Trent is that he is too accustomed to losing (through his entire life of playing football) and it doesn’t seem to bother him. At least, not as much as it should.

So, there must be a shake-up, and it should come from the draft. One of the two (or more) first round picks we have and/or acquire via trade need to be used on a big-name QB, who has always won. Don’t get cute, just do what it takes to land the guy who will want to win, and has the talent to make it happen. The next Peyton Manning is out there. Find him. And get him. At any cost.

The 2011 draft is said to be a quarterback-rich draft. Study them, and with no preconceived limitations, decide who is the best and get him. No exceptions.

FOURTH MOVE: Add depth
Honestly, there will be some depth when the above moves are made and some of the current players take their rightful place as “role players” and roster depth. Aside from running back and defensive back, there are no stars on this team. (Poz may be, but we can’t ever know because he’s always getting hurt. In fact, he should be on the list of potential trade fodder.)

Depth can be added via mid-to-late round draft choices and free agency. But the first three moves must be made first.

IN SUMMARY

  1. Make some moves! No one is untouchable. Build the foundation, and begin adding real play makers by trading players like Marshawn Lynch, Lee Evans, Chris Kelsay, Paul Posluszny, Roscoe Parrish… really anyone!
  2. Specifically, trade Marshawn Lynch and a draft pick (or a WR) to San Diego for LT Marcus McNeill (or if he’s not available, someone of a similar caliber)
  3. Stockpile draft picks by trading the above players—really anyone with any value—and then spend those draft picks on TWO game-breaker WRs, an all-star OT, and a QB that has a proven record of winning at all levels.
  4. Use later draft picks and free agency to keep adding depth and role players.

All of these steps can be made in a maximum of three seasons. It can likely be done in two seasons. So what is keeping you from doing it? Is it just that we loyal Bills fans keep buying tickets, despite the your apparent lack of commitment to excellence and a championship in Buffalo? Perhaps. And I’m not sure how to fix that, since we Bills fans are clearly loyal to a fault.

But for the sake of those loyal fans. For the sake of Ralph Wilson. For the sake of the great Bills teams of the past… make these moves!. Start this week. Use the tools at your disposal and build a great team starting now.

Then you, One Bills Drive, will make a name for yourself as the first to bring a championship to Western New York. Then the prestige that was once known by all associated with this team will once again return. Then there will no longer be a chuckle at the mention of our team or the sight of our charging Buffalo.

Then this team will once again be a proud representative of the most loyal fans in all of sports.

It’s within your power, within your reach.

Now get it done.

The Buffalo Bills’ Strategy

C.J. Spiller of the Buffalo Bills

I am a big Buffalo Bills fan. Yes, believe it or not, there are still some of us out here. Though I may be ridiculed, though I may see little reward for my undying loyalty and eternal optimism, yet to do persist.

Many have puzzled over the operational decisions of our team in the past decade or more. I think it started when then head coach Wade Phillips decided to start QB Rob Johnson instead of the city’s favorite quarterback, Doug Flutie, who had been a huge part of a mid-to-late-season surge to get the Bills to the playoffs. The fans were in an uproar, and the Bills did lose the game—although, of course, that’s debatable, since the win for Tennessee came by way of the infamous “Home Run Throwback” play in the “Music City Miracle” game… IT WAS A FORWARD PASS!!!! Ahem… Ironically, that was the last time the Bills made the playoffs.

More recent years have seen several wasted 1st round draft choices—Mike Williams and J. P. Losman being chief amongst the busts. A slightly below average, mundane (and disappointing in the end) coaching choice: Dick Jauron. (Of course that followed several mediocre choices the years prior who amounted to almost nothing.)

Another piece is that the Bills rarely make the moves that seem necessary to build a championship team. They do alright in the draft overall, but there remain large holes to be filled on the roster. There are very rarely any “big moves” in the offseason, or otherwise. Likely the biggest splash the Bills made in the decade of the 00s was signing free agent wide reciever Terrell Owens. (And, other than setting the Buffalo Bills record for longest TD catch, Owens did not really amount to much either.)

So what is this team’s plan?

After a fairly encouraging pre-season, where Bills fans saw their team actually moving the ball and scoring points (as well as glimmers of brilliance from a few good players on defense and special teams) we have once again been jolted back to reality by an offensive offensive performance in game one against the Dolphins last week: this team is not that good.

And it gets worse. Today the Bills will play in Green Bay (not an easy place to get a win!) and then the next four opponents are New England, New York Jets, Jacksonville, and Baltimore. Ouch.

There are some really encouraging signs, still, despite the high probability that our favorite team might go 0-6 to start this 2010 NFL season. (Again… ouch.)

Young players like Buffalo’s new favorite running back, C. J. Spiller, our defensive backfield including Terrence McGee, Jairus Byrd, Leodis McKelvin and even Donte Whitner… not to mention a few players who have been around and whom we already know are capable of big plays: Roscoe Parrish, Lee Evans, and Fred Jackson.

The biggest questions are still our offensive line (they are, in general, VERY young an inexperienced still), our defensive line, our wide receivers, our line backers, and our quarterback(s).

Wow. Guess we’re still at the beginning of this rebuild, eh?

If the offensive linemen actually do have the talent, then the Bills will be set for years to come. Three of the five starters have only 1 or 2 years of NFL experience. (And not full seasons, due to injuries.) I think they still need to bring in more talent, but if most or all of these guys develop, then they’ll be in good shape. The problem is, it’s still a very big unknown.

Defensive line, line backers, and wide receivers are all positions where the Bills just need to bring in more talent. They still don’t have a reliable #2 receiver. I’m not even sure they have a reliable, game-breaking #1 receiver. Lee Evans is very talented, but I’m not sure he’s a #1 guy. The line backers have potential, but are also unproven. The Bills did bring in a few veterans at this position in the off-season (and recently added Akin Ayodele due to Kawika Mitchell’s injury) but again, this unit does not strike fear in their opponent’s hearts just yet. The defensive line has heart, but they may be lacking in talent, and surely the team is lacking depth there.

That brings us to quarterback. Bills fans were outraged when the team decided to keep the three players from last year’s team who all failed to impress, given a good number of opportunities to do so. Why not get a free agent like Jake Delhomme? Why not trade for Mike Vick or Donovan McNabb? Why not draft a hot-shot rookie like Jimmy Claussen (who was available at the #9 pick this year…) I think the answer is that the Bills wanted to add talent and depth at other positions, and wait for the 2011 draft to grab their QB for the future. (Hoping against hope that one of the three guys they already have might flip some magic switch and be “the guy” before they have to start over again.)

Blame the QB (Trent Edwards) if you want, but QB is not the team’s biggest issue. Trent Edwards has talent, toughness, and football intelligence. He just lacks that intangible piece: the insatiable desire to win. More of the blame for poor QB play should be placed on the broad shoulders of his offensive line. They were awful in week one.

If the Bills can get their running game established this year, they’ll do alright. They have some play makers on defense and special teams. And if they get the other team on their heels with the running game’s success, then they can also have success in the passing game. Unfortunately, this team has way too many “ifs”.

Bills fans wonder “if” that will ever end.

The Bills strategy seems to be very long-term. The best we can hope for this season, fellow Bills fan, is that our team is competitive (technically, even in a dismal performance by the offense last week, they were competitive right to the end of the game) and that we sneak out a couple of wins en route to a high draft pick for the 2011 NFL Draft next April.

Till then… grab some pizza and wings… maybe some beef on weck… and…

Go Bills!

Book Review: The Age of the Unthinkable

The Age of the UnthinkableI just finished the book I began earlier this summer, The Age Of The Unthinkable. As I had mentioned earlier, the book presents a very intriguing look at the world as it currently is, partly due to the great amount of first-hand knowledge and experience that its author, Joshua Cooper Ramo, has with today’s world and some of its most influential people.

Story after story backs up a few central themes to his book: in this currently unstable and unpredictable world (politically, financially, culturally) one needs to be resilient, adaptive, and move towards a decentralized model of operating (be it politically, or in business) and always be aware of your environment—how everything is effected by and affects everything and everyone around it. Relationships are key, as is the power and responsibility of each individual.

What I found to be so intriguing were the success stories of companies and hospitals and other organizations entrusting individuals with more responsibility and ownership (and thus, retaining less centralized control over organizational structures). This goes against perhaps our natural instinct, and the current model of thinking. However, in many cases (and from my own experience) the more you spread out the power and ownership of an organization, the greater the innovation and production of that group of people. We are individuals, and our greatest desire is freedom… when we are granted that, we most often flourish. (And then, so does the organization we are aligned with.)

Ramo told of a doctor who trusted his illiterate, uneducated patients with a very complex treatment, and it worked. Where, the government had spent millions of dollars attempting to respond to another disease and, when those same people were treated as numbers rather than individuals, the treatments were abandoned and the people died. Given respect and choice and education, the people flourished. Given no choice and treated like parts of a machine, they perished.

There were so many great first-hand stories of successful adaptations to a rapidly changing world. It really was both encouraging and challenging. The book ends with the question, what will your part be in this world? Ramo puts forth the idea that another characteristic of this age is that we all have a role. I believe that’s true. We are all very interconnected and all have access to much more information and means of communicating and acting than ever before.

Definitely a well-written, intriguing book. I highly recommend.

What I’m Reading (and Watching)

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I have been reading a lot lately. As much as time allows. Before, after, and in between managing all of my website clients as well as six children and time with Jen… plus friends and family… it doesn’t seem to add up to much! But today, when I updated the list of what I’m reading, going to read, and have read… I can understand why I hardly can find time to post here!

In case you have missed it, I added a tab a few months ago in the top navigation of this website titled “Currently Reading/Watching”. When you click that it takes you to a separate website (which you can access directly by going to reading.gregshead.net) that displays all of the books I am reading, or want to read. It’s fairly extensive, but also fairly easy to navigate.

The little video above is a fun way to “show” you how to get there. (And how to navigate once you do go there).

The bonus part is, if you find any of those books interesting, and decide to purchase them from Amazon, I will receive a commission on anything you purchase (even other things you add to your cart from Amazon with the same order). So you find some good new books, and Amazon contributes to the GregsHead.net fund! (It’s not a very large commission, but every bit counts!) 🙂

If you have any recommendations for books to add to my “In The Queue” section, please let me know. Always open to suggestions!

Happy reading!

Little Smiles Along the Way

Hey.

It’s been a good while since I’ve gotten to sit down here and write out a thought or two as they pass through my head. (This site is called “Greg’s Head” after all, so it should live up to its name every now and again…) I don’t really feel that I have the time to sit and do so now—dishes to wash, kitchen to clean, work to do—but I almost feel I really can’t not.

(Nice double negative there.)

Tonight I noticed something on our bathroom sink. It was a shriveling up leaf that our daughter, Kirsten, had harvested not too long ago. It was likely discovered on a walk with Dad and some of her siblings. She found it interesting, and, as is her wont, she “collected” it. (It makes me smile even as I write this down to think of her various “collections”. She’s quite good at it!)

Something in me recognized that this is the stuff of life. Not the bills I am constantly juggling. (Definitely not the Bills who play football… yikes!) Not the job that I do, nor the every day schedule of life.

But within that daily framework come these moments. These pieces of who we really are. The times we stop to notice things, to enjoy the things that we really enjoy. And tonight, even though my precious daughter Kirstie is 100 miles away from me at her Grandma’s house… the beauty of her innocent love for life refreshed my spirit a bit, and has placed a recurring smile on my face.

Whether it’s a leaf, or a piece of pavement from the never-ending road construction in front of our house, or a nut, or a cool bug, or a stick, or any other sort of thing she fancies that I, or most other busy older people would consider no different than what we through in our trash bins … it signifies something deeper. Purer. The essence of life.

God built this place for us. He made it for us, and us for it. Too often we get caught up in the stuff that we’ve built (or that is building us) and we lose sight of the simple “treasures” that are around us. They can be as simple and ordinary—and, in most tangible ways, meaningless—as the leaf sitting on my bathroom sink…

Or, they can be as profoundly amazing as the daughter God made from me who reminds me to smile along the way. (And gives me plenty of smiles along the way, too.)

Thanks, Kirsten. And I hope you are smiling about something wonderful tonight.

Kirsten’s Daily Schedule

Kirsten's Daily Schedule

This was just too cute not to share.

Today I found this piece of paper on our kitchen table. It would seem that Kirsten is as fond of lists as Mom (or at least, becoming so). Jen is absolutely a lover of lists, and perhaps this little paper is evidence of that budding love in Kirsten!

The cutest part is how much she loves having email, too 🙂 Her older brothers both have their own accounts on our family iMac, and just Sunday Kirstie got her own, too! She’s very excited, and loves that she has her own email (mostly for sending pictures and notes to her Grandmas) 🙂

It sure is fun growing up! (Until you actually get to the grown up part, then you wish you weren’t any more)

But for now… for Kirsten… it’s fun! 🙂

(What is extra fun is that this schedule may have also been inspired by her Uncle Andy who was just here for a visit on Friday and Sunday. I think he’d be rather fond of a schedule that was: TV, nap, Check my Email, TV.)

Restoring Honor Rally in DC: Not About Politics

You’ll hear a lot of different stories regarding today’s “political” rally in Washington, DC. You’ll hear things like “Thousands gather for rally” (Washington Post) or, “Glenn Beck Rally Has People Seeing Red” (NPR) or, “Glenn Beck Rally “Blatantly Political,” Says Top Democrat” (CBS News). There are some media reporting tens of thousands, but many are simply saying that “thousands” gathered for this event.

Interesting…

As you’ll see from the photos below, there were upwards of 100,000 computers tuned into the rally via UStream, and crowd estimates from people who were there were in the hundreds of thousands, not just thousands.

The main point is that the two-day event was much more a Christian convention (minus the exhibitors) than anything political. And not just Christian (though that was the primary viewpoint expressed) but all “brands” of Christians, Jews, Muslims … anyone who places their faith and trust in God as a core of who they are, and how they live.

There were three main emphases: Faith, Hope, and Charity. Awards were given to three Americans who exemplified those three attributes. The call to everyone (in attendance, or watching, and just to all Americans in general) was to restore honor to our country by first turning to God and getting ourselves right with him (faith, hope) – then living that out in our charity toward others.

Not sure that’s how it will be reported, but that’s how I saw it (admittedly, only via the UStream feed, not in person).

Someday I hope we can stop immediately discrediting people based on political party affiliation, or religion, economic status, skin color, and whatever else we categorize and judge each other by. Then we can listen to a people who are different than us, and find our commonality, rather than exaggerate our differences.

Perhaps that falls under the “I have a dream” category? Appropriate on the anniversary of Martin Luther King, Jr’s speech…

Perhaps someday the dream will be reality. We live in a broken world, so I don’t know that it ever will be, but Beck is right: it starts with a heart changed by the grace of God. He is our source of peace, and joy, and hope.

Not any man, or political party or ideology.

PHOTOS FROM RESTORING HONOR RALLY
(screen shots of Ustream feed)
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