Category Archives: Musings

My Neighbor Pulled a Gun on Me This Morning

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Actually, it’s funnier than that.

Walking out to the main road to go for a jog, I saw water running down the street and heard it bubbling out of somewhere. I walked up this fellow’s driveway and confirmed my guess that it was coming out of his water meter. So I knocked on his door and rang the doorbell.

He didn’t come down, so I went for my little run.

When I was done, I decided to try again. I rang the doorbell, knocked “shave-and-a-haircut,” and stepped out into the yard because I was tired of his motion light turning on and off.

And when the door opened, there he stood … with revolvers in each hand.

I almost laughed. He’s an older fellow, lives alone, a little eccentric, and if he’d opened the door and had one weapon I might have taken him seriously — after all, he did move here from a much larger town, and in his defense, it was four-something in the morning. But two guns? I found it funny, because a) I doubt he’s got the “two-gun mojo,” and b) I pictured him working the doorknob while holding that revolver in his hand, and thought he was lucky he didn’t shoot himself in the foot.

So, I showed him that his water meter was leaking, advised him to call the town and have them come check it, and went on my way.

On my way home I realized I should’ve asked him if he thought the bad guys normally rang the doorbell and knocked. I tend to think of things like that long after the moment has passed.

But, hey, it was four-something in the morning.

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What's This? Brad Pitt to Play Me in a Movie?

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Hey, I was as shocked as anybody when I saw the headline, but according to Screen Rant, Brad Pitt has signed on to play The Gray Man.

It turns out, contrary to what you may have heard, thought, dreamed, or laughed at, The Gray Man is not about yours truly or even my Pawley’s Island-based alter ego, but is the title character of the 2009 bestselling thriller The Gray Man by Mark Greaney. I think if I’d ever seen that book I would’ve bought it just for the title — it’s a shame I haven’t heard about it before now.*

However, lest anyone think that I’m just trying to jump on the “Gray Man” bandwagon at the last minute,** here’s yours truly speaking at his 2006 USAF retirement ceremony:


(The Gray Man Speaks. The hard hat lettering was done by then-TSgt Steve Clay while we were stationed at Offutt AFB, 1998-2000. USAF photo.)

Even if it’s not about me,*** I wish them the best of luck.

But I think they should fill the cast and crew with people named “Gray,” and people who are related to me.

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*Especially since I’ve been trying to figure out a Gray Man-themed series of my own since Dragon*Con 2007.
**On the contrary, I’m on my own bandwagon which will happily follow along with theirs for a while.
***As I keep reminding myself, per the first line of Rick Warren’s The Purpose-Driven Life.

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Letter from Thomas Jefferson to My Five-Times-Great-Grandfather

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Our family trip to Williamsburg earlier this summer reminded me of some family history I’d forgotten, specifically my connection to the Page family in Virginia. Some of the history is actually available on the web, which never ceases to amaze me. Around the 4th of July I found another snippet, which I saved for today.

On this date in 1763, Thomas Jefferson wrote a letter to John Page, who was ostensibly Jefferson’s closest friend at the College of William & Mary, would later serve in the U.S. House of Representatives and as Governor of Virginia, and who happens to be my great-great-great-great-great-grandfather. In the letter, we see hints of what would become the keynote statement of the Declaration of Independence:

If I am to succeed, the sooner I know it, the less uneasiness I shall have to go through. If I am to meet with a disappointment, the sooner I know it, the more of life I shall have to wear it off: and if I do meet with one, I hope in God, and verily believe; it will be the last….

Perfect happiness, I believe, was never intended by the Deity to be the lot of one of his creatures in this world; but that he has very much put in our power the nearness of our approaches to it, is what I have steadfastly believed….


(John Page, 1743-1808. U.S. Congressman, 1789-1797. Governor of Virginia, 1802-1805. Image from Wikimedia Commons.)

The idea that God puts “in our power the nearness of our approaches to [happiness]” certainly seems like a precursor to “all men … are endowed by their Creator” with rights including “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” I find it interesting also that he expressed his trust in Providence in terms we are not accustomed to reading from Jefferson:

The most fortunate of us, in our journey through life, frequently meet with calamities and misfortunes which may greatly afflict us; and, to fortify our minds against the attacks of these calamities and misfortunes, should be one of the principal studies and endeavours of our lives.

The only method of doing this is to assume a perfect resignation to the Divine will, to consider that whatever does happen, must happen; and that by our uneasiness, we cannot prevent the blow before it does fall, but we may add to its force after it has fallen.

These considerations, and others such as these, may enable us in some measure to surmount the difficulties thrown in our way; to bear up with a tolerable degree of patience under this burthen [sic] of life; and to proceed with a pious and unshaken resignation, till we arrive at our journey’s end, when we may deliver up our trust into the hands of him who gave it, and receive such reward as to him shall seem proportioned to our merit.

Such, dear Page, will be the language of the man who considers his situation in this life, and such should be the language of every man who would wish to render that situation as easy as the nature of it will admit. Few things will disturb him at all: nothing will disturb him much.


(Depiction of Governor John Page at 16 years old. Image from Genealogy of the Page Family in Virginia by Richard Channing Moore Page, M.D. [New York, 1893], via the New York Public Library Digital Collection, via Wikimedia Commons.)

Jefferson’s letter to Page is quoted in various places on the web, such as this Wikiquote page. This Wikipedia page includes more information about him, most of which is probably correct.

All of this is interesting, but only so — it doesn’t mean much in the grand scheme of things, but it’s fun to think of connections to important people and monumental events.

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A Boring Magazine Article of Some Interest to Me: 'Grey Vs. Gray'

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Actually, the full title of the imaginary article is “Grey Vs. Gray, The Definitive Argument,” as listed on the cover of TIRED Magazine, the winner of BoingBoing‘s “boring magazine cover contest.”

I didn’t see any indication that the image had been released under Creative Commons, so I won’t post it here. You can see the winning entry by itself at http://nothingofconsequence.com/boingboingcontest/tiredmagazine-big.jpg, or you can can see it along with a few other notable entries at http://www.boingboing.net/2011/07/06/boring-magazine-cont.html.

I didn’t have anything to do with the contest, but being named Gray I have a small stake in the “grey vs. gray” debate.

Which, I supposed, proves how boring my life can be.

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My Blog Goes Berserk

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Craziness in the arcane intricacies of MySQL:

I wrote this morning’s entry and posted it, only to have the system notify me that of a database error. So, I tried again, and once more for good measure. After the third error message, I decided to pack it in and try again later … only to find that the system had indeed accepted each of those attempts.

And then what happened when I tried to delete two of the posts? Another database error notification.

I’m so confused. But even if I get an error message when I post this one, I’m only going to try it once.

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Cross-Post on Condescension Toward Manufacturers

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Yesterday I wrote a long post on the NC State of Business blog about what I perceive as condescension toward companies and workers who make things for a living. Rather than reproduce the whole thing, here’s the conclusion:

Manufacturing is vital not just to a healthy economy but to everyone, because it provides many (if not most) of the things that make modern life possible and enjoyable. It’s unfortunate that manufacturers don’t get more respect for what they do, regardless of where they make their products.

If you want to read the whole thing, here’s the link: Disrespect and Condescension: Can North Carolina Manufacturers Expect Anything Else?

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The Challenges of Enchantment: A Book Review

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(Cross-posted, with minor changes, from the NC State of Business blog.)

Some books entertain us, some books encourage us, some books challenge us — and some manage all three at once. Guy Kawasaki’s Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actions, definitely scores the “hat trick.”*


(Guy Kawasaki. Courtesy of his web site, www.guykawasaki.com. Click to enlarge.)

So how does Enchantment, for lack of a better word, enchant?

I admit that the title of Guy’s book did not enchant me at first. As an Air Force veteran steeped in military history, the phrase “hearts and minds” connoted our country’s failed campaign to secure the support of the local population during the Vietnam War. But, reading the text, I quickly moved beyond that prejudice to enjoy the book’s solid advice.

Guy begins by laying out situations in which we may find it most valuable to be enchanting:

  • When we aspire to lofty goals or idealistic results
  • When we make difficult decisions that affect other people
  • When we need to overcome entrenched habits
  • When we find ourselves going against (or even defying) the crowd
  • When we aren’t seeing the good results that we are sure will come

But, having said that, Guy warns us that

Enchantment is not about getting your way solely for your own benefit. To the contrary, if you want enchantment to last, other people must benefit, too.

Guy introduces the foundation of enchantment as likability and trustworthiness, and discusses how we can develop these traits. As a dyed-in-the-wool introvert, I found these sections particularly challenging … but also very encouraging.

With the foundation laid, Guy then discusses how to prepare and launch our central idea or product, how to overcome resistance and produce long-lasting enchantment, and how new technologies can help us reach the audiences most likely to find appeal in our messages. Guy’s frequent use of real-world examples from famous and not-so-famous people makes the book very accessible and adds to its overall entertainment value.

Enchantment, it turns out, is possible even if it doesn’t come naturally for all of us. If you’re getting ready to embark on a new venture — a new commercial product, a service project, a political campaign, or just about anything that will involve other people — you’re sure to find something in Enchantment that will help you do it well.


(Enchantment book cover. Courtesy of Guy’s web site. Click to enlarge.)

Enchantment is on sale now. You can find information about ordering a copy on this web page.

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*Guy is a big hockey fan.

FULL DISCLOSURE: As I mentioned in a previous NC State of Business blog post, Guy’s book includes our “Manufacturing Makes It Real” Tour as an example of a good — and possibly even an “enchanting” — celebration. As a result of providing Guy with information related to the tour, I finagled a review copy of the book. Make of that what you will.

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Under the Dark Full Moon

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Did you get to see the lunar eclipse early this morning?

Instead of staying up late to see the beginning of the eclipse, I decided to get up early to catch it at its darkest. I didn’t even have to set an alarm; I rolled out of bed a little after 3 a.m., tossed on my sweats, and stepped outside to see … clouds.

The clouds were especially dark, in the approximate place where the Moon would have been. Normally a full Moon would shine through the clouds, but not last night.

I failed at going back to sleep, so around 4 a.m. I took a walk under the clouds and the invisible Moon. About halfway through my walk the clouds thinned enough that I thought I saw the limb of the Moon, recently unshadowed. Then the clouds re-asserted themselves and I completed my walk, and when I returned I thankfully got to sleep for a little while.

I hope you had better luck with your eclipse-viewing!

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Making It Real in North Carolina

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(Written as a guest post for, and cross-posted from, the Beyond Lean blog.)

Because I’ve driven across the country several times, from one Air Force assignment to the next, I sometimes think in terms of the nation as a whole and forget just how big some states are. Last week I helped the NC State University Industrial Extension Service (IES) conduct the “Manufacturing Makes It Real” tour, covering over 1100 miles in 5 days, and trust me: North Carolina is a pretty big state.

The central message of the tour was that manufacturing — the actual production of durable and consumer goods — matters to all of us, because it is the source of almost everything we have and almost everything we do. As Dr. Terri Helmlinger Ratcliff, IES Executive Director, wrote before the tour, “Manufacturing makes the difference between imagination and reality in ways that make modern life possible.” Invention creates new products, but manufacturing brings them into all our lives.

To spread the message about how much manufacturing matters, we went to every region of North Carolina: the piedmont, the mountains, and along the coast. As we traveled, we held rallies where manufacturers showed off their products and praised their workers. The host sites made the rallies truly “local” events: some had employees sing the National Anthem, some invited Junior ROTC or other school groups to perform, and one invited the local area’s apple orchards to bring some of their products for attendees to sample. Local, State, and even Federal elected officials attended various events, which usually included plant tours to show off the host sites’ capabilities in more detail.

Our convoy included a tractor-trailer with dozens of different “Made in NC” items that showed off the diversity of products made throughout the state. At each rally, people lined up to walk through the trailer to see their handiwork as well as others’. Many people expressed surprise at the variety of products made in the state: “from tortilla chips to microchips,” as IES Deputy Director Dr. David Boulay said.

I like to think the individual rallies were like “county fairs” for manufacturing, and we were pleased at the number of companies that attended, even though we didn’t have blue ribbons to award. And considering the weather we had — record levels of rain along the coast, making us travel on nearly-flooded roads* — we were very fortunate to make it to each stop and hold each rally on time.


(The Monroe Fire Department’s flag display at Scott Health & Safety. NCSU photo. Click to enlarge.)

The most memorable rally for me was held at Scott Health & Safety in Monroe (east of Charlotte). The Monroe Fire Department had set up two ladder trucks and suspended a huge U.S. flag to help the companies demonstrate their “Made in the USA” pride. That pride-of-workmanship theme was repeated at every stop, but the Monroe event was special to me because I relied on Scott Air Pak breathing gear when I worked disaster response in the Air Force. Their workmanship can literally mean the difference between life and death in dangerous situations. (I wrote more about the Scott Health & Safety rally on the tour blog**).

All week long, from companies big and small and representing many different industry sectors, we heard stories of continuous improvement through lean and Six Sigma, expanded markets through ISO certification, and risk-taking through entrepreneurial ventures and new product development. Company leaders admitted to a lot of belt-tightening and uncertainty in the last couple of years, but seemed pleased that people were paying attention to the good work they do.

The tour ended with a final rally at the NC Legislative Building in Raleigh, where NC State Chancellor Randy Woodson symbolically presented the truckload of products to NC Secretary of Commerce Keith Crisco. The speakers at the final rally, along with the companies that sponsored and participated in the “Manufacturing Makes It Real” tour, testified that manufacturing is alive and well in North Carolina. We are all committed to keeping it that way.

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*Not complaining! We needed the rain to counteract the summer’s drought.

**For more from the tour blog, including pictures from most of the sites, see http://mfgmakesitreal.wordpress.com/.

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