Good to Great (Jim Collins)

In Good to Great, Jim Collins and his research team present the results of years of research, looking at why some companies "make it," and others don't.  By "make it," I mean become and sustain a world-class organization.  The team analyzed over 1000 companies, and ultimately settled on 11 that were originally mediocre, had a breakthrough, and had sustained success for (at least) 15 years since.  They waded through tons of data looking for trends between these companies- why did they have a breakthrough, and how did they sustain it?  This book presents those findings.

I won't present all concepts discussed in this book, but I found many valuable; a summary follows.


- Leaders need to have both personal humility and professional will- for the good of the company, not themselves.  They need to be modest, self-effacing, diligent "plow horses" rather than "show horses."  They largely came from inside the company- and weren't outside, "celebrity" hires.

- Hiring the right people is more important than vision or strategy.  The right people need to be talented, driven, able to deal with change.  They don't need external motivators, and "Good-to-great companies placed greater weight on character attributes than on specific educational background, practical skills, specialized knowledge, or work experience."  Some traits are teachable, others are ingrained.

- To be successful, one must confront the brutal facts.  Infuse things with brutal facts of reality.  "When . . . you start with an honest and diligent effort to determine the truth of the situation, the right decisions often become self-evident."  Don't de-motivate people by holding false hopes or ignoring reality.  Learn the truth by asking tons of questions, and engage in dialogue and debate, not coercion.

- Have unwavering faith amid the brutal facts.  It will leave you stronger and more resilient.  Face the truth head-on and never give up.  "Retain faith that you will prevail in the end, regardless of difficulties AND confront the most brutal facts of your reality, whatever they might be."

- You need a culture of discipline to succeed- unglamorous, tenacious discipline.  Build a culture around the idea of freedom and responsibility.  Bureaucracy arises to compensate for incompetence and lack of discipline.

- You can't do it all.  There will be many opportunities in life that are excellent, but not for you.  Learn to know when to say no- and "stop doing" lists are more important than "to do" lists.

- Technology is an accelerator of momentum, not creator of it.  Similarly, companies decline not because of technology, but due to a lack of discipline.  "Crawl, walk, run can be a very effective approach, even amidst rapid technological change.

- Sustained success follows a predictable pattern of buildup and breakthrough.  There was no single defining action or grand program that did it- it took years of discipline and consistency.

Rating: A

The Dilbert Principle (Scott Adams)

Most business books discuss the ideal.  They talk about challenges as well, but in the end, it's all happiness and puppies.  "Do this, and success awaits you!"  "Do that, and watch profits soar!"  They have their value, those business books, but so does a brutally honest look at the workplace.  Such is The Dilbert Principle by Scott Adams.

Adams (who, of course, pens the Dilbert cartoon strip), in his opening remarks, proclaims the following:

"Everyone is an idiot, not just the people with low SAT scores.  The only differences among us is that we're idiots about different things at different times.  No matter how smart you are, you spend much of your day being an idiot."

"I find great humor in the fact that we ever take ourselves seriously.  We rarely recognize our own idiocies, yet we can clearly identify the idiocies of others.  That's the central tension of business:
We expect others to act rationally even though we are irrational."

It's meant to be funny, but it's also 100% correct- and that's why I enjoyed this book so much.  It's funny because it's true.  It's all true.  We're not in an ideal world where everyone works hard, is honest and fair, and puts others before themselves.  We're irrational, self-centered, and led by the same- so who wouldn't expect absolute chaos (or endless amusement) in the workplace?  It doesn't matter where you work- you will encounter the foolish at every turn- even within yourself. 

The Dilbert Principle is a tongue-in-cheek look at that foolishness.  It talks about what really happens in the workplace, and even suggests tips for advancement in light of it- puffing up your accomplishments, take credit for what others do, etc.  The book covers ridiculous performance reviews, inane marketing, meaningless vision statements, pointless meetings, co-workers, painful downsizing- need I go on?  It covers so many aspects of the business world, and adds a liberal sprinkling of Dilbert comics throughout.  Interestingly, Adams ends on a serious note, with a chapter describing rules he'd make if he ran a company- and they're not half bad.  But, the majority of this work is meant to be enjoyed as a humorous, honest look at what really goes on- and it succeeds.

I'll end with a few quotes that I really enjoyed (there were many candidates):

"A good way for ineffective people to cling to power in an organization is by creating a monopoly on information. . . with the right mixture of attitude and complete psychopathic behavior you can withhold just about anything."

"Speak loudly and act irrationally.  Co-workers and even bosses will bend to your will if you use this method consistently. . . Send a clear signal that you cannot be swayed by reason and that you'll never stop being loud and obnoxious until you get your way.  This method is effective because the law prevents people from killing you and there's no other practical way to make you stop."


"Engineers are always delighted to share wisdom, even in areas in which they have no experience whatsoever."

"I don't mean . . . to imply that leadership is the same as a con job.  The differences are substantial, in the sense that leadership pays much more and doesn't require quick wits."

"The most important skill for any leaders is the ability to take credit for things that happen on their own."

Rating: A

The Joy of Reduction

As recently (and frequently) posted, materialism's been on my mind a lot recently.  I'm happy to report that some real and decent progress has been made against it . . . and, as is always the case, it feels really good.

With a theme of "reduce, reduce, reduce" on our minds, my wife and I have spent time over the past month going through our (and the kids') things.  I've sold a half-dozen games and a few soccer shirts; she's sold some small furniture and even a stroller.  We've donated a bunch of clothing and toys, and thrown out a bit more.  All told, we've made over $400, but more importantly, we've taken a step in the right direction.  Perhaps best of all, we have more mental peace than we've had in a while. 

The cost of ownership exceeds an object's actual value.  Time to clean, space to store, (perhaps) money to upkeep, and time to use all have costs associated with them.  That last bit has been my biggest revelation here.  If you're like me, and have stuff sitting around that you haven't used in years (or ever), there's a subtle stress level associated with it.  Every time I'd look at a few games I never play, for example, I'd think I need to get around to them some time.  Every unread book- I need to read that.  Every unwatched movie- I should do that soon.  You get the picture.  As I looked around and made these observations, I'd get (a tiny bit) stressed.  There's so much to do.  Really?  Well, yes, there is a lot to do, but making sure I use all my stuff shouldn't be a high priority, and the fact that its presence was causing me grief is (in hindsight) laughable.  I was keeping so much "because I might use it some day."  Well, I didn't, so I got rid of it.  And man does it feel good.

I haven't been cleaning out just material things.  Travel goals have also been shrinking.  I really don't need to see it all, and reducing my travel list- crossing off dozens of items- has lifted a burden I didn't realize I had.  Will we travel?  Yes, of course- we live overseas and want to take advantage of it.  But do we need to do it all, or do it often?  Of course not.  And not even trying has made me settle down, focus on those few trips I really want to do, and enjoy things more.  You can't do it all- so why bother trying?  That's not what life is about.

Even digital things have been going down.  Apps are down to "bare bones."  No need to have dozens of things "just because."  eBooks are shrinking.  Library use is growing.  With some contemplation, I realized that I was using digital media as a haven for materialism.  Sure, there's no observable clutter in the house due to having 30 more apps than I need, but there's the aforementioned stress of not using what I can access. 

"The joy of less" is obvious to those who practice it.  It hurts to get started- just like weight loss (which, by the way, is also going well- down 11 pounds so far on my quest to lose 20).  But, like losing the body flab, the advantage of losing the material flab soon feels better than the sting of getting rid of it.  My bureau closes more easily.  My bookshelf isn't as overrun.  My game area is cleaner and contains just my favorites- the ones I've actually played.  I have more money in my wallet.  My mind is more at peace.  I enjoy the "little things"- like playing with my children- more, which is good, because those are the big things.

Am I there yet?  No.  Nowhere near.  I still buy things; I still put too much value in the material.  But I'm in the right direction, and it feels good.  Give it a try some time.

Clone Wars: Season 1

In 2008, the Star Wars franchise entered new territory with its first-ever (standard-length) TV series, The Clone Wars.  A completely CG endeavor, a movie was released that summer (also called The Clone Wars) that set up the story.  Set during the three years between Episodes II and III, the film featured well-known characters (Anakin Skywalker & Obi-Wan Kenobi are the two mainstays) and introduced Anakin's padawan, Ahsoka Tano.  The Clone Wars Season 1 picks up where the movie left off, with the Republic battling the Separatists on many fronts for the control of the galaxy.

Each episode follows a familiar pattern, scaled down from the movies- the logo appears and fades into the star field, with a short message introducing the theme of the specific show.  Then, it cuts right to the chase.  The episodes aren't necessarily sequential (unless they're part of multiple-episode story arcs), and have no discernible pattern or direction- one week, they're fighting to control planet X; the next, they're doing something completely different in another part of the galaxy.  Anakin, Ahsoka and Obi-Wan are in almost every episode, with other Jedi or well-known characters making occasional appearances.  Clones, of course, feature heavily, and most episodes have a fair amount of battle scenes between them and the droids of the Separatists (who often feature as comic relief).  The locales change often and can be quite exotic, but the basic formula is the same.

So, how is it?  It's okay.  The CG is fine (I especially enjoy the space battles), there's not much depth (is there ever in Star Wars?), and the stories/dialogue are average to poor.  It's sometimes hard to determine the intended audience for the show- some scenes feature semi-intense battle sequences or mild cussing (unusual for Star Wars in any medium), yet some dialogue and episodes are clearly intended for juveniles (or, were written by juveniles).  I'd rather watch some of these than Episode I, so that's saying something, but the first season overall wasn't quite what it could be.  The next seasons, I'm told, get better.  Season 1, though, is average at best.

Rating: C+

Deutscher Fussball-Bund

Back in April I began posting on my favorite sports teams.  I continue that here, discussing my favorite international soccer team- the German national team, or "Deutscher Fussball-Bund," or "Mannschsaft."

Origins of Fandom

The European national teams play all year round, but there are really only two competitions they play in that mean anything: the Euro Cups (every 4 years, last played in 2012) and the World Cups (every 4 years, last played in 2010).  So, the national teams are only an "every 2 years" experience.  I lived in Germany from 2007-2011, so I was in-country for two competitions- the 2008 Euro Cup and the 2010 World Cup.  I had little interest in the 2008 competition; I watched a few games, and rooted for Germany, but didn't pay much attention.  In 2010, though, I fell in love.  The first game Germany played in that World Cup was against Australia, and they manhandled them 4-0.  It wasn't just the margin of victory that impressed me- it was the style of play.  The Germans passes were frequent and precise; the team as a whole was selfless.  It was one of the best examples of team play I've ever seen, and I was an instant fan. 

Here is one video showing some highlights from the tournament that so endeared me to them:



Recent History


Joachim Löw became coach in 2008, and the three competitions under his tenure have been quite good.  He keeps the squads young, continually feeding hungry, driven "kids" into the starting rotations, giving them valuable experience despite their youth.  The team, as previously noted, passes wonderfully, and has a lot of promise.  Sadly, they haven't won it all, yet- they placed as follows in recent tournaments:

Euro 2008: 2nd
World Cup 2010: 3rd
Euro 2012: lost in semi-finals

The make-up of the current team shows the increasing diversity in Germany.  You (obviously) have a slew of obviously German players, like Bastian Schweinsteiger, Phillip Lahm, and Per Mertesacker, but you also have those of mixed or foreign descent who were raised in Germany, like Mesut Özil (Turkish), Sami Khedira (German/Tunisian), Mario Gomez (German/Italian), and Lukas Podolski (Polish).  Regardless of heritage, the players are fantastic- there's so much talent here.

Final Thoughts

As I said, the national team experience is only every 2 years, and Löw likes to feed in young players, so every competition sees new faces on the squad, and you never know if your personal favorites will be back next time.  That's a bit sad, but regardless, this is a team worth watching.

Star Wars CCG

Last year, I posted (here) about collectible games in general- what they were and why I love them.  This year, I plan to post on the 5 such games that I've enjoyed the most.  I posted briefly in February (here) on the Star Wars: the Card Game; today's entry is the Star Wars Customizable Card Game, or Star Wars CCG.

History

In 1995, two years after the collectible card game market took off with the release of Magic: the Gathering, Decipher released the Star Wars CCG.  For 6 years Decipher held the license, and they were busy.  The produced 12 standard expansions, a host of smaller, special releases, and several "Reflections" sets, where they combined the most popular cards from several sets and re-released them in giant packs.  The standard expansions were heavily specialized and (mostly) focused on locales in the original movies (the first prequel came out in 1999, so only a few expansions incorporated the new stuff into the game).  Their titles are generally enough to describe the theme.  Below is the list of expansions, grouped by movie focus (order of release is indicated by number in parentheses immediately following):

Episode IV: Premiere (1), A New Hope (2)
Episode V: Hoth (3), Dagobah (4), Cloud City (5)
Episode VI: Jabba's Palace (6), Endor (8), Death Star II (9)
Episodes IV-VI: Special Edition (7)

Episodes I, IV-VI: Tatooine (10)
Episode I: Coruscant (11), Theed Palace (12)

As you can see from the above, the releases were (generally) sequential with the movies.  Decipher held the license until 2001, when they lost the rights to Wizards of the Coast.*

Gameplay Overview

In the Star Wars CCG, you battle for control of locations (planets and sites), which have force icons that generate resources.  Use those resources to produce units (characters, starships, weapons, etc), which assist you in battling for control of locations.  You deploy starships to planets, and characters to sites.  Below are some card examples.

The object of the game is to reduce your opponent's "force" to zero.   The force is represented by each player's deck of cards, so you're effectively trying to get them to lose cards from their deck, which you accomplish by winning battles.  Each turn, you want to posture yourself in a way that maximizes your resource production AND gives you a favorable edge in battles- a tricky balance at times.  Spread yourself too thin, and you might get more resources, but increase your risk of losing big in battles at planets or sites.  So, there's a balance there.  The game is too detailed to discuss the rules in-depth here; use the links provided below if interested in details.

Thoughts on the Game

This game is a mixed lot.

The good:
- It has some nifty mechanics (especially in how it incorporates the deck into resource generation, usage and card drawing).
- It's very "Star Wars"- every character, ship, planet (no matter how minor) of the original trilogy gets a card in this game.
- There's so much variety and possibility.  You can play scenarios (like "Endor-only") or fight throughout the broad reach of the galaxy.  Characters can deploy to sites, take off in starships to the associated planet, and fly from planet to planet fighting.  You can do whatever you want- it's great.

The neutral:
- The expansions are extremely specific and quite unbalanced in terms of card type variety.  The Dagobah expansion, for example, had only two characters for the Light Side- Luke and Yoda- and the rest of the cards were support cards.  The Death Star II set had mostly starships, as it re-created the battle at that battle station.  It's a risky marketing tactic, and was met with mixed reviews.  Sometimes I liked it; sometimes I didn't.

The bad:
- In general the rules are complex and have a steep learning curve.
- The 'card text' on each card is often extremely detailed and scenario-specific, which makes for lots of reading during gameplay, as well as reduced effectiveness unless you luckily get that perfect combination on the table. 
- It was very hard to obtain main characters in packs- you had to buy a lot, which didn't sit well with the casual gamer.
- Card backs were faction-specific (Light Side or Dark Side), meaning you couldn't have 'neutral' decks of any kind (Bounty Hunters, for example, were affiliated with the Dark Side).

Conclusion

As a die-hard Star Wars and collectible game fan, I love this game.  I got into it shortly after Decipher lost the license, so many stores were selling the cards on clearance- and I snapped up boxes of them.  I'll always look back fondly on the hours I spent playing it in college with my friend "Tim."  Every Sunday afternoon, we'd get together and play in the common area of the residence hall.  Were we dorks?  Yep.  Do I regret it?  Not one bit.

At the same time, I have to be honest and admit that this game has pretty significant downsides that would dissuade many from playing.  In fact, though I kept a small portion of my collection, I've never asked friends to play with me unless they, too, were die-hard fans.  This is a first generation CCG- one that erred on the side of complexity.  In time, game makers have learned that simplicity is better for a successful game, and so the Star Wars CCG is a product of a bygone era.  I hope my children play with me some day, and we can re-live those moments in the movies that we so enjoy, or create our own in this extremely flexible, though complex, CCG. 

Rating: B

Links 

Wikipedia page
Image of old official Decipher page
Rules & Resources: here or here
Card Databases here or here
Star Wars CCG Player's Committee
Place to buy


*Wizards of the Coast created their own Star Wars game, the Star Wars Trading Card Game.  It was okay, but never reached the level of success the Star Wars CCG enjoyed.

NHL Logos

As posted previously, I want to start blogging about things I like in an attempt to quench the 'desire for ownership.'  One of my struggles is with sports paraphernalia- so we'll begin there.  Today's topic: the National Hockey League, or NHL.

Yes, it's silly, but I must admit: in every sports league, I root for some teams based on the coolness of their jersey and/or logo.  Petty, stupid, call it what you will, it is what it is.  So, here I present my favorite NHL equipment.

1. The Calgary Flames

The top spot is an easy pick- my favorite NHL team.  The Flames have sported a number of cool logos/jerseys over the years; below are my favorites.

The original Calgary logo

 

The present-day logo

The "horse jersey" of the early 2000s

I like this logo so much, I had it on my car hood.  Not joking.

The modern jersey

2. The St. Louis Blues

My second-favorite NHL team also sports my second-favorite logo.  Again, I know I'm petty.  But, I enjoy the combination of music and athletics in the name and symbol.

3.  The Hartford Whalers

Sadly, this team relocated in 1997 and became the Carolina Hurricanes.  Look closely at the logo- I like how they worked the "H" into the white space between the whale fin and the "W."

4. The Philadelphia Flyers

Love the primary jersey color of orange; also really like the current jersey "name strip" on the back, which offsets it nicely from the main body.  The logo is a nice combination of a stylistic "P" with a hockey puck.

5. The Pittsburgh Penguins

Hard not to like an ice-skating, glaring penguin.

That's it for today- I'll try my best not to buy any of this stuff.

Enjoyment from a Distance

Ever since I can remember, I've had an issue with materialism.  I've posted on it several times, and had it on my mind often in recent days, as I've started to fight more fervently against that tendency.  Part of the fight is reflecting on the question "why do I buy?"  This post is my stream of consciousness on that topic.

So, why do we buy . . . and buy . . . and are never satisfied?  As a quick aside, when I say "buy," I'm not talking about just stuff.  I mean anything you spend resources (like time) to acquire- like traveling, etc.  So, to rephrase- why do we keep spending resources to accumulate [insert obsession here] and are never satisfied? 

We make acquisition an unhealthy obsession for one of several reasons:
1) We think that life's about getting as much as possible.  In a sense, this is basing our self-worth on what we have.  "I have more than the Smiths, so I win" is what our hearts are thinking.  We know no better way to live- no higher purpose or calling- and so we feel "getting" is what it's all about.
2) We want to escape the difficulties we have in this life.  Acquisition can be a form of escapism.  Focus on the latest, greatest thing to take the mind off of our problems- it's a diversion to keep us from dwelling on facets of life that are unpleasant or difficult to think on.
3) We think we need to own/experience a thing to truly appreciate the beauty.  It's not enough to know that the Alps are beautiful- we must go to the Alps to see it for ourselves.

Of course, for all 3 reasons, the cycle never ends- we're never satisfied, so we keep getting, keep escaping, or keep buying to appreciate.  A look at many celebrities can confirm the futility of the endeavor- yet we still try.  I stand firm in my conviction that humans are fallen, irrational beings.  But I digress.

We buy for all three reasons, intertwined, in my opinion- but we all have our different focus areas.  For me, as I think through this, I keep coming back to reason 3- I feel I need to own/experience to truly appreciate.  It could be something grand (a long vacation), or something small (a $7 book), but in many cases, I have this urge to own it.  How can I combat this? 

Here's how I plan to fight the desire to "own to appreciate."  Oddly, it's through the Internet.  I say "oddly" because the Internet often contributes to the problem in the first place- a quick google search or well-placed advertisement can show me a world of things that I "need," awaken desires I didn't realize I had, and encourage my hand to reach for my wallet.  But, I think I can turn this in my favor by using the Internet to blog about things I like, without having to own them.  For example, I really like sports jerseys, and have been tempted in the past to buy them just because I like the way they look.  How foolish!  Instead, I'll just blog about them, and refer to that whenever I get the urge to spend.  Maybe it's a stupid idea, but maybe it will help curb my tendencies.  I can enjoy things from afar- digitally, without having to waste time or money calling something my own.  And, of course, I need to constantly remind myself of the Biblical principle: "lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Matthew 6:20-21, ESV)

Monday Morning Leadership (David Cottrell)

A few years ago, a colleague gave me Monday Morning Leadership by David Cottrell.  Though I had no leadership aspirations at the time, I found myself breezing through the 100 pages- and learning and enjoying myself quite a bit.  It's written in a unique style- a troubled manager ("Jeff") is at his wit's end, and requests help from a family friend ("Tony Pearce"), who happens to be an experienced consultant.  Tony agrees to help him through 8 successive Monday morning mentoring sessions.  After the fact, Jeff decides to pass on what he's learned, and writes this book about what he gleaned from Tony in those meetings.  An interesting format to convey leadership tips- at times it's cheesy, but overall it works.

The 8 sessions focused on a variety of things, and each chapter had a lot of good advice in it.  I won't recount everything here- but below is what I found resonated with me the most

Accept Responsibility
Leaders must accept total responsibility, no matter what.  Leaders are not "one of the guys"- as leaders, they have certain responsibilities that others do not.  "Even though your responsibilities increase when you become a manager, you lose some of the rights or freedoms you may have enjoyed in the past."  The analogy used was apt- that of a leader being the driver of a car, and the employees the passengers.  If the car goes off the road, you can blame the passengers for distractions/etc, but at the end of the day, it's up to the leader to keep on the course. 


Remember the Main Thing
Make sure your people know your group's main objective(s).  People often have different perceptions about that- (frequent, repetitious) communication of the main thing is good.  When your team is asked to do something that's not part of "the main thing," shield them from the request and stand up for them.  "One of the main things for a leader is to eliminate confusion."

Have Integrity
Be on time, and demand that others do as well.  Tell the Truth.  Do the right thing, even when it hurts- your team will be watching and depending on you.  Don't get disheartened- "When it comes to leading people, there is no problem that is unique to you." 

Meet Your People's Needs
"People quit people before they quit companies"- people get more fed up with their immediate manager not meeting their needs.  Recognize and reward superstars, and make sure performance reviews don't shade reality and make bottom-performers feel better- encourage all to succeed, and "raise the top."  Don't sit in 'management land' all day- "You have to escape management land and get in touch with your people."  Talk to them- find out what they need.


Manage Your Time
Time is your responsibility- use it wisely.  Cut meetings down to be as efficient as possible.  Don't check your email constantly- only a few times a day.  Batch like activities- return all phone calls in a row, for example.  Limit interruptions.

Learn

Be a life-long learner.  Read at least 10 minutes a day.  As mentioned above, no problem is unique- learned from those who have come before.  Get out of your comfort zone.


As I said, this one-sitting read is well worth your time.


Rating: A

The Eagle has Landed (Jack Higgins)

Written in 1975, The Eagle has Landed is a classic thriller set late in World War II.  The premise is simple: kidnap Churchill.  The Germans believe this would grant them a huge psychological victory- one sorely needed, as even they acknowledge at this point that the war is all but lost.  But how to pull off such an operation?  The perfect opportunity exists:  a German spy (Joanna Grey) living in the small village of Studley Constable in southeast England has just received word that the Prime Minister will be visiting a local magnate, Sir Henry Willoughby, in a few weeks.  She relays this news to Berlin, who seizes on the opportunity and creates a daring plan.  A small band of paratroopers, led by Colonel Kurt Steiner, will drop into the village a day or two before Churchill's in town.  Staying at the house of another spy (the Irishmen Liam Devlin, who dropped in a few weeks prior, posing as Grey's relative), they'll set their plans in motion and grab the Prime Minister.  Will they succeed?  What do you think?

What I liked most about this book, other than the overall good storyline and masterful telling, is the dilemma it places before the reader.  It's told largely from the German point of view- and as many of the group (in this case) are honorable men (in fact, one saves two village kids from drowning), you almost want to root for them.  It shoots down stereotypes- that the enemy were all heartless, merciless bastards.  It shows that men fought with honor on both sides, and that's what I liked- and some critics didn't- about it.  I don't view it as German apologia, as some suggest- you see Himmler and his evil acts throughout here, Hitler and his insanity, and you never get the sense that the Germans are the good guys- it's just that some of them fought for honor and country, not for Hitler.  Agree or disagree, this book makes you think about that issue, and I appreciate it for that.

This was my third time reading this, so of course I liked it.  It was my first time in over a decade, though, and I must admit that I noticed some flaws this time around that I didn't catch before.  Little things- implausible character interactions, people knowing just a bit too much or guessing just a little too easily what was going on- diminished it slightly for me, but only just.  Overall, this is a good tale.  If you're into thrillers in this vein, I highly recommend The Eagle has Landed (and others by Higgins- I've read between 5-10 of his over the years, and they're all quality).

Rating: A

The Wonderful World of Lego

Lego.  What comes to your mind when you hear that word?  Hours of fun and creativity with the building toy as a child?  Back problems from hunching over those delightful interlocking, multi-color plastic bricks for hours on end?  Indescribable pain from stepping on one in the dark?  A considerably lighter wallet?  I think of all of them, but mostly the hours of fun and creativity- and for me, the enjoyment has extended considerably beyond childhood- but let's begin back in the day.

It was in the mid '80s that I first fell in love with Lego.  The construction toy offered endless possibilities- I could (and did) build houses, forts, spaceships, military bases, vehicles, forts, castles, forts . . . ahh, the good old days.  Most sets came with those delightful little Lego people, with the bland yet cheerful smiling yellow faces, as shown below.  Any Lego set was fun, but what really made my day was the themed sets.

I don't know (or care) when the themed Lego sets originated, but what joy they brought to this child.  Many themes have come and gone over the years (examples here), but the staple themes I remember in the '80s and '90s were city, castle, space, and pirates.  Building castles or ships for my little Lego knights and astronauts filled my rainy days with hours of fun, creativity, and lower back pain.  I remember the frustration of searching for that one piece I needed for minutes- sometimes hours- and the triumph of finally finding it in the sea of plastic potpourri.  I recall the happiness I felt when my creation was finally complete- and the outrage that set in when one of my siblings destroyed it through carelessness or malice.  But, it was Lego- it was meant to be taken apart and re-formed into some marvelous new creation.  Whatever hobbies my children pick up one day, I hope they have an outlet for creativity like what I enjoyed through these toys.

I drifted away from Lego in high school and early college, which is to be expected- after all, if one has any hope of being considered cool, you have to noticeably distance yourself from such 'childish' things.  Alas, popularity never worked out for me, in spite of my best attempts- to include the hairspray enhancing my naturally handsome features- and while I stepped away from the toy for a while, it never let go of its hold on me.  And, I still remember that day when I was launched headfirst back into Legomania.

In 1999, something happened that would alter the fate of the toy universe- Lego came out with its first Star Wars-themed set.  It was my sophomore year of college- I was walking down an aisle in Target, and I spied it.  A Star Wars Lego set.  Oh.  My.  Word.  I knew at that moment that Lego had me for the rest of my life.  An awesome, creative, fun construction toy that now had Star Wars characters and vehicles available?  Sign me up, please.  Lego corporation complied- for an exorbitant monthly fee.

While I wanted to collect the Star Wars sets in college, I didn't have the time, money, or space to indulge in the hobby, so it had to wait until after graduation.  But, when I started working, I now had the means, and no small part of my discretionary income went to Star Wars Lego.  Not much has changed in the last 10 years, come to think of it.  Lego is still pumping out many Star Wars sets every year, and I'm still buying them.  Not all of them, mind you- I pick my favorites and exercise a small amount of discretion- but a decent percentage of them.  Enough to build me an army worth of Mordor . . . or Endor, as it were.

After the success of their Star Wars line, Lego started going more and more commercial, to the delight (or dismay) of many.  Themes include Indiana Jones, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, DC/Marvel Superheroes, and even the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.  While Star Wars is my mainstay, I can't resist picking up a few of these other themes- after all, they're all compatible, and imagine the cross-over scenes that can be created when all of these franchises are thrown together.  Maybe I can convince my children to make a stop-motion movie someday.

In recent years, Lego has produced more and more detailed, realistic, "application-specific" pieces for their sets.  This has led to more realistic models, but also criticism for sacrificing creativity offered by basic blocks for the sense of increased realism.  My personal take is "so what"- the basic blocks are still available, and can be used in conjunction with the modern pieces to create truly amazing creations.

In summary, Lego is a fantastic toy that exercises those creative juices and improves manual dexterity in both children and adults.  Since I've become a father, every year for father's day I get a Lego set from my kids.  In the years to come, I sincerely hope they'll share my love of this toy, and we can spend many a day wading through seas of bricks, looking for that one final piece to complete our Super Star Destroyer.  Here's hoping.

Family Photos

not my family . . . image from here

Hello!  My name is Natalie- I'm John Mark's daughter, and I'll be a guest poster today on my daddy's blog.  He should probably be supervising me, but he mumbled something about 'not being able to take it anymore' and stormed off- I think he's in the guest room playing with star wars legos and choking back sobs.

Today we tried to do family pictures.  For all you kids out there, know that family photos is a prime opportunity to sow discord.  See, mommy and daddy go to great lengths to make everyone look pretty and dress well and smile nicely and look like a well-rested, got-it-together bunch; in other words, they're out to deceive.  We kids know the truth- most families are discordant, rag-tag groups consisting of self-centered individuals just trying to survive without injuring the others in a way that would cause permanent scars or invite legal proceedings.  Once I discovered this planned deception, I did all I could to ensure our photo shoot reflected the more accurate reality- and I present my techniques below for your enjoyment and use.

Ensuring Family Photos Reflect Reality
Before you leave the house for pictures, here's what I recommend:
- know the objective.  My overall objective is to reflect reality; that means I have the following goals:
       - mommy & daddy should look haggard and exasperated
       - I should be angry, defiant, whining, disinterested in the mandated task, and/or openly weeping
       - my baby brother should be exhausted, worried, dirty, and a menace to himself and others
- start early.  While mommy is trying to dress you for the shoot, have a meltdown, preferably over something trivial or irrational.  Example: "mommy I don't like bananas why does Luke have toes I don't want to wear clothes today WAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"
- disrupt siblings.  It's not enough to be out of sorts on your own; get your siblings into it.  My preferred MO is to punch my baby brother in the face and/or try to flush him down the toilet.  Something that would leave noticeable marks on the face is desired, ensuring the photos accurately reflect the typical situation in the household.  Do this right before leaving the house for the photo outing- the closer to departure the better.
- delay departure.  Refuse to get dressed.  Spill ketchup on yourself.  Put nutella in your hair.  Stop inexplicably on the steps, preferably when your parents are right behind you and carrying something heavy.  There are a number of ways to make this happen.  You'll be forced out the door eventually, but not before making sure your first goal is accomplished.  Once at the photo shoot,
- refuse to cooperate.  Once everyone's in position, storm off.  Refuse to sit on your parent's lap.  Start crying- make sure those eyes stay red throughout the shoot.  If outdoors, get your outfit dirty immediately, in a high visibility spot.  Pout.  Put your hands in your mouth.  Make funny faces or appear forlorn.  Look away from the camera.  Instigate your siblings to encourage acts of madness or downright cruelty.
- give hope.  You'll know once your parents reach a certain threshold.  Once you sense total parental frustration approaching, appear to reconsider.  Imply that you're considering obedience.  Appear to mull bribes in your mind.  The idea is to give your parents hope- and them plunge them back into a despair deeper than they could ever realize.
- share the load.  Endure until a sibling, tired from the event, breaks down himself.  At that point, improve your behavior slightly, giving yourself temporary preferred child status, going back to the previous point.  Once the sibling is back to normal, recommence cooperation refusal.

If you follow these basic steps, I guarantee your family photos will result in an accurate portrayal of the standard household situation.  Good night- and good luck!