Day 894: First Annual ‘Hug Against Hate’ Award – Juan Mann

So, today is my birthday… and I know what you’re thinking.  ‘Wow!  What a great day for a birthday!  There’s always a party!’ 

Yes, while this is true… you’re perspective is a little off.  All the parties on New Year Eve are actually held in anticipation of the END of my birthday.  People cheer when it’s over… and that is very hurtful. ;)

BUT, instead of being a grumpy Gus this year, I thought I would focus on something more positive.  After all, it’s the end of the year, so why don’t we honor someone who is doing something amazing to unite the world?  There are tons of people doing incredibly simple, yet powerfully inspiring work that should be recognized.  So, from now on, on my birthday, I’m going to give out the ‘SchutzHappens Hug Against Hate’ Award.

The ‘Hug Against Hate’ is actually something I started saying sarcastically on my Facebook page a while back.  From time to time, I’ll post articles about people behaving in incredibly small minded ways… or saying very inappropriate things… and I would post these articles saying, “Wow, this guy needs a hug… who can be that unhappy after getting a hug?”  And rather quickly, this statement was shortened to, “I know someone who needs a hug against hate!”  And thus the phrase was born. 

So now… I would like to close out 2010 by honoring someone who is more than just a big talker (like me)… someone who is really out there changing the world in such an amazingly simple way… and there is no better first recipient of the ‘SchutzHappens Hug Against Hate’ Award than Juan Mann, the creator of the ‘Free Hug Campaign’.

Somehow, during all much many hours trolling around YouTube, I only just now discovered Juan and his amazing work… which he started in 2006 when he posted this video:

For more information on the ‘Free Hug Campaign’ please visit these sites:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_Hugs_Campaign

http://www.freehugscampaign.org/

Day 893: Mystery Guitar Man’s ‘Paint Magic’

Day 892: Belgrade/Home

Upon arriving back in Belgrade I received a very nice note from long time Serbian reader, Peegee.  Thanks for the warm welcome back!  I didn’t even know you were still reading. 

Anyway, whenever I refer to Belgrade as my ‘home’ I get a myriad of reactions.  Some people just laugh.  Some people think it “makes sense” since we lived here for two years… and my family has stayed on for a third while I am away.  Heck, home where my family is… and frankly, wherever Serena and the boys reside is my home.  That’s simply a practical argument.  However… when it comes to Belgrade… it’s not quite as simple as being practical.

You see, when my Serbian friends catch me referring to Belgrade as “home” they’re overcome with personal pride and exude an overwhelming amount of warmth for me and my family,   (Peegee, you’re not the only one).  For me, it’s almost as if we’ve been thought of as ‘honorary’ for quite some time… and now that I think of Belgrade as home we’re being brought in on the secret. 

Regardless of what it is… besides the fact that my family currently lives here… I have come to realize that I also miss the pride and warmth of the Serbian people, and the excitement surrounding my homecoming merely reinforces my love for Belgrade.

It’s sad really.  In a few days I’ll be heading back to Pakistan for another three months or so.  But I’ll be back… I probably have another two trips back to Belgrade in me before we depart for good sometime this summer.  But when the time comes to officially say goodbye, it’s going to be sad… I really like it here.  I really like the ivar, the Serbian beans, Serbian salad, pljeskavica, kymak… the Guca Festival!... Belgrade Beer Fest!... and Niksicko Tamno!  Oh, Niksicko Tamno… I may miss you most of all!  Serena and I both agree… it’s one of the top five beers we’ve ever had:

I’m pretty sure I won’t be able to find my favorite Serbian foods and beverages in Suriname… but until the end of time, Belgrade will always be one of our homes, and we’ll be leaving with a piece in our hearts to carry always.

Who knows… when the boys are grown, I’m pretty sure we’ll come back for a visit!

Day 891: The Best Christmas Present EVER!

Ref: Day 813 & Day 849

If you’re an avid SchutzHappens reader you will know about Jo, my childhood teddy bear… who I lost, probably, twenty+ years ago.  Well… there is a happy ending.

Under the tree… in a package marked “To: Dada, From: Gray and Gilly” I found my long lost friend… and it’s been a joyous homecoming.

Day 890: SchutzHappens, November 2010, Cosmic Love

The November edition of our family video is final finished!

Day 889: Working The Day After a Holiday

Although Christmas fell on a Saturday this year… this is not always the case.  When Christmas falls mid week folks have to work the other days… or they are forced to take annual leave.  However, since these days are officially considered ‘normal’ working days someone has to go in and keep operations going.

As a Federal Employee, I am often confused by Thanksgiving.  Thanksgiving, traditionally a four day weekend for most is merely a random Thursday off for us.  A holiday declared by a President and specifically placed on a Thursday to give retailers Black Friday… to stimulate the economy and kick off the Christmas buying season… yet, federal employees are not given that day off.

Well… yeah… having worked the on holidays and the day after holidays many times… my friends over at Disney have captured the true spirit of a ‘productive' post holiday working day.

Day 888: A Partridge in a Pear Tree

Merry Christmas from everyone here at SchutzHappens!  Love JP, Serena, Grayson, Gilliam, and Vader

Day 887: Two Turtle Doves

Christmas Eve just would be complete without Christmas Lights.  This is my favorite from the batch uploaded to youtube from last Christmas.

Day 886: Three French Hens

A SchutzHappens Christmas wouldn’t be complete without a visit from Emmy Award winning actor Jim Parsons.  Unfortunately I can’t embed this video… but the scene is so classic I’m including the link anyway.

A little background... Earlier in the episode, Penny decided that everyone should exchange Christmas presents.  Sheldon became obsessed with giving Penny a gift of equal dollar value in return, so to be prepared, he bought every conceivable size of gift basket from Bath & Body Works.  His plan was to receive Penny’s gift, fake a bathroom emergency, Google the retail value of Penny’s gift, present her with the appropriate gift basket, and then return the rest to Bath & body Works the following day… and that’s all you need to know.

(If you don’t want ‘The Big Bang Theory’… you should).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlhHTdDqoBc

Day 885: Four Calling Birds

Day 884: Five Golden Rings

Happy Birthday to Serena, my love!  Serena absolutely adores operatic style Christmas music… and I love food courts, which is why our marriage works.  And why this video is the perfect mix of what we each bring to our relationship:

Day 883: Six Geese a-Laying

Day 882: Seven Swans a-Swimming

I never heard of these guys until they were on the Amazing Race.  This father son comedy team is pretty darn funny.

Day 881: Eight Maids a-Milking

Day 880: Nine Ladies Dancing

Day 879: Ten Lords a-Leaping

Day 878: Eleven Pipers Piping

Day 876: Twelve Drummers Drumming

Last year on December 14^th I posted the following performance of ‘The Twelve Days of Christmas’ by Straight No Chasers.  A few hours later it dawned on me… I had unintentionally posted the video 12 days before Christmas. 

Although I am fully aware that the actually 12 days mark the time from Christmas to the Epiphany (when the Wise Men delivered their gifts to the baby Jesus), I thought it would be fun to count down the day UNTIL Christmas with entertaining videos to help everyone get in the mood.  So I quickly changed the title of my post to ‘Twelve Drummers Drumming’ and well… you get the idea.

So, in honor of the Second Annual SchutzHappens Twelve Days of Christmas-A-Thon I can think of no better way to kick off the year than with last year’s post that started it all.

Merry Christmas everybody!

Day 876: Potty Pals

Day 875: Final Destination – Home (Belgrade)

Finally!  Home sweet home… er… yep… That’s my Belgrade!

Day 874: Layover - Frankfurt

Between Frankfurt and Munich I have probably flow through Germany five times… however, I’ve never actually left a German airport.  Which KILLS me… my name is Schutz for the love of everything holy!

The only thing I can tell you about Germany is that Munich is one of the best airports to fly through… and Frankfurt is one of the worst.

However… the good people at Lonely Planet have shown me a much more positive side to Frankfurt… a side outside the walls of airport madness.

Day 873: Layover - Dubai

You know?  Traveling is rough.  It’s going to take about 18 hours to get from Islamabad to Belgrade… but, honestly, that’s not going to be too bad.  The worst part about traveling like this is that you end up in some of the most amazing cities in the world and you never see anything outside the airport.  On my trip home I will have two layovers in cities I’ve never had the pleasure to explore.

Dubai looks spectacular!

Day 872: Open Letter to DigitalDropbox.com

My first R&R is upon us and you know what that means… while I’m away, SchutzHappens will be a little less substance and little more fluff.  Or, as I like to call it, ‘the usual’.

However, before I board my plane, I would like to take a quick moment and thank www.digitaldropbox.com. 

Disclaimer, I am in no way affiliated with digitaldropbox.com.  Sure, I would like to have a corporate sponsor, but Microsoft didn’t even stop by to say ‘hi’ after I declared Word SchutzHappens official work processor.  So, I have ZERO expectations.  I just want to tell you about a service that ROCKS!

Anyway, for those of you living abroad… or away from your families, digitaldropbox.com is a life saver, especially when it’s time for me to put together our monthly family music videos. 

When I first arrived in Pakistan, we weren’t even sure if we’d be able to maintain our videos.  How in the world would Serena get me her pictures and videos? 

Due to how slow our mail service is, mailing CDs was out of the question (it would take two months to get to me).

So, Serena tried sending me links to digital photo albums via Picasa and Facebook.  These services are great for sharing albums, but terribly time consuming for retrieving and downloading photos (I would have to blowup each individual thumbnail and initiate separate downloads for each photo).  Plus, it was hard to share our videos, in a format I could easily download, using these services.

After that, I set-up an account of www.photobucket.com.  I really thought we were going to like this service.  You can create photo albums and then bulk download every picture and video compressed in a zip file.   It worked really great the first time… except our free photobucket.com account would only allow us to post 500 MB at a time.  In many cases, Serena wasn’t able to upload all of our pictures and videos at one time.  I would have to log on, download everything, purge all of our files on the website, and then tell Serena she could upload the rest.  The second month I was here she had enough material for three separate transactions.   That’s just too much to coordinate.

And, I know what you’re probably thinking, “why didn’t you upgrade to photobuckets unlimited space account?”  Well, that’s a good question.  First, I’m never going to join or upgrade anything unless I like the product.  Second, Serena and I had nothing but problems uploading and downloading to photobucket.com.  Numerous times, Serena would start an upload before going to bed and it would only be 50% complete the next morning.  In turn, I would constantly receive error messages while trying to initiate a bulk download.  It was just a mess.  The technical issues weren’t worth gambling with an upgrade.

Finally, I found digitaldropbox.com.  It looked good on paper and the free account allowed for 2 Gigs worth of space… so we gave it a shot and quickly fell in love. 

It’s so easy!  Serena and I downloaded a very simple piece of software that behaves like a normal folder, not unlike the ‘my documents’ folder… except it’s called ‘my dropbox’.  Then, through the website, we linked our dropboxes together so they mirrored each other.

Now, whenever I save a file to ‘my dropbox’ folder the file is automatically sent to Serena’s ‘dropbox’ folder… and vice versa.  So, to send me her pictures and videos every month all she needs to do is save them… she doesn’t have a initiate an upload or organize them in anyway… just save them.  And, as long as we’re both connected to the internet, in a matter of minutes digitaldropbox will pop on with a message, ‘now acquiring new files’… and then it will immediate begin running in the background until it has successful transferred all the files.  It doesn’t even matter if I lose my internet connection or turn my computer off… the process will continue where it left off automatically once the connection is restored. 

Anyway, we’ve used this service for three months now without a single issue.  It works the way it’s supposed to every time… and that seem pretty remarkable in this day and age.

In close, I just want to say ‘thank you’ to digitaldropbox for bringing a family a little closer together. 

Huh… I know there’s an ad campaign in there somewhere, ;)

Talk to you guys when I get back!

Day 871: Bodhi Day

Today is Bodhi Day, the Buddhist days of reflection commemorating Siddhartha Gautauma’s enlightenment, at which time he became known as Buddha.

I had a hard time finding a video providing more details… this is the best I could find:

Day 890: Football, the Amazing Bane of My Existence

In the past I’ve shared my addiction to professional football.  But that hasn’t always been the case.  Honestly… I hated football for a very long time.

My parents grew up being Baltimore Colts fans, but when my father was transferred to Atlanta (where I was born) they never really followed their team.  And when the Colts moved to Indianapolis, any respect they had for the game was lost.  So, for the most part, I grew up in a football free household.

That is until my brother joined the High School Marching Band.

In Cobb County, Georgia, High School Marching Bands are a big deal.  Bands from Cobb County consistently compete at the national level in the Bands of America circuit… often times winning divisional and regional titles.  In 1992, I actually marched with Pope High School to a Southern Regional Title (the first time a Cobb County school ever won a Bands of America title of any kind).  Check it out the first movement… I actually found our winning performance on YouTube.  I’m the dude playing the trumpet, actually at the 1:08 minute mark I’m standing on the 40 yard line in the inverted triangle:

In 1998 and 2002 Cobb County’s Lassiter High School won the Bands of America National Title.  And this year, I was very pleased to hear that Cobb’s Kell High School (a program that is only eight years old) not only won the Bands of American Southern Regional Championship… but, they also won the Bands of American Mid-Eastern Regional Championship (the only Cobb school to win two regional titles in the same year.)

Anyway… it goes without saying, but I love High School Marching Bands… but, I don’t like the fact High School Marching Bands have to perform at football games… because if there is one thing in this world that I don’t love… it’s High School Football.  And for seven years I was subjected to High School Football week after week.  Plus, the fact that an average Cobb County Marching Bands normally has a more successful season than an average Cobb County Football team never helped my ability to enjoy the game.

Then, in 1989, our family focus on football shifted from high school to college when my brother started at Georgia Tech.  Of course, he joined the marching band, and of course, my parents and I went to every game to support him.  Now, I love my brother and it was great to have the opportunity to see him… but I don’t really like college football either.  Even all these years later… I don’t really understand the Polls and the BCS computer used to rank all the teams.  I never really understood all the hype… College football is simply unclear to me… from every angle. 

So finally, after nine years of attending football games that I didn’t care about, in the winter of 1994… I quit marching band, I stopped going to football games, and I attended a college without a football team.

However, little did I know… five years later, football would reenter my life with a vengeance.

Now, I know I’ve told this part of the story before, but I will tell it again for those of you who are new and don’t have time to read the archives, but just before the start of the 1998 season, my roommates and I lamented over the fact that we didn’t follow a football team… being dudes… we figured it was time to give it a shot. 

So, we decided to pick one team and follow that one team fanatically for the entire season win or lose.  We ended up picking a team all three of use grew up with in one way or another… a team not known for being all that great… we picked a team that had only made it to the playoffs five times in their thirty-two year history… we were gluttons for punishment… because we picked the Atlanta Falcons.  Little did we know…

That season we fanatically cheered the Atlanta Falcons on to their second Division Title in franchise history.  We cheered them through the playoffs and to their first ever Conference Title… and we cheered with all of our hearts as the Atlanta Falcon played (and lost) in their first ever Super Bowl berth.  It was a magical season.  And from that point on I was hooked.

And now, twelve years later… I am still a raging Falcons fan.  And this year, I am beaming with pride as the Atlanta Falcons have achieved two new milestones. 

While the Baltimore Ravens and Atlanta Falcons played on the evening of November 8^th… I was arriving to work on November 9^th.  Upon my arrival my boss called out to me, “Hey JP!  You’re Falcon’s are on TV playing one hell of a game, get your ass in here.”  It pays to have a supervisor who loves football as much as I do… and there we were… on a Friday morning in Pakistan… watching the Falcons narrowly beat the Ravens. 

But, this single game has much more significance to a Falcons fan.  First, since beating the Ravens, the Falcons have maintained their first place standing in their conference.  I can’t say for sure, but I believe this is the first time they have every led their conference during regular season play.  Second, for the first time in franchise history, after beating the Ravens, the Atlanta Falcons were the number one team in the NFL.  This only lasted for a few days… they are now in third place… but I am so incredibly proud of my team for their achievements, regardless of their ability to maintain.

GO FALCONS!

Day 869: Yet Another Reason to Support Toys for Tots!

Reports: Marine helping Toys for Tots stabbed

Staff report
Posted : Friday Nov 26, 2010 16:40:18 EST

A Marine was stabbed Friday in Augusta, Ga., while assisting with the annual Toys for Tots holiday drive, according to television station reports.

Police told television station WRDW that Tracy Attaway, 39, fought with several customers in a local electronics retailer, the station reported on its website. During the incident, a Marine was injured and taken to a local hospital, according to the report.

Television station WAGT identified the Marine as Cpl. Phillip Duggan. The station said Duggan was taken to Eisenhower Army Medical Center at nearby Fort Gordon after being stabbed in the back.

Police told WRDW that Attaway attempted to take cameras and a laptop from the store.

-Marine Corp Times 

Day 868: Parkas and Pot… and a Little More Pot… okay… A Lot of Pot

You know?  It’s actually starting to cool off a bit and it’s really nice.  During the day we’re averaging temperatures in the middle to high 70s and at night it’s actually dipping into the 40s.  I love it.  We’re having beautifully comfortable days and cozy nights perfect for curling up under a blanket to watch a movie… if only Serena and they boys were available to cuddle.

Now, I’ll admit, temperatures in the 40s are cold.  Being a southern boy from the States, I normally break out my Member’s Only Jacket once daytime temps start dipping into the low 60s or 50s… and I’ll probably dig out a more substantial winter coat once daytime temperatures are consistently in the 40s.

The key word here is ‘daytime’.  Low temperatures, of course, occur in the middle of the night.  Normally between 2 and 4am.  Although it dips into the 40s here… by the time 8 or 9am rolls around, we’re back up in the 60s… and by lunch time the 70s.  Sure, a light jacket might be in order some morning… but not often.

That said, I am amazed at the number of people wearing Parka’s in the middle of the afternoon over here… and this trend started about a month ago when daytime temperatures were still in the 80s.  Now, Serena wasn’t surprised at all.  When she lived in Kenya, it was very common for locals to bundle up when the temperatures dropped in the slightest ways… but Kenya lies in the torrid/tropical climate zone.  Islamabad lies in the temperate climate zone… and more importantly, Islamabad falls on the 33^rd parallel.  Do you know what other city falls on the 33^rd parallel?  My home town… Atlanta, Georgia.  Discovering that piece of trivia was eye opening to me.  Especially the fact that Islamabad sits at a much higher elevation as Atlanta… which would suggest lower temperatures… but it’s hotter here and culturally folks are much less equipped to handle cooler weather.

Beyond wearing Parka’s in the middle of the afternoon, once the sun goes down it is very common for locals to light fires for additional warmth.  These fires with rage throughout the night… and by morning the city is pretty thick with smoke… and my clothes often smell like I’ve even been roasting marshmallows all night... er… more like ‘baking’ marshmallows… if you catch my drift… wink-wink nudge-nudge.    

Hmmm… that joke may have gone over your head, let me explain.

You see, to fuel these fires, local Pakistani’s will burn anything lying around… wood… brush… weeds… weed… did I mention weed?  Grass, ghanja, Indiana ditchweed, pot… or let me be more specific: marijuana.

Now, I’ve never been into drugs… but I did go to college… and I studied theatre… so, I would be lying if I said I didn’t know what pot smelled like… and folks… in the wintertime… Pakistan smells like pot.  A lot of pot.  It’s pot city up in here.

From the moment I wake up in the morning to the time I go to bed at night, its pot, pot, pot.    Seriously… Californians should move here.  This entire city has to be on one giant contact high… which would explain why I’m always hungry. 

Dang it!  I just want a box of Girl Scout cookies!  Is that really too much to ask for?!?

Day 867: The Talk

Day 866: Harvard Quidditch Team?

So… um… yeah… So, I’m a self admitted ‘nerd’… although, being a former actor and avid griller, I prefer the word ‘geek’.  Geeks , of course, are known for their theatrical abilities, as well as, their prowess for preparing meats… like chicken.

Now, since the jury has been out for quite some time… I think I’ve finally figured out why I never went to Harvard or any other Ivy League school (although College of Charleston was considered Ivy League once upon a time… a long… long… time ago).  Anyway, besides my subpar SAT score and dismal High School GPA, I have recently discovered the real reason I wasn’t Ivy League ready: I’m not nearly nerdy enough.

  I know!  How could that be?  I’m uberGeek!  I love Star Wars and Harry Potter!  BUT, you will never…. I repeat, you will NEVER catch me playing Muggle Quidditch:

(BTW: My favorite part of this video is the two guys at the end in the ‘Harvard’ chant circle.  The look on their faces says it all: ‘This is way better than home economics.’)

Day 865: Gilliam & Skype, Part 2

To continue with yesterday’s theme, skyping with Gilliam is just as special as skyping with Grayson. 

Gilliam was only 6 months old when I left for Pakistan, so having a chance to interact with him every day is priceless.  I’m always greeted with a warm smile and a wave.  He’s calling me ‘Da’ now… and tries to give me kisses on the screen.  Which are just as awesome as the ‘computer hugs’ Grayson and I exchange.  And our patented ‘I love you’ hand squeeze.

Gilliam is just an awesome boy… if you’re following our monthly music videos you’ll see some of my perspective of watching him crawl for the first time and now cruise around tables.  I can’t wait to see him and I think skype is doing wonders to curb any unfamiliar feelings he might have about me when I get home for Christmas.

Now… the thing with Gilliam and Skype is that he’s always trying to get closer to me (the computer) and as his arms flail around he hits keys at random.  At least once every conversation Gilliam inadvertently opens some feature of Serena’s laptop that she’s never seen before… and then Serena is forced to figure out what it is and how to turn it off.  The best is when Gilliam changed the setting on her webcam to show her desktop instead of them.  I ended up staring at myself in skype from their perspective.  It was really funny. 

Also, if you are familiar with skype, there is an instant message feature that runs in tandem with the video chat.  Which is AWESOME!  Because we can talk about Christmas openly around Grayson, but type what the actual present ideas are.  Now, Gilliam also likes this feature.  When we video chat, I will get a lot of instant messages that look like, “lsdkhSlkasb3441”.  Very cute… well… it gets cuter.

The other day Serena and I were talking about my upcoming R&R… my departure date is getting closer and closer.  And we’re both VERY excited.  Serena started joking around and saying, “I wish you could come home now.  I want to go to dinner with my husband!  Now!  Now!”  Then Gilliam sent me an inadvertent message that read, ‘sasa.’  Serena started to laugh hysterically.  “That’s right Gilly, send Dada home now!”

You seem confused… well, I was at first too… but I figured it out.  ‘Sasa’ is Kiswahili for ‘Now’.  Remember, Serena is fluent in Kiswahili.

Sasa, Now… I’ll be home as soon as I can!

Oh!  BTW: Happy First day of Hanukkah everyone!

PS: Pauline… no, I haven’t finished ‘The Chair’… yet.  I left off with Costello’s flight being diverted.