"And this is good old Boston,
The home of the beans and the cod,
Where the Lowells talk only to Cabots,
And the Cabots talk only to God."
-Harvard University Toast
I work for an Airline and if lucky, get to fly at low cost if there is an empty seat. So last October, Donna and I wanted to go visit with my sister and some falling leaves in Southern New Hampshire so we sauntered to Terminal C at Raleigh Durham Airport one morning and awaited flight. During the relaxing afterglow of the TSA inspection station, we ran into Stephanie and Adam Parken with their delightful one year old child, Everett. We know them through our friend, Kristen Symank (See Get Shorty-2009 post). When God wants to introduce a gentle smile in your life, He introduces you to Kristen or someone just like her...so Adam and Steph come highly recommended.
Steph was going to Texas to visit family and Adam got a gate pass to assist in transport; his help was needed since Steph was pregnant with another child. As I watched them with Everett I could see that if parenting skills were measured against athletic grace then Steph and Adam would reside on the ark of a Ted Williams' swing of the bat. The Parkens were natural at it and the world will only get better with a new addition under their tutelage.
We bid adieu and went to our different gates. They left, we didn't. At takeoff Donna and I were on the wrong side of the jet bridge door for the 7:15am through JFK, the 9am through Washington and the 10:25 through Chicago. I opened the new Michael Connelly mystery, then closed it and had an epiphany! I could help Adam and Steph give their new child a name! The fact that I don't know them well shouldn't be an impediment...I'm sure they will be thrilled. They can now devote all their time and effort toward little Everett and their new baby!
Given thought, most names have become too mundane, too, well, known. I always thought it would be interesting to name a child after a "thing" instead of a person. It opens up a lot of lanes. Architectural?: Chrysler(building), Empire (State Building), or Golden (Gate)...or perhaps a natural resource: Grand (Canyon), Lake (Michigan), or Missouri (Breaks). No? Not highfalutin enough? How about naming her after an S&P corporation? Proctor, Gamble, Microsoft, or Kubota (tractor)? No?
I liked the idea of a multi-national corporation though, but let's get classy. Name her after a European bourses listing: Peugeot?...ugly car design...Rio for Rio Tinto?...yes, I like that except they are currently immersed in a scandal. Too bad, Rio would be nice and also hit several name categories to boot.
What to do. Then it hit me. How about Everette? Since they had an Everett (boy), and probably getting a girl, Everette...they would be a matching pair. Think of the money they could save in initialed clothing. Aren't I good! Everette it is!
Yes?
No, No, No. It is a horrible idea! Everette - would inevitably be mispronounced as "Eva-ret" which sounds like an experimental drug in its third week of FDA trials. Besides, what if Steph, Adam, or both develop speech impediments in later life. Couldn't you just hear Steph yell to the kids from the kitchen, "Ava-ret don't forget to wear the pink shoes with the blue dress." Too much money from Everett's 529 college fund would have to be diverted for therapy.
Then it hit me! From now on all children should have two names; one "written" and one "spoken". Look at the name, Everette. Doesn't it look grand on the page - almost poetic? Look how the letters live well together in print. I just can't give it up. Everette conjures up a romantic notion not observed since Evangeline, the epic tone poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow that chronicled the forced move of Canadians to Louisiana during the French and Indian Wars in the early 1700s. Perhaps some erstwhile Longfellow years from now will write about Everette, a tale involving celestial truth and maybe some intergalactic space zombies. You never know.
So they can name the new baby whatever spoken name they like (anything from Sara to Snappy works for me), but I hope they take Everette as the written name under serious advisement.
Donna and I never made it to Boston. No empty seats. I guess the Lowells and Cabots were having a family reunion.
I wonder what their first names were?
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Friday, January 7, 2011
I LIKE IKE: Travels 2010, South Dakota
Just put a tire in each corner of my parents' lives and they knew bliss. My father received two weeks vacation every summer and in one of those weeks my parents would motor my sister and me through New England and the Mid-Atlantic states. As soon as we hit the road, their demeanor would lighten and take on the joy of expectation, even though as kids we were, well, bored. For them it wasn't about seeing, it was about movement. Jack Kerouac, the author of On the Road, could write about, "What is that feeling when you're driving away from people and they recede on the plain till you see their specks dispersing?...But we lean forward to the next crazy venture beneath the skies." My parents would second that, right after they stopped at a Stuckey's or HoJo for lunch and gas; then go.
Dwight Eisenhower, when he was Supreme Allied Commander during WWII, was impressed with the autobahn system in Germany which allowed them rapid movement of interior lines of defense those highways afforded them. When elected President in the 50s, Ike replaced our patchwork of roads with a federal interstate highway system. Thinking about it, this act was the his most lasting legacy and the last time a a President did something that affected everyday people. (Jimmy Carter you say? You could be right, the first of 24 military satellites were launched in the Carter Administration hereby ensuring everyone's security from nuclear attack in the latter 20th Century...and more importantly technology that led to the GPS. Men never, ever had to ask for directions again.)
So it was inevitable that when my father retired from the shipyard in the late 60s, he and my mother drove from sea to shining sea, way past the mileage allotment of a summers' week. They took two months. When they returned I asked my father what part of the country he liked best: Rocky Mountains, Pacific Northwest, high deserts of the Southwest? He always answered the same, "The Black Hills of South Dakota." The Black Hills of South Dakota? what did I miss? So after 40 years, I decided to find out.
Donna and I took a connecting flight through Chicago then westward to Rapid City. The flight was uneventful. If I had read Flying for Dummies, I would have learned not to accidentally pack the book and newspaper in the checked bag. But I didn't so I did. The time was spent perusing the latest Skymall magazine from the plane's front pocket ("X5 Hair Laser - the Next Generation! It's all over the news media! Only $299.95....Temple and eye Massager. An air bag massager that expands and contract around the eye socket! All for only $149.95!) Whoever said it was the journey and not the destination was never stuck in a plane for 3 hours with Skymall.
Upon flight approach we saw strings of hills in deep shadow fronted by vast, green open spaces and a sense of infinity and space you only feel west of the Mississippi. It was as if when God created our country's topography, East to West, He reached half-way, stopped, then remembered to give us a sense of wonder and the never ending...God must be getting older just like the rest of us.
But give us a sense of wonder He did. East of the Mississippi, dirt has definition. Every meadow has an end. Even if we cannot see it over the rise, we sense the far side of it. In the East, a stand of trees is a complete stand of trees that is to be admired within its space, but not much is left to the imagination. The West gives a sense we are one grain of sand on an endless beach, a small part of God's creation, and somehow that knowledge gives comfort and humility because we know we are part of something large. In South Dakota there are gentle sloping folds of pastures dotted with an occasional Jericho tree and meandering cattle - all garnishments on nature's entree; just miles of space between between the Badlands to the South and Black Hills to the North. We only get that sense of vastness in the East when we are close to an ocean.
Donna and I admired the honesty of the place. No town had more than two syllables in its name; Lead, Custer, Deadwood, and Spearfish, etc. Most people we ran into knew only friendly persuasion and not argument. Isn't it always interesting that people are the nicest and friendliest in areas where they are least in number? Why is that? We've always found North Carolina folks friendly, but even the Tar Hells don't strike up conversations with strangers in restaurants who are a table away. They do in South Dakota. And speaking of restaurants, we were expecting that fine dining would involve the distribution of paper napkins instead of instruction to use your sleeve, but we found some great eats thanks to our friends jack and Anita Marshall who went a month before and dutifully took great notes for us.
Yes, we saw Mount Rushmore. A very impressive work of art, but what most impressed us was the area the "Presidents" were located. This area of the Black Hills is (and was) considered sacred ground to the Lakota Sioux Indians; a spiritual place they used for burial grounds. Life is not fair. If the Indian Wars in the late 18th Century had a different result, the Lakota may have gone in and paved over Arlington Cemetery and put up some grand totem poles, so Donna and I admired the sculptures, but not the chosen location.
On the last day we were on a road that cut through gulches and ascending spurs from Deadwood to Rapid City and came upon a most delightful sight. Above the road, the Hills were covered with clouds that skirted the hilly apexes and afforded the meadows a birthing room for rainbows - a lot of rainbows. We stopped counting at 8. Some spanned miles and some spanned no more than 100 yards. Goodness we even saw a double rainbow! Never have seen anything like it, even in Hawaii.
So why did my father like the Black Hills so much? They don't have the majesty of the Rockies or the artistic epiphany realized when sunlight plays against the complicated shadows of the Grand Canyon. They looked no different that the White Mountains of New Hampshire or the Green Mountains of Vermont - just shorter. What gives? My guess is that my father liked the Black Hills because it was really the first inkling of what was to come as my parents drove further West. The ride from New England to the lower Mid-West provides some scenery of interest, but not great interest. The Dakotas invite change and a glimpse of the wonders to come. Kind of like focusing only on a small finger of Mount Rainier outside Seattle, then looking up and realizing the whole magnificent Mountain.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Happy 2011!!
I hope you and I have a very smooth, blissful, and virtuous year, but between you and me - we know that's not going to happen. It never does and probably is not supposed to. During this year the windows of life will at times fog up and have scratches on them. Sometimes we will loose direction because we close our eyes. Sometimes we will walk unexpectedly into life's sharp elbows, other times the injuries will be a matter of self-infliction.
But there can be times of beauty. Ms. Cassidy is no longer with us, but while she was here on earth you can tell that her heart had a good talking to with her voice. For us, during the in-betweens of healing, I hope and pray that you and I, like Ms. Cassidy, can see the beauty and good in life.
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Now Let Us Praise Famous People
Someone said to me yesterday, "Seasons Greetings" and I immediately wondered what I had ever done to them? It seems that as children we enjoyed Christmas immensely (for all the wrong reasons), then had to pay for it the rest of our lives. What? You think I'm about to start on some self-absorbed rant about how stressful life is and particularly the Christmas season? That I should just man-up, relax, and find meaning? Well, Mister, I have two questions for you. Haven't you read any of my previous posts? And when exactly did you retire?
Wasn't this supposed to get better and easier as we get older? Every year I reach a point of maximum frustration. Too much to do, not enough time to do it. Through the years I've tried every play in the playbook against the nickel defense we call "Christmas". It is 4th down, 18 yards to go and on top of everything else, all the outside Christmas decorations are not up yet; I'm the last one in the neighborhood...as usual.
Why do we celebrate Christmas at the end of the year? Most jobs I've had called this season the fiscal fourth quarter, setting up budgets for the next year, wondering where the money would come from, wondering if lay-offs would occur, or how meager the salary increases would be. Add year end personal tax planning to the mix and the angst that comes with trying to figure out the dreaded schedule D form. If we want to have wars with less casualties, we just need to threaten the offending country with the implementation of our tax code if we are victorious. Don't send a written act of war, send a schedule D.
And shopping. Not my favorite activity. I was just in a Target today and they moved everything. How could they do this to me! What was in the front of the store last year (make that two years ago - I was in recovery last year - the best Christmas ever!)is now in the back and the goods in the back I couldn't find because now they the sell food! It gets worse. After the shopping comes the strangest practice ever: I married into a family that gift wraps presents - so now we have to wrap everything. Didn't anyone think this through? We wrap so someone can tear the wrapping off and get to the gift which would be easier if it had not been wrapped. The Mullen house never wrapped; if my mother saw wrapping paper in a store, she would probably think the rolls would make for colorful shelf lining. But not Donna's family. On Christmas day, I'll bet if Donna's mother asked for a life saver, someone would run upstairs and gift wrap it with a bow.
And worship: the most meaningful aspect of Christmas. Let's see - I get off work at 4:30pm, make it to church by 5pm, then show up on time (7pm) to the "once a year family Christmas Eve if anyone is late the Holiday is ruined dinner."
God disappointed us. Why was he born in December?
Isn't there anyway to salvage this" Joan Didion said that time is the school life uses to educate us. Can I get my time back? If someone told me that I would wake up dead tomorrow, what thoughts would ride the night? Would I be full of "if only?" If only I took those 2 inches off my waist (OK, 4 inches), if only I saw the horses run at Sienna, if only I had been able to impress one important person, if only I had been a better husband and father, if only my mind was filled with highfalutin thoughts? If only I had more time.
Well maybe...maybe not. I think the answer for finding value in life, at least for me, may lie with some guys I met two weeks ago Saturday in Fuquay-Varina. The three guys, Ken, Tim, and Jack are friends of Larry the bee guy (See last post, Burn Notice). They spend their Saturday's cutting, splitting, stacking, and then delivering firewood through the auspices of the local food bank to families in the area. I forget if they said they had made 120 deliveries or delivered to 120 families, but their effort is consistent and impressive. I don't know them, but they worked with ease and without fanfare. I doubt if they had a notion of "good work", i.e., I'm now going to do "good work." I sensed their charity was part of them, natural, like breathing.
Marc Clark, picture above, has also assimilated God's intention into his life. Marc, in his spare time, helped work on a Habitat for Humanity house in Sanford. He and many others worked on the house over a long period of time. I know Marc and know that he shares the wood guys' sensibilities. His sense of purpose and charity is not second nature to him. It is his first nature.
There are many people like Marc, Ken, Tim, and Jack. They have driven God's van full of charity and love, parked it in their respective driveways, removed the wheels and put the van up on blocks making it a permanent part of the property...and of them.
We (I) can learn a lot from them.
Monday, November 8, 2010
Burn Notice
I've never lost a person for 20 years. I lost my wedding ring once. I put it down someplace, the ring not the person, while I was doing some repair and, well, misplaced it. Wife Donna told me I should never loose the ring...or else; so I never told her and she always seemed to be pre-occupied with something very important whenever I was about to bring it up. I didn't want to burden her. I'm a caring person.
I eventually found the wedding ring just where I left it - two house moves later. It was in the top drawer of a toolbox under some screw drivers, so I guess you can say it was never missing, just misplaced. Same with the person.
Gene Burns had the premier talk radio program when I lived in Boston back in the 80s. There were many talk radio programs in Boston, but his was by far the best. It has been said that the major preoccupation of Bostonians is "politics and revenge" and "revenge" not only took a back seat; it spent a lot of time locked in the trunk. A minor political appointment on the Board of, say, Parks and Recreation gave life to more animated conversation and discernment of twisted motivations than an overcrowded lifeboat in a very stormy sea. And that would be just the first day.
Gene Burns was a master at lifting discussion of those events to a higher level. His knowledge of government and mastery of common sense, mixed with a zest for life pushed his show several rungs above all others. His political slant was libertarian and had in fact run for President in the Libertarian Party. You would have to ask him the finer points of libertarianism, but if the platform of the party took on the shape of interior decoration then I think the walls would be white, sans doors, windows, furniture, or drapes (nihilism on the other hand would be painted black and any entrants would be required to wear a blindfold). His familiarity with the Constitution, Bill of Rights, and the Federalist Papers made listeners bring their "A game" to the calls. One would think James Madison and Thomas Jefferson were in the next room on a smoke break and could be beckoned at any moment. Gene also discussed things of narrow interest, but with such skill and affability that he engaged his listening audience. I remember one time he spent three hours talking about photography (before digital); not an easy thing to do on the radio, and he had the listeners' attention from beginning to end. Lastly, he was not doctrinaire and at times would change his position on an issue after listening to callers' differing points of view. Imagine that! In short, he created a forum where opposite ideas could shake hands.
I'm not sure when he left Boston, I left in 1990. I found out he went to San Francisco to radio station KGO, but pre-internet, pre-computer, I lost track. Every once in awhile, on certain issues, I wondered what he thought and if his diastolic possessed a comma, but without web casting I never knew. On a recent search, the KGO website now allows us to listen to his program. Give it a try if you like superb radio.
Here's How:
-Goggle "KGO"
-click on "810am"
-click "On Air" then scroll down to "Gene Burns"
-Find "Gene Burns daily podcasts", click "listen"
-If you need to download the supporting player, take that option.
I must say I was surprised how much he has mellowed. I haven't listened enough to hear if he has changed many fundamental positions, but even if he has - so be it. Changing seats in the political area can sometimes afford a better view of the fireworks.
Mr. Burns is a two-fer. If you give him a try you may just learn (like me) that the "Reserve Clause" is not your favorite restaurant's reservation policy. And if it applies, you may learn something else as well.
I don't want to overdo this, but I think his show provides for many of us some needed purchase into community. TV was hailed as a "global village" back in the 60's, an expectation it could never realize. TV is a wonderful and valuable medium, but not an interactive one. Radio, although not perfect, can let us ride the ripples of conversation and for some of us, an entree into something larger than ourselves. Talk radio is not therapy, a substitute for companionship nor should it comprise a large part of our lives, but it can be a purpose for good. It can forge connection or at least be a condiment for that connection.
Again, I don't want to overdo this, but at times I think we Americans (meaning me: I try to remember CS Lewis admonition to look in the mirror before you look out the window) tend toward the solitary, and at other times toward comity. In other lives I've led, the solitary was usually dominant. I didn't have other people's voices in my life. I'd work among people all day, go home at night and keep my own company. My choice...except when the loneliness visited and settled in for the night then self worth and value gets questioned. I had a feeling I was a character in an Edward Hopper painting. I was of life, but not in life. Like the usher in Hopper's New York Movie painting. This is the time when you may may want to turn off the TV, turn on the radio, talk to God, and talk to another person - get connected to something outside yourself, something bigger than yourself. Now I am out several nights a week - with other people! There were past times in my life when that would be as unlikely as seeing a nun dressed in full tunic and scapular seated in the 2nd row of a World Federation Mixed Martial Arts cage fight, but you just never know.
The opposite of me is my friend Larry Williams of Fuquay-Varina. His avocation is beekeeping. Can you think of a more solitary endeavor? I don't think the bees hold up their end of the conversation too much, but Larry likes people. He enlists friends to help him harvest (harvest?) the honey; bottle, then sell at the local Farmers' Market. He is past President of the NC Beekeepers Association and goes to meetings on a regular basis. Very social. Larry will love Gene Burns! They will be like two bees in a pod.
There are a lot Grumpys and a lot of Larrys in the country - we can both benefit listening to Mr Burns with his curiosity of all things and a willingness to share. He is good at what he does and as my friend Judi Gaitens said...the nature of good is to give itself away.
I think even the nun in the 2nd row may agree with that.
I eventually found the wedding ring just where I left it - two house moves later. It was in the top drawer of a toolbox under some screw drivers, so I guess you can say it was never missing, just misplaced. Same with the person.
Gene Burns had the premier talk radio program when I lived in Boston back in the 80s. There were many talk radio programs in Boston, but his was by far the best. It has been said that the major preoccupation of Bostonians is "politics and revenge" and "revenge" not only took a back seat; it spent a lot of time locked in the trunk. A minor political appointment on the Board of, say, Parks and Recreation gave life to more animated conversation and discernment of twisted motivations than an overcrowded lifeboat in a very stormy sea. And that would be just the first day.
Gene Burns was a master at lifting discussion of those events to a higher level. His knowledge of government and mastery of common sense, mixed with a zest for life pushed his show several rungs above all others. His political slant was libertarian and had in fact run for President in the Libertarian Party. You would have to ask him the finer points of libertarianism, but if the platform of the party took on the shape of interior decoration then I think the walls would be white, sans doors, windows, furniture, or drapes (nihilism on the other hand would be painted black and any entrants would be required to wear a blindfold). His familiarity with the Constitution, Bill of Rights, and the Federalist Papers made listeners bring their "A game" to the calls. One would think James Madison and Thomas Jefferson were in the next room on a smoke break and could be beckoned at any moment. Gene also discussed things of narrow interest, but with such skill and affability that he engaged his listening audience. I remember one time he spent three hours talking about photography (before digital); not an easy thing to do on the radio, and he had the listeners' attention from beginning to end. Lastly, he was not doctrinaire and at times would change his position on an issue after listening to callers' differing points of view. Imagine that! In short, he created a forum where opposite ideas could shake hands.
I'm not sure when he left Boston, I left in 1990. I found out he went to San Francisco to radio station KGO, but pre-internet, pre-computer, I lost track. Every once in awhile, on certain issues, I wondered what he thought and if his diastolic possessed a comma, but without web casting I never knew. On a recent search, the KGO website now allows us to listen to his program. Give it a try if you like superb radio.
Here's How:
-Goggle "KGO"
-click on "810am"
-click "On Air" then scroll down to "Gene Burns"
-Find "Gene Burns daily podcasts", click "listen"
-If you need to download the supporting player, take that option.
I must say I was surprised how much he has mellowed. I haven't listened enough to hear if he has changed many fundamental positions, but even if he has - so be it. Changing seats in the political area can sometimes afford a better view of the fireworks.
Mr. Burns is a two-fer. If you give him a try you may just learn (like me) that the "Reserve Clause" is not your favorite restaurant's reservation policy. And if it applies, you may learn something else as well.
I don't want to overdo this, but I think his show provides for many of us some needed purchase into community. TV was hailed as a "global village" back in the 60's, an expectation it could never realize. TV is a wonderful and valuable medium, but not an interactive one. Radio, although not perfect, can let us ride the ripples of conversation and for some of us, an entree into something larger than ourselves. Talk radio is not therapy, a substitute for companionship nor should it comprise a large part of our lives, but it can be a purpose for good. It can forge connection or at least be a condiment for that connection.
Again, I don't want to overdo this, but at times I think we Americans (meaning me: I try to remember CS Lewis admonition to look in the mirror before you look out the window) tend toward the solitary, and at other times toward comity. In other lives I've led, the solitary was usually dominant. I didn't have other people's voices in my life. I'd work among people all day, go home at night and keep my own company. My choice...except when the loneliness visited and settled in for the night then self worth and value gets questioned. I had a feeling I was a character in an Edward Hopper painting. I was of life, but not in life. Like the usher in Hopper's New York Movie painting. This is the time when you may may want to turn off the TV, turn on the radio, talk to God, and talk to another person - get connected to something outside yourself, something bigger than yourself. Now I am out several nights a week - with other people! There were past times in my life when that would be as unlikely as seeing a nun dressed in full tunic and scapular seated in the 2nd row of a World Federation Mixed Martial Arts cage fight, but you just never know.
The opposite of me is my friend Larry Williams of Fuquay-Varina. His avocation is beekeeping. Can you think of a more solitary endeavor? I don't think the bees hold up their end of the conversation too much, but Larry likes people. He enlists friends to help him harvest (harvest?) the honey; bottle, then sell at the local Farmers' Market. He is past President of the NC Beekeepers Association and goes to meetings on a regular basis. Very social. Larry will love Gene Burns! They will be like two bees in a pod.
There are a lot Grumpys and a lot of Larrys in the country - we can both benefit listening to Mr Burns with his curiosity of all things and a willingness to share. He is good at what he does and as my friend Judi Gaitens said...the nature of good is to give itself away.
I think even the nun in the 2nd row may agree with that.
Friday, September 24, 2010
Disturbing Thoughts
I hate this.
I hate thinking about it.
I am probably over-reacting.
Help me out.
I was part of a group that was asked to make a contribution to help feed the poor in the Caribbean, specifically Haiti. After being told many times that the organization had the highest rating from charitynavigator.com, I made out a very modest check. I have used charitynavigator to investigate worthy charities in the past and have found them to be an excellent resource. Unfortunately, and I do mean unfortunately, the website also publishes the annual salaries of the rated charity CEOs. I have stopped giving to certain charities, many of them Christian, because of (in my view) the excessive salaries of the charity heads.
God did not put me or anyone else on this planet to judge other people or their salaries, but when Jesus told Simon Peter to, "Feed my lambs", I think that command informs donations to those who do. The monitoring websites provide valuable financial information vis-a-vis administrative expenses and direct mission expenditures. Besides these figures, the only other place that can give a potential donor a clue about the Board of Directors is the salary of the CEO - so I give that weight. I was on the internet shortly after I wrote the check and for no particular reason, I checked the website. The CEO salary was $340,000.
I sent a letter to the charity requesting my donation back, never expecting to see the check again. To the organization's credit, I promptly received the check and the letter below. I have blacked out specifics in the correspondence because I have no desire to attack a particular charity on a practice that seems to be wide-spread. Besides, I admit I may be totally wrong on this so when I am driving up this avenue of inquiry I don't want to hit any innocent bystanders on the way. Charities rely on voluntary contributions, not taxpayer funds.
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"August 9,2010
Dear James,
I hope that you are well and enjoying God's peace. We are in receipt of your letter regarding the salary paid to ***our President and C.E.O. *** came to *** at a reduced salary from his previous position. He is a strong leader and was brought into our organization because of his ability to reduce costs effectively. Our Board of Directors voted on the amount of his salary when he was hired and members of the board continually evaluate his performance. According to all surveys that have been published by non-profit watchdog publications, our managing directors' salaries are well below the average of any non-profit organization of this size. Please be aware that the salary figures also include the cost of insurance and other benefits - medical, dental, long-term care, long-term disability, life, group travel and unemployment insurance, as well as 403 (b). Please also note that the Chronicle of Philanthropy has ranked *** as the **** **** in the U.S. Last year we grossed approximately $1 Billion in donations for the poor in the countries we serve, so it would be only fair to compare salaries at *** to charities of a similar size. Salaried professionals employed by *** have the necessary education, background, qualifications and management experience required to run our organization. In order to fulfill the goals of our mission, we must remain competitive in the job market in order to attract the very best people in our specialized field.
As you might imagine, because of working so closely with the poor in the 17 countries we serve, many of our employees from the very top to the bottom of the pay scale choose to support *** with financial contributions on a regular basis. They are our extended family, and it would be difficult for us not to do so. We are anxious and grateful to help the poor, and this is a voluntary and a very personal decision prayerfully made by each individual. We do respect the privacy of all donors, including ***. Because of our strict privacy policy, I cannot divulge amounts donated to our ministry by individual donors, but I can say without reservation that I am personally aware that *** has always been extremely generous to the ministry of *** over the years. In fact, he and the *** family totally supported our ministry during its 1st five years of existence.
We are very proud to report that in 2009 less than 4% of funds received were used for administrative expenses, which means that over 96% actually went to programs that help the poor. You will find that we have excellent rating with Charity Navigator, Ministry Watch and Forbes Magazine. I truly hope that I have answered your question satisfactorily and that you will seriously consider joining us in our fight against poverty. If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to contact me. I can be reached at ***. Please find your gift of *** enclosed.
May the peace of our Lord be with you.
A servant of the poor
****
Director of Donor Services"
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The Director makes some strong rhetorical arguments defending the salary. I have no argument with the CEO. I have yet to refuse any income offered to me or said, "Wow, you paid me too much last year!" Nor have I seen a sign by a store register proclaiming, "all prices as marked; non-profit workers take 30% off." We all live in the real world and contend with real world prices. No, my concern is with the Board. The compensation may be reasonable, but $340,000. per year is in the top 1% of wage earners in the US (ncpa.org: -$340,000 and up). As stated previously, many charity heads, many Christian charity heads, make a lot more money than this CEO.
I am bothered that I am bothered by these thoughts. I regard myself as an optimist, but we seem to live in a time of constant stress and events that engender cynicism. In the age of Wall Street wretched excess fueled by their Board of Directors' compensation committees, the federal government's assault on capitalism through bailouts and inept regulation, and the always lurking presence of the twin sisters of power; accommodation and lack of accountability: I admit to confusion.
And this may be my problem. When I give to a cause, I am under no illusion I am on the parapets feeding the poor. I worked with someone that in the past that had signed up an an Aid worker in Africa back in the 70s. As I remember, he intended to stay for a year, but only lasted 3 or 4 months. He told me that he never had one good night's sleep, knew he was exposing himself to unknown illness, and not always given the basic resources to do the job. His feelings about this occupied a territory between personal disappointment and begrudging pride of accomplishment. I know that when my pen moves across a check I am performing a very, very small part of the "Feed my lambs". The organizations and workers are the ones doing God's work, but the donors do play a part and my perception of that part may be the problem. When I give money, however modest, it is still my money. A donation is not like a commercial transaction - I give you money, you give me stuff: when you give me stuff, I have relinquished ownership of the money. Charities aren't like that - the donation becomes wind of the charity's sail - the donors are always there because their money is always there: no product is ever exchanged.
This point is simple and self-evident, but when I see a charity's board of directors awarding extremely high salaries I wonder if that point is forgotten. I don't believe there is malevolence in this - just human nature. I also realize that everything is relative. If I made $340,001.00 a year I would consider this CEO underpaid. So after reading the letter and some thought I was going to send back the check, but that 1% still bothered me.
Res ipsa Locquitor
I sent a check instead to Doctors Without Borders. A smaller charity, but one whose CEO makes $118,000 per year.
My thoughts are still unsettled about this.
I hate thinking about it.
I am probably over-reacting.
Help me out.
I was part of a group that was asked to make a contribution to help feed the poor in the Caribbean, specifically Haiti. After being told many times that the organization had the highest rating from charitynavigator.com, I made out a very modest check. I have used charitynavigator to investigate worthy charities in the past and have found them to be an excellent resource. Unfortunately, and I do mean unfortunately, the website also publishes the annual salaries of the rated charity CEOs. I have stopped giving to certain charities, many of them Christian, because of (in my view) the excessive salaries of the charity heads.
God did not put me or anyone else on this planet to judge other people or their salaries, but when Jesus told Simon Peter to, "Feed my lambs", I think that command informs donations to those who do. The monitoring websites provide valuable financial information vis-a-vis administrative expenses and direct mission expenditures. Besides these figures, the only other place that can give a potential donor a clue about the Board of Directors is the salary of the CEO - so I give that weight. I was on the internet shortly after I wrote the check and for no particular reason, I checked the website. The CEO salary was $340,000.
I sent a letter to the charity requesting my donation back, never expecting to see the check again. To the organization's credit, I promptly received the check and the letter below. I have blacked out specifics in the correspondence because I have no desire to attack a particular charity on a practice that seems to be wide-spread. Besides, I admit I may be totally wrong on this so when I am driving up this avenue of inquiry I don't want to hit any innocent bystanders on the way. Charities rely on voluntary contributions, not taxpayer funds.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"August 9,2010
Dear James,
I hope that you are well and enjoying God's peace. We are in receipt of your letter regarding the salary paid to ***our President and C.E.O. *** came to *** at a reduced salary from his previous position. He is a strong leader and was brought into our organization because of his ability to reduce costs effectively. Our Board of Directors voted on the amount of his salary when he was hired and members of the board continually evaluate his performance. According to all surveys that have been published by non-profit watchdog publications, our managing directors' salaries are well below the average of any non-profit organization of this size. Please be aware that the salary figures also include the cost of insurance and other benefits - medical, dental, long-term care, long-term disability, life, group travel and unemployment insurance, as well as 403 (b). Please also note that the Chronicle of Philanthropy has ranked *** as the **** **** in the U.S. Last year we grossed approximately $1 Billion in donations for the poor in the countries we serve, so it would be only fair to compare salaries at *** to charities of a similar size. Salaried professionals employed by *** have the necessary education, background, qualifications and management experience required to run our organization. In order to fulfill the goals of our mission, we must remain competitive in the job market in order to attract the very best people in our specialized field.
As you might imagine, because of working so closely with the poor in the 17 countries we serve, many of our employees from the very top to the bottom of the pay scale choose to support *** with financial contributions on a regular basis. They are our extended family, and it would be difficult for us not to do so. We are anxious and grateful to help the poor, and this is a voluntary and a very personal decision prayerfully made by each individual. We do respect the privacy of all donors, including ***. Because of our strict privacy policy, I cannot divulge amounts donated to our ministry by individual donors, but I can say without reservation that I am personally aware that *** has always been extremely generous to the ministry of *** over the years. In fact, he and the *** family totally supported our ministry during its 1st five years of existence.
We are very proud to report that in 2009 less than 4% of funds received were used for administrative expenses, which means that over 96% actually went to programs that help the poor. You will find that we have excellent rating with Charity Navigator, Ministry Watch and Forbes Magazine. I truly hope that I have answered your question satisfactorily and that you will seriously consider joining us in our fight against poverty. If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to contact me. I can be reached at ***. Please find your gift of *** enclosed.
May the peace of our Lord be with you.
A servant of the poor
****
Director of Donor Services"
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Director makes some strong rhetorical arguments defending the salary. I have no argument with the CEO. I have yet to refuse any income offered to me or said, "Wow, you paid me too much last year!" Nor have I seen a sign by a store register proclaiming, "all prices as marked; non-profit workers take 30% off." We all live in the real world and contend with real world prices. No, my concern is with the Board. The compensation may be reasonable, but $340,000. per year is in the top 1% of wage earners in the US (ncpa.org: -$340,000 and up). As stated previously, many charity heads, many Christian charity heads, make a lot more money than this CEO.
I am bothered that I am bothered by these thoughts. I regard myself as an optimist, but we seem to live in a time of constant stress and events that engender cynicism. In the age of Wall Street wretched excess fueled by their Board of Directors' compensation committees, the federal government's assault on capitalism through bailouts and inept regulation, and the always lurking presence of the twin sisters of power; accommodation and lack of accountability: I admit to confusion.
And this may be my problem. When I give to a cause, I am under no illusion I am on the parapets feeding the poor. I worked with someone that in the past that had signed up an an Aid worker in Africa back in the 70s. As I remember, he intended to stay for a year, but only lasted 3 or 4 months. He told me that he never had one good night's sleep, knew he was exposing himself to unknown illness, and not always given the basic resources to do the job. His feelings about this occupied a territory between personal disappointment and begrudging pride of accomplishment. I know that when my pen moves across a check I am performing a very, very small part of the "Feed my lambs". The organizations and workers are the ones doing God's work, but the donors do play a part and my perception of that part may be the problem. When I give money, however modest, it is still my money. A donation is not like a commercial transaction - I give you money, you give me stuff: when you give me stuff, I have relinquished ownership of the money. Charities aren't like that - the donation becomes wind of the charity's sail - the donors are always there because their money is always there: no product is ever exchanged.
This point is simple and self-evident, but when I see a charity's board of directors awarding extremely high salaries I wonder if that point is forgotten. I don't believe there is malevolence in this - just human nature. I also realize that everything is relative. If I made $340,001.00 a year I would consider this CEO underpaid. So after reading the letter and some thought I was going to send back the check, but that 1% still bothered me.
Res ipsa Locquitor
I sent a check instead to Doctors Without Borders. A smaller charity, but one whose CEO makes $118,000 per year.
My thoughts are still unsettled about this.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Walter Gets 5
And by the way, isn't the internet wonderful? You can buy all sorts of interesting things online, saving time, money, and the environment. I don't know about you, but I absolutely hate to shop. It is a big waste of time. I especially don't like going with wife Donna since I always seem to spend too much time and money when she is with me. I always dutifully keep a list of items, go to the store, then find I've left the list at home or in the car; I depend on memory and subsequently miss about 1/2 the things I went shopping for. When Donna comes with me, she remembers everything on the list and consequently drives the numbers on the receipt to high elevation and nixes a fast getaway since proper shopping takes a long time. This is, of course, Donna's fault.
I was hoping at this point in my life that needed things, if thought about, would just show up at my house, closet, bookshelf, or refrigerator. Guess I'll have to settle for the internet. It always amazes me that I can order anything I want at 4:00am or 11:30pm hereby imbuing my life with an unaccustomed time management component and allow me to wade into moments of gravitas and the unrelenting search for life's tautological truths.
OK, that too, I'm lazy.
If I could go to Confession online I would. The internet allows me to sample, review, and criticize all things purchased and then go onto sites like YouTube.com and listen to my favorite jazz ballads.
OK, that too, I'm cheap.
I was so impressed with a guitarist on YouTube, Walter Rodrigues Jr, that I went to the directed website,cdbaby.com, and bought his guitar CD on hymns, My Favorite Hymns Vol.1, I never knew thumbing on strings could bring such goodness to life!
When something is ordered online, a confirmation by email follows; very businesslike, prompt, and boilerplate. I wasn't expecting what I received;
---------------------------------
james-
Thanks for your order with CD Baby!
USPS
(1) Walter Rodrigues, Jr: My Favorite Hymns Vol.1
Your CD has been gently taken from our CD Baby shelves with sterilized contamination-free gloves and placed onto a satin pillow.
A team of 50 employees inspected your CD and polished it to make sure it was in the best possible condition before mailing.
Our packing specialist from Japan lit a candle and a hush fell over the crowd as he put your CD into the finest gold-lined box that money can buy.
We all had a wonderful celebration afterwards and the whole party marched down the street to the post office where the entire town of Portland waved "Bon Voyage!" to your package, on its way to you, in our private CD Baby jet on this day, July 9, 2010.
We hope you had a wonderful time shopping at CD Baby. In commemoration, we have placed your picture on our wall as "Customer of the Year." We're all exhausted but can't wait for you to come back to CDBABY.COM!!
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Sigh...
We miss you already. We'll be right here at http://cdbaby.com/, patiently awaiting your return.
--
CD Baby
----------------------------------------
Very fanciful. And then I received this email:
----------------------------------------
My Favorite Hymns Vol.1 (Walter Rodrigues, Jr.)
...
From:
Walter Rodrigues
...
Add to Contacts
To: jmullen409@yahoo.com
Dear James,
I would like to personally thank you for purchasing my new album "My Favorite Hymns" Vol.1 from CdBaby. I hope you've enjoyed the music as much as I've enjoyed making it available to you.
I would love to hear your feedback on the cd. If you have a chance, please feel free to add a word or two to the review section of the album.
https://www.cdbaby.com/cd/wrjazzmusic1
Thanks again and God Bless!
Walter Rodrigues, Jr.
--------------------------------------------
Well. It got me to thinking. What if we were all able to exceed the speed limit on the alternate time line expressway and converse with all humankind. Kind of like an Amazon.com review with star ratings:
The Old Man and The Sea - Ernest Hemingway (3 out of 5 stars) Yo! Ernie. Loved the book! Great fish story, but next time enter the old man in a bass tournament at Lake Martin, Georgia. It would be more interesting and you could introduce some girls and beer - and maybe a shark. Oh yeah, way, way too long. If you want anyone to read your books you need to make them a lot shorter. Work on that willya?
Lives of The Twelve Caesars - Suetonius (written in 121 - 2 out of 5 stars) Dude - like the one name thing. Did you get the idea from Sting? I only gave you 2 stars. You did a really good job on the corruption and depravity (way to go Sue!), but you left out the all the war parts. Didn't you read any Tom Clancy?
Holy Bible - God (4 out of 5 stars) SPOILER ALERT, DO NOT READ ANY FURTHER IF YOU HAVE NOT FINISHED THE BOOK. You call that an ending?......
--------------------------------
Well maybe the alternative time line is not a good idea, but I tell you though, in my book guitarist Walter Rodrigues Jr get 5 stars. He has the ability to have his heart run down through his fingers to the guitar. His musical expression lifts my spirits every time I put on the CD. Good art affects, His music affects.
Thank you Walter Rodrigues Jr, the world is a better place because of you and your work.
I was hoping at this point in my life that needed things, if thought about, would just show up at my house, closet, bookshelf, or refrigerator. Guess I'll have to settle for the internet. It always amazes me that I can order anything I want at 4:00am or 11:30pm hereby imbuing my life with an unaccustomed time management component and allow me to wade into moments of gravitas and the unrelenting search for life's tautological truths.
OK, that too, I'm lazy.
If I could go to Confession online I would. The internet allows me to sample, review, and criticize all things purchased and then go onto sites like YouTube.com and listen to my favorite jazz ballads.
OK, that too, I'm cheap.
I was so impressed with a guitarist on YouTube, Walter Rodrigues Jr, that I went to the directed website,cdbaby.com, and bought his guitar CD on hymns, My Favorite Hymns Vol.1, I never knew thumbing on strings could bring such goodness to life!
When something is ordered online, a confirmation by email follows; very businesslike, prompt, and boilerplate. I wasn't expecting what I received;
---------------------------------
james-
Thanks for your order with CD Baby!
USPS
(1) Walter Rodrigues, Jr: My Favorite Hymns Vol.1
Your CD has been gently taken from our CD Baby shelves with sterilized contamination-free gloves and placed onto a satin pillow.
A team of 50 employees inspected your CD and polished it to make sure it was in the best possible condition before mailing.
Our packing specialist from Japan lit a candle and a hush fell over the crowd as he put your CD into the finest gold-lined box that money can buy.
We all had a wonderful celebration afterwards and the whole party marched down the street to the post office where the entire town of Portland waved "Bon Voyage!" to your package, on its way to you, in our private CD Baby jet on this day, July 9, 2010.
We hope you had a wonderful time shopping at CD Baby. In commemoration, we have placed your picture on our wall as "Customer of the Year." We're all exhausted but can't wait for you to come back to CDBABY.COM!!
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Sigh...
We miss you already. We'll be right here at http://cdbaby.com/, patiently awaiting your return.
--
CD Baby
----------------------------------------
Very fanciful. And then I received this email:
----------------------------------------
My Favorite Hymns Vol.1 (Walter Rodrigues, Jr.)
...
From:
Walter Rodrigues
...
Add to Contacts
To: jmullen409@yahoo.com
Dear James,
I would like to personally thank you for purchasing my new album "My Favorite Hymns" Vol.1 from CdBaby. I hope you've enjoyed the music as much as I've enjoyed making it available to you.
I would love to hear your feedback on the cd. If you have a chance, please feel free to add a word or two to the review section of the album.
https://www.cdbaby.com/cd/wrjazzmusic1
Thanks again and God Bless!
Walter Rodrigues, Jr.
--------------------------------------------
Well. It got me to thinking. What if we were all able to exceed the speed limit on the alternate time line expressway and converse with all humankind. Kind of like an Amazon.com review with star ratings:
The Old Man and The Sea - Ernest Hemingway (3 out of 5 stars) Yo! Ernie. Loved the book! Great fish story, but next time enter the old man in a bass tournament at Lake Martin, Georgia. It would be more interesting and you could introduce some girls and beer - and maybe a shark. Oh yeah, way, way too long. If you want anyone to read your books you need to make them a lot shorter. Work on that willya?
Lives of The Twelve Caesars - Suetonius (written in 121 - 2 out of 5 stars) Dude - like the one name thing. Did you get the idea from Sting? I only gave you 2 stars. You did a really good job on the corruption and depravity (way to go Sue!), but you left out the all the war parts. Didn't you read any Tom Clancy?
Holy Bible - God (4 out of 5 stars) SPOILER ALERT, DO NOT READ ANY FURTHER IF YOU HAVE NOT FINISHED THE BOOK. You call that an ending?......
--------------------------------
Well maybe the alternative time line is not a good idea, but I tell you though, in my book guitarist Walter Rodrigues Jr get 5 stars. He has the ability to have his heart run down through his fingers to the guitar. His musical expression lifts my spirits every time I put on the CD. Good art affects, His music affects.
Thank you Walter Rodrigues Jr, the world is a better place because of you and your work.
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