http://www.pruetts.com/blog The Years Teach Much Which Days Will Never Know Thu, 01 Feb 2007 06:01:57 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en I upgraded WordPress, and haven’t figured out how to import all of the entries that are here. However, if you click over to www.pruetts.com/jeff/, you can read about all the interesting things I have to say these days. Eventually I’ll write some kind of script that redirects automatically. For ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2007/01/31/blog-relocation/ Isaac slept through the night for the first time two nights ago. Kristen and I both woke up a little bit surprised - but also well rested. Hopefully this is just a sign of things to come =). We’ve been busy keeping up with the little guy - he’s ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2006/05/21/sleep-is-good/ Words are the most effective weapons of death in man’s arsenal. But they can also be powerful tools of life. They may be the only ones. I did what I believed to be the ordinary things that an ordinary man would do. I said no to outrageous actions the way I ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2006/04/15/an-ordinary-man/ Well, the final was anti-climactic. UCLA never really had a chance as Florida just had too much talent in the NCAA finals tonight. Fortunately the Bruins are young, and we may get to see them again next year in the tournament. Hopefully they’ll continue to improve and ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2006/04/03/ucla-comes-up-short/ I’ve always been a UCLA fan when it comes to the NCAA Tournament each March. That heritage comes from my Grandfather, who was an assistant coach for Wooden during summer clinics way back when UCLA owned this Tournament. Thursday’s win was a thrill to watch - but only the last ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2006/03/25/ucla-rolls-on/ Experience is that marvelous thing that enables you recognize a mistake when you make it again. – F. P. Jones http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2006/03/04/on-experience/ Isaac got to meet his Great Grandparents this past weekend. He’s the first great-grandchild on my mom’s side of the family. Isaac with his Great-Grandpa Ron Welch Isaac with his Great-Grandma Patti Welch http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2006/02/24/visit-with-the-great-grandparents/ http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2006/02/24/isaac-at-3-months/ Good and Evil both increase at compound interest. That is why the little decisions you and I make every day are of such infinite importance. The smallest good act today is the capture of a strategic point from which, a few months later, you may be able to go on ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2006/02/19/infinitely-important-decisions/ Isaac watched his first Superbowl today, and his team won! Go Steelers! http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2006/02/05/steeler-fan/ Big smile! Isaac’s only word so far: “Ooooh…” Isaac looks a little too curious next to that keyboard… http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2006/02/05/february-2006/ We’ve had a busy December, and I’m just now getting to posting a couple of pictures from the crazy times. Enjoy! http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2006/01/20/isaac-in-december/ We all have a tendency to think that we’re pretty decent people.  When we’re feeling honest we’ll admit that we have a few, mostly minor, flaws - no quirks, flaws is too strong - that we’re not too ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2006/01/04/cracks-in-the-fascade/ December has been quite the month for the Pruett family! We’ve had some health challenges with both Kristen and Isaac, and I’ve become very familiar with our local hospital. Everyone is on the mend these days, and I’ve been amazed at the love and support we’ve received from ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2006/01/02/return-to-normalcy/ I return to work tomorrow morning, which will be a huge adjustment. The last day I worked was the Tuesday before Thanksgiving! (Okay so I went into the office for about a half day somewhere in the middle… but that barely counts.) I’m looking forward to catching ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/12/11/the-vacation-ends-tomorrow/ It takes time to create excellence. If it could be done quickly, more people would do it. — John Wooden http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/12/09/excellence-takes-time/ Isaac’s Second Week has been filled with changes. He is sleeping more at night, but still getting up to be changed and fed at least twice. His umbilical cord fell off yesterday, so he’s got a pretty normal belly button now. The most fun has been to ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/12/09/isaacs-second-week/ Isaac has had a busy few days. We came home from the hospital on Thursday, and decided to stay at Kristen’s folks to allow her incision to heal a little longer without having to climb the stairs in our place. Isaac slept in the car seat the entire ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/12/03/isaac-day-5-6/ Day Three was marked by plenty of diaper changes - and a roommate for Kristen. The hospital had 12 new deliveries by noon! We made due with a little less space, and had a good day all around. Kristen was able to get up and shower and ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/11/29/mmmm-hospital-food-good-food/ Isaac’s second day was filled with visits from caring family and friends. Grandparents, aunts, and uncles all came to visit and hold Isaac. Here are a few pictures to capture the day: Grandma Sue with Baby Isaac Grandma and Grandpa Van Corbach Grandma and Grandpa Pruett Aunt Kara Aunt Bailey Uncle Brian Grandpa Ken Grandpa Steve Daddy’s ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/11/29/meet-the-grandparents/ Here are a few pictures we took on the evening Isaac was born, and the morning after. Enjoy! http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/11/29/isaac-day-1/ Isaac Andrew Pruett finally arrived late Sunday night! He weighed 6 pounds, 2 ounces, and was 20 inches long. Mother and baby are both doing well. We all spent today recovering, and will continue to use this week to catch up a bit. I’ve been amazed at how ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/11/28/with-arms-wide-open/ It amazes me how every time I have a break or vacation coming up, I get sick. I don’t have too terrible of a bug this time, but it is enough to have me feeling tired and lethargic. I’m trying to stay hydrated and just rest. I ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/11/23/sick-day/ Well today is the due date - but no baby… Kristen is in good spirits, and we’re just trying to be patient. Soon. Very soon, I’ll get to welcome my son into the world. I’m not sure how it will impact me, but I’m quite sure life ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/11/21/no-baby-yet/ Last night we rematched the team that blew us out in City League basketball. The game went back and forth the whole night. They went up 10-0 in the first 5 minutes. We called a timeout and started to gain momentum. At halftime we were up ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/11/18/redemption/ The power went out at work today while I was at lunch. When I went to swipe my badge to open the front door - I couldn’t get in! So everyone was given the afternoon off - which is pretty sweet. It has been quite some time ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/11/18/afternoon-off/ My city-league basketball team hit a brick wall this week. At least that’s what it felt like. We had a double-header scheduled, and only four people showed up! About 10 minutes into the first game, a fifth team member arrived, so we were able to run 5 on 5. ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/11/12/double-trouble/ Dave Anderson has created a “Fab-Five” list of Leadership Principles and I have to say I’m challenged by each one: Leaders are there to serve followers; the followers are not there to serve leaders. Don’t treat unequals equally. Building a foundation on moral sand doesn’t last. Hold others accountable for results. You can’t do it alone. While ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/11/07/fab-five-leadership-principles/ Chad Johnson plays wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals in the NFL. He’s pretty outspoken - in fact may talk more trash than even Randy Moss. When he was interviewed this week about playing opposite the Green Bay Packers star defensive back, Al Harris, here’s what he had ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/10/30/great-quote/ We spent a wonderful evening in Santa Barbara Thursday night. Kristen and I joined my folks and two good friends, Warren and Gloria, for dinner and a great concert. We went to dinner at Fresco’s, a small cafe in the Five Points shopping center. It was one ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/10/30/an-evening-with-keb-mo-and-friends/ I was recently introduced to a simple puzzle-game that is easy to learn but always a challenge. The game is called SuDoku and is apparently a huge hit in Asia. The basics of the game are simple. Start with a grid of size 9x9 with several numbers populated ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/10/24/numbers-game/ A recent study of 3,200 U.S. companies conducted by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania revealed that a 10 percent increase in spending for workforce training and development leads to an 8.5 percent increase in productivity, while a similar increase in capital expenditures leads to an increase in productivity of ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/10/15/wise-investments/ In my Dale Carnegie course tonight we talked about how to correct someone when they’ve failed to meet some expectation, or otherwise behaved inappropriately. There are five steps to this correction process, and they have to occur in order. Here’s my summary of the presentation: 1. Rapport - Do ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/10/11/carnegie-5-rs-of-reprimanding/ This is how sad my life is. The Lakers waive Vlade Divac and I get excited! I watched Vlade play in his “prime” about six years ago. He walked up and down the court the whole game and never broke a sweat. I was disgusted by ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/10/06/laker-news/ The letter I received in the mail today was cordial but firm. My application for a position as an instructor at our local community college is no longer under consideration. I applied early this summer before I had heard anything from Lockheed Martin, my present employer. I ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/10/05/rejection-letter/ I’ve noticed an interesting principle in the corporate world lately. I think it was there several years ago when I was working full time, but for some reason I’m seeing it more clearly today. The principle is played out in individuals’ attempts at climbing the corporate ladder. They carefully weigh ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/10/04/character-and-reputation/ Carly Fiorina gave the commencement address at MIT in 2000, and I was impressed at her clarity and her insight into what constitues leadership today. As a former CEO of Hewlett Packard, Carly knows a thing or two about leadership. The take-away quote for me was as follows: A ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/09/25/leaders-create-possibility/ I haven’t edited our twenty-four week ultrasound yet, so I won’t post the video, but here’s a snapshot of the baby from just a few weeks ago. Baby Pruett at Twenty-Four Weeks We also had another ultrasound at thirty weeks - which further confirmed that we’ll have a son very soon! http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/09/25/ultrasound-at-twenty-four-weeks/ The difference between a madman and a professional is that a pro does as well as he can within what he has set out to do and a madman does exceptionally well at what he can’t help doing. –Charles Bukowski http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/09/22/quote-of-the-day-9/ Great discoveries and improvements invariably involve the cooperation of many minds. I may be given credit for having blazed the trail but when I look at the subsequent developments I feel the credit is due to others rather than to myself. — Alexander Graham Bell http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/09/21/quote-on-teamwork/ I just stumbled on a great resource - learntolead.com. It is packed with free articles on Leadership, Management, Sales, and more. The articles are brief, which means they don’t try to cram a five paragraph essay into a ten-page paper. I’m still sorting through all the articles ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/09/21/learntoleadcom/ I came across an excellent site that is the companion to a book titled, “Second Chair Leaders.” It talks about the challenges we face when we are responsible for leading in an organization, yet not the top leader on the team. There is a sample article on the ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/09/20/second-chair-leaders/ I was in work early today and was sitting so still that the motion detector thought it was time to turn the lights off. The sad thing is it happened at least three times while I was working. Guess it is a signal that I should move around ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/09/17/too-still/ The world breaks every one and afterward many are strong at the broken places. But those that will not break it kills. It kills the very good and the very gentle and the very brave impartially. If you are none of these you can be sure it will kill you ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/09/15/quote-of-the-day-8/ I don’t know if you’ve seen the new Chevy Impala commercial with all of the antelope surrounding a car, but I had a similar experience this morning as I walked out of my front door to head to work. I don’t usually leave as early as I did today ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/09/13/deer-greeting/ I was just about to turn out the lights downstairs and crawl into bed when the phone rang. I answered, figuring it was one of my friends calling to see if I was still awake. “Hello?” Pause. “Hello?” Great, a telemarketer, I thought. What telemarketer calls after 9:30 ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/09/08/collect-call/ The NFL Season starts tomorrow, and you know what that means… Fantasy Football is back! This season will be my third in a row with a Fantasy team — and I keep coming back for more. I’ve finished in the top two in four leagues now. Hopefully ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/09/07/are-you-ready-for-some-football/ I spent most of my Labor Day watching the U.S. Open. I started out watching Lindsey Davenport win in straight sets. Then I watched Andre Agassi fight to pull out a five set win over Milesse. I almost walked away at that point to go play tennis ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/09/06/us-open/ The past few weeks have continued to improve at work. I knew that my transition into the corporate world (from academia via a small business startup) would take some time and would not be without its challenges and frustrations. However, I must say that this transition has been ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/09/02/the-pace-begins-to-quicken/ As I mentioned a few weeks ago, I’m taking a course on Communication and Leadership Skills presented by the Dale Carnegie Course. Last night we had to give a short speech on a lesson we had learned and present it in the format: 1. Incident 2. Action 3. Benefit The Incident is what ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/08/31/dale-carnegie-course-speech/ When solving “impossible” problems, ask yourself: - Is there an easier way? - Am I solving the right problem? - *Why* is this a problem? - What makes it hard? - Do I have to do it this way? - Does it have to be done at all? From The Pragmatic Programmer http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/08/25/problem-solving/ You can accomplish anything you want in life provided you don’t mind who gets the credit. — Harry S. Truman http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/08/25/quote-of-the-day-7/ Our city league men’s volleyball team took the title yesterday. We had a playoff with the team that had the second best record - we only lost once all season long (14 weeks or so), and beat them at least twice. We had some great players on our ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/08/22/we-are-the-champions/ The will to win is worthless if you do not have the will to prepare. — Thane Yost http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/08/22/quote-of-the-day-6/ Some groups are more challenging than others to get past the barriers we naturally put up in group settings. Generating genuine discussion in a group takes strategic effort on behalf of the leader. I came up with three principles I try to implement as I lead, hopefully theyll ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/08/19/generating-discussion-in-groups/ I’ve often wondered how common my last name is. It turns out the U.S. Census Bureau lets you search the results of the 1990 U.S. Census and see how popular a given name was. I did a quick search on the surname Pruett, naturally, and found I have the 2,243rd ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/08/18/pruett-comes-in-a-distant-2243rd/ If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours. — Henry David Thoreau, Walden One of my favorite quotes of all time. Thoreau nailed it when he wrote this one. http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/08/18/success-unexpected-in-common-hours/ RELAXATION AND RECREATIONS The most relaxing recreating forces are a healthy religion, sleep, music, and laughter*. Have faith in God — learn to sleep well — love good music — see the funny side of life — and health and happiness will be yours. — Author unknown * They forgot “play ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/08/17/quote-of-the-day-5/ I was shooting baskets outside our house Sunday afternoon when a kid who was maybe 12 came up and asked if he could join me. I said sure, and he started shooting around with me. Well it wasn’t long and I could tell he was more than a ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/08/16/egos/ Consider carefully before you say a hard word to a man, but never let a chance to say a good one go by. Praise judiciously bestowed is money invested. — George Horace Lorimer I have yet to find a man, whatever his situation in life, who did not do better work and ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/08/15/investing-praise/ I woke up early this morning - early being 5:00 a.m. - to get some reading done that I had fallen behind on. Usually when I wake up that early I’m headed off to the gym for some basketball with the dawn patrol crew, but this morning was just ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/08/11/early-to-rise/ Do the things that matter most to you. If you don’t love it, it’s not worth it. — Don Rosensweig, COO, Yahoo.com http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/08/10/quote-of-the-day-4/ I attended the second session of the Dale Carnegie Course this evening. We spent much of the evening dialoging with the instructor and others as we learned about and put into practice methods to remember critical information. At one point we paired up and shared a bit about ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/08/09/carnegie-course-session-two/ I was selected to attend a course on Effective Communication Skills at Lockheed this week, and already have homework! The course is about 12 weeks long, and looks like it will cover three of Dale Carnegie’s books in that time. We meet once per week, and have opportunities ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/08/04/carnegie-course/ We had our third ultrasound today. It was amazing how much bigger and developed the baby is now. We could make out a ton of distinct details (I’ll post the video once I get it converted), but had a bit of trouble verifying that we’re having a boy. ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/08/03/ultrasound-number-three/ We went to the MidState Fair in Paso Robles last night to see Toby Keith in concert. It was a great concert; Toby played most of his best songs and had the crowd cracking up with his wise-cracks. My favorite of the night: I see I came to the MidState ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/08/03/saw-toby/ In my daily reading, I came across this excellent quote from Peter Drucker: Effective leaders delegate a good many things; they have to or they drown in trivia. But they do not delegate the one thing that only they can do with excellence, the one thing that will ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/07/28/what-do-i-do-best/ I felt the baby kick today as I had my hand on my wife’s stomach. It was quite a sensation to know that I’m feeling the result of my kid moving in the womb. We’re only a little over four months away and I’m already quite excited to ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/07/25/baby-kicks/ My brother Brian married Bailey Brennan last weekend. I had the privilege of standing with him as a groomsman, and am so happy for him as he enters this new phase of life. The ceremony was beautiful, and I think everyone had a wonderful time. The day was gorgeous, ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/07/24/brian-and-baileys-wedding/ It seems like there are some areas in life where I have to keep evaluating and improving to stay sharp. I can set great goals and priorities, and cruise along for quite a while feeling very efficient and productive. Then one day I wake up and realize my ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/07/21/time-management/ Well I was at Costco today and saw Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and couldn’t pass it up. I’ve read the previous five in the series and loved them, so I have high hopes for this one too. I’m only in the middle of about six books ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/07/19/hp6/ As Enron was collapsing in the fall of 2001, the Boston Globe published an article by a Harvard classmate of Enron CEO Jeff Skilling. The author described how Skilling would argue in class that the role of the business leader was to take advantage of loopholes in regulations and push ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/07/13/fighting-compromise/ Today begins Week Two of my career at Lockheed Martin. I’m still learning where everything is, what everyone does, and a lot of new names to go with the many faces I encounter each day. Everyone seems very nice, and I think I’ll enjoy being part of this ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/07/11/week-two/ I came across this picture of Dwayne Wade blocking the shot of Ben Wallace in a playoff game this year, and was just in awe. Realize that Dwayne Wade plays point guard - typically the shortest player on the team, and Ben Wallace plays center - typically the tallest ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/07/07/jumpin-on-the-d-wade-bandwagon/ I have to sign up for health insurance this week, and as my buddy Ly was lamenting the high rates, it made me wonder what could be done to solve the high premiums we have to pay? The problem isn’t the health system, though - at least it isn’t the only ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/07/06/changing-carriers/ I start my first day at Lockheed Martin at 8:00 a.m. this morning. I’ll be working for them as a Software Engineer, and though I’m a bit sad to leave my former position with Predator Systems, I realize this is a great opportunity, and a good company to begin ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/07/05/new-beginnings/ Yesterday I gave my first sermon in 9 years. It was quite daunting for me, but somehow I survived. I think I spent about 30 hours prepping for it, and it took 37 minutes to deliver. Amazingly, I only saw three people nodding off, which as my ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/07/04/son-of-a-preacher-man/ I recently bought Dave Matthews latest CD, Stand Up, and was very disappointed to see that it came with a very sinister form of anti-copying protection. When I put the CD in my computer, it popped up a notice about some MediaMax installer. I figured it wanted to ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/07/02/first-drm-protected-cd/ If you were to destroy in mankind the belief in immortality, not only love but every living force maintaining the life of the world would at once be dried up. Moreover, nothing then would be immoral, everything would be permissible, even cannibalism. –Dostoyevsky, Brothers Karamazov, Pt 1, Bk i, Ch 6 http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/28/dostoyevsky-quote/ I joined my graduating class from Righetti High School for our ten-year reunion this weekend. We had a dinner on Saturday night at the Radison, and then had a picnic on Sunday afternoon with all of the kids of the kids we graduated with. Kristen and I were high school ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/27/reunion/ Have you ever met someone who couldn’t stop talking about themselves? And they had nothing interesting to say? Yeah. Those are fun people. http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/24/self-absorbed/ Today marks the beginning of my younger brother’s 26th year of existence. It’s really weird realizing that my younger brother is getting old. What does that mean for me??? Oh yes, now I remember… I decided to pick an age (24), and stick with it. So ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/23/happy-birthday-brian/ I had an awesome dish of BBQ Shrimp at Bubba Gump Shrimp Restaurant in San Francisco, and I’ve been scouring the net looking for a good recipe. Also, any idea what Creole Seafood Seasoning is? Can I buy that at Albertson’s? The one that sounds the best so far is this ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/22/shrimp-new-orleans/ I just completed reading Bruce L. Bugbee’s book What You Do Best in the Body of Christ : Discover Your Spiritual Gifts, Personal Style, and God-Given Passion, and hope to teach some of the material from it in our next adult class starting in July. The book talks about ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/20/what-do-i-do-best/ Kristen felt the baby move last night. I said he was probably cheering the Spurs (we were watching the NBA Finals at the time), but she seemed to think it happens consistently after dinner and was unrelated. I’m pretty sure he was doing his best Robert Horry imitation ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/20/kicking-and-screaming/ Every man should periodically be compelled to listen to opinions which are infuriating to him. To hear nothing but what is pleasing to one is to make a pillow of the mind. - St. John Ervine http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/20/quote-of-the-day-3/ Hurry means that we gather impressions but have no experiences, that we collect acquaintances but make no friends, that we attend meetings but experience no encounter. We must recover eternity if we are to find time, and eternity is what Jesus came to restore. For without it, there can be ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/18/quote-of-the-day/ Kristen and I had an amazing meal at Bubba Gump Shrimp Restaurant in San Francisco. I had the Shrimp New Orleans, which was the best shrimp I’ve had since eating at Brennan’s in New Orleans. Kristen had a great shrimp dish as well. It came in a ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/18/bubba-gump-shrimp-restaurant/ Kristen and I visited Alcatraz Island last weekend while we were in San Francisco. I visited the site about fifteen years ago as a Junior High School student, but Kristen had never been. If you haven’t heard of Alcatraz, it is an island just a little over a mile from ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/18/alcatraz/ I just returned from a business trip to SoCal this evening. It was a short trip, just overnight, but I was surprised how much it wiped me out. I’ve been running around the house trying to catch up on the various tasks that I had to neglect between ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/15/return-from-business-trip/ Kristen and I just got back from a great trip to San Francisco. I’ll blog more about it tomorrow, and maybe with some luck I’ll get pictures up before the end of the week. Cheesiest thing anyone said to me: “What was Forrest’s last name?” (@ Bubba Gump’s Restaurant ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/13/back-from-vacation/ After almost a week of no Internet access, I’m finally back online as of Wednesday night. The funny thing is that just before Kristen and I left for dinner I checked, and there were no wireless connections to be found. Just before we left, the power went out ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/08/online-at-last/ I guess the saying really holds, “You don’t know what you’ve got til it’s gone.” I’ve been without Internet access now since late Friday, and I’m going nuts! It’s amazing what a necessity it has become for me. As far as I can figure, the neighbor that was so ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/07/sans-internet/ So as my earlier post indicated, I rented Anchorman to distract me from the drippy faucet that has replaced my nose… and even with low expectations, walked away wanting much more. I think the concept of a chauvinistic 70s anchorman learning that his world is changing was good, but ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/03/skip-anchorman/ I’ve been fighting a cold all week… and to be honest, I feel I’m losing the battle today. Swung by the store and picked up some cough medicine, some cookie-dough ice cream and Anchorman. If that’s not a recipe for good health come tomorrow morning, I don’t know ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/03/cold-season/ In the Biggs Interview* in this week’s edition of LeadershipWired, a few keys to making successful hires were outlined that I’d like to summarize here: Does the candidate have a good value system? Is the candidate a lifelong learner? Does the candidate have good work habits? Does the candidate have a positive attitude? While these ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/02/keys-to-a-successful-hire/ Richard Biggs, author of Burn Brightly without Burning Out outlines five key steps to making wise decisions I consider worth passing on. For the record, this is adapted from an interview provided by LeadershipWired*. Give careful consideration to all the facts and options. Pay attention to your heart, intuition and gut ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/02/biggs-on-wise-decision-making/ I came across these three links in Fast Company of Blogs worth reading: Found in the Footnotes Marketing at Microsoft Decent Marketing I haven’t looked at them yet, but I didn’t want to lose track of them before I had a chance to check them out. If you happen to see them before ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/02/blogs-to-read/ The smart ones ask when they don’t know. And sometimes, when they do. — Malcolm Forbes http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/02/quote-of-the-day/ In my leadership reading this week, I was confronted with the following question: Are you gaining or losing momentum? In reflecting on the question, I realized that in most of the leadership roles I fill, I’ve seen a general stall in momentum. Things aren’t failing, but they aren’t growing quite ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/02/building-momentum/ Light a man a fire, you warm him for a night. Light a man on fire, he’ll be warm the rest of his life. –Unknown http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/06/01/quote-for-today/ We had a great time celebrating Memorial Day - I think we made it to at least two barbeques and an evening of playing games with family. The food was great, the time with friends and family was great, and it was just nice to have a long weekend. Kristen ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/05/30/memorial-day/ As promised, I ran around and took some quick pictures of our place now that things are starting to settle from our home improvement rampage. You can look at the before pictures here. 1. Dining Area We were able to hang the ceiling light much easier than anticipated, but had some ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/05/26/condo-pictures-after-improvements/ I was organizing a bunch of files on my computer today and ran across this image - one of my favorites: I took the picture while on vacation in Montana a few years back. I couldn’t believe someone would put up a billboard like that as I drove by it ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/05/26/billboard-in-montana/ I found this satellite imagery on a NASA web site recently. It’s a composite picture of what the world looks like at night. Amazing to see the areas that are so well lit compared to say the heart of the African continent which is almost pitch black. Click on ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/05/26/earth-at-night/ I promised some pictures of our place, both before and after shots of the changes we made once we moved in. Here goes! 1. Dining area We initially thought we’d have to run electrical conduit up to the center of the room in order to hang a light over the dining ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/05/25/condo-before-initial-improvements/ I’m not sure you can call miniature golf exercise, but it certainly counts as recreation. We went to a barbecue at a local park and then went miniature golfing with a group from church tonight. It was tons of fun and great to just hang out with everyone ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/05/24/mini-golf/ I was able to save the ultrasound video in QuickTime format — which just means it will work on the Mac now. Here’s the link: Click Here to View the QuickTime Ultrasound Video Or just click this picture: http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/05/23/ultrasound-take-two/ Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other. — John F. Kennedy http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/05/22/quote-of-the-day-2/ I just read a fascinating article in the May issue of Fast Company that reflected recent findings in the fields of neuroscience and psychology: When faced with making significant, enduring, life-altering behavioral changes in order to prolong or improve the quality of one’s life, 90% of heart surgery (post-bypass) patients ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/05/18/change-or-die-or-dont/ We had our second ultrasound on Wednesday of this week. Click here to view the video: Baby Pruett Ultrasound Video. There is also an AVI version (may work on the Mac): Baby Pruett Ultrasound Video. It was rather amazing to see how much more “lifelike” the baby is now, even though ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/05/14/ultrasound-at-twelve-weeks/ Wow. I haven’t gotten a sunburn in years. I played in a tennis tournament today, and of course, forgot to put on sunscreen. And I chucked my hat because it was cutting off my peripheral vision as I was serving. So much for the hat keeping ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/05/14/sunburned/ Today marks the first studio album in three years for my favorite band, creatively named “The Dave Matthews Band.” The album is titled “Stand Up,” and I’ll be picking it up today if possible, tomorrow if not. I’m not a fanatical fan, but I enjoy DMB’s music and ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/05/09/dave-and-the-band-are-back/ Uncertainty creates the necessary condition for leadership. — Jim Kouzes As I reflected on this quote, I think what Mr. Kouzes is saying is that if everyone knows exactly what to do and where we’re going, why do they need a leader? A leader is needed precisely when there is a ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/05/02/uncertainty/ I made it into the Chiropractor today, and after some scary creaks and cracks, I’m standing a bit more balanced that I was a week ago. I’ve never had an adjustment like that before, so to be honest it was a bit frightening to hear my bones crack. ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/04/29/right-leg-is-no-longer-shorter-than-the-left-leg/ I’m almost done unpacking the house. We’re having company over tomorrow night, so the deadline is almost here! The office area is still a bit cluttered, but at least the living room, kitchen and dining areas are all coming together now. I found some pictures of what the place looked like ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/04/28/unpacking/ I watched Hotel Rwanda last night. Wow. I haven’t had a movie impact me so deeply since Life is Beautiful. Don Cheadle was up for an Oscar for his role in the movie, and it had received some good reviews, so I thought I’d check it out. It ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/04/25/hotel-rwanda/ I don’t know about you, but I have several MP3’s that have missing artist, title, album tags. I’ve used MusicMatch and Windows Media Player in the past to try to edit these tags, but after a while I always give up due to boredom. I just found a great program, ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/04/22/mp3-tag-organizer/ I finished reading Attitude 101 by John Maxwell this week. It is part of his series of books that take a key topic and break down the essentials in an approachable format. The series is Relationships 101, Equipping 101, Attitude 101, and Leadership 101. I actually read ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/04/21/attitude-101/ I had my first chiropractor visit today. The history goes like this: a month or so ago I tweaked my lower back and was in some good pain for a week or two. I scheduled a visit with the chiropractor, but they couldn’t fit me in (as a ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/04/18/right-leg-is-shorter-than-the-left-leg/ Today was the big day! With the help of several good friends from Santa Barbara and my local church, Kristen and I were able to move into our new house today. We were able to pull it off in one trip, which was sweet! The total move time ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/04/16/moving-day/ I’m beginning to see the light at the end of the home improvement tunnel. We’re hoping to move in on Saturday the 16th, and I think we’ll have all of the major projects wrapped up in time to do so. I’ll post before and after pics once we ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/04/10/light-at-the-end/ Cleverness, I suspect, does not reflect intelligence. — Jeremy Post http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/04/10/cleverness/ I learned this, at least, by my experiment; that if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours. –Henry David Thoreau [Walden] I’ve come to realize that some dreams of mine may never come true. ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/04/08/shifting-dreams/ I’m off on an overnight business trip, and if you know me well, you know I’ve packed more books than socks… I’m hoping to make some significant progress in a couple of the books I’m in the middle of, and perhaps even make a dent in a new one. Business ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/04/06/business-trip/ I was listening to the “cool-kids” radio station out of San Luis Obispo yesterday morning while painting our new house, and almost fell over laughing when the DJs came on. They said: “We want to apologize to any of our listeners who actually thought 50 Cent would be on today’s ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/04/02/april-fools-of-us-all/ My friends Matt and Lance came up from Santa Barbara today to help me work on the house. They had the day off and volunteered to pitch in — and they made a huge dent! We’re just about done painting the downstairs, and after a few color decisions, ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/03/31/helpers-save-the-day/ A good listener is not only popular everywhere, but after a while he knows something. — Wilson Mizner http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/03/31/good-listener/ I’ve been working on several home improvement projects in our newly acquired condo the last week and a half. At times I’ve come home exhausted, wondering when it will ever end. Other times I’ve come home excited to see the progress we’ve made in such a short time. ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/03/29/home-improvement-and-leadership-improvement/ The past few days I’ve felt incredibly scattered. I’m certainly being pulled in many, many directions with the new mortgage, a kid on the way, and potential career shifts in play. Yet in some ways I feel things are going as smoothly as could be expected - I ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/03/23/scattered/ Lately I think I’ve fallen into believing our modern culture’s definition of success - that success is found by achieving a desired goal. I’ve had several goals that I wanted to see accomplished over the past 9 months, and only a few have been realized. At the same ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/03/20/success-is-a-journey/ We closed escrow today on a two-bedroom condo on the south side of Santa Maria. The seller needed to rent the place back from us for a couple of days so that they can transition smoothly into their new home, so we haven’t quite been able to take over ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/03/17/closed-escrow-today/ I particularly remember a Saint Patrick’s Day party I attended several years ago - or should I say I can’t seem to forget it? I was working for a company in Santa Monica at the time with a great group of guys who were from Ireland. Actually if I remember ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/03/16/saint-patricks-day/ I’m really not sure how to describe it. Finding out that I am going to be a father on Friday was certainly surreal, and obviously the news is still sinking in. One day you wake up and realize everyday from this point forward will be entirely different because ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/03/15/on-fatherhood/ Seven Things To Do 1. Be true to yourself. 2. Help others. 3. Make each day your masterpiece. 4. Drink deeply from good books, especially the Bible. 5. Make friendship a fine art. 6. Build a shelter against a rainy day. 7. Pray for guidance and count and give thanks for your blessings every day. — Joshua Wooden John ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/03/05/woodens-creed/ I finished The Servant by James Hunter last week. It was the second time I’ve read this excellent book, and it reminded me again of the values I hold that guide me as I try to lead in the various aspects of my life. Hunter first challenges the ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/03/03/the-servant/ It seems that a lot of my reading lately has revolved around becoming a great listener. I’ve always considered myself a decent listener, but realize that there are many times I do not honor the person speaking due to my inattention or preoccupation with looking smart. I’ll write ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/02/23/active-listening/ I took a quick quiz, and this is what came out… pretty interesting. I’ll think about it a bit and let you know if I agree with the results: You Are the Investigator 5 You’re independent - and a logical analytical thinker. You love learning and ideas… ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/02/18/what-number-are-you-quiz/ Kristen and I are moving out of our apartment this weekend. Did I say yet how much I love moving? The rain let up enough this afternoon for me to make a couple of trips to our mini-storage unit. We’re throwing everything in storage and crashing with my folks ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/02/17/moving-this-weekend/ I tend to over-analyze things. I’m a planner, a dreamer, and on good days, a decent implementer. Once in a while, more often than I’d like to admit, I end up over-analyzing a project or situation and miss the opportunity that it represents. Lately I’ve been involved in re-considering ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/02/11/analysis-paralysis/ I was asked recently what I think of singing hymns as a part of a church worship service. To give you some history, as with most churches, there has been a tension between praise choruses and hymns within our church. I think everyone means well, and just wants ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/02/09/my-favorite-hymns/ I heard it once said that we spend more time in the valleys of life than on the mountain tops. I’m not in a valley today, but I’m not on a mountain top either. For me I find I’m generally somewhere in the middle. Not too high, ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/02/06/valleys-that-lead-to-rivers-of-joy/ A couple years ago, Kristen and I took our summer vacation in Montana. I was sorting some of my pictures and came across this picture I took while there. It took a couple of seconds to realize that the billboard said what I thought it did, and by that time ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/02/06/summer-vacation/ I’ve never done a home inspection before, but we walked through the condo Kristen and I are buying with her dad today. We didn’t discover anything earth-shattering, but they did install a non-firedoor leading into the garage that will have to be remedied. The owner also seemed a ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/02/05/home-inspection/ When I first moved into our new apartment, I recognized a gentleman who I had worked with 7 or 8 years ago lived in the same complex. Today I saw him getting out of his car, and stopped to say hello. I’d forgotten what a joy it was to talk ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/01/26/cherished-friendship/ It’s hard to say I feel older today than yesterday, but glancing at the calendar tells me I should. I’ve heard age is a state of mind - you pick a favorite age and stick with it. For me, I think I’ll pick twenty-four. That was a ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/01/24/twenty-eight/ I just finished the third book in Ted Dekker’s The Circle trilogy: White. My friend Laura recommended the series to me, and even let me borrow the first two books in the fall, Black and Red. I thoroughly enjoyed the series, and would highly recommend it to those of you ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/01/22/read-the-circle-trilogy-by-ted-dekker/ I’ve been a Lakers fan my whole life, and still remember when the Portland Trailblazers led by Clyde Drexler, Buck Williams, and Terry Porter ran us off the court — only to be thoroughly dominated by the MJ-led Bulls. Now the Trailblazers have a reputation for paying too much ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/01/21/nba-troubles-mount-in-portland/ Every once in a while I get the urge to do some programming. These days my programming seems to be limited to PHP/MySQL web pages, but once in a while I like to write a quick windows utility to keep my skills up. I’m thinking of writing an ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/01/21/monospaced-programming-fonts/ Insights into our shortcomings are rarely pleasant. Insights that are painless are even more rare. This morning I’ve been struck by re-reading a bit by John Maxwell from his book, The 21 Most Powerful Minutes in a Leader’s Day. The passage I read today related to what ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/01/17/the-law-of-buy-in/ We never keep our minds on the present moment. We remember the past, as if we wanted to slow down the passage of time. And we look forward to the future, as if we wanted time to accelerate. We wander about in times that do not belong to us, and ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/01/15/quote-for-today/   Do your duty in all things. You can not do more. You should not wish to do less. — Robert E. Lee   http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/01/14/quote-for-today/ A favorite artist of mine — and one of the few that I’ve ever met in person — will be in Santa Barbara tonight. His name is Justin McRoberts. He performed at an event at Magic Mountain several years ago — just him and his guitar, no band, no backup ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/01/14/justin-mcroberts-in-santa-barbara/ In my leadership readings for the week, I’m learning about reproducing leaders, or mentoring. The question for today is this: Are you ready to begin thinking beyond your lifetime? The truth is, I’m not. I continue to soak up leadership material, and to learn as much as I can from ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/01/11/reproducing-leaders/ I just read a great article on time management by Peter F. Drucker, the management guru. Here are my notes from the article: Keys to Successful Time Management Keep a log of actual time-use and review it regularly. Ask yourself the following questions as you review activities you’ve completed, and ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/01/09/keys-to-successful-time-management/ I was hoping to play tennis tomorrow, but with today’s rains, it really looks like it will be too wet to play. Sigh. The upside is I’ll have more time to develop my lesson for Sunday. I’m beginning a series on discovering your spiritual tempermant based on Gary Thomas’ book Sacred ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/01/07/rain-delay/ I found a group of guys who gets together regularly to play bball at the YMCA… only problem is that they play at 5:30 a.m. Ouch! But I dragged my butt out of bed and made it down to play MWF of this week. The exercise is good, and ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/01/07/sweaty-old-men/ Just finished a great book, Irresistible Evangelism by Steve Sjogren, Dave Ping, and Doug Pollock. It challenges Christians to stop being so self-righteous, and to start being real with other people. The lesson I walked away with was that I need to be a true friend, and let my friends ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/01/03/irresistible-evangelism/ It has come to my attention that I don’t, in fact, know everything. While this fundamental truth may come as no surprise to you, I know I’ve tried to convince myself from time to time that it is untrue. My pride inevitably gets in the way, and I ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/01/03/admitting-i-dont-know-everything/ How committed are you to reproducing leaders? I’ve really only had one opportunity to mentor another leader, but I sense that in the coming year I will have several more chances to be involved in others lives on that level. During the past couple of years I’ve begun to see ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2005/01/02/reproducing-leaders/   Genius is nothing but a great aptitude for patience. — George-Louis de Buffon   http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2004/12/30/quote-of-the-day/ I came across this list of Nine Critical Behaviors for Effective Mentoring when I was reading a couple weeks back. I want to remember them, but thought you’d also find them valuable as a reminder in your leadership endeavors. Nine Critical Behaviors for Effective Mentoring from The Transparency Edge 1. Keeping Your Promises 2. Staying ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2004/12/30/nine-critical-behaviors-for-effective-mentoring/ I decided to buy the Princeton monitor, and so far I’m pretty happy with it. The screen is very bright, and easy to read, even in low-light situations. My main concern was that it would not be as bright as my CRT, but it actually seems brighter. Windows XP’s ClearType rendering, ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2004/12/28/bought-the-princeton/ I ended up with a little mad money to spend this Christmas, and am considering buying a new LCD monitor. I’m looking at two right now: 19″ Sony Monitor (SDM-HS93/B) [ product details ] at Circuit City for $349.99 after rebates. Adjusted for tax, shipping, and rebates, the total out of pocket ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2004/12/28/lcd-monitor-quest/ My friend Ben and his roommate Chris joined Kristen and I for dinner at Firestone Grill in San Luis Obispo tonight. They have awesome sandwiches, and we had a great time. Tonight I’m trying to resolve the XML-RPC difficulties I’ve been fighting when posting to WordPress via an offline blogging ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2004/12/27/dinner-at-firestone-grill/ Shot hoops with my younger brother yesterday — he’s 2 years younger — and … ahem … won 3 straight games playin bball. This is only significant because he played high school ball, and I got cut in Jr. High. Now I’m older, heavier, shorter, but still took him to ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2004/12/24/schoolin-the-kiddies/ It has been a crazy couple of days, but in the middle of work and many, many, many Christmas parties, I’ve managed to creep along in re-installing all of my favorite applications after baselining my PC last weekend. It is amazing how many little applications I installed over the ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2004/12/23/jeffs-favorite-software/ In what has become somewhat of an annual tradition, I’ve decided to baseline my PC this weekend. It seems like it takes about a year for me to accumulate enough junk on my PC to slow things down. So, about once a year, I re-install Windows and everything ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2004/12/17/annual-pc-baselining/ If you reproduced yourself in another leader, would you be happy with the results? Honestly, there are many aspects of my leadership ability that I would be happy to see reproduced in others. I think my genuine concern for others, my ability to analyze a situation, my commitment to follow-through, ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2004/12/16/leadership-question-for-today/ Gotta love it when the waitress is baffled by your age. She couldn’t believe I was as old as my DL said as I ordered a martini with dinner — or she could have been fishing for a good tip. Who knows. Kristen and I went out ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2004/12/16/carded-last-night/ Kristen and I recently went wine tasting with our friends Lupita and Javier from Santa Barbara. I just found the pictures, and thought I’d post a couple of them here. We’re standing in front of a vineyard that has turned a gorgeous shade of orange. Javier, Lupita, ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2004/12/15/vineyard-pics/ Our church is having its annual Christmas Party tonight! There’s always tons of food, Christmas music, and lots of great people milling about, but this year I expect it will be especially nice. We’ve just recently moved back into the area, so now we know a lot more ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2004/12/11/christmas-party-tonight/ In my inbox this morning was a heads up from Lockergnome on a new Linux distribution designed specifically for NAS. The kicker is that they’ve made the distro so small it fits on a floppy disk, so you can use all four IDE ports for fixed disks. AND ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2004/12/11/linux-nas-boots-from-floppy/ Doh! I got a call tonight, and it turns out our basketball hook up fell through. We were going to play at a local gym, but apparently something came up and it won’t be available tomorrow. Sigh. On the upside, my tennis lesson no longer conflicts with anything, so I’ll ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2004/12/10/hoops-cancelled-for-tomorrow/ I found a nice Notepad replacement for Windows XP called Notepad2. Visit their website or download Notepad2 here. I’ve been using Notepad2 for about a year now, and I like it. Why? It’s quick. It’s lightweight. It color-codes most of the languages I deal with. And ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2004/12/10/notepad-replacement/ ‘To be a good loser takes practice.’ And I don’t intend to practice. –Ernest Hemmingway Gotta love it when you have that competitive spirit. I’m a bit competitive myself, and while I’ve learned to enjoy playing basketball for the fun of it — I still love to win. In fact, ... http://www.pruetts.com/blog/2004/12/10/hemmingway-quote/