Independent Consultant with a Hawaiian Shirt

After the wonderful weekend that was the 2010 Edition of The Grapevine Project Fall Conference ( http://www.thegrapevineproject.org ), I hopped on a plane and headed to Reno, Nevada. Yes, the irony of following up a weekend at a retreat campground with a 5-night stay in a casino/resort is not lost on me. And to be perfectly candid, I think I really like Reno. From a business standpoint, the setup is quite comfortable. The airport is less than two miles from the hotel. The hotel runs a complimentary airport shuttle every thirty minutes throughout the day. The office is right across the street from the hotel. Walking time from my room to the office: Seven minutes, and two minutes were spent waiting for an elevator on the 17th floor. There are nine different eateries in the hotel, including the obligatory buffet. And if I want some down-to-earth food, there is a grocery store and two cafés next to the office. The view from my recently updated 17th Floor room was spectacular, as I could lo...

Reno, Nevada is not the place one would imagine having a spiritual epiphany. But this morning I did. I woke up before sunrise and stared out the window to welcome the day. The view from my 17th floor room has been spectacular with the city below being surrounded by the Sierra Nevada mountains. The airport is to the right, and the downtown is to the left. My only regret is not having my family here to share it with me. As I was looking out to the lights of the city in the pre-dawn hour I saw the usual array of twinkling yellow dots. Some were moving - cars on the freeway. Others were not. And as I looked out across the valley, one light stuck out above all the others: The Golden Arches at McDonalds. I thought to myself, "Of all the lights that I would notice. Aren't there any others?" I looked from side to side. To be sure, the intense lights of the casinos on S. Virginia Avenue - Peppermill, Atlantis - were there. But off to the east of the main street the only light that...

Last week, my wife and I went to the grocery store. As we walked through the parking lot I saw a young man (late teens to early twenties) with Down Syndrome walk out the door of the store. He was holding a stick with what appeared to be the last few strands of a pompon on the end. As he walked out he stared up in the sky with a wonder on his face that caught me wondering what had captured his attention. Was it the bright blue? Was it the shape of the clouds? His gaze was fixed as if he was looking at this wonder for the first time. Moments later his mother came out the door behind him. As she put her arm around his shoulder his head turned and he gave her the biggest smile I'd seen in weeks. And it wasn't just a flash smile; his eyes locked hers for a good long time. In that moment his face communicated an intensity of love for his mother like there was nothing else on the earth that mattered, and he was soaking up every last drop of warmth from his mother's arm. Tears well...

This is the first of an occasional series where I document a 24-hour period for you. Last week Monday. I was starting the second of two classes that I was teaching from my basement for students in Kuwait and Afghanistan. Because of this, I was up kinda early. Well, take a look: 0015h - It's 15 minutes after midnight and I have to be at "work" in 45 minutes. I roll out of bed, change into whatever clothes are laying around the bed that I can find and I turn on my computer monitor. I sign into the online class, go upstairs and down a bowl of cereal. A banana and an apple later and I'm done with breakfast. 0100h - "Good morning Kuwait!" It's "go" time and so far only 4 people are in class. The roster says there will be 17 students. I'll give them a few more minutes. 0120h - Up to 9 students; going to start anyways. 0430h - Lunch break. I'm having another bowl of cereal. 0530h - Right before class starts my beautiful wife surprises me with ...

Last week found me in Minneapolis again. This time I was on the northwest corner of the metroplex, near Maple Grove. It was nice to see another part of town, but I didn't make much effort to see the sites. Monday I drove around the shopping area there and wound up having dinner at, of all places, Dickey's Texas Bar-B-Q. The food was comforting and predictable, but the free soft-serve ice cream cone was a disaster. So I decided to push myself to go out Tuesday and explore downtown Minneapolis to see what I could see. After class on Tuesday I headed downtown and parked on Hennepin Avenue between 10th and 11th Streets. There was a $2 after 5pm deal that made parking quite attractive. And since Hennepin Avenue is the Theater District, there would be plenty to see. But instead, I headed over to Nicollet Avenue and made my way up and down this pedestrian-friendly mall. First, I walked down to about 15th Street before making a U-turn and walking all the way up to where it ended at Was...

Last week I made a return trip to Chattanooga. The rolling hills around Lookout Mountain with the meandering Tennessee River make this one of the most scenic spots I've traveled to. Thanks to seasonal allergies I was feeling somewhat blah the whole week, with the worst of it on Monday. I spent each evening in the hotel room with no appetite for adventure beyond dinner, which I stopped for after class. I tried three different barbeque restaurants, but all they could do was make me long for the Whole Hog Cafe in Bentonville, Arkansas. Here's a quick rundown of each: Sticky Fingers - At check-in the hotel clerk gave me a coupon for a free peach cobbler with purchase of entree. Of the different things I tried the best had to be the smoked chicken wings. These oversized wings were flavorful and smoked to perfection. I did not expect them to be as good as they were. Hillbilly Willy's - With a name like that it was begging for a visit. The food was average, and the Coca-Cola Cak...