Travelin Shoes

My wife and I had enjoyed the Disney animated film "Beauty and the Beast". It had become sort of a running joke that it was descriptive of us, she is a beauty and I---. When Disney decided to create a Broadway musical out of the story, we were excited to learn that they would open the show in Houston before taking it to Broadway. We bought tickets to the first ever performance and were blown away by it. It was a wonderful evening.


We were in D.C. the day of the 9/11 attacks, on a family vacation. On our way home we saw an appeal by the shows on Broadway not to let the terrorist win. They determined that the shows must go on and plead for folks to attend. Our 35th anniversary was coming up the next March, and I determined I would surprise my bride with a weekend in New York and a night at the play.


In October of 01 I had already made travel arrangements, hotel arrangements and bought tickets on the 5th row center to see Beauty & the Beast on Broadway. But I kept it a secret through the Christmas season.


In January of 02, Disney released the film in IMAX form and it had a run in Houston. We made plans to see it, my wife and I our kids, their kids, my wife's mom and one of my wife's friends from work. We did not make reservations, and when we got to the theater, it was sold out. We left, and as we were leaving the parking lot, wife was telling everyone how she had really hoped to see it, and how fun it had been to see the Broadway version. I asked her if she would like to see again, and whe said yes. So I reached in my coat pocket and pulled out our tickets for March in New York. She squealed like a little girl.

I had pulled off the surprise and become a prince!

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I usually spend Friday as my day off. I do yard work or run errands, or every few months I may turn on the computer and check out a blog or two. Today I went into the office and installed a new voice recognition software on my computer.

I have been preaching to my computer for several years, using the IBM Via Voice software. It was a gift at Christmas and I was very satisfied with it. But recently I was browsing a local Best Buy and saw the newer program. It is by Nuance, called Dragon Naturally Speaking. I was impressed with all the things it could do that Via Voice cannot. I did not buy it. It was more money than I wanted to spend. Then on Amazon I checked to see how much it was online. To my surprise, that day they were offering a $70 rebate! So I ordered it and it came this week.

It was not hard to install, but I had to train (or be trained by) the software. It had to learn my speech patterns. This program even went back and read my Word Documents and my sent emails to learn my writing patterns.

Via Voice can only open a word document and type what it hears you say. Naturally Speaking can do that, at 160 words per minute. And it takes commands to backspace, highlight and edit words, insert or delete items. It can navigate the internet and open my email program. Today I sent an email to my wife that I produced and sent without touching the keyboard. I am pretty impressed.

Now, if I could only get it to come up with sermon ideas…

On the long train trip to New Jersey when I was five and Cathy was 3, there were a several memorable things about the time on the train itself. I remember learning that the capitol of Pennsylvania is Harrisburg, because we went through there on the trip, and we could see the Capitol Building from the train.

I also remember my mom being so motion sick that she had to lie in bed most of the time. Cathy and I played Old Maid on the floor of the compartment next to Mom's bed. We behaved ourselves pretty well, as I recall.

But the most vivid memory is that there were a lot of rivers and waterways that looked like the water was orange. Cathy and I looked out the window a lot on that trip and whenever we crossed a river that color, we would sing/shout out very loud, "Orange Juice Water, Orange Juice Water", as long as we were could see the water!

That has been more than fifty years ago, but I can't remember ever crossing a river that is that color without thinking, and sometimes saying, "Orange Juice Water!"

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The long train trip we made when I was five is among my most vivid early childhood memories. I made a friend named Wesley. He lived next door to my grandmother, in Bordentown. I taught him how to spin a six gun and how to quick draw. I learned it watching western movies and television shows. 

I remember watching my little sister tumble down the stairs in Grandma's house. I could do nothing but yell for my mom. She was not seriously hurt, but we no longer were allowed on the stairs to play. We went to the sea shore, Sea Side Heights. It was impressive on the boardwalk. I rode the Ferris Wheel with my grandfather. But best of all was watching the making of, and then the eating of, salt water taffy! 

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Two of my grandsons live with my wife and me. I am responsible for their welfare and proper upbringing. So yesterday afternoon I took them out for a little survival training. They needed to learn about Valentine’s Day. We bought a dozen red roses, a box of Petit Fors (not pinafores, skouba) and a huge chocolate chip decorated with a chocolate bear and the words “I Love You Beary Much!”

We got home just before GrandMom was to arrive home from work. I showed the boys where the vases are kept, how to add the packet of fresh flower to the water and place the roses in the vase. We put them in the center of the table. At the base of the bouquet, we arranged the cookie so it could be read as GrandMom entered the door and the pinafores next to the cookie.

I let the boys go play with their pirate ship while waiting to hear the garage door to open. When that sound came, I called the boys. They hurried in to sit at the table, smiling in anticipation. When the door opened, they shouted “Happy Valentine’s, we love you.” She hugged us all and told us how pleased she was with the gifts. The boys went back to the pirate ship and I went to pick up the laptop. Another Valentine’s Day survived!

Now, I do get sentimental every year at this time. You see, Spring Training begins in Florida this week. I can almost hear the crack of the bat and the pop of the leather, and I feel all ecstatic!

Neither of the two teams I predicted to make the Super Bowl is there to play the game tomorrow. I thought San Diego was too good to lose either to the Patriots or the Colts. I wanted to see a game with LaDanian Tomlinson and Reggie Bush of the field at the same time. I thought Drew Brees would be effective enough to beat Chicago for the NFC championship. I said all that to demonstrate how much an expert NFL prognosticator I am.

I can see the Super Bowl going either way. I can imagine Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison smoothly executing all those plays that have made them such a great duo over the years, putting a rich icing on their football-shaped cake. I can see Peyton distributing the ball to 7 or 8 receivers and taking control of the game. I can see that light and quick defensive line of the Colts really rattling Rex Grossman and making his life and all of Da Bears fans miserable.

But I can also see Thomas Jones and Ced Benson chewing up yardage and clock, keeping the Colts offense off the field and the pressure off the shoulders of Grossman. I can see Devon Hester returning a punt, or two, for long gains and maybe breaking the spirit of the Colts. I can see Tank Johnson hanging all over Manning.

I can see Tony Dungy, the classy man that he is, raising the Lombardi trophy and having some vindication from all the misery he has gone through in his personal life the past couple of years, having lost his mom, dad, and son in a very short time.

I can also see Lovie Smith lifting the trophy, validating the hard work a boy from Big Sandy, Texas had to put in to achieve the height of success. I can see Tony Dungy genuinely embracing his protégé, Smith, in congratulation.

How do you see it?