The Genius Blog

Why I Refuse to Celebrate "Dads & Grads"

Have you seen all the commercials and advertisements lately reminding you to remember your “Dads & Grads”? This marketing catch phrase really irks me. Since when did Father’s Day get lumped in with another holiday? So dads aren’t even important enough to get our own day now and we have to share?

Seriously, can you imagine this happening with Mother’s Day? If Mother’s day took place during music appreciation month would we tell people to celebrate Moms and Brahms? Or if it was near Veterans Day… Moms and Bombs? Not a chance.

When it comes to holidays, we really appreciate mothers. Mother’s Day is traditionally the day of the year when the most phone calls are made. The commercials for Mother’s Day are sappy, heart-warming flashbacks to a mom cooking a child a meal and bandaging up a knee. We are usually told we should get mom a nice big diamond necklace, or a spa treatment, or something to give them a break from all their hard toil and sacrifice they do for us.

With dads… it’s more like you can pick him up a gift on the way to graduation and save yourself an extra trip. Or if stores do advertise specifically for dads… they focus on the things dads do apart from the family. According to the marketing gurus… dads do only two things: they golf or sit around on their duff with other dads and watch sports on TV. The rare, exceptional dad… can both golf and watch TV.

Ok, so maybe it isn’t quite that bad. But I find that in general, society just doesn't respect fatherhood much or even expect much from fathers. And sadly, it’s often with good reason. Far too many fathers have been absent, unfaithful, irresponsible, and focused primarily on themselves. I have to admit that many more moms have been carrying the load of parenting and being the better spiritual leader in their families.

I think it’s time for us dads to step up… and finally be worthy of those incredibly fashionable “#1 Dad” t-shirts we seem to get.

Maybe then – we’ll even get our own holiday.
 

I Think Video Games Have Destroyed My Kids

Last Saturday was a beautiful spring day here in Charlotte. So my wife and I, being the incredible parents that we are… decided that it was the perfect day for a special family outing. Gorgeous day, quality time with the kids, what could be better?

So I had this great idea… to take a family bike ride. We used to do that when I was a kid and I remember loving it. Back then, I had this very cool Huffy BMX dirt bike which was purchased from that high-quality bike super-store… Kmart. Of course, since I was a type-A first child… I never actually rode the bike in the dirt. And if I ever accidentally went through a puddle or something, I would spend the rest of the day washing and polishing the bike. But regardless, there was nothing better than my bike when I was a kid.

Wow. Times have changed.

First of all… it took us a half an hour to find the bikes in the garage. We had to sort through mounds of toys, motorized scooters, roller blades, nerf guns, kites, and inflatable water slide systems. Back when I was a kid, I had a bike and maybe a ball glove in the garage and that was about it. My kids have so much stuff, we had to remind them which bike was theirs. But I eventually got the tires all pumped up and we embarked.

That’s when the drama really started.

My younger son immediately broke into a sobbing ball of tears and whined: “I can’t get up this hill! My legs are aching! How much longer?!”  I assured him that it would get a lot easier… as soon as we got out of the driveway.

Unfortunately, it didn’t. Most of the entire bike ride (um… maybe 45 minutes?) was spent complaining and asking when we were going to turn around and go home. Granted, the ground wasn’t completely flat -- but this is North Carolina... not the Swiss Alps. And we weren’t exactly drafting each other for top speed. We encountered some hills and went at a normal pace, but to all but one of my four kids… it was like my wife and I were waterboarding them or something. My one daughter even described the ordeal afterwards as “the worst experience of her life.”  If that weren't enough, my younger son actually had to stay home from school the next Monday, in part because his legs and ankles hurt so much from pedaling!  I'm not joking!

So much for family bonding. As soon as we got home, my kids asked if they could go inside and play video games.

I couldn’t believe it… but I thought maybe my memory had faded or something, so I called my dad to ask him if I had complained about bike rides when I was a kid. He assured me I hadn’t. Actually, he said that when HE was a kid, back before parents had to be so safety conscious… he would go out on his own and ride his bike 15-20 miles… in the snow… while pedaling with only one leg. He said I was the one who had it easy.

I guess things must get easier for each generation. Can you imagine when my kids have kids? They’ll be telling their children… “Oh yeah? Well in my day we didn’t have video games that you could control with your mind. We had to USE CONTROLLERS with our OWN TWO HANDS until our thumbs ached!”

It does seems like kids these days are more interested in virtual exercise than real exercise. I cracked up the other day when my older son was telling our family that two of his favorite sports were “Tennis and Hockey.” We were all a bit confused, since this child has never held a tennis racket and never, ever played ice hockey. When asked how he knew they were his favorites, he replied: “I’ve played them on the Wii.”

So… I decided after that weekend that my kids definitely need more exercise. My kids are going to be tough and active, like I am. This weekend, I’m shipping them outside... no matter what they say. And then, while they are outside… I’ll sit down at the computer and spend a couple hours on Facebook.
 

The Ultimate Organizational Tool

For us type-A planners... finding the perfect organizational tool is like the quest for the holy grail. Personally, I'm always changing my system in the search for something better.  I started with the Psion Series 3c, circa 1996, right when PDAs were bursting onto the scene. It had a black and white calendar, folks!  In 1998, I stepped up to the sleek and hip Palm Pilot III, which in hindsight looks a little like a big cheap plastic brick. Additionally, I had to scribble each letter about four times before the Palm would correctly identify what I was trying to write. The Palm Tungsten E lasted me quite a while until I made the gigantic leap to a smart phone with the Treo 755p and a software-sync to Outlook. That was pretty darn cool. Still not satisfied, I wrote my own custom web app that would take data exported from the phone and publish it into interactive reports that could be shared online.

Yet... through it all... something was missing. No matter how these devices improved... I still found it just took too much discipline to make these tools useful. My quest had failed. 

Until now.

I've recently stumbled upon the mother of all organizational tools. Seriously. I'm kind of addicted to it. The interface is so intuitive and customizable that it has been revolutionizing the way I plan my day! Sorry Apple fan-boys, I am definitely not talking about the iPhone. What is this incredible piece of technology?

The paper notebook.

I'm really not sure how they came up with this thing. But it is blowing my other tools out of the water. Mainly... because I actually use it. The electronic tools always end up being a hassle. This thing is just so darn easy that it comes naturally. And using a basic tool is actually more effective than having a fancy tool and not using it.

Check out these cutting-edge features:

• Can be used during take-off and landings
• Insanely long battery life
• Includes a multi-color display if you use different colored pens
• You can double your memory without extra cost by turning over the sheet and using the back side
• Very GREEN.  Screen doesn't emit potentially harmful RF rays, can be completely recycled, no toxins used in the production
• Is a great gaming device including popular hits like "Tic Tac Toe" and "Hangman"
• Completely wireless
• You can talk on the phone and write on this thing at the same time
• Backwards-compatible with all brands of pens and pencils
• Priced at about $494 dollars less than the Apple iPad
• The completely customizable interface adjusts to how you want to use it
• Customizable "skins" with virtually any type of cover you want, including "Hello Kitty"
• Comes in both small and large screen sizes for those with poor eyesight
• The case is virtually unbreakable. Can be dropped from a height of more than six feet without damaging the unit
• Writing on screen can be viewed from all angles
• Compatible even with Windows Vista.

Anyway, I felt like I had to pass this tip along to all five of my blog readers. You can find one of these at all kinds of online retailers, including Amazon.com. I'm not getting a commission or anything. Just trying to help.

I can't wait to see what they think of next.

Why Another Blog?

I know. I know. If there’s one thing the world doesn’t need, it’s another blog, right? Your sister has one… your best friend has one… your kid has one… even your pet hamster has one. Enough already.

I can relate. I confess that I’ve been a bit of a “blog-basher” in the past… and when it comes to blogs, I’ve definitely been out of the loop (or do you say “bloop”?). One time I was leading a church prayer group and I asked our members to share prayer requests. We were going around the room sharing requests and one woman actually said to me, “Just check my blog.” I nodded politely… and then immediately wrote “blog addiction” down on the prayer request sheet.

After that night, I went out and bought a T-shirt to wear to church. It read: “More people have read this t-shirt than have read your blog.” I thought it was hilarious. And then I gave it to my wife to wear…. cause I was a little scared of what Miss Blog Addiction might do to me… even at church. Never mess with a mom and her blog.

Anyway… so why bother with this particular blog?

Well… a year and a half ago, I helped launch this fun little site SignUpGenius.com. It was birthed out of my own frustration in trying to plan, organize, and coordinate groups and events. I built the site primarily because I desperately needed a tool like this so I didn’t lose my own mind! But after it was built, a funny thing happened. People all over the country started using it… a lot.

It’s been fun to see it grow. And it’s been really neat to interact with users all over the country – organizing Type-A Planners, just like me – who are looking for a better way to organize their church, school, family, or sports group. I’ve enjoyed great email dialogues about possible SignUpGenius enhancements, had people ask me about sign up and event related resources, and even been sent fun stories of what people have used SignUpGenius for. The users of SignUpGenius have become a little “community of planners” to me – a brotherhood of in-the-trenches people dedicated to organizing the world.

So… Planners of the World, Unite! This blog is for you. I’ll be keeping you up to date on the latest SignUpGenius upgrades, sharing thoughts related to leading groups & events… and occasionally just rambling on technology and family-life topics that crack me up.

So check back when you can. If you’re anything like me… you’ll probably end up reading the blog on your phone while simultaneously eating dinner, driving to a church event, quizzing your kids on their homework, listening to the radio, and writing out a to-do list on the steering wheel.

And… I promise to be more interesting than your hamster.
 

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