Role Model

My father Robert would have turned 79 years old today.  Life has been completely different for me these last 13 months.

This photo is probably my all-time favorite of my dad and I.  On this particular day in March of 2005, me, my brother-in-law Ira and my dad made a journey to Dodgertown in Vero Beach to watch a spring training game.  The tree over my left shoulder gave us shade the entire game, and we liked it so much, my dad had no problem joining us for trips in 2006, 2007 and 2008 (the final year Dodgertown was open before the team abandoned Florida for Arizona).

That's the kind of person my dad was.  If I was interested in something, he became interested in it, too.

He was always a Dunkin' Donuts fan even before I started working with them from a PR standpoint - once I did that, he always made it a point to call me and tell me when he was visiting one for a cup of coffee.

He sat through two heartbreaking FSU losses to Miami in 2000 and 2002 in the upper deck despite being afraid of heights. 

He originally began listening to Meat Loaf and Queen because I liked both groups.

He began using the internet in 2000 while I was still in Tallahassee so he could email me, watch music videos on YouTube and get sports news from ESPN, long past the average age of people who use computers.

He even let me explain Twitter to him, and understood it enough that when I showed him I was quoted in a Sarah Talalay article eight days before he died, he laughed (because the quote was about his short height) and told me he was proud of me.

I miss him the most in the mornings on the way to work - I used to call him religious at 8am to talk about sports, life and whatever else was on his mind or mine.

In short, my dad was my role model and I always try to do everything for my children that he did for me.  I'm happy that my son had a great relationship with him and that he got to spend one year getting to play with my daughter.

Happy Birthday, Daddy. Enjoy the donut!

New Year's Resolutions

Once again, a few weeks go by, and I become entranced in updating what's going on in my life. Since last I wrote:

• I finally met my cousin Kenny's wife in person
• I attended a fun reunion of old high school friends at Howl at the Moon in Ft. Laud
  
• I saw the Seminoles win the Champs Sports Bowl in person in Orlando
• I saw the Seminoles defeat Western Kentucky in Basketball in person in Sunrise, where I grew up
• I saw Virginia Tech defeat Cinncinnati in person at the 2009 Orange Bowl, where I hung out with old friends Drew and Dave
• I saw a couple of great movies
• I had fun with Orange & Blue Donuts (which I never thought was possible)
• I went to a couple of birthday parties with Bailey and Riley
• I have yet to watch a complete NFL playoff game this season
• I have continued working hard at my rehab on my left achilles tendon

With so many things over the last few weeks, I decided to sit down tonight and talk about my 2009 resolutions:

1) I intend to update my blog on a more consistent basis. With so many crazy things going on in my life at different times, I should always take a moment for myself and write.

2) I want to keep my house more clean. It has been a battle for 4 1/2 years now and hopefully one we start winning this year.

3) I want to earn my APR certification in PR. I have belonged to PRSA for over 7 years now, and finally feel like I have time to commit to going for it. This is one of those personal achievements that I will be quite proud of when I can have those letters next to my name.

4) I want to spend more time seeing friends and fraternity brothers in person. Over the last month, I have already seen more people from the old days and current friends than I can ever remember, so my hope here is to keep doing what I'm doing.

5) I want my wife to know how proud I am of her for her dedication to going to the gym, which in turn has made me have to commit to waking up earlier to dress both kids long after she's gone in the morning. So far so good!

6) I want my rehab to be over soon, not because I don't like to go (my PT is a great guy and very funny), but because once I do that, I can start walking again (like I used to in Tallahassee), which will then hopefully spur me to follow my old eating ways rather than getting off course (which is easy to do when you're on your back for 3 weeks and unable to walk long distances for almost 3 months).

7) I want the Seminoles to beat the South Florida Bulls (my wife's alma mater) in September 2009, so she can't go on and on and on about it for three years (when they have their rematch in 2012).

8) I want to keep expanding my horizons with Social Media - A lightbulb went off in my head back in late-August and I have been fiercely active ever since. Twitter is my favorite and I want it to keep taking me to heights I never imagined.

9) I want to hold my emotions in check this August when Bailey starts Kindergarten on his first day of school. Boy, that will be quite a day. At least his mom will be down the hall!

10) Finally, I want to try and read one book a month. I have ALWAYS been a terrible reader. I would like to try to stick to this plan, so if anyone has any books they recommend that they think I would like, I'm all ears.

Happy 2009 to all!

Life is But a Tweet Away

Let me begin by saying I can't believe it's been over seven weeks since I last updated my blog. When I first started it, I fully intended to do it 2-3 times a week. However, between tearing my achilles tendon in mid-October and simply having other interests these days, I haven't found the time.

It's been quite an interesting year on many levels for me. I've had some rough patches but found a way to work through them. I feel more in control of things than ever before. I am not shy to voice my opinion and I've decided life is too short for games and drama.

I've got a beautiful wife who I first wrote to via http://www.jewishsinglesconnection.com/ (the predecessor to J-Date) on December 23, 1998, which means we have been together for 10 years now. She is my rock and my strength and I love her more than words can say. I'm trying hard to help keep the house clean and help more and more with things I used to put off.

We are fortunate to be blessed with two beautiful children - Bailey, our 4 1/2 year old son, and Riley, our daughter who turned one this past Sunday. They are both amazing children, and after so many difficulties trying to have both of the, we feel fortunate to be blessed with such wonderful kids.

My job at Tilson Communications is going well. I've been there for a little over 2 years and am enjoying the versatility of our clients. I am also speaking up a lot more and not shy when it comes to my opinion.

One discovery I made this year that has changed the way I approach everything is a micro-blogging service called Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/). In 140 characters, you tell people what you are doing, answer questions, and basically communicate with people of similar interests. I first discovered the service in late-August through a tele-seminar that I wasn't expecting to learn much from.

Then, a lightbulb went off. I immediately understood how great this service was. I saw it as a tool for personal and professional use. I try to integrate a little humor into my tweets whenever possible.

In almost four months' time, I have tweeted from events such as Dunkin' Donuts grand openings, Alan Snel's Tampa Bay Rays celebration ride, an FSU-Miami Football Game, Dania Jai-Alai, Pompano Park at The Isle Casino, an AC/DC Concert, the launch of @TrulyNolen on twitter, rehab appointments for my left ankle, and much more.

I have also discovered the power of people, as a Chicago-area PR professional named @PRSarahevans created a weekly group discussion at http://www.journchat.info/. Created as a way to bring PR professionals together with journalists to discuss relevant topics to each profession, it has caught on like wildfire and I have met so many great people over the last two weeks. In addition, I'm always taking the principles I learn in the discussions back to the office where I work and sharing with my great colleagues.

The way I have my Facebook account set up, my Twitter updates often reset my FB status. I have had friends make snide comments about the amount of updates I do.

You know what? If it makes ME happy, I'm not going to let others bring me down. If I want to tweet a set list from AC/DC, that's my choice. If my friends don't want to read it on FB, they can skip my page that day. If someone on Twitter doesn't like it, they can unfollow me.

So, fair warning to my Facebook friends - I'll be tweeting from our Nova High Class of 1990 (and other classes) reunion at Howl at the Moon this Friday night. Know why? Because I want to. Period.

Happy Hanukkah and Merry Christmas to all and too all a good night!