Test of Fire: Evangelical Version (Official HD)

POWERFUL

Daughters and Dogs

I was looking in the mirror today and realised the shades of gray coming out in my beard,at my feet was our oldGolden retriever “Puppy” , her face turned a soft white with age ,laying down beside me , flapping her tail while laying down as only old dogs can do, as I tell her of my plans for today . I realised the  love Puppy has brought into  our lives at the same time I realised what she has taught the 3 M’s. Dogs can teach daughters a lot if we teach them to listen with thier heart , mind and soul.Daughters, as very little girls, need to internalize the deepest knowledge of loyalty, faith, honor, respect, and of course, love. Dads may attempt to teach these virtues, but Puppy lives it. Every day.

Puppy  taught my daughters the wisdom of living inthe moment. Even the least important moment is important enough.

Hearing the family car pulling into the driveway is important , exciting and a reason to investigate even if it is just for a hug, kiss and hello.

Waiting at the door is important...awarm hug and hello do wonders for everyone.

Going for walk , strolling ....lolli-gagging is good for the soul , sometimes

Feeling the slurp of cool water is important.

Stretching legs and toes is important.

Feeling the rush of the wind from the car window is important.

Getting a great big hug is important.

Puppy taught my daughters the truth of what is not particularly important. Morning breath. A bad hair day. Gossip.

Puppy taught my daughters to run, play, jump, frolic. Dogs have a magical way of nudging even our teenaged daughters into some agreeable action.

Puppy taught my daughters the beauty of looking into big, round eyes. The confidence of gently bathing and brushing magnificent hair. The patience of training. And the respect of things that are living.

Puppy taught my daughters to listen to a creature who has nothing to say. To speak her heart to ears that absorb her every word. To fear not solitude.

Puppy taught  my daughters to be silly. To pour out saved-up wishes. To love simply, yet completely. To take delight in this love.

Puppy is teaching my daughters about mortality. And immortality. Dogs let our daughters know that man alone contemplates his mortality… animals who are ready to go show no sign of doubt. Puppy is  offering my  daughters the greatest hope that we will always live in the memories of those we leave on this earth.

Puppy has taught my daughters that love often times needs no logic. The sweetest attraction is sometimes the strangest!

Explaining History from an Islanders point of view

Living and growing up on a pirate island is amazing and challenging but with one daughter graduating from Middle school and her team being called the Buccaneers and my second  Daughter being slightly banged up , we have had a chance to review many stories and dreams I told her as she was growing up ...one of them was my belief that sailors are blessed  by God , loved by Jesus and smiled upon by the angels.
With Her quick mind and sharper wit she layed out a trap for me to fall into by mentioning that Pirates  are also sailors ,but being ...older no more experienced I asked her to close her eyes and listen to my story , my version of history and my thoughts on Pirates .....

Just Imagine one night going out with your  buddies , you are having dinner , laughing, talking , singing songs and drinking a bit ,just enjoying your life with your friends ,bragging about your girlfriend and your dreams ….and then someone slips you a mickey  and off to sleep you go……Imagine the heart ache when you wake up on a merchant ship…  a big huge boat….. a ocean going vessal ……not a row boat but a functioning  working 7 days a week 24 hours a day boat  crammed with all sorts of stuff , other people as confused as  you  and a select group of people you don’t know …..This select group of people  won’t let you off the boat or take you back home…..They  demand you to  work or be Flogged…demand you to do unnatural things like climbing ropes on a swinging and swaying  mast or be flogged…..They  tell you ,you will be home in 2 to 5 years …..if you live …..They  demand absolute obedience and use terms and words you have never heard before nor fully understand ….They  give you strange and awful  food , They give you  limited sleeping arrangements and offer you no recourse but to sign papers saying you will work for food and maybe a small monthly allotment  if you survive and  get home .You have been just been  “IMPRESSED”.

Imagine the dispare  for these young men ,So you sign these papers pledging loyalty ,fidelity and your life to these unknown select group of  people.You  slowly and unwillingly learn the boat and the ways of a sailor. [England as well as many other nations in the late 1700’s and early 1800’s had 45 % of its sailors as sign ons ie: experienced sailors with no land based homes or families {formally impressed sailors }, 27% were impressed sailors ie as mentioned above …and now for the kicker 28% were volunteers…{that means they were impressed but told they would get a  bonus if they signed the papers quickly with no problems often at the point of a knife ..these guys were very "impressed "with thier recruiters ….lol….}.Slowly you begin to master several skills and forge bonds with others like yourself ..plucked also from thier mother’s breasts ….by the Select few and also beaten if they  don’t do as the select few say….these bonds forged with strangers grow stronger daily by working side by side with your new also “Impressed “friends .You have created a good impression not to be flogged.

Late at night , the older sailors tell you stories about how they have no home to go back too , families lost or scattered  and about life on the high seas and the different places they have been. In their eyes you still see a glimmer sadness but a flicker of pride or hope  if only given the chance , would they change the course of their lives………..They also whisper stories of men unlike them … free to choose their lives , their own boats , free to choose their own captains , master at arms , Quatermaster ,and First mate  and if these elected officers “screw up” they get voted out of the picture and off the boat …..They vote on where to go , who to see and what to do …they get real profit sharing ….they have real vested interested in the success of the voyage ….they get workmans comp [if they get hurt they get a pay out ]…..free health care …… free dental…life insurance pay out for thier wives .They develop their own set of rules for each trip for all to abide by …..they have formed a loose confederacy or union of men or even better a  breathen  of friends …….real democracy in action .

One day while sailing the select few  yell put more sail on….. and keep looking behind them at the two or three small ships behind them . Slowly the smaller boats get closer and closer and the select few get more and more nervious …..they understand what is happening and what will happen….The loan sharks[the guys from Holland who call themselves the East India trading company[very similar to Italian import/export companies  ] or the boys at Lloyds  bar and grill in London who run the insurance {imagine someone insuring cargo   for amounts of currency that are currently unknown  , the total quanity of product unknown  ,the total  quality of product is unknown and the delivery  is to be determined  at a later date weather permitting if the person handling the money lives long enough} ] Both of those groups   loaned  the select few the money for this voyage……and those guys  will not forgive them  if they loose the cargo [the VIG on a ship and cargo was fantastic 1000% or more ]and they” the loan sharks “will go after the select fews  families ….The select few  don’t want to die, get hurt or mained ….ie: better to save the ship or partial cargo and plan on a future voyage …then to die and  loose it all .

As the small boats come along side ,weapons are being passed out to you and your friends to defend the select fews ship…..hummm…..fight for  select few  you don’t know or like  , for a cargo that means nothing to you ,possibly get hurt for someone who beats you ,possibly die for someone who kidnapped you …hummm  …… ……..as the smaller boats come along side they unfurl the skull and cross bones …stating  “stand and deliver ,no mercy no quarter “ meaning stop the boat now  and we the free democratic sailors on the smaller ships will give you directions home or to the nearest port check your supplies as you may be lost wondering about in a big ocean and in return we will help you settle  your cargo ie  lighten your load so you can get home faster to see your loved ones and this cargo you have given us for directions and safe passage , we will sell it for you  locally to save you time , shipping costs  and to releave  you of the huge  capital gains  and import tax burden that will be placed upon you , on a side note :  you get to live another day [also remember the free democratic sailors  don’t want to get hurt , die or sustain injury either]   …it is a win win solution  for everyone ……. or you the select few can fire a shot and  the free democratic sailors trying to assit you and offer you help out on the big ocean will put you all to the sword because you have been impolite by not stopping  and saying hello ,you have been mean by making the free democratic sailors sweat in the heat and not waving back or saying hello ,  you have thrown a temper tantrum by firing a shot perhaps and given those poor democraticly elected sailors a headache by the noise.

Hopefully you will stop ...While cargo is being transferred to the smaller boats everyone is freely given the option of listening to the recruiters sales pitch for the  Christian non demoninational democraticsea faring coalition of men who promise you …..  better working hours , better  food ,workmans comp and profit sharing ….. or remaining with the Select Fews  Boat and maybe getting paid [remember the cargo just left with the Christian brotherhood of democratic seafarers  and your hopes of collecting a small daily wage after they [the select few]deducted out for loss of cargo , your food bill ,clothes ,blankets  , gloves ,and rain gear are now gone , you are now officially qualified as a debtor and liable to be thrown into debtors prison  upon return home or forced to work this debt off.]

Tough choices for these young men torn from their mothers bossum …hmmmm…..freedom ,democracy and profit sharing  …………..or………….. possible beatings , debtors prison and no guarrentee of getting paid …..ummmmm!!!!!!! what would you do???

Start a revolution [as we did in Texas ], establish your own Country [as we did in Texas ], develope your own system of Seafaring managment  for Global politics [as we did in Texas and on Galveston island ]

Nest week : pleasure boating, Jesus and pirates !

Our commericial for Mexico [edited english version]

Here is a version of our commericial for Mexico with English script for non spanish speakers

http://youtu.be/y37UnHktnBY

Amigo Movil Argentina

Accepted , rejected and objective

Accepted , rejected  and objective

My youngest Maddy daughter was filling out her application for  O’Connell Prep  School ,and among all the items listed for information gathering and questions asked were the following questions which gave pause for thought ,not wanting to repeat the traditional items of sports , school activities and groups and clubs it provided a chance for her and myself to reflect on ourselves as we really saw ourselves [using additional sheets paper if required ].So we each filled out our own versions of form together .Below are several points that caused us to both rethink in a nontraditional way thoughts  and our views of ourselves.

Describe yourself : [Not wanting her to do the …I am a good softball player and team leader which was already listed under the sports line , I thought about myself and came up with the following that fits in the 8 lines of space available]

I am unapproachably friendly. I am deliriously sane. I am normally crazy. I am rapturously unhappy. I am joyously angst-ridden. I am trendily outdated. I am consciously carefree. I am drunkenly devoted to sobriety. No. I am soberly committed to drunkenness. I am educated, but not snooty; a home-lover, but not a home-body. I am funny, but not a comedienne. I am religious, but not pious. I am set in my ways, but not set in concrete. I am confident, but not obnoxious. I am a bit romantic, but not sappy. I am smart, but not smart-alecky. I am  witty, but not at wit's end. I am reliable; but not predictable.

What are your assets and liabilities? [ Again not wanting her  to list team leader , captain of teams etc, but wanting her  to understand who she really is and give a insight into who her father is  , I came up with the following ]

I’m very creative both intellectually and artistically, but can't spell and often use inappropriate, but similarly sounding words to complete thoughts that might otherwise be profound.

What do you enjoy doing? [Again not wanting to list activites that are already described from the  many pages in the form with addition information listed on extra pages ,I looked for an answer that fits in the 4 lines provided on the application]

I Love to  laugh all the time, I enjoy laughing at the absurd, I enjoy laughing at my thoughts sparked by something completely unrelated, I enjoy laugh at texts that, sent to someone with a shadier disposition, might not be so funny, and I laugh at myself for laughing, among other things.

After smiling and reviewing her answers as compared to mine , we together sign, folded and placed a stamp and mailed out the application [s]…….Did I ever tell you I am also very forgetfull ,  I tend to forget minor details until I don't, and then I forget to forget them  again. I also enjoy hearing stories again for the first time….and this story will be told over and over again in my  house thru the years as the time …..my youngest  M got accepted in O’Connell Prep school and her father didn’t …..LOL…..you see when I sealed the envelope I enclosed both her copy and my copy of the application we were filling out….30 some years  after being accepted , graduating and now being rejected ,I can’t help but smile and think  life is still good on my island and at www.amigomovil.net .

Congratulations to my eldest Daughter  and to all seniors from the STEM program at Ball High Prep academy  and thanks to Dr Ricks for a job well done . Molly  good luck in the future and in farmacy or is it Pharmacy [ I don’t know I forget] school [ you already knew I couldn’t spell…lol… ]

Thoughts on Creativity

Creativity By Mike Nixon

Can creativity be created?  I personally find that creativity is a fickle mistress.  When moments of creativity hit, they can be motivating and uplifting.  In the sometimes long droughts between truly inspired thought, it seems that there has never been an original idea.  But, can innovation and ingenuity bedeveloped to the point that they are “on call” when the need arises?

Merriam -Webster describes creativity as “the skill and imagination to create new things”.  Skill – I like that – a skill is something that can be learned and developed.  But the second part of this definition is more problematic.  Imagination is that spark of genius that we are born with, something innately within us that singularly defines us and brands us as unique in this world.

While this psuedo-definition of imagination may be somewhat true, on further thought, it may be incomplete at best.  I wonder that skill and imagination are not so easily divorced as would appear on the surface.  Malcomb Gladwell is one of my favourite authors.  I believe he would take a different perspective on this topic.  In his books, Blink and again, peripherally, in Outliers, Mr. Gladwell would have us look at common (and not so common) occurrences differently.  Is our intuition (Blink) and our “overnight success” (Outliers) a God-given gift or talent bestowed at birth or are they more closely related to proficiency that can be developed?  It think the latter.

Let me give an example.  My wife's birthday was approaching.  As I get older, I am no longer satisfied buying the perfunctory flowers, perfume or other worn-out cliches of a present.  I wanted something creative to show my appreciation of her value in my life.  I wanted to celebrate the time that Anne and I  fell in love (I know, sappy, but true.)  In essence, I wanted to be creative.  But, what to buy or build or do?  One night, I noticed that when she bored of my excessive automotive how-to's and Science Channel documentaries, she retreated to her laptop and a quick game of Classic Ms. Pac Man.  You see, when we were first dating, we would often spend time by frequenting that late 70's hangout – the Video Arcade.

So the seminal idea was born.  I would find a vintage Pac Man arcade game and present it to her as a present.  But – you know what? - those things are big.  Where is it going to fit into our living room without it looking out of place like a fraternity dorm room.  (I say that because I had an Asteroids Arcade in my room...)  No, that definitely wouldn't work.  Maybe the “cocktail table” version of the arcade was a better solution.  Next revelation – those things are expensive.

Maybe I can build one...  There are myriad options and examples on the internet these days.  I secured plans and spent hours looking at examples.  I finally determined that I would not have the time/space/perseverance to complete this task.  But, the idea would not go away.  The cocktail table was a vast improvement but would still be covered by a tablecloth in the corner of the living room.  This would prevent the occasional spontaneous play that I wanted to encourage.  Something different would have to be “created”.  I wanted a classic arcade play but in a fixture that was on display for the world to see (I'm dramatic that way.)  I wanted it to be art.

Now, you see, one thing that I am not is an artist.  I am an engineer through and through.  I act like an engineer.  I talk like an engineer.  And, most importantly, I think like an engineer.  When I realized it was art that was the goal, I knew I was not the right man for the job.  So I turned to a real artist, John V. Weber.  Anne has wanted one of John's pieces in our home for some time.  So I “commissioned” John to build the artwork that would hold my engineering.  You see I have a secret weapon – John is also my daughter's father-in-law.  So art with a purpose.  And this is the metaphor for which I was searching.

So the terms, art and skill are very much relative.  John's art has a skill that is unsurpassed.  Like a pianist or a singer, his art is practised each day until it is honed to a fine edge.  Similarly, my skill has a certain level of artistic quality – the layout of wire, the location of the controls and the operation of the mechanics.  All developed from the repetitive use and tutelage of engineers more practised than myself.

So, creativity has come to mean the development of ideas and practices to a level that seems natural and spontaneous.  What Mr. Gladwell would describe as conforming to the “10,000 hour rule”.  Some, it seems, get this right and call it “focus”.  Others, fail miserably with obvious me-too products incorporating little thought or effort.  I like to believe that we can all insert some creativity into our world based on our own 10,000 hours of experience.  It is with this insight and challenge that we approach the development of all of our projects at Amigo Movil.