A Delay

Well...I had hoped to be able to go to Paris for my 45th birthday, but it appears the trip will have to be delayed until the fall. By the time I got around to getting a ticket for a June trip, the prices had trebled....so, after much debate, I am postponing my trip until November. C'est la vie!

Grad work update

I know you are all dying to know where I am on the road to my doctorate, so here's an update: I am almost done with my first year and still love my program. The readings, assignments, discussions and papers have been rigorous, challenging and very rewarding. I mostly work with two mentors (as HMU calls their professor); Chad Redwing and Robert Burns. Both men are brilliant in their own right and we have had some amazing discussions--mostly on the philosophy of education and how people actually learn. It's been a terrific year and I look forward to the remainder! (Remind me of this post in a few years when I am sick of this program! LOL)

PAX!

Another Grapes of Wrath Pic

OK...I like this pic much better than the other one! It must be because of the smile!

Cotton Patch Gospel Pic

Here's a terrific pic from our production of Cotton Patch Gospel in February. It was such a terrific show--I can't wait for the chance to doit again!

The End of Grapes and New Beginnings

So...we have closed Grapes and struck the set. The costumes are packed away and the props returned to the closet for their next use. I was so honored to be a small part of this important and amazing show--honored to have so many friends who love me and put up with my own special brand of insanity--honored to have gifts that I can share in many, many ways--blessed to have family that love and support me (hi, Mom!) --but mostly, I am so lucky to have a second chance at this rich, thick, amazing, important, tedious, lovely, happy, God-given life. Knowing how lucky I am makes it even better. Knowing that some of you out there love me makes it even richer.

As I was driving home Q called to talk about Torchwood and Julia's concert in May and all of the things happening in Dallas and he pointed out kindly that I don't often receive the love from the people in my life. All of the love from my family and friends that I tend to take for granted--well, not take for granted, but I don't always acknowledge that I know I am loved. I appreciate this feedback more than Q will ever know. I KNOW that people love me, but I think I am afraid that if I acknowledge the bounty of love in my life that it might go away. Now, I know that is crazy, unhealthy thinking--but it is there--at the core of who I am. How to fix that? It will take time--but at least I know that I am not broken and that I am loved by lots and lots and lots of people. Know what? I love them all more than they could ever know!

PAX

Paul and Ms. Mouse

Here is a pic of me and the Nonny Mouse.

The band in Grapes of Wrath has been terrific to work with...really great musicians!

A Grapes of Wrath Pic

Here is me and Nathan Houseman in the Weedpatch Camp scene. The show has turned out quite well and it was a blast to work with Nathan and others....especially The Nonny Mouse--even thought Ms. Mouse refuses to admit that she is indeed Ms. Mouse. LONG STORY!

Pax

Grapes of Wrath--Final Dress Rehearsal

What is it about the theater that I love so much? Here I am, responsible for the equivalent of 3 full-time positions right now at work, and I have managed to find the energy to do these terrific character roles in this show. I am exhausted...but also the happiest I have been in years. It must be the way my brain is wired--I am usually at my happiest when I am in the middle of a production. This show has come such a long way in such a short time. I was mentioning to someone the other night that Shaun-Michael's vision (the director) is ALWAYS worth the amount of effort it takes to get there. He is meticulous in his craft and the show reflects that. I certainly am looking forward to some down-time on Saturday, however!

PAX

Lafitte

Last night at rehearsal, Joyce Cavarozzi (retired WSU theater professor) walked up to me with a file in her hand and told me she had been cleaning out some of her files and came across something she thought I would like. I proceeded to read my journal that I had submitted to her for class credit from my month in New York in the fall of 1984 while we were working on Lafitte for it's NYC preview. I am so thankful for this! I will post some of the entries in coming blogs.

PAX

New WATC Office Location

So...I just got moved into my new house when my VP tells me that I am moving my WATC office today....LOTS of location changes, huh? But that is just fine. I will still be on the Grove campus, just in a different building (B). This is just for a few months until the new Jabara Campus is built (late 09 or early 10) and I will be moving out there....this move does come with a new title though--Manager, Distance Learning. It's a nice step up for me! I'll post more about that when more is made official.

PAX

New House in Riverside

About this time next week I will be moved into my new residence in Riverside. While I have enjoyed my time at 815 W. River Blvd, when the chance to have an entire house (with garage) all to myself at not much more than my current rent presented itself--I had to jump on it! All of my contact information will remain the same save my address. Email me for it!

The Grapes of Wrath

I will be performing a number of small roles in the upcoming Wichita Center for the Arts' production of "The Gapes of Wrath". This show is being directed by my old friend Shaun Michael Morse and has lots of terrific people in it!. Dates of production are April 16, 17, 18 & 19 at 8:00 pm and a 2:00 Matinee on Sunday, April 20. It promises to be a beautiful production!

PAX!

Small blessings....

Ahhh....to be 40+ and FINALLY learn how to tie a full-Windsor neck tie. All of my professional life I have used the simple knot that I knew from youth--the half-Windsor. But, due to the fact that I wear a tie almost daily now, I was getting sick of the wimpy look my knots had...so, with great humility I approached our young CAD instructor, Jeremy, and asked him to teach me the fine art of FULL-WINDSOR. May I say, that I am a terrific student and after just two attempts I feel prepared to wear the knot I have right now home. There, I shall practice all weekend until I am able to do this new knot with ease. I bet you didn't know that Friday afternoons at work could be so productive! Viva la Knot!

My mother's paintings

In the living room of my little Riverside apartment there are two special paintings on the walls. Both are creations of my mother. Both are beautiful. Both speak volumes about how far this woman has come in life. One on wall is a lovely, woody setting--green and tree-filled--and when mom gave it to me, she mentioned about how my father Earl would go bow-hunting for deer and that she painted this as a remembrance of those happier times. Mom knows how important Dad was in my life. The other is a painting of trees in Autumn. It is such a colorful contrast to the first that it actually sits on the opposite wall. I love the beautiful pumpkin matting that she chose to bring out the palate in the painting. I've been thinking about these paintings (and the quilts that she has made me over the years) and the love that we have for one another and I realize what a lucky, lucky man I am to have this amazing, complex woman for a mother. Not only did she create and nurture me...but she continues to create and nurture life and love in her art and her home.

My tribe...

My buddy Quentin posted this pic on his blog and I wanted to post it here. That's my tribe up there!

Some more training....

OK- So I have been an educator and trainer for almost 20 years, yet in the past month I have attended over 60 hours of intensive training from 4 different organizations! Who knew I had so much left to learn! LOL. Mostly it was learning how to deliver their products and services, but I actually got tons of good stuff about facilitation skills from all 4 parties. The biggest thing I learned (which I hear after EVERY class I teach) is that I need to slow down. Well, maybe you all need to speed up! HA! Anyway, I know that I perceive things in a quick manner and I just assume that everyone can keep up....bad assumption. I have asked my friend Trish here at the college to make a big banner to place in the back of all of my classrooms that reads...PAUL--SLOW DOWN. It is a skill I will work on diligently as I begin to provide training to our new clients. PAX

Thoughts on my training--Our Whole Lives

OK-My minister and our Christian Education director asked me to be trained in Our Whole Lives--a sex-ed training program designed for all ages, but specifically for our middle- and high-school aged people. The training was held last weekend at Eden Theological Seminary in Webster Groves, Mo (near St. Louis) and it was an terrific experience. Our CE team at UCC has some decisions to make concerning parts of the curriculum, but over-all it is a terrific program designed to teach basic values concerning our bodies, sexual health and the part faith plays in relationships. Another facet of the training I enjoyed was meeting clergy and lay-people from both the United Church of Christ and some Unitarian Universalists--terrific theology and both congregations have such a calling for justice and inclusivity. Just my cup of tea! Oh yeah, and on the return trip to Wichita, I had Karen drop me off in KC and I got to be with my tribe for about 18 hours--a perfect tonic for me! PAX

Dinner with the Parson

My new minister and his family had me over for dinner last night and I had such a great time. They have purchased a farmhouse out in Walton, Kansas, about 10 miles north of Newton. It reminded me so much of my sister's farm in Eudora that I was instantly comfortable there. They have some horses, goats and chickens and two large furry dogs. We spent most of the dinner talking about UCC and where they met and how they came to Kansas and how I managed to find my way to UCC and tons of other important topics. I left there feeling even more confident that our congregation is in very capable, caring hands and that the difficult changes that lie ahead will be met with concern and compassion and we'll get by just fine. Not bad for a meal of spaghetti and fresh bread!

Pax

A chilly Saturday

So....I finally have a Saturday without a rehearsal, training session or other required thing...and what do I do? I go to the office to work on something else! At this point in my life, my job has a nice central point--and for those of you worried about balance, don't worry, I assure that if the sun were shining and the weather any warmer, I would be on my bike and nowhere near WATC! Tomorrow I am watching the Oscars with some friends--it seems that I have put a self-imposed embargo on watching these for the past few years, (I used to have an annual party at the house on Coe Drive) and it is time to stop punishing myself!

PAX!

Why Every Atom?

Someone asked me why I chose that specific Walt Whitman line for the title of my blog. Well, Uncle Walt and I have a long history--my father used to read me selections from "Song of Myself" when I would visit from college, so it has that connection. But there is something eternal in the poet's line. I have a concrete love of the sciences that I balance as best I can with my philosophy and theology. Whitman's line to me captures the inherent science of our natural world, that the atoms that make up matter (and eventually life) are indeed basic materials belonging to all who abide on this planet. But then he hints at broader issues here, does he not? Socialism? As in a shared society and resources. Parity? As in we each get the atoms needed to sustain life (or at least those of us fortunate to be born in cultures where such substance is made possible). So the poet blends science and philosophy and art into one lovely little stanza, which means a lot to me. I mean, look at all of the energy and time I put into this post--when the Great Uncle said is with such economy and beauty--For Every Atom Belonging to Me as Good Belongs to You.