Rainy Scene

There is a house in Grand Bay that I have admired since childhood.  It's an older home that has as much charm and appeal as any other building in town.

However, this house no longer exists.  It burned down just over a week ago, and the rain falling down on the ashes and scorched lumber on this cold December morning created a rather somber image.

Now, I'm well aware that it's quite cliché to discuss the relative significance of material possessions and we probably all have the same ideas, anyway.  However, seeing what little remains of this home has made me think about how quickly everything you think you have can be taken away.  In a matter of hours, every picture, article of clothing, or electronic device this family had stored inside the four secure walls of their home was gone.  Forever.

Maybe it was just the rain, but it made me (at least on the drive to work) think a little more about how I can better prioritize the things in life that really matter.  I guess that can be a New Year's resolution.

Fatherhood

Since becoming a parent over two years ago, there have been many perceptions I've once held that I've altered or given up completely, many new lessons learned, and a few genuine skills developed.  Here is a brief list of a few of those:

1. Lots of people have lots of opinions.
• Since the day Blair was born, there have been people willing to "guide" us in the proper and appropriate way to rear a child.  Now, my wife and I are by no means experts ourselves in this field, but we are not entirely clueless, either.  Some people think your child eats too much candy while plenty others think you focus too much on fruits and vegetables.  Some folks think you spank too often and others think your child is spoiled.  There are experts everywhere.  
2. Bowel movements can be a reason to celebrate.
• There have been a few times over the past couple of years when my daughter's inability to produce solid stool has caused an elevated level of concern in our home.  When it eventually does happen, there is a great sense of relief in our family.  It's not gross or weird.  Maybe a bit... don't judge!
3. I need to enjoy the younger years while they last.
• I have friends and co-workers that are raising teenagers and I am in no rush at all to reach those years.  Sure, toddlers and pre-schoolers have their own issues, however I am nowhere near ready to deal with issues like dating, curfews, and all the corresponding emotional drama.  Two years have already passed in the blink of an eye, so I know that 13 will be here soon enough.
4. I can put pigtails in the hair of a two-year-old.
• This skill I learned while Betty Clair was on a mission trip with our church in Guatemala.  Kayla Hatcher, my sister-in-law that my brother was lucky to marry, taught me how to do this while she was gone.  It has almost now become a daily demand that she gets "two pigtails" in her hair before leaving home.
5. My OCD ways quite often must fall by the wayside.
• This one has been tough to accept.  Ask anyone who has ever witnessed my system for laundry.  There are constant messes that I have had to learn to deal with if I intend to keep my sanity, though.  Toddlers are messy creatures and are not always necessarily very good at wiping spaghetti sauce and milk off the table after dinner.  Those messes generally are cleaned up rather promptly primarily for sanitation purposes, but toys and socks on the strewn around the house have become something I give much less consideration.

I also have a book to endorse while I have your attention.  I discovered this one while trying to learn about the female sex before my daughter was even born since my wife has been telling me for years that I don't understand women.  I've learned that she is right about this.

The book She Calls Me Daddy has tons of practical, reasonable information that is not overwhelming to naive new dads like me.  It offers lots of ideas that I have already utilized and others that I most likely will apply in the future.  If you have a new-born daughter or a challenging teenager, I recommend that you pick up a copy for yourself.

College Bowl Mania

If you love America and/or your mom, you will play fantasy sports with me.

Click right here to find my group on the ESPN fantasy sports website.  Then create an entry (or use an existing one) and join the group.

You will be choosing the winner of each college football bowl game and ranking them according to your confidence level in your selections.  For example, if you are extremely certain that UCLA will be able to handle Virginia Tech and that Loeffler-guided offensive juggernaut in the Sun Bowl, you should slide that selection all the way to the top of the list. You should be able to figure out how it all works on your own from there.

The first bowl game is on December 21, so hurry up and get your picks in now.

There are also some awesome prizes being given out this year.  The first prize winner will get a printed copy of this blog post signed by me.  All you have to do is print it out yourself and bring it to me for my autograph.  I'm sure you'll want it framed, but I'm not that generous.  Hobby Lobby does excellent work, though.  Additionally, the second and third place participants will get a free life-time subscription to my blog.  Be grateful.

Statistics

During many sports broadcasts, commentators and the networks that employ them seem to relish the opportunity to present random statistics that may in some way relate to the event you are watching.  For example, you may suddenly be informed that in road games west of the Mississippi River after 7:15 pm, David Ortiz has a career average of .342 when facing right-handed pitchers.  Or that Kobe Bryant successfully makes free throws at an 89.2% clip against Eastern Conference foes whose starting point guards went to ACC or Pac-12 schools*.  Most of this data is generally pretty useless, however it often proves to be rather intriguing and has recently led me to contemplate statistics and numbers that actually are relevant to my own life.

The numbers and statistics I've considered in my own life are probably also pretty trivial, but they have caused me to spend some time recently pondering whether much of what I do every day is actually significant or vital to other people.

I recently heard an old Garth Brooks song and I became curious as to just how many times I'd heard that same song in my life.  10, 100, 1000?  If you extrapolate the fact that Rodeo is 3:54 of classic country bliss and conservatively assume that I've heard it at least 100 times, then I've spent 6 hours and 30 minutes of my short time on this planet listening to the SAME SONG! 

I've also considered some of my interactions with other people.  Upon arriving at work, church, or any other social setting, most of us generally exchange the same pleasantries that we always do with the same people that we always see.  "Hi, co-worker, how 'bout that weather?" or "Did you have a nice weekend?" are a couple of the phrases that I verbalize multiple times on a weekly basis.  Now, there is nothing at all inherently wrong with these types of comments.  In fact, it would be considered impolite if these interactions did not occur or were altogether avoided.  It's just interesting (at least to me) to muse over how much time we dedicate on actions such as these.

I don't intend to solely focus on how much "wasted time" I have accumulated through the years.  I'm also captivated by other "life statistics" that I am carrying around.  How many gallons of sweet tea have I consumed in my life?  What is the longest I have ever owned a pair of socks?  How many times have I swung a stick to hit a ball?  How many hours have I spent operating lawn equipment?    How many miles have I traveled in automobiles?  Or on foot?

What is my "Tongue Biting" percentage when I'm tempted to say something I shouldn't?  What is my world ranking in the "Ability to Prioritize Appropriately" standings?

Far more often than not, the results of my alma mater's football contests matter more to me than I should allow**.  Put into perspective, it's really a bunch of teenage boys that I have never met fighting over the appropriate location for an inflated piece of leather.  Sounds silly, huh?  I'm pretty sure some of that emotional energy I expend could be directed toward a better purpose.

The real question remains, however, about how would you obtain this information and what would you do with it if you actually could?  Would I be embarrassed to learn how much time I spend surfing the internet instead of enjoying playing with my daughter?  Would I do much about it?  I don't really know the answer but it has given me some things to consider recently.

I guess I could start with deleting the social media apps on my phone again.

* These statistics are entirely made up and only exist for the purposes of this post.

** I do not actually intend to completely abandon my support of Auburn University.  War Eagle!

I'm Back!

This blogging thing used to be fun... then I bought a house and reproduced.  I don't have much time to blog any more.

However, I'm going to give it another shot, and I'll start by letting you know a couple details about what's going on with the Hatcher family down here in our little corner of southwest Alabama.

My daughter is now two years old.  Yes, seriously, it's been that long since you read anything on this page (shoutout to my three readers).  She's a little firecracker that constantly keeps us on our toes, yet she's still the most beautiful child in the South... umm, I mean America.  Okay, enough with the humility.  She's the cutest and smartest and most awesome kid EVER BORN!  Disclaimer:  I may be a bit biased.

We're also expecting our second child some time in the not too distant future.  I'm not really sure when the due date is or even if the baby has already come.  No, I'm not that apathetic of a husband and father.  We will be adopting our next child.  Currently, we are in the middle of the international adoption process and plan to travel overseas next year to bring home the next addition to our family from India.  We haven't listed a preference when it comes to gender or a specific age, so we still have no idea who will complete our trio on the return trip home.  This process, at times, seems to take forever, so please keep us in your prayers as we hit the inevitable bumps and delays that are still ahead.

Stay tuned for more news, stories, rants, and thoughts.  I'll try to give you (my three readers) advance notice on Facebook or you can follow me on Twitter at @HatcherRoss.