New Features!
- Photo from – http://is.gd/1GDWF
In case you haven’t noticed, dear faithful readers – and the casual stumbler – there are several new features on Daddytude. I’ll just a take a few moments of your time to point them out:
- I’ve added ratings to the posts. I’d really appreciate your time, even if you don’t leave a comment, just click on the stars and let me know what you think of the post. It’s anonymous, free, and gives me some good metrics on my writing – or the usefulness of the post. (Right now, the only metric I have is the number of hits per post – and that’s not much to go on.) I still would appreciate comments – but I understand if you don’t.
- Have you noticed the SocialVibe widget? Click on it and help supply clean drinking water to children in developing nations. It’s free (Well, it may take some of your time, and time is money, but other than that, it’s free!). Just watch and rate a short video by the sponsor and they will donate to Charity: Water. My readers have already donated close to 200 gallons. Let’s see if we can get that up to 1000 gallons by the end of the month, shall we? (scroll down and check it out!)
- There’s a new Facebook Fan Page. I’d love to have you join. It’s a great way to discuss posts, suggest post ideas, and give me more personal feedback. Plus, we are almost at the point where we can get a customized URL!
- Delicious Links! As I roam the interwebs, I often come across interesting sites that I save to Delicious. Those that pertain to family, parenting, and dads are now available at the bottom of the right-side column of the blog. Take a look and let me know if there are other links you’d like to see there. You can see all of my links here. (If you’re a member of Delicious, make sure you friend me!)
- Comics! As you may have noticed, I’ve posted some of my Toonlet Comics lately. I’ve been drawing comics since I was a kid – some with rave reviews. The problem is, I have better ideas than drawing skills – Toonlet lets me overcome that limitation!
- RSS Feed update. If you’re following the RSS feed, I’d appreciate it if you would use this link. Of course there are others, but the Google/Feedburner link allows me to get the most accurate data on my readers. (Don’t worry it’s anonymous – doesn’t even record your IP address)
- One last thing, I’d love to hear what you think of the relevance of the links in the Blogroll. Do you have sugestions for sites I should include, or eliminate? Let me know by clicking sending an email to:
gwalter /at/ daddytude /dot/ com
That’s all! Thanks for your support and for reading about my journey and figuring out the important role of being, not just a father, but a dad.
I remain a man with a Dad Attitude!
Stay the Course
Photo by Jim Frazier - http://www.flickr.com/people/jimfrazier/
As I watch my lovely, thoughtful, and very beautiful wife back the car out of the driveway, I’m reminded of an important life lesson. I first learned this lesson when I was training to be a pilot. My experiences in the air, and also my experience on boats, has taught me the value of having a target. This applies to life also.
Several years ago I went with friends on a charter fishing trip out of Westport, Washington. The trip was rather uneventful until we came across a body floating in the water. Though I learned how to do the “dead-man’s float” in my swimming lessons as a kid, this was not an act. The man was truly dead.
After pulling him aboard our vessel, we summoned the Coast Guard – and then we waited. A hush descended upon the passengers on our boat. We didn’t know what to say. Just then someone noticed that his watch was still ticking. “He takes a licking, but it keeps on ticking,” someone said – reminiscing about old Timex commercials. We laughed.
Soon enough, a 60-foot Coast Guard ship arrived. Because we were in the ocean, the transfer of this body was going to be more difficult than I expected. After providing a life vest, which we put on the man, they threw over a rope which we tied to him. Then we threw him back into the water for them to pull over to their boat.
Photo by Paul - http://www.flickr.com/people/fourmpx/
During all of this the Captain on our fishing boat asked if anyone had navigational experience. Because the water was so rough, the plan was to keep both boats moving so that we could stay close, and pointed into the 6-10-foot swells. I volunteered.
On a boat, or in an airplane, if their are no visible landmarks to aim for, the one at the controls relies on the compass (or other navigation tools). Whether it is ocean swells or wind gusts, there are forces trying constantly to knock the vessel off course. When there are landmarks, it is easy to just point the boat at that landmark and “keep’r steady!” My Grandfather taught me that when I was just a kid, while fishing at Round Butte Dam.
Keeping a steady bead on your landmark will keep your course true. Fewer course corrections, and more distant landmarks, will allow you to arrive at your destination in the most efficient and quickest manner. You will use less fuel, it will take less time, and you are less likely to run afoul and crash into something that you didn’t intend to run into. Constant course corrections, my Grandfather taught me, just waste time and fuel.
Photo by gwgs - http://www.flickr.com/people/gwgs/
Life works the same way. If you can pick out a landmark, or destination, you are more likely to arrive there in the most efficient and safe manner. This seems like common sense, but I find that a lot of people don’t commonly live with a set of life goals, or personal vision. A lot of families have no mission statement. People tend to just go through life, worrying about the future, with no clear path laid out before them. It doesn’t have to be this way!
Take some time, during the lazy days of Summer, and develop a set of five, or ten year goals for yourself – and your family. It’s been said, “If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll certainly arrive there.” In the absence of clear landmarks to aim for, pull out your compass. What you don’t have a compass!? I’d suggest you find one right away. Find something, or someone, to guide you when things get foggy and you can’t see the path ahead.
What are your priorities? What are your personal and family values? What are your longterm goals? Where do you envision yourself in five or ten years? Who do you want your kids to be when you grow up? What are your goals and priorities for your kids? What are your hopes – and how will you attain those? What are your fears? What are you doing to avoid those concerns?
Confessing my Dad Attitude 