This has been quite the lonely week at the Cobb Household. Two ships passing through the night one could say. Stacey has been on night shift and I had many early morning and late evening meetings. Needless to say we've been texting our goodnights and good mornings. She is on oncology right now and has stated on several occasions that these are really sick kids. She will be glad to get done with this one.
I accomplished a pretty cool professional task this week. I was officially scheduled for a meeting with Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin in September at her office. I will be bringing several colleagues with me, but I was able to arrange for the meeting to occur. I obviously have them fooled. The only question now will be how do I describe that one day on the resume. Private consultation to Mayor Shirley Franklin on faith based social policy and action?
On Saturday Stacey, myself and some friends will be attending the Red Bull Soap Box Derby. This will be the seventh one ever held in the U.S., and the first in the southeast. Needless to say it should be fascinating. The commercials have been highly entertaining. Pictures to follow.
I watched the movie Frost/Nixon this week. Really interesting to learn more about the Watergate scandal, the characters involved and how they portray Richard Nixon. He seemed to be a really bright guy with some major internal flaws. Recently I heard David Gergen speak. He was an advisor to four Presidents including Nixon. He described Nixon as a brilliant man with demons he couldn't control. I guess the movie portrayal was pretty accurate.
My last thought is about something I observed yesterday. I was sitting on a volunteer orientation session at the Atlanta Children's Shelter which is located in one of the North Avenue Presbyterian buildings. Its a free daycare for the children of women coming out of homelessness. Really well run organization. There were 8 volunteers from Coca Cola, and 8 volunteers that had found the charity on their own. Of the 8 independent volunteers, 7 were currently unemployed. When asked why they wanted to volunteer, almost to a person, the statement of I'm trying to find out which direction in life to go or who I really am was said. The season we are in is ripe to point people in the direction of the Christian faith. Life transition and even crisis are everywhere and people are looking for meaning and hope. Somehow we have to take advantage and point people in the right direction. Just a thought.
Check back for the Red Bull pictures.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Friday, August 21, 2009
Out on The Farm
I decided that after a summer of honing my golf skills, that I was ready to take on The Farm. The Farm is where my brother Ryan has a complimentary membership on behalf of some generous church members. This is a competition ready, championship golf course.
Now Ryan had warned me that it can be...well...demoralizing. He said the rough is brutal. You lose your balls, you can't hardly hit it out, etc. This is a tough challenge. No problem I told him. I'm hitting the ball really well, there shouldn't be any reason why I'm hitting out of the rough. Right.
I show up to his house the night before and the next morning we drive into the course. Its beautiful. The houses surrounding the golf course are beautiful. Its clear where the carpet execs spend their time and money. We arrive at 8 am and we're the first out. Just to give you some indication of the kind of course this is: we were going to walk the course (big mistake) and they had already grabbed our bags from our car and put it on a cart, so basically everybody hops in a cart and drives it 30 yards to the driving range to warm up and then ditches it! As Ryan described it the ultimate in laziness.
We warmed up sufficiently or so we thought and launched out. This course is just beautiful. Its nestled among some small mountains and hills (did I mention we were walking!) First drive I hit, is perfect out in the fairway. Should have stopped right there. I managed to finish that hole in good shape, but oh how it changed from there. On the second hole God must have decided that my pride was out of check. He reached down and grabbed my golf club on the backswing and forced my ball into the rough. And there we go.
I feel like the rest of the day was spent hacking and chopping my way around the course. I would admire the landscape, the beautifully manicured creeks and waterfalls and then watch my shot disappear into them. Very depressing. We manage to make it through the first nine holes and walk to the halfway house. There I discover a new concept. The equivalent of the honor system. Its an unmanned snack shop. You take what you want. Gatorade, candy bars, snacks, crackers. Yes, Yes, Yes and Yes. I guess when you pay that kind of membership fee, the club can give you gatorade out on the course.
So we're re-energized and ready to rock on the back nine. I guess my pride was still out of check because God kept grabbing my golfclub and causing it to do unnatural things. Other than a beautiful shot on a par 3, it was not an ideal back nine either. It was so exhausting we actually teamed up to play best ball golf on the last three holes to try to beat the course. Couldn't do it. Par on 16, and not 17 or 18.
In the end, it was beautiful, really great to spend time with my brother, and now I know what to work on before I go back again. Oh yeah, the next time we're riding.
Stacey update: She is finishing up her general ward rotation, working 80 hours a week, and starts oncology next week for a month. We're making the most of our hour or so together at night:)
Now Ryan had warned me that it can be...well...demoralizing. He said the rough is brutal. You lose your balls, you can't hardly hit it out, etc. This is a tough challenge. No problem I told him. I'm hitting the ball really well, there shouldn't be any reason why I'm hitting out of the rough. Right.
I show up to his house the night before and the next morning we drive into the course. Its beautiful. The houses surrounding the golf course are beautiful. Its clear where the carpet execs spend their time and money. We arrive at 8 am and we're the first out. Just to give you some indication of the kind of course this is: we were going to walk the course (big mistake) and they had already grabbed our bags from our car and put it on a cart, so basically everybody hops in a cart and drives it 30 yards to the driving range to warm up and then ditches it! As Ryan described it the ultimate in laziness.
We warmed up sufficiently or so we thought and launched out. This course is just beautiful. Its nestled among some small mountains and hills (did I mention we were walking!) First drive I hit, is perfect out in the fairway. Should have stopped right there. I managed to finish that hole in good shape, but oh how it changed from there. On the second hole God must have decided that my pride was out of check. He reached down and grabbed my golf club on the backswing and forced my ball into the rough. And there we go.
I feel like the rest of the day was spent hacking and chopping my way around the course. I would admire the landscape, the beautifully manicured creeks and waterfalls and then watch my shot disappear into them. Very depressing. We manage to make it through the first nine holes and walk to the halfway house. There I discover a new concept. The equivalent of the honor system. Its an unmanned snack shop. You take what you want. Gatorade, candy bars, snacks, crackers. Yes, Yes, Yes and Yes. I guess when you pay that kind of membership fee, the club can give you gatorade out on the course.
So we're re-energized and ready to rock on the back nine. I guess my pride was still out of check because God kept grabbing my golfclub and causing it to do unnatural things. Other than a beautiful shot on a par 3, it was not an ideal back nine either. It was so exhausting we actually teamed up to play best ball golf on the last three holes to try to beat the course. Couldn't do it. Par on 16, and not 17 or 18.
In the end, it was beautiful, really great to spend time with my brother, and now I know what to work on before I go back again. Oh yeah, the next time we're riding.
Stacey update: She is finishing up her general ward rotation, working 80 hours a week, and starts oncology next week for a month. We're making the most of our hour or so together at night:)
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Linda Blairs Twin Brother
This week's update will start with Stacey's first really good residency story. She got to witness the next character for an exorcism movie. This little boy was admitted with seizures and various mental issues. He was violent in spurts and seethed profanities that would make a sailor blush. At one point he took his helmet off and chucked it at Stacey who was standing against the wall. Luckily, she had made eye contact and ducked, earning her props from the security guard standing next to her. The kid was moved to a psychiatric hospital the next day but had managed to freak out the whole staff. Where is a herd of pigs when you need one.
I was overjoyed last week to learn that Duke Basketball will have a surprise addition to its roster this season. A recruit scheduled to attend next year, was discovered to have already earned enough high school credits to graduate. So, thanks to some guys leaving the current Duke team, there was great incentive to complete the paperwork. I can't imagine what that would be like. You've been planning for one more year of high school and after some unforseen circumstances you are thrust into a situation where you will now attend college in a matter of weeks. Talk about speeding up life! I hope he adjusts well and by that I mean shoots the ball really well.
I have begun Twittering. Its actually pretty fun. I don't do it that often. Maybe a post or two per day, but you can follow me at @philcobb for those that tweet.
So now I'm blogging, Facebooking, Tweeting on Twitter, Emailing, Googling, Podcasting, Texting, and chatting. I feel like I'm living in a Dr. Seuss book.
I've been grilling a lot recently. I've discovered a little secret that really works well. Slapping a layer of olive oil on the outside really seals in the moisture and helps the meat not stick to the grill. Lemon Pepper is our current flavoring of choice. Its been really nice here in the evenings and it helps take the burden off of Stacey for me to grill the entree. She works with the side items (I don't do sides.)
One of the police officers who works security at the church is an avid paint ball player. He has a suped up paintball gun and all his own gear. He keeps trying to get me to go. First of all, anybody with all their own gear is dangerous to go with. Second, he's trained to shoot people for a job. If I go it clearly won't be one of my wiser decisions.
I got some Starbucks gift cards for my birthday. I went early one morning this week. The Starbucks workers are scary chipper in the morning. I don't see how you can be that upbeat and helpful serving so many people that having received their needed caffeine jolt yet.
This coming Saturday Night I will be going Karaoke singing with some friends from the church staff. The following blog will be eventful I'm sure.
I was overjoyed last week to learn that Duke Basketball will have a surprise addition to its roster this season. A recruit scheduled to attend next year, was discovered to have already earned enough high school credits to graduate. So, thanks to some guys leaving the current Duke team, there was great incentive to complete the paperwork. I can't imagine what that would be like. You've been planning for one more year of high school and after some unforseen circumstances you are thrust into a situation where you will now attend college in a matter of weeks. Talk about speeding up life! I hope he adjusts well and by that I mean shoots the ball really well.
I have begun Twittering. Its actually pretty fun. I don't do it that often. Maybe a post or two per day, but you can follow me at @philcobb for those that tweet.
So now I'm blogging, Facebooking, Tweeting on Twitter, Emailing, Googling, Podcasting, Texting, and chatting. I feel like I'm living in a Dr. Seuss book.
I've been grilling a lot recently. I've discovered a little secret that really works well. Slapping a layer of olive oil on the outside really seals in the moisture and helps the meat not stick to the grill. Lemon Pepper is our current flavoring of choice. Its been really nice here in the evenings and it helps take the burden off of Stacey for me to grill the entree. She works with the side items (I don't do sides.)
One of the police officers who works security at the church is an avid paint ball player. He has a suped up paintball gun and all his own gear. He keeps trying to get me to go. First of all, anybody with all their own gear is dangerous to go with. Second, he's trained to shoot people for a job. If I go it clearly won't be one of my wiser decisions.
I got some Starbucks gift cards for my birthday. I went early one morning this week. The Starbucks workers are scary chipper in the morning. I don't see how you can be that upbeat and helpful serving so many people that having received their needed caffeine jolt yet.
This coming Saturday Night I will be going Karaoke singing with some friends from the church staff. The following blog will be eventful I'm sure.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
No Joke
Residency is for real people. The first month...not bad. Ohhhhhh is it here now. 4:30 am the alarm goes off, I hear the door shut at 6 am, and the wife is getting back home about 8 pm on a good night. And then she is having to finish up entering notes.
Yes, Philthy Cobb is back to homemaker mode. Cleaning the house, putting away dishes, whatever. But I don't mind, because I'd rather have a wife who isn't more stressed out than she needs to be. The people that talk about Residency with fear and disdain...they're right. 2 years and 10 months to go.
At work I'm getting snowed under. Word has gotten out that I'm an employee of the church. Church members are starting to want to meet with me (how dare they) and people from all around the church world are calling wanting to find out about our urban ministry. I'm earned one honorarium so far. The book is next I think.
My most recent accomplishment is that the Mayor of Atlanta knows who I am. How do I know this? The last event I was at with her, I went up to her and said Hi Mayor Franklin we've met before and she interrupted me and said I know who you are.
On Thursday CNN is coming to North Avenue to do a story on the sex trafficking work we're a part of. I supposed to be interviewed and if it makes it on air, I'll let you know when you can watch it. However, that would make me second in line for the Cobb Family on being on CNN. Stacey was on several weeks ago on Black in America. They were filming at the Morehouse Graduation and she made the footage.
My grandparents just celebrated their 60th anniversary. If 50 years is Golden, what is 60? White Gold? Platinum? Titanium? Enough Already?
I've written before about my friend Monique. She is a sales associate at Bachrach men's clothing store. We have one at our local mall. She is a Christian and she has gotten to know Stacey and I through several trips to the store. She has also helped advise my wardrobe and helped me find many clearance deals. The funny thing that Bachrach primarily caters to Black Men. So they have some wild colors available for shirts and suits. The last time I was in I asked Monique about this one rack that had pink, purple and teal suits among others. I said who can pull this stuff off? She looked me up and down and said "Not You" Right.
I watch a lot of golf. Watching golf is starting to become really helpful if you play golf. They have this new slow motion camera technology that allows them to film these guys a super slow rates and then teach you what to do and what not to do. So for instance when Tiger Woods slices one into the woods they will slow down his swing and tell you what happened in his swing. Well I have the same problem as Tiger occasionally. During the round I was watching, they talked about how his hoops were moving laterally forward and it was causing a severe problem. A few days later I was out on the driving range with Tiger's problem. I attempted to correct the problem and it actually worked! It was the most amazing golf swing breakthrough I've ever had. We'll see if it sticks, but I've never had such instant improvement from making one simple change. Guess I need to keep watching more golf.
Yes, Philthy Cobb is back to homemaker mode. Cleaning the house, putting away dishes, whatever. But I don't mind, because I'd rather have a wife who isn't more stressed out than she needs to be. The people that talk about Residency with fear and disdain...they're right. 2 years and 10 months to go.
At work I'm getting snowed under. Word has gotten out that I'm an employee of the church. Church members are starting to want to meet with me (how dare they) and people from all around the church world are calling wanting to find out about our urban ministry. I'm earned one honorarium so far. The book is next I think.
My most recent accomplishment is that the Mayor of Atlanta knows who I am. How do I know this? The last event I was at with her, I went up to her and said Hi Mayor Franklin we've met before and she interrupted me and said I know who you are.
On Thursday CNN is coming to North Avenue to do a story on the sex trafficking work we're a part of. I supposed to be interviewed and if it makes it on air, I'll let you know when you can watch it. However, that would make me second in line for the Cobb Family on being on CNN. Stacey was on several weeks ago on Black in America. They were filming at the Morehouse Graduation and she made the footage.
My grandparents just celebrated their 60th anniversary. If 50 years is Golden, what is 60? White Gold? Platinum? Titanium? Enough Already?
I've written before about my friend Monique. She is a sales associate at Bachrach men's clothing store. We have one at our local mall. She is a Christian and she has gotten to know Stacey and I through several trips to the store. She has also helped advise my wardrobe and helped me find many clearance deals. The funny thing that Bachrach primarily caters to Black Men. So they have some wild colors available for shirts and suits. The last time I was in I asked Monique about this one rack that had pink, purple and teal suits among others. I said who can pull this stuff off? She looked me up and down and said "Not You" Right.
I watch a lot of golf. Watching golf is starting to become really helpful if you play golf. They have this new slow motion camera technology that allows them to film these guys a super slow rates and then teach you what to do and what not to do. So for instance when Tiger Woods slices one into the woods they will slow down his swing and tell you what happened in his swing. Well I have the same problem as Tiger occasionally. During the round I was watching, they talked about how his hoops were moving laterally forward and it was causing a severe problem. A few days later I was out on the driving range with Tiger's problem. I attempted to correct the problem and it actually worked! It was the most amazing golf swing breakthrough I've ever had. We'll see if it sticks, but I've never had such instant improvement from making one simple change. Guess I need to keep watching more golf.
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