Well, it happened a little earlier than expected. Everyone was planning on January 2nd. But, December 17th will be his date of birth. His name is Rowan James Gonzales. He...is my first grandchild. My daughter Jenifer gave birth to a 7 pound (and change) bouncing baby boy at 8:22 the evening of the 17th in Seattle. All went well, albeit he decided to make his appearance a couple weeks early. Jenifer has always been a little impatient. I think she gets that from me. Maybe it is Rowan who is the impatient one in this case!
The first name was chosen by Jen and Roth totally unrelated to any family names - although Rowan does begin with an “R” like his father’s. The middle name - James - is my first name, as well as my father’s, and my son’s (Jen’s brother). How much cooler could that possibly be? Gonzales (with an “S”) is a Spanish surname. Both Roth and Jen have (had) blond hair, so it remains entirely possible the new “he” in our family may be a toe-head as well...at least for the first few years!
Knowing Jenifer and her propensity for the world of blogdom, the first pics will show up on her blog soon after she returns home from the hospital. Her blog has always been, is now, and will always be a microcosm of what happens in her life...verse and photos.
As far as this proud grandfather meeting the new addition in person...Loretta and I are planning on flying to Seattle for a few days the end of January. We decided to “let the dust settle” a bit before descending upon the new parents and baby. Jen’s mother, Anna, will arrive today to spend some time with and help Jen with the usual postpartum procedures at home. In the meantime, there will be a more than judicious use of our web cams to get up close and personal to Rowan, an experience he will only be able to understand and relate to later in life. Who knows what kind of communication tools will be available as he approaches adulthood?
What Rowan will ultimately become as a person remains to be seen. One thing for sure...he is destined to be a great cook! One can only hope his impending culinary expertise, both from environment and genetics, will be a hobby and not a vocation (it’s a rough business). His father, grandfather (yours truly), great-grandfather, great-great grandfather, and uncle all have culinary backgrounds. Not to mention his mother who has become quite the foodie/cook/chef apprentice the past few years. You can’t be married to a long time chef without a lot of that rubbing off.
Rowan James Gonzales has come into this world during tough times. He will not know of recessions, or wars, or money worries, or stress for many years to come. But, realistically, coming into this world at any point in time is tough. His world immediate, all that he experiences, will consist of simple motherly and fatherly love, warmth, and comfort. That is all he will need for a long time...and that is what he will receive. Jen and Roth are two of the most loving, caring, intelligent people I have ever known. And I am overwhelmingly proud to be able to call them my daughter and son-in-law. There are no words to express my joy at this point in time being able to say, “I’m grandpa to a little guy named Rowan James Gonzales. Welcome to the family!”
(insert tear running down grandpa’s cheek)
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Friday, December 5, 2008
Greed...is good (?)
That and other rhetorical lines uttered by Gordon Gekko in the movie Wall Street...
Greed - for lack of a better word - is good. Greed is right. Greed works. And you are all being royally screwed over by these, these bureaucrats, with their steak lunches, their hunting and fishing trips, their corporate jets and golden parachutes.
***Here's a typical American story I've heard told to me many times of late...
The main bread-winner loses his job. Not a great job, but a good job in terms of workable income. During the good times leading up to the job loss, credit is over-used so the family can have a few "things" they don't need...fun things. Greed? Perhaps. Refinancing the house occurs (more than once). The homeowners mortgage adjusts as they are unable to secure a new, fixed loan as planned a few months later. The last refinance should not have been approved by the mortgage company. Greed? Perhaps. Homeowners are unable to pay the new exhorbitant mortgage. Home values plunge to less than half the amount of the last appraisal. Eight months pass with them working with the loan company in a modification program, ending with a stamp of DECLINED. Homeowners home is sold at auction for an amount significantly less than the total debt. A knock comes at the door the same day as the sale. Time to get out. Can you vacate the premises in five days? We'll give you a $1000. How about ten days? We'll give you $500. If not, we'll go through the sheriff, ie, the eviction process. Homeowners plan to move into a nice, older, smaller house on the other side of town. The rent: about 1/4 of their former mortgage amount. The rental house is a recent foreclosure of a longtime mortgage. The homeowners are starting over with less than desirable credit and an embarrassing, shameful cloud over their heads. All results from (their own) greed? Perhaps. They'll get over it. In fact, they already have. You gotta live your life. It's just a house now anyway, not a home any longer. The rental house will now be their "home". In the meantime, the government is doling out billions of our tax dollars to the companies whose mismanagement and greed led us to this point. The homeowners know that their choice of actions brought them to this. Greed? Maybe. But where is their bailout program? No one is being approved for these programs. The DECLINED stamp is everywhere. Why doesn't the so-called investment group that purchased their home opt for renting to the original homeowners? They will certainly rent to someone, and soon. The company wants the homeowners out ASAP so they can "move forward". Life goes on. Our home of ten years now belongs to someone else.
***This is not only a story told to me by dozens of people recently...it is our story. At least we're not alone.
Commiseration is the consolation prize. And, Wall Street is one of my favorite movies!
Greed - for lack of a better word - is good. Greed is right. Greed works. And you are all being royally screwed over by these, these bureaucrats, with their steak lunches, their hunting and fishing trips, their corporate jets and golden parachutes.
***Here's a typical American story I've heard told to me many times of late...
The main bread-winner loses his job. Not a great job, but a good job in terms of workable income. During the good times leading up to the job loss, credit is over-used so the family can have a few "things" they don't need...fun things. Greed? Perhaps. Refinancing the house occurs (more than once). The homeowners mortgage adjusts as they are unable to secure a new, fixed loan as planned a few months later. The last refinance should not have been approved by the mortgage company. Greed? Perhaps. Homeowners are unable to pay the new exhorbitant mortgage. Home values plunge to less than half the amount of the last appraisal. Eight months pass with them working with the loan company in a modification program, ending with a stamp of DECLINED. Homeowners home is sold at auction for an amount significantly less than the total debt. A knock comes at the door the same day as the sale. Time to get out. Can you vacate the premises in five days? We'll give you a $1000. How about ten days? We'll give you $500. If not, we'll go through the sheriff, ie, the eviction process. Homeowners plan to move into a nice, older, smaller house on the other side of town. The rent: about 1/4 of their former mortgage amount. The rental house is a recent foreclosure of a longtime mortgage. The homeowners are starting over with less than desirable credit and an embarrassing, shameful cloud over their heads. All results from (their own) greed? Perhaps. They'll get over it. In fact, they already have. You gotta live your life. It's just a house now anyway, not a home any longer. The rental house will now be their "home". In the meantime, the government is doling out billions of our tax dollars to the companies whose mismanagement and greed led us to this point. The homeowners know that their choice of actions brought them to this. Greed? Maybe. But where is their bailout program? No one is being approved for these programs. The DECLINED stamp is everywhere. Why doesn't the so-called investment group that purchased their home opt for renting to the original homeowners? They will certainly rent to someone, and soon. The company wants the homeowners out ASAP so they can "move forward". Life goes on. Our home of ten years now belongs to someone else.
***This is not only a story told to me by dozens of people recently...it is our story. At least we're not alone.
Commiseration is the consolation prize. And, Wall Street is one of my favorite movies!
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Yours truly
So what's your story?
