Whew, not much sleep and a huge day. Had a great last photo critique, and the instructor really (in a positive way) tore into my photos and offered great, memorable suggestions for improvement. I'm glad I took the IUPUI photo class. Then had a great catchup with old friend Dave Westol, although I forgot to get decaf instead of regular dark roast and was still abuzz at 1 a.m. Just enough time to run Dogzilla and do my weights, shower, and put on a sport jacket. Breakfast has to be a boiled egg or two on the run. Huge curriculum meetings for Franklin College journalism because of industry changes. I agree. We need to make the changes. Meetings are downtown at Indy Monthly in our Statehouse digs. We'll all go to lunch. Salad as usual for me on this diet.

Running off to gym for weights and abs. Just about have shaken cold, though residual cough requires syrup. Writing and cleaning by day, last IUPUI photo class in evening, coffee with good friend Dave Westol at 9 pm at Starbucks in Carmel.

Tomorrow, journalism and dean meetings for school all day, dentist on the 29th, and a jump from the plane on the 30th.

Hopefully, there will be a July One blog, LOL.

I mean those parachutes open nearly 100 percent of the time, right?

Ready for my first jump

a) a few pounds overweight from what I want, but strong in all limbs and heart.
b) wearing sweatpants and tee and light running shoes. They might want a jumpsuit. Fine.
c) Glasses taped and eye roped to ears.
d) attending safety session first -- will listen and ask questions
e) Plan to be in the moment all moments from plane board to retrieval.
f) Taking my buddy Ray in case I turn an ankle upon landing.

Now just getting rid of this cold and concentrating on jump

Hoping I feel better today and this cold lets up to allow me to take pictures of some small architectural detail. Luckily I snapped two pictures Thursday while working at school. I should have snapped more. I took one of the column top and one with a student posed alongside one. Definitely not my best work.

During my sportswriting phase as a writer (1978-1993), I interviewed so many athletes, broadcasters and coaches. Broadcaster and commentator Nick Charles was a really smart, pleasant man to talk with. I'm so sorry to read he passed away.

Sniffle, blech, hawwwwwwk. Yep, summer cold and this a busy, productive time of year, too. My old karaoke partner Tara and her boyfriend had invited me for a cookout, and I really had looked forward to catching up with them and their friends. I even had bought a nice bottle of wine for the community pitch-in. But at seven last night I just had to concede that I'd only be spreading germs and slept ten hours straight. Nothing worse than trying to open those cold packets in the morning when your nose runs, eyes water, and you spend three minutes prying the things open. Hope your day beats the heck out of mine. .)

I'm writing a lesson plan draft for my summer class. It is a good refresher for me as well, especially cleaning out electronic files and organizing them.

Perhaps the most useful management skill is time management.

To save time, I've included some tips from reference books I went out to Borders and the library to get.
Your questions are in brackets.

First up is Hyrum W. Smith, a CEO.
His theory is the more productive one is, the more inner peace one feels. [Do you agree?]

1) Ultimately, a life in which you fail to control time becomes a life out of control.
2) He ties together one's governing values with time. It's a way to use time to make sure you get personal fulfillment in business and personal life.
[Make a list of your personal real core values as they apply to you and your productivity in school and/or the workforce. ]
3) What are the timewasters in your life that can contribute to a less-than-in-control you? [List? (If it is personal, list but don't send, guys)]
4) Like it or not, our behavior tells others what we seem to value and believe--even if we say it isn't the real us. [Your take?]
5) He says time management has to be grounded in reality. Where do we find ourselves falling short on goals because we unrealistically took on more projects than we had time to finish or failed to realize that our accepting of a challenge outside our skill set was going to take way more time than we had budgeted? [List--and gents, I am doing this one right along with you. I like it a lot]
OK, now we shift to time management expert Jeff Davidson.
He lists a danger sign that your time management is out of control. I'd plead guilty as charged to number one.
1) You find yourself taking work home and slaving during so-called free, family or recovery time, so you never seem to get totally refreshed. [comments?
2) He asks you to make a 24-hour honest "time trap" chart. How much time goes toward the non-traps--your work, stuff in line with your values like a sig. other or family, this assignment so you graduate--and then the traps whatever they are--checking email too often, texting, social media, TV, games, chitchat, daydreaming, whatever. [Evaluate your PAST 24-hours only honestly. Is it typical or atypical of your daily time management. Boy, did I get upset on this one. Because I ordered an interlibrary loan book that I only "sorta" needed, I wasted more than an eighth tank of gas and three hours at FC yesterday afternoon--and stopped on impulse at Kroger's and spent $40 something on things I "sorta" might need. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. [How about you?]

3) [Come up with a written plan to change behaviors related ONLY to time management. Take some time here to process and push yourself. How are you at saying NO to requests, anyway?]
4) Come up with a dollar figure for your time. Say $20 an hour or whatever. Fine yourself an approximate amount for time you wasted the last 365 days. [Total? ]
5) Have you ever tried to evaluate the quality of your sleep? Anything your doing to disturb that sleep? A drink before bedtime? Heavy meal or midnite snack? Wasted time in front of video or the tube? Again, list all but send only non-personal stuff--that goes for all this assignment]
6) Look at your home work space. Imagine you are an efficiency expert. List the things that expert would ding you for and praise you for. [List carefully and offer commentary]
7) Evaluate your computer and paper files. [Shambles or organized?
8) [Establish a game plan for returning texts, email, phone calls?]
9) Multitasking often leads to lots of balls in the air and unfinished tasks. [How many projects now unfinished did you abandon to take on something else? List. Your thoughts?]

10) Simplify your life. [What can you thin out of your house and closet now to reduce clutter and stop you from say handling a bill three times before paying or redoing an assignment for a class?]
11) [Write me time saving tips of yo

One of the pleasures of dogwalking Dogzilla is looking up to see the diving, swooping bats of Waldron. They were wonderful to view just now.

Wanting just to do something on my own to think about the structure of the book I am writing. Probably will be the grounds of the Indianapolis Museum of Art. The IMA building is beautiful, but it doesn't have as many exciting additions and creative shows that it had in the 90s when Bret was curator--I think so, anyway, but it is still one of my favorite "go think" places!

I wrote about this for an encyclopedia in 2001. No nation listens.

My friend Darnell just wrote this: "Loss is the change we least know how to adapt to, particularly in tragic situations." He always has the right words for the right situation.

I've read "Travels with Charley" four times at different points in my life, the last time this year. Now former Pittsburgh reporter Bill Steigerwald has published an investigative look at the supposed Steinbeck journey. Steinbeck's wife Elaine met him to stay in posh hotels 45 of the days he was supposedly camping in his truck Rocinante with his poodle Charley. The chances of him meeting the characters he had supposedly encountered like the Shakespearian actor in North Dakota were unlikely. How could Elaine have stood by and let this happen? Forget the Weiner scandal. He's a lost, egotistical cause and not worth another Twitter post. This is a real shame. How many millions of people did old John rope in with his tale of wandering America? I only know one thing. If I live to be 70 or 80 there will be no FIFTH reading of "Travels with Charley." You let us down, Mr. Steinbeck.

Old neighbor Big Dave stopped by with his son Ethan yesterday for a brief powwow like old times. I showed him my vandalism problem. He agreed that the casino has brought in some tough customers. "You know what else the casino has brought? Divorce," he said, ticking off a list of friends and acquaintances who have divorced or separated after taking jobs at the casino.

This quote has had special meaning this week: “You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience by which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, 'I lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.” Eleanor Roosevelt. I'll need to read her biography soon. I've read her husband's, not hers. Off to Kentucky to work.

Staying at an historic Louisiana establishment called the Brown Hotel. Had time for a coffee break last night and listened to soothing piano music in a lovely setting. Took an hour for my second workout of day in hotel gym late last night. Off to the University in a bad thunderstorm momentarily. This was my room.

This hotel is famous for the HOT BROWN sandwich.

Loved Louisville, the drive along Fourth Street through the historical district reminds me of Fort Wayne's historic district.

Maybe I will go there July 4 back to the bridge.
All sessions at the University of Louisville were stimulating, and I loved working with the three panelists representing Greek Life, Cadet Life, and Athletics. Grabbing a quick bite of cod and tomato and then off to bail out Dogzilla from the kennel and grab a weight session with him as my spotter. I had a gym available for two days at the Brown Hotel and haven't lost any momentum. Took one break today and watched John Sayles in Coming out of the Ice, the story of 40 year Gulag prisoner Victor Herman. It gripped my heart and still has not let it go.

Goood morning. Slept in an extra hour. Dogzilla will knock me down at the door unless I have a food dish in hand. Going to see if my flowers survived a denting thunderstorm. Hope to be writing by 9 a.m. At the school library for an interlibrary loan pickup by three, the school gym for lower body by 3:10, and in Carmel by 5:45 p.m. for the beginning photo class I'm taking at IUPUI branch. What's your day like?

Ouch: severe hail and thunderstorm warning up. I'll need to put Mazda in front of garage and move weights to protect it from hail. There goes my morning coffee chance.

Hail, hail.

Luckily I got the weights moved and car in the garage without damage. Trusty Rusty took the full hit, but he's so dented who'd notice? .)

VIDEO: Dogzilla needed a run after being cooped up in yesterday's hailstorm. I'm feeling pretty Dadlike happy with Father's Day messages from both my wonderful boys--now men.

South Beach Diet update. Hardest part of my diet so far I managed to resist last evening. My instructor in the IUPUI photography class I took let us out a half hour late because he was helping us, and there is only one more class next week. I already had my three meals and a sack and drove by a Carmel Indian restaurant and pulled in front of the door. "You will go over your 1500 calories," I told myself. I opened the door. Now I could smell the food. Oh crap. I got out of the car, went to the door of the restaurant, turned around, came back and drove home. Temptation Number One DEFEATED. Hoo-rah. I am going to win that bet with Jim Brown over who has lost the most weight. I know it now.

We have to turn in some pix for critiques to our instructor Greg next week. I am going to turn in these portraits of friends for critique. I have so much to learn about taking photos, but I am motivated.