The Ghost of Halloween Past

Lately, so much of what I find myself thinking about, and writing about, is the passage of time.  

The boys are growing up so fast.  Earlier this week, Jude and went to Joe's Junior School parent-teacher conference with his advisor, Ritch Gillespie.  Joe's first quarter report card was excellent.  The comments from his teachers were all positive, which made us proud.  Mr. Gillespie had only good and encouraging things to say about Joe, academically and socially.  Thus far, Joe has met every challenge that MBA has put in front of him.  I know the sailing won't always be so smooth but I'm determined to enjoy the calm waters and clear skies while they last.

Halloween, of course, is one of my favorite holidays.  October 1 is the official start for me, as I've decorated the office for Halloween the day before, often with the boys' help.  Zombie heads hanging in the front window of our lobby, zombie babies eating flies, rats, my beloved creepy talking telephone (that may be down for the count), etc.  You get the picture.  It makes my heart soar to mark the official end of another summer - for me, anyway - by decorating the office for Halloween.  Of course, it all comes down on November 1, which makes me a little nostalgic and sad.

Today is Friday, October 31.  Halloween.  I've had a tremendously busy month at work, on the heels of multiple busy months at work.  It's a lot.  It's always a lot.  Clients depending on me.  Clients that need to talk to me.  Staff at work, and attorneys, that depend on me.  So it goes, month after month, year after year.  

I'm thinking this morning, though, that this is the first Halloween with neither of the boys trick-or-treating.  MBA plays Ensworth in football tonight, at Ensworth.  It's always the biggest football game of the season.  This year is no different.  JP is going to take Joe to the game, the leave a little early to attend a USN event with a friend.  Joe, I suppose, will be hanging out with other seventh graders at the game, cheering for the Big Red.

Joe won't be in costume and he won't her trick-or-treating.  For the first time in probably a decade, we won't be going to Derek and Shanna Hughey's house on Oakland Avenue for their annual Halloween party.  I'll give out candy, then Jude or I will go to pick up Joe after the MBA football game at Ensworth.

That's the thing about children and the passage of time.  Once you leave a particular stage of life, you don't ever get to go back.  I desperately miss the stroller day, particularly when I see a young father or mother walking through the neighborhood pushing a baby or toddler in a stroller.  Those days are not returning for me.  It's the same with Halloween, of course.  Once trick-or-treating ends, it ends.  

So, I'm feeling a little melancholy this morning.  A little nostalgic.  Halloween as we're experienced it with our boys has left us.  Halloween - for this year - will be leaving after tonight.  

It's such a beautiful life.  I just wish it didn't go by so quickly. 

Spaghetti Supper

There was a time, before the boys were born, when I used to cook a lot.  More than Jude, even.  And I loved cooking.  

As busy as we are these days, too often we resort to takeout.  Burger Up.  International Market.  12th South Taproom.  Taco Mama.  And on and on.  

Last night, a Sunday, I cooked spaghetti for Jude and Joe.  JP was gone to the Predators' game with a friend.  I picked up the groceries mid-afternoon while I was out running errands and getting a 3 mile run in on the treadmill at the Green Hills Y.  I enjoy grocery shopping even more when I know I'm shopping for things I'm going to use to make dinner that evening. 

While Joe was upstairs studying and Jude was catching upon on some work, I chopped up a green pepper, red pepper, and sweet onion.  I sautéed some three cloves of minced garlic in olive oil, then added the green/red peppers and onions, along with a pinch of pepper, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes.  Next, I added the ground beef, browned it, drained off the grease, and placed it back in my trusty, large skillet.  In with the tomato sauce and fresh tomatoes, let it simmer for 35 or 40 minutes, and all that was left was the pasta.  15 minutes to al dente and voila, dinner was ready.

It's a simple thing, cooking dinner for my family.  But as is the case so often, the simple things are the best, most meaningful things.  Cooking for my family centers me, and I say that as someone who is very, very far away from an expert.  I have my go-to's - spaghetti, chili, white chili, Santa Fe bean soup, stir fry.  Nothing spectacular or complicated.  Still, somehow, it's the act of preparing the ingredients, cooking them, and watching my family eat that is inherently gratifying to me.  

I like it that when I cook dinner, Jude can relax, even if it's just for a few minutes.  Or, perhaps, she can do some work.  JP and Joe, usually, are studying upstairs.  Sometimes, I listen to a podcast on my AirPods.  Other times, I listen to Alexa playing me music, anything from John Hiatt to Drive By Truckers, depending on my mood.  Maybe even some John Coltrane.  Last night, Jude and I talked intermittently as I cooked and she worked.  

I think I'm going to try to cook once a week, even if it's something I make in the slow cooker.  It's doable, I think, if I plan and prepare ahead of time. 

Soon enough, cooking for four will be cooking for three, which is hard to believe.    

The Pavia Mafia

ESPN College Game Day is at Vanderbilt University today for the game between #10 Vanderbilt and #15 Missouri.  

Let that sink in for a minute.

Which part?  Vanderbilt ranked #10?  Game Day in Nashville?  All of it, I guess.  Oh, man, where to begin?

What a ride it's been for JP, Joe, and so many other Vanderbilt fans last season and, especially this season, as part of the Pavia Mafia.  Former Dodger, Cooper Allen, got up at 4:30 a.m. today and drove to campus.  He's on the front row for College Game Day.  JP and Joe left the house around 5:30 a.m. or so and from video's they're sending me, appear to be up pretty close, too.  There's a huge crowd there already, which is amazing.

Vanderbilt's college football resurgence has been a bit surreal.  To see them ranked in the top 10 is almost unfathomable.  For so many long suffering fans, though, it's beyond overdue and so rewarding.  I was one of those fans, once upon a time, so in many ways I can relate to how happy they are this morning.  As I've written before, before my mom could stop me, I stormed the field in 1982 to tear down the goal posts when Vanderbilt beat Tennessee, 28-21.  Thanks to my mom, I was a die hard Vanderbilt fan as a boy and, really, until I went to college. 

And, thanks to my mom, JP and Joe are diehard Vanderbilt fans to this day.  Although I've never told them this, it makes me feel closer to my mom when I see them pulling for the 'Dores the way she did.  Football, basketball, and baseball.  They're black and gold through and through, just like I was at their age.  

As I well know, being a Vanderbilt fan is not an easy road.  It's not unlike being a Chicago Cubs fan.  A whole lot of heartache.  Still, as I've told the boys, that's what makes a season like this one for Vanderbilt fans so special.  The losses.  The tough times.  The disappointments.  It all leads to this season and a day like today which, for a sports fan, is a memory that endures.  

How did this happen?  It's a lot of things, really.  NIL.  The transfer portal.  A head coach, Clark Lea, with local ties (MBA and Vanderbilt graduate).  And, of course, quarterback Diego Pavia, a transfer from New Mexico State two seasons ago.  

To say Diego Pavia has reinvigorated the Vanderbilt football program is an understatement.  He is the Vanderbilt football program under Clark Lea.   Last season, he engineered an upset over #1 Alabama at Dudley Field.  Last week, he led Vanderbilt to a win over #10 ranked LSU, also at Dudley field.  The team is an extension of him.  Tough.  Hard-nosed.  No quit.  Chip on their shoulders.  A little bit arrogant in an underdog kind of way.  All of it.  

Diego Pavia's No. 2 Jersey should be retired at the first home game next season.  That's how big of an impact he has had on Vanderbilt football.

As a former Vanderbilt fan, I know there's an Indian summer aspect to all of this.  It's not sustainable.  Diego Pavia will be out of eligibility after this season.  A bigger school will throw a bunch of money at Clark Lea and hire him away from Vanderbilt.  By next season, things will return to normal.  Still, I'm so glad the boys have this season and this morning to experience what it's like when your team is on top.

Anchor down, indeed.  

That's what Jude and I will be doing this afternoon when we take Joe to the Vanderbilt - Missouri game.  

Anchor down.

A Clean Sheet and Metro Champion!

Monday and Tuesday, I was neck deep preparing for a three day divorce trial on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.  It was a lot.  

Because I had been preparing for a while, I was able to leave work a little early on Tuesday - to watch Joe and his MBA junior school team beat CPA (8-0) - and Wednesday - to watch JP run in the Metro Nashville Cross Country Championship Race.  

Joe's soccer team is really, really talented.  He's one a few seventh graders on a team that's at least half eighth graders.  Although Joe is the backup goalie, he's gotten playing time in the second half of every game so far.  He hasn't gotten a lot of action because MBA's defense is so sound that the ball rarely is on his end of the field.  I don't remember JP's junior school soccer teams at MBA being this skilled, top to bottom.  I am far from a soccer expert but I think this group will win a couple of high school state titles in the coming years. 

The win was the second shutout of the row.  Another clean sheet, as the soccer aficionados say.   

There had been some confusion around the location of the Metro Championship.  Initially, the Exchange, a runner store in East Nashville was going to host the race at Shelby Park.  At some point, though, the realization sunk in that staging three cross country races for a couple hundred high school athletes is quite an undertaking.  At the last minute, plans changed and the races were moved back to Vaughn's Gap, where they've been for several years.  JP was pleased because if MBA has a home course, Vaughn's Gap is it.

I arrived early, as I typically do.  For some reason, the varsity boys drove themselves to the race.  Traffic was terrible, so most of them straggled in less than an hour before the varsity boys' race.  I was concerned that JP might not be in a good place, pre-race, with the disruption of his normal routine.  As it turns out, he was fine.  I, of course, was nervous enough for both of us.  That will never change, I guess.

The field for the Metro Championship isn't nearly as fast as what the boys see in other, out of town races.  I expected JP to do well and I expected the team to do well.  Still, you never know.

As the varsity boys runners were warming up, I saw Coach Russ bring the boys together well out in front of the starting line.  I crept up and listened to him talk to them.  Next, in my favorite moment of any cross country race of JP's, the runners circled up tight and locked arms.  I crept closer.

Close enough to hear JP, Co-Captain, address the other runners.  His message was succinct and understated.

"Like Coach Russ said, every runner do his job."  

Next, in a moment I always will remember, Co-Captain Jack McDaniel ("McDavid," as the boys call him for reasons unknown to me), led the boys in prayer.  As I listened in and basked in what was simply a gorgeous fall late afternoon, my eyes welled with tears.  JP and Jack, friends at age 3, 4, and 5 at Children's House, leading the cross country team and preparing to run one of their last races together. 

On top of that, Jack is the best of the best.  Kind.  Intelligent.  A devout Catholic.  Humble.  Funny.  Earnest.  I'll miss seeing him terribly next year, after he leaves for college.   

Comically - and I missed this - JP was in the box, jumping up and down as part of his warmup, when the starter, without much warning, suddenly started the race.  After the race, JP and a couple of his teammates were still laughing about it.  Watch enough cross country races and you will see it all.

JP and Gabe quickly surged into the lead and it was clear that no one in the field was going to challenge them for the first two spots the race.  Gabe settled in slightly behind JP, on his shoulder, which is how they were running when they passed by me at the one mile mark.  Between miles one and two, JP started to put a little distance between him and Gabe.  The gap widened a bit on the third mile, as JP won comfortably and Gabe finished in second place. 

 

An FRA runner challenged Wynn Humphrey for third place.  However, Wynn sprinted to the end with a strong finish the last 100 yards and nabbed the third spot.  I loved to see how much effort Wynn put into finishing the race.  

MBA won the team titles for Junior Varsity and Varsity, as expected.  Roll Red!  

I can't believe it's my second to last Metro Championship.  One more next year and it's all over.  It's all going by so fast.

Serenbe

I've never been one that believes we need to go out of town for fall break, particularly since the boys only get Thursday and Friday out of school.  That being said, we have had a couple of nice trips to Santa Rosa Beach in October.  The beach is gorgeous this time of year.  

This year, though, I had a three day trial set the week after fall break, so it didn't make much sense - for me, anyway - to leave town.  Still, it's JP's second to last fall break (gulp!), so I looked for a middle ground.  I booked a house in Serenbe, the wellness community outside of Atlanta, Wednesday - Sunday.  My thought, having stayed here a few years ago when JP and I came down with the Allen's, was that booking a house would give me room to prepare for my trial while Jude and the boys hiked, ran, played tennis, and explored the property.  

Mission accomplished!  Our house has a huge front porch, a big screened in porch upstairs, a large back patio, and plenty of room to spread out.  Plus, there are tons of trails to hike, which I knew Jude would love.  It's a beautiful property, especially this time of year.  Plus, plus, the Black-Eyed Daisy (a coffee shop) is right across the street.  Perfect.

Right now, after an exhausting 3 miles run on the trials (the hills killed me), I'm relaxing on a couch on the front porch, listening to John Hiatt and sipping an ice cold Diet Pepsi.  The ceiling fan, spinning above me, is generating a nice breeze.  The sun is reflecting off the tops of the trees across the street as evening approaches.  Jude and the boys are at the tennis courts probably playing pickle ball.  Not me.  I'm comfortable on the front porch couch, surrounded by Halloween decorations.  Later, we'll walk up a trail to have a late dinner at the Farm.  

Ah, Serenbe.  

The Lousiville Cross Country Classic

On a hot Louisville afternoon, JP finished 2nd and Gave 3rd in the 24th Annual Louisville Cross Country Classic.  MBA's varsity and junior varsity teams finished 2nd, too, in their races, right behind St. X, a Louisville cross country powerhouse.  

Running at 1 p.m. was different, to be sure.  As I mentioned, it was quite hot for a cross country race.  It was a large field, mostly with school from Kentucky, I think, and a perhaps a few from Ohio.  There were a ton of college kids there when we arrived just ahead of the MBA bus, and it was pretty cool to see them milling about E.P. "Tom" Sawyer State Park.  The college kids ran in the coveted morning slots, which left the hotter afternoon for the high school runners.  

The setup of the course was nice, similar to the Southern Showcase course in Huntsville.  The court was tight with a few switchbacks, as a result of which I was able to watch the runners at multiple vantage points and still get to the finish line.  It's a bucolic park, too, which was a plus.  The course itself was fairly flat - again, like Huntsville - which means it's reasonably fast.  

It was cool before the race started to hear the announcer talking about the teams and runners over the loudspeaker.  He mentioned that MBA, from Nashville, was racing and should do well.  He also identified JP and Gabe, from MBA, as two runners who likely be running up front.

And that's exactly what happened, as JP took the lead early and held it for the first two miles or so.  There was a lead pack of five or six runners, and Gabe was in it, as well.  He settled in right behind JP, in fact.  It was cool, to be honest, to see JP and Gabe running so close together for the first two-thirds of the race.  

At about the 2 1/2 mile mark, a kid from St. X in the lead pack had pulled away from JP just a bit, maybe 10 yards.  I could see that JP was staying with him, though, and I thought there might be an interesting are to the finish line the last 400 or 500 yards.  As it turned out, JP did pull even with the St. X kid on the home stretch, which is downhill.  JP couldn't quite match his finishing kick, though, and finished in 2nd place by two or three seconds, at 15:30.90.  

Gabe finished in 3rd place, about five seconds behind JP.  It was a good race for both of them, although I know JP would have liked to have won the race.  The MBA team got a Louisville Slugger bat for finishing second overall, probably the best and most interesting trophy they have received since JP's been on the Hill.  After the race, there already was talk about whether the bat would be displayed in the school's trophy case or in the cross country/track and field's trophy case in the locker room.

It was a quick trip but a good one.  I'm glad I was there to see JP run on one of his favorite courses.

JP and Gabe ran into former teammate, Mitchell Chaffin, who raced for Centre College earlier in the day.  It was good to see him.

JP, pre-race.

Tarah and Gabe checking out the map of the course I found.

Co-Captain, Jack McDaniel (a.k.a. "McDavid")

I think this is my favorite photo of JP running I've ever taken.

Post-race.

Gabe, JP, and Wynn.  Strong junior class.  MBA's top three finishers.

JP and Oliver, from Science Hill High School.  I met his parents before the race.  

Co-Captains, Jack and JP.  Friends since they were three years old at Children's House. 

Second place trophy.  Pretty cool.

Gabe and JP with the second place trophy.

The Seven.

Wynn, Gabe, and JP.

On the Run in Jeffersonville, Indiana

I'm sitting at a table outside Coffee Crossing in Jeffersonville, Indiana, having a cup of coffee before sunrise.  I'm almost in sight of the Ohio River from where I sit.  A flock of geese just flew by above me, in formation, honking back and forth to each other.  

Today, at 1 p.m.,  MBA's varsity cross country team is running in the 24th annual Louisville Cross Country Classic at E.P. "Tom" Sawyer State Park.  JP likes the course and, in fact, ran a 15:05 there two weeks ago in the Trinity-Valkyrie Invitational.   

I drove up yesterday afternoon with JP and Gabe.  Earlier in the week, I booked us at an Airbnb in Jeffersonville, Indiana, literally right across the river from Louisville.  We had an excellent dinner last night at TOWN (a neighborhood pub).  Really good pasta.  Too much to eat in one sitting, actually.  

The house is nice.  Three bedrooms.  Three bathrooms.  A small backyard with a nice back porch and a hot tub.  Nice front porch, too, where I sat out for a bit late last night, reading the new Easy Rawlins mystery, Gray Dawn (Walter Mosley).  I slept well, too. 

As I left the house a few minutes ago, JP was up, making scrambled eggs and toast for breakfast.  His plan, I think, is to go back to bed afterwards.  Racing at 1 p.m. is odd for the boys, as most races are first thing in the morning.  He's trying to make sure he's properly fueled, I think.  Properly rested, too.  

If I were industrious, I would add Indiana to my list of states I've run in by going for a 3-miler across the bridge into Louisville.  Instead, I think I'll go for a walk this morning, then run tonight when we get back to Nashville.  I'm at 116/156 3-mile runs for the year.  On target, assuming good health the last quarter of the year.  

I enjoy these quick trips out of town for races in much the same way I enjoy traveling to small towns for baseball tournaments.  Getting away from Nashville.  Time with one or both of boys and, sometimes, other parents.  New surroundings that I likely won't see again.  Finding coffee.  Making a few more memories to add to the scrapbook in my head.  All of it.

Jeffersonville seems to be an interesting town.  Quirky and eclectic.  A real downtown with several restaurants.  Mixed demographically from what little I have seen.  Active, with a lot of runners and cyclists.  From where I am sitting, I can smell what an unkempt man just told me is basket being smoked around the corner at Ramiro's Cantina.  I smelled it as soon as I got our of my truck but didn't imagine someone would be cooking this early.

The sun is rising, now, as the light reflects off the top half of Riverside Cigar Shop and Lounge across the street.  More cars, more people out walking.  Jeffersonville is waking up.  

I just met "Elliott," a rescue boxer mix out for a walk with his owner, an interesting, kind man wearing a hoodie and missing his front teeth.  Another man walked up and is talking to me about the O.J. Simpson trial.  See what I mean?  Eclectic.  

Life is wonderful.  Interesting.  Beautiful.  

Time to go for a walk.  In Jeffersonville, Indiana.  

The Return of Jojo Buffan

It's October 2, the second day of my favorite time of the year, October 1 - January 2, 2025.  Fall, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.  Cooler weather isn't here yet but it's on the way.  I hope.

Last night after work, alone, I began to decorate the office for Halloween.  It's my thing and my law partners tolerate it but only for the month of October.  Zombie heads hanging from hooks in the five large front windows of my office.  Skulls everywhere.  Bloody knives, clowns.  The works.  I do it every year.  Everything goes up on September 30 (this year, October 1) and it all comes down on November 1, 2025.  What can I say.

As I was getting started, I got a call from Joe on my cell.  Answering it, I said, "What's up, bud?"

"I made the A team (soccer)," he replied.

"What?!?  The 8th grade team?" 

"Yeah.  Luke and I are the only 7th graders to make it."

After three days of junior school soccer tryouts at MBA, Joe had made the A team.  I could tell he was kind of stunned.  Frankly, so was I.

It was a difficult decision - but the right one, I think - when Jude and I took Joe out of travel soccer this fall with Armada.  He had carved out a niche as one of two goalies and team captain for the past two or three years.  He has good friends on that team - Rex, Tennessee, Pike - and it was hard to give that up.  Still, we knew how tough MBA would be, academically, and we wanted Joe to focus on his studies.  Also, he had to participate in a school activity in the afternoons every quarter of his 7th and 8th grade years.  It just didn't seem prudent to put him in a situation where, twice a week, he would go from crew practice to soccer practice, and not have dinner and start homework until almost 9 p.m.

I was worried that was it for him in soccer.  I knew he planned to try out for the school team but, without practicing regularly and playing at a high level, I though it might be difficult for him to make the A team or the B team (7th grade).  Boy, was I wrong.

A few of Joe's classmates and former teammates on Armada, Rex and Tennessee, made the B team.  Somehow, Joe made the A team.  My guess is that he will back up the starting goalie, although in Joe's inimitable fashion, he suggested to me that he's as good as the 8th grade goalie and expects to play.  Either way, he will get a lot of reps against solid, 8th grade soccer players.  It will help his development as a goalie. 

In tryouts, I confirmed with Joe that during the scrimmage portion of all three days, he did what he normally does in goal.  He was very vocal and communicative.  Encouraged his teammates and constantly repositioned them where he wanted them, especially on corner kicks.  In other words, he lead his teammates, even in a scrimmage.  That's just what Joe does.

The Captain.

I'm so damn proud of Joe and his start at MBA.  He studying diligently.  Grinding, as JP calls it.  He seems more mature, already, with a seriousness about him that he didn't have last year.  Yes, it's a little sad, because suddenly, Joe seems more young man than child, but that's to be expected, I think, and as it should be.  He's stepping up, getting in the books.  He's competing, in the classroom and outside of it, which its what it takes to survive and thrive at MBA.  I hope it continues.  I think it will.

As Jude and Joe were leaving he MBA-Baylor football game last Friday night, she heard a bunch of boys and girls yelling "Joe!"

She looked over and saw that it was his former classmates from USN, excited to see him.  He said hi, talked briefly to them, then left with Jude to go home.  

The Captain.

In many ways, it was harder for Joe to leave USN than it was for JP.  When JP left, he seemed to never look back.  He was ready for something new.  He was ready to be challenged in a different way.  He didn't seem to be too concerned with who he was leaving behind at USN or who he was joining at MBA.  JP didn't have time for all of that.  After all, there was work to be done, goals to be achieved, and anything else was just a distraction.  

Leaving USN was different for Joe.  His circle of good friends was larger and tighter.  He was in the middle of it all and he loved every minute of it.  He was seen, known, admired, and respected by his classmates, all of which he had earned over seven years at USN.  He said goodbye to all of that  and started over at MBA, and I admire him for it.  Staying at USN would have been easy.  Leaving USN and starting at MBA was hard.  The hard decisions are the ones that teach you the most, or so it seems to me.

I think Joe is on the way.