Luke’s Notebook

I am so thankful that I’m not rich. There, I said it!

Over and over and over, I find myself just thanking God for giving me a situation where I don’t have it made, where I’m not loaded, where I have to work for things, where I have to be clever or creative to solve problems.

I’ll admit, sometimes I think it would be great to just have some big bags of money lying around. While I think that would be fun for a little while, I seriously believe that it would get old, and fast.

Let me share a story. Several weeks ago, I bought a used phone off of eBay. It’s a PDA — a Palm Treo 700wx. It’s one of those phones with Windows Mobile, a miniature version of Windows. It has all sorts of nifty features. It’s basically like a portable computer!

Well, once I got this Treo, I thought how neat it would be to be able to get online with it — to browse the web, to manage my e-mail and all of that. Well, the device can do that with no problem, but our cell phone carrier, Verizon Wireless, isn’t exactly cheap when it comes to data plans with cell phones. Unlimited data for a phone will run you somewhere around $45 per month. And while the e-mail and Internet feature on the phone is very attractive, there’s just no way that I could justify spending that much in addition to what I’m already paying for my regular cell phone service.

So… I started to do some investigating. I found out that Sprint, much to my surprise, has some very attractive plans that include unlimited data and messaging (text, picture, and video), and the prices for that plan may very well be even lower than what we’re paying with Verizon right now.

So we might just be able to get a similar voice plan with Sprint, along with unlimited data (meaning web access, e-mail, their nifty GPS feature, and other stuff) and unlimited messaging, on most, if not all, of our phone lines, and we might even SAVE on the monthly bill!

I keep wanting to pinch myself, because this just seems like it’s too good to be true. I have searched all around for the catch, but there really doesn’t seem to be one. It just looks like that, for whatever reason, Sprint is creaming the competition on the prices for these talk/message/data share plans.

One thing I would have to say is that our coverage with Verizon has been very good. We pretty much never have an issue with them as far as no cell phone service. And in comparing coverage maps of Sprint and Verizon, it looks like Verizon has a clear edge. They definitely have Sprint beat in the coverage department.

However, according to Sprint’s maps, their coverage in this area, the St. Louis area, is very good. And as 95% or 99% of our life is spent within a radius of 30 miles or so, the big concern is how Sprint covers this area. And what’s also really nice is that Sprint now offers free roaming, so when we’re, say, on our family trip and are out of Sprint’s range, we basically get to pick up on almost any other cell phone signal and not get penalized with roaming charges.

So out-of-town coverage isn’t really that big of a concern, because i’m sure that, one way or another, we would be able to get a phone signal. Besides, like I mentioned, most of our life is lived right here.

After learning all of this over the past few weeks, I became very, very excited. Could I have just stumbled onto something grand? A way to get much better cell phone features, but still save money? All along, I kind of thought that the ultimate test will really be getting a Sprint phone out here to our house and putting it to work.

As we live in a bit of a valley, cell phone service isn’t always perfect. Like I said, we haven’t had any problems with Verizon out here, but in the past (especially as we were building our house), we had different people tell us that they weren’t able to get a signal out here.

Since a great phone plan isn’t that great if you can’t get coverage in your home, I kind of realized that the main hurdle would be to test Sprint for myself. Well, I explained my situation to a worker at a Sprint store in Belleville, and this morning she set me up with a trial account. So I walked away with a Sprint phone and a throwaway phone number.

I just so happened to have some errands to run in Belleville, so I had a chance to drive around and find out firsthand how the coverage is in certain areas. My results were positive. So far, so good. Still, though, the ultimate test is to see what happens when I start driving back home, start getting a little bit away from civilization. What will happen??

Well, I am ecstatic to report that the coverage seemed to be just fine all the way home, and even at our home! The signal seems to be as strong, or possibly even stronger, than Verizon’s is here. Bottom line is, it seems to be good enough to use.

So I am super excited!! It looks like Sprint is passing the coverage test, so this may mean that we’ll get to migrate to them, and get some pretty nifty features. I’m actually starting to brainstorm about what kind of new things we can do on FamTeam with these new capabilities.

I still would like to try this Sprint phone out some more, and bring it to surrounding cities. But I’m feeling good about what has happened so far.

Anyway, this whole situation has just had me really, really excited. And I’m realizing that if money was no object, if it didn’t matter if we spent $100 or $1,000 a month on cell phone services, then I would have totally missed out on all of this.

But because there are real limits, real budgets, real dollars, then I had to use my brain. I had to get creative. I had to think outside of the box, to try to find a way to solve the puzzle. If someone would have just plunked down a pile of cash, I really think it would have ruined this whole search.

Well, this is just one of a growing number of examples of times where I am just thanking God that things aren’t “perfect,” that I don’t have whatever I want, that I face challenges.

I have quite a few other ones that I would like to share. Hopefully I can find some time to write about some of them in the near future!

By the way, we are still seeking volunteers for the Classic. If you’re local (or if you want to travel!) and would like to pitch in, please get in touch with me. As you probably know, we’re a pretty small operation, so every little bit of manpower helps. (Yep, that means you. :-))

So, if you would like to help out, or if you have some questions, just send me an e-mail at luke@famteam.com. If you are unable to help, but can still make the event, please try to do so! Thanks!

We are now just 11 days away from the Softball Classic. Wow!

I remember last year’s Classic so well, and it’s just hard to believe that it’s upon us. Yes, sir — Sunday, August 31st is rapidly approaching. Ready or not, we’re going to be having our 10th Softball Classic in just a week-and-a-half!

As is always the case with the weeks leading up to the Classic, things get real busy. There are so many loose ends to take care of, so many people to contact — just so much to organize, to try to juggle.

Mom does a phenomenal job orchestrating much of the event, and although we’re always trying to improve our plans and become more efficient, it seems we always end up crazy-busy all the way up until Classic Day.

This year, we don’t have any representative from the Cardinals joining us. It’s actually the first time in Softball Classic history that this has been the case! While it’s not a surprise, it definitely is unchartered territory.

See, in years passed, we had never had any rhyme or reason to the scheduling of the Classic. It would largely depend on what days any given Cardinal player was available to join us.

Well, last year, we held the event on the Sunday before Labor Day. And, after seeing how that worked out, we decided to just take the plunge and shoot for Labor Day Eve 2008.

The downside to having a specific date set beforehand like this is that, as it’s in the middle of baseball season, this means that the Cardinals are going to be out of town half of the years. So the years that they are on the road, such as this year, there’s simply no shot of being joined by a Cardinal.

So it’s definitely a different feeling. You don’t have the “star power” of Adam Wainwright or Jeff Suppan. But, as we tend to be learning more and more, it seems like fewer people are at Laderman Park solely to see a Major League ballplayer. Instead, they’re just attending to play some games, eat some food, watch some softball.

It’s very hard to know what to expect this year, as far as a turnout. Assuming that the weather is cooperating (which we sure pray it will be!), there’s just no telling what kind of crowd we’ll have. Last year, we had Laderman Park completely filled up. It was so full, in fact, that cars were turning away, as all of the parking lots were filled.

It will be very interesting to see what happens this year. Will we draw a small crowd as a result of no marquee player? Or will we have another full house on the 31st?

In a way, I don’t really care. I mean, it’s always encouraging and validating to have a large crowd, but I’m starting to realize that it’s not really our problem to worry about whether we’ll have 100 people or 1,000 people. I figure that if we just do our part — that is, try to get the word out, and then put on a fun event — then that’s really all we have to worry about! The number of people who participate really shouldn’t be a concern, because we’re just basically throwing a big party.

I have no idea what kind of turnout we’re going to have. Honestly, it’s a little scary, as we can’t rely on a big name this year to help us pump up the crowd. But I’m starting to just not worry about the numbers so much. I’m realizing that we don’t have to impress anybody by hitting a certain attendance. Instead, if we just focus on making the event a fun environment, then mission accomplished.

I know that it’s early August, and it’s still summer, but you can just tell that fall is on its way. We haven’t seen temperature reach the 90s in a while, and the evenings are actually getting somewhat chilly. We are having some simply beautiful days. They can be a bit hot, but temps in the low 80s are pretty enjoyable, especially when they’re falling from 100-ish.

I can’t wait for the fall. This year, I am just very, very amped up, ready for autumn. The weather is so beautiful that time of the year. Football season begins. Baseball playoffs heat up. We get to take a family trip. Another interesting thing to follow this year will be the presidential election.

There is just so much to look forward to. As soon as August began and the temperatures started to drop a little bit, I just felt like we had survived the summer. Temperatures fall, gas prices plunge, and you can just feel a hint of fall in the air.

So I am very much looking forward to the next few months! It has been such a busy summer, and we have had such a large amount of work, and it’s just nice to be able to slow down, change the scene, and have a fun time with the family.

This evening, I decided to go outside and take a walk around the back yard while I was doing my prayer time. It’s just a beautiful summer evening, and the grass in the yard is neatly cut and slightly damp.

I was just walking around the fenced-in area, and I had a view of the back of our house, getting a peek inside different windows to see what was going on around the home.

I just saw so much life. I saw Dad up in his office area. I saw Nathan looking through the kitchen cabinets. I saw Mark following Wizzy from the kitchen, to the dining room, to the family room.

I bent down to look through a basement window, and I could see a handful of the guys playing Super Smash Brothers, a Nintendo 64 game that has long been one of our favorites to play against each other.

In the back of our yard, I spent some time on a bench swing that we have. From there, I went to the classic swing set, and just swung back and forth while I just looked into the house. Being out there, I just found myself thanking God and marveling “Wow, what a life.”

It’s just amazing. I just felt so humbled, because I see these incredible blessings that I have, and I know that I don’t deserve it, that I couldn’t have possibly earned this.

No situation is perfect, but I can honestly say that I’m repeatedly floored by what I have here. The life, the joy, the camaraderie that we all have. Everybody is very unique, yet there are many overlapping interests and talents, and it just amounts to a beautiful blend.

It just seems so clear to me the path that this is something God orchestrated. Paul likes to compare the atmosphere here to that of a college dorm, especially as it relates to the older guys. I think that’s partly true, but what I love is that we still very much have that dynamic, but we also don’t have to miss out on the younger guys growing up.

Peter and David are always saying/doing entertaining things, and it’s just fun to see everybody grow and develop! Wizzy’s maturing into a beautiful young lady. Everybody is at a different stage, and it’s just so neat to observe.

Obviously, being part of a big family involves plenty of sharing. But the upside of that fact is that we get to share life with so many people. Countless inside jokes, anecdotes, and adventures to go around. I just feel so privileged to be a part of it! It’s… quite a life! A little different from the norm, perhaps, but it’s a blast.