Finding My Religion

My namesake from the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran in Rome.

Happy Easter to you, whether it’s a day that has great spiritual meaning in your life or you just enjoy the American festivities of eggs, candy and bunnies. It’s been an interesting month for Christians with the announcement of a new pope, the Supreme Court’s deliberation over gay marriage and to a lesser degree the success of Mark Burnett’s The Bible on The History Channel.

Personally, I consider myself a Christian though I don’t belong to a church. I pray, but not with any regularity or routine. I enjoy discussing religion with people, but in this news-filled month I’ve been discouraged to learn about how many people feel disenfranchised by it. More than disenfranchised…actual disgust and hate.

Sunday silliness

Hope everyone is having a nice weekend.

My job now involves a lot of writing so my blog may become a bit more sporadic, but as I wait for my roommate to wake up so we can go grab dinner, thought I’d share this week’s stream of consciousness….

Lessons from a midlife retirement

My visit to the top of Vulcan Concepcion on the island of Ometepe in Nicaragua.

Tomorrow I begin my second adult life. It’s been 17 months, one week and two days since I  woke up on a Monday morning having a 40-hour work week ahead of me. I need to remember how my alarm clock works, find an ironing board somewhere and try not to get killed during a rush hour I haven’t experienced in a long while. 

5 Easy Tips to Start Your Baseball Career Now

The 2009 National Champion Durham Bulls front office ring presentation. I’m in the back, middle-right.

Though I no longer work for a professional baseball team, one of the ways I’ve stayed connected is by consulting with college students interested in a career in sports. When I ask them where they assume their path to the general manager’s chair begins, they usually tell me it all starts with the internship: that rare opportunity to hop into the shadow of a professional baseball executive and learn the inner-workings of the grand old game. Lock up one of those prime spots and you’re on your way to World Series glory, miss the cut and you can forget about dancing at a champagne-soaked celebration.

Well, there is another way.

In Memoriam: V. Joel Burnette

V. Joel Burnette
(1973-2013)

It was finals week. Sometime in the middle of the night I stepped out of the classroom where I was studying and into the hallway to clear my head. In my haze of frustration I heard the voice of my fraternity brother who always seemed to be around when I was struggling.

“What’s wrong, DeMar?” he asked.

“Nothing,” I replied, head down and shoulders slumped.

“I know what’s wrong,” he claimed. I glanced up at him.

Nine major league reasons to hire a minor leaguer

That’s me picking a fight with WWE Legend Sgt. Slaughter on a military appreciation night. Guess who won.

You know my story by now. I spent 14 amazing years working in minor league baseball. I took the next 15 months to travel around the world. I came back to Durham, NC to start my second adult life doing something else. Seemed simple enough to me, except for this objection I occasionally receive from a hiring manager:

“I’m not sure how your experiences in minor league baseball translate to what we do here.”

Super Bowl Sunday and other musings…

My Super Bowl party from 2009. This is our tribute to the early photos of people enjoying 3D as we watch the 3D halftime show.

I LOVE Super Bowl Sunday. I don’t bother with the week of hype on ESPN (I actually don’t watch ESPN at all anymore, but that’s another story) but it’s hard to beat a good Super Bowl party. The friends, the food, the commercials, the halftime show and the game…this is one of the best purely American events there is.