Thanks for the 2x4. We had a barbecue for the kids at Sunday School yesterday. I organized it. More Dads than I expected showed up. It was a great time. The religious school director was thrilled. So why was it so hard for me to motivate myself to do the work to make it happen? I had to really push myself just to send the e-mail to invite the Dads to help. From the response, there clearly is a desire among the dads to get more involved. So why don't I feel pleased that the event went well?

You are right, we should be more thankful. My son plays on an inner city team and we see how many of the kids live. We dropped one kid off at his grandma's house after practice. There were no cars parked on the street (and the houses do not have garages). My wife asked where everyone was so late at night. I said "honey, in this neighborhood no one can afford a car." We are very blessed. I wish I could feel that way more often.

You are correct. I shouldn't be angry with Mrs. Hold for asking for fancy things. I should be mad at myself for buying into the view that my value as a person is based on my net worth. After all, everyone knows my value as a person is based on how often my wife has sex with me!