Leadership – the ability to get others to do what you are too lazy to do yourself [Baconpedia]. The term is almost mystical in the military, because effective leaders can inspire entire armies to succeed on the battlefield. Everyone, from the most junior Sailor to the highest ranking Admiral, wants to be known as a good leader. Leadership techniques are discussed, studied and categorized so that others can learn to lead. Theorists have written books about it. It is an obsession. There is negative leadership. Negative leadership works for a while, but ultimately fails. There is “tough love” leadership. It…

To all the Information Technology people I have offended over the last thirty years, I apologize. I had no idea what you were going through. Until now. Up until this week, and especially while I was in the Navy, IT people were the ones I would call when my computer didn’t work. I did not always treat them with the respect they deserved. If my email was messed up, I would call the IT guy. If my browser didn’t work right, I would call the IT guy. If I needed training, I would call the IT guy and let him/her…

My niece just got married, and like any middle-aged overweight uncle I felt a compulsion to dance at the reception. As opposed to some venues, at wedding receptions my inhibitions seem to melt away as soon as the DJ starts playing music. This time, however, he began with a set of music from an era before my time, which surprised me. I held fast. The music was for another generation. I would wait until he got tired of playing old people music and got into the modern stuff. Besides, the greatest generation would tire quickly and go home soon enough.…

My name is Jeff and I am tweet-shy. All they talk about on TV is twitter this and tweet that, and it has gotten to the point that I have developed a phobia about it. Until today. Today I decided to tackle it. A man has to know his limitations before embarking on such a journey, and If I were to be honest I would sum up my internet prowess with this cartoon: Twitter has an idiot page for people like me, and it all sounds so easy. You just send out notes (tweets) and follow other people’s notes. You…

Where most families enjoy picnics or backyard barbeques when they get together, mine goes on a hundred mile all-gravel bike race in the middle of Kansas during the heat of summer. It is called the Dirty Kanza and it is held every year in my hometown of Emporia, Kansas. I think I need to clarify something. Your prototypical bike racer is slim, usually weighing in at less than 200 pounds – often more like 150. That does not describe the Bacon boys. In a corral of quarter horses, we are clydesdales. Or maybe buffaloes. If this were a swimming competition…

As I sat in the Houston airport today I was thinking how odd it was that despite thousands of people coming and going in the terminal, no one ever recognizes anyone. I had run into Lola cartoonist and good friend Todd Clark at the Boise airport earlier in the day, but we both live there so that didn’t count. These are the kinds of weighty issues cartoonists ponder in their spare time. Literally seconds after that thought entered my head, I looked up and saw another friend. It was Stephan Pastis, my travel companion on many USO trips. This is…

I liked standing watch on the bridge because it was not engineering. Very rarely did I have to turn a wrench or, for that matter, get my hands dirty at all. And I have been told by my leading petty officer (now a retired Master Chief who reads this blog from time to time) when I actually did pick up a wrench (once) that I should stop or I would – in his words – hurt myself. As an officer, I was offended. But he may have had a point. Fast forward a couple of decades and my sixteen year…

I made a deal with my daughter that if she learned the piano, I would learn the guitar. It was a safe bet, since everyone knows guitar is easier than piano. Besides, if sixteen-year-old kids all over the world can figure the instrument out, so can I. I signed up for lessons. My teacher is one of those sixteen-year-olds I just mentioned and he can make the guitar sing. We make an interesting pair. I, being old enough to be his father – maybe grandfather – am the student. He, the young and talented musician, is the teacher. I shave…

Officially, summer begins on June 20, which sounds like a long time off but believe me – it is just around the corner. Why is this important? In summertime, the chance of being seen without a shirt goes from “never happen” to “mathematically possible.” This concerns me, because I am not ready. Sure, I hit the gym. I have mastered the ability to appear as if I am on a structured, personalized weight training regimen without actually touching any of the equipment. I left no pain, no gain behind me when I retired, leaving me with a conundrum. To look…

You may have heard that one of the TV morning teams is breaking up. The unexpected news upset one of the hosts so much that she did not show up to work for a week. She makes about $20 million a year. If an E-2 tried that, he would have faced a nonjudicial punishment that might have resulted in forfeiture of half his pay for a couple of months, restricted duty (meaning he could not leave the ship), and reduction in rate to E-1. An E-2 makes about $20 thousand a year. Morning hosts sip coffee and talk. Their biggest…