For MiLB President & CEO PAT O’CONNER, this weekend truly is an oddity. MiLB's All-Star Game was held last week, and with nothing on the work agenda, the longtime exec is looking forward to relaxing at home in St. Petersburg, Fla. He said, “Doing what I have done for 30 years, having some quiet time is not a bad thing. In fact, it is a very good thing. If I have an itch to travel or do something, chances are I have already done it.”
RELAX, DON’T DO IT: Because I‘m not traveling, this weekend is kind of an unknown. I am usually on the road so much that a free weekend is quite a rarity. The off weekend is really a good chance to recharge the batteries. I will probably just head to the house, have a nice dinner and really decompress. I am not big on going out and doing a bunch of stuff when I am home. This Friday I may pick up a pizza and eat some salad. I am in the stretch of eating a little healthier.
WASH CYCLE: On Saturday, I will probably get up and clean the car and maybe do a little project around the house -- nothing too exciting. I do laundry and stuff like that to catch up and I'll do a little reading. I try to read scripture every day. I really just crash out. I travel so much that I am not afraid to be a homebody, and I relish that. I also check in with my mother a couple times a day.
SECRET GARDEN: On Sunday I'll probably get up and get some breakfast and watch some TV. My TV diet is “LAW & ORDER,” “SEINFELD,” “EVERYBODY LOVES RAYMOND” and “KING OF QUEENS.” You get me those and I am good to go. I am not a real big hobby guy, but there are things I like. I like to garden and cook on the weekends. I am not a gourmet cook, but it tastes pretty good to me. I do it sporadically because the job has been front and center for a long time.
HOME AWAY FROM HOME: I do not vacation because I travel 150-175 days a year. If I have some free time, I am not inclined to get on an airplane and stay in a hotel somewhere. That is what I do for a living. I have another place in Umatilla, which is about two hours from my home in St. Petersburg. I don’t know if I am going this weekend, but I find a lot of comfort and relaxation in mowing the six acres of land we have there. I can get on a tractor and solve two-thirds of the world’s problems. All I have to focus on is keeping the lines straight.
WALK THIS WAY: I currently am on a walking regimen on the treadmill or in the neighborhood. That is a way to get out and exercise and break a sweat, things a desk jockey doesn’t get to do. I used to fish, I used to play golf. With the pace of my job, doing natural, spontaneous type of things is pretty cool.
