How did I become a "Soccer Dad?"

Fall in Indiana use to mean football...but for this Hoosier dad, it's all about Soccer.  My oldest, Eli just finished up baseball.  Second place in the championship, I was proud of our team.  But just a week after we hung up the mitt and bat, we got the shin guards and cleats out for the season.

When I was a kid, I saw a few soccer balls on TV.  Daniel, the Karate Kid, did some good tricks kicking it up in the air, but that was about it.  Even when I was in high school, we didn't have a team until my Senior year.  And even then, it was co-ed.

But last summer when we asked our son if he wanted to play soccer, he was super excited.  The first practice he was so comfortable.  He got the nickname "Thunder Foot."  An I started to really get into it.

Now in the league he played in, they "didn't keep score".  But parents certainly kept score.  He did really well, and loved playing.

This year he is moving up a division, and I am excited to see him progress.

Never thought I would get excited about Soccer...but this Soccer dad has his bag chair in the back of the jeep, and I am ready to cheer on my little guy in soccer!

Just trying to help...It's what I do...

So we all get those scam calls on our cell phones.

"You qualify for the government to give you three million dollars!"

"A rich lady in South Africa wants to send you a bazillion dollars, all we need is your social security number!"

Most of the time you just hang up...not be!  I love life.

So earlier today my phone rings "unknown"...Yep, I answered it.  A man, with a thick Muslim accent, obviously in a call center comes on the line.  His name is Charles Sampson, (yeah right!)

"Hello sir this is Charles Sampson, and I am calling for Publisher's Clearing House.  You have heard of us, right?

Me - "Sure I have.  Is it my lucky day?"

CS - "Sir I am calling to inform you that you have won one of the prizes in our big giveaway.  Do you have a pen and a clean piece of paper?" (I am not sure why the paper had to be clean.)

Me - "Give me just a second Chuck so I can find the paper, and make sure it is clean.  Is it okay if I call you Chuck?"

CS - "That's fine sir, just let me know when you are ready to write something down."

Me - "OK, got a pen, and a piece of paper, but it's not that clean, will that be okay?"

CS - "Oh, yes, write down this number for your prize code"

Me - "Ready when you are Charlie, can I call you Charlie?"

CS - "Here is the prize code, (reads off a series of numbers and letters). Now, I am going to give you a toll free number you need to call to claim your prize."

Me - "Well Charlie, why do I need to call a separate number if I am already of the phone with you?"

CS - "Oh, sir, I just am the delivery man for the prizes, you have to call this number to claim the prize."

Me - "Chuck, if you are the delivery man, just swing it by my house....you have my address don't ya."

CS - "Oh, sir that is not the procedure"

Me - "OK Charles...let me help ya hear...if you are going to run a phone scam, you need to tighten up your game a little bit.  Too many holes in your story...Lets work on that for the next guy..."

At this point he told me to do something to my mother that I AM SURE is against their Muslim religion, and hung up on me...

See what happens when I try to help people...

A change for the better!

So with a new year, a lot of people join gyms...and my wife and I are no different.  We started in the middle of January.  And so far, I have to say, I LOVE IT!  I have no dreams of being a body builder, or even running a marathon, but I want to get in better shape.  That is my goal.

We have a schedule worked out, and I go three times a week.  It gives me a chance to have a break from the kids, and just get everything off my mind.

In no means am I an aerobic superstar, but I am getting better every day.  I usually walk/jog on the treadmills.  I love to do a few miles on a bike, and even lift a few weights from time to time.  I just want to lose the gut, and be able to run after the kids without requiring oxygen.

So wish me luck.

And yes, I take my headphones a long to enjoy some music.

Leah is on the move!

So earlier in the week, Leah turn 9 months old.  And just days before she did, she started crawling.  This is going to mean lots of getting up and down to keep her out of things.  Sarah and I were thinking back to when Eli started crawling.  He was a really good baby.  Not getting into much.  Listening when we told him no....

Leah is the complete opposite.  Over and over again she will get into the same things.  And when she gets something she is not suppose to, out come the tears.  She makes it sound as if we are beating her.  She has her mother's mood!  Just kidding honey!

But here are a few shots of our little crawler!

So for now, I am having to take off the headphones to go chase down my little girl.  I will have an Eli update soon!

Another Trip to Cleveland..

Last year JB, one of my co-workers invited me to a Cleveland Browns game.  Since I am a Titan's fan, I said sure.  The Titans took it to Cleveland, and we got a big win.

So last week, I asked JB if Cleveland was at home on Sunday.  He said they were, and asked if I wanted to go.  I asked who they were playing...he tells me Buffalo.  I said, sure, why not.  So Sunday morning I got up early and met JB for the 4 hour trip to Cleveland.

JB has a routine on game day.  He always parks in the same lot.  Goes to the same bar before the game, and then makes the trek through the wind off Lake Erie to Browns Stadium.

Once inside we get a Jumbo Brown Dog, with Brown Mustard, and take our seats.

Once in the stands, you realize that Buffalo is only 3 hours away from Cleveland.  That means a lot of Bills fans in the stands.  And were they rowdy.  Chants of "Let's Go Buffalo" were heard over and over again.  Browns fans were cussing at Bills fans, Bills fans are saying things like "meet me in the parking lot after the game."  It was kinda wild.

The game was a typical browns game.  The fans in Cleveland are a different kind of fan.  They will love their team win things are going good, and as soon as there is one bad play, they will turn on them.  It is like a love hate relationship.  It is fun to watch.

When all was said and done, Cleveland lost 24-14.  So following JB's tradition, we went back to his favorite bar for about an hour, and then as we leave Cleveland it means a stop by Outback.  Once we feed, time for the long drive home.  It is always good time in Cleveland, even if they lose!

When they lose, the fans are made, but they always seem to come back.  Last year a comedian filmed himself in front of Brown Stadium.  It pretty much puts in all in perspective!

Joys of Small Town Living!

I grew up out in the country, and I loved it.  With a 10 acre woods behind my house I always had something to do.  From hunting raspberries to climbing trees, there was no other place I would have wanted to grow up!

A few years ago when we started looking for a house we looked at some "country" houses, but couldn't find anything we liked enough.  So we settled for a house in a small town.  Right across the street is a city park, and trust me...with a 3 year old, we use it a lot!

Earlier this summer when the heat was so bad, we saw a group show up at the city park across the street from our house.  I remembered seeing a flier at the local grocery store about "Water in the Park."  So we went over to check it out.

With temperatures in the upper 90's with high humidity the local volunteer firemen decided to do this event.  They hooked up their trucks to a fire hydrant, and then ran hoses out into the lawn of the park.  They turned things on, and boom, water in the park!  They had the two sprayers, and then they got one mounted on top of the truck and made quite a shower.  When they gave the go ahead, the kids went nuts running through the water!  And did they ever!

Eli was a little nervous to go by himself, so I decided that it wouldn't kill me.  We ran to the water and right away we started having fun.  And trust me I wasn't the only adult enjoying the "kids" day at the park.

After a couple of runs with Dad, Eli was ready to go on his own.  He ran and ran through the water.  After a little while they pulled out a 4 foot wide plastic table runner, and turned it into a slip and slide.  The kids really had a good time with that.

After a while was SOAKED!  He said it was one of the best days ever!

 
The community really enjoyed the water, and they had popcorn and drinks for everyone.  When I take the headphones off, I am happy to hang them up in a small town!

Our newest little bundle of joy...

So when I last left you, I told you I was going to introduce our newest addition!  Leah, our daughter was born back in April.  And here she is!

We have had here around for 3 months now, and it has been a change in the house.  I can honestly tell you we were spoiled by our first child.  Eli was much easier that Leah has been.  But now we do get to sleep through the night, so that is good.

She is getting along great with the dog.  As you can see, and Eli is loving being a big brother.  He likes to give us "play-by-play" of what she is doing.  We will be driving down the road, and here Eli say, "Leah is asleep", or "Leah is sucking her thumb."

But he loves to love on her.  He wants to help.  He likes to get stuff for her.  He even throws diapers away...as long is they are just wet.

All in all, we could not be happier as a family.  We are truly blessed to have our little boy, and our baby girl!

A weekend getaway...part two

So when I last left you, I was standing on the breaker wall in Holland Michigan, enjoying the view, when from the water below I hear, "HELP".  Wow, that almost sounded like the first line of a really good novel.  Anyway.  As we look down there is a man getting pulled out into the lake by a rip current.  He had a kickboard, but you could tell he was not a great swimmer, and was not in the best of shape!  I stood there not knowing what to do.  All the sudden some younger guys grabbed a life ring off the fence along the breaker wall, and threw it to the man.  Meanwhile some other guys were swimming to him to help.  It was a stressful few minutes.  Next thing we know there were three or four more people being pulled out.  A crowd had formed on the wall.  Everyone was watching and helping.

I see another guy being pulled out, and he starts to yell.  There was one more life ring mounted on the rail beside me.  A lady looks at me, and says here, throw this.  I make my way down the rocks to the edge of the water.  She is following me.  I assume she is holding the rope as I prepare to throw the life ring.  I send it sailing out into the water, and as I see it splash, I see the end of the rope following it out into the water.  Well, that is not going to do a lot of good.  By the time I had done this, someone had swam to them, and helped the rest of the people out.  There were no lifegaurds on the beach.  As we are walking back to the beach, we look and see signs clearly posted that say "No Swimming Area - Rip Currents in this Area"  Shouldn't that be your first clue NO TO SWIM THERE?

After that excitement we went back to the hotel to chill out for a little while.  We got cleaned up and headed to the "Downtown" area.  Lots of shops, stores, and resturants.  We stuck around for a while.  Not much for me.  A lot of the stores were the same you would find in a mall.  So after a little walking we decided to head back to the room before dinner. 

When we got back I thought I would find a nice place to eat dinner.  We settled on "The Piper."  We had driven by it earlier while we were checking out the super expensive houses along the bay.  It was located next to the yacht club.  Yes, we were high society.

Like the look of it, it was VERY expensive.  And like I have found at more expensive resturants...the food is not as good as you get at some "cheaper" places.   But it was right on the bay, and very romantic.  Our favorite part was hearing a couple next to us talking about how they were trying to decide whether to build on to their mansion, or buy a bigger yacht...decisions decisions.

After dinner it was out for a night on the town.  Come to find out, they roll up the streets of Holland around 9pm. 

We did have an alright time in Holland.  I think we enjoyed our stops in South Haven and St. Joseph on the way home a little more.  Our next stop up Michigan's West Coast would be Muskegon, but we are thinking about another weekend in South Haven first.

It was nice to have a weekend OUT of headphones.

The next post, you will finally get to meet our newest addition, Leah.  That coming soon!  I promise!

A weekend getaway...part one.

One of our favorite places to visit is Michigan's west coast. Several years ago we stumbled across St. Joseph Michigan, and fell in love with the lighthouse there, and the shops, the beach, and the whole atmosphere of the area.  So over the past 8 years or so, we have been to St. Joe a few times. 

 A couple of years ago we decided to start working our way up the coast. Next lighthouse was South Haven. Another beautiful beach town with shops, restaurants and more right by the beach. We feel in love South Haven too.  The Lighthouse was beautiful, and the shops and restaurants had that small beach town feel.

So when Sarah said she wanted to get away for an early birthday present, I thought, why not go to the next lighthouse.  I did a quick search, and found that Holland would be our next stop.  When I was doing the research, I found out that "Big Red" was the most photographed lighthouse in Michigan.  It was beautiful and picturesque.  Then I was reading about things to do it Holland.  Websites spoke of their quaint downtown with shops.  I started thinking, "Sweet, we are going to love it!"  We reserve a room at a cheap hotel.  I mean, we only sleep there...we don't need anything fancy.  We pack up the car, drop the kids off at the in-laws, and we are north bound. 

We are making great time up 31 out of Kokomo.  We are in Lapaz, just south of South Bend.  All the sudden a state trooper pulls up beside our car, with lights and sirens.  I look over to see him pointing at me.  I pull to the side of the road, and he continues on.  OK...that was weird.  About a half mile up the road, I see the same trooper in the left turn lane behind a car.  He jumps out of "The Cruiser" and starts pointing at me.  I have never seen an officer do that.  So I pull over behind him, and he tells me to follow him.  We pull into an empty lot.  He comes back and tells me I was speeding.  I tell him, sorry, I am from out of town, and was just going with the flow of traffic.  He says, yeah, you were, but I picked you out.  WHAT?  Did I look like I might be muling drugs up to Detroit?  Why pick me out.  So he goes back to "The Cruiser" and we are waiting.  He comes back and tells us we are only going to get a warning for the speed, but...But WHAT?  He informs me that the back of the vehicle registration is not signed.  OK...is that a problem.  I guess it is, because we GOT A TICKET FOR IT!  Really?  It is early in the month, are you trying to reach your quota for the month in the first week?  So we have to find out how much that is going to cost.  Great way to start the trip.

So after the stop we continue on our way up the coast.  We drive through the two cities I mentioned before.  It was a beautiful as we remembered.  Back to the interstate to make it up to Holland.

We get into town, and realize it is bigger than the other towns we had stopped in.  We drive to the lighthouse, only to discover if you want to get close, you have to be one of the select few in the "vacation rentals" near the coast.  So we drive all the way around the bay.  When we get there, there is a line of people to get to the beach in the state park.  $8 gets up in to find barely a parking spot to be found.  We do walk down to the shore, and wade in a little.  The water was beautiful.  And we did get to stare at the lighthouse for a while. 

We start walking down the breaker wall, and all the sudden we hear a man shouting for help.  A riptide was pulling him out along the breaker wall. 

I guess you will have to tune into part two for the rest of the story.

More of me singing...

I have posted in the past about how I love to sing. And one of my favorite places to sing is in church. We have a great church, a great worship leader, and a great congregation. When I tell our worship leader that I would like to do special music he is always willing to learn the songs for me.

So here is a song by the group call The Great Divide.

The song is called "Deliver Us" and it is one I found about a year ago, and listened to it over and over...it really hit me. So we learned it, and played it a few months back. Hope you enjoy it.

The Tax System Explained in Beer

A friend of mine posted this on his facebook, and I thought it too good not to share!

Published: January 12, 2012



Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten
comes to $100.
If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like
this…

The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing
The fifth would pay $1
The sixth would pay $3
The seventh would pay $7
The eighth would pay $12
The ninth would pay $18
The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59

So, that’s what they decided to do.

The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the
arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve ball. “Since you
are all such good customers,” he said, “I’m going to reduce the cost of your
daily beer by $20″. Drinks for the ten men would now cost just $80.

The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes. So the
first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free. But what
about the other six men ? How could they divide the $20 windfall so that
everyone would get his fair share?

They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that
from everybody’s share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end
up being paid to drink his beer.

So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man’s bill
by a h higher percentage the poorer he was, to follow the principle of the
tax system they had been using, and he proceeded to work out the amounts he
suggested that each should now pay.

And so the fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% saving).
The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33% saving).
The seventh now paid $5 instead of $7 (28% saving).
The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% saving).
The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% saving).
The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% saving).

Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to
drink for free. But, once outside the bar, the men began to compare their
savings.

“I only got a dollar out of the $20 saving,” declared the sixth man. He
pointed to the tenth man,”but he got $10!”

“Yeah, that’s right,” exclaimed the fifth man. “I only saved a dollar too.
It’s unfair that he got ten times more benefit than me!”
“That’s true!” shouted the seventh man. “Why should he get $10 back, when I
got only $2? The wealthy get all the breaks!”

“Wait a minute,” yelled the first four men in unison, “we didn’t get
anything at all. This new tax system exploits the poor!”

The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.

The next night the tenth man didn’t show up for drinks so the nine sat down
and had their beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they
discovered something important. They didn’t have enough money between all of
them for even half of the bill!

And that, boys and girls, journalists and government ministers, is how our
tax system works. The people who already pay the highest taxes will
naturally get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much,
attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In
fact, they might start drinking overseas, where the atmosphere is somewhat
friendlier.

David R. Kamerschen, Ph.D. – Professor of Economics.

Are You Ready For Some Football!

So you might not know that I am a Tennessee Titans Fan...Love me some football. So about two months ago, Jimmy B that I work with tells me that the Titans play Cleveland at Cleveland this year. Since he is a season ticket holder, he asked me if I wanted to go. There wasn't a moment of hesitation. I jumped at the chance. I had not been to an NFL game since 1997 when I saw Dan Marino play in Indianapolis against the Colts.

So needless to say I was long overdue for a football game.

So I get up early Sunday morning and meet Jim at a gas station, and park the car. After grabbing my coat, my shades, and my Tennessee Titans hat, we are Cleveland bound.

As we are in the middle of the 4 hour drive, the clouds are getting thicker and thicker, and temperature is dropping and dropping. We are about an hour out from Cleveland, and Jim turns on the radio. They are in the middle of their 3 hour pregame. When it comes to football, those Browns fans are hard core! The announcer is telling us that it is suppose to rain, the wind is coming off the lake, and temperature is going to be around 52. What a day for football.

Well, we are in town about 2 hours before kick off. Jim likes to go to a bar right across the street from the stadium. So we sit there for about an hour. I get booed as we walk in the bar...Of course I was wearing my Titan's shirt.

After my taunting at the bar, we make the trek to Brown's Stadium. Grab a hot dog ($5.75) and head to our seats. We are sitting at one of the end zones, about 20 rows up. Perfect seats to see the wholes in the line open up. Really cool. Plus, we are covered by the upper level...so when the rain came in the second half, it was not big deal.



After another Hot Dog, and a coke ($3.00) the game comes to an end with MY Titan's with the victory. Jim wants to head back to his favorite bar. The place is packed! Jim says after all the losing season in Cleveland, they are use to it. They have the philosophy, "We Came, We Lost, We Partied." And that was the case. After about an hour at "Liquid" we head back to the car. Jimmy says he always stops at an Outback Steak House on the way out of town. We get to watch the second half of the late games, and head back to Marion.

Needless to say, I had a GREAT time in Cleveland, and I am ready to go to another game with Jimmy B. I would even go see someone like the Bengals play there. It was a good time!

My TV Addiction

So the fall season is here, and that means all your favorite TV shows are back. So what are we watching in our house…LOTS! Thanks to the DVR we get double the pleasure.

Here’s a run down of some of our favorite shows…

1. Survivor. Far and away the Number one show each week in our house. It doesn’t matter what season, we are hooked. I have not missed a season since season 2. I know I didn’t see the first, but haven’t missed on since.

2. The CBS Monday night comedies. How I Met Your Mother. Love the whole set up of telling stories to his kids. Two and A Half Men. OK…not as good with Ashton Kutcher, but still funny. Ready for the return of Mike and Molly. A really funny show!

3. The Big Bang Theory. I consider myself a little bit of a nerd. So to see these “nerds” doing all the nerdy stuff makes me feel a little bit better about myself!

4. CSI – Yes, I still watch. I have not seen a new episode with Ted Danson. That might be the end for me. Lawrence Fishburne was good. We will have to see if Ted can step up.

5. Up All Night – Becoming a new favorite for the wife and I since we are raising a little one.

6. Criminal Minds – I know it has a lot of blood and guts, but wow is it “edge of your seat” suspenseful.

7. The Sing-Off – This is an incredible singing competition. There is no band, no backup tracks. Just people singing all the different parts. Really good!

8. The Amazing Race – So we are hooked on reality TV. Can’t help it. They get to see parts of the world I will never see. One I look forward to all week!

9. Top Shot – OK, this is an all John pick. A shooting competition. LOVE IT!

10. Storage Wars – This one started out as a John show, but after watching it a few times, Sarah got hooked. People buying storage lockers that are in default. You would not believe the things they find in those things.

11. Law and Order: SVU – So this is the opposite of the other…This was a Sarah show that she got me hooked on.

12. And one I am going to give a try…The Playboy Club. I have a couple on the DVR, but as of yet, not got a chance to watch an episode. So we will see!

So all these tied in with Eli watching Super Why, Mickey Mouse Club House, and Looney Tunes, we have a busy TV schedule. But honestly Eli gets about an hour of TV a day because he would rather be outside. And Sarah and I only get to watch about an hour and a half of TV before I go to bed. Thanks to the DVR we have TV all summer to catch up on!

Proud Parenting Moments..

Vol 1.

So this past weekend, the weather was beautiful...when I say beautiful, I mean upper 60's, and breezy! I love fall.

So I let our little Boston Terrier out to go potty. Like every other time I let the dog out, our little 2 1/2 year old wants to go outside with me.

So no problem, I let go out with me. The dog does his business, and I tinker around on the deck for a minute or two to let the boy play outside for just a few minutes. When I feel like it is time to go back into the house, I tell Eli, come on buddy, back in the house. Like other 2 or 3 year olds, he doesn't want to...so I start doing what most parents my age do...I start counting...

Eli knows that if I get to three he is not going to be a happy boy.

1...Eli, come on buddy.

2...ELI, BACK IN THE HOUSE....

He goes right through the front door, and no problems.

Then I look at the dog.

"Tank, it's time to go in the house"...Sometimes he likes to play outside, but since he doesn't like to stay in the yard if left alone, I look at the dog again...

"Tank, HOUSE NOW"...

"ONE, why in the heck am I counting to the dog"...I go in the house and get the remote to his training collar, and he comes running in the house...

Vol. 2

So the very next day, Eli and I are out playing in the yard. We are playing with his big dump truck, and then he decides that we need to play ball. So I go get his Sesame Street ball. Just a normal kick ball. We are kicking it back and forth to each other. Then he wants daddy to kick it really hard.

It goes flying across the driveway into the side yard. We both run over to get it and kick it again. Then Eli learns that he can kick it into the shed and it will bounce back, and you can kick it again. So we do that for a while, and then we are kicking it back and forth again.

So Eli is far away from me. He kicks it to me, and then tells me to kick it back.

I have my eye on the ball, I am concentrating on making it a good kick. I connect perfectly with the ball. It was a kick that the kids on the playground of elementary school would have been proud of. The one thing I didn't notice was Eli was running towards me....

The ball flies right into his face....he doesn't even fall, he doesn't even cry...

He looks at me and says..."Ouch, that funny daddy."

All I could do was laugh. Does that make me a bad parent?

When I told my wife, she laughed too...does that make her a bad parent?

What is the appeal?

So I have from time to time in my life thought about getting a tattoo. A microphone on my arm would be really cool. Maybe a set of headphones. I mean it goes with my profession. Then the thought in my head enters...what if I not in radio the rest of my life. I would have to explain to my grandkids why there is a big ugly microphone on my arm.

I mean, sometimes you get a tattoo because it is something you care about. Maybe something in honor of someone who died. Maybe your Mom. Maybe your wife. Your kids. OK. A few of those make since.

But when people start going nuts, it makes me step back and think...OK, I am going to have this the rest of my life. Why would I do this...want some examples....of course you do.


OK. I like my beer as much as the next guy. But really, that is the only 6-pack he is ever gonna get drinking PBR!







OK....so I wonder if he has all his body parts labeled?











This has to be her "Dis-Knees"










Hey...I found WALDO...that is really funny to me!









OK...all I can say is WHY???














So after seeing how horribly wrong tattoos can go...I think I will stay INK Free for the time being.

A Day on the River...

So last year started a tradition, that I hope last for many years. My buddy was getting married, and for his bachelor party, we did a canoe trip. Had a blast, 10 guys, 5 canoes, and lets say, a good amount of beer.

So about a month ago, got a message from one of the guys via face book, and said, hey, lets do it again. So this weekend we loaded up the canoes, paddles, boat cushions, and the cool, and hit the river.

For the most part it was the same group of guys. I had my trusty canoe partner, my brother. So last year we were the only canoe not to take a trip into the water. So of course we had to talk it up. We launched at around noon. Let than an hour in, my brother is moving a little more than I like, so I say, "Hey, quit rocking'!"

He says, "What, like this"....

In the water we go. OK, that was our fault. We dump the canoe, collect our stuff, and back down the river we go. There is a lot of joking around between the guys. Just a fun afternoon. We stop a time or two to swim. With the limited rain we have had this summer, we did a lot of dragging, and looking for the deepest part of the river. At one point, we are cutting under a tree, and my brother and I lean the same way under the branches...there we go again.

Another time we were talking some trash with one of the guys as he was swimming and we were not...guess what...here he comes and dumps us again. We tipped on other time, but that one I am blaming on Keith Stone!

All in all, what should have been a 3 or 4 hour trip took us right at 7. I know it was a long day, but a lot of fun...except for the sun burn on my legs, and the bruises on my legs from tipping. But will I do it again next year? You bet!

Another Birthday has passed...

So last week was my birthday. Yee-Haw....Getting older...but I don't feel that old. Had a great party with family and a few close friends. I decided to break out the grilling uniform. Yep, that's me in my Camo apron and hat. It got some looks for passers by, but my family understood I am not right in the head. So we just did burgers and dogs. None of my true grilling talents were exploited.

And then it came to gifts...

I got a lot of great stuff, from grilling tools to a rechargeable automatic wine bottle opener to clothes. A lot of great stuff. But my favorite gift came from my wife.

Ok, I have to tell a quick story first...

When Sarah and I go to bed, the bedside table is on my side of the bed. So I have to turn the bed side lamp off every night. Well, there are some nights I get all cuddled up in bed, really comfy waiting for Sarah to get in bed. So she finally does, and says, "OK, turn off the light." For a joke some nights I will clap my hands real loud twice, and say...."Crap, it didn't work."

So as you can guess at the bottom of the gift bag, there wrapped in tissue paper...my very own Clapper! Yes, right out of the bad commercials you see at Christmas Time...



So that is not the best part. That night I decide to install it in the bedroom on the bed side lamp. It works like a charm. I am clapping to beat the band....Lights come on, lights go off...Again and again. Finally I get my fill, and drift off to sleep.

Hours later I am awakened to a really bright light in my eyes...the lamp is on. How did this happen...

During the night Sarah started to Cough..."Cough Cough" Lamp comes on..."Cough Cough" it goes out. She is facing the other way, and doesn't see the light show her allergy draining cough is producing. After being woken up twice, I say forget about it...I reach up and flip the lamp off. Problem solved.

So from now on, Sarah is not aloud to cough in twos...

Buyer's remorse before you even buy it....

OK, so as you might remember, I have told you in the past I have a few addictions...McDonald's Sweet Tea, Survivor, and Animaniacs...

But I have recently started a new addiction. Ebay! Yes, Ebay. One day at work, I started looking at the deals and I was hooked. Things from my past, like a Sega CD, Nintendo 64, M.A.S.K. toys, Ataris, Star Wars Action Figures...Man, you can find anything on there.

One day on my lunch break, I start surfing around for some of the video games I grew up playing. Not so much the Nintendo, but the Sega CD. I love that thing, everything from Sewer Shark to Sherlock Holmes....it was GREAT! In college, it was the N64. Their were several up for bid in ebay. The 007 game was awesome. I could not tell you the hours I wasted, when I should have been studying. Too many to count.

I also found my very first video gaming system, the Atari 5200. What a beauty this was. Old school, and I found one on Ebay...so I started bidding. I figured out what the problem is...it's the whole dollar or two at a time thing. Ohhh, I really want this, but someone out bid me...but it's only a dollar more....yeah, you do that 13 or 14 times, and that thing starts getting expensive. And this was the case that caused me a very stressful evening at home.

So at work I had done the whole dollar more thing a few too many times. And I was in for an Atari 5200, one controller, and 2 games....for more than I really wanted to pay. And there is no taking back bids....OK, so with shipping this is not going to go unnoticed by the wife when she checks the bank statement. And did I really want the Atari THAT bad? NO, I guess not.

So that evening, as time is running out on the auction, I am watching my phone...Yes, there is an Ebay App. 5 hours 32 minutes...Still the winning bidder. 4 hours 48 minutes...Still the winning bidder. I finally break down and tell the wife. But I justify it. I say, hey, there are some old toys on there that I own that will sell for like a hundred bucks...so I will more than pay for my Atari, and make some more....OK?

She was actually really cool about it. Shhhheeeewww, dodges a bullet there.

All the sudden my phone goes off. It's an alert from Ebay..."You have been outbid!"

2 hours and 14 minutes to go. YOU CAN HAVE IT!

So...have I learned my lesson? Nope, probably when I get done writing this, I will go back to Ebay and see if I am still winning on the auction for the "Shiner Bock Beer" clock...wish me luck, and happy bidding.

This is just more of my "Life on Ebay"...wait, doesn't have the same ring to it..."Life in Headphones"....yeah, that's better!

Time to Upgrade!

So for the last few weeks, The wife and I have been looking for a different vehicle for her to drive. The Blazer she had was getting up in miles. And it was getting to the point it was starting to nickel and dime us to death with repairs and things like that. So we decided to trade it in. We decided on a Ford Edge. We did some dealin' with our local Ford dealer, who just happens to be a sponsor on my radio show. There were a few things we were looking for. It had to have the Vista roof. No, that is not a bad Windows program that runs the roof. It is a dual sunroof that pretty much makes the entire roof glass. Eli really loves to look at the clouds, or the stars through the roof. The other MUST was the Sync system. That is the computer installed that links your phone and Mp3 player with the car. You push a button and tell it to "Play Garth Brooks" and it does. Plus you can tell it to "Call Mom Mobile" and it plays the calls through the car speakers. Really cool stuff. So once we told the dealer all the stuff we wanted...he went to work to find it. It took a couple of weeks. But then I get a call, and he tells me to come take a look. It was everything we wanted. So this past weekend, we did the deal, and now Sarah has a new car to drive. Here is the beauty sitting in our driveway.



So we are really enjoying the new car. And Eli LOVES to ride in the EDGE!

An End to An Era....

Well, it was a sad day Monday around 99.3 WCJC. For the past 6 plus years, I have been here on my morning show every day I was suppose to. Now, that doesn't include vacation days that were planned. I had to call in sick for the first time.

This was all set into motion on Friday morning when I get a call from my wife saying that Eli was sick at daycare. So my parents were nice enough to go pick up the little sicky boy. I was scared to death that I was going to catch his flu bug. And this weekend would not have been the weekend for any of us to get sick. Saturday our day was full of plans including a dinner with my in-laws for Valentines day. And then Sunday I was scheduled to sing at church.

So after getting Eli home Friday evening, and he is starting to act like he is feeling better. Good! We all wake up Saturday feeling fine. Hmmm, maybe this flu bug is going to miss us. We go to dinner, which was wonderful! As we get home Saturday night, I was getting to bed thinking, man I hope I don't get sick through the night, because I still have to sing in church.

Sunday I wake up early because I have to sing in both services. I feel fit as a fiddle. Sweet. So the singing goes really good. I will have to post the video as soon as I get it.

We head to my folks house Sunday after church, and Sarah starts to feel sick. Ohhh no, maybe we aren't through the flu. So she feels crumby all day. So as I go to bed, I feel great....until I get up with Eli around midnight. I take a drink of water, and BOOM....I feel it hit my stomach, and I know that the flu bug had got me.

I was up through the night until around 5:00am. I called someone from work, and said, "I am not sure what to do. This is a first."

So they get things taken care of, and I miss my first day of work in over 6 years. My sports guy said it best...The Brett Favre starting streak is over...but I am now back to my "Life in Headphones."