MissingGrayMatter

7-15-07: Ireland Day 4 - Connemara & Kylemore Abbey

2008-04-23T09:01:00.002-05:00

Here is a picture of the Westwood House Hotel that we stayed at while in Galway. For some reason remembering the whole house / hotel part was particularly difficult and would get us into a bit of trouble when trying to take a cab back to the hotel from the King's Head, but we'll get to that later. For now it's just the beginning of a snap happy day. For our tour group the ongoing joke was that one of us would crash the ritzy wedding being held there, which our tour guide added wouldn't be the first time tour members would have been involved in such a debacle. However, to my knowledge, nobody did anything more than get sloshed in the bar... that's my story and I'm sticking to it. Sorry about the black border around the picture, I was a bit rushed and didn't take adequate overlapping photos of the sky so that I could crop it properly.

Before I get too far, Helen randomly took this photo that makes me laugh. The tufts of grass are so huge that at first glance it makes me look like I'm hiding amongst them. My own personal picture of a leprechaun and it's me. Fun-nee.

Our first task of the day.. a long drive. Basically we were headed to Celtic Crystal. It's a family run shop, husband slowly working the cash register but quickly working in jokes about his whip cracking wife, and wife playing tour guide to the tourists. This stuff is apparently only available for export, can't be sold within Ireland, and is all handmade. They actually had a 'master' crystal-smith?.. available who demonstrated how they use a variety of grinding stones and water to carve their designs from memory. The speed and fluidity of this guys movements while making the glass were pretty darn impressive. Likewise, the products at the store are expensive. Helen and I both ended up getting little goblets for our mothers, which I can tell you they both loved.

Next stop, Connemara Marble. Again, we went to this shop, full of cute 'little' things made from, you guessed it, connemara marble. This particular type of green marble took something like 700 million years to form. Apparently they were digging it up and carving it up like nobodies business until someone stopped to ask.. "Hey, where are we going to get more of this stuff when we run low?", which is why you can't buy more than a small amount now. No more green church columns for you! They were all out of clover cuff links or I would have bought some for myself, so I ended up getting a few worry / power stones for friends and family. The first two shots above are some random store across the street from the marble shop. In fact it's only significance is Helen's bladder, which had to be emptied there. I do however, like the lego guy getting attacked by badly drawn pigs, apparently designs from the 9th century couldn't include arms, or realistic animals.. hehe.

The last shot is only for old folks so pay attention. This bridge was apparently used in some John Wayne movie I've never seen called The Quiet Man? Something to do with a bicycle, I dunno. But for those of you that have seen it, or are old enough to care, there ya go!

7-14-07: Ireland Day 3 - Continued Again

2008-04-21T08:03:00.003-05:00

As we drove through the Burrens I managed to snap this shot. Our tour guide on the bus (Pattie) was as friendly and funny as any guide you could ask for. He had stories and jokes that could have the whole bus laughing, and speeches essentially designed to lull the unwary to sleep. Actually on a side note, several of our friends on the tour made a sport of taking pictures of each other sleeping on the bus. It's all the more funny when you realize how much money most people spent to sleep on the bus while Ireland whizzes past them. Anyways, this mini stonehenge is typical of gold markers that were left by settlers. I'm assuming that they already got the gold and left the marker, but we didn't get a chance to get out and check.

Finally we reached Galway, aka City of the Tribes (Browne was one of them). We were dropped off at Eyre square, basically the city center park / shopping district, to hang out and have fun for a few hours when the bus would pick us back up. Some sort of festival was going on and there were a ridiculous number of college students just laying around and hanging out along with tourist, bands, musicians,.. you name it. The cover above is not manhole size, it's more like the size of a small cantaloupe, but Helen and I thought it was a real touch of class that they bothered to put a little art on something so functional so we snapped of a picture. Like almost everything in Ireland it has a Celtic design inspired by the Book of Kells.

Helen and I wandered around, hit up the gift shops something fierce looking for keepsakes and gifts for friends and family. However, I can't remember actually buying anything other than a smoothie at a little shop. Helen was really trusting me to get us around, because we were on our own, wandering for several hours, and the streets of Galway aren't laid out on a grid, so many of the turns we took were at strange angles. I'm proud to say, we found our way back to the tour without incident. Almost directly across from the cover, we did walk past a bar blaring American music "Boot Scoot and Boogie?" and named Hole in the Wall. I immediately thought my dad would love this!

Our next stop was just a few blocks away at Galway Cathedral. It's not an old church but it was definitely built to have that look. As you can see it was quite beautiful inside, and the stained glass proved quite difficult to photograph properly. Out of the 5 of 6 I attempted, this was the lucky one that was largely in focus.

This last picture, is a bit out of order because it's from the Eyre center, a bit of art. Art is pretty and that's the only reason for the picture. Last but not least, the picture below. After leaving Galway we stopped at some random castle. The tour guide actually used the phrase ABC several times which stood for Another Bloody Castle. This may have been something noteworthy, but yet again it was so beautiful that I was more focused on getting a good shot.

7-14-07: Ireland Day 3 - Continued

2008-04-21T07:33:00.005-05:00

After the Cliffs of Moher we went to the Burrens Visitor Center in Kilfenora. The inscription on the plaque above reads:

Stony seaboard, far and foreign
Stony hills poured over space
Stony outcrop of the Burren,
Stones in every fertile space

At the visitor center we watched a presentation on the Burrens, describing the plants and animals that live there. It's actually quite interesting because the rocky soil provides a home to variety of plants that like to live on the stones, in between the stones, and normally would never be found together. It's a unique place to take pictures of plants if you ever have a chance to go.

After the presentation we were invited to wander and have lunch. Most people went to the tearoom attached to the visitor center but Helen and I went next door to take pictures of an ancient cemetery, and then we found a little pub down the street to have very quiet lunch all to ourselves. This cemetery has a glass ceiling to keep it from wearing down any further than it has. Then the picture of a plant comfortably living in a little nook of rock shows tenacity I think, and the fertile nature of the Burrens in that any cranny big enough for a little dirt is big enough that something will probably grow there.

As you can see, some of the stone work and graves within this courtyard were very old. If it wasn't for the squarish jaw and prominent cheek bones above, I'd say this dang thing looked Egyptian. I wish I knew more of the history here, and I may go back and look it up, but Helen and I are mostly snap happy tourists, just interested in taking pictures and saying "I've been there"!

The shots above are from the pub we wandered into. We paid the equivalent of about 24 dollars for smoked salmon, served on a piece of bread, and a shared Guinness. Did I mention the salmon was cold and by smoked they didn't exactly mean cooked, just smoked? It was actually very good, but definitely not what I was expecting. However, if you look closely at the Guinness you'll see a clover imprinted in the foam. According to instruction I received there, to properly drink a Guinness you must wait for it to settle, which takes a few minutes, and it should have a head that is "just so", etc.. I'm such a slacker Irish mutt.

7-14-07: Ireland Day 3 - Cliffs of Moher & Galway

2008-04-21T07:04:00.002-05:00

So today was our first full day in Ireland even though as far as the tour is concerned it's our third day. On our way out of Limerick I got this quick shot of Bunratty Castle which Helen and I couldn't even see when we visited the folk park the day before. Too bad we didn't get to go in it with the rest of the folks that were on the longer tour!

The shots above are composite shots I made by stitching together several shots from left to right. If you are curious I use a free program called AutoStitch and as you can see it works like a champ. I was really excited about today, in fact seeing the Cliffs of Moher is one of the big attractions that sold me on the idea of the tour in the first place. We were lucky, it was a beautiful day. Actually, according to the rest of the tour Helen and I brought good weather with us so we were all smiles about our good fortune.

At the top of the Cliffs of Moher is a little lookout mini-castle situated basically between the two panorama's at the top of this post. That's where we decided to take pictures of each other standing in the archway. Then there's this shot of Helen on the pathway to the top, and in the background you can start to get an idea of how truly green Ireland is. It's breathtaking to be up so high and have a view of the cliffs and ocean on one side, and the many hued green quilt work that is Ireland on the other.

First a shot of the stonework leading up to the lookout. Helen and I love textured pictures like these because they make for great framing and desktop backgrounds. A shot of a flower with a very 'hands off' attitude! For some reason, Helen and I went gaga taking pictures of all the flora in Irelands... you'll see. A shot of Helen walking back to me at the bus on our way out. There were shops on the walkway up, and I think she'd been shopping until the very last minute. Next a shot of a very practical and in my mind funny sign warning you against trying to get that picture out on the edge of the cliffs. Last but not least, a cute picture Helen snapped off of the actual lookout. If you see a picture taken on its side like this (so that it's taller than it is wide) that's probably Helen. It's one of her things. But I have to admit, sometimes it makes for a very good picture.

7-13-07: Ireland Day 2 - Continued

2008-04-17T10:35:00.008-05:00

So we find a random mall to look through. It's small by mall standards in the US, but they have quite a few little shops and we wander through them. I'm definitely getting hungry, and for me going to a new place usually brings up questions of 'what's good to eat here?'. I wanted something Irish, that I couldn't easily get back home, and I got it. There was a shop upstairs serving a traditional Irish breakfast of eggs, white pudding, blood pudding, beans, and bacon. The egg is identifiable, the white pudding is the lighter colored circle at the top, the blood pudding is the darker colored circle (yes it's made with blood). Then you have beans, which in Ireland aren't beans unless they are served with mushrooms, bacon which is ham but tastes sweet because it doesn't have all the salt and preservatives we serve it with, and finally the divine sausage. I'm serious, they should call it something other than sausage because it gives sausage I've come to love a bad name. Enough on the food, it was just really good!

After eating, we walked around stopping at visitor centers, pondering what knick knacks to buy, and just having a romantic walk. Getting back to the Hotel was a bit of an ordeal because we found a bus stop, but the dang buses wouldn't stop. There must be some sort of routine where only the 5th bus stops, but it was getting annoying. Did I mention that we hadn't changed after getting off the plane? I'm still wearing shorts and a T-shirt, Helen is dressed pretty much the same, it's about 45 degrees and raining, and we are huddled under the smallest umbrella's you've ever seen in your life! These umbrellas must be partially related to the little one's that clown's use at the circus. So cold and wet, we made our way back to the Hotel to take a nap and then meet up with our group for the first time in the evening.

One interesting thing. No air conditioning. You want to condition the air, you open a window buck-o. And that's what we did. The rooms were nice but small, the sheet were excellent, we opened the windows and took a few hours nap until we met our group for the first time. The get together was in the hotel bar, and we quickly found out this was a friendly crowd. They were on the longer tour that starts in Dublin, then wraps completely around Ireland so they had already been together for 5 or 6 days, and we were the only new couple joining up. However, complimentary drinks and introductions all around made short work of any ice breakers that we may have been worried about. As far as they were concerned, we were newly weds on a late honeymoon, like another couple on the trip. The last photo above, commemorates my first Guinness, in Ireland or anywhere else for that matter.

My thoughts on Guinness. Nice bitter taste going down, strong aftertaste that makes you want to drink more to stall it. Somehow I can still say I don't like beer, but I like Guinness. Go figure.

So after introductions we gather together on the bus, which was very nice, and head over to Bunratty Folk Park. Apparently they had been their either that morning or the day before and got the full tour of the place, but we went straight to dinner. The stew was fabulous, copious amounts of wine and hard cider, comedy, singing, and dancing. I would recommend it to anyone as a very good evening. And then...

I got picked by one of the dancers to come on the stage. Basically about 20 minutes before I was required on stage I was informed that I had been chosen to participate in a dance on stage. I wasn't asked, I was informed *grin*. With that much notice, I had a few more glasses of the honey wine they were serving, mustered up the courage and gave it my best shot. Helen was stunned I think. If the video link below works, you can hear her saying in the background "He's really trying!".

After the various performances, mine included, we finished our meals and headed back to the hotel, which ended the day. Time to rest, relax, watch TV. Interesting stuff when you can find children's programs that you are familiar with, but being broadcast dubbed in Gaelic. Hilarious stuff.

7-13-07: Ireland Day 2 - Limerick & Bunratty Folk Park

2008-04-17T10:15:00.003-05:00

When we first arrived at the Radisson Hotel in Limerick we were several hours early for check in. However, we had funny money burning a hole in our pockets and we were feeling adventurous enough to try and get in some trouble on our own. So we asked the front attendant to stow our bags until we got back, asked him which way to Limerick, and headed out.

Let me just say, the roads there are harrowing. Apparently shoulders on highways are just for American sissies... add that to the fact that they are driving on the wrong side of the road and it made for jittery crossing. Luckily, there was a bus heading into Limerick, and with some negotiation as to how much the ride would cost we were headed off. Keep in mind, we don't actually know where our hotel is located because a cab dropped us off. Also keep in mind, we have no particular destination in mind other than 'Limerick', so we road the bus until we saw a street with quite a few shops, and then we hopped off just figuring we would wander around looking for some breakfast.

Which brings us to the photos above. We wandered about, looking in the store fronts, me following my nose mostly. Then it started to rain. After a brief squabble about whether I really needed an umbrella or not (I did) and whether we could find / buy them nearby (we did), we set out despite the misty rain.

It's hard to describe the Limerick shops. Everything is just a little different. Pastries, fruit, display cases, store layouts, all just a little different than what we were used to. We had a good time talking endlessly about the differences and similarities, but mostly we were just holding hands on our own personal mini-quest to see something different. If you are looking above, you'll see two pictures from the downtown area we stopped in, a picture of King John's Castle in Limerick, and then a picture Helen took through a pharmacy window. Apparently that's not how they spell Clarityn here so you medical people should get a grin out of that. Finally, my picture of a bathroom on some random street. The interesting thing there is you have to pay to get in. We found the same kind of system in bathrooms in the malls, pay to get in. The indoor bathrooms are on an honor system usually, but outside you better have correct change or you are in big trouble.

7-12-07: Ireland Day 1 - The Flight Over

2008-04-17T07:34:00.002-05:00

Wow, it's been a LONG time since I posted on this blog, but it's time my blog caught up with my life. My life sure as heck hasn't slowed down one bit...

So if you didn't know, Helen and I went to Ireland last year. It cost many a pretty penny, and we weren't sure if it was the right thing to do at the time because we could already see that our financial picture was going to tighten up considerably in the near future. However, we went, had the time of our lives, and looking back I don't regret a bit of it.

Day 1 wasn't really all that eventful. Basically we took an early flight from Tulsa to Chicago. The first two pictures above are just the approach to Chicago and then the O'Hare airport, which is pretty huge. It's one of those major hub airports with trains to take you between the different stations. Every time I step foot into one of these I have to remind myself that I am an adult and I'm supposed to know how to navigate on my own now.

The flight from Chicago to Shannon seemed pretty long. I don't remember the logistics of it but it seemed like it was only dark on that flight about 1 hour. I kept thinking that any minute I would see Ireland but the truth is that the approach was a long gray blanket of nothing. It wasn't until we were a few thousand feet up that you could make out anything at all, and what you did see was a patchwork of tiny farms. Don't get me wrong, they were pretty, but as you get closer and closer to landing you start to wonder where the big international airport is.

Their airport isn't big, and it has more of a pastoral setting,... you know, sheep grazing around the thing kinda of pastoral. The interior of the airport is drab and boringly functional with decorations that don't look like they have been udpated since the 70's. We unloaded, stretched, and proceeded to some lengthy lines where we could declare ourselves as tourists. The first real decision Helen and I had to make was how much money to convert. It's ridiculous how much fun we had playing and looking at foreign currency.

Next thing you know we were in the airport proper, trying to explain ourselves to the outfit that is supposed to be providing transportation to the hotel, then whizzing along the roads to the Radisson Hotel in Limerick at break neck speeds. My camera batteries were dead due to poor planning, but I was able to snap quite a few pictures off with Helen's. As you'll see, we were more than snap happy.

Let's call that day 1, I'll cover the pictures of Limerick in day 2.

7-11-07: Resting His Eyes

2007-12-28T10:24:00.000-06:00

If Curtis slows down enough he'll generally come to a dead stop in a cat nap. He likes to say that he's just resting his eyes. He'll even say that he was listening to everything you said. However, he snores awfully loud for someone that wasn't sleeping and can't remember what you just said. Hehe.

7-04-07: 4th of July

2007-12-28T10:14:00.000-06:00

I had a really good time on the 4th of July this year. Me, Dad, Pam, and Kyle all went to the big show that they put on in Lee's Summit each year. For some reason you can actually see two fireworks shows for the price of one because the city has it's display and then a posh neighborhood / community has their's. It's basically dueling banjoes with fireworks. And if you tune in the right channel they play patriotic music that seems roughly coordinated with the display so that really takes it up a notch.

After the display and the traffic jam that always insues we went back to my Dad's place and I basically hung out with Joe playing games until they put on their little show. Joe dropped at least 150 on fireworks and had some real blockbusters. I've got video but I'm not sure where to host it, still working on that. Anyways, we had a great time, nobody blew themselves up or lost any limbs so that's always a bonus.

7-02-07: Flowers Don't Need A Reason

2007-12-28T09:54:00.000-06:00

I know it's a strange post to start off with after such a long break, but I like to do things in order and these were the next photos in line. There is no story per se, just pretty flowers. Enjoy.

6-21-07: A Family Tradition

2007-09-20T17:41:00.000-05:00

Well the end of my home hunting / Father's Day visit was at a Pappi's Pizza in Lee's Summit. I have a lot of great memories of pumping quarters into the arcade machines there and eating pizza with my dad until I was ready to bust at the seams. However, this visit was mostly about my uncle David. Somewhere within the last year he decided to start singing and stunned everyone when he turned out be pretty darn good at it. I've got several short videos of hims singing different songs but until I find a place to host them this picture will have to do. Enjoy.

6-17-07: One Long Father's Day

2007-09-19T15:00:00.001-05:00

Two things were going on this Father's Day. One, the search for a house for my mom, and two, Father's Day plans. I don't like to put much on here that would indicate my life was anything but peaches and clover, but my mom has herself in a bit of a financial pickle. The best solution my dad and I could come up with would be for me to buy her a very cheap home, fix it up, and have her live there. We took a look at a lot of different cities within about an hour of Kansas City, and came up with a promising looking HUD home in Butler, Mo. After much gnashing of teeth, and many weeks later, I ended up actually buying this house and when we are done with it, it will look great, and be a good investment as well.

The strange thing about this day is that we set out knowing the address of the house, but not how to get there. I don't care what search engine you tried, you couldn't find this rural route address on any map. But my dad figured, let's just get down there and home in on it asking the locals as we go. Somehow even Joe agreed to go although I'm sure he had misgivings about the ride. Well the plan didn't actually work that well. We drove to Butler, and Appleton, and every community around there and couldn't find it. We took every back road we saw, tried to map out whether we were getting closer or not by looking at the box numbers, but most weren't marked and the few that were seemed to have no organization whatsoever. We flagged down people in their front yards and asked directions, and after they got in their cars and took us where they thought it was, still hadn't found it. It was a real mess. We eventually found the place around 4 to 5 PM. We left around 10 AM. Joe was not happy one bit, but we all felt a sense of deranged accomplishment at having found it. I wanted to plant a flag or pee on it, I'd earned it. Well that and I'd been holding it for about 4 hours. Argh!

Well having found the home, taken many a picture inside and out, we set off to go back to Lee's Summit with a few pit stops along the way whenever Dad spotted a real estate sign. While Dad was out looking at one of the homes we stopped at, Joe and I managed to arrange a surprise get together at Tequila Harry's. Everybody managed to make it on time, and so Nathan, Joe, Chris, Kyle, Tasha, and myself all managed to squeeze into a booth with Dad for some good Mexican food. Dad never saw it coming and we actually had him convinced that Chris and Kyle had left to hang out with their friends before we could invite them to dinner. I even managed to sneak the check. Long day, but a productive one.

6-10-07: Mothra Attacks / Donkeys Escape!

2007-09-19T14:35:00.000-05:00

I'm a little fuzzy on whether Helen and I had already gone to bed or not, but I started to hear a rhythmic buzzing noise that didn't quite sound like either of our cell phones. We turned the lights on and started looking around when we found this VERY large moth. And let me tell you, the moth wasn't having a good night either. Apparently the moth was in the process of squeezing out some pale green little moth eggs. So we grabbed the camera, took some pictures, waited for the moth to finish it's business, and then gently escorted the moth and the eggs out of the room onto a tree just off the back porch.

The next day was a typical day on the farm. I drove the tractor, Curtis played foreman and was in charge of opening and closing the gate as I went to and fro. Catherine and Helen worked in the garden. Everything was fine, and Helen got some nice nature shots while going about her work until we received a phone call asking if we had any donkeys. Had being the operative word. Somehow the donkeys had managed to walk through the gate to the back half of the farm, right past the house, out the front gate, and then walked along the road for about half a mile to a neighbors property. They weren't sure who's donkeys they were, but they were certain that the animals weren't supposed to be running around wherever they pleased so they corralled them and started calling folks.

Curtis, Helen, and I all jump in a car with a few short pieces of rope, and no plan, and head up to make somehow get the donkeys back. Luckily the neighbors had real harnesses, good rope, a trailer, and a herding gate where you could pen one donkey at a time while you got charge of him and then led him into the trailer. It wasn't easy actually, the donkeys were quite irritated that we were interfering in their holiday. Anyway, all ended well with the donkeys back on our property and us owing the neighbors a big favor if the opportunity every comes up. Good times.

6-03-07: Farm / Petting Zoo

2007-09-19T14:17:00.000-05:00

Helen and Monica decided to take Lauren out to see the animals at the farm, because she's all city slicker-fied and they thought that would be fun. As far as I can tell, because I wasn't actually there, it was fun and Lauren managed to jump in the mud puddles, chalk up the front porch, and drive the dogs bonkers while they were looking at the donkeys. Here's a few snaps Helen took that day.

5-27-07: Random Pictures

2007-09-19T14:03:00.001-05:00

I don't remember if there was anything special about this day. Obviously Mike and Kristie were over during the first half of the day, and Helen and I ended up having dinner with June, Curtis, and Catherine that evening. Just another sunny day, and a few pictures to prove it happened.

PS> Poor Kristie. She knocks out a good photo, even squeezing in a 'girl' pose, and she's got that goofball in the background... hehe.

5-26-07: Renaissance Festival

2007-09-19T13:46:00.000-05:00

I hate that I've waited so long to post these pictures but hopefully I can remember most of the important stuff, so here goes. Helen, Kristie, Mike and myself all went to the Renaissance Festival in Muskogee. It's about as large as the one I'm used to from the Kansas City area and has pretty much all the same stuff. For all I know, the same people hop back and forth between the two.

Nobody brought enough cash so we ended up picking up some cash at an ATM across the street from the fair, and managed to get hit by the largest ATM fee any of us had ever seen. I think it was 4.50 or something... argh. Then parking was a bit of a mudpit, but we got in none the worse for the wear. The day was a solid gray, overcast, and muggy but we really didn't care as long as it wasn't actively raining on our heads.

Short story, we had fun. I made a fool out of myself trying to climb the hard section of the rock wall. Mike threw axes, and didn't manage to make even one stick. Helen bought me a cute little compass, which apparently I don't pronounce right. I bought a shirt that Helen was shocked I would buy / wear. See the picture for a laugh. I managed to let my inner carnivore / flintstone loose on a large turkey leg. We cheered on some of the jousting knights. And a peacock strutted his stuff for all to enjoy. That was pretty much the day in a nut shell. Now enjoy the pics.

5-22-07: Kyle's High School Graduation

2007-07-24T15:20:00.000-05:00

As you can see Kyle graduated from high school. I think if you ask him he'll admit that it wasn't the smoothest 4 years of his life but the point is that he made it and in this family that's an accomplishment that has to be recognized. As you can also see, Kyle's school was a rather big one with a quite a few graduating that day, so the ceremony was long even with them having two simultaneous lines of graduates receiving their diplomas. You may also be able to tell that because our groups got arrived just in time to face a parking nightmare and then proceeded to get separated in the building, we ended up in the nosebleed section taking long rang shots.

However, none of that matters. We found each other outside, spent a little time congratulating him and teasing him, before he went on some sort of class graduation field trip. I think Dad has to stand on his tippy toes to hug Kyle... that's funny.

5-16-07: The Great Outdoors

2007-07-24T15:04:00.000-05:00

See that? Definitely outside of the doors. Barely. Sometimes Helen and I do whatever the heck we want to and today it was setting up the tent on the back porch. We used to set this same tent up in the living room of our apartment in Phoenix and leave it up for as long as the novelty lasted. In fact, I spent quite a bit of time just hanging out in my tent with the door facing the television, while living in Phoenix those few months after Helen had moved back. But don't let me get side tracked.

We set the tent up right outside the door so we can put our monster fan right inside the door and have it blow around the inside of the tent like a tiny man made tornado. I love it. Only problem is that just about every time we set it up like this, it starts to rain. But we just zip it up and leave it up for a couple weeks, hopping in it whenever we feel like stepping outside of our ordinary living spaces. It's basically our tree house. Don't look at us like that, you're just jealous! Haha.

5-06-07: Dinner Outside

2007-07-24T15:00:00.000-05:00

The picture really says everything today. Just an evening where Cathleen and Catherine were having dinner on the porch. Only thing you can't see is the constant need to shoo the flies away and pleasant distractions of the birds eating at their various feeders throughout the yard.

4-29-07: Kristie's 30th Birthday Party

2007-07-24T14:45:00.000-05:00

Kristie was very surprised by her surprise birthday party. The general consensus is that she may have wet herself just a bit when we all yelled on her way into the apartment. If I remember right, the story was that Helen, Kristie, and her sister were going to dinner somewhere but her sister wasn't ready and so Helen and Kristie were stopping by her sister's apartment to wait for her to get ready. That's always a good one because it's completely plausible. There were quite a few people there, most of whom I didn't know, but we put Monster's Inc on the TV, played a bit of good music, and pigged out. I think part of the catering was done by her aunt's restaurant. Good eating.

The only other picture to explain is the ominous looking round cake with the number 30 sinking into it. That's one of Helen's healthy-sorta-cheesecakes. Don't get me wrong, they are good, but they are an acquired taste. And the way the candles were sinking into it gives me the feeling they were splashing around in slow motion as some candle eating shark circled them with creepy music playing in the background.... Did I mention most of the people kept asking why anybody would put olives on a cake? Well they weren't olives they were black cherries or something... just added to the creep effect. Hehe.

4-20-07: Sigma Theta Tau - Helen's Induction

2007-07-24T13:47:00.000-05:00

Today was the day Helen was inducted into the International Honor Society for Nurses. The ceremony was held in one of the auditorium's of the University of Central Oklahoma in Edmond, OK. The ceremony itself was a bit of a bore, because they insisted on introducing each person on the stage by listing every single thing that person had every accomplished or been a member of. I'm not kidding one bit. Each person easily had a 10 minute introduction. If the president of the United States had been there he would have had a shorter introduction! Regardless I'm very proud of Helen and her accomplishments. The picture's are a little grainy because I'm convinced there is a conspiracy between the school and the lighting they use and a photography company who wants to sell pictures from the event for ridiculous prices.

After the ceremony, Helen and I went to a very nice Asian restaurant named Kang's where we had sushi 'spider rolls' and a few other delectables. It's a nice place with a lot of atmosphere and good music if you are ever there. After a good meal we decided to just get a room in Edmond and call it a night.

4-15-07: Whatcha Got Cooking?

2007-07-24T13:37:00.000-05:00

I think I got this grill from Curtis sometime in November but suddenly it seemed like weather that just made us want to take it for a test run. I spent about an hour putting it together in the garage, moved it out to the porch, crossed my fingers, and lit the grill hopingI wouldn't be on the news that day. For the record, everything went just fine. And if you can't tell by the pictures, the dogs were very interested in the smells coming from the grill. I love the primal, caveman feel of grilling meat. I shouldn't post while I'm hungry *sigh*.

4-13-07: A Little Get Together

2007-07-24T13:25:00.000-05:00

I can't remember the purpose of this visit, maybe Helen will tell me when she sees this post. Either way it's a picture of friends and family in a cozy little cabin, and did I mention they have pie? Why wouldn't they be smiling when they have pie? Heck I should have taken a close-up picture of the darned pie. Left to right in the first pictures, its Curtis, Helen, and June. The second picture is of Dorris (June's sister) and June.

3-26-07: Just a few pictures to share

2007-07-24T13:18:00.000-05:00

Like I've said before, sometimes pictures tell the story. Helen and I have acquired a taste for taking pictures of bits of nature that sound the people and places that mean something to us. I've played with the colors on this one to make it a bit more interesting but I think Helen gets the credit for both shots. The second shot is of Curtis sporting a very interesting ensemble featuring a flame covered ball cap, color coordinated shirt and belt, jeans a la mud / grime, and a pose that screams "Gettin 'er done!". A round of applause for Curtis please.

3-25-07: Little Projects

2007-07-24T13:09:00.000-05:00

A few pictures from the farm where small projects are coming together. The main photo is of Catherine and her new garden. Little did she know that over the next several months this was to become a marsh because of all the rain we got. Her plants alternately drowned or rotted, or well both. A couple of the pictures are of new flower beds that Helen and Catherine were putting on the sides of the house. Then we have a picture of new saplings that were put just inside the fence to line part of the drive. And last but not least, a picture of the back half of the main barn... freshly covered in rocks, and ready for cement. It actually still looks like this! We can't poor the cement until we have the time, and weather that will allow it to dry properly, which hasn't happened yet. Regardless, the saga of the farm moves ever forward, albeit slowly.

3-21-07: Farm Hand

2007-07-24T12:59:00.000-05:00

Believe it or not I can drive a tractor. I may not be the best driver, but I get around the farm just fine. I move rocks here and there, dig holes for trees and posts, drive posts, and move the occasional bail of hay. I don't think I ever had too many Tonka toys when I was growing up, and I wasn't really that kind of kid anyways... But there's no denying the fun to be had while driving the big-boy toys around the farm. City boy be damned!

3-20-07: Another Bright Idea

2007-07-24T12:50:00.000-05:00

This picture doesn't make much sense unless you are aware of how often the dogs would charge the fence trying to scare the goats. After a few weeks the goats weren't having it and couldn't care less what the dogs were doing on their side of the fence but the dogs were still making quite a ruckus. So my idea was to take one dog at a time into the goat pen so that the dog could get used to them. This plan probably would have worked but I didn't do it consistently enough and not too long after this we got rid of the goats anyways. So much for bright ideas.

3-18-07: A couple of 'small' jobs

2007-07-17T01:25:00.000-05:00

Every so often Curtis gets me to come out to the farm to work on a couple of small jobs. He says things like "They are just a couple small jobs that require two people to do..." or "I think it won't take more than 2 hours... ". Ha! If you translate these innocent sounding statements into something the rest of us could understand it would sound more like "I have a few jobs that could end up taking all day, assuming everything goes according to plan. Oh and by the way, I hope you like the smell of cow manure". I still go, and I'm not complaining, I just think it's funny that Curtis speaks his own language and it takes a few years to understand it.

I think the two small projects this day were filling the barn's addition with gravel in preparation for the cement floor which still isn't poured, and putting in some fence posts. Good times.

3-14-07: Spring Cleaning

2007-07-17T01:14:00.000-05:00

Helen snuck outside taking pictures of the flowers and trees and then she snapped this one before I was really ready. I think I was outside cleaning up the driveway because Curtis had trimmed the hedges the day before and we needed to take new pictures of the house for the ForSaleByOwner listing. Nice pictures, but I guess not much story to tell. More coming soon.

3-13-07: Flowers from the Yard

2007-07-17T00:56:00.000-05:00

Not much to say here but definitely some pretty pictures that are worth posting. Helen could probably tell you what kind of trees / flowers these are but I am at a loss. Enjoy.

3-3-07: Lunar Eclipse

2007-07-08T20:12:00.000-05:00

Somehow we got it in our heads to go see the lunar eclipse. Helen, Mike, Kristie and I all met down at the observatory to freeze our butts off wondering when the eclipse was going to happen. There were a lot of astronomy groups around letting people use their HUGE telescopes to observe the event and somebody even pointed out the international space station as it sped overhead. I never would have noticed it if someone hadn't pointed it out. We decided to bail on the big presentation that they inside because of the lines and went out to stuff our faces at a Chilis.

2-18-07: Dinner at the Farm

2007-07-08T20:00:00.000-05:00

Just a day at the barn. I think we got together for dinner, which we try to do as often as we can but not as often as we should. In this post the pictures kinda speak for themselves.

2-11-07: Birthday Party for Fred and Catherine

2007-07-08T19:43:00.000-05:00

Back in February we had a combination birthday party for Catherine and Fred. It was Fred's 83rd birthday and Catherine's (insert number here) birthday. *Hint: You can just make it out on the cake!* Helen really puts on a spread at these kinds of functions as you can see from the smorgasboard of food and the little details like the colored paper bits on the tables. To get photos like these I spent the whole time hovering around like a gadfly but I had at least one hand cramming food into my mouth at all times. Strange details that I remember, the bunch was good, but I was dubious about the color and sherbet ice cream floating around in it. Happy Birthday Fred and Catherine!

2-10-07: Basketball in Tulsa

2007-07-08T19:35:00.000-05:00

I waited too long to post these photos and now I can't remember the name of the team we went to see play. Well that wasn't the important part anyways. Helen's friend Jeremy, who we all met in college, was at this point a strength trainer for a semi-professional team of basketball players. They were in town playing some other team and we used the opportunity to visit with him. Basically I went along because I love any kind of sports / stadium food. The more expensive a hot dog apparently the better I like it, no matter how small or dried up they are. I'm a sick sick man. We had a good time, although I was dog tired and took little cat naps throughout. Hey, a day out of the house with friends is definitely blog worthy.

2-03-07: The new grill get's delivered.

2007-07-08T19:28:00.000-05:00

Wow, been a long time since my last post so let's get a bunch up here as quick as possible. I've got to get caught up before our trip to Ireland. More on that later. As you can see, Curtis is delivering my new grill. Sure it's the middle of winter but a man needs a grill....right? Well this particular grill doesn't get broken out for months and months but it works like a charm and I love it. This grill is probably the only place I feel comfortable cooking. Thanks Curtis!

1-28-07: Mmmm BBQ

2007-05-04T09:08:00.000-05:00

January 28th was a Sunday so we had to head back home that day. On the way out we arranged to have lunch with my dad at Smokehouse BBQ in Independence. I highly recommend the food and the sauce there. We completely pigged out. Even after the 5k run that morning I think we were a bit over on our diet. Sunny days, good food, and dad behaved himself. I'd say it was a good outing.

1-28-07: Wrasslin

2007-05-04T08:57:00.000-05:00

Just a few more photos from my visit to Kansas City that I thought you guys would like. Nicholas decided to attack me while I was on the phone with my father. After a short bout of me flinging him around like he was training to be an astronaut he conceded defeat.

1-28-07: Groundhog Run

2007-05-03T14:27:00.000-05:00

So we went down this hole and ran around seeing many a wondrous thing. No Cheshire cats or anything but we still had fun. Did I mention we were late?

I didn't plan this out well. I hear Groundhog Run and cave and I figure it can't be all that large an activity but I was very wrong. We left with just enough time to get there, we probably should have left about 2 hours before the race was to begin. By the time we get in there, get our packets and numbers to pin on our shirts, the first group had already left. Helen was pretty upset about the whole thing but I figured we could make the most of it and we started off on our own, which at least allowed us to talk as we walked and not feel bad about getting passed left and right by little old ladies.

The cave is humongous. Miles of air conditioned caverns and truck depots. Plenty of room for the race and then some. It was way below freezing outside, and we had to park about a quarter mile from the entrance. That means we jogged the first quarter mile to the entrance wearing shorts and t-shirts. I couldn't feel my legs by the time we got there. Luckily it was a nice steady 65 or so in the caves no matter where you went. By the time we finished we were getting passed by the groups doing the 10k, kinda bad considering they went twice as far in less than half the time but it's about us having fun together AND getting exercise to boot.

It was a good day, which reminds me, I need to find out when the next 5k is and get us committed. Without those commitments an extra couple pounds doesn't seem like that much. With the pounds, every step is a reminder that you are carrying extra weight you don't need and don't want. All in all we had a good time, and I'm sure we pigged out when we got back to my Mom's house, so we probably broke even for the days dieting.

1-27-07: A Friendly Cuththroat Game of Poker

2007-05-03T14:20:00.000-05:00

Helen and I were visiting Kansas City around this time, partially to see my family, partially to participate in a underground Groundhog Run, more on that in other posts. Here you can see me trouncing most of the table while maintaining a corpse-like poker face. Heck I'm surprised they let me wear long sleeves at the table, I'm just that crafty. Anyway, I can't remember who won the game but as always we had a good time playing. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

01-14-07: The Big Freeze

2007-05-03T12:52:00.000-05:00

Yup, still here. Not posting nearly enough but just like last time I intend to get caught completely up in about a week. Man the big freeze just swooped down on an Oklahoma that collectively responded by asking "Man, what's this white stuff?". If you think Kansas City is bad, the entire Tulsa area is worse. Drivers here will honk at you if you are driving 5 miles an hour over the speed limit on a solid sheet of ice when nobody is entirely sure where the road is. Throw in a healthy dose of power outages and you'll have an idea what we were dealing with for almost 10 days. The governor declared a state of emergency it was that bad.

I didn't teach for an entire week because school was canceled each day, but I did end up making about 2 trips a day up to the farm so that we could feed the goats and cows. That was a real pain because we essentially had to fill 55 gallon drums full of water, load them onto the back of a truck who's tailgate couldn't be raised and who's truck bed was a solid sheet of ice, drive the buckets of water out to the trough without having it fall off the truck, and then empty it into said trough AFTER breaking out the solid block of ice that the last batch of water had become! Needless to say, by the end of the week the animals were real excited to see me coming. Oh well, the adversity became an adventure and our little family got to spend a lot of unexpected time together, bouncing off each other in the Claremore house again.

Oh and not to be forgotten, the ice! Everything that couldn't move was covered in up to 2 solid inches of ice. Trees although beautiful looking would make a constant crackling noise as the branches struck each other followed by the intermittent popping of a branch just giving up the ghost and snapping off. Grass collected more ice than I would have thought an individual blade could. The air was sharp and clean, and the ground was smooth and hard... as my butt can attest. We have a ton more pictures of frozen things but you'll have to wait for a picture album or collage to see em. Check back soon for more posts. I mean it. Check back in like a few hours. Geesh!

P.S. I dominated that Monopoly game. Helen had me on the ropes with those darned railroads, but then through a series of ridiculously good rolls I turned my luck around and crushed her. Not that I'm gloating. *grin*

Christmas 06: Happy Chrisma-Hana-Kwanzaa

2007-01-31T13:35:00.000-06:00

Sometimes Helen and I forget to keep the camera ready and so we miss out on some good photos that we would otherwise get. Our Christmas pictures here seem to have caught most of the in-between moments but I think you'll get the impression of a fairly relaxed and happy Christmas. Enjoy.

12-16-06: Christmas at Kathleen and Sherman's

2007-01-31T12:47:00.000-06:00

Because we all have families that want our attention on Christmas proper, we decided to have a little pre-Christmas with Kathleen, Sherman, and Rick over at her house. The idea was that we would all exchange 5 dollar gifts and have a good meal. I suspect a few of us didn't stick to the 5 dollar rule but we had a good time and I wanted to share some of the pictures with you.

Before anyone asks, Helen and Rick were actually there but Helen was taking most of the pictures and Rick just wasn't lucky enough to have a decent one taken of him so they got left off of this post. Don't worry, more to come later.

12-09-06: Waaazzzuuup!

2007-01-30T14:55:00.000-06:00

Mike and Kristie came over to watch movies and hang out. Beerfest was at least one of the bad movies that we enjoyed, and the picture, well it definitely says Waaazzzuuup!

12-03-06: Just Say No To Santa Hats

2007-01-30T14:34:00.000-06:00

Helen had plotted to put this Santa hat on poor Newton. Helen may even have taken pictures of Newton in said hat. However, you will never see those photos. You will only see this photo of Newton kicking that hat's butt. 'Nough said.

12-02-06: Red's Coney Island - EAT ME

2007-01-30T14:18:00.000-06:00

Whenever I splurge and feel like eating Italian sausage, polish sausage, coney's and whatnot, I go to Red's and the food there is excellent. But this display that went up in December is just downright creepy. Just try, ... try to keep this image out of your head as you bite into one!

12-01-06: When It Snows it SNOWS!

2007-01-30T13:43:00.000-06:00

Right at the beginning of November the skies opened up and dropped a LOT of snow on anything and everything that would hold still for it. The roads were awful and cars were frozen shut because somewhere in the night it went from rain, to ice, to snow. Megan and Harry were staying the night with us in Claremore because her allergies were killing her so they were in the same boat with us. Despite the weather, we were determined to go out to the farm and have dinner with Catherine and Curtis. Getting there would be the trick.

Between the four of us, 2 cans of deicer, 2 scrapers, and about 1 1/2 hours we were able to dig our cars out of the driveway. Then we split up a pair of walkie talkies and carefully headed out to the farm, which we managed without any incidents. Once at the farm we discovered a winter wonderland, with all the trees covered in ice, and the farm under a thick white blanket. We took photos, threw snowballs, built snowmen, and Harry tried out some trapeze tricks. Enjoy the mass of photos.

11-29-06: Andrew Goes to the Oklahoma Aquarium

2007-01-30T11:50:00.000-06:00

As a fun together activity most of the family went to the Oklahoma Aquarium. It's no SeaWorld but pretty dang good considering it's about as far from an ocean as you can get in the United States. By all accounts he had a good time and the only snafu was apparently the loss of an overpriced souvenir hat.

11-28-06: The Goats Have Landed

2007-01-30T11:26:00.000-06:00

Well Five Dog Ranch can finally be referred to as 'the farm' because they now have animals. Three goats, who have yet to be officially named arrived and Andrew was helping out with their feeding. Goats are apparently not known for the patience and were busily pushing each other out of the way and managed to pin Andrew into the corner. Months later the dogs are now calm about the whole situation but at first it was Sooner's purpose in life to sneak into their pen and chase them around while the other larger and less nimble dogs barked in frenzied frustration. Next hurdle, who's going to milk them? Not me!

11-26-06: Christmas Card

2007-01-30T10:19:00.000-06:00

Hopefully I don't have the dates confused on these photos, but that's what I get when I wait several months to post. The first photo, we posed just at the end of the porch at the Claremore house and we ended up using it in our Christmas card. The second photo is of Harry and Megan who were visiting about that time.

11-23-06: An Impromptu Family Reunion

2007-01-29T15:24:00.000-06:00

It's not often that you get every living Brown in one place at one time. Generally all hell breaks loose if you do. But we got lucky this time and without anyone planning it there we were. For posterity's sake we tried to arrange everyone according to age but I'll just list them as I see them. Paul, Duane, David, Jason, Nathan, Joseph, Kyle, Chris, and Nicholas. The other pictures were taken at John David's house where the Wilson clan had gathered for a similar get together. Thanks for a great Christmas guys!

11-11-06: The Tulsa Run

2007-01-29T12:14:00.000-06:00

Back in November, Helen, Mike, Kristie and I all ran our butts off in the Tulsa Run. Well the goal was to run our butts off anyways. The idea was that the looming goal of not embarrassing ourselves at the run would keep us working it on a regular basis, which it largely did. The day of the run it was just a bit above freezing so we were plenty cold, soar, and tired at the end, but we had a great time and had a very fattening and delicious breakfast afterwards.

11-09-06: One Good Looking Dog

2007-01-29T11:57:00.000-06:00

I can't remember exactly why we were taking pictures of Newton out back of the Claremore home but we were and these are some of the best.

11-05-06: Dinner with Friends

2007-01-29T11:47:00.000-06:00

November in Claremore. A few pictures of a happy dinner at the farm with Kathleen, Sherman, and June.

11-01-06: November in Claremore

2007-01-24T11:57:00.000-06:00

These pictures are all about November in Claremore. That and Helen was getting a little snap hap

10-07-06: Worlds of Fun

2007-01-24T11:25:00.000-06:00

Well, we were back in Kansas City. This time it was Mike, Kristie, Helen, and I all having fun at World's of Fun. We managed to snag a room right across from the park and we took full advantage of it. We walked in the park until our feet hurt, left and had lunch, then went back for more. I probably rode the Mamba 3 times. Because it was close to Halloween the park was all decked out for it, which explains how I ended up paying for horns for Helen and then ended up wearing them myself.

The Mamba picture is all about Mike ruining my ride photo. They are always trying to sell you a photo of the stupid faces you make while riding the roller coaster, but I knew where the cameras were after the first run and was prepared for everything but Mike's hand in my face! Anyways, Mike thought it would be funny to do it again for this one. *sigh* Hehe.

10-01-06: Joe Comes to Visit

2007-01-21T17:16:00.000-06:00

At the end of our visit to Kansas City we brought Joe back to hang out for a while. Somehow we ended up helping Curtis finish the barn door in preparation for the cement pouring of the floor. Basically Curtis and I had cut the bottom off the door the create the clearance needed and it was not time to reattach it higher up. Definitely a fly by the seat of your pants kind of job.

09-30-06: A Visit to KC

2007-01-21T13:17:00.000-06:00

I can't remember if there was really anything behind this visit but Helen and I went to Kansas City for this weekend. Somehow we were roped into going out to see my Dad's friend Tom's new house. Chris went along for the ride and spent his time acting like a goofball.

09-04-06 Museum Closed!

2007-01-21T04:00:00.000-06:00

Boy was it frustrating to arrive in Elk City to see the purportedly largest Route 66 Museum closed. The pictures really say it all. Up side, we had a good breakfast at Denny's.

09-03-06 The Blue Swallow Motel

2007-01-20T21:31:00.000-06:00

This town was a bust for us as I've described in an earlier post. Furthermore, taking pictures of blinking neon signs at night is either a skill I don't currently have, or needs gear which I didn't have. However, it's a landmark and the owner knows it, and knows we know he knows it. So now I've been there, Dad's been there, and we are both cooler than you because of it. Nah!

09-02-06 Grand Canyon: Round Two for Two

2007-01-20T20:59:00.000-06:00

Just take a look at these shots. If you've never been to the Grand Canyon it's as if a city had been scooped out of the earth. I called this post Round Two for Two, because this is the second visit to the Grand Canyon for both Dad and I. His last trip was when he was just a little boy, and mine was a few years back while visiting Harry with Curtis, Catherine, and Helen. Helen and I had snuck off and took a tour-van trip from the resort we were timesharing at. My only other comment before I post a few more images is to reflect on how some things change and some stay the same. From the time my father saw the Grand Canyon to now, it has changed almost not at all. Now more pictures.

09-01-06 The Trek Back Begins

2007-01-20T18:43:00.000-06:00

My trip back home begins. The story has pretty much been posted before but you missed all the great photos so I'm going to post the best of what I brought back with me. Two of the pictures above are of my empty home, and the front door that I will probably never see again. Phoenix was good, but never quite felt like home, we're both glad to be back. The room that looks like the Borg just landed is Harry's living room. Resistance is Futile! And last but not least, is my Dad trying to figure out how to attach a bike rack to the back of my car. We eventually figured it out and the bikes didn't fall off even once. Amazing. More to come.

Long Live the Blog!

2007-01-20T18:33:00.000-06:00

Well as you can see the blog isn't dead, it just went into hibernation for the winter. Life didn't stop, and it didn't slow down, it never seems to anyways. But I'll pick up where I left off. Because I'm so behind I'll write what I can remember and keep these posts short and sweet until I get caught up again. I know I've said it before, but keep checking back, because it will be coming fast and furious this evening.

Jason, Kristie, and Mike with Helen behind the camera. Good times with friends bowling. I won by the way! Mike bowled for Kristie when she stepped away and totally gutter-balled it. She was not happy! But then we left and ate good food at some restaurant and who can stay grumpy through that? Photo taken 8-19-06.

8-06-06 Beauty and the Beast

2006-11-10T14:34:00.000-06:00

Beauty and the Beast - Claremore Performing Arts Center

As you can see, we went to see Beauty and the Beast at the Claremore Performing Arts Center. Its a new facility for Claremore and Curtis bought tickets as a season ticket holder so we thought we would take a looksee. The production was awful! I didn't like their voices. I didn't like their costumes. I even thought that the stature and demeanor of the actors was wrong for their parts. I think Helen and I spent most of the time rolling our eyes at each other. When intermission came, we were out of there. I know it's rude but I couldn't stand it. The thought that Helen and I could be snuggling on a couch somewhere vegging out instead of watching this production was killing me. Either way, I'll never forget how bad it was so that memory is worth something.

8-05-06 Trip to the Blue Hole

2006-11-10T12:21:00.000-06:00

Kristie, Jason, and Helen at the Blue Hole

Kristie and Mike at the Blue Hole

Well as you can see I'm a bit behind on this post but I'm going to get caught up pretty quickly. Several months back Helen, Kristie, Mike, myself, Catherine, and June all headed out to the Blue Hole. Basically it's this freezing cold spot fed by a natural spring that they charge you to get into. Its very nice but I would certainly vote for something a bit warmer next time.

We spent the day trying to get in and out of the water without going into temperature shock or ripping the skin off the bottoms of our feet because of all the sharp and slippery rocks just below the water's surface. Good times.

7-08-06 SeaWorld - The Trip Back

2006-09-27T14:17:00.000-05:00

Along the way back we agreed to meet with some of June's family that lives in San Diego. We decided to drive out to Huntington Beach and have lunch at Ruby's at the end of the pier. The food was great, and we had a lot of laughs. This also gave us the opportunity to take a picture of the two of us in the Pacific Ocean so that we could show it off next to the one of us in the Atlantic off the coast of Maine.

The Pier at Huntington Beach

Huntington Beach

Jason and Helen in the Pacific Ocean

The Trip Back

I probably don't have to tell you that after the car trouble we had getting to San Diego that we were not at all confident we would get back without more trouble. However, we made it back just fine and the weather produced another beautiful day for us. We stopped in little towns along the way, chatting and filling our cooler with goodies. Helen and I need to take more little day trips like this to remind us why we work so hard. More posts coming soon. Sooner than usual anyways.

7-08-06 SeaWorld - Part 4

2006-09-27T13:58:00.000-05:00

Whale Surfing

Three Dolphins Up

Flowers Outside SeaWorld

Paradise Point - Swanky McFancy!

Paradise Point Flowers

Helen Smelling the Roses

Paradise Point Flowers 2

Paradise Point Flowers 3

Our trip to SeaWorld was just what we needed. A little time to stop and enjoy life on the west coast before heading back. A chance to see something we'd never seen before. A quiet moment in life to enjoy the fruits of our labor.

7-08-06 SeaWorld - Part 3

2006-09-27T13:41:00.000-05:00

Soaked in the water park

Feed Me!!

Crew of the USS Motley - That's a pun son.

Helen and Jason on Vacation

Basking Sea Turtle - Helen loves these guys.

Cactus Picture For Helen

San Diego Bay

San Diego Bay 2

Supa Splash - aka people sitting in the front row and acting surprised!

Flipping Dolphins

7-08-06 SeaWorld - Part 2

2006-09-27T13:20:00.000-05:00

Shamu Dive

Shamu Nose Stand

Shamu Cannon Ball

Shamu Bow

Jason and the Walrus - Helen didn't think I would do it!

Ok, if you are wondering how I got all these shots from above I should let you know that SeaWorld has both a Sky Tower and a Skl Lift. The Sky Tower is like a huge circular room that rotates around a pole and takes you up about 150 to 200 feet or so. The Sky Lift is essentially the same kind of lift they use to get you up a mountain. Both offered a chance to get off our feet and a chance to see the park as a whole.

San Diego Skyline

San Diego Coast

Childrens Waterpark - I got soaked playing in here.

Dolphin Show

Sea Lion Show

7-08-06 SeaWorld - Part 1

2006-09-27T12:58:00.000-05:00

Well it's been a long time coming but finally I'm posting pictures from our day at SeaWorld. Believe it or not we only spent one day at SeaWorld but it was definitely a full day. We walked to the park from our rooms which was a bit of a hike and even worse coming back after a day of walking around in the park. For the most part I'll let the pictures tell the story and just add a snippet or two of my own for context.

Outside SeaWorld

Helen on the bridge

Dolphin Feeding

Starfish Pond

Starfish Pond 2

Aquarium Fun

Jellyfish Colors

Shamu Stadium - Will the real Shamu please stand up?! Ok I have to write a bit here. This production was high quality and hokey as all get out but still fun. I think it's put together for the 5 year old crowd. Anyways we arrived late enough that we couldn't get anywhere near the front. Not that I would have wanted to considering the electronics we were carting around. And the one thing I couldn't figure out through the entire show was which whale was Shamu. I understand the original Shamu is probably retired somewhere making little baby Shamu's but shouldn't one of the buggers hold the title? Regardless the show was good and the stunts were an eye opener. Imagine being flipped around in the water by a bus and you can get an idea of what these people were pulling off.

Shamu Jump

Shamu Splash

We've Landed in Elk City

2006-09-04T03:53:00.000-05:00

Wow it's been a long night. A night of wrong turns and strange highways. A night of signs lying about the mileage between cities. Hell, part of the time we couldn't tell what city we were in, but we are still having a good time.

We started our day in Moriarty with a good American breakfast at what Dad called a "junk-joint" along Route 66. After that it was a quick and failed search for decent fireworks seeing as we were in New Mexico.

The rest of the day was essentially spent on the road and ended in Elk City at the Econo Lodge. We stopped to get gas when we needed it and I am still fighting something off from before we left so I was the cause of more than a few bathroom stops. I spent more time than I probably should have trying to figure out how to send pictures to Helen using just our phones, but I did manage it.

The big stop of the day was supposed to be Tucumcari but it was basically a ghost town when we rolled in around 10 PM their time. Apparently Route 66 running right through town is under quite a bit of construction there and so the few businesses that would normally be active are dormant and waiting for the roads to be open again. Out of all the places listed in the books I purchased the only two that we could find with any lights on were the Teepee Curio and the Blue Swallow Motel. Dad managed to go into the Blue Swallow and meet the owner who was extremely excited to tell us about the motel and the impact that it had on the movie Cars. According to the owner the Pixar animators stayed at the Blue Swallow for almost two weeks gathering inspiration for the movie and even left caricatures of popular pixar productions in his guest book.

We purchased a few trinkets in Tucumcari and headed east with Elk City as our destination. A few wrong turns, and one very nice gas station in San Jon (with free internet, a lounge, awesome sausage, and cheap gas) later, and we finally arrived. Sure there were the mysteries of why and where lights are placed along the highway, the insanely large texas rest stop we saw along the way, and whether or not we were in fact in the Twilight Zone... but we've managed to not get into too much trouble yet again. Goodnight all, and especially good night to my lovely wife awaiting my return.

Grand Canyon and Moriarty

2006-09-03T05:16:00.000-05:00

One... I am dead tired. But I had a good day. I managed to get awake around 9:30 AM this morning. By 10:30 AM we were on the road headed towards the Grand Canyon. I know, the Grand Canyon is not on route 66. But we decided that a few extra museums or classic cars couldn't compare to the Grand Canyon, and considering it was only about an hour and a half outside of Flagstaff, we just had to go.

Driving north towards the Grand Canyon we were a little worried because the sky was a bit gloomy and it was raining on and off again. When we finally arrived it was close to 2:00 PM and it was still sprinkling but stopped within a few minutes. The sky parted, the clouds created nice shadows on the Grand Canyon and all was well. I took tons of photos which I will get up here once I am properly settled in with Helen again. We had a good time and Dad got to see a national treasure that he hadn't seen since he was a boy. It's nice to know that some things dont change.

We probably arrived back in Flagstaff around 7:30 PM which is when we checked in with Helen who at that point was getting a bit worried. There was no cell phone reception at the Grand Canyon and having not told anyone where we were headed, we were effectively off the grid. At this point we started heading east and decided that Albequerque (which I can never spell right) would be our destination. That would have worked out fine if we had been able to find a place to stay that we could actually get to. Time after time we'd see a place along the highway after having already passed the exit we would have had to use to get to that place. Before we know it we've popped out the other side of Albequerque but running on fumes we knew we had to find something fast.

Finally, we see Moriarty, which not only boasts a variety of motels (we chose Super 8) but also has a sign specifically saying that this exit was Route 66. That's all we needed to make up our minds so this is where we are crashing. Good night to all and thanks for checking in. Honey, I'm coming back to you as soon as I can!

We Made It To ... Flagstaff?

2006-09-02T05:35:00.000-05:00

Well we didn't make it as far as I had hoped but we at least made it out of Phoenix today which I was starting to worry about. My plan was to be heading north out of Phoenix around noon today but that just wasn't going to happen with the amount of cleaning my Dad and I had in front of us. Basically my plan was to load up the car, vacuum and be gone. But that plan got shot to hell when reality set in and I realized that the oven cleaning and fridge cleaning, general kitchen cleanup really, was going to take quite a bit longer than expected. Long story short, we did manage to leave Pheonix before midnight so it still counts.

So far we have taken our time, stopped and got a bit of dinner at Denny's and managed to end up at the King's House Best Western in Flagstaff. It's clean and it actually is on Historic Route 66 so the journey has official begun. Now it's time to sleep. I shouldn't post tired but I wanted anyone curious about our adventure to be up to date.

Lexar JumpDrive Lightning - Ceedo - PowerToGo - Install Anything

2006-08-29T15:34:00.000-05:00

This is my new Lexar JumpDrive Lightning and hopefully the toy that will allow me to update the blog more frequently. Basically its a flash drive. I purchased the 2 Gigabyte version so it holds a little less than three CD's. The reason I got this specific model is because it comes with Lexar's PowerToGo software which I believe is just a simple rebranding of Ceedo's software. In essence it allows me to install programs which they have already approved, directly to the flash drive and run them completely from there without affecting whatever machine it's plugged into.

I know, you are wondering so what? Well say I want to scan a computer with Spybot Search & Destroy but I dont want to leave a copy behind on the machine that's having problems. Or say I want to remotely control my home PC to get a file I may have forgotten but I dont want to install the client software on whatever computer I'm currently at. This flash drive solves those problems. However, the real reason I purchased this drive is because I was hoping that Picasa's Hello program which includes a feature called BloggerBot would be supported. That is the software that I use to update this blog with pictures. Regrettably Hello isn't on the authorized list but Ceedo just released an addon called Install Anything which allows you to to install software that hasn't made it onto the authorized list.

The picture above was posted with the Hello software running directly from the flash drive so I think it's working fine. Basically they want me to buy the Install Anything application for 30 bucks but I'm not sure it's worth it. And unless the program somehow disables software I've already installed at the end of the 45 day trial period then I don't see much reason to keep it. Of course, now that I have it running I have no remaining excuses to not update the blog so expect all those Sea World photos to be posted soon.

7-07-06 SeaWorld Here We Come?

2006-08-08T22:59:00.000-05:00

A bit of everything ------------------------------------ Bird Blenders

------------------------------------More Car Troubles-----------------------------------

This day was the day we began our trip to SeaWorld. Basically we decided that we wouldn't have a better opportunity to visit something on the west coast and although we considered Vegas we finally decided that SeaWorld was more our speed. As you can see from the first photo the scenery between Phoenix and San Diego changes quite a bit. In fact that shot seems to have a bit of everything in it.

However, the last shot of our car getting towed is the real story. Despite all the money I had recently sank into my car I think it just hadn't got enough attention. So after making it over the mountians and cruising into San Diego the radiator through a hissy fit and refused to go one step further. Anyone that knows me knows I am not a car guy. I ended up calling my Dad while Helen worked the insurance company in a race to see who came up with the most timely reasonable advice because I was not going to let this ruin our trip.

Dad was all set to help me drive the thing where I needed to go but the insurance company put its foot down and demanded we keep the vehicle where it was, tow it to the resort Helen had booked for us near SeaWorld, and then tow it again in the morning to local FireStone. At first that seemed like it would ruin our evening and Helen was not happy with how things were turning out, but our luck turned and the tow truck was literally there hooking up our car within 15 minutes of getting off the phone with the insurance company. The resort was gorgeous, so much so that even the embarrassment of getting towed into it didn't ruin our fun.

Helen and I walked to the Barefoot Bar & Grill, had some pretty good food, listened to some really bad live music, and poked fun at the drunk but well dressed women on the prowl. It was a night of moonlight strolls lit with tiki torches on a beautiful resort and our vacation had only just started.

6-28-06 Stupid Criminals!

2006-08-05T18:49:00.000-05:00

I'll give you one guess what happened to my car... Yup, a dumb criminal tried to take it. First, they tried to pick the driver side door lock with a knife. When that failed they tore up the trim around the driver side window when they wedged a knife in there so they could pop out the window. Then they tried to use same said knife to break the ignition. When that failed they popped the hood of my car to check on any security system I may have installed that was thwarting them (there is none). For unknown reasons they left my car in this state, and left me the knife on the floorboard behind the driver side seat.

What's really interesting is that the knife had a route 66 logo on it. To me it's like Phoenix is saying, "Go home while you still can..." Hehe. I should have kept the knife but instead I called the cops and they actually sent someone out to print the vehicle so they bagged the knife as evidence. Our insurance is paying for the car but I still had to pay the deductable which was 500 dollars. And dont forget, for the week the car was in the shop I had to drive a Dodge Neon which felt like a large go-kart. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad they didn't manage to steal my car because I would have liked the hassle of filing that paperwork with my insurance company even less. But I really didn't feel like spending money to get my car back in the condition that I left it in. Money for nothing.

Maggie and Puppies

2006-08-05T18:41:00.000-05:00

Maggie and Puppies -----------------------Pretty Flowers

Despite what you may have assumed this is not a picture of Sooner. This is actually Maggie and her puppies. Sooner was introduced to her and another scottish terrier named Susie a while back and Sooner decided he liked Maggie best. The puppies are going to be sold by the owner, Rick, and we are in the process of putting up flyers looking for good homes. The second photo is all Helen. I'm not sure where it was taken but it's a bunch of pretty flowers. A funny thought I had while looking at this photo is that if they were evil flowers they may actually be slowing expanding from this clump to try and TAKE OVER THE WORLD!

6-18-06 A Homecoming

2006-08-05T18:32:00.000-05:00

Sooner and Tucker ----------------------Flynn

Sooner and Newton -----------------------Hershey

The Ranch's Log Cabin ----------------------- The Ranch's Barn

These pictures were taken by Helen on her arrival back home. I wish I had been there with her but work required me to stay a couple of extra months to help out with a staffing crisis. Anyways, this is just after the U-Haul trip from hell so I'm sure there were some happy faces there when she arrived. These are also our first real looks at the cabin on my blog so enjoy. The cabin is larger than it looks from the outside, but still small enough to definitely be considered cozy. Quite a bit of work still needs to be carried out on the ranch to get it back to where it should be but Catherine and Curtis are excited and determined to do it and Helen and I are helping out as we are able.

6-16-06 The Infamous U-Haul

2006-08-01T22:07:00.000-05:00

The Infamous Truck ------------------ Breakfast with Connie

Truck Packed to the Gills ------------------ Stranded in the Desert

It Don't Work! ------------------ On the Road Again

A LOT is tied up in these photos. Helen and I worked our butts off trying to get this truck completely loaded before Curtis arrived. For the most part the truck was loaded but I was concerned about some of it moving around in the back if it wasn't lashed down properly. Little did I know that was the least of our worries that day. Basically I got off to work a bit later than expected but satisfied that Curtis and I had lashed everything down and that I had done everything I could to help Helen and her Dad start their trek back to Claremore.

About 1 1/2 hours after their journey got underway it came to a screeching halt because the radiator overheated and Helen had to quickly get to the side of the road while only scraping the truck against the railing a little! Long story short. Six and a half hours later, three technicians later, and they were back on the road only a little worse for the wear. Sure their timetable was shot and they would nearly have to drive through the night to get back on track. Sure they were dehydrated and miserable... but that's what roadtrips are all about. They are supposed to remind you why you like to stay home.

They made it back just fine and then had the gall to call me to let me know it took less than an hour to unload the truck that took us a 14 hour day to load. That first night in our townhome without Helen was a lonely quiet one and it doesn't get any better, I'm just getting used to it. We are homesick for each other, but determined to make it through so I can have excellent references at the next job. It had damn well better be worth it!

6-13-06 Dog Park Goodbye's

2006-08-01T21:52:00.000-05:00

Elvis is in the Park! --------- Sedona just hanging out.

Ginger waiting for a ball ---- Dennis acting Cheesy

Travis guarding a ball ------ Sunset at the Park

------------------ Travis and Newton ---------------------

This was basically our last visit to the dog park. I probably looked like a tourist because I had both camera's slung around my kneck and I was following the dogs around taking pictures instead of really socializing with the people. Notable exceptions to the photos I have here are Cash, Ginger's ever grumpy and yet loveable companion... and both Parker and Curly-Sue. None of them would hold still long enough to get a decent photo but I haven't forgotten them.

This visit was a tough one. Worse than losing friends was the reminder that Newton would probably never see dogs that helped him mature into a socialized canine. Well as socialized as he can be while still being lovingly referred to as a punk. In our minds it's like watching a child on an important day knowing that his life is going to be completely different afterwards and also knowing that he is not aware of what's happening and may never appreciate the significance of the day.

Newton is having a wonderful time in Claremore so don't worry about him. But sometimes we wonder if he is expecting these dogs when he runs after something not quite heard by us.

5-20-06 Dinner at PF Changs with Dog Park Friends

2006-08-01T21:29:00.000-05:00

Until I get caught up on posts I thought that I would put the date in the title so I can remember when everything actually happened. As usual I let a little project grow into a big project and that got paralyzed with indecesion on how to start it. The good news is the blog isn't dead and my life was not on hold. Nothing tragic happened and life kept chugging along. Now let's get this blog back up to date.

Having happened more than 2 months ago I don't have a lot of details but I wanted to put something up to comemorate a dinner with friends. Basically the friends we made at the dog park (Dennis, Rosalinda, Mary, Nichole, and Stephanie) wanted to make sure we had dinner at least one more time before Helen left. PF Changs looked great and had a good atmosphere. The place probably appeared even better because it was full of high school students dressed for prom night. At least I assume it was prom night because otherwise I can't explain the strangely colored tuxedos on the men and the dresses designed to hide very little on the women.

We don't want to leave the friends we've made here but we can't take them with us and life won't slow down long enough for any happy medium to emerge. Anyway, the dinner was all about hanging out and exchanging dog themed gifts. Actually I had nothing to do with that part of it. Sometimes it does seem as if we are the parents of kids who went to camp together and now we can't hang out anymore because the summer is over. Definitely weird but why should Phoenix be any different for me.

A Lazy Weekend Together

2006-06-05T08:17:00.000-05:00

Well we didn't do all that much this weekend but we did spend almost all of it together, so I thought a post was in order. Let me see. Well to start our weekend off we watched a matinee showing of X-Men: Last Stand. I think I'm getting old because I'm finding myself grumbling that the matinee cost $7.00 each. A matinee! Then ofcourse after you watch this movie you'll be grumbling again because it really wasn't worth it. This new director doesn't know what the hell he's doing. Maybe it was the screenplay but it's still the directors fault for signing onto a bad script as far as I'm concerned.

Saturday evening we had a bite to eat at Chevy's, which is a nice Mexican restaurant. We both had margaritas although mine was a prickly pear grande-sized monstrosity which made me a bit loopy but definitely keeps the conversation interesting.

Saturday night we bought a game called Champions of Norrath for the PS2, which is a lot like Diablo, Baldur's Gate, and Gauntlet all wrapped into one. Nathan, Joe, and Tasha have been playing this game and it's sequel for a while now and having fun at it so Helen and I gave it a try. The short answer is that the game is fun and it's cooperative so we get to play together for a change. Basically it's good family-time spent slaughtering our way through hordes of creepy crawlies and bickering about who gets what loot. As a side note, my PS2 is crotchety and took about 10 resets in order to play the game, its days are definitely numbered and I think I'm going to have to break down and buy a new PS2 even knowing that the PS3 is coming out in November. Oh well.

Sunday, Helen made me pancakes with sugar free syrup and I couldn't tell the difference. Six mini pancakes later and I was ready for hibernation. We spent the rest of the day watching TV and playing our new game. What more could you want from a lazy weekend?

My Naruto Fixation

2006-05-29T23:53:00.000-05:00

I go through phases of fixation on one subject or another. This one is all about a cartoon called Naruto. I ran into this cartoon on The Cartoon Network. It's right up my alley but only one new episode comes out a week and they are only around 20 minutes long. Now you may not know this but these are based on a manga which is a lot like a comic book. A manga has to be pretty popular before an animated series follows. Then that animated series has to be pretty popular before anyone here in the states decides to dub it in english. What does that all mean? It means there are a ton more episodes that can be seen if you can find "fan subs" (subtitled episodes created by fans). Needless to say I spent some time finding them and they are currently at episode 180-something. That's compared to episode 28 or so that you can currently see on The Cartoon Network. I'm currently working my way through them and it's times like these that I know Helen loves me because I know she wouldn't put up with this crap if she didn't.

An Evening on the Lake

2006-05-29T23:20:00.000-05:00

The second half of our anniversary was all me. Originally I wanted to rent a house boat and taken Helen out on that but the cheapest one I could find would have cost around 4500 for one night and I wouldn't have lived past my anniversary had Helen found out! I decided instead to rent a pontoon boat and taken Helen out for the evening. Basically we picked up the boat at 5:30 PM and didn't have to return it until 7:00 AM the next morning.

Lake Pleasant is a bit strange to be out on. I mean a lake in Arizona, especially a man made one just seems wrong. You feel like at any moment the desert could reclaim the place. Maybe I should have expected it but everything here is out on the water. It's like a little floating island with a restaurant, boat and equipment rentals, a shop, etc all just floating on anchored squares. The atmosphere there was completely different from the lakes I've spent any time at but the sun, water, and wind are that much greater for having crossed through such a dry land to get there.

I like to call these two Captain Jason and 1st Mate Helen. The boat was VERY fun to drive. The boat had plenty of speed and I actually could have rented a tow rope and tubes or skis if I rented it during the day. I also found out that Helen is a bit of a speed demon and had the throttle completely cranked up within about 1 minute of me handing over the controls. We had a great time speeding around the lake, enjoying the view, waving at other boaters and we actually had the guts to take it out in the middle and jump in the lake. Nobody told us that the water was freezing cold, but after Helen jumped in I felt I couldn't be shown up.

The rest of these photos speak for themselves. We spent most of the evening anchored in a quiet little cove listening to the radio and eating freeze dried food that I made with a water purifier. Apparently I have a weakness for buying camping gear. I know, boys and their toys.

The evening was a success and again I have to emphasize that we will not forgot this day. The bills alone would remind us of it but more importantly we were trying new things together. Just me and Helen out to enjoy the world, which we did.

99 Luftballons - The Start Of Our 5th Anniversary

2006-05-29T22:42:00.000-05:00

For our anniversary we each decided to plan half the day. Helen had the morning and I had the evening, and it was supposed to be a surprise for both and I have to see we pulled that off. Half the fun was spending weeks dropping clues that would completely confuse the other.

Anyway, Helen's morning got me up pretty early, as you can see. Her plan for me was to take me for a hot air balloon ride with a local company called Hot Air Expeditions. Apparently the cooler the air is the easier it is to handle one of these things so we had to be at the airfield before the sun rose. I was concerned that it would be even colder once we got up in the air but I forgot about the huge flame over our head. I thought the hair on my arms was going to curl it was so hot.

Hot air balloons basically go where the wind is going and steering them is entirely a matter of finding the wind that is going in the direction you would like to. The first 20 minutes of the trip we were skimming over the desert and it wasn't until we got over some of the smaller mountains that we could get really high. It's peaceful up there, if you can manage to ignore the creaking sounds the aluminum frame makes around the fire as it heats and cools. As it turns out, you can see part of Lake Pleasant in the picture below, and that is where the second half of our day would be spent although Helen didn't know it yet.

I have to admit Helen was being a devious stinker in putting this one together. She had emphatically told me that she was afraid of getting into one of these things so I didn't consider it for my half of the days activities. She was in fact afraid but not as much as she made out to be. It was a ploy to make sure we didn't end up planning the same activity for each other. She didn't have to worry about that but I didn't think she had that kind of cunning in her.

I believe it's days like these that become anchor points for a marriage. We experienced something new, interesting, and a little bit scary but we had a great time. I could live to be a hundred and never forget this day. Thank you Helen.

Helen Goes Back to the Rez

2006-05-14T23:54:00.000-05:00

(A Post by Helen)

At the end of April I took a few days to travel back in time to where I spent my formative years between the border of New Mexico and Arizona. My first stop was Gallup New Mexico where my good friends the Lewis-Kratsicks put me up for the night. Stephanie, my "cool" mother stands in front of her Pinon tree where she has found a place of solace for herself. Stephanie works as a counselor as well as Food Network Addict, cooking both a lemon cream pie concoction and grits florentine for me - delicious and worthy of Martha Stewart praise.

Above are some pictures that bring back many memories for me. On the left is "Window Rock," both a landmark and scenery for what was then the biggest town near my home, Fort Defiance. At that time Window Rock probably had a population of 20,000 - but it had a grocery store! The second photo is a Indiana Jones type bridge that spanned what I remembered to be a huge cavern of a canyon but now seems tiny - not worthy of a bridge. Funny how we remember things bigger than they really are.

On the left is the church where I spent my weekends roller skating or playing bingo in what was kindly referred to as the "great hall" - all fifty feet of it. On the right is Stephanie's office whom I hear she shares with a lunatic who just happens to be the other counselor.. Go figure.

Above is Fort Defiance in all of it's glory. Fits the title of government compound, houses lined up in rows, roads unmaintained etc. My good friends Kathy, Ray and Judy from Claremore traveled to Albuquerque NM to meet me for the 2006 "Gathering of Nations Pow Wow." It was so cool to see them all. I just wished I hadn't fallen in the parking lot like a dork and re-twisted my ankle. They were all cool about me hobbling around, the only bad part was that Ray and Judy headed up to Santa Fe the next day for Ray to run in a race and I was camped out with my ankle up in the air instead of getting to go with them.

It's weird how places stick in your mind. The brick corner above is at my old high school called "Rehoboth" Christian private school. My friends and I spent every second we could just sitting in this corner - what we talked about I'll never remember. My good friend Jeremy from my college days at Tulsa University met me in Albuquerque, finding me a great discounted hotel room and treating me to dinner at the local country club and even took me to a Karaoke Bar - NO I did NOT sing :)

The Pow Wow in Albuquerque was beautiful. The dancers were amazing. I caught this little one napping soundly through it all - she's is on a traditional cradle board. On the right is an Intertribal dance where representatives from tribes across North America dance together all at once. I definitely recommend this detour for anyone - and the steak and potato burrito I had was pretty good too-missed out on the Frybread though...the line was way to long for a bad ankle. I headed home a day early, I missed Jason and Newton so much and I wanted to go ahead and get the seven hour drive home over with. All in all a great trip.

I Took Her Out to the Ballgame!

2006-05-02T23:38:00.000-05:00

Chase Field April 17th, 2006
Helen and I need more dates. I hear guys at work talking about baseball games. I put two and two together and decided that we should go to a baseball game, which we obviously did. Diamondbacks lost but they made a heck of a close comeback so it was a good game to watch. Helen had a good time and her only complaint was getting a bit cold towards the end. She snuggles with me when she's cold so I'm not complaining. And as a final bonus, I ate 1 1/2 huge bratwurst, half a personal pizza, a quadruple size rice krispy treat, and washed it all down with real lemonade. I love baseball... food.

Outside Chase Field
Helen and I are attempting to take more pictures together so that our mutual parents are happy. It was a very nice night, and Phoenix certainly makes some good ones. A quiet reflective drive home and a good nights sleep rounded it all out.

My Trip Back Home

2006-05-01T22:25:00.000-05:00

Nicholas' Mouth Pocket

Nathan's TV Zen

As usual I'm several weeks behind in getting my posts up on the blog. This trip back was with Joe immediately after his trip up to Phoenix. Nicholaus is very cute and Nathan has achieved a Zen-like state watching TV above.

Chris, Nathan, Paul holding
Nicholas, Jason, and Kyle

Chris, Jason, Brenda, Kyle, and Nathan

Nathan, Nicholas, and Tasha
Pictures are worth a thousand words. My family is getting older and it reminds me that what I see in the mirror every day has changed just as much. The world I grew up in appears to have gotten smaller in every measureable dimension and because I seem to only dip into that world every so often I can see it change like time-lapse photography. The really strange part is to both miss being a kid and be unable to remember a time when I did not feel as I do. I mean, how many of us really change past somewhere in our mid-teens. You can't miss something you never really left.

I'm definitely looking forward to moving back so things stop moving so fast and I get to see enough of the in-between stages that it will again seem as if nothing is changing at all. Ignorance can sometimes be bliss.

Up On The Mountain

2006-05-01T16:51:00.000-05:00

This video should have been posted weeks ago but I couldn't find the utility I used before to shrink them down so they don't take forever to download through a web page. Problem solved. Anyways, click the picture and enjoy a video from the top of the mountain.

Jason, Helen, and Joe on the Mountain

2006-04-19T22:03:00.000-05:00

Jason and Joe on the Mountain. Ok, I'm behind on my posts again but I hope you like these. Joe just visited through my Birthday basically staying with us from April 1st to April 7th. This first picture is of Joe and I on the mountain behind my house. Joe got the crazy idea that we should climb it, and because I've wanted to take a long range picture of my home to remember it we all agreed.

Mountain Sunlight. Helen loves pictures of nature and sunlight so this works on both levels.

Just Watched Ice Age 2. Not a good movie but Helen and Joe liked it. Really the whole point of taking this picture was just to catch the clouds playing shadow games on the mountains in the background.

Flowers in Bloom. More nature.

Golfland Miniature Golf. We had trouble thinking of fun things to do while Joe was in town and my idea was to go to Golfland in Mesa. Its like a small amusement park with several golf courses, arcade games, laser tag, go-karts, bumper boats, etc. Like it or not I lost the first game to Joe but beat him on the second. Helen as usual was just there to have fun, and sometimes I wish I wasn't so competitive but can't help it when my brother is around.

Windmill of Doom. Joe was a little scary on some of these courses. He's the Tiger Woods of miniature golf and tried to launch several balls right off the course.

Flowering Tree at Golfland. More nature, more flowers. I like them but they don't tell a story, they are just pretty. What more is there to say.

Jason and Joe Shooting Hoops. Joe thought he would school me shooting hoops but that day definitely wasn't his day.

Jason and Joe Throwing Bricks. Actually we both sucked, I just sucked a little less.

Born to Be Rockstars. This arcade game was a bit insane. Everything on it was in Chinese, we just kept hitting buttons until the game started but it was a lot of fun. Basically it involved playing a guitar with only three cords so it worked a lot like DDR. Basically I stomped Joe because I am one white boy who has rhythm.

Joe's Plane Tranquility. Technically this is Joe's second time on a plane, both my fault. As it turns out he loves it. If you know Joe you know that is very strange.

Helen on the Mountain. Helen hauled her butt up the mountain with the rest of us. Here's a shot of her admiring her accomplishment.

Our Home in Phoenix. This is the reason I climbed the mountain in the first place. Years from now we'll remember our little townhome fondly while looking at this picture.

Downtown Phoenix. Megacity that she is. I liked her but Helen and her just couldn't get along. We'll miss you!

King of the Mountain. These pictures are obviously not in any particular order. Here I am starring in my own personal sim city.

My Domain. Ok its posed and I don't care. Nobody will know I was full of shit years from now, or they will know it but they won't know how much. Thank Joe for the picture because he's on the top of the mountain taking this for me.

Joe the Mountain Goat. Joe can't help but squint into the sun so I obviously didn't set this one up very well. Either way it proves he made it up there and that I guess is the point.

Brothers on the Mountain. How many brothers have pictures standing on a mountain. Even little mountains. Thanks for coming to visit Joe.

Kristie Visits Phoenix

2006-04-11T00:26:00.000-05:00

I'm a month behind and making up for it with lots of photos. I'll add stories to this post as I consult with Helen because it's been a whirlwind for me and this late night posting is definitely hurting my retention of the details.

Kristie finally came to see us in Phoenix and we had a great time. Our big event for the stay was a trip to Sedona because the rock formations are beautiful and there a quite a few shops with nice but pricey stuff. We went without a real plan just figuring we would find something interesting there and we were right. We found a very nice spot to picnic, Helen found a bracelet she loves, Kristie had a chance to pick up a few gifts for people back home, and Newton got to mark another swatch of this great country of ours.

If you ever pass through this part of the country, head a little north of Sedona to a picnic area called Half Way Point, which you can't find unless you are heading south. Go figure. On the way back, stop at Slide Rock National Park. The picture of Kristie and I near the water is the river at Slide Rock and it is VERY cold.

The last couple of pictures are just of Newton hamming it up in the car. Apparently he likes to ride in the rear window when we are going fast enough because of the way the wind hits him, I suppose he thinks he's flying.

Kiss Me I'm Irish

2006-03-19T00:05:00.000-06:00

Helen and I went to a concert this St. Patricks day. Apparently it was her first concert so it was bound to be an interesting evening. Basically the crowd was full of drunk, Irish, tattooed, chained, hair-dyed but fun loving people. There was many a mosh pit and that alone was worth watching. The two headlining bands were Authority Zero and Flogging Molly. I recognized every song that Authority Zero covered but I'm not sure it was their own material. With Flogging Molly I was at a loss. Not only had I never heard any of their music before, I couldn't understand anything through their thick Irish accents. Helen's a sweety and she basically bought the tickets once she found out it was a real Irish band and they were playing St. Patricks day. I've never really celebrated St. Patty's day, basically because I'm a stick in the mud, so I agreed it was about time we did something interesting.

The night was a success, despite the fact we came home smelling like we'd been in a bar. A quick detox and all that is left is the shirt shown above and some decent memories of St. Patrick's day.

PS> I still haven't been kissed simply because I'm Irish. Getting kissed by your wife, fiance, or girlfriend doesn't count!

My Screwy Wireless Plan

2006-03-14T13:33:00.000-06:00

Ok, this won't be a typical post for me, but its something I'm dealing with and that's my screwy wireless plan. I'm a Sprint PCS customer and have been since January 2000. I'm considering buying a new phone and I've decided it should be a PDA phone. The only phone currently available with Sprint that I am looking at is the PPC-6700. I would be interested in the Treo 700w if I knew exactly when Sprint was going to be offering it but that's another story.

Here's the plan I have now:
$85.00 Free & Clear Plan
2000 Anytime Minutes (Shared)
Unlimited PCS to PCS Calling
Primary Line
$0.00 Unlimited Vision
$6.00 Equipment Protection Plan
Second Line
Free Add A Phone
$6.00 Equipment Protection Plan
Third Line
$20.00 Add A Phone
$6.00 Equipment Protection Plan

+10% Discount because of one of my affiliations.
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Approximately $110.70 per month + around $17.00 worth of taxes = $127.70.

I am not currently under contract. Two of the three phones are currently eligible for the phone replacement credit, whatever they are calling it now.

Before anyone that would help me find a new plan starts asking how many minutes we've been using, let me do you one better. I've put together some charts of our usage from July 1st 2005 to February 28th 2006.

As you can see, my Dad is a talker. But what it basically shows is that I'm using between 1200 and 1800 Anytime Minutes a month. So here is what I need.

I need a plan that shares at least 1500 AT minutes between three phones. I need unlimited PCS to PCS calling. I will be getting two new PDA phones that I will NOT be tethering to laptops or anything else so I need Power Vision plans to accomodate those. Having spent quite a bit of time in the SprintUsers forum I'm already thinking that I'm paying too much for my Add A Phone and I could probably be getting a loyalty discount that would be better than the 10% discount I'm getting now. Any other, and I mean ANY other suggestions are welcome!

Light Box Project

2006-03-12T23:41:00.000-06:00

For the few of you that I talked to about this project, these pictures should help in figuring out what I was building out of PVC pipe. Basically I have a lot of computer crap that I need to get rid of in preparation for the move and to generally make my office a bit more usable. At first I found products on Ebay called "light tents" or "light boxes" which you can buy ready made. Then I found a tutorial by Bill Huber on how to make your own light box with PVC pipe and I based my light box off it. The only real modification I made was that I found a three way connector for the corners with one socket being threaded so I could make the legs easily removable. I also didn't glue any of it together because all it has to hold up is a bed sheet and one sheet of poster paper. So far it is working pretty good although I need to learn more about white balancing my camera to get the colors right. Luckily I know how to fix most of that with picture editors so these are the results.

Squeaker in Blue. One of Newton's favorite toys and one he is annoying me with right as I type.

Jewelry Box in Yellow. A jewelry box which was apparently Tilly's and which Helen has in our living room.

Ethernet to USB Adapter. One of many bits and pieces I need to sell off.

Hard Drive Enclosure. Think monolith.

Hopefully the light box, which cost around 50 bucks to make, will pay for itself with the crap I have to get rid of. I'll be posting most of these items on Craig's List or Ebay shortly. Wish me luck.

Torturous Treadmill

2006-03-12T23:13:00.000-06:00

Another post I should have put up over a week ago. Helen and I ordered a treadmill online. If you are curious we ordered the Smooth 7.1 HR Pro Folding Treadmill from Smooth Fitness. Its a torture device but we need the extra cardio exercise and we don't want to drive down to our gym to get it each day. Since it's arrival Helen and I have been putting in 30 minutes a day at least 6 days a week. Hopefully in a month or so we should start to see some results if we can just keep our meals decent. Here's hoping we can get rid of our fat asses before either of us hit 30!

Chicken Enchiladas and Show Tunes

2006-03-12T23:06:00.000-06:00

This picture is a bit over due but as always I'm using a weekend to catch up on the blog. Basically Helen and I made chicken enchiladas the Tuesday before last. The enchiladas aren't very blog worthy on their own even though I did help make them. What's blog worthy was the evening. Helen and I were feeling romantic, working in the kitchen together, and listening to one of those all-music channels playing nothing but show tunes. Basically it was an evening of "The Sound of Music" complimented by poorly made enchiladas. It may not have looked anything like the recipe but put enough cheese on it and it turned out all right.

One Long Day

2006-03-09T18:05:00.000-06:00

The Chocolate Festival

2006-02-18T23:50:00.000-06:00

On the February 5th, they were having a chocolate festival in downtown Glendale that I decided to taken Helen to. It was a beautiful day and the smells of chocolate and various fair-food wafted on the air. The pictures above were actually taken inside a candy factory just a few blocks from the fair.

One of the stands at the chocolate festival had dog hats for sale. At first I thought the dogs were stuffed and I was kind of unsettled by it because they looked so real, and then I realized that the guy had three lazy dogs just sleeping and watching the crowds oooh and aaah at them. Despite my aversion to dressing animals I have to admit it was cute. I can also attest that had Helen found a hat she liked, Newton may have had to wear it at least once before I lost it.

Our Trip to Bisbee

2006-02-18T23:38:00.000-06:00

We stopped at some ruins along the way and I took this picture of a cactus. Helen likes the occasional nature photo, and she's been mixing the nice ones in with our regular pictures to make cool group framed shots. The second shot is of The Bisbee Grille. I kid you not, I had the best BBQ ribs of my life here.. I'm sorry Momma.

I didn't get that many good shots of where we stayed in Bisbee but that's probably best. The website description sounded good, but the place was a bit of a dive from the outside. Our cabin was small but very cozy on the inside, with a gas burning space heater. I would honestly go again. Oh, and before I forget, the story behind the gate... apparently to keep the wild pigs out. Don't ask me, for all I know it was the innkeepers way of pulling our legs.

These last two pictures are taken in the historic shopping area of Bisbee. You could definitely lost a couple of afternoons and several hundred dollars in these stores because they have some nice stuff. In fact I bought Helen a nice necklace with some sort of Zuni life circle on it at the jewelry store pictred above.

The trip was a good one, Bisbee is nice and I think we'd go again if we get the chance. Of course it makes me think about all the towns with interesting little places to visit that I probably could have seen in Missouri or Oklahoma. Life just isn't long enough to visit them all, nor would I want to try, but the memories in Bisbee will stick with us.

Family Photo '06

2006-02-18T23:30:00.000-06:00

I've been slow to post pictures lately because I lost the software I usually use to upload them to my computer. That's a pain because it automatically sorts them into folders based on the date they were taken. Well I finally got the software installed again so here's a bunch of updates.

This photo was taken just outside the 5 & Diner where we all had lunch before Catherine and Curtis had to fly back. Funny or not I was cooking in the sun at our table.. cooking in January! But I had a huge stack of pancakes so I couldn't complain about much. Oh, and this picture was taken with my camera on a mini-tripod setting on our car, not bad considering I had to run after setting the timer.

Phoning It In

2006-02-16T15:49:00.000-06:00

Well it looks like I've got a way to make my posts happen a bit more frequently, I can now phone them in. Audioblogger allows me to call a special number record up to 5 minutes worth of my inane rambling and then have it all uploaded for your listening pleasure. Most of you should just be able to click on the icon below, when click open when it prompts to you, and that should open your default MP3 player. For most of you that will probably mean Windows Media Player will open and start streaming my recording. Close that when you are done and you are back to the blog. It's that simple. Expect more soon.