So I was thinking to myself earlier today. Not much to report.
Just a couple days before we're off to Tahoe with the cycle team. Can't wait! It is such a fun group of people and we'll be extending our stay to enjoy the sites and definitely do some relaxing. We had some cool shirts made for the TNT Minnesota team which we'll either wear to the pasta party or the victory party. We'll have to get a team picture with them on. Way cool.
Found this incredibly stupid story. Perhaps this is an example of too much drinking...
Here are some of the more entertaining titles of actual "Monty Python's Flying Circus" TV programs:
"How to Recognize Different Types of Tree from Quite a Long Way Away"
"The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra Goes to the Bathroom"
"The Golden Age of Ballooning"
"Live from the Grill-o-Mat Snack Bar"
What the heck is up with THIS?!
So I've got three brothers and one sister and the closest one in age to me is my sister Kathy who is 8 years older than me. When I was in kindergarten I began riding the bus to school and, with Kathy being in 8th grade, we rode the bus together. She would go to the back of the bus - because that is where the 8th graders sat (you worked your way closer to the back with each year, a nice pecking order actually) - and I would sit near the front of the bus, where I would sing songs and do it rather loudly. For the record, I'm told I was gosh darn cute. Anyway, one of the songs I would sing a lot was "Cecilia" by Simon & Garfunkel - a classic song. If you're not familiar with the lyrics click here and you'll see that perhaps it wasn't the best song to sing when you're 5 years old, let alone on your way to a Lutheran grade school. If I had any idea what I was singing about...
The most valuable word you can make at Scrabble is "Quizzify", which is worth 31 points, but if this were stretched across two triple-word scores, it would total 419 points - including the 50-point bonus (for using all 7 letters) and the double-letter bonus for the "z". Keep that in your back pocket, unless you're playing against me of course.
I can get you a good deal on toothpaste and deodorant. For details click here.
If people evolved from apes, why are there still apes?
Do you know Mickey Finn? Probably not, but I'm sure you've heard the phrase associated with him. He was a 19th-century San Francisco saloon keeper who ran a bar popular with sailors. When customers got too rowdy, he slipped drugs in their drinks to knock them out. Today, giving someone a knockout drink is called "Slipping them a Mickey."
A man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest.
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Monday, May 28, 2007
Julie Was Right
A heartfelt thanks to all the men and women in uniform who have served in the past and to those serving now. Thank you.
It was a great and interesting Memorial Day weekend. We hope it was good for you as well. We got some training in, did some fundraising, and spent time with friends. What else could one want?
Saturday morning, after the bikes were picked up for the Tahoe team, Julie and I went over to Lake Harriett and met up with the fall marathon teams for their first team training. We had a large turnout and afterwards a lot of us went over to Bruegger's for some bagels and banter. The mentors this season are again a riot. It was pretty much non-stop laughter the entire time. After Bruegger's Julie and I went over to Lake Nokomis and rode part of the triathlon route. We rode about 16 miles and then ran a mile, our first BRick. We were tempted to go for a swim in the lake when were were done but thought it would be best for our first open-water swim to be with the team so we passed.
Sunday I went over to Cub Foods in Plymouth and helped with a fundraiser. We had about 25 people in all (between two shifts) and we accepted tips for bagging groceries. I haven't yet heard how much we raised but it was a pretty good chunk of money. Julie went to a baby shower for our friend Julie (J-Flo as she's known) and all reports are that a great time was had by all.
This morning Julie and I met up with Misty and we did our own little "mock" triathlon. We swam 1/2 mile in the Life Time pool, rode 11 miles, and ran 2 miles. The wind felt good and the skies were overcast for nearly the entire swim. (We swam in their outdoor lap pool, which was nice.) We all felt pretty good afterwards, although I did have some shin splint issues come up. I think my problem was that I didn't stretch before we started the run - I'm hoping that's the case. Misty and Julie kicked my butt! Way to go ladies!
OK, so this morning we're getting ready to head over to Life Time and our bedroom window was open. I hear the neighbors across the street open their door and, knowing that we were going to be letting the girls out, I looked through the blinds to see if they had their dogs out. Well, they had let their dogs out onto their deck, which is above their garage. By the way, we live in a town home complex and they live directly across the street from us. I was shocked as I watched one of their dogs hunch and relieve himself on their deck! It was then that I realized all the other piles covering the area like a huge litter box! I couldn't believe it! Rather than take their dogs out into the yard they'd prefer to let them use the deck. Unbelievable. Come to find out that they are renting the place. Why is it that some renters have a total disregard for property? Makes one sick.
I found something the neighbors could do with the piles of poop they have... read this.
I love short work weeks.
So, my favorite radio station changed formats a couple weeks ago and I'm none too happy about it. Drive 105 would play a good mix of alternative music old and new, but they changed their format to "the best songs of all time" and changed the name of the station to Love 105. Yeah, cheesy. Since there isn't a whole lot else to listen to I now flip through the stations even more than I did before, and this new Love 105 was playing a song but something was wrong. I noticed that they were not broadcasting the full song - only one channel of the song. I'll try to explain. You know how a lot of the old songs would have the vocals coming out of the left speaker (if you will) and the music coming out of the right? Well, the new and wonderful Love 105 chose to only broadcast the right side! Where were the rest of the vocals? I heard another song later that was the same way! Yeah, I know, you're probably thinking "Are you serious?". I complained to Julie but she couldn't believe it annoyed me so. I hated it! And another thing, why do some stations cut out parts of songs to make them shorter? Is it really necessary to remove that 20 seconds of the song? Irritating!!!
So glad I'm not a woman.
Shortly after Julie and I moved out here to MN we were doing some shopping and she told me she saw a two-headed girl. That was nearly 5 years ago. I didn't believe her. But over the weekend I was at the liquor store where I overheard two workers talking about it. So I just did a quick search on Yahoo and found this and this. A very interesting story. Julie, I guess you were right, and it wasn't the drinking... ;-)
Hold me closer, tiny dancer. Count the headlights on the highway. Lay me down in sheets of linen. You had a busy day today.
It was a great and interesting Memorial Day weekend. We hope it was good for you as well. We got some training in, did some fundraising, and spent time with friends. What else could one want?
Saturday morning, after the bikes were picked up for the Tahoe team, Julie and I went over to Lake Harriett and met up with the fall marathon teams for their first team training. We had a large turnout and afterwards a lot of us went over to Bruegger's for some bagels and banter. The mentors this season are again a riot. It was pretty much non-stop laughter the entire time. After Bruegger's Julie and I went over to Lake Nokomis and rode part of the triathlon route. We rode about 16 miles and then ran a mile, our first BRick. We were tempted to go for a swim in the lake when were were done but thought it would be best for our first open-water swim to be with the team so we passed.
Sunday I went over to Cub Foods in Plymouth and helped with a fundraiser. We had about 25 people in all (between two shifts) and we accepted tips for bagging groceries. I haven't yet heard how much we raised but it was a pretty good chunk of money. Julie went to a baby shower for our friend Julie (J-Flo as she's known) and all reports are that a great time was had by all.
This morning Julie and I met up with Misty and we did our own little "mock" triathlon. We swam 1/2 mile in the Life Time pool, rode 11 miles, and ran 2 miles. The wind felt good and the skies were overcast for nearly the entire swim. (We swam in their outdoor lap pool, which was nice.) We all felt pretty good afterwards, although I did have some shin splint issues come up. I think my problem was that I didn't stretch before we started the run - I'm hoping that's the case. Misty and Julie kicked my butt! Way to go ladies!
OK, so this morning we're getting ready to head over to Life Time and our bedroom window was open. I hear the neighbors across the street open their door and, knowing that we were going to be letting the girls out, I looked through the blinds to see if they had their dogs out. Well, they had let their dogs out onto their deck, which is above their garage. By the way, we live in a town home complex and they live directly across the street from us. I was shocked as I watched one of their dogs hunch and relieve himself on their deck! It was then that I realized all the other piles covering the area like a huge litter box! I couldn't believe it! Rather than take their dogs out into the yard they'd prefer to let them use the deck. Unbelievable. Come to find out that they are renting the place. Why is it that some renters have a total disregard for property? Makes one sick.
I found something the neighbors could do with the piles of poop they have... read this.
I love short work weeks.
So, my favorite radio station changed formats a couple weeks ago and I'm none too happy about it. Drive 105 would play a good mix of alternative music old and new, but they changed their format to "the best songs of all time" and changed the name of the station to Love 105. Yeah, cheesy. Since there isn't a whole lot else to listen to I now flip through the stations even more than I did before, and this new Love 105 was playing a song but something was wrong. I noticed that they were not broadcasting the full song - only one channel of the song. I'll try to explain. You know how a lot of the old songs would have the vocals coming out of the left speaker (if you will) and the music coming out of the right? Well, the new and wonderful Love 105 chose to only broadcast the right side! Where were the rest of the vocals? I heard another song later that was the same way! Yeah, I know, you're probably thinking "Are you serious?". I complained to Julie but she couldn't believe it annoyed me so. I hated it! And another thing, why do some stations cut out parts of songs to make them shorter? Is it really necessary to remove that 20 seconds of the song? Irritating!!!
So glad I'm not a woman.
Shortly after Julie and I moved out here to MN we were doing some shopping and she told me she saw a two-headed girl. That was nearly 5 years ago. I didn't believe her. But over the weekend I was at the liquor store where I overheard two workers talking about it. So I just did a quick search on Yahoo and found this and this. A very interesting story. Julie, I guess you were right, and it wasn't the drinking... ;-)
Hold me closer, tiny dancer. Count the headlights on the highway. Lay me down in sheets of linen. You had a busy day today.
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Welcome to the Age of Aquarius
Just some random thoughts and interesting links...
Holy cow! Did you watch the season finale of LOST?! Me either...
Here's an interesting article about how to make the perfect burger. Pretty interesting. Did I mention it was interesting? Sorry about that. By the way, it's for the most part somewhat interesting, if you find stuff like this mildly interesting, which I do, and this is it. Right here. Right now.
Notice that sometimes the media calls him "Osama" and other times "Usama"? Is there a difference?
Lyric quiz: What song are these lyrics from? "You can see the summit, but you can't reach it. It's the last piece of the puzzle but you just can't make it fit. Doctor says you're cured but you still feel the pain. Aspirations in the clouds but your hopes go down the drain."
To say Congress got an unexpected reaction to the immigration bill is an understatement. Doesn't sounds like anyone likes it.
Well, the Red Wings were eliminated. That stinks. Not surprising, but it still stinks. Let's hope the best for the Pistons and Tigers. I love baseball.
In this story we find the following headline: "Four walk unscathed from plane wreck". Well, except for the part about them crashing into water, swimming for a bit, being picked up by a helicopter, and having scratches and bruises. Other than that they "walked" away "unscathed".
An entry from the "You've got to be kidding me" department: Jamie, a woman who works in my department, along with her husband (of course) put their house up on the market this morning. This afternoon severe storms ravaged their neighborhood resulting in part of a tree landing on their house, their backyard being flooded, hail large enough to break a window in their garage, and their bushes to be in essence destroyed. Don't know about you but that really blows. (Pun totally intended.) Thankfully, everyone was OK. Jamie's reaction? "What the hail?!?"
I do really enjoy a good hamburger. Gotta have cheese. How can you eat a burger with no cheese? I'd say "stupid is as stupid does" but I never really understood what the hail that meant. Makes no sense to me.
Here's a reason you should always keep extra cups in your car, or at a minimum some straws.
I am completely addicted to YouTube. There is just about anything you can imagine on there. The latest thing I was searching on was old commercials from the 1930's to 1970's. Some of the old auto commercials are pretty cool.
You got me feeling hella good so let's just keep on dancing.
Holy cow! Did you watch the season finale of LOST?! Me either...
Here's an interesting article about how to make the perfect burger. Pretty interesting. Did I mention it was interesting? Sorry about that. By the way, it's for the most part somewhat interesting, if you find stuff like this mildly interesting, which I do, and this is it. Right here. Right now.
Notice that sometimes the media calls him "Osama" and other times "Usama"? Is there a difference?
Lyric quiz: What song are these lyrics from? "You can see the summit, but you can't reach it. It's the last piece of the puzzle but you just can't make it fit. Doctor says you're cured but you still feel the pain. Aspirations in the clouds but your hopes go down the drain."
To say Congress got an unexpected reaction to the immigration bill is an understatement. Doesn't sounds like anyone likes it.
Well, the Red Wings were eliminated. That stinks. Not surprising, but it still stinks. Let's hope the best for the Pistons and Tigers. I love baseball.
In this story we find the following headline: "Four walk unscathed from plane wreck". Well, except for the part about them crashing into water, swimming for a bit, being picked up by a helicopter, and having scratches and bruises. Other than that they "walked" away "unscathed".
An entry from the "You've got to be kidding me" department: Jamie, a woman who works in my department, along with her husband (of course) put their house up on the market this morning. This afternoon severe storms ravaged their neighborhood resulting in part of a tree landing on their house, their backyard being flooded, hail large enough to break a window in their garage, and their bushes to be in essence destroyed. Don't know about you but that really blows. (Pun totally intended.) Thankfully, everyone was OK. Jamie's reaction? "What the hail?!?"
I do really enjoy a good hamburger. Gotta have cheese. How can you eat a burger with no cheese? I'd say "stupid is as stupid does" but I never really understood what the hail that meant. Makes no sense to me.
Here's a reason you should always keep extra cups in your car, or at a minimum some straws.
I am completely addicted to YouTube. There is just about anything you can imagine on there. The latest thing I was searching on was old commercials from the 1930's to 1970's. Some of the old auto commercials are pretty cool.
You got me feeling hella good so let's just keep on dancing.
Monday, May 21, 2007
The Century Man
Happy Monday! Ain't life grand?
It was a busy weekend starting with a swim on Friday night. We met Misty again, this time at the Life Time at 98th and 35W. As pools go it wasn't too bad, a little short (about 20 yards) and the chlorine was pretty strong, or it must have been because your skin still itched even after putting lotion on. We did about 1,300 yards so not too bad of a work out.
Saturday we went to Suzanne's garage sale (She brought in $4,800 and the money is still coming in - way to go Suzanne!!) where I was "forced" to put on a sequined silver jacket. Hopefully I can get the picture uploaded. After we left Suzanne's we headed over to Jim and Sandy's for a benefit bike ride to support our friend Joan Martin's Woman of the Year campaign. We got in a decent 24-mile ride and the heat wasn't too bad until we'd stop - as long as we were moving we were ok. Had a couple ice-cold beers when we got back (Julie, of course, had margaritas) and some great Mexican food. A great ride with some great friends for a great cause!
Sunday we did some errands, I went and helped my friend Chuck with his deck for a couple hours, then Julie and I ran a couple miles when I got home. I didn't think having one beer right before running would have that much of an impact but it really seemed to make me sluggish, not that I'm a speedy runner by ANY stretch of the imagination, but it really seemed to zap the energy. So, all in all it was a great but busy weekend - as they all are these days.
Here's an interesting story about how to live longer from someone who's hit the century mark. It may not be for everyone....
Sometimes people will get concerned about accidentally getting off the course of a race, especially if it's there first one. I always tell them the route is well marked and they shouldn't worry about it. Well, according to this story, perhaps there should be concern.
Sometimes you find a story on line that makes you wish you never opened up your web browser. This one might just qualify, so consider yourself warned. The headline: "STDs on rise in Peoria County". The first line of the story: "Grab a group of friends and a bag of Cheetos."
And one last story that will open your eyes to a new world.
qapla, my friends.
It was a busy weekend starting with a swim on Friday night. We met Misty again, this time at the Life Time at 98th and 35W. As pools go it wasn't too bad, a little short (about 20 yards) and the chlorine was pretty strong, or it must have been because your skin still itched even after putting lotion on. We did about 1,300 yards so not too bad of a work out.
Saturday we went to Suzanne's garage sale (She brought in $4,800 and the money is still coming in - way to go Suzanne!!) where I was "forced" to put on a sequined silver jacket. Hopefully I can get the picture uploaded. After we left Suzanne's we headed over to Jim and Sandy's for a benefit bike ride to support our friend Joan Martin's Woman of the Year campaign. We got in a decent 24-mile ride and the heat wasn't too bad until we'd stop - as long as we were moving we were ok. Had a couple ice-cold beers when we got back (Julie, of course, had margaritas) and some great Mexican food. A great ride with some great friends for a great cause!
Sunday we did some errands, I went and helped my friend Chuck with his deck for a couple hours, then Julie and I ran a couple miles when I got home. I didn't think having one beer right before running would have that much of an impact but it really seemed to make me sluggish, not that I'm a speedy runner by ANY stretch of the imagination, but it really seemed to zap the energy. So, all in all it was a great but busy weekend - as they all are these days.
Here's an interesting story about how to live longer from someone who's hit the century mark. It may not be for everyone....
Sometimes people will get concerned about accidentally getting off the course of a race, especially if it's there first one. I always tell them the route is well marked and they shouldn't worry about it. Well, according to this story, perhaps there should be concern.
Sometimes you find a story on line that makes you wish you never opened up your web browser. This one might just qualify, so consider yourself warned. The headline: "STDs on rise in Peoria County". The first line of the story: "Grab a group of friends and a bag of Cheetos."
And one last story that will open your eyes to a new world.
qapla, my friends.
Thursday, May 17, 2007
High School Wasn't Like This!
Where the heck have we been?! Geez, long time no post!
Last night was the Twin Cities kick-off of the fall season and we had a GREAT turnout! Everyone had a good time and the excitement level was high - everyone is full of energy and anxious for the training to start. For the fall season we will be doing the Disney World Triathlon in Orlando, FL, the Nike Women's Marathon & Half Marathon in San Francisco, CA, and the local Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon. If you'd like more information on Team In Training you can visit www.teamintraining.org. We'd love to have you join us!
Julie will be the staff person for both the Nike and Twin Cities events. The teams are already big and we'll still be getting sign-ups for the next month! These are two great events, and if you're a single guy I'd strongly recommend doing the Nike event. Even though it's called the Nike "Women's" Marathon it is open to men. In fact, men are outnumbered on the course 15 to 1, plus the only way you can do this event is through TNT as it is already sold out to the general public.
So, the kick-off last night was at Hopkins High School. I know it's been a while since I've been in high school but this place is incredible. Not only is it huge compared to my HS but it felt like a mall. Although, it didn't make sense that the school was "pop free" (or "soda free" if you prefer) while also having a coffee shop. Students can buy lattes or cappuccinos but NO POP. They also had a full service cafeteria better than most large companies. Do students really need all this? Aren't they there to learn? I thought that was the whole point of school. I was shocked that there wasn't an Abercrombie & Fitch store in there. Should our taxes go to letting Johnny get a latte or to actually educate Johnny? I would sure hope the answer is obvious.
This Saturday is a HUGE 45 family garage sale being held on the 4900 block of Newton Avenue South in Minneapolis. The entire block will be closed so they can take over the whole street. All the proceeds from this event go to support the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and it runs from 8 AM to 5 PM. Please stop out and support this event. They have EVERYTHING (honestly) plus a huge bake sale. KARE 11 will even be on hand to film the event live, so please stop out and buy some stuff and support the Society! Her goal is to raise more than $5,000 in this one day, which she has done before.
I'm getting a little sleepy. I think I'll head over to Hopkins High School and get a latte.
Last night was the Twin Cities kick-off of the fall season and we had a GREAT turnout! Everyone had a good time and the excitement level was high - everyone is full of energy and anxious for the training to start. For the fall season we will be doing the Disney World Triathlon in Orlando, FL, the Nike Women's Marathon & Half Marathon in San Francisco, CA, and the local Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon. If you'd like more information on Team In Training you can visit www.teamintraining.org. We'd love to have you join us!
Julie will be the staff person for both the Nike and Twin Cities events. The teams are already big and we'll still be getting sign-ups for the next month! These are two great events, and if you're a single guy I'd strongly recommend doing the Nike event. Even though it's called the Nike "Women's" Marathon it is open to men. In fact, men are outnumbered on the course 15 to 1, plus the only way you can do this event is through TNT as it is already sold out to the general public.
So, the kick-off last night was at Hopkins High School. I know it's been a while since I've been in high school but this place is incredible. Not only is it huge compared to my HS but it felt like a mall. Although, it didn't make sense that the school was "pop free" (or "soda free" if you prefer) while also having a coffee shop. Students can buy lattes or cappuccinos but NO POP. They also had a full service cafeteria better than most large companies. Do students really need all this? Aren't they there to learn? I thought that was the whole point of school. I was shocked that there wasn't an Abercrombie & Fitch store in there. Should our taxes go to letting Johnny get a latte or to actually educate Johnny? I would sure hope the answer is obvious.
This Saturday is a HUGE 45 family garage sale being held on the 4900 block of Newton Avenue South in Minneapolis. The entire block will be closed so they can take over the whole street. All the proceeds from this event go to support the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and it runs from 8 AM to 5 PM. Please stop out and support this event. They have EVERYTHING (honestly) plus a huge bake sale. KARE 11 will even be on hand to film the event live, so please stop out and buy some stuff and support the Society! Her goal is to raise more than $5,000 in this one day, which she has done before.
I'm getting a little sleepy. I think I'll head over to Hopkins High School and get a latte.
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Happy Anniversary Mother's Day
What a gorgeous weekend! And busy!
Friday night Julie and I met up with Misty and did some swimming at Life Time. Overall the night went pretty well, doing 1600 yards total. I still need to work on my breathing and rolling completely to each side, stretching out and all that jazz. It was a great workout, everyone worked hard, and we headed over to Champp's for some sustenance. Got to share some good conversation while also watching the Tigers beat up on the Twins and the Red Wings take game one of their series. If only the Red Wings would have won today...
Saturday Julie and I headed over to Afton where the cycle team started a 90 mile ride - a ride that featured many demanding hills, a little wind, and a PB&J lunch in Maiden Rock, WI. The team did a FANTASTIC job and is definitely ready for Tahoe! It was great being out there to support them on this tough ride and they all came through like champs! After the 9+ hour ride we enjoyed some ice cream before everyone went home to rest their tired rumps. Way to go TEAM!!!
Today Julie and I took advantage of our first opportunity to sleep in in over 2 months. It was wonderful! We purchased some tri shorts and top plus picked up some stuff for the bikes at REI. The place was packed! I had no idea REI was the place to be on Mother's Day.
Today is also our 12th wedding anniversary! I have NO idea how I've managed to hang on to Julie as long as I have. She is an amazing woman and couldn't do half the things I do without her. She's the best thing that ever happened to me. How did I get so lucky?! I love you, Julie!
*********************************
Here is an informative and well-written column that you might find interesting.
*********************************
In honor of Mother's Day (happy Mother's Day to all of you mothers out there!) here is some interesting information on this day and how it all came about:
Mothers' Day was held in Boston in 1872 at the suggestion of Julia Ward Howe, writer of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic."
But it was Anna Jarvis, daughter of a Methodist minister in Grafton, West Virginia, who made it a national event.
During the Civil War, Anna's mother organized Mothers' Day Work Clubs to care for wounded soldiers, both Union and Confederate, raised money for medicine, inspected bottled milk, improved sanitation and hired women to care for families where mothers suffered from tuberculosis.
In her honor, Anna Jarvis persuaded her church to set aside the 2nd Sunday in May, the anniversary of her mother's death, as a day to appreciate all mothers.
Encouraged by the reception, Anna organized it in Philadelphia, then began a letter-writing campaign to ministers, businessmen and politicians to establish a national Mothers' Day.
In response, on MAY 9, 1914, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed the first National Mothers' Day as a "public expression of...love and reverence for the mothers of our country."
In his Mother's Day Proclamation, 1986, President Ronald Reagan said:
"A Jewish saying sums it up: 'God could not be everywhere-so He created mothers.'"
Friday night Julie and I met up with Misty and did some swimming at Life Time. Overall the night went pretty well, doing 1600 yards total. I still need to work on my breathing and rolling completely to each side, stretching out and all that jazz. It was a great workout, everyone worked hard, and we headed over to Champp's for some sustenance. Got to share some good conversation while also watching the Tigers beat up on the Twins and the Red Wings take game one of their series. If only the Red Wings would have won today...
Saturday Julie and I headed over to Afton where the cycle team started a 90 mile ride - a ride that featured many demanding hills, a little wind, and a PB&J lunch in Maiden Rock, WI. The team did a FANTASTIC job and is definitely ready for Tahoe! It was great being out there to support them on this tough ride and they all came through like champs! After the 9+ hour ride we enjoyed some ice cream before everyone went home to rest their tired rumps. Way to go TEAM!!!
Today Julie and I took advantage of our first opportunity to sleep in in over 2 months. It was wonderful! We purchased some tri shorts and top plus picked up some stuff for the bikes at REI. The place was packed! I had no idea REI was the place to be on Mother's Day.
Today is also our 12th wedding anniversary! I have NO idea how I've managed to hang on to Julie as long as I have. She is an amazing woman and couldn't do half the things I do without her. She's the best thing that ever happened to me. How did I get so lucky?! I love you, Julie!
*********************************
Here is an informative and well-written column that you might find interesting.
*********************************
In honor of Mother's Day (happy Mother's Day to all of you mothers out there!) here is some interesting information on this day and how it all came about:
Mothers' Day was held in Boston in 1872 at the suggestion of Julia Ward Howe, writer of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic."
But it was Anna Jarvis, daughter of a Methodist minister in Grafton, West Virginia, who made it a national event.
During the Civil War, Anna's mother organized Mothers' Day Work Clubs to care for wounded soldiers, both Union and Confederate, raised money for medicine, inspected bottled milk, improved sanitation and hired women to care for families where mothers suffered from tuberculosis.
In her honor, Anna Jarvis persuaded her church to set aside the 2nd Sunday in May, the anniversary of her mother's death, as a day to appreciate all mothers.
Encouraged by the reception, Anna organized it in Philadelphia, then began a letter-writing campaign to ministers, businessmen and politicians to establish a national Mothers' Day.
In response, on MAY 9, 1914, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed the first National Mothers' Day as a "public expression of...love and reverence for the mothers of our country."
In his Mother's Day Proclamation, 1986, President Ronald Reagan said:
"A Jewish saying sums it up: 'God could not be everywhere-so He created mothers.'"
Wednesday, May 9, 2007
It's Official
As some of you know I've been seeing a chiropractor about my shin splints (which has worked out marvelously) and last week I was taking care of my co-pay when the receptionist asked my about my TNT shirt. I briefly explained the program, paid my tab, and left. This week, I'm paying my bill and she hands me an envelope containing a $100 check! Apparently, my short TNT speech inspired her to donate. For those of you out there fundraising, it pays to keep your TNT stuff visible!
I heard about this story talking with Thelma yesterday at work. Is there really a need to make stuff like this? This is a case where I think the company is not acting ethically. Thoughts?
Julie and I officially registered today for the Life Time Fitness Triathlon - Olympic distance! There is no turning back now! This is the first TNT event we've had to register for on our own and it's kind of surreal. For other events you can sort of play tricks on yourself and not own up to what you're doing until the day of the event, that morning, walking or riding a bus to the start line. Then it hits you. With registering on your own you feel it sooner. We have no doubts we can do this, it just makes it real now. LTF Tri, here we come!!
Chat with ya' on the flip side.
I heard about this story talking with Thelma yesterday at work. Is there really a need to make stuff like this? This is a case where I think the company is not acting ethically. Thoughts?
Julie and I officially registered today for the Life Time Fitness Triathlon - Olympic distance! There is no turning back now! This is the first TNT event we've had to register for on our own and it's kind of surreal. For other events you can sort of play tricks on yourself and not own up to what you're doing until the day of the event, that morning, walking or riding a bus to the start line. Then it hits you. With registering on your own you feel it sooner. We have no doubts we can do this, it just makes it real now. LTF Tri, here we come!!
Chat with ya' on the flip side.
Tuesday, May 8, 2007
Hello, Video
Finally, here is the video. To keep the video from starting and stopping annoyingly I found that if you hit Pause right when the video starts and allow it to fully load and then hit play it's better.
Hope this works. Hope it was worth the wait. Enjoy.
Video Update
I emailed my ever-brilliant nephew asking for advice on posting videos to the blog. He suggested a new site which I will try tonight. If you haven't tried to download the video mentioned in last night's post it takes forever. Hopefully this new site will be much better.
Speaking of my nephew (Brian is his name, all things art is his game) he had an excellent analogy which he used to describe how he feels artistically. He said it's like a million dollars dropped from an airplane and he's trying to pick up as much of it as he can. He's constantly moving from one project to the next, videos to music to writing to blogging and back again. I found that his analogy really rang true for me and maybe for you as well. In life there is so much to do, so much to see, so many people to help, so many friendships to make, so many stories to tell, so much of life to live. A great quote that I came across recently is by W.M. Lewis. "The tragedy of life is not that it ends so soon, but that we wait so long to begin it." Grab life. Embrace it. Live it to it's full potential.
"Normal day, let me hold you while I may, for it will not always be so. One day I shall want, more than all the world, your return." – Mary Jean Irion
Speaking of my nephew (Brian is his name, all things art is his game) he had an excellent analogy which he used to describe how he feels artistically. He said it's like a million dollars dropped from an airplane and he's trying to pick up as much of it as he can. He's constantly moving from one project to the next, videos to music to writing to blogging and back again. I found that his analogy really rang true for me and maybe for you as well. In life there is so much to do, so much to see, so many people to help, so many friendships to make, so many stories to tell, so much of life to live. A great quote that I came across recently is by W.M. Lewis. "The tragedy of life is not that it ends so soon, but that we wait so long to begin it." Grab life. Embrace it. Live it to it's full potential.
"Normal day, let me hold you while I may, for it will not always be so. One day I shall want, more than all the world, your return." – Mary Jean Irion
Monday, May 7, 2007
Very Finch-Like
Ok, in a previous post "Mr. Saturday Night Special" I had a link to a video that I didn't create correctly. I believe I've figured it out and you can go to that post and click the link or click here to watch the video. It may take a minute to download and hopefully you'll feel it's worth the wait. After it downloads it will open up in Windows Media Player. Enjoy!
Julie and I took tonight off, a much needed break. I'm just posting quickly before "Two And A Half Men" comes on. Great show. By the way, I never know when to italicize a title and when to put it in quotes. I used to know that stuff and I'm sure my 8th grade English teacher would be shaking his head at me right about now. Let's give a shout out to Mr. Weiss!!
I found a couple stories that were rather interesting. The first one comes from the Star Tribune and is an article about a man who ran for sheriff in a small Wisconsin town. Not so much of a story, right? Well, it just so happens that before he started campaigning he changed his name to Andy Griffith, yes, as in that lovable sheriff from Mayberry. Check out the story for all the details.
The second story comes from Norfolk where a student was suspended for two days and is required to go to drug and alcohol counseling because she gave a fellow student a Tylenol. These zero tolerance rules are ridiculous.
We had some birds visiting the bird feeder that Julie got me for my birthday! I didn't think to take a picture but I think they were yellow finches. Of course, I'm not Jungle Jack Hannah so I could be all wet on this one. But they were yellow and very finch-like in nature, so I'm going to stick with it.
Heading off to watch some TV, chill out, and hopefully get to bed early. I always say that but for some reason...
Julie and I took tonight off, a much needed break. I'm just posting quickly before "Two And A Half Men" comes on. Great show. By the way, I never know when to italicize a title and when to put it in quotes. I used to know that stuff and I'm sure my 8th grade English teacher would be shaking his head at me right about now. Let's give a shout out to Mr. Weiss!!
I found a couple stories that were rather interesting. The first one comes from the Star Tribune and is an article about a man who ran for sheriff in a small Wisconsin town. Not so much of a story, right? Well, it just so happens that before he started campaigning he changed his name to Andy Griffith, yes, as in that lovable sheriff from Mayberry. Check out the story for all the details.
The second story comes from Norfolk where a student was suspended for two days and is required to go to drug and alcohol counseling because she gave a fellow student a Tylenol. These zero tolerance rules are ridiculous.
We had some birds visiting the bird feeder that Julie got me for my birthday! I didn't think to take a picture but I think they were yellow finches. Of course, I'm not Jungle Jack Hannah so I could be all wet on this one. But they were yellow and very finch-like in nature, so I'm going to stick with it.
Heading off to watch some TV, chill out, and hopefully get to bed early. I always say that but for some reason...
Sunday, May 6, 2007
Running on Empty
It was a very long day. This morning we headed over to Excelsior and set up a TNT tent at the finish of the Wells Fargo half marathon. The first 90 minutes or so wasn't too bad - a slight breeze and a little drizzle. But by 10 AM the wind really started to pick up. We went to Home Depot yesterday and purchased some cinder blocks and rope to help keep the tent down but the wind was so strong that we ended up having to take it down. We were running into the strong possibility that either the canvas top was going to rip or we were going to bend the frame, so we closed it up and put everything in the car. Julie and Janice (also from LLS) walked around and handed out flyers and Power Bars to the finishers while I loaded up the car.
We had a new prize wheel that was definitely an attention-getter, although mainly with the kids. I think we got some strong leads on future participants so the entire day wasn't a washout. Julie and I then went to find the Tahoe cycle team and cheer them on as they finished up their ride. We then stopped and got some lunch and came home for a couple hours before heading over to the Life Time Fitness in Savage for some lap swimming with Coach Bob, Misty and Joanna. Julie probably swam around 700-800 yards and I was closer to 600 yards as I had some technique issues to work on.
If you've never been to the Savage LTF I wouldn't recommend it, especially if you want to lap swim. They don't have a lap pool, but instead have the kid pool and you swim from side to side. We figured on length was about 12-13 yards, about half the distance of a lap pool. And this is a new LTF! How can you build a brand new club without a lap pool?! Unreal.
Julie and I were talking on the way home from swimming tonight about how we don't think we've had a day off from either work or TNT in over 2 months. We're really looking forward to going to Tahoe with the cycle team in June! When we get back from Tahoe we can take the next 5-6 weeks and really push hard for the triathlon in July. One thing that keeps us going is how much we love the TNT program and everyone involved with it. We are especially blessed to be touched by the people who are fighting these blood cancers - they are truly our inspiration. We're also thankful that the fundraising has gone fairly easy this time as we just haven't had the time to focus on it. While we still have a ways to go we're not panicked about it. People know TNT is foremost about the cause and they are always generous. If you've already donated thank you! If not, there is still time to do so. Our fundraising web sites are linked at the right of the page. Thanks again for your generosity!!!
I think it's time to hit the shower and go to bed. Tomorrow starts another week. As it stands right now we have Sunday as our first day "off" in months and we're planning on keeping it that way. We need it!
Thanks to everyone for your support!
P.S. I've changed some of the options on blog which will now allow you to post comments without having to register, so feel free to comment! Peace out!
We had a new prize wheel that was definitely an attention-getter, although mainly with the kids. I think we got some strong leads on future participants so the entire day wasn't a washout. Julie and I then went to find the Tahoe cycle team and cheer them on as they finished up their ride. We then stopped and got some lunch and came home for a couple hours before heading over to the Life Time Fitness in Savage for some lap swimming with Coach Bob, Misty and Joanna. Julie probably swam around 700-800 yards and I was closer to 600 yards as I had some technique issues to work on.
If you've never been to the Savage LTF I wouldn't recommend it, especially if you want to lap swim. They don't have a lap pool, but instead have the kid pool and you swim from side to side. We figured on length was about 12-13 yards, about half the distance of a lap pool. And this is a new LTF! How can you build a brand new club without a lap pool?! Unreal.
Julie and I were talking on the way home from swimming tonight about how we don't think we've had a day off from either work or TNT in over 2 months. We're really looking forward to going to Tahoe with the cycle team in June! When we get back from Tahoe we can take the next 5-6 weeks and really push hard for the triathlon in July. One thing that keeps us going is how much we love the TNT program and everyone involved with it. We are especially blessed to be touched by the people who are fighting these blood cancers - they are truly our inspiration. We're also thankful that the fundraising has gone fairly easy this time as we just haven't had the time to focus on it. While we still have a ways to go we're not panicked about it. People know TNT is foremost about the cause and they are always generous. If you've already donated thank you! If not, there is still time to do so. Our fundraising web sites are linked at the right of the page. Thanks again for your generosity!!!
I think it's time to hit the shower and go to bed. Tomorrow starts another week. As it stands right now we have Sunday as our first day "off" in months and we're planning on keeping it that way. We need it!
Thanks to everyone for your support!
P.S. I've changed some of the options on blog which will now allow you to post comments without having to register, so feel free to comment! Peace out!
Saturday, May 5, 2007
Mr. Saturday Night Special
It's 10 PM on a Saturday night - do you know where your dog is?
This morning we had a fall season info meeting in Hopkins and it went really well. We had 9 people attend and 7 signed up, with the other 2 leaning heavily towards signing up. Suzanne did a great job explaining the coaching aspect of the program, Betsy talked eloquintly about her involvement with TNT and why she got involved, and Bob spoke about his treatment for Hodgkin's over 20 years ago. And, of course, Julie did a great job explaining the program as a whole. People were very excited about TNT, which is one of the things I love most about this program - the fresh eagerness to want to do something more with your life and be part of something bigger than you are. GO TEAM!!!
After the meeting we headed back to the LLS office to drop off the stuff from the info meeting and load up the car for Sunday's Wells Fargo Half Marathon in Wayzata. Julie and I will be working the TNT tent at the finish line and we have this really cool prize wheel that people will be able to spin to win TNT stuff. We're hoping the weather cooperates. We went out and bought more rope and some cinder blocks to help hold down the tent. Hopefully things will calm down for the race and we get some more people interested in TNT.
We also stopped by Leslie's house to check on her garage sale fundraiser and to order some purses that she makes. Leslie is on the Tahoe cycle team and is working really hard to get her last $1,000 raised. We talked for a while about what her first TNT experience has been like and she is really impressed and excited about the "team" aspect of TNT. The way everyone supports and leans on each other is something that she greatly enjoys. We're all hear to support each other and raise the much needed funds for research and patient aid. TNT draws the best people!!
Our fundraising is going ok this time. We're each still a few hundred dollars short of our minimum and over $1,000 short of our goal. I've signed up to bag groceries at Cub's in Plymouth for tips with about 20 other people from TNT. We've heard that groups tend to do very well with this type of fundraiser so we're looking forward to it. This will give me the opportunity to dust off my bagging skills!!
I was doing some digging through old pictures and videos and came across this one from the Nike Women's Marathon back in 2005. Julie is interviewing me at the victory party after we just finished doing the full marathon. Not sure if this link will work or not but we'll try it. If so, perhaps you'll get a small kick out of it...
Well, it's time to call it a night. And remember desperado - it may be raining, but there's a rainbow above you. You better let somebody love you before it's too late.
This morning we had a fall season info meeting in Hopkins and it went really well. We had 9 people attend and 7 signed up, with the other 2 leaning heavily towards signing up. Suzanne did a great job explaining the coaching aspect of the program, Betsy talked eloquintly about her involvement with TNT and why she got involved, and Bob spoke about his treatment for Hodgkin's over 20 years ago. And, of course, Julie did a great job explaining the program as a whole. People were very excited about TNT, which is one of the things I love most about this program - the fresh eagerness to want to do something more with your life and be part of something bigger than you are. GO TEAM!!!
After the meeting we headed back to the LLS office to drop off the stuff from the info meeting and load up the car for Sunday's Wells Fargo Half Marathon in Wayzata. Julie and I will be working the TNT tent at the finish line and we have this really cool prize wheel that people will be able to spin to win TNT stuff. We're hoping the weather cooperates. We went out and bought more rope and some cinder blocks to help hold down the tent. Hopefully things will calm down for the race and we get some more people interested in TNT.
We also stopped by Leslie's house to check on her garage sale fundraiser and to order some purses that she makes. Leslie is on the Tahoe cycle team and is working really hard to get her last $1,000 raised. We talked for a while about what her first TNT experience has been like and she is really impressed and excited about the "team" aspect of TNT. The way everyone supports and leans on each other is something that she greatly enjoys. We're all hear to support each other and raise the much needed funds for research and patient aid. TNT draws the best people!!
Our fundraising is going ok this time. We're each still a few hundred dollars short of our minimum and over $1,000 short of our goal. I've signed up to bag groceries at Cub's in Plymouth for tips with about 20 other people from TNT. We've heard that groups tend to do very well with this type of fundraiser so we're looking forward to it. This will give me the opportunity to dust off my bagging skills!!
I was doing some digging through old pictures and videos and came across this one from the Nike Women's Marathon back in 2005. Julie is interviewing me at the victory party after we just finished doing the full marathon. Not sure if this link will work or not but we'll try it. If so, perhaps you'll get a small kick out of it...
Well, it's time to call it a night. And remember desperado - it may be raining, but there's a rainbow above you. You better let somebody love you before it's too late.
Thursday, May 3, 2007
Taken To The Cleaners
Went down to the Twin Cities 1 Mile Run tonight to hand out Power Bars with TNT info on them. Mucho thanks to Misty from the Tahoe team and TNT alum Jon for helping hand them out. We started with 250 Power Bars and they were gone in five minutes. They had fairly good success with this last year so hopefully we'll get some future TNTer's again this time. They had various waves, each starting every 10 minutes or so, and the first person from each wave was pretty consistently crossing the finish line in under 5 minutes. Yeah, that's not so much me...
I mentioned Sinead O'Connor in the last post and also wanted to mention her second album "I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got", featuring her biggest hit "Nothing Compares 2 U". This is also a fantastic album worth digging out. I threw it in the car this morning - great CD.
Did you hear about this? There is a judge (yes, a judge!) who is suing his dry cleaner for $67 million for a lost pair of pants. I kid you not. Apparently, the pants were lost for only one week but the judge is still suing. Absolutely ridiculous!
One night in 1975, an out-of-work advertising executive named Gary Dahl was hanging out in a bar listening to his friends complain about their pets. It gave him an idea for the perfect "pet": a rock. He spent the next two weeks writing the Pet Rock Training Manual, which included instructions for house-training the rock. ("Place it on some old newspapers. The rock will know what the paper is for and will require no further instructions.") He had a friend design a box shaped like a pet carrying case - complete with air holes and a bed of straw - and then filled them with rocks he bought from a builder's supply store for a penny apiece. The rock debuted in August 1975 and sold for $3.95; by the end of October Dahl was shipping 10,000 a day. The fad encouraged a host of imitations as well as an entire Pet Rock "service industry," including dude ranches, "hair-care" products, and burials-at-sea. The fad died out in 1976. (From Uncle John's Legendary Lost Bathroom Reader.)
Sinead O'Connor's hit "Nothing Compares 2 U" was written by Prince.
I mentioned Sinead O'Connor in the last post and also wanted to mention her second album "I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got", featuring her biggest hit "Nothing Compares 2 U". This is also a fantastic album worth digging out. I threw it in the car this morning - great CD.
Did you hear about this? There is a judge (yes, a judge!) who is suing his dry cleaner for $67 million for a lost pair of pants. I kid you not. Apparently, the pants were lost for only one week but the judge is still suing. Absolutely ridiculous!
One night in 1975, an out-of-work advertising executive named Gary Dahl was hanging out in a bar listening to his friends complain about their pets. It gave him an idea for the perfect "pet": a rock. He spent the next two weeks writing the Pet Rock Training Manual, which included instructions for house-training the rock. ("Place it on some old newspapers. The rock will know what the paper is for and will require no further instructions.") He had a friend design a box shaped like a pet carrying case - complete with air holes and a bed of straw - and then filled them with rocks he bought from a builder's supply store for a penny apiece. The rock debuted in August 1975 and sold for $3.95; by the end of October Dahl was shipping 10,000 a day. The fad encouraged a host of imitations as well as an entire Pet Rock "service industry," including dude ranches, "hair-care" products, and burials-at-sea. The fad died out in 1976. (From Uncle John's Legendary Lost Bathroom Reader.)
Sinead O'Connor's hit "Nothing Compares 2 U" was written by Prince.
Wednesday, May 2, 2007
You Should Have Left A Light On
I needed to jump on and do a quick post before heading off to bed. It will probably be short and relatively sweet. It's all relative...
Training update: Tuesday night Julie and I had planned on going to Life Time and doing some weights and possibly running, but at the last minute decided to do some swimming. Didn't do a whole lot, maybe about 500 meters. On Wednesday night we had a fall info meeting at my work so we didn't work out. It just didn't work out to work out. We'll have to work in a work out over the next couple days. Yeah. Definitely.
I was searching through YouTube and came across this video of Sinead O'Connor doing a live performance of "Troy" back in the late 80's. It's absolutely incredible. She has so much talent and an amazingly powerful voice. This song showcases that very well. I could watch it all day. It's really too bad that her career was destroyed from one stupid thing she did in her youth. What a talent she has. If you've never heard her album "The Lion and The Cobra" you really need to get it. It's great.
So is it true that everybody loves Raymond?
I'd like to give a shout out to all the high school kids here in Chaska who read the blog everyday and are down with it. You're all cool cats! Fo-shizzle.
So Minnesota is trying to ban smoking anywhere and everywhere in the state. I have a few issues with this, but I heard one thing that I thought was stupid but typical. Apparently, tobacco shops, where they sell nothing but tobacco, cigars, etc., have rooms called "smoking rooms". (Who'da thunk, huh?) Well I guess they want to ban smoking even in places where that is all they sell! Are you serious? Unfortunately, yes, they are.
Actually, I don't know any kids from the Chaska High School.
Training update: Tuesday night Julie and I had planned on going to Life Time and doing some weights and possibly running, but at the last minute decided to do some swimming. Didn't do a whole lot, maybe about 500 meters. On Wednesday night we had a fall info meeting at my work so we didn't work out. It just didn't work out to work out. We'll have to work in a work out over the next couple days. Yeah. Definitely.
I was searching through YouTube and came across this video of Sinead O'Connor doing a live performance of "Troy" back in the late 80's. It's absolutely incredible. She has so much talent and an amazingly powerful voice. This song showcases that very well. I could watch it all day. It's really too bad that her career was destroyed from one stupid thing she did in her youth. What a talent she has. If you've never heard her album "The Lion and The Cobra" you really need to get it. It's great.
So is it true that everybody loves Raymond?
I'd like to give a shout out to all the high school kids here in Chaska who read the blog everyday and are down with it. You're all cool cats! Fo-shizzle.
So Minnesota is trying to ban smoking anywhere and everywhere in the state. I have a few issues with this, but I heard one thing that I thought was stupid but typical. Apparently, tobacco shops, where they sell nothing but tobacco, cigars, etc., have rooms called "smoking rooms". (Who'da thunk, huh?) Well I guess they want to ban smoking even in places where that is all they sell! Are you serious? Unfortunately, yes, they are.
Actually, I don't know any kids from the Chaska High School.
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