Happy Birthday to... Me

Did anyone ever say... "gee I'm glad I turned 49?" I didn't think so. How will I remember this birthday... the last birthday of the first half century of my life? I'm tempted to say that I don't like it... in fact I actually said that. I was a little grumpy all day long.

But now, after having dinner with my three kids at The Outback Restaurant, I'm going to change my mind. Turning 49 is just fine. The only thing I regret is that I'll always remember this birthday as the day the Tigers traded Pudge Rodriguez to the hated Yankees.

When I was born I nearly died after two days. Only through the miracles of medical technology were they able to perform life saving surgery. So you see- every day after those first two days has been a bonus and I'd like to think I have taken advantage of this blessing. When I look around, I have a great wife, three great kids, two great parents and a superb younger brother... how much luckier can a guy be?

So when someone asks me how was your 49th birthday, I'll answer... "everything I expected- it was great."

Now that's a lot of candle power on that cake!

Earthquake Felt Here...

BMO and I were at the house when it started shaking late this morning. Just after it sdtopped Erin walked in the door and wondered why everyone was excited. She was driving at the time it happened. It was pretty strong for being 100 miles away. Here's a picture from the U.S. Geological Survey website:

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/

They're saying we can expect some aftersshocks into the night. Although they have had over 30 up in Los Angeles, we haven't felt any... yet.

Everyone is home

The kids returned safely yesterday. After two weeks of nearly complete silence I picked BMO up early in the morning and Erin in the late afternoon. Both times I timed my arrival perfectly and didn't have to wait for hours on end in the airport. It must have just been a good day of flying weather across the USA.

They both looked tired from all the flying but no worse for the wear.

101 in 1001-- Item # 35-- No TV For Three Days

Why I chose This Goal: Has TV taken over a hunk of your life? I was concerned that it had for me. No our television wasn't broken... but maybe it's presence was breaking me down. I noticed I was watching several shows daily and when it came to not getting things done that needed to get done... well... it was time to look into the lost hours of watching television. I found that I was plugging into the O'Reilly factor and Cash Cab every evening. That's two hours right there. Add to that a Padres game... usually another hour- they get turned off when they fall behind by three runs or more.

What I Did: Starting on Friday morning, it was no TV for me. To avoid accidentally turning it on I put the remote in a spot I'd have to consciously go to get it. Not so surprisingly I've been able to get more stuff done around the house. Riding my bike more, doing chores and got to bed at a reasonable (9:30 pm) hour. Funny thing is that at 830 am, I've not even considered checking the news. This exercise focused my attention on how much time I have been wasting on TV. I'm going to limit my viewing to a maximum two hours total per day. Sorry Bill O'Reilly-you've been cut from my daily team. To twist his phrase, "Caution you're in a no TV viewing zone." Probably a good thing since O'Reilly usually gets my blood boiling for no good reason.

101 in 1001-- Item # 33-- Don't Speak For One Day

Why Chose This Goal: The monks of days-gone-by would take a vow of silence and would not speak for years. Could I do it for at least one day?

What I Did: Beginning last night I began my silence. Yes it was easier since I had the day off and the kids are away. But I did it. Additionally I began day one of three days without television. Guess what... I got lots of cleaning and reading done today. That shouldn't be a surprise.

P.S. Kilted Piper Winery began four new one gallon batches of wine. Two batches of white grape, one red grape and one peach. They are in primary fermentation (I added the yeast this morning).

101 in 1001-- Item #24-- list 101 things that make me happy

Why I Chose This Goal: Sometimes it's good to find out what makes you tick. I wanted to write down the things I enjoy doing and things that I like.

What I did: Over the last two days I sat down and listed off my 101 things. Most related to family and activities that I enjoy doing. It proved interesting and I had to do heavy thinking near the end of the list.

So far I have completed 21 of 101 items. That's not too bad for 2.5 months of trying. Yes, I've been cherry-picking the easy one's. So it's going to be a little harder for the next 81.

101 in 1001-- Item #30 Read 12 Books in a Year

Why I Chose This Goal: being well read is the sign of a cultured and civilized man. Hey- that's me! I enjoy reading and figured this was a slam dunk.

What I Did: It was a slam dunk... I read a dozen books, they're posted on the left side bar and marked by an asterisk. Most are non-fiction but there are a few novels listed. I've read 30 books in the seven plus months of 2008.

Five Foto Funnies

My Five Things

It's been hectic so here's a brief look at the five things that have shaped my day.

1- I took Erin to the airport at 6 am for her departure to Italy. Even that early it was a little nuts at the airport. I watched in amazement as a family repacked their suitcases, underwear and all, at the front of the ticket line to get it under weight. That was at 6 am. Just a few minutes ago Erin called and said she was delayed in Atlanta due to bad weather. She's already had her connector flight from Roma to Napoli rescheduled.

2- I cleaned out three dozen wine bottles and am in the process of sterilizing and bottling the Zinfandel/Shiraz wine kit. I'm just making sure that the mix has stopped fizzing and fermenting. For anyone who hasn't cleaned off the labels of wine bottles than you cannot understand that it took nearly two hours to finish the job.

3- I went over to Walmart to pick up some school supplies. All I wanted to get were some 5 cent spiral notebooks. Incredibly, a lady was there and she was filling her shopping cart up with these bargains... I mean like 300-400 notebooks. Really. What does one person do with that many notebooks? Can she have that many children that they'll use that many in one school year? Also on the shopping list was a set of college sheets for Erin. We are also the proud owners of a brand new, black , rubbermaid trash can.

4- Cats. Ten things that torque me off about our cats:
a. they cough up gross hairballs
b. they miss the litter box
c. they fight with each other all night
d. Rocky chews (and eats) white plastic bags
e. Einstein lays too close to my feet at night
f. They don't really "do" anything
g. They cry out in the middle of the night for no reason
h. Whenever you have dark clothing their hair is all over it
i. Einstein sleeps on the top step of the staircase... makes walking at night an adventure
j. Getting woken up at night and having a cat staring you in the face trying to steal your soul

5- I have two weeks in a quiet house- BMO is in Arkansas and Erin in Europe.

Sad notes: Bobby Murcer (Yankee baseball announcer) and Tony Snow (President's press secretary) died this weekend.

101 in 1001-- Item #5-- No fast food for 30 days

Why I Chose This Goal: After watching the movie "Super-Size Me" I saw how it ruined the guys health. He ate McDonald's fast food at every meal for 30 days and the serious damage it did to his body scared the crap out of me. Now I don't eat fast food every day or even every week... but a Big Mac every now and then wasn't so bad... was it? I wasn't addicted to it but... could I go 30 days without it?

What I Did: Starting on the 5th of June I avoided fast food restaurants and their food. We did it out a few times but if the place had a drive thru window or served burgers it was off limits. The list of forbidden places included: McDonald's, KFC, Burger King, Taco Bell, In-n-out burger, Rubio's, etc. So after 30 days success. Did I lose any weight? You would have thought so but no- I'm about the same as I was. In the end it wasn't so bad. It was more of an inconvenience than a problem.

Happy Fourth of July

My five things:

1- My Treo 70p smart phone arrived and ... its great. It combines my cellphone and my Palm Pilot. I use both - especially when I'm at work. The phone keeps me in contact with family and I use "E-pocrates" to manage my medications and prescriptions.

2- How about those Red Wings? They re-sign their all star defenseman Stuart and a fine backup goalie to replace Dominik Hasek. To top it off They sign fast forward Marion Hossa from Pittsburgh. they're going to be loaded in 2008-09 and unless things fall apart they should make another run at the Stanley cup.

3- Recommendation: Johnny Dangerously. I just got it om-sale at the borders and it's hilarious. Both of my thumbs are up on this one.

4- BMO is going to Visit Conner for a few weeks on Sunday. He's really looking forward to it. After that Erin flys to Italy for a two week visit with Karen.

5- Happy Independence Day. Remember the 56 brave men 232 years ago who put their butts on the line and signed the Declaration of Independence. By signing their names they essentially signed their own death warrants if we had lost our fight with England. How many can you name? These truly are forgotten American Heroes.

Always Use Sunscreen...