What?

"I went all the way to Torino, Italy to participate in the XX Winter Olympic Games and all they gave me was a lousy gold-colored compact disc."

NEW WRAPPING PAPER!!!!

Isn't it lovely? I'm so happy. I was so sick of the old page; and the title!?!?!?!? The title?!?!?!?!?!?! Geez, I feel like I need to be slapped around for choosing that. It's like the things I choose for decorating in my home. I hate to go with trendy things; 5 to 7 years down the road I hate myself for not thinking ahead. Trends suck. I'm currently looking for a psychological pamphlet titled "So, you want to put glass tile in your sons' bathroom". I'm probably going to do it, but in 5 or 6 years I'll be kicking myself again and have to do the "Honey, I think we should change the glass tile in the boys' bathroom again. It's out of style." Anyway, hoping somewhat normal posting and surfing will begin now that the Olympics are done. Take care.

Yield To Construction Traffic

Tammy is working on the Sabbath; shame, shame.

Please be patient as she reworks this page.

Past Life Occupation, Um, Okay

No, no, I'm not into the previous lives thing but this was funny.

In a Past Life...

You Were: A Lazy Undertaker. Where You Lived: Alaska. How You Died: The Plague.

Sasha Cohen

Let's go girl, the performance of your life; well, again.

We Coloradoans Are So Weird

After last weeks deep freeze anything over 30 feels balmy.

A special Colorado event:

I spent the entire day running errands and everywhere I went, shorts and t-shirts. Shorts and t-shirts. Shorts and t-shirts. It's 35 degrees; shorts and t-shirts. I never was able to pull that one off.

Oops, Sorry

Already dropped the ball didn't I? Actually I've spent my blogging time reading everyone else's pages. Just trying to get caught up. That and my wonderful, obedient, quiet, non-combative children are home today. Ugh.

Greetings

Please forgive yesterday's shameless self-promotion in order to drive up traffic on my first day back. But really, I work my ass off for that too. Anyway, here's the lowdown:

My thinking was that should I ever return to blogging that I would do it with my own domain and WordPress; I've changed my mind about that. It's very possible that in a few months I will have decided that I really do not want to blog anymore and I will have lost nothing. Investing in a domain and the time it takes to set it up will not be an issue. This is a trial reblogging run. I've just missed all of you terribly.

I am not going to completely immerse myself in the 'sphere this time around. I have established a daily time limit for myself and I will not go over that amount. Real life is just too important for me to have my backside parked in this chair for multiple hours a day. If I don't make it around to your place, I apologize. It will eventually happen.

Also, I have ANOTHER NEW E-MAIL ADDRESS. Gmail sucks it big and bad!!!!! I have been repeatedly locked out of my e-mail by Gmail and I can't take it anymore. You'll see my new address in the sidebar, but it is stacysblog@yahoo.com. Hotmail sucked, Gmail sucks, Yahoo has not given us any problems yet. p;oaksef;ldifadfjklfj Sorry, the new kitten likes to sit in front of the screen watching the cursor. I'm going to load her picture into Flickr today, she's one of the best things to happen to our family. But I digress, sorry. Anyway, also I will be changing the name of this blog. The NADH thing is so old and it makes me want to gag. I am going to keep the same URL, mostly for convenience; for both of us. But yea, new name coming, don't know what.

I would also like to thank all of you. I appreciate you stopping by and commenting, just like old times. Anywho . . . . I'll try and post something later on today. It's time to hit the weights. Take care.

Another Advantage To Not Blogging

When one is not spending too much time on the computer, they find that they are able to spend more quality time with their Bowflex and free weights.

Yo . . .

I'm going to hang out here for a bit. Try to touch base with y'all tomorrow.

It's Official

Our wrestling club IS cursed. This one is very big and bad and we've yet another funeral to go to Wednesday morning.

Dearest Rob, none of us understand. I will forever morn your death, our entire family will. I will miss you terribly. Your smile, your help, your presence. One day we will meet again on the other side.

This Is Why I'm Not Blogging

It was a great day; a long one (most everyone had already left), but a great one.

Adios!!

I'm sure many of you have already figured out that I no longer care for the 'sphere. This time away has been personally and spiritually productive for me and I choose to stay away.

I officially started blogging on December 31st of last year and have been shocked by how successful my blog became. This little housewife from Colorado crawled her way into the 300's of TTLB for a period of time and had quite an audience. I also found great comfort in knowing that there were such strong voices in this nation; voices drenched in common sense and reason.

This battle in our nation right now is frightening. Knowing that I have publicly contributed my opinion to this is pleasing. I will continue my fight, it just will no longer be here. Janette has offered a place for me at her blog and I might take her up on it; one day. For the time being I'm focusing on more important matters.

I appreciate MOST of you, the rude, irrelevant ones will not be missed. As I always told everyone "your opinion is welcome, just keep it cordial". You would think that that was a simple enough rule, WRONG!! To those people, and to those people who can't put your shopping cart in the parking lot caddies; or even worse--you abandon your cart behind someone's car so that when they come out of the store, they actually have to move your cart so they can get their car out--I wish nothing pleasant for you. You'd think the Christian in me would care for your well being, but I don't; oh well, whatever.

Anyway, to all of my loved ones, take care. I'm going to try and contact as many of you as I can by e-mail and thank you for your support and kindness. At this point I really don't see me ever returning to blogging, this season of my life feels complete. Thank you so much.

Still On Blogcation

Nuf said. Although you might want to check out Charmaine's place. She's at the Supreme Court and was doing some live blogging with the abortion thing.

Sporadic Hiatus Ahead

I'm fine, I'm fine. My kick-ass antibiotics had be back to normal by Saturday and I've been busting my back-side trying to make up for the lost week.

But, between wrestling season, the holidays, year-end and for some psychotic reason the husband and I have decided to start some projects; I'm short on time. Something must suffer and I choose blogging. I know days will come that I'll be able to surf and post, and all of you who have e-mail relationships with me know that that will continue.

I'm walking away from major traffic right now and that's okay. Priorities. Take care and I'll be by sometime.

I'm Alive, Barely

I have a nasty infection that was a few hours away from landing me in the hospital. I had a fever for three days with it often spiking at 105 degrees. Still waiting to see if there's any brain damage. LOL. Anyway, I'll most likely have problems still and might have to have surgery.

I'm taking some time off, at least until Monday; I feel like crap and really could care less about the 'sphere. Thanks for the thoughts and prayers.

Sick

Sorry, very ill; no blogging.

The Death Of Patrick

Many of my long-time readers might remember Patrick. Well, Patrick's gone now. Something ripped through the chicken-wire last night and grabbed him. Judging from how much is left of him, and how well it was removed; I'm thinking it was something bigger than a fox. We've heard coyotes every now and then for years, but they were always off in the distance. But with the construction of a new school going in down the road, they might be here now.

The funny thing about this story has to do with my neighbor though. Two weeks ago she lost her dog of 18 years; yes 18!! A week later a neighbor's husky got out and killed her goose. They have no children so they're pets are very special to them. Yesterday we were chatting and she said she was worried because death always happens in threes. I said "Jody, I'll gladly sacrifice one of my chickens so you won't have to lose another pet". We awoke this morning to what's left of Patrick. LOL!!! The kids are happy, they always hated that rooster; I guess I did too. I just kept him around because he was huge, the biggest rooster I'd ever seen. I have a few scars on my wrist from him taking chunks of skin off of me, and knowing I don't have to listen to those annoying sounds anymore is nice. I informed my neighbor this morning of his death and she was happy. She said she had chills and couldn't believe it, we just spoke of this yesterday. So in memory of Patrick, I'll once again place him on my blog for all to see.

Patrick - August, 2002 - November, 2005

UPDATE: It was more than just Patrick, I lost several roosters. Guess this solves my rooster problem. Now I just move straight to getting those goats I wanted.

All My Appreciation

Today, this Veteran's day, I'm thankful that I have my blog so I can publicly thank veterans. My prayers of thanksgiving were always unheard by those who actually served, but I hope you felt them.

To all the veterans that have served this nation proudly, thank you. From ages ago when the Union (mostly Republicans) battled against the Confederacy (mostly Democrats) to free the slaves and establish our nation as one; to those who have recently returned from Iraq and Afghanistan, again thank you. All of my love, everything within me, appreciates your hard work and sacrifices. Enjoy your day veterans, know that many of us do get it.

And The Years Keep Coming

On November 5th, 1968; my mother gazed down at her newborn baby and said "Great . . . another girl". Yes, that other girl was me. Tomorrow this housewife will be celebrating her 37th (ouch) birthday. And as a present to myself I'm taking today and tomorrow off from the 'sphere. I want to enjoy these days and not having to indulge in confrontations will be pleasant. But I'll be doing what I normally do too, shopping.

I would like to say however how thankful I am. Each year that passes is a gift from God. Some years I want to just laugh and say "Ha, I've beat the odds and survived another year". We all need to be grateful for each birthday we celebrate. I've known far too many young people that left here many years before my 37th. Take a moment, thank God for the breathe in your lungs and enjoy the years He gives you.

I'm Cured

I'm a tough cookie, that's pretty obvious. Bullets bounce off of me and I'm often referred to as a rock. People flock to me for advice because they know it will be harsh, but honest.

I have known many people throughout the years who say "Stacy, I'm not strong like you; you just don't understand how hard this is". I receive e-mails now from total strangers stating the same.

But there is one element to my life that has held a deathgrip on me since I was about 13 years old; my weight.

I spent my teenage years as an anorexic. At a height of 5'5" during those years, my weight would fluctuate between 90-100 pounds. There were health issues involved, so I would allow myself to gain a few pounds every now and then to please my mother. I remember her bringing me plates piled high with food and saying "I better not hear a toilet flush". I would hide the food and dispose of it elsewhere later on.

Anorexia stayed with me throughout my adult life as well. It would come and go like a bad boyfriend. There was usually something that triggered it; a painful event, an overheard statement or maybe I felt I wasn't pretty.

I would weigh and measure everything I ate; I even remember weighing lettuce once. It wasn't unusual to weigh myself a dozen times a day. The routine was methodical. Wait about an hour after I drank anything, use the restroom, strip my clothes off, take a deep breath, step on the scales and exhale. Anything over 108 lbs. left me devastated. I was too embarrassed to seek professional help, I just told myself that I would deal with it.

A few years ago while eating a salad, my husband said "Stac, I hate to see you eating like this. I wish you would eat more. I can't even take my wife out to dinner anymore because she won't eat". I decided then that it was time to confront this demon.

I did start to eat but the issue of the scales was too much for me to handle. I refused to weigh myself because I knew where it would lead me. Even at the doctor's office I stood backwards on the scales so I wouldn't have to witness the horror of gained pounds. I decided that I would allow myself a clothing size range and stay within that. And that is exactly what I have done.

Back in early April I decided to take weight lifting a bit more seriously this year than I usually do. I started taking supplements and made sure I timed everything correctly. I knew that I had gained quite of bit of muscle but was never really sure since I refused to step on the scales.

Well, tonight, for the first time in years, I weighed myself. My pant size has remained in the 4-6 range so I was shocked to see a number so high. A number that just a few years ago would have left me curled in the fetal position contemplating which method of suicide I wanted to use. A number I have never seen before without a pregnancy being involved. I weighed myself at the end of the day, with all of my clothes on; something I never would have done before; and my weight . . . . was . . . . 130 pounds. I stepped off the scales and dropped to the floor in laughter. When I gathered myself together I went and told my husband who said "yea, you've put a ton of muscle on". Later on it hit me that for the first time in my life, I didn't base my self-worth upon the number on the scale. I sat and cried for about 10 minutes; I cried tears of joy. Tears that brought about the end of this cycle that I've been imprisoned by for almost 25 years.

I'm proud of my weight. I'm proud that I've put I believe to be about 20 pounds of muscle on. I'm proud that I no longer am bound by an eating disorder.

My Continued Gender Identity Problem

I really do hate going into personal stories here, but this one's worthy.

I have spent much of my adult life doing guy things. I love using a shovel and have personally planted everything in our landscape. Nothing like dirt under the nails to prove to yourself that you're a tough cookie. I know more about internal combustion engines than many men do. I don't fear spiders, snakes, rodents, etc. I know what tool is what and was thrilled one Christmas when my husband gave me a cordless screwdriver. I have spent many, many weekends matside yelling "crossface, crossface" (which is a very painful thing to do to your wrestling opponent). I take creatine and lift weights (had to cut back on the creatine though, whoa). Get the picture?

I often complain to my husband that I don't feel feminine enough. Maybe I should wear jewelry, or paint my nails, or something; anything. My life living with four guys has changed my outlook, my thought process and my humor. Has all of this testosterone ruined me?

Well, yesterday I was getting an oil change (although I could do it myself if I had to) and there was a man in there with his bird dogs. One of these dogs was desperate to get to me. She was falling all over herself and wagging her tail in a rushed effort to have me pet her. Her owner then states "well, that's weird, she doesn't like women". Enough said, I guess I am a man.

A Few More Things

"K" from last week, aka Click, claimed that she would never come to my blog again. Well, the massive amount of time she's spending here is interesting. Hmmm.

Second, another member is being added to my community. Go check out Broman and give him a NADH 'howdy'. He might regret this later on.

UPDATE: Just noticed Broman doesn't have comments, well, that sucks.

OH AND ANOTHER THING: Yesterday I got to speak on the phone with Ron. He has had so many changes in his life lately that the IM's and e-mails weren't good enough for me. I wanted to hear about all of his changes straight from his mouth. It was a nice conversation that lasted for about 40 minutes. Ron is exactly as expected, not a bad thing. So many of us feel real friendships here and it was so nice to speak to him voice to voice.

God Bless Computer Nerds

That's all; God bless them.

Post For You Scumbags

Those of you who create and install trojans, spyware, adware, viruses, worms, et al, can go fuck yourselves. I'm guessing that's a sentiment the liberals and I can share.

UPDATE: Pardon my language, I'm upset. And . . . the more I got to thinking that perhaps the libs would agree with me on this; the more I thought "no, they would probably say that a scumbag like I described is just expressing their artisitic abilities".

New To My Neighborhood

I have added two new members to my blogroll; go stop by and welcome them.

Bohemian Conservative

and

Infinitely Prolonged

Racism Again

Yesterday was interesting, no?

First, 'K' is not a regular at my place. When you claim to be a regular you need to be aware of the meters we have on our sites. I have the paid version of Stat Counter and can research your visits. 'K' came to my place yesterday from Tom's place and left a little something behind for me. So trolls, don't bother lying.

Second a few items I would like to add:

Ken did a piece earlier in the week about New York Yankee's Derek Jeter. Jeter is biracial and recently came under attack by someone in the black community for dating white women. I liked Ken's take on the subject and it's a must read.

Next, my friend Maggie e-mailed me an article from the Washington Times about repopulating the city of New Orleans.

In the storm's aftermath, the Rev. Jesse Jackson and Rep. Maxine Waters, California Democrat, charged that relocating evacuees across the country was "racist" and designed to move black people, who overwhelmingly vote Democratic, out of Louisiana. The state elected its first Republican senator, David Vitter, in nearly a century in 2004.

A piece that Jo posted today contains links that only back up my current feelings regarding the state of black America.

In yesterday's comments Valerie left a valuable tidbit for us. She is the mother of a biracial child and spoke of the challenges they faced while adopting this child and their experiences since then.

I am one of those people who put their money where their mouth is. If I believe in something, I do something about it to promote it. I, too, believe in equality for all, and detest racism and prejudice. So, when the opportunity came for my husband and I to adopt a biracial infant, we decided to do so because she needed a home, and we honestly feel that it was God's will. We knew there would be times when problems would arise, but we were ready to take on the challenge.

I lost a friendship as a result of this decision. She was a wonderful friend who happened to be black. She didn't think it was "appropriate" for us to adopt a biracial baby because she felt we couldn't provide our daughter with the "culture" she needed. I asked my friend if she'd be willing to help me with that - and her response was to terminate the friendship. So, rather than be supportive and teach me things about the Black culture, and rather than ACCEPT the fact that my daughter was also half Caucasian who also needed exposure to her other culture, this woman spoke volumes about HER prejudice towards me and my culture by cutting all ties. Also, if by chance this adoption had been through an agency, there would have been no way we would have been allowed to adopt a biracial child because there is an "understanding" among those professionals (black and white) that white people can't properly raise a biracial or black child. HMMM - doesn't that sound a bit preducial???

My daughter was never taught to interpret events which have happened to her as prejudice. I never wanted to put that poison in her mind - i.e. that other people were judging her on the color of her skin. I believe if you interpret everything that happens to you as a direct result of racism or prejudice, then you will ALWAYS HAVE THE VICTIM-MENTALITY MINDSET. That kind of framework will get you NOWHERE. It erodes a person's view of the their society, and causes deep divisions within their society. Over the past couple of years, when there was obvious racial overtones to the treatment my daughter was receiving at her school, we have had several discussions about this very topic. I explained to her that some racism is based on ignorance, some is based on fear, and finally, some is based on hate. She will have to decide her response when faced with racism based on what the other person is motivated by. But, she CANNOT assume that the other person is racist because of the color of their skin, because that is totallly unfair and prejudicial.

One of the people I admire the most is Condi Rice. I have raised her up to be a true role model for BOTH of my daughters. But, you will notice how a lot of members of the black community talk about Condi. Not in admiration and awe for her brains, talents, faith, or beauty. But in derision because she just so happens to work for a president who has placed women and minorities in positions of power more frequently than ANY other president before him.

Obviously, this is a subject which stirs me up, just like it has you. I have mentioned this topic on my blog frequently - and I have started a series named "Racism Still Exists" wherein I will describe what has happened to my younger daughter. I thank you for your honesty and courage to tackle this subject as well. I noticed that the person above "K" was not brave enough to leave information as to where she can be contacted - so I seriously doubt that she is indeed "real". Rather, she attacked you personally without knowing where you are coming from on this topic.

Last, my contribution:

Now that Roberts has been confirmed as Chief Justice it's time to look at who will be replacing O'Conner. I personally have been crossing my fingers since this all began in hopes that Janice Rogers Brown will be placed on the SCOTUS. Ms. Brown is the epitome of the American dream. Born to an African-American sharecropper in Alabama, she clawed her way out of poverty to receive an education and currently sits on the Supreme Court of California. She is a woman who should be exalted in the African-American community but is instead ridiculed. In searching for information on her I ran into far more sites claiming that she is a HOUSE SLAVE rather than a heroine. Tell me, who is the racist in this situation?

Ode To Number 3's Gym Teacher

Once again an assumption landed me on my backside.

This all began last spring with Unplanned No. 3's field day. In the years prior field days consisted of the traditional activities. Running, jumping, throwing, etc., with place ribbons being awarded to the children; the proper way to conduct a field day.

Last spring No. 3's field day consisted of non-competitive group activities with no recognition of accomplishments. There was wet sponge throwing, a game using those Styrofoam swimming noodles, a game of placing a strip of fabric in the back of your pants and running around trying to step on this strip to remove it from others; just basically a hodge-podge mixture of games.

This year the gym teacher chose to do field day early for some of the grades and it once again was these group, game activities. I purposely did not attend this latest field day because I knew it once again would be the non-competitive games. I also knew that I would be unable to keep my mouth shut. My son came home angry and disappointed once again.

Being neck deep in the 'sphere you develop knee-jerk reactions to most everything you experience in your daily life. The current PC movement invading our school systems is yet another example of the destruction of inherent characteristics our children have. We all have memories of failures and successes in our childhoods, and how we coped and often conquered our failures in order to improve ourselves. Outward improvement often affects our inner selves and increases our confidence in all that we do.

I personally feel that learning to cope with failure is imperative to a child's development; and that that failure is often a motivator to achieve and accomplish more. Raising children to believe that there is nothing they can fail at is detrimental to their character. Life overflows with accomplishments and failures. Performing a task poorly, and being challenged to improve that task, be it by your peers or yourself helps to develop the fortitude necessary to be successful in life.

Reading of physical education programs in schools that have chosen to take on this new ideology of **EVERYBODY IS A WINNER** will directly affect these children's lives in the future. It equates with the 'Purple Marker' movement occurring in many schools in order to keep children from feeling bad about themselves. Feeling bad about one's self is a good thing, it promotes the ability to challenge themself. I fear a future where no child was ever taught the valuable lessons of success and failure. Without failing you will never discover what your true talents and abilities are. A world functioning on a level where no one was ever informed of their limitations will only lessen standards. I personally was a clumsy, unathletic child that HAD to develop those skills on my own. And here in my adult life, I'm quite the opposite and can recognize how those challenges made me grow, inside and out.

Back to gym teacher:

On Monday of this week I had decided that I had kept my mouth shut long enough. I have always been very pleased with our school district but was very concerned that perhaps they were intending on changing their policies. They have remained on the traditional level in a world pressuring them to cave to the new movements. We still have the Pledge, we still have Christmas programs, and as I stated last spring at my son's graduation, we had prayer. So, big mouth Stacy leaves a terse message for the gym teacher.

"Yes, this is Stacy ______, my son ______ goes to school there and I'm concerned about field day. I take issue with this non-competitive PC thing that has been going on at this event. Please call me."

She returned my call quickly and we had quite a long conversation. She told me of other activities that they do in class, what she expects out of children at their age levels, what they will be doing in the future and reminded me of the Olympic field day that she started that was competitive. She even mentioned that some have been trying to take away dodge ball and that she felt when it is played properly, is beneficial for the children. HALLELUJAH!!!!!

There are gym teachers in this nation whose goal is to not let the children feel bad about themselves, not to give them a 'physical education'. Hence the latest item I read where teachers had children jumping rope without a rope. Items such as those led me directly to the panic mode and the assumption that this teacher was guilty of the same.

I repeatedly apologized, I assumed things I shouldn't have; and this woman is one after my own heart. So Ms. B., again, I am so sorry and please know that I've got your back. You are truly challenging these children with Physical Education as they should be.

Another Self Banning

I had the best of intentions, but me and my big mouth have yet again landed us in a predicament.

When I must deal with any sort of government agency, be it City, State or Federal, I always make sure my ducks are in a row before attempting the dreadful task of acquiring their services. I call first, make sure I have filled out everything that needs to be filled out; I ask them to list everything I will need to bring with me; and then I ask them if there is anything else I should know. These lessons were of course, learned the hard way. I have on many occasions voiced my opinion in these situations to whoever was in hearing distance. I have pointed out the many faults in their systems and have confronted department heads and asked why the hell that employee was in that position.

Thank God the days of Scarlet Letters are gone, mine would be a giant 'B'. Every government office entered, I would immediately be shunned and told to take a seat.

Now granted, many government employees have to deal with undesirable people, anyone in retail understands. But it's our tax dollars that pay their salaries and they really should treat us more as customers rather than a nuisance.

So here's the issue. The first time we attempted to get Unplanned No. 2's Learner's Permit, the computers were down. It was just the other day that we once again had the opportunity to attempt this task, and I of course had called to make sure the computers were fine and that I had everything I needed.

The venture began poorly when we entered and the employee at the front desk was on a personal phone call and refused to help us. We went ahead and stood in line (and yes I said loudly, that frickin guy is on a personal call) but noticed that over by him was a 'take a number' machine. So we stepped back over there and waited while he finished up his personal call. When finished, he asked if he could help us, we told him what we needed and he looked at our documents.

Well it turns out that my son's birth certificate wasn't good enough for them. It is a legitimate State of California birth certificate, it's legal, it's good; it's what we got his passport with. We have used this birth certificate for everything for the past 15 1/2 years and were now being told that this certificate was no good. At this point I'm assuming its because the moron at the desk was thrown off by an out-of-state certificate and it was just too much for his feeble mind to grasp.

After I made sure that these people knew what they were doing was wrong, I went home and called the Colorado DMV. It turns out that my son's certificate, everyone's sons and daughters birth certificates, yours, mine, every citizen of this country; our certificates are no longer good.

After 9/11 they decided that they needed to change how drivers licenses are obtained. Being a government thing and all, it has taken almost 4 years to instill this new requirement. A few months ago, his old certificate would have been fine, but no longer. So, illegal aliens can get drivers' licenses in several states, but my natural born US citizen son, with proper documentation, cannot.

I am now going to have to deal with the State of California to obtain a new certificate. My first call to their Department of Vital Statistics went like this:

"Due to budget cuts, our customer service staff is only available from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon, Pacific Standard Time, Monday through Friday."

So California can find the money for Embryonic Stem Cell research but can't answer a damn phone. It took me two days to get a real, live person.

I'm beginning to believe that this is just a conspiracy. Its going to cost me $15 to get a new certificate. Now if there are 280 million of us in this country, then that's $4,200,000,000 that state agencies across this nation will receive because all of us need new birth certificates.

When we finally get the new certificate in 4 to 8 weeks, my husband will have to be the one who takes him in. I'm pretty sure they would remember me and I highly doubt they'll be helpful.

Blogging For Cody, The Fifth And Final Day

I would first like to thank those of you who have been faithfully coming by. The links and trackbacks mean so much to me and I look forward to returning to my usual bitching and humor. That will probably come back later on in the day, I have much to complain about.

In the days following the accident we learned much about the other boys. All of them had the same characteristics. They were all athletic, religious, intelligent, loving, giving and thoughtful. We heard many stories of volunteer work they performed and that they each were the kind of person who always thought of others first. My heart ached knowing that these eight fine, young men were removed from this planet and that the one who killed them, the one with a reputation for binge drinking, was still alive.

Cody's funeral was beautiful, there were over 600 people there. So many people were there that some had to stand outside. There were microphones set up around the church for everyone to tell their Cody stories. I found out that day that his family wasn't the only one who thought he was the greatest person in the world. The service lasted about twice as long as it should have and the processional to the cemetery was far too long. Colorado has made a law now that there can be no more than 25 cars in a funeral procession and I swear it must have come about because of Cody. LOL! When we arrived at the cemetery, the groundskeepers were impatient having been expecting us much earlier and it would soon be time for them to get off of work. I remember feeling as if they were vulture-like; waiting for all of us to leave so they could finish off what was left of Cody.

On the 25th the University of Wyoming held a memorial service for the boys. Our families were seated on the floor of their indoor arena and there were MANY students in the seats. We listened to Governor Jim Geringer, miscellaneous UW staff and the UW President Dr. Philip Dubois attempt to honor the boys. Many on the athletics staff did just that, but the governor, a man partially responsible for Wyoming law, I could not respect; and even worse was Dr. Dubois. UW was just coming out of the Matthew Shepard murder and had been desperately attempting to convey to the nation that they were not homophobes. Dr. Dubois took an opportunity to again stress that, stress it while there was media present, stress it when all of the families seated on that floor didn't give a flying fuck about Matthew Shepard that day. He spoke of how UW has changed and that they would not stand for sexual identity discrimination. Yet UW, claiming they came out of the dark ages, promotes alcoholism.

In the coming months we learned about several incidents of the university not acting upon drinking, and in some cases actually providing the alcohol to it's students. After the memorial service the families were invited to Dr. Dubois' home. There was food for all of us, but most disturbing, there was an open bar provided for us. An open bar with the liquor for it being removed from vans that said 'UW' on the side. All of the families just stood there and looked at the bar and thought "How could they do that? How?"

In the months following, my sister, and many of the other parents fought with the university to expel Clint. They were repeatedly told that they had no grounds to do it under. When at the same time in the media, we heard of a student expelled from Baylor for setting a cat on fire. Clint was a member of the rodeo team at UW and this accident divided the school. It became the athletic department against everyone else. Sides were chosen and eventually Cody's coach lost his job.

Wyoming's problems not only lie within its lack of drunk driving laws, but with their judiciary as well. Clint Haskins was found guilty but was only sentenced for 7 to 14 years with early release for good behavior. As it stands today, he will most likely be serving only 3 1/2 years to 4 years. He wasn't sentenced until May of 2002 and was allowed to finish college.

Since then I have seen two different people on two different occasions, wearing t-shirts that said the following:

"My drinking team has a rodeo problem"

It took everything I had not to confront those individuals. Binge drinking is a problem in many different groups, but is massive within the rodeo crowd. I had always enjoyed going to rodeos, and especially the National Western Stock Show. Since 2001 I have been unable to go and I hold much bitterness for that crowd.

There are changes that need to occur in this country. The federal and state governments need to recognize the seriousness of drunk driving and follow the examples set by other countries. Europe as a whole consumes twice the amount of alcohol the United States does, yet has virtually no drunk driving incidents. It's a combination of large public transportation systems and tough laws.

Once again, in the United States alone; 17,000 people are killed every year because of drunk driving. An additional 500,000 are injured because of drunk driving. I have received e-mails throughout the week with people saying, yes, I know someone affected by drunk driving. Who will it be next time? Will it be a friend, a co-worker, a spouse? Or will it be, God forbid, your own child?

I see no issue with enjoying an alcoholic drink. But when your problem is so large that you over drink and then chose to get behind the wheel; you should be shot. What is the difference between a drunk climbing behind the wheel and a person randomly firing a gun into a crowd? Nothing, both have the ability to be fatal to someone.

Hug someone you love, for you may never be able to do it again after today. And if you know someone who has a drinking problem, confront them. Their problem extends far beyond themselves, it has the potential to kill the innocent and destroy the family that has been left behind.

Dear Lord:

Please be with the families today as we remember, as we grieve, and as we ask that people understand the importance of this epidemic.

Amen

Technorati Tag drunk driving

Blogging For Cody, Day Four

The events of September 11th changed the destiny for my nephew and his friends. That weekend they were suppose to be at a track meet, but it was instead cancelled.

The morning of the 15th, the cross country coach took his team to the mountains just outside of Laramie. They all had record times and were exhilarated by their success. Wanting to continue that emotional high, eight of the boys decided to spend the rest of the day together.

Later on that day, they decided to drive to Fort Collins to shop, eat and dance. When their night finished up, they got back into the SUV they drove to Fort Collins in, and started their trek back up to Laramie. Seventeen miles away from Laramie on Highway 287, as they came around a corner, Clint Haskins, who had spent his night drinking heavily, crossed the line. Crossed it so far that he was almost on the opposite shoulder.

Clint's truck ripped through their vehicle as if it wasn't there. Bodies were shredded and ejected, and my nephew's body was thrown 200 feet away from the vehicle. The accident scene was horrific. Investigators picked up body parts and attempted to identify the boys from their ID's. My nephew, ejected so far, was the last one found. He was so maimed, they had a difficult time identifying him.

The calls to their coach began to come in. Repeatedly the phone would ring, and each time it was yet again, another death. When relaying this to us later, the coaches wife, who had been suffering with terminal cancer, told us that she just kept hoping, 'not Cody, not Cody'. You see, he took care of their children while she underwent therapy. He was always at their home helping her throughout her illness. The entire team, they felt, were their own 'kids' and together they were a family. A family who everytime the phone rang, grew smaller.

The driver of the truck, Clint Haskins, spent his evening drinking. We were told that on the accident scene, he reeked of alcohol and when taken to the hospital, was uncooperative. In the state of Wyoming a suspect must first agree to a blood alcohol test, it cannot be done without their permission. After several hours of asking him for the test that he had been refusing, one doctor in the ER took it upon himself to do the right thing and take the test anyway. Clint's blood alcohol content, several hours after the accident was .16. Later on that doctor, and some others on the medical staff lost their jobs for doing what was right. Alternatively, the driver of the vehicle Cody was in, had no alcohol at all in his blood. Of all the boys, only a few had a minimal amount of alcohol in their blood; that of about one beer.

That Sunday, my husband, our children and myself; decided to go to the mountains for the day to escape the news coverage of September 11th. We had a wonderful day hiking and ended it with dinner out. When we arrived home I noticed that my sister had called repeatedly and left a message. Oddly, my mother in law had been calling as well. "Stacy, I have some horrible news; call me as soon as you can". In returning her call, I couldn't get through and I asked my husband to call his mother. I remember the look on his face and him repeatedly saying "shit, oh shit, oh my God". And then his look at me, walking towards me while I tried to back away and saying "Stacy, I think it's Cody, I think, he's dead". I ran for my car and drove to my sister's house saying to myself "I'm sure he's not dead, just hurt real bad. It'll be okay, it'll be fine. We'll just get him better". On my arrival I was told indeed he was dead, he and seven of his friends killed by one fucking drunk driver.

I remember crawling around on my hands and knees for days and screaming in agony. I remember attempting to stand and being unable to. I remember watching my husband and my children writhe in anguish. I spent weeks hunched over the toilet dry heaving. Cody was my favorite person; he was the most delightful human in the world and emoted love and laughter everywhere he went. And my sister, a person who I would gladly give my life for, lost her first born child. The child that was all that was left of her first husband's legacy. The child that later everyone told us was "their" child as well.

If anyone who had ever been guilty of drinking and driving, saw the pain we had to endure, they would forever loathe themselves for ever having taken that risk. There has been no other day in my life, up to this point, that I have felt that much pain. One of the saddest elements of this event though, was knowing that the next weekend, there would be other families in this country enduring the same thing. Cody and his friends were not the end to this gross misjustice.

Technorati Tag drunk driving

Blogging For Cody, Day Three

Cody's love of cross country running landed him at the University of Wyoming. He spent most of his childhood in Colorado and we all found it ironic that he would be attending college in the state he was born in. Laramie was only a few hours away so he would still be somewhat close to home.

He would return for weekends and holidays, and I remember packing up LOTS of leftovers for him to take back. He was so desperate for home cooked food he would even take the older leftovers from my refrigerator. Men . . .

I remember his laugh and how he would stop by after he attended church. He always looked so sharp, it was nice to see a young person dress for church. He chose to go to church, wasn't forced to. He had a strong relationship with the Lord and it was obvious to everyone around him.

He was always so busy. Just non-stop, go, go, go. But it's because of that personality trait that he touched the lives of so many.

My middle son recently completed drivers ed and came home upset one day. He said that they had learned how other countries dealt with drunk driving, and that if our country took it as seriously as the others that maybe Cody would still be alive. In most foreign countries if you're caught only once drinking and driving your license is permanently revoked. Additionally other countries will incarcerate the offender for many years as well. There are rather large penalties for drinking and driving worldwide, but here? You must kill someone in order to receive jail time, and even then depending on the state, it's for a short period of time. The young man that killed my nephew, and the other seven boys, Clint Haskins, received a very short sentence. He murdered eight people and will spend roughly 6 to 7 years in jail. We'll jump into this tomorrow.

Please pass these posts around as much as possible, you might be saving the life of someone you know and love.

Technorati Tag drunk driving

Blogging For Cody, Day Two

Cody never had it easy growing up. When he was five his parents divorced and shortly after the divorce his father committed suicide. His relationship with his stepfather was never healthy but he was always optimistic.

He tried everything and kept himself very busy throughout his adolescence with sports. Of all the sports he participated in, cross country running was the one that he loved the most. He was involved with everything, everywhere. Church groups, school groups and was a rock that many leaned upon. He was a 'shirt off his back' kind of person and was an asset to our family and to the world in general.

You could call Cody anytime for help with something and he was there. He was a gigantic help to my sister when she had her third child who was quite a handful. He was there for me with my children as well. He did a lot of babysitting for us and would clean out our kitchen every time he came over. It was always a joke of "Cody's babysitting, I better go buy some ice cream".

He was the kind of guy the mothers wanted their daughters to marry. My mother-in-law always said "some woman is going to be real lucky one day when she marries him".

He had this habit of making surprise visits to people and I remember hearing the doorbell often and seeing his smiling face in the sidelight window next to the door. He would just stop by to say hello and play with my kids. His funeral was full of stories of his surprise visits and were such a comfort to us. My favorite one was from my brother who lives in Texas.

He and his family were sitting in their den one night and heard the front door open and someone start saying "hello, hello". My sister-in-law who had been undergoing chemotherapy was grabbing for her wig but at the same time wondering who just walked into their house like that. It was Cody; I don't even remember how he ended up in Dallas, but what a blessing it was for my brother and his family. They took a few days and enjoyed each others company. It was about six weeks after this that he was killed.

When my brother took him to a Rangers game they ran into people that Cody knew from Colorado. He was such a busybody that he knew people all across the country and even abroad.

My sister who works for a pediatric dentist/orthodontist has been participating in humanity missions around the world for her employer. Of all the places they've been, Romania touched their hearts the most. Her employer built his own clinic there in order to accommodate his staff and patients better. In the spring of 2000, Cody decided that he wanted to go to Romania with them for their summer mission trip. He was so touched by the children he met that he decided he wanted to follow in his mother's employers' foot steps. His plan was to attend Baylor after he graduated from the University of Wyoming and pursue a dental career that helped the needy.

I know that I will be unable to relay his 21 years in 5 days, because he was without doubt, the kindest, most giving person I've ever known. Everyone he knew felt honored to have known him; I, as his aunt, am humbled that we shared blood.

Technorati Tag drunk driving

Blogging For Cody, Day One

This Friday, September 16th, marks the fourth anniversary of my nephew's death. He and seven of his friends from the University of Wyoming men's cross country track team were killed by one drunk driver.

This entire week I'm devoting my blog to Cody and his friends. I'm not even sure where to begin. My hope for this week is to try once again to make people recognize the dangers of drinking and driving and the impact it makes upon society.

I was there the day he was born, June 30, 1980. I was so proud, I was an aunt. I remember our drive up to Wheatland, Wyoming vividly that day. It was beautiful and upon our arrival, he was there. So perfect, so exciting for my 11 year-old self. I gushed with emotion knowing that this was a spectacular chapter in life. Cody was the first grandchild born on both sides so he was special to many. I remember watching my eldest sister hold her baby and it was the first real example of mother and baby I had ever acknowledged.

In the coming years we often drove up to Wyoming to see them or they would come down to Denver to visit us. I watched this baby grow and felt more of a sibling attachment to him rather than aunt/nephew.

This was a boy that I loved dearly, he grew to be a spectacular young man. In the coming days I will tell you of his great accomplishments in his short 21 years.

For today know this; every year in this nation 17,000 people are killed because of drunk driving. Every year in this nation 500,000 are injured, many severely, because of drunk driving. With statistics such as these, most people in this country will in someway be affected by a drunk driver.

I should preface this week with the fact that I am not against drinking alcohol, but I am against drinking and driving; we all should be. I ask that all of my regular readers please link this week. Whatever your politics, we should all be able to agree that this needs to end. Thanks.

Technorati Tag drunk driving

Remembering

My thoughts and prayers go out today to those of you who are survivors or lost a loved one on September 11th, we still grieve as one nation this horrific day. Take a moment, hug someone you love, and remember that despite any political differences we might have; we do share a common enemy that cares little for the individual ideologies we believe in.

Plus, if you've the stomach for a photo essay regarding the hideous actions of Muslims go here. These monsters care not if you're Republican or Democrat.

Out For The Day

I swear our wrestling club is cursed. Not quite two years ago we lost two of our wrestlers, young boys, 7 & 8, and one of their mothers in a car accident. And today? We are headed off to a funeral for one of our wrestler's dad. He was killed in a motorcycle accident. Wear your helmets people, wear your helmets.

Good Bye

A piece of my childhood passed today. I spent many afternoons watching Gilligan's Island and I dare say there isn't an episode I haven't seen; even the black and white ones.

Why did America enjoy this show so much? It wasn't cutting edge, it wasn't spicy, in fact it was predictable as hell. Gilligan gets hit over the head with Skipper's hat, a rowboat appears in the lagoon, head hunters are on the island, Ginger has a twin, the professor creates something in his make-shift lab, Mary Ann makes a coconut cream pie and it disappears, Mr. and Mrs. Howell count their money; aahh Lovey, now she was quite a dame.

I know that for myself, it was innocence, pure innocence. There was no profanity, no sexual activity, not that Ginger didn't turn a few heads from time to time, no busting a cap in someone's ass, well except for the game hunter episode but Gilligan survived that one too.

I feel honored to have grown up with quality television. Sure my kids would look at a show like that now and be fighting for the remote. But it's nice to know that once upon a time, Gilligan was on a deserted island and I had a blast watching him there.

Blogging For My Family

Today, bloggers across the nation are posting links to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Being that several family members of mine lost their homes on the Mississippi coast, the Mississippi chapter of Red Cross is my chosen site.

Mississippi Gulf Coast Red Cross

Please give what you can. Thanks.

Technorati tagsflood aid,Hurricane Katrina

Ugh . . .

Despite having been born and mostly raised in Colorado, my blood hails from the deep south. My dad was from Alabama and my mother is from Mississippi. I have MANY aunts, uncles, cousins and their families living on the Gulf shores of Mississippi and Alabama. I'm anxiously awaiting updates from my mother, she spoke with her sister who lives in Pascagoula and it's not looking good.

I tried not to worry too much, they're old pros at this hurricane thing; but boy, did Katrina turn out to be a biggun'.

Mai Tai!!!!

Hey, I'm out of the 'sphere for most of the day. I'm being a good girl and getting things done. Have some fun with this one and I'll catch up with you later.

You Are a Mai Tai

You aren't a big drinker, but you'll drink if the atmosphere is festive. And when you're drunk, watch out! You're easily carried away.

Damned If I Do And Damned If I Don't

First, the winner is (ding-ding-ding-ding)

Tom at Admin Worm. My family liked his the most. It was:

Someday son, this will all be yours, except that sweet, all-natural urinal you see in front of you. I'm taking that with me.

Second, so here I've been dealing with liberal trolls and then some conservative guy comes in here and insults me as well. Well Franz as I said in my reply to you, don't come in here and critisize a blog that you don't even know. If you actually READ through my archives you would have been pleased with what you saw. But no, you read one post and assume an untruth. I will never change who I am for anyone. If you don't like my style, then quit coming here, there are plenty of other blogs to read.

I See Blog People

Quickly, because who knows how long my frickin' Direcway Broadband by satellite is going to work, (that's a whole other story, I'm looking into alternatives): I've got a few pictures for y'all.
Me with the one and only Vodkapundit.

Thanks to Dorkafork the picture of me with Protein Wisdom god, Jeff has been removed. Jeff told me I could post it, but he was drunk when he said that. But here's the real question dork; do we listen to Jeff when he's drunk or when he's sober?

And last, but not least,
Darren from Colorado Conservative.

It was a fun evening, but we left before everyone had too much to drink, don't know about anything after that.

Met some other great bloggers, the guys from Resurrection Song. And a fellow Munuvian, Rae from A Likely Story. I had a nice time, but damn I'm not photogenic.

One Of Those Days, The Good Kind

How many times have you been driving and some asswipe driving like a maniac cuts you, and everyone else, off? They speed, they don't use turn signals, and you're pretty sure they're probably carrying a gun as well. Then you say to yourself "where the hell is a cop when you need one?" Today, I witnessed sweet karma!!!! The aforementioned asswipe that cut off me and everyone else, was quickly pulled over by a police officer on a motorcycle hiding behind a tree. I'm still smiling.

Details, Details

First I would like to welcome all of my new readers. Thanks to the spectacular Michelle Malkin and Mary Katherine Ham posting at Wizbang, I received 786 hits yesterday. This morning at not even 9:00 a.m. I have received 550+ hits, so today will surpass yesterday. It's not that I'm a fantastic blogger, it's all about Cotillion. In the coming days my numbers will return to normal (between 250-300) hits per day and that's okay, I love my regulars.

I need to head out today and am hoping to write something pithy later. Feel free to rumage through my archives, although I should forewarn you, they are still a mess from my move from Blogger.

THAT DAMN BEAR!!!

I enjoyed my Large Mammal status, but when I moved from Blogger, everything fell apart. It seems as if it's taking forever for NZ to get his act together and put the housewife back where she belongs. If there is a shred of decency in you, LINK ME!!! It's been tough on my ego, how does a blogger who gets a good number of hits and links be listed as an insignificant microbe?

Today: Unplanned #3 started school and unplanned #2 starts tomorrow; but today (oh good Lord, I can't believe this is happening) #2 and I are going to go get his LEARNER'S PERMIT. I will have two teenage sons driving, how the hell did this happen? (shaking my head in disbelief)

I have a linky love for you too; This guy is a new member of my community, although I still need to Blogroll him, but he has this article up regarding abortion. CAUTION: GRAPHIC PHOTO OF ABORTED BABY. I do believe that everyone should see the picture, it reminds us of what really does happen in that procedure room. It's a baby, not a choice.

Take care and I'll catch up with y'all later.

UPDATES: The Colorado Dept. of Motor Vehicles computers are down AGAIN!!!! They need some serious help y'all, this happens all the time. AND: Anyone concerned about the code at the top of the page, it HAS to stay there for awhile, I'm trying once again to redirect stuff because of TTLB. Oh, and I put in a word to my IT gal about the remember me comment thing not working.

Obligatory Vacation Post

BLAH, BLAH, BLAH-There, does that work? Actually, IF you are interested in what I have to say about our vacation; I've broken it down for you. Below are 11 items that are in the extended entry. Pick and choose what you wish to read.

Smuggling Pocket Knives On To Airplanes
Schlitterbahn v. Water World
Air Conditioning In San Antonio
Patriotism
Marriott Residence Inn
The Little Turd
Downtown San Antonio
Children On Airplanes
Muley
My Son Beating A Guinness Book Of World Records Record

Smuggling Pocket Knives On To Airplanes

Of all my family the last one I would expect to do something stupid like that is, well, myself. I HAD this little utility knife thing. It had tweezers, scissors, nail files and a little blade all in about a 2 1/2" long holder. I carry this thing around with me everywhere in my purse, it has come in handy over the past 16 years. I usually remember to remove it when traveling by air but forgot this time. My purse was heavily x-rayed (I'm kind of scared to touch it now) and then examined. They found my knife and confiscated it. I am sad it's gone, it was a gift with my name engraved in it. But . . . cheers to the security screeners at DIA for finding it, it makes me more comfortable to fly.

Schlitterbahn v. Water World

The purpose of this trip was to visit Schlitterbahn. It was rated #1 in the Travel Channels list of best American water parks. Colorado's own Water World was ranked #7 in that list. In all honestly, we were very disappointed with the park. Our first day started with having to wait in line for 45 minutes just to receive a key to a locker that they charged $4 to rent. We needed two, so the days cost was $8. At Water World lockers are there for rent with keys in them. You simply place 2 quarters in the slot and bingo, you have a locked locker. Every time you open it you have to place more quarters in, but I only got into our locker once. So $8 locker rental Schlitterbahn, Water World would have been a buck fifty. After that we made our way to the lines that lasted far too long. The good rides were anywhere from a 2 to 4 hour wait. The good rides at Water World top out at about an hour. I personally have never waited more than 30 minutes for anything at Water World. Water World is cleaner, it's more organized and also spread out over a larger area so you never feel cramped. Oh, and the two days we spent at Schlitterbahn were week days. Water World is about a 20 minute drive from our house, so yes, we're stupid.

Air Conditioning In San Antonio

What is the deal with making all the restaurants far too cold? I know that it's hot outside, but that's what people are dressing for. Going into a restaurant that has AC blowing full blast 24/7 makes for a miserable experience. The last day I actually got up and walked out with my food to eat outside. Over air conditioning was a common problem everywhere we went.

Patriotism

Our day at Sea World was a moving experience. At the Shamu show they did a tribute to our military that left me with goose bumps. Being in Texas with the pride that is common place there left me emotional. During our stay there I saw only two Kerry/Edwards bumper stickers. It was so nice being among people who I knew were of the same mindset.

Military

I was shocked by the number of military personnel who were traveling by air. The San Antonio airport was full of traveling soldiers and I almost felt 'star-struck' by them. It was as if I felt that they were such heroes, such celebrities, that I was unable to speak to any of them or even make eye contact. It was an enlightening experience for me knowing that I held them in such high regards.

Marriott Residence Inn

Don't stay there. If you're staying in San Antonio go ahead and bust your bank account and stay at the Westin on the Riverwalk. I should have known that $209 per night for a two bedroom, two bathroom suite was too good to be true. The first day I literally made a list of all the things wrong with the room and took it to the front desk.

The Little Turd

Why is it that travelling can sometimes bring out the worst in people? Unplanned #3 is an easy-going kid. He's always willing to go along for the ride and is usually very cooperative. But this trip? He was unusually selfish and whiney, and he's almost 9; just weird.

Downtown San Antonio

I LOVED downtown San Antonio!! Downtown Denver is not a pleasant place to be. Actual downtown Denver is full of transients, yuppies and grass eaters. Walking down the 16th Street Mall here is a frustrating experience; you ask yourself if there's any normal people in Denver. And Denver's famous LoDo area is full of young adults who are down there to do nothing but drink themselves to death. But San Antonio? It was so nice, sure most of them were tourist there for the Alamo and all of the touristy stuff around it, but the regulars (you can tell a difference you know) were NORMAL people. Colorado is home for me, but Denver is far from the mentality of the rest of the state.

Children On Airplanes

If you have poor parenting skills, then don't take your children on airplanes. I know, I know, people with poor parenting skills are most likely oblivious to their shortcomings, but, good Lord. When you have children who are old enough to understand 'quiet voices' and are choosing not to instruct them with how to behave on airplanes, you shouldn't be flying; period. Unplanned #3 was close to getting up and shutting those kids up for everyone on the plane. He kept asking me why the parents weren't doing anything. From the mouths of babes, huh?

Muley

Muley was in the San Antonio area the same time we were. We were hoping that we would be able to meet up and have coffee together but the group he was traveling with never went into San Antonio and we were at Schlitterbahn on different days. We played phone tag for awhile but did eventually get to speak to each other on the phone. He was just as I expected, polite and interesting. It's amazing how well all of us know each other because of our blogs. I'll never understand why all of you keep coming back.

My Son's Record Breaking Act

We went to the Guinness Book Of World Records Museum while in San Antonio and saw one display that really caught our eye. The record for drum strokes in a 60 second period is 1,080. Unplanned #2 is a drummer. They had a machine that counted the number of strokes you do in one minute period. He did it and it counted 1,215. It was amazing watching him, the drumsticks were moving so fast that you couldn't see them. I have already contacted Guinness and am going through the necessary steps to see that MY son is in their record books. So hopefully one day soon you will see him in there.

Well, that's it. Despite anything that might sound pessimistic, I really did have a nice time and I loved San Antonio. I have lived in Texas before, Amarillo and Irving, and travelled through there much as a child. I love the people, I love the ideology, I love the history. I would most definitely return and look forward to the day that I get to. Hopefully it won't be another 20 years before that happens again. Here's a few pictures.

I'll Work On It

Okay, okay. I'm feeling guilty about my

I'll try and do something about it.

Strongly Recommended

I love this CD. At my church they do his "Grace Like Rain" song, very moving. I'm not one for listening to worship music outside of church much, but this CD is going over well with me, myself and I.