Based on your love of theater in high school, did you ever consider doing something professionally in that area?
When I was in elementary school, I was certain I was going to be in the NBA. I spent hours at the basketball court across from my house practicing to become the next John Stockton. My friends and I would spend hours having dunk contests on their back yard basketball hoops. Our junior high basketball team was pretty good.
Then came my freshman year of high school and everyone around me got taller while I remained short and skinny. Everyone became faster, stronger, and better than me in sports. This was a very unwelcome wake-up call to me that my dream of playing professional basketball would remain just that, a dream.
During my sophomore year, on a whim, I auditioned for the school drama club Fall production of M*A*S*H. I had no illusions of getting a role. In fact, I'm pretty sure that I hoped that I was rooting that I wouldn't get a role. I am pretty sure that I only auditioned because my cousin Brian was trying out and I was with him at the time. Yet, for some reason, the drama teacher cast me in one of the lead roles as Hawkeye Pierce.
And somehow I was good. And I loved being on stage. I loved getting laughs. I loved the costumes and learning lines and rehearsing with my friends. I especially loved being able to escape and hide behind all of the characters I played on stage.
As high school progressed and I still wasn't growing as quickly as my peers, I found that in drama, my size and speed and strength were irrelevant. I found that I had a previously undiscovered knack for theater. And my insecurities were dulled with this success. On stage, my wise-ass, theatrical, do-anything-for-a-laugh personality was not only encouraged, but I received praise and accolades. It was a win-win situation.
The summer before my senior year of high school, my friend Brad and I put together an improv/variety show with members of our community. As much as I loved scripted drama and comedy, I really found my wheel-house with improvisational comedy. I loved thinking quickly on my feet. I loved being able to showcase my wit and sense of humor without being restricted by a script (even though I would often go off script during drama productions just for fun and to see how my co-actors would react). We continued our improv acting in college when we put together a show with some fellow thespians. It was great fun and my love for getting a laugh never waned, even though it would end up being my last stage performance.
Yet in all of those years, it never occurred to me that I might be a wise decision to try to earn a living in theater after college. As with sports, acting was always just something fun for me to do. So while I still enjoy comedy, going to the theater for the occasional performance, and might dabble in community theater sometime down the road, I am certain that I'll never have the drive or ambition necessary to do it professionally.
It seems to me your views about gay marriage may be changing. Is that true? If so, what’s up with that?
Hmmmm, how to tackle this one?
Let me first tell you where I sit, before I tell you where I stand. I am a small "L" libertarian, which means that I am a fiscal conservative and a social liberal (the former more so than the latter). My first principle is to support and promote fiscal responsibility in government: balanced budgets, low deficits, low tax rates, low spending, etc. Notice I didn't say "no" deficits, tax rates, spending, etc. I said "low" because I believe in small/limited government (I'm not an anarchist), and even a small/limited government needs money.
My second principle is to support and promote independence, liberty, and freedom, both in society and economically. I believe that I know how best to live my life and spend my money. I am a Federalist, which means that I believe that our Founders intentionally created a government where power is SHARED between national and state governments. I believe that the federal government has enumerated powers expressly laid out in the Constitution (and that they long ago overstepped on those powers). I believe that our Constitution was created to limit government, not as a tool to limit it's citizenry. As Edmund Opitz once said, "No one can read our Constitution without concluding that the people who wrote it wanted their government severely limited; the words “no” and “not” employed in restraint of government power occur 24 times in the first seven articles of the Constitution and 22 more times in the Bill of Rights."
Finally, I wish that the Founders would have put the 10th Amendment first (Pop Quiz: Without looking online, say aloud the 10th Amendment). If you don't remember, the 10th Amendment states
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.
With all that said, I have come to the belief that there are many, many, MANY issues that are better left in the hands of state governments to handle, and gay marriage should be one of those issues.
In my world view, marriage would be seen by the federal government as a contract between two consenting adults. In the government's eyes, all marriages would be civil unions.
I would first eliminate the federal Defense of Marriage Act, as I believe it is an example of the federal government meddling in an issue that is not theirs to decide.
This would then leave it up to each individual state government and their citizenry to define which consenting adults could enter into the marriage contract. States would decide how old both parties would need to be. Some states would allow two 16 year olds to marry. Others would set the age higher. But it would be up to each state to decide.
In the same way, some (and, I would hope, eventually all) states would recognize all marriages, regardless of the gender of the parties involved (and, hopefully, they would do so legislatively, as Vermont and New Hampshire have done, and not rely upon judicial fiat to decide the issue in their state). Some states might never recognize same-sex marriage. My remedy to those gay couples who live in such a state would be for them to convince their fellow citizens to change their mind or, as a last resort, move to a state that does recognize same-sex marriages. (Similar to how some people leave a state that has too high of a tax rate and move to a state that has a lower tax rate.)
Also, I would like the federal government to switch from an income tax to a consumption tax as a way to eliminate the need for the federal government to get involved in the matter. This would eliminate tax breaks and incentives for married couples, thereby eliminating the current bias in favor of hetero marriages.
Is my solution perfect? No. Are there flaws within my proposed solution? Yes there are (probably more then I can currently see). But my solution would be wholly consistent with my libertarian and Federalist principles.
Thoughts, comments, and critiques are welcome in the comment section below. And feel free to leave your comments anonymously if you would like.
ALBUM: Boston by Boston -- with such hits as "More Than a Feeling," "Long Time," "Rock and Roll Band," "Let Me Take You Home Tonight," and "Peace of Mind," it's no wonder that this is the second-best selling debut album of all time.
NETFLIX: The Ultimate Fighter: Season 11 -- I just finished the first disc of this season, and it was fantastic. Thanks, in large part, to UFC President Dana White, this series gets better and better with each season.
SPOILER ALERT!!!!: With regard to the television show "Castle," I've discovered that a vast majority of the time, the murderer is the character (who isn't one a regular on the show) who speaks first. Feel free to try out my theory the next time you watch an episode.
6:47 - 6:49 -- I finally awaken enough to get up and hit the snooze button. (Which means that the alarm has been repeatedly beeping for a solid 3+ minutes, which gives my wife an interesting soundtrack while she is getting ready for the day in her bathroom. If she ever gets around to murdering me, this will be one of the top reasons for doing so.)
6:50 - 7:10 -- repeatedly hit the snooze button, with the hope that the Rapture will occur during this time so I can skip work.
7:10 -- drag my lazy butt to the shower. During the shower, it is my hope that the Rapture will occur so that I can skip work.
7:20 - 7:40 -- eat breakfast, let the dog outside to do his business, stop the dog from eating students from the nearby high school, check my email/eBay/Facebook/Twitter, sync my iPod, all the while hoping for the Rapture.
7:40 -- fight rush hour traffic to work, flipping between AM radio stations hoping that one will announce the impending Rapture.
7:59 -- arrive at work. Resign myself to the fact that another Rapture-free day is upon me.
8:00 -- arrive at my desk. Spend the next five minutes shuffling papers, checking that my stapler is full, emptying my two-hole punch, etc.
8:05 - 10:59 -- wander around the office asking coworkers for work, especially work that is VERY time consuming and menial. Such work includes breaking down old files, shredding old paperwork, stuffing envelopes, making copies, putting together new file folders, and preparing mortgage files to be sent out via UPS. Occasionally I'll be sent downstairs to the bank to get cashier's checks and to pick up the mail. During this time I listen to the previous day's Dan Patrick Show podcast.
11:00 - 12:00 -- drive home for lunch. Let out the dog to do his business. Yell at him to stop sniffing the grass and to come inside. Listen to the Jim Rome Show. Eat lunch, check my email/eBay/Facebook/Twitter/blogs, sync my iPod, get the recently delivered mail, open any recently delivered packages containing baseball cards, log said cards into my Excel spreadsheet, talk to my friend Burt Near Denver about the Jim Rome Show via Twitter, grab a couple of sodas, and drive back to work.
12:00 - 5:00 -- repeat the morning routine, but this time I listen to today's podcast of the Bob and Tom Show and the previous day's Mike Rosen Show podcast.
5:00 -- fight rush hour traffic home.
5:15 -9:00ish -- make and eat dinner with the wife. Watch any newly arrived Netflix. Take an evening walk with the wife and the dog. Watch more Netflix and/or television.
9:00ish -- tuck the wife in as she goes to bed.
9:00ish - 11:00ish -- surf the web, monitor my email/eBay/Facebook/Twitter. Also, during this time I'll go outside and check for a blue moon. If I see one, I'll head back inside and write up a blog post.
11:00ish -- crash into the bedroom. Startle my wife out of her deep slumber. Assure her I'm not a killer. Let her curse at me for a minute or two. Fall asleep immediately.
Would you ever consider training for and running a marathon?
The short answer to this question is a definitive NO!
But, since I can't stand to have three sentence blog posts, I'll elaborate. I don't like physically exerting myself. I find it tiresome and tedious. There are a few exceptions to this rule, such as walking while I golf (if it'll mean saving enough money to fund an extra round of golf), walking the dog with my wife (which I actually enjoy, even if I give my wife a hard time about it when she tells me it is time to go on our nightly walk), mowing the lawn, etc., but for the most part, I will do almost anything to avoid raising my heart rate.
So, while I enjoy many sports (golf, skiing, basketball, baseball, etc.), I don't enjoy running. I can think of no worse way to spend my time then running. To me, running is torturous. It is tedious. It is tiresome. And one of the best parts about being an adult is that I don't have to do something that I don't enjoy. I don't see any upside to running. There is no incentive for me to run. There are a bazillion other activities that I'd rather spend my time doing. So, I don't run. And I don't see my position changing any time soon.
For me, running a marathon is like playing tennis or playing a guitar. Could I do it? Sure. Will I ever take the time to do it? Probably not. I'll stick to the activities I do well, activities I enjoy, and activities that are not very tiresome.
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SONG: "Rock & Roll" by Eric Hutchinson
NETFLIX: We've been on a nice streak of watching quality television shows lately. Usually we'll get a new show from Netflix, watch the first disk and dislike it so much we don't get any subsequent shows. So, when we find a handful of great shows to watch, it's a very good thing.
I've thoroughly enjoyed the following:
"Deadwood" -- I can't say enough good things about this show. It may be my new all-time favorite drama (knocking "Six Feet Under" and "Dexter" down a notch). The acting is spectacular, the story-lines are well paced, and the writing is dry and witty. I'm currently working on Season 3 and the show keeps getting better and better. Not an easy feat.
"Band of Brothers" -- This show is growing on me. I thought the first episode was a bit boring, but the following two episodes were spectacular. Extremely gripping plots and great acting make this show a must see. I'm excited to see what the rest of the series brings.
The wife and I have enjoyed watching the following together:
"Castle: Season 1" -- while the gist of the show (a civilian assists a cop in solving crimes) is similar to another of our favorite shows, "White Collar", this one is unique enough to keep us interested. This show has enough plot twists to keep the viewer guessing about who done it. And the chemistry between the two lead characters is a nice touch.
"Dexter: Season 4" -- we both have loved this show since my bro-in-law introduced us to it in the shows first season. While seasons 2 and 3 had their weak points, we were happy with the addition of John Lithgow's character.
"The Closer: Season 1" -- another cop show that is fairly entertaining. It has some nice plot twists in each episode. It'll be interesting to see if it gets too predictable or if it can stay fresh as the season progresses.
We recently finished the following shows:
"True Blood: Season 2" -- great, fun show. We cranked through this season in a couple of days.
"Project Runway: Season 7" -- probably not the strongest group of contestants, but we kept watching because my pick to win the show stayed in (and eventually won) the competition.
Looking forward to the release of "Fringe: Season 2" and "The Ultimate Fighter: Season 11". I'm also excited about rewatching "Modern Family" and "Community" on dvd. Both are really well done comedies.
In the past couple of weeks, two of our best friends and their spouses had babies. The wife's best friend M and her husband M gave birth to little J.H. And my cousin B and his wife K had an early surprise when their son E.C. (also my initials. Coincidence? I think not.), was born a few weeks earlier then expected. Both parents are now home with their new sons, and everyone seems to be healthy, happy, and doing great. One of the hardest parts about being in another state is not being able to share in the joy of new babies in person. Pictures and phone calls are great, but it would be so much more fun to be there with them. And, while they never say it out loud, with the arrival of new babies in the family and friends circle, I'm sure many people are wondering why the wife and I are babyless (that's a word, right?).
In my circle of friends and family my age, I was one of the earliest to get married. And six great years later, I'm one of the last holdouts in the baby making category. So, why have we waited so long, and why are we planning on waiting even longer before we have kids? (I'll give my Mom a chance to pick herself off the floor after a panic-induced heart attack after the last part of that last sentence.) Four main reasons come to mind.
1) Financially speaking, we are not in a great place to have kids right now (and probably won't be for a couple of years).
Of the six years we've been married, we've only had one year where we were probably financially stable enough to consider having kids. When we first got married, I still had one year of school remaining, and the wife was just starting her job. We lived in a 1-bedroom apartment and drove less then reliable cars. Kids didn't make much financial sense. Year two I was starting a new job and we'd just bought a house. Kids still didn't make sense at the time. During year three we were a two income family with a house and two cars, so, financially speaking, we could have had kids and been fine. But we didn't (mostly because of the reasons explained below). Year four, with no kids, we decided that we were in a good place to be able to leave for law school, which bumped us back into the "it's not the wisest time to have kids financially speaking" category for three years. After law school, we'll (probably) be moving back to Colorado and reentering the job market, so it may be a few years before we're back to a financially stable situation.
2) We've never really had a long enough period of time of calm in our lives for the subject of having kids to make sense (or, life's stresses have always gotten in the way).
Year one was filled with learning how to be married, my finishing school, and the wife's new job stresses, so throwing the a kid into the mix would have been a big overload. Year two was filled with my being in survival mode as a first-year teacher (and the wife was overcome with the stress of being married to a first-year teacher. I think she got the tougher burden to carry that year.) and buying and fixing a house.
At the beginning of year three, we were in a less stressful phase of our lives, which lead to us getting a cat and a dog (usually the gateway drug for baby making). But, eventually the wife's job stagnated, so we spent a year preparing for law school, and goal number one of that preparation was staying baby free. The following couple of years were filled with the stresses of moving, law school, my new job, my being unemployed, my finding a great new job, etc. All of which would have been much more difficult with a child.
3) Married life without a kid is a ton of fun (or, less responsibility is a ton of fun).
One of my favorite comedians, John Heffron, has a bit about how he was at a point in his life where he had to choose between having a kid and buying a jet ski. And he chose the jet ski. At this point in my life, if I had to choose between having a kid and golf, baseball cards, nights at the ball park, weekly poker games, going out to eat as often as possible, spur of the moment trips/vacations, shopping sprees, hours on the couch watching tv and movies, blogging, etc., I'm going to pick the latter choices every time. Would it be possible to do those things with a child in our lives? Sure. But it is so much easier to do them, and to do them more often, without the child.
4) We're still relatively young and the so called "biological clock" hasn't really begun ticking.
Because we got married as youngsters, we were given a larger window in which we could have kids. We live in a time where it's not imperative to have kids at an early age. It's both scientifically possible and socially acceptable to have kids at an older age then ever before. My parents were both in their thirties when they had my brother. So the wife and I are in no hurry to have kids, biologically speaking.
With each passing year, the choice of having a kid becomes less and less appealing for many reasons, especially those listed above. Will we have kids in the future? More then likely. But right now (and for the next couple of years), it just doesn't make sense for us.
Well, technically, my 1st Blog-aversary isn't until the 18th, but being married to my wife for 6 years has corrupted me to the point that I can't wait until the actual day to open my presents.
Last year, around this time, I was chatting with Friar Tuck on Facebook and he suggested I start a blog. I told him that I'd started a blog a few years back, but, as with most of my childhood pets (frogs, lizards, turtles, etc.), I grew bored with it after a few weeks and my parents were forced to take care of it. Unfortunately, my parents didn't know the first thing about how to care for a blog, so they took it to a nice farm out in the country where it still lives to this day, right Mom?
Friar Tuck suggested that I give it another try. So, I reestablished "87 Murphy Squirrels" on August 19, 2009, with the following words:
It's finally time for me to get off the sidelines and finally put my opinions where people can read them, critique them, and challenge them. It is my plan to make a blog entry at least once a day.
I have enjoyed being able to use Facebook & Twitter status updates to express myself, but have always felt limited by space.
I also apply a heavy filter to my Twitter and Facebook writings due to the audience. I do not feel like alienating my friends and family by forcing my views/opinions/thoughts onto them via their news feed. I would rather have people show up on their own, when they want, and if they want.
So..............here goes nothing.
A year later, I feel I have accomplished everything I set out to accomplish with my blog. Over the past year I have written 160 blog posts (a bit shy of my idea to post daily, but not too bad). My blog has allowed me to express my thoughts and feelings about politics, movies, music, and golf. It has allowed me to brag about myself, my wife, and my dog. It has been an outlet for my frustrations, sadness, and anger.
I tend to have obscure hobbies and interests (i.e. baseball cards, golf club building, eclectic music, among others), and writing in my blog allows me to explore those topics in my own way (and hopefully educate others about the things that I enjoy).
Also, over the past two years, my wife and I have been living far away from our family and friends, so my blog (as well as Twitter and Facebook) allows anyone of those friends or family members to know what has been happening in our lives. It's a nice lifeline as we float along in this scary world.
Towards the later months of this past year my blog started running out of steam. I'd grown sick and tired of politics (and sick and tired of how angry my political posts had become). I'd said nearly everything I've ever wanted to say about golf in general. My movie and television reviews and recommendations had become cliche and trite. And while I'd found a new hobby in card collecting, those posts were slowly morphing into "look at these pictures" posts (which are not much fun for anyone other than me). In short, my blog was getting stale and boring. I had lost the passion and fervour that my posting once contained.
So, imagine my surprise when I found a "Happy Blog-aversary" card on the counter from my wife (and don't worry, there is still plenty of time for everyone else to send me and my blog something to celebrate our day. Not much time. But, technically speaking, there is still time. But not much. So hurry.) I opened the card and found this note written inside.
As much as I love reading your blog, I grow a bit tired of posts about golf, politics, and Luke Hochevar baseball cards. As such, I am giving you this gift of inspiration. Each week I will ask you a question for you to answer on your blog. This answer can be one word or one thousand words, but you must answer my question, and you must do so weekly. If your readers have questions they would like answered, please have them post the questions in the comments of your blog and I will work them in as the weeks go by. Hopefully, you will get at least a weekly blog post out of this deal and I will get to know more about you at the same time. I'll even help you with the name of this feature, "My Wife Asks..."
--- Your Wife
I am so very excited by this present. For me, the hardest aspect of maintaining a blog is finding topics that interest me enough to spend time writing about. And I can't believe I missed the most interesting topic there is for all of this time -- ME! And, since this is my party, I'll open one more present. This one is my Wife's first question.
My Wife Asks... what is your all-time favorite song?
There are thousands of songs that I love. I have favorite country songs, favorite rock songs, favorite DMB songs, favorite oldies, favorite hymns, favorite instrumentals, favorite rap songs, favorite classical pieces, and favorite heavy metal songs. But if I were forced to pick an All-Time Favorite I would have to pick
"Right Now" by Van Halen.
I love Van Halen and I love everything about this song. In my mind, every aspect of this song is perfect. Musically speaking, this song is awesome. This piano solo should be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Add to it the world's greatest guitarist, a fantastic drummer, and an under-appreciated bass guitarist, how could you go wrong? But as good as this song is instrumentally, the lyrics are what nudge it to the number one spot. Give the song another listen, and read these lyrics as Sammy sings them.
Don't wanna wait 'til tomorrow
Why put it off another day?
One by one, little problems
Build up, and stand in our way. Oh
One step ahead, one step behind it
Now ya gotta run to get even
Make future plans I'll dream about yesterday, hey!
Come on turn, turn this thing around
(Right now) Hey! It's your tomorrow
(Right now) Come on, it's everything
(Right now) Catch your magic moment
Do it right here and now
It means everything
Miss a beat, you lose a rhythm
An nothin' falls into place. No!
Only missed by a fraction
Slipped a little off your pace. Oh!
The more things you get, the more you want
Just trade in one for another
Workin' so hard to make it easy
Whoa, got to turn. Come on, turn this thing around
(Right now) Hey, it's your tomorrow
(Right now) Come on, it's everything
(Right now) catch that magic moment
Do it right here and now
It means everything
Pure genius.
If I was stuck on a deserted island and could only listen to one song the rest of my life, this would be that song. I have listened to this song hundreds, maybe even thousands, of times, and it always feels fresh to me. There are songs that I greatly enjoy the first couple dozen times I hear them, but soon they soon tire. Before long, I'll hear the first few bars of the song and hit skip on my iPod (or change the station in my car). But not this song. This song, I listen to the entire song, every time.
When I was in high school, I would listen to this song, and only this song, when I was in my car on game day. Before football games, I would drive to Loaf 'N Jug to buy a Gatorade just so I could listen to this song multiple times (I wouldn't have been able to finish the piano solo at the beginning of the song if I'd have driven straight to the gym from my house) and I wouldn't leave my car until the song ended. I am pretty sure that my playing this song over and over at a very high volume blew out a couple of speakers in The Celebrity. To this day, just like Pavlov's dog, my adrenaline starts pumping while listening to this song.
For the past 12+ years, "Right Now" has been my favorite song, and I don't know how any song will be able to overtake it.
Today I tried to pull some April Fool's Day pranks on my online friends via Facebook. With the advice of my wife, I decided to forgo the typical April Fool's jokes that we're pregnant (nothing funny about that one), that I've quit or been fired from my job (no need to jinx it), and/or weather related pranks (which is something only my grandma would find funny, and I'm pretty sure she's been banned from Facebook to help cure her FarmVille addiction).
So, this morning before leaving for work, I hastily jotted down the following "joke":
I can't believe that they aren't going to allow on the course spectators at the Masters this year because Tiger didn't want people watching him. The guy is a diva. And the people running the Masters tournament are a bunch of wimps for caving into his demands.
At the time of my writing it, I thought it would be good for a chuckle or two, but I now realize it was too much of a niche joke (and not all that funny in hindsight). One of my friends believed it was true, but it didn't bring me too much joy to point out that it was my April Fool.
So, the first lesson of the day: make sure to keep your audience in mind when concocting a prank.
When I got home for lunch, I decided to give it another try and came up with the following:
You know, the more I've read about it, the more ObamaCare sounds like a good idea.
This joke still brings me much pleasure, because anyone who knows me or has been reading my blog knows that very little is going to convince me that ObamaCare is a good idea. I also liked that it was more personal than the first joke, which lent more credance to it's credibility. And, it is a controversial topic, so I figured it would chase out a few people who were happy for my conversion and others who would be pissed about it. I ended up getting one of each reply. I also recieved a challenge from my cousin JB for me to prove on my blog that it's a good idea. Another friend questioned whether it was an April Fool. And my Mom gave me a "Oh, that's rich" reply, which is exactly the reaction that makes me happy that she's my Mom.
Lesson number 2: personal pranks are better than celebrity news pranks, those of political nature need to be crafted by a master jokesmith to be effective (and I'm not a master political jokester, nor was my attempt very effective).
I decided to give it one more try, this time broadening the scope of the joke, and going for something a little more lighthearted. I came to this joke while walking to the bathroom at work (number 1), which is where I often get my best ideas. I decided to end my April Fool's Day with this "gem":
Ugg, someone broke into my car and stole my CD case filled with my Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga, Adam Lambert, GLEE, and Celine Dion CD's. Luckily my Miley Cyrus CD was in the CD player because only "Party in the U.S.A." can lift my spirits at a time like this.
This update was probably the most successful one I had today. I received kind words from my friends, including:
L.G. -- "my 10 year old has all of these if you want to copy them". (I would never copy someone elses cds, because everyone knows piracy hurts us all)
T.B. -- "I assume you had your mp3 player loaded with the Best of the Jonas Brothers and Hansen." (of course I did)
C.R. -- "This prank fails because everyone assumes you have copies and b-sides on your hard drive." (again, guilty as charged)
A.B. reminded me to just "nod your head like ya". (words to live by. also, a candidate for my next tattoo)
D.R. -- "that's a devastating loss. Tell the wife to hide the rope and shower rods." (great advice. consider it done)
It's good to know that I have great friends to help me though the tough times in my life.
Lesson number 3: Putting Miley Cyrus and Justin Bieber's names in a blog post should help pick up the page hits from the 10-15 year-old demographic.
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THINKING BACK ON: Seven years ago today was the first time I told my Wife that I loved her. We had been dating for about a month and a half and had been doing the "I really like you" tightrope walk up until that point. We were upstairs at my parent's house and were watching a movie. I finally psyched myself up enough to take the plunge. I turned to her and said, "Can I tell you something?" And, at that exact moment, I had this internal dialogue:
Oh, man, today is April Fool's Day. What if she thinks I'm pulling an April Fool's joke? What if she gets pissed off and storms out of here? What if she doesn't want to say it back? What if I'm moving too fast? Uh, oh, this is WAY too long of a pause. What if she thinks we're breaking up? Say something, stupid. SAY IT!!!
I finally broke out of my trance and told her "I love you" for the first time. It was terrifying and exhilarating. And, thankfully, she reciprocated with an "I love you, too." The rest is, as they say, history.
(Bonus) THINKING BACK ON: The best April Fool's Day pranks that I fell for during my youth. The ones that have always stuck with me were both carried out by my favorite radio station, 98.1 KKFM. I don't recall which came first, but I remember that one year they were playing classic country music rather than the usual morning show. They would occasionally announce that the station had been bought by a country music station and that they were so thankful for the support they'd received in the past when they were a classic rock station. They also took phone calls and people were not pleased with the move, to say the least. Very funny.
The second prank came when the station announced that the Broncos had traded John Elway to Pittsburgh for Kordell Stewart (who had played QB at CU, so he was basically a local boy). This was before the internet was a huge phenomenon, so people couldn't hop online to double check the story. Instead, they called in to voice their support with the move (Elway was at the end of his career and Kordell was a great athlete) or their opposition to the trade (Elway IS the Broncos. Kordell is not half the QB of Elway). Again, very funny.
Since I did a book review of Sarah Palin’s book, Going Rogue, An American Life, I told Eric that I would also like to do a book review of Andrew Young’s book, The Politician. I am not sure this is really a book review, as it is just me expressing some thoughts that came to me while reading the book, but either way, here it is:
After it became apparent that John Edwards had a child with his mistress, and that he had a mistress in the first place, I was fascinated to hear some back story and what transpired to make this “family man” fall from grace. Well, as it turns out, the story is much more awful than I would have thought. Although my views on some things fall to the conservative side, some also fall to the liberal side. I am one of those people. As such, I don’t generally judge a book by its cover or by its label. Because of this, I became a big fan of John Edwards back when he was running for President/Vice President in 2004. I am not sure which of his views at the time I agreed/disagree with, but the thing that I loved about John Edwards as a politician was how much he seemed to love his wife. Not necessarily his family, but his wife. It was the essence of his image, and one that I bought hook, line, and sinker.
Now, looking back, I should have been a bit wiser. Everything that came out of John Edward’s mouth about his wife was kind, loving, and respectful. I cannot imagine any person, let alone woman, who would not like to have those qualities spoken about her publicly. Let’s face it; John Edwards always seemed a bit out of Elizabeth’s league. She was short and pudgy and never quite looked the part of a rich, political power. John Edwards, on the other hand, was exactly what one would expect from a politician. If anyone were to get elected based on their looks, John Edward was the man. Yet, John still seemed to love Elizabeth as much in 2004 as he had the day they met. He did not see her as short and pudgy, but rather as the love of his life. However, after reading Andrew Young’s book, I was reminded that Elizabeth Edward is quite an intelligent woman with a prestigious career. She grew up as an Army brat and became very worldly as a result of it. She also graduated at the top of her law school, just behind John. She really was a force to be reckoned with. It was this intelligence and presence that attracted John to Elizabeth at the beginning of their courtship and marriage. According to Andrew Young, Elizabeth continued to be a strong voice in John’s political career and a trusted advisor. But somehow, after many years of marriage and the gut-wrenching loss of their only son, John Edwards managed to stray outside his marriage.
Andrew writes that Reile Hunter was just suddenly in the Senator’s life and seemed to stay there. They first became acquainted in 2006 and apparently continue their affair to this day. Andrew reveals many questionable tasks the Senator asked him to perform in order to hide the affair from Elizabeth, including taking responsibility for fathering Hunter’s child. Andrew also speaks of John telling Hunter that the two would marry once Elizabeth had died of her incurable cancer. This part of the book is no doubt full of juicy tidbits and exposes John and Elizabeth as power-hungry and sneaky people who would do anything to get into the White House.
When reading the book, I actually believed Andrew Young. He does have incentive to lie and there were many quotes in the book that were virtually impossible to remember, but for the most part, I honestly believed the story he was telling. And at the end of the story, I did not feel better for having read the book, but rather worse. Yes, I now believe John Edward to be a man who played the American people like a fiddle. Yes, I now believe Elizabeth Edwards turned a blind eye while be relentless and not such a nice person with John’s staff. But at the end of the day, I just don’t care. John Edward created a public persona and ran with it for as long as he could. He should have been honest with the American people, but there are a many political implications of having something like this scandal out in the open. It is a game, and John and Elizabeth Edwards wanted to win that game. I can say that after reading The Politician, I would never vote for John Edwards to be a president. I do not understand how adults can lie like they are 12. That baffles me. However, I also wish I would not have given my money to Andrew Young. I think there are some things that are better left unsaid, and if Andrew Young was as dedicated to John as he claims throughout the entire book, he should have kept his mouth shut. His allegiance to John Edwards should have faded long ago, and because he made the mistake of not letting it fade, it is not now his place to air out dirty laundry of a family that needs to just sink into the background and go away. If you want to read this book, rent it from your library or ask me for my copy. I will be happy to get it out of my house.
Tomorrow marks the day that I met my wife seven years ago. Seven years should seem like a long time, but it seems like it was just last week.
It was a Friday, and my friend Brian and I were going to meet our mutual friend Michelle for our weekly lunch at Wendy's. All three of us were attending CSU-Pueblo in the education department, and we somehow had fallen into the habit of meeting up at the Wendy's on Elizabeth Ave across from the K-Mart every Friday. Usually Michelle brought along another one of our classmates, April, but this particular Friday, Michelle called Brian and said she was bringing her roommate.
And then they walked in, and I was hooked. I watched them as they ordered (Brian and I were already seated) and paid special attention to Rach. When they had their food and came to sit with us, Rach sat next to me, and I couldn't bring myself to make eye-contact with her, as I was too intimidated with her striking beauty. Luckily, she was attracted to me enough to overlook my shyness and awkwardness, and, we were soon dating.
(Our first picture together)
So, to my Buddy, I'd like to wish you a Happy Valentine's Day and I couldn't be happier that Dave Thomas decided to start a burger joint and then franchised these restaurants and then one was opened in at a convenient location in Pueblo in comparison to the college and they provided a quality product at a reasonable price. You're my kindred spirit and I know in my heart of hearts that the next seven years will be amazing.
Favorite song on iPod shuffle: "40 Dogs (Like Romeo and Juliet)" by Bob Schneider
Looking forward to: watching my cousin Lauren play volleyball at the President's Day Volleyball Classic at the Qwest Center tomorrow. Thinking back on: all the wonderful memories I have about my Grandma Eva. She was recently moved into a nursing home after spending the past few months living with my parents, but her health had diminished to a point where they could no longer provide adequate care for her. My friend, and their pastor, Clint has a beautiful post about his recent visits with her, and it was a wonderful reminder of how lucky I am to have such an amazing woman as a Grandma.
In honor of the approaching "love" holiday, and because this winter is stifling all of my creative juices, I thought I'd make a list of my favorite "love" songs. As far as themes go in song writing, "love" has to be one of the top three inspirations for song writers, along with "sorrow" and "partying". A simple search for the term love in my iTunes library resulted in 200+ songs with "love" in the title.
Since Billboard already created a list of the 50 Sexiest Songs of All Time, I'll stay away from the sexy/love-making-inspiring songs and will focus my list on songs that best represent the feelings and emotions experienced when in love.
TOP ELEVEN
11)Need You Now -- Lady Antebellum
One of my favorite duets (even though they're a trio, it sounds like a duet to my ear) in a long time. And what is a love song list without a country duet?
10) Up Where We Belong -- Joe Cocker & Jennifer Warnes
An iconic 1980s love song that, thanks to great lyrics and vocals, has found a way to remain timeless despite the horrible electronic keyboard and synthesized drum kit accompaniment.
9) Beautiful Mess -- Diamond Rio
This song was mildly popular when I met my wife. I would soon realize that the lyrics were the narrative to my life aswe dated and became engaged.
8) Happy Together -- The Turtles
Classic.
7) Heaven -- Bryan Adams
Unfortunately, this song has been overshadowed by Bryan's other famous love ballad, "Everything I Do (I Do It For You)", which is a shame, because I think this song has a stronger message of the power of love.
(unable to embed a video of Bryan Adam's version, but go HERE to see Bryan perform this song acoustically)
6) Oh -- Dave Matthews Band
Had the top five songs on my list not been written, I'm certain this is the song my wife and I would have chosen for our first dance at our wedding reception.
5) She's Got a Way -- Billy Joel
I love the simplicity of the piano behind one of the best explanations of the effect a woman can have on a man. This was one of the songs that we had our wedding pianist play before our wedding ceremony.
4) Love Comes Walking In -- Van Halen
This song is one of the reasons I prefer the Sammy Hagar years of Van Halen over the David Lee Roth era. I'd like to think that this will be the song that is playing overhead in Wendy's in the portion of the movie of my life when I meet my wife for the first time.
3) Your Song -- Elton John
This is another song that was played before our wedding ceremony. It's another great example of how amazing lyrics don't need a big musical arrangement to be effective.
2) Rapunzel -- Dave Matthews Band
One of my (and my wife's) favorite DMB songs. The ecxentricity of the lyrics and the syncopated rhythm of the music makes this one of the most unique love songs I've ever encountered.
1) Inspiration -- Chicago
The epitome of the love ballad, I'm pretty sure I wore out this cd when my wife and I were dating, and she always insisted I sing the lyrics to her, because I am a much better singer than Peter Cetera could ever hope to be. And, of course this was the song chose to dance to for our first dance at our wedding.
THE BEST of the REST
Addicted to Love -- Robert Palmer
I Will Be -- Leona Lewis
All of My Love -- Led Zeppelin
Make You Feel My Love -- Garth Brooks
I Just Called to Say I Love You -- Stevie Wonder
Carrying Your Love with Me -- George Strait
Angel -- Aerosmith
Every Breath You Take -- The Police
I Just Wanna Love You -- Jay-Z
When I Said I Do -- Clint Black & Lisa Hartman Black
You & Me -- Dave Matthews Band
Faithfully -- Journey
In Love with a Girl -- Gavin Degraw
Love of a Lifetime -- Firehouse
For Your Love -- Chris LeDoux
Almost Paradise -- Ann Wilson & Mike Reno
Two Steps Behind -- Def Leppard
Only Wanna Be with You -- Hootie and the Blowfish
Hello All. This is Eric’s wife, and he has asked me to do a guest blog about Sarah Palin’s book, Going Rogue, An American Life. Let me first say that I love Sarah Palin. I love how ambitious she is, how dedicated she is to her family, but most of all, I love an underdog. Although I don’t agree with all of her political views, I love that she is a conservative woman who is not an elitist. She is the very essence of what conservatisms should be and I respect that she sticks to her guns and does not falter.
I can remember the day John McCain announced that Sarah Palin would be his running mate. I spoke to Eric on the phone and told him it was a colossal mistake. However, as the months drug on and I learned more and more about Sarah, mostly through the liberal looking glass, I began to find something in her that I respected and wanted to know more about. As such, when I heard that she was releasing a memoir, I immediately logged onto Amazon and pre-ordered myself a copy. I had high hopes for her book, but I am not sure those high hopes were met. Don’t misunderstand, I believe her book to be an excellent representation of who she is, but at the same time, she was on the defensive for a good amount of the book and I found that off-putting.
She discusses many of her experiences working her way up the ladder in Alaska politics and at the same time being a mother. There is no doubt she had a lot on her plate, but she loved the challenge and worked hard at everything she promised to do. She was very conscientious of finances and waste while she was Mayor of Alaska and reduced the budget, including her own salary as Mayor, dramatically. She stuck to her beliefs and did not waiver. She also spoke of her stint as Governor of Alaska and how that gig had to come to an end following her Vice Presidential run because of unfounded ethics complaints that were costing Alaska, her home and the state she loves, too much money. However, she also spent a good portion of the first pages of her book discussing the troubles she had with individuals in her cabin and how she was constantly struggling against a political wall. I found this information interesting, but have to admit that I became bored and began to skip pages.
Sarah also discussed her family and the many trials she has been through on that front. I personally find this sort of information intriguing and did not skip a single page. Sarah is an avid running and quite concerned with fitness. As anyone who has seen her knows, she is very fit and takes care of herself. She speaks about her life growing up in Alaska and her courtship with her husband Todd. She is also quite candid with the reader about her pregnancy with Tripp, her some with Downs Syndrome, and the trials she went through when she found out about his special need. When speaking to these issues, she seems very down to earth and friendly.
Finally, after many pages of discussing her political past and her family, Sarah speaks about her experience with the campaign. There are many juicy details, including her calling out some campaign staffers by name and stating their sins for the public to see. I can understand that she probably felt so beaten up by the end of the campaign, leaving a bad taste her mouth, so she used her book to rid herself of that bad taste. Taking what she represents in the book at face value, I cannot blame her for that. It is her time to speak, since she explains how she was silenced through the entire campaign, and she is not holding back. However, the most telling aspect of the book, in my opinion, is the fact that Sarah did not once speak badly about John McCain directly. She does criticize the campaign and how it was run, but she never once says anything negative about the man who moved her career forward at lightning speed. I believe this to be the best representation of who Sarah is and the respect that she has for the political process. I would not be the least bit surprised to see Sarah Palin throw her hat into the ring in 2012 and I would be even less surprised to see her giving her acceptance speech on election night. I hope it happens.
So there you have it. I recommend the book if you have any interest in getting to know more about Sarah and her life, but I doubt this book will go down in history as one of the greats. I understand many people don’t like Sarah Palin because of her political views. However, I would implore you to respect Sarah Palin as a person and read her words directly without the filter of the media and then make your own decision. I know my opinion is different having read her book, and yours might be as well.
Mark it in your calendars: we only made it two weeks into December before my wife and I opened all of our Christmas presents.
Man, I love being my own boss.
Usually we observe our own version of Hanukkuh, opening a present here or there until they are all opened, which is usually 2-3 days before Christmas. But this year, we couldn't help ourselves and we opened them all up tonight after a lovely dinner at Chili's.
Our problem stems from the fact that in the 5 years we've been married, we've never celebrated Christmas Day in our own house, we've always been at my parent's house. So we figure, we're going to have to open them early anyway, why not open them 10 days before Christmas?
This year, I received the following:
A blue Titleist golf hat with a Creighton Univ. mascot logo (I've wanted one for as long as we've been out here)
Tiger Woods Golf '09 for the PS2 (I've only played it once, but I haven't been able to find any mistresses yet. Do I need cheat codes? Does anyone know?)
Four golf polo shirts (all from the Goodwill, all "retro" looking, and all with random golf logos on the breast, and none costing more than $3, which is the only way to buy them, IMHO)
An Amazon.com gift card (Foo Fighters Greatest Hits mp3 here I come)
A new seat for my drum kit (which I'll have to return as it has a 200 lb weight limit, which I exceed ..... just barely)
A driver head cover -- Callaway with a red/white/black pom-pom on the top (I've been wanting a pom-pom head cover for years)
A Creighton Univ. mascot logo golf towel (awesome)
So I basically cleaned house and got everything an amateur golfer could could need to be badass on the course.
My wife received:
"Six Feet Under" the complete series
A 2010 calendar that I created on Shutterfly.com that contains pictures from the past year
A carry-on luggage bag that matches her travel suitcase
A "power inverter" which will allow her to plug her laptop into the cigarette lighter so she can watch movies on road trips
Her presents seemed to have made her quite happy (especially the "SFU" series as she's run out of tv/movies to watch at night in bed), and I managed to surprise her with a few of the gifts.
So, while we may be unorthodox in our gift giving, at least we gave them to each other in December. That's good, right? Right?
* For the three people who read this who are not my wife, bro-in-law, or sister, "Wendy" is what many too many people think our last name is when they hear it on the phone.
On this day of Thanksgiving, I have so much for which to be thankful, so here are some of them, in list form, in no particular order:
I am thankful for my beautiful wife. She has been busting her ass for the past year and a half in law school and I couldn't be more proud. This semester she has been working part-time at a law firm and going to school with a full-time schedule. I can't wait to show her off at my 10 year high school reunion!!!
I am thankful for my dog Brodie, for always keeping me in the moment, because when I'm not in the moment, I might miss his awesomeness. Like this morning, while playing fetch, he saw a prairie-dog hill, so he struts over, lifts his leg, and marks it as his territory. I'm not certain that dogs possess emotions other than excitement and fear, but today, I'm certain, he had a look of pride on his face at a job well done.
I am thankful that my sister stayedwith us this summer. It was great having family out in Omaha and she pulled us out of our cocoon of comfort because the wife and I don't mind being boring, but we can't have my little sister thinking we're boring. We went to concerts, tried different restaurants, went to baseball games, and took the dog to the lake and state park. It was also awesome that our being in Omaha allowed the Sis to work at a very fine contemporary art studio as an intern.
I am thankful to have a great political sparing partner in my brother-in-law. At his blog, he has started putting out policy proposals, which I challenge him over, but I feel the need to make my own counter proposals so as to not just be the grumpy, anti-government curmudgeon sitting on the sidelines throwing stones. I need to actively defend and explain my beliefs.
I am thankful that we were able to move to a better part of town and live in a modern home. This summer the wife and I moved from our Mid-Town duplex to a home in west Omaha. The neighborhood is much, much nicer, and the house is not drafty and old. It also has a half-basement which is the perfect place for the pup to hang out while we are at work.
I am thankful for technology. This past year, I joined Facebook and Twitter, and started blogging. I doubt that I ever would have done this had we not moved away from home. These online places allow me to be connected with my family and friends no matter where we are. I have also reconnected with some old friends, which never would have happened had these sites not existed.
I am thankful to have experienced one of the greatest golfing years ever. I got to play weekly at an amazing course for free. I played in three tourneys. I created my perfect bag of clubs. My golf goal is to work my handicap down to under 10 next year. I also want to play as many different courses in the area before we leave.
I am thankful that our basement is so awesome. Half of the basement is our two-car garage. The other half is a family room. I have a place for my drum set and the wife has a place for her treadmill. But what makes this room the great room, is that it is the perfect set up for a home theater. We bought a digital widescreen projector, which throws nearly 100 inches of picture onto our wall. We also have our surround sound system set up, which provides the most amazing home movie experience we've ever experienced. This has also lead me to start playing my PS2 football games again, which has been nice now that the weather and shorter days have limited my golfing.
I am thankful for my awesome parents and in-laws. The wife and I would definitely not be where we are today without their support and guidance. I can't wait to see them this Christmas.
I'm thankful for all the visitors the wife and I have had this year. We've had my sisters, parents, in-laws, wife's cousins, my cousins, and my wife's lifelong friend all come to visit. I has been fun trying to find new ways to entertain our guests. It has lead us to find countless new restaurants, which we've enjoyed.
I am thankful that I got to see the Dave Matthews Band in Des Moines with my cousins, and that I saw Mat Kearney with both of my sisters, and OAR w/ Brett Dennen, and The Script with my sister who stayed with us this summer. It was a great year for concerts and for music.
I am thankful for five years of marriage to an amazing woman. To celebrate this milestone, my wife and I went on our first cruise. Also, my mom and dad had their 30th wedding anniversary, and my wife's mom and step-dad were celebrating their 5th anniversary, so we made it a family event and all 6 of us went cruising. Our trip took us to San Diego, Catalina Island, and down into Baja, Mexico. We had a great time. The wife and I also made a trip out to Colorado over Labor Day weekend where we and my siblings suprised my parents with a weekend in Estes Park to celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary. It was a great year for marriages.
I'm thankful that I was fortunate enough to be able to watch one of my high school classmates, Luke Hochevar, compete in professional baseball this past season. He started the season with the Triple-A Omaha Royals. It was such a treat to be able to head down to the ball field and watch him compete at a high level. And no one tries harder to get you to have a fun time than a minor league ball club. $1 beer nights and $1 hotdog nights were my favorite. When Luke got called up to the big league, I was able to go to five of his Kansas City Royals games and watch him pitch against the best of the best. Also, sports related, I am unthankful for the thunderstorms that ruined the one drag racing event I was able to go to this year to watch my cousin race.
I am thankful that my mother-in-law loves me so much that she would pack four Pass Key Specials in her carry-on luggage when they came to visit us.
I am thankful that I have been able to raise $226 for prostate and testicular cancer research during Movember, and that my team has raised over $500.
I am thankful that I have a stable job and a steady paycheck and get to work with some really great people.
You get the idea. I know I'm forgetting countless things I am thankful for, which shows me how blessed I really am, and for that I am thankful.
Went on a date with my wife tonight. It was a long time coming and I believe we both had a great time. As much fun as it was to have my sister stay with us this summer, it will be nice to have it be just the two of us again. (And Brodie, of course).
Since the beginning of our relationship, Rach and I have always been quite comfortable just hanging out together. One of our favorite past times is watching television and/or movies. It is even more enjoyable on the projector we bought, which allows us to watch a 90" picture and listen to our 5.1 Dolby surround sound system in our basement. It is nice to look over and watch her watching the tv, with her face lit with the ambient light. It is one of life's simple pleasures.
Tonight, we ate dinner at Chili's, which is a restaurant we have not enjoyed for months, since there is not one near our house. Of course we started with the chips and salsa, which is always tasty. Rach had a mango margarita and I had a Miller Lite. We both ordered the Buffalo Chicken salad, which was very good. And we ended with the molten chocolate cake. How very suburban of us, no?
Then we went over to the movie theater and watched the movie (500) Days of Summer. It was the perfect date movie as it was not too "lovey-dovey", which I don't like, and it was not too "shoot-em up" which she doesn't like. It was a very good movie. The script was good, the acting was good, the soundtrack was great. All in all, it made for a great night.
Tomorrow the in-laws come in for the weekend and then Rach starts back to school, so it was a nice way to cap off the summer and have a little bit of fun.
I spend my time chasing Murad T51s, building mustache franken-sets, tracking down eBay one-of-ones, and convincing my wife that manupatches aren't lame.
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