Hey one and all,
I suppose that when there is a black cloud, you have to find the silver lining. For me, last week's difficult turmoil was tough, but I got through it and when the week was over, I got to go spend some much needed time with the gal pal. I must admit, I was sleep deprived and could've used the time to sleep, but you know what? I got to enjoy my gal pal and I don't care how tired I am, she is always worth the effort. This last weekend was no different. I fell asleep in her arms on the couch watching TV (side note: I'm such an exciting guy...yawn) and she just sat there and stroked my hair while I snoozed. I even snored because I was so exhausted and she was understanding. She's a keeper, I will say that... I felt so energized after spending time with her. My attitude was better, I felt like my inner spirit felt better. And to all of you who keep asking me about when am I going to ask her.... well, I'm not going to ask her THAT question yet, but when I do, she told me to tell you all that she's already said 'yes'...lol... Like I told her, we may set a record for the longest courtship on the planet, but she is stuck with me and I'm not going anywhere but with her. She gave me the biggest smile of satisfaction that just lit up the room. I looked in her eyes and I felt the warmth and reassurance that even though it's going to take lots of time, I know that I'm where I am supposed to be. Where I was meant to be... with her as her man.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
More than a feeling... (with apologies to Boston)
Hey folks,
Hope your week is going decent. Me, I'm feeling better after a rough start to the week. One of my co-workers passed away suddenly and another co-worker ended up in the ICU with Lord only knows what. But she is now out of ICU so that's good, but still... Not a good start to the day, week or anything... I was bumming a little bit. Bev was a very cool lady. She was tough as nails if she had to be, but she also had a very warm soft spot that made her so endearing to people. She was suffering from the ravages of cancer and we knew it was going to eventually happen. But we were thinking in another year perhaps. She called work on Saturday night to talk to some of the folks that were there and she was laughing it up with them. On Sunday night, she felt short of breath, her daughter asked Bev if she wanted her to call for help. Bev said 'no' and closed her eyes and that was it. Bev would come in to work and she didn't like sports as much as I did, but she did love baseball. Atlanta was her team and every once in a while she'd go down and catch a game. She would also give me a word each week out of the dictionary to use on my sports show. Sometimes a tough word, sometimes a whacked out word. Her family was her passion and she loved them dearly. It's times like these that make me so grateful that despite the trials and tribulations that we have from time to time, I still have family to love. My parents are up in heaven, but I've still got some siblings and nephews, etc... I've learned to appreciate that regardless of the make-up of family, whether it's blood related, or if you're alone with only a couple of close friends, as much as I used to be a loner, I now know that we weren't meant to go through life by ourselves. I did for most of my life, but by choice. I didn't let people get remotely close to me for most of my adult life. Not till the last eight years. Dumb move on my part. But now with God in my life, and an inspiring gal pal to touch my heart, I've found more happiness in the last 2 years than I have in the previous, well... ever... That's because I've allowed myself to feel more of what goes on around me. There was once a time where sadly, Bev's passing would've not even phased me. But I thank God, that over the last few years, I've learned that it's not about me. It's about serving others and my faith in my Creator. That has allowed a bright light to shine in this once cold heart and say g'bye to my friend Bev with sadness. But also a sense of gratitude. A thanks for having gotten to know her and know about her family. Things I used to take for granted. Not any more. God Bless ya Bev...
Hope your week is going decent. Me, I'm feeling better after a rough start to the week. One of my co-workers passed away suddenly and another co-worker ended up in the ICU with Lord only knows what. But she is now out of ICU so that's good, but still... Not a good start to the day, week or anything... I was bumming a little bit. Bev was a very cool lady. She was tough as nails if she had to be, but she also had a very warm soft spot that made her so endearing to people. She was suffering from the ravages of cancer and we knew it was going to eventually happen. But we were thinking in another year perhaps. She called work on Saturday night to talk to some of the folks that were there and she was laughing it up with them. On Sunday night, she felt short of breath, her daughter asked Bev if she wanted her to call for help. Bev said 'no' and closed her eyes and that was it. Bev would come in to work and she didn't like sports as much as I did, but she did love baseball. Atlanta was her team and every once in a while she'd go down and catch a game. She would also give me a word each week out of the dictionary to use on my sports show. Sometimes a tough word, sometimes a whacked out word. Her family was her passion and she loved them dearly. It's times like these that make me so grateful that despite the trials and tribulations that we have from time to time, I still have family to love. My parents are up in heaven, but I've still got some siblings and nephews, etc... I've learned to appreciate that regardless of the make-up of family, whether it's blood related, or if you're alone with only a couple of close friends, as much as I used to be a loner, I now know that we weren't meant to go through life by ourselves. I did for most of my life, but by choice. I didn't let people get remotely close to me for most of my adult life. Not till the last eight years. Dumb move on my part. But now with God in my life, and an inspiring gal pal to touch my heart, I've found more happiness in the last 2 years than I have in the previous, well... ever... That's because I've allowed myself to feel more of what goes on around me. There was once a time where sadly, Bev's passing would've not even phased me. But I thank God, that over the last few years, I've learned that it's not about me. It's about serving others and my faith in my Creator. That has allowed a bright light to shine in this once cold heart and say g'bye to my friend Bev with sadness. But also a sense of gratitude. A thanks for having gotten to know her and know about her family. Things I used to take for granted. Not any more. God Bless ya Bev...
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Curveballs and Change-ups...
Hi all…
Y’know, sometimes you just gotta reach back and go for the fastball in life. You sit and look back at how sometimes life will present some challenges and throws us a curveball or a change up and we bite on it and end up in even more miserable circumstances. And when you look at it, the people involved are not able to do anything about it. I was sitting here mulling that over. I usually get over it when I start to think about how blessed I actually am when I think about my issues. The first thing that pops into my head is that my gal pal faces serious challenges every day in her wheelchair and she handles them without even batting an eye. She makes me realize that I don’t have much in the way of issues that I can’t solve. She inspires me to want to do more for others instead of myself. Well, sometimes, we get that curveball or change up that we weren’t expecting and we swing at it and miss. Or better put, we get reminders of how blessed we really are. One such a reminder is a young man named Kyle. Kyle is a 14 year old freshman in high school. Kyle was injured in November playing in a hockey game down in Dayton and is now paralyzed from the chest down. Kyle is still in a hospital trying to stay alive and cope with his new situation. Don’t know about you, but for me, to have such a life altering change to your world, would be dang near impossible to deal with… and at the age of 14 years old??? On Wednesday, January 14th, there’s going to be fund raiser from 5-9pm for Kyle at Buffalo Wild Wings and Weck (or better known as BW3’s) in Oregon, OH. We (Myself, Jamo, and Dave… better known as the ‘3 for All’ radio program) will be broadcasting from 6-9pm ET. BW3 or as we call them ‘B-dubbs’, is going to donate 10 percent of all the food bills from 5p-9p to Kyle and his family to help offset his medical bills, which are astronomical. We’re honored to be allowed to be a small part of this event. You can listen to the show at Toledo Sports Radio online. If you’re in the area, please stop out and say hello. If you’re listening from anywhere else, leave a note saying hi if you would be so kind. It would really help raise some spirits around here.
Y’know, sometimes you just gotta reach back and go for the fastball in life. You sit and look back at how sometimes life will present some challenges and throws us a curveball or a change up and we bite on it and end up in even more miserable circumstances. And when you look at it, the people involved are not able to do anything about it. I was sitting here mulling that over. I usually get over it when I start to think about how blessed I actually am when I think about my issues. The first thing that pops into my head is that my gal pal faces serious challenges every day in her wheelchair and she handles them without even batting an eye. She makes me realize that I don’t have much in the way of issues that I can’t solve. She inspires me to want to do more for others instead of myself. Well, sometimes, we get that curveball or change up that we weren’t expecting and we swing at it and miss. Or better put, we get reminders of how blessed we really are. One such a reminder is a young man named Kyle. Kyle is a 14 year old freshman in high school. Kyle was injured in November playing in a hockey game down in Dayton and is now paralyzed from the chest down. Kyle is still in a hospital trying to stay alive and cope with his new situation. Don’t know about you, but for me, to have such a life altering change to your world, would be dang near impossible to deal with… and at the age of 14 years old??? On Wednesday, January 14th, there’s going to be fund raiser from 5-9pm for Kyle at Buffalo Wild Wings and Weck (or better known as BW3’s) in Oregon, OH. We (Myself, Jamo, and Dave… better known as the ‘3 for All’ radio program) will be broadcasting from 6-9pm ET. BW3 or as we call them ‘B-dubbs’, is going to donate 10 percent of all the food bills from 5p-9p to Kyle and his family to help offset his medical bills, which are astronomical. We’re honored to be allowed to be a small part of this event. You can listen to the show at Toledo Sports Radio online. If you’re in the area, please stop out and say hello. If you’re listening from anywhere else, leave a note saying hi if you would be so kind. It would really help raise some spirits around here.
Sunday, January 04, 2009
Raising The Roof... (literally!)
From the “just between you and me” department...
So, last we chatted, I was asking about what you hope for in the new year that you would try to improve on. Me, I walked out of my house last week in the hope of getting together with my gal pal and enjoying the holidays and her birthday and have a great time. Well, I got (figuratively speaking) a swift kick in the pants. I walk to my car to head to church, and as I start to open the car door, I look back at my house, and notice that part of the roof is gone!! My jaw dropped and my heart sank. I just looked at roof and all that was there in the one corner was wood. Everything else was gone. I was numb. The wind storm that hit during the night before had wreaked havoc on my roof, the siding on my house, and the roof of the garage. There were 60 mph winds and higher wind gusts and the shingles couldn't stay in place. I swallowed hard and went to church anyway, choosing to thank God that nobody got hurt and that there were no leaks into the house. Trust me, that wasn't an easy thing to do. But that I did and I'm glad that I did. Our pastor just happened to be talking about being tested and how to be grateful to God during the tough times. Coincidence? I think not... So I go home and look at the roof again and this time, I wasn't so angry or sick about it. I felt better. I knew that I had a lot of stuff to do to get done, but I knew I was going to be okay. The only bad spot was that my girlfriend was expecting me to be coming to see her in a matter of a couple of hours and I had to let her know that I wasn't going to make it. To say she was disappointed is a great understatement. I couldn't be with her for Christmas. I couldn't be with her for her birthday. And now because of a stinkin' roof, I wasn't sure if I'd get to see her at all. Well, I threw my arms up and asked God to handle this one. As I was reporting all the details outside on my cell phone, a neighbor of mine is driving down the road and stops and gives me his card. Turns out he's a roofer and said he'd be able to help me to get this puppy taken care of. I felt better immediately. After getting the info I needed, I was able to go 2 days late and head to the gal pal's and spend a couple of days with her and her family. I took her out for dinner and a movie and by the time that we got home, it was 11:25pm on new year's eve. We were both so tired that we forgot that it was new year's eve. I had kissed her goodnight and when we seen each other the next morning, we both laughed when we realized that we missed bringing in the new year together. But we made up for it on new year's day... lol... So, what started out as miserable week, ended up being a pretty good one after all. So I thank GOD for being so good and giving me peace during difficulties and helping me deal with what seemed to be a rotten situation and putting people in my path that allow me to not only resolve things, but give me the perspective to realize that I needed to deal with everything and keep my sense of humor and calm throughout the whole ordeal. Plus my gal pal. Without her being there, I'd be toast. She wasn't happy about me not being there at the beginning of the week. But she understood and continues to amaze me with who she is... a true gift from God...
So, last we chatted, I was asking about what you hope for in the new year that you would try to improve on. Me, I walked out of my house last week in the hope of getting together with my gal pal and enjoying the holidays and her birthday and have a great time. Well, I got (figuratively speaking) a swift kick in the pants. I walk to my car to head to church, and as I start to open the car door, I look back at my house, and notice that part of the roof is gone!! My jaw dropped and my heart sank. I just looked at roof and all that was there in the one corner was wood. Everything else was gone. I was numb. The wind storm that hit during the night before had wreaked havoc on my roof, the siding on my house, and the roof of the garage. There were 60 mph winds and higher wind gusts and the shingles couldn't stay in place. I swallowed hard and went to church anyway, choosing to thank God that nobody got hurt and that there were no leaks into the house. Trust me, that wasn't an easy thing to do. But that I did and I'm glad that I did. Our pastor just happened to be talking about being tested and how to be grateful to God during the tough times. Coincidence? I think not... So I go home and look at the roof again and this time, I wasn't so angry or sick about it. I felt better. I knew that I had a lot of stuff to do to get done, but I knew I was going to be okay. The only bad spot was that my girlfriend was expecting me to be coming to see her in a matter of a couple of hours and I had to let her know that I wasn't going to make it. To say she was disappointed is a great understatement. I couldn't be with her for Christmas. I couldn't be with her for her birthday. And now because of a stinkin' roof, I wasn't sure if I'd get to see her at all. Well, I threw my arms up and asked God to handle this one. As I was reporting all the details outside on my cell phone, a neighbor of mine is driving down the road and stops and gives me his card. Turns out he's a roofer and said he'd be able to help me to get this puppy taken care of. I felt better immediately. After getting the info I needed, I was able to go 2 days late and head to the gal pal's and spend a couple of days with her and her family. I took her out for dinner and a movie and by the time that we got home, it was 11:25pm on new year's eve. We were both so tired that we forgot that it was new year's eve. I had kissed her goodnight and when we seen each other the next morning, we both laughed when we realized that we missed bringing in the new year together. But we made up for it on new year's day... lol... So, what started out as miserable week, ended up being a pretty good one after all. So I thank GOD for being so good and giving me peace during difficulties and helping me deal with what seemed to be a rotten situation and putting people in my path that allow me to not only resolve things, but give me the perspective to realize that I needed to deal with everything and keep my sense of humor and calm throughout the whole ordeal. Plus my gal pal. Without her being there, I'd be toast. She wasn't happy about me not being there at the beginning of the week. But she understood and continues to amaze me with who she is... a true gift from God...
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Adieu to '08... Looking Forward to '09
Hey y'all,
Just dropping a line to say howdy as we come to the close of 2008. Lord knows there are a lot of things I won't miss about '08 and am looking forward to 2009. I wonder what 2009 will bring? I'm wondering what to hope for as we dip our tootsies into the sea of '09? I guess my hope for 2009 is for a calmer world, less stress for me and my family. more success for us. Things like that. Good health would sure be a big help! As I type this, the winds are whipping here on the lake and I've already heard a few shingles blow off of my roof. I know one new year's resolution that is rooted in reality... fixing my dang roof.... grrrr.... Besides that, some of the old favorites are there for me to try and stick with... lose weight, more exercising, try and be a better person. Only this year, I'm going to make a conscious effort to get to more blogs/journals as I've been less that stellar in that department over the last year and have lost touch with a couple of folks. I want to make that right and get my poop in a group. I know that's something I want to work at heading into the new year. So what is your new year's resolution and do you think you'll be able to keep it?
Just dropping a line to say howdy as we come to the close of 2008. Lord knows there are a lot of things I won't miss about '08 and am looking forward to 2009. I wonder what 2009 will bring? I'm wondering what to hope for as we dip our tootsies into the sea of '09? I guess my hope for 2009 is for a calmer world, less stress for me and my family. more success for us. Things like that. Good health would sure be a big help! As I type this, the winds are whipping here on the lake and I've already heard a few shingles blow off of my roof. I know one new year's resolution that is rooted in reality... fixing my dang roof.... grrrr.... Besides that, some of the old favorites are there for me to try and stick with... lose weight, more exercising, try and be a better person. Only this year, I'm going to make a conscious effort to get to more blogs/journals as I've been less that stellar in that department over the last year and have lost touch with a couple of folks. I want to make that right and get my poop in a group. I know that's something I want to work at heading into the new year. So what is your new year's resolution and do you think you'll be able to keep it?
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Christmas on TV...
As we get closer to Our Lord's birthday, I was thinking about all the Christmas shows that are out on tv now... between ABC Family and the Hallmark Channel, there's a bizillion to choose from. But I'm an old school kind of guy. Now, though I am a christian, and I believe in the REAL meaning of Christmas, I still enjoy Christmas themed shows because even though they are more secular and revolve around holiday characters and activities (santa, shopping, decorating the tree, etc...) They still take me back to a more innocent time. As tough as things are right now with the economy, I enjoy the old school movies and tv shows that highlight the joy of Christmas. Looking back, I started thinking about which of the old school shows and movies were my favorites. I couldn't pick just one of each. But I limited my picks to three of each. So I narrowed it down to my top three Christmas movies and top three Christmas shows.
Top 3 Movies:
1) A Christmas Story- Watching Peter Billingsley as Ralphie and Darren McGavin as his father, this flick is an absolute classic. The fish-net legged stocking lamp is my favorite part. That and when Ralphie inadvertently curses while his dad is changing a flat tire an ends up with a bar of Lifeboy Soap in his mouth... Priceless stuff.
2) It's a Wonderful Life- Yeah, it's a bit schmaltzy when you watch it, but hey, with the economy as it is right now, maybe we should watch this one again and pay attention to the last 45 minutes of the movie...
3) The Santa Clause- Okay, so it's not as old as the others, but I love Tim Allen in the first movie. The sequels that followed were kind of blah, but the first one is always a favorite.
Top 3 TV Shows:
1) Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer- How can you not get a hoot out of Rudolph flying through the air screaming "I'm cute! I'm cute! She said I'm cuuute!" or Yukon Cornelius... "bumbles bounce"...
2) Santa Claus is Coming To Town- Okay, two words: Bergermeister Meisterberger
3) Charlie Brown Christmas- One of the few that actually references the Birth of Our Lord as the true meaning of Christmas. Plus, I love the tree that Charlie Brown picks out. To this day, when I see a lame looking tree, I refer to it as a "chuck tree"...
There you have it... How about you? What's your favorite Christmas movie and tv show? Let me know and I hope you all are enjoying this time of year...
Top 3 Movies:
1) A Christmas Story- Watching Peter Billingsley as Ralphie and Darren McGavin as his father, this flick is an absolute classic. The fish-net legged stocking lamp is my favorite part. That and when Ralphie inadvertently curses while his dad is changing a flat tire an ends up with a bar of Lifeboy Soap in his mouth... Priceless stuff.
2) It's a Wonderful Life- Yeah, it's a bit schmaltzy when you watch it, but hey, with the economy as it is right now, maybe we should watch this one again and pay attention to the last 45 minutes of the movie...
3) The Santa Clause- Okay, so it's not as old as the others, but I love Tim Allen in the first movie. The sequels that followed were kind of blah, but the first one is always a favorite.
Top 3 TV Shows:
1) Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer- How can you not get a hoot out of Rudolph flying through the air screaming "I'm cute! I'm cute! She said I'm cuuute!" or Yukon Cornelius... "bumbles bounce"...
2) Santa Claus is Coming To Town- Okay, two words: Bergermeister Meisterberger
3) Charlie Brown Christmas- One of the few that actually references the Birth of Our Lord as the true meaning of Christmas. Plus, I love the tree that Charlie Brown picks out. To this day, when I see a lame looking tree, I refer to it as a "chuck tree"...
There you have it... How about you? What's your favorite Christmas movie and tv show? Let me know and I hope you all are enjoying this time of year...
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Christmas Time
Wasn't sure what to write about today as I have been so incredibly busy. But I must say, I'm looking forward to the Christmas season. I love Christmas. Not cause of the commercial reasons, but because there are people that under normal circumstances, would not be very happy during this time of year. Whether it be because of losing a loved one, the end of a meaningful relationship, the idea of being alone... y'know, the whole enchilada. But somehow, God reaches them (either directly, or by using others to reach out to them) and when they don't want to do it, they still manage to get through Christmas and continue to live. How do I know this? Simple, I used to BE that person. Now, I give thanks everyday to God that He allowed me to gut it out and through that misery, I was able to find real happiness. One thing I've learned from all of this is that you have to stick around for the finish, because you really don't know how the end of this movie we call life is going to be. We think we do, but we don't. I never ever thought I'd be as happy as I am right now. But thanks be to God... I AM... My gal pal loves me. My family is hanging in there as best they can. And I have a lot to be thankful for... including friends here that stop by to read up on what's going on in my whacky world. For that, I am also gratefully blessed.
Here's a recipe for a non-alcoholic drink that I found... something Christmas-like... mmmmm
Peppermint Mocha: (makes 4 servings)
8 tsp sugar
8 tbsp milk
16 tbsp vanilla ice cream
8 tbsp peppermint candies
8 tbsp chocolate syrup
Add all ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into a cocktail glass, add straw, and serve.
Here's a recipe for a non-alcoholic drink that I found... something Christmas-like... mmmmm
Peppermint Mocha: (makes 4 servings)
8 tsp sugar
8 tbsp milk
16 tbsp vanilla ice cream
8 tbsp peppermint candies
8 tbsp chocolate syrup
Add all ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into a cocktail glass, add straw, and serve.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Holiday Hopes... :)
hmmm...
I'm sitting here post turkey day, still smarting over the bruises incurred on the holiday weekend so far... let's see, stood in line only to not get the item I wanted. Um, oh yeah, getting a ticket for not wearing my seat belt... grrrrr.... 65 bucks lighter, I'm still hacked but I know better, so my being ticked off isn't lasting long. Besides it could be worse. I read where some poor guy literally got trampled to death working at Wal-Mart. That's just wrong. That's not what the Christmas spirit is supposed to be. Of course most of what we do now is not associated with the origin of Christmas. But I'm not going to be derailed. I'm looking forward to the Christmas season. I don't get into all the 'stuff' that comes with the season till AFTER Thanksgiving. Now I know we all like to do things for others as part of the holiday spirit. To do things for others is both an honor and a great feeling inside. But what I want to know is this... was there ever a time when someone did something really nice for you? For no apparent reason, other than kindness? It doesn't necessarily have to be a down on your luck story, but I want to hear about circumstances where good people stepped up and without any benefit to themselves, did something to help you or a loved one out at a time you wouldn't have expected? I want to keep my hope for the holidays.
I'm sitting here post turkey day, still smarting over the bruises incurred on the holiday weekend so far... let's see, stood in line only to not get the item I wanted. Um, oh yeah, getting a ticket for not wearing my seat belt... grrrrr.... 65 bucks lighter, I'm still hacked but I know better, so my being ticked off isn't lasting long. Besides it could be worse. I read where some poor guy literally got trampled to death working at Wal-Mart. That's just wrong. That's not what the Christmas spirit is supposed to be. Of course most of what we do now is not associated with the origin of Christmas. But I'm not going to be derailed. I'm looking forward to the Christmas season. I don't get into all the 'stuff' that comes with the season till AFTER Thanksgiving. Now I know we all like to do things for others as part of the holiday spirit. To do things for others is both an honor and a great feeling inside. But what I want to know is this... was there ever a time when someone did something really nice for you? For no apparent reason, other than kindness? It doesn't necessarily have to be a down on your luck story, but I want to hear about circumstances where good people stepped up and without any benefit to themselves, did something to help you or a loved one out at a time you wouldn't have expected? I want to keep my hope for the holidays.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Food... Glorious Food...
I am looking outside and seeing the snow on the ground and the roads are slick with accidents all over the place... and I'm thinking two things:
One- I'm glad that I decided to put another set of tires on the car last week. I knew that the tread on the tires were getting kind of low. So I opted to go get that taken care of... so far, so good. I'm liking the way my car is gripping the road again... I'm a happy guy. And the second thought I'm having is- boy am I glad that I'm at home and not out in 25 degree weather. I didn't turn my heater on until last week because the weather had been pretty mild up until last week when the cold hit us good. My rule of thumb is not to turn on the heat in the house until November 1st. Well, it was mild out so I tried to see if I could go until December 1st but two nights sleeping in 30 degree weather told me that I was crazy. Not to mention frosty... so the heater was turned on and 20 minutes later I was curled up on the couch sawing logs... er, sleeping comfortably. I have been trying to stay the course and not veer too far out of my normal patterns. Just work, home, eat, talk to gal pal, occasionally do laundry, and then hit the sack. I should probably do more exercise and try to get into a little better shape, but I haven't had the time to do it... I know I need to make time... hopefully I'll get into the swing of things after the holidays. I don't even pretend to think that I'll be good for the holidays... I love food... I love to eat... Holidays = Food. Enough said. What do you love to eat most over Thanksgiving, besides turkey? Now I LOVE turkey. But besides the bird, I love stuffing and pumpkin roll with crème filling... ooohh how do I love food...
One- I'm glad that I decided to put another set of tires on the car last week. I knew that the tread on the tires were getting kind of low. So I opted to go get that taken care of... so far, so good. I'm liking the way my car is gripping the road again... I'm a happy guy. And the second thought I'm having is- boy am I glad that I'm at home and not out in 25 degree weather. I didn't turn my heater on until last week because the weather had been pretty mild up until last week when the cold hit us good. My rule of thumb is not to turn on the heat in the house until November 1st. Well, it was mild out so I tried to see if I could go until December 1st but two nights sleeping in 30 degree weather told me that I was crazy. Not to mention frosty... so the heater was turned on and 20 minutes later I was curled up on the couch sawing logs... er, sleeping comfortably. I have been trying to stay the course and not veer too far out of my normal patterns. Just work, home, eat, talk to gal pal, occasionally do laundry, and then hit the sack. I should probably do more exercise and try to get into a little better shape, but I haven't had the time to do it... I know I need to make time... hopefully I'll get into the swing of things after the holidays. I don't even pretend to think that I'll be good for the holidays... I love food... I love to eat... Holidays = Food. Enough said. What do you love to eat most over Thanksgiving, besides turkey? Now I LOVE turkey. But besides the bird, I love stuffing and pumpkin roll with crème filling... ooohh how do I love food...
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
An Attitude of Gratitude
Hmmm... it's been the busiest time of my life these days. But the thing that I have found is that despite the work and insane schedule of juggling things around, I have discovered a spirit of peace and contentment that I haven't had in a LONNNNNG time... Lou got to go home from the nursing facility as she has two new leg prosthetics that she's working hard on trying to use. She's been on dialysis 3 days a week, but has been improving with her kidney function to the point that they're talking about reducing the amount of time she needs to be dialyzed. For this, I am grateful to the Lord. He is GOOD. Terri still has chemo every three weeks and gets her butt whipped when she does. But her guy came into town and is spending some time here. I haven't seen Terri this peaceful and relaxed for a long time. She has a look of happiness, after all these months that I've seen her go through misery and despair. She is now experiencing a little happiness. I am grateful to the Lord... He is GOOD. My wallet has been a source of derision and despair as I wanted more income. Trying to catch up on bills has been a chore, but I was a little frustrated. I have been working on promoting the Toledo Sports Radio website and have been praying hard for the alliance with a local TV station to become fruitful. My radio partner who has been given the charge of making this whole thing work told me that I would be the lead broadcaster for the high school playoff football games that they did if we could get enough sponsorships. Well, we got the go ahead for the games but each game that we have to do, I already have a commitment to broadcast Cherokee hockey online. So I couldn't do the football games on TV. And to make matters tougher, the football game this weekend is going to be shown statewide on cable. But y'know what? I'm okay with it. My ego doesn't need this for me to be happy. I genuinely was happy for the guy doing the game on TV because he's a good friend and fellow Christian. It's awesome how God works. When I was released by the other TV station, I figured that I'd just stay in the backround and off the air. But those of us that are now working for TSR, of the six of us, five of us are Christians. And we're going to be doing more sports on local TV this year with our new alliance with the other station. It's really wonderful. I've seen my income increase from my job. And in a true God moment, I was at church when our pastor was talking about giving and tithing. I gave double what I normally give because I have been on the road with hockey and missed a couple of weeks. So when I go on Monday and check my mail, I get an unexpected check from the city. I was not expecting anything from them at all. It was completely out of the blue. It was for over 6 times what I gave on Sunday to church. I am grateful to the Lord... He is GOOD... He isn't good because I got some things going my way or because I received a check. But because I want to work on being a better Christian and serve Him. I still screw up lots, but He's always there. And by the way, did I mention... HE IS GOOD!!!
Saturday, November 01, 2008
Greet Me In St Louis
Hi y'all,
Right now, I'm down in St Louis getting ready to broadcast a couple of hockey games on Toledo Sports Radio this weekend. I haven't been by much lately and I apologize for that... I have been so stinking busy but I am going to try and stop by pay a visit to your blogs... Most of the stuff I've been tied up with is broadcast related. Trying to get some deals done with local stations and goofy stuff like that. But I needed to at least say hello and let you know that I'm alive and ticking. Terri is trying to hang in there still. Her boy toy is in town so she is all happy and stuff... Lou got her new prosthetic legs and is trying hard to learn how to walk on both of them. But she finally gets to go home next week sometime. So that's a huge blessing. Me, I got to spend a day and a half with the gal pal last weekend and it made all my frustrations and irritations from work and what not... all worthwhile. She always has that effect on me. So I'm doing not too bad. Well, I'll be in touch over the next week or so... Be sure to have a great weekend/ week and I'll post here again in a few more days.... thanks for understanding...
Right now, I'm down in St Louis getting ready to broadcast a couple of hockey games on Toledo Sports Radio this weekend. I haven't been by much lately and I apologize for that... I have been so stinking busy but I am going to try and stop by pay a visit to your blogs... Most of the stuff I've been tied up with is broadcast related. Trying to get some deals done with local stations and goofy stuff like that. But I needed to at least say hello and let you know that I'm alive and ticking. Terri is trying to hang in there still. Her boy toy is in town so she is all happy and stuff... Lou got her new prosthetic legs and is trying hard to learn how to walk on both of them. But she finally gets to go home next week sometime. So that's a huge blessing. Me, I got to spend a day and a half with the gal pal last weekend and it made all my frustrations and irritations from work and what not... all worthwhile. She always has that effect on me. So I'm doing not too bad. Well, I'll be in touch over the next week or so... Be sure to have a great weekend/ week and I'll post here again in a few more days.... thanks for understanding...
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Never Judge A Book By It's Cover...
I sit sometimes and have to laugh at some of the bizzare things I see as I go through life. Every time that I begin to think that I'm a few fries short of a happy meal, someone comes along to show me that maybe I'm not the complete crackpot I thought I was...
Yesterday morning, I jump in my car at 8am to go and watch my nephews' football games. (an A.D.D. moment- why can't pee-wee football games start at more NORMAL start times and not at 8:30 in the freakin' MORNING???!!!!) So, as I'm driving down I-75 towards the games, I see a new, beautiful, fire-engine red Ford Mustang convertible cruising past me effortlessly. As I look over at this dream machine, my sleep-deprived eyes were expecting to see either a middle-aged guy wanting to look young or maybe a 20-ish college girl who thought she was all that and a bag of chips... Well, as usual, I was wrong... I look over to my left for a split second, and sure enough, it was a female. However, it was one for the books... it was an older woman, couldn't make out her features or much less care because of the noxzema on her face. The curlers in her hair were covered by a see-through scarf over her head. It freaked me out... at 8 in the morning... It was very cold at the field but I couldn't get that picture out of my head... I had one set of expectations, and was surprised to find something else. So let me ask you... have you ever went into a situation expecting one thing and something comes out of left field and your jaw drops??
Yesterday morning, I jump in my car at 8am to go and watch my nephews' football games. (an A.D.D. moment- why can't pee-wee football games start at more NORMAL start times and not at 8:30 in the freakin' MORNING???!!!!) So, as I'm driving down I-75 towards the games, I see a new, beautiful, fire-engine red Ford Mustang convertible cruising past me effortlessly. As I look over at this dream machine, my sleep-deprived eyes were expecting to see either a middle-aged guy wanting to look young or maybe a 20-ish college girl who thought she was all that and a bag of chips... Well, as usual, I was wrong... I look over to my left for a split second, and sure enough, it was a female. However, it was one for the books... it was an older woman, couldn't make out her features or much less care because of the noxzema on her face. The curlers in her hair were covered by a see-through scarf over her head. It freaked me out... at 8 in the morning... It was very cold at the field but I couldn't get that picture out of my head... I had one set of expectations, and was surprised to find something else. So let me ask you... have you ever went into a situation expecting one thing and something comes out of left field and your jaw drops??
Thursday, October 09, 2008
I Wanna Be Se-(Up)dated
Howdy howdy hey....
Hope this finds y'all in good spirits. Me, I'm a little under the weather today with a slight cold and sore throat. But other than that , I'm alright. I haven't spoken much about the sisters so I should do an update. Lou is improving more and more. They've reduced the amount she's had to go to dialysis and they're going to fit her with new prosthetics. So things are a lot better for her, much to my relief... Terri is still hanging in there. She gets hit with chemo every three weeks, which is so hard. But she's battling as best she can. But right now, she's had a few problems with her kidneys. So we'll see how she responds to treatment. My gal pal is doing okay. She still puts up with my crazy schedule and though she doesn't see me as much as she wants, she still loves me and is my biggest fan. I only say that cause I don't take her for granted and I try to go out of my way to let her know that she is so amazing to me and I love her deeply. She reads this space here so I like to let her know that she means everything to me... and that I am blessed to have her in my life.
Hope this finds y'all in good spirits. Me, I'm a little under the weather today with a slight cold and sore throat. But other than that , I'm alright. I haven't spoken much about the sisters so I should do an update. Lou is improving more and more. They've reduced the amount she's had to go to dialysis and they're going to fit her with new prosthetics. So things are a lot better for her, much to my relief... Terri is still hanging in there. She gets hit with chemo every three weeks, which is so hard. But she's battling as best she can. But right now, she's had a few problems with her kidneys. So we'll see how she responds to treatment. My gal pal is doing okay. She still puts up with my crazy schedule and though she doesn't see me as much as she wants, she still loves me and is my biggest fan. I only say that cause I don't take her for granted and I try to go out of my way to let her know that she is so amazing to me and I love her deeply. She reads this space here so I like to let her know that she means everything to me... and that I am blessed to have her in my life.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Working For The Weekend...
Had a long and rough week last week... but I just started thinking about my gal pal and our time together. Whenever I get down... I go see the gal pal... she brings me up like no one else... I am blessed... that's it in a nutshell... my girl is something else... and I'm grateful. Hope y'all are having a good week. Me, it's getting better and between her and listening to the co-workers talk about Dancing With The Stars... I guess life can't be all bad...lol... But I do change the channel when Chloris Leachmen comes on... ugh... I'm pulling for Warren Sapp... He's a big guy like me and he's light on his feet. Plus he's just lots of fun. Can't go wrong with that...
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Who Am I??
Thanks to my friend Riccie for this little get to know... me...
1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? Everyone and their brother wanted me to be named after one of the Beatles. I'm glad my folks didn't. I think I was named after St. Michael the Arch Angel... either way, I'm glad I wasn't named after Ringo...
2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? I can't remember...
3. Do you like your handwriting? NO
4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? Chicken, Turkey and Corned Beef...
5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS? none that I'm aware of...lol
6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON, WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? I dunno, it depends on when I would meet me...
7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? ME?? Nooooo... NOT ME.... lol
8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Yes I do....
9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? Oh heck no...
10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? Well, I'm lame... Cheerios!
11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? No Way!!!
12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? Not really... just trying to make a go of life... that's about it.
13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM? Butter Pecan or Strawberry. I can't have ice cream anymore but when I did... mmmmm...
14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE? APPEARANCE (SLOVENLY VS CLEAN) I'm an eye man...
15. RED OR PINK? why be greedy... BOTH!!
16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? AGAIN, PHYSICALLY OR PERSONALITY???? Too many to list here...
17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? My dad... he was something else
18. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU? Not necessarily, but it's okay...
19. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? Midnight Blue and Black...
20. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE? Watermelon
21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? The radio
22. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU Be? Aqua
23. FAVORITE SMELLS? My gal pal with her favorite perfume, Fresh baked bread.
24. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? My radio partner...
25. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS? Absolutely
26. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH? Hockey... Hockey... oh yeah, football too...
27. HAIR COLOR? Black with a few grays tossed in for fun...lol...
28. EYE COLOR? two black olive pits jammed into my skull...lol...
29. Do you wear contacts? nope
30 FAVORITE FOODS? ALL OF IT.... I flat out, LOVE food... lol
31. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? Happy Endings
32. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? Still Crazy (Billy Connolly, Stephen Rea) came out in 1998
33. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING? Blue
35. HUGS OR KISSES? I am greedy.... BOTH
37. MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? Don't know
38. LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND? Don't know
39. What book are you reading now? 90 Minutes In Heaven
40. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? Logo of the Saskatchewan Roughrider football team...
41. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON T.V.. Fox News Channel
42. FAVORITE SOUND? Music and sports radio...
43. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES? Neither one...
44. WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME? Hawaii
45. Any new news in your life? Not yet... subject to change though...
46. WHERE WERE YOU BORN? In a cave, during the days when dinosaurs walked the earth...
47. WHOSE ANSWERS ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO GETTING BACK? Didn't I answer this earlier? oops sarcasm...lol
48. WHAT TIME IS IT NOW? It's now... and it's NOW (plus 7 seconds)... and it's still... NOW.... aiiiiiiiigh!
1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? Everyone and their brother wanted me to be named after one of the Beatles. I'm glad my folks didn't. I think I was named after St. Michael the Arch Angel... either way, I'm glad I wasn't named after Ringo...
2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? I can't remember...
3. Do you like your handwriting? NO
4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? Chicken, Turkey and Corned Beef...
5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS? none that I'm aware of...lol
6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON, WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? I dunno, it depends on when I would meet me...
7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? ME?? Nooooo... NOT ME.... lol
8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Yes I do....
9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? Oh heck no...
10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? Well, I'm lame... Cheerios!
11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? No Way!!!
12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? Not really... just trying to make a go of life... that's about it.
13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM? Butter Pecan or Strawberry. I can't have ice cream anymore but when I did... mmmmm...
14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE? APPEARANCE (SLOVENLY VS CLEAN) I'm an eye man...
15. RED OR PINK? why be greedy... BOTH!!
16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? AGAIN, PHYSICALLY OR PERSONALITY???? Too many to list here...
17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? My dad... he was something else
18. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU? Not necessarily, but it's okay...
19. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? Midnight Blue and Black...
20. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE? Watermelon
21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? The radio
22. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU Be? Aqua
23. FAVORITE SMELLS? My gal pal with her favorite perfume, Fresh baked bread.
24. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? My radio partner...
25. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS? Absolutely
26. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH? Hockey... Hockey... oh yeah, football too...
27. HAIR COLOR? Black with a few grays tossed in for fun...lol...
28. EYE COLOR? two black olive pits jammed into my skull...lol...
29. Do you wear contacts? nope
30 FAVORITE FOODS? ALL OF IT.... I flat out, LOVE food... lol
31. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? Happy Endings
32. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? Still Crazy (Billy Connolly, Stephen Rea) came out in 1998
33. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING? Blue
35. HUGS OR KISSES? I am greedy.... BOTH
37. MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? Don't know
38. LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND? Don't know
39. What book are you reading now? 90 Minutes In Heaven
40. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? Logo of the Saskatchewan Roughrider football team...
41. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON T.V.. Fox News Channel
42. FAVORITE SOUND? Music and sports radio...
43. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES? Neither one...
44. WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME? Hawaii
45. Any new news in your life? Not yet... subject to change though...
46. WHERE WERE YOU BORN? In a cave, during the days when dinosaurs walked the earth...
47. WHOSE ANSWERS ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO GETTING BACK? Didn't I answer this earlier? oops sarcasm...lol
48. WHAT TIME IS IT NOW? It's now... and it's NOW (plus 7 seconds)... and it's still... NOW.... aiiiiiiiigh!
Monday, September 15, 2008
Extreme Makeover: my hometown edition...
So, it's been a while since I've been on here writing. Sorry about that. I have been insanely busy and have not been doing much except for working and more working... My fair hometown of Toledo just had a visit from the folks at ABC's “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition”... Some couple from a neighborhood in the west end got a new house. It was filmed this past week. They and their 11 kids (mostly adopted) went on vacay and the house was built. They came home this past Sunday and I think most of the city of Toledo came out to see it. I didn't bother because I had a hockey game to broadcast online but I knew many people that were there and worked on the project. It was a great experience for all of them and I'm glad for the family as they were very deserving. The news media here were just fawning all over the cast... they had a lineup of Pauly, Rachel, Rib, and Ty...
Now from the “what do you mean there's no Santa Claus?” department:
Apparently, since they're at a build for 7 days, around the clock, the stars have a little freedom to just relax. From a couple of guys that were putting some of the flooring in the house, “Pauly just sat there and smoked cigarettes most of the time we were working...” And from a couple of others: “Rachel spent most of her time in her trailer. For one of her shoots, she came out and they sprayed her with some sawdust to make her look like she was working it and they cleared the area of the volunteers so that they could film her “working”.... Now normally, I would say something really crass and mean because I know of a couple of folks that worked at the build and they said the same thing. The designers don't do much in the way of the physical labor... It's okay, I choose to acknowledge that it's the 100's volunteers that do all of the work and get very little of the credit. They're the ones who make it special. And for that, I am very proud of my hometown. I still am very much a fan of the show... The airing of this show will be sometime in November. So that'll be cool. Oh and by the way... there's no easter bunny either... have a nice day... ;)
Now from the “what do you mean there's no Santa Claus?” department:
Apparently, since they're at a build for 7 days, around the clock, the stars have a little freedom to just relax. From a couple of guys that were putting some of the flooring in the house, “Pauly just sat there and smoked cigarettes most of the time we were working...” And from a couple of others: “Rachel spent most of her time in her trailer. For one of her shoots, she came out and they sprayed her with some sawdust to make her look like she was working it and they cleared the area of the volunteers so that they could film her “working”.... Now normally, I would say something really crass and mean because I know of a couple of folks that worked at the build and they said the same thing. The designers don't do much in the way of the physical labor... It's okay, I choose to acknowledge that it's the 100's volunteers that do all of the work and get very little of the credit. They're the ones who make it special. And for that, I am very proud of my hometown. I still am very much a fan of the show... The airing of this show will be sometime in November. So that'll be cool. Oh and by the way... there's no easter bunny either... have a nice day... ;)
Thursday, September 04, 2008
Calm Before The...
Yippeeeee....
Well, I've been able to shake the thoughts of Chloris Leachman out of my head and am able to face the world again. Things are calm at the moment and sometimes that really scares me. It's been so long since I've had an uneventful week, that I don't know how to handle it sometimes. I'm just so used to pressure filled crisis of some sort or another that it seems odd that I'm sitting here feeling peaceful and almost waiting for the next big issue to come along. I don't want to think or feel like that. I want to be peaceful. I want to relax and find a way to enjoy life. To feel good about going about my life and be able to enjoy it. In other words... I want to be my old, whack-job self that is such a goof. Drives me crazy sometimes... I want to relax. Diving head first into broadcasting sports has been a big help for me. I try to keep prayerful and I gotta say, I've been a lot more peaceful and calm since I started getting in the Word every morning. I'll be honest, I didn't start out that way... Reading the Bible was about as interesting as going to a yawning festival. Till I actually tried to find out what the stuff in that book meant. When I started yearning to learn more in it, I began to grasp some of what is in there. It took a while for me to learn that I'll never completely get the meaning of everything in it... But it took longer for me to realize that it's OK for me not to understand it all... That's why I continue to read it. To find new things in there to help enlighten me as I try to do life with those around me... Hope this finds you in a good way and with a smile on your face... If not, do what I do... when I need to perk up, I look in the mirror, and just say "you're such a dork"... and I usually feel better. You can even do what a friend of mine did... My friend was feeling out of sorts, kinda blah... well, he told me that he went into the bathroom feeling that way and then he looked into the mirror and as loud and proud as he could, he said: "Mik is such a dork!"... He said he was feeling like a million bucks all day... in fact when he changed the ending of that statement to include other names, he said he got out of his mood and was whistling by the latter part of the day. So, if you're feeling down at all, feel free to look in the mirror and say, "Mik is such a dork" and maybe you too, will feel better... Have a great weekend... :)
Well, I've been able to shake the thoughts of Chloris Leachman out of my head and am able to face the world again. Things are calm at the moment and sometimes that really scares me. It's been so long since I've had an uneventful week, that I don't know how to handle it sometimes. I'm just so used to pressure filled crisis of some sort or another that it seems odd that I'm sitting here feeling peaceful and almost waiting for the next big issue to come along. I don't want to think or feel like that. I want to be peaceful. I want to relax and find a way to enjoy life. To feel good about going about my life and be able to enjoy it. In other words... I want to be my old, whack-job self that is such a goof. Drives me crazy sometimes... I want to relax. Diving head first into broadcasting sports has been a big help for me. I try to keep prayerful and I gotta say, I've been a lot more peaceful and calm since I started getting in the Word every morning. I'll be honest, I didn't start out that way... Reading the Bible was about as interesting as going to a yawning festival. Till I actually tried to find out what the stuff in that book meant. When I started yearning to learn more in it, I began to grasp some of what is in there. It took a while for me to learn that I'll never completely get the meaning of everything in it... But it took longer for me to realize that it's OK for me not to understand it all... That's why I continue to read it. To find new things in there to help enlighten me as I try to do life with those around me... Hope this finds you in a good way and with a smile on your face... If not, do what I do... when I need to perk up, I look in the mirror, and just say "you're such a dork"... and I usually feel better. You can even do what a friend of mine did... My friend was feeling out of sorts, kinda blah... well, he told me that he went into the bathroom feeling that way and then he looked into the mirror and as loud and proud as he could, he said: "Mik is such a dork!"... He said he was feeling like a million bucks all day... in fact when he changed the ending of that statement to include other names, he said he got out of his mood and was whistling by the latter part of the day. So, if you're feeling down at all, feel free to look in the mirror and say, "Mik is such a dork" and maybe you too, will feel better... Have a great weekend... :)
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Bizarre Dreams or Random Thoughts? Depends...
Hi kids,
I'm in a crazy mood these days. Mostly because work is nuts and I now am doing broadcasting work which means I'm going to start travelling all over the place and won't be keeping the close eye on the sisters or spend any free time with the gal pal as much as during the summer. But they know what I do and are very understandiing... So I'm happy for that...
Now, for an A.D.D. moment... The lineup or cast for Dancing With the Stars was revealed earlier this week. I was yawning my way through it... ZZZzzzzz Lance Bass, Toni Braxton (okay she's good looking)... yawn... Warren Sapp (he'll tackle the judges and eat them first)....Zzzzzz... Susan Lucci (well, she's okay to be in the cast since Jane Seymour proved it can be done)... snorrrrrre... Chloris Leachman...zzzzzzzzz... huh?.... wait a minute! Chloris "Phyllis" Leachman??? She was old when I was a kid!! She made it to DWTS? She is 82 years old!!!! Are you kidding me? I don't have a prejudice against seniors. But in a competition like this, the first two words that sprang to my sleepy head were "broken hip"... And of course, being in the health care line of work by day, you start to have bizarre thoughts going through your head. And I'll apologize in advance, but the number one thought that went through my head was the obvious: I hope that underneath Chloris Leachman's ballroom gown, she's wearing Depends undergarments. I keep thinking that the folks at Depends have a great marketing opportunity here. Wait a minute, I have an incredibly gorgeous girlfriend whom I love more than life itself, and I'm waking up here, thinking about an 82 year old's Depend's undergarments???? HELLLLLLPPP!!!! Quick! Someone get me a bottled water and a motivational CD! Why am I thinking about Dancing With the Stars anyway? AHHHHHHHHH.... Please, God, make it stop!!!! No more thoughts of Chloris Leachman... Please make it go away..... okay, Mik, repeat after me: "I love my gal pal"... keep saying that till you fall back asleep and the nightmare will soon end... I HOPE!!!!
I'm in a crazy mood these days. Mostly because work is nuts and I now am doing broadcasting work which means I'm going to start travelling all over the place and won't be keeping the close eye on the sisters or spend any free time with the gal pal as much as during the summer. But they know what I do and are very understandiing... So I'm happy for that...
Now, for an A.D.D. moment... The lineup or cast for Dancing With the Stars was revealed earlier this week. I was yawning my way through it... ZZZzzzzz Lance Bass, Toni Braxton (okay she's good looking)... yawn... Warren Sapp (he'll tackle the judges and eat them first)....Zzzzzz... Susan Lucci (well, she's okay to be in the cast since Jane Seymour proved it can be done)... snorrrrrre... Chloris Leachman...zzzzzzzzz... huh?.... wait a minute! Chloris "Phyllis" Leachman??? She was old when I was a kid!! She made it to DWTS? She is 82 years old!!!! Are you kidding me? I don't have a prejudice against seniors. But in a competition like this, the first two words that sprang to my sleepy head were "broken hip"... And of course, being in the health care line of work by day, you start to have bizarre thoughts going through your head. And I'll apologize in advance, but the number one thought that went through my head was the obvious: I hope that underneath Chloris Leachman's ballroom gown, she's wearing Depends undergarments. I keep thinking that the folks at Depends have a great marketing opportunity here. Wait a minute, I have an incredibly gorgeous girlfriend whom I love more than life itself, and I'm waking up here, thinking about an 82 year old's Depend's undergarments???? HELLLLLLPPP!!!! Quick! Someone get me a bottled water and a motivational CD! Why am I thinking about Dancing With the Stars anyway? AHHHHHHHHH.... Please, God, make it stop!!!! No more thoughts of Chloris Leachman... Please make it go away..... okay, Mik, repeat after me: "I love my gal pal"... keep saying that till you fall back asleep and the nightmare will soon end... I HOPE!!!!
Sunday, August 17, 2008
keeping on... keeping on...
Just checking in from the pier...
Here's a couple of photos featuring my godzilla-sized skull and my much more attractive better half... she has no idea how beautiful she is... That she loves me is something that I don't take for granted. I only pray that I can keep doing the right things to keep her feeling that way. I think about it and I notice the difference between this relationship and any other relationship I've been in, is that even though some time has passed, both she and I still look at each other as if we were just starting out... namely in the beginning of a relationship, you get all goo-goo eyed, and you're punch drunk and you can't wait to just spend all kinds of time with that person. You'll make accommodations for that person because you want to be with them. You're so smitten with them that it doesn't matter what you're doing as long as you're with them. Well, the gal pal and I still feel that way about each other. But the reason for that is because we both realized that with people breaking up left and right all over the place, the one thing we're both committed to is what you do when you're first smitten with that other person in the beginning of the relationship... you think about the other person FIRST before you think about yourself. That's what you do in the beginning of a relationship (hence, the goo-goo eyes, the "I love everything" feeling, the willingness to go anywhere or do anything with that person so long as you're wth them)... Because I don't get to spend as much time with the gal pal as we'd like, I don't think about myself when I see her, I think about her first. And she feels that way about me. I think that's why we get along so well. We're both committed to keeping that train of thought entact...
Went to go see Lou at rehab... she has been really struggling with some short term memory loss, and just feeling overall awful at times. But I went and seen her and she was able to remember things about me and was in a mood. So I wasn't happy for that. When I first got there, she was very, very depressed. But when I got there and she told me she had been experiencing the diahrrea blues... my first comment was "oh, so you're full of sh**, so what else is new? I've known that for years..." I thought Lou's mouth was going to fall off of her face... She was not expecting that from her little brother. At least not quite like that... I surprised her with that. We explained that the anti-biotic she is on right now for the next few days, was the reason for her making frequent BM's. Once she grasped that concept, she was okay with that and when she and Terri started picking on me about my gal pal and our relationship, she felt much, much better and by the time I left, she was laughing and felt a lot more upbeat.
So, another week of work lies ahead for me, and the start of broadcasting high school football games on Toledo Sports Radio online. I'm looking forward to it. But it means my schedule becomes very hectic and I won't get to see my gal pal as much I want to. But I'm blessed in that she understands and is so encouraging for me to do the job I love. One of many jobs that I love... The one job I look forward to the most??? Oh, that's easy... loving her... no question about it... Y'all have a great week...
Here's a couple of photos featuring my godzilla-sized skull and my much more attractive better half... she has no idea how beautiful she is... That she loves me is something that I don't take for granted. I only pray that I can keep doing the right things to keep her feeling that way. I think about it and I notice the difference between this relationship and any other relationship I've been in, is that even though some time has passed, both she and I still look at each other as if we were just starting out... namely in the beginning of a relationship, you get all goo-goo eyed, and you're punch drunk and you can't wait to just spend all kinds of time with that person. You'll make accommodations for that person because you want to be with them. You're so smitten with them that it doesn't matter what you're doing as long as you're with them. Well, the gal pal and I still feel that way about each other. But the reason for that is because we both realized that with people breaking up left and right all over the place, the one thing we're both committed to is what you do when you're first smitten with that other person in the beginning of the relationship... you think about the other person FIRST before you think about yourself. That's what you do in the beginning of a relationship (hence, the goo-goo eyes, the "I love everything" feeling, the willingness to go anywhere or do anything with that person so long as you're wth them)... Because I don't get to spend as much time with the gal pal as we'd like, I don't think about myself when I see her, I think about her first. And she feels that way about me. I think that's why we get along so well. We're both committed to keeping that train of thought entact...
Went to go see Lou at rehab... she has been really struggling with some short term memory loss, and just feeling overall awful at times. But I went and seen her and she was able to remember things about me and was in a mood. So I wasn't happy for that. When I first got there, she was very, very depressed. But when I got there and she told me she had been experiencing the diahrrea blues... my first comment was "oh, so you're full of sh**, so what else is new? I've known that for years..." I thought Lou's mouth was going to fall off of her face... She was not expecting that from her little brother. At least not quite like that... I surprised her with that. We explained that the anti-biotic she is on right now for the next few days, was the reason for her making frequent BM's. Once she grasped that concept, she was okay with that and when she and Terri started picking on me about my gal pal and our relationship, she felt much, much better and by the time I left, she was laughing and felt a lot more upbeat.
So, another week of work lies ahead for me, and the start of broadcasting high school football games on Toledo Sports Radio online. I'm looking forward to it. But it means my schedule becomes very hectic and I won't get to see my gal pal as much I want to. But I'm blessed in that she understands and is so encouraging for me to do the job I love. One of many jobs that I love... The one job I look forward to the most??? Oh, that's easy... loving her... no question about it... Y'all have a great week...
Monday, August 11, 2008
And then there are days like these... When Mik's worlds collide...
As of late, I've written of some of the struggles of my family and loved ones. It's been rough sometimes. Filled with worry, frustration, disappointment, anxiety... the usual suspects. So with all of that going on, I also tried to temper things with the fact that my gal pal's parents were going to be meeting my family for the first time on the weekend. I was worrying... I'll be honest. I was poopin' pickles wondering how was I going to clean the place up and make it homey enough and get food ready for the gathering on Saturday. I figured I'd be toast. But the one thing I believed and worked at trying put into action, was my faith. It's easy to say 'I have faith' or 'Yeah, I have faith in God'... I can give lipservice with the best of them. Well, this time, I knew I had to really put my money where my mouth is... I had to lay it down and let go and give it to God. Considering the back drop of everything leading up to this, the easy thing to do would be to just say 'the hell with it' and be a whiner about everything. But then, by ME having the utter gall to think I could do all this alone... HA! Who's kidding who here? I knew I couldn't... so I prayed... I prayed hard. And just when things seemed darkest... God answered my prayer. He put it in my kid sister's heart to come over with her sons to help me get the place presentable by decorating the walls and windows... (I'm such a bachelor... I don't know jack about decorating)... The boys went swimming at the beach and had a blast. I began to feel so much better. I was getting stuff done a little at a time. My refridgerator (which died a horrible death) was in the kitchen and the garbage men wouldn't take it so I put it out for someone to take it. I had the small micro-fridge though to get me through the weekend. So I knew I'd get through that. Then the coup de gras... The food for the get together. Major problem... I'm not much of a cook. I can do some things okay... but not great. Not even close. So I was over at Terri's house. She was still wobbly from the chemo therapy. But being Terri, she asked me about the weekend up coming. I told her I was probably going to by some take out or something and put it out for everybody. She said 'no way'. I asked her if she thought she'd feel well enough to help me a little. She said 'I will be fine' and offered to cook for me. As for cooking skills, let's put it this way... growing up at home, when my friends would come over and we'd get ready to go out... they asked if she'd feed them instead of us going out to eat. To say Terri is an awesome cook is a gross understatement. To this day, I'd rather go to her house to eat dinner, than to go out to a 5-star restaurant for free. So I went over on Saturday morning and loaded up my car with everything and headed back to my place. Oh, did I mention Terri is an awesome cook? That girl is amazing! My sister whipped up two distinct meals in case some of the folks didn't like mexican food. In addition, she made two different large desserts for after dinner. And sent me away with extra chairs and a big card table in case I didn't have enough room on my table for everything. I tried to give her more money for everything, but she wouldn't take it. "Ah, I just grabbed a few things out of my freezer and whipped them together." That's typical Terri. The only thing she didn't do was come to the get-together because she went to the rehab place to be with Lou. Now Lou is feeling better and improving from everything. She was miserable and disoriented earlier in the week. But on the weekend, she started to remember everything and was feeling a lot better. And they say there is no God... HA! So I bring the food and everything in the house and my gal pal and her parents arrive. My other family members are late in arriving so it's just the four of us. I wanted to just grab a cane and top hat and entertain them or something to keep them from just sitting there and doing nothing. My gal pal's mom offered to help me, but I told her that she was here to relax and take it easy, and not to be working. So I'm getting stuff ready. And then since I knew they were hungry, I saw where Terri whipped up some homemade salsa... and tortilla chips to go with them. So I grabbed those and served them that to tie them over till the meal. Well, they started by saying "just a little Mik, just to try it. Don't want to ruin our appetite." Uh, two plate fulls of chips and salsa later, my family show up. Then the fun began...
In another hand of God moment, my family and her family simply hit it off perfectly. My nephews just loved her parents and vice-versa. My kid sister was a riot and my other older nephew's fiance' came over and I just sat there and watched them all just have a blast. By the end of the day, my gal pal's parents were almost demanding that my kid sister and brother in law and the boys go down to their place and spend time at their cabin. How could this be topped?
Simple. God gave us Sunday! I woke up and met my gal pal's family at the motel and we headed to church. I was a little apprehensive at first because where I go to church, it's a little more uh, contemporary, than the church where they go. But even that, was not a problem as once the service started and the band played, they rocked the house. And the message preached really hit home and hit me but good. It was about how we all in some way or another try to impress... not in the same way, or to the same degree. But we have in the past. I thought about this weekend and how I was during the week and could only smile and nod. After church, my gal pal's dad told me "that first song was a little hard rocking for me but that's because of my age. Other than that, I'm right on board with what your church is doing Mik." I smiled and we headed to eat lunch. The afternoon had us go do a little window shopping at an outdoor mall. My gal pal's dad bought a pair of Fubu tennis shoes and showed them to me and asked if I had ever heard of them. I held back my chuckle and smiled and said "yes, it's a well known brand... amongst the young hip-hop generation." He liked them though so he was happy, and in the end, that's what it's all about.
After the outdoor mall, my gal pal's parents went back to the motel to rest, and me and the gal pal went to go see Lou. Terri was already there so she got to meet both of my sisters. They hit it off wonderfully and I didn't have to spend much in the way of introductions. They started talking together and picking on me a little... after spending time there, my gal pal and I met her parents later for dinner at Applebee's. I ordered a combo plate that included a keylime pie for dessert and my gal pal reminded me that I'm diabetic and shouldn't be eating that so I reluctantly put the spoon down. lol..
After dinner, her parents headed back to the motel to relax and me and my gal went over to the pier by the beach to watch the sunset. The water was calm, and even though it's August, it was a little on the chilly side. I got a coat for her to wear while we were out there and spent time watching the beautiful midwestern skyline. I just looked in her eyes and fell in love with this girl over and over again. I told her flat out "honey, you are stuck with me.." to which she happily responded "para siempre" which is spanish for 'forever'... if I wasn't diabetic before this, I would've been with the gooey, sticky-sweet nothings we were saying to each other...lol... it was simply perfect.
As they left for home on monday morning. I had two prevailing thoughts... the first one was "God is so good." I came into this weekend in a state of anxiety and disorganization, and He blessed me with peace, and perspective and I believed in Him and He put people in my path that allowed me to have such an amazing weekend. To Him be the Glory. The second prevailing thought from this previously very staunch and stubborn bachelor was: "y'know, I'm going to have to marry that girl..."
In another hand of God moment, my family and her family simply hit it off perfectly. My nephews just loved her parents and vice-versa. My kid sister was a riot and my other older nephew's fiance' came over and I just sat there and watched them all just have a blast. By the end of the day, my gal pal's parents were almost demanding that my kid sister and brother in law and the boys go down to their place and spend time at their cabin. How could this be topped?
Simple. God gave us Sunday! I woke up and met my gal pal's family at the motel and we headed to church. I was a little apprehensive at first because where I go to church, it's a little more uh, contemporary, than the church where they go. But even that, was not a problem as once the service started and the band played, they rocked the house. And the message preached really hit home and hit me but good. It was about how we all in some way or another try to impress... not in the same way, or to the same degree. But we have in the past. I thought about this weekend and how I was during the week and could only smile and nod. After church, my gal pal's dad told me "that first song was a little hard rocking for me but that's because of my age. Other than that, I'm right on board with what your church is doing Mik." I smiled and we headed to eat lunch. The afternoon had us go do a little window shopping at an outdoor mall. My gal pal's dad bought a pair of Fubu tennis shoes and showed them to me and asked if I had ever heard of them. I held back my chuckle and smiled and said "yes, it's a well known brand... amongst the young hip-hop generation." He liked them though so he was happy, and in the end, that's what it's all about.
After the outdoor mall, my gal pal's parents went back to the motel to rest, and me and the gal pal went to go see Lou. Terri was already there so she got to meet both of my sisters. They hit it off wonderfully and I didn't have to spend much in the way of introductions. They started talking together and picking on me a little... after spending time there, my gal pal and I met her parents later for dinner at Applebee's. I ordered a combo plate that included a keylime pie for dessert and my gal pal reminded me that I'm diabetic and shouldn't be eating that so I reluctantly put the spoon down. lol..
After dinner, her parents headed back to the motel to relax and me and my gal went over to the pier by the beach to watch the sunset. The water was calm, and even though it's August, it was a little on the chilly side. I got a coat for her to wear while we were out there and spent time watching the beautiful midwestern skyline. I just looked in her eyes and fell in love with this girl over and over again. I told her flat out "honey, you are stuck with me.." to which she happily responded "para siempre" which is spanish for 'forever'... if I wasn't diabetic before this, I would've been with the gooey, sticky-sweet nothings we were saying to each other...lol... it was simply perfect.
As they left for home on monday morning. I had two prevailing thoughts... the first one was "God is so good." I came into this weekend in a state of anxiety and disorganization, and He blessed me with peace, and perspective and I believed in Him and He put people in my path that allowed me to have such an amazing weekend. To Him be the Glory. The second prevailing thought from this previously very staunch and stubborn bachelor was: "y'know, I'm going to have to marry that girl..."
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