155x5/5

Bret's Tandem Skydive

2010-10-10T20:22:00.003-05:00

2010-04-10T19:53:00.002-05:00

Pullin' into the citaaay! State Road Trip 2010 is minutes from finis.

2010-04-10T12:25:00.002-05:00

Lunch provisions again in St. Louis at Dierbergs, now back to the road!

2010-04-10T08:03:00.002-05:00

We have just hit the road for the return trip! We'll be home tonight after a long day...

Success!

2010-04-06T18:05:00.000-05:00

2010-04-05T20:43:00.002-05:00

Made to Memphis safely to Brady's warm embrace.

w00t!

2010-04-05T17:13:00.002-05:00

Roughly 200 miles north of Memphis, eating dinner. Both boys had KFC on the brain for the past 4 hours.

2010-04-05T10:46:00.003-05:00

Stopped at the HyVee in Waterloo, IA for some lunch provisions. Gassin' up then back to the road!

2010-04-05T07:37:00.002-05:00

We have hit the road!! The car made a noise as we pulled out that it never has before, but not alarmed.

State Trip Eve

2010-04-04T21:24:00.003-05:00

The boys and I embark upon 2010's state trip bright and early tomorrow morning! We're headed to Tennessee, and will be using Memphis as our homebase, primarily because my lil' brother lives there.

(Hi Brady! Leave comment every now and then, stalker.)

Anyway, we have barely enough of a plan for it to qualify as a plan, but we intend to see Graceland, a psychic (yeah, the one on Beale street I visited last time I was there, but this time with the boys too!), and then maybe do a day or overnight trip to Nashville.

The rest? We'll go where our whims (and Uncle Brady) take us.

Stay tuned for updates here and FB/Twitter if'n you're interested in what we're up to.

Song of the DayMason Jennings - Lonely Road

2010-04-04T21:04:00.002-05:00

Mason Jennings. I think I've probably gushed about him before, and if I haven't, I have been negligent in my blogging.

Oh wait, that's right! I've been totally negligent in my blogging since like October of 2008.

Anyway... this is hands-down my favorite song on the new album right now, and I first heard it LIVE at First Ave.

That was a great night.

Dig the guitar riff. Bling, blingyding ding!

Song of the DayPercy Faith - Theme From a Summer Place

2010-04-03T17:28:00.001-05:00

Why? Because I like cheese, and there's something romantic about oldies of this variety.

Anybody remember Town & Country Mall in Minot? This song takes me there, circa 1970-something.

Hairy Legs

2010-03-17T21:26:00.003-05:00

Here is the improvised result of Cory & Cole's short wait in the car while I picked up salsa and coffee from Cub.

They're crazy. I giggle.

And tonight, they got in GarageBand and rocked out a version with instruments.

Song of the DayLongwave - The Devil and the Liar

2010-03-06T08:23:00.003-06:00

I just think this is SUCH a great song. Mostly because of the music, which for some reason is very "comfortable" to me. The lyrics though? Not so much.

"Whatcha gonna do when in the end you're all alone?"

Hopefully not be.

Song of the DayXavier Cugat - Cerezo Rosa Y Manzano Blanco

2010-03-05T23:18:00.001-06:00

Why? Because it is SOOOOOOOO classic to me right now.

AND. I wanna be the guy in the background in mambos that is always grunting, "Uuauh!"

Wild Beasts @ The Entry!

2010-02-18T01:07:00.001-06:00

Brett Hummel

2010-02-16T21:37:00.001-06:00

Wow, there exists a Brett Hummel in this world, and he actually has meaningful things to say on his blog, unlike me.

His parents totally wasted a 't', but I won't hold that against him.

A Whole Freakin' Truckload of Makhani Goodness

2010-02-09T23:59:00.003-06:00

I LOVE chicken makhani. I love making Indian food and usually just wing it by sauteing some veggies and/or meat and pouring a jar of Patak's sauces on top of everything, but they just don't have Makhani.

Tikka Masala? Yes. Vindaloo? Yes. Korma Curry? Youbetcha.

Makhani? No.

At least not in the stores I shop in. So I set out to find a recipe to finally make it myself and quadrupled it, so that I can make chicken and daal makhani to my hearts content.

THAT's what I'm doing at midnight on a Tuesday.

w00t!

Independance Day

2010-02-05T13:09:00.002-06:00

I am divorced, as of Feb. 2nd, 2010.

That's all I have to say about that. W00t!

Song of the DayThe Dodos - Fools

2010-01-20T22:07:00.003-06:00

Finally became the proud owner of a couple more The Dodos albums, so I finally have the song that turned me on to them in the first place.

Yay!

And so I share it with you.

Almost There

2010-01-20T22:06:00.003-06:00

I signed the divorce papers today. It is almost official!

I'm not exactly sure when I can pop the cork on the champagne, but it'll be soon!

Aside from that, I spent most of the day scrambling to put together some designs against late content decisions on an interactive kiosk about tires. Or, I "put the rubber to the road" on 'em, if you will...

har har.

*cough*

Song of the DayCake - Comanche

2010-01-14T16:38:00.004-06:00

"If you want to have cities, you have to build roads."

Ain't that the truth. I love music.

Song of the DayCory Hummel - The Farting Intro

2010-01-10T13:50:00.006-06:00

So, I'm proud to host Cory's debut as a composer here on the Song of the Day! He spent a little time yesterday composing this little ditty, which I think is quite tasty.

Isn't he talented?

Please forgive the sophomoric title, which reveals the actual use for the track: intro music for the fart videos he, Cole and Holden post on YouTube as CCHCinema.

Cory & Cole composed another one today, but I told them they have to bring the sophistication of the subject matter up a notch or two first, then Cole can have his debut as a vocalist (with his signature faux British accent).

Go Fly a Kite

2010-01-09T23:42:00.003-06:00

The boys and I braved the bitterly cold coldness to fly a kite today at the Minnesota Kite Society's winter kite festival.

The spiced apple cider and little marshmallow-roasting firepits saved my cold finger from falling off, and the kitchy music they were pumping over Lake Harriet made bearing the cold all worthwhile!

Song of the DayThe Paragons - The Tide Is High

2010-01-05T23:13:00.004-06:00

Did you know that Blondie was NOT the first to do "The Tide Is High?"

Now you do!

Eva's Mad Sales Skillz

2010-01-05T22:26:00.004-06:00

I stopped in GNC in Ridgedale Mall the other day to get another bottle of my daily vitamin of choice.

I was out, you see.

Well, I usually walk by the store first to case out whether this particular woman is there or not. If she's there, I don't go in. However, this particular day, I was in a particular hurry and particularly short on time the rest of the week, so I decided to go in regardless of this particular woman's presence.

I needed my vitamins, you see.

Eva here must be single-handedly responsible for like 80% of the store's sales. In fact, the very vitamins I went in to purchase were skillfully sold to me by her a couple of years ago when I was in for a product from another category entirely that frankly cost a fraction of that bottle of vitamins.

No matter.

I bought both, and I keep coming back for more.

So, yeah. I avoid her.

I know I complain about the complacent cashiers at other stores who barely give you the time of day before they give you your total, but I kinda wish someone like that took my credit card at this particular GNC rather than Eva.

Song of the DayNaked Eyes - Always Something There To Remind Me

2010-01-02T16:58:00.004-06:00

A little throwback song to remind us of times gone by.

Think These'd Sell?

2009-12-31T22:42:00.011-06:00

I Hate Being Stuck

2009-12-26T09:00:00.003-06:00

I've been in Bismarck for Christmas since Wednesday. While I didn't have the boys this year so it was a different sort of holiday than it usually is, I have had a great time with Mom, Dad, Brandon, Grandma R., and Pat & Bern. Ate a couple great holiday meals and a hella lotta great other food between them. I'm almost sick of eating in fact, and am going to have to live at the gym for awhile to ensure non-fatness.

I drove here Wednesday to avoid the storm that was supposed to start that night in Minneapolis, and while I've been here, the storm has hit ND and MN hard. North Dakota has closed all of I-94 and I-29 (the two interstates that run through the state) as well as some other major highways including Hwy 83 and Hwy 2.

That means I'm stuck.

And while this ain't a bad place to be stuck, I just HATE being stuck. Anywhere. I was stuck in Cabo San Lucas once because of a hurricane and didn't particularly enjoy being stuck there.

The roads are the first barrier to leaving, but a close second are my mother, father, grandma, great aunt and all those that would just as soon strap me to a chair to prevent me from putting myself in harm's way.

Of course, I appreciate their concern.

But I don't appreciate being stuck.

I was supposed to have the boys this weekend, and I was going to make Hamburger Strudels for a post-holiday special meal and we were going to open presents and stuff. Hopefully I'll get back tonight, so I can pick them up in the morning and still do all of that tomorrow.

I Hold Commercial Grudges

2009-12-23T23:24:00.002-06:00

So, on my drive back to Bismarck for Christmas, Chad Hagen rode with me as far as Fargo and it was nice to have some company. We got to talking about stuff, and after talking about the crappy reception our iPhones were getting, we got on the topic of companies we're biased against. It wasn't until I put them all together in one conversation that I realized that I have a few!

AT&T - www.att.com
This is where the conversation started. I've hesitated to switch completely over to my iPhone because of AT&T's shit-coverage in ND. I don't even know if it is as true anymore but that impression is still stuck in my head, and I can say that at multiple points in the drive between Minneapolis and Fargo, the iPhones had NO coverage, while my Blackberry on Sprint had like 4 bars and full digital service.
TCF - www.tcfbank.com
When I'd first moved to the cities in the mid-90's, I was in some mall (Southdale maybe) and had to take some cash out of an ATM to spend in the food court. It was a TCF machine, and was the very first time I'd ever encountered having to pay a fee to take out money. They charged me like $2! I know it is common practice now, but still to this day I have stayed true to my vow never to bank with the greedy bastards who led the way.
First Bank (now USBank) - www.usbank.com
My childhood accounts were with First Bank because of my parents' relationship with them. I think I had a savings account that I'd had since I was little, as well as checking account and I was always perfectly satisfied with them and their service. That is, until I went off to college in Moorhead, MN where they apparently only employed snide bitches with chips on their shoulders.

I don't even recall the series of incidents that contributed, but now that I think about it, I think one of them involved an overdraft charge that was a result of a bank error, not mine. Well, that and the young woman that had a total attitude with me about it. I had NO money then, but I closed all of my accounts and moved over to Norwest (now Wells Fargo), and vowed that no matter how much money I'd have some day, First Bank would never see any of it.

I haven't been able to keep that one though, because USBank bought our mortgage at one point. Fuckers. But I'll never actively open an account with them, no matter how many stars of service they guarantee.
US West (now Qwest) - www.qwest.com
I had the absolute worst experience with US West multiple times, and at multiple points in my life. I can't even quantify the countless hours I've spent on the phone with their customer service organization, or waiting patiently for a real person to pick up. When I finally did get through to a live person, I'd invest heap long-time trying to get them to understand the issue at hand, only to be transferred along to someone else, wait another half hour for THEM to pick up, and then have to invest the same heap-long time telling the same damn story all over again. And it wouldn't end there. I'd be told it would be fixed, and days later the problem would still exist. So I'd get on the phone and go through the whole damn dance again. And again. And again.

Never again.
Ford - www.ford.com
I had a used, maroon Ford Taurus back in college that was either an absolute lemon, or I was taking it to a service shop that would fix one thing and intentionally break another in order to create a recurring revenue stream. Either way, we sunk so much money into that car that we could have bought a new one off the lot.

Although I said I'd never buy another Ford, we bought a Mercury Villager when we had kids, which is manufactured by Ford. But I'll still never buy a Ford.

So there you have it. I'm sure there are more that I'm not even thinking of right now, but I certainly hold commercial grudges, and I'm okay with that.

Song of the DayThe Whitest Boy Alive - Burning

2009-12-23T00:45:00.003-06:00

No reason, except this song really hit the spot just now. And they have one of the coolest band names ever.

If I Could Save Time In a Bottle...

2009-12-20T21:49:00.001-06:00

This cud has been chewed before by poets and scientists and philosophers and the like (none of which I am), but why is it that the time you want to savor passes the quickest, and the time you wish would pass the quickest takes forever?

This weekend falls squarely in the domain of the former.

Damn It Cecil! Take a Chill Pill.

2009-12-16T22:33:00.008-06:00

So, I was up late last night again. Too late.

I'd just went to bed and had successfully drifted off when I heard a loud, dull commotion going on somewhere outside my room, but inside my house. It was loud enough that, even amidst my slumber, I got a little of the "fight or flight" adrenalin rush stirred up but as I gained a little bit of consciousness, I rationalized it away by sleepily cursing my goddamn cat for getting whatever wild hare he had up his ass that would made him run around out there and collide into walls repeatedly like an idiot.

It made sense at the time.

Until the second crashing sound, a couple minutes later.

It was clear then that this was no cat. Shit was goin' down out there, and since I didn't have the boys with me last night and it couldn't be them, I best cowboy up and see just what was what.

So, vulnerable and dazed as a naked mole rat, I sheepishly opened the door to a pitch black hallway to face whatever dangerous creature was wreaking havoc upon my casa. My heart was beating a little fast when I reached jerkily for the light switch, and flipped it on.

Would I see some nefarious invader after the extensive loot everyone knows I have in my crackerbox of a house?

No.

I'd see a hallway closet who's shelf had torn free from the wall, flung the closet door open and spilled its 40 pounds of contents onto the floor in front of the bathroom, including two cases of Lipton's Diet Green Tea with Citrus and assorted coats, vacuum attachments, and my inventory of lightbulbs.

Luckily, nothing had broken. Well, except for the closet.

But I saw that coming. I'd noted that the shelf was kinda listing a few weeks ago, and frankly was biding my time until I had occasion and dollars to fix it. Well, my time ran out at 2:45 in the morning.

I kinda shoved what I could back in there into a big pile and shut the door, resolving to deal with it later.

So, tonight, after I picked up the boys, we went to Home Depot and bought wire closet organizer shelves and stuff, and I done fixed it up goooooooood. It now has TWO shelves that can hold like 60 pounds each (that's two small children!), and one of them is about 4 inches deeper than the one that ripped itself out of the wall.

So my closet is GLORIOUS now.

Merry Christmas to me (and Little House), and for Christ's sake Cecil, let me sleep in peace tonight!

Song of the DayFleet Foxes - White Winter Hymnal

2009-12-08T23:25:00.001-06:00

In honor of the white winter we all-of-a-sudden have.

I Need To Own These Shoes

2009-12-06T17:49:00.003-06:00

How do I get me a pair of these, short of stealing them from the bowling alley?

Song of the DayDeath Cab For Cutie - Cath+

2009-11-25T00:32:00.003-06:00

I wouldn't mind being Ben Gibbard.

Song of the DayThe Legendary Jim Ruiz Group - Be My Valentine

2009-11-23T10:16:00.004-06:00

So, again, the world is small. I discovered The Legendary Jim Ruiz Group way back in college on a "Made in Minnesota" compilation disc, and have loved 'em ever since. They only have two albums (that I can find anyway), but I've kinda kept my eye on them periodically to see if I might get to covet anything new.

I hit their myspace page, and discovered how small the world is again. Under the "Band Members" section, there are two names I recognized: David Schelzel (again) and Mark Greenberg. Mark has done the music and sound effects for many of our games at HAM.

The older I get, the smaller the world gets, and the cooler everyone I know gets.

Redemption By Billboard

2009-11-20T20:10:00.003-06:00

Interesting juxtaposition of messaging on two sequential billboards on
94 on the way to Bismarck. Choose your path:

Billboard 1: "Nothing's too hard for God."

Billboard 2: "1-800-NOT-GUILTY. One Call. That's All."

Hmmm.

Song of the DayFigurines - Hey, Girl

2009-11-16T18:59:00.004-06:00

I really, really dig the Figurines. They know exactly how simple things really are.

Me, I'm still learning...

Song of the DayThe Police - Masoko Tanga

2009-11-15T09:30:00.000-06:00

Favorite. Band. Ever.

Hunka Hunka 'spensive Soap

2009-11-12T20:27:00.008-06:00

So, I had lunch downtown today, and afterward found myself walking through Macy's where I happened upon the Lush handmade soaps display. If you know me at all, you know I kinda have a bit of a penchant for handmade soap.

That does not make me any less of a man.

But it is the key ingredient in a recipe for trouble when I happen upon a display full of them and then get approached by the helpful, young, just-persistent-enough and friendly sales associate.

She totally played me.

I remarked how I thought the names of the flavors such as "Porridge" and "Sultana of Soap" and "I Should Coco" were great. She replied that she thought it was cool that I called them flavors because she did too.

I picked up a hunk of one that had a really interesting stuff in it. She remarked how she knew exactly what parts were edible and which weren't, and that I really shouldn't eat the translucent orange-y bits she was pointing at.

I said, "You've seriously eaten this stuff?" She said, "Oh yeah! I popped a whole vanilla bean from a bar of soap in my mouth and sucked on it for awhile."

I laughed.

She smiled.

She said, "Would you like a complimentary hand treatment?" I said, "Um, no, that's okay." She rephrased, "Well, let's call it a hand massage then..." I said, "Maybe I'll come back some other time and take you up on that."

By then, she'd established a rapport with me and I'd let down my guard, and I was a goner.

By the end, I willingly handed over my check card for a $17 hunk of "Demon in the Dark" that was barely twice as thick as a normal bar.

Note to self: Do not talk to sales people. Especially cute, little, funny ones.

Song of the DayThe Hives - Find Another Girl

2009-11-12T10:56:00.000-06:00

Song of the DayLaura Cantrell - What You Said

2009-11-11T13:12:00.006-06:00

A little country never hurt nobody.

My Brain Sucks

2009-11-10T21:42:00.002-06:00

So, does this happen to everyone?

You're talkin'. Telling a story. And while you're setting it up, you say one thing that just completely derails your whole line of thought and soon, you're dead silent, unable to recall a bit of what you were just about to say.

I think I have a problem.

Song of the DayTito Puente - Ti Mon Bo

2009-11-10T21:33:00.009-06:00

Tito!

PUENTE!

Nothing like some gratuitous bongo playing to lighten one's day, eh?

Song of the DayThe 5th Dimension - (Last Night) I Didn't Get To Sleep At All

2009-11-08T23:50:00.000-06:00

So Much For Being Sneaky

2009-11-08T23:48:00.009-06:00

Well, I'm busted.

Mom found out I've been blogging again and hadn't informed her yet.

I kinda wanted to "sneak" back into the blogosphere so there were NO expectations, ya know? So you, interested reader, Mom or not, could one day stumble on the blog and be pleasantly surprised that the "What My Personal Hell Will Look Like" picture wasn't on the main page anymore.

But she knows I'm back now, so I best not disappoint.

Again.

So, I had the boys this weekend, and Mom & Dad were in town too. We had a full weekend! Friday we all went to Cole's school for the Dad's Spaghetti Dinner which was tasty as always. Afterward we came back to Little House and the boys and Grandma & Grandpa played Wii into the wee hours.

(Well, not really that late, I just wanted to say Wii into the wee...)

On Saturday night the boys both ended up at sleepovers, so Mom & Dad & I went to the casino and I played most of the night on $5. Did alright there at first and walked away from machine #1 with $40 extra in my hand. However, machines #2, #3, #4, and #'s 5-8 took all of that back away from me, including the initial $5.

As if I'm surprised.

I picked the boys up at about 10:30 or so this morning from their respective sleepovers and found Cory'd had only ONE hour of sleep and so much sugar and junk that he self-proclaimed he wanted only to eat healthy today. I think Cole fared better in terms of sleep, but showed some signs of being a little overloaded too. And although I have limited patience with them after they do that to themselves, I suppose that's what sleepovers are for when you're youngins.

After I got them home, we quickly got cleaned up then met Mom & Dad again at Aunt Laurie's for a nice brunch Laurie had prepared. I totally thought I'd cheated and went against the advice of Dr. Mike when I ate two pieces of sausage there, but turns out it was TURKEY sausage, not pork.

That Jennie-O... She can turn turkey into anything.

After brunch, we patronized the newest Trader Joe's off of 394 and Hopkin's Crossroad with Mom & Dad, as well as a Game Stop where the boys helped Grandma & Grandpa pick out a birthday gift for each of them.

Although, mean ol' Daddy made Grandma take the games with her until their actual birthdays instead of letting the boy's crack their new games open right there. I mean, come on! Doesn't some of the birthday specialness wear off when you hand-pick your gift and get it handed to you weeks before your birthday??

I think so anyway.

When we got home around 3:30, Cory zonked out for a couple hours and drooled all over himself, while Cole tackled his homework and his birthday invites.

After we ate, I dropped the boys at Jo's and Mom treated Dad & I to see "The Great American Trailer Park Musical" at Illusion Theater downtown. It was pretty durn funny, if I do say so myself.

And now, since I know she's reading this again, I can say "Thanks Mom!" again right here in the blogosphere!

Thanks Mom!

2009-11-06T01:59:00.001-06:00

Cecil Meecil.

Song of the DayThe Ocean Blue - Denmark

2009-11-04T23:54:00.018-06:00

I have the coolest intellectual property lawyer EVER.

So, this song comes up randomly tonight and I'm tapping my toes, nodding my head to the beat and thinkin', "Damn, the late 80's makes me feel goooooood," and although I know I've heard the song before in my collection of some 26,000 songs, I just HAD to see who this was.

It was a band called "The Ocean Blue" and I have all of two songs from them. Songs that I'm almost certain I downloaded from a promotional Indie band site like in 2006. So I Googles 'em.

The first link is their Wikipedia page. The second sentence on their Wikipedia page mentions their lead singer, David Schelzel, and I'm like, "Hmmm, that's odd. One of my laywers is named David Schelzel."

And then I remember my lawyer has told me he's in a band.

And then I go through a moment of shock and horror in which I realize I've had HIS FREAKIN' MUSIC in my collection for 3+ years and didn't even fucking know it!

Now I do. And I think I have the coolest intellectual property lawyer ever.

Although, hopefully he won't sue me for posting this song on my blog. Or for thinking the song was from the late 80's when it was actually from '99. Seriously Dave, cut a guy some slack.

David Schelzel. Call him up for your intellectual property needs. And buy his albums. I just did.

A Smidge of Everything

2009-11-04T23:03:00.007-06:00

I had a pretty busy, eclectic but fulfilling day today.

The business day started with an early coffee and pastry with a good friend from college, and ended with a new business call that I think will lead to some great things.

A group of us @ HAM got to tour the MN Opera Center this morning too, which was pretty awesome! It is really amazing how much goes into putting on a production. I'm kinda fascinated by the real-life behind-the-scenes stories of what goes on, what goes wrong and how they get around it because it is all handled SO well that the audience never even notices.

I think we'll be able to do some really cool stuff for the MN Opera peeps, who are just plain cool by the way. They understand that if you're gonna have something hurled at you while walking through their administrative space, it may as well be candy.

w00t!

I also met with the Principal Peer Group (which is a group of fellow creative business owners) over lunch today, and for the most part the news was uplifting. Things are not getting worse. In fact, there are signs that things may be getting better.

About Freakin' Time.

Tonight, the boys and I devoured a bunch of leftovers for dinner, played around with some school pictures, and I took care of dishes and some other stuff while they littered my tiny living room with Legos.

Had a little bit of "user error" tonight as well which caused this tiny little crackerbox of a house to be hotter than Hades. I have been repeatedly turning down the thermostat to adjust until I thought I had it set at 70, but just realized I'd been turning it UP. It has been set to 80 since like 7:00!!

Time to open some windows.

Why Not, Right?

2009-11-04T20:37:00.001-06:00

Click it if you wanna see the version without the graffiti. :)

Song of the DayThe Dodos - Fables

2009-11-02T21:35:00.005-06:00

The Dodos first caught my ear on The Current back in August. The song that got me was "Fools" which I still do not own unfortunately, but I did get the newest album and THIS song has caught my ear from that.

Gooooooooood stuff.

Return of the Bluebird

2009-11-01T13:47:00.012-06:00

With as nice as it was outside today, I felt I should really get out and run on the path in the sun rather than the suffer the treadmill again, which has just seemed tedious lately.

On the return leg of my loop, I was visited by a bluebird again for the first time since July of last year. Call me superstitious or "out there" or whatever you will, but there's meaning in things like this. And the fact that I saw one today literally stopped me in my tracks.

Last year when he appeared, a few reader-folk let me know some of the meaning behind it, but with his timing it seemed like I should maybe dig a little deeper for some additional meaning.

"The bluebird is a guardian of all passages and transitions that we make or are about to make. We speak often of the bluebird of happiness, and this is rightly so. It makes our movements more fertile, productive, and protected so that we can attain the happiness we need in life."

"Although once common, they are now quite rare. This often is a reminder that we are born to happiness and fulfillment, but we sometimes get so lost and wrapped up in the everyday events of our lives that our happiness and fulfillment seem rare."

Ya know, you can take a jaded view of the world (which I most certainly have in the past) and say that it is just coincidence, having seen this bluebird today. But you can also look at all the little micro-events that had to happen to allow for it and the context in which it happens and kind of be amazed.

I mean, I really didn't feel like working out today -- I had been out last night and had a few drinks. I didn't get enough sleep. I could have taken a nap instead, and thought about it seriously.

But I didn't.

I could have gone to the gym again instead, and maybe should have because I get a $20 discount if I get enough visits in each month.

But I didn't.

And so I ended up there, on the path. With a bluebird fluttering about me.

There has to be meaning in it. All things are tied together by little microfilaments that we don't understand, but it is in those connections where the meaning lives, so I'm choosing to pay attention.

I'm also going to be paying attention to every song that comes up on random on my iPod today. That little magic box knows things too.

Disappearing Finger Trick

2009-10-30T21:43:00.000-05:00

This is a picture of my hand, taken during the angiogram I had in early September.

See why that one finger is cold? Yeah, noooooooo blood.

See how much there is in the other fingers? Especially the tips?

Song of the DayBee Gees - I Started a Joke

2009-10-30T20:10:00.000-05:00

Noooooooo reason, except for that The Dirtbomb's version of this song came up randomly and reminded me how good this song is.

But here, I went back to the original.

Damn it Jim, I'm a Designer not a System Administrator!

2009-10-29T23:08:00.006-05:00

****WARNING!!****GEEK SPEAK POST****WARNING!!****

You most likely won't give a shit about this, but it has occupied my thoughtspace for almost the entire week, and so I blog.

We have a dedicated web server at HAM that has been hosted for years with Rackspace, so many years in fact that the hosting facility it was housed in is not even used as a hosting facility anymore. The OS, Windows 2000, has reached its end-of-life, as has SQL Server 2000, AS has the box it was all installed on.

So they upgraded us to a new hosting facility, with a new box that has Windows 2003 Server and SQL Server 2003 installed, which is AWESOME! And FREE!

Only problem is, everything that was hosted on that box had to move to the new box. Web sites. Client presentation pages. Multiplayer servers. The whole shebang.

Who's job description does all that fall under?

*crickets chirping*

Yeah, no one. So... me.

Luckily, I don't mind such things. My left brain functions as well as my right, and it knows just enough to be dangerous when it comes to all things technical. I can really break something without much effort at all.

Like our voicemail system.

A day after I pointed a subdomain that I barely remembered to the new server, one of our developers noticed he wasn't getting his voicemail in his email anymore. Hmmm. Funny thing.

Oh, wait. That's right -- we had to fake out our old voicemail system and relay its email messages through the old web server to get them to send properly.

Well, I done did broke dat good.

I wasn't about to purchase another license to install a mail server on the new web server just for this one instance, so I opted to set up the mail server in IIS with the help of some tutorials on the internets. I then set up an email account in Mail and successfully sent an email through the new server.

AWESOME.

Except when I configured the voicemail server to use the new server, messages did not come through at all, and the only error it gave was some stupid generic (ec=2) thing that could be anything.

CRAP.

After I got the kids to bed last night, I scoured the internet for clues about why the goddamn voicemail system was being an asshole and came up pretty much dry, until I saw someone's hint to someone else to use this tool called Wireshark. I installed it on the voicemail server so I could see what the actual network traffic could tell me, and though I don't speak Network Traffic, that whole knows-enough-to-be-dangerous thing paid off. I was able to decipher enough to realize that I'd been blaming the wrong asshole.

The problem wasn't the voicemail server, it was IIS on the new server. Even though the voicemail server was acting like it should, IIS didn't like the way it was talking to it, so it wouldn't talk to the voicemail server at all.

See? Asshole.

So anyway, with the help of the internets again and some more detailed error codes that IIS was throwing up, I got to the heart of it and had to go in and change some deeply hidden registry key sorta thing to make IIS be a little more forgiving.

When I finally beat it, I actually whoooped out loud and started clapping for myself. Right there in the office.

I know, sounds NOTHING like me, right? ;)

Song of the DayLaura Veirs - Wide-Eyed, Legless

2009-10-28T08:34:00.005-05:00

More Laura Veirs! Toss-up between this and the other song I posted which is my fav.

Maybe, just MAYBE, I don't have to have a fav!

Song of the DayChairlift - Bruises

2009-10-27T14:31:00.000-05:00

This was one of Cole's favorite songs this summer. Had I been blogging, I'd most certainly have added it then!

Quote of the Day

2009-10-25T18:49:00.004-05:00

So, the fall weather has had me feeling domestic and wanting to cook fall-type stuff, so I've been baking apple muffins and making apple pancakes and homemade chili and such. Today, I felt like knoephla soup.

So, I made a vegetable knoephla soup for dinner that was pretty damn good if I do say so myself. While we were eating, Cory finished his bowl lickity split and then following exchange occurred.

Cory: "Can I have another bowl? This soup is GOOD."

Daddy: "You like it, eh? Ya know why?"

(This is where I usually say "Because there's LOVE in it," but Cory jumped in with a re-direct.)

Cory: "Because there are DUMPLINGS in it."

Cole: "Yeah. LOOOOVE dumplings."

[comedic beat]

Cory: "Cole, don't ever say those words again."

How could I NOT laugh out loud?

The Trees Are Exploding!

2009-10-24T13:45:00.000-05:00

With color that is.

I had to break out the camera and just shoot a few pictures while the sun was sorta out and the colors are at their peak, which I think they are.

I should have walked down Deephaven Avenue and shot the reds and browns and oranges and purples but alas, I didn't.

But holy crappers, ain't this beautiful?

Song of the DayKermit the Frog - It's Not Easy Being Green

2009-10-24T09:16:00.009-05:00

So, The Current played this one morning as part of their 9:30 Coffee Break. The theme was songs with colors.

I'd heard it of course, but after hearing it again and getting goosebumps, I HAD to have it. Talking about The Muppets in last night's post reminded me of it again.

Enjoy. The goosebumps.

Gremlins Ruined Christmas

2009-10-23T22:39:00.010-05:00

The boys and I ran to Blockbuster after our frozen pizzas intending to get Ice Age 3. However, we discovered that it isn't in stores for another week. Luckily, Cole had a Plan B.

A year and a half ago, I'd kinda pushed Cole into renting a classic 80's movie instead of the usual SpongeBob Squarepants episodes that he always insisted on when he was uninterested in anything else, as chronicled in this post. Since then the boys have voluntarily seen things like the Muppet Movies, Karate Kid, BeetleJuice, Edward ScissorHands, and ET among others.

Cole's Plan B was either Gremlins or Goonies. So we rented both. Tonight, we watched Gremlins. I forgot how gratuitously violent it is for a kids movie! I mean, the mom stabs a gremlin like 5 times with a kitchen knife, puts one in the microwave and we see it explode, later on there are gremlins randomly shooting gremlins in the bar while playing poker... At the end they pop open a gas line and pump it into the theater where the gremlins are all watching Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs and blow the whole place up to kill them all.

I bring this up not because had I remembered the violence, I wouldn't have let them watch it. More because My Memory of Gremlins does not match Gremlins, and that surprised me.

Anyway, I also forgot the story the girl tells about why she hates Christmas in which she talks about how she learned there's no Santa Claus.

Awesome.

She had to tell that right there in front of my boys. I mean, they're almost 13 and 11, but they are still letting us think they believe!

Gremlins can't take that away from me!

Song of the DayBird And The Bee - You're a Cad

2009-10-20T16:28:00.004-05:00

This one's a toe-tapper. Theriouthly.

I've been happily pushing pixels around all day, and this song had me humming and whistling along in addition to the toe tapping.

Of course, I've kinda been doing that all day, and am sure my employees wish I'd shut the hell up.

The Luckiest Tiny Type Ever

2009-10-19T22:30:00.022-05:00

So, I was wondering exactly what I'd blog about today, that is until I took the trash out just now and got the mail.

I'd put the recycling on the street right next to the mailbox and had taken out the one piece of mail today saw, which was a magazine.

Now, I'm sorry, but I don't know how or when I was graced with a subscription to MAXIM, but it was not by my doing. I don't read it. I don't even look at the pictures.

Don't get me wrong, I like pictures of scantily-clad women any day, but the highly-photoshopped and glitzed-up girls of MAXIM just aren't my thing. It shows up and literally goes from the mailbox into the recycling bin outside.

Except this time.

With one hand holding the lid of the recycling bin open and the other about to pitch the magazine into it, I caught a glimpse of the headline "Battlestar Babes" and then recognized the two babes on the cover to be the two hot Cylon flesh-jobs. (Yes, I speak BSG, frak off.)

I took it inside. (Come on, they're HOT.)

When I got the cover inside into the light, I noticed the little block of copy strategically placed over the coming-together of their backsides.

That made it all worth it, even moreso than the highly-photoshopped and glitzed-up Battlestar Galactica girls, MAXIM-style.

P.S. If you, dear reader, are the giver of the subscription to MAXIM and I have very inconsiderately forgotten you'd gifted it to me, I am very sorry.

Song of the DayVampire Weekend - One (Blake's Got A New Face)

2009-10-19T15:58:00.005-05:00

Music makes everything better.

Vampire Weekend's coming out with a new album soon. Well, January. If they come to the Twin Cities on their tour, guess who'll be there?

Today's Victims

2009-10-18T20:54:00.002-05:00

So, though I can't attribute it caffeine, here's what fell victim to today's flurry of activities:

The "junk" t-shirt drawer
As I did to the sock community yesterday, I did unto the junk t-shirt drawer today. I just simply don't paint enough to need that many junk shirts. Out with ye!

(All the other clothes now fear me, as well they should.)

Three large Fireside apples
I had to accelerate the consumption of the orchard apples that the boys and I picked a couple weeks ago (lest they go bad) and decided to make a batch of deeeeelicious apple muffins and another tray of apple crisp, which was even better than the first.

My waistline
I ate two of the muffins, a piece of apple crisp, and a threw in a few bites of a scrumptious piece of pecan pie that had been graciously given to me.

Granted, I did get a workout in so I don't feel so bad about the goodies, but still. I'm sure eating with wild abandon like I have been lately will eventually catch up with me.

This was a productive weekend as it turns out. In addition to everything I've already mentioned this weekend, I installed the new parts in the grill I inherited off the streets and fired it up successfully, did laundry, got an oil change, ran some errands, mega-dosed the hell out of my developing sore throat, finished season 2 of LOST, and squeezed in a little fun too.

Life is good.

Strong Coffee & Sock Drawers

2009-10-17T11:59:00.004-05:00

Helllooooooo World!!

So, this is the second weekend in a row without the boys and I'm kicking it off right with far too much caffeine. Ya know what effect that has on me?

Well, many actually.

It makes me have to poop. (Sorry, just tellin' it like it is.)
It makes me get creative, or at least think that crazy ideas that start popping into my head are way better than they really are.
It opens a very narrow window in which I feel like tackling every single thing I've been putting off for the past 6+ months.

Like my sock drawer. I cannot believe how many pairs of socks I have, and more importantly, cannot fathom what has possessed me to hold on to the the thirty odd pairs that are either paper thin or have holes in them.

So, today I purge. I'm going through the sock drawer and without mercy ditching anything thin, hole-y, or that hasn't had the privilege of being on my feet within the past two years.

While the window is open anyway.

As soon as the buzz wears off I'll be back to wondering what to do with myself.

Look at me! I just make a blog post!

Song of the DayLaura Veirs - When You Give Your Heart

2009-10-17T10:27:00.002-05:00

If you haven't heard of Laura Veirs, you need to give this a listen. Apparently she used to have an all girl punk rock band, but this stuff is just deeeeeeeelicous.

Thank you, bluebird.

Where the Hell Is the Manual?

2009-06-16T13:28:00.005-05:00

I'm making all the mistakes at this point in my life that I should have been making in my 20s so that I'd be wise enough now not to be making them.

Good clean fun.

I Oughtta Start Blogging Again

2009-06-04T22:30:00.002-05:00

Theriouthly.

This is What My Personal Hell Will Look Like

2008-12-23T10:50:00.000-06:00

What did you do today, Bret?

2008-12-02T08:22:00.004-06:00

160.0 on the scale, no exercise.

I really have to figure this exercise thing out. There's no room for my treadmill in the Little House, and it is just plain too cold to go running outside, and will get harder and harder to with more snow on the ground.

So, instead of running, I've been pretty productive this morning.

I took care of some bills, filled out an internship evaluation (finally!), and cleaned the horrible rust stains that were developing in the toilet, shower and sink.

The water has been HORRIBLE these past couple of weeks. I think it is the salt that I put in the water softener. I put salt in that has rust remover in it, and I think it is doing a good job of removing the rust and pumping it RIGHT into every pipe in the house. That is counter to what you'd think it'd do, but...

I hope that goes away. I'm going through Whink like it is water.

P.S. Holy CRAP it is December!

Pictures of The Little House

2008-11-29T23:50:00.004-06:00

Or, you can view the album on Flickr.

Curmudgeon

2008-11-25T18:31:00.000-06:00

Big Day

2008-11-24T09:29:00.002-06:00

160.5 on the scale, no exercise.

Today is our first "official" all-parties-at-the-table meeting about the divorce. Jo, I and our attorneys meet at the Family Justice center with our Judge Referee for the Initial Case Management Conference.

Sort of a non-binding discussion with the Ref to give him an overview of the parts and pieces of the case.

But it sorta makes it feels more official now, for me anyway.

Then a jam-packed day of meetings after that!

I'll rest when I'm dead.

Busy Day of Rest

2008-11-23T22:32:00.003-06:00

158.5 on the scale, 5.0 miles on the path, 4.0 of them ran, and 150/100.

This morning I slept in to about 9:30, then got up, did the dishes, showered up, then went out for some brunch with Lisa at The Hot Plate.

After she dropped me off, I decided I should go running while there was sunlight and it was relatively warm out, since I've used weather and lack of sunlight as an excuse not to get out for like 4 days straight now.

After my run, I diddled around buying music (6 albums) before showering up again and heading out.

I got a haircut, then I went down to the office to get as close as I could to finishing this gmail migration I've been doing all weekend. I also had some additional things to do like put up a new projector, put up a new projector screen in the kitchen, and put the old projector in there, but I didn't get to the kitchen stuff.

Everything else, aside from the people who had laptops and just couldn't live without them, I did pretty well.

Now, I'm gonna go to sleep.

Night!

I did pretty well, frankly.

2008-11-17T11:43:00.000-06:00

160 on the scale, 5.0 miles on the path, 4.0 of them ran, and 0/0. I'll maybe do the floor exercises tonight.

The Hokey Pokey on Skates

2008-11-16T16:46:00.009-06:00

Dunno what I weigh, but probably around 160, and my exercise today was 3 hours of roller skating at The Roller Garden with the boys.

So this morning after making waffles, the boys and I worked a bit on making the basement a kid hangout. The basement is one big unfinished square, with painted cement floors, and exposed floor joists that are pretty low. Like, I have to duck a little to not clip my head in certain places.

Well, Jo was disposing of the old blue furniture which I took to put down there, and we bought a bunch of cheap $2 white sheets from Ikea to hang to make "walls" and to staple across the floor joists to make a ceiling. I've got a big spruce green shag area rug from the old office that has been in storage for awhile that we'll put down there, and with a few more touches, they can have a place to horse around without me saying "stop throwing pillows in the house!" or "Goddamn it, pick up the living room again!" when they're over here. Maybe they can even bring some Legos or something over here to mess it up with.

Anyway, AFTER that, we quick ate some lunch and then hustled our way over to The Roller Garden for their family open skate today. Cory asked his friend Holden to come with us, and we met him there.

On a side note, he'd called earlier to ask me a Very Important Question. He let me know about the concussion he got last week, and that his dad was making him wear a helmet if he was going to go. Holden asked if Cory and Cole could wear helmets too so he didn't feel so stupid. SOO, our entourage (except me) was the only group o' peeps with bike helmets on, but oh well. Nobody took much notice.

We skated for hours, got all sweaty, played a few games, I beat Cole at air hockey, and they had a good 'ol time foolin' around on the floor. See the video below, which I think was the funniest of the bunch that I took today.

That's all for today! Seeya tomorrow hopefully.

Coming Clean

2008-11-16T00:06:00.033-06:00

Hi.

It is me, Bret. You know, the guy behind this blog.

I know you haven't seen me in awhile, so I thought it only right to sorta re-introduce myself. If you've read this at all in the past, you know that I've been horribly negligent about posting for the past handful of months, aside from little spurts here and there.

Like the road trip, for instance. It is easy to have things I can post about when on something like a road trip.

Day-to-day life, not so much.

It isn't that I don't have things to talk about. I do. I have shit-tons to talk about. But there's a difference between having things to talk about and being able to talk about them.

That's because Blogger, like Facebook, is a public forum. Shit you say on here is shit the world gets to know. If they wanna, that is. But ya know, there are some things a guy may not be ready to have the world know.

A guy such as me likes the world to think he's got his shit in order (at least most of the time). While I'm sure the infrequent -- or more accurately, non-existent -- posts were themselves a clue that perhaps my shit was in fact not in order, I didn't have to reveal the shit itself!

That's the beauty of silence, the sheer mystery that comes along with it.

But there also comes a time when a guy such as me is tired of carrying around the burden of silence. Secrets, while fun sometimes, become heavy heavy things the longer you carry them.

So as it made sense to do so, over time I've let those who's paths I cross most often know of the shit. Mind you, not of all of the shit. I just generally let on that there was shit, and that it was going on, as shit does.

Well dear world, the time has come where the guy such as me is ready to let you know of the shit too.

Lucky you.

So here it is: Jo-Anne and I have separated.

If we're Facebook friends, you may have already gotten a hint. The night of this post, my relationship status on Facebook changed to "It's complicated" when she changed it on her profile.

I'd let Jo-Anne know of my decision to move out before, but shortly after I returned from the L.A. new business trip (mid-September), we let the boys know what was happening and I moved my things shortly after that. I moved into a little (and I mean little) rental house about 4 blocks as the crow flies from our house. It was close enough that the boys could go back and forth on their bikes if they wanted, and I was still right where my life was. I could run and bike the same path, drive the same route to work, hit the same coffee shops, grocery store, and Blockbuster, etc.

I've been very proud of how everyone has handled the separation.

The boys have done well, Jo-Anne seems to been doing alright, and I have been doing well too. I've "nested" and made this tiny little house into my own, painting and decorating and fixing little stuff to be just how I like it. The vibe is really good, and the boys are here with me Wednesday evenings and every other weekend too. Everyone seems happier -- even Cecil (my cat).

It feels like I made the right decision.

Since moving out Jo-Anne has made her own decision too, and we are now getting divorced.

So yeah, that's the shit. Now that it is out there for the world to know, I should be very clear and say that I will NOT be dumping all the details out for the world to see. I am quite sensitive to what should and shouldn't be discussed in a forum such as this, and I have no intention of getting too personal or being inappropriate.

However, now that y'all know what's going on, I can actually start to talk about the things going on in my day-to-day life that would have made NO sense otherwise.

Like, I can take and put up pictures of the Little House and my Craigslist and Ikea -assisted decor. I can talk about whether I have or don't have the boys. I can talk about the frustrations and joys of living in a 530-something sq. ft. house, not having a dishwasher, and doing laundry with a washer and dryer right smack in my kitchen.

God, the freedom!

SO.

This site started as the chronicle of a weight loss plan, has chronicled road trips, rants, random stories and much much more. Now, it'll chronicle a divorce too, as much as is appropriate for me to share anyway.

It is crazy how life changes.

2008-10-18T15:38:00.001-05:00

W00t! We've crossed the border into our home state again! Yay!

2008-10-18T13:56:00.001-05:00

Wowsa! Now I'm paying $2.499 for Plus quality gas an Ames, IA. What's Iowa got going on that Minnesota doesn't?

2008-10-18T09:30:00.001-05:00

We're back on the road, headed east on I-80 to meet up with I-35 in Des Moines for the home stretch. We should be home by 5! Woooo!

2008-10-18T02:12:00.001-05:00

We've made it to Lincoln, and are safe in hotel beds for the night. Home tomorrow!

2008-10-18T01:40:00.001-05:00

Almost to Lincoln, NE for the night, we're driving through patches of rolling fog. How eerie!

2008-10-17T18:53:00.001-05:00

Holy, that wasn't rush hour. That was a broadsided car.

2008-10-17T18:42:00.001-05:00

Awesome. "Planned" it just right to get stuck in Denver rush hour traffic.

Day Six - The Southwest

2008-10-16T23:48:00.002-05:00

No exercise again. I'm gonna have to work hard to get back in a rhythm when I get home.

So this morning, Cole woke up first in our rustic little motel in South Fork, and wanted to do something to get on the road, so I suggested he shower.

That's when we discovered how rustic the motel was. A steady temperature for the shower was a luxury. He suffered through it first, and when Cory argued that he didn't wanna get out of bed yet, I happily went next so I'd at least get SOME hot water in case it ran out. Cory could have the cold one, if that's what he wanted!

Anyway, after we all got cleaned up, we drove into town a bit more and found a coffee shop that served breakfast, and we ate. And I also used their wireless and uploaded the 113 pictures I'd taken so far. Unfortunately that took some time and the boys got bored, so I let them go out behind the coffee shop and play for a bit. They found a couple dogs to play with and so it occupied their time just fine.

We finally got on the road at about 11:15 or so, but only had about an hour and a half to drive to get to our next stop, Durango.

We spent a low-key couple hours in Durango, mostly downtown eating a late lunch at Francesco's and then walking around the shops, stopping where we pleased. We hit a couple cool novelty shops, and then ended the adventure with a shop in a candy store, where I got an icecream cone and some freakin' good peanut butter candy they make, and the boys custom-filled 18" tubes with sour powder stuff, like giant pixie sticks.

We then filled the car, and hit the road for Mesa Verde. The entrance to the park was only about 45 miles away, but then we had another 20 mile trek up the mountain to the visitor center. When we paid our entrance fee, the ranger told us that we would probably not get up there by 4:30, which is when they sell the last tour tickets for the day. That put a mission in my head.

So, we bolted up the side of the mountain, and got to the visitor center by 4:25. YAY! We got tickets to the more adventurous of the tours, Balcony House. You have to climb up a 32 foot wooden ladder and then squeeze your way through tunnels and stuff to get back out of the dwellings.

It was a pretty awesome tour, and the ranger was great. Although, there was a kid about 13 or so on the tour that was just completely oblivious to social convention and kept farting loudly and saying "excuse me." I think he was an aspby.

Anyway, after the tour, we had another half hour before some of the other self guided tour dwellings closed, so we rushed to one of them on account of daddy (the boys didn't wanna see anymore) so I could get my money's worth.

We didn't have a place lined up to stay, and there's a lodge at the top of the mesa so we checked that out, but it didn't have a pool (which Cory really wanted) and the restaurants and stuff were too fancy for our tastes, so we headed back down the mountain, destination unknown.

However, we did decide that rather than sticking around this part of CO to see the Four Corners monument, that it was time to start back home, so we headed east once down the mountain, past Durango, back to South Fork before daddy got too tired to drive anymore. About 10:30 or so.

This time, we picked a nicer hotel for a few bucks more, but we get steady hot water, a pool, and a continental breakfast in the morning.

Now THAT's livin'!

The Colorado State Trip Gallery

2008-10-16T11:12:00.003-05:00

Day Five - Interesting People Day

2008-10-15T22:34:00.000-05:00

Again with the no exercise.

Today, I woke up kinda early again, a bit before 7 or so, and while I dozed in and out for the next half hour or more it occurred to me I should finalize the plans with my cousin, Lance, for breakfast which was right around the corner. So, rather than wake him with a crazy-early phone call, I think I woke him with a crazy-early text, to which he responded rather quickly much to my surprise.

A few texts back and forth and we had nailed down breakfast at King's Chef at 9:30.

That gave me enough time, I thought, to shower and cruise down I-25 to the next exit (where the nearest laundromat was) to do the piled-up laundry. So, I hustled into the shower, and leaving the kids with their computer time and a TV remote, rushed down there by 8:10. I knew that was pushin' the time-table a bit, but better to do it then than to cut into our day's adventures.

I got three loads going, then ran down the street to get an americano before coming back to wait for the wash cycles to finish. There was one other person there, an older woman, who, after some exchanges about which machines were faulty and how to operate those that weren't, felt comfortable enough to say the following: "I know it is none of my business, but I was wondering who you thought you might be voting for. I'm hoping you can give me a little hope."

When I said that Obama was my man, it became clear that I'd eroded her hope rather than added to it, and she launched into a handful of things she saw wrong with Obama. Exactly why I don't enjoy talking politics. She was quite clear, at least, that his being black wasn't one of the issues, but she outright called him corrupt and that he'd just make promises to the "gimme, gimme" folk and plunge the country into deep trouble, deeper even than the trouble we're in right now.

I did what I usually do when presented with conflict of this sort and tried to find the common ground between us, because I'm not about to defend my position, nor try to convince any one else out of theirs when it comes to politics. It is a game I don't play, like pinochle.

Anyway, this conversation took us well past most of my clothes being dried and folded, save one damp sweatshirt that just didn't want to let me a) get out of this conversation, and b) get back to the hotel to pick the kids up and get them to breakfast on time with Lance and his girlfriend.

Finally, when 9:25 rolled around, I plucked the goddamned still-damp sweatshirt out, politely excused myself with a "nice talking to you" and a "good luck with the election", then bolted out to the car and rushed back up to the hotel.

I texted Lance to let him know we were late, but we got there finally around 9:50 or so and enjoyed a great breakfast, both in the quality of the food and the conversation -- Lance is always good for a great convo. His girlfriend was great too (first I'd met her), and we all had a good time I think.

After breakfast, we went to see Garden of the Gods which is just on the western edge of Colorado Springs. It is a series of monstrous, intricate red rock formations protruding from the ground. It was freakin' beautiful, but just about everywhere they wanted you to stay on the paths and sidewalks, which was counter to the boys instinct to run up to and conquer every single formation by means of climbing.

On the way out of the park, the boys stopped in the single-stall restroom together, and I waited a few yards away against a fence. It became clear after only a few minutes from the giggles and moronic sounds coming from the bathroom that they were in there fucking around AGAIN, exactly what I'd been harping on them for for days now. I was getting pissed, but as a line of men formed waiting, I saw this as an opportunity for a powerful lesson, so let them carry on as they would naturally. In fact, after a few minutes, I walked away into the parking lot and got in the car out of sheer embarassment, since everyone there could hear everything they were doing. Out of the rear-view mirror, I watched guys get fed up and walk away, and saw some pacing around, clearly agitated at having to wait while two kids fucked around in there.

Some 15-20 minutes later, they emerged prancing like idiots until they realized I wasn't standing there anymore. I could see Cole looking around for his vanished father, concerned, and saw Cory had left his sweatshirt yet again, in the bathroom.

Eventually, they found the car running, realized I was in it, and opened the doors to get in. Cory was met with a, "Cory, where's your sweatshirt?" and after an "awwwwwww crap", he ran off to retrieve it again. Cole was met with a "What were you guys doing in there?" When he started to fill me with some bullshit, I corrected him, and asked if he noticed all those guys waiting outside the door, because they, and I, could hear everything they were doing in there, and it wasn't innocently waiting for Cory to finish pooping.

By then, Cory had returned, and I said, "I want you to realize the impact of your behavior on others" and pointed out that those men were waiting for 15 minutes and getting pissed and leaving because they heard two irresponsible kids that should know better screwing around in there and wasting everyone's time. And I asked if they wanted to know why I was here sitting in the car. They both said "No." but I said, "Well, you're gonna know," and let them know that everyone could hear EVERYTHING they were doing, and I left because I was horribly embarassed.

A closing, "Are you guys proud of your behavior? Because I'm not at all." and I let the silence fall for them to think about it all awhile.

After enough time passed and they'd had enough time in the heavy silence, I asked them how they were going to prevent that from happening again. I got a couple good answers from Cory and prompted a couple from Cole, then said, "Alright, you're lucky because you're never gonna see any of those people again, and YOU can make sure that this stops and that nobody else sees you act like that, and we can get on with having a great roadtrip."

Then I put our audiobook back on and we listened in silence until stopping for gas an hour-and-a-half later in some tiny, barren little town, where we met the next interesting individual.

On just about every roadtrip, I can count on a great encounter with a gas station attendant, and this was our first on this trip. I paid at the pump, but we went in to get some chips and beverages to go with the sammiches I was gonna make, and when we went up to the counter, there was a younger guy with a scrappy beard and a baseball cap to greet us with a routine, "How are you today?"

When I said we were great and asked how he was doing in return, I got a sharp-witted, "Just enjoying another day in paradise." followed by a satisfied grin when I chuckled out loud at his response.

See, that shit is just FUN.

After making the sandwiches and passing them out, we got back on the road for the last stretch before hitting the Sand Dunes National Park before sunset.

We got there a little before 5 to some of the most amazing sights I've had on this trip so far. Literally huge, mountainous dunes of sand juxtaposed against a backdrop of pine and snow-covered mountains! We trekked and trekked to get to the top of them, stopping along the way to mischievously modify people's messages and make our own in the sand, make sand angels, tumble down huge sand hills and more, but the highlight came when we found an abandoned snowsled buried in the sand, not quite at the top!

We dug it out and had a ton of fun barrelling down the dunes, and not as much fun climbing back up them with the sled for the next person's turn. We did that for at least another hour before the sun started to set. Almost the whole time we were at it, we saw two tiny figures sitting on the tip top of the dunes way above us, and as Cory was bringing the sled back up for Cole's last turn, they'd walked down and were coming our way.

Turned out to be a mother and 12-yr old (or so) son, and I talked with them a bit. Turned out they were on a roadtrip too, but a 3-MONTH one, from New York. Holy crap was I jealous, and I told 'em so!

They were planning on heading up to Vancouver from here, then going all the way down the coast to Baja California, then cutting across Mexico and rentering the U.S. in Texas somewhere to start meandering home. Holy CRAP that would be fun.

Anyway, we let them have the sled after Cole's turn and wished them well on their journey and they on ours, then started the trek back down, got in the car, and hit the road for destination unknown. We wanna see Durango and get to Mesa Verde tomorrow before starting home, so the goal was to find some supper and some lodging somewhere between the dunes and Durango.

(That could be the title of a song, "Somewhere Between The Dunes and Durango")

We found both in a little town called South Fork, which is where we are now. We ate at a restaurant called The Shaft (all had the salad bar), then got a room at the Spruce Lodge, a little family-owned rustic motel by the highway.

So that's where we'll be until hitting the road for Durango in the morning.

So, in short, we met lotsa interesting peeps, had a lotta fun, and learned some important lessons today. A GOOD DAY.

I'll really have to get the pictures I've been taking up on flickr when I gets me some reliable internets, because there's some good'uns in there!

More tomorrow!

Leaving My Mark

2008-10-15T14:29:00.001-05:00

There, proof that I, Bret Hummel, was here.

Garden of the Gods

2008-10-15T13:31:00.001-05:00

We're checkin' out some giant red rocks.

2008-10-15T09:46:00.001-05:00

When the payphone at a laundromat rings, do you answer it?

Day Four - Making Our Way South

2008-10-14T22:28:00.000-05:00

No exercise today. I'm sure I'm going to regret the lack of structured exercise when I get back and step on the scale, but I've been getting some happenstantial exercise in at least!

So this morning, we woke up in our cabin-shack nice and toasty warm, about as the sun rose. I, of course, had to pee like every other morning, but sans bathroom, our only option was to trompse out into the sub-freezing weather and piss in the trees.

Which I did.

When I came back in the boys were stirring, and as I donned my cheapo winter coat from Walmart, I told them I was gonna go out and find where the real bathrooms were. I walked around the cabin loop, not venturing too far, and didn't find them. When I returned, I found Cory locked out in his jammies, after he'd made the morning trompse as well.

He blamed Cole, but the cabin doorknob turns from the inside but not the outside when it is locked, and it'd been locked all night. I recall Cole getting up at some point during the night to pee outside too, but he must not have let the door close all the way like I did this morning, else the poor kid would have been locked out while we were both asleep! And, the bears!

Anyway, we all got our coats and hats and gloves on (well, Cory's ONE glove. He's already lost the other) and then explored around Steamboat Lake a bit before packing up the cabin and heading out.

It was another hour to get back to Steamboat Springs for breakfast, so we turned The Golden Compass back on and listened while we drove. After a hearty and relaxed breakfast at The Shack Cafe, we hit the road again back towards Denver.

On the way there, Cory wanted deperately to do some climbing, so we found a trailhead alongside the road in a BEAUTIFUL part of the mountains and spent about an hour climbing almost to the top. There was snow everywhere, so it was a bit slippery, but the boys enjoyed the snow at the base and got into a snowball fight. As with everything with boys, it was fun at first, but escalated to the point that one got pissed at the other and Daddy had to put the kabosh on it before both were crying. I got some good pictures of the fun part though.

Anyway, back mid-statish, our goal was to hit three places: Tiny Town, The Coney Island Hot Dog stand, and The Buck Snort Saloon, then go on to Colorado Springs for the night.

By 5:25, we were 1 for 3.

Tiny Town was closed for the season, but we found The Coney Island after some shenanigans with Google Maps on my phone leading us astray. We had a late afternoon hotdog snack (nachos for Cole), then played a bit by the river in front, and with a dog that'd found us before heading to the Buck Snort in Pine.

In the Pine area, we saw some of the absolute coolest scenery yet, and so were excited to get to the saloon for supper (even though we weren't that hungry after the hotdogs), which is perched atop some major rocks and a gorge.

Much to our dismay, we pulled in at 5:25 to find out they closed at 5. Apparently, the whole town of Pine shuts down at 5 too, so we trudged back, having gone well outta our way to see the stuff, with a bit of a sense of failure.

The good news is, though, that we then just hit the road for Colorado Springs, which we got to early enough as a result of the two closures to have a late supper with my cousin Marisa. However, none of us had showered due to our rustic accommodations last night, so first st was to check into the hotel (Hyatt Place, very nice!) and shower up, quick like a flash.

She chose Fargo Pizza for us, which was a pretty cool parlour-type pizza joint with an arcade in the front.

We ate, caught up, and played, then parted ways and headed back to the hotel for an early bedtime again, like 9:45.

So, despite the disappointments today, it was a pretty good day all 'round.

Hot Dog Treat

2008-10-14T17:55:00.002-05:00

The boys and I stopped at a roadside beacon called The Coney Island Hot Dog Stand for a hot dog snack. Cole had the nachos.

But now we're not sure we're hungry for supper at The Buck Snort in Pine!

2008-10-14T09:58:00.001-05:00

23 degrees and after exploring the lake a little we've packed up the cabin and are headed back to town, unshowered and bedheaded.

Day Three - Headin' Northwest

2008-10-13T22:53:00.000-05:00

No exercise today.

This morning we kinda took it easy at the hotel, although it brought to a head a smack-down convo that needed to happen.

The boys had been acting like complete morons the past couple days, misbehaving, picking on each other, ignoring what they've been asked to do or not do, and generally trying CONSTANTLY to make each other laugh with whatever inappropriate conversation topic they can think of. (Think bodily functions and naughty bits.)

Well, I'd had enough.

So the morning brought the "shape up or we're through here" conversation, which resulted in scowls on all three of our faces as we headed out for the day. That said, today felt like the most fun so far, and felt like we'd started to finally get in our roadtrip groove.

After a quick breakfast at Einstein Brothers Bagels (we tried to find something unique first but failed), we hit the road and stopped first at Red Rocks Park and Ampitheater, on the far west edge of Denver. That was really cool, and after donning our gloves, allowed the boys to squirrel around and put smiles back on their faces. Cory & Cole hopped their way all the way down the seats to the stage, then climbed around the rocks a bit, but the best part was on the way out, when they wanted to climb some rocks.

We all climbed up a ledge by the car, which gave view of a giant hillside that the boys were aching to climb, to the top. So I perched myself on a rock, and said "go to it!" figuring there was probably no better way for them to shake off some of their "moron energy" than some physical exhertion. I watched as they climbed and climbed and turned into ants at the top of the hill. The whole time, we were in earshot and could shout back-and-forth, and the rule was that they had to be able to see me (so I could see them), which they generally obeyed.

In fact, when nature called and I had to duck behind a tree, Cole seemed to have a mini panic attack from 4/5ths the way up that I'd left!

After they came back down all damp and dirty, we climbed in the car and headed west to Idaho Springs for lunch. We partook in a custom-crafted Mountain Pie pizza at Beau Jo's, a Colorado standard pizza place, played some arcade games after, then walked along the main drag and checked out some of their nifty shops.

We saddled up again around 3 and headed into the mountains towards Steamboat Springs, which was our destination for the night. On the way up we listened to three more chapters of The Golden Compass (thanks Lisa & David!) which helped the time pass, and actually led to Cole's first car-nap, proof that the earlier climb did its job.

When we arrived in town, we went straight to Strawberry Park's hot springs, which is what lured us up there, on the recommendation of Cole's Wings teacher. It is a series of rock pools set in the mountains, all different temps. When we walked up to the admission wagon, the creepy old guy in there said in his creepy monotone voice, "Ah... More victims."

We paid the fee and rented some towels from him, then got our swimsuits and changed into them in a teepee before venturing out, half naked, into the 28-degree surroundings. Needless to say, we scurried quickly to what turned out to be the hottest pool (some 110 degrees) and as soon as our boy-vittles were accustomed to the hot water, plunged ourselves into it.

Man it was NICE!

It was pretty cool to be just kinda floating, steam from the pools rising into the cold mountain air, in a beautiful wilderness, and the boys had a blast. Highlight of my day, and the trip so far.

That is, until it started getting dark and we had to get out. The pools are clothing-optional after dark, and while we didn't wanna be seeing any of that flesh carnival, we also had to find the rustic cabin I'd rented an hour north yet, on Steamboat Lake. But really, getting out meant braving the cold in nothing but a wet swimsuit and a flimsy towel.

After we got dressed again in the aforementioned teepee, we rushed back to the car and cranked the heat for the drive back into town. In town, we stopped at a gas station and got some provisions -- chips, drinks, Subway sammiches, and some muffins for the morning -- then hit the road for our next adventure, finding this rustic no-running-water cabin at a state park in the dark.

When Google Maps had us turn on what turned into a dark, unpaved road for about 12 miles of the trip, I began questioning the wisdom of my choice of accommodations, wondering if a) we'd arrive there too late -- after the park gates closed perhaps -- and if b) we'd really be able to find it from the sketchy directions I had.

Cole fell asleep again on the drive, but Cory was awake to witness us passing two cows within 4 feet of the car, which, combined with a couple unintended turn-arounds, is what prompted him to say, "You really don't know where we are, do you?"

I reassured him (and myself) that of COURSE I did -- we were on the way to the state park, and almost there. Soon thereafter, we saw signs for the park, and found that there was no gate, just self-service park fees to pay before entering. And, just as the guy said, cabin 10 was right there as we turned in, and had the porchlight on waiting for us.

Except the heat wasn't on yet, and it was 24 degrees up here. We unloaded the car, got our sleeping bags out, and cranked the little space heater, and then sat down to eat. The boys wrapped themselves up in the sleeping bags for the meal, and after we ate, layered on their jammies and we all turned in for the night, at about 9:30 or so.

A good, adventurous roadtrip day. THIS is the kinda day that makes these fun!

Ginormous Mountain Pie

2008-10-13T14:35:00.001-05:00

We're having lunch in Idaho Springs at Beau Jo's. We custom-crafted our own Mountain Pie!

Day Two - Exploring Denver

2008-10-12T22:15:00.000-05:00

I'm not sure what I weigh (but I think it is in the neighborhood of 159), 3.5 miles on the treadmill, about 3 of it ran, and 150/100.

Man, running on a treadmill in the exercise room just isn't the same, staring at the same shit the whole run. No bunnies running alongside me, no puddles to avoid, no passersby to say hi to or give nicknames to... meh.

After the run, we all went swimming for awhile in the pool. The indoor pool itself wasn't the warmest, so after about a half-hour, daddy got out and wrapped a towel around himself. The boys, however, raised it another notch by venturing outside to the patio where the hot tub was. Thing is, outside was about 36 degrees. So their schtick was to run out there, watch the steam rising off their half-naked wet frames until they couldn't handle the cold anymore, then run and jump back into the pool, which I'm sure felt considerably warmer than it had prior to their schtick.

After a bit of that, we went up to the room to get cleaned up, then headed out to meet Mandy (my cousin) and Jamie (her hubby) at Rosie's Diner in Aurora for brunch. It'd been awhile, so it was nice catching up a little, and the food was swell. Cory got his fill, and Cole got his stack o' cakes with berries and whipped cream.

During our convo with Mandy and Jamie we talked about our disappointment that Winter Park's Alpine Slide was closed for the season, we found out there was another alpine slide on the west side of town that they'd been to. So, some quick googling and I found out it was at a place called Heritage Park, so we went out there (a half hour away) to try our luck.

After a wrong turn or two, I found it. As we got out of the car, I made sure the kids were bundled up in the sweatshirts we brought because it was some 44 degrees by then, and I imagined it'd be cooler up the mountain and the wind in our faces would be chilly. We found that the park was open (albeit a ghost town), but the slide was closed.

Curses!

Anyway, during our walk, we found our sweatshirts weren't even enough for the non-mountain, alpine slidey goodness. So, I found us a Wal-Mart, and we bought some cheap coats, hats and gloves, since I knew we'd be headed up the mountains tomorrow, and the forecast wasn't much better than 42's and 45's for highs, ALL WEEK.

So, $100 later, and we're now equipped for the cool spell we'll be dealing with on this trip.

The afternoon was spent foolin' around at a couple cool toy stores (The Wizard's Chest and Kazoo & Company) and then a cool bookstore (Tattered Cover) and the more-cooler record store next door, before our dinner experience. I gave the boys each $20 to spend at Wizard's Chest, so we spent well over an hour just there! Oh, and we tried on some wigs.

When we were through with everything, we headed to Casa Bonita for supper.

The food was less-than-desirable, but we got to see high divers, a gun fight, a routine with a guy in a gorilla suit, and their roaming mariachi band. After eating, we spent some time in their arcade, feeding tokens to ticket games, and such classics as Ms. Pacman, Frogger, and Centipede (where daddy spent his time). Afterwards, we were tired, and headed home for an early bedtime (9:00 or so!).

Tomorrow, we head out for the Northeast. I'll update from the road!

2008-10-11T22:26:00.001-05:00

We are checked in to the DoubleTree, and I for one am eager to get us all down for the night. Catch ya on the flipside.

2008-10-11T19:36:00.001-05:00

We just crossed the border into Colorado! Couple more hours to Denver, where we'll spend the next two nights...