this one's for the girls.....

The top 12 girls performed on American Idol last night. Since I know everyone is dying to know what I thought, here's my assessment:

Mandisa - Nashville favorite, plus I met her a few years ago when we worked in the same building. Amazing voice, she'll be in the final 12 for sure.

Kellie Pickler - Cute, good voice, has the ability to cry at the drop of a hat. (Reminds me of a young Joan Van Ark, which is just more proof of how old I am.) Good job last night. Will make it to the final 12.

Becky O'Donahue - She did OK. Prettiest of the bunch, and that may be enough to get her into the final 12, but she's not a shoe-in.

Ayla Brown - Good voice, very tall, basketball player. She did OK. Probably survives this week, but doubtful to make it to the final 12.

Paris Bennett - One of my favorites. Sings and performs effortlessly. Book it, she'll end up in the top 5.

Brenna Gethers - Never before have I wanted a contestant to come out and fall down on the stage more than with this girl. She'll hang on for one more week, maybe two weeks, but she won't be in the top 12. Did anyone else see the Sammy Davis Jr./Popeye expression she had on her face a couple of times, or was that just me?

Stevie Scott - Opera girl goes home tomorrow night. They've said it a million times already - song selection is key. She has talent, but it's not right for this show.

Melissa McGhee - The surprise of the night. Sounded much better than I thought she would. She needs to do some Melissa Ethridge material.

Heather Cox - Pretty girl, but could be going home tomorrow night. Average voice at best.

Lisa Tucker - 16 years old, and one of the best. She's a pro. Another book-it, she's in the top 12 for sure.

Kinnick Sky - She makes it one more week, then exits. Very elegant performance, but doesn't have enough to make it to the top 12.

Katherine McPhee - Another one of the best. She's got talent, personality, voice, total package. Top 12.

So my prediction for the 6 girls that make it through (in no particular order) - Melissa, Kellie, Lisa, Paris, Katherine and Mandisa. 4 of these are no-brainers.






Tonight it's the guys' turn. My favorite going in is Taylor Hicks, the grey-headed guy from Alabama. A combination of Billy Joel/Ray Charles/Joe Cocker. Should be good.....

delayed reaction.....

Growing up in East Tennessee afforded me the priviledge to two things in the winter - hills and snow. (OK, I had hills in the other three seasons, too, just humor me here.) Whenever we got snow, there were hills all around that were great for riding sleds. In Middle Tennessee, we don't get alot of snow. We get more of a wintery-mix or ice.

The past two weekends, the weather forecasters told us we'd get anything from and inch to 5 inches of snow. We got around an inch or less both times. However, this past weekend there was enough to at least cover most of the grass, so I was able to get out the sleds and ride with the girls. There aren't alot of steep hills, but at the end of our cul-de-sac is the 18th fairway. There's a small hill that goes down to the fairway and eventually into a pond. Luckily, no one from our group ended up in the pond.

I took my first ride down the hill in the normal, sitting up fashion. Whee. Not alot of rush there. So I decided to go down the hill standing up on the sled. I grabbed the cord/rope on the front of the sled, kicked off the excess snow/ice from my boots, positioned my feet on the sled and started down the slope. No big deal, just like riding a skateboard. As I approached the part of the ride where the hill leveled off into the fairway, I started to slip. Attempted to right myself, I shifted my weight in the opposite direction that I was falling. But I fell anyway. Right onto the cart path. Oh, did I mention the cart path? The asphalt cart path?

When we're kids, we just fall. We don't worry about how we fall, we already know that we're going to fall, so we just fall. As adults, we do really stupid things like shifting our weight and trying to brace ourselves with our appendages.

I went down onto the cart path with my left elbow hitting first followed by my left hip. It hurt, but not too bad. I got up, surprised that the pain was so much less than I thought it would be. (Remember, this was only my second ride down the hill, so there was no way I was going in just yet.) I stayed out for about an hour more. Still, not alot of pain. No, the pain was going to wait.

That night I felt it a little more, but nothing major. Sunday morning, I felt it a little more. Sunday night, Fred Sanford could have beaten me in the 100-yard dash. A hot tub of water sounded good, but it didn't do too much for my situation. I slept with one of those heat patches around the back of my neck Sunday night.

It's Tuesday morning, and I'm doing a little better. Although there's no bruise on my hip, I'm still feeling it. The bruise on my elbow looks more like a carpet burn. The bride reminded me several times over the weekend that I just can't do these things and expect to bounce right back like I did 20 years ago. I think what she meant to say is that she looks forward to growing old with me, but it didn't come out right.....

yeah, right.....

They say it's good to start your day with a laugh. I'd like to thank the weather guy at WKRN for making the bride and me laugh this morning.

We began our day as we normally do - the alarm clock went off and we turned on the TV. The weather guy came on and said that we should expect 1-3" of snow late tonight and early tomorrow. The bed started to shake a little, then a little more. Then he showed the 7-day outlook, and more snow was predicted. The bed shaking stopped when the laughter was released.

Maybe it'll snow, just maybe. Last week when the prediction was for 3-5" of snow all kinds of things were cancelled in the Nashville area. ACT tests. Softball and baseball sign-ups. Hospital. OK, not hospitals, but practically everything else. And we woke up Saturday morning to less than an inch of snow and clear roads.

For once I'd love to hear a weather person come out and say, "I just don't know." That way they'd have a better chance of being accurate with their forecasting.....

just an observation.....

You know you're getting old (either that or you're very easy to please) when you get excited about a needle already having the right color of thread in it when you go to sew something because you dread having to rely on your "up-close" eyesight to thread a needle.....

valentine's day review.....

I heard last week that the average consumer was going to spend around $108 for Valentine's Day. I can tell you that the bride and I both missed that mark by around $105 each on each other.

A lack of spending does not equate to a lack of love. I think any more that culture says "the more you spend, the more it shows how much you love them." If that were the case, I'd be broke around our house.

Both daughters got flowers (or a flower) from "friends" yesterday. Being the father of girls, and especially girls who receive attention from stinky ol' boys, can be tough. My mind goes back to times when they were younger and I was met at the door with cheers and chants. Now I'm greeted with "I'm on the Gazelle!" or "I'm going to Amanda's house!"

I know we're not empty-nesters yet, but it's heading that way. The girls' social life is much busier than ours, and that's OK. Because when you're in a nest with someone you love, you sort of like hanging out with them there.....

valentine's day gift idea.....

I heard this story recently:

My husband, being unhappy with my mood swings, bought me a mood ring the other day so he would be able to monitor my moods.

We've discovered that when I'm in a good mood, it turns green. And when I'm in a bad mood, it leaves a big, freaking red mark on his forehead.

Maybe next time he'll buy me a diamond.

No diamonds this year, my dear bride, but no mood rings either. Happy Valentine's Day!

PS - On a slightly more romantic note, the bride and I met and had our first date 19 years ago this week.....

snow day.....

Not for me, but for the girls. It looks like someone opened up a salt shaker and and barely dusted the roads, so Williamson County and Franklin City schools are closed.

Weather forecasters all over the city of Nashville were predicting 3"-5" of snow Friday night, with additional accumulations on Saturday. We got less than an inch. Wouldn't it be great to have a job where you didn't have to ever be right or even accurate?

Ken Davis spoke at church yesterday. He grew up in northern Minnesota and lived in the Denver area for years. Ken said that he couldn't believe the way we reacted to snow. Ken said that if a snowflake falls in Gallatin, all of middle Tennessee is shut down. I agree.

Growing up in upper-east Tennessee, we got alot of snow. Yes, we missed school when it snowed. In 1971, when I was in first grade, we only went to school about 3 or 4 days in the month of January because of snow. Our county was prettry spread out, and there were alot of hills that buses had to travel, so snow made traveling by bus an impossibility.

Days like these are the only days I wish I was in school again.....

this could be a good book.....

Yesterday was one of those days where I just wanted to get away from the office at lunch. I hadn't had a bad day, I simply needed a change of scenery. Although it was about 32 and breezy, I decided to brave the cold and walk downtown for a bite to eat and to spend some time in the downtown library. I've spent quite a bit of time there lately during my lunch, sifting through model train scenery books and taking notes. (So far it's all just head knowledge; I've yet to act on a single idea.)

In the new books section, I found a new book on model railroad scenery, realized it was just a new edition of a book I'd already scanned, and put it back in the rack. The new book section in non-fiction is right next to the Religion section. I decided to look for a Donald Miller book. I've never read any of his writings, but I've heard good things. I found one called "Searching for God Knows What" and sat down to read the first chapter.

You ever have one of those "wow" moments when you're reading something? It's not new to you, but it's so profound. I had one of these moments while reading a small portion of this book.

The author talks about going to a Christian writer's conference in Memphis early in his writing career. He was so excited, felt that he had at least two good books in him (one involved a machete-weilding nun), and he just knew this was going to be a life-altering weekend. Miller hadn't bothered to find out that the conference was for non-fiction writers. His ideas were more along the lines of fiction. In fact, while talking one-on-one with an instructor during lunch, he asked her what the difference was between fiction and non-fiction. The instructors said there were basically two formulas to writing books, and that they would learn them over the next two days. As he listened to both formulas, he realized neither of his books would fit into the formulas.

Some of the ladies at the conference were doing devotional books. One was for reading while sipping tea; another was for reading while drinking coffee. When we got home after the conference, he thought about writing a devotional. Using one of the formulas from the conference, he began his process. After several attempts, he gave up. He realized something - you can't get to know God or about God from a formula. Salvation is basically God's invitation to get to know Him.

Miller said that when he wanted to talk to his best friend, all he does is call him. He didn't have to light candles, start some incantations and sing a song. Same thing with God. Sometimes religions put so much into the production of "church" and the things surrounding church that the simplicity of it all is lost in the shuffle. When we decide to have a relationship with God, He comes to where we are, no matter where that might be, and lets us get to know Him.

And that's just the first chapter. Looking forward to the rest of the book.....

I've heard of people tipping over outhouses, but.....

Teen Using Restroom Falls Out Bus Window

ALBANY, N.Y. - A New York City teenager fell out the window of a moving bus while using the restroom Tuesday and landed on the New York State Thruway.

State police said Jose Gonzales, 17, lost his balance when the chartered bus swerved to change lanes. It was unclear how fast the bus was going.

Gonzales was taken to Albany Medical Center for treatment. Police said he'll recover. Gonzales fell onto the shoulder of the thruway near Exit 23 southbound.

makes you think.....

The bride and I attended a funeral for a friend yesterday. We weren't all that close, but we got to know each other a little better in Sunday school over the past 6 months or so when we found out that we had a mutual friend. We usually sat together in class.

Steve was just 52. Two months ago, life was good. About six weeks ago his doctor told him that he had kidney cancer. Sunday morning, around 2:40 a.m., he was gone. The members of our Sunday school class were honorary pall bearers.

He left behind two sons - one 24 and married, the other a senior at Centennial and just 18. The youngest is having a hard time. There were so many kids from school at the funeral, and even more at the visitation the night before. The coming weeks and months will be tough for him.

I learned alot about Steve yesterday. I found out how many people loved and respected him. One of his neighbors spoke and said that he asked himself if Steve was a successful man. He said that according to John Maxwell's difinition of sucess, Steve was very successful. Maxwell said that success is when those you're closest to in life love and respect you. In other words, they know the real you and love you anyway.

Maybe this sounds trite, but I looked at the bride and the girls a little differently last night.....

not-so-super bowl.....

I once had a root canal that was more exciting than last night's Super Bowl.

Yeah, yeah, the Steelers were a team of destiny; no other 6th-seeded team had ever made it to the Super Bowl; and Jerome Bettis is going home. I was sick of all of it before it even started. And the Seahawks blew it more than the Steelers won it. Sorry if you're a Pittsburgh fan, but it's true. (And I'm not a Seahawks fan.) However, it was good to see Cowher win a Super Bowl. He seems like a great family kind of guy.

Here's what stood out for me:

The officiating was horrendous. This was supposed to be an all-star crew? Stevie Wonder should have stayed on as the head ref after his pre-game performance.

The commercials. Best one of the evening was the Budweiser commercial with the streaking sheep. Next best was Ameriquest with the lady getting up to go to the bathroom on a plane. Worst one? Hummer. Pretty stupid.

The Seahawks' tight end. If he catches the 4 or 5 he dropped, Seattle wins.

The defenses. Seattle was much better than I expected, Pittsburgh was very overrated. For all of their hype, Porter and Polamalu were non-factors.

Pre-game MVP ceremony. Seeing the former MVP's before the game brought back a flood of memories for me. Sorry to sound like an old fart, but those guys were true legends. They played when it was still just a game.

I'd also like to thank the bride for the lovely Super Bowl meal and snacks, without which I would be able to button my pants this morning.....

super bowl time, and I don't care.....

It's been a long time since I've had any real interest in the outcome of a Super Bowl. I guess the last one was when the Titans played the Rams back in 2000. Great game, one that we could have won.

For me to really get into a Super Bowl, I've got to care - which usually means that "my team" has to be in it. Of course, had the Colts made it, I would have cared. I'd like to see Peyton win one before he retires.

When I was younger, I had a few different favorite teams. First it was the Packers because Dad liked the Packers. My first football uniform was a Green Bay uniform. Then I later became a Steelers fan, mainly because they won alot. I remember getting a Steelers winter coat one year after alot of begging. Some of the neighbors made fun of it, and I wouldn't wear it any more. Soon after that, I succumbed to peer pressure and became a Cowboys fan. I remained a Cowboys fan until the Titans came to town. And while this past year was not alot of fun to endure, I'll stay a Titans fan.

I was glad to see someone other than the Patriots in the Super Bowl. And I will probably watch the game Sunday night. I just hope it's competitive and exciting. If it gets to be one of those games where Rothlisberger turns and hands off to Bettis 45 times, it will be anything but exciting. And I'll end up watching Comedy Central or TV Land.....

things can only go up from here.....

As I was about to walk out of the mens' room just moments ago, I could feel something cold against the inside of my left thigh. I looked down and it was as if I had no control over my bodily functions. Apparently I turned the water on too fast and splashed more than just the cuffs on my shirt. It also got my pants. I don't think I could have done the actual deed and made it look any more realistic. I had to spend a few extra minutes in there as I attempted to dry my dress khakis with paper towels.

Yep, it's gonna' be one of those days.....

staying on topic.....

I thought about ExxonMobil's press release on the way home yesterday. Their excuse for their huge profit in 2005 was this - our bottom line was enormous because we're enormous. Sounds like ExxonMobil hired a former Clinton administration speech writer.

Saying this is sort of like a fat person saying their butt is gigantic only because they weigh so much.....

and I used to despise wal mart.....

After reporting that they had their largest quarterly profit EVER, they have the nerve to say this. I'm no genius, but it doesn't take much to figure out that being me being gouged at the pump equates to their hefty bottom line.

Excuse me while I heave.....

assumptions.....

Kids have been known to question things. Why the grass is green and why the sky is blue. Sometimes adults don't have the patience to explain. And sometimes we assume that children are born with a database full of information and that they should already know the answers.

While reading something from a local author recently, he talked about how small children have to be forced to take baths and brush their teeth. They may not like it at first, but after awhile they figure out that this has value. (Especially boys when they discover girls.) Sometimes the things we learn from our parents are not fully appreciated until we become adults. Ask any college graduate how smart his father became from the time the recent graduate was a freshman to the time he took a job out in the real world.

A teenager I know asked me this weekend if she could get 2 drivers licenses - one for her purse, and another for in the car. That way she would never be without one. To a teenager, that makes perfect sense. To an adult, all kinds of red flags and bells go off. Fraud, forgery, etc. But she had no way of knowing all this.

If you think about it, age brings with it a bit of cynicism. Walls automatically come up whenever questions are asked, standards challenged. Creativity suffers and companies sometimes die due to a lack of asking enough questions. Remember Tom Hanks in the movie Big? He was a kid working for a toy manufacturer. What better person than a kid to tell you what kind of toy works or doesn't work?

Maybe all research and development teams should include at least one child. With questions come answers.....

project patience.....

The bride and our girls bought me a train set for Christmas. (That's my new diesel locomotive on the right.) For the past month I've been working on a layout. One weekend I built the frame. The next weekend I cut the plywood and foam for the track base. The following week I put the plywood and foam into the frame. For the past week I've been trying to come up with a good, workable, somewhat realistic layout for the track. Just when I think I've got the right layout, something goes wrong. It's either an electrical issue, an elevation/incline problem, or a concern about track length.

This is a whole new world for me. Yes, I've worked with trains before. But I never got past the stage of setting them up on the kitchen table for a few hours then putting them back into their respective boxes. Plus, I'm a checklist kind of person. The kind who makes a checklist and rushes to get it finished. This is different. This requires something I have very little of - patience.

It's alot like marriage or parenting or any other long-term relationship - you're never finished with your project. It's always evolving, always changing. There's always something more that can be done with it, something else that can be added or taken away. A tweak here or there.

I think I've been tricked. The bride actually bought me an educational toy....

giving up the wheel.....

On Monday I told about the couple from our class that hydroplaned on their way to church, and the song on the radio was Carrie Underwood's "Jesus Take the Wheel". Why is it that we sometimes wait until we're out of control before we hand over the keys?

It's pretty easy to forget where your blessings come from when things are going well. But when things turn sour and life is hard, that's when we're ready to get things right. It's almost like we have this Santa Claus mentality, only communicating with God when we want something. (And when I say "we" I'm pointing back at myself.)

God wants us to talk to Him, but not just when things are bad or when we want something. He wants a relationship with us. And just like in relationships we have with other people, you're going to have the good and the bad. That relationship isn't always going to be fun. Sometimes it will be downright confusing. There are times you just have to trust that whatever road you're on is going to get you where you need to be.

I have a friend who just recently lost his job. He's one of the strongest Christian men I've ever met. He's also one of those guys whose relationship with God is constant and genuine. Over the past week he's had people come up to him and say that this is probably for the best, and that God's got a plan for him. Even though he knows all this, it doesn't make him feel any better. And frankly he's tired of hearing people tell him this. Because pain still hurts.

What's so impressive about this guy is his positive attitude through it all. Is he ticked off? Sure, but he knows deep down (and some days it's way deep down) that God is in fact leading him through this journey. Trust makes unknown destinations a little more tolerable.....

she could help your heart.....

Comedy Films May Boost Blood Flow To Heart
(courtesy of the Seattle Times, 1/17/06)

Heading to the movies? Pick a comedy if you want to boost the blood flow to your heart.

In a small study outlined in a letter published in the journal Heart, researchers at the University of Maryland Medical Center asked 20 volunteers to watch 15- to 30-minute segments of sad and funny films. Examples of sad films included the opening scene of "Saving Private Ryan," and examples of comedy films included "There's Something About Mary."

Participants were asked to abstain from drinking alcohol, using vitamins or herbs, or engaging in aerobic exercise the evening before the experiment, since those factors can affect blood flow.
The researchers then measured blood flow in the brachial artery, which runs from the shoulder to the elbow, and is a good indicator of blood flow around the body.

Brachial artery blood flow was reduced in 14 of the 20 volunteers after watching movie clips that caused distress. But it was increased in 19 of the 20 volunteers after watching movie clips that elicited laughter.

The impact of watching a sad film was of the same magnitude as remembering episodes of anger and doing mental arithmetic, the researchers said, and the impact of watching a funny film was equivalent to a bout of aerobic exercise or starting on a cholesterol-lowering drug treatment.

makes you stop and think.....

A couple in our Sunday school class was on their way to church yesterday morning. The wife commented to the husband that it was starting to rain. About a mile later, the bottom dropped out and it began to pour. A few minutes after that, they hit a ponded area on the interstate and they began to hydroplane. The husband said that they did about three 360's. He said that his view through the windshield kept changing from the median to a rock wall.

When their vehicle came to a stop they were pointed in the right direction. Neither of them were hurt, and no other cars were involved. The song on the radio at the time? Carrie Underwood's "Jesus Take the Wheel".....

permission denied.....

This is a bit frustrating. I feel like a comic who's just come up with the best material for his act, but his agent said he couldn't use it.

I've heard of things lately that would be so enjoyable to those who read this, but I've been denied access. Just last night, the bride was telling me about something from her day. At the end of the story she quickly added, ".....and this better not end up in your blog!" Great.

While cleaning the kitchen last night, I had an old Barry Manilow CD playing in the stereo. (Face it, for all the bad publicity he's gotten over the years, the man did shape the culture with his lyrics. And no, I'm not gay because I listen to Barry Manilow. Just in case you tried to make that connection.) So a song comes on and I immediately think that it would be good background music for a popular drug that makes older couples want to sit in seperate bathtubs on a hill and watch the sunset. I'm writing the thing as I'm scrubbing the baked on chicken casserole out of a Pyrex dish. What happened when I told the bride about it? She nixed that one too.

I've gotta' get a new agent.....

overheard.....

On my way to pump more caffiene into my body Tuesday afternoon, I overheard one lady say this to another lady:

"Is it ever going to stop raining?"

I immediately started thinking about the Seattle area, and how fortunate we are here compared to them. At that time, it had been raining in Nashville for approximately 18 hours. As of this past Saturday, it had rained for 27 straight days in Seattle. During the 27 straight days of rain over the past month, over 13 inches of rain fell. And not only is it wet, but they get to deal with all the other side effects of the rain - mud slides, water cresting well about flood stage, patients being evacuated from hospitals.

People who complain about a little rain are the same ones who complained about dry conditions only a few weeks ago.....

i know her, i know her.....

While watching American Idol last night, they kept showing this girl who looked so familiar to me. Then when she went before the judges and said her name, I finally remembered her.

The young lady who wanted to be known as just "Mandisa" used to work here in Nashville. I actually hired her to sing at one of our meetings about three years ago.

Go, Mandisa.....

funny how it's not as funny.....

Every year, for several years, there were about 15-20 couples who made their annual lake trip. We were all in our mid-20's to early-30's, we had young kids, and we were all very close. The times we shared with them, not only during the lake trips but also just day-to-day, bring back some of the best memories for the bride and me.

Days on the lake went like this - the guys played golf every morning while the ladies worked on their tans; we'd have lunch together then spend the rest of the daylight hours on the water on jet skis, wave runners or ski boats; dinner would usually be something on the grill or lasagna; then we'd sit up all hours of the night playing cards and watching movies.

One year I brought a couple of movies - Jim Carrey's Ace Ventura - Pet Detective, and Pauly Shore's Son-in-Law. Of course these were movies for the guys - the ladies would obviously not appreciate or understand high-class humor like this. We watched both movies and laughed until we cried. We quoted lines from the movies for months.

I've watched Pet Detective several times since then. I've even introduced both daughters to Ace (the edited for television version), and they loved it. This past weekend I had the opportunity to watch Son-in-Law again. I'm not sure how it happened, but Pauly Shore isn't funny any more. It's the same movie, but he's now more stupid than funny in that movie. Yes, there are some funny parts, but not nearly as many as there were 13 years ago.

And it can't have anything to do with me growing older and maturing.....

strange things that happened this weekend.....

* The Colts, everyone's shoe-in for the Super Bowl, lost yesterday. Pittsburgh's defense had them rattled from the start. And Indianapolis' "liquored-up" kicker couldn't close the deal when the game was on the line.

* I worked out for about 20 minutes total on the bride's new Gazelle Power Plus and didn't drop 15 pounds. I thought that thing was supposed to work fast. May have to send it back.....

kind vs. nice.....

The father of someone I know and respect deeply always had a saying:

Be kind to everyone, because everybody's having a hard time.

People don't use the word "kind" in their everyday language any more. "Kind" has been replaced by "nice", and while the two words may be similar, their meanings vary. When I looked up "nice" I found words like pleasant, good and polite. Here are the words that define "kind": caring, sympathetic, gentle, thoughtful. Big difference, huh?

Here's a good way to look at it. You ask someone how they're doing, and after they tell you, you say something like, "Well, hope things get better. Talk to you soon!" You've just been polite or nice. Nothing wrong with that at all! But as someone once said, people don't care how much you know until they know how much you care.

No matter how good things are for someone, there's always some kind of struggle they're going through in their life. It may be obvious, or it could be something hidden. But showing someone kindness instead of simply being nice could make a big difference in their life.

We all have the choice to be nice or to go the extra mile and be kind.....

follow-up to yesterday.....

As we started out on our walk yesterday afternoon, the bride said that she had read my post for the day. She did point out, however, that I had left out some important information. So here's.....the rest of the story.

Apparently I've been snoring quite a bit lately. But just in my sleep, so it's not an all-the-time kind of thing. My "alleged" snoring keeps some people awake. And by some people, I'm referring to the bride. So the moment I asked if she liked her bone, she had just come back from trying to sleep on the couch in the den. Evidently my alleged snoring was so loud that it kept her from sleeping that night.

But let's take it a step further. When she got back into bed that night, she apparently roused me from my slumber causing me to ask her this question. Makes me wonder if she didn't actually wake me up.....

sleep-talking.....

I used to sleepwalk when I was younger. I don't remember many of the times that I did it. I do vaguely remember when I was about 4, I went sleepwalking and thought I was in the bathroom. Thankfully, Dad's raincoat that was hanging in the hall closet was water repellent.

When we first got married, the bride got to witness a few episodes of my wonderful talent. But I added a new twist for her - dialogue. One night I got up, went to her side of the bed, and proceeded to ask her where the gas seed was. What is gas seed? I don't have a clue, but I was sure she knew where it was and that she was hiding it from me. Another time I poured water on her head while she slept. I must have been dreaming about watering flowers or something. Yet another time I decided that all the lamps in our bedroom belonged in the kitchen - at 2:30 AM.

I haven't sleptwalked (is that even a word?) in several years. But night before last, the bride said that I asked her the following question - "Did you like your bone?" And according to her, I found this question to be quite humorous, because I immediately started laughing.

Life with me is never boring.....

1 in 5 people.....

I heard something interesting while at lunch today. In a recent survey, people were asked to give the best way to become wealthy. 20% of those surveyed said the best way to become wealthy was to win the lottery. That means if you see 5 people standing together, odds are that one of them thinks this way.

Whatever happened to working to obtain wealth? Another interesting fact is that of all the "wealthy" people in America, only 8% of them inherited their wealth. Now I didn't graduate from MIT, but if my simple math skills work here that means the other 92% DIDN'T inherit their money. Think they worked and worked hard for it?

The land of opportunity is becoming (or has already become) the land of gimme' what oughta' be mine.....

unlikely angel.....

Ashley Smith was probably the kind of person who was easily forgettable. Hooked on drugs, with a seemingly hopeless messed-up life. But about a year ago she found out that God can use people who don't have their acts together.

You've probably heard the whole story about how Ashley was able to convince Brian Nichols to turn himself in after killing 3 people in Atlanta. I was able to hear all the details as our pastor did a "Larry King style" interview with her during our morning services yesterday. (You should be able to view the whole service at www.pclive.org later on today. For some reason, they just have the opening song on there this morning. Just click on the "1-8-06" link under the Video heading.) She admits, she wasn't an angel. At one point she was a drug addict, so much of a drug addict that she lost custody of her daughter.

But things changed. She got into rehab and was making a new life for herself. Then came March 11, Brian Nichols and more prayer than she'd ever known before. Ashley said at first she felt like God was tired of her and that she was about to die. Then she said she felt that this was happening for a reason, and that everything was going to be OK. Seven hours later, Brian Nichols surrendered to police, and Ashley surrendered to God.

We don't all get second chances, but when we do we need to make the most of them. I've heard several "learned" people say that she's not the real thing. I tend to disagree, because Ashley Smith got her second (or third or fourth) chance and she's making a difference.....

good intentions.....

I've heard it said that the road to hell is paved with good intentions. You know another road paved with good intentions? The road to Fatty Town.

It's about 35 and spitting snow in downtown Nashville. I decided to get out and walk downtown for lunch. My intention was to eat chicken strips at Burger King. By the time I got to my destination, not only was I freezing, but I also learned that Burger King had been closed. Gone. Vanished.

I looked across the street and there was Cheeseburger Charley's. Sure, I could have walked back up to Subway or Quizno's, but I was cold and hungry so I took the easy way out. And, yes, they did have grilled chicken sandwiches. But getting a chicken sandwich at a burger place would be like, oh I don't know, getting a cheeseburger at a Chinese restaurant.

So I got a burger (their smallest one!) and enjoyed it immensely. I did walk at quite a brisk pace on the way to the library and then from the library back to work. That should count for something.

Gonna' start eating better on Monday.....

not in college any more.....

While I hate to see the college football season end, my body is ready for a break. Tuesday night's 3-OT game kept me up until 12:30, then the national championship game had me up until 11:30. And since I get up at around 5:20 every morning, that didn't leave much time for sleep.

Texas, while they got a few calls, deserved to win. Vince Young made a believer out of me. I went into the game thinking Reggie Bush would be the difference in the game, but Young stole the spotlight from him. It was an incredible game.

On another topic, the elliptical machine has been returned to Sears. The repairman said a major component was broken, and that if it were him he would take it back and get a brand new one. The bride talked to him about the reliability of ellipticals, and he said that he repairs more of them than any other kind of exercise equipment. So we're back to the drawing board. More research.

OK, gotta' go get get some toothpicks to prop my eyelids open for the day.....

what i did on my Christmas vacation.....

I didn't try to blog once during Christmas vacation, other than the brief post on Christmas morning. Here's a synopsis of what happened during my 11 days off:

12/23
Came into work for about an hour. Shopped around Cool Springs until the theater ticket office opened so I could get tickets for the afternoon "Narnia." Great, wonderful movie. Some scenes will give you chills. Mark and Jennifer went with us, then we went back to our house for the evening.

12/24
If I remember correctly, I ran a few errands that morning, then we went to Christmas Eve service at 3:00. Very nice. Watched a movie that night.

12/25
The big day! Our poor daughters didn't get hardly anything for Christmas. My three girls surprised me with an n-scale train set! Looking forward to building a layout this coming year! Mark, Jennifer and Cole came over that afternoon, and we all played an extremely long game of Yahtzee. Hint - keep the number of players under 6 or you'll be there all day. Not that the company wasn't wonderful!



12/26
Got up that morning and did some after-Christmas shopping. Bought a new softball glove, then some train stuff at Hobby Lobby (50% off). Went to the bride's parents' house for family Christmas that night. Had a great time and ate too much.

12/27
Left for Mom's and Dad's that morning, and stopped off to see Helen and Shelby on the way. Had a nice drive up, except for going through Knoxville. Thought of mailing a nasty letter to TDOT and asking them why Knoxville is always in a mess. Never got past the thought process. Fried chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy and green beans for dinner. Again, ate too much.

12/28
Spent the most of the day at Mamaw's and had a good time there. Had dinner that evening with the Moffits. You just can't beat Christmas with family and friends. Had too much to eat at lunch and dinner. (There's a pattern developing here.....)

12/29
Dad and I spent the day driving around Kingsport and Bristol. Went by our first two houses. Ate at Pal's (chili bun, frenchie fries) for lunch. The neighborhood looked both different and the same, if that's even possible.

12/30
Drove back to Franklin. Knoxville traffic was much lighter. The girls watched a movie while the bride read a book. It was great being in East Tennessee, but just as good to be back home.

12/31
The bride and I ran some errands that morning. Picked up tickets for "Cheaper by the Dozen 2" for the late showing. I love Steve Martin, but he won't have an Oscar on his mantle for this movie later on this year. We actually stayed up to watch the ball drop. Good to see Dick Clark back, but it was hard to watch. Hope he can get back to normal soon.

1/1/06
Did the late service that morning. Came home and ate. Spent the rest of the day undecorating for Christmas. While it's necessary, I don't like it because that means Christmas is officially over. After that, while the bride and Meg were out, I completely rearranged the bonus room. I was dead tired by the time my head hit the pillow that night. I'm getting old.

1/2
Watched football most of the day. Alot of good games. The SEC didn't fare too well this bowl season. At least UT didn't lose! Put the bride's elliptical machine (surprise Christmas present!) together that afternoon. After less than 10 minutes of use, it locked up. The repair guy is supposed to come Wednesday. Disappointing, but it'll be fixed or we'll get a new one.

Here's a little tip for you - if, the night before you have to go back to work after being off for Christmas, you wonder aloud to someone "gee, I hope my work clothes still fit", you probably ate too much while you were off.....

*Please note that this is not my gut, but rather what my gut will look like if Sears doesn't fix the bride's elliptical machine.....

t minus 10 minutes.....

It's Christmas morning, 6:50 a.m. The bride is drying her hair, and Meg and Sara are doing their countdown upstairs. Though they're 15 nd 10, Christmas morning brings out the 3-year-old in both of them. And although I'm 41, I can still relate.

Excitement. Anticipation. And all those other emotions all rolled into one. Think that's how Joseph and Mary felt over 2000 years ago?

Christmas morning. Nothing like it.....

four of the best words ever.....

1 - out
2 - of
3 - the
4 - office

Yep, after today I won't be back in the office until Tuesday, January 3rd, 2006. That's like next year!
This was the Christmas card that our family sent out for 2005:

We decided to add Coach Fulmer to our list this year. Along with the card, Sara wrote him a letter. When I got in from work yesterday, the bride had me open a large cardboard envelope that we had gotten in the mail. Inside was an autographed photo of ol' Phil himself. The bride said that Sara was so excited that she was out in the driveway jumping up and down! We may have to get a frame for this one.

To all three (OK, that's stretching it a bit, probably more like two) of you who read this on a regular basis, and for anyone else who may have happened upon this site, Merry Christmas! I hope it's your best ever.....

yeah, i'm 41, but.....

I had a Circuit City gift card in my billfold that needed to be used. I got it when we played "Dirty Santa" Saturday night at Julie's house. The funny thing is that I actually took the gift card to the party, and I brought it back home with me that night.

So after getting a haircut last night, I went to Circuit City and bought this:

Yes, I know it comes on television ever year, but we missed it this year. Now we won't ever have to miss it again. The plan is to watch it together tonight.....

just one question.....

It could be that I missed the memo on this one, but since when did Dan Fogelberg's song "Same Old Lang Syne" become a Christmas song? The only thing I can figure is that it mentions "Christmas Eve" in the second line of the song, but after that it has nothing to do with Christmas. It's not that it's a bad song - it's just not a Christmas song.

I'm partial to the old, traditional Christmas songs. Give me Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" over NewSong's "Christmas Shoes" any day; Perry Como's "There's No Place Like Home for the Holidays" over any Christmas song Michael Bolton has ever done (his voice makes me cringe); and Nat King Cole's "The Christmas Song" over Celine Dion's "Happy Christmas (War is Over)." There's just something soothing to that music that seems to fit the season much better.

Like all families in the 70's, we had an 8-track player. And we had a grand total of one Christmas 8-track tape (The Living Voices' Little Drummer Boy). Sure, we had a few Christmas albums (Perry Como was my favorite), but the tape could loop and you'd never have to turn it over like an album. You would just hear the same songs over and over. (That was pretty high-tech back then!) But even though we heard the same songs over and over, thinking about the songs on that one 8-track tape brings back so many good memories.

CD's may have improved the sound quality and convenience of music, but they'll never be able to improve the memories of past Christmases.....

old friends are the best friends.....

We went to Otter Creek Saturday night to see their Christmas concert and came away from it feeling wonderful. Partly from the music, but mostly from the friends we were able to see. Getting to visit with the Lusks (both sets of Lusks!), the Thomases, the Englands and so many others was great. Even though we were just there for a little under five years, we made friends there that we'll (and I never use this word because it sounds hokey, but here goes anyway) cherish for the rest of our lives.

I guess Michael W. Smith knew what he was talking about when he wrote the song "Friends" all those years ago.....

for the turtle who has everything.....

WATERTOWN, N.Y. - Hermie the Turtle's little defective beak made meal time a struggle. Unable to close his mouth completely, the tiny 20-gram reptile's very existence was at stake.

But today, this map turtle has a new lease on life thanks to the work of two doctors who outfitted young Hermie with braces. Now, some are calling the orthodontic work a Christmas miracle.

"I've worked on animals before but nothing this small," said Dr. Peter M. Virga, a Watertown dentist who along with veterinarian Jeffrey G. Baier performed the unique procedure.

After receiving Hermie in May, zookeepers at the New York State Zoo in Watertown's Thompson Park noticed the turtle was having difficulty eating. Medical exams then showed Hermie's lower jaw growing downward.

"He may have adapted to eat like this, or he may have not made it," Baier said.

Turtles, who are toothless, use their beaks to break food down before grinding it with the plates in their mouths.

After Baier injected Hermie with two anesthetics Wednesday morning, Virga inserted four pins into the turtle's jaws, according to the Watertown Daily Times which published an account of Hermie's ordeal Thursday.

During a meeting with reporters, the doctors placed the immobile turtle, believed to be between 2 and 3 years old, on a table. As Baier held Hermie's head, Virga placed two rubber orthodontic elastics — the same kind used by children with braces — on the pins across the turtle's mouth.

While Hermie recuperates, zookeepers will remove the rubber bands once a day to allow the turtle to eat. In keeping with the spirit of Christmas, the doctors chose red and green rubber bands for Hermie's beak.

"It's very exciting and I was glad to help," said Virga, who's performed root canal surgery on dogs.
Baier's wife, Angela, the zoo's executive director, said she was thrilled such a small zoo could take part in such a rare procedure.

"Miracles happen this time of the year," she said. "Hopefully his beak will be fixed."

The good doctor and I obviously have different definitions for the word miracle.....

mature beyond her years.....

I was like most kids about this time every year when I was younger. I knew what I wanted for Christmas, and I'd cover all my bases by telling both my parents and Santa. But I took it a step further by not only itemizing my list, but by also including the prices then figuring the tax. I didn't know if Santa had tax-exemption status or not but I wasn't taking any chances. (The word you're searching for is thorough, not anal-retentive. You're welcome.)

In Sunday's message, our pastor told about a young girl in our church. She decided that she didn't want any presents this year. In fact, she's asking everyone who would normally give her a present to just give her money. I know, you're probably thinking "What a brat!", but there's more. She's asking for money because Wednesday night she's renting a limousine, and along with her father they're picking up 12 homeless men from the downtown Nashville mission. From there, they're going to Famous Dave's for ribs and barbecue. Then for two hours they're going to be driven around in the limo and look at some of the Nashville-area Christmas lights. Once they're finished, the limo will bring the men back to our church when they will spend the night out of the cold and in our warm church building.

We all sat there, around 1,500 people, with our jaws down around our navels. The pastor said he was actually a little jealous that he didn't come up with the idean himself.

They say that one person can't make a difference. To 12 homeless men in Nashville, one young lady from Franklin will make a big difference this Christmas.....

the holidays can be difficult for some.....

The bride and I went out to eat Friday night then ran a couple of errands on the way home. When we got home, we wrapped Christmas presents for about 2 hours. As I was sitting in the floor of our bonus room, surrounded by stuff wrapped and to be wrapped, I started thinking about how blessed we are as a family. We've got so much to be thankful for because we have each other.

This thought stayed with me all weekend. It's not that I don't think about this quite often, but for some reason it just kept coming back - like the thought was trying to tell me more. When I got to the office this morning and logged onto my computer, I decided to check my Juno e-mail account. As I clicked on the Internet Explorer icon, my screen was filled with Yahoo's front page. At that moment, I saw a picture of someone that made me realize what my thoughts were trying to tell me - there are less fortunate people in this world who don't have anyone to spend Christmas with. Who am I talking about? Jessica Simpson.

Think about it. She and Nick just filed for divorce, so she'll probably be all alone this year for Christmas. Plus, her movie "The Dukes of Hazzard" didn't exactly take the world by storm this summer, so she's probably pretty depressed about that. That's when it hit me - I should invite Jessica Simpson to spend the holidays with us! I think it might be one of my best ideas yet. She could spend time with us and not be depressed about her marriage breaking up or her movie tanking at the box office. She could travel to East Tennessee with us! I'll bet Chris and Landon would even welcome her with open arms when we go to see the Moffitts, because they're very compassionate people!

This could be big.....

good thing it wasn't over krispy kreme.....

HAMTRAMCK, Mich. - A police officer has been charged with using a Taser on his partner during an argument over whether they should stop for a soft drink.

Ronald Dupuis, 32, was charged Wednesday with assault and could face up to three months in jail if convicted. The six-year veteran was fired after the Nov. 3 incident.

Dupuis and partner Prema Graham began arguing after Dupuis demanded she stop their car at a store so he could buy a soft drink, according to a police report. The two then struggled over the steering wheel, and Dupuis hit her leg with his department-issued Taser, the report said. She was not seriously hurt.

Hamtramck police union lawyer Eugene Bolanowski said he expected Dupuis to hire a private lawyer.
Hamtramck is a city of 23,000 surrounded by Detroit.

no snow...yet.....

Once again, the Nashville weather forecasters tried their best to scare the public into believing the world was coming to an end because their might be some snow flurries in the area. It's hard to have snow when the temperature's in the low-40's. Could get ugly later, as it's been raining all day and it's supposed to get down to 18 tonight. Might be a bit tricky driving into work tomorrow.

Spent the day Christmas shopping with the bride, most of day at Opry Mills. Apparently it's OK for schools to take field trips at malls now. There had to be over 500 kids there today. Combine that with the busloads of retirees, and you've got yourself a pretty full mall. Nothing like attempting to swim upstream through a river of flabby-armed people with name badges that read "Claude", "Millie" and "Gert."

I'll probably be one of those flabby armed people 30 years from now.....

thoughts from last night.....

We were watching Charlie Brown's Christmas last night and a commercial came on for Welch's grape juice. Here's the way the conversation went:

Meg: Oh, I love that little girl!
Me: (sarcastically; I know, it's a stretch) You don't even know her!
Meg: Ha, ha, Dad.
Sara: I'll bet that little girl never gets zits.
Meg: Yeah, she's got smooth skin.

Now here's the difference between the way girls think and the way boys think. Girls see a little girl on TV talking about juice and start talking about her skin. A boy sees the same commercial and thinks, "Hmm, I'd like to have some juice."
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Since when did Garth Brooks and Santa become such good buddies? And do you think that Garth cries himself to sleep every night knowing he sold his soul to Wal Mart?
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Tom Petty won an AMA last night, their Century Award. I've always liked his music. He's never been what most would call a handsome man, but last night he did look a bit like someone's elderly aunt who forgot to take their daily dose of estrogen.
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I now have a UT Christmas tree in my office, compliments of Meg. Here's a shot of it:

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So with the help of the tree and being able to watch Charlie Brown's Christmas with Sara last night, Christmas is here, baby.....

less than 3 weeks away, but.....

Maybe it's just me, but it sure doesn't feel like Christmastime. Yes, the past few days have been cold enough to freeze off certain body parts, but I just haven't gotten that Christmas feeling yet. Part of the reason is that I missed my favorite Christmas show last week - Rudolph.

When I was little, Rudolph sort of "marked" the start of the Christmas season. I remember having to be home on that night just so that I wouldn't miss it when it came on. (I feel like an old man - "In my day, you couldn't use your fancy Tivo or high-falutin' video recording machines! We had to watch it when it came on or we missed it! And we liked it that way!") I also remember missing it a time or two when I was younger, and I had that same sick feeling last week. Sure, I'm 41, but when I was channel-surfing last Wednesday night and saw that Rudolph was almost over, it was sort of depressing. (I also missed the Charlie Brown Christmas show last week. But it's coming on again tomorrow night, and I made sure to set the DVR set to record it. So I've got that going for me.)

Yep, I'm needing a dose of Christmas spirit right about now. I'm starting to feel like Charlie Brown, just before Linus came out and gave his great speech on the true meaning of Christmas.....

state mottos.....

GEORGIA
A SONG IS WRITTEN ABOUT US
WE GOT THE BEST PEACHES

MONTANA
HOME OF THE UNABOMBER, RIGHT WING CRAZIES AND VERY LITTLE ELSE.

OREGON
SPOTTED OWL
IT'S WHAT'S FOR DINNER.

NORTH DAKOTA
WE REALLY ARE ONE OF THE FIFTY STATES. REALLY, WE'RE NOT KIDDING.

COLORADO
IF YOU DON'T SKI, DON'T BOTHER US.

CONNECTICUT
LIKE MASSACHUSETTS, ONLY THE KENNEDYS DON'T OWN IT.

MICHIGAN
WE'RE SHAPED LIKE A GLOVE, THAT MUST MEAN SOMETHING! TELL US IT MEANS SOMETHING!

WASHINGTON
WE'RE BIGGER ,WE'RE BETTER! NOT REALLY, IT RAINS TOO MUCH HERE!

WISCONSIN
WE'RE REALLY CHEESEY!

MINNESOTA
10,000 LAKES, 10,000,000,000 MOSQUITOES

WEST VIRGINIA
ONE BIG HAPPY FAMILY...REALLY!

RHODE ISLAND
WE'RE NOT REALLY AN ISLAND.

IDAHO
MORE THAN JUST POTATOES. WELL,OKAY, WE'RE NOT.

HAWAII
COME, LEAVE YOUR MONEY, GO BACK HOME.

KENTUCKY
5 MILLION PEOPLE AND ONLY 15 LAST NAMES.

MISSISSIPPI
COME VISIT AND FEEL BETTER ABOUT YOUR OWN STATE.

OHIO
AT LEAST WERE NOT MICHIGAN.

WASHINGTON D.C.
WE'VE GOT ISSUES

CALIFORNIA
SI HABLA ESPANOL ?

ARKANSAS
LITERACY AIN'T EVERYTHING.

NORTH CAROLINA
TABACCO IS A VEGETABLE!

ALASKA
11,509 ESKIMOS CAN'T BE WRONG.

ALABAMA
YEP, WE GOT LECTRICITY!

MAINE
WE'RE REALLY COLD, BUT WE GOT GREAT CRABCAKES.

PENNSYLVANIA
WE GOT A BIG BELL WITH A CRACK. YEA, WE'RE # 1.