Happy Veteran’s Day
Brent | November 11, 2009
From my family to you and yours,
Happy Veteran’s Day
click for close-up cuteness
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and Thank You for anyone who has served or is serving. It is not forgotten.
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The infamous Boomer footage
Brent | May 9, 2009
We have a dog. His name is Boomer. He’s a great dog, really. My daughter Casey loves to take him in our back yard, do tricks with him, and film him doing jumps, obstacle courses (“agility training”), or whatever she can dream up.
During one of these sessions, she had the camera set low to catch a ground angle shot. Boomer decided the camera looked like more fun than sticking around for the training!
(Make sure you have the sound turned up)
Check this out – from Boomer’s perspective:
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Thanks to Casey for posting on her YouTube page so I could link it here 
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The Run for the Roses
Brent | May 2, 2009
One of the greatest events in all of sports happens today.
The 135th Kentucky Derby. “The Run for the Roses”. (If you are completely uninformed, the winning horse gets saddled with a blanket of roses as part of the winning ceremony.)
It’s called by some, and recognized by most, as “The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports”. I would not disagree.
For as long as I can remember, our family has made a great day of this. Now, with my own horse-crazed daughter, for the last several years we’ve made our own tradition. On Saturday of the Derby, we’ll get up early and go the store and get donuts for breakfast, and a copy of the Louisville Courier Journal. There is a special race insert with all of the horses and information about them. Their Sires and Dams (dads and moms), their jockey’s, their bloodlines, trainers, the farms they’re from, etc. Casey and I will look through this and pick our horses for the day. Of course, racing is going on all day long, so that’s what the TV will be tuned to.
Possibly one of the greatest music tributes, that will forever be tied to an event, is Dan Fogelberg’s “Run for the Roses”. I’ve listed this great video, I think the original airing of this song. Enjoy.
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OH – and my picks for today are Dunkirk and Friesan Fire. Who you got?
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Chest Cat – SOTD #12
Brent | April 18, 2009
He’s always watching. You probably didn’t know that, but he’s there. Always there. Ceiling Cat watches everything, taking it all in. Well, the self-proclaimed “disheveled nutjob” that is Jimiyo made a shirt in homage to this mythical creature, and it’s called Chest Cat.
I’ll have to add that my daughter has taken an affinity for interesting shirts, and just absolutely loved this. Of course, being an animal lover, and cat lover specifically, didn’t hurt either.
See how happy Chest Cat makes everybody?
However, my cat was none-too-thrilled about having Chest Cat around…
Do you think I make this stuff up?!!!
(yes, click for proof of ceiling cat’s existence)
My last ride
Brent | April 14, 2009
I like bikes. Not motorcycles = bikes, but like bicycles = bikes. I used to ride all the time. Hundreds of miles a week. That’s pretty much all I’d do. Since I was in high school, really, I would ride probably 6-7 times a week. Sometimes twice a day.
But several years ago, my friend Eric talked me into trying triathlons (ya know? “swim, bike, run”). That decision made me do two things: Learn how to swim, and re-embrace running. So we pitched in a bought a self-instruction video. (Total Immersion. Excellent stuff.)
From there it was a slow transition, but I have eventually swam and ran much more than I bike now. I don’t know if I was just burnt out from all that riding, but I really liked the two new sports I was trying to master. Plus, the time to get a good bike ride is at least an hour or two. In comparison, you can get a good swim or run workout in half the time.
Sad as it sounds, the last time I rode my bike was several months ago. Every fall we take a cycling trip to the Smoky Mountains. Last year we decided to do the two highest mountains in the Eastern United States, back-to-back. First we rode up Clingman’s Dome, which is a 20-mile climb, then the next day we rode up Mt. Mitchell, which is the highest point east of the Rocky Mountains.
(click on the pics for full view) On top of Mt. Mitchell
don't look at me, look at the view
I need to start riding again…
The Choice Was Not Hard – SOTD #10
Brent | April 9, 2009
This is what I call a “statement shirt”. It says something about me. The title is “The Choice Was Not Hard” , and was designed by Jamie Marshall, known as “Boots” to some. Jamie is an illustrator of children’s books, and creates wonderful, whimsical scenes. I have already talked about her designs on “Explanation“, but this was her first to be printed at woot.
I like it because the placement is sort of uneven, with most of the design being on the right side of the wearer’s chest, and the smaller side centering the shirt. The best thing about the shirt, however, is what it says. Given the choice to pursue money, success, fame, fortune, and/or glory, or to just go and have fun on some “really cool waterslides”, well, it’s a pretty easy choice for me. I think it fits with my “enjoy life” mentality.
Anyone who knows what I do for a living will know that I did not seek fame, fortune, or money 
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To choose these things over money, fame, or glory?
Well….the choice was NOT hard.
Holidays are for Family.
Brent | April 7, 2009
Easter is in a few days. I love Easter. And all holiday’s, really. This Easter, along with celebrating pretty much the hugest event that ever happened in the history of history, we’re also going to be getting together as a family at my Aunt Susie’s house.
I am so excited to see my cousin Baron, who’s really like a brother, and the rest of my great family that I don’t get to see very often.
That is what holiday’s should be about. The celebration of something great with the ones you love. To visit with family you don’t get to see very often. To enjoy each other’s company. To eat with reckless abandon. To drink wine, be silly, and fall into a bathtub….
I love my family.
Meet Greenwood
Brent | April 2, 2009
(click picture to view full size)
My son’s name is Greenwood. He loves baseball. Did we really name him after a city? No, not really. But that’s what I call him sometimes. Why? Well, it’s really the name of a city close to where we live, but it’s also the team that we play almost every year to try and win our “district” in little league baseball.
A couple years ago, in 2006, Gabe’s group of kids were having a really good season of all-star baseball. I think the year before they went the whole summer without losing in a tournament. And in 2006, they started the summer by playing in the Little League Districts, with teams from all around. Including Bedford, Mitchell, Columbus, Madison, Greensburg, Jennings County, and others. We won our pool play, then ended up playing (of course) Greenwood to get to the Championship. And we were going to play Greenwood, IN Greenwood, on their home field.
Gabe is a very good athlete, and is good at football and good at basketball, and one of those athletic kids that is good at just about anything he tries. But he is a great baseball player. Extremely talented, and can play any position, but will mostly play center field, shortstop, and pitcher.
Well, the game with Greenwood was truly epic. I think it started early evening, probably around 7:00, on a Friday night. Two very good teams in a close, back-and-forth game. We had a lead, they came back and tied it. They took the lead, then we tied it. Then we ended up having to play extra innings. Seymour managed to go up a run or two in our half of the extra inning, but then in Greenwood’s last at-bat, they hit a home-run and tied up the game again. Then they had a kid on third base that would have won the game for them if he scored, but Seymour managed to get out of a jam and push it to the next extra inning.
So after the momentum swung from Greenwood to us again, we ended up with a chance to score the go-ahead run and win the game. With one out, Gabe was coming up to the plate. And he had been absolutely killing them this tournament, and this game. Hit after hit, he had been pounding the ball, getting all sorts of hits. As a matter of fact, Gabe also turned a triple play while playing shortstop in the previous game. They knew exactly who #12 was. So they walked Gabe. I don’t mean they “pitched around him”, or threw bad pitches and hoped Gabe would swing. I mean they gave Gabe an intentional walk, not even trying to give him a chance. Doing this, they have put an extra runner on base, giving us another person that could have scored, and moved two runners into scoring position. They risked doing that instead of pitching to Gabe. He was so mad. Of course, the way he had been hitting, he was really wanting to hit in the winning run, but Greenwood wanted no part of him. It was the ultimate sign of respect to a kid from another team.
From there, things got really weird, going into yet another extra inning, heavy fog rolling in, and then, as Seymour had the momentum again, the Greenwood officials (remember we’re IN Greenwood) said it was getting too late, dark, and foggy to play. Go home, Seymour, and come back at 9am tomorrow to finish the game. What? So, it’s like 11:00 at night, drive home from Greenwood, and come back again early the next morning. Well, that’s what we ended up having to do, but we did just that. Came back, dead tired, the next morning and beat Greenwood. Beat Greenwood IN Greenwood. And then beat Center Grove (which is also pretty much home field for them) for the Championship.
So it’s become a thing between Gabe and I. That in the years since then, if he’s struggling with hitting, or having a tough game, or in a tough spot, I’ll call him Greenwood. Almost every time I do, people cock their heads, or wonder what in the heck I’m saying. But he knows. He remembers the game that lasted two days, and remembers the team we always have to beat. And remembers that team did not want any part of him, they knew exactly who he was, and wasn’t shy about staying as far away from him as possible. For times when he doubts, or worries, it’s just a reminder to Gabe of how good he really is.
Still Undivided ?
Brent | March 28, 2009
I just got back from my run.
As always, I was listening to my mp3 player (NOT an iPod, thank you). I have all sorts of music to fuel my workouts: rock, rap, pop, country, techno (thanks Dan!). Anything up-tempo. Bon Jovi’s song “Undivided” was rocking, and I really started to listen to the lyrics.
This song was written immediately after, and in direct response to, September 11th. Written by Jon Bon Jovi, who is from New Jersey, it had a very strong message: What the terrorists did only united us. Only made us strong again. We are pissed off, and we are gonna kick your ass.
Anyway, here are the lyrics to Undivided:
That was my brother lost in the rubble
That was my sister lost in the crush
That was our mothers, those were our children
That was our fathers, that was each of us.
A million prayers to God above
A million tears make an ocean of
One, for love
One, for truth
One, for me. One, for you.
I found spirit, they couldn’t ruin it
I found courage in the smoke and dust
I found faith in the songs you silenced
Deep down it’s ringing out in each of us
Yeah… yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
One, for love
One, for truth
One, for me. One, for you.
Where we once were divided, now we stand united
We stand as one… undivided.
How many hands? How many hearts?
How many dreams have been torn apart?
Enough! Enough!… The time has come to rise back up as
One, for love
One, for truth
One, for me. One, for you.
Where we once were divided, now we stand united
We stand as one… Undivided.
Remember how you felt that day? Did you go out and buy a flag to fly at your house? Or get one of those car magnets that supported our Armed Forces? Or maybe you were mad enough you felt like you could personally go kick someone’s butt that even could have been a terrorist?
The question that struck me during my run was: Are we still that united? Do we still feel as bonded to our fellow Americans? To our leaders? Would we do just about anything for our country at this point? I don’t know about you, but I don’t EVER want to forget how our country pulled together that day, and in the following days and months.
Before we start flag-waving and you start singing the Battle Hymn of the Republic, I’ll end it here. I just wanted to share my feelings listening to that song. It just reminded me of where we were not too long ago.
We live in a great country, fellow humans.
It’s About the People Around Us
Brent | March 24, 2009
Recently I’ve been reminded of how blessed I am. I have a great family, several great friends, and co-workers that I really look forward to seeing every day. Those things cannot be purchased, traded for, or sold.
I once quoted myself, stating:
“We are not made to be independent. We should strive for INTERdependence. Our lives are meaningless if lived alone. Meaning is given to our lives through our connections to the people around us”
(click on pics for larger image)
While we’re here on this earth, we need to lift each other up, to comfort when times are bad, and to spur each other on to greatness.
Don’t miss out on the world going on around you. See how what you do impacts the lives of others. Invest in other people. You will not be disappointed in the return.
Peace.