Monday, July 31, 2006

castro giving up power? i'm shocked, shocked!

Tuesday, July 25, 2006

being a father, i somehow have become my parents. not everything about them, but some quirks and such. here's one such reason:

since it is summer, the days are hot and the nights warm. perfect time for the "ice cream man". that stupid song playing throughout the neighborhood that permanently leaves itself planted in my brain. i sit in my backyard, watching the kids play and off i hear it in the distance, slowly moving towards our house. getting louder and more intense.

it makes me think back when i was a child and i asked for money for that icy cool treat. my parents would say "you have to use your allowance." but did i use it? no. why would i? it is their responsibility to buy me ice cream. not mine. soon, the temptation would be too great for me to pass and i would go running into my room, grab out my bank and pull out some quarters. then, full bore, rip through the front door, and track that stupid truck down.

before long, my money (and ice cream) would be gone. i had nothing to show for saving my allowance. later, i would catch on that it was a "learning experience" that my parents somehow put together. they would tell me that for the price of one bar from the ice cream man, they can purchase a whole box and there would be some for everyone.

now, am i the same way toward my kids? no, not entirely. my tastes are still expensive...ask rin...but i haven't ran towards the ice cream man with the children in tow, telling him to stop. but, i do know that i can purchase a gallon of ice cream and some side stuff and still have enough leftover for a couple others times, instead of one trip and one treat. now, applying that to the rest of my life? easier said than done. . .

Friday, July 21, 2006

sick. that's how i describe myself today. last night, i started feeling queasy. we went to bed and i woke up about 3ish. had to head to the bathroom. then went back to bed and tried falling asleep, to no avail. i probably got up a half dozen times. today, my head is pounding, my body is achy and i need sleep. hopefully, it is only a 24 hour thing, but that remains to be seen.

Wednesday, July 19, 2006

last night was our monthly serving at the union gospel mission. we had a total of 13 people go and served a crowded cafeteria. i still can't believe how many people come in, especially with children. i mean, i know of the homeless situation, but to get in and get my hands dirty with serving them, just blows me away. it's funny (not hahah, but hmmm) that in one instance, you are financially secure, and the next you could be on the other side of the counter, having someone serve you up a hot meal.

the meal for last night was beef stew, bread, salad and dessert. apparently there is another shelter that reopened, but they don't serve meals, so the homeless get redirected to the ugm. we were told one scoop of the stew and one piece of bread. the crowded line started snaking it's way towards us. we were the first stop. then salad and dessert next. we started dishing up and kept the line moving. people would ask for a second scoop or another piece of bread, but we had to say "no" which is sad.

after the majority came through, a man came in and we handed him a tray with hot stew. he asked for another scoop and we had to tell him "no" but it wasn't good enough for him. he told us that he has never heard of that before and that he wants a second scoop. luckily, there was a "bouncer" standing by us he was told "no" by the bouncer. the homeless man walks away, not happy. he goes and eats his food. after he was finished, he comes back up and asks for seconds. we told him we can't and the bouncer told him "no" again. finally, the kitchen "manager" starts talking to him. the homeless man gets more irate and starts saying that he is hungry and homeless. that he needs food. it breaks the heart, but i can understand why there aren't seconds.

Tuesday, July 18, 2006

updated 7.19.06

so, yesterday was sort of an eventful day...i guess. we had a lot of errands to run and things to do. we had to go to the valley and run to a couple different stores. then costco to have pictures taken for our visas to india. we are planning on going sometime in the fall (hopefully, everything will work out). after that, we had to go to tri-state to return something, so we headed on down that way. we hit some traffic and waited to take a left turn. the person in front of us made their turn, so i took my foot off the brake and applied it to the gas pedal and. . .nada!

the vehicle just shut off. no spikes or drops in the gauges. "that's odd," i tell rin. so i turn the key and crank the engine, but it doesn't turn over. i try again and nothing. "great!" so i get out and pop the hood. i start poking around, looking for what could be the culprit, but nothing is waving it's hands at me and pointing at itself. rin tells me that she called her dad and that he is on his way. "ok."

i see that an off-duty kc sheriff pulls up behind us. he climbs out of his rig and is huge. that is one sheriff i wouldn't want to deal with on the wrong side of the law. but he is courteous. he askes if everything is alright and i tell him i don't know, but someone is coming to help. he gets back into his pickup cruiser and waves to us as he leaves. after that, a family that we just saw at costco (whom we know through church) sees us and stops. they inquire as well. but i tell them the same. they wind up leaving and another person asks if he can help. then a female cop comes and waits with us until rin's dad shows.

we get it pushed to the side of 95 and start our journey of the engine compartment. i pull out my phone to call someone and a voicemail is waiting for me. it's from someone i work with that saw me on the side of the road. he lets me know that he is on his way to help too.


after being broken down for about two hours, we were able to get it towed to a mechanic. but the mechanic informs me that he is booked up for the week, and the soonest he can look at it is next monday. but there's a chance that someone will cancel. while we were there, someone did in fact cancel. their appointment was for today at 8 this morning. so, hopefully it will get taken care of this week. . .

---
well, i had to take it to a dodge dealer for it to get fixed. apparently, i need to have a new computer put in. of course...right?!?! anyway, it's supposed to be up and running by tomorrow. . .

Thursday, July 13, 2006

Your 2005 Song Is

Beverly Hills by Weezer

"My automobile is a piece of crap
My fashion sense is a little whack
And my friends are just as screwy as me"

You breezed through 2005 in your own funky style!

Wednesday, July 12, 2006

this last weekend, we had a guys camping trip up near sandpoint, idaho. there were 17 guys that went. we arrived midafternoon on sunday and got camp sent up. after the inital set-up was done, some of us went on the boat for some wakeboarding and others went down to the beach.

the water on the priest river was nice. the first submersion was a bit nippy, but a split second after, it was great. it was a bit chop too, so it was good for tubing. soon, the water was glass and out came the boards.

we went back to the docks and got ready for dinner. had some good food and fellowship around the camp fire. it got dark around nine, so we stayed near the fire and just hung out, playing cards and talking. passing around the guitar and drinking sodas.

with 17 people and four tents, i opted for sleeping in the truck. not the most comfortable way to sleep, but it beats the rocks. i woke up through out the night, many times. about 5.30, i heard thunder and then the rain came down. first, it was a pitter patter, then the heaven's opened and everything was drenched. lightning flashes every which way. when a lull came, i went down to the beach to see how the conditions were and dark clouds were overhead. finally about 9, the sun was out, the clouds were gone and the water was beautiful.

the first boat load headed out and did there thing while i stayed at camp and hung around, cleaning things up and enjoying the sun. when it was our turn to go out, i grabbed my board and hopped in. the engine came to life and we went about 200 feet from shore. i lava-ed my bindings and slid into the waiting water. the throttle opened up and i was riding. ewok pulled me towards our new destination: the train bridge. after i got into the boat, we sped faster towards the bridge. we got there and got out of the boat and started climbing up the short hill.

the rocks and dirt were easy going. we got to the top and started walking over the trestles to the middle of the bridge. the bridge itself was about 35 feet above the water. there was a point where a metal "wall" stuck out and that added another 10 feet. having to pull ourselves up and onto the top was a feat in itself, but when we stood there, the water seemed about 70 feet give or take, away. i fling myself off and hit the water with full force. i have no idea how far i go under, but it take me a while to surface. i get out of the water and, hike back up and across for a second time. i don't climb the wall this time though. we get back in the boat and head back to camp.

for lunch, we go into sandpoint for pizza. then the store and buy some things we need. 9 more cases of soda. after that, we go to starbucks and walk 1st ave.

back at camp, we went back out on the boat, went to the beach and all around just had a good time. night came quickly and the stars started poking out. the threat of a severe storm was over. at 10 o'clock, we had a time for devotion. hanging out at the fire, talking about spiriual things was great. questions and answers. back and forth. good times. people started getting ready for bed and some of us stayed up. i finally went to bed about 1 and then woke up every half hour it seemed. at 7 in the morning, i got up and talked with a couple guys.

since we had to leave the camp site at noon, we had a early morning wakeboard session and headed in for breakfast. the boat had to be gassed up, so, while that was being done, camp was torn apart. things were loaded and camp was gone. we parked above the beach and went back in the water. a waterball fight ensued. people went back on the boat and others, back into the water. it was a good camping trip. . .

Friday, July 07, 2006

oh yeah...transformers are back!

Thursday, July 06, 2006

i can't believe i forgot my blog's first birthday. it's a year old and was started on thursday, the 23 of june in the year of 2005. time's wasted, i suppose. time i can't get back. all the typing and posting. ah, well. here's to another year. . .

Wednesday, July 05, 2006


yesterday was the fourth of july...independence day!

we had our annual church picnic yesterday day. the temp was a good 104°f. to start it off was the kiddie parade. then food, music, jump house, tug-o-war, and other miscellaneous things. a watermelon eating contest for three different age groups. by the time it was over, i wanted to just get home and take a long nap, but my day wasn't over yet.

i met rin and the kids over at her par
ent's house and had some dinner. the night wasn't cooling off and was actually getting humid. it reminded me of a nice, cool evening in cuba. the smells and the heat. the heavyness of the air.

darkness finally came and the toys came out. since rin's parents are moving to india and her sister moving to florida, this is the last year of the fourth with the family together. we had a big shebang.

we sent out the first fireworks and used the lighters, but the lighters stunk. i'm not really into using punks, but we had six of 'em, so we lit those and made things easier. we shot continually for about 2 hours, only to break to watch the show over hayden lake. we had a decent view through the trees.

sulfer and smoke were everywhere. during the fireworks, God started showing us up and began a lightning storm. we continued to finish off the light show and cleaned everything up. but God wasn't done with His. lightning was everywhere, shooting across clouds and striking the ground. what a great evening. . .

Tuesday, July 04, 2006

happy fourth!


high score: 152,275

no pooping