Domesticated Man

Do you remember HomeEc class from Jr. High/High School?

I do...I remember how to clean a pot, cook an egg and sew...

In Norway, I proved my love to Claire through my use of HomeEc skillz...

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In College, I sewed an outfit for my girlfriend. I bought fabric, pulled out the sewing machine and went to work. It was a GREAT Christmas present...

I made shorts and a scrunchy (there was left-over fabric)...

I think there was left over fabric because I, UNINTENTIONALLY, made the crotch of the shorts about as thick as an Andes Mint...

Her dad did not think that UNINTENTIONAL mistake was very funny.

From Norway, with love....

Claire and I had a wonderful trip to Norway...She was there for 2 1/2 weeks for work and I was there for 9 days because I like to be with my wife.

It was an interesting place and one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. You like camping, hiking and/or biking...then you would love Norway.

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Here are some of the things that struck me as interesting...

1. They seem very serious about the whole small car thing...
2. In some parts of town, you can take your time and cross the street leisurely.

Other places, you need to hustle and apparently dress very dapperly...

3. The bathrooms are a treat. The men get to smoke pipes and, from the looks of it, the women get to go shopping...


4. The manhole covers all have a little story to tell....
5. They seem to like this statue that sorta looks like a Chocolate Man...they are all over town.
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And this is quite possibly the most beautiful place I have EVER been... It is called Preikestolen or Pulpit Rock. It is 25 meters x 25 meters and is a sheer cliff about 1/4 above the water. AMAZING.
It was also quite scary...the wind blows and that cliff just drops off. We did what any sane American would have done, we hung off the edge:
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It was a good trip and we had a wonderful time together...I am so blessed to have a wonderful wife and life.

The Colbert Haircut

Back from Norway without Claire...she comes home Wednesday night only to leave again on Thursday...

See you this weekend, Hot Chick! :-)

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I will post some pictures and thoughts on Norway by Friday...for now, enjoy Stephen Colbert...

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Stephen Gets His Hair Cut
http://www.colbertnation.com/
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Stephen Colbert in Iraq

Nice suit Stephen...I need me one of those!

SoCal and Norway

I had a chance to visit Southern California this past week. Claire left for Norway on Saturday, so I decided to head back “home” for a few days.

It was a nice respite from the day-to-day in VA…Had lunch with a friend at a rock’n taco shop, got to spend the afternoon with my Goddaughter, her sister and her parents, my great friends Steve and Stacey…Had a night of poker with my buddies, which included just my second cigar of 2009, was able to go to the church that I helped found back in 2004 and even got to have breakfast with my Bubble-Headed buddy Derek and his wonderful family…then to the OC for some family time.

That was also glorious…plenty of chocolate chip cookies and an ample amount of avocado for consumption…got to hang with Pops, play games with Gma and spend some quality time with mom. Even got to see all the siblings (save the one in MN).

All-in-all a great trip, but one thing was missing…the beautiful woman I call my wife.

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A week without hearing her voice is way to long. I don’t know what I would do if she were called up to active duty and then deployed again…that would personify suckiness!

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Luckily I am now in Norway with my lovely bride. She is working and I am touring, but I do get every evening with her and we do have some free time together.

I really do live a blessed life!

Music, My Wife Rocks and SCOTUS...

Rebuilding my iTunes folder has become a mess. So many duplicate songs, so many lost albums and so much confusion. There are many benefits to having all of your music on CD and not in digital form. Sure the ability to carry your music anywhere you want at anytime is very nice, but if those bits and bites fail or you are a moron and delete most of your music, the resulting work and frustration is enormous.

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Some of you were asking for a photo of Claire going head first into a puddle…here is as good as we got:

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Just finished Jeffrey Toobin’s book The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court. Claire’s boss had given it to me to read after both his wife and another friend found it boring and were unable to get through the first 100 pages…what a ringing endorsement, eh?

Well, with my love of all things Supreme, I actually enjoyed the book. Sure, it was like when I watch the news, a lot of disagreeing with the sentiment, shaking my head in frustration and even an occasional outburst of yelling, but overall I loved the “Insider’s Picture” the author drew.

If you like the behind the scenes type of books AND have any interest in SCOTUS, then pick it up….just don’t blame me for the political and ideological rants that are throughout the book.

Pool Day One

I am gonna die.

You are not gonna die.

I can’t breathe.

You can breathe You are just tired and out of shape.

No, I can’t breathe. I think the pool water-boarded me. I am going to drown.

You are holding onto the side of the pool, standing in 4 feet of water. You are not going to drown.

Michael Phelps is not human.

That is true, but don’t change the subject. You have 14 more laps to do. Now get on it, Chubby.

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I see the hand of God reaching down from Heaven, hearkening me onward.

No you don’t. Stop making stuff up, you have 8 more laps. Get on it.

This sucks. Who chooses to do this? At least with running, I know that I won’t die…being in the pool is bringing death upon me. My lungs are filling with water. It is over for me. I hope Claire knows that I thought of her in my last moments.

You are not going to die. Will you knock it off? Just get those last laps done…there is no shame in doggie paddling the last little bit.

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I don’t think I can ever do this again!

How are you going to do the triathlon if you can’t swim a mile?

I don’t like your logic right now.

Cause you know I’m right. My half of the brain is always right.

Shut up. Emotions need to be coddled right now. I think I might still die. Only a big hoagie and some chocolate chip cookies will make me feel better.

Loving My Wife...wink, wink, nudge, nudge

Last Thursday, we played our weekly kickball game. Neither Claire nor I really wanted to play…we had the last of our packing to do for our trips and we were not really excited about the still present storms that had made the field muddy and puddle-ly.

The game started just as the drops fell…stronger and stronger the rain fell. Wetter and wetter we became.

The fun was just beginning…

Sure, it was great to win 14-0…yup, a shut-out, but what followed reminded me of one of the reasons I love my wife…not only does she tolerate my persistent silliness, she often is either the instigator of it, or, the main participator in her own silliness.

The puddles had grown quite large…4-5 inches deep in a couple of areas. She whispered to me that at the end of the game, she was going to do a “slip-n-slide” through the biggest puddle.

True to form, she got a 25-yard running start and hit that puddle like she was Pete Rose and it was Ray Fosse.

The explosion of water caused by my beautiful wife going headlong into the mud was glorious. As was the cannonball that followed by another one of our players.

I don’t know about you, but a cannonball into a puddle is not often seen by me unless it is in a Sprite commercial.

My Baby's Daddy's

So Claire and I were talking about this story the other day...go ahead, click the link and then come back...I'll wait...

Okay, really?

I don't have the words...as a matter of fact, the statement that Claire and I were "talking about" the story is not exactly true...it was her telling me about it and me looking out the window in shock.

I think I dropped a "WHAT THE???"

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And then the evolutionary biologist says it happens in about 1 in 400 fraternal twins?

Really?

And he says it happens because they are looking for someone who is more genetically different...suggesting that if you look like your mate/spouse, then you are more prone to be cheated on.

Or did I miss something?

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Really makes the whole Swinger Scene a whole lot more scary.

Guilty

Thanks for your input on my ticket from DC...while I know that the law allows me to get out of it (prove who the driver was!), I admit I was speeding and will pay the $50. It seems like the right thing to do.

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On Saturday morning I am hopping a flight to SoCal...30 hours in San Diego, 3 1/2 days in Anaheim and a final night back in SD.

Poker night with the guys, a Padres game with my brother and some glorious time with the family...how does it get any better than that?

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24-hours after getting back to VA from CA I board a plane to meet Claire in NORWAY!

I get to spend a day in Oslo, visit Stavanger and if I get lucky, even get to see my good friends Jeff & Dorthe in Copenhagen...I am one blessed man.

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Job searching stinks, so I decided to start my own company. Sorta nervous about that whole self-employment thing. Good thing I married a woman that can hold a steady job!

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