Tag Archives: Musings

tuesday & it’s pretending to snow…

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Woke up last night to a howling wind, accompanied by the sound of rain & hail being slammed up against our windows. Ah yes. It is nearly Winter. Or at least its pretending.

Went to theWeez’s soccer banquet tonight – held at Pizza Plus, which IS a plus. Got to eat pizza & wings & watch 15 or so 12-14 year old girls do whatever it is that 12-14 year old girls do.

75 minutes, lots of giggling & a 3 minute awards ceremony later, we were on our way out.

It was snowing. Or at least pretending to snow. You know what I mean, the kind of snow that you can actually see falling to the ground, but once its actually there, it sort of disappears. Which is why I say it’s ‘pretending.’

I’ve started my packing process – the week-long saga I go through in preparing for my November trip to Germany. Laying out clothes I might want to take, making sure they’re all washed & pressed; then, laying out clothes that I’ll wear in the days leading up to departure day. Silly, I know. But the 2 piles can’t be mixed.

Determined more than ever not to over pack, & also to leave adequate room for my gifts & take-alongs.

Got a great present today – about 40 3-packs of the Starbuck’s Via instant coffee… just add hot water & booyah! Coffee, or at least a reasonable facsimile thereof. I’m taking it with, just in case I meet some hot water…

I like to hulu, – esp. because it makes it so I can watch Fringe. It reminds me a bit of The X-Files… Fringe is something I normally couldn’t watch, because it’s on the same time as The Office, which totally trumps Fringe, at least in theBean’s eyes. (Which, by the way, are some pretty deep blue eyes… so deep, I got lost… but I digress…)

Week 3 of the kettlebells – holy moly. That’s all I have to say. Arms, legs, chest, core…

Which reminds me that I need to soak-a my feet. I’m tired.

Here’s to “No Snow!” tomorrow.

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thursday night…

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One of the by-products of the killer kettlebell workout from yesterday, which was also accompanied by a couple miles of extra running up & down Disc Drive, is that I am sore. Really sore. Wake-yourself-up-in-the-middle-of-the-night-rolling-over sore. Sigh.

As the ALCS plays out in front of me, I’m realizing that this is officially the least amount of baseball I have ever watched, over the season, on TV. The plus side is that having the Aces in town meant that I got to see more games in person.

Re-discovered an early 80’s movie The Philadelphia Experiment. Last saw it as a high school sophomore. Took me back in time.

Which reminds me: that may be why I love to watch old movies (old to me mostly means 40’s, 50’s & 60’s) – watching them takes me back to the 1st time that I saw them. Almost like time travel… except safer. And without a DeLorean.

Socks have become increasingly important to me.

Fresca. Get it.

Great talks with EdieVegas yesterday. He’s in grad school studying a developing branch of Historical-ness. Love that guy. He’s living one of my dreams – pursuing a graduate degree in History. Heavy sigh.

Is there anything that you CAN’T put Tea Tree Oil on?

A nap is one of the best gifts that you can give yourself. Good news: I’m a giver! Perhaps tomorrow I shall nap. We shall see. We shall see.

Good night now!

Wednesday was a funny day…

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I found a new gym. Or should I say, it found me. Its only .9 miles from my home, & my whole family can gymnasium (I totally verbed a noun) for less than $30/month. Haven’t left my old gym officially, but I’m not going anymore, because my new gym has NEW equipment. Functional treadmills. Nice barbells. And kettlebells. They had me at kettlebells.

Worked out today. Happened to put my car/house/every-important-thing-that-requires-a-key-in-life-key chain in a locker. Forgot my own lock, but that’s ok, right? Came back to pick up my keys to find… someone had put a lock on the locker. Sigh.

I went around to every male in the gym (thank you Jesus that there is a Men’s locker room, because it totally limited my search) asking, “So, did you happen to put a lock on locker #37? Cause my keys are in there, man.” Everyone said, “No.” It was awkward, especially with the BIG men, the guys that have a Routine, guys listening to their iPods, guys like Sal who seem like they’d rather break me into several pieces as soon as look at me…

So I called mytheBean. She brought me keys to my car so I could take care of some of the errands I needed to run. I rationalized, “I will come back in 2 hours & the lock will be off #37 & my silliness at not putting my own lock on will be but a distant memory…”

I had planned on driving the Ex down to the gym to pick up my keys. Turns out, everyone left me at home WITHOUT keys to the Ex. So…

TheWeez & I walked the .9 miles down to the gym & I expected that my keys would be at the front desk by this time. Not so. The lock was still on #37. I was able to convince the manager that the best course of action was to CUT the lock on #37, & let me get my keys. Then, I would buy a new lock at the Home Depot & bring it back. A small price to pay for my… forgetfulness.

Got my keys. Ran the .9 miles uphill home, while theWeez waited at theBean’s work. Got the Ex. Drove to pick up theWeez. Went to the Home Depot. Tried to find a lock that resembled the 1 that was cut for me. No dice. Looked for 1 that I would want, & found 1 for only $6.34 (tax included.)

Went back to the gym to drop off the lock. Girl at the front desk was amazed at the quality of the lock I chose. Go figure.

Turns out the guy that had put the lock on #37 had been in the gym the whole time, (4 hours bro?) & had said, “NO!” when asked if he had put a lock on #37, but had obviously been simply trying to avoid the responsibility of locking a space that had held my keys… go figure.

Drove home with theWeez. Weary. 3 hours & counting of my life, poured out in the pursuit of right. Gonna watch a moving picture with my girl – Shanghai Noon? That’ll work…

Football on a Sunday afternoon, & other musings…

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It’s easier to watch the 49ers now that they seem to have at least a fighting chance. Goodness. The last few years have been rough. Like 15 of them.

On that note, I think I made it through the tough stuff because of fantasy football – when things were rough in the Bay, at least I could live vicariously through the players on my teams.

My last fantasy baseball team ends its season today. With me in 1st place. Booyah.

I’ve had a series of very vivid, realistic dreams. Sometimes it seems that they’re totally random & don’t have any special significance… but these dreams make it seem like some action &/or response is required. Gotta pray.

More & more, I am understanding the saying, “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink…”

Stargate Universe was ok. Seems like the creators have taken a page from the BSG playbook. I’ll watch again this week & see how it goes. You see it? What’d you think?

Nap time.

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…October Friday

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I’m reveling in the joy that is Friday morning. A little extra sleep. Morning coffee with theBean. Catching up on some blog-rolling. Making sure my 8 fantasy football rosters are complete (its the 1st week of the NFL season with BYE weeks, don’t you know…?) Enjoying the coolness of autumn mornings.

I like how October feels in the morning. Its distinctly different in its feel & smell. The pleasant crispness of the day, which is not the BITING cold that November brings, but is perfect for wearing my new Snuggie™. Theoretically.

We’re off to beautiful downtown Stockton today – Pasty has a game against Franklin, & we’re making a family voyage of it. I’m already foreseeing a good time being had by all. Road trips mean stops at Local Mini-markets & the rubbing of shoulders with Said Locals. Which = Fun. And I know IDoey will be getting chili-dogs, theBean will load up on sunflower seeds, & theWeez will aim for anything Sour Patch. And maybe I’ll have some McDonald’s Double-Cheeseburgers. The possibilities are endless.

Re-reading some Sherlock Holmes. I almost forgot how much I enjoy the familiarity of the stories coupled with the keen observation & wit of Holmes.

Softball season has ended none too soon. 1x/week since March, & the ball left a few indelible marks on me. Left hand got hit during BP in March. Still bruised. Right shin off of a bad hop in May. Still feeling that. Top of left foot from yet another bad hop last Monday. Achy & tender to the touch, which makes tying my shoes dis-comfortable. And un-agreeable.

Pasty just came home – & theBean made him Second Breakfast. Funny. At least to me.

the fun of getting presents in the mail…

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I’ve taken the 5 Love Languages quiz before, & also am a bit self-aware about what communicates love, sweet love, to me – mostly physical touch & words of affirmation.

Still, there is nothing like coming home from a long day at work to find that there are Unopened Packages awaiting ones arrival. Today there were 3 boxes; 2 from Amazon, 1 mysterious unmarked (yet professionally wrapped enough to make me not sweat that Ted Kaczynski is striking again,) box. All with my name on them. Booyah.

I’m a slooooww opener of stuff. Perhaps its to convince myself that the wrapping paper needs to be saved. However, that’s not it – in this situation, there wasn’t even any wrapping & I still managed to take For-ever to open. I started with the unknown (because, hey, if its from Amazon & comes in a box, its a book. Or DVD’s.)

Turns out my buddy Rudy, a wine ‘broker’ in SF remembered my birthday with some fruit of the vine – a Malbec & a Shiraz from the Barossa Valley. Sweet. Nothing like unexpected signs of blessing showing up on my doorstep. Thanks Rudy.

First box from Amazon – turns out it is a couple of Financial Peace books that theBean had ordered & BOOM had showed up the next day. Nice to have an Amazon hub in Fernley… So she was happy too. Vino & her books.

2nd box from Amazon is the jackpot – FIVE (5) books by C.S. Lewis:

  • The Problem of Pain
  • A Grief Observed
  • Mere Christianity (my other copy got snaked
  • The Great Divorce
  • Miracles

    • All of which means – I will be reading tomorrow. Lucky me. And thank you.

    Wednesday in the afternoon, & I’m hungry…

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    Just finished lunch – it came 3 hours too late, but why cry over an already eaten meal? What gets me is that even though I just ate lunch, I am already pining for dinner. And I’m not really hungry… just wanting to make sure that I plan adequately for the evening meal. It happens this way when theBean works her doubles – Tuesdays & Wednesdays – meaning we fend for ourselves. Not that we aren’t capable re-heaters of the delicacies known as Left Overs, but everything is better with theBean. If you’ve met her, you know what I’m speaking of…

    Talking with Chum today about life & stuff… like we normally do 1 or 2x/week. Don’t know where I’d be without the steadying, consistent encouragement & friendship of that guy.

    Got on the topic of Old Dead Guys – people we like to read – A.W. Tozer came up… Got to talking on the topic of leading within the context of church, & one of Tozer’s quotes:

    A true and safe leader is likely to be one who has no desire to lead, but is forced into a position of leadership by the inward pressure of the Holy Spirit and the press of external situations. Further, I believe it might be accepted as a fairly reliable rule of thumb that the man who is ambitious to lead is disqualified as a leader.”

    That one really rings home for me – mostly because I don’t aspire to be ‘the pastor’ – the leader, the guy in charge. Yet through circumstances & as Tozer says, “inward pressure of the Holy Spirit,” I have consistently found myself in the spot where I’m holding the keys to the bus… Ok, guess its time to drive.

    Led to discussion on Tozer’s commentary… those who are ambitious to lead. Not sure if that person “gets” what leading is, cause if they did, would they have to try to make it happen?

    Brings to mind:

    Jesus said, “You know that in this world kings are tyrants, and officials lord it over the people beneath them. But among you it should be quite different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be the slave of all. For even I, the Son of Man, came here not to be served but to serve others, and to give my life as a ransom for many.” Mark 10:42-45 NLT

    And also:

    FRODO: “I wish the ring had never come to me. I wish none of this had happened.”

    GANDALF: “So do all who come to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to do is decide what to do with the time that is given to us.” Tolkien, Lord of the Rings

    Hmmm.

    coffee in the afternoon, & other musings…

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    Maybe its a coping mechanism, but when I am noticed that certain days I crave coffee in the late afternoon. Its not the need for caffeine, because the decaf will do… its the smell of the brewing process, the taste of the 1st sip, the reassuring heat emanating from the ceramic cup. Sigh.

    Took a spill last night in our softball teams’ victory… lunging for a ball hit just beyond my reach, I landed on my left shoulder. Thought it came out of the socket… had brother PULL on the wrist to see if there was any give… nope. Just a jammed shoulder. Its ache-ey today. I will have to apply the Bio-Freeze.

    I was taken off guard today by Baby Zoe. She was sitting in her little bouncy chair, as she usually is, but this time she had her eyes open. And she was looking at me. And when she noticed I was looking at me, she smiled & yelled for me, “Tay-tay, I want you to pick me up & play with me.” (That last part about the yelling I’m PRETTY sure happened. Though no one else seems to have heard her do it… I did.)

    The more time that passes, the more I am convinced that 3 of the really great Sci-Fi shows of all time were:

  • Stargate SG-1
  • Farscape
  • Star Trek: TNG

    • Others, like BSG, Star Trek, & even the other Star Trek off-shoots are good. Still, I can put in a DVD of one of my personal big 3 & watch it over & over.

    That might say more about me & my longing for the old than it does about the new stuff. But I could be wrong.

    Off to soccer with theWeez. Lucky us. We have a 6:15 p.m. game tonight instead of the 7:45 game that ends at 9:15. Sweet.

    monday afternoon musings…

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    Watched Pasty’s football team last Friday – he played a phenomenal game, & was all over the field on defense. His team lost, mostly due to experiencing some bad breaks with turnovers, a couple fluke bounces, & then… some of the players ‘quit’- just stopped trying hard. Looked like they just went into shock & stopped playing to the caliber that they are capable of. It was frustrating to watch, but even more for the Pasty who gives the proverbial 110% on every play & has never even thought the word “quit.”

    It made me wonder about other situations in life where people have gone through difficulty, adversity, hard stuff & have “quit.” Like the quitting or removing themselves from the ‘game’ was the answer. Made a mental note or 10 to persevere.

    Pasty turns 18 on Wednesday. Unbelievable. What a great lesson in how fast life goes.

    With school starting & students all around me, I am feeling the pull to grad school stronger than ever. Not now. Not now. Maybe later.

    Gym time is becoming harder & harder to carve out. Days are full & so are the evenings… my gym is ok (esp. treadmill #5,) but its 6 miles away, & its becoming more & more difficult to get to it. I’ve heard some rumblings about a gym on Disc & Vista…

    Just finished reading this book. Really enjoyed it, & think you might too…

    TheBean’s new work schedule is awesome. Tuesday & Wednesday doubles, Thursday day, some Saturdays. Off Monday, Friday, & Sunday. Which means a day off together. Lucky me.

    In case you didn’t notice, the NFL season has begun. And none too soon.

    I’m dreaming a lot more (or at least remembering them). Interesting stuff. And I don’t think its the pizza, cause I’m not eating any. Maybe I’ll write one up.

    Had another reminder that words mean things. And how certain words are ‘buzzwords’ that provoke a strong response. And that coming up with a common definition may be the most helpful thing in a marriage, let alone a relationship. Goodness.

    Double the fun – 2x the MNF tonight. Sa-weet!

    BTW: the Over/Under for total fantasy football teams for me was 10. I came in JUST under. Thanks for playing.

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    the 1st day of school, & other monday morning musings…

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    Today is the first day of school for all 3 kids – Pasty is starting his senior year. IDoey is a freshman. TheWeez is off to 7th grade & Middle-School. Preparation for the day included everybody in bed, willingly & of their own accord, by 10 p.m. Lunches packed. Clothes washed, pressed & laid out. 3 mostly self-sufficient humans getting themselves together… nice.

    And then this a.m., everyone up no later than 6. No real rushing – just the familiar sounds of Pasty downstairs with Mike & Mike, Weezer’s hair dryer, & IDoey’s humming. The inexplicable & matchingly liberal application of Axe Body Spray or Ralph...

    The funny part is that we all ended up at the counter in the kitchen… with theBean, (starting her week off with a Day Off of Work,) willingly making breakfast ala “short-order-made-to-order..” What a site to see.

    Then I realized that it was time for the kids to head out… & I flashed back across the 13 years of First Day of School that we’ve done.

    Pasty’s first day of pre-K at Seeliger with his little siblings jealous of his chance to get out of the house & go to PLAY.

    Our first day of school upon our move to Sparks – mid-year of all times… Pasty was a good sport through a tough situation.

    IDoey’s first day of Kindergarten with Mrs. Martin.

    The day that all 3 kids finally went to school together.

    Pasty’s move to Jr High, then High School. Then IDoey’s.

    And now Weez is out of elementary & into the world of 12 going on 25…

    I wanted to get them to pose for a picture, but I couldn’t find the words. They were stuck in my throat behind a big lump. My eyes were swimming & I found that all I could really do was sit & look at them in their morning routine.

    Coffee helped compose me, & I finally eeked the words out – & asked the 3 kids to pose by the stairs. Without a word of complaint, they did, & went into the familiar routine of goofy silliness that characterizes & lets steam off of such moments. Let me take several pictures even.

    And then off.

    Sigh.