Is it yesterday already?

New Blog

2009-09-29T09:32:00.003-04:00

This is most likely my last blog post on this blog. Moving over to Wordpress for blog now. Much better user interface and easier to handle remotely (iPhone tool) and it plays nicely with the Google browser, even if Google owns blogspot (this blog site). I think you will like the more streamlined view and user interface over there too.

Here's the link:

http://mrsoulmark.wordpress.com/

I will not be deleting this blog, just no longer using it. Thanks for reading my ramblings and posts here since January 2008. See ya!

Weekend Review

2009-09-27T20:34:00.003-04:00

Great weekend even if the Tigers lost and it rained (a lot).

The neighborhood party was fun until the rain came. I hope we have the next one in the daytime because it sure was hard to see the food and everyone's face in the dark; but, again it was a fun time for the hood.

Saturday was just a hang out day watching football and some yard work with Tricia before the rain started again. We planted some grass and some flowers in the back. Then the rain really came down, really raining hard. I spent most of the day, after taking Miles to karate, on the couch watching and listening to football. Well, the Tigers fell short this week to Texas Christian. We had a chance, well... a few chances to win the game. It also really rained, did I mention that? The beaver dam is also backing up the water again by the trail.

Today, after a great worship at Freedom and a lunch at the Cici's in Spartanburg, I went out on Lake Robinson with a buddy from Freedom, David Faucette. It was an amazingly beautiful day on the lake. You could see the towers on Hogback Mountain and the sky was so clear and blue after all the rain. Dave was kind enough to take me to get my kayak before we headed out on the water. Dave is a VP at a local bank. His youngest daughter, in Nursing school at USC, was our babysitter before she went to USC. We had a blast on the water today and are planning many return trips soon. Now that the heat is going down, the water is the place to be. I even got to check out Billy Mays home on the lake too. It's empty and HUGE. Go figure. I plan to bring the camera the next time out on the lake. Our neighbors, Todd and Christine, have also invited me and Miles or Tricia to float down the Green River soon. That will be way cool. Love my boat :-)

The kayak is now hanging from the chains in the garage. Yet another great use of the shelves Charles Lamb and I put up in early 2008. We spent some time this afternoon trying to figure out how we would store the kayak. Couldn't put where Keller would be tempted to chew anything. Glad I had such a brilliant idea!

Watching some NFL on Sunday right now and getting ready for my short week at work. I am off to Nashville on Thursday.

Hey, did I mention the Breakfast with Dad that Dylan and I worked out last week? Usually, we go super early to school and stand in line for not-exactly the best breakfast in the land? Well, I had a great idea that went well with Dylan. He and I hit the McDonald's on Wade Hampton. We practically had the place to ourselves. It was the best breakfast with Dad so far! Nice to have his attention for a few minutes too.

Please pray for the people of the Philippines right now. They are suffering from a massive flood due to a Tropical Storm. We have great friends who have been missionaries for the last 20 years there. They have two kids at North Greenville right now too. Jill and Greg Harvell have been keeping us posted. Please pray for everyone's safety and the searching and rebuilding that must take place now. Here's their site: http://www.harvellsforhim.cjb.net/

News on the flood here: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article6851191.ece

God Bless and See ya!

Ready for the Weekend

2009-09-24T22:09:00.002-04:00

We are going to the rescheduled neighborhood party tomorrow. Mom and Pete are also going to spend the night with us since they have something at Taylors First Baptist on Friday.

Watching the Ole Miss vs. USC game right now. Right now, USC looks good.

Work has been busy as we prepare for our annual retreat next week. We only get together once per year. We are going to be at the Gaylord in Nashville, which looks like a very nice place. Looking forward to the retreat and the fun. We spend most of the day in conference and workshops and then have great dinners and entertainment in the evenings. I am then flying back to Charlotte to see Widespread Panic and the Allman Brothers in Charlotte (Oct 4th). Looking forward to that!

So, short week in the office and then out to Nashville on Thursday afternoon. I'll get back on Monday morning after the concert in Charlotte.

Meeting with the Friday morning men tomorrow to continue our discussion of "If you want to walk on water, then get out of the boat". I really get a charge out of meeting and praying with these men, we have shared some deep discussion about faith, family and church. Thank you God for this group.

Back to the chiropractor on Tuesday. So far, a little relief. I'm not convinced yet. But, I did see the xrays and I think I agree with the problem, maybe it's the solution I am still judging.

Well, I'm short on words this week. Hope you are ready for the Fall! I know I am! See ya!

Fall

2009-09-23T08:58:00.002-04:00

My favorite season is here! Nice walk this morning with just a touch of cool. I am sitting at the chiropractic office for my 2nd visit. My hips have been hurting for a few months with radiating pain on my left hip. Had xrays on Monday. No sx of fracture, but you don't see nerves on xrays. I'll give this a few visits and see or go back to my family doc.
Back to Life Group tonight studying "The Hole in Our Gospel". A good group is a must!
Ok, gotta run!

via iPhone

Clemson's Stormy Weather Outlook

2009-09-20T15:04:00.004-04:00

Miles and I went to the Clemson game yesterday with tickets I got from a good friend from Sumter who couldn't use them. We had very good seats on the opponent side lower deck. We rode to Clemson with our friends (and Clemson grads) Steve and Amanda Somers (Freedom Fellowship friends). We also had the chance to use Mark Thornton's parking space too. Mark started for Clemson as center back in the 70's and has a great parking spot right outside the stadium. That was the best thing yesterday as we had 2 weather delays due to lightning in the area. That was the first time ever I have been to a Clemson game delayed by weather. We got some rain; but, we never heard thunder or saw the flashes. We had to leave our seats and during the first 50 minute delay, Miles and I went back to the car for a break. With the 2nd delay, all 4 of us meet up and decided we were done for the day. The Tigers were up 19-7 in the 4th by that point. It was fun to take Miles to a Clemson game and I ran into an old Clemson buddy, Pete Kennedy. He was with his wife and parents. I haven't seen Pete since graduation. He's living up in Asheville. Of course, we are friends on Facebook now!

That was the good part of the day yesterday; but, I was more than frustrated by Clemson's lack of offense plans. We got a record 6 field goals from Greer (Riverside) kicker Jackson-that tied a single game record and 1 punt return for TD by C.J Spiller. Other than that, the Clemson defense carried the game. BC's only TD was due to the offense giving up a fumble on the 8 yard line in the 4th quarter, yes, it was raining hard then too. Nonetheless, our offense needs to get it together. We have tons of talent and speed, we just need someone to drive this fast car! Texas Christian will be a different animal next week. I hope we wake up in time!

Lots of rain here this weekend and we are looking at rain all week according to the weather report. We have a rescheduled neighborhood party on Friday and I am going out on Saturday morning in the kayak with another friend from church, Dave Faucette. Looking forward to getting out on Lake Robinson this time. Miles has an open house at the middle school tomorrow. Should be a fun week.

Checkout some pictures from the game yesterday and my video of the hill run. Go Tigers!

See ya!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RN_kK2iRito (The Hill Run, I added a soundtrack so it wouldn't be a bunch of screaming and yelling)

Bruce Springsteen 9-16-09 Greenville

2009-09-17T09:03:00.003-04:00

My first Bruce "The Boss" Springsteen and the E. Street Band show last night in Greenville, thanks to my good buddy, Cliff Marshall. The lights went down around 8:15pm and the show ended a few minutes after 11pm. Great show even if the sound was the usual horrible assault on the ears that is the Bi-Lo Center sound system. Very, very engaging. Bruce is one intense rockin' man.

My favorites would be the "Atlantic City", "Radio Nowhere", "Satisfaction" (request from the audience and first time played), the"Detroit Medley " which was "Devil with a Blue Dress on">"Good Golly Miss Molly">"C.C. Rider", "Dancin' in the Dark" and "Glory Days". "Born to Run" was so good and glad to finally hear/see it LIVE; but, my top favorite was the last tune, "Thunder Road". That's probably my favorite Bruce tune and I had some serious chicken skin going then when it's just Bruce, harmonica and piano. It was that good!

Thanks Cliff for taking your brother from another mother! I can't wait for the next show to "pay you back"!

Greenville, South Carolina
Bi-Lo Center 9-16-09

Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out
Badlands
No Surrender
Hungry Heart
Outlaw Pete
Out In The Street
Working On A Dream
Wreck On The Highway
Seeds
Johnny 99
Atlantic City
Raise Your Hand
This Hard Land
(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction
Ramrod
Waiting On A Sunny Day (got 2 little girls from the audience on stage to sing with him)
The Promised Land
Backstreets
Radio Nowhere
Lonesome Day
The Rising
Born To Run

Hard Times
Double Shot of My Baby's Love
American Land
Glory Days
Detroit Medley
Dancin' In The Dark (got a lady on the stage with him to dance)
Thunder Road

Thunder Road - Bruce Springsteen

The screen door slams

Mary' dress waves

Like a vision she dances across the porch

As the radio plays

Roy Orbison singing for the lonely

Hey that's me and I want you only

Don't turn me home again

I just can't face myself alone again

Don't run back inside

Darling you know just what I'm here for

So you're scared and you're thinking

That maybe we ain't that young anymore

Show a little faith there's magic in the night

You ain't a beauty but hey you're alright

Oh and that's alright with me

You can hide 'neath your covers

And study your pain

Make crosses from your lovers

Throw roses in the rain

Waste your summer praying in vain

For a saviour to rise from these streets

Well now I'm no hero

That's understood

All the redemption I can offer girl

Is beneath this dirty hood

With a chance to make it good somehow

Hey what else can we do now ?

Except roll down the window

And let the wind blow

Back your hair

Well the night's busting open

These two lanes will take us anywhere

We got one last chance to make it real

To trade in these wings on some wheels

Climb in back

Heaven's waiting on down the tracks

Oh-oh come take my hand

We're riding out tonight to case the promised land

Oh-oh Thunder Road oh Thunder Road

Lying out there like a killer in the sun

Hey I know it's late we can make it if we run

Oh Thunder Road sit tight take hold

Thunder Road

Well I got this guitar

And I learned how to make it talk

And my car's out back

If you're ready to take that long walk

From your front porch to my front seat

The door's open but the ride it ain't free

And I know you're lonely

For words that I ain't spoken

But tonight we'll be free

All the promises'll be broken

There were ghosts in the eyes

Of all the boys you sent away

They haunt this dusty beach road

In the skeleton frames of burned out Chevrolets

They scream your name at night in the street

Your graduation gown lies in rags at their feet

And in the lonely cool before dawn

You hear their engines roaring on

But when you get to the porch they're gone

On the wind so Mary climb in

It's town full of losers

And I'm pulling out of here to win

Born To Run

2009-09-16T22:26:00.002-04:00

__________

Badlands

2009-09-16T20:26:00.002-04:00

Bruuuuuce!!!!!

__________

Awesome weekend

2009-09-14T08:14:00.002-04:00

This past weekend was so great in many ways!

1. Friday night just hanging out with the family (and a trip to Costco).

2. Saturday: a new kayak. I could stop right there and it would be an awesome weekend.

3. Putting the kayak in Lake Lyman and going out twice on the water. Dylan and Miles got really excited about fishing on the lake too. I got 2 new light rod/reel combos all ready for next weekend.

4. Sunday: It just kept getting better with the praise band at Freedom opening the worship service with a tune that the Derek Trucks Band has covered on 2 albums: "I Wish I Knew How It Felt To Be Free". Wow! Goosebumps!

5. Then Cliff laid down some Old Testament on us that cut the skinny and pressure-washed the room. Good stuff brother!

6. Then Pizza Inn for lunch with the family. Dessert pizza is always tops in my book.

7. A Sunday afternoon nap.

8. Then Steven Somers and I head out to Charlotte last night and caught a great Derek Trucks Band show with Mofro opening. Yonrico (the drummer for Derek Trucks Band) had us on the guest list for 2 nice seats. I made a decent recording too. Pictures here.
Made it home around 1am (construction traffic on 85 slowed us about 30 minutes).

As I look back on it, what a weekend! I can't wait for another like that!

Bruce Springsteen with Cliff on Wednesday is making this week look pretty cool too! Ok, gotta get to work!

See ya!

And I wish I knew how
It would feel to be free
I wish that I could break
All the chains holding me
I wish I could say
All the things that Id like to say
Say em loud say em clear
For the whole round world to hear
I wish I could share
All the love thats in my heart
Remove every doubt
It keeps us apart
And I wish you could know
What it means to be me
Then youd see and agree
Every man should be free

I wish I could live

Like Im longin to live
I wish I could give
What Im longin to give
And I wish I could do
All the things Id like to do
You know theyll still miss part of you
Yes sir...
And Im way way over due

I wish I could be like a bird up in the sky
How sweet it would be
If I found out I could fly
So long to my song
And look down upon ihe sea
And I sing because I know
I would see you
I sing because I know
I would see you
And I sing because I know
I would see you
To be free yea

Early 40th birthday present

2009-09-12T11:31:00.002-04:00

via iPhone

The annual Sunrift demo sale is something I have tried to make for the
last few years; the date was later this year. See below for my new
Wilderness Systems Pamlico 120. Happy early birthday to me!
Thanks Tricia!!!

Go Tigers

2009-09-10T08:12:00.002-04:00

Big game tonight on ESPN with GA Tech and Clemson going head to head. GT is ranked 14th, not sure what that means anymore :-) In fact, Clemson usually plays better when they are the underdogs. Miles and I are going over to Mark and Vonda Thorton's place along with Jason Collins and his son, Blake. Jason went to Africa with me last week. Vonda is his mom too. We are going to have a cookout and watch the game and hopefully give Mark's Dad (GT graduate) a whole lot of smack talk! Mark is also a part of our men's group on Friday mornings too.

It's been a busy week at work and I have a major project kickoff today at 1pm for a new contract in Georgia. I think I have at least responded to everything that was waiting on me. I guess I will find out later ;-)

We went to our first Lifegroup meeting yesterday at Donny and Shelly Kaufman's home. Donny is also the associate pastor at Freedom. He and Shelly have 3 boys and are awesome friends- the kind you can depend on for laughs and support. We are going to go through a book called "The Hole in our Gospel". It challenges you to actually do something with your faith and put your love in action, just as Christ did. So looking forward to getting down into that one with Tricia and the rest of the group. Lifegroup presents a fun challenge this year with Miles going to the youth group (LINC) at the same time. Dylan is staying with his buddy, Nick, while we are all gone. Nick's Mom saved the day by volunteering to let Dylan stay there on Wednesday nights! Good neighbors rock! Speaking of, we are having our 3rd annual neighborhood cookout next Friday and Jason and Rachel Hodges have a band coming to play and BBQ to eat. I'm looking forward to being able to walk to that party next week.

Well, gotta get ready for work. Hope your short week is going smoothly. I will try and post more on the weekend if I get the chance. Hope to watch Obama's healthcare speech on Sunday before heading up to Charlotte for the Derek Trucks Band show. I need about 30 hours in each day, could you use a little more too?

Go Tigers!

See ya!

Back in the Saddle

2009-09-08T06:31:00.002-04:00

In case you didn't know, I was in Africa from 27Aug to 5Sept. http://freedom2africa.blogspot.com/

Back in the saddle today at work, lots to catch up on. We had a fun day just working on chores around the home (cleaned the garage) and I snuck in a nap and then we all enjoyed a free Chic-Fil-a meal (free sandwich for wearing our favorite team colors, lots of ORANGE there yesterday). Miles and I then went out to some stores, including Sports Academy. I picked up a new pair of New Balance trail runners for $39.99, I gave my old pair to Mathata in Botswana. Keller and I are going to hit the trail this morning and break them in real nice. Of course, we are going to walk Miles to the bus stop too!

I am so glad it's a short week, we have some major projects going at work and things are reaching a peak if what I read in the emails is correct. Pray for strength and compassion and clarity this week for me. I think I have the time zones just about right in my head.

Looking forward to the annual boat sale at Sunrift outfitters, don't have the money for a kayak this year; but, it's a great place to check out the demo models and see the low prices. We are also going to hit the Big Dig Saturday afternoon. It's a benefit out in the country that allows kids to drive and work big machinery for a donation. The boys are excited about that!

Well, gotta sip some more coffee and kickstart the short week! Hope yours is productive and healthy.

See ya!

Back Home

2009-09-06T16:11:00.002-04:00

I made it home around 11am today. It was so good to see the Tricia and the boys (and Keller) and take a long hot shower. I will post more later and some videos when I have them uploaded. Thank you for your prayers and words of support and encouragement. We are already planning the next trip back to Botswana! Glad tomorrow is not a work day!

Botswana 2009 photos

Thursday at the Bus Stop

2009-08-20T08:28:00.002-04:00

Keller and I walked Miles down to the bus stop this morning. That will be very good for Miles, in many ways. Keller had a blast and was just soaking up all the attention from the girls on the bus too. I'm sure Miles told them all about Keller, his dog, on the way to school. I would put money on it!

The reports all around were of a good 1st day at school. Tricia is feeling a little better about the situation, Dylan is so excited to have a dog in his class everyday, part of the teacher's "tools" and Miles is now taking Strings in place of Chorus. He is going to play stand-up bass. We are all looking forward to how that turns out and think he will really enjoy it too.

It was a quiet day at work here yesterday. I can almost feel the fall around the corner; but, the humidity this morning was beating that feeling over the head this morning. It was thick on the trail this morning after the bus stop.

Speaking of thick fog...some of you know I have been on a combo of nerve pain meds since my surgery in 2006. I have finally crawled out of that fog, having taken the last of the meds the Sunday after we returned from Ohio. While I have felt a tinge or two since then, it's nothing like it was and nothing Tylenol or Alleve haven't been able to handle. I have about 10x the energy level and much more clarity of thought and drive at work. It got really tough for me this year and fighting the meds' "fog" was getting harder and my waistline was showing the effects too. I feel liberated and free. I started praying about God giving me the strength to let go of those meds this spring when Tricia and I went through the Financial Peace class. The meds were NOT cheap and I also had some weird withdrawal effects in the past. God delivers folks! My family doctor (who did not start me on the meds just continued what the neurologist started) and I came up with a good plan after I did some research on the internet and our plan seems to have worked. So far, so good. Thank you God!

On the Africa front, only 1 week until we take off. Thank you for continuing to lift us (Freedom Fellowship, Alice Drive, Old Naledi Fellowship) in your prayers. I have a long list to take care of this week; but, time to work now...

See ya!

First Day of School

2009-08-19T08:17:00.002-04:00

It's the first day of school. Back to work for Tricia and a new class for Dylan. Miles is now a middle school kid. Hard to believe my little monkey man rugrat is now moving on to the next level. He is riding the bus home today. Keller and I took him to school today. Keller was very excited for Miles. Please whisper or shout a prayer of protection for Miles and Dylan and a prayer of encouragement and strength for Tricia. The beginning of the school year is always stressful for her and this year is no different.

Shadow and I now have a quiet house. Good thing, as work and the Africa trip planning have me busy.

Last night after the orientation for parents and students at the middle school, we celebrated in style at Cold Stone Creamery. Nothing like some ice cream to soothe the anxiety or fuel the excitement!

Only 8 more days until we depart for Africa. Please pray for me, Jason, Nancy and Joel from Freedom. We will be joined in Atlanta by Scott and Clay from Alice Drive. Pray for the children of Old Naledi and for the people of Botswana. Pray for words of truth and clarity to come from our mouths. Pray for strength and endurance for all. Follow our blog here: http://freedom2africa.blogspot.com/

See ya!

Weekend Review

2009-08-17T08:03:00.002-04:00

Tricia and I had a great weekend. On Friday night, her friend from Sumter, Diana Lyles, came up to spend the day with us on Saturday. We had a great time at the Lake Robinson community day, which included Tricia and Diana going out in kayaks. Keller and I followed in a canoe. It was the first ever Lake Robinson community day and a great day for environmental awareness, local business booths and some food and bluegrass music. Keller and I even walked home because he went for a swim after the boat ride.

We then took Diana downtown for a tour to include the Mast General store and Falls Park. She had a great time and you can see some pictures in the link below. After Diana left on Saturday evening, Tricia and I went for a date at Copper River. Wow! That Apple Cobbler was huge and so good. Tricia looked amazing in a black dress and actually had to dress up :-) It was a fun date to celebrate the end of the summer and the beginning of a new school year. Tricia wants to be positive and we are thankful for her job and what it provides our family. She does a wonderful job too and we proud!

View all

Get your own

On Sunday morning, Tricia and I went to Capstone Church down in Anderson. Our good friend, David Barfield is now the senior pastor and we wanted to be there to help celebrate their first worship in their new building. They had a similar situation to Freedom Fellowship, in that an older church donated the land and building for Capstone. Capstone had been meeting in a movie theater! It was an amazing service and we were thrilled to also witness 6 baptisms, including Miss Anna Barfield, Dave and Caroline's 8 year daughter. Jesus Rocks! Dave was also the camp pastor at Camp McCall this year when Dylan and I were there in July. Miles and Jacob (their son) were also in the same cabin. Dave was the coaching pastor at Alice Drive in Sumter and is a fine Clemson graduate too! It was such an honor to be there yesterday and we look forward to visiting there again to see what God is doing. I also heard a super cool song that will work so good with our Africa mission trip and well, really, any time. Lyrics posted from "The Solution" below. This was the closing song at their service yesterday.

We then headed down to Irmo to pick up the boys at Susan's place. Miles and Dylan were at "Nanny Camp" all week with Mom and Pete. They had a ton of fun on the farm; but, we were happy to see them again. Tricia and I also took advantage of the "coupleness" and hit Fatz Cafe in Clinton for a great lunch! We thought about you Kathy on your birthday too!

Miles went to his very first church youth event last night. It was a swimming/shaving cream fight party and he almost won an Xbox in the "back busters" contest. He came in second and walked away with the 2nd place prize, a red back! He was proud of his war scars. I hope his Mom lets him go back to other functions (wink, wink).

Tricia is off to school and I need to get started. I am covering all week while one of the consultants is on a well-deserved vacation. Pray for us as we prepare for Africa next week (can't believe it's almost here!). Also, pray for my Dad's brother, David. He had a heart attack yesterday and is in the hospital in Columbia. More on that as I find out.

See ya!

The Solution

HillSong United

To stare not fight while broken nations dream
Open up our eyes, so blind
That we might find the mercy for the need

Hey now
Fill our hearts with your compassion
Hey now
As we hold to our confession

It is not too far a cry
Too much to try to help the least of these
Politics will not decide if we should rise
And be your hands and feet

Singing...
Hey now
Fill our hearts with your compassion
Hey now
As we hold to our confession

Whoa-oo-ooh
God, be the solution
Whoa-oo-ooh
We will be your hands and be your feet
Yeah Yeah

Higher than our circumstance
You promised and you loved for all to see
Higher than our protest lines and dollar signs
Your love is all we need

Hey now
Fill our hearts with your compassion
Hey now
As we hold to our confession

Whoa-oo-ooh
God, be the solution
Whoa-oo-ooh
We will be your hands and be your feet

Whoa-oo-ooh
God, be the solution
Whoa-oo-ooh
We will be your hands and be your feet
Whoa Yeah

Only you can mend the broken heart
And cause the blind to see
You erase complete, the sinner's past
And set the captives free

Only you can take the widow's cry
And cause the heart to see
Be the Father to the fatherless
Our Saviour and our King

We will be your hands
We will be your feet
We run this race for the least of these
In the darkest place we will be your light,
We will you light

We will be your hands
We will be your feet
We run this race for the least of these
In the darkest place we will be your light,
We will you light

Whoa-oo-ooh
God, be the solution
Whoa-oo-ooh
We will be your hands and be your feet

Whoa-oo-ooh
God, be the solution
Whoa-oo-ooh
We will be your hands and be your feet

We will run
We will run

We will run with the solution

We will be your hands
We will be your feet
We run this race for the least of these
In the darkest place we will be your light,
We will you light we´ll sing

The End of an Era (no more MiniDisc)

2009-08-13T19:50:00.006-04:00

Today marked the end of my minidisc era. I was trying to get some tunes ready for the long flight to Botswana on my minidisc (the battery life was always miles above most electronics, especially for listening only) when I found my only remaining device would no longer record. So, I guess I have to take my iPhone and/or iPod to Africa this year.

My first MD was a Sharp DR7, November 2003. This was my main recorder for many LIVE shows. All of my learning curves were straighten out on this device. I also had a Sony deck to transfer the recordings to my old Philips CDR deck. Talk about old school! It was optical out of the Sony MD deck to optical input on the CDR deck. I then took the CDR and transferred to my PC to split the tracks and make edits. This was not a fast process. I also recorded in dual channel mono back then to give me 160 minutes of recording without changing the disc, as it was limited to 80 minutes of stereo. Since most concerts are mono mixed, it wasn't a big deal most of the time.

In late 2004, I then upgraded to my first Sony Hi-MD, the NH900, replaced that with the RH10 then the RH1. These Hi-MD could hold up to 1 Gb of music with variable bitrates (compression) or no compression (PCM-WAV). While the NH900 had some serious battery life challenges and was seriously crippled by Sony software, it was a big step forward for the format. I made some good recordings with that device; but, by far, my greatest MD was the RH10. The display on that device was something to see in dark settings and made a big difference for my level checks when recording live. Plus, it was not mostly plastic and thin "metal" like the NH900. What was Sony thinking??? The RH1 in 2005 had great promise but the form factor was dying and being replaced by flash recorders by this point and Sony has stopped any further development on MD. The best thing about the RH1 was you could adjust the recording level on the fly. Believe it or not, Sony crippled their MDs with a menu setting that always defaulted to automatic recording level adjustments... you always had to stand on one foot with your left eye closed to get it just right (well, you get the picture). That didn't go so well with many first timers... I actually sold the RH1 not long after buying it (missed the RH10 display and hated the proprietary battery form) and bought another RH10 on eBay. I would actually record with 2 Hi-MDs with one in the ready once I got close to the 94 min and would hot-swap to the waiting deck.

The Hi-MDs also allowed you to upload to the PC via USB. See the above description of the chain I had to use before Hi-MD. Before Hi-MD, I did upgrade my deck to the Sony MXD-D400 which was an awesome mp3 CD player and MD player/recorder. I sold that to a Ohio radio station via eBay back in 2004. Hope it still serves them well. That was a great deck and Sony could have done so much if that had pushed MD and Hi-MD without the stupid DRM software that really crippled the format from the onset. I also had a cool Sony S1 that I got on clearance at Best Buy that was my main walking tunes device for several years. That is the device that just went in the trash with all my old MDs. Miles used it as his tunes device until he got his iPod nano. It was a rugged device made for sports and was water resistant and would run over 30 hrs on 1 AA battery. But, it has gone on to the other side of the electronics trash heap. Luckily, I was able to sell all of the others on eBay or to other tapers to keep the "upgrades" going. That's why you always, always, always keep the box and manual around ;-). I actually kept the 2nd RH10 around as a stealth recording device along with my new flash recorder. I just sold it this spring to a taper who was just getting started with taping...

While I enjoyed learning the methods of recording and digital transfers and edits on MD, my PCM-D50 device is MILES above the MDs in terms of memory (4Gb + expandable card slot), user interface, speed of transfers and it has internal mics just in case! So, I enjoyed the MD era and it served me well; but, I won't miss it! Glad I could help be a beta tester! MDs got me into concert recording and I can honestly say I truly enjoy this hobby and would not be where I am today for recording techniques if it had not been for MDs. The entry price point for these devices was reasonable compared to DAT recorders and made it easy and relatively cheap to get started. You had a lot to learn but you could make it happen. Glad I stuck it out.

So, if you see a minidisc out there one day, you can truly say "wow, dude. That's like OLD SCHOOL!!!" See ya!

14 years

2009-08-11T21:56:00.003-04:00

I know I have been more than slack on posting lately; but, work and the trip to Ohio have had me out of time and place for the last few weeks.

Today, I took Miles and Dylan down to Irmo to meet my Mom at Susan's place. It was okay as I had no DSL at home and could only be on the phone for meetings and that worked out for the drive down. It gave Tricia the opportunity to stay at school all day working too. We lost power and phone service suddenly this morning around 9am. The power came back around 1030am but I didn't get DSL or phone until I was home from Irmo. It was a challenge for work.

Miles and Dylan are going to stay with Mom and Pete until Sunday and get their ya ya's out for the last week of summer. That worked out fine for us as Tricia has a lot to do at school. We went to a Youth orientation for parents tonight at Freedom. The Youth group is called LINC (Liberty in Christ) and the meeting was for the parents of upcoming 6th graders. Miles went to his tour of Blue Ridge middle school on Monday with Tricia and his buddy, Ryan. He is really excited about school, he can't believe he can order Chick-fila and Pizza in the cafeteria. He is also stoked about riding the bus. We learned it is one of the last routes and he needs to be there by 8am. We might make that a regularly scheduled event since he needs to ride it while I am in Africa. I will take him the first few days to get him oriented and on schedule. This is gonna be a brand new world.

We thought he was going to be in a single gender class this year; but, since he is in advanced reading and Challenge classes, he has to be in co-ed. That was a quick decision for us, we don't see much problem with the girls just yet for Miles and he would be too bored and not challenged otherwise!

Got tickets for the Third Day Family picnic at the Heritage Park Amphitheater today on the way to Irmo. $65 for a pack of 4 is a steal and it includes a free hot dog and drink for all of us. Now that is a recession buster!!!! It's on a Friday in early October and I am really looking forward to that show.

Today is the 14th anniversary of the first date Tricia and I ever had together. It's amazing how time has changed us and our world; but, how we are still in Love and still the same two that God brought together. We went to Staples and Chick-Fila to celebrate :-) Well, I didn't say we were getting younger ;-) God changed my life by bringing Tricia into it and I am forever thankful and amazed. I Love You Honey!

See ya!

Friday

2009-08-07T08:13:00.002-04:00

It's Friday and we have one more day here in Ohio. The weather has been great, although the folks here call it "cold". Nice and cool with highs in the 70's and humidity nowhere to be found. Work on the other hand has been full speed and then some. I have had no less than 10 hr days all week. Development cycle push, disgruntled sites and upper level demands. So glad we don't use video cameras!

Last night we walked down to the East Coast Ice Cream shop with the boys, including nephews Henry and Charlie. Nice double serving of Apple Crum frozen custard hit the spot after a few Sloppy Joes for dinner. We have eaten well and Missy is cooking some good stuff these days! It's also been good to spend time all week with Grandma and she has contributed mightily to the meals too. No complaints there!

Wednesday we took a trip to the other side of Cleveland and had dinner with Tricia's brother, Frankie and his family. They have 3 kids: Jasmine, Aiden and Dominic (just turned 1 year). We had a lot of laughs catching up with them. See Jasmine's new Youtube video here: Jack-in-the-box. That's what she asked Aunt Tricia to bring for her birthday. She is a sweetheart.

Ok, sorry for the short posts this week. It's been a challenge not being at the home office; but, we made it and had a great time. On the road tomorrow bright and early heading South. Looks hot from here! See ya!

Happy Birthday Amy

2009-08-04T07:48:00.002-04:00

We are in Ohio right now. We had a decent drive up on Sunday. Tricia drove more than she has ever on any trip! Maybe she can drive all the way home this Saturday ;-) . Miles and Dylan are having fun with Henry and Charlie. Dylan is a little sick, feeling puny and running a fever. No other symptoms right now, we are giving him water and Tylenol and watching.

Today is Sister Amy's birthday! Happy Birthday Aunt Amy!!! Tomorrow is also my Mom's 70th birthday! So, in honor of the 2 days of birthdays in my family, here's a little lyric I stole from Bob Dylan.

See ya!

Forever Young

May God bless and keep you always,
May your wishes all come true,
May you always do for others
And let others do for you.
May you build a ladder to the stars
And climb on every rung,
May you stay forever young,
Forever young, forever young,
May you stay forever young.

May you grow up to be righteous,
May you grow up to be true,
May you always know the truth
And see the lights surrounding you.
May you always be courageous,
Stand upright and be strong,
May you stay forever young,
Forever young, forever young,
May you stay forever young.

May your hands always be busy,
May your feet always be swift,
May you have a strong foundation
When the winds of changes shift.
May your heart always be joyful,
May your song always be sung,
May you stay forever young,
Forever young, forever young,
May you stay forever young.

2009-08-01T10:57:00.001-04:00

Testing my new way to post via text messages! On the way to WNCW in a few! See ya!

Summer Saturday

2009-08-01T06:56:00.002-04:00

Last night we went out to celebrate Dylan's birthday. We hit the new McDonald's on Wade Hampton per Dylan's pick and then headed out to see G-Force in 3D. I will say that I won't be ordering any more Angus burgers from McDonald's. I was left flat by that choice last night.

G-Force was funny and the 3D pretty good. We had a lot of fun; but, ended up the night with Dylan having a little meltdown. I think camp really made him tired and it took some long conversations with him last night to get him calmed down after his meltdown. The emotionalism started with him sliding across the floor at the movie theatre after the show. He was doing some action hero movies, totally appropriate after watching that movie. He got a little embarrassed and I think that set him off. I hope he sleeps in today...

Today, I am going to Spindale to answer phones for WNCW. The NC legislature cut their budget and that left them 200K in the red and they are having an extra fundraiser week to offset the deficit. I always enjoy that "work".

I got the good news that I am going to see Bruce Springsteen in Greenville after I get back from Africa. My pastor (and brother from another Mother) Cliff bought me a ticket yesterday. We were trying to get free tickets from his buddy who knows someone who works for Bruce. Unfortunately, that was not working out as planned. I think it was "killing" Cliff that Bruce was coming to town and he might miss it! I'm glad it bothered him so much he bought me a ticket too! Glad to be of assistance!

Tomorrow, we are waking early and hitting the highway up to Ohio. We will be there with Tricia's family all week. That's the great thing about my job, I get to work while the family spends time with the folks in Ohio and I don't even have to use my vacation time. Thank you God.

Hope the private blog hasn't been a hassle for you. It was necessary after someone who works at Iatric told one of the consultants I work with about my 1 liner regarding not reading the book I was sent. In all fairness, I have yet to crack the pages and they were overworked and didn't have time to read it then. I have had a conversation with her about my comments and we are much better off now having had that conversation. and clearing the air. I guess I can't have everyone reading my thoughts and ramblings. Some folks just take it the wrong way. Oh well. Move forward. Have a great weekend!

See ya!

Private Blog

2009-07-30T20:34:00.005-04:00

Well, it was bound to happen! I made someone mad with a post at work and I need to make the access to the blog a little more private...I have sent an invite if you enjoy my ramblings and want to stay in touch with the Johnson Family, please accept the invite. Otherwise, just think of all the funny stories you might miss! The good news is now I can write what I want and not worry about it so much, be prepared ;-)

Had a blast with Miles and Cliff last night at the Willie Nelson/John Mellancamp/Bob Dylan show. Nice to get home from the show at a decent hour. I was totally floored by Mellancamp's show, my expectations were definitely met with his performance. I had goosebump skin several times during the show; but, none more than during "Rain On The Scarecrow". Miles had a ton of fun too. Willie was the best I have seen him and had some local Gospel Men singin' along to end the set. Dylan was mid-range for his set, I have seen him 6 times and I would put that somewhere in the middle of what I have seen from him. It was good but nothing over the top, like Mellancamp on the other hand.

Here's a great picture of me and Miles at the show:

Here's some shots from the 2 days of Camp McCall! We had so much fun and I plan to post some videos on Facebook soon. Speaking of Facebook, I deactivated my old account and now have a new account, so make me your friend :-)
Dylan enjoyed his birthday so much but he also went to sleep really easily last night too! His new Flip video camera was a HUGE hit! You should see some videos from the Jr. director one of these days. More about camp later!

Well, time to eat. See ya!

Rain on the Scarecrow by John Cougar Mellancamp

Scarecrow on a wooden cross Blackbird in the barn
Four hundred empty acres that used to be my farm
I grew up like my daddy did My grandpa cleared this land
When I was five I walked the fence while grandpa held my hand

Rain on the scarecrow Blood on the plow
This land fed a nation This land made me proud
And Son I'm just sorry there's no legacy for you now
Rain on the scarecrow Blood on the plow
Rain on the scarecrow Blood on the plow

The crops we grew last summer weren't enough to pay the loans
Couldn't buy the seed to plant this spring and the Farmers Bank foreclosed
Called my old friend Schepman up to auction off the land
He said John it's just my job and I hope you understand
Hey calling it your job ol' hoss sure don't make it right
But if you want me to I'll say a prayer for your soul tonight
And grandma's on the front porch swing with a Bible in her hand
Sometimes I hear her singing "Take me to the Promised Land"
When you take away a man's dignity he can't work his fields and cows

There'll be blood on the scarecrow Blood on the plow
Blood on the scarecrow Blood on the plow

Well there's ninety-seven crosses planted in the courthouse yard
Ninety-seven families who lost ninety-seven farms
I think about my grandpa and my neighbors and my name
And some nights I feel like dyin' Like that scarecrow in the rain

Rain on the scarecrow Blood on the plow
This land fed a nation This land made me proud
And Son I'm just sorry they're just memories for you now
Rain on the scarecrow Blood on the plow
Rain on the scarecrow Blood on the plow

Rain on the scarecrow Blood on the plow
This land fed a nation This land made me proud
And Son I'm just sorry they're just memories for you now
Rain on the scarecrow Blood on the plow
Rain on the scarecrow Blood on the plow

The set from Mellancamp last night

7/29/09 Heritage Park Ampitheatre, Simpsonville, SC
Pink Houses
Paper and Fire
My Aeroplane
Check It Out
Don't Need This Body
Cherry Bomb
Save Some Time
Small Town
Scarecrow
Peace In This Troubled Land
If I Die Sudden
Crumblin' Down
Hurts So Good

Off to Camp

2009-07-27T06:57:00.002-04:00

Dylan and I are off to Camp McCall until Wednesday! It's a great time up in the hills and we get to do such cool things together. He really enjoys it and I do to! Miles had a blast last week up there and I could tell he was much more comfortable with being away from home this year. The DVD of the week he brought home proved that point!

We had a great weekend! The game on Friday with Susan and her family was a big hit! No rain, a little warm; but, the evening went great even though Greenville lost. It was not a pitcher's duel, so at least there was lots of action! The night was topped off with a trip to Krispy Kreme that will forever be remembered as the night the woman with the donut in one hand telling her friend "Kisha" to go call 911 because the car next to them scratched her door and she "can't let that roll". It was something you can only see in South Carolina :-).

Tricia and I headed down to Atlanta for Ruth and Bobby's wedding. We had such a good time. The ceremony was beautiful and active (read that as "Catholic"). The reception was a ton of fun with a spectacular view from the 26th floor looking at Stone Mountain on one side and the north Georgia hills and the sunset on the other side. We had a table of old crazy Clemson buddies and we showed many dance skills (or lack thereof) on the dance floor. Ruth and Bobby had a fantastic evening capped with a sparkler promenade down Peachtree as a sendoff. Tricia enjoyed getting to know some of my old Clemson pals and hearing some old stories. Luckily, we have all settled a little and we have kids now and try to act responsible. I stress "try"!!! We were able to stop at an outlet mall on the way home for some shoes and clothes for school and met up with Susan and the kids in downtown Greenville at the Mast General Store.

What could be better? How about a Freedom Fellowship baptism at the lake with a BBQ meal afterwards? You got that right! We saw a wide variety of folks make that step and take the plunge in the lake yesterday afternoon and spent a couple of hours with our family from Freedom. Dylan was ready for this step yesterday; but, we are planning to celebrate his baptism the next time Freedom holds the celebration. The boys and Susan's family went to Table Rock on Saturday and the boys had themselves a complete blast hanging with their cousins a weekend. That also meant they were cross-eyed tired last night too. Should be a long day for Dylan at camp today; but, he will sleep well tonight! We were all out early last night.

Well, time to get another cup of coffee and read the paper with Keller. Then, off to camp. Wednesday is Dylan's 8th birthday! That's always a fun day at camp. We get home around lunch and then Miles and I are going to see Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson and John Cougar Mellancamp with Pastor Cliff here in Greenville. Dylan's birthday party will be on Friday at Frankie's Fun Park! Yahoo!!!! What a week!!! Then off to Ohio next week! The summer is reaching terminal velocity!!! Hold on tight!!!

See ya!

Summer Daze

2009-07-23T07:13:00.005-04:00

This time of year always takes me back to the summer between my 10th grade and 11th grade in high school. I remember getting into the album Signals by Rush so intensely that summer. One of my favorite songs by Rush is on that album. Here's a wordle for ya from the tune: The Analog Kid.

Miles will be home from Camp McCall tomorrow morning. I look forward to his stories! We have a way to send him emails every day and I know he is enjoying his week in the hills. Dylan and I head that way on Monday. Tomorrow we are going to another Greenville Drive game with Susan and her family. That should be a blast and Susan and family finally get to meet Keller. He didn't even know he had so many cousins! Shadow said "great, more people taking my sleeping chairs" :-)

See ya!

Well They Say...

2009-07-22T08:54:00.000-04:00

Albuquerque (Neil Young)

Well, they say
that Santa Fe
Is less than ninety miles away,
And I got time to roll a number
and rent a car.
Oh, Albuquerque.

I've been flyin'
down the road,
And I've been starvin' to be alone,
And independent from the scene
that I've known.
Albuquerque.

So I'll stop when I can,
Find some fried eggs
and country ham.
I'll find somewhere where
they don't care who I am.
Oh, Albuquerque,
Albuquerque.

“Our lives gradually becoming brighter and more beautiful as God enters our lives and we become like him”

(2 Corinthians 3:18 MSG).

See ya!

Tuesday Morning

2009-07-21T08:14:00.002-04:00

Well, I see the iPhone formatting leaves some to be desired. I was typing in an email, I will try using the iPhone on the actual blog page next time around. Just got back from a great long walk with Tricia and Keller. Keller walked back from the playground trail head without a leash this morning. We had an early start and he did fine. He's a good boy; but, he has some ADHD and you have to be very vigilant, which Tricia found out last week :-)

Full speed ahead this week with work. I had a conversation with my Mom this weekend about work. I really am happy and more challenged with work when I have too much to do and believe me, I am there now! Makes the days go by very fast, especially when you work at home. I am enjoying the challenge and feel like we are making some progress too! That's always good!

Mom is feeling better and up and about but still in discomfort, especially at night. I had the joy of changing her dressing on Friday as it was raining too hard when Amy had to go to work and Pete didn't feel like he could handle it. I guess my nursing experience kicked in! She still has staples and bruising too. She's been sleeping in her chair in the living room. It takes a while to bounce back from two major surgeries, regardless of your age. She's in good spirits; but, wants to get out and do more. It's a bit frustrating to be limited as she has always been on the go. See my comments about work in the last paragraph, no need to worry about how I got that work ethic. Dad was the same way too, always on the go and looking for the next thing.

Speaking of the next thing, Africa is just around the corner. I am going to call our dentist and orthodontist this week to solicit donations of toothbrushes and toothpaste. That's a big campaign they are working on right now. The last group had good success with promoting some basic dental care and we want to make sure they have a good supply to keep the momentum up.

Well, time for work. Quick note, I finished the book about Andrew Jackson, American Lion. Well, I read the first half and skimmed the second half. Way too much detail for me; but, I would consider it the definitive history on the subject at hand. It was an interesting view of what it was like to be President before the Civil War and another history of the events that lead up to the Civil War. I now have a new book from my VP at work called The Exceptional Presenter. He sent it to my 2 consultants; but, they never read it. It was sent to me yesterday. I do look forward to picking up on more presentation skills. That's my bread and butter right now and there is ALWAYS room for improvement.

See ya!

Hey now

2009-07-20T20:59:00.001-04:00

Too tired to go back in the office to post in the blog, so I will try
my first iPhone post!
Worked a short day since I was still feeling a little under the gun
from the stomach bug from the weekend. Yesterday's drive home was way
too long; but, Dylan and I had a good time. We had a good time at
ADBC yesterday and a great time talking about Africa after church at
Logan's. We are getting closer and still have a few details to finish.
Got my travel insurance today. Really cheap but oh so worth the $3.30/
day! I am working on getting our per diem money wired ahead now. Got
my sleeping pills and malaria mess today from my doctor.

Miles went off to Camp McCall today. He will be home on Friday. He's
gonna have so much fun. Dylan and I go next week!

I am teaching Dylan (and Tricia) how to play chess. They are playing
each other now and practicing the moves. Night moves...

See ya!

via iPhone

Weekend in Sumter County

2009-07-18T20:33:00.002-04:00

Dylan and I are in Sumter this weekend spending time with my family. I had to come down to Tuomey (my old hospital) to help teach ACLS for nurses and doctors. It's an easy check and pays for the gas to get home and spend some time on the farm. Tricia and Miles stayed home and went on a "date" to see the new Harry Potter movie together. Dylan and I got to swim and eat some country cooking too. Although my Mom is still recovering from her surgery and very sore, she is able to give directions and orders to Amy, who did a fine job with the field peas and okra and corn bread(mmmmmm). My favorite had to be the fresh tomatoes and cucumbers (could be a meal in of itself). A nice chocolate cake and coffee to top it off!

Dylan and I are going to look on Amazon in a few minutes for Harry Potter books that his Aunt Amy is going to buy for his birthday.

Tomorrow we are going to church at Alice Drive and we are going out for lunch with the Shipes family. Scott and I went on the Africa trip last year and he is one of the two folks from ADBC going again with us this year. We have some planning to do in our lunch meeting. It's exciting that we are about 1 month away from returning to Africa. I am looking forward to the work and the adventure and it's always great to have Scott along to keep me laughing.

Here's a picture of Scott and I climbing the Kgale Hills in Botswana last summer!

After lunch, we are going to head back for a quick swim and rest before heading back home to Greer tomorrow evening. Miles is heading off to Camp McCall on Monday for the week. It's his 2nd year at McCall by himself and he is very much looking forward to the week of fun and adventure. Well, that's the update. More soon! Love you all!

See ya!

VBS

2009-07-13T21:13:00.002-04:00

It's VBS week at Freedom Fellowship. Tricia and I are movers for a group of 14 1st graders! We are the Coyotes! So, you probably won't see many posts this week unless I can find some time during the work day. Which doesn't look promising from here.

Dylan and I are heading to Sumter this weekend. I have to help teach the ACLS class at Tuomey, my old employer. It makes a few bucks for me and Dylan gets to swim in Nana's pool. Miles has camp on Monday, so he and Mom are going to hang around and go see the new Harry Potter movie while we are out of town.

Hey, did you notice the new Google Voice icon at the top of the blog? It's a neat new service from Google that allows you to link all of your phones with one call and it has a preview feature so you can know it's from Google Voice and it allows you to make cheap overseas calls too and free text messages! So, give it a whirl if you feel like talking. There is no charge for long distance calls.

I also added some of my Youtube videos on the blog too. Ok, that's about it. It's hot and muggy up here this week. Must be summer! Hey, the Drivin' n' Cryin' show was great and LOUD! My recording turned out great too, nice to see those guys again. Brings back some old memories of a far more innocent and free time for me. Rockin' in the Free World!

See ya!

Certifiable!!!

2009-07-11T16:59:00.003-04:00

Yes, once again, I am certifiable. I passed the CPHIMS exam yesterday. It was not an easy exam and required me to put on the old thinking cap. Lots of questions that forced you to eliminate 1 of 4 answers: "A-1,2,4 only B-2,3,4 only C-1,2,3 only D-1,2,4 only" or putting a sequence of events in correct order, etc. I was challenged considering I didn't study using any of the recommended guides and I didn't pay for the practice exam. The cutoff for passing was 65. I scored 68! But, 66 is still passing and all that matters is that I passed!!! I am now a Certified Professional in Healthcare Information and Management Systems (CPHIMS) and will be for another 3 years. I won't have to take that exam again as long as I maintain my continuing education credits. I can now add to my signature lines on Outlook and work is ordering new business cards too! Glad I didn't have to retake the exam since that $300 would have come out of my pocket. Iatric paid the 1st round! If you are on Facebook, you probably saw some of my friends getting the CPHIMS exam confused at first glance with a CHIMP exam. I guess that explains a lot about my friends over there too ;-). Regardless, I will take the jokes since the pressure is now off. I would have felt like a CHIMP had I not passed the first try.

Nl: Drivin' n' Cryin' "Honeysuckle Blue", can't wait to see them tonight at The Handlebar! Getting pumped for that show. Should be a perfect summer night for music too! I just found out that Dickey Betts from Allman Brothers fame (he was a founding member and part of the group for their first 31 years) is coming to The Handlebar in October. That will be a packed house!

I finished something today that I started over 10 years ago: the 50 State Quarters map. The Montana quarter had escaped me for too long and I had to place an order on eBay to finish the collection. That was worth the $1.98. We have the completed map up in the boys' room. Somethings take a while to complete and that's the lesson I was working on with the boys today when we finished the map.

Tomorrow marks 20 years since my first Grateful Dead LIVE experience: 7-12-1989 at RFK Stadium in Washington, DC. My high school friend, Marty Proctor, and I drove up there and had life journey in the process. I knew the tunes for the most part having initiated myself into Dead tapes and albums the 2nd semester of my freshman year at Clemson. My entire summer revolved around that trip to DC. I was determined to make it after not getting a ticket to the Atlanta shows that spring. I didn't have a car then either! I had a few hundred dollars in cash just itching to be spent on anything and everything in the parking lot. Back then, the Dead were crash cities for a few days and bring the entire travelling circus of campers and parking lot carnival along with them. This was the last tour they were allowing concert goers to spend the night in the lots after the show. It got ugly after this tour with cops pushing us out not long after the music was over. But, for this weekend, we had the circus lot all to ourselves after the music. I'm sure 1/3 of the lot Deadheads never made it into the show or ever had a ticket, other than a miracle or two each tour. Any way, on the way to DC, we stopped at a hotel in Northern Virginia to sleep before hitting the show. I got paranoid (I hadn't been away from home too much at this point) and put my wallet in my pillowcase in the hotel that night. Of course, I didn't remember the wallet until we had gone about 5 miles down the interstate the next morning. Long story short, I never got the money or the wallet back. I did get my license and Clemson ID sent in the mail a few weeks later. The hotel owner felt sorry for me and gave me $20 for gas. We used that $20 to drive to Richmond to find an ATM that Marty could use. These were the days of no cell phones and regional ATMs (remember that headache?). We made it to Richmond, got some money and headed back to DC. This was NOT how I envisioned my trip to Mecca!!! But, I think it was also part of God's plan to keep me from going on the rest of the tour that summer and keepin' me tied to home.

Since the band was still in Philadelphia, the travelling circus had not arrived in DC yet for the most part. We spent the day before the 1st show walking around DC and riding the subway, my first experience with that big city mode of transportation. By the time the music started on that 2nd day in DC, I think Marty and I were about cross eyed from lack of sleep and way too much of everything else. One of my Clemson buddies found us in the lot (don't know how that even happened). Despite all the hassles and fried brain cells, I do remember an incredible sense of joy when the band took the stage. There was magic in the air and it wasn't just that strong odor we all smelled either :-). This was when Garcia was focused and his playing and singing on target. The band was loose and tight all at the same time. The mass of people swirling around that open air stadium rushing the field, running from the security, the loud music and colors everywhere were imprinted on my brain for life. One large Garcia smile punctuated by Phil's bass lines and the 2 drummers were all it took. I ended up seeing the band another 39 times until 1995 when Garcia passed away. My last show was Memorial Day 1995 in Portland, Oregon. In my mind, complete bookends. The uptight insanity and confusion of the East in 1989 compared with the peaceful mellow vibe of the West Coast spring in 1995. The band had changed and so had I. What happened in those 39 shows (and a few more where I didn't get a ticket and spent the night running from cops on horseback (only in Washington of all places)), I can't do justice with words in this blog. It was a great way to see the country with friends, the ones on stage and the ones travelling the highways with you. My summers at Clemson were milestoned with Dead shows, spring breaks too. I would see the band in the DC area a total of 7 times; but, there was never another one like that first in 1989. In other words, what a long strange trip it turned out to be...

See ya!

Greenville Drive game

2009-07-09T17:40:00.002-04:00

We had such a great evening last night at the Greenville Drive game. The Drive won 6-5 on a double play to end the top of the ninth. The boys had a ton of fun running up and down the hill next to the playground (3rd base line). We met my cousin, Tonya, and her husband, Rob at the game. They live in Clemson. Rob is a Clemson grad (93) and works for the Clemson Foundation. Rob and I went to Sumter High together. They have 3 kids: 2 precious girls and a son, Austin. Austin is a little younger than Dylan, I think. The boys get along great and we are hoping to have Austin spend the night before school starts back again. The weather was overcast but nice and cool. We had the cheap $5 seats and it just works so well for us to be able to hang out and watch the game and keep an eye on the kids running around. We also got the ride the trolley over from the county center, always a hit with Miles and Dylan. I think the most impressive part of the night was me getting a foul ball. Miles and Dylan were very impressed with my retrieval skills in the crowd and told everyone who would listen that their Dad got a foul ball. Miles is adding it to his "collection". They are so easy to please sometimes! The ball park is just a great place to see a game, can't say enough about how much fun we have there and what a great facility we have here in Greenville. In case you don't know, it's a replica of Boston's Fenway Park (our team is a single A team of Boston). Good park food as well!

I am taking a certification exam tomorrow around lunch in Spartanburg at a testing center. It's for Healthcare Information and Management Systems. It's a testing center and it's 100 questions and I get 2 hours. I have studied some this week; but, I think I am prepared. My company took care of the exam fee, which is always super in my book. The association group that offers the certification runs the largest trade show in our industry and is a big advocacy group for our industry. Check out HIMSS online. So, I hope to add the credentials of CPHIMS to my signature title soon!

Music Update:

I am so stoked to not only be listening to Styper online with Napster (all of their albums are there); but, I should have a chance to see them LIVE in Atlanta later in October with some guys from church, including Cliff. That will be cool and total retro 10/11th grade trip for me. I think my Sr. VP from work will be there too. Should be great road trip! Getting the Bob Dylan/Willie/Mellancamp tickets this weekend for the show on the 29th of this month. Also, Drivin n' Cryin show this weekend here in Greenville.

Tricia and I are having our new worship minister and his family over for lunch on Sunday. Chris is a very cool dude and a welcomed addition for our worship experience at Freedom. Check out his blog. They have 2 boys near our boys' ages. I have the zip line all ready with new hay bales for the landing!

On the Africa mission front, we had one of our ladies drop out this week. We are now searching for a lady with a passport and a servants heart who is hearing the call from Africa. I know God is going to make this work out and we are going to be in Botswana with the team that God wants to be there. Thanks for your prayers as we work through this small issue. Thank you!

Ok, time for dinner! See ya!

Monday Mojo

2009-07-06T08:37:00.003-04:00

Got a serious Zyrtec hangover this morning. I was sneezing like crazy yesterday after clearing the gargage (our normal Sunday afternoon chore for me and the boys) and took the whole 10mg pill last night before going to bed. Makes me so hungover, will have to remember that next time-> just like I said the last time. 5mg seems to work okay without this feeling of slow motion.

We had a great weekend! We didn't make it to Lake Hartwell on Friday because I sent an email instead of a text message to my buddy Steven. We never heard from Steven or Amanda until we had already taken the boys up to Table Rock State Park for a swim and hike. The boys had so much fun and watching Miles and Dylan run off the high dive was fun. Dylan was brave; but, he also made sure I was out in the deep past the floating diving board area when he ran off. Tricia was doing a chicken dance of sorts and hid it well with the chest high water! We plan to get down to Steven and Amanda's lake house soon.

Saturday was just hanging out and working on home projects. We got a lot of work done in the boys' room and Tricia's new office. Everything looks nice and I know Tricia enjoys all the extra room for her work and hobbies. In the late afternoon, we went down to Greer City Park for the big 4th of July celebration. The weather was perfect and the crowd was big but easy to get around. I think Greer should be very proud of that park. I enjoyed sitting out on the lawn listening to Cravin' Melon (hadn't seen them since Clemson daze) and then we all took in a HUGE fireworks display. Our neighbor, Noah, went down with us and they all had fun running around the park playing football and jumping around the kid's area. They got some tasty elephant ears too! The boys slept long on Sunday morning, we were actually a few minutes late for church!

After a great service at Freedom topped by a message from Cliff on what it means to be a Christian, we headed to Greenville to meet up with my old Army buddy, Steve Adams and his wife Ann. Steve and I were in I Corps G3 Plans back in the day. He got out and then went back as an officer in 2004. He's now supporting Special Ops in Civilian Affairs and still seems as gung ho as ever! He and Ann are on a waiting list for an adoption from China. They are currently stationed at Fort Bragg in NC. It was good to share a meal with Steve and Ann and spend time in Mast General. Steve and Ann are very much fans of Mast too. It was a great afternoon catching up and laughing about old times.

On the Dylan and the Transformer movie front... I think he got the message and appears to be good with it. A lot of folks told us the same thing over the weekend- they either saw it and were disappointed and uncomfortable or heard it was NOT for kids. Even Dylan's buddy and his parents mentioned it was not for kids and how surprised they were about the theme and language. Now, he says he will pray for the director and thinks it's not worth going to see anyways. Glad we got past that one with lots of support for the cause!!!

Well, I have to get to work. Enjoy your week and stay cool! Tricia and the boys are going to Shipwreck Cove water park (a new park not far from home) today and we have our fingers crossed that any storms will hold off for them to enjoy the park.

Did you watch any tennis this weekend? We watched some of the men's final that we recorded. Wow! What an epic battle!

NL: David Gilmour's About Face on Napster - loving this service for $5 a month I can stream almost any album. Obscure or classic, it's all there!

See ya!

Being a Dad is not easy

2009-07-03T06:34:00.003-04:00

I hate it when I have to disappoint one of my kids. Dylan and Miles were so set on seeing the new Transformers movie: Revenge of the Fallen. We had plans to take them on Saturday for a family movie outing. That might still happen; but, it won't be that Transformer movie. Read here.

While I know Dylan loves his Transformer toys and video games, this movie goes way beyond what I want to expose to my 7 and 11 year old boys. I'm glad we got a tip from some school teachers that Tricia works with while at the Greer City park last night. I have suggested we go and see Night at the Museum 2, and that might still happen once Dylan gets over his stubborn refusal to see any other movie, ever! I told him I don't have any problems with the toys or the video games; but, the movie is not intended for him and I had major issues with the content and it's rated PG-13 for a reason. We did watch the 1st Transformer movie last summer; but, we watched it at home and we had to control some of the content and discuss during the movie. What makes it worse is Dylan's buddy, who is also 8, has already seen the movie. I was a little surprised about that given what I know about their family, maybe they missed the reviews. Oh well, like I told Dylan, I am not raising Nick. I am the Dad of Miles and Dylan and it's my responsibility to control what their minds are exposed to while they are in my care. God demands that of me and I have to take it seriously. I told Tricia (and she is in agreement with me on this after reading the review), I would rather Dylan be disappointed and mad now than be spiritually and mentally harmed and mislead. His big crocodile tears didn't help either. Being a Dad is hard; but, everything good that we pour into these boys will be what grows out of them as men when they are old enough to thank me for the hard choices. That is my prayer.

Hope you have a safe and fun 4th of July. We are heading down to the lake with some friends from Freedom (Steve and Amanda) after I work a 1/2 day. Then tomorrow we may see a movie (see above :-) ) and then Greer is having a Freedom celebration at the City park with bands and fireworks. That will be fun! You know what's really cool about the City park? Free Wifi! My iPhone picks up the signal right as I get out of the van. That is cool!

Hey, did you know Billy Mays was building a home here in Greer right next to us on Lake Robinson? Weird week with all the "famous" and infamous celebrity departures and our Governor digging a grave at press conferences. I won't be surprised if we don't have a new Governor here in South Carolina by the end of July. Sad state of affairs. Like Jon Stewart said last week: "just another politician with a conservative agenda and a liberal penis". Ouch!

See ya!

Summer goes fast...

2009-07-02T06:28:00.003-04:00

I promise I keep trying to get back to this blog every day; but, something keeps getting in the way, like summer!!!

Last night we had the Africa group and family over for a cookout and we watched some of the Face the Nation videos from Botswana. Face the Nation is a group started by Open Baptist Church in Gaborone focusing on character development through Christ to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS in Botswana. We will be working some with them when we are in Old Naledi, which is now only 8 weeks away. Wow! I am starting to get excited and nervous about all that we still have to do. The ADBC Youth just came back from Old Naledi and I am planning a conference call with the youth pastor, Nathan, who went with us last year. We need to get the "inside scoop" on the travel details and what's going on at the site. Please pray for our preparations and travel to go smooth.

Mom is doing much better. She had to spend the night after the surgery due to pain and oxygen levels. She went to the surgeon for a followup yesterday. The drains are out and the pain is much more tolerable, just sore now, she says. The pathology report for the 2nd surgery was clean. Thank you God! Thank you for your prayers too. My sisters have been down there taking care of Mom. I know she's in good hands.

Got an iPhone this week and all I can really say is "Wow!" This is an amazing device that really stands hands and shoulders above the rest of the smart phone pack. The web, media functions and email are so easy to use and navigate. Thanks to Iatric Systems for helping out on that too! I will be testing a good bit of our portal applications on the device, so it's more for work (that's my official line right now). I have an Otter Box Defender case in the mail right now and I look forward to getting that so I can stop treating it like "Precious". It gets finger prints and smudges pretty easily. Dylan is fascinated with it too and really, really wants one ;-)

On the music front, Miles and I are going to see Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson and John Mellancamp here in Greenville at the new Heritage Park Ampitheatre later this month. My pastor and good friend, Cliff is going with us. It should be a lot of fun. Miles and I saw the Bob and Willie show in Charleston back in 2004. This will be my first time seeing John Mellancamp (my 3rd Bob and Willie show, Myrtle Beach 2005 was a solo venture) and I am really looking forward to this show. Although the date is Dylan's birthday, we are going to be at Camp McCall that morning and he told me it was okay if he didn't go because we are celebrating his birthday that following weekend. Tricia really didn't want to go and kids under 14 get in free, so Miles goes for free and you KNOW he wants to go! Dylan would probably be WAY too tired to have fun for very long after 3 days of camp. I was glad when Tricia said she and Dylan would stay home. Saved some money and stress for all of us.

Tricia's room exchange is coming along very nice. Her office and hobby room looks perfect for her and the boys are very comfortable with the 1 big bedroom. Nice to have a dedicated guest room as well. We shall see how this works when they are teenagers. Tricia is enjoying her summer break and getting a lot accomplished. Miles is even working as a volunteer media assistant at the library at Crestview this summer. If you know Miles, then you know that is something he is enjoying to the max. The boy loves books! They are also watering the plants and yard for our neighbors while they are on vacation and really excited to be making extra money too.

This weekend, we are going to the lake on Friday with our friends Steve and Amanda. Then on Saturday, Greer is having a big 4th of July Family Fun Day at the new City Park. The Clemson bar band, Cravin' Melon, is the main music act and a big fireworks display is scheduled. Should be fun and HOT. Enjoy your holiday and stay cool and safe!

See ya!

Mom's 2nd Surgery

2009-06-29T12:14:00.001-04:00

Mom's 2nd surgery is over and she is now in recovery. My sister, Amy, reports she is dealing with a good bit of pain right now and has 2 drains but is in good spirits. She may stay most of the day in day surgery and then go home or spend the night inpatient. Thanks again for your prayers and words of encouragement. More later!

Thriller

2009-06-26T21:24:00.003-04:00

What a weird week and I'm sure you have thought the same...Sanford, Jacko, Farrah.

Sad to see Farrah have to suffer. I admit to staring at that red bathing suit poster for a long time in one of my Uncle's homes many years gone by. She was IT back then. She paved the way for the posters of the 80's that drove my Mom crazy. May she rest in peace.

Now, Jacko. Wow! That was a shocker. I will go ahead and admit it, I really liked the Thriller album when it came out. It was cool and had some muscle too. The constant MTV play didn't hurt either. There have been few videos like "Beat It" or "Thriller" and there will never be anyone like Michael Jackson. Thank God for that! Dude had some musical and dance skills; but, he also got way warped by fame and money. It was a sad slow spiral for him. I wish his family peace. Now, it's time to keep moving forward. Thanks for the tunes Mike!

Sanford...Sanford...Sanford. It just keeps getting worse. More details about his recent behavior in South America lead me to beleive he decided to do the "right thing" on the drive from Atlanta back to Columbia AFTER being busted by the reporter as he got off the plane. I'm still pissed as a father and citizen that he would do that over Father's Day weekend. I guess Jon Stewart nailed it with his line "just another politician with a conservative agenda and a liberal penis." Sad state of affairs indeed!

Enjoy your weekend and please let the rest of the summer not be as weird and frustrating as this week!

See ya!

Sad State of Affairs

2009-06-25T08:40:00.002-04:00

By now you too have watched with your mouth agape at Governor Mark Sanford of South Carolina make his tearful apology to the state and the nation about his extramarital affair. I will be truthful here, I was shocked. Although I didn't agree with his politics 100% of the time, I did vote for him twice. I always viewed him as a good family man, a father of 4 sons. He had everything: a home on the beach on Sullivan's Island, money (well, his wife is the granddaughter of the Skil saw fortune) and was elected twice as Governor here in South Carolina. Unfortunately, he let us all down. Most noteworthy, he let his family down. I still can't fathom or comprehend how he could choose Father's Day weekend to be away with his mistress or his now "ex-mistress" as he promises.

He also failed in his duties as our Governor, he had no contact with his staff or family after turning off his cell phone when flying out to Argentina last week. His staff told everyone he was hiking on the Appalachian Trail. He would have been much better off there! It's just so sad that he could hold himself so high in principle for politics (see Stimulus Money fight with Legislature this year) and then be so low in morals. This does nothing for politicians in my mind, except chip away at what sense of decency and moral bearing that is left in this nation.

While I am mad and disappointed, I know his family needs prayers for strength and endurance right now. That is my prayer: for my home state and the families affected. Governor Sanford will have much work to do in order to restore any faith from his constituents and his family. I hope and pray he moves forward from this terrible moment in our state's history.

Ok, time to get back to work. We have new cell phone numbers in case you did know already:

864-354-6958 for Mark and 864-354-6963 for Tricia. I went in to the AT&T store yesterday to order my new iPhone (thanks to my employer) and changed our numbers to local numbers. That will make it much easier for Miles and Dylan and all of our friends and neighbors.

Keep Smilin', it does get better! See ya!

The Longest Monday of the Year

2009-06-22T07:48:00.002-04:00

Is this the longest Monday of the year? The sun was up long before me on my 7am walk with Keller this morning. Nice and cool(er) today in the woods. Keller still took ample time in the creek, he becomes part otter in the summer months.

What a great day yesterday with the family. An awesome worship experience at Freedom, a great lunch from Tricia which was topped off with her best blueberry cheesecake (EVER), Ice Age 3-D with the family (special Father's Day special viewing before the 7/1 opening day), a trip to Costco (you know that makes Daddy's day!) and then back home for more cheesecake! I also got some great presents: shirts (cool for the summer) and a retractable drop cord for the garage (that's what I'm talking about!). The boys gave me some great card at church too. Dylan wrote I am awesome Dad because I helped him believe in Christ the Lord. Now that is cool! Miles wrote that I do fun things with him. My boys rock!

We also kick-started the big summer break home project last night. Tricia wants her own room for work and hobbies. Miles and Dylan have been sleeping in the same bed (Miles) for the last 5 months or so anyways. So, Dylan's room is now the official "guest bedroom" and Miles room will be Tricia's work/hobby area. The "hangout room" is now officially the boys bedroom. We still have a lot to do and the painting will have to be delayed for now. But, we got the bunk beds moved and my large CD locker is now here beside me in my office. I think that is where Tricia wanted it anyways! Works for me! I think it will take at least this week to get everything moved and situated. But, that's what teachers do in the summer!

Gotta get to work! Enjoy the longer days and hopefully a break from the heat! See ya!

Here's some photos from our little session at church yesterday! I have an awesome family that I thank God for everyday! See ya!

Father's Day Pictures link

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Father's Day Weekend Update

2009-06-20T18:34:00.006-04:00

It's Father's Day Weekend. I can make it that way for a entire weekend, can't I? Lots of updates, so here goes...

My demo on Thursday went great. Still no news on the site's decision; but, based on the immediate feedback from my Senior VP and Regional Account Manager, my demo went great. I think I did pretty good considering the room had a horrible echo that was only heard when the mics were not muted on the hospital side. Whenever they took their phone off mute to ask questions, the echo was three fold. That was also made worse due to the Middle Eastern accent of a few of the physicians asking questions. I guess that 6 months of talking to Tricia on a satellite phone while she was in Honduras finally paid off, royally!!! I was able to pick up key words and did not one time as them to repeat their questions. I used a good many "I think I heard you say" statements and I was correct 100% of the time. My VP was mightily impressed and I think the demo was a success, considering it was my first for the product too! God is good and he helped me through that stress and my mental prep all week worked to mightily to my advantage.

So, that's the good news of the week. The bad news of the week came from Mom. Seems the surgeon's tissue samples from the margins around here small tumor came back as pre-cancerous. She is more than likely going back for a complete mastectomy soon. She was not in good spirits after that; but, the bright spot is that she will likely NOT have to undergo radiation therapy if she goes forward with the additional surgery. Thank you for continuing to pray for her strength.

We were heading to Ohio tomorrow; but, Missy's father-in-law passed away after a struggle with stomach cancer. Missy is Tricia's sister and that is where we would be staying next week. For now, we have postponed until we can find a better time, maybe a longer trip in the Fall for Thanksgiving? Who knows? John Hagopian, Missy's father-in-law, was a good man and it was a joy to get to know him the few times we met. I know how Missy's husband is feeling. Losing a parent is never easy; but, we never want them to suffer and there is peace in the end. There is a better place. Funny, I look at this paragraph and see it's right next to a paragraph about my Mom and cancer. All the more reason to treasure the time we are given together.

This week and last week while we were at the beach, my devotion from Rick Warren (Purpose Driven Life) has been about being a good father to my kids. As a human father, I know I have failed in many ways; but, I also see some of the right things shining through in my boys. Miles and Dylan are growing in their faith and are learning about hard work, responsibility and humility. I think I struggle the most with my expectations of them. I need to give them more credit for their progress and watch my words to them more closely to encourage more and be less critical. Fathers: Help Your Children Know God. Dylan and Tricia are making blueberry cheesecake for me right now. It just doesn't get any better than that! I guess I most be doing something right! I know I need to include them daily in my prayers for this season of parenting young boys will soon be past. Tricia and I also watched "W" this week. It's the Oliver Stone movie about the now-ex President George W. Bush. I have read some about his relationship with his father and the effect on his political career; but, Stone really put the focus on that in the movie. I know I still feel the sting from some of the words said to me by my father growing up. While I know I will still make mistakes, I pray for and strive for a closer relationship with them so they will at least they will know the real me and how much I truly love them, regardless of how I sometimes fail to show it or say the right things to them. Wow, this blog got heavy didn't it? Time to change the subject!

I got into another free show last night, Toubab Krewe. I was able to get on the guest list for handing out flyers and posters. I guess it worked, there was a big crowd last night at the show and I danced almost the entire first set. It's not really a dance more than a shake and move around. They are a high energy instrumental band that focuses on African instrumentation (mainly from the country of Mali) including kora (21-string harp-lute), kamelengoni (12-string harp-lute),soku (Malian horsehair fiddle). I left after the first set because I had danced enough and the smoke from all of the cigarettes was getting to me. I suppose the club is not in the city limits of Greenville, I can't understand why smoking is still allowed there. Another reason why I love the Handlebar so much better. I should have the full show recording soon and can enjoy the rest of the show from the smoke-free confines of home :-).

Speaking of shows and music. Yesterday was a sad day for music fans in the Southeast. One of the best places to see music suffered a near complete loss. The Georgia Theatre in Athens, Georgia burned. This was a musical second home for me while I was at Clemson. I can't tell you how many shows I saw there; but, I know I experienced my share of music magic in that hall. Widespread Panic in the late 80's and early 90's, Govt Mule, The Radiators, Phish with Giant Country Horns in 1991, and the Derek Trucks Band when they recorded their Live double album there (I can hear myself yelling song requests between tunes on the album). I can remember driving by myself in 2002 to see the Widespread Panic movie right after their guitarist and found member died. It was like a funeral and celebration and a lot of emotion was felt that night. Just a shame that happened. It's as if part of my life just disappeared into ashes. I hope they can rebuild and I look forward to hearing more live music there again in the future. I wore my Ga Theatre shirt proudly last night! Georgia Theatre burns

It's some kind of hot down here in South Carolina this weekend. It was almost 100F yesterday and the temp is showing 100F right now at 7pm on my outside reading. I mowed the full yard and did some weed-eating yesterday. It took a lot of water and laying around after a cool showed before I had the energy for Toubab Krewe, another reason I left during the set break.

On the reading front, I have a new book from the library about Andrew Jackson, written by the editor of Newsweek called American Lion. I look forward to starting that tonight.

Lastly, we went to Miles' Purple Belt graduation today. He has improved so much in his moves and focus. This was by far his best graduation ceremony. It was also special because several new black belts were awarded today. There's a lot of work to obtain that belt, which is traditionally considered the first level of marital arts training. We look forward to Miles getting that far and making a decision on his next level of training.

Well, that's enough for today. Pictures posted below. Have a great weekend and STAY COOL!

See ya!
http://picasaweb.google.com/mrsoulmark/MilesPurpleBelt#

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Work

2009-06-17T18:04:00.002-04:00

Work is really moving full speed for me. Nothing like learning everything all over again, right? I have to lead a major demo tomorrow for a new site. I am showing the physician portal to a potential buyer. It's down to us and one other vendor. No pressure there, right? I have been working on the prep work all week and think I'm ready to go. I look forward to Friday and the end of this week.

I am seeing Toubab Krewe here in Greenville on Friday night. On Saturday, Miles gets his Purple belt in Karate. He's now over 1/2 way to his black belt. I have him practicing his balance now, holding one leg up while he watches Sponge Bob. You can't just laze in the chair all day.

My car had some belt troubles yesterday and we had to have it towed to the dealership this morning. Luckily, it's a problem they created and they have it fixed and are even covering the tow ride. Thank you God! Well, Tricia is now home and we have to go get the car from the shop.

My Mom is recovering well and doing good at home with Nurse Amy. I think Susan will be there the rest of the week while Amy works a few nights. Mom is sore but in good spirits.

We are heading out to Ohio on Sunday. Hope to post again before I leave, if not, I will pick up next week as time permits! Oh yeah, it's raining...again!!!

See ya!

Mom's Surgery : Good News

2009-06-15T15:33:00.002-04:00

Mom is done with surgery and the surgeon thinks the lymph nodes and margins around the area looked very good and were negative for spot testing. We will get the final biopsy results in a few days. Thank you for your prayers and words of encouragement. She is out of recovery and awake and talking (imagine that :-) ). I will be working from Sumter until later today when we are heading back to Greer. I know Keller and Shadow will be happy to see us. See ya!

Back from the Beach

2009-06-13T20:50:00.002-04:00

Wow! I'm letting this blog slip. Not that I haven't wanted to post something here lately. It's been very busy since I took the promotion and Tricia and the boys got out of school.

Last Sunday the boys headed to the beach (Cherry Grove/North Myrtle Beach) with my sister Amy and my Mom. They met up with my other sister, Susan, and her family. Our family rented an old beach house that we have stayed in since I can remember. That old house and the one next two it (we rented both over the years) have some great memories. If those walls could talk... The houses once belonged to the Future Farmers of America (FFA). My Dad had a lot of connections with FFA over the years (he had a PhD in Agricultural Education after all...) and we got a great deal on the rentals. The houses are right on the beach and at the end of the Ocean Drive right before you get to North Carolina/Little River. The boys had so much fun with my family down there this week. Tricia and I had a blast going to see Grace Potter and her band at the Handlebar on Tuesday night. My recording had some issues; but, I know the problem (switch issues and operator error :-) ). Luckily, there was another taper and I should have no problem getting the audio. Check out my pictures here: Grace Potter at The Handlebar. It's always fun to go out to see music with Tricia and not having to worry about the kids is a big PLUS too!

Speaking of the kids...Dylan had some major and minor trauma this week at the beach. While walking with Uncle Dave on Tuesday along the beach, he made the HUGE mistake of picking up a washed-up Man-of-War jellyfish. Can you say "Pain"? It took a great deal of TLC and some vinegar and benadryl to make things right. The life guard told Dylan he handled it better than some men he has helped treat for the stings. Dylan had multiple stings on his hands,arms and legs. It was not a good site according to the eye witnesses. Luckily for us, his aunts and Nana took great care of him and today he doesn't have any signs of the stings. He also learned a valuable lesson about God's creatures, great and small.

Tricia and I left Greer on Wednesday night and spent the night in Home Branch before getting up and driving to the beach on Thursday morning. We went out to eat with the whole family after some fun in the sun. We went over to Ella's in Calabash, N.C. We have always gone to eat seafood in Calabash and there is good reason for that. Although we had to wait and it was hot, we had a great meal with everyone. You can't replace fun times like that. We walked down to the fishing docks and got a nose full of fish and made it back to the cars just in time before a HUGE storm rolled in and let down the rain. We hit the ice cream shop on the way back to the beach house. That was some of the best black cherry ice cream ever made. Period.

Mom and Pete went back to Home Branch after the meal in Calabash. We had the house with Susan and her family. We made a full day out of some putt putt on Friday and all the girls went out shopping in the evening. My brother-in-law Dave and I spent the afternoon with the boys in the surf and watching God's fireworks over the ocean from the back deck. Like I said, you can't replace times like that!

We are back in Home Branch now and will be going to the Johnson Family reunion tomorrow. This is a reunion for all of the children of my great grandparents on my Dad's side. Next year will be the 50th reunion and I will be the president of the reunion committee. I have put together a website at http://pinewoodjohnson50.org (it's a shell right now and I will be putting more family tree info and pictures on there soon). We are going to church in Pinewood tomorrow and then the reunion. More swimming in Nana's pool after that, I'm sure. We are staying here on Monday because my Mom is having her surgery on Monday. We will drive back home after I finish some work meetings. It will be good to get back home and see how much fun Keller and Shadow have had with Mrs. Linda and Mr. Barry. Well, time to wrap it up over here. I am at my sister's house while she is working. I have her wireless network up and running and her external hard drive ready to go. Life is good now that I can bring my laptop to my folks and be able to work wirelessly!!!!

Couple of cool things before I go:

- Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson and John Mellancamp are playing in Greenville at the new Heritage Park ampitheatre on Dylan's birthday in July and kids get in free with an adult. It will be a lot of fun for us. Of course, Dylan will have a "real" party later that week with his friends at the movies and a sleep over planned.

-Swimming over to Bird Island (across a small river) with the boys on their rafts was very cool. Although Susan got caught in a little current and was scared a little before she made it over. We had a lot of fun walking around the practically empty island looking for shells and surf treasures. Mom and Nana stayed on the other side and waved. Miles and Dylan thought it was so cool that I could swim and pull their rafts at the same time. I hadn't swam that channel since 9th grade with my buddy David Curlovic. That seems like another life time ago and I am so glad Miles and Dylan got to go over with me. That is something that you can't replace either! Thank you God!

See ya!

Stomp

2009-06-06T21:19:00.002-04:00

Wow! You can see how busy my first "official" week in my new role has me at work. I haven't posted all week. It's been a busy week combining my new position and the last week of school all in one. Glad to have my wife home for two months. Things are always nice in the summer without the hectic schedule and early mornings. I also sleep in on occassions in the summer; hope I can continue that some this summer too. That remains to be seen. Good week at work with a lot of big things just around the corner. Last month's bonus reflected the fact that I was really working in my new role along with covering my previous position some too. Thank you God!

Today we took the boys down to the Peace Center for Stomp. If you have never seen Stomp, then I can highly recommend. It's basically a dance group that uses everything you can imagine from push brooms to zippo lighters to 50 gallon drums to make rhythm and beats. I was very, very entertained. I got the tickets for the family Christmas present way back in October when Dylan and I went to the Sunday show for the Peace Center Bluegrass festival. Nice seats and the boys and Tricia enjoyed it just as much. Worth every cent and I have to say the Peace Center remains one of my favorite venues.

Speaking of shows, Tricia and I are going to catch Grace Potter and the Nocturnals on Tuesday night. The boys will be at the beach with Aunt Amy and my Mom (and Aunt Susan and family too). I got the tickets free thanks to a guy I worked with at Tuomey who's family owns The Handlebar. That was a great favor and I look forward to the show and not having to worry about the boys at the same time. A great date night for us to celebrate SUMMER!!!

Looking forward to church tomorrow as we start the One Prayer series. Cliff and family are at the beach having a great time, I'm sure. We will be watching a video series along with many other churches nationwide for the next few weeks. Talk about connecting God's family! We also have a new worship leader (well, actually, the first "paid" staff member to lead worship at Freedom), Chris Roberts (click for link to his blog). Cliff's wife, Sherry, has been the worship leader since the church started and is now taking a more causal role to spend more time with family (she also homeschools their 2 girls, Emily and Grace). God has some amazing things in store for Freedom and the Greer community and Chris is going to be a big part of it all!

I got a package from Toubab Krewe, a band from Asheville, today. It's full of posters and postcards to promo their show in Greenville later this month. I spread a few around the Peace Center today and at the world's best record store, Horizon Records. They also threw in their latest Live CD as a token of appreciation. How cool! Looking forward to that show too. They are like a blend of Eastern (as in Middle East) acoustic jams mingled with high powered slamgrass. Well, that's the update from the Johnson clan. Know you are Loved, one and all!

See ya!

Summer

2009-06-01T21:04:00.002-04:00

Wow! I think we woke up this morning to SUMMER. The smell of magnolia is so strong outside here in the foothills, you can almost taste it!

What a sunset I was treated to just now when I went to take back a video to Ingles. The pink and purple-grey sky over the Blue Wall Escarpment was something special God was using today to touch us. What an artist!

Miles made it back to karate today after a week absence. He is going to be working extra hard on balance exercises this summer, or no allowance. His choice of course ;-).

My first day on the "official" product manager position. I felt like I was in 1 meeting the whole day. It will probably benefit me to become accustomed to such a day if I am reading the signals correctly. Hey, it could be much worse. I thank God everyday. The worst day here is ALWAYS better than any of my previous jobs. I feel blessed to have listened to the wisdom of mentors while in the Army. I choose a career that fits me and I really do enjoy what I am doing. Yes, I am pinching myself; but, I also feel like a lot of labor, blood, sweat and tears got me this far too. That makes it feel even better! Thank you God!

A couple of more 1/2 days of school and the Johnson summer will be officially here, regardless of what the magnolias are telling us!

See ya!

Sunday

2009-05-31T07:33:00.003-04:00

On the way to church for setup, enjoying a nice Sunday morning cup of coffee.

We had the best dinner last night with our neighbors, Barry and Linda. Their grandson, Noah, was there and we even brought Keller over to play with Cady, their boxer. Everybody had so much fun and Barry and I traded about 20 CDs each. Linda made the best chicken Francesco and a chocolate cake that would make you wanted sing "praise" and do the happy dance, which I did :-)

A small yard sale yesterday profited me $15 and Dylan $5. We tried to organize a neighborhood sale, it worked okay. The rest went to Goodwill. Nice to see the sun yesterday and dry out some. Lots of yard work yesterday. Pulled the pansies and planted the petunias. Worked on the basketball goal, the water plugs were leaking so I drained and started filling with playbox sand for weight. That project is still on going as the sand is still drying. Put down some grass fertilizer and adjusted the irrigation system. Next up is putting a barrier under the deck to keep the basketballs from rolling under there. I have some supplies from Home Depot that should do the trick. I also threw some extra safety handles on the fort to help with the zip line fun. Dylan gave me the thumbs up on those.

Miles had a blast at Disney and got everyone some great gifts. He is such a kind-hearted fella. He got Dylan a big dinosaur set. They really missed each other. It's gonna be so different with Miles in middle school next year. Can you believe they will not be in the same school again until Miles is a senior and Dylan is a freshman in high school? That was the same for me and Tim growing up. Only a couple more days of school and then it's summertime for the Johnson family. We have a trip to the beach with my family in 2 weeks and then up to Ohio in late June. Looking forward to Tricia relaxin' more and getting some good rest! Way to go Tricia, year #2 is in the books! Dylan got a ton of awards on Friday, including the only one to get the P.E award since he got one of the top scores. He also made the AB honor roll with only 1 B all year! Go Dylan!!!! Miles' awards on Monday.

Here's some pictures below.

Gotta get to church for setup. We have an Africa meeting this afternoon too, I will be offering some education on HIV and talking to the group about our plans.

See ya!

http://picasaweb.google.com/mrsoulmark/DylanS2ndGradeAwardsDayEndOfTheYear2009#

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Get your own

Mom

2009-05-28T17:49:00.002-04:00

I want to first wish my Mom and Pete a Happy 20th wedding anniversary. My Mom was a single mother with 4 kids from 1973 to 1989. How she did that solo without killing one of us or seriously abusing any chemical of choice, is beyond my comprehension. I wish them many more years of continued happiness. That wedding was one of many mixed emotions for me and honestly the end of a childhood even though I was on my way to my sophomore year at Clemson. I still had a lot of growing up to do and that wedding is a milestone in that long journey.

Today is also my Aunt Jane's 60th birthday. Jane is the youngest of the bunch. That really makes the rest of them all feel old, I'm sure.

Yesterday we got the results back from Mom's breast tissue biopsy that was done on Tuesday. Mom has breast cancer. She is scheduled for a lumpectomy in mid-June (after our beach trip with her and the rest of the family) to be followed by radiation therapy and possibly, oral chemotherapy. Mom is a little shell shocked right now and really worried about how Pete might take this news. Pete's mother and 1st wife both died of breast cancer. Not the best thing to learn on your 20th wedding anniversary. But, Mom is a fighter and of strong stock. We know that and expect her to come out of this stronger than ever.

Miles is now on Day 2 of his big 5th grade Disney trip. So far that reports have been as expected and no big issues. I think it's been raining down there too. I know we have had our share of rain here in the Upstate and am thankful for it; but, a little drying out is warranted. I think this weekend's forecast looks to be dry and sunny! Can't wait to hear all about Miles' trip, whether I am ready or not ;-)

Tricia is counting down the day left in the school year and ready for break. My life and work changes when summer break starts. I officially start my new manager role on Monday;but, all the signature lines and manager setup are now changed and the pay increase is the last to start and it will on June 1st, Monday. So far, I have been trying to feel my way around the product line and get a handle on the big picture items. Got a new HUGE contract this week and that took care of wondering what I might be doing :-) So, Monday is nothing more than a formality.

Take care, stay dry and See ya!

Share some more Misery

2009-05-26T18:27:00.002-04:00

Since my last post was so happy, I thought I would share some more misery with you. I was taking care of the roses yesterday and hit my toe on a rock coming back in the garage. I was proud of my control (over my tongue) and only mumbled incomprehensible and meaningless cries of woe. It was not a bright moment this weekend.

See ya!

Tuesday Afternoon

2009-05-26T17:21:00.004-04:00

What a nice long and WET Memorial weekend. We had a friend of Miles' (Sam) spend the night on Sunday. Miles actually slept in until 1130am! I had to go and wake him for fear he would sleep all day. His buddy had been up hanging with Dylan since 930.
He might need that sleep yet, his 5th grade class leaves for Disney World today. That bus ride tonight is gonna be something I am glad to miss. A bus load of 5th graders heading to Disney would be close to torture for me. Miles is beside himself with excitement. We plan to take Dylan to get a Sonic treat on the way home from the bus departure tonight.

I finished my book Picking Cotton. Wow! Some serious work had to take place for that relationship to form and if you want to learn something about forgiveness and healing, I highly recommend. Basically, a guy was picked from a line-up and charged and convicted (not once, but twice) for a rape he did not commit. He spent 11 years in jail until he was cleared by DNA evidence. True story, based in Burlington, NC. Very well written and engaging as I mentioned in another post.

Speaking of emotions and forgiveness. I watched a very real and raw 2 hour show about 911 and the day of the terrorist attacks on National Geographic channel last night. I had never seen all of the details in such a synched timeline of action. An amazingly gut wrenching production. I was speechless and overwhelmed like it was the same day once again. This show was very graphic and not something I would watch very often. But, given it was Memorial Day. It was very fitting and a somber reminder of the world in which we live. It's also makes me mad that we let our guard down so much and let that happen. Never again, I pray.

Well, gotta get the Disney express in gear. Check out pictures from yesterday at the Memorial Park in Greer and at the fountain at the new Greer City Park. Life does go on! It reminds me of that scene in Who Framed Roger Rabbit when the truck with all of the cartoon-eating acid is hit by the train as it rolls into Toontown. It's a big deal and it's an ugly mess but we pick up and move on and then the picture changes...

See ya!

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Get your own

Brevard and Jupiter Coyote

2009-05-24T17:27:00.004-04:00

I headed out for Brevard yesterday afternoon with an eye on the sky and ready to see Jupiter Coyote, almost 5 years to the date that I last saw them (5/26/05 at Swan Lake). I took 276 through the mountains and made it to Brevard in about 1hr 15min. Check out this picture I took with my blackberry from Caesar's Head looking back at Table Rock. I saw a few ravens fly around from the lookout too. Soaring above that sea of green trees. Always cool to stop by that park on the way up.

Brevard is a cool little mountain town, it has maintained a lot of it's Mayberry meets the mountains charm and they were in full celebration of spring when I made it to town. Free parking down the hill. The clouds kept building as the afternoon waned. I saw a little of Wilsin and got a soundboard patch a spot for my chair right in front of the soundboard just before Shannon Whitworth's set started. During her set, I wandered down to the food vendor area. Unfortunately, most of the food vendors were shutting down as the night came, most of the family crowd comes during the day and they had a Memorial Day parade and 5K during the day. I stood in front a BBQ vendor and watched the family and friends fix their plates. I guess I had some serious puppy dog eyes going as I asked "are you stilling selling plates?". Grandpa spoke up and said "nope, but even better" as he handed me the biggest chunk of rib meat. Talk about BBQ heaven standing on the corner of main street with grease on all of my fingers and a smile on my face listening to the music across the street. That was worth driving up the mountain on all those switchbacks (at about 5 mph).

I had a few minutes to spare before Jupiter Coyote started at 930pm, so I found my way inside the roped off beer garden and had 2 tasty Appalachian Brewery beers to get the evening just right. I was so ready for Jupiter Coyote and by this time a good crowd was forming to dance the night away with Brevard's big hometown band. But, the weather was not going to cooperate. We got 3 full songs and a partial of the 4th tune before the band had to pull the plug and try and wait out the rain. The band and soundboard were covered but the bottom had fallen out of the sky and it became a steady shower and not worth risking all of the "donated" equipment. It was a free show afterall. So, after standing in a door way of a closed shop and doing the rain dance in reverse, the band called the night. They promised to be back next year. Hopefully, I get a chance before then! They played The Handlebar in Greenville last New Year's eve; but, my inlaws were down from Ohio. Hopefully, sooner than another 5 years.

It's still raining off and on here in the Upstate. The forecast looks the same for the rest of the week too. We are talking about going up to Pleasant Ridge county park with the boys tomorrow as we are both off work. Miles leaves for Disney World on Tuesday. The talk inside the house about Disney has reached a peak and we all look forward to his big trip.

Great worship today at Freedom including graduate recognition, including the requisite baby in the bathtub shot that all parents love to show at these type events. We later took the Lord's Supper, which is always perfect and even more so as we celebrate Memorial Day. Jesus died to give us freedom and that is worth proclaiming everyday. I also pray that we would have no more wars that require us to remember those that have willingly given all for our freedom and nation. One day it will be perfect and the wars will all be gone. Until then, we must remember their sacrifices to keep us focused on that day.

Reading a new book, Picking Cotton. I heard about this story on NPR and made a note to get the book. I had the Greenville library order it and put myself on the list. So far, very well written and a page turner. Glad I have some downtime this long weekend to enjoy it.

See ya!

Stuck inside of Hartford with the Greenville Blues Again

2009-05-21T19:40:00.004-04:00

I was all set to get on the plane for ATL and head on home, to arrive very late tonight. I was offered a $400 credit and a hotel room to fly out tomorrow morning. I took the chance to call Tricia and make sure school transportation was set and then took their offer. It almost was not so easy. They took about 1 hr to find my luggage before I could get out of there and get to the Ramada. Delta and I have not seen things eye-to-eye this week. They bumped my flight on Tuesday and I didn't make it to the hotel here in Connecticut until 1am. It was a very early 8am class I had to teach. But, it's all done and we are finished here.

I had a great dinner with Donna, one of the consultants I will be a manager for once my promotion becomes officially "official" on June 1st. It was a great time to just have some personal time to discuss our new team and where we want the product to go from here. Since we all work remote, I think it will go a long way for our team. Plus, my company picked up her tab too. Good timing for me as I have already discussed. Still patting myself on the back for a good plan there.
Nice weather up here in Connecticut and I enjoyed the drive up to Sturbridge, MA yesterday.

The site was a good team and a really nice place to work, a long term acute hospital on an old farm in the hills. Long term acute means the patients are ventilator patients, brain injury rehabs, etc. That means no ER, no babies, no pregnant mothers, etc. Makes the system design very easy too!

Looking forward to getting back home in the morning. I have a very early flight that should get me home around 930am tomorrow. Nice to have 1st class upgrades these days too. All the miles to Africa and for work have added up to get me into the tier where I always get a free upgrade to 1st class if available. That makes for nice leg room and free drinks never hurt on the long flights either.

Just a note, I changed the address for my photo gallery links, so if you have trouble finding pictures on old post, you can find the photos using the Picassa gallery link in my links or above the posts on every page.

Well, time for a meal and then an early sleep so I can catch that early flight home.

Hey some great news to report here before I go: Dylan's baseball team went 12-0 this year and won the championship on Tuesday night. He had a great game according to Tricia and his report. I think that will go a long way in his love of the game!

Check out this video I filmed on my camera in the airport. They had this going in Detroit when I was out there a few weeks ago too. Funny to see everyone having so much "kid time" when they see what is going on!!! See ya!

Manic Monday

2009-05-18T18:57:00.000-04:00

Running on 2 tracks this week during my role transition at work. Actually looking forward to travel work tomorrow up to Hartford.

-you know we (really me) are serious about our financial peace -) I closed the Best Buy account. That card was like a family member and it's now dead and closed. One step closer and Lowe's is next on the short list. Thank you God!

-bought 1 thing to celebrate my promotion: room air filter for my office. It's the same one we have upstairs and I saved $20 at Costco w/ instant rebate. It's immediately noticeable and worth it x10.

-i'm at Dylan's 1st playoff game and they have won again. Tricia and Miles went to karate. Dylan got a good single and scored. It's actually chilly today, I went back to the van for my windbreaker. Wonder what the temperature is in New England...

See ya!
on Blackberry

Africa Encouragement

2009-05-17T17:23:00.006-04:00

What a cool day at Freedom today!!! I got another chance to speak to the church about our mission trip to Botswana and WHY we are going. We also ended that part of the service with the church surrounding us with prayer. It was very cool and I can't wait to return and share more. Thank you God for a church family like Freedom.

Just waking up from the "oh so good" Sunday nap to find it raining again.

What's going through my head right now:

->This drier-than-normal spring is really something ;-) My neighbor, Barry, went out yesterday to the beaver dam and did some "destruction work". He said it was an amazing sight of construction. I think those beaver really know what they are doing. Glad to see some of that "backwater" go away as it was starting to look like a mosquito farm.

->I still think "The Office" is the funniest TV I have ever seen. Tricia and I watched another episode this afternoon following lunch. It was the "Company Picnic" episode.

->I am still mad as Hell about the Bernie Madoff scheme. I watched a Frontline 1 hr investigation last night. It just proves that deregulation is NOT the way to go and partially responsible for the mess we are in. When you have the wolves watching the sheep, some of the sheep are not going to grow old... The fact that whistleblower's attempts to uncover the scheme were denied for so long and then judged to be untrue at least once by the SEC is a shame of all shames and an indication that we cut the budgets and regulatory power of the bodies governing our financial markets way too much during the Bush years. We now have this to show for all of it.

->Listening to my recording from the show at the Handlebar on Friday. It was Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit. Jason spent 6 years in the Drive By Truckers before stepping out in 2007. Good show. I really like his songs; but, will be honest and admit the show is totally different and a more subdued engagement than the DBT. Not bad, just different. I enjoyed it, it was a free WNCW show for me and the recording turned out really good. On a Handlebar note, can't wait to see my old college favorite, Drivin' n' Cryin', there in July. It's gonna be a great summer night show!

->I finished Blue Highways yesterday. This is a book I will be revisiting again as I continue on my own journey through life. A vivid portrait of the backbone of America through one man's looking glass. Recommended summer reading.

->Really excited about my new job with Iatric Systems. I am travelling to Connecticut for work under my current position this week. I "officially" start in my new capacity on June 1st (ie, that's when the raise kicks in ;-)); but, I am already going full-speed ahead with plans and work for my new position. The best way to describe the position is to say that I will be the Harry Truman of that product line.

While I will have manager duties for the 2 consultants, I will be primarily the product champion for the line of applications in my suite, IatriConnect. The main applications are portals that allow physicians to view hospital information about a patient using only a web browser. We are also working on a patient portal to allow patients to schedule exams and procedures as well as review information from a previous admission (discharge paperwork,etc).

I will be steering the development work, doing the market research (there is a lot going on in this arena due to the recent federal stimulus funding and mandates), and responsible for most of the sales demos and conference presentations. It will be a HUGE responsibility; but, it's all based on applications that naturally attract me and I look forward to the challenge. I worked on a portal development team at my last hospital job and have some history with the development focus and intent.

So, I am buckled up and ready to move forward. I am planning to meet with my team of consultants this week while travelling to Connecticut. Both of the consultants live in Massachusetts and we are planning on a dinner while I am in the area for my other training duties. Since we all work remote, this will be an excellent opportunity for some team-building time. Glad I thought of that one!!! It's perfect timing since my travel and meals are already covered under the implementation contract that has me going up there in the first place. Basically, that means the hospital where I am going to train is paying for me to be there. That allows me to get more out of the trip without added expense for my company.

->I have about 5 roses blooming right now. I will post a picture this week once all the blooms are out. Nice viewpoint from the hammock on the porch.

Well, that's a snapshot today. Hope you have a great week! See ya!

Haircut and Job Promotion

2009-05-14T09:05:00.004-04:00

Yep, got the ears uncovered and lowered significantly yesterday. Dylan told me that I look "like 27 or something". I guess it's better than being "obtuse" as he told me the other day. He was talking about my Wii Fit profile telling me that I was close to "obese". He doesn't miss a beat.

The job promotion to Product Manager is now official. Here's the email from the Sr VP sent out today down below my new haircut shot! Luckily, the promotion had nothing to do with hair; but, it was time for a change and had gotten way past time to do something different.

See ya!

ASD Team:

I’d like to share some very exciting news with you regarding an upcoming organizational change within the Application Services Team.

As the suite of applications collectively known as IatriConnect, aka “the portal” (CareContinuity, MDAccess, MDOrder, EMPI Match Builder, Archiving Solutions etc) continues to grow, evolve and expand into different areas of the healthcare marketplace, the need for a product team devoted exclusively to these solutions has become apparent. Therefore, effective on June 1, the IatriConnect Solutions team will be created to manage these applications. As with the other three product teams, the IatriConnect Solution team will report to Carrie Walton.

Mark Johnson, in his new role of Manager, IatriConnect Solutions, will lead this team. Mark’s broad experience in nursing and hospital IT combined with his dynamic personality make him the ideal product manager to champion these applications as they continue to grow and evolve.

Reporting to Mark, Donna Binette and Maura Furtado will continue the excellent work they do implementing and supporting these products.

Please join me in congratulating Mark on his new role!

Frank Fortner
Senior Vice President
Application Software Division

Iatric Systems, Inc.

Things that made me smile today

2009-05-12T08:31:00.002-04:00

Real quick post about 3 things that have me smiling this morning:

1. The mountain laurel along the creek that runs by our trail in the woods have exploded with flowers. Awesome display!

2. I had blueberries from Home Branch in my protein shake this morning. Tricia found them in the freezer and wanted to know what we might do with them. No problem there!

3. Something really BIG is happening at work this week and should be announced soon. More details on that soon.

See ya!

Miles' 2009 Chorus Performance

2009-05-11T20:59:00.001-04:00

We are proud of our performer!

Weekend Update

2009-05-11T14:37:00.004-04:00

What a fun weekend:

-we didn't have any baseball games as scheduled due to the rain, so we hung out for a while and did some work around the yard and Miles karate practice.

-I finally got the hammock swing in place on the front porch, hanging from one of the rafters and very secure thanks to some good ole Tractor Supply chain and links. Nice to hang out there at night listening to the frogs like I did late Saturday night.

-We headed downtown Greenville for the big Artisphere festival and had an absolute blast, enjoyed walking around looking at the awesome art on display, being performed and on sale. It was a perfect afternoon for it.

-Miles and Dylan brought their bathing suits and had a chilly blast running around the Greenville fountain by the Reedy. Check the pictures below.

-On Sunday, we went over to Lake Robinson Community Church (LRCC) for their last service as a church before they join Freedom and we start building on the land there on 290. We were there to support Cliff give the vision and answer questions as well as to help relate what God has done at Freedom. It was a very emotional service for the church. They have been together for over 7 years but had not grown to the size they envisioned and offered the 10 acres to Freedom. We look forward to serving alongside our new friends that we met on Sunday. This is such an amazing opportunity and the community is going to benefit in amazing ways. For them to have the vision and humbleness to offer that land to God's purpose really knocks me back. I also got a chance to play congos with the band. I had a moment of inspiration and saw an empty set on the stage. They liked it so much, I was invited back for the closing song of worship. It was a powerful service and I'm looking forward to what is next for all of us.

-We had plans to take Tricia to Olive Garden for Mother's Day; but, the wait was over 1 hour. We made a nice stop at Atlanta Bread Company and then Starbucks. I think we made a great choice. It was a nice afternoon together. I even steam-mopped the kitchen floor and added a nice layer of shine.

For Mother's Day, I surprised Tricia with my craftiness. A friend printed some posters of images I sent of the boys back in the winter. Jack runs his own printing company and was part of our men's group on Friday mornings. In addition to the posters, he printed one of the images of the boys at Stumphouse Tunnel park on a nice canvas. I tried to get it mounted but the image was the wrong size. So, I got the idea to mount it on dowel rods and it turned out great. I added a couple of cup hooks and some suede cord for a nice touch. She was very surprised at my skills and was so interested in how I got it done without her knowing. I guess it does pay to work at home ;-) A few new roses from my new bushes added a nice touch too!

Well, speaking of work, my break is about over. We have a big chorus performance at Crestview tonight to wrap up the spring semester. Stay tuned for Miles' big solo on video to be posted as soon as possible.

See ya!

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Spring Explosion

2009-05-07T21:15:00.002-04:00

It seems all the rain over the past few days has lead to a explosion of spring here in Greer. My roses are just about to bloom and it's like everything is growing and turning green before my eyes. It a scene out of Fantasia 2000 where Mother Nature transforms the world to spring come to life before my eyes. I love it!

I spent most of the afternoon watching Dylan play 2 baseball games. We have some make-up games due to the rainouts. They are still undefeated and I think he is enjoying it for the most part. Gonna be a late night tonight and we already warn his teacher for tomorrow :-)

This week's musical gem: Grace Potter and the Nocturnals Live EP that I got for $4 on Amazon. Her set from Christmas Jam 2007 still rocks my ears (and world)!

Just got a call from my old Clemson house buddy, Todd Nolan. He's 5th row at the Dead in Denver and wanted to give a shout out to one of his travelling Dead tour buddies. Nice! I know that will be a good time. Warren Haynes is pulling that band forward and it's getting better as they head down the road; but, still glad I didn't spring the $100 for the show :-)

On the travel front for work: I am heading to Hartford, Ct on May 19th for another new site training. It was a late switch for another consultant and I should be able to get home after the 2nd day of training if all goes as planned.

Well, I gotta get ready for Friday. Check out the Fantasia 2000 clip below. If you have ever been to Mount Saint Helens, then you know...

See ya!

Keller's 1st Haircut

2009-05-06T17:19:00.002-04:00

We took Keller up to Dog Gone Beautiful for a trim and he looks and smells so good. The nail trim was way over due and you can't even hear him in the kitchen on the hardwood floors. He likes his new accessory too; but, I don't let him wear around his buddies ;-)

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Now, I guess it's our turn! See ya!

That Low Sinking Feeling

2009-05-03T20:50:00.003-04:00

Well, we had a full weekend of errands, karate, yard work, Clemson baseball game and a Costco run today. It's almost 9pm and the boys are still awake eating brownies that Mom just made. It's gonna be a hard Monday morning, I can see that from here.

At the Clemson game, which Clemson won 11-2 over Maryland, we ate at the hot dog stand. I used my debit card. I remember this clearly because the team behind the stand had a time with the receipts and the credit card machine. We had a decent supper and a great time at the game, luckily, the rain held off for the whole game with clouds threatening all around.

After church today, we had a quick lunch at the Costco cafe, highly recommended by the way for quality and price. We stopped by the credit union to get cash for our trip to Costco. I pulled out my wallet and open it. That low sinking feeling washed over me, my blood pressure dropped and I said "I think I left my debit card at the game." Sure enough, it was true. After heading home and trying to crawl under a rock, I called my cousin's husband, Rob.

Rob went to Sumter High with me and also is a fine Clemson graduate. He also now works for Clemson University as the Director of Development (grants, alumni groups, endowments, etc). He and Tonya (my 2nd cousin on my Mom's side) have 3 kids, 2 girls and 1 boy, Austin, who is Dylan's age. We stopped by their place in Clemson yesterday on the way to the game. They also joined us at the finest ice cream shop in Pickens county, if not the Upstate: The Class of 55 Ice Cream parlor in the Hendrix Student Life Center. It's the fancy new digs for the place that was once over at the Ag Sales building (for all of you older Clemson alumni, fans and former students). I got a nice big cone of black cherry ice cream. I can testify that you can in fact survive on nothing but Clemson black cherry milk shakes for an entire semester if you should attempt. Ok, I digress. We had a great time hanging out with Tonya and Rob and the kids. We are looking forward to Austin spending the night this summer when school is out.

Well, I couldn't find any numbers for the baseball stadium and the Clemson University police department wasn't much help either. So, I called Rob and told him my story. In no less than 5 minutes, he had the director of concessions on the phone and verified my card was in his hand. Rob even met us in Easley (about 1/2 way for us to Clemson) while running errands today with the card. Talk about a life safer! I had just moved all of my automatic debits over to the credit union and was just dreading making all of those changes again. Thank you Rob! I owe you more than I can say! We plan to make it up to Rob and the family at a Greenville Drive baseball game this summer.

Well, I have some laundry to do and some boys to get in the bed. Have a great week every one. I am happy to report my world's axis is now tilted back to normal and my low sinking feeling is gone for now. Oh yeah, an awesome service today at Freedom! We are blessed with such a great church family and look forward to what is to come!

See ya!

Thursday, stuck in neutral

2009-04-30T07:41:00.003-04:00

Sitting here wondering when I am going to head out the door and go for a walk with Keller. Already worked out and dressed, just can't get going. Keller is right here working on the rawhide obliviously happy just to be inside for a few minutes.

A couple of updates: Dylan's baseball team is now 6-0 and he had 2 hits in the last game, despite being tired and whiny. He is getting the hang of the routine although his behavior was across the red line a few times at school according to reports. I think he got good sleep last night.

Miles is suffering from allergies and a sore throat this week. He puts on a good show too so it's made a little worse by his "I'm an old man" routine. But, a nice dose of medicine last night got him in the bed early and he looked and felt 100% better this morning.

Our Dave Ramsey class is almost done; but, our dedication to the principles and the goals we have set are just getting traction and I see momentum starting to slowly gain. We owe it to ourselves and the boys to continue and to prosper. God has so much in store for us and I can't wait to demonstrate we have what it takes to be responsible for what he wants to give us. The ability to take short term mission trips without fund raising is high on my list!!! Plus, Tricia and I have found a new level of communication regarding finances and family goals that we did not have prior to this class. If nothing else, that is priceless!

Tricia and I were cracking up each other last night laughing about family matters. I know most of you have crazy and dysfunctional family members just like us. Nonetheless, I care to wager that I have a branch that would rival some of the best reality TV shows. I even made up names for the show we were proposing last night. I can't disclose on this blog of course, to protect the not-so-innocent :-). It's part of life to have some reflection about our own trials and trivial concerns when watching others around us; but, it's so much deeper when it's your family or extended family. To put it all in focus, I think I am fairly sane and have decent coping mechanisms in place and I have family members who do not have the same to reassure me of my self belief! I guess I can think them for all of that!

Well, coffee is kicking finally and Keller is ready for the trail, I am ready for the trials :-)

See ya!

Weekend, Where Did It Go?

2009-04-27T20:52:00.002-04:00

We had a karate mid-term graduation and a baseball game on Saturday, some yard work and then off to Paris Mountain State Park for the 1st of the 2009 Music in the Woods series. Nick from the neighborhood went along for the fun and then off to Dillard's for ice cream aftewards, it doesn't get much better than that! Sunday at Freedom and then some more yard work and Dad beat Miles in a game of 21, while breaking the backboard, luckily it's still under warranty!!!!

Throw in some walks on the trail with the family and Keller and the weekend becomes a blur!

Check the pictures below!

I'm tired and it's only Monday! See ya!

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South Dakota Wrap-Up

2009-04-24T10:33:00.001-04:00

Sitting at the airport in Sioux Falls waiting to fly to Cincy.

-Sioux Falls is gonna need a bigger airport, there is a lot of business and development going on here. Low Unemployment, decent education and good healthcare. Lots of cheap land too.

- I think solar and wind energy is gonna be a HUGE player here too (stress those O's to sound like a local)

- saw the BIGGEST coon ever on the side of the road on the way to the airport, size of a medium sized dog

-had an awesome hazelnut latte at the new Coffea in Sioux Falls, handmade hazelnut syrup put a zing in my step, it was that good!!

-incredible steak and superb chunk (it was not a slice) at Foley's steak house last night. Very highly recommended if you ever find yourself here

-enjoyed the Dave Ramsey Town Hall last night, I have been listening to his pod casts a lot and the message was consistent. He wants us to look away from the fear and use wisdom and long term planning. This is NOT the worst recession ever or even since the Great Depression. Very motivating talk. I went to a Lutheran church near the hotel and watched with about 30 others.

I am ready to get back home! Miss the family and my own bed and shower, got lots of yard work to do and it looks like great weather this weekend for just that.

See ya!
on Blackberry

Falls Park

2009-04-23T05:22:00.002-04:00

The weather here in South Dakota has been great. Went down to The Falls Park here in Sioux Falls yesterday after work. See pictures below.

-I got 1st class upgrade all the way here on Tuesday. Nice leg room!

-There is a funny accent here, reminds me of the folks out in Oregon/Washington, because many of them moved from the Dakotas to the Pacific Northwest to work the shipyards for WWII.

-I am going for a walk on the river trail today before work, means I need to go back to bed. I never sleep well in hotels. But, I can honestly say I have yet to turn on the TV here in the room. Way to celebrate Earth Day all week.

-Going to the Dave Ramsey Town Hall tonight at a church right down the street from the hotel. How cool is that? The hospital where I am working is also showing it. That's cool too; but, more of a drive across town.

-Sioux Falls is pretty town and seems to have a lot going on for the location. But, I know I couldn't stand the extreme cold/heat.

Tricia's Mom had knee replacement on Monday. Hang in there Kathy! It will get better, just get through the fun of PT (Physical Torture)!

Also, please rememeber my Aunt Gladys who was visiting with my Mom and Pete. She suffered a stroke a few years ago and recovered fair with right sided weakness and aphasia. She is now suffering through a nasty bout of C. Diff. She is having a rough go right now.

A note of praise! I think I am almost at the goal for my Africa fund raising! Now, it's time for a plane ticket! Thank you all for your support and prayers!

I am going back to bed! See ya!

Sioux Falls, South Dakota

South Dakota Bound

2009-04-21T09:32:00.002-04:00

Heading out the door today for Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Not in my territory; but, I had to pick up the training for another consultant who has to go to Alaska for a training. Lucky me, right? It should be pretty good, the weather looks nice and it's more Hampton Inn reward nights and Delta Sky Miles, not to mention, eating out on someone's ticket! Gonna miss 1 of Dylan's games tonight; but, will be back in time for his game on Saturday or Miles' midterm graduation. I fly home on Friday afternoon. I'm hoping to have some time to hit the state park near Sioux Falls and get down to the Falls downtown. I am also going to a Dave Ramsey Town Hall event that is being Live broadcast nationwide on Thursday night, tune in here for more details: Town Hall for Hope

Reading a great book right now called Blue Highways by William Least Heat Moon. Recommended if you like books about the real America. Reminds me of a modern Travels With Charley, one of my alltime favorite books by Steinbeck.

Been listening a good deal to Jack Johnson's Sleep Through The Static. This is a classic summer evening album. Or Sunday morning...

Well, gotta run! See ya!

The Weekend Update

2009-04-19T09:37:00.005-04:00

Wow! What a busy week. I was covering for 2 other consultants most of the week and the time fly by. Didn't even notice that I had not posted since Tuesday.

-The weather improved in the later part of the weekend with sunshine and blue skies. The grass is GROWING.

-We now have a beaver dam near the trail head and Lake Robinson. I thought it was all the rain; but, the neighbor told me about beaver damage on some tree stumps. Looks like a job for CPW.

-On the way to Spartanburg on Friday to pick up doughnuts at Krispy Kreme to sell on Saturday for our Africa trip, I saw a weird sight indeed. A car with scripture hand-painted (kinda like high school homecoming wording)all over the car, including I Peter 2:9. Yes, we have folks that come down from them thar hills to "go to town" often. I have seen such a sight before. But, what was rather peculiar this time around was the young couple going at each other in the front seat. It looked like 2 people in the driver's seat. Not sure if they just ignore the writing on the side of the car when they get in, they obviously were not the "artists". Maybe it was written for them?

-We sold 50 boxes of Krispy Kreme for our trip yesterday at one of the local little league parks. It went pretty fast once the teams and associated grandparents starting showing up. Many folks donated without taking doughnuts, probably a smart move. We raised $140, combined with the $125 from Pizza Inn, not too bad this week. We are getting closer to our deadline for the plane ticket purchases. Please keep praying for all of us: Jason, Julie, Nancy and me. I will be glad to have the tickets done so we can start focusing on the mission.

-Tricia and I saw John Scofield and The Piety Street Band at the Handlebar on Friday night. We had Alex from church come over and watch the boys. They played mostly gospel blues and it was a great set. My recording turned out super. Working on that now. Scofield is the tops when it comes to soulful blues jazz fusion guitar. With the band including George Porter, Jr and John Cleary, it was a perfect match and it showed. Nice to hear those gospel tunes turned out in that New Orleans manner with just a touch of New York City. See them if you get the chance!!!

Off to church for more gospel! See ya!

Here's some pictures from the Scofield show (my focus was off on some of these):

John Scofield Band 2009-04-17

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My Own Music Video

2009-04-14T08:27:00.003-04:00

Couple of things cracking me up today:

Jason Collins is one of the Freedom Fellowship team going to Botswana. He was at Pizza Inn last night and Miles and Dylan were talking to him about Transformer movies, etc. Tricia told the boys he was the Jason from Friday the 13th. Dylan didn't buy it; but, Miles said "Really?" Dylan wanted to know where the chainsaw was.

The weather forecast in the Fall calling for a drier-than-normal winter/spring. I think they got that wrong.

I was walking in the damp rain drizzle on the trail today with Keller and we came across one of those florist aluminum balloons. It said "I Love You" and had a few roses on the front. It was almost out of helium but still had it's shape. Keller was very interested in this something new on his trail walk. On the way back from the loop, I picked up the balloon to take it home. Well, first, I was going to tie it to a tree limb. Then, I decided to take it home. I must have look pretty peculiar walking in the rain with a half-inflated "I Love You" balloon and a soaking wet dog. Maybe my own music video or a bluesy book cover.

My walk soundtrack went right along with the scene. I have really gotten stuck on John Lee Hooker and Carlos Santana "The Healer", a latter day Hooker that is an amazingly simple; but, powerful new age blues with some smokin' Carlos leads. That along with Jupiter Coyote's "A Little Like Me" and Plant's" I'm In The Mood" really made me open my eyes to the awakening of spring that is so rapidly unfolding around us. Thank you God for rebirth and rejuvenation!

Hoping Dylan gets to play baseball today, that drier-than-normal- NOT forecast still calls for rain.

See ya!

Weekend Recap

2009-04-13T21:42:00.003-04:00

What a food fest we had at my Mom's place for the last few days. I think I gained at least a few notches on the belt buckle. I could fast for a few weeks and be okay. But, of course, I was at Pizza Inn buffet tonight helping the Africa mission trip team (including me) raise money for our trip. Thanks to all who made it out to help! We are the hands and feet of Jesus for those children because of your help and support and Prayers!

Listening to the 1st night of The Dead's tour from Greensboro. So far, kinda lame. I would have fallen asleep by now...Really not much spark there but I would have taken a free ticket. I think it's Bobby Weir that gets me distracted the fastest. Warren and Phil will have to carry the load as the show goes on...

Listen here: The Dead 4-12-09

Miles had his mandatory accident while at Mom's farm. While riding in the bucket on the front of the tractor (not a good way to start a story), he got his leg caught between the road and the front of the bucket. Nice scrap and scratch and bruise. He skipped karate today for the Pizza Inn event but he and I have both suffered a little indigestion and frequent bathroom visits today. So, he's had a rough Monday. He seemed to be in good spirits otherwise. Dylan was proud that he got on green even with less sleep than normal. We drove back from Sumter last night and made it home in time for me to plant some blueberry bushes and Carolina Spice. It's rained all day, so hopefully, that will help the plants overcome the shock. I still need to get the fig tree in the ground and get some mulch to go around the blueberries. One of these days, I may mow the grass if the rain will hold off. I did get the weed eater fixed with some mail order parts. No complaints, we needed all the rain.

Keller and Shadow were very happy to see us last night. I was happy to see my shower and my bed. We were not happy about getting up early this morning, ask Tricia.

Well, I'm done for the night. See ya!

Fishing with the boys

2009-04-11T08:52:00.003-04:00

Today is Saturday. Slowly getting a start on the day, watching some of Series of Unfortunate Events with Miles and Dylan (Miles bought the DVD yesterday) and waiting for biscuits and country breakfast at Mom's. I plan to work on some fig trees and blueberry bushes to take home for the yard and just hang out. Tricia is going to meet some friends for coffee in Sumter later today. This afternoon, I am taking the boys fishing at the Garnay pond. The weather looks to be good and perfect for fishing.

My Mom's sister, Gladys, is spending the next 2 weeks with Mom and Pete. Gladys had a massive stroke a few years back and suffers from right-sided paralysis and has difficulty speaking. Despite the physicial challenges, she continues to be a joy to spend time with and is always gracious for time spent in her company.

I worked yesterday from my sister's place, which is located on the back side of the farm and was once where Tricia and I lived with the boys. They have done some extensive renovations and the house looks great; but, it still feels like the same place and brings memories of those 3 years with young children whenever I walk around the place. It's a blessing to be able to work remotely and around my family during the holiday.

We had some loud thunderstorms with rain last night around 1am. I woke for a little bit and listened to the rain and watched the lightning. More memories of summertime there...

Tomorrow, I am going to Sunrise service and Men's breakfast at Home Branch Church. Tricia declined the invitation before I even offered it. Luckily, she had an out since it's a Men's function ;-)

Well, enjoy this Saturday and be sure you take a moment to thank God for rebirth and triumph over death through the resurrection of our Jesus.

See ya!

From the Zoo to the Zoo

2009-04-09T13:30:00.003-04:00

We are heading out to Sumter for Easter weekend. Looking forward to going fishing with Miles and Dylan at the pond on the Gingko tree farm my Dad ran for 20+ years. Easy fishing and the boys love it! Looking forward to eating some country cooking from the low lands of South Carolina. We are going to Easter service at Home Branch Baptist church, a little country church near Manning, SC. I have 2 sets of Great Grandparents buried in the cemetery there.

Then we have the big Easter egg hunt after the extended family (usually 50 or so of my Mom's family) dinner.

Hope you have a great weekend with family and have time to reflect on what this Sunday means for you, rebirth and salvation.

We had a blast at the Greenville zoo on Tuesday. Here's some photos below. We then froze at Dylan's baseball game. He had a good game with a few put-outs, a few hits and the team came from behind to win the game in super fashion. Now, hopefully, the next game will be just a few degrees warmer...

See ya!

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Spring Break?

2009-04-06T10:44:00.002-04:00

Not sure if it's gonna be spring or not. The forecast is calling for lower temps, wind, some rain and even snow in the mountains. I was going to be off all week and we were going to be in DC; but, I changed it to today and tomorrow to hang out with the family. We are thinking about going out on the Lake tomorrow with our friends Ruth and Allan. We are also talking about hiking on Wednesday at the Berry Mill park and about taking Keller to the dog park in Greenville, Cleveland Park.

Random Ramblings:
I got home around 5:30 on Friday, just in time to take Miles to Karate

I woke up at 0615 on Saturday and headed to WNCW to answer phones. Always one of my favorite things to do. I get to hang out in the studio, talk about music, get free WNCW stuff (got Miles a WNCW tshirt, a pair of tickets to see Jason Isbell in Greenville and BBQ for lunch)->who wouldn't want to do that?

We went to Dylan's first real baseball game on Saturday. He had 2 hits and scored 1 time. They won by a large margin. He was a little tired but had a lot of fun. Calvin from next door went to the game and then spent the night and then went to church with us and then went to the movies with us. I had 3 sons for most of the weekend.

The movie was Monsters vs Aliens in 3D. Very cool and fun for the boys. I enjoyed the story and the visual fun too. Looking forward to the new UP! and Ice Age 3D movies that are due this summer. I can't think of a movie that I have seen lately that wasn't a cartoon... oh, wait! we did see the Chimpunk movie a while back :-)

Finished the Clapton book on the way home. I haven't read a book that fast in a while. Very well written, brutally honest and full of uber interesting music history. My kind of book! Just think, he's a British guitar icon married to a gal from Ohio with young daughters at home. Not what he saw his life becoming back in the 60's I reckon...

Well, I am off to run errands and enjoy my time off. Enjoy your week and the schizophrenic weather of spring in the South! Go ACC, Go Tar Heels!

See ya!

Southbound

2009-04-03T08:36:00.003-04:00

Packing up and heading out to the airport shortly. It's been a good trip; but, I'm ready to get home. It's gonna be busy once I get home too. I am going to try and take Miles to karate this afternoon if the planes arrive on time. Then out the door early in the morning to go answer phones for WNCW up in Spindale, the best radio in the land, bar none. Then, back down home for Dylan's baseball jamboree. The weather is looking nice for Saturday, so hopefully, he gets to play. A lot of rain has made practice hard for the team. But, we needed all of that rain and then some.

Had some good meals while here: Wings at Buffalo Wild Wings yesterday and some nice pies over at The Spot in Sidney. Couple of pictures from the trip here:

Watched a great documentary on Hulu.com about the music biz, that I highly recommend:

http://www.hulu.com/watch/62945/before-the-music-dies

Hulu is very cool and I have enjoyed some good stuff on there lately. Thanks Cliff for making that recommendation.

Enjoying the Clapton bio, he's in alcohol rehab right now. Not the most enjoyable section; but, part of the story all the same.

Well, heading out to deal with the rain and get to the airport on time. See ya!

Sidney, Ohio

2009-04-01T17:42:00.003-04:00

Working in Sidney, Ohio at Wilson Memorial training. I will be here until Friday morning. Had the unbelievable experience of going through security in Charlotte in less than 5 minutes yesterday, seriously, I couldn't believe it myself. It was the shortest line ever, even when the line I was in had to move to the other line due to the xray scanner having to reboot. Seriously, I have never been through security in Charlotte that fast. Miracles abound!

The rental car is a Hyundai Santa Fe. It's the new model and feels HUGE compared to the Santa Fe we had before the minivan. Nice ride and very roomy. Easy drive from Dayton to Sidney. Kind of a drag to have to fly from Cinncinnati to Dayton, should have driven from there. Very short flight but had Wolfgang Puck's pizza in the Cincy airport. Very nice.

I did read almost half of the Eric Clapton autobiography yesterday. Very interesting read and I'm amazed the guy still has a liver or a memory. He is blessed and has lead a charmed life. I really enjoy the social and musical history he lays out. His inside look at The Beatles and Jimi Hendrix were worth the read alone. Maybe I will pick up David Crosby's autobiography next ;-).

Watching commercials for the Reds here, not the Braves. It's Ohio!

Talked to my sister, Cecily, in Florida last night. She gave birth to a baby boy, John, last week and is doing great. I hadn't talked to her since my Dad's funeral and felt good to touch base with her and let her know that Tricia and I are celebrating with her in the birth of her child. Hope to send her some music that goes well with newborns and some gifts. I am an uncle again!!! Very cool.

Well, I'm going veg a little and then head out to eat. See ya!

Here We Go

2009-03-29T17:39:00.002-04:00

Just got back from our Africa mission trip gold party. We made almost $500 in donations and money from the buyers. Everyone who sold gold was very surprised at the price paid by the buyers. We got commission for every gram bought. We also should get more from a seller who is planning a party. Not bad for a Sunday afternoon. Please continue to pray for our group, visit our blog often and if possible consider supporting our mission financially.

Watching some UNC basketball (vs. Oklahoma). I have to pull for the ACC, even if I am not the biggest UNC fan in the world. Should be a great game. Very windy today, at least the rain has stopped. I think we got almost 3 inches since Tuesday, which is very welcomed considering our extreme drought. The lakes and creeks still need more. There is rain in the forecast for the week; but, for now it's nice and sunny with the wind drying everything that was a little soggy.

Speaking of soggy, that drive home from Boone on Thursday was another difficult drive. Driving on 321 to and from Boone is never easy (lots of curves on the side of the mountain) but throw in some seriously thick FOG and major construction and I can tell you that my travel pay was not nearly enough this week. Promise you that. On the travel note, I take off for a site near Dayton, Ohio on Tuesday (out of Charlotte). Luckily, business is staying steady and we are gaining new sites, always nice for the bonus. We have our biggest trade shows in the next 2 months (HIMSS in Chicago and MUSE in Vancouver, B.C.) that usually means a lot of extra work for us in terms of data and testing during the shows and for leads and new customers. I am the monkey behind the curtain back home during the shows, which is fine with me. These conferences are designed for the marketing folks, I prefer the support and implementation approach. So far, things are holding steady for our applications and we are hopefully regarding the stimulus money for healthcare IT.

My trip to South Dakota will be 22Apr to 25Apr. That should be interesting. Haven't been to Sioux Falls since my 1996 trip from Tacoma to Portland, Maine with my buddy Matt Joy.

Matt and his wife sent us a beautiful coconut/sea shell wind chime from Thailand this week. We hung it in our bathroom above the bathtub. Looks great. Thanks Matt! Matt and Marcia were the couple I gave me the Germany/Amsterdam tour back in 2007.

My Allman Brothers moogis run is now complete. It was a great time and I really enjoyed the ability to hang out at home watching one of my favorite bands celebrate their 40 years of making music. The line-up now continues to create some magic on stage and pays homage to the legacy they have established. I am also happy to know that I can watch these shows any time I want during the next 6 months. I have recorded some of the audio to listen again on my car stereo and so far the results have been really good. It will take a little time to record the shows I want; but, I have 6 months!!!! Yahooo!!!!

Well, that's the weekend update. Hope you have a great week! Enjoy the spring and take time to remember that every moment is precious and we should never take it for granted. As we get closer to Easter, that thought stays with me. We are blessed and we have been given new life through the sacrifice of the Savior. We need to tell God we are thankful for that ultimate love too. Do it today!

See ya!

New Room

2009-03-25T20:34:00.003-04:00

Much better now that I am in a new room. My eyes were burning, my face burning, not good. They knew exactly what I was talking about at the desk. Tone down the Cl - there buddy.

I think I am going to watch some Survivor, call Tricia and then hit the hay. Good night to all!

We are going to get 1-2 inches of snow tonight. The 30 mile drive in the morning is going be a challenge. This is a R-U-R-A-L hospital and they are proud of it too!

See ya!

Fog in Boone, Traffic Court Fun

2009-03-25T20:01:00.002-04:00

I made it to Boone this afternoon after a long, slow drive from Hendersonville, NC. I had to hit Hendersonville for traffic court to deal with the speeding ticket from January. The court was packed, evidently the cops in Hendersonville were busy in January. I got the ticket reduced, I think to 69 in a 60; but, I am not 100%. The scene was a complete cluster and the epitome of Carolina county-level bureaucracy at work. Proud of my people, don't you know! We had to respond as to how we wanted to deal with the ticket, I choose to ask for a reduction. The fine was reduced from $30 to $10; but, the court fees of $121 stayed the same. Well, $131 is better than $151 and I'm glad to have that behind me. I will have to see how the insurance deals with this in South Carolina. The fees and points are different even though NC will report to SC.

The fog on the trip to Boone from I-40 was unbelievable. I haven't driven in that kind of fog ever. Not a fun drive other than I got to listen to the Clapton and Allmans sets. That made it bearable. Made it to the Hampton, checked emails and then headed to the Sagebrush next door. Nice steak and dessert to wash it down. The only drag is the chlorine from the pool down the hall is really starting to bother me and I think I need to move rooms. Well, I know I am.

More later, if I get the chance. If not, good night all!

See ya!

New Rose Bed, Zip Line Zen

2009-03-22T19:53:00.006-04:00

I got my cinder blocks and worked on the rose bed yesterday in the gorgeous early spring sunshine. It took a good bit of digging to level the bed since it's on a nice slope. I didn't think the cinder blocks would go over well with the Home Owner's Association, so I took the abundant sandstone and granite rocks in the empty lots and around our yard and continued the theme. It's looks worth the sore back and legs (going up the hill with the rocks). I look forward to the smell of these roses in the summer sun. Bring it on!

Lots of fun today in the yard with Dylan and Miles. We even got Miles to do the zip line from the top of the fort. Believe me, it took all Dylan and I had in persuasion skills and when it finally happened, it wasn't the best form; but, it happened! He did it and had a little roll about half way down. Now he knows he can do it. I'm glad Tricia wasn't outside, it would have been a full blown trauma drama scene. He was way uncomfortable sitting on the ledge ready for take off and was sounding just like someone we know with the "Hold On, I know, I know, just hold on." Tricia and I got a laugh out of that later when talking about the scene. But, he did it and we helped him get over the fear. I knew once he got on the ledge, the easiest and safest way to get down was the zip line.

If anyone ever ask that boy what his biggest fear is, he should simply say "heights". Period, nothing closer. I remember when Tricia took him to Edventure in Columbia, she said he became uncomfortably frightened about climbing up inside the giant boys body. She got to the top and discovered Miles was at the bottom crying and being consoled by a stranger. He doesn't do heights, neither does Tricia. I remember taking Miles to McDonald's playland as a kid, he would be terrified of going across the horizontal tube that was suspended about 12 feet up. Dylan on the other hand has always been the monkey. Sometimes, to his detriment. Dylan has other fears, namely public speaking or being in front of crowd. Definitely, NOT something Miles has a problem handling. Isn't it funny how two brothers can be so different. No, it's not funny, it's amazing and how God uses us. I'm glad they are different. I'm also glad they are both my boys. I love them, fears and all.

See ya!

Random Ramblings

2009-03-19T19:33:00.004-04:00

Sitting here watching the Tigers play Michigan. Not sure what to think right now. Looks like the Tigers are again playing under what they are capable. I see some sloppy ball handling, poor shooting and lazy set-ups. Coach P just called a timeout. Hopefully, he can get them back in the game.

Got another Allman Brothers Band show tonight. I guess I will be watching basketball on 1 screen and the concert on the other. Should be fun.

Found some MUSC friends on Facebook this week. Nice to catch up with professors and others who were in my MHA program.

Dylan had his first scrimmage for baseball today and the opportunity to try his new cleats. Unfortunately, the game/practice was canceled. I guess we will wait for Saturday. Also hope to have some friends over on Saturday to watch the ABB concert and share a dinner.

Working on Africa fundraisers this week, including the Gold Party. This is a neat idea that allows folks to sell their old gold for cash and we earn money by them showing up and selling. Hope it works! But, I am confident God will make this trip work for all of us. He has a plan and it will happen.

Watched NBC Nightly News tonight. Is there a limit to how many drug commercials you can show in 30 minutes? Do you need to have an over active bladder with rheumatoid arthritis and enlarged prostate to go with your high cholesterol to watch network news?

Got the new Internet Explorer 8.0 today. Not bad and I found it far more stable than Firefox lately as it's been crashing way too often. I try to use Google's Chrome for most non-work stuff when working (to keep things separate). I like IE 8 so far and I have been using the beta version for a month or so. The official release came out today. Check it out.

Looking forward to hopefully getting time and resources to build the rose bed this weekend. Talked with some friends in our lifegroup and they like to build them with cinder blocks. Makes sense to me and prevents the chemicals leaching into the soil from the usual railroad ties or treated lumber. Plus, the cement blocks don't rot. I can also decorate with sandstone rocks or some paint. Much cheaper for supplies too!

Still having pain in my left shoulder that has bothered me since a crash on the ski slope in January. I think I need to tell the doctor next week when I go see him. It really only hurts when I left my arm to the side (like checking the mail or using an ATM). It wakes me at night sometimes too. Not good, I know...

I am probably going to Jefferson, NC next week for a quick 1 day consultation for a site that is a beta site for one of our handheld applications. Going to Sidney, Ohio the first week of April and then off to South Dakota at the end of April. Looks like a busy month just around the corner.

No credit card use other than my prescriptions in almost 3 weeks. So far, so good!

See ya!

1x1 = 3

2009-03-16T20:32:00.002-04:00

Two things are going on here at the Johnson family home.

1. Dylan got a Multiplication Rocks DVD at the library on Saturday. Just think of it as flash cards put to rock video. Lots and lots of flash cards and even more multiplication. I think I witnessed a multiplication marathon on Saturday and Sunday. I guess it could be worse and he knows the answers and Miles is catching on too. Yes, I meant to write Miles. Math and quick responses for math is not his strong point; but, he enjoys the music and the flash cards. Did I mention the video has lots of flash cards? I close my eyes at night and see 5 x 6...

2. Speaking of 1 x 1= 3. Miles went to a human growth and development seminar today. It was divided into girls and boys in different classes. He thinks he is starting "his puberty" now. He also learned more about body fluids, especially those associated with reproduction. He's kinda embarrassed to talk about it too, so he spellls it out. Like Dylan can't spell. So, yes 1 x 1 does equal 3 or more... Tricia and I have been trying to keep a straight face at the dinner table and behind the bedroom door. God helps us, I feel like we are at the top of a roller coaster climb and just about to see the downward descent and pick up some speed. For now, let's buckle up and make sure we stay focused on keeping our hands and feet in the car. I know the 2nd round is going probably be a little rougher, that would be Dylan, so we will take this nice and steady.

Watching the 6th night of the Allman Brothers Band LIVE from the Beacon Theatre in New York City as part of their 40th Anniversary celebration. They take every Sunday and Wednesday night off (for church ?) :-). Nice and rested and they came out firing on all cylinders with a "Statesboro Blues" tonight.

Nice to see Clemson got a decent seed for the NCAA, now if we can only get to the 2nd round. Go Tigers!

I think we are done on the rain for now. There's a lot of soggy red clay around these parts right now and Keller is looking a little red himself. But, the rain is always welcomed. I did some more yard work today and have the front flower bed looking nice and purty with pansies and fresh red mulch. Next up, the new rose bed for the 3 Abraham Darby roses I have ready to transplant. It's gonna be in the 70's by the end of the week and the pink peach blossoms are ready to kick it into overdrive. Me too!

See ya!

R.S. Hornsby

2009-03-15T20:38:00.002-04:00

I have been a Bruce Hornsby fan for a long time and have seen many a Bruuuuuuuce show. I was just listening to some Bruce today and recollecting on one of my all-time favorite shows that Tricia and I went to up in Asheville on the grounds of the Biltmore Estate in 2005. The last song in the 3 song encore was "Across the River" into "Morning Dew" then back into "Across the River". It was such an incredible version and still puts goosebumps on my arm with intensity and feeling. I listened again today as I was driving home from a meeting at $tarbucks with the Africa 2009 team. I found myself thinking about what Bruce is up to these days and went to his site. I was floored to see that an integral part of that band and those concerts, Bruce's nephew, R.S. Hornsby, was killed in a car accident on January 15th. He was 28 years young and was an amazing talent. He had a very "Jerry" sounding guitar sound and played with great technique and transparent feeling. I still can't believe I am writing about him being gone and the July 2009 show at the Biltmore (or Biltmo' as Bruce calls it) just won't be the same with R.S. there over Bruce's shoulder. This is a tragic loss for the world and I really feel hollow right now.

Here's some sites to check out about R.S. and hear some tunes (some of the ones posted are my recordings) and watch this video he and Bruce doing "Standing on the Moon".

http://www.rainbowofsound.net/

http://www.rshornsby.com/

May you forever rest in Peace R.S and thank you for some of the most incredible nights under the Carolina stars at the Biltmo' that I won't soon forget. That night in 2005 with the moon coming out from behind those dark clouds and the sky clearing by the time that magical encore started will forever be a moment in time for me and Tricia. Thank you!

"Across The River" by Bruce Hornsby

She moved back around here
thirty-five weeks ago today
Oh down the lane
At night she walks on the banks
and remembers how she
Dreamed of rowing away
And how she left one day
She left with a driven look in her eyes
Came back around with it still inside
They said give it some time and
you'll forget about it too
We know they always do
Well I know

Some fine day
You will find your way Across the river
Row down slow
There's a long way to go
Across the river

She was proud and so strong
And she tried not to listen to idle talk
Downtown where she walked
They sit around and they say
That she came back with her
tail between her legs
Like they always said she would

Well I hear it's better on the other side
They say you'll never do it
so don't even try
Well you may be beaten down

with your closed mind
But don't try and make it mine
Well I know

Some fine day
You will find your way Across the river
Row down slow
There's a long way to go
Across the river

"Your wild days are
through" is what they said
I dreamed she came, when I was down and
I walked where she led

Standing on the shore
She looks to the west with a look of longing
To where the grass seems greener
There's a hard and distant prize
It probably won't happen
but I think I'll try
Well even if it doesn't happen for me
It still beats hanging around here
Well I know

Some fine day
You will find your way Across the river
Row down slow
There's a long way to go
Across the river

Night 3 and Oh Well

2009-03-12T21:29:00.002-04:00

Watching my 3rd Allman Brothers Band concert of the week and sitting right here in my office. This Moogis thing is the real deal. It's almost better than front row seats (no smoke and drunks to deal with either and that's an important thing these daze...). So far, great playing from the band and Gregg sounds fantastic. Lots of guests, sitting here watching the legendary Buddy Guy tear it up with them right now. In the first two nights the guests were Los Lobos (Cesar and David), Levon Helm (The Band) and Taj Mahal and look out, here's Trey and Paige from PHiSH walking on the stage right now. Gotta watch this, be right back...

Wow! That was cool. They ripped into Southbound with Buddy and Trey and Paige. Lots of jam on that one! I still can't believe how good the video quality and audio quality is for this online venue. Seriously, Tricia even commented on how good the video looks for online video. It's just as good as TV quality and the sound on my 5.1 speaker setup is good but I will be on headphones for the 2nd set as the boys have hit the hay.

Speaking of hitting the hay and the boys. While Tricia and I were at Lifegroup last night, Miles and Dylan got into a wrestling match and one thing lead to another and Miles ended up sitting on Dylan's face (or so the story goes) and giving him a nice bloody nose. I think the Wii will have a nice week off and Miles has about 100 sentences to write this week. It's not like we have never mentioned "no wrestling" when we are gone. Poor Gracie felt so bad about it. But, she gets another chance tomorrow night as Tricia and I are heading to a friends to help celebrate a birthday and have a fun game night with Mia and Scott and friends from Freedom.

Some good news on the Africa trip, I got a scholarship from the South Carolina Baptist convention that covers almost 20% of my trip. Thank you God! That will come in handy and at the right time. Others are also helping out! Thank you sister Amy! Working on Krispy Kreme and Pizza Inn fundraisers here too. Still have lots to do and the price of the flight is still hovering above $2000 right now. Keep us on the prayer list!

The "Oh Well" in my subject title? Seems the Clemson Tigers have completely run out of gas for the basketball season. The last place Ga Tech Yellow Jackets booted them from the ACC tourney in the first round today. Not a pretty sight as the team looked totally exhausted. I'm not sure how well we will fair in the NCAA, if we get selected. We have been on a slide since that loss to VA back in February. I'm sure UNC will take the ACC again this year...

On the work front, looks like I am heading to Sioux Falls, South Dakota in April and I have another new contract in Ohio that was signed this week, near Dayton. Full speed ahead at work and that is a good thing, considering the state of the economy. But, I do see signs that some hospitals are starting to end their spending freezes and more contracts are coming in this month than the last 3 months combined. Keep on moving!

Well, I gotta get ready for the 2nd set and for my men's group Bible study in the morning before the 2nd set starts. We are finishing Job this week and I want to be prepared. Have a great weekend! Hope this chilly weather moves on out soon, Dylan had a very chilly baseball practice tonight. Brrrr....

See ya!

Moogis!

2009-03-09T20:15:00.002-04:00

Tonight I am watching a LIVE Allman Brothers Band concert from New York City online. In fact, I am going to be doing this for 15 nights from the same theater in NYC as the band celebrates their 40th anniversary. Many guests are expected, including many of the musicians who have joined the band onstage and in the studio over the many years. What is cool is this is a High-Def video and audio feed. I subscribed to the service at the start and got in for a ridiculous $100. Not bad for 15 concerts that I can watch any time I want for the next 6 months. The show starts in a few minutes. I have invited many friends over to join me the next 2 weeks for some great music and video from my favorite band. This is gonna be fun and I don't have to travel to NYC and spend way too much money to do it!

I have also been enjoying Phish's free soundboard downloads from their reunion shows in Hampton, Virginia. The band made all of the shows available for free within hours of the shows (each night) and they sound great. The band had disband in 2004 and these are the first shows in almost 5 years. Glad to see them getting back together with positive energy and doing the right thing for the phans. Gotta love their jams and energy. Almost as good as being there, well, almost...

Clemson limped into the post season yesterday with a loss at Wake Forest, hope we can make something happen in the ACC tourney, which starts Thursday via Ga Tech. We are entering the "One and Done" stage of the season. Hope we can make it run!

Well, I got a concert in NYC to catch!

See ya!

Saturday

2009-03-07T15:58:00.002-05:00

Just hanging out today, doing some cleaning and honey-do's. It's been a busy week, despite the snow days for everyone else. It went fast for me!

Just finishing up on some Africa mission support letters and taking it easy while everyone else is out shopping and hitting the library. Don't worry, we are still very much on the Dave Ramsey budget and Tricia is taking cash envelopes to stay in focus. I did the same thing last night at Wally World for the milk. It feels good to turn this corner and know it will get easier and easier as we change the paradigm of thinking about our finances. It's definitely made communication between us more open. That's always a good thing. We are blessed and we need to start living like it and not taking it for granted.

One of the coolest things ever in my life as a parent happened yesterday. Dylan has been talking a great deal about becoming a Christian and taking the first step of giving his life to Jesus for eternal salvation. Well, he came home from school yesterday and boldly told his Mom he was ready to make that step. Tricia and Dylan were in the kitchen and I was wrapping up work. As she asked the questions, he answered sincerely and then she lead him in prayer. It was an awesome thing to hear and I waited until he was done so as to not interrupt. I went in to congratulate him and he was all smiles and so was Tricia. It was a proud moment for all of us. I made sure he knew that was just the beginning and the start of his journey. He assured me that he knew that was the first step. I compared it to starting Jedi Knight training, he knew exactly what I was talking about. It was awesome. Writing this made me think about Father's Day in 2007. That was the day Miles was baptized at Alice Drive and I was invited into the pool and was able to ask Miles of his Christian confession. That was awesome too! We look forward to Dylan taking that step later this year at Freedom Fellowship! God is Good. I told you I was blessed!!!

Enjoy these great warm pre-spring days and don't forget to set the clock ahead tonight. I am on call so I hope the computers do the right thing around 2am EST on the way to EDT.

See ya!

New Africa 2009 Blog and Gray Whale video from 2009

2009-03-03T21:55:00.002-05:00

We have a 2009 Africa blog going here. Can't wait for what God is going to do this year and beyond through our missions there. I can feel the momentum starting to build and some of my own anxiety (cost of the trip, what God wants for me in Botswana, etc). Please keep our team from Freedom in your prayers: Nancy, Julie, Jason and me. We are also going to team up with another group from Alice Drive while on the mission. That will be awesome. Check out the blog and keep up to date on this year's trip.

I posted a fun video on YouTube today of a Gray Whale watching trip I took with Amy, Susan and Aunt Jo (my Dad's only sister) from back in 2000. Susan and Aunt Jo came out to spend a week with us before we moved back. It was a fun trip and a great day for whale watching.

The family was home again today due to the 2nd snow day (just ice and crunchy snow today) and they have a 2 hour delay tomorrow. Short week, aye?

Clemson won their last home game of the year and right now Maryland is beating Wake. That is Clemson's last regular season game, at Wake this weekend. Go Tigers!

Got the new U2 album for $3.99 from Amazon mp3 store today. Sweet deal and I am still getting into the songs. Very murky, muddy sound and a little more non-verbal Bono than I would like...you know the sounds he makes between lyrics, makes me think he didn't have a good lyric so he just makes noises. Also, some of Edge's guitar licks are starting to sound like retread. But, still I paid $3.99 :-) I would love to see them on tour again... someday!

See ya!

Snow!

2009-03-02T20:43:00.002-05:00

No school today as we woke to find about 2-3 inches of crunchy snow on the ground. The boys and Keller had a blast going up and down the hill. We just got word, no school tomorrow either. Lots of water out there and some snow and the temps are going to be in the 20s. I guess Greenville County schools is going to save some money and some lives :-)

The videos are with Tricia's camera, which is why the quality isn't that good; but, you get the idea!

Snow!!!

Snow!

See ya!

Blue Belt Graduation, Snow?

2009-03-01T02:27:00.002-05:00

Miles got his Blue Belt yesterday. He did great at the graduation. He is getting close to half way to the black belt.

View Album

Get your own

Blue Belt Graduation

The Tigers lost, again... This time to Florida State. It was hard to watch this one as I could see that FSU was going to make us pay for the sloppy ball control (again). We have 2 more ACC regular season games and we are now 8-6 in the conference. Hope we can get at least 1 to stay above .500.

It's possible we may get 3-5 inches of snow by Monday. It's been raining every since Thursday and the team is supposed to drop. Should be fun.

I'm going back to bed. See ya!

No Wanee

2009-02-27T21:16:00.002-05:00

I guess all things must pass. No Wanee for me this year, not sure I wrote about that yet. Nonetheless, it's a great line-up. But, I can't do the heat of north Florida in June. It's hot enough there in April but June will be ridiculous. Really a bummer as this is the ABB's 40th anniversary and it's gonna be fun. I will wait and see them in Charlotte in the late summer/fall. I hope the Wanee makes it back to April next year as it's become a great spring trip for me and my buddies. Not going this year will also save me time and and money that I will need for Africa. If you can't tell, I am trying to rationalize it :-)

Watching Space Chimps with the boys and Tricia tonight. Really funny cartoon action. Crazy visual effects and unique storyline. Recommended.

Tomorrow is Miles' karate graduation to the BLUE belt. He is really excited and has been working hard on all the moves. This is the first graduation for him that has required more sessions, the belts past green take 2 graduation periods to earn a new belt.

Miles was an escort in a pageant for the school last night and by all reports did a great job. Dylan and I stayed home to work on his research paper on Sharks. He wrote a great paper and had a lot of fun writing it as well.

Other than the karate graduation and some grocery shopping, we are going to hang out, watch Clemson basketball (hope they can pull out a win vs. Florida State). We are also going to put some time in on our budget. Our Dave Ramsey class has some serious budget work this week. It's gonna take some work. Already working on lots of changes and just getting the ball (debt snowball) rolling.

Having fun with a new internet browser from Apple called Safari. It's the beta version of 4 and it rocks! Tabbed browsing, preview page gallery, and AMAZINGLY fast rendering of pages. Apple does it again!!! Check it out here: Safari

See ya!

Brown Spot on my ceiling?

2009-02-26T20:49:00.002-05:00

Miles decided to take a bath in his bath tub. We think that is the first bath in that tub that we can remember since moving into our new home. Tricia and I have a full-sized bath tub in our bathroom. All the baths are there for a reason. I think I have another reason. You may or may not be familiar with the overflow drain on a tub. I got more familiar with the one on this tub this week.

See as Miles was taking a bath, I hear the shuffles of the infamous "chicken dance" and Tricia starts yelling "Mark there is water coming from the ceiling!" Sure enough, the kitchen light fixture was acting like a fountain. We quickly ran upstairs and got Miles out of the tub. A little investigation found the overflow cover to be loose, which makes the gasket seal loose. You get the idea. I killed the lights, removed the light fixture and got a nice stream of water out of the ceiling.

I have left the fixture our of the ceiling for now, letting it dry out. That was Tuesday night. On Wednesday, we noticed the telltale signs of water damage on the ceiling just under the tub. Not too bad but definitely from the overflow leak. I have tighten the overflow cap and gasket and no leaks from a few showers since the accident. I should be able to handle the stains with some Kilz and some touch up paint. Oh, the joys of home ownership!

If you don't know the chicken dance, I will save it for another day; but, it has something to do with Tricia being very nervous or uncomfortable. I think water coming out of the kitchen light fixture qualifies.

See ya!

Wednesday Parking

2009-02-25T21:05:00.006-05:00

I usually pick up the boys on Wednesday because Tricia has staff meetings. There is a relatively new park just down the road on the site of an abandoned mill, a Boy Scout troop has created some trails around the mill pond and guess what, it's only opened on Wednesdays. So, I surprised the boys today and made a stop by the park. We were the only ones there and the weather was perfect. I love doing things like this with the boys, especially when they don't expect it. It's a nice break after school and a nice break from work for me. Maybe something we can do every Wednesday when the weather is right.

See ya!

Personal Testimony

2009-02-23T17:41:00.006-05:00

As I prepare to lead a group back to Botswana to work in Old Naledi, I have the opportunity to receive a scholarship from the South Carolina Baptist Convention for up to 20% of our trip cost.

Part of the application process is a requirement to write your personal testimony about your personal salvation and faith in Christ. Your calling for the planned mission is also an expected part of the testimony. Well, here it is in all it's glory. I think it must have gotten the point across because it made Tricia cry and I don't think she was sad (it's hard to tell with women sometimes, you know ;-) ).

Feel free to comment or even better take a look at my Africa 2009 page and consider any donation of support and please put the mission on the prayer list!

Africa 2009

If your church is interested in supporting our mission and would like me to come and speak and present our mission focus, please let me know also!

See ya!

Mareko morwa Johane

****************************************************************************

Personal Testimony

Mark H. Johnson

I was raised in a church-going family and made a public profession of faith and was baptized as a believer at the age of 9. This was 1979 and at Alice Drive Baptist Church in Sumter, South Carolina. I strongly believe this was a sincere and honest declaration of faith in Christ; but, it was also what was expected of me in my family. I would remain involved with Youth ministry in church throughout high school and would even go on summer mission trips (domestic) and made some statements to friends and family about feeling a call to ministry. However, I did not choose this path and in fact ran as far as I possibly could from ministry and religion while attending college at Clemson University. I basically turned off my faith and sought a purpose and calling in all things worldly. However, because he is faithful, God was still working in my life and seeking reconciliation with me as his child.

After Clemson, I joined the Army. This was another attempt to find a purpose for my life other than ministry. It was while in the Army and stationed on the west coast that I meet my wife, Tricia. Tricia was also in the Army and grew up a non-practicing Catholic in Ohio. It seemed I could continue my path without church and God in my life. Little did I know, but God brought Tricia into my life to begin the restoration and reconciliation with him and his salvation. Not long after Tricia and I married, she was sent to Honduras for a 6 month unaccompanied tour. Tricia found a group of missionaries from Michigan while in Honduras and formed a relationship with Jesus while in Honduras. Didn’t I just say God is faithful? Although I had no plans of reestablishing my relationship with Jesus when my wife returned from Honduras, it was through conversations with her and seeing the change in her that God began to speak to me and reach out to me, his lost son.

When we moved back to South Carolina in 2000, Tricia and I sought a church home for our growing family, now including our first son, Miles. I started working night shift at the hospital and we visited a few local churches when I was not working or sleeping. Then Tricia started going to services at Alice Drive, my childhood church home. Being the stubborn man I am, I initially refused to join her at Alice Drive. I took pride in quoting all the things wrong with that church that I could remember. Of course every church is not perfect because we are all human and we have all sinned. But, I was using this as a wall to prevent me from totally sacrificing my old self that I was hanging on to. Tricia was determined and really started to enjoy the fellowship she found at Alice Drive. She was later baptized as a believer at Alice Drive. Soon I found another excuse to not go to church: graduate school while working night shift full-time. But, I begrudgingly started going to Wednesday night services with Tricia and our two sons.

It was during these Wednesday night services that I joined a men’s class studying John Eldredge’s Wild at Heart. By the end of that class, a great wall had fallen between me and God and between me and my family, including my Alice Drive church family. God used that class as the tool to finally break down the remaining obstacles. I reached out to God and found my heavenly father there faithful and forgiving. In addition, I found myself enjoying the fellowship of my church family and reconnecting with my mentors and fellow brothers and sisters, many who professed to having been praying for me for so many years. I was broken and overwhelmed by all of the emotions I was feeling. How could have been so stubborn and selfish? Reconciliation with God was so easy, yet so hard. My wife’s journey to Honduras was the seed that God planted in my life to bring me back to his fellowship. Amazingly, my relationship with Tricia began to improve and we became closer than ever before. The closer my walk with God, the closer I grow to Tricia. The forgiveness and mercy that God shows me began to flow from me towards my friends and family.

Not long afterwards, I finished graduate school and I found I could now work a normal weekday shift and had the weekends free. While I totally immersed myself back into the church and the service ministries, including choir. It no longer felt silly or fake to stand in front of hundreds of people and shout to the top of my voice how Jesus had saved me, again and again. I was even blessed with the honor and privilege to be called as a Deacon to serve the church body. My ordination with old Sunday school teachers and youth mentors laying hands on me and whispering prayers and affirmations of spirit was a powerful and emotional homecoming for me. After so many years of fighting and fleeing, I had returned to God and his family.

God made another connection to satisfy my search for purpose and a calling, you might even call it a ministry. I had studied about the HIV/AIDS crisis in sub-Sahara Africa in a health policy class at MUSC. Shortly afterwards, God put a musician in my path (if you know me, that’s an easy way for God to get my attention). This musician is a South African folk singer. He and I had a long conversation about the HIV/AIDS crisis and how devastating that was to his country and homeland. Well, God never stops until his work in us is complete. We were just beginning to see the plan. A pastor friend showed up at Alice Drive a few weeks later to speak to us about his new mission focus on sub-Sahara Africa. It was like sky writing saying “Hey Mark, do you get the message now?” At the end of the service, I found myself standing in front of the pastor saying “I don’t know when or where; but, I am going with you to Africa to be the hands and feet of Jesus.” I felt such an amazingly clear vision had been presented to me and I was no longer going to stubborn and try to ignore the message and calling.

My first trip to Africa was in 2007 to the township of Mamelodi, South Africa. We worked with the children and orphanage there. We made amazing friendships and lifelong connections. Nonetheless, this church already had a huge sponsorship from a church in Ohio that was sending hundreds of workers each year. We felt overwhelmed and somewhat diminished in spirit. But, God showed us as believers and seekers he was not going to let us turn from our focus, the children of Africa. We found God was just beginning to use us. Through our first trip, we made connections with a church in Botswana that had a more critical need for help. Old Naledi Baptist Fellowship in Gaborone, Botswana is working to show the love of God and spread the Good News of his salvation to a people beaten and battered by the cycle of HIV/AIDS and poverty. Our trip in 2008 to Gaborone was the affirmation that God really has a purpose and role for those willing to put their self aside for his kingdom.

Because I had moved from Sumter to Greer between the times of joining the trip planning for the 2008 trip, I went as the out of town member. Before going, I spoke to Freedom Fellowship, our new church home, about the mission work in Botswana. I noticed after that service that God was moving in the hearts of many at Freedom Fellowship and brothers and sisters told me that God was pushing them towards Africa and the ministry there. While in Botswana, I boldly proclaimed that Freedom Fellowship would be joining in the fight with Old Naledi and we would be joining in service with Alice Drive Baptist. Moruti James of Old Naledi was more than delighted to hear that good news and I was proud to bring the report back to Freedom Fellowship. Our church is now sponsoring Old Naledi through a monthly donation for the feeding station and ministries there.

While in Botswana, I also promised Moruti James that I would be returning in 2009 to bring a group from Freedom Fellowship to serve and witness the work they are doing with the vulnerable children and orphans of the community. You know it’s easy to say those words while on the spiritual mountaintop of mission work; but, actually carry out the plans? I feel God was commanding me to take that stand and be that conduit for his Love and work in Botswana. As I look back on how God lead me to that church yard in Old Naledi, I can see his work and calling and I am amazed at his work and determination of spirit. It’s with great honor and privilege that I stood in front of Freedom Fellowship again to tell them of plans to return to Botswana to continue serving the children as the hands and feet of Jesus. For as Jesus told us in John 13:34, we are to love one another and that is how others will know us, by our LOVE for one another. That is also the verse I wrote on the church foundation and wall supports for the new church building we erected last year for Old Naledi. That is my purpose and calling that I have sought for so long. Just like the reconciliation with God that took me so long to find, it’s so easy and yet so hard. I continue to pray for God’s guidance and wisdom as we plan our return trip for 2009. I also thank you for reading this testimony of how God has brought me back to his family and given me clarity of purpose and mission for his kingdom.

Mark H. Johnson

(aka Mareko morwa Johane)

http://oldnaledifellowship.org

(please visit the web site I have developed and maintain for Old Naledi Baptist Fellowship)

John 13:34-35 (New International Version)

³⁴"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. ³⁵By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."

Old Army Buddy on Facebook

2009-02-23T17:27:00.004-05:00

It's still amazing to me how fast we can make reconnections (is that a word) on Facebook. One of my best buddies from the Army who lives in California and I are now friends on FB. Fred is the best skier I have ever known, his folks live in Berkeley and trips home with Fred to hang with the family when we had some 4 day weekends were always fun. Northern California coastline, San Fran, Golden Gate and touring Napa valley with Fred and his sister and her friend one weekend. It seems like another lifetime ago. He seems to be running his own business and finished his degree at Stanford (which is something he always mentioned he wanted to do). Check out this picture of us acting cool and all "Jack Kerouac" outside Ben and Jerry's in San Francisco at the corner of Haight and Ashbury.

His mom is Australian and actually worked for the Australian Embassy in SF. Not only did I get a chance to tour the office; but, she gave the best tours of SF ever. What a classy lady. Tricia and I also spent a wonderful evening after I got out the Army with Fred and his family on their ranch drinking Pinot Noir from grapes grown on the ranch and eating lamb, also grown on the ranch. It was a great weekend hanging with Fred and family in the California summer. It's great to catch up with old friends and see what has happened in the past 10 years or so. Life moves fast.

See ya!

No DC for Spring Break

2009-02-22T13:54:00.001-05:00

Our trip to DC for spring break is going to have to take a rain check. My sister's father-in-law has been diagnosed with cancer and they are going to spend their spring break there in Alabama. It's interesting how God works for our plans, the night before my sister let me know they were considering not going, Tricia and I had a conversation about how much it would cost for us to go and were considering it to be a burden on our plans to get our debt and finances on the right track with the Dave Ramsey program. We plan to do that trip with my sister and her family next year. It will be a fun memory to tour DC with cousins and family; but, it will have to wait until next year. We are thinking of a camping trip to the mountains in NC with the boys that week to get out of the house and have some fun locally while school is out. You know I am always willing to hit the woods and trails in NC.

We are also considering the big cancel button on the trip to Orlando that Tricia and were planning for July. This is one of those condo tours that costs a little as long as you do the tour. We will likely miss that one too as it would cost more for travel and the necessary items and dinners if we went. We are determined that this will be the year to get things on the right track. We will have time and money for trips to Florida as soon as we are free to live without debt.

Hope you got a chance to watch our Zip Line video. We had a ton of fun with that yesterday. Watching Clemson look asleep vs. Ga Tech. I hope we wake up soon.

Enjoy your Sunday! See ya!

Backyard Fun

2009-02-21T18:29:00.002-05:00

We finally got the new zip line going and boy, is it fast (if you are Dylan). It will even hold me for about 10 feet. Much bigger pole, deeper hole and tighter cable. Much better!

Also, forgot to mention the awesome time we had last Saturday with our fire pit. We gathered a bunch of big rocks from the empty lot and made a nice fire pit ring in the backyard. We had fun roasting marshmellows and I got the guitar out for a few Neil Young tunes, it was nice and mellow. My sister, Amy, joined us as did Calvin from next door. The boys were very impressed we could have a fire in the backyard. Don't worry we moved that fire pit you see in the Zip Line video. Now, it's no longer in the path waiting for someone to fall on the rocks.

Worked on the front yard, flower bed and tree bed were built up and fortified. Nice set of pansies planted too. It's looking better each day. I still have to build my rose bed for the 3 roses I got from Uncle Harold. Hoping to get the lumber for that in about 2 weeks. The cedar trees are looking good in the back along the fence, need more of those for sure.

Well, we are going to watch Madagascar 2 with the boys. Gotta run!

See ya!

What next? A Black President? Pigs Flying?

2009-02-19T09:27:00.000-05:00

Sumter to ban Smoking in Public Places

Africa 2009, New Spring, Tigers win BIG!

2009-02-18T05:36:00.002-05:00

Philippians 2

Imitating Christ's Humility

¹If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, ²then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. ³Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. ⁴Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

1. Great Africa meeting on Sunday. I think there are about 8 from Freedom who are very interested and are praying about this mission and what it will be this year. I should know in about 2 weeks as that is the deadline for the non-refundable deposit. Please pray for us and this trip and that God's work be done as we step out to be the hands and feet of Jesus to those in Gaborone, Botswana.

2. Went to New Spring church here in Greenville with my buddy, Scott Wolfe. It was a message about marriage. I think it did us both some good and was the right time for that message. Perry Noble just got back from his first trip to Africa (Kenya) and it was cool to hear him drop more stories about the trip into the message. I look forward to hearing the mission message for Africa in the weeks to come. Scott and I are trying to hit New Spring every other weekend for the 6pm service. Looking forward to the next time and following along via the podcasts.

3. Woooo Hooo! What a Tiger win last night! After falling to FSU at home and then blowing the Virginia game, I think we needed this shot in the arm more than anything going down the stretch. The first half was close; but, we dusted them in the 2nd half with some EXTREME intensity that just rattled the Maryland team. It was fun to watch and I needed that too!

I posted some stuff about 15 albums that made a difference in how I listen to music, for good or bad on Facebook last night. Albums that changed my life or albums that marked a period in my life. It was really hard to pin it down to 15 and I wanted to add so many more. Here's my list, think what you will. Yes, I have some admissions in here that I wouldn't want my kids to read but history is history and I can't deny some of past, no matter how hard I try. I do know that God has changed me through music, secular and gospel. Enjoy!

Think of 15 albums that had such a profound effect on you they changed your life or the way you looked at it. They sucked you in and took you over for days, weeks, months, years. These are the albums that you can use to identify time, places, people, and emotions. These are the albums that no matter what they were thought of musically shaped your world. When you finish, tag 15 others, including me. Make sure you copy and paste this part so they know the drill. Get the idea now? Good. Tag, you're it!

I will try to have some chronology here, starting way back when...

1. America- History
My older sister had this on LP (remember those). Cool album cover but the tunes are what got: funky acoustic jams, tight vocal harmonies and I had never heard CSNY yet. "Tin Man", "Horse With No Name", and my favorite "Ventura Highway" This one made me pick up the guitar way back when.

2. John Denver- Greatest Hits. 8 track heaven. This one reminds me of my Dad and spending time on the farm and trying to be cool while shooting pool in the hangout room at my Dad's place. All of these are still classic in my mind. "Sunshine on my Shoulders", "Country Roads", "Rocky Mountain High" and "Poems, Prayers and Promises". Still regret I never saw Denver live.

3. Def Leppard- Pyromania
First cassette that I ever bought, at Wal-Mart, no less. Also the first tape I ever played until it was worn out. How do you spell untock glibben gloppen globben? This one made me pick up the electric guitar. This one will forever remind me of Myrtle Beach and hanging out on the pier with a boombox on my shoulder trying to be cool.

4. Boston- Boston. This one took me places in the 9th grade when I got a copy. I think it might have replaced Def Leppard in the tape deck of the 1978 Mercury Monarch that was my first ride. It also became the spring break soundtrack for me. Classic rock from the first power chord and it never gets old with the beach on one side of the road.

5. Cowboy Junkies- The Trinity Sessions. It took one video on VH1 back in the summer of 1988 and I was off to Camelot Music at the mall to get this tape. I had never heard of this band but was hooked from the first listen. This one reminds me of big houses in the summer with the windows open and ceiling fans slowly turning and strangely enough some of the more mercurial relationships in my life. It's country, blues and folk in a perfect live setting that has benefited from 20+ years of devoted listenings. The Timmons family may have made the perfect album with this one.

6. Rush- Signals (aka Subdivisions). Thanks to my buddy Matt Hopkins on this one. He turned me on to Rush and 25+ years later and this one still ranks near the top. It was practically all I listened to in the summer between 11th and 12th grades. I can put on the headphones and "Digital Man" and "Analog Kid" take me to that summer. This is the album that started it all for me and what has me taking my sons to see Rush and turning them into Rush fans so many years later.

7. Led Zeppelin IV- I still remember my cousin Vickie Charles from New Orleans telling me "you gotta listen to Led Zeppelin, you might not like it now but you will love it later!" when I was just getting into rock music. I remember her cranking up "Black Dog" and smoking a cigarette and singing along in my front yard. I was blown away with her show and the tunes. "When The Levee Breaks" still freaks me out and gives me chills. A close tie would be Led Zep II and how that blew my mind when I finally stopped listening to Zoso long enough to realize that they had other great albums, every one of them.

8. Black Sabbath- Sabbath, Bloody Sabbath. Yes, I admit I was a classic Sabbath freak. Tony's guitar and Geezer's bass made me rock out like no one else could. It was heavy but funky all at the same time. This one especially got a lot of LP play time when I would study during high school. It stayed in constant rotation on the turntable between Maiden and ZZ Top albums and that's the way I would study during high school. It's a wonder I made it to college :-) It was a close call on this one between Paranoid and the first one but this is the one where they finally got it to the Beatles level of production and still had the Harley shuffle. Sorry, but I can't stand anything past this album and rarely listen to anything other than a bit of Paranoid every now and then.

9. CSNY- So Far. My freshman year at Clemson and this album are forever intertwined. "Helpless", "Helplessly Hoping", "Wooden Ships". I was also doing a lot of mind altering substances back then and this fit the speed at which I was moving back. This also introduced me to Neil Young and was a welcomed reprieve from all those Sabbath albums :-)

10. Neil Young- Ragged Glory If Neil's "Freedom" made me a Neil Young fun, then this one made me a Rustie (an obsessed Neil Young fan) and was the yin to the yang that was Freedom during the period of time when I would become immersed in the world of Neil Young.

11. Miles Davis- Kind of Blue. My oldest son is named Miles in honor of what this album has meant to my life. It's hard to remove this album from my life. The classic lineup that included Davis, Cannonball, Coltrane, Mr. PC and Bill Evans. My Dad had this on LP and I have that same LP. I can't begin to list where this takes me; but, it's a good safe place in my mind and close to heaven. It would be the desert island disc if I could pick just one.

12. Widespread Panic- Space Wrangler. I think at one time in my life I would have picked this one to be the solo desert island disc. I distinctly remember hearing "Stop Go" in the parking lot of a Dead show in Charlotte back in 1989 from the top of a RV. It made so much sense and fit like a glove around everything I liked in music. I became an ambassador for this band and would really annoy most of my friends who didn't like them by insisting we play some Panic. I can still pull this one out and "Chilly Water" will make my skin crawl and take me to the Georgia Theatre on a hot, sticky night in Athens in the late 80's or early 90's with a hazy vision of lights and a thunder of bass in my chest, just like it was yesterday.

13. Bob Dylan- Oh Mercy. I remember seeing this one in the collection of a friend at Clemson and just looking at the picture of Dylan on the back cover. Thinking to myself, this can't be any good. I could be no more wrong about a CD. I know Dylan has better albums and there are some good ones;but, this is the one that got in my head and has never left. "Most of the Time" could be his best song in my universe. This also introduced me to the magic of Daniel Lanois (U2, Neville Brothers, Emmylou Harris, Peter Gabriel, et al).

14. Grateful Dead- Dead Set. This is the one that made a Dead Head. The intense Jerry and that rhythm section from outer space. Can't help it, this is the one that did it for me. "Passenger", 'Friend of the Devil", "Fire On The Mountain" and the classic "Brokedown Palace" encore forever carved a space and time in my mind. A definitive album among many live offerings from these guys. One I can put in and go right back to a show in an instance.

15. The Allman Brothers- Live at the Fillmore. If there was 1 album that I played constantly, bordering on too many times during my Army years, it was this one. This is one that found myself thinking "how did I miss this one for so long?" I had other ABB albums and had seen the band a few times and enjoyed their work but never got the deal until the "Statesboro Blues" hit me up side the head. It was slide guitar heaven from then on...

This was way too hard to narrow down to 15 and some of these are distant relics; but, I stuck with the rules. But, I can think of many more that have changed how I listen to music or what a use to compare good albums to these days. I will stick with the rules and send it on. Hope you find something to relate to in this list, it was fun. If you get confused, listen to the music play!
Close runners up-
Abbey Road, Dark Side of the Moon, American Beauty, Brighter Than Creations' Dark, Alive, She Cried, Moving Pictures...

See ya!

No Home Phone

2009-02-17T12:52:00.001-05:00

We have turned off our home phone. The 864-895-8680 is no longer working. Call us on our cell phones or you can try me during the day on the home office phone at 864-895-5045. Saves $50/month, 1 less bill and 1 less phone to ring!

See ya!

Sheesh

2009-02-16T21:02:00.004-05:00

I can't believe the stupidity of Sheriff Lott down in Columbia. Really, did he think it would matter if he busted Mike Phelps for possession of marijuana after seeing the photo of him with a bong? There wasn't even smoke in the bong and he never said "I smoked pot"; but, clearly said "I did something really stupid that I regret." Lott seemed to relish a little of the ole Miami Vice that still creeps up from the 80's every now and then down in Columbia. It's a sad state of affairs to think we need to waste time and resources on this matter or marijuana prosecution laws any ways. To my knowledge (quick Wikipedia search) there are now 13 states in the US that basically have no fines for simple possession of marijuana. These progressive states have seen that resources can be spent better on other more dangerous drugs like meth and heroin traffic. Don't read into this to think that I am advocating that everyone smoke pot. What I am advocating is a dose of reality in our drug laws. Alcohol does far more damage to far more people than pot and it's a self-righteous double standard that exists in our laws when dealing with the two substances. Ok, climbing down off my soapbox now. Just had to get that off my chest, too many news stories about Sheriff Lott and Micheal Phelps with the bong today.

Sheesh...

See ya!

Sad Situation

2009-02-14T10:33:00.002-05:00

Here's a post on one of the most depressing news stories of the week from Freedom Fellowship's pastor, Cliff Marshall.

Alex, you done us wrong. Alex, you done Alex wrong. What happened to that phenom we knew out in Seattle?

http://cliffmarshall.blogspot.com/2009/02/you-can-even-fool-yourself.html

Wii for Christmas, round 2

2009-02-13T20:44:00.003-05:00

Found this on YouTube when looking at all the Wii Christmas videos that list with our video about the Wii. This kid really gets worked up over his Wii. Luckily, Miles and Dylan were happy but not too happy!

Enjoy!

Fender Bender

2009-02-13T20:01:00.002-05:00

It must have been Friday the 13th and the stars misaligned. I was leaving Wal-Mart after picking a few things after the Friday morning men's group Bible study (studying the book of Job, see any connection here?) and backed into a lady in a HUGE SUV who was backing into me at the same time. Guess which car won? Luckily, no lights were damaged and it just missed my gas tank cover. I was able to hammer it out from the trunk, not perfect but not worth going to the insurance fiasco circus and perhaps even having my rates go up. It's a 7 year old car that's paid for and now it has another dent, this one a little bigger. It was not the way I wanted to start my Friday.

Well, it was a busy day at work (been a long week) and that kept my mind off the the fender bender. Then to top it off my comedy of errors surrounding headphones that I have tried to get for Tricia and Miles to use with their iPods just keeps getting worse or funnier, depends on how you look at it... The first round of headphones were supposedly delivered to the house while I was in Wisconsin but never showed. The mailman testifies he put them on the porch but then again, no one checked the mail or paper while I was gone. It was the first week of school for the year and everyone was focused on other issues at hand. Well, my 2nd attempt from a Hong Kong vendor showed up today; but, the earphones are for a cellphone, not an mp3 player. Sheesh. I give up. I have now spent $40 trying to get earphones with a line-in volume control (the only way to go for mp3 players like the iPod). As I type this watching the Colbert Report I am trying to email back and forth with the store in Hong Kong with a small communication (it's called English) problem. Maybe it will be resolved, maybe not. The comedy continues.

I'm glad to see Saturday on the horizon. Sick Dad, sick kids, travel, work, fender bender...I need some down time. Yard work will be a welcomed focus. Some trees to plant, some work on the zip line. It will be better, promise.

See ya!