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2011-12-01T23:03:00.001-06:00

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Lilypie - Pregnancy ticker code selection

2010-01-23T19:18:00.000-06:00

Lilypie - Pregnancy ticker code selection: ""

Rickey Harrison 10K | Tuscaloosa, Alabama 35401 | Saturday, January 30, 2010 @ 8:00 AM

2010-01-15T13:09:00.000-06:00

Rickey Harrison 10K | Tuscaloosa, Alabama 35401 | Saturday, January 30, 2010 @ 8:00 AM

Rock N Roll Marathon

2009-12-18T13:08:00.004-06:00

This may very well be the biggest undertaking of my life. I have signed up to run a half-marathon.

You're probably thinking to yourself... "Derek? 13.1 miles? Are you ready for that? Do you think you can actually do it?" And you would be perfectly sane in that line of thinking. I've asked myself the same thing over and over. But, somehow I have found myself signed up for this. So crazy or not, here's how it all came about.

My life-long friend, Margaret, posted a link on Facebook last week suggesting that a group of us old friends get together and run this. She thought it would be a great way to reunite with old friends while doing something healthy for ourselves as well. There'll be bands and other entertainment all along the race course. The race winds all around through some of New Orleans' most beautiful historic areas. Then after the race, there's a concert in City Park featuring Cowboy Mouth and Sister Hazel. Cool stuff.

To be honest, I half-way thought about it and moved on. But Margaret persisted. And then I started noticing others that were talking about doing it. And it looked like a fun group of folks. At least 20 years ago they were. So I responded with a "Maybe" and started mentioning it to Heather.

I figured she'd say I was crazy. But she didn't. So I kept bringing it up in conversation, and she acted like it was ok with her. Hmmmm.....

So the other night, I told her that I thought I really thought that this was something I wanted to do. It would give me something to work toward (actually a whole lot to work toward), and it would be a great weekend trip for the 2 of us. We've been wanting to get down to New Orleans anyway, we just haven't actually sat down and made the plans to go.

Then yesterday, we had a meeting for some City budget stuff, and the mayor asked if I was sticking to my running on a daily basis. I then opened up my mouth and told him about the 1/2 marathon. His face lit up and he got all excited, and then he started telling me about how he had run the full marathon in New Orleans last year and how much fun it was. He kept saying how great it was that I was doing this, and how fulfilling it was going to be when I completed the race.

Well even if I wanted to change my mind I'm not going to now. He's going to keep asking me about it when I see him and he's going to make sure I continue to train and prepare myself for it. Which really is a good thing. He's an avid runner, and he can probably offer some great advice. And I can sure use all the advice I can get.

I got online yesterday and registered. I'm in with both feet now.

So. February 28th, 2010. 7am. New Orleans. 13.1 miles.

That's where I'll be. Ya'll should come join me.

www.runrocknroll.com

Ya'll have a great weekend!

Iron Bowl

2009-11-25T10:34:00.002-06:00

Well the turkey was great and the dressing was fine,
We saw all the kinfolks and had a good time,
We had leftovers for supper and we took out the trash,
Now get ready for game day and the Iron Bowl bash...

The game's in the east, over by Opelika,
You can ride in your car or hitch on with a biker,
Or if you ain't got the ticket, the time or the gas to burn,
You can sit on the couch and suffer through Gary and Verne...

Auburn comes in seven and four on the season,
And if you've got the time, they've got the reasons,
Injuries, depth, coaching changes, they've rehearsed it like singers,
Plus Tubberville left and took all his fingers...

But the War Eagle folks aren't in a 'tizik',
They got a new coach, that fella named Chizik,
They've won seven games, they're as happy as can be,
And, shoot, 3 of those wins were in the S.E.C....

They like their new coach, and if they don't, that's a shame
It just took folks six months to remember his name,
But at Bama our coach is more well-known by far,
'Bout what you'd expect ---from a movie star...

Auburn's fired up and hoping for the upset,
They're buying up all the toilet paper they can get,
But when the Tide starts risin', and their knees turn to jelly,
They might need that paper for the upset in their belly...

This year Bama's eleven and oh again,
And it's a mighty big shame that Pride is a sin,
'Cause when we say "Roll Tide!" we sure don't mumble,
If you're a Bama fan it's hard to be humble...

And speaking of humble, Auburn's guy, Ben Tate,
Came right out and said that he's the best in the state!
He was serious, he meant it, it wasn't a joke,
I guess nobody told all of those Heisman folks?

See, they think the best back is that Ingram kid, Mark
Because, as they say, "he runs it out of the park",
With a few good blocks we'll hear Eli's call, loud and true,
"Touchdown Alabama!, ball carried by Twenty-Two"...

But the Bama defense has really played well,
It's even been described as "six seconds of hell",
The Tide comes from all sides, like water jets from a fountain,
And in the middle of 'hell' stands a mighty big mountain...

Tiger fans should remember Rolando McClain,
It's really quite easy, his name rhymes with 'Pain',
That's what they'll be feelin' from this all star head-hunter,
And a busy day at work for the War Eagle punter...

We expect a good game and the licks will be violent,
The Tide fans hope that Jordan-Hare will be silent,
Except for the cheers for the crimson and white,
As they light up the scoreboard and tell Aubie, "Good night"...

They say "It ain't braggin', if you really can do it",
And the Crimson Tide is ready to get to it,
On the menu Friday night is War Eagle gizzard,
And then, next week, "Here! Lizard, Lizard, Lizard..."

RTR!

I guess I've turned into a Blast from the Past

2009-11-02T17:12:00.002-06:00

I don't even remember the last time I sat down and wrote on here. I know it's not really an excuse, but I truly have been so busy I haven't had time for much at all.

I haven't even written about Alabama football. However, we have been on the quad before and after each home game so far this year. It's been great, and of course we love getting together with everybody. And speaking of football, what the hell is wrong with Lane Kiffin? What a whiney little jerk!

We're still working on the fertility thing. Our first round of IUI resulted in a negative test. But we're not letting that get us down. We're still doing the shots and trying for a baby, and when God wants it to happen for us it will. We're also looking at adoption agencies and trying to decide which one will be best for us.

We stayed on the road all this past weekend. Mama's sister, Laura, passed away last Thursday. The funeral was Saturday in Graceville, Florida. So Heather and I drove down to Mama's Friday evening and went to the funeral with them. Then Saturday evening we came back to Mama's, and then back home, so that we could be up and in Birmingham at the fertility clinic for bloodwork on Sunday morning. We ate sushi for lunch and did some shopping while we were in Birmingham, and then came home and chilled out the rest of the evening.

I ended up getting the Associate Finance Director job here at the City. The fact that I was doing 2 jobs is a large part of why I've been so busy. But we have interviewed for my old position and hope to have it filled in the next week. Then things can begin to get better.

Thanks for being patient. I have still been keeping up with you guys. Just haven't been able to share.

Hope ya'll have a great week!

2009-09-21T12:58:00.004-05:00

I'm beginning to think I may need an ark. It has rained and rained and rained in Tuscaloosa. We've had our ferns out in the yard for the past week, and they are loving it! And my grass has never been greener.

But there are times when I wish the rain would stop. And there were several of those times this past weekend.

Thursday night, Heather came in from the hospital and said that she thought something had bit her all over. She was itching and her skin was blotchy. She took some benadryl and went to bed. Then Friday morning, she woke up looking like a freak show. She was swollen all over and was covered in hives. So she went to the doctor and found out that she was having a reaction to the antibiotics that she was taking for the crud she'd had the week before. They gave her a shot and put her on a week of steroids, and it seems to be helping a little.

Friday night, our friend Jessica came over while Chris was doing ballgame parking stuff with the Scouts. We sat outside until the rain forced us back in, and then Heather and Jessica worked on shelling the peas I had brought home Thursday.

Notice how Heather looks like a China-man with her swollen eyes.

Saturday morning, we woke to heavy showers outside. I had gone out to the Quad at noon on Friday and put our tents out. So on Saturday, we just had to take the chairs and cooler and food. We got ready and headed on over and were on the Quad a few minutes past 8am. Chris and Jessica arrived shortly after.

We normally have a huge tailgating group. But this weekend, the usual folks weren't making it out there for one reason or another. So since it was just the 4 of us, we decided to keep things simple.

But our lives are never simple.

It was raining when we got out on the Quad. And when we got to our spot, one of the tents had collapsed under the weight of all the rain. So I got absolutely drenched from the start. But I got the tent somewhat put back together, and we finally got things set up so we could relax.

Sorry those pics are so blurry. Something funny was going on with the camera on my phone.

The sun finally came out, and of course the Tide rolled and rolled! It was a great day!

We did end up getting wet one more time before we left the Quad, so yesterday I hung everything out to dry before packing it all back up.

This should be a big weekend for us. Arkansas may put up a fight. I'm sure we'll be ready for them though.

Ya'll have a great week. Roll Tide!

Happy Labor Day!

2009-09-07T10:04:00.004-05:00

City Hall is closed today for Labor Day. So I took advantage of having peace and quiet around the office and got caught up on some things that needed to get off of my desk.

When I got downtown this morning, I noticed police on every corner. And it looked like they were in their personal vehicles, even though they were in uniform.

Hmmm.... That got me wondering what was going on. But I came on inside and started working.

But, ya'll may remember that we had a bomb threat here a few months ago. And those kind of things just don't really ever leave your mind. Always a chance some fool will do something crazy.

So I emailed our City Clerk, Tracy Croom, who usually knows if something is going on. I knew it would go straight to her Blackberry and she'd let me know if I needed to get out fast.

Then I heard drums. And I looked out the window and saw a band.

It's the Labor Day parade!

I immediately sent Tracy a message back and told her I'd figured it out. Then I went downstairs to watch the parade.

Something funky was going on with my phone, so the pics aren't great.

But here's what I got. Sorry about all the equipment and orange cones in the pictures. Downtown is still under construction.

No matter how large or small, you just gotta love a parade!

Happy Labor Day!!

Roll Tide

2009-09-07T09:32:00.003-05:00

I have 2 things to write about today. And the first is how pumped up I am for this coming weekend. It's our first gameday in Tuscaloosa, and we've been phoning and emailing with all our tailgate crew to get ready for the big day.

This past Saturday, the Tide rolled over VA Tech in Atlanta! As I told you a while back, I sold my tickets this year and watched the game at home with friends.

Friday afternoon, I was just sick over my decision. I just couldn't believe I had actually thought to do such a thing. What kind of a fan am I?

Then Saturday morning, I got up to a rainy day. Clouds and rain were doing nothing to boost my spirits. I turned on ESPN Gameday and then turned it off. I couldn't watch it.

So I loaded up Hershey and we went over to Chris and Jessica's to help them with a landscape project they were working on. Jessica's parents were here from Pelham to help, and they actually had very little left to do when Hershey and I arrived. It poured down rain at one point, and we had to move under the porch for a bit, but after about 2 hours, their back yard was finished. I took a couple of pictures with my phone. I'm sure they won't mind me sharing.

The area with all the rocks was an area where the water just poured through their back yard. So Chris built a "dry creek bed" for the water to flow through. Since it was constantly raining, we all got to see that it works as planned. They did a great job, and quite frankly, I am now wanting to do the same in the bottom part of our yard where the rainwater flows from the neighbors yard on its way to the creek out back.

About 4pm, Adam go to the house and we started watching the Georgia game. Then our friends, Libby and Megan, from Birmingham arrived. Then Jack & Leigh Kennedy with their new little girl, Emma. (Emma only stayed about 30 minutes since she has only been home from the hospital a week. Then Leigh's mom came and took her back home.) Then Chris and Jessica, and Katie and Aidan and Ethan all arrived.

I'm sorry, but I forgot to take pictures. I'm not sure all of the food would have fit in a picture anyway. I had lost about 20 pounds until Saturday, and I'm sure over the past couple of days, I have put 5 of them back on.

We ate and drank and cheered on the Tide (and Auburn, too). And it was a great night for the Tide and the Tigers both. We have such great friends, and I didn't regret my decision to stay in town one bit! It was an awesome night!

I made something new that our friend, Debbie Watson, makes. It's a cheese ring with strawberry preserves. Oh my gosh, it was so good. I told several people Saturday night that I would share the recipe, and most of them read this, so I'll share with all of ya'll. Here goes....

Cheese Ring

1 pound of finely shredded cheddar (sharp and mild mixed)
2 cups of mayo
1 package of cooked bacon pieces
1 tsp cayenne pepper
3 or 4 finely chopped green onions
strawberry preserves

Mix everything except the preserves together in a bowl.

Then pour into a round mold. (I didn't have a round mold, so I used a flat round pyrex dish, lined it with plastic wrap, and put a small round dish in the middle to leave a hole.)

Cover and refrigerate overnight.

When you get ready to serve, turn the whole thing over onto a plate, or cake server, or whatever you want. Then remove the mold and the plastic wrap.

Fill the center with the preserves and spread preserves over the entire top of the cheese mold.

We served ours with Sociables and Wheat Thins and it was good with both.

Note: I do have a fish mold, but Heather told me that the preserves would make it look like a bloody fish, and I didn't think that would be too appetizing.

I may do this again for the tailgate this weekend.

Roll Tide! Ya'll have a great week!

Trying New Things

2009-09-03T09:15:00.003-05:00

Every morning on my way to work I pass this little drive-thru coffee shop called "Cuppy's." For a while there, I stopped every morning. I kinda got hooked on their vanilla latte, and thought I couldn't start my day without one.

At the same time, I was on a big time diet, but I never even thought about the calories in that latte until Heather's sister pointed it out to me. Cheryl works for Royal Cup Coffee in Birmingham, so she's our go-to person when it comes to anything coffee related. She told me that I should ask for a "skinny" latte, which is made with skim milk instead of whole, and that I should ask for sugar-free vanilla syrup. So I changed to that.

Then Cuppy's changed the syrup to another brand, and my coffee started having a medicinal after-taste to it. So I quit it cold turkey and just started drinking coffee at the office.

Until this week.

I've stopped 3 times and until today I've just gotten a large regular coffee. But this morning I thought I'd try the latte again.

"I'd like a large sugar-free vanilla skinny latte, please."

Maybe I spoke too fast for the girl to understand. Or maybe it was just too early in the morning for communication. Regardless, when she handed me my drink, I thought, "what the hell is this?"

Yeah, that's ice. In my coffee.

I've heard of iced coffees, and I've seen them in the cooler at convenience stores, and I've always thought that sounded pretty nasty. So when she handed me an iced latte, I figured I'd just wasted $4 and some change.

But then I tasted it. And it is gooooood!!!!!!!

I wish I had two.

So cheers to trying new things.

Alabama football is day after tomorrow!

Roll Tide!

Ya'll have a great day.

Budget

2009-09-02T10:06:00.002-05:00

There it is. The very thing that has been keeping me away from you all so long. It's the Mayor's budget recommendation, and it has consumed my life for the past month. Last night he presented his budget to the City Council in the form of a power point presentation. The news is bleak. We have a lot less to operate with this year than last year.

But Tuscaloosa is in a whole lot better shape than other cities in our state, and we should weather this economic storm and be ok.

So over the next 3 weeks, the council will go over the budget line by line and should have the final draft ready to adopt on September 29th.

Maybe I'll have time to write a little more. I still haven't posted about our fishing trip weekend before last. Thanks for hanging in there with me.

3 days til Alabama Football!!!!

Roll Tide, ya'll. Have a great day!

The New Adventures of Tom and Huck

2009-08-25T10:13:00.009-05:00

So sorry it's been so long since I've written. It's Budget Time at the City, and things have been wildly busy.

A couple of weeks ago, I told ya'll that Heather's brother, Hess, and I were taking a boat trip. Hess mentioned to me one night that he wanted to go down to Orange Beach via the river, and since I'd always wanted to do the same thing, I jumped on that bandwagon and we started making plans.

Almost immediately, we were met with opposition. You'd have thought we were trying to sail to Timbuktu.

"Ya'll will never make it."

"Do you know how far that is?"

"You need a bigger boat."

"You're camping on a sandbar in the middle of nowhere? Better listen for banjos!"

We didn't care though. We were going to make it come hell or high water.

So on Friday night, Heather's parents took us to Myrtlewood and we launched the boat into the Tombigbee River. It was about 7pm. Hess' wife, Carrie, would leave the next morning with the truck and trailer and meet us at the beach.

We had that boat loaded down. We had tanks and cans with 50 gallons of extra fuel. We both had our backpacks loaded down with extra clothes and gear. We had my tent, our sleeping bags, our sleeping pads, and Hess' camp stove (for coffee the next morning.) We also had a cooler with ice and drinks. We were ready.

Hess had gotten the marine application for his GPS, and I had written down the coordinates at our marina the week before when Heather and I were down there. So we knew kinda where we were going.

The original plan was to head down the river to Ezell's and eat catfish for supper, but Carrie fed us spaghetti with homemade cheese bread that she bought from the Mennonites before we left, so we kept on going past Ezell's and figured we'd go for couple of hours and camp.

Mama had called me the night before and reminded me that the Army Corps of Engineers has a campground just north of the Coffeeville dam. I told her that there'd be no way we'd make it that far Friday night. But I was wrong.

We had been traveling for a while. And it had gotten dark. And then darker. And I couldn't see where I was going anymore. So I told Hess to keep looking for a sandbar, and that we would need to stop at the next one he found. But we were in kind of a swampy area, and there were no sandbars to be found. So we just kept going.

This is about where Hess started wigging out on me. When he'd turn the spotlight on, all you could see was a wall of bugs. I knew they were there because about a dozen had already flown into my mouth and eyes. But they kind of freaked Hess out a little. Then he shined his light off to the side of the boat, and a crane was sitting on a limb that was sticking up out of the water pretty close to the boat. So we were probably a little shallower than we should have been at 30mph in the darkness.

Around the next bend, we saw the beginnings of lights ahead. All along the riverbank was all these lights. It was the campground, and it was about 9:30pm. We had made it to Coffeeville! The next thing we saw was this big reflective "Warning! Submerged Dam Ahead!" sign. And this time we both freaked. I slowed down to a crawl and we turned ourselves around and away from the dam. I wanted no part of that freaky thing at night.

We headed up to the Corps of Engineers campground and found a grassy spot with a seawall in front of it, so we tied the boat and set up the tent. It was hot and muggy, and I nearly sweated myself to death in that tent, but we managed to get a few hours sleep before somebody came by and blew a horn at us around 6am.

I think we really should have registered and paid to camp. But what were we supposed to do at 9:30 when we obviously couldn't keep traveling south?

Hess made coffee and some breakfast while I took down the tent and packed the boat. It was about this time that I realized my cell phone was completely dead. And it had been fully charged the night before. Hmmmmm....

Hess filled up the tank, and commented that we were burning quite a bit of gas. But we weren't worried, because we had mapped out marinas along the way. So we were pretty sure gas would not be a problem.

Hess called the lockmaster and told him we wanted to lock through. We were told it would be about an hour because a tug boat was coming through. We could go after him. So we took our time getting ready to go, and then the boat wouldn't start.

We tried and tried and tried to crank it, but no luck. Hess took the cover off of the motor and I tried cranking again while he looked around. Then he saw why we had burned so much gas. We had a hole in the fuel line. And a big hole at that. So Hess started saying something about calling Carrie to come and get us. But I persisted. We could call Daddy to bring us a fuel line. He was only about 30 miles from us at that point. Or we could try to just fix it. Which Hess did. He cut off the line at the point of the hole, and finally got it reattached.

And the boat still wouldn't crank.

You know how sometimes you just know that you are in a certain place for a reason? Well there was a reason we made it all the way to that campground Friday night. A couple from Grove Hill, AL was fishing with trot-lines and saw that we were having trouble. And the man was a mechanic. Now how about that?

He helped us for about an hour with no luck. Then when we were about to give up hope again, he mentioned the kill switch. I unclipped it, put it back on, turned the key, and the motor came to life! Whew! I almost thought we were going to have to call Carrie afterall.

We rode back up to Bobby's Fish Camp and refilled the tanks with gas. Then we called the lockmaster again. We had both noticed that no barge had come by us. And this was a couple of hours later than our first call. The lockmaster told us that the barge had broken down, but that it was back up and running and would be out in about 20 minutes. It actually took about 45 minutes, but we were finally able to get through and keeping heading downriver.

You see things so much differently from the river than from the car. We were basically running close to parallel with Highway 43, and we could tell from the GPS what towns we were passing. I grew up in Jackson, but had to look twice when we went under the Joe McCorquodale Bridge. Then later on we passed Thyssen-Krupp, the new steel plant that is being built in Calvert. It is huge and so much more impressive from the water.

The weather was perfect, and the scenery was absolutely beautiful. We were seeing parts of our state that we had never seen before. And we were having a blast.

We kept looking at the GPS for guidance, because the river has a lot of turns and quite a few forks, and for the most part we did fine. But just north of Mobile, we took a left when we should have taken a right. We had planned to follow the shipping channels to Mobile and cross over the tunnel, but instead we ended up following the course of the Bartram Canoe Trail and bypassed Mobile, heading instead toward Daphne and the Eastern Shore. Which worked out just fine for us.

About 3pm we entered Mobile Bay. It was here that we filled up with gas for the 3rd and final time. I then pointed the boat toward Point Clear and we headed across the bay.

Up until this point, the ride had been fairly smooth. But when we enter the waters of Mobile Bay, the winds picked up and the water got really choppy. I had to slow down to keep from being knocked through the bottom of the boat.

We rounded Point Clear and headed on to our destination, the intercoastal waterway. We could see Fort Morgan road in front of us, and knew that we needed to be headed toward the Gulf Shores end of the road. So we used that as a guide.

One thing we noticed was that from out in Mobile Bay, you can actually see both Fort Morgan in Gulf Shores, and Fort Conde in Mobile. We both agreed that we had always wondered how those fort actually protected Mobile Bay when they were so far apart. But being out there in the middle of them brought a new light to how things must have worked. The forts didn't seem that far apart afterall.

We found the intercoastal waterway with no problems, and followed it along until we got to our marina. It was 5:10pm.

We made it.

We got off the boat and fatigue hit us both about the same time. We were hot, sweaty, salty, and both in need of showers. Carrie and the kids were headed down the street to the "Little Beach", a neighborhood beach area, and were surprised to see us so soon.

Hess at that point admitted that he was surprised too. I couldn't believe it. I had full intentions of making it. And we did.

We all went out and ate at the Fish Camp for supper. And after over 300 miles on the water, and then an all you can eat seafood buffet, I was down for the count.

We've talked about making the trip again. We've done it once, so we could do it better the next time. And although we'll definitely have fun doing it again, this first time had that excitement of the unknown to it that the future trips probably won't. But who knows what the next one will have in store? You just never can tell.

I hope ya'll have a great week!

Busy, Busy!

2009-08-18T14:41:00.004-05:00

I know you all are just dying to know about the latest adventures of Tom and Huck, but be patient. I've been so busy the past couple of days I have barely had time to breathe.

I'm heading back to Orange Beach this afternoon after work. I'll be down til Sunday, so maybe I'll have some time to catch up on things.

Ya'll just hang in there with me.

18 days til Bama Football!!!! Roll Tide!

Weekend

2009-08-12T16:36:00.006-05:00

I have really got a big weekend coming up.

Heather's brother, Hess, has a new boat. It's a 19 foot Carolina Skiff. And he's itching to take it on a trip.

So Friday afternoon, I'm heading down to Demopolis to meet up with Hess. From there, we will drive down to Myrtlewood and launch the boat in the Tombigbee River. And we're heading to Orange Beach.

I've always wanted to make the trip by river, but never have had the opportunity. So I am excited as heck about this!

We're planning to travel a few hours on Friday and then camp out on a sandbar. We've discussed tents, and I realized yesterday afternoon that I have a tent that I had forgotten about. It's a 4 man, which will be great. Otherwise, it's a 1 man backpacking tent or a big huge walk around inside tent.

Saturday morning we'll hit the water again bright and early. We figure it will take 16 hours or so.

We've mapped out the marinas and Hess has borrowed extra gas cans. So we should be good there. And I've started gathering my camping stuff and a few bare necessities in a corner of the kitchen.

Heather made sure I have plenty of batteries, so I'll be able to document the whole adventure. Should be interesting.

Hess' wife is heading down Saturday morning with the truck and boat trailer. So if we have problems along the way, she could always stop and get us. But we're hoping for no problems and smooooooth sailing. Except we won't really be in a sailboat.

No matter what happens, we'll have fun. And years from now, we'll be able to look back and say,

"Remember when we boated all the way to Orange Beach?"

or

"Remember when we had the crazy idea to take the BOAT to Orange Beach?"

I can hardly wait!

24 days!

2009-08-12T16:24:00.003-05:00

I'm doing something that I never thought I'd ever do.

I'm selling my Alabama vs Virginia Tech tickets on StubHub.

It just about killed me to do it. But when I weighed going to Atlanta and spending $500 on the weekend, or selling the tickets and making a little cash, common sense won out for a chance.

Last year, Adam and Katie went with us to Atlanta to the Clemson game. Adam and I went to the game, and Heather and Katie went Atlanta shopping. And it was a whole lot of fun. That is until the girls wanted to tour the World of Coke after Adam and I had stayed out til 4 in the morning. We had a great time, but as always, we spent the tar out of some money.

Heather works that weekend, anyway, so she couldn't go this year. And I've committed myself to buying 150 ft of red and white candy cane rope lights to go around all 4 of the tents at our tailgate. Not cheap! So I've told all my friends, and what the heck... I'll tell ya'll too. We'll watch it at our house. We've got the new TV and the high def dish on the roof. We'll eat, drink, and cheer on the Tide. It'll be great! And we'll miss the Atlanta traffic to boot.

And I can hardly believe that all this will happen in only 24 days!

Roll Tide, ya'll!

Birdseed Bandit

2009-08-10T09:30:00.003-05:00

We have a new friend at out house. Except he's really not a friend, because what kinda of friend does this to your brand new 50 pound bad of bird seed?

The culprit is a big ole raccoon. I saw him Friday night while we were sitting on the deck. The fence gate was open and he came bounding through. When he saw us, he took off back the way he came.

Heather said then that he was probably the one who had eaten the food in the garage. I didn't know what she was talking about. Then Saturday morning, I saw it.

Needless to say, the buffet is now out of business. My neighbors better look out!

Roll Tide!!

2009-08-05T11:07:00.002-05:00

The football tickets came Monday!

31 Days!!!

Roll Tide!

39 Days.....!

2009-07-28T08:48:00.004-05:00

ROLL TIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!

Lake Harris

2009-07-27T16:34:00.012-05:00

Saturday morning I got up wanting to get outside and play. So Heather and I loaded Hershey up and went out to Lake Harris. I hadn't been out there in years, and I'm still not sure that we were exactly where I remembered going to before. The main thing was just to get outside and enjoy the nice weather.

The university ski team uses Lake Harris to practice. I can remember back in college going out there and watching them do stunts and tricks. Nobody was out there on Saturday when we arrived though.

I also remember one time some friends and I went hiking through the woods to this huge natural whirlpool. I thought that was where we were headed Saturday. But I was wrong. I think that might have been at Lake Nicol, which is still very close.

Heather pointed out a trail that she had been on before, and we started out. We could look out over the lake from high above on the cliffs.

The trail was fairly rocky, and very hilly. Hershey was all excited to begin with, but she tuckered out on all those hills, and her enthusiasm over being included in our adventure soon wore off.

When we got to the bottom at the creek, she found a puddle and plopped herself down into it.

This was the back side of another small dam.

And then we followed the creek.

I thought this was going to be the whirlpool. But it wasn't. That will be another day's venture.

Hershey got hot and had to find her a shade to sit under.

We stayed for a while and played in the water. But we eventually had to head back to the car. And guess who was too tired to walk back? Yup. Hershey. She'd make a few very slow steps and stop. And then another couple of even slower steps and stop. So I carried a wet dog most of the way back to the car. At least up the hills anyway. She was pooped!

Our friend Ben Judd got married Saturday night and we went to the wedding and to the party after. I don't think Hershey even knew we had left the house!

Ya'll have a great week!

Nick's.... use your imagination

2009-07-24T16:12:00.003-05:00

Last night we decided to visit one of Tuscaloosa's best kept secrets... Nick's in the Sticks.

Nick's is one of those hole in the wall concrete block buildings that you find in every town that has been there forever because they are good at what they do. Nothing fancy... there's no need for anything like that. Just good food, pure and simple.

The walls are covered with old photos of Alabama football players and the ceiling is covered with dollar bills that people have signed and dated. The tables are formica and show years and years of wear. They pack folks in, and we were lucky to grab the last empty table in the house, so we didn't have to wait.

Nick's has great big ole hamburgers that get all messy and drip juices everywhere, and they serve them up with french fries or homemade onion rings. They've also go a mean hamburger steak. But the thing that always keeps me coming back is the filet.

Last night I was starving when I got there. So we ordered onion rings to start with, then moved on to our salads. I really do wish I had gotten pictures. They serve the salad with no dressing, and then give you one of those old round servers with 3 bowls all around it. You can have French, Ranch/Blue Cheese mixed, or Thousand Island. Pass em around.

Then our waiter brought our steaks. They were cooked to a perfect medium rare, and were falling apart in your mouth tender. I had to make myself eat mine slow so that I could enjoy it as long as possible.

I tried to take pictures, ya'll. I really did. But Heather wouldn't let me. She was embarrassed. So you'll just have to visualize it all in your head.

Next time I'll have to leave her at home so I can share it all with you.

:)

Hope ya'll have a great weekend!

Hot Lips Hoolihand

2009-07-23T16:27:00.003-05:00

Just wanted to let ya'll know I'm still here. This has been a busy, busy week, and I just haven't had time to stop and post anything.

We're a bit short staffed at work, and I'm kinda playing a dual role. That began on Monday. Our village idiot was sent packing, much to the joy of everyone who works here. Both jobs still have to be done though, and that has made life pretty chaotic for me. But even though it's hectic, it's a good thing.

But anyway... enough excuses.

Our nephew, Mitch, who is 11, stayed with us from Monday morning til Tuesday afternoon this week. We had a great time. We fished on the Wii, ate Mexican Monday night, ate chocolate ice cream, and played with Hershey. His mom got off of work at lunch Tuesday and had planned to pick him up after she went to get her hair done.

Heather told Mitch that his mom has at the beauty shop, and to make sure he gave her a compliment when she came in.

So. When B came in the door, Mitch said, "You look like Margaret off of M*A*S*H!"

B did not take that as a compliment.

I thought it was hilarious.

Hope ya'll are having a great week. Tomorrow is Friday!!!!!!

There's so much in this post that I can't even think of a title....

2009-07-20T14:19:00.009-05:00

We had such a hectic weekend.

I woke up Friday morning about to starve to death. SO all morning I ate. I couldn't get enough and nothing satisfied me. I even left the office mid-morning and made a trip to Publix for bananas and Dole fruit bar popsicles. I ate the bananas, but after lunch, I realized that I was miserable and that we were going to eat Hokkaido for supper, so I left the popsicles alone.

I told ya'll on Friday that Sharee and Ethan were coming to visit. They got to the house around noon and Heather entertained them until I got home.

I came in the door with my groceries that were leftover from the trip to Publix, and had a package to open. Then Sharee had to open her birthday presents from us. Then I had to change clothes, all the while Ethan is telling me to hurry up. And then finally we were on our way to eat.

We ordered a whole lot of sushi, and then ordered from the grill as well. I love sushi for breakfast, so I wanted to make sure that if Ethan and Sharee took a liking to it, that I'd still have plenty to take home. And I did. Ethan had one piece and decided he'd rather have his fish fried... and that he'd really rather just stick with fried catfish.

Heather slipped away during dinner and told one of the waitresses that Sharee was celebrating her birthday. Now if it had been my birthday, we may have had a problem. I'm a complete party pooper when it comes to singing in a restaurant. But Sharee was a good sport. And she got free ice cream, and her picture taken wearing a Japanese dunce cap.

Then we shopped. And shopped. For over 2 hours. I had bought 9:30pm movie tickets to make sure we had plenty of time and weren't rushed. We had plenty of time.

Harry Potter was great. I thoroughly enjoyed it. But I wanted more. I felt like it left me hanging in the end. Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that halfway through the movie, I remembered the grocery bag that was still sitting on the kitchen cabinet. And the popsicles that were melting in that bag. Maybe that had me a little bit distracted.

We got home, unwound, tried to refreeze the popsicles, and got in bed around 2am. (yeah! 2am!)

Saturday morning we went over to campus to the Bryant Museum. I hadn't been there in years, and although a lot was the same, so much had changed or been added. We spent a good part of the morning there, watching videos, looking at trophies, seeing the replica of Coach Bryant's office, and visiting the giftshop.

It was very cool. Even Ethan, who has had his mind poisoned by his Daddy and is an Auburn fan, enjoyed himself. We left there with "Yeah Alabama" in our ears and Tide Pride in our hearts.

It was such a nice day, that we decided to spend a little time on campus. We went around the quad and then walked around over at the Ferguson Center. We couldn't have asked for more perfect weather.

Saturday night I fixed us a low country boil for supper. We had shrimp, crab legs, potatoes, conecuh sausage, corn on the cob, and onions. We all made pigs of ourselves! It was soooo good.

I didn't have any newspaper to dump it all on, but we did have those colored bowls that Heather got from Dollar General last year for $1 each! So we just dumped everything into about a dozen or so bowls and dug in.

Sunday I ended up coming in to the office for a while. When I got home last night, the DirectTV guy had been by to upgrade us to high definition. I had asked that they use the same pole, or at least try to use the same holes, and I had thought that I would be home when the guy arrived, but instead of getting there between 8am and 12pm as told to me on the phone, he actually got there about 2pm. And I was at the office. So when I got home, this is what I found...

Yes. That is a bare pole on the side of the house where the old dish once lived. And the new dish is mounted ON THE ROOF! THROUGH THE SHINGLES! WIRES ARE EVERYWHERE!

But the picture on the TV is incredible. I walked in the den last night and thought Hank Hill was in there with me. And Heather has been overly impressed with the maps on the Weather Channel. So I guess I'll try to paint over those wires and make the best of it. Let's just hope the roof doesn't leak.

Happy Blogoversary to Leigh over at Bloggeritaville. She's giving away stuff all week to celebrate, so make sure you go by and visit with her. You can follow the link from here on my page.

I sure hope ya'll have a great week.

Hogwarts Tonight!

2009-07-17T10:14:00.004-05:00

I got our Harry Potter tickets!

My sister, Sharee, and my nephew, Ethan, are on their way from south Alabama to Tuscaloosa to spend the weekend with us. Sharee's birthday was yesterday, so they decided to get out of town and hit the road.

She called the other night and wanted to know if we could do sushi at the house one night while they were here. I told her I didn't even know they liked sushi. Well, they don't know... they've never tried it. So I decided that home would not be the best venue for a first-time sushi experience. It's fun and all, but lets face it, I am no sushi chef and it is sooo much better in a restaurant.

So we are going to Hokkaido for dinner. It's a hibachi-style place, and I thought it would be entertaining for Ethan. Heather and I usually just sit at a regular table. I don't think you can talk as well at the grill, and I'm usually kind of picky on who else I eat supper with. But tonight I think we'll go for the whole experience. And we can order sushi and have other options as well. My mouth is already watering for that rice with shrimp sauce... mmmmmmmmmm!!!!!!!

Then, it will be time for the main event. HARRY POTTER!!!!

I went ahead and ordered my tickets just in case they sold out. I'm ready.

I don't know what we are doing tomorrow. Maybe the Bryant Museum. Heather and Sharee may shop. Adam reminded me yesterday that there's a boat auction in town in the morning. Or we may go to Tannehill for Trade Days. I'm kinda thinking low country boil for supper....maybe with some friends too. I have a new cooker that has never been used. It needs to be broken in.

Whatever we do, I'll be sure and let ya'll know.

Have a great weekend!

No More Stitches!

2009-07-16T13:57:00.005-05:00

Yesterday marked day number 6 since I had George removed from my arm.

I went home yesterday afternoon determined to convince Heather that the stitches had been in my arm long enough. I was afraid that they were about to become a permanent part of me.

She and Jessica had just come in from Birmingham. Heather had a doctor's appointment at the ARC Clinic (that went very well, by the way) and then they had shopped, had lunch at Tavern on the Summit, shopped some more, had their nails painted all different colors at the MAC store, shopped some more, and then made their way back to Tuscaloosa.

Poor things were tired.

But Heather loves anything medically gross, and Jessica, who seemed just as excited about pulling things out of my arm as Heather, volunteered to help.

They obviously were not as tired as they let on to be.

So I sat down on the sofa and braced myself. And it was a good thing that I did because Heather at that point announced to us all that my arm may have gotten to the stinky stage.

Whoa. Put the brakes on. Nobody told me anything about stitches being stinky. Furthermore, I do not stink. In fact, I put quite a significant amount of value on good hygiene. I have bathed at least twice a day for the past 6 days. My arm did not stink, and I made sure I let them both know that.

So we moved on.

Jessica held the flashlight and narrated what was going on for me since I wasn't about to watch. At one point she told me that I was half-way done though. Yeah!!!!Then just about that time Heather announced the removal of stitch #2. I had 7. And Jessica is a teacher. 2 is not half-way to 7, Jessica.

It pulled quite a bit, and managed to suffer through the process, but I think I must have ended up being possessed by some foreign being. Look at my eyes.... hisssssss!

Now I am stitchless, although I do have steri-strips on there for a couple more days.

Everybody at work has been commenting on my arm today.

Hope ya'll have a good day, and I hope you are getting some of this good rain.
We sure do need all we can get of it.

Sorry... I couldn't resist....

2009-07-15T10:26:00.002-05:00

A man is dining in a fancy restaurant and there is a gorgeous redhead sitting at the next table. He has been checking her out since he sat down, but lacks the nerve to talk with her.

Suddenly she sneezes, and her glass eye comes flying out of its socket toward the man. He reflexively reaches out, grabs it out of the air, and hands it back.

'Oh my, I am so sorry,' the woman says as she pops her eye back in place...

'Let me buy your dinner to make it up to you,' she says.

They enjoy a wonderful dinner together, and afterwards they go to the theatre followed by drinks. They talk, they laugh, she shares her deepest dreams and
he shares his. She listens.

After paying for everything, she asks him if he would like to come to her place the next evening for dinner.

She cooks a gourmet meal with all the trimmings. They had a wonderful, wonderful time. The guy is amazed. Everything had been SO incredible!

'You know,' he said, 'you are the perfect woman. Are you this nice to every guy you meet?'

'No,' she replies. . .

'You just happened to catch my eye..'

HA!

Have a good one, ya'll.

The Amphitheater is Coming

2009-07-14T14:28:00.005-05:00

This morning I attended the groundbreaking ceremony for Tuscaloosa's new amphitheater.

I expected to burn up since I had on a coat and tie, but there was a nice breeze blowing and it was very comfortable in the shade of the Hugh Thomas Bridge.

The amphitheater will seat 7,000 people and is expected to be open in time for the first football game of 2010.

There's been a bit of controversy around town lately concerning the existance of an amphitheater in Tuscaloosa. A guy named Mark Booth started a website called "Stop the Amp" in an attempt to gather support against the construction. However, the last time I checked, the poll on that website showed over 80% of voters were in support of having an amphitheater here in town. I think Mr Booth really wanted to run against our mayor in the upcoming election, but his hopes got kinda squashed.

So anyway, I'm pretty excited about this. It's really going to be something nice for Tuscaloosa.

Ya'll will have to come check us out when it opens!

Family means having your banana pudding and nutter butters too....

2009-07-13T09:43:00.008-05:00

We had a really great weekend. Of course, it was busy, but that's the only way we know.

We made a trip to Lowe's Friday night, in anticipation of doing some work outside Saturday morning. Unfortunately, I ended up having to go in to the office for a while Saturday, and when I got home, the heat had kicked in outside, so we didn't get anything done work-wise.

We did go up to Jasper to see Heather's Uncle Jim and Aunt Debbie. They are such awesome people, and are so good to us. Jim has always been like a father to Heather, so we really enjoyed sitting out with them catching up on things.

We left Jasper headed to Mitchell Mountain near Berry, Alabama for a reunion of some of Heather's folks. This was the first of such reunions for me, but I'm usually at home in just about any crowd, so I wasn't worried about going.

All I can say is wow.

David and Sherry Mitchell hosted us all at their place. I have no idea how Sherry keeps that yard looking like it does. It was simply amazing, and they were so nice to share their home with everybody. We ate barbeque, chicken with white bbq sauce, potato salad, slaw, pasta salad, and then for dessert, we had banana pudding (the one from Southern Living with the Nutter Butters), southern praline cake, and some sort of chocolate brownie cool whip layer thing. Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm!!!!

Then we stopped back by Chris and Jessica's on the way home, and they gave us Monkey Bread to take with us! Folks are not helping our diets.... which evidently are non-existent.

Yesterday I did get some work done around the house. I got all the windows washed on the outside, the front porch washed down, and the garage cleaned out and washed.

Then we went to Sam's and I bought a new TV. So now we are all high definition at our house! I liked to have never got it set-up. I had to call the Sam's help line for assistance. But it's all working great, and Heather is picking up another cord today so that I can hook the Wii up to it this afternoon.

So that's about it for the weekend from our house.

Hope you all had a good weekend yourselves, and I hope ya'll have a great week!

The Yum just keeps on coming....

2009-07-09T15:28:00.004-05:00

We continue to be fed by people.

Last night, Keith and Susan Whitley brought supper over to the house to us. Susan works with Heather, and Keith is CEO of a cancer center here in Tuscaloosa. They came over about 6pm with Mollie, their long-haired dachsund. Hershey wasn't too sure if she wanted to be friends or not.

Susan had called Heather earlier in the day yesterday and was worried that the food would not be good. Evidently, she doesn't cook very often. She even went as far as to call FIG (Food Is Good), a local restaurant here in town, to tell them that if the food she was bringing us was not fit to eat, then we would be calling for something else and that she would pick up the tab.

Of course we would never have done that, but it didn't matter anyway because the food was delicious. She brought chicken spaghetti, an awesome salad with grapes and strawberries and cranberries and nuts all mixed in with balsamic dressing, garlic cheese rolls and oatmeal raisin cookies. She also brought REAL Milo's Tea! We never get the real stuff anymore. We have to get it with Splenda.

So once again, we gorged ourselves. It was all so so good. Sorry I didn't get pictures. I'm gonna have to do better on that. I just love food and get all carried away and forget.

We are truly blessed to have so many great friends.

Ya'll have a good night.

George has left the building....

2009-07-09T09:21:00.002-05:00

Thanks for all the comments and well wishes on my freakishly gross arm thing.

As it turns out, I didn't have a ganglian cyst. I don't know where I got that from. I may have made it up. Who knows?

It was actually a lipoma. Again, I turned to Wikipedia for an explanation. A lipoma is a benign tumor made up of fatty tissue. Approximately 1 percent of the population has a lipoma. Leave it to me to be in that 1 percent.

I'll just tell ya'll, Dr. Laubenthal is an awesome guy. I've had doctors in the past that are just basically doing their job and could care less about the person that they are taking care of. Not so with Dr. L. He takes his time and makes you feel like you are the only patient he has. You can tell that he genuinely cares about you and what he is doing.

And his office is ultimately cool. He played baseball for Alabama in college, so a lot of the office is themed around sports. The exam rooms all have names like "Coleman Coliseum" or "Bryant Denny Stadium."

His other passion is super heroes. And that is the theme for the rest of the office. For example, the room I was in today had a larger than life size mural on one wall of Spiderman swinging from building to building. The shelves in that room are covered in action figures that he has collected. There's a batman light on one wall, and a US map indicating where the forces of good and evil reside hanging on another wall. Very entertaining.

Dr. L is also a very snappy dresser, and he is the one who introduced me to Robert Graham shirts. So we talked a lot about those today. Look them up here... http://www.robertgrahamshirts.com. Very cool stuff!

So Dr. Laubenthal told me that anything as large as what he took out of my arm needed to be named. So I have named it George, because it was indeed a curious thing.

I didn't see what he was doing to me. I told him I didn't want to watch. But when he took George out, he asked if I wanted to see it.

It was gross. That's all I'm gonna say about it. Just gross. And I thought about saying, "Hey! Can I get a picture with my phone for my blog?" But I decided against that. So no pics.

I have 7 stitches. Didn't hurt a bit. He gave Heather a scalpel and told her that she could take them out in 8 days. He did say that it was a wise decision not to hit it with a Bible. He said that would have been quite painful.

And life just keeps on going....

Ya'll have a good one!

Just hit me with the Bible...

2009-07-08T15:30:00.006-05:00

WARNING! This may be a little gross to some of ya'll. I know it is to me.

Ok. So for years I've had this thing on my arm. Just beside my elbow. It started off as a small knot, but through the years has grown to about the size of a quarter.

I actually had my doctor, Jeff Laubenthal, look at it about a year ago. He said it is a ganglian cyst. It's benign.... not really much to worry about.

I looked up ganglian cysts on Wikipedia. They are also called Bible bumps. Wanna know why? Because people used to get rid of them by whacking them with a Bible or other thick book! I can tell you now that's not going to happen here. No way, Jose'!

But it freaks out Heather. And honestly, as you can see, it really is kinda gross looking.

So Heather has been trying to get me to have it removed. In fact, she called me at the office earlier to remind me to call and make an appointment.

So since I'm not getting rid of it with the Bible, I called the doctor's office, expecting to get an appointment in the next couple of weeks or so.

It's at 7:30 tomorrow morning. They had a cancellation. Joy!

Ya'll, I have a very weak stomach and don't handle things like this well. I asked some questions, and basically have determined that I will be awake while Dr. Laubenthal is cutting this thing out. Kinda makes me queasy just thinking about it. I may pass out and bust my head open and then I'll really be in a fine mess.

Stay tuned.... If I can use my arm after he gets done cutting things out of it, I'll let ya'll know how it goes.

Happy 4th Weekend!

2009-07-06T09:13:00.009-05:00

I didn't get to post this weekend, so Happy Belated 4th of July!

We ended up going down to Orange Beach. A week later than we planned, but we made it. Along with everybody else in the southern United States, it seemed.

It was a very spontaneous trip. I wasn't even sure that Heather would be up for riding that far, since she was only a week out of having surgery. But she assured me that she would be fine, and she was.

My father in law, Terry, and my brother in law, Hess, had planned to go down for a work day. We've all been trying get down there together since March, but schedules just haven't worked out for us. So when Heather and I heard that Terry was going down last Wednesday, and Hess last Thursday, we decided to go as well so that I could help out where I could.

I'm not the handiest person in the world. But I'm a pretty good gopher, and I can handle most tasks if I have a little guidance.

So we headed down Thursday after I got off work.

Friday was our work day. We replaced part of the floor in the bathroom, built a handrail for the new steps at the back door, and then replaced a section of floor in the kitchen. (Terry's chair had gone through the floor and dumped him in the corner on Wednesday afternoon!) We still have to lay new tile in the bathroom and kitchen, but at least we are back on solid flooring!

Hess and I also got the grass cut on both lots, and we caught Heather cutting back the shrubs. We sent her back inside though, and I cleaned up her trimmings.

Terry took us all out to eat seafood Friday night, and then he and Hess left Saturday morning. Terry headed home, and Hess headed to Lake Martin to join his wife and kids at his in-laws'.

Heather and I hit the beach. With every everybody else. It was packed!

I had my new backpack beach chairs, so we were able to pack efficiently and ended up with just a cooler in my hands. Heather had her tabloids and I had grabbed a new book at Publix, so we were content out there long enough for both of us to get nice and crispy.

We ate at Flippers at Bear Point Saturday night, and they had home-made ice cream for dessert! I do love me some ice cream. It was treat!

We knew we wanted to watch some fireworks. We are only about a mile from the Wharf, and we knew they would be shooting fireworks there, but we couldn't find anything that told us what time. Gulf Shores was having fireworks out in the Gulf at 9pm. So at first, we figured that would be our best choice. But then we couldn't figure out where to park to see them.

Little Big Town and Montgomery Gentry were scheduled to play at the Wharf. So I decided that maybe we should just grab some tickets and spend the rest of the evening there. And that is what we did.

I didn't really know much about either bands. But after they started playing, I knew most of the songs.

It was a great night. A breeze was blowing, the music was great, and everybody was in the spirit of the evening. We had a great time.

All the Who's in Whoville were out as well...

The fireworks started around 10:30pm, and were the perfect ending to our day.

Sunday morning we got out and walked around the neighborhood and over to the marina. The sun was already beating down on our burned shoulders though, so we didn't stay out too long. We packed up, cleaned up, loaded up, and started for home.

Until we got to Canal Road. And the traffic was awful.

Normally, I take the toll bridge and the beach express and avoid the main beach traffic. But Mama had phoned that morning to tell me that the birds are pecking big holes in Daddy's tomatoes, and that he wanted me to go by Al's and pick him up some rubber snakes. So we ended up heading over to the main road, and the traffic got worse from there.

We got those snakes though. All colors. I wish I had taken a picture, but I forgot. Sorry. Use your imagination.

After about an hour or so in traffic, I pulled into Papa Rocco's in attempt to find a source of strength to deal with the traffic. After a half of a Chicken Club pizza and half of a Seafood Primavera pizza, we were back in full force.

It was at this point, that Heather made the suggestion that we by-pass the traffic and take the Fort Morgan ferry over to Dauphin Island. Neither of us had been out that way in years, so we decided to invoke our sense of adventure and come back home that way.

Now let me just say something here. I didn't know you could ride that ferry as a pedestrian only. I thought you had to be in a car. But Heather said that when they were growing up, Sue would take them to Fort Morgan all the time to ride the ferry over to Dauphin Island and back. I had never thought about that. You learn something new every day.

We ended up waiting about an hour to get on the ferry. Not a bad wait though.

After we got all lined up, with cars in front, behind, and beside us, I asked Heather if she had cash. (I had spent most of mine on $6 frosty beverages the night before at the Wharf.) She had none. So I got out and looked at the fee schedule, and we needed $20.50 to cross. I started rummaging through my pockets and the car, and finally came up with 16 bucks. Not gonna do it. And there we are all boxed in. Well I started to worry. I mean, how embarrassing is this gonna be??? So we walked over to the snack bar hoping for an ATM. No luck. Heather was picking out her popsicle when I pointed out the "Cash Only" sign. Well if we haven't got enough to pay for the ferry, we certainly aren't going to be buying ice cream.

So we walked back to the car, and Heather found the attendant to ask what forms of payment they accepted. Praise the Lord, they took VISA! So we were in the clear. But in the future, I will try to be more prepared for the adventure.

We went back and got popsicles from the snack bar and wandered around. Then we loaded up on the ferry and were off to Fort Gaines and Dauphin Island.

We stopped at Mama's and picked up Hershey, and visited with my sister and nephew as well. We ate some barbeque and fried apple pies, and then finally headed for Tuscaloosa.

Needless to say, we slept well last night. It wears us out, but it's so good to get away. On the way home, we were already figuring out the next weekend to go back.

Hope ya'll have a great week!

Thanks, and more Thanks!

2009-07-02T08:24:00.003-05:00

One of the best things about being from the South, is the great art of Southern hospitality. And we have definitely been on the receiving end of that since last Friday. We have had one visitor after another, one phone call after another, and more food than we could possibly ever eat.

Last night's supper was courtesy of Dr. Bill and Teresa Wright. Dr. Bill has been my dentist for the past 10 years or so, and they have taken us in as their own. We have tailgated with them, fished with them at their farm, shared uncountable meals together, and basically have just done all the things together that good friends do. Teresa was in our wedding, and Dr. Bill has always been a source of knowledge and advice.

So when they heard about Heather's hospital stay, they wanted to bring over supper.

During the fall, motorhomes cover Tuscaloosa on ballgame weekends, and Dr. Bill would drive his to campus where he had a spot reserved over in front of Coleman Coliseum. We'd head out on Friday's and stay late, arriving back on Saturday morning for pre and post game festivities. One staple of the weekend would always be fried chicken. Dr. Bill would bring out his cooker, and before you knew it, a heaping pile of chicken legs on an Alabama platter would magically appear.

So that's what he wanted to cook for Heather. They came over last night about 6pm with chicken, potato salad, baked beans, FRESH tomatoes, and yeast rolls.

Once again, I just about made myself sick. Literally. It was all sooo good! Heather and I feasted, and when her mom got in from church, she did as well.

Thanks, Dr. Bill and T! It was fantastic!

We are so blessed to have such wonderful friends. I don't know what we would do without them.

Ya'll have a good day!

Friends.. What Would We Do Without Them?

2009-07-01T08:50:00.003-05:00

Our sincere thanks goes out to our friends, Chris and Jessica, for being so good to us. Yesterday, while I went back to work, Jessica came over and stayed with Heather at the house.

They got pedicures, shopped on Ebay, caught up on the latest gossip, and just basically chilled. Which is exactly what Heather needs to be doing as she recuperates from her surgery.

Then after I got home, Jessica announced that she was picking up supper for us. So she went to Jalepeno's and brought back mexican.

Chris came over and joined us, and we all pigged out! Jess even went by Taco Casa and got bags of sopapillas because Heather absolutely loves them. It was all sooo good, and I ate until I was miserable.

After supper, we got out the Wii Fit. Chris was surprisingly good at the balance games, taking first place in almost everything he tried. Now I've gotta get to work and beat his scores!

When I was turning off the lights to get ready for bed, I noticed the Taco Casa bag still on the counter. I thought it was garbage, but instead it was gold! There were 3 more unopened bags of sopapillas in there! Now how nice is that?

Anyway... thanks, Chris & Jess. We appreciate ya'll more than you'll ever know!

Everybody needs friends like that!

Have a good one, ya'll.

Happy Birthday, Heather!

2009-06-30T09:56:00.009-05:00

Yesterday was Heather's birthday.

If you are following my posts, then you know we did not make it to Orange Beach. So we were not the mere steps away from fresh seafood as I had planned.

I had already taken off of work, since we had planned to come home from the beach last night, and since H and I were both just plain pooped from all of the hospital stuff, I decided to stay home.

I got up before she did and prepared the mantle with our recycled "Happy Birthday" banner and balloons. (The balloons were not recycled. I don't think you can recycle balloons.)

Then Heather got up, and immediately wanted to know if it was "present time." Now she is not normally the one in our relationship that focuses on getting gifts. That person would be me.... I love presents! So I figured that if she was showing that much enthusiasm that early in the morning, then it was definitely "present time."

She opened her gifts, tried on her new "Switch Flops", oohed and ahhed over her other gifts, and then decided to shower and dress and prepare for the day ahead.

After all of that, I asked what she wanted me to do for her birthday supper. She hemmed and hawed, wanting me to decide for her. Well it wasn't my birthday. So I wouldn't say.

Once she realized that the decision was truly hers to make. She spouted out a complete menu. Obviously, she had already given this some thought.

Seared Tuna with Wasabi Glaze, asparagus, and wild rice.

Ok. Easy enough. And I honestly should have thought of it myself, since a medium rare tuna filet is one of her favorite foods.

I'm gonna share the recipe for the tuna with you. It has become a favorite at our house. I was lucky enough to find the tuna on sale, because it can run kinda high normally.

Seared Tuna with Soy Wasabi Glaze

4 6 oz. fresh Ahi tuna steaks, about 3/4-inch thick
extra virgin olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 Tbsp. cold unsalted butter
3 green onions, thinly sliced
1-2 Tbsp. fresh lime or lemon juice
3 Tbsp. soy sauce
1-2 Tbsp. prepared wasabi (I make mine with the wasabi paste from the oriental aisle...very simple!)

Brush tuna steaks on both sides with the oil and season with salt and pepper.

Combine the butter, onion, lime juice, soy sauce and wasabi in a small pan.

Heat a heavy, nonstick frying pan over high heat. Place the tuna in the pan and sear until crispy and brown. Turn over and sear the other side. Be careful not to overcook the tuna. It’s best rare to medium rare.

While the tuna is cooking, heat the butter mixture over low heat, stirring constantly until smooth and emulsified.

Serve the tuna immediately, drenched with the sauce.

Sorry I didn't take a picture. We ate it too fast.

While I'm at it, let me share the rice with you as well. It was a new recipe that had been shared with me. My gosh, it was good. The only thing I would do differently, is that next time, I'll buy plain wild rice. The pack I bought had seasoning mixed in with it already, and I think it made it a little bit salty.

Wild Rice Pilaf

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup pine nuts
2 to 3 cloves garlic, smashed
1 to 2 strips lemon zest
3 sprigs fresh thyme
1 cup wild rice, preferably whole not broken
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus extra for seasoning
1 bunch scallions (white and green), thinly sliced (3/4 cup)
Freshly ground black pepper

Heat the olive oil in a small saucepan over medium heat.

Add the pine nuts, garlic, zest, and thyme, swirl the pan until the nuts and garlic are beginning to brown, about 2 minutes.

Add the wild rice and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until lightly toasted, about 1 minute tops.

Stir in the chicken broth and salt. Bring to a boil.

Reduce heat to a rapid simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour.
Check the texture of the rice and, if needed, continue simmering until tender.
Add more liquid as needed, another 10 to 15 minutes.

(Note: The rice should only just begin to crack when done. If it begins to curl it is overcooked.)

Remove from the heat, scatter the scallions over the surface, fluff with a fork, and remove the herb sprigs and lemon zest before serving. Season with salt and black pepper, to taste.

I normally just broil my asparagus with some sea salt and pepper until wilted.

So... there's supper for tonight. Or this weekend.

Ya'll have a great day!

A Drastic Change In Plans

2009-06-28T21:02:00.009-05:00

I could smell the salt and taste the shrimp. We were ready for a long weekend at the beach. Our bags were packed and sitting by the door. We just had one little thing to do before heading south.

A doctors appointment.

Heather had an appointment for a simple procedure Friday morning at Brookwood hospital in Birmingham. We were driving up and then heading to Orange Beach afterward.

The hospital called Thursday afternoon and gave us a 10:30am arrival time. Not so bad... Still plenty of time for travel. So Thursday night, we got everything ready to go.

Friday morning, Heather's mom came up from Demopolis to ride with us. We got to Brookwood a little early and got Heather checked in.

Then we waited. And waited. And waited. And a little past noon, they called Heather back to be prepped.

And Sue and I waited........

Finally, they called us back to sit with Heather. And we got to wait back there as well. Around 5pm, 6 and a half hours after arrival, they took her back.

At 6 pm, the ladies in the admitting area and waiting room closed up shop. Sue and I were the only ones left watching the Michael Jackson saga on the TV. (We had tried several times to change the channel, but couldn't figure out how to do it.)

Finally, Dr. Houserman came out to talk to us. She told us that the procedure had ended up being more complicated than she had originally planned.

Of course. That's the only way things go with us.

I'm not going into details because Heather really doesn't want the world reading the details, but she had a whole lot done. She has a 3" bikini cut and basically had a c-section without the baby. She had several fybroids and cysts removed, as well as a lot of scar tissue. She is in a good bit of pain, and will be off of work for 6 weeks.

So I don't think I have to tell you, that we spent the night in Birmingham instead of Orange Beach. They checked her into the Women's Center at Brookwood, and Sue and I settled in.

Now of course, I hadn't put the bags in the car. We had planned to come back through Tuscaloosa to get Hershey. So we had nothing as far as toiletries or clothes. And Hershey was in the house and had not been outside all day.

So once Heather got situated, I came back to Tuscaloosa to take care of things.

God bless our friends, Chris and Jessica. They came and got Hershey and kept her for us. And I grabbed the packed bags and headed back to Birmingham.

Heather's cousin, Jane Ellen, brought Sue and I some sandwiches and plantain chips from a new Cuban restaurant in Vestavia Hills. WOW!!!!! It was sooo good! And it saved us from hospital cafeteria food Friday night.

Now let me just say that I have never had to spend the night in a hospital as a visitor until this weekend. And I am so thankful for that. Mainly, because of the loved one not being sick factor, but also because I ended up crammed into a lumpy loveseat sleeping fitfully between nurse visits. Finally about 4am Saturday morning, I was up for good.

Heather was starving of course. So she ordered breakfast and shortly it arrived. She eagerly tore the top off of her pancakes and her face told it all....

She said I could post that picture.

The pancakes and sausage were pitiful looking.

The pale spot on that sausage was where it wasn't completely done.

So I went down to the cafeteria and got her something else. While down there, I ended up finding the best thing of the whole weekend. Fruit Loop Treats!

Now I am a huge fan of the Rice Krispy Treat. In fact, I could eat them by the panful if I knew I wouldn't regret it the next time I put on my pants. But I had never heard of Fruit Loop Treats! Where in the world have these been all my life? That's what I want to know.

Heather's doctor said that although she would rather her stay until Sunday, that if everything was "moving along" accordingly, that she could go home Saturday afternoon. So we left around 5pm and headed home.

Hershey didn't even miss us at all. In fact, she acted mad that she had to come home. So much love....

In the end, we found out a lot that has been inhibiting our trying to have a baby. So this was all a good thing. Dr. Houserman said that all looks good now. So at least it was for the best.

We've spent the rest of the weekend laying around, watching TV, and visiting with close friends. I'll stay home tomorrow (Monday) and then friends and family will stay the rest of the week.

Although she's in a good bit of pain, Heather is doing very well. She probably won't be on the Wii anytime soon though.

And oh yeah.... don't cry for me Orange Beach. We'll be back down there before you know it!

Ya'll have a great week!

2009-06-25T22:55:00.004-05:00

A Lunchroom Favorite Takes a Turn for the Worse

2009-06-24T08:05:00.006-05:00

I don't remember the days at Jackson Academy before we had a cafeteria. I guess I've blacked that out. The school opened in 1970, and I started kindergarten in 1976. Classmates of mine tell me that we were in grade school before the cafeteria opened. I guess that's true. I just don't remember.

I do remember that we had great food though. The spaghetti was awesome, the pizza was that frozen square pizza that I can still find at Souths Finest Meats here in Tuscaloosa, and the fried shrimp was always one of my favorites.

After lunch, Polly Nettles would be over at her ice cream stand in between the snack machines and the coke machines. I think I had a Mickey Mouse popsicle just about every day. Which probably started my addiction to ice cream, and which is also probably why I was a chubby kid.

Polly was this old black lady who ran a tight ship. She kept everybody in line, from 1st grade to 12th grade. She called us "crazy white kids" and wielded her broom freely. Recently, Ms. Wendy Nall, who taught us math in our middle school years, started a tribute to Polly on the Facebook. Last time I checked, there were over 75 posts from students who had walked the halls of Jackson Academy through the years. It was really very touching.

I'm not sure when Polly died. Like I said, she was old way back then. I remember Mama telling me about it when she passed, but it was years ago. Her son Abe and daughter Alma also worked at the school. I know she is probably looking down on all of us Facebook commenters and still laughing at all us "crazy white kids."

But this post is not about Polly. She's just a big part of our lunchroom memories.

This post is about one thing that I will always remember as one of my favorite lunchroom menu items...

Parker House Rolls.

On Fridays, we would get our menus for the next week to take home in our backpacks. Parker House Rolls were usually on there at least twice each week. And I loved them. I still love them today. But because I love them so much, I seldom buy them cause I'm gonna eat them. And somehow, there was a bag of them in my freezer this past week that Heather found.

Ya'll know she's been sick, and was trying to ease her way back onto normal food. For some reason, she thought those rolls were going to be the ticket.

I came in yesterday and could smell them cooking. ~smiles!~

She had taken them out of the freezer and plopped them on a cookie sheet and into the oven. Here's our conversation on that....

"Heather, you know those rolls are supposed to rise before you cook them."

"What do you mean?"

"You lay them out and let them rise so that they are nice and fluffy."

"That doesn't matter. They'll be fine."

Hmmmm... you be the judge.

Those didn't just come out of the freezer, even though they look like they did. That is the finished product. Hard as a brick.

I wasn't tempted even a little bit.

I'm sure I will get a response from Heather on this. :)

Ya'll have a great day!

Spaghetti

2009-06-23T08:52:00.005-05:00

Heather decided last Friday to go to Demopolis to visit the folks. We have since learned, that the wretched stomach bug truly did originate from that visit. Seems it has spread through the women in her family. In the words of my father-in-law, "It must not like men folks, 'cause just the women folks is getting it." Women and kids, I guess. Since it started with our nephew, Austin. And that's fine. I am perfectly happy to be discriminated against in this case.

But that's not what this post is about.

Heather phoned while she was at her Mama's to tell me that she was waiting around to see our niece, JW, and that she would be late. Knowing that Sue's house is always a plethora of home cooking, I asked Heather what she'd been eating.

Left-over spaghetti.

Which made me start thinking about how long it had been since I'd had spaghetti. Regular pasta is not on any low-carb list.

But a while back, I found a website that advertised low-carb pastas and I ordered some. It's been sitting in the cabinet since it arrived. It is soybean pasta. Hmmmm....

So I looked in the freezer and took out a pack of ground venison (which by the way, is one of the leanest meats you can find), and popped it in the microwave to defrost.

This gave me time to do the Wii Fit.

Once the pasta got done, it had a particularly strong odor to it. Kinda like an iron smell. So rinsed it with cold water and tasted it before I added my deer to it. Didn't want to ruin that whole pack of deer meat.

It tasted like normal pasta. The texture was a bit more grainy, but it was very good.

So I proceeded making the spaghetti and here's what I ended up with.

Obviously I am neither a cookbook author nor a professional photographer, but you get the idea.

So anyway... it was good. I actually had 2 helpings.

And then got back on the Wii.

Weekend Update

2009-06-22T09:22:00.007-05:00

It would appear that the Stomach Bug has left the building....

As the day went on yesterday, the shot that the doctor gave Heather must have started working, because the gross stuff stopped and she basically just slept the rest of the day and night. This morning, she is tired but much better. And so far, knock on wood, I am fine.

So... lemme tell you about our weekend prior to the point that Heather moved into the bathroom.

Last week, we finally got around to refinancing our house. I had actually taken our information to the bank about 3 weeks ago. But it took a while for the appraiser to come out and look at everything. But she finally did, and we got her report back last Tuesday.

Now I told you last week that we were deciding on colors. And we did. The room is now Hampshire Gray, which actually is not an accurate description since it really is more of a green. Heather keeps saying that she sees the gray in it. Not me. It's green. But it looks GREAT! We started Saturday morning, got all the furniture moved, the walls painted, the trim done, and the furniture moved back.... all by 5pm.

I made this with my phone so it really doesn't do justice to the room.... but you can get a general idea...

We haven't hung things back on the walls yet, because we are probably making changes there as well. And Heather has found a duvet from Pottery Barn that she wants.

So the room has more work to be done before we are finished. And needless to say, we did not go bed shopping.

We did however, make it to eat Mexican and homemade ice cream with Chris and Jessica before all hell broke loose. Which may have added to Heather's unfortunate situation all night.

This is a short week for me. We will head to the coast on Friday for a few days. I'm already getting antsy.

Ya'll have a great week.

Turistas

2009-06-21T14:28:00.002-05:00

I do love a weekend.... usually.

This one started off great, and I'll fill ya'll in on that later, but it has not ended on a positive note.

Heather went down to her Mama's on Friday and evidently has brought back a stomach virus. It hit last night. She was up and down all night, and let me just tell ya'll.... it was naaaasty!

I'm not very good in those kind of situations. I just kept the cold bathcloths coming. She was and still is in pitiful shape.

Heather's grandfather used to write these random stories about his life. We have them and they are really entertaining. One time, they went to Mexico and drank some bad water. He said it gave them the "turistas", which is a nice word for "the trots." Heather has herself a massively violent case of the turistas!

So we ended up at the hospital this morning about 5am. They gave her a shot and sent her home. In between puking and pooping spells, she is sleeping.

I certainly hope my brother in law, who didn't keep his sick child at home, and whose child passed this thing along, is having a good Father's Day.

If I end up like Heather, as God as my witness, I will drive down there and kiss him full on the mouth to share the love!

It's my blogoversary!

2009-06-19T09:59:00.003-05:00

Wow. I can't believe I have been doing this a whole year! Thanks to those of you who take the time out of your busy lives to read what I write on here.

Thanks especially to my loyal 7 followers: Heather, Katie, Leigh, Chris, Jessica, Heather Ryan, and jr14grau.

I hope you all have enjoyed reading my posts as much as I have enjoyed sharing with you.

Here's to another year!

No problem, mon!

2009-06-18T12:16:00.006-05:00

Ok, that last post has got me thinking about Jamaica. I thought I'd share a few memories from our trip to Negril last year.

Maybe it really is time to go back!

Rambling

2009-06-18T08:06:00.005-05:00

I am restless.

I keep thinking that I want to go somewhere this weekend but I don't know where. Heather keeps wanting to fly down to Jamaica for the weekend, but I think we need to stay a little bit closer to home.

On the other hand, we really need to stay home and paint our bedroom. We had the house appraised last week, and when the pictures came back in the appraisal, I noticed that our bedroom is really kinda blah. Heather said that she's been trying to tell me that for months.

One other thing about the bedroom picture is that our bed is unmade. Heather had an early doctor's appointment the day the appraiser lady came. She got up first. Then I got up later and was kinda rushed to get ready and out the door for work. We passed each other as I was leaving. Heather didn't go back to the bedroom part of the house again until after the appraiser left. She thought I had made the bed. I thought she would make it since I didn't have time. And neither of us ended up making it.

In my own defense, making that bed is not a quick job, due to the fact that we have about 50 pillows of various sizes piled up on it. So it's not like I could have just thrown the covers up and been done.

Heather called me at work all in a dither when she discovered this housekeeping faux pas. She was mortified. Now I really don't think that had any effect on the appraisal. But now people all over town have seen the pictures and our bed is clearly all messed up. I bet folks at First National Bank are speculating on how we live....

So anyway... we have realized that the room needs to be spruced up a bit, so we started looking at paint colors. Not an easy task. Heather wants a darker color, but will it make the room too dreary? And if we go lighter, what colors do we lean toward? And will the new curtains match the color we pick? So much to think about. Decisions, decisions....

I don't know. We may pick up and go somewhere. Or we may stay home and be productive.

We may even go shop for a new bed. Heather's wanting a sleigh bed.

Whatever we do, ya'll know something crazy will happen. I guess I'll tell you all about it on Monday. I know the suspense is killing you.

Oh yeah.... Happy Birthday to Aidan Benefield! He's 5 today. He's a huge Beatles fan and shares a birthday with Sir Paul McCartney. Cool huh?

We're heading over to Chuck E Cheese this afternoon to celebrate! I'm fairly excited about it.

Hidden Valley

2009-06-15T12:09:00.009-05:00

I went home this past weekend. It was Homecoming and Mama and Daddy's church, so I went down Friday night and stayed til Sunday afternoon.

Daddy had the fish ponds open Saturday, and folks were everywhere down there. The weather could not have been nicer. A group from Oak Grove Baptist Church was down having a family day. They caught a bunch of fish, and then fried them up under the pavilion. I think they all had a really good time.

There's Daddy in his hat....

Ribbit~

Hershey was scoutin' out for food. And she even stole one poor girl's ham sandwich!

Black-eyed Susan's

I think this guy had around 60 pounds...

The cabin...

Duck...

Loggers...

When I walked into the kitchen Sunday morning, this is what I found...

Yummmmmmy!

Hot Dawg!

2009-06-09T10:25:00.005-05:00

Guess what? The Wii is here!

I know this is probably not a big deal to most of ya'll because you probably already have one of these in your own home, but I never buy video games or things even remotely similar. So this is a big deal for us.

I actually did have a Sega Genesis in college. But that was the result of a long afternoon of happy hour followed by a ridiculously expensive trip to Wal-Mart. It seemed like a good idea to buy it at the time. I'm pretty sure my roommates highly encouraged it. I think it has since gone to live with Sonic the Hedgehog in the barn at Mama and Daddy's.

So anyway, we have friends who have Wii's. Endless hours of fun. And thanks to dear, sweet, Katie B, one afternoon Heather got hooked just enough to agree that we needed one. So I jumped all over that.

Now here's what I do most of the time. I go online and think about things I want to buy. If it's something big, like a boat or a car, I'll build my own and add things to it. But of course I'd never buy a boat or car online. Other things though, such as a pile of books at Amazon, or kitchen gadgets at Williams Sonoma, or cool loaded up cameras, or cool new clothes, often find themselves in my cart, but in reality are often not purchased. That's kinda how things started with the Wii.

Except I actually hit the Send button.

That's also how I got the Daniel Moore and my Blackberry. I had them in the cart about a dozen times, but just couldn't hit that Send button to spend the money.

Until I finally had enough of myself and just did it.

No regrets. Just cool stuff, right? Yeah....

So back to the Wii. We got it all hooked up and played Carnival Games. Then I hooked up the Wii Fit.

Hehe.

It plumped us right up. We spend a long time picking out our little Wii people. Then that damned Wii Fit made us fat. When Heather's person grew, she looked all around at her new large waistline and then out at us as if to say, "Where the hell did that come from?"

That's ok though. Gives us a starting point. And things to work on. Lots of things.

So we did some yoga. Wow. Not as easy as it looks.

Then we did step aerobics. That one took Ms Coordination some getting used to.

Then we played this soccer game but I kept getting hit in the head with shoes and panda heads. I know... weird.

We walked a tightrope, skied, jogged, and did some twisting and stretching stuff. And I can feel it today.

And I can't wait to get home.

Ya'll get ready. I am going to be soooo buff.

Later....

Gators, Mules, and Pork Chops

2009-06-08T08:52:00.008-05:00

As usual, we ran around like crazy this weekend.

I had some dear friends from high school, Jodi & Kara, in town last week. They were here because their daughters are mascots for Clarke Prep in Grove Hill, and were attending camp at the Capstone. We had a great time catching up on old times and basically just doing nothing.

Friday night, the girls were being evaluated, so I joined Kara and Jodi in Coleman Coliseum to watch. It was hilarious! There were all sorts of mascots. Tigers, bears, eagles, a hornet, and even a red devil. They milled through the crowd and danced around on stage and basically did what mascots do... get the crowd involved. The gators both did great, and I hope they took home all sorts of awards Saturday morning. These pics were made with my phone so they are a bit blurred. Sorry.

Then Saturday, I got up and met Adam down at Southeastern Auctions for a nursery action. We've been down there before to the boat auctions, and I had shopped the nursery several times for various things. I think they are remodeling the nursery side, and needed to clean everything out. There were some great deals to be had. I ended up with a couple of apple trees and a couple of plum bushes. We were out there a couple of hours or so, then I paid for my items and headed home. I'm sure the auction went on all day. They were cleaning house!

When I got home, Heather was ready to start her day, so we rode over to Gordo to the annual Mule Day and Chicken Festival. We got there after the mule parade, but I know that it had occured, because the evidence was still in the streets.

We walked around and visited the vendors, and I realized that I was about to starve. So I got me a rib-eye sandwich from the Pickens County Cattlemen's Association and wolfed it down like I hadn't eaten in weeks. We ran into a couple of friends, Ansley and Tanner, who were there for the festivities as well, and hung out with them for a little while. Heather decided that she wanted a blooming onion. So I decided that I needed some chicken on a stick. The onion, although very slow in the making, was great. My chicken was kinda iffy. But I ate most of it anyway and we found us a spot in the shade to side and tore that onion up. My gosh, it was good!

Barney Fife was even making his rounds, keeping the streets of Gordo safe!

On the way back to the car, we stopped by Solid Rock Church's booth for homemade icecream! Wow! What better way to spend a hot June afternoon....

Shortly after we got home, Chris and Jessica called and invited over for dinner. I thought they were tied up with Chris' 20th High School reunion, but they had gotten done with all of that on Friday night. So we stopped at Publix and picked up a key lime pie, and headed over to their house. Chris grilled some pork chops, and we had squash and baked potatoes, and once again stuffed ourselves.

They have a wren who has built a nest in one of Jessica's hanging pots. Five little baby birds have hatched and those things sang just about the whole time. We sat out and watch that mama bird take care and feed her babies. And then Heather's random mind told us how birds reproduce. I'm not even going to go into that on here. If you wanna know, Google will be glad to tell you.

Sunday afternoon was veg-out time. We ate chili dogs for lunch. I do love a chili dog. Then we watched "Surfer Dude" with Matthew McConaughey, and did nothing the rest of the day.

Obviously nobody was concerned about losing weight this weekend. We are back on track today though.

Heather is home today. Hopefully the new Wii and Wii Fit is being delivered. That'll help with our waistlines. We shall see.

Hope you all have a good week.

Progress

2009-06-04T16:04:00.003-05:00

What do you see when you look out the window?

I see downtown Tuscaloosa, which looks like a war zone right now. Outside my office windows a new city central is arising from the rubble.

The new federal courthouse will be next door, with a new park stretching from the court house, behind city hall (and my windows) to the new intermodal facility that will be open soon.

There'll be lots more to come on this. I'll keep ya'll posted.

The Blow Out

2009-06-03T09:56:00.003-05:00

Yesterday I probably talked to Heather about 8 times on the phone. Nothing in particular; just this and that. Then about 2pm, Heather called me back...

"Have you been calling me all day just to see if your package has arrived?"

"No. What package?"

"This package that looks like it could possibly be another Daniel Moore print."

Well I honestly did not know it was coming yesterday. We actually talked about it a couple of nights ago, and I wondered when it would be shipped. But it's here now!

It is absolutely gorgeous. It portrays Alabama's 36-0 win over Auburn in the 2008 Iron Bowl, and features Glenn Coffee and Antione Caldwell. I opened up the box and got chills.

Heather is not pleased. She said our house is going to look like ESPN. She also says it is not going in the living room, but will instead go back in the office with the others. I'm not so sure about that.

I mean, come on.... it's the "Hey Auburn! We just beat the hell outa you!" print. It needs to be out where it can be seen. Obviously she has forgotten jumping up and down cheering in Bryant Denny Stadium that afternoon with shakers madly waving about, and that she actually cried when we won that ballgame. I kinda think we both did a little. Those things can't be put back in the office out of sight. No way, Jose'!

I have a little time to work on this because I wanted to have my own framing done. So that gives me a couple of weeks probably.

Just as our dear Crimson Tide fight their battles to the bitter end, so will I fight this battle of my own!

Maybe. We'll see.

It really is a kick-butt print.

Roll Tide!

Oops.

2009-06-03T09:18:00.003-05:00

Ok. So I thought today was the day. But I was wrong.

Heather said that we will not know until she goes to the doctor next week if all this is working. I thought it was today. She had to go for something today.

This is all so far over my head. I really haven't got a clue what we are doing.

Heather said that she would definitely test positive today due to all of the hormones and meds that she is taking. She said she even thought of taking one just to see what a positive test looks like. ~~smiles~~

It's all going to work out like it's supposed to when it's supposed to. We've only been trying a few months. This stuff takes years for some folks. So we just continue to wait and go about our business as usual.

Thanks Leigh and Katie for the prayers and crossed fingers and toes.

At least I got my new Daniel Moore.... more about that later!

To Be or Not To Be....

2009-06-02T16:32:00.003-05:00

In the morning Heather will go for a pregancy test and we will know if all these danged shots have worked.

Either way, we're cool with it. They haven't exactly built our hopes up. So whatever the outcome is ok.

Cross your fingers anyway....

'til tomorrow.....

Another Great Giveaway! Hope I Win This One!

2009-06-02T09:38:00.004-05:00

Giveaway for One of Three Amazing Alabama Coffee Table Books!!

The fine folks at Alabama Bloggers and Turner Publishing have teamed up for a great giveaway!

The books are FASCINATING. The timelines. . . seeing things change before your eyes. . .seeing the phases of history that our state went through. . . seeing what my city looked like when my grandparents were teenagers, then when my parents were teenagers. . . seeing all of the crazy men in 5 piece suits and top hats and ladies in 10 feet-in-diameter dresses and hats in the dead heat of Alabama Summer. . . the experience is simply indescribable.

They are each valued at $40, and these books are pure artwork.

Available in the giveaway are the following:

1. Historic Photos of Birmingham

2. Historic Photos of Mobile

3. Historic Photos of Huntsville

To enter to win one of these three books, go to alabamabloggers.com and register!

This contest will be open until Monday, June 8th. The three winners will be chosen randomly and announced on Tuesday, June 9th.

Good luck!!!

2009-06-01T16:27:00.004-05:00

Lewa's Designs

Lewa's Designs is vinyl wall art. And it's fabulous! Lewa's Designs is owned and operated by an elementary school teacher, Brittany Hughes, who is home with her baby right now.

Love these decals? You can win one! All you have to do is go here for details!

Did I mention that anyone with a blog can win? Yes! Everyone wins!
Hurry! Offer ends the beginning of June!

See all of Lewa's Designs:
Lewa's Designs website (www.lewasdesigns.com)
etsy shop (www.lewasdesigns.etsy.com)

Oh What a Night.....

2009-06-01T13:26:00.007-05:00

That picture has nothing to do with this post except that it is of Hershey, our spoiled rotten dachsund. We were down at Adam and Katie's and Aidan was pulling her around in the trailer behind his Power Wheels John Deere. But that's not what this post is about....

I guess it's confession time. I wasn't going to share this (how many times have I said that on this blog?) but I'm sitting here thinking about the weekend, and I figure I might as well tell all.

Our sister in law, Barbara called last week to see if Mitch could stay with us Friday night while she went to a function for the medical school. Of course we didn't mind, and I told her to let him stay the night if he wanted. That was fine with her, so Heath dropped Mitch off Friday afternoon.

I got home and changed, and realized that Heather and Mitch were waiting on me to make our plans.

So I suggested we grab a movie, and Mitch was all over that. He wanted to make sure I knew how to prepurchase our tickets through Fandango. So I played dumb and let him run the show.

We decided to see Night at the Museum, and to just grab something to eat at the theater. Good plan.

Mitch made the A honor roll for his last 6 weeks in the 5th grade. So as a reward, we decided to get him a new pair of flip flops. He had told us that his dad would only buy him cheap dollar store flip flops (Heath said Mitch's feet are growing too fast to buy anything else.) So Heather wanted to get him a pair like he wanted. As it turned out, he got a pair of Sperry's identical to the ones I had one. Which of course, were the most expensive pair Shoe Station had, but Mitch said I could afford it because we were rich.

Well now that's good to know. I had no idea until he told me.

So we got the shoes and headed for the theater with our Fandango tickets.

We all had popcorn for supper, and the movie was great. Just as good as the first one. If you haven't seen it, it's worth your time.

We got home, played on the computer for awhile, and hit the sack. That's where the night lost all form of normality.

Mitch wanted Hershey to sleep with him. Of course we knew that was coming. He also wanted to sleep on the sofa, but we explained that Hershey was not going to stay on the sofa with him. We'd been down that road before.

So I talked him into sleeping in a bed, and Heather piled Hershey up in there with him. I could see Hershey from our bedroom across the hall, and she was not happy at all with the sleeping arrangements.

But we turned out the lights, and all was well.

Until 2am.

I guess Hershey had had enough and was determined to get out of that bed one way or another. So she backed herself up next to Mitch and wet all over him and the bed.

I awoke to bright lights and a lot of fussing. Heather's earplugs saved her from being the first one awake and out of bed. So since I was up, she opted to just wait and get a report on the activities when I got the sheets changed and in the washer with Mitch's clothes.

Our only salvation in this, as gross as it is, is that Heather had 2 of those egg crate things, a memory foam mattress pad, and 2 regular mattress pads on that bed (to make it "fluffy.") So the mattress was saved. Actually, everything but the 2 top mattress pads were saved and those went into the washer with the sheets.

Hershey then reclaimed her spot in our bed, Mitch got bathed and into dry clothes, and all was well in the world.

Never a dull moment....

Up, Up, & Away...

2009-05-31T18:25:00.009-05:00

If ya'll missed the hot-air balloons in Tuscaloosa this weekend, you missed a treat. We went out Saturday afternoon about 3:30pm to sit and take it all in.

Our plans got changed just a little once we got to the airport. You see, Hershey was with us since it was such a pretty day, but dogs were not allowed in the main areas. So we went to the park on the other side of the airport to watch everything with the other dog owners. I think we actually ended up a whole lot better off over there. We were in the shade, the temperature was great, and we could see everything that was going on.

About 5:30, our local TV personality, Kip Tyner started announcing that things were beginning to get rolling. Deonte Wilder then made an appearance; Walt Maddox, our mayor, said a few words, followed by Northport's mayor, Bobby Herndon; and then the balloon-meister took over. About 6pm, the first balloon began rising.

Then the others began following the lead balloon. It was very impressive!

Did you see the airport control tower in front of that Energizer Bunny? That was one big rabbit!

Looks like this may be an annual event now. So if ya'll missed it this year, be sure to watch for it next year.

New Specs

2009-05-27T16:00:00.004-05:00

I've been thinking about ordering new glasses for over a year now. In fact, at last year's eye exam I noticed that my glasses were pretty outdated. But I could never make up my mind on a frame, and eventually I forgot about it.

Until 3 weeks ago....

You see, I am blind as a bat. I either have to have contacts in my eyes or glasses on my face in order for me to even walk across the floor. It is bad!

I was getting kinda low on contacts, and Dr. Moore's office informed me that it was time for another exam, so I made the appointment. And the thoughts of new glasses came wandering back into my mind.

So I'm not going to bore you with the eye exam details. It was normal. But then it came time to pick out frames. Dr. Moore has the nicest lady named Bea that works for him. She helped Heather pick out her glasses this last time, and she has helped with the last 3 or 4 pairs of mine. She's got great taste and doesn't hold back on giving her honest opinion. That goes a long way with me.

So Bea and I narrowed it down to about 4 or 5 pair, and she boxed those up and sent me home with them to show Heather and finish my decision. Now it just so happened that Chris and Jessica were coming over that night. So when Heather got home, I gave them all a glasses fashion show.

They oohed and aahed over how good looking I am.... just kidding. But they did give their opinions and I finally made a decision.

Last week Bea called and said that the glasses didn't pass inspection at the lab, and that they were starting over and that I should have them this week. And I do.
Here they are.

Feel free to print those so you can use them to keep the crows out of your garden. :)

Later...

The Balloons are Coming!

2009-05-26T09:10:00.002-05:00

This is so cool...

About 30 hot air balloons will float over Tuscaloosa and Northport this weekend in an effort to raise money for people with disabilities. For the past 25 years, the annual Sunrise Community Hot Air Balloon Race has been held in Miami, but because of south Florida's urban sprawl, the event's planners decided to move it elsewhere this year. They chose Tuscaloosa.

How cool is that? Alabama football, Blue Angels, and now balloons!

The hot air balloon race will be Saturday and Sunday, and is free to the public. About 30 corporate and privately owned hot air balloons have signed up for the event, from across the Southeast. The world's largest hot air balloon, a 116-foot-tall pink Energizer bunny, will also participate in the race.

All proceeds from the race will benefit local people with developmental disabilities.

Balloons will be inflated between 5:30 and 6 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday, weather permitting, and will follow a specific path where teams of aeronauts must drop beanbags on marked spots along the race route. The races should take between 30 minutes and an hour.

Now I know what you're thinking... 5:30a.m? Well, there will also be a race on Saturday between 5:30 and 6 p.m. That's when we'll be there.

So ya'll come on out. Should be fun!

Happy Memorial Day!

2009-05-25T16:25:00.003-05:00

This has been a great weekend. After being down at the beach the past two weekends, and then back and forth, in and out of town during the weeks, this has been a much needed rest for me. Heather had to work, so it's just been me and my girl, Hershey. We've watched movies and all sorts of TV, watched it rain, taken naps, and on top of all that, we've eaten some pretty good grub.

I got my new phone in the mail Friday. Somehow, I am unable to copy all my contacts to my SIM card so they all have had to be entered individually. That took up part of Saturday. I think I'm to the M's.

I went out to the Booth Saturday night to hear the Chinese Dentists, and they were awesome. Our friend, Rusty Kyzer, is the drummer, so I met his wife, Kim and we hung out and watched the show. There was a big screen behind them, and they played the "Muppets in Space" movie throughout the whole show. It was cool.

Sunday was a nothing day. And I do mean nothing. I cooked some ribs and watched the rain. I set the ferns out because I think the rain is better for them than the water out of the faucet.

And then here we are. Memorial Day. Thanks so much to all of our troops, past and present, who give so much so unselfishly.

Today I ran a couple of errands, had lunch with a friend, and then came home where I was pleasantly surprised to find that there was a Land of the Lost marathon on! I used to watch this all the time when I was little. Somehow though, the acting was a whole lot better years ago.

Anyway, today is day 5 with the fertility shots. So far so good. Nobody has passed out, and Heather says they aren't hurting. So today and tomorrow, and we should be done with this round.

Again, Happy Memorial Day, ya'll. I just wish I didn't have to go back to work tomorrow.

Bored random thoughts....

2009-05-21T09:30:00.003-05:00

Well we should have our first round of fertility shots today. I ordered them yesterday. Heather had to go this morning for an ultrasound and the results from our bloodwork. As my grandmother used to say, she has sugar. Her insulin levels were raised so they have put her on a sugar pill. Side effects are diarrhea and weight loss. HA! She's gonna love me telling that. I told her to get a double prescription and we’d both take them…

I lost my new phone. How bout that? I had it when I left the office yesterday. I went from work to Moody Music Building and when I got out at Moody I realized I didn’t have it. So I came back to the office and looked for it. I have turned my office and the car upside down half a dozen times, and it is gone. I think it may have fallen out of my pocket when I got in the car. I asked around to see if anybody saw it and maybe picked it up, but no luck. I am sick over it. So I called AT&T & reported it lost or stolen. They have mailed me a replacement. Of course I will have to pay the deductible on the insurance, but that will be much better than having to buy another one. In the meantime, they turned my old phone back on so at least I don’t have to do without.

I don’t really know much else. I think I have decided to plant very little in pots at this point. I have done nothing so far. Very unlike me. The pansies are still sitting there dying. So I may try to get a couple of things for pots this weekend and just go lightly this year. I really don’t have the energy or desire (or extra cash) to fill 20 pots. 3 or 4 should be just fine.

I’m about to starve and evidently Chuck’s Fish is giving away free shrimp and grits this morning. I’m staying strong though. I am not going to cheat. H slipped up and told me she had shrimp alfredo for lunch yesterday. That is definitely not on our list of ok dishes to eat! I told her to try to do better today, and I would cook tonight.

I don’t know anything else. Looking forward to a calm, do-nothing, possibly watching the rain, long weekend.

Baby Hopefuls

2009-05-20T10:56:00.005-05:00

We want a baby. Sounds easy enough. Babies are born every day. But it is proving to be more than just a little complicated for Heather and me. I don't know why I am surprised. That's par for the course with us. So Monday we spent the day in Birmingham at the ART fertility clinic and then with an adoption attorney.

We kinda felt like the clinic visit was one of those meant to be things. Week before last, Heather was getting a pedicure and while her toes were under the dryer, she saw a business card from the clinic. We had already phoned for an appointment, so Heather said that the card was a sign. Now I don't really know what kind of sign it was, but it was a sign regardless.

To put it mildly, we are overwhelmed as crap. Everyone has thrown so much information at us that there is no way we will ever remember what all they said. We saw Dr. Virginia Houserman, and we immediately liked her. She's probably in her late 50's or so. Very cut and dry. Very to the point. And you could tell that she knew her stuff. and she was very nice.

Dr. Houserman had several suggestions. I'm not really going to go into all of that on here though, because it would take forever. We spent over 4 hours at the ART clinic. Heather will start taking shots at some point this week. I'm not really sure when. At some point I have to give her one, and quite frankly, that's freaking me out just a little bit.

So we have several options and they all have one thing in common.

Money money money. Lots of it. Piles of it. Mounds of it. And we are not made of it.

We were told to exercise more and lose weight. Then she said no more than 1 drink a day or 7ish a week. Moderation, of course. So quit eating,and quit drinking. Joy. Life as I know it is gone.

So we went to Sumo and filled up on sushi as a last hurrah before going back to strictly low carb. It was sooooooooooooooooooooo good!

Heather finally found her a maxi dress after shopping all over Orange Beach, Gulf Shores, Foley, Spanish Fort and Tuscaloosa. Thank the Lord.

Then we saw the attorney, Drew Whitmire. What a nice guy! Very southern lawyerish. He told us that we need to make a book on ourselves. Like a scrapbook. The mother will look at a pile of them and decide who gets her baby. So we have to make ourselves look good. Then we need to decide domestic or foreign. Then we need to pick an agency. He named a few here in Alabama. One is in Helena. Then we need a home study. So much information! My brain couldn't take it all in.

He also told us that the easiest and cheapest way is to put the word out that we are looking. That way, if somebody knows somebody who knows somebody who's friend is 19 and single and pregnant and wanting to give it up, we might be able to just get it directly. He said networking is a great tool for trying to adopt. So that's what we are doing. And ya'll spread the word too. Far and wide. Who knows who might hear of a baby out there somewhere. And it could be ours.

We filled out and signed all of our legal paperwork to adopt. So the papers are ready. They just need a baby name and date.

And that was our day. We were and still are exhausted. And stressed out.

There's a plan for us. I don't know what it is yet. But following it is about to wear me out.

Back to the Beach!!!

2009-05-15T12:05:00.002-05:00

Ok, ya'll. We're heading back to the beach. Catch ya first of the week when we get back.

Have a great weekend!

5 Followers!

2009-05-13T10:03:00.001-05:00

Hey and congrats to Heather for becoming my 5th follower! Wow! I'm moving up in this blog world. :)

Tech Support

2009-05-12T11:04:00.002-05:00

Thanks to Katie from Serenade Handmade Soaps for helping me to put a face with a name. I think this is the guy from Dell Technical Support who had me and my computer so screwed up! He's employee of the month!

Orange Beach Weekend

2009-05-11T10:01:00.011-05:00

I tried to post some pictures from my phone while we were in Orange Beach, but I obviously done quite have the hang of this mobile blogging.

Of course, we had another crazy weekend. I mean, why should the fact that we are at the beach mean that wacked-out stuff won't happen to us? It started out as a textbook example of Murphy's Law. But it got better. We just had to get it all out of our systems.

Thursday was a long day at work for me. We had decided the night before to just up and get out of town. So I knew I still had to go home and pack and get on the road, & 5 o'clock took it's sweet time getting here.

But finally we were on the road, and got down to the beach around 11:15pm. That's when the fun started.

I pulled up and shined the lights on the hiding place where the spare key is kept (we didn't bring the main key.) I found it with no trouble, and was untaping it. Just as the last piece of tape was unwound, I dropped the key. At the same time, Heather turned off the car lights. I hollered for her to turn them back on, but I lost sight of the key, which was in the midst of a whole pile of water oak leaves. We searched and searched for it. As of right now, we still haven't found it.

Guess what a locksmith in Orange Beach, Alabama charges to come out at midnight and let you in your front door? I know the answer, and it's a helluva lot!

The mosquitos were the size of my palm. And our cell phones won't work inside or under the porch. So I had to stand outside and talk on the phone, while swatting those blood-suckers every 3 seconds. It was quite the experience. But this guy from Aaron's Locksmith came and did his thing, and we were inside at last.

Let me pause here for a minute, and tell you about our neighborhood pet. He's a fox. There's a fox-crossing sign when you come into the neighborhood and we usually see him at night when we are down there. I guess he likes the water. Well, while I was on the phone with the locksmith, Heather said he came right up beside me and sat down. She said I could have petted him if I'd wanted to. Then a little later, he was back in the yard looking all around. It was very cool.

So anyway, I got up Friday morning determined to find that key. There's a table out back next to the shed that we use for cleaning fish, and I noticed that the faucet out there was leaking. So I looked at it and tried to tightened it where the faucet screws into the PVC. Mistake. I cracked the pipe. That made water start spraying out in all directions. So I had to make a trip to the hardware store and get stuff to go back and fix the water pipe.

And on that note, does anybody know if Orange Beach Hardware on Canal Road has closed for good? Looks like there is merchandise inside, but there is a For Sale sign on the door and we can never find them open.

Back to my story. While the glue dried on the PVC, we walked down the road to the neighborhood pavilion and watched the boats for a bit.

After all that, I went ahead and go the grass cut, and Heather did some weeding and pruning. All kinds of pretty things were blooming in the yard.

I don't know what this is...

Old-timey Lantana

Some Prickly Pear thing... I hate it because it always hits me in the leg when I'm mowing and then I spent the next several weeks with a big nasty scar on my leg...

Friday afternoon we headed out to the beach. It was great weather, and Heather caught me up to date on what is going on in the world. Did you know that Sarah Palin was raised by wolves til age 6? And that Holy Water has been found on Mars? Well enquiring minds need to know things like that.

The seagulls were out in force. And some of them were camera hogs.

When we came in from the beach, we could hear a humming noise. We have one of those new TV converter boxes down there, and I thought that was making the noise. Nope. Upon closer investigations, we realized the TV was dead. And I mean as a door nail dead. So guess what? We went to Gulf Shores Wal-Mart, Target, Foley Wal-mart, Office Depot (I was grasping at straws) and back to GS Wal-Mart and bought a new TV. Dang TV's aren't cheap anymore folks! But it works great, and we are back in business.

After I got the TV's changed out, Heather came in the living room fresh from a shower and dressed in her sleep-shirt for bed. I was hungry. She said she thought that we'd just snack for dinner, but I was hungrier than snacks. So I went over to the Keg and got cheeseburgers and onion rings for us. Boy did they hit the spot!

Saturday was a fishing day. Not a whole lot of luck was had by either of us, but Heather did end up snagging an entire reel and rod. It worked too. I changed out the hook and used it. So at least we caught something. But it was HOT! So around lunch-time, we decided to try something cooler. And cooler meant lunch!

We ran back and freshened up just a little bit, and then went to Fat Back's for lunch. It's a new place at Sportsman's Marina and has only been open about 3 or 4 weeks. Heather is a huge fan of tuna, and she had an Ahi Sandwich. It was a thick filet of mouth-watering tuna and thick crusty bread and had some sort of dark asian flavored sauce on the side. Fantastic!!! I had a shrimp po-boy. I do love a shrimp po-boy! (I had already had the same thing for lunch Friday at Doc's.) It was on a thick crust loaf of bread and had cole slaw on the side. The slaw was very similar to West Indies salad, and was sooo good! We have definately found a new favorite place.

Of course, during our lunch, somehow Heather and our waitress realized that they are both from Demopolis and that Heather's mom taught our waitress in 2nd grade. So they had to catch up and compare stories. I just watched the boats.

After a short recovery nap, we hit the beach again. I think it was at this point that I became pretty sunburned. It's brown today, but I was really red for a bit there.

Saturday night we ate at Shuckers over by the Wharf. Hmmmm.... I'll give it a 7 out of 10. The food was good and there was plenty of it, but our waitress didn't exactly speak fluent English and it was fairly pricey. Still, we enjoyed ourselves. It's an outdoor setting and they were playing great music. So we had a good time.

After that, we tried the Flora-Bama, but things just weren't happenin there. So we called it a night.

Sunday we headed home. Foley was having Art in the Park, so we spent a couple of hours there and then headed back to Mobile and stopped at Felix's on the causeway for lunch. Of course, it was awesome as always.

We stopped and saw my folks for a bit and then headed home.

I think we are going to have to have a repeat this coming weekend.

Being Spontaneous

2009-05-08T08:30:00.001-05:00

We decided to go incognito for the weekend. So we are in Orange Beach. More to come.
Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

Freaked Out!

2009-05-05T08:11:00.001-05:00

I love this time of year because it's just right for sitting on the deck in the evenings. Unless it's raining, you can usually find us outside, and yesterday was perfect.

Hershey was out looking for lizards on the deck, when all of a sudden, she started going crazy over in one corner. There's this big iron candle holder thing over there and she was trying to get at something that was under the base of it. So I went over and moved it and thought that a lizard ran out from under it.

The whole time I was out there, Hershey was hunting that lizard. She sniffed and looked but neither of us saw another lizard.

That's because I don't think it was a lizard.

It was a damned snake!

If you know me, then you know how I feel about a snake. I can't watch them on TV or visit the reptile exhibit at the zoo or really just even think about snakes in general. They freak me out big time! That Snakes on a Plane movie just about did me in.

So imagine my response when Heather said "There's a snake" and pointed to the area of the deck in front of the den door! Thank goodness I had been too lazy to put up the shovel the last time I used it. It was leaning up against the deck, so I grabbed it and began to chop that snake into as many pieces as possible. Heather said I was ruining the deck, but at that moment, I could have cared less about that deck. The snake had to die!!!

I don't know what kind of snake it was. It was young though. Probably about 6 inches long or so. And you know what that means. There are more babies somewhere and a mama snake to go with them.

I don't know what I'm going to do about this, but I can't have snakes everywhere.

We may have to pack up and move.

It's a Boy!

2009-05-03T18:52:00.002-05:00

Congratulations to our very dear friends, Adam, Katie, and Aidan Benefield! They have a new baby boy, Ethan _____ Benefield. (They haven't decided on a middle name yet, although Aidan has suggested "Ethan John Deere Benefield.") He was born at 3:54am, is 21 inches long, and weighs 8 pounds and 7 ounces.

I just spent the last hour and a half holding him at the hospital. Normally, I don't think babies are cute at this point, but I think I'm gonna have to make an exception in this case. He is definately a cutie!

I'm sure Katie will have pictures posted on her blog, Serenade Handmade Soap, as soon as she is able. Ya'll be sure to check them out!

Congrats my dear friends! We can't wait to start spoiling him!

Request

2009-05-02T19:17:00.003-05:00

I know those of you who read this hear me talking all the time about our friends, Chris and Jessica. Well I'm writing this today to ask all of you to remember their family in your prayers.

Jessica's sister, Johnna writes "Our Journey With Baby Stafford." I have the link posted here on my page.

Johnna and her husband Jeremy are passing through a very trying and sad time in their life. Please pray for them to find grace and comfort in the coming weeks.

Thanks,

Derek

Update

2009-04-29T16:26:00.003-05:00

I don't remember exactly what I have shared and what I haven't, but I filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau concerning this whole mess with Dell. I don't normally do things like that, but a friend of mine from the Facebook said that she had found it to be a solution that worked for her. So being at the end of my rope, I tried that as well, seeing as I really had nothing else to lose.

On Saturday, I received a call from Shuri at Dell. He had been notified of my complaint and wanted to help. Oh really? Now you want to help? And for free? How considerate.

Just to be honest though, and I know what you will think when I tell you this. I had just gotten out of the shower after the race, and I just did not have the strength to deal with Shuri right then. So I told him it was a bad time. He told me that he would call back Tuesday after 5pm. Evidently, Shuri is off on Mondays. You're probably thinking now that they offered help and I turned them down so I must not have been as desperate as I act like I was. Well that may be true, but there really was no way I could handle anymore Dell at that point. And he said he'd call on Tuesday....

I went home yesterday afternoon and waited on Shuri to call. About 5:30, I decided to try to fix it again myself. You can imagine how successful that was.

After about 15 minutes of myself doing absolutely no good, Shuri called. We worked together for about an hour and a half, much of which was spent on hold. So I got laundry put away and the computer printer fixed all at the same time.

Who says men can't multi-task?

And all is well once again.

The Running Man

2009-04-27T14:08:00.004-05:00

After this weekend, I am officially calling myself a runner. Not really, and if you could have seen my poor self Saturday afternoon, you wouldn't call me that either.

A couple of months ago, I signed up to do the Mayor's Cup 5K. The proceeds benefit Tuscaloosa's pre-K programs, and I could earn time off from work at the same time. I had great plans of getting ready for this. I planned to go to the the Y everyday at lunch and being ready to go by the time the race arrived. I have had similar plans before, and sadly most have ended with nearly the same result.

I did do better with my preparation this time than I usually do though. I think it may have had something to do with the fact that I would be out there with people that I work with and actually see everyday, and I didn't want to make a complete idiot of myself. Also, the Mayor offered any City employee who finished in less than 50 minutes a full day off with pay. Who wouldn't want that?

So if you've seen me huffing and puffing up and down University Blvd and around the quad lately, now you know why.

Saturday was the day, and I was determined to make it in less than 50 minutes. And I finished in 41. I ran a whole lot more than I did getting ready, but being out there with everyone else seemed to make it easier. By the time I finished though, I looked like I had been caught in a storm. I was soaked.

I went home, and after grabbing a long shower at the insistence of my wife (what? stinky people don't need love too?), I crashed on the sofa for the rest of the afternoon.

A couple of times I tried to get up and actually be productive, but there's only so much a person can do. Besides, my legs really didn't want to work so well.

About 4pm, I was able to head to Jalepeno's for some golden enchilada's and margarita's. And that was about it for me.

Now if I can just stay motivated to keep running, I may be the next Jesse Owens.

Typical

2009-04-23T16:34:00.005-05:00

I wasn't going to say anything about this. I mean, I want reading this to be a positive experience for all of you. Nobody want to hear me bitch and moan. So here's a heads up... that's what this is gonna be. So if you aren't interested in my latest technological frustrations, then stop reading now.

For years, Heather has been buying these cheap printers that last about a year and then won't print anything legible. Our last one had been on the blink for about 8 months. If we needed something printed, we'd email it to ourselves and print at the office. So I decided a month or so ago that we needed a decent printer.

I have a Dell laptop and I love it. I bought it back in August and have had very few problems. It's awesome. So with that in mind, I thought I'd shop Dell for a printer. And I found one and bought it. The thing that sold me on this particular one, was that it is wireless. So I could sit in the living room and print in the office. Cool.... ideally. Not so cool realistically, of course.

So anyway, the struggle began the day after I ordered the printer. At the time of placing the order, the estimated arrival date was March 12th. The morning after I placed my order, I received an email from Dell stating that my order had been delayed and would be sent March 27th. WTH??? I called them to inquire what had changed during the course of the evening and basically got the same run-around that I have gotten for the past month. I should have run then. After telling the Dell rep that I would just cancel my order and go to Office Depot, they were amazingly able to ship my printer on time after all. Imagine that....

So the UPS man brought the printer. I unpacked it and it was all nice and new and pretty looking. I oohed and aahed over it for awhile and began setting it up.

Let me break here for a second. Heather did not want this printer. She somehow thought that there was nothing wrong with our old one, regardless of the fact that each document that printed looked like one of those ink-blot test things. So she didn't ooh one bit. In fact, she kept grilling me about the price in a not so nice way. She has not liked it the entire time I have had it. So I take full responsibility for what I am about to tell you.

The printer didn't work. I spent several hours that first weekend on the phone and online with Dell technical support. Something was wrong with it. So they sent me another printer and I returned the first one.

And it doesn't work either. And there's my problem. I have spent countless hours on the phone with technical support. I have been transfered from regular tech support, to XPS tech support, to printer support, to software support, and even have talked a couple of times to customer service. At one point, the printer worked. Kinda. I've printed a total of maybe 5 things on it. I think 2 times it worked as it should have.

So Sunday night, Heather wanted to print and fax some paperwork to send to the ART fertility clinic in preparation for our first visit. We actually filled out the paperwork by hand and were going to fax it. Heather decided that she needed to add a cover sheet, and when she hit the print button, nothing happened. She immediately began telling me how she hated that printer on how it has never worked even once for her. I took the laptop back to the office and plugged it directly into the printer. That worked a couple of times in the past. Not so this time. I got nothing.

So once again, I called Dell and went through the motions of being passed from person to person. My frustration continued to grow. My last person of the night, after nearly 3 hours, was in software support. It seems that they thought the problem was not in the printer, but in the laptop. Ok. So fix it. They are both Dell products and the software in the computer is Dell software. Makes sense to me. And then they tell me, that for the low price of $69.00, they will make it all work. Come on... really? $69.00? I hate to admit it, but I lost it. Why in the world would I spend additional money with them? I told the guy that what I needed was a shipping label so that I could send it back to them. I still have the box. I'm done with it. Of course, that required a call to customer service, who happened to be closed at the time of my request.

So Monday morning, I called for my shipping label. They tried to pass me off of course, but I was having none of that. So then they tell me that their return policy is limited to the first 21 days. So they won't take it back. I think I hung up on them.

I let it go for a couple of days so that I could cool off. Then Wednesday night, I tried one more time. Again, I went through the motions of explaining the problem to each and every possible department at Dell. Finally I ended up back with the software department. Guess what? The price was now $129.00!

At that point things get a little fuzzy. Remember when we were growing up and we would watch the Incredible Hulk and how poor Bill Bixby would morph into this big green creature that he had no control of? I think that is what happened to me. I freakin exploded. The tech guy put me on hold to speak to his manager.

I completed unloaded a whole month's worth of frustration on this manager guy. He promised that if I paid the money, they would fix the problem. At least I think that's what he said. His English was so bad, that I really couldn't understand much at all. I told him that I no longer trusted anything that anybody from Dell told me. And why should I? I trusted them enough to pay for a printer that should have worked when it came in the door, but now 2 printers, and hours and hours and days and days later, I got nothing. I don't remember what all else I said. There was a lot of comments about horrible service and the most infuriating experienced I have ever had, and I think I even mentioned the Better Business Bureau, which by the way, has been contacted at this point. When I got done, he said that they would fix the printer free of charge.

Well now that's more like it. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I am obviously a fool.

So the tech guy gets back on the phone and takes over my computer. He goes to some website and starts downloading some kind of utility. I noticed that the picture on the screen was of a printer that looked nothing like mine. I pointed that out to him. No problem. He just needs the utility. Ok.

Let me just make this story shorter here. By the time he finished, not only was the printer still not working, but we no longer had internet access. He kept telling me that I had to have internet access for him to be able to help me and that he was unaware that I was unable to connect online. Hello???? Obviously we were connected for him to be able to screw things up even further!

I had to back everything up and reinstall Windows. The software guy told me to call XPS support and have them walk me through it. I didn't even bother with them. I did it myself yesterday.

So at least we can get online again. I didn't want my Facebook friends to get too worried about me. The printer still doesn't work though. Maybe this weekend, I can summon the strength to get it all worked out.

Who knows....

Crawfish and Bluegrass!

2009-04-20T13:33:00.005-05:00

There was so much going on this past weekend, and I truly had a hard time deciding what to do. I was pulled in all kinds of directions. When it gets this time of year, and the weather is as nice as it was Saturday, I just want to do it all.

My main dilemma was Crawfish Festival or the Alabama Crimson Tide A-Day Game. I thought long and hard about it. I mean, we are die-hard Alabama fans. So that should have settled it for me. But then again, I do love going to the Crawfish Festival in Faunsdale. I decided that since we are about to shell out an ungodly sum of dough this month for our football tickets, and will be at all of the home games and as many of the away games as we can possibly swing, that I could skip the A-Day game and go chow down on some mud-bugs.

When we woke up Saturday morning, I thought my plans were going to have to be thrown out the window into the rain that was falling. But we decided to drive down anyway, and at least get some crawfish to go. But the further we got down the road, the more the sun came shining through, and we ended up having an absolutely beautiful day.

We ate as soon as we got there. I repeated my plan from last year and got the combo plate... crawfish etouffe, a pistolette, and a mini crawfish pie. I swear, that crawfish pie was so danged good I could have eaten a dozen of them. It was even better than last year, in that I didn't throw up afterwards!

We walked through the arts and crafts but didn't buy anything. Then I went back to the car and grabbed our chairs and we settled in for an afternoon of listening to the bands.

There were a lot of people there, and a whole lot of them were bikers. I am always entertained at all these older people who will pour themselves into black leather and then come out for a day in the hot sun. Doesn't make sense to me. I must be missing something.

Of course, there were some who were dressed more appropriately for the weather.

Yes, her boyfriend's shirt does say "Stroke Me." Hmmmm.....

Heather evidently tried to get into the biker spirit as well, because when we started to get out of the car, this is what I noticed.

Yep, those are black toenails. Hmmmm.....

About 4pm, Rolling in the Hay took the stage. I love some bluegrass, and they have a funky way of making me love it even more. The crowd really got into it, and we kicked back and had ourselves a ball. About half-way through their show, Heather asked if I was ready for some boiled crawfish. So she went and got us a big ole sack of steaming ones, and we ate and ate and ate and actually ate every last one of them! So good!!!!!

It was a great time.

Then Sunday afternoon the rains started. So we laid around and listened to the weather and watched old movies on the TV.

What a life........

Dude, Where's My Phone?

2009-04-15T13:01:00.003-05:00

I am a crackberry addict. I've had my Blackberry for 2 years now, and I don't know how I ever lived without it. I'm on it all the time, and if I slip up and leave it at home, well we've got to go back and get it. I feel naked without it.

I've been watching the AT&T website to see when it was time to upgrade. I'm a gadget freak, and I'd been doing a little shopping and product comparing, and had decided to get the new Blackberry Bold. Week before last, when I logged on to AT&T, I saw that it was time to do a trade-in.

I went out to the retail store 3 times last week. The online specials were better than what they were running in the store. I tried to get the same deal as online, but those folks in the store really didn't care. They kept trying to sell me on that 3G network, when we don't even have 3G available here in Tuscaloosa yet. I pointed that out too. Sell me on something relevant, people!

I also got online, had the phone in my cart, had all my info filled out, but couldn't bring myself to hit the Submit button... 3 or 4 different times. So finally on Friday, I just did it. I ordered it. And I have been excited ever since.

The phone should have been here yesterday, but got held up in Opelika. So it was scheduled for delivery at the house today. I left a note for UPS to call me if a signature was required, and I would meet them somewhere. But just a little before lunch, I checked the UPS website and the phone had been delivered.

I took off to the house, all the while planning my afternoon of getting the new phone and my email and calendars, etc set up. I got home and took the box inside and carefully opened it up. Wow... lots of stuff in the box! There was even a phone case, something I hadn't expected. I had manuals, USB cords, earbuds, Blackberry software, and a plastic card that holds the SIM card. But that was it. Where was the phone? I looked all through everything, thinking that somehow I overlooked it. No dice. The phone was not in there.

So I immediately thought that it must be coming in a separate box. I called AT&T to confirm that idea. Nope. "There's no phone, sir? Are you sure?" I'm sure.

The AT&T folks were very nice (and I talked to 3 or 4 of them before I was done.) They have filed a lost/stolen phone report and a new phone is on its way. Hopefully, I will have it on Friday.

Que sera sera....

"There's rosemary, that's for remembrance..."

2009-04-10T16:25:00.005-05:00

We ate last night for our last time at The Globe restaurant in old downtown Northport. Why? Because after 17 years of delighting the citizens of Tuscaloosa and surrounding areas with his culinary genius, Chef Jeff Wilson has decided that he must close his doors. Thus, another example of how the economy is affecting us all.

Jeff Wilson has always been a fan of the works of William Shakespeare. That is why he named his restaraunt The Globe, after the Globe Theatre. The walls inside were covered with Shakespearian artwork and framed quotes from Shakepeare's plays. The theatrical theme continued onto his menu, with dishes such as Twelth Night Trout, the Oberon, and my personal favorite, a lobster stuffed filet mignon known as the Prince Hal.

Heather and I are sad to see The Globe close. We have shared many great memories there. It was there that we had our first date. It was there that we ate when we got engaged. It was there where we have celebrated our anniversary every year. And it was there that we have enjoyed ourselves over and over too many times to count. I have shared many a meal with many wonderful friends, some who are no longer with us, and The Globe was my absolute, number one, favorite place to eat.

So we heard through the grapevine that it was closing, and knew that we had to have one more dinner before saying goodbye. Last night I had a filet, and Heather had the shrimp tortellini. The place was packed, just like it used to be before times got hard for so many people. We had to wait a little while, but everything was excellent, as always.

I asked our waiter at one point what they were doing with the artwork and quotations on the wall. He said some were being sold. So when we were done with our dinner, I walked around the entire restaurant trying to find the perfect piece. I thought I had found a couple of things that were close, but just wasn't sure. Then when we were about to leave, hanging beside the door was just what I wanted. It's a quote from Hamlet and was spoken by Ophelia. It was the perfect piece to remember such a great old place.

"There's rosemary, that's for remembrance; pray, love, remember."

I bought it. Chef Jeff even signed the back for me. And Heather kept a menu that we will add to the back. And we'll always have a piece of the Globe, and we will always remember.

Tuscaloosa Air Show

2009-04-06T20:01:00.001-05:00

I thought I'd post a few pics from Saturday's Air Show here in Tuscaloosa. It was the first to be held here, and an estimated 150,000 people turned out at the airport to see the Blue Angels, the Golden Knights, and a host of others. The Golden Knights said that it was the largest crowd they had ever jumped for. We had a great day. The crowds were twice what the city had expected, so the shuttles were a bit slow afterwards (it took us 3 hours to get on one), but we didn't let that bother us one bit. We all enjoyed the day and got nice sunburns. My face is already beginning to peel. If you missed it this year, the City plans on this becoming an annual event, so you'll have to make sure and be here next year!

Lowe's Lowe's Lowe's

2009-03-31T08:28:00.007-05:00

Sorry I didn't get around to posting any pics last night. It was once again an eventful evening. I will try to do better.

Heather wanted to replace the ceiling fan in our bedroom. I may have already mentioned this yesterday, I don't know at this point. We had bought a fan at Home Depot Saturday, I think. Got it home and took the old one down, and the new fan wouldn't fit where we wanted it to. You see, whoever built our house was gracious enough to include these beams in the ceiling where the pitched parts meet. I measured the width of the beam, and we have 5 1/2 inches to work with. The fan base needs to fit in that space. Doesn't sound too complicated does it? Well guess again!

When the tree fell on the house, we had the good sense to have the beam in the kitchen removed. Now we'd like to take out the beams in the den and our bedroom. But I have a feeling that the ceilings underneath the beams do not match the ceilings outside of the beams. That would make things way to simple, and simplicity does not exist at our house.

So yesterday, I returned the fan to Home Depot, drove over to Lighting Plus and looked at their high-dollar merchandise that they obviously very proud of, and then went BACK to Lowe's for about the seventeenth time and bought what I thought was the same fan that we bought for the den, but in white.

I got home after work, and miraculously, Daddy had been able to fix the garage wall without have to rip out every piece of siding and start over. It just needs painting now. (Which again is not simple. Cabiness paint has our interior paint records on file, but cannot find the colors for the exterior. So I have to take some of the old siding over and have them match it. And of course I forgot to bring that with me again today. I also need to get more of the exterior trim to cover up the places on the back of the house where I knocked the trim paint off with the pressure washer.)

We brought in the new fan and started unpacking it. Nope. Won't work. The base was too wide on this one as well. So I didn't even finish taking it out of the box. I just closed it up and we went to get yet another one.

We had to make a detour because Daddy wanted to buy himself a new TV. It's pretty sweet. I think what hooked him was the fact that they had a fishing show playing and the bass was right up in his face. I knew at that point that he was sold. He said that he's going to have to be careful watching those cattle auctions on RFD because the picture looks so real he might actually get manure on him..... I know... funny. I tried to get him to see if SAM's would give him a better deal if he bought two, and he could give one to me, but that didn't go very far.

So after SAM's we headed BACK to Lowe's for the twenty-eighth time since Friday. And we looked, and we looked, and we had them open boxes so we could measure, and eventually we bought another fan. And it's not even white. It's something called brushed nickel. I like it. But at this point, I would like anthing. I think I would even be willing to hire Egyptian women to stand around the bed with big palm leaves. Anything to be done with this!

We did end the evening with big heaping plates of fried seafood from Wintzell's. Daddy made the comment that he had been eating oysters at Wintzell's for over 50 years. Probably longer than that since he was born in 1938, the same year Wintzell's opened for business in downtown Mobile.

When I left the house this morning, Daddy and Heather were about to open up the box and hang the fan. I got out of there fast. I'm afraid that if that one didn't work, I might throw it through the bedroom window out into the yard. And of course that would require additional repairs.

Mama made the comment night before last that we should go ahead and start on the deck remodel that I want to do, since Daddy is here to help us.

Obviously, she has lost her mind, or she wants me to lose mine.

UPDATE: Heather just called on her way home from Lowe's. The rod that came with the fan wasn't long enough to work with our pitched ceiling. I'm just glad that I'm at work.

Tuscaloosa Airshow Info

2009-03-30T10:34:00.002-05:00

Full Schedule for Tuscaloosa Air Show
For both Saturday (4/4) and Sunday (4/5)

9 a.m.: Gates open

10 a.m.: Airspace closes

10:45 a.m.: Opening Ceremonies

10:55 a.m.: Golden Knight Parachute jump

11:12 a.m.: Red Eagle Air Sports – Teaser routine (full show at 2:38 p.m.)
The two-member Red Eagle Air Sports team flies the Talon Eagle and the Red Eagle. The Red Eagle is a one-of-a-kind plane with a engine that exceeds 250 horsepower. It travels 180 miles per hour while flying level and can exceed 230 miles per hour during air show maneuvers. The roll rate of the plane is 360 degrees per second and the vertical climb is 1,500 feet. The Talon Eagle is one of five in the world and features an unusual double-swept wing and a powerful engine. The biplane travels 210 miles per hour in level flight and 250 during maneuvers. The roll rate is 400 degrees per second and vertical climb capability is 3,000 feet.

11:25 a.m.: Alabama Air National Guard KC-135 Flyby
The KC-135 Stratotanker is an aerial refueling craft that the United States Air Force has used for more than 50 years. The planes also provide refueling support for the Navy, Marine Corps and allied nation aircraft. The aircraft has four turbofans mounted under 35-degree swept wings, which power it to takeoffs at gross weights up to 322,500 pounds. A crewmember known as the boom operator is stationed at the rear of the plane and controls the boom – the KC-135’s primary fuel transfer method.

11:26 a.m.: Warbird Flight
Warbird is a term used for vintage military aircraft. P-51 Mustangs will be showcased at the Tuscaloosa show. The Mustang was among the best and most well-known fighters used by the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II. Possessing excellent range and maneuverability, the P-51 operated primarily as a long-range escort fighter and also as a ground attack fighter-bomber. The Mustang was used in nearly every combat zone during WWII, and later in the Korean War.

11:36 a.m.: U.S. Air Force A-10A Thunderbolt II Demo
The Thunderbolt II can survive direct hits from armor-piercing and high explosive projectiles up to 23 mm. With a wingspan of 57 feet, 6 inches and weighing 29,000 pounds, the aircraft can reach 800 miles per hour. The planes are favored by the Air Force for their maneuverability at low air speeds and low altitude and their highly accurate weapons-delivery platforms. The Thunderbolt II can loiter near battle areas for extended periods of time and can operate under 1,000 foot ceilings with 1.5-mile visibility. They are used against ground targets, including tanks and other armored vehicles.

11:52 a.m.: Greg Koontz and The Alabama Boys – Flying Farmer Routine and Cartop Landing
Greg Koontz got his start in aerobatic flying in Ernie Moser’s Flying Circus, where he became known for his comedic performance and “World’s Smallest Airport” stunt, where he lands on a moving pickup truck. In the comedy show, Koontz climbs into the bleachers as “Farmer Clem Cleaver” who demands a flight lesson. He ends up “stealing” a 1946 Piper J-3 Cub with the crew in pursuit and eventually lands on the truck when “Grandpa” shoots a tire out. Until 2002, Koontz flew jet aircraft for a corporation in Alabama and performed airshows in his spare time. He owns a bed and breakfast with his wife in Ashville where he is an aerobatic flight instructor. The team flies Super Decathlon planes, which exceed 200 miles per hour.

12:07 p.m.: U.S. Air Force B-52H Stratofortress Flyby (Saturday only)
Air Combat Command’s B-52 is a long-range, heavy bomber that can perform a variety of missions. The bomber is capable of flying at high subsonic speeds at altitudes up to 50,000 feet. It can carry nuclear or precision guided conventional ordnance with worldwide precision navigation capability. During Desert Storm, B-52s delivered 40 percent of all the weapons dropped by coalition forces. It is highly effective when used for ocean surveillance, and can assist the U.S. Navy in anti-ship and mine-laying operations. Two B-52s, in two hours, can monitor 140,000 square miles of ocean surface. The plane cruises at 275 miles per hour and can reach 437 miles per hour.

12:12 p.m.: U.S. Navy F/A-18E/F Super Hornet East Coast Demonstration Team
The fighter and attack aircraft was first flown in 1995 and is used by the Navy for day and night strikes with precision-guided weapons, anti-air warfare, as a fighter escort, for close air support, suppression of enemy air defense, maritime strikes and reconnaissance missions, forward air control and air-to-air refueling .

12:25 p.m.: Gordo Sanders Roll Tide T-6
A former Lt. Col. in the Air National Guard and later a FedEx pilot, Gordo Sanders served in the 1990 Gulf War and was involved in search and destruction of SCUD missiles in Iraq. During his military career, he logged more than 1,500 hours and flew aircraft that exceeded 600 miles per hour. Sanders flies a T-6 Texan, the basic training planes used during World War II and has competed in competitions and flown in air shows across the Southern states.

12:35 p.m.: Mike Wiskus, Lucas Oil Pitts
Solo performer Michael Wiskus’ show has been described as smoky, loud and high-energy. Wiskus, from Minnesota, began flying at an early age and was the 2002 U.S. National Aerobatic Champion and a 2004 U.S. National Aerobatic team member. He has competed in air shows in Europe and Russia. His Web site describes the performance as “outrageous, high-performance, low-altitude, solo aerobatics smothered with smoke and noise”. Wiskus flies a one-of-a-kind Pitts S111B plane, an biplane that is a variation of the Pitts Special -- an aerobatic type of plane first used in the mid-40s and widely used in air shows of the 1960s and 1970s. Wiskus reaches speeds of more than 260 miles per hour.

12:49 p.m.: Warbird Flight
The Yakovlev Yak-52 first flew in 1976, and is still being produced in Bacau, Romania. The planes were originally designed as a trainer for students who would later fly Soviet jet aircraft. Nanchang CJ-6 are Chinese aircraft designed and built in China for use by the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) as a basic trainer.

1:02 p.m.: Greg Koontz Decathalon Demo

1:24 p.m.: Aeroshell Aerobatic Team

The Aeroshell Aerobatic Team has performed across the country for more than 20 years. Pilots fly AT-6 Texans. Nicknamed “The Pilot Maker”, the planes were first used in 1938 as basic training plane for the United States Army Air Corps. They were flown by all World War II pilots who went on to fly fighter aircraft. The Texans are still used as basic training planes and light attack aircraft in 22 countries. The planes have wingspans of 42 feet and can reach 212 miles per hour. There are under-wing attachments for light bombs and rockets. The team is sponsored by Shell Aviation, the aviation division of Shell Oil.

1:44 p.m.: U.S. Army Golden Knights

2:20 p.m.: U.S. Air Force C-17 Demo

2:33 p.m.: Air Force Reserve Jet Car
From zero to 400 miles per hour in just eight seconds, The Air Force Reserve Jet Car always outraces the pilots who try go up against it – despite the head start from driver Bill Braack. The car is powered by a Westinghouse J-34 jet engine that develops 10,000 horsepower and 6,000 pounds of thrust. Made of aluminum and magnesium, the 26-foot long car weighs 2,300 pounds and uses 40 gallons of diesel fuel for each performance. Attached parachutes can bring the car to a stop in less than 2,000 feet. Mike Wiskus, of Lucas Oil Pitts, will attempt to beat the car in a race.

2:38 p.m.: Red Eagle Air Sports Full Show

3 p.m.: U.S. Navy Blue Angels C-130 Demo

3:15 p.m.: U.S. Navy Blue Angels

5 p.m.: Gates close

Bobby the Builder

2009-03-30T08:54:00.003-05:00

I am about worn slap out.

We have had several projects at our house that have been needing to be done. But as busy as we always seem to be, the list never gets shorter... in fact it has been growing lately at an alarming pace!

So this weekend, Daddy (Bobby) came up, I brought out my checkbook, and we worked all weekend getting things done and redone. In fact, just because the weekend is over doesn't mean that the fun has stopped. Daddy is still here and will probably stay with us another couple of days in an attempt to finish up the projects we have started. God bless him.

Daddy got here Friday afternoon, much to the pleasure of Hershey. We had told her that Poppy was coming, and she had been excited for 3 days. He tends to spoil her more than just a little bit, and anybody who knows Hershey knows that she is definately a high maintenance little dog who thrives on attention from everybody.

We decided to hit Lowe's wide open before we went to eat. So we loaded up in the Volvo and prepared to go spend. We started looking at kitchen sinks and faucets. Our original plan was to get a new stainless sink. When the tree fell on the house, and the kitchen had to be redone, four years ago, the painters used our kitchen sink to wash out their paint rollers and brushes and ruined it. In the midst of arguing over everything else that needed to be done in the rebuild, we gave in on the sink and decided to replace it ourselves. So 4 years later, here we are.

Heather suddenly decided that she didn't want stainless steel anymore. She found these granite sinks that she loved. I wasn't so sure, but decided to just go with the flow. We picked out the faucets, but couldn't decide on a sink, so we decided to keep looking.

Basically, Friday's purchases ended up being a new fan and light for the den. And a few other small things we needed. Then we went to eat at Kobe, which took forever. So by the time we finished eating, there was no time for Home Depot.

Saturday morning, after ham and cheese croissants, we tackled hanging the new microwave over the new stove. Not bad at all. We got that done with no problems. So we decided to hang the fan in the den. No problem. Looked great! We were pleased.

So that was Saturday morning. After a lunch of some chili-dogs (on burned up buns because I forgot they were toasting under the broiler), we put up the new lights on the outside of the house. No problems. An easy job. And I got to use my new ladder, as well.

Then we went to the other Lowe's to look at sinks again. They guy who helped us kept telling us that the single basin sinks were special order. Not a problem since we wanted a double basin. But he kept saying it over and over. Then I actually saw a single basin sink in the spot on the shelf where our double basin should have been. Of course I pointed this out, which confused the mess out of him. The he went on and on about how it was a mistake and how he could special order our sink and have it here within 4 days or so. He then told us that they provided installation for an additional charge. I replied that my dad was going to install it for us. Lowe's fella replied that my dad couldn't offer the warranty on the installation that Lowe's could. What????? No thanks, dude. We moved on.

Then we went to Home Depot and stayed forever! We needed siding to do some repairs on the garage wall, and we finally found what we needed. Then we looked at fans for our bedroom.

How is it that these home improvement stores hire these employees who are complete idiots when it comes to knowing anything at all about what they sell? The lady in the fan section was completely clueless to any questions that we asked. She kept running up and down the aisles muttering to herself about the new fans that they were about to start putting up for display. Then, when we made our decision, she pointed out that the fan we were getting was not a Hunter fan, but an EnergyStar. My dad pointed out that the EnergyStar logo on the box was letting us know that the fan was energy efficient that that the Hunter logo in the corner meant that it was a Hunter ceiling fan. She looked at him as though he had spoken Swahili.

Then we headed over to look at Home Depot's sinks. They were awful, and were higher than Lowe's. Heather had almost decided on one of them though, but I vetoed that vote and said I would drive back over to the first Lowe's. So once again, we left a store without a sink. But we did get another fan.

We headed home with our lumber and siding, and Heather volunteered to go back and get the sink. She was tired of looking and was ready to buy anything. At this point I had grown to really like the granite. We were just differing on which one to actually buy. Then one I liked had 2 different basin shapes and 2 different depths. The one Heather liked had identical basins. Mine was more expensive by about 50 bucks. So I figured she would come back with the one she wanted.

We got home and unloaded the truck, and Heather and Hershey went back to the store. Daddy and I started tearing the old siding from the outside of the garage. That's when we hit the first big obstacle. The wood underneath the siding was soaking wet. We have a moisture problem. We basically took the siding off the bottom part of the house, and then left it to dry. Daddy is probably out there right now trying to deal with what has hopefully dried out. So who knows what else is instore for us with the garage when I get home from work. (Yes, I blog at work.)

Heather and Hershey came back with the sink...my choice! They had also stopped and picked up some ribeyes and porkchops for the grill. So we stopped working, got cleaned up, did a little grilling, and just chilled out the rest of the night.

Let me share with you here, that our new microwave will cook a baked potato until it shrivels up like an old piece of leather. Heather set the thing on an hour and left it to cook! So we just had salad and asparagus with our steaks.

Sunday morning we went back to Lowe's for some plumbing items and then came home to install the sink. Second obstacle. Our countertops are evidently thicker than normal, and the brackets that came with the sink to hold it to the countertops were not big enough. That sink took over 6 hours and still another trip to Home Depot before it was finished. But oh my goodness, it does look good with our countertops! I'll post pics later on when I get a chance.

It was beginning to get a little dark when we decided to hand the bedroom fan. Third obstacle. The base of the fan wouldn't fit into the beam at the top of our bedroom ceiling. So after quite a bit of unsuccessfully trying to make it work, we packed it back up and I will be returning it at lunch and getting another one. I'll probably get the same one as in the den, only white. We can hang it this evening.

I think Daddy will get to go home by Wednesday evening. Then they head back up here this weekend for the Blue Angels.

Moral of the story: No rest for the weary. But if all you do is rest, then you end up waiting 4 years to replace your sink.

More later.

Meatloaf... exciting stuff, huh?

2009-03-24T13:54:00.003-05:00

This is gonna be dull. Thought I'd warn ya'll in advance. Just not a lot exciting going on right now.

By now, you should know that I have found a love for cooking, and that I like to try new things. It's fairly rare that we have things over and over. Unless you count meatloaf. We have it about once a week. I love it. It's one of my favorite meals.

But when it comes to my meatloaf, I'm a simple person. I rarely eat it anywhere but home, because a lot of people try to jazz it up with bell pepper and all sorts of things. I dated a girl one time that mixed so much ketchup in hers that it always ended up bright red. She liked it that way. That's how her Mama made it. But not me. I like it plain and simple. Some salt, peppers, a little onion, and a dash of Moore's. If I get crazy I may add an egg. (By the way, be careful with the egg. You know on the Food Network when they tell you to always crack your egg over a bowl instead of over your dish? Well pay attention to that. I once had 3 pounds of very lean ground beef in a bowl and when I cracked the egg it was green inside and I had to throw it all out and start over. The smell was atrocious too! And I had just bought the eggs at Publix! Who would've expected a bad one?)

Let me break in here and share a little story with ya'll. When Heather and I first started dating, she was going to cook supper for me one night. She knew of my love for meatloaf, so she decided to impress me with her own version. Back then, whenever Heather would cook anything, she'd open up the cabinet and just start grabbing things until she had a minimum of 7 random spices added to whatever dish she was making. This did not always have the desired results. In fact, that leads us back to that fateful first meatloaf.

So Heather had cooked that night, and it actually tasted good. I think I had seconds. Then we were going to watch a movie and chill out. Well about half way through the movie, I started feeling funny. The feeling progressed pretty quickly and before I knew it, I was puking my guts up in the toilet. I was sick as a dog! I stayed sick all night! And I don't think she had ever made meatloaf again.

But back to my story....

So this weekend I broke my own rule and tried a new meatloaf. I found it somewhere on the internet, and it called for sundried tomatoes. Sounded pretty good to me, because otherwise it was a simple recipe.

The recipe said to drain the oil out of the jar of tomatoes into a skillet, and then to cook a cup of chopped onions in that oil. Who knew that onions cooking in sundried tomato infused olive oil could smell so bad. It was almost as bad as the green egg. (Not really though....)

I kept moving forward with the recipe though. Even though I was concerned about ruining another bowl full of hamburger meat. I mixed everything together and ended up with so much that I had to make 2 loaves. As they baked, the smell got much better and even started smelling really good! When Heather came home she said it smelled incredible.

We sliced it up.

I could taste the aftertaste of the tomatoes, but just faintly. It grew on me. But not a whole lot. Heather asked if it was really a new recipe because she couldn't tell the difference. I could tell a difference for sure. She had lots of ketchup on hers and I think that masked the taste. We ate half of one and have another whole one and a half in the fridge. So we've got to learn to like it. It's not so bad with ketchup.

That jar of tomatoes was almost $6.00. I think I'll stick with what I know from now on.

Fried Pies!

2009-03-20T09:48:00.002-05:00

I know ya'll probably think that for somebody who is trying to lose weight on a low carb diet, I sure do eat a lot of stuff I'm not supposed to. Well, here I go again....

All my life I have loved fried apple pies. My grandmother used to make them all the time and they were one of Daddy's favorite things. Anytime we had any kind of gathering, whether holidays or church or family reunions or any other excuse to get together and eat, she always brought plates of fried pies. Mammaw made hers with lard, so they were greasy, and oh my goodness they were so good! She was known for those pies and she probably made thousands of them in her lifetime.

So let me just say that I did a really good thing when I married a girl who's Mama makes fried apple pies! Heather went down to Demopolis yesterday to visit and came back with a zip-lock bag full of happiness for your mouth. Or my mouth. I had 2 of them for supper. I knew they were coming because Heather drove her mother around Demopolis yesterday delivering pies to the sick, and I had looked forward to having some of them all day long. I'd show ya'll a picture, but somehow the pies disappeared before I got a chance to take one.

I called Heather's mom last night to thank her, and she has promised to teach me how to make them. I think that is a skill that needs to be passed on. I wish I had learned from my grandmother, but I had not discovered the joys of cooking back then. So Sue can teach me. And if you're nice to me I just might share!

Have a good weekend!

2009-03-17T08:36:00.005-05:00

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

May those who love us, love us.

And for those who don't love us,

May God turn their hearts.

And if he can not turn their hearts,

May he turn their ankles,

So we may know them by their limping.

May you live as long as you want, and never want as long as you live.

How many crazy weekends can one have before actually going crazy?

2009-03-16T10:38:00.004-05:00

Here we go again, ya'll. And this one is a doozy.

It has rained in Tuscaloosa all weekend. In fact, it must have started during the night last Thursday night, because when Heather left for work Friday morning at 5:30am, she announced the current weather conditions on her way out the door.

To be honest, I had been watching Mickey Ferguson every morning, so I was aware of the approaching rain. And yet I did nothing to prepare for it. The cover was off of the charcoal grill and the charcoal and lighter fluid were out. The little gas grill that I bought last year because it was on sale (and mainly because it has speakers built into the base of it with an outlet to plug in an i-pod making it possible to cook and sing along with my favorite tunes simultaneously) was still out in the weather as well. So I jumped up out of bed and went out on the deck to cover up or bring in the things that didn't need to get wet.

What happened next is unclear. I was barefoot. I was in my boxers. The deck was wet. There was a wrought-iron chair involved somehow, I think. All I know for sure is that one minute I had a bag of charcoal in my hand and the next I was on all fours with my head in a wooden planter and covered in dirt.

I think some choice words were voiced at this point. I'll leave you to your own imaginations regarding that.

I got up, wiped off as much dirt as I could, and finished what I set out to do in getting things put up. Then I went inside to get a shower and get ready for work. My hand did hurt, and I had a cut on the side of it. And I realized that I had hit my right eye on that planter, and that it was attempting to swell a bit.

I shave in the shower. Much easier than at the sink. I have a fogless mirror mounted on the shower wall, and keep my razor and shave stuff in there as well. When I started to pick up my razor, I couldn't hold it in my fingers like I normally do. I had to shave left-handed. That was the real clue that I may have hurt myself.

So I finished getting ready and my eye was looking rough. I called Heather at work and told her I thought I had broken something in my hand. Then I called the office and gave them the same spill. When my doctor's office opened, I was sitting in the waiting room. After x-rays, the news was confirmed....broken finger. They wanted to put a cast on my hand to my wrist, but I talked them into a splint. Even that is driving me crazy at this point. But I have 2 more weeks to go.

Now on a normal weekend, this would not have been as big a deal. But we were driving to Opelika and Auburn this weekend for a wedding! I suppose I could have cancelled. But honestly, I was ready to put the new car out on the road and drive it, and we had waited too late to cancel the hotel reservation without a penalty. So onward we went!

The wedding was held at Auburn First United Methodist Church. It's an old church, and was absolutely beautiful. It was a very nice ceremony, despite the fact that it continued to pour down rain outside.

Then we went back to the Grand National Marriott for the reception. From there it was a night of great food, great drink, and great music. I got to catch up with a lot of old friends from college, and also with our regular tail-gate crew as well. The bride and groom left for the Atlanta airport around 11:30pm and the party wound down soon afterward. At least it did for me. I think some folks took cabs to the Supper Club and stayed out til 4am, but thank goodness for once I realized my age and I was greatful of that Sunday morning.

We wound up the Auburn visit with a Sunday lunch trip to Cheeburger Cheeburger. For some reason, Heather thought that she should order the One-Pounder Burger. If you actually finish one of those, you get your picture taken and hung on the wall. Boy, did she really want her picture on that wall! But needless to say, she did not even get close to finishing the burger. The patty hung way over the bun, and she basically cut off the excess meat and ate that, leaving what would normally be a very large hamburger for us to take home. In fact, there was so much left that we split her leftovers and had them for supper last night. We also had fries and homemade onion rings! Our bodies were in complete shock! I wanted a cremesicle shake, but I figured I'd better just settle down and stick with what I already had. No sense in getting too wild!!!

I hope this is a dull week. I don't know how much more I can handle.....

Happy Birtday to Me!

2009-03-12T10:57:00.006-05:00

Yesterday was my birthday.

When I was growing up, birthdays were always a big deal at our house. Heather says that wasn't really the case with them, but with 6 kids in the house, I can kinda understand that. But there are just 2 of us kids in my family. So Mama always went all out. Birthdays were "your day." We each got to plan and go or do whatever we wanted for our birthdays. Mine was usually during Spring Break, so school wasn't a problem for planning my day. Sometimes my sister would have to have "her day" on the weekend though.

I must tell you that either on the actual day or somewhere close to it, I always celebrate my birthday with "pink pie." I never really liked birthday cake when I was little, but Mama made this pie that I loved. I think it has strawberry jello and evaporated milk and cool whip or something like that in it. The crust is Nilla wafers and the wafers stand up around the edge of the pie. Heather has told me to not even consider her making it for me, because she knows there is no way that her pie will be able to compete with Mama's.

Heather did make me a key-lime pie though. On the top, in green gel-icing, were the words "Happy Birtday Derek." She made a picture, and that's when she realized she had left off the "h". I'll have to post the picture later on today. The pie was really very good, and she made it from a low-carb recipe. I've had some the past 2 nights.

I didn't have any really significant plans for my day this year. Heather had to work yesterday and today, so there was not time for going out or anything like that. I did however decide to take an early day at work and head to Birmingham to shop for my present.

I drove it home. It's a Volvo. Here's a picture, although this really isn't mine. Mine is black with tan leather everywhere. I absolutely love it, and I think I look pretty good in it too.

I got home about 20 minutes before Heather. I sat out in the car and checked out all the gadgets that I couldn't play with while I was driving. Then when Heather got home, we went to Shoe Station so that she could get some shoes to go with the dress she bought for this wedding we have to go to this weekend in Auburn. Even Hershey got to go along for the ride. Maybe I can get Heather to drive to Auburn and I can keep figuring out the car.

When we got home, I had 6 voice messages from Happy Birthday wishers. Then I logged on to the Facebook, and had 45 messages on there! So it was a good day indeed.

Happy Birtday to Me!

Range

2009-03-09T14:51:00.002-05:00

I bought a new range at lunch today. Here's a picture. Now we can eat again.

Wild and Wacked Out Weekend

2009-03-09T09:31:00.005-05:00

Well, I don't even know where to being with this one. It was definately not your typical weekend for the Reeves'. But then again, nothing for us is normal, so maybe it actually was a typical weekend for the Reeves'.

Friday was an absolutely gorgeous day, and I had Spring Fever something fierce. So when I got home from work, I decided it would be a good night to cook outside on the grill. Heather made up a pile of burgers, and I cooked them. I had stopped on the way home at Publix to pick a couple of things, but of course forgot the charcoal. I rummaged through the utility room until I found 2 bags that when combined, gave me just enough to make do with. Halfway through the burgers, that old charcoal gave out on me. I had a pack of conecuh sausage (because if I am going to the trouble of lighting the charcoal, then I am cooking some conecuh sausage) that seemed to take forever on the lukewarm coals, but eventually everything got done. Heather made a new cole slaw that is low carb and probably some of the best I have ever had. I'll include the recipe at the bottom of this post.

So Friday was fairly calm.

Saturday morning we slept late. I had a meeting scheduled at the house with a friend of ours to get an answer to a couple of questions concerning the tax return I am doing for her, and while she was there, the Fed-Ex man delivered my new printer from Dell. After K left, I spent the next few hours trying to set up the wireless connection between the printer and my laptop. I never got finished with that.

Heather works with a girl at UAB who she has gotten to be friends with, and who had invited us to their house for dinner and karaoke. Now let me just take a minute here and say that I have done my share of karaoke in the past. Actually, Katie Benefield and I were quite the entertainers at Harry's Bar back in the day. But that has been the extent of my karaoke....bar singing, if you catch my drift. Well, Rachael and Ricky are not bar people, which is of course, just fine. I'm just saying that singing without a little liquid courage was something that I was not recently familiar with.

Back in high school, at dear old Jackson Academy, I sang in a barbershop quartet. We called ourselves "The Jackson Four." (Get it? Like the Jackson Five?) We wore white pants with red and white striped shirts and straw hats. I guess we were good. We sang all over the place, and we actually won a couple of national competitions. But that was over 20 years ago.

So Heather and I drove up to Oak Grove and had dinner with Ricky and Rachael. About half way there, I went over a railroad track that I should have slowed down for. It didn't look rough, but there was a dip in the pavement just on the other side of it. I hit it at about 45mph and thought I had knocked the bottom out of the car! My head actually hit the car roof. I had a stadium cup full of diet coke in the console, and it flew out and landed upside down, covering us with coke and soaking everything in the console.

Ricky cooked for us, and it was absolutely outstanding! We had a shrimp and andouille sausage pasta dish with "Olive Garden" salad and big pieces of crusty bread. So much for the low-carb. I thought my body might go into shock right there at the table! It was all sooooo good! Strawberry cupcakes were for dessert! I thought I had died and gone to Heaven.

Until after dinner. Then they fired up the karaoke. And nobody would take no for an answer. I think I did ok though. After the first couple of songs, I got over myself and actually had a good time. We all took turns singing and joining in to help each other out. In fact, we sang until nearly midnight, which with the clocks springing forward, put us getting home around 2am!

Sunday was non-eventful until the afternoon. I spent a hella lot of time on the phone with Dell. That printer is still not working wirelessly. They are now sending a replacement printer because evidently the wireless card is faulty. Why in the world can't I have something simple for once?

I had picked up some shrimp to do for supper. I seasoned it up really good and let it sit for a while in the fridge, and we were wrapping them in bacon when I noticed a bright light shining through the oven door. Early in the week, the oven had caught on fire, and I put it out with baking soda. We weren't so lucky this time.

At this point I need to stop and clarify that we do not have a dirty oven. That is not why it caught on fire, I don't think.

But yesterday, the thing was burning again! This time, I couldn't get it put out. I turned off the oven and it kept burning. It was this white sizzling fire that was moving along the bottom element. I was concerned that it would reach the back of the oven and then we were going to be in a mess. Heather already had the phone book out and was going to call the fire department, but I told her to wait. She said she couldn't find their number anyway. I guess she has never heard of 911.

The fire eventually stopped, but the oven is kaput. And that's fine. My dad suggested weighing the cost of fixing it instead of buying a new one, but Heather said no. She wants a new one. So I guess tomorrow when she is off, we will be at Lowe's or Home Depot or Sears shopping for appliances. We were already looking at microwaves. We'll just add a stove to the list.

And that's our weekend in a nutshell. Nuthouse may be more like it.

Here's the Coleslaw Recipe:

Ingredients:
1/3 cup mayonnaise
2/3 cup sour cream
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
2 Tablespoons Splenda brown sugar
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/8 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon plus one pinch salt
1 lb cabbage, shredded

Mix all cole slaw dressing ingredients together, and then mix them into the cabbage. Balance the lemon juice and sweetener to your own taste.

Nutritional Information: This makes about 7 servings of 1 cup each. Each serving has 4 grams effective carbohydrate plus 2 grams fiber, 2 grams protein, and 145 calories.

Temptation

2009-03-04T07:45:00.003-06:00

I have hit the diet trail full force this week. I'm watching the carbs, and I have made it to the gym at lunch to run/walk on the treadmill. I am determined to run the Mayor's 5-K at the end of April.

So when I got up this morning, I was starving. I turned on the coffee pot and Juan Valdez saved my life when I got out of the shower. After a couple of cups, I thought I might actually make it without eating the entire jar of pre-salmonella peanut butter.

I grabbed a couple of Adkin's shakes on my way out the door and headed to the office. When I got here and went to put them in the fridge, I noticed that some thoughtful non-dieting person had brought 2 boxes of Krispy Kreme doughnuts for everyone to enjoy. They weren't just the plain glazed ones either. I'm talking chocolate covered, creme-filled, cinnamon dusted, candy sprinkled and basically whatever else Krispy Kreme was making this morning.

So far so good. I have resisted. Maybe everybody else will eat them before I cave in.

Last Night's TV

2009-03-03T08:53:00.003-06:00

I have become an outcast in my office. Last night Heather informed me that there was nothing on TV at 7, and that I should find something for us to watch. I scrolled through the channel guide, and of course I saw that The Bachelor was on for 3 hours, but seeing as how we have not watched one single episode all season, I just kept on looking. In all honesty, I can't really remember what we watched, except that at 8pm we did catch Two and a Half Men, and at some point we watched the Dog Show on whatever channel was showing it.

So when I got to the office this morning, folks started asking me how I felt about this whole Bachelor debacle. You'd think I had sprouted an extra nose on my face when I responded that I didn't watch it. I mean, come on people.... who in the world watches that crap when a rerun of the Dog Show is on? Not me. But evidently I am in the minority. Go figure.....

Monday Morning Excitement

2009-03-02T09:33:00.003-06:00

Here's a first for me. I got to the office this morning after having been in Auburn last week to find the usual pile of things on my desk, and my email in-box filled to capacity. I figured that I'd have plenty to do to make the day fly by. At 8:15 we went in for our usual Monday morning management meeting in the Finance Director's office. Things were moving along normally, until we were interrupted by the news that some idiot had phoned in a BOMB THREAT and that we had to get out of the buildings immediately! So I grabbed my jacket and stood with everyone else outside in the biting wind for 45 minutes until the police gave us the "all clear" to reenter the building. I guess they didn't find anything.

Since the municipal court is on the first floor of our building, it makes me wonder what exactly is on the docket for today. Maybe somebody was trying to keep from going to jail.....

Moon Pies!

2009-02-23T15:08:00.003-06:00

Of course everyone knows well that Mobile throws it's unique item the moonpie, which the krewes purchase by the ton. The story of how the moon pie got its start is also well known, but if you're not familiar with the story, please head on over to to Moonpie.com and click history.

The story here revelers is the history of how a moon pie came to be used as a throw in the Mobile parades.

Food has always been involved as a throw ever since 1949, when Crackerjacks, (peanuts and caramel nuggets) were throw by a lot of krewes as a treat for the revelers. Crackerjacks, were brought about because of the cheap alternative it presented to beads. However, people kept getting beamed with the end of those rectangular boxes that the treats came in, and those box ends were hard and sharp. Sensing something needed to be done the mobile city official banned the candied popcorn as a throw about 1972.

A lot treats and articles preceded the mobile icon into the parades as the krewes searched for a replacement, to the popular popcorn in a treat.

The first to throw moon pies were the krewe of "Maids of Mirth" in 1974 as an alternative to the recently banned boxes of cracker jacks. Soon other krewes were following the action as the throw caught on.

Moon Pie is a trade marked name of the Chattanooga bakery in Tennessee. New Year's Eve, 2008, saw the first Moon Pie drop over the City of Mobile, while downtown partiers were invited to partake in the "world's largest moon pie!"

My favorite are the Banana ones!

Mardis Gras Weekend

2009-02-23T12:11:00.018-06:00

Well, it was another busy, busy weekend for us. I had put our some feelers amongst our friends to see if anybody wanted to go to Mobile this weekend for mardis gras. I had checked the parade schedules, and Saturday looked like a good day to go down and join in the merriment. So Adam and Katie and Heather and I headed down Friday.

I took off work early, partly because I have spring fever, and partly because I was just plain excited to be going somewhere different, especially mardis gras. So we got all packed up and headed south. I figured we could just stay in Jackson at the cabin since Mobile would only be an hour away. Adam and Katie left after we did, and ended up getting to the cabin about 9pm.

A little bit of history for ya...

Mardi Gras actually started in Mobile in 1703 when it was a colony of French soldiers. After having survived a particularly nasty bout with yellow fever, they decided to celebrate, but since party favors were few and far between in the New World, the men opted to paint their faces red and just act crazy for a few hours. They must have had fun because it became an annual event.

Mardi Gras was transformed into a parade event in 1840 by a group known as the Cowbellion de Rakin Society, the first of many of Mobile's so-called mystic organizations who journeyed to New Orleans in 1857 to help a group there set up a Mardi Gras celebration.

After the Civil War, Mobile was occupied by Federal troops, and it was not a fun place. Hostilities had long since put Mardi Gras on hold. However, in 1866, a man by the name of Joe Cain felt it was time once again to bring back the merriment of Mardi Gras and decided to do his part to put life back into the town. Cain decked himself in full Chickasaw Indian regalia, proclaimed himself Chief Slacabamorinico, climbed aboard a coal wagon with six spirited (figuratively and literally) friends calling themselves "The Tea Drinkers," and road his one-mule, one-float parade through the town.

Mobile during the Festival of Lent has never been the same since.

There are twenty-two parades, with at least one parade each day during the two weeks leading up to Mardi Gras Day, but the Saturday, Sunday and Monday before, the excitement begins to build up with two to three parades each day. The crazy crescendo is tomorrow, Fat Tuesday when six parades turn Mobile upside-down for the day. My family plans on being down there all day tomorrow to join in the good times.

At the stroke of midnight on Fat Tuesday, it all goes away. But it will be back next year, because as early French colonists and ol' Joe Cain discovered many years ago, enjoying the unreal, getting a little bit crazy, if just for a brief time, is a great way to deal with the real. And, Lord knows, this year we all have a lot of real to deal with.

Our day Saturday began with the Floral parade at noon, followed by the Knights of Mobile and the Order of Angels parades. Then about 1pm, we took our chairs and cooler a couple of blocks over to Bienville Square where we ate a picnic lunch, listened to some music and soaked up the scenery. A lot of Mobile's homeless live in Bienville Square, and even they were in the spirit, covering their grocery carts with beads.

We also spent part of the afternoon walking around downtown Mobile and Fort Conde. Fort Condé protected Mobile and its citizens for nearly 100 years from 1723-1820. It was built by the French as a defense against British and Spanish attack on the strategic location of Mobile and its Bay. The military importance of Mobile and Fort Condé was huge. The fort and town protected access into the lands between the Mississippi River and the Atlantic colonies along the Alabama and Tombigbee Rivers. Two other fort served to protect the area as well. Fort Gaines sits on Dauphin Island and Fort Morgan is in Gulf Shores. All of the forts are open to the public, and if you've never paid them a visit, you should take the time to do so.

The Mystics of Time parade was Saturday night, and the police estimated that over 83,000 people were in attendance. The Mystics of Time parade is known as the mammoth parade, and lasted about an hour and a half. It has been said that the Saturday night before Fat Tuesday is when the "lid comes off" in downtown Mobile, and from what we could see after the parade, it definately came off. Downtown was packed with people dancing in the streets and DJ's on balconies throwing beads, cups, and even dollar bills to the masses below. We sat back and enjoyed a hurricane and took it all in. Adam walked around with Aidan on his shoulders and each time they came back by, Aidan had gotten more and more beads. The ladies all thought he was cute, Aidan that is, and loaded him down with goodies.

After watching the crowds for awhile, we realized that we needed to get some food. So we ate at the original Wentzell's Oyster House. Having been in business for over 70 years, they are famous for serving their oysters "fried, stewed, or nude." We left full, happy, and worn slap out.

Needless to say, we were glad to get back to the cabin and crash and go through our loot!

Laissez les bons temps roulez!

Happy Valentine's

2009-02-16T15:56:00.004-06:00

What a busy weekend we had! I woke up this morning feeling as though I could use a couple of extra days to rest. We pretty much stayed on the go Friday and Saturday. But it was Valentine's so we changed things up a little.

The Tuscaloosa County University of Alabama Alumni Association sent out emails last week offering free tickets to the BAMA vs LSU gymnastics meet Friday night. We love gymnastics, and had intended to buy season tickets this year. But when I looked at the schedule, I realized that Heather would be working during half of the home meets, so we never did anything about ordering them. So when I got the free offer, I took it and we went to the meet. As always, it was a lot of fun. The announcer and the band really keep things going in between rotations. They have a lot of give-aways, the kiss-cam, YMCA, BAMA gymnastics trivia, and other cool stuff to keep the pace moving along steadily. The girls all did great. It is amazing how they can throw themselves around like that. LSU ended up winning overall by a little over a point. But both teams did very well.

Saturday we went to Birmingham. We started off doing some car shopping so that I could get a better idea of what I want to buy. I really would rather not have to buy anything, but my car has given me nearly 200,000 miles, and she is getting tired. So I know the time to trade is fast approaching. I'm not ready yet though, and just went to look. I have had in my mind that I want a Nissan SUV. Xterra, Pathfinder, Murano.... I like them all but wanted a closer look. So that was my plan. Before I even sat down in one of those vehicles, Heather started talking about a Volvo. I tried to supportively discourage her, but she persisted, so we looked at a black XC90. Wow....what a mistake. I almost forgot about not wanting a car payment. All of a sudden I wanted it bad. If we had driven my car, I actually may have traded in a weak moment. But that was not my plan when I left home, so on to the Nissan's. I will have to say that although I liked the Xterra and the Pathfinder, I still liked the Volvo more. But what about fishing and pulling a boat? A Nissan may be better suited for that. The afternoon definitely gave me some things to think about. Maybe in a few months I will break down and do something. I can look a lot more til then.

After an afternoon of car shopping, we were starving. We met our friends, Kim and Rusty, at Sumo for sushi. The restaurant was packed, but we had called ahead a couple of weeks earlier and put our names on the list, so we didn't have to wait at all. The whole time we were there, they kept calling out our names to be seated. Reeves, party of 4. We were finishing up and the hostess was still calling us. The food and everything was great. Of course, sushi rolls are not low-carb, but we decided we could splurge since it was Valentine's.

Then on to the Comedy Club where we heard Tom Papa. He used to open for Jerry Seinfeld and was one of the voices in Bee Movie. He was hilarious! I knew nothing about him beforehand, but I thoroughly enjoyed his show!

We got home late, but it was good to get out and about. Hershey was glad to see us. It was a very nice Valentine's indeed.

Fine Dining at the Reeves Home

2009-02-09T19:12:00.003-06:00

Ok. So I promised to let ya'll know how the tenderloin turned out. Holy Moly!!!! One of the best things I have EVER put in my mouth! I had a Heritage Commission board meeting at 5pm, and Heather got home early today since today was a teaching day for her, so she started it when she got in and it was almost ready when I got home. We used Splenda brown sugar instead of regular since we are watching carbs. And it was so good coming out of the pan, that we almost didn't open a bottle of wine to make the sauce, thinking that we could eat it as it was. But the juices in the pan had started to caramelize and get thick, so Heather wanted to go ahead with the sauce. Here a suggestion for you. DON'T SKIP THE SAUCE!!!! So good! So so so so good! We had it with steamed green beans and hollandaise. (Hollandaise is carb-free!) If any of you are thinking of a romantic dinner for Valentine's on Saturday night, this would definately be a recipe for you. It reminded me of something we would get at Evangaline's or Kozy's.

Here's the recipe....

Brown Sugar Glazed Pork

3 fresh garlic cloves
2 tablespoons light brown sugar (we used Splenda)
2 teaspoons Montreal steak seasoning
1 Whole Pork Tenderloin (about 2 lbs)
2 tablespoons butter, divided
1/4 cup red wine

1. Crush garlic, using garlic press, into medium bowl. Use knife to remove garlic from bottom of press. Stir in brown sugar and steak seasoning until well blended.

2. Preheat large sauté pan on medium heat 2-3 minutes. Cut pork diagonally into about eight 1-inch-thick slices. Place pork slices in bowl and press into mixture. Turn and press again to lightly season both sides (wash hands).

3. Place 1 tablespoon of the butter in pan; swirl to coat. Add pork (wash hands); cook 5-6 minutes on each side or until well browned and internal temperature reaches 160°F (for medium).

4. Remove pork from pan. Stir in wine and remaining 1 tablespoon butter; simmer 1 minute, stirring continually. Serve wine sauce with pork.

CALORIES (per 1/4 recipe) 230kcal; FAT 9g; CHOL 90mg; SODIUM 440mg; CARB 8g; FIBER 0g; PROTEIN 24g; VIT A 4%; VIT C 2%; CALC 2%; IRON 8%

The Splenda brown sugar should cut the carbs down even lower.

Ya'll are gonna really enjoy this. I promise!

Hmmm.....

2009-02-09T09:08:00.001-06:00

My mother in law sent this picture to me this morning. No additional comments are required.

What a Great Weekend!

2009-02-09T08:49:00.003-06:00

I have a fever. Spring Fever that is! HA! How cheesy is that?

It was a busy weekend at the Reeves home. The house got cleaned from wall to wall and I stayed outside working in the yard for most of the day Saturday. The weather was great for being outside. Heather was working, so Hershey and I had the whole place to ourselves. I did some trimming, and raking, and got myself some nice new blisters on my hands. I am truly amazed each year at the amount of leaves that fall in our yard. We have help with them in the main part of the yard, but we do the flower beds ourselves. Our forsythias up next to the fence were swamped with leaves, and cleaning that area was the biggest part of the day.

I did notice that the birds were especially appreciative of my work. I guess there were plenty of bugs and worms and such under all those leaves and the birds were literally flocking to our yard Saturday evening. I saw our pair of red birds who normally live around the yard, and several other varieties as well. I even saw a woodpecker out in the woods. He was as red-headed as could be. I went ahead and refilled the feeders. Maybe they will all like our yard and stay around awhile.

So that was the weekend in a nutshell. Not terribly exciting, but I sure did enjoy it. I still have things on that ever-growing list of things to do. Maybe next Saturday I can do it all again!

On another note, I found a recipe for a pork tenderloin in this week's Publix sale paper. I bought the tenderloin yesterday, and I'm going to fix it tonight. I'll let ya'll know how it turns out.

Why can't we just all be thin?

2009-02-03T09:44:00.004-06:00

This may be a tough day. The folks over in the water department are having a bake sale to raise money for the American Heart Association. They even have little ham and poppyseed rolls! I also saw rice crispy treats and brownies. Of course, nothing is low-carb. I must be strong.

I am starving and the only thing that is keeping me from going over there and making a $50 "contribution" is the fact that the auditors from JMF are feeding us pizza and salad from DePalma's tomorrow for lunch. So if I cheat today, I can't cheat tomorrow.

I just ate a stick of cheese. Not even close to rice crispies.

It was Super Sunday

2009-02-02T09:19:00.002-06:00

I'm not really a fan of pro football. Never have been. I'm much more of a college level guy. But I do usually watch the Super Bowl if for no other reason than to see the commercials. I suspect that I'm not alone in that. But last night's game drew me in. It was actually a good game. And even though I haven't really followed either team, I found myself cheering for the Cardinals. So I was a little bit disappointed in the outcome, but not so much that I will need therapy or anything.

We went to Greensboro after lunch yesterday to Adam and Katie's. We knew that we wouldn't be staying there for the entire day, since Monday's are Heather's days to teach at the hospital this semester and she would need to be in bed early. So we went on down so we could eat all afternoon. I fixed this new chicken appetizer recipe that Mama saw on one of Paula Deen's shows last week. I'm not sure which show. Mama says it comes on the Food Network at 4:30 in the afternoons though. Anyway, it basically is bite-sized chicken breast wrapped in bacon and rolled in brown sugar and chili powder. It was time consuming, but I enlisted Heather's help and we got them made and in the oven without too much work. Trying to be carb-conscience, we used Splenda brown sugar instead of regular. The rest of the ingredients were no problem.

Katie made meatballs. She is expecting in April, and evidently had really been wanting some meatballs, since she has mentioned them several times in the last week or so. She made them with ground beef and ground sausage and cooked them in that bbq and grape jelly sauce. Then she had bought croissants to put them in. Mmmm. They were so good. I almost made myself sick. And yeah... we blew the low-carb diets for the day.

We also had conecuh sausage cooked on the grill, cheeses, and homemade guacamole that Adam fixed us. So we basically sat on their deck and grazed all afternoon while enjoying the beautiful weather. The dogs played and Aidan even pulled Hershey in a trailer behind his John Deere tractor (made by Power Wheels!). Hershey was not amused.

Right after we got there, Heather and Aidan walked across the street to the Dollar General. Aidan came back with a shiny new sword, and I will tell you this.... it was a dollar well spent. He carried that sword around for the rest of the day. The dogs were all terrorized, but he was highly entertained!

Later in the afternoon we took a break from the deck for some Mario Kart on the Wii. That actually kinda went on into the first quarter of the game.

Heather and I left after the 3-D part of half-time. So I missed seeing The Boss. I haven't heard anybody really saying anything tremendous about half-time though. So I guess we didn't really miss too much. We got home in time for the 4th quarter, and I watched it through the end of the game. Heather turned in a little earlier.

So it was a busy and tiring Super Sunday. But it was a great day. I could use a few more like it.

Here's the chicken recipe in case you're interested...

Sweet & Spicy Chicken Bites

4 boneless Chicken Breasts, cut into large cubes
2 Tablespoons Chili Powder
1 Cup Brown Sugar
1 Pound of Bacon, sliced in halves
Salt to taste

Cut up the chicken and salt it. Then wrap the chicken pieces in bacon and secured with a toothpick. Combine the brown sugar and chili powder in a zip-lock bag and tos chicken wraps in it a few pieces at a time. Place on a greased cookie sheet and cook for 1 hour @350. Then transfer to a crockpot set on low to keep them hot.

Enjoy!

I may be running this in the ground, but....

2009-01-29T16:11:00.003-06:00

The other Bama Santa has appeared! Mama went to a meeting in Thomasville this morning with other bank employees from several different branches. While she was there, one of the ladies from the Butler branch, who Mama had been talking with about the Santa mystery, asked her if she every found it. She said no, and they were talking about what could have happened to it and how strange it was that the thing just disappeared. A lady from another Thomasville branch overheard them, and she told Mama that there was a package just like that sitting at her bank. So Mama left that bank and went and picked it up.

So I now have 2 Tree Top Bama Santas, a new Butlerfest T-shirt, and a new Butlerfest apron! Who could ask for anything more.......

Santa has been found!!!

2009-01-23T08:36:00.003-06:00

Heather cornered me when I came in the door Wednesday night. It seems that she was still on the Santa hunt, and when she googled "Tree Top Santa," the first thing that came up was my blog. She said, "You've told everybody about this whole fiasco!" I merely explained that I was enlisting the help of my readers in the search to find the non-existent 2008 Santa. But I realized that she was still looking hard for one, although I had given up hope.

The one I got in Butler never turned up. We know it made it to the bank in Gilbertown, but from there it has disappeared. So maybe somebody else thought they needed it more than we did. But the girls at Butler City Hall had turned it into a care package for me, and I just hate that I have lost my Butlerfest apron and t-shirt.

Anway, yesterday, Heather goes down to visit her parents in Demopolis. Before she left, she got on the company's website looking for dealers in Demop or anywhere close by. Frank's Drug Store in Greensboro was listed, and when Heather phoned them, they had 2 left! So she made a detour through Greensboro and got one of them. She said the lady at Frank's was beside herself that she was able to help. We will definately be shopping with them in the future, and I really don't know why we had not checked in Greensboro before now.

When Heather came in last night, she handed me the bag with the box in it. Wow, was I surprised! I had decided that we were just going to be missing a year. We are both extremely pleased, and I commend her for a job well done! We phoned Mama and let her know that Heather had found one. "Hallelujah, and Praise the Lord!" was her response.

Ho ho ho!!!!

Slow days, but a good potroast!

2009-01-21T11:32:00.004-06:00

I haven't posted in the last several days because I haven't had a whole lot to write about.

We did go to a birthday dinner for our friend, Camilla Huxford, last Friday night at Kozy's. We always love to go to Kozy's because, besides having some of the absolute BEST food in Tuscaloosa, the atmosphere is like none other. It's a dark restaurant, with dim lighting and black walls. But covering those walls, are dozens and dozens of old pictures of movie stars and old movie posters! If there isn't somebody playing jazz on the piano, then there will be great old 40's and 50's era jazz music coming through the speakers. I had one of the specials, grouper stuffed with shrimp and artichoke, and I substituted the gouda macaroni for asparagus in an effort to stick to the low-carb diet. Then I blew it by eating a HUGE piece of birthday cake. But it was every bit worth it!

Saturday I headed down to my friend Adam's house in Greensboro. His wife, Katie, writes Serenade Handmade Soap, http://serenadehandmade.blogspot.com/, and we have all been great friends for years. Well, Katie was out of town all weekend at her mom's, and Heather was working at the hospital all weekend, so the guys were unsupervised! So I went down to Greensboro and we cooked on the grill and played Wii all afternoon and night. I stayed over down there Saturday night, and came back home Sunday morning. It was great! I have got to have me one of those Wii's!

That was really about it for the long weekend. The City was closed on Monday, but I went in to the office for a bit during the morning to catch up on a few things. Then I was basically lazy the rest of the day.

I did stop at Publix Monday and pick up a roast. I'd been having a craving. Now, I'm not a pot roast expert, but I've made pot roast in the Crockpot enough times to have some opinions about how it should be done. There are three things I think are important. First, be sure to brown the meat well before you put it in the Crockpot. I think the browning creates flavor. Second, don't use too much liquid for any crockpot cooking, but especially for pot roast. Third, be sure there is plenty of flavor in the liquids you're adding. All day cooking can make foods bland if there isn't a flavorful liquid. This was a first time trying this recipe, and it was a hit! So good! So I'm gonna share.

Here's whatcha do.....

Balsamic and Onion Pot Roast in the Crockpot
(about 6 servings)

3-4 pound boneless chuck roast
1-2 T steak rub
Black pepper to taste
1-2 T olive oil (depends on your pan)
1/4 cup water to deglaze pan
2-3 large onions, peeled and thickly sliced
1 cup beef stock, reduced to 1/2 cup
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1 can diced tomatoes, drained well.

Trim as much fat as you can from roast, and cut if necessary to fit into Crockpot. Rub meat well with steak seasoning and black pepper. Heat heavy pan with small amount of olive oil and brown roast well on both sides. This will take a few minutes; don't rush the browning step.

While roast browns put 1 cup beef stock in saucepan, bring to a boil and cook until reduced to 1/2 cup, then let cool slightly and mix in balsamic vinegar and tomatoes. Peel onions and cut into thick slices. Deglaze pan with 1/4 cup water and add to sauce mixture.

Place onions in bottom of Crockpot. Put meat on top of onions and pour beef stock mixture over. Set Crockpot to low and cook 6-8 hours, until beef is tender. The meat might be partly submerged in liquid after this much time.

My roast was almost falling apart. It was so good, and was still moist the next day. Ya'll give it a try and let me know whatcha think.

I guess that's about it for now. If anything exciting happens, you'll be the first to know.....

Missing.... Tree Top Santa!

2009-01-15T14:41:00.005-06:00

Ok so here's the story. Eleven years ago, Mama started buying me the Alabama Santas for Christmas. That was the first year of the series. Every year since, I have opened the Santa on Christmas morning. Except for this year.

Heather was going to pick up the Santa for Mama this year. She went to one of our local stores, Anna Kate to get it. The lady there showed her a Santa whose name was "Workshop Santa" and told her that it was the one for 2008. So Heather, not being familiar with which Santa went with which year, bought it and wrapped it up to give to Mama to give to me. When we got down to Mama's at Christmas, she realized the mistake. It was last year's. So that one went back to the store, to the displeasure of the Anna Kate saleslady. Too bad.

In the meantime, we get on the phones and online and try to find the 2008 Santa, which is called "Tree Top Santa." There are none left. But luckily, I finally found one at Mr. Discount Drug in Butler, AL. I was so pleased. I used to work on the audit for the Town of Butler so I called the City Hall down there, and had one of the ladies go over and pick it up for me. I called the drug store back, put it on my card, and told them that someone would pick it up. Amy, from City Hall went and got it, bagged it up with a Butlerfest T-shirt and apron, and included a note about Alabama losing the Sugar Bowl (she's an Auburn fan) and took it to the bank. Sounds like a happy ending, huh? Well hang on...

Mama works at a local bank back home and the bank has branches in Butler and Gilbertown. Everything is processed in Grove Hill at the main bank, and the other branches send paperwork, etc. to that bank a couple of times a week. So Mama says to have the City Hall ladies take it to the bank in Butler, and have it sent to her along with their work. Amy took it to the bank. The Butler branch sent it last week to Gilbertown where the work would be picked up. And that's the last anybody has seen of my package. It has disappeared. Mama was there today and nobody knows anything about it.

So who knows what happened to it. Maybe it will turn up. In the meantime, I still don't have the 2008 Santa, and they appear to be sold out everywhere. So I need help. If any of you see one anywhere, please let me know. Mama was very upset that I ended up not getting one, since that is "her thing" to give me for Christmas each year. We thought we had the problem solved, but who knows.... So if you see one, please let me know.

Thanks!

Making Changes...

2009-01-06T13:19:00.006-06:00

I have got to do something about our washer and dryer. For some reason, they are shrinking the waistband in my pants! At least that's the explanation I am telling myself. Regardless, something has to be done to solve this problem because I am running out of things to wear to work! If the weather would stay cold, I could wear a sweater and people wouldn't see how tight my pants are, but since it seems like Tuscaloosa is going to remain tropical this year, I gotta make some changes.

So I started back to the gym yesterday. When I got there, I was comforted by the fact that it was much more crowded than it was the last time I was there 2 months ago. I assumed that meant that I was not the only one in this situation. Evidently there is a rash of washer problems all over town.

I have found that working out before work just doesn't get it for me. I may go a couple of times, but I fall off the wagon fairly quickly. After work, I just want to go home. So I don't go then either. But if I can go at lunch, then I can stick with it long enough to get into the habit. I got up and got to the office early, and about noon I headed over to the Y. Today I did the same. So far so good....

We also started back on the diets yesterday. At least I did. Heather had told me that we would diet together, and I actually believed her. We've done the low-carb thing before, and it has worked very well. So that's what we decided to do again. All day long, I stuck to the diet, and last night I decided to fix us some pork chops and asparagus. About the time for Heather to leave the hospital, I thought I'd call to see if she got away on time. The lady that carpools with her answered the phone. Then she shared a bit of information with me that I just could not believe....my wife decided to have fajitas and an apple dumpling for lunch! So much for her low-carbing. Cheater.....

Right now I think I could eat 4 apple dumplings. I'll keep you posted.