Beginners Pilates...

Pilates was formed by Joseph Pilates during the First World War with the proposal to improve the rehabilitation program for the many returning veterans. Joseph Pilates believed mental and physical health are essential to one another. He recommended a few, precise movements emphasizing control and form to aid injured soldiers in regaining their health by strengthening, stretching,and stabilizing key muscles. Pilates created "The Pilates Principles" to condition the entire body: proper alignment, centering, concentration, control, precision, breathing, and flowing movement. - Wikipedia

Last night I went to my first ever Pilates class. It was only 45 minutes. The instructor is a wonderful "little" man named Barry. Just a side note, he felt it necessary to let my girlfriend and I know that while he is a Pilates instructor - he is straight. Anywho, the only equipment necessary for Pilates is a mat. My friend and I were excited because we have grown not very fond of weights. Boy were we in for a surprise. Once we began the floor exercise portion and had to keep our legs in the air at various points for various durations of time... life began to get tough. This very nice, straight instructor began looking an awful lot like Hitler, Musselini and Stalin all rolled into a 5 foot something man named Barry. It did not help that he kept reminding us - as he heard our moans of anguish - that this is the beginners - beginners class.

Then after I made it home, I made the mistake of getting the purple dinosaur out and playing tug-of-war with Millie. I had forgotten that the purple dinosaur is laced with doggie crack. Toby and me both tried hiding for 30 minutes before she finally gave up and went to sleep.

Go then there are other worlds than these...

Two Things I Love...

...Jason Boland - Jason (the ghost of Waylon) is having some health issues. He has been working triple time the last six months on a new CD and keeping up his live appearances. He has a polyp on his right vocal chord. While it is treatable - he has been forced to cancel all performances until released by the doctor or it is potentially career ending. I blame myself. The last time they were at the station, I asked for a new CD - less than a year later they were in the studio. Jason, man, my thoughts are with you and I've been praying to every god I can think of to help you heal. In the meantime, he has released the first single off the new CD: Comal County Blue. It's really good... www.thestragglers.com

...the St. Louis Cardinals. They weren't expected to finish above last place this season. What a surprise they were the first half of the year. Seems more than just my prediction about the NL West is coming true. They woke up one morning and realized they were actually a good team, and well, have gone to hell in a handbasket. They have managed to lose 4 straight. That's not the bad part of this story. The really bad thing is it was 4 home games against the Brewers! That's only slightly less embarrassing than losing to a team in the NL West. Unless the pitching staff gets control and the bullpen stop walking so many people - even a Wild Card is out of the question.

Go then, there are other worlds than these...

Aunt Tammie Vacation

Last year Patty and I "kidnapped" Hayden for a couple of days and called it our "Hayden Vacation." We never dreamed that this summer he would call both of us and demand 'cation. Nor did we imagine that he would actually have a list of things he wanted to do on his 'cation.

So last weekend was his Aunt Tammie Vacation. Sinclaire has also been feeling terribly neglected, so I took the opportunity to take care of both of them. We had the best time!

First on Hayden's list: Work with Frank
Friday night the whole gang met Frank and me at the Porter Peach Festival. We were live in the 4/5 & 6pm newscasts. Hayden helped by running around and spending all his momma and mooma's money. He also made it on-air with Frank in the 6pm. We filmed some b-roll of Frank talking to the crowd, Hayden was in that as well. It was terribly exciting to see himself on TV.

Second on Hayden's list: Go to Ollie's
When Poppie, Hayden and I made it back to Tulsa, we stopped at Ollie's. He loves that place. It has model trains running all over the place. It's a greasy spoon with hamburgers and the absolute best breakfast buffet.

Third on Hayden's list: Space Chimps
We took Sinclaire with us. She made it to my house pretty early. We had to walk to Channel 8 to get my car. That just about killed Hayden. It was a loooong walk. Then we had a lunchable and were off to Space Chimps. The kids loved the movie. I think they liked the video games at least as much. They also got popcorn, soda and air-heads at the movies.

Fourth on Hayden's list: Chuck E Cheese's
If you have never been there, I don't recommend it unless you have a 4 and 5 year old with you. We saw the kids when they either needed a drink or ran out of tokens. A two hour stay there and both were pretty tired. Daddy and me, that is. Aunt Tammie also bought them cotton candy as a present to take home.

Notes from the weekend: Millie loved having someone to run and play with. She also escaped outside a couple of times to get away from the children to rest. Seems jumping on the sofa at home is not something that is allowed, but at Aunt Tammie's the pillows fall on the floor as if inviting jumping. Shoes are required at home, but can't seem to be found at Aunt Tammie's. Sponge Bob 24/7 will drive an adult to madness.

I pray that each year both of them want an Aunt Tammie vacation.

Long days and pleasant nights...

Baseball Halfway Mark

Just a quick note to update those of you that care and even those that don't.

We are halfway thru the season now. My prediction that the NL West is the worst in all of baseball has come true. Not one team is even at .500. Pitiful! Arizona had very high hopes. Honestly they were the only team in the division that was supposed to be contenders. However, Joe Torre has proven himself as a manager. He has taken a team that couldn't even figure out how to tie their own shoelaces and made them a contender in the West. Keep in mind, Arizona sucks this year, even with Brandon Webb. Currently LA and AZ are tied for first both are at .495 with 49 wins and 50 losses each. Chicago is in Arizona this week, so look for the DBacks to add at least 2 and possibly 3 more losses. Note to the DBacks - it would help me out a LOT if you take down the Cubbies...

The real competitions are in the East and Central divisions. Very surprisingly, the Mets are at the top of their division. Just a few short weeks ago they fired their beloved manager, in a middle of the night ordeal that found itself on the Daily Show. Stewart whined about it for week - but now he is all smiles, seems that was just the shot in the arm the team needed. In the East as with the West there is a tie for first. Unlike the West - the teams are showing respectable numbers: NY has a .535 while the Phillies are at .531 - each have won 53 games and lost 46. The rest of the season is a run for the finish. The 2nd place team is only 1 game out.

Now to my favorite division - the NL Central. Frank has tried to get me to go Dodger Blue while Jeff thinks I should watch the DBacks. My question to them is "why" I have one of the best teams out there. I was ready to watch the other teams play this year. If you recall we gave up 17 men this season. Everyone, including me, thought LaRussa had lost his freakin mind. We also started the season with our only two starting pitchers that anyone had ever heard of on the DL - and our best reliever went there quickly after the season started. Pujols and Molina have both made it on the DL also. The fact that we are giving the Cubs a run for their money is impossible. When asked why the team is playing so well, LaRussa says it's like the old days, you aren't guaranteed a slot on the team, you have to earn it each day. Boy have they earned it. My Redbirds are sharing 2nd place right now with the Brewers - the Redbirds are at .564 with 57 wins and 44 losses. The Cubs are 2 games ahead with a .586 - 58 wins, 41 losses - the best record in baseball! No reason out there at all to watch anyone else play. =)

Go then, there are other worlds than these...

Rocklahoma 2008

Last year, the first year of the ginormous 80's hairbands concert, was a lot of fun. I went with Kenna, Jimmy and Regina. We went two days and partied out to the music Jimmy and I remember from our teen years.

I opted not to renew my $100 ticket when the price went to $400 plus. I'm happy about that too since I had no clue who most of the bands were and therefore the music just annoyed me. We added Rocklahoma to Frank's Fun Friday Festivals list and were there live in the 4, 5 and 6pm newscasts. Frank had asked for one of the bands to be his primary interview in the 6pm. A man I had never met drove up on a golf cart with the funniest looking creature wearing a velure bright orange jogging suit. He had an entourage of two voluptuous women that were wearing so little clothing, even Frank didn't want to put them on air. I started trying to make small talk and do the producer thing, got the guys name - Donnie V, and band - Enuff Z Nuff, about that time Frank walks up. The first words out of his mouth were "Donnie V - OMG!" That began the night.

Barbara gave us a tour of the backstage area. Frank and Donnie V had become best buddies. We had corporate tickets and were able to go just about anywhere we wanted. The problem with going places with Frank is that you can only take two steps every half hour. People literally mob him. They want to give him hell about the weather or this or that, and almost always want a picture with him. Barbara snuck him backstage where he watched his favorite band of the night. Kenna and I left long before Frank.

Saturday Kenna and I went back as worker bees. Let me tell you - being just a volunteer isn't too bad. That is if you can handle smelling like beer at the end of the night. You meet a lot of really nice people that are very appreciative of you. I was offered marriage, money for my TK hat, and other things because I could pour a mean and fast beer. It was also fun seeing old friends that I haven't seen in years, literally.

The only scary part was when the wind and rain came and we thought the tents were going to blow away to Kansas and take us with them. Or, we would all be electricuted since the power box was 2 feet underwater. It didn't stop the party - only made our lines for beer longer.

Then when absolutely no one that had signed up for the last shift showed, I had the pleasure of working with Hunter (the new me), Jo and Lorri. That was fun. It was especially fun when the really cute girl that was hitting on Hunter actually believed that Hunter was was my son and she kept trying to get me to talk to him about going out with her. Then there was the kid that asked us if we had seen a man wearing a pink hat and dressed like a woman. We said no, he explained that was his step-dad and he was is in dire need of cash so would we keep a lookout for him. A while late that man actually came to me for beer! I totally believe John, Marlene and Jo about the weirdness having no end at Rocklahoma.

Go then there are other worlds than these...

Hola San Antonio

After two of the most wonderful days on Earth we just knew that day 3 of our Texas Experience couldn't be any better and likely not match the first two. To our delight, we were so terrifically mistaken. As Jo would say, if asked, how can we have been mistaken about a day in Texas being just as AWESOME as the day before?

We were greeted by the now familiar smell of Starbucks quality coffee. We also had breakfast. I found time to lie beside the pool on the hammock like swing. You would have never known we were in the middle of the city. It was so peaceful. I had asked to go to the Alamo. I think Jo wanted to go to the Riverwalk and everyone agreed that it was a Texas size shame that I had never had a hurricane. Those are really the only three things on our agenda, so you can see how we didn't really think the day, while being fun, would come close in comparison to the previous days.

I want to start out this day with the story of our hosts, Don & Nadeen. It truly is a Hollywood type love story. Who knew that really happened? Don and Nadeen knew each other from a few social events they each had attended years ago in Muskogee, OK. Don claims to have never met Nadeen. Anywho, Nadeen was on year 15 or 16 after her divorce. She found out from her cousin that Don's wife had passed away. Nadeen is a wonderfully thoughtful woman, she wrote him a letter. To her surprise, he wrote back. Marlene (Nadeen's daughter) suggested that they email each other. Nadeen had no clue how to even turn on a computer so the task of actually sending the email fell upon Marlene. Marlene and Nadeen say that the author was Nadeen, Don disputes that. =) After a couple of months of this correspondence he invited Nadeen to Germany (where he was currently living (retired military- parttime employee of the CIA) and he offered to pay her fair. Only a fool would turn that down. Their first few minutes together he was kissing her or if he's telling the story, she was kissing him. Their second date, he proposed. The pictures are incredible. They have been married since 2000 and are truly living the "happily everafter."

Ok, now to the day. We went to the Alamo. It is awe inspiring. It is a major piece of American/Texan/Mexican history. I've been once before and was in awe. This time Don was our tour guide and he knows everything about everything. When we left the Alamo we walked a couple blocks and came upon this church. They were about to begin a service and had the live music going. We went in to observe. I immediately had the urge to sprinkle the Holy Water - kneel and pray. As we walked out, I was caught off guard. We walked by the remains of the men that fell trying to save the Alamo. This tribute is so powerful in it's simplicity. A powerful reminder of the risks and lives that have been taken for our homeland.

We went to the Mexican Market; the Riverwalk; ate at a wonderful Mexican restaurant. In the midst of the day we happened upon this child enjoying the Texas sun. I couldn't help but get a picture. Sadly, this was the last full day of vacation. The next morning we packed up, said our goodbyes, visited Geisla (sp) the wonderful German woman that lives next door, and headed back North.

The motto for the weekend was "It's All Good!" and it really was. No regrets. Good Times, Good Friends, It's All Good!

Go then there are different worlds than these...

Whiskey River Take My Mind...

The bestest 4th of July ever was this year. I'm not sure it will ever be topped.

We woke to the smell of freshly brewing Starbuck style coffee. Jo made a beeline to the coffee and the solarium. I lingered in the shower and then ventured downstairs, after being assured that the evil monkey was nowhere to be thought of. First thing I did after finding a coffee cup was to break said cup. While picking up the pieces, I met our hostess for the first time.

Nadeen and Don are darn near the nicest people on EARTH. Mayhap in the niceness category with my beloved Tio NT!

The night before we had feasted on Nadeen's home cooked brisket. This morning after the most awesome breakfast of bacon, eggs, biscuits and gravy, and the most scrumptious melon from the Czech Stop (more on that in another blog) Jo packed about 20 brisket and bbq sandwiches for the picnic. Then filled 2 - one gallon bags full of chips. We laughed at the ungodly amount of food we were taking - however - we didn't laugh long. The cost of food was outrageous. The fact that Nadeen forced Jo to make so many sandwiches actually saved the crew tons of money. We were the envy of our neighbors.

The day brought just about everything imaginable. It started off warm. Pat took the stage and like magic, first guitar strum and the Heavens opened up forcing the populous closer to him. He left the stage and the sky immediately cleared. Most memorable part of Pat's act - "Welcome to San Antonio! Birthplace of .... ME!!!" That's what makes him so special - he recognizes that we love him that much.

We endured a couple more showers, nothing like the gullywasher like the one during the Pat portion of the day. Robby called at some point. The funny thing is that Robby seems to worry about me - a lot. We have yet to figure out why, but I think it's wonderful to have someone care. Jo convinced him that I was passed out on the lawn and she had just left me. The truth was that I had hung behind talking to our new friends. I'm sure they were kinda scared of us and thought it best to befriend us. We weren't the strangest of the day. There was a cute cowboy, nice body, but for some reason found it necessary to show off his undies. He also danced with anyone that walked by and halfway looked at him.

I met the cutest / hottest cop on Earth also. Sorry, I only have the pic that I took of him from my admiring distance. His name is Chad. He is a Selma (HOT) cop. Jo, Marlene and a whole slew of our "new" friends have the pics of the two of us together. We convinced him to take the picture to show my cousin in Tucson that the cops in Selma are way hotter than the ones in Tucson. The thing that amazed everyone is that at any point if I was asked where he was - I could point him out - in a crowd of tens of thousands. When we posed for the picture, he couldn't believe how many cameras were pointed at us. =)

I was thrilled to learn that this wasn't just any Willie's 4th of July Picnic, it was also a Last of the Breed concert. We were given the pleasure of seeing Ray Price and the Hag - LIVE. This is our reaction to the 2nd chord of the Hag's Rainbow Stew.

Then Willie took the stage with his family. Jo and I sat back and just soaked up the music and the big Texas sky. We lingered a bit after the almost 90 minute performance by Willie and family. I've seen him 3 times now in the last year and that is by far the longest he has been on stage. It truly was a day in Heaven.

After leaving the picnic - we found an IHOP and had the most outrageously sinful pancakes and eggs. Then made our way home and fell into restful slumber that even Monkeyshine couldn't disturb.

Long days and pleasant nights...

Southbound 35...Let Texas Fill Our Souls

Thursday morning, July 3, 2008 I was up before the roosters. It's all good, though. That was the day we began the most awesome trip ever. I was in Mazie by somewhere around 8am. John and Marlene arrived not long after and we were on our way south to what I now know is the "Hill Country."

Jo and I had packed snacks so we could save some money on the road while eliminating a couple stops on our way to the ultimate destination - Willie! Marlene discovered quickly that our idea of "snacks" includes bologna and cheese. Thankfully, she was delighted by the surprise.

We had heard of Willie's Truck Stop in Abbott, Texas and decided to make a pit stop there, since it was right on 35 South. This was the first real clue that the weekend would be totally spectacular. We thought that the truck stop had been open for awhile. Willie has been on the road talking it up - he even talked about it on the Colbert Report. What a surprise when we were just one vehicle of about thousands to pull over and park. There was a huge picnic going on, including a stage with live music, tents of food, and a few people selling souvenirs. This was also John and Marlene's introduction to Jo and Tam in that Texas Country Fog that people seem to think we have.

There is a Willie Saloon, a Willie general store and Willie gas pumps. We were truly in Heaven. Little did we know it was just the outskirts of Heaven. We took pictures of everything, including the dancing frogs and frog worshipping the Texas flag. About ten minutes further south on 35 - we passed the Honeysuckle Rose headed North. We barely missed seeing Willie at his truck stop grand opening.

We made it to our 5 Star hotel somewhere around 8 or 9. We had a wonderful princess room with twin beds awaiting us. There was a pool and all the accomodations we could ever ask for. As we enjoyed a drink pool side we also were blessed with seeing the deer and racoons feed in our lawn.

We did have one thing to be worried about. Monkeyshine! Jo went to the bathroom came out rather perplexed, made me go into the room and look - sure enough - there he sat looking innocent in his OSU t-shirt. We knew better though and ran screaming from the room. That night our door was locked and we made sure that we both said our prayers to every god we could think of to warn him off.

Go then there are other worlds than these...

Wonderful Day

Happy Birthday to my BFFJo! She is now legal when she enters a bar! The last dozen years have been just testing the local law enforcement...

Also, it is the anniversary of Nannie's b-day. If she were here she would be 87 years young today. The good news is that I'm sure she baked a cake and a pie and she and Poppie are enjoying it together, once again!

That's all I have time for now. We leave before the chickens wake up tomorrow morning. I would complain - but we will be South Bound - Willie in Sight! Nothing in that complaint worthy.

Long days and pleasant nights.