Music

I have a wide range in tastes when it comes to music, but if I was asked to show someone who had never heard of music what it is, I would show them this.

A Few Forgotten Characters

I ran across these old clips from Mad TV. Saturday Night Live has always had very memorable recurring characters, but I forgot how good Mad TV was at times. Here are just a few off my favorite recurring characters from that show:

Here is Dot:


And Miss Swan:


And Stuart:


And Lorraine:

Baby Tabler

As everyone knows by now, Julie and I are expecting our first baby at the end of January or early February (official due date is January 30th). I think we are still both in the stunned faze, even though this is exactly what we wanted. However, it all still feels little abstract. That being said, I think it will really sink in once we have the first ultrasound and/or hear the heart beat. We are both very excited and are doing what we can to get ready. Aside from reading everything we can get our hands on, we have started on the nursery. It is freshly panted and ready for us to start putting it together. Jen and Chip gave us the crib they used for the boys, which is fantastic. Julie and I also bought a dresser from Louisville Antiques that is a good size to use as a baby changing table. I still need to install a new ceiling fan and switch out the blinds. All in all, we are very excited and know it will be here quickly. We look forward to sharing this experience with all our friends and family and relying on the experience of those who have been through it.

In an effort to save money and eat healthier food, Julie and I have made an effort to cook more meals at home. On Sundays we have started making several dinners for the week. Yesterday, we made chicken enchilada casserole and I have chicken and dumplings in the crock pot. I will probably finish off the baked spaghetti we made in the next day or two. Doing this gives us lunch for the week as well. I haven't had fast food in over two weeks and we limit eating out to once or twice a week. When we do eat out, we often split a dinner because the portions are so big. Another benefit is the gas and time we have saved by not running out to pick up food at lunch and dinner.

Julie hasn't had any strange cravings yet, but has had a mild aversion to some foods. It will be interesting to see how this holds up as baby gets bigger. She will be 11 weeks this coming Friday, so the baby is about the size of a peanut shell.

We will keep everyone posted as we go through our doctor visits and check-ups.

 

Meteorite Landing in Russia

I spent much of the early morning watching and reading coverage of the meteorite in Russia that caused wide spread damage and around 1,000 injuries. When I first saw this story breaking this morning, the nerd in me was very excited and I immediately began looking for videos of the event. In doing so, I found several incredible videos. I also wanted to see peoples reactions to the event and hopefully see some interesting conversations. I made the mistake of looking at reader comment sections on popular news sites and found the exact opposite of what I was looking for. Some comments I agreed with, but here are some comments from people in need of a good slapping:

Wouldn't it have come from above rather than the side?? Just saying...... Looks staged to me!

- Umm, west yorkshire, 15/2/2013 2:52

There appears to be a lot more to this story, as usual a lot of speculation, maybe the truth will be told, maybe not!

- maggie Elaina, jasper Ga USA, United States, 15/2/2013 10:06

I'm not totally buying this story. A meteorite is random yet there just happen to be a camera on a pod shooting a empty scene in the exact location. Also, there were reports of the Russian air force intercepting the meteorite? Really? How many thousands of feet per second does a meteorite travel? I'm not buying it. The Russians were testing something that went awry.

- TN_Ric, Nashville, 15/2/2013 9:39

Cameras at the ready to capture this thing from every angle, just at the moment it happend to appear? C'mon - give me a break. Look at that trail, something in there is reflecting light, something liquid perhaps. And it looks more like smoke than vapor. Meteorites don't smoke. This was the breakup of some high flying aircraft that was going to require an explanation and they decided "There's an asteroid passing by today - we'll just say it was a meteorite - they'll never know the difference."

- Forward Observer, Miami, 15/2/2013 9:21

Check out the book of revelations. It fortells an event where burning ice falls from the sky. Sounds like frozen gases entering the atmosphere. It also describes a star falling to earth that destroys a third of the trees and a third of the sea life. How could the ancient writer have speculated with such accuracy the impact of space objects on the earth with such limited science in that day? Could he have been taking dictations from God? Igf he was, then this little rock was just a trailer for the big action flic to come.

- markd4lyph, LangleyOKusa, 15/2/2013 9:19

Global Warming strikes again. When are we going to learn?

- asmith555, Charlotte, 15/2/2013 8:29

So, how come a meteor strike has never been witnessed before? I'm as sceptical as the next man, and I think human causes are more likely than meteorites. It looked more like the Columbia did when it broke up on re-entry.

- Realist, Kent, United Kingdom, 15/2/2013 8:25

Was it the same one which wiped out the dinosaurs?

- Dexter Morgan, Kettering, United Kingdom, 15/2/2013 8:18

so it was big enough to knock a building down but no crater??? more likely some government body has used the meteor passing us today as an excuse to test fire something!

- mark, hull, 15/2/2013 7:36

Marvel Mash-Ups

Here are just a few of my favorite Marvel Mash-Ups that Marvel puts out on their Youtube channel (although Disney owns it now). I like a company that can lampoon their own product.

Office to Bedroom Renovation Almost Complete

Turning our office off the living room into a bedroom is almost done. The drywall and doors are in and everything has been mudded. I spent about 5 hours last night priming the drywall and then filling in the little nail holes in the door frame with wood putty. I then sanded the door frames down before I went to bed. Our contractor is going to touch up a few spots now that he can see it primed and will add in the outlets, door hardware and shelf in the closet. My goal is to have the doors painted tonight and start painting what I can. I think it turned out really well. The last thing we will do is put a nice thick area rug in their to give it a homier feel.

We hope to put the house on the market very soon, possibly this weekend or Monday. We are meeting with a Realtor to look at a few houses on Saturday.

Ummm...yeah

A "Waiting for the Storms" Update

I am sitting in bed waiting for the storms to blow through a bit later on and thought I would post an update on all the trivial things I have been up to outside of working. I used to love storms, rain or snow. Now I just worry about the community center flooding, experiencing a power outage or having to delay an opening. I am still fascinated by storms, but don't enjoy them as I once did.

I am currently watching "Haywire", one of the three free movies I am getting from Redbox because the "Muppets" DVD I rented a couple weeks ago did not work. Julie lasted the first fifteen minutes and now she is snoozing. It is moderately entertaining, but that is about all I can say. The cat is curled up under my arm asleep, so I am left holding down the fort.

GOLF
I played golf at Shawnee on Labor Day with Kevin, Uncle Mark and Matt. It was incredibly humid. Tropically humid. I scored fairly well, especially the back nine. The front nine, I kept barely missing fairways and had several punch shots at greens. I also hit more bunkers that nine than I have the rest of my rounds at Shawnee combined.The back nine was better scoring, but I always feel like I give away too many shots. I did putt well both nines. That was the only consistent part of my round. I shot 5 over on the front for a 39 and 2 under on the back for a 34...73.

My shoulder hurt a little, but I had neglected my anti-inflammatory for about two days. I am back on them with some ice and the shoulder feels better.

CORNHOLE
Kevin and I began our cornhole league at St. Martha on Wednesday night. There are 8 teams in the league. Each night we play four games against one team. We began 3-1, so not a bad start. The game we lost was close. We play again Wednesday at 8:15. I enjoyed playing and spending time with my brother.

DNC/RNC Conventions
I watched'em. It was all status quo for the most part. I, however, did get angry at the  platform change during the DNC convention. I won't go into more detail, but it ticked me off.

Ok...time to check the weather. If you are reading this, it means you survived and your house is probably still standing. Goodnight everyone!

Shoulder Update

As most of you know, I have been battling a bad left shoulder for several years. In the past year, it has become incredibly more painful when I play golf or try to lift anything above my head. I was first diagnosed with an impingement in my shoulder blade and rotator cuff. I went through a few weeks of physical therapy and did my exercises at home, but did not feel it was any better. It may have even been worse.

I went back to my orthopedic yesterday and I think we have finally pin pointed the problem. Bicipital Tendonitis. In the picture below, my pain is exactly where the line points to for the tendon of the biceps muscle. The tendon stretches over the ball at the top of the humerus, in a notch call the Bicipital Groove (I like that name...sounds funky). This is where the problem lies. Physical therapy will not help this. The doctor gave me a cortisone shot right into the tendon. Apparently, this has been going on for so long, the anti-inflammatory medicine I am on is unable to decrease the inflammation. However, the shot has greatly increased my range of motion and decreased my day to day pain. I haven't tried a golf swing yet, but I am going to wait a week or so until I attempt a practice swing. Hopefully, the medicine can now maintain the tendon.

I have been told not to play golf for a couple of weeks to give the shot a chance to work. It takes a few weeks for all the inflammation to subside. Here is hoping for the best. If not, I am moving up to the gold tees with Pop.

The Open

My favorite golf major to watch on TV started this morning. I awoke at 4:30am to watch a few hours of the Open Championship before I went to work. Every year for four days in July, I wake up early, head to the couch with some breakfast and watch golf, occasionally dozing off while doing so.

The reason it is my favorite to watch is the combination of a few things. First, I love I get to wake up and watch golf early and still have the whole in ahead of me. Second, it is a different type of golf course and game than we watch week in and week out on the tour, including the majors. I have always loved links style golf and watching the players battle wind and rain makes it even more fun. I love the pot bunkers, the tall golden Rye and Fescue grass, the old buildings and clubhouse and even the bagpipe bumper music they play during the telecast. Plus, I think watching them play golf in July while wearing sweaters helps me forget how hot it is outside.

Enjoy the Open if you plan on watching. If not, what is wrong with you?