Whew! We’re back. After a wonderful trip up north to visit my folks, we returned last Thursday and have been struggling with various issues ever since. Argh! Did you know that eating a left-over cheeseburger that remained in your car for a couple of hours in the afternoon is an extremely BAD idea? Well, it is. Take it from me. I haven’t thrown up that hard in quite some time, and I don’t ever want to do that again. Ever. Eeyech.
Some of the highlights from our holiday season:
Flying on yet another tiny, propeller-driven plane. And they actually told us not to sit in the back seats, “because it makes the plane tip.”
Seeing my mom and dad.
Feeling sad that their dog, Ricco, had just run away.
Feeling happy when he showed up the next day after being inadvertently locked in the shed overnight.
Visiting with my brother, who now has a Saint Bernard in his back yard. No, I don’t know why.
The Guerilla Attack Family Gathering at Aunt Linda’s house. Over and done with in 42 minutes flat.
Watching our Monkey chase my Mom around at the playground.
Waiting for our luggage at the airport for a half-hour and then spotting it laying against the wall nearby.
Christmas Eve at my in-law’s, where there was a nativity scene skit (my son was the pirate).
Spending time at my dear friend Jason’s parent’s houseboat.
There’s more, but I need to hustle out of here soon. Now that I’m fully recovered from the food poisoning issue, I’ve got lessons to teach.
Thursday, December 28, 2006
Thursday, December 14, 2006
Hack, Snort, Cough, Snnaaarrk.
Argh. This week has been a bit of a trial. Monkey's been sick with an ear infection, so he stayed home much of the week. Actually, we didn't know it was an ear infection until the doctor looked at his ear and said "WHOA! Does that hurt?" Monkey replied that it didn't, but he couldn't hear out of it too well. "Wow. Your son must have a high pain tolerance." He must have gotten that from his gorgeous Momma...I'm a big baby when I get sick.
So I've been sick all week. The sheer amount of mucus that has made its way through my system has been staggering. I mean, I don't think that elephants can produce this much snot. Geez! I've been basically miserable for most of the week, but I'm finally nearing the end of it. I hope. So I've lost another week of training for the Half-Marathon, and I'm about to go up to Indiana to visit my folks for several days. I wonder if they'll let me sneak off to the YMCA to hit the treadmill here and there?
We're all looking forward to the trip. My darling wife is just about to drop from the 12 hour workdays she's been putting in, and I'm pretty sure that she's ready to nap in Mom's basement for hours on end. I've been missing my family lately, so I'm really looking forward to seeing them all. Mom, Dad, and Pee Wee, my brother. Granted, I'm the only one allowed to call him that since he's 25 and at least as tall as me, but that's what I've called him his whole life. He still calls me Brother, and I have to admit that I really like that. Pee Wee's really come into his own lately...two cute kids, about to break into the home-building business, and he's got more college degrees than I, by far. Proud of that one, I am.
Anyway, I'm looking forward to seeing everyone up there, aunts, uncles, cousins (there must be a million of 'em), everyone. The plane rides I'm not too thrilled about. We generally take one big flight most of the way and then transfer to a puddle-jumper to get to the South Bend airport...I swear, one time we walked out to the runway to board and a mechanic was cussing at one of the propellers on our plane. That's right, propellers. I thought the pilot was going to stick his head out of the cockpit wearing one of those leather helmets with earflaps on it like Snoopy used to wear. It was not a large plane. By the way, did you know that those little barf bags will hold a fist-sized apple and a whole can of ginger ale? They will. Yessiree, they sure will.
So classes will be run by SiHing Shaun Lawler while I'm away. I understand that he's quite excited to run class...that probably means trouble for the rest of the students, but they could use a change of pace now and then. I hope nobody pukes on our mat.
So I've been sick all week. The sheer amount of mucus that has made its way through my system has been staggering. I mean, I don't think that elephants can produce this much snot. Geez! I've been basically miserable for most of the week, but I'm finally nearing the end of it. I hope. So I've lost another week of training for the Half-Marathon, and I'm about to go up to Indiana to visit my folks for several days. I wonder if they'll let me sneak off to the YMCA to hit the treadmill here and there?
We're all looking forward to the trip. My darling wife is just about to drop from the 12 hour workdays she's been putting in, and I'm pretty sure that she's ready to nap in Mom's basement for hours on end. I've been missing my family lately, so I'm really looking forward to seeing them all. Mom, Dad, and Pee Wee, my brother. Granted, I'm the only one allowed to call him that since he's 25 and at least as tall as me, but that's what I've called him his whole life. He still calls me Brother, and I have to admit that I really like that. Pee Wee's really come into his own lately...two cute kids, about to break into the home-building business, and he's got more college degrees than I, by far. Proud of that one, I am.
Anyway, I'm looking forward to seeing everyone up there, aunts, uncles, cousins (there must be a million of 'em), everyone. The plane rides I'm not too thrilled about. We generally take one big flight most of the way and then transfer to a puddle-jumper to get to the South Bend airport...I swear, one time we walked out to the runway to board and a mechanic was cussing at one of the propellers on our plane. That's right, propellers. I thought the pilot was going to stick his head out of the cockpit wearing one of those leather helmets with earflaps on it like Snoopy used to wear. It was not a large plane. By the way, did you know that those little barf bags will hold a fist-sized apple and a whole can of ginger ale? They will. Yessiree, they sure will.
So classes will be run by SiHing Shaun Lawler while I'm away. I understand that he's quite excited to run class...that probably means trouble for the rest of the students, but they could use a change of pace now and then. I hope nobody pukes on our mat.
Wednesday, December 06, 2006
Ninja Warrior!!!
After a bit of an absence, I’m finally back to the regular routine. More or less. I just got in from a 2 mile run, the first run in more than 2 weeks. Argh. I admit that I was a little less than diligent during Thanksgiving week. And the week after that, the weather turned nasty, and I didn’t bother to jump rope at my school…yes, I, too, can have my lazy moments. But now I’ve returned to my regular workout schedule, and I’m currently sitting with that slack-jawed look of exhaustion as I type. I sense a nap coming on.
Things are generally good. Our little monkey is recovering from a bug that had him feverish and puking the last few days, but he’s back in school today. Poor kid…he took it well. He just lay there on the couch, covered in blankets, just looking worn out. At one point, he looked sadly at me and then relocated to the floor just in time to throw up on himself. It was mostly water, and he actually did a pretty good job of keeping the worst of it from hitting the floor. So we cleaned him up and gave him some water. Instant repeat of the previous three sentences. But then he started to feel better, and was able to start his recovery from there. OK, so maybe this is more than you want to know on the subject, but this is my blog, so there.
He felt better in the afternoons, and since his gorgeous Momma was at work, I just took him with me to class. He stayed in the back office watching vids most of the time, but when he got tired of that, he’d come out and sit next to me while I ran the workouts. He enjoyed yelling ‘BREAK!’ for me when my timer would beep, signaling the end of a round of pushups or squats or whatever. I really enjoyed the time I spent with him this past few days. He’s grown up a lot, practicing his letters and numbers on his own, singing songs to himself, building things with his Lincoln Logs and such. It’s cool being a Dad…even with the puke.
So while we were home, vegging in front of the TV, I found this awesome new show. It’s called Ninja Warrior! It consists of four absolutely insane obstacle courses, and of course, it’s a Japanese program. WOW! These guys are put to the test, to be sure. The course is timed, and consists of some tremendously challenging obstacles with names like ‘Warped Wall’, ‘Curtain Cling’, ‘Circle Slide’, and so on. You have to jump, run, swing, climb, and some other methods of locomotion that defy description, all the way through the course before time runs out. Most of the course is 10-20 feet above large pools of muddy water (I guess that’s a cheaper way to break a fall than having expensive crash pads). Paul Hamm, gymnast from the 2004 USA Olympic team couldn’t finish the first course…that’s how tough it is. It’s got me to thinking, yes it has. Hmmmmm…..
One thing I love about the Japanese…they are all about the ‘fighting spirit’. I mean, you will see the most unlikely folks trying to make it through this course. Some of them are repeat customers who have never made it more than 3 steps, yes, you read that right, 1-2-3 steps into the course before being eliminated. Some of them are wearing their work clothes (as in the case of the sushi chef, construction workers, and bicycle racers) while competing, but they are dead serious about their effort. Dudes almost in their 60’s are out there giving it all they’ve got, and consequences be damned. So what if their chances are somewhere between slim and none? They’re gonna get out there and give it their best shot. It’s that fighting spirit that counts!!! Man, I love that. I’m gonna start my research and see what it takes to get into one of these things. I’m hoping I can make it more than 3 steps in.
Graduation is Friday night, so I’m looking forward to awarding new ranks to several of our students…they’ve earned it. And many of them are enjoying the new workouts I’ve been running lately. Especially Annie, who sent me a pleasant email that actually included the word @&%$#(*&!@#$%#$%^& in describing how sore her arms were. You go, Annie!!!
OK, that nap is calling me. Time for me to answer.
Things are generally good. Our little monkey is recovering from a bug that had him feverish and puking the last few days, but he’s back in school today. Poor kid…he took it well. He just lay there on the couch, covered in blankets, just looking worn out. At one point, he looked sadly at me and then relocated to the floor just in time to throw up on himself. It was mostly water, and he actually did a pretty good job of keeping the worst of it from hitting the floor. So we cleaned him up and gave him some water. Instant repeat of the previous three sentences. But then he started to feel better, and was able to start his recovery from there. OK, so maybe this is more than you want to know on the subject, but this is my blog, so there.
He felt better in the afternoons, and since his gorgeous Momma was at work, I just took him with me to class. He stayed in the back office watching vids most of the time, but when he got tired of that, he’d come out and sit next to me while I ran the workouts. He enjoyed yelling ‘BREAK!’ for me when my timer would beep, signaling the end of a round of pushups or squats or whatever. I really enjoyed the time I spent with him this past few days. He’s grown up a lot, practicing his letters and numbers on his own, singing songs to himself, building things with his Lincoln Logs and such. It’s cool being a Dad…even with the puke.
So while we were home, vegging in front of the TV, I found this awesome new show. It’s called Ninja Warrior! It consists of four absolutely insane obstacle courses, and of course, it’s a Japanese program. WOW! These guys are put to the test, to be sure. The course is timed, and consists of some tremendously challenging obstacles with names like ‘Warped Wall’, ‘Curtain Cling’, ‘Circle Slide’, and so on. You have to jump, run, swing, climb, and some other methods of locomotion that defy description, all the way through the course before time runs out. Most of the course is 10-20 feet above large pools of muddy water (I guess that’s a cheaper way to break a fall than having expensive crash pads). Paul Hamm, gymnast from the 2004 USA Olympic team couldn’t finish the first course…that’s how tough it is. It’s got me to thinking, yes it has. Hmmmmm…..
One thing I love about the Japanese…they are all about the ‘fighting spirit’. I mean, you will see the most unlikely folks trying to make it through this course. Some of them are repeat customers who have never made it more than 3 steps, yes, you read that right, 1-2-3 steps into the course before being eliminated. Some of them are wearing their work clothes (as in the case of the sushi chef, construction workers, and bicycle racers) while competing, but they are dead serious about their effort. Dudes almost in their 60’s are out there giving it all they’ve got, and consequences be damned. So what if their chances are somewhere between slim and none? They’re gonna get out there and give it their best shot. It’s that fighting spirit that counts!!! Man, I love that. I’m gonna start my research and see what it takes to get into one of these things. I’m hoping I can make it more than 3 steps in.
Graduation is Friday night, so I’m looking forward to awarding new ranks to several of our students…they’ve earned it. And many of them are enjoying the new workouts I’ve been running lately. Especially Annie, who sent me a pleasant email that actually included the word @&%$#(*&!@#$%#$%^& in describing how sore her arms were. You go, Annie!!!
OK, that nap is calling me. Time for me to answer.
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