Tile Shortage.

I think actual real world construction experience should be a Federally required prerequisite for being able to work in a lumber store or a flooring store.

Case in point, my Uncle Skip, a somewhat-retired handy man works for UBC in Garden City, he has taught me things, so I know he is a great asset to UBC helping weekend warriors with projects...I worked construction in the summers and at a lumber yard during college time, and so I always thought I was a good help by knowing the difference between AC and CDX plywood and so on.

Now to my story...we started to lay the tile in the kitchen last night...we are doing a "hopscotch" pattern. So there are 2 size of tile, 12"x12" and 6"x6". I told the flooring guy we needed 400 square feet of flooring, in a hopscotch pattern in this tile. When we picked it up I should have wondered, but I trusted the "expert" tile estimator.

The tile looks great, but we are only half done with the kitchen and we are out of small tile. I should charge the clown for the gas it takes to drive to Mitchell to pick up more, but I have to pick up some other things at Menard's anyway, so I'll just be kind of grumpy to him when I tell him he messed up the project time line. (Like this project has a time line anyway...I think the tile sat in his store room for 3 weeks)

Maxim's birthday is on Sunday...5 years old.

My dad has a cat.

My dad is not much of a cat person...me either for that matter, but he has a few wild cats at the horse barn to help keep the mice population down.

I think there has always been 1 or 2 cats around, but at one point this year he had a cat that had kittens. One day out of the blue he commented to me, "I think I'm gonna neuter that cat." That comment now lives in infamy in our house, because at the time he said it...nobody was talking about cats, and he just brought it up as general conversation.

Try it sometime, when a conversation goes dead during a party, during a boring meeting, or in bed just before you kiss your wife goodnight...just throw this out there, "I think I'm gonna neuter that cat." then see how many people look at you strange or just bust out laughing at your obscure Bob Barker remark.

So anyway, after laughing at him and finally with him, I ask him if he is going to take it to the vet or what...he says, "Are you crazy, I wouldn't waste money on that...I'd just shoot it." Now you have to understand this comment came from a 60 year old, native Beadle county, farm-raised boy. Pretty typical thing for a person around here to say.

For the record Webster defines neutering much differently: To render incapable of breeding by surgically removing reproductive organs--the testes in males, the ovaries and uterus in females ("spaying"). (Not by drilling it with a .45 slug)

So now that you have his background with cats...about 2 weeks ago I was in dad's garage and I hear this meowing sound. It was a couple week old kitten! This guy flopped from cat killer to kitty foster parent like Lindsay Lohan goes from sober to plastered! On top of it all...he was bottle feeding it...once every 3 hours!

So on Sunday I see the once homely orphaned kitty, is eating kitty food and lapping up milk out of a bowl, jumping, climbing and running around. She has been named "Shaky" by Maxim. She occasionally comes into the house, climbs on the screen doors, and despite mom's efforts to give her every chance to run away, the kitty lives in the garage.

Dad said after my niece Cassidy leaves he's going to get rid of it, but we will see. It will be to lazy to hunt for food on the farm, and I'm not taking it. I think it should stay in the garage. After all, I think he is attached...I kind of like the little thing as well...just not enough to be a cat person.

This Child Is Very Excited About Living!

The title of today's post is a nice way of saying, Brecken is a complete handful. Some minutes he can be a sweet little boy, but then the alter-ego kicks in and he dumps toys all over the floor, or pulls a plant and stand on to the floor then laughs like a madman about his ability to destroy that which Stephanie has made.

Last night Steph was in town, so it was me and the boys. We went swimming, which involves the tube, a 15 foot section of climbing rope tied to the dock, and all 3 of us in a tube made for 1 or maybe 2 small kids. After 30 minutes of riding the big waves Maxim and I jumped on to the dock and when I went to grab Breck, he went "rubber legs" on me and would not get out of the water. So for another half hour I pushed him out and pulled him in on the tube.

He threw a huge fit when it was time to get out. After the swim in the lake, we hit the swing set and trampoline, finishing the night off with grape freeze pops. I gave him a bottle and sent him to bed at 8:30...I was pretty proud of myself, thinking I was super dad, and that this kid was not the little tornado we sometimes make him out to be.

1:30 a.m. Brecken had been crying for at least a half hour (I was waiting for Steph to hear him...she sleeps super heavy). By 2 a.m. we are all awake watching TV and Brecken is playing like it is the middle of the day???

Just when you think you have your children figured out, they throw the off-speed pitch and catch you sleeping. I think we all went to bed around 3:00 a.m. Somehow during all of this Maxim ended up sleeping in our bed while Brecken was voicing his opinion very loudly...he was still there when I left for work this morning.

Fun Stuff Always Happens Around Boats.

I posted this video because stuff is always funnier when it happens to other people...but ironically I have fallen out of a boat, ran over a friend at a very slow speed with a jet ski, seen a pair of boardshorts get ripped off by a boat cleat, caused a friend to rack himself on a boat dock, while on a jet ski I saved a sailboat crew of 5 from the shark...I mean CARP...infested waters of Lewis & Clark resivour...also towed in the sailboat, on the same day watched an 18 foot boat go under the water in like :30 seconds, ...and finally was the 2nd to last person to abandon ship when my cousin's Malibu sank due to some crazy high winds last year.

That being said...I really love being around the water.

Memorial Day Pictures.

The weather for Memorial Day weekend sucked so not much time was spent in the water. Dave and Travis were huge in helping get the docks back in the water and rebuilding the section of dock that the neighbor's pontoon tore apart.

Here are some pictures...most don't need any explanation.

Steven Wright

My dad and I love this guy.

Happy Birthday to the good doctor.

Most of us have childhood friends that we spent tons of time with, I was lucky enough to have cousins that doubled as friends. Our extended family unit is a close one, and we always do stuff together. My dad's sister has 3 boys and they lived a few minutes on a bike away from our house so, it seems like, every day I would ride to their house.

Brent is the oldest and kind of the voice of reason. He still is, now that I think of it. Jon and I would be dead or in jail if we would have done everything we wanted to back then, he kept us safe. Aaron was the little one that was along for the ride, whatever the day brought.

I'm not sure how old we were, but I pretty sure parents these days don't trust their kids or society enough to let them be home alone like we were back then...but we had Brent as our summer guide!

Our dads worked at the same bank, and our moms at the same clinic so there was enough communication between all parties to understand what the boys were doing that day, or what they thought the boys were doing...and who knows my aunt might have been home all the times I was over there, but the years have clouded the memories.

Jon and I were the closest in age, so we were natural playmates. From climbing on the roof to epic baseball games in the backyard trying not to get caught climbing the fences to retrieve the ball from the neighbor's yards, games of fumble-bumble (a football game we made up), knee hockey in the basement, and street hockey games at all hours of the night. I am pretty sure we always made Aaron be the goalie...sorry about that, AJ! Fishing trips with Uncle Lynn to the river...who could forget the frogs we caught and named them all "Joe Heckburg". I have fond memories of their house on MacDonald Drive. The crawl space, the tree in the back yard that was 3rd base, climbing the trees in the front yard and listening to Michael Jackson's Thriller album on the record player in the living room.

It's been a few years, but those memories are still as fresh as ever.

Rick Springfield of 1980's pop music fame had a song called "Me and Johnny"...every once in a while it finds it's way to my MP3 player's now playing when I hit shuffle. Here are some lyrics...

Lookin' back I'd say we broke a few rules
Left one or two hearts in a ruin
Spent all that precious time doin'
Things we figured that Presley might have done

Stole a few cars, never got caught
Started some fights in the scrimmage
We got caught up in the image
Of playing young rebels by the handbook
Looking back I guess we had some attitude
We were gonna be hard and tough

Me and Johnny
We're gonna play tonight
It's gonna be alright
We're gonna shine

I think of the Doctor when I hear that song...and 1000's of times in between those times.

May 29 is his birthday...out of all my friends and cousins, that's the only person's birthday I have memorized.

Happy Birthday, Dr. S.

I'm a son of a gun...fighter.

If you know my dad, you know he was born 150 years to late.

He would ride a horse to work if they had a hitchin' post at the bank. In fact, when he retires he is going to ride his horse across South Dakota.

He still ropes some calves and team ropes now and then, but during the winter that season slows down, so this winter he started participating in Cowboy Fast Draw Competitions. He built a target and backstop in the garage and shoots his .45 Ruger as shown in the picture to the right with cousin Scott. He has only shot himself in the leg once...just a flesh wound. Gunfighters are a tough breed.

This video shows some guys doing this at some big thing in Idaho. Not the greatest video, but they are shooting at 2' diameter circles with a light that tells them when to draw.



So anyway last Sunday my dad had a shoot in Mitchell and he did really well. All of his draws were under a half a second, which is really good. He ended up getting 3rd place...which means he's the 3rd Fastest Gun In The Mitchell Region, or it means in a gun fight he would have been the 2nd to last guy to die!

We joke about his new hobby quite a bit, when we wrestle in the living room (yeah we still wrestle like we did when I was a kid) he always says, "Hey, easy that's my shooting arm!".

So to give my dad something to strive for I post the below video as something to aspire to. This guy takes out 5 targets in the time it would take me draw and shoot once! I think it's cool, my wife thinks my dad is crazy...look what she has to look forward to!

A Little Vacation From Typing.

Sorry, that was a long pause between posts, and apparently it didn't go unnoticed...Verlie the Great ran me down on Sunday, almost in tears, asking why I wasn't writing anymore. So I promised him the blog would go on.

We have been very busy getting things ready for "opening day" weekend. Memorial is the true kick off for most northern lake dwelling folks (so we are told), and we have 13 people coming to the house on Wednesday. Bad new is...the weather according to KELO-LAME is supposed to be rotten, oh well.

The boat house looks super, new paint, mom's old kitchen cabinets, and some scrubbing...it's a place I like to hang out...it's like a screened in porch on the water.

I'm ready for summer...you can just feel the fun of summer getting ready to explode...especially when you talk to people who have kids in school or teach school. The last week is like a formality to satisfy G.W. Bush's master plan...so that no child is left behind.

I remember how end of the year field trips rocked, but I saw the most pointless field trip yesterday...the teacher took them to Wal-Mart...like...OH...we might have this problem with American kids not knowing how a retail store works. Those might be the children that are left behind.

I think we should just cancel the last week of school, the teachers don't want to be there, the kids don't want to be there...just end school a week earlier. But then again the new last week of school would be just like the current last week of school. Catch 22.

Noah's Update 2.0

So it's not going to be as bad as the Governor first told us on Saturday night...I almost cancelled my trip to Montana because of the gloom and doom he was forecasting. The scientist at the USGS calmed he and his staff, by saying that the James River had crested at 17.9 feet. The picture to the left shows the river at it's highest point. The 3rd Street Dam is somewhere under about 8 feet of water.

Then again as I say "not going to be as bad"...I think...tell that to the folks in Aberdeen.

Lake Byron looks so big right now because of the added water volume, it's pretty impressive.

The lake went down 4 inches overnight...it's down about 6 from it's highest point, but not enough to use this picinic bench.

Finally today I leave you with another successful parenting moment. We only wanted boys so we would have someone to mow the lawn. Last night the 2 little weasels started on the lawn...Brecken would pull the grass out of the ground and give it to Maxim, then he would put it into the bag while making engine sounds. At this rate the yard should be done by the time I get back from Montana.

It is a beautiful day in the mountains today...to bad I have to work. I wonder if United Airlines will let me "carry on" my mountain bike next time?

Noah's Report

Would anyone know the number of a good canoe builder? I might have to load Steph, the boys and our dogs, 2 by 2, on to the thing if we get any more rain.

Since Friday night there are reports of up to a foot of rain in some places along the James River Valley in South Dakota.

We got about 7" on Friday night at Lake Byron. People all over the area are cleaning basements out, and buying every Shop-Vac in a 8 county region.

The lake, which is up 2.5 feet since we moved in back in August, came up another foot early Saturday morning...along with a day of 30 mph winds our permanent dock got a great wash off, and we were pretty happy with how things were going.

Then Sunday morning, when we woke up we heard this constant, bong, bong, bong, bong...so I walked out on the deck and looked down at the water, and behold, we inherited a pontoon boat. The bad news was that the waves were throwing the boat on top of our dock and breaking it apart. (the pictures above shows the damage, and our neighbor and his kid looking at the "wacked up boards" as his son Cody put it) In 10 minutes 3 neighbors had identified the pontoon as a neighbors from the south side of the lake.

We jumped in, found the keys in the glove box (only in South Dakota) and waited for some waves and a couple of pushes off the dock and our piers by the deckhands, and the boat was freed.

So me and the neighbor went for a 7Am pontoon ride on Sunday morning, to help the lost boat find it's way home. The owner met us at his house, and we ended up loading the pontoon and his boat on the trailers. He said, "enjoy your new dock that my insurance company will put in for you." Ahh, insurance companies, I love working with them, or getting worked by them.

Sunday night we took a tour of the area to see the water levels...here are some pictures.

This is the boat launch on the south side...if you click on the picture you will be able to see the mooring posts that hold the dock in place...right now the dock is about 2 foot under water.

This is the Dave Gross' farm. The house was dry, but the feedlot looked more like a swimming pool. Dave also has a place on the lake, and his dock suffered a little damage as well.

This was the scene in the back of the Expedition during the tour of the country side...Maxim was completely excited about driving around looking at the water, as you can tell. Brecken, as usual, just happy to be along.

This is "Hog's Back" on the east side of the lake, if you are familiar with the lake, you probably don't recognize it at all...funny how some water changes the look of the land.

Over all we were pretty fortunate, no tornadoes, no flooding, yet. Just some busted up dock and a bunch of drifting garbage that found it's way to our dock and boat lift. Oh yeah...if you look closely at the picture of our dock you can see a 40 foot utility pole...that will be brought up to the front parking area of our house and will serve as our "parking bumper". So I guess we did get some good things out of the storm. Maxim was also excited about the dead bullhead that washed up on our dock. Living on Liquid is soooooo exciting.

And just think about a week ago I was running out of things to blog about, and was thinking about shutting down the blog for a while, or forever...like anyone beside Skipper, Verlie and Grandpa Roger would know. Last thing, becuase of the rain, Steph's dishwasher is hooked up and running, and the fridge is plugged into it's own outlet, not by an extension cord running to the bathroom.

Progress, little by little.

Montana Tourisim Council

A buddy of mine from Missoula sent me this today.

Montana life long residents love their state to death, and hate...let me spell that...H-A-T-E...the fact that people in California and other West Coast states come into town and buy up land, houses and resorts for top dollar because they need a break from the smog and the big city.

So when they see another article in National Geographic Adventure, Transworld Snowboarding, Outside Magazine or any other publication they cringe a little bit. They fear Clark Griswold will pack up the family RV and crowd their town for a glimpse of mountain, river and wildlife majesty.

They are a bit jealous about sharing their state, kind of like when you see Minnesota or Missouri license plates on another yellow H2 parked in front of field in the middle of South Dakota during the opening week of pheasant season.

I am sure Montana Gov. Brian "Bolo Tie" Schweitzer would not approve of the "campaign", but most of the Montana locals I work with feel at times like putting up a fence around the boarders...at least on the west and south side of the state.

I am headed back to Montana next Wednesday...in fact in the next 3 months I will spend about 40 days in Montana and Idaho...I think that gets me an "honorary citizen" pass for 2007 anyway.

If you want more reason to head to the mountain state, check out some pictures from an acquaintance of mine through work and pheasant hunting.

I have a "man crush" on Tony's abilities with a camera, and his overall job for that matter. He gets to travel all over taking pictures of active lifestyle stuff....my kind of gig. You will realize why Montana citizens want the whole state to themselves after drooling over some of his pictures.

Learn To Play The Drums With Your Fingers.

You never know what you will get from the Living On Liquid blog site.

Today's post is a video that came to me from a friend who shares my love of playing the drums and congas.

At first I was like you have to be kidding me, this is ridiculous...then he busts out this crazy rudiment, that I couldn't play with 4 arms and 6 legs!



If I only I had a Creative Keyboard..."THIS IS ROCK AND ROLL".

The Butter Effect.

2 years ago BFY Productions put out a wakeboard film called The Butter Effect. In the world of skiing and wakeboarding "butter" is also known as "glass". When the conditions are perfect...no winds, no crowds...it is some of the most fun you can have on a wakeboard no matter how good or bad you are.

To snow skiers, it's 8 inches of fresh powder, to surfers it's a clean double overhead, to walleye fishermen I'm told it's a nice little chop in the water, to a hockey player it is freshly Zambonied ice...those perfect days and conditions for doing what you love.

Well, yesterday was a typical Monday, too much work to be done in too little time...in fact, while walking through the hallway I actually thought about pulling a fire alarm so I could bail. I actually get that temptation almost every time I see a pull-type fire alarm, but that is another story, and my therapist won't allow me to blog about it yet.

So around 4:50 my wife says, "Hey babe when are you coming home? Just wanted to let you know I looked at the lake and it's butter."

This is where the Butter Effect kicks in...I forget all my worries and stresses of the job, and I find new life on a Monday. I got home in 15 minutes and was on the lake 7 minutes later. After a nice session in some pretty cold water the rest of the day was spent in the yard watching the boys play on the swing set, trampoline and riding bikes...pretty easy to forget about the Monday with a life like this.

It made me think, so many people don't have a "Butter Effect". That's probably why we have so much crap going on in the world.

What gets you off the couch, out of the cage you call an office and enjoying "God's Playground" as a great friend of ours would call it...is it golf, biking, walks, fishing, hunting, grand kids messing up your house and eating all your cookies?

Teva sport sandals has a slogan to help sell sandals to people with a mind like Steph and mine...

GO. DO. BE.

State Fair Entertainment, Drummer Needed?

My cousin Brent, who pretty much introduced me to a lot of the "great" music I listened to in Jr. High and High School as a result of riding in the back of his light blue Citation on the way to school, posted a reply to LivingOnLiquid yesterday informing me that Ted Nugent is coming to the South Dakota State Fair. Now of course this isn't 1979 Ted Nugent it's 2007 Ted Nugent, but hey, it's the Motor City Madman in HURON???

For those who don't know, when I moved to Huron as a youngster my father was the State Fair manager, and since then the Fair has had a special place in our family's heart. My sister still gets giddy at the mention of the ride known as the "Scrambler" and she is still addicted to cotton candy, my mom and Aunt Glo were nurses at the first aid trailer for years, and I enjoyed the benefits of being the manager's son, with free reign over all the Midway rides, and shuttle buses at my front door when ever I needed them...OK, so our house was on the regular route...but it was a fun place to grow up, and the week of the fair was like a big party on our yard, as we lived right on the fairgrounds.

Even after he resigned, the Fair hired my dad as the Entertainment Stage Manager. This also turned into the family business of "fair week". Eric, Mari, Aaron, Sally, Mom, Scooter and countless other "friends of Bob" would "work" the catering trailer or "runner" duties for the week of the fair, or for just the night of the show they wanted to attend. All in search of the "backstage pass".

I have a few backstage passes, guitar picks and mementos in a scrapbook somewhere, and have had the chance to rub elbows with, drive around, and watch eat the likes of...REO Speedwagon, Rick Springfield, a bunch of WWF superstars, New Kids on the Block, George Strait, Garth Brooks, Chris LeDoux, Loverboy, Barbara Mandrell, Charlie Daniels Band, Tiffany, Vanilla Ice, Color Me Badd, The Beach Boys, John Waite, Tiny Tim, Charlie Pride, John Denver...and the list goes on. As I look back it was pretty big time stuff to be involved on the inside of that operation.

As a drummer I would always figure out who the drummer of the group, or better yet who the drum technician was and I would hang around them, trying to pick up anything, hints, pointers, drumsticks, or drumheads. In fact, I once got a full set of Remo LiquidHeads from the drum tech for some country group. They were worn out for him, but to this day they are still on the set I used to play, that somehow ended up, and still is, in the back room at Bethel Church. My dream was every year, that the drummer for a group would come up sick or missing and they would need someone to sit in for the concert...I was confident I could have played for anybody back then. To the benifet of each artist that dream never came true.

I did sit in for Kyle Evans and the Company Cowboys for a few songs one night, and also played for his son Dustin Evans before he became the regional act he is now. My other night of drumming stardom was at my cousin Kent's wedding dance...he sang and I ripped the drums with the band, doing Garth Brooks' "Friends in Low Places". My cousin Jon and I also tried to jam in my parents basement one time...him on the trumpet and me on the trap set, but there wasn't much music we could play with a 2 person "pep band".

Now I play in church, on the steering wheel, on my desk and occasionally on Maxim's tummy full of milk...but if Ted Nugent shows up to Huron without a drummer...I am ready. Ted it's up to you???

Star Wars Kid

Maxim is completely obsessed with all things Star Wars...I can't blame him, I still find my wallet caught in a "tractor beam" anytime I see something Star Wars related.

I was online looking for a Stormtrooper Pirate Flag for the flag pole by the boat house, and/or attached to the roof of Maxim and Brecken's swing set...that's another story...anyway, I ran across probably the most famous piece of video ever, on the Al Gore invention that we now call the Internet.

"Star Wars Kid" I am pretty sure this is one of the first videos I ever saw on the Internet...and might be one of the funniest as well. Turns out this portly little soul was teased beyond belief for his unwelcome Internet fame.

Some things you didn't know about him, that I find interesting...Ghyslain Raza is his name, he's from Canada, and his "light sabre" is a golf ball retriever! He cut the video at his high school video department and left the tape...a few months later some classmates found it and posted it on Kazaa.com...the rest is history. His parents helped him sue the 4 kids responsible and late last year they were awarded around $300,000 Canadian.

Not bad money for a little humilition in front of the world...but then again that's only about $267,000 American...take out $95,950 for lawyer fees...and about half in taxes, and the kid has enough for about 2 years of college!

Motor City Madman.

In the wake of VT's campus shootings, rock-n-roll and hunting legend Ted Nugent opened his mouth, or his computer keyboard and this is the result. (click on the word "this" in the last sentence...it's called a hyperlink)

The Motor City Madman knows how to kill a buck from 50 yards with his Oneida Eagle bow, how to rip classic rock and roll with a scream, and how to completely tick off every gun control proponent in the nation.

Brecken's Birthday Weekend.

Brecken turned one last Friday. We had a little party at the lake house for him. A few relatives, and some grilled pork loin, and cappuccinos. It was super fun to host the party.

I remember when Maxim was turning one, my job was to get the garage in Sioux Falls sheet rocked so we could have the party outside...I finished it 1 day before the party. I also built him a big toy box made out of hockey sticks.

So I wanted to do something special for Brecken as well for his number 1, something I built. So I finished the plumbing in the kitchen :20 seconds before the first guests arrived for the party. I stood up from the cabinet turned on the water, Steph welcomed Jim and Patty. I said, "Welcome to our home we have running water in the kitchen, and now I'm going to take a shower." Steph was happy. So was my mom...she was so happy that she and Patty did the first round of dishes in the sink. (I haven't hooked up the dishwasher yet...that will happen this week.)

I still felt the need to build/create something with my hands for Brecken's 1st birthday, so on Sunday, we drove to Mitchell, and bought a swing set...I think that is Saturday's project. It is actually a pretty good present for both of the boys.

Maxim also got fishing stuff...some lures and bobbers...Grandpa Roger already got him a graphite pole...I guess that's pretty cool to have at this age.

I don't know much about fishing, so when I got to Cabela's I asked this fishing department dude what I needed to catch fish, he started throwing lingo at me, and I was like...timeout...I don't know anything about fishing, so he got us some stuff, and then the best thing he did, was give me a couple of little handout guides on how to tie lures on to the line...Steph and I just knot them on, but there is a special way to tie them, and now I know how.

He asked where we would be fishing, and we explained that we live on Lake Byron, etc...and he said, "but you don't fish?". Yeah, we get that a lot.

Sunday night around 10:30 p.m. Maxim comes out of his bedroom...I told him to go back to bed, but just then Kent Hrbek's Outdoors TV show comes on. Maxim says, "I want to watch the fishing channel with you, dad."

How do you turn that down? For the record I hate most fishing shows...some redneck in a boat and his shaky Uncle Willy running the camera, The Outdoor Channel is full of programs like this.

Kent Hrbek's Outdoors on the other hand is a good program, it's not always about fishing, Hrby has a great personality, and is such a larger than life figure anyway...I love how every time he ties a lure on, they get a close up of his World Series ring.

So we are watching Hrbek fish with some MLPS guru of fishing, the Grizz or something like that, and Maxim says, "Dad, when you get home from work, we'll go to the backyard and go fishing right?"

I couldn't help but smile...and we were going to, but it was way to windy last night...I even bought my license! First fishing license I've bought since I was in Alaska.

Crazy...My 4 year old has me excited to sit on our dock, and let life pass by one cast at a time...

Before & After

It might be a little early for "Before & After" pictures, but I couldn't resist.


This picture is from one of our visit to the house prior to purchasing.

This is from the same time...this is the whole kitchen back then.

This is the construction process...that's Roger in the picture.

This is the finished...well, almost finished project.

Brecken's 1st birthday party is tonight in the kitchen, and the rest of the house.

Let the parties begin!

Almost

This was Steph last night!

I'm pretty sure she was excited. We cleaned the basement, another 10 or so boxes of stuff was unpacked, and we rolled up the temporary carpet in the sitting area so the guys could lay the carpet this morning, which Steph says looks awesome.

We are waiting on the plumber, who was supposed to be there yesterday, still isn't there today???

As you can see in the picture, Steph's crazy 8' wreath of dead trees is in place, and Maxim's Trek is in the foreground...I told him when the kitchen was finished no more driving your bike in the house. Last night, Steph took his bike out of the kitchen. Poor little guy, now he's going to have to drive outside like all the other kids in the world...if the snow would ever go away.

$58 Surround Sound System?

We had a fun weekend.

Easter activities, church, family, seeing new born calves bucking in the field, sub-10 degree temps, ice re-forming on the lake in spots...you could feel spring in the air...or at least until you went outside.

Easter weekend...the weekend we are reminded of Christ's death and Resurrection...I went through a sort of death and new life in the last few days. About 2 weeks ago I was "sick to DEATH" of working on the kitchen, and just wanted to quit. This weekend was Resurrection Weekend in a couple of ways.

We moved out of the "kitchenette" and into the somewhat fully-functional kitchen.

Steph unpacked about 20 or so boxes of cups, plates, pans, cookie sheets, kitchen utensils and the decor that defines her kitchen and "coffee house" sitting area. She felt the new life of an almost finished project.

I did the important things like, hooking up the dining table light, the electric to the main panel, and placing some speaker wire on top of the cabinets to put our speakers and kitchen sound system up. We both felt some energy about the project.

Except the sound situation in the kitchen.

I'm not a speaker-Nazi like some, but I do like my music to sound rich and full, and the JVC speakers that we have had for years do the trick...until now. "They are just to big and ugly," said my loving wife.

So I pulled them, and last night we picked up a full surround sound system with CD/DVD player for the bargain price of $58. My initial thoughts were...for 58 bucks...how bad could it sound, I mean it has a sub-woofer. I hooked it up last night, and my thoughts changed to...how could they make it sound that bad?

I'm going to try to sneak the old JVC speakers back up there...think she'll notice

Maxim and Brecken might have just inherited a surround sound system for their play room.

Good News

So the MRI came back "negative".

Which is ironic, because in all reality "negative" is "positive"...they don't think I need to have surgery.

They couldn't see any damage to the ACL, the Othropod Doc hadn't looked at it yet, but they thought the whole thing could be remedied with a little PT.

I am supposed to lift legs a little more, quit running for a few weeks and only use an elliptical machine or bike for cardio.

I am guilty of not lifting legs (if you have seen me in shorts you know this to be true...I have Grandpa Walt's Chicken Legs)...at most I do legs once a week. Wednesday is legs day, and a lot of times I skip out of the gym after running.

Oh yeah the other "solution" they gave me is Aleve Liquid Gels once a day. The surprising thing is, the last 2 days I have taken Aleve LG's the knee has felt pretty good, or not felt...however you look at it.

Last night I saw a commercial for Aleve Liquid Gels, and it has this guy kayaking, a lady rock climbing and one other guy doing some other sport. They all could do their sport after taking the wonder drug Aleve LG's...I might be starting to think the ad is correct.

Well, hope everyone has a good Good Friday and happy Easter.

Actually we've got a nice little weekend planned. Eat at grandma and grandpa's, then we're going to Home Depot to pick out some wallpaper, then maybe we'll hit Bed Bath and Beyond... I don't know! I don't know if we'll have enough time! (Will Farrell in Old School)

ACL, what happened to you???

So for the past 3 weeks, after running, my right knee has felt, for lack of a better word, sloppy. It feels like at anytime it could fall apart.

It is stiff and I feel a ton of pain when climbing steps or biking...my first thought was I must have tweaked it a little bit when I got leveled reffing hockey a few weeks ago, and the pain will pass.

It hasn't.

I had a buddy of mine who is a PT guy look at it 2 weeks ago and he said there was a lot of movement on my ACL, but nothing felt real bad to him.

So I let it roll, cause I'm a dude, right?

Well, when your knee is in pain while sitting down, you start to question your "dudeness", and "mama's boy" starts to kick in. I broke down and went to an orthopedic specialist on Tuesday...Wednesday morning I was inside a tiny tube getting an MRI on my knee to see what my ACL was doing.

I'm still waiting to hear the results of the MRI...

The doc told me the ACL is not tore, but if left alone it could develop into "junk you don't want"...that's how he put it. They must teach you that at Med School.

So for the last 48 hours all I can think about is, great I'll probably have to get my knee scoped, right before wakeboard, soccer, golf, mountain bike and climbing season, not to mention all the work around the house we have planned.

If he tells me I need surgery, I'll make him do it that instant...I've been waiting for summer to roll around again since it ended early in August last year, and I can't fathom not being able to go all-out doing whatever, because my knee won't keep up.

I sound like a whiner today, a bed-wetting mama's boy, I guess I am.

For 34 years, my body has been pretty healthy...a few jacked up ribs, jaw, chipped bones in my elbows, crooked nose, broke little toe...dislocated shoulder which keeps me out of softball, but I can live with that. I understand I'm getting old, but I am trying to do it better than most guys my age. I dropped 26 pounds since last March. (I could drop another 20)

I think it's my fault, I always used to say, I have never had knee problems, back problems and only sprained my ankle one time. Now the knee thing is going to be taken out of the list.

I'm getting old.

Taking Shape.

Thanks Skipper.

All I can say is Uncle Skip got a hug and kiss from Steph this weekend. I'm glad she did, So I didn't have to. The Great One from Garden City was all about kicking out the kitchen cabinets. The end result was level, flush, great looking cabinets. The old boy still surprises me.

The only thing I am worried about, is now that he drove 12 hours to do something super nice...the next time back will he do something...Skipperish.

The boys had fun with a bunch of family in town, the house stayed pretty busy through out the weekend with visitors, and relatives. Steph says I get a little over anxious with the house tours...I guess I didn't know almost everyone has a "flush toilet" in their homes now. I don't' think I was that over the top, but I guess showing all 4 of our master bedroom/bathroom closets is a bit over-zealous. I'll try to tone it down.

Back to the boys, Grandpa Bob is happy his older brother is gone, because, Brecken couldn't tell them apart. He kept running away from Grandpa to go to Skipper. Of course, Skipper ate that up...along with the hug and kiss from Steph and didn't let dad forget he was around!

Mom and dad brought out Godfather's last night for the First Supper, we had some pizza around the island. Eric and Jim stopped over to close the night off with some good laughs.

The weather may be cold, but our house sure felt like summer this weekend...just without the water recreation.

Paint by numbers.

Quick and dirty update to catch you up to speed.

Last week...wife and grommets were gone...I hire the tape and texture guy to come and finish the kitchen. Wife comes home and sees walls ready for paint...wife very happy with lazy husband.

Now to the story.

So today, with all of the ice of Lake Byron contained to an area of about 5 football fields because of a strong Easterly wind, my mind starts to think about the pending fun of summer. I can't help but also think about all the work that needs to be done as well.

Part of the work/fun balance equation is being taken care of today as Steph, mom and Aunt Patty are going to paint the kitchen. I learned long ago from my wise father that it is good to be real bad at painting...I mean really bad.

I couldn't do a good job painting a canvas white, let alone painting a kitchen "crested cinnamon". What the heck color is cinnamon anyway? Cinnamon to me is a taste...and right now I might drive to the Empire Mall to hit up the Cinn-a-bon store for one of their fat freshys.

My wife sees white walls and a big empty room as a blank canvas for her HG-TV inspired feng-shui style of decorating our homes. Good on her, because I would have a couple of hockey jerseys, a poster of Alyssa Milano and a Chicago Cubs flag up on the walls. And instead of a "focal point" of decor, I would hang my wakeboard, snowboard, mountain bike, climbing gear, a few big Star Wars toys and hockey equipment on some sort of "mecca to fun stuff mobile" from the ceiling.

Yeah, she balances me that way.

Isn't that why we marry in the first place?

So our couches are not had-me-downs without legs, and our end tables are not made out of recycled lumber with a bunch of marker-written funny one liners or autographs of infamous people. (yes, I meant infamous, not un-famous...watch the movie ¡Three Amigos! for the back joke on that one) My college room mates are laughing right now.

Our "bachelor pad" was a tribute to Hockey, Eric's Sega Genesis, tv and stereo, Rahn and my CD collection and Thaler and Rahn's movies. But the "focal point" was an end table, in front of the legless couch, that was a dinner table, study desk, sometime weapon in epic wrestling matches, and a pedestal for the house champion of NHL 95 to proclaim his glory.

I built the table out of scrap wood from the lumber yard where I worked during my college days...I don't remember how the whole autograph thing started, but everyone that visited signed that thing. The top, the legs, the underside where ever you could find room. Then each year we would add another layer of plywood to the top to start a new round of writings and wisdoms. I think it ended up with 3 layers.

I don't ever remember what became of it...if I gave it to some underclassmen or junked it or what...but as I look back it would be fun to have. I also know on the first or second layer, Adam Vinatieri (pre-NFL fame) autographed the table.

I guess, for men, that's what college is for, so we live like dogs in dirty houses with bad furniture with a bunch of other dawgs. For women, college is about the education and figuring out which type of dog you could best train to sit around on your classy furniture (with legs) and not put too much stupid crap on your walls. Most of us domesticated dawgs get one wall and it's in the garage.

For the record, my college roommates...

Rahny, married, successful, with children in a beautiful home, and works in the banking industry.
Thaler, married, successful, with children in a beautiful home, works in the ag industry.
Erkel, well let's say, Eric is a successful farmer, and still generating his story, he is also the leader of about 6 bachelors in Beadle County, they are on Lake Byron on most calm days ripping it up behind the Malibu.
Bozzell, married, successful, with children, in a beautiful home, and Boz also builds beautiful homes if you are in the market in Sioux Falls.
Giles, married, successful, with children on a beautiful acreage, owns his own engineering firm.
Me, married, what is successful???, with children and still acts like a child, in a home on the lake that is becoming more beautiful every day, thanks to the wife.

Yeah, we all turned out pretty good...crazy isn't it?

Jacks Win!

South Dakota State defeated Indiana 60 to 53 before a sellout crowd at Frost Arena tonight and moved to the Elite Eight of the Women's National Invitation Tournament.

Senior Megan Vogel led the 24 and 5 Jacks in scoring again -- this time with 14 points on five of 17 shooting. Andrea Verdegan added 12 points and Jennifer Warkenthien ten.Indiana, 19 and 13, got 12 points from Nikki Smith and 11 each from Sarah McKay and Kim Robertson.

Neither team shot well. The Jacks were 33 percent from the field and the Hoosiers shot 32 percent.But the Jacks did out-rebound the taller Hoosiers 49 to 33. Maria Boever led SDSU with ten boards

Progress Report

The entire kitchen/dining room is now taped and mudded. Friday my drywall guy comes back to sand and prep for Saturday's super awesome day of texture! (Disclaimer: The attached picture is of Steph a couple weeks ago taping and mudding a corner...it is not my drywall guy)

We should be able to paint next week and by early April cabinets will be hung. I think I will be hiring a plumber as well. I'm just ready to get this project completed.

Did I mention that we are putting tile in the entire room...I want it to have a coastal-Florida feel, and all the homes I have ever been on the Gulf Coast have tile all over the place. It also lends itself to an easy clean up if 2 boys should ever bring dogs, frogs or snakes into the house.

About 600 square feet of tile...my knees and back are already yelling at me!

By the way, here is a catch up on the Bachelor Week Report:
I haven't made the bed in 3 days (the first nights I slept on the couch)
There is a pile of clothes in the living room for no reason
I have eaten 1 meal at home
The dogs were in the house most of the night last night
I left my shoes on in the house 2 times on Tuesday
I ate cookies and milk at 12:30 am this morning...and left the cup and bag of cookies on the coffee table
I also have the thermostat set at 67...nice and cool at night!

Yeah, I know...I'm pretty much a rebel.

The real story, I miss the heck out of my family and can't wait until Sunday.

Oh yeah, and GO JACKS!...I am headed to Brookings in about 2 hours to watch the SDSU Women's Basketball Team play Indiana in the WNIT Tournament.

Bachelor Week Has Begun!

So I had a lapse of one week between posts...I think that is the longest I have gone without a blog fix...sorry to my readers, all 3 of you...Verlie, Uncle Skip and Roger.

It has been a crazy last 3 weeks...google my name and natural gas and you will understand what I have been up to.

Anyway, I put Steph and the boys on a plane last Friday...they headed to South Bend, Indiana or Ind-Montana as Maxim would say. So for about 10 days the lake house is the bachelor pad! My plans were to completely kick out a bunch of work on the kitchen and get things all wrapped before she got back.

All I had to do was ref my last hockey games of the year and get home and work. Unfortunately during my 2nd game I got caught up in a couple players checking each other and I got decked hard on my elbow.

Through my elbow pad my elbow cut open and from the X-rays it showed I chipped a couple of flakes off the bone. This is painful, and my arm is stiff, I got whiplash and my knee is sore.

So I laid around on Saturday...did a little work around the house on Sunday, and called my drywaller from Sioux Falls, who happened to be in the area. He's coming tonight to check out the project.

It should be taped and textured by the time Steph gets home.

I should have done this like 3 months ago...but I am stubborn.

So bachelor week started kind of rough and will end with a happy wife...I hope.

Springtime Heatwave.

I like how we bust out our huge down jackets when the temperature drops below 50F in autumn, but when the weather hits 45F in spring, it's practically bikini weather.

Every once in awhile you see some guy who's way ahead of the spring curve. He's the one who can't stand to wait another day for 50F weather, so he goes out running in shorts and a T-shirt when it's still getting dark at 6p.m. Those guys are always the joggers who find the dead bodies and get interviewed on the local evening news.

For women it's flip-flop and capri time right now. They don't care if there is water to the top of all the ditches in Beadle county...they are wearing their favorite capris and those cute sandals today.

For the record, Steph wore flip-flops and capris yesterday, and I ran in a t-shirt and shorts this afternoon!

Brecken is having a rough day!

I'm in Rapid City working as talent for KSFY's coverage of the SD High School Hockey Tournament, but my heart is at home.

Brecken is sick and is going to spend the night in the hospital. Steph took him into the ER today and after about 5 attempts they finally drew blood from him.

The tough-nut even made them knock him out so they could find a vein to give him an IV.

He has a little cast on his arm so he dosen't pull the shint out of his elbow. He will stay overnight so the doctor's can monitor him. I owe Steph so much for what she has been through in the past 3 weeks! She is going to really enjoy that trip to Indiana to see her folks.

I'll pray for you Brecky!

Mountains move me.

I'm in Montana again...have been since Sunday. I really do love Montana. This week's trip has reinforced that again.

I flew into Missoula, drove to Kalispell, then drove back to Missoula and down to Butte. Kalispell/Whitehall is the farthest I have been North and West in MT, and the Northern Rockies are beautiful. Flathead Lake is EPIC.

Since the bulk of readers of this blog have some connection to South Dakota, think of the Black Hills on steroids, specifically the Sylvan Lake area.

I went to Big Mountain...not quite the vibe you get at Big Sky, but very nice indeed. I would love to come back to mountain bike and climb in this area sometime. I also would love to kayak down some of the local rivers. Every Subaru Outback that I see has either a kayak on the rack or an empty rack.

I was in Missoula on Tuesday...downtown is like a giant Starbucks. Very progressive and outdoor savvy town. Right up our family's ally.

The mountains, the rivers...the wild that is Montana is what moves me each time I come here. I think it's funny when I tell people I have to travel to Montana for work and they say..."oh, sorry about that" or "what a boring place to have to go to". I smile and say I enjoy it, knowing that they have never been to Montana or just don't like the outdoors.

Here is my plug...if you are planning a vacation this summer...head to Yellowstone National Park (yes, I know that is in Wyoming) get out of your car and walk around. Then drive North, go to Big Sky, even if you are there in the summer...get out and hike around, ride the chair lift, then hike to the top of Lone Peak. Go to Glacier National Park...along the way stop in Missoula, Butte go to Kalispell...it's a trip you won't forget. Beauty everywhere.

I sound like a travel agent.

By the way just to balance this rambling of wanders around the Big Sky State...My loving wife was stuck at home, on a frozen lake with Mr. Energy (Maxim) and a sick, puking baby. Oh yeah...today....our Anniversary...9 years ago we got married on a super snowy South Dakota day.

For our 10 year anniversary I'll take her to Montana.

Blizzard - Schmizzard.

We are in the middle of a wicked blizzard. I think we are over 20 inches of accumulation in some areas.

I’m just glad the power stayed on.

We left the lake on Thursday morning...I didn't want Steph and the boys stuck out there without me, in case our rural electric company's feeble system would collapase.

We did forget a couple of key items...the Playstation 2, my snowboard and Star Wars movies.

So I have compiled a list of things to do during a blizzard.


Shovel snow

Take lots of pictures
In fifty years your grandkids will want to know how much snow “a lot” really was. Take pictures of yourself skiing to the grocery store because, come on, nobody would believe that...I actuall think when I was younger my dad did that once.

Watch people get stuck

Help people get unstuck

Do a flip into a snow bank, then watch your son try the same thing...only it usually ends up looking more like he is diving into a swimming pool and just bounces off the hardpack.

Throw snowballs at your wife.

Throw your kids into a snowbank...this is very stress-relieving, and the kids like it.

Sled down your driveway.

Snowblow other people's driveways...the widows, orphans and in general everyone you want to love you, and proclaim you as the best neighbors ever.

Stay over night at your parents house...if this is possible...this is a great way to pass the time.

Buy a bunch of snacks, pizza and drinks and invite everyone to your house for coverage of the Ididarod 2007 which starts on Saturday....someday I will own a sled dog team.

Listen to the Beach Boys and Jack Johnson...nothing warms the soul like "surf music".

Hopefully we will get back to the lake on Saturday afternoon.

Hey family, I'll be right home after work, I just have to stop at the DQ for a cookie dough blizzard.

In like a crazy lion!

March came in like a lion...in the shape of a wicked snow storm. This is the scene outside my office at the electric factory.

Winds are picking up, so the family came to town to have a little overnight at the grandparents.

Huron got record snowfall amounts for one day...10" on Wednesday.

Maxim and I brought our snow pants along....we should have fun tonight again.

Red Bull: Ride The Sky 2.

A buddy of mine who owns Spoke - n - Sport in Sioux Falls, was lucky enough to be one of 50 participants to race in the Red Bull: Ride The Sky 2. It is a mile long mountain bike race through the sky walks of downtown St. Paul, Minnesota.

The race started on the north end of downtown in the Lowry Building and ended in the Union Depot at the south end of downtown. In between the two points were over a mile of twists, turns and obstacles.

The footage below is off of Chad's helmet cam.



The footage below is of some guy hucking himself off some stairs into a wall.



Midwesterners will find anything to break the boredom of winter!

Cabin Fever...

The boys (aka. Arctic Monkeys) will do anything and just about everything to keep themselves entertained and into mischief during this long winter.

The latest is Brecken bobsledding in one of Maxim's toy totes.

Brecken dumps out the toys and climbs in, and then waits for his "sled dog" Maxim to push him around on the wood floor.

Most moms would go insane seeing their precious wood floor being used as a psudo-Antartic playground, but in the picture you can see Steph is laughing right along with me.

It must be time for Spring, because we are all getting a little Cabin Fever, but with the big STORM OF THE YEAR on it's way, we will have a few more weeks before winter starts it's placid fading.

I'm glad I'm not the Spokesperson for Weatherford Electric.

Printing mistake -- blamed for billion dollar electric bills

WEATHERFORD, Texas — Some people in Weatherford got (B) billion-dollar scares this week when they opened their electric bills.
Richard Redden's bill said he owed more than 24 (B) billion dollars.
Pam Pearson with Weatherford Electric says the Reddens and nearly 14-hundred other customers this week received erroneous late notices.
Pearson told the Weatherford Democrat that a printing company made a mistake.
Pearson says customers who received the inaccurate bills will get the correct ones later this month -- and won't face any late fees.
Meanwhile, Redden says he guesses his family shouldn't have run the heater quite so much.
Weatherford is about 20 miles west of Fort Worth.


February 21, 2007 - 3:19 p.m. CSTCopyright 2007, The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP Online news report may not be published, broadcast or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press

My Home In Montana

I spend quite a few days in Montana and the numbers will go up this year, because of a new project I am working on. When I am in Butte I stay at the Hampton Inn, and it is one of the reasons I almost always stay at Hampton Inn Hotels when I travel for business or pleasure.

Last night when I checked in, I got this feeling like...ohhhh yeah I'm home for the night. After a good workout, a buddy and I grabbed some food at a local pizza spot, was given some fresh baked cookies and milk at the front desk, and I laid down at around 9:30 pm MST, I woke up at 5:30 MST and had no idea where I was. Then I was worried that Brecken hadn't woke me up last night with his crying for "ba-ba...ma-ma, ba-ba". Then there was this noise that I was trying to figure out, which turned out to be the blower fan for the heater in my room.

Honestly, it took me a good 30 seconds to figure out I was in Butte, Montana in the Hampton!

Then I felt sorry for Steph, she most likely didn't sleep through the night and Maxim probably didn't go to bed until 11:30 pm. I felt so awake and rested this morning I didn't even go back to bed.

I promise you, Steph...when I get home I will get up with Brecken all night on Thursday night. That way you can enjoy one night of full sleep, a mommy deserves that.

Last night I ran 3 miles before I lifted...I forget how much the altitude affects your ability to process oxygen! The 65+ year old guy next to me must have thought I was going to die...right there on the treadmill. I was begging for more air...and actually had to walk for about 2 minutes to get my legs back under me.

Hopefully tonight I will have acclimated a little bit.

The Lego Translation

What would life be like if little boys didn't have Legos to play with?

I'm quite sure that every mom in America has vacuumed up a few Lego pieces. I loved and still do love playing with Legos. The little bricks might be the best toy of the modern era. I have yet to hear of any negative report that playing with Legos has some crazy side effect.

We have several sets of the blocks at our house...one is a set of "big" blocks, and surprisingly enough, Brecken can put a few together and then tear them apart quite well. Our other sets are of the Star Wars variety.

At least once a week Maxim grabs his tote that is full to the brim with Star Wars Legos and we build "awesome ships" and "super big forts". He hasn't quite figured out the whole direction following concept, so I am the one he looks to to build the things that he sees on the directions. He is a great "free builder" and on occasion he builds some super cool stuff.

He has worn out and lost several direction booklets, and a buddy of mine told me you could download the directions from the Lego Website. So I googled something like "Lego directions" and The Brick Testament was one of the things that came up.

Amazing is one of the words that would describe what Brendan Smith has put together on his website. Smith is the son of a minister and an atheist. He said he wanted to let people know about all of the violence and sex in the Bible that is left out of most pictorial versions of the Bible.

Smith didn't cut any corners on his verse for verse pictorial translation...Goliath's severed head, a nice puddle of blood when a Sabbath breaker got stoned, and a couple of bedroom scenes, one involving an animal.

One forgets how raw the Bible is in parts...even by today's standards, and even when told by a still camera, Lego people and an atheist Lego free-styler with tons of time on his hands.

The Gong Show.

Remember the Gong Show?

I was sick again yesterday afternoon, but I was stuck in a hotel in Pierre, SD. Nothing sucks more than being sick away from your own bed, except for the fact that you get the remote control and cable TV.

Anyway I start watching AMC and there is this movie about Chuck Barris who invented some game shows like The Dating Game, The Newlywed Game, and The Gong Show. The movie is called Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind.

The movie is based on Barris' autobiography of the same name. He claims that during the time of the Gong Show he was also a secret CIA agent...basically a hit man. Who knew? Even if it was true or not it made a great double life.

I remember watching the Gong Show as a kid and thinking he was soooo cool, with his hats and jokes, how he joked with the Unknown Comic and thinking that he was super funny as well.

Good movie, made you think about that time in American culture, and what was going on in my life...I was like 7 or so. Also made me think of TV today...I think American Idol should be cutting Mr. Barris a check every time their show airs, because that is exactly what their show is with a little different twist.

Crazy the amount of time we spend watching TV and how it shapes our lives. I'm kind of glad we got rid of cable when we moved to the lake...if it wasn't for yesterday's "all day TV bender" I wouldn't know anything of Anna Nicole Smith's death...I'm glad that I am starting to lose touch with what's on TV.

For the record, I did watch Conan The Barbarian as well...forgot how good of a movie that was.

Cable was nice to waste the day, even if I had to be sick to watch a full day of nothing.

Lake Sanford???

T. Denny Sanford dropped $400 million over the weekend to Sioux Valley Hospital....I mean Sanford Health Systems. While in Sioux Falls, Steph worked for the bank TDS owns, it is a great company and there is no wonder why he is successful.

But anyway, since Sioux Valley "requested" the gift, I thought I would give it a shot as well...

T. Denny if you can drop $4 million to me (in our First Premier Bank account) I can see about getting Lake Byron renamed Sanford Lake or Lake Sanford....After all, if Sioux Falls can try to rename Skunk Creek, I'm $ure I could influence $ome local politician$ and county government folk$ to con$ider the change.

We could even somehow incorporate Sanford Health Systems into the mix, like, by claiming that the murky, algae filled waters of the formerly known Lake Byron have some sort of healing powers that fight the evil Herpes Gladiatorum.

We could put your logo in lights in the lake East of Hogsback (which would be renamed to Sanford Ridge), and would make the logo big enough to see from any Google Earth satellite picture.

Let me know what you think Mr. T. Denny...if you aren't interested, that's o.k. I've got a rich uncle in Garden City, Kansas who should be starting his philanthropic efforts in the near future.

Mom...60??? No Way!

My mom turns 60 today. The groundhog shares a special day with my mom!

I'm not feeling very typish today, so I'll keep it short.

My mom is the most incredible person, and if I am half the person she is, I'll be happy.

She raised Sally and I with love, honesty, hard work and a strong faith.

She prays for her children and grandchildren without ceasing.

She beat cancer.

She makes the best O'Henry bars.

She let me and my sister keep our dog in the house...and she doesn't charge for babysitting!

60 seemed old when I was 20...now it's the age of young, beautiful and fun grandmas.

I completely love this picture by the way.

The Sickness.

I am sick. Nothing Earth shattering, little fever, achy, cough and sore throat. I missed my first day of work due to me being sick in over 2 years.

In fact, we were looking for some cough syrup and found some penicillin from Jan. 2004 that was prescribed to me. I had Influenza A&B and Strep Throat that time...only out for 2 days...a lesser man would have died.

Speaking of sicknesses, today a tight friend of mine is enjoying his first day of "health" after deciding to resign from his post as a youth pastor. Don't get me wrong, the position he left behind itself wasn't bad, it was the office situation surrounding him. A bad virus of non-communication, and from my view, poor choices by people in leadership positions.

.....................I just deleted like 4 paragraphs of typing...............................not sure if I wanted to publish my exact feelings on the matter, even though only about 4 people will read this, but I am reminded that as a human we all make mistakes...even humans who are in leadership positions of "regional impact churches".
Some lyrics from Roper's "Brace Yourself for the Mediocre" album come to my mind.

This wooden soul is old
It's lies are growing cold
Its knotted trunk is straightening
Its roots are loosening their hold
So cluttered with debris this inefficient melody
I'll keep waiting patiently
If this world will ever release me
You love me even though I am untrue
If I was perfect, I wouldn't need you
I'm the object of your affection
You loved me still in my imperfection

Gloria, in excelsis Deo
Not so far, not so far to go







PS-Nothing but love for you Decker...ride on.