JEDI MILLER

The Jedi Restaurant Review

2008-07-17T08:48:00.000-07:00

I thought this would be fun, and would enjoy comments from others, maybe I'll even start some controversy. Today's Review is a Mexican Restaurant called Uncle Julio's.

We had just picked up my parents from the airport and we all were ready to eat, starving in fact. Their plane had been delayed and so had our dinner plans. We thought Mexican food sounded good, mostly because you get to eat right away. Real Mexican places have free chips and salsa ready and available right when you sit down. So when you are so close to death from lack of food it's the perfect thing to eat. I remember seeing the new Uncle Julio's restaurant that was built in the old theater in Grapevine, and suggested we trying something new. We all agreed and began drooling.

We pulled up to the restaurant and noticed it was packed. We are not sure what's happening in the lives of people in Grapevine but I'm pretty sure no one ever eats at home. I saw under the "Julio" sign it said "Fine Mexican food" I'm not sure why some places say that. Is it just a staple for Mexican food? Are they trying to convince me that it's not bad but really good. why not say, "yeah burritos, taco, and fajitas what did you expect?" I'd eat at place like that.

We finally get a table and we are excited to start on the chips. Chips are an important part of the meal and their chips weren't bad. The staff kept us well stocked, which can be a problem for some places. The salsa on the other hand was a little brown. Actually we were wondering if the salsa had gone bad or something. It wasn't real spicy, kind watery, and not chunky. Texas Toad doesn't like chunky salsa but she realizes the important of it to be there for the full flavor, she happily picks around. Bad salsa was a bad omen. I was thinking in my mind we should leave and just get a burger or something. But I didn't want to spoil every one's time. We were miserable enough from having to wait so long to eat. We finish off two bowls of chips and were pleased. We made our orders and it took a bit but they were pretty busy so I can't fault them. There was a machine in the back that was pumping out tortillas. I was excited because on each of the entrees it said "... and warm tortillas" I liked that idea, if you haven't had a fresh tortilla with butter you probably live up north and don't know what good food is anyway :)

Our food arrived and it looked okay. I got a little combo plate. Taco, two cheese enchiladas, and a pork tamale. (yum tamale's) It came with rice and some beans (beans in a bowl on the side). I was ready to eat. We blessed the food and dove in face first. (okay maybe it was just me). The tamale wasn't good at all . Actually it was the worst tamale I had ever eaten. I used to grab tamales when I was reading meters from some of the nastiest places and still had never had a bad tamale. I have had some tamales I couldn't finish because it was too hot but never because it was bad. This tamale had too much wrapping and barely any pork, what pork was there I couldn't taste because the whole thing was dry. Ugh I wasn't happy. Rice was okay, but I'm pretty sure most rice is all the same, most people don't eat all the rice anyway. The taco was hard and it lacked flavor as well. I was really bummed out now. I ate them both though because I was hungry. I moved to cheese enchilada. It was loaded with onions. I thought back in my head and remember it was a cheese and onion enchilada. That was my fault I should have asked no onions. Shelly had gotten chicken enchilada's with cream sauce (her favorite) and it had onions in it and on it.

I ate one of them but it still wasn't that great, I moved to the beans, which my dad liked. They tasted like they were fresh from a can of Ranch Style Beans you get at the store. Bummer. We just kinda sat there ready for our check, and then it hit us. We didn't get any of those yummy tortillas. I'm sure we could have asked for them, but they were supposed to come with our meal. We were ready to leave anyway. Whoever built the place thought it would be a good idea to make all the walls flat and concrete. It was so loud in there. We all had to yell to converse. Overall this place wasn't good. I thought about the sign and decided they were trying to convince because word of mouth isn't too good for them. I noticed all the people sitting around they were really enjoying themselves. Which was weird cause they were eating all the same things we were. Then I saw it. Margaritas! When ever I ask people at work about a new Mexican food place, they always say food is good but the margaritas are even better. I don't judge a Mexican food place by their margaritas. My wife and I do not drink so it's kind of lost on us. We are there for the food. So I'm thinking that ol' Uncle Julio makes some good drinks, which people were enjoying. I came up with this solution in my head for why so many people were there.

They got Mexican food and margaritas. The margaritas came before their food and it impaired their judgement on the food. When they leave they remember how good the margaritas were but can't remember the food. SO they give it an A+ and bring their friends. Hence the full parking lot. It's not a fool proof solution, but it made me feel better until I got home.

I had never gone to a Mexican place and left still hungry. I stopped at sonic and we got some ice cream to enjoy because we didn't want our night to be ruined.

So My review is Skip Uncle Julio's, unless you like Margaritas, and then I'm assuming you won't remember the food anyway.

How many hungry Rancors do I give it?

1/5

Wait... How come this place was recommended to me by a church member?????

An update!!!

2008-07-09T08:48:00.000-07:00

Good to see you how have you been?

Here's to catch you up in my absence.

I got word back from Dallas Baptist University on the credits I petitioned. I got 9 credits, 6 lower level credit and 3 upper level credits. The problem is I only needed the upper. So i will have to take 3 classes in the fall and then I can graduate in December. I was disappointed but in my writing I don't think I did as well as I could have.

Our new Dog Keira is house broken and is extremely hyper. She is a very sweet dog, she loves hugs.

MOVIES!!! I have see quite a few movies in past few months. Here's a Quite Jedi Movie review (may contain spoilers but by now you should know this stuff)

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull-

Hey Indiana, X-files called they want their plot line back. I mean come on aliens... ( oh excuse me interdimesional beings) Could we expect anything less from Spielberg, he has a thing for aliens. Oh and George Lucas please stop revamping your icons. we didn't like the new Star Wars movies and we don't like the new/ geriatric Indiana. This just made me want to watch all the old Jones movies. The CG was horrible. It made it look like a cartoon. The stunts were just outrageous and beyond belief and not in a good way. Shia was okay in the movie but swinging with the monkeys ugh I wanted to throw popcorn at the screen. okay I'm done on this one. If you want to see it great enjoy, but be prepared to be disappointed. I give it a 2/5 ( 1 is the lowest)

The Happening
Well I like M. Night's movies so this review will be a little biased. If you didn't like Lady in the Water you probably won't like this. For some people I have talked to they feel like it's a tree hugger movie (there's a pun if you have seen it.) Yeah it did have a "if we don't stop polluting we are going to kill ourselves" to it but I enjoyed it. The characters were weird and unconnected, the couple didn't even seem like a couple. I think this is one of Night's worst in the area of character development. But over all it's a little violent. But the violent seems to be in the right place. I bet with a few cuts he could have gotten a PG-13 I give it a 4/5.

Okay last one but this is a good one.

Iron Man

AWESOME!!!!

that's pretty much my review. I'm not a Iron Man fan, I have read the comic and wasn't interested in his character all that much. I like X-men and Batman more than anything. Robert Downey Jr. was the perfect cast for him and CG blended very well the everything. I only wish they would have done such a good job with my X-men as they did with Iron man. It reminded me of Spider-man on how well they tried to stay true to the comic. So I won't say too much other than you need to see this movie. 5/5

I'll try to do more detailed movie reviews from now on. I'll try to be a little better at it, Hope you enjoyed the Jedi Movie review. stay tuned.

oh and of course here's a few pics for the day...

I think this happens all over the country..

Yeah you are awesome!!!!

Who knew alligators were so agile?

If you haven't been rick rolled and you have never played an old dungeon crawler game then you probably won't get this...

I've been this depressed, he needs lobster!!!

An interesting conundrum....

If there is anything I can do for you just let me know

2008-05-29T08:58:00.000-07:00

This statement is something that my wife and I have heard a lot of. I know I myself have said it to other people with honorable intentions. But do we really mean it?

I had a conversation with a teacher of mine who we had a great time of fellowship. I was still grieving over our miscarriage and his wife had a very sudden accident, she had slipped and hit her head, She was pretty banged up and many times he thought he could loose her. Head injuries are very serious. Thankfully, last I have heard she is doing well and recovering, her vision came back and she is more concerned about her hair for a Wedding that is coming up.

Anyway, we were talking about how we had both heard this statement about people saying "hey, if there's anything I can do for you just let me know". His thoughts on this idea was how empty it was. It reminded me of how people say "hey I'm praying for you" Do you actually pray for them? or do you just say that cause it's what you say in situations. I am guilty of this at times, and I now I am very cautious with it when I say it now. It's something we as Christians shouldn't take lightly. okay back on topic,

*Let me point out that I am not talking about anyone in particular and in my situation. This has been brought to my attention and I am guilty of it. So I'm kinda talking to myself. *

okay, So my teacher isn't the kind of guy who is just going to start ordering people around; do this for me and do that. He did have a girl, who was a friend of his daughter do something. One morning he had to take his wife in for another surgery which started at the crack of dawn. Well this girl decided that if their family is going to be up early, I need to do something for them. She went out and bought all sorts of pastries, donuts and big urn/type thing full of freshly made coffee, with an assortments of creams and sugar and brought it to their house before they would leave. My teacher was touched. It turned out he didn't need all of that and the girl said take it to the hospital I'm sure there are others there who could use a snack or the coffee. My teacher did end up needing the coffee though.

As my teacher and I shared our stories we found that when people have troubles and situations we need to act. I don't doubt that the people who said this to me weren't sincere, I'm sure if i had asked anyone in my church to do anything for me they probably would. I think though it would be easier on the person for us to go to them and find something they need and do it, or give examples of what we can do for them so they don't have to feel like they are taking advantage of you.

I think we also should let people be a blessing to us. We should never hinder some one who feels led by the Lord to provide something for us. Maybe you don't mind mowing your lawn and it helps you to get your mind off of things, but if some one asks I think we should be willing to let them help us.

Anyway I felt like blogging on this topic because it has taught me to look at things differently now. Maybe it has opened up some minds of others, or maybe I have offended everyone who reads my blog??? Guess we will see what is said in the comments, let me know what you think!

The Loss of our Third Child

2008-04-15T15:40:00.000-07:00

Some of you may already know that we have lost our third child in a miscarriage. I want to share something with you that helped me deal with our second. I blogged about it before in an old post, if you want to read it. I'm going to paste it below because it says everything already of how I feel. Below is the video that I saw that help me understand what our reaction as Christians should be. The music isn't what I like nor the pictures but I was unable to just get the sermon. John Piper does a small piece on the "health and wealth gospel". He shows us in his sermon how we should react as Christians. When you heard about our news, what was your reaction? Was it, "Oh God NO!! not again!!" or was it "God is Glorious"?

My reaction was in tears and I reminded myself that God is Good.

During this time I am praying for anyone who has no hope or doesn't understand why. God is sovereign in all things. Nothing happens by chance. There are no random encounters in this life everything has a purpose.

"God is enough"

If you haven't read my wife's blog I would suggest reading it here first. If you didn't read then I'll sum it up. I'll do the very short version because it's long and I'm not that great of a writer. We lost our second child. We were pregnant for a very short time and then it was gone. I wish I could say that it was easier this time but it wasn't. It grieves my heart. I have been upset on and off all week. I still get emotional. I'm sure by the time I finish this my eyes will be tearful. I know that there's not much I can do about a miscarriage. There are some medical things that can be done to help hold a pregnancy but the decision is still in God's hands.

Who am I to question the creator in his sovereignty?

"Woe to him who strives with him who formed him,
a pot among earthen pots!
Does the clay say to him who forms it,
What are you making?'
or Your work has no handles?" Isaiah 45:9

I have no place to question an Almighty God. I can only examine my life, rid it of sin and continue worshiping a Gracious and Loving God. The one thing I do have control of is my reaction. Do I glorify Him, or curse Him for the sorrow and pain? My only example is Job and this was his reaction when he lost his business and his children.

"And he said, "Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return.
The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD."
In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong. " Job 1:21-22

God is good. He has given me so much. He has given me a home, a job, and Godly wife. He has chosen at this time to not bless me with children. I accept that. I can say God is enough, the following is from a sermon from John Piper. I want this to be my prayer and the desire of my heart regardless of what happens in the future.

God is enough.
He is good;
He will take care of us;
He will satisfy us;
He will get us through this.
He is our Treasure;
Whom have I in heaven but you?
And on Earth there is nothing that I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail
but you are the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

God is most glorified in you when you are most satisfied in him in the midst of loss,
not prosperity."

So I say to anyone who feels sorry for us, God is enough and we are satisfied in Him.

Fun Star Wars Pictures

2008-04-03T06:36:00.001-07:00

Here is a few to keep you laughing. I'm working on another post so this will have hold you for a bit.

It's dangerous to pick up hamsters...

Love this one, evidently this little girl is tattle telling on her parents to the authorities.

I think there is some sort of struggle in the squirrel world we are not aware of. Too bad they didn't get video of this exciting battle. The two on the right are engaging on another while the third on the left is using his force power to push the "evil" squirrel back. Pretty intense.

what comes to your mind when you see this?

2008-03-20T10:52:00.000-07:00

I found this comic a few days ago and it has stuck in my mind. If people (meaning evolutionist/atheist) feel this way, why do they care so much that us "weirdos" want to believe in God. Look to them the end result is the same. To the Christian this picture doesn't even come close to representing what we believe.

I went to a Answers in Genesis Conference a few weeks back, and I am glad I did. At first I didn't really care about going, because hey I know God created the world. I don't need them to tell me that. What they showed me is how much science actually reflects that there is a Creator. It was a blessing to me. The biggest impact on me was that these evolutionist aren't being guided to evolution based on facts. They hated/avoided/denied God before they even had "facts". It's a heart problem. They follow evolution to give them an excuse or reason to not follow God and unfortunately they are convincing a ton of people in our country with bad science.

I would encourage anyone to get some more information and talk with their children about this issue. Here are a few websites that might be handy. Answersingenesis.com, answers101.com , str.org, and creationontheweb.com

But really what did you think when you read this comic? does this reflect how you feel?

Marathon (this is a little over due sorry)

2008-02-25T13:40:00.000-08:00

Yay!! I did it I ran the (okay so there was a lot walking toward the end) Marathon.

Here's me before the race with Shelly eating my last minute banana for the race.

Here is all the guys who ran. Keith and his brother ran the Half-Marathon(13.1 miles) Mr. Baker and I ran the Marathon (26.2 miles)

Here's us waiting and still trying to figure out if we are in the right spot.

Shelly hollered at me to turn for a picture right about when the guy said GO!!! this is the result.

So we were off, I felt pretty good. We made a mistake and ran a little too fast early on, but we held out for about six miles. Here Shelly can see me coming.

At the first stop Shelly had some sport jelly beans and Gatorade. It was good. This is right about when we got to her.

From here I didn't see Shelly for another 10 miles, which was a little too long for me to go with out food. I could have easily made it to 16 miles and stopped and been fine but at 16 miles I was out of food and energy, I did get a few bites of a snickers bar along the way. I only grabbed a few pieces because i didn't want to seem like a greedy pig. Mr. Baker was not with me at the time he had to stop for the bathroom and was going to catch up. Once he caught up he told me he grabbed handfuls and had been eating them catching up to me. Guess I should have played the pig...

During this time we were coming up to the course where it would double back and all the really good runners were heading back to the finish line. What I thought was awesome was they all cheered for me as went back. They were heading back in on about mile 20 or so and I was heading in after about 12 miles or so. Running is such a cool sport because everyone cheers for everyone. I was so encouraged by them to keep on because now I felt that if I didn't finish I'd let them all down as well.

Here is us at about mile 16, I was beat very tired and had no energy.

Once I saw Shelly I was much more energized (mostly cause I didn't want her to catch me walking cause I was dying), but more than that because I love seeing her and she was really worried about me. She had my banana and a full throttle ready for me. I slowed a little and kept on going, Mr. Baker on the other hand stopped, gave the report on how we were doing and I think got a peanut butter sandwich??? He caught up with me later. I wasn't going to have a full throttle, I was going to save it for like mile 20 or so, just in case. Boy was I wrong I needed it right then and it hit the spot I was able to keep going another 2 miles or so and then the worse part happened to me.

I pulled a muscle in my calf. We are not real sure what caused it. It could have been not enough stretching at the beginning, lack of water and salt for 6 miles on a day that was warming up, could have been too many hills (I didn't train real hard on hills). It hit me hard, it knotted and wouldn't go away. I was really thankful for Mr. Baker being there. He helped me stretch it out and showed me the proper ways of doing it. I later found out from him that he thought I wouldn't have made it after that. It was my first marathon and training hadn't gone the way I'd have liked it to. And now a leg cramp, I still had about 8 miles or so to go. I was determined to finish and kept going.

I ran into a couple who were trudging along and he gave me some salt pills and a Gatorade, it did help but it was already too late the damage was done. So for the next 8 miles or so I had to stop and stretch it out and knead the muscles loose to continue. It ruined my time, although I was already slipping behind before that happened but now it was really dragging.

Here we see two men running,(mile 22) one who feels great and is jumping around the other looks like they are about to collapse. I had 4.6 miles to go after this. I was also in the need of a bathroom (clean bathroom) Thankfully around the bend the Lord provided. More stretching and I was off.

Here we are at about mile 24. We had a little walking but the past mile and a half I ran without having to stop and stretch, things were looking up, but after about mile 20 you are pretty much running on mind alone. Your body will spend all of it's energy after this point, it becomes a mental battle. You eat and drink not because it does anything for you but because you think it does something for you. I got to see my biggest cheering section at this point. My dad was able to locate me along with the Pallers from our church with everyone else who had already ran. The kids had made signs and I was touched.

Due to some traffic problems Shelly didn't get to get the picture of me running across the finish line. But I did it. I got my medal and a congrats for finishing from some lady who worked there, then it hit me horrible pain was shooting up through my now worn out and severely cramping calf and my legs as well. I tried stretching but it wasn't doing much good. If I hadn't have been so happy finishing I probably would have fallen down crying in pain. Everyone was there at the end. It was a great time.

This is the shirt I got for finishing, it is a really nice running shirt I was surprised at the quality of the material.

After the race I truly learned why Friends Don't Let Friends Run Marathons. Although Keith wants to run one with me now... So I guess we aren't friends?

oh well, I look forward to exercising and burning off more fat in the future. Training and running this marathon has taught me a lot about what the human body can do and endure.

Again let me apologize for not posting sooner.

And thanks to all of those who supported me!!!

The History behind Valentines Day

2008-02-14T08:05:00.001-08:00

I found a historically accurate origins of Valentines Day, I must say I was shocked...

"For generations, Valentine's Day has ignited passion, caused fistfights, broken up marriages and led single people to ingest more tequila than Amy Winehouse and Ted Kennedy can handle.
What most people don't realize, though, is that Feb. 14 is about more than testing the memories of middle-aged married men or undermining the self-esteem of the unattached.
According to unsubstantiated gossip, a room full of middle managers, a Google search and that owl from the Tootsie Pop commercials, the true history of Valentine's Day is quite rife with romance.
You see, back in the third century, Roman Emperor Claudius II made it illegal for young men to marry because he felt they would make for better soldiers if they were single. Well, a priest by the name of Valentine thought that practice was way harsh. So he began conducting marriage ceremonies in secret – including one for Elizabeth Taylor and her second husband.
Anyway, when the emperor found out about these marriages, he jailed Valentine and issued an execution order set for Feb. 15. However, the day before the scheduled hanging – Feb. 14 – a cow in a barn next door to the jail kicked over a lamp and caught the whole city on fire. Valentine escaped and hopped around the world under assumed names for centuries before settling in Pennsylvania.
It was there that under the fictional moniker Milton Hershey he started a chocolate factory. And every year on the anniversary of his fateful escape he held a massive sale on heart-shaped boxes of candy.
But his chocolate fortune soon led to excess, and he took to drinking, often dressing in nothing more than a diaper and angel wings during parties at Jay Gatsby's house. It was at one such party that he fell in love with first lady Eleanor Roosevelt, the Paris Hilton of her time.
The two carried on a torrid love affair with the help of their friends, the Hall brothers, who had invented greeting cards that could be sent in envelopes so people sorting mail – like White House interns – would not read the contents.
The relationship ended with Roosevelt's death in 1962. But touched by the epic love story, Richard Nixon made Valentine – by now the host of The Price is Right – a saint on Aug. 8, 1974.
How the folks at 1-800-Flowers got involved is still unclear..."

written by Brandon Formby

Leonard Nimoy Sings about Bilbo Baggins

2008-02-13T09:22:00.000-08:00

I don't really understand this, if any one has a clue or a comment please fill me in...

And what is with the weird girls running around with Spock ears?

Fun pics

2008-02-07T12:27:00.000-08:00

Today is an easy day just sit back and enjoy the fun pics.

Some of these are random the rest are what are called demotivational posters. Let me know in the comments which are your favorites...

This is why America wins wars!!!

I laughed really hard at this one

hmmm I can see the Princess in this oufit.

Awesome I see 3 how many can you see?

I'm not hating i just thought this was funny!

Good things still happen on TV.

2008-02-05T11:30:00.000-08:00

hmm wonder why this is a topic...

Here's some proof that TV can do some good. I'll post the link so you can see where i got it.

http://www.nbc.com/The_Biggest_Loser_5/community/weight_loss_gallery/gallery_0093.shtml#main

The Biggest loser TV show has inspired hundreds of people in the US and even other countries to start losing weight, to start evaluating their lives and start counting calories and get healthy. Here is a 6 year old boy who watches the show and learned that exact same lesson. He dropped 30 pounds through diet and exercise (like it should be done) here are his pics. On the website there is a place to leave comments should you feel like congratulating him.

Before

After

I've tasted something grand

2008-01-31T12:51:00.000-08:00

Okay forget about cinnamon rolls, I have found the perfect food. The mango:

My trainer told me to eat a mango for my fruit because it has such a high source for vitamins and such. What i didn't know was how good they were. I cut into a mango last night after running and got juice all over. I was little bothered cause i didn't want to be sticky. Once i took my first bite, I didn't care about anything in the world. It was awesome. When i cut into it the mango looked kind of like a cantaloupe on the inside but when eaten reminded me of a peach. I ate that thing fast was had a hard time not eating the other one. If you have never had a mango, you should try it. If you have and you don't like it I suggest cinnamon rolls.

The DIE.........T

2008-01-28T08:24:00.000-08:00

because it's going to kill me.

I shared my concern of my lack of weight loss to my trainer/elder/friend/choir director (or to those of our congregation Mike Baker) and he said you need to go on a diet.

I don't have to stay on it, but the goal is to drop as much weight as i can before the Marathon. Which, by the way, is about 4 weeks away. My time hasn't improved too much on my runs but the fact that i can even run 18 miles is great. I have been losing weight but it has been over a long period of time, and i wasted to much of that time instead of preparing. So now i get to be punished. yay...

So here's the deal below I'm going to list all the stuff i can eat from now till then and then I'll list a few things I can not eat.

Things i can eat as much of as i want:
lean steak
lean hamburger (just meat)
chicken
tuna
fish (baked or broiled not butter, sorry Paula Dean)
fresh or steamed veggies: beets, Green beans, peppers, mushrooms, lettuce, celery, tomatoes, carrots.
2 egg white per whole egg ( I make scrambled eggs or poach them, again no butter)
beans, and more beans (these are my favorite)
various walnuts and almonds in smaller amounts.
protein shake
brown rice
sweet potato

Things I can eat before or after a run or during (these are supposed to be the treats)
toast(whole grain) with jelly (still no butter)
fruits-banana, mango, apple, orange
milk skim, even chocolate milk :)
small slice of Amish bread
goo pack
Gatorade

things that are forbidden:
BUTTER
bread
cookies
candy
cheese
pretty much anything the Monk's Wife makes
potatoes
pies
anything else that tastes good :( basically if it has been processed or has a long shelf life, then I can't eat it.

I am going to miss my food, I was regulating what I was taking before on Fitday, and with the link to the right you can see what I eating.

The good news is right after the marathon I can eat whatever I want that day. so look out Cold Stone Creamery, and Red Lobster we have a date!!!

Bummed out

2008-01-23T08:37:00.000-08:00

I'm a little sad today. I am no means depressed, just not happy and cheery today. here is why:

Heath ledger died: I'm not a huge Heath fan. I like the Patriot, and A Knights Tale, and am looking forward to the new Batman movie where he plays the joker (I'm a huge Batman fan). But it's just sad to see some one die. I'm kinda glad that my response is a sadness rather than some sort of joy in his death. I seriously doubt Heath had any love for God or even knew who he was based on some of the other roles he has played. I know some "christians" will celebrate his death, But he was still some one's son, he's a father, and he had many fans who looked up to him. Now he's gone, it's still inconclusive as to weather he "killed himself" but with most of these young stars they started killing themselves long ago, by messing with drugs and alcohol and that kind of lifestyle. Other than that, the realization that he was about the same age as me is kind bothering me too. People aren't suppose to die at this age we are supposed to live to at least 70 right? isn't that what man has promised, we have a life span of seventy years. Ha yeah right. I wonder how many other people my age think that way. I guess I just got a dose of mortality and it didn't taste good. I guess I'm starting to drop off of the ideas that I'm 10 feet tall and bullet proof and I'll live til the Lord's return.

Running: I did run 18 miles last Saturday. Yay for me. Although it revealed something to me. The pace that I am at will not beat Katie Holmes. I'm not very happy about that. I really should not focus on that but it's beating me down. I'm not where near where I need to be for the marathon. I have no doubts that I will complete it but it's not going to be the time I was hoping for. I know I'm a whiny teenager with problems right?

Weight: OKay, I have cheated some times here and there. I'm back down to my weight I was before I put some it back on, but I'm still heavy. too heavy for running. If i keep this up I'm going to have hip and knee problems because of the amount of weigh pounding mile after mile. Kind of weird that I can run more 20 miles a week and not be dropping some major weight. I know Christmas killed cause there were many places to go and peoples food to eat. I'd just tell myself hey I run I can eat whatever. That's not true, for every mile I should be taking in about 100 calories. that's not that much. I should only be eating 2000 a day anyway. So on my long runs (like the 18 miler) I should have gotten a total of 3800 calories. I may have gone over that, which counters the whole reason for running. Losing weight is harder that you think. It's not impossible and I am public shaming those who gave up and say I just can't lose weight (oh yeah i see you look and my bug ole Fat finger pointing right at your, you know who you are), you can you just don't have enough discipline, like me. I am at least being reminded about that every time I look in the mirror. So I'll have to get on top of my diet more and get some more weight training in.

Work: my current job isn't really that exciting, I click buttons all day when there is work. I work 9 hour days so I get every other Friday off(very cool) but lately there has been a surge of NO WORK TO DO. It makes for a really long day and that can really bum you out, I think of all the things I could be doing and getting done.

The big one
School starts tomorrow for me:This is going to be one of my hardest classes. It's a portfolio class. I do a whole bunch of writing about my job and work experience then I turn in my portfolio and it gets sent off to some important scholarly people and they will award college credit for stuff I have done. Just taking the course gives me 3 credits, but I am going to be writing for a total of 15 hours. If I can do this that would leave me with about 6 credit or so to graduate. (awesome) if not I'll have to take a few more classes. If all goes according to plan I can graduate in August, if not it will have to be December or so. SO the pressure's on. The bad part is... I HATE TO WRITE. I'm bad at it, I can't cite sources, ugh it's just awful. SO yeah that has me down.

Long posted today and woe is me, I know there are people out there with real problems, but this is my blog and you are in my world now :)

I'll be okay once I get to go home and then to church. These things always perk me up.
Home=Shelly
Church=Godly friends

Boomshine

2008-01-17T06:30:00.000-08:00

Okay I know this isn't a regular post but this has been taking up a little of my time and I'd thought I'd share it with you.

This game is fun and as far as I can tell there is no real strategy. Try it out. There are 12 levels. My high score was 253. Let me know how you do. BTW isn't the music nice and relaxing mixed with all the pretty colors. It's mesmerizing.

click here for the game!
http://www.k2xl.com/games/boomshine/

Update: my new High score w/proof!!!

Fun

2008-01-15T11:29:00.000-08:00

I thought this little drawing was funny. For some reason it reminds me of The Mad Monk... anyone else?

New job prospects

2008-01-14T12:23:00.000-08:00

So today I finished working on my resume and have turned in my application for a job that could potentially double my income. Which would be totally awesome. I mean come on I already make like a million dollars a month(smell that sarcasm). This could do some great things for us in the future. It can provide us with the lifestyle we would like, where Shelly doesn't have to go to work and would be able to stay home with (future) children and be the awesome Mommy I know she will be. I often wonder though, am I worthy of such blessings from God. When you start to analyze yourself you begin to think. Why would God want to bless me? Of course why would God want to save me for that matter? This just humbles me, then I start to think how dare I ask for more when God has given me and my wife so much already. Am I crazy do other people feel like this sometimes? I feel like bratty child in the grocery store who wants this and that. Once sitting and thinking about it, I don't think wanting this job is a bad request and if he gives it to me. It's not like I want more money so we can vacation in the Bahama's or buy all new cars and junk we don't need. But it would be nice to not have to budget ourselves into a corner where we can't be a blessing to anyone.

okay that's enough of that, anywho, to my prayer warriors out there please pray that if it be God's will that I can get this job.

oh right, the job, I guess some of you don't even know what i do, let alone what I am wanting to do.
Current Position- Records Specialist
I maintain the computer graphics of the Electric Grid after the various electrical constructions jobs have been completed. I also balance everything so that all the material and labor are recorded accurately so Oncor can get paid either from the Electric providers, homeowners or the State.

Position applied for- Distribution Service Advisor (DSA)
This person handles direct customer issues, like crossed or missing meters, scheduling outages for construction projects and notifying business and homeowners, dealing with upset customers about storm work done on their lines and tree trimming issues (yeah I might even be on the news) I would also have close relationships with schools and government officials for storm situations and for safety seminars. It's a pretty neat job.

So if you wouldn't mind add me to your prayer lists, and I'll keep everyone updated as this long process go on in the background.

Star Wars to the Max!!!

2008-01-03T13:06:00.000-08:00

Okay I know I haven't posted in a long time, but I have had lots on my mind and just couldn't blog. It's complicated trust me. If you could see the inside of my head, it would terrify you. Just cause I have a hugely (yeah it's a word) wide, weird imagination. Shelly loves it. It's kinda sad though, I may be certifiably crazy and she thinks it's neat. Oh well. So anyway I have tons of bloggy type ideas and I'll do better at posting. I guess I just needed a vacation.

Alright already get to the Star Wars stuff. Check this link out

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,320005,00.html

Love this story. They aren't real clear if the kid actually fended off the attack, or drew more attention to what was happening. Kudos to the kid defending his mother. I'd love to see the video though that would have been better. So, Moms, the next time little Johnny wants to take his lightsaber with him on your trip to the grocery store, you should let him. What else can he use to fight off evil people in this world. Just think if it were a real lightsaber, (drools a little). Ha that guy wouldn't be hurting anyone else after that.

Makes me wonder though, this kid was obviously a huge star wars fan (can't blame him), I wonder how this situation would have gone if the kid was a different kind of fan.

Spiderman- Kid could have used the spray can of silly string web stuff.

Superman- the Kid would have ran as fast as he could have hitting the guy in the stomach. I think just the kid being in the costume would provide him with an adrenaline rush to protect his mother. (cool)

Batman- throw the grappling hook and pull the guy down. (he so wouldn't expect this)

Transformers- All I can say is if something that looked like this ran at me and started hitting me, I'd run. Plus check out the gun. He can shoot or just hit him with it.

Okay so now that I have terrified all parents from buying their kids toys they would really enjoy, I'll move on to another cool thing I found, also Star Wars related.

This will let you watch a text-animated version of Star Wars Episode IV.

1. Open Windows XP and go to Start, then run.

2. Type in or copy "telnet towel.blinkenlights.nl" without the commas or quotation marks.

3. Sit back and watch the ASCII movie :)

This is totally awesome. I wonder how long it took them to do it.

BTW Happy New Year, stay tuned for more blogging adventures!

Beware of Little Girls

2007-12-06T09:53:00.000-08:00

So last night in A.W.A.N.A most of the time was taken up by rehearsal for the Christmas music. Game time was going to be combined and I needed an idea so everyone could play together and have a good time. Well my teens love to play dodge ball, and my little ones always want to play dodge ball. But the idea of a 15 year old hurling a ball at ridiculous speeds toward a 4 year is probably not the 4 year olds idea of fun. So I changed the rules a little. Everyone who was older/taller had to throw left handed (Or for the southpaws, the opposite hand) I wasn't completely sure how well it would work, but I thought hey these aren't my children... J/K. I talked with the teens said if I see you pelt one of my wee ones, they'd be in some serious trouble.

(oh look a rabbit trail) Speaking of my teens, we have the best kids at our church I have ever seen. Our older ones willingly play games and include the young kids all the time. It's quite interesting to see the Warrior run full speed at the 15 year olds and tackle them quite effectively.

back on track here...

So here are the little girls I am referring to are Liver Pie, Sis and the Princess. (as pictured below)

Remember these faces should you ever come across them on the dodge ball field. They are extremely dangerous and should be considered lethal with a ball.

So here's how it went down. We all played as a group and had a blast. Sis was on my team (thankfully) and she was a fighter. She would run up to the line and nail anyone who dared get near her. And the way I remember it the Mad Monk had entered the game and was hitting people left and right, until his beloved daughter threw a ball when he wasn't ready. He did a really good three stooges impression trying to catch it but was unsuccessful. Sis Cheered! and grinned at me. I applauded from the sideline because her father got me out earlier, I was avenged!!! So in another game I had developed a nice side arm throw. It worked wonders on the teens. It would curve a little once thrown. Well the sneaky, Liver Pie had just thrown a ball that went randomly flying into the crowd (these were dangerous cause they came out of no where, no where meaning from about 2 feet off the ground from the cute giggling blondie) and I threw my ball trying to hit an older kid. I missed and it hit Liver Pie in the chest. She clapped her hands together catching the ball as if she meant to do it. I was in shock!!! Although at first she thought she was out but we had to explain to her that it was me that was out. She gloated the rest of the night, there wasn't a moment that went by when she didn't tell me that she caught my ball. Man, what do these parents teach their kids?

Stupid Dodge Ball!!!

Oh and the little princess who I am going to start a petition to get it changed to the little warrior princess. She wins MVP (Most Valuable Player).

This girl stayed in longer than anyone on both teams. I don't know if it was skill or size but she was good. see the pic below for a size comparison of the Little (Warrior) Princess.

I mean come on how do you hit her. She was bouncing and jumping. She even outlasted her brother in every game. I guess it could be her size. Although, if she ever figures out that she can't hit anyone from the back of the room, there will be no safe place on the court. The Princess even cried when we were done because she wasn't done playing and wanted to make sure their team won. Sounds like my wife when playing any game. Such determination.

But in closing I think these girls are very precious. Their parents ought to be proud of them. I know I am. I'm just more cautious now...

Angel Tree

2007-12-04T12:32:00.000-08:00

This year Our company took on the Salvation Army Angel Tree. In short they find children who are in need of gifts for Christmas. Some of the children are in orphanages or foster care, or maybe the parents are going through a hard time, or even a single parent. We don't really know the situation but we are assured from the Salvation army that they do a little research so that we are not being scammed. I'm not sure people would actually do that but people surprise me all the time. So as I went through the names trying to find a boy or a girl to get gifts for, I came across a girl named Kaylene. I liked the name. We even named our dog Kaylee. So the named jumped out to me cause I liked. She had a list of needs and wants on there and I considered them to be reasonable for a 12 year old girl.

I had many thoughts about who this little girl was. I wondered what was her situation, what does she really need, what does she really like. Shelly and I thought for a while trying to come up with things to get her. On her card she had listed:

Want: Video journal

Need: Jacket

then it listed her sizes so if we wanted we could buy clothes for her.

I thought that was neat, but a little more info about the girl would have been helpful. What does she like does she have a favorite color, does she like cartoon show or something? Here is an example if she like the Dallas Cowboys (okay not a great example) then I could get her a jacket with the Dallas Cowboys on it and she would just love it. Okay well anyway that's not the point of my post. I'm sure they do the best they can. So I tried to do the best I could. There was a 60-70 dollar range for the gifts you would buy. I though okay that sounds fair I guess. So we went shopping.

We ended up spending about $120 and were shocked that it added up so quickly. I guess your heart gets pretty big at Christmas time. As I thought about it more I realized what I had done. Since we have had 2 miscarriages this past year, I was substituting this girl as my own. My eyes were welling with tears as I talked to Shelly about. She then cried thinking about what we didn't have. We talked about it and decided to return some things. First of because we don't really have the money to be spending (we weren't spending that kind of money on our family's). Second because they had a limit in their original asking for someone to spend. We returned a few clothes and settled on about an $80 price range. Still over, but there were some things we felt we should get. So here's what we got her.

The video journal

new black fleece jacket w/ hoodie (girls love the hoodie)

Thumper pajamas

various candies in Christmas packaging ( Reese, Hershey, gummy life-savers)

Candy flavor lip gloss

A Bible (that's what it looked like)

Doesn't seem like much but the video journal was almost $30 and the bible was $25.

I wasn't sure about getting her a bible at first. I wondered if the Salvation army would approve, then I thought, I don't care. I felt that I should share the one gift that she needed. That is the gift that only God can give. I figured if the little girl was a Christian, how happy would she be when she got her own new bible that is leather and a pretty Burgundy. If she does not know Christ, then I must rely on God's Sovereignty to save her soul. We kept thinking, maybe we should write something in it or put some sort of list of verses for her to read. I did put her name in it and put the date and put that it was from the millers. After a while I wondered what should I have written that was not already written. How convincing can I be? Can I convince someone to choose Christ? Am I head of the Marketing department for Christ? Are we selling Jesus? (BTW this will another blog in the future)

I was reminded of this passage in Luke 16:29-30

But Abraham said, 'They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.' And he said, 'No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.' He said to him, 'If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.'

So what I was able to give her was Moses and the prophets. I just pray that the Lord would reveal himself to her and she would come to know him through His word. This is all I can really do for her. Until she knows Christ she will never know true peace and love.

Abusing drugs and feeling great

2007-11-17T07:03:00.000-08:00

So we are traveling down the freeway since about 6 last night. We stopped at about 11:30 and started back up this morning at about 8:30. Anyway back to the good stuff. I had full throttle last night to push me through the late part of the night. And in order to counter the high strung bouncing, I took a Zyrtec. Which always knocks me out. I sleep like a baby. So now I am so well rested i didn't need any caffeine this morning. Aren't drugs great?

anyway ladies, while your man is driving and he's getting groggy get him a full throttle! He'll be singing "Any Man of Mine" as loud as he can in no time.

Slighty annoyed

2007-11-12T11:10:00.000-08:00

So the NYC Marathon was on Nov 4. I don't much about that run other than it goes through all the different districts or boroughs (I think they are called). You know what I do know about it. That Katie Holmes ran it. It's all over the place. Any news article you read there she is. I'd be impressed if she was doing it for some cause and was rallying people to put the support behind______ (name charity). Or if she had some sort of traumatic event that she recovered from, or if she had new running record or was in the top 10. She was asked why she ran and she said "I wanted to lose all the baby fat."

Media people make me sick. Why is this girl so important. I didn't get much info on Lance Armstrong. I did scroll down and find out who did win. A lady from England who gave birth 9 months before ran and won with time of... get this 2 hours 23 min and 9 sec. that means she ran every mile at 5 min 28 secs. FOR 26.2 MILES!!!. And who gets their picture all over the place Katie Holmes. Lets look at her time 5 hours 29 min and 58 sec. I'm not hating on her time or work by any means she held a 12:35 min/mile pace. That's not bad. Shoot, finishing isn't that bad. But why are we talking about her. She placed 34165th (does this get a th or nd?)

The male who won did it in 2hours 9 mins 4 sec.

okay so I'm ranting but I know what it's like to work hard and run in some of these races. A Friend of mine told me that you don't get you name in the paper unless you are like top 10. Or you have an extreme home makeover story that will sell papers. I guess I'm just sick of the media.

But here's my new goal I'm going to beat Katie Holmes' time. That's my new new Marathon goal 5 hours 29 mins and 58 secs and I have my own tragic story. I'm fat and have asthma and I'm overcoming it. So there take that!

stupid media!

I am a Genius!

2007-11-07T07:29:00.000-08:00

So last night I was sitting on the couch watching Star Trek while Shelly was making dinner. We were having fish and she was going to broil it. The oven was set on broil and was heating up, Shelly was working on the other counter away from the oven. When suddenly we heard a loud squeak. I looked behind me then went promptly back to my show. It was a 2 part episode about Data and his brother Lore... I digress.

So Shelly says, "what was that?" I told her I thought it was her shoes on the kitchen floor. I looked and saw she was wearing no shoes. Then we heard it again. I jumped up from the couch and looked at the oven. It squeaked again.

I told Shelly, that there was probably a mouse behind the oven and he's stuck and he can't get out. The heating oven was burning him when he tried to escape. Shelly was really bothered by this, She said she doesn't want a mouse to cook in the oven. We had caught a mouse in the garage several weeks ago, and I figured that this poor mouse was his brother or something. I turned the oven off and sat and thought about how can I get this poor cooking creature out from where ever he was.

Then... I heard the squeak again. It was the teapot that was sitting on top of the oven. There was a little bit of water in it and it was squealing due to the steam. Shelly and I laughed and were relieved.

The moral of this story is just because you hear hooves doesn't mean it's a Zebra.

"God is enough"

2007-11-01T13:09:00.000-07:00

If you haven't read my wife's blog I would suggest reading it here first. If you didn't read then I'll sum it up. I'll do the very short version because it's long and I'm not that great of a writer. We lost our second child. We were pregnant for a very short time and then it was gone. I wish I could say that it was easier this time but it wasn't. It grieves my heart. I have been upset on and off all week. I still get emotional. I'm sure by the time I finish this my eyes will be tearful.

I know that there's not much I can do about a miscarriage. There are some medical things that can be done to help hold a pregnancy but the decision is still in God's hands. Who am I to question the creator in his sovereignty? "Woe to him who strives with him who formed him, a pot among earthen pots! Does the clay say to him who forms it, What are you making?' or Your work has no handles?" Isaiah 45:9 I have no place to question an Almighty God. I can only examine my life, rid it of sin and continue worshiping a Gracious and Loving God.

The one thing I do have control of is my reaction. Do I glorify Him, or curse Him for the sorrow and pain? My only example is Job and this was his reaction when he lost his business and his children. "And he said, "Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD." In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong. " Job 1:21-22

God is good. He has given me so much. He has given me a home, a job, and Godly wife. He has chosen at this time to not bless me with children. I accept that. I can say God is enough, the following is from a sermon from John Piper. I want this to be my prayer and the desire of my heart regardless of what happens in the future.

"God is enough.
He is good; He will take care of us;
He will satisfy us; He will get us through this.
He is our Treasure;
Whom have I in heaven but you?
And on Earth there is nothing that I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail
but you are the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

God is most glorified in you when you are most satisfied in him in the midst of loss, not prosperity."

So I say to anyone who feels sorry for us, God is enough and we are satisfied in Him.

Happy Reformation Day

2007-10-31T08:31:00.000-07:00

Below is Wikipedia's definition of Reformation day. I am wearing red today what color are you wearing????

Reformation Day is a religious holiday celebrated on October 31 in remembrance of the Reformation, particularly by Lutheran and some Reformed church communities. It is a civic holiday in Slovenia (since the Reformation contributed to its cultural development profoundly, although Slovenians are mainly Roman Catholics) and in the German states of Brandenburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia.
On this day in 1517, Martin Luther posted a proposal at the doors of a church in Wittenberg, Germany to debate the doctrine and practice of indulgences. This proposal is popularly known as the 95 Theses, which he nailed to the Castle Church doors. This was not an act of defiance or provocation as is sometimes thought. Since the Castle Church faced Wittenberg's main thoroughfare, the church door functioned as a public bulletin board and was therefore the logical place for posting important notices. Also, the theses were written in Latin, the language of the church, and not in the vernacular. Nonetheless, the event created a controversy between Luther and those allied with the Pope over a variety of doctrines and practices. When Luther and his supporters were excommunicated in 1520, the Lutheran tradition was born.
Within the Lutheran church, Reformation Day is considered a minor festival, and is officially referred to as The Festival of the Reformation. Until the 20th Century, most Lutheran churches celebrated Reformation Day on October 31st, regardless of which day of the week it occurred. Today, most Lutheran churches transfer the festival, so that it falls on the Sunday (called Reformation Sunday) on or before October 31st and transfer All Saints' Day to the Sunday on or after November 1st.
The liturgical color of the day is red, which represents the Holy Spirit and the Martyrs of the Christian Church. Luther's hymn, A Mighty Fortress is our God is traditionally sung on this day. Lutherans customarily stand during the hymn, in memory of its use in the religious wars of the Sixteenth Century.
It is also traditional in some Lutheran schools for schoolchildren to hold Reformation Day plays or pageants that re-enact scenes from the life of Martin Luther.

Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reformation_Day

Biblical or Extra-Biblical

2007-10-23T10:30:00.000-07:00

Recently I have been analyzing what I believe and why I believe it. For most new Christians they will rely on what their pastors or other Christians tell them. This is not necessarily a bad thing unless these people are sharing their own convictions. As we grow and study Scripture more we soon find out why people have told us these things. But sometimes you come across issues that aren't specifically spoken of in the Bible. I'll name some pretty hot topics that Christians now debate and some even will separate over: (no particular order)

1. Homeschooling
2. drinking alcohol
3. going to movies
4. natural childbirth
5. Bible translations
6. women wearing pants
7. anyone wearing shorts
8. color of the church carpet

This is just the list of ones I can think of off the top of my head. The question is, which rules on these issues are our personal convictions and which ones are revealed to us in Scripture.

I myself have found my own answers to all these. But I won't share them here. I'd rather not have a debate on my blog. But if you'd like to know more about how I feel, you can ask me anytime. I'd be happy to tell you how I feel. But here's something that I won't do. I won't attack you for not agreeing with me. I won't stop talking to you and I won't question your salvation because you feel a different way.

Here's what I will do: encourage you to study more, show you where and how I came to that belief, and if I feel so strongly about a certain issue and I feel that you are wrong... (did you hear the drum roll?) I'll put you on my prayer list and leave it up to God to work on in your own heart and continue showing you charity. I can not change a man's heart only God can do that.

I think we need to be cautious in our lawmaking. We do want to make rules to help protect us from our sin or temptations to sin, but we do not want to become legalistic or Pharisaical in our rules. I think that Satan is excited when we take such strong stands. He knows he can use our pride against us so that we will be busy attacking and sometimes hating our brethren that we lose focus on what is really important which is Glorify our most Holy God.

"Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth." 2 Tim 2:15

Return of the Star Wars

2007-10-17T13:49:00.000-07:00

SO as some of you may have read or been told there is a Star Wars TV showing coming soon. From what Lucas tells us, it's going to be about the droids. Translation: It won't be about anything people really care about. Don't get me wrong, I love Artoo (R2-D2) and Threepio (C3PO) I think they are great characters and they serve their purpose. Excluding the annoying parts that threepio was given in the newer episodes, they were okay. But a series set on just the droids, yeah I'm not excited about it. Why not make a show that based on the young Jedi and recast Luke Skywalker (if Mark Hamil won't do it) training them. Or better yet let's follow Boba Fett so Lucas can finally show us why he's supposed to be the greatest and most feared Bounty Hunter of all time. Or Young Obi-wan before episode 1. Or go way back in time when the Jedi fought against the Sith when Yoda was young. Wait isn't that what we enjoyed seeing was the Jedi battles or did everyone just say, "Wow, I love those droids they should make a show on just droids how fun would that be?"

Well I found this little comic in some forums it made me laugh, because this is what we would probably get if they did something other than Droids, Think of that show The O.C. or Summerland (insert cheesy teen TV show on the WB) and cross it with the Star Wars Universe.

Rain, Rain Go Away

2007-10-15T12:44:00.000-07:00

Well at least I'm having a better day than this person. Today we had a nice downfall of rain. Normally I love the rain, it's great sleeping weather and it cools everything down. But today was not good. First of all I was late to work cause I could barely get over 20 miles an hour down the road. On top of that it didn't stop until I got to the door of my building. I park about 5 blocks away from my building in the ghetto daily parking lot. hey it's 1.50 and I'm getting exercise. Well the river (streets) I had to cross were about 2 inches deep so I was soaked from the knee down, also the tiny umbrella I had didn't work for all the rain that came in sideways, so my waist was wet as well.

So with all my soaking I thought well I'll be okay I'll dry quickly. WRONG!! The people in the building keep it at a cool 65 degrees year round. So after freezing for about an hour or so I got permission to go home and change.

I can see why babies cry, cause it feels great to be dry again.

I feel it and see it...

2007-10-11T10:30:00.000-07:00

Today I feel great!!! of course, this week I have Friday off because I work a 9/80 schedule (I work four 9s and get every other Friday off). But I feel great today and I have plenty of energy. Last night I ran 3 miles in 28min and 33secs, a first for me to be sure.

But last night my running shorts felt a little more loose than normal, and today my pants that fit me well, not are getting droopy and saggy. That's a great sign, because I have been feeling very discouraged lately because my weight hadn't dropped yet. Hopefully the fat is being replaced with muscle. Also Jonathan said he could see a difference in my gut, he said he didn't recognize me from across the hall earlier at first. Now that I have looked in the mirror I do see a little bit of change, it kinda seems like I'm getting taller.

So I'm super excited, and ready for more changes.

oh and the guy who gave us so much trouble in my class, well he's still not high on my list favorite people in the world but we managed to do our project without his help. I just hope the teacher lets us grade each other, but if not I hope my grade isn't affected by his actions and choice not to work.

A Liar and a Thief?

2007-10-08T09:30:00.001-07:00

In my conquest of attaining my bachelors degree, there are certain courses that are required. Operation and Quality Management is one such class. In this class we review how "operations" work and how to ensure quality without losing quantity. Seems pretty self explanatory (which it is) Until you actually have a product to work on... Okay so I was assigned to a group with a guy and another girl in my class. For some reason DBU (Dallas Baptist University) loves to have you write papers and work in groups. Our project was to come up with a flowchart of a company of our choice, an overview of the company and make any changes we thought that would help improve the companies structure. The guy in our group suggested we work on Dell. I figured sure why not I don't know much about Dell, might be interesting. I did however suggest we do a more simple company, but I figured this guy may have some insight on it that I'm not aware of. The girl in our group wanted to work on Pianos, like Steinway. We decide to give in to him because he seemed earnest about Dell. So we go our separate ways to find info and research so we can put our info together later.

The guy in our group came back with a slide-show he told us he made based on the research he found. He said he has pretty much completed everything we needed and that the girl and I should change it around and we will be ready to present it. I showed them what I had found, about 8 websites and 3 PowerPoint's. The girl in our group was going through all of our info when she pointed out that one of the PowerPoint presentations that I found was an exact copy of what this guy said he worked on. (he had changed the names to his of course) I decided to confront him on it. I told him I have the same PowerPoint presentation that you said you made. He decided to correct me and say, "oh I didn't say I made it, I said I got it". The girl and I looked at each other both thinking the same thing. yeah that's not what he told us earlier. This is what you get in these so called groups which we are required to do in each class.

Here is the interesting part. The school is supposed to be a Christian university, I realize it's a Southern Baptist school but I expect that normal morals like the Ten Commandments are pretty clear to most Protestants. No stealing, no lying... Anyway this guy actually did profess in class to be a Christian during our "get to know you" part of the class and he's probably in his 40's or so. Not exactly the behavior I would expect from a grown man, who claims Christ...

So anyway the project is due tomorrow and he wants to meet tonight to finish it. I haven't decided on what to do. I am certainly not looking forward to this.

Why am I not tired?

2007-10-06T19:36:00.000-07:00

Okay so today I ran my own 10K (6.2 miles for you non-runners or people who don't have conversions chart readily available). I was able to do it in 1hr 25min. I rested for about an hour or so, and then headed to my second job. I work with Peter Franz in my spare time. My current project is doing some painting in some older store fronts. I've just spent the last 4 hours or so paining non-stop. For some reason I'm not tired. I've even taken in about 2000 calories and I need about 700 more to get my daily needs. I figured I'd be pretty much dead today after this. Hmm, better not jinx it. I'm sure going to have to focus on resting tomorrow. But that's what the day was made for: resting and worship. Let's hope I don't try both at the same time.

Marathon (It's a bit long i know, but so is 26.2 miles)

2007-10-05T11:24:00.000-07:00

Some of you may already know that I am training for the Cowtown Marathon, but I thought I would talk a little about for those who are interested (or just have nothing better to do). So far I'm doing good on my running schedule, Last night I started running outside. It felt like a much better workout than inside on the treadmill. Nice to get some fresh air and feel the wind blow, (and smoker's smoke and bugs buzzing me).

ASTHMA
Yes I'm a runner and I have asthma. Scary isn't it. This has been a struggle with me since I can remember. My parents had a horrible time with me when I was little cause I would wheeze and hack and cough, this was before all the advancements we have now. I remember my Dad holding me in the bathroom with the hot shower running to try to make the air more humid. It's a blurry memory but J remember wanting to just close my eyes and sleep. My mom even told me recently that I had a hood or bubble thing over my crib when I was little (This was news to me). I played soccer when i was older but the coaches always held me back, afraid "I'd die on them" as they put it. It happened even more in high school. So now I'm running I'm actually running. This is a huge accomplishment in my life and you know what. I'm doing great, no major problems so far and I feel good. I sometimes wonder if I could have played more sports or ran sooner. But now I'm tackling my Goliath. This is going to be a great milestone in my life I'm sure I'll be quite emotional when I cross that finish line. Because I will not only have just run a marathon, but I will have slain a giant that I have lived in fear of my entire life...

MARATHON

The Marathon is race that is 26.2 miles. I don't plan on finishing first. I'd have to run like a 6 min mile and that ain't happening. Currently my mile that I can hold is about 13:20 min mile. Not great but hey I could finish the Marathon (hopefully) in about 5 to 6 hours. My ultimate goal is to run without stopping (walking). Next will be just to finish before the 8 hour timer is up. I'd love to get to a 11 min mile. that would be awesome for me but I just don't have enough time to train that hard so soon. Normal people who are already are fit train for 13 weeks, I think I had 24. Okay enough about all the runner mumbo jumbo.

SPARTANS
I looked up where the Marathon actually came from and to save everyone the long story and accurate details; basically the Spartans were fighting the Persians (Battle of Marathon), and the Spartans won. They sent a runner to the near by city to tell them of the news. Now If you know any thing about Spartans, you know these guys are tough and rough. So this guy runs about 26 miles and gets to the village yells out "NIKE" which is Greek for victory. Now for the really encouraging part for me. He fell over dead right after he yelled. Great huh? SO now my goals have changed since learning this information.

1. don't die
2. keep and eye out for Persians (you never know)
3. don't stop running
4. finish before they close the race 8 hours.

I figure if I don't die I'll be doing better than the Spartan did...

My First Blog

2007-10-04T09:59:00.000-07:00

Can you just hear the Star Wars Fanfare playing in your head when you read this. Hmm maybe it's just me. Man I have so much to post about and I'll will definitely be on top of it on a daily basis. Please feel free to comment and answer the poll to your right, I really would like to know how well I am doing at this.

Lets see whats happening today.

I got a FLU shot and I am getting used to eating an apple with the skin. I get a lot of flack for peeling my apple from fellow co-workers. "The good part for you is the peel" they would say. I just look at them and say can I eat my fruit my way? At least I'm eating fruit what I wanted was a Snickers or Twix bar. I think I made the better choice with or with out the peel. Oh man speaking of things I want to eat... i should make another list.

Oh I'm going to put another feature on my blog it's my fit day. I use that website to help me factor calories. I need about 2700 a day for my training i.e. running, SO anyway for the fun of it you can see what I eat everyday, just click the link and then find what day it is and you can see what I ate. Oh and for a fun game if you see me eat something and i don't put it on my fitday feel free to harass me profusely. Speaking of which now I'm hungry. mmm chicken, asparagus, and beans with a nice banana. Weird eating all this healthy stuff and exercising you'd think I'd be thinner. hmmm guess we will just have to wait and see. Good Journey, be well, and may the Force be with you, always...