U.S. Secret Service 5K

I ran in the U.S. Secret Service 5K this weekend and it was the first race I had run in since the 2004 White Rock Marathon. I originally signed up because they were suppose to have a lot of neat things for kids and I thought it would be fun to take the boys to it. Well, as things turned out the boys didn't get to go but I went and had a decent run. I ran it in 24 minutes 14 seconds which is not great for me but I haven't run in a race in quite some time, I had already run 3 miles that morning and been to the gym for an hour, so all things considered I was pleased with the time.

After I signed up, I came to the decision that I might use this race as the beginning of my training. (This next sentence might send shock waves through my house) I think I am going to train and run in my 6th marathon this year. Shelley won't be please with this decision because she isn't a fan of my marathon running, even though she is the one who got me into it.

I am turning 40 this year (expect more post on this subject in the next few months) and this will be my best opportunity to try and qualify for The Boston Marathon which is my ultimate goal. Since I am turning 40, I get an extra 5 minutes added to my qualifying time which makes it 3 hours and 20 minutes. This is not an easy thing to do and I don't know if I am capable but I keep trying. My best time ever is 3 hours 37 minutes so I have to trim 17 minutes off of my best time in order to qualify. Another way to put it in perspective is in the 5k I ran this weekend, I averaged 7 minutes, 47 seconds for the 3.11 miles. In order to qualify for Boston, I have to run 26.2 miles at a pace of 7 minutes, 38 seconds. Wow, when I think of it that way, it sure seems like a daunting task.

$5 on Pump 1

I was at my favorite place today and a guy came in and paid the cashier and said "I want $5 on pump 1".

When I was in high school this is how I always put cash in my car, $5 at a time because that was the most money I usually ever had at one time. But, then gas was only $1.20 a gallon so I could get over 4 gallons which would take me over 70 miles and in a town of 1200 people and no stop lights, that would take me a long way.

But, today at $2.95 a gallon, that same $5 would only get 1.6 gallons and that will only get you about 30 miles. I don't think I could afford to be a teenager today.

T-Ball Practice

Tonight was our first t-ball practice and Seth did great. But, despite my repeated promise that I wasn't going to get involved, practice had barely started and I found myself out on the field helping out the little guys. I think I am going to volunteer to be an assisted coach against my better judgment but nobody else seems to be willing to help.

I'm looking forward to this and I hope Seth enjoys it. There were times when he wanted to go play in the park across from the field but he stuck it out. This is the first organized sporting event he has participated in so the structure is a little different for him. But, he is already learning and he loves to talk about being a "baseball player".

Just pray that I don't get to "enthusiastic" and ruin the experience for all of us.

Math Proves the Resurrection

I like to watch the show Numbers and they can solve almost any crime with math on this show. Now, an Oxford University professor has created a formula that shows a 97% certainty that Jesus was resurrected.

Read the article here.

Even Nana Has Poo Poo?

Here is a conversation Seth and I had as we walked to the park today.

Me - Seth, don't step in the poo poo.
Seth - poo poo?
Me - Yes, the doggie poo poo.
Seth - I have poo poo.
Me - Yes, everyone has poo poo.
Seth - Do you have poo poo?
Me - Yes, I have poo poo.
Seth - Does Chase have poo poo?
Me - Yes, Chase has a lot of poo poo.
Seth - Does Mommy have poo poo?
Me - Yes, Mommy has poo poo.
a pause has he lets this sink in and then he exclaims
Seth - Even Nana has Poo Poo?
Me - Yes, even Nana has Poo Poo.
He pauses again and then makes this statement.
Seth - Grandmama, Grandmother and Kathy have poo poo.

I'm a Baseball Player Now

We signed Seth up for 3 year old T-Ball and practice starts next week. So, today I bought him a baseball glove and the league required batting helmet. When he saw them he got very excited and quickly went about putting the helmet and glove on and then he declared

"I'm a baseball player now"

Food Craving

I don't crave food very often. In fact, food for me is just a necessity, a source of fuel, and I don't get a lot of enjoyment from eating. But, right now I am craving something and that is Cashew Chicken. Now, this is not the same Cashew Chicken that you can get at any corner chinese restaurant. No, this is a type of Cashew Chicken that few are familiar with, it is not readily available but if you have ever had it, you won't forget it. It is "Springfield" Cashew Chicken with "Springfield" referencing Springfield, Missouri where it was made famous.

In 1963, David Leong opened Leong's Tea House in Springfield, Missouri. He had moved to the United States from China in 1940 and had struggled to gain acceptance for the foods of his homeland so he began searching for a dish that would appease local residents' taste buds. Asian food, after all, wasn't common in the Ozarks in the 1960s and Leong needed a dish the fried chicken loving people of the region would appreciate. He eventually came up with a combination of fried chicken chunks covered with Chinese oyster sauce, a handful of cashews and chopped green onions.

We have found recipes on the internet that are suppose to be the Leong Secret family recipe but they just aren't the same. I mentioned to Shelley the other night we might have to plan a family trip to Branson but my ulterior motive is so we could make the additional 30 minute drive to Springfield so I could get some Cashew Chicken.

Joys of Fatherhood #24

Chase is in a stage where he really fights going to sleep. We went through this with Seth and the same solution we used then works for Chase and that is putting him in the car and driving around for a short time. The last few nights this has become my responsibility and I am really enjoying it. We usually don't even get out of our neighborhood before I hear Chase's breathing pattern change and I can tell he has gone to sleep. I will usually drive around for another five or ten minutes just to make sure he is fully asleep. When we get back to the house and I take him out of his car seat he is usually limp and he will bury his head into my chest as he tries to keep the light from his eyes. This is the only time I get to hold him and not have to worry about him try to wiggle out of my arms and it is a very special time for me.

Chase's First Haircut

This weekend Chase got his first haircut. He was a little trooper and wasn't bothered by the experience. He did get a little restless after about 10 minutes which led to a little unevenness in the back but overall he did great. It was interesting to watch because he was getting restless but then a little boy about a year old started getting his hair cut in the chair next to us and Chase calmed down. It was as if he saw "one of his kind" and decided that it must not be all that bad after all.

On another note, if you read this post by Shelley, then you know she isn't a fan of my barber shop but she was also a trooper as she manned the video camera catching this special moment for posterity.

Joys of Fatherhood #23

This really should be titled "Joys of Motherhood" but I got to participate ever so slightly so I am claiming it as well.

This morning when I returned from my run, Shelley was not in bed. This is generally not a good thing because her and 5 AM are not the best of friends. So, I went looking for her and found her in Chase's room.

She was gently rocking him and he was curled up in her lap. They both looked so peaceful and I stood for a few moments trying to burn the image into my memory because I don't know if that moment will be repeated again.

Also, Chase is 10 months old today. We love you Chase and are so blessed that we have you.

I/O Brush - This is cool!

This is really cool. Go here for the website.

Update - If you are viewing this in a reader like Bloglines then please go here to my blog to view the video.

Who Is Reading My Blog?

Who is reading my blog? Well, I can tell by looking at my statistics that in the last few days someone from Perth, Australia read my blog. Also, I had visitors from Reston, VA, Greenville, SC, Redondo Beach, CA, and Uruguay. But, I also know who isn't reading my blog and that is my wife, Shelley. Here are some excerpts from recent conversations.

S - What are you watching?
J - The Masters.
S - Oh, that is this weekend?

Obviously she had not read this post.
J - Yes, it is. (trying not to show annoyance because of the revelation that she isn't reading my blog)
S - Who is winning?
J - Phil Mickelson
S - Who do you want to win?

Again, she obviously had not read the previous mentioned post.

A few days later.

J - Did you see the video on my blog?
S - Yes
J - What did you think of it?
S - uhhhh, you had a video on your blog?
J - Yes, it was this post.

So, thank you to whoever is in Perth, Australia, Reston, VA, Greenville, SC, Redondo Beach, CA and Uruguay. It's nice to know someone is reading it.

My First and Second Real Jobs cont..

This is a continuation of this post.

After graduating in 1990 with an MBA, I took a job as an installment loan collector for a small bank. You are probably wondering if the MBA was worth it, and that is a post on another day. But, at the time, being a collector was not what I had dreamed about while sitting in my Econometrics class at UTA.

However, looking back on it some 15 years later, I can say it was one of the most enjoyable jobs I ever had and one where I may have learned the most. If you are asking yourself, "how can calling and asking people for money be enjoyable?", then you have never repossessed someone's car. If that sounds cruel to you, then loan someone $15,000 and then have them hang up on you, avoid your calls, lie to you and break promise after promise to pay, then you will understand the joy of repossessing a car. Also, I can say in most cases, when I had a car repossessed it was the best thing that could happen to those people because I was removing a burden from their lives that they no longer had to deal with.

I also learned a lot from being a collector. First, I learned some personal lessons like how important keeping good credit is and how you never want to be in debt or over extend yourself. These were lessons that were never taught to me directly as I grew up so I was fortunate to get to see the true value of them first hand before I messed up my own life. I also learned how to deal with people diplomatically. I have used the skills I learned as a collector everyday as I manage people and also work with other groups within our organization.

While I didn't know it at the time, God placed me in that position to teach me some lessons he knew I would need during the rest of my life.

Do it yourself Lasik?

It took me 5 years to decide to get Lasik done by a qualified surgeon, I don't think I could ever do it on my self. But, that is exactly what you can do with Lasik@Home. I assume this is for real but I don't know for sure.

Chase is a Mama's Boy

As Shelley wrote in this post, Chase is a Mama's Boy. Dictionary.com define's a Mama's Boy as

A sissy, especially a boy or man excessively attached to his mother

But, don't get me wrong, when I say he is a Mama's boy, I am not saying he is a "sissy". Chase is far from a "sissy" but right now the only thing he needs is his mother and the rest of us are just taking up space.

Chase and I are just not connecting and I'm trying to not let it bother me. I have been through this with Seth but it can be a challenge to my ego.

Yesterday, Shelley had to go to her office for a few hours and from the time the garage door went down for about 90 minutes, Chase cried out for his "Mama". It wasn't a straight 90 minutes, he did take a few breaks but that was just so he could either try and pull something down on himself or something else that might cause some bodily harm. He finally collapsed out of exhaustion. When Shelley finally got home, I don't know who was more exhausted, him or me. I think it was me because he only napped for a short time and was up and ready to go again. Thank goodness Shelley was home.

My Kind of Band

Check out the video

Here is their website.

The Masters

This is one of my favorite weeks in sports. I can't wait for it to get started and I will be pulling for Phil Mickelson again this year.


Update: Congratulations Phil on your 2nd Masters victory!

Boo Boo Bunny

When Chase was born it was obvious that he was different from Seth. For example, he only would sleep on his stomach and Seth was a back sleeper, Chase hated riding in a car and Seth loved it. One thing I noticed was that it seemed Chase might be a little more adventerous than Seth. If you have read post like this one or this one, then you know Seth can be a little cautious.

We are starting to see that Chase is more adventerous. If you read this post from Shelley or this one we have had to break out the "Boo Boo Bunny" twice in the last two days. Also, I forgot he pulled a flower pot down last week that barely missed landing on his head. I have a feeling we may need to buy more "Boo Boo Bunnies".

Joys of Fatherhood #22

Seth built a "Fort" in our entry way yesterday out of a folding table and a blanket draped over it. He invited Chase into the "Cave" and they began chasing each other in and out of the cave. Now while Chase is only crawling, it was a lively game of chase.

It was really fun to watch the two brothers playing together without any adults involved.

My First and Second Real Jobs

I graduated in 1988 from Texas Christian University with a BBA in Marketing. I had dreams of being a brand manager for some product and designing ad campaigns, creating promotions and trying to create brand loyalty. Well, I quickly discovered the sad reality that to get a job like that you need to have an MBA from some Eastern school and a lot of luck. So, I was destined to do what everyone else with a BBA in Marketing does and that is sales.

I got a job selling computers to auto parts stores and to say I didn't like it would be an understatement. Anyone that knows me probably wouldn't be surprised that I wouldn't be good at sales because I'm not the type that just walks in the room and starts talking to people. But, talking to people wasn't my problem with this job, I got quite good at that, I just couldn't get anyone to buy anything. Fortunately, my life style had not changed much since I was in college. I still shared a two bedroom apartment with 2 other guys and I had few expenses so the income I was making went a long way. So, I started a plan of saving as much as I could so I could go and get my MBA and hopefully have a career change.

And, I did just that. I quit my job after about 15 months and started back to graduate school full time. I decided to get my MBA with an emphasis in Finance because I really am more of a numbers guy. While I was in school it was the time when we were having all of the bank and savings and loan failures so we were studying that quite a bit and I got fascinated with banking. So, I decided that is what I wanted to do, go into banking. Now, remember I was still young and it never occurred to me that it probably wasn't a good idea to pursue a career in an industry that was failing.

I graduated about a month before we went to war in the first Gulf War and that combined with the fact that I was looking for a job in a struggling industry, resulted in six months of unemployment. But, I finally got my big break when I got a job as a collector for a bank that, yes you guessed it, had failed. But, the FDIC didn't shut down all of its branches so it was still operating but barely. And, yes, I was a collector. I collected mostly on automobile and boat loans and while I only took the job because I needed the job, it turned out to be one of the best experiences I have ever had.

to be continued...

For Arlan Part 2

Arlan asked me another question which is "How have I been able to stay a "Happily Married Man with Two Kids?"

I am going to try and keep this succinct and to the point.

I first give all the credit to God.
Secondly, I have to give credit to Fellowship. They helped bring God into my life and put me on a walk with Jesus that has changed my life.
Finally, I have to give credit to the Christian based counseling Shelley and I have been going to for over four years. We found a wonderful counselor that really changed our marriage.

I could go on and on about each of these reasons and I will do that in future posts possibly.

Also, Arlan, thanks for helping break my "Blogger Block". :-)