The DRIVE!

1533 miles....It took us 3 days....With stops in Tucson, Arizona & Fort Stockton, Texas.

Here's some of what we saw....

Really cool rock formations along the freeway.

Breakfast @ Denny's

Both of our cars were packed and then we were also towing this little spaceship!!

Here's the "House of Butter"....not really....I just call it that.

Sun Visor essentials....the badge is fake! (A gift from a friend)

FINALLY....we cross into Texas!!

Here's my beautiful bride enjoying some coffee in Fort Stockton.

Who knew that Lee Tevino had his own Drive? (Really....who knew??)

My racing partner....I couldn't have done it without you sweetie!!

Leaving Latham

My last day at work was a Friday and I was able to bring Loo to work with me....she brought her digital camera with her so we could document my last day!

Here's some of what we saw through her eyes!

OK....OK, I took some pictures with her camera too!

After lunch we went outside to shoot some bubbles with her new Bubble Gun!

I love the 70's film look that this camera produces with pictures taken outside!


Here's someone that I consider a good friend....Miss Wendy!


This is Pilar....she was my last student at Latham....sniff, sniff....I think I need a tissue.

Then there's Miss Yvonne....I worked with her before at a different law firm....
it was like having an instant friend at a new job! She's the best!

Finally here's me and the guys!

Loo stood on my desk to get this shot (....don't worry, MOM....she was safe!)

Department Goodbye Lunch

Before I left the OC, the guys in my department at work took me out to lunch.

Here's my boss, Rah....dare I say the Best Boss in the World?? (probably shouldn't....HAHA)

Then there's Kirk....TiP Stud!

Here's Andy....Network Admin Extraordinaire

Last but not least me and Kyle....the BEST Trainer I know!

Thanks for lunch and the great memories guys!

"Papa"razzi

Sometimes....Daddy can be THAT BAD!

NO MORE PICTURES, DADDY!!

My Little Model

Sometimes....she just wants to color!

Birthdays!

Before we left Orange County, we had a birthday party for the girls.

Thanks to family and friends who came to see us....and wish our girls a HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Here's a couple shots from the day.

"Loo" got a Fisher Price Digital Camera.

I think she likes it....what do you think?

Her sister had some fun opening presents too....

"Goog" opens up some presents

Trust me....she LOVES this nightgown!!

"No, Daddy, I did not have any cupcake."

Houston

Only some of you know that we're now living in Houston. We've been here for about a month.

Over the next few blog posts, I'll be posting about our journey....about living in Texas....leaving California, a great job and family and friends....and of course about our new life in Houston.

Children Are Miracles

I don't normally post things about my personal life (that may be changing soon), but I can't help but share this with the few of you who actually read this blog.

My daughters and I go to story time at our local bookstore, every week....without fail....we're "regulars." They sing songs and read stories, it's about ½ an hour to 40 minutes at night.

Sometimes there's a theme (colors or characters, such as Clifford the Big Red Dog) and other times a guest reader.

Recently we had 2 guest readers. Both of these guest readers were kids, but they were mentally disabled. The boy who read for us was about 13 or 14 and he did a great job. Next, was a girl who was 10 or so, had her Mom sit with her and she also did a great job.

After they read, we sang some songs, read a couple more books and then we were finished....as I was getting up from sitting on the floor, my oldest daughter came up to me and asked me, "Daddy, can I go and tell that girl that she did a good job reading?"

"Sure!" I said.

As she started over to the girl, who was with her parents and some others surrounding her, my daughter said out loud that she did a good job reading.

My daughter came back over to me a little frustrated, saying "I don't think she heard me."

I told her that it was OK, and asked if she was ready to move on with our evening....but this was something that was important to her. She looked at me and said, "No, Daddy, I want to tell her."

So, I said, "OK, sweetie, go ahead"

I watched her the whole way....her little body standing there amongst these tall adults, all to get the attention of one girl, who she was proud of (and wanted to let her know.)

"Excuse me," she said....all of the attention was now fully on her...."You did a really good job reading." She received a thank you and then she turned around and ran back to me.

I was so proud of her. I didn't want to make a big deal out of it, but I wished that the other girls parents knew it was her idea and not mine.

Are moments like this needed to validate parenting? I don't know about that, but when things like this happen, you can't help but feel good about your children and who you hope they become.

That's What I Was Thinking

Jack in the Box has some of the funniest commercials out there!

I LOVE U

Happy Valentine's Day Sweetie!

Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol

We'll do it all
Everything
On our own

We don't need
Anything
Or anyone

If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me and just forget the world?

I don't quite know
How to say
How I feel

Those three words
Are said too much
They're not enough

If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me and just forget the world?

Forget what we're told
Before we get too old
Show me a garden that's bursting into life

Let's waste time
Chasing cars
Around our heads

I need your grace
To remind me
To find my own

If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me and just forget the world?

Forget what we're told
Before we get too old
Show me a garden that's bursting into life

All that I am
All that I ever was
Is here in your perfect eyes, they're all I can see

I don't know where
Confused about how as well
Just know that these things will never change for us at all

If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me and just forget the world?

Super Bowl - the Commercials

WARNING!
This is going to be a BIG POST

So it's been a week since the SuperBowl.

Here's my TOP 10 for the Super Bowl Commecials....

Let's start off with some Honorable Mentions

Honorable Mention #1 - GM - Robot Bad Dream


HM #2 - Foot Locker - Autograph


HM #3 - Budweiser Select - Jay Z vs Don Shula


OK....so here's my TOP 10

#10 - Budweiser - Spot Wink
I really thought this one was cute....but that's about it. The part that won me over and moved it from Honorable Mention to #10 was the very end of the commercial with the dog and the parade princess.


#9 - Chevy - HHR Car Wash
"Tell me when it's over!"


#8 - Doritos - Live the Flavor
I like this one, I really do...it's funny....but I saw the commercial BEFORE the Super Bowl, so that ruined it for me.


#7 - Bud Light - Rock/Paper/Scissors
Nothing like a classic game to settle a grievance.


#6 - Sprint - Connectile Dysfunction
FREAKING HILARIOUS....If they would have added a disclaimer about the side effects, this would have easily been top 3 for me!!


#5 - Bud Light - Class Mencia
"Bood Light"


#4 - Budweiser - King Crab
Just plain funny


#3 - Doritos - Check Out Girl
I liked this one, EXCEPT for the final remark....I could have done without the "Clean up on Register 6" - YUCK!


#2 - Nationwide - Rollin' VIP
You've seen it here on my blog before....I loved watching on the big screen on Sunday! (What??)


#1 - Bud Light - Auctioneer
How awesome would that be??? Even as a joke, that would be funny!


All in all, I thought it was a pretty weak year for Super Bowl ads....I think there was a total of 51. I hate when they show movie trailers for commercials during the Super Bowl too....even if it was a new movie, like with that Wild Hogs movie. If you're gonna show a movie trailer, ESPECIALLY for a movie that has already been running ads, like with Hannibal Rising and Meet the Robinsons....give me something new, something I haven't seen yet! Come on guys!

Also, as much as I hated Career Builders monkey ads from last years Super Bowl, I hate their commercials this year just as much! They weren't even funny to me.

Super Bowl Sunday - the FOOD

This past Sunday I made a dish for a Super Bowl Party that I saw on Emeril Live....

It was "Brown Sugar-Crusted Baked Bologna"....here's a picture from Emeril's website:


The recipe is pretty simple.....you can find it here. We couldn't afford to get a 6½ pound chunk of bologna, so we bought a 3 pound one instead....who knew that bologna was that expensive!! Not me, that's for sure....$4.99 a pound!

We cooked it for about 3 - 3½ hours.

Here's a picture of the one that I made

BAM!

Not bad huh??

Honestly....it's really good too! A little white bread and some mustard!

Magic is Cool!!

It's only February....

The groundhog said that spring would come early, but since February 2nd, the temperatures have been 70+ here in Southern California!!

Check out the 10-day forecast (from weather.com)

Kevin Federline - Nationwide Commercial

As much as I've ragged on him in this blog....(maybe one or two posts)....I've got to toast that guy for doing this commercial!

Scary Mary

Another YouTube gem!

Groundhog Day

Whooo hoooo!

Spring comes early this year!!

Thanks Phil....It was getting cold!

New Phone & Bluetooth Headset

I upgraded my phone a couple weeks back....I got a Motorola L6 for free from Cingular.


The phone has bluetooth so I got a bluetooth headset on eBay for $25. (It retails for $80)

The Biggest Sports Story of 2007

Da Da Daa.... Da Da Daa!
Who's voice leads off SportsCenter tonight?

Beckham's moving to Hollywood!

Will he choose #7 or #23? I think he'll go back to #7. We're sure to find out on Friday when he's officially announced by the Galaxy.

I'm still not 100% sure I like this move for Beckham, but he's determined to make it work and try to make soccer popular in this country. I think the biggest hurdle will be getting the media to cover the sport more. MLS barely gets any press nationally and hopefully with Beckham here in SoCal and he starts producing the free kick goals and the long ball passes that we all know he can, then MLS can get some buzz and ride the wave that is David Beckham.

Most Americans know who he is....which is a good thing for MLS....I don't think he's washed up....not even close. I think he had a very good World Cup until he got hurt....his free kick skills are UNMATCHED!! Corner kick skills are great and the ability to be a leader....well....I personally thought he was good captain for England.

I wish him the best of luck and I (personally) would love to have a press pass for his first match at the Home Depot Center.

And don't forget that he brings Posh and the kids with him too!!
In other MLS news....FC Dallas are in talks with Edgar Davids. Davids is a tough player and has a "bulldog" mentality....if soccer had "enforcer players" like hockey does he would be it.
He's also one of my favorite players and I wish he would have done better at Tottenham.

Silent Star Wars

Found this on YouTube....pretty funny stuff!

This is the Season

Do You Know....

What's on the radio?

Right now? Anywhere in the US?


Check this web site out....

YES NATION

Crosswalks

Sent from the blogberry

I'm standing here next to a twenty-something, who (NO LIE) has hit the crosswalk button 20 times....IN A ROW!!

Once the light changed I thanked her for making the light change.

(Not really but I wanted to say it)

Champions League Draw

The champions from the last two years will meet in the final 16 of the Champions League.

Liverpool drew Barcelona in the draw....Liverpool won the title two years ago and Barca won last year. The first of the two home and away matches will be at the Nou Camp in Barcelona. Should be a great match.

Here are the other matches from the draw:

FC Porto v Chelsea

Celtic v AC Milan

PSV Eindhoven v Arsenal

Lille v Manchester United

AS Roma v Lyon

Barcelona v Liverpool

Real Madrid v Bayern Munich

Inter Milan v Valencia

The first legs will be staged on Feb. 20-21 next year with the return legs on March 6-7. The final is in Athens in May.

Addictive Game

Remember that Snake game that was on your Nokia phone?

This one is just as cool and just as addicting!

Coffee and Coins Don't Mix

The wife and I went out to visit my grandparents last weekend. When we go to my grandparents we always take the toll roads. We stuck a $20 into the toll machine and we got dollar coins back.....no worries there, it's still money, right??

On the way home, the kids were asleep in the back of the car and we decided to stop off at Starbucks to get drinks.

I give her about 10 of our $1 coins and off she went into Starbucks. I stayed in the car with the kids.

When she came out, she had the funniest story.....the girl behind the counter looked at coins and then turned to another barista and said...."We take these, right?"

REALLY?? Is that even a valid question? It's U.S. tender....why wouldn't they take it?

Has our society become so dependant on plastic??

The Number 23

The Number 23 is Jim Carrey's new movie....based on this trailer, you can count me in!!

This movie looks really good!!!

All American Rejects

I really like the All American Rejects....and this video, for "Move Along" is AWESOME!

McDonald's Video Game

A few months ago, I came across this video game. If you like the Sims or other "Sim" type games, you'll get a kick outta this one.

The game itself has you running the McDonald's Corporation. From harvesting soy fields and raising and slaughtering cattle to managing a restaurant. Then to the corporate headquarters....and you have to do all four at the same time!!

It's an addicting game, to say the least. My best score is January 2015.

Fun stuff though!

Check it out!

You can downlaod it here.

NYC Children

Danny Goldfield is a New York City photographer who is working on a project (New York City Children) that has him attempting to take a photograph of at least one child from every country in the world who is actually living in New York City.

For those of you doing the math:

194 Countries....1 City

Amazing Teenager!

This video is from the CBS Early Show....from an article in People Magazine.

I don't want to give too much away....you have to watch it....but he is VERY inspirational!!

I would love to meet him AND his mother!!

McDonald's Drive Thru Song

This video is AWESOME!

Welcome to the Black Parade

and, the making of....

JT on MTV

Justin Timberlake gets all the chicks....

At some point though, don't ya have to just say...."PASS!"

Champions League Update

Arsenal beat FC Porto 2-0 tonight.

Goals from Henry and Hleb.

I didn't see the match, only saw highlights on Fox Sports World Report....they are looking better and better.

Just had a bad start, I guess

New Artwork

The budding artist, that is my daughter has painted two new pictures....for your review and enjoyment


This is Ariel, the Little Mermaid....next to her is an orange fish and in her hand is a human trinket.

My daughter let's me know what colors she would like me to mix and I mix them and she does the rest. Although her version of Ariel does look like Ronald McDonald's sister....I am very proud of her and her Ariel painting.

Next up we have Gabriella....she's Ariel's deaf, Latin mermaid friend. She was an original character created for the TV series.


I found out while researching the TV series on wikipedia, that Gabriella is actually based on a real child who was a big fan of the show, but had passed away.

EPL Season

The English Premiere League kicked off on August 19th. (I know, I haven't blogged in awhile....I've been busy!)

After 6 matches, my favorite team Arsenal is in 9th place with 8 points. 7 points behind the leaders Chelsea. It's early in the season, but they need to get on the stick and start winning some matches and getting some points! (photo from Getty Images)

Keith Olbermann's Special Comment on 9/11

Where were you

....5 years ago?

I was in Singapore. My wife and I were living there and had been for 9 months of a two contract job I was on.

It was just before 9 pm on September 11th, when my mobile phone rang. My wife and I were walking. She was about 4 months pregnant with our first child, a girl. On the phone was the managing partner at the law firm that I was working at. He asked if I had the number to the New York office.

I said, "Not on me, but why don't you use the tie lines?" We had just recently upgraded our phone systems so that all the offices were connect via VOIP (voice over IP).

"Where are you?" he asked.

I told him we were walking on Orchard Road. We were actually on our way back home at this point and were about 3-4 minutes from our flat.

It was then that he told me about the plane.

We immediately rushed home and turned on CNN. Like so many others we watched on TV as the second plane hit the south tower.

We continued to watch CNN and the BBC until 2 or 3 in the morning. Watching both towers crash upon themselves to the ground.


Complete shock!

How could this happen?

That was all I could think of.

I'm not ashamed to say that for several weeks after 9/11, my wife and I were from Canada. Vancouver, British Columbia. This was out of necessity not out of lack of pride in our country of birth. When taxi drivers are asking you how you feel about what happened in the states....you don't know what to say....what if you say the wrong thing? Sometimes you just do what you've gotta do to survive....that's how it felt.

Lately a lot has been made of 9/11 being forgotten....and are we safer now, 5 years later. Well, I will say, I don't see as many American flags as I used to see, but I don't think that what happened to our country on that day will ever be forgotten. We haven't forgotten Pearl Harbor have we? As far as being safer....yeah I think we're safer now.

With the help of our allies we're safer. If it weren't for Scotland Yard, would we have been given a 5 year anniversary gift? I think we would have.

Where were you 5 years ago? What do you remember?