Another Day at the Office

Well it is Thursday. I am just really excited about the Freeman Party that is coming up on Saturday. I just checked the weather for the weekend, their prediction is scattered thunderstorms possible. Highs in the upper 70's with a 40% chance of rain. As I have been telling a number of people, if it is going to rain, this is the year. The house is empty. Should be plenty of room. I will say this, if it does rain you are going to see one crazy game of speed quarters.


I was doing some thinking yesterday. I was trying to decide on what is my favorite day of the year. This is a real toss up. Here are the candidates.

The Freeman Party, obviously one of my favorites, it brings together all of my family and friends. I am pretty much the center of attention, and I haven't heard too many complaints about the party in the past. Musical chairs is always the highlight for me.

The Dave Matthews Concert, one of my favorite bands. Tailgating at Alpine Valley. Sneaking up into the 3rd row. Watching people fall down the hill after the show. Just a great day.

The Fourth of July, always a party out at my aunt and uncle's on Lake Waterville. The party starts around noon and goes until midnight when we play Ina Gadda Da Vida. I am again in charge of fireworks. I would like to see the midnight swim out to the raft come back. That hasn't happened in a couple of years.

Summerfest, I almost always have one good day down at Summerfest. I normally run into at least one person from high school down there, and their reaction after talking to me for 5 minutes is, "You haven't changed at all".

How about Thanksgiving Eve? Over the last couple of years, it has been gaining popularity, and from what I have been hearing it is fast becoming one of the biggest party nights of the year. I am normally out with my brother and the Dillabers.

Opening Day, even though I am missed it the last couple of years, I am hoping to make a triumphant return next year.

Mexico, I have been assured that this is now an annual trip that I am included on. And while it is a week long. Each day of laying out and swimming up to the swim up bar, then later dressing up and going out for dinner, has to rank pretty high on my list of favorite days.

The first day of skiing on my first trip to Colorado has to be up there. Normally I don't have anything to drink the night before. If I can get Russ moving early enough we make the first lift on that Friday morning. You get an inch or two of fresh powder and a sunny day, strap on the MP3 player and ski the day away. There isn't much better than a nice long cruiser run, making good turns, the sun is shining, music blaring in your ear, then you stop half way down to catch your breath and take in the great scenery. Makes me want to jump on a plane and get out there right now.

Halloween, every year I throw on the gorilla suit and pull the wagon as my nieces and nephews go trick or treating. A night I always look forward to.


Those are a lot of good days. And let me know if you think I missed one. I wouldn't be surprised if I did. In the end I think I will say that Saturday, the Freeman Party is my favorite day of the year. So Saturday don't do anything that will screw up my favorite day of the year.



Because these postings are always a bit more exciting with a picture, here are some pictures that I took this morning on the job site. Who says I never work? Here I am on the north abutment of my bridge. The steel beams that you see will soon have 8 inches of concrete poured over them and will serve as the roadway approach to the bridge.
Here I am in the pit of the north abutment standing on the machinery platform. You can see one of the roadway approach beams over my head. And you can also see to my right is where the shaft for the trunnion that raised and lowers the bridge goes. The motors that drive the bridge after begin reconditioned will be placed approximately where I am standing. The counterweight which hasn't been painted yet is behind me. Over that railing behind me is about a 15 foot drop into the counterweight pit. Yes I am sure this is all very exciting for you.

Picture of the Day

This picture was taken August 30th 2003 in Morgantown, West Virginia. This was my first trip with my old roommate, Joe, and his college buddies. Here we are tailgating in the parking lot before the Badgers played West Virgina. The closest bus on the left was our party bus. It was quite the crew. I have always considered myself pretty good at partying and having a good time. But these guys are out of control. Rob is getting married this weekend and from what I have heard, most of the group in this picture is making the trip, and also from what I hear the ones that are coming are leaving their wives at home. I don't think we will have any issues with being home at 4 in the morning.

Memorial Day Weekend

I hope everyone had a relaxing Memorial Day weekend. I spent a good share of the weekend, getting my house ready for the party this coming weekend. I think I have everything ready to go. So this year I am hoping to be not so stressed out and I will enjoy the party more. Sunday I took some of my nieces and nephews to go and see Shrek 3. The movie was barely OK. I would give it a 4. About 2/3's of the way through the movie you just want it over with. Although I did find it surprising that they had some Wings and Led Zeppelin on the soundtrack.
Sadly I did break one of my Memorial Day traditions. For the past 3 or 4 years, the morning of Memorial Day, I always watch "Saving Private Ryan". This year, well I didn't have a DVD player at home in Milwaukee. But I do plan on watching the movie tonight to make up for it. I guess it is my way of understanding, appreciating and acknowledging the sacrifice that many others paid so that we could live with the freedoms that we often take for granted.
Sunday afternoon I took Jared, Erin, Ethan, Nick, Abigail and Lindsey to the park before the movie.Here they all are again on the slide.We had a contest to see who could hang the longest from the monkey bars. Ethan in the red shorts won.Jared and Lindsey in the slide.Here the kids are at the movie.We went to McDonalds after the movie for ice cream. I had a water. I am still fast food free.Later Sunday afternoon, there was a party for my brother, Dan turning 39 years old, or 14,235 days old. Here is the Davies clan at the party, Jody, Abigail, Josh and Dan, with Dan's brother in law Pete in the background.
My parents, Dan and Jodi.
My nephew Josh, staking his beer cans.
Monday, I was at my parents house. Here we are in the front yard launching rockets. We lost one in the tree across the street in the cemetery.

Picture of the Day

It has been a long time since I have posted a picture of the day. I am still a bit out of sorts since my move to Appleton. I don't have my home computer hooked up to the internet. I have internet access here at work. So there is no real need to have it at home. Here are a couple of picture for you.

This picture was taken back in 1993 or 1994. My second year of college. I was up in Minnesota visiting Krum. We took this picture in the hallway at Stanford Residence Hall. I am not 100% sure on the set up, but I think Browny was Krum's roommate that year. I know that Little Buddy was across the hall fromKrum. And I think Russ was only a couple doors down. Note we are both holding beers. I think I had just meet the RA for the floor and had a beer already. Weird since you actually try not to drink in front RAs. What did I care, I didn't live there. This picture was taken April 19th 2002 in Waukesha, Wisconsin. Me with my niece, Erin. The day that she was born. She is 5 now. That just seems amazing to me. Probably even more amazing to her parents.

Not much more exciting going on here. I will be back home this weekend. I doubt that I will be doing any beer bongs this weekend. I plan on doing a lot of prep work for my party, so that next weekend I can try to relax and enjoy my own party. Slim chance of that. For all of the party goers out there, I just came up with a new relay game that I will be implementing this year. That is if the supplies I ordered yesterday get to me before next weekend. It promises to be the best year of games yet. Initial forecasts have the day as being partly cloudy and in the 70's. As long as it doesn't rain I don't care what the temperature is.

What else do I have for you. Sunday afternoon I am taking 7 of my nieces and nephews to go see Shrek III. That will be my first movie in a while. So expect a review next week. Also on Sunday I am helping my brother, Dan, celebrate his 39th birthday. That is almost 40!!!! This scares me a bit especially since I used to use his ID to get in bars when I was in college. So if I could pass for 24 when I was 19, does that mean next year at 35 I will be able to pass for 40. I hope not. Anyhow, Dan, you big loser happy birthday.

I did notice something yesterday. I have an absolutely huge forehead. I should find an empty parking lot on weekends, set up a projector and sell tickets. (For those that missed that, my forehead is as big as a movie screen.)

Well enough of this mindless rambling. Check back on Tuesday for photos of the weekend.

Captial of Thailand

A couple of years ago we had a group of guys that went to a Brewer game. I don't remember everyone who was there, but I know that Tree and The General were in attendance. And actually Tree and The General are very good friends. The three of us were walking to the concession stand or something when Tree in his ultra loud Tree voice says to The General "Hey what is the capital of Thailand?" The General thought about it for about half a second and then Tree yelled out "Bangkok!" as Tree gave The General a swift backhand to the twig and berries. Obviously this is an old joke and it really isn't very funny. The humorous part of the story is that this happened right in front of a policeman. Not Miller Park security, but a real City of Milwaukee Policeman with a gun and etc. The General looked up at the policeman and said "Did you see that? Aren't you going to do anything?" To which the policeman replied, "No." and continued laughing.
I realize that I have one reader out there who doesn't think this is funny, because in effect what Tree and The General were doing was keeping this policeman from pulling over drunk drivers. But I don't care. Plus I have been a little low on ideas for postings as of late, and while I was actually talking to The General last night the story came up. Yes friends, The General is still alive. His blog is dead.

General, if you are reading this, I would love to get a scanned picture of you and Tree at your wedding. You know the football pose picture.

Question for the Married Ladies Out There

I have been having some problems understanding women. So I thought I would throw together a poll to help me understand. Recently I had a friend. I will call him Tom. Tom is married and just got into a bunch of hot water with his wife. Tom was out with myself and some of Tom's other close friends, one whom he hasn't seen in a year and another he hasn't seen in close to 4 or 5 years. I think it is safe to say that this was in fact a rare occasion. That being the case, we ended up having a couple drinks and we quickly lost track of time. Easy to do when you have having fun with friends. Tom didn't get home until 4 in the morning. His late arrival wasn't even his fault. Tom had lost his keys and had to call his lovely wife to have her let him in the house. It took four phone calls before she answered the phone and then finally let him in the house. The next morning Tom's lovely wife didn't even want to talk to him. I have spoke to a number of women on this topic and they said that the reason she was mad was that he didn't call. So why do women want there husband's to call if they are going to be home late. Answer, because they are worried something might have happened to them. Well if she was so worried, why did it take her 4 calls before she answered? So my question to the married women out there is how late can your married man stay out. Obviously there is a cut off in your mind, where you say you won't be mad at him. Suppose Tom had been home at 9 that evening. Probably not in trouble. But 4 in the next morning and he is the worst husband in the world. I don't get it.

What is the latest time that a married man should stay out with his friends?
	11:00 p.m.
	Midnight
	1:00 a.m.
	2:00 a.m.
	2:30 (bar time)
	4:00 a.m.
	I don't care. (This answer means you are a liar)
	I hope he never comes back.
Free polls from Pollhost.com

From what I have heard, the answer lies somewhere between midnight and 2 in the morning. But here is what I don't understand. Suppose Tom has to do certain things in the morning, I.E. Frank the Tank and he must go to Home Depot pick up some wall paper then Bed Bath and Beyond. As long as he is able to do what he is suppose to do, what difference does it make how much sleep he gets or when he comes home. Seriously, ladies, you go to sleep at 10 on a Friday night, what is the difference between midnight and 4 in the morning. You are sleeping!!!! Why should you care how much sleep your husband gets, as long as he is able to function as a husband the next day. Shouldn't you be happy that he is out with his friends that he hasn't seen in a while.

Here is another question for you married ladies out there. What if Tom spent all day at my house from 8 in the morning until 9 at night. Suppose he was helping me build a deck or something. Would you be mad? Why does the time of day that a married man spends with his friends make any difference? And don't give me any crap about getting into trouble. I know just about all of Tom's friends. We are all professional people with real jobs and homes. I get into the most trouble of any of his friends. And what is the worst that I have done, get kicked out of a bar? Big deal. I know parents always say, nothing good can come of being out that late. And to a degree they are correct, but we are adults. I think we can make good sound judgements. I realize how much trouble you can get in at 3 in the morning talking about old times sitting around a fire.

End of a New Years Resolution

I would like to admit that I violated one of my New Years Resolutions this past weekend. Saturday night after Hartfest, Borky and I decided that K-Mart needed to experience Oakland Gyros. In the past I have always chased down a gyro with a rootbeer. Maybe it was a force of habit, but I had a rootbeer soda with my gyro. It was the first soda I have had since New Years. Obviously other than in a mixed drink. But I am not jumping off the wagon. I am back to not drinking soda. I was able to stay away from chips, doritoes, etc while tailgating. All in all I still think I am doing pretty well with my resolutions.

Saturday Night Twins Game

Saturday's Twins game probably would have been a lot of fun if we had actually went into the game. One thing led to another and we ended up not even going into the game. It was the best game that I never saw. Look at these dorks, Borky, K-Mart and Preston. Again I got the beer bong out Saturday night. Whitney seen here, challenged me to a race. It was closer than I expected but she still came in second place.Here I am with my new friend, Whitney.
I don't know where the Chicken Van came from, but I just had to get a picture up on top of it.
K-Mart, Borky and Preston showing off their girth.
Here is a view from above, it is sort of like looking down into the "Perfect Storm".This is a reenactment of a picture I took down in Chicago at a dead show. In that one it was on top of Nate's Four-Runner with Solider field in the background. I have come so far in the last 10 years.
Here is a group picture, I think the game was pretty much close to over by this point. That is Joe, K-Mart, Tyler, Fogel, Preston, our new friend who we were calling Shep Proudfoot, Borky and myself.
After the game Preston, Borky, K-Mart and myself headed down to Hartfest in Tosa. Here is Preston and K-Mart in Tosa.
The Love Monkees on stage at Hartfest.Me, Borky and K-Mart. Yes it is about 10 at night and I am wearing my Uni-Bomber sunglasses.At Hartfest we lost Preston and met up with Liz and her friends. I can't remember any of their names.

Friday Night Twins Game

I am not even going to try to do a write up about the game either Friday or Saturday night. I am just going to go straight to the pictures. Here I am doing a beer bong, you can also see Borky's thumb. How do you get your thumb in the way when you are using a digital camera?Prior to the game, that is me, K-Mart, Brian, and Borky.Something of a treat that I wasn't expecting for the weekend was an appearance by Browny. Browny, what can you say about that guy. It is always an adventure when he is around. Here is is with Nate.Here is Nate doing a beer bong. What I love about this picture is that in the back ground you can see someone from another tailgate party doing a keg stand. I would like to mention that I also jumped up on the keg stand, and unofficially had the longest stand of anyone that we saw do it.We go into the game around the 5th inning. Here was the view from out seats, but we weren't there long and soon ended up in the 300 club.

Here we are meeting Browny in the 300 club.After the game we headed to My Place for drinks and Karyoke. This is Lisa's brother (I forgot his name), Lisa, Nate, Eric, Doug and Borky.
Here is a new one, Eric with a girl. Doug and I after cleaning up on the pool table.
End of the night, here is Nate passed out in my back yard.

Weekend

Well it is a big weekend for me. I will be making my first appearance of the year at Miller Park. Tonight, Friday, I am headed to the game with Borky, Nate and Borky's brother in law. My goal is to be in the parking lot tailgating by 3 or 4. I talked to Borky and he wants to get in a little Karyoke this evening. Saturday morning I would really like to finish up that sink in the basement and then I will be headed back down to the Brewers game. Preston will be along on Saturday night. After the game we are headed down to Hartfest in downtown Wauwatosa. Sunday I am going to make every effort to rechalk the bathroom tub. I was thinking about using black chalk, but I don't have any. Last week, I was looking for some but couldn't find any, I resorted to walking down the street yelling "I need black chalk. Does anyone know where I can get some black chalk!!" Sorry, a little Saturday Night Live bit for you. This is all just utter ramblings, come back Monday for stories and pictures.

Drinking Games

I would like to share my greatest drinking game moments for you.


#3. I was camping with Tree and a group of his friends from work. We were playing drinking Trivial Pursuit. This is a game that TT invented. This is how it works. You divide up into two teams. Each team is read all 6 questions on the card. You have to get three questions correct before you get what is called a siren. Sirens are the same as points. And whenever the guessing team gets a siren, the other team has to make the noise of a siren, you know like a police car or fire truck. I know it is stupid, but then again so is TT. You also have to take a drink on every siren. So on any given card you can get up to 4 sirens. However, there is a twist, if you know the answer to the question before the person reading the question is done, you can yell out "Fastball". Once you yell out "Fastball" the reader stops reading the question and then only the person who yelled "Fastball" can answer the question. This doubles the value. Theoretically if you yelled out "Fastball" for every question, then your team would get 9 sirens. Understand? I guess for the purpose of this story you really don't need to. We had a group of at least 12 people and we were drinking sitting around the campfire playing the game. Since I was in the middle next to a girl (We will call her Kim for the story's sake) on the other team, Kim and I were taking turns reading the cards. Once the game got going, and while I was reading questions to their team, I looked ahead at the next card that was going to be for my team and memorized the answers. Then when it was out teams turn she began reading. It went something like this:

Kim: "In what state is the river.."
Me: "FASTBALL, UTAH!"
Kim: "Correct. Who won the Oscar in 1974 for best supporting..."
Me: "FASTBALL, ROBERT De NIRO!"
Kim: "Correct."
Me: "That is a siren."
The whole other team: "Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr" (that is how you type a siren sound)
Kim: "What is the favorite food of the pink..."
Me: "FASTBALL, BLUE GREEN ALGAE!"
Kim: "He is right."
Me: "I can't hear you."
The whole other team: "Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrr"
Me: "I believe that is 2 sirens."
The whole other team: "Rrrrrrrrrrrrrr"
Kim: "Who signed the Treaty putting an end to the.."
Me: "FASTBALL, WINSTON CHURCHILL."
Kim: "He is right again."
The whole other team: "Rrrrrrrrrrrr"
At this point they were starting to catch on, so I made it obvious.
Kim: "Where..."
Me: "FASTBALL, WALLA WALLA, WASHINGTON!"
Kim: "What the...."
Me: "I read the card when I was reading you card."
It was pretty funny, they all thought I was an absolute genius. Which isn't too far from the truth.


#2. This was at the Dave Matthews concert at Alpine. Preston was sitting behind the a table and dealing up "High, Low, Red, Black". The object of this game is to call what the next card is going to be. Either higher or lower than the previous card or call if the card will be red or black. once you get five correct it goes on to the next person. But once you get a call wrong you have to take a drink or every card. And if you call the card to be higher than the previous card and it is the same number, I.E. two 8's, you have to drink double, so if it was the 5th card, you then have to take 10 drinks. It was just about time to go into the show and I walked up to Preston and I before he could turn the cards, I rattled off "Red, high, low, tie, black!" Now normally you call the cards one at a time, but I am a little different. Preston proceeded to slowly turn the cards.
First card: 8 of hearts
Second card: Jack of Spades
Third card: 5 of diamonds
Fourth card: 5 of clubs
Fifth card: 7 of spades
Yes I got them all correct, and even called a tie. Unheard of, but Preston will back my story, and the twins were there as well.


#1. This was playing speed quarters with Nate and Borky before going down to Summerfest to see Rusted Root. I guess the pictures speak better than another long story.

Absolutely true, I landed a quarter on the edge of a shot glass. I would rank this as a little bit harder than getting a hole in one in golf.

Ms. Anonymous

This is an open letter to Ms. Anonymous. Everyone, well I guess that is everyone that I know who then would also know Krum, wants to know who you are. They ask me all the time who you are. I think I had a poll a couple months back and everyone wanted to know who you are. And since my days here in Appleton aren't all that exciting, I have nothing better to talk about than you. Although I would like to challenge your statement that your picture would sweep me off of my feet. So why don't you just send me one and I will post it up here on the blog. Come on, everyone wants to be on the blog. That is the first thing I hear when I take a picture of someone, "Is that going to go up on the blog?" Join the party, or are you embarrassed? What is the worst that will happen? Maybe your picture will sweep me off of my feet and I will move back to Minnesota.

The Ultimate Sheephead Table

My favorite card game is Sheepshead. The best flavor of the game is with 5 individuals. This past weekend as Preston and I were attempting to get a game together we were discussing what would be the "Ultimate Table". The main factor in getting a good table together is not just about a person's playing ability but more their conversation skills. Although if they are a moron when it comes to playing the game that does take away from their inclusion from my "Ultimate Table". That being said, Preston, sadly you are off the table. The first three to be invited to my "Ultimate Table" are easy fastballs.

My number 1 pick to the table is TT. TT is the self proclaimed "W.G.S.P.", which stands for "Worlds Greatest Sheepshead Player". I have witnessed TT drink an entire 30 pack of Miller Geniune Draft Light in a single afternoon of card playing, and as amazing as it might sound, it didn't seem to effect him at all. TT is also a top pick on the "Ulitmate Table" because if in his mind someone else has made a misplay or a mistake, TT will not only tell you, but yell at you. Just because TT is top pick doesn't mean that I would want to play with him every day. TT in severe moderation is a great thing.

My number 2 pick is Justus. As mentioned previously, Justus is highly entertaining. He is the best friend I wish I never had. Plus he often will make the mistake that will make TT fly off the handle.

My number 3 pick is Roman. This may seem like a bit of an odd choice since Roman isn't anything like TT or Justus. In fact Roman is the total opposite in that Roman is fairly quiet and always considerate. But when you get those three on the table and conversations travel away from card playing, TT and Justus can usually make Roman blush, laugh and get embarrased, especially when the conversations turn to that of the topic of sex. It is truely entertainment on the highest level. Plus Roman is the only decorated Sheepshead player among my friends, as he did win a round at the Germanfest Sheepshead Tournament, something that not even TT can claim.

My number 4 pick is going to be The General. If you can get The General off on a tangent talking about his army stories, you have no choice but to laugh. My favorite of all is his version of how he had to do over 1000 push-ups because of letters that I sent him. The General also thinks he is a better player than he actually is, which will at times lead to a mistake that TT will no doubt catch.

My number 5 pick comes from out of state and that is Tree. Tree gets on the table for two main reasons, sheer volume and immature attitude while playing (Tug Boat). At times you get Justus and Tree talking, and you would swear you were listening to two 7 years olds.

For the record my last two picks were difficult to make and could have easily gone another way. I would like to say that honorable mention will go out to Preston, Joe and Stu. I would also like to note that as far as the "Ultimate Table" goes I probably won't even put myself in the top 7 or 8. Which is saying something since I do have such a high opinion of myself.

I know that Joe, Preston, Tree and The General are all regular readers, so I would appreciate input as to who would be in their "Ultimate Table".

Mother's Day Weekend

I had a pretty busy weekend. Friday night I went to my friends, Ray and Kate's wedding. I met them through Tree and we used to all play volleyball together. Now I only see Ray and Kate maybe once a year. It was a fun wedding, but I only knew 4 people there. And I managed to say quite possibly the dumbest thing to ever come out of my mouth. I was talking to this girl, and she was wearing a dress that made her look pregnant, plus their were a number of other pregnant girls at the wedding. So I asked her when she was expecting, and of course she said that she wasn't pregnant. Essentially what I did was just call her fat to her face. Nice work. Later that night I met my friend, Liz, down at Leff's for a drink.

I have been working on fixing things up in my house for my renter who is moving in to the place in early June. I had noticed over the last year that there was a slow leak in the utility sink in my basement. Friday afternoon, I did a little investigating into this problem and found a 8 inch crack on the underside of this old concrete sink. I spent a good portion of the weekend fixing what I thought was going to be a quick project. As it turns out, I am not quite done with it. But I should have it completed by the end of next weekend.

Saturday night, Preston had people over for cards. It is truly sad that my friends are all so busy. We used to play cards at least once a week, now it has fallen off to 4 or 5 times a year. Pathetic. To me the best part about playing cards isn't the gambling and taking all of my friends money (because I am a better card player than all of them) (that what I said Joe, I am best of the creeps at cards, deal with it), but it is the conversations that go along with playing the game. Justus was in peak form Saturday night.

Sunday I was again working on the basement sink and then dinner at my brother's house with most of the family. I would like to share with you the poem that I wrote and included in my card to my mom for Mother's Day.

Roses are red,
Green is the color of snot,
Giving birth to five kids,
Sure must have hurt a lot.

Here I am with Liz down at Leff's. What do you think Roman, should I use this for my Christmas Card picture?

Cards at Preston's place.Justus, being Justus. Here is a new one for you, Justus was well over an hour late in showing up for cards. I wasn't surprised in the least bit. And then just when you want to write him off altogether as a friend, because is he screws you over, you hang out with him for an hour or so and you just can't stay mad at him. He is the best friend I wish I never had.Here is my basement repair. The old sink was centered on the wall. I ripped that out, which was a little more than a bargains for, then I moved the washer and dryer far out to the sides and squeezed the new sink in next to the washer. That gave me plenty of room to put in a counter top which I guess would be nice for folding clothes or something. Unlike many of the other home improvements like the custom paint job I did here on the basement floor, the installation of the new sink and counter top will actually raise the resale value of my house.Mother's Day at Jon and Julie's. Here are all of the kids, from left to right, Ethan, Erin, Abbigail, Jake, Lauren, Pickle, Josh, Lindsey and Jared.My mom, Deb, Dan, Jodi and Tim all equally excited to have their pictures taken.My mom and dad. Just before I took this picture, I asked my mom which of her five kids was her favorite, and as you can see, she is clearly indicating her 5th child.

TVs

I was back up in Minnesota Wednesday and Thursday. I stayed with Krum. I think just about everyone who knows me, knows Krum. I would like to give you all a little piece of advice. Never watch TV at Krum's place. Krum has his own business and part of his business is installing home theater systems. He is currently turning the condo that he lives in, into a showroom. Included in this is a 91 inch High Definition Television Screen. It is ridiculous. I have a 56 inch TV that I love and his TV makes mine look grossly undersized. Here are some comparison photos to give you some perspective. Krum and I are roughly the same size, I am a little taller and he is a little fatter. But you can see the differences in these TVs.

Finally as Mother's Day rolls around this make sure you wish your mom a happy mother's day. Just for giving birth and dealing with that pain they deserve a special day every year. Since I am always asking my mom for peanut butter cookies, I thought I would return the favor and buy my mom some Nutter Butters and flowers. Have a good weekend everyone.

Water Bill and Security Deposit

Nothing really exciting happens to me during the week. Because of that, this is what you get. Last night I was checking my mail and I go two interesting things in it. First, my water bill came from when I had the pipe burst, I was worried that it would be $200 because I had no idea how long the pipe had been broken. Apparently no too long, since my bill was only $82. The other good news I got in the mail was my security deposit back from my townhouse. This was the first time as a renter that I had ever received my security deposit back. The other times were all in college, I guess that makes sense. But the interesting part about getting my deposit back was that included in the check was the amount of interest my money made. My deposit was $892 and I got a check for $912, and it was itemized out as $20 for interest. I am I moron or is this common practice to get interest back on a security deposit?

I wish I had something more interesting to post here, but I don't. I am headed back to Minnesota tomorrow afternoon. I am finishing up the final testing on my bridge up there. From Minnesota I am just heading back home to Milwaukee. I probably won't get another posting in until Monday.

Weekend Update

Last word on the blender. I spoke with my sister in law, Jodi, this weekend. They moved into their house a couple years ago. Every Christmas a box of chocolates came to their house for the former owners. For the first two years, she actually forwarded on the candy to them. But she said that the third year all bets were off and they ate them. I guess the rule is three years. I would like to add to this story that at my house in Milwaukee the same thing happened, chocolate came every Christmas. At the time, I actually thought about calling the former owner, but then decided against it. I mean really how do I start out that conversation, "Hi this is Rickie, I bought the house that your child was murdered in, and some chocolates came here addressed to you. Where can I drop them off? Sorry to bring up a bad memory about your dead child at Christmas but my blog readers think it is the right thing to do in delivering these chocolates to you."

Alright enough sarcasm, let me update you with my weekend. Friday, I didn't do much but work on you house repairing the plumbing in the basement and fixing some drywall. Saturday morning I did the Breast Cancer walk on the lake front. That evening I had dinner at Chris and Rebecca's. Sunday was my nephew, Zack's, first communion. Here are the pictures.

Saturday morning I met the Hardwicks at their house and here is baby Elery.

The Hardwicks come to downtown Milwaukee.Here we are in mid Breast Cancer Walk. Linda, Nate, Michel and Cesar.Here is the entire group that did the walk.Saturday night at the Cinco de Mayo celebration with my bendahos Chris and Rebecca. Here is Rebecca and Tammy. Tammy is the one who will be moving into my place the day after the Freeman Party.Still celebrating Cinco de Mayo. This is out on the patio, Chris, Eric, Bob and myself. I haven't seen Bob in at least a year or two. I used to work construction with him as well back in high school and college. Bob is one of the most unique individuals that I know. I recall working with him one time. We were putting in the island pier on Pine Lake. We were trying to finish up the job before the rain came but that didn't happen, we were nearly done, and a downpour hit. Bob and I were out there screwing down cap boards each of us with an impact wrench. We were working as fast as we could but we were still absolutely soaked and cold. At one point we both moved to the next lag bolt and both of our impact wrenches were silent as we walked, Bob turned to me and said "Wow, this is fun." He said it in such a sarcastic way, that it summed up the moment so well as to how miserable we both were at the time. Maybe you had to be there, but trust me, Bob is just a trip to be around.The Davies family after Zack's first communion. Here is my rag muffin niece, Abbigail. Here brother, Josh, threw a racket, which hit her in the head and resulted in stitches.