Not only is today New Years Eve, but today is a "Blue Moon".Thursday, December 31, 2009
Monday, December 21, 2009
Weekend Update
Here is the crazy weekend that was. Friday night I went out for a fish fry with my brother, Dan, and his inlaws. We went to the 5 o'clock Club where my sister in law, Jody, works. It had been a while since I had a fish fry. And it was great. I really enjoy taking the rye bread, loading it up with butter, then throwing a piece of fish smothered in ketchup in there, and making a fish sandwich. So good. I then let Dan beat me in pool 5 games to 1. That was Friday night.
Saturday I had The General's son, Mason's, baptism. The General's wife, Diane, was raised in an Armenian church. The baptism was back at the same church that the two of them got married at. For them, this is a church with happy memories. For me, this is a torture chamber. Let me roll back the calender 5 years to their wedding. I was the best man (or better man) in their wedding. In the Armenian church for some reason during the service, the best man has to stand behind the couple with a cross in his right arm and raise it over there heads for what seemed like the whole ceremony. In a tux, under those lights with my arm up in the air for 10 minutes, not to mention I was in a church which always makes me nervous, I was dripping with sweat. The General told me after the service that the back of his neck was sweating from the heat coming off my body. If you ever get a chance to see the pictures from the service, in every picture I am glistening with sweat. Now back to the baptism. When I arrive at the church, The General, gives me two sheets of paper and says, "Tell the priest that I gave these to you a week ago. Read it over. Good Luck." Thanks. I get into the church and the priest gives me something of an interview. When asked if I attend church regularly, I said "Of course." After I pass the interview, the priest pulls me aside and tells me to follow him. We go back into the office and he gives me a robe to put on. I asked "Why I am the only one who has to wear a rob?" He said "Because your the godfather." Then I said, "Well if I have to wear a rob, can I wear one of those hats?" He said no.
So the service starts out with "The Door of the Church" there are a couple readings that must be done. Then I grab Mason and carry him into the the "Baptism Font". This is where the baptism takes place. The priest wasn't feeling good. Apparently he threw up a couple times before the service. He actually had to stop the service and sit down for a couple minutes. I told him "Don't worry about it, I feel that way every time I step into a church. You will get used to it." Then I started thinking, what if he can't finish the ceremony. I am going to have to come back here again next Saturday. I don't think so. We finished the baptism and then headed to the third part of the service "The Holy Altar". I take Mason into the church and give him to the sick priest then he walks around the altar with Mason, he comes back, gives Mason back to his parents and then the priest gives communion. So Mason was baptized and confirmed in the same day. The priest had to again sit down in the middle of that ceremony. He told me that in years past, they used to make the Godfather carry a candle in each hand and the baby when entering the church for "The Holy Altar" ceremony.
Here are Mason, Diane and The General.
The two god parents. Again, why am I the only one who has to wear a robe?
Saturday night I went to a benefit that my buddy, Mick (Man Crush), was helping with downtown. U2 Zoo was playing and I wanted to see them. I got down there around 9:30. I was too cheap to pay for parking and I walked 5 blocks from where I parked to the bar. As I was freezing on the walk there, I felt like I was back in my college days when we would walk to parties and freeze on the way there. I almost stopped a cab when I was half way there for a 2.5 block ride. The band was good. Their new singer sounds a lot like Bono. Here is what I thought was a little cheesy. They look nothing like U2. But the lead singer had glasses on that looked like something Bono would wear. And the lead guitarist had on a stocking cap just like The Edge always does. That bothered me quite a bit. Here is the old man in me, the band was a little too loud, and by 11:30 my feet were getting tired from standing, and I decided to leave before the band was over.
Saturday I had The General's son, Mason's, baptism. The General's wife, Diane, was raised in an Armenian church. The baptism was back at the same church that the two of them got married at. For them, this is a church with happy memories. For me, this is a torture chamber. Let me roll back the calender 5 years to their wedding. I was the best man (or better man) in their wedding. In the Armenian church for some reason during the service, the best man has to stand behind the couple with a cross in his right arm and raise it over there heads for what seemed like the whole ceremony. In a tux, under those lights with my arm up in the air for 10 minutes, not to mention I was in a church which always makes me nervous, I was dripping with sweat. The General told me after the service that the back of his neck was sweating from the heat coming off my body. If you ever get a chance to see the pictures from the service, in every picture I am glistening with sweat. Now back to the baptism. When I arrive at the church, The General, gives me two sheets of paper and says, "Tell the priest that I gave these to you a week ago. Read it over. Good Luck." Thanks. I get into the church and the priest gives me something of an interview. When asked if I attend church regularly, I said "Of course." After I pass the interview, the priest pulls me aside and tells me to follow him. We go back into the office and he gives me a robe to put on. I asked "Why I am the only one who has to wear a rob?" He said "Because your the godfather." Then I said, "Well if I have to wear a rob, can I wear one of those hats?" He said no.
So the service starts out with "The Door of the Church" there are a couple readings that must be done. Then I grab Mason and carry him into the the "Baptism Font". This is where the baptism takes place. The priest wasn't feeling good. Apparently he threw up a couple times before the service. He actually had to stop the service and sit down for a couple minutes. I told him "Don't worry about it, I feel that way every time I step into a church. You will get used to it." Then I started thinking, what if he can't finish the ceremony. I am going to have to come back here again next Saturday. I don't think so. We finished the baptism and then headed to the third part of the service "The Holy Altar". I take Mason into the church and give him to the sick priest then he walks around the altar with Mason, he comes back, gives Mason back to his parents and then the priest gives communion. So Mason was baptized and confirmed in the same day. The priest had to again sit down in the middle of that ceremony. He told me that in years past, they used to make the Godfather carry a candle in each hand and the baby when entering the church for "The Holy Altar" ceremony.Here are Mason, Diane and The General.
The two god parents. Again, why am I the only one who has to wear a robe?Saturday night I went to a benefit that my buddy, Mick (Man Crush), was helping with downtown. U2 Zoo was playing and I wanted to see them. I got down there around 9:30. I was too cheap to pay for parking and I walked 5 blocks from where I parked to the bar. As I was freezing on the walk there, I felt like I was back in my college days when we would walk to parties and freeze on the way there. I almost stopped a cab when I was half way there for a 2.5 block ride. The band was good. Their new singer sounds a lot like Bono. Here is what I thought was a little cheesy. They look nothing like U2. But the lead singer had glasses on that looked like something Bono would wear. And the lead guitarist had on a stocking cap just like The Edge always does. That bothered me quite a bit. Here is the old man in me, the band was a little too loud, and by 11:30 my feet were getting tired from standing, and I decided to leave before the band was over. Sunday I got a little work done on the house, but not as much as I would have liked to. I watched football nearly all day. I know no one likes to hear about fantasy football, but I do have to tell this story. This was the first week of our playoffs and I was playing Preston. 5 or 6 weeks ago I traded with Preston, Ben Roethelisberger for Larry Fitzgerald. And as anyone who watched the Packer game knows, Ben Roethlisberger went off for the game of a lifetime, 503 yards of passing. If he would have even had an average day, I would have won, but as it is I got smoked. You see the irony here right?
Christmas Card
By now everyone should have received their Christmas Card from me. Now I would like to get some feed back on your thoughts. In case you didn't email me with your address, here is the card, or at least the picture and caption. I don't have my scanner hooked up anymore. So the tag line was "What would Harry Caray have said upon entering the Manger? Holy Cow!!!"
So that is the picture of me with the statue of Harry Caray outside Wrigley Field.
So that is the picture of me with the statue of Harry Caray outside Wrigley Field.Sunday, December 20, 2009
Politics Anyone?
I hit on religion the other day. I didn’t get too much buzz out of that. So now I thought I would take a shot at one of my other taboo topics. Politics. I am familiar with how our elections work. Are you?
I have stated before that when it comes to voting for president that I feel my vote doesn’t count. And in a presidential vote it really doesn’t. If we take a look back to the 2000 vote, you can see that the popular vote went one way and the Electoral College went the other. Here are the numbers:
Bush 47.87% of the popular vote, 50.37% of the Electoral College.
Gore 48.38% of the popular vote, 49.44% of the Electoral College.
Nader, Buchanan and Browne made up the remainder of the popular vote with 2.73%, 0.43% and 0.36% respectively.
If you don’t believe me here is the link:
http://www.usconstitution.net/elections.html#2000
So what does that mean? If I am reading this correctly, then the people (popular vote) went to Gore, but the Electoral College went to Bush.
I have stated before that when it comes to voting for president that I feel my vote doesn’t count. And in a presidential vote it really doesn’t. If we take a look back to the 2000 vote, you can see that the popular vote went one way and the Electoral College went the other. Here are the numbers:
Bush 47.87% of the popular vote, 50.37% of the Electoral College.
Gore 48.38% of the popular vote, 49.44% of the Electoral College.
Nader, Buchanan and Browne made up the remainder of the popular vote with 2.73%, 0.43% and 0.36% respectively.
If you don’t believe me here is the link:
http://www.usconstitution.net/elections.html#2000
So what does that mean? If I am reading this correctly, then the people (popular vote) went to Gore, but the Electoral College went to Bush.
What is the Electoral College and why is it so important?
The Electoral College is a uniquely American institution, used for over 200 years to select our President. The Framers of the Constitution were wary of giving the people the power to directly elect the President — some felt the citizenry too beholden to local interests, too easily duped by promises or shenanigans, or simply because a national election, in the time of oil lamps and quill pens, was just impractical. The Electoral College insulates the election of the President from the people by having the people elect not the person of the President, but the person of an Elector who is pledged to vote for a specific person for President.
Today, Electors are chosen by popular election, but the Constitution does not mandate a popular election. Electors could be appointed by a state's legislature, or the legislature could empower the governor to choose electors. (That sounds almost like it could be illegal!!!)
But in most cases it comes down to who you vote for in the campaigns for the Electoral College seats. And who are they? They are Senators and those in the House of Representatives. Currently Wisconsin has 10, and for my friends in Minnesota they have 10 as well.
Is the 2000 election anything special? Not really, in 1824 John Quincy Adams was elected President by the House after every candidate failed to get a majority of the Electoral Vote. Here are those numbers:
John Quincy Adams 30.92% of the popular vote, 32.18% of the Electoral College.
Andrew Jackson 41.36% of the popular vote, 37.93% of the Electoral College.
William Crawford 11.21% of the popular vote, 15.71% of the Electoral College.
Henry Clay 12.99% of the popular vote, 14.18% of the Electoral College.
A quick analysis of this vote shows that Andrew Jackson had more of both the popular and Electoral College vote, but because no one had the majority of the Electoral Vote, the House of Representatives voted, and the winner of that was John Quincy Adams. It looks to me that Andrew Jackson got screwed.
Today, Electors are chosen by popular election, but the Constitution does not mandate a popular election. Electors could be appointed by a state's legislature, or the legislature could empower the governor to choose electors. (That sounds almost like it could be illegal!!!)
But in most cases it comes down to who you vote for in the campaigns for the Electoral College seats. And who are they? They are Senators and those in the House of Representatives. Currently Wisconsin has 10, and for my friends in Minnesota they have 10 as well.
Is the 2000 election anything special? Not really, in 1824 John Quincy Adams was elected President by the House after every candidate failed to get a majority of the Electoral Vote. Here are those numbers:
John Quincy Adams 30.92% of the popular vote, 32.18% of the Electoral College.
Andrew Jackson 41.36% of the popular vote, 37.93% of the Electoral College.
William Crawford 11.21% of the popular vote, 15.71% of the Electoral College.
Henry Clay 12.99% of the popular vote, 14.18% of the Electoral College.
A quick analysis of this vote shows that Andrew Jackson had more of both the popular and Electoral College vote, but because no one had the majority of the Electoral Vote, the House of Representatives voted, and the winner of that was John Quincy Adams. It looks to me that Andrew Jackson got screwed.
While we are at it, what is the majority of the Electoral Vote? That would be one more than half of all Electoral College votes. Currently we have 538 Electoral Votes, half would be 269, to be declared winner of the presidential election (today) you must have 270. How is that for Democracy? Are you feeling better or worse?
In 1876, Rutherford Hayes won by taking 47.92% of the popular vote, 50.14% of the Electoral College. While Samuel Tilden had 50.92% of the popular vote, 49.86% of the Electoral College.
In 1888, Benjamin Harrison won with 47.80% of the popular vote, 58.10% of the Electoral College. While Grover Cleveland had 48.63% of the popular vote, but only 41.90% of the Electoral College.
So what do you think about your vote on Election Day now?
Here is some trivia as if the last couple paragraphs weren’t enough for you.
Which president recorded the largest percentage of the popular vote in any one election? In 1964, Lyndon Johnson had the largest percentage of the popular vote, 61.05%. That really doesn't seem like that much.
Along those same lines, which president recorded the largest percentage of the Electoral Vote in any one election? in 1936, Franklin Roosevelt was reelected after grabbing 98.49% of the Electoral College Vote. His percentage of the popular vote that election, 60.80%
Now does anyone else want me to talk more on politics? Anyone? Bueller?
In 1876, Rutherford Hayes won by taking 47.92% of the popular vote, 50.14% of the Electoral College. While Samuel Tilden had 50.92% of the popular vote, 49.86% of the Electoral College.
In 1888, Benjamin Harrison won with 47.80% of the popular vote, 58.10% of the Electoral College. While Grover Cleveland had 48.63% of the popular vote, but only 41.90% of the Electoral College.
So what do you think about your vote on Election Day now?
Here is some trivia as if the last couple paragraphs weren’t enough for you.
Which president recorded the largest percentage of the popular vote in any one election? In 1964, Lyndon Johnson had the largest percentage of the popular vote, 61.05%. That really doesn't seem like that much.
Along those same lines, which president recorded the largest percentage of the Electoral Vote in any one election? in 1936, Franklin Roosevelt was reelected after grabbing 98.49% of the Electoral College Vote. His percentage of the popular vote that election, 60.80%
Now does anyone else want me to talk more on politics? Anyone? Bueller?
Friday, December 18, 2009
The Godfather Part IV?
Last night I went to that Dave Matthews Band Movie with The General. Afterwards, The General asked / told me that he and his wife, Diane, (but mostly The General) would like me to be their son, Mason’s, Godfather. I consider it both an honor and a privilege to have been asked. I thought I had a past posting on the topic of what it means to be a god parent before, but I couldn’t find it. So I did a little research online which probably isn’t the most reliable source, but this is what I found.
Godparenting:
One of the Godparents often needs to be a practicing member of the faith into which the child is being baptized and they must be sufficiently well-connected to the family of the child to be able to exercise the responsibilities they undertake in the service. (Diane comes from an Armenia background and the baptism is taking place in the same Armenian Church in which The General and Diane were married. I can assure that I am not of the Armenian faith.)
When an infant is baptized he/she can't answer the questions for him/herself, so someone needs to answer on his/her behalf. (I can do that.)
After the ceremony, the role of the Godparents is to look after the child's religious path. The role of Godparent has become that of a "supporting friend" who assists the parents and takes a special interest in the child, but does not stand in for the parents or make up for any lacks in their care. (That all sounds good. I am happy to hear that I don't have to make up for that "lack in care", because that could be a rather large "lack".)
The best way to do this is to help make sure he/she gets to Church regularly. (I am going to go off on a big tangent here. I try to stay away from Religion and Politics, but let's get into religion. Am I religious? Yes. But I do have a some skepticism in religion. Is there a high power, an all knowing being? One who knows how many hairs are on my head? What if there isn't? Part of me believes that when we all die, it just fades to black and that is it. No heaven, no hell. There are a number of different religions, be it Lutheran, Catholic, Baptist, Armenia, etc but for the most part the story is the same, right? God, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit. Let's go a little further with it and head across the pond to the middle east. Remember those plans that flew into the World Trade Center. Didn't they do that for the glory of Allha? If there is a higher being, why would he want groups of people hating and killing each other. Maybe that is just the human element making their own interpretation.
My parents had / made me go to church every Sunday growing up. Looking back I am OK with that. Over that time I think I have heard all of the stories. After a while isn't everything just a repeat? Yes, you have the scripture readings. By now, haven't I heard them all, or if I haven't, have I heard all the ones that any church would use. I am sure there is some recycling going on. Here is the thing that really gets me, especially when people critizies the fact that I do not attend church regularily. You can go to church every week and you can give money to the church and be an usher or a sunday school teacher or elder, but if it isn't in your heart it doesn't mean a thing. As far as I am concerned, my god (which I will say I believe in, but not whole heartedly) doesn't listen to me only on Sunday mornings, my god doesn't keep track of how much money I give to the church. The times that I think of God most often is actually when I am working out. When I go for a run, or when I was in living in Eden, I would go for a bike ride through the rolling hills and the farm land with the sun setting. If you ask me that is where my God's church is. Go watch the sun rise sometime, you will feel closer to God than you will in any church. I think there are a couple people out there that are readers that are also hunters. I am sure at times when they go out in to the woods and they look around at nature, they feel in awe of all that God has created. That is of course before they raise their weapon to kill one of God's creatures. I think we all have our personal churches and for the most part, they aren't actually physical buildings. You want me to go on with the religion talk. Let's talk about communion. Yes, I know that it is a symbol of Jesus and his blood and body that he sacrified for us. That is great, but do we have to do it? It is a just a symbol. When you get right down to it, it is simply just wine and bread. Yes, it is a symbol of what he gave up for us to save our lives. But when you take a sip of the wine is that what you are thinking about? I know that there are people out there who go to church and take communion and the foremost thing on their minds at that time is their fantasy football lineup. Wasn't he also nailed to a cross? If you really want your head to be thinking about the sacrifice he made for us, try pounding a nail through your hand. I am sure you could careless about whether you should start Brett Favre or Arron Rodgers. You want to show your faith, their is your faith. Some of you may call my words here blasphemous. But that is the way I feel. Sorry Annie, I am sure you are reading this and your head is spinning around. Alright enough of my tangent back to being a Godparent.)
Setting an example by regular Church attendance and by being willing to take your godchild with you to worship is a great witness and a fine way to keep your oath as a Sponsor. (I don't know about taking Mason to church, but I will make it a point to engage the young lad in conversation to see what is going on inside his head.)
Questions to ask yourself before agreeing to be a Godparent
Are your views on religion, spirituality and morality similar to the child's parents? (The General and I had a discussion about religion last night, and I think it is fair to say that we have a common view on religion
Are you ready to help the parents of this child in their duty as Christian parents? One of the most important things to do is to build a relationship with your Godchild. Make time to see your godchild as regularly as you can. (I have been thinking about this one in regards to my other Godchildren. I see my nephews, Nick and Josh, on a fairly regular basis. But I don't get around to seeing Elery (Nate's son) as much as I should. Although I have been bugging Nate quite a bit to get over there to play ping pong. And the times I am over there, it seems Elery is always sleeping. I need to see Elery a little more.)
Do you have an interest in the child's well-being? Godparents find they only really begin to establish a relationship with their Godchild when he/she reaches teenage or beyond.
This was written on one of the websites the spoke of Godparenting: "A model Godparent I know holds a great event inviting all his Godchildren to his house at the same time every year on his birthday!" (No problem, every year all of my godchildren are invited to the Freeman Party.)
Godparenting:
One of the Godparents often needs to be a practicing member of the faith into which the child is being baptized and they must be sufficiently well-connected to the family of the child to be able to exercise the responsibilities they undertake in the service. (Diane comes from an Armenia background and the baptism is taking place in the same Armenian Church in which The General and Diane were married. I can assure that I am not of the Armenian faith.)
When an infant is baptized he/she can't answer the questions for him/herself, so someone needs to answer on his/her behalf. (I can do that.)
After the ceremony, the role of the Godparents is to look after the child's religious path. The role of Godparent has become that of a "supporting friend" who assists the parents and takes a special interest in the child, but does not stand in for the parents or make up for any lacks in their care. (That all sounds good. I am happy to hear that I don't have to make up for that "lack in care", because that could be a rather large "lack".)
The best way to do this is to help make sure he/she gets to Church regularly. (I am going to go off on a big tangent here. I try to stay away from Religion and Politics, but let's get into religion. Am I religious? Yes. But I do have a some skepticism in religion. Is there a high power, an all knowing being? One who knows how many hairs are on my head? What if there isn't? Part of me believes that when we all die, it just fades to black and that is it. No heaven, no hell. There are a number of different religions, be it Lutheran, Catholic, Baptist, Armenia, etc but for the most part the story is the same, right? God, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit. Let's go a little further with it and head across the pond to the middle east. Remember those plans that flew into the World Trade Center. Didn't they do that for the glory of Allha? If there is a higher being, why would he want groups of people hating and killing each other. Maybe that is just the human element making their own interpretation.
My parents had / made me go to church every Sunday growing up. Looking back I am OK with that. Over that time I think I have heard all of the stories. After a while isn't everything just a repeat? Yes, you have the scripture readings. By now, haven't I heard them all, or if I haven't, have I heard all the ones that any church would use. I am sure there is some recycling going on. Here is the thing that really gets me, especially when people critizies the fact that I do not attend church regularily. You can go to church every week and you can give money to the church and be an usher or a sunday school teacher or elder, but if it isn't in your heart it doesn't mean a thing. As far as I am concerned, my god (which I will say I believe in, but not whole heartedly) doesn't listen to me only on Sunday mornings, my god doesn't keep track of how much money I give to the church. The times that I think of God most often is actually when I am working out. When I go for a run, or when I was in living in Eden, I would go for a bike ride through the rolling hills and the farm land with the sun setting. If you ask me that is where my God's church is. Go watch the sun rise sometime, you will feel closer to God than you will in any church. I think there are a couple people out there that are readers that are also hunters. I am sure at times when they go out in to the woods and they look around at nature, they feel in awe of all that God has created. That is of course before they raise their weapon to kill one of God's creatures. I think we all have our personal churches and for the most part, they aren't actually physical buildings. You want me to go on with the religion talk. Let's talk about communion. Yes, I know that it is a symbol of Jesus and his blood and body that he sacrified for us. That is great, but do we have to do it? It is a just a symbol. When you get right down to it, it is simply just wine and bread. Yes, it is a symbol of what he gave up for us to save our lives. But when you take a sip of the wine is that what you are thinking about? I know that there are people out there who go to church and take communion and the foremost thing on their minds at that time is their fantasy football lineup. Wasn't he also nailed to a cross? If you really want your head to be thinking about the sacrifice he made for us, try pounding a nail through your hand. I am sure you could careless about whether you should start Brett Favre or Arron Rodgers. You want to show your faith, their is your faith. Some of you may call my words here blasphemous. But that is the way I feel. Sorry Annie, I am sure you are reading this and your head is spinning around. Alright enough of my tangent back to being a Godparent.)
Setting an example by regular Church attendance and by being willing to take your godchild with you to worship is a great witness and a fine way to keep your oath as a Sponsor. (I don't know about taking Mason to church, but I will make it a point to engage the young lad in conversation to see what is going on inside his head.)
Questions to ask yourself before agreeing to be a Godparent
Are your views on religion, spirituality and morality similar to the child's parents? (The General and I had a discussion about religion last night, and I think it is fair to say that we have a common view on religion
Are you ready to help the parents of this child in their duty as Christian parents? One of the most important things to do is to build a relationship with your Godchild. Make time to see your godchild as regularly as you can. (I have been thinking about this one in regards to my other Godchildren. I see my nephews, Nick and Josh, on a fairly regular basis. But I don't get around to seeing Elery (Nate's son) as much as I should. Although I have been bugging Nate quite a bit to get over there to play ping pong. And the times I am over there, it seems Elery is always sleeping. I need to see Elery a little more.)
Do you have an interest in the child's well-being? Godparents find they only really begin to establish a relationship with their Godchild when he/she reaches teenage or beyond.
This was written on one of the websites the spoke of Godparenting: "A model Godparent I know holds a great event inviting all his Godchildren to his house at the same time every year on his birthday!" (No problem, every year all of my godchildren are invited to the Freeman Party.)
DMB Larger Than Life
Last night I went to see The Dave Matthews Band in the3D film, "Larger Than Life". It is playing for a limited engagement at The Ridge Marcus Cinema. In fact, it only ran for a week and tonight is the last night. It has been a long time since I have seen a 3D movie. In fact I recall it was just over 10 years ago when I was in Norway. And the 3D glasses were just like those gigantic clown sunglasses. I remember it being kind of cool, the movie had some decent depth to it. I can say this, 3D has made some major advances in the last 10 years. I thought the 3D looked great. 
It was basically just concert footage from a concert played down at the Austin City Limits Festival. At one point in the film, the point of view of the camera was dead center about 20 rows back from the stage and there was a puff of smoke in the crowd that when across the screen and at first I thought it was someone in the theater that was smoking. Also from that same point of view when a beach ball was getting knocked around by the crowd, it looked like it was coming right at you and I even flinched once.
It was basically just concert footage from a concert played down at the Austin City Limits Festival. At one point in the film, the point of view of the camera was dead center about 20 rows back from the stage and there was a puff of smoke in the crowd that when across the screen and at first I thought it was someone in the theater that was smoking. Also from that same point of view when a beach ball was getting knocked around by the crowd, it looked like it was coming right at you and I even flinched once.As far as content of the movie. It was mostly concert footage of the Dave Matthews Band. But they also showed a couple songs by Ben Harper. And before that was a band called Gogol Bordello. Gogol Bordello was something different. At first they were something different, but then after a while, they just got to be annoying. I am going to try to find some footage of them on YouTube and post it.
Watching the movie and the incredibly believeable 3D got me to wondering, when we will come to a time where everything is filmed in 3D and we all have theaters in our homes. I don't think we are that far from that happening. I wonder how cool a football game would be in 3D, especially with that above the field camera.
Thursday, December 17, 2009
4 Down 2 To Go
Last night wasn't too exciting. I went to the hardware store to buy a new router bit. I started work on my vents at 6 in the evening and had them finished by 11:00 p.m. It took a while, but I think they turned out pretty good. Now I just have 2 more to go, but the problem is that the 2 I have to do are in the living room and that is where all of my furniture is. So I need access to the old ones to get measurements. I am hoping to have them done by the end of the weekend. It has actually been fairly cost effective. I am able to make 6 vents out of one 6 foot 11x12 that was $35. So that $6 a vent, minus labor.
Again here are the old ones.
Here are the ones I finished up last night.
Not too shabby.
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Pictures of the Remodel
Well here are some pictures of what I have been doing. This is the new ceiling fan in one bedroom, I call it the Shark Fin Fan because the blades look like shark fins. This is the one that after installing for the second time, the motor started humming when it was turned on. I still haven't fixed that problem yet.
Last night I put up this fan in the other bedroom. It looks good, but it doesn't give off enough light. Maybe it will be better once I paint the walls. The walls should be painted by the end of next week. I have decided to paint the walls Candy Apple Red. Something different.
This is back to the first room. The walls used to be black. They are now a light lavender. Originally this was the paint and color that I was going to use in the basement. I am glad I came to my senses. It took three coats to cover the black walls. Here you can see the vents that I am currently working on.
This is the disaster that is my living room. Basically everything from the two bedrooms are now in the living room. 
Here is the stack of trim. I thought it would cheaper to rip oak plywood and then use a cove piece and a quarter round, than buy base boards. I don't know that it is cheaper, but it does take more work.
This is the current status of the first vent cover. I wasn't paying attention last night as I was making the last pass on the router. The router bit caught and threw the board across the room. That also bent the router bit. So I am buying that after work. I am hoping to get three covers done tonight. And I am buying to router bits.
Here is the jig that I made to help me make the vent covers.
Oh and here is the bent router bit. 
Last night I put up this fan in the other bedroom. It looks good, but it doesn't give off enough light. Maybe it will be better once I paint the walls. The walls should be painted by the end of next week. I have decided to paint the walls Candy Apple Red. Something different.This is back to the first room. The walls used to be black. They are now a light lavender. Originally this was the paint and color that I was going to use in the basement. I am glad I came to my senses. It took three coats to cover the black walls. Here you can see the vents that I am currently working on.This is the disaster that is my living room. Basically everything from the two bedrooms are now in the living room. Here is the stack of trim. I thought it would cheaper to rip oak plywood and then use a cove piece and a quarter round, than buy base boards. I don't know that it is cheaper, but it does take more work.
This is the current status of the first vent cover. I wasn't paying attention last night as I was making the last pass on the router. The router bit caught and threw the board across the room. That also bent the router bit. So I am buying that after work. I am hoping to get three covers done tonight. And I am buying to router bits.Here is the jig that I made to help me make the vent covers.
Oh and here is the bent router bit. Tuesday, December 15, 2009
The Remodel
I have nothing on my plate right now except working on my house. I am trying to repaint, replace the trim and add ceiling fans to both bedrooms and the living room (minus the ceiling fan). And have it all done by the end of the month when my windows get delivered. But as these projects so often do, one little thing snowballs into a big thing. I want to replace all of the trim because I hate painted trim, so I am buying new trim and staining all of it. I have one bedroom all painted and I was about to put up the base boards, when I realized that I didn't the like the heating vent cover and the cold air return vent cover. They are metal and stick out into the room a little. So I am trimming up the vent itself and replacing the cover with an oak stained vent. But in searching Menards and Home Depot, I could not find the correct size vents. So I am making my own. That is where I am at now. So the plan was to finish one bedroom, then move everything from the next bedroom into the finished one. Well to keep things moving, I am still working on the vents for one bedroom while painting the other one. Here is the problem, where do I put all of the furniture that was in both rooms? Currently everything is in the living room. Here is the other problem I currently have. The one bedroom that is painted, I just finished putting in a ceiling fan. On the first install everything was great. But I didn't like how low it sat. I took everything apart and cut the pole between the ceiling hanger and the fan motor. That all went well, I put everything back together and I turned everything on to see if it worked, it did, but now the motor on the fan has a humming sound coming from it. It never ends.
Monday, December 14, 2009
Congratulations
I got some great news this past weekend and I thought I would share it with all of my blog readers. In fact the news is about one of my blog readers. My good friends, K.O. and Trooper got married on Friday night. I am extremely happy for them. I would like to think that I had a little something to do with there relationship, fore I believe the first time they met was when they both came separately to meet me downtown Minneapolis, when I was in town for a Badger Gopher game. Here they are this past summer on my front porch in the County Stadium seats.
They are two great people. K.O. (or now I guess it is K.T.) such a great girl, I have known her since right after I graduated from college and moved in with Krum for a couple months. And Trooper, the only thing I don't like about him is that he is so much better at soccer than me. I know that they will be reading this, so congratulations.
They are two great people. K.O. (or now I guess it is K.T.) such a great girl, I have known her since right after I graduated from college and moved in with Krum for a couple months. And Trooper, the only thing I don't like about him is that he is so much better at soccer than me. I know that they will be reading this, so congratulations.
Saturday, December 12, 2009
The 40 - 40 Party
Here is my brother, Jon, showing off two of his gifts from his birthday.
And I believe that today is actually his birthday. 40 years old. Wow.
And I believe that today is actually his birthday. 40 years old. Wow.
Friday, December 11, 2009
Pink Floyd Laser Spectacular
I just got this email this week. I made mention of the Micheal Jackson Laser Spectacular a couple posts ago. But just announced is the Pink Floyd Laser Spectacular, which I went to last year, and I highly recommend it. So put this on your calendar, Saturday, February 20th, at 8:00 p.m. at the Riverside Theater, $25. Let me know if you would like to attend with me.
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Just Like Henry Hill
This is a tough time of the year for me. If you have been to my house, no doubt the proudest of all my rooms is the bathroom. The double headed shower is the greatest feature of the bathroom. But as you may know, I have had problems in the past with the double headed shower. Because the one shower head is on an exterior wall, during the winter, I have had a pipe freeze up on me and burst. Now I have to off the water to that shower head. This week I shut off the water to the one shower head. As Henry Hill at the end of Goodfellas, "I'm an average nobody. I get to live the rest of my life like a schnook." I don't know how "normal" people deal with one shower head all year. I have to turn around quickly in the shower to keep from getting cold.
Here is the one that is shut off.
This one still works. I might upgrade the TV one of these days. But I think that is much further down the line.
Here is the one that is shut off.
This one still works. I might upgrade the TV one of these days. But I think that is much further down the line.
Tuesday, December 08, 2009
All I Want For Christmas
Well the snow hit tonight. Over the past week or two I have had a number of discussions with Nate. Every time he mentioned to me that he had prepped his snow thrower for the first snow fall. I had not gotten that far. So tonight I had to take my snow thrower apart clean the spark plug and then it started up like a champ. I even sent him a text message, which I am sure he got a kick out of. Last year, my parents bought me a snow thrower. As I opened my garage door and began clearing the apron in front of my garage and huge smile came across my face. It was so effortless. With my bad back, I probably would have ended up in the emergency room if I didn't have the snow thrower and had to shovel. So if my parents are reading this, I am so happy with my snow thrower from last year, you don't have to get me anything this year for Christmas. You brought me so much happiness on this night. In fact I was in such a good mood I cleared the sidewalk for the entire block. Good Karma. But then as I was driving around afterwards, I went by a front wheel drive Kia that was stuck and I didn't help. Then again, you shouldn't be out in this kind of snow with a Kia anyhow. So they deserved to be stuck.
Where Have You Been?
I guess I have been busy. Let me revisit this past weekend. Saturday was the big 40th birthday party for Jon and Julie. It was a lot of fun. The Newlywed Game went pretty well. Next time, maybe the host shouldn't drink so much so he doesn't stutter and forget how to read during the game. The only other thing would be to narrow it down to 10 questions, 15 was a little too long. But congratulations to the Kleppes who won. I think they were in 3rd or 4th place after the first round and I think they got all but 1 question correct in second round. I don't know if there are any photos out there. I was sort of busy entertaining everyone so I didn't take any pictures.
I also got some ping pong in this weekend with Nate. I am starting to get myself ready for Christmas with the Krumrichs. I would like nothing better than to smoke both Krum and JFK.
What else is there? Well, I am starting to ramp up the work on the old murder house. Last night I finished painting the ceiling on the first bedroom. I am going to get the third coat on the walls tonight. Three coats to cover the walls which had been painted black. I would like to have the baseboards, stained, cut and installed by the end of this week and then start on the second bedroom. I am going to wait on it for now, but I am planning on putting up crown molding in every room. But that isn't really necessary to put the windows in. I am also putting ceiling fans in both rooms.
How about a look ahead to see what is on the horizon? Nothing is going on this weekend or next weekend....so far. But on Christmas weekend I am going to see the BoDeans in Sheboygan with Borky. Weezer really got me in the mood for another concert. I had been talking to Borky a little bit. He told me to find a concert on December 26th. And the BoDeans is what I came up with. The last week of December is going to be a skiing trip to the U.P. It has been two years since my last trip to the U.P. I have yet to hear the final list of attendees, Liquid is in charge of that. Last I heard, it was Doug, Liquid, Eric, Anna, Flo, Nate, Michel and myself. I am pretty excited to ski with Nate. I think it has been 3 years since we have been on the same hill together, which means Nate probably hasn't skied since then. And on smaller hills like the ones in the U.P., Nate and I get bored pretty quick and that usually leads us to jumping off everything we can find. And if one of us takes a jump then the other one normally feels compelled to do it to, because neither of us want to get shown up by the other.
And I get my new windows January 4th. I hope to have those installed by the 5th or the 6th at the latest. Then if there is any money left, I was going to carpet the living room and both bedrooms.
Once I am done with the house issues, I was planning on having a doctor take a look at me and see what we can do about fixing my back.
Start looking for some holiday cheer in your mailboxes. The cards should go out tomorrow. If you don't get one it is your own fault for not getting me your address.
I also got some ping pong in this weekend with Nate. I am starting to get myself ready for Christmas with the Krumrichs. I would like nothing better than to smoke both Krum and JFK.
What else is there? Well, I am starting to ramp up the work on the old murder house. Last night I finished painting the ceiling on the first bedroom. I am going to get the third coat on the walls tonight. Three coats to cover the walls which had been painted black. I would like to have the baseboards, stained, cut and installed by the end of this week and then start on the second bedroom. I am going to wait on it for now, but I am planning on putting up crown molding in every room. But that isn't really necessary to put the windows in. I am also putting ceiling fans in both rooms.
How about a look ahead to see what is on the horizon? Nothing is going on this weekend or next weekend....so far. But on Christmas weekend I am going to see the BoDeans in Sheboygan with Borky. Weezer really got me in the mood for another concert. I had been talking to Borky a little bit. He told me to find a concert on December 26th. And the BoDeans is what I came up with. The last week of December is going to be a skiing trip to the U.P. It has been two years since my last trip to the U.P. I have yet to hear the final list of attendees, Liquid is in charge of that. Last I heard, it was Doug, Liquid, Eric, Anna, Flo, Nate, Michel and myself. I am pretty excited to ski with Nate. I think it has been 3 years since we have been on the same hill together, which means Nate probably hasn't skied since then. And on smaller hills like the ones in the U.P., Nate and I get bored pretty quick and that usually leads us to jumping off everything we can find. And if one of us takes a jump then the other one normally feels compelled to do it to, because neither of us want to get shown up by the other.
And I get my new windows January 4th. I hope to have those installed by the 5th or the 6th at the latest. Then if there is any money left, I was going to carpet the living room and both bedrooms.
Once I am done with the house issues, I was planning on having a doctor take a look at me and see what we can do about fixing my back.
Start looking for some holiday cheer in your mailboxes. The cards should go out tomorrow. If you don't get one it is your own fault for not getting me your address.
Friday, December 04, 2009
Weezer
Weezer was great.
When the show was first announced, I thought about going and then decided against it. Last time they played in Milwaukee they sold out in only a day or two. So a week later when I heard there were still tickets, I told myself I have to go. And I am glad that I did. I invited all of my loyal readership to come along but no one took me up on the offer, except Mark and Suzanne. They drove down from Appleton for the show. I felt bad for them because they had to drive back on the same night, but after the show they said it was worth it.
When the show was first announced, I thought about going and then decided against it. Last time they played in Milwaukee they sold out in only a day or two. So a week later when I heard there were still tickets, I told myself I have to go. And I am glad that I did. I invited all of my loyal readership to come along but no one took me up on the offer, except Mark and Suzanne. They drove down from Appleton for the show. I felt bad for them because they had to drive back on the same night, but after the show they said it was worth it. This is a picture from the Rave's Wedsite. But that is me in the red circle. I know that because I know where I was standing and I know I was wearing a red shirt.
Why was it such a great concert? I am glad you asked. First it was at the Eagles Ballroom. It seems like nearly 2 years since I have been to a show there. I think it is one of my favorite venues. Obviously Alpine is number one. But I like when you can see a fairly big name act at such a small locale. So the atmosphere was great. You may have heard the phrase "there is a certain electricity in the air". Well I felt it last night before the show started.
Why was it such a great concert? I am glad you asked. First it was at the Eagles Ballroom. It seems like nearly 2 years since I have been to a show there. I think it is one of my favorite venues. Obviously Alpine is number one. But I like when you can see a fairly big name act at such a small locale. So the atmosphere was great. You may have heard the phrase "there is a certain electricity in the air". Well I felt it last night before the show started.I wouldn't say that I am huge fan, but I like Weezer. Their only cd I have is the blue album and I bought that back in college. If you have it I suggest you pop it in and listen to it from start to finish. I think "Only in Dreams" is my favorite song. But I have heard their newer stuff on the radio.
Highlights of the show. Oh wait!!! Before I get to the concert itself. A quarter of the way through the show I was in the bathroom waiting in line. The urinals were occupied and so were the two outside stalls. I pulled on the door to the middle stall but it didn't move. I then noticed that the door was actually screwed shut. I said to the guy behind me "I guess it is out of order." He said "No it isn't!" He then dropped to his stomach and crawled under the door. I am thinking "Are kidding me? Do you have any idea how disgusting that floor is?" Even more puzzling is that I was second in line to use the next avaible of the 5 urnals and he was third. Second craziest thing I have ever seen at the Eagles Ballroom. Number one was when Stegall was in that very same bathroom, he was in the middle urinal with two guys on either side of him. He dropped his pants down to his ankles, raise his arms up and moaned while going to the bathroom.
O.K. to the show. Highlights: They did a cover of "7 Nations Army". I think that every band should have to play at least 2 cover songs with they play a show.
I noticed the for two songs the bass play and drummer switched places. I have been to quite a few concerts and I've never seen that.
In between songs, the guitarist was screwing around playing something and then that turned into "Over the Hills and Far Away" by Led Zepplin. But that turned out to just be a tease and then they went into a different song. Later in the show they started out another song by leading into it with the beginning drum solo from "Hot For Teacher" by Van Halen.
Also at another point of the show the lead singer came out by the sound board area at the back. Here is a photo.
Then on the last song, they ended with just the guitarist and drummer. Then the lead singer picked up some drumsticks and helped drum. Then the bass player, then the other guitarist. So they had 4 guys wailing away on the drumset.
So here is some video. The Sweater Song
Say It Ain't So
My Name is Jonas
Beverly Hills
The Newlywed Game
I am pretty excited about this weekend. Saturday night we are celebrating my brother, Jon's, and his wife, Julie's, 40th birthdays. As party of the party, I have been put in charge of the games. Since the party is indoors, most of my Freeman Party games will not be applicable. But we will be playing the Newlywed game. I was going to try and get this game going at the 4th of July party. But it just didn't happen. Of course I will be serving as host for the Newlywed Game. As hard as it maybe to believe, but in high school, I was voted most likely to become a game show host. That and a circus performer. I am hoping to get some video of the game that I can post on the blog.
Thursday, December 03, 2009
Abby's Birthday
This past Sunday I was at my brother, Dan's, for his daughter, Abby's, brithday party. Here are some pictures.
Wednesday, December 02, 2009
Cookies
From time to time, my sister-in-law's mom, Annie, (One of my most loyal readers) bakes me cookies. I don't know what I do to deserve this, but thank you. I got these cookies on Tuesday night, and here is what was left the next day at lunch.
And they were gone by Wednesday night. I have no control when it comes to cookies, especially peanut butter ones. Thanks again Annie.
And they were gone by Wednesday night. I have no control when it comes to cookies, especially peanut butter ones. Thanks again Annie.
Hanging with the Shermans
This past weekend I met up with my cousins, the Shermans. I don't recall anything out of the ordinary happening. Just a couple drinks. Here is Pocahontas and MKA, with Justin in the background.
Mariah and the Bassman.
And look even Timmy......I mean wait..that isn't Timmy. That is Pocahonas sleeping.
Mariah and the Bassman.And look even Timmy......I mean wait..that isn't Timmy. That is Pocahonas sleeping.
Tuesday, December 01, 2009
Christmas Shopping
Be careful, Christmas is going to sneak up on you before you know it. I don't have that problem. I 
have all of my Christmas shopping done already. I took care of it Sunday evening. The Christmas cards are another thing altogether. I will be sending out emails to confirm people's addresses. But if you are a loyal blog reader who doesn't get an email, leave your address on my blog and I will make sure you get one. I have the card narrowed down to one of two pictures. I am not real excited about either one, but I guess I will see what people think after they get it.
have all of my Christmas shopping done already. I took care of it Sunday evening. The Christmas cards are another thing altogether. I will be sending out emails to confirm people's addresses. But if you are a loyal blog reader who doesn't get an email, leave your address on my blog and I will make sure you get one. I have the card narrowed down to one of two pictures. I am not real excited about either one, but I guess I will see what people think after they get it.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
What Are You Thankful For?
My nephew, Ethan, had a homework assignment over Thanksgiving Break. He had to read a paper he wrote about what he was thankful for to everyone before the Thanksgiving meal. Here it is.
Ethan also had the assignment of writing down everyone's reaction to his paper. My reaction was tackling him the ground because I wasn't in the paper.
Ethan also had the assignment of writing down everyone's reaction to his paper. My reaction was tackling him the ground because I wasn't in the paper.
Friday, November 27, 2009
Are They Related?
I was again watching AMC in the shower the other day, and they were showing Mad Max. And that is when it occured to me. Are Lord Humungus from Mad Max
and Jason Voorhees from Friday the 13th
the same person? I will let you decide.
and Jason Voorhees from Friday the 13th the same person? I will let you decide.
Thursday, November 26, 2009
The Toilet Trophy
I am well aware of the fact that most people, even those that play, could really give a flying flip about fantasy football. Rumor has it that that is what brought The General's blog to a crashing halt. One day he posted the results of his fantasy football draft, and that ended up being the last posting he would do. If you don't believe me, here check it out. I am not going to go into any detail about my team, even though I am currently sitting in 3rd place and I am poised to make a run at 1st place. I am here to talk about the end of season hardware. I have had my league for 8 years. I waited a couple years until I finally finished in 1st place before I decided to purchase traveling trophies for the Regular Season and Playoff Champions. In fact, I am currently holding on to the regular season trophy, displayed here.
For a while now I have been meaning to make a last place toilet trophy. Just this past fall I found a toy toilet and I thought that would be just great to put on top of the trophy. But as is often the case, I took things a little too far. (See my garage, shower) My mind started coming up with a couple different ideas. And here is what I came up with. Note the plungers.
Yes, it is a little too much, especially since now the last place trophy is well over twice the size of the first place trophy. I am currently in search of a new toilet which is a bit more proportional to the rest of the trophy to put on top. Currently, my uncle, Dav,e and my brother-in-law, Tim, are battling for the right to bring this bad boy home for a year.
There is just one thing that is too bad about me making this last place trophy, because I know what I am doing when it comes to fantasy football, this will most likely be the last time I see it.
For a while now I have been meaning to make a last place toilet trophy. Just this past fall I found a toy toilet and I thought that would be just great to put on top of the trophy. But as is often the case, I took things a little too far. (See my garage, shower) My mind started coming up with a couple different ideas. And here is what I came up with. Note the plungers.
Yes, it is a little too much, especially since now the last place trophy is well over twice the size of the first place trophy. I am currently in search of a new toilet which is a bit more proportional to the rest of the trophy to put on top. Currently, my uncle, Dav,e and my brother-in-law, Tim, are battling for the right to bring this bad boy home for a year.
There is just one thing that is too bad about me making this last place trophy, because I know what I am doing when it comes to fantasy football, this will most likely be the last time I see it.Wednesday, November 25, 2009
The Head Boner
As promised, here are deer cutting pictures. I have been helping my parents since I was in the 3rd grade. I only remember that because I cut my finger so bad that year, and I still have the scare. As shocking as this may sound, I have 27 years of experience. Back in high school I proclaimed myself the "head boner", and no one has challenged me to take that title away. I was kind of hoping to get some pictures of the deer before they were skinned, but my brother had them all done by the time I got there last night. So here is where they hang after they are skinned.
Here is the cutting table. That is Chucker and my nephew, Pickle. Normally you would see my brother, Jon, on the left side of the table, but he knew I was taking a picture and walked away. Not quite the same as a picture of him annoyed but close. Tensions between the Davies boys at times can run fairly hot during deer season, and I didn't see the point in pushing any buttons. Maybe today. And at this near end of the table, that is the domain of the "Head Boner".
Here is the man who is responsible for the whole thing. I have heard my mom tell the story hundreds of times, but I still probably don't have it right. Next time you see her ask her about her version of the story. So we are going back 40 some odd years ago when my parents first got married. (I know, what a great son, I have no idea how long my parents have been married. But I know it is at least 40 years because I was at the 40th anniversary party) My dad would go hunting with my uncles and some buddies, and then because my dad was a butcher he would end up cutting all of the deer. They used to do it on a card table, I would say I can't imagine that, but I did help Jota at his parents house and I know how much it sucks trying to cut a deer without the proper equipment or surroundings. The thing that triggered this whole thing in to a full deer processing operation, was that each guy in the hunting party chipped in $50, which at that time was quite a bit of money, for a saw and a grinder. But then my dad had to do their deer for free. Then my dad saw that with a little advertising, he could make some pretty good cash. We used to have a sign in the front yard, I can only imagine how many would stack up if we put that sign back up. And in the early years, my dad would even go to the local bars and put up flyers. Of course, he would also put down quite a few beers as well. So after an 8 hour day cutting deer at the super market my dad would come home to a house full of kids yelling and screaming, then walk out to the garage and start cutting deer. He would cut 10 deer and then skin 10 more deer to have ready to cut for the next day. I am sure he wasn't as efficient as we are now, so I am guessing that would take him at least 5 or 6 hours at the minimum. There is no way I could do what he used to do. 14 hours of cutting meat a day for 2 weeks straight. However, if you ask him about it he would just say, "I had to provide for my family, so I had no choice. I had to." Over the last couple of years we have scaled back the operation quite a bit. Instead of cutting 250 deer over the gun season we are back to just around 50. Last night my mom said that the record of deer that she checked in for a day was 126. 126!!! Let's do a little math. 126 deer came in on that day, I will make some assumptions and say that we worked 12 hours that day. So that is 10 deer an hour, or every 6 minutes someone was dragging a deer across the driveway to drop off. I believe that that is also the day we set the record for most deer processed in a day, 50. I think it was me, my dad, Jon and my cousin, Justin, cutting that day. At the time my dad was in his late 60's, and he cut 50 deer. When I am in my late 60's, if I make that long (I am taking the under), you won't get me anywhere near a deer cutting table. Let alone, at one to cut 50 deer.
And of course a trip to the Davies house during deer season isn't complete without a trip to the dumpster. A couple of years ago, I was there when they came to pick up the dumpster, and it was a warm day, sunny and around 50 degrees. I will be honest, it was a little ripe. This was before we put a liner in the dumpster. As they raise the dumpster onto to the truck, all the juices came running out the back and it drained all the way down the drive way and out on to the road. How would you like to drive behind a truck with dead deer carcass juices running out of it.
Here is the cutting table. That is Chucker and my nephew, Pickle. Normally you would see my brother, Jon, on the left side of the table, but he knew I was taking a picture and walked away. Not quite the same as a picture of him annoyed but close. Tensions between the Davies boys at times can run fairly hot during deer season, and I didn't see the point in pushing any buttons. Maybe today. And at this near end of the table, that is the domain of the "Head Boner".
Here is the man who is responsible for the whole thing. I have heard my mom tell the story hundreds of times, but I still probably don't have it right. Next time you see her ask her about her version of the story. So we are going back 40 some odd years ago when my parents first got married. (I know, what a great son, I have no idea how long my parents have been married. But I know it is at least 40 years because I was at the 40th anniversary party) My dad would go hunting with my uncles and some buddies, and then because my dad was a butcher he would end up cutting all of the deer. They used to do it on a card table, I would say I can't imagine that, but I did help Jota at his parents house and I know how much it sucks trying to cut a deer without the proper equipment or surroundings. The thing that triggered this whole thing in to a full deer processing operation, was that each guy in the hunting party chipped in $50, which at that time was quite a bit of money, for a saw and a grinder. But then my dad had to do their deer for free. Then my dad saw that with a little advertising, he could make some pretty good cash. We used to have a sign in the front yard, I can only imagine how many would stack up if we put that sign back up. And in the early years, my dad would even go to the local bars and put up flyers. Of course, he would also put down quite a few beers as well. So after an 8 hour day cutting deer at the super market my dad would come home to a house full of kids yelling and screaming, then walk out to the garage and start cutting deer. He would cut 10 deer and then skin 10 more deer to have ready to cut for the next day. I am sure he wasn't as efficient as we are now, so I am guessing that would take him at least 5 or 6 hours at the minimum. There is no way I could do what he used to do. 14 hours of cutting meat a day for 2 weeks straight. However, if you ask him about it he would just say, "I had to provide for my family, so I had no choice. I had to." Over the last couple of years we have scaled back the operation quite a bit. Instead of cutting 250 deer over the gun season we are back to just around 50. Last night my mom said that the record of deer that she checked in for a day was 126. 126!!! Let's do a little math. 126 deer came in on that day, I will make some assumptions and say that we worked 12 hours that day. So that is 10 deer an hour, or every 6 minutes someone was dragging a deer across the driveway to drop off. I believe that that is also the day we set the record for most deer processed in a day, 50. I think it was me, my dad, Jon and my cousin, Justin, cutting that day. At the time my dad was in his late 60's, and he cut 50 deer. When I am in my late 60's, if I make that long (I am taking the under), you won't get me anywhere near a deer cutting table. Let alone, at one to cut 50 deer. 
And of course a trip to the Davies house during deer season isn't complete without a trip to the dumpster. A couple of years ago, I was there when they came to pick up the dumpster, and it was a warm day, sunny and around 50 degrees. I will be honest, it was a little ripe. This was before we put a liner in the dumpster. As they raise the dumpster onto to the truck, all the juices came running out the back and it drained all the way down the drive way and out on to the road. How would you like to drive behind a truck with dead deer carcass juices running out of it.
Kakeface
I don't think that Kaker is a reader of the blog. At least he has never mentioned it or left a comment. But I do know that many of my loyal blog readers know Matt Kaker, and if they didn't hear the news, here it is. Kaker is once again a father, for the third time. 
Three kids, that seems like a lot. And to think that my parents raised five of us. This conversation just came up the other day. My mom is one of 10 kids. So my grandmother was pregnant for pretty much for 7.5 years straight. That is mind blowing. Think about that hell ladies. Anyhow, I am off the topic. Here is the email that got sent to me:
Three kids, that seems like a lot. And to think that my parents raised five of us. This conversation just came up the other day. My mom is one of 10 kids. So my grandmother was pregnant for pretty much for 7.5 years straight. That is mind blowing. Think about that hell ladies. Anyhow, I am off the topic. Here is the email that got sent to me:"Quincy Thomas Martin Kaker arrived November 16th, 2009 at 10:35pm. He weighed 8pounds, 14ozs and is 21 inches long."
Wait a second...you are telling me that he has two middle names. Is that possible? I want to add a couple middle names. How about Richard Evan Logan Stone Davies Jr.?
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Weezer
I have been getting the beat down on concerts lately. Last week I tried scalping for 
Bruce Springsteen and I couldn't find any tickets other than upper deck tickets. So I didn't go to the show. Then this past week I contemplated going to see Wide Spread Panic, but I was too comfortable to get off the couch. But I have found the cure for my concert blues and that is a strong dose of Weezer. They are playing at the Rave Thursday, December 3rd. I have already purchased a ticket, and if you are interested here is the link to the box office. It is a General Admission show. I will be taking a cab from my house to the show and back. Let me know if you are interested.
Bruce Springsteen and I couldn't find any tickets other than upper deck tickets. So I didn't go to the show. Then this past week I contemplated going to see Wide Spread Panic, but I was too comfortable to get off the couch. But I have found the cure for my concert blues and that is a strong dose of Weezer. They are playing at the Rave Thursday, December 3rd. I have already purchased a ticket, and if you are interested here is the link to the box office. It is a General Admission show. I will be taking a cab from my house to the show and back. Let me know if you are interested.
Goodfellas
Saturday morning I was taking a shower and watching TV. I was flipping through the channels
and on AMC "Goodfellas" was on. Easily in my top 5 movies of all time. "Pulp Fiction" is also right up there at the top of the list. Anyhow, my hot water heater isn't big enough for me to watch the whole movie, but the portion that I did see was when Tommy and Jimmy jump Billy Batts in Henry's bar. Arguably the best scene in the movie, where you have a close up of Jimmy (Robert DeNiro) as he is kicking Billy Batts, and his arm is swinging in front of him. I will have to see if I can find that scene on Youtube. Here is a picture for that seen. Look at that face. So great. As they are wrapping Billy Batts in table clothes, Jimmy says to Tommy and Henry, "Look what that mutt did to my shoes." He is mad because the guy that he just killed, or shortly would kill, scuffed his shoes. Like it was Billy Batts' fault.
Here is the scene on Youtube. Note, this is the uneditted version so there are at least 15 F bombs. "Drinks are on the house." watch him deliever that line.
Last night I was at my parent's house helping them butcher some deer. The "Head Boner" , that is me, is back in peak form. I was stripped down to a T-shirt and I was breaking a sweat trying to keep up with everyone. Anyhow, my father who is now a blog reader, asked if the deer cutting would be on the blog. I do requests here on the blog from time to time. So look for those pictures tomorrow. I am predicting that my mom and my brother, Jon, will be less than receptive to having their pictures taken or posted on the blog. So their pictures will show their ture irritation with me. Mark my words and wait for the pictures.
and on AMC "Goodfellas" was on. Easily in my top 5 movies of all time. "Pulp Fiction" is also right up there at the top of the list. Anyhow, my hot water heater isn't big enough for me to watch the whole movie, but the portion that I did see was when Tommy and Jimmy jump Billy Batts in Henry's bar. Arguably the best scene in the movie, where you have a close up of Jimmy (Robert DeNiro) as he is kicking Billy Batts, and his arm is swinging in front of him. I will have to see if I can find that scene on Youtube. Here is a picture for that seen. Look at that face. So great. As they are wrapping Billy Batts in table clothes, Jimmy says to Tommy and Henry, "Look what that mutt did to my shoes." He is mad because the guy that he just killed, or shortly would kill, scuffed his shoes. Like it was Billy Batts' fault.Here is the scene on Youtube. Note, this is the uneditted version so there are at least 15 F bombs. "Drinks are on the house." watch him deliever that line.
Last night I was at my parent's house helping them butcher some deer. The "Head Boner" , that is me, is back in peak form. I was stripped down to a T-shirt and I was breaking a sweat trying to keep up with everyone. Anyhow, my father who is now a blog reader, asked if the deer cutting would be on the blog. I do requests here on the blog from time to time. So look for those pictures tomorrow. I am predicting that my mom and my brother, Jon, will be less than receptive to having their pictures taken or posted on the blog. So their pictures will show their ture irritation with me. Mark my words and wait for the pictures.
Friday, November 20, 2009
Laser Spectacular
The Michael Jackson Laser Spectacular. I just got this in an email the other day, and I am intending upon attending. Say that five times fast.
Intending upon attending.
Intending upon attending.
Intending upon attending.
Intending upon attending.
Intending upon attending.
This is the same company that put on the Pink Floyd Laser Spectular last year. It is all general admission seating. And I still have my glasses from last year. Friday Feb, 19th. Let me know if anyone is interested.
Gyro Tally
I have had a number of gyro contests. Up until press time, only one person
has cashed in on their gyro.
has cashed in on their gyro.Please correct me if I am wrong, but I believe the following is the list of people I owe a gyro to:
Sherman,
Annie,
Sarah,
Borky,
Tony.
Let me know when you want to collect.
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