Roy to the World

On Saturday at around 4 a.m. my grandfather, Roy Wayne Blevins, passed away in a hospital in Aurora, CO. He was 89 years old.

We knew he was in grave condition in the hours leading up to his death and this was extremely hard for me as I was 1,000 miles away in Texas and had my dad and stepmom with me. It was the night before I was leaving Austin to move back home to Colorado. The main reason - to be able to spend more time with family, especially my grandparents. I never got that extra time I was hoping for with my Grandpa but nonetheless a big part of who I am is because of the kind of man he was. This blog titled "Roy to the World" is about the man he was as a husband, father, grandfather, great grandfather, uncle, cousin and friend in the 32 years I was able to be around him. 

I have so many fond memories of my grandfather and it would take forever to describe all of them but hopefully these few short stories will help sum up my feelings. 

On the exterior he could come across rough to people who didn't know him. He had a tendency to speak his mind no matter what the situation. He did not like being around big crowds of people and was not much of a socializer. One of the funniest stories was he was sitting on a bench in the mall and a lady asked him to move because the bench was reserved for the children who were waiting to see Santa Claus. My grandpa abruptly replied "you can kiss my ass!" While that was him being honest in that situation, for most of the time he was as caring as could be. 

There were numerous people throughout the years that he helped out. Despite being in his 60's and 70's he would shovel snow for the elderly neighbors next door, fix things at their house, take care of animals, take them goodies my grandma made and pretty much do anything to help them out. I saw him do this extensively with the Oldhams, Ms. Poole and his brother Bruce who was never in good shape after surviving a plane crash. He never accepted anything in return. He was just doing what he thought was the right thing to do. This is something I have seen a lot from my dad and grandma as well and led me to volunteer my time at Children's Hospitals.

He was also a very loving husband to my grandma Juanita. The two were just a few weeks from celebrating their 66th anniversary. That is an unreachable number for my generation with so many people rushing into marriage for a variety of different reasons and then divorcing at the slightest sign of trouble. My grandparents loved each other and made it work even though things weren't always perfect. Some examples of this love is my grandpa telling my grandma she was still pretty after all those years in the hospital last week. He set aside some money without her knowing about it in case he passed away first so that she would be taken care of financially. He also taught me manners and how to treat a lady. One time we were walking down the street in a neighboring town of their home and he told me "When you are walking on the sidewalk with your girlfriend or wife you should always walk closest to the street." I asked why and he said "If a car drives by and splashes a puddle then her pretty little dress wouldn't get ruined." I have never to this day heard anybody else talk about doing this but my grandma says he always walked closest to the street in the 65 years they were married.

When I was little and with my grandparents, I always wanted to be with my grandpa no matter what he was doing. He was very smart and really interested in finding out how things worked so he would tear apart fans, clocks and other things to try and fix them if they were broken. I had no clue what was happening but I would stand by him in his shop the entire time and watch him. If he was laying on the carpet taking a nap, I would lay down next to him. When he was working as a locksmith I would go spend an afternoon with him at work and watch him make keys. I am not a cowboy at all but my grandpa loved watching western movies and it made me as happy as can be to this day to sit with him and watch westerns because all I wanted to do was be with him. 

Camping trips were some of my favorite times with my grandpa and dad. We would find sticks and turn them into walking sticks. My grandpa would make toast and jelly on the camping stove which I still love to make at home. He always tried to scare us or probably warn us about bears in the mountains. The best memory I have is when it was just me and my grandma and grandpa and we went to a cabin on a lake. We were sitting outside on the porch steps and he taught me how to play the game mumbley peg. It is a simple game played with a pocket knife but I loved playing it with him and I probably asked him to play that entire trip after he showed me. 

Growing up I loved sports. Most of my family was not really into it very much but my grandpa liked to watch football, especially the Broncos, with me. He would also go in to the backyard and play with me as much as he could. He would throw the football to me and let me make diving catches or hit pop flys with a wiffle ball bat so I could pretend like I was an outfielder. I didn't have any brothers but my grandpa would always come out and play with me in the yard.

With my grandpa passing at this time of year it is especially tough because he loved Christmas. He always told me that the two of us were going to try and catch Santa Claus when he showed up at the house. We slept next to the tree the night before Christmas with cookies as bait. Although sometimes I would wake up in the middle of the night and think I heard something we never did catch him but it was something we did for a long time. My grandpa really loved opening gifts too. He would shake and rattle them to try and guess what he was getting. He never really wanted much but he sure did love anything he got. I don't know how Christmas is going to be without him but it just won't be the same that is for sure.

My grandpa enjoyed drinking his coffee, old instrumental music (he did not like music with people singing), reading and watching westerns, having a nice yard, a good chocolate milkshake, building and fixing things in his shop, the local news, my grandma's cooking (like me he loved pancakes) and helping out neighbors and family. For anybody who knew my grandpa like I did, he was one of the sweetest, most caring men there is and will be greatly missed. 

Election Day

In the spirit of election day, our office decided to host an election between our monkey and fish to determine which one would become the official mascot of our office.

The back story to these two is that they really despise each other. The monkey has been around since April while the fish (Sir Chester Wilson Marbles III) only came into existence a couple of months ago. The fish immediately started stealing attention from the message-giving monkey, thus causing an all-out battle between the two. Death threats emerged from the monkey towards the fish, while the fish returned sarcastic laughter at the threats.

Come halloween the two each chose to dress up as the other one.

The monkey dressed up as a dead fish in a fish bowl ...

The fish dressed up as a stupid monkey

That brings us to the present. The campaigns got off to a fast start using social media. Both hit up facebook. The monkey just told people to vote while the fish presented its beliefs and issues in a well thought out ploy. The fish obviously had the better campaign and immediately gained a crucial edge in the online votes. The monkey relied more on its personal connections for its campaign. Having known staff and students a lot longer and putting its face out there more often, the monkey seized this edge to garner a majority of the written votes. Final tallies were ...

Monkey - 15
Fish - 14

The fish held a 10-4 advantage in online votes while the monkey carried a dominating 11-4 in-house vote.

With the win the monkey gains its own twitter account. You can follow it at -     MonkeyvFish

The monkey was ecstatic and here is the acceptance speech I gave for it.

With every elected official there is a chance of assassination but in this ongoing battle to the death there was that chance long ago. Stay tuned to what happens next in the classic tale of monkey vs. fish.

The Monkey's Tale part one

Back in early April, morale was down around the office after one of the worst weeks of the year as far as number of hours worked for everybody. I alone worked 100 hours that week and our student workers put in a ton of time as well with every sport in season hosting 1-4 days of events over a four-day span it seemed. I knew the best way to get them through the week was the promise of a party when it was all said and done. I talked up this party pretty good all week so when the next Monday rolled around I knew I had to do something good. I took a few hours off of work and hit up my personal stash of party items from Oriental Trading Company and made a trip to Party City to arrange some fun.

Enter the Monkey

Part of the plan was to have a pinata and the best one I found was a monkey holding a banana. This was the time for the Monkey to shine. It was its destiny to be beaten until broken. It is what it was raised to be and now it was time to fulfill that dream.

Hung by a string from the upstairs balcony it floated in midair awaiting crunch time. It was full of joy and candy as a mixed bag from the grocery store was emptied out into its insides. One hour went by, two hours went by, three hours went by and then finally a flock of students came around the corner with a plastic bat in hand.

The first hit drew no candy and the monkey laughed and taunted the students as if it were mocking them for not getting him on the first attempt. The next student the same and then again nothing. Finally the whacks took their toll and candy exploded from a hole opened up beneath the back of the head. Alas with candy in hand the students withdrew from inflicting pain and went on to discuss where they were going to go for the after party party.

The Monkey survived but was it a good thing? Over the next few months the Monkey sat in the student work area, each day reliving the torture and being mocked by not fulfilling its destiny of dying a good death as every pinata should. Just like Lieutenant Dan in Forest Gump, pain swelled up for not continuing the family legacy which for the Monkey was perishing at a party. The Monkey's mother, father, brother and sister had all suffered an end to its existence but not the Monkey.

Seconds lasted minutes, minutes lasted hours, hours lasted days and days lasted weeks as time stood still for the Monkey. At the end of June he looked around and something was happening. Things were changing and items from the room disappearing. Then all of a sudden the Monkey was whisked away from its spot on top of a bookshelf, thrown in a box, hauled to another building and placed in an area that looked like a conference room.

After noticing glaring looks from passerbys, a feeling of being disliked was added to the feeling of shame. His time in the room was shortlived, however, as he was soon moved into a room next door.

Deciding to make the most of his time and stop feeling sorry for himself, the Monkey chose to pass on wisdom to people walking by with short messages such as chinese proverbs or intelligent sayings.

Things were going great for the Monkey as he became fond of his three best friends in the video office. He started to see all of them wearing headphones a lot and so to fit in decided to put headphones on himself. The messages were well received and the Monkey turned his sad, despressed lifestyle into one with joy.

Then one day a new member of the office was introduced and things turned again for the Monkey. A Beta fish named Sir Chester Wilson Marbles III came and started getting all the attention. Instagram photos were now being taken of the fish instead of the Monkey, days would go by without messages being posted and the fish was being fed. The Monkey never received food.

The fish laughed at the Monkey for all the attention it had taken away from him. Every day the fish would swim back and forth laughing away. This drove the Monkey crazy and hatred swelled up. The Monkey knew that the only way to make things right again was to kill Sir Chester Wilson Marbles III. As seen by the fish chalk outline the Monkey's message is getting across.

This story to be continued .....
   

What is up with my 30's birthdays?

So far I have experienced two birthdays in my 30's and neither has been all that great. Yet at the same time both have been special in their own way.

For many years in my 20's I chose to not only celebrate Sept. 18 on my real birthday but I chose to celebrate for seven total days in what I called a birthday week. I wanted to go to dinner, to a movie, bowling or just hang out with friends at home with a few cold beers each day for seven days. Why celebrate for just one day? That was my thought but long gone are the birthday weeks and I have paid the price for the dismissal of the week-long celebration.

A lot of people dread turning 30 years old. I for one welcomed the opportunity as I considered a leap into the grown up world finally. I thought with a new decade of years would come a growth in my career, mind and overall life. In some regards that has happened I guess. On my 30th birthday I was driving six hours in my blue truck to complete my move from North Carolina to Texas. I was starting a new job at UT with hopes of taking a step forward in my career. I was totally wrong on that looking back over the last year but I won't get into that much. This past year has tested me in many ways and I have failed in some but the experiences has made me feel more grown up. I no longer party like I used to and certainly think more about my health and finances than ever before. I miss the old me but felt these changes were necessary.

Back to my actual 30th birthday. Moving and driving to an unknown place with so many questions rushing through your head is not an easy thing to do. I was not only changing jobs but packing up and moving halfway across the U.S. to a new city, new state, new timezone and a place I knew nobody all after having just a few days to make a decision to move or not. Add on to that I was leaving a place where I had developed some really great friendships and had a great job. It was not easy to do but felt like I could move up in the business by doing it. Leaving my friends was a lot harder than I thought it would be. The two days prior to leaving weighed heavy on my heart and made me depressed. It would last for several months which was a sign I shouldn't have left in my mind. This made my birthday even tougher as I had planned a reverse surprise birthday party which was my way of giving back to all my friends as my own birthday present. Canceling the party and not spending my b-day with them was rough.

A few things really turned my birthday around however. As I was having breakfast in a  hotel in Longwood, Texas, I received a call from my friend Ashley, one of those friends I had left behind in N.C. I answered and it was her aunt singing me happy birthday. I had gotten to know her aunt and other members of her family through their generosity of having me to their house for Thanksgiving and a summer weekend at the lake. This turned a frown upside down in a hurry and made the environment in old blue for the six hour drive look more like a unicorn prancing on a rainbow than a ship lost at sea on a drury, rainy afternoon. Before I had left I discovered I had family in Austin and planned to meet them for dinner when I arrived. This cheered me up even more as they came to a place down the road from my hotel, bought me dinner and even brought birthday treats. Family always makes things better no matter how well you know them and for me family is the most important thing in my world. So what wasn't the best birthday I ever had turned into a pretty good one with those two things and the numerous texts/calls/emails I received as well.

One year later I am more settled in and not moving when I turn 31. Things were a lot different from a year prior but I was adjusting to life in the 30's no matter how different it was from my glory days in 20-29. Par for the course I got called in for an early meeting at work. Whenever I get called into a meeting it is never a good thing so I knew that was bad for starters but I also missed out on my chance at stopping for a chicken biscuit, one of the few pleasures I look forward to anymore.

Things picked up after the meeting as Margaret, our administrative assistant, had hung a happy birthday banner on the outside of our office. I quickly forgot about the meeting and moved forward with my day. Many calls and texts later had me walking on sunshine. After work I went with some friends to a local establishment for some trivia. Just prior to leaving I had a sharp pain in my chest but I thought it was because I was still at work at 6 p.m. on my birthday. I dismissed the pain and went to have a few beers and hang out with office mates.

Two beers, 15 missed questions and three hours later the pain in my chest had increased and became more frequent. I complained vocally and must have caused worry from my friends. They insisted I get it checked out and since it was by my heart I didn't fight the idea. We ended up finding a hospital nearby and both Michael (Tomko) and Mary went with me to the ER. I felt guilty going to the ER when I was certain it was probably nothing. However, you shouldn't mess around with pain near the heart of all places. Over one hour in we were still making fun of my hospital gown as I sat in the lobby. Then I finally got called into the hospital exam area. At this time Tomko took Mary home but I really appreciated the concern and worry she expressed for me for the two hours she kept me company. As I went through more tests Tomko returned and met me in the exam room. An exhausting four more hours went by before I was dismissed just before 4 a.m. Tomko was by my side the entire time and luckily good news came from the tests as it turned out to be a weird muscular injury where muscle broke down and seeped into my blood. Not the best way to end my birthday. Usually you would think being drunk as a skunk would put you in the ER if anything would on your birthday but not this time. It was still a decent birthday, however, because of the support of friends during a time where I was pretty freaked out. Thanks so much Tomko and Mary!!!

I hope the remaining birthdays in my 30's are a lot better but no matter what happens on them I will walk away with a smile as long as I have friends and family doing the little things to make them special.

The Great Turtle Race

Remember the story of the tortoise and the hare, the Aesop fable where the hare kept saying how fast it could run and beat the tortoise easily but the tortoise won anyway. This brought the saying slow and steady wins the race.

Well there was no hare in the race I witnessed on Friday night. It was all turtles - six of them in fact - in what would be some of the most exciting and unpredictable races ever.

Little Woodrows in Austin provided this entertainment for a large crowd of turtle racing enthusiasts. Ok maybe they had never seen a turtle race before like myself but the energy in the place was outstanding. First let me explain how this works.

Six turtles, all with great names such as Pearl Snap, Frank the Tank, Boris, Turbo, Testudo and Soup, are placed in the center of the ring inside a bucket. Prior to the race you get a raffle ticket and can pick which turtle you think will win. The raffle ticket is placed in the numbered bucket matching the number on the turtle. If that turtle wins a ticket is drawn from the bucket and a prize awarded.

At the start of the race the bucket is lifted leaving a mad dash for the first turtle to cross outside the line of the circle. The champion is not crowned right away as a turtle has to win twice to be declared the winner. It could be two quick races or as many as seven to name a winner.

Once the bucket was lifted it was utter chaos. One turtle sprinted out to the lead, turning around and heading back to the middle. A turtle jumping in front of another turtle to cut off the path of victory. Three turtles barely moving a muscle and wanting to climb inside their shell because they can't handle the spotlight. This is where you see what turtles are made of. Turtle races separate the best from the rest. 

For a look at how great this is check out my video.

Turtle racing goes all the way back to 1902 when the first turtle race was held in Chicago (Thanks Wikipedia). It was dubbed the "Strangest race ever run" by the Chicago Tribune. Apparently Longville, Minnesota's claim to fame is they are the Turtle Racing Capital of the World so I need to make a trip there one summer. They have been running turtle races since the 1950's.

Now that I have witnessed this wonderful spectacle I plan on going back again and again. The Little Woodrows by my apartment does it every Tuesday night and the one downtown is every Friday night through the summer. Come visit and we can go watch the turtle races together!

Walk a mile in her shoes or run 3,000 barefoot

Does everyone remember the song by the Proclaimers called I would walk 500 miles? Well I read a story about a girl who is doing a lot more than that. She is running across the United States. Not only is she running across the country but she is doing it barefoot.

Rae Heim, an 18-year old from Iowa, is running barefoot from Boston to Huntington Beach, Calif. She left Boston in April and plans to get to Huntington Beach in October. She started out just to do this and prove to people that she could run but it has turned into a fundraiser for Soles4Shoes, a charity that supplies shoes to needy children.

I think about what she is doing at 18 years old and then try to think about what I was doing at the same age. I was a freshman in college, wide-eyed and driven. I tried to get my hands in about as much as I could including being a sports anchor on TV, calling high school football games on the radio, writing a movie review column for a newspaper, singing in a barbershop choir (that one might surprise some people) but those are all pretty minor compared to running across the United States to raise money for a charity.

Now I hate running. Well it isn't so much that I hate running but I hate how my legs feel during and after runs because they are carrying around my beer gut that I spent years in heavy training to achieve. I also have the lung capacity of a chipmunk and have to stop every little bit because I am breathing harder than I am running.

All that aside I would love to do something like what Rae Heim is doing. Maybe the answer is not running but I have thought before about doing an around-the-world trip. Doing it in 80 days is not near as much of a feat as when Jules Verne dreamed it up so that angle is shot. I do like a lot of the ideas from the story though so my twist that I would like to do is pick a sum of money (maybe $10,000) and do an around-the-world trip in less than that amount. It would be challenging and I would have to be creative in finding ways to move about but fun none-the-less.

Until I get the money, or more importantly the time ,to undertake this challenge I will be left admiring what an 18-year old from Iowa is doing this summer. She started out running about 40 miles per day until she twisted her ankle and cut it to about 20 per day. She stops and rests for a day or two every now and then but a 3,000-mile run is nothing to sneeze at no matter how you break it down.

If you to want to follow Rae's journey here is the website I found ... http://flavors.me/raeainslee 

Blevinicus: Work and Eat

In my two glorious days off this weekend following a three-day NCAA Track meet I had the pleasure (haha) of hosting, I went back and rewatched the TV show Spartacus: Blood and Sand. While the quality of several of the scenes is laughable I am entrenched in the plot lines of the show. Granted it is a show filled mostly of blood and nudity which is not normally my cup of tea. However, it contains so much more than that built in the storylines of the characters. To those who have not seen it, it is about a man who goes off to fight a war in conjunction with the Romans and after some betrayel from the Romans and some killing of the Roman army he has his wife taken away and he is sold as a slave to a place that trains gladiators.

It is one of those shows that you get so involved with you start picturing yourself as a part of the show, going through what ifs in your head. When I am done thinking about how poor of a gladiator I would be, I begin to carry forth the premis of the show to my own life.

This show would be called Blevinicus: Work and Eat. Whereas all the gladiator show contains is blood and sand (and nudity) for the most part, my show (or life) pretty much contains work and eat. There may be a little bit of sleep mixed in there but even that is rare. Spartacus' entire being was driven by his one true love, Sura. He would give anything including his life to be with her for eternity. I have no equal to this as I have not found the lady to strike me this way. I picture the day when such love exists and I have one to call my own. For now the thing that drives me the most is getting to a day off. I fight through the weeks on end of consecutive work only to taste the sweetness of one day where I am not called, emailed or texted about work. These days are so uncommon that when they do come I struggle to think of how to spend them and end up watching 20 some hours of a gladiator TV show. These days off are my Sura or if you compare it to Braveheart, my freedom. Spartacus got through most days thinking of the time he would be with his wife again. I get through most days thinking of lunch and getting out of the office to go eat.

In the TV show, the gladiators fight in the arena, some for fame and money, others to stay alive and gain their freedom. I fight the battles of hosting events and dealing with others. In my job there is a lot we can't control. We have no control over the outcome of an event and often have to wait on others constantly to get what we need done. I would say for something that takes 10 minutes I usually wait an hour's time. There is no fame or money in our job no matter how much we dream of it so I guess that leaves me just trying to stay alive and gain the freedom of one day off every couple of months.

Some of my favorite movies are the ones where there is a very well-though out plan. This is one of the reasons why the A-Team was such a great show. Every episode included a plan to carry out to save somebody and destroy the bad guy. And like Hannibal Smith, I love it when a plan comes together. Spartacus had a couple of genious plans to kill everybody and escape slavery. I like to think that I would have the capability to come up with such a plan and maybe one day I could write for movies doing just such a think. The Oceans 11, 12 and 13 movies all had great plans as did the Thomas Crown Affair. I plan in my head all the time ways that I can enjoy my day off but I always fail to execute and end up on my couch watching movies.

I am not really sure if any of this makes sense but I seem to be in full Blevinicus: Work and Eat mode right now. I am still one month away from not being crazy busy with work and although I lost a lot of weight due to stress awhile back, the LB's are coming back because now all I do is eat and have developed a clear mind like what happened to the main character in Office Space. I sort of zone out, not to the point where I don't know what is happening, but just to the point that nothing worries me anymore. I felt very sick with stress in March and can't go back to that feeling so no matter what happens I will not get concerned over it.

I also find myself talking like they did in the Spartacus TV show. The other day I mentioned in a series of interviews that it was time for the Primus. Everyone looked at me like I had two heads. I had to explain that it meant the marquee event, the person they were all waiting to talk to was coming up next. In the show the Primus was the main event of the gladiator games and usually featured the top fighters. It would be the championship title match of Wrestlemania or the Kentucky Derby after a full day of races before it. I also refer to money as coin now like the show and refer often to things happening because of the Gods such as "the sky will open up and rain will fall if the gods have it so."

Big Ben meets Big Ben

I recently spent 10 days in Europe for my last master's class at Virginia Commonwealth University. Most people question my degree because of this class but to me it was well deserved after trying to mix in an average 50-60 hour work week with two classes per semester and all the work that went into doing well in those classes. Since so much came out of this class in Dublin, Liverpool, London and Paris I decided to break it down by categories for this blog.

Big Ben vs. Big Ben
I would like to start with the obvious highlight of the trip. Myself "Big Ben" finally met face-to-face with the famously named Big Ben in London. I feel there was mutual respect between the two. I had no idea that Big Ben was a bell and not the giant clock but the bell tolls for thee. I have tried to live down the National Lampoon's line "Look kids, Big Ben, Parliament" for quite a few years but my experience was similar. As was the case with much of the trip it was a quick view and then on to the next thing. I would have loved to spend some time there but I was just happy we got to see so many things in such a short amount of time.

Big Ben vs. Big Ben

Dublin

I was really excited about going to Dublin and drinking like an Irishman. However, the city was even better than I imagined. One of my favorite things was the cobblestone streets that went through the Temple bar district. It would not be fun to run a marathon on but lucky for me I don't like running period so I was ok. It was my first experience with traffic flowing in the opposite direction of the U.S. though. Good thing I was taught to look both ways before crossing the street because the tendency to look left first was still intact. 

Cobblestone Streets

Dublin Drinking

Now I still accomplished my goal for drinking in Dublin. However, the first night I had five beers and stumbled back to the hotel. I blame it on the jet lag and having not slept more than four hours in the previous 36 hours but it could have been that I am getting old and can't hang like I used to. After three I felt a little buzzed and started to head back to the hotel. The beers ran through me quickly and I had to stop twice at a pub along the way to use the restroom and of course get another beer. I was proud that I tried different beers every place I went the entire trip. My internal GPS did get me back to the hotel eventually and luckily my roomate, Greg, was in the lobby to help me find the room. The next night I did much better, drinking just as many beers or one or two more and not feeling buzzed at all. 

I enjoyed my Guinness

Guinness Storehouse

The coolest thing we did in Dublin was go to the Guinness Storehouse. We were pushing closing time as our previous tour ran long but managed to call ahead and have the tickets waiting for us. As we were about to go on the tour, we found out the free beers were about to close up shop as well so we skipped the tour and went for the important stuff. Greg and I were apparently the only ones who listened to the announcement that the fourth floor was learn how to pour the perfect pint and the sixth was the bar. We went and learned the tricks of the trade, gaining a certificate of excellence afterwards to go with our perfectly-poured beer. Everyone else just went and some other person pour it for them. I don't like Guinness but that is U.S. Guinness. Dublinites tell me it is the water but whatever the reason Guinness is very good in Ireland. I filled my second night with pints of Guinness in fact. One of those was free as the bar on the sixth floor was about to close and our small group talked the bartender into giving us the extra ones she had poured. She kept pouring more after as a private group came in but we didn't want to push our luck by trying a second time. This was at the Gravity Bar which had a great view from the top of the tower overlooking the city of Dublin. 

The Perfect Pour

Dublin Sports

Contrary to how this blog has started out we did do a lot related to sports. In Dublin we toured Aviva Stadium (soccer stadium), Croke Park where Gaelic Football and Hurling occur and the National Aquatic Centre. Aviva is only a few years old and was very cool. It was our first of a few experiences where we got to walk out of the tunnel to crowd noise and music to the pitch (field). At Croke Park we learned that hurling is the fastest moving sport alive and ridiculous while Gaelic Football is not to be taken lightly either. The cool thing at the National Aquatic Centre was we got to watch swimming Olympic Trials races for the tri-nations although they were slower than collegiate races in the U.S.

Aviva Stadium

Liverpool

I will be honest. I did not have high expectations for Liverpool. The only thing I knew about it was the Beatles had some connection to the city. It was the most pleasantly surprising part of my trip as I had a blast. First of all the drive there was spectacular and everything I pictured in my head about England only with a lot more sheep. Much like driving through Eastern Colorado and seeing a ton of cows in every pasture, in England it was hundreds of sheep everywhere you looked.

Holy Sheep!

Best Day Everton

The first thing we did before even going to the hotel in Liverpool was go to the English Premier League game between Everton and Fullham. This game was a lot of fun as the hometown Everton won 4-0. Six minutes in to the game they scored on a penalty kick after a player was tackled in the box. The equivalnet of 4-0 is like a 50-0 football game = beatdown. Two Americans were on the field. With a shutout performance, Everton goalie Tim Howard made us proud. Also the most exciting thing for me was watching Clint Dempsey as he looks just like my buddy Tomko. Holla Tomko! I could not zoom in enough to get a picture in focus but he is wearing pink shoes. Unfortunately Dempsey/Tomko was on the losing team. The game was so much fun our grouped came up with the slogan "Best Day Everton" which was used a lot throughout the trip. 

Best Day Everton

Michael Tomko and Clint Dempsey

Liverpooligan

The term I came up with from being in Liverpool was Liverpooligan. We all partied hard like hooligans but did not stir up any trouble (that I know of). We were staying at Albert Docks which reminded me of the Inner Harbor in Baltimore somewhat. There were several restaurants and bars to enjoy. I knew there would be some crazy stuff when the name of a bar included Freak Show in its title. Yes, I ended up there and after having several drinks I witnessed two girls in scimpy outfits grinding metal to shoot sparks all over the place. The sparks did not feel good so I got out of the way but some embraced it and danced underneath. People were dressed up like it was New Year's Eve in New York. I don't get that dressed up, well except for the ESPYs. I did not fit in but still had fun.

Albert Docks - Home of the Freak Show

Cavern Club

The best part of Liverpool for me was the Cavern Club. This is where the Beatles got their start apparently. The second day we were there was a day off but it was pouring rain. I foolishly walked to find the Cavern Club and meet up with some people. It was hard to find and my directions were poor so I ended up walking for over an hour and was drenched when I found it. I had a couple of beers at the Cavern Pub first and figured I missed the group but then went across the street to the Cavern Club. I went down three or four floors beneath street level to find a jovial group that had twice as many beers as me hanging out in a cave essentially. I had some catching up to do so I started downing beers. The music was awesome and the band played several Beatles songs. Then almost the entire class showed up and it was a great time.

Help! It was a Hard Day's Night!

Liverpool Sports

Outside of the soccer game we did not do a lot with sports in Liverpool. On our way out of town we stopped to visit the Everton Youth Academy and found out it is legal to sell nine-year olds. We also found out that the Everton players make good money because we saw the cars they drive in the parking lot as we were leaving. After that we went to Loughborough University to take a tour. It was interesting to see the different sports at a University level in Europe and we got to see some cricket players taking some whacks in essentially the equivalent of a baseball batting cage. My favorite part, however, was the Sir David Wallace building. If any of you watch The Office you get the humor in this.

Dunder Mifflin knighthood

London

I was really looking forward to going to London but was actually disappointed which was the reversal from Liverpool. Don't get me wrong I loved London and want to go back but I really was excited about touring the Olympic venues. Unfortunately construction is still going on and all we got to do was look at them from afar.

2012 Summer Olympics

Furry Hats

I was also excited about getting a picture taken with a guy in a furry hat. However, those weren't around so I settled for one with a guy in a pointy hat. I read that if you touch them they will beat the bloody hell out of you so I kept my distance. However, the changing of the horse guard was starting so he stomped his foot real hard and scared the crap out of me as I was yelled at by another guy to move away. Later on we saw the furry hats in the changing of the guard for Buckingham Palace. I was satisfied with that.

Cheer up! I am an annoying tourist.

There are the furry hats

Picadilly Circus

The final night in London was free. Some people were going to see Platform 9 3/4 from Harry Potter (we took the train from there the next day) but I couldn't decide what I wanted to do. I ended up taking the train to Picadilly Circus. It was basically like New York's Times Square and unfortunately not a real circus. Although the street lined with strip clubs and sex shops could have had some circus performer types. I avoided that street and went to a pub that was four stories or so tall and had a giant tree in the middle of it. A bartender at place I ate dinner told me about it and I ended up hanging out with a man and two gorgeous ladies from New Zealand that now live in London. Another good night.

A tree in a bar?

London Sports

Outside of the Olympics the only thing we did with sports in London was tour Wembley Stadium. This is the home of the English soccer National Team. It was nice to see the stadium and Wayne Rooney's jersey but the cool thing was that the press conference to announce the National Team head coach was taking place while our tour was going on and we went right by the room. We also got to take our picture with the FA Cup but I was too cheap to pay for the picture.

Wembley, not to be confused with Wimbledon

Paris

Paris did not get off to a great start for our entire group. We took the high speed train from London that travels around 150 mph and goes underneath the English Channel which is pretty cool but the view around the Paris train station showed a lot of graffiti and the city was very dirty. Also our hotel was not in the best location. I chose to walk around and kill a little time when we got there but I felt like I was going to get jumped for about 10 straight blocks. Three to five guys were hanging out in front of every store and would just stare at me as I walked by. It was very uncomfortable but I made it back to the hotel unscathed. When we all got on the bus to go to a soccer game I sensed everyone felt the same way I did about Paris. However, the mood quickly changed when we reached a different part of town that was a lot nicer. 

Louvre changed Paris for the better

Robert

For the first three cities we visited our bus driver's name was Robert. He was a cool dude who was very friendly and maneuvered the bus around like a geo metro. He drove with precision and quickness that impressed all of us students. When we got to France we missed Robert and the new bus drivers didn't help any. They were all rude, obnoxious, crazy drivers and smoked like freight trains. I wish Robert could have come with us to Paris. 

Montmartre

On the first free night we had in Paris, most everyone decided to go to the Eiffel Tower. I ended up going to Montmartre with the trip leaders. It is a part of the city up on top of a hill that has a view overlooking the entire city and has some quaint cafes and shops. It put me in a very good mood and I don't know if I was feeling adventurous from the area or not but I tried foods I normally would not try. We had escargot (snails) for appetizers and then I ordered frog legs for my main course. The escargot looked green and slimy but I ignored the look and they weren't bad. Same with the frog legs but the garlic butter probably helped the taste. I had seven frog legs so seven frogs had to die for my meal. Not bad for a meat and potatoes guy from the land where beef is every meal. It was a great night as we walked back down the hill past some more shops, stopping for wine at a couple of places along the way.

Seven of these guys died for my meal

Versailles

We bused about an hour from Paris to Versailles which is the royal palace of France. We only had an hour to go through it but I could have spend an entire day. A lot of the ceilings and walls were hand painted which made the inside of the palace amazing to look at. The outside was even more impressive as the gardens were at least 10 times the size of the palace and all groomed like an Alice in Wonderland maze. We did happen to hear some gun shots outside while checking out the gardens. I wish I could have taken a golf cart to see all the gardens. There were single shots and some automatic fire. Either there was a gun range nearby or they were out hunting frogs for the cafe at Montmartre. 

Paint by Number?

How does your garden grow?

Last Day

We essentially had the entire last day in Paris free. I wanted to make the most of it so I got up at 6 a.m. to go see the Statue of Liberty. When I was little I remember going to New York and we just missed the ferry to the Statue of Liberty so my mom was upset we only got to see the back of it. I have since made it back and showed her pictures of the front and now, for you Mom, here is the front of the Paris Statue of Liberty as well.

After looking at the Statue of Liberty I decided to go and climb to the top of the Eiffel Tower. It wasn't open yet so I waited an hour in line and another half hour after that to get my ticket before finally ascending to the top. I weaved through old ladies and young children at a fastened pace all the way to the top. It is a lot like the Empire State Building with a view overlooking the city. I enjoyed the view but the time it took was unfortunate as it cost me a chance to walk through the Louvre. Oh well I did what every tourist should do and that is go up the Eiffel Tower.

American tourist in the way of a great view

Official Dinner

I guess every year on this trip there is an official dinner. We had the choice of duck or salmon and I chose to try duck. It was awesome and I ended up getting it the next night at dinner as well. We also had plenty of wine as the waiters kept the glasses full. It was a great night but there is a side story that goes along with it. I was told to dress nice for the dinner but I didn't know they meant suit nice. I discovered, luckily, the day before that all the guys brought suits with them. I didn't want to look shabby so I found a suit store around the corner from our hotel. I found a great french suit for only 49 euros which is like 65 dollars probably. I was stylin for dinner that night and now own a suit from France.

Paris Sport

The sports aspect of Paris was also pretty good. We went to see Paris Saint Germain vs. Saint Etiene soccer match. The atmosphere was really good with the fans doing chants throughout. Paris Saint Germain won 2-0 and scored on a penalty kick. Who would have thought we would see a PK in both games we went to. The only downside to this game was everybody around us smoked nonstop so we probably all got the black lung.

Allez Paris-Saint-Germain !

We went to INSEP which is the home of the French Olympic training facilities. A couple of cool things happened here. We got to have lunch with a ton of Olympians. Being in the room with so many possible medalists was exciting for me. Here are the elite athletes of France and me all together. It would be like having lunch with the USA Basketball team, Michael Phelps and Justin Gatlin for example. The other cool thing was they loaned us a field for us to play our own soccer game. Not to brag but my team won 3-1. They must have known my soccer prowess as they put me at right back. I played lockdown D to help shutdown the opponents fastbreak attack on numerous occasions. Best thing was I did not pull a hamstring. The final sport activity for us was a rugby game between Paris Rugby and Racing Metro. We received a lecture from Paris Rugby the day before and they gave us flags to wave. I enjoyed watching rugby and experiencing a new sport. The greatest thing was they had a remote control car to take the tee out for kicks.

Wrap Up

This blog is probably way too long but I had such a great trip and wanted to share my experience to the five followers I have. Although there is a new stats feature with my blog and it turns out I have had over 1,000 views, including people from India, China and Russia. In fact I have quite the following in Russia. By the way Rocky > Ivan Drago. For the people in India, ignore that we eat mostly beef in rural Colorado. Now that my blog is worldwide I am glad I can write about worldly experiences.

True Love?

This morning when I got to work I was checking out some links on cnn.com. After going down the list of ones labeled North Korea about to test a nuke, a New Hampshire police chief killed, three killed in Ohio restaurant shooting, two coast guard members killed in Alaska (sensing a pattern?), I finally came across one titled "A love story made at Chick-fil-A". I really enjoy reading people's stories about falling in love but this one was a video. Apparantly there is a group of people who go around and camp out for the opening of a Chick-fil-A. Now I love chicken biscuits possibly more than anything in this world but I wouldn't camp out for one because I can get them every day. I even had two before going to work this morning.

http://www.cnn.com/video/?hpt=hp_t2#/video/us/2012/04/13/dnt-md-chick-fil-a-love-story.cnn

These two lovebirds were camping out for an opening and they kept staring at each other until finally getting up the nerve to talk. When you watch the video you will be shocked at how many Chick-fil-A openings they have gone to. This love story got me thinking about random encounters. Could it be the next time I am waiting in the checkout line at Target that I find my one and only or I could be pumping gas next to my soul mate. With my luck the perfect someone is held up in a chinese prison because of a typo on her passport.

These random encounters that could lead to 60 years or 60 days of marriage can happen anywhere I guess. Another video I watched recently courtesy of my cousin Erica (Thanks Erica!) was from a show called SoulPancake. The name of the episode was chatterbox and what they did was put a ball pit on a street corner with a sign above it saying "Take a seat and make a new friend". What a great idea! I love ball pits and I could sit in one all day. I would love to put a ball pit in my house one day. Anyway to help the process along there were questions the people could ask each other written on bigger balls in the pit. (That's what she said!).

http://cozyhunter.com/musings/chatterbox/

One of my favorite references to true love was made by Westley or the Dread Pirate Roberts in the movie Princess Bride. If you haven't seen it the movie has fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love and miracles according to the storyteller. A couple of my favorite quotes from the movie about true love are "Death cannot stop true love. All it can do is delay it for a while" and "His true love is marrying another tonight, so who else has the cause for ultimate suffering?"

I have always thought of my grandparents as the ultimate true love example. They have been married 65 years now and are still going strong. Well they aren't as strong as they used to be because of age but they are certainly a great example for me and my siblings. Whether we follow that example or not has been another story.

I consider myself quite the romantic, using simple things to make an impression. With my bucket full of ideas and my recent urge to write a lot I have started to write my own love story. It will quite possibly be the greatest love story of all time and I am sure once the five subscribers to this blog pass the story on to friends of theirs and they pass it on to friends of theirs it will be picked up by Random House and then made into a movie by Paramount within the month. I won't provide details yet but the story will make a lot of girls cry and Pretty Woman will no longer be their favorite movie. They will have to pull this book off the shelfs.

 

Pink Flamingo has risen

With it being Easter and knowing the true meaning of the holiday, you know hunting easter eggs to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus. Well nobody really knows how the two are connected but I have found a way to connect them through my blog.

I would like to tell a little story about the birth or rising of my Pink Flamingo. Awhile back I found a pink egg for sale with directions on how to hatch the Pink Flamingo inside. I placed the egg in some water as directed and waited for the process to begin.

The excitement of this entire process was hard to contain. I wanted my pink flamingo to be born right then and had no idea how long it would take. I bought the egg over a weekend and each day and night I hoped progress would be made. I checked it when I woke up in the morning and when I went to bed at night. After no progress the first day I decided to try and speed the process along so I incubated the egg by moving it under the floor lamp for a little while. Sure enough the next morning there was the first crack!

Worried about the late birth of the pink flamingo I thought it would be wise to get it checked out. Since the ultrasound app on my Iphone cost money I went with the free x-ray app. Everything seemed to appear 100 percent good so I was pleased. The crack slowly started to spread over the next couple of days and you could see the neck and body show through.

When the head popped out I decided it would be good to transfer the egg over to a larger container in order to give the pink flamingo more space to breathe. Not wanting to jeopardise the egg or pink flamingo in any way I used some ice cube tongs wrapped in bubble wrap to move the egg from the glass to a bowl.

A few days later the pink flamingo had emerged from the egg. I now was the very proud owner of one of the rarest species of pink flamingo.

As most of the birthing process took place in a Guiness glass I decided to name it Guiness. Here it is in its new home next to my black bear that is trying to avoid being stabbed by a japanese knife.

Now don't you see the significance of the relationship between this story and Easter.