(Plutonic) Man 'L' Word

Before we begin, please copy the link below and open it in a different page. Make sure your volume is up...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zmo463Md7M&feature=related

Legend has it that in the year of our Lord, 1979, a bearded man named Pat was propagated in a snowy field in South Dakota. Legend has it that he crawled out of the womb and exclaimed in Czech, "I am the SPA." Legend has it that in high school his dominance in the yearbook room sparked comparisons to King Leonidas' dominance on the battle field. Yes, Pat took no prisoners, edited those yearbooks like a mad man, and earned the highly coveted honor of being an All-State Yearbooker. While certain fame and an abundance of money was awaiting this humble humanitarian, he turned down a professional yearbook career to spread the Gospel to thousands. Legend has it that he inspired many during the school-year with a couple stints on NET, a year as a gourmet chef, and several years of campus ministry. Legend has it that his summers were spent serving at Camp Gray (which btw is considered by at least one man to be the best Catholic camp in the country), not for a mere summer or two, but for nearly a quarter of a century.

Legend has it that a simple blog writer that hailed originally from the panhandled state of Oklahoma became acquaintances with Pat in 2006 AD.

And now, this is where things get hazy among historians.

After several years of friendship, there was a man embrace between Pat and the blog writer not unlike: click here. While most historians agree that there would have certainly been a high level of awkwardness during a hug between Pat and the blog writer, what isn't agreed on is the comment that came forth from the bloggers mouth. Some argue that "I love ya, brah," was exclaimed, while many others claim there is clear evidence that "Alligator shoe, draw," was said.

While I can't be certain of which holds the most validity, what I do know is that Pat Andera is a man amongst boys (Literally. I mean come on, he's 30 years old and he works at a kids camp), and I'm humbled to have him as my friend.

- Peace be da journey.

Adventures in train travel, part 2

If you haven't read part 1, yet, click here.

1:45pm - After boarding a new train that will take me from Chicago to Little Rock, I discover that while there are not assigned seats on the train, there are sections which are reserved for couples, and I lacked .5 of a couple. The train attendant moved me to the front of the train where I sat by a seasoned Amtrak veteran - we'll call her Lisa. She was eager to help this novice with some inside information to traveling the world of rails.

2:07 - 2:36 - Power nap, which was ended by an: "Excuse me, can I get by you to use the restroom," from Lisa.

2:44 - All this bathroom talk reminded me that a visit to the facilities was long overdue, and upon Lisa's return, I received directions to the bathroom.

3:28 - I finally wandered over to the observation car, which confirmed my thought that traveling by rail would be quite a relaxing experience. The observation car definitely does not lack in great views, making a journey through the snowy midwest quite beautiful. The seating is different in the observation deck as well in that there are seats that face directly toward the window, rather than forward like in a plane, AND, there are several restaurant style booths to sit in to read/write/people watch - with an electrical outlet at each seat!

4:31 - As I navigated the swaying train back and forth between the observation cart and my seat, an elderly man walking towards me heading the opposite direction says, “So we dance.” (Isn't it cool how elderly folks can say and do pretty much anything they want? At what age does this begin? I'm not wishing away my childhood [I'm told that it ends at 30 {which reminds me, I was recently told that a double parenthesis is faux pas, but it is legal to throw a bracketed sentence into a parenthesised sentence, however, can you put a bracketed sentence inside the bracketed sentence which is inside the parenthesis, or do you move to something like this squiggly line thing...}], but I'm excited to be a grandpa someday.).

4:47 - Caleb calls to tell me he’s leaving work to start his 2-week wedding/honeymoon vacation. As we're talking, I see two deer off in the distance scurrying across a snowy midwestern field. "Dude, you're getting married," I say somewhat in disbelief, as if he needed a reminder. I've had other friends get married, but I think because I still hadn't met his lady friend, it seemed a bit unreal...

5:41 - I wander to the food cart with the hopes of purchasing a delicious train style meal, only to find that the cheapest food item available was a hot dog for $3.95. I resort to the Austin Peanut Butter Crackers and a bag of Frosted Animal Crackers that I packed for the journey, because it’s a known fact that when you can pay a mere 50 cents for a quality roller-dog at the Baraboo BP Station, why pay 8 times as much for one that isn’t even a roller...?

6:04 - The linebacker from Remember the Titans is seated in the booth near me.

6:49 - You may not have heard, but word of my illustrious middle school basketball career made it to Baraboo, WI, inspiring the principal of St. Joseph Catholic Elementary School to recruit myself and a fellow Camp Grayer, Moty, to coach the girls 5th grade basketball team (which actually doesn't have any 5th graders - but we do have two 6th graders, three 4th graders, and a 3rd grader). I have aspirations of writing an article about the hilariousness and greatness of this experience, but for now, I'm going to watch Hoosiers for inspiration.

7:48 - I paused the movie as we take a pit stop in St. Louis.

10:17 - That Jimmy Chitwood is so hot right now.

11:41 - I finally decide to quit fighting my tiredness and I try to sleep in my seat. Although the seats recline pretty far and there is a foot rest at each seat, I've never been very successful at sleeping in a chair.

12:21am - After a brief snooze, I notice the two seats behind me were unoccupied, so I do my best to curl my 6'4'' frame into fetal position.

2:04 - Caleb calls to check the status of my journey. With an ETA of 3:00am, he's eager for me to arrive. I realize that we're stopped, and after stumbling around for a few minutes to find an Amtrak staffer, I learn that we've been stopped for nearly an hour, pushing our arrival back to closer to 4.

2:31 - I called Caleb to pass along the unfortunate news. I then return to fetal position.

3:48 - 10 minute warning from Amtrak staff. We're almost to Little Rock.

3:58 - Train pulls into Little Rock Train Station.

4:09am - Caleb and Hedger arrive with sleep goop in their eyes and smiles on their faces. While the train travel adventure of two hundred and one - zero ended nearly as quickly as it began, the real adventure of an extended weekend in Little Rock for the wedding of my good friend Caleb has just begun. While stories and pictures from the wedding weekend await publication from the editor of a blog, allow me to recommend, in the meantime, that you research your own personal train adventure. It'll be an adventure you won't soon forget.

Thanks for tuning in, friends!

Peace be da journey!

Topher

Adventures in train travel, part 1

I seem to fly a lot. Whether I’m flying to my folks place in Oklahoma, Grandma’s place in Florida, my folks place in Oklahoma, or some other random location, I’ve become so accustomed to flying that one might say that it has lost its luster (and that one person would be me). While road-tripping and I have a special thing going - a special thing that I’m not sure will ever lose its luster - I can only solo roadtrip so much (If you were to define my relationship status with roadtripping on facebook, it would say "In an Open Relationship") Back in July, when my buddy Caleb asked me to stand in his wedding in Little Rock, I knew I had a tough decision to make. Do I fly (again)? Do I solo roadtrip (again)? OR, do I embark on a journey the likes of which this young adventurer has never before experienced?

That’s right, friends. Amtrak it is.

I purchased my ticket back in October - a one-way ticket from Milwaukee to Little Rock - and have been anxiously awaiting the journey ever since. A phone call to the Amtrak office the night before I embarked helped to answer a few last minute questions, and as I went to bed that night, visions of the Polar Express (okay, I've never actually read/watched this story, but when the wife of a friend heard I was traveling by train she said, "Oh, like in Harry Potter!", which was met with a blank stare, because likewise, I haven't read/watched. Seemingly disgusted, she countered with, "Or, like in the Polar Express!" Not wanting to doubly disappoint/disgust, I enthusiastically nodded my head) were dancing in my head...

And now, in an effort to mimic my favorite article style of espn.com writer Bill Simmons, what follows is the play-by-play of my latest adventure...

6:00am - My Nokia 5600 cell phone alarm abruptly erupted (yeah, say that three times fast), followed by a swift poke at the snooze button.

6:10 - My Nokia 5600 cell phone alarm abruptly erupted (what if we morphed that into one word: abrupted) followed by a swift poke at the snooze button.

6:20 - My Nokia 5600 cell phone alarm abruptly erupted (are you still reading these lines or do you assume they are the same as before because they start the same?) followed by a swift poke at the snooze button.

6:30 - Okay, I'm up. After a nice long shower and two cups of coffee, the finishing touches were put on my packing, and I then loaded up an ice chest (or, for those of you in the north, a COOLER) with cokes (or, for those of you in the north, sodas) and snacks (or, for my brother, snack'ms).

Editors note: Go do an image search on google.com of "ice chest" and see which image comes up first. Seriously, go do it. I'll wait....

... And, boom goes the dynamite.

7:50am - A fellow Camp Grayer, Sean, kindly agreed to take me to the train station, which meant I didn’t have to deal with paying for parking (which seemed like a solid idea until I had 16 hours of solitude on a train to weigh the cost of $5/day parking vs. an extra round-trip from Camp to Milwaukee. At the end of the day, I'll call it a push.")

8:38 - Sean and I paid a quick visit to my old friends at the East Madison Panera Bread Co. Unhesitatingly, I ordered a cinnamon crunch bagel, which of course was bread sliced to my proper specifications (If you've never ordered a bagel "bread sliced" at Panera, do it now.).

10:23 - After being dropped at the Milwaukee train station, I strolled into the station feeling a bit out of place, even if my suitcase no doubt screamed, "The guy carrying me has traveled by trains for years..."

(this isn't actually my suitcase, but does have a solid resemblance.)

11:11 - The station in Milwaukee isn't a "hub," so once the train arrives, you simply load up and go. There isn't any security, no frisking, no bag checking, or even assigned seats. You just grab your stuff and go.

11:47 - As the conductor meandered through the train collecting tickets, he excitedly asked about my Pittsburgh Pirates hat. He told me that he has followed the Pirates extensively ever since the Pirates radio play-by-play man once traveled on his train. Two women behind me overheard our conversation and mentioned that they too were Pirates fans. This, of course, thrilled me - for a while now I've assumed I was alone in my Pirates fandom - and it also debunked a comment a man said later on my journey:

a man: "You play ball?"

Me: (Assuming he is making mention of my Aderhold Height) "Basketball?"

a man: "No, baseball, I noticed your Pirates hat..."

Me: (Surprisingly excited that he actually thought I was a professional athlete) "Ah, nope, just a fan."

a man: "Oh, well, there aren't many Pirates fans out there."

Me: (Hoping to end the conversation rather than get into a debate about how I was recently surrounded by 3 fellow Pirates fans...) "Yep"

12:29 - Arrive in Chicago, where an old college friend, Katie, is waiting for me with a Chicken Caesar Sandwich from Panera Bread Co. (Any day that involves Panera for both breakfast and lunch is a good day!) We reminisce about the good ole days (she once ate a spaghetti dinner with my family and flipped a fork-full of noodles onto her white shirt), devoured our sandwiches, made eye contact with a fellow train traveler that appeared two eye-contacts away from an all out conniption fit, discussed the improbability of my friend Caleb tying the knot, and then find where I'll be boarding for the next leg of my journey. The first portion of the journey was relatively quick and easy, but this next section of rail will test my adventure seeking mettle...

To be continued.... (soon!) (like in a day or two!) (Go Pirates!) (Go Thunder!)

Happy Two Hundred and One - Zero!

Greetings friends!

How the heck are ya?

I was reminded recently that it had been a long, long time since I gave the pages of a blog any love (I actually didn't need a reminder, as the pain I've felt neglecting these pages has been nearly unbearable). It's fitting that the last post I published way back in September was in regards to my newest adventure; grad school, as it has been mostly-to-completely responsible for the long layoff (which, if you're scoring at home, was longer than the recent sabbatical for summer camp - an unfortunate fact).

To update, grad school has been going very well, albeit more challenging than I could have ever imagined. (Who knew that a business degree wouldn't properly prepare me for the rigors of a Masters in Theology?) But, I've been able to keep my head afloat, and survived to live another semester, which doesn't start until the end of this month. Yes friends, that gives us nearly 4 weeks to catch up and to tell a few stories.

I'll be embarking tomorrow morning on an odyssey of epic proportions - a 16-hour train ride from Milwaukee to Little Rock to take in the festivities of the Bloyd - Johnson wedding. Mr. Bloyd and I met back in college at Oklahoma State, and haven't agreed on an OSU coaching hire since.

I'm excited to have 16-hours of people watching, blog writing time, reading, and more people watching, but mostly, I'm excited to see my friends in Arkansas. It's been much too long since I've been in the company of my close friends from college.

A 16-hour train ride? Yeah, look for a Bill Simmonsesque time table update in the coming days for an intense and exact play-by-play story chronicling this adventure.

I hope you and your family had a lovely yule-tide Christmas, and that your New Year brings nothing but fun adventures. Oh, and the staff at a blog are starting an underground movement... A discussion was hatched the other day: Is it 'Two thousand and ten' or do we call it 'Twenty-ten'? Nay... I say neither. The year is: Two hundred and one - zero.

Thanks for tuning in, friends.

Check back soon!

Peace be da journey!

Topher

Grad School?

Greetings!  Welcome back to a blog!

Meet Jason Richard Hedger:  

Jason is one of my closest friends from college.  While students at Oklahoma State, if we weren't dreaming of crazy sweet road trips, successfully pulling off crazy sweet road trips (ALASKA BABY!), or going nuts at OSU football and basketball games, we could be found studying hard in OSU's Edmon Low Library.  Okay, actually, although we both enjoyed the majors we later received degrees for, oftentimes studying took a back seat to the aforementioned craziness.  In fact, I once took this picture of Hedger because it was so rare to see him studying... 

Because of this fact, it's a bit ironic, and has come as a great surprise to many of our friends, that the both of us are starting grad school this fall.  Turns out, we both have passions that we're hoping to successfully turn into future careers by tackling a couple more years of school.  While Jason is studying to get his Master's in Counseling from the University of West Virginia, I'll be studying for a Pastoral Theology Master's Degree from Ave Maria University (I'm in a program that offers classes one weekend a month - with tons of reading/writing/and studying in between).  Our hope is to one day work at the same high school; Jason as the school's top-notch counselor - Me as the Church History teacher and soccer coach (this is actually a dream I just came up with, but I'm thinking Hedger will be game). 

Because there isn't a Panera within a 50 mile radius of camp, I needed a pleasant study area right here in my own apartment.  It's about time my two years of high school wood shop experience came in handy:  

In case you're scoring at home, the bottom frame of the desk is painted orange.  For those of you that have been to camp, the top of the desk and the bookshelf are built out of an old table from "The Joe" that was struggling to stay attached to it's metal legs.  One of my camp buddies, Joseph, recently visited and after seeing my desk he exclaimed, "Oh, looks like you built it Andy Miller style."  Mr. Miller, I hope this desk passes your "Andy's Dandy's" quality control inspection.  

Lastly, the response for the new "monthly mailbag" feature here on a blog has been overwhelmingly positive!  Letters have been flying in at a pace that has kept all of us here at a blog on our toes.  Please, please keep the letters coming, as we're excited to continue answering these questions, which we'll be posting soon.  If you haven't emailed your questions yet, you still have time!  christopher.clyde.aderhold@gmail.com

Thanks for tuning in! 

Peace be da journey. 

Christopher

P.S.  Oh, and how 'bout them Cowboys!  Go Pokes!

Clyde the Horse

Last winter, our stables handy man, Jim, traded two of his older horses for a young and vibrant gelding horse. Not unlike getting any other new pet, Jim had a task on his hands: What was he going to name this new horse?  Because I may have hinted at some point that Clyde was a good, strong name, Jim paid me homage by naming the horse Clyde.  

A couple months later, Jim stopped by the office at camp to take care of a few things.  The following conversation took place: 

Chris:  Well, howdy Jim! 

Jim:  Aderhold

Chris:  How's things going in your neck of the woods?

Jim:  Fine

Chris:  Hey!  How the heck is Clyde?

Jim:  Clyde's dead.

Chris:   What!?! 

Jim:  Winter did him in.  

Chris:    Well, why didn't you call me?  I would have helped you bury him!

Jim:  Oh, I just dragged him into the woods for the coyotes. 

Chris:   Good heavens, Jim.  What the heck?    

A couple months later, Jim got another new gelding.  The following conversation took place over camp walkie-talkies: 

Jim:  Aderhold, come in, Aderhold

Chris:  Go ahead, Jim

Jim:  Just got a new gelding.  He's got a big head and he's ugly as sin.  Looks alot like you.  Should we try again with the name "Clyde"?

Chris:  That didn't work out to well for us last time, now did it?

Jim:  I'm willing to give it one more shot if you are.  

Chris:  Thanks, Jim.  I'm honored.  

And now... I'm proud to introduce:  Clyde 2

Unbeknownst to many, the staff at "a blog" have both street and book smarts, not to mention a strong opinion, making us the perfect forum to get all your questions answered.  "a blog" is excited to introduce "the monthly mailbag" feature.  Ever wonder what our opinion is on a certain topic?  Well, there's only one way to find out!

Send questions via email to: (christopher.clyde.aderhold@gmail.com).   

Thanks for tuning in, friends! 

Peace be da joureny. 

A blog returns...

Sound the horns!  Release the hounds!  Kick the tires!  Saddle up and ride!      

A Blog is back!  

I've been looking forward to this day for a long, long time, friends, and my sincere hope is that you have also had countless nights sans sleep in anticipation of this fabulous day! 

Much has happened in the 104 days since I last logged in to this portal of fun.  Yes friends, we have a lot to catch up on, so brew some coffee and pull up a chair.  Go ahead and picture yourself sitting at your local Panera Bread Co.  Don't worry, I'm there too, sitting across the table with a cup of coffee in one hand, an apple in the other, and a smile on my face.  In case you need help with this picture, here's a visual:  

Also, imagine we have nothing but time to chat because this is going to be an experience you won't soon forget.  

Actually, although I just said we have nothing but time, we actually have so much to catch up on, there is no way we can finish today.  You know how when you finally get together with someone after you haven't seen them in months and you have a ton to say, but you only briefly touch on the highlights to fill them in a scosh, and then you say, "I promise we'll get together again soon so we can finish catching up!" and then 3 more months go by and the "friend" doesn't call you back and then you're in the same darn position as before?  Okay, that first part is you and me right now, but the second part isn't us.  Don't fret, I'm a bit of a local legend at the particular Panera you and I are currently chilaxing at, so they'll save this table (I prefer booths, but I'm not a big enough deal yet to reserve booths - just wait for summer 2010 (did you say twenty-ten, or two thousand and ten?  I know, we're in the midst of a quagmire not seen in some time.)) for the same time next week.  My bottomless coffee mug, apple and smile will be there, will you?  

So, to whet your appetite (or to make you scratch your head with confusion), here's a brief overview (some with visual aid) of some of the more exciting moments from the previous 104 days, with stories and details soon to come... 

MAY

- I conquered Beaver Dam Falls (with the help of Jeff) 

- The Pirates sweep the Mets

JUNE

- Summer Camp Begins 

- Camp closed for 10 days due to Swine Flu: 

JULY

- I discover an appreciation, NAY!, a Love for John Denver:

- My voice cracks during the parent program we have at the end of our camp sessions.  No worries, only 300 were in attendance

- John Denver slips to second as Neil Diamond effortlessly slides into first in the "Favorite old musicians list" - a list of old guys that I've always known about but didn't give a chance until now

- Mark finds his hat!

AUGUST

- Clyde the horse!

- Pirates lose to Cubs 17-2, fall to 19 games back

- Summer Camp extends to a 10th session

- Northwoods vacation

- Grad school here I come!  

It feels good to be back, friends.  I'm excited to once again be your weekly voice from the 53959.  We'll see you next week with a full length feature story filling you in with more detail on one of the many exciting moments from summer 2009.  Thanks for tuning in!  

Peace be da journey.  

I'll be seein' ya.

As the sun sets on "a blog" for a few months, here I sit, in my shabby recliner, with a can of Orange Crush and a foot long Tootsie Roll, pondering what to write about...    

Here's a thought:  Sitcoms don't go on all 12 months of the year.  What do they do on TV during the down time from certain television shows?  That's right, they show re-runs.  The fact that I'll be taking a sabbatical from "a blog" for a few months is no reason to panic.  It's simply a time for you to check back on some of your favorite stories (and if you're new to "a blog", this is your chance to catch up - sort of like the time I watched the first 3 seasons of The Office on DVD over the course of only a couple weeks so I would understand the upcoming premiere of season 4 - and speaking of The Office, has it really been terrible lately, or what?  Man, what happened?).    

For those of you that can't imagine life without my weekly stories and jocularity, I wanted to pass along a new option for both keeping up with me and this great place in which I am employed: 

Camp Gray's blog has been moved to blogger!  Due to some technical issues with our last blog site, we've transfered the Camp Gray blog (affectionately named "Misplaced & Found") to the more familiar and user-friendly blogger.com interface.  I've been extremely excited with this process and I'd love to hear your feedback!  Plus, now I can post at work and not feel guilty about it (just kidding Jeff & Rebecca!).  But seriously, you could say I'm now a professional writer because I'm getting paid to blog!  Sweet! Check it out here:  Camp Gray Blog

All that being said, I've come up with the summer schedule of "a blog" re-runs.  Check back weekly to view some of my favorite posts!

Have a terrific summer, friends!  I know I certainly will.  Please keep Camp Gray and our hundreds of campers (and our phenomenal staff) in your prayers.    

May 19 - What's scarier than a grizzly bear... - Attack of the Killer Shrew

May 26 - Why do I love Panera? - Panera Bread Co. 

June 2 - Growing a mustache is hard.  - Mustache Diaries IV

June 9 - "You want me to cut off what?" - Bucky the Deer

June 16 - It's business time. - Freedom of Choice? 

June 23 - An epic (true!) story about a young man and his head light... - Haiti

June 30 - Instead of a re-run of "a blog" this week, you should check out this video I made to introduce our co-directors to our new staff this past spring:  A Star is Born!

July 7 - Skiing the Lakeland Loppet, part 1 (skiing is a loosely used word, as form took a back seat to surviving sub-zero temperatures) - The Lakeland Loppet Part 1

July 14 - Skiing the Lakeland Loppet, part 2 - The Lakeland Loppet Part 2

July 21 - The tale of a first time hunter and lessons learned... - The Chris Aderhold Inaugural Deer Hunt Journal

July 28 - Why are they called, "coon hounds"? - Coon Hunting with Jim Riggs

August 4 - Gary, Sr:  A man among boys... - The Mustache Diaries Super Grand Finale 

August 11 - "ESPN called.  They heard things about your hunting..." - World Class Hunter

August 18 - Tall people have the ability to balance things well. - The Peacock Feather

August 25 - The sabbatical is over, and the fall line-up has been determined.  The sun is rising again on "a blog" and it's going to be a good fall (with lots of good stories - and maybe another mustache...  probably not, though)...

Peace be da journey!

- ChrisTopher

P.S.  Oh, and by the way.  With mother's day on Sunday, and my dad's birthday on Friday, I wanted to recognize them both with not only this shout out, but with an amazing picture of them hiking at Devil's Lake (which is a mere 13 minute drive from Camp - yep, you should come visit and we'll go there.  Yes...  You.)  

Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

Happy Birthday, Dad!

I love y'all!

P.S.S.  The Pirates have lost 8 of 10.  

It's May!

Can you believe it's already May?  Goodness, gracious, 2009 is flying by at warp speed!  

With the coming of summer camp (at the time of press there were only 40 days until the first week of campers!), comes the realization that my time to devote to "a blog" will become less and less.  If you've been thinking lately, "Gosh, Chris' posts have become pretty stale and short the last couple weeks (minus the amazing picture of Chris & Andrew sporting OSU jerseys last week)," then you'd be correct (especially regarding the part in parenthesis).  Already, time to devote to "a blog" has been tough to come by.    

Because of this realization, I've had to come to a difficult decision.  I've decided that my post next Tuesday, May 12th, will be my last weekly post until after summer.  I've hated that my posts lately have been well below the high standard we typically strive for at "a blog", so this seems like the best solution.  When will weekly posts return?  Let's shoot for Aug. 25, 2009.  It is truly a sad realization and an enormously tough decision to make, but I'm incredibly excited for summer camp 2009, so I can't complain.  

 

So, next week will be my last weekly post for over 3 months.  What should I write about?  It would absolutely make my day to hear from you with suggestions on a topic.  (christopher.clyde.aderhold@gmail.com) 

Because next weeks post will be difficult enough, I thought I'd take this time to personally thank you for reading my blog.  Yes...  you.  I know who you are.  Well, most of you, anyhow.  With google analytics, I have the ability to see how many folks check out my blog each week.  Not only that, I can view a map of the world with the city, state, and country of every hit my blog receives, and there are a lot of you (which makes me so very happy!)  One of the highlights of having "a blog", is viewing this map and attempting to figure out who is tuning in to my blog.  For instance, over the course of the past month (since April 5th), I've had 20 hits from Omaha, NE (Derek?), 13 hits from Broken Arrow, OK (Caleb?), 7 hits from Chicago (Katie?), 13 hits from Lawrence, KS (Lauren & Kristen?), 36 hits from Edmond, OK (hmmm?),  24 hits from Onalaska, WI (Ford at home?), and 13 hits from La Crosse (clap and point), WI (Ford at work?).

  

There are also hundreds of other hits that I can't identify.  A small sample: in the past month I've had 6 hits from Sheboygan, WI; 3 hits from the ATL; 6 hits from the Twin Cities; 4 hits from Denver, 11 hits from Texas, 4 hits from Davison, MI, and 6 hits from Westlake, LA.  I've even had hits from places such as Turkey (Istanbul), China (Laiwu), and Spain (Santa Cruz de Tenerife).  (Who are you people?!)  All told, since the inception of "a blog", I've had hits from 37 of 50 states, and 6 countries!  It's incredible to think that people literally all over the world read my weekly ramblings.  

So, thank you.  I love writing, and it makes it that much better knowing people enjoy "a blog" enough to tune in each and every week (or just once - such as the single hit I have from the dude in China).

  

For you students, Godspeed during upcoming finals.  For you working adults, don't forget to get outside and enjoy spring!  I can't wait to see you next week!

God bless!   

Peace be da journey.    

Birthday Boy!

Yesterday, April 28th, was my 26th birthday.

Many thanks to the many warm wishes, phone calls, and emails.

The guys at camp took me out to Milwaukee for my very first Pittsburgh Pirates game, as they were in town battling the Brewers. More details to come, but again, thanks gentlemen for a terrific evening.

This was all well and good, but the best part of the day? It had to be Andrew insisting that he wear his new OSU Cowboys jersey in honor of the big day...

Peace be da journey.