Thursday, July 28, 2005
Another Ferron trip...
...and a good one it was.
Only being a member of the Fink clan for a year, I don't have a huge knowledge base to lean on, but I do have my experiences. If there is one thing that is really apparent with the Finks it is that they really take their family reunion at Ferron seriously. This is the second of these family reunions I have been to, the first being just before I married Kristin. Both have been great opportunities to get to know the family.
This trip, for me, was more about getting acquainted with the family because I didn't feel like an outsider at all. I still don't know everyone, but I do know Alan and Debbie and Mark and Jenica. I must also say that I know others in the family for their lending of much-needed Band-aids.
The weather was very nice this year up at Ferron. The nights were almost a bit too warm. But, the days were not too hot. It was perfect for riding the motorcycles and quads. I was glad to see Chuck up there again this year. He's the quintessential quad rider. :) Of course, I fell in love with the stupid little yellow 100 because it's got such a nice riding position and it's easy to start. Yeah, I did dump it a couple of times, but I'm okay.
One thing that was really fun was learning to play Texas Hold-Em and Omaha. I really enjoyed that quite a bit. Note for next year: Have a bigger table. For once, I actually enjoyed playing Hand and Foot, as well. Really, for anyone who knows me, this is a big surprise. I'm not much of a card player, but I really started to enjoy myself playing that game.
Ooh! And who can forget the flies this year? Geez man, there were a lot of them. But hey, I guess when you go camping, that's one of the things you deal with, eh. I can't remember any time recently that I have felt as dirty as I did when we were packing up and heading out of camp. But, y'know, for the fun that I had, I think it was worth it.
One thing that I must make mention of is the night sky on Saturday night. It was crystal clear. You could see a great many stars and other heavenly bodies. I counted two satellites orbiting Earth that I saw in the brief time I was able to gaze up into the sky.
When I get some pictures, I'll be sure to post them on this or make appropriate links to them on other sites. I am very grateful that I was able to go to Ferron this year and hang out with the great Fink family. They are a great group of people.
Only being a member of the Fink clan for a year, I don't have a huge knowledge base to lean on, but I do have my experiences. If there is one thing that is really apparent with the Finks it is that they really take their family reunion at Ferron seriously. This is the second of these family reunions I have been to, the first being just before I married Kristin. Both have been great opportunities to get to know the family.
This trip, for me, was more about getting acquainted with the family because I didn't feel like an outsider at all. I still don't know everyone, but I do know Alan and Debbie and Mark and Jenica. I must also say that I know others in the family for their lending of much-needed Band-aids.
The weather was very nice this year up at Ferron. The nights were almost a bit too warm. But, the days were not too hot. It was perfect for riding the motorcycles and quads. I was glad to see Chuck up there again this year. He's the quintessential quad rider. :) Of course, I fell in love with the stupid little yellow 100 because it's got such a nice riding position and it's easy to start. Yeah, I did dump it a couple of times, but I'm okay.
One thing that was really fun was learning to play Texas Hold-Em and Omaha. I really enjoyed that quite a bit. Note for next year: Have a bigger table. For once, I actually enjoyed playing Hand and Foot, as well. Really, for anyone who knows me, this is a big surprise. I'm not much of a card player, but I really started to enjoy myself playing that game.
Ooh! And who can forget the flies this year? Geez man, there were a lot of them. But hey, I guess when you go camping, that's one of the things you deal with, eh. I can't remember any time recently that I have felt as dirty as I did when we were packing up and heading out of camp. But, y'know, for the fun that I had, I think it was worth it.
One thing that I must make mention of is the night sky on Saturday night. It was crystal clear. You could see a great many stars and other heavenly bodies. I counted two satellites orbiting Earth that I saw in the brief time I was able to gaze up into the sky.
When I get some pictures, I'll be sure to post them on this or make appropriate links to them on other sites. I am very grateful that I was able to go to Ferron this year and hang out with the great Fink family. They are a great group of people.
Monday, July 11, 2005
Instant Lip Enhancer
Okay, so I find this really fascinating. This morning I was watching a little bit of TV before heading to work. It was a really cool show on the Travel Channel about the best miniature golf courses around the country. The show was interesting in its own right, but what I found very captivating was the advertizement for a lip enhancer. That's right, a non-surgical lip enhancer. I brushed it off at the time, but just now, I was checking my email on hotmail (repository for all Dilbert comics for at least the last year) I came across another ad for lip enhancement. What the heck?! I guess it's considered sexy or attractive to have lips three or four times the size of Liv Tyler's? I don't know. I mean seriously, the lips portrayed in the photos had shadows under them because they were so big. I'm also thinking to myself that this may not be good. What if it causes a speach impediment and it STAYS that way?!
All right, so it was like Christmas opening my hotmail this afternoon. I hadn't opened it since June 21st. So, needless to say, I had a few emails backed up in there. But, oh man, it was good reading those Dilberts. ;)
Hey, have you seen Lee Iococca on the latest Chrysler ads? Yeah, he's the one reading the newspaper. Funny, he's an icon of the late 70's/early 80's, is the creator of the Ford Mustang (which he drives) and he's trying to sell brand new German Chryslers. I don't know about you, but that's a conflict of interest. We'll see how it works. Oh, and what's Chrysler's thing about employee discounts? It was really cool with GM, but now it's feeling like Chrysler is saying "Hey, me too!" Besides, I'd rather have a Cadillac CTS any day over some Chrysler.
And in more automotive news...
Just when you thought it was safe to cross the street: Attack of the Handcart, er I mean, Big Pickup. Introducing the greatest icon of opulence, the International CXT. Yeah, it makes the military Humvee look small. I don't get it. Why do you need a truck that can haul more load than you can legally drive on a Class - D license? I can see the headlines now: "Man arrested for pulling 80,000 lb Camper Trailer -- Roads Damaged." I'm waiting for Abrams to produce a "street legal" version of their M-1 tank just so that the uppity, power-hungry crowd will jump all over it.
Oh, and what's up with sports car pickups? People, if you're going to get a sports car, don't get a pickup truck. Trucks can't handle like cars. Period. It just ain't gonna happen. The geometry of a pickup or SUV is not right for sports car performance. Driving a truck like a sports car is dangerous. Mmmkay.
Movin' right along. Footloose and fancy free...
So I listened to the podcast. Pretty cool. It will be nice to have podcasts to keep up with the band news and trivia. It just took me a while to figure out how to work the iPodder utility. After I figured that out, it was smooth sailing all the way out. Ooh, I hope I have enough wind to make it back. ;)
Event of the little while: Teaching my youngest brother to drive stick. Here's a salute to Scott and the best second-gear start I have ever seen.
Song of the day: "I Get Around" by the Beach Boys
Browser of the moment: Apple Kilochipmunk
I really liked War of the Worlds. It was definitely really intense, and seemed a bit cliched (by Independence Day) but I really enjoyed it. I think I'll have to read the book and draw some of my own conclusions. Also, for more alien invasion suspense, read the Tripod Trilogy by John Christopher. Kind of a simple read, but quite good as I remember. It's been a long time since I read them.
Ta Ta!
All right, so it was like Christmas opening my hotmail this afternoon. I hadn't opened it since June 21st. So, needless to say, I had a few emails backed up in there. But, oh man, it was good reading those Dilberts. ;)
Hey, have you seen Lee Iococca on the latest Chrysler ads? Yeah, he's the one reading the newspaper. Funny, he's an icon of the late 70's/early 80's, is the creator of the Ford Mustang (which he drives) and he's trying to sell brand new German Chryslers. I don't know about you, but that's a conflict of interest. We'll see how it works. Oh, and what's Chrysler's thing about employee discounts? It was really cool with GM, but now it's feeling like Chrysler is saying "Hey, me too!" Besides, I'd rather have a Cadillac CTS any day over some Chrysler.
And in more automotive news...
Just when you thought it was safe to cross the street: Attack of the Handcart, er I mean, Big Pickup. Introducing the greatest icon of opulence, the International CXT. Yeah, it makes the military Humvee look small. I don't get it. Why do you need a truck that can haul more load than you can legally drive on a Class - D license? I can see the headlines now: "Man arrested for pulling 80,000 lb Camper Trailer -- Roads Damaged." I'm waiting for Abrams to produce a "street legal" version of their M-1 tank just so that the uppity, power-hungry crowd will jump all over it.
Oh, and what's up with sports car pickups? People, if you're going to get a sports car, don't get a pickup truck. Trucks can't handle like cars. Period. It just ain't gonna happen. The geometry of a pickup or SUV is not right for sports car performance. Driving a truck like a sports car is dangerous. Mmmkay.
Movin' right along. Footloose and fancy free...
So I listened to the podcast. Pretty cool. It will be nice to have podcasts to keep up with the band news and trivia. It just took me a while to figure out how to work the iPodder utility. After I figured that out, it was smooth sailing all the way out. Ooh, I hope I have enough wind to make it back. ;)
Event of the little while: Teaching my youngest brother to drive stick. Here's a salute to Scott and the best second-gear start I have ever seen.
Song of the day: "I Get Around" by the Beach Boys
Browser of the moment: Apple Kilochipmunk
I really liked War of the Worlds. It was definitely really intense, and seemed a bit cliched (by Independence Day) but I really enjoyed it. I think I'll have to read the book and draw some of my own conclusions. Also, for more alien invasion suspense, read the Tripod Trilogy by John Christopher. Kind of a simple read, but quite good as I remember. It's been a long time since I read them.
Ta Ta!
