best imitation of myself

good movie, good beer

good movie - Cold Comfort Farm - wry, smart, brit, funny. and strange.

good beer - Morimoto Hazelnut - thanks for bringing this fine brew to the partay, Jeannette (not Diber Jones).

bahamas report

check out the pictures here.

Our 4 day jaunt to paradise was in many ways better than expected. The location and facilities were beautiful, the people very friendly, and the crowds were sparse. The weather was warm and sunny, although the wind kicked into high gear on saturday and sunday. Too windy for sailing even (and of course far too windy for flyfishing). The fishing and snorkeling could have been a little better, but both served to remind me of all the good times we had in the ocean growing up (which wasn't very far away in fact). The food was of course excellent, although some of us had a bad experience or two. The guys came away as big fans of Kalik Gold (bahamian beer). Since my parents sprung for the all-inclusive package, I enjoyed more beer than I've had in the past couple months combined (which isn't as much as you may be thinking).

Michelle did rather well for the most part, although she had to take it slow due to the fibromyalgia rearing its head again. And she still had morning sickness, which in the end turned into more than just morning. But overall we enjoyed relaxing together and with the family, in what will most likely be our last hurrah before parenthood. We were anxious about the baby-on-the-way dynamic with my sister, but thankfully those fears turned out to be unfounded.

It was a bit odd to be in the bubble of the resort. It didn't feel all that carefully controlled, but in some ways it didn't feel quite right either. Perhaps the weirdness comes from knowing that all that stuff, no matter where you look, is there for us. We would wonder: are all these nice people being friendly because that's the way they are, or because they are paid to? Perhaps both. A few actual conversations we had with the staff showed them to be lively, smart, and friendly folks.

It's hard to believe I was eating cracked conch and downing a margarita by the water just 24 hours ago. And the temperature was about 40 degrees more than it is here. Back to "normal" life, which is a very good thing after a month of fun but hectic travels. The next thing to look forward to is the 2nd ultrasound and Michelle's tummy getting bigger and bigger.

bahama bound

for some strange reason we're going to the Bahamas this week. my parents got some unexpected funds from their parents, and they wanted to share the wealth with the fam, so they're taking us and my sister and her husband for a 4 day getaway at somewhat all-inclusive resort. with all the other craziness going on in our life we were a little worried about going, but we're finally getting excited. so bring on shorts, chacos, fishing, and lots of good food and (hopefully) good beer.

the funniest thing in st. elmo

for those of you who may not live in the heart of st. elmo, you're certainly missing some great entertainment. in case you can't tell, this is a custom-built trike, with a big fat (or is it phat?) stereo on the back. cd player mounted on the handle bars. best ridden at slow speeds, looking as tough as possible.

these kids clearly think they're the baddest thing on the planet, but little do they know they're pretty much the funniest thing around, although I certainly admire their ingenuity and creativity. but the joke fades when they're blasting profane and vulgar stuff at high volumes within earshot of toddlers. nevertheless, they're a constant source of entertainment, as there was four of them around this summer. as soon as school started and the weather cooled it quieted down, but today we had one come down the street. to make it even more absurd, this guy has taken to walking his contraption down the street in leu of riding.

sadness and fear

another co-worker is leaving today: Ben Horner is going off to England. This makes me happy for him, yet sad for us. We saw him turn into the best web designer I know, and perhaps one of the best, period. And his print design rocks too.

I actually miss him already, since for a while last year Michelle and I were in the same Bible study with him. It's funny (odd, not ha ha) that I've been in close proximity with him for over 2 years, and never really knew him until that time. And now that that time is done, back to simply proximity. I guess you'll have this in "quiet guys" of which I am one as well (mostly).

So he'll be an ocean away, and I surely hope we get someone in here that's even close to having his skills and personality (his chief virtue that I saw in this office: patience with all of our, er, interesting idiosyncracies). I don't want to slight anyone we may have already interviewed, but it's been really tough to find his replacement. But we'll go on and still be the best web company around. Or something like that.

Bye bye Ben.

angel mechanic - part 2

the saga continues, and I'm starting to think that this guy isn't going to go away. my internet patience and attention span is running short. but there must be a reason for all this.

so I show up at his place this evening, and he found a problem with the headlight, which was apparently the root of all this evil. but he can fix it, no charge. oh yeah he also got a ticket at one of the republic lots when he came downtown to find me today. add $6 to the tally.

at 8:30 he pulls up, and he says he accidentally blew the bulb, will have to get another tomorrow and install it then. everything else is apparently running better than ever. he tried to fix the gas gauge too. and the loose mirror. I find myself having to constantly tell him NOT to fix things. and he's doing all this on the butt-coldest day of the winter so far.

Michelle's out to see Cold Mountain with friends. So I invite him in. Feed him a cupcake. He uses the phone. He uses the potty. Uses the phone again (long distance). He talks about his family. Too much information perhaps. I even learn that he's recently been in jail a few days because of an unpaid ticket and failure to appear (in Rossville). He's got 4 kids of his own, but divorced. nasty custody battle over the oldest, who is 16. Apparently he's spent all their money trying to get his daughter back, and their car blew up on the way home from the court in georgia or something. His fiancee has 2 school-age kids too, and tomorrow is their first day at schools here in TN (they just moved from GA). And he doesnt know the bus schedule. After skirting and aplogising, he comes around to asking me to borrow the truck to take the kids to and from school. They're getting their car back from the body shop on Friday.

How can I say no? All his stories make sense, and he's proven himeself trustworthy quite a few times within the last 24 hours. He's saved our butts with the truck, and yet my suspicious heart wants to cut him loose. But I can't. There must be a reason why. So I make some calls arranging a ride into work and to borrow Dave's car to make the Dr. appointment. So the truck is his for a while longer. Michelle's not going to be too happy, but hopefully she'll trust me with this. I can't shake this feeling that there's a purpose for all this. At times I suspect that he really IS an angel. Maybe I'll ask him.

I gave him another $20 for the work on the truck. That makes it $123. Plus the $6 parking ticket. Less $5 in gas he put in the truck, and less about $60 in parts. Still not a bad deal. And it looks like I'm making a friend that I definitely wouldn't otherwise make. He saw our porch and he wants to come fix it this weekend. He wants to check the Honda to make sure I didn't screw anything up. He's as generous with his time as Scot Redpath, and that's saying a lot. And Scot knows a thing or three about cars too.

Henry said he talked to his mom last night, and she was apparently praying for him yesterday because he's without a car right now. Based on how he told the story, he doesn't seem too keen on prayer. But he said, that's when I met you. As if I'm the answer to HIS problems. You know what I prayed when the truck wouldn't start? First it was "sh*t!" every time I unsuccessfully turned the key. Then a pathetic, "Please God!" which probably qualified more as "in vain" than a prayer. But he sent Henry: the nicest, if not oddest, stranger I've met in a long while.

angel mechanic

I don't get along very well with cars. I have nothing against them, and most have served me rather well, but there always seems to be something. Perhaps it's because all but one of the cars I've driven have 6 digits on the odometer.

Well last night it was the old ford pickup that Joe Staven bequethed to me right before they left for Honduras. He payed very little for it a while ago, and it's served him quite well. Yet it's got 190k on the dial, so I'm driving on borrowed time. I put 10 miles a day on it, just to work and back. He advised if anything goes wrong, just to ditch it. Well I was prepared to ditch it last night.

I stopped at Winn-Dixie to get a gallon of milk, and when I turned the key to go home, it wouldn't start. Sounded like it may have needed a jump start. So I got a ride from my neighbor (there's ALWAYS someone I know around the Dix, no matter when I'm there). Upon returning with Michelle and the Honda, I proceeded to try to jump start it. Well, the battery wasn't clearly labeled, and I STUPIDLY got my wires mixed up. I am very thankful that I (apparently) didn't screw anything up with the Honda. But I almost burned down the Ford, as there was smoke coming from the overheated (and cheap) jumper cables. Michelle thought we were gonna die.

Apparently the smoke signal did the trick. Out of the night steps our angel mechanic. A talkative, friendly guy with a slightly weathered look and somewhat bad teeth, Henry came to our rescue. He got the cables arranged properly and the truck started charging. But it didn't start. Made some funny noises. He said he could fix it, as he's a mechanic (and carpenter and who knows what else). But we had an urgent need to get to a store out by the mall, so after talking for a while, and somewhat verifying his story with the Winn-Dixie off-duty cop, I gave him the key. He said he was going to get his tools (he lives on 41st and Alabama) and have it running within an hour.

So returning from the mall, we went to his place to find him in the running truck. He fixed it! I gave him all the money in my wallet: $23. But there's a catch: it was just a temporary fix, and he could fix it right tomorrow for about $50 total. Still not too bad.

Now it's tomorrow. He says it'll be all ready this evening. He needed to buy the part new (he thought his friend had one used, but it didn't work apparently), so I gave him more money. And I'm starting to wonder if I made a mistake. Will there be another "unexpected" expense?

Why did I trust this guy? I pretty much gave him the truck. He could have driven it away, and I'm sure I would have never seen him again. He could have been just another fast talker. As he was talking, I felt that he was being sincere, besides the fact that he raised one big red flag: I find it hard to believe anyone who tells me he "don't do drugs or anything like that." It really does seem like he enjoys helping people, and he clearly works for himself, doing odd jobs for cash. I think I can support that.

And I do believe that God sent him our way. He knows we don't have much money to fix this truck, and although it may be a vehicle more for convenience than anything else, it's what takes me to work and back. Henry has come through for us so far. He's only going to take home about $60 for all his trouble, so I feel like I'm getting a steal here. We'll see how it works out.

there's hope for us yet

After years of being blissfully unaware of what was on TV, I was particularly un-blissed to learn that Fox was doing a drama involving a family in the porn industry. Add to that the guilt that I felt because we just finished doing the website of our local Fox station, which of course promotes the show.

Thankfully, the people have spoken. We don't want to see a crappy romeo-and-juliet ripoff that revolves around porn. Cancelled after 3 episodes. And stay out.