Last Night's Party for Linda

Last Night's Party for Linda

Our pastor's wife was the big five-o yesterday so we had a party. Here are some pics:



Linda is on the right, pink shirt. Happy Birthday Linda!!

The Three Amigos: Hanson, Dan, and Mike

Mike and Karen

It was fun, even though we had some party crashers late - we gave them some cake and let them watch crazy people have fun.

WH

I Finally Cut My Locks

I Finally Cut My Locks

Well, it's done. I've been mulling this one over for the past few months. I have had a pony tail for the past decade. It has gradually gotten grayer as the years have passed - and I have less hair on the front of my head as it has turned "loose".

I woke up this morning thinking about cutting the "mane", and, after some discussion with my stylist, she clipped it off.

She cut off 8 inches of salt and pepper ponytail and it will be donated to Locks of Love.

It is always interesting to see people's reactions and just how long it takes for them to notice the change. We have a party to go to tonight so I'll post a short update afterwards to let you know how reaction times are.

Back in college I cut half of a full beard off - from the middle of my nose to my Adam's apple - one side was as smooth as a baby's butt and the other was bushy with growth. It took people minutes, at least, to notice. This was when they were staring me right in the face, talking to me. It could have been the 55 gallon trash can of Grape and Grain...

Hopefully the crowd tonight will be a bit quicker on the draw.

WH

My Freaky New Contact Lenses

My Freaky New Contact Lenses

Left, right, left, right. Blink, blink, squint.

I went to the eye doctor yesterday to get my check up. He is a brilliant doc who we do a number of referrals to in Charleston, SC. I had a few questions concerning my eye care and possible options.

I have been considering laser surgery and getting rid of my glasses

The possibility of "blended" contacts - wearing a close-up contact in one eye and a long vision in the other

Extended wear contacts for when I backpack so I don't have to mess with glasses while out in the "bush"

The simple answers for me were - don't worry about laser yet, I'll need cataract surgery later anyway and we can put refractive lenses in then - don't wear extended wear contacts, anytime, they don't allow your eyes to breath as you sleep, and let's try the "blended" contacts and see how I do.

So here I sit without reading glasses, for the first time in a year or so, typing away. My one eye, the right one, is my long vision; my left is the close vision one. It's kind of weird. Doing close up work my right side is a bit blurry, and the opposite is true when looking far away.

Since it takes the brain a week or so to adjust fully to this dilemma I will wait before ordering more contacts. So far I like the idea of not carrying my reading glasses around - one less thing to lose:)

But I do find myself closing one eye then the other, just to see how the view changes.

WH

It Wasn't Three Weeks

It Wasn't Three Weeks

In my post of July 11, I confessed to being a gadget whore. I was also calling Amazon.com on the carpet for stating that they wouldn't be able to send my camera for three weeks.

I just checked the web site (OK, OK, I've been checking 20 times a day but who's counting) and the item is shipping out today - 5 days after ordering.

Rat Jackals. There, now I feel better.

WH

You Have Got To Read This

You Have Got To Read This

I stumbled across this blog the other day and the post is very insightful. Have you been here? I have - on both sides of the equation - may God free us from this type of shit: either as victims or abusers.

Bridget Jones Goes to Seminary: Fundy Sunday

Thanks for the post Meg.

WH

Our Visit to The CF Clinic In Charleston

Our Visit to The CF Clinic In Charleston

Jen and I went to the CF clinic at MUSC in Charleston, SC this past week. We were very impressed with the doctor and his staff. They are caring, competent, and aggressive in the treatment of CF.

It is exactly what we were hoping for - the clinic is also a Phase 1, 2, and 3 center for trials regarding new treatments for CF. The staff and Dr spent a great deal of time answering questions and interviewing Jen. Treatments were mentioned that we hadn't even heard of (which was a bit irritating since we had been at another clinic for 4 years without any mention of these methods).

We are very thankful for people who have a passion to help others.

WH

Jessica Simpson's Breasts

Jessica Simpson's Breasts

I know, that was a dirty trick. I apologize to all of the "breast seekers" who showed up at this page via a search Google or Yahoo. This is just a test.

You see, I was checking my page stats the other day and much to my surprise, my blog entitled "Men Pissing, I Mean My God" was the most visited blog on my site, by a LARGE margin. Further investigation led me to discover that the search term "men pissing" was used to discover that page via search engines.

"So," I thought to myself, "what would happen if I put something that may be searched more than 'men pissing'?" So the title above was entered. Maybe it actually will not generate many hits, but my theory says that I'll have the stat counter spinning over the weekend. Either way I'll let you know how the experiment turns out.

Oh, just for fun I Googled "Jessica Simpson's Breasts" and got 13,400 hits in .27 seconds. I Googled "Wounded Healer" and got 132,000 pages in .31 seconds. :)

"Men pissing," freaking perverts.

WH

I Am A Gadget Whore

I Am A Gadget Whore

It's true. I love gadgets. But not just for gadgets sake. They do have to be useful...sure they do.

I have owned four iPods - two I still have, a 4th Generation click wheel and a Shuffle, 20+ mac computers, Handspring Visors, various stereos, 8 track players, speakers, DVD players, an Escort radar detector, etc. You get the idea.

I am getting a NEW gadget! I decided to get this little guy on my latest backpacking trip. I sorely wanted to take pictures but was not about to lug around the digital camera that we have - an Olympus C-4000 Zoom. It tales great pictures and we love it BUT it is cumbersome. So I did some research and some price checking and found a reasonable, small, and high quality camera. It's the Canon Powershot S410. I ordered it yesterday and hopefully it will be here next week.

Small Aside - You know how when you order from Amazon they try and extort shipping charges by saying that if you use the Super Saver Shipping they will try and ship it in the next three weeks - bastards.

I've never succumbed to the extortion and have always had the items shipped two weeks earlier than they threaten to. No matter what, it, the spare battery, and a larger memory card will be here in the next few weeks...yeah!

I'll get pictures posted as soon as I figure out how to use the camera. My idea is that it will be small enough and easy enough to use that I will be more apt to photograph stuff.

Oh, we have a new printer too (I told you I was a gadget whore), a Canon PIXMA iP3000 it will work seamlessly with the new camera. The little booger prints GREAT pictures.

Stay tuned for updates and PICTURES!

WH

PS - What set up do you have for digital photos? Share your thoughts and experiences.

I've Decided on A Definition of Successful Parenting

I've Decided on A Definition of Successful Parenting

Not THE definition, but a definition. I was talking with a friend last night and realized, that once your kids are grown up and are able to get as far away as possible, and don't, that's good parenting.

I mean, if your kids don't just do the obligatory now and then phone call and holiday visit, only one holiday per year mind you, then they feel comfortable and able to be themselves around you - that's a good thing.

I've wanted to be that type of parent - I will let you know how it goes over the next few years.

WH

We're Back From Our "Hike"

We're Back From Our "Hike"

Holy Schnikes! as Chris Farley would say. Dan and I are back from the woods. I have to confess, the hike was rated as "moderately difficult" and I kind of poo-pooed that having been on the AT and PCT. What? This was just a trail along the Chattooga River. Yeah right.

Well, it was hard. Tons of switchbacks, steep climbs, trees across the trail, run-off coming across the trail, HUMID AS HELL, and the last third of the trail going in to the campground had overhanging branches from laurels in regular and repeated intervals. I kept having to bend, twist, kneel, step over, and otherwise negotiate these trees - all with 40+ pounds on my back.

At the end of the day on Friday I was drenched from head to toe with sweat from the humidity - so much different than backpacking out west where the humidity is so much less. Thankfully I had my polyester clothes that dried quickly on my body. The smell we won't discuss. After getting some freeze-dried chicken and rice I was feeling so much better.

Anyway, yesterday morning, Saturday, Dan and I decided to hike out the 13 miles that we had hiked in and get home Saturday evening instead of doing another day, and getting home on Sunday. 26 miles in two days was a good tune up for my trip next month. I was so hungry when I got home last night that I even at he hamburger helper that Jen had made - I usually stay away from the stuff but IT WAS SO GOOD. I was pretty wupped, but it wasn't anything a hot shower, a cold Corona, and a fat belly couldn't handle.

I'm sore but satisfied. I promise to never minimize a trail rating again. Oh, and the great surprise was that when I got home Jason was here - he bought a truck and drove from Camp LeJeune. He's in bed right now so we haven't spoken very much yet, and he has to go back today. But it is good to see him before he goes to Iraq next week.

WH

Glad to Get To The Woods

Glad to Get To The Woods

I'll be gone for a few days backpacking with Dan. Need to clear my head and enjoy the outdoors.

I'll be posting back here Sunday evening or Monday.

Grace to all.

WH

Well, The Phone Call Came

Well, The Phone Call Came

As you may know, if you have been reading this blog, my son is a Marine. He graduated Boot Camp in December 2004 and has been training in NC for the past few months with the LAR.

His planned departure to Iraq was March 2006. That left plenty of time for us to see each other before he left - Labor Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas. March was also out "there" somewhere - months away.

Fuck. He just called and told me that his platoon will be going to Iraq in 10 days or so. 10 days! He was pretty somber and we just sat on the phone for a few minutes, quiet, stunned, thinking. My best friend is going to Iraq. My son. My flesh and blood. My hero.

Anyway, pray for him, his platoon, as well as all the Armed Services around the world who put themselves in harms way. Pray for his family too.

Semper Fidelis.

WH

Wanting to Waste Some Time? Do This Thingy!

Wanting to Waste Some Time? Do This Thingy!

What a fun way to pass the time. At the end of this paragraph you will find the link to go to the page that will generate the code for you after you answer one of the three questions for each state.

Instructions are as follows: bold the states you've been to, underline the states you've lived in and italicize the state you're in now...

Alabama / Alaska / Arizona / Arkansas / California / Colorado / Connecticut / Delaware / Florida / Georgia / Hawaii / Idaho / Illinois / Indiana / Iowa / Kansas / Kentucky / Louisiana / Maine / Maryland / Massachusetts / Michigan / Minnesota / Mississippi / Missouri / Montana / Nebraska / Nevada / New Hampshire / New Jersey / New Mexico / New York / North Carolina / North Dakota / Ohio / Oklahoma / Oregon / Pennsylvania / Rhode Island / South Carolina / South Dakota / Tennessee / Texas / Utah / Vermont / Virginia / Washington / West Virginia / Wisconsin / Wyoming / Washington D.C. /

Go HERE to have a form generate the HTML for you.

Now wasn't that fun!?

WH

Why I Have Macs For My Personal Computers

Why I Have Macs For My Personal Computers

I'm not going to get into a bunch of trivial arguments concerning Windows vs. Mac but as I write I sit next to a friends computer that I am trying to purge evil ad-ware, spyware, and viruses from. He had McAfee, Ad-Aware, SpyBot, and CW Shredder installed and STILL got bit. I'm presently, as I type, installing Corporate Symantec Anti-Virus to try and get the thing straightened out.

I read the other day that the average time it takes for 50 % of unprotected Windows computers, connected to the internet, to be compromised is 12 minutes. While the Dell next to me chugs through a deep scan for viruses, I'm typing away on my iBook that doesn't even have anti-virus software installed. That has to say something for the platform. Now, let me stop and give props to effective protection. Properly protected, and maintained, your Windows computer is safe and secure - I administrate over 25 computers at work and we have had two compromises in the past year - both forwarded e-mail viruses from a workers home computer to their account at work. Both were detected and quarantined by Symantec.

I like my Acer Tablet PC, I LOVE my iBook. It just works. Simple.

I have my favorite add-on programs which I use regularly. They make my life easier and my computing pleasurable. Here they are:

Two are from the same company: Ranchero.

NetNewsWireLite 2.0 is a RSS reader. I have 107 feeds at present that I can view and peruse without visiting each and every website or blog. Slick, fast, and free.

MarsEdit 1.0 is the program that I am now using to manage my blog - It rocks. You can read about the features at the website.

Here are some others:

SpamSieve - what I use to keep Entourage clean and free of spam. It's trainable and scriptable. Need I say more?

Recently I have been using Sync-Entourtage and AddressBook to keep my contacts between my two main applications up to date. This enables me to use Spotlight for contacts and lets my .mac back-up stay current also

Acquisition is a mainstay for all of my P2P file sharing needs.

That's it for now. If you have a Windows machine I feel your pain, especially if you get invaded, infected, or compromised. I just prefer the OS X platform. In a year or so, now that Apple is moving to Intel chips, we may be able to run both platforms on one machine - that would be so freaking cool! We'll wait and see.

WH

Getting Ready For The Weekend

Getting Ready For The Weekend

This will be a short, but busy, week. The office is hammered so far today, and we expect the next few days to be as busy as today. One of the docs goes on vacation at the end of the week so that adds to the load a little.

This weekend I'm planning on going backpacking with my friend Dan. Were doing a short hike in the northwest corner of SC. The trail is called the Chattooga and it is located in Sumter National Forest. We're both pretty excited and I'm ready to do some stream fishing for trout, hike, and relax. The only snafu is a little Tropical Storm named Cindy. She is bearing down on the corner of the state where we will be. We'll be watching the weather closely - the latest map puts the eye of the storm past us at our starting time Friday morning.

WH

I'm Totally Stunned

I'm Totally Stunned

I have been watching Live 8 all day today and am stunned in many ways. The truth that 30,000 kids are dying each day in Africa, preventable deaths for the most part - due to lack of basic medications - is sad and sobering. This whole series of concerts is for awareness - not to raise $, but to get the 8 richest nations to step up to the plate and address this issue. Not to soapbox, but President Bush's appeal to forgive the debt that these African nations have was a good step in leading the way. I have no doubt that this nation will offer and provide aid for this particular cause.

Next, and not even close to the importance of the issue, I am watching Pink Floyd play together - Roger Waters and David Gilmore on stage for the first time in many years. I'm glad that something this important could cause them to put whatever differences they had behind - in my words, "they grew the fuck up and put whatever petty shit they had aside." There are more important things that artist's egos.

Anyway, the real issue is poverty. You can read more here - Make Poverty History.

WH

I Live With Heros

I Live With Heros

There are people in my family and they are all heros to me. Let me introduce you to my personal Hall Of Fame:

Jen - My wife and one of my biggest heros. Jen has Cystic Fibrosis. She lives with more crap each day than anyone I know. She has to do two breathing treatments each day hooked up to a machine that occilates her chest and breaks up the mucus and infection that collects which makes it hard to breathe. Jen loves life and is so full of "vinegar". She is so much bigger on the inside than her 5'3/4" stature. She is a great step-mom(I hate that term) and loves Jason and Jessie. She makes birthdays and special occasions so much fun. Jen loves animals and is presently on a mission to get another dog. We fight about this - I want another dog too, just not right now. Counseling anyone? I love my wife more than life itself and love how she loves me. She is my best friend, my soul mate, and my hero.

Jessie - My daughter is another of my heros. Jessie is 16 and courageously negotiating life right now. Do YOU remember 16? I mean shit! I don't know if being a teenager now is actually harder than when we were that age but it sure seems like it to me. Jessie has a job at a local restaurant, has a boyfriend(His name is Jesse, which makes things really fun), she plays softball, wants to run cross-country this year, is in Student Government - TIRED YET?, excels in school, has a social life with friends, takes care of her cats and shuttles back and forth between her mother's house and here. I admire and love my daughter. She is one of those kids that everybody wants as their own - I'm proud to be her Daddy.

Jason - My son is a Marine. He is still in training at Camp Lejeune, NC. His chosen job is Infantry and, through some interesting circumstances, is now training with LAR - Light Armored Reconnaissance. Jason is 19, loves to play poker, plays with his iBook and iPod, loves music, has a great sense of humor, and is a man of integrity. He is my closest male friend (see Jen above for my closest female friend). You should thank your fucking stars that we have Marines like Jason - he will represent his Division, Battalion, and Company well. He will be in Iraq next March. He is my hero. Oh, and he will be with us this weekend for the holiday. I can't wait to see him and catch up on what's going on.

I hope that you are fortunate enough to have heros. They spur you on. They make you think. They show you truth and set the bar. I have hero's in my home. I am most thankful and fortunate.

Have a great 4th of July Weekend.

WH

Take This You Stupid Ass, or How Brooke Shields Roasted Tom's Butt

Take This You Stupid Ass, or How Brooke Shields Roasted Tom's Butt

Tom Cruise hasn't been the most stable of actors recently. A few days ago he really stuck his foot in his mouth, NO both feet in his mouth, when he decided to pontificate on medication and depression. Dumb ass.

Well Brooke has an response to Tom that she put in the NY Times: Read it here.

Oh, and Tom - Shut up, please.

WH

The New iTunes 4.9 and Podcasting

I am pretty impressed with the new version of iTunes. It allows podcasting right in the iTunes application. Before, you had to use one of the great programs out there that retrieved podcasts and then used iTunes to load them on the iPod.

Now, podcasting is integrated into iTunes - via the Apple Music Store Podcasting page, or you can manually add a podcast from the particular web site you use.

Read more about podcasting here at the Apple web site.

Here are some podcast websites:
Podcastalley
Podcast.net
All Podcasts.com
PodcastPickle.com

I actually podcasted a message from Mars Hill Church in Seattle, WA and listened to it on the car on the way to work this morning.

Have fun and happy podcasting.

WH

New Look For My Blog

I decided that I needed a new look this evening and here you go! I should actually be gettting to sleep now since I need to get up at 4:45 AM and get to work.

WH

Men Pissing, I mean My God!

Ok, just a quick post. I was thinking about something my wife said, and mentions each time it happens.
In fact, I didn't realize this until she mentioned it to me.

Did you realize how many movies have men PISSING?
It's freaking unreal. Start taking a count. There are more movies with a guy(s) taking a wizz than not.

Second observation about pissing men. My observation, not Jen's. Did you ever notice when we guys are talking about taking a leak, and giving a sort of charade demonstration, we hold our hand like we have a FIREHOSE, our thumb and forefinger are not even touching - kind of like we are holding the business end of a baseball bat. Really guys. We WISH.

There you have it! Random thoughts about urination!

WH

Oh, Here's A Mystery...Not!

Ok. No surprise. I am somewhat of an organizational freak. I have need to be able to place my hands on any number of pieces of information at work. I have a filing system. My e-mails have folders, rules, and organization flags. My contacts are sorted. Blah, blah, blah...you get the idea.

One of my great quandaries and challenges (translated FRUSTRATIONS) is the inability to get my head, and hands around the 97 item to-do lists that my boss lays on my desk after an evening (or early morning) of swirling and making shit up.

He emails it to me, I sort it, try to put it into categories, and email it back. He makes notes and emails it back, and the thing begins to get a life of it's own - BIG, UGLY, AND UNTAMED.

So yesterday morning I do a Google search for project managment software - cross platform, web-based software.

Here is what I found - Simple software to help you get organized: 37signals. Amazing is all that I can say. I'm using the free Basecamp and now he and I can look at, add to, organize, communicate and update the same list without having to spend time sorting through 20 emails to find the latest one, and all other sorts of shit.

In addition, changes and additions can be configured to send out emails and RSS updates (I use NetNewsWire Lite), so you can keep track of completed items and the like.

Check it out. They have three types of FREE (some levels cost) organizational, web-based, cross-platform software. I am not a paid advertiser, just and amazed and satisfied person. Oh, and organized.

WH

Why Do You Think They Call It Dope?

True story from the local newspaper. I could have lied and said that it was from far, far away. I just hope that the guy gets neutered or something.

Augusta Chronicle:

MAN SAYS COCAINE DEALERS TOOK MONEY - A 45-year-old Augusta man reported to authorities that two men from whom he intended to by crack cocaine robbed him late Thursday. Ricky Edward Reese, of the 3500 block of Highview Court, said he met with the men behind the Kmart on Gordon Highway to buy the drugs at about 10 p.m., a sheriff's incident report states. When they threatened him with sticks, Mr. Reese said he handed over $75, which he was going to use to pay his probation officer the next day. According to the report, the men never harmed Mr. Reese.

-------------------

Folks, that is crack destroying one's brain.

WH

Two Monday's In A Row!!

OK, disclaimer from the start. I'm gonna swear in this one. Just thought that I would let you know so you could get out now if need be...you still have time.

HOLY SHIT! Wednesday and Thursday were un-fucking-believable as far as days go.

Think I'm exaggerating. To put this in context, so you don't have to read a bunch of other old posts, I wear two hats at work -
1. Practice Administrator: Taking care of the day to day operations at our Dr.'s office.; and
2. Systems Adminstrator: Taking care of the information systems at our Dr.'s office.

We have a state of the art, paperless, electronic, digital, and high tech office. That means LOTS of information systems and cool shit that breaks. We are one year old and, so far, very successful. Ok, enough.

Here's the short list of stuff, in no particular order, that happened during those two days:
1. Wireless, handheld credit card machine went down due to the company that leases the cell tower airspace went Chapter 11. We scan THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS each month this way. It stopped working Wednesday morning - dead. We resort to the "old timey" method of laying the card down and SHUSHUNK, sliding that thing over and back over the card to get an impression - new wireless solution will be $600 - $1000 dollars.

2. One of our wireless extension phones, we have 6 lines, gets a demon and will not dial out. All you get is a squawky noise trying to call out. Now it can RECEIVE a call. I try everything - no luck. Staff calls support, "That's curious, we'll have to log in to the system and see what that is." I hook up a back-up extension and it won't even install and "see" the base unit - so I hook the other base unit back up - NOW IT WORKS. That's shit! But I look smart.

3. Wednesday we have a total, instant power outage. The server and critical computers are on back-up so that we have 10 minutes to power them down normally. We do so and the power stays off for 10-15 minutes. Of course, everyone calls me to tell me that their power is off - NO SHIT! UPS back-ups are screaming all over the office. Oh, I forgot to mention that it's HOT outside and we have no air conditioning running. The real FUNNY phone call is the one that says, "What happened?" I can't even go there. So we power everything back up after the electricity turns back on - the process isn't pretty since we are state-of-the-fucking-art and EVERYTHING, phones included, is digital.

4. Shortly, an employee comes to my office, while I am on the phone trying to get the credit card machine thing worked out, and states, "the computers up front aren't working" and walks out. For 11 months we have stressed the importance of CLEAR AND CONCISE communication and explanation. We have 6 computers up front. I'm going to lose my mind! Which computers? What are they doing or not doing? When did that happen? I excuse myself off of the phone and go up front looking for the employee. GONE! I ask, "has anyone seen Jill (Not her real name for obvious reasons)?" No one has. Now I'm pissed. This employee is on probation anyway and has computers that are not working and disappears, WITHOUT TELLING ANYONE! That is a cardinal sin in a doctors office. When we go to take a piss we tell each other - ALWAYS. So now I have to fire this employee too. No, seriously, we had the, "one more time and I have to let you go" discussion already. Anyway, I see the offending computers and get them running smoothly again, with instructions to send the employee to my office when she returns from where ever the hell she has gone. Waiting in my office for her, another front desk employee pokes her head in the door and says, "I lied. Jill told me she went to the bathroom but when you asked I wasn't really paying attention and said 'no' without thinking since I was concentrating on something else." AGHHHHHHHHHHHHH! Thank you:) I just have to leave this little story here since there is more.

5. We usually get one to two patient complaints per month. Wednesday I am trying to get to lunch with a colleague, which I have done ONE OTHER TIME in one year - and we have TWO patients in the office who want to talk to me...NOW. I'm still recovering from the power outage and screaming UPS back-ups.

6. Oh, Microsoft issued 10, count 'em, 10 security updates - they got installed in the midst of all this crap.

7. Thursday, our office manager is doing something in billing and says, "that's weird!" Never good when people are staring at an alert dialog box on their computer. Seems that there is a problem that was detected and Microsoft is requiring a hot-fix. We proceed but now it MS wants to validate that we are true Windows XP users. So I am crawling UNDER the desk to read this little sticker on the side of the DELL that has the numbers while the Office Manager types in the numbers - we do this three times before it takes the number.

8. The same manager is unplugging her radio so another worker can use it while posting payments - sort of like watching kudzu grow in my opinion - as she is pulling the cord out of the UPS Power Supply, there is a "POP", a flash, she screams and all three power supplies in the room start beeping. WHAT THE FUCK! Seems like a paper clip had fallen from the desk on top of the UPS and when she went to pull the cord, it rocked the UPS, the paper clip slid under a plug and "POP". It tripped the breaker to the receptacles in the back office. I couldn't believe it. What are the odds?

9. My God! I get out of the office and am on the way home and my cell rings. The office. The server has spontaneously restarted and all of the computers are down - patient charts were open, 15 users were logged on, x-rays were being stored, etc. Everyone wants to know what to do!! AGHHHHHHHHHH. So I talk them through the crisis and all seems well.

10. 30 minutes later my cell rings. "Pete, charges are not coming across from the patient side of the system to the billing side." All together now...AGHHHHHHHHH. So I have to walk the employee through logging in to the server, opening services and starting or restarting 6 separate services to see if that works - it does.

Oh, as I am driving, focusing on this problem I get ZAPPED by, not one, but two cops RADAR. THANK GOD I have a Escort Passport detector because I was not paying attention to my speed and would have gotten a ticket for sure.

Now that would have made an already "wonderful" two days even better.

Ok, I feel better now. Thank you for letting me vent. There were 10 other small, bother some things that pale in comparison, but were almost enough to get me reaching for the Xanax. To let you know how bad it was, for RELAXATION that Thursday night, I got home, picked up dog shit, and cut and trimmed the grass - that was to dial down.

But let me tell you - the shower and ice cold beer at the end of that day were incredibly satisfying.

We're back off to Charleston tomorrow for Andy and Karen's wedding. I'll update from the hotel tomorrow night.

WH

Where Do You Want To Eat?

Don't you love that game? On the way home this evening my daughter called me to find out it I had gotten home yet so she could stop by before she went to work at the restaurant. Unfortunately I wasn't going to get home until after she was at work.

My brainstorm was that Jen and I would go out to eat and see Jessie at the same time. So after telling Jen and driving another 1 1/2 hours I came home and we got ready to go. The salad where Jessie works is excellent and we were already tasting the house dressing in anticipation.

So the phone rings and Jessie says that the hood in the kitchen was broken and the cooks walked out because it was 140 degrees. Bummer. We went into immediate depression. Jessie said to call her back when we decided where we were going to eat and she would meet us, since she didn't have to work.

Well, the whole "where do you want to eat?" scenario is pretty painful at our house. This evening it was extra sad. Jen was moping since we were all dressed up and had no place to go - pouting even. I made a few suggestions and the lower lip protruded even further.

Teresa's? Ugh!

Red Lobster? Ugh, ugh!

Outback? Just a look, a really bad look.

Ok, where? Amandas. "It's too expensive (me)" I'm admittedly tight.

How about Malia's? OK. Called and they were closed.

After looking through the phone book we were no closer to an answer.

Eventually we decided on a local hotel that has a restaurant we haven't been to in a while. We met Jessie, which was fun, and the meal was so-so. The real fun was re-hashing the entire incident that led to going out to eat:)

If you think that was fun, I'll tell you sometime about ordering food. Let's just say that one of us is a bit indecisive when it comes to selecting our "fare" for the meal.

But for now it's time for bed and another few days of work before going back to Charleston this weekend for a wedding - I'm officiating for a friend and his bride.

Have a great evening.

WH

Weekend Over

Well got the car back and the window had a bad regulator and clip:/ I ended up getting a loaner truck - a brand new Z71. I'm not really impressed by the truck thing. It was a gas guzzler and not very comfortable - I was glad to get my Alero back.

My hives are a little better - at least they aren't worse. It's probably nerves, or stress. There is some stuff happening that I can't really put in the blog - got some prayer in church today for the issue and that was cool.

Guess what we had this weekend? RAIN. It has been raining for days. Not all day mind you, just when you want to, oh let's see, walk the dog, cut the grass, wash the cars, run, or go to the pool. It's freaking uncanny. And irritating. The forecast for the next few days is the same. I spoke to a friend today and he said that he was close to hurting himself if it rained any more. I guess that I should call him tomorrow and see if he is still alive.

Off to Charleston in the EARLY am. This is an exciting week for a friend. He's getting married this weekend. Well, he's already married but he and his wife are getting married in public...anyway, it's kind of complex and hard to explain. I'm actually doing the ceremony and we are finalizing stuff tomorrow evening. I'll probably have some great stories this weekend after the event. He has some crazy friends. Pilots. Air Force pilots. Top Gun guys. You get the picture.

More later:)

WH

Things Needing Fixing...

On the way home from work yesterday I heard the wind whistling around the driver side window of the car. I decided to raise and lower the window (it's power) to see if that would stop the wind noise. I heard a disconcerting clunk-clunk-click as it closed. The window was coming off of the track or something. Since the forcast has been rain, and I drove through rain earlier that day, and I could see dark rain clouds ahead, I left well enough alone - it was still whistling, but at least it closed again.

I called from the road and made an appointment to drop off the car at the dealer. Did that this morning. The car is gettting fixed.

Then last night I was laying on the couch and Jen says, "What is that on your leg?" It was a rash! I thought that nothing was wrong and that there wasn't anything to worry about. However, this morning my lower torso was covered with little red dots as well as my upper arms! I did some research and it seems that I have hives of some sort. About an hour ago I took some benadryl to try and reverse the trend. So far the only effect that I can feel is wooziness. I fact, I think that I need to post this and get to some rest - I may fall asleep in my keyboard.

Jen has been resting since she had a bout of some stomach thing early Wednesday morning. I think that I'll join her:)

WH

What's your theological worldview?

Here's a quiz for you.

Emergent/Postmodern 89% Neo orthodox 79% Evangelical Holiness/Wesleyan 75% Fundamentalist 50% Charismatic/Pentecostal 46% Classical Liberal 39% Reformed Evangelical 39% Roman Catholic 36% Modern Liberal 36% What's your theological worldview? created with QuizFarm.com

What did you think? Comment your results.

WH

Back From Vacation

Well, we are back home, unpacked, and settled in for a regular week. The double-edged sword - loving vacation and loving getting back home to your own bed, routine, and, in our case a very happy dog!

The reality check was getting home and having to scoop up the piles of dog shit - two weeks worth - and cutting the grass. Ah, yard work.

We're relaxing tonight, watching basketball and the Brave's game. I will pack during the commercials and get ready to work three days straight in Charleston. That way I can get back here on Thursday evening and have the usual three day weekend.

I have been re-reading parts of "Searching for God Knows What" by Don Miller. The last three chapters should be required reading every 6 months for all people who have a relationship with God. Powerful stuff. If I told you what it said it would take the fun out of it for you:)

WH

Dad and I at The Phillies Game

Dad and I at The Phillies Game, originally uploaded by Macmania Pete.

Great game. Phils won 7-6 and the seats were perfect. We were in the shade the entire game and the temp went up to 90. The hot dogs and beer were the best, as they always are at baseball games. We were both tired but happy at the chance to so something together. I love my Dad.

WH

Pats and Genos Cheese Steaks

Pats and Genos, originally uploaded by Macmania Pete.

As I mentioned in the earlier blog from today, the Home of The Original Cheese Steak, are actually "homes." They are both seen in this picture. To make things really interesting Jessie and I got steaks at Pat's and Jen got her's from Geno's and came and sat at PAT'S. I thought that there would be a riot but all was calm. The instructions at Pat's when you order remind me of the soup Nazi from Seinfeld:

"How to order a Steak"
by I. M. Hungry

Step 1. Specify if you want your steak with (wit) or without (wit-out) onions. {if you're not a rookie this should come naturally}
Step 2. Specify Plain, Cheez Whiz, Provolone, American Cheese or a Pizza Steak. {we have lettuce and tomatoes / { if we have to read your mind it's 50 cents extra}
Step 3. Have your money ready. {do all of your borrowing in line}
Step 4. Practice all of the above while waiting in line. {if you make a mistake, don't panic, just go to the back of the line and start over}

Oh, and that is BLUE SKY that is in the background. The day ended with a beautiful starry sky. We are all tired and ready for a well earned sleep. Off to the Phillie's game with my Dad tomorrow. Should be a great day.

WH

The "Explore Your Roots" Tour

Louise Dr, originally uploaded by Macmania Pete.

They say that "there's no place like home." Here I am standing in front of the house that I spent most of my early years in (I moved when I was 12). The house seems so much smaller than when I was younger. There are lots of good memories and stories galore surrounding this place and neighborhood. My Mom enjoyed talking about some of the more embarassing moments - parents use this for some sort of payback for all of the ways that you embarassed them.

WH

Off To The City of Brotherly Love!

Had breakfast with the 'rents this AM and back to the hotel to get Jen and Jessie. We are off to the City. We'll start the tour with a visit to my old stomping grounds and then into the bowels of Phila - South Street, Liberty Bell, maybe Penn's Landing. I will be getting a cheese steak for lunch and starting an entire riot as to which place - Pat's or Geno's has the best steak sandwiches. They are literally within line of sight of each other, and each claims to be the Home of the Original Phila Cheese Steak! Their fans are as ardent as any Eagles fan and will fight to the death to defend their loyal "cooker of the shredded cow." In reality I don't know that you could taste the difference in a blindfolded test.

Oh, and it's STILL RAINING! We are going anyway (screw the rain)and hoping that the weather breaks by the late afternoon so we can see the sun. Ugh!

Back with pictures later tonight...

WH

Ok, We're Here

Quick update. We are here in NJ and the sun did come out I swear! I didn't take a picture and the clouds returned this evening. OH, and here's a shock - it's supposed to fucking RAIN tomorrow. I'm not bitter at all...noooooooooo.

Anyway, the flight was uneventful and I have to say that internet check-in rocks. We got to Atlanta, parked, got the bus to curb-side check-in, went through security - all as easy as pie. The lines at the check-in were HUGE and we passed right on by! Other than the two guys seated behind us trying to "outbrag" each other - thank God for my iPod to drown them out - the flight was smooth.

Once at the airport we shuttled to the rental car place and they didn't have the car so, shucks and damn, they upgraded us to the next level car - a Grand Marquis - now that's the shit!! We could fit the luggage and Jen and Jessie in the truck, that's a New Jersey car, plenty of room for bodies in the trunk:)

After checking in at the hotel we met my parents for dinner and are now back at the hotel getting ready for bed after day of travel.

Hopefully, I'll have some pictures to post tomorrow or the next day.

Family is fun...

WH

OK, It's Officially Wet Enough From The Rain

This morning, after letting the dog out for her AM wizz, I hear an uproar in the back yard. The last time I experienced this type of alert, our psycho-neurotic dog, Cinnamon (A whole, entire 'nother story), was very excited that she had discovered Possum. SO excited in fact that she was carrying it around in her mouth and tossing it in the air with glee (I rescued the little mammal and tossed it over the fence).

Well with her barking and panting and bouncing all around, I just had to go out and see what the commotion was about. I expected to see a snake, or possum, or cricket (I did mention psycho-neurotic, right?). Today it was a frog! Not a little tree frog, or even a toad - which we see frequently - but a BIG FAT FROG.

Actually it was bigger than normal since I guess that one of the froggie's defense tactics is to puff himself up real big - so big and puffed up that his already short and stumpy fog legs were sticking out to the four corners of his body, none of them touching the ground, and he was rocking back and forth. As my wife would say, "Sad!" So I threw him over the fence, just like the possum. Only too late did I realize that I should have taken a picture to show the size of this booger (I did go outside later and try and find him to take a picture, but alas, he had moved on - traumatized but deflated).

The whole point!? We do not live in the swamp, or the deep woods, or near a lake or a pond. We live in the city of Aiken. The fact that it is wet enough to garner a frog in our backyard is enough for me to cry, "Uncle!" Oh, and it's been raining all night. It has stopped this AM but is overcast and they are calling for, you guessed it, RAIN!

Shit. So anyway, we are on our way North to Philly, PA today. If the sun is out, I'll take a picture and show you that it does actually exist.

OK, there is a plus side to all of this rain - the yard looks greener than it has all year:) I just can't cut the stuff.

WH

Go. Go. Go. GO!

So starts the traditional chant before a vacation or trip that doesn't involve work. Jen will call and say, "Go!" and I'll say "Go!" It's silly and stupid for sure BUT it is something that we do. And Lord knows that YOU don't do silly shit like that. NO not you:)

Oh, an aside. I have been using "Blog This!" to post to this blog for two years and now it is possessed! Every time I hit the RETURN to start a paragraph the little imp posts what I am writing and DOESN'T just start a new paragraph. Just happened in fact when I tried to start this paragraph. So I have to log in to the main blog account and edit the post that is one paragraph long. In fact, in this case, I had to delete one post, since I hit RETURN twice and had two incomplete posts. I have no reason why the thing does this now BUT it is aggravating.

Back to the subject at hand. We are taking a trip! Off to NJ. Weather isn't cooperating however. The Northeast US has suffered a very wet and cold spring - like high 60's, low 40's, rain 4 out of 5 days spring. Not totally what you expect. My dad and I have a baseball game to attend on Sunday and the weather BETTER be good for that one. Baseball in the rain SUCKS, not because of the rain, but because of the RAIN DELAYS. If it rains hard enough they will SUSPEND play and wait - fans wait in the rain. Not these fans by God. Anyway, as you can see there is some angst about the trip. Not to mention the BAGGAGE demands. OH, I know that I mentioned that Jen, my wife, and Jessie, my 16yr old, are going to. Do you know how many clothes that involves with only ONE type of season to dress for? Here we are back at the weather discussion, sorry. BUT there are TWO seasons going on here. My back is already objecting. I don't know if the rental car will hold the bags or not but I'll let you know.

Shit, the weather is still the subject here in SC. Today it is rainy and cloudy. Yesterday it was rainy and cloudy. The day before it was rainy and cloudy. See a pattern? Now look, this is the SOUTH not the Northwest, or England for god's sake. NO wonder those folks are crabby or depressed or addicted to coffee and tea or whatever. This is not typical Southern weather and I want my normal weather back! There I feel better. Oops. Time to get to work. Folks are coming into the office. Is it 3 pm yet?

Go. Go. Go. GO!

WH

Jason relaxing

Jason relaxing
Originally uploaded by Macmania Pete.

One of the favorite things Jason loves, is what any 18 yr old loves, is FOOD!
The ritual when he comes back for a visit is for Jen to make Fettucini Alfredo and Poppy Seed Chicken. I usually grill steaks or chicken and we sit around the table and talk. It's good to have him visit.

Jason and Jessie

Jason and Jessie
Originally uploaded by Macmania Pete.

I told you that I would try and get some pictures in from the weekend. Here are Jason and Jessie. These are kids that make a Dad proud and humble. They actually are the best kids that I know or have ever met. My heart breaks for parents who work hard, love their kids, parent wisely , and still have the heartbreak of kids who make bad choices and end up with consequences that hurt. I won't say that I don't deserve good kids, but I will say that I am EXTREMELY thankful for the kids I have, and the privlege of being their Dad. I love my kids.

It's A Good Weekend!

The weekend started out in excellent fashion last night with Jessie, my 16 old daughter, playing on her softball team for the Rec League Championship. Some history. This is the team that has been playing together for the past two years. The first year they just got the living shit kicked out of them almost every game. They were young, inexperienced, and basic fodder for the other teams. Last year was a bit better. THIS YEAR they kicked ass.

For the first time in Rec League, a girls team went undefeated in the regular season and in the playoffs. That's called "taking your licks" and then taking names. They deserved it. These girls help each other out, don't critcize each other stick together like no other group the coach has seen. Anyway, as usual, I forgot the camera. Jen forgot the camera. And we have no pictures. Poo. Some other, more on the ball, parent will probably have pictures for the entire team. Duh!

Next good thing. Jason is home from Camp LeJeune, NC! For those of you who don't know he is a Marine. He called last night and I went to Columbia this morning to pick him up. Got a ride with a guy who has a girlfriend in Columbia. He doesn't have to be back until 1800 on Tuesday (that's 6 pm). So he gets to stay home for 2 extra days more than we thought. Cool. And yes, I will try and remember to take some pictures and post them here over the weekend. He looks good and likes the job that he is doing in LIght Armored Recon. It will be a good weekend.

And the real shit is that I get Monday off, work Tuesday and Wednesday, then fly to Phila with Jen and Jessie to visit The City of Brotherly Love - who, by the way just celebrated the 20th anniversary of dropping a bomb down the chimney of Move Headquarters - Here is a blog link which has inof and some discussionPhilly Blog. 61 homes burned, 11 people killed and $42 Million dollars later - Brotherly Love?!? Anyhoo, I get to see the Rents and take my Dad to a Phillies game on Sunday. The weather has been very sucky there - rainy and cold - so I hope that the weekend holds out for the game!

I will be able to blog there if the same hotel has the wireless access that it had two years ago. Hope you have a great Memorial Day weekend.

WH

Ready for the weekend already

Heard from Jason today. He is coming home this weekend for about 48 hours. I'm glad that he's coming home. Sad that it's for such a short period of time. It's fitting that he comes home for Memorial Day as a Marine. There's a parade Saturday in downtown Aiken. We may go.

I will find out tomorrow if we have off on Monday - that is the back office at work. We are usually off because the banks are closed, Post Office is closed, insurance companies are closed, blah, blah, blah. Doesn't give us much to do. If I do get off that means that I will work Tuesday and Wednesday and Jen, Jessie, and I fly off to Phila on Thursday morning. I am looking forward to seeing my Mom and Dad as well as travel. It will be fun to travel with Jen and Jessie.

I've ordered my stuff for camping and hope to get in a few weekend trips before the trip to Washington State in August. I've looked at some trails in North Carolina that are hopeful. 15 to 20 miles with a loop. Maybe I can get some pictures and post them via Flickr.

Time to go to bed.

WH

Star Wars

Jen and I went out tonight and saw the new Star Wars movie. In my opinion, the best of the first three "prequels" to the original Star Wars that came out in 1977.

However, the real reason that I was motivated to write about the movie was the 2 year old who was next to us in the sold out theater. Ok, before you say, "why did you sit near a baby?", I have to say that we took our seats BEFORE Mom and child returned from where ever they were. And to be fair the kid was pretty good for a 2 1/2 hour movie, so my rant is really about the parent(s).

This poor kid just sat on Mom's lap almost the entire time - he did kick the seat in front of him a few times, and slap the seat too. But the most disturbing part was at the end of the movie when (don't read this if you want the surprise) Darth Vadar has just finished fighting with Obe Wan - I say finished since he has just had both of his legs cut off at the knees, and one arm disintegrated by the lava that he was laying upon. He was also on fire, screaming, as his flesh burned off of his face and body. Why in the hell would anyone bring a child that young to a movie like this, let alone sit there and not get a freaking clue as this scene played out and take your kid out of the movie? It was evident that the child was disturbed by the scene as he stared transfixed at the screaming amputee and then started whining and buried his face in his Mom's shoulder.

Anyway, it bothered me. 'nuff said.

Wh

World View - What's Yours?

I saw this quiz in a blog that I have a RSS feed to and was interested. I took the test and here are the results:

You scored as Cultural Creative. Cultural Creatives are probably the newest group to enter this realm. You are a modern thinker who tends to shy away from organized religion but still feels as if there is something greater than ourselves. You are very spiritual, even if you are not religious. Life has a meaning outside of the rational. Cultural Creative 88% Fundamentalist 50% Idealist 50% Postmodernist 38% Romanticist 38% Existentialist 25% Materialist 19% Modernist 6% What is Your World View? (corrected...hopefully) created with QuizFarm.com

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I like that I am a Cultural Creative. Let me know what you found out about your world view.

WH

The Thirst That We Have...

First things first - Tiger has already had one update. 10.4.1 was released two days ago and seems to address some of the major problems that were present. The networking at work went flawlessly. I have negotiated 4 different access points with no difficulty - my iBook has remembered all of the WEP passwords without issue.

I still love Spotlight (I keep forgetting to use it when searching for items) but am disappointed that Entourage isn't supported. Hopefully there will be an update that will allow indexing of all of my mail in Entourage like there is in Mail. That would be helpful.

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Wednesday evenings I have been attending a small study group here in Charleston. We are talking about and trying to practice the presence of God. There is a thirst for the infinite in all of us. Some of us stay so busy that it is hard to get a sense of our need, yet, if we will get quiet for a short period of time we will realize that our best day and experience leaves us wanting more. The spirit desires connection with the infinite - spirit to spirit

Paul seems to communicate this in the following passage from The Message: Eph. 3:14 - 19 "My response is to get down on my knees before the Father, this magnificent Father who parcels out all heaven and earth. I ask him to strengthen you by his Spirit—not a brute strength but a glorious inner strength—that Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite him in. And I ask him that with both feet planted firmly on love, you’ll be able to take in with all Christians the extravagant dimensions of Christ’s love. Reach out and experience the breadth! Test its length! Plumb the depths! Rise to the heights! Live full lives, full in the fullness of God."

How can you experience the "extravagant dimensions of Christ's love" ? My guess is that it is a spiritual thing. I also believe that if you seek for that love - deeply and genuinely - you will find it. God knowable? He must be. At least that is our hope and desire. Mere experience in the realm of the 5 senses leaves us disappointed at times - think about it. When you go after what you believe will be the ultimate and it lets you down where do you turn?

I want to find my rest in the Infinite. Matt. 11:29 "“Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS."

WH

Weekend Update...

Well, a great weekend at home.

Tiger is stable and running smoothly on both iBooks. No kernel panics. No crashes. No applications that have been problems. Pretty impressive for a major release. Tomorrow I'll be networking with Windows Server 2003, negotiating firewalls, VPN tunnels, and file sharing with thin clients, workstations, and fat client Acer Tablet PC's. That will be the real test for the release a far as I am concerned. I'll report later:)

Jessie is on her way back from a trip to West Virginia with her boyfriend to stay with his dad and step-mom. She will be in tonight and ready for school tomorrow. She has a few weeks left and school will be all over!! Then we'll travel to Philly to visit my parents and see the city. Fun!!

I am having a great time with my new Bible software, Accordance. It is deep and wide. I have installed the Greek NT modules as well as The Message and The Amplified Bible. The Scriptures are amazing and opening them again in a study and discovery method is exciting to me. It has helped me on the Friday night survey class.

Last night was a blast with a group of folks from church celebrating Karen Carter's college graduation with karaoke in The Valley. This was so much fun and Jen was in her element singing and celebrating. And, no. I didn't sing. I'm still too chicken.

So Jen and I are watching Survivor and bringing the weekend to a close. I hope that yours was a good one surrounded by those who love you and getting some relaxation.

WH

Hang On To Your Butts

Ok. Ok. I admit it. I am a geek when it comes to my computers. I couldn't resist the temptation. I woke up this morning and installed Tiger - the newest Apple operating system - on my everyday, totally dependent upon, if anything goes wrong my ass is in a sling, iBook laptop computer.

And.............CRASH!!! No, just kidding. Everything seems pretty stable after a few hours. I want to take it on a test drive over the weekend and see how it works when I am going through the normal paces of my day. I took all of the precautions and fixed permissions, backed up, installed (update install vs. archive or clean install) OS10.4, and away I went. If things go FUBAR, I can reinstall over the weekend and back up from my back up.

First impressions:
1. Spotlight ROCKS. You can check out what it's about here Spotlight
2. The Dashboard Widgets are cool and I may use some of them.
3. Things seem a bit "snappier" on my 800mhz, iBook. Pretty good programming if you ask me.
4. So far, all of my applications work as expected. I use Word, Excel, Entourage, Safari, Powerpoint, QuickBooks, and MYOB extensively. They seem to be OK.

So, I will give a report back this weekend regarding how the day-to-day stuff on the computer goes. Still no install on our family iMac - too risky. Update 10.4.1 should be out in a few weeks, if not sooner.

WH

Relieved Frustration!

I was all set to talk to my friend last night but there were circumstances out of my control which interfered - truth be told, I was glad - who looks forward to potentially catastrophic interactions? Yet I am frustrated as there will be no opportunity to address the issue before next week, as I head back home tonight after work - 10 pm - and we will both be busy until then, and too tired to talk that late.

So, I get a needed and appreciated break for the next few days. I will get to handle this next week.

I am excited about getting to sit down and talk with a friend who I haven't hung around with for what seems like 10 years - it's probably been 3 or 4. Friday evening we are going to get together before I have to go teach class. Jonathan has always been great fun and a great friend. I met him, hmmm, over 12 years ago. He was pretty confused and hurting. God's Kingdom broke in on him and he has grown so much. He is a fantastic musician and artist - great gifts. I feel good about catching up.

Saturday night we are going out with friends to do Kareoke at a local Mexican restaurant. How do I get talked into this stuff? Not really. I'm looking forward to relaxing and watching people sing - well, ok, sort of sing. I still don't have enough scrotal fortitude to get up and sing - well, sort of sing:)

WH

Thinking...

Today has been one of thinking. Mostly due to the fact that I have a good friend who is slowly ruining what he has worked so hard to build. Holding too tightly to something is a sure way to choke the life out of it, and that is what is happening.

There are a number of people who are watching what is happening, just no one as close as I am to being the one to say something. Want to change places? The truth is that it won't get better if __________ (you fill in the blank). Have you played that game? Trying to convince yourself that if left alone long enough, or if just the right circumstances happen, or if you stand on your right foot, jump and slap your thigh, it will be OK. You get the idea. It's foolish to think that it will change if it hasn't so far.

So here I am. Faced with the task. Faced with the possibility of being rejected, or worse. Time to step up to the plate and deal with life.

I will let you know how it goes.

WH

The End of The Vacation

Well, today we finally got sun!! It was a beautiful FL day. I ran early, then Jen, Jody, and I went for a walk on the beach and they lay by the pool. We had a relaxing evening - watched a movie, played cards, ate a great meal of Rigatoni and homemade meatballs (yummy!). Tomorrow is Mother's Day and we are going to church here and then leaving right after the service. Jen gets to sing on the worship team with her Mom, which she loves. It will be a "nap" ride home tomorrow, at least for Jen.

Jason called and he is transferring from RECON to LAR - Light Amored Reconnaissance. He and two other guys are making the change next week. He was pretty excited about it since he will get to train right away and probably get to travel sooner. To which I say, "why?" His answer is that he joined to be a soldier and that is what he wants to do. I would rather he train for the next three years and never go anywhere and stay stateside. But, as the parent thing goes, it is his life and his choices. Hopefully we'll get to see him before he has to travel (you notice that I say 'have to travel', instead of 'go to Iraq or Afganistan.' Somehow, if I don't mention the place it's not as bad.)

After the drive back tomorrow I have to pack and get ready to go back to Charleston for the week. Last week we had our busiest two days in a row since we opened - 94 patients each day. That's is crazy! This week will be another busy one, as we continue to build a patient base and do some exposure activites.

Remember to call your Mom tomorrow!

WH

PS - Tiger will have to wait as I read more reports of incompatibilities with programs. Acquisition and Entourage are two that I use frequently that are reporting problems.

Having Fun In Florida?

Well we are here on vacation, in sunny Florida. Actually, it's been raining all day. The past few days, in fact. And it is supposed to rain tomorrow. A bit of a bummer, but the company is great!

Jen and I were talking and we remembered that the last time we were in FL was in March, in Orlando, for our anniversary. Guess how the weather was? It rained most of the time. What is it about FL and the rain?

Anyway, today we went to COSCO to shop for stuff for Bob and Jody's house and we went to the new Apple store at St. John's Town Square. It was very cool to see and test drive Tiger. Spotlight is very cool and the Dashboard is even cooler. I am looking forward to the update, 10.4.1 has already been seeded to developers and should be out in a few weeks. I will probably install Tiger on Jason's iBook to see how it reacts with the network at home and the basic programs on the iBook.

Anyway, hopefully we will get some sun tomorrow and I'll get to run and continue to catch up with my class notes. I was able to get two more books into Powerpoint.

Back in a few days.

WH

Tuesday Evening In Charleston

Normally, I'm back at home Tuesday evening, but tonight I'm staying in Charleston so I can get into the office early, do some things, and get back home early so we can leave for FL in the afternoon. That sounds so good! We get a long weekend to relax, play, and spend time with Jen's parents.

I have spent the evening watching American Idol, the Braves game and IMing Jen and her Mom as we watch American Idol. That's pretty funny when you think about it - three people, watching TV in three different places, at the same time IMing each other about the show that they are watching on TV!

Oh, Tiger update. It arrived today at the house, via UPS. There are already some reports that it messes with some networking applications so I may hold off on the install until the first update which should be released in the next few weeks...or maybe not:)

Got to talk to and pray with a young lady today. Her father is dying of cancer and is in the end stages - may the last few days. She just needed a place to cry and be heard. Most of the people around her are telling her to "be strong", "trust God", and really helpful information like that. We gave her a place that she didn't have to be strong or "be" anything for that matter. She called about 3 hours after her visit and said that she felt better, and was able to talk to her dad, who is unconscious, and tell him that she would be OK, and that if he wanted to go that was OK with her. That took a lot of courage for her. Sitting with her and watching the Lord give her peace during a really though time was an amazing thing.

Anyway, I'll be blogging from FL next entry. Did I mention that I am excited about the weekend?

WH

Great Fun!

Last night we celebrated my daughter's sweet 16 with a "Rave." Not to be confused with the sordid, drug and dreg counterpart, this was a group of high school kids, mostly 15 - 17 years old, expending a great deal of energy for two hours.

It was the perfect environs. A private party room at a local billiard parlor - spinning disco ball, strobe light (I thought that I was going to have a seziure a few times), colored lights, tube lights, black lights, techno DVD playing to a huge projection screen, the works. A friend provided the techno music - thanks Adam, AKA DJ Slim - and it was awesome. He has the scratch pads, mixing board and all that other stuff. My pastor guarded the door as the bouncer - thanks Hanson (he's a big mother) - and the kids came, some dressed for the party in "club clothing," most in the style of the day. I think at it's height, there were about 70 kids there.

Interesting Notes:
1. The beverage of choice of this crowd - water. We learned this lesson from my daughter's boyfriend's party. The soda was untouched and the water was a hit. Go figure?
2. Instead of presents, my daughter had her friends give cash and is sending it all to Compassion International to provide for kids overseas in Third World countries - her idea. Gives me lots of hope for today's kids and tomorrow's world.
3. I'm glad that I have two computer platforms - after 15-20 minutes of frustration of trying to get my work computer, a $3000.00 Acer Tablet PC, to play S-Video out to a projector - Control Panel>Displays>etc>etc>blah-blah-blah - I got out my iBook, plugged in the cable and...it just works. Some of you can tell me what I was doing wrong and how the set-up should have worked as I am not a PC guru. The point is, why should you have to jump through hoops to get the stupid thing to do what you want?
4. I love the digital lifestyle! We were able to take pictures of the kids at play, load them into iPhoto, set up a slide show, and play it out to the big screen while they were dancing up a storm in the "Rave". How fun!

Happy Birthday Jessie!!

WH

PS - Now I have two and 1/2 days of work and Jen and I are heading to FL for some R&R. I can't wait.
PSS - Tiger is on the way! UPS tracking says that it will be here Tuesday morning:)

Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger - It's Official

Well, it's here! Today is the day that Apple's Newest operating system is released. Be at your local Apple Store (CompUSA is also getting in on the show)at 6 PM for the rollout. This is the most significant release for Apple since the OS X beta back in 2000. I am looking forward to the "intro phase" and will be the guinea pig for the install here at our house until it comes in a "gentler and kinder" .1 update. My trusty iBook will be the "lamb."

As you may have read in an earlier blog, I pre-ordered from Amazon and got a huge discount on the family pack - of course we are an Apple family!! My only complaint is that the install disks are DVD's. That means our trusty iMac will have to go through an installation via target Firewire mode, or I have to pony up $9.95 and trade in my DVD disks for CD install disks. GRrrrrrrrr! The other solution that I really like is that maybe it's time to buy a brand new iMac!! Not really Jen, if you are reading this...

If you are a geek, or even for the non power user there is an excellent article by John Siracusa, Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger, that details the "under the hood" stuff that Tiger brings to the world. Much better reading than the pablum that is just glamorizing Tiger.

Oh My!! As I write my Software Update activated and is installing QuickTime 7, the new Quicktime that is included in Tiger. Changes are afoot.

You can be sure that I will be tracking the status of my Tiger package from Amazon hourly (it hasn't shipped yet:(). I will also be blogging the growing pains that the new operating system gives me.

WH

Just A Quick Post

The past few days have been busy ones at work. The time has flown by and I am looking forward to the next few days - Jessie, my daughter, turns 16 yrs. old tomorrow, we have a party planned for her this Saturday. It will be a "rave" theme. Lots of techno music and fun. My pastor is going to be the bouncer at the door, to make sure that the kids are safe and that the ones who are invited are the only ones attending.

A friend who is a youth minister here in Charleston is going to be the DJ - he is so good at that!! It will be so much fun.

Then next week is a short one at work and Jen and I are going to FL to visit her parents. I am looking forward to the beach, the peace and quiet - to catch up on my lesson preparation for the Friday night class, read, run, and just basic recharge.

Then we have a month and we'll be going to visit my parents in NJ. I'm pretty excited to go and visit some old stomping grounds, eat real pizza, a cheese steak or two, and enjoy time with my parents. I have tickets for my dad and I to go to the Phillies vs Diamondbacks game on the 3rd of June - that should be a blast.

Lots to look forward to. Oh, and I just heard from my friend in WA, and our annual backpacking trip is planned for August. I am excited and sad. Jason will not be going since he is in the Marines - I will be in the tent by myself. Transitions. Life is good.

WH

Wouldn't It Have Been Amazing?

I often find myself bemoaning the fact that the days of Christ did not have the technology that we have today-like video recorders. I would have given anything to see the actual faces of the people when Lazarus was raised from the dead, of the sneer of the Pharisees when Jesus healed yet another person on the Sabbath, or the reactions of the family of the Gadarene demoniac as he was coming up the hill to the house after Jesus made him whole.

Wouldn't it be amazing to have a home movie of the feeding of the 5,000? I think that, for the most part, theater movies today cannot grasp the intensity, flavor, and heart of the experiences that people had when they encountered Jesus and the Kingdom of God. I think that Mel Gibsons' "The Passion" came close, which was why it captivated people so much. It showed the reality of the brutality that Jesus endured, as an innocent man, more graphically than we have dared to realize.

I mean, what would the disciples have expressed when they pulled the huge catch of fish from the sea. Maybe some "sailor" language?

Anyway, next time you read the stories of Jesus, or any stories for that matter. View them from every angle, every persons perspective, the surrounding crowd or non-participants on the fringes, and let your mind go. Imagine the whole scene and let it come alive. Bring life to the page...you will never again see the Scriptures the same way.

WH

What a Great Surprise!

The past few days have been filled with various chores around the house: change car oil, fix a bathroom fan, cleaning gutters, planting, grass cutting, etc. Spring time!

Reflecting back on the past few days. Jason called me two days in a row, which is a bit unusual, asking what we were doing this weekend. I thought that he was homesick and felt bad that what we were doing was pretty selfish in that it had to do with "our" stuff, and he was homesick and asking, indirectly, for a visit.

Back to the present. I was walking through the bedroom to the living room and guess who is standing there? Jason!! He got a ride to Columbia, SC with another Recon Trainee, and then was able to get a ride to Aiken from a friend who goes to school at USC (that's University of South Carolina - not the West Coast USC) and was coming home to Aiken for the weekend.

Jason looks great. His attitude is much better than at Easter when he was having doubts about the choices that he's made - some guys were just filling his head with a bunch of shit. He is learning a great deal in his present training - I can't wait to go backpacking with him again. In the past, I was the one with the experience and he was the "mule," carrying the heavier pack. He will still carry the weight but he is now a thinker, a problem solver, knows the woods, and doesn't know how to say, "no" when facing a difficult challenge. His shoulders are broad and hugging him is like putting your arms around a pine tree and squeezing.

The weekend was a "friend" weekend for him, so he didn't stay long, just long enough to eat some of Jen's left over calzone and talk. We will probably see him again tomorrow before he heads back to Camp LeJeune. The good news is that the guy he rode to Columbia with has a girlfriend (which is why he goes to Columbia), so my gut tells me that he will need Jason to keep him awake in the car as long as he and his girlfriend are together.

Today has been a good day. My boy came back for a visit.

WH

My Pastor Rocks

I love my pastor. If you want to read about what has been on his heart lately here is a link to his blog - Tales from the Briar Patch.

Hanson and I are, in many ways, polar opposites. You would only have to look at our tool chests to see the difference. The great thing is that we appreciate each other and embrace the differences that we share - and are actually able to lovingly "goad" each other about the same. However, we are similar in the areas that are most important - we are both fiercely loyal, really want to see people "get it" with God and His Kingdom, and are just two, "getting older", farts trying to please God and get to heaven. Oh, one last similarity we share - don't fuck with our wives or kids:)

One of the greatest "stressors" that Jen and I face when we talk about moving to Charleston is finding a community of faith - I would say "church" but it doesn't carry the same meaning that community does. Most "church" people would feel uncomfortable at the Downtown Vineyard. I like that. Maybe it's a maturity thing on my part but I just can't force myself to do the "ministerial" and "churchy" thing. I enjoy the attitude and atmosphere that our church has - I would like better planning, or people getting to stuff on time, but it is ALL about relationship. Some church communities are so slick and are packaged so nicely that all of the struggle and "icky" stuff is whitewashed. I'm convinced that if a church community doesn't talk openly about these things something is wrong. If the pastor can't talk about his struggles openly, something is wrong. The "Truman Show" is what many churches are like - that's not real.

I am scared to death to open up and talk about the nitty-gritty stuff in my life, but so what? What is community about if it's not that? Can you picture Jesus sitting aroung talking about stupid, superficial shit? How many did you have in Sunday School this morning? Have you read the new book about when I am coming back, Peter? When I talk to Jesus, I talk about real stuff - good stuff, hard stuff, gut level stuff. Funny, I don't find weather or sports or American Idol as part of my communion with God. Not that those are bad things to talk about (and I do talk about all three), but they are not CORE areas for building relationship - that's why we talk about them - they are "safe".

I am looking forward to seeing some of my friends tomorrow night for the New Testament Survey class. I love the banter. I enjoy the light hearted sarcasim. I like to hear what people are really going through. That atmosphere and acceptance is what Hanson is all about. It shows in our church community.

Thanks Hanson, for making a space in which we can be ourselves. You rock.

WH

Jessie is going to be 16!

My daughter, Jessie, is gettting ready to turn 16 years old. We are planning a rave - a clean, drug-free, water for drinking rave. I have asked a friend, who is a youth minister in Charleston, SC, to do the DJ stuff. He is a bunch of fun and LOVES to mix music. I am hoping that he can do this. Otherwise it will be me, and that may not be pretty:)

I can still remember Jessie being born...she had a hole in her lung and pneumonia. The doctor said that she would be in the hospital for another 7-10 days with anti-biotic therapy, etc. All I can say is that many of us prayed. The next day the doctor came in and said, holding up two x-rays, "I don't understand." He put the x-rays up on the screen. One showed fluid and a shadow where the hole was, taken the day before. The other showed a PERFECT set of lungs. Jessie's name and ID number were on both sets of x-rays. "I don't understand," he said again. "I guess you can take her home, there is nothing wrong with her lungs."

That was her start! Jessie is an energetic, loving, brilliant, and beautiful young woman. I can't wait to see what she will do as she grows into adulthood. Thank you Jessie for 16 wonderful years as your dad.

WH

It IS a relaxing Sunday

As I had hoped, the three day weekend has been welcomed and appreciated. I have been able to get work around the house done, restocked the larder (went to Sams Club), and some relaxation.

I have also been able to run the past three days, a total of 13 miles, and that always feels good. I HATE to run but hate even more to be out of shape - the cardio benefits are what I am really concerned with, as a 46 year old male, I don't want to "pop-off" due to heart problems. I have been satisfied with the progress - I am able to do 5 miles at a 8 mph pace. My long range goal is to be able to have more stamina for the hike that I take in the late summer out in Washington State. Last year I was a bit winded and sore due to my lack of conditioning. I would like to change that. Next step, since my cardio is getting up to snuff, is to start weight training and develop more lean muscle mass - gain 3-5 more pounds of muscle - so the engine stays running even at rest.

Hanson's talk today was one of his best in a long while. From Rm. 8:28-30 - The suffering that we experience, what the passage doesn't mean, as well as what it means to us as followers of Christ. Way to go Hanson. Well done.

I'm planning on doing some work on my class material this afternoon, doing a crossword puzzle, updating some playlists for my iPod Shuffle, and watching the Braves/Phillies game tonight on ESPN. Nice.

One final, but important, note...Jen has been sleeping so much better the past few nights. Actually, she had someone pray for her the other night, specfically for good rest, and the next two nights were so much different. I am grateful for that.

Hope your weekend was a good one also.

WH

Back to A Routine

I hate to admit it, but I do like my routine and get a bit out of sorts when it is disrupted. The last few weeks I have taken a day off in the middle of the week and still worked my four days - meaning that I came home Friday and had a two day weekend. I was used to the Monday - Thursday thing and a three day weekend.

Friday is usually my busy, around the house, chore day. I typically cut grass, wash cars, scoop dog shit. You know, the usual middle-class domestic stuff. Saturday was reserved for the few items that needed to be crossed off the list left over from Friday, and Sunday was typically an easy day - hanging around the house, relaxing with Jen and Jessie, watching movies or sports. The past few weekends have been compressed and short, way too much rushing around. I am enjoying my Friday off:) Thanks for asking.

Other notes...Jen is recovering well. Other than the fact that she doesn't read her prescrition meds bottle - last night she was feeling itchy, crawly if you please - insomnia was also present. So I asked my general diagnostic questions - starting with the obvious. After doing a bit of research found that, sure enough, some of the side effects that she was experiencing with Levaquin were documented. So we checked the dosage on the bottle - one 500 mg per day.

WOOPSIE! Jen had been taking two per day. That folks is 1000 mg per day for a 100 lb woman - bound to create some side effects. Anyhoo, hopefully, after today Jen can get back to her regular sleep patterns once the medication leaves her system:)

Tech notes...I just preordered Apple's newest operating system Tiger. It ships on April 29th and the new additions make it worth while as well as a great deal from Amazon.com. Amazon is offering a $50.00 rebate off of the family pack (5 computer install), as well as $30.00 off of your first purchase if you apply for an Amazon.com credit card. I did, and the TOTAL cost for the Tiger Family Pack upgrade is $119.99 - that's $10.00 less than the $129.99 Apple charges for the single user upgrade at the Apple Store. I am such a geek:) I'm actually splitting the cost with my In-laws (Hi Bob & Jody!) since they are "switchers" (from the PC world to Macs). That in itself is a subject for another blog!

Vacations are upcoming. We are excited about going down to Amelia Island to visit Jen's parents, and Jen, Jessie, and I are flying up to Phila to sightsee and visit my parents in NJ. Should be fun!!

Oh, don't forget TAXES! Have a great day, I'm off to scoop doggie doo:)

WH

The Second Time Around or "Stone Revisited"

Monday morning, my cell phone rang as expected, my wife had her follow-up appointment with the doctor after her kidney stone was blasted the week before. One thing about Jen, she wears her emotions out on the sleeve - or in this case the airwaves - "Hey," she says, vvveeerryyy despondently. "They need to do another lithrotripsy." Great. One more round of pain and puking. "When?", I asked. "Tomorrow morning." Poo. Turns out the the first blast turned the BIG stone into a bunch of sand and three smaller stones. Smaller is relative. Not small enough to pass through, if you get the idea.

Just a small aside. Women say that passing a kidney stone is WORSE than having a baby. I've not done either, but I have seen two kids born and it looks and sounds like a great deal of work (that's why it's called labor, I guess). Anyhoo, guys do not like the idea of any type of discomfort when it comes to the plumbing. Having a hard, sharp object pass through a narrow sensitive passage in a particularly sensitive area creates a "wince factor" of about 9.9 on the Richter scale. Did I mention that my wife has my respect and admiration?

Anyway, Jen's parents graciously offered to come up and stay so Jen wouldn't be alone and I wouldn't have to miss work. Thanks guys! So the dreaded early morning routine was repeated exactly one week later, and the offending little stones were blasted into high heavens with sound waves (I know I liked loud music for some reason - cuts down on stones!). Without going into more detail the procedure was declared a success and the doctor announced that this would do it. Her recovery is 100 times better than last week. Eating pizza a few hours afterwards and napping peacefully were good signs.

So, the prospect for a regular weekend looks good. Yeah! I'm glad for my wife, she has had a bitch of a week, and the idea of a weekend without a bunch of discomfort is very attractive.

WH

Great Weekend

The weekend was good, but short. I usually get a three day weekend but this one was Sat and Sun only. Stayed around the house, yard work, cars, doggie. Sat with Jen as she continues to recover from her procedure - she goes to the dr this am for a follow up.

Went to the early service at church. Hanson revisited the story of the rich man and Lazarus. It got me to thinking about the Pharisee's since this is the purpose of the story - that they were indifferent to the marginalized people of the day, the very people that Jesus made an effort to reach. Anyway, what I was thinking was that the Pharisee's wanted to be noticed by others, Jesus said that's why they prayed, fasted, gave, etc. The motive was to be noticed. Not that they cared what others thought, they didn't. In this case you care what others think when you are insecure and other-centered. Instead, they cared about themselves. They loved themselves. In contrast to caring what others think, in this case you want people to notice you when you are insecure and self-centered.

Made me think...do I care what others think, do I care that they notice, or something else - do I care what my attitudes and actions reflect about maintaining and nuturing a relationship with God and others.

WH

Masters Fever

In our area of the country, Augusta National and The Masters is king this time of year. The surrounding school districts schedule Spring Break around The Masters and traffic in Augusta is unbearable, especially on Washington Rd. For Masters information and scores click here:The Masters

Last night was fun. After my usual two hour, one way, commute from Charleston, SC, I prepared to teach the New Testament Survey class at our church. Jen didn't attend due to her continued recovery from lithrotripsy. We finished some background discussion on the NT times and the Kingdom of God and moved into the Gospels. Each one is unique but all of them reveal an approachable and knowable Lord. The epmhasis of the Gospels is that a relationship with Jesus is possible and available. "Come all who are tired and worn out - emotionally, physically, spiritually, and/or socially, and I will give you rest."

Jason, my son, continues his training at Camp LeJeune, NC. He finished School of Infantry and is in INDOC for Reconnaissance - the elite of the elite in the Corps. If he makes this first few months he will then get picked up for formal Recon Training in Virginia. The challenge is formidable. I couldn't have done it at 18 yrs of age. I respect my son for his choice, and for his being chosen.

Jessie is vacationing at her aunt and uncle's in Pittsburg, PA during spring break. We're gearing up for her 16th birthday - a rave party! Should be interesting. More as the day draws near.

More travel is being planned for the summer - Jen is always on the move:)

TTFN

WH

Jen's lithotripsy

Interesting week. Jen had a HUGE kidney stone smashed this past Tuesday (even the uriologist was impressed). We woke at 5 am - usual for me BUT not for Jen - and off to the hospital by 6 am. Jen says funny curse words that early on the morning:) Two days later and she is doing well - isn't vicodin a wonderful drug?!?:)

I love my wife and wish that I could go through some of this stuff for her.

WH