Workhorses

These two pieces of equipment were workhorses for us during our big city living in Busan, Korea:

Living on the 29th floor of a high rise apartment building, we really had to plan out how we were gonna lug massive amounts of groceries to our kitchen.  We had a HomePlus grocery store a couple of blocks from our apartment so the blue roller thing came in handy.  These rollers are a necessity in Korea.

The baby stroller was used for purposes other than originally intended.  We would load that thing up with so many groceries, the wheels would sometimes buckle.  Without these two workhorses, we would've at least doubled the amount of elevator trips from our parking garage to the 29th floor.  So as we retire the blue roller and the baby stroller, it's with thoughts of gratitude that Carol and I bid farewell to these simple beasts of burden.

How many little things in your life do you take for granted that help make your life easier?  Maybe it's the sunshade in your car that prevents your car from turning into a furnace.  Or the sidewalk chalk that keeps the kids occupied when you're really needing to get something done.  There's always the alarm clock that makes sure you don't lose your job.  Gotta love the little portable bottle of Purell that helps you from getting sick.  How about the big old purse that the ladies can sneak snacks into the movie theater and avoid paying those crazy concession stand prices?

And so today, let's alI salute the little workhorses that don't get much attention.

Pencil Sharpener

Don't talk to strangers.

Look both ways before you cross the street.

Don't put your finger into a pencil sharpener.

Two out of three ain't bad.  In a span of the millisecond that Carol turned her head away, Jake let curiosity get the best of him.  Hmm...I wonder how this thing works?  Bamm, he sticks his finger in the pencil sharpener and I think he tries to crank some shavings out of his little digit.

I don't think he'll do that again.  The damage wasn't too bad.  A couple drops of blood and a slightly mangled fingernail should be enough to dissuade him from doing that again. Ah, the joys of parenthood.

Now I know where all those warning labels on products come from.  Those warnings are there because people have actually tried to do certain things to those products.  Here are a couple of examples of real warnings on real products:

Liquid Plummer:  Do not reuse the bottle to store beverages.

Windex:  Do not spray in eyes.

Toilet Plunger:  Do not use near power lines.

and my favorite:

Claymore Anti-Personnel Mine:  DO NOT EAT

Here is Carol fixing the pencil, I mean Jake's finger.

Maybe some big wig pencil sharpener company executive will read this blog entry and add a warning to their product, all because of Jake's antics.  That would be quite the accomplishment for a 5 year old.  Well, gotta go.  I think Jake's putting his grilled cheese sandwich into the DVD player.

Mr. Plant

I was very impressed recently...by a plant.  So impressed that I named it - Mr. Plant.

The movers in Korea took Mr. Plant, dirt and all, wrapped him up in paper and threw him in a box with a bunch of other stuff.  We've had our garbage packed up by movers before so this shouldn't have surprised us.  Good thing we didn't own a cat.

So Mr. Plant was crammed into a cardboard box with vases, knick knacks, papers and other inanimate objects that couldn't talk.  This cardboard box was then stuffed with other cardboard boxes into a large wooden crate.  Off to America they went, on a slow boat to the New World.  A two month trek.  No sunlight.  No water.  No Miracle Grow.

And Mr. Plant lives!  He must've really wanted to see Tennessee.  He's much greener now after basking in some Memphis sunlight and refreshing water.  I think he's happy now.  No more brown leaves.

So if your boss or your job makes you feel like quitting or curling up into a ball and dying, think of the resilient Mr. Plant and his recent journey.  The sun will come out.  It might take two months, but it will come out.  Until next time.

Cake-Off!

CJ recently celebrated his 12th birthday.  Some of the neighborhood girls found out about the birthday boy and decided to do a "cake-off."  First they conducted a mini-interview with CJ and asked him about some of his favorite things - colors, superheroes, candy, music, etc.  Armed with this knowledge, the girls now had the inspiration to make some nice cakes.  The best cake wins of course.

Some of the neighborhood girls that participated in the cake-off.

Here's CJ and Jake after finding out about the cake-off.  It's not everyday that you get folks making stuff for you.  Well, for single guys anyway.

Sugar overload!  Not a bad way to get welcomed to a neighborhood.

Jake did his part to show his appreciation to the young bakers by downing their colorful creations.  Looks like a Candyland board game.   


One cake was a volcano with lava.  There was another one that was an island.  So who won the cake-off?  They all did.  Sugar and blue lips for all my friends.

Super Canadians

Here's a shout out to our Canadian friends.  One of the best things about living in Korea was getting to know so many awesome people from many different countries.  It was like being in a Benetton commercial or living across the street from the UN.  Although the language barrier was tough when speaking to our Canadian friends, we still got along just fine, eh.

So CJ ran across this guy in the store the other day:

You don't see too many Canadian superheroes running around.  This guy is the "Guardian" and he was the leader of Canada's first superhero team.  This team was called "Alpha Flight."  One claim to fame about Alpha Flight is that one of its members, "Northstar" was the first mainstream openly gay superhero ever.  Not sure what his super power was.  Color coordinating maybe?  Kidding.

This is Alpha Flight.  Northstar is the guy on the left in black and white.  

Just to be clear for those that have never been to Canada, not all Canadians are superheroes.  Anyway, Carol and I were both reminiscing about the good times we had with our Canadian friends.  Scott, Sarah, Amber, Dan, Nikki, Maria, Steve, AJ, Will and all of you other Canucks - you might not be able to leap a tall building in a single bound, but you're all super in my book.

Why The Cowboys Won't Win The Superbowl This Year

With the Hall of Fame game kicking off last night, I am happy to announce that football season is officially here!  Sure, it's only preseason, but it's football.  Watching the NFL in high definition in the comfort of my own home during normal hours is one of the biggest things I was looking forward to after my time in Korea.  It just wasn't the same watching my beloved Dolphins at 3 o'clock in the morning every week in Korea.

I love the Dolphins.  One of my favorite NFC teams is the Cowboys because two of my brothers love em.  I hate to break this news to you loyal Cowboy fans, but there's absolutely no way that Dallas can win the Superbowl this year.  Here's why:

Everyone knows that if you date a Kardashian, you are going to win the Superbowl.  Exhibit A:  Reggie Bush dates Kim Kardashian and the New Orleans Saints win the Super Bowl.

Dallas Cowboy wide receiver Miles Austin is now dating a Kardashian.  Kim, to be exact.  This automatically eliminates the Saints from hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.  You would think this would be a good sign for the Cowboys, right?

The thing is, no starting quarterback of a team that has a line of clothing at Wal-Mart has ever won the Superbowl.  Here's a picture of Dallas quarterback Tony Romo's line of clothing at Wal-Mart.  Sorry Cowboy fans.  Maybe next year.

Getting Settled In...

Long time no blog.  Been crazy busy with work and settling in to the new digs.  So here's a quick stroll through our new neighborhood in Lakeland, Tennessee.

The house is great and the neighbors are awesome.

Our street

Lots of open space in our backyard.  We all missed having a yard while in Korea.  While on the train from Busan to Seoul during a weekend trip, Jake said, "Ah, grass.  I miss grass," as he saw a big patch of the green stuff out his window.  I'm actually looking forward to mowing the lawn.

The sidewalk chalk has been a lifesaver.  The first thing Jake asks when he gets up in the morning is if he can play with the chalk outside.

Since we don't have our household goods yet, we've been doing the air mattress thing for a while now.  I'm usually pretty good with these things but lately, it's been killing my back and shoulder.  I know I sound like an old man but dang.  Not sure how good of an Army soldier I would've made, sleeping on the ground all the time.   

Check me out using my Leatherman to open up these tuna cans.  Gotta do what you gotta do when you don't have your stuff.  I pounded my chest afterwards like I just wrestled a bear.  Sign me up for Survivor now.

The little guy's gotta have his internet.  Dang we're spoiled.

Fishing with the boys at the pond right around the corner.  CJ and Jake both caught something.  I got skunked.  I did lose a $6 lure though.

CJ and Jake making fast friends with the neighborhood kids.

So the last couple of weeks have been crazy with traveling, visiting with friends, living in hotels, air mattresses, the new job and family drama.  Korea seems like eons ago.  We're definitely missing our good friends in the Land of the Morning Calm but we're excited about our new adventure in Honky Tonk.  More to follow.  Hope everyone out there is doing great.