Photobomb!

I've enjoyed seeing the many family pictures from Easter that everyone's been posting on Facebook the last couple of days.  The Cruzers had a great time in Alabama this past weekend.  So here's one of my favorite pictures from the entire weekend.  Thank you CJ for this classic Easter Sunday photobomb!

Nothing like a good photobomb on your birthday.  This one is from a couple years ago.  I'm sure CJ is happy about that iTunes gift card he's holding up and the birthday cake in the background but for some strange reason, no one notices those two things in this picture.

Little cousins like to photobomb.  Andrea and CJ thought they were having fun with blueberries but Cooper jumped in and had a little fun of his own.  For me, this picture symbolizes the joys of summer.  

I had no idea how popular photobombing was until I Googled it.  I almost busted a lung at what I found.  Allow me to share.

Cats photobomb.

Cats photobomb other cats.

Dogs photobomb. 

Dogs photobomb other dogs.  Some dogs even photobomb their own breed to make it look like they are one super long slinky dog that can walk around corners.

Horses photobomb.

Fish photobomb.

Here is the extremely rare giraffe photobomb.

Photobombing is very equal opportunity.  White people photobomb.

Black people photobomb.

Asians photobomb.

Even little people photobomb.

Would you believe that Stephen Hawking photobombs?

 The covert photobomb.  Do you see it?

We even had a photobomb of the classic Cruz pose.  The horror!

Thanks for taking this stroll down photobomb lane with me.  Until next time.

A&F

So a couple of years ago, Abercrombie & Fitch got their pee-pee shwacked:

In April 2005, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California finalized a  settlement of Gonzalez v. Abercrombie & Fitch Stores.  A&F had to pay $40 million to several thousand minority and female plaintiffs who charged the company with discrimination. A&F also had to institute a range of policies and programs to promote diversity among its workforce and to prevent discrimination based on race or gender.  A monitor will regularly evaluate and report on the company's compliance with the provisions of the consent decree.  These provisions include:

• "Benchmarks" for hiring and promotion of women, Latinos, African Americans, and Asian Americans. These benchmarks are goals, rather than quotas, and the company will be required to report on its progress toward these goals at regular intervals;
• A prohibition on targeting fraternities, sororities, or specific colleges for recruitment purposes;
• Advertising of available positions in publications targeting minorities of both genders;
• A new Office and Vice President of Diversity, responsible for reporting to the company's chief executive officer on the company's progress toward fair employment practices;
• The hiring of twenty-five recruiters who will focus on and seek women and minority employees.
• Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) and Diversity Training for all employees with hiring authority;
• Revision of Performance Evaluations for managers, making progress toward diversity goals a factor in their bonuses and compensation;
• A new internal complaint procedure; and
• The company's marketing materials will reflect diversity by including members of minority racial and ethnic groups.

The info above comes from Wikipedia which means it's absolutely true.  I want to bring something up really important though.  Have you been inside an Abercrombie & Fitch store lately?  What is up with the crazy loud music and the heavy marine layer of cologne and perfume floating in the air?  The only redeeming quality of the overpowering music and cologne is that you could do the crop dusting fart thing in their store for as long and as loud as you'd like and no one would ever notice - not even the worker girl that needs permission from the store manager so you can enter the fitting room.


I do like some of their clothing but dang, the freaking shopping bags they give you are enough to make you stop shopping there.  Or go workout.  What guy wants to walk around holding a shopping bag with a half naked dude on it?  We got this one shopping bag recently that had a picture of a dude fully nuded up.  At least that photo was taken such that none of his twigs or berries were showing.  Very considerate of you A&F.


Now I fully realize that I may have surpassed A&F's target audience (18-22 years old) by a couple of years.  And by "years" I mean "decades."  Maybe that's why they're purposely fumigating me out of their store with that rancid cologne like a dang mosquito spraying truck on a muggy Alabama highway ridding the county of its unofficial state bird.  Carol is usually an enthusiastic shopper and she even refuses to go in their store now because of the massive barrage on her senses.


And so what's my point?  Online shopping is awesome.

Total Randomness - LaFonda

LaFonda Restaurant during a trip to San Antonio

Kip waiting for LaFawnduh

Kip and LaFawnduh

Our neighbors as Kip and LaFawnduh

Peter Fonda

Jane Fonda

LaFawnduh and a witch

A witch and Jason

Jason in space

Jane Fonda in space

Peter Fonda spaced out

Random Thoughts #2

Football thoughts:  Ryan Mallet looked pretty darn good last night...up until that game changing pass.  Ohio State's zone blitz got him and he threw a horrible interception to a defensive lineman that doesn't normally go back into coverage.  I'm pretty sure the Buckeye defender that intercepted the ball is one of the five players that will be suspended for the first five games next football season. If the transgression was so grievous to warrant a five game suspension, why weren't those players suspended for last night's Sugar Bowl?  They should've been.  Oh well, the SEC domination over Ohio State had to end some time.  I wonder if the Dolphins have a shot at drafting Mallet?

Navy thoughts:  I haven't seen the Enterprise videos yet.  Darn shame.  Everything I hear about the Skipper (Commanding Officer) has been really positive.  You never like to see good officers get fired.  I've seen some pretty interesting things on the aircraft carrier TV broadcast over the years.  One guy even taped a surgery he had while onboard the ship.  I think it was a big cyst he had removed.  Entertaining (I guess) but would probably earn some type of reprimand if it was shown in today's Navy.  Sheesh, I guess posting the "Naked Day on the Aircraft Carrier" video on Youtube is out of the question.

Jake's thoughts (word for word from the little guy himself):  "My soup tastes like the moon.  I know because I've been on the moon.  Well, I haven't actually been on the moon.  You guys knew that, right?"

Canine thoughts:  A friend recently asked for dog advice on Facebook.  She got a ton of responses.  Get this, get that.  Carol was the only one to mention adopting from the Humane Society or a shelter.  A few months from now, as the novelty and cuteness of that Christmas puppy wears off and the reality sets in that you actually have to take care of that animal, shelters all over the country will be teaming with former Christmas present dogs that will have to be put to sleep due to overcrowding.  Adopt a pet instead of going to the pet store.  Save an animal's life!

Random picture (as random as closing my eyes and double clicking on a bunch of pictures can be):

So this is from my 40th birthday party in Korea.  That's Big Daddy in the middle.  Tripp Blanton is a great American.  He and I were the two Commanding Officers there in Busan.  He was the 837th Transportation Battalion Commander while I was the CO of Military Sealift Command Korea.  You can't help but smile when you're around him.  He was recently selected for Colonel.  It was sad saying bye to Tripp and his family.  I have a feeling we'll see each other again sometime down the road.  Even though he's older than me, he got me some Ben-gay, hemorrhoid cream and Metamucil laxative for my birthday.  Sweet.  More randomness later...

Random Thoughts #1

I've got the best Mom anyone could ask for.  Happy Birthday Mom.  I love you.

Jake's announcement to his kindergarten class today:  "Everyone, I have a loose tooth today.  You must all leave me alone."

Tennessee gets a lot colder than I thought it would.

On my recent visit to Korea, I was reminded that kim chi in a jar is not as good as fresh kim chi.

I consider it a success when my work email inbox is below 200 emails.  Not much success lately.

The Miami Dolphins may not win the Superbowl this year.

Navy moves are never easy.

Who knew that Santa Claus made a regular stop at Bass Pro Shops?

Hand models are creepy people.  See video if you don't believe me:



Until next time...

Slightly Strange Sights

So here are a couple of random shots of things you don't see everyday.  None of this stuff is shocking by any means - just a little...off.

That's quite the unwieldy load in that truck.  You should've seen it move around when it was rolling down the street.  It's an episode of Emergency 9-11 waiting to happen.

This advertisement reminded me of an old joke about three guys at a gentlemen's club.  Carol reminded me that some of our church friends read the blog so I decided not to share that one.  I'm showing restraint in my advanced age.

Ah, nothing like taking advantage of a nice spring day and the sunshine to dry your clothes.  Makes your garments smell fresh and clean - unless you've got a dead fish hanging next to them.  Again, not shocking.  Just a little off.

If you look closely inside the bed of the truck, you'll see a guy actually on the motorcycle talking on a cell phone.

This is one of those claw machines that you put money in and try to grab a stuffed animal toy.  That part isn't strange at all.

What is a little strange are the things inside the claw machine - shoes, belt buckles, a can of STP oil treatment, walkie talkies, a flashlight and other stuff.  Interesting.

Here's a man riding a big tricycle in the subway.

A group of Koreans hanging out on the beach in their thongs - during the winter.  Notice everybody else with jackets on.  Yes.  Thong Man strikes again.  No jumping rope this time.

This is outside a nightclub in Haeundae Beach.  It's a very distinguishable landmark and great for giving directions.  "Yeah, go past the Paradise Hotel, take a left at the big hairy penis and you'll see my apartment on the right."

Enough silliness for now.  Have a great weekend.

Ramblings at 4 in the Morning

Not that you asked, but here is a short diatribe of random thoughts from a sleepless little brown man in Korea:

- I'm disappointed in seeing some of my military friends on Facebook talking so negatively about President Obama in their status updates and comments. Not because it's President Obama but rather because I think the military needs to support the President regardless of political party or personal preference. Military members take an oath that says we will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over us. Yes, obeying orders and supporting the President are two different things, but when military members publicly bad-mouth the President in an open forum like Facebook, in my opinion, this is wrong. Consider the fact that there are strict rules for the military on campaigning for a President they support. Bottom line for me is that as a military man, no one should even be able to tell who I voted for. They just need to know that I will wholeheartedly support whoever the President may be and unflinchingly follow any orders from the President or any of my superiors. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this topic.

- It's the big Pier 8 Christmas Party tonight. Lots of hard work went into this event. Really looking forward to it. I'm so glad Paul and Shiela are able to sing for us tonight. They are the singers from the Westin Chosun Hotel at Haeundae Beach. It would really be a different event without them. It's gonna be an awesome night!

Here's a picture from last year's Christmas Party. This is the leadership from the Republic of Korea Port Operations Group Team (ROKPOG), 837 Transportation Battalion and MSCO Korea .

- Time for the birds and bees talk with CJ. I never had that talk with my Mom and Dad. You can imagine my surprise when the first hair popped up in my nether regions. Sheesh.

- I miss flying.

Getting ready to launch off the aircraft carrier on catapult 4.

Coming back from a good flight.

- I could've spent an extra week in Thailand and it wouldn't have been enough. Phuket was fantastic. Will post some pictures soon.

- Still working the next set of orders. We contemplated going overseas again but decided against it for a number of reasons. One being the poor health of our other family member back home, Fred, our 15 year old furry friend. Here is a short tribute to our great dog Fred that I taped last week in Thailand:

- My change of command is scheduled for 30 June 2010. I've got less than 7 months to go here in Korea. We are really going to miss Busan. What an incredible tour this has been so far. Well, better get back to bed or work. One or the other. Until next time -- C2

Off To Thailand

It's been a very busy couple of weeks. I recently returned from two conferences in San Diego. One was a gathering of all the Commanding Officers of the Military Sealift Command units stationed in the Pacific and Far East regions. The other event was a planning conference for JLOTS - Joint Logistics Over The Shore. JLOTS is a huge exercise that will occur in Korea in 2010. Yup, the Gaslamp District is still fun and the Mexican food is still good.

The family is off to Phuket, Thailand today for some rest and relaxation. Since I haven't blogged in a while, here are a few random pics before I'm off the net for a few days.

My office at Pier 8. Can't beat my window view. It looks out over the water into the Busan Harbor.

Not sure why he started doing this but one of Jake's favorite things to do lately is drop his drawers, smack his rump roast and sing, "Shake your booty, shake your booty!" Curse you, KC and the Sunshine Band!

Because the parking situation is so tight in Korea. Most folks place their cell phone number on the dashboard of their cars. When people are double and triple parked, folks will call each other to let them know they need to move their car. Pretty neat. Wonder if that would fly in the US?

CJ as MJ this past Halloween. He's become quite the Michael Jackson fan lately, even learning the moonwalk. Spoiler alert. We saw the MJ movie, "This Is It." Although we liked the movie, how can you make that movie without a single moonwalk? Very disappointed with that. I'll live.

That's all for now. Until next time -- C2