Hallow–what's-that-again?

This year for Halloween was a little different than any years in the past decade and a half.  I was going to be “participating” in the annual ghoul-fest, but in a capacity outside of that which I have become accustomed. 

Having two kids, there have been 14 Halloween nights that required chaperoning or tagging along with said youngsters as they went trick-or-treating. This was the first year that they were allowed to both go sans an adult and wander the neighborhood in search of goodies, none of which had been shared with their father to date.

Since I was going to hand out candy to trick-or-treaters who darkened my doorway, and N was going to join me for the first time, I had to come up with a costume.  I’ve been Darth Vader, of course, and any number of characters comes to mind as appropriate for me, but I hadn’t put thought or effort into planning this year’s outfit. By the time I got home from work, I had 45 minutes to design a costume and get set up.

Then it hit me.  As a matter of fact, it hit me as I was concluding my last post to this very blog.  That chocolate box for which I had just discovered the identity was now my identity for a few hours on Halloween night.

Enter Domo-Rock:

P was not too proud to be seen around Dad as Domo:

Then enter the most fantastic Minnie ever!

It was fabulous.  Little kids inquired because they didn’t know what to think of me.  One little guy was almost to the door at the next house before he stopped eyeballing me.  A lot of ‘tweens were happy to see this crazy character, many yelling “Domo!” from the sidewalk before they got to the door.  One girl even said “You two are the coolest adults in the neighborhood.”

Yes we are.

It’s Not Mr. Ro-box-to

Looking back to the Chicago trip from two months ago, there were a lot of memorable things, and a lot of great experiences.  To me, there is always something cool about noticing a small detail somewhere that sparks an even better memory of something else.  On occasion, that spark may come from something entirely ridiculous.

While attending the Royals/Sox game, we passed by a character that couldn’t even trigger N’s affinity for photo opportunities with mascots, but was so odd looking that I had to snap a photo anyway.

He had been dubbed “Chocolate Box” because there was no other way to describe him.  I’d never seen it before, and it didn’t look any better than some company's mascot attempt gone awry. Little did I know, my opinion of this guy was not too far off, but he’s apparently getting more popular than I would ever expect. He has become hats…

And slippers…

And his name is “Domo.”  Perhaps the rendition of him at the ball park was just a really bad attempt?  I still don’t know, even after checking out some wikiDomo.  He has apparently been around a while and comes to us from Japan. As far as I’m concerned, he should stay there.  Then again...

Windy City Royal-ty (Part II)

It's great to be busy, and stinks to feel lazy, so for whichever reason, I apologize for the nearly four week pause between posts.  If you haven't read Part I or it's been so long since you did that you don't remember, go read it now.

After a good night's rest, we were ready to take in some sights in the daylight.  Looking out the window to get a feel for which direction we might go first, I looked down to the river and spotted something floating.  It looked to be about the size of a human body...



It was very likely NOT a body, since the water taxi passengers were not very concerned.

We decided to head to Navy Pier since we had a few hours before game time, and there is some cool stuff to see.  The first cool thing for me was the view of the city pier-side.



Being on the pier made it absolutely obvious why Chicago is referred to as the Windy City.  I actually thought N might blow off of the pier into the water a few times.



I got to see a real lighthouse for the first time. I realize they are very common, and functional, but you don't see them in the middle of corn fields or pastures, which is what most of my existence has been surrounded by, and people like to decorate with them, so enjoy (and shut up.)



Since I hadn't been here before, and there was so much I want to remember, I figured I needed a souvenir to commemorate my adventure on Navy Pier.  What would make the most sense?  A shot glass? A hat? All too run-of-the-mill for me.  Ooohhh, how about an anchor!



I couldn't get the darned thing in my pocket, so I settled for a Chicago pint glass instead (in Royal Blue, of course.)
It had become time to eat again, and being in Chicago and in a baseball mood, it made perfect sense to eat at Harry Caray's.  Topping off the day of baseball wouldn't have occurred if it had not been for the enormous Harry Caray Chicago Dog.  Nothing says baseball better!


Then I was lucky enough to get a photo with the baseball announcing legend.


Alright, it was just his head.  He is dead, you know (R.I.P. Harry!)  This place had so much sports memorabilia that I could have wandered around reading the walls for days. One thing I couldn't pass up was this autographed jersey from the 2010 Stanley Cup Champions.  I definitely thought of you, DMcG!



By the time I was done wandering around reading newspaper clippings, baseball autographs, and all the other fantastic stuff in there, we were going to be cutting it close to make the opening pitch of the game.  I wasn't too concerned with that, as that's not what makes a game exciting, and it wasn't going to hurt me or help the Royals (love ya KC) if we were a little late getting there.

The plan was to head back to the hotel and catch a cab to the ball park.  A change of clothes was involved now as well, because what we thought was going to be a nice day had stayed  a bit chilly and windy.  I don't know if that was an excuse that was thought of beforehand to get me back to the hotel room, or if she came up with it on the fly.  All I know is, when I opened the hotel room door and walked in, I nearly crapped myself.  Being a few hours from home, and not having any reason to expect some sort of surprise, I was absolutely ridiculously surprised to see two people sitting in my room, just looking out the window like they belonged there.



There was JG and his girl S, just hanging out, waiting for a baseball game!  They pulled off one of the greatest surprises I have ever experienced.  I found out just after that there were  a couple of opportunities for the surprise to get ruined, but I do a fine job of not paying attention to what's happening around me sometimes.  Lucky for me, and them.
As we arrived at the ball field, I was still taking in the sights.  This seemed like a typical ball park on the outside.  We thought maybe there would be a mascot or two in sight, hoping rather, since N is such a fan(atic) of them.  There weren't any that we might recognize, but for some reason, this thing was just hanging out as if it belonged.  We dubbed it "the Chocolate Box."



The park and field are nice, but it certainly is not The K.



ME and my favorite lady making a memory...



and my "Royal Cabinet"...



I probably don't need to tell anyone the outcome.  My Royals stayed true to their form for the second half of the season.  The Sox fans were extremely cool.  They gave us a it of a ribbing, especially since I was cheering so much for the last place team at an away game. At one point we cheered back and forth "Let's go ROYALS!" "Let's go White Sox!" Until I switched it up on them and yelled "Welcome to the basement!"  They all seems to enjoy that one.  You can't be a fan of a losing team and not accept that they will lose.

There were cool things to see and do after the game.  I still wouldn't pose as a player for any other team, so ignore the extra hand over my shoulder...



There was a spectacular view of the city from this vantage point, since we were still up on the concourse.



Another friendly Sox fan stopped to help us with a photo.



I've ridden the "T" in Boston, so I had been on a subway/train before, but we had to experience "the L" since we needed to make our way back to downtown.  N helped me honor the moment while we waited for the train.



We made it back downtown and wandered a bit before going to clean up and hit the town that night.  I guess N had put up with enough of me and decided there was room for another body in the river.



Clearly, I survived that ordeal and was happy I lived to see another day.  No matter how happy I am, cartwheels don't look right with these crazy-ass long legs.



In all, I had a spectacular time, and spent it with spectacular friends.  And there are not any other pictures to share, because it is best that any further activities that took place are not discussed.  Maybe someone danced in an open window for passersby, but that's just not pretty.

If you'd like to read N's account of my fabulous Royal weekend, you can do that here.

Thanks again, N, for the fantastic weekend!

Windy City Royal-ty (Part I)

It’s well known to most folks that I consider Kansas City (Missouri) “Home.”  I lived there for twenty years. People who don’t know me that well tend to ask why I left Kansas.  I didn’t, because I never lived in Kansas.  I was, however, born in Illinois, and lived there until I was eight. I’ve been in Indiana for eleven years. So, eight years in the Land o’ Lincoln, twenty in the Show Me State to the West, and eleven in the armpit state to the East (yep, that’s 39 years) might lead you to think that I had traveled, at least once, to the largest city in any of the three states that I’ve resided in.  Oddly enough, until I turned 39, I had never been to Chicago. Sure I’ve been to O’Hare and Midway airports, and even went to Carol Stream for some convention, but I had never actually seen the streets of the Windy City.

Along came that last birthday before “making the turn” or going “over the hill” – 39.  Whatever.  I look and feel good for 30, let alone 39.  Hence the blog title, folks.  It does surface on occasion.  Anyway – in honor of my special day, NF asked what I wanted to do.  I had been contemplating a day trip to a nearby city so I could catch my Kansas City Royals in action for a second time this year.  As luck would have it, they were playing the Chicago White Sox on the weekend following my birthday. NF let me pick the seats, and she picked up the tickets for us. Happy Birthday, Chad!  What I had originally hoped would be a sweet day-long trip to Chicago to see the Royals had just turned into a weekend trip to chill out and check out the city.

Living 2-3 hours away from Chicago for over a decade, one might expect that I had traveled far enough in that direction that I wouldn’t see such a spectacular sight along the way.  Little did I know, even after seeing parts of these on trucks heading up the highway in the past, that so many enormous energy-providing windmills are right up the road from me.

Obviously, Indiana is great for these, because it’s so gosh-darned flat here.


Lots of folks in Indy are Bears fans.  I am not particularly, but I am a fan of Jay Cutler since he was with the Denver Broncos.  It was cool to see Soldier Field as we drove past it.

I wasn’t singing the Superbowl Shuffle, but I did have to say “Da Bears” in my head fifteen times.

I was also unaware, that the fine looking fountain from the intro to Married With Children would be visible along the way.

NF was keeping as much as she could a surprise, making the entire weekend more fun by the minute.  She had booked the hotel room and wasn’t going to tell me where until she absolutely had to say.  She didn’t know that our friend BK had spilled the beans the day before, but he would not have been able to describe the view.  It was incredible!

After checking in, it was time to go see some stuff.  All I had in mind was to wander the streets to see what I could see.  We headed to the Magnificent Mile, even though it was a little late to shop.  Along that mile is a store that I know my daughter would have loved a couple of years ago.  Hopefully now she’s outgrown the desire to continue this pricy collection.

Making the choice to check out the shops while they were closed was an excellent idea.  There are a few places that I could spend days and a few months salary.  I’ll plan a longer trip once the kids are done with college.  Walking for a couple of hours had really built up the appetite, and it was beginning to rain. NF and I decided we’d stop in at Jake Melnik’s. The menu is full of tantalizing subjects, the first of which caught my eye was the Hickory Smoked Half Chicken:

That’s right! Kansas City Style!  But wait.  I am hungry enough to eat half a chicken.  Am I sure I just want chicken? Probably not, so how about the burger selection? Just then, I spotted Jake’s Smokin’ Que Burger. It’s wrapped in BBQ spiced bacon & slow-smoked, topped with BBQ pulled pork, crispy beer battered onions, cheddar cheese & BBQ sauce. You read correctly. A burger topped with pulled pork!

Of course it wouldn’t have been a full experience without seeing people displaying their big-city personas.  While we were waiting for the rain to stop and finishing dinner, we had the very distinct pleasure of witnessing something I know I’ve never seen before.  Without a hint of discretion, across the street from our window seats, was a lady (term used way too loosely) who simply stopped at the corner of the sidewalk in the rain. She leaned forward a bit so her hair blocked sight of her nethers, dropped what she was wearing below her waist to her ankles, squatted for a few seconds, then pulled ‘em right back up and walked away.  “There’s nothing to see here. Keep moving, folks.” Seriously, we couldn’t get a camera out quickly enough, so there’s none of that to see here. Still, unbelievable.

We had reached the end of the night on the town, and decided to head back to the hotel.

The walk back was pleasant.  Across from our room, there seemed to be apartments, whose residents are not particularly fond of window coverings.  We must have spent an hour just spinning stories of what was going on a block away.  There were art thieves, an internet porn mogul, and several other interesting souls (in our heads anyway).

Aside from seeing my Royals, what could happen on day 2 to top this?

I Won't Forget You...

...even though I will do my best to block the memory of  you.  Although, it may benefit me to remember you, just so I may walk away unnoticed next time I see you.

I understand social interactions that wouldn't normally take place if you are with friends or other people that you know.  I am no stranger to striking up an otherwise meaningless conversation in a restaurant, airport, or elsewhere that I might be sitting alone, just to ease an awkward situation a little.

Last night, while sitting with a couple of friends, we met someone who apparently has no knowledge of, and/or concern for social graces.  Her name may or may not have been "Kara."  There's no innocence to protect in this story.  My friends and I were simply talking about how our days went, chatting about work stuff, office politics, etc.  Then it happened.  "Kara" introduced herself to each of us, because she could not help but hear our conversation taking place a few seats over.

Normally, this may not be so awkward, except that one person doesn't typically join three strangers in a conversation without prior invitation. "Kara" is obviously the type to talk when she wants to talk, and say exactly what's on her mind.  Without knowing us, she began telling us of her career as what may or may not be a veterinarian, and that she recently applied for a job with a local pharmaceutical company which shall remain unnamed here.

Having heard the phrase "I'd do anything for a year" in reference to unsavory or unlikable lines of work, "Kara" thought it appropriate to refer to certain acts with animals for certain amounts of money as a similar point of view.  At this point, we laugh along a bit and try to go back to our conversation.  Not surprisingly, at this point, "Kara" wants to play a "get to know you" game and kicks it off with "Where's the weirdest place you've done it?"  After divulging that I've never done "it", then being reminded that I have two children that indicate otherwise, we paid our check and left, hoping to not run into "Kara" again.

If you are friends with someone like "Kara" please discuss social etiquette with him or her, or pay more attention to that person so he or she doesn't strike up inappropriate conversations with me.  If you are someone like "Kara", please stop.  Strangers don't want to talk to you.

Hot Tub Hideaway

Sadly, it's been a few weeks since my last post.  I've been a little busy, but I'll get you caught up shortly (maybe not quickly.)  Part of being busy was the need to clean up the hot tub for fall, since we haven't used it all summer.  Between lake weekends, the excessive heat, and everything else, it just has not been on the agenda.

I say "we" haven't used it, but someone certainly has been.  I opened the lid to start draining it, only to find that this guy has decided that it would be a nice safe habitat...

I have no idea how long he has been living in his deluxe condo, but he seems to have kept the place bug free.

I am not sorry to report, however, that his lease was up and he has recently relocated to a lake-front (or pond) residence.  Hopefully he will be as happy there.

Par ...but not for realz.

In years past I've played many rounds of golf. I've played in a weekly league, and otherwise gone out with my golf buddies almost every weekend.  It has gotten tougher this year as I limit my time away from B & P, and I have devoted so much more free time to trying to reel in the behemoth this summer.

So far this year, I've played 9 holes after work twice, and 18 holes on a couple of Sundays.  Until yesterday, my annual best was a 94 (46 on 9 holes), which is a tad over bogey golf. if you don't know what bogey golf is, close your browser and don't read anymore golf stories, or ask someone who knows.

As I said, that was my best, until yesterday.  The scorecard from yesterday tells the entire story of shooting par on nine holes...



So what if I did it on Wii Golf?  I enjoy the accomplishment.  I even achieved Pro status for Wii Golf.  Maybe an online golf tourney will be in my future.

Uhhhhhhhgleeeeeee

I can't say catfish are pretty.  I also can't say I've ever seen one alive that was this ugly and smelled bad too!



Caught a few last weekend, and a few bass. The behemoth eluded me once again.  Trying my hand at making my own lures now.  They fetched me a couple of crappie.  Just gotta work on the colors.

I may be taking a break from fishing for a couple of weeks.  Nah, you know I'll hit a local pond or two instead.

Catfish Weekend

Weird weekend for fishing, comparatively speaking.  I started out by catching a handful of these colorful little guys...

I have been keeping a catfish rig at the end of the pier, trying to land something big.  At one point, we were floating on tubes, and I would periodically glance at the catfish pole to see if anyone was nibbling. It's not so easy to get out of an inner tube, up the few stairs, and down to the end of the pier when the fishing pole starts bouncing, but it was time to try.
I got to end and started reeling.  It was something of significance at the end of my line.  Just as I got it to the top of the water, it flopped around just enough to get itself loose.  NF caught just enough of a glimpse to know I wouldn't be lying about a fish being on the line.  From my vantage point, it was clearly a catfish. I would guess it to be a 3-pounder or so.
That made the day interesting.  I cast out again, to almost the same spot, then reeled in my crappie line, dropped the depth to nearly the lake bottom (it's no deeper than six feet for at least a hundred yards from the pier) and cast that out there too.
Within a couple of hours, I caught four of these guys...

They were all between 2 & 3lbs.  Notice the bobber in the photo? Yep, I caught three of the four catfish on the crappie line with a bobber.  Wacky, but cool. Now I know where to hunt for the big cat.

P asked me to take her out on a jet ski.  Like I would say no! No photos, but I can still hear her saying "Daddieeeee" every time I got on the throttle more than she wanted.

NF also took B, P, and me on a couple of boat rides.



Obviously, she's fan of the photo opp...

Looking forward to an even hotter weekend coming up.  It won't stop me from fishing, to be sure.

Eh...

Still trying to catch the beastly behemoth. This RedEar is not him...

Yep. Still trying...

R.I.P. Garth

You may have read here about the baby gar that I brought home, because I wanted to see how big he might get, and because he was cool.  I had been taking him out to the garage in the evenings so I could catch tiny bugs by the garage lights and feed them to him.  It was awesome watching him attack them from the side, like he was some stealthy little beast stalking his prey.

I left him in the garage one day, all day, and came back to find that the garage got really hot during the day.

I think Garth may have gotten cooked.  So much for being a cool fish.  Saddened by his demise, I will go on trying to catch the behemoth of prior tales in his stead.

Rock 'n' Roll BBQ

I don't get excited about too many concerts, mainly because the majority of concert-goers are a$$holes who think they deserve more than everyone else, even though we paid the same $$ for a ticket. Occasionally, one comes along that makes me say "I have to go see them!"

Fourth of July weekend marked the inaugural Rock 'N' Roll BBQ in Indy. There were three days of concerts, surrounded by booths peddling their award winning Bar-B-Que, depending on what state you are from (shout-out to KCMO!)  Friday was clearly fitting for a BBQ festival in a stadium parking lot.  The Charlie Daniels Band was the headlining act.  Since the Guitar Hero version of Devil Went Down to Georgia is more pleasant to my ear these days, I opted not to go.

Saturday was a much different story.

B & P had not yet experienced a Rock concert, so what better venue for them to enjoy a few bands than Victory Field (Indianapolis Indians) parking lot?



Rev Theory was the first of the bands I was looking forward to seeing. Some throaty metal mixed with a little mainstream rock sound makes them, in my opinion, very fun to listen to, and now exciting to see.

Not only were they awesome on stage, I get to remember the show with the awesome souvenir that was thrown my way...

Saving Abel was next.  They seem to get more radio play, but not having any of their music in my personal collection left me wondering how good they would be.  They absolutely did not disappoint!

The headlining act on this day was one that I had been waiting to see since they released their EP "stuck" back in the early '90's.  The bar-b-que in the parking lot may not have been from Kansas City, but one of my favorite bands is.  Finally, I got to see Puddle of Mudd live.

As rare as it is for me to ignore the d!cks in a crowd and just enjoy the show, it's even more rare for me to know every song in a set list, and still more rare (never) that I like every one of them.  This show, especially for $8 per tic, was as awesome as I had hoped for. I think Wes knew the kids and I were there to see him.

Absolutely the best "first rock show" I could have imagined for the kids. Even though there were examples to point at and say "Don't act like that," there was more than enough cool stuff to encourage them (even me) to try enjoying the experience more often.

Back at ya, Wes!