Texas vs. Kentucky

It's been a relaxing week filled with way too many home made goodies and lots of time just chilling and reading.

However, there has also been a little bit of butt-kicking - especially in the Rook and Spades department...

Joe and I come from a non-Rook background. We learned the game only yesterday. It is similar to Spades where two people play on the same team. After one night of learning the game, Joe and I teamed up to win the upset of year. Hand after hand we hammered the opposition by dominating with our cards. Steve, Amber's father, asked me at one point, "Why aren't you bidding!?" I merely tapped the scorepad and said, "Steve, I am winning this game, I no longer need any help from you." Slamma Jamma! Let the gloating begin!!

We followed our game of Rook with a game of Spades. This time Amber paired up with her mother, Thelma, and once again the Kentuckians got shut out.

Of course Joe and I had to celebrate and show off our victory by making ourselves some champion "accessories". As you can see, I have the champion cards attached to my guns, and Joe is wearing the prized Rook/Spade belt.

Anyone up for some games?

Boot Camp

Perhaps I didn't mention it, but during my holiday feasts I consumed more calories 3 sumo wrestlers at an all-you-can-eat sushi buffet. When I jogged on the treadmill after a weeks worth of partying I started to smell something sweet. I touched my forehead and it was sticky. I looked at my arms and they were covered with what looked like donut glaze - I was literally sweating sugar!

Like the rest of America, I plan to diet in the New Year, but for now I plan to enjoy the holidays denying myself nothing and consuming every tasty confection that is prepared for me.

However, in Kentucky, Joe Bruner has found a gym and that gym has cardio classes and today he suggested we do a Boot Camp class. "I ain't afraid of no boot camp!" I told him, knowing that in the past I had destroyed many a boot camp class and went home ready to sign up for the Army. Amber, Nicole, Joe and I started the class and one of the girls informed us that it would be from 9-10:30. I started to worry. 90 minutes of hard cardio is A-LOT. Especially if in the last month you have replaced your cardio workouts with Christmas parties and binge eating.

The class started with the dreaded jump rope. It was the longest 3 minutes of my life. We went from jump rope to 50 jumping jacks WITH WEIGHTS, 50 toe touches kicking out with one foot while touching with the opposite arm, and then 50 mountain climbers!!! We did it and then the instructor said RINSE AND REPEAT!!! So we did it again. After about 15 minutes of class I knew that I had already burned about 3000 calories - at this rate I knew I would be back down to my pre-holiday weight by the time the class was over.

My favorite part of the class was moving to the basketball court where we ran suicides and each time we came to the base line we did 10 push-ups. I didn't realize that you could actually expel your interior gastrointestinal system, but I almost did - twice.

When the 90 minutes was over I prayed to God and asked him why he allowed Satan to work as a boot camp instructor in Kentucky - I am still awaiting his answer.

So, that being said, Kentucky has been fun, and when I return home I am probably going to be ripped and there will be no need for New Years Resolutions!

Miss you guys and gals!

Christmas in Kentucky

Hello Everyone! How was your Christmas? Good I hope.

I am in Kentucky with my best friend Joe Bruner and his wife Amber. Amber's family is from Kentucky and so I am staying at Amber's parents house until New Year's Eve.

It is going to be fun to get away for some R&R. Cat, I am sure, is going to enjoy having a little bit of free time. Since Thanksgiving Day I have schedule every one of her free evenings to be with me - and she works two jobs and so she didn't have many free evenings. I already miss her though, it would have been nice if she could have come up to Kentucky - we could have gone on some runs up here through the hills - this place is beautiful!

I still have internet and a Camera and so I will post some photos and of course I will be blogging!

I love you people - don't ever forget that. I.LOVE.YOU.

The Twelve Days of Christmas - DQ Style

When I was in the 7th grade we road the school bus to school. I had my two sisters with me and we all sat in the back with our friends and normally had a great time goofing around together.

One year we were riding the bus and we started to make up the 12 Days of Christmas with food from Dairy Queen.

I will share it with you now in revers so that you can just see how it went down...

On the 12th day of Christmas my True Love Gave to me

12 Tater tots

11 Milk Shakes

10 Oreo Blizzards

9 Steak Sandwiches

8 Chocolate Dipped Cones

7 Apple Pies

6 Coco-Cola's

5 ONION RINGS - SAAAA! (We really extended the ending)

4 Hunger Buster's

3 French Fries

2 Corny Dogs

And a BIG FAT JUICY HAMBURGER!!!

Now that, my dear friends, is TRUE LOVE!

Merry Christmas!

Steve Sporre Points to the Lord!

Check out this video and see if you can spot Steve!

This one will definitely have you laughing all the way!

Merry Christmas!

NIP / TUCK

"Tell me what you don't like about yourself..."

I had plastic surgery when I was 22.

When I was 21 I lost 113 pounds by dieting, running, and eating mostly Healthy Choice meals and drinking more water in a day than most camels in a year. Inspired by years of taunts and jeers, I finally got tired of being fat and started doing something about it.

I worked my butt off to get rid of my man-boobs. That was my number one goal, I could have cared less about having a big stomach, I just wanted a normal chest. I had already lived most of my life being made fun of for my high voice and my for being a christian and having a moral standard and as I continued to put on weight I started getting made fun of for being fat.

I worked at Boeing in Corinth and there was this one guy on my team that always told me that I needed to wear a bra. It was like high school all over again. Me being sensitive about my self image and someone picking up on that sensitivity and exploiting it. Some people seem to be able to sense weakness like an animal can sense fear and then they attack without provocation.

Long story short, I dieted to get rid of my man-boobs. I worked hard, I ran and ran and ran. The running was therapeutic. I lost weight, I felt great, but in the end I still wasn't satisfied with the results. I started looking up plastic surgeons to fix my chest. The excess skin sagged down and my chest looked better, but it still didn't look right. I probably could have waited patiently to see if the problem would have corrected itself, but I was impatient and tired and ready to be free from this burden.

I went to a plastic surgeon in Lewisville and for 3,500 dollars he removed the excess skin and did a small amount of liposuction on the remaining fat in my chest. I weighed approximately 230 pounds and I had a 34 inch waist and so I felt like I was ready to take this next step to becoming a new man.

Two painful surgeries later my chest was looking much better. I felt good about myself. I started being much more confident. The following summer I went to Kanakuk Kamps and took my shirt off when I went swimming. It felt good.

My new-found confidence helped me to overcome a lot of self-esteem issues that I had harbored over the years and soon I matured and found out who I was and that being fat or thin didn't make me - me. But it took losing weight and having the plastic surgery to realize that.

So the reason I am writing this post is because last night I was watching NIP / TUCK. It was the season finale. I haven't been able to make it through one of these shows completely because it is so violent and sometimes vulgar. However, just from the commericials it was easy to keep up with what was going on with the show. I knew there was this spooky Carver dude and I wanted to find out if the Carver was one of the Plastic Surgeons or someone else.

Turns out, The Carver was a Plastic Surgeon and a Detective - they were a brother/sister team. They were both born with physical birth defects and sent to an orphanage. Society rejected them and they were never adopoted. The brother was born without a penis and his sister was born with a face abnormailtiy. ( I thought it was interesting how they chose the two things that men and women seem to value most about their appearance) They lived their entire lives trying to fit in and hating a society that equates self-worth with beauty. They set out to destroy women who valued outward beauty, and the plastic surgeons that made them.

NIP / TUCK is a provocative show that looks at all levels of plastic surgery, but what all plastic surgery seems to boil down to is vanity. We don't like what is ugly. We don't talk about what is ugly. Instead we take the ugly, and we put a pretty face on it.

Being born with a deformity is not unbearable, being rejected for something that we have no control over is.

Disclaimer:
This post isn't about being for or against plastic surgery, it is only intended to share my experience with plastic surgery and to make people think.

Say Bueno!

Just in case you didn't know, the very best thing you can order at Taco Bueno is the Combination burrito with guacamole and queso. It costs 3.97 when you order it this way instead of 1.99, but IT.IS.WORTH.IT.

Beans, Meat, Cheese, and Guac in a fresh soft tortilla is pure mouth bliss. I am sure that if the Mayan's had Taco Bueno, then they would have made a burrito shaped idol and bowed down and worshipped it. They would have danced around large cauldron's of refried beans chanting, Bur Reet Toe - Bur Reet Toe! In the caves, we would have seen hieroglyphics with people fighting, not over land or corn, but over an oversized burrito with gaucamole and queso! Civilizations would have been destroyed over this tasty bit of heaven and speaking of heaven...

I think if you look at the Apocrypha, it mentions that the Israelites when they were fleeing Egypt, were not actually being guided by a pillar of clouds as Exodus states, but by a huge floating burrito. (Perhaps that is why the Apocrypha was not cannonized?)

Something to ponder while you eat a burrito...

Merry Christmas!

Best Birthday Ever!

Thanks to everyone for all the birthday wishes, it was indeed a good one.

I got a call Saturday night for Ben and Sydney of Married in Minnesota two people who are closer to me than anyone that I have never met in person before. Sydney, who I had never talked to before was the one who made the call and she didn't have a Minnesota accent, but Ben got on the line and I recognized his voice right away. About a year ago I helped him with his domain name setup and we talked on the phone a couple of times. We became fast friends and now I feel as though he and Syd and the kiddos are part of my extended family.

Last night Cat and I went to dinner at the Hardrock Cafe for a party that Office Expo was having for the corporate employees. The Mavs ManiAACs were invited because they are our corporate sponsor.

When I went to Cat's house to pick her up she surprised me with a chocolate hazelnut cake and ice cream from Wild About Harry's. She put numbered candles on the cake and instead of putting 30 she put 309! I see she thinks I am really old! Hrmphf! ha ha - I got a good laugh out of it. Being with her on my birthday was present enough, but she topped the cake off with an AMAZING shirt from the Gap and, wait for it... wait for it... CONCERT TICKETS TO SEE COLDPLAY!!! I almost exploded with delight when she showed me the tickets. She really, really outdid herself and even worse, it is going to be a gift that will be really hard to top. ( I probably better rethink that homemade pottery as a Chrismtas gift to her!)

The Hardrock Cafe party was cool because everything was free and they had a raffle and I won a Robopet! The funny thing about winning the Robopet (which I have already named "Fetch") is that as soon as they pulled him up and said, "This will be the next prize" Cat said, "Watch us win that one..." And then we did! lol. It was so funny.

The evening was long, but it was fun just spending time with Cat and Biggy and his wife. We sat and just talked and laughed and had a good time.

Now today I am getting together at La Hacienda with the family and so it should be a good time.

Life is good, God is Great, I love you all.

Happy Birthday to Me!

I woke up this morning in my birthday suit! I NEVER sleep nekkid, I just prefer to sleep in loose fitting boxers. Last night I went to bed in a pair of superman boxers and I woke up this morning without them!?!?!?! I just thought how odd it was to wake up in my birthday suit on my birthday! I must have been dreaming about taking a shower or something, I can't imagine why else I would need to undress?

Also, last night at around 7pm my sister had her baby!!! I AM NOW SUPER UNCLE EDDO Times 3!!!! (Nikki and Sarah who are like sisters to me had their babies this year too, and Cody Miller's sister is going to have hers any day now!)

Can you believe it! His name is Aiden Skyler Thompson. He is 8 pounds even and 20.25 inches long! He is really white and has blue eyes. They say babies eyes change color, but I hope his stay blue because they sure are pretty right now.

Mavs ManiAACs - Yes, another post!

Wednesday night I performed at the AAC and it was Cat's first time to go to a Mavs game. Suh-weet! She goes to a Mavs game AND gets to see her hot boyfriend perform in camo pants that are a little bit too short and lots of blingage. Look at how cute she is with the beads I gave her so she could totally have some cool blingage like me.

Just a reminder in case you have forgotten - Tomorrow I turn 30 and so you still have 24 hours to shop!

Some suggested retail outlets:

The Apple Store - iPod Video
Best Buy - Digital Cameras
Pottery Barn - Leather club chairs
Crate and Barrel - teak dresser
Williams-Sonoma - Kitchenaid Mixer
Toys-R-Us - XBOX 360 or a Tickle Me Elmo!

Fitting In - Part II

Tears flowed from my little brown eyes as if my head contained an internal faucet with an incessant drip. When I was younger -I always seemed to be crying.

You see, I was born on the planet Criesalot, which is right next Planet Sensitivitia. Both planets are located in the Galaxy of Emotia. I wasn't a sad little kid at all, most of the time I was extremely happy, but when I got upset, I got upset hard.

I don't know why I was such an emotional kid growing up, I still get emotional now if a close friend dies or I see someone being mean to a puppy, but I don't cry when the teacher won't call on me when I have my hand raised. (They do after I threaten to beat them within 1 inch of their life if they don't! lol.)

Stroll back with me to third grade, this lane of memories can get a little bumpy, so try to keep up...

I was sitting in class and it is MY BIRTHDAY. My mother is going to bring a cake to school, I have told everyone and for some reason I expect special treatment in class because IT IS MY BIRTHDAY. When I raise my hand for help with a math problem, the teacher doesn't come over immediately and help me. Later when I know the answer to something, she doesn't call on me either and I am thinking to myself, "Does this lady not realize that IT IS MY BIRTHDAY?!!" Eventually I just put my head down on my desk in defeat and turn on the waterworks.

I was one of those kids that was normally really good in school. I made good grades, I said "yes mam" and "no sir", but on the days that I got emotional, I was the kid that caused teachers to commit suicide. It is a good thing all of my elementary schools were on the fourth floor or else I am sure some of my teachers would have flung themselves out the window preferring death to the sound of my sulking.

I remember my mom finally showing up that day, she brought me a cake that had football players on it. The field goals were made out of straws and there was green frosting for grass and little plastic football players. I was so happy. Seeing my mother was like an injection of the most powerful anti-depressant on the planet. I was instantly happy and I even felt a little guilty for being such a lamo by crying all day - ON MY BIRTHDAY. I don't remember a single moment of the day after we opened the cake, the day ended on an upnote I am sure - but that wasn't the end of my emotional outbursts, those didn't end until much later in life - but thank God they ended.

And when they finally ended I added them to my list of...

How NOT to fit in

1. Make fun of old people
2. Cry like a baby all the time (Somebody call the Whaaaambulance!)

Fitting In

It was a cold Fall morning and we all stood outside Sanger Middle School waiting for the doors to open. We were just a group of boys talking about nothing and making fun of everything. I wanted so badly to fit in and to be part of their cool jibber-jabber, but I had nothing funny to say.

I stuffed my hands into the pockets of my Z Cavaricci jeans and pulled my shoulders toward my ears turtling my neck so that I could keep warm. I scanned the area around me looking for something to make fun of, or something witty to say, but all I saw was an old man walking.

He shuffled along in loose-fitting khaki pants with a matching jacket, leather gloves and a brown hat similar to the one Tom Landry always wore. My eighth grade brain churned and my mental gears turned looking for an oppurtunity, hoping for something clever to say, and then it came to me - "I should call him an old geezer, that will make the guys laugh!" I wrestled with the idea for a split-second knowing full well that it was the wrong, but I wanted so badly to fit in and so I blurted it out in my most humorous voice, "Hey guys, look at that OLD GEEZER! Ha Ha Ha!"

No one laughed. I think for a moment the entire world stopped - except for the crickets, you could hear their crystal clear chirps loud and clear.

Even worse than the lack of laughter was the rebuke - "Eddie, that's not nice, that is an old man, you shouldn't make fun of old people." The boy who rebuked me was much cooler and older than me and of course everyone followed his lead and gazed at me with incredulity. I immediately wished that I could turn back time, I prayed for God to return and rapture me, I would even have been happy if a space ship had come down from space and landed on me at that moment - anything to change what I was feeling inside. But no one came to rescue me. The guys walked away and I was left standing their shivering in my shame.

That day I started a mental list and to this day I still use it.

Eddie's List of How NOT to fit in

1. Make fun of old people

SOS Christmas

Yesterday was the Song of Solomon Christmas party luncheon at Maguires. Normally we have the luncheon at Maggiano's, which is a delectable feast of family style dishes. Maguires was nice and the food was great, but since they don't serve the food family style you don't get to try a little bit of everything - and if you know me, then you know I like a little bit of everything!

Tom Nelson always comes to the party as well as a handful of other people that work for Doug Hudson and it is always a blast. Each year we get little gifts on the table, last year it was Williams Sonoma Peppermint Bark and Mint Hot Chocolate. This year it was a tin of hot chocolate from Williams Sonoma and we had little chocolate attached to our name tags at the table. It is always a delight to go to these parties and spend time with such wonderful people.

Tonight 9 of my closest friends and Cat are coming to the Mavericks game tonight. They will get to see me perform live and I am really excited. It is Amber Bruner's birthday and so her and Joe are coming from Waco as well! Yeah! It is going to be a fun night.

Much Love.

-Eddo

Weekend Update sorta late...

Fun

After spending the evening with Cat at the Christmas play on Thursday night, I had her keep Friday open as well because we didn't know which days we would get the tickets for the Christmas show. She called me at work Friday to see what I was doing that evening and I told her that I was going to call her to see if she wanted to come to my place and we could cook dinner and just stay in and watch a movie - she said yes.

We went to Sprouts to buy groceries and Cat was delighted to see the wonderful prices on all of the fresh produce. Broccoli crowns were 2 for a dollar, and red peppers were also 2 for a dollar - normally these items sell for 2.99 each! So Cat grabbed a second basket so she could do some shopping for herself as well.

We purchased our items and went back to my casa and cooked an all veggie stir fry of zuchinni, squash, onions, broccoli, carrots, and bell peppers and then ate it with some wonderful pad thai noodles. I put some "Delerium" into the CD player and we ate and I was delighted that the pad thai noodles tasted as good as they did. After dinner we went to Starbucks to get coffee and then over to Blockbuster to rent a movie. We rented Crash and I forgot how unsettling a couple of the scenes were as I had seen it in the theater by myself. The movie deals with racial stereotypes and so the movie is intense but Cat enjoyed it and I enjoyed watching it again as well.

Saturday night we went to a Christmas party that some of Cat's friends were having. It was another great evening filled with nice people and crazy gag gifts. One of my favorite gifts was a doll that was packaged with the words "Black Doll" on the top. It was obviously a dollar store item and what really struck me as funny was how ghetto she was dressed. Flourescent green halter top, hot pink shorts and some white pumps completed the ensemble. Apparently no one had told "black doll" that you can't wear white shoes after Labor Day.

Sunday, Cat, Dumas, and I went to see The Lion, the Witch and The Wardrobe. It was just as good as I expected and I give it an 8 out of 10. The only thing that would have made it better was if they had shortened the slow parts and elongated the action scenes.

We saw it in a theater that had subtitles because that theater was the only one not sold out. We went in and got great seats and it was kind of funny to see how detailed the captions were. They would say things like, "Cricket Chirping" "Door rustling over ice" - I guess if you can't hear you really appreciate those things, but I think since you could see the door moving then you migh assume that it would be scraping the ice - but maybe not.

ManiAAC's

Saturday I had an outside appearance to do with the ManiAAC's. We drove to Belton, TX where we performed at a basketball game that benefitted Special Olympics. It was really a ton of fun because the two teams that were playing were the Killeen police department and Ex Dallas Cowboy football players. During the third quarter they even let some of us ManiAAC's sub in and I got to play basketball with Ed "Too Tall" Jones! Even on my tip-toes I wasn't taller than him.

We performed 3 routines and the small crowd loved us. It was about 10 times more fun than I thought it was going to be.

Also, Biggy posted a video from the Allstar game last year in Denver. If you still don't know what our dancing looks like - check out his site and watch the video. If it gets choppy, back the video up and let it play again after it fully loads.

Having Nothing...

I used to lead a small Bible Study called Extollo Deus. Extollo Deus is Latin for "To the Glory of God." I created the group with the idea of having a few men who were dedicated to reading their Bibles daily and to memorizing scripture on a monthly basis. The group lasted for a year and we memorized a lot of scripture. Unfortunately, accoutability can sometimes hamper a relationship with God. If you feel like it is a requirement to read your Bible and there are consequences for not reading your Bible then sometimes your spiritual walk becomes as boring as walking on a treadmill and staring at a wall - you go through the motions but you don't enjoy it.

The difference between a relationship and a requirment is that when we spend time with someone we love the time spent with them is cherished. We look forward to that time, we can't wait to see them and we hate it when they have to leave. Deep rewarding relationships take time, they require give and take from both parties.

Looking back on the year of Extollo Deus I had all these great hopes for the group and I really wanted us to be like a Fraternity, a brotherhood of young men who wanted to seek the face of God. I desired so badly to have a ministry that was great and excellent and called us as men out of our complacency. The problem with it was that I was relying too much on myself and not enough on God. Our scripture memory became a burden instead of joy, and when I moved to Plano I knew that I wasn't going to continue the group.

Extollo Deus wasn't a complete bust. No, we did spend a lot of time in the word and we did memorize a lot of scripture and the Bible says that God's word does not come back void.

Extollo Deus also taught me to trust in God and to pray for direction. All the Glory was supposed to be going to God, but I am not sure if in my heart if that is what I really wanted - perhaps I wanted some of the glory for myself?

One of my favorite verses and favorite memories of the group was when I gave the guys their final exams and they had to write out their scriptures at the end of the semester.

This was what I got from Josh Sizelove

3 We put no stumbling block in anyone's path, so that our ministry will not be discredited. 4Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; 5in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; 6 in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; 7 in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of Mass Destruction in the right hand and in the left; 8through glory and dishonor, bad report and good report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; 9 known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; 10sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.

It should have read "...weapons of righteousness"

I loved this verse mostly because of the ending. "Poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything." We have nothing, but when we share the gift of Christ we "'make many rich" and even though we have nothing when you have Christ you have everything that you need! Awesome.

I love you all.

Merry Christmas!

At the Sleigh Wash!

Whoa Whoa Whoa - At the Sleigh Wash Yeah!

Dancing Reindeer and Oompa Loompa like things
These were a few of my favorite things...

Prestonwood Baptist Church Christmas play was a montage of music and dance that reminded me of Cirque De Soleil meets Dancing with the Stars meets Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir meets The Passion of The Christ. Yes, there really was THAT MUCH going on.

With over 1000 volunteers you can imagine how big of a production this play was. It started with a 30 minute intro that included elves miraculously appearing out of the ceiling and spiraling down on ropes, Santa coming down from the sky in his sleigh, and dancing and singing reindeer with really, really good vocals. At one point I actually thought they had Christina Aguilera in one of those reindeer costumes - she was that good.

The costumes and dancing during the intro were Broadway quality. I couldn't believe hte color and the attention to detail. There was so much color and the cosutmes were so intense I couldn't help but think of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

There were also allusions to Elf the movie and Buddy the Elf made an appearance and even said "Santa - I KNOW HIM!" Which is one of my favorite lines from the movie.

After the Pagan intro (Santa and Elves, I call it like I see it) we got to listen to about 300 people singing Christmas carols. The men were dressed in Tuxedos and the women were weearing these sparkly gold dresses that looked very formal and very pretty. This was the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir part - minus the soul. It was very pretty, but as a 30 year old man I have to say this part was a bit of a snorefest.

Finally we got to the part I was expecting - the Birth of Jesus! Hundreds of people came in with lit candles to see the birth of Jesus. The Three Kings of Orient who were bearing gifts showed up on Camels and dressed in the most amazing robes that anyone could imagine. The fabric for this scene alone probably cost 5000 dollars. It was probably the most moving part of the play.

Overall I give the show a 6 out of 10. For production and set design and costume design they get a 12 out of 10, but the overall performance lacked real depth and emotion, I wasn't moved like I normally am in plays where they show the crucifixion of Christ.

The show was nice, but really, when it comes right down to it, I was just happy to be sitting next to Cat, holding her hand. We could have been watching paint dry on the wall and I would have been happy.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

I don't know if this was done with a computer or if someone really did this with lights - either way, it was a lot of work.

Play with sound and enjoy!


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Gym Etiquette

I know that when you read this blog you probably think that I am always handing out unsolicited advice, well I am, and you are still reading it and so I am probably talking to you.

Lately I have noticed lots of disconcerting things happening at our work gym. TI has a great little gym that is full of great weights and cool people, but sometimes those people get out of hand and I need to point out some things that need to be addressed and remedied.

1. If you look like Chewbacca and you have more hair showing on your body than skin, then there is never a time when you are allowed to wear a tank top. If at all possible, please wear a full jogging suit to cover up your entire body and a portable Dirt Devil wet/dry vac might come in handy if you sweat alot.

2. If you don't know how to use a piece of equipment, ask someone. The tricep pull-down machine is not designed to workout your entire upper torso.

3. Weight Slamming - For resistance machines that have cables you should never need to slam down the weights after each rep. The incessant slamming for 3 sets of 8 reps is giving everyone migraines and we would like to ask you to cease and desist with the slamming.

4. Leg Press Overload - Guys, this is strictly for you - Even my sister can do close to 800 pounds on the leg press and so there is never a time where you need to load the weight press machine to its maximum capacity. This is showing off in the worst way. Also, do not go and ask someone to "spot" you on the leg press machine - especially when the spotter weighs 1/8th of the amount of weight you have loaded onto the machine - if the weight is crushing you, it is going to crush him as well.

5. Grunting - Grunting is fine when you are busting out your last few reps, however, make sure your grunting is indeed necessary and normal sounding. Some of you are grunting and those grunts need to be saved for the bathroom.

6. Short Shorts and Spandex - these items of clothing were designed for women only - nuff said.

7. Deodorant - I even have to get onto some ladies for this one - This product IS necessary if you are going to run next to me for 45 minutes. It is very hard to hold your breath when you are running 3-5 miles.

8. Body Detail - the locker room is not your own personal bathroom. There is no need to comb your hair while you are naked. Showering is fine, everyone showers, but there is NEVER a need for in-depth body scrubbing. When I walk into the shower I do not want to see you working overtime reaching back and scrubbing your rear, please keep the detail work at the casa.

Thank you for following these rules.

-The Management

Marriage Retreat?

The problem with our culture is that we expect quick fixes, drive through resolutions, and convenience at every turn. I am guilty of it. I only like to work hard if I can see immediate results. I only take vitamins if I can feel them working. I only diet if I can actually see that I am losing weight.

So what does this have to do with Marriage and a marriage retreat?

Well, lately I have found that my Bible reading has been almost non-existent. I admit it. I have been a Christian since the age of 5 and I have found that my relationship with Christ is becoming boring and stale. Where is the spark? The Joy? The passion? I told this to a close friend of mine and expressed that I don't love God any less, it is jus that I don't feel like spending time with him anymore. Gulp. I try to go through the motions of reading, but I feel like "I know this already, blah, blah, blah, be kind, love one another, pray, repent, etc..."

He suggested that I stop trying to read the Bible at my house or at the usual places and that perhaps I needed to change up my study habits, go to a coffee shop or outdoors, take a 3 day weekend and get away and spend some one-on-one time with God. What? Go away on a retreat? Who has time for a retreat? Who has time for God?

I mulled this over in my head. I chewed on these words of advice like a big blob of cud. In the Bible it talks about us being the bride of Christ, but that is a difficult metaphor for me to wrap my head around - the bride? Our relationship to God is just like a marriage and even though I am not married, in my almost 30 years on this earth I have observed that marriages sometimes need a retreat, a refueling, some TNT!

I need my spiritual walk blowed up!

I am going to go up to Mardel's or some other Christian bookstore and pick up some C.S. Lewis or Bonhoffer, or Piper, or Tozer, (can I drop some more names?) and try something new with God because I miss what we used to have.

New Friend - New Blogger

Hey guys, a cool ManiAAC friend of mine started a blog. He is really cool and does some sweet design work and so I am sure his site will be updated soon with a sick template.

However, you know what it was like when you first started blogging, you felt alone and comment-less. You needed some validation, some feedback. Well help a brotha out and say hello and welcome.

He even has his own online real estate - http://www.biggybounce.com

So check it out and tell him Eddo sent you.

Word.

My Boys Are Growing Up

Thanksgiving weekend Cody Miller got engaged! I meant to post about this sooner, but I was too busy talking about myself.

Cody started dating his fiance on June 10th of 2005 and they are going to get married on June 10th of 2006. It was a whirlwind romance, but despite the quick courtship, this relationship will stand the test of time because Cody and Amy are meant to be together.

In the first two weeks of their dating, Cody had to leave for a week long trip to Canada with his mother. Amy made Cody little notes out of construction paper that he was to open each day while they were apart, and each one of them contained a reason why she liked him. Things like this are things you remember on your 50th wedding anniversary. The little things are special.

Amy was proud of Cody and was delighted to show him off to her co-workers when he stopped by to visit her one afternoon at work. A man needs a woman that is proud of him.

On their second date, Cody and I were the DJ's for Nathan and Chelli's wedding and when we were packing up the equipment, Amy stayed around and helped us carry stuff to the truck despite the fact that she was all dressed up in a dress - she was a servant and that alone made me think highly of her. She was a "Rebekah" and if Cody had some thirsty camels with him that night, I am sure she would have watered them. (This is a Biblical Analogy)

Amy was also very helpful at Cody's house and took to Cody's family immediately. If you love Cody, then you have to love his family. Cody is devoted to his family and I am constantly amazed at his loyalty to them and how he serves without complaint. Since his father died in January, he has really stepped up and taken on so many of the responsibilities of his father.

I already loved Cody and new that he would be an amazing husband and one day a spectacular father. But in the past I wasn't too happy with some of the girls he was interested in - they were definitely not like Amy.

Amy is special.

Cody and Amy cherish each other. They feel like they are the luckiest people in the world to have found each other and I am extremely happy for them.

True love is a miracle from God and when I think of True Love I think of The Princess Bride -

MIRACLE MAX
Hey! Hello in there. Hey! What's so important? What you got here that's worth living for?
And he presses lightly on Westley's chest.

WESTLEY
... tr ... oooo .... luv...
Everybody stares at Westley lying there on the bench.

INIGO
True love. You heard him. You could not ask for a more noble cause than that.

MIRACLE MAX
Sonny, true love is the greatest thing in the world. Except for a nice MLT, a mutton, lettuce and tomato sandwich, where the mutton is nice and lean and the tomato is ripe...

Congratulations Cody and Amy - I love you both!

Indian Food Woes

The Friday work lunch group got together and went to Chetinaad Palace today. 2 helpings of Curry chicken, a spoonful of spinach cheese tofu, spicy potatoes with cilantro, dosa, soup, and fried cauliflower(fried cauliflower is AMAZING). I didn't feel like I was that full when I finished, but now I feel stuffed and bloated like a dead animal that has been out in the desert sun for about 5 hours. - Ever feel that way?

Quick Pic

Here is a picture from our performance last night. I am not in the picture, but you can get an idea of what we looked like.

It was a great night. The Mavericks lost to the Spurs but the game was neck and neck all the way to the last minute.

Now who is going to see Aeon Flux tonight? I can't wait to see this movie!!! It has Charlize Theron.

Let Me Pencil You In!

I got to lookin' at my calendar this month and it is filling up really fast. I often try to tell people that I get really busy and they give me this look and then say, "Well, try to pencil me in" as if I really have to check my schedule. Here is a quick glance at my December.

Dec. 1 ManiAAC performance
Dec. 3rd Cat's Office Christmas Party - (Gladly) Canceled NYC Pot Luck and Mavs game to attend
Dec. 6th, 7th, and 13th, Mavs ManiAAC practice
Dec. 13th Christmas Luncheon Performance at work at 11:15 - Christmas NSYNC routine
Dec. 13th 11:45 Song of Solomon Christmas Luncheon Maggiano's
Dec. 14th - Perform with Mav's ManiAAC's. Bought 10 tickets so 10 friends can come and watch. It is also Amber Bruner's birthday!
Dec. 16th Work Christmas Party - I am the party planner for this one.
Dec. 17th It is my 30th birthday
Dec. 22nd 9th Annual Coit Street Christmas Party - I am also part organizer of this party.
Dec. 25th Leave for Kentucky and return on Dec. 31st.

Now I left out normal stuff like going to the movies on Friday night to see Aeon Flux. Sunday slideshow presentation at the boys home. Dates with Cat, Church, etc. etc.

The great thing is I love it. I love being busy, I just want people to be understanding when I tell them that I am busy and, yes, it does indeed require me to look at my calendar before I can commit to something.

Egg Nogg Latte's with a side of Merry Christmas!

Blues Brothers 2005

I'm In!

Tonight I will perform with the ManiAACs a sweet Blues Brother's routine. I went to practice twice this week and learned the routine despite the fact that I wasn't supposed to get to perform tonight. Well, as fate would have it, one of the members of our team can't perform tonight and so I am in.

Let me just tell you that this routine is one of the coolest we have done this year. We are all wearing suits, jackets, hats, and glasses and we bust out of them in the middle of the routine.

Last night I was watching the routine and wishing so badly that I was going to get to do it and now I do! I'm pumped.

The Mavericks play the San Antonio Spurs tonight and so if you watch the game on TV you should see us at least once.