Friday Random Thoughts

Today's post will just be a stream of thoughts forming in my head this morning. Scary, I know...

Why can't the country make up it's mind about God? The government seems to want to take God out of everything, yet we always have a prayer at the Presidential inauguration. There is always a spiritual service for our soldiers. What about 9/11? It seems our government went over the top with praising God. Odd hunh?

Thanks for the 8,000 earmarks President Obama. Those same earmarks that you said last year would not happen. Oh...did you forget?

Stem cell research. I am on the fence on this. Since my wife suffers from MS, I want a cure found. Since Obama is going to push for Stem cell research, hopefully it can be done without using embryos. I know there are other ways to accomplish this testing. Someday my wife will be cured.

Is there nothing more fun than March Madness? I can't wait to fill out my brackets and follow teams that I only watch once a year. Go UNC-Willmington!! Who???

"Let The Right One In" just came out on DVD this week. This is a foreign film about a child who befriends the little girl next door. What he doesn't know is that the girl is a vampire. Truly one of the best movies I have seen. Yes, it is a horror movie...but it is not over the top gore. Just a great story of friendship and love (and a few dead people along the way). If you don't mind subtitles, rent it today.

It was almost 80 degrees a few days ago. Now it has been in the low 40's. It's not fair. Don't tease us like that. I was ready to get the golf clubs out!!

I know for a fact that God is always talking to me. I also know for a fact that I don't like to listen. I think that is the way we were made. I will make an attempt to listen more...promise.

Okay...time to enjoy the weekend. Go Cats!

Until next time.

Rebirth

It is funny how life can sometimes slap you in the face. What a wake up call that can be. Take me for instance. I had a life of my own...one that I worked hard at. And it all changed in the blink of an eye. Let me elaborate a bit...

I came from a small town in Kentucky. Madisonville to be exact. A very small corrupt little town of about 20,000 people. I guess all small towns are corrupt to a point. It seems very few people have power in small towns, and those with power can control everything. I was happy to finally get out of Madisonville. I had met and married my wife in 1991 and after two years we moved to Dayton, OH. She went to University of Dayton and I worked full time as manager of a local store. Money was tight and times were tough...but we made it work. After three years, she graduated from University of Dayton. It was now time to decide the next step in life. We both wanted to be a bit closer to home (Madisonville), but did NOT want to move home...or at least I didn't. So we decided to move to Louisville, KY and open our own business. I ran the business for three years (a hobby shop in the local mall) and she worked as an accountant for the City of Louisville. Things did not work out as planned. The business was a failure and it was time to look for new endeavors. I then decided to take a big chance and go back to college.

Let me tell you something...I HATE SCHOOL. With a passion. But I went back to school and earned a degree in Computer Science. I worked hard and was proud to graduate with a 4.0 GPA! That is probably one of my proudest achievements in my life. After working a few odd jobs and doing some contract work, I finally landed a very good computer job. The job paid very well...and along with my wife's salary, we did VERY good. We had everything you could want...nice cars, a nice house...great vacations...good pets...great friends. At 35 years old, I had everything you could ever want. Then the slap in the face.

In early December of 2003, I came home from work and was confronted by my wife. She told me she had fallen in love with someone else and was leaving. After a brief conversation, she left. Can you say devastated? 12 years of marriage gone. I had no clue...it was a complete blindside. Looking back, I can see where the problems were in the marriage and that is another blog entry for another time. But in the matter of seconds, my life came to an end. I felt that everything we had worked for was gone. What was going to happen to me? Let me be the first to tell you, God always has a plan. You may not realize it at the time, but He is always there and He will always comfort you and take care of you.

It was not long after that I met my current wife. We actually met through an online dating service. For those of you wondering if those things work...YES THEY DO. I did not want the bar scene and it is hard to meet people sometimes. The online dating service let me pick the type of person I wanted to meet. And I found her. Actually, she found me! But the real truth is, the Lord brought us together. We dated for a year and then was married. She is the greatest wife in the world and I cannot imagine living without her. A true rebirth had happened in my life. And the rebirth has consisted of a new look at life. I am closer to God than I have ever been. A lot of that has to do with my wife and her strong faith. I now know for a certain, that no matter what obstacles are put in my way, everything can be overcome. I am excited about the future. Yes, I know the economy is bad and people are losing jobs, etc. But I know that every day must not be taken for granted. Live each day to its fullest.

Until next time.

Picking Up the Pieces

I had the misfortune of going to the UK vs Georgia game last night. In what was to be a highly anticipated blow-out of a 2 SEC win team (Georgia), it turned out to be a living nightmare. I have rooted for Billy Gillispie from day one. The man has heart, determination, and a work ethic that can be rivaled by few. But can he coach? I used to think so...but game after game has led me to believe otherwise.

I think Billy G is over his head at UK. He has rescued two schools and took them to NCAA glory. Not necessarily winning the Big Dance, but at least getting these schools to the NCAA Tournament and playing well. UK did not need a rescue, they only needed a strong-willed coach who could come in and pick up the pieces left by Tubby Smith. A coach who could pick this squad up and move them deeper into the Big Dance. Two years later we may not even have a dance partner. UK barely made it into the field of 64 last year, this year we may not make it at all. Who is to blame for this fall from grace? Tubby Smith? The players? No.

Billy G.

Billy G. has proven to be bull-headed and stubborn. He will not back down on his promise to never play zone defense. He has been rude to the ESPN side-line reporter (twice) and has often sparred with radio host Tom Leech. Billy G. is determined to confuse everyone by his substitution patterns...even the players are confused! The coach has often forced the players to have a two hour practice before games and will yank players out of the game for misdemeanor act on the court. Even if it means pulling out the whole team with the game on the line. (Georgia game anyone?)

Do I think Billy G. needs to go home? No. What other coach in their right mind would accept the UK job knowing the previous coach was sacked after two seasons. Billy G. needs to have at least three to four years to harvest his recruits and lead them to glory. But the coach needs to learn to be less stubborn and make changes. Losing at Rupp Arena is NOT acceptable. Tubby Smith lost 19 home games in 10 years...Rick Pitino lost 7 home games in 8 years. Billy G. is looking to surpass those great feats in just three years. We are already hearing rumors that Patterson is looking to leave...who knows about Meeks. I am sure he is ready to go too. I don't believe that these guys are looking to go to the NBA as much as they want to leave Team Turmoil.

Shame on you Billy G. Its time to step up and be the coach we know you can be. Stop fighting the world and the fans. Lead our team to victory. I know you can do it.

The Infamous First Post

I thought it was about time that I started a daily/weekly diary of my life. Some may think I am interesting, others may think I am boring. I really don't care where you fall into those categories...this is more about me and the ability to express myself. I have longed for an outlet and I believe this to be a good start.

I just returned from a ski trip to Utah. This is the first trip that I have ever taken by myself. I had a friend that was supposed to go with me, but he bailed out because of his impending divorce and lack of available funding. C'mon...what about priorities?? Going skiing is much more fun than worrying about your marriage! Okay...maybe not. I then called some other friends and none could go...basically bad economy, no money, blah blah. My wife then expressed some interest in going, but that soon went kaput as we found the need for two rental cars. I certainly needed a car to drive around to the ski mountains, and the wife did not want to be stuck in the hotel room. So she decided to stay home and I went on this trip by myself.

I have travelled extensively with my work. My previous job saw me going to over 30 states installing software and training physcians and nurses on how to use said software. I am very used to travelling...but not on vacations. It was a bit odd at first. I had to remember that I was not on an "expense plan" like I am for work. Everything I do comes out of MY POCKET! I am sure if I did forget this, the wife would quickly remind me as she always has a pulse on the bank account (thank you Internet). So here I am in Utah all by myself. All I want to do is ski every day...eat...then sleep...then do it all again the next day. There is no fancy eating out or going shopping. Just ski baby...everyday. And that's what I do...all by myself. You must know that I grew up an only child. My father passed away when I was very young. So I am very comfortable being alone. And because of this fact, I did enjoy myself on this trip.

I am an odd individual. I find myself being a bit shy and I do not like being the center of attention...unless I can control it. You would think that because I am shy I would not like talking to strangers. WRONG. I cannot control myself...especially on the ski lift where you are riding back to the top of the mountain with 1 to 4 people you have never met in your life and will probably never meet again. Not once did I ride up the mountain in those four days in complete silence. I ALWAYS initiated a conversation with someone. I just can't help it. So I made lots of "five minute friends" on this trip. Everyone was very nice, even the locals.

What happens when you take a trip by yourself? You find yourself doing a LOT of thinking. And the thing I thought about most was my wife and how much I missed her being there. Yes, she is a hard head (and so am I) and we fight about silly stuff, but I found myself thinking about her every day. She is not a skiier...so she would not have been there with me on the mountain, but I know we would have had a great time in Salt Lake City! Hopefully my next ski trip will include my wife...but I can still be alone on the mountain. There is nothing more thrilling and exhilirating that skiing down a wide open mountain with the awesome views that God created.

Well this is my first post...I know it was all over the place. Hopefully my next ones will be a bit more coherent. Thank you for reading and caring enough about me to visit this page. Until next time.