A milestone

  So I've stomped around this earth for a while and I haven't gotten this far without help. I'm lucky enough to have my best friend by my side, through thick and thin, the ups and downs and all the of the lessons I have to work through. There's no way I could've done this by myself.
  We met on a blind date, set up by my best friend and his girl friend. I still can't tell you how long we dated, but she broke up with me. Of course I was devastated and to add insult to injury, she moved all the way across the country to New York.
  Again, I couldn't tell you how long it was, but I do know it was my 21st birthday and she was back in California. I was asked if it was alright if she went to dinner with us, I agreed and she still hasn't left.
  So, here we are celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary, that's right, 25th. I can't hardly believe it and I'm not gonna tell you it was easy. I take that back, her and I are easy, it's the rest of life that's a challenge. I've heard that most arguments between married people is over money. Well, we've never had a lot of money and we've always taken on the world as a team, us against them, never, me against her.
  So, we've never had too much to argue about and we never wanted a house full of disrespect. Our house is exactly the opposite, lots of music, lots of laughter and over flowing with love for each other. And that was especially true for when our kids were growing up and continues on now.

  So here we are 25 years later and she still thinks I play my music too loud and that I should be nicer and I think she should enjoy punk music played too loud and that she's too nice. She has compassion for them and I want to whip their asses, so we balance each other.
  I've never done anything in a row for this long. No job, no school, hell, not even my kids and I know I'm not that easy to live with, but she's still here. I'm not really sure why, but I do know I love her with every fiber of my being and soul. I would sacrifice everything for her, I would die for her and I would kill for her. I may not be able to give her everything, yet, but I'm working on it.
  There are only two things I can think of that I do without her. I don't work with her and she doesn't surf with me. I don't really want to work with her, but there are times that I would like her to watch me surf so I can show off for her. Cause that's what we do, we show off for our girls.
  Otherwise I need her by my side on this journey and I'm uncomfortable when she's not. I'm going to ask her if she'll do another 25, I'll let you know what she says. And as I've told you guys before, I really work towards balance in my life and that's what she does for me.
  Plus, she bakes me chocolate cake.

Sometimes the truth hurts

  I work at a very small site, for a very large corporation. We have to walk the corporate line and most of the time it doesn't fit our small facility very well, but we do the best we can. Our district manager worked out of an office an hour south of us and most of us did not hold a very high opinion of him.
  Corporate finally agreed with us and removed this manager from our company. This manger had been with the company a long time, so his superiors are trying to spin him up as a leader and a mentor, both which could not be farther from the truth.
  Since this news was announced to us, a card showed up at our shop that we were told we could sign if we wanted to. A card to wish this former manager good luck and to thank him for a job well done. A good majority of the guys I work with signed it. Guys that didn't have a nice thing to say about this manager for, at least, the last two years.
  I couldn't believe it. Suddenly the shop was full of hypocrites. Guys that couldn't say his name without spitting or cursing were lining up to sign a card thanking this guy for his service.
  I was asked by my coworkers if I was going to sign the card. When I told them I wasn't going to sign any stinking card for this clown, they were a little shocked and I think they were also a little embarrassed buy their hypocrisy being brought to light.
  I wasn't about to thank a guy, that could not give a rats' ass whether I lived or died, for a job he did so poorly that he was asked to leave the company and I wasn't about to apologize for my position. Some of my coworkers think my attitude is a little harsh and they thought I should be nicer.
  Well, that ain't going to happen, I'm not feeling charitable today, and my opinion of this former manager isn't going to change just because he is now unemployed.
  I'm not sure why these guys feel they need to be so emotionally dishonest, but it drives me crazy. For crying out loud, have an opinion and stand by it, quit being so damn wishy washy.
  I'm not about to stop telling my truth just so we can feel all squishy inside.  Suck it up cupcake, sometimes the truth isn't pretty and neither am I.

Got to get rolling again

  Well, I have to tell you guys that I'm really no fan of winter. The winter in this part of the world was not particularly harsh or anything, but it seemed to go on forever. I was really missing the sun, warmer weather and the opportunity to get the motorcycle back on the road and the surfboard in the water.
  The cold, short days really threw me off my game, I couldn't find any motivation or inspiration. My muse seemed to be missing, and she's usually pretty ruthless when there's something we need to create. There's been numerous times when she's whipping my ass to get something done, but not this winter.
  I went to see my acupuncturist around the beginning of spring for a tune up, which I desperately needed. She helped balance me, plus,the time changed, which means it's staying light later in the evening and all these things combined are helping me get motivated again.
  I was able to get back in the surf on Easter Sunday and although the water was a little cold, it was great to be back in the line up. The weather has warmed a bit, so my son and I have been riding the motorcycles to work this week. It's amazing how being back in the water and back in the wind helps me out.
  Which means I'll probably be up here spewing more things at you about what pisses me off and the general state of manliness. I really don't have a plan, so grab a beer and let's see where my muse takes us.
  Now, go out there and find what it is that brings balance and joy to your world, grab a hold of it and enjoy it.
  I'm going to just that.

Where are the men?

  I don't really follow entertainment news or award shows like the Oscars or the Grammy's. If you ask me all those award shows are just a way for all the "stars" to get all dressed up, walk down a red carpet and be all glamorous and all that other crap. I think they take themselves a little too seriously.
  So, I was driving home the other day listening to the radio ( I have Sirius satellite radio in my truck, I love commercial free, uncensored radio) when they started talking about Chris Brown winning a Grammy and what a travesty it was.
  I don't listen to Chris Brown, I don't know any of his songs, I'm not a real fan of pop music. But, what they were pointing out on the radio show, was, that the music industry gave a guy who hit a woman a goddamn award. I don't really care about the Grammy's, but really? This guy beat Rihanna bloody. Why the hell would they give him any award?
  As far as I'm concerned this guy doesn't deserve shit, he hit a woman. I don't know Rihanna or listen to her music, but I do know, she should never be hit by any man.
  So where's the outrage and public outcry? And who are these people buying music made buy a guy that hits women? Chris Brown is worthless piece of scum that deserves absolutely nothing, except a beating like the one he gave Rihanna.
  The other point that was brought up on the radio program was, where are the men in Hollywood? Are there no men in the music industry? None of these executives would stand up for a woman or stand up to an abuser. What a worthless lot these people are. This just shows us their true colors and what is important to this industry. All they are worried about is the almighty dollar and if a woman beater sells records, they are right there to give him some crappy trinket.
  I'm a huge fan of music, not of the music industry and trust me, I will not be buying any music by Chris Brown. That guy can rot in hell. And if I have the unfortunate opportunity to hear one of his songs being played I will point out to the owner of the sound system Chris Brown's tendency to hit women.
  C'mon guys, you need to protect our women and keep them away from guys like Chris Brown.     

My family is growing

  My family is small and that has its good points and bad points, depending on who you talk to. My wife and I will celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary this year, that's right, she has put up with me for 25 years, in a row, and, I have two kids. My daughter is in her second year of college and my son works at the same place as I do, but in a different department. The four of us are quite close, we've always watched out for each other and my daughter being away at school, about six hours away, is as far away as any of us have lived from each other and that is still taking some adjustment on all our parts.
  But my small family is changing and growing. My son is getting married this year. He and his fiancée have been going out since high school and we think they make a pretty good couple.
  So my close knit little family had to let this young lady find her way into our house and hearts. And let me tell you, that's no easy task, at least the hearts part, our house is pretty easy to get into. We are a pretty wicked bunch, especially sitting around the dinner table. We have been known to be a bit competitive and nothing is off limits at the table. The music is usually on and in between verses being sung the barbs fly fast and furious.
  So this young lady comes to dinner and I'll be damned if she doesn't jump right in. Her and my daughter become best friends and she asks my daughter to be her maid of honor. This young lady managed to move right into our hearts, so, we gave her a key to the house.
  The other day one of my most favorite people in the world asked me if I'm ready to be a daddy-in-law. I never even thought about that. This young lady has endeared herself to me in such a way that the pending wedding is just like the next step, a natural step. I'm actually very excited and honored about gaining another daughter.
  My little family gained another member, my son is taking a wife, my daughter gets a sister and my wife and I get another daughter.
  I couldn't be prouder.

The only way through it, is through it

  I just got done with one of "those" weeks at work. I had two of my work mates on vacation which left me on my own in the shop. I was expecting a long week of not being able to keep up with an overwhelming work load. Leading up to the week I had a sense of looming disaster and dread. I had the feeling I was driving into a car wreck and couldn't turn away, the crash was imminent.
  About halfway through the week I still had my head above water and I was actually surviving the imagined car wreck. This fact started me thinking about my attitude leading up to the week of doom and I wanted to share my thoughts and realizations with you guys.
  It seems to me, that we are presented with situations as we wander through this universe and some of them are really not to our liking. We try to avoid these situations, or lessons, for as long as we can, because we only want to do the pleasant and easy lessons, they're fun. Since we hate the hard or difficult lessons, we'll walk clear around the block or whatever else it takes to avoid the hard stuff. But, try as you might the universe will make the difficult lessons available and unavoidable for you.
  So there I am, halfway through a difficult lesson and, like I said, I'm surviving. Plus, I'm now understanding that the imagined doom and the anticipation of being totally overwhelmed was way worse than actually living the week. Yeah, there was more work to do, but it was all doable and I missed having the extra sets of hands working with me, but, goddammit, before I knew it, it was Friday, I made it. There was no fiery ball of flames or anything, just a sense of accomplishment.
  So go on, go live your life and learn the lessons set before you. You can avoid them for a while, but you have to learn them and, trust me, you will. Just try to have a good attitude and see them for what they are.
 A very good friend of mine said, "the only through it, is through it", so don't get yourself all worked up the way I did. Get yourself ready and go learn something about you.
 
  

End of the world

  Well, you made it, it's 2012. Hope you guys had a great holiday season and accomplished everything you wanted to during 2011. If you didn't get everything done, don't worry, you've got a fresh new year in front of you.            
  However, some people will tell you that you only have roughly 11 months to get your affairs in order. In case you haven't heard, the Mayan calendar runs out on the 21st of December this year and a lot of people think that spells the end for us. Needless to say, I'm skeptical.
  Our world has changed many times over, we did not grow up in the same world our grandparents did and our grandkids will also come of age in a different world than us. So, I guess in one aspect, our world is always ending and also beginning again at the same time. There have also been countless predictions about the time the world will end and they have all come and gone and we're all still here. So, there's a pretty good chance that the world will be here this time next year.
  The unfortunate side effect of all this end of the world stuff is, it spawns these survivalist idiots. What a sorry ass lot this is. These are the people that think the world is ending, so they need to stockpile what they consider essentials and that usually means a whole lot of guns and ammo. They will build bunkers, buy a bunch of dehydrated food and fill water barrels and they claim they need the guns to keep you away from they're stash. I really have no time for these clowns, listening to them tell me about their survival strategy is like listening to them tell me about their political views, I don't want to hear it. They are so busy preparing for something that isn't going to happen, that they forget to live their lives. It just makes them look like scared little boys with some sort of twisted view of the universe.
  My personal view of this is, if Surtr swings his flaming sword and the world is going to end, so be it. I'm not in a real hurry to survive the whole end of the world thing. None of us are going to get out of this life alive and I really don't want to be on a decimated planet with a bunch of scared survivalist morons.
  So, go live your life, enjoy some good beer and let's get this year rolling.