Small Group Time

Jenny and I were looking forward to our small group meeting again tonight. We had decided to take off the month of July and had our first meeting in some time again tonight.

It is a wonderful part of life. The community we have with the people in our small group is something only God can create. It is amazing to meet with him as the only common ground (there is much common ground now, but initially, it was only Him).

We love our small group. We don't want to think about any time in life that will cause us to have to leave that place.

I Actually Have To Do It Now

I was going to start my homework about a week ago. I didn't ever get it started before I needed to leave for Kentucky.

It's due tomorrow at midnight.

Should be a fun day.

2 papers to write and one commentary to read.

I Love Procrastinating.

Nothing Else to Say

KEMPER, JOE C., 85, of Louisville, passed away Tuesday, July 24, 2007 at Baptist Hospital Northeast Hospice Unit. He was a native of Lyon Co., KY, a Navy veteran of World War II, a retired claims adjudicator and a rating board member for the Veteran's Administration, a KY Colonel and a member of Southeast Christian Church. He was preceded in death by his wife, Fern LaRue Kemper; brothers, Billie Kemper and Arch E. Kemper Jr.; sisters, Dorothy Kemper and Freda Hubbard; and grandson, Matthew Eisenmenger. He is survived by his son, Marcus Kemper and his wife Mary; daughter, Melanie Hendricks and her husband John; sister, Dottie Drennan; and three grandchildren, Jason Kemper and his fiancée Sarah Lindsay, Nathan Kemper and his wife Jenny and Sara Hendricks. His funeral service will be 10 a.m. Friday, July 27, 2007 at Southeast Christian Church Chapel, 920 Blankenbaker Pkwy., with burial in Cave Hill Cemetery. Visitation will be 1-8 p.m. Thursday, July 26, 2007 at Highlands Family-Owned Funeral Home, 3331 Taylorsville Rd. Expressions of sympathy may be made to Hospice of Louisville. Published in The Courier-Journal from 7/26/2007 - 7/27/2007.

Going Away

I'm flying out tomorrow to KY for my grandfather's funeral. I won't update this until i'm back.

Stuck On Anger

I've had lots of time to think about grieving processes lately. Most of the time, i've tried to figure out how I might better enable people to grieve appropriately.

Today, I lost control of those things.

I actually started to grieve today.

Denial didn't last long, but I'm stuck on anger.

I don't know what I think about the traditional progression of stages (denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance), but I know that tonight, i won't get past anger.

It feels releasing to type that. To know that there aren't forces around me currently hoping to move me through a process at their pace, but that I get to chose my pace.

So I'm Angry.

Homework Comes Quickly

I'm actually likely to work on my homework before it is the last couple days.

The reasons are unfortunate.

I don't have a grandparent, aunt, uncle, or parent you can't be praying for.

Blogs might slow down if travel does happen, but I'll let you if I'll be away.

All The Good Ones Taken

My brother stayed up late yesterday so that he could buy the Harry Potter book for his fiance. That meant, he had time in line to talk with others waiting for the midnight release of the final book in the series.

After talking with a couple of the women around him, Jason found himself talking with an "older" (which meant 40s) gentleman who was there to buy the book for his stepdaughter. They were the hit of the line. Two men, there waiting, while important women in their lives were home asleep.

One "British" woman even commented to the other ladies that "all the good ones are taken."

This was just before she threatened to castrate him and do other, more frightening things, if he made good on his joke to read the last page and put the ending in a card with the book as to ruin it for his fiance.

Fortunate for him, and his future children, he did not choose this line of action. Instead, he woke up two households worth of people (his fiance's when he took the book there for her, and his parents, where he showed up unannounced at 2 a.m. to spend the night).

Here's to hoping I can make it through the final book without learning anything new about Harry Potter. I don't even know another characters name.

Too Many Cops

Does anyone know what was going on in Minneapolis this morning? Was there an "Amber Alert," some fancy smancy politicians, or some threat response drill?

Driving South on 35W, every overpass had 4 cop cars on it, lights flashing, with all the cops standing outside their cars. I must have seen 30 cop cars all sitting on overpasses.

Someone tell me why. What was Big Brother up to?

Another "How To"

Reading this made me remember some of the things I used to do in my Mustang. None of them were practicing, or "proper braking," but they sure were fun.

How to Brake and Stop a Car in the Shortest Distance
Braking is a lost skill. With so many cars with anti-lock brakes (ABS), people just slam on the brakes in any situation. This can be a good option, but it is not always the best. Braking (even with ABS) can cause reduced handling capabilities and actually place you in more danger. It's better to learn how to brake properly if you want utmost safety and control.

Steps [edit]
Avoid braking and turning at the same time. Turning while on the brakes can cause the vehicle to not turn as well or not slow down as much. Race car drivers, who are always on the edge with their vehicles, have learned the needed skill of separating braking from turning. In 90% of corners, racers (of any race type) use their brakes before they get to the corner, make the corner, then use the gas. Each section of the corner (or the straights before and after the corner) has its own purpose and separation of brakes and turning gives the best traction for the vehicle to make a desired corner.

Use your brakes smoothly (if you do not have ABS). Depress your brake pedal with rapidly, steadily increasing force, but do not simply slam it as hard as you can. This is essential to maximize the braking potential of your vehicle. The goal is to bring the vehicle's tires just shy of breaking traction. The only time that one should pump the brakes is when driving a non-ABS vehicle on a slick surface, and even then only if you're too inexperienced to reliably sense the limits of traction.

If you have an ABS-equipped car, however, it's better to slam the brakes than to not depress them hard enough. Many people who are unfamiliar with ABS systems will pump the brakes on an ABS-equipped vehicle. There is no need to pump ABS brakes, so don't do it. Another common error people make when using ABS brakes is to take one's foot off the brake pedal when it begins to pulsate. The pulsating is normal when the brakes are applied hard, and you should continue to press the pedal down just as hard. Where in doubt, slam ABS-equipped brakes as hard as you can, as this will ensure that you'll stop as quickly as possible.
Practice panic stops in an empty parking lot. Start by intentionally over-applying the brakes (skidding), then reduce your braking force until you have a good sense for your maximum braking potential. Roll down your windows and start at one end of the lot. Accelerate to a safe speed (30-40 MPH should be good) and apply your brakes as hard as you can. You should hear a good deal of squealing (if you do not, you may have ABS, or your brakes may need service). Go back and forth until you are able to apply your brakes while only hearing a whisper of squealing (this is called the optimal squeeze point — OSP). This is the point where your tire's rubber is being twisted and contorted to a degree that only parts of your tires are actually skidding; this is the absolute limit of your tire’s traction, and the quickest way to stop.

You can measure this by setting up markers as to when to start braking and when you stop the car, and you can visually see the difference between your tires locked up and not.

Extra practice: Purposely lock up your brakes. Now practice reducing pressure on the pedal until it stops locking up, then apply pressure again to the OSP again). Inevitably, you will go over your OSP, or you will change surfaces while braking, that is why this practice is essential.
Take note: each surface and speed will have different OSPs. This is why you should practice while it is dry, then while it is raining, and then when it is snowy (if available). Get yourself adequately adapted to different traction levels so nothing will surprise you.

Use ABS brakes, in almost all cases, by depressing your brake pedal smoothly (albeit quickly) to the floor. You will likely feel the pedal either vibrate (dependent ABS) or feel like it gives out altogether (independent ABS). Either way it is a sign of the ABS working--don't panic and take your foot off the brake! Of course, if the pedal feels like it gave out, and you aren't stopping, your brakes probably gave out, in which case you should try shifting into neutral (N) or a lower gear than your current(or read the wikiHow article, How to Stop a Car with No Brakes). Do not however shift your vehicle into reverse or park, these will not slow you down, but simply cost you an expensive trip to the transmission shop.

Focus on where you want to go, not what you want to avoid. It's very difficult to steer away from something that you're looking at directly, and many people have a tendency to focus on what they are worried about colliding with. Instead, concentrate on where you want the car to go (to the side of the object) and pay attention to how the car feels—whether you're at OSP or locking up.

Tips [edit]
Practice, practice, practice in a safe location. Keeping you, your car, and others in the area safe is worth more than all the skills you think you have.

You want to hear a little bit of squealing when braking hard. This lets you know you are at the limit of your traction. Also, tires actually use the most traction when there is 5-8% of slide.
On low traction surfaces (loose gravel, snow, or ice) no squealing will be heard, and the OSP is more difficult to achieve. It is safer to keep traction and not push too hard (this also keeps your ability to steer).

On a vehicle which the brakes are out of balance (the left side brakes harder than the right or vice versa), enough traction must be kept to allow for the correction in vehicle direction.
On a vehicle which the brakes are out of balance (the rear brakes are much stronger than the front or vice versa), be sure to check brake pads and rotors and replace them if necessary.
Some times a good cleaning is all they need. The easiest way to clean them is to accelerate to highway speeds (65-70MPH) (in a safe area) and stop very quickly (do not lock up the brakes).
If you experience poor front-to-back balance during a situation where you cannot check/change/clean them: if the front brakes are stronger than the rear, brake normally (while you will stop slower than with balanced brakes, this is still your best option). If your rear brakes are stronger than your front, it may be your best bet to allow your rear brakes to lock up, and achieve the OSP with the front brakes. Do not attempt to turn a corner with your rear brakes locked up, spinning out is very likely.

If you have ABS, gentle turning while braking can help you avoid a collision. However, under no circumstances should you swerve or jerk the steering wheel, as this can cause the vehicle to go out of control, especially in ABS-equipped cars. It is not uncommon for people to swerve to miss a small animal and end up colliding with a tree or another car. In some circumstances, however, such as if a child jumps in front of your car, it is prudent to try to turn while you apply your brakes. You should practice this in a safe environment so you'll get an idea of how the vehicle will react.

Rose Pink to Blood Red

Today's work included painting. We needed to make a white wall red. We had pink primer. The pink went on pretty solid, which gave us high hopes for the red. We had been warned that red might take a lot of coats.

We've done 2. It isn't close.

It looks like someone smeared blood on the wall with a hand. There is varying shades (from every brushstroke) all over the wall.

We'll see how many more coats it takes.

Keeping Things Meaningless

Seinfeld. The show about nothing. The show without meaning. Amazing success and memorable characters. How did they do it?

Simple. The writer's gave themselves 2, and only 2 rules to keep the characters funny.

1. No one can hug. They never wanted people cheering for a relationship that they hadn't planned as intimate, so no friends ever hug, only those in a relationship.

2. No one can learn anything new. No one can learn from a mistake. No one can develop as a person, or grow. People will make the same mistakes, learning from them would have required that the characters change, keeping them the same allows you to write about nothing, with strong characters.

I haven't ever been the biggest Seinfeld fan, but I find the rules that the writers came up with to remain successful to be captivating.

No Intimacy, and No Growth.

The two opposite things we aim for in life. Ironic.

Things I Don't Do In Advance

There are some things in life which I feel deserve no advance prepwork.

Showering is one of those things. That, I guess, is why it amazes me that at significant moments in life, girls throw "showers" for each other. It feels wrong to hear someone say "I have to plan a shower tonight." Even when I know it isn't the kind of shower I'm thinking of, it just doesn't sound right.

"I need to plan my toothbrushing now."

"I'm in the middle of planning my next t.v. station flipping time."

Some things just shouldn't be planned in advance. I say, girls need to come up with a different name for the parties they throw so that I am less confused.

Waywood's Gruntwork INC.

Tomorrow starts the new business opportunity... Waywood's Gruntwork INC.

Started by two friends, the company aims to reach the high places that people can't reach themselves. We promise to tape, paint, wash, eat, clean, cut, eat, fix, build, and eat.

We pride ourselves on never starting before 10:00 as to give the home owner's ample time to prepare for our arrival. We guarantee a partial workday and a quick pace.

If you're looking for gruntwork to be done, Call Waywood's Gruntwork INC.

Sentimental Value

I always like hearing the stories of the sentimental value behind and object.

Maybe it is a ring passed down through generations. Or the search to find, buy and restore the first car you ever owned.

Sometimes it is taking your favorite baby blanket and making something new from it. It could be a photogropher's first camera, or a musicians first guitar. It is interesting sometimes to hear of and see the things that people want to hold on to, things that seem to have such little actual value, but for one reason or another, they have immense worth to an individual.

I saw such an object this week, but was not fortunate enough to hear the story of value placed on it by the owner.

It is a toothbrush. A 10 year old toothbrush. The bristles aren't straight, and more might be missing than are actually there. I could maybe brush my teeth as effectively with my finger. Yet, no new toothbrush is allowed to replace this one. It is THE Toothbrush, with immense value to its owner. I just want to know why.

I Got Nothing

It's 5:30 in the morning and I just got back from our 7 hour long poker game. I can't think of anything to say. I'm going to bed.

I'll write something better tomorrow.

(At least I won)

Will He Help?

America's professional soccer league is not one of the premier leagues in the world. It isn't even close to the level of some countries.

Granted, I don't think it gets the respect it deserves, but I don't think it deserves the respect many American soccer fans thinks it does.

Today, David Beckham arrived. He will bring attention to the league for sure. Only time will tell if this attention will actually help.

Youth Soccer

Last night was my last league night for reffing youth soccer. The state tournament is in a couple weeks and the ref schedule for that hasn't been made yet. High school games start in late August.

Here is my favorite conversation with a coach this year.

Coach: "The league only gave us a long sleeve green goalie jersey. It's hot today so our goalie was wondering if she could wear something short sleeve instead?"

Me: "That's fine as long as its a different color from the teams."

Coach: "Does this yellow one work, its not green?"

Me: "Is yellow different than what the two teams are wearing (pointing to the teams wearing blue and white)?"

Coach: "Yes. (kind of answered quizically)

Me: "Good. Then i'll know who the goalie is."

Catching On To Old Shows

I've noticed recently that I like a lot of shows that had been on for a while, yet I had never watched them before.

Two seasons ago, I watched Survivor, and then watched it the following season, it has been on for quite a long time. 2 Years ago (after 5 seasons) I got hooked on 24. Last year, I got hooked on Big Brother, currently in its 8th season.

I am happy though, that my current favorite show, I got in on the ground floor with. How I Met Your Mother. I even have a crew of people who now feel obligated to watch that one because I got them hooked.

Not that I need more shows to watch, but what are some of your favorites, keeping in mind that I can only watch cable at other people's houses.

No Hot Dogs Today

In the last three days (Friday through Sunday) I had eaten at least two hot dogs a day.

Today I never made any.

I did however, eat 5 corndogs for dinner, so I hope that counts.

I love mystery meat.

This is healthy right?

Co-Operating Weather

There were lots of storm warnings today.

That made me less than excited about thinking about our evening soccer game. We drove through rain to get to the game, but got to play it rain free. The field was wet, which made slide tackling fun, without the hastle of being drenched and your bag getting soaked.

I just feel bad for some of the fields. Obvious standing water and the largest youth tournament in the country starts on them tomorrow morning. They are gonna get torn up pretty bad.

We even made it through tonight with a win, which was pretty good seeing as we only started the game with 8 people.

Pop Quiz

Today (7/7/07) they released the New Seven Wonders of the World.

Can you name the original 7 Wonders?

Sucker for the "New" Thing

Today we went grocery shopping.

Jenny has turned me around and my impulse buying is limited when i'm there now, but there was something I couldn't pass up today.

Limited Time Only Summer Pepsi with tropical fruit flavors.

I'm a sucker for new things that are well advertised. Apparently to me, limited time only, is good advertising as I had to try it. Jenny didn't argue much because I had been good to that point so far.

I like it. I still like Wild Cherry better, but this trumps vanilla or berry's and creme.

Refusing to Grow Up

Today I played my 8-bit original Nintendo.

I also ate two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, one of which, I had someone else make for me.

In some areas of life, I refuse to grow up.

I'm quite okay with that.

Do something today that reminds you of being a child.

July 4th Knowledge

Their may be no more important information you need than what is below. Taken from:

http://www.wikihow.com/Cut-a-Watermelon#


How to Cut a Watermelon

One of the most popular summer fruits is the watermelon. This cooling, sweet king of fruits is also very healthy. You can buy one in a supermarket cut, sliced, and in chunks. They are fresher, however, when you buy them whole and cut them yourself.

Steps
Wash the rind of a watermelon with regular soap or with a vegetable wash. Everything which the knife touches on the outside of the melon will end up in contact with the watermelon flesh as it slices through.

Use a sharp knife to carefully slice off the top. A serrated knife works best for items that have a softer interior and tougher exterior like melons, tomatoes, and breads. Always cut away from yourself whether slicing watermelons or anything else. Serious injury may accidentally result if you cut toward yourself.

Stand the melon on end, and carefully slice down through the center.

Cut each half into sections.

Hold the section in one hand while you slowly remove the melon from its rind.

Slice down from the top to the rind in even slices. Continue in this way until each section has the fruit removed.

Place each section into a bowl.

My Fill of Veggies and Dairy

After shoe shopping with Jenny tonight (where I behaved), she decided to reward me with a treat. In reality, she wanted a treat, and I got to go along. It was a hunt for milkshakes. We started out driving to Snuffy's Malt Shop to realize they closed 12 minutes before we got there.

Then it was to "The Malt Shop" which has now been replaced by an Anchor Bank.

One last idea and we would head home failures if they weren't available. Annie's in Dinkytown. Fortunate for us, the University Ave exit is under construction which left us scrambling and lost to try and find a way back to there. After half an hour of working the maze, we finally found our way and were ecstatic that they were still open.

It was necessary to order french fries (potato is a veggie right?) to dip in our milkshakes (dairy) which seemed to be bottomless. I'm full. Jenny is full. It is time to lay down and digest.

It Seemed So Wrong

It is weird for me to shop in a clothing store for women. Weird even to be in the department. I've come accustomed to dealing with the stores in general, but the undergarment department is still highly awkward to me. It doesn't matter who I'm with, it just seems wrong.

Tonight, Jenny and I went to Target.

On the agenda was a different kind of underwear to wear while I run.

Jenny seemed far too comfortable. I couldn't even say where the underwear was without whispering it, but she had no regard for the awkwardness she was supposed to feel.

A Better Person

That is what Jenny tells me she is making me.

I do some things different when she's gone than when she's home. She is convinced that all the things she makes me do (showering right after a soccer game, brushing teeth more) make me a better person.

I'm convinced the quality of a person cannot be seen in their hygiene.

For now, we agree to disagree, knowing inside that she will win every time.

Continuing the Streak

Our soccer team has not lost a game on our home field in two years. That includes that game last year where we tried not to win (and ended up with a tie) and the game this year where we played a man down in the hot weather (and ended up with a tie).

Tomorrow we get to try to continue that streak. We should finally have a game with some subs again, so that will be good.

I'm giving myself 8 minutes before I re-open the wound on my knee this week.