12 Years...and Counting

I am the lucky man who for the past 12 years and counting gets to call that sexy godess in the photo to the left my wife. On Sunday, July 31st, my beautiful wife and I get to celebrate our 12th wedding anniversary. I waited until I was almost 27 years old to get married because I wanted to choose wisely and make sure I was making a good decision. I have always told myself that divorce was not a word that I wanted in my vocabulary, so I wanted to make sure I choose the right woman. Beyond any shadow of a doubt, Joi was and is the right person. How do I know this? I'll give you some reasons. She makes me want to be better than I was. She inspires me to grow and mature. Not to be cliche, but she completes me. She is strong where I am weak. She is amazing where I lack. Her strong personal devotion to God was and is always inspiring to me and, besides her dazzling smile, was one of the first things I fell in love with. She is beautiful. The most beautiful woman on the face of the planet. And not just on the outside. She is hardworking, funny, quirky, and thoughtful. She is talented (did I mention that her first published book is available for pre-order on Amazon and Barnes and Noble?). Later in our marriage I would discover what a great Mom she is. Our boys are well behaved, polite, intelligent, and thoughtful gentlemen and most of that credit goes to Joi. Plus, she tirelessly works at home-schooling our boys and giving them exactly what they need academically. And I've discovered what a great cook she is. Her baked desserts have a glowing reputation at my work. In fact, they threatened to fire me and hire Joi because her cookies are so good. She is an amazing wife. She is selfless and always puts the needs of others before her own. She has taught me a lot about communication and the value of conflict (if done properly). She is everything I've always dreamed of and more. Every day I discover something new about my wife that I adore. She is my favorite! I am so blessed. I tell my boys often that besides accepting Jesus into their hearts, finding a good wife is one of the most important decisions they will ever make in their life. I tell them to take their time and choose wisely because this decision can make or break the rest of their life. I know it's true. I'm living proof. I choose wisely and I get to spend the rest of my life on earth with my best friend, my lover, and my favorite woman on the face of planet earth. I love you, Dearest!!! Happy 12th Anniversary!!!!

Pandora...how I've missed you!!!

I discovered Pandora sometime in 2009. I wrote a couple of blogs about it. I loved it! It's a great way to find new artists and listen to song styles that you like. Unfortunately, shortly after discovering it, my place of employment blocked it on the network (probably because it eats up bandwidth). So, goodbye Pandora. I was bummed. But, while on my trip to California, a friend gave me an iPhone. I haven't been able to hook it up to use as a cell phone yet, but I am greatly enjoying using it via WiFi. While at work, I link in to the open, public network and, using the handy-dandy Pandora app, I have been able to listen to Pandora again! Yea for technology! It's been great to listen to Pandora again. The app is very nice. The sound is clear with no lag-time even though I'm only getting two bars on the wireless network. The occasional pop-up adverts get annoying, but otherwise, it's been wonderful. I'm listening to Regina Spektor via Pandora as we speak. Welcome back to my life, Pandora!

The 9/11 Cross

Shortly following the aftermath of 9/11, a construction worker found a perfectly formed cross in the rubble at ground zero. The cross consisted of two intersecting steel beams that were sheared off perfectly in the shape of the Christian symbol. This cross, serving as a beacon of hope for thousands of relief workers, remained prominently displayed while relief workers went through the rubble looking for victims and while families mourned the loss of their loved ones. The cross became a shrine. People prayed there and left messages and photos of their lost loved ones taped to it. The cross is now housed in the New York's National September 11th Memorial and Museum. Aside from the cross' religious affiliation, it is and will always be a part of the history of the 9/11 tragedy. It's place in the Memorial and Museum should not even be in question. However, an atheist group is suing to have it removed because they feel that the museum doesn't reflect other religious or non-religious beliefs and that having the cross displayed somehow gives Christian's precedence and demeans the people who died in the tragedy that do not share the Christian faith. Give me a break!

First of all, this cross' place in the history of the 9/11 story is without question. If, for instance, an atheist symbol was found in the rubble and was displayed as a beacon of hope (Hope in what?) for all atheists, would we be having this same conversation? The fact remains that this cross was found, it did give thousands of bible believing Christians and non-Christians hope while trying to find peace in such a disturbing tragedy, and it's place in the memorial should be secured. The atheist rhetoric is getting old fast. Despite an atheists non-religious belief system, they can't remove or whitewash Christianity's part in the story. You can't remove the cross' story from the history of the 9/11 tragedy, just like you can't remove the bedrock of Christianity that is so engrained in the history of the United States of America. I'm sickened by the hatred and blatant disregard that atheists have for the faith that formed this wonderful country that we live in. They claim the tired argument of "seperation of church and state" but they get it all wrong in the process. The phrase "seperation of church and state" is never mentioned in the constitution and is actually from a letter from Thomas Jefferson to the Danbury Baptists that reads ""...I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should 'make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,' thus building a wall of separation between Church & State." Adopted later, the First Amendment does state that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." This does not mean that government should not take part in or endorse religion. It means that the government will not stop anyone from freely practicing any religion they so choose, hence their reason for relocating from Brittan in the first place. But, yet, isn't this exactly what the atheists are doing? They are preventing Christians from freely exercising their faith by asking that they remove prayer from school, the 10 commandments from government facilities, or the 9/11 cross from the 9/11 Memorial. This is hypocritical and completely biased. Atheists often preach tolerance, but are being intolerant in the process. If you want to be an atheist, wonderful. I certainly won't stop you, if that is the decision you've made. But, don't impede my, or anyone else's, American right to freely exercise my faith in Jesus Christ! The 9/11 cross should stay exactly where it is!!!

Green Technology: The Dyson Airblade

I love technology and new inventions. I wouldn't describe myself as a green person, but I do appreciate environmentally friendly innovations. During my trip to California, I found an invention that fuses technological geekdom with green awesomeness. It's called the Dyson Airblade. As a huge advocate of Dyson's vacuums, I'm not surprised that they've come up with this incredibly useful invention.

First off, let me say that I'm not a huge fan of hand blowers in bathrooms. They take too long, it takes lots of wringing and rubbing of my hands to effectively work, and if there are paper towels nearby, I'll always choose them first. However, during my trip to California (it might have been at Disneyland, I can't remember), I found the Dyson Airblade and I just had to try it. After thoroughly washing my hands after using the facilities, I walked up to the machine with dripping hands. I didn't have to touch anything. I simply stuck my hands in the slots and pulled them out. I was amazed at how quickly my hands dried with very little effort on my part. The powerful air blade literally scraped off any water that I had on my hand. Within about 5-10 seconds, I was completely dry. I used it for another couple of rounds because I was so enthralled with how effective it was. I LOVE this product. I'd use it every single time over paper towels if it was available. If you see one, use it. You'll be amazed!

For you geeks out there, here are some stats from the official website. It uses up to 80% less energy than warm air hand dyers, it's certified by NSF as hygienic, it dries 22 pairs of hands for the price of one paper towel, and sheets of air traveling at 400 mph dry your hands in less than 12 seconds. Amazing.

Vacation Highlight: Food

To wrap up my Vacation Highlight series, I wanted to talk about something that we were looking forward to for a long time. Food! Food that you can't get in Colorado. Food like Vince's Spaghetti, In and Out, North Woods Inn, The Hat, etc. So, interwoven into our plans were small excursions to these delightfully tasty locations. On the way to California, we strategically planned our hotel stay in St. George, Utah. Why? Because a few minutes from St. George is the closest In and Out burger to us. We got burgers and shakes to dip our fries in. I got animal style fries and decided it's just way too heavy for me now. But, the burgers were to die for...as usual. On our first day in California, we took Joi's Dad and Ginger to Vince's Spaghetti in Ontario. It was a very nostalgic experience. On the way, we passed my Dad's old T-Shirt Shop building where I spent a good chunk of my childhood. As we walked into Vince's, which hasn't changed much in 38 years, a flood of memories came back to me. Memories of childhood dinners and even excursions in my teen and adult years. It was great to be sitting there with my wife and kids to share that experience with them. The spaghetti was as awesome as usual and even better for lunch a couple days later via leftovers. On another day, we went to The Hat to get their famous Chili Fries and a Pastrami Sandwich. The lady behind the counter remembered us and asked where we'd been. I told her we moved to Colorado. She told me that she was originally from a place in Colorado that I probably never heard of called Fruita. I told her that we drove through Fruita on the way to California and I even know why they are famous....Mike the Headless Chicken. The Hat was just as good as I remembered. We went to El Pollo Loco one day on the way to an event and realized that we haven't had something like that since we left California. Colorado just doesn't have a place like that. It was good. Joi and I had an opportunity to go on a date to celebrate our 12 year anniversary (coming up on July 31st). We went to the North Woods Inn. Because our plans that day went a little late, we both ate a late lunch, so neither of us were really hungry. But, this was the only slot we had to have a date. So, we went anyway. I was really excited about their cheese bread and salads. Those didn't disappoint. But, the overall experience was not very good. My wife and I were so tired from the hectic pace, we sat open-mouthed and cloudy eyed across from each other and tried really hard to have a meaningful conversation. We did, but we were both so very tired. Also, the prices are horrendous! I wanted Salmon, but they didn't have any. I'd settle for Halibut, but wasn't willing to pay $30.95 for it. The waiter told us that we could split a meal, so we agreed on Fried Chicken, which alone was priced at a alarming $19.95. But, since we were splitting it, we thought $10 a plate wasn't bad. The waiter failed to tell us that there is a $7.95 meal splitting charge. Unbelievable. Aside from the salads and bread, the experience was not very good. My beautiful date was wonderful, as always, but the rest sucked! We hit In and Out one more time after attending Flipside and enjoyed a meal with Dante and his kids. We even had a chance to go to Grand Burger, a favorite of ours when we lived in Azusa, San Dimas, and Rancho Cucamonga. I took Joi and the kids there to get them food before they went over to visit with David, Destani, and Faithe. I took Joi's sister, Jackie, there for a lunch-date a little later. I had an avocado burger. Yummy. All in all, it was good to experience those eateries again. My only regrets were going to Northwood's Inn at all....and not being able to eat Vince's one more time. We had originally planned on getting a gallon of meat sauce to freeze and take home with us, but our funds ran low toward the end of our trip and we had to scrap that idea. Overall, we did enjoy our California food experiences. Now, if we can only rally to get an In and Out and a Vince's in Denver. Come on, people! Let's make it happen.

Vacation Hightlight: Family, Friends, and 90 Year Old Grandparents

When we made it known that we were going to California, we began to get lots of requests to spend time with people. Plus, we already had lots of activities that centered around Joi's family and the 90th birthday party of her grandparents. So, we did our best to accommodate everyone and make it to each event that we could. The bad side was that it made for a hectic and busy two weeks. The good part was that we got to see most everyone that we wanted to and it was good to see everyone. I got to spend time with my good friend, John, eating Sushi in Claremont (Sushi Cruise was very good and reasonably priced). We spent time with Kim Broadwell and I got to bond with her son, Jake. We went to a park and visited with Krista Tucker and her kids. We had a wonderful July 4th holiday with the Ferris', Joi's Dad and Ginger, Jackie and David Long, the Hita's, and my Mom and Ray. I was so thankful that my Mom drove all the way from Huntington Beach to spend time with us, even while battling cancer. I got to have a lunch date with my sister-in-law, Jackie. That was very special since it's been years since we've had a chance to do that. We had a great time at Joi's grandparents 90th birthday party while talking to people and honoring their life and inspiring marriage. Lots of friends and family came to celebrate Dan and June (or Papa and Nana...as we affectionately call them). We got to spend a morning with my Dad and Step-Mom in Corona and were able to see their new trailer. I got to spend two wonderful nights jamming with my good friend, Joe Servia (at practice and the CFM concert). We had a triple date with the Hita's and the Ferris'. We surprisingly got to see my friend, Dante, quite a bit. We had lunch with him after attending Flipside. We saw him at the friend gathering. He came to my concert. I got to see most of my old colleagues in the Imaging Department and IMT while visiting APU. I got to have yummy street Tamales in Pomona with my boys and the Ferris men (and Destani). We had a get-together for my family at a park in Upland and at my Aunt Cindy's house. As I mentioned in an earlier blog, I got to see my good friend of 34 years, Christina, and her family when they drove from the high desert to see my concert. We spent an awesome day with my Mom and Ray at Disneyland. We spent a day with Nana and Papa and I was able to get a few hands of cribbage in with Papa. We had a friend gathering at the Broadwell's house and got to see lots of friends and loved ones (too many to name). On our last day, we stayed at Joi's Dad's house and asked if anyone wanted to come and say goodbye to come by and spend some time with us. Again, my Mom and Ray drove down before work and spent the morning and early afternoon with us. Miguel went out of his way to visit us before he went to Las Vegas for his birthday weekend. Very nice! Also, he gave me an iPhone, which was unexpected and very nice of him. Jackie, David, Destani, and Faithe spent all day with us. We saw Kim, Sierra, and Jake later that afternoon. Plus, Angela and Nico. Later that evening, Cindy, Phil, and his girlfriend came to say goodbye. I may be forgetting something. The two weeks were a blur. If I did forget something, please forgive me. I wish we would have had more time to spend quality time with the people that we love, but it was good to see everyone...even if it was only for an hour or two at a time. I am very thankful for the people who went out of their way to spend time with us and who drove long distances to see us. It was very good to see everyone.

Vacation Highlight: Disneyland

As a Christmas present, my mom gave us enough money to go to Disneyland while we were in California. On Wednesday, July 6th, we did just that. I was grateful that Mom was feeling well enough to go. With just starting chemo to fight her breast cancer, the whole day was up in the air. But, she was feeling good. I offered to push her around in a wheel chair all day, though, to make sure that she had enough energy to open and close the park with us. The kids were excited. They had been talking about it for weeks. When the day finally arrived, we got there at 7:45am. We parked and took the tram to the ticket booth. We decided to get a single park ticket, since most of the rides we wanted to go on were at the Disneyland park anyway. We entered the park shortly after opening and went directly to the new Star Tours ride. We only had to wait for about 20 minutes. Not too bad. The ride was awesome. I've never seen 3D so clear and crisp. Mom couldn't go on the ride with us because the doctors said to avoid fast rides and rides that would make her dizzy. So, she people watched outside while all of us and Ray went on the ride. Afterward, we did Space Mountain because it had just opened and was only a 15 minute wait. Then we took the kids to Captain EO, which was cool to see again after so many years. The only problem was I didn't like the room moving up and down to the music. It got annoying after a while. It didn't used to do that. Must be a left over from "Honey, I shrunk the audience!" We did Nemo's Submarine Voyage and we basically walked right on because the cast member saw us parking Mom's wheel chair and told us to take it through a special place to get right on the ride. Very nice! We did all of the fast rides that our kids were too small to enjoy the last time we went to Disneyland years ago. We did Matterhorn, Splash Mountain, Thunder Mountain, Indiana Jones, etc. We went on other fun rides that were more low-key so that Mom could join us like Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, Tiki Room (still one of my favs), Jungle Cruise, etc. We pretty much did everything we wanted to do by dinner time, which is amazing for a summer day in July. We even did the canoes around the Rivers of America. We had dinner at the Tomorrowland Pizza Port (Mmmmmm....chicken fazzuoli) and later let the kids hunt for something to buy. We got to sit in the handicap area for Fantasmic, which was awesome. We were the first one's there and got an amazing view. We had ice cream from the Golden Horseshoe while we waited. The boys enjoyed the show and then we decided to hit Pirates again while we waited for the crowd to disburse. We did some more shopping and then around 11:30pm, decided to call it a night. It was a wonderful day and it was probably the best day we had while we were in California. Thanks, Mom for the Christmas present and for spending the day with us. We had a wonderful time!!!

Vacation Highlight: CFM 20 Year Reunion Concert

One of the highlights of the trip to California was the Cry for Mercy Reunion Concert. It took place in the same room where we started 20 years ago at Christ First Church of Covina. Although, the room was much nicer now with carpet and a full stage with lights and sound. The crowd that came was probably the biggest crowd CFM ever played for (not counting the two years playing the L.A. Marathon). I was very grateful to everyone who came to see us play. Especially those who came from far away. For instance, my good friend, Christina, drove over an hour with her family from the high desert. I've been friends with her since I was 5 years old. So, it was good to see her again and meet her family. Other guests came from as far away as Oregon, Colorado, Texas, and Fresno. It was so good to see everyone and chat with them. Dave DePonte opened the night with a wonderful set list of songs from our early days as Christians. He acoustically rocked songs by the Altar Boys, Breakfast with Amy, Violet Burning, and Scaterd Few. Definitely a blast from the past. After his set, he filled in on percussion for us because our drummer was unable to make it. His Djembe playing gave the CFM set a nice coffee shop feel and laid the back-beat for our set-list. Bobby Hansen gave us a really heartfelt introduction and almost made me cry. It was beautiful and a special moment. After the intro, we moved through songs like "Hope", "Chronicle", "Identity", "The Answer Lies in You", and many other of our early and later songs. Joi's family and my boys held up signs from the audience. It made me teary eyed to see my boys holding up signs that said "R Dad Rox". In fact, every time I looked down into the audience, I could see one of my boys holding up a sign. It was a special moment for me.The songs sounded really good considering we only had one practice and lost our drummer only hours before the show. I was very pleased with how it all turned out. After the concert, it was nice to chat with everyone, take pictures, and even sign a few autographs. I don't think I've ever done that before. Playing with Joe again was awesome. I love that guy and was blessed to get to share a stage with that talented man again. Also, it was really good to get to introduce my beautiful wife and children to that part of my life. It was a very special night and a once in a lifetime experience.

Check out the CFM facebook page for pics and watch the vids on the CFM Youtube Page.

Coming Home!

We are back from our vacation in California. It's good to be home. Life was way too crazy in California. We were up early in the mornings and up until late in the evenings, going from one event to the next. There was too much to do and too many people to see. While we got time with everyone we planned to see, we don't feel like we really got good quality time with anyone. It was a blur. But, we did have some good moments and made some good memories. I'll highlight those in subsequent blogs throughout the week. Overall, we are glad to be home where we can finally rest and relax a little bit. We decided that we don't want to do a trip like this ever again. For our next vacation, we will go somewhere as a family and take it easy. While we love all of our friends and family out in California, we would prefer that you come out here to visit, so that we aren't spread so thin.

We'll Need a Vacation from our Vacation

Vacations are tough. There is so much to do. Planning, shopping, calling, scheduling, getting the car fixed, planning some more, and everything else required. It's just plain tiring. The hope is that once you get on vacation, you can rest and take it easy. Unfortunately, we have so much planned and so much going on, there will be very little rest and relaxation. It will be good to see everyone and spend time with people we haven't seen in a few years, but the running from place to place (sometimes several places a day) will get old pretty quick. But, since we can't change that, we;re determined to focus on the good. We are looking forward to seeing family and friends. We plan to stop by our old work (APU) and say hello to some old colleagues. We look forward to "In and Out", "Vince's Spaghetti", "The Hat", "North Woods Inn" and some of the other eateries we they don't have in Colorado. We look forward to Disneyland with my Mom next Wednesday. We look forward to staying with Joi's Dad...who has been awesome about letting us stay with him. We look forward to utilizing his Jacuzzi. Okay, maybe there will be a few moments of rest and relaxation. We look forward to the birthday festivities for Joi's Grandparents (who are turning 90 years young). We look forward to the get-together for my family at Upland Memorial Park next Saturday. There will be lots of good moments. I just hope that the hectic pace of the next two weeks doesn't wreak havoc on my wife and kids (and myself). Deep breath. The adventure begins tomorrow. (There probably won't be much blogging going on while I'm gone...just an FYI)