Take me Home Country Roads

Well we made it home (barely) from our semi-tolerable trip to WV this weekend. The tolerable part was that we had all the kids together for the weekend. This might have been the last time for a long time.

My SIL has a house in the woods in Berkley Springs WV. A un-air conditioned house! It was hot during the day but it did cool down at night. The community has a pool so we went there during the day on Saturdays.

I don’t like trying to sleep in the heat and I don’t like all the bugs and I don’t like to camp (give me a Four Seasons Hotel at the beach anytime). So we don’t go there to often. This was one of those humor the wife trips – which isn’t a bad thing. It’s just that Sam is one of 9 kids so they went camping a lot for vacations. And since I’m an only child (well I do have a brother and sister) we vacationed at beaches in nice houses or condominiums that had AIR CONDITIONING. The house did have electricity and indoor plumbing so it wasn’t like we were really roughing it but it was close enough for this spoiled suburb-boy.

I think everyone actually had an ok time. Well a few of the teens grumbled about the lack of cell-phone service, no Internet and no TV. But other than that they survived.
.
The little boys (6, 8, 10) had a blast because I brought 3 BB guns which they never get to use at home. The gun-nazi won’t let them. They went through 4,000 BB’s! And nobody shot their eye out. When we first got there and got the guns out, Dominic (6) says “let’s throw the bullets in the campfire and see what happens”. Um, Dominic, they aren’t bullets and if they were its probably not a good idea to throw them in the fire, at least when your mom is around.

We also roasted marshmallows and made Smores, shot off fireworks, cooked out, some of the boys slept in a tent…I took a nice bed thank you very much, and we played games.

Around 2pm Sunday on the way home, around 90 miles from home the Van broke-down. So there we are sitting on the side of the interstate in the heat with all the kids. Good times! I called AAA and Sam called friends of ours that live about 20 minutes from where we were stuck. They said we could borrow their big van; they have 9 kids (slackers). So after about 45 minutes the tow-truck and the loaner van showed up and we were able to get on the road again. Thank God for fellow large families.

I think the timing chain went on the van, waiting for the garage to call. This is especially fun since we just spent almost $1000 on this vehicle 2 weeks ago…

So on top of the $100 we spent on gas to get there and back, we are going to have a fat repair bill and then tomorrow we get to drive the borrowed van back to our friends and pick up our van.

update - Sam drove back to the scene of the crime and picked up the van, $493, ignition coil and a tune up...

Here are some pictures from the weekend.

Open your eyes and you might actually hit something

Which way did he go?

Nothing is safe around these guys

Got to start them young

Is my marshmallow done yet?

Princess don't work

Family Game Night

Stranded

Today's Workouts

5.1 mile run with The Donk. Drove over to his office at lunch (where I used to work) and ran our old 5.1 mile hilly loop. He took it easy on me. My ankle is still a little sore and swollen but getting a little bit better each day.

Oh and The Donk still has chicken calves - at least the right one anyway.

Tour de France 2008

I was away all weekend but the race went on.

There was some good action yesterday in Italy (the tour is in Italy for a bit - as they play in the Alps).

The top 5 changed a bit with the yellow jersey going from Cadel Evans, who is in 3rd now, to Frank Schleck. American Christian Vande Velde is in 4th place and not to far back.

Any one within a minute or so of the leader is in good shape.

Today is a rest day for the boys before a couple of tough stages in the Alps. The next few days could break the race open and decide who will be the winner on Sunday in Paris.

Tuesday they ride 157km in the Alps as they leave Italy and head back into France. Wednesday is 210km including the almost mystical climb up the L'Alpe d'Huez with its 21 hairpin turns. It really is cool to watch.

Stay tuned.

Silly Sunday

The Fonz


And of Course...


The best show when I was growing up

What Would Happen if I Missed a Day of Posting?

I'm away for the weekend so this is relative today.

thanks to a running forum buddy for showing me this

Today's Workouts

First run since Monday's debacle of the twisted ankle.

5 miles on the track of the local high school.

The run was ok. Ankle still stiff and a little sore but getting better.

Guess I've Got Some Redneck in Me

You Are 30% Yankee, 70% Dixie

You're completely Dixie all the way. You've possibly never even met a Yankee!

Are You a Yankee or Dixie?

h/t Roger

Graded by Sweetie

My bride has decided to Grade, or should I say re-grade my post on 10 Steps to Being a Better Husband

Stuff Catholics Like

A Friday Feature.

Free Coffee and Donuts – as Catholics we flock down to the basement, church hall or another location where coffee and donuts are being served after Mass. As the first notes of the closing song are being played, parishioners can be seen heading out in droves before the priest has even left the alter. People need to get a head start to get the best choice of donuts. If you aren’t fast enough you won’t get the chocolate donut with the sprinkles or the Boston crème filled one, you will get stuck with a powdered sugar donut or worse, one that my kids have taken a bite out of and put back. And the only coffee left will be from the bottom of the pot and filled with grounds. My own kids are guilty of jumping the gun on “Donut Sunday”. By the time I finally get down to the basement they are already on their second or third ones.

At our church we have coffee and donuts after the 10am Mass on the 3rd Sunday of the month. It’s the kid’s favorite Mass of the month. It’s my ace in the hole for the inevitable “Why do we have to go to Mass?” question that at least a few of them are going to ask on Sunday mornings. Saying “its donut Sunday” is a lot easier than saying “because I said so”. It gets a better response too. Makes me wish we had coffee and donuts every Sunday.

At our church the Youth Group does all the work for Donut Sunday. They leave collection baskets out on the tables so people can leave a donation. I’m sure they hardly ever break even let alone make a profit. Catholics can be real cheap. I’m guilty of almost never remembering to throw some money in. And after all these years with the amount of kids I have and the amount of donuts they eat, I’d have to take out a second mortgage to catch up. Sorry youths.

But these get togethers are a nice thing to have. At ours we get around 150-200 people down in the basement. The adults get to visit, the little kids run around and eat, and the teens stand in groups and pretend they aren’t having any fun and want to leave. It’s a great time for parishioners to catch up with each other, exchange church gossip, complain about the music during Mass and critique the priest’s homily.




With apologies to Stuff White People Like and the Stuff Catholics Like websites. I haven't read these websites but I imagine they are similar to this.

Tour de France 2008

My last Tour update until Monday. Heading to the hills of WV for the weekend.

Stage 13 - Friday, July 18: Narbonne - Nîmes, 182km

With just three fourth category climbs in the way, this should once again be a stage for the sprinters. The route continues its way across the southern edge of France between the Pyrenees and the Alps. It's likely that a break will try to get away, but even more likely that the sprinters' domestiques will bring them back before they reach the finish.

The stage travels from one Roman settlement to another: leaving the oldest one in Narbonne, and arriving in probably the most famous one in Nîmes. The capital of the Gard department, Nîmes is home to probably the highest concentration of historic Roman sites outside Italy. These include the best preserved arena in France – which still gets used for concerts and bullfights, the Maison Carrée – a temple dedicated to the sons of Agrippa, and most famously: the Pont du Gard – a three level aqueduct which lies 20 kilometres to the north.

Nîmes' other big claim to fame is as the origin of Serge de Nîmes, an indigo blue fabric that has changed the world. Over the years its name has been shortened to one word that most people will recognise: Denim.

The city has hosted the Tour 15 times before, with Aitor Gonzales (Fassa Bortolo) taking the victory in 2004, the last time it finished here.
Stage description lifted from cyclingnews.com

158 riders started this morning…out of 180 who started the first day.

So as we head to the big show-down in the Alps where the Tour should be decided, we will probably have another bunch sprint to the finish.

A couple riders have broken away early and have a 10 minute advantage. The sprinters teams will take their time and slowly pull them back in before the finish.

The Peloton spent the day slowly reeling in the 2 (Niki Terpstra and Florent Brard) in the break. They were pretty much doomed from the start but hung on for a 100 km’s or so.

Terpstra broke away from Brard around the 30km to go mark. For some reason he has decided to have a go at it himself.

By the 10km to go banner, the leaders up front were swallowed up by the peloton.

So it’s going to be bunch sprint for the line.

Holy Moley. 4 times is the charm. 4 for Cavendish! Mark Cavendish took an exciting sprint to the line for his 4th stage win!!!

So do I get excited about him and hope he is a clean rider? Or wait and see what happens?



No changes in the Jersey's today

The Jersey statuses

Maillot Jaune (yellow jersey - overall leader) – Cadel Evans of Australia who rides for Silence - Lotto

Maillot Vert (green jersey - points leader for sprinting) – Oscar Freire of Spain who rides for Rabobank.

Maillot à pois (red and white polka-dot jersey - best in the mountains) – Sebastian Lang of Germany who rides for Gerolsteiner

Maillot Blanc (white jersey - best young rider - under 25) - NIBALI Vincenzo Nibali of Italy who rides for Liquigas


Tour Tidbits -

domestique
A domestique is a road bicycle racer who works solely for the benefit of his or her team and leader. The French domestique literally translates as "servant", though the French term for such a team worker is porteur d'eau (literally: water carrier, like the German Wasserträger).

Some general important tasks carried out by the domestiques include retrieving water and nutrition from team cars and bringing it back up to the rest of the team and shielding teammates from aggressive opponents.

Domestiques are also important for racing in a way that is in the tactical interest of their own team, or against the tactical interest of the opposing teams. By putting themselves in a breakaway they force other teams to chase the given breakaway. In turn, they may have to get to the front of the peloton to chase a breakaway that threatens their team's goals.

Tour de France 2008

Stage 12 - Thursday, July 17: Lavelanet - Narbonne, 168.5km

With the Pyrenean stages over, the Tour now begins its journey across to the Alps. This stage features just one fourth category climb as it descends steadily towards the Mediterranean and so is a prime opportunity for the sprinters to reopen their accounts after a hard few days.

Lavelanet, situated in the heart of Cathar country with its hilltop castles, has hosted the start of a Tour stage once before: in 2002. That day saw a very similar course profile – although an entirely different route – and finished not far from today's Narbonne finish in the Herault department's capital Beziers. The stage was won by Scot David Millar (then Cofidis, now Slipstream-Chipotle) from a breakaway group that finished almost ten minutes ahead of the peloton.

Narbonne, with its 13th century Saint-Just cathedral, has been in existence since 118BC when the Romans settle there. The city has hosted the Tour seven times before, most recently in 2003 as it saw the start of the stage to Toulouse that was won by Juan Antonio Flecha. The last stage to finish here – or more accurately at Narbonne-Plage – was the second of five stages won by Belgian sprint legend Freddy Maertens in 1981.
Stage description lifted from cyclingnews.com


Today’s stage was over-shadowed by the news that Riccardo Ricco of team Saunier Duval has been kicked out for testing positive for EPO. The Italian was taken into police custody before the start of today’s stage. Ricco was 9th overall, first in the young rider competion (white jersey) and had won 2 stages with impressive performances. Now we know why.

The entire Saunier Duval team has withdrawn from the Tour and suspended their operations. This means that besides Ricco being gone, David De La Fuente (the polka dot jersey - mountain competition leader) is now gone and so is Juan Jose Cobo who was 8th overall. The Tour would have let the team continue but they decided not to.

This is all on top of Spanish rider Moises Duenas getting kicked out yesterday for the same thing.

Whenever someone has a great performance that comes out of the blue, there is always the thought in the back of my mind that they are dopers. But I had really hoped he was one of the new young super talented riders who were going to help change the sport. Someone as cynical as me shouldn’t be so naïve.

Ricco the Cheater Being Given the Boot from the Tour

My New Favorite Bike Jersey - Honey Buy Me One for Christmas

Anyway we did have a race today. Today’s relatively flat stage setup nicely for a bunch sprint finish.

A sweet bunch finish with Mark Cavendish from Great Britain who rides for Team Columbia taking the win. This was his 3rd stage win of the tour, I first for a rider from the UK. One can only hope he is clean.

The Hat Trick

There were no changes in the top ten riders but there were jeresey changes.

The Jersey statuses

Maillot Jaune (yellow jersey - overall leader) – Cadel Evans of Australia who rides for Silence - Lotto

Maillot Vert (green jersey - points leader for sprinting) – Oscar Freire of Spain who rides for Rabobank.

Maillot à pois (red and white polka-dot jersey - best in the mountains) – Sebastian Lang of Germany who rides for Gerolsteiner

Maillot Blanc (white jersey - best young rider - under 25) - NIBALI Vincenzo Nibali of Italy who rides for Liquigas


Tour Tidbits - today's selection comes to us at the suggestion of Lady Catherine of France.

The Broom Waggon (also referred to as Sag Waggon) is the affectionate name for the vehicle that follows a Cycle Road Race picking up stragglers (or sweeping them up) who are unable to make it to the finish the race within the time permitted.

In the Tour de France the vehicle used was traditionally a Citroën H Van. The expression broom waggon is a translation of the French, voiture balai. The broom waggon of the Tour de France did indeed once carry a broom fixed above the driver's cab - except in the years that it was sponsored by a vacuum-cleaner company.

The broom waggon is colloquially known as the sag wagon. SAG is an acronym which stands for Supplies and Gear. By extension, cycle-touring groups which have a vehicle to carry their luggage and food are now said to be "sagged" in that they have a vehicle that carries supplies and gear for the participants in the ride.

10 Steps to Being a Better Wife

Before we try to change you, here are a few changes we'll try to make ourselves. Deal?
By Sharon O’Brien

Ok wives it's your turn. Here is what you are supposed to do.

1) Take care of yourself

My honey is beautiful, nuff said. Grade A+++

2) Say thank you, often

I usually feel appreciated. Grade B

3) Keep the romance alive

Um, 11 kids. Some would call that a deterrent, not for us. Grade A+

4) Let him have "guy time"

I workout at least once a day, sometimes with friends. Grade A+

5) Make your husband a priority

Sam always wants to know how my day was, what I’m thinking etc…so I guess the grade is an A. Assuming you like that kinda stuff.

6) Don't try to change him

For the most part this is no longer a problem. I think Sam has realized that trying to change me has the opposite effect. Grade B+

7) Don’t make him guess—tell him what you want

I think I always know what she wants and what’s on her mind. Sweetie’s no shrinking wall flower. Grade A

8) Cultivate friends and interests outside your marriage

Sam has more friends than a swimsuit model asking to have sunblock rubbed on her on a crowded spring-break beach. When we have a party the house, yard, street, neighbors yards are overflowing with people. I’ve banned her from making new friends. Grade A+

9) Let free time be free

I do get free time to pursue activities but I also get booked with lots of other activities. Grade B

10) Believe in your husband, and let him know it

Sam’s got this one down. Grade A

Tour de France 2008

Stage 11 - 168km

Despite still being in the region of the high mountains (Lannemezan is in the Haute-Pyrénées department, and Foix is the capital of Ariège) this stage features very little serious climbing: the only serious obstacle of the day being the first category Col de Portal. Consequently, the course has breakaway written all over it and will suit strong riders who have lost enough time over the preceding two mountain stages for the contenders' teams to let them go.

This mornings news. Team Barloworld's Moises Duenas Nevado has been thrown out of the race due to a positive A-sample test for EPO. That makes it the second-such occurrence in the Tour, with fellow Spaniard Manuel Beltran (Liquigas) also having been shown the exit for the same reason.

Nevado the Cheat

A dozen or so riders broke away early from the peloton. None of the riders in the break are a threat to win the overall race so the group probably won’t waste the energy chasing them down today. Instead they will take it a bit easy (as easy as you can riding 100+ miles) and save themselves for the Alps.

Amael Moinard as made a nice break from the lead riders and put up 1:30 advantage. The lead riders have responded and with around 10 miles to go they are hunting him down.
With 5 miles to go it appears that Moinard will be caught and we will have a sprint finish.

Nice finish. 3 crossed the line around the same time. The stage win goes to Kurt-Asle Arvesen of Norway who rides for team CSC. The photo finish shows that Arvesen won by perhaps two centimetres.

Race leader Cadel Evans (Silence Lotto) finished safely in the main bunch after a largely uneventful day for the general classification contenders. He thus retained his one second lead over Frank Schleck (CSC – Saxo Bank), with Christian Vande Velde (Garmin Chipotle) remaining 38 seconds back in third overall. Evans and the rest of the peloton finished 14.51 back from the leaders.

Arvesen with the narrow victory

The Jersey statuses (no changes today)

Maillot Jaune (yellow jersey - overall leader) – Cadel Evans of Australia who rides for Silence - Lotto

Maillot Vert (green jersey - points leader for sprinting) – Oscar Freire of Spain who rides for Rabobank.

Maillot à pois (red and white polka-dot jersey - best in the mountains) - Riccardo Ricco of Italy who rides for Saunier Duval - Scott

Maillot Blanc (white jersey - best young rider - under 25) - NIBALI Vincenzo Nibali of Italy who rides for Liquigas



Today's Tour Tidbit:

Peloton - from French, literally meaning ball and related to the English word platoon. The peloton or bunch is the large main group of riders in a cycling road race

10 Steps to Being a Better Husband

Turn off the autopilot and start feeding your marriage.
By Craig Playstead

1) Take an interest in something your wife is really passionate about.

This is a tough one. She’s really passionate about babies and I’m doing my best to give her a 12th. It’s a tough job but someone has to do it… Grade B+

2) Put the kids to bed.

Nobody likes me putting the kids to bed. Not my wife, not me and certainly not the kids. It takes me less than 5 minutes. “Have you brushed your teeth and gone potty? Good now get in bed and don’t get out”. Done! Sam takes at least half an hour to do the job. She does all that nicey-nicey stuff like read bedtime stories, say prayers, make sure they have on clean pajamas etc…

So when we only had little kids I would do the dinner dishes and Sam would put the kids to bed. Now that we have older kids, Sam puts the kids to bed and the teens do the dishes and I goof off. When Sam is out for the evening, the older kids do the dishes and put the kids to bed and I goof off…it’s a great system. Grade D

3) Learn to apologize.

I’ll keep this in mind in case I’m ever wrong. Grade A+++

4) Thank her for putting up with you.

See #3 above. Actually I think I do this on occasion especially with my working out a lot. C+

5) Clean up after yourself.

This I do try and do. Actually both of us do. We have been on a de-cluttering kick the last few months. Our house is definitely losing weight. But with 11 kids it’s only going to get so clean. Bags and bags of stuff (clothes, toys etc…) have been leaving the house and going to various charities. Grade A-

6) Make time for just the two of you.

This we do. We were married on May 20th. So we try and go out on a date the 20th of every month. We also have ‘couch-time’ when I get home from work. 15 minutes alone in the nice living room to chat and catch up on the day. So we do ok for the amount of kids we have. Grade A-

7) Groom yourself.

Well I brush my teeth each morning, my underwear are usually clean unless we are behind on the laundry, I shower at least two times a day, and my blue jeans only get worn 2-3 days in a row. There is the stray nose and ear hair now that I've passed 40. Grade B

8) Get away from the family.

Oh this I do without a problem. Training for triathlon takes a whole lot of time away from the family. Grade A+

9) Deal with your side of the family.

Since I’m and only child and my parents aren’t a pain in the rear, this isn’t an issue. Grade A

10) Don't lose your dating manners.

I could do better on this one. I try and remember to open the car and other doors but sometimes I forget. I shall endeavor to do better. Grade C+

Tomorrow - the other side of the coin.

Honey, feel free to grade me.

Is Barbie Over the Hill?

At 48 is she an 'old-hag'?

According to Sean McGowan, an industry analyst, Bratz has now captured 40 per cent of the fashion-doll market, compared with Barbie's 60 per cent. Chuck Scothon of Mattel's girls division admits, 'The competition has changed. There's no denying it.'

Bratz dolls have large heads and skinny bodies. Their almond-shaped eyes are tilted up at the edges and adorned with thick crescents of eyeshadow.

Their lips are lush and pillowy, glossed to a candy-apple sheen and rimmed with dark lip liner. They look like pole dancers on their way to work.

Bratz dolls don't have Barbie's pin-up-girl measurements - they're not as busty and they're shorter. But their outfits include halter-neck tops, faux-fur armlets and ankle-laced stiletto sandals, and they wear the sly, dozy expression of a party girl after too many mojitos.

Barbie hasn't been replaced by Bratz yet but in just 6 years since they were introduced, they are closing in on her. 125 million of them have been sold so far. What is this country coming to? Barbie is as American as Apple Pie and Viagra. And what has this blog come to that I’m putting up a post defending Barbie?

While the Bratz don't have the perfect figures of Barbie, they have a much trashier look. If Barbie is a high-priced escort service girl than Bratz are more of a streetwalker type of girl. Barbie is Champagne and Bratz are Budweiser. Barbie is filet mignon and Bratz are ground round. Barbie is my wife’s blog and Bratz are my blog. Who would have thought Barbie would be the classy one. She was considered risqué when I was growing up. Having a naked Barbie lying around the house was a near occasion of sin.


I just wonder if Bratz' heads pop-off just as easily as Barbie's? Switching my sisters' Barbie’s heads with my GI Joes heads was a favorite pastime when I was a kid. You could entertain yourself for hours doing this. If this got boring I would have GI Joe beat the pretty off of Ken’s face and run off with Barbie to Barbados. And once that got old I would give Barbie a Sigourney Weaver in Aliens, head-shave. All this might explain the wedding gown wearing post and my weekly sessions with the therapist.

As far as I know my girls (and please dear Lord not my boys) don’t have any Bratz. I’m not sure if we even have any Barbie’s in the house. I’ll have to check with the Honey. The boys and I could have lots of fun the next rainy day.

Racy in 1968

Racy in 2008

Today's Workouts

3 mile run on Sunday.

2.9 mile run today at work. It was supposed to be 4.3 miles. Twisted my ankle on a curve and walked/limped back to the office 1.4 miles.

Tour de France 2008

Stage 10

More high mountains in this stage which, despite being just 156 kilometers (99 miles) in length, should prove to be one of the toughest of this year's Tour. Despite a reasonably flat start, the stage finishes with the legendary ascents of the Col du Tourmalet and Hautacam. This stage should see some real gaps appear between the overall contenders as the favorites for victory in Paris start to show themselves.

Hautacam, a ski resort nestled above the pilgrimage centre of Lourdes, has been a stage finish three times before. The riders my want to make a brief stop in Lourdes, I’m sure they could use some of the healing waters and St Bernadette’s intercession. But they will get a bit of a rest since tomorrow is a rest day, no racing. They will still go for a short ride to loosen up the old legs.

I watched some of this stage before heading to work and then listened to the rest of it on the Internet. Will watch the replay tonight. The women in the household are sick of seeing men in spandex on bikes. But the boys have been having fun watching, although they seem to like the crashes the best.

Team CSC has been driving a hard pace all day.

Kirchen is hanging in on the last climb for now but hurting. Valverde and Cunego aren’t fairing as well.
Kirchen has been dropped, can he get back on? It’s not looking like it. Looks like we will have a new Yellow Jersey after today’s stage.
Evans and Sastre are hurting too.
Christian Vande Velde is having a good day, so far.

There’s a French rider in the lead group. Will it be a Bastille Day win for him?

Leonardo Piepoli and Juan José Cobo (Saunier Duval-Scott) are going to be the first to the line. They are on the same team, which one will be given the win? Looks like the team is going to let Cobo have the win for all his hard work helping Ricco. No it’s Leonardo Piepoli of Italy crossing first.

Major shakeout of some of the top 10 contenders. Let me try and sort this out.

Today’s biggest winners:
Cadel Evans moved up from 2nd to 1st and is in the lead my 1 second! 9 days of racing. Over 42 hours and he’s ahead by a second. Great job by the Aussie. One day after crashing and banging himself up nice and good.
Frank Schleck jumped all the way from 11th to 2nd overall.
Christian Vande Velde is still comfortably in 3rd.
Bernhard Kohl moved all the way from 13th to 4th.
Juan Jose Cobo and Riccardo Ricco both moved into the top ten. 8th and 9th place respectively.

The biggest losers for the day were:
Obviously Kim Kirchen losing the yellow jersey and dropping from 1st down to 7th.
Stefan Schumacher was 4th and he dropped out of the top ten.
Alejandro Valverde, Stijin Devolder, Oscar Pereiro and Samuel Sanchez all dropped out of the top ten also.


The Jersey status

Maillot Jaune (yellow jersey - overall leader) – Cadel Evans of Australia who rides for Silence - Lotto

Maillot Vert (green jersey - points leader for sprinting) – Oscar Freire of Spain who rides for Rabobank.

Maillot à pois (red and white polka-dot jersey - best in the mountains) - Riccardo Ricco of Italy who rides for Saunier Duval - Scott

Maillot Blanc (white jersey - best young rider - under 25) - NIBALI Vincenzo Nibali of Italy who rides for Liquigas

Piepoli of Italy crossing first
The new Yellow Jersey wearer

Tour Tidbits

How do riders go to the toilet?

Generally, they pull over to the side of the road, stop, and shed liquid ballast in the usual way. Sometime in the first couple of hours of the race, a senior rider (a team leader or team captain) will organize a comfort break and the whole peloton will slow down enough that riders can stop for a break and easily catch up afterwards.

The etiquette is that you don't attack while a large-scale comfort break is in progress, and you certainly don't attack the yellow jersey when he's taking a leak, as we saw in stage 6 2002 when Domo and Rabobank were berated by Armstrong and ONCE for attempting to go after a breakaway while race leader Igor Gonzalez de Galdeano was answering nature's call.

On some days there will be no organized break. If the stage is short, fast or very hot it may simply not be necessary, but on a cold morning at the beginning of a long day's trek across Northern France a mass disposal of that last cup of coffee will almost certainly happen.

Welcome to the Peoples Republic of Maryland

New car seat law makes even more parents criminals

Some Maryland children who thought they were free of car seats will have to climb back in beginning Monday, when a new state law takes effect.

The law requires that children use safety seats until they turn 8, weigh 65 pounds or reach 4-foot-9.

Safety advocates say the law strengthens Maryland's standards that require a safety seat or booster seat until children reach 40 pounds and age 6. The law allows older children to use either booster seats, which elevate children to allow seat belts to fit properly, or car seats that have a five-point safety harness. Younger children should use a car seat with a harness until age 4 and nearly 40 pounds, officials said



Once again the Nanny State is hard at work (using our stolen tax dollars) keeping us safe from ourselves. Telling people how they can live their lives and what they can do with their children. It’s so nice to have politicians watching over us and helping us. It worked wonders for the Indians.

I don’t think for a minute that the State Mooches, I mean lawmakers, have my kids interest in mind. It’s all about power and money. They can’t seem to help butting into every aspect of our lives. It’s some ingrain survival instinct for politicians. They have to justify taking a huge percentage of our money. If you are living off the hard work of others you need to pass these asinine laws to show that you are doing something for the people. It can be tax “rebates”, onerous business regulations (in the name of helping consumers), bailing out Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (which the feds screwed-up in the first place) or this new car seat law to protect our precious children. You just have to show that you ‘care’.

And let’s not forget about the money that the State will make form this new ticket-able ‘offense’. 48 bucks a pop for a violation. But it’s not about the money; it’s about the kids…riiiight. More money into the government coffers to pay for the Bread and Circuses and Wars. Not to mention the salaries of these dedicated public servants.

This isn’t about whether or not 7 year-olds are safer in a booster seat, heck I don’t remember using even a seat belt growing up, it’s about MY right as a parent to decide what is best for MY children. I’m guessing they are probably safer and I’m sure my bride will have our poor 6 year-old strapped into one until he is 8.

And I don’t want to hear about parents who would be irresponsible and never use a car seat unless they were forced to. First of all there aren’t as many of those as the state would have us believe and second, I don’t care! It’s their lives and their kids. It’s none of my business.

It will only continue. More and more laws will keep coming that take away more and more of your personal freedoms. The State must feed itself.

This law is just hilarious coming from a state with some of the most liberal abortion laws in the nation.

Tour de France 2008

Riccardo Ricco of Italy crossing the finish line to win the ninth stage of the Tour de France

Stage 9

The Pyrenees! Lots of hills with two major climbs at the end.

Riccardo Ricco of Italy crushed up the last hill and held off everyone to take his second stage win of the tour. Viva la Italy.

The American Christian Vandevelde moved up from 4th to 3rd overall.

Cadel Evans hung on to 2nd overall despite crashing.

The Jersey status (the white jersey was the only one that changed hands):

Maillot Jaune (yellow jersey - overall leader) – Kim Kirchen of Luxembourg who rides for the American team of Team Colombia

Maillot Vert (green jersey - points leader for sprinting) – Oscar Freire of Spain who rides for Rabobank. Kim Kirchen is actually the points leader but since you can’t wear two jerseys at once…

Maillot à pois (red and white polka-dot jersey - best in the mountains) - David De La Fuente of Spain who rides for Saunier Duval - Scott (he rode a heck of a race today)

Maillot Blanc (white jersey - best young rider - under 25) - Andy Schleck of Luxembourg who rides for CSC

Tomorrow's stage 10 - More high mountains in this stage which, despite being just 156 kilometres in length, should prove to be one of the toughest of this year's Tour. Despite a reasonably flat start, the stage finishes with the legendary ascents of the Col du Tourmalet and Hautacam. This stage should see some real gaps appear between the overall contenders as the favourites for victory in Paris start to show themselves.

À demain


Today's Tour Tidbit:

Twice in the history of the race has the rider awarded the win being disqualified at a later date. The first time was in 1904 when the leader was found to have caught a train for part of the event, and then at the 2006 race Floyd Landis of America was disqualified for elevated testosterone levels found in a urine sample taken after one of his stage wins.

Silly Sunday

Freak or Geek? Which were you?


Moving on up!


Come on, Get Happy


Dasiy and her dukes


and only because my bride had a crush on him...the truck driver not the monkey

Today's Workouts

36 mile bike ride this morning.

3.2 mile run this afteroon with Robert following along on his bike.

Puke No More

Well the plague seems to have left the household. All the sick ones are back to their ornery selves. I think I liked them better sick...it was a lot quieter around the house...well except for when they were in the bathroom heaving their guts out.

Joey (10) still has not succumbed to the nasty little bug. A few more days and we shall know for sure

Tour de France 2008

Stage 8

Hills at the beginning then it flattened out for a sprinters finish.

Team Columbia did a great job setting the pace at the end of the race and chasing down the break.

Then Mark Cavendish of Great Britain made all their hard work payoff by taking the stage win. It was the young sprinters second stage win of the tour.



The Jersey status (no change from yesterday):

Maillot Jaune (yellow jersey - overall leader) – Kim Kirchen of Luxembourg who rides for the American team of Team Colombia

Maillot Vert (green jersey - points leader for sprinting) – Oscar Freire of Spain who rides for Rabobank. Kim Kirchen is actually the points leader but since you can’t wear two jerseys at once…

Maillot à pois (red and white polka-dot jersey - best in the mountains) - David De La Fuente of Spain who rides for Saunier Duval - Scott (he rode a heck of a race today)

Maillot Blanc (white jersey - best young rider - under 25) - Thomas Lovkvist of Sweden who rides for Team Columbia

À demain

Today's Tour Tidbit

What's the deal with the stuffed lion that the yellow jersey holder is given after each stage by one of the Poduim Girls?

One of the major sponsors of the tour is Credit Lyonnais (they are the yellow jersey sponsor) and their corporate symbol is a lion.

Tour de France 2008

Stage 7

Today's stage is one of the shortest of the tour (159km). But there is not a lot of flat and the country roads are twisty. The stage starts in Brioude and ends in the town of Aurillac

A very active stage todayu. Lots of atacking and other action. It was a great stage win by Luis Leon Sanchez of Spain who rides for Caisse D’Epargne.

The Spaniards had a great day today. A stage win, the green jersey and the polka dot

The Jersey status:

Maillot Jaune (yellow jersey - overall leader) – Kim Kirchen of Luxembourg who rides for the American team of Team Colombia

Maillot Vert (green jersey - points leader for sprinting) – Oscar Freire of Spain who rides for Rabobank. Kim Kirchen is actually the points leader but since you can’t wear two jerseys at once…

Maillot à pois (red and white polka-dot jersey - best in the mountains) - David De La Fuente of Spain who rides for Saunier Duval - Scott (he rode a heck of a race today)

Maillot Blanc (white jersey - best young rider - under 25) - Thomas Lovkvist of Sweden who rides for Team Columbia

À demain




On the negative news side of things:

Veteran Spanish rider Manuel Beltran has tested positive for EPO at the Tour de France.

And 5 riders today either withdrew or didn't make the time cutoff. That brings the total to 9 who are no longer in the race - from 180 at the start. Not too bad so far. But the real mountains await.

Today's Workouts

10 mile run at lunch time on tired and sore legs. But not as bad as I had feared after yesterday's long run.

Puke Happens

Last Saturday and Sunday I was sick. Some weird flu/stomach virus hybrid. Flu in the summer????

Monday and Tuesday the baby and Cecilia (2) had it. Wednesday and Thursday Barbara (12) had it. Last night between midnight and this morning Sam and 6 of the kids came down with it. Normally 3 bathrooms are enough, even for our large family. But Tupperware bowls seem to work just as well as the porcelain bus when one needs to do the Technicolor yawn.

Robert (8) and Joseph (10) are the only ones not to succumb yet. They have barricaded themselves upstairs in their bedroom and will probably hide out in there for a few days. I image they will be lowering a rope with a basket attached to it out their bedroom window for food supplies, masks and Lysol.

They are dead men walking.

I’m fully recvored and at work. It’s nice and quiet here and doesn’t smell of last nights dinner.

***Update from home*** Robert just went down for the count. Sam says Joey is the only one left and he’s teasing the others. Oh how the mighty shall fall…

Dinner and a show

Josh is home for 2 weeks before going back to NH for the summer and then on to seminary in the fall.

Last night we had Father James, the vice-rector of the school in NH, and Brother Daniel - one of the deans, over for dinner.

Dinner was shrimp scampi over linguine, tomato cucumber and onion salad, garlic bread and lots of ice cream.

The kids behaved pretty well. I guess threatening them with having their faces torn off if they didn't behave actually works.

There was no yelling at the table. The 2 year-old didn't pull her dress over her head. The boys bodily functions were nice and quiet.

We used the good china and nothing was broken.

We didn't have to say:

"Stop burping your ABC's"

"Don't eat with your fingers"

"Clean up your spilt milk"

"How do you know what worms taste like and no I don't think this meal does"

"One bite of food doesn't qualify you for dessert"

"Clean up your spilt milk"

"No I don't think linguine makes nice hair extensions"

"Yes a shrimp stuck in each nostril does make you look like an elephant, no take them out and you will eat them"

"Clean up your spilt milk"

"Do not use the baby for target practice with your peas"

"Yes it is kinda cool how milk comes out your nose when you laugh"

"Clean up your spilt milk"

"'Rub-a-dub-dub, thanks for the grub' does not count as grace"

All and all it was a pleasant evening. There are times when I really do like my kids and think maybe I’m not a total screw-up as a father. I wish these moments were more common than the “dear lord why do you let me breed” moments. Baby Steps.

Tour de France 2008

Stage 6

Nice stage today. Cool long uphill finish. While it’s not the mountains yet, it was enough to make the day more interesting. Pyrenees are coming!

Ricardo Ricco won the sprint to the line. Nice ride by the youngster. He’s having a very good tour so far.

The Yellow Jersey (Schumacher) went down in the last kilometer. Normally if you crash in the last 3 kilometers you get the same time as the others but this was an uphill finish so that rule doesn’t apply.

Kim Kirchen moved into the yellow jersey. Nice job by the new team from American, Team Columbia


The French countryside is beautiful.


The Jersey status:

Maillot Jaune (yellow jersey - overall leader) – Kim Kirchen of Luxembourg who rides for the American team of Team Colombia

Green Jersey (points leader for sprinting) – Thor “the god of thunder’ Hushovd of Norway who rides for CREDIT AGRICOLE. Kim Kirchen is actually the points leader but since you can’t wear two jerseys at once…

Polka Dot Jersey (best in the mountains) - CHAVANEL Sylvain of France who ride for French team Cofidis Credit Par Telephone (how do you fit that on a jersey?)

White Jersey (best young rider - under 25) - Thomas Lovkvist of Sweden who rides for Team Columbia

à bientôt


Ricco winning today's stage

Today's Workouts

21 miles running (34km). Don't ask why. I feel old today. Walking like an old man who has had too much prune juice.

He's Home

He seems taller.



The little kids have been having fun with him.




His momma is being a momma.



He's got a second High School diploma (New Hampshire to go along with his Maryland one).

He's leaving in 2 weeks...for a long time.

But he's home for now.

Today's Workouts

4.3 mile sticky run at lunch time.

Tour de France 2008

Stage 5

Today was the longest stage of the tour, 232 km’s, but a flat one. This lead to a bunch sprint for the last few hundred meters. Nothing really changed with the overall leaders. The green jersey is the only one to change hands today.

Tomorrow is when it gets interesting. We will finally start getting some hills to break things up and make the riders really work. the race resumes its southerly course across France's hot Massif Central and has an 11 km uphill finish to Super Besse, a ski resort.

The Jersey status:

Maillot Jaune (yellow jersey - overall leader) - Stefan Schumacher of Germany who rides for Gerolsteiner

Green Jersey (points leader for sprinting) – Thor “the god of thunder’ Hushovd of Norway who rides for CREDIT AGRICOLE

Polka Dot Jersey (best in the mountains) - Thomas Voeckler of France who is the leader of the French team BOUYGUES TELECOM

White Jersey (best young rider - under 25) - Thomas Lovkvist of Sweden who rides for Team Columbia

à bientôt

You Mess with the Bull

You get the horns.

13 are injured in Pamplona's running of the bulls

PAMPLONA, Spain (AP) — Daredevils kicked off the running of the bulls Monday with a long, messy and particularly dangerous dash through the streets of Pamplona, with 13 people injured but none gored, officials said.

It was the first of eight scheduled runs. The most crowded ones will be next weekend, when the throngs of thrill-seekers will swell dramatically as people pour into Pamplona from out of town for two days of revelry and Adrenalin.
Since record-keeping began in 1924, 14 runners have died.

The last fatality from a goring was a 22-year-old American, Matthew Tassio, in 1995. In 2003, a 63-year-old Pamplona native, Fermin Etxeberri, was trampled in the head by a bull and died after spending several months in a coma.

On Sunday a young man died after falling 30 yards from an ancient wall that encircles the old quarter of Pamplona. Authorities identified him Monday as Aidan Holly, a 23-year-old from Ireland, and quoted friends as saying he had been drinking.

I know, shocking that alchol was involved in the poor lad's death.

I tend to pull for the bulls to get in a few good licks. They are going to end up in bull-fights and dead by the end of the festival so they might has well get in a poke or two.

But don't worry because Big Brother is wathcing out for it's servants, I meant citizens.

From the New Zealand Embassy's Website warning about the run.
"Running with the bulls is dangerous," the site said.

Masters of the obvious.

People are actually paid (with stolen tax dollars no less) to write this drivel.

So politicians in New Zealand are just as worthless as the ones in the US.
I'm sure the first thing every New Zealander visiting Spain does is to logon to their embassy's website and see what wisdom they have to dispense. Who knows they might have some other useful information like smoking is bad for or driving while plastered might cause accidents or messing with a PMSing woman could get you "Lorena Bobbitt'd".



is a bikini really proper attire for running with the bulls?

pay no attention to this, doctors orders

Today's Workouts

2 mile w/u
8 X 1/4 mile hill repeats at 10mile race effort. Jog back down the hill.
2 mile c/d.

around 9 miles total

Tour de France 2008

Today's 4th stage is a 29.5 KM (18.3 miles) individual time trial in the town of Cholet.

The riders start every 2 minutes and they are racing the clock. No team for support. They get to use their time trial bikes. It's basically 35-40 minutes of pain.

The time trial was won by Stefan Schumacher of Germany which put him into the yellow jersey over Kirchen and Millar by 12 seconds.


The Jersey status:

Maillot Jaune (yellow jersey - overall leader) - Stefan Schumacher of Germany who rides for Gerolsteiner

Green Jersey (points leader for sprinting) - Kim Kirchen of Luxembourg who rides for the American team, Team Columbia

Polka Dot Jersey (best in the mountains) - Thomas Voeckler of France who is the leader of the French team BOUYGUES TELECOM

White Jersey (best young rider - under 25) - Thomas Lovkvist of Sweden who rides for Team Columbia

Au revoir

Meat Eaters Rejoice

Tofu causes dementia

Eating high levels of some soy products - including tofu - may raise the risk of memory loss, research suggests.

The study focused on 719 elderly Indonesians living in urban and rural regions of Java.

The researchers found high tofu consumption - at least once a day - was associated with worse memory, particularly among the over-68s.

I knew that hippie tree-hugger food was bad for you. Besides tofu tastes like toe-cheese. Don't ask me how I know what toe-cheese tastes like. It was a long time ago and involved alcohol and a triple-dog-dare. Plus I never could eat tofu because I always felt so bad for the poor soybeans that had to die to make it.

If the choice is between a heart-attack and Dementia, I'll take the heart-attack and enjoy my meals in the meantime.

So go eat a nice big fat juicy steak!!! It tastes like spotted owl with a hint of snail darter.

Yeah Yeah I know it doesn't say to rush out and eat red meat - I'm reading between the lines. Don't be such a buzz-kill people...sheesh.

Tour de France 2008

Stage 3

It was a good day for the host country. A Frenchman, Samuel Dumoulin of team Cofidis, took the stage win. And another, Romain Feillu of team Agritubel, is now the holder of the Maillot Jaune (yellow jersey). Neither of them is expected to be in contention when the race reaches Paris, but it’s nice for now. Feillu is a young rider who is also now the holder of the White Jersey but since you can’t wear both and the yellow is 1000 times better, the white will pass to the second place youngin’.

William Frischkorn of the US and a member of the Garmin Chipotle team took second in the stage. A nice showing for the new US team and a young rider.

There may be some trash talking tonight as the peloton was split in a few pieces towards the end of today’s stage by a crash. It’s a rule of etiquette that you let the riders affected by a crash get back to the group before pressing the pace. But the front end of the peloton just kept hammer away. In their defense they were trying (unsuccessfully) to catch the 4 man break away before the end of the race.

Tomorrow is a 30km individual time trial.

Maillot Jaune (yellow jersey - overall leader) - Alejandro Valverde of Spain who is the leader of the Spanish team CAISSE D’EPARGNE team

Green Jersey (points leader for sprinting) - Kim Kirchen of Luxembourg who rides for the American team, Team Columbia

Polka Dot Jersey (best in the mountains) - Thomas Voeckler of France who is the leader of the French team BOUYGUES TELECOM

White Jersey (best young rider - under 25) - Andy Schleck of Luxembourg who rides for Team CSC Saxo Bank of Denmark.

Au revoir!

Dumoulin winning the stage with a hurting Frischkorn coming in second

Today's Workouts

4.3 mile very slow run at lunch. Still suffering from the flu a bit.

RIP Bozo

LOS ANGELES - Larry Harmon, who turned the character Bozo the Clown into a show business staple that delighted children for more than a half-century, died Thursday of congestive heart failure. He was 83.

Bozo was a staple of my childhood (no not my father - kidding). I watched him on TV a lot in my younger years.

Although I must admit that clowns kinda creep me out a bit. I mean just exactly who is lurking behind that disguise?

But not nearly as much as Mimes. They are down right freaky. With all that Black and white makeup they could at least have the common decency to be Goth.

Pretending you are inside an invisible box is not fresh or entertaining.

Say something Freak!!!

Tour de France 2008

Stage 2 is over. The results haven't change much. Just the Green Jersey will change hands. The stage was won in a sprint by Thor Hushovd of Norway who rides for the Credit Agricole team.

Yellow Jersey (overall leader) - Alejandro Valverde of Spain who is the leader of the Spanish team CAISSE D’EPARGNE team

Green Jersey (points leader for sprinting) - Kim Kirchen of Luxembourg who rides for the American team, Team Columbia

Polka Dot Jersey (best in the mountains) - Thomas Voeckler of France who is the leader of the French team BOUYGUES TELECOM

White Jersey (best young rider - under 25) - Riccardo Ricco of Italy who rides for the Spanish team SAUNIER DUVAL - SCOTT

Wimbledon 2008

Ok so was that a great gentlemen’s championship or what?

I managed to get off my death-bed (flu) to watch it. I actually missed the first 2 sets. We were at church and then the whole family went out to lunch. Thank God for rain-delays.

I’m glad it didn’t go any longer; I was starting to get stressed. Not because I wanted Nadal to win so badly but because I was starting to not want anyone to lose.

Anyway I still feel lousy from the flu so no more on this for now. Everyone else feel free to chime in.
I’d like to know how others enjoyed the match.

Silly Sunday

AYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!


Count Chocula


T & J

Tour de France 2008

The tour has started and stage 1 is in the books.


Yellow Jersey (overall leader) - Alejandro Valverde of Spain who is the leader of the Spanish team CAISSE D’EPARGNE team

Green Jersey (points leader for sprinting) - Philippe Gilbert of Belgium who rides for the French team FRANCAISE DES JEUX

Polka Dot Jersey (best in the mountains) - Thomas Voeckler of France who is the leader of the French team BOUYGUES TELECOM

White Jersey (best young rider - under 25) - Riccardo Ricco of Italy who rides for the Spanish team SAUNIER DUVAL - SCOTT

Wimbledon 2008

I did get off my death bed long enough to watch Venus beat Serena in straight sets. The match was better than I thought it would be.

The Williams sisters' also won the doubles championship.

I aslo watched stage of the Tour de France. More on that another day.

Today's Workouts

Actually yesterday's workouts:
10 miles running and then 35 miles cycling.

Todays workouts concisted of laying in bed sleeping due to the Flu.

It's 4th of July Weekend

What are you people doing here?

You should be out partying!

Now go grill some dead animal flesh, drink some beers and blow-off a few fingers with some fireworks.

Except for you Catherine. Since you aren't in this country you can do something else. Or you can join our celebration of getting free from the Limeys. Or you could use this as a warm-up party for Bastille Day.


I look forward to seeing your lovely country as the Tour starts today!!! Were you selected to be a Podium Girl this year?

Sounds like a good course this year.

Du samedi 5 au dimanche 27 juillet 2008, le 95e Tour de France comprendra 21 étapes pour une distance d’environ 3 500 kilomètres.

Ces 21 étapes se décomposent comme suit:

10 étapes de plaine,
5 étapes de haute montagne,
4 étapes accidentées,
2 étapes contre-la-montre individuel.
Les particularités de l'épreuve

4 arrivées en altitude,
2 journées de repos,
82 kilomètres contre la montre individuel,
17 cols de 2e, 1re et hors catégorie seront escaladés

A Haiku On the Death of a Good Friend

Your time is no more
Thanks for all the scenery
300 miles done good

Never fear my friend
Out of my life you won’t be
Mowing lawns you will



Yes one of my pair of running shoes are being retired.
They have 300 running miles on them. After that they become yard work shoes or the teen boys take them and abuse them as only boys can do.

Wimbledon 2008

Serena beat Jie Zheng of China and Venus beat the shrieking Elena Dementieva of Russia.

So we are stuck with a Venus and Serena final…oh well…

I’m going to go with Venus. Based solely on her being the more athletic of the two. I can’t figure out how Serena moves around the court with those big thighs and caboose. I’m not being a pig. This isn’t a looks criticism, she looks a lot better than Venus; I just can see how she can keep up with Venus.
Hopefully the match will be a good one.

The men’s semis were rounded out today. Schuettler of Germany beat Clement of France in a 5 set match that was played over two days and few rain delays. The lucky German gets a whole days rest be racing the Nadal juggernaut.

Sorry Catherine. If it’s any consolation I thought Clement looked better. His bandana look was better than Schuettler with his baseball cap on backwards. On my 8 year-old that’s cute…it makes a grown man look like a doofus.

Today's Workouts

18.5 mile long run or 30 kilometers.

I Guess $5 Hot Drinks Aren't a Priority...

...at least not in this Economy

Starbucks is closing 600 stores.

That's out of 7,257 stores. Only 6,657 to go until that yuppie plague from Seattle is gone from this country.

Tough to get people to buy your stuff when they can hardly afford to buy food, pay their mortgages or put gas in their tanks.

Let's see a 20 ounce plain coffee runs around 2 bucks. That works out to around $13 a gallon - makes gasoline look down-right reasonable.

I've bought Starbucks coffee a few times in my life - on the Jersey turnpike (talk about plaques) at one of those big rest plazas where they were the only choice and I was driving 9 hours straight. So I have a good excuse.

I don't really care if someone wants to pay $2-$5 for some 'coffee' type drink. But I can grind my own beans and make better coffee for around 25 cents a cup.

So even if I was inclined to go to Starbucks, it doesn't really make financial sense. A weeks worth of coffee purchased there would cost me the same dollar amount as a new pair of running shoes. And yes I do think of the cost of everything and how many running shoes I could buy with it.

And all you Starbucks Idolaters, chill. My 18 year-old daughter goes there too. Besides the 'good' Senators and Congressmen from Washington State will probably get a bill passed to send out a coffee stimulus check, redeemable only at Starbucks of course.

Today's Workouts

4.3 miles easy at lunch time.

Wimbledon 2008

Its men’s quarter finals day

First up is Roger “what a great name” Federer against Mario Ancic. And Marat “I’m making Mary Margaret look like a genius” Safin faces Feliciano Lopez.

The second set of matches (why do they have to play matches at the same time?) features Rainer Schettler of Germany against Arnaud “Catherine’s last chance” Clement of France.

And Andy Murray of England verses Rafael “Man-Crush” Nadal.


Results:

Federer took care of Super Mario in straight sets.

And Safin, after dropping the opening set, beat Lopez. The legend of the Tennis Genius/Geek continues to grow.

Nadal cruised past Murray 6-3, 6-2, 6-4


The Schettler and Clement match was suspended due to darkness with it tied at one set apeice. Couldn't they have started it a little earlier? Or was there a rain delay. I hate when I have work to do and can't watch it.

$840,000 for a House and a Wife

Apparently a Florida woman is tired of her house and being single. So all you single guys who want to live in Florida might want to check it out.

After a year of trying to sell her four-bedroom home and eight years of singledom, Deven Trabosh is offering her South Florida home and a shot at marrying her on the Internet.

"I figured let's combine the ad because I'm looking for love and I'm looking to sell the house," said Trabosh, a Barbie-esque blonde who teeters around the nearly 2,000 square-foot house in patent leather heels.



This gave me a great idea on how to make money. I've decided to sell my house and family on EBay.

For Sale:

1 - 45 year-old house. Broken-in and comfortable...like an old pair of loafers

1 - 40 year-old wife. See description above for house. Actually more like flashy and classy running shoes than loafers. Seriuosly people, I could never sell my Soul Mate...the kids on the other hand...

1 - 18 year-old daughter. Can drive and do errands. Also proficient at babysitting. Does not clean well.

1 - 17 year-old son studying for the priesthood. Will pray for you and will eventually be able to say Mass and perform baptisms, weddings and funerals.

1 - 15 year-old son. Would be a good mid-fielder if you are starting a soccer team.

1 - 13 year-old daughter. Very responsible. Great babysitter and cleans well too.

1 - 12 year-old daughter. Feisty but loves to play with little kids.

1 - 10 year-old son. Sweet disposition. Loves to play baseball. Cuts lawns.

1 - 8 year-old son. Confident. Swims in a Speedo.

1 - 6 year-old son. Goofy. Will keep you entertained for hours on end.

1 - 4 year-old daughter. A little cutie-pie. Will talk your ears off.

1 - 2 year-old daughter. Look-up firecracker in the dictionary and you will see her picture.

1 - 10 month-old son. Possibly the happiest baby on earth.

No reasonable offer refused. Will consider a trade for a Harley Davidson or 66' GTO.

All sales are final. Absolutely no returns for defective goods after 30 days.

Buy now. Pay later. 12 months and 0% financing available with approved credit.

Caveat Emptor

Wimbledon 2008

The march of an all Williams’ final continues. Both of them cruised to the next round.

Venus will face Elena Dementieva of Russia and Serena will face unranked Jie Zheng of China. She is the 122nd ranked player in the world. Not a bad showing by her.

Oh and the Williams' Lasses are playing doubles togther and still going strong in that too.

Today's Workouts

Ok so registration opened today for the JFK 50 mile race in Boonsboro Maryland. The race is on November 22nd. Yours truly for some bizarre reason signed up for it today.

So today was an 8 mile run with an emphasis on hills. Since there is a decent chunk of hills in this race.

2 mile w/u
8 X 1/4 mile hill repeats at 10mile race effort. Jog back down the hill.
2 mile c/d

Pray for me. Pray for my wife.

Balance and Moderation my Fanny

My wonderful honey thinks we are balanced parents

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

To quote my bride:

"11 kids...and an exercise crazed man???"

Who is this person she is referring to? You get up at 4am daily to work out and you are labeled for life.

I only have a few minutes to respond to her post between workouts. Hopefully I won't get sweat or Gatorade all over the keyboard.

Here are our True Parenting Styles.

Sam's - Firm but loving and always has time for the kids - to talk, to play a game, go for a walk, read a book to them etc...

Mine - Easy going until they get on my nerves one too many times and I erupt like Mount Vesuvius. I always have time to put a movie on or...um...put on a movie.

Sam treats this as a 24 hour job/vocation without even trying to. It just comes naturally to her. She is the youngest of 9 kids and she has always wanted to be a wife and mother of a larger family as far as I can tell. I met her when she was 16 (I was 20 - what were her parents thinking? I know what they were thinking, "one more to get out of the house and we are free") and knew not too long after what she wanted. I'm surprised I didn't run in the opposite direction (being a young, stupid and self-centered male - that's all redundant). It must have been her stunning looks and fantastic out-going personality. Whatever it was about her that was so appealing to me, it was enough to keep me around until I got my act straightened out (ok, semi-straightened out).

I never really thought about having kids let alone a lot of them until I met her. I'm the oldest of 3 who thinks he's an only child. Isn't that right my brother and sister? Whatever your names are.

I’ve had to work at this parenting thing (the marriage gig too). My natural inclination (being an introvert) is to want to be left alone. I I’m perfectly happy to sit alone for hours in the evening reading a book and ignoring everyone or going out and running or cycling for hours by myself. Whereas Sam would have company over every day of the week and twice on Sunday if I would agree to it.

So when we were dating and I realized what she wanted out of life, I was like "sure no problem. Whatever you want babe. How hard can this 'kid' thing be"?

Pretty darn hard as it turns out. It's funny how something can be incredibly difficult and satisfying at the same time (kinda like doing marathons). But that is just what this parenthood adventure has been. From the million little issues and drama’s of the young kids, to the few but trying and scary troubles of the teen years (just you parents of little kids wait - you think a 2 year-old is a handful? Wait until they are teens ). You will be longing for the days when getting them to keep their shoes on or eat their veggies or not go poo in the kitchen were the issues of the day. But don’t worry too much…when the time comes you will be given the grace that is needed to deal with your daughter wanting to dye her hair purple, become an exotic dancer and date Spike a member of Hell’s Angels or worse your son wanting to do the same.

So to my under-appreciated wife, thank you so much for being the driving force of this wonderful adventure. It’s been heckuva ride so far.

We balance and complete each other. I love you more today than ever before.