Thursday, April 28, 2011

This is not the best idea for a character

We were watching TV last bight and this commercial came on for those Sideshots things. Now, they may not taste bad, but who came up with the mascot? Take a look.

Don't they seem a little gross? It looks like they ate so much they are going to puke out all of themselves, I guess? It's not a pleasing look. Am I right? Does this make you want to buy them?

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Time to give it up...and give it away

No, I'm not giving up on the blog, though it may seem that way at times. Or, all the time really. I know.

Anyway, a little history. At the beginning of Lent I decided to give up chocolate. Not for religious reasons, but to see if I could and Lent seemed like a good timeline to use. I figured if I could make it through Lent it would be a big deal for me. Really, it is. You don't know how many M&M's I normally eat.

Now, I'm not going to lie to you, it was tough. That first week was like giving up drugs. From what I've seen on TV of course. I wasn't stuck in bed hurling into a garbage can or anything, but I certainly kept looking for some chocolate that first week.

I guess the best comparison would be to giving up tobacco. I used to chew tobacco in college (I know it's gross, that's why I don't do it anymore) and I remember how tough that first week without it went. You get used to having it at certain times like after a meal, or a snack or while watching TV, etc. Sure, chocolate doesn't have nicotine in it, but I was still used to having some after I ate, or I was bored. It was a bad scene.

So, I gave it up for Lent and I did really well. After that first week it was much easier to go without it. Franky, I was proud of myself. Until Good Friday, I was sick, and I decided to stop that day. Remember, this wasn't for religious reasons so I wasn't worried about getting struck by lightning after eating a piece or two. Or more.

I think I did pretty well the first two days being able to eat chocolate, but yesterday I decided I need to stop and get rid of the stuff in the house. Why? Two words: acid reflux. A while back my doctor had told me some things that can trigger acid reflux; tomato sauce, chocolate and alcohol. Being an Italian, beer loving, chocolate fiend, that was some pretty tough news to take. I have done well with holding back on the pasta sauce and the beer, but not so much on the chocolate. So, long story a little shorter, I had my first acid reflux attack since I gave up chocolate for Lent last night and that's when I decided I need to keep off the stuff for the most part. I can't keep M&M's here in the house, that's for sure. Those things keep calling me back and I end up regretting it later in the night. I need to get rid of them. Now.


I have three bags that I got for Easter. Do you want them? Yes, you! If I'm going to get rid of them I might as well give them to someone that actually reads this thing. So leave me a comment if you want them and tell me why you should get them and I'll chose who gets them. If nobody leaves a comment, I'll bring them to work or something like that. But, I'd rather give them to you. Make sure to leave an e-mail address for me to contact you if you don't have a link back to your blog or website.

Go tell your friends. I know they like chocolate even if you don't.

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

"I'd Say It's Coming Straight Toward Me"

Have you seen this video of a tornado taken by a guy sitting in a truck? Does anything excite this guy?

But I feel, as a sort of PSA, I should mention a few things about this video. First, don't do this. Ever. Sure, if you see a tornado you are going to want to grab a few frames of video, but do it from a safer spot. Be ready to take cover. Okay?
Second, I like how he says it's about a half-mile away and it's a weak one since he can only see dust and leaves in it, or something like that. Those aren't leaves. That is debris. Can you see leaves from half of a mile away? No, those were probably branches and parts houses or something. Maybe a cow. Are there cows in North Carolina?
And, finally, the best part is when it gets close and he gets a little nervous and tells the person on the phone he loves them. I thin, then he realized that this might be a little more dangerous than he thought. See, even if a tornado look, or is, a little weaker it can still fling some pretty big stuff at you. That is what is going to kill you.
I'm glad this guy wasn't hurt and he shared this video, but let's not try to top him, okay?
This has been your Tornado PSA For today.
I know Jenn is laughing as she reads this since this is something I would do, but I'm a professional so it's okay.

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Trying Out Some New Stuff

I'm trying out some blogging software for my iPad. It's called Blogsy and seems to have some of the stuff I was hoping for like, links, posting photos and all the other stuff that goes with blogging. Maybe I'll post more, but don't get your hopes up. (Not that they were).

So supposedly I can put a picture on here. Let's see if it works.

Hmm. I can't see the picture, but I see the link where it comes from, so let's hope it shows up.

Hey, "The Jerk" is on. I haven't seen this is ages! I want to say the first time I saw "The Jerk" was at a sleepover. I remember thinking it was so funny when he called the dog shithead. Actually, it still kind of is. Obviously I haven't grown up at all.

Okay, that's enough random thoughts. It's late, I'm tired and I want to see if this works.

Edit to add picture back in. I figured it out now!

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

For once it was warm during the Shamrock Shuffle


Jenn and I ran in the Shamrock Shuffle again this weekend. One thing about having a race this early in the year in Chicago is you never know what the weather is going to be like. Two years ago we ran in a blizzard. So this year the race was pushed two weeks later and what do we get? Near record heat. Yes, I know I shouldn't complain about warm weather in April, but I'm going to. See, I haven't run outside in temperatures about 55 so far this year. It's not that easy to all of a sudden shift like that. Especially as you get older and don't prepare the way you should.

Let's backtrack a bit first. Jenn and I were smart this year and went downtown the night before to make it much easier, and less stressful, to get to the race. We had won a night's stay at the Park Hyatt last year in a silent auction so we used it for this race. It worked great, the hotel was super nice and we had a great view.





We walked around downtown a bit and grabbed dinner at Mity Nice Grill in Water Tower Place. We noticed a million cops walking around as we walked to the restauarant. We weren't sure why, but we thought it might have something to do with it being the first nice night of the year and the cops expected undesirables to come out and try to swipe stuff. Who knows? Whoopi was also in town, maybe they were protecting her. (I'm kidding about that.)

Since we had to get up early we didn't walk around much so we'd be well rested and ready to run. Because we are professionals you know. (What?)

The next morning I put on my favorite nerdy running shirt and we headed downstairs to catch a cab to the starting line. Hey, we were about a mile away, we didn't want to burn ourselves out before the race!




We met up with Jenn's cousin, Kim, and waited a long time for the race to start.



It took so long to start because we are slow people and they let all the good people go first and release the rest of us losers in waves. I think it took a little over thirty minutes from the start of the race until we actually crossed the starting line. Those good people up front are finishing the stupid thing before we even get to the start. That's what happens when you have over 30,000 people running at once.


So, since it was warm and humid, my plan was to start of slow and take it easy. So, of course, I took off in the beginning and totally screwed myself up. I was hot and panting way too early and I never really got my groove back. It probably didn't help that I was wearing a black shirt. Idiot.

I finished though. I don't think it was my worst time, but it was nowhere near the time I wanted. After the race Jenn and I made a pledge to be better prepared and not slack off so much during the winter. Sure, we make the same pact every year, but this time we mean it!

We decided to walk back to the hotel so we wouldn't cramp up after sitting in a cab. We walked by the famous Chicago Magic Bean. I don't know if that is it's official name, but what else would you call a giant chrome kidney bean?



After we cleaned ourselves up we went across the street from the hotel and ate at RL, better known as Ralph Lauren Restaurant. Jenn told me she read that the resturant served Jennifer Aniston's favorite burger in Chicago. So, of course, I had the steak sandwich. Jenn had the burger and said it was good, but she also mentioned that Jennifer Aniston should probably go out and try more hamburgers in Chicago.

Now, I don't know why, but after the race when we got to Jenn's parent's house to pick up the kids I felt like crap. I just wanted to sleep. And, actually, I did drift off for a few minutes while we were there. I chalked it up to not being ready for the run and going a bit too hard in the beginning. But then I felt lousy the next day and Jenn was feeling ill today and stayed home from work. I think someone put something in the water. That's probably why I ran so poorly as well. That's my story and I'm sticking to it!






Sunday, April 3, 2011

Growing like a...um...bean


Just before Spring Break the kids had a special day at school where they could sign up to learn about different things. I mean things that aren't normally taught in school, of course. The school invites parents to come and teach the kids which is nice. I didn't sign up since I don't know anything fun to teach the kids. I could certainly bore them to death if I wanted to though.

Anyway, our daughter signed up to do some planting and came home with a little planter that had carrots and bean seeds in it. She was very excited and checked on them everyday. After a few days we started to see a spout popping up.



She made sure to show off the little sprout to anyone that would look. Now, not even two weeks later we have two of these big things. Not to mention some carrot tops popping out. No, not the comedian, thank God.



Obviously she has a much greener thumb than I do. I suck at this stuff. Now we need to find something bigger to put these in, and maybe something to support them so they don't fall over.

This must be my most exciting post ever!