Like, Love and Don't Like

This week, I like (some aspects of) the government shutdown. Some good people - - including family members - - have been furloughed by the recent government shutdown. This is not an aspect of the shutdown that I enjoy. However, I have no problem with parks, zoos or old clocks not operating at full capacity. Yeah, old clocks. Check this out:

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In short, the person(s) that gets paid untold amounts to wind this clock can’t perform his/her job because of the shutdown. I’m am completely OK with this. Our country is in debt to the tune of $17 trillion dollars. Maybe this shutdown is actually good for highlighting ridiculous expenses and helping us see that we can indeed get by without them.

This week, I love the Mannings. Grab the tissues and listen to watch this tale of how a broken circle of fatherhood was reformed and now thrives. In The Book of Manning, a film by ESPN about Archie Manning, his sons and their football success, it is clarified that the love and devotion Archie showed to his three sons stemmed from the loss of his father.

Archie had the money and other resources to develop all three of his sons into recipients of college football scholarships and Super Bowl MVP awards. But the resources he used were completely free: his time and love. His boys reached these heights anyway and Archie’s relationship with his sons is better for it. This film reminds me of how great my father is and makes me want to be just as great for my son.

This week, I don’t like pumpkin spice. Pumpkin spice makes this list for two reasons: it tastes bad and it is highly annoying. Coffee, pie, air freshener, donuts, M&Ms - it’s more difficult to list the products that don’t feature a pumpkin spice variation these days. We can assume that pumpkin pie was the first edible use of this member of the gourd family. Do you know the history of this culinary evolution? I’m pretty sure it came about because times were tough and there was nothing else to eat. When conditions improved, eating pumpkin pies served as a reminder of how bad things can be. But that message got twisted somewhere along the way and now we have a spice that can make all things taste like pumpkins. Tell me that pumpkin spice reminds you of fall but don’t you dare say that you enjoy the way it tastes. That’s offensive to your ancestors.

Like, Love and Don't Like

This week, I like The Bible: The Epic Miniseries. Since we're saving mucho money by doing the "no cable/no dish" thing, Julie and I missed seeing "The Bible: The Epic Miniseries" when it originally aired on the History Channel earlier this year. The entire series is now available on DVD through Netflix and I've enjoyed watching it. Now, the series skims over Creation and packs a lot of information into each episode so by no means should it serve as your main study guide. But it is really cool to see these stories being told in a popular format. Sidenote: I thought it was very odd that this series is not associated with the History Channel in its Netflix description or on the actual DVDs.

BONUS: The casting in this series is unbelievably good:

This week, I love Julie’s deep dish pizza. I don't know how to meet your "medium rare" request when grilling your steak. I don't smoke my own BBQ. I feel that chili should be cooked at certain, cooler parts of the year. On the rare occasion that I can enjoy a beer, I don't care about its hops or if it's home brewed. I don't drink coffee so I'm clueless about your cappufrappu. In summary: I am not a foodie........except when it comes to pizza. I like trying all makes and shapes of pizza but I will shamefully admit that my sampling experiences have been limited to large chain restaurants and small mom-and-pop eateries. I recently expressed my desire to try a Chicago style deep dish pizza and my sweet wife went above and beyond in her efforts to surprise me. Unfortunately, I could not resist eating the pizza long enough to take a photo. Julie has made it a couple of times now and it gets better each time. She tells me that it isn't very difficult to make so maybe she’ll share a step-by-step recipe on the blog soon. SO GOOD!

This week, I don’t like listening to Auburn games on the radio. College football season is here and as I've already mentioned in this post, we have elected to be sans cable for the 2013 campaign. We're still able to watch lots of games every Saturday but we've had to rely on the radio play-by-play for two of Auburn’s three games up to this point (we were very fortunate to see the Arkansas State game in person with Julie's wonderful parents). I’m sure Rod Bramblett and Stan White are nice enough fellas but they aren't quite up to speed with Gus Malzahn's hurry up no huddle offense. I've been spoiled with HD television coverage of Auburn's football games - we all have. The radio experience is a big step backwards. Announcers, like the players, defensive coaches and referees, are going to have to step up their games in order to keep up with today's fast-paced offenses.

This video highlight from Auburn's most recent game against Mississippi State has been paired with the audio from the radio broadcast. It was edited heavily in Rod's favor.

Summer...in a nut shell

I say this every year, and I will say it again...how is summer already over?  I realize that the blog has taken the back seat over the past few months so this is my attempt to catch you up on what we have been up to lately.  Graham is definitely on the go now and really enjoys new adventures so we packed as much as we could into our summer days.  In May we took a short trip to Calera to the Dixie Railroad Museum for their train safety day.  It was hot, but we were with our friends Ivey, Thomas and Elaine May and a good time was had by all. 

Our friends the Davis' invited us to join them at their lake house for Memorial Day weekend and of course we couldn't pass up the opportunity.  It was the perfect weekend until G took a spill on the concrete and busted his lip.  Thankfully he recovered quickly, and we got to enjoy the rest of the weekend.

The zoo was almost a weekly destination for us.  So many of our friends have zoo passes and were kind enough to let us tag along.  We are so fortunate to have such a nice zoo so close.

 In July we took our first trip to the dentist.  Our good friend Dr. Flynt Purvis is a pediatric dentist, and he is amazing.  If you have children and live in Birmingham go check them out...Vestavia Pediatric Dentistry. Graham got a horse and a toothbrush...not necessarily for good behavior.

I've blogged about Mr. Mac before, but we have been back several times this summer and it is always a great time.  Graham is always at the front!

One morning while I was getting ready Graham was watching TV in the bedroom, and I thought to myself...wow he is being very quiet and content.  So I peek in on him and he is in the process of painting the carpet and himself with purple nail polish.

I quickly googled stain removing techniques and proceeded to try just about every one I could find....hairspray, peroxide, rubbing alcohol, Spot Shot, ammonia and hot water.....  Thankfully it hadn't had time to dry so I was able to get most of it out.  Fun times!

The kid loves water so we started off in the back yard with a mop bucket and a measuring cup...which he loved....

But his daddy felt like he needed an upgrade and came home with this one afternoon.  We play in the pool at least 2-3 times a week.

 Splash pad at the Zoo with Thomas....as I mentioned...he loves water.

A few days were just too hot to play outside so we built a fort in the living room.

More pool time...

4th of July isn't complete without a trip to Camden.  Unfortunately is rained most of the weekend, but we did manage to squeeze in some time outside in between storms.

Summer trim...not thrilled with that days activity.

Coloring

Water baby....

First Krisy Kreme (chocolate covered creme filled)

Our cousin, Lee Chapman, is off to Auburn this year, and we celebrated with a dinner at Vestavia Country Club.

This past weekend my sister came home (she lives in DC) so we took a trip to Auburn to spend time with her and the rest of my family.

Again I can't believe summer is coming to an end, but I am beyond thankful for all of the fun memories.

Like, Love and Don't Like

This week, I like Breaking Bad. It’s been a while since I touted a TV show but I want my appreciation for this show to go on the record. Breaking Bad is about an underemployed high school chemistry teacher (with cancer) who teams up with a former student to make drugs in order to make as much money as possible to leave for his wife and children. The storylines and suspense of each episode are addicting (no pun intended). I've managed to watch this entire AMC original series instantly on Netflix. The new (and final) season of Bad begins this weekend and I hope that AMC will make these episodes available for viewing on its website.

This week, I love Nestle Toll House Ultimates Dark Chocolate Delight cookies. There’s no such thing as too much chocolate. Julie surprised me with these unbelievable cookies recently and I will no longer crave any other cookie. Chocolate on chocolate on chocolate on chocolate! Best of all, Julie pulled these bad boys from the oven just before they firmed up. She was concerned about the dangers of uncooked cookie dough but I took my chances - and I’m so glad I did!

This week, I don’t like Hwy 280. Everyone knows about the work that’s being done to improve traffic flow on Hwy 280. Some of the changes I've seen make sense (the eastbound left-turn traffic lane in front of Whole Foods) while others leave me concerned (the new, sure-to-fail turn lanes in front of Wendy’s / Hampton Inn). What I really don’t like is the afternoon bottlenecks that occur at the CR 119 / Hwy 280 intersection. The new CVS did a very smart thing by installing a curb that will prevent drivers from turning left onto CR 119 from their parking lot. If the BP gas station across Hwy 280 would install a similar curb that would prevent drivers from turning left onto CR 119 from their parking lot, we’d be in business.



Sadly, the more Hwy 280 road construction I maneuver through, the more I realize the main problem is simply the number of cars on this road. I’m guilty of being one of the numerous single-passenger vehicles that travel this highway on a daily basis. I've only lived here for 5 years but I speak like I’m a veteran traffic sufferer. In all seriousness, you only have to spend one day to realize that Hwy 280 is doing way more than it was intended to do. We drivers usually get some relief when the area schools break for summer. This road construction has taken away that brief period of improved conditions. And guess what? School traffic will be upon us in just a matter of days.