Upstate Ramblings

The owl family

2009-04-14T10:55:00.000-07:00

Lucy and I have another family who lives with us, a family of Barred Owls. The owls introduced themselves the first day we moved in our new home as one of them took a dive at me as I unloaded the trunk of my car. Since that day, I see (or hear) them almost every day or night. I was worried about my three dogs becoming owl food, but after seeing the number of squirrels and birds (and witnessing the owls have dinner several times), our dogs are safe (I think).

Last week, I got to witness one of their young leaving the nest. I knew something was different by the owl's behavior leading up to the day. Both adult owls were visible at the same time (rare) and staying near their nest. The morning the baby emerged, all three sat on limbs most of the day until the youngster had the courage to take the plunge. And plunge it did! Baby owls cannot fly (read that online) and this one was no different. While it was on the ground, I snapped several pictures and for the rest of the evening, the parents watched closely over their baby as it learned how to use it's wings. The next day the baby was gone, but both parents took up their usual spots high up in the trees of my backyard.

After initially being concerned (mostly about the dogs), there's something comforting about having the owls watching over my yard. Every time I walk the dogs, I look up to see if my friends are looking back down and most of the time, their large black eyes are staring back.

snow pics

2009-03-11T05:16:00.000-07:00

Once in a blue moon, the south will get snow. I can think of maybe five times where I saw snow growing up in middle GA....and that's almost 30 years worth of memories.

I've experienced snow a little more the past few years living in Kansas City and now Greenville, SC. This past weekend was one of those times which saw us getting about 4-5 inches starting Sunday afternoon.

Two of my three dogs, Otis and Dudley, loved playing in the snow while Roscoe didn't want to leave the comfort (and dryness) of the back porch. Dudley continued to play with his tennis ball rolling it around the yard turning it into a mini snow ball.

I enjoy snow! Now I don't want a huge storm with multiple feet of snow and the inevitable broken branches and lost power (luckily that didn't happen to us this time, but friends lost their power for 3-5 days), but once a year, a nice snowfall with sticking for a day or two is fun.

Dogs!!!

2008-12-13T20:05:00.000-08:00

Just some recent pics of the most spoiled dogs in the world including a few of them trick or treatin' at the local coffee shop.

Baton Rouge beatdown

2008-11-06T19:54:00.000-08:00

Although UGA's season took it's annual nosedive around Halloween (damn you Gators!), it's season looked much brighter the week before. UGA's offense finally showed up for a complete game and took LSU to the woodshed to the tune of a 52-38 beatdown - only the 2nd time EVER an opponent has score more than 50 points at Death Valley (and the other time involved multiple overtime periods).

I had been planning the trip to Death Valley for over a year since UGA only makes the trip west once every five years. In the last few seasons, I've had more fun with road trips than at Sanford Stadium. Sure, every UGA fan likes to 'go home', but I also enjoy experiencing gameday and seeing the opponent's campus and traditions. BTW, I love college football.

I've heard numerous stories about how terrible LSU fans can be. Apparently they didn't show up October 25th because I had the best road experience I've EVER. TONS of free food and drink (and even cuban cigars) were given to me throughout the day (Thanks Dr. Phil!). The tailgate I hung out at was even written up for a story in the NOLA Sothern Cuisine Magazine. I can't say enough about their hospitality! Of course there were a few 'Tiger Bait' chants thrown our way, but most were in good fun and quickly followed by a chuckle. I can't say UGA fans would have been as gracious after a defeat like that. THANKS LSU FANS for a great experience!

I can't say Baton Rouge is a fun place to hang out though, and compared to the Athens nightlife, it was down right BORING! There is no central place to go or hangout after games. There was ONE bar closeby, but it was overcrowded and full of 21-year olds. Compared to other college towns, this was a huge letdown.

Overall, it was a great trip! I'm slowly knocking off each SEC campus. I can't wait for the trip to Fayetteville (sarcasm alert!!!!)

Recent pics

2008-10-11T04:43:00.000-07:00

I'm just going to put a few pics up from the past few months.....I guess 'cause I'm lazy and don't feel like doing a post for each set.

In September, Lucy and I had two trips, the first to the UGA/SC game and the second to Blue Ridge, GA, for a weekend getaway.

The trip to Columbia will be one of only two games (Baton Rouge in Oct) I'll get to go to. Originally, a large group of us were planning to tailgate together, but one-by-one, everybody dropped out leaving only Lucy and I. Lucy and I haven't missed a game in Columbia since '02 and it's kinda become our by-yearly football trip. Even before we moved to Greenville, we made two trips to Columbia and mentioned we along we friend should make the easy road trip. It may have been the hottest game I've ever attended (am I getting old?), but we found tickets at face value and got to see another nailbiting UGA/SC game ending with a win by the good guys.

Our trip to Blue Ridge coincided with Lucy's B-Day (September 26th). Instead of giving each other birthday gifts we probably don't need (more shirts?), we do a weekend trip near the big day. She took Thur/Friday off work so I booked the cabin for a long weekend. The weather was perfect, I managed to fit in a long trail run, and my parents and sister were able to come for a day. My Dad had just finished his radiation treatments so luckily he had the strength to put up with all of us!

And finally....a pic of the luckiest dog in the world - Roscoe.

ICON 5 and New York

2008-08-15T09:11:00.000-07:00

I've been so busy over the past few weeks that I haven't been able to post pictures from Lucy and my New York trip over the 4th of July holiday.

The purpose of the trip was ICON 5, the national illustration conference held every few years. The last conference was in '05 in SanFran which I was unable to attend due to moving so I was eagerly anticipating this one.

The conference itself was alright - I got to meet several illustrators I knew by name only, I met a few art directors at the ICON Roadshow, but the most fun was had exploring New York. I've been to the city 3 times now spending usually a week there each trip. By this past trip, I had hit most of the 'touristy' spots (you won't see many shot so the Statue of Liberty, museums, etc) so I spent the week finding 'hole in the wall' restaurants and bars. We spent the 4th sitting in a bar called the 'Burp Castle', sipping high gravity Belgium beers while the fireworks exploded blocks away. FUN TIMES!

My sis came into the city and joined us for most of the week.

I've been 'TAGGED'

2008-06-13T07:05:00.000-07:00

I've been 'TAGGED' by Ben Holmes, of the KC Trail Nerds. Gotta answer these questions about running now.

1- How would you describe your running 10 years ago?

This would have been was during my college years and my running consisted of a mile sprint to/from the gym. I never ran for fun during highschool or while playing sports - it was just for getting in shape. At this point, running was just that - WORK. I'd do the mile as fast as I could (5-6 minutes), hit the weights for an hour, then sprint the mile back to my dorm.

I didn't get into trail running until 1999/2000 when I discovered several trails around Athens, GA. In the past 8 years, only a small fraction of my running mileage has been on pavement. It's DIRT ONLY for me!

2-What is your best and worst run/race experience?

My worst running experiences all involve some nagging injury that flares up during a run - bad feet, sore ankles, chaffing, etc. There really isn't ONE bad experience though.

All my great experiences involve me running in new places, finding a random trail, getting lost then finding my way back.

When Lucy had an interview in Salt Lake City in February '06, I was running around the campus of Univ. of Utah and and saw a path that started up the mountain. Two hours later, I was at the top of the mountain sitting on a stone bench in a foot of snow watching the sun go down! A deer skipped in front of me and glanced my way...probably wondering what the heck I was doing wearing only tennis shoes and thin running shorts sitting on a frozen rock in winter when the sun was about to go down!!! Once I realized I was about to be stuck at the top of a mountain in dark during the winter, I ran (fell) down the mountain and made it back just after dark. It was MUCH HARDER going down the mountain due to the path being covered in snow/ice. I could only run so fast going up which limited the number of times I tripped or fell, but I rolled in the snow several times going down due to hidden rocks.

FUN TIMES!

3- Why do you run?

To clear my mind. To experience something more than work, computers, emails, etc. To push my body to its limits while I'm able. To feel my muslces burn and air rush in/out of my lungs. To finish long races....just because.

4- What is the best or worst piece of advice you've been given about running?

Best - leave your watch behind. Worst - stop while your young and injury free.

5- Tell us something surprising about yourself that not many people would know.

I was the shortstop on a traveling softball team for 5 years. The season usually lasted 8 months and we'd play every-other-weekend around the state of GA. It was fun until my eye site deteriorated. I can't wear contacts due to my funked-up eyes (shaped funny) and glasses tend to fog up when the weather is 90 degrees w/ 100% humidity. Needless to say, it's not fun when a 6'5", 250lb guy is up to bat and my glasses fog up. When it became dangerous, I quit!!! A softball up site the head isn't good for ones' health.

Also I collect/roll change for several years at a time to take on vacations!!! I paid for my trip to Santa Fe for the Illustration Conf in '01 w/ change. Ditto for the '03 Conf in Philly and now I'm doing the same thing for the Conf. in New York in a few weeks. I've saved about $900 in five years.

A new addition

2008-05-22T06:31:00.000-07:00

Late last week, Lucy and I tempted fate too many times and finally lost. We occasionally eat at a local pizza joint then visit the pet store that neighbors it. On this particular visit, one pup, a pie-bald Dachshund, was aggravating the crap out of his cell-mate. He played, growled and after seeing us watching, wanted to get after us! Now this is a big 'no no', but we took him out and played with him in a little room. Welp....after watching him bite my shoes and run circles around the room, we couldn't bare to put him back into his cage.

Meet Dudley, the new addition to the Crosby family.

Tornado! 2008 edition

2008-05-22T06:16:00.000-07:00

I lived in middle Georgia for over 20 years and NEVER remember a tornado coming near my home. Maybe we were just lucky for all that time, but in consecutive years, my parents have narrowly missed their path.

As posted last year (look in my March 2007 posts), a tornado came within a few hundreds yards of their house. It followed the road my parents live on, but turned into the woods in another direction as it closed in. No one was killed, but numerous houses were destroyed.

Two weeks ago, Lucy and I visited her mother in Dublin, GA (about 20 minutes from my parent's home) for Father's Day. We went to sleep Saturday night no expecting anything more than a storm, but around 6:00am, I was awakening by a screeching siren. I listened for a minute then asked Lucy w/ a sleepy slur, "Why are all those fire trucks driving by?" "That is a tornado siren, dummy!" Hehehehe.

I then could hear the wind whipping in the pine trees outside and the rain pounding the window. It passed within a hour, but the news that trickled in wasn't good. Macon, about an hour away, was pounded mightily, but news that hit even closer to home, was 2 people were killed about 10 minutes away - about halfway between my parent's home and Dublin.

The phone lines were out so info was scarce, but luckily my parents were out of town so their safety wasn't in question. The condition of their house was another matter though so I made my way there. The major road, 441, was closed to I took the back way going by Evergreen Rd, the area the two people were killed when their house was thrown against a tree. Pine trees, telephone/power lines and debree were scattered everywhere. Trees that were 10ft + wide were torn out of the ground like they were sticks. Luckily, I didn't see 'much' damage to homes, but I didn't venture toward the worst area. I HATE accident gawkers so I continued my drive toward my parents home.

As in 2007, they avoided any damage. A few pine trees were broken, but honestly, you could barely tell a storm passed. I don't know what they're doing to avoid the tornadoes, but keep it up! Not only did they missed the GA tornado, but the city they were visiting, Greensboro, N.C., had a tornado hit near the hotel they stayed the night before!

Here's to hoping that I don't have to write a 'Tornado: 2009 edition!"

No big happenings...just busy.

2008-04-17T06:15:00.000-07:00

I realize I haven't posted anything to my ramblings site in a few weeks. The delay hasn't been due to laziness, but just the opposite. Work has been steadily flowing in the for the few weeks (which is GREAT!). It hasn't allowed me to do anything 'photo worthy' to post and I'm not someone who usually types/rambles about their daily lives.

The weather has gotten warmer over the last week (high 70s today). Everything is a light, pale green from the pollen which would explain my headache. I'll hop on the bike in the next week and take some pics of the usual stomping grounds - Paris Mountain.

My exercise has been steady - 2/3 gyms days and 2 running days a week. I haven't been pushing myself running though due to the constant ankle pain (for about 1.5 years now). I have a 4 hour run planned near Jones Gap State Park which will test my indurance and ankle strength. The few people (Mom) who read my blog will see some pics soon!

More wedding pics

2008-04-01T19:11:00.001-07:00

Here are a few more pics from Mel's wedding and after party courtesy of Tim Carter!

Wedding weekend

2008-03-20T20:00:00.000-07:00

March 14th - 16th was the weekend of Melanie and Brad's wedding in Athens, GA. The festivities started Friday night for the rehearsal dinner at Harry Bissets - great food, lots of wine, and plenty of funny stories were on the menu. After the dinner, 15 of us had a karaoke party at a new restaurant, Shokatini. I just wish I would have brought my camera for that - seems like we have a few karaoke masters among us (I'm married to one, BTW!).

The wedding wasn't until Saturday afternoon (4:00pm) at the Botanical Gardens, but most of the day was spent prepping, delivering items to the chapel and recovering from the night before! The wedding went off without a hitch except for a few downpours. We didn't know that Athens and Five Point (about 3-5 miles from the Botanical Gardens) were under a tornado warning. I stupidly forgot my camera for the wedding, but she has plenty of pics from family, friends and the photographer they hired.

I didn't forget to take my camera to the after party at the Flick'r bar though! We rented the bar from 7:00pm till close plus booked a live blues grass band. Everyone finally relaxed (mainly my Mom) after a stressful day - alcohol can help you with that though! It was great to finally get to talk w/ lots of family/friends I hadn't seen in years. Melanie had several friend fly from Japan just for the wedding - her former host family and one of her bridesmaid. I can never complain about traveling for a wedding now because I can't compete w/ them (about a 15 hour plane flight!).

Congratulations, Melanie and Brad!

An early and late night run

2008-02-25T10:19:00.000-08:00

This past week, I realize there was a perfect opportunity for a night run. What can get more fun than kicking up dirt under a lunar eclipse. While living in Kansas City, I would accompany the Trail Nerds on two weekly night runs - Tuesday and Thursday. I'm even the one who suggested they start running on Tuesdays, and 2+ years later (yeah me!), they're still having them.

Since I haven't done a night trail run since I left K.C., I set my plan in motion! I met w/ John Lehman, a fellow trail runner who just happens to live near Paris Mountain, and we set off on a 7-mile trip up the mountain around 9:30pm.

The Earth's shadow was just beginning to cover the moon when we started from his home. We'd stop every few miles to gaze into the sky to see how far the eclipse progressed. Even better than the eclipse was the view from the top of Paris Mountain. During the day, you can't see the number of houses, but at night, a sea of lights - blue, green, yellow - cover the horizon from 2,000 feet up.

I took a pic of the eclipse just before we left on the run. I just wish I had my camera on the mountain. Maybe I'll take it on a future night run that I recommended we do.

This past Saturday, Lucy and I were in Athens for my sister, Melanie's, and her fiance, Brad's, bachelor and bachelorette parties. Before the late night festivities, I had time to put in a few 'trail miles' on the trail that started me on my 'dirt only' running lifestyle.

Honestly, the trail isn't hard and is probably 2 mile round trip at most. The trail is relatively flat with a few small grade hills mixed in. I made 4 laps in an hour and made it back to the hotel just in time to meet the gang headed to the bar - WWEEEEEE!!!!

As I jogged on my old trail, I reminisced about some of my runs here years ago. The one that popped into my mind was a 6:00am rainy run during my last semester in Athens. I had stayed up the entire night doing work and had an 8:00am class. Instead of going home for maybe an hour, get little or no sleep then have to drive back to class, I decided to push myself, hit the trails for a few miles then go to class!!! If I could make it another half day without sleep, I could then crash and sleep all afternoon!

What I remember about the run is barely being able to see the trail while I crashed into multiple spider webs - one of the least favorite things for trail runners! It's just one of many great experiences I've had running trails.

weekend getaway

2008-02-19T04:29:00.001-08:00

Welp...I finally got around to giving Lucy her Christmas gift - It's only a month and a half late. Actually this past Christmas, I gave Lucy a receipt.....a receipt for a weekend getaway to a cabin in Blue Ridge, GA, a small town in the north Georgia mountains. We were so busy around the holidays that I scheduled our trip for mid-February so we could make plans for it. I guess you could say it served as a Christmas/Valentines/birthday (mine - 31st) trip.

The weekend went wonderfully! The weather was perfect (mid-60s) which allowed us to visit downtown Blue Ridge and for me to run a few miles in the Chattahoochee National Forest. I only did about 5 miles...but it seemed like most of it was UPHILL! I brought my camera along so I had an excuse to stop and catch my breath. I had to preserved the moment, ya know (not of me gasping for air....but of the mountains of course!).

I had NO cellphone reception and Lucy's phone worked periodically (only had 1 bar though). Basically for three days, we sat around a fire or in a hot tub. We grilled and watch our doggies play in the woods! Can't beat that for a relaxing getaway.

I've always loved the mountains (MUCH more than the beach), and I think this trip converted Lucy to a 'mountain lover'. I'd love to move somewhere like Blue Ridge one day, but not right now. I'm addicted to (and need) stuff like....the internet....phones.....restaurants.....

When I become an old phogey though (not too long away I suspect), I'd love to get lost in the mountains though. Here are some pics from the trip.

A cold day for running

2008-01-20T11:20:00.000-08:00

This week, southerns got to experience something rare - snow! Granted, it wasn't a heavy snowfall - 2-4 inches the first time (Wed.) and 1-2 inches yesterday (Sat.) - it was enough to lift my spirits and make me hit the trails!

The past few months have been tough on my running routine. After being of the road and away from home so much during late '07, the start of '08 has brought tons of illustration and design work. Normally this is a good thing (actually getting paid 'n such), but not very helpful when trying to get back in the habit of trail running. But when I saw the flakes falling this week, I HAD to set aside my work and put in some miles at Paris Mountain.

The temperature was in the low 20s this morning when I started my run. My aching in my ankles/feet were definitely letting me know they weren't used to this abuse. I kept sloshing along and took in the experience of the rare Southern snow run. Good times!

These aren't pics from my run but from the night the snow started to fall.

New Orleans and the Sugar Bowl

2008-01-03T19:17:00.000-08:00

After UGA started the season so terribly (4-2 with embarrassing losses), I never thought they'd end up w/ an 11-win season and Sugar Bowl title. Back in the middle of the season, UGA sent me an email to order bowl tickets. The email listed all the available destinations so I requested 4 Sugar Bowl tickets knowing UGA wouldn't be playing in it!

After a huge midseason turnaround w/ victories against Florida, Auburn and Georgia Tech, Lucy and I were headed for New Orleans to watch UGA play Hawai'i. I didn't find out I was getting tickets until very late so by the time they arrived, most affordable hotel rooms in New Orleans were filled. We spent New Years w/ her brother, Tim, and his girlfriend, Kristy, in Jackson, MS then the four of us drove the 2.5 hours to N.O. on Jan. 1st.

The four of us had the day to soak in the French Quarter, have a great meal and 'loosen up' for the game later that night. The only thing I really have to say about the game is it was only enjoyable for UGA fans. It's understandable why HI fans wouldn't like the beating they received (41-10), but college FB fans in general had to watch a blowout instead of the game we all wanted: UGA vs USC in the Rose Bowl. The four of us didn't have great seats, but honestly being in the upper deck seems to be better than the bottom w/ the way the Superdome seating. After the game, we lucked into a hotel room at Hotel St. Louis so we got to partake in the Bourbon Street nightlife instead of driving back to Jackson.

GO DAWGS! Bring on the '08 season!

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-21T08:30:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from the Crosby family: Jason, Lucy, Roscoe, and Otis.

How we'll spend New Years

2007-12-18T11:17:00.000-08:00

The picture shows how Lucy and I will spend New Years!

Her brother, Tim, lives in Jackson, MS, about a 2.5 hour trip from New Orleans. We'll stay/visit w/ him for a few days then head to the Sugar Bowl!

GO DAWGS!

Recent Happenings

2007-12-05T09:39:00.000-08:00

The past month has been fun, exciting, stressful and sad. As mentioned in a previous post, my father-in-law, Donald Carter, passed away November 25th. Lucy and I had traveled home for Thanksgiving on the 21st and stayed in Dublin, GA with her Mom until November 30th. I'm so glad that his entire family was in town (Tim lives in Jackson, MS and Lucy/I live in Greenville, SC) and by his bedside.

I was able to attend the UGA/GAtech game w/ my sister on November 24th. I've been to most of the UGA/tech game in the last decade and they're almost ALWAYS rainy and cold! We're lucky to avoid the rain this year, but the wind was whipping through downtown ATL. After the final score (31-17), I'm sure the Tech fans felt worse than we did! GO DAWGS!

I also traveled to the Lyndon House gallery in Athens, GA for the opening of a show I have pieces in. The show is titled "Between Thought and Expression: A lifetime of Athenocentric Cartoons". I am honored to have been asked to display four pieces along side many names I recognize included an illustration hero, Jack Davis. As you see from the pic, I have a piece just to the right of one of Davis' originals - might be the only time I have this honor!!!!

2007-12-05T09:29:00.000-08:00

Donald Carr Carter - 1951-2007

On November 25th, my father-in-law, Donald Carter, passes away at 2:30pm with his family by his bedside after a 9-month battle w/ lung cancer.

He was a quiet man who spoke with his action and not words. He was a 32-year employee of the United States Postal Service and had recently retired when his diagnosis occurred. The love of his job was only outweighed by his love of his family: wife, Karen; daughter, Lucy; and son, Tim.

Paris Mountain

2007-11-08T05:29:00.000-08:00

I haven't taken my camera to Paris Mountain since last year so instead of speeding through on my bike as I usually do, I slowed down enough to snap some pics.

The trees are starting to change colors, but I need to go back in a few weeks to see the full effect.

Georgia Tech vs Virginia Tech

2007-11-02T07:56:00.000-07:00

I took the three hour drive to Atlanta last night to watch Georgia Tech vs Virginia Tech at Bobby Dodd stadium. All of my UGA friends are probably wondering why I would go see TECH? Welp, I wanted tickets to UGA/GAtech so I went through the Tech ticket office. You can only buy full season sets or three game packs. Besides the UGA/Tech Thanksgiving clash, I chose GAtech/Army (which I didn't make), and last night's game. Let's call it...a scouting mission!

Neither team impressed me much....Tech impressed me the least! Their QB is horrid...and actually made a few Tech fans wish they had Reggie Ball back (as a UGA fan...PLEASE come back Reggie!).

Here are a few pics from the game!

Meat eater?

2007-10-18T07:24:00.000-07:00

I was home a few weeks ago and captured these pics. My mom has several humming bird feeders on the backporch which bring dozens of little birds begging for sugar water. Along w/ the birds, you'll see lizards, large garden spiders, and an occasional praying mantis.

I thought all these creatures lived in harmony until I saw a praying mantis sneak under a feeder and grab a humming bird (OK...I actually didn't see the moment of capture, but did see it sneak up). I honestly didn't know praying mantis would go after something so large. I just assumed they ate plants or small bugs. Who knew?!

My mom wasn't too happy w/ it killing her humming birds so hopefully it enjoyed it's last meal. Awwwwww.

On the road again....

2007-10-18T06:46:00.000-07:00

Sorry it's been so long between updates. I think I mentioned it in a previous blog entry, but this fall is/was PACKED with football games, weddings, and trips back to middle Georgia. This past weekend was the first free weekend I had in over a month and the first I didn't have to travel to Tennessee (Nashville - David Cunio's wedding - or Knoxville - TN/ARst game and TN/UGA games) in three weeks.

Things have started to slow (hence the blog entry), but In upcoming weeks, I have a trip to Atlanta (GATech/Army game), middle Georgia (cousin's wedding), Atlanta (visit friends) , middle Georgia for Thanksgiving then again...Atlanta (UGA/GATech game). WHEW!

Here are a few pics from my recent trips.

UGA vs Okst.

2007-09-03T08:26:00.001-07:00

This past Saturday, I made the trip to Athens to see my Dawgs play the 'Pokes of Oklahoma State University. Admittedly, I was a little worried about this game due to all the question marks for UGA this year - young O-line, 9 starters gone from defense, new punter, and Bobo's first full season and O-coordinator.

But the worrying was all-for-not as the Dawgs played one of the most complete games in a long time. There was nothing spectacular and The 'Pokes gave us very little (turnovers, penalties, etc). Both teams lined up and played ball, but UGA was the far better team.

Final score: 35-14

Next victim: South Carolina

The new car!

2007-08-29T06:15:00.000-07:00

After weeks of looking and saving, we finally bought our first new car last night! We test drove three cars the weekend before, a VW beetle, a Toyota 4-runner, and Mini-Cooper. The prices were all similar (20-25k), but the range of sizes brought jokes and remarks like, "Are you sure Lucy will fit in that (bug and cooper)?" Believe me, Lucy was tired of hearing those!

The list of cars was narrowed to two after talking it over with each other. The beetle and 4-runner made the cut. Both dealerships had good deals - The VW had 0% financing for three years and Toyota had a $2,000 rebate.

After finagling w/ the sales person, the bug could be had for 22k after taxes, tags, insurance, etc. It's the 'level 2 package' - leather seats, 17" wheels, sunroof, satellite radio (and a few other small things). The 0% really helps save us money though. The 4-Runner would have a final cost around 26k after everything. It's the basic model (not the 'limited') - no 4-wheel drive, leather, etc.

For anyone who doesn't live in SC, we have a GREAT 'sales tax cap' on new cars. It doesn't matter if the car cost 10k or 100k, you will only pay $300 for taxes!!!! While listening to a sales person describe the car, he quickly blew by this fact probably thinking we already knew about the advantage, but I immediately stopped and questioned, "What sales tax cap?" He mentioned lots of people from GA and NC come to SC to buy their new car due to them saving thousands in taxes. Anyway....back to the car report.

Lucy has been wanting a bug forever and after seeing her 'build her own' on the VW website for the 100th time, I said, "Just get one!" Since it's 0%, we'll have it paid off without paying a dime of interest. The sales people were the nicest and easiest to work with of any dealership we went to, and they had a black 'level 2' which worked for me (I told Lucy I couldn't drive yellow, pinks, greens, or any color that reminded me of Easter).

Our monthly payments are low enough that we'll finish paying for the car in three years. I never thought I'd be driving around a little beetle (with two dogs sitting in my lap) so if anyone sees me, you can't laugh! Seriously, it's a nice car and I'm proud to own my first new ride (my Grand Prix was a used car when I bought it). And with it with it being black, the car will look good w/ a red UGA magnet on the side though. GO DAWGS!

Are you ready for some foooootball (college, that is!)

2007-08-29T05:56:00.000-07:00

Game week is upon us and I'm ready to go! My fall Saturdays are quickly filling up as plans are made to travel across the Southeast. It seems if I'm not going to a football game, I'm probably at a wedding.

Here is how my upcoming weeks look:

September 1st - UGA vs OKst
I've got two tickets - one for me and my sis)

September 8th - UGA vs SC
I actually have no tickets for this game, but friends are using this as a 'reunion' game. I'll of course be there along w/ my sis, Melanie and her fiance Brad (driving from TN), Lucy's brother Tim and his girlfriend Kristy (driving from MS), and an old friend Frank along w/ his girlfriend. As far as I know, no of us has tickets so we'll probably end up at the Georgia Theater watching the game, but just enjoying seeing everyone together again.

September 15th - UGA vs Western Carolina
I make every year that a good friend of mine, Randy Starley, makes it to at least one game. Turns out UGA had a few extra tickets for sale recently so I bought two of them.

September 22nd - TN vs ARst
My sis, Melanie, recently started a doctorate program at the University of TN and I'm using this weekend to visit her. She bought two tickets for us. It'll be my first trip to Neyland Stadium, one of the largest stadiums in the country (105k).

September 29th - David Cunio's wedding in Nashville
I'll be the best man so Lucy and I will be making our second trip to TN in as many weeks. We'll arrive on Thursday and come back on Sunday.

October 6th - UGA vs TN
This will be the third consecutive weekend Lucy and I travel to TN and the 2nd time I go to Neyland stadium in three weeks. I know Melanie has at least one ticket so we need at least one more for me (Lucy doesn't care if she goes or not!!! booooo). Should be a good game - TN probably has a stronger team than UGA this year due to UGA's lack of experience, but my alma mata has OWNED TN at Neyland since '01.

October 20th - GATech vs Army
To get UGA vs GATech tickets this year, I took the route of buying through the GATech athletic department. They sale '3-game flex packs' (I can choose any three games to buy). This was one of the 3 games I bought due to it fitting in my schedule. My good friend, David, is a former GATech student so he wanted to go to this game due to it being GATech's homecoming.

November 1st - GATech vs VATech (Thursday night ESPN game)
This was the 2nd of three games I bought through GATech. This should be one of their biggest games of the year and it's a nationally televised ESPN game. Should be fun - GO HOKIES!

November 24th - UGA vs GATech
Finally....the game that I bought all the other GATech tickets for. GATech has a solid team this year and should compete again for the ACC title, but by this time, I expect UGA's freshmen to have gained valuable experience. It'll be a close one but UGA pulls it out.

Flicker is closing

2007-08-15T06:10:00.001-07:00

Just read where another bar, Flicker, in my 'ol stompin' grounds of Athens is closing. Seems like with every passing year, I have less and less of a link to the city. First it was the Engine Room, then Blue Sky Coffee, and now Flicker. I only have a few more bars or restaurants left I that frequented regularly. Anyway....gettin' old...and being nostalgic.

****UPDATE****
Looks like the Flicker bar will stay open, but with new managment. Sounds like they plan on keep it almost identical. Great news!

College FB in the south

2007-08-12T13:12:00.001-07:00

If you're from the south and love college football (who doesn't?), you've heard the phrase, "it's not a pastime. It's a religion."

True Enough. I've been to games around the country and the ones in the south just seem to be a little louder, a little faster, and a little more personal.

Now that the '07 season is only weeks away, I have a great article to share with anyone who isn't familiar w/ college football in the south.

GO DAWGS!

By B.J. Bennett
SouthernPigskin.com Senior Editor

Attempting to explain the relevance, and importance, of college football in the south.

Simply put, it's different down here - just ask former Heisman trophy winner Frank Sinkwich.

"I'm from Ohio," the University of Georgia legend once said, "but if I'd known what it was like down south, I would have crawled down here on my hands and knees."

Football in the south is an interesting beast. It's not a game, it's not a pastime...it's a way of life. It's a mixed drink of family, religion, politics and pageantry, spiked with shots of antagonism, arrogance and pride. .

Critics label our view of college football as naive and tendentious. Our response? We couldn't agree more. Southerners revel in regional bias and why shouldn't we? In the south, we transform a vast picnic area into The Grove. We see a stadium on the river and bring a Navy. We take a plain desert stone and make it magic. We have The Chop, The Chomp and The Ramblin' Wreck. We root for the same team as our dad, the same team as his dad and say "to hell" with the team of your dad's dad. We call players by their first names, anyone on the athletic staff "coach", and to the chagrin of media pundits and those who just don't understand, we say "we".

Southern football is why my grandmother spent fall Saturday's in orange capris, blue reebok classics and alligator jewelry and had a football card of Danny Wuerffel taped to her dresser. It's the same reason why my mom can't watch the fourth quarter, my dad won't watch the first quarter and my uncle and his two sons have walked around Valdosta, Georgia with a little more pep in their step since December 7th, 2002.

Southern football isn't tailgating, it's all-nighting. It's not about painting your face, it's about painting your chest. It's not about grills, it's about cookers. Inside the stadium, you don't talk to your neighbors, you yell at them. Those around you aren't strangers, they're 80,000 of your closest friends. You don't go on the road when you travel to see your team play...you go home.

Down here, you're not born a boy or a girl, you're born a Gamecock or Tiger. Down here, football is just as entrenched in our culture as Jesus, sweet tea and barbeque sandwiches. We say "Yes Ma'm" and "No Sir", but we also say "Roll Tide", "War Eagle" and "Pig Sooey". Down here, "two plus two equals third down and six".

Southern football is why you drive through Wrightsville, Georgia and see "The Home of Herschel Walker" on Highway 15. It's why hundreds of adults in the state of Alabama are named "Bear". Southern football is Billy Cannon, Bo Jackson and Archie, Eli and Peyton Manning. It's Bobby Bowden, Vince Dooley and the Ole' Ball Coach. It's detergent boxes under toilet paper, frat boys in team-colored pants - it's Lynyrd Skynyrd and Molly Hatchet in button-down shirts, Southern Living with a cowboy hat; it's a clash of styles that produces a scene often imitated but never duplicated. Ever.

The setting? So picturesque you don't want to touch it, yet so enthralling you just can't let it go. It's a similar one in Knoxville, Tennessee, Starkville, Mississippi and Blacksburg, Virginia, and it has been for years.

Southern football is Erk Russell joking, "we don't cheat at Georgia Southern, that costs money and we don't have any." It's John Heisman saying, "it's better to have died as a young boy than to fumble the football." It's Bobby Dodd saying he'd rather face the lions in the coliseum than the Tigers in Baton Rouge. It's Clemson fans stating they would rather be on probation than lose to Furman.

The players, the coaches and the rivalries are captivating here in the south. Florida-Georgia weekend causes more people to call in sick on Monday morning than the stomach flu and strept throat, Alabama-Auburn divides households, neighborhoods and the entire state, and The Egg Bowl is a true late November fixture. The storylines are just as alluring. Think "The Choke at Doak", "Lindsay Scott!!" or the 1961 Clemson-South Carolina game where a group of USC students inpersonated the Tiger football team in pre-game warm-ups, catering to the crowd and the band before flopping all over the field and mocking Clemson's agricultural background with milking hand-motions.

Though the press tries to hype the last week in the regular season as rivalry week, every week is rivalry week in the south.

Something down here makes this game different. College football has a legitimate influence on state government, a major affect on commerce and local economies and is the lifeblood and pulse of God's country.

Perhaps former Tennessee Volunteer radio personality George Mooney put it best.

"Southerners are proud of their football heritage, their schools, and their teams. And they share a deep pride that goes with being from the South," he said.

It's a match made, and currently outplayed, in heaven.

Catching up after MULTIPLE vacations

2007-07-26T06:16:00.000-07:00

July has been a whirlwind (not quite as much as July '06 though - moving halfway across the country and getting married!), but it's been busy in its own right. After finishing two 2-week vacations, I'm finally sitting down and getting caught up with work and tying those loose ends together that inevitably development.

My first trip was to St.Louis for a wedding (late June/early July). A life-long friend of my Dad, Leroy Gibson, was getting married and instead of him flying (he probably wouldn't have attended if that was the case), I volunteered to drive my Dad across country. I would use the opportunity to drive the extra 3+ hours to Kansas City to see some old friends and try to fit a run in with the KC Trail Nerds....if even just for a night.

The wedding went off without a hitch. I met Leroy and his daughters, Sheri and Melissa, who I hadn't seen for 20 years. Leroy's brothers are a hoot and hung out (drank) with them while the wedding party did their thing. Funny wedding facts: the original preacher DID NOT SHOW UP! Yes...it sounds like something that only happens in movies, but he didn't show, didn't call, and everyone was seating ready to begin. After 30 minutes of sitting, everyone was getting restless and we didn't know what the problem was until a groomsman told everyone the problem. Luckily, they had called another preacher who said he would quickly change and be there in 30 minutes. Everyone then exited the Hall, went outside, and preceded to start DRINKING! Yep....it was kinda like 'pregame' so everyone was loosened up. When the backup preacher showed, I can't imagine what he was thinking seeing 50 or so people all drinking outside! Fun times.

My Dad and I drove to KC early Sunday morning and caught a Royals game before settling in for the night. We probably averaged 3 hours sleep a night during our stay in St.Louis, but I managed to push through one more night on Sunday. I ran with Ben, the KC Trail Nerds organizer, for 6 miles ON PAVEMENT before relaxing and having some of his 'home brew' he makes in his garage. Much of the Midwest was experiencing flooding so many of the trails were under water. Maybe soon, I can go for an extended stay in KC and hit all the multiple trails around the area. On Monday morning, we woke and started our 14 hour drive back to Georgia.

It was a perfect opportunity to spend time with my Dad as we were trapped in a car for 25+ hours both to and from the Midwest. He's not one for long trips or being trapped in a car, but I think (hope) he enjoyed the trip and seeing his buddy. I think it was his first MLB in 20 years also!

My second vacation was to Hilton Head Island, SC (July 14-21) with Lucy, her mom and dad, her brother, Tim, and his girlfriend, Kristy. I honestly can't remember my last beach trip, but it had to be around 2000/2001. Needless to say, that's far too long without seeing the ocean considering how close I live to the east coast. Lucy and my 1-year anniversary took place during the trip (July 15th) so we spent a nice evening dining out and walking the beach.

I think my favorite part of the trip is when I explored the Island on my biked. During the week, I probably put in 100+ miles. One day, I decided I'd bike the 20+ miles to Pinckney Island Wildlife Refuge and put in a few hours in the trails there. There are no paved roads or buildings on the Island - only some dirt roads and paths. Years from now, that's what I'll remember about the trip - biking on an island with deserted beaches and not seeing ANYONE! I probably won't forget biking over the long bridge on I-278 from Hilton Head to Pinckney Island either - it's not that fun biking when only a few feet separate you from either getting squished by semis on your left or plunging in water on your right. I pushed myself a little too far though by only carrying one small water bottle with me which ran out about halfway through the ride. I had to stop on the way back and fill my bottle with water at multiple service stations (didn't carry a wallet with me either).

Overall it was a great time relaxing at the beach. Mostly, I hope Lucy's parents enjoyed the week. After his diagnosis of lung cancer and the subsequent treatment, Lucy's Dad, Donald, has been weak, but he managed to get out a few times to see the beach and eat seafood. Actually that was one of the highlights of the week, seeing him happy eating Oysters!

Now I'm back behind my desk in Greenville, SC trying to figure out how to get on track with work. Instead of it being hard to get started after relaxing for weeks, I'm excited to be able to pick up a pen and splash ink. I've gathered some pics of the month and will post them all together soon.

The 'ol stomping grounds

2007-06-18T10:13:00.001-07:00

This past weekend due to Lucy having Friday off work, we were able to take a long weekend with our parents in middle Georgia. Since Lucy's dad's illness, it's nice to be able to spend as much time with him as possible so that extra day helped. Saturday evening, my mom and dad joined her family (her brother drove from Mississippi) and had a cook off at their home. Good family fun had by all!

One thing I accomplished while at home was putting in some good miles on the 'Pig Trail' in Macon, GA. I can't count how many hours/miles I ran and biked on this trail during my 'prison term' working in Macon! Even though I had been enjoying the pleasures trails bring (dirt, mud, breeze, shade, no cars or their fumes, an occasional critter) for years while running in Athens, the Pig Trail (aptly named due to the draining problems after a rain and the slosh pit it becomes!) was were I understood why I liked running!

First to put you in my mindset while living in Macon....I HATED the city and my job! I also knew very few people who had similar interests (running trails, illustration, college football).....so if I wasn't working my full time job or doing my freelance, I was probably running! It was a stress reliever and helped ease my mind (probably after a crappy day at work). I knew several mountain bikers but they weren't interested if it wasn't about frames, tires, derailers, and whatcha-ma-callits.....I say give me a water bottle, some shoes and let me run! Other than them, I saw less than 10 people in 2 years running on the Pig Trails.

I woke up 7:00am on Saturday to make the hour drive to the trails. I started my run around 9:15am and greeted by that rare of days in the south - FOGGY and COOL with a daytime high of only mid-80s! My intention was to do at least 2 laps of 6.1 miles for a total of 12.2 - a respectable distance as I try to increase my distance over the next several months. The Pig Trail isn't a hard trail - there's very few technical spots or big hills. The Macon Mtn Bike crew has done a good job of making the trail longer and a tad more technical since I ran them though increasing the lap total to somewhere around 6.5+. I completed my two laps in 2hrs, 12mins - about the pace I wanted to keep.

It was fun visiting the ol stomping grounds of the Pig Trail. There are just a few trails during my running days that have influence me - a few in Athens, a few in KS, and the Pig Trail. Maybe it won't be as long until I can put in a few more miles there.

(pictured is a t-shirt I've done for the local Mtn Bike race)

Party like it's 1987!

2007-06-14T11:40:00.000-07:00

Lucy and I had the opportunity to timewarp back to 1987 last night by attending something I never thought I would - a Poison concert! Yep..that Poison..."Unskinny Bop"...."I want action"... "Every rose has its thorn".....do any of those songs job your memory?

A coworker, and former 'hair-band' devotee, of Lucy's bought 4 tickets for himself, his wife and another couple. When the couple backed out, Lucy and I were the fill-ins. I have to admit..as a former 'hair band fan' myself, I think I knew every song and was able to sing along to most. The show was fun and their energy surprised me the most. They've been performing these songs for 20+ years but looked/acted liked they enjoyed it! And why not...they're making a living playing music! I think this is what I took away from the concert - try to find a job you enjoy.

The experience really took me back to my childhood - my sister (the bigger fan of Poison - I was more of a G'N'R fan) and I listening to a casette tapes. I called her on my cell during the show hoping she'd recognized the song, but to no avail. After talking to her on the phone today and laughing, maybe she'll try to find a way to party like it's 1987 all-over-again.

Steady with the exercise

2007-06-01T06:57:00.001-07:00

I really have nothing exciting to report with my workout routine except that it has been steady over the past few months. I never want to feel like I 'have' to run....I do it because it's fun and I love to be outside. My routine is always flexible and I go when I can. Besides running 15-30 miles/wk depending on my work load, Lucy and I have been going to the gym 2-3 times/wk. I can really tell the added strength in my legs has helped me climb Paris Mountain faster! Besides helping during the actual run, the added strength helps in recovery time.

Speaking of recovery time, I usually have something hurting me that affects my running. If it's not my ankle, it will be my stomach. If both of those are fine, I'll get a blister. I cracked my big toenail during the Paris Mountain run last November that is almost healed, but the new nail is growing into the skin....so that was bothering me during my 10-mile run on Monday this week. Instead of running yesterday (and Tues), I took the mountain bike on the trail for few hours. Since I can't run doesn't mean I can't get outside!

I do all my trail runs at Paris Mountain due to it's proximity to my apartment. It's a great trail and you can easily vary your distance and terrain. I've been wanting to branch out and find new trails, but most are 30-45 minutes north closer to North Carolina. During my recent trip to the 'outdoor' store, I purchase a book that list all the trails in upstate South Carolina and western North Carolina. The book lists directions to get there, the trail lengths, and terrain details and just quickly flipping through the book, you can see there are a varity of lengths and difficulties. I've convince Lucy to come with me Saturday morning so we can walk/run an easier trail. I haven't decide which we should go to, but it should be exciting!

The evolution of the non-running man

2007-05-13T20:39:00.000-07:00

My trail running has been steady over the past several months usually averaging 15-30 per week depending on how much work I have to do. The sunny Spring and Summer weather has definitely had an effect as my running always picks up during this time. After getting the chance to run in sub-zero and snowy weather in Kansas, I've come to realize my 'southern-ess' even more - I like to run in hot weather...it's what I'm used to!

As my miles have picked up, I keep wanting to push myself and do a race. We'll see how my training goes over the next several months, but I have a few planned. I've also bought a book with all the trails, their locations, and distances in Upstate South Carolina and Western North Carolina. I've been meaning to branch out and try to new ones considering I run Paris Mountain 3-4 times/wk. This is when I really need a group of like-minding runners.

Speaking of...here's a great article written by 'Bad Ben', the KC Trail Nerd organzier. It's a must-read for all you 'pavement-pounders' out there.

Free State Trail Run

2007-04-30T06:39:00.000-07:00

This past weekend in Lawrence, KS, the 1st annual Free State Trail Run took place at Clinton Lake. From reading about it in emails, it sounds like the Trail Nerds put on another great race. Here is an article from the Lawrence newspaper about the race. The link also has a great video w/ pics of the trail. At the end of the video, there is a great shot of the finisher medal and belt buckle I designed (both photos above are by Rachel Seymour, Lawrence Journal World)

Great jobs guys! I expect the race to be even bigger next year!

When too much is bad

2007-04-18T04:35:00.000-07:00

My work has been steadily increasing (the volume and pay!) since I began freelancing almost 2 years ago. Up to this point, it's all I could ask for. I was making money, learning the business, and taking most any job I could find.

It's been even better the past 6 months as my income, volume and the 'quality' of jobs have all gotten better, but as with everything, there's bound to be negatives. I literally had TOO MUCH work and I didn't do a good job of saying, "No, I can't make that deadline." Over the past month, I've finished multiple t-shirts, logos, medals, brochures, and illustrations (fullcolor and b/w) often staying up allnight for multiple days and averaging little sleep for weeks. I kept telling myself to keep going and I could handle it while ignorning how my body felt. It came to a head about a week ago while I was doing my 7-mile run - my joints ached, I had no energy, and my head throbed. By the next day, I had chills, fever, and stomach cramps that lasted throughout the night. The fever and cramps went away, but the headache has persisted for a week now. I've had headaches before, but none like this - it actually blurred my vision! Luckily I was coming to the end of my deadlines and had a few days to rest. I've probably averaged 10 hours of sleep a day over the past 4-5 days and my headache has slowly went away and hopefully after a few more days, I'll be cured!

From this point on, I have to do a better job of managing my time, learning how to say 'no', and not putting my work ahead of my health. I've gotten to the point where I can pick and choose my jobs and if I don't like it, I can pass. I may have learned a lot about the business side, but lost something that should be common sense - sleep is good!

The happenings

2007-04-10T06:22:00.000-07:00

A lot has been going on lately w/ Lucy and I....much that seems too serious to post in a blog about, but I'll do my best.

Lucy's dad was diagnosed with lung cancer about 3 weeks ago. Each day has brung a new round of testing to first, determine IF it was cancer and now, how far along it is. At this point, it's confirmed that he has 'stage 3' which is very serious (what stage of cancer isn't, right?). Yesterday he had a tube inserted into his chest for chemo and will start making weekly trips to ATL. They will find out soon is surgery is an option to remove part of the tumor - dependent on how far the cancer has spread. He seems to have stabilized over the past few weeks after losing 15+ lbs in the first two. Of course he's weak, but someone is there helping him at every step. Lucy as traveled home each weekend just to spend time with not only him, but the family. Her family is very 'tight' (sometimes I call them a 'cult'....believe me...it was tough to 'get in good' with them), but I mean this in the very best possible way. The love each other extremely and will do anything possible to help. If only everyone could have a family this close.

There is one thing that I keep thinking about - how the past came back to haunt him. Her dad, Donald, was a smoker for years, but quit 'cold turky' many years ago in his early/mid 40s (he is 56 now). I've known Lucy for 10 years now and have never seen him with a cigerette. As tough as it is to quit especially after smoking for years as he did, he had the dedication and strength to do so. I always used him as a positive example and bragged on him to my 'smoking dad' hoping to influence him to quit. We all have bad habits and have made mistakes, but hopefully we've had the power and dedication to quit. Maybe we'll be lucky that they won't come back years later to haunt us.

Lucy and I will be making our weekly trip to her parent's home this weekened hoping for the best!

St. Patty's Weekend

2007-03-16T07:41:00.000-07:00

Lucy and I are headed to ATL for the weekend to visit one of her old friends, Larissa. We'll be bringing the 'boys' of course. Larissa also happens to have two sausage dogs so it'll be a puppy-fest weekend.

I do believe we've been roped into doing a 5k on Saturday morning (race for charity). This is significant for me because it'll be the first time I've run on pavement (or concrete) in over a year. I really don't know when was the last time....probably sometime in Spring '06 in Mission, KS. And guess what...I DON'T MISS IT! My trail running mileage has been picking up over the past month after a bad start to the year. I've been averaging 20-25 miles/wk lately w/ several long back-t0-back runs. I have no race planned in the immediate future, but would love to attend the KC Trail Nerd's new race, the Free State 20/40 miler, in April. There would be no way for me to finish the 40-miler so I would settle for the 20. The trails in Lawrence, KS where the race is held (Clinton Lake to be specific) are great. I got the chance to do them several times while I was there. I'll keep running/training and see how work goes for me. If I get the chance, I'll be there!

I've got several jobs I'm working on now. I'm in the middle of finishing the '07 KC Marathon T-shirt and 'finisher' medal. I'm working on a cover for the UGA alumni magazine and an upcoming postcard for the UGA Alumni Association. I'm also designing a brochure for the KC Trail Nerds and T-shirt for the previously mentioned 'Free State' Trail race.

Business is good!

To increase the 'cute factor', here is a pic of Roscoe barking at the TV. He doesn't like to see dogs, cats, horses, cows.....basically ANY ANIMAL on TV, and he'll run up to the screen and start barking. Apparently he doesn't like 'fast-break points' either 'cause he starting barking at the screen after a viscious dunk during the NCAA tournament last night.
G

Tornados hit too close to home

2007-03-03T05:29:00.000-08:00

Lucy and I had it lucky while living in Kansas last year . The state had it's warmest year on record (only 3 snowfalls) and very little tornado activity. You would think that we've lessened our chances of experiencing tornados since moving back to the South.....but you'd be wrong.

A tornado hit much too close to my parent's home in Central Georgia on Thursday night literally coming within hundreds of feet from the backporch. There were two 'touchdowns' in the area that shredded trees and multiple homes. I've attached a map I drew to show how close it came - the 'red square' being my parent's home and the 'blue x' being the spot where the 'touchdowns' and heavy damage occurred.

That night, my mom was watching TV (cable...so no local news) when the neighbor called. He mentioned that the news said a TORNADO WAS GOING TO HIT NICKELSVILLE and everyone should take cover. Since his house was smaller, he asked could he stay at my parent's home while the weather passed. They watched the local news as they counted down the minutes. - "Everyone in Nickelsville should take cover." "Only 15 minutes until the weather will be centered over Nickelsville."

My mom said the wind blew, windows shook, but nothing else happened. They figured there was no touchdown not knowing the tornado had passed in the woods behind their home. The neighbor went back to his home, but called soon after saying he lost his electricity. MY PARENT'S HOME DIDN'T EVEN LOSE POWER! They didn't know the extent of damage until the next day after seeing homes in the neighborhood. Pictures she took are attached.

Multiple homes lost their roof, one was twisted off it's foundation, and smaller homes and trailers were GONE! Luckily, no one was hurt unlike the tornados that struck in West Georgia and Alabama. It's the 'luck of the draw' that some homes were hit while others like my parents had no damage.

The happenings

2007-02-13T07:14:00.000-08:00

To catch everyone up on the latest happenings:

Had my first nationally published illo come out in January in No Depression, a portrait of musician Joan Osborne.

My second nationally published illustration will come out in March in Trail Runner Magazine.

I wasn't able to go to the 07 PsychoWYCO in Kansas this past weekend. I had been training to do the 50k which I did last year. Work was more than steady in January which presented a small problem with training, but the main reason I chose to not attend was some 'stomach issues' which plagued me most of the month. I don't know what 'it' was exactly but I lost 10+ lbs in just 2 weeks. My stomach was constantly churning and cramping and wouldn't allow me to trail run for a few weeks. Overall.....NOT FUN! It seems like if it isn't one things slowing my running down (ankles or feet), it's another (stomach cramps or blisters). Poot.

My site is being updated (color section finished) and new postcards were mailed last week. Hopefully I can bring in some new clients and make 'em happy!

Here is the latest pic of Roscoe being bathed. As you can guess....he's not liking it!

The children

2007-01-09T20:06:00.000-08:00

Here are a few pics of the cuties, Roscoe (the dapple) and Otis (black and tan).

Begging for punishment

2007-01-09T05:09:00.000-08:00

Psycho Wyco 50k is a little more than a month away (Feb 10th) and I'm excited. It's a brutal 50k that I ran last year (my first BTW). Up to this point, I really didn't want to put myself through that again because I had swollen ankles for weeks and couldn't run comfortably for months. I wasn't able to prepare as I would have liked last year though due to travel - in the month before the race, I was on the road for 2+ weeks.
I may be niave, but I think I can not only finish it again, but improve on my time of 6hrs; 40mins. The past few weeks, I been putting more 'miles on my feet' starting with small amounts (4-7 miles) and increasing the number of days I run (2-3). Last week, I bumped my mileage to 21 miles/wk and 4 days. Yesterday, I put in a 13 mile day with at least 3 more run scheduled this week. I'm looking forward to increasing each the next few weeks with some long runs (20+ miles) mixed in.
I'll never be a great runner, but I can do better. I enjoy pushing myself though and immediately after last year's race, I was disapointed in my finish. Don't get my wrong, all this work won't help me win the race, but as long as I know I gave it my best, it's all I can do. Besides, I'll get to see some friends from the KC Trail Nerds and if not for them, I wouldn't be doing long races anyway.

I'm looking forward to it!

Getting back into the swing of it

2007-01-09T04:42:00.000-08:00

After being away from my 'comfort zone' for 2 weeks (in TX and in GA for Christmas), you would think I would be more energized and ready to start back to work, but with how I like to work, it's been the opposite.
I can't just jump back and forth into my 'creative state', and sometimes it's tough for me to even find! When I start working, I don't like to quit in the middle of a piece...sometimes staying up for a few days. I'll get an idea or a 'feeling' about a work and must finish it then.
Before the TX trip, I had been in the 'zone' for weeks and been churning out piece after piece - some for work but others for myself. Doing multiple personal pieces is a good sign I'm having fun. This past week has been tough though AND I have jobs I can start on. I'm just gonna have to force myself to sit!!!

Great article about trail running

2007-01-04T20:29:00.000-08:00

Here is a great article about trail running that points out many of its benefits. I wish every 'road-runner' could read this. I understand that running through the woods, slipping 'n sliding in mud, rain, and splashin' in puddles aren't for everyone, but I continue to tell myself most people haven't tried it yet.

If you're interested in trail running, please check out the most passionate trail runner I know, Ben Holmes, and his blog: http://badbenkc.blogspot.com/ The following article was taken from his site and was written my Matt Carpenter for skyrunner.com

Gnarly trails and magic rocks
By MATT CARPENTER
www.skyrunner. com

I remember that first gnarly trail to this day. I found it on my standard out/back run from the dorm. What looked like a little path turned into quite the discovery! Soon the whole cross county team started running it on a regular basis. In the past we had always sought out new training runs sometimes resorting to taking a van to distant places to log our miles. But this trail was different. We could run it over and over but it never got old. We called it the gnarly trail because it had everything: hills, creek crossings, mud, rocks even a few Tarzan vines. Time had no meaning because we never bothered to look at our watches. Simply put — this trail was fun!

Now, almost fifteen years later, I find I spend most of my running time on trails. I have grown accustomed to hours passing without notice. The excitement of never really knowing what lies around the next corner. The hunt for the next gnarly trail. But then again I am a trail and mountain runner. What’s in it for the road runner?

The next time you go on a run take notice of what happens when your foot strikes the ground. What happens when the next foot strikes the asphalt? And the next? If you are like most people the same thing happens again and again. The repetitive nature of running on a road can bring about our least favorite word — INJURY!

Contrast that to a trail run. I am talking trail here — not a paved bike path. Each individual foot strike is just that — individual. Throw in some rocks, slanted trails, and gravity defying curves and you give your feet and legs a well deserved natural break.

The same goes for the rest of your body and mind. On the road your running form seldom changes except for interruptions — cars, intersections, and the occasional whatever that always seems to break your zombie like trance. Even your mind rarely gets much excitement on a road run. After a while you may find yourself thinking of everything you were trying to get away from when you went on your run in the first place — work, bills and all those nasty little thoughts that creep in unless you run so hard that you only think about stopping. This tedium and monotony can bring about another not so favorite word — BURNOUT!

On a trail you must lift your knees to get over the rocks, torque your body to keep from falling over on the slants, and swing your arms wildly to keep from flying off the curves. Most of the time you are thinking about only one thing — the trail! You rarely end up in a zombie trance without having to pick yourself up off the very trail you so rudely forgot to think about.

The workout a trail run gives you may leave you feeling beat up but it will never leave you feeling beat down. A good trail run has an invigorating- one-with- the-world- who-cares- what-the- neighbors- say feeling. However, to get this feeling a good trail should have one or more of the following elements:

Magic rocks and roots the ones that trip you but you can never find afterwards.

Surprises the occasional fallen tree, psycho mountain biker, bear, horse poop, etc.

Scenic stopping points something so awesome that you actually feel OK about stopping for a few seconds and saying wow! Note: The actual time will vary depending on your little understood obsessive compulsive gene (OCG).

A small dose of risk lets face it, magic, and not so magic, rocks can hurt you.

A small dose of fear of getting lost and ending up in another state.

Remorse a good trail always makes you feel sorry that it is over no matter how tired you are.
After you find a trail with some of these elements — or a gnarly trail with all of them — you may find yourself not wanting to get back onto the roads. It’s a risk with many rewards! Wherever I travel I almost always manage to find an off-road adventure that has something new to get excited about. Even the biggest cities often have a park or a river with a trail around them. Sometimes however I find myself back on the roads where it seems like I constantly look at my watch. I am never quite sure if I am timing how far I have run, or how much longer before I get to stop.

- Matt Carpenter

It's been tooooo long between updates!

2007-01-04T20:02:00.000-08:00

Wow! I can't believe I've wanted this long to add an update. So much has happened over the past month and half that I might break it up into multiple posts.

November was one of the busiest months I've had freelancing. My first 'official' postcard mailing was a success bringing in multiple new clients. My next postcard is printing now and should be in the mail in the next few weeks.

I visited my sister, Melanie, in Waco, Texas in mid-December to help her work on her new home. I was there for 5 days and believe me, it was no pleasure trip. We usually worked for 6-8 hours a day scraping old paint off their 2-story home, painting hallways, doortrims, rooms, etc. We really accomplished a lot in less than a week. I've attached some pics of her house. You can see how much effort it took scrapping old paint - I spent 10+ hours on a ladder.

After working, Melanie, Brad, myself and two dogs (Hank and Porter) drove 16+ hours to GA to visit the parents for Christmas. If you can believe it, the dogs were great the entire trip - Hank slept and Porter chewed on his new toy. Brad drove the first half and I wrapped up the 10pm to 6am shift going from Jackson, MS to Dublin, GA.

Lucy met us in GA for Christmas where we stayed from the 22nd to the 27th. The folks are doing great and it was nice to be back home. Our family loooooves to eat so there was more than enough food for everyone.

Lucy and I only bought one thing for each other - and we already knew what it was - TWO 'lil Daschund puppies which we named Otis and Roscoe. Otis is a black/tan while Roscoe is a dapple (like a tiny blue-tick hound). They were frightened at home in GA because all of Hank, Porter, and Dixie, the family bulldog, but they've settled in nicely in Greenville. I've never had an 'inside' pet. While growing up in the country, my pets were all outside so they required little supervision. The two news pups are a different story. I'm constantly saying 'no', 'take that out of your mouth', 'let's go outside!', etc. I am slightly illergic to animals (mainly cats or long-haired dogs), but I'm doing alright with Otis and Roscoe. It's too late now though....Lucy would probably get rid of me before she gave up her babies!

On a sad note, Brad and Melanie's home was burgularized while they were in GA over Christmas. The robbers took anything valuable - TV, computer, guitar, some jewelry, etc. They even took half-used liquor in the freezer. Due to some helpful 'informants', they're pretty sure they know who did it. It just so happened it was a guy who was helping w/ the plumping and he knew they would be away for almost 2 weeks. The guy had loose lips and told the wrong person who contacted Melanie and Brad. Right now, nothing has happened - the cops are gathering statements and Melanie and Brad have been staying in a hotel for the past fews days due to their home 'not being secure'. Today they installed a new door (which the burgular broke into) so they should be at home tonight. I wish them luck and hope I never have to go through this. Too bad the attached pics are BEFORE their home was burgularized. Melanie said it was/is severly trashed.

NOTHING IS WORSE THAN A THIEF!!!!

Paris Mountain Trail race results

2006-11-13T07:01:00.000-08:00

What a great weekend! On Friday evening, Lucy and I drove to Atlanta to pick my sister up. She had a layover from a company trip and decided to stay with us for the weekend. We were supposed to have a lazy Friday night so we could wake up early Saturday to run in the Paris Mountain Trail race. Instead, Melanie's plane was delayed over 3 hours in Chicago because of bad weather. Instead of arriving back in Greenville around 10:00 PM, we didn't get back and into the bed until 2:00 AM.
I was already undecided about running the race mainly because my twisted ankle from three weeks earlier hadn't healed as fast as I hoped. This was my 'homefield' and considering I run on this trail 2-3 times/week, I wanted to give my best shot. Melanie had agreed to race with me and since I was hobbled, I assumed I would just walk the race with her. In the morning, I woke up around 7:00am and immediately said, "I'm not racing" and went back to sleep. Around 7:20, guilt woke up again so I crawled out of bed and decided I would go. It was a different story for Melanie who wouldn't stir from her comfortable spot on the sofa.
Now knowing I would be going alone, I decided to test my ankle and run the 7 miles course. The trail is a great one - not too hard as other Mountain trails, but hard enough that you have to be a comfortable at offroad running. The main 'hill' has a 1750 ft elevation but there are many more smaller hills throughout the course. I'm just guessing, but I figure there is probably 3000-4000 feet of elevation gained/lost per lap. The trail drains wonderfully so you don't have to worry about a sloppy course and it was well marked (considering me along with the race director marked the course the day before with 60 pounds of flour!!!)
My ankle still had some slight pain, but I put on several pairs of socks to add as much support as I could. The weather was GREAT - at racetime (9:00), the temperature was probably 60 degrees and reached a high in the mid-70s. I would hate to have to run that course in rain or worse - sleet. The mountain parts would almost be impossible....or at least dangerous.
I'm happy to report my ankle gave me very little trouble and I tied my fastest time on the trail - 1:05:04 (24th place out of 90 entries). I faded toward the end and actually tripped about 100 feet from the finish, but was proud that I made myself go and compete. Considering I hadn't run in almost a month and still had lingering pain, I did well. Next year, I'm shooting to break the 1 hour mark.

Oh...I designed the T-shirt for the race! Since it was a rush job, I used a previous design from the Kansas City Trail Race Series I did last year, but changed the wording. John, the race director, decided to go with the camo shirt for an interesting combo. You definitely can't miss it!!!

Happy Halloween!

2006-10-31T09:04:00.000-08:00

Last night, Lucy and I went and watched the horror classic, Halloween, at the theater. They were showing the movie twice - Oct. 30th and 31st at 8:00.

Lucy and I have seen this movie literally dozens of times and can quote most any part. We actually have a few inside jokes we say between each other. See if you can recognize the actor/actress or part:

"Get you ass away from there, Lonnie!"
"The evil is GONE!...Gone away from here!!!"

Anyway, it was a fun time last night and in honor of one of my favorite movies of all time, I decided to carve our pumpkin like Michael Myers. We bought the pumpkin over a week ago with intentions on carving it then, but things always got in the way. I took a short cut and scanned a pic, took it into photoshop and made it a hard-edged, B/W pic which made it easier to trace onto a pumpkin.

I took a few shots and had fun in photoshop. Here are the results!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

busy, busy...but doing something I love!

2006-10-27T08:50:00.000-07:00

I finally have time to put down my thoughts after one of the busiest months of work I've had in a long time. I completed 3 covers, 6 b/w spot illos, 7 color spot illos, 2 brochures, 3 logos, 3 T-shirts, and a medal design. WOW! It's nice to have the work, and I tell Lucy, "maybe I can actually make some money with this illustration 'thing'!"

After my first full year of freelance illustration and design, I have gained a lot of useful knowledge ranging from the artistic to business side. While working in Macon, GA with a fulltime design job, I didn't have the freetime to truly devote to illustration. After working all day and running on the trails after work, I maybe had 2-3 'useful' hours left. There were many days I stayed up well into the 'A.M.s' trying to finish the few freelance jobs I had. Now, I'm thankful that I actually have time to think about an illustration, spend quality time working on it and still get to bed at a decent hour. But all of those long nights and were worth it - I still have clients now that I started with then.

My illustraiton career is a work-in-progress and has been a steady climb that's just beginning. Sometimes I'm impatient and want it - the big jobs and acknowledgment by peers - all now, but until that time, I'll keep working. Illustration is not really a 'wise' career choice - and I mean that in the best possible way! No one makes you keep drawing - the pay is low and the fees haven't increased in years - the large corporations are always trying to take away your copyrights - and you have to keep advertising or you'll be lost in the shuffle. Even after knowing all of this, it's still what I want to be doing! Luckily, I've made enought to support myself in the progress (also lucky is the fact that I really don't want all the 'fancy' stuff $$$ can buy - like new clothes...and food!). The feeling of accomplishment I get after working hard on a job can't be matched at the other jobs. I'm working for myself and I'm confident the long hours I put in will benefit me. I'm not working for a corporation where I'm just a #, or a 'family' business where they get preferential treatment (been there...I know). Working for yourself as an illustrator is tough, but the reward I've received make it worth it.

Songs I'm listen to now:

'The Letting Go' - Bonnie Prince Billy's new album
It's an above-average album compared to his others. My favorite album is still 'Master and Everyone', but this is a good middle-ground in between the bareness of "master' and the electric guitars in 'Superwolf". Best song: "I called you back"

'Clap Your Hands Say Yeah" - self-titled debut album. Even though I've been listening to his album for almost a year, I still bounce around when it's on. This looks to be one of those albums that stay in my playlist for a long time. This first album is gonna be hard to match if/when they come out with another. Best song: 'The skin of my yellow country teeth'.

KC Marathon T-shirt and medal

2006-10-26T10:41:00.000-07:00

Yesterday in the mail, I received a packet from the Kansas City Sports Commission, the group I worked with to design the T-shirt and medal for this year's race. The race was earlier this month and was a success - considering they had many more people than expected to sign up and didn't have enough shirts or medals for them!

Maybe some folks liked my design. Here are some pics I took.

Pics from Paris Mountain State Park

2006-09-25T18:31:00.000-07:00

Since I rarely do any pavement running and the Paris Mtn. St. Park trails are the only decent ones in the immediately area, I go there often. There are many more trails in the general 'upstate' area, but they require at least a 45min. drive.

This past week, I took my camera with me while I did some laps at the Park. I try to either run or bike 3-4 times per week there. Last week, I managed to bike twice, run 3 times (2 shorter 7-mile and 1 long 13-mile) and walk once (with the camera).

Trip to Athens for the UGA/UAB game

2006-09-18T20:16:00.000-07:00

This is the most excited I've been about going to a UGA game in a while. Since Lucy and I lived in Kansas last year, I was unable to make a trip to Athens. This will be my first game in almost two years (UGA/GAtech in '04)!! I met my friend Randy for the game.
Here are a few pics - I left the 'action' shots large so you should be able to get a close-up when clicked. There was a nice tribute to Erk Russell, the legendary defensive coordinator for UGA (64-80) who passed away recently, and for UGA I, the first in the line of the world-famous mascot who turns 50 this year.

Trip to Columbia, SC for some football

2006-09-14T06:33:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics from this past weekend's trip to Columbia, SC to watch UGA put a whoopin' on the USC Gamecocks. Final Score: UGA-18, SC-0. A final score like that makes the drive back home eeeeaaasssy!

Running in the rain

2006-08-22T23:50:00.000-07:00

Even though I'm finding out there aren't many trails in the immediate Greenville area (not counting a few short, easy ones), I have been enjoying Paris Mountain State Park. It's a huge, well-maintained, system of trails (both hiking and biking) that are plenty hard enough for me. I've ran/biked most of the trails now, but there are plans of adding 5-7 more miles of biking trails.
There is one trail race (a 7m and 4m loop) that takes place here in October. I've been doing the larger,7-mile loop to train (pink trail on map). Seven miles doesn't seem that long after some of my previous runs, but there's a reason MOUNTAIN is in the name of the park!! The first half of the loop is almost a 45-degree angle up while the second half is the opposite. The loop has both biking and hiking portions (from fast and rolling small hills to not runable). I've been trying to do the loop at least twice a week.
Today was my fastest loop so far (1hr, 12min), but let's say it was 'weather-aided'! As I started my run, it was a little hot to run and the humidity was terrible. I was soaked with sweat almost immediately and figured I would go through my water bottle quickly. Just as I got to the top of the uphill section though, the dark clouds rolled in. As I began my descent, the wind and rain started and the lightning was a little too close for comfort. The second half of the loop is already a fast run (because it's mostly downhill), but the lightning definitely sped me up!
Other than the lightning, it was enjoyable to do half of the loop in the rain. The rain, cloud cover, and wind made for a pleasant run!
Now to best my quick finish time, I guess I'll just have to wait for more bad weather!

Mr. Awakeat4am TriathlonMaaaaaan

2006-08-08T21:21:00.000-07:00

As I'm sitting here getting my running gear together for a 6am trail run tomorrow, I remembered this email I received a few weeks ago.

I'm sure everyone has heard the Budwieser 'Real Men of Genius' radio spots now. You know....they have the cheesy, 1980s 'RReeallll Meeeen of GEEEEENIUUUUS' intro music followed be a serious talking narrator who gives tribute to whom he sees fit. Even though I haven't heard this particular one on the radio, it easily could be.

Bud Light Presents...
Real Men of Genius
(Real men of geEEEeeeinuuuUUuus)

Here's to you, Mr. Awake at 4 am Triathlon Man.
(Mr. Awakeat4am TriathlonMaaaaaan)

In your lycra and drifit armor, you emerge into the early morning darkness
to battle the hordes of others that also don't know the meaning of ...

"sleeping in on Sunday."
(Better set that alarm twice)

While the rest of the world sleeps, you're dutifully slathering your
crotch with vasaline.
(squishin' and slidin')

For you, abusing your body with an early morning run simply won't cut it.
You tack on a swim and a bike ride... just because you can.
(doOOOOOOooooon't forget the Bengay)

So crack open an ice cold Bud Light, you trisporting Titan. You monster of
the mile marker. Because the only thing tougher than a three sport event
first thing in the morning, is a four sport event ... and that's just insane.

(Mr. Awakeat4am TriathlonMaaaaaan)

KC Trail Nerds and Greenville running

2006-08-03T06:00:00.000-07:00

Most who know me and my running habits understand that I detest 'pavement' running and what it brings: car fumes, hot sidewalks, people in your way, and crossing busy streets. Running is GREAT for you, but somehow I figure a lot of the benefits are canceled out when you have to suck on a truck's tailpipe waiting at a redlight so you can cross!!!

I started trail running in college at UGA. There were a few trails in the area ranging from 1.5m up to 5m and I got to know them well as I went 2-3 times/week. Once I graduated college and moved to Macon, GA, I frequented the one mountain bike trail there (6.1m) and could be found running it at least twice/week.

When you runs trails, you have to be comfortable running alone. Many hours will be just you, the woods, an occassional deer and snake...and in my cased living in Macon, the random Mountain Bikeer. In the years living in Macon, I never once went running with someone else, but did get to know the mountain biking group well. But I can only run so fast so running/riding together was impossible. When Lucy and I found out we were moving to Kansas City, I immediately 'googled' trails in the KC area and found a 'yahoo' page about a trail GROUP! Wow...you mean people actually gather to run trails? I thought only 'pavement' runners did this, but after I emailed Ben Holmes, the group organizer, and told him I was moving there in the preceding months, I became a part too!

The group was small at first usually consisting on 2-6 runners. We held 3 weekly runs - one 'night' run starting at dusk and using flashlights and two weekend runs starting in the morning. After I mentioned starting a second night run, four weekly runs became the norm. The night runs were ranged from 4m (one lap) to (7m) depending on which trail we used. We reserved the weekend for the longer runs (usually 8m to 15m).

I'll never met someone so passionate about trail running as Ben Holmes. He organizes the group runs as well as being the webmaster for two KC running site: the KC Track Club and Trail group. Almost daily emails are sent our detailing upcoming runs, events, and races in the community and the greater midwest. Over the year I lived in KC, the group grew from the 'dedicated few' to the 'many' with more runners showing for each run and event. Ben came up with the name 'KC Trail Nerds' and had shirts printed for the group. The second annual 'Psycho WYCO trail run' brought in 250 people compared to 40 the first year. Just as I was getting ready to move to South Carolina, the Trail Nerds were beginning a 'trail race series' where points were kept over the course of a year depending on the trail, its length and difficultly and the runner's finishing time. I did a few T-shirt designs for races which Ben had printed. It was satisfying seeing the group grow over time with people who had a similiar interest. This made my move to Greenville, SC even more challenging. After years running alone, I enjoyed the group dynamic and the motivation it brought. After not running more than 12m alone, I completed my first marathon and 50k with the Trail Nerd's help. I'm sure Greenville will have it's share of trails, but I'm also confident the organization won't be there.

I've been in Greenville for a week now and have scoped the running community. The 'pavement' runners seem to be going strong and I got the chance to meet a few at the monthly Greenville Track Club. As I assumed, the organization for trail running isn't here, and they seemed a little confused when I said I run on 'dirt' only. The locals mentioned only one trail, Paris Mountain, which I'll visit soon. Looks like many more hours exploring the woods alone for me.

As I get used to the humidity of the Southeast again (sorry KC, it's hotter here), I wanted to say thanks to the KC Trail Nerds for the great year of running. I have a good idea how to organize a group.....now if I could just make myself wake up for those 6am runs! That's what I need a group's help for!

Thanks Kansas City!

2006-07-31T06:18:00.000-07:00

As I sit in a coffee shop in my new home of Greenville, South Carolina, I trying to figure out what I want to do next: go to Shawnee Mission Park to run or go to Westport to sketch? Should I go by Broadstreet Cafe or Crave Cafe for my coffee? Do I have time to meet the trail running group tonight? WAIT....all of these things are in Kansas City and have to be stored in my mind where all of the other good memories go.

Even though I only lived in Kansas City for one year, I did many things I will remember for my lifetime. KC is a wonderful 'family' city. At just over 1 million people, it's large enough to have everything you want but without many of the things larger cities bring.

There are very little traffic problems and one can drive across the city in 20 minutes! Compared to ATL (the only major city that I have extensive experience in) KC is a breeze. Atlanta offers nothing more than KC, but with much more aggravations.

Every little neighborhood has a park, greenspace areas, and sidewalks. There are at least 6 public parks with long running trails within 30 minutes of my old home. Shawnee Mission Park is one of the best public parks I've seen. It's well maintained and has anything you would want to do outdoors: fishing, a 22-mile riverwalk, miles of wooded trails, horse trails, a dozen covered shelters for gatherings, etc.

The cost of living is cheap and is relatively the same as where I grew up in GA.

The weather is great and you get to experience all four seasons! Growing up in mid-Georgia, winter doesn't exist. Usually I had 9 months of summer with the next three being a combination of spring and fall. In KC, each season was a few months long and by the time you were tired of one, the next was starting. It's hot during the summer sometimes reaching triple-digits for a week (but little humidity). The fall and spring are wonderful and the winter is mild (even though the locals said this past one was unusually so). I enjoyed the weather immensly mainly because of the lack of humidity - I didn't sweat each time I stepped out of the door. Yesterday in GA, the temperature was mid-90s with 91% humdity. Blah.

If you like sports then KC is full of passionate fans: the Chiefs make up the large part but you can't help but root for the 'lovable losers', the Royals. Lawrence, home of the Jayhawks, is only 35 minutes away also!

If you like music, then KC has plenty for you. It's a major stop in the midwest for all the major acts plus it's a hub for all things 'blues' (listen to the 'Fish Fry' on Friday/Saturday nights on public radio for some great music).

Anyway, I wanted to boast some and say 'thank you' KC for a wonderful year. I'll always have postive memories about my time spent there and hope my travels take me back one day.

WOW...what a month!

2006-07-31T06:08:00.000-07:00

Things have finally started slowing down for me after the busiest month ever which involved marriage and moving across the country! I'm sitting in a coffee shop in downtown Greenville, SC after dropping Lucy off for her first day of work and it's nice to have time to rest my mind (catching up on sleep will probably take a few days).

I'll do a few seperate posts over the next few weeks with pics updating both the wedding and moving. Doing one post for all wouldn't do each justice. Thanks for all the help we got with the wedding and moving. I'm excited to get started in Greenville!

I'm no longer a crook!

2006-07-03T20:41:00.000-07:00

GOOD NEWS!! I have been cleared of all charges and the government is no longer after me! It seems as if the IRS has 'cleared the differences between our records' and that I no longer owe them money (or my arm...or first born).

For those who haven't read the past posts, I received a letter in the mail in March saying I owed $96,000 in back taxes from 2004! Obviously this was a mistake that could have easily been corrected (if they would have checked my checking or savings!). Instead, everything was put on my shoulders to find back information, contact the client in question whose job the IRS screwed up (I was paid $960...not 96k), get an accountant to write a letter saying I'm not a crook.

After all of this, you'd think this would clear me....NOOOOOOOOOOO! I then received ANOTHER LETTER in early May saying I no longer owed 96k and 'they understand there was a mistake'...(NNNNNOOOOO SSHHHH@#@#@T!), but they couldn't see where I paid tax on the original payment of $960!

Honestly, this is wear it's get comical! I glanced at my back tax forms and saw where I paid taxes on all my 1099 forms (and I'm not an accountant). All of my 1099 (freelance) forms were totaled and then added to the amount I made from my fulltime job. When I showed the accountant the IRS' letter mentioning they couldn't find where I paid taxes on the $960, he laughed out loud!!!! Can they NOT UNDERSTAND OR READ THEIR OWN FORMS????? He then had to write another letter basically holding their hand explaining their own form to them.....pointing out where taxes on the $960 was paid!!!

In conclusion, I'm glad I kept all my back tax information. I can't imagine 'what if' and I didn't have it!!! The IRS put everything on my shoulders to prove to them that THEY SCREWED UP!! Please....everyone...KEEP YOUR BACK TAX INFORMATION because you never know when you'll have to prove you're not a crook.

It's official...we're moving!

2006-06-22T23:36:00.000-07:00

Today brought an end to Lucy and I wondering we're we would be living this Fall. Lucy accepted a position as a Drug Information Specialist at a hospital in Greenville, SC and will be starting August 1st. Lucy has been stressed out over the past few weeks going to multiple interviews and actually turning down two different jobs because 'they didn't feel right'. After returning from the Greenville interview, she knew she wanted to work there and hoped they offered!
Greenville is actually one of the few cities in the South I haven't spent time in. I've driven through it going to Ashville, NC (which is only 1 hr away! YEAH), but never stopped. It's a short drive to the mountains and only about 3 hours from the beach! During her interview, she asked the employees if there were running trails for me (thanks LU!) and they said there were plenty. One of her future coworker's husband runs them often. It'll be hard-pressed to find a running club as organized as KC's, but I'll try....but it'll probably be just me running alone for a while.

More news to come!

dead deer

2006-06-18T22:19:00.000-07:00

As I did my trail run today, I rounded a turn and came upon a deer. Nothing unusual about that, but it only trotted a few feet from the trail and didn't run in fear. I jogged a few more feet and found out why. A tiny baby deer lay in the middle of the trail and was either dead or very sick because it was motionless as I walked past it.
It was actually a sad moment when I realized the adult deer didn't run away because she was watching over her baby. I looked over at the doe and felt a connection - she knew I wasn't going to do anything to her and I knew the situation she was in. I really don't expect the baby to live, but I guess I will see tomorrow when I hit the trails again.

Mission Days

2006-06-12T07:58:00.001-07:00

This past weekend, the area we live, Mission, was having their annual festivval, 'Mission Days'. There's aBBQ contests, car give-away, pancake breakfast, but the largest event is the cattle drive through downtown.

There were probably 50 cows lead by 5 cowboys on horseback. All the street were blocked off so the herd didn't have to worry about stopping at red lights.

Here are some pics from our sidewalk seat!

And the beat goes on.....

2006-06-09T10:14:00.000-07:00

Well...maybe I should say, "And the streak goes on!"...as in Lucy and I continuing to earn the self-given nickname of 'streak-busters!!!!'

We attended our second Kansas City Royals game last night and the woefull Royals won 16-12! This win ended a 9-game home losing streak. Along with the 16 runs, they had 18 hits and came back from a deficit of 11-4. If you combine the stats from this game to the previous Royals win (10-4 victory ending a 11-game losing streak), the Royals have combined for: 26 runs, 29 hits and ended two long streaks! They have only won 15 games in the entire year (for a terrible winning percentage of .250) and we have seen two of them!!!!

ALSO combine the Royals game to the Univ. of Kansas game we attended in the fall where the JayHawks beat NE for the first time in 37 years! Our nicknamed of the 'streak-busters' is well-earned!!!!! All fans of Kansas' sports team should pay for Lucy and I to attend.

My latest runs in the heat

2006-06-07T09:29:00.000-07:00

I've been getting back into the groove with my trail running the past few weeks. As the heat and humidity rise, my running seems to get stronger! I've come to realize after a year in KC that I'm a 'warm-weather runner'. Living here has allowed me to run when the weather is pushing 100 degrees and when it's near zero. Between the two, I prefer the scorching hot! I can't warm up when it's cold and my muslces stay stiff which leads to tripping while on trails. This past winter on a night-run at 4 degrees, I tripped due to me running 'tight' and drove my knee into a rock. It felt like someone hit me with a baseball bat across the knee. I of course, called my run short that night and stumbled back to the car. The point is: I'm loving the 90-degree weather and being able to take my shirt off and zip through the woods! The 'less layers the better' I always say!

Trip to Philadelphia

2006-06-06T09:07:00.000-07:00

Recently, Lucy had her first in a series of interviews for her future job. The locations range from Philly to Auburn, AL to Greeneville, SC with each position's job duties being a little different.
The first trip was to Philly and I was lucky enough to tag along. It's my third time to Pennsylvania and my second to Philly - the first time being the 2003 Illustration Conference. I still remembered my way around and was able to hit some spots I missed on my first time here....namely the Philadelphia Museum of Art (yes..the one Rocky ran up) and their Andrew Wyeth exhibit! Good stuff!
I compare my 'big city' experiences to ATL since it's the one I've spent the most time in. The first thing I look at is if people actually live downtown and if there's a 'community' atmosphere. Atlanta doesn't have this....it's just a big corporate dump with all the employees returning to the surrounding suburbs in the evening. Philly of the otherhand does have a great downtown area. There are local pubs, restaurants, bookstores, etc and people are always walking around and sitting in the parks. There's a 'life' to the area that ATL will never have. I sat and enjoyed a coffee in Rittenhouse Square (Lucy was shopping of course) and wished I lived in an area that had this feeling. Although not on par with NY, Philly would be a nice city to live.
BUT...we won't be moving there. Lucy was offered the job, but really didn't feel comfortable with the position. It's mostly a medical writing position, but she feels most comfortable in a hospital setting. Welp...it was a fun trip anyway!

Great Trail Run

2006-05-25T06:47:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I drove to Minor Park to enjoy a run on the trails. These are some of my favorite in the area since they involve multiple water crossings and varied terrain! The water level was low yesterday though (only covering my feet), but it has been almost to my waist before!

The route I run is about 7 miles and includes everything from flat stretches near the river to rolling and steep hills in woods. I felt good and covered the 7 miles in just over an hour. I only had to jump one baby rattlesnake (yikes!) and found only one tick on me while driving home (yuk!).

The photos above aren't from yesterday but from last Fall while I rode my bike on the trails.

Race shirts

2006-05-18T14:35:00.000-07:00

It's been great being a part of the KC Trail Nerds the past year in KC. Although I already considered myself a trail runner, I used to run alone. It's nice to have a group of peers who keep pushing me to get better. I would have never figured I would run a marathon....let along an ULTRA-marathon (anything beyond a marathon distance).
Anyway, I did a T-shirt for the group. Ben, the group organizer, printed copies for anyone who joined the group. Lately, I saw a lady wearing the shirt in the grocery store and a woman wearing it on a blog located in Illinois! Ben has said he's sold shirts to other countries included Thialand.

Ben is wanted to start a race series which will include 'shorter' races (usually anything under 10 miles). I have to have this shirt to him by next week. Here's the KC Trail Nerds shirt for anyone who hasn't seen it.

(we do a lot of night running)

My new toy

2006-04-27T12:38:00.000-07:00

As a relatively new freelancer in illustration, money is not something I have a lot of. This past weekend, I threw caution to the wind and broke the bank: spent some money on a new mountain bike. My old bike was just that...OLD! I bought it just after graduating college. Everytime I took it to the shop, it would cost me $75 - new brakes, tires, etc. It was a entry-level bike in the first place costing me only $300 brand new. Instead of dropping that much money on repairs, I spent the extra cash and bought a new one. It is a TREK 4500 - the next level up from my old bike. It's still an entry-level bike but perfect for the amount of riding I do. I also bought some lights for the night-riding I plan on doing!

Yeah...another way to hurt myself!!!!

Saturday, April 22nd

2006-04-24T13:13:00.000-07:00

This past Saturday, Lucy and I made the most of our day. We started our day by driving to Lawrence, KS to see an art show featuring a favorite illustrator of mine, John Hendrix. The show was entitled, "Dear Old Kansas" and was at the 'Signs of Life Gallery'. John is a relative newcomer to illustration and has been making it big for the past few years winning a few Society of Illustrators awards. He was a KU grad (in graphic design) before heading to NY to go to SVA's Illustration as Visual Essay program (which I didn't get into!!! #$Q#%$$#%). Anyway, his work has always jumped off the page to me (great colors!) but seeing it up close showed me how much detail he puts into each stroke. His work is all hand-done which I truly appreciate because I, too, prefer to paint by hand and try only to use photoshop when I'm pressed for time. Great stuff, John!

After Lawrence, Lucy and I, along with two of her coworkers, took in our first Royals game. Even though they were mired in an 11-game losing streak, Lucy and my 'mojo' was too strong and the Royals won! Lucy and I are regular 'streak breakers' this year. First, we attended our first Kansas Jayhawks football game last fall and they beat Nebraska for the first time in 36 games!!! Yowza! Even the Royals putrid play lately can't defeat us! What I'm truly disapointed about though is that the Royals didn't get 12 hits (ending their night at 11). At 12 hits, everyone in the stands get a dozen Krispy Kreme doughnuts. Even though they had 11 hits after 6 innings, they couldn't manage one...more...hits. My waistline thanks them though.

Here are some pics of our day.

Jack Daniels distillery

2006-04-11T23:05:00.000-07:00

Lucy and I visited some of our old friends in Nashville recently, David and Carlene. It was my first time spending any time in the city I've heard so much about. We both enjoyed it and look forward to making a few more trips there.
That weekend, we decided to visit Mufreesboro, TN, home of the Jack Daniels distillery. There's not much in Mufreesboro besides the distillery - the population is around 250 people which designates it a 'dry' county. Don't quote me but I remember hearing on the tour that a county in TN needs at least 2,500 people not to be considered 'dry'. Kinda odd that Jack Daniels, the item that puts the town on the map, can't be sold there. The distillery covers over 1,200 acres and is dotted with 80 warehouses full of casks of whiskey!
Here are a few pics from the trip. BTW, one photo depicts the 'killer' of Jack Daniels! After he purchased the safe, he had trouble opening it. One day he got frustrated trying and kicked it! He broke some bones in his foot, infection set in, and he later died from it.

My new job

2006-04-06T20:44:00.000-07:00

I never thought I'd really do it, but I actually worked in a grocery store today! It's not what you're thinking (me bagging groceries or working a register!). I actually gave out free samples of juice........intriqued now? Here is some background information.

My sister, Melanie, moved to Fort Worth, TX, to work for Bolthouse Farms as a sales rep.
The sales rep is asked to find a 'demo team', a group of people who set up a table at local grocery stores and give out samples of their juice. Melanie met the local KC sales rep for BH, Natalie, who mentioned she was looking for 'demo' people. Melanie mentioned I lived in the area....so a few weeks later, I'm a Bolthouse employee!

It's really a laid back job. Since I do freelance, I can work whenever I like, keep all the opened juice (which I buy anyway), and get a decent hourly wage for it. When I have plenty of freelance jobs, I won't work that week. But there are times when I need to get out of the house (and have human interaction) so why don't I get paid for it? The employees at the grocery store were great as well today. I started at 12:00 so I didn't eat lunch beforehand. The ladies around the store brought me samples to try: spicy chicken nuggets, chile, fresh fruit, and my juice! I actually ate better than I usually do!

I wish I would've brough my sketchbook though. There were plenty of times when I had five minutes to draw when noone was passing by the booth. Hopefully I can get some sketches over the next few weeks.

Never thought I'd be a juice salesman!

St.Louis trip

2006-04-04T13:43:00.000-07:00

While Lucy worked in St.Louis for the month of March, we managed to make it to the arch one weekend. Here are a few pics.

great illustration

2006-03-31T13:28:00.000-08:00

In this week's New Yorker (April 3rd issue), P.C. Vey summed up my IRS debacle perfectly!! Honestly, at least in the cartoon, the accountant only added ONE zero. The goof at the IRS who 'tried' to finish my taxes added TWO zeros.....

(shaking head)

Recovering

2006-03-29T19:52:00.000-08:00

I'm in a recovery mode both physically and mentally. As most of my friends know, I ran a 50k back on February 11th. Physically, I really wasn't ready because I didn't (actually, wasn't able to due to travel/work) put in enough training miles. I did finish the race, but it definitely set my running back. After the swelling in my feet went down, my legs still felt weak and wobbly. Only in the last two weeks have I been able to up my milage to about 5 miles per run/twice a week. So far, so good, but I just have to keep trying!

Also, mentally, I'm adjusting to the news I got this week. SVA didn't accept me into their MFA illustration program. Bummer. Not to sound cocky, but I really thought I would be able to get in and was really looking forward to the experience of being in a artistically stimulating school environment, and moving to New York, the 'illustration capital (if there is such a thing!). The school didn't say what they based their decision on only saying in the letter, "we regret to inform you...",....yadda, yadda. You know it's never good news when you read that! It's just a case of me counting my chickens before they hatched.

With me receiving the grad school news this week, it clarifies Lucy and my future plans a little. Lucy has been looking for potential job all along (she's always prepared!) so she'll start interviewing soon. I know she's heard from hospitals at Auburn, AL and Greenville and Charleston, SC so she'll ultimately decide where we'll end up this fall - that's really how we ended up in KS anyway!! I will enjoy the move to a new place.....Not that I don't like Kansas (I will miss many things about it!), but moving is always exciting. It may not be New York....but what is?

For me, I'll have to push my freelance even harder since I know school isn't in the immediate future. I've been holding off sending out mailers because my website hasn't been updated in so long and didn't want the ADs to see the same images. Luckily, my good friend, Sania, is in the middle of rebuilding my site. (yeah!!!). Maybe by this summer, I'll be sending out the first round of my new mailers.

So my recovery continues.....the news I got this week maybe wasn't what I wanted, but the direction I'll be headed can be just as rewarding. I'll continue running, continue inking....and continue to stay positive!! (some new jobs would help with that last one!)

Jason

Another reason to hate taxes

2006-03-17T13:13:00.000-08:00

This is my first year having freelance as my sole source of income. Even though my 'business skills' are nothing to brag about, I feel as though I've prepared my small business the best I can. Besides the usual problem of finding customers, advertising, supplies, etc, all small business owners know the aggravations of taxes.

I recently finished my 2005 taxes. I didn't feel confident enought to do them myself so I went to H&R Block and had no problems. It turns out I DID do a decent job of handling my biz and expect to receive a small amount back.

Well, my parents (my address two years ago) call yesterday and it turns out that there IS a problem.....with my 2004 taxes!!! (2004???!!??). Yep, it seems like the IRS expects me to pay (after penalties, etc) 45,000 dollars!!!! because they said I made $96,000 from one of my customers. Anyone who is close to me knows I didn't make 96k....and if I did, it never reached me!! Actually I made $960 from that particular customer and after an IRS screwup (obviously someone whose '0' key was stuck and added TWO extra '0's), the govt is after me. Why this is the FIRST time I've received ANY paperwork from the IRS questioning or asking ANYTHING is beyond me. This is a perfect example that a person can have everything together with your paperwork prepared and still get screwed.

I hate incompetent people. And even worse, I HATE incompetent people who have the power to send letters and expect me to pay money after THEIR screwup. I'm calling the accountant who did my 2004 taxes and contacted the customer who will need to send the 1099 tax form in question. Hopefully after I jump through the many hoops that's sure to come, I can get this resolved.

And if not, does anyone know of a good place I can go into hiding....'cause I WON'T (and when I say 'won't', I mean CAN'T) pay $45,000!!!!

Thank you, IRS. Really....thanks. (and when I say 'thank you', you know what I really mean)

strange day of weather

2006-03-12T22:15:00.000-08:00

You never knew what the weather was gonna give you yesterday. The morning started out warm and sunny so I thought I would enjoy the day with some biking or running. Instead of I was startled out of a nap with tornado sirens! Most of the eastern border of Kansas had a tornado warning with the worst storm centered near downtown KC - about 10 away from me. Luckily, my home didn't see the hail or rain that was only miles away. The storms slowly moved to the northeast - exact the opposite direction from me! Good stuff.

Within 45 minutes of hearing the first siren, it was SUNNY again! Well, I started getting my bike ready to go outside, ate some lunch, but then the clouds rolled in. Let's just say I thought it best to just have a lazy Sunday instead of rolling the dice with this fluxuating weather.

That night, I sketched at the local coffee shop for about an hour. It was very warm and felt like a wonderful night to be outside. Welp...to keep up the trend for the day, a huge storm was coming in the distance filled with high winds and lightening.

Wierd. But I was lucky the bad storms seem to stay away from me. Lawrence, KS got it bad (classes are closed tomorrow with 60% of the campus bldgs damaged) along with Columbia, MO. This link shows an accident only about 45 minutes from my apartment.

Another take on Bonds and steroids

2006-03-11T18:18:00.000-08:00

It's too late to change baseball's fate: The 1990s will forever be known as the steroid generation. Fans, owners, players and journalist all helped by ignoring sometimes obvious problems. As with most things that take us by surprise or hurt us, people want to take immediately actions to solve the problem. What can we do (if anything) to help heal the sport? Should the 'roiders be kicked out of the game? Should there stats have an asterisk? Should certain players be banned from the hall? There are no right answers when it comes to this, but by looking at precedents set by earlier players, I have my own solutions.

What do you think of when I say Shoeless Joe Jackson? Mostly people think of the biggest black eye for baseball ever, the Black Sox scandal. SJJ 'is' a Hall-worthy player (.356 career BA, .408 rookie ave - highest ever, etc) but will never be inducted because of his association with that White Sox team. It doesn't matter that people still debate whether he helped throw the 1919 world series (a judge ruled him innocent), SSJ will always be guilty by association. This is the same situation Barry Bonds finds himself and will ALWAYS be remembered.

Bonds was a Hall-worthy player even before he allegedly started using steroids (1998), and is generally considered the best player in the decade of the 90s. He's never failed a drug test and all steroid allegations seem to bounce off (much like TN in college FB...but that's another story :). But by being the poster-child for the Steroid Generation, his legacy will always be a tainted one. You can't delete his stats from the books because you would be singling out Bonds when there were so many more 'roiders, BUT the good news is that historians won't need to put an asterisk by his statistics because he will always be guilty by association.

Pete Rose is the other player I can draw comparisons to Bonds dilemma. Rose is also a Hall-worthy players. Besides being the all-time hits-kings, Charlie Hustle was one of the most likable players during his day. He is of course banned from baseball and not eligible for Hall consideration even though his biggest sin (betting of the game) occurred AFTER his playing days.

This is one of the biggest arguments for the pro-Bonds crowd. They say he was already Hall-worthy before he started taking the 'roids so even after discounting his stats from 1998-06, he should still be in the Hall. Well, if you go by the Rose case, then no, he shouldn't. BOTH players committed sins against the game. By betting on games, He affected the integrity of the sport. I argue that Bonds did the same thing.

In closing, Bonds will forever be guilty by association. Even though you can't erase his statistics from the records books (you can't single him out), his legacy, like Shoeless Jackson's, is tarnished. Also, both Bonds and Rose had Hall-of-Fame careers, but neither deserve to be in the Hall. Each affected the integrity of the sport by their actions.

Knowing that the 'roiders generation and all their inflated stats will forever be tarnished is all I need to heal. Baseball is about more than 70+ homer seasons. It's about players like Dale Murphy who played the game the right way. It's too bad his stats pale in comparison to the 'roiders, but he has something they never will: integrity.

Game of Shadows

2006-03-07T12:12:00.000-08:00

I grew up a sports-lover and followed every sports according to season. I bought baseball cards, memorized stats (which I can still tell you some), and idolized my favorite players. Even one of my birthday cakes was Mark McGwire themed - topped with one of his baseball cards and decorated with green and yellow icing.
Over the years, my love of 'sports' hasn't changed, but my idolization of athletes have. As I started viewing sports through an adult's eyes, I couldn't ignore the fact that the athletes were human and had the same flaws regular people have. The have domestic disputes, drinking/drug problems, and traffic violations; things you can read about everyday in your city's paper. Again, as a fan, I understood everyone has problems but these issues didn't affect their play on the field and the sport directly. That is until the steriod contreversy over the last two decades. Nothing has made me lose more respect for athletes and forced me away from the professional athletics.
I've never been blind to the issue. Even as a kid in the 80s, I saw the changes in the athletes. In the early 90s as Sammy Sosa went from a skinny, base-stealing threat to a hulking, homerun killer, my friends and I joked that we needed to join his off-season workout program. Even though we really didn't know what steroids were and how they worked, my friends and I all assumed his muscle gain wasn't 'natural' because we KNEW he couldn't bulk up that much in one offseason. How the adults and other athletes could ignore this is beyond me.
During my college years as McGwire and Sosa blasted homeruns farther than anyone player before, I found it easy to ignore the problem as well. It was fun every morning reading the box scores and seeing that they hit ANOTHER homerun inching ever closer to historic records. In the back of my mind, I knew that it wasn't natural (along with what I've already mentioned about Sammy, how could McGwire go from an injury-prone 6'5" skinny player to a Paul Bunyan, 70-homer monster?). Yet, all baseball fans chose to look past this because maybe we still idolized the players and their superhuman feats. We wanted them to be able to do things noone is the long history of baseball came close to. Second basemen, traditionally the weak-hitting link of team, were putting up 30+ homerun years. In previous decades, 40 homeruns would probably win the player the HR title, but in the 90s, that number was reached by the allstar break. I call these years the 'Nintendo' years because of the out-of-the-world stats ALL players were putting up. Besides, fans were still healing from the effects of the '94 strike and these feats helped us heal.
So as the information has mounted over the past few seasons of how much steroids were part of the 90s baseball culture, what will heal us from this? I 'knew' Sosa was a user, I understood that McGwire, my childhood idol, did as well. I saw Brady Anderson and how he went from a high of 18 homeruns to 51 the next season, and finally, NOONE could ignore Barry Bonds and his age-defying seasons. As each year passed and more ridiculous stats were put up, the more I became bitter about how these players were ruining the SPORT.
One of the best things about baseball is that the game hasn't changed. It's the one sport you can compare statistics from the 20s to the present day and argue which team or player is better. Sure, the athletes of today are in better shape than years ago, but at the same time, the competition is tougher. Could Babe Ruth be as good today as he was in his generation? How would Alex Rodriguez do against a young Sandy Kofax? Steroids changed this though. You can no longer compare the 90s generation to previous ones because their feats aren't 'natural'. These players were making a joke of the game, and if something wasn't done, irrepreble damage.
Now that a new book is coming out entitled 'Game of Shadows' detailing Barry Bonds' steroid use, maybe this is another step towards healing the game. If you love baseball, you can't enjoy the 90s and what they did to the sport. It's too bad, but as long as baseball is played and those stats are kept, that generation will have to be known as the 'steroid' generation. If it's confirmed that Bonds was a user, do you want to delete his stats? What about Palmero and his documented failed steroid test? What about the other suspicious stats? It's sad because you CAN'T delete one without deleating ALL of them....and that won't happen. Because of everyone (fans, other players, owners and higher-ups) ignoring the problems for so long, the generation is tarnished. All we can do is hope everything comes to light and any player who has used to be confronted.

The critter in our ceiling

2006-03-06T09:20:00.000-08:00

Even though I'm typing in St.Louis (due to Lucy having to work here during the month of March), I feel like I'm back in Macon, GA. It seems like we have a 'critter' in our ceiling at our apartment back in KC. I say 'critter' because we don't know if it's a squirrel or a rat, but what we're CERTAIN of is that is scraps, scratches, and claws right above the bed most of the night.

While I lived in Macon in a 'not-so-nice', old home, the season of the year determined what 'critter' I had bothering me. During the winter, I had squirrels running laps in the ceiling. During the Spring, the birds bird a nest in the wall only 2-3 feet from my head and finally during the summer, bugs (roaches) LOVED to come inside the damp, old home.

After those experinces, you figure I'd be used to a pest bothering me, but this past Friday night was the worst. It started going to work around 11:00pm (just as we were going to bed) and only got louder as the night we along. Finally, we just got up, and played video games in my work room (it was still too loud to be in the living room) until 4:00am.

Being in St.Lous for the next few days have allowed us to escpape to quiet place to sleep. Hopefully the maintenance guys will find the 'problem' before I get back.

I hate critters....especially the ones that bother my sleeping.

Constructive weekend

2006-02-27T13:25:00.000-08:00

It always feels nice to get a lot of things done. This past weekend, Lucy and I accomplished a lot of things that may not have been fun, but were necessary. First, we had both of our cars serviced and had the brakes replaced in Lucy's car. She will be working in St.Louis during the month of March so we wanted to get this out of the way. I'll be making a few trips back and forth from KC to St.Louis so I'll be putting many miles of my car as well.

We then cleaned the apt. for the rest of the afternoon. We washed clothes, vaccumed the apt., did the dishes, and finally, swept the patio.

Lucy skipped town on my birthday (2-17) to go to a bachorlette party in ATL so we had planned to go out to eat at a nice restaurant Saturday night, Cafe Maison. It's part of the KC Originals group, a collection of nice, locally owned restaurants. They're pretty expensive so we go when we can. The place was great and I had some of the best bread puddin' I've ever eaten! Apparently, they have a spectacular Sunday brunch and I think we'll hit it before we head to St.Louis next weekend.

Sunday was the dreaded 'tax day'. We both went to H&R Block only a few miles from the apartment. For me, 2005 was split between a having a fulltime job in Macon, GA until May and moving to KC and having freelance as my sole income afterwards. I'm no tax expert but I tried to organize all my financial info - payments received, reciepts, etc. I went to H&R expecting to have to pay a lot of money, but luckily for me, I had a lot of 'write-offs' from everything I had to buy to start freelancing (mainly $4,000+ for a G5 and a huge scanner). I didn't get back much money but anything was a relief. Maybe Lucy will extend my birthday wishes and use some of the money she got back on me!

After a busy but constructive weekend, I headed out today to enjoy the beautiful weather here and do some mountain biking. As luck would have it, I not only popped the tube, but tore the tire itself only a mile into the ride. Add 'fixing bike' to the list of things to do NEXT weekend.

Another WYCO update

2006-02-17T12:11:00.000-08:00

All the finishing times from Psycho Wyco have been posted now. At first, I was just happy to finish and not worried about my times. Later, I saw the times and felt pretty good with my finish (23rd out of 43 finishers; 3rd in my age group [20-29]; 6hrs: 40min finishing time). Now, six days after the race, I'm a little disapointed with my finish because I KNOW I could do much better if I could have trained. I didn't 'bonk' and my breathing was perfect, but I didn't put enough 'time on my feet' to stay mobile for a 50k. My weak ankles and flat feet couldn't take it - evident by the swelling for days afterwards. Nothing bothers me more than not doing my best. Not that I think I didn't do my best DURING the race...I just didn't do my best getting ready for it.
Of course, I said I would never do another race like that again as I limped around this week. But maybe my ego and desire to keep pushing myself will get the best of me. Besides....there is a 50-miler coming up in April!!!!!!

Psycho Wyco race review

2006-02-12T17:09:00.000-08:00

"Welp, at least I made myself finish." I keep saying to myself as I hobble around on my swollen, bum ankles today. I knew I hadn't trained enough of the past several months to compete in a 50k but I thought I could at least do the required three laps and finish.

I had run on the course many times. The KC Trail Nerds train there on Thursday nights and we usually do one lap (10+miles). No problem with that length...but my body usually starts breaking down around around the 'high teens'. It's not the dreaded 'wall' that marathoners talk about, but it's my flat feet and weak ankles that start to ache. I was just hoping that they could hold up for all three laps.

The weather in KC has been wonderful since Christas - mostly 40s and 50s and sunny. So it came as a surprise when I closed the door to leave and saw SNOW! And I saw on the news that it was only going to reach 30 degrees as the high. Thank you Mother Nature. You're not making it any easier for me. I don't mind the cold weather, but the snow makes the course HARD to run. Snow makes hill climbing harder...and even worse, the snow will melt and leave mud, my leave favorite thing on trails. I enjoy cruising on fast, rolling hills. This course is anything but: huge, steep, muddy hills to climb.

The number of people at the race took all of us by surprise. Ben, the race director, said last year, he had 40 people to sign up. This year after adding the raceday applicants, the total was 230 runners! (60 for the 50k; 50 for the 22miles; 120 for the 10miles). Ben did a marvelous job in organizing everthing (T-shirts, medals, food, marking the track, etc). Other KC Trail Nerds supplied food, soup, chili, etc so we had plenty of carbs to power through. I'll post pictures of the medal (w/ my logo!), T-shirts, and pics from the race soon!

I cruised through the first lap with no problems, but about halfway through the second lap, I knew I was in trouble. I completed the second lap after 3hr: 45min but I knew my feet were finished for the day and ready to hang it up. Call me determined (or just stupid), but I HAD to earn my finishers medal so I headed out for the third, and final, lap. It was bad...I tripped, hobbled, and whined my way through the last 10+ miles and crossed the finish line after 6hrs: 40 mins (yes...that's correct...it took me almost three hours to finish the last lap...barely more than the first two). I wasn't last place though!!! And considering it was only the second time I had ever run over 20 miles, it was an accomplishment....maybe not the smartest thing to do, but something I felt was important: to finish my hometown race in which my running group, KC Trail Nerds, sponsored.

As I crawl (literally) around my apt. today hoping the pain will go away within a few days, I consider myself lucky to be able to get outside and push myself. Maybe pushing (i.e. - hurting!) myself to finish will be a 'defenitive moment' for me. Nah...who am I kidding...it was just a race....

Songs for the race

2006-02-09T11:31:00.000-08:00

I've been taking advantage of the ipod shuffle Lucy bought me for Christmas and have used it the last few trail runs when I go alone. I'm sure most of the 50k Saturday, I will be running alone as I won't be able to keep up with the fast KC 'Trailers'. This is where my ipod will come in handy.
I've been experimenting w/ different genres of music on my runs. Depending on what mindset or situation in the race, I'll listen to different songs. This is what I expect to happen.

As I charge out of the gate and onto the first lap, I'll be fun of energy and not focused on pain. I'll just have some upbeat background music. Maybe:
• Chesterfield Kings
• Howling Wolf
• CCR (specifically the jammin 'Heard it through the Grapevine' rendition)
• Flamin' Groovies

On the second lap, I'll have to play something I can sing along to. I have to have something to take my mind of 'the hurts' that will be inevitable. I'll turn to the 'classics' and play songs I know all the words to. I'll look like 'goon' as I run and sing.
• Johnny Cash
• Waylon Jennings
• Bob Dylan
• Townes Vand Zandt
• Gordon Lightfoot

By the third lap, I'll probably be 'loopy' and not thinking straight. My mind will be floating and probably will feel like I'm under the influence. I'll work this condition and use it to help me finish.
• Velvet Underground - heroin
• Pixies - Where is my mind
• Doors - The end
• Roky Erikson (13th floor elevators)
• Brian Eno

Last run before the 50k

2006-02-07T22:25:00.000-08:00

Today, I got to hit the WYCO trails for the last time before Saturday, raceday. I ran one full loop and finished in 1:45 minutes which I'm satisfied with. The race will be three loops but I doubt I will be able to keep that pace. On the third lap, I'll probably be delusional, seeing spots, and mumbling incoherently so the pace won't matter anyway. The most important thing for me is to run 'my race'. I know I'm not as good as my KC Trail brethren so I can't start too fast and try to keep up with them. They'll be racing to clock a fast time, but it'll be an accomplishment for me just to finish.
I've got my ipod full of songs, my new trail shoes in (broken in today), and I'm as in-shape as I'm gonna get before Saturday. The next few days, I'll take it easy, eat right, and get plenty of sleep! Wish me luck, and if I make it out of the woods and remember any of race, I'll write something about it!

I've uploaded some photos of the course I took several weeks ago. They really don't convey the change of elavation on the trail. Brutal. It's definitely the hardest course I've run.

Another hurdle down

2006-02-06T15:29:00.000-08:00

This has been a busy start to my year. Just as it seems I can get back in a groove of work, making my own art, and exercise (my favorite things), something else comes up. I've already written plenty about the 3 weeks bouncing back 'n forth across the country, going to weddings, and finishing grad school applications. Just as I think I've wrapped everything up, my alternator and battery died in my car. Two hundred dollars and a wasted day later, maybe....just maybe...I can get started on work. Luckily it had just enough juice to make it home 'cause when it started having problems, I was about 30 minutes from home w/ no phone.

I've changed a few alternators before (2 on my old Buick and 1 on my friend, Sam's Buick) so I knew what to expect. There a big difference in my old Buick and my new Pontiac. Mainly it has to do with 'working room'. I could practically climb into the engine in my Buick - plenty of room to work! I had to take off three parts just to get to my alternator on the Grand Prix though....aggravations and busted knuckles ensued.

Getting ready

2006-02-02T08:25:00.000-08:00

I've got a huge physical undertaking coming up - a 50k on February 11th. I'll be the first to admit I haven't trained NEARLY enough. I've been bouncing around the country and finishing an ill-timed work load to keep any sort of schedule.
Over the last week, I have been picking up my pace though doing either biking or running on most days. It won't be enough for me to be confident I can finish the race, but it'll have to do. I'm about to go bike for a few hours then run tonight w/ the trail gang.
Lucy was sweet enough to get me an ipod shuffle for Christmas. To let you know how busy I've been, yesterday was the first day I even took it out of the box. I've loaded it up w/ some inspirational bikin' music. Here's some highlights:

Chesterfield Kings - great 70s punk band
Flamin' Groovies - another great 70s punk band. Listen to "Heading for the Texas Border"
Link Wray
Wolf Parade
Q65
The Dead 60s

Time to bike!

FINALLY! I see the light!

2006-01-31T07:03:00.000-08:00

This has been some past month, but I think I may have finally seen the light at the end of the tunnel! As I've posted earlier, I've barely been in the same city for two consective weeks: two weeks in GA for Christmas. Back in KC for 1.5 weeks. Back to ATL for Paul Boyd's wedding for 5 days then back to KC. I then had to wrap up my grad school info (slides, story, statement of purpose, etc, etc) and mail it off within a week! I stayed up all night last night dottin' my 'I's and crossin' my 'T's, but I finished it and mail it 'next day' to New York! Wish me luck everyone. Lucy and I may be in New York next year.
Now I can get back to jobs I've had to put off. (sorry everyone! You know who you are!)

Married Land

2006-01-16T11:50:00.000-08:00

After my two weeks in GA over Christmas, you'd figure I'd be 'Georgia'd out'. Nope, I gotta head back for another week for Paul Boyd's wedding. Honestly, I had just gotten back in the KC swing from the first trip and now I'll be living outta a suitcase for another week. No problem though because it'll be nice to see Paul one more time before he heads off to 'Married Land' - a place where old friends go to rarely be seen again. Not his fault though...it happens to everyone and will probably happen to me also. Seems like marriage is the imaginary point when the past is put away (old friends, places you used to frequent, college crap) and the 'new' begins - jobs, kids, house, etc. Guess I'll be booking my ticket to Married Land soon. Bon Voyage, Paul!

Snowy run

2006-01-10T14:08:00.000-08:00

Instead of doing a night run with the trail group, I decided to head out on my own and do a loop at WYCO. Since I'm trying to get in better shape as fast as I can for the upcoming race there, I figure what better way to train than on location!
What started out as an overcast, chilly run became a snowy mud fest! The snow felt great against my face as I charged down the hills. What I didn't like was the mud though. Some of my running breathren like to slip and slide through the trees. I don't. I prefer to ZOOM and while zooming....I prefer TRACTION! I didn't wear my spiked trail shoes either ('spiked' as in drilled screws in the bottom) so about midway through the first lap, I was doing more walking than running. At that point, I jogged around the lake on the paved highway. It was still fun to be the only person out and to see the hazy snow in the distance, but pavement running can't compete. My trail run will just have to continue at another time when I wear the proper muddin' shoes.

WYCO trail run

2006-01-09T13:17:00.000-08:00

Just got back from a wonderful run at Wyandotte Co. Park (WYCO), the site of the 'Psycho WYCO' race I'm running in February. The course is an extremely difficult 10+ mile, single-track loop, but the race will be THREE times around . Ben Holmes, the organizer of the Psycho WYCO, and the 'KC Trail Nerds', have put a lot of effort in making the course as challenging as possible and is easily the hardest I've ever run. Saturday morning, we worked on about 1.5 miles of track and the group (without me) ran two loops. Since I was unable to make it, I decided to get my butt out there today.

The race is coming up fast and I haven't been training as hard as I need to. With the 2-week vacaction back home in December, all the good (i.e. 'fattening') foods during the Holidays, and ANOTHER trip to GA next week for my friend's wedding, it's been hard to keep any regular schedule. I'm gonna really have to pick up the pace over the next few weeks and will try to 'hit the trails' most days even for short runs. The hardest thing for me isn't the breathing but the long time spent on my flat feet. My feet along with my knees will start aching soon after one lap I'm sure.

I've never considered myself a 'runner', but a person who likes to run. I enjoy pushing myself and my limits and is probably the reason I do it anyway. The marathon I finished back in October was hard enough but this 50k coming up on a much harder course will really test me!
All I can do is work hard up to that point and give it the 'ol college try! Wish me luck!

Oh, I design the shirt for the race so I gotta represent. I'll try and post some photos of the course after my next run there.

Back in KC!

2006-01-05T07:19:00.000-08:00

Finally...I've gotten reorganized from my vacation to write. That was a very long two weeks living outta a suitcase back in GA. First, I lost my Montblanc pen at the airport. Lucy got sick on the way home. A quick turnaround job came up and only had Christmas weekend to do 6 illustrations with no supplies and my parent's slow computer! Finally on the way home, our flight was delayed in ATL because of tornados!! Hopefully everyone sees the irony when the only tornados I experience are in Atlanta...not Kansas. Overall, it was nice to see the family and visit some of my 'ol stomping grounds. I got a chance to run on the trails in Macon 4 times and once in Athens. I'm very happy to be back in Kansas City and not living outta my suitcase....at least for the next two weeks until I have to head back to GA for a wedding........

Back in GA

2005-12-23T07:51:00.000-08:00

After an aggravating day of state hoppin', Lucy and I are back in GA. I spent yesterday visiting Macon, the place I lived for a year before moving to KC. Macon gives me mixed emotions: I love to see my old friends, go to my favorite coffee shop (they gave me my latte free yesterday!) and run on one of my favorite trails. Along with the good comes the bad though. Macon isn't a great city. A lot of areas aren't 'safe'. It has gotten better over the last few years - the downtown where I lived has been restored but it seems more and more people are leaving Macon for other areas (Warner Robins, Perry, etc.). Also, I really grew sick of my job in Macon. Driving down some of the streets brought back the same 'sick' feeling I had when I worked - a dread of having to do the same boring jobs with no hope of creativity involved. I had to remind myself that I wasn't working there....just visiting!
I'm sure I'll go trailrunning again soon and will bring my camera. I'd like to show my Kansas friends my Macon trails. Maybe I'll get to Athens over the holidays and take some trail photos there too!

The all-nighter

2005-12-13T21:27:00.000-08:00

Well..here I am sitting behind the computer late night again. Although I don't do all-nighters nearly as often as I used to (college days and during my jail sentence working in Macon), they still happen. It's usually because of deadlines and/or procrastination. I don't 'put off' work and just sit around doing nothing.......I usually just end up working on something I 'want' to instead of the work I 'need' to. Tonight happens to fit that instance. Got a deadline for sketches tomorrow, but instead of doing it today, I work on my weekly 'Illustration Friday' entry. Then I napped....and after that, I did my weekly Tuesday night trail run. So after settling down to work, it's midnight.
But you know what? I don't mind all-nighters...and I even like them sometimes. I like the quiet. I like when I'm listening to music and I like the darkness out the window. I'm a nerd and like 'coast-to-coast-AM'. I like to drink coffee...all day and night! Anyway...guess this blog entry was just another way to put off work. Gotta go...'coast-to-coast AM' is coming on and I'm sure it's something about ghosts!

Music I'm into lately:
The Meters
My morning jacket
Andrew Bird
Chesterfield Kings

Christmas surprise

2005-12-11T15:45:00.000-08:00

If you'll be reading this blog, you'll soon see that future posts will jump from present time to this past summer when I moved here. I've been taking pics all along but just now started posting them. Here is a more recent one.
Lucy and I put up our 'Charlie Brown' tree on the last day of November. She was leaving for a week-long pharacy trip the next day so we wanted to finish it before she would be gone. When nearing the end of decorating, she was admirering our handywork and looked pleased, but then I said, "there's one ornament missing though!" Lucy looked confused then I pulled out her surprise and asked, "Lucy, will you marry me?" Since I had been decorating our little tree, I was already in the 'asking position'. Totally caught off guard, she had the 'deer in headlights' look for most of the night and into the next day. Let me put it like his, Lucy rarely has a shortage of comments and isn't afraid to state her opinion on ANYTHING. This is what caught me off guard!

Oh...she said yes!

Snow running!

2005-12-11T15:33:00.000-08:00

Had my first 'snow run' this past Saturday morning. The group has been telling me, "wait 'til we're running when it's cold and snowy..." all along so I was prepared for the worst. Actually the weather was nice and I overdressed. After the last few days, the cold weather is moving north and leaving us w/ pleasant temperatures in the high 30s/low 40s. When we started Saturday morning at 8:30am, it chilly but bearable. The run was 10 miles and would normally take us 1hr, 30min. during the summer, but on this snowdy day, we were gone for 2+ hours....and it was tough going. I only slipped a few times, but you had to watch every step because you never knew what the snow covered - sticks, rocks, or deep horse hoof prints (we run on horse trails).
After we finished, the park was having a 'chili run'. It's an annual event where people run a 10k then donate some money or clothing to charity. There's homemade chili and goodies available to everyone....so I donated my cash and had lunch!

Halloween '05

2005-12-08T22:57:00.000-08:00

As most friends know, Halloween is a huge event for the Crosby clan. It was the best holiday of the year - friends, food, drinks, and plenty of laughing. I guess having the creative gene didn't hurt either. We would (still do) spend wwaaay too much time making our costumes or even a haunted trail when we were younger.
Over the past several months, Lucy and I have been watching wrestling on and off. She actually didn't know Ric Flair until we started and now, everytime he walks into the ring, she laughs. I thought, "why not make her a Flair costume for Halloween? She's already loud enough to pull his act off!!" (heheheh). Anyway, I probably put 15 hours into sewing her robe and making her old school WWF belt. I spent so much time making hers that I had to do the worst thing possible (not quite as not having any costume), but I had to 'buy' one. BOO! I was a voodoo doll....who actually looked like a person in a giant potatoe sack. BOO! Luckily, no one took any photos of me before my camera batteries died. I do wish I could've snapped a pic of Lucy wearing her full 'Flair' garb (including colorful boas not pictured) and doing the 'Flair strut'.
My sis, Melanie, and her fiance, Brad, drove to KC from Fort Worth to spend Halloween with us. Mel pulled off the 'bad ass fairy' costume pretty well! Enjoy the pics!

Finally...a post!

2005-12-08T22:52:00.000-08:00

I made two different blog when I started - one for illustration and one for pics. I've been great about updating my picture blog, but haven't done ONE entry for the 'Midwest Ramblings' blog. Until now...We just had a big snow storm (5-8 inches) yesterday and today. Here are a few shots. Hopefully I can dig up more photos from the past several months!

Hello Everyone!

2005-07-25T19:08:00.000-07:00

Welcome to our blog! Jason and I are having a wonderful time in kansas city so far. I'm getting lots of good experience during my drug information residency at KUMed.

When we get a digital camera, we'll be able to post some pictures on this site to give you a better idea of things we've seen!