Chess

Yes I have began playing Chess once again. Study a bit each day and have joined a chess club. My Chess playing has also allowed me to hook up with an old friend I have not talked with in over a decade.

Quote of the Day
Everything in excess! To enjoy the flavor of life, take big bites. Moderation is for monks.
--- Excerpt from the notebooks of Lazarus Long

Just For a Laugh

Had to throw this in here today. Since I was browsing Youtube and came across this commercial.

Guitar Lesson 101

Since I have a few guitars and no skills, I really like when I find a well made guitar lesson on Youtube. By well made I mean, visually it shows everything and for those of us lacking any type of real teaching its easy to understand and fun.

Hurt- Johnny Cash Version guitar lesson


Here is another link to another lesson of Hurt on The Guitar Teachers Notebook site.

Hurt- Johnny Cash

Quote of the Day
Mistakes are a part of being human. Appreciate your mistakes for what they are: precious life lessons that can only be learned the hard way. Unless it's a fatal mistake, which, at least, others can learn from.
---Al Franken

Hospice 5K

Today's 5K at Hospice of Volusia county did not really go as planned. I learned several new lessons at this race. Me, Dee, Jinelle and Brittany all entered. This was the first race we had run that had been melt your face hot. It was like 90F at 8am and sunny. This race also had to have the most people we ever saw at a race up to this point, close to 600.

Mistakes I Made
1. I had really been slacking on the running, and my result shows this.
2. I wore all black to a sunny, hot, 3.1mi race i was not conditioned for.
3. I started the race and ran the first mile way to fast.

Dee did not set any record for this race but she has been running a lot. I really think the heat took its toll on all of us. Every race up to this one I had handily beat her by 5 Min's or more. Not this day, at 2 miles she over took me and pulled away. She was the only reason my time was not 5 min slower. (Pride) I refused to let her beat me, I honestly could hear her and Jinelle taunting me with that scenario in my head the last mile.

Brittany ran a really respectable 27 min time and finished 2ND in her age group. Unfortunately after a mile she took off her sneakers and ran the last 2Mi barefoot. With her sneakers in her hands she crossed the finish and the detector never registered her race chip.

All in all it was a fun morning, Mel and Mom went and we all had a good time.

Quote of the Day
Everywhere is walking distance if you have the time.
---Steven Wright

TROUGH

trough -
Function: noun
Pronunciation:
\ˈtrof, ˈtroth, by bakers often ˈtrō\

This morning as we watched the first day of the Olympics an argument broke out between Dee and myself. It all had to do with how one simple word was pronounced. She is of the trof camp and I am of the troth camp.

It is days such as this that I wonder how I could have married a woman who pronounces trough with an F. Neither of us were wrong, seeing as it is pronounced both ways.

But in the end, in her eyes, I am wrong.

Quote of the Day
Watch your thoughts, they become words.
Watch your words, they become actions.
Watch your actions, they become habits.
Watch your habits, they become your character.
Watch your character, it becomes your destiny
---Unknown

A little Guitar post

A Guitar Teacher's Lesson Notebook - A Blog I have been reading as of late and am now putting under my guitar links on the sidebar. Really nice simple down to earth lessons for those of us who are really new to playing with lots of songs broken down into chords and strums also. The guy has a great sense of humor as well.

New Run

Well I am now focusing on the Hospice 5k, Sept 14Th. Ran last night for the fist time in like a month. I do believe I am going to have to really get running to beat my last 5K time. Dee is pounding the pavement nightly. Finishing behind her would also have dire consequences.

The back room nears completion after months of procrastination. Just have to finish up the base moulding and paint it.

Quote of the Day
Nice guys finish last, but we get to sleep in.
---Evan Davis

Cuil

CUIL - The new search engine that's suppose to give Google a run for their money.

Been playing with it for a few days and I do like the fact it does bring back some different things than Google.

Quote of the Day
A man travels the world over in search of what he needs and returns home to find it.
---George Moore

Crime Spree

Paid today to have Dee's truck side window replaced. Someone smashed it in to take her purse with no money in it. Had to cancel a few cards, get a new licence and pay $200 for a new window.
Lesson learned.... Leave your vehicle unlocked with nothing in it. If they steal the car, your covered under your insurance. If they smash a window to get in, your insurance wont pay for that window.

The car next to her truck was broken into also. That woman had like her whole life in her purse and it was stolen as well, licence, half dozen credit cards, soc sec #, checks, cash etc.

Quote of the Day
A criminal is a person with predatory instincts who has not sufficient capital to form a corporation.
---Howard Scott

Strumming Patterns

Just a little post today with a link to a website with strumming patterns for different songs and MP3's of those patterns to go along with them.

Guitar Strumming

Quote of the Day
That man is the richest whose pleasures are the cheapest
---Henry David Thoreau

Joe Cocker

Just a few Videos you would not see on MTV nowadays.
Cry Me A River from the "Mad Dogs and Englishmen" album


The Letter from the same album and tour in 1970

Who knew, no news

It's been a slow summer so far.

Dee's vacation was a week of hanging around the house and going to the beach.
I did finally get the laminate wood floor installed in the back office. The office is slowly taking shape. Rebuilt the cheesy little transmission on the mower that seized up and spent a few days throwing up with a stomach bug (I Think). Since neither of the two women were sick at this time I have a hard time believing I food poisoned us all. (One can never tell though, I may have just contaminated something I ate?)

Needless to say though my sickness kept us from running our 5K on the 5Th. Dee is already looking ahead and is planning a run in Sept I believe. She is still running almost every day and even though she does not see it, she looks better and better every day.

Quote of the Day
A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing
---George Bernard Shaw

Running on Empty

Dee has us running another 5K in like 12 days. Now I have enjoyed these runs but have to admit that I have kinda fallen off the run everyday bandwagon about a month or so ago.

Got up this morning and ran 2.5 mi to see how my legs felt. My legs sent my brain one simple telegram and it went something like this. We hate you and that woman you married.

This run is on the beach though. The fact that there will probably be a half million people in town for the 4Th of July and the Nascar race should make getting over there even more fun.
Don't think Nelly is up for this one, so I will have to hunt down some other unsuspecting friends and family to run it with us.

Quote of the Day
Pain is inevitable; suffering is optional
---Unknown

Blogs of Note

Well I changed my Blogs of Note this evening. The two that use to be on there are no more. Since I only put links on my site of places I like to visit from time to time, I have added a few new blogs to the list.

For Heavens Sake - One of Nellies new blogs. I have a hard time keeping up with them.
This Rediculous World - If you would like to take a side trip some evening to China and see the world through the eyes of a couple of western school teachers living there. Really interesting & fun reading.

Quote of the Day
There are a billion people in China. It's not easy to be an individual in a crowd of more than a billion people. Think of it. More than a BILLION people. That means even if you're a one-in-a-million type of guy, there are still a thousand guys exactly like you
---A. Whitney Brown

Elaphe guttata guttata

The title of tonight's post is the scientific name of tonight's guest...

Our guest tonight on the porch was a Corn Snake, also known in these parts as a Red Rat Snake or Chicken Snake. Been here 16 years and have never seen one before.

I have to say he kinda scared the crap out of us. Its not often you see snakes climbing walls but from what I read he is one of the most colorful snakes in these parts and a great climber.
Also listed as Harmless...phewww



Quote of the day
Someday we'll look back on this moment and plow into a parked car.
---Evan Davis

Travis Picking

Two fun lessons in finger picking with the guitar. These two lessons by David Hodge make learning to finger pick fun and remarkably easy to do. I was quite amazed at how simple this technique was and how with a little practice I could start playing in a way I really didn't think I was capable of doing to be honest.

Let Your Fingers Do the Talking - Basic Travis Finger Picking Tutorial (part 1)
Add A Pinch - Basic Travis Finger Picking Tutorial (part 2)

Hodge has quite a few lessons at Guitar Noise and all his lessons are interesting and fun

Quote of the Day
Democracy is the recurrent suspicion that more than half of the people are right more than half of the time.
---E.B. White

Bo Diddley

Just a video of Bo Diddley in his prime playing and dancing.
He passed away today at the age of 79 and will be missed.



Quote of the Day
"I thank you in advance for the great round of applause I'm about to get.”
---Bo Diddley

Jinelles Song of the Moment

Just a video post today of a song Jinelle has me hooked on now, since she plays it so often.
I'm a Tom Petty fan anyway.


Saving Grace lyrics

I’m passing sleeping cities
Fading by degrees
Not believing all I see to be so

I’m flyin’ over backyards
Country homes and ranches
Watching life between the branches below

And it’s hard to say
Who you are these days
But you run on anyway
Don’t you baby?

You keep running for another place
To find that saving grace

I’m moving on alone over ground that no one owns
Past statues that atone for my sins

There’s a guard on every door
And a drink on every floor
Overflowing with a thousand amens

And it’s hard to say
Who you are these days
But you run on anyway
Don’t you baby?

You keep running for another place
To find that saving grace
Don’t you baby?

You’re rolling up the carpet
Of your father’s two-room mansion
No headroom for expansion no more
And there’s a corner of the floor
They’re telling you is yours
You’re confident but not really sure

And it’s hard to say
Who you are these days
But you run on anyway
Don’t you baby?

You keep running for another place
To find that saving grace
Don’t you baby?

Quote of the Day
A bird does not sing because it has an answer. It sings because it has a song.
---Chinese Proverb

Pause

I have not posted in a while. Not giving excuses here, just the fact that I have not been wandering the wired world as much as of late.

On the fitness front I have been aimless as of late. I have not seen any 5K's listed for the next couple months close by. In all honesty it looks like the people around here run all their 5K's in the spring and fall. (To avoid killing people with heat stroke...maybe?) Dee is still working out quite regularly.

Still trying to learn to play the guitar. Here is a link to a free online course in music theory. Understanding Basic Music Theory

Quote of the Day
People who throw kisses are hopelessly lazy.
---Bob Hope

Dawn of the Dead 5k

This morning was the 5K Run For Meals On Wheels. This race started at 7:30 so everyone had to be up and out of the house by 6:30.

This is where the title of my post came from. Jinelle being a teenager had the difficulty of her body realizing it was a Saturday and turning itself off and fighting all attempts at waking itself before noon.. Dee in the other hand had to work last night until midnight and her older (Sparing myself great pain here by not spitting out a number) body rebelled at her few hours of sleep as well. After telling them both I would not go alone and bring their 5k t-shirts back they both finally arose and shuffled out to the car.

The Race

Being held at the beautiful LPGA golf course up in Daytona it was a crisp sunny cool morning. Sign-in was quick and we waited for only about 15 Min's for the start. Me and Vinny started up front while the two women did not want to be run over by eager runners started way back.

Eager runners it was, at the horn half this field left me in the dust. You would have thought that someone had arrived telling everyone they had to sit through a Ashley Simpson concert the way they broke and ran from the start. Vinnie amongst them, after only a few Min's he had left me from sight.

This was the first race that I really had no leg pains at all through out. At about 1.25 miles I reeled in rabbit boy Vinnie. We stayed together for about 1/4 mile then my much longer legs and pace had me slowly pull away. He had dipped too deep into the well at the beginning with that blistering pace out of the blocks.

For all of us though this was really a good race. Every single one of us beat our last 5k time. (Times on the sidebar) Jinelle received a plaque for third place in her age group and I won the "Bongo Billy's Banana Boat Ride" for 6 door prize tickets.

Quote of the Day
Not untill just before dawn do people sleep best; not until people get old do they become wise.
---Chinese Proverb