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My day has been ruined and a new mid-life crisis has been prematurely entered. I was stretching my legs while walking at work. Kind of rocking the Frankenstein walk to clear my knees out a little and stretch the hammies. This guy asks why I’m limping and I joked that I was getting old. The reply? “Old? Come on. You’re only, what, mid thirties?” I searched his face for a hint of joking. He wasn’t. I protested his assessment. “Mid-thirties!? Are you kidding?” His response was “32? 31?”

After I get off work I’m buying a box of Just For Men, and scheduling a face lift.

FML

As a married father of two, I don’t get to go to as many concerts as I did when I was a free-wheelin’ teenager. My lovely wife has been gracious enough to accompany me to a few shows over the years, and I’ve always had a blast. I love her for taking one for the team to spend time with me doing something she knows I enjoy. It’s epic amounts of brownie points.

A few weeks ago, we went to go see Barlow Girl and Benjamin Shafer. The tickets were a present from my mother-in-law; however, my wife agreed to spring for the upgrade to VIP tickets. That’s when the lulz ensued.

We showed up nice and way early for the show to go to the VIP event. After sitting around the lobby for 15 minutes, surrounded by 14 year old girls, we overhear someone say the VIP meet & greet hullabaloo was down the hall. We go down, expecting to find some adults. We found them, escorting their 12 year old daughters. It was the most awkward half hour or so of my life thus far. My wife and I surrounded by little girls during a Q&A session. Granted, this is a band comprised of three girls. But they’re all in their mid/late 20s, like myself. I didn’t expect it to be a 7th grade party.

We then moved into the auditorium and waited around for an hour with nothing to do. Older people started showing up, and the balcony started filling up with teenagers, which left me feeling a little less weird. Apparently it was just the little girls parents and my wife who shelled out the VIP tickets. At least I got a cool souvenir pass.

Benjamin Shafer opened up the show. Even though he did a really short set, it was great. I hadn’t ever heard of him before but immediately recognized him as the front man from a local band, 10th Hour Calling. We ended up getting his CD later. (You probably should too. It’s great!)

Finally, BarlowGirl came out. It was worth the wait and humiliation. They really rocked the house and delivered. Like a schmuck, I forgot our camera and was able to capture some horrible video and pictures on my cell phone. To show you how bad they are, this is the best of the batch.

It really was a great show, though. Very cathartic with a lot of the stuff we’ve been going through lately. Words of truth were spoken. Jesus was proclaimed. And I got some Barlow Girl drumsticks.

Rawk.

So, if you haven’t been blessed with the opportunity to rock with BarlowGirl yet, check ’em out. Buy some CDs. Become a fan. If you do, maybe my wife and I won’t be the only people over 20 willingly at the next show.

On a personal tangent, I’m waiting to hear from a potential employer later this week on a decision. I’ve got my fingers crossed. I’m really loving the time I get with my girls, but, financially, we’re going to what’s left of our savings in another paycheck or two. Then, we’ll be in real trouble. So, if you’re inclined to pray, it would be most appreciated.

I’m still waiting to hear from B-town, Sarpy County, and Papio on cop jobs, but those won’t happen at least until March. I’ve preliminarily signed up for testing with OPD, much to my wife’s chagrin. Their testing process takes 3 months to even finish though. I liked doing them all in one day better. :/

Mosecrest out.

Well, today was a good day of honest, hard work. We took care of business, got stuff done, and made it home through the ice-storm in one peice. It was also my last full-time day working with my good buddy Bob. With the economy tanking, there really isn’t going to be enough work going forward to keep me around, and the schedule was taking its toll on both my wife and the kids. I’m needed around here more than I’ve been able to be. We also need to pay bills, so I’m still looking for another job until Bellevue PD, Sarpy County Sheriffs, or Papillion PD realize how awesome I am. Technically, I still work there, but (extremely) part time. I’m effectively on-call for nights and weekends. When the other guy is out of town (like today) or doesn’t want to go out at night, I’ll take care of it. It’s a good arrangement.

I applied for a help-desk job yesterday, that may pan out. If anything, I’m overqualified for the position, but not so much that it should prevent them from considering me. If you know anything about my self-deprecating nature, you know that I’m not a braggart by any stretch of the imagination; but, this company would be foolish not to hire me for this position. We’ll have to see if I can make them see that.

Coming back to the ice-storm, it kind of hit me out of nowhere. I guess that’s what I get for not watching the news. I didn’t have an ice-scraper in the car, and both of the driver’s side windows were covered with ice. So, I carefully drove to the gas station and proceeded to humiliate myself. I started the gas going and went into the station to purchase an ice-scraper. I also got a Bananas Foster Cappuccino. (Fantastic by the way!) Then I went back out to the car. I put the coffee in the car and start scraping the heck out of the windows. I finally got them cleared, got back into the car and pulled away.

Did you spot it?

That’s right, I drove away with the gas nozzle still in the tank. I’m not even a woman. How is that even possible? I got 5′ away when I heard a thunk. *CRAP* I turn around and, sure enough, there’s no hose hanging from the pump. I get out and find the nozzle still embedded in the tank. I put it back and tried to reattach the hose. I then take a walk of shame into the station to confess my sin. The two girls manning the shop were both watching and one of them was apparently already on the phone with a maintenance guy. I stop and say, “You both just saw that happen, huh?” 😐 Luckily, they make the hoses idiot-proof these days. They shut off and disengage at some sort of release nut. They let me know it was okay and sent me on my way. I screwed it back in to the best of my abilities and slowly drove away with my tail between my legs. The worst part of this is I can no longer make fun of other idiots who do this.

On the good news front, my mother-in-law was super enough to buy us tickets for the upcoming BarlowGirl concert. We’ve got a babysitter lined up and will make a night of it. Yes, I love BarlowGirl. They are my escape from the Christian Hardcore/Metal world, yet they still rock. Check ’em out.

You’re welcome.

Mosecrest out.

My back and my fingers.

Something in my back decided to go on strike last night. It apparently doesn’t want me to move much (or at all), so I am stuck at home instead of working. At least I’ll be home when it’s time to go out for Ava’s first birthday. I still can’t believe that kid’s one year old. Time flies by too fast.

While sitting here trying to think of a way to be productive, I picked up Stephanie. I haven’t played with my guitars much in the last few months, and it shows. My left hand is aching something fierce right about now. It’s a good fierce aching, though. I’m going to need to work on taking care of that.

Boy, oh, boy. My foot is killing me. I bought a new pair of running shoes on Saturday and some insoles to go with them. To break them in, I decided to go on a nice long run yesterday. I did 4.5 miles, but about halfway through, I couldn’t feel my feet anymore. By four miles, they were screaming. I really hope it’s the insoles I got with them. They have a really high heel, which I think was putting more pressure on the balls of my foot. Since that’s exactly where my regular insoles are designed to take the pressure off, that’s probably why my right foot is still on fire this morning. I’m going to lay off it for the rest of the day and probably not run tonight. It’s my day to lift anyway.

I’m probably going to suspend the running and lifting altogether Wednesday or Thursday. I’ve got a big day on Saturday and I don’t want to strain anything or risk any injuries. I’m in the best shape of my life right now, taking into consideration I’m almost thirty years old. (God help me.) Still, I have no idea how I’ll do. I’m pretty confident I won’t have a problem, but there’s still nagging doubts. I’ve got butterflies right now just thinking about it. I have to remember that everything that has brought me to this point appears to have been pre-ordained. Every time I’ve thought about not going through with it or examining other options, God slams those doors shut and gently brings me back onto this road, like a shepherd guiding a sheep along the path. “Stop trying to wander. Stay on the road upon which I’ve placed you and see this through.” I have to believe that if He has worked the circumstances to bring me to this point, He’ll help me rock it. If you want the cliche, “If He brings you to it, He’ll bring you through it.” It’s campy, but it works.

I’ll see you, Saturday.

Yeah, so, it’s an update. It’s been three weeks, so we’ve got some ground to cover.

First, I’m feeling much better. I think it’s pretty much gone; but, I still feel a little weak every now and then.

Colorado was awesome. We went camping and I was able to get some decent mountain hiking in. It was real nice to see family and relax for a week. I really needed a break from work. The recharged batteries should keep me going for a while.

We now have a new vehicle. My Buick has been limping along for a while now. The driver’s window won’t roll up, so there’s rain damage. The roof was caving in. The driver’s seat belt didn’t buckle. No air conditioning. My in-laws were nice enough to watch our dog while we were away. We drove down to pick Hanna up and on the way back I happened to glance into the back. Kati & Ava were both passed out, covered in sweat, with their hair plastered to their foreheads. We’re going 75MPH with me in no seat belt. It was time. So, Saturday we went out just to check inventory and ended up coming home with a 2002 Chrysler Town & Country.

We got a pretty good deal, I think. We haggled for a while on it. My wife took it to a mechanic to inspect it and make sure everything was ship-shape. It passed with flying colors. It feels good to have a vehicle that’s not old enough to smoke or join the army. Still, it was really, really hard leaving the Buick. There was a lot of attachment stored up there. I’m going to miss it. It will be nice to drive something stable, though.

God’s been doing a lot of wonderful things with me lately. I’ve been spending a lot more time in prayer and study in recent weeks. It’s definitely paying dividends. It’s been a long time since I’ve felt this close to Him. It’s the same as any relationship, I guess. If you don’t talk, you lose intimacy. Keeping the lines of communication open bring you closer together. I’m really excited to see what He has in store feor me in the near future. I’m starting to get a feeling there’s a change on the horizon.

Finally, regarding UFC 87, (Thanks, Tony) Jason MacDonald is an animal. I can’t believe he didn’t tap out. Roger Huerta, you have failed me. Rob Emmerson, even though you’re calling yourself Robert (lame), you’re still the man. Brock Lesnar may actually be legit. Go figure. GSP is still a punk.

That is all

Mono sucks. Reader’s Digest version:

Got sick again Friday. Went to hospital Sunday. Majorly dehydrated, lost 10 lbs in 3 days. Took 2 liters of fluid in an hour and got some nice nausea drugs normally given to cancer patients. That helped a lot and let me actually eat for the first time in days. I’m well “enough” to be at work now, but still feel like crap. Hopefully some fresh mountain air will recharge me on Friday.

Seriously. I’m officially an old man. I was doing some housecleaning and found the Me page up there ^ still said I was 26, so I had to update it to 27. That’s old. Last year, I was still a young guy. This year, I’m old. My knees hurt when I run. I’m tired more. My foot’s been hurting for the past couple of weeks, so I went to a podiatrist yesterday. Apparently, I have a high arch, which puts too much pressure on the balls of my feet. This, in turn, has caused the bones of my foot to spread out, which (no shock here) hurts. The solution: orthopedic insoles. ORTHOPEDICS! I’m old.

Aren’t you supposed to get *more* money as you get older?

Also, don’t forget. $5 footlongs at Subway.

I’m not necessarily overly enamored with my job right now, but I like working. I enjoy getting up, going out, and earning a living. Being able to use my talents to contribute to my family’s well-being brings me pride.

What if that was all taken away?

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$5 Footlongs