The Base Gym

So I finial went. My father has been wanting to go with me for a while. For those of you who don;t know, my father was an officer an the Air Force for 20+ years. I think he is kind of excited about doing "air force" stuff together. Me and my father went after work. It was rather spur of the moment but it worked out. The gym was about the same it has been for the last five years. I went some right after I got out of high school. The only thing that my father and I did was run on the treadmills. I had planned to run so thats what I did. I was actually excited about have an accurate measurement of my run times. 1.5 miles in 13:30. I wonder if I'm that fast on the street now. That was about the time I ran right before I took a break for my legs. Pretty stoked about going to the gym more. I like the fact that the treadmill doesn't pound on my legs as much.

Cutting it short, I have to go hang out with the wife and friends. Actually excited about having a night out.

Later

Love, Say it with Magnetic Decals.

So me and the Mrs. went down to the base today. We were getting are military ID's. This is pretty exciting and actually a little against the rules. See they don't really let you have one of these until just before you leave for basic, but I have no basic dates (I won't be leaving until after july most likely) and I still got one. I didn't do anything backhanded or anything. I need an ID to be able to enroll in Tri-Care. I need to enroll in that cause there is a baby on the way. I had to shave and put on a BDU Jacket for the photo. I miss my beard. We ran around the office building going up and down the stair trying to find the place, and when we did we had to go back up stair to print a document out. (super awesome fun.) But we did it. We are now card carrying members of the Air Force. Well, Jen isn't in the Air Force like I am, but really it is a commitment that we have both made.

We also went to the BX and did a little shopping while we where there. We also had our first meal as a military couple right there in the food court. I was surprised to find that the base had a starbucks. The only thing better than a tall moca latte is a tax free moca latte.

Utterly and Completely Shameful...

... I'd like to take a break from blogging about babies and take this opportunity to update you on something.

If you've read my blogs before now, then you know that I'm joining the Air Force Reserves. Thats all fine and dandy, but in order for me to graduate basic I have to do something that I have no talent for. I most display strong displays of athleticism. I must do 50 set-ups and 45 push-ups in a minute, and run 1.5 miles in 12 minutes. Running is the biggest obstacle facing me at this point. I've just come off a break from running. I know that it is not good for progress to take time away from running, but I had such great pains in my legs I thought that I may have stress fractures. The only way to get better was to take time off. So after my break I went back to running. My first times were unmentionable. Over 20 minute for two miles. Today I was able to get under 20 minutes, and my 1.5 miles time was 13:30. Not great, but closer to the times I was putting down before the break. I was closer to  12 minutes three weeks ago. I am gaining in leaps and bounds now, but I'm still struggling, and the familiar pain is back in the legs. Oh well, no pain no gain. I have to go finish up the workout.

Laters

Newborns...

... are really small.

I recently had a chance to hold a newborn baby. (is a baby still a newborn when its a week old?) A couple of my friends have been trying to adopt and just a few day ago they were able to bring their new baby home. Being brand new parents, they stay home most of the time and they were wanting visitors. So me and Jen, and two or our other friends went to see them yesterday. The baby was so tiny. I was afraid to hold it. I guess I need to get comfortable with baby holding because I'm going to be doing a lot of it come december. Little baby Jaden was pretty calm for the entire visit. I think he just slept though most everything. Every now and then he was stretch or yawn, but then he would nestle down and go back to sleep. I hope our baby is that passive. Adoption is a long and hard process and we will be praying for that whole family.

...man, I'm going to have one of those...

This Is The Latest I've Been Up Since...

...my bachelor party. Which was actually just me and my groomsmen at the apartment playing video games and drink a bunch of Mountain Dew.

So why so late tonight. If your mind has gone to the gutter, then you should you should be ashamed. My darling, beautiful, and pregnant wife has been in bed since we got home from dinner with our friends. It takes a lot out of you when you're grow another person. What was I doing?

Me and Jen have a spare room the houses, for the most part, the extra junk that we've brought with us to our home. My musical things live in the guest room, as does Jen's crafty (and other assorted) things.  Lately, and frequently that particular room is a particular mess. I pull things out and play around while Jen adds to her assortment. Other than more space, that room was in much need of some organization. Hopefully I accomplished some of that. I basically just separated our things. Musical things here, and crafty-ish things there. Jen will most likely hate it. Oh well, I tried. In addition to cleaning, I also worked on a guitar, rearranged my pedalboard, and wrote a lullaby for my soon-to-be born baby.

Night has come, look where we are

I just want to say that I love you

1000 times brighter than a star

and so close I can hug you

Go to Sleep my baby

Go to sleep my baby

Close your eyes and sleep tight

You are in good arms tonight

Go to sleep my baby

Go to sleep my baby

Everything is gonna be alright

When  you close your eyes and sleep tonight

Not ground breaking or anything, but I want to write some simple lullabies and record them. When we find out if we are having a girl or boy I want to use our baby's name in the songs. I want them to have some unique and personal. I can't wait for this little kid of ours.

The DEP Call

So for all those that don't know, I've enlisted into the Air Force Reserves. Although, right now I am in the Delayed Entry Program (or DEP). Basically I'm waiting to go to basic, but I get called out to the base on things called DEP Calls every month so I can sit in a room with others in DEP and listen to people talk about whatever. So Tuesday I go to one of these things. I was actually looking forward to it because it meant that I didn't have to go straight into work that day. The catch is that now I have to make up those hours. But anyway, I sat in a room with five other recruits and I found out something, I was the oldest one. Having just turned 24, I felt like grandpaw. The two other guys there were right out of high school. I listened to a guy explain that even if I "decided to eat a bullet", my life insurance would still pay. So that was great. Then there was the imposing, yet sensitive, black man that told us how he cried when he was in basic. I find out however that apposed to what I've recently learned, I will be able to get an ID and enjoy the benefits of actually being in the Air Force before I go to basic. Which reminds me, I need to talk to my recruiter.

Later guys

Is The Hammer and Sickle Turning Into the Apple and Sickle?

I'm not much for conspiracy theories but it seems to me that Apple, the newly reborn computer giant, is pushing a liberal agenda...?

First off, let me say I hate politics, and I don't really know what to think. It seems that all streams of media preach one extreme or the other. To tell you the truth, I'm sick of it. I actually have no cable at my apartment and it's great. The longer I spent without it the more other people idea's about "trending topics" seemed to be amazingly strange. I'll be honest, I grew up in a conservative home. My father watches Fox News and likes O'Reily. I can't stand anyone who thinks by raising their voice and spouting one sided facts can change anyone's opinion on anything.

Down here in the south you get a lot of Johnny Reb Republicans that think Jesus must be coming back soon because there a democrat in the White House and low and behold, he is a black man. That man is the Whitest "Black Man" I've ever seen. All that aside, I know there are lots of differences between the Right and the Left, but all you see and hear about is Abortion and Gay Marriage. I hate abortion. I wince when I say it, I also hate to bring it up in a blog that hardly anyone will see. It is a point that has many opinions, but I found it hard to find any reason to knowingly end a life thou be it dependent on another person. I've heard it agued that as Christians we should be against abortion, but law is not based on morals, it is based on justice, therefore we are not charged to make the act illegal, but to care for the ones that have the abortion, or want one. To be honest I don't see how it could become illegal. It would take would take an amazing turn of direction for this country. I guess the same could be said for Gay Marriage. That the act is still a perversion, but the person is still loved by God and we are compelled to Love people no matter our differences.

I have friends that think very different than me. One in particular is a very liberal thinker. If gay marriage were legalized by federal law then I could imagine her smiling, clapping and giggling while saying "Yay gay people!" And if Pot was Legalized, again she would say, "Yay, Pot-heads!" She'd be thrilled that these people would no longer have to be suppressed by laws. But what if it were drunk driving that was legalized, or robbery, or arson. But I guess that some issues are not moral absolutes. That was kind of a skewed point.

Back to Apple. Apple is a company that has an image. One that is attracting many people. They have rose from the ashes to once again be major competitors in the computer and technology market. I'm thrilled that there is a platform that is pressing forward in a new direction. It gives hope that we will not have limited technology monopoly. Apple is seeing huge favoritism from younger consumers. Younger consumers are typically more liberal thinkers and swing more to the Left. So, Apple tends to promote a more Liberal image and please their customer base. Apple wants to be cool and hip, but they really just want your money. So all the image is a thin guise to cover up the truth. They want to sell more product to make more money. Capitalism... hmm maybe they're Right-winged...

(sorry for the lame graphic, i hate gimp)

Blogs Have Taken Over My Life

... no really.

I have three blogs. And maybe some of you out there have more. Well congratulations to you, you win. For me, one blog is enough to post on regularly, but I decided to branch out. I have this one of corse and it is my main one. I just post my random thoughts on here, you basic everyday stuff. Then you have my music blog. I like to post about my gear that I use and what I'm doing and listening to musically. Then there is a story I'm writing. I'm doing that bit by bit (or post by post) on another blog. Thats a project all on its own, because I want people to input and make suggestion of how things should happen in the story, kind of like a collective effort. I've made links to all the other blogs, plus my wife's blog, other on the right. Feel free to check them out if you'd like. Three blog really don't take over a life.

It's everything else that takes over your life. My wife started blogging first. I just went with the flow. Started posting stuff on my own blog just to practice my creative writing and whatever. After a little while my wife asked me how does she know if anyone is reading her blog. No one had left any comments. So I looked into it. Google and there many tools came to the rescue. There is Google Analytics for keeping track of the visitors to your sight. It tells you how many visits you have and how many clicks on different pages you get. It keeps track of it so you can see how well you are doing compared to yesterday or the week before and so on. So that was good enough for her, but then I found Google Adsence. That puts ads on you blog (or website) and when visitor click on it you get a small monetary compensation. Then there is Google Webmaster Tools. Oh my, that is a beast in it's self. It tells you how google sees your blog (or site) and tells you what keywords or showing up the most and other useful, although boring and time wasting.

But even then there is more. You can use services such as dlvr.it to post to all your social media outlets. When I blog here it shows up on twitter, Facebook, and tumblr, and something called linkedin. So I have a lot of plates spinning with this whole blog thing. But you want to know something that just blows my mind. I do all this and my wife, who doesn't use any of this crap, still blows my blog away in visits.

(Mind Blowing Image)

Its My Birthday!

B-Day quote, "Super-Size that jumbo mofo".

My dear wife got me a wii for my birthday. I've mentioned this before, but today we got it set up with netflix. Its pretty much awesome. You can watch movie online on your TV. We actually watched some of season 6 of King of the Hill. Its was pretty exciting. We watch a ton of movies at the Apt. This is mostly due to the fact that we don't have cable. Netflix is amazing and even more so now that we're aren't stuck watching movies on our tiny laptop. I recommend Netflix for anyone not wanting to get cable but still wanting to enjoy movies and even some TV shows. Not to mention the fact that you can receive movies by mail.

Now that the shameless plug is over. I'm a little nervous about going back to work tomorrow. I got into a little altercation with a "boss" and it may have long lived consequences. I'm not terribly worried, but the co-worker is rather unreasonable at times. Its a good thing she really doesn't have much authority over me.

My wife found these guys and I have to hand it to them. They are pretty cool.

Manchester Orchestra

So my friend showed me this band. It changed my life. I haven't heard the entire album, but I'm pretty sure it's amazing. I'm buying it on Itunes because of one song. "The River" in my opinion is the best track. He's folky but there is electric guitar and some pretty grungy parts mixed with some heartful lyrics and sweet melodies. Full review later. Put I'm pretty stoked about the CD.

Laters

(I've listened to most of the CD now. I can't recommend for all ages. Some lyrics may be offensive.)

Oh The Cheese!

So when I was a young lad I, like many others, was a GI Joe fan. I watched the cartoon and the feature length animated films religiously. So naturally I was really excited to hear that there was going to be a live action film being make about the "Joes". I was excited until I saw the trailer. Seriously? It looked more corny than squirrel terds. The review confirmed my fears. Both new comers and old school fans agreed that this film was covered in cheese. To be honest, I forgot about the movie until I started looking for titles that I've missed in the theater and haven't bother to pick up. So my netflix que finally got around to G.I. Joe. I was actually excited to see it. I had forgotten what crap I was convinced it was. Well the film was a great reminder. Super-suits? Pulse Cannons? Nanobots? Its like they took every lame gimmick from Jackie Chan movie's and combined them into this one. I know I'm being harsh and there are some really neat parts. Snake eyes was probably the best part of the entire movie and he didn't have any lines... I am glad that they got "knowing is half the battle" in there. Oh the good 'ol days.

Oh well,

Cobra!

Wii!

So I wife got me a Wii for my birthday. Its actually Sunday, but she let me have the Wii early. I'm pretty excited. I'm not much of a gamer. I prefer things that have real physical outcomes to ones that just serve to taunt you when you fail. So why would I get a gaming system. All they actually serve to do is an exercise in the futile. But the Wii can be used for thing such as real physical exercise. So can weights and dumbbells but the Wii also has fun games. I like Mario Cart, so sue me. You can also browse the internet on a Wii... Thats cool. Oh, and you can watch movies from netflix on the Wii. I've been meaning to hook that up with our laptop computer. The one that I'm actually on right now, but then we'd have to be plugging and unplugging it all the time.
Moving on. We are coming ever so closer to the launch of the Davis Blog. I probably won't link it to here just because I don't want something I say to this audience to spread to another audience. Work has been such a chore lately. I used to enjoy much of my job, but now it just seems like a drag. I go through phases like this from time to time. Every job has it's ups and down and you have to get through the bad to get to the good and all that. I think a lot of the unrest comes in the not-knowing of my Air Force details. I still don't know basic dates and I should be getting my ID soon. Hopefully that means I can start Tri-care.

I sometime feel like I start a day planning on doing something, but often that thing is the very thing I neglect to do. Like today, I planned to get fitted for my friend wedding. I have to wear a tux and there is a certain day that I have to be fitted by. I don't know that day. It may have already passed, but I know that I still need to be fitted. I planned to do that today, but when I got home that is where I stayed. I've also lost a ID card for the bank I use. I'm sure it probably go lost in the laundry or something, it's just a piece of paper with some numbers on it, but those are important numbers. I think the last two weeks I"ve told myself that I'd get a replacement, but I've yet to go down to the bank. Oh, and the workouts, they've almost all stopped. Today was going to be that day that I stated back running, but I didn't take it off so I didn't go. I need to snap out of this lull... Sorry guys, that was kinda heavy. Maybe I'm tripping out about being 24. It's not old, but it is older.

Oh well, Heres a picture.

I'm Gonna Party Like It's My Birthday...

...because it is my birthday. Actually it's my birthday in a week, but I still plan to party.


So anyways, Earlier today I asked my beautiful wife what she was going to get me for my birthday. She gave a quick thought and then she told me that she knew, but she wasn't going to tell me. I begged for a hint. So she started telling me things like it was something that was available for more than just a particular store. My first thoughts are to musical things because most of the time my thoughts go to musical things by default. I ask her questions about what she has in mind. Her answer blow my mind. I can't think of anything that fits the description that she is giving me. I am racking my brain what could this thing be. Long story short, I'm pretty stoked about what she intends to get me.

What is it? I don't know... Maybe this will help

Coffee Night...

So the group of guys I play music with got together the other night and discussed playing a set at a coffee night here is town. I actually got excited about playing out of our regular Saturday venue (our church). So tonight I got my things together and headed to the local BCM. I should have expected the scene. Young, college kids filled the building. This was somewhat of an "open mic" type event so there were a few sets before us. When my wife and I arrived, there was a couple of guy rapping to a track. I was completely surprised to see a friend of mine up on stage. We used to work together at the Lifeway store in town. I knew he did Hip Hop, but I had no idea he'd be there. I have an album of his, It the single greatest Hip Hop CD I own. (that not really saying a whole lot, but it really is a great CD) But after him (and Mr. A-1 Bold) This was a Hardcore hopeful guitarist. The kid had guts getting up there just rocking out, but he need to work on his fundamentals. There was a singer-songwriter type with long hair. He was solid but nothing amazing. A girl played the guitar and sang, she had potential. Then there was Luke, who played electronica originals. Lastly it was our turn. All in all it was fun. It was the closest thing to a gig that i've played in years. Fighting a sound system brought but some "fun" memories. Me and the misses got back close the 11pm. I can't remember the last time we stayed out that late. Oh well, Tomorrow is another day... of work.

Till Then.

Off To Work...

So I just jumped on here to check some things before I head to work. This whole Google Analytics can really suck your life in. I've check my hits about a half dozen time yesterday only to realize that it updates once a day. But now I'm using even more Google tools because when I checking my stuff on analytics I saw Webmaster tools and now I've started that. Partly because it may help out at work, but most because I was kinda board.

Off to work for me, Later friends!

Mmm Lutherans...,

Happy Tuesday everyone! Tuesday are great days because they are my off days. I know that most of the free world gets Saturday and Sunday for their weekends, but I work in retail. I am fortunate enough to work in a store that is closed on Sunday, but we are open every Saturday and that means I work, for the most part, every Saturday.

If you were thinking to yourself as you read this blog, "I wish I could know more about His morning routine.", then today you are in luck. This morning was like many other mornings. Jennifer woke up about 6 this morning. I laid in bed motionless. About a quarter till 7 Jen comes in the room telling me to wake up. I told her that I had no intention of getting up. Although I didn't say so eloquently as that. It probably sounded more like a long grunt. She persisted that I get out of bed. I told her that there was no reason to since I was off. She then proceed to whine and moan for a minute. (she doesn't enjoy the fact that I get a day off while she has to go to work. She gets off at 1:15 by the way, just saying...) So after this I explain that its the same difference when I go to work on Saturday. She didn't seem to think so. She leave the room and I continue laying in bed. She's back a minute later asking me about her outfit which was cute and I told her so. She then climbs into bed to pest me some more when I notice she's crunching something. I ask her, "what are you eating" and She replies, "oh some Lutherans." (first of all, let me just say, poor lutherans, I mean... what group of Christians are more looked over in America then the Lutherans. It took me 13 years to actually see a lutheran church.) So I give Jen a hard time about saying that she is eating people when she is actually eating a Ludden's cough drop.

I'm Having A Baby!

... ok, let me back and say that my Wife is having a baby.

We had our first ultrasound two days ago. I have to say that it was a major relief to hear that baby Harris is doing well. I've actually never seen the baby in a ultrasound picture before. I always just got lost in the black and white, but I was able to spot my baby right away. He already looks so much like me (just kidding). By the way. I like the rule in English grammar that if the gender is unknown then "he" can be used as a pronoun besides it. I can't stand referring to my baby as "it". Having a little person forming is extremely personal and human. I'm still blown away by mere fact there is a tiny person inside my wife, and in six and a half (give or take) month we get to meet this little  person.

Hoping for a boy (typical) but so it Jen, so we are for sure having a girl.

Boy name: Jonah Brice
Girl name: Caroline Brice

Either way, I can't wait to meet baby Brice.

Laters