Good Medicine

"God...... is so good.......He rides upon...the wings of the wind..." I have had that song in my head as I reflected upon my amazing weekend. I went canoeing on Saturday with my bra (lingo from Dog the Bounty Hunter) Ryan Gale. He bought a brand new Wenonah canoe (see picture) and wanted to get it wet. Leaving before sunrise, we had a great drive down watching the sun come up over the horizon and catchin' up on the ole friendship.
We headed to the Niangua River around Lebanon, Missouri. (It is this river that a complete stranger spoke to me of at a gas station last summer in south, central Missouri, when he said, "You wanta see some titties..." Of course Luke Thompson and I were heading to the Eleven Points River and avoiding the Niangua because of this at all costs (being married men of course).)
Now, I have come to realize that when people say "canoeing" they get the mental image of summer time, 5,000 drunk people on the river, and general chaos. While that may be the typical canoe experience, it is one that I have not been apart of since I was a young boy and would surely never willingly partake in as a man approaching 30.
Ryan and I head there in the fall knowing that we are not likely to see anyone on the river and that the leaves are approaching peak colors. In fact, our 7 mile and 6 hour float (Ryan was fishing(see picture (rainbow trout))) involved only one other canoe and two small boats. And in all of the years of my outdoor experiences in the midwest (which come to think of it is only like 10 or so seriously), I witnessed something never before seen with my eyes (in the midwest). We saw two bald eagles soaring above the river as we floated. What an experience! It made me think of God riding upon the wings of the wind, soaring high above all of us and able to see down the river when we can only see what is just ahead. Good medicine doesn't fully explain it. It sure is awesome when He gives us just a tiny taste of who He is. We also saw deer, turkeys, ground hogs, snakes, fish, and an Osprey with a song bird in his talons. God is sovereign and omnipotent; but that day, He spoke to my heart.

taking a break from thank you notes

from william blake's "on another's sorrow":

he doth give his joy to all;
he becomes an infant small;
he becomes a man of woe;
he doth feel the sorrow too.

think not thou canst sigh a sigh,
and thy maker is not by;
think not thou canst weep a tear,
and thy maker is not near.

o! he gives to us his joy
that our grief he may destroy;
till our grief is fled & gone
he doth sit by us and moan.

-------------------------

the realization that mary had a baby inside of her like i do right now and that baby was jesus is incomprehensible. like we've been talking on friday mornings, mary had to teach her son about his own heavenly father. did jesus really not know about god the father, the creator? how humbling for both mary and jesus. how cool that the nine months she carried him she wondered, what will he look like, what will he be like? i can only imagine that anticipation. (wyatt hiccups with the wonderment of it, too)

ich bin ein berliner

my brother went to germany for the weekend and came back with some photos: the gate, reconstruction and toilets. this is such a brilliant european thing. my question is, who's the guy? and who gets to take weekend trips to berlin? only my brother. he even has the knowledge to compare the architectural recontrustion with what's happening in dublin. the last time i was in dublin...oh wait.

and speaking of german, my friend bri is going back to school. it's fun and inspiring to hear that she's going not necessarily because it will help her hugely in the business world but because she wants her brain to be stimulated. i felt like that a while ago, and it would be nice to be forced to write, but i feel so overstimulated by baby stuff i think i could explode.

and i do feel like i could explode, this belly is huge. my ankles have officially turned into cankles, and i have hobbit feet. no, they're not hairy, they're huge. i had to get two new pairs of shoes that are a size and a half larger than my usual shoe size. but i found a pediatrician, thanks to galadriel, the baby's room is 95% ready to go, and we have a car seat so we can bring wyatt home with us. that seems fairly important. four and half weeks to go...

progress and the slippery slope

there's a good side and a bad side to moving forward into the technological side of life. we finally purchased a digital camera, and it is fantastic. i think the price was rather alright, and i got what i wanted. nothing too big, something that has a good zoom and enlargement capabilities, and it's easy to use. plus, when we went to best buy (again, i'm really pleased with this large business) the sales guy (austin, at 95th & metcalf) was very knowledgable. he answered all my questions, pointed us in the right direction and then mentioned that there was an "opened" camera, which meant 10% off the original price. no defects, just returned. he went to look for it and couldn't find it, discovered it had been sold but still gave us the 10% off. now that's service.

on the flip side, i installed the software this morning onto my ancient computer (which tom likes to pretend is alright since it has a new modem) and the whole thing flipped out on me. i only have two usb ports, but i have some handy-dandy adaptors which should allow me to put my mouse in a different port (assuming that's what they're called). i try this with no success. then i try the second adaptor to no avail. now i must sacrifice either the mouse (impossible) or the printer (sorry). once i have an operable mouse and the software is loading like a dream i realize, my keyboard isn't working. i didn't even unplug the thing. but sure enough when the program asks me to title something, i can't type a single letter. control+alt+delete. nothing. control+alt+delete. nothing. i hit the restart on my tower, and here i am, finally typing away.

all the while yuma is whining to go outside and then barking to come back in two minutes later. over and over and over. and over. but now all is well. the computer is working (minus the printer) the camera is working (minus a large memory card which has yet to be purchased) and the dog is laying down (lying down?). if only i could master the english language.

Open House/ Baby Bash

So, it's kind of interesting because Leah did not want to have the normal baby shower where (I hear) women get together and sit in a circle and play strange games or something. She's not one to draw attention to herself anyway, so this didn't fly with her. Also, we have been talking about having an open house get together since we bought our house over a year ago but we have been putting it off since there are always more projects to get done. So, Leah (in Sarah like fashion) wanted to have a combo get together where people can come and go as they please. So, if you are reading this and you have not heard it is this Saturday from 12:00-5:00 and kids, dogs, and spouses are encouraged to come. On Saturday, if you start getting bored, please feel free to leave at any time without saying goodbye. We will not be offended. In fact, if you decide not to come, that is OK as well. If you do come, pretend like everything looks great because I have been spending every free moment the last few weeks getting the house ready.

tom

(and that's Yuma when we brought her home last January)

Friendship

This goes out to a dear friend of the Blakes:

You know who you are, we are sorry if any of our actions or inactions caused you harm. We love you and appreciate your friendship.

Fabio

The Final Quest

For the last 28 and a half years (Tuesday is my half birthday), I have not been into learning all about the end times and that aspect of Christianity. I figured, we should live everyday like Jesus is returning, regardless of whether we were "in the end times" or not. My brother Paul remarked that without an understanding of this age, I will not be driven to truly live my life accordingly. I have been praying that God would show me the lies that I believe so that He will reveal His truth in my life. I believe He is doing just that.

WARNING: This book is nothing short of life changing! SEARCH INSIDE!

does he look really old?

quedstions & searh

this is somewhat tacky, somewhat just what i do 'cause i don't like to let go of certain things and mostly because i don't like to ask for help: i'm creating invitations for our open house/shower (that my sister and bri are having for us) and halfway through printing and putting stamps on these postcards, i noticed two errors. i misspelled 'questions' and my sister's name. i'm thinking the font is weird enough that people might overlook it, but really i feel like an idiot.

isn't this supposed to be my specialty? i spent four years learning how to write and edit and now i've screwed this up. and what makes it worse is i have to feed these through the printer individually, so if i do decide to correct this error it means at least three more hours in front of the computer, monotonously typing in addresses and sliding little blue postcards through the printer. ugh -- what a moral dilemma.

tell me what i want to hear

tonight was one of those nights where i think we're going to be alright as parents. but then i have to remind myself that miles and isobel are amazing because their parents are amazing.

while galadriel went to a meeting to help battered and abused women, luke and the kids came over for dinner and some home improvements. as i'm standing in the kitchen getting dinner ready i hear miles' little voice from out on the sun porch, "you're one of my best friends, tom." and every time tom brings out something and puts it on the table isobel whispers, "thanks, tom." no sooner had i sat down then miles is thanking me for the food. isobel, of course, thanks tom again.

we eat dinner peacefully, no spills or fusses, and then it's time to color. isobel favors pink and purple, gathering all the crayons of those colors to her side of the table, while miles sticks with the red and orange colored pencils. we draw hearts and dragons, dragons mostly, and come to think of it, i do most of the drawing, but they're so happy that i'm using their favorite colors that it doesn't matter that my dragon doesn't look exactly like the one on the box and that my hearts are a little mishapen. and while miles and i finish our dragon, isobel is putting all of her crayons back in the box. without being told to do so.

having a sweet tooth myself, i offer them their choice of blow pop or tootsie roll pop. miles takes the red tootsie roll and isobel takes the purple one, of course. miles, being the responsible three year old, asks his dad if it's okay for them to have the suckers. and after telling both me and luke that she can unwrap the sucker herself, isobel eventually gets too eager and asks for help.

so hats off to the thompson parents -- they have succeeded at something most people can't even imagine. they have two, soon to be three, beautiful children, who respect adults other than their parents, know how to share with each other, and even pick up after themselves. and of course, say all the right things.

sweatpants are good

i woke up this morning and realized, i need to shower. isn't that scary? i won't tell you how long it had been, but it felt good. absence does make the heart grow fonder. and as i was getting dressed i looked at my belly and said, i want to be really comfortable today (by the way, com-fort-able should always be pronounced as such, not com-frtbul). i opened up the closet and ta-dah, these black addidas-looking pants were hanging there, on loan from my sister-in-law. and they are just what the massive belly ordered. i don't think i can get any bigger, which is good, 'cause i'm wearing these pants every day till this baby comes. at least around the house...

also, i'm trying to get the business organized and i am realizing how poorly large businesses run things. they make it so hard for the little guys to really make any headway. example: yesterday tom and i went to a large furniture store (one that boasts it's four football fields big) looking for various items. we found a fantastic rocker, maybe a bit expensive, but very much our taste. when we asked a sales clerk for some assistance it turned into such a fiasco. it ended up with me saying, we'll just look around and see what we find. thanks...

but then the real trouble started. we're switching furniture around for the baby and realized, maybe we should recycle for him and get a new dresser for us. we found a dresser that would work so well in our room, the right color, the right size, the right price. it was a perfect solution until we were told that a) the dresser we were interested in could not be purchased for the price that was shown, b) we could order it for more money ("but it's still a great deal"), and c) the only way we could get the dresser for the price that was advertised was if we bought the whole bedroom set ("we can't sell individual pieces, because who wants part of a bedroom set?" um, we do, that's who, idiot) . so i was frustrated after hours of looking and then thinking we've found what we're looking for and THEN we run into this bozo with his false advertising.

after working for a small business and now with another small business, i expect more out of customer service. i refuse to believe the world is full of idiots, but recently i have not had enough proof to show otherwise. garage sales and second-hand stores are still the best places to get what you want.

just to show off

this is abbie again. i love this munchkin so much. i got to hang out with her friday and i have to say, if the lord blesses us with a child like abbie, i will forever be thankful. she has the sweetest temperment; she only fusses when she's hungry (she's a franz girl) and she just loves being with people, even if they're not completely focused on her. we played with blocks, and talked about animals and then cuddled while watching baby einstein. the night was rounded off with some mac-n-cheese and asparagus. that girl can chow down. then james came home and as i was leaving all i could hear was this hilarious exchange, with james saying, "ABBIE!" and her saying "DAH-DAH!" right back at him. back and forth. so cute.

come on out baby

who knew 9 months could look this good. in this picture candra is three days from having her son, alexander william. (born this saturday evening) doesn't she look incredible? galadriel's got about 6 weeks and i'm pushing 11. all boys. they will be best friends and true trouble-makers. just check out their fathers...

it's been so long since i've had anything to say. i think this baby is sucking out my brains. and i've been on social overload. so saturday, after a morning of cleaning out the to-be-play room, i threw up and stayed on the couch. watched my favorite wizards player score an own goal, which hurts tremendously, then slept.

truly i wish my belly would get bigger. i've been in this miserable state of maximum capacity, where he's pushing into my ribs and making my esophogus do disgusting things and all i know is, i'm ready for this guy to make his appearance. 11 weeks to go.

so candra and andy had their little booger this weekend, and he is cute. at least in the pictures. dark hair and great little features for being so new to the world. i don't know if i can do this feeling of expectance for another two months or more. how grueling. i suppose i've gone into enough detail about the "joys" of pregnancy, but the shine has worn off and now i want my son.

My Soccer Journey

I still remember watching my first World Cup in Italia '90. (I may have watched some of Mexico '86, but I don't remember). I only remember the games on the USA network and they would cut to commercials throughout the game. When the game would come back on, there was often one or two goals scored...bad luck for the viewer I guess? In the '94 Cup in the USA, the television innovaters in the US used our marketing genius to put the score and advertisements in the corner of the tele-screen during games to prevent interuption (something all sports would steal from soccer).

By this time, the Blake family was well on their way from transitioning from a basketball family to a soccer family (a little discussed movement in the Michael Blake family). The round of 16 loss to Brazil on Independence Day set a precedent for Blake holidays and hangouts as the family gathered to cheer our nation to victory. The precendent was also set as the Jason Blake ran "Masterpiece Painting" (who happened to employee Tom and Paul Blake) focused on the games instead of their work. (Good thing we were saving for college since we were in the 5th grade....true story).

The MLS kicked off the inaugural season (with my college team playing before the first Wiz
game of all time) shortly after the World Cup; and mom and dad had season tickets with mom bringing her yellow card to the games to show off to the opposing teams when necessary.

Jason actually paid for cable for the 1998 games in France (good thing France hosted so they could qualify). Jason and I claimed to have watched every single game; but mom and dad's professional soccer enthusiasm began to wane as they focused on Susan's rising soccer career and skills (thanks in large part to her club coach).

And who can forget the early mornings/late evenings for Japan/Korea 2002? Leah and I began our relationship during the hermit-like season that is the month of a World Cup. After Brazil lifted the trophy, I knew she was the one because we were still dating (I was also playing twice a week). Plus, it was a quarter final finish for the USA (we should have made it to the semifinals if not for the German hand ball on the goal line that was never called) so Leah was destined to be a fan of the world's most popular sport. We got cable at my house in the hood with Nate and Seth and then cancelled the cable shortly after the games, but we still had free cable until the day they sold the house...life in the hood is good...plus it was free rent (I miss Luna).

Well, soccer has come a long way in the US, and I am glad to be alive during the "birthing process" (Wyatt William will be born around thanksgiving time). MLS has almost completed its 10th season and the Wizards were the champions in 2000. My best understanding is that the Wizards will get a new stadium in Johnson County and an ownership group that stands behind us. Not a bad place to "raise your kids on Wizards soccer" (Leah Blake).

And, as of Saturday night, the US men's national team, your red, white, and blues, have qualified for the World Cup next June in Germany. We beat Mexico 2-0 to finish a qualifying campaign that has lasted about 2 years. Well done Yanks...and Go USA! (this is about as patriotic as I ever get...so enjoy).

The Art of The Little White Ball

Once upon a time, there was this little ball. And all he wanted to do was to go into this little hole. It seems very simple. It looks pretty easy on the tele (that's for you Andy). But, NOOOOOOOOOO sir. Mr. "I love playing all sports" found a very interesting challenge. I mean, I knew it would be difficult, but I didn't think it would be THIS difficult. Mark (Armstrong..shout out to Iowa) is shooting in the 80's and I am still in the $@&*'s. I actually have two really good teachers in my dad and Rod (my father in-law). But, like any good sport, it is not something you pick up over night.

It's also my observation that golf brings out a unique side to most people's personality. Little did I know the openness that the little white ball reveals. Who would have known how emotinal my dad would get during a round of golf? I have already decided that taking up golf is worth it just to play with my dad.

It's a simple game really and I am not even good enough to talk trash yet, which makes me feel way below average. I've also learned that in golf, you have to pick and choose when you talk trash. Example: guy tees off and skulls the ball which doesn't get past the ladies tee. This is not a good time to make fun. It seems to me that after 3-4 holes you start making cracks about overall scores and the number of 3-putts the other guy has had etc. (or you throw pink tees and markers throughout the rest of the game as Paul supposedly does (yes Megan, he's real). It's a finer point to the game, but something that with practice I think I will be able to master....the art of talking trash on the golf course that it. The only problem is that my game has to be a heck of a lot better before I can even begin my favorite art.

not the man

sorry everyone, that's not tom. it's a really funny picture that luke sent when the guys were talking about pompadours, but then chickened out of the style. i guess only a real man like johnny cash could pull something like that off. now they're just faux-hawkers like a lot of the world.

but tom's brother paul is thinking of going with the beckham-like mullet. i'm not sold, i'm a little nervous about it really. paul's a good looking guy, but a short-long is risky. it'll either make or break the dating scene for him. good luck paul.

where's my husband?

aren't you all curious as to why tom doesn't post? he's the one who started this whole canoe americana blog and now it seems that it's strictly me posting. frankly i'm a little disappointed that he hasn't taken advantage of this media. he's got opinions, and stories, and life experiences that he could share -- so why doesn't he?

for instance, in the last week, he's taught our dog how to "bring the paper" on a somewhat consistent basis, as well as lay on her side when he shoots her with his pretend gun and says "bang." that's really impressive right?

or he could talk about the controversy on the bigsoccer postings -- how these younguns think they know soccer, but clearly have no clue when they say bo oshonyi is a better keeper than tony meola. they love to rip into tom with stats and whatnot, but stats don't mean anything unless you're watching the game. and they called his brother paul a name, which is just hilarious because who calls people names when they're trying to prove a point? nevermind what they called him. they're mere children in the world's oldest sport.

and speaking of -- tom insists that the wave (where everyone stands up in a tidal-like motion at sporting events) originated in mexico and that it is actually called the "mexican wave." and also says that he hasn't done the wave at the k, during a royals game. are you kidding me? who hasn't done the wave at kaufman stadium?

so here are some topics i wish he would talk about, as well as many other things. like becoming a father, or taking a vacation with my family (scary?), or anything else that people blog about. (thanks for the photo, luke)

be still my beating heart

i know he has a new movie coming out, but currently tom & i are watching "quick change" which he helped write and direct, as well as star in, of course. he's a clown holding up a bank. even in 1990 he was a deadpan actor, just on the brink of becoming a cutely depressed old man. and i love him.

every time we see bill murray tom reminds me that his own looks are wasted on me. he's convinced that he could be a wrinkly, saggy-mouthed middle-aged man but maintain his sense of humor and i'd love him the same. he may be right. it's so much more important to laugh every day then think to yourself, man, my husband's hot. in twenty years he probably will be a wrinkly, saggy-mouthed middle-aged man. but he'll still say funny things, and do funny things and that's what i need - to laugh every day. several times. if not all day long.

camera shy

i'm trying to find the best camera for the buck. my sister says i want a fancy one, definitely with slr. perhaps a canon powershot 3.2-megapixel or kodak easyshare 5.0-megapixel. or even a canon eos digital rebel. i was looking at a fuji fine-pix 6.3 or a minolta dimage 6.0. if i go with say, a fuji fine-pix 4.0 i get the speedy shutter, but i sacrifice the enlargement. if i get the fuji fine-pix i get the enlargements but lose the shutter speed, right?

and i have a nice minolta maxxum 300si. it's a great manual camera, but big, and i tend to leave it at home because of its size. do you have a camera you like? something that you take a ton of pictures with, and can reproduce/zoom/take pictures quickly with high quality? i'm itching to get this camera before the baby comes, which means i have 3 & 1/2 months.

and some might know that i LOATHE canon; supposedly they're the best on the market as far as professional photography is concerened, but both kelly and sarah have had terrible luck with them breaking. and on top of that, their customer service lacks in every area, except in being frustrating. but if i get my camera from best buy then i can get a protection policy, which means they'll take care of everything and pretty much hand me a new camera. i hate to admit it, i really like best buy. but not canon. (thus no link, bad camera company)

you taste good boss

i love to cook, mostly because i love to eat. and i love to eat because both of my parents are great cooks. i've found that i cook more like my mom, sticking close to tried & true recipes that always please. my dad is fancier, watching the cooking shows and then emulating them in amazing ways. and i'll eat everything, except veal, which is morally wrong and depressing and every time someone orders it or eats it i think about this sad little baby cow carcass i saw my senior year of high school at alex's lake house. it was just the remnants, bone and fur, and really small. sad, huh? don't you feel bad?

anyway, if you have great recipes, let me know. i can always use some suggestions. and i'll try anything once. i know a lot of you out there cook. from fried fish to chicken tortilla soup to lemon bars, i'll take it.

some of you might wonder, does tom cook? no, i won't let him. i have trust issues in the kitchen and therefore usually refuse to let others around the sink and stove. only family and close friends can really step into that arena. and while tom definitely fits into that category, he doesn't love the kitchen like i do. but he can make some mean pancakes.