"A lot of people run a race to see who is fastest. I run to see who has the most guts, who can punish himself into exhausting pace, and then at the end, punish himself even more."

Steve Prefontaine

"Now if you are going to win any battle you have to do one thing. You have to make the mind run the body. Never let the body tell the mind what to do. The body will always give up. It is always tired morning, noon, and night. But the body is never tired if the mind is not tired. When you were younger the mind could make you dance all night, and the body was never tired...You've always got to make the mind take over and keep going." - George S. Patton, U.S. Army General and 1912 Olympian

life captured one frame at a time

I've been thinking about getting a decent camera. To see if I have a nose for taking pictures. And maybe start a photo blog.
Some photos that have inspired me.

christmas at home

The little guy is really starting to crawl.

christmas 2006

Madison played Mary at our church's Christmas production that Brenda helped put together.

Scotty and Maddy hanging out before the opening of the presents.

Dreams
by Langston Hughes

Hold fast to dreams
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly.

Hold fast to dreams
For when dreams go
Life is a barren field
Frozen with snow.

happiness is an empty diner and ice cream

how to ask for candy....step by step

1) Stand quietly next to pops with candy in front of face. Do not say anything.



2) Transition to verbal request, spoken softly with many sidelong glances.



3) After the request is made, look through bangs with beseeching eyes.





4) I call this Madison's "je-ne-sais-quois / aw-shucks"combination. It is highly effective.





5) The sad puppy eyes seals the deal 9 times out of 10.

success.

similarities between little scotty and the great communicator

Scotty's pleasant disposition has drawn a number of comparisons with celebrities.




Bob Barker is one I hear Scotty likened to often.







The gipper is another name that comes up.

the newsweek interview....and why Stallone's angst still inspires me.

Stallone:"It nags me that I took the easy way instead of the high road," he says. "But everyone makes mistakes. I look around at people my age, and I can see it in their eyes—a kind of bittersweet reflection: 'I didn't live the life that I wanted, and now I've got all this stuff I want to say, but nobody wants to hear it.' I was feeling that, and if you don't get it out, it can become a beast that tears you apart."

You see billionaires who have everything, yet inside they're still the same lonely, insecure people," Stallone says. "You think you've got it all figured out, but then you turn 60 and there's still this little hole inside you. You realize, we're always going to be somewhat half full."

of mice and men and the hats we wear.

took Maddy on our monthly trip to disneyland to give Brenda and baby a break.







the matterhorn was being renovated.










Madison's favorite ride at Disneyland is the teacup ride.








Her next favorite ride is "It's a small world"








The inside of "It's a small world" was revamped for Christmas.







Asian dolls representin'







I took this picture surreptitiously while in line. The family on the left is wearing what I call, The Blast Shield Hat. Sometimes I call it the Stormtrooper Helmet. In the last year, this type of hat has become very popular among the Asian community.

Moments after taking the photo, the Hispanic lady next to them asked the man where she could buy a Stormtrooper helmet.

The gravitas of the moment struck me almost instantly, as I realized I was witnessing the crossing over of one cultural phenomena into another culture. It was a momentous occasion in history. I feel unworthy, but duty bound, to record this event for posterity.








My world was rocked again as I was disembarking my "it's a small world" boat.
I believe this is the first recorded photo of white people wearing the Blast Shield hat.

welcome to this world, chris

your family has been waiting a long time to see you.