Experience. Reflect. Repeat.

Today's musings

2011-12-27T11:29:00.000-08:00

What I learned from the Gospel of Matthew this morning:

- There is something more important than a temple (12:5)
- Anytime is a good time to heal, pray and be with someone (12:11)
- We have to decide whether we will have a good tree with good fruit or a bad tree with bad fruit (12:33)
- My words will acquit or condemn me (12:37)
- Beware of the dangers of spiritual emptiness!! (12:43-45)
- Have good soil. Digest, understand, cultivate and my production will be multiplied! (13:1-23)
- Peter let the littlest thing rattle him while on the water. Jesus never wavered. Just stay focuesed on Him and you wont' either. (14:22-33)
- Jesus tells us things hidden from the world in his parables. The question is: Are we listening? (13:35)

Sometimes you just gotta read the Bible. The place to go for answers. The book to read for entertainment. The document to buff up your history knowledge. The source of life!

Until next time, live today full of joy, love and courage. You have a partner in crime!

2011 Year in Review

2011-12-26T13:49:00.000-08:00

It's that time again, folks! Time to fill in the blanks from 2011 that went unblogged and time to recap some events that you may have already read about. Either away, join me on the 2011 year in review journey! Ready? GO!

January - kicked off the year in style with Molly and Will, had visitors Jamie and Chris (Black Butte, Neskowin, whirlwind-heck-of-a-good-time)and went to watch my mighty Ducks play not so mighty in the National Championship game. Worst day of my life.
February - and so begins my travels to DC for the "Dealer Academy" and the death of our favorite Portland restaurant, Belly. Son of a!
March - 2 major events: our 1st anniversary, which we celebrated on Maui! And Jamie's 21er, which was celebrated in the South, as it should be.
April - Alex to DC again, fun outings to the Tulip Festival, wine tasting, and being jealous of my Dad, who spent a week in Augusta for the Masters.
May - I was featured in the Statesman Journal "Young Professionals" section, and spent a wild weekend with college friends in Palm Springs for a bachelor party. Wild being golf, dinners out, and laying by the pool. Pretty crazy, huh?
June - DC, again, after another Bachelor party, this time in San Diego. June also saw the beginning of 5 weeks with Jamie, which took us to Seattle (Mariners and oysters!), Black Butte (hiking!) and lots of Portland! We polished it off with a Mary Poppins show with Mom...all in all, one of the better months of the year!
July - 4th of July in Neskowin, the happiest place on earth, and let's be honest - the real highlight of the year - the VICTORY at the Oregon Best Ball!!!
August - DC, for the 4th time, but this time was able to pair that trip with a trip to Georgia for a week. We got to go to Chris's lake house, the PGA championship, and spend much needed quality time in the humidity. Upon returning, I was in one of my best friend's wedding, which turned out to be an incredibly great weekend spent with great friends!
September - the return of the Oregon Football Season, a quick trip to Salishan for Ashley and I, and the start of Ashley's teaching career in Salem!
October - busiest month of the year! DC for me, planning and executing our 1st Annual Wine to Water fundraiser, a trip to Ruby Springs, and the grand opening of our brand new Toyota store. And the major highlight was the arrival of our new puppy, RUBY!!!
November - really highlighted by a trip to Oxford and Thanksgiving in Georgia. I wore shorts. You don't do that in Oregon at Thanksgiving.
December - sprinting to the end of the year, we had the final trip to DC, which Ashley and family were able to attend. Couple that with the 2nd Annual Ornament Exchange and many other parties, we find ourselves a bit exhausted but hopeful for a great 2012.

Lessons learned: love a lot, live a lot, travel often, and appreciate home!

Until next time, happy new year and blessings to you for the upcoming year!

Meet Bob

2011-12-17T10:12:00.004-08:00

I have a new friend and his name is Bob. I always admired him from a distance through stories I'd heard about him and from things he has written. But then I got to meet him. It took flying all the way to the East Coast (Washington DC) but by chance we met. He has a wild story, but in the end all he cares about is loving people like crazy. Bob inspires me to love better, to love more freely, and to do strange things for love. Here is what he has to say about it:

"I understand more about my faith when I think about my plane that leaks oil. We were made to leak as well; we were made to leak Jesus. We’re the ones who are supposed to love each other extravagantly, spontaneously, not just on Wednesday nights or Sunday mornings. And when we do, people might look at us a little funny, like there’s something wrong with us. But there isn’t. It’s what we were made to do. When we love each other extravagantly, our love gets on everybody and everything.

I know when I’m fearful, stressed out, distracted or hedging too. In those times, it feels like I’ve run out of love and what I notice always happens first, is that I stop leaking. My love isn’t as messy or spontaneous anymore. It doesn’t get on anything. It comes across as painfully polite, merely pleasant, barely tolerant, it’s somewhere in the mid-range rather that an explosion from a big engine and lots of blue smoke. When I stop leaking, I’m reminded that I’m not living the way I was designed to from the factory."

I love that statement that at times our love can come across as "painfully polite, mearly pleasant, barely tolerant". As Bob puts it, we are made to surprise people, do extravagant things, and go out of our way for love. That kind of makes life a little more exciting doesn't it? We get to think of ways to love people, whether they like it or not!

What can you do today to love someone like you've never loved them before? Until next time, meet Bob here and get creative in love!

Business Blog

2011-11-11T08:01:00.002-08:00

I was accepted a while ago to be published as a blogger for Oregon Business Magazine...here is my latest entry!

Culture: What yours is and how it affects your business

I recently listened a podcast by Andy Stanley on the topic of culture, and it hit home in a lot of ways.
Not only did it prompt me to write this article, but it has prompted my business to make some positive
changes recently and going forward. His podcast was titled “The 5 Inescapable Truths About Culture”
and he is right on in regards to all five truths. These truths are can be found in every business or
organization, and they are undeniable and inescapable.

Culture says simply “this is how we do things here”. It is infectious but incredibly hard to measure. And
leaders love things that we can measure! We like numbers, reports and charts. We love reporting to
the boss how much of an improvement we had in the last quarter. However, leaders have a hard time
working on the culture of their organization. It feels like we are moving backwards when we address the
culture of our organization, doesn’t it? We wonder, Why can’t employees show up on time? Why don’t
people just do the right thing? Here is what Stanley has to say about all of this.

The first inescapable truth is that leaders shape the organizational culture whether they intend to or
not. No one has more impact on the culture of a business than the leader. The buy in comes from the
top down. We, as leaders, often forget that. Mostly we think about the stuff we can count or measure.
However, we have much more influence than we think we do. And a major temptation that we can fall
in to is that once we are in a space for a long time, we either adapt to the culture around us or continue
to shape it. If we look around our business and say “this is not something I like”, then we need to look
in the mirror. However, if we look around and like what we see, then we need to discover what Stanley
refers to as the “driving force” behind those good things. Then we need to protect them, nurture them
and don’t let anything get in the way of them being changed.

It is an enormous temptation for leaders to sit back and say, Wow things are great and I’m not changing
anything! But we need to discover why things are great and not just accept the fact that they are great.
We need to discover how to further cultivate a healthy culture and not be comfortable with it. If you
don’t know what these good things are, then it is possible that you might make changes that could
disrupt something that is inherently good and potentially destroy a good thing. So you can see the
importance of finding out the really healthy things you have going on in your business culture and act on
them.

The second truth in all business cultures is that “time in erodes awareness of”. It is pretty simple: the
fresher we are in an organization the more we see. The longer we are in a place the less aware we
become of the small things, the culture, the people, and of what’s going on around us. We need to
build in to the rhythm of our business ways to discover things that are unhealthy, and ways to discover
the driving force of things that are healthy. Does that mean interviewing every new hire after 90 days?
Does that mean randomly polling employees on the way things are at work? I don’t know what it means
for your business, but I know we all need to do something to have safeguards in place that uproot
unhealthy practices or make healthy cultures come to the surface and stick.

The third truth that Stanley talks about is the fact that healthy cultures attract and keep healthy
people. Healthy people have a very low tolerance for unhealthy people; likewise unhealthy people are

attracted to unhealthy environments. This is psychology 101. Unhealthy people aren’t happy in healthy
organizations because nobody puts up with their gossip, drama, bad attitudes or their poor work ethic.
At the same time healthy people will leave a company if they are always walking around on eggshells,
avoiding the elephant in the room, etc. They simply won’t put up with it. A healthy culture attracts and
maintains great people. There won’t be “sideways energy”, where a lot of activity is going on with no
real productivity.

Speaking of productivity, the fourth inescapable truth is that the culture of an organization impacts
long term productivity. They are joined at the hip. Culture is tied to accessibility of information,
transparency, unfiltered debate and communication. Lack of those things are a “bottleneck for
productivity”, says Stanley. If you are not afraid to communicate, be transparent and are not scared of
unfiltered debate then you probably have a good foundation for a healthy culture. Employees become
less territorial and less focused on themselves, which will ultimately lead to better productivity. They
will collaborate more and bosses will no longer have to be worried about what’s going on “underneath”
them. Suspicion is now replaced with trust and productivity will increase exponentially.

The fifth truth about culture is that unhealthy cultures are slow to adapt to change. We all know this.
Unhealthy cultures are usually so focused on what’s happening inside the walls that their backs end up
against it. They are more concerned about what’s happening in the cube next to them, what the boss
said to that person and such that they lose focus of the marketplace. We can’t afford this. We can’t
afford to have a culture that resists change. We’ll be out of business before long! This makes it all the
more difficult for a company to transform from an unhealthy culture to a healthy one. The change is
worth it though. It impacts who you get, who you keep, and what kind of productivity they bring, which
in the long run directly affects the bottom line.

Your culture: what is it? What is it harvesting? What good things is it producing? Do you need to take a
look at making some serious changes? From someone who’s business is making a change, trust me.

News

2011-10-31T17:34:00.003-07:00

So I dressed as up a my Dad today for Halloween. Not sure how I felt about it. First off, my step mom hit on me because she thought I was him (totally kidding, but that was funny though huh??). But seriously, it was kind of weird. Was it a flash forward? I'm not sure...I'm not sure I dig the cowboy boots and buckle at work really. Me, I'm more of a suit guy. Actually I'm a sweater vest guy, but those can only come out in the winter months.

Ok enough rambling. Did you hear that we moved? And bought a dog? And are going to be aunt and uncle again? And are both working in Salem? And we don't live in an apartment anymore? Yep. A LOT has changed recently! Where shall I start?

The move. It's been a while coming. We have talked about moving somewhere for a while now. The apartment walls were closing in and we wanted more space! But what we didn't expect was a little blessing in disguise. A house in our ideal neighborhood in Salem came available to rent and we have to jump on it. So we did. It is a great house! And it feels way too big for us right now, but that is waht 800 square feet will do to a couple. But after having been in for 1 day and not even close to being unpacked, we love it so far.

Ruby. Our new puppy. She's a shih tzu and a damn cute one. We drove all the way to Puyallup, WA to get her and boy was it worth it! Ruby has quite the personality so far...she a little bit of a leash biter...but I guess that's better than a poop eater! She loves to cuddle late at night and it potty trained already! Stay tuned for more stories...

Rhodes. She will have a sibling! Due in late Spring and gender unknown, there will be another Casebeer. And we all can't wait!

Ducks. 7-1. 1st in the Pac 12. National Title Contenders...you know, the usual stuff. Not much else to report other than we are really good again...fun time to be a Duck fan!!

Ashley. She's still the best! Working for the school district, mommying a dog, and getting to be the lead designer of our new house! Love her. . .

That's enough updating for now. My only wisdom for you? Live a little. Buy a dog. Move towns. Do things for people, both that you love and don't love. Do things in general. Until next time, keep it fun and adventurous - you won't regret it!

AJ and Travis

2011-08-24T09:43:00.002-07:00

"We're road dogs man, road dogs. Once you start living the life, you can't stop. It's addicting man." So I picked up 2 hitchhikers on my way to work this morning and ended up riding with them for about 25 miles, ending with a drop off at the Greyhound Station in Salem. It was interesting, to say the least.

You see, AJ and Travis are trying to get to Humbolt, CA. They are going there to "trim", which I found out means to get weed. Hopefully, they say, they will get enough to sustain a trip back to Portland, or in AJ's case, back to Missouri to the hippie commune that he lives in. Yes, hippie commune. I asked him about life on the commune, and he said they get $150 a month, but can eat, drink and do anything that the land produces for them. The commune provides shelter and food and a way of life, I suppose. But not much more than that.

Travis is recently divorced (for the 3rd time, as I found out) and is actually making a stop in Eugene to "get my Subaru back from the ex...hopefully she filled it up with gas" (wouldn't count on it!) Travis claims to have 3 degrees and to have a job offer from the City of Portland for $34/hr, plus benefits. Tough for him to take, he says, due to being addicted to being a "road dog". Needless to say, I encouraged him to take the job.

But what struck me most about this brief encounter actually started last night. Ashley and I were lucky to have been invited to a great dinner event on Sauvie Island. We talked at length about fellowship, being Jesus to people, mission, community, and a lot about "the least of these" from Matthew 25:40. I thought, as I picked these guys up, about the least of these and what that meant. Did it mean being poor? Does least mean being homeless or a road dog? Does the least of these mean not having a family? I decided that in this case, AJ and Travis epitomized the least of these, to me. They needed love, acceptance, and mostly, Jesus.

I did my best to love these guys. I asked them questions about whatever I could think of. I gave them all the water they could drink and whatever food I had in my car. Mostly, I thought about "the least of these" and hopefully that they saw something unique in our encounter. I didn't want to preach to them (maybe I should have, who knows) or affirm either that weed is the way of life. I just wanted them to feel cared for, even if for a minute or two.

Who are "the least of these" in your life? Is it a co-worker? An orphanage? A non-profit you are involved in? I know for me, today, the least of these was AJ and Travis.

Until next time, "The King will reply, "Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me"." Matthew 25:40.

You should run.

2011-08-06T10:37:00.002-07:00

Seriously, you should run! Maybe you already do. But are you a part of a running group? I'm a huge advocate of this. There is a running group in Salem that meets out of Gallagher Fitness (http://www.activesalem.com/). They accommodate all types of running levels - beginners, sprinters, marathoners, etc. so no one is left out. I went on a run this morning with 6 people and we ran about 8 miles. On my own there is about zero chance of running 8 miles, but when you can chat and laugh and take some walk breaks with other people it isn't that difficult. I don't even have to mention the health benefit this either - I burned 1200 calories all before 8AM!

What got me thinking about this was when we ran by a gentleman who was probably in his late 60's or early 70's. He was cruising right along at a good clip and smiling all the way. That got me thinking - I want to be running fast when I'm 70. But I want to be doing it with friends.

Have you looked into a running club in your town? It is a great networking tool, a friend-making atmosphere, and a get-your-butt-in-shape thing. Check into it, you will not regret it. Until next time, go buy some Nike's and get running!

It was a good month...

2011-07-26T10:10:00.004-07:00

Ok make that a GREAT month! This update has been long overdue, but here I am. From June 8 to July 6 Ashley and I were graced with the presence of Jamie O'Dea. And let me tell you, folks, she is one of a kind! Funny, friendly, adventurous and excitable are a few adjectives to describe her. But to really get to know Jamie you need to spend some good quality time with her. Like a month. Here's what we did!

- We attacked the PNW (Pacific North West). One weekend we went to Seattle and caught a Mariners baseball game, some fresh oysters and a naked bike parade. Always a good time! Another weekend we ventured to Black Butte and pushed Ashley up a hill. Well worth the trip, though. It was actually sunny and warm, and we had a great time cooking out and relaxing. And then it was off to Las Vegas...which was anything BUT relaxing. You know the drill. Try to get some sun in the AM, then try not to lose all your money. (Sidenote: one word for me...WINNING!)

- In another adventure, we rented a house in Neskowin for the 4th...and had a GREAT weekend! It was sunny again (rare at the coast), we had great guests (shout outs to the Halls, Marras and Weckerts!), and loved the celebrating that goes on in Neskowin. The parade was a hit as always, the Gin Fizz with Judge Barber tasted great, and Uncle Chris' Bloody Mary's were spicy as heck! But we sang out hearts out by the flag pole and fell in love with America all over again.

- I have to say, however, that some of my favorite times last month were coming home from work and seeing what the girls had done that day. One day my apartment was totally rearranged (always refreshing!). Another day they had a tennis game planned, followed by discovering a Portland treasure - the Rose Garden. Most nights were great home-cooked meals and some good ol' down time with the girls. Sometimes the less you do the more fun you have!

- As you can tell, it was a great month. A month I know I will cherish for a long time. There may not be many more times that we'll get to spend for that length of time, uninterrupted and free. So maybe that's a good lesson for all of us to relearn...love the ones you're with, as much as you can, for as long as you can.

The girl can SING!

2011-07-21T09:28:00.004-07:00

The other night we were fortunate to go see the Sara Bareillis show at the Schnitz in Portland. Ultimately, the only reason we went in the first place was to reunite with my friend who is her bass player (he and I played in the same jazz band in college for 3 years. Too bad he got famous and I still suck at drums!) Well I sure am glad we went, because it was amazing. That. Girl. Can. Sing. Who knew that big of a voice could come out of such a small person? And that she could play the piano as well as she does? Needless to say, we were all truly impressed and extremely entertained! As a bonus, it was great to see old friends on stage (I knew the guitar player for the opener, Josh Radin, too!) and to party with the rockstars!

In other news, I have had 2 haircuts in the last week. Why, you may ask? Well I was tired of getting butchered at Bishops, so I called an Aveda Salon. What I didn't realize was that it was an Aveda SCHOOL and that I was going to get my haircut by a student of just 6 months. You can probably tell how that turned out! 1.5 hours later, she hadn't cut any hair off my head and then announced that she was done, and how did I like it? Blankly I stared at her, thinking thoughts that I could not say out loud, and said "It looks great!".

2 Days later I had a rescue haircut at Rudy's in the Pearl...and now I look like a superstar. Lesson learned!

One last update...we got to babysit RHODES! And man did we have fun. Our time was filled with soccer, lunch, a nice walk in the rain and lots of videos and laughing! More to come hopefully...

I do realize I am due to write about our month with Jamie...and I will. But until next time, pick up a copy of Sara's album and enjoy!

Advice from Dad

2011-06-19T13:31:00.004-07:00

"If you sleep with dogs, you are going to get fleas". Translation: life is all about who you associate yourself with. Point taken!

"Pigs get fat, hogs get butchered". Translation: It is ok to enjoy life's good offerings, but certainly don't take advantage of anyone or anything.

"Don't let me find out from anyone other than you". Translation: Don't hide anything or else you'll get your butt whooped. Got it!

"I'm here for a good time, not a long time!" Translation: Don't take life too seriously...have FUN!

"Don't be a hero, take a cab." Translation: Don't drink and drive. Thanks, Dad. I think that's a law, too.....

"Execution equals Impact". Translation: Whatever you do, do it well. Do it right. And have fun doing it.

And lastly, "Love you". Translation: He's a good (actually, great) Dad.

I'm lucky to be able to spend this Father's day with my Dad. A lot of people aren't as fortunate as me (my wife, for starters). I won't take it for granted. I am lucky to have a Dad as great as mine. For those of you who don't have a father who is alive or a part of your life, know that God loves you and is your great Father. I'm just lucky to have two.

Until next time, go golfing, fishing, hiking, whatevering with your Dad. You won't regret it.

I love you, Daddio!

The Thing Behind The Thing

2011-06-17T20:47:00.004-07:00

Makes a lot of sense, right? #nope. Do you get what I mean when I say that? #thethingbehindthething. That's exactly what it is, according to my brilliant wife. When I was trying to explain Twitter to her a few weeks ago, she asked about the #. The hash mark. It is kind of hard to explain, really. Do you do the # thing to make a point? To say something funny? #ihavenoidea. It's very ambiguous. Mysterious, really. #letsmoveon

What has "The Trio" been up to this week? #lotsofthings. So far, Jamie has taken over the role as "Interior Decorator". It seems like every day I come home from work and something has been done to the apartment. It's like a game...they stand there, looking at me, wondering if I'll figure out what moved. #kitchentableANDhalltable. Or why am I suddenly staring at myself when I walk in the door? #theyboughtahugemirror. So far, I love the changes. This is something I recommend to all. Change things up every once in a while, it will surprise you how much energy is inserted into an already lived-in space.

We have also been fairly active. We did another Portland Hill Walk (NW neighborhoods, Forest Park, lovely). Ashley and Jamie have been walking all over the city every day. We also roamed the West Hills #hugehouses #wanttolivethere. Last weekend we even went down and watched the Portland Rose Parade, and today we were lucky enough to go to Cirque du Soleil! #thankscarrie

All in all, it has been a great #start to the month. Wait...did I mess that up#? The thing behind the thing? #dangit! # Crap!

Until next time, enjoy your company. #won'tbehereforever

Our duo is now a trio!

2011-06-10T05:43:00.002-07:00

Nope, we are not preggers. Settle down! But we do have some exciting news to report...we have a visitor! Ashley's sister Jamie decided to spend a month with us in Portland and she came in yesterday!

This is exciting for a number of reasons. For starters, it is nice to have more family around us. We love family. We love spending time with family members, so this is perfect! Second, we love mixing things up. I am a firm believer that shaking your world up for a little bit keeps it exciting. Ashley and I have never had a roommate before. We have hardly had anyone stay with us! So this will definitely change up "the routine" and I'm looking forward to it. And lastly, Jamie is a huge breath of fresh air. She is funny, exciting, sporadic and above all she just loves life.

Surely we will have some stories to tell. Hopefully we'll have great adventures. But I do know one thing: we're glad she's here. Welcome to Oregon, Jam Jam! Until next time, shake things up. It will be fun!

TIMBERRRRR!!!!!(s)

2011-05-13T14:35:00.002-07:00

If you haven't been to a Portland Timbers game yet, simply put - you need to go. Find a way to get tickets. Beg your friend who belongs to the Mac Club. Hound a scalper. Do what it takes! But you need to go. Here's why.

- Because there are about 5,000 fans called the "Timbers Army" who are planted behind the North goal. They are lead by 2 different conductors. They are dressed to the 9's in Timbers garb. And they. Don't. Stop. Chanting. And. Singing. All. GAME. LONG! It is really impressive! They are jumping, dancing, banging drums, IN UNISON! It creates quite the environment.

- Because there is no announcer or lame electronic media going on. It is pure fan-dome. Pure energy. Pure Portland!

- Because there are actual fans who actually care about the game!

- And because those same fans show up rain, sleet, hail, or sun! We went and it was raining sideways for the first half of the game and guess what? It was just as fun!

- Because you should always try new things. This can apply to just about every area of your life...

- Because you should support the local economy! Not going to get all political on you, but I do believe in this...

- Because I said so!

In all honesty, I have never been a fan of soccer, let alone pay money to go to a game. But this was well worth it. We had so much fun and can't wait to go back! Until next time, gooooooooooooaaaaaaaaaaaalllllllllllllllllllll!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

God and Country

2011-04-15T09:53:00.004-07:00

Woah! Struck a nerve, didn't I? Well so did the podcast that I have been listening to lately by Andy Stanley. He's the pastor of North Point Community Church in Georgia - the church Ashley and I attended when we lived in Alpharetta. And to say it is an amazing church is an understatement! Anyway, let me share with you what I've been learning and convicted of.

God and Country. God and Politics. God and schools? God and...God and...that is the essence of what Andy has been talking about. God is being left out of so many areas of our lives, but not just our own lives. You see, America has what he calls a "national conscience". Not only do we have a conscience, but our country does too. The question is: What informs our conscience? You and I (and the USA)- we know it's wrong for a man to marry a 14 year old girl. In other countries? Might not be wrong. THAT is a "national" conscience. Agree?

Ok, so what informs that? Where do we get that "ought to" and "ought not to" feeling in our gut? Andy's argument is that as a Christian it comes from the Holy Spirit. It's God nudging us in a certain direction. But what about the country? We might have to look a little further back to figure this out.

How about 1776 and the Declaration of Independence? Phrases like "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" and "And for the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence" support the fact that we founded this country reliance on God - as creator, protector and 'influencer'.

Do you know when the last printed prayer was by a sitting US President? 1944. "D-Day". Our President literally stopped the nation. Cars, businesses, everything paused for 5 minutes and was asked by the President to pray for our troops. And every newspaper printed the prayer from the President in the afternoon press. I thought that was interesting. So long ago!

How about a little more current? Do you know what our National Motto is? "In God We Trust". That is the USA's National Motto! Could you imagine if every school started the day by declaring their own country's national motto? Why is it that that makes people squirm? It shouldn't! The Congress is who came up with it! In 1956. Our elected officials were the ones who thought that we need to put our trust in God.

How about even a little more current? Like at the end of every State of the Union Address, when the sitting President asks that "God Bless America". And yet there are law suits and fusses about taking the phrase "One Nation, Under God" out of the Pledge of Allegiance.

It is interesting how far we have strayed, as a nation, from God. Our nation started with God, founded on principles laid out by Him. What if we were a nation that was dependent on God? What if we gave Him credit and were accountable to Him? I think we have gotten a little too reliant on "self" and that our country and ourselves are taking credit for all the blessings that we do have. In reality, lack of humility leads to less dependence on God.

I know I' rambling...and I'm really not trying to be political or anything! I just thought it was interesting what Andy was saying about the state of our country and how we have strayed from a basic foundation. I agree with him that we need leaders in this country that look to Jesus and who are influenced by Him. We need leaders in our own communities that do the same. After all, He created this place. We need to be accountable to Him and look to Him for guidance and leadership.

I don't often blog about Jesus or politics, or the two together. So forgive me if this strikes a nerve. I just felt the urge to write something! Until next time, look to God whenever you can. He's in control anyway!

Have a great weekend!

Maui, Masters, and more!

2011-04-08T09:34:00.002-07:00

Well hello again friends! I left you last time wondering where we would go on our 1st anniversary. Well we ended up in wonderful, beautiful Maui, Hawaii! This was Ashley's first trip and boy was it a good one. Our main objectives were to a) relax, b) see some sights and c) relax some more. We accomplished all three!

Some highlights included:
- Twin Falls hike. We wandered around a rain forest near the small ocean town of Paia and managed to find 3 great waterfalls (one of which I jumped off of!), get really muddy, and find an incredible lunch spot (Cafe Mambo). A great day!
- Finding (reconnecting?) friends by a pool at the Ritz Carlton hotel. Got to catch up with Seth and Julie and realize that we need to be friends again!
- Dinner at David Paul's Island Grill. One of the best on the Island!
- Whale watching!!! Never done this before and it was AWESOME. Got to see 50 foot humpback whales in action...and by action I mean...you know...action.
- We relaxed. A lot. On the beach, by the pool, on our porch, it was GREAT!

If you want to go to Maui on the cheap, let me know...because we managed to keep it in the budget and also have a great time!

Other things going on in our lives is extreme jealousy. Well just me, really. Let me explain. You see I am a golf nut. The 2nd weekend in April every year means is Masters time. I'm not there. My dad is. That means I'm really jealous. Upset, really. Not at him, just that I'm not there!! I was blessed have been once, and it was incredible. I took Ashley's dad and we had the best day. Hopefully one day I'll go back!!

In other news, there are rumors that Ashley's sister Jamie will be living in Portland, OR for one month this summer. More on that later.

Well I guess I should stop hiding in my office where no one can find me and get out to the Sales desk. The live online feed of the Masters is just too good to pass up! Until next time, relax this weekend. Trust me, it's nice!

Whirlwind weekend, a studio appearance, and more!

2011-03-29T12:03:00.002-07:00

Hi friends, welcome back! Since I've last blogged, a lot has happened! Nothing of major importance to speak of, but life got busy for us. Last weekend we managed to accomplish the following:

- Housewarming party for a friend, followed by meeting more friends after for a night cap. Great to catch up with the Hanna's, for sure!
- Golf on Saturday morning (beat Wade by 1 shot, come on!)
- Wedding Saturday night in Salem. GREAT to see lots of old friends and even make some new ones!
- MAGOOS. Still a classy joint.
- Church to hear Sco speak, that was a nice little bonus to the weekend.
- 84th birthday party for Grandma - boy was that a wild time!
- Dinner with friends from San Diego back in Portland (Toro Bravo, SO good)
- BED!
- Stuido recording session (for me) in Salem. Got to record keys on a worship album coming out soon!

Needless to say it was quite the weekend. But in all that busyness we managed to reflect on how good it is to see old friends. The first set we got to reconnect with (in a way) was the Scofields. Eric was the officiant of our wedding and also the leader (with his wife Marni) of our marriage counseling. Living in San Diego we don't get to see them all that often. But it is amazing what an hour of conversation and a glass of wine does to rekindle a friendship. We laughed, got serious, talked about future and just loved being together.

The next set of friends we reconnected with was the Pitkins, who we didn't even know would be at the wedding! Talk about a great surprise. We were able to be with them thru the whole wedding, then to Magoo's for shuffleboard, and then for a nice quiet dinner on Sunday. What a treat to have them in town and be able to steal some time from them.

Just writing this makes me want to get back in touch with some people. What about you? Who can you call this week to reconnect with? Encourage? Say hi? I think when we lose track of people we can lose a special part of our lives. Don't let life move too quickly that you forget about friends. I know I'm guilty of this.

Well as nice as this weather has been for the past 4 months, Ashley and I are going to be leaving tomorrow. I'm not saying where - you'll have to check back to find out. But I know one thing: we are ready to get out of here!!

Until next time, enjoy your friends, old and new.

1st Anniversary and other adventures

2011-03-22T08:52:00.003-07:00

Well it has been a great year! Two nights ago Ashley and I celebrated our 1st Anniversary, and we did it in style. We spent the day writing a 5 page paper for her Grad school (yes!), watching golf (yes!), and going to church (getting better). But the good times really hit around 5:30 when we toasted to a great year with a glass of champagne, followed by an amazing meal at Urban Farmer. We capped the night with chat and a pillow fight! I was once told by a very wise man to have a pillow fight once a year because "it keeps you young!". Good advice!

A funny thing happened at dinner, however. Ashley excused herself to go to the bathroom about halfway through our meal and came back smelling her hands. She said, "Man, this place is great! They have this really nice oil that you can use on your hands after you wash them! My hands feel so soft!". So naturally I wanted to investigate this claim. I excused myself and headed to the men's room in search for this oil. After washing my hands and looking around, I came up empty. I told her that I couldn't find the oil in my bathroom. She said, "Well did you see a little blue bottle?" "Yeah, it had three of those smelly sticks sticking out of it".

Silence.

"Crap" she says. "I doused my hands in the smelly stick oil and it is so strong!! My blue bottle didn't have the sticks poking out so I thought it was hand oil!!"

My wife, ladies and gentlemen! She keeps me guessing and smiling. And that's why I love her.

2 days later her hands still smell!

Other than that, Ashley obviously made it home safe and sound from the beaches of South Carolina and is now depressed with the weather. But she's a champ and realizing that Summer is right around the corner! And a great Summer it will be. Aren't we all looking forward to getting rid of this Winter?? On to bigger and better things!

I hope you have a great week, and remember - watch out for those things that sneak up on you, like oil. . .Until next time, wash your hands and pray for sun!

ASHLEY'S GONE! WHAT DO I DO???

2011-03-15T22:35:00.003-07:00

Well its been only 4 days since Ashley left for the East Coast, and I'm bored!! She went to celebrate her sister Jamie's 21st birthday (a worthy excuse, I suppose) and they are enjoying the beaches of Hilton Head, SC. Paparazzi stay away!!! Anyway, that leaves me here in the rain, working away. So far I have done about nothing. Here are some highlights:

- Worked out on Sunday morning while everyone else ran the Shamrock Run. (I have a fractured foot or else I would have!)
- Went to church on Saturday night with a group of friends, then went and had a beer with a group of friends.
- Went to church again with best friend on Sunday night, following a nap while watching golf. Riveting, right?
- Worked all day Monday, Kettlebell (aka KILLMEBELL) class in the evening.
- Woke up not being able to move
- Worked again. Boring! Ok, I did go to Spin Class.
- Farted while doing a sit up in front of my trainer (at least Ashley didn't hear it!)
- Finished the set sits ups with no more farts or sharts.
- Bought some iTunes music (Matt Wertz - get it, The Civil Wars, Amos Lee)
- Went to Molly and Will's to watch Emily win the Bachelor, then announce the break up. What a waste!
- Now I'm blogging.

I mean, come on! Life just isn't that fun without my wife around! She's laying on the beach, drinking some Mick Ultra, eating Danny's killer food, and laughing the night away! I'm in the apartment eating quinoa, brussel sprouts and fish. Boooorrrring!

Ashley, if you can hear me - come home quick and save me from myself!!

In other news, I am leading Em in our year long game of cribbage (and will be adding to my lead on Friday), am very excited about our upcoming 1st anniversary, and am loving the longer days! See, some things aren't all that bad. Until next time, count your blessings. And come visit me.

Life with the Casebeers

2011-03-06T12:41:00.003-08:00

Its a fun life, really. We laugh a lot. We cry rarely. We try to have as much fun as we can. All in all, we like life being the Casebeers. End of post.

You weren't going to let me off that easily, were you? Life has been to good to us so far together, but it isn't all peaches and cream. For instance, lately I have been punching Ashley in the face while sleeping. Unknowingly of course. You could set off a blowhorn under my pillow and I wouldn't wake up. And apparently I have been sleeping as if there were a blowhorn under my pillow and swinging my arms around. But she treats me pretty fairly after these instances...I'm grateful for that!

Life has also seen me start my year of travel (for work). I'll be spending 6 weeks in Washington DC this year for the NADA Academy (Nat'l Auto Dealers Association). My brother and I will be learning intensely what it takes to run an auto group and how to be more effective leaders. It is a huge task but we will be so much better off after this year!

Ashley on the other hand is busy with Grad school full-time while I'm gone (and while I'm here). Her 3rd term ends next week (how time flies!) and will moving on to term #4 and a thesis. "Yuck" she says as I write this. I agree.

It has been a great start to 2011 - our first Valentines Day together (a smashing success!), a trip to the National Championship game (don't wanna talk about it), and our first anniversary, which is in 2 weeks from today. We are so grateful for what we have and are looking forward to this next phase in our lives! Any suggestions?

Keep checking back. I'm going to try to do more posting this year. In the meantime, enjoy what you have and look for ways to enhance it!

It's that time of year again...

2010-12-22T13:16:00.010-08:00

For presents, movies, fires, and Alex's Annual Top Ten (or 5 or 11 or whatever) Blog! Saddle up folks, this one might be good! If not, well there's always next year.

Top 5 Trips of the Year (lots to choose from!)
5. Ruby Springs Lodge, MT. Fishing, shooting, laughing, Moscow Muling.
4. Watercolor Beach, FL with Ashley's family. Sun, bikes, sun, beers, food, and sun. LOVED IT.
3. Camping with Molly and Will. Have you met them? You should.
2. Surprise visit to Georgia for Mother's Day. Holy surprise!
1. Did you have to ask? HONEYMOON!!!! DUH.

Top 8 phrases of the year
8. Brotally (hybrid of bro and totally)
7. Y.O.L.O. (You Only Live Once - thanks Chris Brickell for that one!)
6. "Toyota Service, how may I help you?" Glad those days are over!
5. "Chevrolet Service, what's the problem with YOUR car?" Glad those are over too!!
4. "You gotta get your veggg". Worker in Antigua on why they eat so healthy there.
3. GO DUCKS. Need I say more?
2. "I DO". I said that on March 20.
1. "I DO". She said that on March 20. SCORE!

Top 10 Books Read this year
Oh wait, I didn't read that many. Some honorable mentions..."Little Bee", "A Million Miles in a Thousand Years", "Don't Blink"

Top 5 Favorite TV Shows of the Year
5. The Office
4. Keeping up with the Kardashians. Wait, what?
3. Modern Family - Laugh out loud every episode!!
2. The Biggest Loser
1. Survivor!!!

Top 5 games of the year!
5. Catchphrase!
4. Yahtzee!!
3. Battle of the Sexes!!!
2. Words with Friends!!!!
1. SCATEGORIES!!!!!

Top 5 Family Members
5. Really, you tought I'd actually do that?? Pfff.

Top ? Things Learned this year
1. Ashley is a great chef!
2. Ashley is a great launderer!
3. Alex is neither (see "failed steak dinner" and "shrunken sweater" categories)
4. Ashley loves making things. Wreathes, plants, Christmassy things, creative things
5. Alex loves to run but never does it......
6. Ashley actually liked Spin class!
7. So did Alex
8. Still got the magic...sold 11 cars this year and didn't work 1 day in the Sales Department!
9. Drove approximately 12 cars this year...liked the Toyota Sequoia the best.
10. Ashley is a great wife...but you already knew that, didn't you?

Top 5 iPhone Apps. Am I a geek or what?
5. ForkFly. Coupons in Portland galore!!
4. Twitter
3. Words with Friends
2. PDXBus (saved our butts many times!!)
1. Facetime. How freaking cool is that?

Are you tire of this yet??? ME NEITHER!!

Top 3 Marriage Moments
3. Ashley's Birthday. She finally got a good one!
2. Christmas tree decorating. It was interesting.... but we ended up friends, so it worked out.
1. Honeymoon. End of story.

Top 5 things Ashley caught while fishing in Montana
5. A bush
4. A bridge
3. A hat
2. the boat
1. A FISH!!!

Top CD's of the year
3. Jamie Cullum. What that this year or last? Can't remember. Who cares it was good!
2. Project 4. Shout out to Mark Wade! Buy it in iTunes...support him...
1. Dave Barnes Christmas Album. BUY IT NOW, QUICK!

Top New People Met or struck up a friendship with this year. To be PC, there is no order here!
1. Brody (www.nivenspt.com). Once an enemy (kind of in high school - we were idiots). Now a friend and getting me in shape!!
1. Terah soon to be Wade. A wonderful addition to the Wade family!
1. Molly. Funny how you meet people and take it from there!
1. Gene. Your architectural plans will shape my future. Literally!
1. Will. Have you met him yet? Why not?
1. Eric. Duck fan, loud like me = great guy!
1. Whitney. Also a Duck fan, keeps Eric in order, easy to hang with!

Top 6 Memories from 2010
6. December 9, 2010. 1st Annual Casebeer Ornament Exchange! What a night!
5. June 18,2010. Watercolor Beach, FL. LOVED IT!
4. March 21, 2010. First day of the best vacation ever...aka HONEYMOON!
3. December 4, 2010. Civil War win sends DUCKS to the National Championship game!!!!
2. February 9, 2010. RRRRHHHOOODDDDEEESSSSS!!!!!!!!!!
1. March 20, 2010. BOOM. MARRIED!

Well friends, its been a great year. Maybe I'll be better at posting more next year. I hope so! I hope that your 2010 has been wonderful as well, but you know what? 2011 is going to be a great one regardless. Starting with a DUCK victory on January 10!!! Anyway, enjoy the Christmas season and until next time, make a top 10 memory before the year is over. You won't regret it!

What's your favorite color?

2010-10-11T20:05:00.003-07:00

Don't ask Ashley this question on Sundays. Any other day, fire away. But on Sunday? Stay away from anything having to do with Blue. Why, you ask? Well, there is a phenomenon I hadn't heard of until recently (read: marriage). It's called "The Sunday Night Blues". Da daaaaa da dun (sing with me). Da daaaaaa da dun.

It's inevitable. Every Sunday night (unless Monday is a holiday, then it's the Monday night blues) about 6 o clock the blues come upon us. It starts with a rather frank statement, something like "Babe, I think I've got the Sunday night blues". I say, "NO YOU DON'T, IT'S ALL MENTAL! FEND IT OFF!!!" Then she says, definitively, "Yep, they're here". Dang.

Most Sundays I can't do anything to stop the blues. Sometimes you just have to talk about Monday. How bad it's going to be, and long with week is, and far off the next weekend is. But not me! I'm an optimist! I'm going to work out more this week! And we are going to have some great dinners and have the best week ever and hey, the weekend is right around the corner! But not those afflicted with the Sunday Night Blues. It is a very bleak outcome. However, I figured out a few solutions. Here are my tips for curing the Sunday night blues:

1) Beef Stew. It was cold, rainy, and sucky. Stew helps all of that.
2) Yahtzee. What else do you do while you wait for stew?
3) Wine. Well that helps a lot of things, and the blues is one of them.
4) Conversation. Take her mind off the blues!!!!
5) Movie. In our case, it was reruns of "Sister Wives". Disturbing, but it took her mind away from the blues and into happiness.

Once I heard of these blues, I was convinced that they were indigenous to Ashley. Nope. My friend Kevin has them too. Every Sunday. I tested my theory last night, and sure enough - he had the blues. So does Ashley's Dad. He had the Sunday night blues even when he was here and he had one day left to visit!

They are unstoppable my friends. Don't give in. Don't let the Sunday night blues take you over. Stay positive! Have a glass of wine - it's healthy, in more ways than one! Eat a big fat meal and watch trashy TV! It will make Monday morning much easier.

Until next time, enjoy MY favorite colors - GREEN AND YELLOW!!!!

Ducks, Doc and the Drive

2010-09-14T16:15:00.004-07:00

What time is it? Update time! Not that anyone cares, but here are some recent thoughts, experiences and reactions to the world around me (and the world not so close).

Did you hear about what happened to the Ducks? They scored another touchdown! Ba doom, ching! Man the Oregon Ducks look good this year. Granted, the 1st half of the Tennessee game was crapola, but the 3 halves they have played thus far have been a) unstoppable. b) shutouts and c) exciting! I love watching the Ducks when they are in rhythm. It is one of Oregon's best qualities!! I'll be attending this weeks slaughtering, if you are interested.

How about some recent "Service Drive" experiences at work? Here are some typical conversations I have each day. In person, mind you.
- Hi there, how can I help you?
- MY BUMPER IS FALLING OFF YOU NEED TO FIX IT FOR FREE!!!!
- Well, I can certainly do my best. I noticed that there is some scrapes under the front bumper. Did you maybe run over a few curbs?
- (silence). Yeah maybe one or two. How much will it be to fix it?

- Hi there, what can I do for you today?
- MY CAR KEEPS DYING! ITS BRAND NEW! THIS SHOULD ALL BE PAID FOR UNDER WARRANTY!!!
- Ma'am (or sir), did you happen to notice that all interior lights are currenty on?
- YES
- Were they on this morning?
- NO THE CAR WAS DEAD!!!
- Did you leave them on possibly all nigth?
- (silence) How much for any oil change?

And lastly this interatction...
- MY WINDOWS WON'T STAY UP!! THEY ROLL DOWN ON THEIR OWN!!
- Ok ma'am, let me try to understand. You are telling me that the windows just fall down?
- YES! THE REAR ONES!!!
- Ok. When does this happen?
- Normally at the end of a day at my house. You need to fix this.
- I will certainly do my best. Tell me a little more about this condition. Do you have kids?
- Why?
- I am just wondering.
- Yes I do. They are 4 and 6.
- Do they sit in the rear ever?
- (silence).........yes.
- Is it possible that they are rolling the windows down and you might not notice?

Just another typical day on the service drive!

And now on to a more serious topic - Doc. For those of you who either live in North Carolina or have read my blog, you have met Doc Hendley with Wine to Water. He is an incredible man on an incredible mission. Currently, Doc is in Cambodia in the Sway Reign region digging wells so that these people have fresh water for the first time in their lives. 80% of the deaths in this region are directly related to poor water quality. Unbeleivable stat! So Doc is doing something about. Please check out their new blog, it is awesome. Video updates, great photots...go to http://winetowater.org/blog

Well that's all for now friends. I have uploaded some pictures from our recent adventures here in Oregon! Until next time, roll up your windows!

The Casebeers Went Camping!

2010-09-07T11:52:00.005-07:00

Or shall I say, the Casebeers did nothing while our friends treated us to a great weekend in the wilderness. I have no idea how to set up a tent, no clue how to cook food outdoors, and did not know that I couldn't burn my Styrofoam cup in our bonfire. But you know what? Everything worked out OK.

Our good friends Molly and Will - freshly married 4 weeks ago!! - took us camping on the beautiful and scenic Oregon coast this weekend. We loved it! Will and I arrived a little late due to work and school duties, but when we got there Molly and Ashley has already set up the tent, had a fire going and had the wine open! Needless to say I was impressed from the get go. What was even better was the fresh pot of coffee on Saturday morning. I was expecting to have to drive 10 miles in to Starbucks (I'm lame) but nooooo. Coffee was fresh, hot and tasted as good as anything else! Ashley and I were in charge of breakfast, which consisted of eggs, bacon, toast and lots of coffee. We were aided by the help of a great grill and competent friends.

After breakfast we wandered down the coast to check out some local historical landmarks. Devil's Punchbowl, Cape Perpetura, and the 500+ year old tree hidden miles back in the forest, tide pools, and the like. It was a beautiful day to be hiking around! The afternoon was filled with Bocci Ball, beers, more fire and no showering by Will and myself. The girls opted for the public restroom. I opted for poor hygiene. As it turns out, this was not much appreciated by Ashley come Sunday afternoon. Annnnnyywaaay.

Another revelation about camping is that you don't have to eat hot dogs over a campfire for dinner. You can eat grilled salmon, asparagus, warm bread and wood fired corn on the cob if you camp with the Marra's! I was shocked at how great dinner was. But then again, I'm not that smart and my expectations were out of whack. We had a great meal, great games by the fire and a great time together!

Sunday morning - more coffee, eggs, and sausage. More goodness. We had a few more sights to see and the road to hit. But leaving the camp site made me want to do more camping! I love sleeping in nature. I love fires. I love the fact that all you can do is play games and have great conversation. And eat all of Molly and Will's good food.

A camper tip, from the pro Alex: Don't sit too close to the fire or else an ember may fly out and hit you directly in the eyeball, causing a scab. True story.

Other thoughts from the camping trip:
- sleeping under the stars and by the ocean is better than not.
- sleeping not in a bed sort of sucks
- showering is overrated
- brushing your teeth is not
- TV, phones, music, electronics, etc....also overrated
- Fires will forever be fascinating
- I still hate sand, but love the beach. Go figure!

Well friends, enough rambling. But I did want to recommend to go camping at least once a year. I know we will. Until next time, take a shower for goodness sakes!!

Perspectives

2010-09-02T09:38:00.003-07:00

Oftentimes I am extremely guilty of being content. And being content with being content. I am also guilty of not being grateful for what I have and appreciating the little things. I recently listened to a Dave Barnes song and it just made me think of "the big picture" - aka perspective. Here are the lyrics:

"We will have love, we will have pain. We will have days and days and days that feel the same.
We will have fear, we will have joy. There may be little girls and little boys.

We will have friends, we will have peace. There will lights and nights and music til you sleep.
We will be strong, though we were still weak. We will live thru so much more than we could take.

Amen, Amen. With the dawn the love began again.
Amen, Amen. What is done and yet to come, Amen

We will have hope, we will have doubt. There will be memories that we could never live without.
We will have tears, but there will be grace. There will be prayers that we never thought we'd pray.

Amen, Amen. With the dawn the love began again.
Amen, Amen. What is done and yet to come, Amen.

In the sun or the storm, the flood or the flame.
When everything's wrong and I'm the one to blame.
When heartache grow old, I swear I'll say Amen.

Amen. With the dawn the love began again.
Amen, Amen. What is done and yet to come, Amen."

I like this song. In fact, I love this song and you should immediately to go iTunes and download it! But I really feel like it says a lot about perspective. Interpret it how you may as well, but I think it has a lot to say.

More thoughts on perspective...

- The sound of grocery carts rolling down the street in our neighborhood.....perspective
- The fact that troops have been in the Middle East for 10 year....perspective
- I still have 4 grandparents....perspective
- Marriage is all around us, as is new life.....perspective
- I talked with 1 of only 200 living survivors of Pearl Harbor yesterday....perspective
- I have a wife who loves me.....perspective

I don't even know if any of that makes sense to anyone but me. But I guess that is what blogs are for. To put things in perspective. Until next time, experience something. Reflect on it. And realize the perspective of it all!

Recent memoirs

2010-07-21T07:47:00.002-07:00

Some highlights and lowlights as of late

From the last month:
- Highlight(s): Going to Cour de Alene with Toyota and "The Lion King" with Ashley
- Lowlight: leaving Toyota Service Department and starting all over at Chevy Service Department

From the last 3 weeks:
- Highlight: 4th of July in Neskowin. Duh
- Lowlight: Working on the 5th of July when everyone else had it off

From the last 2 weeks:
- Highlight: Running 16 miles on a Saturday morning with my Mom and Uncle
- Lowlight: Running 16 miles on a Saturday morning with my Mom and Uncle

From the last week:
- Highlight: A weekend in Cannon Beach with great friends drinking amazing wine
- Lowlight: Drinking too much amazing wine

From this week:
- Highlight: Getting to hit golf balls at lunch
- Lowlight: Realizing that I need to hit more golf balls to stay good at golf

From today:
- Highlight: Dinner tonight with Ashley (Spicy Mustard and Brown Sugar Salmon with Cilantro/Ginger Rice.....and wine)
- Lowlight: Pulling a 75 year olds dentures out from in between his seat in his Cadillac.

Looking forward to next week:
- Highlights: Heading to Laguna Beach for a wedding!
- Lowlights: Work next Monday

Looking forward to next 2 weeks:
- Highlight: Oregon Best Ball golf tourney with best friend Matt and the highly anticipated Marra-Harding wedding!!! Can't wait!
- Lowlight: Missing Oregon Brewers Fest this weekend

Looking forward to next 3 weeks:
- Highlight: Another great friend's wedding in Bend! The Robinson-Cowart Nuptuals. Can't wait!
- Lowlight: Another weekend that we are gone from beautiful and exciting Portland!

OK that should catch you up on what is going on in our lives. And what we are looking forward to. What are YOU looking forward to? Any interesting lowlights as of late? Would love to hear some feedback! Until next time, don't get caught like a deer in the headlights! Or maybe you should...maybe it would be a great story...

A Tradition Like No Other

2010-07-11T10:52:00.004-07:00

We all have our traditions, whether it be breakfast in bed for Mom on Mother's Day, camping over Labor Day, the summer trip with just the guys (or girls) or just coffee every morning with your wife. Tradition is a strong word that for many can conjure up great feelings. For me (and now Ashley), there is one tradition that we were just involved in that will forever be something we look forward to doing again. That is the infamous Neskowin 4th of July weekend celebration.

Neskowin turned 100 this year. It started as a small community of houses on the Oregon Coast and is now a haven of fun, family and rest. They have a small golf course, Proposal Rock, long beaches and exquisite views of the Pacific. There is one restaurant - Hawk Creek Cafe, which has the best cinnamon rolls and wood fired pizza on earth. There are signs everywhere made by children asking you to slow down. Practically every house could be in a magazine and the feeling you get going there is indescribable. But when 4th of July rolls around, everything changes. Everyone shows up and everyone goes America to the gills.

On the morning of the 4th it is go time. We wake up and Uncle Chris makes his famous Blood Mary's - complete with American Flag stir rods. Lots of people have caught on to this tradition and they show up around 8:00 to cash in on the free drink. You then gather the crew and costumes and walk down to the Flag Pole where the entire community gathers. The judges, who can be persuaded by six packs of beer or bottles of wine, walk around to every float and talk to the families and begin determining who is going to win the prizes. We, of course, put on the full show in the parking lot to tip the scales in our favor. At around 10:00, the parade begins. The funny thing is we are just parading for ourselves. No one really shows up for this other than the people who are there for the weekend. I like that.

As the parade rolls thru Neskowin, people are dancing and singing, putting on a show, showing off their costumes or cute kids and dressed up bicycles. The Casebeers of course are drinking our Blood Mary's on the float and singing as loud as we can. This year's theme was "Glee" - we had 3 choreographed dances to 3 different songs and man did we do it right!!! Once the parade gets back to the starting spot, everyone gathers at the Flag Pole to sing American Songs a Capella. It is beautiful. Jimmy leads the crowd as we all sing and celebrate freedom. Then the Blue Angels fly over and thunderously rock the town and drown out our voices, but only for a few seconds. We are back to the singing until Kay Kay decides its time to hand out the awards. Her family has been around Neskowin for over 80 years so it is fitting that she decides the winners. There are different awards handed out - Slightly Inappropriate, Best Family, Most American, Best Superheros, and Best in Show. When the awards are over, people begin to disband and most head to Judge Barbers for a complimentary Gin Fizz. Not much is wasted however, because the Sand Castle and Kite Flying contest is about to begin.

Chaos ensues as people scramble back to the house for lunch and getting ready for round 2. As the day rolls on, most awards are given, and by the end of the day pretty much every family or kid ends up with one. Its a feel good story, really. As nighttime comes, various parties are hosted and dinners and drinks are had. We crammed about 20 people in our house that sleeps 4 and waited for the bonfire, cigar and fireworks to end the night.

Leaving Neskowin is a strange feeling. You leave wanting more, you leave feeling like America is the best place to live, and you leave loving family and friends and tradition. You already talk about going back next year. It is truly one of the best traditions I have ever been involved in.

What about you? Do you have unforgettable memories with tradition? I encourage you to be apart of one, or you know what? Go out and create one. I read a book ("A Million Miles in a Thousand Years" by Don Miller) recently that encouraged me to be a part of a bigger and better story, or just go around creating fun stories. That is what Neskowin is all about. That is what life is all about. Until next time, let your tradition live on.

Life carries on. . .

2010-05-27T21:52:00.003-07:00

Hello friends! I've given up on the honeymoon updates. You all know how it went anyway. It was amazing, the food was incredible, we relaxed and pampered ourselves beyond belief. I mean, really. How much better can a vacation get? We loved it and will never forget that week of our life.

Since being back, life is fun! We are enjoying Portland (although the weather SUCKS!) and enjoying life together. I love cooking, exploring the Hills of NW Portland (and Forrest Park!), making new friends and just figuring it all out together. That's really the best part.

We have had some great adventures so far! One of our top highlights was doing our first "Portland Hill Walk". It is from the book - creatively named - "Portland Hill Walks". It was more like "History of NW Portland while hiking 5 miles". We loved it! It took us from NW 25th and Raleigh all the way to Pittock Mansion, one of the highest elevations in all of Portland. We gained about 950 feet in elevation and learned so many cool things about the hills of Portland. Needless to say, we can't wait for our next walk!

Another great highlight was our recent trip to the beach with our friends Molly and Will. This was a great break from reality! A little wine tasting, a huge sand dune in Pacific City, and a great bonfire on the beach. It was so much fun getting to know them better and just getting away for a bit.

Other adventures include Ashley's amazing cooking, my amazing softball skills with the Capitol Auto Group team, and our double incredible apartment. But of course the best adventure to date was our surprise trip for Mother's Day to Alpharetta. We were missing the fam and needed to see them. So we surprised them all!! We literally just showed up in the house on a Thursdsy afternoon and everyone freaked. Needless to say, it was an amazing weekend and we can't wait to go back!

In the coming weeks there are more adventures for sure, but until next time, enjoy your city!

More Honeymoon Adventures. . .

2010-04-12T11:32:00.005-07:00

When I left you last time we were just getting into the swing of things. We hadn't really made many friends, but were enjoying the sun, the rum and life together. We decided to take advantage of a few day trips the Island had to offer, the first being a snorkeling adventure on the Scaramouche ("scare-uh-moosh"). We didn't know what to expect, other than some great snorkeling. But we got much more than anticipated! The scenery, of course, was amazing. The boat was also pretty cool - it was used as an "extra" in the 1st Pirates of the Caribbean. Speaking of that movie, one of our destinations was an island they used in the movie! You know the scene where Jack Sparrow is marooned and finds the rum under the trees in the sand? Then they burn the island down to create a smoke signal? "Why is all the rum gone?" Yes, that island. Anyway, we quickly befriended the captain and some other people on board and had a great day. The only bummer was the monsoon that came in for an hour or so. But it made the experience all the better!

Another Island adventure we went on was a trip to Happy Island. We saw this place on our way to Palm Island and wanted to go. You see, there is this man made island about a mile off shore, and all it is is a bar. You'll see from the pictures below. It is literally a bar, and that is it. The owner (and builder) says, "It is great, mon! No traffic, no police, no worries bro!" We convinced a local worked to take us there in his boat for a drink (no we didn't go alone, we dragged 2 other couples along with us). It was great! Rum punch was flowing, as was Bob Marley. Talk about as local as you get it!

Day 4 brought us something we didn't anticipate - a tennis match against 2 Brits. We met Mike and Sue on about Day 2 and instantly struck up a friendship. They are well into their 60's, and live in Sussex, England. A great, entertaining pair! Every morning they greeted us with one of 3 statements: "Where have you beeeeeeen?" "What have you been dooooing?" or "We've beeeeen loooking for youuu". They were so fun to be around! Well they asked to play a match of tennis and we obliged. Did we take it easy on the old timers? Nope. Kicked their butts 6-3. Did I feel bad about whooping up on grandparents? The jury is still out on that one. The bright side to the match, however, was an invitation to England (we may score a plane ticket too, he runs Virgin Atlantic Airlines!). We shall see...

Day 5 was the goodbye day from Palm Island, and hello day to Hermitage Bay, Antigua. Our friends Mike and Sue, and John and Kakee came to the dock to see us off, which was nice. We did not know what to expect at stop #2, but our expectations were high. We had amazing food, great friends, fun adventures and lots of sun. Could it get any better??? You be the judge.

As for life in Portland, things are going well...we are loving shopping for the apartment with our gift cards, spending time with baby Rhodes, and being married. Loving the last one the most. Until next time, why is the rum gone?

The dust has settled...

2010-04-04T09:41:00.004-07:00

Hi everyone. I'm back. Again. I know, I say it every time I have a long lay off from writing. But there has been a major dispute with my editor, so I have fired them and have hired a new one....well actually I married her. I have a feeling this editor will be around for a while, as our relationship started on a great note! That note was called the honeymoon! But first, let me walk you thru the most incredible day ever: The Casebeer Wedding Day.

I'll spare you the details of the day leading up to the ceremony, because who cares about girls getting their hair done and guys getting European shaves? For those of you who were in attendance, you obviously witnessed the greatest wedding of all time. For those of you who missed, well you missed the #1 Wedding of the Century. The officiant was a great friend of ours, Eric Scofield. To say he did a great job would be the understatement of the year. He made the ceremony so personal, so loving, and so incredibly memorable. We are forever in debt to you, Sco! And could the music have been any better? We had the world renown PW Gopal travel to Georgia to play some very special songs...3 actually. Did he move people to tears? You know it. Could not have been any better! And the cherry on the cake was my brother helping him out on the keys during our communion. It was at that point that yours truly lost control. Unbelievable.

And the best part of course was being introduced as Mr. and Mrs. Casebeer....sounded weird, still does, but it is so so cool, gratifying, and worth it. We, as you know, have had a LONG and arduous journey to this wedding. Years, miles, tears, fears, smiles all encompassed the "I do's" and the vows. But, we will both tell you, it was and is clearly worth it. For those people who tell you a long distance relationship does not and can not work, well we proved you suckers wrongs!

And for the reception? Well let's just say party of the year. Decade. World. Eternity. Needed to last longer!! We had our friend DJ Nickel fly out all the way from LA and rock this wedding, and rock it he did. Have you ever seen Harry Marks lose his mind to AC/DC? Have you seen my godfather Ed announce that he's having such a great time he's flying everyone to Vegas next weekend? How about Nana going hands in the air during "Shout"? I mean, it was unreal. Nickel mixes like no one has ever heard. It was so great. A night NO one will forget!!

So off to the Honeymoon we went...on such a life high. That feeling of being married, being together, and starting a journey is one we'll never forget. The journey at hand was getting to St. Vincent and the Grenadines, to a private island called Palm Island. We couldn't wait! A great start it was in first class (thanks Dad and Mom!). They treat you like kings up there! And we needed it too - so tired from last night's festivities. But we made it to the Island after 2 planes (one really tiny, sweaty one) and one boat ride. Waiting for us was the General Manager with a Rum Punch (which turned out to be the drink of the trip). We also met some friends, who at first glance seemed odd, but turned out being some of the greatest people on earth. Jonny and Kakee. You'll hear more about them.

Also waiting for us was a beach front villa and a great meal. We were treated like kings again and had a great night one. Day 2 brought a ton of sunshine, 2 massages and the meeting of more friends. Mike and Sue were from the UK and we ended up spending a lot of time with them during meals and even played a tennis match - which we won! We were mainly concerned with getting tans, however, but did not realize how intense the sun is down there. Too close to the equator, we decided, as I ended up with a nice burn. Great start to the tanning process!! So we bought some strong sunscreen at the little boutique...for $32. Ouch.

Stay tuned for more Honeymoon adventures...I'll write about Day 3,4 and 5 soon. For now, the day's focus is Jesus. The fact that he resurrected changes everything. He was who He said He was. He did what He said He'd come to do. And that fact alone means so much to us as humans. It gives us hope, not only for today and tomorrow, but for eternity. Let's celebrate that today!

Have a happy Easter, and until next time, stay out of the sun!

Another great trip to the gym. . .

2010-03-04T20:59:00.002-08:00

Remember when I was "that guy" at the gym about a year ago? Ok...maybe it is more frequent than once a year for me, but today was I NOT that guy. There were many "that guys" tonight. Should I say them guys? Those guys? Them there guys? At any rate, I was not that guy. They were that guy. Join me on my journey on the treadmill.

While I was running, there were 3 great games going on. You would think I'm talking about basketball or some sport on TV. Nope. Racquetball. Live. On 3 courts in front of me. Court #1 consisted of 2 dudes, probably mid 20's. They were that guy. Their attire? Let's start with the headband and move all the way down to the short shorts and knee high socks. Yep, you know that guy. In fact you see him sometimes running in a park or downtown. Tonight he (they) was (were) playing each other in a rousing game of racquetball. It was riveting watch them play like they were trying to swat flies. Swing swing swing MISS! Swing swing hit sideways! Swing swing hit the other player! Miss again! Water break! Hilarious.

Scene #2 was slightly more interesting because it was a boyfriend/girlfriend combo. Again, mid 20's. Athletic looking and friendly. I was first thinking that the boyfriend would go easy on his girlfriend, because naturally boys should always beat girls. Well she whopped his A. Had that poor boy running all over the place, whiffing, sweating, hitting himself in the shin because he swung so hard and missed, and so on. After 35 minutes it was game, set, match.

The last court was a solo match. One man vs one man - himself. A little different scene here, a mid 50's guy, sort of short. You might have seen him playing men's league softball or perhaps on the golf course. Poorly dressed. He was playing 2 balls - a blue one, and a red one - at the same time. Just whacking away. Swingswingswingswinghithiththitmissmissmissswing and so on. I don't think he took one single break. It was really impressive. Not sure whether he was waiting for someone to show up to play him or if he was ok going mono e self. Your guess is as good as mine.

Anyway, upstairs I ventured after my run and saw a 20-something attractive woman. She was working ONLY her abs and gluteus maximus. You can only imagine what she was wearing. One word - I-N-A-P-P-R-O-P-R-I-A-T-E. MOVING ON!

Needless to say, not sure how much actual working out I did. Entertainment value was high though, and that made it worth it!

In other news, Ashley is gone now. But this time it is ok - she's home for the WEDDING! That means we are within days folks. 15 to be exact. Not that I'm counting. But I am.

Ok that's all for now. Enjoy your workouts, don't be that guy, and until next time, don't worry about whiffing, sweating, shanking or losing. Don't care what anyone on the treadmills think - just play and have fun!

The countdown is on, and other things...

2010-02-21T10:52:00.003-08:00

Well friends, we are within a month of the Event of the Year. The time has finally come, the journey is nearly over. Actually, it is just beginning. Either way, my (our) excitement is boiling over! And no, I'm not talking about The Masters 2010...you know what I'm talking about - the Casebeer/O'Dea Wedding!!! March 20th can't get here soon enough! Ashley and I have come so far together and it will all be celebrated in 27 short days! Anyway, just had to get that excitement out of my system.

A Rhodes Mckay update....she is doing very well! And of course, cuter than ever. I put a few more pictures up below...check her out! Although she is a little confused thus far...she thinks days are nights, and nights are days, and that means Mom and Dad are getting zero sleep. Rumor has it that can last up to 6 weeks!! I hope not . . .

In other news, I apparently have an ugly jacket. I still will not admit this despite the facts against me. Let me explain. I bought this jacket (its stylish) about 5 years ago...still in great condition, the type of jacket you wear out on the weekend. Suede with silk lining, it's classy. I think its nice! Ashley does not think so. Neither does our friend Molly. Neither do the bouncers at the Crystal Ballroom, or the Asian lady in the elevator on the way down from our apartment. Neither does the cab driver I asked on the way there, or the two random dudes on the street. Neither does my brother (thanks for the backup, jerk!) and neither does ANYONE I ASKED LAST NIGHT. All I needed was one yes to keep me going. All I needed was some confidence and one vote in my direction, but noooooo. Everyone hates the jacket!!! And in return, I hate them all. Just kidding. But seriously people, you need a sense of style like the master of style, Alex Casebeer. Can't wait until the next chance I get to wear it out!!!

Well I hope your Sunday is a great one. Weather is amazing here, and yet here I am blogging at 11am. Time to get out of the house and enjoy NW Portland! Until next time, enjoy this February weather. I just hope it doesn't rain so I can keep wearing the suede jacket!!

I'd like to introduce you to....

2010-02-10T20:49:00.004-08:00

....a great story. A story of love, triumph, laughter, tears, and...well, a new life. This was a day that my family will never forget and one that will be treasured forever. This is the story of Blankity Blank Blank. *Editors note: can't reveal the name until the very end, just like my stupid big brother. Yes, he wouldn't tell any of us the name of this baby girl until we met her. So I won't tell you either! Just keep reading...it will be worth it.

9:30am I get a call from my brother saying that Chris' water broke. This was shocking because it was 8 days early, so no one (except for Matthew and Chris probably) was prepared at all. I texted Ashley the good news and waited for the official word to go to the hospital. I wanted to leave immediately, but Matthew said it would be pointless... contractions far apart, no word from the Doc, nothing really to report. Just wait. And wait some more.

I had a hard time focusing at work (do you think any Toyota Service customer cared about my pending uncle-dom?? Nope. They were worried about the stupid recall! Idiots!) I kept texting and wanting to leave but decided to wait and leave around 4PM. I went to lunch and it dawned on me - WE HAVE NO CHAMPAGNE. Quickly I ran into Costco and made an impluse purchase. Dom Perignon it is! I mean come on. When will the 1st grandchild ever be born again?? When will my 1st neice ever be born?

At 7PM still no word from Matthew on what is going on...only things like "We're still waiting to hear from the Doc". Vague. I hate vague. I wanted to hear "Baby will be here 9PM!" Nope. The word from M is have dinner, take your time, it will be a while.

So we eat dinner with Dad and Carrie and head to the waiting room around 9:30PM and are so full of excitement! We want to meet this baby and hold her and be merry....little did we know, this was going to be one long freaking night. We meet my mom and friend Kim and waited. We check emails, play cribbage, read magazines, and wait. For something, anything! Another family comes and meets their new baby before we hear anything! Jealousy sets in.

Finally Matthew comes out and says they are hoping for a 1AM delivery. Sounds good to us, we say. Can't wait! So we wait some more. And get tired. Matthew says "go home, get some rest". We do, and come back at 1:00. But every time I think about how tired and pathetic I feel, I think of Chris. I think of a baby entering the new world and I smile. I realize that my 'troubles' and weariness pale in comparison to Chris. We hear that she starts pushing at 1:47AM. This is great news! The end is near!

2:47...still pushing. We are worried. And tired. 3:15, pushing. 3:45 I am sleeping on a hard floor, Dad is fighting fatigue. We think of Chris and perk up. And almost cry. 90 minutes of pushing?? Can't they do something?

I get a great idea to download some iPhone games at about 4am....this keeps us entertained for about 20 minutes (highlighted by my dad giggling at "Paper Toss", and then cussing it out because he couldn't make the damn paper into the waste basket!). We go back to worrying, because Chris has now hit the 3.5 hour mark of pushing. It seems inhumane to us. Finally, Kim (the birthing coach) comes out and gives us bad news. She has to go into surgery to have a C Section. This is devastating for a myriad of reasons. We thought, Why couldn't they have done this 4 hours ago? Why did she have to go thru all of this pain and frustration when this could have been done a while ago? On the other hand, that means that the end really is in sight. That means the nameless baby is almost here!

Or so we thought. Matthew tells us to go home, you will not be able to see the baby until about 10AM. Surgery, along with recovery, moving rooms and a bit of rest means we all have to keep waiting. But we oblige and leave the hospital, frustrated and sad. But hopefully that everything will go ok. We think of Chris...the pain medication, the effort, the pushing, the tears, the fighting for her daughter's life. It is almost overwhelming and we all dream of the moment when we can meet baby blank. So we head to Ashley and I's apartment to get a few hours of sleep.

And a few it is! We sleep from 6:30 to 8:42, when my dad calls because he can't sleep. Let's get coffee and some food, he says. Ok, we're all awake too. But suddenly I hear my phone do the text thing that it does and read: She's here! 7:55am! 7lb 9oz and beautiful like her mother. We scream and throw our clothes on! Can we come now? No, we have to wait until 11 to meet her.

Naturally, we get to the hospital at 10 hoping to maybe break some rules to see her early. Matthew comes out to meet us. More bad news. Chris is having a terrible time recovering and we have to keep waiting. What is the baby's name, for crying out loud?? You'll have to wait, he says. My dad offers him $300 to tell us, and he declines. IDIOT! I offer to hogtie him and beat it out of him...he declines that as well.

So we wait. And wait. I get some wedding planning done. Carrie and Dad cancel work meetings. Ashley declines sub jobs. We wait. We worry. We can't wait to meet blankity blank blank baby blank blank!!!!!!!

My dad says, "This baby is stubborn, just like her dad!" My mom says, "She is patient, just like her mom". I say, "She will be beautiful. Just like her uncle".

Matthew texts us: move to floor 4, it is time! I look at the clock: 1:17PM. I first got the call 32 hours ago. It has been a long day. We watched as 3 other families met their babies, natural delivery and all. We saw the same guy who fell off his chair in the waiting room and kept snorting meet his twin granddaughters. We saw another grandma in the waiting room come and go and go...and yet we didn't even know my neice's name!!!!!

2:15. Matthew comes to the waiting room. Are you ready, he asks? My dad says, No let me finish my magazine artic-OF COURSE WE ARE READY!!!!!!. So we march back to room 462 begging for the name. We go to 462 forgetting how tired we once were and tired Chris actually is and realize we are going to meet a baby girl who has just entered this world!

We are introduced to a beautiful, calm baby whos voice simply squeaks. She opens her eyes, squeaks again. Matthew can't keep his eyes of her. Neither can we! She is perfect. She has fingernails! She has a head full of beautiful black hair! She is healthy, and we are relieved. Chris is REALLY relived.

We are all smiling and happy and finally, Matthew and Chris say together...Meet Rhodes McKay Casebeer.

Another Christmas in the books

2009-12-24T09:30:00.005-08:00

You did it folks. You made it thru another Christmas! Did you remember that is was about Jesus and the Holy Spirit and not so much about presents and food? I had to keep reminding myself throughout the day. Never the less, Christmas 2009 is in the books. And another success it was. Except I was missing one thing...well, one person.

Ashley. She was in Georgia for the holidays, so that was not too much fun for us. However, the only positive (for her) was that she was able to avoid the inevitable: Casebeer Christmas Poems. The longstanding tradition on the Casebeer side is buying a $50 gift for the person who's name you draw out of a hat at Thanksgiving and then writing a poem for that person to be read in front of everyone at Christmas. It never fails - I put off writing mine until Christmas Eve last night and this year was no different. I, along with brother and sister-in-law, were all up last writing our poems only to realize that my brother and I drew each other. The result of a few gin n tonics and some brainpower resulted in an epic dual poem read together, banter style. However, top prize in 2009 went to Scott Casebeer, who did a lively rendition of Santa Claus is coming to town for my Grandpa Dick.

But now that Christmas is over, it's time to look forward. Time to end this decade in style and begin next decade with a bang! When Ashley gets back, we'll be moving her in to our new downtown apartment, awaiting the arrival of the first Casebeer Granddaughter (not ours, stop freaking out), and getting MARRIED. And this is all in the first 3 months of the year!! I can only imagine what the rest of the decade will bring.

Other future highlights include combined family holidays, lots of travleing back and forth to from Oregon to Georgia, and Georgia to Oregon, the Oregon Ducks embrassing the Ohio State Buckeyes on January 1st, hopefully some a few fun trips, and figuring out married life! I am excited. I hope you are too!

What about you? What are you looking forward to? Do you have any goals? Any dreams? What are you going to change, if anything, in 2010?

I have goals and dreams and changes to make...stick around and you'll hear them! Until next time, have a great rest of 2009 and let's make 2010 a great year!

Time for some Top 3's

2009-12-18T19:29:00.003-08:00

I just feel like making lists tonight. I am currently at work, with nothing to do really. My mind is wandering...from this to that...and I figured I'd write some of it down for you! So please enjoy my lastest installment of Top 3's!

Top 3 Cars Sold:
- Camry Hybrid
- 2010 Prius
- Avalon

Top 3 SUV's sold:
- Platinum Sequoia
- Limited Tundra
- Used Lexus rX 450h (hybrid)

Top 3 Favorite Beers:
- Mirror Pond Pale Ale
- Hopworks Organic Ale
- McMenamin's Ruby Ale

Top 3 Favorite Christmas movies:
- Christmas Vacation
- Home Alone 1/2 (I cheated, I know)
- Die Hard 2

Top 3 most interesting people met so far in Portland:
- John Stipan (creator of JellyBath. LOOK IT UP!!! www.jellybath.com)
- Tim Crane (now a friend, dinner mate, and Duck fan)
- Chris Rich (former salesperson at Broadway, slash professional glass blower! www.chrisrichstudios.com)

Top 3 restaurants so far in Portland (look them up, go there now):
- 50 Plates (Pearl)
- Clarklewis (East Waterfront)
- Belly (NE Portland)

Top 3 Days since "the move":
- Civil War...duh
- Finding Ashley's and my first marriage housing!! Move in date: Jan 5.
- My first day off, going to the coast with Ash. A great day!

Top 3 Events of the year:
- Keith Urban!!
- Blazers vs Suns thriller
- Thanksgiving with the Casebeer's

Top 3 things I'm looking forward to:
- Wedding
- Honeymoon
- Wedding

Top 3 Favorite Christmas Artists this year:
- James Taylor
- Diana Krall
- Harry Connick Jr

I think I'm topped off. Also, its time to go home. Until next time, top off your beers and have a great night! The next blog will be MUCH more interesting, I promise. But YOU NEED TO GIVE ME IDEAS!!! Thank you. Annnnd good night.

Annnnd I'm back!

2009-12-12T16:08:00.006-08:00

Good day friends! Has it really been 2 months since I've written a blog? What the heck am I thinking? My apologies. After an "indefinite break" from blogging (see Tiger Woods), I have decided to begin writing again. I'm not even sure why I stopped. Maybe a major life change got in the way. Maybe I should have written my way thru it! None the less, my writers block has been lifted and the creative juices are flowing again! Well, time will tell on that one. I do ask one thing if YOU, however...I like ideas, I need ideas. I will be asking for topics to write about. More on that later. On to a quick update, and topic #1.

Some last-60-day highlights in the life of Alex and Ashley...
- Found THE PLACE that will be our first dwelling as a married couple. Check it out... www.livepark19.com. It is very cool and in a great location in NW Portland!
- Finalized the HONEYMOON plans! Bring it on, Antigua! (hermitagebay.com)
- Have been going to a cool church in Beaverton, OR called Solid Rock. We haven't decided quite yet if this will be "the one", but we like it so far.
- I have sold 25 cars so far...5 this month...we will see how I end December!
- Ashley is leaving me for 3 weeks starting Tuesday...aka "the longest 3 weeks of my life"
- Been slowly making friends, reconnecting with old friends, and spending quality time with my brother and his wife. Baby Neice countdown: 60 days.

Overall, life is hectic, busy, but slowly getting better here in Oregon. Hopefully my job situation will stabilize a little bit and Ashley and I will actually be able to spend more time together! Looking forward to 2010...

Ok, now for my "back to blogging" topic #1: The Christmas Spirit. Are you in it? Has the spirit come over you? Do you even like the Christmas spirit? Here are things Ashley and I have done that contribute to the spirit of Christmas.

- Pioneer Square Tree Lighting Ceremony. Big tree. Lots of lights. Hot chocolate. I mean come on, if THAT isn't in the spirit what the heck is?
- The Nutcracker Ballet. We are going tonight and we can't wait!!
- Limiting myself to only Christmas music until Christmas is over. People, grin and bear it. It's only about 27 days.
- Peppermint Lattes. I probably need to stop ordering them......
- Soup. Has nothing to do with Christmas, but we seem to eat more soup this time of year.
- Christmas parties. Ashley and I went to my first ever company party. It was interesting...at a Lebanese restaurant, with a really tacky speech by the company owner, and really crappy gifts. Other than that, we really enjoyed the free drinks and food!

Some downfalls to this season...no tree (lack of space and Ashley is leaving), no lights (I mean, can you really put lights on a basement apartment?), spending Christmas apart (I hate my work schedule). BUT! 2010 is going to be the best one ever, because it will be our first one married!

Ok so I'm back. But I need and want your help. What is my next topic? I will write about the best one received, so put in your votes!! Thanks!

Love to you all, and keep Christ in Christmas please!!

Read all about it!

2009-10-13T16:10:00.003-07:00

“Are you ready to play Oregon vs. Washington: Who is smarter?” Yes I am! “Do you think you’ll beat Washington today?” I hope so, I’m not very smart! “OK Alex, you are up against Diane today. The topic is: Babies.”

This was the scene yesterday morning while I am driving to work. I called in to 99.5 The Wolf (hoooowwwwllll) radio station and was chosen to play their daily game show “Who is smarter, Oregon or Washington?” Little did I know that the topic was babies and I was going up against a 62 year old woman! I mean, talk about your all time underdogs!! Diane went first and got 2 out of 3 questions right, and I went second and matched her. OVERTIME! I am feeling pretty excited about this already, seeing as how I was pretty sure I would go 0 for 3. Anyway, the OT question was this: For every 100 girls born, how many boys are born? Fat chance. Diane guessed 108, I guessed 91. She was closer, it was 105. A loss, as expected, but a great way to pass the time on a trafficy freeway!

BREAKING GOOD NEWS UPDATE: Ashley got her first 2 sub jobs! This is an answer to frustration, prayer, tears and hope. She needed something positive to happen, and lo and behold, she’s teaching today and Thursday. We could not be happier!

MORE BREAKING NEWS UPDATE! It turns out I can sell cars after all. After selling one on my first day on the sales floor, I have now sold 6 this month, and am 2nd on the Salesman of the Month leaderboard. This matters for 2 reasons: 1) Pride. 2) Free car and gas for a month from the dealership! I’ll keep you posted.

EVEN MORE BREAKING GOOD NEWS UPDATE!!!! Ashley was offered a FREE place to live until we get married! And it is SWEET. It is in the basement of a friend’s parents house, BUT has separate entrance, alarm system, and brand new everything. Carpet, stone tile floors, granite counters, stainless steel appliances…I mean it is awesome. And it is free. And we will finally be able to hang out together somewhere other than a stupid restaurant.

NEWS UPDATE! The Oregon Ducks have won 5 in a row, ranked 13th in the nation. Bring it! Although my favorite down-to-earth quote from their coach: “This only guarantees that we could end the season 5-7”. Buzz kill!

Things are on the up and up folks. God wins, again. It is funny how sometimes He lets you get right to the end of your rope, and then makes His strategic move. He has our attention.

In other totally unrelated news, my brother and wife found out they are having a girl! This is monumental. Casebeer’s don’t have girls. This family is riddled with boys. My mom marries Peter, who has 4 boys. My dad and mom both have 2 bothers. I have 1 brother (except for the Halloween where we dressed up as sisters). This is HUGE. There is going to be pink appropriately worn. Ashley will be able to show off at how good of an aunt she will be. My mom is already freaking out. My dad has uttered the word ‘cute’ numerous times, and Carrie has started knitting booties, hats, and pink scarves. Times are a’ changin! I love it, and can’t wait for February 16th! Name is thus far unknown, but I am going with Scarlett. What’s your bet?

The moral of today’s blog: Keep pressing on. You never know what is going to happen. You never know how “it” is going to turn out. You never know that just because you are headed in one direction you may end up going in an entirely new one. Until next time, turn your headlights on and buckle up!

First week of work. . .very interesting.

2009-09-28T12:34:00.002-07:00

Here are some highlights from my first week of work. We'll call this part of my life: Welcome to Reality!

- Monday thru Friday I was busy taking tests learning Toyota's products and processes and engines and all that jazz. I have to become a Certified Toyota Salesman, so this testing is necessary. Arduous and long and seemingly meaningless, but necessary none the less. It actually does help me learn my products!
- Had a random bloody nose on Wednesday. Thankfully no one knew!
- I am actually enjoying wearing a suit to work. Ashley likes it too!
- Working 65+ hr weeks is tougher than I thought. . .makes me really enjoy 2 days off!!
- Decided to make Saturday my first day on the sales floor, and what do you know: Sold my first car! A 2005 tC Scion. Will never forget it!
- After 6 days of work, I got 2 days off. This month my team gets Sunday's and Monday's off. Ashley and I decided to head to the beach for some MUCH needed time together and relaxation. So we are at Neskowin now - Ashley is knitting (her new found interest), I am blogging and loving the sound of the ocean. We are eating good seafood and being bums. And we love it.

Ashley just informed me that my last few blogs have been mostly about me (except for Jamie's email!). So now it is up to you. I need topics. I will discuss. I will get interesting. Let's take this blog global! (Ashley just laughed at me).

Should I be an Auto Industry blogger? A Portland blogger? A Jesus blogger? I'll take suggestions! Until next time, enjoy some crab!

First week of work. . .very interesting.

2009-09-28T12:34:00.000-07:00

Back on the blog train. . .plus Day 5 tribute!

2009-09-25T08:59:00.004-07:00

To all of you 11 faithful followers, I apologize. I have been absent for way too long and there is no excuse! Actually, there is a pretty good one. We moved across the country, thus making it difficult to keep up. We radically changed our lives, we took a huge leap of faith, and we are stepping way out of our comfort zones. So far, it is tough. But here is a little of what has happened over the last few weeks.

Early September:
- Packed up our crap, rented a trailer, and started driving to Oregon from Georgia. Tears were shed, hearts were broken, something loomed in our future (still to be determined!).
- Our route? LONG. Here is the gist of it: Baton Rouge, LA. Austin, TX. Tucson, AZ. Flagstaff, AZ. Santa Barbara, CA. San Francisco, CA. Black Butte Ranch, OR. Salem, OR. Now Portland, OR.
- We saw great friends, had amazing food, and great wine along the way! I would say the trip was not as bad as we both thought it would be. Some highlights included: Ashley reading out loud to me (way better than book on tape!), podcasts, dipping our toes in the Pacific, wine tasting in Santa Barbara County, San Francisco in general, and 2 days of relaxing in Black Butte.
- Low lights in included: the drive from Austin to Tucson (18 hour day), leaving GA, living out of a car for 2+ weeks, the last day on the road (felt SO long).
- But we made it, no tickets, no flat tires. All in all a "successful" trip.

Mid-September (NOMADS)
- Bounced from house to house, town to town, family to family, trying to get organized and "settled in". I don't think you ever get settled in when you live in someone else's house, but for now, until we find something, we are as settled as we are going to get. And it is not ideal. But we press on!
- Alex started working. Welcome to reality.
- Ashley looking for work and getting on as many substitute lists as possible. Welcome to reality.
- Reality sucks.

Late-September
- Highlighted by the Wade Wedding! A great weekend long full of activities, punctuated by a great ceremony and reception!
- Alex and Ashley adjusting to life in another city, living apart, working, struggling.
- Looking for a place to live when we get married (which is very exciting). As soon as we find that baby, Ashley will move in immediately! Hopefully that will help things. . .
- Adjusting to the daily routine, life change, and missing GA.
- Looking forward to: THE FAMILY VISIT in ONE MONTH! Less, actually. We can't wait. It needs to happen sooner, and more often!!

So I have to admit I was reluctant to finish my Tribute to the South. Mainly because I knew it would be hard to write. But here goes. What I miss most about the south is the family (included 'extended' family...). I miss Danny's antics, I miss Taff and Spanky, I even miss Buddy (I wonder if he has kicked the can yet?) I miss Nana's insisting on doing my laundry and always cooking chicken salad for me. I miss Patti and how she falls asleep watching TV curled up in a blanket even though it is 101 degrees outside. I miss the Aunts - Kim and Lynn. I need Lynn's food immediately! I miss Jamie - but hey, she's off at college and loving it, so I'm not feeling to sad. I miss everyone there! It was very hard to leave, and even harder (especially for Ashley) being here without them. But it is life, and people do sometimes move away from close ones. It's not like we'll never see them again (28 days), it is just a very hard adjustment. But life will go on and Ashley and I will create our own family. We will thrive on being together and truly relying on each other. We are growing. Not growing away from family, but growing into who we are going to be as a family. So far, that is about the only positive!

But honestly. If you have never met someone Southern, you are missing out. The people are great! They are friendly, they talk funny, they drink lots of beer (have never heard of a micro-brew), they cook way better than yo momma, and they love church. They are laid back (except for Dan-O), love golf, drive trucks, and love Nascar. In one hyphenated word, they are : one-of-a-kind. And I love 'em!

So there you have it. The conclusion of my 5 day Tribute to the South. What a great place to live, a great season of our lives, and someone we will always have to go back to and love and enjoy. Until next time, Roll Tide!

It's been a while...

2009-09-23T18:28:00.003-07:00

Ths was an email that Ashley and I received from her sister. Just read it. You will die laughing.

hello family!
just thought i would let you know how my day went since i
didnt really get to talk to you all that much.....
well started of wkaing up with a verrrrryyyyyyy stiff neck
from my bike riding accident yesterday! ( ashley i forgot to
tell you i ran into a role going down a hill and couldnt
stop myself....and flew prolly 15 feet, if someone saw it,
it WOULD be the most embarrasing moment of my life!) and my
arms a little sore from jumping up and down and not letting
my hands be below my shoulders in rush practice, went to get
a coffee cause i felt a little tired and the were out of
espresso, went to class that was fine but had to give an
unexpected speach on barack obhama........ ya yall prolly
know how that turned out. after class and before work i have
30 minutes to get back to the apt shower and get to work.
knowing we have no food at our apt i went to chik fil a and
used one of my free coupons and they took for ever so while
i was back out of my parking space i went a little faster
than usual and was a milimeter away from SLAMMING into a
precious esclade, the man got out and statred yelling while
i just drove off while he took down my liscence plate number
even though i didnt even hit him! soo went to work freaking
out about everything else i had to do, and had to work by
myself which actually i liked cause i didnt have to do
anything.....then went to a younglife team dinner which was
aweosme but ended up missing role call at rush and prolly
getting fined, walked to my car and see a little tickt on my
window because ther is NO parking at the chi o house so
every car had a damn ticket on the window!...came home and
prcratinated studying a little bit then finally decided to
sit down and dow it and my chair fell out from under neath
me so i now have one loooonnng scratch from my shoulder down
to my butt :) and now im still up studying because i took a
aderol and dont feel tired! so i thought i would shoot you a
little hello message and update you on my wonderful
day!!!!!!!!!!!

hope your was better than mine! I love you all!
Jam
__________________
Now I KNOW your day was better than THAT!! So smile and have a great day!

Day 4 Tribute to the South

2009-08-29T21:06:00.003-07:00

Topic? There are so many I couldn't choose just one! If you read my blog every now and then you'll find that I often have random blogs. I write about a lot of things at once, and now is one of those times. So maybe on my day 4 tribute I'll write about 4 things that make me smile or laugh about the South. Here we go!

1) The Cooler Theory. This may sound odd at first, but let me lay the situation out for you. You see, on the West side of the US, he who throws party supplies the party. Ok ok, not in EVERY situation. But, most of the time, if you want to have a little schindig, you buy some beer, wine, some snacks or food, you know, the works. Not so in the South. You see, people are smarter here I think. Or maybe more considerate. But if someone is going somewhere (where you can drink), you pack your own parachute baby. Coolers abound! You pack that baby full of Ultras (or in Lynn's case, Miller Lite), some ice, seal 'er up, and hit the road. There is no "oh we'll just have what they have" mindset going on. Nope. BYOB ATT. (the att stands for All The Time). It was strange at first, but now that I think about it, what the heck have we been wasting our money on this whole time?? The next time Ashley and I have people over for a football game or whatever we are abiding by the Southern Cooler Theory. So be prepared!

2) Classic Rock. Before moving here, I was naive and I was uneducated --- in rock n roll. I grew up on Hall n Oats, James Taylor, and ToTo. These are great bands. But Ashley grew up on The Allman Brothers, Steve Miller, The Doobie Brothers, and Van Halen. I mean I thought I knew rock n roll, but not until I moved here. Rock n Roll is Mid Life Crisis on a Friday night at Durty Kelly's. Rock n Roll is 97.1 radio on the way to work. Rock n Roll is not Hall n Oats. I am now educated, thanks to Danny and Ashley. Thanks!

3) Spanky and Buddy. Aka dumb dumb and freak. (just kidding, Patti). But seriously, these animals are weird, but yet they make me laugh or smile. Some times both. Spanky is a Shih Tzu, and lazy as I have ever seen. He will not go to the bathroom without Patti's supervision. He will not go up a stair without a kick in the ass. He sucks on the strangest things (noses of stuffed animals, the occasional rouge pair of underwear, you know, the usual things). He is always perfectly maintained, probably due to his wild life style (hardly). He snorts at weird times. But despite all of that, there is something about him that keeps you coming back. Maybe it's that he's a great cuddler. Or maybe because he only has one eye (he was rescued). I haven't pinpointed it yet, but deep down, I like Spanky. He's not all that bad!

Now Buddy - oh man, we've got a weird one here. Buddy is on his last days, and we are all convinced he is delusional For instance, this morning, he thought he was taking a dump in the litter box. What he didn't realize is that it was actually a pile of Ashley's swimsuits. Doh! Or how about when he walks upstairs he doesn't realize why he isn't moving.......his claws are caught in the carpet. Buddy, it's been a good ride. But you can't sleep in file cabinets anymore. And you can't jump up on to my laptop and rip out 4 keys. Buddy I think it's time. Wait, what's that? You caught a mouse?? You are still alive? You ate your food and both of the dogs food?? How do you do it, Buddy? These are questions we ask ourselves every day. He lives. He is 17 (which in cat years is about 185). It is amazing. He is all fur and bones, no meat. But the legend lives on friends. Buddy continues to yell so loud in the morning that Patti can hear him from 2 stories up. He annoys, he claws, he smells...but Buddy is still a great cat. My guess is that he'll he live until somewhere near the age of 35. Just a guess.

4) And then there's Taffy. You knew I was going there. This little dog makes me laugh, give out undeserved treats, talk in funny voices, smile, and take stupid pictures (see below). She is smart and has the personality of a TV reality star. Taffy is hilarious. Her under-bite is epic and her energy is unsurpassed. Can she speak? Yes. Can she play dead? Yep. Can she shake? Uh uh. How about a high 5? You bet. She does it all! You have to meet this dog. I never thought I would like Shih Tzus, but have come 180 degrees. I love this dog! And so does every single person who comes in contact with her. (Don't let the secret out of the bag, but Ashley and I are going to sneak her in to the car when we leave town.....do you think they'll know??)

Stay tuned for Day 5 Tribute. Also known as Tear Jearker 2009. Until then, Ashley and I are hitting the road tomorrow. It has been a tough week, and although tonight's food was great, it was equally as hard to say "see you later" to friends. I am refraining from "goodbye". . .because guess what? No one is dying. We will be back in 3 months. And we will see the family in Oregon in October. This is just Ashley and Alex starting our lives together. It isn't goodbye. It is we love you and we will see you soon. Because that is exactly what will happen.

Day 3 Tribute to the South: Oh, the places you'll go!

2009-08-28T06:30:00.007-07:00

When you live in the South, there are more benefits than amazing food and unbeatable golf. There are endless places to visit!! And one thing that I am proud of Ashley and I for is visiting places. Going places. Seeing people. Taking advantage of being so close to so many great things. We have really carved out a hobby for ourselves: traveling! It is ironic, because that has been the essence of our relationship for years. But now it is something enjoy! Let me give you the highlights of our travels from the past year!

Cool Stop #1: Asheville, NC. This is one place you have to go. We tackled this place head on for a weekend back in early November. THe real reason we even went there in the first place was because Ashley bought me a round of golf at the Grove Park Inn for my birthday, so we wanted to make a weekend out of it, and man did we. We were lucky enough to stay with Ash's friend Betsy, and it was great because she only lived about 15 minutes from downtown. But after golf, the weekend was just starting. We ate at great restaurants, walked around a very cool quaint downtown, and the best part of the trip (which everyone needs to do once in their life) was the Biltmore Estate. I have blogged about this before - but my goodness, it was easily the coolest and most amazing place I have ever seen. Go. Book your tickets. And make sure to do some free wine tasting afterwards!

Cool Stop #2: Charleston, SC. If you want to get a taste of the "real" South, go to Charleston. They have cobblestone roads dating to the 1760's! I mean, talk about history. Charleston has battlefields from the Civil War, historic and important cotton plantations, row houses that are older than half of the country, an epic oyster festival every year (which we attended!), the best southern food anywhere, great golf...I mean this place has it all! We were lucky enough to have stayed with a friend of mine, Kelley (who is getting married next weekend!) and again, were pretty close to downtown. We took a house carriage tour, we strolled the historic streets of Charleston, ate oysters, had amazing food...we had a great weekend. So if you want "the South", go to Charleston and get some!

Cool Stop #3: Hilton Head Island, SC. Just last weekend we invited ourselves on someone else's vacation (come on, you've done it before!) to Hilton Head. I have always wanted to go here, mainly for the golf, but I quickly realized that it had way much more to offer. We rode bikes, walked on a very flat beach (much easier than fluffy sand), ate seafood every night, kayaked in a sea inlet, and yes, I golfed. But talk about relaxing...ride your bike to the beach, walk, tan, come back, have a beer, go get some seafood, do it again the next day. One of the top 2 highlights for me was our dinner on night 2 at "Eat!" (http://eathhi.com/). The owner gets his fame from the Food Network on the show called "Dinner Impossible", so he definitely has some street cred. It was unbelievable. Probably one of the top 3 dinners I have ever had in my life!! But of course, highlight numero uno was Harbout Town Golf Links. But aside from the heavenly golf, Hilton Head Island is worthy of a trip!

Cool Stop #4: Orange Beach, AL. Wake up, get coffee, sunscreen up, go to beach, come in for lunch, back to beach, come in for shower, go to dinner, sit on patio, go to bed. REPEAT. It is THE MOST relaxing place on earth. And it has great seafood as well, because it is located on the Gulf of Mexico, so shrimp, oysters, grouper is all readily available. We have been here a number of times, it is an O'Dea favorite. And it has become one of mine too! If you are a golfer, there are endless options as well...but I rarely play golf while there. Lots of reading, lots of sun-time, lots of eating and beers, lots of laughing. It is such a fun place to go! Of course, you can't to there without visiting the "Florabama" bar. Yep - on the border of Florida and Alabama. And yep, easily the most white trash bar in the world. Bras hanging from the ceiling, dirty floors, dirty people...but if you can get past that, great music and a rowdy crowd! It is a sight to be seen. Seriously.

Cool Stop #5: Atlanta, GA. Talk about a cool city. In tourist terms, you've got it all: CNN headquarters, Coca Cola headquarters, the World's Biggest Aquarium (literally, I'm not just saying that...), site of the 1996 Olympics...I mean, its a tourist heaven. In terms of being a local, you have great sports teams (Hawks, Falcons, BRAVES!!), great music venues (Eddie's Attic, Verizon Amphitheater, Peidmont Park), great local bands (MID LIFE CRISIS!), great food (come on, it's the South!!), and great people. Atlanta, while we didn't take nearly enough advantage of the downtown area, is a cool place to live. And a great place to visit!

Some honorable mentions from our visits: Durham (ok, only for Alex and Jay's wedding...and DUKE), Montreat College, NC (home of Billy Graham), Mt. Airy (home of Andy Griffith!), Winston-Salem, NC, any place surrounding Boone, NC (Valley Crucis, Banner Elk, Blowing Rock, etc etc..it is all cool!), Windy Gap Young Life Camp, Sharp Top Cove, YL camp, Charlotte, NC....I could go on. But those made the list.

As you can see, we took advantage of living in a very cool part of the USA. The best part? We drove everywhere! That's how accessible these historic and awesome places are. My encouragement to you, wherever you are: GO. Go places. Visit people. Try local food. Go to Oktoberfests and Wooly Worm festivals. Go to Oyster Cracking contests. Go go go! You gotta take advantage of where you live, and where you don't. We have come to embrace that, and I love it. So X out my blog, and google some place to go this weekend! It's only a drive away. . .

Day 2 of the Tribute to the South

2009-08-26T07:09:00.005-07:00

Drum roll please...............................GOLF. You know I was going there. I probably should have made it Day 1, but for some reason, food caught my fancy yesterday. Did I mention that we are having a Lo Country Boil this weekend as a send off? Doesn't get much more southern than that.

Anyway, back to golf. The people in the south (well, the men in the south) LOVE their golf. And after being on the East Coast for a year now, I can see why. I have played top of the line courses in North and South Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama. Been very lucky, to say the least. But let me tell you why the East closely rivals the West in terms of golf courses and the experience.

First state on the docket: North Carolina. I was able to play 2 awesome courses while I was there - Boone Golf Club and Grove Park Inn (Ashley's birthday present to me!). BGC was a great course, and was my first dose of Donald Ross, one of the most famous golf course designers in history. This course was designed by a protege of his, so it was identical to his style, which is HARD. But it was a great tune up for the real gem of the Asheville area - the Grove Park Inn. This course was unreal. Beautifully green lush course, very hilly, views of the city of Asheville, and set on the property of the historic and top 10 Spas in the World! I played with a great guy (who happened to live in Alpharetta, weird), smoked a great cigar, and had a great round. But aside from the experience, the course was awesome. It was designed by Donald Ross himself in 1919 or something like that. It had his very standard "upside down salad bowl" shaped greens and huge slanting greens. It was quite the test, actually. But I like that. I would go back and play in a heartbeat! Except next time I'd take Ash to the spa afterwards for a post round massage!

Next up: Alabama. I was only able to play a few courses in Gulf Shores (or should I say, Golf Shores?? Ba doom, ching!), but the highlight being Kiva Dunes. And this time, Ashley played with me! Well, actually she just rode around in the cart and had a few beers. . .hit a few shots occasionally. . .but mostly drove the cart, worked on her tan, and put back some Mick Ultras. Annnnnd I had my fair share too. Maybe that's why this course was so fun, I have no idea. But it was very hard, very sand dunes-y, with palm trees and lakes.......needless to say, picturesque. Gulf Shores is a great place to play golf. By the ocean, very warm, lots of sun and beers, and fun courses that for the most part are pretty easy. I played a few others times while there (once with Danny, once with Lee) and both were a great time! But next time you are in Gulf Shores, play Kiva Dunes. It is worth it!

Next up: South Carolina. Or as it says on their license plate, "First in Golf". I thought New York was first in golf, but maybe I am mistaken. SC is first in everything else, given the war history and early settlement history. So that is cool. What is even cooler is Harbour Town Golf Links. Uh-maze-ing. This course is the host of a PGA Tour tournament (the Verizon Heritage Classic), and is worthy of being called an amazing course. I played it last weekend, and it kicked my butt. It was so hard! Designed by Pete Dye (AKA Dye-abolical, for a reason), the fairways are smaller than your local Par 3 course, and the greens were about as big as your kitchen table. I mean, those bad boys were impossible to hit! I actually hit the ball fairly well, but realized how good the PGA tour guys are. It was a humbling experience. But the main reason you go to Harbour Town is for #17 and #18. 17 is a par 3 headed straight for the sound, surrounded by bunkers and hills and water. It is an amazing golf hole (I almost made birdie from the sand trap, but tapped in for par). 18 is all beauty. And all hard. It is 455 yards, with trouble everywhere. You are headed towards a candy cane looking lighthouse, with water all the way down the left side of the hole. The right is out of bounds, which makes it tough as well. But 2 interesting stats on this hole: the fairway is the #1 largest on the PGA tour, and the green is the #3 smallest. Pretty interesting. But, if you are a pro like me, you hit a 295 yard (Tiger what?) right down the middle, followed by a smooth 7 iron right at the flag, followed by 2 easy putts for par. What a great way to end a really great day! This course is worth a trip to South Carolina in itself, it is that good. Every hole you want to take a picture (and then throw your club because it was hard). And the last 2 holes make one of the best courses in the entire country.

Last up: Georgia. Home of Augusta National Golf Club. Or to a guy like me, Heaven. But in North Georgia there are also some gems that I have been lucky enough to play. White Columns, Atlanta National (where our wedding reception will be!), The Georgia Tech Club (aka Echelon), to name a few. White Columns was where I played a national tournament when I was 17 years old, about 3 years before I met Ashley. Extremely ironic - it is about 4 minutes from her house. Fate, anyone? I've written enough about Augusta (if you haven't read it, go to my blog archives and read about Augusta!), so I'll give you some golf history from Georgia. Atlanta was home to Bobby Jones, arguably the most famous golfer of all time. He still holds most amateur records, and designed some of the South's great courses, including Augusta. But if you are rich and have money to blow, you can be a member of his home course in Atlanta, or play some other favorites of his. A few PGA Tour golfers live in Duluth at Sugar Loaf, or at Atlanta Athletic Club, both extremely exclusive and extremely unbelievable. But up in horse country in Alpharetta, the courses are so beautiful. They are set on rolling acreage, with huge Pines deciding the fairways. The greens are all smooth bent grass, and every course I have played here has been so pretty and soothing and again, picturesque. On your next trip to visit the South, you must play some North Georgia courses. They are awesome!

Well that about ends my golf experiences and recaps of the South. The styles and layouts are drastically different from Oregon and California, but in their own right, they are amazing. I can't wait to come back and play some Southern Golf!

Part 1 of a 5 day Tribute to the South

2009-08-24T19:08:00.004-07:00

So for the next week or so, I'm going to write some Casebeer Tributes to the South...an Ode to the South...a farewell of sorts. You see, Ashley and I are moving on Sunday. That's not very long. This is the beginning of a very hard week and I figured that I need to do something to bring some smiles to some faces! So off we go, part 1 of 5 Tributes. Tribute #1: SOUTHERN FOOD.

I think the way I'll craft these tributes is by doing a series of goods, greats, and interestings. At least, that's how I'll write the first one. So before I even moved out here (down here, over here, whatever) everyone told me "you're going to love the food", "you have to eat this or that", etc etc. It was all about the FOOD. Well, I love food - this is no secret. This thought excited me about moving here. The first thing everyone asks from the West Coast is "have you tried grits?" After a few weeks of resisting, I caved. I tried some. Ashley had to make me try Cheddar Cheese Grits, so of course, who wouldn't love those?? Alan Yawn gave me grit lesson once too. LOTS of salt and pepper. Strange at first, but I've come to embrace it. Now after many months of grits, I'm just a little-butter-salt-and-pepper Grit guy.

Next on the good list is hush puppies. Jon Frazier loves hush puppies. I'm still not sure how to eat them - last night for instance, I dipped them in my 1000 Island salad dressing. Before that bite, they went into the ketchup. And after, directly into my tartar sauce. Does anyone know the proper way to eat these things?? I don't really care how, but they too are a delight found no where near the West Coast. A crying shame if you have never had a hush puppy!

Next up: The Great List. Food you can't live without. Food that will make Ashley and I come back to Georgia every 6 weeks just to eat this food. You know what I'm talking about: FRIED PICKLES. Just kidding, although I really do love fried pickles. What I am really talking about is the one and only CHIK FIL A. The nearest Chik to Oregon is Southern California. Some franchise guy in Oregon needs to get on this ASAP. But again, if you have never had Chik Fil A, you are missing out on real life. Some say real life is in Jesus. I couldn't agree more. It's also eating Chik Fil A. There was a stretch in Boone where I had it 4 days in a row (Ashley did not know about 2 of these days). There have also been twice-a-dayers. It's just that good. Chicken sandwhich, chicken nuggets, waffle fries, milkshakes...it is all good. You need to find one and eat some, immediately!

Another food category on the great list is the seafood. I have been a long time lover of good seafood, but it is different here. I have never had grouper. Or trigger fish. Or oysters. Or real authentic crab legs where you actually have to break them and get the damn meat out of the leg. I swear I tried for hours and ate about 4 ounces of food one time. But the seafood is amazing. Fried grouper? So good. Oysters Patti O'Dea style? Amazing. Crab Legs Aunt Lynn style? Hard work, but well worth it!! I love southern seafood. Last night (along with my hush puppy dilema) I had blackened Flounder, some of Kim's crab legs, 1 of Ashley's Crab stuffed Shrimp, and Gumbo. I mean, come on. Does it get any better than that??? The answer is no.

On the Interesting list is only one item. Maybe it even deserves a disclaimer, that's how disgusting it is. So here is the disclaimer: If you have a weak stomach, stop reading and go to the next paragraph. Last chance. Ok moving on. An O'Dea Family Tradition (ok, only 2 people actually like this) is called Pear Salad. Sounds delish, right? Think again. Imagine with me if you will: a succulent pear chopped in half. . . . .filled with a large scoop of MAYO. . . . .topped with shredded cheddar cheese and a cherry. What in the world? I was tricked into eating this one Easter a few years ago. They said, "Oh come on, everybody loves this thing!!!" So of course, trying to impress the futures, I ate it. Choked it down, really. But I guess people actually like this thing. I'm just not one of them!

And now on to some Honorable Mentions. Food that is definitely noteworthy. Top of the list:
- Nana's Chicken Salad. Also worth coming back every month or so for.
- Anything Danny cooks. In particular, steak with potatoes, seasoned veggies, and garlic bread. Ohhh soo good!
- The dreaded Banana Sandwhich. Yep. Banana Sandwhich. Bread, mayo, sliced naners, mayo, bread. Sick.
- Patti's chicken enchiladads
- BANANA PUDDING
- La Parilla Mexican Grill
- Southern BBQ (I favor the non-vinegar type...)
- Kim's artichoke dip
- Shrimp and Grits
- Mick Ultra, Blue Moon, Yeungling
- Steak n Shake, Waffle House

Well that about wraps up my food portion. Now that everyone is hungry. . .sorry about that! But needless to say, I love Southern Food. I am going to miss Southern Food. I am going to miss eating by the fire in the winter, and the pool in the summer. I am going to miss eating so much chicken salad that I feel like throwing up. I am not going to miss eating the Pear salad and actually throwing up. I am going to miss Ultras, Pinots, and a Guiness at the Olde Blind Dog. I am going to miss a lot!

Things Ashley needs to look forward to in moving West: Micro Brews, Scott Casebeer's cooking, organic everything, and Kettle Chips. Lots and lots of Kettle Chips.

Special and heartfelt thanks goes out to the O'Deas for showing me what real eating is like! Cheers to Southern Food!

Oh I suppose I'll blog again. . .

2009-08-11T06:49:00.004-07:00

It's been a while. I've had a run in with a snake since the last blog. Been to a wedding. Been to Charlotte 2 times in 4 days. You know, the usual. Want the update? Ok then!

Ashley's life long dream (ok, dream of 2 years) has been to appear on the Smitten Photography Blog. For further detail, click on smittenphotographyblog.com . But anyway, she has stalked this website (stalk sounds bad. Obsessed is better. Well, that sounds bad too. She has LOVED this website...) for about 2 years. It is a friend of a friend of a friend type of deal. Anyway, she loves this photographer. And after a year of telling me about it, I have found that I love her too! Such a unique style. Well we decided that Sharon is the person who we wanted to shoot our wedding, and coincidentally our engagement photos. Dreams really do come true for Miss Ashley. We went to Charlotte on Tuesday for our official shoot, and it was a blast. And the photos, well, you'll probably see them in a magazine soon. Movie stars. Rock stars. Whatever you want to call us. We look GOOD. So check back on that website within the next few days, because they will be up soon!

But the whole process was just funny. We met her at Chik fil A at 7AM (meanwhile I'm wondering why I couldn't get food) and she says "Hey guys, just follow me we are going to take some pictures in a gravel parking lot". A strange start, to say the least. I was thinking some serene field, trees, grass, running around hand in hand. . . nope, gravel parking lot. But hey, like Ashley told me, "just trust her, she's good!". So I do. Off we go - to Lowe's Motor Speedway parking lot! What the crap? I had some very sketchy feelings about this. But we start shooting - because "the light is amazing!", Sharon claims. I'm skeptical - until she screams with excitement about the first few shots. Then she shows them to us on her camera - and I am shocked too. This gal can really turn lemons into lemonade! I mean, it was a pretty place - but these pictures looks amazing! We shot there, then went to an abandoned looking church, and same thing - she was great. She used old beat up chairs, picked flowers from a field for Ashley to hold, used our Starbucks cups in some shots, just whatever she felt like, as long as "the sun was good". And the sun was good to us! I can't wait to see all of the pictures. . .so cool and unique! A little bit like Ash and I. . .

Our return trip to Charlotte on Friday was for good friend Lauren's wedding. It was a fun weekend on a lot of levels but for me, it was great getting to hang out with the one and only Jay Whitaker. You see, his wife Alex and my future wife Ashley are besties. BFF's. Life longers. Which means for Jay and I, we are inherently going to be life long friends as well. Which is fun to think about! Might as well get this party started! We did so by hanging out at the world's largest Bass Pro Shop, sharing a hotel room, playing frisbee golf and laughing a LOT at the wedding! I'd say we bonded. And I liked it. On this frisbee golf trip we ran into a snake - see picture below. Not friendly. We are little girls when it comes to snakes, I'll be honest. It looked at me and I sprinted. And might have screamed.

In other news, Ashley and I are looking for places to live in Portland. Preferably free. Know of anyone or anything?? Of course, we realize that is a little ridiculous, but just throwing it out there.

I'll update more once the highly anticipated engagement photos are revealed. But let me promise you this folks. They are going to be amazing.

A Day to Remember

2009-07-31T00:08:00.004-07:00

It all started with a pot of coffee at about 7 am. This trip, that is the norm. There has been to much to do, and yesterday was the pinnacle. Yesterday was the highlight, the thing we looked forward to: THE GARAGE SALE. You've inevitably been apart of one - the neon stickers, the bins full of crap that you think no one will buy, you know the drill. You put things in there and said "There is no way ANYONE will buy THIS for $1.50", and yet, they did. Here is how our day went.

7:45am - first customers, 15 minutes early. South Africans from down the street. They purchase a half broken George Forman, a brand new set of plates/mugs/dishes, a portable DVD player. Great start to the day!
7:55am - the first real "garage salers" that we had been warned about. These gals - typically in their late 50's, early 60's, show up early and try to get the best stuff. They roll up in their beat up '89 Camary and go for it. Today was no exception. We had one. She took a look in about 23 seconds, and bought nothing. I felt defeated.
8-10am - steady flow. But here is what Ashley and I's conversation sounded like: "Hey we got one". "Nope, they are neighbors". "Nope, '92 Bronco. They'll stop". "Yep, you're right". And so on. We sadly analyzed cars and figured out which ones would stop, ignore, or drive and stare. It got to be quite entertaining!
8-10am. Also during this time span was our friend Gus. Gus was the big winner of the day. Gus came 3, count 'em, THREE times throughout the day, he was relentless! Gus bought the following items: my old laptop from freshman year of college, my Dell from soph-senior year of college, an old MP3 player (not sure if this works anymore), 2 pairs of shoes, a totally broken TV (free, don't worry), another fully functional TV, a desk, a hat, and who cares what else. Gus spent almost $100 at my sale. I declare Gus the WINNER!
12PM - Ashley and Alex are roasting in the frickin heat, and decide to call it quits.
12:03pm - more people show up, of course. They buy a pair of shoes, a book, and I throw in a coffee travel mug for free.
12:17pm - even more people come. . .they walk away with mostly free items. My negotiating skills have completely deteriorated.
1:01pm - everything unsold is packed and off to Goodwill. All in all, a SOLID day. But here are some Garage Sale lessons:
- people buy the most random crap ever - drivers with a dent in it, old shoes, mirrors, anything. It is unreal.
- people want desks, electronics, shoes, and free stuff.
- people will drive up, take a look, and drive off if they see nothing of value. Very embarrassing.
- people will haggle, but hey, who won't?

All in all, it was fun. We drank way too much coffee, gave away way too many free items, but hey - we made money, people walked away happy. What more can you ask for??

We ended our day by going to the Sugarland concert at the Amphitheater. And let me be the first to say that they were amazing. I was impressed at the variety of music they covered - REM (Night Swimmer), Bon Jovi (Can't Go Home), B-52's (Love Shack), MJ (Rock with You), and Pearl Jam (Better Man). They were just extremely entertaining and well worth the money spent!

As I type this right now, my house is totally empty. Except for me, Ashley and my Mac. The end of an era - a very good one - in Bend. I loved this house and this town, but you know what? Ashley and I are on to amazing things ahead. And we are very excited about it.

Thoughts, hot sauce, and pickles

2009-07-22T05:18:00.002-07:00

I'm not even going to intro this blog. Here we go.

Some good thoughts/quotes I've heard recently:
- God is an expert in taking care of His people in the most uncertain times. - Andy Stanley (our pastor)
- Never let your character erode because of the present circumstances. - Andy Stanley
- Waiting can be turned into endurance and perseverance - with the proper perspective. - Jeff Hendrickson.
- The hardest part of waiting is not the waiting itself. It is dealing with the aftermath of acting in our frustration. - Hendrickson
- Despite your circumstances, there should still be something unique about the way you treat people. - Andy Stanley
- Never touch your face (or any body part) after dealing directly with Cayenne Peppers. - Alex Casebeer
- If Christ were to actually reveal Himself today, would you know where you stand? - taken from 1 John
- The man who's life lived IN love in fact lives IN God, and God lives IN him. - 1 John 5:16.

Steps to making Cayenne Pepper Hot Sauce - follow closely.
1) Grow peppers in yard
2) Water peppers, pick peppers when completely red.
3) Dry peppers using a wire hanger found in your closet, and hang awkwardly in the laundry room using clothes pins.
4) Look up many recipes online, decide on one.
5) Begin selecting the "chosen few" peppers because you grew 17 times too many. Turns out you only need 5 for this recipe.
6) Cut peppers, get peppers all over your hands and don't realize it.
7) Scratch face.
8) Scratch arm. . . . . and then leg.
9) Wipe sweat off forehead, because, well you are cooking PEPPERS.
10) After bottling pepper sauce, let the anticipation begin of "is this going to be good?" "or is it going to burn my mouth off?"
11) Realize your forehead is ON FIRE and you get can't it to stop.
12) Go hit golf balls and realize your arm and leg are BURNING LIKE NO TOMORROW
13) Come back, get sauce out, get a tortilla chip, and get ready for launch.
14) Dip, eat, think, reflect.
15) Realize you didn't put any salt or garlic in, dang it!
16) Add salt and garlic
17) Try again - and realize you got it right!
18) Brag.

And lastly, my story from the Fickle Pickle.

I went to use my free lunch at the Fickle Pickle (and to visit Ashley, of course) the other day and it was a very packed house. I sat outside for a variety of reasons, mainly because of the weather, and table availability. About halfway thru my meal, 3 older ladies (late 50's, early 60's, sorry if that offended anyone) stroll outside, Chardonnay in hand. The begin looking for places to sit, only to realize that it is totally full. One of them looks at my table (1 person sitting at a 4 top) and announces "Let's sit with this guy!". To which I respond, BRING IT ON CHICKS. At this point, Ashley gives me the stink eye (deserved) but what can I do? I have attracted cougars.

When they sit down, they are all talk. Talking about Florida, houses, 20 years ago, blah blah blah. I ask them what they are doing and Diane's response was "Oh, just out spending our husband's money!". Mary said "In my case, my booyyfriend". These gals were hilarious! We talked about the West Coast, Texas (where one was visiting from), food, Ashley, wine, the car business, the new show on TV about cougars, we covered it all. Once their food arrived, I left them to their party - they were having a great day! I got up to leave and said "See ya later, girls!" to which Diane's response was "Bye Alec". Hate that. Old people never get AleX right. It's always AleC. Why is that? Anyway, a good time had by all!

Well Ashley and I are off to Oregon today. We'll be busy - anniversary party, birthday party, golf tournament, trip to Bend to pack my house, visit Portland. . .we'll be busy, but we can't wait.

Crap! I gotta go. About to miss my fl.. . . .

Watch out, I'm going political!

2009-07-17T11:28:00.005-07:00

Ok, maybe political isn't the right word. I'm not sure really, maybe it's 'socially conscious', or 'doing the right thing'. But cut me some slack, I never write about anything serious! What I want to write about briefly is my thought this morning: Buy Local, or Bye, Local! Maybe this thought is something my Mom instilled in me. Maybe it was the way of life in Bend, OR. Or maybe it's "an Oregon thing". But I am behind it, and let me give you my thoughts on the subject.

I like local things. In fact, one of my favorite days with Ashley was going to the Portland Farmer's Market in downtown Portland. It doesn't' get any more local than that! There were flowers, veggies, wine, fruits, trinkets, all sorts of stuff - all made and grown by someone in Oregon. I love that! Local food always tastes better, I'm convinced. Maybe it's because I just made Cayenne Pepper hot sauce with the peppers that we grew in the back yard. But fresh local produce and food tastes better to me. And it is always good to support the local farmers. They are hard workers!

I love local coffee shops. While I realize that the beans are not grown locally, a truly "local" shop the milk will be local, the mugs will be made from someone in town, etc etc. In Bend, if you went to Starbucks, you were an outcast! There were so many great coffee shops in town - why go to 'big bad Starbucks'? (Don't get me wrong - I'm a huge fan of Starbucks, but when I can go local, I do).

I love the local restaurant scene. This is a little easier to get into because in most towns, there are so many options other than franchises or chains. But even here in Alpharetta there are amazing local joints - Pure Tacqueria, Milton's, The Union, La Parilla...I could go on. Why would we go anywhere else? And I feel like it is the same way in most towns, so I'll rant no more on that subject.

But what is the bigger reason for "going local"? Supporting the community, supporting the local business scene, supporting the economy and supporting fledging entrepreneurs. I like that, above all else. I am a big fan of going to Ranch Records vs. Best Buy. I am a huge fan of going to The Back Porch vs. Starbucks. I like Roswell Used Books over Barnes and Noble. Not only is the service mostly better, but there is a bigger sense of "I did something good". A lot of the time, the local restaurants/coffee shops/bike shops etc. are the most who give back the most to the community, so in a way, by shopping or eating there, you are helping give back to the community. It all comes around full circle.

Now I know that this isn't always possible. Sometimes you just have to go to Burger King. Or Taco Bell. Or wherever. But maybe next time before you go, do some homework and find out which ones are owned by a local person. Typically Starbucks never are, but sometimes the fast food chains are. I would venture to say that it is ok in my book to support those too, because they can often give back to the community in great ways too.

But for some reason - the small places, the ones that seem like they aren't making any impact at all in a community, actually are. Upon closer inspection, the little guys oftentimes come up the biggest. They support schools, races, book fairs, Art Fairs, Young Life, and on and on and on. And that is why I like supporting them. And that's why I would encourage you to do that also!

What would our towns be like without the local guy? Without the person who knows your name when you go to Jittery Joe's? What would our towns be like with big chains only, and Olive Garden's and Circuit City's everywhere? I say that if we don't buy local, then we can say "Bye, Local". Let's not let that happen, especially in this economy. I am really tired of that statement - "this economy". I know things are bleak, but if you are going to spend money, think about where it's going. I hope it's going local!

If you knew me, you would know. . .

2009-07-11T21:02:00.003-07:00

This is a hilarious game that Ashley likes to play occasionally with her friends. It is called "It you knew me, you would know..." It is a way of revealing some funny things that make you YOU. Maybe they are secrets, maybe they are idiosyncrasies, maybe it is just a random fact. But none-the-less, it is revealing something! So off we go. If you knew ME, you would know. . .

- that I never order the "special" at a restaurant. I view it as losing. I'm not sure why. I feel like I lose if I order the special. Like I feel like gave in to something. Never order the special!

- that I can't brush my teeth in the morning without either eating or drinking something. You know, lots of people wake up and the FIRST thing they do is brush their teeth. Not me. It disgusts me. I have to drink Cranapple juice, or coffee, or eat Honey Nut Cheerios. Anything before I brush those pearly whites.

- that I rarely ever finish a full cup or "grande" of coffee. For some reason, I just can't do it. I LOVE coffee. I order it all the time. But I can never finish a whole cup! Ask Ashley about this. She will disclose full details.

- that I have to hug a pillow every night while sleeping. At least, I have to fall asleep this way. Sometimes I end up upside down, or on the floor, or one time I ended up in the shower (ask for details, please). But if you knew me, you would know that to fall asleep, I have to be clutching a pillow!

- that when I am golfing, I always have 2 quarters in my pocket. For you non-golfers out there, you always need a "ball marker" in your pocket. For me, it has always been quarters. For as long as I can remember, I always have had 2 in my pocket. Ask me why and you will get no response. I have no clue. It just happens.

- that I never use hair "product" in my hair. I use hand lotion. Yes, the secret to this amazing hair (hardly) is hand lotion. I hate the feeling of waking up the following morning with "sticky" hair. Hand lotion prevents this.

- that I secretly hate Tiger Woods. Yes, I may be a golfer. And most golfers like this guy. Not me. I like the underdog. I like the guys who play golf to make ends meet, because they feel like this is the only thing that they can do to be successful. I don't really like Tiger. Do I respect him? You know it. The guy is unreal! Do I like him? Not really.

Ok friends. I have revealed. Now it is YOUR turn! If I really know YOU, I would know. . . . . . .

I will be taking suggestions for my next blog. Please be responsive. It's more fun that way! Have a great Sunday!

A plethora of things!

2009-07-07T05:53:00.006-07:00

Good evening. Tonight's topic: Whirled Peas. And cotton candy. And Janell Ediger, along with the Deschutes Cup, Hedo Turkoglu, and of course, Michael Jackson, King of Pop. Ok, I know that's a lot. But I asked people on Facebook what to blog about, and those are the things that they came up with. You'll get your chance too, just be patient! So off we go, into world of thoughts, reactions, and weirdness. First up: WHIRLED PEAS, courtesy of Mel Wade.

I must admit, I have never heard of whirled peas. In fact, as I type this I still haven't. I am going to google them hold on...........Top results: Whirled Peas Catering, Denver CO. Pretty sure Mel wasn't talking about this. Whirledpeas.com - Handmade Jewelry. Uhhmm, no. Next up - Whirled Peas Productions. Seriously? Nice name. Then I realized I've been duped - Whirled Peas, AKA WORLD PEACE. My initial reaction to this epiphany: Mad at Mel. Second thought? Agree with World Peace. When we will see more unifying? When will people realize God is in control not them? In fact, when will people stop blaming God for things going on? Maybe we need to look at the Man in the Mirror. (I'll get to that later...) Next topic: COTTON CANDY, courtesy of Kris Willis.

Have you ever watched someone actually make cotton candy? I got to 4 times this summer - Carnival Night at Young Life Camp. It is a strange process really. You stick this plastic thing in to a big mixing bowl, some air is blowing, color is in there somehow, and voila! Cotton Candy! It's bizarre. It's also something sticks to your teeth in a strange way, and that I don't like. But I did cave and have one this summer, and did not regret it. Thanks for reminding me of the Oregon State Fair, Kris! Next topic: JANELL EDIGER, courtesy of Janell Ediger.

Or as I mostly refer to her, Miss Ediger. She was an assistant principal at South Salem HS, home of the MIGHTY Saxons! I was lucky to have someone as cool as Ediger - because when you are a sweet talking, mischievous, sly little sophomore like I was back then, you needed someone on your side. She was definitely on my side! Always let my group of friends get away with things we shouldn't have. So thanks Janelle, for being a great, cool, amazing principal! Next up: THE DESCHUTES CUP, courtesty of Dan Odiorne.

Dan brought up a rough memory for me. Well, actually a funny one. But I was a loser in this contest. You see, there was a season long golf tournament between country clubs in Central Oregon called the Deschutes Cup. My club and his were in the finals, playing at the infamous Crosswater Golf Course in Sunriver. It is an amazing place! Dan and I squared off in a singles match, and I got whooped. Not only did I get whooped, but he capped it off by making about a 157 foot putt on #17 to rub salt in the open wound. However, I got the last laugh - Bend Golf and Country Club won the whole shebang! Next topic: HEDO TURKOGLU, courtesty of Matt Sheelar.

Hedo is an idiot. Well, sort of. He played for the Orlando Magic for the past 3 years, and wanted a change. Portland wanted a good Forward. Are you thinking what Portland was thinking? That's right - let's get Hedo out here, Nike him up a little bit, show him what Portland is all about! Turns out Hedo thought Portland wasn't that great, and wanted to go to TORONTO. Yeesh! He said that he liked the city better (idiot), and that there were more people like him there. Well duh, Hedo, you are TURKISH! There are no Turkish people in Oregon, or at least not enough. Adios, Hedo! Enjoy another underperforming team! Next and final topic: MICHAEL JACKSON, King of Pop, courtesy of many people, but including my cousin Elle and T.Roy.Hess.

Let's face it - an era-defining human has come and gone, right in front of our eyes. Don't care about the molestation charges, don't care about the skin pigment deal, the guy was flat out amazing. I can remember, when I was young, watching concerts where people would literally pass out and have to be carried out by security, limp-bodied and all. I can remember dancing around my house to Beat It, Bad, and Thriller. In fact, I still do that. Annnyyway. I once made a music video with my cousin James to the song "Bad". If it wasn't on VHS, it would a YouTube sensation right now! We had it all - the outfits, the dance moves, the cool video effects - it was awesome. Mom, can you dig that up, please? Thanks. But seriously - Michael Jackson defined music in my era and life, and even before me. And he will continue to do so after we pass on. He was amazing, and I loved his music. I loved his crazy dancing, and his crazing awesome music videos, and the fact that the guy had Disneyland as his freaking home! Who cares that he was a little odd? Not me. You shouldn't either. You should immediately go to your iTunes and turn on "Man in the Mirror" and marvel at the words and the message. He gets it. I wish there were more people that thought the way he did in this song, and many others (ie Heal the World and more!). Anyway, it's too bad he left us before this latest tour - that would have been unreal to see! His time here on earth definitely ended a little too early, in my opinion.

Well I'll leave you with one funny story from this morning. I'm sitting in Starbucks, and Mr. Cool walks in. You know - 50 years old, designer jeans, ripped white T shirt, glasses still on (even though it's raining and 8 AM), you get the picture. I listen to him order the following, or something like this: Uh, yea, gimmeuh Soy Vanilla Chai Iced Latte. Whole soy milk (huh?), 9 pumps vanilla, 1 pump white chocolate, 1 pump Chai, and 2 pumps I'm an idiot. Ok, I added that last part. But honestly, just get a Mocha and get the heck out of the line!

You are going to love the next blog as well. Topic: "If You Knew Me, You Would Know. . ."

Thanks for these words, MJ!

Man in the Mirror
I'm Gonna Make A Change, For Once In My Life
It's Gonna Feel Real Good, Gonna Make A Difference
Gonna Make It Right . . .

As I, Turn Up The Collar On My
Favourite Winter Coat
This Wind Is Blowin' My Mind
I See The Kids In The Street,
With Not Enough To Eat
Who Am I, To Be Blind?
Pretending Not To See Their Needs
A Summer's Disregard,
A Broken Bottle Top
And A One Man's Soul
They Follow Each Other On The Wind Ya' Know
'Cause They Got Nowhere To Go
That's Why I Want You To Know

I'm Starting With The Man In The Mirror
I'm Asking Him To Change His Ways
And No Message Could Have Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World A Better Place
Take A Look At Yourself, And Then Make A Change!

I've Been A Victim Of A Selfish
Kind Of Love
It's Time That I Realize
That There Are Some With No
Home, Not A Nickel To Loan
Could It Be Really Me,
Pretending That They're Not Alone?

A Willow Deeply Scarred,
Somebody's Broken Heart
And A Washed-Out Dream
They Follow The Pattern Of
The Wind, Ya' See
Cause They Got No Place To Be
That's Why I'm Starting With Me

What's happening?

2009-06-29T06:49:00.004-07:00

For starters, a great trip to the beach! Actually, that has already happened. Talk about the ultimate camp wind-down. Ashley, Jamie and I took off on Tuesday after realizing that I didn't have to work until this week for Orange Beach, AL to meet their mom and friends for a few days. Here are some highlights and snapshots:
- Great seafood! Aunt Lynn cooked crab for us one night - and it was amazing. But all seafood is great there, because it's fresh!
- Sunsets. There really is nothing like a beachy sunset.
- Dolphins, crabs, stingrays, and sharks. We had encounters with all 3!
- Lots of tanning and relaxing. It's not like the Oregon coast, where jeans and a hoodie are required at most times. No - here, you sit in a chair with a cup holder (presumably with a beer in it), and your feet are in the ocean. If a big wave comes along, it comes up and hits in you in the butt. Probably the most relaxing place I can think of. . .needless to say, it was a great trip!

What else is happening? Well back to work for me. . .and back to wedding planning for Ash! On the docket: save the dates, invitations, engagement pictures, flowers? Things are going to start rocking now!

Still a busy summer ahead - Ashley is in a wedding that has some fun commitments coming up, we'll be taking a trip to Oregon for my grandparents 60th anniversary (VERY cool), and then potentially planning a move across the country. . .not sure of when or how, but we're looking into it!

Meanwhile, I'm trying to convince Young Life that they need a Camp Blogger. I mean, how cool would that be? Travel around to various camps, write about what is going on. This could reap huge benefits for them! So if you happen to run into the President or VP's, put some pressure on them for me, ok?? Thanks!

Until next time, enjoy life as it comes at you!

Camp Decompression

2009-06-22T12:40:00.003-07:00

Camp decompression sometimes equals camp depression. You know - you miss the place you love. In this case, I miss the feeling I love. The feeling of constant service, the feeling of surrounding love, the feeling of God everywhere. You miss the things that once seemed monotonous but ended up great. You miss the simplicity, the way of life, and the way of the people. I'll admit it - I miss camp! Coming home is such a shock - lots of cars, lots of stresses, lots of things. At camp, you worry only about a few things: working hard, loving people as best you can, serving as hard as you can, and being a great model. Maybe that's how life really should be lived?

Some things I love / miss about camp:
- 3 normal meals a day (why does it seem harder to do this at home?)
- Walking everywhere, and sometimes riding a bike
- Hanging at the smoker's pit with the tough kids (easily the most action at camp)
- Stone House Coffee in the morning
- Fruit shakes with Sco nearly every day
- Pretending that we'd run every day, and making it 2 weeks
- Smiles
- Walkie Talkies (won't miss these too much actually)

I'll miss the war room in the morning, where we'd go over some scripture, and more importantly go over our hearts. That daily check in was healthy and worth it.

I'll miss the excitement of 350 or kids per week - the littlest things make them happy, ie hospital corners on beds, pizza delivered to their cabin at 12am, blobbing, program characters, etc. It is so refreshing.

I'll miss the freshness of Day 1's. And the elation of Day 7's.

Most of all, I'll miss seeing kids stand up on the last day to profess their faith in Christ. How amazing to be a part of this experience. How amazing to be a worker for God's kingdom. How amazing to feel the Holy Spirit move into kids' lives. Kids like Loren (the self-professing atheist turned Believer), and like Sean (who had so much hurt in his life that he cried 5 out of 7 days at camp, but found Jesus' love and let people know about it).

Needless to say, Day 1 at home is not as cool as Day 1 at camp. Day 1 is groggy, and not as exciting. Day 1 will get better for us all who have the same feeling, but for now, let's just feel so happy about what we were apart of. Let's feel loved. Let's feel honored that God paved the way for us to have been at Lost Canyon, because not many people get to do that.

Here's to bringing some camp spirit back home!

Final Update!

2009-06-20T20:52:00.002-07:00

Good afternoon friends!

As I type this email, busses are leaving camp for the 4th week. 260 or so campers have come to camp, taken it over, and are now headed back. Of those 260, we counted about 60 that stood up and accepted Jesus into their lives! Again - the Kingdom has been impacted, and heaven is having a "major rager" party celebrating this! As for us, here is what is going on:

- Tonight consists of a banquet dinner - assigned team will be serving the Summer Staff and Work Crew, and we can't wait!
- Busses/cars leave camp tomorrow for good at 9 AM.
- We will party hard tonight and celebrate what God has done over the past 4 weeks. We, as an entire team (work crew, summer staff, program, etc) have been impacted in a great way, and tonight we get to reminisce and have fun for the last time this month!

Some highlights from week 4:
- Sean (tough kid, been in jail for assault), was having a difficult time with a leader of his. He was feeling antagonized and made fun of by his peers and pretty much everyone. I had talked to him multiple times throughout the week (he became my "1" - sometimes you leave the 99 for the 1), and was so happy to see him stand up and profess his faith today!
- Many of the work crew servers said today that they had been praying for a specific table this week, and EVERY one of them stood up today at say so!
- Loren, from last week, walked the 3 miles to camp from Williams to say hey. He is also contemplating doing work crew 3rd session!!
- Martin led the New Believer Walk today - he did amazing!
- Neal spoke at Say So - also did amazing!
- The sickness slowly went away in this house. . .there are still a few coughs and sneezes, but overall, we feel better and feel good leaving!

Some final prayer//praiase requests:
** Please pray for safe travel! We have people flying to the east coast, to the south, driving. . .we need some safety prayers!
** Pray for the morale of the goodbye - that it would be a happy send off, and not a negative, sad thing.
** Please pray for the new assigned team that comes in tomorrow! This camp will look very different tomorrow, so please pray for the transition for the Lost Canyon Property Staff.
** By our tally, we think somewhere around 450 kids met Jesus Christ this month. God is so powerful, and we are all in awe of what He did and will continue to do!

The pictures that I attached are from this morning's believer walk. Great images to go along with our mission! It is SO fun welcoming in our new believer friends into the Kingdom! It's why we do this. . .

Well thank you so much for coming along on this journey with us. We are all honored that you would be praying for us everyday, and lifting up our needs and thoughts and our everything. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!

Thanks for reading the camp updates. . .I'll be back with more entertaining stories soon! Until then, enjoy life!

2009-06-15T16:30:00.003-07:00

Good evening blogees!! Week 3 has officially ended - which means we just got finished deep cleaning every single cabin/bathroom, picking up trash, etc all in about 90 minutes. It is quite a sight to see! And I'm sure you can imagine the "Young Life competitive spirit" kicking in. . .here are some highlights and prayer requests for your reading and praying pleasure!

- 410 campers this week - incredibly diverse and energetic group. Over 120 campers came to know the Lord this week!! Say So was an awesome experience this week. More on that later!
- 170 bibles were given out this morning at the "New believer walk" - it is so refreshing to hand a kid a bible who has never read one. What a great journey they are about to embark on!
- One guy from local Williams named Loren came to camp an atheist. He walked away a believer. The Spirit moved in him like nothing we have ever seen this week, and it had a profound impact on everyone here.
- The weekly basketball game was interesting this week - lots of urban kids who kicked our butts, playing on the court with kids wearing jeans and not caring, expecting to go 0-5 and ending up 2-3. Not bad for a bunch of old hacks!
- Watching kids at club starting the week in the back of the room, distant from the group, and ending up in the middle of the room with arms around each other at the end of the week.
- We had 2 911 calls this week - both ended up at the Flagstaff hospital, but due to our EMT and great guest services staff, 2 lives were spared and were back at camp by week's end.
- Malcom Hess falling asleep basically on his dinner plate. Never gets old. PS It is his birthday tomorrow!
- Watching 2 property staff guys at Lost Canyon lead some of their cabin guys to Christ this week. So cool!
- AJ Pitkin leading the new believer walk on his own. . .and speaking at Club #7 today. Looks like our little boy is growing up!!
- No John Byard incidents to report this week - stay tuned though. You never know what might happen. . .
- Magaly is currently cooking dinner "Costa Rica Style" as I am typing this. As you can imagine, we are ALL so excited to experience this meal!!
- Late night nug and guac sessions continue. . .the kitchen hates us for ordering so many bags of chicken nuggets!!
- Day 5 consists of the entire assignment team making breakfast in bed for the campers - 6:30 is early, but you know what? We have fun every time!

Some prayers requests:
** Would you pray that we would all be "present" this last week? It is easy to check out a few days early, and we want to be here the entire 7 days.
** Please keep praying for health. The Scofield boys have now been struck - Hudson spent the night in the hospital, and Charlie has been to the clinic now twice. Pray for fast healing for their whole family.
** Some of our AT are still sick - please pray for the sickness to leave this camp immediately.
** Areas coming this week: El Paso, Las Vegas, Yuma, Northern Colorado, Northern Arizona, Grand Valley, CO, Jackson Hole, Rancho Cucamonga, Temecula, and Fallbrook CA, and Aspen. Pray for open hearts, and for the Holy Spirit to start moving, even now.
** Pray that we would finish strong. That we would come close as a team this last week and solidify friendships.

Thanks for reading, and here's a great Week 4!

Week 3. . .Come ON!

2009-06-08T10:54:00.003-07:00

Good morning once again Blogees!!! A lot has gone on since I've last updated you, so here we go! I'll start off with some random highlights. . .

- We had a "drama free week" at camp - no drugs, no kids sneaking off property, not too much "policing" going on! It was very nice. . .
- Dakota, one of our Capernaum friends, was the big winner of the coveted Mattress Race at club. We load a kid on to a mattress and send them all the way up the club room, "crowd surfing" style. It was an amazing sight - the entire camp gave him a standing ovation for winning!
- Our late night chicken nugget/Scofield guacamole sessions continue - a great night cap!
- Watching the Capernaum kids go through the Ropes Course and the Playground was heart warming. Their excitement and enthusiasm and timidness is so refreshing. Brings people to tears of joy!
- Last week - 260 campers/leaders. This week? 415. The energy so far is INCREDIBLE. These kids are fired up about being here! They just about tore down the club room on Night One. It is so fun watching 415 people sing great songs (No One, 500 Miles, Brown Eyed Girl, etc.)
- We have 2 property staff friends as leaders this week - John Offner and Jeff Walker. It is so fun to see them out of their "work place" (Lost Canyon) and entering in to their kids lives as leaders and friends! (John's wife Miriam is also leading this week too!)
- The Kingdom was impacted again - over 70 kids met the Lord this week!! There were over 100 kids on the "Believer Walk" on Day 7. So powerful and encouraging!!

And now for the coveted prayer requests!
** Sickness is taking over this house - it is no fun. Eric is now sick with a 101 temp, Marni is down, Karen is in bed all day, Jordan and Martin have been feeling awful for days...I could go on and on. But please please please pray for the sickness to leave this house NOW. We have kids who are sick also - please pray for Harrison and Ben Byard, as they are battling something too.
** A few work crew kids have left camp this week - some to sickness, some to 'family issues'. Please pray for the work crew, that they are function with a few people missing, and that no one else gets sick or has to take any time off.
** Please pray for energy as a whole. This week is large, and we need to have 100% energy the entire week just to keep up with them!
** Please pray for the following areas of kids here : Chandler, AZ, Lakewood, TX, Williams, AZ, and the Colorado crew: Bello Valley, Metro Urban Denver, Central Denver, Parker, West Douglas County, and Montrose. Pray that the Lord would meet each and every camper exactly where they are at and that He would move in a HUGE way.

OK that is all for now! The kids are currently in "Cabin Unity Games" - always a sight to see. There is on cabin who painted their entire bodies GREEN. I bet you can guess what their name is!

Until next time, may the Lord bless all of you too! We love you and are so thankful for your prayers.

Week 2 update! Bring it!

2009-06-03T12:57:00.003-07:00

Good afternoon friends! I hope this blog finds you well. A little insight to the beginning of Week 2 and the end of Week 1....enjoy!

- This week is significantly smaller - 260 compared to 390. There are kids here from Boulder and Delta CO, New Mexico, and more AZ people. But the most exciting group of all (not that we really compare) is the Capernaum group from Phoenix. There are 12 kids and 8 leaders, and so far, they have been so amazing to be around.
- The weather has been holding up "OK", but we are desiring a little warmer sun and less thunderstorms!! We have had some rides cancelled, and some rain storms, which is not typical for this time of year. But overall, it has been good - today is sunny and around 70!
- As for last week, it finished up great! Not that numbers matter, but eternity was impacted - about 140 kids gave their lives to Christ!!! The "New Believer" walk was awesome - we handed out 141 Bibles to kids who gave over their lives to God, and Say So on Day 7 was tearful, joyful, and celebratory all at the same time! It is at that exact instant of celebration that we all look around at each other as if to say - THIS IS WHY I DO THIS. Needless to say, we are looking forward to EVERY Day 7. Clearly the best day of the week!
- On a personal note, my mom and step dad came to visit for 2 days. It was great seeing them!
- We gained 2 new families (5 more kids) this last weekend, and it has been great getting to know the Byard kids and the Scofield kids! Not mention Jen and Marni as well!

Random highlights from the last few days
- John Byard almost impaling himself during a "safety skit". Luckily only his pants suffered any damage.
- Charlie Scofield riding every tractor at camp - even got to drive one!
- Mark Wade forgetting to bring his guitar for the "Say So" song - and doing it a Capella with AJ. It actually was an amazing moment. Sometimes the Lord works in funny ways!
- Ronnie from Capernaum PHX hugging every person he comes in contact with. He squeezes hard!
- Neal got the Coke bottle open on the first try this week!
- An entire cabin of boys this week shaving Mohawks in their head. Hilarious!
- Troy and Alex chasing down 2 cabins on Night 6 last week trying to break into the kitchen.
- Day 1 welcome is always a hit - especially when you have a mountain biker riding off of a jump and into the lake!
- Everett Hess has now passed out asleep at the lunch table twice - face down, arms out, drooling, Cheerios stuck to his face....an unbelievable sight!
- Assignment team vs camper basketball game - we are 2-1 so far, next games coming up tomorrow....Team MVP last week was John Caldwell. Who will step it up this week???

Now for some praise reports and prayer requests...
** HEALTH HEALTH HEALTH. Neal is getting sick, Debbie is currently sick, Ben Byard has been a little under the weather, Ashley has felt some sore throat, Sco has been tired for 2 days...we need your prayers big time in this area! Please pray for FAST healing, and for disease to stay away from this team.
** Week 2 can tend to be an energy struggle. Pray for sustained energy and power from the Lord. We need it!
** Praise God for no major injuries. There was one ambulance visit last week - but turned out to be nothing major at all. Please praise God for this, and pray that He keep safety at the helm here at camp!
** There is a leader here with her 2 month old baby, and her mother taking care of the baby. They are in their own cabin! Pray that the mom - Ashley - can get good time with both her baby and her YL kids at camp. Tough balancing act!
** We gained 5 work crew kids this week - they were campers last week. Pray that they transition into their work roles, and that they know why they are here! "Not to be served, but to serve..."
** Continued prayer for Eric as he shares Christ with hundreds of campers. Pray for clarity, wisdom, and communication.

That's all from Lost Canyon! I'll try to send another by week's end. Until then, let me know if you have any nudges from the Holy Spirit or anything you need to communicate to our assigned team! Oh, and packages are ALWAYS welcome. :-)

Camp update from Lost Canyon, AZ

2009-05-31T12:54:00.004-07:00

Fellow blogees! Not sure if that is a word...anyway...here is the prayer email I sent out to about 100 people. You may find it interesting - you may find it boring. You may not even care! But most of it pertains to what is going on at camp, our familes, etc. But as I'm gone (until June 21), I'll probably post what's happening at camp on the blog. So enjoy!
____________________________________________

Wow, what a week it has been so far! I will do my best to not only update you on some highlights from the week, but also ask for specific prayer requests. So off we go!

- There are 383 campers and leaders here this week - all from New Mexico or Arizona. It is an interesting mix of kids. There are some tough kids who put on a huge front, and some kids who are just going through some brutal stuff at home. I feel like we have communicated well as an assigned team with a lot of campers, so that is great.
- Eric has been giving great club talks, and been laying a very clear picture of who Christ is. Last night was the "15 minutes of quiet", and I feel like it was extremely powerful. It feels like the Holy Spirit is really moving here at Lost Canyon!
- No major injuries - praise the Lord and cross keep crossing your fingers!
- Our assigned team has really been coming together this week. Week 1's are always tough - fine tuning the schedule, adjusting to living together, the program walk-ons, the Opera, every little detail! But our meetings have been VERY productive and we can't wait to keep improving ourselves so we can better relay Christ to these campers. Please pray for the little details of running a camp!

Random highlights from this week:
- Blob contest was amazing - the winning blob consisted of a 1 1/2 back flips, landing perfectly!
- Listening to Malcolm Hess say "Horton Hears a Who"- he is a 2 year old kid from one of our families
- Catching 2 boys cabins streaking through the night to the girls cabins...always fun!
- Chasing a skunk off the property
- Chasing down a cabin who broke into the kitchen on night 6...trying to steal liters of Pepsi, bananas, etc. A very fun chase!
- John Byard wearing a caveman outfit multiple times throughout the week. Absolutely hilarious.
- Mattress races at club - always a great game
- Neal Eckerlin attempting to open a coke bottle for 4 minutes during a skit on entertainment night...the end result being a girl opening it for him. Sorry Neal!
- Chicken nuggets almost every night at the AT house. SO good!
- A work crew girl walked in on me going to the bathroom...yes, she saw everything. Ouch.

Here are some prayers requests around the property, and specifically with our AT:
** 2 families are arriving today and tomorrow - the Byards and the Scofields. Pray for safe travel and a smooth transition into "camp life".
** Continue to pray for Eric - that he portrays a very clear picture of who God is, who Jesus is, how He can change campers lives!
** Please pray for sustained energy. Week 1 is always tough - we all want to GO GO GO! But there are some really tired bodies here - and we need some spiritual food and energy!
** One camper (Kyle) has been sober for 5 days - since Day 1 of this week. This is the longest he has been sober in 2 years. He accepted Christ last night during cabin time. Please pray for Kyle as he goes back to a horrible situation in his hometown, and that he can start fighting the good fight!
________________________________________
If you have any thoughts or questions or anything fellow blogs, let me know! Enjoy you week! We get new kids today...around 270 or so. Should be another great week at YL camp!

Let me introduce to you...

2009-05-19T07:36:00.003-07:00

Good morning friends. I would like for you to meet someone at my work. For privacy's sake, I will not give you her real name. But it starts with a D, and rhymes with Fonna. She was born in Alabama and went to school in Mississippi (where she "was the only white kid in that school". She has a big country accent and is hilarious. Laugh out loud hilarious. So let me lay out the scenario for you. I work in a cubicle - 3 sides of boredom, and one side open to get in and out. Next door to me is my friend "Cloe". Wink wink. Same set up for her. So clearly we cannot see each other...just hear each other talking on the phone and typing and whatnot. Here is our correspondence from yesterday. (you have to read this in a Southern/Country accent)

- sssiiiiigggghhhhhh.........."I need me some JeeesUs" I hear from next door.
- Did you just say you need you some Jesus Cloe?
- Yeah. I've been out of church for like 2 months now and I can feel it.
- What do you mean you can feel it? What does that mean? (type type type type)
- Well, its like i'm a deer out in the wilderness runnin around. like lyin in a ditch or sumthin. Plus my kids are gettin sick. (pause) I just need me some JeeesUS man.
- Why haven't you been going to church? What caused the stop?
- Well the church made a dress code, and my girls refuse to wear dresses. They say they ain't goin to church dressed like that.
- What kind of church is this? Who set the dress code??
- It's a baptist church...the elders set it. or should i say the "menfolk".
- Hmm. Well have you looked for another church?
- Yeah, a little bit. i just need me some jesus, tho. even my kids say so. they bin sayin, 'Momma, whats wrong? You need to gitchasome JeeesUs?' and i say yeah.
- (type type type)What are you going to do about it?
- I guess I'm gonna find me a good church and get back into. I just need some JeesUS.
- Me too, Cloe. Me too.

Don't we all just to gitchasome Jesus?

Here are some more Cloe comments from cube-land.
- My husband got kicked out of his county's schools for life when he was a keeeiid.....want to know why? (sure). he hit the principal in the head. (ooooo, that'll do it). with a chair.

- I ain't givin up food. I don't drink, smoke, do drugs, nuthin like that. At least let me keep my food. I don't care if I have a heart attack I ain't goin on no diet.
Amen Sister!

- I embarassed my daughter today at the bus stop. (really, how?) She was runnin her mouth and I told her in front of the bus that she'd look awful funny with a busted lip from her momma.

You get the point. She talks, I laugh. All day. It is awesome. Sometimes the office ladies just ask her to tells stories and we all sit around and howl. Everyone needs someone like this to brighten up their day!

What about you? Got any funny stories as of late?

Other news of interest:
- Ashley and I leave for YL camp on Friday for a month - can't wait!
- New Mat Kearney CD is out today...go buy it, it is amazing.
- Wedding details are materializing...........but you'll have to find those out later! It will be awesome!
- Because I know you are all dying for more Taffy pictures, I'll put some up tonight or tomorrow. Keep checking back!

Have a great Tuesday. And go gitchyasome Jesus!

You know you're a redneck if....

2009-05-12T12:19:00.000-07:00

NEED I SAY MORE?

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

2009-05-08T22:12:00.004-07:00

I have always wanted to say that my website is "Under Construction".........but it really isn't. I am just crafting my next blog!!!

Oh by the way...I was THAT GUY again today!! TWICE!! I worked out...on the way home, wanted some wine for the night...stopped by "Sip" on the way home, only to find out that they were having this ultra-hoity-toity wine tasting (I was in workout clothes). I walked in....and you know, once you get so far, you can't really turn around...so there I was, USD shorts and USD shirt (sweaty), and flip flops, standing amongst the crowd of swanks...it was ugly, to say the least.

Not once, but TWICE did my iPhone fly off the treadmill today. I am dead serious friends. 2 TIMES. Woooooosh!!! Off the back of the treadmill. People laughing behind me. THAT GUY AGAIN.

I will update soon......for all of you readers who are dying to get the next blog (all 4 of you)...its on the way!!!!

Hey GUY

2009-05-04T07:47:00.003-07:00

If I say the term, "That guy", I'm sure you know what I'm talking about. You know, that guy. You never want to be that guy, and generally make fun of that guy. Well, I was that guy. Most of this happened over the last week, and I thought I'd give you some insight to my worst series of accidents of being "that guy".

- I fell asleep on the plane this weekend with my tray down in front of me. Had a full glass of water. Jolted myself awake, hitting the tray upwards and spilling the water all over myself and the 70 year old next to me. THAT GUY.

- Proceeded to choke on what was left of the water and cough for 10 minutes uncontrollably. CHOKING GUY.

- Got out of my car last week and dropped everything I had in my hands - coffee, what I was about to ship at the UPS store, some change, sunglasses, and a book. Everyone driving by just stared......PARKING LOT GUY.

- Plane delayed, short connection, zero time. Running thru the Denver Airport with 2 bags and sweating, only to miss my plane by 5 minutes. Breathing hard, yelling at the person at the check stand. AIRPORT GUY.

- At the Yardhouse in Palm Springs, Matt pretends to slap the waitress in the you-know-what, causing her to tell management, causing a scene. THOSE GUYS.

- While working out, accidentally pulled the "STOP" ripcord on the tredmill, causing me to trip and then yank my iPhone out of the holder thingy. It then landed on the tredmill and shot about 10 feet backwards, leaving me standing there looking around in amazement. THAT GUY.

Have you ever been that guy? Got any stories of that guy? Please, share! And stop making fun of me!

Come one, come all!

2009-04-28T07:16:00.004-07:00

Bring your lawn chair. Bring your dog. Bring a bottle of wine. Bring whatever you want. We're just going to get together and listen to music and hang out. Why don't more things happen like that? Ashley, her friend Emily and I went to this place called Matilda's the other day - with very low expectations, at least for me. From the front, it looks like a dump. It's basically a store that sells a variety of crap - you know, old furniture that has been painted over like 10 times, weird metal objects, stuff like that. But we walked around back (it was dark) and there was a totally different scene and feel going on.

The first thing we saw was a huge old barn with an enormous American flag painted on it. Very cool. To the left was another old country house - not lived in - with the front porch set up as a stage. It had lighting, sound systems, you name it. To the right was an open area with about 200 people. They had brought blankets, fold out tables, chairs, dogs, food, beer, wine, frisbees, kids...it was awesome! For about an hour and a half, a blugrass group played. We sat there and half listened and half talked, and loved it. It sure didn't feel like we were in Alpharetta, GA. It felt more like a Boone or Bend event, and Ashley and I both liked that.

Can't there be more events like this? A community of gatherers with really nothing in common other than wanting to get out of the house and do something, anything for a night. Wanting to do something different and cool. Wanting to feel like a local. Or wanting to feel like you are not local at all, in our case. It sure was a lot better than going to a "formal" concert - paying $40 to get in, and spending more $$ on decent food. We spend $10 to get in, and brought whatever we wanted. We loved it.

In case you were wondering, here are some more random events and updates:
- Danny turned 50. We had a great celebration of life, because he thinks that once you turn 50 you are going to die. We told him otherwise.
- Taffy and Spanky (the dogs) continue to be the cutest in the world. See pics below.
- Ashley and I had a great time in Arizona for our Young Life training...can't wait to be there for a month!
- My brother is starting his pilgrimege to Oregon...he found a place to live and a job! A productive week, to say the least.
- Work is going good - I am now managing our MySpace page...should I make a shameless plug? Ok. www.myspace.com/ironhorseauto
- I have pandora on and Don't Stop Believin just came on...its going to be a good day!
- Wedding plans are coming along...March 2010 is looking like the wedding month. Probably the 20th for the actual date, although don't hold us to that just yet!

Until next time, do something local. Go have fun. Summer is almost here!

I don't know what to write about.

2009-04-17T07:15:00.009-07:00

I know I've been absent for a while...for this I greatly apologize to all of my readers (well, all 6 of you). But I just had to linger on the Masters post. I mean, other than proposing to Ashley, this was the greatest day of my life! So it deserved a week or so atop of the blog page! Another reason for not writing is that nothing cool has happened lately. Or funny. Maybe I'll just make something up? Have you ever played the game "2 truths and a lie"? Well we are going to play it right now. I am going to write a series of 2 truths and a lie. Tell me which ones are which! Ready?? Go!

1) I have skiied the Swiss Alps. I have bungee jumped in Zambia. I have rafted the most dangerous river in the world, the Zambezi river.

2) I Facebook. I Myspace. I Twitter.

3) I have lived in 3 different time zones. I have never owned a car. I (personally) have never owned a pet.

4) I play the piano. I play the guitar. I play the violin.

5) I was a ski bum in Bend. I was an assistant golf pro in Bend. I was a white water raft guide in Bend.

6) In golf, I have shot a 69. I have shot a 68. I have shot a 67.

7) I love Chinese food. I love Thai food. I love Japanese food.

8) My favorite color is blue. My favorite number is 1. My favorite day is Tuesday.

9) I ski. I snowmobile. I snowboard.

10) I hate bees. I hate beavers. I hate beagles.

11) I wish I could waterski on 1 ski. I wish I could skateboard. I wish I could fly.

12) I loved elementary school. I loved middle school. I loved high school.

13) Ashley has 2 dogs. Ashley has 2 aunts that aren't really aunts. Ashley has 2 sisters.

14) If I had a gun to my head: I would root for the Beavers. I would root for the Huskies. I would root for the Lakers.

15) If I could go anywhere in the world: I would go to Cuba. I would to China. I would go to Chile.

That's about all I can think of right now. I'd love to hear some guesses! Bonus prize for the person who gets them ALL correct!!

Good luck, and don't forget: always tell the truth!

Dreams really do come true....

2009-04-09T07:05:00.004-07:00

I knew one day I would go. I knew one day I would see the green grass, and the azaleas, and eat a pimento and cheese sandwich. I knew I would roam the cathedral of golf and hear the roars that every talks about. I knew I would get to experience a golf tournament that not many others get to, especially from my side of the US. I knew one day I would go to The Masters. Yesterday was that day.

Danny and I left Atlanta at 5:00am for Augusta - about a 2 and a half hour drive. We were painfully tired, but stricken with huge anticipation as we drove in the darkness. About 7:15 or so the sun came up, and so did our energy. We were close. We were also hungry!

We pulled into the parking lot (free parking for anyone who wants it at The Masters) at 8:15 or so, and had to walk to find my ticket broker who had our coveted tickets. Retail price on the ticket was $41.00. We did not pay $41.00. I'll leave that one for your mind to wander. Anyway, after walking about 2 miles to find this place, we finally made it to the front gate. After getting caught trying to sneak my cell phone in (nice one, moron), I had to check it at a checkstand and get back in line. It didn't take long, and WE WERE IN.

The very first thing you notice is all of the green grass. It is the greenest and most well maintained grass you'll ever see. And there is a distinct difference between "inside the ropes" and outside. The grass really is greener on the other side!! Anyway, we didn't really know what to do other than be in awe and start taking pictures. We took pictures of anything - signs, people, players, food, flowers, the grass, ourselves, beer, whatever. When the day was over we ended up with 419 pictures. Danny said "We'll probably end up with 3 good ones". I doubt it!

There a few places we knew we needed to go: Amen Corner (the 3 most famous holes in golf), holes 16 and 18, the par 3 course, and see the historical sights like the clubhouse, the Crow's Nest, Butler Cabin, and getting a pimento and cheese sandwich. Our first mission? Get food. We were hungry! We figured we'd just get a little something to snack on and get going. I got a sausage biscuit and a tuna sandwich, for a grand total of $3.00. Danny got 2 egg sandwiches and a water for $4.00. The prices are unreal! Beer? $2.75. ALL sandwiches? $1.50. Coke, water? $1.00. Needless to say we ate a LOT. And had a few beers along the way.

We went to check out Amen Corner after walking a bit of the front 9. On our way down there we ran in to Tiger on hole #4. Danny got some good shots of him! We just wanted to see him hit one shot, to say that we did, and mission accomplished. He hit a 5 wood on a par 3 to about 20 feet. Moving on! We walked the beautiful hills down to Amen Corner (holes 11,12,13) and just watched the players practice and hit some shots. It was pretty amazing. There is no noise there. All you can hear is the wind and the birds and an occaisional private jet overhead. It was peaceful and quiet and a great place to watch golf. And VERY picturesque.

We had no real agenda, which was nice. It was a practice day so it was extremely casual. The pros were talking to fans, hitting all sorts of shots, and not worried about too much. Neither were we. We wandered around, saw all of the holes, saw the practice facilities (it was amazing watching Phil Mickelson practice his short game), watched the guys skip balls across the pond on #16 (big Masters tradition), walked up #18 like we were champions, and just took it all in. In the afternoon they had the famous Par 3 Contest. The par 3 course is ridiculously cool. We stood by the 1st green - about 5 feet from it - and watched probably 10 groups come thru. We got to see some of the biggest names in golf history - Palmer, Nicklaus, Player, Mickelson, Norman. We were so close it was very cool.

When it was all said and done, we left around 4:30 exhausted. I bet we walked 5-7 miles up and down hills all day, but it was worth it. It was worth seeing the most coveted place in all of golf. The hardest ticket to get in all of sports, they say. And we were there. Here are some interesting stats:
- Sandwiches consumed by Danny and Alex: 7
- Pictures taken: 419
- Holes in 1 on the par 3 course (we heard the roars, they were LOUD): 3
- Number of souvenier cups I took home: 5
- Number of Masters shirts I bought (you can ONLY get them at the Masters): 7
- Number of times we said "this is so cool": 217

Enjoy the day folks. Watching The Masters on TV will never be the same for me. Pictures will be up soon, so check back!

Now, on the first tee...

IT'S ABOUT TIME!

2009-03-30T11:04:00.004-07:00

If you have ever had to keep the biggest secret in world for more than 3 weeks from the person you love, than you will know exactly that I am talking about. It is damn near impossible. You dance around the issue, you lie about the weekend plans, and you just want to shout out "IF YOU ONLY KNEW!!" I knew I would propose, I knew how I would propose and I knew exactly when. Ashley? NO CLUE. A constant question over the last few weeks: What are you waiting on? Why haven’t you proposed yet? Why why why when when when??? Inside my head? I’M WAITING ON THE RING PLEASE STOP ASKING!!! If you only knew...

What she didn’t know turned out to be the best night of our lives. It was also one of the most nerve wracking moments I’ve ever experienced. And I’ve been in some dicey situations – sneaking around my high school at midnight waiting to do a prank with the security officers roaming the halls, hitting the 1st tee shot in many big golf tournaments, skydiving, bungee jumping – nothing compared to this. Nothing.

The venue? First United Methodist Church (thanks to Patti O’Dea’s negotiating skills!!). The scene? 100% candlelight, 6 dozen roses, grand piano (thanks to my brother and wife Chris for setting up!!). The ask? A song that I wrote for Ashley. Music and lyrics, the whole shebang. She claims that she had no idea what was going on until I actually started playing, which I supposed was the intended effect. She thought we were there for a prayer vigil (believable?) with my small group. All I know is that I was incredibly nervous to sing for her, nervous that my voice would crack like a 6th grader going thru puberty, nervous that I would cry like a little baby and not be able to finish...but I was not nervous about the answer. When the song was done, she was a wreck (in a great way), I was shaking so bad the piano was wiggling, but I eventually got down on my knee and went for it. I have no idea what I actually said but I remember the response. Pretty sure you know what she said too. I do know that an incredible sense of peace came over me when we were just standing there, a newly engaged couple, talking and hugging. It was like nothing I have ever felt before, honestly.

After the 3 greatest letters I’ve heard, we had some champagne and went to dinner with “my brother and Chris and your parents”. You really think that’s all I had planned? Yeah, right. Fat chance. We showed up to The Union to have 40 of her closest friends and family yelling and screaming congratulations! It was an amazing scene. Once I get some pictures I’ll make sure to post them. But Ashley’s reaction was PRICELESS. It was unreal. She really had no idea that they were there (why would she?) and it really hit both of us the love we felt. This road has been long for us – over 4 years of dating, and all across the freaking United States of America – so for it to come to this is just the best feeling I have experienced. And we felt that from the crowd of friends too. I felt the years, I felt the distance, I felt the relief, but I felt calm and I felt loved. It was almost indescribable. But it was amazing.

We spent the rest of the night there and back at her house talking and celebrating and laughing and hugging and reacting and recalling the night. It couldn’t have been better one bit. We are so excited for what is next. Not sure of a wedding date yet, but you know what? We are going to enjoy being ENGAGED for a few days!

As one great mind once said, Engagement means Enragement! We’ll do our best to avoid that.

Bring on the next great Mrs. Casebeer!

Someone's got a case of the Mondays....

2009-03-23T08:21:00.004-07:00

Some sights and sounds and thoughts from the last day or two....

Saw a guy driving with no shirt on this morning....and drinking coffee.

Saw a guy drop a weight on his foot at the gym (which coincidentally almost made me do the same thing).

Sang my lungs out last night to Meat Loaf (a long standing O'Dea tradition...you'll see it in action one day...verry funny slash impressive.)

Really sick of Jason Mraz "No More"...or whatever it is called...you know..."So I....won't....hessszz...iii....tate.....no.....more...nooooooo more"...etc etc. Enough already!

My bracket is holding up alright after a huge Wake Forest upset...13/16 teams left.

Church was "off the chains" yesterday...to quote Alex Whitaker. Please see : Eddie Kirkland to realize why. He was the musician. And he was amazing.

Learned how to shag last night. (Get your mind out of the gutter). A Southern dance. Have you heard of it? I never have. I did realize that I am horrible at it, but I did get a good laugh watching Ashley learn! I'm sure she got the same laugh at me.....

My book, "The Long Run", is picking up speed (ba doom, ching!). It's about this group of orphans at an orphange in Newfoundland who get into all sorts of trouble. It is pretty good!

Just heard this lady talk about her husband, who is a police officer, and how he had to taze someone this weekend. Cool!

Layed by the pool yesterday...70 degrees...in March...tanning...I love global warming!

Played tennis on Friday, and woke up the following morning to a sore right leg and right arm. Does that mean that I hit too many forehands?

Ashley/My current favorite shows: Celebrity Apprentice (hilarious/pathetic), Dancing with the Stars (never ever ever thought I would like this show), Biggest Loser (biggest fan).

Wertz coming to town on Saturday....always fun! We are also going to see Chick Corea play on Sunday, and I can't wait. A music-filled weekend!

If you haven't had a fried pickle in your life, please go to the Fickle Pickle in Roswell, GA. THEY ARE AMAZING.

That's about all. This Monday sucks. I am bored. So far today I have: blogged. And texted a friend from my small group. That's about it. Hopefully next Monday will be better!

What's the deal with Starbucks, anyway?

2009-03-20T07:02:00.002-07:00

So I am at the gym this morning, and normally I like to get in the steamer after my workout. The steamer feels like a manly place to be...you know, nothing but a towel on, sweating like crazy, feels manly for some reason. So this morning I steamed. I am in there sweating like a banshee when this guy walks in. He is sort of tall, pretty buff, and is carrying a Venti Starbucks cup. Yes, you heard me. In the steamer, this idiot is drinking Starbucks. I sneak a peek - at his CUP - and see the following in big bold letters: NFVL. In the language of Starbucks that means Non Fat Vanilla Latte. In the steamer. Are you kidding me? I can't think of one thing in the world that I would want LESS in a 130 degree steam room than a NFVL. I mean seriously. Then I watched him carry it in to the SHOWER! Come on people!

But that did get me thinking about Starbucks (SBUX on Nasdaq). And how many other places that I would rather go for coffee than Starbucks. And yet...that stupid green emblem keeps me coming back. Why? Maybe because you can find one on every corner. There is a street in downtown Salem that literally has 2 Starbucks in a 1 block span. There are 3 businesses in between them, and yet they both thrive!! However, I will give you a list of my favorite coffee spots, for various reasons: The Back Porch (Bend, OR), Dunkin' Doughnuts (for their coffee!!), Thump (http://thumpcoffee.com/), Espresso News (Best coffee in Boone, NC - http://www.espressonews.com/), Blue Pepper (Salem, OR - http://bpepper1002.qwestoffice.net/), and Sister Coffee Company (Sisters, OR - http://www.sisterscoffee.com/). If you ever get the chance, go to them all. Not in one day, just sometime in your life.

I like coffee a lot - not addicted by any means, I could quit cold turkey if my life depended on it - just like it a lot. I like the aroma. I (secretly) like coffee breath.....that is gross, but I had to say it. I like the way Sco used to smell because he always had a mocha in his hands. But what I really like is to have it steam and make things smell like it. Ashley likes to think this is the only reason that I get coffee - to make my car smell like coffee, or just so I can sit there and smell it and occasionally take a sip. I don't think I have really ever finished an entire cup, in fact.

But I will tell you one thing. There really is nothing better than sitting in a coffee shop on a cold, rainy (or snowy) day talking with someone. It is comforting. It is normal. It is good. So if you want to help the economy and have a good time - grab a friend, go find a local joint (not Starbucks!), and have a conversation!

Come to think of it, I'm a hypocrite. I had Starbucks yesterday. So shoot me, alright?

We are all the same

2009-03-13T07:01:00.003-07:00

We're kings, we're free, we're weak, we're empty

We're strong, we fail, we trust and deceive, we doubt and we believe

We are, We are, We are, All the same. We are, we are, we are all the same.

We're wrong, we're fools, we're wise, we're beautiful

We're fake, we hate, we're cruel and we're kind, we give up and some of us find

We all look for love and some of us look to above

And no matter what one of us may believe

We're all searching for a love that never leaves

We are We are We are all the same

But we all have different eyes...And we see through different lives

We're saved, we're damned, we hope, we can understand

We're loved, we kill, we give and we need we break down and some of us achieve

We all look for love it never changes...God loves us all.

And no matter what one of us may believe

We're all searching for a love that never leaves.

We are We are We are all the same.
__________________
I didn't write this. I wish I did, because it is all true. We really are all searching for one thing - a love that will never leave us. We look in strange places, look all over our lives for it, but typically it (He) is right in front of us. We chase love around by buying things, stressing about things, always wanting the next best person or thing, but really, we are all just the same. We want to be loved! My friend Sam Martin (http://www.sammartinmusic.com/) wrote this song and for some reason I have been listening to it lately. You should check it out too - it's a free listen on his website. It has a music video that is amazing too!

Let's see, what else can I ramble on about this morning? How about an update on some unfinished business?
- I finally finished Abraham. Not looking back.
- Susan in my office, I have discovered, is married. But she tells at least 3 different people that she loves them and misses them...and they are not her kids, because she has none. This confuses me. To be continued.....
- Ashley and I have a fun-filled weekend coming up...Sister Hazel (where did THEY go??) concert tomorrow night, and then we get to watch the Portland TrailBlazers destroy, annihilate, and embarrass the Atlanta Hawks.......from the front row. Thanks Chris Brickell for that hook up!
- Things at Casa Nana are great...she insists on doing my laundry, which is great, because my clothes have never been pressed or ironed in their life. She loves ironing. She irons my tee-shirts. And I'm pretty sure she gets the socks too. I have never seen so many perfect creases in my life. Plus she makes a MEAN chicken salad! But if you want to be truly humbled in life, have your girlfriend's grandmother clean your dirty underwear. She said, and I quote: "Well at least I know what to get you for your birthday".....wink.

Ouch.

Have a great weekend!

Secrets secrets Secreast?

2009-03-09T07:14:00.004-07:00

I secretly want to be a professional photographer. I mean, who wouldn't want to be able to wake up every morning and say, "Well, I need to go outside and work." "Well, I need to go look at those moutains". "Well, I need to go spend some quality time in nature". I guess golfers do that too........

Here are some great photographers: Jeremy Cowart (www.jeremycowart.com/), Josh Cordell (http://www.joshcordell.com/), Bob Sutton (http://www.bobsuttonphotography.com/).

I secretly want to be a professional golfer. Honestly, who wouldn't want to play a great game in the sun (most days) every day? I guess the stress can mount as the stakes get higher, but when you are clutch it really doesn't matter.

I secretly want to be a professional blogger. This actually is not a secret. If you know anyone who wants a blogger on their staff, please have them email me. Alexcasebeer@gmail.com. I'm serious.

I secretly drank too much water/coffee this morning and have to pee every 28 minutes. Seriously it is so annoying. And sort of embarssing. What's more embarssing is the coffee that I spilled on my pants this morning in the car. So not only do I have to pee all the time but it looks like I pee all the time on myself!

I secretly want to be really fit and in shape and have some rockin' abs. This is vain and pathetic. I worked out this morning. I almost pooped my pants and almost threw up. Did I work out too hard? Or am I just a really big wuss? Time will tell.

I secretly want to be a professional motivational speaker. I look up to people who can speak well. Sco, Herb, Barack, Ty Saltzgiver, Andy Stanley, Miles McPherson, Scott Casebeer. If only we could all just do that for a living.

I secretly want to be a writer. Although I'm not sure that I would handle the solidarity well...or the writer's block...or the sometimes long, lonely days...or the rejection or writing a crap book...so maybe I don't want to be a writer. Back to blogging!

I secretly want to know if God has this huge master plan for us already planned out...or He is making it up as we go along. I'm not so secretly perfectly ok with either option. He's in control, I'm not. I'm just an idiot trying to do what He wants.

I secretly want to be on Young Life staff. This has been available to me at times, but for some reason I did not feel the pull from God to do this as a full time job. I wonder why?

I secretly hate Facebook. You know you do too.

I secretly love realty TV. Ok, this is not a secret at all. Just an admission. You know show made me laugh this reality season? True Beauty. Man, it was horrible. But boy was it funny!

I think I have revealed most of my secrets. You got any good ones? I have few more, but can't reveal them just yet...

Ok, one more. I secretly think vulnerability is a very good thing and more people should be more vulnerable.

Secreast (Casebeer) out!

What in the world?

2009-03-03T06:57:00.002-08:00

What in the world is God's call in our lives? How do we figure that out? Do we sit around and wait for a loud gong or something? Do we wait for the infamous lightning bolt that God will send down to get our attention? Do we just trust that God is in control? Or do we sit idly and wait. And wait. And wait some more.

I think that is the most confusing question for a follower of Christ. It says all over the New Testament to listen to the voice of God...or to follow His will for us. It is reality. It is something we have to be willing to trust and to buy in to. But it may be something we do not want or think is right for us. Oftentimes we come to the inevitable fork in the road (Yogi Berra says to "Pick it up!"). One way may be our way, the easy way. The other way may be hard. And confusing. And strange. But it also may be God's way - or His will. Have you experienced this? I have. I'm not saying that I am experiencing it right now, but really just encouraging us all to keep listening.

So how do we listen? How do we "hear God's voice"? I think a lot of it starts by reading. I'm not talking about James Patterson here, although I am guilty of picking up his books when I don't want to be challenged in my life. I am talking about diving into scripture and pulling from it. Applying something - anything - to our lives. Ashley and I have been reading through Acts lately, and have both been loving it. It's one of those books in the NT that I just gloss over. I go immediately to the General Electric Power Company (Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians) or to the Gospels when I read. Never Acts. But I wish we read it and talked about it everyday. It is powerful and amazing. The Disciples had SO MUCH faith in God. They would go into the hardest, darkest places and be BOLD. Because they knew, from reading scripture and studying it, that God would honor their faith in Him. God promised them all power and authority in His name to heal and preach, and they believed it. They were so secure in that they were willing to die for it. And 11 of the 12 did. Paul was thrown in jail (after being stoned and tortured) and stayed there waiting for trial for things he didn't do for 2 years. And just before getting to trial, his captors lead him about 4 miles away from jail and cut his head off. But reading through his letters to the Philippians and Ephesians he had JOY in jail! And on top of that, he converted Roman guards from the cell! Talk about faith and boldness. Talk about following God's call for his life. He listened...and trusted.

I also think that "listening to God's will" involves prayer and counsel. I think it is a very good thing to have someone to talk to about this complex. For me, it is usually an older man - Sco, Fox, Herb, etc. They always seem to help me flesh out my thoughts and give me a plan to act. By no means do they interpret God's call for me, because they have no idea. But they listen to what I think God is telling me or calling me to or what my "gut" says and help me through it.

I don't even know why I am writing about this. I'm not an expert. Far from it, in fact. But I know that God has called us to something. And I willing to find out what it is.

PS. The Hawks game was great...Phillips Arena is sweet! The Thrashers game didn't work out...communication breakdown! Oh well. And things at the office are pretty mellow, although there was a massive upheaval this morning surrounding the outcome of "The Bachelor" last night....Jason Meznik is an idiot and a sleazebag!

Boredom leads to productivity! Not!

2009-02-27T06:42:00.003-08:00

So far today I have done the following: printed out fax cover sheets (actually, I had someone print them out for me), checked every bank account/credit card/phone account that I have to make sure no one is stealing from me, asked a lady if she had received a fax for me (wanted to sound important), filled out a fake dealer packet for my boss (she actually wanted this done), and am now starting to blog. I wonder what the next 6 hours will bring?

No update on Susan, sorry. She was yelling at someone this morning, so something's brewing!

Ok check this out. Tomorrow night, Atlanta Thrashers, GLASS SEATS. Two of those three statements probably don't make any sense to you. Thrashers = hockey team. Glass seats = front row on the ice. I am so pumepd. The last time I went to a hockey game was in Portland with Steve Copenhaver in the 3rd grade. We sat so high that - I kid you not - his nose started bleeding and we had to leave. So I am excited to actually be able to see something, see some fights, pound the glass after too many beers and try to pick a fight with a hockey player thru the glass. The other reason that I am pumped? Double date with Ashley's sister Jamie and her boyfriend! This is a first for us...they are home from Ole Miss for the weekend. Very exciting!

Tonight is more excitement - get to see the Atlanta Hawks play. My friend Jason (from my new small group) invited me to go with him to see the Heat paly the Hawks. I am excited to get to know him better and to go see some NBA! Always better in person than on TV.

Ok let's talk about something. Pick a topic................................thinking..................................private schools vs public schools. This topic was brought to you by: Ashley O'Dea, who is currently subbing in a private school. The topic is hers, the thoughts are mine, FYI. I am a public school boy, as most of you know. I would have never traded this experience for any other high school experience. But what about the private school experience? They, in my mind, are always regarded as better than public schools. They say things like 'smaller class sizes = more attention from the teachers'.....'better qualified teachers'.....'a system of rules or guidelines is a good thing'.....but let's analyze this. At SSHS, home of the Mighty Saxons, the classes weren't small, but they weren't big. I mean, honestly, how big can a high school class be?? It's not USC! And as for the attention issue....I can think of two or three of my teachers that gave me their home or cell phone numbers in case I needed anything...and even went to a Blazer game with my teacher-turned-friend John Turman! In fact we have a beer at every Civil War game. So I don't buy the attention deal, it just depends on the teacher. As for the "better qualified" thing...I don't buy it either. I know people around here who have been teaching for 1 year and got hired at a private school. It is a toss up of "qualifiations"...some are very experienced, some are barely out of a college classroom.

Verdict? Send your kids to public schools, save your money for their college education. Just my thoughts, though.

Ok I just made a phone call. See, I told you boredom leads to productivity.

Not!

He is arrested...and the official Grand Tour

2009-02-23T20:45:00.013-08:00

Do you recall my friend Susan? My fellow office worker? Well the dude that she talks to every 7 minutes was in custody today...I don't know how it went down, but I heard one phone call. You know which "one" I'm talking about. Will update you when I know more!

So I have survived (not really the right word) Week One at Nana's house. I say survive only because it's a new environment. It is not bad - at all. Let me take you on a tour.

The picture on the upper right (UR) is the office as you come upstairs in to my living quarters. My space contains: 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, this office, a sitting area the size of 2 bedrooms, and some storage. Needless to say, it's ample space.

The picture on the LR is my bed and is so big because that's what it is...too big to fit on the iPhone camera. I can lay at any angle possible and still have all 4 extremities touching bed. I can go total X style and be totally fine. The hall way on the UL is my bath room and my big A walk in closet. Could double for another bedroom if need be.

The decor, however.......sketchy. It's a mix of a antiques, the taste of a 67 year old, and collections of many years and many houses. However, it seems to come together in its own way. You should see it at Christmas time. Woah.

So as you can see, I'm doing fine. My days are screwy, for the most part. At the gym early 2 or 3 days a week, home late 7 nights a week. Nana and I don't get much alone time, which is good because she'd probably employ me in her jewelry making side business that she has going ($240 sold yesterday!). I'm sure I'd screw everything up that she makes.

Other than that, I'm still bored with "Abraham", my current book. Only 23 more pages. If I hadn't blogged tonight, I would have finished it. Dang it!

Ashley and I are enjoying our new gym membership (www.mylt.com). She made me do the "Strictly Strength" class tonight - kicked my ass (sorry for the language). But seriously. You think you're tough? Go to a SS class with a bunch of middle aged women and see who's the tough one. One hour of pure hell. But you know what? You feel good at the end.

**BREAKING NEWS!** My mom visited! She made the 3,000 mile trek last weekend, and her very first trip to Georgia! I'm guessing it won't be her last...but it was jam packed. We were tourists one day - a trip to the CNN headquarters (very cool), the Coca Cola tour (you get to taste 64 different Cokes from around the world...beware of Asia!!) and the Georgia Acquarium (World's Biggest...and I'm not just saying that it is huge...it actually is the biggest in the world). The GA is pretty unbelievable. They have Whale Sharks (we watched the feeding), Boluga Whales, everything you can imagine. We spent Friday night with Ashley's family, and Saturday touring around Alpahretta. Got to see Dave Barnes and Drew Holcomb on Saturday night which was a great show! Then we capped off the weekend by showing her the majestic North Point Community Church, one of the biggest in the nation (can you tell that everything is bigger here?). It was great having her come all this way to see Ashley and I and to see where she grew up, and to see our lives together here.

That's about all to report from here. I'll end this blog how my Dad ends every voicemail that he leaves me - with a weather report (ask me why. I have no idea).

Well, 45 degrees, pretty cloudy and really windy. Crappy. See ya later. Click.

The Perks, Phyllis, and a new routine

2009-02-17T10:15:00.004-08:00

Well friends, it has finally happened. They (my family, not including me) thought it would never happen. They deemed it unimaginable. They said, Yeah right, him?? They laughed. I'm sure you are dying to know what I am talking about: an office job*. It comes with an asterisk for a few reasons, and I'll get into that a bit later. But first let me introduce you to Synergy Acceptance Corp., my new home.

I started working here yesterday, as an extension with my current employer, which is what the * means. This is not a "new job", per say...just switching roles and workplace. I am helping Synergy out while I am living in Alpharetta, so it works great. They do loans, service and insurance contracts for a few auto dealerships in the greater Atlanta area. This is great for me for a few reasons - mainly learning another facet of the auto industry and expanding my already-limited knowledge. But another reason I perceived to be good was to work in an office atmosphere. Here's how it is going so far.

I showed up yesterday, met with my designated boss Natalie. I'll be primarily working with her in the marketing department. She showed me around, introduced me to 60 people who's names I will never remember, and got me a work space. The perks: computer, phone, office supplies. I felt cool. I'm not, but having never really worked in a office, these are cool things to me. While we were out meeting and greeting, some phantom person came and set everything up. New pens! My very own stapler! A fingertip moistener, which I used today! All bonuses.

So my workday is pretty typical...come in around 8:45 or so, check some emails, write some emails to the west coast that won't get read for another 3 hours, see what I can do to help (if nothing, log back in to my old work's database and do work for them) until I am given a project. Do the project. Try to check facebook only to realize it is a blocked website. Gchat with Ashley while reading materials for Synergy. Today's project is was reviewing and printing marketing materials and putting them in to a Dealer Packet that we will hand out to prospective clients. And reading Dealer Agreements. And blogging. Who knows what tomorrow's excitement will bring!

It is definitely interesting going from working from home on Friday (for the last year and a half) to working in an office 8:30 to 5:30. At least I get to get Dunkin Doughnuts coffee on the way to work! (the best coffee in the US). At least when I get off work I have something (someone) to look forward to seeing. At least I have someone to call during lunch other than a dealership. At least I have a job!

I will post some pictures later today or tonight of the new office...so check back! Until then, enjoy your workday, whether it is from home, at a high school, at an office, or none of the above.

Community and other sentimental things

2009-02-10T06:44:00.004-08:00

Community. What an amazing thing. I have realized over the past few years that everyone needs community in their life, and that became abundantly clear this past weekend. It is so important, but more importantly, it is fun and valuable.

What I realized was that it takes very little to have fun when you have great community. When your first reaction is to smile, or laugh, you've got a good one. When all it takes is a kickball to have fun, you've got a good one.

Kickball. When was the last time YOU played kickball? I bet just hearing that word reminds you of the 2nd grade getting hit in the face on a line drive, or catching one swiftly in the crotch, or tripping over first base (wait, maybe all of those were me?) or booting the coveted home run over Baker Elementary's back fence in to Mr. Adams yard. I bet everyone has good memores of kickball. Let me tell you one thing: It was fun in 2nd grade, and it is fun when you are 22 like me.
I played this epic game last weekend with the Boone crew in Raleigh, NC. We were all at a Young Life conference thing and when it was done, we realized that we had 3 hours of sun left. Harry's first thought? KICKBALL. Of course everyone said yes. Here are some memorable moments from our game.

- Erin P yelling HiYA!!! on every attempted kick, fair or foul.
- Blake doing a ballerina jump (arms out, legs spread) while rounding 1st base - and not realizing that he did it.
- Manny literally running over the smallest girl on the field, linebacker style.
- Elise accidentally catching a ball between her legs, no hands necessary.
- Not caring who won.

The point in telling you this was that I realized what a great community Ashley and I had in Boone. All we needed to have fun was a ball and grass. I love that. I miss that.

The other great community in my life (and many others) is Young Life. The Great Connector. Young Life Find a Wife. 6 degrees of seperation, or in YL's case, 2 (doesn't it seem like someone knows someone who knows someone who knows you wherever you go??). Everytime I am at a YL event I feel at home. Camp, club, Boone, Bend, whatever. I feel instantly loved, accepted, respected, welcome and valued. There is nothing like it.

Ashley and I's next goal? FIND COMMUNITY. Find Boone wherever we live. We are trying in Atlanta, but it is hard not knowing anyone. We are trying to get plugged in, but it is a slow process. We want community. We need it. But we are determined to find it.

Thanks Boone for being such a great example of what it truly means to have brothers and sisters in Christ, and for showing what a great community really is.

In other news, I'm moving in with Nana.

Should provide for some interesting blogs!

Thoughts on Normal

2009-02-03T18:44:00.002-08:00

Ok people. Maybe it's my luck. Maybe it's my timing. Maybe it's Alphertater. But I have been finding anything but normal people to live with. Craig has really been letting me down. For your enjoyment, here are my recent "interviews", if you will. (I have always wanted to say the following statement, it makes me feel very important). I have changed the names of the people mentioned to protect their privacy. Haha, there is was!! Anyway.

1) Steve. Advertising "new townhouse, furnished bedroom, private bathroom, free internet". Ashley and I go over there to check things out, meet the guy...my pocket statement in case I don't like it is "Hey, great, yeah I have told a few people that I will check their place out too, so I will definitely let you know, yeah, thanks". Steve opens the door and only has one eye. Instantly I am waiting for a moment in the conversation to whip out the pocket line. Sounds bad and horrible, I know. But I'm just being honest. That was my initial thought. The house didn't dissapoint - he did have an extra bedroom and bathroom. And free WiFi. What he failed to mention in his post was that his 18 year daughter may be coming by time to time to stay with him, and that this was HER room. Ah ha. "Hey, great, yeah, I have told a few people that I will check out their place too, so I will definitely be getting back to you, Steve". Goodbye.

2) Barbara. Advertisement: "Everything incl--10 min NPM 400-Lg rm-Priv bath-Ex fac". Looks like Chinese, I know. But it makes sense to us locals. Anyway, off I go, Ashley decided to stay home - don't blame her after one-eyed Willie. I meet Barb at the front gate (gated community, I'm upperclass now!!), and she proceeds to reach out the window of her 1986 Camry to open her own driverside door from the outside to get out.......rough start. I follow her back to the apartment (didn't advertise this), which is on the bottom floor. After getting thru the duct tape holding her door shut, I walked in to an odor that I couldn't quite put my finger on. Later I discovered that it was a mix of cigs and vodka I think. And cat pee. The room was as advertised.....however the "lg" part was not true...and the fact that I would be sharing a 300 sq foot apartment with a woman who talked to her cat like it was her fantasy made up friend Boingo. "Hey, great, yeah, I have told a few people that I will check out their place too, so I will definitely be getting back to you, Barbie". Adios!

3) Bill. Advertisement: "Corporate Relo's / Interns.Furnished room,Large house,No Smoke,Mo/Mo". Ok, sounds decent. I'm not corporate, nor an intern, but what the hey, it was close to Ashley's place. The room was decent.......minus the fact that none of the walls were finished, or the stairs, or the living room, or the kitchen, or the anything. Yes, he was rebuilding his house with roomates in tact. Oh, and he also had his 70 year old mother living there, as well as a German Intern and an Aussie corporate guy. Frat house! With a House mom! "Hey, great, yeah, I have told a few people that I will check out their place too, so I will definitely be getting back to you, Billy". See ya!

All of that searching made me realize a few things. A) Bunking with Nana is quickly approaching, unless my boy Craig lists something good. B) Just because people are quirky and different doesn't really mean that they aren't normal. They are just normal in their own way. I read a book about this. It was called "The Short Bus". You should all read it. I'm sure one-eyed Willie is really nice guy and probably gets a lot of strange looks. But that doesn't mean anything is wrong with him. He's just different than me, and there is nothing wrong with that. And I'm sure that Barb is great. Just not my type. And I bet that Bill is great - he looks after his ailing mom, houses foreign guys who have no other place to live. Extremely nice gestures. So don't get me wrong: I am not bashing these folks. Normal is what you make it. Or what they make it. Normal just is. Normalcy is overrated.

Some more thoughts...

I'm listening to Dave Barnes' new CD right now - called "You, Night, and Candlelight". Go get it. It's only $3.99 on iTunes. What a deal!

I am reading a book called "Abraham". It is looking at how Abraham ties in to Christianity, Judiasm, and the Islamic faith. I can't wait to finish it..............it's that boring.

I can't wait to take another weekend trip with Ashley. We have been finding some amazing places and been having an even more amazing time. Where should we go next? Please respond. Especially if you have a free place to stay! ;-)

I can't wait for two great wedddings coming up...Matt Wade, Ian Swihart.

That's all for now. Sleep well, have a great day, go to the gym, do whatever it is that you consider normal.

Or shake it up and be different.

Updates and abreviations

2009-01-22T07:53:00.003-08:00

Hi friends, I apologize for the absence. A lot has happened since the crazy plane flight home from Atlanta! I wonder what those crazy love birds are up to? It’s almost like the world has changed since I have written…oh wait, it has! (See : President Obama). It’s almost like my life has completely changed since I have written…oh wait, it did! (Side note: I am currently on a plane from PDX to ATL…………one way.) Without further hesitation, here is the update, once again in bullet form fashion. (or BFF, for you abreviation buffs).

· Another Christmas without Ashley…hopefully the last one
· First Christmas without my brother (and new wife)…hopefully the last one!
· Survived the HH (hell holiday) aka Christmas once again…for further details on the Casebeer day, please watch the movie “Four Christmases”. My day is literally like that, minus the crazy family members. It can sometimes be brutal, but we seem to get thru it every year!
· Another New Year’s spent with Ashley…that would be 3 in a row.
· On that note, a VERY successful NYE party after last year’s complete bust. 2009 was rung in properly, with great friends, great food, and a kick A game of charades! Hint: If you want to see a hilarious word acted out, use “gynecologist” next time. Props to our good sport Matt Robinson on that one….my retinas will be forever scarred after seeing that.
· Movies that we saw: Valkyrie (8.1), Marley and Me (6.2), 7 Pounds (5.8), Yes Man (7.1)
· Best 3 day span of golf I have ever played – at Bandon Dunes, for the icing on the cake. 68, 72, 70. Believe it, folks. If Ashley thinks I had the golf bug bad before, well she’s in for it!!!
· Discovered “Flight of the Conchords”…made my holiday season. If you haven’t heard of it, hear of it. They are hilarious.
· Discovered the Zac Brown Band…well, didn’t discover, but found out that I really like them.
· Also found out that holidays are no fun without Ashley. Let’s put a stop to that!!

Enough of the updates. On to what is next. What is next, you might ask? Well, the Era (aura?) of Alpharetta is next. We’ll call it AA, to keep the abreviations going. I am heading there right now. Some call it Alphertater, some call it Alfretta, I am calling it home for the next few months. Ashley and I really don’t know what it is going to look like…hopefully she can find work so we can stay there until we head to YL camp in May. Hopefully I can find a place to live so I don’t have to bunk it with Nana…I’ll keep you posted.

But for now, I shall sit back and enjoy my exit row seat with zero other people in it. I already fell asleep across all 3 seats, but that resulted in a nasty pain in my side and my entire arm falling asleep when I woke up. Adios amigos! TTYL. (I’m done with those now.)

Tales from the airplane

2008-12-24T21:58:00.002-08:00

So I traveled home yesterday, and was lucky that I made it. The weather has been horrific, but I was one of few that had no delays or anything! Must have been my lucky day. Anyway, I was incredibly lucky to have been sitting next to the two people I did...check out what happened.

I am sitting on the window, not wanting to talk to anybody. Feeling rather antisocial, I put in my ipod earphones and zone out. The guy next to me sits down, says hey, and that's the only correspondence we have. A girl sits next to him, and immediately starts asking questions to this stranger next to her. He is military, late 20's, good looking. He seemed pretty lame - dorky, very focused on his fitness, and kind of dumb. She has about 15 tats and piercings and looks rough...but decent looking, also late 20's. She is into art (started knitting as soon as she sat down). This whole time I have not picked a song to listen to, so I am looking like I am listening to something but secretly listening to them. Anyway, here they go.

She asks, Where are you going? He says, Anchorage to visit my mom. She says, Wow, that's f***ing far away. Why are you here? (bluntly) He says, I'm in the military. She says, I used to date a military guy. Didn't work out. He says, Do you have something against the military? She says, No. I have something against him though. He says, You should look into joining (bold). She says, Hell no, I would never do that s***. I like art and don't like being told what to do. Anyway, they keep talking, going over the basics (Do you have a pet? He has a lizard, she has a dog). She's going to Idaho, he has lived all over the US, blah blah blah. I fall asleep, and wake up 20 minutes later to the follow scene:

Two bloody mary's in front of them, they are laughing and smiling. They seem pretty friendly now! This QUICKLY moves in to more talking (flirty style), sharing each other's ipods (you know when one person has 1 ear thing and the other has the other?) That moves in to more laughter, and now some serious cuddling. Must have found some romantic music. They share a head rest. They keep flirting. Then they both get up and head for the bathoom. Are you thinking what I was????

Tough luck. Two minutes later they came back. Cocktailed up, on the same page music wise, he now starts massaging her. Full on (almost groping). They both turn toward the isle, and he just goes to town. Lots of rubbing, massaging, and whipsering sweet nothings in to her ear and she nods yes in response. This whole time I am just enthralled as to what is happening between these two strangers!! You know, like looking around to see if other people are witnessing what I am seeing, that sort of thing.

Now we are about 15 minutes from landing and he starts being lame again, asking her stupid questions...they talk about their signs (he's a pisces, she's a libra), her desperate need for a cigarette (she tried to quit once for 7 months and had a mental breakdown), his getting her thoughts on what to add to his tatoo, etc. They finish by exchanging emails, and head off the plane. I follow. Lurk, really. They head straight to the bar for another drink and probably some.........

Well it was interesting, to say the least. Kept my attention almost the whole time. I read about 2 pages of my book (pretended to at least), listened to nothing, and was totally focused on the budding love (lust) happening beside me.

Have a Merry Christmas! Don't forget about the crazier story that happened 2008 years ago or so...pretty amazing.

End of an era

2008-12-17T11:49:00.003-08:00

Today is Ashley's last day ever in college. Wow. That statement in itself is amazing. Last day in college. I remember thinking to myself when that was me, This is crazy. She's now making the same statement. What is more crazy is that I remember her FIRST day in college! Back at good 'ol Ole Miss (can you say that? good ol ole miss? Doesn't really work). Now she is graduating (Sunday) from The Mighty Appalachian State University. What a ride it has been! Am I talking about her, or us? You decide.

I was talking with Ashley and Christi last night and we decided that there is something infectious about Queen Street, their house. People always leave there thinking, I wish I came here more often, or I wish I could stay longer. It doesn't matter if it is the YL guys wishing they hung around more often at Queen St, or people who have moved out (and married) remembering the great days and nights there, or roommates moving out for good. There is something about that place that seems to bring people together and sort of solidify friendships. Catch phrase is a major component of this. As is watching The Biggest Loser, Jeopardy, and Jon and Kate + 8. I can honestly say that I will miss Queen Street. I will missed being locked out and climbing thru the window to get in. I will miss drinking wine and gossiping (terrible, I know). I will miss the girls that live there. And I'm sure Ashley will really miss it after having lived there for 2.5 years. But there is also something healthy and good about moving on and having such great memories of a certain time of life. I hope and pray that the Queen St girls will never forget those times!

In other news, I catch flack around here for never having devoted an entire blog to Ashley. I suppose that in lieu of her graduating, she deserves such an honor! Some highlights of our time in Boone (the first time we have ever lived in the same town):
- Shows/concerts. Tim Reynolds, Matt Wertz, Dave Barnes, Drew/Elle Holcomb, that one random jazz trio, PW, and BJ Novak.
- Trips. Asheville, Nashville, Winston Salem, Windy Gap, Alpharetta, wine tasting in Banner Elk, "The Wedding" (Durham/Raleigh), Montreat College.
- Dates. We never get to date. It is FUN!
- Birthdays. Never have we spent a birthday together. Let me say that again. After 4 years of dating, we have never spent our birthdays together!! We were 2 for 2 this year!
- Realizing that we are much better together than we are apart.
- Cooking. We both kind of suck, but had moments of brilliance! (Alex = quesadillas, Ashley = steak/potatoes
- Driving. Lots and lots of driving. And NEVER in the Jimmy.
- Her changing my hatred of Buffalo Wings into a love for Buffalo Wings!!

I could go on and on about the last 3 months...but it has been very good living in the same place. We figured out a lot of things about each other than really can't be figured over the phone and 3,000 miles. We have come a long way in the last 3 months...and over the last 4 years!

No more college Ash! This day was bound to get here eventually!!

One final note...adios to Kirbi...it has been fun!

One more final note...adios Queen Street. I will really miss you, and it has been really fun!

Signs (not that stupid game)

2008-12-11T08:49:00.005-08:00

First of all, I don't like that game. If I have offended you, I'm sorry. Some of you may not have heard of "Signs". Don't investigate. It's not worth it!! Anyway, I digress.

Signs that I am getting old:
- One seemingly meaningless game of football renders me unable to move the following day.
- I like shows such as Jeopardy, The Biggest Loser, Primetime, the news, and Frasier.
- I think I like wine more than beer
- The first thing I do in the morning is get a glass of cranapple juice and read the news.
- My friends are getting married, and some are pregnant!
- Care about such things as taxes, mortgages, and the stock market
- Really like James Taylor
- Running hurts...but I do it anyway
- I enjoy reading every night before I go to sleep. Now THAT is old.

Signs that I am getting young(er):
- Still enjoy pranks
- I blog
- Still love mac n cheese
- Still really love Taco Bell (sorry Ashley...)
- Pick up basketball games are still a priority (when in Bend)
- Text more than I call (except for when I'm working)
- LOVE Catchphrase

Signs that Oregon will win the Holiday Bowl:
- 65-38 trashing of the Beavs...good momentum!
- Offensive coordinator has something to prove...head coach desinate and all...
- Lost to Oklahoma in 2005, need to beat their rival this year
- Make a statement that the Pac-10 is legit

Signs that Christmas is coming:
- Hallmark started Christmas themes before Halloween (hate that)
- Starting to get Christmas cards/letters/updates from families
- great movies on TV, great music on the radio

Signs that 2009 will be a great year:
- Change is in the air

- Maybe some people's resolutions will actually be kept!

- My brother may be living in Oregon at some point...date TBD
- A new president could be a great thing...also TBD...but I think we are all hoping that it will!
- There is going to be a movie based on my favorite book series...VINCE FLYNN
- Could 2009 be much worse than 2008 in terms of politics, economy, and industries??
- I like the number 9 much better than 8...except on the golf course.

Signs that Mustaches will again be cool:
- Brad Pitt had one this year
- George Clooney had one this year
- Matthew Casebeer currently has one
- Willie Dinsdale had one in Africa
http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/fashion/articles/2007/11/15/mustaches_cool_by_a_whisker/
- I can't grow one

Signs that black will be the next brown:
- I have no idea, I just think brown will be cooler than black in 2009. That's my only sign.

Signs that this blog is over:
- You're bored
- I'm bored
- You discovered you have better things to do
- I discovered the exact same thing...

Until next time, Ryan Seacrest OUT

A birthday, a parade, and one a hell of a game of Catchphrase

2008-12-08T06:55:00.004-08:00

Buckle up friends, this might be a long one. But hang in there...it will be worth it! And as Matt Wade says, the pictures at the end will be the icing on the cake!!

So since the last time we have talked, a lot has happened. Not really, but it was a fun weekend. Ashley and I kicked it off having some dinner at a nicer restaurant in downtown Boone. Food? Great. Wine? Great. Gay waiter? Interesting. Have you ever heard the old addage that if a waiter makes physical contact (in a good way, of course) with a customer their tip increases by like 5 %? Well this guy would have had about a 75 % increase in tip. He was all over me!! I lost count of his touching efforts after 8. Ashley just laughed at me. I felt invaded. Anyway, moving on. We spent the rest of the night at the Wine to Water wine tasting event....but really we spent it with PW Gopal and Doc's kid Beattie. Beattie is easily the cutest baby I've ever seen...and he was really fond of sucking on Ashley's chin (see picture below...hilarious!) Needless to say, whenever there is a baby involved it is an entertaining night!

Saturday morning welcomed us in with 20 degree weather and the infamous Boone Christmas Parade. Last year Baby Jesus, Joseph and Mary rode in on a donkey and the donkey pooped right in front of Ashley and Christi and Kirbi. This year Joseph was riding a GMC Truck (good man, supporting the economy) wearing a bathroom towel. No Mary to be found, no Jesus either. I bet he was pissed at the donky incident so he stayed away. Daniel Boone and his confederates made an appearance though, so that was good!! But some highlighted floats include: a shopping cart, a hippie truck, a random alligator popping out of a PT Cruiser, and of course Cloggers. What are those, you are asking right now? Well they are basically tap dancers with clogs on. Only in the South, I tell ya. They were good though!

After the parade was the App State playoff game where Ashley and I met the most disgusting human being alive. Actually, the 2 most disgusting human beings alive. They were the two girls behind us who were yelling obsenities the entire game...no cheering, or encouraging our team on, but screaming "F-ing your S up!", or nicer things like "S my D" to which I yelled back "YOU HAVE NO D YOU ARE A FEMALE". And then, "SHUT UP". That didn't sit well. They also yelled phrases to the other team like "Shove it up your A", which made me wonder...shove what up their A? They were playing football and their A's really have nothing to do with it...anyway, it was awful. Horrible. I hate them and hope that they can find happiness somewhere in their lives because clearly they are missing something.

Saturday night brought Ashley and I to celebrate her birthday at the Gamekeeper...the nicest place to eat in Boone, hands down. We have been there twice now, and want to go back immediately. She had mountain trout. I had Bison. We had champagne. It was amazing. What was more amazing was the events that followed...the surprise birthday party and the greatest game in the world.

"THE GRILL THE GRILL THE GRILL THE GRILL!!!!!" - Matt Campbell, shouting.
(less than one second later) "GEORGE FORMAN" - Blake Robbins, cool as the other side of the pillow.
pass to the girls
"This is a place where a ton of wine is made, and you go there, and you drink it and they make it...." (at this point Blake leans over to Erin and says, "Erin, I think you mean beer...its a brewery")
NEXT
Harry Marks says nothing. He just stands up really fast and starts moving his finger wildy in and out....to which someone yells, "TRIGGER FINGER!!!".
Pass to the girls and so on and so on.
You get the point. The game is Catchphrase, and it either solidifies friendships or ruins relationships. There is a huge amount of bromance and a scary amount of high pitched screaming. It is amazing. And about 10 of us played it for 2 hours on Saturday night. You don't need beers or TV or anything other than our little blue round friend that beeps and beeps and beeps faster and faster and fasterfaster and then BUZZZZZ. BOYS WIN!!!!!

A great weekend my friends. Wish you could have been here to enjoy it with us. Have a great Monday!

And I'm back

2008-12-03T06:09:00.002-08:00

Sorry for the absence from the blog! I was on vacation.

Something in my shower smells horrendous, and it's not me. Lately when I get in my already funky shower there is this overpowering smell of................something. Like a rat crawled in the pipes, froze to death because I had the heat off for the past 10 days, then came back to life because I turned the heat back on, and then died again. And it is only occuring in the shower! It's not because it isn't clean - I have Cometed that thing to death. But it sucks and it causes me to take extraordinarily short showers, which I hate. I love showering. Now I hate showering. Because of the rat.

Anyway, I was going to get all reflecty on you about my trip back to Oregon, but then I realized no one cares. I will go bullet-point style on the major events and thoughts from the trip.

- Blazer games are fun, but are way more fun from the 1st row! Thanks to Kevin for those seats...
- Duck games are fun, but are way more fun when you anihilate the Oregon State Beavers!! 65-38 is all that needs to be said.
- I have amazing friends in Bend. And I love my house there!
- Charades is brutal with my step-family. Fun, but brutal. They are way smarter than me (or anyone, for that matter). You have to describe people, places, or things such as : Igor Stravinsky, Botswana, "Steel Magnolias", Absolom, Absolom, "The Marriage of Fiagro", Wolfgang Amadeaus Mozart. You get the picture. It's impossible. My mom dominated, however.
- Scott Casebeer and Alex Casebeer are collectively Clark Griswold when putting up Christmas lights. Ladders falling, stapling things you shouldn't, etc. It is a sight to behold. But the finished product is nothing short of a miraculous sight!
- I asked my dad if he has read my blog. He said, "I deleted you". I said, WTF. He said, "You didn't mention me in your Top 5 Favorite Lists bloggy and it hurt my feelings. I deleted you". Point taken.

Top 5 Memories with Dad
- Pebble Beach golf in a hurricane after having 70 degrees and sunny at Spanish Bay the day before
- Ski trips to Sun Valley, Aspen, Deer Valley...it's a tie
- Christmas light extravaganzas
- Playing in the Father Son golf tourny at Waverly CC, and at the Member Guest at Bend G&CC
- Having him caddy for me in the Oregon Amateur. It was awesome, hard to explain, but a connection was forged there.

- Back to the list
- Missing Ashley sucked. We are much better together. That is clearly evident after spending 10 days apart!
- Wine tasting is always fun, no matter who you are with or where you are at.
- I love Christmas movies (watched the following with Dad and Carrie: The Grinch, Die Hard, The Santa Clause, Elf, Die Hard 2, and Christmas Vacation). Late nights, needless to say.
- I was thinking to myself, Who says you have to have turkey on Thanksgiving Day? Why not pizza, or tuna or peanut butter and jelly? Then I realized that I love - maybe more than anything in the world - left over turkey sandwhiches. Oh man want one right now!! Dumb thought.

I think that is all for now friends. Thanks for checking back in. I will not delay 2 weeks next time! It's nice to be back in Boone.....

Happy Birthday Andy Howard!

Highlights, lowlights, and Christmas lights

2008-11-20T05:24:00.002-08:00

Clever title, I know. I was going to wait on another story from Grandma Casebeer to write, but alas, nothing has shown up in my email from her...............yet. You'll be the first to know!

Some highlights since last Friday:
- Men's retreat with Banner Elk Christian Fellowship @ the Doe River Gorge.
- A little background info....I knew approximately 3 out of 34 people on this trip, 1 of which was showing up a day late. Not that it bothered or worried me, but I'm just throwing it out there. 1 person I knew was Alan Yawn, YL Area Director here in town. He is a great guy, and is basically the reason I went. Anyway, we stayed at the Doe River Gorge for 2 nights, and of course had great fellowship, prayer time, and hang time. But I did want to tell one story that I thought was pretty funny. Allow me to introduce Bo Barinowski. Bo is a man's man....a retired Army Ranger (he's only 44), Lt. Colonial, taught at West Point, you get the picture. He's big, strong, and looks lethal. But as anticipated, he's a teddy bear. Bo and I went on a hike on Saturday afternoon, and you hike way up the gorge on the old Tweetsie Railroad. It is awesome for a few reasons...you follow the river, you are looking down a huge gorge, you are going thru old tunnels and over old trussles 50 feet or more off of the river with nothing to hold on to. It is pretty awesome. So Bo and I get to the end of the railroad - about 3.5 miles out - and Bo decides that he wants to go down to the river and try and cross. Sounds fun, right? I thought so. But then again I'm an idiot so that doesn't count. So Bo and I climb down the gorge hanging onto trees and shrubs and falling most of the way, and finally make it to the river bed. Let me add that it is about 42 degrees and raining. But I am thinking to myself, well I'm with an Army Ranger, how much trouble can I get into? It is at this point that Bo jumps in the river, figuring this was the only way to cross. It was officially Man vs. Wild, Bo Barinowski style. It was at that moment that I said, Adios Bo! See you back at the cabin! I did. I ran back, wondering if Bo would make it out alive.

Needless to say , 2 hours later, Bo comes back in the cabin sogging wet, and says only the following before heading to the shower: "Bad idea."

- Another highlight would be seeing BJ Novak last night. He is most commonly known as "Ryan the Temp" on the show "The Office". But he did some stand up comedy last night at App State, and Ashley and I had a little date night and decided to go. Here is my thing with comedians. I have a very low expectation of them before I go. I don't know why. When I go to a movie I think, Man this is going to be good!! I am so excited to see this!! When I go to a stand up show I think, How is this dude going to make me laugh? And it never fails..............I am laughing hysterically within minutes. And it was the same last night...he was hilarious!

- Lowlight - might be selling Jimmy. He sucks and I hate him. His tires suck, the CD player stopped working, and he went on Craigslist two days ago. I am meeting a gal today at 1:30 who wants to look at him...will keep you posted. The only downside to this would be sharing a car again, but hey, that just means more time together, right?

- Christmas lights. It is officially Christmas Season at Queen Street (Ashley's house). I have mixed feelings (maybe mental issues) about this, but hear me out. In my family, it is quite commonly known that Christmas doesn't start until the last person leaves your house on Thanksgiving Day. We then run to the living room and put in the 1st Christmas CD of the season. Thanskgiving, done. Hello Christmas. We've been doing this for all 26 years of my life. Tree goes up and the lights go on the next day, and bam, here we are. But not in the world of Christi Mercer. I quote: "Thanksgiving and Christmas are just one big holiday for me". And what am I going to do, not go over to their house anymore? No way! So in one night their house went from normal mode to a Hallmark store....there is Christmas stuff everywhere! I fought it at first. I bitched and moaned and talked about how my family did this and that. She said, I don't care, you're in Boone now. Good point. But once I started putting some lights on the tree with Ash, and some ornaments on the tree with Christi and Kirbi...I felt like the Grinch: My heart grew 3 sizes that day. Or whatever he says. You know the scene - he transforms from the Grinch to the lover of all people and Christmas. The Christmas spirit was being injected into me against my will!! I confess...I enjoy the tree, and garland, and signs that say "__ Days Until Christmas". And I am putting lights on their bushes today. Did I cave in? Did I go against Casebeer Family Rules? How do I feel about this?

I'll tell you how I feel: "It is Christmas in the heart that puts Christmas in the air." ~ W. T. Ellis

Welcome to the season, even if it is 7 days before Casebeer Go Time!

Smelly breath and more hippies

2008-11-14T06:37:00.003-08:00

Ashley informed me yesterday I lately I have bad breath. I was offended and upset and I pouted and whined. Then she told me why: the damn tooth soap! She's right! I’m no dentist, but I am guessing that my hippie friend neglected to tell me that this magical soap would be detrimental this breath issue. Moral of the story? SAYONARA HIPPIE SOAP. Welcome back, Crest. Let your minty freshness rule my mouth for years to come!! Thanks to Ash I am now saved from embarassment!!

So Ashley and I have seen two concerts this week, both drastically different. Concert # 1 was of Tim Reynolds. For you music nerds out there like me, you’ll know that Tim is one of the country’s great guitarists – rock, blues, back-up, bluegrass, whatever. He can play it all, and he can play is amazingly. His “best known” album was playing an acoustic show with Dave Matthews, just the two of them. It is amazing. His concert in Boone was nothing like it. I was expecting some 32 year old music-y looking guy, and what we got was a 55 year old hippie (is there a theme here?) wearing an 80’s cutoff shirt and was 5 feet 3. This guy was the weirdest, creepiest looking musician I have seen in years. And some of his songs had words, mostly about sexual things or government overthrows, weird crap like that. Most of his songs were just music. However, the guy could shred! In the end, I didn’t really care that he was a nut-job. In fact I made Ashley go stand in the front row and take pictures because I was too embarrassed to do it myself. Needless to say, it was a funny experience for the two of us…looking like Banana Republic representatives at a hippie fest. Check Tim out below!

The next concert was last night, and it was awesome. It was at this thing called After Dark, and is a secret thing that happens on campuses all over the US. Long story short, there is a musician and a speaker, and that’s all you know, more or less. The musician was Dave Barnes, who I have wanted to see for a few years now. Funniest guy in concert. It is like watching a stand-up comedian play awesome music. I loved it. You should YouTube him, his videos are hilarious. On top of that, he’s a great musician too and a great songwriter, so it was awesome to just sit and enjoy a good concert. He did 2 sets, and in the middle was the speaker, who came out and talked about Jesus, which was very cool and had a big impact on lots of college kids there. After Dark is aimed mostly at un-churched people on college campuses, and this provides a pretty non-threatening way to hear about God. It’s a pretty cool concept.

It is supposed to snow here on Sunday and Tuesday…am I ready? Is Jimmy ready? Will his worn out tires be able to handle the frozen roads of Boone? Time will tell, people. I’m sure I’ll have some idiot crash story to tell. Stay posted. And have a great weekend!

Asheville extravaganza!!

2008-11-10T06:10:00.004-08:00

First of all, if you have never been to Asheville, NC, you should go sometime in your life. Or immediately. For a few reasons, really. #1 at the top of the list: Biltmore Estate. We'll get into that later. Pictures to follow. #2: Downtown. #3: Food. #4: Grove Park Inn. We'll start there, and go in reverse order.

Some background info on the trip before we dive in...for my birthday this year, one of Ashley's gifts was a round of golf at the Grove Park Inn Resort and Spa golf course. Being from Oregon, naturally I have never heard of this place. But after doing some research, I found out that it was designed by one of the world's most famous designers, Donald Ross. I have never played a Ross course, so this was instantly exciting for me. Then I come to find out that the Grove Park Inn is a Top Ten Spa destination in the world. This place is UNREAL. So anyway, here we go.

#4 - Grove Park Inn. Golf? 10. Bloody Mary on the 11th hole? A solid 9. Playing partner? Easily an 8+, maybe a 9-. Negative points for being a smoker - sorry if I offended any smokers. Jason was his name, he was from Alpharetta, GA. Ring any bells? That's right...he lives about 5 minutes away from Ashley's house in GA. Needless to say, he and I had some things in common, and he was a good golfer, so it made for a great day. Between us, we made 7 birdies I think. That always makes things more fun! But as for the golf itself, it was awesome. The course was hard, which I like, and it was in amazing condition, considering we are 2 weeks into November. I was seriously impressed with this place...and would easily go back to play again. The Spa (which we didn't really see the inside of) was amazing just to look at. Most of it is underground...grotto style. Not to be confused with ghetto style. We looked at some prices, just to be inquisitive.....uhh....about $250 for a 60 minute massage...that being the cheapest treatment you can get. Needless to say, Ashley spent her time in Starbucks writing lesson plans, dreaming about facials, peddies, and steamy hot tub. Clearly my stocks need to do a little better in order for us to make a return trip for anything other than golf!! Overall experience? 9.2

#3 - FOOD. I like food, and lots of it. In fact I am kind of getting fat, but that's beside the point. One of Ashley and I's great habits and traditions is finding fun, new, old, young, hip, whatever places to eat in new towns. The nature of our relationship has blessed us in the fact that we have been so many places together and coincidentally have eaten at a lot of great places. We found a place called Table in downtown Asheville (found it on OpenTable.com, great website. If you are a traveler, USE IT). It was small, upscale, fairly priced, and had great food. I had lobster risotto, Ashley had pork chops......But Asheville is supposedly known for it's food, and I can see why. Downtown is laden with small boutiquey restaurants...I didn't really see any chains at all in downtown, which was nice. But you can walk everywhere, get a good glass of wine or drink at tons of places, and it has the feel of a big city eating spot in a setting like Bend kind of. Overall eating experience (lunch at Bello, glass of wine before dinner at ZLounge, dinner at Table, after dinner drink at Zambra Tapas Bar)? 8.7

#2 - Downtown. This will be short and sweet, because I covered most of it already...but once you park, you don't get in your car again until you leave. I love that. It was $5 flat rate all day, and $1 after 7 PM all night. So that takes most of the guess work out of it. The buildings are old - Pearl District feeling - the streets are easy to navigate, and scenery is amazing. Overall downtown experience? 9.0

One now for #1...BILTMORE ESTATE. Let's start with some stats.
- Biggest house in the USA
- 8,000 acres (used to be 125,000, but the wife sold the rest to the government, which is now a National Forest that the Vanerbilt's head landscape guy started on his own, because he was bored, probably)
- 255 rooms, 43 bathrooms
- Built from 1889 to 1895, opened on Christmas Eve, 1895.
- Owner - George Vanderbilt, father of ONE. That's right, three people lived in it.
- Staff was 66 people.....living in the staff quarters....and 435 living in an adjacent villeage.
- 2.4 million cubic feet of living space....can anyone convert that into square footage for me, please?
- 95% self sustaining while people lived in it...they grew, caught, raised, all food and drink, and operated one of the largest dairies in America at the time.

Ok now for some descriptions. THIS PLACE IS HUGE. It is amazing and cooler than anything I've ever seen. The tour takes you thru about 40% of the "house", if you can even call it that. You see some bedrooms, the billiards room, the gun room, the cigar room, the kitchen (which has seperate rooms for: fruit, veggies, canned goods, baked goods, meat, walk-in fridge, its own cannery...), America's first in-house bowling alley, the first house with underwater lighting in the swimming pool, and the first and maybe only house with a fully functional PIPE ORGAN.

It was a crazy life back then...everyone had servants, and the servants had servants, and you had to have someone help get you dressed for every activity throughout the day, the meals were 7 course meals, your guests had trunks full of clothes and funny hats, you spoke with lots of funky words to try to be impressive, and so on. It was an amazing visit for Ashley and I. We spent about 7 hours on the estate, finishing up at the Winery. It is the 55th largest winery in the USA, and totally self contained on this esate.

It is so hard to describe, but I did my best. Ash and I really had a great weekend together, one of my favorites! After 2 months of living in the same town we aren't sick of each other, so that's good! I hope that sometime in your life you can see the Biltmore Estate. And make sure to get the little head-phone tour thingy...Ashley got one and relayed the info to me (we're cheapos) while I walked around in a daze trying to figure out what I would do if I lived there. Rollerblades made the list.

Overall Biltmore experience? 10.7

Overall weekend experience? 11

Enjoy the day!

Grandma Casebeer is the funniest human alive

2008-11-06T06:52:00.002-08:00

You might think you know some funny people, or have some funny family members. I am telling you I have the trump card: Marcia Casebeer. She is one of the creative and funny people I have met, and the following story is one that she wrote me in response to my Halloween blog. Enjoy!

"I have always loved Halloween and when the boys were little I would tell them that Halloween was the ONLY time that witches and goblins could be "free" and have a "chance" to capture a little boy or a little girl--and THAT was why it was so necessary to "dress" up in a costume so that the witches would not REALIZE that you were a little boy or girl. Also we had "noise-makers" because the witches could stand the sound of the noisemakers--so the thing to do was to make a LOT of noise and keep your mask on at all times!!!! On the afternoon of Halloween I would go to a neighbors and use their phone to call home--and one of the boys would answer-and in a squeeky-crackly voice--I would say--"this is the WITCH and I will be watching you tonite!!!" After dinner Dick would take them out for the trick or treating and I would put on my "witches costume" and take a broom--and get on one of our bikes--and just ride around the neighborhood cackling etc.--and it would cause quite a commotion--but you could sure hear the "noisemakers" going full blast-and everyone had their costumes on!! Once home I would await their arrival and the stories of how many time they saw that witch go by--it was SPOOKY!!!
- I can only imagine this scene...3 boys and Grandpa running around yelling and banging things while this crazy woman is riding thru the neighborhood on her bike, cackling and laughing hysterically!! Anyway, continue reading, the next story is better.

When we were transferred back to Coos Bay--and Scott was in the 3rd grade-Todd in the 2nd grade-for some reason I decided that I would visit their school the afternoon of Halloween--and they had not idea-none! So I got dressed up in my witches outfit-I had a really big witches hat-=and with my "nose" and "glasses" on you really-really could not tell it was me--and since their classes were all on the first floor of the school building-and because they had low windows--it was easy for me to crouch down and just run the length of their class room--with just the tip of my witch hat showing just above the window sill-and I could hear the teacher explaining something--and then hear a student say--look!! --there is a witch out there!!--and then others would see it--and the teacher would try to get them settled down and say it just could not be witch--by then I was off to the next classroom!! If I did this today-I would be arrested--anyway--this was going SO well that I went inside the school-got to Tood's class first--burst open the door-and with my broom -hopped up on a desk and shouted in a 'Horrible" voice-fee-fie-fo-fum--tonite I will get a little girl or boyium!!!-and off I would dash-to Scott's room-do the same-by now the two rooms were in an uproar-even the teachers--and THEN I saw the principal coming down the hall shouting --witch-witch--no don't go!!! So I stopped and he was laffing so hard--and asked if I would visit ALL the rooms-just quickly--and so I did--and THAT school was totally aware of the witch's "visit". When the boys got home--they could hardly wait to tell me about the witch--actually--ACTUALLY-coming to their school--and into their ROOMS!!!! It wasn't until we moved to Salem that I finally told them who the witch really was--and they had no idea!!!"

Imagine with me, if you will, a woman running outside of every classroom with only the tip of her hat showing. If you were a 2nd grader and saw that crap, I would be scared out of my mind. For Grandma? Mission accomplished! But this wasn't good enough for her...she runs into the school and into the class and up on a desk and singles out Todd Casebeer and cackles at him that she will eat him and get him later tonight. Could you imagine the sheer horror this must created? And at the same time, the sheer delight for Grandma?? Brilliant.

But she wasn't only Halloween tricks and pranks. When we were younger she would keep 4 grandkids busy for hours without spending a dime. We would go to Kueblers Furniture and she would pretend to be shopping while secretly we were all playing hide and seek. She would be talking to the salesman and every now and then would spot us and hiss "I see you!!!! go hide again!!!".

Another memory would be "fishing". She would announce that we were going to go fishing when we got to the house, and this would be so exciting. We would then spend the next 3 hours or so making the poles...out of things we found around the house...then by the time we were "ready" to go fishing, it would be time to go!! Genius!!

Anyway, this woman is hilarious. You would have to meet her to experience her story telling skills, and how good she is at writing poems at Christmas, and how great of a golfer she is (still plays multiple times a week, came within 7 shots of shooting her age a few years ago). Hopefully you'll get the chance in your lifetime, if you already haven't, to meet the one and only Grandma Casebeer.

In other news, was that election night crazy or what? It is illiciting responses from people that are just downright dumb. Here are some highlights of things I've heard from around Boone and the nation:
- The end of the world is here
- Praise the Lord that I don't have to worry about filling up my car with gas or paying my mortgage anymore.
- Are we living in Revelation?
- Packing up my stuff, moving to Canada
- Be back in 4 years
- Palin 2012

I mean, come on people. I thought Obama did an amazing job in his acceptance speech, and couldn't help think while he was talking that I was witnessing probably one of the top 5 most historic speeches in American History. Pretty cool to think about, and watch, and experience.

That's all I've got for today...if you have any responses for Grandma, post them or email them to me and I'll forward them on! Enjoy the sun if you live in Boone!!

Politics and shout-outs and new pictures!

2008-11-04T06:24:00.005-08:00

Well it was inevitable...I had to write about the election at some point. I'll be brief and not profound. My brother and I made a bet yesterday: What time is McCain going to concede to Obama? I went with 6pm EST, he with 8pm PST. I'm guessing he'll win, mainly because he's smarter than me. I voted - absentee - for McCain for a variety of reasons that I will not go into, but we will see what happens tonight!

Election days are exciting. It wreaks of change, and it sometimes tastes a little sour. I say that because it seems like everyone walking around has to get their opinion out on a day like today, and sometimes do it in an abrasive way. I'm at Espresso News right now and everyone is trying to get their point across to someone else. Sometimes I could care less who wins - the economy is bad but guess what? One single person isn't going to fix it by themselves. It will turn around, it always has and always will. Everyone just needs to calm down, go vote, and see what happens. Tomorrow is for being upset or jubilant or "I told you so's". Ok enough politics! On to shout-outs!

So this last weekend I experienced my very first App State football game. A little background on the team...they have won 3 straight National Championships at the D1-AA level (my Alma Mater USD is a D1-AA football teamm too). They have this guy named Armanti Edwards who is a better version of Dennis Dixon (former Oregon Duck). He dominates games. If they did not have Armanti, they would not be where they are, simply put. The guy does it all. Stats from last game: 17-19 367 yards passing, 73 yards rushing, 4 TD's. Oh and he sat most of the 4th quarter. Anyway, Ashley's best friend Alex Whitaker came to town with new hubby Jay (shoutout #1). They are YL staffers in Surrey County, and we like them. Also in town for the game was the infamous Janelle Rose Knox (shoutout #2 - everyone calls her by her full name all the time, I'm not sure why, but I'm going to do the same). JRK, as I will now branch out and call her, lives in Wake County and teaches 4th graders. She lets them blog everyday so I now instantly like her. Another funny thing about NC - this state is pretty much defined by counties. I'm not sure why. Where do you live? Watauga County. Where are you from? Catawba County (Christi Mercer, roommate of Ashley O'Dea, and also shoutout #3). Where do you teach? Wilkes County. Oh my friend lives in Avery County.......get the point? It is strange and kind of cool. I'm going to tell people from now on that I am from Deschutes County and grew up in Marion County, and let them decifer what that means.

I'm done rambling for today. Mainly beacuse I'm out of topics. And I should go work. Have fun watching the festivities tonight, and good luck to whoever you are rooting for! I'l be closely following the Smith-Merkley battle in Oregon, the Soucek-Tarleton battle for the House in North Carolina, and of course, the battle for the Vice President of the United States.

Go America!

What are YOU going to be for Halloween?

2008-10-30T06:18:00.002-07:00

Halloween.....what a strange holiday. As a kid, heaven. A chance to show off your creativity and eat endless amounts of candy. As an adult, just an excxuse to be someone other than yourself for a night, and have some fun doing it. But Halloween has created some funny memories for me. Some highlights of my Halloween career:

- My first few years in costumes I believe were as either a clown or possibly a sheep. Maybe a tiger. I could be way off base here - I don't really recall most of my childhood - but I remember being a clown. And a tiger. And a ghost. Or something.

- One year, my mom dressed my brother and I up as girls. Sisters. Ha. Ha. Very funny. We were convincing though - fooled my Uncle Chris, he had no idea who or what we were. Mom putt makeup on us, ear rings, leggings, the whole deal. It was humiliating, as I look back on it...but I'm sure created some laughs around the neighborhood!

- One year I was a witch's hat..............yes, just the hat. I'm pretty sure it didn't have arms, which made trick-or-treating confusing and difficult. Props to Mema for creating that outfit, though!

- Another year my friend Em was Garth from Wayne's World...we still laugh about that one. I think his sister was a black Jamaican hippie that year....

- A classic outfit one year, as my mom just reminded me via Gchat this morning....we were CALIFORNIA RAISINS. You remember..."I heard it thru the grapevine..." I bet you've never been one of those!! Mema, again, on the outfit creation. She was brilliant.

- In college, I was slightly more sophisticated....I was Steve Irwin, aka The Croc Hunter. It actually was a pretty dang good outfit, if you ask me. It was replete with a puppet crocodile and a rubber snake around my neck. And reeeeallly short shorts.

- Our neighborhood was pretty sweet for trick-or-treating.....a few houses went all out. My neighbor - Jim Litchfield - grew these pumpkins that were big enough for me to fit IN TO until I was about 7. They were HUGE. And he carved them with these elaborate patterns, it was amazing.

- Then there was the guy who never gave treats...............only tricks.

- Andrew Elliot's parents always did this haunted house thing on their front porch, and it legitimately scared me until I was like 16.

- Dentist's never give good candy.......Litch, are you listening??? NO MORE TOOTHBRUSHES PLEASE. VERY FUNNY.

- Then of course, anyone who has lived in Salem has been to the infamous, world famous, Deaf School Haunted House. You talk about being scared......I am still scared when I take my cousins there. It is like 20 minutes long, winding all the way thru the basement of the cold, deaf school on Cherry Ave. People are popping out of no where all the time, and this creepy vampire guy follows you thru the whole thing...sometimes he is silent, sometimes he runs thru your group and pulls people and screams and yells.....freaky. At the end this deaf guy chased you with a fully functional and working chain saw until you couldn't stand it any longer. He chased us all the way to our car one time.

That about sums up my Halloween memories....anybody have any funny ones?? Feel free to post them! I'd love to hear some great outfits or stories....enjoy the weekend. I'll be going to my very first Appalachian State football game!! KICK APP, as they say around here.

Global warming my butt!

2008-10-28T07:14:00.002-07:00

Let me be honest - it's freezing in Boone. October 27, 2008, first snowfall. It started flurrying yesterday about 6 PM, and we woke up this morning to a snow covered ground and cancelled school. I wish they cancelled work when it snowed, but I have no excuse since I work from my house. Which reminds me - I figured out the heat issue. It is now working. I don't have to use the stove anymore. However, when then wind blows really hard while I'm working, I can feel the cold air coming thru the cracks. Needless to say, when I leave the heat off at night (every night) the mornings are frigid and brutal. Anyway, sometimes I naively think that Global Warming is a bunch of crap when I hear that it snowed in Bend on Oct 9th, and in Boone last night. And when I hear that the Ice Caps in Antartica had their least amount of melt the last two years than the last 5 combined...or something like that. But then Ashley yells at me and makes me realize that is actually is an issue...and she's right. I've discovered she's right a lot. I'm just bitter than it's cold.

In other news, Ashley and I carved pumpkins last night. I won the speed round - taking the top off, taking out the guts, feeling proud - and she won the style round. Hers was clearly better than mine, which doesn't surprise me because I picked a design WAY too hard for me and got annoyed that it was taking me well over 2 hours to finish the stupid thing...so I cut corners and finished and now it truly looks scary because of how bad it looks. Suffice it say I am going with an easier, less ambitious design next year. (Pictures below). She is a perfectionist. And it paid off. She wins.

Last weekend Ashley and I headed to Windy Gap, a Young Life camp in North Carolina. It was a weekend of nostalgia for me. I realized how much I love YL camps and how much I believe in their mission. I always think to myself, Wouldn't life be easier if I just moved to a YL camp and lived there? Sometimes I think it would, but I realize that is not what I am called to do. Anyway, we were "AM Cooks", which meant we cooked and prepared and served breakfast and lunch to the servers, who took it out to the campers. The hours were 6 Am til about 2:30pm or so in the afternoon...maybe taking 15 minutes for breakfast and lunch. Basically.....brutal. But somehow no one seems to care or mind that they are tired and their feet hurt and they smell like bacon and hotwing sauce. They just keep going, keep serving food to serve the Lord in serving kids. It is amazing. We would serve 500 people per meal like it was no sweat off our backs. The campers have it good. It's like a resort - 5 star dining, swimming, frisbee golf, basketball, tennis, laughing, finding their "weekend fling", and hearing about God in a non threatening way. It's a great thing, and something I forsee myself being a part of in some way or another for a long time.

Random thought...I get to see my best friend John Olinger play a basketball game tonight. It is their first game of a 3 week or so tour. It will be a little bit of a trek - about 1.5 hours - but well worth it!

That's all from here...thanks for reading, sorry for the time in between...I got blogger's block. Hopefully that doesn't happen again!

Jimmy and other thoughts

2008-10-22T06:51:00.003-07:00

Jimmy (my car - see picture below!)) finally got a license plate!!! Praise the Lord. Jimmy is now an Oregonian with Boone stickers all over him. I spent the last 10 days evading the Boone Police Force, SWAT team, State Troopers, and App State security guards. NO TICKET. It really was an unbelievable performance. I would be driving - no place or temp tag or anything - and see an officer and immediately turn on the nearest street and drive really fast. There were times when I honestly thought that the town was out to get me. Here are some examples:

- I am sitting at Espresso News, two cars get in a fender bender in the parking lot, call the police. The police person pulls up directly behind my car - I am watching this from the inside - gets out, looks at my car, and moves on!
- Car breaks down in the parking lot of my apartment, calls the police (for some unknown reason). Policeman does not notice my car sitting 3 feet from him with no plate on it!!
- Traffic jam on King Street (aka Main Street). Moving 3 MPH, Police officer at EVERY SINGLE INTERSECTION directing traffic. I drive by at least 8 officers, look the other way and pretend like I'm waving at someone, and somehow none of them noticed the empty plate or cared to call a buddy about it.

I'm lucky I tell you. Stupid, but lucky. But now I'm official!

Other random thoughts from this morning:
- Wine to Water - a non-profit here in town. Check them out. winetowater.org. They are an amazing organziation that is fighting the poor water epidemic in suffering countries - mainly Uganda and Cambodia. They build and dig wells to provide clean water to these communities(poor, unclean water accounts for nearly 75% of illness or death in those countries), and are currently working to build a water filtration facility in Northern Uganda. Each filter costs $100, and provides clean water for about 5,000 people and lasts at least 10 years with no maintenence. It's amazing what a simple $100 can do......hint hint....
- Heading to Windy Gap - it's North Carolina's Young Life camp - this weekend to do Work Crew. My old boss Ben Lambeth from Crooked Creek in Colorado now lives about an hour from Boone (we've hung out a few times and it has been great!). He asked Ashley and I to head up there with him for the weekend to work in the kitchen...can't wait!
- Newest favorite TV show - Biggest Loser. Great message, great results.
- I'm reading Don Miller's "Searching for God Knows What" currently, and it is great. It is all about how Christianity is a relational religion, not a set of rules and regulations. It is about Jesus walking around relating to people, and that He still does that today...thru the Bible, thru chuches, thru Young Life leaders, etc. Needless to say, I am digging it.

That's about all I have for today...enjoy the sun while it is here!

The 31st Annual Woolly Worm Festival!!!

2008-10-20T08:24:00.003-07:00

So I woke up on Sunday and I could see my breath for the first time............IN MY APARTMENT. I kid you not - it was that cold. I immediately tried to turn on the heat, and thus far has not produced any. So I turned on all 4 stove tops and that worked temporarily until I felt like I was going to burn the place down. Next attempt: the oven? Wear gloves permanently? Sleep in jeans and my Patagonia? Or maybe I should just talk to the landlord..........

In other news, Ashley and I went to the Woolly Worm Festival in Banner Elk, NC. Have you ever heard of a Woolly Worm? I hadn't. I bet you've seen one though - they are brown and black and fuzzy and crawl around on leaves and on the pavement sometimes. Well every year (31st Annual) they have a festival to celebrate this worm. And at the end, the winning worm predicts the weather for the next 13 weeks. Allegedly they have, so far, an 87% success rate. Who knew?? Here's how it goes down.

They have this huge stage, and it has 25 racing spots. Each 'racing spot' consists of: a place for a name plate. Each woolly worm of course has a name. Some of my favorites: R2D2, Zippo, Arwoolly Edwards (you'll only get that if you live in Boone), Paul, Ichabod Crane, C3PO, Rainbow Wormier, and Slick. Anyway, below the name plate is a 5 foot long string. The goal of the race is for your worm to beat all other worms UP the string to the "finish line". It costs $5 and you can race as many times as you want. Also on the stage is an announcer - like the announcers that you see at the Fair that announce the Clown water baloon gun shooting race, or the rubber ball horse race, you know what I'm talking about. They announce loud and fast it make it way more exciting than it really is. On top of that there are 2 judges with whistles that let everyone know who the winning worm is. It is amazing! Each heat winner moves on to the next race, and the over winner receives $1,000 cash and the chance to predict the weather! To give you the scale of it...last year there were around 2,500 racing worms. It's unreal. And it's 2 days long. My friend Kirbi's worm last year got on the string and went the wrong way - down instead of up. Happens all the time.

Needless to say, it was hilarous and fun. I took pictures, and will try to post some somwehere on this thing. Keep checking back! Until next time and more experiences, have a great day!

Lists

2008-10-17T06:34:00.002-07:00

So today is my birthday. Happy Birhtday Alex, thank you. I was in the beginning stages of being depressed about having another birthday - I thought that started happening around age 40 - and my brother told me I was being an idiot. So I stopped. I woke up this morning to a surprise on my doorstep from Ashley...BANANA BREAD. I love that stuff. I instantly wolfed down half of the loaf and started this day off right! So props to Ashley, that stuff was good!

That made me start thinking of my favorite birthdays...and no, I'm not going to brag, this is actually going somewhere. And then that train of thought lead me to "Lists". Top 5's. Favorite whatevers. So I am going to list some lists. Hope you enjoy! Feel free to chime in at any time.

Top 5 Favorite Birthdays:
- Golf at Crosswater with Em, Scott Taylor, and Andy Howard. Well, 3 of us golfed, and Taylor just sat in the cart and smoked cigars and drank beer.
- 21st birthday in LA. 4 parents, 1 brother, 3 great friends...and Betty White and Nancy Raegan.
- LAZER TAG
- Pendleton to Eugene to Black Butte in 1 day for 1 great weekend!
- 16th Birthday at that one place that our parents rented out for the 10 of us who had October Birthdays!

Top 5 Favorite Golf courses:
- Crosswater, Pacific Dunes, The Vintage, Sahalee, Pebble Beach (with Dad)

Top 5 Favorite memories with Em:
- Golfing at Hawk Creek in Neskowin in a torential downpour with Howard...and Em blowing the win on the last hole!
- Playing one on one to 200 points at McKinley...yes, 200 points. By 1's and 2's.
- Tennis at 2am at Illahe...epic battles.
- Ping Pong in his basement...calling timeouts (there are no timeouts in ping pong) and sweating so bad because of no A/C and it being 96 degrees outside
- Playing one on one BASEBALL. You'd think it's impossible, but not with Em and I. It was amazing.

Top 5 Memories with my brother:
- his wedding
- driving from LA to Salem in 12.5 hours. Left at 12AM, met Dad at McGraths downtown at 12:30 pm.
- playing tennis at Fairmount Park on those crappy courts
- NYC for Spring Break in 2004
- his visit to me while I was at Young Life camp in Colorado

Top 5 movies (I'll cheat a little on this one):
- Indiana Jones Trilogy, Scent of a Woman, Shawshank Redemption, The Goonies, The Little Mermaid

Top 5 Memories with John Olinger:
- Europe 2006, way too many competitive golf rounds at Illahe with Em and Wade, talking in Bend a few weeks ago, Palm Springs (twice I think), Work Week at Malibu

Top 5 Authors:
- Paul, Henri Nouwen, Donald Miller, Vince Flynn/James Patterson/David Baldacci (they are all the same, more or less), Roald Dahl

Top 5 Classes I took in college:
- Christian Marriage, Marketing (because of Professor Gerson, who was one of the only people on this earth who I knew that knew my Great Grandfather), Spanish 3 (again, the professor), Leadership and Entreprenuership, New Venture Finance

Top 5 Places I have visited (I'll brag on this one, sorry):
- Africa, Young Life's Malibu Club (Canada), Switzerland, Austria, Cuba

5 Best Places to eat in Bend:
- Baldy's BBQ, The Blacksmith, Longboard Louie's, Deschutes Brewery (only because of the Mac n Cheese), Croutons

5 Best Places to eat in Boone (so far):
- Chick Fil A, Black Cat, Char, Jimmy John's, Mellow Mushroom

Top 5 Places

Top 5 Memories with Mom:
- US Open in NYC, running/talking in Cape Town, finishing the Marine Corp Marathon (and all of the damn training runs and talk and everything that went in to it!!), San Francisco (what was that one broadway show we saw with Martin Short in it? Hilarious...), living mono e mono for 2 years at 1835 Alta View Drive

I guess I'll quit now...I could go on and on forever. I am sure all of you have great lists too! Feel free to post one or two of them in the comment section...would love to hear some thoughts on what your favorite things are! In the meantime, I'm going to enjoy birthday # 26. My mom already recounted what happened 26 years ago....for the 26th time. Enjoy the day!

Hippie Soap and the Bummer Hiccups

2008-10-15T06:32:00.003-07:00

So Ashley and I went to Oktoberfest 2008 in Banner Elk, NC last weekend. We had been looking forward to this for a few reasons: the amazing weather, the arts and crafts they sell, the amazing changing of the leaves, and good beer. Or maybe that last reason was just me. Anyway, we went on Saturday and it did not dissapoint! In fact the pictures at the bottom of this page are from it. But one experience made me laugh, and potentially changed my life: the encounter with the hippie.

There was a soap stand among the arts and crafts at the fair portion of Oktoberfest. I have bought some home-and handmade soaps before, and really like them. They smell good and you are supporting local economy. But they didn't just sell soap. They sold deodorant, perfume, and of all things tooth soap. All handmade! So the guy who was running this joint was a hippie, and we got to talking. Turns out he was the most normal guy in the world. Used to work in Information Technology and is now a hippie. He and his wife had six kids and are now making soap and selling it for a living.

However during our conversation I couldn't stop thinking about the Tooth Soap that was hiding in the corner. I asked him about it. He went on to explain all of the bad and tooth damaging things that are in Crest and all of the other toothpastes out there, and that Tooth Soap is not only all natural, but are actually better for your teeth. I said, really? He said, Yes, there are things in toothpaste that don't protect your teeth and actually damage them. My wife and six kids have been using the same bar for over a year. It is amazing. I thought, Gross, same bar, 8 people, but said, Wow, how much does it cost? Like $500 bucks? He said, No, $4. I looked at his teeth. They were amazingly white and shiny. I mean, really white. Especially for a hippie!

So Ashley and I thought about it for a minute, and pulled the trigger. I am officialy now a user of Tooth Soap. Aka Hippie Soap. (Litch, are you reading this? Any thoughts?) So far, so good. My teeth feel cleaner than they ever have! I do have to say that brushing your teeth with soap is strange. It reminds me of the time my dad washed my mouth out with a bar of Zest for cussing at Mike Long when I was 4. It was gross and scarred me for life.

Upon returning from the Fest (beer was great, riding the ski lift to the top of Sugar Mountain was sweet, and the weather was amazing), we went to the Boone Saloon with some of Ashley's friends who were in town for the night. We were sitting around drinking beer when friend Megan noticed a guy sulking in the corner. She looked at him for a few seconds, and then walked straight up to him and said, You are trying to get rid of the hiccups, aren't you?

How she knew this I have no idea. I was amazed. He said, Yes I am. She said, I know how to get rid of the hiccups. Do you trust me? Dangerous question from a stranger, I might add. He said, Yes.

Picture this if you will: One girl plugging his nose. Another girl with a finger in each of his ears. And the Hiccup man chugging an entire bottle of water. And Ashley and I falling out of our chairs laughing. But as you can probably guess by now, it worked. He no longer had the hiccups.

He came over to our table and said, Man, I'm not drunk or anything. I have only had 3 beers and f***ing got the bummer hiccups!!! I probably look like a dumbass but I'm not even drunk! I hate the bummer hiccups! I thought to myself, Well no, you looked like a dumbass with 2 girls plugging your ears and nose, but that's neither here nor there. Point in fact, he actually was not drunk. I asked, Bummer hiccups? He said, Yeah, you know, when the hiccups sneak up on you when you aren't even drunk.

Bummer hiccups. New term, folks. Has that ever happened to you? I can relate. I hate the bummer hiccups. They suck bigtime.

But I love hippie soap!

Random things from random days.

2008-10-13T06:28:00.003-07:00

Hello. I decided to write a hybrid blog today. I feel like I have written a lot since I have been here, and wanted to post of few of my journal entries from some different days...hopefully you'll find one or two or all or none of them interesting. Hopefully I don't offend anyone! Enjoy.
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9/11/08
Mix.
This town is weird. Pretty much in every way possible. But in it's own cool way. Take for instance the new Guinness World Record Boone just set for “Most People Dressed like Daniel Boone in the Same Place” about 2 weeks ago. Over 400 people looking like Daniel Boone. In one place. Strange. Then there is the wacky mix of locals vs. ASU students. A town full of country hicks vs. a town full of eccentrics. Hippies, freaks, gays, straights, normals, creative minds, country boys all fill up this crazy little town called Boone. It is an awesome, eclectic mix. I have not seen anything like it! It is random, cool, trying to break out of the 70's and into the new
millennium, but also being a funky old mountain town at the same time. There is golf, moutain biking, rafting skiing, running, and fishing for outdoor activities, to name a few. There are good places to eat (CHIK FIL A), great coffee shops, and a few good bars (and a LOT of real crappy ones). Just stay away from Klondike Bar is what I hear. I'm more of a Boone Saloon guy.

All this to say I feel slightly weird here. A little out of place. I talk different, dress different, think different and act different. Not that it is a bad thing; just weird. I’ve never really felt this way before. San Diego, Salem, Bend – there has always been a 'place' for me. This sounds like a pity party – it’s not! Just an observation. I can handle it, I can adapt. I can grow a beard and wear funny clothes too!
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9/23/08
Nothing.
I don’t have much to say today really. I bought a car though, so that’s nice. 2000 GMC Blue Jimmy, who will from now on be referred to as “Jim”. You know exaclty which car I'm talking about, because you used to see them everywhere. Now I have one. Jim runs ok – needs new tires and a wash big time. The doors are kind of broken, the A/C doesn't work, and the gas gague is broken…but he’s getting a detailing tomorrow, so hopefully he’ll make it out alive. My dream of the Craigs List Land Rover that I had been lusting over for 2 weeks ended for 2 reasons. First, I’m impatient. I jumped the gun because I hadn't heard back from the owner. And because I wanted a car. Secondly, it was probably a fraud. Oh well.
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9/24/08
Stereotypes and Starbucks.
I was thinking those things in the shower this morning for some reason. My thought: People who drink Starbucks are generaly stereotyped as being “rich, affluent, ‘with it’, in the know, cool”. At least in my feeble mind. When I see someone walk around with a Starbucks cup I think they are cool and proud of what they are drinking. I think they have their life together. I think that I want one too. When I see someone walk around drinking out of a McDonalds cup, I think they are cheap. Why is that? Why does that little cup make all the difference? I think that is interesting. Maybe Starbucks has brainwashed the world somehow and made us all think that their cups and coffee and things are so much better than anything the world has to offer. Maybe they have drugged the espresso. Who knows? I mean there has been all sorts of coffee studies – the blind taste tests and what not. And it seems that Starbucks never wins. McDonald's always does. Or Seattle's Best. But never Starbucks. So why does it all rest on the cop that we carry? What if they did "cup studies" like they do coffee studies? Personal image studies?
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10/02/08
More thoughts.
I really thought that my windows were going to blow in last night and that I was going to die. It was incredibly windy and stormy, just without the rain. I couldn’t believe it. I felt like a tornado was lurking right outside my 2nd story crappartment. I have never heard anything like this before; it was not as awe-inspiring as I thought it would be. It was more scary than anything else.
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10/10/08
Tradition.
I like tradition. Ritual is different than tradition in my eyes. Ritual seems very religious to me, as opposed to tradition, which is just something you do because that’s all you know or because it’s fun to keep something going. I have a tradition with Katie (Myers) Selbak. We have been participating in this tradition for at least 10 years…maybe even a few more. It started with me – for whatever reason – giving her a card and a single rose for her birthday, which is exactly one week before mine. (Her birthday is today, by the way). To my great surprise, she did the exact same thing for me on my birthday, and I really liked it. The greatest part about this is that neither of us has missed one single rose giving. And she has lived in Corvallis, Salem, and Portland, and I have lived in San Diego, Salem, and Bend for our respective birthdays. I got the rose issue taken care of this year thru her dad, Bob. I am wondering how she’ll figure out how to deliver a rose to Boone…

Other traditions I like in recent years (in no particular order): playing cards with the guys, Fantasy Basketball, drawing cards to see who has to be the “DD” at Christmas at Grandma’s house (Carrie has lost 3 years in a row!!), golf with Wade, the Annual Black Butte trips, Big Town Hero when visiting Salem (Court Street too, for that matter), the birthday cutting cake knife that Uncle Jim made (great story!!), the car races at Grandma’s, $35 in the mail from Grandma on our birthday (no more, no less, ever), the 4 games of cards dad and I always play (Spades, Gin, Crazy 8’s, Casino), and Battle at Bandon (ie Jacobs Cup). I can’t think of any more right now, but I really do like traditions.
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More to come later...thanks for reading!
Happy birthday to: Lauren Dalton, Bryan Maletis, Andrew Vijarro.
Have a great day!
Alex

Fall

2008-10-09T07:00:00.000-07:00

The leaves are changing here in Boone. They started the inevitable process about 10 das ago, and it is quite a sight, really. There are so many trees here it is ridiculous, but it is nice because it reminds me of The Valley. But these trees are different. Not as many Doug Firs – if any – and no aspens (like Bend). There are conifers and some pines, and lots of leafy ones that create what looks like a painter’s palate on a mountainside. They are woven into the mountainside as God knew exactly what He was doing when they were planted or grew or however they got there.

I am looking at this huge hill right now, and there has got to be at least 20 different colored trees on it. There are 4 shades of red, 3 yellows, a few oranges, and lots of greens. No pink or blue or black, thank goodness. Fall has a distinct color to it I feel like. I wouldn't call it pastels, but it is something like that. Of course, pastels don’t greens I don’t think. But that’s neither here nor there. Anyway, I feel like looking at this hill is reminding me of something familiar, and making me feel connected somehow. Maybe it is because I am used to the leaves changing so vividly every year. Or maybe it is because I expect it, and if it didn’t happen then I wouldn’t feel like I belong where I am. I would feel out of place and not myself.

Maybe that’s why I didn’t really like San Diego. The leaves didn’t change, and there was no fall. Or winter, or spring, for that matter. It was all the same all the time. And I felt trapped in this strange serenity. Some people love that and will never leave. But not in Bend, or Boone, or Salem. Things change and change is good. Changes stirs up something in people, for better or worse. It seems like attitudes change and mindsets shift or something, but something happens when the leaves change. And I like it.

Humorous Correspondence

2008-10-07T12:41:00.000-07:00

Every day in my junk email I receive something from "prayermanager", which is mail from "Liveprayer.com". It was founded by Bill Keller. I had an interesting correspondence with them this morning about his thoughts on "The Shack". Have you read it? It is pretty good. It also has stirred up some controversy lately regarding the author's thoughts on God. The following is my emails back and forth. This post is VERY long!! Just a fair warning!!

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10/07/08 Daily Devotional. "The Shack" is NOT a Christian novel, but simply more New Age heresy. Things have not really changed since the first days of the church over 2,000 years ago. One of the problems Paul dealt with often were those who perverted the Absolute Truth of the Bible with writings that purported to be Christian. All throughout these past 2,000 years men have written books about the Christian faith that compromised the Truth of the Bible. We have never been so ripe for these types of heretical books as in the year 2008, with the better part of 2 generations having never even gone to church and the large percentage of those who do, being Biblically illiterate. So it is no wonder that a huge best selling "Christian novel," "The Shack," is the latest in a long line of heretical books promoting anti-Biblical ideas.
William P. Young, the author of "The Shack," is the son of missionaries whose dad also pastored churches in Canada. He went to Bible College and later graduated with an undergraduate degree in Religion from Warner Pacific College in Portland, Oregon. However, there is absolutely no information available on his theology. "The Shack" is an allegorical fictional novel.
It conveys postmodern spiritual ideas and teachings that challenge Biblical Christianity, all in the name of God and Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
Much like New Age author James Redfield's book "The Celestine Prophecy,"
"The Shack" is a fictional vehicle for upending certain Biblical concepts and presenting contrary spiritual scenarios. Young's book moves through a very engaging and emotional story to eventually present the New Age teaching that God is "in" everything. God is not "in" everyone and everything. The Bible makes it clear that man is not divine and that man is not God!
"The Shack" presents many of the same New Age concepts and ideas that plague the controversial Bible paraphrase The Message, written by Eugene Peterson who enthusiastically endorsed "The Shack," as well as Rhonda Byrne's "The Secret" that I warned you about years ago and was heavily promoted by the queen of the New Age gurus Oprah, New Age leader Benjamin Cr me's, "The Reappearance of the Christ and the Masters of Wisdom," and New Age matriarch Alice Bailey, in her book "The Reappearance of the Christ."
This "God in everything" immanence is why The Shack is such a deceptive book. It teaches this same heresy. This is most apparent when he uses the person of "Jesus" to suddenly introduce the foundational teaching of the New Spirituality, God is "in" everything. Using the New Age term "ground of being" to describe "God," the "Jesus" of The Shack states: "God, who is the ground of all being, dwells in, around, and through all things.." (p. 112)
This false teaching about a "God" who "dwells in, around, and through all things" is the kind of New Age leaven that Paul warned about. Clearly, the "Jesus" of The Shack is not Jesus Christ of the Bible. The apostle Paul warned the Corinthians that they were vulnerable and extremely susceptible to "another Jesus" and "another gospel" and "another spirit" that were not from God (2 Corinthians 2:11).
In the Bible, Jesus warned that spiritual deception would be a sign before His return. He further warned that there would be those who would even come in His name, pretending to be Him (Matthew 24:3-5;24). William Young's mixing of truth and error can become very confusing to readers, and God is not the author of confusion (I Corinthians 14:33).
We are living in such perilous times and satan is busy using tools like "The Shack" to lead people astray, many searching for real truth in their lives.
This is why I am like a broken record every day to challenge people to get out into the world and take the REAL TRUTH of the Bible to people. They are hurting, looking for answers. Why do you think books like this are so popular? It doesn't help when you have people like Pat Robertson featuring Young on The 700 Club, not to rebuke or chastise his New Age concepts, but to promote his book.
This is why I come down so hard on cotton candy preachers like Osteen, expose Masonic cult member Robert Schuller who promotes many of these same New Age concepts and even sells New Age garbage in his crystal church's bookstore, warn you about these watered down, compromised seeker/purpose driven/emergent church movements geared to attract bodies and not souls.
People are looking for life changing answers, and the ONLY place they will find those answers are in the Bible!!!
Listen, there is SO much material out there. My word of wisdom for you today is this. First, know who the author is. Research them and find out what their theology is. If you can't find it, STAY AWAY! You wouldn't go to a stranger for open heart surgery, why look for Biblical Truth from someone you don't even know. If the book isn't tied to Scripture, have any sort of Scriptural references (from credible translations and not these perverted paraphrase Bibles), STAY AWAY! I don't care how clever man thinks he is, there is no substitution for the Word of God!!! It is the ONLY Truth there is that can truly change hearts and lives.
I love you and care about you so much. "The Shack" has touched the hearts and emotions of many people. While there are many other examples of the author's unbiblical teachings, the heretical New Age concept that "God dwells in, and around, and through all things" is in and by itself enough to make this book dangerous. To allow yourself to get carried away by this story, while disregarding the book's New Age concepts, is the kind of compromise that has invaded the church today.
I have learned over these many years of ministry to be very leery of anything that is embraced by the world and becomes wildly popular by the masses. The fact is, the pure Truth of the Bible is NOT something this lost world gravitates to. They want something that feels good, makes them happy for a moment, helps them through a difficult time, without making any real commitment or sacrifice in return. That is why the spiritual crack of our day, these New Age teachings are so popular. Sacrifice and service don't sell, success and satisfaction does!!!
I will be praying for those who are caught up in "The Shack," that the Lord will put the right people in their lives to help guide them to the real Truth of His Word.
Know that I am praying for you, be richly blessed,
Bill Keller
Founder liveprayer.com
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(My email back to Bill)
Hello Mr. Keller.
I am a little perturbed at your daily devotional “lesson” today. Having read “The Shack” for what it is – a work of fiction – I thought you were too tough of a critic and certainly very biased. And at times, not scripturally based yourself.
I have met Paul Young, and have talked with him about his book. These aren't his exact thoughts, they are mine. But he is a very down to earth follower of Christ, like yourself. His intentions were good in writing this book. A few points you might find interesting:
1) This fictional book was meant as a story for his kids, not as a “New Age Heresy”. There was no intent for this to be a “Christian novel”, as you claim it is. Sure you might find it in the Christian section of Borders just because it has the word “God” in it, but it was written for his children as a fictional novel. It was not written as a “vehicle for upending certain biblical concepts”.
2) Romans 8:10-12 reads: But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. And the spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies thru His spirit, who lives in you. I guess I am a little confused by your train of thought that Jesus does not live in us once we hand our lives over to Him. That’s what giving our lives to Christ is – salvation – a relationship with the God head three in one. In every translation that I found of that passage there is some mention of Christ either “living in us” or “dwelling in us” or “taking up residence in us”.
3) Jesus of “the Shack” is clearly not the Jesus Christ of the bible. No kidding. He wasn’t meant to be. It is a fictional book!
4) God is the “ground of all being”. Please see Genesis 1.
5) God created everything and dwells in us once we give our lives to him. He is omnipotent. Or am I off base here?
If you could please explain your train of thinking scripturally I would be opening to hearing it. I believe in a God who walks in this life with me, not one who sits on a throne a dictates what is happening. I believe that Jesus and the Holy Spirit live in me and give me wisdom and guidance and comfort (Proverbs), and I did not learn this from “The Shack”.
I also don’t think that Satan is using this book for his purposes. I also don’t believe that God is using it to bring people to salvation. I believe the book is creating good, however. I believe that “The Shack” is making people at least think about God, and think that if there is something else out there that is greater than them, and better than them, that they might look in to it. And THAT is good. That is not evil.
Comparing Paul Young to Joseph Smith is a little bit of a cheap shot, don’t you think? He’s just a guy who wrote a fictional book, not a guy who created a cult.
I will be praying for you too, Bill.
Sincerely,
Alex Casebeer
PS What are some “many examples of the author’s unbiblical teachings”? Would you please send them to me? I would like to know.
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(response)
it is Biblically illiterate folks like yourself who make marketing such garbage so easy...go do some homework my friend..type in The Shack heresy..and you can do the research for yourself..it is dangerous..and if the author didn't do it intentionally..he out of sheer ignorance..created a book that is leading people AWAY form the true Christ..and into New Age teachings from hell..you are right..I am biased..for the TRUTH of the Bible..period..
Know that I am praying for you, be richly blessed,
Bill Keller
Founder, http://www.liveprayer.com/
________
(me)
You failed to answer any of my questions.
Or respond to any of my facts or points I made. Genesis 1? Romans? Anything?
Instead of attacking me, maybe, just maybe we can have a conversation. Feel free to call.
Alex
503.569.3135
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listen...Dr. Keller gets over 40,000 emails a DAY..most are for prayer..there are 700 of here who answer them...we are a prayer ministry..over 2.4 MILLION people worldwide read what Dr. Keller writes every day..we don't ahve time for "conversations" with everyone who agrees or disagrees with what he writes..if you want to defend this heretical garbage..knock yourself out..sadly..this is the state of the church today..people defending anti-Biblical works,,my suggestion..go spend some time with God..and a real book..the BIBLE
Know that I am praying for you, be richly blessed,
Bill Keller
Founder, http://www.liveprayer.com/
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(me)
Dear nameless:
Such a loving and welcoming “ministry” you have! It sure makes me want to keep reading what Bill writes! Is this how you respond to everyone?
As “people of a prayer ministry”, maybe adopting a little more loving attitude would benefit all 700 of you…and the 2.4 million readers.
Well, 2,399,999 now. You just lost one of them.
Hold on I have a prayer request!! Can you pray that I continue to seek and follow God’s will for my life?
Thank you,
Alex
_________
it is your loss..not ours..but I will pray the Lord gives you better discernment..
Know that I am praying for you, be richly blessed,
Bill Keller
Founder, http://www.liveprayer.com/
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Dear the one who has no name:
Aren’t we trying to win hearts for the Kingdom? Win hearts for the Love of God? Save souls that are lost and have no hope?
I didn’t ask for prayer for discernment! But thanks anyway, discernment is good.

This time I would like prayer for discipline. Sometimes I struggle with having quiet times every day, and need to do a better job at that.
Thank you,
Alex
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winning souls is what we do here every day..not with New Age garbage like the Shack..but the BIBLE..be blessed..
Know that I am praying for you, be richly blessed,
Bill Keller
Founder, http://www.liveprayer.com/
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Dear Unknown:
I am glad you win souls every day! I’m a little disappointed that you didn’t try harder with me. I feel attacked and disrespected! But I didn’t say that I win souls with The Shack. I use the Bible too, just like you!
But as you instructed me, I will be blessed. I feel blessed every day already! Do you have any prayer requests? I would like to pray for you directly.
Know that I am praying for you, be richly blessed,
Alex Casebeer
Matthew 5:44
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be blessed..
Know that I am praying for you, be richly blessed,
Bill Keller
Founder, http://www.liveprayer.com/
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Booooo!!! Are you done? I still have questions unanswered!
Alex
______
LOL..no..done wasting my time..what a tool you are..
Know that I am praying for you, be richly blessed,
Bill Keller
Founder, http://www.liveprayer.com/
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I am shocked.
How can you be so bitter and unfriendly and work for a ministry? Just doesn’t make sense to me. And it is a horrible representation of the person and character of Jesus Christ. You really should do some bible reading yourself!
Know that I am praying for you, be richly blessed,
Alex Casebeer
Matthew 5:44
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LOL!!!..you defend new age garbage and want to be taken seriously..give me a break..move on son...
Know that I am praying for you, be richly blessed,
Bill Keller
Founder, http://www.liveprayer.com/
________
New Age Garbage New Age Garbage…..Nameless, I wish you would use your own words and thoughts and ideas instead of living out of the back pocket of Big Bad Bill Keller! Hold on let me count the times you used the phrase “New Age Garbage” in our “conversations”………..............counting….........……..4 times!! And I really didn’t even defend "The Shack"...just asked for responses to Bill’s “devotional” – which you, or he, never gave!
Thanks for the advice, dad.
Know that I am praying for you, be richly blessed,
Alex Casebeer
Matthew 5:44
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no ..your daddy is clearly satan...run along before a house falls on you
Know that I am praying for you, be richly blessed,
Bill Keller
Founder, http://www.liveprayer.com/
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Dear nameless person:
What is this, the Wizard of Oz? Houses don’t fall on people like they did on Dorothy!! Clearly you don’t have anything better to do than attack me, who was just searching for some simple answers from a devotional that your boss wrote. I didn’t realize that it would be this hard!
I hope you have found as much enjoyment in our conversations as I have!
Regards,
Alex
__________________
There you have it. I found it to be rather interesting, and funny, and tragic. But needless to say, I guess I'll stop reading Daily Devotional now...
Thanks for reading, if you made it this far! More to come later from Boone...they all won't be this long, I promise!!!

Alex