When you hear the phrase “memory lane,” you immediately think of just about anything special from the days gone by.  Whether it’s old times with friends, classic cars, your high school prom, retro sports heroes, or special moments with family. Just about everything from the past classifies, right?   Okay, let me throw this one at you.

As I was traveling through North Carolina earlier today, my trip took me into a small, humble little town, replete with cotton fields, a country store and a farm-type home on every corner.  Then as I pulled up close to a 4-Way stop, I looked to my right and I saw a road sign that read, Memory Lane.  “Pretty cool” I thought, especially since it Dead Ends onto someone’s property.  Then, almost immediately I did a double-take and the whole thing jumped right up into my face, in a freaky sort of way.

As I looked over towards the sweet little road called Memory Lane, I see a graveyard.  Yep, a graveyard, right beside of the house.  Don’t get me wrong, but graveyards on peoples private properties were very common throughout the19th and early to mid 20th centuries here in the US, but on a road called Memory Lane? And with a sign that reads Dead End on the other side? 

No joke.  If you were to turn into, or walk straight down this short 50ft long road, you would be greeted by a sign that says Memory Lane on the right, and a big yellow and black sign on the left that says Dead End, only to walk right into a small cemetery.  

Is that not messed up?  

KNOXVILLE, TN - A Morgan County jury deliberated just 20 minutes Thursday before convicting a man of the aggravated rape on Easter Sunday 2007 of a 90-year-old woman who is still recovering from injuries she sustained in the attack.

There's no need to post the rest of the article, that's enough for me!  That is so beyond disgusting I don't know whether to cry, puke, scratch my own eyes out or do all three!

90 years old! NINETY YEARS!!! That's one decade shy of a century and this is how she gets treated.  Are you kidding me?  And ANY person who wants to argue against capital punishment for crimes other than murder needs to take a long look at their own soul. 

I think this scumbag needs to be tossed into a large room along with a few hundred child molesters while someone pumps it full of cyanide gas! Problem solved!!!

Today, this July 4th 2009, I come with the sad news that former Tennessee Titans Quarterback Steve McNair has been found shot to death in his Nashville, TN condominium along with a 20 year old female who was also found dead.

This is particularly hard for me.  I not only live in Tennessee, but I am a huge Football fan, and Steve McNair was my guy. 

Much like Peyton Manning while in college with the UT Vols, anytime Steve McNair was on the field and the Titans were trailing during the 4th quarter, you never left the game/television set.  Why?  Because you just knew a late comeback was in order, and 99% of the time Steve McNair came through with the win.

Call me crazy, but this is the worst I’ve felt since the death of Elvis Presley when I was just a young 8 year old boy learning to play guitar, and my world was rattled to the core when I learned that The King of Rock-n-Roll had died.

Whatever the cause or outcome, I don’t want to judge, but rather remember Steve McNair for all of the excitement and joy that he brought to me and my life every Sunday afternoon, and especially that one special Sunday evening better known as Super Bowl XXXIV.  Steve McNair was 36 years old.

Thanks for the memories Steve and may you,
Rest In Peace
February 14, 1973 – July 4, 2009

As most of you already know, there’s a war going on between late night talk show host David Letterman and former Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin.  The war/spat comes after Letterman's pedophile like remarks regarding Palins 14 year old daughter in which Letterman stated, "One awkward moment for Sarah Palin at the Yankee game, during the seventh inning, her daughter was knocked up by Alex Rodriguez."


Are you kidding me?  A man of Letterman's stature and he stoops to that level?  Actually, stooping for Letterman would be the equivalent of crawling into a hole.  Letterman is not funny and he never has been, in fact, Letterman is a prime example of a sorry ass who routinely preys upon good people’s weaknesses to make his on pathetic life seem better.  And what about Obama’s, “family is off limits” comment during the elections?  One sided eh? 


I look at it like this.  At least Palin’s daughters still have their whole lives in front of them with a chance to become whatever they want, even if one of them is already a mother at a young age.  Look at the extreme left.  Here we have former President Bill Clinton - former (and possibly current)cocaine abuser, womanizer and adulterer.  Next we have the Kennedy’s in a nutshell.  Womanizers, rapists, alcoholics, drug abusers, tax evaders (yes, sweet Caroline is now making the Kennedys proud) and who knows what else?


Although I stand as a moderate, I am becoming increasingly sickened by the left-wing nut jobs in this Country.  They commit acts of violence against everyone, from people who hunts to put food on their family table, to people buying a leather wallet or purses, yet they condone and support aborting a human life.  Where’s the sensible reasoning in that?  It’s okay for a woman who’s been out sleeping with every mothers son to use abortion as a form of birth control, but a man down on his luck can put venison on the table for his family to eat?


I’m a realist here.  I don’t look at the world through rose colored glasses, I look at it with clear 20/20 vision, and what I see is sickening.  There’s been a 180 degree turn that’s taking this Country to the fast lane of destruction.  Our socialist President is bowing to Arab leaders and acting as an apologist for America rather than a leader.  He’s even gone as far as to cease control of numerous institutional entities via his “economic stimulus bail out plan.”   Hey, before you know it we’ll have government health care, government made cars, groceries etc, etc.  Just like Clinton’s “everyone deserves their own home” thing.  Hell, we don’t even need to think for ourselves anymore because Obama and his cronies have everything we need.  By-the-way, if it wasn’t for Bill Clinton giving welfare crack hoes, pimps, white trash and so on, low interest, no money down home loans, we wouldn’t be in quite the housing industry mess that we’re in now.  Hell we all can afford zero down, that way it’s easier to walk away from.   Now that’s frugal thinking from THE LEFT!

The bottom line is this:  WE NEED A PRESIDENT!!!  NOT some token merely playing the role of #1 White House goon!  And unfortunately Barack Hussein Obama is just that - a knee-jerk-vote-into-office goon who needs to get his senses straight.

If you want to see and/or hear a bi-partisan take on torture, then just listen:  Actually,  Chuck Schumer is an Obama Democrat.



With that said:  I still do not believe that water boarding is torture.  It might just freak the terrorist the hell out, but it certainly is NOT torture!

And to think, I have been willing to give Mr. Obama a chance, but he just keeps living up to his low expectations.   This is a good example of why not to vote with anger and passion, but rather to use good judgment and common sense when electing a President of the United States of America!

Sorry if I offended anyone - NOT!   Oh yeah, we don't need to wait for a dirty bomb or a nuclear device to be planted in an American city to water board some terrorist freak!  Let's get it done before a device of that nature makes it here.

As they say, the Apple Banana doesn’t fall far from the tree. Yep, back in 2001 the mother of Travis the Chimp, Suzy, also went on a rage filled escapade in the tiny town of Festus, MO.
 
Hmm, we’re a decade into the new millennium, and you’d think that research of wild animals, along with previous behavioral patterns and such, would’ve given a good benchmark on how to handle a wild animal such as a Chimpanzee. I know what you’re going to say, “oh, Chimps are sweet and lovable, just like family.” Well, yes and no. Chimps are still wild animals that needs to be taken seriously. With that said, some tea and xanax may not have the same effects on a Chimp that it would on a human.
 
Tea and xanax? Okay, against popular belief, the drugs xanax and Valium don’t always induce a calm state. Sometimes they have the opposite effect and cause irritability, agitation and rage. Also, listen closely to the clip. These animals can really do some damage. When they fight, it’s for real, even going as far as to dismember their victim, which is usually another Chimp during one of their rituals.
 
As tragic and crazy as this was, it still doesn’t answer the question: Is it really a good idea to take a wild animal and keep it captive as a pet? I say no, but you may have other ideas.
 
Just listen to the 911 call, it’s crazy!  

 

Here’s something pretty crazy I thought I’d share:

As a former Personal Fitness Trainer of more than a decade, I knew better. I knew better than what you ask?  Eating a horrendous amount of potato chips and other fatty foods while busy playing my guitar and blogging before bed. Oh and let’s not forget the cold Moosehead beer or shot of whiskey on the rocks.

Luckily I am from a hereditarily small to medium sized family, and the weight I gained was unnoticeable, (except to me) but man you won’t believe the calories and fat I consumed. Here goes:

I was routinely eating as little as 4.oz to as many as 8 or 9.oz of Wavy Lays chips every evening while writing and playing my guitar. Are you freaking kidding me? If you do the math that is NUTS! At 150 calories per ounce and a whopping 10 grams of fat per ounce, I was consuming between 600 calories and 40 grams of fat, to as much as 1350 calories and 90 grams of fat, all in a span of 3 hours EACH night! DAMNIT, that is totally insane!

That right there is an example of how fat and calories add up. Now I am getting/eating a 1 to 1.5 .oz serving of pretzels which happen to be naturally fat free, (or close) and 1 table spoon of Ranch dressing. That’s a total of 170 calories and 7 grams of fat, and I never eat all of the Ranch or pretzels. And even by the lowest figures I am eating 430 calories and 33 grams of fat less than before.

As a Personal Trainer, this was the type of thing I used to always do for anyone who asked. Most people, including myself, were always shocked at what we were putting into our bodies.

So, are you overdoing it?  If you need any advice or have information of your own to help someone, then please leave it here or message me!  I can't imagine the yearly total on that stuff?

P.S. If you are wondering, I gained  12 lbs.  I went from 165 lbs to 177 lbs in 4 months.   And yes, I still enjoy a cold  (or two) or a straight up shot of CC or Jim Beam on the rocks!

This morning as I was preparing Sunday dinner for some friends and family, I ventured into my own world as I usually do. I like to call it “taking a trip without leaving home,” aka “day dreaming.”

Anyway, unlike many times before, this little day dream session cost me some food. Not paying attention, I forgot to drain the water from what was going to be a three cheese baked macaroni and cheese dish with seasoned buttery bread crumbs. It looked horrible!

The good thing is that I obviously caught the mistake, but what if I hadn’t? Would you have told me if you knew, or would you in some noble fashion try to spare my feelings? Let me say this: I hope you would’ve told me.

I ask because of a similar mistake that occurred with one of my family members several years ago when I was young. The only difference was that mine was made from scratch and the family member made theirs from the box. Three boxes in fact, and all three boxes were swimming in about 6 cups of water. Pardon my expression, but it looked like SHIT, and tasted even worse!

Yeah I said “tasted”. In my family everything was always, “hush hush.” It was either, “don’t say this because people might think,” or “it’s not polite to say this or that” etc. Do you know the type I’m talking about? So in family like fashion, I was made to endure a nice big serving of macaroni and cheese-water!

How dare they do that?! First of all, you are allowing friends, family, etc, to make an ass of themselves and suffer possible humiliation over their mistake. Secondly, why do that to a child? They’re not the family dog, they’re human just as you are aren’t they? Hell, I wouldn’t even feed my dogs a culinary debacle such as that. Oops, let me rephrase that because I don’t think that mac and cheese from the BOX counts as a culinary debacle, more like a stovetop brain-fart!

So, would you speak up and spare the person cooking it the embarrassment, or would you allow it to reach the table and just set back and watch everyone suffer? This can apply to anything and not just food.