Sometimes You Have To Go Back

Growing up in the GTA, I often dreamed about getting out. I am not a big city guy. I'd like to have some property attached to my house. You know have dirt jumps in the backyard, some trails through the woods, and a ride'em mower. I know some of you may think Barrie is still big city, but it's not.

Today I made the journey down the 400 to my old stompin' grounds in Mississauga. Everything was gravy, until I had to try to drive back to Barrie in rush hour. What was I thinking? I don't think I was. What normally takes just over an hour, ended up taking 2 and a half!

Glad I don't have to do THAT everyday.

Where Is Winter?

A couple weeks back I posted a blog about how I was wanting winter to arrive. Well, as of today (Nov 24) it doesn't appear to be coming. In fact, I heard on a Toronto news station today that they are predicting a mild, dry winter. Temperatures won't drop to the minus 30's and we'll see less snow than normal.


That means less shovelling.
Less pushing your car after it gets stuck in a ton of snow.
Less squinting through the windshield covered in road salt.
All good stuff right?


It also means less snow for the ski resorts.
Not good.


Besides, Christmas decorations always look better in the snow.

Hockey Fans In SoCal

Hockey fans in Southern California are CRAZY!

I hate to break it to these fans, but that's not even the stick he used in the game. I could go to Canadian Tire and get you that same stick for 10 bucks. Seriously.

What Matters More

Derek Webb stirs up trouble again...

Mangagement Rings

Mangagement Rings: An engagement ring worn by a man. Often worn by men in a relationship with a more progressive partner. Usually applies to heterosexual couples. Man + Engagement Ring= Mangagement ring

So the dude buys her a ring, asks her to marry him, and then they go pick out a(nother) ring for him to wear? I'm not digging it. Wedding rings I'm good with, but mangagement rings, not really a fan. That and promise rings.

What do you think?

Some Java Love

I love coffee.

No seriously, I LOVE coffee.

Crystal doesn't share my affection for the roasted arts, and so I have this special coffee maker that makes one cup at a time. You load the little (K) cup into the coffee maker and it spits out some seriously awesome stuff.

Yesterday my sister sent some new stuff down from Sudbury for me to try. "Perfect Peach." It is AMAZING!

For real, I'm almost out of stock. It's the perfect beverage. With breakfast. With lunch. With dinner.

Cheaper than Starbucks too!

We All Need That Somebody

I had the chance to sit down for lunch today with a friend that not only respect, but hadn't seen in a couple months. It was so good. Had the chance to talk about our summers, what's new in each of our lives and even spent some time dreaming about what the future could hold for each of us. I needed that. It's been a rough couple of months, and I really needed that encouragement. It's so easy to get caught in the rut of "life" and go through the daily grind without much thought. I needed that lunch today. I needed it to shake me from my malaise and reignite the dreamer within.

Do you have someone who challenges you to dream bigger and live more awake?

Rules Are Meant To Be Broken

I had a conversation with a friend last weekend about how they think I'm a rule breaker. I disagree, but it got me thinking... Are some people naturally wired as "rule-breakers"? Maybe they are. My brother was always a stickler for the rules. Everything had to be done by the book.

I don't like to break rules, I just break rules that don't have a logical explanation behind them. I like to know "why," and if the explanation isn't good enough, then the rule isn't good enough. There is no "Because I said so" in my mind. I like to work with logic.

For example: The cell phone law. I think it's dumb. The guy eating a Big Mac, driving with his knees and spilling special sauce all over his pants is more dangerous behind the wheel than I am on my phone. Conversely, smoking in the car with a baby in the back seat is not a good idea, no matter how you slice it. Some rules are good (no smoking with a baby in the car) and some rules are ridiculous (the new cellphone law).

Which one are you? A rule follower, or a rule breaker?

A Little Extra To Hug

The past couple of weeks have been tough. My schedule is all messed up, I find myself living in the office and I think I've hit the gym once (for a quick workout). I've been letting myself slide into a donut and pastry induced funk. Tomorrow I vow to get out. If I post it for everyone to see then I'll do it right? I hope so.

Switchfoot Is Back!

I've been looking forward to this new offering from Switchfoot ever since I heard they severed ties with Sony. You see Switchfoot's last independant cd was "The Beautiful Letdown," which also happens to be my favorite Switchfoot album to date. So I was expecting big things from the boys from San Diego, and they did not disappoint. I LOVE the new CD. It rocks while still throwing some tender moments our way, and it's a return to the Switchfoot I know and love.

Bravo Switchfoot! Another great album!

The Ultimate Marketing Campaign

You grab some chips, maybe a cold pop and sit down in front of the tube to watch the latest episode of The Office. The show is actually only about 24 minutes long, the other 6 minutes is made up of commercials. Now I love commercials as much... probably more than the next guy. (Especially if they are well done.)

It doesn't take much to notice there is some stiff competition going down between cell phone/tv/internet providers right now. You've got the 2 guys who keep running into each other and the poor dude on the blue network always get the raw end of the deal because a) he doesn't get service, or b) because his network is too slow. I'm not sure how much they paid for those ads, but this video has been making the rounds on the interweb and I don't think it has the same big marketing budget behind it.

Which is more effective? That's up to you to decide. But the balance of power has shifted. The consumer now has a voice, and you'd better be sure what they are saying is good. because what they say can spread much faster than a slick commercial campaign. You have been warned, the age of the consumer has arrived.

L-O-V-E

Saturday Night Live asked: What is Love? DC Talk taught us the Love is a Verb. Well, I decided to look up the meaning of "Love" (the verb) in the dictionary: "to have love or affection for." (I didn't think you could use the word to define it, but I digress.)

Over the last couple of years I have been to a TON of weddings. Some big, some small, all promising the same thing: Unconditional Love. It's like a fairy tale, from this point on the couple will ride off into the sunset, return to the castle and live happily ever after. I don't want to rain on any body's parade, but it seldom happens like this. Instead Prince Charming and Cinderella go home and fight over bills, the cost of Prince Charming's new chariot, Cinderella's outrageous bill from her spa day, etc.

I got an email from Crystal today saying that one of her friends (that got married less than 2 years ago) has left her husband. I think that runs the total of friends with failed marriages to 4 (at least since we tied the knot 3 years ago). To be honest, it sucks. I don't know why it happens, but everyone always says the same thing: "It's been like this for a while."

WELL THEN WHY DIDN'T YOU DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT?

It's not like you didn't see it coming.

Maybe I'm lucky. Crystal and I work opposite shifts and I work a lot of weekends, so we don't see enough of each other to fight. When we do get time together it's special. We're not together enough to get on each other's nerves.

I can't ever see myself leaving Crystal. She's the best thing that has ever happened to me. She makes me laugh even when I really don't want to. She makes me forget about whatever might be stressing me out or getting me down. She blows me away with how thoughtful she is. She makes me want to read my Bible and spend time in prayer. AND she is so incredibly talented that she brings home the biggest paycheck. (that's a shot to the male ego!)

I've heard the divorce rate is just as high among church-goers as it is among non-church-goers. Is that how it should be? Probably not, but we're all screwed up just the same. Doesn't matter if you go to church every Sunday or not, we're all messed up. You'd think that having God as the centre of the relationship would bode well for the success of the marriage, (and it probably does), but how many of us really have God at the centre? How many of us try to serve our spouse like Jesus would? Probably not many. I know that isn't case with my own marriage. Sure we try to put God first and serve each other, but sometimes selfish AJ comes out and he's not really into watching Extreme Home Makeover or taking the dog out to pee. Luckily I have a very patient wife, and we manage to work through problems when they come up.

I've been told to avoid using the word "never", but I can honestly say I am SO thankful for the gift I have been given in Crystal and I never want her to leave my side. She's the best thing that's happened to me, and I want her with me as I journey through life.

Funny The Way It Is

Funny the way it is... a friend moves out to Kelowna (my favorite city in Canada), I hang out at Jibfest on the weekend, yesterday Dave Stewart (from Righteous Riderz) joined me in studio, today we get our first snow of the year. All this has me thinking about how I would LOVE to take a week's vacay and head for the mountains. It's got me checking resort websites, scoping out flight and accomodation prices, and thinking who would be able to join me on a week-long getaway. It's likely just a pipe-dream, but a guy can dream can't he?

Who wouldn't want to live in Kelowna?

Itchin' To Ride

I had the chance to check out Jibfest at Georgian College on the weekend, and while I was there I met this dude named Dave Stewart. Dave is the head coach of a group called Righteous Riderz. Dave was in studio tonight to talk about the team, their beginnings, and his vision for what the program could become. All this talk about skiing has got me itching to ride again. Last night over dinner I looked outside and it was snowing, normally this would bum me out, but I got kind of excited about the winter season. True driving in the snow sucks, but winter also means hockey games and trips to Blue Mountain. (Both of which score highly in my books) So I say "Bring On The Snow!"

P.S. - Dave and the Righteous Riderz are out of Mount St Louis just north of Barrie.

P.P.S. - To get you extra stoked, watch this!