He-Man vs Chuck Norris

Does anyone know, at what point in your life you start to become skeptical? My theory puts that point at about 24 to 36 months (started referencing in terms of months after my trip to baby gap).

When you were two (give or take a few months) and your parents introduced the concept of sharing, I think the majority of us became skeptical. Your mom or dad asked you to share with whomever and at that precise moment your brow crinkled up for the first time. You might not have said "wait a minute" but you were thinking, "wait a second, explain that again, I have to play with the CHUCK NORRIS doll because the kid YOU invited over wants to play with my HE-MAN action figure".

There is nothing profound about pointing out that the basic principles of sharing suggest that you will have less than if you didn't have to share at all. Whether it be less toys to play with, less cookies to eat or less space to live if someone else is around you are not going to get as much. I am speaking of only tangible objects of course.

You might have a little less room on the couch when you share it with your loved one for a Sunday afternoon nap but you can't argue that those thirty minutes would have been better by yourself. Just the same, few things beat the feeling you get when you share a moment or event in your life with the people or person you love.

Altruism is defined as: the unselfish regard or devotion to the welfare of others, or behavior by an animal that is not beneficial to or may be harmful to itself but benefits others of its species. Many disagree with the fundamentals of altruism, they argue the idea is flawed, EVERY action an animal makes, regardless of how selfless it may appear is done for its OWN survival or peace of mind.

Though provoking arguments can be made against altruism, anyone who firmly believes it doesn't exist, really hated Chuck Norris as a child.

Our experience was enhanced sharing the moment we learned whom our new addition was. We look forward to the first time Pierce Zachery Hernandez crinkles his brow and we can't hardly wait to share many more events with all of you who read this blog (I am up to five faithful followers now, yippee!).

Legion Grey

Know, that while we have not lived down the block from each other in quite some time, we are just as close. There are few that I respect, more than you.

I Look forward to the day when our women are watching our children play so that we can share a highball and smoke a couple of cigars while watching the sequel to Ravenous.

Be Safe and we'll see you soon...

Cattle

Charcoal vs Propane

Depending on which website you visit, the Earth cruises along at about 1000 mph. We hear and use many expressions about time; "time flies when you are having fun", "this year is flying by"," "where has this month gone"?

I sometimes wonder if time "flew" at the beginning of time? Did Caveman sit around the proverbial fire and grunt to themselves about how "the year had just got away from them"? Did time fly when they were foraging for nuts and shelter or killing saber tooth tigers with sticks. Did Romans feel like life was zipping along after exiting the Colosseo? I can't imagine anyone thinking to themselves during the Dust Bowl or the 1930s in general that life was a breeze?

The distractions in today's 4G world make it difficult to stop and smell the roses sometimes. How can we get information faster. We faxed, emailed, now we text. We download any information that we want in less than 10 seconds. With everyone trying to figure out how to speed things up, lost is the practice of appreciating the small things.

Most will agree that the taste of food grilled using charcoal is superior to that prepared over propane. Why then would we use propane? The answer is simply that it's faster and more convenient. The quality sacrificed is probably minimal but it speaks to my larger point. Besides the food being amazing, as a child, I loved when we grilled because I got to spend time with my Dad. While the coals were burning, we played. We threw the football or the baseball or my parents just watched us ride our bikes and play.

It is probably natural to come to the realization at one point in your life that time is precious. I am sure that realization correlates with prioritizing your life. When one arrives at the precipice, deciding on who and what is most important in their life, that is when time will cease to matter in the figurative sense. As long as you figure out those variables, you'll be able to live in the moment and focus your energy on the important things.

Figuring "it" out will probably not keep us from one day starting a sentence with "it seems like only yesterday.....", hopefully though, when your last breath is exiting your body, you'll exhale knowing that you didn't sacrifice too many of the important moments.

Home and Garden

As we travel down the road of our lives we pass certain mile markers. Some of these markers, we are very proud of: graduating from high school/college, marriage, buying a house, all come to mind. I recently experienced a new level of grownup-ness that left me in a cloud of confusion that I am still trying to sort through.

I've had conversations before about "adult" moments. Adult moments occur when you are transitioning from young adulthood to a fully independent adult. Often times you have this realization that you are not a kid anymore because you have to sacrifice a recreational act for a more responsible one.

One of my most memorable adult moments came when I was paying bills and watching a favorite childhood movie. I don't remember what was going through my mind when I watched the movie BIG for the first time, (I was ten years old) I can tell you with 100% certainty that I was not thinking the next time I watched this movie I would be writing a check to the water company 12 years later. That was an "adult" moment!

There have been countless more since then. The first time you go to bed at 9:30 is always a tough pill to swallow. Aches and pains after physical activity are depressing. Shopping for health insurance and for some reason buying mulch or fertilizer is always a sobering experience.

This current event/ experience was an adult moment to the 3rd power. It took place April 11 at Heritage Hall inside the famed Rupp Arena. The event: The 35th annual Home and Garden Show. My better half and I have committed to a more spontaneous, more outgoing schedule this spring/summer (while we have the opportunity). Our attendance WAS a spontaneous act, discussed and decided, while reading the Sunday paper (adult moment), that morning on the patio of our new favorite brunch spot "Doodles". It is an important detail to note because we did not anticipate attending this event, this was not a "Dave Matthews Concert" that was circled on the calender months in advance.

First of all, I expected a lot more garden and a lot less booths involving the latest and greatest fruit cutting technology. As soon as we walked in to Heritage Hall, I realized that our sanity for the remainder of the day was going to depend on navigating through the crowd and vendors in the least amount of time while spending least amount of money.

As I stood watching the presentation of the all new versa grater, (which grates countless different cheeses and peppers) it hit me, "I just passed a new mile marker". I am not ashamed of seeing the appeal in the latest foam insulation technology, or wanting a Pergola and new Patio area. I don't want a hundred different garden flags but trellises are cool.

At the end of the day, I was 24 hours older but felt like I aged ten years and I am comfortable with that. I came to the realization that I acted ten years older than I am around age 11, when I bought a short sleeved button down shirt with my OWN money (don't worry Linda, it was on sale). The Home and Garden Show was just another button down shirt....

Good, Better, Best

The circumstances under which one discovers they are going to be a parent vary. From surprise to mild planning to obsessive charts and graphs, the possibilities stretch to the moon and back and probably back again.

I can't speak for everyone, sometimes I am guilty of over thinking the room, (buying a lawnmower comes to mind as an example). When I found out that I was going to hold the most important title a man can ever have, my heart and my brain went to a level of elation and concern that I have never experienced before. I mentioned on a few occasions that I didn't exactly know which adjective to describe how I felt because my emotions ran the gamut.

The news is now eighteen weeks old and I have had an adequate amount of time to wrap my thoughts around our little "sweet potato". While I've had the time to think about the soon to be new Hernandez, I have also taken an equal amount of time to examine myself. I have toiled over how or what I need to do to be everything that my family needs me to be. How can I be BETTER for all of us? I'll spare you the details on how I am planning on adapting. I will say that I can certainly do a better job of not feeling like I have to be in control of everything.

I've envisioned his/her birth, birthdays, bike rides, tee ball, bedtime stories heck I've already seen the kid graduate a couple of times! While I know that all of those things will come faster than I would like, as long as our family navigates this world and this life in an orb of love and communication than we'll come out on top more than we are at the bottom. I am going to my BEST to make sure that we are not at the bottom (literally and figuratively)....