Horse Manure Park

I've come to the end of my seven night tour of duty and now I am enjoying "Freedom Monday." That's what I call every other Monday, as it is the beginning of seven days off and gives me a chance to be among the living for a little while. I started this particular Freedom Monday in typical fashion: enjoying an early morning Iguana in the garage with a Diet Coke while my loved ones slumber a few extra minutes. It hasn't been a bad week at work, at least not compared to some weeks, but I am ready to be off for a while. Seven consecutive nights may not sound like a lot, but it does get a little long. Still, I get those beautiful seven days off in return, so I won't cry too hard. It is starting to sputter snow now; I've heard we are supposed to get 1 to 3 inches of the white shit before it's all said and done. We shall see. Winter is no longer welcome here. I don't think I am alone in that sentiment. I will update again later in the week. I am sure I wil...

It is the end of a whirlwind week and now it is back to the grind. I hope my week at work goes as fast as this past week did. We saw a lot of highway this week, having traveled to St. Paul on Tuesday, back Wednesday... then to Bismarck, North Dakota on Friday and back Sunday. That's a lot of road time. Thank goodness the roads were good and our trips were safe. Also thank you to the Stokes' for letting us borrow their portable DVD player. Lesson One : I promised myself I would not buy a DVD player to entertain my child on long trips, but Phyllis didn't raise no fool. My philosophy has changed: I am not getting soft, I am taking advantage of modern technology to prolong my sanity as a parent. Lesson Two : I've said it before and I'll say it again, anyone who babbles on about global overpopulation has never traveled I-94 from Fargo to Bismarck. But once we got to Bismarck we had a great time. Thanks to Sara and Jon for their hospitality! We got to visit wi...

We are in the patch of light on the audience to the extreme left of the picture. I'm the fat guy rocking out!

Set List: LOST HIGHWAY BORN TO BE MY BABY YOU GIVE LOVE A BAD NAME RAISE YOUR HANDS RUNAWAY I LOVE THIS TOWN SLEEP WHEN I'M DEAD w/ Jumpin' Jack Flash BLAZE OF GLORY w/ Knockin' On Heaven's Door intro MISS FOURTH OF JULY WHOLE LOT OF LEAVIN' IN THESE ARMS WE GOT IT GOIN' ON IT'S MY LIFE BAD MEDICINE w/ Shout I'LL BE THERE FOR YOU (YOU WANT TO) MAKE A MEMORY BED OF ROSES WHO SAYS YOU CAN'T GO HOME HAVE A NICE DAY KEEP THE FAITH LIVING ON A PRAYER ENCORE: SOMEDAY I'LL BE SATURDAY NIGHT WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE

My ears are ringing, my throat is raw and my voice is hoarse, and I couldn’t be happier! Boy, did 18,000 people get their money’s worth Tuesday night at the Xcel Center. Enjoy the videos; they were taken Tuesday night by someone in the nosebleed section, but I thought the sound and image quality was good, considering the chaos in the arena that night! Bon Jovi put on one heck of a show. For 2 hours and 30 minutes everyone was on their feet for one the best shows I’ve seen in the last 15 years. Daughtry opened the show, and I approached it with an open mind. Lead singer Chris Daughtry was on American Idol, a show I’ve never watched (believe it or not) and I will give him credit -- the guy can sing... but so can Julio Iglesias and Englebert Humperdinck. This Daughtry character seemed to think he was a star. At one point during his 45 minute set (which was about 40 minutes too long for me), he said, “If you are sitting down, I need you to stand up and sing this song with me.” An...