just a small one today...

Had a productive day at work today and am celebrating with another stop on my constant tour of Portland area coffee shops. I am at River Maiden in Vancouver. Pretty good stuff. Here are a couple small thoughts before I close up shop for the day.

Goodnight, Mariners. Thanks for coming. It was fun while it lasted. I'll keep a passive eye on you but it's looking more and more like this season is what one would optimistically call "a learning experience".

I just got turned onto the band/artist Danyew (Thanks, Cali). Great stuff. Kind of a Leeland-esque/Killers vibe. That whole electronica/heavy synth/rock thing. Would love to drum with this guy.

I guarantee that I'm going to sound like a cynical jerk here but I'm not sure I really care for Pam that much anymore. I feel like they've tried to add too much personality to her. I miss the quiet, unassuming jokester. I don't know who this new sassy sales rep is who randomly knows how to play volleball (what???). Speaking of which, I think I could more convincingly play the part of an NBA player than she did as a "good volleyball player". Before anyone gets all cranky, The Office is still my favorite show. I'm basically just nit-picking at the 5% or so that I don't dig. New Dwight, on the other hand, is AWESOME. That joke about the new receptionist winning the art contest was GOLDEN. As was the horse doctor joke. And I thought I was going to cough up a lung while laughing when he started delaying the volleyball game. Genius. On a slightly related note, Andy Bernard is still remarkable.

Is there EVER a situation where a small stain on your work shirt is made better by creating a giant water spot because you're trying to "clean it off" while at work? Just leave the stain and hope it comes out. Don't make it worse than it needs to be.

Am I the only one who's MUCH different at work than he is around friends/at home? I feel that I'm extremely professional at work. I'll let you draw your own conclusions as to what I'm like outside of work given that information. :)

Alright, going home to clean dishes. Have a great night, guys.

- Dominic

back for another sporadic posting...

Special thanks to Mrs. Christa Lerew Jeffreys for the inspiration to write this one. I was kinda on the fence about it but she gave me a random compliment about how much she enjoyed them so I figured I'd drop one of you guys today. It's a gorgeous Vancouver day and I'm in a writing mood so here goes. Oops, almost forgot, I'm about to taste my VERY first cup of Peet's coffee. I will let you know how it goes. Right now.

*Grabbing cup*

*Taking drink*

Outstanding. No other word for it. This stuff tastes like love, forgiveness and world peace in a cup. The 78th St. Tully's might've just been replaced as my "go to" coffee shop. A touch more inexpensive than Tully's as well. Sweet deal. Anyway, here are some more random musings.

I miss playing football. I'm wondering if anyone in the area here gets together and plays. I'd love to make that happen with some fellas if it's not already a weekly or bi-weekly occurrence.

I hated the Puyallup Farmer's Market. Quite a bit. It screwed up my parking on Saturdays when I wanted to go to Forza. Now, in the irony of ironies, I love the Vancouver one. Probably because it's walking distance from my apt. I checked it out today. It's kinda huge. Live music, tons of booths. Pretty awesome. I might have to take friends to it who visit me.

How is one supposed to react when he's at Winco @ 11:00 PM and his cashier is interrupted by a Russian gentleman in tattered clothing who is INSISTENT on getting custom frosting writing on a cake RIGHT THEN? I just kinda kept looking straight ahead lest he and I make eye contact and he asks me if I do cake writing. Which I don't.

I want to play in a band and it's getting to the point where I want it badly. I blame Roman Holiday. Good music just gives me the urge to create new stuff. Maybe I will find some folks to jam with in Portland. Or maybe I will just beg my buddies from the south side to let me come up and jam with them. Kevin, Benj, Bryan, Adam, Nate, Michael, I am looking in your collective direction.

Speaking of the ROHO boys, the EP has dropped and they played the Liberty for the release show last Friday. I've gushed enough about them already so I'll keep this brief. It was extremely good and I'm still loving the disc. Buy it. And visit them on myspace at myspace.com/romanholidaytheband.

Last weekend was great fun. I took Thurs and Fri off. Hung out with Jessie, Jessica and Radloff a ton. Hit The Cheesecake Factory. Hit the ROHO show. Celebrated the ladies birthdays. I would like the 3 of them to move to Portland. There's just no other way to put it.

Bryan, you're welcome for me bailing you out on that auction. For those of you who don't know, Mr. Bryan Reynolds, GM of the downtown Forza, started a live aution for a marshmallow square and a marshmallow mocha at about noon on Saturday morning. 4 bucks. Good deal, right? Unfortunately, when he started it, he got met with such a quiet reaction from the 25+ people there that I swear I saw a tumbleweed roll by. Which I didn't really think was possible since we were indoors. Anyway, after a few painful seconds, I met the minimum and bought it. Honestly, I didn't think it was a bad idea. Sometimes stuff just doesn't click. 4 bones really was a great deal though. And I think Tom Rogers (who I gave it to since I already had my drink and had been sitting there for about an hour) really enjoyed it!

Daniel Radloff (whom only great things come from) sent me a text asking me when American jumped the shark. I won't explain what that term means because it's very easy to find online but we determined that the exact moment was this right here. You're welcome.

In some unrelated news that should be a surprise to absolutely no one, I still love my Honda.

I am itching to play another Danielle Henry show.

Congratulations to Brooke Sliefert for completing the OT program at UPS. I know it was an uphill battle but you did fantastic and I am proud to have someone as intelligent/awesome as you as a friend. Thanks for skipping down the beach with me!

I'm not sure how I'd handle it if I'd have moved any farther away. If I hadn't seen my back home friends since late December, I might be kinda freaking out right now. Good thing it's a short drive. One of these times I'm going to bring my Vancouver folks up north with me. Which means a road trip with the Hagelganz sisters. Which would be nothing short of ridiculously entertaining.

That cup of Peet's went down smooth.

Protein smoothies are the best invention ever. One of the few things that tastes extremely good and is good for you.

I'm moving my kit into a studio tomorrow. I'm very, VERY excited. I just hope that my tuning of the kit is up to par with the quality of the facility. That place is sick. For those of you who don't know what it looks like, go here.

Congratulations to Adam Barringer and Megan Taylor for graduating last Saturday. It was an awesome time seeing them. Was also great to hang out with Jess Whims for a few hours. And then see Elise, Jessie Cram, Ali, Havilah, Ariel and anyone else that I'm forgetting. :)

Alright, gonna go try and be productive with the rest of my Saturday. I love you all and miss anyone who I don't get to see very often. Take care!

- Dominic

trying out a new coffee shop today...

Good morning, everyone. I am happily enjoying an Americano at the new River Maiden coffee shop here in downtown Vancouver. From where I sit, there is some seriously good people-watching to be done. Between that, writing and listening to the songs I have to play tomorrow, this could be a productive morning. Here goes...

Let me first say, curse this darn bodily clock of mine. I'm now officially programmed to wake up everyday between 7 and 8. This curse had better stick around when I have kids and actually HAVE to wake up early everyday.

One quick letter that I have to get off my chest here -

"Dear 23-year-old Motorcycle-Rider guy,

Knock it off. Just stop. Stop slowing down in front of me just to create a gap in front of you so you can speed up. Stop cutting between traffic. No one cares about your high MPG. And no one thought wheelies were cool when you were a 7th grader on your BMX, why the heck would they care now? If you're not careful, I'm going to accidentally kill you in traffic and the idea of jail time doesn't really appeal to me in the slightest. Seriously. Stop. NOW.

Signed,

Dominic and the greater Portland area"

Whew, I feel MUCH better.

I'm going to completely jinx myself but the M's are making me happy pretty much daily. This team just keeps scrapping. And it's like Erik Bedard and Felix got together for coffee and basically decided that pitching extremely well and being tough was a good idea. I could've told them this much sooner but hey, better late than never.

The spare room at Adam Roberts place is becoming like a second home when I hit the north side.

The Fray - The Fray - Good. Really good. Was tapping my foot to Syndicate from the beginning. Absolute and You Found Me are gems and I think that Enough For Now is a unique take on the father/daughter relationship. Buy it.

I keep going back and forth about whether I want to live back up north in the Puyallup area. It was a no-brainer a couple months ago but I think that's just because I hadn't really gotten settled in down here. I'm starting to feel that way down here. Vancouver and Portland are nice.

Become friends with Joel Parker and watch his Liam blogs. You won't be disappointed. They're about 8 shades of awesome.

I've got my second weekend of drumming at Crossroads this weekend. Not nearly as nervous as I was the first time which is a good thing, I think.

I had originally intended to shoot a video of my apartment to show everyone but, the longer I wait, the more that people keep visiting and seeing it for themselves so I'm not sure there's a huge need anymore.

Bryan Reynolds is looking slim and awesome these days.

I had the chance to go to the studio and watch a little bit of session work by a group called SONSOFDAY. Good guys and the studio experience is a fun one to watch. I wasn't there long but the facility is great and I just love watching the creative process.

I JUST NOW (as in about a minute ago) discovered the songs "The Long Fall" and "Weapons" by Jars of Clay. Yes, THAT Jars of Clay. Buy them both. They blend together. I want to play drums for these songs at this very moment. Might have to walk home and make that happen.

Daniel Collins compared me to Ronnie Vannucci Jr. of The Killers and I loved it. Anytime I get compared to anything about that band, I'm okay with it. I'd have to say that, if I were to liken myself to professionals who are MUCH better than me, I'm probably a cross between Ronnie Vannucci, Chad Smith and Matt Chamberlain. Please note that I did just say that all these guys are MUCH better than me.

I've discovered that the country music that I do like is usually WAY behind what actual, real country fans like. It's like I'm a couple years too late and the real country music fans would laugh at me and then go off and do whatever it is they do. Presumably hayrides, line dancing and spitting in spittoons. Also, mechanical bull-riding.

Cannon Beach is great. That is all.

In other news, Roman Holiday is still great. CD release show on May 8th at The Liberty in Puyallup. Be there. I will. And again, I will be giving out complimentary hugs. We should all come out and make it the best party ever. Buy the CD. Get these guys music while it's cheap cause they could be headed for much bigger and better things if the chips fall just right.

Benj Haisch is REALLY good at photography. www.benjhaisch.com . Great blogger too. Great guitar player. Great singer. Helped me discover the joys of Diesel jeans. The good Lord blessed him with a pretty remarkably skill set. There's not a lot of people that I would seriously refer to as "kindred spirits" but he's one. He's one of the few people that I know that I really, really, REALLY want to work with in ministry again.

While I'm gushing about things Haisch-related, I always want Nick to be playing synth whenever I come into town to play. And I never get tired of Alex hitting me up with the hug and telling me that he loves my playing after the service.

Alright, I'd say that I got some good mileage out of this one. Have a wonderful day/week/month/whatever. My apologies on the sporadic entries. I don't really have a consistent internet source other than coffee shops so I kinda gotta plan these things better. I love you all, take care.

- Dominic

Oh yeah, got a new car. 2005 Civic EX. It makes me happy. I'm sad that I discovered the joys of carrying more than 1 person in my vehicle so late but what can ya do?

just wrapped up one of the most exhausting musical weekends I can recall...

Hello all,

Once again, just checking in. I hope this finds you all well. I'm doing great here. Like, really good. You know that feeling of just wrapping up something high-risk and feeling that it went over well as opposed to spiraling down into a firey crash/meltdown? Yup, I'm kinda livin' that right now. Allow me to explain.

This weekend was my first weekend drumming at my new church. I walked out of the sanctuary today feeling that God blessed it and that, at the very least, I didn't come across as someone who had no idea what they were doing on drums. Which is always a massive plus. :)

I've been drumming for about 15 years. I won't lie to you and pretend that they were the most efficient 15 years, practice-wise, but I feel that I've picked up a few effective tools along the way. I drummed at Calvary for a little over 8 years or so. Saw a lot of folks come and go, was involved in some big stuff, had a great time and I wouldn't trade it for anything. Anyway, after about a year or so at Calvary, I slipped into a really good comfort zone. I was increasingly given more and more of the important musical tasks there for my position and felt secure in my abilities. There's something to be said for getting into a good groove with people. There's also something to be said for building up credibility among leaders/fellow musicians. Calvary was that for me. I was extremely comfortable there and, basically, didn't have a care in the world musically.

Now, as many of you know, I chose to transfer to our Portland branch in January. I won't bore you with the details of that. They're in my old facebook notes and I'll probably get around to posting some of those on here just to catch up any non-facebook site followers. Anyway, I didn't really give a second thought to how things were going to go musically. I knew I'd miss Calvary but the idea of getting used to/growing into a new role didn't cross my mind. I don't think I'd call it arrogance because I'm fairly certain that, at no point, did I think,"Oh yeah, no worries, I'm gonna OWN wherever I play!" It was just an area that had not been a concern for so long that it didn't really cross my mind. Here's where things get scary.

The first few Sundays that I caught at Crossroads were a good wake-up call for me. Turns out that (at least) a couple of their drummers are touring/recording professionals that do music for a living.

Uh oh.

Maybe I'm the only insecure musician but my world was kinda rocked by this revelation. I was used to playing with part-timers like myself. I had played with some FINE players in my time, a lot of whom could probably go pro right now if they felt the need but this was different. These guys were/are legit. Very legit. In any event, after a few meetings with the worship pastor here, Jason Ritchie, we decided that the end of March would be a good time to start up for me. On a side note, he's a fantastic guy and an extremely cool dude to know and play with. Has DEFINITELY made my transition from church to church very easy. Thanks, brother, I appreciate it.

We planned it at the end of February so I had a month to prepare. And prepare, I did.

I'm not sure I've practiced harder for a gig. (For all you staunch, starchy types, forgive me for calling it a gig. Yes, I know it's a church service. I don't use "gig" as an irreverent term. It's just a round term for any musical commitment) Anyway, wrote notes, practiced with a click, even used my laptop to video myself and then play it back and scan for any errors. (Great way to keep your ego in check, by the way. Just watch yourself on video. *shudder*)

Game day came and, unfortunately, didn't sleep super well last night. Anxious, I guess. Got into the sanctuary, set up and was ready to rock. By the way, for all of you that don't know, their sanctuary is a multi-thousand seat auditorium that is at least moderately frequently a venue for concerts. I won't be a dork and name-drop any of the artists. *cough..Leeland...cough*

Will keep the details to a minimum but both services went solidly. Was definitely more comfortable the second service. Played with some fantastic musicians. Was all-around a good day. And a great way to start my ministry career where I'm at. God is so good. I was so exhausted/relieved that I just passed out this afternoon. Felt good. :)

In any event, hope this finds you all doing great. I just wanted to let you all know that I'm doing well. Really and truly. Not in any fake, cliche way. Doing great. God provides and I am very grateful. Anyway, you guys take care.

Love God, love each other. I love you all so much.

Dominic

Note: Forgive any punctuation errors. I wrote this as quick as I could so I can make it to Crossroads Young Professionals group. Will proofread later.

Just some random musings from the Puyallup Forza... and one very large milestone for me...

I'm hope for the second weekend in a row to play for the 7:33 service so I might as well take some time and muse on some random stuff. Enjoy.

I want to be in an ageless band. There are some bands that you hear that play music that is very much specified for the age that the artist currently is at. This can be a good thing but can also severely limit any long-term aspirations that an artist has. I mean, there are some things that you just can't get away with singing about when you're 40. That being said, some bands/music can be done and done well for years upon years. We'll call this the U2 Corollary.

Pencil the M's in for at least 80 wins this year. Yup, I'm going out on a very non-sturdy limb.

Count me in as one of the people who enjoys the new CD by the Fray. They've come along quite nicely which is a plus given that their first big release was so good.

Go check out my friend Bryan's website. www.thelgnproject.com . He's done a GREAT job with his weight loss.

Playing drums @ Calvary tonight. Really hoping I still remember how.

My baby sister is engaged. It's kind of funny because I was CONVINCED that I was going to be the REALLY overbearing and protective big brother when my sister started dating but she kinda took the wind out of my sails by getting together with a really upstanding, fun and reputable guy. Darn her. Anyway, I started pestering her and tell her to hurry and get engaged because I really like the guy. He's a drummer as well so that definitely works in his favor. Anyway, I love her to death and I'm so very proud of her. She's done extremely well for herself.

Go to YouTube, type in Hillsong + Bittersweet and enjoy what you find. One of the better conference intros I've ever seen.

I haven't the SLIGHEST idea who the Hawks should pick this year. Although I think they have a lot of delectable choices to choose from. QB, OT, WR, LB, it's all good to me.

If anyone has 670.00 that they're looking to burn, feel free to grab me a DK10. www.drumkat.com. I will be eternally grateful.

There's not quite a better awkward experience than looking up from your computer and having the entire Forza staff staring at you on purpose. Totally throws you off your groove. But is hilarious at the same time.

One of the more fortunate things to happen to me is the fact that I was able to find a new stylist so fast upon moving. Totally lucked out. Thanks, Lori.

Balmorhea. Great band. A little unorthodox music for what you might expect from a "band" but great stuff.

Sorry, guys, short one today. Have a great time, all, probably see most of you at Calvary tonight.

- Dominic

it takes some gall to just start bag-piping in the middle of my favorite coffee shop...

So, I think I've stumbled upon a new way to generate interest in these little updates.

Include others in my stories and such. Everyone likes to hear stories with themselves in them, right? So I'll try my best to share my own personal experiences that involve others as well. Here's one for ya as I dive into my Sugar Free Chocolate Americano w/Cold Soy. Thanks, Tully's.

Anyone that has ever read anything I've ever written knows that the Forza Coffee Shop in downtown Puyallup is kinda my little haven of rest when I'm in town. Allow me to explain why. Let me start off by saying that I honestly don't have much allegiance to Forza as a brand per se. Don't get me wrong, they seem cool but it's not like I'd be super amped if I ran into a Forza down here in Vancouver. I had a terrible experience at one in Kent and have kinda been soured on them since.

That being said, this one here....

Run by this guy here....


is an absolute gem of a place to be. It's like the social hub of the Puyallup Valley. No other place that I've been to seems to care more about their customers and care more about making your Forza experience a positive one. I'm sure I'm biased because I know most of, if not all the staff but I think that the fact that this place never seems to be dead probably speaks for itself.

Anyway, I spent a good deal of time there the weekend of March 14th and 15th which just so happened to be the weekend before St. Patty's day. I figured that there'd be a lot of green everywhere but I didn't really consider it anything that would affect my weekend. That was my first mistake. I should've known when myself and Katie Nestor, whom I was having coffee with, looked outside and saw several Irish Wolfhounds, green tents being set up and, just outside our door, approximately 11 Pipers Piping. And here I was thinking that the 12 Days Of Christmas was just a bunch of obscure numerical Biblical parallels. As U2 has taught us, never, EVER underestimate the Irish.

It didn't start out obnoxious. Very few things ever do. Myself and Katie wrapped up our coffee and I actually had to jet out to Tacoma for a few errands so I left with no incident outside of the norm. I finish up my to-do list and I get a hold of George Holcombe, a buddy of mine from my old church. He and I hadn't had a good, sit-down chat in quite literally years so I text him and we arrange it. And where do we arrange it? Forza, of course. No brainer, right? I come in, kill some time until he gets there and then he and I sit down fully anticipating the idea of catching up. He and I go back to about 1993 or so and we had plenty to catch up on. Here's where things get interesting.

If this story was a roller-coaster, this is EASILY the peak right before the dive. We embark on chatting and in walks The Irish War Band. That's not their real name, I'm sure, but that's what I'm going to refer to them as. It's a gentleman about 40, a young girl who was presumably his daughter and a woman on crutches who wasn't playing pipes but seemed to be associated with The Irish War Band. The three of them are dressed up like they're ready for battle and have multiple sets of bagpipes on their person. My first thoughts are "That's nice, they're taking a break from their piping and are grabbing some coffee. That's awesome. Good for them." At this point, I'm in my "Visiting Home" mode so I was kinda loving anything and everything. That mode was quickly changed by The Irish War Band.

The Irish War Band then puts down one set of pipes on the table and then starts fiddling around with their smaller ones, playing sporadic notes and such. My thought at this point was,"Hmm, it's almost like they're warming up for playing. That's kinda rude to warm up in such a public place indoors. Eh well, I'm home for the weekend so I love anything and everything".

It's at this point that the gentleman in The Irish War Band announces loudly and publicly that they're going to be playing some songs for us and will be selling CD's. They launch into what must be some sort of tune from ancient Irish lore and everyone kinda starts looking at each other like,"Um, why would Forza schedule something like this?" It was the same reaction you'd get if someone walked in and made some sort of huge, embarassing, awkward spectacle. Like if some dude in his 50's walked in with acid-washed SHORT shorts and a pink tank top singing Whitesnake tunes at the top of his lungs. Kinda the "This isn't really happening, right?" reaction. I must admit, I was thinking the exact same thing. Here's the kicker. They WEREN'T scheduled! They, in their wisdom, just figured that it was a good idea to just drop on by and start playing, all the while hawking their merch.

Now I could stop it right here and it would be a moderately funny story but it actually gets better.

In between songs, the honorary member of The Irish War Band (the woman on crutches) informs me that these pipes they're playing aren't actually the loud pipes. The loud pipes are the ones on table next to them. This gives me the feeling of "Well, I guess it be worse." I should've knocked on wood at that point.

After they wrap up their third song or so, the gentleman in The Irish War Band raises his voice and tells everyone in the shop that they should get their drink orders in now because they're switching to the loud pipes. It's at this point that any hilarity or humor that I found at the time is completely gone. They've officially gone from "probably disrupting business" to "officially disrupting business because no one can order their freaking drink". I'm at the point where I can't hear my buddy talking to me so I go up to Matia Petrovich, who is working behind the counter, and we devise a plan. After they wrap up whatever battle anthem they were working on, she was going to clap loudly and nicely and say,"Hey guys, thanks for coming!!" I feel that it's a brilliant idea given the fact they the gentleman in The Irish War Band has, in his sock, a knife with a handle made out of bone. No, seriously. Presumably the bone of some poor critter that he either wrestled and killed with his bare hands, bludgeoned with his big pipes or played so freakin' loudly that the animal finally gave in from mental exhaustion and passed on from this world. They finish, she does and, not quite getting the message, they ask the shop if they want an encore. I'm not making this up. He yells out "Who wants one more??" Luckily for me, some jerk in the corner speaks up and says "MAKE IT SHORT!". On a slightly related note, the jerk in the corner was me.

Anyway, after 2 more magical minutes of enchantment, they finish, say thank you to what can only be described as a mortified audience and then bow out. Just in time for me to have to go to sound check at church. Yes, that's right, they took up the vast majority of my time with Mr. Holcombe. You can't make this stuff up.

I apologize if this blog somehow, someway gets back to The Irish War Band. If you know them, I'm sorry. I really am. But seriously. In the middle of a crowded coffee shop? In the middle of the day? I can look back on it now and say that it was kinda hilarious. At the time, though....

In any event, I promised George and Katie that they'd be involved in a blog about the events of last weekend and here it is. Hope this finds you all doing well. More to come later, I'm sure. Take care, have a wonderful day. Will be in town the weekend of the 4th for a wedding so hope to see you all.

Dominic

Edit: I went back and proofread it and found out that I actually had a typo involving their and they're. Unbelievable. I'm usually such a stickler when it comes to this. Sorry, Benj. I'll do better next time.

Back from Puyallup with a brand new Cardigan...

Thank you very much, Centralia Outlet Stores, for the sweater. $4.75. Yes.

Good afternoon/evening to you all. Just checkin' in after another enjoyable weekend back home.

Here are some musings about the trip and life in general.

I went straight to Forza when I got into town. That place never fails me. It's a very effective social hub for if I just want to hang somewhere and run into people I know. Hung there till the concert. Spent some time catching up with Jessica McCoy. I very much enjoyed her nerdiness, as I often do. And yes, she knows I call her a nerd and she's totally okay with it. Of course, I'm sure it helps if the person calling you a nerd is a total nerd themselves.

The band Roman Holiday is good. Real good. I did and will again pay money to watch them play. There's a chemistry there that just kinda seems to bleed into the crowd and people feed of that stuff. Great original writing, extremely sing-able music, a very complete skill set among the players. My apologies if this offends anyone but I think they're the best young band I've heard in the Tacoma/Puyallup area and if they keep progressing, there are some Seattle bands that will start losing gigs to these guys.

Speaking of which, The Liberty Theater in Puyallup provided a terrific atmosphere for watching a band. The set-up, while a bit unorthodox, was great. I looked around at a point during the evening and realized that I was sitting at a table with a bunch of friends that I loved, eating Onion rings, drinking a beer and listening to a good band. We should all be so lucky to spend our Friday nights that way.

Before I forget, thank you, Daniel Collins, lead guitar player for Roman Holiday, for letting me crash at your pad this weekend. I never, ever know where I'm going to sleep when I head into the Puyallup area. I just bring clothes and figure it'll all work out. Hasn't failed me yet.

After the concert, we headed to Cattin's for a late-night breakfast. If you live in Puyallup, you know exactly where I'm talking about. I had a huge waffle topped with strawberries and whipped cream which, I'm sure, looked like the manliest meal of all time. Whatever, I am what I am. Anyway, got about halfway through it before I had to tap out. Part of me misses the old days when I would've killed one of those with little resistance and zero guilt. Ah, the perks of getting older.

It's tough to strike against a company when they employ several of my friends and two of my siblings. Dang you Starbucks for selling my favorite basketball team.

Was good to catch up with Jordan Madison. I didn't get to see him last time I was there so it was cool to say hi. He gave me a great picture of me and bunch of friends as a going-away present that hangs on my wall to this day.

Went out to Tacoma for my usual Guitar Center visit and family visit. I don't know if it was, is or ever has been taboo for a guy to say openly that he loves his Dad but if it is, I don't much care. I love my Dad and I enjoy the time that I get to see him even if it is brief.

Hit the mall, grabbed a 4 dollar shirt. Jen Ingham will be in NO WAY surprised at this. Neither will anyone that knows me. I can find any clearance rack within a 5 mile radius blind-folded.

In another life where I had more free-time and lived very close to Puyallup, I'd probably dedicate a lot of my time to begging Derek Konzelman to be in a band with me. Just a good, musical player.

How in the world did I not see Drew Westerfield this weekend?

The Husky Men are in the NCAA tournament and that makes me very happy. I'm a pretty big Seattle sports fan in general and it's been a tough last 12 months. This helps.

I like bouncy, fun pop-rock. "A Rocket To The Moon - Greetings from...." if you feel the same way.

Watching Dwight field everyone's congratulations after David Wallace thought that the ticket thing was his idea was spectacular. "Thank you, old man".

I bought a domain name for this blog. Not sure if that's dorky or not but hey, I've definitely spent 10 bucks on WAY dumber things.

Bryan Reynolds and Daniel Collins are looking extremely "in shape" these days. Good job, gentlemen.

I have yet to make it all the way through the new U2 album but am psyched nonetheless.

I'm also amped for Coldplay at The Gorge about 20 rows back.

Alright, I'm gonna wrap this one up. I'm sure I'll have more in a couple days. As always, love God, love each other. I love you all.

On a slightly related note, just wanted to say hi to a buddy of mine, Adam Barringer. He's been kinda my partner on a lot of different church-related projects for a lot of years and he's probably the one that I spent the most volunteer hours with during my Calvary tenure. Just wanted to say that I love ya, buddy, and I can't wait to see ya. You're one of my best friends and will continue to be for as long as I've got breath. Take care, see you very soon.