Game Plan(s)

Our Medium sized group is going to the game tonight.  The Cincinnati Redlegs are taking on the Houston Astronomicals in what is sure to be a great night.  I have no idea who will win, and kind of don't care..I just want to hang out with friends and family and possibly play the mound game.

Saturday is about a day of no plans.

Sunday is speaking at the Vineyard in beautiful downtown Mason, Ohio followed by the Stambaugh annual kickball tournament...or party.  I don't think it's an actual tournament, now that I think about it.  Probably calling it a party...I should read my electronic invitation.  It's basically a grill out picnic deal centered around a giant kickball game.  What could be better than that?

Monday we'll be walking with the Medium sized group for approximately 5 kilometers and then headed over to our annual post-walk medium sized group barbeque.  At some point we'll get competitive and play some celebrity and ask the question, "Is 5 Dollar Footlong a celebrity".
I submit that it is not...

Should be a great weekend.  I'm looking forward to it.

Best Characters on TV?

In no particular order:

Andy Bernard

Cameron Tucker

Gregory House

Jack Donaghy

Sue Sylvester

Dwight Schrute

Kelly Kapoor

Michael Westen

Liz Lemon

Abed Nadir

Phil Dunphy

Facebook

I'm exploring Facebook today.
I'm giving it fifteen minutes.  I have an account and even some Facebook "Friends" but I still haven't figured out what all the fuss is about.

Young Stevie Joe refered to it as the "Blue Hole" inferring that it was a time waster...so that's what I'm going to do today.....that's what Tuesdays are for, right?  I figure I'll skip one of my smoke breaks and really give it a whirl. (Do people still get those?  If so, are they fifteen minutes?  If so, what about gum or diet dr. pepper breaks?)  Maybe I'll just do it this morning before my meetings start stacking up.

I have people tell me random things about random people all the time and I typically answer with, "How do you ever see him? or How would you know that?"
The answer is always the same - "My friend Facebook.  You should really join the '90's Sean"

My twitter account @ylmurph automatically sends my tweets to Facebook and makes it look like I'm updating a few times a day - but that's all a lie.  On a side note - @churchpunk is teaching me the ways of twitpic at lunch today.  Seems like win/win/win. (friend, food & twitpic knowledge)

So today I become an explorer, and tomorrow I'll most likely wonder what all the fuss was about...

finally

We paid a plumber to dig up our lawn and fix a pipe that I'll never see.
We then paid a mechanic to fix a muffler that I probably won't ever notice.
Then we replaced our dryer...something I'll see and use, but never really care about.  It's hard to come home and get excited about a dryer...

Today was different.  Today we bought a couch/sofa/davenport (that's what my grandma called them)

My brother and sister in law were good enough to give us their old sofas about five or six years ago.  They were old then, and after living with three kids and two adults - it was time for a change.  We're keeping the loveseat in the basement, because it's a basement...but the couch is about to be lawnfood.

 So we bought a couch at Krogers.  Where else would you buy a couch?
We went with the Manhattan Chaise Lounge & Sofa because we love Buddha and Margaret.

So goodbye 12 year old couch, hello Kroger/Manhattan lounge sofa thing.
It's the dawning of a new era...

so anybody have a pickup truck I can borrow?

Lee Majors and the swine flu

I get to hang out with some of my favorite people tonight - get paid - improvise...and then do it all over again. If you're looking for something to do, why don't you come by Taza in Clifton for the 7:30 or 9:30 show?

I'm sleeping in tomorrow. I go to the gymnasium or to a breakfast meeting just about every day...but not tomorrow. Tomorrow I could sleep in to 8 if I wanted!  It feels a little like living Kid Rock's life...

Griff and Coop have baseball game and what could be better than watching the boys play ball on a Saturday afternoon?

We're headed to the Vineyard Community Church in Beautiful downtown Springdale, Ohio...and then Sunday will be a day of rest. It hasn't been a day of rest in months. In fact, I haven't had two days off in a row in about six weeks.

Two things I don't miss about my twenty years with Young Life are bus rides and overnight trips....and that's what I've done these past three days. I'm ready for the weekend. I can't wait.

network

I'm rarely on the world's larget website known as Facebook.
I'm on Facebook every day.
Huh?

This blog gets more comments on Facebook than on this blog.
Huh?

My tweets and my weblog both get forwarded to the Facebook, and so I have stuff pop up several time per day.  Because of this, it looks like I'm on it several times a day.  I actually get most of the comments and notes that are through Facebook sent directly to my electronic mail...so even when I'm reading Facebook stuff I'm not really on it.

I still don't really get it.  I have a bunch of Facebook "Friends" and hear about the book o'faces all the time.  I've heard it referred to as a masive time waster - but I don't have any idea how you could spend more than 4 minute on there...

on the way back from the conference...

Is there something I'm missing about the big fella?

Yesterday I documented the conference I attended via Twitpic and Twitter.  Each time I took a camera cellular telephone picture, I'd write a description of what was happening.  When I came home all I saw were the links to the pics...so what am I doing wrong with this twitpic deal?

I have so many questions...

improvisation

The Q City Players have performed several times at Taza - in beautiful downtown Clifton, Ohio.

There were a few too many people at the first show.
There were way too many people at the second show...

so the last time there, we had two shows back to back and didn't really tell anybody...well that didn't work out so well.

This seems like the time to get all of our ducks in a row (we have 7 small ducks...ducklings really... and they're fairly obedient).

If we can talk up the show(s) - we'll have two full shows, but no fire code issues.  It's all about balance...and obviously the hokey pokey...

Here's what I mean....We'd love to see lots of people, but we don't want to die in an inferno...or by drowning...but there's almost no chance we'll die via flood at Taza.

So, in short....lots of people spread out over two shows = two great crowds.

It'd be fun if you joined us (assuming you're not a murderer or Dave Coulier)

$5 per ticket or 3 for $15.
-7:30 & 9:30 shows

Should be fun.

alarming

There is no single noise more irritating that that of an alarm clock.

Is there any sound quite as awful?

So I don't use one.
Normally

I woke up at 5:30 yesterday before my alarm clock went off.  I woke up today at 4:30 to the sound of Parker who no longer wanted to sleep in her wet bed. 

I'll probably wake up at 5:30 tomorrow before I meet a friend for our Wednesday 6AM workout & coffee.

Today I have a 7 o'clock breakfast.

I'm a morning guy who doesn't like morning meetings.  It's not the meetings, or really the time of day...it's more the fear of oversleeping.  So I do what I hate to do...I set my alarm clock and somehow my brain knows to wake me up before I hear that evil sound..

and now I'm off to get pancakes...or some sort of delicious bacon infused product...

Great

I know that some people love to go shopping at the malls.  It's their "therapy". 

Others like to buy away the pain by picking up a new purse or flat screen.

Some people just love to save money with coupons....and who could blame them?

We recently paid $2,300 to get a pipe fixed in our front lawn. 

A month later we paid $575 to get my car fixed. 

That's roughly what we make a year...

It'd be kind of fun to come home to the new $2,875 hot tub or pool table we bought.  It'd be great to be able to send that money to Bernard Tagbo in Tonga...it'd be great to have something fun or significant that we could point to.

It's just hard to point to a muffler, oil change or underground pipe and get very excited.

And did I mention our dryer just broke?

Before you feel too sorry for us - I should mention that we have the greatest family, best friends and our health...and that's pretty great.

Do I have lupus?

CouldIhavelupus.gov is an actual site on the world wide web.
yup

Thanks to our government I'm fairly certain that I don't have lupus...but I've got something bugging me lately.

Here's where you come in. 

When I run at the indoor track at Urban Active, my right hand gets numb.  It's also the hand that I'm using to hold my internet touch.  It hurts when I'm waiting for a new muffler and I'm sitting in the lobby holding it too...

I've also noticed that I get chest pain when I put it in my shirt chest pocket.

Is Apple trying to kill me?  Be honest with me.

When I put my laptop on my lap as I sit on the couch and write weblogs...my legs start hurting me.  If I type away for a good chunk of the day (as I was doing sending out electronic mail yesterday) my hands start to hurt.

Is Bill Gates trying to kill me?

Anyone know House?

few quick things

I love how a sneeze feels and hate how it looks.

I love how mufflers work, but hate how my particular one is hanging by a bungee cord right now.

I love delicious bacon and can't think of anything bad about it.

Strangely, I don't love a parade.

I love the weather right before it rains and even enjoy a little light rain on a warm day.

I love it when I get to hang out with a friend over coffee...and even enjoy getting under the car to strap my muffler afterward (can you tell this muffler thing is on my mind this morning?)

good to be me

My friend Eddie gave me five passes to the Cincinnati Zoo the other day.
a parking pass too...
I love free

My friend Quinn gave Parker a bunch of awesome clothes that she loves.

My friend Matt with one T is letting me borrow his power washer.
Aunt Peg is letting me borrow four ping pong balls, and I think if I'd asked she would hae let me borrow up to seven.
Annie gave me a bunch of kids and an incredible life
My friend Dan is letting me have 5 of the nine shelves in my new office that I share with him.
My friend Joe gave me a book, and about 400 rides.
Tom gave me some Naproxen Sodium
Chris gave me a diet coke
Mom gave me life and about 40,000 rides...and a gps to help with future rides
I'm sitting here thinking about this while sitting at a table that grandpa gave me

These are the first ten or so things that popped into my mind as I was thinking of how generous the people in my life are...it's pretty good to be me...

the evolution of Murphy photography

This is an example of typical scenes around the Murphy household after Griff was born...it last for several years - Birthdays, Christmas, first steps, first day of pre-school...

 
and then we had Cooper

 

And then Parker...

 

Luckily we have friends around to take pics like this