Braving Freezing Temps for My Wife

Surmounting treacherous icy pavement and a windchill factor dipping as low as 19 degrees Fahrenheit, I survived a real-life battle with the elements Friday when I successfully completed a harrowing four-and-a-half-minute journey across the desolate, frozen parking lot of an area King Soopers Grocery Store.

With night coming and temperatures dropping rapidly, I was forced to leave my wife, Brianna, at the entrance of the supermarket and valiantly set out on my own to retrieve our Toyota. Before leaving, I solemnly vowed that I would return for my wife as soon as I possibly could.

Recuperating at home following my struggle with nature's fury, I recounted the look in my wife's eyes at the moment I set out across the barren rows of the parking lot.

I could see that she was concerned, but I wasn't about to let Brianna go out there, as I sit blanket-wrapped now from the safety of my living room couch recounting this story between sips of hot chocolate. You see Brianna had left her hat at home.

Shivering from the brutal winds, my heart full of determination, I encountered the first setback on my grueling 75-meter trek when a sudden gust of wind blew freezing cold snow off an SUV and down my collar, nearly causing me to lose my footing on the slippery pavement. Due to the restrictive nature of my bulky cold-weather gear, several tense seconds passed before I was able to brush the snow out of my jacket and soldier on.

My next hardship came when I was forced to guide the wheels of my shopping cart through the increasingly slushy terrain. I was eventually left with no choice but to abandon the cart and carry nearly seven pounds of groceries in hand for the remainder of the journey, slogging past the lifeless, long-abandoned carts of those who had attempted the perilous journey before me.
I remember thinking, "If I stay out here much longer, I'm going to freeze to death." It was that cold.

Because the strain of my journey at times caused me to doubt whether I would ever find the car, I was forced to look inward—drawing strength from past experiences in which I successfully overcame similar extreme conditions. I'm no stranger to long waits on hold for customer service or scaling the heights of the attic stairs with nothing but a box of Christmas decorations. I even remember one traumatic ordeal in which I was locked out of my own home during a violent rainstorm for a full 12 minutes before Brianna heard me knocking.

However, even with all of my experience, nothing could have prepared me for what was in store next.

I thought I saw my car, but it was a different Toyota about seven spaces up. Upon seeing the similar Toyota, I made the near-tragic mistake of removing one of my gloves in order to retrieve my keys and accidentally dropped it beneath the misidentified vehicle.

With my visibility limited by blowing snow and the fast-approaching dusk, I was forced to leave the glove behind. Summoning all my strength, I quickly reoriented myself, using the brightly lit Blockbuster Video store to the right of the supermarket as a guide, and steadily made my way in the general direction of the car.

After one-and-a-half-tense minutes I made the ingenious tactical decision to set down my shopping bags and blow vigorously into my unprotected fingers, providing me with just enough warmth to retrieve my bags and continue on.

Those final twenty feet were the hardest of the journey. That last thirty seconds felt like an eternity out there.

Chilled to the core, I at last reached the car safety and collapsed exhausted behind the wheel. My survival instincts kicking in, I swiftly put the key into the ignition, turned the heat up full blast, hit the defrost button, and waited for the car to warm up. I then set about recouping my energies before undertaking my only remaining task: retrieving my ice scraper from the glove compartment and leaving the car one final time to begin the painstaking and risky process of removing the thick layer of ice from the car windows.

Shaken but wiser after the ordeal, I'm just glad to be home again, but if nothing else, I have learned a valuable life lesson I will not likely forget.

I don't think I've ever been so cold in my life and I'm parking much closer next time—even if I have to circle that parking lot several times to find a space.

Wait....Where is Brianna???

(Taken from the Onion and rewrote to amuse you...hopefully it worked)

Being Good Financial Something Somethings...Yeah

So I'll admit, Brianna and myself have not been very good with our finances in the past. We would go out and eat all the time and bought whatever we wanted when we wanted it. When we moved out here to Colorado though, things changed. We looked at our finances and realized that we couldn't keep doing what we were doing or else we would be Moochie McMoochers when we got older. So we have started to be very tight with our finances and watching everything that goes out and where it goes to. I have definitely learned one thing with this -

It's stinking hard to watch the finances.

I come to find out that "I want", and I want all the time. I find my mind justifying things that I want and it is really hard to say no. No to running in and getting some snackage at the gas station, or picking up that DVD at Best Buy, or buying that video game at Target. It's like I crave shopping sometimes even when I don't need anything. I take lunch with me to work and I sit there justifying how I can go out to eat even though I brought a lunch. I'll admit that once I eat the lunch I brought and not go out to buy food I feel good, but still, I'm craving that WingStop or Jimmy Johns.

So anyway, it's super hard and I'm sure I'm not the first person to ever figure this out. If there is anyone else out there struggling to save I feel your pain.

YES!!!!

So I go on Yahoo and see the most wonderful thing that is coming out Christmas this year. I even have a preview video of it. Who's with me on this???




Oh Yeah!! Cool Beans!!

Past Week

It's been a week since I last wrote so I figured I put a recap of this past week for Brianna and I. Not a whole lot going on. We went and saw Juno last Friday night with some of the couples from our small group. It was a pretty decent movie in my opinion. Some of the other guys thought it was a total chick flick. Afterward we went to Chili's and I was given a very hard time for not sharing my boneless hot wings. I'm sorry Jeff, I didn't want a taste of your chili in exchange. I love wings and I don't share them with anyone....unless they taste aweful in which case help yourself (i.e. Pappa Johns wings).

Saturday was spent cleaning and then we went over to a friends house and watched the football game. After the Jaguars lost us guys played poker and I did well for the first time in a while. Brianna played cards (Dutch Blitz) and board games with the girls while we played poker. Then we did some Wii and played Apples to Apples. It was a great time, but we stayed out really late. Probably the latest we have in years.

Sunday we went to church in the evening and did some grocery shopping.

Brianna had a busy week at work because she is getting ready to teach a class again. She's excited for it though.

I had a busy week watching the Barrett-Jackson Car Auction!!! So far I have watched 15 hours of it. It's totally awesome. Only 24 more hours to go. They are auctioning off Truckasaurus on Saturday. You may have seen him in commercials for monster truck rallies. He is the dinosaur truck that shoots flames and eats cars.

Well, I hope everyone that actually reads this blog is doing well. Drop us a line and let us know how you have been.

Cool Beans.



P.S. Huckabee For President.

Another Good Reason I Support Huckabee

I swear I will not make this blog a "Huckabee is the greatest blog" but I wanted to point something out. Tonight there was a debate in South Carolina and Mike Huckabee was brought under attack and asked a question to clarify what he said. Here is part of the article that was written by the AP -

"In a 90-minute debate that touched on economic issues, foreign policy and immigration, Huckabee drew the loudest applause of the night from the audience when he was asked about having quoted a Biblical passage saying a wife "has to submit herself graciously" to her husband.

A Baptist preacher before entering politics, he said he was "not the least bit ashamed of my faith," but didn't impose it as governor and wouldn't as president. He said the citation is from Ephesians, and "the point is that as wives submit themselves to their husbands the husbands also submit themselves" to their wives.

"That's why marriage is an important institution, because it teaches us how to love," he concluded. "

I really think that you have to, at the very least, respect his answer.

Countdown to one of my Most Favorite Times of Year!!

Does everyone know what wonderful event starts this upcoming Tuesday?!?? If you guess Martin Luther King Jr. Day you would be wrong. It's the first day of the Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Show and Auction.

You may be asking yourself why you have never heard of this glorious event that should be up there with Easter and Christmas (I know I may be speaking sacrilege). Well let me inform you the way I wrote papers in college...by copying and pasteing all the information into here from the internet (just kidding).

The ultimate collector car auction and exposition arrives in Scottsdale, Arizona, offering hundreds of the world's finest classic and collector vehicles, and provides world-class, non-stop entertainment. This visual feast includes spectacular displays of classic, muscle, sports, and futuristic automobiles, designer fashion shows, and auto memorabilia. Plus, I can watch all the action on Speed Channel...Thank the Lord for DVR's!!!!

Some of you may ask if this is also Brianna's favorite time of the year. Sadly, it's not. She gets mad at me watching 30 hours of car auctions. I think that deep down she enjoys it though, she just doesn't like to admit to it. Her rolling of the eyes at me is just a way she says.."Keep watching it, cause it's awesome."

So to all those who have DVR's or are home and have nothing better to do, sit down this Tuesday through Sunday and tune into Speed TV to watch this fantastic event.

Oh, and if you don't have a DVR or Speed TV I also sell DISH Network and can hook you up.

Random Thoughts for Today

My first random thought I wanted to put on here was a Congratulations to Mike Huckabee for taking first in Iowa. I've been a big Huckabee supporter since before we left Delaware so I am really excited about his first win.


My second is that Brianna and I went to Burger King last night for the first time in a while. We don't eat out very often any more and I was craving it. It tasted good going down, but afterwards I felt like junk. Brianna said the same thing. I don't know if I can really handle their food any more which is a shame because I like Burger King a lot.

And my third thought for the day is that JenVare thinks this blog rocks. I think you are correct Jen....Cool Beans.

New Years

Last night for New Years, Brianna and I were invited - by our friends Jeff and Jaime - to go to PF Changs for dinner and then back to their place for a party. It was a really good time because we got to hang out with some couples from our Bible Study and meet some new people in the process. There was a poker game going on when we went over to their house that I decided not to get in on because my skills at poker are lacking a little bit. Actually, I didn't feel like losing $10. Anyway, a good time was had, but I must say it seemed artificial to watch the ball drop in Times Square 2 hours after it had really happened. Happy New Year everyone!!

Bri and I.
Greg and Emsie
Jeff (wearing a pink crown) and Jaime: our hosts.
Jaime, Jeff, Me, Brianna, Greg and Emsie. We are all in a Bible Study together.
Me being the only dork that drank sparkling cider to ring in the new year since I don't like champagne.