Tennessee State Fair, 2006

Selena, Sean and Caden.

Getting on our first ride.

You spin me right round baby, right round baby, right round, right round...

Hey, can you see me up here! These things make you so dizzy, I would much rather jump out of an airplane.

You have to finish your beer before you get on one of these puke inducing attractions.

Waiting to get on the next ride. hmmm.... Lets leave it at that.

Win me one of those.

We just finished peeing. What a relief!

I know these two very well and I can tell you they are not slutty.

Selena and Carey on the bumper cars.

The fair from the top of the hill.

New Paint and Furniture

Earlier this year with the help of my buddy Michael, I remodeled the living room, entry way, kitchen and dining area of my home.

It took a while to pick out the colors and right before I went to buy the paint we picked a new set of colors.

I ordered the table from American Signature. I really like the quality of their goods and have bought many things there. New light fixtures and wood blinds were also installed.

Michael did a great job of rearranging the furniture and decor. He is also an excellent painter. Most of my friends know not to let me touch a paint brush unless you want a Picasso.

The chest in the corner is from Mindanao (in the southern Philippines).

Many of the crosses on the wall are gifts and some have been purchased over the last couple of years

I've had some of these plants for more than 10 years from back when I lived in Florida.

Okay, this is not a pretty picture, but I just wanted to show off my new 72 inch widescreen. I also have an awesome 5.1 digital surround sound system in the room (not pictured, I just installed it). I got the screen and projector for less than $500 at woot.com (sorry it was a one day sale, so no it is not available anymore).

Memorial Day Barbecue

I put together an impromptu Memorial Day barbecue. I didn't realize how many people would come for the gathering. There were over 40 people at the house that day.

Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation's service.

Hanging out in the dining area.

Mitchel (who is a shaman/medicine man) brought his buddy Morpheus with him.

Snakes are amazing creatures. Mystical and powerful, they represent so much to the human psyche.

I prepared salmon, chicken and we also had all kinds of side dishes brought by everyone else.

To cap off the large meal, there was a variety of desserts and Turkish tabacco.

Sunday Brunch at Opryland Hotel

Caleb, Carey and I went to the Opryland Hotel for brunch today. The hotel has the best brunch in Nashville. We took our time eating and spent some time comtemplating and discussing each others future plans/goals.

After brunch, we walked off our heavy meal at Opryland's indoor gardens.

Opryland has an impressive collection of orchids and flowers.

I took these pictures with my camera phone. Not bad, considering the low resolution.

At first, I was wondering why everyone was staring at this lamp post.

Then, I saw her face.

Caleb hit it right, when he said it is like something out of the Chronicles of Narnia.

Her movements were very slow and graceful.

If the mythical Green Man had a wife, this would be her.

PhreakNIC 9 Weekend

It is Sunday (October 23) and the last two days have been event filled. I left work early Friday and went to Edwin Warner park to run/hike before sunset. It is a great place to go because of the rugged and varied terrain. After the running I hit the gym for a nice workout.

Later that evening, I went to meet some friends at the Days Inn. There was a hacker/computer geek convention (PhreakNIC 9) that Aaron and Carey were attending. It was great seeing Aaron again. He is now permanently based in Austin and has great job there. When I got there it was evident that just about everyone was more than just a little bit inebriated. Needless to say, those geeks can party. The hotel was teched out and people were walking around with booze in one hand and their laptops in another.

Jessica had a friend in town who wanted to go clubbing. So Adam, Jessica, Emily, Maria (from L.A.), Kaz and I hit downtown. We went to Decades (80 and early 90's music), Bar Nashville (Top 40), Graham Central Station (multilevel entertainment complex) and Envy (two dance floors - Dance/Techno & Hip hop). It was a wild night. After all the bar hopping, we went back to the hotel to chill before heading home.

The next day started out slow. I met the group down at Fido's and then went to Ken's Sushi for lunch. Robb and I hung out for a while and then took Aaron and his buddies back to the Days Inn. I was not in any condition to do this but, Jessica, Adam, Robb and I, went to the Y for an hour of really bad Racquetball. Thank god there were no cameras there. Especially when Jessica and I were attempting to hit the ball. I think she and I got our abs worked out more from all the laughing.

I had dinner that night with Caleb, Heather and Robb. We had Chinese at my favorite Chinese restaurant (on Gallatin Road). The food was delectable. Heather and Caleb had big plans that night (I hope you guys had a blast!!), Robb had to get home to take care of the animals and I had to go back to the convention to hang with Aaron and the gang. It was a low key night for me, but being the last night of the convention the Days Inn was much wilder than the night before. It was good to spend some time Aaron before he headed back to Austin.

That night, I had a really nice surprise - Rica called from Chicago. She lives in Singapore now and is visiting with her family. Rica is one of my best friends (high school years) and I haven't spoken to her in years. She has 2 little girls now (2 & 10) and I am godfather to her oldest. Rica sounds so grown up, but she always did - even when we were kids. Her brother called Thursday to let me know she would be there. I would have flown up, but I didn't have enough notice. It was blessing enough just to hear her voice.

The weather here in Nashville is getting cooler and the leaves are falling. Winter is fast approaching. I am looking forward to Christmas. I will spend part of my holiday celebrating with my family in Florida. Well it is Sunday morning, the weekend is not yet over and the day is just beginning. Today, I am going to attempt to find a new dining room set. I'll post pictures when I get something. I've looked before and I have to say, it hasn't been easy finding something I really like.

Birthday Weekend

The following are shots from my birthday weekend (October 15). Friday started with a surprise from my buddies at work. This what my desk looked like when I got in to work.

Thanks Nicole, Ida and Patrick. I love you guys!!

Several friends also had their birthday on this weekend. I was not able to celebrate with everyone, but I did get to share this special time with Irene and Muhammad Jamal.

October 14 is Muhammad Jamal's birthday. We went to Anatolia's for dinner.

After dinner.

Irene and I (celebrating our birthdays). We met up with her at Bosco's.

Hanging out with Irene and her friends.

After Bosco's, we headed to Mirror's for Stephanie's (the bartender) special seasonal drink, Crack. Then we went clubbing. It was lots of fun!!!

Saturday started with Emily, Adam and Jessica picking me up at home and taking me to Shelby Park for a birthday picnic. After that we headed to the Chocolate Festival at this little shop in Greenhills. Then, we met Carey at his home were Jocelyn gave me a beautiful broom.

The group took me to the top of one of the hills at Centennial Park to do a meditation at sunset.

As always, Aja is amazing with his drumming.

This was special gift and a blessing on my birthday.

Chanting with the Shruti Box.

We had dinner at Buca di Beppo. It was the first time for several in the group. There was a long wait, but it was well worth it.