And yep, still sick.

Back and forth to the doctor, and over a week later I am still sick. My doc is now concerned that I may have Whooping Cough. It's crazy. All I want to do is sleep, lay around, anything to keep from moving. That makes me cough and my head hurt. Ugh. I'm miserable right now.

Argh.

Coolest Puppy Pic

Our friend Sook Jin took this picture of the puppies, and we love it. They look like little prisoners.

An overall feeling of Yuck.

I can't remember when I last two more than a day off work because I was sick. But I left work early on Thursday for a doctor's appointment, and I am still home today (Tuesday). I have the worst cough, and despite a trip to the doc and tons of meds, I still cannot seem to recover. I am at the point now where I start to cough so much and so hard that I literally cannot catch my breath.

Ugh. I hate this. I am heading back to the doctor in a couple of hours to see what else can be done. Being sick really bites.

First Day of Spring

It's March 21st, the first day of Spring. It's wet and rainy here in San Diego, though, so not much of a beautiful day to welcome the new season.

Marine Corps Mini Reunion - San Diego

Yesterday several old friends gathered in San Diego for an afternoon of bbq, beer, a lot of laughs and way more "remember when?" comments than we could count. Now we are all even more anxious to get to Vegas and catch up with everyone else!



Trent, me, Mia, Brian and Joel

And a special thank you to the friends and family that were with us yesterday and never once tried to get us to stop walking down memory lane.

A great week of Weather!

San Diego rocks.

This is the weather forecast for the week, and I am so happy to be out here instead of back where it's snowing!

Patty Griffin - Live in Concert!

Sunday night, Ric and I had a chance to see one of my favorite artists in one of my favorite venues. We saw the amazing Patty Griffin at 4th & B, and we had 5th row center tickets. It was incredible. She performed most of the tracks from her new CD, and she also played several of her older songs. The crowd was crazy for her, and she ended up playing almost two hours.




She is a waif of a thing, a redhaired burst of energy with a voice that blows you away. See her anytime, anywhere you can. She does it like no one else.

The 300

So we waited in line for over an hour, just to make sure we were the first ones into the theater. We were a group of 8, and I was adamant that we were going to have the best seats. And we did.

Man alive, this movie was two hours of sweat and blood, muscles and mayhem. As one reviewer noted, it was 300 Spartans and 1800 abs!

I remember seeing the movie 300 Spartans as a young man, but I never saw anything like this. Just go see this movie. Right now. Just go. And then be prepared to see it again!

Walking on Sunshine Weekend!

I have really been dragging lately, feeling mopey and more than a little bit down. So my friend Nate hopped a flight from Phoenix and came over to San Diego to cheer me up. First stop Friday morning was the Broken Yolk restaurant in Pacific Beach, followed by a long walk along the water.

This is the picture we took with Nate's cell phone. It isn't all that clear, but it does show how beautiful the day was.

The whole weekend was lazy and relaxed, and it was just what I needed to pull myself out of my funk. Thanks, Nate, for the good friend thing. It really did make all the difference.

Marine Corps Bulldog Bike Race

After a few months of avoiding the gym, eating like a fool, and being a lazy bum, I decided it was time to get it back in gear. So I agreed to ride in the Bulldog Bike Race on Camp Pendleton. My friend Joe and his buddy Derek were riding, so I figured it was as good a time as any to get off the couch and back on the fitness trail.

Ugh. What a day. It was a 26 mile bike ride, the middle section a huge hill to conquer. In the course of 20 miles, I managed to get not one, but two flat tires. And when I had the second flat, at mile 20.5, I was paying too much attention to the tire as I slowed down, forgot I was clipped into the pedals, and fell onto my side. What a dolt.

I only had the one spare tube that Joe lent me at the first flat, so there was no repairing the tire and getting back in the race. So for the first time in my admittedly limited competition career, I did not finish. I had to be swept the last 4+ miles and dropped off at the finish line. It was not a great feeling.

The next event is the Devil Dog Duathlon in April. It is a 5k run, a 30k ride, and then another 5k run. I don't know if I will be up to it, but I need to get back out there. Wish me luck!

And more about the wedding weekend...

All I will say here is that I had the best time hanging out with three fantastic ladies while I was in Austin. And no, none of us are admitting to anything. Right, ladies?






Same, same. More to come, but I need to get these posted.

What is wrong with people?

I spent most of last week fighting a cold, so I did little more than sit around on the couch or take long naps. By Saturday evening, I was feeling more than a little stir-crazy. So Ric, Grant and I decided to go out for a couple of beers. I wasn't feeling up for a smoky patio, though, so we opted to not go to Pec's and instead went to The Loft.

As soon as we walked in, Grant and I went to order drinks and Ric sat down at the end of the bar where he found a couple of empty barstools. As soon as he sat down, he realized the guy next to him was completely drunk. One moment he was alert and awake, and the next moment he was passed out cold.

As if that wasn't bad enough, there were several people standing near this guy, and they decided that it would be fun to start messing around with him. It was stupid stuff, poking him and screwing around with his barstool or the buttons on his shirt. Keep in mind, at this point, Ric's arm around the back of this guy is the only thing keeping him from falling completely to the floor. Finally, Ric had enough of the other people and let them know that it was in their interest to back the hell up.

Meanwhile, I have retrieved this guy's cell phone from his pocket and am trying to reach someone who can come take care of him. He was alone in the bar, with no friends and no signs of consciousness. I start calling people from his "recently called" list, and I finally found two different friends who agreed to come get him.

All and all, it took nearly 40 minutes to try and help this guy. All the while, two things kept running through my mind. One, what kind of a fool goes out and drinks himself into a stupor when he is all by himself? Anything could have happened to him, and he would have had no clue what was going on. Two, and this one pisses me off even more, what kind of asshole sees someone that completely gone and thinks, "oh, let's mess around with this guy"?

I don't mean he was a little drunk and deserved to be teased. I mean he was so drunk that Ric kept checking his breathing to see if the guy was still alive. When you see someone in that condition, you either think to help him or to hurt him. I can't believe the other people in that bar chose to hurt him.

Anyway, it was late when we went out, and then we burned close to an hour taking care of this stranger. Is it too much to ask to just go out, have a beer or two, and enjoy a good time?

Off the Charts Cute...

Could they be any cuter? I don't know how.

Neutral Underground - An Update

Earlier, I posted an entry about my newest discovery, Neutral Underground. Well, that was then and this is now, and things have really changed. I have been asked to serve as an Administrator for the site, and I said yes. It's a great site that I have really been enjoying, so acting as Admin, while unexpected, is something that I am confident I can do well.

Here is a quick description of the site:
Neutral Underground - A political discussion forum for progressives and conservatives.

Highlights: There are a number of special purpose discussion forums for civil political discussion, general news and topical discussion, late breaking news, a members articles forum and a Fight Club forum for knock down drag out discussion between members. There are also non-political forums, covering religion and spirituality, hobbies and activities. We have a Lounge forum so active it's the envy of many other sites.

The forum management is dedicated to a very hands off management style and lean heavily on self policing by the members. They use "Community Guides" and a small anonymous mod staff to keep things running smoothly.

List of forums:

• NU Lounge: Casual socializing in a politics free zone
• NU Coliseum: Discussion of all sports topics in a politics free zone
• Best/Worst of the Left: Showcases the worst of the left
• Best/Worst of the Right: Showcases the worst of the right.
• Fireside Chat: Civil and cordial political discussion. No raised voices in here.
• General Discussion: Uhhh general discussion
• Political Discussion: General political discussion
• Breaking News: Late Breaking News stories. Threads here are displayed on our forum homepage.
• NU Articles: Articles written by our members. Threads here are also displayed on our forum homepage.
• Fight Club: Knock down drag out discussion on a very high energy level.
• Lefty Lounge: Casual discussion and socializing for Progressives only.
• Progressive Political Discussion: Political discussion for Progressives only.
• Righty Lounge: Casual discussion and socializing for Conservatives only.
• Conservative Political Discussion: Political discussion for Conservatives only.
  

Plus the usual functional forums: Ask the Forum Staff, Admin Announcements, Community Guides Lounge etc.

Neutral Underground

I encourage anyone reading Falling Into Forty to check out Neutral Underground. You will find a lot of the same types of reading there that you find on my blog - politics, personal growth, activities and fun. Stop on by, register, and list San Diego John as your referral.

Hope to see you soon!

Dog Rassling

We bought the puppies sweaters today, because they are still young and it's been fairly cool around here. Of course, they no sooner had them on then they were back in the yard rasslin' around.

Good heavens. More puppies?

Oh, give me a break. They have only been here a week or so. How am I not supposed to be watching their every move, taking picture after picture? Sheesh.

Here they are this morning, taking a break from a very exhausting morning of... well... playing, eating, and resting.

Playing with the puppies

So it is raining like crazy today, and the puppies have been inside most of the day. They are feeling a bit feisty, so I have them in my office with me. I looked over and saw that they were sleeping on top of one another, and then just like that they were chewing on each other's faces. They are cracking me up!

Sleeping with the puppies...

I went outside today to feed the puppies, then sat on the bench for a bit to watch them play. I guess I was more tired than I thought, because I fell asleep. Ric said both puppies were sleeping underneath me. He went back inside to grab the camera, but Ruth ran to meet him. He was just able to grab a pic of me sleeping and Idgie underneath.



And then here they are again right now, as I type. Ric caught them both in their new favorite place - under my chair.

But oh those darn puppies...

Okay, these two are about the cutest pups in the world. They are great on their own, but together? They are sweet enough to rot a tooth out!

Here they are yesterday, napping in my office. Notice that they must be touching at all times when they sleep. No separating these two.



And this is what I see right now, looking down from my chair in my office. I took one picture from one side and one from the other. The puppies are asleep underneath me, and each has their head facing the opposite way. But they are still completely connected, even in sleep. They are so frickin' cute!

Why so quiet?

Falling Into Forty has been quiet. I know. I have been a bad blogger of late. Having the puppies has added to that, but it really isn't the reason.

I think I am feeling a bit of the post-40 blues. Not being 40 years old, exactly, but more post-turning 40 blues. For 15 months, everything was gearing up towards my big 4-0. Physically, emotionally, mentally... it was all about becoming 40 and starting a new chapter in my life.

Well, I'm 40 now, and I feel like I am... how to describe this? ... still stuck. I have not made changes yet, and I am feeling a bit in limbo.

I need to sort through this, I know. Part of it is the expected letdown after any major event. All the energy and effort that goes into it, and *poof* it's over. But it's more than that. I need to make a plan for the next several years of my life, and figure out what I want to do. Time's a' wastin', as they say.