What is a Blog

I just googled the word "Blog", and I thought that it would have to be an acronymn, but it isn't. It is short for Weblog. And when you look up the definition it says - Blog is short for weblog. A weblog is a journal (or newsletter) that is frequently updated and intended for general public consumption. Blogs generally represent the personality of the author or the Web site.

Well, I thought about how I would write on this thing, and I think it would be better for me to call my posts RUTS which stands for "Random Unintelligible Thoughts".

So here goes my second RUT. I was at the Gym working out this morning. BTW, this is my second day of my new diet and exercise program. Well, I guess since I went to Olive Garden for lunch yesterday and had "all you can eat" soup salad and breadsticks with a side order of alfredo sauce, I can't really say I've started the diet yet, but I have gone to the gym for two days in a row. Maybe tomorrow I will get up the energy to even go inside the gym and work out. :)

But seriously, things have changed since I was a kid. Now you work out on these computerized machines. You put your weight and age into the machine, and then it comes up with your target heart rate. They even have little sensors that you hold on to while you are working out, and it tells you your heart rate. It tells you whether your heart rate is too low, too high or in the target zone. Now tell me something, by the time I walk up the stairs to where all this fancy equipment is, my heart rate is already above the target zone and into the danger level - does that mean I shouldn't be working out on those machines?

Anyway, back to my RUT - while I was there at the gym (with my heart rate way above the danger line), I was watching a father and his son (about four years old)playing basketball out on the floor. It sure brought back a lot of memories for me. I spent a half hour on this crazy machine watching this kid trying to put the basketball in the hoop. His dad would go shoot a few baskets, and then he would come back to his son and try to teach him the proper technique for shooting. His son was just hucking that basketball at the basket for all he was worth. He was hitting the bottom of the hoop when he threw it up. But he kept trying - and smiling. He finally made it about 20 minutes into my workout. I about came off the bike cheering for the kid. It was fun to watch -

And, as I said, it brought me back to a day long ago when I used to take my boys out to the court. They would mostly watch me play my games and go shoot a few hoops before and after the game and at the breaks. They were fun father and son outings. Except one game I took the boys to that is. It was a Saturday morning game. Tyler and Bryson were 5 or 6 and Colby was about three.

The nerves were running before the game, and I was running late, so I had to stop in for a pre-game leak. Well, the boys needed to go too, and since they couldn't reach the urinal yet, and I didn't have time for them to go one at a time in the only available stall, I decided we would take care of them in a mass production fashion. So, I situated them all inside one of the stalls. Colby and Bryson were on the sides, and Tyler was in the front of the toilet. I got them set up and then left the stall for them to get their work done, and closed the door behind me.

Things were going well for a few seconds. Then something terrible happened. I believe it was Colby who first lost control of his hose. That is when I heard a yelp - not from Colby but from Bryson - who was directly across from him. I guess when Bryson went to cover his face, he let go of his hose. That is when Colby and Tyler started screaming. I guess Bryson was moving around trying to get out of the direct stream which sent water in all directions. By the time I got to the door and opened it, there were three boys dripping wet, with hoses still running. Luckily I only opened the door a crack, and, due to my quick thinking, I immediatley closed it again. I waited a minute or two. It was tough with all the crying and screaming going on, but I'm glad I did. They were still dripping by the time I reopened the door, and now they were all crying.

So what is a dad to do - the game is about to start. You have three boys dripping from head to toe in unpleasentness. I had to think quick. I threw them each up on the counter, and washed them down the best I could in twenty seconds. Then I unrolled a half a roll of paper towels, handed them to the boys and told them to come into the gym when they were dried off. I can't remember if we won the game that day, but I sure had a memory to last a life time.

Enough fodder, back to my original RUT. When I was at the gym, it brought back great memories when the boys were kids playing baseball, soccer and football. I coached the boys' teams when I could, and that reminds me of some good stories for other posts. I have also had a great time watching Colby play LaCrosse the last several years. What a fun sport that is to watch. Advice for young fathers - spend as much time as you can having fun with your kids playing and watching sports. When you are old and grey, you will be glad you did.

Indulge me one more minute. Today Elyssa's science project was due. So, I spent half the night last night finishing it for her. I hope we get a good grade. It was fun to do though. We put together a report on how to determine the speed of an object by taking pictures of the object at a predetermined shutter speed, and calculating the speed based on the distance the object travels. Ask us about the project if you want to know more. It was fun spending time with her working on it.

Later...