Ok, seriously, this is the last one

Well, as the pictures show, we do have a new dog. We've actually had him for a few weeks now. The story goes something like this. When we were visiting Lace and Ryan in Arkansas there was a cute little chocolate lab that lived next door. He lived in a 4 x6 fenced in pen, and was occasionally tied to a leash in the yard, but was never came inside even though it was roughly 110 degrees while we were there. His primary attention came from the neighbor, Ryan, when he brought him over to play with their dog. While were there I joked that we'd take him back with us, if they were willing to part with him. They didn't take the bait while we were there, but a couple of days after returning to Wisconsin, Ryan calls and asks if I still want him. We think about it for a couple of days and decide, what the heck. It turns out that Lace's parents were in town and returning to WI in an RV and were willing to bring him back. I met them just outside of Madison, and here he is. His full name is Gigabyte (his previous owner was a computer programmer or something) but we just call him Gig. He's been great so far, but I go back to work tomorrow and Jen starts school next week, so hopefully he'll handle the crate for extended periods of time.

Happy to be in Wisconsin, at least until it snows.


Abbey with her new brother. Hey give me my toy back.


Fortunately, just before getting him, we found out that Jen could get a free invisible fence as part of an advertising deal from Petsafe. Basically, we get a free system, she provides feedback, and they hope that she recommends it in the future. Much cheaper than the quote I got to have our yard completely fenced in. We only need 87 ft and it was going to be just over $1000. The only negative is that I have to install it and then train them. I guess it will be worth it when it's -10 and I can let them out without worrying.

LJM Week #1

Team IBetImTheOnlyOneThatEvenRemembersThisLittleGameWePlay

Q: Leak, FL
RB: Barby, Bama
RB: Irons, AU
WR: Jackson, FL
WR: Taylor, AU
WR: Bowe, LSU
K: Coutu, UGA
D: LSU

By the way, Wilco will be playing the concert hall in the VBC on Oct 9th, and I have tickets. James, start with "A Ghost is Born" good stuff, good stuff...

Never to early to start planning

Well, there has been much talk about gathering for a football game this year. Between families, flights, new jobs, etc. I was hoping to get the ball rolling. Here are the home games (full schedule):

09/02/06 Sat Washington State
09/16/06 Sat LSU
09/23/06 Sat Buffalo
10/07/06 Sat Arkansas
10/14/06 Sat Florida
10/21/06 Sat Tulane (HC)
11/04/06 Sat Arkansas State
11/11/06 Sat Georgia

Any thoughts...preferences? September is probably not good for us, but I think October and November could probably be arranged, assuming frequent flyer tickets are available. I look forward to comments. Wives, don't be afraid to speak for husbands.

Also, if you need to get pumped up for the season, I highly recommend that you tune into the following Auburn highlights, courtesy of youtube. I warn you that you might want to make sure you have some time to burn.

Home from Alaska

I am back! The trip to Alaska was unbelievable. We apent 7 days and nights on a fishing boat. Our captain was Rich Billings - an envirnmentalist that spent 15 years working for the forest service mapping reefs, observing animals, and measuring forest growths on Baranof, Kuiu, Admiralty, and chichagof islands. We caught about 1000 lbs of fish including sockeye salmon, coho salmon, king salmon, halibut, and various other species that we could not keep. We witnessed humpback whales bubble-netting (a phenomenon where the blow bubbles deep under water below a halibut bait ball and then shoot straight up with their mouths open to eat the fish. We saw a group of 4 or 5 breaching at the same time. They carried on like this for over an hour while we were in little trolling boats about 100 yards away. We saw two bears fighting above a stream. We saw coho salmon jumping up a 8 foot waterfall (and yes a few of them actually made it). We saw an eagle working for over an hour getting food for his new family. We saw sea lions, seals, sea otters, and many other animals. I will write longer later once I get my pictures straight. I have to go get the fish from the airport (we have 10 boxes, about 500 lbs of fresh fish - I look forward to sharing it with all of you!

It was like being Huck Fin for over a week.

It had to end sometime

Well, the Southern Tour finally came to an end. We concluded with an awesome three days in Maumelle, AR, which included a trip to Arkansas' largest water park, Wild River Country. A few trip statistics:

2090 miles, 36 hours spent in our car (does not include trip from B'ham to Panama City)
59.2 mph, avg
26.7 mpg, avg

It was an amazing two weeks. Being such a long trip really gave me a feel for what it would (hopefully will) be like to live close to, or in H'Vegas. I think I mentioned, but I'd probably drive you guys crazy wanting to do something all the time. Here are a few highligts from the trip.

Not even a hurricane can keep the Flora-Bama down.


Little P getting to know the extended family.



Hiking in Huntsville (great trails!).



Walking the dogs in Little Rock.



It was great seeing everyone. Boner, can't wait to hook up with you guys this fall. We were talking about a game in November possibly. I'll look into some dates here shortly. Larry, I can't wait to hear about the fishing trip. Don't forget to save me a fillet. Jeremy, thanks for turning me onto High School Musical. Fil, keep the posts coming. CHARLIE, let us know how the road trip was. Henley, study hard. Chandler, where are you. Kevin, save a job for Jen. Ryan, do you remember the web address.