2012 Mindset

Whether this is a true quote from Mother Teresa or not, it sounds like something she would have said.

I do not pray for success, I ask for faithfulness.

It’s also something that I need to remember as I wake up each morning and live each day.

Cutest Cheerleader in Kentucky

Listen, I’ve been a fan of the University of Kentucky for more than 30 years and this is definitely the best looking UK cheerleader.

The Order Has Been Placed

The order has been placed. My wife is ecstatic.

When will it arrive? Might take quite awhile given the tsunami that hit Japan halted production on many automobile manufacturers.

At least that’s what the salesman is telling us.

Update: We have it! Now, we’re all in the dont-let-anything-hurt-the-car mode. You just can’t win.

In My Mind I’ve Gone To…

…I know the song says “Carolina” but it could be anywhere. As long as it’s a beach. Everything else is, well… less.

Isn’t it interesting that in our culture, the best vacations take place on beaches? It’s like their are tiers or something.

Top 10 Vacation Destination Types

• 1) Beaches (All)
• 2) Europe (Mediterranean)
• 3) Mountains (Ski Resort)
• 4) Theme Parks (Disney World, Disneyland)
• 5) Australia
• 6) Theme Parks (Other)
• 7) Mountains (No Ski Resort)
• 8) State Park, Camping
• 9) Theme Parks (Dollywood)
• 10) Relative’s House

I didn’t include Vegas because Vegas is for addicts. Oh no he didn’t!?!

Oh How Our Government Mistreats Us

I’ll admit that running a county is pesky work. You might even say it’s a huge challenge. But when cartoon characters can explain a complex tricky simple concept like quantitative easing in a couple of minutes, it’s clear that someone is trying to pull the wool over our eyes.

Louisville Real Estate Is Ripe for the Picking

I don’t often plug things on this site, it’s mostly about Guitar Hero, Kentucky Basketball, cool tech or hip music.

But given the current Louisville real estate market, I thought I’d see if any of my readers are looking to buy or sell their home. Simply Google “top agents Louisville” and you’ll see that I’m more than qualified to help you with any of your real estate needs, whether you need to sell your Louisville home or if you’re a renter looking to jump into the market, it’s a very good time to be a homeowner, just ask billionaire John Paulson.

I wrote the following piece in August but it’s even more true now.

Is It Good Time to Buy Louisville Real Estate?

If you have questions, I’d love to help.
All the best,
-Tre

Weirdness Among Us

Ok, I must confess that I’m not the most technically savvy guy around. I know HTML/CSS and a few other things but that’s not really programming. (For shame!)

But get this, yesterday I try to log into my WP for this site and it fails. Huh?!? Try to have it re-send the password and it says:

There is no user with that email address

What the helicopter?!?

Um… I log into my Web host, head over to PHPMyAdmin and try to browser my users table. Uh… it’s grayed out. Can’t browse. I hear the gremlins chuckling.

Turns out there are ZERO records in that table so, naturally, I can’t browse it if there’s nothing there. Curses!

Contact my host, get a back up of the Db. $25 bucks, thank you very much. Restore it. Same deal. *sadness*

Today I decide to just plug a new user in that table. Heck, how hard can it be? Turns out, it’s trickier than you think but I muddled through, thus this post.

The moral of the story? There is no moral to this story. I’m just venting. Thank you for listening. *sigh*

Now please resume your daily lives. 8^)

Sunset on Fripp Island

Likely the only image worth the bytes it was taken on but somewhat beautiful, if you ask me. Now only 357 days until next Fripp!

Beach Vacation Here We Come!

No, I haven’t started painting my toenails (although I could be swayed) but I wanted an image that showed someone laying on the beach, looking out over their toes towards a beautiful ocean.

So that’s what you got.

What did I get? A week off! Yay!

Leaving today… don’t try to contact me, my shunt link will be set to forward all messages to my executive assistant Farfel. Farfel is a ferret.

Best Grilled Cheese in the World

It’s important for you to know that I can make the Best Grilled Cheese in the World. Don’t believe me? Check this:

Uh huh… I thought so.

Beach Vacation Needed: Apply Inside

Raise your hand if you married up? You know who you are. See me over here? I have my hand up and I’m proud to admit it.

My lovely wife and I have been married for 17 years (yeah, I’m old, shut up) and we’ve just had one vacation apart from the kids in that time. Well, that ends today. By the time you read this, we’ll be jetting South for an unnamed island in the Caribbean. Little hint, it looks *just* like this photo.

So for the next 7 days I’ll be out of pocket. Unless I get abducted, held for ransom, escape and send out an cry for help via this blog, you won’t be hearing from me. Via con dios!

Paladin Does 2010

What to do… what to do… I’m not sure really.

I’ve been blogging since 1996 and wonder if there’s truly nothing new under the sun. I may take this site in a completely different direction… or maybe not. I’ve not yet decided but it seems there may be a need to ramp things up.

Happy Birthday Jesus, Thank You

The Three Trees

Long ago in the forest, lived three tall tress, the biggest among all trees in the forest. One fine day, the three were having a chat, talking about their dream of the future.

The first tree said, “I want to grow taller and stronger, and I want a man to chop me down and make a beautiful bed of my trunk, so a great king can sleep on me.”

The second tree said, “I want to grow taller and stronger, because I want a man to chop me down and make a big yacht of my trunk, so a king can sail on me and go around the world.”

The third tree said, “If me, I don’t want anyone to chop me down. I want to be the tallest and the biggest tree in this forest, so everyone can come to me and look at me admiring my tall trunk.”

So then – the trees agreed to pray each and every day so God would make their dreams come true.

One day, a man came and chopped the first tree. The first tree was excited. He thought his dream was finally come true. But when the man found the quality of the tree trunk was not very good, he didn’t make him as a bed, he turned the tree trunk into a manger instead, for the cattle to eat grass and hay. The first tree was very disappointed to see what he became of. His dream was shuttered.

Another day, a man came and chopped the second tree. The second tree was excited. He thought his dream was finally come true. But when the man found the quality of the tree trunk was not very good, he didn’t make him as a yacht, instead he turned the tree trunk into a fisherman’s boat, simply for fishing. The boat was having holes everywhere on his body and was always dirty after sailing. The second tree was very disappointed to see what he became of. His dream was shuttered.

Another day, a man came and chopped the thrid tree. The third tree was very disappointed and got terribly sad. He was so sad that his trunk rottened. The man couldn’t make anything from the tree trunk that he just disposed the trunk and it became useless.

Well – was life fair for those trees? They worked hard, they prayed a lot, but this is the end they got.

However, the story is not finished… yet…

Years went by, in the middle of the night, a couple of husband and wife went to the stable where the first tree lived now. The wife was pregnant and they weren’t able to find any room to stay and deliver the baby. So the wife gave birth to her baby in that dirty stable and put their baby inside the manger to keep Him warm. Inside the manger, which was the first tree. We all know who the baby is.

Years after that, a storm came on the sea, and it hit a sailing boat that all the people who was sailing in the boat – which was the second tree – scared and panic. The storm was so heavy that it nearly broke the boat down and sinked everybody inside. But then, a young man came out and stood on the boat bravely. He waved his hands to the sea in front of Him, and when He cried out to the sea, “In the name of My Father, I command you to stop!” And soon after that, the storm stopped, and the sea was calmed. The second tree was amazed. Who was this person – even the sea and the storm obeyed His command? We all know who the man was.

Years gone by, an innocent man was sentenced to death by the trial. He was tortured and beaten, and at the end, He had to die on the cross. He was crucified. Before He died on the cross, the world moaned for Him. And guess what? The wood to make the cross came from the trunk of the third tree. And again, we all know who the man was.

So, here is the conclusion of the story…

The first tree, even though, he didn’t end up as a beautiful bed as he wished for, a king – the king of kings – still slept in him.

The second tree, even though, he didn’t end up as a big yacht as he wished for, again the king of kings had once stood on him and sailed across the seas.

The third tree, the saddest of them all (was), even though at the end, he was chopped down, now look at him. Until now, people will look at him when they have hope and prayers. He stood tall for those who are in need and hopeful.

WordPress Upgrade In Effect

Just made all the file moves to 2.8.4 of WordPress but I already see some silliness happening here. May take some time to figure it out but I wanted to move to a newer version so that I can “Upgrade Automatically” which is uber-keen.

Fripp ’09 a Success, According to Barret

Fripp, now just weeks past, seems a distant memory. Oh but life is strange. Onward and upward!

Here’s a great shot Andrew took of Barret at the Cabana pool. Looks like the boy is having fun, no?