A tree limb fell next door and took out the garage and part of the kitchen…

That was our old house and that garage is where I spent 75% of my time because my office was out there.

Carrie is entering the Blue Lake Triathlon.. which is a a sprint triathlon consisting of 1/2 mile swim,  12 mile bike ride,  and a 5k run.  Carrie’s race is in June.

I just started training for the Fat Fifty Five Endurance Race. It’s a 55 mile mountain bike race with 8000′ of climbing. Coming into the new year I had my sights  set on the Cascade Cream Puff (110 miles, 16K feet of climbing), but with work going off the hook and 3 kids under  5, it became apparent very quickly that I just wouldn’t have the time to prepare for a race of that magnitude.  When the Fat Fifty Five came up I jumped on it. I’m also sponsoring the race by providing website hosting and Wordpress CMS  support. My race is in September.

I’m in my second week of training and right now the goal is miles on the legs and lots of climbing.  I haven’t ridden 50 miles in one shot in over 10 years since I was a courier in Chicago. And I might  have only done that a handful of times at best in my 6 month career.  What I do remember is that it took me almost 2 months to get my legs in that kind of shape.

My plan is to start posting weekly training logs to help me keep track of times, distances and elevations etc. Stay Tuned!

The type of silicon in beer, called orthosilicic acid, has a 50 percent bioavailability, meaning that much is available for use in the body. Some foods, like bananas are rich in silicon but only 5 percent is bioavailable. This soluble form of silica found in beer could be important for the growth and development of bone and connective tissue, according to the National Institutes of Health.

Past research has suggested that moderate beer consumption may help fight osteoporosis, a disease characterized by low bone mass and deterioration of bone tissue.

Read the whole article about Beer May Be Good For Your Bones.

My hope is to find a sitter for the kids for an hour or so later on this morning so Carrie and I can go for a trail run. If not I might just need to put a couple of the little ones in the double jogger and go for a run in Amazon park.

Back to my coffee and a Tinker Bell puzzle with Jaden.

So what the hell have I been doing for the last several months? Well there’s work which is very busy right now.  The kids which keep is extremely busy. And somehow between working and maintaining the children, Carrie and I find time to work 3-4 days a week.

Jaden is now riding a bike without training wheels. Nathanael wants to be Jedi Master Cowboy Woody. Annie is hitting her terrible 2’s about 8 months early. We had to remove the kitchen chairs from the house because she drags them everywhere to climb up to something she shouldn’t have.

We’re looking forward to spring as the rain is getting a little old… although it’s been a pretty mild winter up here in Eugene. I thought it is was rather funny a few weeks ago when California was getting pummeled by snow and rain… it was sunny and warm up here.  The downside is right now the Cascades are hurting for snow it seems so it could be a pretty long and lousy fire season.

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This animated video says it all. Anyone for Tea?

“YOU MIGHT BE A TALIBAN IF…….”

1. You refine heroin for a living, but you have a moral objection to beer.

2. You own a $3,000 machine gun and $5,000 rocket launcher, but you can’t afford shoes.

3. You have more wives than teeth.

4. You wipe your butt with your bare hand, but consider bacon “unclean.”

5. You think vests come in two styles: bullet-proof and suicide.

6. You can’t think of anyone you haven’t declared Jihad against..

7. You consider television dangerous, but routinely carry explosives in your clothing.

8. You were amazed to discover that cell phones have uses other than setting off roadside bombs.

9. You have nothing against women and think every man should own at least one.

10. You’ve always had a crush on your neighbor’s goat.

Click here to view the embedded video.

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Only in Chicago can would you find such a fine establishment

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This kid is fucking incredible!