US Americans and The China

Tonight we're going to see Yo Mamma's Big Fat Booty Band play at the American Tobacco campus for free. I'm not sure what kind of music they play (my guess is jazz), but how can I pass up hearing a band like that? Afterwards, we are going to see a little bit of the USA vs. Chinese-Taipei game at the DBAP followed by fireworks. What better way to end a game against a Chinese team than to celebrate with a little treat that they discovered?

Off the Chain

So Kimberly and I have committed to not eating at chain restaraunts. Technically, it's Kimberly, but since I want to be a supportive husband and I think it's a good idea, I am doing it too. It's really about fast food restaraunts since they are so ridiculously unhealthy for you (with the exception of a few items), but for me it's also about supporting local businesses. The people who own Chili's have never been to Durham, they don't really care about Durham, so why should I help them? I should help the person who decided to work and live in Durham by opening a restaurant of their own here. That way the money I spend at their restaraunt typically goes right back into the Durham economy.
The one place I will miss the most...Chick-fil-A.

Close, but no cigar...

Too bad for the Georgia Bulldogs that close (as my dad always said) only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades. They came within one game of winning their first College World Series since 1990, but couldn't contain the Fresno St. offense in game two and then couldn't find their own offense in game three. Maybe next year, but in the meantime, congrats to the Fresno St. Bulldogs on winning the College World Series on their first trip!

So small...

So, the other day Kim and I were riding in the car coming home from an overnight trip to South Carolina. We had to miss church to make this trip (which we weren't too happy about), but we decided to listen to a podcast of Mark Driscoll of Mars Hill Church in Seattle. He's easily our favorite pastor other than our own.

Mark was talking about the Resurrection, explaining it mainly to new Christians so that they had an understanding of the most important aspect of Christianity. He made the statement a good ways in that God had sent his son to the Earth to give himself as a sacrifice for us. The Christian side of me agreed, the human side of me said, "that's the craziest statement I've ever heard."

Think about the belief that there is a God and that he would send his son; it's illogical, all I can believe is what I can't see. I can't see God, therefore he doesn't exist. These were thoughts that were literally running through my head at the time. At that point, I started looking around me at how big everything was outside. I started thinking about how tiny I am compared to the grand scheme of things. It's in those moments that I absolutely cannot believe that there is not something greater than me that created the entire universe. It's impossible!

I read that a large anthill (colony) has about 10,000 ants. Think about how tiny one ant looks in this colony because of the sheer number of them. Now multiply that by 600,000 and you have an estimation of what we are like on this earth. You are just one of 6,000,000,000 people in the world. Do you feel small? Now realize that we are one just one teeny, tiny planet in the galaxy. How small do you feel now? Now realize that this galaxy is one of many galaxies in the universe. Now I hope you realize how small we are and how great God is.

How does your garden grow?

So Kim and I have become gardeners. We are fighting back against the high prices of the grocery store and growing our own vegetables! Actually we threw some squash seeds out in our yard sometime last year and now we have two gorgeous Spaghetti Squashes growing right now. I can't wait to cook them and eat them and revel in our gardening skills...okay really God's gardening skills.

We're Talkin' Baseball

Kim and I are going to see the Durham Bulls take on the Norfolk Tides today. Before I go to the Bulls games, I like to check out and see if there are any players I know that are going to be there tonight. On the Norfolk Tides roster is none other than Esteban Yan. Former pitcher for the DRays, Braves, Orioles, and a few other teams; he's been signed (again) by the Baltimore Orioles to a minor league contract after a year in Japan last season.

There's a player for the Bulls this season by the name of Fernando Perez. You've probably never heard of him, and might not ever hear from him. He's batting a measley .273 on the season. He plays outfield and is fast and has a pretty good arm, but doesn't seem to hit very well...except when Kim and I go to the games. He is Kim's favorite player for the season and in the 4 games we've attended he's batting .400 with 2 doubles, a triple, his only HR, 4 RBI, and 3 runs. I'd say we're a nice little good luck charm (it's probably just Kimberly though).

Also, tonight is $1 hotdog, fries, and popcorn night. I can't wait!

I love Durham

So, since I have been married, I have really grown to love Durham. This is mostly because of Kim. She has encouraged us to look around and see what's going on around town and find some new restaraunts. I'm so glad she has too because I've discovered what a great city this is that I live in.

This weekend Kimberly and I are going to a Chili Cookoff downtown to sample some delicious chili and just enjoy the everchanging, renovated downtown area. Just last month we had our annual Taste of Durham Festival in which owners of various restaraunts in the area give tastes of their cuisine to all who come.

Also, on the week of July 6-13 there is going to be the Week of Hope in which some area churches are getting together to help out the community. They will be doing some upgrades to schools and community centers, giving dental check-ups, washing cars, giving oil changes. It's going to be so awesome!

The last thing I have is a great map that I've done showing some restaurants that Kim and I either want to go to or have gone to here in Durham. It just consists of local restaurants, no chains. Check it out.


View Larger Map


What's going on in your town?

What I'm reading...

I've just updated (finally) my list of what I've been reading lately. As you might be able to tell I've been on a serious baseball kick lately. It is baseball season, but I've been especially crazy about any reading material having to do with baseball. I did pick up one non-baseball item that seems pretty interesting so far...As I Lay Dying (the book, not the band).

No pain, no gain

Yesterday, I commited to playing some basketball with my cousin and a few other people. I thought to myself, "yeah, Nick, this will be fun, you haven't played basketball in a while (late 2004 to be exact)." Oh my goodness, I nearly killed myself and I want to die right now I'm in so much pain.

It was a group of 11 of us and I was right in between the group, age-wise. Unfortunately, the younger ones outran me, and the older ones just abused me physically. That being said, I played very well considering the long layoff. I would say I might have even played better than before.

Two hours of basketball in a hot, stinking gym!

All Around Me

I can feel you all around me

Thickening the air I'm breathing

Holding on to what I'm feeling

Savoring this heart that's healing

My hands float up above me

And you whisper you love me

And I begin to fade

Into our secret place

"All Around Me" - Flyleaf

If you haven't checked them out before...do. The cd is a few years old now, but it's such a great cd. I've known about them for a while, but haven't really listened to the lyrics until the other day.

Legends of the Ball

Since I've already met my non-baseball quotient for the day, I thought I'd go ahead with this post. I love baseball!

Have you ever heard of Steve Dalkowski? No? That's what I expected. Would you believe me if I told you that in one season, no make that two separate seasons, he recorded a K/9 in. ratio of 17.56. For those uninitiated into baseball statistics, that means that for every 9 innings that he pitched (one entire game) he struck out an average of 17 batters! That's insane. The major league single season record for that is 13.41 by Randy Johnson in 2001. But wait you say...if that's the major league record, what about Dalkowski.

Those two seasons were done in the minor leagues. In 1957 with the Kingsport Pirates and also again in 1958 with the Aberdeen Pheasants, he struck out 121 batters in 62 innings. Now, I assume your question is why didn't he do well in the major leagues? Well, he never pitched in the major leagues. Why you ask? He had a little problem with control. Not anger, pitching control. In fact, in those two previously mentioned seasons, he walked 129 and 112 batters respectively.

On top of the fact that he couldn't control his pitches very well, he had a viciously fast arm. Legend has it that he once broke through the netting of a backstop on three straight pitches and also once tore part of a batter's ear off with a pitch. Supposedly, this is the incident that gave him the most trouble as he was afraid he would one day kill someone with a pitch. Most people believed his pitches were as fast as 105 mph.

Dalkowski ended up a serious alcoholic after leaving baseball and wasn't hear from much again. Sadly, this is a true story...unlike Sidd Finch

Oil Crisis

I am fascinated by how many people are really complaining about the cost of a gallon of gas. Yes, gas prices are absurd and yes, the oil companies are greedy and yes, their excuses for why the gas prices are going up are lame. But honestly, I hear people complaining that they just don't have enough money to pay for the increased price of gas, and I don't think they are trying hard enough.

One guy at my work complains about the gas prices and then goes out for lunch EVERY day! We're talking about using gas to drive to and from where he goes to eat and then probably $4 or $5 to eat. How is he complaining if he's just going to turn around and waste?

Stop driving so much! If I could bike to work, I would. I honestly am close enough that I could feasibly do it, but I don't have a bike. I am already in talks with some people here at work though to start carpooling, so that's a start. Hopefully if we get that going it will make other people aware.

But this is like the current drought situation here in North Carolina. People get all up in arms and do what they can to conserve...then when the threat is calmed down, go right back to wasting. That shouldn't be how it is! It's a precious resource, we should always conserve on GAS and WATER.

More Google Maps...

Yesterday, Google celebrated the one year anniversary of their Streetview feature by adding 37 new cities and expandiing the coverage in some of their other cities.

Here's the list of the new cities:
Springfield (MA)
Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse (NY)
Newark (NJ)
Virginia Beach (VA)
Charlotte, Winston-Salem (NC) - I spotted a Chrysler Concord there
Columbia, Greenville (SC)
Atlanta (GA)
Huntsville (AL)
Boca Raton, Cape Coral, Ft. Lauderdale, Jacksonville, Sarasota, West Palm Beach (FL)
Jackson (MS)
Knoxville (TN)
Lexington, Louisville (KY)
Cincinnati, Columbus, Dayton, Toledo (OH)
Ann Arbor (MI)
St. Louis (MO)
Topeka (KS)
Oklahoma City, Tulsa (OK)
Reno (NV)
Bakersfield, Fresno, Sacramento, Stockton (CA)

I hope you all can enjoy it as much as I do.

Google Maps

So, I have what some would consider a love affair with Google Maps. I think it's the coolest invention since baseball. There are endless things you can do and see with the maps. You can do a satellite view and zoom in on the top of your house. Or if you're lucky enough to live one of a few select cities, you can look at an actual streetview picture of your entire city...frame by frame.

Another really cool tool is the ability to create your own information to put into a map. A good example of this is a map that I created of mine and Kim's trip to Atlanta during Christmas of 2006. I've posted the map below so you all can take a look. I like to think it tells a story of our vacation. It also is helpful for anyone who has never visited the city and is considering it.

You can navigate around the map by clicking on the icons and zooming in out and on the left hand side. Have fun!


View Larger Map

Ken Griffey Jr. "The Kid"

So, last night one of my favorite players in the history of baseball, Ken Griffey Jr., hit the 600th HR of his career. It's such a huge accomplishment and I just really enjoy seeing it happen to such a great guy. One of the reasons why I've always liked him is his attitude. He always has a smile on his face and from the time he came into the league has been one of the most approachable players around. He also has the added benefit of an untarnished reputation. Heck, even Chipper Jones hasn't managed to avoid that pitfall.

It's only sad to me that it took him this long to reach this point. He really was supposed to be the one to break the all-time record and was well on his way when he left Seattle to come home to Cincinnati. For those that don't know, his dad played a good part of his career in Cincinnati and so Griffey pretty much grew up there. But he couldn't avoid injuries and therefore hasn't played very consistently over the last 7 or 8 years. On top of that, he doesn't get much love from the Reds fans. He can come to Atlanta to finish out his career if he'd like...although the fans at Turner are pretty lousy too.

Congrats Griffey on another milestone! You still have the sweetest swing in all of baseball. Here's to passing Sammy "I slam steroids" Sosa in the coming month.

Baby Kyrie

Just wanted to send out a post/prayer request about a couple of friends. I know the audience reading this is not very big (I'm pretty sure it's just 2), but I wanted to write this down for myself anyway.

A couple that Kimberly and I know just had a baby (Kyrie) Friday night. Kyrie is/has gone in for her first heart surgery today sometime. She has a defective heart that is missing some key components that transport the blood between its chambers.

Tell everyone you know to pray for her and for her family. This is just the beginning as she is scheduled to have multiple surgeries to repair this. This is something she will continue to deal with for a long time, but provided that everything goes well (and we know it will) she will have as normal of a life.

We know God is in control and we also know that Kyrie will be a blessing to her family and everyone else she comes in contact with regardless of what happens.

Baseball weirdness...

I got this story from Yahoo! Sports and I was just going to type in my own description, but it was just too good to do that so I just am putting it word for word in here. It's got a video too which is the main part, but if you've lived for any time in NE GA, you'll find the story a little interesting.

Here it is: They say the great thing about baseball is that there's always a chance you might see something that you've never seen before. They also say high schoolers are prone to do stupid things.

But have those two maxims ever collided in such strange fashion? Take a look at this clip from a high school game in Georgia, which some believe shows a catcher intentionally ducking his pitcher's pitch so that it pegs the umpire. It's almost so unbelievable that you have to take a look and judge for yourself.



So exactly what was going on to make the catcher bail on the pitch like that?

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has been on top of the story and is reporting today that the investigation into the incident is 'ongoing.' According to the report, "Stephens County shortstop Ethan Martin, the brother of the pitcher, Cody Martin, had argued with (umpire Jeff) Scott and thrown his batting helmet after becoming the ninth consecutive Stephens County batter to strike out."

On Monday, the paper reported that the Stephens County principal had apologized to the Georgia High School Association, but that the school's coach contended the pitch was a mixup between the catcher calling for a curveball and getting a fastball instead.

But Scott Singer, who was in charge of videotaping the game for the rival team, saw things differently.

Said Singer in the AJC:


"Those two, the pitcher and his brother, the entire game had been riding the umpire about balls and strikes, and [Ethan Martin] got rung up in the top of the fourth, so [perhaps] that was payback in the bottom of the fourth. I don't know what was going through their heads, but when you see a catcher go to his right, it's like 'Good God!'"

Scott wasn't injured on the play and neither he nor the umpires' association have had any comment about the situation. The pitcher and catcher aren't talking either, so stay tuned to see what, if anything, the investigation turns up.

(Given the apparent mess they're trying to untangle, here's betting school administrators wish that their summer vacation had started two weeks ago.)

Leroy "Satchel" Paige

Just read an interesting story about the man known as Satchel Paige. Satchel Paige, for those who don't know was a player in the Negro Leauges, who after playing most of his career was accepted in the Major Leagues. After his brief Major League career he went to various independent teams and eventually to the Minor Leauges. In 1956-58 pitching for the Miami Marlins when Satchel Paige was 50+ years old (nobody knows exactly when he was born), he was 31-22 with 200+ SO, 34 walks, and a ERA under 3.00. That's insane for a man of his age, but he always said that he got stronger the more he pitched. Just thought you might like to know some baseball history.