Chris Stout's Blog

Remember Me

2009-04-14T21:40:00.001-07:00

We do remember you. We do support you. We are honored to know you and be part of your lives. Come home safe!

We're Moving - Update

2008-06-21T23:33:00.001-07:00

Okay, yes, we moved; however, there is a little snafu with the domain name stuff...so in the meantime re-bookmark here and update your readers!

Moving to WordPress

2008-06-03T21:32:00.000-07:00

Yup,

I'm going to take that plunge and move over to wordpress. If you have any tips, idea's, how to, and any suggestions to get my mind working on it, let me know. I can't wait to see what works out...

thestoutsonline.com

See you there!

I'm Back!

2008-06-02T21:37:00.000-07:00

So, I'm back! YES! It was the most awesome thing to see my family waiting for me back at the unit whe we got there. To hear the fire truck lead us up the ramp and hear the siren and lights going was awesome. Stephanie and Ryan were so beautiful! I can't believe how amazing they are...I'll blog more about my homecoming later.

Well, catching up on things and only have 212 posts to read on my reader. Wow...

It's so nice to be in my house!

In Thailand!

2008-05-07T03:19:00.000-07:00

Well, we're here in Thailand starting to head east! it is a great feeling. I'm sitting at an American Sports Bar that is very classy and relaxing. Kris is the manager and when he was in the Navy he was my bosses (sp) boss back in the day. I think you can check them out at http://www.moorebar.com.th or something like that. Sorry, i'm blogging using my phone so I can't hyperlink it normally.

the count down has begun to our return. I can't wait! Alex is going to join me for a few days right before we get home so you'll get a full report frm the two of us when we get back.

Not much else going on. Advancement (promotion) results are possibly coming out mid month. We'll see what happens there. Keep your fingers crossed.

well, that's all for now. See you all soon!

Places I've Been

2008-02-27T06:36:00.001-08:00

create your own visited country map
or write about it on the open travel guide

create your own personalized map of the USA
or write about it on the open travel guide

What to do?

2008-02-27T03:04:00.000-08:00

So,

I've had a lot of time to think lately and unfortulantly not enough time to talk to my wife or family. Thankfully I've been able to call them recently but due to the time difference and cost of the call, I never really feel like I've been able to talk to anyone. Sure, Stephie talks about Ryan and I listen intently and I laugh, cry, feel proud, etc. It's just not the same.

I was getting off track. So, what do I want to do in life? Do you remember elementary school? I remember in 5th grade, we were asked to write down what we wanted to do in life and what the world would be like in ten years. I remember thinking, "I want to marry Allyson Sawyer..." I had a huge crush on her in 5th and 6th grade. We went to different schools later and of course I was always too scared to even talk to her. Good thing, cuz I love my wife! Anyway...I wrote that cars would be flying and I would be old. Ha ha...

I sit here and remember when Mr. Vangelder would say that we could be the President of the United States, or an astronaut. I wish I could remember what I was thinking? I think President crossed my mind, but I was just a kid.

I have roughly 3.75 years left on my current contract with the Navy. I will have 11 years in the Navy at that point and only 9 left till I could retire. There are some nice benni's to retiring from the Military. I'll only be 40, lifetime Medical/Dental Insurance, lifetime Commissary and Exchange benefits, lifetime access to MWR Resorts around the world and Military Flights for free. Is that something I really want to hang in another 9 years for? I'd have 9 more years of having to pass a physical fitness test twice a year, I'd have to work people who I possibly just cant stand, be a professional babysitter, be a professional janitor, have to deploy several more times an possibly a year at a time, miss more of my families life.

So, do the benni's out weight the costs? I mean, I can understand the physical fitness test, I just hate running. Well, I'm a slow runner thanks to my knees and the fact I'm out of shape. When I get on the Elliptical I can run up to 4.75 miles now, but I wouldn't say I really enjoy doing it that much. Also, I'm pretty slow. I can't run a 1.5 mile in less then 13 minutes. Yeah, people think they can walk it that fast, I can't. Push-ups and sit-ups who cares? I always do well.

What about politics? Could I be the President some day? I don't know. I feel that I'm too independent on issues. This whole thing going on right now sometimes just angers me. I like some of the plans of the Democrats, and I like some of the Republican plans. I'm registered non-partisan before someone gets on my band wagon. The think I like about Republican's is I feel much safer at home. Democrats can save some money. Then everything is situational and not really one particular person's legacy or fault. I don't know. Maybe local? Could I do that? Then I remember how my parents being in a newspaper industry always told me never to draw attention to myself. It's better to be known as a quiet, cool, collected, well mannored, humbled person. If I entered into pollitics, the private life would be gone.

I've always wanted to work on boats! ALWAYS! I love boats! Sail, power, outboard, inboard, cruising, racing, you name it. I want my own sailboat and eventually power boat some day. I'd love to have a Melges 24 to start, and maybe someday move on to a J-Boat. Anyway, should I get my liscense and be a day captain or something? I could do that. I thought in Middle School that being a captain of a San Francisco Ferry might be fun.

What about the church? Service? I like to serve? I love God, I love worship, I love Jesus and the Bible. Is it really cut out for me? I'm a sinner just like anyone else in this world. Could I clean up my act and come around? I don't know. It has crossed my mind though. I don't know if I could really be a pastor, but staff or a leader might fit. I don't know.

What about teaching? I guess I can tell you more about that after I transfer to be an instructor. We'll see. What about continuing in the electronic field? Maybe as a business owner and part time tech vs. a worker bee. I don't know...I'll have to see. In High School I wanted to be a Sound & Lighting Production Company. Maybe...Hmmm

Well, I don't know where I was going to end this with. I had a plan, then I was distracted by software updates and google. I don't know, I just want to come home to my wife and talk to her about it. I've got plenty of time...

Life Church from Half A World Away

2008-02-24T08:28:00.000-08:00

I'm glad I got to see these guys today!

Had Tea and Stew

2008-02-24T06:59:00.000-08:00

So I ate at The Dome which seems like a nice little coffee shop. Come to find out they are in several places. Not too bad...

Bahrain x 4

2008-02-24T04:22:00.000-08:00

Do I really need to say more?

Deployment + 30 Days

2008-02-15T03:56:00.000-08:00

Well,

The Captain of the ship put out yesterday morning that the senior leadership (meaning Admirals and people that way out rank him) have recommended a 30 day extension for the ship that I'm on. It's not approved by the Joint Chiefs of Staff yet, but it's pretty much a 99% chance that it will happen.

The bad: I'll be home 30 days later.
The Good: Maybe I'll be able to make more money. Tom may be more able to do the Tiger Cruise.
The Maybe: Once they start extending, they sometimes keep on adding time...

Please pray that this isn't going to get anymore prolonged. It would be real nice if they said no...Oh well, it's part of the job.

Bahrain x 3

2008-02-15T03:47:00.000-08:00

Yeah, we're here again. Today sucks weather wise. Thankfully this will be a rather short visit. I have duty tomorrow. Going to a birthday party tonight at Trader Vic's...

In the mean time, I'm just sitting here with my buddy Chris and cruising the net. Woo hoo!

Happy Day!!!!

2008-01-31T08:25:00.000-08:00

This made my day so much better!

Steve Gray @ The Desert Dome

2008-01-31T07:31:00.000-08:00

So,

I say so a lot. Just noticed that. Anyway, on base at the Desert Dome there is the Steve Gray Band which will be out here for two months. A mix of artists from a recording drummer, Steve Gray obviously, experienced lead guitarist. They do covers and some originals of everything from Rock, Rap to Country. I didn't get to stay and listen much, but they seemed pretty good. The Dome set them up with a Allen & Heath GL3300. That's funny since we (Life Church) just sold a GL3200. Anyway, it wasn't their board (The Bands) so they were at a slight disadvantage. On top of this their sound guy was actually their Roadie and Manager. More of a light guy then anything.

So anyway, I chit chatted with themfor a little bit (the area is kind of dead right now) and looked over the equipment for a bit. Looks like they started out with good intentions. When I came back later after they had started, the sliders were all maxed out, meters were barely moving and everything but the bass guitar sounded good. I was thinking about offering my help, but I thought that might be a little bit rude especially since that's what those guys do for a living.

Anyway, I would say check Steve Gray Band out. They looked like a pretty good band and the did sound good for what I did hear.

My Addictions - INTERNET

2008-01-31T07:22:00.000-08:00

So,

Here I am in Bahrain again. I had duty on Tuesday, so I rushed off the ship as soon as I could to go to the exchange and get on the internet. Stephanie is up at my parents house and I wanted to get on either iChat or Yahoo Instant Messenger and SEE my family. Well, apparently Batelco who I guess is the primary and possibly only internet provider for at leasts Manama, which is where I am, was having internet problems. We walked everywhere! Finally around noon my time someone had come back from the mall, where I am now, saying they even went out here trying to get on. NOTHING...So I was very dissapointed that I didn't get to see my family yesterday.

Today I brought ye ole lappie along just in case it worked. We got here at the mall about 6:15'ish and I didn't want to get my hopes up. So I went and browsed for a moment. Took a pit stop at the Sony store, then walked over to Starbucks. Expecting to not get anything, I sat down and reluctantly pulled out my laptop. Sure enough, it works!! So now I'm waiting to see if Stephanie will wake up and talk to me. I don't have a ton of time, but I'll work with it.

Can you believe how important the internet is to me now? Wow...

In Bahrain - still

2008-01-03T04:25:00.001-08:00

So, the american dollar doesn't go very far here. For every Bahraini Dinar, it's $2.64'ish. When taking a five minute taxi cab ride, we've been able to barter down to 4 BD. Small electronics are super expensive here. Also, PS3 games go for well over $100 American.

Alas I sit at Starbucks again. This time with James and Rachel. We're going to see National Treasure Two in about an hour. I'l hang out here in the meantime.

One thing that is kind of irking me is that I tried to comment on Alex's and Billy's Blog. For some reason, I can't leave comments on the Wordpress blogs. :-( <--Makes me sad.

I'm in Bahrain - Happy New Year!

2008-01-02T01:15:00.000-08:00

So..Here I am, sitting at Starbucks of all places drinking the water. Hey Karl, I agree it's pretty good. I never have liked coffee, but I just wanted to get on the internet and this seem to be the best place. At least according to my friends HT1 Lee and Grant who are addicted to World of Warcraft. I just wanted to blog, get updates, and check my e-mail.

So here are some pictures from Saipan, followed by our oh so joyous Christmas Day Det Photo...

So, as you can tell we were really happy. I don't have any pics of me since those were just off of my camera. The ones that are of me are back on the ship.

Well, other then that, I'm going to say bye for now and do some updates. I will update you more later!

-Chris

Hey All, an update!

2007-11-30T04:28:00.000-08:00

Well all,

I'm in Saipan which is part of the Marianas Islands. I'm at one of the local hangout bars. I've had a few drinks, which is probably too many. There isn't much here to do so it's usually just end up at the same place every night. Last night they had this kickin' cover band and they totally rocked! Gave me total inspiration to learn the guitar and songs and maybe get back into the vocal realm. Well, tonight a different band is playing. I really can't drink enough to make them sound better, hence the reason I'm blogging.

On the technical side of the house, they are running a Cerwin-Vega combination which has got way too may watts for this Small place, but it seems to work if you enjoy permanent hearing damage. Using a Berringer board. I'm not sure what kind of amps, but that is okay. Bass is killer! Last night and tonight the bass players were playing 5 string bass's. They are pretty good. Last nights band covered Nickleback, Brittney Spears, 3 Doors Down, and such. This band has slaughtered way to many to even claim they tried. I figured if I had a few more, they'd sound better. Well, nope. I guess I shouldn't talk because I still suck, but I'm trying to learn. It's okay, everyone has got to start somewhere.

Well, so far we've been to Guam and Saipan. Guam was on base liberty only which was okay. Saipan I golfed and spent way too much at the bar. Went to a Vegas like Copperfield show. Wasn't worth the money, but I can say I did it at the Hyatt Regency in Saipan.

My chain of command has proven to be exactly what the rumors have been. You have to be very careful of who you select as friends and trust. I think I've found a select group, most have transferred in with the same opinion. Hopefully we'll be home soon. Man, I pray that is the case.

Life Church seems to be moving along. I got a e-mail from Alex the other day. He said that they are in the new building now, but tithe has been way down. I'm praying that it comes up and that they are growing and glorifying more then I could even imagine. Keep them in your prayers!

Well, I'm going to go now. I'll talk to you all later!

Update from the ship.

2007-11-08T15:33:00.000-08:00

Ok so here is the latest email from Chris. I figured I would let you all know how he is doing. Oh yeah Ryan and I are doing as good as we can be.

Stephanie

Well all,

Here we are on day three. It was a busy day for the ship today but not so much for me. I ended up catching up on some sleep and moving my test equipment around. We had Hamburgers for lunch which weren’t too horribly overcooked and Pork Adobo for dinner. Yes, I ate Pork Adobo. I will be soon attempting to maintain a diet and start to loose weight. I have no “goal” per say, but I would like to loose at least 15 or 20 pounds.

After dinner I broke out my guitar and learned some fundamentals. I actually know what each string is now (EADGBE)! I even know how to play a scale, and how to play different notes on different strings. Tomorrow I’ll probably learn more about Chords and such. ET2 Francis, also named Chris, has been kind enough to teach me. So if you really think about it, in three days, about an hour or two a day, I’ve learned a lot.

Our internet/e-mail connectivity was down for a while but seems to be straightened out. I’ve noticed a few people have commented on my you tube videos, but you tube is an unauthorized website. I’m having blog withdrawals like you wouldn’t believe! I just want to blog away about all the silly stuff, how much I miss Stephie and Ryan, etc.

Tomorrow looks like an interesting day. I’ll send out an e-mail and keep you all updated. I keep forgetting to import my address book off of my thumb drive (which is in my rack right now) so I know that I’m missing many people. If you happen to speak/e-mail them, let them know I haven’t forgotten. I should be getting off of here. There’s not going to be much hot water left in the showers by the time I get there. I know I’m supposed to do our Navy Showers (which I do) but it is nice to have hot water when you take one! Talk to you all soon!

-Chris

Deploying, NOW.

2007-11-05T07:37:00.001-08:00

Well all,

I know I have a ton of fans who read this so, I'll see you in a few months! When I pull into a port where I have internet, I will post and let you know what's going on. I'm not allowed to post from the ship.

Well, I must really go, otherwise I will be late. Take care all of you and see you soon!

Shipboard Mailing Address

2007-11-03T20:15:00.000-07:00

Hey All,

Here's my shipboard mailing address if you want to snail-mail me:

ET2(SW/AW) Stout, Christopher H.
USS GERMANTOWN (LSD-42)
ACU-5 Det Charlie
FPO AP 96666-1730

Send whatever you want, just don't expect it to get to me in 5 business days. They usually take about a month and a half. Also, baked goods, um, just remember that they'll be sitting there for a while and a rat or two might help themselves. Don't send beer, as much as I may want it. Don't send anything fragile or valuable. If you send DVD's, or movies, just make sure they are packaged correctly.

As far as the e-world, all of my e-mail addresses will be forwarded to the ship. If you absolutely must update your address books, you can e-mail me at stoutch@lsd42.navy.mil and you can check out the website here.

Well, that's all for now. I have to finish packing. Talk to you later.

New Family Pictures

2007-11-03T08:36:00.000-07:00

So, this goes directly against Los' successful blogging secrets (or maybe it doesn't), but here are some pictures that we had taken on Wednesday:

Copies available upon request!

Good Times, Good People.

2007-11-03T08:27:00.000-07:00

So, we had a few people over last night:

Alex & Jen McLean
Chuck Hudson
Josh McConnel & Christi Harris
James Van De Water
Chris Clark
Robert & Maria Libert
And a couple of Josh's and Christi's friends.

We ordered pizza from Murrieta Pizza & Brewing Company which was pretty good! They do offer a Military Discount FYI. Anyway, it was a pretty low tech evening so we didn't get any pictures; however, it was just a good little get together of some of our closest friends before we left.

Thank you for coming over guys! James, Chris and Josh are deploying with me, but I look forward to seeing the rest of you soon!

Happy Birthday Mom!

2007-11-02T10:01:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to say, that today was my mother's birthday! Happy Birthday Mom! Wish we were with you!

Cheerleader Gets Run Over By Football Team

2007-10-30T17:08:00.001-07:00

I'm on a video sharing kick right now. Ouch!!!

TV Tonight!

2007-10-30T17:00:00.001-07:00

Oh, I just can't wait for TV tonight!

Tech Confessional 14

2007-10-30T16:33:00.001-07:00

Well, here it is. This I think will be the last one that I do before I deploy. Unfortunately, we can't blog or post video's or anything from the ship. :-( Well, leave me some love and I'll see you guys soon!

TopGear: Bugatti Veyron versus Eurofighter Typhoon

2007-10-30T16:17:00.001-07:00

I just thought this was really cool!

Green Bay 19, Denver 13

2007-10-30T01:26:00.000-07:00

Anyone watch the game tonight? I did! WOW! You can get recap here.

I'm not a terribly huge Green Bay fan, but I have mad respect for Bret Favre. Last year Green Bay was 8-8. As of right now in week eight, they're 6-1. They're doing a lot better then my team, the Chargers who went 14-2 last year and are currently standing at 4-3. They did however layeth the smaketh down on Houston the other day, 35-10. Oh, and we did loose to the Packers this year. Hmm, so how far is Bret Favre's team going this year?

Wet Dogs

2007-10-29T09:33:00.000-07:00

Ryans First "Solid" Food

2007-10-25T13:17:00.001-07:00

Tech Confessional 13

2007-10-24T20:03:00.000-07:00

Here it is:

Family Pics

2007-10-24T19:55:00.000-07:00

The dogs were making sure I was changing Ryan's diaper correctly...

Ryan's first solid food. He liked it.

What bad dogs...They won't be doing that again.

Map of all Fires

2007-10-24T09:02:00.000-07:00

View Larger Map

What a handsome guy...

2007-10-22T22:28:00.000-07:00

Need I say more?

Evacuation?

2007-10-22T21:44:00.001-07:00

So today I was talking to some of my co-workers and the subject of what to take and do during an evacuation came up.

#1: I'd load my truck up with my Guitar, Drums, Sitar, Computer, mixing boards, and my Motorcycle.

#2: I just bought my big screen TV, so that'd be the first thing I pack up.

#3: My dog.

#4: My babies (in reference to her two cats).

#5: Let it all burn. I've got insurance.

Well, answer #1 might be okay if you're Karl Verkade, but what about the rest? I could buy #3 since I consider my dogs my children and I suppose even #4 even though Cats and I don't get along all that well. I feel that answers 1, 2, and 5 would be the most dissapointed in the long run. I'll tell you what we prepared with today:

Pictures of our family
Cody's ashes (we had to put down our 9 month old puppy a while back and still haven't been able to let him go fully)
An external hard-drive with all of our video's and pictures since we don't have many photo albums anymore.
Important documents (either take with or put in our fire proof box that lives inside our fire proof safe).
Combo/keys to sed safe.
Medications
Address book with Contact information for family and friends. (A laptop would be considered okay in this instance)
Diapers, clothes and toys for Ryan (our 3 month old son).
Food/Treats/Leashes/Beds for our dogs.
A few days worth of clothes/toiletries/water/snacks f0r ourselves.

What would you take?

California Fires

2007-10-22T17:31:00.001-07:00

We live in Murrieta California which is kinda in the middle of all this mess. We're actually not to far from Alex. Our house and family are not in any danger at the moment, but we're not far away. The biggest problem we have is road closures and traffic. Took me 2.5 hours to get home today because I had to go way North to come back South. If you know what I mean...

View Larger Map

Simply Adorable

2007-10-21T22:39:00.001-07:00

I love my baby girl! How can you turn down a face like this?

Say a Prayer, please!

2007-10-20T09:47:00.000-07:00

So, my brother-in-law and his family were robbed at gun point last night at their home. Everyone is doing just fine. Bob did the right thing and didn't try to be a hero which is hard since he's in the Army. The robber got away with $4, a wallet, a purse, and some bruised ego's. Why?

Street Racing

2007-10-19T23:30:00.000-07:00

So, I live on this street that's roughly a half a mile long. Straight, wide, low traffic, perfect for street racing. Well, Stephanie was doing her homework and coudn't get over that lovely pitched "ricer" running up and down the street so she called the cops. So they just showed up, where by this time the kids were just sitting in their cars. Apparently he said something, and pulled away.

"...lets get out of here before they call the cops again..." Or something to that affect. Off they go! I don't mind if kids want to put the pedal to the metal and see what their vehicle's got, but do it legally and safely, not at 11 o'clock at night. I guess this is where the hypocrite comes in. I'm guilty of it. In fact, today I did a 0-60 run in my truck (8.6 Seconds). I wasn't street racing though. I also did it in broad daylight with no cars around between driveways so that I knew no kids or cars would pop out and make for an unfortunate events. I guess not legal since I think the speed limit is 35 on our street, but I would consider it a little bit more safe. Plus I own a Ford F-350 with a Powertsroke Diesel. Now rice in this baby!

Updated Blogroll

2007-10-19T22:52:00.001-07:00

Alright guys,

I've finally updated my blog list on the left side of the page. Check out the guys I've added:

Andy
Rob
Tim

Welcome guys!

Deep Calling to Deep: What is a Sound Engineer?

2007-10-19T22:31:00.000-07:00

Guys and Gals,

A friend of mine, Rob Tremonte, has written this awesome post on being a Sound Engineer. You really need to check this out if you are a sound engineer, or if you're looking for a sound engineer. I only hope that I'm doing my best to hit all these requirements.

Deep Calling to Deep: What is a Sound Engineer?

My Wife

2007-10-15T21:51:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to tell the world...I LOVE MY WIFE. She is so amazing. There's no real reason for this post other then to say what I just did...

Yes, I wrote this, not her! Ha ha...

My 1st Guitar!

2007-10-15T21:22:00.001-07:00

So here are the pictures:

And then, here's some video of me butchering a D:

Tech Confessional 12

2007-10-14T23:53:00.000-07:00

Here it is:

Guitar Lessons?

2007-10-13T09:49:00.000-07:00

So, I finally bought a guitar! I got an Ibanez AEF Accoustic Electric. I'll post pictures of it later. Anyway, stumbled across this. Thought it might help since I don't have a clue...

Tech Confessional 11

2007-10-10T16:11:00.000-07:00

Well Folks, here is Tech Confessional #11! Sorry it took so long! I've been underway on a ship off the coast of California. Last float before I actually deploy. Well, enough, here it is!

Sound for Dummies

2007-10-01T07:19:00.001-07:00

So, when I went on my first work up, it was kind of short notice. I decided that since I have my nice new Macbook, I would record a Sound @ Life Church for Dummies. It's just me blabbing to the lappie on my way home. Not edited, all rough, and unscripted. Hopefully it helps somebody, someday, somehow. Here they all are:

1. Basic Setup (i.e. the first thing you do when you show up at 6:00 am)
2. Mic'ing the Stage
3. Aviom Setup
4. Trouble Shooting (can be used everywhere, but covers our setup.)
5. Miscellaneous things (covers our final mix and accessories.)

Alex requested I blog about it, so here it is. I apologize for how "primitive" it is. Like I said, I dummied it down so that any volunteer should be able to at least plug in the FOH speakers and reproduce something. I don't remember if I went into detail regarding Unity Gain, or mixing, but that's always personal preference and style.

Well, that's all for me for now. I'm off on another work-up. You can e-mail me here for the next couple of weeks. See you soon!

iChat Fun

2007-09-29T23:48:00.001-07:00

Sorry Alex, had to steal these from your blog! Ha ha...

Oh, I'm going to so miss the fruits of technology while I'm gone. I'll just have to stick to my Radar's and Radio's in order to get my fix... :-(

Buying a Guitar: HELP!!!!

2007-09-29T23:19:00.000-07:00

So,

I decided a while back to start learning how to play instruments. I figured that since I can't seem to sing anymore (as my wife keeps reminding me) that I'd get my music fix by instruments instead. Well, eventually I went and picked myself up a Yamaha DTX Electric Drum kit and I've got beat one and two down. Now I need to learn fills, etc.

With the deployment baring down on me, I decided that it would be better not to try to tak drum kit and to try to get a guitar to learn how to play. One of the fellow ET's on the ship is ae the huge guitar head. We talked back and forth and he busted out his magazines and hundreds of pictures on his current prospects. We kept talking and he asked me what my favorite bands were: Metallica, U2, Mercy Fall, Seether, Skillet, GnR, Bon Jovi, Life Church! Eric Beeman, etc. He said that a majority of my fav's used Ibanez guitars. On top of that, he said that the Ibanez's used the same types of necks for both electric and acoustic. That's a good thing because I want something easy to play. According to most guitarists, electric is easier, but I should learn an acoustic first.

Some people have said some things for me to look for. Well, about the only think I know how to do on a guitar is tune it and I'm not that great at it. So yeah, I'll look for action, inlays, etc., but how am I to know what the difference is? I just want to pick up a decent sounding guitar that anyone can learn to play and not be embarrased by its sound when a pro picks it up. Any suggestions?

Amazing!

2007-09-28T11:23:00.001-07:00

It's amazing this translated over so well:

Check this out:

2007-09-28T11:07:00.000-07:00

I really hate it when something happens like this. Go check out Fred's Blog and see what's going on. Quick summary:

1. Fred does Online E-Business
2. Fred has an outside source that does some stuff for him.
3. The outside source screwed up (it happens).
4. It wasn't his fault and apologize to every single customer personally.
5. Most customers were cool, but a lot were not.
6. His account is being closed now because of this major screw up, bad complaints, and ratio's being skewed because of the screw up.

Anyway, check it out and pray for him. I really hate it when something is totally out of your control but it affects you in a very negative way. Who doesn't hate that? Seriously, this is something that his family depends on and it could serious hamper life in his household. Hopefully his "outside source" roger's up and helps to make things right so that his business can continue on.

Plaxo, HTC 8525 & a Macbook

2007-09-25T23:07:00.000-07:00

Well,

I'm losing to something here. I should only have like 200 contacts, and somehow I keep ending up with 400 plus! I have a Cingular (AT&T or HTC) 8525 Windows Mobile phone and a new MacBook using Plaxo and the Missing Sync. I'm trying to figure out how to sync it all up, but somehow I keep ending up with duplicates, triplicates, and quadruplicates. I've gone through and deleted and "de-dup'd" at least five times now...This is getting annoying!

Late Work - The Norm

2007-09-25T22:50:00.000-07:00

So, I had to work late Monday night. We had to hang the "lateral bag" on LC-08. This is something I typically do not end up doing since I have technical job. Unfortunately, it's one of those, "get it done before the morning" type of things. Well, since we didn't start on it till about 1630 (that's 4:30 pm for you civilians), it was a late night. So, hanging this several hundered pound, 44 foot wide piece of bag with ten guys isn't as easy as it sounds. So, here's the results of what happens when your fingers are in the wrong spot while using a pry bar:

Well, it doesn't hurt, too much! LOL, just got a nice little gouge. Only two of us bled last night. One guy stood up and knocked his head so good he "scalped" himself. He didn't bleed. You see, when we're doing this, we're underneath a 200,000 lb. craft sitting on blocks about 5' 6" high On top of all of that, it's hot, it's heavy, it's uncomfortable, etc.

Anyway, that's just how my Monday went. Since we finished at 2030 (that' s 8:30 pm) we were supposed to be able to get out of work about 0900 the next morning. Well, I left at 1430 (2:30 pm). Don't you love my job? Ha ha...

Ryan's Tummy Time

2007-09-22T17:49:00.000-07:00

So this is like 5 or more minutes of my kid on his stomach. I just thought he was being cute...

My Parents New Digs

2007-09-22T16:21:00.000-07:00

An "interactive" tour! Enjoy:

What do you mean you're back?

2007-09-21T23:27:00.000-07:00

So yeah, I'M BACK! I apologize for the two weeks of nothing. I was embarked aboard USS Germantown (LSD-42) with no internet, telephone, or TV. Unfortunately, expect more of the same, at least no updates. Blogging is kind of a no no. I'm finding ways to work around it; however, it means that I have to make sure I don't disclose current operations and such.

Well, I'm at Tahoe right now with my parents. I'm going to head to bed, but wanted to update you all!

Tech Confessional 10

2007-09-03T22:51:00.000-07:00

Sunday was absolutely awesome! Phenomenal! Check out Alex's Blog and watch his Teaching/Worship Confessional!

Here it is:

Blogger:

You Tube:

Which is better?

My A/C is broke...

2007-08-29T17:43:00.000-07:00

Help!!!

Tech Confessional 9

2007-08-28T22:06:00.000-07:00

Here it is! A little longer then usual, but fun!

Feedback?

It's a MAC!

2007-08-27T21:24:00.000-07:00

Custom configuration
2.16GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
2GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM - 2x1GB
160GB Serial ATA @ 5400 rpm
Superdrive 8x
iWork '08 Preinstalled
Final Cut Express

Ships by: Aug 27 - Aug 29
Delivers by: Aug 29 - Sep 5

That's right, I ordered a Mac! I'm heading BACK to the right side! Ha ha! I'm really looking forward to this. I have found that all I really use my laptop for is homework, e-mail, editing movies and internet. On deployment I'll use it for watching movies and such but other then that, nothing much else. Alex helped sell my wife on the Mac with iSight. We were thinking of purchasing another video camera so that I could make little videos, read a book, whatever, and send them home to my son so that he can here my voice and see my picture on the TV every once and a while. So why spend all that extra money on just a video camera when I already have the $$$ invested in the one that I'm going to leave at home for my Wife? Plus, when my lappie breaks (yes I said when) I'll be done. I was looking at a DV tape, but we don't have any DV tape devices at home. So I would have to put them on DVD thru my lappie. Can't really get any other quality cameras that are "cheap."

I said earlier that I was "heading back." I was brought up on the Mac since I was about six I think? My dad thought it would be an awesome birthday present to go buy a Mac Plus with 2MB of Ram and an external 40MB hard drive and an Apple Image Writer for my Mom while she was on deadline for the Opera Program. My mom is a Graphic Designer and until that day was still doing everything with a typewriter and layout boards. Well, for some reason, I picked it up really quick and my Mom would call me during School to help her with printing issues and such. A few years later, Dad upgraded her to a Mac IIci with a 20 inch screen and an Apple Laser Writer II NT so I got the Plus in my room. Followed by a 1200bps modem! Since then she's had a G3, G4, iMac Green, iMac Red, and now is on a G4 iBook I think. Dad has long since converted to the dark side after his G4 to Asus, then IBM's and now Linovo's. My parents owned a commercial printing company which they eventually sold and retired even though Mom still does a couple of things for her favorite charities. I ended up upgrading eventually to one of the first run iBook's. You remember the blue toiliet bowl cover? I still have it laying around somewhere!

When I moved in with John in Washington, he introduced me to Medal of Honor Allied Assault, Call of Duty, Call of Duty 2, Battle Field 1942, Wolfenstein Enemy Territory, Counter Strike and a couple of other first person shooter games. I had already been PC savy thanks to the help of Dad and was actually working as a PC repair tech for the Navy, so I decided to build my own computer just for gaming. Well, I just don't play that much anymore. Now, with the invention of Boot Camp I might decide to partition a small portion for a copy of Windows XP, or maybe even Vista just in case I decide to play some games on the ship. I'm not sure which!

Wow, that was a journey down Mac history! Does anyone remember playing Oregon Trail? Ha ha!

Work Woes

2007-08-21T21:12:00.000-07:00

So, this picture is what I actually work on. It's not one of my "boats" but you get the idea. Most of you know (well Alex does since he's the only one other then Billy that reads this thing) that I'm deploying in November. It's going to be a six to nine months of floating around the Pacific Ocean and places I can't talk about just yet. I was chosen to go on this deployment because there was nobody left to make it. So with this being said, I had to be taken out of my detachment and put into another. Now here's were I get to toot my horn a little:

I'm the Sailor of the Year at my command. I'm the subject matter expert on about six million dollars (yes, $6,000,000) worth of gear for this detachment. Each craft costs $23 million so I've got a little chunk of the pie. I've deployed before so I volunteered to help assist with some administrative requirements for the deployment. So I go to meetings, arrange for computers, arrange for advancement exams and college courses. This in relation to my primary responsibilities are very minimal if you ask me. Anyway, I get those secondary duties (collateral's) squared away and try my hardest with my primary duties. I'm not exactly the best at it, but I try and I think I have more resources available to me to help.

With all this being said, I get yelled at by someone who didn't go to one of the meetings that wanted me to ill-advise my shipmates and make them sign up for something that certainly don't have to and if they do, they should wait for the brief that has been scheduled next month. What makes it even worse, I got my butt chewed out over an e-mail.

So with all these little things and being chewed out for them, it makes me wonder why I try to do my primary duties. If I can't get something little taken care of, how am I supposed to take care of these big ticket items? Why do I do what I do? Just takes all the motivation out of a person who was at one point the most highly motivated person in the command.

I'm praying guys...but I just don't know sometimes. Pray with me? Pray for my family? Finally, pray for the people I work for.

Radio Check

2007-08-19T17:47:00.000-07:00

I just heard this on the radio and had to say something.

Person 1, "Person 2 this is Person 1."

Person 2, "Person 1 this is 2, roger?"

Person 1, "We are trying to conduct a radio check with you on this radio, so can you give us a radio check?"

Person 2, "Roger..."

DUH!!!

A night of worship!

2007-08-16T22:04:00.000-07:00

So,

I got home after driving 200 miles today and wanted to take a nap before I went over to Worship Practice at Alex's house. My wife succored me into going to the pool with the neighbors. So I went, on one condition! We get to go to practice, together! It worked especially since I wasn't going to be there on Sunday. I have to work, yeah! :-( I think she was bored till Jen got home with the kids then she was sitting with Miles and having a good conversation with the 4 and half year old. Stephanie is such an awesome mother!

Anyway, I was sitting there and I thought maybe it would be cool to get the camera out. So I went and rumaged thru Alex's truck and got one and started taping practice. The funny thing was that Alex was doing all the funny cool stuff when I wasn't recording. Go figure. I did however catch some really good video of everyone and seeing how even though it's practice you can get caught up in the song and worship God. Even if Alex was flat, Chris loose his part, or Rich goofing around on the drums. There was a moment when Alex's daughter, Macy came up to him and was looking up at him while he was singing. It was especially powerful for me because it was a song about looking up to God and all of his glory. I think it was the Matt Redman song, I could be wrong.

One thing about me, I always forget the name of songs and who sings them. It takes me a few months to figure it out! It also takes me forever to remember the words and the part that goes with it. I can usually get one or the other and if I'm singing with someone else, I'll nail it; however, it takes me months to get a solo down. I'm still trying to figure out why Alex wants me to sing! Well, maybe I'll give it a shot. Stephanie may not come because she's heard me sing in the car and in the shower! :-)

Anyway, I'm going to go to bed "early" and try to get to work early tomorrow. I've been goofing off way to much this week and need to catch up!

What to blog about?

2007-08-15T23:36:00.000-07:00

You know, I have the urge to blog about something...but I don't know what! Any ideas?

I guess one really cool thing to check out is Karls Rant over at betterthanblank! It was a totally awesome e-mail!

Check it out. You might want to read it in parts! LOL

Scuttlebutt Video: 32nd America's Cup

2007-08-13T22:53:00.000-07:00

I was looking for photo's for the previous blog and came upon this site. There are a couple of awesome video's here for you sailboat racing fanatics!

Name Change??

2007-08-13T22:15:00.000-07:00

So,

I'm thinking about changing my domain name because I just don't think it flows. Yes, I r twidget. Yes, I do love to sail sailboats. Yes I do "sail" (more like steam) in the Navy. Finally, yes, .blogspot.com is going to have to stay since I don't have my own server. I could, but I don't have a static IP and don't feel like paying for one. On top of that, I'd probably have to learn HTML again and have the time to design, and tweak things.

You may notice I use the screen name J29teamtahoe a lot. The story behind that is when I was a kid (not too long ago) my dad bought a sailboat named Team Tahoe. Team T was a well known boat on Lake Tahoe thanks to it's previous owner, Jimmy Gregory. She was fast, sleek, a winner, and a J! J/Boats designed by Rod Johnstone, are one of the hottest designs on the sailboat racing and racer/cruiser market. Team T was a J29 Masthead Outboard rig. Our results weren't as good as Jimmy's but we made a run at it for a few years. Team T was the first sailboat that I skippered for a race (NOOD regatta or JFest I think). I was so scared! San Francisco City Front right in front of St. Francis Yacht Club and Golden Gate Yacht Club just east of the Golden Gate is no punk! Sure I sailed our Catalina (Sails Call) several times at Lake Tahoe when we were just cruising, but this area in San Francisco Bay is way/totally/drastically/crucially different. Dad couldn't make it and we had to represent our class since a lot of other people bailed. Richard Leavey, another J29 owner was on board, but a "Stout" had to skipper. It wasn't till I joined the Navy that Dad sold the boat and became a stink potter. He had no crew so I don't blame him. I do miss those days though and have been known as j29teamtahoe ever since.

So...for those of you who know me, and for those of you who just met me, send me some ideas! I just don't think Sailingtwidget makes sense or fits that well.

Tech Confessional #8

2007-08-12T20:36:00.000-07:00

Let me know what you guys think!

Anyone?

2007-08-11T23:03:00.001-07:00

So, if anyone wants to purchase a Allen and Heath GL4 40 channel 10 Aux board with two RPS10 power supplies, meter bar, and road/travel case, please let me know!

Just for clarification, the pictured equipment above is a link from E-Bay. I think our equipment is a little nicer. I just dumped all the pictures that I took before we put it away and don't feel like pulling it out again. Ha ha!

Too Cute

2007-08-11T19:40:00.000-07:00

I just had to post this!

Tech Confessional #7

2007-08-08T21:25:00.001-07:00

Let me know what you think!

Tech Confessional #6 Take Two

2007-08-03T21:03:00.001-07:00

So,

For some reason, I can't open this file on my computer. I probably could on my tower because it has the software for my Video Camera who records mpeg4. The catch is, I need to clean that thing up and because I simply just can't edit video on it with out crashing it. So the lappie will edit, if it can open the file.

So I tried to do it Los style while I drove home from the gym. Unfortulantly, this looks like absolute crap. So don't watch it! LOL Hey, at least I put one up. I'll use my video camera next time.

Tech Confessional Delay

2007-08-02T21:15:00.001-07:00

Alright guys, sorry for the delay in the tech confessional. Stephanie's best friend, Michelle and her boys, Caleb and Seth, are visiting and I've been kinda busy. PLUS...Stephanie had a 102 degree temperature on Sunday, so I had to leave before the first service.

All accounts have been said that it went okay. Jon has been fantabulus in taking initiative. It is nice to have fresh blood on the team that is motivated!

So I promise I'll throw a generic Tech Confessional up here before next Sunday!

2 Hip for Me????

2007-07-30T21:48:00.000-07:00

So, a couple of days ago, I was driving down California Oaks going towards Guitar Center trying to find some short cheap XLR cables (a bust) when I came across this car. It was a beautiful Mercedes-Benz S63 AMG. Now, let me fill you in on it's specs:

Engine: AMG hand-built 6,208-cc DOHC 32-valve V-8. High-pressure die-cast aluminum alloy cylinder block

Net Power: 518 hp @ 6,800 rpm

Net Torque: 465 lb-ft @ 5,200 rpm

MSRP: $127,775

Now, that's one hell of a car! (Yes I said Hell.) It was so icredibly beautiful, sounded like a Mercedes, moved like a Mercedes, etc. I fell in love with it...until I saw the license plate, 2HIP4U. What kind of statement was that person trying to say? I immediately wondered, "Is this person too hip for Jesus? Too hip for God? Do they go to church?" It just seemed like a bold over the top statement to me. I mean, just look at the car! I would love to be able to own that sleek little black number with the limo tinted windows someday, but does that mean that I would have to be "2 Hip" for even that person? I don't know...

Ryan's Bed

2007-07-30T21:35:00.000-07:00

Ryan was fussin' a little bit and we tried a few things to calm down. Well I finally picked him up and just walked around a little bit and eventually sat down on the couch. Apparently he found that my chest made a real good bed.

Guests

2007-07-30T13:17:00.000-07:00

So, we have two new guests at the Stout household. Two cute little beagles that belong to our friends Josh and Christy. They are both in the Marines (Christy just joined and is in school at Ft. Leanardwood) and Josh is deploying with me.

So Josh calls the other day, "Dude, can I ask a huge favor?"
I said, "Sure!" since they've house sat/dog sat for us several times.
Josh, "Can you watch the dogs for me while I'm out in the field?"
I said, "Now I thought you were going to ask me to lend you money or something. Not a problem."
Josh, "Awesome, but can you watch them for a month?"

...

So here they are! As you can see, Jesse and Tator have become quite at home...Ha ha...

Oh and arriving tomorrow, Steph's best friend Michelle, and her two sons. Woo hoo!

Sleeping In

2007-07-28T11:04:00.000-07:00

So I fell asleep on the couch last night and slept till about 8:30 when my Lab decided to wake me up. She usually wakes me up around 7 so I didn't complain. I got up and opened the garage door so she could go out. I think I heard our other dog, a sheppard mix, come running down the stairs when I laid back down on the couch.

Around 10 or so, I heard the intercom ringer on the phones, so I guess my wife was trying to tell me to get up. Well, I got up, fed the dogs, and checked my e-mail, read some blogs, and now am blogging. It's currently 11:06, so maybe I should go upstairs and see what she's doing! :-)

The Saints Are Coming

2007-07-26T23:18:00.000-07:00

What do you think? I like it even if there is some "creative" editing. I'm pretty sure an Apache Attack Helicopter doesn't have hoist capabilities. LOL

I hate shots!

2007-07-26T17:47:00.000-07:00

So being in the lovely US Navy and getting ready for a deployment, I had to get my first Anthrax shot today. It's the first in a series where they have you come back every couple of weeks and give you another shot. Then, you have to get boosters every year if you keep deploying.

I tend to pass out at the sight of a needle but I did pretty good today. They stood us up in a line and started to administer the shot, which of course I immediately turned and looked the other direction. I went up to the Corpsman and reminded her of the last time I got a shot and blood drawn and she very politely said, "Can you come see us in our office later? We'll make an exception for you." I went to their office later and got the shot while sitting down. It's also good because they like you to have stick around for 15 minutes or so. I had a Chief who almost died from getting the shot. It's very rare that people have reactions like that, but a lot of people do have reactions.

So far no real reactions other then a sore shoulder and back. Hopefully it won't affect the golf game tomorrow! I'm just really thankful that I didn't have to get it like the guy in this picture had too.

Okay, finally my own!

2007-07-25T23:01:00.000-07:00

Well,

I guess I got to impatient on waiting for Alex over at betterthanblank to post my tech confessional the other night, so he encouraged me to get my own blog! :-) I Love ya Alex! So...hopefully this will work out.

I used to to some web design with he aide of Adobe products back in the day and a little of raw html, but it's been SO LONG! I have no idea to where to start. So it's going to be painful (because I don't have the patience for code) and I don't have a ton of time.

I'll also be deploying soon, so I won't be able to edit the blog per say. I'll be able to post via e-mail, but that's about it. And even then so I can only post so much. So...we'll see how this works out!

Tech Confessional #5

2007-07-25T22:53:00.000-07:00

What do you think?