Hey All, an update!

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.

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.

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

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

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.

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!

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

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

TV Tonight!

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

Tech Confessional 14

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

I just thought this was really cool!

Green Bay 19, Denver 13

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

Ryans First "Solid" Food

Tech Confessional 13

Here it is:

Family Pics

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

View Larger Map

What a handsome guy...

Need I say more?

Evacuation?

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:

1. Pictures of our family
2. 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)
3. An external hard-drive with all of our video's and pictures since we don't have many photo albums anymore.
   
4. Important documents (either take with or put in our fire proof box that lives inside our fire proof safe).
5. Combo/keys to sed safe.
6. Medications
7. Address book with Contact information for family and friends. (A laptop would be considered okay in this instance)
8. Diapers, clothes and toys for Ryan (our 3 month old son).
9. Food/Treats/Leashes/Beds for our dogs.
10. A few days worth of clothes/toiletries/water/snacks f0r ourselves.

What would you take?

California Fires

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

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

Say a Prayer, please!

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

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

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?

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

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!

So here are the pictures:



























































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

Tech Confessional 12

Here it is:

Guitar Lessons?

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

Sound for Dummies

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

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!!!!

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!

It's amazing this translated over so well:

Check this out:

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

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

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

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

What do you mean you're back?

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

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...

Help!!!

Tech Confessional 9

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

Feedback?

It's a MAC!

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

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

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!

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?

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

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??

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

Let me know what you guys think!

Anyone?

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

I just had to post this!

Tech Confessional #7

Let me know what you think!

Tech Confessional #6 Take Two

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

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????

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

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

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

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! :-)