No Fear

and I don't mean the formerly popular line of t-shirts...

Pirate Motivational Poster

It also works for criminal organizations with spiffy t-shirts ;)

An unusual gift

Well, I've had a great Christmas, but before I retire to the couch to pass out watching TV I'd like to share with everyone the most unexpected gift I received this year... a ship's wheel! Most of you know I have always been fond of all things nautical (in terms of the age of sail). Well apparently my parents tried to get me one for my college graduation but the local antique store wanted a considerable amount for it. Well, apparently, the store had a few different ones this year and reduced the asking price considerably (actually, I think the first one they saw was considerably larger). But without further ramblings, here it is:
Now I just need a house so that I can hang it properly (my apt only allows me to hang stuff with finishing nails)... or a ship for it ;)

A New Fav TV Show?

...time will tell, but so far so good ;)

Epic Conditions

Upcoming episodes on The Weather Channel (times in Mnt)

Cobloggeration

Well, I owe someone an ode to cobloggeration ;)

New Hobby

Well, I have just started on a new hobby. I am starting to get into home roasting coffee. I am very near the stage of coffee connoisseur as my friend, Cutler. A video of my roaster in action:

I could have gone the way of roasting with a hot air popcorn popper but the company I ordered this from through in 10 pounds of "green" coffee beans for free.

A couple of roasts I have already done:
I roasted some beans from Java to what I believe is a Full City Plus and some Ethiopian beans to what I believe is City.I know most of you aren't coffee drinkers but everyone is welcome to come over for a cup :)

The Past Month

I have hit an all time low! It has been over a month since I last blogged :( I could easily blame a friend from discontinuing his blog, but I will take it upon myself.

What have I been up to that kept me from blogging? I am not even sure, but I am going to do my best to recall it.

I went to see American Gangster. As with every Russel Crowe movie I have seen, which is nearly all Russel Crowe movies, it was great. Afterwards I concluded that Crowe and Denzel Washington are two of the best, if not THE BEST, actors. When I watch them, I am not reminded of any of their previous characters. There are many actors that I cannot say that about. I'll give it a rating of DOMINATING.

Over Thanksgiving weekend, I tried to get a few friends to stop by Pierre to hang, but three of the four couldn't make it. So I revealed the greatness of The Big Bang Theory to my friend from Cedar Rapids, IA.

This last weekend I saw The Golden Compass. I suspect that some of the statements made by the author of the novel were for publicity purposes. As I have heard stated before, 'there is no such ting as bad publicity.' After watching the movie (and note that it is supposed to be 'toned down' from the novel), I got the impression that it is about free will. The title characters are fighting a totalitarian government. From what I understand, the novel has them fighting a false church... much like Breath of Fire 2! Either way, it topped the American and British box offices. Though, if I want to know how the story ends, MTV says I'll have to read the books. I'm catholic, but I in no way feel that I am strong in my faith. I go to church regularly and I believe in most Christian preachings, but I fail to see the problem with this story. But enough of that. You would think that I might rate this as godlike, but it wasn't quite that good. I'll have to give it a DOMINATING as well.

In music news, the alluring Andrea Lewis of The Clumsy Lovers has left the band to have her baby. I wish her a great and wonderful life... and maybe not so clumsy love ;) The fans will certainly miss her. And from the newsletter email:

PARTING IS SUCH SWEET SORROW

It's with sadness and excitement that we announce Andrea, our long-time (try
forever) fiddler, is pregnant and has stopped touring. Sadness, because we
have played with her so long, and because she is the most consistently
dynamic performer I've ever seen, and because we all have so much shared
history and so much admiration and respect, and because she's irreplaceable,
professionally and personally.

But excitement, cause we are so happy for her and excited for her coming
arrival, and cause it feels like the right thing for her. Change is scary,
but it's inevitable, and ultimately good. It is gonna be strange, tho.

MEET THE NEW KIDS

So, then, what now? We are thrilled to be joined by not one, but two,
fiddlers. Rebecca Smith and Trent Freeman are both amazing talents. In the
course of the audition process we just couldn't force ourselves to choose
between the two of them, so we decided to try both. That first moment in
the rehearsal room when we heard those twin fiddles cranking we knew we'd
hit paydirt (and that it was a brilliant decision, of course, not a happy
accident). They've been working hard to learn the repertoire (we never
realize how many songs we have until we try to teach them to somebody ­ it's
a truly ridiculous number), and been doing a great job. But the real
excitement is in new material we're working on, and in the new sounds that
come out of the twin fiddles (Trent also plays mandolin and guitar, and
we'll undoubtedly get to utilizing that, but right now we're having too fun
much hearing them both fiddle). It's truly a very high point in band
history in terms of excitement to jam and develop new material and see where
the music heads. We are beyond optimistic.

Of course, there's still gonna be a transition period, and again looking at
the sheer amount of material to be learned we know there'll be some rough
spots. But even that can be kind of fun (even if it makes you sweat, like,
a lot). Overall, we just simply cannot wait to see where things go. Make
sure you come out to the shows, say hello to the newbies, and watch the band
grow right before your eyes.

We'll have more info about the new fiddlers in the next newsletter, when
after a month on the road we'll know a lot more about them (like, say,
whether they can survive a month on the road!)

From the Gaelic Storm newsletter I learned of great news:

Yes, it's true...Gaelic Storm has been hard at work writing new songs and will begin recording tracks for a new album this month!

A release date has not been set yet, but stay tuned and we should have more details in the new year. All we know at this point is the band is incredibly excited about the new material and can't wait to start playing some of the new songs on the road.

So, listen for new songs at shows beginning in 2008!

I do have a new CD that most of you should find enjoyable. Rootstomp Volume 1. It calls itself "a cross-section of contemporary celtic music." If future volumes contain the likes of Gaelic Storm, Great Big Sea, and Natalie MacMaster, then there is no doubt that it is a correct statement. Either way it is a great CD.

This coming weekend I plan on seeing I Am Legend... seems like a page out of The Twilight Zone ;)

I think that is enough for tonight... hopefully I can continue it more regularly.

'yakin'

I have been out kayaking 6 times this October including yesterday when the temp broke 70. I even took an hour off of work to make the most of the opportunity!

Smooth as the other side of the pillow!

Ducks

Not the Deadwood that most think of ;)

It's a bird...

It's a plane...

No, it's a "Powered Parachute"!

Captain, First Mate, hat band, and a gold coin!

A siamese twin pirate?! Captain and first mate! ;)

My monitor is adorned with pirate decor; only thing missing is treasure!
My straw hat that I have been wearing to paddle is falling apart (what do I expect from a $5 Wal-mart hat!), so I placed the Hawaiian-esque hat band on my tri-corner hat!

A small piece of treasure, cleverly ucked away in the hat band!

In The News

Hard Hat Area

Setting An Example

EDITED TO ADD: The Office of Highway Safety director resigned. Also, remember he is part of the Dept of Public Safety not the DOT... just had to protect my dept. ;)

from an ASCE email...

Curious George Takes on Civil Engineering with ASCE

With help from ASCE, Curious George is bringing civil engineering to students in grades K-1! ASCE has joined Universal Studios and Scholastic Inc. in developing educational materials that introduce engineering design concepts to students in grades K-1. Engineers and educators now have access to reproducible lesson plans that supplement a series of televised Curious George shows. Activities have been designed to reinforce objects and concepts familiar to little ones who want to “Become a Builder” just like George.

To qualify for a free copy of the Curious George Let’s Build teaching guide and poster, email outreach@asce.org with information about your upcoming outreach event. And that’s not all! ASCE has also made it possible for educators across the country to invite a civil engineer to their classroom to spread the excitement of engineering. To register a civil engineer or educator for this exciting program, visit the Scholastic Web site.

Final Destination Hat Trick

Well, I spent the afternoon watching Final Destination 1 and 2 on the USA network. I enjoyed them so much I went out and rented Final Destination 3. All were pretty good movies, but I may have to disappear for awhile! After watching all three in a day, I think I am going to be awfully paranoid about death and freak accidents. So I am off to build a "death-proof" shelter! ;)

Country Funeral

As a young minister, I was asked by a funeral director to hold a grave-side service for a homeless man, with no family or friends. The funeral was to be held at a cemetery way back in the country, and this man would be the first to be laid to rest there.

As I was not familiar with the backwoods area, I became lost; and being a typical man did not stop for directions. I finally arrived an hour late.

I saw the backhoe and the crew, who was eating lunch, But the hearse was nowhere in sight. I apologized to the workers for my tardiness, and stepped to the side of the open grave, where I saw the vault lid already in place. I assured the workers I would not hold them up for long, but this was the proper thing to do. The workers gathered around, still eating their lunch. I poured out my heart and soul.

As I preached the workers began to say 'Amen,' 'Praise the Lord,' and 'Glory'! I preached, and I preached, like I'd never preached before: from Genesis all the way to Revelation.

I closed the lengthy service with a prayer and walked to my car.

As I was opening the door and taking off my coat, I overheard one of the workers saying to another, 'I ain't never seen anything like that before and I've been putting in septic tanks for twenty years.'

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving!

Well, I started myself a Canadian Thanksgiving tradition! I made meatloaf and potato cakes for supper tonight; it was all good, but I can not think of any real connection between my food choice and Canadian Thanksgiving.

Also, October 15th is Blog Action Day and the topic is the environment... READY, SET, BLOG!

Select A Candidate

I found this quiz to help narrow down presidential candidates for everyone. My results are below. Remeber this is to help narrow the field down not to choose for you.

	Barack Obama Score: 53	Agree Immigration Taxes Stem-Cell Research Health Care Abortion Line-Item Veto Energy Marriage Death Penalty	Disagree Iraq Social Security
	Hillary Clinton Score: 53	Agree Immigration Taxes Stem-Cell Research Health Care Abortion Line-Item Veto Energy Marriage Death Penalty	Disagree Iraq Social Security
-- Take the Quiz! --

Bad River Pics

Pictures from kayaking up the Bad River after work:

Split Rock Creek Cruise

Well, this weekend was my debut at a SDCA cruise. We met at McHardy Park in Brandon, SD to embark on the cruise. Also, I had a friend join me for the trip.

upstream from the put-in

A fellow kayaker prepping for the cruise.

We were warned that the beginning of the cruise would be shallow, but we had lots of problems with having to portage. The two of us weighing nearly 400 lbs didn't help us either. We noticed that passage was possiblewith only one of us in the boat. But after about 1/3 of the trip was complete the water depth began to increase easing our paddling. Thanks to frustrations of portaging, I didn't take near the pictures I had planned on :(

Goat!

My friend, THE BOATSWAIN, at the take-out

Even with the frustrations, we had a great time on the cruise. Afterwards, we tried to hit the Sioux Falls night life, but the three downtown bars we checked were either closed or slow! But we were exhausted so we headed back to the motel.

Accent Quiz

What American accent do you have? (Best version so far) Neutral You're not Northern, Southern, or Western, you're just plain -American-. Your national identity is more important than your local identity, because you don't really have a local identity. You might be from the region in that map, which is defined by this kind of accent, but you could easily not be. Or maybe you just moved around a lot growing up.

Click Here to Take This Quiz Brought to you by YouThink.com quizzes and personality tests.

My thoughts on my results? Well, before Pierre, we (my family) lived in the KC area; Ft Peck, Montana; & somewhere in Wisconsin (I don't recall exactly where)... Plus, I lived in Washington for a year+, so I have been exposed to a lot of accents. Also, I have heard that the Midwest, in general, is considered a neutral accent.

Capital City's Annual Honker Run

I just ran my third 5k (summer and total) and I also came up with my best time yet!

22:41

I averaged ~8.2 mph and a pace of 7:19/mile!

I actually finished 2nd overall and 1st in my age group. Some 16 year old kid was wa-ay ahead of everyone. I guess it might be time for me to try a 10k.

Vanessa Carlton

I am excited about the release of Vanessa Carlton's third CD, Heroes and Thieves, in ~2 weeks. Some of you may not know her, so here is a youtube playlist.

These two are must sees:

Nolita Fairytale

White Houses

Also, an old interview I found:

TLAPD

Arr, it be 2007 Talk Like A Pirate Day, you swabs!

I's not spent the day like many of me cutthroat brethren but it be not wasted either. I worked the day long, but I sported me PotM t-shirt!

A young mate also partook in the day's glory by sportin' ey paper eye patch and a ey sleek paper hat.

I be spendin' the evenin' sailing the internets, spying pirate vids, and just unleashing me inner pirate...

Long live the scourge of the Missouri...

A Good Weekend

I didn't get out kayaking this weekend (overcast and rainy), but it was still a good weekend. I ran well this weekend thanks to the cooler temps and victories for "athletes I cheer for":

1. Justine Henin won the women's final at the US Open... Allez Justine!
2. The Carolina Panthers defeated the St Louis Rams 27-13 in St Louis.

Then I found this article:

In shadow of Vick case, two NFL players show love for dogs

Sep 7, 2007 04:20 PM

CHARLOTTE, NC (AP) - The Michael Vick dogfighting case drew headlines all summer.

At the same time, the doggy day care backed by linebackers Will Witherspoon of the St. Louis Rams and Dan Morgan of the Carolina Panthers did brisk business.

Talks have recently heated up about expanding Club K-9.

As Vick faces jail time and an indefinite suspension from the Atlanta Falcons, Morgan and Witherspoon have agreed to help sponsor a rescue program that places stray dogs in homes.

Witherspoon says he and Morgan are "on the opposite end of the scale" from Vick's situation.

On Sunday, the friends will likely chat about canines when they meet on the field before the game.

Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Stand Up

I have managed to out wit the internet pixies and capture a streaming video from one site to upload it to you tube ;)

Now here is what I want everyone to do at work on Monday:



JUST STAND UP!

Also, I have discovered that I get Canadian Thanksgiving off of work this year! (Never mind that it lands on Native American Day/ Columbus Day/ Leif Erickson Day!)

Saturday... did NOT end this great summer... ;)

Well, I tried to end what I am calling the best summer of my life with a bang of grand proportions, but I failed.

First, I thought about going to see the Clumsy Lovers on this coming Tuesday night in Lincoln, NE but I couldn't even get my friend in Lincoln to join me and I didn't want to use leave if I was going alone. My KC friend had his parents coming for the weekend so I chose not to head to the KC Irish Fest. I thought I had an opportunity to paddle with said Lincoln friend near Vermilion, but he decided not to help his sister move back to college and chose new tires for his car and working on a presentation for work. So I chose to paddle Sheridan Lake in the Black Hills, partake of the Phoenix, and catch part of the Gathering of the Clans in Rapid City.

Low-head dam at the outlet.

Outlet is clogged with debris, water is very shallow, and the dam has a gentle slope, so no worry about getting close ;)

Beautiful, isn't it?

Hopefully, these pictures make it obvious why I decided to return here this summer and not find another lake in the Hills.

I was quite disappointed with the Gathering of the Clans (and not because of it's Scottish lean). It seemed to have only three musical acts for the whole weekend! Two local groups (I didn't get a chance to see) and a duo out of Colorado. I did purchase a CD from one of the local groups though. There was one humorous detail though!

Nessie!

There she is! And no fog for her to hide in!

But heed the warning... luckily I saw this sign before I went paddling with her.
I really don't feel as lucky as this guy. Though...

A copy of the gtalk conversation between myself and my Lincoln friend:

Arnold: I will probably not be coming because my car needs new tires very badly. I will spend tomorrow doing that, will not get to Vermillion in time, so I'm canceling the trip to work on my presentation Sent at 11:31 PM on Friday

Pat: if you would have let me know sooner, I could have found some where near Lincoln to paddle. Instead I'll go to Sheridan Lake and force myself to enjoy general chicken at the phoenix ;) Sent at 6:09 AM on Saturday

Arnold: Noooooooo I didn't know you'd be willing to come out this far. But oh well. Have fun at Sheridan. Sent at 10:19 AM on Saturday

Speaking of coming out "this far," Paddling.net has three locations near Lincoln that look enjoyable.

1. Elkhorn River
2. Platte River
3. Zorinsky Lake

Here is the location of the first two (the larger river is the Platte).

Zorinsky Lake map. And it is near I680!

If my Lincoln friend (and anyone else) thinks they sound like fun, let me know and we can try to plan something for this month yet. next weekend is my dad's B day so it is out but the following would be good (for Saturday). Sunday I would need to procure a chair in a sports bar to catch the Panthers game before heading back to Pierre.

5k Evidence

I got a hold of a few pics my mom took of the 5k.

Just before the finish line

Just past the finish line

I have absolutely no idea what I was pointing at or why ;)

Ah, water!

Run With The Celts 5k Results

I just found the official results of the Run With The Celts 5k from this last weekend.

318 Finishers
157 females
161 males
average time 00:30:23

My results
47 out of 318 (overall)
11 out of 30 (div)
39 out of 161 (gender)

time: 23:34
pace: 7:36

I found the results here.

Concerts

A friend recently commented,

"I don't know how you do it, Pat - you must be burning through the vacation time!"

Well, I am sitting at 98 hours of annual leave yet thanks to being able to flex my time too ;)

But this got me thinking, how many concerts, etc have I been to?

I have attended the Minnesota Irish Fair in 2003, 2004, 2006, and 2007. I have seen Gaelic Storm in concert 5 times: Anchor Inn (Omaha), 2004 MIF, 2006 MIF, Grand Emporium (KC), 2007 MIF.

NOTE: Each Minnesota Irish Fair is many concerts/sets

While I lived in Yakima, I managed to attend many concerts including, Natalie MacMaster, Sugarland, Lee Ann Womack, Wylie and the Wild West, The Clumsy Lovers, Lee Ann Rimes, Toby Keith, George Carlin, and many smaller folk groups! Also, I just saw the clumsy lovers last June!

Other concerts I have attended in the past: Lila McCann, Kenny Chesney, Clay Walker, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Trisha Yearwood, Doug Supernaw, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, David Copperfield (the magician), and many cover bands.

4 Day Weekend Properly Spent

EDITED TO ADD: I'll continue adding Youtube videos to this post as i get them uploaded, but for the time being they are all here

Well, I spent this weekend (+Friday night) at the 2007 Minnesota Irish Fair and it was a blast! I managed to get a few friends to join me and I think I can say we all had a great time despite sunburns, T storms, and lack of sleep!



I met up with my KC friend, a fellow SD state employee (DENR), and a friend from Lakeville, MN at the Comfort Inn in Lakeville, MN. Google Maps did lie to us though... the directions to the motel from I35 were incorrect! And the motel sign was hidden by another building but we did find it.

Friday night we enjoyed performances by The Mahones, The Young Dubliners, and the end of a Wild Colonial Bhoys set.

The next morning I got up early and headed up to the fair (at Harriet island) to compete in the Run With The Celts 5k. I did well, 23:40 (16sec longer than my Oahe Days time) but I did manage to finish on a sprint!

On Saturday, we wandered around catching various music and dance sets (also rugby and boxing) culminating in The Fuschia Band, Gaelic Storm, and The Young Dubs (Dubliners). The GS show was prematurely ended due to a wicked lightening show. After the main stage shows were over, we wandered over to the Ceili tent and enjoyed a set by the Wild Colonial Bhoys.

Sunday allowed us to sleep a LITTLE longer and I was able to enjoy the waffles at the motel (I don't eat before a run). We managed to get a game of Settlers of Catan in before we headed up to the fair for the day.

Sunday was cooler and, in general, nicer than Saturday. Again we watched various performances. Including Alicia Corbett, The Doon Ceili Band, more dancers, some pipers, The Fuschia Band,

If you can't do this, you can't be a janitor ;)




the Wild Colonial Bhoys, culminating in a full (and then some) Gaelic Storm set


The second sexiest instrument:


and a scattering set.

I will let my KC friend tell of the breakfast excitement on Monday morn in Rochester, MN ;)

18 Miles from a Dark Age

I didn't kayak yesterday, but I did go for a bike ride. I rode up to the campgrounds below Oahe Dam; a round trip of 18 miles averaging 13 - 14 mph.


On Saturday, the CSPAN BookTV bus was in Pierre. I check it out and received a $10 gift card to Prairie Pages. I used it to pick up this book. One I've been wanting because it appears to reflect my beliefs (a heck of a lot more than Dark Age Ahead).

My posting has become few and far between and I must strive to fix it. But my bloggin' accomplice has also fallen from the blog 'verse and needs to get back into bloggin' shape. Will it happen, can we do it? Probably not until fall, but we'll see ;)

I have partaken of the phoenix...

And all was good ;) I went out to Sheridan Lake in the Black Hills yesterday for a day paddling excursion.



Circumnavigating the lake was a scant 6.2 miles.


But the sites at the beach were nice ;) (sorry, no photos). While in Rapid I stopped off at a few stores that we don't have in Pierre, culminating in eating at the world class Golden Phoenix. Where my food was prepped by the master himself: Jerry! Also, I managed to fill up for $2.92/gal at Safeway, while the rest of the state sits around 3.01 to 3.03.

kayak antics... and bridges

Pictures from todays kayak excursion... the seadog has his sea legs!

The prettiest boat that you've ever seen...

Another Great Big Sea song that applies to my new kayak: Lukey

Well oh, Lukey's boat is painted green,
Ha, me boys!
Lukey's boat is painted green,
The prettiest boat that you've ever seen,

'Cause she can punch ahead in any gale

Well, I got my new kayak yesterday. I got the call (from Scheels) that it was in just before noon, so I took the afternoon off and drove down to Sioux Falls to pick it up. Everything went off without a hitch... well except those used to tie the kayak down to my pickup rack ;)

While I was down that way I stopped in Mitchell for supper with a friend... I would link to his blog, but he doesn't update it so i won't waste your time.

For anyone who doesn't already know, I got the Santee 140T (14' long, tandem) from Hurricane Kayaks. And it is a beaut! Made from trylon, a thermoformed plastic, it ways just 52 lbs. FYI, my old boat weighs in at close to 90 lbs.

I am contemplating christening it, the Gideon Brown ;)

A few pics for you to enjoy!

MUST SEE

from engadget.com

kayaking pics

Well, obviously, I went kayaking today. A few pics to share:

These first to are some sort of crane (bird) that I saw on a small sandbar island.

Ducks!

A mysterious splash ;)

After said splash...

The cove is no longer filled in with sand!

Beyond the bridge, I do find mosquito breeding grounds, so guardians for my treasure? ;)