David Archuleta - Part 2

The media-swell of David Archuleta's top 20 performance singing John Lennon's "Imagine" has slowed down some since late last week, but the fan support continues in earnest for season seven's most promising contestant yet. Several myspace "fansites" created by many different users have popped up in support of David; not to mention the plethora of myspace groups devoted to David that have also appeared out of thin air. Hundreds of David's performances on Idol have appeared on YouTube with some of the most popular videos registering over two millions views and thousands of comments. The viewer ratings on almost all of the videos are at four in a half stars, with a couple more at a perfect five stars. The majority of the users who leave comments are mostly positive - but there are a few who love to wreck the spirit of the comment posting section by saying negative things about David; things they have no proof are true and draw the ire of all David fans. The minority group who leaves the negative comments tends to leave notes questioning David's sexuality. These people honestly make no sense to me.

Does David even remotely seem gay? Not in the least for me. He's a 17 year old kid, for god's sake. Now fellow Idol contestant Danny Noriega is openly gay. I mean, how could anyone not tell? He flaunts it everytime he's up on stage. David does nothing of the sort. He's a cool, calm, collected individual who's always pleasant and smiling when up on stage. He generally seems a little shy once his performance is over (as Ryan Seacrest pointed out after David's "Shop Around" performance), but being gay is not a word I'd describe him. One user's comment on YouTube stated that his "gaydar is going off" (supposedly an expert when telling when a person is gay or not - probably because he himself is gay) at watching David onstage and that he's clearly gay. Obviously his "gaydar" needs fine-tuning then, because David is nothing of the sort. I generally take these comments as being offensive against David's character - even though some of the people leaving the comments are still supportive of David even though, "he's obviously gay" as some put it. You know, just leave the homosexuality accusations out of it and root for someone who's actually an exceptional singer and performer. What his orientation is should have nothing to with the overall outcome of the show (even though I think David isn't gay in the least). It's his right to keep that part of his life personal, anyways.

I really have no idea why I'm bringing these morons comments to the spotlight in this blog, but I feel as if I need to get my message out in some way. Replying to each and every negative comment on YouTube within David's videos is just a lot of work and I think it would more or less be trying to fight a losing battle. I will say this though, I am a supporter of David Archuleta purely because of his singing abilities. He's been a singing prodigy every since he was nine or ten years old. Singing is his nature. He's a good guy; he's nice, it seems he doesn't have a mean bone in his body and he's a hell of a good singer. I can somehow relate to the kid, too. Although I didn't start singing at a young age like him, I joined my high school's chorus when I was a freshman and discovered the joys of singing that can bring to not just me individually, but also to those in the audience listening. He's a nice guy, like me; he's shy like me (but he has a lot more courage to get up on that stage and sing in front of millions of people more than I ever could), and he's destined for big things. Who says nice guys finish last, because I sure don't think he'll be last in this competition.

The fan support for David Archuleta will likely continue for some time. Some of the YouTube comments were from people who generally hated American Idol but heard the hype that David was all about and checked out his videos and enjoyed what they saw. That is the beauty of YouTube, as well. It gives the opportunity for people who don't normally watch the show a chance to witness the better singers of the group. And I don't believe for one second that the competition is already over. As much as I want David to win this year's American Idol crown, it wouldn't be much fun of a season if all of the other contestants just rolled over and let David have it. I don't think that is going to happen and David will have his off-weeks, just like Jordin Sparks and Taylor Hicks did in years past. So if you are checking this blog out for the first time and aren't ordinarily an avid American Idol watcher, at least check David out on YouTube and see for yourself what all of the hype is all about. You will not only see his videos from American Idol, but also his performances form Star Search (when he was about ten or 11), high school concerts, an appearance (singing "Imagine" then, as well) on a Utah television morning program, and much, much more. Being a big fan as I am of David, there just isn't enough of his performances on there to satisfy me. That's pretty much why I play his Idol performances over and over again. I never get tired of watching them either. He's such a likable guy that it's just too difficult to root against him. It's his title to win.

David Archuleta

Alright, so I didn't plan on creating any blog postings yet on American Idol until we reached the top 12, which is when I'll start my review of each singer's performances like I did last year. However, there is one singer that I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to comment on because this individual is blowing the rest of the competition out of the water thus far. His name is David Archuleta and he is only 17 years old (like Jordin Sparks was last year). He has an incredible voice and has such amazing control for a person as young as he. I believe that at this point in the competition, he is the front runner, as he has been the most consistent and best singer thus far. I am sure he'll have an off-week once in a great while, but seeing the fan support he has so far in this, I'd be shocked if he didn't make it to the final. I know we have a long ways to go in this year's competition and lots can change, but at this point, I am finding it very difficult for anyone else to pass him up as the favorite. Even Simon thinks so.

David has been a singer for awhile. In fact, he competed in CBS's revival of "Star Search" back in 2002-2003 where he was crowed the junior singing champion. During David's audition interview, he revealed that he even experienced vocal paralysis that had given him some difficulty singing and even speaking. But it appears he is doing quite fine now. Randy Jackson, one of the judges of American Idol has commented on how mature he seems for someone of his age. And it's really true because he seems to take every ounce of criticism (even though there hasn't really been a lot of criticism of him yet) with a grain of salt. His smile is infectious, he's very vibrant, and he seems like he's enjoying his Idol experience very well. It seems like in previous years once the top 24 begins, there have been a couple people that really stand out and you could make a case that either one of them could wind up as the Idol winners. And I know we've heard many different things about this season's contestants being "the best ever," but I must say that only one individual stands out for me so far, and that's David. I guess you could say I am a fan.

The first time we saw David this season during his audition, he sang John Mayer's "Waiting on the World to Change." He did a good job with it and even had Randy singing background vocals. I think the judges were quite impressed with David, especially considering he was 16 at that time. Simon even commented how great of a song choice it was for him. Here's David's rendition of "Waiting on the World to Change":



Seeing the high praise Daivd received from the judges, he picked up his golden ticket and made his way to Hollywood. He sang a couple of different times - including a song written and performed by Bryan Adams called "Heaven." The judges were thoroughly impressed with Randy even saying it was the best vocal performance of Hollywood Week thus far. How could you disagree with that - especially considering how well David sung it. Check out the song "Heaven" sung by Mr. Archuleta:



By the way, the very first song that David sang during his first audition at Hollywood week was Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy." With Paula commenting "you are awesome," and Simon saying "it was incredible," it appeared that David didn't have anything stopping him from joining the American Idol top 24. And just as a note, due to "Crazy" not being officially cleared by one of the members that make up the group Gnarls Barkley, David's rendition of the song could not be aired. Rather tragic, especially considering the reaction he got from Simon after singing the song. And it appeared that David was playing the keyboard and singing the song, too! Such a shame... But whatever the case, David moves on to the Idol top 24.

So the top 12 boys were the first to perform during the week of February 18 and David was #6 of the night. The judges were once again quite impressed with his rendition of a 1960's classic "Shop Around" by The Miracles. It was a much more upbeat song that David took on; a pretty big challenge considering the previous songs tended to be more softer, slower, and the ballad-type. Nevertheless, he continued to wow the judges and had the crowd up on their feet. Listen to David sing "Shop Around":



David made it through to the top 20 with flying colors (in my opinion). Next up were the 70's classics this week and David took on John Lennon's legendary song "Imagine." It was a huge risk for David but one that paid off extremely well. It's a performance that had many people talking and it really helped gain some attention for himself. Paula was inspired to tears (which I pretty much predicted she would) and Randy saying it was one of the best performances he's ever heard on the show. Simon paved the way for David to reach the finale by saying he's the one to beat (which I certainly don't disagree with). Listen to the preformance that had many people talking this week:



So there you have it, we haven't even reached the top 12 yet and I'm already talking about one of the contestants. Like I said, I didn't plan on it yet, but he's such a good singer that I couldn't pass up this opporunity. But you certainly can't disagree that he's the clear cut favorite to this year's competition. He has the voice, the looks, his youth, and fan support that can keep him going for a very long time. Season seven is David's to win; so when the month of May comes around and you see him on the stage of the Kodak theater singing the final song of the American Idol competition; don't say I didn't warn you.

Some Things are Hard to Avoid

Have you ever experienced an incident that you wish never happened, something that was embarassing, lacked judgement, and something that you could go back in time to fix? Well such an incident happened within the past few days at work. Now before I get into the details, no, I did not go off the deep end and murder a bunch of my co-workers (which seems to happen more and more frequently these days). In fact, it's something so minor in comparison that many of you will probably think it's no big deal. Well, it's a fairly big deal to me, particularly if I've done it twice now within the past three months. The thing that I did was; I lost my keys!!

Now these aren't your ordinary keys. I have different lockers located within the plant at work that include important tools, gear, and other essentials that I need from time to time. My dad and I share one such cabinet where I need to access daily to retrieve my wireless radio, flashlight, and toolbelt. In total I think I might have about 5 different cabinets/lockers at the mine (and I really don't need them all, really). But I guess it's one of those things where the more you have, the better off you feel. About three months ago (I'm guessing how long ago it was), I lost the set to all of my lockers/cabinets. And now, two nights ago, I lost the latest set of keys. Needless to say, my dad was not very happy to hear that I had lost them AGAIN (he had to arrange to get new locks for two of the cabinets we share). I used this key caddy that had a nylon string and doesn't really hold up for very long because the string wears out particulary fast. They have the metalic string key caddies, but I didn't find it necessary to change it out the one I had. Boy, was I wrong.

These kind of things tend to go in phases for me. I used to have all sorts of problems with my old 1990 Oldsmobile Ninety-Eight car in which I'd either drain the battery or lock the keys out of my car on countless occasions. I would either accidentally leave the headlights on my car and forget to turn them off once I got out (the beeper that alerted you that your lights were still on when you turned the engine off never worked - which certainly didn't help my cause) or I'd forget to bring my car keys along with me (due to my mind being elsewhere) and when I'd go to lock all the doors, my keys would be stuck inside. I never did have the handy keyless remote lock/unlock option with that car and boy, I really could've used it. I remember one such incident where I locked the keys inside the car while it was still running during one of my trips home! So there the car sat running until my uncle came over to get the vehicle opened up, but not without using up a bunch of gas in the process. That was the time where my parents had just bought a new computer and I guess my mind was on putting that thing together and using it for the first time. I've only had one such unfortunate incident with my current car, where I locked the keys inside the vehicle while it was still running at work. Thankfully my dad happened to be there (I was just getting off midnight shift). So I had my brother-in-law call a tow-truck to help me out. That bill ended up being $30, but it was money well spent.

So tonight I went out and bought some new locks for work (locks that all use the same key so I can eliminate some keys) and a new key carrying device. I am hoping there will never be another incident of losing my keys for a very long time to come. Having to replace every single lock gets very old quite fast!


UPDATE!!! I am happy to announce that I ended up finding my keys at work after all! So I didn't end up replacing all of the locks that I had dreaded doing. I still used the new locks I bought that just used the one key - so that still came in handy. But the happy ending to this story is that I found those keys that I thought were burried in a big pile of dirt in the messy basement of an iron ore mine.

Dogsled Season

Well, it is that time of the year here in the Upper Peninsula. The dogsled season has kicked into high gear in preparation for the big races this weekend. I know I've blogged about this before and my experiences watching the sport of dogsled races since I was a little boy. It's hard to believe the races have been going on for that long. Seems just like yesterday when I'd get all bundled up and take the short walk down the highway up to the fairgrounds where the start of the Midnight Run would take off. That's no longer possible since the race organizers changed the route of the trail. But no matter, I still enjoy the races in my own way.

I've always had a slight bit of ambition to try riding on a dogsled one time. Heck, I bet it would be so fun that I'd like to do it time and time again. But as for building my own team to run in races for a living (or for a hobby), I just don't think I'd be up for that part of it. Taking care of one dog can be hard enough. Imagine eight to 12? You have to buy lots of food, give the dogs proper care and take them to the vet, and train them to be an elite team of dogsleds. I don't know that I'd have that much patience. I've never spent time with a musher just to see what all is involved in the training process, but I have heard plenty of stories. In fact, I work with someone on my crew who's a musher. I lived in a community growing up where dogsled racing became embraced by the individuals who lived there (except when it was feeding time when you could hear the dogs howling from across the valley). No, it's definitely not easy. But when persistence pays off and your team begins to win some races, then it's all worth it.

I remember when the start for the Midnight Run was still in my hometown. They'd plow out a huge area just west of the ball fields for the mushers and their teams to stage until the start of the race. During some years, there wasn't even enough parking for all of the dog teams to rest as they'd cram into every possible plowed space up there. It was always interesting to look at the teams just prior to the start of the race and see what the mushers were doing to care for their dogs. Certain dogs tend to lay around and not get overly excited, while others are just rarin' to get started. I guess it all depends on the breed. I even thought I saw a dogs that looked similar to the breed that my dog was. I always thought what kind of sled dog Spike would make. In his healthiest condition, probably not very good. But alas, that is where the training would come in.

You know, I miss the community spirit that existed when the dogsled races was in my hometown. During the very early years of the event, we'd help decorate grocery bags with dogsled themes and those bags would get distributed to the customers at the local grocery stores. It was an attempt to get the rest of the community in the dogsledding spirit. Our school would always "sponsor" a musher to come to our school and talk to us about the sport and the trials and tribulations they experienced during a race. And then on race night, the community was abuzz with activity. I really sensed a large amount of community pride and excitement during the years the races were in town. There'd even be a schedule of events leading up the dogsled races that would allow the kids to have a good time and stay warm. Heck, there even used to be a snow sculpture contest throughout the community; one in which my class participated in one year (although I don't think we won it). During the last few years that the event went through town, it just didn't seem like there was all that much enthusiasm for the event anymore. Less people were showing up and there were less events planned around it. Now, all of that has ceased to exist once the races pulled out of town once and for all. But then again, I can't really blame the race organizers if they can't gather up enough volunteers to help run the races more smoothly in my community.

So the start of the local dogsled races begins this Friday and lasts through Sunday. The start of the 12-dog race takes place right here in Marquette and begins around 7:00 PM. Depending on the weather conditions, I just might head towards downtown to watch a team or two. It might just help to bring back good memories of the races gone-by in my hometown.

A Memorable Excursion

It's a freezing cold day outside with temperatures near zero and the wind whipping out of the northwest at 25 to 35 mph with higher gusts. Thankfully it's not really snowing here, although just off to our east it has to be snowing quite heavily. In those areas where it is snowing, blizzard conditions are prevalent. It's one of those days you definitely don't want to venture out in unless you have layers upon layers of clothes on. The nice thing is, this cold blast is only supposed to be shortlived. Tomorrow already the temperatures will be up into the teens and by the time Tuesday rolls around, we'll be in the 20's. This kind of cold weather really makes a person long for the warmer season.

Back when I was in high school, one of the activities I'd do during the winter time to stay active and to beat away the winter blues was to go cross country skiing. We have this big field in our backyard where we could go quite far to the south, but mainly I'd always make a trail to the township fairgrounds which are right next door. I'd make a few loops around the ball fields and depending on the depth of the snow, I'd get quite the workout. You see, I'd be making my own trails because we never had a snowmobile that could help to groom the trails. So on the warmest of days, I'd definitely work up a sweat. But in general, the trails that I made were always flat and following the same trail day after day did get rather boring after awhile. Eventually I'd try doing something different and create a new trail, but even that would get boring. So on those days when my sister would be over (on her days off from school or work - seeing that she liked cross country skiing, too), we'd head over to the local ski hill which had cross country ski trails located there.

I can't tell you how many times we'd make a visit there to do some cross country skiing. The local ski area is a small resort, operated by the township and it requires volunteers to help run it. The cross country ski trails were seldom ever taken care of. In fact, they were rarely groomed. Many times when we'd make our first trips out to these ski trails, we'd have to traverse around and over fallen trees or overgrown shrubs. Eventually someone would come through with a chain saw or the snow would get deep enough where we could finally just ski over a lot of the fallen trees that laid in the midst of the trail. But regardless of the obstacles, we always had fun. We even brought along our dog who loved to follow us behind our tracks. He really got a good workout following us.

There are only three main cross country ski trails at the ski hill and we'd always try to break things up a bit by trying a combination of two of the three or just one of the trails. It really depended on how we felt physically and the conditions of the snow that day. Trail "A" was the shortest of the three but was definitely more advanced with a variety of different hills to ski down or climb up. Trail "B" was the longest of the three and definitely the most challenging of all. One of the hills at the mid-point of the trail is extremely scary to ski down because it has an incredibly quick drop. We almost always side-stepped down this particular hill unless the snow happened to be extremely sticky that day. And trail "D" was probably the most boring because it's just a plain, flat trail. However, it is probably the second longest of the three. My sister and I always chose trail A the most because it was the quickest of the three. If we felt that going down that particular trail was never enough, we'd always go a second time. Whatever the case was, we always enjoyed ourselves there. Our goal was never to fall - which often was difficult to do because the conditions always varied. One such time we went and it was extremely warm out - probably in the mid 30's. We had just started skiing and I always went first. I skiied down a short hill and at the bottom of this hill was a surprise puddle. The water was up to the top of my boots and my feet were soaked. Needless to say, my day was done.

You may have caught on to the fact of the odd labeling of trails at the ski hill. There's a trail A, B, and D. But where's C? That was the exact same question my sister and I had pondered for a long while. We knew there had to have been a trail "C" at some point in time. But we just didn't know where it was. All of the trail maps located at the ski hill only had the three trails listed. That is until we took a journey down trail "D" one day. Most of the trail maps out there were copied onto a piece of paper and laminated. But there was one trail map on trail D that was a hard-covered plastic copy. On it was the fabled C trail. My sister and I were thrilled. We had finally found the location of the fourth trail. The only trouble was seeing if we could actually follow the route the entire way and finish the course.

So during one day when the weather was half-way decent, we decided to see if we could find trail C. It actually followed along trail A, then trail B, and then finally broke off on it's own. We were having a good time and were actually able to follow the trail quite easily since most of the blue diamonds marking the trail were still in place. Eventually, though, we hit a dead end and found ourselves out in the middle of nowhere. No matter which direction we headed, it proved to be wrong. We couldn't find a single blue diamond any longer. Simply put, we were lost. We were rather disappointed, but the only logical thing to do was follow our old trail and head back to where we started. I think at one point we were standing ontop of a small frozen lake because we were suddenly amongst this wide-open space in the middle of nowhere. It had to have been a lake, otherwise I think we would've encountered some brush. So we doubled-back and followed our tracks. We met back up with trail A and followed that to its conclusion. After that, we were wore out. That tired us out for the rest of the day. And we never did try to find the finish of that famed trail C ever again.

Cross country skiing is one of those activities that can really be fun once you get the hang of it. I had always downhill skied when I was younger. But when you cross country ski, it really gives you a good workout. Skiing is something I haven't done much at all the past three winters. It's one of those sports I miss doing and hopefully soon I'll be able to get back into. I just mainly do it for the fun and not the competition anyway - so don't worry, I won't be entering any races anytime soon.

Hospital Visits

I think for many people, hospitals are not the most pleasant places to visit. You have sick and dying people being treated and not all of them are able to live, sadly. Luckily for me, I haven't had to enter our area hospital all that much. I've made a couple of visits there to see my grandma, who has been through numerous surgeries and procedures. My sister works at the hospital here in town as a nurse and one time when I went to see my grandma, she happened to be working, too. She was working on the pediatric floor and I happened to see a young child laying in a bed, being carted to a closed-off area. It was such a sad sight, seeing someone that young having to endure the misery of being sick. Not only do hospitals have that sterile smell, but it also has that sense of illness and pain about them. I know it leaves me uneasy everytime I enter the place.

I'll be going to see my mom at the hospital in about an hour or so. Now, it's nothing major, but she needed to have surgery to correct a hiatal hernia. It had been bothering her for some time and the doctor said she may have had it for up to ten years. She's a strong woman and puts up with many of her aches and pains. We all believe that this may have been a contributing factor to her not feeling very well for awhile. And although she was nervous about the procedure as anyone would be when facing surgery, she knew it needed to be done so that she would ultimately feel as well as she has in a long time. The good part about the procedure was that it was done laprascopically and she didn't need to be cut open as severely, so the recovery should be quicker. Still, she will be sore for a few weeks and will need to take it easy in the meantime.

You know, my mom has never been through any kind of major surgery. Back when I was about five years old, she had one of her knees scoped and was off her feet for a time. I can't even remember much about it anymore, just that she was on crutches for a time. Other than that, she has been relatively healthy. One time she was with my dad in a restaurant and instantly passed out onto the table. He brought her into the nearby hospital where they did a few tests on her, but didn't really find a conclusive cause to her just randomly passing out. Then about a year ago or so, she was on medication that was making her very sick. Whenever she'd take the pills, she'd come down with a flu-like illness. I know it really concerned everyone, especially knowing that they really couldn't find anything wrong with her, no matter what tests they did. Eventually they found out that the medication was causing her to be sick all of the time and that she was allergic to it. Only a very small percentage of the U.S. population is allergic to this medication and she was one of them. So needless to say, she's never been back on that certain medication since.

So the hernia procedure was something corrective to take care of an ongoing problem and it will really help her overall health. I know she was thinking about warmer weather to come before going in for this procedure, but now is better than later. As soon as she heals up, she will feel as good as new. She'll have to stay off her feet for awhile as the incisions heal, but it will all be worth it in the end.

Roundabouts

A new kind of traffic control device is gradually being implemented across the nation as a means of alleviating intersections where accidents and congestion are prone. In fact, roundabouts may already be in place in your location. The modern roundabout is gaining popularity throughout the United States and whenever there is new construction or re-construction road projects, roundabouts are getting serious consideration. Here in Upper Michigan, not a single roundabout is in existence, but that may eventually change. As far as I know, two such high impact intersections where I live are planned to be re-constructed within the next five years and the state department of transportation has recommended that they be turned into roundabouts.

Traffic approaching a roundabout should slow down. Yield signs are present so that vehicles already within the roundabout have the right away. When it appears that there is an opening to enter the roundabout, you may do so. Recommended speeds within a roundabout are between 15 and 20 mph. If you intend on making a right turn, stay in the right lane and make your turn. If you wish to continue straight through a roundabout, either stay in the right or left lane (whichever lane is appropriate for the type of roundabout you are in) and maneuver through the roundabout. Lastly, if you intend to make a left turn within the roundabout, stay in the far left lane and when your turn approaches, make your left turn. Remember that speeds within a roundabout are pretty slow and traffic within these intersections are generally one-laned.

When I first heard the concept of a roundabout, it seemed confusing as heck to me. I honestly didn't think it could possibly work. But once I studied and understood them a little better, they seem to be a decent choice for traffic control. Now they do not work well at every intersection which is why traffic studies are conducted to see whether they really work or not at a particular location. Apparently it has been determined that they work well in the two locations that MDOT has conducted studies at. I am willing to give them a chance, but usually most people are either for or against them. And people are hesitant to change, even if it is for the better (which I think it is). One thing that I am particularly interested in seeing is how they will do in wintery climates. From a video clip I watched from the New York Department of Transportation's website, the plows seem to be able to clear them fairly easily. But with the way the road commission is around here, I have my doubts. It could end up being a nightmare in that regard.

MDOT has a preliminary timetable to reconstruct these intersections in 2011, so there is definitely time to get used to the idea of driving within a roundabout. And for an area where traffic patterns have not changed in some 30 to 40 years, this will be a big change. Who's to say the plans won't get changed again and we'll be in store for another intersection with signal lights. Like I said earlier, I am willing to give them a chance, but you can be sure I will be a bit hesitant driving through them once they are officially opened - which I am sure a lot of people will be. And if anyone else out there happens to come across this blog and drives through roundabouts from time to time, please leave a comment regarding your reactions of these traffic control devices. I'd love to hear them!

A Night to Remember (at work)

It was late Tuesday night and another midnight shift where I work. The good part about it was that it was the last midnight shift of the stretch before I started my long weekend. So needless to say, I was in pretty good spirits. Our previous night was horrendous with many different things going wrong, so earlier on Tuesday, I really did not feel like coming to work for that night and contemplated even taking the night off. The weather wasn't the greatest outside and I could've always used that as an excuse. But as I was about to leave, the weather calmed down and I knew I shouldn't let one bad night at work deter me from coming the next night. So I forged ahead and made the 20 mile drive to work. When I got there, I knew I should've taken the night off after all.

My job as an assistant plant operator at the mine includes operating the concentrator when our regular crew operator is not there. That was the case Tuesday night so I had to fill-in that role. Our crew was already short one person and without me on the floor, that left us without two people on the floor. So we were pretty short handed and when you throw in us having to shut the entire plant down within short notice, well it basically means all hands on deck for the crew. People are placed in positions that they wouldn't normally be in and things get to be pretty hectic. That was the case when I entered the control room. The previous crew and control room operator began the process of shutting the plant down because a set of very important pumps that brings water into the plant had kicked out due to an unknown electrical problem. Without these pumps, we cannot run anything. A tank stores the water short-time, so it allows us to shut things down in a relatively controlled manner. Seeing that we could not re-start these pumps in a timely noticed, the crew on afternoon shift began the process of shutting things down. The operator on afternoon shift was already scheduled to stay two hours over for casual overtime, so he assisted me in getting the rest of the plant shut down. By the time all was said and done, we had everything down within two hours into our shift and not much time left to spare. It was an interesting experience; never being in that role before of shutting things down like that. Then began the process of draining a pair of very important lines for our tailings system outside. That is where things really got interesting.

Even though I was a control room operator that night, I was techically not supposed to go out on the floor and lend a hand to the rest of the crew. But seeing as the afternoon operator stayed on (and didn't leave until around 4:30 AM Wednesday morning), I headed out into the storm (actually, I was sent on this very important mission with another person on my crew by the shift foreman). I dressed up as warmly as I could with the appropriate gear, gathered up some equipment to bring outside, and headed out with my partner in a company vehicle to one of the lines we needed to drain. Whenever we have to shut the plant down or we need to switch tailings lines, the line we are using needs to be drained. On the tailings line itself, there are six drains. We needed to open those up so the line could drain properly. Beyond this, there is another line with 11 drains that needed to be opened as part of the tailings booster line. This is located on our tailings basin which is an elevated area where the by-product of the mining process is pumped to. The condition atop of the dikes was just too bad. I didn't get out that far as some other members of my crew did, but from what they described, it was absolutely hellish. Blizzard conditions, blinding snow, winds in excess of 50 miles per hour greeted them. There was absolutely no way that line could be drained, so it was determined that we focus our sights on draining the other line; definitely the more critical line of the plant.

A total of five of us met at drain number three, where we brought along various torches, rose buds, and other heating utensils to try and thaw open valves and drains that were froze shut. Earlier that day, temperatures were in the middle to upper 30's and even some light rain fell. A cold front moved past earlier in the evening dropping temperatures fast. So it was easy to see why everything froze up the way it did. But we were on a fast track to try and drain the line because we didn't want the line to freeze, either. A few of the drains were stubborn and wouldn't unleash their material, but eventually we got them all opened up. But it certainly wasn't easy. The booster line was a lost cause because the conditions were very much life threatening. At least we were able to get the main tailings line opened up, however. Otherwise that really could've been a catastrophe.

I know everyone on my crew was hoping for an easy and quiet last shift before long weekend but it never materialized. And despite the craziness of the entire night, we accomplished pretty much all that we could do. We were satisfied with our job, even though the plant was never able to start back up again. I am happy to report that the mine is back up and running today after a day in a half break. Those kinds of shut-downs usually do not last that long unless they're because of economic reasons, etc. But as least things are relatively back to normal than they were late Tuesday night/Wednesday morning.

Weather Review

After a very chilly stretch of winter weather here in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, the weather looks to modify within the next day or so. The last week in a half or so brought on Arctic Air down from Canada. We went through a stretch of about five days with high temperatures in the single digits and overnight lows well below zero. When it's cold, we haven't seen much snow. Things began to warm up very slowly and at the peak of the warmth on Monday and Tuesday of this week, temperatures rose to the low 40's. Some areas of the region even picked up some rain. But that is when the bottom dropped out.

A very strong cold front pushed through, dropping temperatures a good 20 to 30 degrees in an hour's time. The frontal passage also produced some meaningful snows in the general four to eight inch range, with higher totals in the northwest and northeastern U.P. Winds howled from the west-northwest; that combined with temperatures around zero brought dangerous wind chills anywhere from -30 to -50. We had a power failure to a very important set of equipment where I work which caused us to shut the plant down. All of my crew was out in the elements during the height of the horrendous weather and I can tell you one thing; it was VERY unpleasant. The wind was whipping the newly fallen snow and caused blizzard conditions. At times, it was very difficult to see five feet in front of you. Since then, the weather has calmed down and temperatures are beginning to warm up. Today, we experienced a high temperature in the lower teen's with ample sunshine. Things look to get even warmer in the days ahead with temps in the mid to upper 20's and continued sunshine. Now THAT'S enjoyable winter weather.

Weather - 1/18/08

Things are REALLY starting to chill down in the Upper Great Lakes. An Arctic blast has seeped down from Canada and has caused the temperature to plummet. Most of this month, we've been experiencing pleasant winter temperatures in the 20's and 30's. Today, we only made it into the upper single digits for high temps. Overnight lows are expected to drop well below zero in many locations. We've also been getting our fair share of snow as of late - with as much as eight to ten inches of snow falling in some areas from the last storm system. So I guess we'll all have to get accustomed to these chilly temperatures for awhile. They look to stick around for the next seven days and possibly beyond. Who says that global warming really exists?

A Year of Rumors

As I said in one of my earlier blogs, 2008 could be a very interesting year for me. Probably the biggest wildcard for me this year would be at work, where a number of things may or may not happen. Our union's contract with the company expires on September 1, 2008. I experienced the company's last contract negotiations back in 2004 when I was a summer student and I can tell you, it was something I'll never forget. At that time, the company "threatened" to hire replacement workers to run the mine - so the word "scab" became a frequently used word throughout the mill; written on bathroom stalls and basically anything that could be written on. There were many rumors flying around about bringing in immigrants to run the plant. The company even planned to house the replacement workers on mine property as they started bringing trailers on company property a week prior to the strike deadline. Needless to say, the union never did strike as a contract was approved three days prior and ratified a week later. But, who's to say that'll happen this year.

The mine that I work at is on its last legs; I guess you could say. It has been in operation since the late 1960's and has mined millions of tons of iron ore from its large open pit. The ore reserves are expected to be exhausted by the year 2010, meaning the mine would be subject to closure if back-up plans weren't in place. Probably the biggest news that breathed new life into the old mine was the annoucement of a nugget plant that would be built near the old mine facility. It would create a ton of new construction jobs and would produce about 500,000 tons of nuggets a year. The nuggets are different from the pellets that we currently make. It's a completely different process used to create the nuggets; one that I am still quite fuzzy on. It basically re-invigorates the process used to create iron ore by incorporating new technology and equipment into the mix. This was all great news to those that work at the mine and was something that really rose the spirits of not only the employees, but for community members as well. But eventually we found out about the company's true intentions of the nugget plant and soon the picture wasn't as rosy as we invisioned.

The nugget plant would basically operate as its own company and be managed by the current company that operates the current mine. None of us that are employed with the mine would be eligible to work unless we quit first and then tried applying at the new plant. And what exactly are the chances that any of us would get hired at this new plant? The control room operator of the plant would be a salaried position and there would be no retirement plan in place. So for those of us that are currently employed with the existing mine, this really doesn't not sound all that appealing; not as great as it earlier seemed. I guess many of the details are still being worked out and many things are subject to change. Hopefully there is a better outcome to this than there is at this moment.

So the mine is running out of ore reserves in its pit, which would mean the possible closing of the facility by 2010. It has already been annouced earlier this month that the mine will be cutting back on its production; going from a 5.0 million ton operation to 2.8 million tons. Currently the mine is operated into four sections; one section being the original plant and the three other sections being additions made to the original structure. We only run one grinding line in the original plant, while section number two, three, and four have many grinding lines running. After June 2008, only the grinding lines in the fourth section of the plant will be running, with a few limited mills running in the third section. This is a dramatic cutback to how things are running now. With that news comes the likelyhood of cutbacks in staffing at the plant. It has already been rumored that 20% of operating (the department I am in) will be eliminated by the second half of the year. So as you can see, this could be a very tumultuous time for many people that work at the mine. But honestly, a lot of things could change between then and now.

There are some people who believe every little thing that comes out of the mouth of the company and there are those who choose to be resilient in these times of adversity. There are a lot of "positive" rumors out there including that we'll continue to maintain our current production levels throughout all of 2008. But then there are also other rumors that include us running more than one flux mill (flux stone is used in the production of iron ore pellets), which will help to supply our mill, the neighboring mine, and the new nugget plant with flux. There is also talk that additional ore reserves have been found and they are in the initial testing stages to see whether our facility can create pellets from these ore bodies. The point of all of this is that rumors are flying rampant all of the time regarding the mine's future. You just don't know what to believe until something really happens. I remember when I was a summer student in 2003 and they only gave the mine five more years in which we could process iron ore. It's five years later now and we anticipate running until 2010 at least; except at reduced capacity. So needless to say, things can change in a hurry. I am not going to worry about the impending doom and gloom. I'll believe it when it actually happens. When you work in the steel industry, you always experience your ups and downs. That's how it's been for my dad during his 35 years of employment. There were a couple of different times where he thought he'd never go back to the mine. But things change and the industry changes. Right now the price of metal is incredibly high. As long as this trend continues, the company is going to find any little way in which they can produce ore at our facility, whether it'll be using our current methods or implementing new technological advances. Time will tell what actually happens at our facility. Right now, all we can do is take it one day at a time.

First Sickness

We are in the midst of the 2007-2008 cold and flu season and I can officially say I picked up my first cold of the season. Usually I get sick from my mom, dad or my niece or nephew, but I can't honestly think of where I picked up this cold from, seeing that non of them have been sick recently. Another culprit could've been someone from work, but I wasn't at work for five days because of my long weekend. I did bring my mom to the local medical center on Monday and we did go to a public restaurant afterwards. Maybe I could've picked something up from those places. Whatever the case, I'm not complaining about it too much because it's only a minor cold. I have a slight runny nose, a scratchy throat, and am a bit stuffed up, but otherwise I'm in fairly decent shape. Hopefully this is only as worse as it gets!

I am not one to get sick very often. If I do, they only end up being minor colds or a slight flu. Last year I had the flu a couple of different times. During one of the flu spells, I went to work feeling somewhat down but felt able enough to make it through the shift. Well, when all was said and done, I really felt awful and I probably should've went home early. All I did that evening and night was lay on the couch and rest. I don't even think I ate. I missed work the next day in hopes of trying to rest up for a weekend of 12-hour shifts. That's something you definitely don't want to miss out on. Later on that day, I felt much better and by that Saturday, I felt well enough to go to work and work that 12-hour shift. Not that working 12's are the greatest thing in the world, but it really hurts your paycheck in the end!

Back when I was a senior in high school, I was on a science team that competed at a regional level in this science-based competition that included many different categories. Our teams, both junior high and high school had an amazing track record (more so with the junior high team) where we'd win the regional level and won the right to compete at the state level. We were heading downstate towards Lansing where the state competition was taking place on the campus of Michigan State University. As we got closer to our hotel just outside of Lansing, I wasn't feeling the best. I started getting more and more sick and by the time I reached the hotel, I was miserable. The illness came on suddenly and shortly upon entering the room, I had to make a dash to the bathroom and started throwing up. I felt much better after I vomitted but that feeling didn't last long. I was miserable the rest of the day and elected to sleep and rest while the rest of the teams were out having the time of their lives. Even in the evening when we were supposed to be studying for our respective categories, I just didn't have the concentration to do anything. I felt that horrible. I had a fever and my body ached terribly.

The next day wasn't much better; but it was competition day. I had to do what I could for my team and fellow teammates. Between competitions, I rested. I laid back as well as I could in a chair in the auditorium where our team headquarters were, but after awhile that just wasn't good enough anymore. I ventured out to find a soft spot in the lawn outside of the building. I had an amazing rest; slept for a good hour or so. In fact, I woke up with enough time to make it to the competition I needed to be at. Luckily so or I would've missed out on a fifth place medal at the state level! I feel bad for my teammates who had to put up with a sick person as their partner. And I'll admit, I still didn't have 100 percent concentration even at those competitions. But I did what I could and I was there for support if anything else.

It's the weird thing about illnesses like a cold or flu because sometimes you can never figure out where you picked them up. But this time of the year, anything is possible and it's so easy for germs to spread. I attribute the illness I experienced in Lansing to food poisoning; as there were a couple of different instances where I could've had something that made my stomach churn. As for the newest cold I have, it's hard to speculate exactly where I picked it up. Needless to say, it always helps to wash your hands as frequently as possible this time of year, especially when you're in any public place. It sure beats having to be miserable and put up with any kind of illness, whether it's major or minor.

Weather - 1/9/07

After a very mild stretch of weather, temperatures are beginning to cool down. We even saw a light dusting of snow come down late in the evening yesterday to remind us all in the U.P. that it is still winter and not spring (afterall, it is January). Temperatures yesterday were generally in the lower to middle 30's and today they are expected to hover around 32 degrees. Only light snow is expected today; no significant accumulation is anticipated. No major snows are expected within the next seven days which means the winter sports lovers will be in agony at the lack of snows in our neck of the woods.

Weather - 1/1/08

Welcome to the new year (it will be hard getting used to writing/typing 2008)! The weather in the central Upper Peninsula of Michigan this afternoon hasn't been too overly exciting so far. The much hyped lake effect snow event has been nonexistent thus far. Only 1-2 inches of snow has fallen in certain areas in the central U.P. Snows are expected to pick up this evening and overnight; dropping as much as five to eight inches of snow in the favored snow belt areas. Temperatures have remained in the middle 20's for much of the day, but they are expected to drop as night time approaches.

Songs I Dig - 5

It has been a long time coming, but "The Songs I Dig" blog has returned! There hasn't been a whole lot of new music that has interested me lately, but recently some songs have became catchy enough to earn a slot in this blog. And what better way to end 2007 on my blog than with a musical entry discussing the songs I think you should check out. Enjoy!

By the way, some of these songs have been out for close to two months, so if they seem a little dated for this blog, they probably are.

"Sorry" by Buckcherry - So Buckcherry is a band that I knew absolutely nothing about when I first heard this song hit the air waves. It's a softer sounding song with a rock edge to it. The song is basically one big apology for a variety of wrongdoings listed in the lyrics. It's quite catchy and has a nice tune to it. The group has been around since the mid-1990's and has had a few band members leave throughout their existence. According to their Wikipedia entry, "Sorry" is a release from their previous album and they are currently in the studio working on their latest album.

"The Great Escape" by Boys Like Girls - Another group I was unfamiliar with up until the release of this song. And after doing some research about them, it's understandable why, because they formed the group at the end of 2005. "The Great Escape" was not a song I liked at first, but it was one that I grew into and now enjoy listening to. It's a youthful, teenage kind of song that evokes the message of freedom and independence. It's the first song released from their debut album. The next song to be released is called "Hero/Heroine" and may have already hit the airwaves where you live.

"Shadow of the Day" by Linkin Park - Linkin Park is back and better than ever (and apologies to those that disagree with me). I'll be honest, I never did care much for this group when they first began releasing music. But their latest album is like a breath of fresh air for me. "What I've Done" was the first song released from their latest album, "Minutes to Midnight," and I found that song to be exceptional. "Shadow of the Day" is more softer and an easy-listening tune. But it is just as good as "What I've Done." It's no surprise they've been as successful as they have and sometimes they are not afraid to take risks and re-engineer their sound.

"Falling Down" by Duran Duran - Here's another group that made a resurgence in 2007 with the long-awaited debut of their newest album. When I heard Justin Timberlake actually helped write this song for the group, I was pleasantly surprised. He actually made it sound really good for Duran Duran. The group has been around for a long time and have produced a number of hit songs including "Hungry Like the Wolf," "Rio", "Come Undone," and "Ordinary World;" the songs that are my most favorite from Duran Duran. It's nice to see a group that has had momentous success back in the 80's and 90's continue to have success today.

"Teenagers" by My Chemical Romance - It was nice to see the group My Chemical Romance return to the charts after releasing their 2006 song "Welcome to the Black Parade," which proved to be a nice hit for the group. "Teenagers" is a really fun song with an even greater video. It's a song that brings to life teenage angst and it really highlights the point that parents and adults do not understand teenagers - thus, the reason they need to rebel. But it's their message that continues to get lost in translation. This is a nice way of My Chemical Romance to reach out to the teenage crowd (if they didn't already) and write a song for them.

And so to wrap up 2007, I give to you my top 3 songs of the year! They are: "Dig" by Incubus, "Apologize" by One Republic, and "If You're Gonna Leave" by Emerson Hart. It was actually a pretty difficult decision, but I feel pretty happy with these selections. They proved to be the songs that I enjoyed listening to the most this year and songs I still like listening to! So with 2007 nearly in the books and a new year lurking around the corner, you can be sure 2008 will bring us some great new songs to enjoy and you can bet that I will be blogging about them. So to all of my loyal blog readers out there; Happy New Year!!!

Weather - 12/31/07

I haven't done one of these in awhile ... so I think I'm well overdue. Anyways, the weather in my part of Upper Michigan has been pretty tranquil the last few days. We even saw the sun today for the first time in awhile. Temperatures were pretty moderate for this time of the year. Highs in the mid-20's and lows in the teens. Big changes are in the works overnight tonight into tomorrow as a brief shot of arctic air moves in. North to northwest winds will blow across Lake Superior causing heavy lake effect snow to drop along the leeside of the lake. As much as ten inches of snow could fall in favored snow belt areas. An even bigger change is expected as we head towards the weekend as a dramatic rise in temperatures are predicted with the potential for record warmth for much of the country; including the U.P. where rain is forecasted and temperatures will remain above freezing for an extended period of time.

The Year that Was 2007

Christmas has now come and gone for another year and we have a new year in which we can usher in with a bunch of fanfare. Unfortunately I won't be able to ring in the new year like most people as I will be at work when the clock strikes midnight! Not like I've done all that much when I've been able to enjoy it in the past; but hopefully next year I'll be able to catch the ball drop that takes place in our small city every year - that is, if it's not cancelled because of a lack of funds like it almost was this year. Not that I am a big drinking person mind you like a lot of people are on New Years Eve, but it would be nice to check out that event for once in my life at least.

With 2007 nearly over, it's time to look back at the year that was in my personal life. And I can basically sum it up in one word: uneventful. Yep, that's right ... not a whole lot went on in my life this year and that's not necessarily a bad thing, because as the saying goes, no news is good news. My life was pretty stable in 2007. I lived in my current apartment the entire year (no moving this year), my employment status was stable (no layoffs, no shutdowns, no strikes), and my family life was stable as well (no deaths, births, illnesses, etc). In that regard I am very thankful. I guess probably one of the most exciting events of 2007 was going through a hellacious hail storm inside of an Applebee's restaurant with the lights flickering inside of the restaurant and watching the hail pound the heck out of my dad's 1994 Chevy pick-up. That took place in July and was an event that I'll never forget.

My love life, or lack thereof remained pretty much the same as it did in 2006. Although this year I did date a couple of different girls, but it just didn't work out. Hopefully the new year will help me find my true love. But I have come to find out that love ain't easy, and I am definitely someone not looking to rush into anything. I would like things for start slow, kind of get to know the person really well, and then see where things end up. I think in my last relationship, I kind of freaked the girl out by acting like she was the one for me when she didn't feel the same about me. Apparently she found her true match as she's looking to marry the guy and have his kids! So much for being patient and taking her time.

2008 should be a much more active year for me. It'll be an important year for my employer as our union's contract expires on September 1, 2008. If the contract negotiations go south, I may be headed to the picket lines as we go on strike. I hope that doesn't happen, but you never know exactly how things will end up. In this day of increasing health care costs and companies looking to eliminate pension plans, it may very well be an interesting round of negotiations with the company. Not only that, but there should be some stipulations in the contract that just might determine how long the mine I work at will remain open. Either it will remain open awhile longer but with a reduced work force or continue at the same work force and close sooner. Also additional ore reserves may allow us to remain open for a long time to come. Lets just say there are a lot of uncertainties with my job not only next year but for many years to come. 2008 is just the start of an uncertain time at the mine.

If contract negotiations go well and a strike is either averted or settled pretty quickly, I will begin the process of house hunting. I will be looking for a permanent place of residence somewhere relatively close to my place of employment. It should be an interesting challenge trying to find the right house for my needs. There is a lot of time between now and early fall to really decide on the kind of house for me. Whether it'll be fairly new or a fixer-upper or something small that I can eventually add-on to. I guess that remains to be seen as we progress through the new year. Maybe I can find a duplex and rent out the other half like my dad has suggested I do if I happen to find a duplex. House hunting should be an interesting thing to experience for the first time in my life.

Well, that just about does it for now. The new year is less than a week away. Hope that your new year ends up being a pleasant and enjoyable one for ya.

Christmas Day

It's finally here. December 25th, 2007; Christmas Day. You know, as I think back to previous Christmas days, a flood of memories come back. It seems as if Christmas traditions are ever changing for my family. For Christmas Eve, we always went over to my grandma's house and had dinner and opened presents. Then of course on Christmas morning, we'd all wake up and open presents brought to us by Santa. Now Christmas Eve is our traditional night we go to Christmas mass. Once we got home, we'd open up presents and then next day we'd have Christmas dinner. Well, seeing as both my dad and I were asleep by 9:30 last night (we both were up early that morning for work), we didn't get a chance to open gifts and that will wait until later today. But my mom and I did attend Christmas mass at our familiar community church where I hadn't been in close to three years. Nothing about the church itself had changed; all the asthetics were just as I had remembered. But the biggest change were the people and how much everyone had gotten older. Three years does not seem like a long time, but when you've been away for that long, it can be a long time. I saw many familiar faces, saw a couple of old classmates, shook hands with people I knew, and took in the whole atmosphere of the Christmas season within that church. It really was worth visiting that old church again; and what better time than on Christmas Eve.

Probably my most favorite present I had ever received on Christmas was when I got my first video game system, which ended up being the original Nintendo console. I remember lifting the large box the Nintendo came in and began to rip off the wrapping paper and saw what was on the box. I was overjoyed and excited. I don't think I stopped playing Nintendo at all that first day as it was the coolest thing I had ever played. But I tell ya, that gift of all of the ones I had received when I was young was probably my favorite and it ranks up there as one of my personal favorite Christmas moments of all - and it helps that my dad video taped it, too! In fact, I just might watch all of our past Christmas moments on tape today. Why not make that one of our newest Christmas family traditions. I know there are some great Christmas moments to look back upon.

Christmas Eve at my grandma's was always a blast. We'd get there fairly early, and some years we even arrived after church - but not always. A few of my cousins and uncles would already be there - and although I was never that close with a lot of them, it was nice being together even if it was just that one time a year. We'd open up presents, enjoy a good Christmas meal that my grandma had cooked up, and just generally enjoy each other's company. It has been some years now since we've been over at my grandma's house on Christmas Eve. People have grown up and it has no longer become an important destination for the Christmas season. My grandma has also been in declining health for some time now and she can no longer do the things that she used to be able to. So now we just hold our own immediate family traditions. At least we have the memories of those previous Christmas Eve's and are able to enjoy Christmas in a new way.

You know, even though we grow up and Christmas may not seem like it did when we were kids. But the holiday still gives us this special feeling and makes us feel great about things. We may be occupied with work or other activities that may not allow us to enjoy the season as much anymore, but when it comes to Christmas day - then it's a different story. Most everyone in the world has the day off so everyone is able to be with family. We're able to open presents, enjoy a wonderful Christmas meal, watch Christmas programming on TV, and everyone is in good spirits - even if it's just for one day. It's unlike any other day of the year. And unless you're a Scrooge about the day, it really gives you a good feeling about things. Now tomorrow things will probably go back to normal, but at least for one day out of the year - this day is really special for us all.

To all of my blog readers - whether you're loyal and always log in to see if there's a new blog posting each and every day, or those that happen to stumble upon it, I wish each and everyone one of you a very merry Christmas! May you be able to spend it with the people you love and have a most enjoyable and joyous time.

A Time to Sing

Wow. Christmas is only two days away. To me, it seems the holiday season just started not that long ago. And now already it is nearing a close. The holiday season just isn't as fulfilling as it used to be when you're a child. Christmas really was the most wonderful time of the year then. Now it just doesn't have that same luster. Welcome to adulthood. The time between Thanksgiving and Christmas just seemed to last so much longer when I was a kid. Now that I'm a full-time worker and don't really get to enjoy the holidays as much as I used to, it really seems to go by quick. I'd say this is probably the fastest the holiday season has gone by yet. And I don't even have any kids!

But of course when you're a kid, there are just so many more events to enjoy and participate in to get you in the Christmas spirit. One of those events that continues for children around the world to this day are Christmas programs. As part of the music program at our school, each grade would sing a Christmas song for the elementary program. I am sure many kids hated this part of the Christmas season, but I actually enjoyed it very much. I've always enjoyed Christmas and one of my favorite things about this holiday are the wide variety of Christmas songs that accompany it. I've always listened and sang along to Christmas songs, so the Christmas program at school was my cup of tea. We'd all arrive at the school for a designated time and meet in our classrooms. We'd take our shoes off and walk around in our socks since the program was taking place in the gymnasium and they wanted to protect the floor. From Kindergarten to sixth grade, each class performed a Christmas song. It was always nerve wracking to be up on stage in front of a large audience, but something that made it comforting was being amongst all of your fellow classmates. It made singing that much easier. Probably some of my favorite songs that our class sang during the elementary programs were "Up on the Housetop," "All I Want for Christmas," and "We Wish you a Merry Christmas." I can't seem to recall any others, but it was definitely an enjoyable time and really got me into the Christmas spirit.

As I moved into junior high, there were no more Christmas programs to take part in. My seventh and eighth grades lacked any kind of "choral" performances for me. But once I moved into high school, I took part in my school's choir. I was kind of hesitant to join the choir at first because I didn't know if it would be something I enjoyed. In time, I learned to enjoy it. And with being in a choir, we got to take part in the high school Christmas program. We usually ended up singing two to three Christmas songs. Some of them were Christmas medlies, others were classic Christmas songs, and one year, we even sang a song along with the high school band! Now that was a cool experience. During the final day of school before Christmas break and during our high school choir class period, we would parade around the school singing Christmas carols in the hallways. At first I enjoyed this, but once I got to my senior year, a part of me didn't like this tradition anymore. We went to sing to the elementary kids but when it was time to head down to the high school wing of the school, a bunch of us bolted and made a run for it back to the music room. Our teacher didn't repremand us for doing so; so maybe she didn't notice (but I think she did). All in all, high school choir ended up being a very fun class for me, especially during the Christmas season!

Even for church, as part of our catechism classes in high school, we'd go out in the community and sing Christmas carols to elderly citizens in our area. We'd visit the elderly apartment building, assisted living homes, and elderly residences and sing them songs of the Christmas season. We even made one elderly woman weep because she was so happy we stopped by to sing. It really made you feel good to see these people so happy and greatful for a visit by us. And church was another time when you'd hear songs of the season and plenty of them! I don't go to church much anymore which is a pity. But the Christmas season was definitely my most favorite time of year to attend church because of the Christmas songs and the way the church was decorated so beautifully. I just might have to attend mass tomorrow night on Christmas Eve at my church for old times sake. It's been a long time; and what better way to attend than for the Christmas season.

A good way to enjoy the Christmas season is to listen to the wonderful sounds of this holiday. Put in a Christmas tape, CD, or even a record (if you still have them) and sing or at least whistle along. It's something I haven't done a whole lot this Christmas and I've realized I'd better do now before it's all over.

Weather Review

The weather has been relatively tranquil the past three or so days. Saturday morning brought some lake effect snow showers into the area, depositing around three to four inches of snow. Other than that, the conditions have been pretty spectacular for early winter. We've had generally sunny skies with temperatures mainly around 20 degrees. We've had a few days where the temps stayed in the teens and overnight lows dropped below zero, but it's really nothing unusual. Yes, those temperatures are below average, but we've been above average for so long that it's actually kind of nice to be below average. And it's not like we're getting pounded with snow for days on end. Our next significant chance of snow could come through next week as a clipper looks to drop through and crank up the lake effect snow machine.

Weather - 12/5/07

What do you know? The snow finally stopped! It snowed quite heavily overnight, with some locations picking up an additional six to eight inches of lake effect snow. But finally by this afternoon, the snow moved off to the east and the sun finally appeared for the first time in several days. Total accumulations from the past five days in certain locations have reached 30 to 35 inches. Temperatures remain pretty chilly, staying around 20 degrees during the day and in the teens at night. The winter weather appears to stick around for the next five days with additional chances of snow and chilly temperatures.

Weather - 12/4/07

The weather word of the day is - SNOW! Yes, we have picked up an additional accumulation of snow since yesterday. Anywhere from four to six inches of snow have fallen. Temperatures remain rather chilly with highs around 20 and lows in the teens. This time of the year, the sun is rarely out. The last few days have been very cloudy. Things don't look to change within the next few days. The lake effect appears to remain rather dominant with northerly winds and chilly temperatures forecasted.

Memory

Have you ever encountered this problem before? You're having a conversation with someone and you're discussing a particular individual. The only problem is, you can't think of their name! It happens to me all of the time, especially when it comes to remembering people from my past. I've always admitted that I am terrible with names. If I haven't been around a person for five years or more and they're someone that I never really socialized with that often, their names eventually become filtered out of my mind. Sometimes it's like a vacuum, a wasteland of memories that get erased after a period of time. Unfortunately that's how many people are when it comes to remembering things; not just names, but memories, too. You hope that someday you will always remember things when you were a kid, or in high school, and even college. But after awhile, only the most significant memories remain and all the rest become forgotten.

Do you ever try to think back to when you were a little boy or girl and try to recall the earliest memory that you can think of? I've tried doing this before and I believe the earliest memory from when I was a child was when I was still in my crib and I was picturing these green scary faces on the ceiling of my bedroom in the middle of the night. I kid you not, for I remember standing up in my crib, crying as these images swirled around the ceiling. I do believe this is why I had a nightlight in my room for most of my childhood as I was picturing these scary creatures in my room. But isn't that how it goes for most people when they're kids; imagining scary creatures in a room or closet? This is definitely the earliest memory that I can recall. At times certain memories will pop up of your childhood but after your mind drifts away for a long period of time, they vanish like thin air.

Unfortunately I have very few memories of both of my grandfathers; as they both passed away around the time when I was five or six. I honestly could not believe myself today when I couldn't remember my one grandpa's name (my dad's father) right away. I had to think about it; but then I realized he had the same first name as my uncle. But wow, just that example right there is an instance where not seeing someone for a long period of time and especially someone with whom you have very few memories of is when you can't remember a name. Too bad it's that way, but I guess it is what it is. Thankfully we're able to ponder for awhile and in due time, the name will come up. In most cases that's how it is for me, but there are certain names that I continually draw a blank on, even though I can see their faces! It's definitely hard getting old.

I've definitely learned one thing as I've grown into adult-hood. Enjoy your youth while you can. Do you remember the song, "Everyone's Free to Wear Sunscrean" almost ten years ago? If you haven't heard it in awhile, it has some rather inspirational words. In fact, I consider it to be an age-less song, because today's and future generations can follow its message. With age comes the continual loss of memory. Alzheimers or dementia are memory-depleating diseases. Keep a journal, create a blog, jot down some notes of the activities of your day. Someday, they will definitely come in handy when you try remembering certain activities back in the day. And at least one thing it'll accomplish is hopefully bringing back to life some wonderful memories for years to come.

Weather - 12/3/07

Needless to say, the weather has gotten quite wintery in the Upper Peninsula. A major winter storm overspread the region on Saturday and continued into the next day. Six to 12 inches of snow blanketed the region; with residents also enduring strong winds at times. The temperatures warmed into the low to mid 30's on Sunday but the precipitation continued as snow with some freezing rain and drizzle mixing in at times. There was a break in the snow for awhile during the day on Sunday, but then the lake effect snows kicked in. In the lake effect snowbelts, an additional six to 12 inches has fallen. The snow continues tonight and the temperatures have cooled off some into the 20's. It's definitely got that winter-time feel around these parts; just in time for the Christmas season!

Weather - 11/30/07

The weather today was very chilly. Temperatures hovered around 10 degrees all day; making today the coldest day of the season thus far. The sunshine was out all day, though, but it did not make a difference in warming things up outside. A cool northerly wind made it feel that much colder. Last night we had temperatures below zero with clear skies, as well. We are definitely in a chilly pattern right now - and a big storm looks to move in just in time for the weekend.

Favorite Christmas Specials

Tis the season to be jolly - and what a great way to get into the Christmas spirit than by watching some awesome Christmas specials from the past. A lot of these air to this day, making them long-time classics. It's not Christmas until you've seen all of these, and thanks to YouTube, it makes it that much easier to watch them!

Here is what I consider to be the most classic of all Christmas Specials: "A Charlie Brown Christmas."

PART 1 - A Charlie Brown Christmas


PART 2 - A Charlie Brown Christmas


PART 3 - A Charlie Brown Christmas


The next is a special that used to air every Christmas season on CBS, but nowadays, the only way you'll be able to watch it is if you have it on DVD or you watch it on YouTube (thankfully someone uploaded it there). I guess CBS stopped airing it around the time they cancelled the Saturday Morning cartoon. It's "A Garfield Christmas"!

PART 1 - A Garfield Christmas


PART 2 - A Garfield Christmas


PART 3 - A Garfield Christmas


And what's a Christmas special without Santa and his reindeer? In fact, this next Christmas special is about one of Santa's reindeer that was born with a shiny red nose. You guessed it; it's Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. This long-time special dates back to 1964 and has been a long-time staple for CBS during the Christmas season. In fact, it is set to air this Tuesday, December 4 at 8:00 PM (EST). But, if you can't wait until then, here is your chance to watch it now!

PART 1 - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer


PART 2 - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer


PART 3 - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer


PART 4 - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer


PART 5 - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer


PART 6 - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer


Next up is the special that features an inanimate object that suddenly comes to life when a magic had is placed on his head. That's right; it's Frosty the Snowman! I'm sure you all know the carol by heart and if you've watched this special year after year, you should know the details of the story pretty well, too. A newer adaptation was created in the late 1990's, but doesn't nearly hold a candle to this one that still regularly airs on CBS every Christmas season. Happy birthday!

PART 1 - Frosty the Snowman


PART 2 - Frosty the Snowman


PART 3 - Frosty the Snowman


Last but not least is a Christmas special that I consider to be a more recent classic but one that has quickly become forgotten by many that grew up as kids in the 80's. It hasn't been on television since at least the early 1990's and can only be seen on DVD and on YouTube. It's called "A Claymation Christmas" created by legendary claymation artist Will Vinton. Some rather kooky characters are featured in this special (including the California Raisons) singing classic Christmas carols. If you haven't seen this one in years, it'll sure to bring back some good memories. Enjoy!

PART 1 - A Claymation Christmas


PART 2 - A Claymation Christmas


PART 3 - A Claymation Christmas


So there you have it, some of the very best Christmas specials that exist to this day. Hopefully by watching these, it'll help you get in the Christmas spirit as well. Enjoy!

Weather - 11/23/07

It was a very chilly day today, overall. Temperatures hovered in the low 20's all day, but the sun did appear for most of the day making it seem better than what it was. Those who ventured out early this morning for the deals at the stores had to endure temperatures in the teens and a slight northerly wind. This evening is proving to be quite chilly as well, with a brisk wind and temperatures dropping quickly under a clear sky. We are definitely easing into that winter mode, despite not much snow on the ground.

Weather - 11/22/07

As part of a new feature at "Luke's Ponderings," whenever I don't have a specific topic to write about on certain days, you will see small postings that will talk about the day's weather at a particular location I happen to be writing from (my apartment or home). This is a way for me to have a blog written for every single day of the year (at least that is my ultimate goal)! And I'm always able to talk about the weather; because something new seems to happen every day in the weather department and I've always enjoyed discussing the weather. So here we go!

The weather on Thursday, November 22, 2007 was quite chilly. Temperatures stayed in the low 20's and we had off and on snow showers coming in from Lake Superior (lake effect snow). It was generally cloudy, although there were a few peaks of sun through high clouds at times. Accumulation was around a dusting to one inch. Current snow cover is a dusting to one inch.

Thanksgiving

And so Thanksgiving is now upon us; that much closer to Christmas. To me, once Thanksgiving is beyond us, so begins the Christmas season. These days you see Christmas introduced to us right after Halloween is over; both in stores and on the television. Thanksgiving seems to be stuck right smack dab in the middle. It's a holiday where you give thanks for everything that's important in your life. This holiday has always meant something special to me and I really have some great memories of Thanksgiving day from the past. Not only did we get out of school for a couple of days, but it also meant being with family that you don't regularly get to see. These family gatherings are ones I didn't always mind.

I used to always get up around 8:00 or so on Thanksgiving morning and get prepared to watch the Macy's parade on television. Prior to that, you'd have the boring morning news programs on but I'd sit patiently through those. Then, once the parade came on, I waited for the balloons to appear. To me, those were the most exciting part of the parade. Just because of the fact that they were so big and dozens of people below controlled them from getting out of hand. They are actually pretty spectacular to watch, but I wouldn't want to be hanging onto one of the ropes down below on a windy day. Then, after watching the parade for awhile, I'd have to get ready as we prepared to venture over to my grandma's house a short 15 miles away for Thanksgiving dinner. Usually an aunt, an uncle, and their kids were there along with another uncle or two and some cousins. It wasn't a tremendous gathering; just enough people, I'd say. There was always plenty of food to go around and leftovers to bring home, if we wanted (but we never could take too much home, since my grandma always wanted to save some for her "boys"). To be honest with you, I don't remember any specific memories about those dinners. It just brought family together and we shared in each other's company for that one day. That was probably the best part of all.

These days we don't have Thanksgiving dinner at my grandma's house because she is too sickly. Instead, dinner is held at my parents house, with my sister and her husband and two children in attendance. If my grandma feels up to it, she may even stop over. But these days, even that is too much work for her. This year, however, I am stuck working Thanksgiving day until 3:00 in the afternoon. After work, I plan to head home for dinner, eat, spend time with family, then head back to my apartment here in town and get some sleep before work the next day. Yeah, it's not exactly the most glamorous Thanksgiving day, but it's the best I could do. I'd rather have it off but I wasn't lucky enough to have it off this time around. Oh well, there's always next year.

Hopefully your Thanksgiving day is wonderful. Remember to be thankful for what you have and enjoy the time you have with your family. I know we all can get on each other's nerves from time to time, but it's different on a holiday like Thanksgiving. It's time to put issues aside and be together. Thankfully in my immediate family, I don't have issues like that. Happy Thanskgiving, everyone.

Hunting Season

Right now in the states of Michigan and Wisconsin, we are in the midst of the fire arm deer season. It is probably one of the most anticipated outdoor sporting events in the late fall around these parts. Thousands of people take to the woods and venture to their respective deer blinds and have the ultimate goal in mind; a deer with a nice set of antlers. I am probably in the minority for guys my age that live around here that do not hunt. I have nothing against the sport of hunting and feel it's important to keep the deer herd in check. Otherwise we'd be slamming into them more often with our vehicles. Hunting just hasn't been something I've been interested in. That is basically my explanation as to why I've never hunted.

No one in my immediate family hunts either, which probably explains my lack of interest in the sport. I have uncles on my mom's side that hunt on their own property. I have an uncle on my dad's side that also likes to hunt but lives way down in Florida. The deer down there don't live up to the beasts that thrive around here. My dad did do some hunting with his father when he was a kid, but hasn't been interested in doing so since. He is a fan of most animals, so I have to believe it would be very difficult for him to shoot an animal like a deer. As for me, I don't think it would be as big of a deal to shoot a deer. When we had pesty racoons invade our bird feeders back home, traps just weren't doing the trick. I got out my dad's .22 and prepared to shoot a big monster of a coon that was perched on one of the feeders late one night a few summer's ago. All it took was one shot; bam, and it was down to the ground. Even for a critter like a racoon, the adrenaline that races through your body up until you pull the triger; it's a feeling unlike any other. Of course a racoon is no prize, but for the sheer thrill of hunting these creatures is amazing. Now compare that to hunting deer and I'm sure it has to be ten times better.

Back when I was in seventh or eighth grade, I took a hunter's safety course. I mainly took it because my best friend was also in the class, but a part of me then was interested in going hunting someday. I remember being a lousy shot then, using a .22 and not even able to hit the target near the edge of the woods on the school's property. My aim has improved quite a bit since then, but my interest in hunting has definitely fallen off. Just the thought of sitting out in the cold in adverse weather waiting for the smallest signs of life in the middle of the woods just doesn't intrigue me. Maybe I am not supposed to think that way; maybe I am supposed to be in it for the thrill of the hunt. And I do see these people with monster bucks portrayed on television and in the newspaper and seeing the trophy they're able to display for years to come. Now that part would be pretty cool. But I guess I'm not really up to gutting a deer and dragging it out of the woods. But if you're hunting deer, you can't have it totally easy.

Maybe someday, when I have my own place and if there's enough land in the back where I can do some hunting, I just might have the interest to search out that ultimate buck when I don't have much else going on. And there's more than just hunting deer, too, such as birds, bear, etc. In the meantime, I'm just going to stay in the warm comforts of my apartment and hear of all the other people and their success stories. At least I can be happy for them and their accomplishments.

Single Again...

Well, that didn't last long, did it? I am once again single after a four-month relationship. To be brutally honest with you, I wouldn't even call it a relationship - it never even got to that point. The most intimate we had gotten was one hug and that was the last time I saw her. It was more of a friendly hug, too. I was willing to make this relationship work but as she told me, she never felt the spark between us like I did. That tends to deflate the ego quite a bit. But, that's the way things go sometimes. And do I feel the least bit upset about how things turned out? Not in the least. Because as the saying goes, there are plenty of fish in the sea.

You know, when I first met her it was hard for me to keep my eyes off of her. There was just something about her that I enjoyed right off the bat. She was very friendly, easy to talk to and she seemed so carefree about many different things. We talked that first day for close to three hours about a variety of different things. It was a nice meeting and I was actually speechless on the drive home. A sense of peace had come over me as I thought, "you know, this might be the one." It just goes to show you that first instincts aren't always right. It takes awhile for a relationship to evolve and that's one bit of advice I'll take with me next time. I probably went overboard when I told her a few things about us being a couple and that could have freaked her out and ruined my chances in the long run. But hey, I was being honest and I'm not exactly experienced when it comes to romance. It ended up being a lesson learned and important for the next time around.

We talked quite a bit those first few months; mostly on the phone and some on instant messenger. I got to learn a little bit more about herself such as the things she liked, her relationship with her parents and where she worked. Lots of times I talked to her while she was at work - which was okay with her employer. I felt I was really getting to know her pretty well; but our meetings in person were few and far between. I was getting anxious to see her and in fact one night we planned to meet at her apartment after I worked an afternoon shift. But a friend of hers was planning to stay the night so all we could do was talk (not that I had planned on moving in on a second meeting). But as I approached the door, a note was stuck on the door saying she had an emergency and wasn't home. I was disappointed and headed back home. Shortly thereafter, she made the decision that she just didn't feel right that we met again until we could get the "parents" situation straightened out.

Ah yes, the "parents" situation. It all came down to this: she was afraid to tell her parents about us because they did not want her to be dating anyone she met from the internet. And I can completely understand their concerns; but not everyone you meet on-line is a psychopath. And she was 22 years old afterall and out on her own. This is what really held up our relationship. She wanted us to come up with this white lie she could tell her parents. The white lie was a place where we had a pretend meeting - and not on-line. What she really wanted was for me to attend her Baptist church and have our "meeting" there. I never committed to this because for one I am not that religious. The last time I attended church was close to two years ago. Also, I am Catholic and I am not about to switch religions just on the flick of a dime. So it was pretty much up to me to come up with something and I was never able to.

After awhile, I kind of got fed up. She basically swore off our relationship just because she couldn't tell her parents about me, which is why she couldn't see me. I got to the point where I just did not want to try anymore. There went a period where we did not communicate for close to three weeks. Then I e-mailed her to see how she was doing. As soon as I sent the e-mail, she appeared on IM and we communicated for a bit. She was planning to make a trip to Wal-Mart and since she was in the vicinity, she wondered if I would like to meet her there. I was all for it and so we met at Wal-Mart, of all places. We did a little shopping together, had an extensive conversation in the greeting cards section, and at the end of the visit, we hugged in the parking lot. That ended up being the final time I saw her in person. At that time, I had a glimmer of hope that we could make things work. I still had some feelings for her. But there was still that obstacle to overcome; the parents.

Another month surpassed without communication. I guess I was still kind of hurt that she didn't want to see me for the simple fact that she couldn't tell her parents about me. So I didn't call her or e-mail her. For awhile there the first few months, we talked everyday. But the last month, hardly ever. I knew that was not a sign of a healthy relationship. But I continued to have hope. But then suddenly, her myspace page disappeared. I thought that was a strange sign but I didn't really dig into it right away. Finally about a week later, I had to know what was going on. So I e-mailed her, asked her how she was and what she was up to. She e-mailed me about four days later, but I did not open it right away for fear of what she had written. I guess I was fearing a break-up, but it did not come with that e-mail. It soon came about a week later, not only in an e-mail but a rare appearance from her on IM. In the month between I last talked to her, she met someone else. She was in the initial stages of a new relationship with this guy, but didn't seem to be in a hurry to tell me about it. And so, life goes on.

You know, I am not the least bit disappointed or upset about "what might've been." I guess I knew it was inevitable. Now maybe if I had grown closer with her it probably would've been a lot harder to take. I just hope she's happy with whomever she's with now. And if she happens to read this at some point; please don't feel sorry for me or upset at what I wrote in this blog. It's just my way of venting and we both could've handled things differently these past two months. We made our fair share of mistakes and all we can do is look forward to the future. And as for me, the search starts over to find my missing piece. I wonder how long it'll take this time around?