– Let’s get spontaneous.
– Let’s not hold nothin’ back.
– Can we talk here ?
– Today I ate Lunch at the Longhorn Steakhouse.
– It’s transitioning into a weekly tradition for me.
– It’s my favourite of all of the new eating joints that have opened recently.
– Homestead has come a long way over the past few years.
– We are turning in to quite the eating mecca down here in suburbia.
– I dig that since eating food is one of my favourite hobbies.
– So next Friday night I’ll be seeing what should be a GREAT concert.
– It’s Toby Mac, Skillet, and House Of Heroes.
– All three acts rock my face off !
– I’m seeing them over at the Germain Arena between Naples and Fort Myers.
– I’m actually driving over to Naples early in the morning next Friday.
– I plan to spend the entire day over there and visit various places.
– The Naples Zoo and the Collier County Museum are on my short list.
– I’m also spending the night over there following the concert.
– I thought about driving back home after the show, but then I reconsidered.
– It’d be a 2½-hour drive in the dark across Alligator Alley (I-75).
– I’m not into that.
– I’d rather relax in a hotel room and get a good night’s sleep.
– And then the next morning I can see more of Naples before I head home.
– It’ll be like a short little vacation for me.
– I want to do those at least once a month.
– I’m already planning a nice little road trip for a later weekend in April.
– It’s fun to get out on that open road and visit places and see things.
– I used to do it far more often back in the day.
– Homestead Air Reserve Base reopened 16 years ago this weekend.
– That’s when I moved back down here to Homestead after a 19-month hiatus.
– If I had to do it all over again then I’d do it all over again.
– It’s straight-up and down six o’clock in the evening as I type this.
– That means that Life Group is just an hour away.
– Life Group has been the crown jewel of my work week in 2010.
– I get excited about it every week.
– It’s fellowship done right.
– Have a great night my friends.
– Celebrate Life !
It’s time to kick-off a fresh new week of blogging here on ‘The Major’s Life Blog’, and I can’t think of any better way to kick it than with the longest-running weekly series in this blog’s history. It’s the flagship series that’s been here since the very start. It’s the ‘Tuesday Night Grab Bag O’ Thoughts’ – in HD !
I.Monkey Jungle – 51 weeks after my last visit to my favourite local tourist attraction I went back again this past Saturday morning to check up on my primate buddies. Read what I had to say about my last fun visit on the 14TH of March of 2009. On this visit I bought an annual pass to the joint. It’s worth it. Adult admission is $29.95, and an annual pass is $39.95. Had I bought an annual pass on my last visit in 2009 I could have used it for this visit – 51 weeks later – in 2010. Now I can visit as often as I wish free of charge. I dig that. This was another fun 2½-hour visit. It was also a cold visit with actual air temperartures only in the mid-60s and wind chills in the upper-50s ! My friend Mei the orangutan was so frigid that she kept throwing her new blanket on top of herself like a little kid. The only time she let go of her ‘blanketty’ was when she had to go fetch her food that unintentionally landed in the moat below her. My old buddy King the western lowland gorilla is still hangin’ in there. He’s nearly my age. He came right over when he saw the crowd gather, and he performed all of his usual tricks. He knew that it was time for Lunch. While the vocal animal rights activists may not appreciate Mei and King (and zoos in general) I certainly look forward to checking up on my old buddies with every new visit to the jungle.
Me In Front Of Monkey Jungle In January 2006
II.Operation Desert Storm – TODAY – the 09TH of March – marks the 19TH anniversary of my return home from war on the harsh desert sands of Saudi Arabia. I departed Al Kharj Air Base at 0326 Saudi Arabia time on Saturday March 09TH 1991. It was a 7 hour and 7 minute flight westbound to Torrejon Air Base Spain followed by an unexpected 5 hour and 24 minute layover there. The transatlantic flight to Dover Air Force Base Delaware took 8 hours and 59 minutes. It was a long 21½-hour travel day for me. The next morning I flew from Philadelphia to Miami, and then back home to Homestead Air Force Base as a war veteran. For rest and recuperation the USAF awarded us returning home from war the rest of the month (March 1991) off from work. I ended up driving to my official home-of-record up in the Washington D.C. area to be with my family. That capped roughly 10,000 miles of travel for me in just 6 days.
III.Your Weather Forecast – No ‘Tuesday Night Grab Bag O’ Thoughts’ is complete without a weather forecast (or at least my analysis of recent weather). It’s been a record-breaking cold winter season all across America’s Riviera due mostly to the continuing El Niño phenomenon. This is the same weather pattern that destroyed virtually every single tropical system out at sea last summer. It appears that El Niño is now waning, so more normal seasonal weather should be expected for at least the next 9 months or so. In the near short-term look for a return to afternoon temperatures back in the 80s and overnight low temperatures back to where they should be during this time of the year – the mid-60s. Also look for a return to that wonderful South Florida humidity that’s been on hiatus for an extended period of time. Normal probably won’t feel so normal after so much abnormal weather for the greater part of the past year, but I’m sure that we will all get used to it again in no time flat.
IV.Longhorn Steakhouse – Late this morning I enjoyed a delicious Lunch at Homestead‘s Longhorn Steakhouse. I was in the mood for juicy steak, buttery mashed potatoes, and soft warm bread, and I can’t think of anywhere else within a short driving commute to go for such a fantastic feast than the Longhorn. I’m also doing my part to try to keep this place in business. I hear that the joint is jumpin’ every night for Dinner, but it seems like such a well kept secret for Lunch. You can enjoy a delicious Lunch there with excellent customer service for $10 or less – slightly more of course if you prefer to go the steak and potatoes route such as myself. The Longhorn is gradually becoming a Tuesday for Lunch tradition. Who wants to meet me there next Tuesday ? I’ll treat !
We’re just about 48 hours away from another intriguing ‘Thursday Night Mini Thoughts’. Think of what would happen if the ‘Grab Bag O’ Thoughts’ collided with Twitter. It’s what you’d get with the ‘Mini Thoughts’. Each unique thought is presented in 15 words or less, and I pass the savings on to you !
– Let’s get spontaneous.
– Let’s not hold nothin’ back.
– Can we talk here ?
– I love typing in these ‘Mini Thoughts’.
– That’s because there’s absolutely no planning for this beforehand.
– The ‘Disco Party’ and the ‘Retro’ are both planned weeks / months in advance.
– Even the ‘Grab Bag’ on Tuesday nights takes much of the week to plan.
– But these ‘Mini Thoughts’ are happenin’ right here and right now.
– If you look sad and miserable on the outside then you are that way all around.
– Even if you look happy on the outside you may still be sad and miserable.
– You can hide sad and miserable with a smile on your face.
– Some people are good at it.
– I’m thinking that if you’re sad and miserable then you don’t know God.
– There’s a MASSIVE difference between believing in God and knowing Him.
– I’ve believed in His existence for nearly my entire lifetime.
– But I’ve only really known Him for the past 42 months.
– As the journey continues I’m knowing Him more and more.
– Adults who hate raise children who hate.
– That vicious cycle is endless unless One steps in to break it.
– That One is God and no other.
– Imagine how this world would be if we all loved rather than hated.
– Tonight I’ve got my Life Group where we will learn more about God.
– Tomorrow is a normal Friday work day for me, and then the weekend begins.
– I’ve cleared my Saturday morning schedule to do two main things.
– I’m getting a professional car wash and detail done first thing in the morning.
– After that I’m heading to Monkey Jungle to hang out with my primate buds.
– I’m even thinking of getting an annual pass to the joint.
– I think an annual pass costs just $10 more than a one-day pass.
– Are you getting tired of this outrageous cold winter season ?
– Don’t worry we’ll get back to more normal weather as soon as next week.
– I forgot what 80°F+ feels like.
– Unofficially so far in 2010 we’ve only had 8 days (out of 63) in the 80s.
– 7 out of those 8 days were just barely into the 80s (80° or 81°).
– But back to reality – how does FROST on your car sound for tomorrow ?
– It could very well happen for those of us well inland (such as Homestead).
– Stay warm, and may you have a cozy Thursday night at home.
– This morning I took a spontaneous walk around my neighbourhood.
– I say that because I had actually decided to skip the walk due to the cold.
– I was gonna go straight to Denny’s to consume a GINORMOUS Breakfast.
– But then when I stepped outside I had a ‘Godwink‘ moment.
– God directed me to grab my iPod Shuffle and earphones and go for a walk.
– And so I did, and it wasn’t as frigid cold as it was originally forecast to be.
– It was still a cold walk – in the upper-40s – but there was little to no wind.
– My neighbourhood smelled good at dawn.
– Aside from the occasional passing vehicle it was peaceful and quiet outside.
– Not a creature was stirring – not even a canine or a feline.
– I couldn’t even find the usual assortment of ducks outside.
– They were probably in the bushes staying warm(er).
– I love my neighbourhood.
– It’s hard to believe that I’ve lived here in one place for nearly 15 years.
– Could I possibly live here for another 15 years ?
– I ended up walking one complete lap around my neighbourhood.
– That’s roughly 1.3 miles, and it took 25½-minutes to do so.
– Immediately following the walk I jumped in my car and went to Denny’s.
– Three words dude – ‘All-American Slam’.
– Need I say more ?
– I didn’t think so.
– It took me 51 minutes to drive to Denny’s, eat hearty, and return home.
– That was exactly twice as long as my walk around my neighbourhood.
– But they were both equally fun and satisfying.
– I’m glad that I did both this morning.
– It’s gonna be a great normal weekend at home for the 1ST time in 3 weeks.
– I’ve got a lot of paperwork and online work to do today and tomorrow.
– Later tonight be sure to come back here for some 2003 ‘Retro’.
– Until then enjoy your Saturday in paradise.
– Make it special and memorable.
CountUp 