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The Major’s Walk-A-Thon

Time: 6:44 AM – 7:26 AM
Sky: Mostly Clear
Temperature: 65°F
Dewpoint: 58°F
Relative Humidity: 78%
Winds: NW 5 MPH
Barometric Pressure: 30.01 Rising

Here are my walking thoughts in 15 words or less:

– It was a bit noisier outside yesterday morning compared with last week.
– My neighbours were driving away, returning home, and walking their dogs.
– When I say ‘neighbours’ I mean all 1,500 to 2,000 of them.
– I had one cat sighting, and she knew that I was her friend and not her foe.
– The air outside was clean, cool, crisp, and dry.
– During certain parts of my walk I could feel that 60°F wind chill.
– It felt really good after a long and hot and humid summer.
– I did not forget my iPod for this walk.
– I jammed to tunes from the ’70s, ’80s, ’90s, ’00s, and today.
– One song in particular was rather ironic.
– It was Ferry Corsten’s “Rock Your Body, Rock”.
– 7 years ago I sweat by dancing to it late at night in a packed nightclub.
– On this morning I (not quite) sweat by walking to it early in the morning.
– I’m happy that I can look back at where I came from.
– I’m happy that God has placed me at this point here on this journey.
– This was a 2¼-mile walk, so that’s 4.4 miles towards my goal of a marathon.
– I’m lookin’ forward to the next 2+ mile walk – perhaps next Saturday AM !

Romans 10:13 – For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

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Saturday Night Retro

Saturday October 09TH 2010
Volume 3 / Number 5 / Edition 102

I lived in the Great U.K. for 2 years and 1 week from November 1985 to November 1987. It was a wonderful (and quite memorable) time during my young life. I remember distinct details of those two years more than any other two year period in my life. There are many great memories – as well as a bunch of not so great memories. One of my best friends back then is now my longest-running friend. We still keep in touch with each other after more than 24 years even though it’s been nearly 23 years since we last saw each other. I wish I still had contact with my other friends back then, but I did some things that I’m really not too proud of. I was young and immature at the time (like we all were). It resulted in the end of friendships that should have continued on through the years. The past can’t be changed. History can’t be rewritten. I can only move forward into the future, and do the right things at the right times.

Thank You my friends for those two wonderful years of working, living, and playing in that foreign country that we once called home. Thank You for those 17 music concerts that we enjoyed together in London, Oxford, and Birmingham. Thank You for partying with me. Good Times indeed.

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Saturday Night Retro

Saturday October 02ND 2010
Volume 3 / Number 4 / Edition 101

Let’s take a ride back 14½ years ago to the Spring of 1996. Back then I was not quite 29-years-old and living in the same home that I’m living in now and working at the same place that I’m working at now. In fact I was sitting at my computer (a different more primitive one back then) and working from the same home computer workstation that I’m working at now. All of the furniture here in my living room is the same furniture that I had back then. The more things change over the years – the more things stay the same.

Back during the Spring of 1996 my Mom, Dad, 21-year-old brother Danny, and our two cats Fluffy and Barney (born in the 1980s) were still living up in the Washington D.C. area. They were living in our McLean Virginia house that we moved in to back in November of 1980 when I was 13 and my brother was 5. Later that year (in November of 1996) everyone would move down to Jacksonville Florida. I got to visit the old house (built in the 1950s) one last time in May of 1996 when I drove up for a visit. I didn’t really know at the time that it would be my last visit. The move down to Jacksonville just 5 months later was a bit on the low-key side. My family lived in that house for 16 years – the longest tenure for any one home. I only lived in that house for 4½ out of those 16 years until I began my USAF career. Now I’ve been living in my current home for over 15 years. It’s hard to believe that I moved in to this place back when I was in my late-20s, and now I’m in my mid-40s. There’s a lot of history of me in this home of mine. Back in 1996 a young black cat by the name of Boots was loaded with energy – running all over the place and loving me. Today I have a little memorial set up for him at the edge of one of my living room couches where he enjoyed relaxing. This home of mine is indeed ‘Retro’.

On the radio back during the Spring of 1996 me and my brother listened to this song as we drove southbound on I-95 in Virginia en route to Kings Dominion to spend a fun May day at the park in the chill, fog, and drizzle. My brother won free tickets to the park by winning a radio contest on the rock station DC-101. Here’s Spacehog – “In The Meantime”:

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Saturday Night Retro

Saturday September 25TH 2010
Volume 3 / Number 3 / Edition 100

It’s the remarkable 100TH edition of my ‘Saturday Night Retro’ – an unsuspecting weekly blog series that began at the start of September of 2008.

While 100 is indeed a very special number signaling a milestone it is not often utilized in reference to time. You don’t often hear the terms ‘100 seconds’ or ‘100 minutes’. They are essentially irrelevant. ‘1 minute and 40 seconds’ or ‘1 hour and 40 minutes’ are more appropriate. ‘100 days’ is used to signify the first 100 days of a Presidential administration: ‘It’s his first 100 days. Here’s what he didn’t get done.’ Nobody really cares about 100 weeks or 100 months because 100 weeks is close enough to 2 years, and 100 months is just too many to keep track of. 100 years is significant because it’s a century. When you turn 100 that’s remarkable enough to get your name mentioned by the legendary Willard Scott on “Today” on NBC. I often find myself rooting for Willard to reach 100 himself. That could happen in 23½-years.

On this 100TH edition of my ‘Saturday Night Retro’ I look back at 39 years ago in September of 1971. I was a 4-year-old kid living with my Mom and Dad in our small Greenbelt Maryland ground floor apartment (# 102). We watched a lot of TV together after my Dad came home from work. In fact one of my favourite TV shows during that time was the cartoon “Wait ‘Till Your Father Gets Home”. I also loved to visit my Grandmom and Granddad and their Pekingese ‘Meei Ling’. They lived just a mile-and-a-half down the road from me in neighbouring Lanham Maryland. Their grandchildren loved to visit them, and I loved to hang out with my cousins there – especially John John who is two years older than me. He was like a big brother to me back then. We loved to play with green Army men figures and colourful Matchbox cars. Good Times. 1971 Retro.

My Grandmom always played the hottest hits on her stereo and record player – like this one from The McCartneys: