The 100 Coolest Things of 2010... #50 to 41

And we continue with the longest running list, not counting The Dave100, on this blog site... that being the 100 Coolest Things of 2010.  I won't bother with the recap just yet, you can find it to the right under archives...

50... Harry Finds a Hallow
After what I considered to be a disaster, though one I can still bear to watch, of the last movie (the post I wrote, by the way, "A Letter to Steve Kloves" is one of the most read posts on this here bloggy site), my expectations for "Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows Part I" were lower... but still slightly high, nonetheless.

Here's what I wrote on November 30th, 2010:

First and foremost, it holds a huge, huge advantage over any of the previous six films, and that is simply that this movie covers only half the book. The reason "Goblet of Fire" and "Order of the Phoenix" cut out almost half of their respective books is simply a time factor... you would have a six hour movie to cover everything ("Goblet of Fire" skipped the S.P.E.W. subplot, and was one of the few things I enjoyed about the movie versions over the books).

Essentially, the film version, at least Part I, of "The Deathly Hallows", is a little like a table of contents. You see a live action snippet of each scene that is fully fleshed out in the book itself, something is allowable because the 140 minutes of the movie covers only about 300 pages, not 500 pages.

You can read the full post here, but it continues to talk about the movie, first spoiler free, and then second, spoiler filled (though there are several alerts to tell you to stop reading if you haven't seen it).  I finished the post by saying, "Anyway, I really enjoyed the film, and have intentions on seeing it again. I said before my favorite movie character is Luna, but my favorite book character is Ginny Weasley... but I'm not sure I dig Bonnie Wright. I also think Fenrir Greybeck is fantastic in the book, but in the movie he's so marginalized and relegated to a second tier character.  Go see the movie, irregardless of whether you've read the book."

49... Via Napoli


Don't let the angle fool you.  This pizza is a monster, and this is taken
after four adults had just about had their fill...



What can I tell you about Epcot's newest restaurant?  Its in Italy, its authentic Italian, and its delicious.  I've eaten there twice, and its got some of the best pizza I've ever had, not to mention some of the best desserts I've eaten in a while.

Their food is a little pricey, but let's face it, its Disney, and all prices are a little higher than normal.  They ph-balance the water to match that of water found in Italy, as well as authenticate other ingredients to give you the freshest, purest form of Italian food... and their large pizza, $40 as it may be, will feed at least six people, if not more.  Its pretty awesome. 

48... Christians Like Stuff
So, Jon Acuff writes this blog, aptly titled Stuff Christians Like about being a Christian, and he asks tough questions like, what to do with the Christian version of "Freebird", or the problem with unrated movies on DVD... he's the author of several books, including one named after his website, and its a great read pretty much every day. 

47... Little Sister Ashley Gets a Ring
What can I say... my own adopted little sister (I got the looks in the family) got a ring on her finger from her hometown sweetheart, Brandon.  Apparently, he'd pined for her for years and years and years, and she gave him the cold shoulder... but one day, she woke up and said, "Whaaaa...?  I... like this guy!  No!  I love this guy!"



At top, its Brandon and Lil
Sister Ashley.  The bottom pic
features The Honorable Rev'rn
Ty "Sharpton" Coffey and Lori
Anne, bride to be.

 She stopped by my store and flashed the ring, then I immediately commanded her to go to The Cabana and show The Lovely Steph Leann, which she did. 

And this past May, we were able to attend the wedding, which I'm sure you'll read about in The 100 Coolest Things of 2011... at this rate, some time around September 2013. 

Which leads me to...

46... Ty Gives a Ring
Here's another engagement that rocks, and gets the slight edge over Little Sister Ashley's big moment if only because I was involved in the proceedings...  The Honorable Rev'rn Ty Sharpton called me up and asked if I would participate in his little engagement get-together, which involved me taking the ring from him and setting it up in Samford's chapel. 

It was a little intimidating, holding a ring that cost more than Toni Rocki Honda, my little car at the time.  He asked me to not open it, not to look at it, he wanted Lori Anne to be the next one to see it, and I obliged.  I was to place it on the podium of the chapel at a certain time, then hide when Rev'rn Ty and his bride-to-be, Lori Anne, came in. 

While I was waiting for the word from Ty, people came in and out of the chapel--Samford had a football game going on in the stadium across the street at the same time--and I sat off to the side in a pew, probably looking like an old creeper.  I held the ring box tightly until I got the text that said, "In chapel yard".  I was nervous about letting the ring leave my sight, but I put it on the podium then slipped out a side door.

I walked around the student break area until I finally got a text that said "ITS DONE"... upon my return, there was a big smile from Revr'n Ty, and a bigger smile from little Lori Anne, and the ring almost blinded me.   And I was also able to not just attend, but be a part of their wedding, which you'll probably see in The 100 Coolest Things of 2011 as well.

45... B.o.B. Professes His Love
By the summer of 2010, there weren't a ton of songs that had really piqued my interest, especially in hip-hop areas... cause really, they all kind of sound alike.  So, here comes "Nothin On You" by B.o.B. featuring Bruno Mars, with this profession of love for his boo, telling her that there are chicks all over the place, and that sure, they might be cute or he might say hello... but ain't none them ho's got nothin on you.  Nothing.

"Beautiful girls, all over the world, I could be chasin', but my time would be wasting, they got nothin on you baby (nuh nuh nuh nothin on you... nuh nuh nuh nothing on you)... they might say hi, I might say hey, but you shouldn't worry about what they say cause they got nothing on you, baby (nuh nuh nuh nothing on you... nuh nuh nuh nothing on you)... nothing on you baby..."

Keep in mind, this was the summer that both B.o.B. and Bruno Mars emerged, so I don't feel bad in telling you that for the longest time, I couldn't tell who was rapping and who was singing.  Perhaps I'm still not sure.

44... The Books Get Read
My love of audiobooks is well documented and deep, with probably 100 or more in my collection... I keep most of them, about 110 gbs worth, on an external portable hard drive, but on my iPod that I have with me about 97% of the waking hours of my day, I have at least 30 or 40 that I take with me, just in case I might want to jump into a random book, be it Kristen Chenoweth's biography (or Andre Agassi's) or maybe some Glenn Beck, or even a chick lit novel by Emily Giffen...

And then, I finally joined Audible dot com.  The way it works is, you pay one price per month and you are given "Credits".  Then, you can download audiobooks for a credit, or for larger audiobooks (like the Walt Disney biography I initially got, which was 35 hours--it was two credits, but I got it free for joining).  Every month, for $14.95, I get another credit...

Essentially, its buying an audiobook for $15 per month, but when you consider they are running anywhere from $25 to $50 per book, its a pretty good deal.  Also, for members, you get special discounts on books, sometimes half off, sometimes huge percentages off, sometimes free... I just downloaded "Go the Heck to Sleep" children's book (warning:  NOT Emmy Turnbow safe), narrated by Samuel L. Jackson, for no charge whatsoever...

And the selection is pretty great too.  I managed to get The Pixar Touch for less than $7, I got Patton Oswalt's comedic book for about $6 and downloaded "ESPN: Those Guys Have All the Fun" for May's selection for one single credit... regular price, $26. 

Randomly, just for thought, here's my current wish list, or, books I'll end up downloading or purchasing if they go cheap--in the order I'm going to get them:  "The Men Who Would Be King: An Almost Epic Tale of Moguls, Movies, and a Company Called Dreamworks" by Nicole LaPorte... "Decision Points" by Dubya... "Bossypants" by Tina Fey... "Without You: A Memoir of Love, Loss and the Musical Rent" by Anthony Rapp... "Your Only As Good As Your Next One: 100 Great Films, 100 Good Films and 100 Films For Which I Should Be Shot" by Michael Medavoy

And if you think this was just a reason to go all Ron Burgundy and say, "Hey everyone!  Come look at the cool stuff I've been reading!"... well, you may be right.  Though if anyone has thoughts on any of these books, then I'd love to hear them--besides the predictable recoil by Brad Latta, Atty at Law, at the mention of Glenn Beck or Dubya. 

43... A Dragon Gets Tamed
Here's what I wrote about "How To Train Your Dragon" on June 6th, 2010...

"How to Train Your Dragon" follows the story of Hiccup, who lives in a Viking village where the life of a Viking is to hung and kill dragons of every size--and they are aplenty in this movie. Hiccup is a loser that is made fun of by most of the clan, mostly because his heart is not into hunting anything, much less dragons, but to please his father--who happens to be village chief, no less--he does what he can.

Hiccup ends up taking down a rare Night Fury dragon, but upon finding it in the woods, cannot bring himself to finish him off... and there, the adventure takes flight, pun intended.

I loved it. I loved every single second of this movie. I loved the main character, Hiccup, I loved his love interest, a spry pixie named Astrid, I loved the dragons, including the main one nicknamed Toothless, I loved the setting, I loved the creativity, I loved the story... I thought this movie was brilliant. This was the first time I'd ever seen a non-Pixar animated movie and thought, "This should have been a Pixar film."

The Lovely Steph Leann loved it too. As the credits began to roll, she piped up and said, "Wow. DreamWorks finally got it right." (full review is found here)

By the way, I watched this movie a few days ago on cable... it is just as good, great even, as the first time I watched it.  And that is a true test of a good movie.

42... A Town Gets Covered
Wow this is a big book.  Perhaps Stephen King likes to release a 1000 page behemoth every year, or maybe I just tend to read one--in 2009, it was "It"... and in 2010, it was "Under the Dome".

In the fall of some year after 2012, Dale Barbara, known as "Barbie", is trying to leave the small town of Chester's Mill.  Before he can get very far, however, something odd happens.  An invisible, indestructible barrier--a dome, per se--is dropped over the town, keeping everyone who's out of town out of the town, and everyone who is in the town, in the town.

Big Jim Rennie, second selectman, takes over the town, appointing his corrupt friends and sick, twisted son Junior as town officials, and does his best to try and contain the opposition, which includes Barbie and newspaper editor Julia Shumway.   Slowly but surely, the town's government falls apart as Big Jim's rule becomes more and more stern, and as his ego--and paranoia of losing control--spiral out of control.

Efforts to destroy the Dome fail one after the other, and everything from civility to law to just common sense begins to fall apart, piece by piece, little by little... its not a slippery slope so much as a straight up and down cliff. 

While the Dome is the central key to the novel, it is what happens to the town that becomes the book's plot.  The breakdown in civilization, the loss of respect and democracy... that's the book's central storyline.  When Big Jim realizes that not everyone sees it his way, its then that he begins doing whatever, and I mean whatever, is necessary to ensure his own rule is followed. 

King stated in an interview that he thought of Dubya when he was writing the character of Big Jim, but honestly, all I could think of was He Who Must Not Be Re-Elected... who gives a rip how it affects anyone, this is what I think is best, so this is the way we are doing it. 

Anyway, its a huge book, but I'd rank it up there as one of King's modern classics, and one I'll probably read again in the next year or two (it stays on my iPod just in case...)

41... Z's Serves the Burgers
Sometimes the best food you can find is in a nondescript hole in the wall place you've passed by a thousand times but never noticed its existence... and that would be Chris Z's to a tee. 

Nestled on a corner near St. Vincent's hospital, sharing the same block, if not the same wall, with the empty building that used to be Golden Rule BBQ (take a left off of Red Mt Expressway/Hwy 31 as you are facing St. Vincents), it doesn't have very much parking, and in fact, the best way to get to it is to drive past it, turn left at the light and come around the entire structure.

Walking in, you can see immediately that its family owned and operated... covering the walls in almost every space are frames, frames with single pictures of family, frames with duo photos of more family, large frames with collages of a dozen or more pictures of family and friends.  Being my close friend Melanie's husband, you'll see pictures of Melanie and Chris together.  You'll see the Z kids, Jay Z, Special K and The Zack Attack.  You'll see lots of people that sort of look like their family, and you'll see friends that you might recognize... or not.  

The cafe itself is set with not more than a dozen tables, mostly because there is no room.  Come at lunch time, you'll be hard pressed to find an open chair, but if you are an experienced Chris Z eater, you'll know this and will plan for it--either come earlier or later, or get it to go, or just stand and eat like many patrons do.

The menu is typed out in a familiar Comic Sans font, with some scribble with a marker and some tape over certain things, those manual corrections that the owner doesn't have time to make in the form of a new menu... no, there is too much food to make.  And the food is aplenty.

Hot dogs cooked to perfection, topped with everything or nothing at all, your request.  And the cheeseburgers are fantastic... my personal favorite is a Chris Z burger with mayo, mustard and ketchup, and cheese splashed all over the fries.  The Chris Z burger was actually recently named by a local magazine to the be the best burger in town, and its a well deserved distinction.

And then there is dessert... a family owned recipe for cheesecake pie.  That piece of pie kinda deserves its own ranking among the coolest things of the year, almost like a #40 1/2 spot... its amazing.  I've had cheesecake in six different states, ranging everywhere from the Carnegie Deli in Manhattan to the Baltimore Harbor... and its the best cheesecake I've ever had.

Anyway, if you are in the St. Vincents area, and you find yourself hungry--or even if you just want to find something new, check 'em out.  They also serve breakfast, which is excellent too... and that's not to mention their Middle Eastern menu they have the first Friday of every month.  Its good, good stuff.  (you can click here for more info)

Coming up... Hide yo' kids!  Hide yo' wife!  Its more of the best of 2010, now that 2011 is half over!  Yeah!  More Disney!  A DFC Champion!  And startin' fires...

The Summer of Blogging, Day Twenty Two

The Six Milk Rotation (a Starbucks tale)

On Facebook? Become a fan of the blog by searching "Clouds in My Coffee" and then join. If you do it by midnight tonight, then get 10 of your friends to do it, great things will happen to you. I know this guy who won the lottery, all because he joined. I know another guy who refused, and he died. Don't be the second guy. Be that first guy. Join "Clouds". Its like winning the blog lottery.

Gotta tell ya, I'm pretty tired. I'm giving myself about 30 minutes to blog out what I wanted to say, then I'm going to go up to my darkened bedroom (due to the cloudy skies outside) and take a two hour nap, so I can recharge before zipping off at The Happiest Place in the Mall.

My b'day weekend was great, and I'll probably talk about that on Thursday or Friday, when I have some free time, and though I worked all day Sunday and Monday (my actual birthday--and 816pm is my actual birth minute, if you must know, though that's Central time, as it was 916pm on Orlando on that fateful day long ago), it was still a good weekend. Monday night, The Lovely Steph Leann and I invited over two of our besties...

...by the way, I think the word "besties" is one of the most ridiculous, silliest words I've ever heard. I mean, "BFF" is bad enough, but "besties"? So, because I think its so stupid, I use it liberally now. Of course.

...James and Jessica Hawbaker, winners of the 2008 Hannah Pruitt Cool Award on this very blog. We grilled out Omaha steaks, had baked potatoes, some Milo's tea and after dinner, we just sat and chatted for a while, like friends who don't get to see each other are wont to do, this time over 2 day old, yet still delicious, birthday cake and ice cream.

And as I cuddled up next to The Lovely Steph Leann later that evening, falling asleep, I was bracing myself for the whirlwind that would be the next three days. I woke up at 420am, rolled out of bed, dressed, brushed my teeth and left The Cabana around 445am to head to Starbucks. I left there around 1040am, got home, made some lunch, rested for a few minutes, did my email and such, took a long, hot shower and was at The Happiest Place in the Mall by 130pm.

Left The Happiest Place in the Mall around 1010p, got home around 1030p, crawled into bed around 1115p, then was up again around 420p. And back at Starbucks by 5a, getting off about a half an hour ago. Later, this time at a request time of 3 instead of 130, I'll be back at The Happiest Place in the Mall until at least 10pm, only to get home, go to bed and be back there by 830 in the morning. If I can last until tomorrow around 5pm, I've got 3 days off. And I'm smiling to myself, thinking of how I'm probably going to turn my phone off on Thursday night and sleep on Friday until my eyes cannot possibly stay shut any longer... I say that, but I'll be up by 930 or 10, just cause as I get older, I don't like wasting my days off... that's not to say I don't want to sleep, or like to sleep, because I do, but I do want to do other stuff. Important stuff. Like watch WWE: Raw on DVR, or sort through The DFC, or organize my Disney pins or sit and surf the interweb for hours on end with no real purpose... you know, vital things to do.

Anyway, we were busy this morning at Starbucks... really busy. Early busy. That's not atypical for a Starbucks sitting along the busiest highway in the state of Alabama, that being Hwy 280, but at the same time, it can be stressful.

Let's be clear... I'm good at some things, I'm not so good at others. I excel in certain areas, and I fail in many others to the point of not even trying. Making drinks when its busy? I'm good. I'm very, very good.

As much as Starbucks would like to have every store uniform, every drink the same at every store, its just not possible. There are too many people who all make drinks for it to be the same--thats not to say the recipe changes, as it doesn't. A grande caramel macchiato recipe is simply 3 pumps of vanilla syrup, steamed milk to about an inch below the cup line, layer it with about an 1/2 inch of foam, pour your shots atop the milk and put a caramel syrup crosshatch on top. Lid it, pass it out. But I'll bet anything that my caramel macchiato would taste slightly different than the one that Lil Sister Ashley makes. And this isn't to say its a bad thing--sometimes people prefer certain baristas make their drinks, cause they just know how much of what to put in there. A half pump difference here, a fourth scoop of foam less there, and you've got a slightly different tasting drink.

To that end, everyone sets their bar up different too. Most baristas I know, and I'm included in this category, want their bar set up a certain way. Me? For slower times, I've got an gallon of nonfat milk and a gallon of 2% milk on the ready. My thermometers are in one single pitcher off to the side, along with my pouring spoon and my stirring spoon. Two rags sit under the machines, one for wiping the steam wands, the other for wiping the front of the counter, lest I spill some milk. Since I work in front of two espresso machines, I have four glass shot glasses, two on each side, turned upside down, side-by-side, ready to be grabbed at a moments notice. Under the machines, in the fridge, I've got a nice stash of apple juice, whole milk, soy, signature hot chocolate, berry chai and other fun things. One addition I've recently made is having a sleeve of grande hot lids tucked away, but within arms reach, for when (not if) I run low during a rush.

When we get busy? Its imperative to have some sort of organization. I typically will use the slower time to prep and stock and get ready for the busier times, those times when you have seven cups lined up down the side, and one is a a venti very dry cappuccino (you probably will have to steam some new milk just to have the foam available) and another is a grande no water soy chai (not hard, but now you have to steam soy) and another is a Caramel Apple Spice (once again, having to steam apple juice) and another is a regular nonfat latte, but with five shots, taking up valuable time at your bar...

Milk is essential. The best and fastest way to get behind in a rush, the quickest way to get all out of whack is to not have enough milk steamed. Espresso shots by themselves only last around 10 seconds before they become dark and bitter, so if you don't get some milk or water on them, your drink is altered. Its a terrible, terrible thing to have four cups in front of you, each with shots in them, some with syrup, and just waiting on milk to steam.

When the rush hits, I start out with my Four Milk Rotation. I have two pitchers labeled 2%, two pitchers labeled nonfat. Off to the side, I have a pitcher labeled "Half-N-Half", one labeled "Soy", one labeled "whole milk" and two pitchers with no labels at all. And ready at the call is another pitcher of nonfat, and another pitcher of 2%. I keep steaming milk constantly. I typically press the "X-Hot" button, just to give it a few extra minutes of life, though its never enough to make a drink undrinkable. Even when I've cleared out the drinks in front of me, I will steam more milk, and have all four pitchers with fresh milk, ready to pour.

And one some mornings, like today, I call in the reserves... and go to the Six Milk Rotation. Three pitchers of nonfat, three pitchers of 2%, continally steamed. I only have four thermometers to work with, so I would put one in 2 of each milks. When I steamed a new pitcher of milk, I moved it to the back of the line. As the pitcher in front emptied, I refill it with cold milk, steam it, move the other two to the front, and put the thermometer in the next pitcher. When the new pitcher finishes steaming, I put it in the back, and grab the milk in front for pouring.

Several times I had three and four venti drinks in a row, so it wasn't uncommon to use up two pitchers of nonfat milk at one time, then have to steam two more. This morning I probably went through about 12 gallons of milk, just filling a pitcher, steaming, pouring up a latte, filling a pitcher, steaming, pouring a misto, filling a pitcher, and so on and so on. Each thermometer has a red area on it, and when the needle drops out of that red area, you have to pour the milk out, as its now "out of temp"... this only happened twice in three hours. When you are on a Six Milk Rotation, there's very little chance of wasted milk...

I did spill a pitcher of milk, though. It was kinda comical, as it was early, and I was still waking up. The music overhead was whimsical, not quite "The Entertainer" but along those lines, and I almost felt like if the music were loud enough, watching me would be like one of those Chaplin old silent films with the music synced with all the pratfalls and hi-jinks. And then I knocked over a pitcher filled with cold, nonfat milk. And the song that started playing overhead? "I Fall to Pieces" by Patsy Cline. Fitting.

I'm not nearly the greatest barista, I'm sure there are many, many more ahead of me. But I do know there are many, many, MANY more behind me, if only for the fact I've got close to seven years of Starbucks bar experience, enough time to have seen the changes in the way we do things, learning things that we weren't supposed to do are now things that we have to do, and finding out things we based our learning on were wrong, and we have to change it now... such is Starbucks life.

Just like baristas want their bar set up a certain way, most are territorial when we get busy. As in, "give me the drinks, let me do them, if I need your help, I'll tell you." And really, most of the time its easier to just do the drinks you need to do, than to explain to someone else. So, when you see a barista behind the counter and there is a line of drinks, remember... it might be helpful for someone else to walk up and start making drinks with them. Or it might be hurtful, as the barista at the bar would be forced to say something like, "okay, I've already put the splenda in those two, but not in the grande mocha, which needs another pump of toffee nut because the bottle ran out, and there's a venti misto, but they want it half-caf, and since we are still brewing the decaf, I don't have it in there yet, and I'm steaming the soy for that, and for this chai with no water and oh, can you add equals to that venti misto there that needs the decaf which is almost finished brewing..."

You know what. Back up. Back off. Let me do it. When I need some help, I'll say, "Fellow barista, could you assist me?" You'll get your drinks quickly enough--another person adds another minute to your wait time, I promise.

Finally, rushs are great. Line the cups up, there is a line at the counter, the drive-thru is backed up, your pumping vanilla syrup as fast as that plastic pump will spit it out, and the white mocha is flowing hot and heavy and the pitchers are in full Six Milk Rotation (I seriously had an Eight Milk Rotation once--holy crap) and there is chai on your apron and your finger has cinnamon dolce syrup on it and people are hollering to each other, "Hey, I need the Pike Place" and "Can you get me a blueberry muffin for the DT?" and "Please run back and grab some more milk" and so on... its awesome.

And when its over, I always think of one thing... I'm Triple H and I lean over the rush we just had, and say, "Rush, you can't see me!". Then I do the move that says, "I just killed it." I never do the full move, as it might be kinda rude, but you'll see me sometimes do a slight, quick hand cross up and out in front of me.

Then I walk away. Cause (courtesy of The Miz) I'm Dave. And I'm awesome (too bad you can't see my arms outstretched).

And now? I'm going to enjoy a nap. Cause I'm The Dave... and I'm... Sleeeepppy

Arguing the Hotness of Ashley Tisdale (and other points of interest)

Just got finished with another movie, this time "I Love You Man", starring Paul Rudd and Jason Segel. Met Mikey at Popeye's Chicken & Biscuits after church, and we headed up to the Carmike Dollar Theater for a late night viewing. This has been a common ritual, we find a movie that both want to see, perhaps one that we just don't want to pay $7 bucks for, and we catch it at the dollar theater.

We started this trend while watching "The Marine", starring 5 time WWE Champion John Cena, but this didn't work with "12 Rounds", starring 5 time WWE Champion John Cena, because it was up one week, then gone the next. We also wished we had waited until the dollar theater to see "Punisher: War Zone" from last year. Mikey, you still owe me 9 bucks for that drivel.

As for "I Love You Man", it was funny enough. Not awesome, not terrible, but good for some good laughs. Great moments, Paul Rudd's delivery is solid as always, and Jason Segel is someone I could get used to laughing at. The appearance of Jon Favreau was a welcome sight, too, as it always is. And somehow, the character playing Zoe, Paul Rudd's fiance, got hotter as the movie went on. Found out later it was Rashida Jones, the daughter of Quincy Jones. Not a clue.

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Had this exchange with The Lovely Steph Leann while watching Ashley Tisdale's new video, airing in a snippet before the commercials & previews of one of our movies this past weekend:

Me: Ashley Tisdale. Still think she's hot.
The Lovely Steph Leann: She's a baby!
Me: Seriously, she's like, 23
The Lovely Steph Leann: Still, anyone you are ten years older than is... well, a baby
Me: Uh... Dennis Quaid? He's like, 50. Bradley Whitford, too.
The Lovely Steph Leann: (pause) Well... (pause)... I like older men. So there.


See... I think she's pretty hot. Maybe its just me.

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I did minor in sign language in college, and though I've forgotten most if it, it still piques my interest. Lil Sister Ashley and I were actually trying to take a sign class at nearby Six Flags of Brookhills, but we weren't able to go alot, and it fell through for both of us.

Still, its my love of sign and Fergie, a championship combination that is solid any way you put it, that makes me think this video is just awesome:

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Toni Rocki Honda is sick. I'm not sure if there's a cure. Apparently, her electrical system is screwed up, and sometimes she starts. Sometimes she doesn't. In fact, she doesn't give any indication of when she may or may not start. Seriously.

Monday morning, that being this past Memorial Day, I went out at 5:20a to drive over to Starbucks and work my 4 hour, time & a half shift. She turned over, but didn't start. Wouldn't start. I took The Lovely Steph Leann's car. Tuesday morning, I had Toni Rocki Honda towed over to my mechanic, Christian Brothers Automotive.

Today I get a call from them, and they basically tell me that something is shorting... out... the relay... switch (I scrunch my face to try to recall what it is that is wrong, and the words that were being used...) and they... can't figure it out...

Brandon: We've been running tests, and we can't figure out whats wrong.
Me: Wow. Just eliminating one thing after another?
Brandon: Pretty much. We haven't even done anything to fix it, but it just started working in the middle of us working on it.
Me: So you'll be doing more tests, huh?
Brandon: That's all we can do.
Me: You know this sounds like I'm on the phone with a doctor discussing the prognosis of my grandmother, right?

Hopefully, they'll figure it out... for all the debt-freedness we have going on, we cannot afford to just write a check for a new car. And car payments are not an option.

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New blog plugs...

Wookiee has his own blog now. He's not as chatty as I am, but he's much more into sports, or at least more knowledgeable, and has random thoughts just like me. You can find his blog right here.

As always, I have to mention Erin the Marine Wife, who has an excellent blog started. She calls it Many Kind Regards, and its all about being a mother and a Marine Wife, and some of her best work is when she dives into the life, struggles and hilarity's (what there are, I mean) of being a military wife. Check it out right here.

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Had a house guest here at The Cabana Extended Stay Suites & Resort Spa. About a month or so ago, out of the blue, Tyler the Brother in Law calls up his sister, my wife, and says, "Hey, I got a friend working in Birmingham this summer and doesn't have a place to stay for a few weeks... can she stay with you guys?"

"Do we know her?"
"No. But she's nice and all. You'll like her."


She'll probably kill me that I used this pic, but I lifted it from her Facebook page. It was hard to find, though, because she's with someone on just about every picture.

Her name is Davis-Ann, and that's just the first name. She's been here in our guest room for a few weeks, and today she moved out into the place she'll call home for the summer, at a friend's family place. She was really just wonderful, if I may be so old to say as such, she was quiet, polite, and clean. And she loves her coffee. She's going to hold down The Cabana when we head to The Happiest Place on Earth in a few weeks. She even mentioned us in her blog today... we feel special.

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Hilarious spoof. And pretty accurate.

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Want me to completely waste time and not do anything? Put me in front of the television, then turn on Investigative Discovery when there's a rerun of Dateline NBC or 48 Hours Hard Evidence. This past Saturday, I completely killed three hours just staring at this channel, as I saw a dentist who murdered his wife for his mistress, and a judge who was killed by a hired gun and another case of a love triangle gone wrong. Heck, its on right now, at 1:04 in the morning, and though I'm not watching it, I know its about some old chick who bought it at the hands of... well, we won't know until about 20 after. And I'll be done by then, hopefully.

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Made a new header for Clouds, I hope you like it. I also added pics of those people I often talk about on Clouds, like Mindy D'A, Mikey, Wookiee, J Rob, KT and many, many more. Eventually, I'll link those pics to their respective blogsites, if they have them.

I also added The Dave100 listing on the side, to which I'll add to from time to time. And I'm going to add a section on books I've read this year, so far, and movies I've seen this year, so far.

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And for tonight, that's a wrap.

A Quiet Time with a Man of God

What a gorgeous day. You know how sometimes you want to roll the window down, feel the air coming in as you drive, but either its a bit too chilly, or its just too hot, even traveling at 40, 50+ miles per hour, so you end up rolling the window back up, and you have to pipe down the radio, because you had it blaring--blaring out because your windows were down, right?

Today was the kind of day that you could roll down the window and drive, the air felt treeeeemendously awesome and the CD playing could blast away. My CD of choice? "Cracked Rear View" by Hootie & the Blowfish. Normally, I use my iPod, but with the car dock, sometimes its all staticky, and I wanted to feel the air rushing around my head, even in my ears, so I had to dispense with the earbuds...

Hence, an actual CD in my car stereo. And you can't go wrong with "Cracked Rear View", by far and away their best CD of the band's career.

The latest stop on my Reunion Lunch Tour had me meeting for lunch with Barrow, a friend from the old days at Troy that I hadn't seen in at least 10 years. Very good to see Barrow, though next time I have a reunion lunch--or any kind for that matter--its gotta be somewhere different than Chick-fila. Had it like, three times in the last four days. Too much.

Had to stop for gas, as Toni Rocki Honda was gasping for fuel, then stopped off at Valleydale Church (an sbc fellowship) to run up to the theater and pick up a suitcase I left backstage. I was using the suitcase as a prop on Sunday morning's KidStuf performance, another one that we thought would be an unmitigated disaster, but came off extremely well... actually, I worry more about those KidStuf Sundays when everything seems perfect.

The Funniest Man of 2008, Rhett Barnett, and I joked on Sunday that when its perfect, it almost feels as if we're too arrogant, and God puts us back in our place. When we royally screw it up over and over, its as if God steps in and says, "Oh my Me, you guys just need to back up and let me handle this. Geez. Want something done, gotta do it Myself".

Stopped off at the Hoover Public Library to tour the audio books, which they've expanded (still didn't find much of anything good at the time) and the CDs (which they are currently removing for a few weeks to sift through, get rid of old ones and put new ones in the selection). I did pick up a copy of Natalie Grant's new CD, as well as one from Third Day, so we'll see what it looks like.

By the time I had pulled out of the parking lot, the Hootie CD had run its course, so I had change out the music... I was disappointed to learn that I had not put in "The Globe Sessions" by Sheryl Crow in my CD wallet, so I settled for "Sheryl Crow" by Sheryl Crow, which made for another good driving CD.

Took a trip to Starbucks on 119, my current store to pick up my tips, saw my friend MZ and also Lil Sister Ashley, so I conversed with both of them. Got my tip money from last week, and then finally headed to my final destination before coming back to The Cabana... Veteran's Park, where I planned on having a good ol' fashioned quiet time. Though they aren't nearly as frequent as they should be, they are getting more frequent now as time goes by. My prayer of "Help me need a quiet time" has been coming truthful, as I actually want to have one. Strange, I know.


The scene from where I sat at Veteran's Park. Life rocks. Except for the pollen that is now embedded in my Word Sheath, all things are great.


Also came up Paulie Walnuts and his wife, Sammi C, as they were picnicking with Baby Cate on this wonderful Spring day.

I flipped through Luke 23, as directed by my Sunday Scho.... er, Life Connection book that we've going through, but found myself on Psalm 40:

I waited and waited and waited for God. At last he looked; finally he listened. He lifted me out of the ditch, pulled me from deep mud. He stood me up on a solid rock to make sure I wouldn't slip. He taught me how to sing the latest God-song, a praise-song to our God. More and more people are seeing this: they enter the mystery, abandoning themselves to God. -- vs. 1-3, so sayeth The Message

Love it. David knew he was writing for readability, so he broke up Psalm 40 into sections, much like most of the Psalms are, and so it might be nice to take a few verses at a time over a couple of days.

Also, while listening to the iPod on a playlist called "Open Me Up" name for a song by Watermark, one of my favorite bands, a gem came up that, had I an iPod and play count capability in 1997, I would imagine that this song would have had a couple of dozen plays... "Man of God" by Audio Adrenaline, off of the forgotten but much loved "Bloom" album. While its true that I think the band peaked with "Underdog", the aforementioned "Bloom" was great.

Here's my take on Audio Adrenaline... the first CD was just silly. Its kinda like dcTalk's first CD, or their second, "Nu Thang", with the immortal classic "I Luv Rap Music". Shoot me. The second, "Don't Censor Me" was good... it wasn't great, but it was good. It features the oft recited and hand motioned "Big House", which can be annoying if you hear it more than twice in, I dunno, a year. Next was "Bloom", which like I said, was solid but not perfect. I think "Bloom" was the album the studio wanted them to make, and then they did "Some Kind of Zombie", which was excellent (you ever want to get a party going, pop in the title track, or "Blitz", their collaboration with The O.C. Supertones)... but it was like, they wanted to make something more rockin' than the previous stuff, so they overcompensated on the rock effect with "Zombie"... don't get me wrong, its a great CD, but they went from one extreme to the other.

"Underdog" got it right. The fine balance between rock, pop and just a little grunge with some Holy Spirit mixed in all of it was just perfect. Loved that CD, probably listened to it a dozen times or more in the first month it was out. The next several, like "Lift", "Worldwide" and "Until My Heart Caves In" all kind of sounded alike to me, though I'm probably going to give them all another try at some point.

Anyway, my point is I heard "Man of God" again for the first time in maybe five years... and its a great song...

Sometimes I'm a liar, sometimes I'm a fake, sometimes I'm a hypocrite that everybody hates.
Sometimes I'm a poet, sometimes I'm a preacher, sometimes I watch life go by sitting on the bleachers
But I've never been left alone in any problems that I've known
Even though I'M TO BLAME (blog authors emphasis)
There were times when things were dark and I've been known to miss the mark
But Someone fixed my aim

Sometimes I'm a Man of God
Sometimes I'm alright
Sometimes I lay down and close my eyes and pray to God...

Sometimes I don't feel good, its hard to start the day, its hard to climb the obsticles that sometimes come my way
If I make it, I'm a good man. Am I a bad man if I fail?
I know I'm never good enough, so I left GRACE PREVAIL (blog authors emphasis, again)
I've never been left alone in any problem that I've known
Even though I'm to blame
There were times when things were dark and I've been known to miss the mark
But Someone fixed my aim

Sometimes I'm a Man of God
Sometimes I'm alright
Sometimes I lay down and close my eyes and pray to God... I'm ready for the night

Right now I'm alright, right now I'm alright, sometimes I'm alright
I'm alright, I'm alright, thank God, thank God

Cause sometimes I'm a Man of God
Sometimes I'm alright
And sometimes I lay down and close my eyes and pray to God...


The song plays over a screenshot of "Hit Parade", one of their greatest hits compilations.

Alright... its almost 5pm. I'm going to go enjoy the rest of my day off, the day that He tossed at us to take delight in. Cause that's how He rolls. Idol results tonight.

The Top Five Coolest Things of 2008

FYI... For an American Idol recap, scroll to the next post... for Facebook users, click to Clouds in My Coffee to see videos...

Before we begin (finish?) here's a recap of The 100 Coolest Things of the Year, numbers 100 thru 6...

The Introduction and Recap
The 100th thru 91st Coolest Things of 2008
The 90th thru 81st Coolest Things of 2008
The 80th thru 71st Coolest Things of 2008
The 70th thru 61st Coolest Things of 2008
The 60th thru 51st Coolest Things of 2008
The 50th thru 41st Coolest Things of 2008
The 40th thru 31st Coolest Things of 2008
The 30th thru 21st Coolest Things of 2008
The 20th thru 11st Coolest Things of 2008
The 10th thru 6th Coolest Things of 2008

One of the best things about a blog site is that as things are more important and more cool throughout the year, chances are, you've already blogged about it. So much of this will be a recap of what has already been written, with bits and pieces, plus the link for the entire story...

So, finally...

The 5th Coolest Thing of 2008. Toni Rocki Honda.
From the moment I picked up my new-to-me Honda Accord, I knew that my time with my 1999 Mercury Pezochit was limited. Yes, yes, this car caused me much grief, and yes, it wasn't exactly a "chick magnet" vehicle... but I had had it for about 8 years. I felt like I had paid car repair bills every single one of those years. You can read my car-ownership history here, a sad tale of lemons, wrecks and bad auto decisions...

Here's how I start the story...

I'm hanging out at The Happiest Place in the Mall the other day, and I get a text message. "Call me when you have a minute". The Lovely Steph Leann needs to converse with me for some reason, and I'm puzzled why.

Could she have discovered my hidden stash of Sweet Valley High novels? Did she find the full 3rd season of Manimal on my computer? Surely not... its well hidden. (I'm just kidding. I don't have Manimal on my computer... duh!). Or maybe she finally realized that she's so far out of my league, its funny, and she wants to negotiate a deal... who knows...

I call her back, and after the usual married pleasantries, she tells me, "Okay, so my cousin JoAnna is selling her car." Its a 95 Honda Accord, with 102K miles on it. The price is extremely cheap, and its in really good condition... do we want it? (I only say "extremely cheap" because I don't know if JoAnna offered it to anyone else and and what price, so I don't want to put her on the spot--if you really wanna know, just ask me)

We discuss it for a few days, consider the options, and decide its worth a look-see. But when to go? The car is in Gadsden, an hour up the road, I've got a very busy weekend, I'm at The Happiest Place in the Mall and The Most Caffeinated Place in Soho Monday and Tuesday, maybe Wednesday, but that night we need to pack, because on Thursday, we're going to The Happiest Place on Earth Not Next to The Lovely Steph Leann with our friends DeLisa and DeNick.



Do you want to know what happened? How the little Honda Accord came to be known as Toni Rocki Honda? Sure you do... click here for the full column from September 20th, 2008.

Movies I'm totally stoked for in 2009... "The Land of the Lost", starring Will Ferrell... "Star Trek", cause even though I'm not a Trekkie, I dig JJ Abrams... "GI Joe", which had the trailer premiere during the Super Bowl... "Transformers 2", cause how could you not be excited?... "Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian", cause I loved the first one, and this one not only has all the major cast back, but also Amy Adams!...

And finally... these two...



And I think this will be just fantastic...


The 4th Coolest Thing of 2008. DeLisa & DeNick at The Happiest Place in the Earth.
One of the best things about my job as an assistant magic maker at The Happiest Place in the Mall is the fact that we are able to go to The Happiest Place on Earth more often, and with that, we are able to take friends and loved ones with us.

Our first excursion with this ability came last September, around the birthday of The Lovely Steph Leann, as we traveled down to Orlando, Florida. With us was The Lovely Steph Leann's BFF from high school, DeLisa, and her husband DeNick.


This is The Lovely Steph Leann and DeLisa being all BFFy on The People Mover in Tomorrowland

I know that The Lovely Steph Leann just loves DeLisa dearly, and because of the marriage, she in turn dearly loves DeNick... and personally... I do too. There are great people in this world, perhaps people you don't see often enough, but people that none the less will bend over backwards to help you in all manners that they can, expecting nothing in return, and both DeNick and DeLisa fall into this catagory. Heck, just last week, DeNick, handy manny that he is, came over and installed a shower curtain rod into The Cabana's guest bathroom, and... well, I was going to say "helped me", but truly, I followed his instructions in laying down carpet in our newly almost finished attic turned super duper closet area upstairs. Anyway, it was this type of affection and adoration that made The Lovely Steph Leann and I look forward to taking them with us to The Happiest Place on Earth.


Not sure which is more disturbing... the lion on my head, or the fact that DeNick wants to look growly with a flowery lei wrapped around his hand

Neither are Disney-philes like we are (yes, yes, someone out there just said aloud "well, who is?") but both do enjoy the parks and the splendor of it all. We even worked out a great deal where we flew down on Thursday night, stayed at All Star Sports Resort, hit the parks on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, taking in some shopping on Monday. We had character meals together, and even dined extravagantly at Le Cellier in Epcot.

DeNick is one of those people that make me nervous when we go out to eat in a restaurant that has been chosen by The Lovely Steph Leann and I... he's such a cooking aficianado, you can only hope that whatever he tries, he likes... so when you hear him say, "Wow, that's really good" like we did at Le Cellier or in Animal Kingdom Lodge's Boma restaurant, you breath a sigh of relief.

Random The Happiest Place on Earth Story... DeLisa, DeNick, The Lovely Steph Leann and Yours Truly was coming out of Soarin', in The Land, headed back outside to presumably ride Test Track, when we saw a Cast Member with a lanyard. The Lovely Steph Leann and Yours Truly made a beeline for the guy, with DeLisa--newly indoctrinated pin collector that she was--following close behind.


DeNick likes to pose when he knows the camera is watching.

The Lovely Steph Leann notices a pin from Toy Story, a Woody pin, on the guy's lanyard, and exclaims, "Oh, you have a Woody! I want your Woody!" probably louder than she intended. I glanced over at DeNick, who was smirking, his left elbow in his right hand, his left index finger covering his twitching mouth. I shot a look at DeLisa who was also smirking. Finally, biting my own lip, I dared a glance at the Cast Member who looked at us, sighed, and with a half smile said, "Go ahead and laugh. I am not allowed to, but you can." DeLisa, DeNick and I began to laugh heartily, and a few seconds later when The Lovely Steph Leann understood her vocal folly, she half laughed, half gritted, "Shut up!" while smacking both me and DeNick. The Cast Member even enjoyed a laugh. Good times. Good times.


The four of us enjoying drinks and an African style buffet at Boma, located inside Animal Kingdom Lodge

By the way, if you want to read some early blogging stories, you can read the story of DeNick and DeLisa's wedding told in three parts...
Part 1: Its In the Shoes
Part 2: Its All Greek To Me
Part 3: Everybody Wang Chung Tonight... Everybody Go Greek Tonight

Some of the crappiest things, or biggest disappointments of 2008? In no particular order... Auburn firing Tubby... "Mamma Mia!" was a disaster on the big screen... "Indiana Jones & the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" was a huge blemish on the Indy Legacy... The New England Patriots lose the Super Bowl, thus ending their bid for undefeatedness... Being a Starbucks manager isn't everything I hoped it would be... and, of course, John McCain gets the Republican nomination, all but assuring that the most liberal, left-wing idealistic, socialistic minded (these aren't slanders--this is who he is. don't get offended. you elected the guy) Democrat in Congress would win the White House.

The 3rd Coolest Thing of 2008. The Happiest Place in the Mall.
Its interesting that I'm just now finishing this list at this point in March, though I said I would try to get it done by the beginning of February. Right, right... anyway, I was talking about "High School Musical 3: Senior Year" last night to a fellow Cast Member, about the final scene.

At the very end, when the credits are just starting, all the major players in the movie, that being Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Monica Coleman, The Junior Goddess, Corbin Bleu and that dude who plays Ryan Evans, are all standing there, taking a bow. They have these big grins on their faces, grins that read "Wow. We did it. The show is complete..." and they are smiles that only people who have been involved in drama can understand. That big exhuberance you feel when the show you've slaved over (or in this case, a movie trilogy) has finally come to a close, a smashing, wonderful, rousing, successful close, and its over, so your smile is part sadness that its over, part relief that its over, part excitement that its over, but all smiles because its over. Wendy Deckermiller... Erin the Marine Wife... you feel me. I know you do.

Anyway, I was trying to describe this feeling to my Fellow Cast Member, when she said, "How do you know?" I told her I'd been involved in student drama now at Valleydale Church (an sbc fellowship) for almost 10 years, and before that, I was a drama minor in college. She said, "But you didn't finish, did you?" and I said, "Of course I finished. I have a degree in broadcast communications, with minors in theater and sign."

And she stammered for a second, then said, "Then why are you here? In retail?"

And I smiled, "Because... well, because I want to be."

And its the absolute truth. How many people are doing the jobs they want to do, or feel like they are in jobs that suit who they are almost to a tee? Granted, if offered a creative ministries position at a church, or full time with the All Things to All People drama team in Student Life ministries, or if The Happiest Place on Earth called up and said, "We want you in our creative department", I might have to take a gander... but for now? I work at The Disney Store. I'm an assistant manager. I'm paid pretty good jack (I'm not rich, President B. Hussein Obama, so please don't tax me yet) to demo toys. To discuss the new line of Power Rangers with a guest. To toss a ball filled with glitter swirling around a plastic Cinderella to a little girl who can barely catch it. To hand out free Jonas Brothers posters to a squealing pre-teen convinced she is not only the biggest Jo-Bro fan in the world, but the future Mrs. Joe. Or Kevin. Or Nick. To come up with ideas of how to get Pinocchio on DVD into the hands of more people. To help people plan their first Disney vacation by telling them the dos and don'ts of fast passes, Toy Story Mania, the dining plan and pin trading. To tell an unhappy guest that yes, Peter Pan just went back into the vault, but luckily, we have a few copies left.

This is what I get paid for. Yes, yes, it has its challenges, it has its difficult spots and there are things about the Disney Company that make me think, "What the crap? They are a bajillion billion dollar company, and they do it THIS way?" But I love my job. I love going to work. I love the people I work with. I feel valued there. I feel accepted there. I feel important there, something I felt somewhat at Parisian Corporate, something I felt at Cox Radio, but never, ever felt at NBC13, and only partly felt, some of the time, at Starbucks.

When I was trying to decide whether to leave Starbucks, an ordeal I wrote about in a piece called "Between a Mouse and a Bean Place" from last June, I was faced with a decision one should be so lucky to have... which great job to choose from? Stay where I am, be happy. Be okay. Take the new job. Be happy. Be okay. I followed the essay up with another column a few days later called "Taking the Mouse, Leaving the Bean Place". Anyway, you can read the full story there...

"Why are you still here?"

"Hmm. Because... because I want to be. That's why"

The 2nd Coolest Thing of 2008. The Cabana.
We spent much of 2007's latter half looking at houses. You know the routine, anyone who is married and has looked for a house... you lurv a house and your Significant Other merely likes it. They just adore the house you are looking at, but you are thinking it's just okay... which a house should never just be "okay".

We searched and searched... we saw a three story townhome next door to Mark & Cindy Warner that I absolutely loved... the basement was finished, it was like a mini-apartment, and I was already envisioning it as a Man Cave, with a big, fat tv on the wall and a ping-pong table in the corner. We don't drink, but I might even start collecting wine, who knows... The Lovely Steph Leann liked it. Just okay.


The Lovely Steph Leann, inspecting the drawers and sinks at The Cabana

We looked at another home that had this huge living room, with this huge stone fire place, large rafter filled ceilings and big bay windows. The Lovely Steph Leann loved it, or at least this part of the house... I slowly talked myself into it, but that time, she had soured on it. Something about the house needed a new roof soon, or whatever. Our real estate agent was Tanya Stephens, now... Mischa? Mescha? We're terrible friends having not kept up with her...

Tanya, The Lovely Steph Leann and I pulled up to one house, and my response was "Hmm". Immediately, Tanya turned around and said, "You don't like it, do you?" I looked at her, "I didn't say anything." She smiled at me and said, "Yes you did. You said 'Hmm', which tells me at first glance you don't like it, and if Stephanie likes it, you'll to be talked into it. And thats not a good sign."

We found another one down past Greystone, a home that I liked well enough, but The Lovely Steph Leann wasn't crazy about. Tanya nailed it perfectly, something like "Dave, you like this house because its new, and its fun, and Steph, you don't like this house because its so new that it doesn't have character." Righo, Tanya.

The funniest moments though were perhaps when we both didn't like the house, like one in Bluff Park that was nice enough, but you could tell the guy living it was either fresh out of college or still living like he was. The house smelled strongly of bad potpourri, and having grown up in a smoke-infested home, it took me about three seconds to inform The Lovely Steph Leann that the powerful fragrance is covering up the cigerette smoke in the house. Plus the small fridge with beer cans on top, sitting beside the bed in the bedroom didn't help any, and neither did the old Pepsi machine on the porch. We passed.


Our agent, Tanya, helping us get a measure of the bedroom

We had to sign another lease at The Casa de Pesos Apartment on December 31st, or go month to month, but since we weren't close to finding a house, we figured we'd just sign a 7 month lease and keep looking for houses. On the last day of the year, I signed the contractual lease locking us into The Park at the Galleria and its ever rising rent until August of 2008.

The next day, The Lovely Steph Leann and I were at Mikey's parents home for their annual New Year's Day gathering, when for whatever reason (I'm sure she remembers), The Lovely Steph Leann had to run an errand... and for whatever reason, Lil Sister Ashley goes with her. A little while later, I get a call on my celly from my dear wife, saying, "David, you HAVE to come look at this house! You have to come look! Ohmigosh! Hurry up!"

I hop in the car... maybe Lil Sister Ashley went with me... or maybe it was Rev'rn Ty... you know what, doesn't matter. Anyway, when I arrive in this newly built neighborhood of Beaumont, I see three or four houses that are built, the rest are just dirt plods awaiting a foundation, or foundations awaiting a frame, or frame awaiting a wall. The one in question rests on Laurens Street, numbered 1508. It's got a palm tree in front. No joke. All the houses down this street do. I'm diggin' it.


The Lovely Steph Leann, looking over the kitchen area

I walk in, and the first thing I say to The Lovely Steph Leann and Lil Sister Ashley is, "If we end up moving here, we're calling this place 'The Cabana'. We just are."

Its dusty with the smell of drywall, the paint cans are everywhere, the floor is half there, the stairs have plastic all over them... but it kinda hooks me. This place is kinda cool. The Lovely Steph Leann... well, you just have to understand her. She has levels of likes and dislikes. For instance, during Idol, I started a verse of "Hero" by Marc Antony, and she yelled at me because she so deeply despises this song. If I were to sing "I Hope You Dance", she'd just ask me to stop, because she just merely hates the song. Conversely, she has two positive emotions... like it and love it. You'll know like it, because she'll smile, or she'll agree, but you just get this hint that she's not crazy about it, but it'll do. When she loves it, you know it.

And she loved this house. She was clapping, pointing out random things in the home, like the fireplace and the attic and the counters and the sinks and so on and so forth. She loved this home. And you know what? I could see it... I didn't know if I was in love with it--yet--but I really, really liked it.

We contacted Tanya, and on a Sunday, she met up with us, telling us that she had this house in mind for us as well. She loved it too. The next few days were a whirlwind... we met with the realty company several days later for what I thought was an informational meeting... so when the lady said, "Oh it will be blah blah blah down to hold the home for 2 weeks, and closing costs will be blah blah blah..." I looked at The Lovely Steph Leann and said, "Do we need to discuss this?" and she nodded and said, "No, I have a check." What? I looked confused, and she said, "Didn't I tell you this was a meeting about reserving the house?" Uh... no... she looked, smiled sheepishly and said, "Oh... well, this is a meeting about reserving the house!"

A week or two later, we met with Gary "The Idol" Eubanks and signed the papers. We were officially homeowners. Thus began the homesteading saga you can read about in "The Glorious Road to Colombiana".


Life at The Cabana

Just two more quick notes... if you ever need someone to walk the house with you to determine what needs to be fixed before moving in, call Ruth Campbell, the mother of The Lovely Steph Leann. The woman is... well, ruthless. She walked in with her green dots and put them on every nick and cranny, every paint streak that was streaked, every nail that was a little bit crooked, every railing that considered shifting left 0.07 degrees... she was all over it. It was awesome. She and the Wonderful KT also are owed some props for helping us to get the place cleaned up in time for move-in, including one most-to-all-nighter on the eve before we moved. I also give props to J Rob for coming to the Casa de Pesos and helping me get done packing up... KT and Britlicious did a wonderful job that next day too. This gets a nod in "The Moving Diaries: 24" and "RIP Casa de Pesos"

And who'da thunk that a year later, we'd still be on Phase 4.

Before we finish... people/things that barely missed the cut that deserve a mention... in no particular order... Tanya Stephens... Sonic Cheesesticks... Dayla Ellison... Big Jon Taylor... Croyle... Britlicious... Jamie Cartledge... The Purple Onion... Scotty Latta... Pruitt Cool Award Nominee Tyler Campbell... Ashley Tisdale... Amy Valdmanis... Pruitt Cool Award Nominee Mikey... Dale's Southern Grill... KidStuf... Gainey Wins the DFC... JustFish... Pruitt Cool Award Nominess Lil Sister Ashley... Trey Cartledge... The Freckled Becca & Bobowen... Sammi Carby... Dixon Brock... Cristie Stephenson... The Dainty Steph Halpert... Andy Murry... Chipotle Mexician Grill... Wendi Deckermiller... Blair Andress... Kelly Karrell... and I'm sure I'll think of more when I finish this list...

THE COOLEST THING OF 2008

Three words:
1) I'm
2) Debt
3) Free

Read about Freedom here....

And now that this list is done, we'll continue with blogs about our real life...

The 100 Coolest Things of 2008... 60 thru 51

NOTE: If you are reading this on facebook, click here to see the videos (they will not appear in facebook notes)

Are you new to the blog? Click here to find out what the heck this is all about.

And we'll continue our annual list of the Top 100 Coolest Things of 2008...
The Introduction and Recap
The 100th thru 91st Coolest Things of 2008
The 90th thru 81st Coolest Things of 2008
The 80th thru 71st Coolest Things of 2008
The 70th thru 61st Coolest Things of 2008

WARNING... There are three videos that I would rate as PG-13 on today's blog. You can probably find uncensored versions of them on YouTube, but the ones you'll see here aired on network tv at one time or another--including the "F" word being bleeped about, oh, four dozen times. So, Emmy Turnbow, it might be good to not click on the videos involving Matt Damon & Ben Affleck...

60. Melissa Robillard
She's the WalkAbout mom of the year (last year's honor went to Paula Maddox, one of The Coolest Things of 2007). Anyway, she rocks. I (heart) this chick.

59. "Carrie" by Stephen King
Having been an avid reader of Stephen King since I was in junior high school, I've read just about all of his early works--"Firestarter", "Pet Semetary", "Christine", "Night Shift" and more--but somehow "Carrie" evaded me. Strange, because its one of his thinnest novels, and really, took about two days, mostly because I read 30 minutes here, 20 minutes there and so on.

Carrie is a strange little book. Its almost pieced together like a scrapbook, and were it made into a movie other than the John Travolta/Sissy Spacek classic, it might have been a docu/mockumentary of some sort. Filled with fictional documents, it uses "interviews", "book excerpts", "transcripts" and "newspaper clippings" that give the background of the "tragic events of Chamberlain, Maine", all to tell the story of Carrie White, a lonely 17 year old girl who has special telekentic powers that she is only beginning to understand.

She's tormented by her classmates and even worse, tortured by her crazy mother. Anyway, it progresses on and on, until a prank goes awry and gets carried away at prom, and Carrie decides "enough is enough".

I also said this on November 19th... I dare say despite all of King's bad guys in all of his books, Chris Hargensen may be the most rotten villian overall... she's not possessed, she's not risen from a grave, she's not a zombie... she's just really, really mean.

If you like horror novels, give it a read.

58. Investigation Discovery
The Discovery Channel has lots and lots of offshoot channels on expanded cable, like Discovery Health, Discovery Science, Discovery Kids, Discovery Food, Discovery Global Warming, Discovery Britney Spears and more... but my favorite? Investigation Discovery.

Anyone who has read this blog for very long will know my love for forensic shows and crime documentary stuff... this channel is chock full of them. Twenty four hours a day of shows like "Solved", "Most Evil", "Justice Files", "The New Detectives" and even better, repeats of "48 Hours" (they have relabeled them "48 Hours: Hard Evidence) and of course "Dateline NBC".

The Lovely Steph Leann and I have about 877 channels on DirecTV right now, and a year later, I have yet to learn most of the numbers. I know ESPN is 206. I know USA is 242. I know The Travel Channel is 277. I know the movie channels start with HBO on 501. And I know that Investigation Discovery is on 285. I know this because I watch it often.

57. "The Green Mile" by Stephen King
I know, I know, we've already had a King novel on this same post, and yes, I'll admit, I have read this before (this issue will pop up again later), but here's what I wrote on November 19th:

After I finished "Carrie", for some reason, I immediately went to "The Green Mile". This was a novel that came out in the mid-90s, in a style that was a throwback to the way many books were published... a few chapters at a time.

The first book, "Two Dead Girls", was only about 100 pages and I remember buying it in Troy's Wal-Mart in March of 1996. I was intrigued because it was so small, and figured I could read it pretty quickly--which I did. The next book, "The Mouse on the Mile" came out at the end of April, and so on monthly, until the final volume, Part 6, "Coffey on the Mile" was released in August of 96.

I remember liking the story a whole lot back then, and was excited to pick it up again. And it was amazing. Seriously... I don't remember much of what I re-read, perhaps having seen the movie so many times. By the way, the movie is just incredible too, a Dave100 pick, so I highly recommend it.

But the novel goes into so much more detail, as novels tend to do as they've got a length advantage over movies. You get more backstory, you care more about the characters, and though I still could see Tom Hanks and David Morse in the part of Edgecombe and Brutal, the best... worst... part was Percy Whitmore. He perhaps rivals Chris Hargensen as the meanest King villian, even worse that Wild Bill in the story.

56. Leading FPU Again
I love Financial Peace University. In 2008, The Lovely Steph Leann and I became debt free, and part of it was due to what we had learned from Dave Ramsey's ministry, including what we went through in Financial Peace University, ie, FPU.

Over several years now, we've been able to not only put people through it, but help to lead it in small group settings as well. It seems like each week gets better than the previous, each year gets better than the last. And this year, I was lucky/blessed enough to not only share my testimony, but help guide my friends Croyle & Britlicious. KT and J Rob, Paulie Walnuts & Sammi, but I also got to lead a group that include more friends, including Little Sister Ashley.

The bonus was the new people I met, including sister of Amy Mac, that being Jenn Smith, and her husband Michael. I was able to get Jenn a job later at The Happiest Place in the Mall a few months later, and a friendship was cemented.

Wanna know how the Financial Peace Plan works? Ask. I'd love to see you be debt free too.

55. "Grey's Anatomy"
The Lovely Steph Leann and I have a DVD tradition with a few shows, as in, we don't watch them on network tv, we wait until the season comes in, then watch the whole season over the course of a few weeks, as in the case of CSI... or in a few days, as in the case of "Grey's Anatomy".

Patrick Dempsey, a charter member of The Colin Firth Club, keeps The Lovely Steph Leann paying attention, while I can never decide between Christina, Meredith or Izzie... actually, I don't know who is hotter, or if any one of them are even attractive--its The McGriddle Effect in full effect, really...

The McGriddle Effect garners its name from my first time eating a McDonald's McGriddle breakfast sandwich. Its the weirdest thing, because you can taste the syrup filled pancake that makes the sandwich, and you can taste the sausage, and you can even taste the egg, and seemingly all at the same time. And I can't decide if its absolutely amazingly good... or one of the worst things I've ever eaten. There is no in between. Its not "eh" or "alright" or "so-so"... its either delicious or disgusting, and I am just not sure which one it is.

Such it is with Sandra Oh, Katherine Heigl and Ellen Pompeo. Personally, Kate Walsh, a one time Ashley Judd Club finalist, beats them all, but she was siphoned off to another show, "Private Practice" that I have tried to watch, but just don't care enough about.


Its the ending to Season 4, which we watched in pretty quick time

54. I'm... Matt Damon/I'm... Ben Affleck
So, in 2007, comedianne Sarah Silverman came on the Jimmy Kimmel Live late night show... she and Kimmel were dating at the time (I think they broke up) and she reveals that she... well, she and Matt Damon were together at one time. And another. And another.

Anyway, the language--lots of it--is bleeped out, which is why I'm okay posting it here... and maybe its bad that I think its hysterical (most things are, really), but wow, its hysterical.

So then, Jimmy Kimmel fires back. And he fires back bigtime... with Brad Pitt, Don Cheadle, Harrison Ford, Cameron Diaz and an entire group that resembles USA for Africa during "We Are the World"... and Ben Affleck.

wondering where it is? well, when i post a video, i always make sure i check the quality of the clip on the site before i finish... and so i watched both videos, laughed again, and then noticed after the videos, the description of the video was right there, complete with the F-bomb and everything. i just felt funny leaving that there, so i pulled the videos down... however, if you go to YouTube and search "matt damon sarah silverman" and "jimmy kimmel ben affleck", you'll find it. just remember it is NOT SAFE FOR WORK or Emily Turnbow.

53. "Quantum of Solace"
For the record, I've never been a huge James Bond fan. I guess the early movies with Connery and Roger Moore were decent enough, but I thought Timothy Dalton was a terrible choice. Pierce Brosnan was pretty good, I guess, but it took Daniel Craig to actually turn me into a Bond fan.

"Casino Royale" was excellent. And "Quantum" was just as good, possibly better. Lots of action, very little of the silliness that makes Bond movies sometimes, like the goofy gadgets, the improbable cars and such... and perhaps the hottest Bond girl ever, Strawberry Fields.

Earlier today, I was coming downstairs to DVR the Baltimore/Pittsburgh game only to find The Lovely Steph Leann already setting up the DVR to record some show on Ovation called "Lost in Austen". I thought of Austin, TX, at first, though it didn't look right... then it hit me... Jane Austen. She said it looked like a good show. Imagine my surprise tonight when, while retrieving links for this blog post, I found that Strawberry Fields herself was Elisabeth Bennet in two episodes of "Lost In Austen". Perhaps this is a show we'll watch together.

52. "Bedtime Stories"
I was actually looking forward to this flick, and when it was released on Christmas Day, we made it one of our two part movie double feature (the other was Benjamin Button). I knew it would be silly, and I knew with the premise of the movie--Adam Sandler tells bedtime stories, and they come to life--the plot would be silly, borderline stupid.

You know what? I was pretty much right. And it was a great flick anyway. Its a fun film to watch while shoving popcorn in your mouth, slurping down overpriced Coke and munching on Twizzlers, my candy of choice at the movies.

Its clean, too. No bad situations, no bad language, heck, even Felicity manages to look cute, something she has a hard time doing in my opinion.

51. Ambre Lake on Rock of Love 2
So, I'm surfing through MySpace, and I hit upon the page of my friend Wendi Deckermiller, and her blog is discussing Ambre Lake, my friend from college and according to Wendi, new reality star.


I know what you are thinking... and no, I didn't "indirectly" kiss Bret Michaels. Or did I? Ha!

I flip to her website, and yes, its true... Ambre Lake is going to try and win the heart of Bret Michaels from Poison. Watching the episodes, I came away with three things...
1) I am not sure she initially wanted to win. Perhaps that changed later, but I think she just wanted some exposure.
2) She was actually respectable. That's a big difference from all the other girls on the show, who mostly acted like ho'bags and tramp vamps. Even my friends, the ones who knew and the ones who didn't, liked her the best.
3) Define surreal: Watching someone who you danced with to "You Were Meant For Me" at a fraternity formal over 10 years ago appear on a Vh1 reality show she's trying to win the affections of a rock star that was famous 20 years ago. That's surreal.

And she won.

Coming soon... Doctor Earl becomes an Angel, My favorite song of the year, and someone else gets a Pruitt Award.

The 100 Coolest Things of 2008... 80 thru 71 (plus a Pruitt Award!)

NOTE: If you are reading this on facebook, click here to see the videos (they will not appear in facebook notes)

Are you new to the blog? Click here to find out what the heck this is all about. And we'll continue our annual list of the Top 100 Coolest Things of 2008...

The Introduction and Recap
The 100th thru 91st Coolest Things of 2008
The 90th thru 81st Coolest Things of 2008

80. My Backpack
Cheap (on sale, plus my discount). Functional. Fun.



Best. Backpack. Ever.

79. Chicago Dan
Dan Gerber is a very good friend of Tyler Campbell, the self proclaimed "Sexy Beast" of the Clouds in My Coffee Blog. Don't ask me.

Anyway, I met Dan, or "Chicago Dan" as we call him--he's from... Chicago...--several months ago when he came with Tyler back home for a Sunday lunch, along with some of the other faces I knew. He seemed like a cool enough guy.

Over Thanksgiving, he came with Tyler down to the beach with the family for the Annual Campbell Turkey Week Beach Pilgrimage, as he couldn't go back to Chicago for the week... and he's just a neat guy. Funny, clever, smart as a whip (when I start using phrases like "smart as a whip", how old does this make me? Excuse me, I'm going to take my dentures out) and it was even more funny when they both came with me and The Lovely Steph Leann to go antiquing. Hence the picture below, with Dan (left) and Tyler (right) holding a Swim Ken doll. Ken's trunks change colors when they get wet! The shorts, not Dan and Tyler.



78. "The Incredible Hulk"
Let's pretend that abomination and smear of the good Hulk's name that Ang Lee created years back didn't exist. Let's put it on the shelf with Rocky V, Superman III, Saw II-XXVI, Caddyshack 2, Pearl Harbor, Twilight and all the other movies that should have never been made.

Now that that's done, I have to say I am excited someone has finally brought The Green Goliath the silver screen after all these years. And Edward Norton as Banner is brilliant--he's great in the role, and Liv Tyler as Betty is also great, and is a much better choice than some random chick like, I dunno, Jennifer Connelly. Besides, Connelly won an Oscar. She would never do a "Hulk" movie. (remember, we are pretending the other one doesn't exist). And make sure you watch until after the credits.

For what it was, it was fantastic. Fun, thrilling, not too deep on emotion--let's be honest, the folks want to see The Hulk smash things and blow stuff up. If a random director who should never do something like this, like, I dunno, Ang Lee, he'd be wise to skip the emotional depth. This isn't "BrokeHulk Mountain". HULK CAN'T QUIT BETTY!!!

77. Watching The White Oaks
Got to see the rock band The White Oaks play in May, and it was really, really awesome... some of the highlights include:

• Seeing so many friends there--The Good Doctor Earl, Tommy Mac, Sybil, and of course, Amy Valdmanis
• If there was a Valdmanis Fan Club, I'd be an officer. She's just great. Where all my Valdmaniacs at? Right heh! Right heh! (what am I even talking about?)
• Hanging out with Lil Sister Ashley, which I don't get to do enough
• Seeing Joel Blount, who is awesome
• Meeting Nancy Osborne, who, after I told her gushingly all about The Lovely Steph Leann, she told me gushingly all about her man too
• Of course, the band. The White Oaks are a great band.

You can read the whole thing right here.

76. Manda Laughlin
She was #83 last year, this year she leaps 7 spots. Maybe its because now that she's in college, we relate just a little better, maybe its because we meet at IHOP twice, maybe three times per year to catch up.


Did I tell you she's on a full ride scholarship at Auburn for volleyball, and her serves have been clocked at over 40 miles per hour? Well, its not true, so that's probably why I didn't say anything about it. But it would be cool if it was true, eh?

She's great.

75. The Boston Celtics Win the NBA Championship
My mom was a Boston fan, so when I grew up, I learned to 1) Hate the Lakers and 2) Like the Celtics, necessarily in that order. So, today, I hate the Lakers and like the C's. When Orlando got a team, the Magic, I instantly became a Magic fan, so I've been supporting them since their very first game (a loss to the Nets 111-106) in 1989, and alternately, I've been a Spurs fan--this is because I spent five years in Texas.

The Spurs have been good to me, winning four championships in the last decade or so, but the Magic, not so much. However, since this is about the Celtics, let me say it was very cool to see them take it this year...

Kevin Garnett languished in Minnesota for so long, a team that wasn't willing to spend the money needed to win. So when he was traded to Boston a few years back, adding the third and final piece to a team that already had Paul Pierce and Ray Allen, it was... well, Magic. Not the guy or the team, but magic, the chemistry. And thought they almost were busted by the surprising Atlanta Hawks (who is also building), they fought out the 7 games and went on to knock off The Hated Lakers in the Finals for their 18th title.

I love watching it when guys who deserve championships win championships. Like when Elway won for the Broncos, another pro favorite team that has been very good to me.

74. Taking Back the Mile
I've discussed it before... Elisabeth Malphrus and I borrowed stuff from each other at Troy State. She borrowed my leopard print boxers. I borrowed her Spam t-shirt. Neither one got the other items back, so that makes us both 1 for 1, right? Well, then she goes and borrows all six volumes of "The Green Mile" by Stephen King. When he first wrote the story, he released it as a "seriel novel", publishing one 100ish page part at a time. And Liz borrowed it. Then she never gave it back.

And the original chapters are out of print, you can only buy the full novel in one book. But then, I stumbled across all six parts at a bookstore that The Lovely Steph Leann and I frequent when we go to the beach for Thanksgiving, Books By the Sea. And at only $2 per, I got the whole collection back. So take that, Liz!

73. American Idol
At about 400 posts, I would daresay that 100 of them are either about, or at least discussing American Idol in some form or fashion. And this season was great, much better than the previous... I can't knock Idol, some great stuff has come from that show, like Daughtry (who I can't help but like), Carrie Underwood (both CDs are grrrreat), Kat McPhee (I'm interested in seeing what she does next), Kelly Clarkson (the Idol Original) and of course... PICKLES!!! I love Pickles.

Anyway, last year was a mess. There were some highlights from Jordin Sparks and Blake Lewis, but the fact that Sanjaya lasted as long as he did was a bad, bad thing for the show. So this year, there was much room to improve... and improve they did. Young David Archie, who had more talented at what, 14, than most people do all their lives... The Dreadlocked One, who faded in the stretch, but had some fantastic moments... David Cook, who reminded me so much of Rob Thomas--a guy who looked like he should rock much more than he actually does--that I started calling him that... The Black Julia Stiles, Syesha Mercado, who also had her shining moments... the crazy fer-a-ners, Carly and Michael Johns...

There were some down nights, and as the season wore on, you could tell who wasn't going to make it... The Black Julia Stiles began to falter, KLC stayed on waaaaay too long, The Dreadlocked One was just tired of it, even Carly and Michael, who perhaps went home to early, showed signs that perhaps they wouldn't make it. And it came down to David vs. David, which with only two or three weeks left, you knew that would be the finale. And it was great.

I look forward to blogging about American Idol this year, I look forward to discussing Kara, the new Idol judge with Randy, Paula and Simon, and I look forward to coming up with my own nicknames and trying to predict who might win it all...

Wait, what's that? Did I forget someone? Oh yes... lest we forget...

72. My Next American Idol Brooke White
It's well documented on Clouds of some of my favorites... sweet potato casserole... The Rock... The Goddess... Hootie... and I do love me some Carly Simon. Perhaps that is why I liked her so much. My Next American Idol Brooke White wasn't exceptionally pretty, nay, she seemed almost plain with hints of prettiness and flashes of good-lookedy.


My Next American Idol Brooke White + Carly Simon = Idol Goodyness.

But her voice is so great. I mean, she can't sing everything... she won't be filling in for Courtney Love in a Hole reunion tour (alert! alert! the first time Courtney Love has been mentioned in Clouds, I think!) and she won't be rivaling Alison Krauss in record sales. But she's got this gentle, great, sweet niche voice that, when singing just the right song, sounds wonderful.

71. "Phineas & Ferb"
Who remembers the Animaniacs from the 1990s? Jeff Herring and I would watch the foo' out of that show during breaks at Troy State, I recall. I liked it because while it was a kids cartoon, it also had plenty of jokes for the adults too...

And thats why I enjoy Phineas & Ferb so much. Phineas and Ferb are step-brothers who are always looking for something to do, as the show takes place during summer vacation. So what do they do? Build a roller coaster. Start a rock band. Fly to outer space. Build a drag racer. Whatever.

And Phineas' sister (and Ferb's half-sister) Candice (voiced by Junior Goddess Ashley Tisdale, thanks) does everything she can to get them caught. Along the way, they find a way to sing a new song, entertain their friends and of course, save the day. And the entire episode is worth watching just to hear Ferb speak--he does it once per episode. And its hilarious. If you have The Happiest Channel on Cable (no, not Cinemax, Alan the Facebook Stalker) then check it out, cause its on all the time.

Oh, and did I mention they have a pet platypus named Perry, and Perry is actually a secret agent?

The Hannah Pruitt Cool Award
Ya know, there are some things/people/places that just make this 100 Coolest List every year. Is it fair to have them take up coveted spots? I say no. So, this year, I'm bestowing upon four recipients an award named after the coolest person I know, my friend Hannah Pruitt. It's The Pruitt Cool Award.

For the record... now that Hannah Pruitt has her own award, I'm totally changing the name of the iPod playlist. I don't want Hannah overkill. Oh, and congrats to Hannah and John on their 4th year of wedding bliss this past week. It can be tough, believe me, when you've been married as long as The Lovely Steph Leann and I have (five years in February) we know it can be a challenge.

Our first recepient...
They are two of my favorite people in the whole wide world. She's trying to desperately finish school at Southeastern Bible College, he's some sort of engineer and brilliant. One of my first cool moments with them include:

Sitting at the home of Ross Robinson, in one of our first "Newlywed Class" at Valleydale Church (an sbc fellowship), Jessica is sorting her Skittles. James then informs us that she likes to put them in ROY G BIV order. Still one of the funniest things I've ever heard.

James and Jessica Hawbaker are two of our closest friends, and I know that The Lovely Steph Leann holds Jess to somewhat of a BFF status, especially after four years of knowing them... and James? One of the funniest guys I know. I mean, the guy brews his own ale, and can even make his own cheese--how cool is that?


An incredibly cute couple, and totally fulfilling the "made for each other" cliche, I didn't want to post a cutsy picture... I wanted something fun. Like Jessica eating.

So, for being so awesome and so cool, the first recipient of The Pruitt Cool Award is Jessica and James Hawbaker. Consider yourself to have a proverbial spot on The 100 Coolest List every year...

Coming soon... Crappy movies are always good with someone fun...