Mike Pernecky's Blog

Chicago Bears Podcast - The Bear Garden

2011-11-07T21:45:00.000-05:00

My friend Nick Jones and I have jumped into the world of podcasting. We have a Chicago Bears podcast entitled "The Bear Garden Podcast", and you can find the blog page here. So far we've recorded 10 episodes, and I think it's the best Chicago Bears podcast you can find on iTunes, so give it a listen!

Here's an excerpt from our 10th episode:

Here it is! Let us just warn you...we didn't have much to talk about during the Bears' bye, so we flew in a special guest...our friend named Pete from Minnesota. We cover some general Bears talk, but we also get to witness Nick after performing over 2 "Power Hours" by the time the show was over. Some of the random things we touch on: UTEP, Merril Hoge, Mike Adamle, Sweetness, Tom Skilling, Jeff Skilling, internet searching, AP, Hunter Hillenmeyer, Big Cat Williams.

Enjoy!

Should I Get a Kindle?

2011-11-04T10:49:00.000-04:00

With Christmas right around the corner, I thought it would be a good time to re-post a nice little writeup my wife had on her love for her Amazon Kindle. She tells me it's the best gift she's ever received, so I think it's safe to say she's happy with it!

I was so shocked when I opened my birthday/Mother's Day gift and saw that Mike had gotten me a Kindle. I had wanted one for a while since I absolutely love to read. I seriously think Amazon should put me on their payroll as an advertiser since I seem to promote the Kindle so much!

It seems that about half of the people I discuss the Kindle with tell me that they prefer actual books; maybe because of the smell, the feel & the idea of being able to see them stacked upon their bookshelves.Others seem very interested in the Kindle or another e-reader such as the Nook or even the iPad & want to know how I like it & what I like about it.

So, this blog post is to tell you the things I like or don't like about the Kindle.

The only thing I've found that I dislike about the Kindle is the fact that it's really hard to go back & find a part that you may want to re-read. It can take a while to click previous page over & over again if you don't know what chapter you may have been near.But what makes me love the Kindle so much?

It can store an endless amount of books in one small package. Perfect for times when you may be taking a trip or even going to the beach & you don't want to pack multiple books.
I absolutely adore the cute little case that holds my Kindle.
Perfect for a spur-of-the-moment buyer such as myself who loves instant gratification. I'm the type who is in need of a book, hears about an interesting one & immediately wants to run out & purchase it.
You can enlarge or minimize the print to your liking. I've found this most useful at the gym when I'm on the elliptical or treadmill and would normally be unable to read the print of an average book from that kind of distance. And since you don't need to open the book, it stays in place on whatever piece of equipment I happen to be working out on.
The pages don't need to be turned & you don't need to hold the book open which makes it so much easier to get comfortable in bed while reading.
There's a dictionary right at your finger tips. All you have to do is move the cursor right next to any word you may not know the meaning of &, poof, there's your answer!
Long battery life. In the the 2+ months I've owned my Kindle, I've only charged it twice. And I read a lot! I keep the wireless off unless I'm searching/buying a new book which definitely helps conserve the life of the battery.
Very easy on the eyes since it's not back-lit. I have a book light for it so I'm able to read in bed at night while Mike is sleeping. And since it's not back lit & has a non-glare screen, you can easily read it in bright sunlight.
Very user friendly. By no means am I a techy person & I'm easily able to navigate my way through the Kindle.

But what do I love most about the Kindle? The fact that Mike is now also the proud owner of one so we're able to spend our nights reading in bed, side by side, like an old married couple!

What is the One Breakthrough Company with the Key to Global Commerce

2011-02-15T11:34:00.001-05:00

I get emails from Motley Fool all the time, trying to get me to buy into one of their investment group emails or something. Those guys are great at the extended, super long, extra special, wait for it, wait for it, now wait for it longer.....tease. They get me to click on their stuff about 15% of the time just based off of curiosity. Every time I think they're telling the truth that the "whole story" is just a click away....I find out they fibbed and they want you to sign up for one of their services first with no risk to me since I can cancel at any time.

Good thing we have the internet. After a quick search for their latest teaser, a report based on a small Virginia firm called One Breakthrough Company with the Key to Global Commerce

I found out from a site called Stock Gumshoe that the company in question is most likely Rosetta Stone (RST). I've never tried any of their products, so I have no idea whether this would be a good investment or not. Has anyone reading this ever tried Rosetta Stone software? I have a couple friends that gave it a shot and I'm looking in your direction guys!

Good luck to anyone that puts some money into RST.

Blend Fitness

2011-02-07T23:03:00.000-05:00

So I'm going to start a new workout regimen starting tomorrow around 6 am. I signed up for this new gym called Blend Fitness in Lutz, FL, it's open 24 hours and it's kind of/sort of in the back of our subdivision (takes about 5 minutes to get there) so it's pretty convenient.

Now that I think about it, I could potentially ride my bike there in the morning and get 10-15 minutes of cardio out of the way before I even get there! Thanks for the idea, internet!

Anyways, I'm going to take measurements and stuff to see how much my body changes, and I'll post the changes here just so I can come back to it next year and reminisce to the good ol' days, when my body gets fat all over again. That's the spirit, Mike!

Waist: 42"
Right Bicep: 17 7/8"

Allison Pernecky, my little wife, helped me with the measurements and we took the waist measurement from just above where my hip bones ended. That's what the Google told us to do, so that' how we'll do it.

As for food and stuff, I think the first few weeks I'm just going to work out and not concentrate too much on my diet. I think my diet will improve naturally with me working out, it seems I eat better things when I'm actively working out than when I'm sedentary, so we'll so how that goes. After the first month or so I'll need to cut back on portions more, and concentrate more on what I'm putting into my body, but I don't want to shock it just yet.

I've asked some friends if they thought it would be a good idea to post pictures of me in my underwear to see how my body changes through the weeks and months...but they all said no. No idea why.

So we'll see what happens this time around. My goal is to weigh around 225 lbs and take inches off of my waist while adding inches to my arms. Thanks for reading.

My Own Android App!

2010-07-23T09:18:00.000-04:00

Thanks to my buddy Josh (theJTOG), I now have an Android app that links to a mobile version of my blog! Why? Why not?!?! If you have an Android OS phone, just take a picture of this SQARQcode with your Barcode Scanner app and it will take you right to it on the Market. If not, just search for "Perno" and it will pop right up. Thank you again Josh!

Coldplay Fix You Meaning

2010-06-07T12:06:00.002-04:00

My song interpretation of Coldplay's Fix You.

I think "you" and "your" is him speaking in the 2nd person for most of it about himself, which that could even be another focus "2nd person" is about this second person also. Until he goes to the lights will guide you home part, which he's speaking to the chick. This is just my take....

When you try your best but you don't succeed
When you get what you want but not what you need
When you feel so tired but you can't sleep
Stuck in reverse

He's tried his best to make this girl love him, and he didn't succeed.

He got a girlfriend and she wants to have a good time so physically maybe they're good, but she says she doesn't want anything serious, so no "love" which is what we all need.

I think this is just him not being able to sleep because he wants to fix the situation but can't.

Just moving backwards instead of forwards in the relationship because he's aiming for love but it just gets further and further from it, like he can't win.

When the tears come streaming down your face
When you lose something you can't replace
When you love someone but it goes to waste
Could it be worse?

Don't even have to go line-by-line here, he's crying because he loves this chick, she's like "no, I just want to have fun or just be friends, if you can't do that then we're done" and he just wants her to love him.

Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you

I think he pictures himself as the light and he wants her to come "home" towards him and fall in love. His "light" will "ignite" the love in her (hopefully) and he's trying to "fix her" since she's "broken", meaning unable to love him for some reason.

High up above or down below
When you're too in love to let it go
But if you never try you'll never know
Just what you're worth

Maybe this is more big picture comparing two opposite spectrums of love, like "high up above" means you've found the one you love and you both love each other so much and are married and happy whereas "down below" is the point he's at, just down in the dumps about this chick not loving him back and never wanting to love him. Both situations are too in love to let it go but the 3rd line is kind of like "if you never put yourself out there then you'll never feel either of these....yes most times you'll probably hit that low, but it's so worth it to get to that high in love that everyone needs so don't be afraid because when finally find that someone who loves you back, you feel the best you've ever felt and helps you to know your true worth when you see someone think the world of you."

Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you

Tears stream down your face
When you lose something you cannot replace
Tears stream down your face
And I...

(will try to fix you) is what he wants to say, he's being persistent and dedicated I think.

Tears stream down your face
I promise you I will learn from your mistakes
Tears stream down your face
And I...

Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you

Please comment if you have any ideas!

Time to Get Fit

2010-05-11T11:12:00.005-04:00

I think I'm at the least muscular and highest body fat percentage levels I've ever been in my adult life, so I've decided it's time to start cutting back on some things in addition to adding a little exercise to my life. Not just for myself, but also because my son and wife deserve someone a little healthier than I am right now, I'm not living my life just for myself anymore.

The only real time I have a problem with eating bad things is during the NFL season (Mikey likey his wingies!), and I have until September to get into a healthier mindset before football time comes around again. So this morning I woke up about 20 minutes earlier than usual and went for about a mile walk with my pug. It was great for both of us and I look forward to increasing my activity level every week. My goal is to get to jogging 2 miles at a time about 3 times per week, which I should be able to get to that point some time next month. Weight loss is also a goal, I weighed myself this morning and I'm sitting chubby at 244 lbs. My goal is to break into the 220's, so we'll see how that goes.

With the help of my friends at Google I'm going to try to keep track of how far I walk/run and keep it in some sort of spreadsheet just so I have a better idea of how healthy I'm getting, or how much I'm slacking. I've downloaded their My Tracks app onto my T-Mobile MyTouch 3G Fender phone from the Android Market and look forward to reviewing my activities on a weekly basis. Wish me luck!

Allergified Definition

2010-04-09T10:06:00.001-04:00

Allergified (v): to be struck with allergies in a way that is easily noticeable to the general public.

"Man I was so allergified last night, the grocery store clerk probably thought I smoked some dope before coming into the store. My eyes were SO RED!"

Allergies are a pain, good luck to all my fellow allergy-ridden folk out there.

DREA100 pvt 32b

2010-04-06T08:58:00.001-04:00

My T-Mobile G1 was recently stuck on the multicolored bootloader screen (with the first line reading DREA100 pvt 32b) and wouldn't load past that stage. I tried a hard reset and wiped everything clean, talked to T-Mobile tech support for over 30 minutes (we wiped everything clean 3 or 4 more times just in case) and it still wouldn't go past that page. All they could offer me was the phone number to the manufacturer HTC who said it would be anywhere from $50 - $250 to fix the phone, OR I could spend about $150+ on a new Android smartphone! Lucky me!

I wasn't about to take this lying down so I wanted to try anything I could to fix the situation. This is where the CyanogenMod comes in to play. I've known about this CyanogenMod for at least a year now, and I've known that it supposedly makes everything run a little faster and smoother and has a few extra bonuses, but I've always been a little scared to try it in case I bricked my phone. Well I'm proud to announce that I successfully installed the CyanogenMod on my phone last night and it's been working like a champ thus far. If anything changes I'll definitely report back but I'm glad I finally made the jump.

Should you do it if you own an Android phone? Well I consider myself fairly techy...I've installed some hard drives, graphics cards, and lots of RAM into desktop computers, but I've never actually BUILT a computer from scratch, so I'm nowhere near an IT professional. I'd only attempt it if you're familiar with how computers work, otherwise it might be best to stay away. It's not the hardest thing I've ever done from a computer standpoint, but there were a couple spots where it got a tad confusing. Just go to the link above and they lay it all out for you.

All in all, a bad experience with T-Mobile tech support (since they couldn't help me), but a good experience knowing my phone is able to easily take on a brand new custom operating system. Hooray Android!

Quick and Easy Slow Cooker / Crock Pot Recipe

2010-03-11T09:51:00.001-05:00

I read someone's recommendation on Facebook a few months ago to throw some ingredients together into a crock pot, I tried it, and it came out great. I made it for my mom when she visited and she's asked for the "recipe" like 3 times now. There's really no "recipe", just put this stuff into a crock pot:

1 lb of chicken breasts
1/2 lb of chicken thighs (leave this out if you despise dark meat, but I added it and my wife couldn't tell. Makes it better IMO)
2 big jars of salsa (spicy if you like it spicy, or mild if you don't like spice)
1 can of corn niblets
1 can of black beans

Heat all this stuff on low for 5-6 hours. After that, take the chicken out and shred it up with a couple forks, it will come apart very easily. Put all the chicken back into the crock put to absorb more of the salsa juice (at least 15-20 mins), and you're done! Serve the chicken in taco shells with cheese, sour cream, diced tomatoes, lettuce, or whatever sounds good to you. Add more/less corn or beans, or throw in a can of green beans if you really want to get crazy.

It's totally flexible and totally easy. Leaving it cook longer will only make it better, so don't feel like you have to rush it. Enjoy!

-MP

Super Bowl Office Pool Game

2010-02-04T09:06:00.002-05:00

I put a little Super Bowl strip card game together for some people and thought it would be useful to put it on the Internet since all the strip cards I found cost money.

The strip card game is much easier than the traditional football "squares" since you only need to fill 10 spots instead of 100. Just like the squares, it takes absolutely no football knowledge to enjoy.

Here are the rules, and here is the spreadsheet I put together. We're playing for haltime and for the end of the game, with the end of the game having the biggest payout. Let me know if you have any questions, good luck!

EDIT: Go here to generate the random numbers. Enter "0" for the smallest value and "9" for the largest value, then click "Get Sequence". Then just fill in the sheet with the numbers. Tell your coworkers they can watch you do it if they don't trust you.

Best Layaway Deal

2010-01-20T20:17:00.002-05:00

I was speaking with a friend of mine today who's currently in the market for a new HDTV (let's call her/him Jimbo). The problem is, Jimbo doesn't have the cash readily available, and he doesn't want to put the TV on a credit card since it's almost never a good idea to flash the plastic if you can't pay for the item outright...right?

He was shopping at Sears because Sears has some pretty good prices on the latest brands of TVs and they have the option to put items on layaway. Unfortunately every time Jimbo found a TV he was satisfied with, it seemed that particular TV was not layaway eligible. Jimbo was sad, thinking he'd just have to save money the old fashioned way which works for some people, but not for others.

So I came up with an idea for Jimbo. "Jimbo," I said, "why don't you just take a chunk of money every month, the same amout you would put towards your layaway payments, and email yourself an Amazon Gift Card with that money? If you buy a $250 gift card per month, in 4 months you'll have a nice $1000 to spend, and could probably get a TV 46" or bigger!"

"Huh, I never thought about it that way," said Jimbo. Jimbo was back to being happy. He knew that if he just socked away $250 cash each month that he'd probably dig into the cash on days he wanted to get a nice lunch, buy a video game, or order the latest hamburger earmuffs instead of using it towards his ultimate goal - the HDTV. This way it made the money a little less "liquid" and easier to forget about, which would allow him to reach his goal as quickly as possible -- all while not having to pay any fees or worry about losing his hard-earned money.

A happy Jimbo is my kind of Jimbo. Best of luck to you buddy!

How I Ate Baby Puke

2010-01-16T18:18:00.005-05:00

When my wife and I are hard up and looking for a meal to feed our 15-month-old Cameron, we usually turn to a nice and light frozen dinner. They're cheap, usually nutritious, and sometimes even tasty!

Well today we've been cleaning the house all day and didn't have the time or energy to make a nice meal so we heated up Michelina's Five Cheese Lasagna for the little guy. He loves pasta and we figured this would be right up his alley.

Tastes better without baby bile.

At first Cameron didn't take to it very well because he just had his 15 month vaccine shots, and his last 2 baby teeth are cutting through (yeah, the last 2 at 15 months old...jeepers) so he's a little crabby, has a slight fever, and a little cough...all expected. To get him to taste it I put some lasagna on his spoon and let him feed it to himself since he enjoys having control (I wonder who he got that from?)

He did well with feeding himself for his standard amount of time, about 5 minutes...after that I had to think of something else to make the food interesting, so I decided to pick up the lasagna with my bare hands and feed it to him like a wrap/sandwich. This 2nd feeding phase went very well, he had 3, 4, maybe 5 bites and loved it.

As a new parent, one of the best parts about having a new human in our lives (besides the love, compassion, teaching, blah blah blah) is eating whatever leftovers Cameron leaves on his plate, or even eating his food along with him. Sure, I'm probably the heaviest I've ever been, but for now I'm blaming it on the holidays and just enjoying the extra 300+ calories I'm eating since Cam never eats all his food. Sorry to digress...

So I was wrapping the lasagna, feeding it to Cam, taking a tiny bite for myself here and there, feeding it to Cam, etc. Cam was coughing regularly while he was eating, and here's where it gets gross. As I was about to give him another bite of his lasagna sandwich, he ended up vomiting up a few tablespoons of digested lasagna on his shirt. "Aww poor guy" we thought, "maybe it's time to stop feeding him." Then I had the bright idea of having one more bite of the wrapped up lasagna in my marina-stained hands...chew-chew-swallow. Uh oh...I say to Allison, "umm, I think I just ate some of Cam's puke." "How did that happen and how do you know it's puke?" she asked. To which I replied "apparently Cam got some puke on the lasagna, I took a bite, and now I can taste the bile I usually taste after vomiting. Awesome."

Allison was pretty disgusted and said she would have vomited on the spot if the same had happened to her, but not this guy...I'm not going to waste a nice bite of lasagna. Sure it had a bitter aftertaste from the bile/acid in Cam's stomach, but overall I'd say it was pretty tasty.

This is what happens when you have kids, beware youngsters!

Pugs Rule!

2009-11-11T15:43:00.001-05:00

Pasco County Trick or Treating Hours

2009-10-31T12:05:00.003-04:00

I called the Pasco County Sheriff's Office today to find out what the hours are for trick-or-treating this year. After getting laughed at by the operator, I talked to someone else that informed me there are no set hours for trick-or-treating here in Pasco County, Florida.

I'm just writing this post to help anyone else out that may be looking for the same information, as it's not really readily available anywhere else. So if you're waiting for a certain time to take your kids out...just go! :)

Happy Halloween!

Better Bet?

2009-10-16T09:07:00.001-04:00

What's the better bet this weekend?

1) Bears at Falcons over/under is 45.5 and I'm thinking of the over - I think it will be a shootout and Matt Ryan is the second coming of Peyton Manning. I've watched him every game this year and he seems just like Peyton in the way he commands the field and almost always finds someone open down field. Not to mention his new toy Tony Gonzalez. The Bears offense is getting better every week, and they have Desmond Clark coming back this week, who seems to always find a seam 15-20 yds down field, not to mention the emergence of Johnny Knox, and the sure handedness of Earl Bennett...and there's always Devin Hester speeding down the field. This team will have no problem stretching the field on a questionable Atlanta secondary -- as long as Cutler gets his protection. Did I mention Matt Forte is finally starting to break out?

2) This was a better bet yesterday so I'm off of it, but Packers are -13.5 (yesterday they were -14) at home vs. the Lions. The Lions have showed their offense isn't exactly horrible and the Packers are coming off a very emotional loss against the Vikings. The downside is the Packers have had 2 weeks to prepare for the Lions and they absolutely must win this game to stay part of the NFC North race. Ok I just talked myself out of it...

2b) Cardinals at Seahawks -3 -- Matt Hasselbeck is back and ready to take some names in Seattle. They're getting healthier every week with a good defense and arguably the best home field advantage in the NFL. The Cardinals are so up and down that you can never count on them, and I think they'll have a horribly tough time once they get down early in Seattle.

I haven't placed a bet on a sporting event in a couple years, but I think about it every weekend during the NFL season. We'll see if I pull the trigger this weekend, TGIF!

Easiest Way To Make a Free Org Chart

2009-08-28T13:23:00.001-04:00

I searched around the Internet for a few minutes trying to find the cheapest/easiest way to make an organizational chart / structure chart / hierarchy chart in order to visually show my company's hierarchy structure. I found a lot of downloadable programs, but I'd hate to download a program from a company I don't trust, so I kept looking.

Turns out it's pretty easy to make an Org Chart in Microsoft Word, and I found it at this website. Here's the gist, written by Ugur Akinci, PhD (great guy I'm sure):

You can create an amazing variety of fantastic-looking Organization Diagrams in Microsoft Word 2003 without using any external graphic programs.

1) Display your DRAW toolbar by selecting View > Toolbars > Drawing.

2) Place your cursor where you want to insert your chart or diagram.

3) Click the 3-spinning-balls icon on your DRAW toolbar. The tooltip message should read "Insert Diagram or Organization Chart."

4) From the Diagram Gallery window, select the Organization Chart button on the Upper Left. The ORGANIZATION CHART Mini-Bar display automatically.

5) Click Insert Shape drop-down menu on the Mini-Bar to insert "subordinate," "coworker" or "assistant" boxes.

6) Click the Autoformat button on the Mini-Bar to select one of the chart templates.

7) To delete a box, click the Select drop-down menu on the Mini-Bar, then press the Delete button.

8) Click on individual boxes on the chart to add text.

9) Click Layout drop-down menu on the Mini-Bar to change the layout of the whole chart and select one of the following options: Standard, Both Hanging, Right Hanging, Left Hanging.

10) Select a text wrapping option (if need be) by clicking the Text Wrapping button on the Mini-Bar and selecting one of the available options.

11) Experiment with other buttons on the DRAW toolbar for an infinite variety of different effects. For example, select an organizational box and change its color by clicking the Paint Bucket button, or add drop shadows by clicking 3D button and selecting an option.

There are several expensive graphic-creation software out there as well. But why spend the extra money when you have great tools at your disposal, already built into the MS Word?

Song Interpretation - Green Day "21 Guns"

2009-07-30T11:11:00.002-04:00

My wife asked me to look over the lyrics of 21 Guns by Green Day and here's my interpretation of what they may have meant when writing the song:

Do you know what's worth fighting for,
When it's not worth dying for?
Does it take your breath away
And you feel yourself suffocating?
Does the pain weigh out the pride?
And you look for a place to hide?
Did someone break your heart inside?
You're in ruins

This was straight-up anti-war, pretty easy to comprehend right? Like a soldier that wanted to go fight for his country because of the pride he feels, but then he gets there and realizes he's fighting for some guy sitting in his office eating ice cream. The soldier panics because he hears gunfire and whatever, and just wants to be back home, so that's the pain...does it outweigh the pride?

One, 21 guns
Lay down your arms
Give up the fight
One, 21 guns
Throw up your arms into the sky,
You and I

EDIT: My interpretation of this one was HORRIBLE, so here's a good interpretation from a commenter...

With war there is death and when you have one gun (participation in war), you get 21 guns (you die), either physically or emotionally.

My interpretation is one = one person. 21 guns MAY stand for the soldier just being young and 21 years old with his whole life ahead of him. Why 21? I don't know, maybe he has a cousin or something that he wrote this for that was 21 when he went into the service. "You and I" = "join me, I'm not fighting in this stupid war for oil, neither should you."

When you're at the end of the road
And you lost all sense of control
And your thoughts have taken their toll
When your mind breaks the spirit of your soul
Your faith walks on broken glass
And the hangover doesn't pass
Nothing's ever built to last
You're in ruins

Again pretty straight-forward...back to the soldier that just keeps thinking and freaking out and finally starts to lose it "end of the road, lost all sense of control, thoughts have taken their toll" and then he talks about how this soldier is questioning his faith in God because of the things he's seeing, dead children, shooting other people in the head that he doesn't even know, etc. "The hangover doesn't pass..." like the next day he wakes up, he's still out in Iraq or whatever when normally a hangover goes away the next day, but not this one. "Nothing's ever built to last" is his faith in God and humanity.

One, 21 guns
Lay down your arms
Give up the fight
One, 21 guns
Throw up your arms into the sky,
You and I

Did you try to live on your own
When you burned down the house and home?
Did you stand too close to the fire?
Like a liar looking for forgiveness from a stone

This one's tough, but here's my first thought: Maybe the soldier FINALLY makes it back to the United States after a few years of being at war....and maybe he has nobody to come home to that cares about him, maybe his parents shipped him off because they couldn't pay for college or whatever, hence his reason for going off to fight...and he's living on his own for really the first time in his life after seeing some truly horrific things in combat. "burned down your house and home" Could be literal or figurative. Literally = he came home to live with his parents and concocted some scheme to burn the house down because he hated it. He hated that his parents for putting him in the situation to go to war and just snapped one night and burned the house that represented some of his anger. Figuratively = "house and home" could be his old ideals (faith in God, love for America and wanting to fight for his country) and childish thoughts. When soldiers come back from war they instantly mature like 20 years because of the stuff they witness every day. "Did you stand too close to the fire" Again literal or figurative 1) he stood there watching the house go down in flames because he was happy to see it go or 2) "the fire" is another meaning for "the war" and he got way too entrenched in the war, which ruined him inside for the rest of his life.

When it's time to live and let die
And you can't get another try
Something inside this heart has died
You're in ruins

Definitely a "shout-out" to the Beatles messages of peace, and this soldier wishes he could just live and let the memories of war die and that he could just get a re-do of his life and get the option of not going to war, but he can't. "something inside this heart has died", more like everything in him has died.

One, 21 guns
Lay down your arms
Give up the fight
One, 21 guns
Throw up your arms into the sky

One, 21 guns
Lay down your arms
Give up the fight
One, 21 guns
Throw up your arms into the sky,
You and I

Same as I said earlier. Just don't go to war, kids! It screws you up!

Chicago Bears Players on Twitter

2009-06-30T13:29:00.010-04:00

I did a Google search for Chicago Bears players on Twitter and it seemed a little hard to find a list of Bears players on Twitter, so I thought I'd start one. Here are the ones I know of, please comment if you know of any others (even ex-Bears are cool).

Jay Cutler: @jcutler6 (thanks ScottSandSkokie)

Greg Olsen: @gregolsen82

Matt Forte: @chitownforte22

Devin Hester: @d_hest23

Tommie Harris: @RealDeal91

Jason Davis: @JasonDavis43

Desmond Clark: @tightwork88

Ex-Bears:

Fontel Mines: @FMines89
Jason McKie: @Jmack37
Bernard Berrian: @B_Twice

Kyle Orton (maybe): @kyleorton08

Feel free to follow me @Perno

Pie Man? Angry Black Man?

2009-06-25T12:11:00.001-04:00

So I just did a quick search on Google Image Search for "Pie Man" (don't ask, long story), and this is like the 4th image that popped up. The description is "Angry Black Man Clip Art". So my question is, do a lot of people looking for a guy carrying pies happen to see this image and think, "you know, a pie man would work really well, but this angry black man will REALLY make my point! Thank goodness for Google!"

On a side note, Happy "Beer Bottling" Thursday...I'm going to bottle my first ever homebrew with my sister who's in town from Chicago. Wish me luck!

Black Pug Brewery Logo

2009-06-17T09:57:00.000-04:00

My dad said not to send any gifts to him for Father's Day since he has everything he wants/needs so Allison and I are sending him a gift certificate for admission to the Black Pug Brewery in Land O Lakes, FL (my house) along with unlimited beers to be used before the end of the year. So Allison and I took some pictures last night and came up with this logo for the brewery.

Obviously this won't be a final logo of any sort, but it will be the one I put on my dad's gift certificate :)

Happy Father's Day!

Phish in Asheville, NC

2009-06-16T20:55:00.005-04:00

My (future) brother in law Gregg and his (future) wife Lauren (along with Dave) went to see Phish play in Asheville, NC and Knoxville, TN. Gregg just showed me this awesome picture that Lauren took at the Asheville show with his camera, and I thought I would share it:

Click on picture to make biggy

I'm not a fan of Phish, but I don't hate them. Now I can see why the hippies like to go see them so much. Glad you guys had fun!

T-Mobile G1 Android Cupcake Battery Charging Issue

2009-06-10T13:53:00.001-04:00

UPDATE (7/9/09): I've tried everything, a hard reset of my phone, letting the phone fully discharge then recharge, and it improved a little bit, but not much. I called T-Mobile and they admitted it's a known issue. I expect the next software update to take care of this.

I'm a T-Mobile customer and own the G1 phone. Recently, an over-the-air update was released for the Android operating system, version 1.5 or "Cupcake". Everything's been running smoothly for me thus far besides a couple complaints, but the main thing I found was my battery would only charge up to about 64% and then charge VERY slowly. I'm talking it went from a couple hours to perform a full charge to around 8-10 hours!

After a few days of this happening I thought I would just restart the phone (since that seems to be the answer to almost any techy device) and the battery said it was fully charged, 100%, which led me to believe it was a software issue. The battery was fully charged, but the software didn't know it. So I did some digging and it seems a lot of people had this same problem.

Turns out downloading the updated operating system on a less than fully charged battery led the new OS to believe the battery is fully charged at whatever percentage you had when you updated your phone. Sounds like someone at Google would have thought of this and prevented this from happening, but I guess they were eager to push this out so they missed it. Anyway, one solution someone suggested is to just let your battery fully drain to the point your phone shuts off from lack of battery, then just fully recharge it. I'm told this will solve the problem and allow the OS to re-calibrate itself, I guess it makes sense logically. So far I've drained mine and it's charging right now, I'll report back on how it goes.

Homebrew Status

2009-06-07T12:28:00.001-04:00

Here's a look at where I'm keeping my fermenting pale ale along with the bubbling airlock.

Eating His O's

2009-06-06T10:49:00.001-04:00

Good morning! I'm just having some O's for breakfast.

Brew Day!!!

2009-06-04T20:58:00.001-04:00

Here's what the wort (what beer is called prior to fermentation) is looking like while it's boiling.

My First Yeast Starter

2009-06-03T21:20:00.001-04:00

I think it's ready to make a big batch of beer but I'm not sure at all.

New Blog Post Idea

2009-05-26T11:42:00.001-04:00

I always have blog subject ideas coming to me and I've decided to try this one out for a bit. What I'll do is take a look at the last 5 pictures I've taken with my T-Mobile G1 (I should get paid for that mention), and pick one to write a quick post on.

Realistically it will probably happen once a month since I only whip out my camera phone about once per week. Let's get really crazy and include cell phone videos in this too! I won't count any pics I take of Cameron since that kid has his own blog.

So this picture was taken at our great buddies Matt and Kelly's house this past Saturday. Allison's 30th birthday was on Sunday and the Cakies were nice enough to surprise her with a cake. Best part about my wife's birthday? I finally get to make out with a 30 year old! Thanks for making my dreams come true honey!

Sleeping Pug

2009-05-15T10:53:00.000-04:00

I'm staying home from work today, taking care of our sick little boy. As I was sitting on the couch, I looked over and saw Dempsey's sweet little sleeping face and thought I would share. Happy Friday!

Leftovers at Work

2009-05-13T19:30:00.003-04:00

In this day and age, it's important to find ways to stretch that dollar as far as possible. Something we all have to spend money on is food. I'd even go as far to say most of us eat food every day!

As my wife will tell you, I hate wasting food and I try to be frugal whenever I can. Sometimes I'll eat leftover Chinese food a good 10 days after it's born-on date. With fish-related leftovers I'll usually give it 5 or 6 days and then really make sure I microwave it to make sure all the "baddies" are eradicated. "Oh today is the 25th and the milk 'expired' on the 13th? Hey it still smells ok, bring on the cereal bowl!"

I follow these guidelines at work and all my coworkers know it. When I first started my current job a few years ago, I made sure to get it all out on the table. For example, I noticed a couple of my female coworkers had gone out to lunch at Chili's and came back empty-handed. I asked them how their lunch was and -- knowing out of 2 females one of them should have leftovers -- what they did with their leftovers. They told me they each left half of a chicken sandwich since they knew they would not eat them later. I looked at them in disbelief and said "PLEASE don't ever leave your leftovers from lunch at the restaurant again. I will gladly take them off your hands as long as they weren't molested too badly."

Ever since that day I get offers from all my coworkers to take their leftovers off their hands. Hey I'm not saying you should try this out or anything, I'm just saying it works for me and I've probably saved somewhere in the neighborhood of $2.3 million by just letting it be known to my coworkers that I'll eat any leftovers they don't want.

Beautiful Day at the Beach

2009-05-10T13:11:00.000-04:00

I'm sitting up in Allison's parent's condo in Indian Rocks Beach, FL (maybe Indian Shores, I can never remember) while Cameron is napping in one of the bedrooms. The water isn't normally this turquoise, hopefully the colors I'm seeing come through in the pic from my phone. Reminds me a little of Cancun.

Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers out there!

Love Bug Infestation

2009-05-07T17:52:00.002-04:00

We're not big fans of this whole love bug thing.

EDIT: Lovebugs are these flying insects that grace us with their presence in two "flights" per year, usually late spring and then again in late summer. They're referred to as "lovebugs" because there's almost always two of them attached to each other, in the process of mating.

You seriously can't walk around our house without having some land on you. Luckily they don't but or anything, they're just really annoying. Ahhh, just one of the joys of Florida I guess.

Guess What's Coming in 4 Months?!?!

2009-05-07T13:11:00.002-04:00

Here we are the the Dog Days of Summer (yes, it's already considered the Dog Days here in Florida, we're hitting 90 almost every day already), and a great thought entered my mind yesterday while at home with my wife. In just a hair over 4 months we'll have the regular season of NFL upon us!!!

The Chicago Bears signed a great talent in Jay Cutler (another frequent reader of this blog), and made a few other moves that have us Bears fans very excited. I was reading one of the Bears Blogs I frequent and stumbled upon a link to some pictures of Jay Cutler in a Bears uniform!!! It's really real!!!

Looking forward to getting past this NFL Offseason (baseball) and getting into more Chicago Bears talk.

Homebrewing Kit Arrived

2009-04-24T07:54:00.001-04:00

I'm very excited since my beer homebrewing kit has arrived from Midwest Supplies in MN. I'm hoping to have everything necessary to brew this weekend.

The only thing holding me back is I need to figure out how to keep the fermenting beer cool (between 60 and 70 degrees F) here in Florida. Most homes don't have basements and there's nowhere in the house that comes close to remaining at that temperature. I'll be looking for suggestions on the Internet today, wish me luck!

Welcome Back Tropicana

2009-04-23T13:17:00.002-04:00

I think Tropicana made the right move switching back to the old packaging. The new packaging seemed too generic.

NFL Draft 2009

2009-04-23T12:43:00.004-04:00

I just finished reading a great article at Pro Football Talk by Mike Florio that Brad Biggs at the Chicago Sun-Times mentioned in his coverage of the Chicago Bears 2009 Draft Pick possibilities.

Florio talked about players testing positive for marijuana prior to the draft, and how the main concern of NFL teams was not that the player smoked weed - rather that the player is either 1) too stupid to stay clean for a certain period of time before the biggest test of their lives, or 2) addicted to the drug in question.

Obviously, all things being equal, if an NFL team has a choice of choosing someone that smokes or drinks vs. someone that never touches the stuff, they'll go with the "clean" person...but it's just mind boggling how someone like Percy Harvin from the University of Florida could test positive for marijuana right before he has the opportunity to sign for millions of dollars. Hopefully he's not addicted, because his possible stupidity just cost him a few million in the bank.

6 Month Stats

2009-04-01T13:36:00.001-04:00

Cameron went in for his 6 month well visit at the doctor's office this morning, here are his stats:

Length = 28" -- 91st percentile

Weight = 20 lbs -- 86th percentile

Head Circumference = 18.3" -- 98th percentile!

That's our large-headed, growing boy!

GAVT = Generally Accepted Vampire Traits

2009-02-20T20:40:00.003-05:00

I'm sitting here in Land O Lakes, FL with some friends discussing whatever people discuss while sitting at a kitchen table with friends. My friend's wife is a HUGE fan of the Twilight series of books featuring vampires, and my friend has coined a new acronym. The acronym is GAVT and it stands for Generally Accepted Vampire Traits, and my friend is M. Will Tammaro.

Unfortunately Twilight doesn't seem to adhere to GAVT. These vampires have to be torn into pieces and burned in order to die. A wooden stake through the heart just doesn't work on these poor saps. They can eat tons of garlic in their pasta and gravy and not blink an eye...the only thing is they don't eat (weird!) Crucifix? No dice! They can even go into the sunlight without worrying about that pesky burning of the flesh. It's just not right, and anyone who thinks otherwise is mistaken.

Thank you for stopping by, and thank you to my friend, M. Will Tammaro.

Pray for Josh and Lauren's Quads

2009-01-22T12:36:00.003-05:00

Our friends Lauren and Josh are going through some tough times right now while Lauren is pregnant with quadruplets here in the Tampa, FL area. Check out their updates at http://joshsblog.greenfamily.net and let them know you're thinking about them. We're all hoping for the best, stay healthy Green Beans!

International Beer Garten Opening Soon

2008-12-06T10:10:00.004-05:00

EDIT: It's officially open, and I've been here quite a few times. It's Pernecky Approved.

This is more of a selfish post, but I guess having a blog dedicated to myself is pretty selfish to begin with, right?

Anyways, there is a new bar opening up within (LONG) walking distance from our house, about 1.5 miles away in the new Northpointe Village in Lutz, FL - near Land O Lakes and Odessa. It's called the International Beer Garten and was originally scheduled to open in the trendy Hyde Park area of South Tampa, but they had some zoning problems, so we will gladly welcome them with open arms! As you can guess from the name, they'll be offering tons of different beers in bottle form (over 300 per their website) and on draft (40 taps), along with a selection of pizza and appetizers.

I stopped in to check out the place yesterday and it's coming along swimmingly. I chatted with (someone I believe to be) one of the owners, and she's hoping to open the doors for business this Thursday, December 11th, for a soft opening with the grand opening to follow later.

The interior looks great, lots of brick and a large wood bar, a few big screen LCD TV's, and plenty of taps just begging to be filled with hoppy goodness. I'd suggest checking out their website at www.IBGTampa.com to find out the latest details on product offerings and when the place will open. I know I'll be watching, as my wife and I can't wait to try this place out!

If you're the owner of the International Beer Garten in Lutz, and would like me to add/delete something from this post, please send me an email, mikepernecky [at] gmail [dawt] com.

Easy Link

2008-11-20T20:19:00.003-05:00

For those of you that come to this blog to get to Cameron's page (I know there's plenty of you), I placed a link directly to the right called "Cameron's Page", take a look ---------->

Cam's Growth

2008-11-15T16:01:00.007-05:00

I thought I would post a few pictures that show how much the little guy has grown...

Almost 2 months:

His first 2 days:

He's a little stinker, but we love him. He slept almost 6 hours last night for us, hopefully it's a sign of things to come!

Dempsey the Pug

2008-11-09T16:23:00.000-05:00

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-31T10:21:00.001-04:00

Thanks to the PicSay application on the T-Mobile G1...

Busch Gardens Coupon Howl-O-Scream

2008-10-15T11:53:00.001-04:00

If anyone is interested in going to Busch Gardens Howl-O-Scream and would like a discount, just go here:

$25 -- Busch Gardens 'Howl-O-Scream' in Tampa, Save $40 http://www.travelzoo.com/top20/22558167-476722/

Source: Busch Gardens

Pretty good savings I'd say! The wife and I won't be attending because I don't think it would be the best atmosphere for a 4 week old infant.

My Boy!

2008-09-29T13:03:00.001-04:00

cameron 008
Originally uploaded by al schuth

Here's a nice little picture taken the day after Cameron was born. He's my little dude!

Cameron's First Pictures!!

2008-09-20T14:47:00.002-04:00

Once Cameron Michael is born, we will start posting pictures to this link, so CLICK HERE, you'll be brought to http://babypernecky.blogspot.com/

I'm making this especially easy for my mom:

CLICK HERE TO SEE CAMERON!

Thank you!

Our President

2008-08-18T22:30:00.004-04:00

Pretty funny, found this while surfing Digg.com. I'm sure maybe the picture was taken at an angle "just so" or whatever, but he's still a man, right? So is this really out of the ordinary?

Flents Quiet Time Comfort Foam Earplugs (Purple Ones)

2008-08-15T11:56:00.001-04:00

My wife has been using earplugs to aid her sleeping ever since we were at Northern Illinois University, circa 2000. So she's become addicted to them and is now at the point where she CAN'T sleep without them. Like many earplug lovers out there, she had to try a bunch of brands to find just the right fit, and Flents (purple colored) Quiet Time Comfort Foam Earplugs turned out to be the best - so she's been using them for years. Just a couple weekends ago, she purchased another 10 pack of these earplugs and they weren't as "squishy", and actually hurt her ears so much that she would wake up a few times in the night. What happened?

Well I called the company, which is actually Apothecary Products out of Minnesota, for an explanation. I talked with a very nice woman who explained they just switched manufacturers of their foam, and this is causing an uproar in the earplug community. Ok she didn't say "earplug community" but anyone reading this that isn't one of my friends -- you're a member of the earplug community! The representative went on to say that they're switching back to the old formula, and the new, original formula earplugs will begin shipping shortly. They will hit Wal-Mart stores first, then everywhere else. She also said they will have a sticker on them saying something like "Original Formula!", so make sure you pick one of them up when they become available.

Fear not, earpluggers, your voice has been heard!

Xbox 360 RROD End Result

2008-08-11T10:53:00.001-04:00

I'm happy to say Microsoft took great care of me and my faulty Xbox 360 Elite, since it was still within the 3 year "Hardware Failure" warranty period. I received a brand new Xbox 360 Elite last week (it was manufactured in June of this year), and the total turn around time from the night I placed the call, through packing it up, shipping it out, and receiving it was less than 2 weeks. I played Civilizations Revolution last night for hours and my sweet little 360 chugged right along, good as new...because it is! Nice work Microsoft, now stop making terrible hardware!

I can't wait for Netflix online to be accessible through Xbox LIVE later this year!

Xbox 360 Elite Red Ring of Death

2008-07-24T08:48:00.002-04:00

So I was playing Rock Band a few days ago on my Xbox 360 Elite that I received around 13 months ago, and the system froze right in the middle of a song. I just took the disk out, cleaned it, and restarted the system, and that worked fine for the rest of my time playing.

Then yesterday I wanted to play some songs on guitar before my wife got home, so I jumped in right away, and the dang thing froze towards the end of the first song. Restarted, happened again. Restarted, got through 1 or 2 songs, happened again. Got PO'd and had dinner with the Mrs., then I went back to it, same thing happens, froze in the beginning of the first song I tried. I thought "no way can there be a problem with the disc, especially if it's every song." So I shut it down and restarted it then BAM!!! RROD (Red Ring of Death, below). So then I shut it down and restarted it and it wouldn't move past the intro screen when the Xbox first turns on, but it didn't give me the red rings again. I unplugged the Rock Band guitar and started with a regular controller, and it seemed to work ok til I plugged in the guitar again. Either way I already called Xbox Customer Service last night and I'm shipping this thing in.

We'll see what happens!

Rock Band 2 Setlist

2008-07-14T15:11:00.000-04:00

Looks like a great little video game!

Rock Band 2 On-Disc Track List:
Artist Song Title Decade
1. AC/DC “Let There Be Rock” 1970s
2. AFI “Girl’s Gone Grey” 2000’s
3. Alanis Morissette “You Oughta Know” 1990’s
4. Alice in Chains “Man in the Box” 1990’s
5. Allman Brothers “Ramblin’ Man” 1970’s
6. Avenged Sevenfold “Almost Easy” 2000’s
7. Bad Company “Shooting Star” 1970’s
8. Beastie Boys “So Whatcha Want” 1990’s
9. Beck “E-Pro” 2000’s
10. Bikini Kill “Rebel Girl” 1990’s
11. Billy Idol “White Wedding Pt. I” 1980’s
12. Blondie “One Way or Another” 1970’s
13. Bob Dylan “Tangled Up in Blue” 1970’s
14. Bon Jovi “Livin’ on a Prayer” 1980’s
15. Cheap Trick “Hello There” 1970’s
16. Devo “Uncontrollable Urge” 1980’s
17. Dinosaur Jr. “Feel the Pain” 1990’s
18. Disturbed “Down with the Sickness” 2000’s
19. Dream Theater “Panic Attack” 2000’s
20. Duran Duran “Hungry Like the Wolf” 1980’s
21. Elvis Costello “Pump It Up” 1970’s
22. Fleetwood Mac “Go Your Own Way” 1970’s
23. Foo Fighters “Everlong” 1990’s
24. Guns N’ Roses “Shackler’s Revenge” 2000’s
25. Interpol “PDA” 2000’s
26. Jane’s Addiction “Mountain Song” 1980’s
27. Jethro Tull “Aqualung” 1970’s
28. Jimmy Eat World “The Middle” 2000’s
29. Joan Jett “Bad Reputation” 1980’s
30. Journey “Anyway You Want It” 1970’s
31. Judas Priest “Painkiller” 1990’s
32. Kansas “Carry On Wayward Son” 1970’s
33. L7 “Pretend We’re Dead” 1990’s
34. Lacuna Coil “Our Truth” 2000’s
35. Linkin Park “One Step Closer” 2000’s
36. Lit “My Own Worst Enemy” 1990’s
37. Lush “De-Luxe” 1990’s
38. Mastodon “Colony of Birchmen” 2000’s
39. Megadeth “Peace Sells” 1980’s
40. Metallica “Battery” 1980’s
41. Mighty Mighty Bosstones “Where’d You Go” 1990’s
42. Modest Mouse “Float On” 2000’s
43. Motorhead “Ace of Spades” 1980’s
44. Nirvana “Drain You” 1990’s
45. Norman Greenbaum “Spirit in the Sky” 1960’s
46. Panic at the Disco “Nine in the Afternoon” 2000’s
47. Paramore “That’s What You Get” 2000’s
48. Pearl Jam “Alive” 1990’s
49. Presidents of the USA “Lump” 1990’s
50. Rage Against the Machine “Testify” 1990’s
51. Ratt “Round & Round” 1980’s
52. Red Hot Chili Peppers “Give it Away” 1990’s
53. Rise Against “Give it All” 2000’s
54. Rush “The Trees” 1970’s
55. Silversun Pickups “Lazy Eye” 2000’s
56. Smashing Pumpkins “Today” 1990’s
57. Social Distortion “I Was Wrong” 1990’s
58. Sonic Youth “Teenage Riot” 1980’s
59. Soundgarden “Spoonman” 1990’s
60. Squeeze “Cool for Cats” 1970’s
61. Steely Dan “Bodhitsattva” 1970’s
62. Steve Miller Band “Rock’n Me” 1970’s
63. Survivor “Eye of the Tiger” 1980’s
64. System of a Down “Chop Suey” 2000’s
65. Talking Heads “Psycho Killer” 1970’s
66. Tenacious D “Master Exploder” 2000’s
67. Testament “Souls of Black” 1990’s
68. The Donnas “New Kid in School” 2000’s
69. The Go-Go’s “We Got the Beat” 1980’s
70. The Grateful Dead “Alabama Getaway” 1980’s
71. The Guess Who “American Woman” 1970’s
72. The Muffs “Kids in America” 1990’s
73. The Offspring “Come Out & Play (Keep ‘em Separated)” 1990’s
74. The Replacements “Alex Chilton” 1980’s
75. The Who “Pinball Wizard” 1960’s

Bonus Artist Bonus Song Title Decade
76. Abnormality “Visions” 2000’s
77. Anarchy Club “Get Clean” 2000’s
78. Bang Camaro “Night Lies” 2000’s
79. Breaking Wheel “Shoulder to the Plow” 2000’s
80. The Libyans “Neighborhood” 2000’s
81. The Main Drag “A Jagged Gorgeous Winter” 2000’s
82. Speck “Conventional Lover” 2000’s
83. The Sterns “Supreme Girl” 2000’s
84. That Handsome Devil “Rob the Prez-O-Dent” 2000’s

Singing Cats Picture

2008-06-25T14:34:00.001-04:00

Singing Cats

2008-06-25T14:00:00.001-04:00

My wife and I were shopping in a Ross store the other day and came across this statue:

Every time I see it I chuckle. Who the heck would put this in their house in a serious manner? I love it!

Beer in Fridge Directly Related to Disposable Income

2008-06-18T13:47:00.001-04:00

So here I am, about 3.3 months from becoming a father if all goes as planned. Yup, September 30th of 2008 is the day our little son, Cameron, is scheduled to bring his sweet feet into this world.

Just like any parents-to-be, my wife and I are saving every penny we can to help pay for this terrible investment / bundle of joy because apparently, babies need to be changed more than once or twice a day, and those diaper costs can really add up!

So since I've buckled down and tried to spend money only on necessities like gas, food, and the occasional hoppy beverage, I've noticed a terrible occurrence. My fridge has lost beauties like this:

And have since been replaced with the likes of this:

So as you can imagine, I'm not the happiest of campers. Ah well, I guess having a son will all make up for it. How about anyone reading this? Have you had to spend less money on the finer things in life to save some money?

Nathan Sehl Contribution Success

2008-06-02T16:12:00.002-04:00

My wife and I went over to the Sehl's house along with our neighbors a couple weeks ago to show them our successful collection of over $800 worth of pledges!

As you can see, Nathan is months ahead of what the doctors told him he should expect as far as walking, talking, etc...and we were very happy to see that. If you would like to help Nathan and his family with anything else, please contact me. My email address is mikepernecky (at sign) gmail (dot} com. I didn't type it because it's harder for a spam program to pick it up this way.

Thank you for all your help!

Good Weekend

2008-06-02T11:26:00.001-04:00

I had a great weekend, my brother was in town, we went to watch the White Sox play (and lose, unfortunately) the Tampa Bay Rays...man the Rays are doing quite well, which is nice to see. I took a picture from our horrible seats and posted them on my mobile blog (link on the right) or just http://perneckymobile.blogspot.com. We also saw Sex and the City which was good, highly recommended if you liked the show. Good times all together.

Glad to be back at work though! :)

State of Florida Slavery Apology

2008-03-27T15:51:00.000-04:00

Earlier today, the Florida Senate apologized for slavery, here's a little news article about it in the Miami Herald:

http://www.miamiherald.com/458/story/471728.html

I haven't read into it that much, but from what I hear, the Florida Senate gathered all the African American e-mail addresses they could, and sent the following message:

----------------------------------------------

Subject: Slavery

Dear Sir/Madam,

Sorry about that.

Sincerely,

The State of Florida Senate

----------------------------------------------

I haven't confirmed the above with anyone, but if it's on the Internet, it has to be true.

Up Yours, Seasonal Allergies!

2008-03-23T23:12:00.003-04:00

My wife and I just got back from a great "belated" wedding reception thrown by our friends Lauren and Josh in celebration of their small wedding a few months ago. It was held at Timpano Italian Chop House in Tampa, over in Hyde Park. Delicious food, good drinks, cordial servers...everything was top-notch...top-notch!

We got there at about 6:10pm Eastern Time. We were having a great time chatting up some friends we had not seen in a while, sampling some tasty chicken skewers, pasta, margherita-style pizza slices - a little bit of everything. The first hour of the evening was great, but after that it was all down hill. My nose started itching, eyes were watering up, post-nasal drip, sneezing, a bit of coughing, and [insert any other seasonal allergy-induced side effect you can think of here]. So we left at about 8:30 and got home around 9. It's now 11:30ish and my nose is still running like a faucet. I think I've sneezed upwards of 20 times. My nose feels like someone punched it and it's just filled with random liquid. Just perfect for the sleep I'm about to attempt in the next 30 minutes or so.

Yes, I should be taking Claritin or something, but my Claritin is at work so I won't have it until tomorrow. Yes, the generic Claritin (Loratadine) can be as low as $4 or so for 10 tablets so I should just buy some for home...but you know what? I didn't!!! I decided to write a silly little blog about it! Up yours, seasonal allergies!!!!

If you suffer from seasonal allergies, like this d-bag, then you may want to sign up for daily e-mail alerts from the folks at Pollen.com. They told me today was going to be an intense 10 out of 12 day for allergies, with oak, cedar/juniper, and myrtle/bayberry being the predominant pollens down here in T-Town. Interesting? Perhaps...if you don't like it, tough cookies! Happy Easter to all!

Twitter Addition

2008-02-06T10:29:00.001-05:00

I've added a little "Twitter" widget to my blog on the right side of the main page. Check out my profile on Twitter if you'd like, http://www.Twitter.com/Perno

Twitter is basically a SUPER easy SUPER quick way to have a mini blog and a good way to keep friends updated on what you're up to. Twitter's question to it's users is simple, "What are you doing?" So if you're interested in what I'm doing (that's why you're here, right?) just follow me via my Twitter updates!

When Will My Anger Be Justified?

2008-01-16T18:29:00.000-05:00

I went to Sweetbay, a local grocer, on the way home from work today to pick up some International Delights liquid coffee creamer/sweetener (Vanilla Hazelnut flavor if you must know). I only had this one item in my hand, so I thought my checkout process would be pretty quick, assuming there was an open register. I quickly scanned all open registers and happened upon a line with the conveyor belt totally empty -- sweet! -- so now I just have to wait for the 38 ish-year-old female customer to finish her transaction, then I could bring home the sweet artificially flavored goodness home to my hot little wife's waiting arms.

But did it go as I planned? Of course not, otherwise I wouldn't be writing about it, silly goose! No, this woman stood there, with her (right around) 10 year old daughter looking on, writing out a check for the patient grocery employee.

For those of you too young to remember, a check is something that people used to stand there and physically WRITE OUT before the broadly accepted card payment options of credit or debit cards. It's probably even older than cash. Don't quote me on that though.

Anyways, this isn't the first time this sort of thing has happened to me, and I'm sure it happens every day in stores all around the country, but what I'm wondering at this moment is, "Is it acceptable for me to ask this woman if she's ever heard of a debit card?" I MAY have actually asked her this, but I didn't want her daughter to feel like her mom was a loser, so I decided against it. I guess that's just the nice guy in me.

So finally the little check scanner got done scanning her check 15 times to make sure it was legit, then the cashier took down her phone number and put it on the check (couldn't she just make one up? Does that really help?), and it was my turn to purchase.

The cashier swiped my one bar coded item, I swiped my card, entered my pin, took my receipt, and was off to fight another day.

So, anyone have any ideas as to when it's ok to start belittling check users in public? Do any of you (nutbags) still use checks?

Pileated Woodpecker

2008-01-06T10:49:00.001-05:00

My wife and I are sitting here at the kitchen table -- she, reading her Every Day with Rachael Ray magazine, and I checking my RSS feeds -- in our home both enjoying our Sunday morning coffees, and she looked out the sliding doors into the conservation area in our backyard and said, "Hey look at that bird, it's holding something red in it's beak, how funny!"

So we both took a longer look at the little guy and figured out the "red thing" was really his head, and after a quick Google search, we found it to be the Pileated Woodpecker. I posted a picture from About.com to show you what he looked like, pretty cool. If you're wondering what he sounded like, go to the Cornell All About Birds website, click on the "sound" link, and give him a listen!

I Love You McGriddles

2007-12-22T08:55:00.000-05:00

Gotta love the food while on the road.

Hulk Hogan's House

2007-12-20T12:55:00.001-05:00

Clearwater, FL

At Our Christmas Party

2007-12-20T12:44:00.001-05:00

My Beef With LOL vs. non-LOL'ers

2007-12-03T21:41:00.000-05:00

I'm a fairly confident person and, as such, have no problem doing
something that may be considered "dorky" or "out of the ordinary"as
long as it makes me happy. For example, I own a blue colored Chicago
Bears replica football jersey with my last name, and the number "0" on
the back instead of one of the Bears actual players. Some guys in the
NFL community (and sports communities in general) consider this a
no-no (See: Bill Simmons "The Sports Guy", Page 2 ESPN Funny
Guy/Blogger/Writer/Fellow Geek).

My reasoning for going with my surname instead of someone else's: 1)
I don't really have a favorite player on the team, so why commit
myself to a guy that's not even my favorite? 2) Odds are, whichever
player's jersey I decide to purchase, that player will end up on a
different team at the end of his current contract (See: My #8 Rex
Grossman jersey). 3) What if I pick Robbie Gould's jersey, and he's
convicted of manslaughter 2 weeks later? Do I really want to be
wearing the jersey of a murderer? Sorry to digress...

So even to the most casual of observers, it would seem I make well
informed, and well thought out decisions, but don't ask my wife about
that, OH BOY!!! Sorry, terrible married joke. Anyways, what's with
people that OVERuse "LOL" when e-mailing/texting/IM'ing? It seems to
be generation Y or whatever this latest rung of teeny-boppers is
considered. "I needz 2 go 2 the store lol What are u doing 2nite lol
I need herpes ointment for my 89 year old grandmother lol Seriously."
Last time I checked, LOL means Laugh Out Loud and does not take the
place of punctuations such as periods or exclamation points. It's
these freakin' LOL-overusin' youngn's that lead to perfectly normal
people to shy away from the correct use of LOL, like my wife.

Here's where my decision-making process comes in. I thought about
never using LOL again mainly to distance myself from those Gen Y, Z,
i, whatever they're called, kids. Then I thought harder (I had a lot
of down-time in college) and realized if I use it sparingly, ONLY when
I actually LAUGH OUT LOUD, then there's no reason to be afraid! My
wife vows never to use LOL when emailing me with the rationale I just
mentioned. She would rather take the time to type out "oh my goodness
gracious, you may very well have made a joke funny enough to actually
make me emit a joyful noise, coupled with a smile! I believe you just
made me laugh here at my desk! By golly you did!" When she could
have just said "oh LOL! LOL! Nice!"

Oh sure, you say, that will save a good 10 seconds per day, but who
cares? Well I've been carefully crafting my humor to effectively mesh
with my wife's for almost 12 years now, and I believe I make her "LOL"
via email around once/day on average. We work about 50 weeks/yr times
5 days/week = 250 days. 10 seconds per day = 2500 seconds = 41.6
minutes that my wife wasted instead of simply typing "LOL". That's
right, if she would only have been confident enough to say "Oh Mike,
LOL, love you!!!" she may have found the cure for ALL CANCERS.

Ah well. I guess that's why I'm writing this rant. Don't be afraid
of LOL. Embrace it. Don't overuse it, and please, PLEASE, teach the
over-users to LOL in moderation. Good night.

Got It!

2007-11-20T00:03:00.000-05:00

Line Behind Me

2007-11-19T22:58:00.001-05:00

At Best Buy.

Rock Band Line at Best Buy

2007-11-19T21:34:00.000-05:00

I'm sitting in line waiting for the release of the game "Rock Band" for my Xbox 360. Some guy just drove by us saying "look at all those people with no boyfriends and no girlfriends" while his girlfriend sat cackling in the car. I hope they miss a McDonald's breakfast tomorrow by 30 seconds, that will show them!

Oh, I'm about the 15th person in line, and the Best Buy guy said they should have like 50 Xbox 360 bundles in stock, so I should be good to go!

Microwaved Cheese Omelet

2007-11-15T09:22:00.001-05:00

I made this omelet in the microwave at work. Many people don't know you can make some good scrambled eggs in the microwave. I learned that from my little brother back in the day.

Rock Band Demo

2007-11-13T14:19:00.000-05:00

That's a picture of me holding the drumsticks for the PS3 version of the Rock Band demo in a local WalMart. The drums took me the whole Weezer song, "Say It Ain't So" to get the hang of, and I was on my lunch break so I had to hurry. From what I played though, this thing is a must-buy for me.

I just found out the Best Buy in South Tampa will have a midnight release of the game, so I'll probably be there to get it in time to show it off on Thanksgiving. See you there!

Super Target

2007-11-09T19:05:00.000-05:00

Across the street from our house.

Neck Cut

2007-11-09T14:24:00.000-05:00

I got a haircut at Big League Haircuts on Hillsborough in Tampa, and this is what I come back with. The chick cutting my hair was trying to give me a close shave on the back of my neck with her clippers. Normally I appreciate this, but this woman just wouldn't take my apron off to get down further, so not only was she choking me, but she managed to burn/cut my skin as you see here.

Yes I still tipped her, but I shouldn't have. :(

Happy Christmas

2007-11-09T08:56:00.001-05:00

Man, I just love to see these red Starbucks cups, they remind me of Christmas which is always great.

When I used to work in downtown Chicago, it was very rare to walk around and not catch a glimpse of one of these red cups, but I swear some people viewed it as a status symbol. I'll take my Dunkin' Donuts any day, thank you very much.

Happy Friday!

September 11th Prayer

2007-09-11T11:34:00.000-04:00

I was just wondering if there were any prayers out there to remember the September 11, 2001 tragedy and I found this one at http://www.appleseeds.org/9-11_prayer.htm by a Navy Chaplain:

Almighty God, the past year will be indelibly inscribed in our memories.

We looked with horror on the terrorist attacks of last September 11th.
But we looked with honor on acts of courage by ordinary people
who sacrificed themselves to prevent further death and destruction.

We shed our tears in a common bond of grief for those we loved and lost.
We journeyed through a dark valley, but your light has led us to a place of hope.
You have turned our grief into determination.
We are resolved to do what is good, and right, and just.

Help us to remember what it means to be Americans—
a people endowed with abundant blessings.
Help us to cherish the freedoms we enjoy and inspire us to stand
with courage, united as one Nation in the midst of any adversity.

Lord, hear this prayer for our Nation. Amen.

NEW Mobile Blog!!!

2007-08-30T14:32:00.001-04:00

I just started a new blog in preparation for the San Diego trip. So feel free to check it September 7th through September 10th to see what we are up to in San Diego. Here's the link:

http://perneckymobile.blogspot.com

Go Bears!

San Diego Here We Come!

2007-08-29T14:48:00.000-04:00

So a group of friends and I will be flying out to San Diego on 9/7 and attending the Chicago Bears vs. San Diego Chargers game on 9/9. Should be a great time, here's a map of the place we'll be staying, and where we will be. If you're a Bears fan, and in the area, come on by!

View Larger Map

Madden!

2007-08-14T12:15:00.001-04:00

I haven't written anything in quite some time, so I thought I would take a second to let everyone know that I have my new copy of Madden NFL 08 and will be playing it on my Xbox 360 until Halo 3 comes out. How's that for a run on sentence?

Who's The Wino?

2007-07-22T19:41:00.001-04:00

Allison (my lovely wife) and I are cooking dinner, so I asked her to take a normal sip of her wine and hold it in her mouth. Then I took a normal sip of my wine and held it in my mouth. I then rushed to get these glasses so we could compare sips. You guessed it, my "sip" is on the right, and hers on the left. There's the Pernecky genes working at their finest!

My Weekend

2007-06-25T11:44:00.001-04:00

How was my weekend? Pretty good, thank you for asking! Oh, besides the fact that I was attacked by a rabid middle-aged woman that had clearly forgotten to take her meds on Saturday night.

Here's how it went down: My dear coworker Joanie was having a birthday party at her house to celebrate 3 birthdays including her's, her daughter's, and her best buddy's. There were about 30 people there, a bunch of food, and plenty of drinks...great times were being had all around.

Darkness settles in...it was about 9 or 10pm, and my wife and I were having a conversation with "Dawn" about good looking celebrities I believe. So I say something about Katharine McPhee being smoking hot, and how my wife would be OK with it if Kat offered to snuggle with me for a night. I also mentioned how my "get out of jail free" card used to be Britney Spears circa her "One More Time" years. Every couple has these tongue-in-cheek agreements.

So upon hearing this, Dawn starts to say things like "listen you piece of s***, your wife is fantastic and she is gorgeous" to which I replied "I totally agree with you, she is awesome, but we just have this deal..." and she says "no, you f****** jerk, you listen to me, you have no idea what you have." It went on like this for about 3 minutes, we were even standing up and yelling at each other in the middle of this party of about 15-20 people.

I'm not sure what order this happened, but you'll understand why when I tell you she shoved the palm of her hand into my forehead not once, or twice, but THREE times, hitting me pretty well, enough to make me a tad dizzy. So then I say "I'm going to guess you're from New York" and she was! This got her in a full-blown tizzy, so she proceeded to jump over my wife who was sitting to my left, and then jumped up on top of me in my chair, straddling me with her legs on either side of me in what I can only imagine was an attempt to choke me or something. I immediately grabbed her wrists and kept saying "I am a man, you are a woman, and that means I am stronger than you!!! This is useless, you won't be able to do anything!!!" Just as she was letting up, I started to let her go, and she lunged at my neck, trying to bite me! No joke!!! So I pulled her wrists again and successfully stopped her from sinking her teeth into my flesh. Just then her very embarassed husband came up and pulled her into the house, saving my life.

Luckily, I was right and I held her off pretty well, except for a couple scratches, one of which I've included the picture of:

Just a little scratch, I know, but I didn't expect to get attacked while enjoying a few beers at my coworker's party.

I'm told "Dawn" was inside still really mad at me for the next few hours, doing what she could to get back outside and teach me a lesson.

Either way, this chick is fit for a straight-jacket, and I lived to tell the story.

Besides that, we had a great time! So what did I do wrong? Anyone?

Mikayla Says "Hello World!"

2007-06-13T11:33:00.001-04:00

EDIT: Click here to see all 5 pictures we have so far of Mikayla. I posted 2 of my favorites below...

Here's one of the first pictures of my new Niece, Mikayla Ann waving "hello" to this crazy new world! She was born this morning and is right around 8 lbs, sorry I don't have more specifics.

A big "hello" right back at ya, little tyke!

And the cutest one so far:

Erika Pernecky Makes Deans List

2007-06-11T15:14:00.001-04:00

I just heard that my sister made the Dean's List at Governor's State University again, so I thought I would take this time to give her a shout out, and say "way to go, sis!"

So, uhhh, WAY TO GO, SIS!!!!

Besides that, I've got nothing. Oh...90 DAYS UNTIL GAME 1 OF 2007 CHICAGO BEARS FOOTBALL!!! Hello to Rex Grossman, as he is a regular reader of this blog. Surprised you guys didn't know that. I heart Rexy!

Berries!

2007-06-06T10:13:00.001-04:00

I was reading my Men's Health magazine and they said all sorts of berries are in season RIGHT NOW, and usually are every year in June and July. Yes this may be obvious to some people, but I'm glad they brought it to my attention This is good for a few reasons:

1) Berries are high in antioxidants, so they're very good for you!

2) In season = they're at they're peak of taste!

3) In season = lowest prices of the year!

Ally and I just picked up strawberries (the biggest I've seen in a long time, and they're are SOOOO good!) raspberries, and some blueberries. OH SO GOOD!

So get out there and berry up!

My FREE Xbox 360 Elite!

2007-06-05T16:45:00.000-04:00

Thank you to all who made this possible (and you know who you are)! Below is a picture of my new, FREE, Xbox 360 Elite from getting 10 people to complete 1 offer each!

For those of you that didn't think this was true, I will see you on Xbox Live with my Gamertag Perno!

If you would like to do the same thing as me, just sign up here on the link below. Any questions? Email me at mikepernecky ({shift2 )) hotmail [d0t) co/\/\.

http://www.360Elite4free.com/index.php?ref=3868223

This picture courtesy of Ally P, RD.

Food Porn

2007-05-17T16:28:00.000-04:00

Here's what my buddy at work Robert had for lunch today. Looks pretty good, no? He eats like this daily, but he stays under 200 pounds.

The Saga Continues

2007-05-15T10:22:00.001-04:00

I'm on the road to recovery, and here's a picture of the robocop boot I'm supposed to wear for the next 6 weeks. I've already attempted a bathroom break, and everything went swimmingly, thank goodness.

In other news, Jonesy's brother just moved down to Florida, and packed his Xbox 360, so Jonesy has officially been introduced to the next generation of gaming. Hooray!

Mother Earth is Not an Ashtray

2007-05-13T21:43:00.001-04:00

Whenever someone strongly supports recycling - and is a cigarrette smoker - I wonder if they think about the estimated two billion cigarette butts that are tossed on the ground every day. Do they know that the filters are non-biodegradable? A good read for the fight against this often overlooked form of littering.

read more | digg story

My Bone Contusion (Bruise) FAQ

2007-05-09T14:10:00.001-04:00

So, the verdict is in...I just got a call from the doctor with the results of my MRI I did this morning. Turns out I have 2 bad bone bruises (or stress responses) in the 3rd and 4th metatarsal bones of my foot. It doesn't sound serious, but he said a lot of bone bruises ultimately lead to stress fractures, so luckily mine did not get to that point.

Just a bone bruise? That's it??!? Yes, a bone bruise, just like famous NFL players Shaun Alexander of the Seattle Seahawks (which led to a broken foot since he overused it) and Anquan Boldin of the Arizona Cardinals. Both of them missed a few games because of their bone bruises.

What is a bone bruise? Bone bruises are also known as periosteal bruises. The most painful bruises, they can sometimes take months to heal. What happens in a bone bruise is a compressive force pushes the in on itself. When this happens the outer layer of the bone, which is fibrous, breaks down. This leads to leaking of fluid.

How did it happen? I'm not positive, but I believe it was from a time in October when I was running (almost sprinting) with my Pug Dempsey for about a half mile while wearing flip flops. I don't normally do that, but it just so happened that the next morning I could hardly walk, so that's a pretty good indication to me.

How long will it take to heal? The doc says I will need to be in a walking cast / boot for about 6 weeks. I'll be getting fitted for it tomorrow hopefully, and then be pain-free in a month and a half after wearing it. It should smell awesome during this Florida heat!

You're so hot, are you married? Yes, happily.

Any other questions? Feel free to email me! Thank you for your concern!

Found a good article on bone bruises as well:

http://www.nba.com/cavaliers/news/TT_bone_bruises_040712.html

Beard: "Very Nice"?

2007-04-20T13:03:00.000-04:00

So I'm growing a bit of a beard in support of the Tampa Bay Lightning and their current playoff run. Not sure how they're related, but it makes me feel like part of the team. So, is it naughty or nice? Obviously female opinion matters more than male but please feel free to comment either way. Toodles!

Don't Be Afraid

2007-04-12T14:05:00.001-04:00

It's recently been brought to my attention that there are people reading my blog but not commenting for fear of something. Whether your fear is rejection, manipulation, emasculation, or penetration, I welcome all thoughts. So please, if I write anything that doesn't make you dumber for having read it (or even if it does) then by all means, blow up the comment section! Hungarians need not apply (thank you Stephen Colbert)!

Free Xbox 360

2007-04-05T23:23:00.000-04:00

Ok, here we go...I'm sucking up some pride and asking everyone that reads this to take 10 mins out of your day to check this out. Here's what to do:

1) Click this link, and you'll be taken to the site www.360Elite4free.com, but it's my referral link so that I get credit for when you sign up. They don't require any info besides the standard address, email, etc. They haven't sent me any spam at all yet, so they seem to be a pretty good company.

2) When signing up, you'll be asked if you would like a Referral Account or Points Account. I choose Referral Account since it's easier and a better deal, so go ahead and pick that one. You can change in the future if you'd like.

3) After signing up, you should complete an "offer". I've had 5 people complete offers so far, and the most popular offer was Stamps.com since it doesn't require any initial investment. Stamps.com is a website that allows you to print REAL postage from your printer at home with their proprietary software.

4) To complete the Stamps.com offer, just click on the Stamps.com offer, fill out the info along with your credit card information (they need this in case you would like to stay as a member after your free 30 day trial), then download the Stamps.com application. Open the program, print out a stamp or a mailing label, and you're done!

After that, make sure to call Stamps.com to cancel your account, unless you would like to keep your account, then by all means please do.

5) Other offers my friends did were Blockbuster.com, Gamefly.com (game rentals) and Netflix.com.

6) That's it! If you want to get a free Xbox 360 or a free gift card, then just have some of your friends or family sign up for an offer through your referral link, and you're on your way! I got my first 5 referrals in a matter of 2 days, you just have to make a list of people that may be willing to help you, and contact them about it.

Any questions? Please email me at mikepernecky (shift2) gmail d0t com, or just call my cell phone if you know me. Thanks for your help, it's GREATLY appreciated!

Garlic Chicken for Lunch! Whoooooooo!

2007-04-04T11:56:00.001-04:00

Chicks and Cell Phones

2007-03-24T12:15:00.000-04:00

So I was in my "special office" yesterday at work (usually this takes
place daily from about 10am to 10:30 or 10:45am depending on what I
ate/drank the night before) where I usually get some of my best
thinking done.

I brought my cell phone into the loo with me to keep me company,
because I never know what/who I may need to Google/text/picture
message (ewww!) from the head. As I was taking out my cell phone to
get the Internet all up and going, while simultaneously pulling down
my knickers, I thought to myself, "wow, that would really be terrible
to drop this pretty little phone (Samsung SGH-T629 slider from
T-Mobile) into that excrement-infested water below, but I've never
really even come close to it luckily."

Just then, I began thinking of everyone I know that has dropped their
cell phone into the crapper by accident. "Ok, there's her, then that
one girl, and my good friend *****...huh that's weird, a bunch of
girls." Now I'm not really a social butterfly, I keep in touch with a
couple people from college and high school, and I've even made some
delicious new friends here in Florida, but everyone I knew that's had
the problem of the ol' "Dropped the Celly in the Stinkwater" was a
girl!

Can someone back me up here? Are there any guys out there that have
had the misfortune of watching your personal lifeline to the rest of
the world take a plunge into the deep, cold depths of a pooper?

Maybe it's because girls always have to sit when they "eliminate" so
there's more of a chance of that happening, but I'm not taking that as
a valid excuse. Holla at me, Mike Pernecky (shameless attempt to up
my Google ranking) and PLEASE leave a comment, ya dig?!?!?

Super Bears, Super Bowl!!!

2007-01-21T22:16:00.000-05:00

Unbelievable, I can't believe the Chicago Bears will be playing in Miami
for Super Bowl XLI.  This has been a great season, full of excitement.
Sure, backing Rex Grossman is like riding a roller coaster, but it's a
great time anyways!

Here's to hoping the Bears can take down the Indianapolis Colts and
achieve a Super Bowl championship for the great city of Chicago.  It's
always been a Bears town! :)

Interesting side note: this will be the first Super Bowl with one black
coach, much less two black coaches.

Oh, and if you're a Bears fan like I am, you may want to download their
fight song.  Here's a link to where I found it:
http://www.chicagobearsbandwagon.com/beardown.htm
RIGHT click on "Bear Down MP3", then click "Save Link As" or
something similar, and decide where to save it on your computer.

Good luck and GO BEARS!!!

Lyrics to "Bear Down, Chicago Bears":

Bear Down, Chicago Bears.
Make every play clear the way to victory!
Bear Down, Chicago Bears.
Put up a fight with a might so fearlessly!

We'll never forget the way you thrilled the nation,
With your T formation.

Bear Down, Chicago Bears.
And let them know why you're wearing the crown.

You're the pride and joy,
of all Illinois.

Chicago Bears, Bear Down!!!

Microwaving as art

2007-01-21T22:15:00.000-05:00

Let's cut to the chase...I microwave a lot of food. It takes of lot
of carbs, fats, proteins, and alcohol to maintain my slim and trim
weight of 240 lbs. Luckily, most alcohol doesn't have to be heated up
so I stick to microwaving those other calorie contributors.

For the longest time I've put my foods in the microwave, punched in a
few minutes on the display of the glorious magic heating box, and let
the little guy work it's magic. Most of the time I'd have to stir my
food halfway through the process to help my sweet microwaving buddy
heat my food more thoroughly.

I'm writing today more as a Public Service Announcement than
anything....so here's the announcement: DON'T BE AFRAID OF YOUR
MICROWAVE POWER SETTINGS!!! Sure, we've all tooled around with these
settings at one point or another, whether it be a Hungry Man meal or
two, or even a Lean Cuisine for you ladies out there! Unfortunately,
I have yet to meet anyone that regularly adjusts the power settings to
achieve optimal levels of food heating. Well if you're reading this,
then please do me a favor and start spreading the word...the power
settings are actually useful!

For instance, I usually do my microwaving at work, heating up all the
delicious leftovers my little wife makes for us (thanks
Giada!)...she's quite the catch! Anywho, the other day I had 4 pieces
of marinated flank steak, a big spoonful of mac 'n cheese with
chicken, and 3 meatballs to top it off. All I did was set the
microwave to about 4:30 or 5 mins, pressed start, and dropped the
power setting to 5 out of 10. All that does is turn the magnetron
(the device that transmits the heatwaves into your food) on for 5/10
(or 1/2) of the time, and off for 5/10 of the time, going between the
on/off every :15 seconds or so. If you have 6/10, the magnetron stays
on a little longer than it stays off, and 4/10 stays off longer than
on. You get the picture.

I could go on and on about this, but I can't stress enough...even
though this might add a minute or so to your microwaving, it will be
worth it in the long run. Go ahead, give it a shot...don't be afraid
of those power settings...they're there for a reason!

Dieting

2007-01-09T16:39:00.000-05:00

I want to start off by saying I'm an overweight ( 6' 1", 240lbs on a bad day) 27 year old man with high cholesterol, high triglycerides (both of which I'm on medication for), and slowly-reaching-high blood pressure. I may not be of the highest authority to offer my opinion on a person's "diet".

Now here's the other side - I've been in constant contact with some sort of nutrition professional (Dietitian or Nutritionist) since I've been about 14 years old. It started with my mom taking me to a Dietitian because of my triglyceride problem, and now I'm married to the cutest little RD (registered Dietitian) you ever-did-see. [Quick side note - if you think I'm spelling Dietician wrong, it's actually spelled Dietitian, ask the American Dietetic Association, www.eatright.org ] I've also been a subscriber to Men's Health magazine on and off for almost 10 years. So I learned all of the in's and out's of the Nutrition Facts labels on foods, I know a lot about what foods are good for you, what you should stay away from, all the details on good fats, bad fats, trans fats, fats fats, you name it.

My downfall (the reason I'm a bit of a chubber) is portion control. Instead of having 2 slices of pizza, I go for 4. Instead of having one breadstick at the Olive Garden, I engulf between 4 and 6. Usual exchange between Johnny Olive Garden and myself: "More breadsticks sir?" "Keep 'em coming, I don't feel like I'm about to explode yet, so there must be plenty more room!"

Anyways the whole reason I'm writing this is because of all these fad diets that everyone has been talking about since the beginning of time. I'm not going to harp on any particular diet (Atkins, South Beach, Grapefruit), I'd rather lump them all together. In the beginning, the word "diet" just meant "food and drink regularly provided or consumed" or simply "habitual nourishment" (thanks to www.m-w.com!) So, really, a diet is just what you eat every day. You know, like a penguin's diet consists of fish and cupcakes, or a flamingo's diet consists of shrimp (that's where they get their pink color), or my diet consists of beer and pizza during the NFL season.

Anyways, here's my main point of this whole deal...if you choose to go on a diet, make sure it is something you're willing to stick to for the rest of your life. IF YOU CAN'T SEE YOURSELF NEVER EVER EVER EATING HAMBURGERS AGAIN, then don't go on a no-hamburger diet. A "diet" should not be something to lose a quick 10 lbs, and then you'll keep the weight off by going back to your normal activities. Guess what? Most people never keep that weight off. The most successful people are the ones who embrace the lifestyle change and make the commitment to eat better for the rest of their lives, and stay active while doing it.

Is your dog overweight? I'm guessing you're probably overweight as well. My dog is about 2lbs overweight (she's only 20 lbs) so we have to change our lifestyles together! Let's do it!!!!!

Ok, I'm off my soapbox. Here's hoping I'm watching the Bears play in Miami in February.

Cakey Crisis!

2006-12-27T14:18:00.000-05:00

Earlier today, Matt Osikowicz threatened to revoke the Honorary Cakey Membership bestowed upon us (my wife and I) by the residents of Cakey Manor during our trip to Asheville, NC. Luckily, my quick-thinking wife diffused the situation quickly, and our relationship has been salvaged.

Thank goodness. Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year!

Long Live The Cakey's!!!

Text Messaging Through Email

2006-12-20T11:39:00.000-05:00

Sending SMS through email is very, very easy.

Sometimes it's easier to text message someone via e-mail, especially if you're sitting at work and don't want to take the time to type out a whole text message on your cell phone

T-Mobile:

phonenumber

tmomail.net

Virgin Mobile:

phonenumber

vmobl.com

Cingular:

phonenumber

cingularme.com

Sprint:

phonenumber

messaging.sprintpcs.com

Verizon:

phonenumber

vtext.com

Nextel:

phonenumber

messaging.nextel.com

phonenumber

your 10 digit phone number

you can try this universal service.

Got this info from www.tech-recipes.com

2006-12-16T16:21:00.000-05:00

So we got a new dog for Christmas! She is a gift from each of us to each other. Her name is Stella and she is a long-haired Chihuahua. She's been with us for less than 24 hours, but she's making herself at home already! Here's a cute pic of her followed by a picture of her new big sister...

Outback Steakhouse Jingle

2006-10-20T14:30:00.000-04:00

I am very excited to announce I found out where the Outback Steakhouse jingle came from. You know, the one that goes "Let's go Outback tonight, life will still be there tomorrow."

Apparently the original song is by a band named "of Montreal" (out of Athens, GA oddly enough) and the title of the song is "Wraith Pinned to the Mist (and Other Games)". I got the album, and it's pretty frickin' good! I would say it's a mix of Modest Mouse and New Order. I would recommend giving them a try.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Of_Montreal

While doing my research, I also found out they were one of the bands one a "Music from the O.C." CD, Mix 5.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_from_the_OC:_Mix_5

I've got some new critter pictures as well, but just haven't had the time to update. Sorry to my 1 fan out there (me)!