February 27, 2011

Avery's 2011 Basketball Tournament


Avery's 2011 Basketball Tournament
Shortarmguy's Diary for February 27, 2011



Our week started miserably with more than 22 inches of snow falling on our house within a 24 hour period.  Poor Miss Sheri had to really work hard to keep that driveway cleaned throughout the weekend!


Krazy Kory and Young Master Ben came to town this weekend to celebrate Ben's entrance into the Kingdom of Man.  Otherwise known as his 17th birthday.  I told Ben to be sure not to wear this shirt for his yearbook photo otherwise he may end up like this poor kid seen here.



Not knowing where to take a young stud for such an important occasion, we finally decided on going to a high school basketball game in Prior Lake.  I figured it would be a good place for him to pick up high school girls.  Sadly, his success rate wasn't the greatest.  I think his chances would have been much better if he didn't have to compete with his father so much for their attention.



Pretty much by the second quarter we couldn't get anyone to even sit anywhere near us.



Lucky for us, we ran into an old friend of mine, John Bornholdt.  He's pretty much a local hero throughout Prior Lake and was at the game that night to collect an award for being a really great guy.  I thought he may be able to help get people to like us.  Sadly, even with our moments spent with John, it didn't help our popularity.  So we decided to go home.



Keeping true to his name, Krazy Kory didn't want to go home and go to bed, though.  Instead he pulled out some toys that might be legal in certain states, but not necessarily in Minnesota.  I took this picture and then informed the boys that they didn't get to hold them while they went off despite Kory's attempt to light them.  Sure they called me a bad guy, but I think we have enough missing fingers in our household already.


Sunny was not a fan of the fireworks and started suffering a massive anxiety attack shortly after the activities began.  So I took the scaredy dog home.


On Saturday, we spent the whole day watching Avery play in his 6th grade basketball tournament.  His team had a good year and ended up in fourth place.



Avery was lucky to be part of such a great team this year.  We just love Coach John and Tom!!  We wish they would guide our boys through much more of life's journey and are strongly considering dropping them both off in baby baskets on their porches in the middle of the night.  We just haven't found baby baskets that are big enough yet.



Our team center, Jake, told me that he was the tallest kid in 6th grade.  Since Luke has told me before that he is one of the smallest kids in his grade, I thought this would make for a great photo opportunity!  I don't think Luke was as fond of the idea as I was.

Hockey Fun





Quote of the Week --- February 7, 2011

"My father instilled in me that if you don't see things happening the way you want them to, you get out there and make them happen."
-- Susan Powter, Author

Ken Finds an Unusual Church Sign

Good morning Mr. Todd.

I was out with my 15 year old son driving on Saturday; we pulled into the parking lot at the Catholic Church in Medford [Medford is a small town 6 miles north of Owatonna] to switch drivers. This is what was on the sign in front of the church. I was to busy later in the day to check out the folks showing up for "ass time".

Thought you mite get a kick out of this.

Enjoy the snow,  Ken

Sapporo Beer Commercial - Legendary Biru



The Finger


Leading the fight is U S Marine Gunnery Sgt. Michael Burghardt, known as 'Iron Mike' or just 'Gunny'. He is on his third tour in Iraq . He had become a legend in the bomb disposal world after winning the Bronze Star for disabling 64 IEDs and destroying 1,548 pieces of ordnance during his second tour.

Then, on September 19, he got blown up.... He had arrived at a chaotic scene after a bomb had killed four US Marines.. He chose not to wear the bulky bomb protection suit. 'You can't react to any sniper fire and you get tunnel-vision,' he explains. So, protected by just a helmet and standard-issue flak jacket, he began what bomb disposal officers term 'the longest walk', stepping gingerly into a 5 foot deep and 8 foot wide crater.

The earth shifted slightly and he saw a Senao base station with a wire leading from it. He cut the wire and used his 7 inch knife to probe the ground. 'I found a piece of red detonating cord between my legs,' he says. 'That's when I knew I was screwed.' Realizing he had been sucked into a trap, Sgt Burghardt, 35, yelled at everyone to stay back. At that moment, an insurgent, probably watching through binoculars, pressed a button on his mobile phone to detonate the secondary device below the sergeant's feet 'A chill went up the back of my neck and then the bomb exploded,' he recalls. 'As I was in the air I remember thinking, 'I don't believe they got me...' I was just ticked off they were able to do it. Then I was lying on the road, not able to feel anything from the waist down.'

His fellow Marines cut off his trousers to see how badly he was hurt. None could believe his legs were still there 'My dad's a Vietnam vet who's paralyzed from the waist down,' says Sgt Burghardt. 'I was lying there thinking I didn't want to be in a wheelchair next to my dad and for him to see me like that... They started to cut away my pants and I felt a real sharp pain and blood trickling down. Then I wiggled my toes and I thought, 'Good, I'm in business.' As a stretcher was brought over, adrenaline and anger kicked in. 'I decided to walk to the helicopter. I wasn't going to let my team-mates see me being carried away on a stretcher.' He stood and gave the insurgents who had blown him up a one-fingered salute. 'I flipped them one.. It was like, 'OK, I lost that round but I'll be back next week.'

Copies of a photograph depicting his defiance, taken by Jeff Bundy for the Omaha World-Herald, adorn the walls of homes across America and that of Col John Gronski, the brigade commander in Ramadi, who has hailed the image as an exemplar of the warrior spirit.

Sgt Burghardt's injuries - burns and wounds to his legs and buttocks - kept him off duty for nearly a month and could have earned him a ticket home... But, like his father - who was awarded a Bronze Star and three Purple Hearts for being wounded in action in Vietnam - he stayed in Ramadi to engage in the battle against insurgents who are forever coming up with more ingenious ways of killing Americans.

State Mottos

Alabama:

Hell Yes, We Have Electricity

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Alaska :

11,623 Eskimos Can't Be Wrong!

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Arizona :

But It's A Dry Heat

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Arkansas :

Literacy Ain't Everything

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California :

By 30, Our Women Have More Plastic

Than Your Honda

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Colorado :

If You Don't Ski, Don't Bother

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Connecticut :

Like Massachusetts , Only The Kennedys

Don't Own It yet

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Delaware :

We Really Do Like The Chemicals In Our Water

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Florida :

Ask Us About Our Grandkids

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Georgia :

We Put The "Fun" In Fundamentalist Extremism

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Hawaii :

Haka Tiki Mou Sha'ami Leeki Toru

(Death To Mainland Scum, Leave Your Money)

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Idaho :

More Than Just Potatoes...Well, Okay, We're Not,

But The Potatoes Sure Are Real Good

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Illinois :

Please Don't Pronounce the "S"

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Indiana :

2 Billion Years Tidal Wave Free

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Iowa :

We Do Amazing Things With Corn

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Kansas :

First Of The Rectangle States

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Kentucky :

Five Million People; Fifteen Last Names

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Louisiana :

We're Not ALL Drunk Cajun Wackos,

But That's Our Tourism Campaign

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Maine :

We're Really Cold, But We Have Cheap Lobster

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Maryland :

If You Can Dream It, We Can Tax It

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Massachusetts :

Our Taxes Are Lower Than Sweden 's (For

Most Tax Brackets)

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Michigan :

First Line Of Defense From The Canadians

and Ohio

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Minnesota :

10,000 Lakes..And 10,000,000,000,000 Mosquitoes

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Mississippi :

Come And Feel Better About Your Own State

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Missouri :

Your Federal Flood Relief Tax Dollars At Work

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Montana :

Land Of The Big Sky, The Unibomber,

Right-wing Crazies, Yellowstone, Buffalo , Elk, and Very Little Else

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Nebraska :

Ask About Our State Motto Contest

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Nevada :

Hookers and Poker!

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New Hampshire :

Go Away And Leave Us Alone

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New Jersey :

You Want A ##$%##! Motto? I Got

Yer ##$%##! Motto Right here!
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New Mexico :

Lizards Make Excellent Pets

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New York :

You Have The Right To Remain Silent,

You Have The Right To An Attorney..

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North Carolina :

Tobacco Is A Vegetable

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North Dakota :

We Really Are One of The 50 States!

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Ohio :

At Least We're Not Michigan

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Oklahoma :

Like The Play, Only No Singing

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Oregon :

Spotted Owl...It's What's For Dinner

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Pennsylvania :

Cook With Coal

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Rhode Island :

We're Not REALLY An Island

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South Carolina :

Remember The Civil War?

We Didn't Actually Surrender

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South Dakota :

Closer Than North Dakota

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Tennessee : The Educashun State

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Texas :

Sí, Hablo Ingles

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Utah :

Our Jesus Is Better Than Your Jesus

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Vermont :

Yep

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Virginia :

Who Says Government Stiffs and

Slackjaw Yokels Don't Mix?

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Washington :

We have more rain than you do

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Washington , D.C. :

Wanna Be Mayor?

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West Virginia :

One Big Happy Family...Really!

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Wisconsin :

Come Cut The Cheese

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Wyoming :

Where Men Are Men...And The Sheep Are Scared

A Black Fawn

Pictures taken by RJ Verge near Beamsville On. Canada

I have never see or heard of one of these before. What beautiful pictures.

A BLACK FAWN

If you love animals....this is a rare and beautiful set of pictures.






NO, I HAVEN'T SEEN YOUR LIPSTICK!

Why would you even ask me that?

I am so insulted!

Every time something goes missing around here,
everybody looks at me!







February 25, 2011

Prank pulled by high school kids in Montana

At a high school in Montana , a group of students played a prank - they let three goats loose in the school.

But, before turning them loose, they painted numbers on the sides of the goats: 1, 2, and 4.

School administrators spent most of the day looking for No. 3.

Now that's funny, I don't care who you are....

Trailer for Hangover 2

February 23, 2011

ET Sequel: "ET-X" (Extended Trailer)

This actually looks like it would be a really good movie.....if only it were real!

Violence warning.  A lot of comic gore by an ET gone wrong...

Red Band Trailer For Bad Teacher!

This movie looks pretty darned funny!!

Very Naughty Language Warning!!!

Safe Fracking

February 22, 2011

New Milk Carton from Wisconsin

Missing 14 Democratic Senators…..

February 20, 2011

Luke and Avery's First Band Concert --- Shortarmguy's Diary Entry for February 20, 2011


Luke and Avery's First Band Concert 
Shortarmguy's Diary Entry for February 20, 2011


On Thursday night, we had the chance to go to Luke and Avery's first band concert of their lives.  I've been so enjoying hearing the boys play their instruments at home for the past 6 months that I just couldn't wait for the opportunity to hear hundreds of 6th graders all play their instruments at the same time.  I was prepared for musical greatness!
   The boys were so excited to put on their ties and other dress clothes.  Almost as excited as they were to have their pictures taken while wearing said clothing.  Luckily, I was able to snap one photo of the both of them smiling at the same time.  The rest of the photos of them show nothing but anger.
Luke played the percussion instruments including the marimba, snare drum, and bass drum.  I also think I saw him use his sticks to hit one of the kids in front of him, but I can't be sure.



Avery played the trombone and seemed to enjoy it.  I can't be sure because when I tried to go up and see him in his section before the concert, he yelled at me and ran away before I could determine his emotional state.  That boy sure doesn't like it when I try to take his picture while he's sitting with his classmates!


On Friday night, I tried something new and went to the Canterbury Downs poker room to try my hand at some Texas Hold 'Em.  I've been playing a lot on my iPhone lately so I thought it would be fun to play against real people.  I discovered I do much better when I'm playing against the people inside my phone with fake money.




I met up with my old buddy, Jason Hornbuckle, to play cards with me and several strangers.  For some reason, Jason didn't want me to take his picture.  He's just a little shy, I guess. 



On Saturday, we took the boys and their friend, Chris, to the Mall of America. 


We had plans to have a quick bite to eat before we went to Underwater Adventures.  Sadly, every other person in the state of Minnesota thought it would be fun to go to the mall and have a bite to eat at exactly the same time.  Avery just loves waiting a half hour to be able to buy a slice of pizza!



This was the first time Chris had visited Underwater Adventures.  I think he liked it.  He probably would have liked it more had the two sharks he was looking at in this picture suddenly decided to engage in a battle to the death.  I know I would have.

Video: Michael Shoots his .45 with His Feet

Shortarmguy's Crazy Emails for February 20, 2011






















Video: The Hunt For Gollum - LOTR Prequel

Best Piece of Fan Fiction Film I've Ever Seen!!

RIO 2016 HERE WE COME!


"Solar City Tower", built atop the island of Cotonduba will be the welcome symbol to the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

It will be seen by the game visitors and participants as they arrive by air or water.

The tower, captures solar energy. It will supply energy for all of the Olympic city, as well as also for part of Rio.

It pumps up water from the ocean to create what appears like a water fall and this fall stimulates turbines that produce energy during the night.

It will also hold the Olympic flame.


The Tower possesses an amphitheatre, an auditorium, a cafeteria and boutiques. Elevators lead to various observatories. It also has a retractable plat-form for the practice of bungee jumping.

At the summit is an observation point to appreciate the scenery of the land and ocean, as well as the water fall. Solar City Tower will be the point of reference for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.