Illinoiskating Takes Silver at Nationals!

That's right.........Silver medal at Nationals! That would be 2nd in the country!!!! (I really hate when exclamation points are overused but I can't help myself in this situation!) Nobody expected it. Except, maybe, just maybe, the girls. They work so hard all year long to travel all over the country to prove themselves in a four minute skate. Four minutes. That's it. Not 9 innings, not a half, not 3 periods, not 4 quarters, not 18, 36 or 72 holes. 4 minutes. There is no coming back in the second half. It's now or never. You have to be on and they were in every sense. The Collegiate division is changing. Here comes University of Illinois Illinoiskating! It was such a close competition. Close between second and fourth place. Miami Ohio took first, they always do. Hard to compete with the Redhawks. But this is the first time ever the University of Illinois has medaled at Nationals and the first time they have ever beaten Michigan State and Delaware, both skating powerhouses. The Illini's skating program has only been around since 2001 and is already making the skating community take notice. They certainly did this weekend. Illinoiskating was the talk of Collegiate division. This victory may even help Illinoiskating's argument for Varsity status. Let's cross our fingers. That's Lauren, front row, second from right.

We are so proud of our daughter. Not only this but straight As last semester and on track for more of the same this semester. Lauren works so hard at everything she does and she deserves this so much. What great fun to be a proud parent.



In other news (as if there really is any! Ok, ok, I'll quit with the exclamation points.):

Dad is hanging in there with the chemo, etc. It has been rough recently but I'm hoping we are on a better path now.

Going down to Cadiz soon for a few weeks. Looking forward to spending some time with family and with my honey. We have lots of visitors coming and going so it should be a good time. Rick and I also got a fishing guide for one day. Then we are sure to catch some fishies.

The Girl's are coming in for my bday. Always a crazy ass time with them. On the agenda so far are limos and lobster and champagne, Corona for Col, and Hawthorne. Can't have a Girl's weekend without a little horsey action.

Marc is graduating from Tulane University's School of Law on May 16th. Wow. Three years, gone already. I'm sure Marc would argue the swiftness of those years.

Ozzy survived the lamb chop episode. Darn.

We miss Audrey. Maybe I can sneak over for a visit this week.

GW '08

Hard to believe that we survived another Girl's Weekend. Nancy was the "Hostess with the Mostest" this time around and I must say she rocked ass. We all arrived in Lexington on Thursday night and serious eating and drinking ensued. Shocking, I know. Spent the day Friday taking a tour of Darley Farms where last year's Kentucky Derby winner, Street Sense, is now a serious stud. No kidding, three times a day, everyday for six months. Then they ship him off to Australia for the other six months, again, three times a day. That's the kind of stud I'm talkin' about! From Darley we were off to Keeneland for the last day of Spring Thoroughbred Racing. After a fabulous tailgate we headed in to bet on the ponies. Sad to say there were no big winners that day. Back to Nancy's Lost Creek Farm for cocktails and dinner. Pasta night, YUM! Saturday was the Rolex Three Day Event at the Kentucky Horse Park where we scored the most awesome parking spot. Crazy shit that eventing. It takes an average of 11 minutes to complete the course with the horses running an average of 21 mph jumping over jumps almost as big as my house. There were two horses that were injured in Saturday's competition that ultimately had to be put down. Very sad. Once the bloody mary booth closed for the day we split and headed back to Nancy's for shrimp on the barbie. We've learned over the years that as much as we love each other, we really can't take more than three days together. Sunday rolled around and it was time to head home. We dropped Colleen off at the Louisville airport and Nancy, Lene and I headed to Churchill Downs where I hit the exacta in the 2nd race for some serious cash. We could have stayed there all day but needed to get home. Long drive back to Chicago but we arrived safe and sound. To view all the pictures from Girl's Weekend, click here.

There is nothing better than spending some quality time with my girls. I've known Nancy and Colleen since 7th grade and Lene since I was 17. I would go to the ends of the earth for these women and they would do the same for me. Many people never have a "best friend" but I have three (4 counting K-Ho!) who I wouldn't trade for wine anything.

In other news:

Still not smoking but getting fatter by the second.

Justin turned 35 yesterday, even he is getting old! Happy belated bday dude.

Lauren finishes up her first year of college next week. That went fast.

The rabbits ate all my tulips again this year. Bastards!

My new camera sucks. I'm going to try and take it back to Best Buy. Wish me luck.

A Dub

What a weekend. We all had a great time in spite of all the obstacles. The first obstacle came before we even left my house. The car was all packed, Colleen and Karla waiting in the car. I opened my car door and heard a big POP. I closed the door to investigate and, lo and behold, the bottom panel of my car door fell off! That's right. Fell right the fuck off. K-Ho to the rescue with the double sided carpet tape and scissors and we're off. (That carpet tape worked the entire trip there and back.) We arrived safely at the lake house only to find that the boat lift isn't working. Turns out it was the outlet on the dock that wasn't working. After a short trip to the "Do It Best" hardware store in Cadiz for a heavy duty extension cord to run up to the house, the boat was afloat and we were off to the beach. The rest of the weekend was uneventful for the most part. However, we did learn a few things.

• We never have anything good to eat or drink
• Mikey must always wear her PFD near the water
• We will never have "Girl's Weekend 2007" t-shirts, or the like
• We are all willing to take one for the team unless it involves John L
• Always have Pepsid on hand
• Nobody beats Mikey on garbage patrol
• Nobody beats Col at A Dub
• K-Ho is an awesome bartender
• We all love the word "CRAP"
• None of us know anyone with the names Paprika or Coriander
• Kentuckians seem to like Eminem, no matter how loud we blast it

Girl's weekend in New Mexico next year. I'm off to rehab. The Ingalls bus should be here momentarily.