End of Creation - A Poem by Thomas Brogan

End of Creation
by: Thomas Brogan

There will come a day when we will all have to choose.
Some of us will win, some will lose.

The choice will be simple to decide our fate,
Will we choose to keep peace of succumb to the hate?

When the leaders come together and hear us speak,
Will they be happy, or slap us on the cheek?

There may be one final stand for human survival,
It will take on faithful person to lead the revival.

Will we overcome the power and the fear?
Can we beat the awesome odds and find a cure?

When the cities have finally fallen to the ground,
A mushroom cloud of destruction will be seen all around.

The Earth will be a dark and desolate place,
Only the true believers will be saved, as they seek His face.

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Ginger - A Natural Cure for Motion Sickness

So this past weekend I took my daughter to Adventureland to ride some rides and to relive my childhood glory. One of my concerns was now that I’m older, spinning rides and I don’t get along too well. I definitely wasn’t going to take Dramamine, because the last time I took that on a Cruise Ship I was a tired walking zombie. So I decided to go a more natural route. I went with a Ginger Pill. I had read in my Natural Health Magazine* that if you take a 250mg pill at least 15 minutes before your activity you should be covered. Well the only ginger pills I had around were 550mg, so I figured the more the better.

So we got to the park and one of the first rides my daughter wanted to ride was the Teacups. If you aren’t familiar with these, it’s basically a large tea cup that spins and spins. So a good first test. The results…………. No issues at all! My daughter had a blast, I had a blast and no motion sickness or nausea. So the next time you are looking to avoid nausea from motion sickness, give Ginger a try.

*Tests conducted on the television shows Mythbusters and Food Detectives also support the theory that Ginger is an effective treatment for the nausea caused by motion sickness.

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Chick-fil-A Bites At Home - The Best Thing Ever!

I came home to a wonderful surprise Monday after work! My wife had just fried up some of the best tasting Chicken I have ever had! She found the recipe at the Iowa Girl Eats Website. The secret this wonderful dinner is letting the chicken soak in a marinade that includes pickle juice. This is essential because one of the great part of the Chick-fil-A sandwiches is the taste of pickle. So each little chicken bite tastes like sandwich with a pickle! Brilliant! Here's the Recipe, we omitted the dipping sauce used in the original recipes because they are so good that they don't even need any dip!

Ingredients:

2 large chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces and seasoned with salt & pepper
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup pickle juice
1 egg
1 1/4 cups flour
2 Tablespoons powdered sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup peanut oil, divided (or canola or vegetable oil)


Directions:

1. Whisk together egg, milk and pickle juice, and pour into a large ziplock bag or bowl. Add chicken pieces and marinate in the refrigerator for 2-4 hours.

2. Combine flour, powdered sugar, salt and pepper in a large ziplock bag. Shake to combine. Remove chicken from the marinade and add into the bag. Shake to coat the chicken completely.

3. Heat half the oil in a large skillet or dutch oven over medium-high heat (6 or 7 out of 10.) Test the oil by dropping in a bit of the flour mixture. If it sizzles, the oil is ready, if it pops, lower the temperature a bit.

4. Gently place chicken pieces into the oil with tongs. Do this in 2 batches, as you don’t want to overcrowd the pan. Cook the chicken for 3-4 minutes, or until golden brown on one side. Turn the chicken over and allow to cook for 3-4 more minutes. Remove to a paper-towel lined plate. Heat the remaining oil and continue with the other half of the chicken pieces.

ENJOY!

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Couples Need Balance - My Guest Commentary

I was given the opportunity a couple of weeks ago to guest write for an article in the Des Moines Register. The title of the article was "Couples Need Balance". Here is my commentary from the article. To read the entire article click here.

“It’s funny how much your relationship changes when you have children. It’s almost as if you become one of the children to your wife, or at best, you are Lieutenant Daddy, just another soldier in the ranks that Major Mommy has to account for in the war we call ‘raising kids.’ One of the more notable changes is just getting some time with my wife. After spending eight hours of her day with a 1- and 3-year-old hanging all over her, the thing she wants most is some personal space. This means ‘Sorry Daddy, you will have to wait.’ Major Mommy also needs a break after a long day with the kids. So when I get home from work, the Major gets a break and the Lieutenant gets a set of orders. If I’m lucky, it was a good day and I open the door to a quiet house and a small set of orders. But, when there is a bad day, it’s like World War III erupting. I can usually hear the screaming and crying as I pull in. Should I just stay in the garage? I walk in, get mobbed by my two kids … and the orders begin. Set the table, pick up toys, put the clothes in the dryer and give me 50 push-ups. Fifty push-ups, maybe I exaggerate, but you get the idea. So, what can you, as a dad, do to combat being pushed aside for the kids and being designated as a common soldier? How can you become a partner again? I suggest two things. First, don’t take your wife’s actions or comments personally. This is no time to be sensitive. Let your ego go and try to be more understanding of the stress she endures. Second thing is to take charge. Don’t just go with the flow. Don’t wait for orders. Start doing things before you are told and watch how you regain your partnership and have a healthier relationship with your wife. You might even get that cuddle time again.”

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Looking Back - Some of my Favorite Blogs from Years Past

I have been blogging since 2004! I decided to take a look back and find a few of my favorite blog posts over the years.

The Fridge

Free Beer at the Mall

The Red Hat Ladies

The Drinking Fountain Incident

Pizza Delivery and Cops

The Long Ride Home

The Colgate Curse

Bathroom Memoirs

Turning 30

Thank God for My Keychain

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Lottery Tickets - The Worst Gift Idea?

Sometimes people will throw Lottery tickets in a with a card as part of a gift. For two reasons this is just plain crazy to me. 1. If that person doesn't win anything, you have just given them a useless piece of paper. What kind of gift is that? It's like giving them nothing. 2. What if they do win? What if they win big? Let's say $100,0000. That could have been you! All you had to do was keep the ticket for yourself. I wouldn't be able to handle that. I would eventually go crazy living with that on my mind. So take my advice. The next time you are running short on time and think about slipping in some lottery tickets with your gift...... Don't! Just give the person the $1.00 you would have spent on it and save your sanity.

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Chicken Nuggets or McNuggets?

I just got home from picking up some food at Wendy's. I love Wendy's because they have the 99 cent menu that includes a 5 piece chicken nugget. For some reason though, every time I order the nuggets I say "Chicken Mcnuggets", which we all know is what McDonald's calls them. I stop and try again but I can't not say "MC" in front of the nugget. Am I the only one who does this?

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Suitcase on Wheels?

Have you seen the people that take luggage to work with them? You know those suitcases on wheels that you can pull behind you. What are these people bringing to work? Their paperweight collection? What can really be that heavy that you would need a suitcase?
To me this would be too much like going on vacation. I think if I started taking luggage to work it would totally ruin my whole vacation experience. Every time I was pulling my suitcase in the airport it would feel like I am going to work! Who wants that?

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Three Sheets to the Wind - What Does this Mean?

Have you ever heard the expression that a person is "Three sheets to the wind"? It means that a person is very drunk. But where did this expression come from and what does it mean? Here's what I found out:

"To understand this phrase we need to enter the arcane world of nautical terminology. Sailors' language is, unsurprisingly, all at sea and many supposed derivations have to go by the board. Don't be taken aback to hear that sheets aren't sails, as landlubbers might expect, but ropes (or occasionally, chains). These are fixed to the lower corners of sails, to hold them in place. If three sheets are loose and blowing about in the wind then the sails will flap and the boat will lurch about like a drunken sailor.

The phrase is these days more often given as 'three sheets to the wind', rather than the original 'three sheets in the wind'.

Sailors at that time had a sliding scale of drunkenness; three sheets was the falling over stage; tipsy was just 'one sheet in the wind', or 'a sheet in the wind's eye'."

So there you have it. Now we have to figure out "What do you do with a Drunken Sailor early in the morning".

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Wet Plastic = Anger - From The Archives

(Originally Posted 9/3/06)
I don't ask for too many things in my life. But for once, I would like to open up my dishwasher and see a new sight. All I want is to have my Tupperware and other plastic items to be dry! Everytime, it's the same old thing. I pick up the piece of Tupperware and water dribbles all over. Either that or there is a big puddle on top of my favorite plastic Iowa State mug. What I don't understand is...... It has an option for "Heated Dry". Shouldn't this take care of the problem? I know this isn't an isolated event. I have used over 10 dishwashers, all with the same effect.

If someone knows of a dishwasher that guarantees to dry tupperware please let me know! I am willing to pay large sums of money. Just help me get a piece of dry Tupperware!

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Uncomfortable Return - From the Archives

(Originally Posted 6/1/06)
Well, I did it again this morning. I seem to fall into the same trap on a daily basis. A trap set by my self. I opened the door to my car this morning to head for work. Of course I was only half awake (like a zombie pretty much). I slowly put the key in and started the Ion up. Then............... BLAST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! No it wasn't a car bomb planted by a member of the Corleone family, it was my radio turned up to a point where it felt like my ears were going to bleed. What was I thinking when I pulled my car into the garage the night before?
Isn't it strange that the music didn't seem so loud the night before, but now it just made me insane in the membrane. Another one of life's mysteries. I guess I could just get in the habit of turning off the radio when I leave the car..... But that would be too easy. :)

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The Athena Project - Another Gem from Brad Thor

I just finished reading another great book by Brad Thor today. In Thor’s latest book The Athena Project, four of Delta’s best and brightest women are about to undertake one of the nation’s deadliest assignments. Introduced briefly in a previous Thor book, Foreign Influence, the girls of Athena are back again, kicking butt and protecting the United States. This book has something for both men and women to enjoy and I would recommend this to everyone. I really enjoyed how the book uses bit of WWII history and ties them into modern war on terror. It’s a quick read, and you will find yourself staying up all night to finish it. But don’t despair when you are done. The book sets itself up for a sequel to follow and I’ve seen rumors posted around the web about a possible movie deal!

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Breakfast Cereal - From the Archives

(Originally Posted 5/23/05)
I'm curious if I'm the only one who does this? After I pour a bowl of cereal into the bowl, I put the box down next to me at the table. If I have no paper to read, I will read the entire cereal box, from nutritional information to ingredients. I do this every time I eat cereal. I could have the same box of Lucky Charms for a week straight and still read that stupid box every time I eat it. If you ask me to remember what is says......no clue! Somehow when I eat cereal, my brain goes to a far off galaxy where it can't retain information. Does anyone else relate?

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I Ordered a Glass of Water..... Not Lemon Water

I don't understand why restaurants insist on putting lemon wedges in my water without me asking. Shouldn't they only put the lemon in my water if I ask. Since when did water just come with lemon in it? Sure, I could fish out the piece of lemon, but by that point the water has been tainted. Not to mention the fact that lemon wedges have a high level of bacteria from being prepared by workers not wearing gloves. Now, if you want to throw a lemon wedge in my Bacardi Limon and Seven go ahead. In that case the alcohol is hopefully killing off all the bacteria. Cheers!

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The Colgate Curse - From the Archives

(Originally Posted 11/15/06) If you are like me, you brush your teeth two times a day or maybe even more. The "Colgate Curse" applies to the morning brush. This is the brush before you are exposed to the world, and nobody wants to introduce Mr. Morning Breath to everyone. Keep in mind, this may only happen to me, so I need your feedback.
So there I am, finishing up brushing, spitting out that last mouthful of water and then wiping off my face of any excess toothpaste. I look in the mirror and I think to myself, "There is one good-looking guy, with some minty fresh breath to say the least". But, I have made a fatal error... I have forgotten about......"THE COLGATE CURSE"! It usually doesn't hit you until an hour later. You are sitting at work and notice a white paste on your pants.
What is that? That has to be toothpaste. Right?! What was I doing last in these pants? Hmmm.. Then you try to take some water and rub out the white stain.... IT ONLY MAKES IT WORSE. Now the stain has spread out even more. What will others think? AHHHHH, "The Colgate Curse" has gotten me again!
Did I make you look at your pants for a white stain?

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Are Those Real? - From The Archives

(Originally Posted 5/2/05)
I think I know what it feels like to be a woman with fake breasts. How can this be possible? I get asked on a daily basis, "Are those real?" Yes they are and thank you for asking. Of course this comment is being directed towards my eyes, not my breasts. It's nice to be complimented on something, but when that is the only thing you hear, over and over again.....it gets old. I know that there are many others of you out there. You have the perfect hair, the perfect butt, or something that everyone always makes a comment on. It's strange how someone trying to be nice to you can actually annoy you.

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Bears at Merle Hay Mall?

Never thought I would see a bear and other wildlife at the mall, but I guess I was wrong. Thanks to the Red Rock Wildlife Education Center at Merle Hay Mall the next time you are shopping for that new outfit, you can also check out some wildlife. Admission is only a $1.00. A good chance to show the kids some animals they don't see everyday.
I know one thing for sure, I would hate to be the one carrying around a pretzel and soda, from the food court, when one of those bears got loose!

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The Most Interesting Man in the World eats at Viva La Bamba in Urbandale?

No, I'm talking about me. This past weekend when I walked into Viva La Bamba Mexican restaurant, who did I bump into? None other than the Most Interesting Man in the World. And if that wasn't cool enough, he was wearing a sombrero. Okay, it wasn't the real guy, it was a cardboard cutout, but still pretty awesome. Which gives you just another reason to eat at Viva La Bamba (see earlier review here).
Just for some fun, here are some great quotes from the Most Interesting Man in the World commercials:
"He is the life of parties he never attended."
"He once had an awkward moment, just to see how it feels."
"He's won trophies for his game face alone."
"His words carry weight that would break a less interesting man's jaw."
"If he were to punch you in the face, you would have to fight off the irresistible urge to thank him".
"His mother has a tattoo that reads 'son'".
"At museums he is allowed to touch the art."
"Sharks have a week dedicated to him."
"He can speak French, in Russian."
"He bowls overhand."

Stay thirsty my friends!

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Silos and Smokestacks Signs - Say What?

Have you ever seen the Silos and Smokestack signs along the interstate while driving? This sign (see picture) is on northbound I-35 in West Des Moines, approaching I-80 and I-235. I drive by it all the time and always wonder what it means. Are we talking nuclear silos, or corn silos? After a quick search here's what I found out:
Silos & Smokestacks National Heritage Area preserves and tells the story of American agriculture and its global significance through partnerships and activities that celebrate the land, people, and communities of the area.

Considered yourself enlightened.

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Some Bling for Your Belly - From the Archives

(Originally Posted 10/25/06) Much like champagne, Goldschlager has a reputation as a celebration drink. It is touted by style consultants for its ability to increase one's inner bling. Goldschlager actually has little flakes of gold floating around in it. For those of you who don’t know, Goldschlager is hard liquor that has a cinnamon taste.
So one night my friend and I were drinking some Goldschlager with some Bailey’s Irish Crème (Oatmeal Cookie). After a few drinks I noticed that both full bottles were gone. This is when things started to get interesting. My friend began to feel sick to her stomach. She stumbled and fell to the ground. She then proceeded to vomit all over the wall. By this time I was feeling a little gross myself and went to bed. The next morning I woke up and noticed that something shiny was on the wall. The gold flakes had stayed stuck on the wall where the vomit was. Wow. I now had a gold wall. It just goes to show, drinking does pay off sometimes!

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