365 Days...

If you put them all side by side it feels like forever. Have you ever tried to count 365 of anything. Except for money it gets pretty boring after say 10. Try doing it, but wait exactly 60 seconds between each count.

E-T-E-R-N-I-T-Y!!!!! (Mr. Obvious says it's my ADD)

Anways...

That's how many days it's been since I packed my Wife and Son in a car and sent them out ahead of me in a trek across the country. It was the first day of the rest of our lives. We were excited, eager, ready for anything, and loved every second of it.

I'm not saying it was all roses, that would be a bold face lie. But.. man.. where we are today makes me proud to be a husband, friend, and father.

Ups & Downs... Bumps & Bruises... through it all I look at my Wife & Son and know as long as I'm on the other end of their stare, I couldn't be in a better spot.

I'm happy to say... Lori and I live, and we want our children to live like there is no tomorrow. The only reason to look back is to see what you accomplished and the excitement you've experienced.

It's a great line to follow...

Sometimes you have to just get it out

It's funny looking back at it now. When I left Texas the first time, bound for the empty landscape of Oklahoma, I knew I would be back in 2 years or less. Little did I know I'd fall in love with the place that brought me a beautiful wife, wonderful son, and a career that I have a passion for.

I can't quite call it funny just yet, but the past 12 months have taught me a lot about life. For those that don't know I left a company that was very good to me, for one that I thought had great promise. The day my wife and I made the decision, I would have bet everything I owned it wouldn't have transpired the way it has.

Today I'd give everything I own to have what's come out of it.

I don't know of any other word can describe the whole experience better than the word "sad."

unhappy, despondent, disconsolate, discouraged, gloomy, downcast, downhearted, depressed, dejected, melancholy

All defenitions of sad.

It took us moving to California to realize that the only real tie you have to family is a name, and what makes a family is the people you allow to be a part of it. That said, I've lost some and gained better ones in the past 12 months.

I'll start with the move to California, DISASTER. The whole situation. Nothing more, Nothing less.

The move back to Oklahoma, SCARY AS HELL. Neither Lori or I had a job, but we knew not having a job, and not knowing what was next, was better than what was going on in California.

Once home, our world changed. Friends we thought to be just aquaintences became like family. Family caught in the middle have emerged stronger, and my wife and I now have strength I wouldn't trade the world for.

The move to Dallas, EXCITING. We are surrounded by family. I'm working in one of the most respected newsrooms in the country. My wife will soon be a teacher in Texas, and my family will once again be together and having a ball...

The way a real family is supposed to be. Not separated by lines.

I've seen this character before

Sometimes words are just too much to describe what you are trying to say.. So I'll leave it to the images below...

Rumble, The Oklahoma City Tunder's new mascot..

















Teen Wolf - Popular 1985 movie starring Michael J. Fox










The line's a little blurred don't ya think...

It only took all day!!! Seriously...

That's a fact.. All day.. Literally... just to creat a Youtube Channel... I'm applying for jobs all over the country, and to show how savvy I am I wanted to create a Video page to display my work.

There are a couple reasons really:
1. I have the ability to learn and grow every day and this is proof.
2. It's a reel I can add to and edit everyday. I look at it like a living resume.
3. I don't have to send tapes all over the country.
4. I love learning new things, and this is an example of that passion.

That's just some of the big reasons why I created my page... I have 1 newscast that I produced and about 15 promos that I did as well. For now it's just the beginning. I will add to it. And when it's done, I'm sure I'll be able to credit it with helping me land that next step in my career.

Check it out at www.youtube.com/travinskid

I'm putting it all on the line and want to know what you think...

Run or Hide??? A decision I didn't make for myself...

Not that my story is anywhere near one of the worst from yesterday's storms, but now knowing the damage caused and lives taken, it begs the question that ran laps in my brain yesterday.

Run or Hide???

It was the first real severe storm with my son. The 'mark' I'm leaving on this world. The reason I get up every morning. The person who relies solely on my decision to stay safe and be protected. Let me tell you... Yesterday for a brief moment... I didn't know what to do other than to prepare... for both!

I'll set the stage for you... I was watching the weather reports from all stations. I was looking for specific information on where the tornado was. Depending on who you were watching, they would alternate between pictures from either the helicopter, ground crews, or radar. In my opinion, times like these call for street level radar at all times. Put the pictures in a box on the side or something, but I need to know what area is in danger and where it is on the map so I can make an informed decision. Below is the last picture I saw before my cable, phone, and internet went out..











This tornado was just a few miles from my house. I was ready to run. I put a heavy coat on Austin, the cat in the carrier, the dog on the leash and my keys in my hand. But there in that instant, without any information, I was lost.

Was it on the ground? The poor people whose houses were currently being torn up. Was mine next? All of these thoughts, and many more, screamed from every corner of my brain. I had to do something.

I fired up the DVD player and turned it up loud to keep A's attention while I frantically prepard to hide. I ripped open the closet door, the only completely interal room in our house, and started pulling everything out. Once ready I had to find some information. I pulled up the first analog signal(seriously, we need to think about this digital thing) I could find. It was all fuzz, but I had sound. The hail was banging down, Barney was yelling over it, and I was huddled infront of the bedroom television staring at snow. Listening. Trying to make out any image I could so I could tell where the beast was.

Amidst all the chaos it seemed to be gone. Really?? Minutes earlier is was tearing up the earth and then gone? I wasn't sure, and it seemed the weather man I was listening to wasn't either. The hail got worse, my truck can tell you about that, and man was it dark outside. I went to our sunroom to look it in the eye. It was there, the low hanging wall cloud, the circulation, the relentless roar of hail on a metal roof. I watched for anything to give me a sign. My neighbors' homes, the trees, the clouds. Where was it? I thought for a moment that I hope this is not how I go. Standing in a room full of windows and thin sheet metal. I was vigilant, watching, preparing, ready at a moments notice... To hide!!!

And just like that IT was gone. The sky cleared, the roar of the hail ended, the weather man's voice got louder, almost as loud as Barney sining on the home stero system, the wind stopped and so did the rain. It was calm outside.

But inside my head it was anything but. I was scared, not necessarily for myself, but for my son. It was one of those moment's as a parent that I will never forget. He trusted me through every moment, knowing I was there and was doing what was best for him. Didn't waver once.

He's mine, I love him, will take care of him, protect him, provide for him, and plan for him every day of my life.

It is truly a great experience to have the title Dad...

Take one down... Pass it around...

So this got me thinking today... Aubrey McLendon auctioning off his 9,000 bottles of wine... It made me think of my own collection, and the feelings Aubrey must be going through. Granted my 10 bottle collection doesn't compare in size or retail value, but I guarantee I have some idea of loss he's facing.

My 'collection' is currently sitting in a box in the garage. By no means climate controlled. Unless you count the closed off vent running into the garage. And my wine rack is wrapped in celophane standing piled in a corner. It looks more like a stack of kindling than a wine rack. (We've moved across the country twice in the past 8 months and I just don't have the energy to unpack it right now.)

Regardless of where it sits or how it's displayed, it holds some of the greatest memories of my married life. And every year it grows more cherrished and more sacred.

You see, my wife and I started our collection after we got home from our Honeymoon. We had 8 bottles left over from our reception and two we picked up at the resort in Mexico. It started at 10 and will stay at 10. That's because every honeymoon(that's what I call our anniversary) we pick a bottle together and we drink it together. And every year we remember where it came from and how it got to our glass. Together. It took both of us to get, and it takes both of us to share it. And ever year we buy a new bottle together to make new memories.

Once a year my wife and I enjoy the luxury of drinking one of the 10 most valuable bottles of wine(or possibly vinegar) in the world. Every day we share the joy of making the memories that go with the next bottle.

Aubrey, I know this sale, for whatever reason, will be a memory you will never forget. As will the purchase of your first bottle after it.

Lori, I look forward to keeping our collection at 10 forever....

I want my piece of the pie...

Okay, so this one has been bugging the tar out of me for a long time. Especially since I've had several weeks to sit and watch it unfold. I'm talking about the 'stimulation' of the economy. Can someone please tell me why, for goodness sake, are the leaders of our country throwing good money after bad and helping out the people who screwed up. Let's just look at the math, and you tell me if it makes sense.

$7.6 trillion (that's 12 zeroes) - the amount of money allocated so far to stimulate the economy. It's like a cow peeing on a flat rock. Everyone's getting wet, but when you realize what it is, do you really want to be standing next to the rock?

303,824,640 - the estimated population of the USA in July 2008. So... (I get "so" from the Dr Suess books I read my son.) I'm guessing that the total number of people seeing the $7.6 trillion dollars so far is probably the last six numbers that started this paragraph.

Just for "fun" devide the population into the dollars allocated. Did you get the number I did?

$25,014.43

Are you serious. They're planning to spend more than $25 thousand for every man, woman, and child estimated to be living in the United States, and we don't get one bit of a say so in the process. Can you say CRAZY!!!!

I'll just take my family for example. What could I do with $75,000 dollars? Let me tell you, a whole hell of a lot, and it would stimulate the economy too.

- I could put it in the bank of my choice(not the one that is on hand and knee begging to be kept a float)
- I could invest it into a business I've always wanted to open. (Bush's Chicken - If you haven't tried it you are totally missing out)
- That would create local jobs to employ local people.
- I would be paying taxes, and my employees would be paying taxes. The money would be going back to the Gov't.
- I wouldn't have to wonder how I was going to pay for the mortgage on my house, or loans on my cars.
- I could afford to pay for my child to go to school.
- I could afford to have insurance.
- I could afford to put food on the table for my family.

In short we all would be spending money again. Put it in a bank, start a business, pay for our jacked up mortgages, or throw one hell of a party. You get the idea. The list could go on forever. You could do whatever you wanted, and either way, your $25,014.43 would be stimulating the economy. And then, really and truly, the American people would get their vote on who should stay afloat, and who should go under.

But then again, what do we know, we're just the American People. We don't really have a say so, do we?

As for me, and for now, I'll stay on the Unemployment Line. Fill out my applications every week, collect my Unemployment check, and keep putting one foot in front of the other.

And waiting for the next line to come...