Michigan Trip Part 2: Bryant's Friends

It's hard when most of your best friends live across the country from you, but it usually makes for quite a fun time when you finally do get to see them again. That was the case for me on our recent trip to Michigan. Ryan and Joel - who live in the same house even though they're married (it's a duplex), were kind enough to host our little get-together along with their wives (thanks to Sarah for the amazing food). As always it was a great time filled with more hilarity then I can explain. There was a lot of reminiscing of the college days, especially once Ryan busted out the photo album containing many ridiculous pictures from our "misled youth" as Joel might say. I've been very blessed throughout my life to have such great friends and often wish I could see my college friends more frequently...I look forward to next time which should be in a few weeks.

Ryan, Joel, Luke, and a soon-to-be-grilled chicken. (Not pictured: me, Justin, anyone's wife or girlfriend...I didn't take very many pictures).

The chicken. (Not pictured: anyone else).

Michigan Trip Part 1: Ron and Luann's Cottage

We've gotten a little behind with the blog since we left for Michigan a few weeks ago. During our nine days in Michigan we had such a great time getting to see our families and friends and getting to be a part of Josh and Sarah's (Bryant's sister) wedding. We will be posting highlights from the trip as we have time. As always, thanks for reading.

The first stop on our Michigan trip was with our very good friends Ron and Luann at their cottage on Big Star Lake. This extended what is normally a 17 hour drive into a 19 hour drive, but it was more than worth it to get to spend some time with them. For those of you who don't know, Ron and Luann are the parents of Jill 'DeVries' Johnson who was Becky's college roommate. I got to know them when they let me take over their basement during World Cup 2002 because I didn't have ESPN2 at my apartment that summer (the games were on at 1 and 3 am and they didn't even know me before that which gives you and idea of how cool they are). Ron and Luann were the Master and Mistress of Ceremonies at our wedding (which interestingly no one from outside of Michigan has ever heard of) and did so much to make sure everything went perfectly for us that day.

It was the first time we had seen them in a year-and-a-half so we had such a great time just hanging out and catching up. We took the waverunner out on the lake and they cooked us a delicious dinner. Hopefully next time we'll be able to stay a bit longer.

Becky and I on the sun porch.

Zoe and Chloe met for the first time and got along quite well.

Ron made me a gigantic steak and asparagus omelet with the previous night's leftovers. It was fantastic.

Backpacking with Zoe

For those of you who don't know, Zoe is our dog. This past weekend Becky was in Michigan surprising her Mom for her birthday and attending Jill DeVries' (now Jill something else...sorry Jut I don't know your last name...I'll look it up) wedding. Since I was sans wife for the weekend I took Zoe with me on a short backpacking overnight trip up Left Hand Canyon at the north end of Boulder (our friend Kersta referred to it last night as a "father-daughter camping trip").

We found a great spot right next to a creek which Zoe swam in all night while I sat by the fire. It's a great thing to once in awhile just get away from absolutely everything and be alone in God's incredible creation. As is usually the case when camping in Colorado the stars were so vivid; a sight you can't get unless you get away from all of the light pollution from the cities we all live in. It was a very peaceful evening and I look forward to many more nights this summer spent in the Colorado mountains. Here's a couple of pics from the trip:

Zoe carries her own stuff...and some of my stuff.

Zoe enjoying the amazing view.

Happy Memorial Day.

Every Memorial Day my parents drive to the cemetery where my Grandpa Loomis is buried to decorate his tombstone. He served as a bombardier in the Air Force during World War II. As I mentioned a few weeks ago with the passing of my other grandpa, I have always been so proud of my grandfathers and just wanted to say how much I appreciate their unselfish and brave service to our country. I hope you enjoyed your day off and value the freedoms we are so blessed to have.

Fondue Night '08

Last weekend we had our second installment of fondue night with our closest Colorado friends, Tim & Rachel, and PJ & Kersta (the first of course was Fondue Night '07). It was a great night of delicious food and silliness - i.e. Tim trying to kick the top of a door frame for no apparent reason. But it was also a bit sad as it was the last time all six of us would hang out together before Tim & Rachel move back to Dallas.

Unfortunately we have kind of gotten used to our friends moving away since we moved to Colorado...people move here for awhile because it's a fun place to be, but more often than not they end up moving back closer to family. It has really taught us to enjoy each day and to fully appreciate the friends that have blessed our lives. If you're reading this somewhere across the country from us, please know that we love you and wish we could see you more often. It's a good thing Al Gore invented the Internets so we can all stay updated on each other's lives by reading blogs.

Here is our amazing spread with more things you could possibly think of to dip in cheese. Later in the night we had more things than you could possibly think of to dip in chocolate.

Us, Tim & Rachel, PJ & Kersta.
One of many Tim's attempts to kick the top of the door frame. For those of you that don't know Tim - he is funny.

Grandpa Jazzbo, 1918-2008

My (Bryant's) grandpa passed away this past Sunday, and it seemed appropriate to offer this small tribute to him. He did many great things during his life - most notably from my perspective was the raising of my mom who is one of the greatest people I have ever met. My grandpa was a kind man and I have many great memories of our trips to Massachusetts to visit him and my grandma Ruby, who he was married to for 56 years. (My grandma passed many years ago when I was in middle school).

He bravely served our country as a Heavy Mortar Crewman in the 42nd Rainbow Division of the Army during World War II. He served in the Rhineland and Central European Theater including Normandy and was awarded the Bronze Star. He also participated in the liberation of the Dachau concentration camp which my mom discovered when we visited Dachau and she recognized his unit number on a plaque dedicated to the soldiers that liberated the camp. I have always been so proud of the military service of both of my grandpas.

One thing we shared in common was our love for the Red Sox. He was born the year the 'curse' started, and he lived long enough to see them win the World Series twice. When we talked our conversation would often end up about the Red Sox. I always got such a kick out of the fact that he would often listen to the games on the radio in the kitchen even though the game was on the tv in the living room.

If you want to read more about my grandpa you can do so here.

Grandpa Jazzbo was very loved by his family and will be missed.

Mario Kart

I haven't owned a video game system since I bought a Sega Genesis with my own money about 15 years ago. Since that time there has been one game that has always left me desiring a new video game system...and that game is Mario Kart. The Nintendo 64 version was the game of choice for myself and my buddies in college and I have many fond memories of people shocking da house, jumping walls and tracks (i.e. cheating), and everyone fighting over which track we were going to do next. I believe much of my great driving record is the result of the rigorous training that Mario Kart gave me in that I am prepared for anything I might encounter while driving: bananas on the road, getting struck by lighting and shrunk to a miniature size, or a giant boulder falling from the mountains (which actually happens occasionally in Colorado).

Up until this time I have withstood the urge to rejoin the world of video games as I am supposed to be an adult now and should not spend time on such childish things. Then, this past weekend I spent about 4 hours playing the new Mario Kart game for the Wii at our friends P.J. and Kersta's house. It is hands down the greatest video game ever made. It even comes with plastic steering wheels so it feels like you're driving.


All of this leads to the following question: should I use part of my economic stimulus check to stimulate the Japanese economy and purchase a Wii?