Here's a couple more from our session with Macy.  Clicking the images provides a larger view. 

Vacation is over for Jodi and I but we enjoyed the time off and have been able to spend the last two weekends with friends who visited from St. Louis.  We enjoyed having the Kemp family stay last weekend while they toured some Kansas City area colleges with their son Luke who also is a senior this year.  Our friendship goes back almost 10 years as I recruited their son to play for the baseball team I coached in St. Louis.

Another long time friend, Cris, and her senior son, Tyler, visited us this weekend.  Tyler also palyed ball with JD and Luke and he was in town to attend a baseball showcase.  We took advantage of the visit by doing his senior portraits over the weekend.  We took along one of JD's good friends, Macy, and did hers as well.  We haven't gone through all of the pictures yet but here is one I took of Macy that I especially liked.  You can click on the photo for a larger image.

This coming Saturday is our KCAP fall shoot.  I have to order our Class B product this week so we can get it shipped over to the magazine in Topeka.  We have a real nice show planned that includes some 8" and 10" shells as well as a huge willows segment.    



Homecoming 2011

 

You can click on the photos to see larger images.

Here is the coronation ceremony at William Jewell College.  It was at halftime of the football game.  For best video quality, change the resolution to 720p as this is high definition video.

 

JD and Macy at "Pomp It Up Night".  Macy, as you probably can tell, is also on the Homecoming Court.

My first self portrait studio shot.  

Homecoming Week

Tomorrow starts a busy week for JD as he represents the Senior class on the Homecoming Court.  Tomorrow night, his Concert Choir performs for the first time in the high school's brand new theater.  I was able to get a sneak peek a couple weeks ago and the theater is first class. 

Other events for the week in which he will participate is an assembly, a rally at the school in which the Court will arrive in vintage convertibles and then the Homecoming game where Jodi will get to escort JD onto the field during half time festivities.  It should be a fun week for all of us.

I'm told the group that JD will go to Homecoming with consists of 17 couples.  I think the majority of them will be coming to our house for photos.  I picked up some new equipment over the past couple days and did some practice shots with it last night. 

In other news, I'm still waiting on my friend to post his video from our fireworks event last weekend.  There are some other videos up already so I'll link to a few of them here.

Like salutes?  Skip to 10:30 of the video!!!  Change the resolution to 480 or 720p.

Here's the 1.4 Pyromusical I helped my friend set up.  This was the best choreographed show of the night!  Change the resolution on this one as well.

Here's my KCAP group doing a little twist on "Dueling Banjos".  We did it with salutes.

Unbelievable!!

This was my 4th year attending our annual shoot in St. Louis and it keeps getting bigger and better every year.  Not only do I get to hang out with my pyro friends but I also get to see some of the best fireworks shows in the country.

This year I worked on two shows at the event, both being starkly different. The first show I helped set up was designed by my good friend Scott.  He has the vision and product knowledge to put together some of the best choreographed 1.4 shows you will ever see.  At one time, I used to think that the best shows had the most product going up in the air and the louder the better.  Well, I still love titanium salutes but thanks to Scott, I know how to do a great show with minimal product and without the hard breaking shots and salutes.  I will post some quality video of his show shortly.

The second show I worked on was one put together by members of my KCAP group.  The idea was to shoot a show of dueling salutes, much like the dueling banjos scene from the movie, Deliverance.  Here is video of the result.  The first 1:20 is of a mass launch of a cake called Jet Propulsion.  We shot 35 cases of it at the same time as part of our group show finale.  At the 1:20 mark, the KCAP show begins.   http://vimeo.com/29593672

One of the themes this year was obviously LOUD as many of the shows featured mass launches of titanium salutes.  Jodi commented that she was going blind from all of the salute flash.  Then there were the gas bombs.  I'll post video of these when available but on a cool night, these things warmed everybody up and were crowd favorites.  As you can see by the photo, we weren't playing around!!  Click on the photo for a larger picture. 

I will post videos of some of the shows soon.  They will look great on video but there is nothing like experiencing them in person.  The crowds this year were huge and we may be getting close to maxing out the spectator area.  I'm already looking forward to next year.

On a final note for today, Jodi and I are proud to say that JD has been nominated to the 2012 Liberty North homecoming court this year.  Homecoming King voting will take place this week and he will get to represent the Senior class during all of the events during homecoming week.  This is turning out to be a very memorable year for him.

I forgot to mention that today is my 23rd anniversary at Ford Motor Company.  The first 10 years went by pretty slowly.  The second decade went a little faster and now I can see the 30 year mark in reach.

I think this sums it up pretty well.



If you're a teenager today, it is common practice to ask someone to a dance (homecoming or prom) in a way that required some thought and the girl will find cute.  On Friday evening, one of JD's friends enlisted JD and several others to help him with his idea.  The method is shown below and she answered , "Yes".   Click on the photo for a larger image.



I'm looking forward to a short week of work as Jodi and I have taken off a few days to have a long weekend as we travel to St. Louis for my annual fireworks shoot in Fenton.  We will also be taking JD to SIUE for him to meet up with the current team, watch them practice and hang out with the players for awhile.  He will also be meeting another recruit from the St. Louis area that he has been talking with on Facebook. 

I made good on my promise to fix steak dinner for 8 of JD's friends the next time they were over for Jersday (Jersey Shore on Thursday).  I grilled up 8 ribeyes and 2 porksteaks and they were all devoured quickly.  The mesquite marinade we've been using is quite tasty and the teens were raving as to how good the steaks were.  Along with the expertly grilled meat, they enjoyed a salad, mashed potatos, butter noodles, corn and green beans. For dessert, I made iced cinnamon rolls and those were all gone by the end of the evening as well.  I was asked if I was going to do this for them every Thursday.  My response was "no".

After they had the opportunity to digest their meal, we went downstairs and I powered up the studio lights and we took some more photos.  These kids have more fun posing for photos than they probaby do playing video games.  Some of them are pretty creative with their poses and I was having trouble keeping a straight face while operating the camera. 

Jodi and I had a very enjoyable weekend as my sister and brother in law came up from the St. Louis area for a visit.  After watching a football game into the wee hours of Saturday morning, I got up and fixed them breakfast while we waited for Jodi to get home from work.  We then went on a short sightseeing tour of the immediate area prior to going to Zona Rosa and having lunch at 54th Street.  From there we drove through Riss Lake and then made our way downtown to show them the Kaufmann Performing Arts Center and some of the other downtown sights.  We spent Saturday evening talking, looking at old yearbooks and watching some TV.   I fixed breakfast again Sunday morning and we watched the first half of the Chiefs game before they left.  It was great to have them.

It looks like contract negotiations will once again go past the expiration date of our current agreement, which is the norm.  There are several rumors making the rounds but I don't get caught up in that nonsense.  I'll read what the union presents us and make my decision from there. 

There's a big football game this Friday as two undefeated's take the field.  North will take on Staley to see who will remain at the top of the standings.  I'm hoping for a good game, no matter the outcome.

I hope to get my studio lights setup tomorrow evening.  I had to order some sync cords to utilize my wireless triggering for the studio strobes I recently purchased.  Apparently I will be the official photogapher for JD and his friends for their homecoming photos next month and a friend from St. Louis is coming up so I can do his senior photos too.   

Liberty North looks to improve to 3-0 on the young season as they take on William Chrisman in a Thursday night contest, necessitated by William Jewell's soccer team schedule.  The conversion to NCAA Division II has created some adversity for the Liberty football programs with each high school having to move games off Friday nights.  Therein lies the reason for the push to build a district stadium, not to mention the fact that it's ludicrous the district doesn't have one to begin with. 

Tuesday night I scored an awesome Craigslist deal when I purchased some studio lighting equipment from a guy in Olathe.  I'm looking forward to getting it set up and trying it out this weekend.  What I paid for all of the gear was ridiculous as he basically gave it away.

Only two weeks away from our annual fireworks shoot in St. Louis!! 

After work today I played a bit with my flash setup in the basement.  The good thing about our home being the hangout place for teenagers is that there are always plenty of subjects around to test things out.  Here's some shots from this evening.  I still have a lot to learn but I'm on my way.

They were going for the "Stepbrothers" pose.

I went for a harder, edgy look on this one.  I wanted to capture a commercial feel with it.  Click on the photos for larger, high quality images. 

Jodi and I spent the evening at the Royals game last night as the guests of one of our vendors at my work.  Their company had rented a suite and we enjoyed the game from both the air conditioned suite and out on the balcony.  We were served a great barbeque dinner and enjoyed meeting some new people.  Unfortunately the Royals dropped the game 5-4 but they made it close with an Alex Gordon two run monster blast to center late in the game.  We enjoyed a 10 minute fireworks show after the game before heading home.

Has America become the land of special interest and home of the double standard?

Let's see: if we lie to Congress, it's a felony and if Congress lies to us it's just politics; if we dislike a black person, we're racist and if a black person dislikes whites, it's their 1st Amendment right; the government spends millions to rehabilitate criminals and they do almost nothing for the victims; in public schools you can teach that homosexuality is OK, but you better not use the word God in the process; you can kill an unborn child, but it's wrong to execute a mass murderer; we don't burn books in America, we now rewrite them; we got rid of the communist and socialist threat by renaming them progressives; we are unable to close our border with Mexico, but have no problem protecting the 38th parallel in Korea; if you protest against President Obama's policies you're a terrorist, but if you burned an American flag or George Bush in effigy it was your first Amendment right.

You can have pornography on TV or the internet, but you better not put a nativity scene in a public park during Christmas; we have eliminated all criminals in America, they are now called sick people; we can use a human fetus for medical research, but it's wrong to use an animal.

We take money form those who work hard for it and give it to those who don't want to work; we all support the Constitution, but only when it supports our political ideology; we still have freedom of speech, but only if we are being politically correct; parenting has been replaced with Ritalin and video games; the land of opportunity is now the land of handouts.

What has happened to the land of the free and home of the brave?

Friday night, Liberty North rolled Oak Park, 34-0.  It was North's game from the get go as a quick 60+ yard running score put North up early.  The damage could have been much worse but the offense had some trouble with false starts and then fumbled inside the 5 yard line to keep Oak Park in the game.  North's defense was suffocating and regualrly pinned Oak Park with lost yards on most plays.  If North continues to improve over the next couple games, they could give the confernece favorites quite a challenge.

On Saturday, I drove to Belton for my fireworks club meeting.  We discussed formalizing the club, reviewed the bylaws I had written and had some lengthy discussion on insurance and potential shoot sites.  After the meeting, we enjoyed a nice pot luck dinner and then we proceeded to shake the countryside with pyrotechnic calamity.  One guy drove up to proclaim, "I used to be the fireworks king of this area until you guys showed up!"  It was a lot of fun and we're looking forward to our next get together in October.

Yesterday I unpacked all of my photographic equipment that arrived Friday and Saturday and starrted getting familiar with it.  Once I get a couple light stands in, I'll be ready to start shooting. 

Speaking of photos, here's a couple shots of JD in his new Letterman's jacket that I picked up Saturday.  He chose the poses.

JD continues to get good press as prepbaseballreport.com has him ranked as one of the top baseball players in the State.  JD is currently ranked #50 in the state of Missouri.  Link to ranking article 

Friday Night Lights

Tonight marks the opening of the high school football season and I will be heading to a neighboring school to watch our team and see how they have improved.  With last year being the first season in program history and without a senior class, the team had a rough season although there were some bright spots along the way.  This year appears to be more promising and I'm curious to see how they perform. 

With Jodi enjoying several days at the Lake of the Ozarks, I pretty much have a free weekend.  Tomorrow I am going to a meeting for the fireworks club I started and we will continue the work required to formalize our club.  We will review the bylaws I have written and probably install officers.  I have a large shoot to attend in St. Louis at the end of September and then will will get my club together for our annual Fall shoot. 

I've been deciding on a new weapon to add to my cache.  I've narrowed the choice down to two fine specimens.

OR

Decisions....decisions.

I'll finish up today with a photo I received via email today.  Form your own opinion.





Last night I attended a Board of Education meeting where the Board would decide whether or not a tax levy increase would go on the November ballot.  I, along with many others, spoke in support of letting the patrons of the district have a choice in addressing the capacity issues our school district is struggling with.  After an hour and a half of debate by the Board on the matter, a vote was taken and the will of the people will be heard.  The final vote was 4-3 in favor of putting the issue on the ballot.

If passed, the levy increase will pay for the third phase of our new high school, the addition of classrooms at the original high school, a new elemetary school and a district football stadium.  We need to be proactive in addressing our growth issues now and will work with others to get the levy passed.

Jodi and I had a nice evening together last night as we went to dinner and then to the Parkville Days Riverfest.  This year, the festival had to be moved further into the town due to flooding along the river.  There were a lot of sandbag walls still up even though the water has receded.  There's an ongoing battle right now with the business owners and city officials about getting them removed.  The city wants them to remain until they are assured by the Corps of Engineers that there will be no more flooding from their piss poor river management upstream.  The business owners want the sandbags removed now as they feel they are a detriment to business. 

In addition to carnival rides and food, they had vendors who sell everything from jewelry and clothing to antiques and collectibles.  Jodi bought a couple pieces of custom jewelry she liked and we got some fresh squeezed lemonade while we strolled around taking in all of the sights.

I found the band they had playing very entertaining.  They were a cajun/creole band and the music had a fast tempo.  One of the band members played what probably would be a washboard in a country/bluegrass band but it was ribbed metal and he wore it like armor on his chest.  He used some metal objects to make the scratching noise as he danced around on the stage.  He was very entertaining by himself.   The crowd seemed to enjoy it as well. The band was rounded out by a guitar player, bass player and a drummer. 

Earlier in the day, I picked us some seamless background paper to use as a backdrop for portrait photography work.  I found a great deal on Craigslist and bought two new rolls for about 33% of the original cost.  Gotta love great deals.  While Jodi is at the lake this week, I will probably work on getting my studio set up.

I am thoroughly disgusted by the back door amnesty policy put in place by Obama, Holder and Napolitano yesterday.  Apparently being an illegal in this country is not enough reason to deport someone.  They now intend to review all 300,000 pending deportation cases to make sure these are the type of people they really want to deport.  They are only looking to deport those that are believed to be threats to our national security, hardcore criminals, gang members, those that have been deported before or have committed identity theft (isn't that all of them?). 

If you fall into one of the following categories, you will likely not be deported as these will be considered "low priority" cases:

– veterans and members of the U.S. armed forces;

– long-time lawful permanent residents;

– minors and elderly individuals;

– individuals present in the United States since childhood;

– pregnant or nursing women;

– victims of domestic violence; trafficking, or other serious crimes;

– individuals who suffer from a serious mental or physical disability; and

– individuals with serious health conditions

Ain't this just ducky?  So basically if you're pregnant, elderly, handicapped or sick, you get to stay here and we, the American citizens get to pay for your care and of course it will cost them nothing!  If you're a victim of a crime, welcome to America!  If you're pregnant or nursing, welcome to America and here's some food stamps and WIC vouchers for you. 

I have to call this what it truly is, BULLSHIT!!!

ILLEGAL IS ILLEGAL YOU STUPID MORONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I had a nice relaxing weekend at home and it felt good to sleep in a bit both days.  Saturday morning after I got out of bed, I drove down to a camera shop in the Waldo area to purchase a remote trigger for my camera.  I also signed up for a studio lighting class so I can learn more about flash photography.  In addition to shooting sports action, I think I might pursue some senior portrait photography as well.  JD will be my first victim, I mean subject.  I did a lot of online studying this weekend.

Sunday I got out of bed and mowed the lawn before Jodi got up.  I did some cleanup of the landscaping in front of the house and did some edging work along our patio in the back.  Later in the day, I grilled up some super thick pork steaks we bought at Costco recently.  Jodi likes hers grilled after a Mesquite marinade and I just use some seasoning salt prior to applying hickory brown sugar sauce while on the grill.  These steaks were super tender and were very good.  Of course, I have mad grilling skills too.

I received word that one of JD's teammates from his summer team was also offered by SIUE.   It would be very cool if this young man wound up there rooming with JD.  I know they would have a blast together so we're hoping it works out.

The Liberals want to raise taxes on the wealthy so that they pay "their fair share".  What about the 50% of Americans who do not pay income taxes at all?  Where is their fair share?  Huh?

We survived the birthday party this past weekend.  JD had 40-50 friends show up and they all apparently had a great time.  The music played until 1am and then I had to go to bed so the remaining group hung out upstairs for awhile longer.  I woke up at 6am to find 5 over night guests sleeping throughout the house and Jodi on the sofa.

On Monday, we attended a meeting to go over the Educational Internship Program that JD will participate in this year.  He will travel to another school during his 4th and 5th hours to be a teaching assistant for a 5th grade class.  He will earn credit for it through Northwest Missouri State University.

Yesterday was JD's actual birthday and he received some cash and SIU-E apparel from his grandmothers.  I had a friend make him a custom Fathead of the SIUE logo.  It's a true one of a kind and we put it on his bedroom wall last night. 

Things should start to slow down a bit for us now that we have the college choice and his birthday out of the way.  The next big thing on my agenda is the annual St. Louis Shoot in Fenton the last weekend in September.  This shoot keeps getting bigger and better and I'm confident that this year will top all others.  It's a can't miss event.

Jodi is going to spend a few days at the Lake of the Ozarks with the women in her family in a couple weeks.  It's become an annual event and I know she enjoys getting away and spending time with them. 

I am ready for high school and college football to get started.  I'm hoping to get to shoot from the sideline at the Liberty North games this year in an effort to improve my night shooting skills.  I'm currently developing a plan to get back into sports action photography and offer some new products that no one else is. 

Prepbaseballreport.com has a brief article listing the most recent recruits for SIU-E which includes JD.

http://www.prepbaseballreport.com/News/tabid/1042/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/2267/SIU-Edwardsville-receives-commitments-from-three-Missouri-players.aspx

Ready to Rave

We're just a couple days away from JD's 18th Birthday party Rave.  The food is bought, the basement is pretty much ready and we have out of town guests driving in for it.  We have a special cake being made that commemorates both his birthday and his college commitment.  I also have a friend working on a special project for his room that ties into his college choice.  We're expecting 50 guests so it will be a crazy night of music, dancing and food.  Lucky me gets to work the next morning but it's always easier to get out of bed in the morning when it's a double time day.

IT'S OFFICIAL!!!!

It's been a long journey, starting at age 4 when we first played catch. Thousands of hours of practice, thousands of miles in travel, countless ballpark hotdogs and endless days in the summer sun in an effort to achieve every young baseball player's dream to play D1 baseball. Congratulations JD on achieving your dream and playing for SIU-E Cougars baseball!! We are very proud of you! GO COUGARS!!!

 

We're back from a quick trip to the St. Louis area where JD visited two universities who had invited him down to check out their campus, meet the coaching staff and get a feel for what it would be like to play baseball for their team.  For the time being, I'm going to withhold the names of the schools only because he is still receiving/interest/offers and knowing who is recruiting him could affect future offers/interest.

The first visit was to a NCAA Division I university.  Upon arrival we were met by an assistant coach (the one who recruited him from here in KC) and we were given a tour of the baseball stadium and the clubhouse.  The infield is already turf and the outfield will be turf by the time he would get there.  We then drove to the campus and took a tour of the buildings which included the student center, dorm, basketball arena, sports training facilities, classrooms, etc... There was a pretty big WOW factor for JD and he was very impressed.  We then were taken to meet the head coach in his office.  He talked to JD about some of his expectations, what JD was looking for in a program and then prior to leaving, he gave JD a very nice scholarship offer to come play baseball for him at the university. 

The next day we visited a NCAA Division II university.  We were greeted at the stadium by the 5 members of the coaching staff which included the head coach.  They had asked JD to throw a bullpen for them on the visit since only one coach had seen JD throw in person and the others only on videotape.  The head coach sat with Jodi and I while JD warmed up with the pitching coach on the field.  They had the pitching mound perfectly manicured for him as he made his way onto the field and took the mound for the throwing session.  We talked more with the head coach as we watched him throw about 25 pitches for those in attendance and needless to say, they were impressed. 

Once JD got toweled off a bit, they took us around the campus in a limousine style golf cart that seated 6 and was painted up in school colors.  They showed us the brand new clubhouse they were finishing up before taking us to the admissions office to talk about the enrollment procedure and cost to attend.  We then visited more of the campus buildings, weight training center, etc... before going to the office of the head coach for a sit down.  He told us about his coaching staff and their roles in the program.  He told us of his expectation of his players and what opportunities would be available to JD if he would attend there.  He then made JD a very good scholarship offer to attend the university. 

JD has a lot to think about for the next week or two.  One offer is only good for two weeks.  The other is good until the university gets the pitching commits they need.  He'll be going to another university on Monday to pitch there and see what interest is there.

JD's summer team played their last game together as a team yesterday and they went out with a bang by bringing home the championship with a 1-0, seventh inning walkoff victory.  After being presented the tournament trophy, the coaches and players gathered for an emotional meeting and a lot of hugs were shared along with some tears.  It will be exciting to follow these young men as they pursue greater things in college and beyond.  They are very talented individuals and we are proud to have shared a couple years with them.  We wish them all the best of luck in the future.

JD and I will hit the road for a couple days and visit a couple universities that have invited him to visit this week.  He will get campus tours and the usual VIP treatment for recruits.  I think he's going to have some fun and get a lot to think about while considering where he wants to go to college.  He is also going to attend a camp at the Univeristy of Central Missouri next Monday and showcase for them.  It gave me a chuckle when he said he was in "Beast mode". 

JD threw great yesterday and was immediately invited by a couple coaches to visit their schools to see their baseball facilities and meet the coaching staff of each school.  One is an NCAA Division I school and the other a Division II.  He also has a couple other schools interested as well and is expecting invitations to their campuses.  It appears we will visit the Division I school next week.

JD threw a bullpen on Tuesday for some college coaches at the tournament he is playing in this weekend.  He said he was the last to throw that day and most of the guys throwing in front of him were throwing in the upper 70's to around 80.  Apparently the coaches weren't seeing much they were interested in and had migrated away from the bullpen area.  When it was JD's turn, he said he threw his first fastball and after that the coaches all moved up to the bullpen fence to watch him throw.  He said he threw really well and upon leaving, he was approached by a coach for his name and phone number.  He also received a phone call from a D1 coach yesterday morning wanting to know which game he would be pitching this week.  Apparently several coaches will be coming to watch the game he throws Friday morning.

I don't think I could have had a better birthday weekend.  I spent all day Saturday in the heat setting up and shooting a fireworks show in Smithville.  It was my buddy's annual 4th of July show a couple weeks late since he was busy the 4th weekend shooting city shows.  Not may people get to celebrate their birthday with a big fireworks show so I was lucky to do so.  I think I lost about 10 lbs to boot!  I don't recall ever drinking that much water in a day in my life. 

Jodi took me to dinner and a movie on Sunday and we had a great time.  We saw the movie "Horrible Bosses".  It was pretty crude but hilarious.  Jason Bateman has really gotten big in the last few years and he can be real funny playing the straight guy.

JD gets back on the bump this week in a tournament down in Lee's Summit.  Today he is throwing a bullpen in front of coaches from Mizzou, KU, Central Missouri, Creighton, William Jewell, Emporia State, Missouri State, and about 15 other colleges expected to be there.  He will then pitch in a game on Friday.  He has also been invited to attend the Atlanta Braves tryout in Bloomington, IL next month. 

JD turns 18 in a few weeks and wants to have a blowout birthday party, or a "Rave" as he calls it.  We're converting the basement into a "club", complete with laser, blackout and strobe lights as well as a fog machine so he and the 50 (it will wind up 100 or more I'm sure) friends can listen to music and dance all night.  This should be interesting. 

I attended the Liberty Board of Education meeting last night and in the public comments section of the meeting, I spoke to the need of raising the needed revenue to build new schools and a football stadium for the district.  Typically there are several regulars who get up and talk about the district spending too much, etc...  I was the only one to speak last night so my view was heard loud and clear.  I also gave praise to the Board and the district administration for the work they've done to date.  Afterward, several Board members, the district Superintendent and JD's principal came to me and thanked me for my view and comments.  I've been invited to attend a meeting next week to discuss the stadium issue and brainstorm ideas on the best way to get it built.

JD threw for a second day on Sunday and we long tossed it out to 150 feet or so.  He was throwing pretty hard with no issues.  We took Monday off to rest his arm a bit and he'll get back after it today.  Still on target to pitch in the last tournament of the summer. 

I'm happy to report that JD had no pain/discomfort yesterday when we played catch for the first time after his injury one month ago.  He's been doing PT three times a week and hasn't picked up a ball in a month so his arm should be well rested.  We'll continue a daily catch session until next weekend when he will throw a  brief bullpen.  If all goes well, he'll throw another bullpen a few days later and then we'll determine if he has the green light to throw a few innings in the tournament scheduled for the 20-24th.

When injustice becomes law, rebellion becomes duty.



Illegal Immigrant kills 12 year old girl and her mother in KC

A drunk, illegal immigrant drove 14 miles in the wrong direction on Interstate 435 here in Kansas City before striking a vehicle, killing the driver and her 12 year old daughter.  He was found to have multiple forms of identification on his person when arrested.  He remains in the hospital and your tax dollars are at work.  Thank your President and his appointees for turning a blind eye to our border issue.

It felt great to have 3 1/2 days off work and I was able to get rested up a bit.  I spent Friday evening and Saturday morning with a friend of mine I hadn't seen in awhile.  He flew his plane up from St. Louis and landed nearby at Mosby Air Center.  I picked him up and we came by the house for a visit with Jodi before driving up to St. Joe to watch his son play for the St. Joe Mustangs.  We had a great time talking and watching baseball.  The next morning, we went to Cracker Barrel for breakfast and then I took him back to the airport.  After readying his plane, I stood out near the runway and took photos of him taking off and flying by.  Here's one I got as he passed me.

 

We traveled back to St. Louis on Saturday to attend Jodi's sister's annual 4th of July party. It was hot but we enjoyed some good food, music and of course, fireworks. The next day, we paid a surprise visit to my mother and then went to Jodi's aunt's to hang out for awhile before driving back to KC.  The weather got real interesting right before our departure when a microburst hit and took out some trees near us.  The rain was coming down sideways in sheets.  As we passed through Warrenton on the drive home, we saw part of the roof was taken off the Super 8 hotel and other businesses had roof and other damage.  We also saw a couple fireworks tents that had gone down in the storm.

We went to two parties on Monday and shot fireworks off in the neighborhood this year.  I took some of my "good stuff" and did some e-firing.  I'm shooting the fireworks after the T-Bones game on Saturday and then I have another shoot to do the following week in Smithville.

It should be relatively quiet at the plant this week since we are down for vacation.  The end of Escape production is now planned for April of next year. Employees are being offered opportunities to :follow the product" and transfer to Louisville.  We're waiting to hear how many have decided to go.  An official announcement has not be given as to what product we are getting to replace the Escape here.

Dick Durbin = Doofus!!

You would think a sitting U.S. Senator, who is charged with upholding the U.S. Constitution might know better but apparently he doesn't.  Yesterday he said that one day he can see one of the illegal immigrants he is fighting for via the DREAM Act as our President someday.  Earth to Dick!  Even a "LEGAL" immigrant to the U.S. cannot become President per the U.S. Constituition!  I guess he plans on trampling our Constitution at some point.  Maybe all of the illegals he is pandering to plan to do so in the future along with him?

 

No DREAM Act!!!

In case I haven't been clear in the past, NO DREAM ACT!!!!  Dicky Doo Durbin is at it again, along with Obama and Janet Neopolitan to give back door amnesty to illegals.  This is ridiculous.

 

In preparation for the upcoming 4th of July holiday, here's a show from 2009 that is a must see.  It is "Nit de Foc" or "Night of Fire" shot in Vallencia and is incredible.  If you don't have time to watch the entire show, let it buffer and then watch the last 3 minutes or so.  Be sure to watch it in HD too.

http://vimeo.com/3811656





As I previously reported, the DoJ and Obama admisnistration has told ICE and the DHS to only deport illegals here who have committed violent crimes and/or who are known gang members.  Well, here's proof that this new directive is now in place. 

How ridiculous is it that we catch people who are illegally in this country and then just let them go?  What percentage of illegals actually show up for their deportation hearings? This is ludicrous and has to stop!  If you catch someone in this country illegally, they should be detained and deported immediately.



Yesterday, Border Patrol agents found three Mexicans attempting to cross into the U.S. illegally from a crime ridden area of Tiajuana.  The agents grab and wrestle with one as the other two scale back over the fence.  One climbs back atop the fence and begins assualting the Border Patrol agents with rocks and nail studded boards.  One agent draws his gun and kills the assailant with a tap to the head and his lifeless body falls back onto Mexican soil, where it belongs.

The President of Mexico is upset and calling for an investigation stating that those guilty must be punished.  Oh really?  Well, you can't punish a dead guy!  Oh, you think the BP agents are at fault?  Well, that comes as no surprise but your citizens should know by now that if you throw rocks at a BP agent, you're likely to get shot since rocks do kill and disable people.  Don't think so?  Stand there and let me throw a few rocks at you and see if you want to stop the assault or not.  I bet you cry like a little school girl after the first hit.

In addition, we have the wonderful ACLU chiming in.  "We simply cannot allow our law enforcement agents to use lethal force when confronted with rock throwers," said Kevin Keenan, executive director of the ACLU of San Diego & Imperial Counties.  So the ACLU sides with criminals in this matter?  They also side with illegals obviously and the American taxpayer helps fund this crap?  Why?

I don't give a crap what Mexico's leaders think, what the ACLU thinks, what La Raza thinks and what immigrant rights groups think.  The United States is not an open border country and you do not have a right just to walk in univited.  You also do not have the right to assault our people guarding the border to keep your stupid ass out.  There is now one less idiot that won't be sponging off the American taxpayer in this country because he chose to attempt to kill government agents.  So, to all of you who don't like this guy getting shot for his attempted deadly assault, I'm waving at you....with my middle finger.  Keep throwing rocks so we can keep our shooting skills sharp, dumbass!

Your tax dollars at work!

Here's an illegal from the Dominican Republic, who already was under house arrest after pleading down to a previous drug trafficking offense, who was up to his old tricks while getting $900 in food stamps every month!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mWs9p6bzo0

1) He's an illegal who hadn't been deported from a drug trafficking arrest!

2) Why is an illegal getting taxpayer assistance?

3) Why is a criminal getting foodstamps?

Meanwhile, Obama and the DoJ have issued new mandates giving greater latitude to prosecutors to not prosecute illegals who are only acccuses or convicted of minor crimes.  They only want to deport the violent criminals and let the others stay.  Deportations have pretty much stopped under the new orders.  Absolutely ridiculous!! 

I kicked off my weekend by sleeping until 11am on Saturday morning and it felt great.  Outside of doing a little cleanup around the house, I was a bum for most of the day.  I did spend some time learning a new software program for my photography but didn't do a whole lot more.

On Sunday, I decided to clean out the garage and get it better organized.  Jodi wound up joining the effort and when we finished, we pulled all three cars into the garage, which was a first. 

Here's some thoughts on how to resolve the illegal immigration problem we have here:

1. Declare that there will never again be illegal immigration amnesty. The first one was a mistake that lead to 4 to 5 times the number of illegals. Give them six months to get out, no questions asked.


2. After that six month period expires, anyone caught here, regardless of their age, will be banned forever. No future citizenship, no legal immigration, not even a vacation visa. The exception to this would be those here committing other crimes, including identity theft.

3. Those caught again that are 18+ will be given at least 5 years in prison. Those under 18 will be sent back to the parents’ country of origin for state foster care.

4. Add up how much the U.S. tax payer gave each illegal deported or incarcerated and bill the country of origin. The countries that do not want to pay, no more foreign aid, even when faced with catastrophe.

5. CORRECTLY interpret the 14th Amendment. Illegal immigration was not a problem in 1868. What was a problem were the newly freed American slaves brought here or born to other American slaves because slavery was once legal here. This amendment was to give the slaves their legal rights, not to grant citizens to an illegal border jumper who just stuck the American people with their birthing bill.

6. Enforce laws against hiring illegals. Once it is shown that business owners are going to jail for that, you can be sure that most will not take a chance on hiring illegals. If there are fewer jobs for illegals, they are less likely to be here.

JD goes on DL

While pitching in Chicago, JD suffered an elbow injury to his throwing arm.  Fortunately, he took himself out of the game immediately and we iced it prior to returning home.  He saw an orthopedic surgeon on Tuesday in which Xrays and a range of motion exam didn't find anything out of the ordinary but to be on the safe side, I insisted on an MRI.  Yesterday, we went to find out the results and were told JD has a flexor pronator sprain.  The two tendons that reside above the Ulnar Collateral Ligament (Tommy John Injury) are strained and he has some fluid in the joint.  Fortunately, the UCL is not involved in the injury. 

The doctor recommended JD shut down for 6 weeks while attending physical therapy and once cleared to throw, work his way back slowly to the mound.  In all likelihood, his return will be this fall season.  He begins his physical therapy sessions next week

Although we are all disappointed that he is losing his summer season, we are very thankful that the injury is not more serious and that it doesn't require surgery.

Baseball Banquet

Last night, the North baseball team banquet was held at a nearby neighborhood swimming pool.  It was a perfect night for the event as temps were in the low 80's and there was a light breeze.  The food was supplied by our local grocery store and there was a nice selection of deserts that followed. 

After dinner, the varsity coach did a review of the season and then called up each player to receive their varsity letter.  When JD was called, the coach said that there were giving out an annual award that would go to the team's "Pitcher of the Year" and JD was the first recipient.  He was also presented with his varsity letter and his award for First Team All Conference.  

After the award ceremony, the coaches were presented with the framed posters that Jodi and I did.  One coach told us it was the coolest thing he's ever been given.  I have to admit, they do look pretty cool.

The players got to swim awhile before being treated to a couple videos that showed picture and video highlights of the season.  They were set to music and were very well done.  We all enjoyed watching them and it was the perfect ending to a great night.

Way to go, JD!!!!

Congratulations to JD on being named First Team All Conference Pitcher!!! 

Whew!

What a weekend!  I need some recovery time after being on the go for 4 days straight but it was sure a lot of fun.  Upon getting into town, my mom took JD, Megan and I to Olive Garden for dinner and then we had ice cream afterward with my friend, her son and his girlfriend.  I took JD and Megan to Jodi's sister's house where they would stay for the trip and then I went to my mom's and crashed.

Thye next day was the first game and JD started.  He only made one bad pitch that day and the team won.  A dozen college coaches watched him pitch from behind the backstop and we found out afterward that JD's coach was contacted by some of them after the game.  It appears they have interest in JD at this point so we'll see how things go. 

The team wound up winning their pool going 3-1 and played in an extra game at St. Louis University in which they won.  4-1 on the first weekend is a great start to the summer season.  It sounds like several of our unsigned players got some interest from the coaches in attendance so hopefully they'll start getting some correspondence from them.

When not at the ball park we spent time visiting family and friends.  JD and Megan also went to the St. Louis Zoo which was at the top of their "To Do" list.  Sounds like they had a great time there.  I went to Illinois for a bit to seee my friend's son play and then I stopped by my oldest brother's house and visitied with him and my sister-in-law for a couple hours.  I hadn't been to their house in at least 5 years so it was great to see all they had done to their home since my last visit.

Now we're going on the road for nearly two weeks as JD's team will take on some of the best team's in the nation.  We're expecting to see some large throngs of college coaches and MLB scouts at some of the games.  It should be a great trip.

Who wants to tell this officer's family that these illegals are all just hard working people wanting to come here and contribute to our society?  Who wants to tell them that our border is more secure than ever?  Who wants to tell them that these criminals deserve a path to citizenship? 

Drunk Illegal Immigrant who had been previously deported kills officer

Somebody just take him out back and shoot him. 

It was nice to have ONE day off over the holiday weekend.  I can't really complain since I will be using a couple weeks vacation shortly.  I spent my day off doing some work around the house and then in the afternoon, Jodi and I went to Lowe's and bought some flowers to plant.  After we got those in, I grilled up some of my world famous pork steaks and some lemon pepper chicken.  After dinner, we took the dogs for a walk and then watched some TV prior to going to bed.

There's been a lot of good news lately when it comes to making the United States a better place to live.  Many states have adopted new voter I.D. laws that require proper identification to vote.  Many of these laws were enacted when it was found that tens of thousands of illegals voted in a Colorado election.  States are also passing strict "Arizona style" laws that require police officers to check immigration status of people who cannot prove they are here legally.  It won't be long before Obama pulls some more of his shenanigans to help the illegals in this country.

In other good news, Florida's governor just signed a law that requires people who apply for state assistance/welfare to be drug tested.  Two words: About Time!!  Why in the hell should taxpayers subsidize drug habits?  Of course, the libs are upset about it.  Imagine that!

A Victory for Arizona and U.S. citizens

The U.S. Supreme court upheld a 2007 Arizona law that punishes businesses that knowingly hire illegals.  This sets the stage for SB1070 to be upheld too.  Go Arizona!!!  Obama, Holder and Neopolitan can stick it!! 

The end of school has arrived and that can only mean one thing, that summer baseball has arrived.  Next week, JD will travel to St. Louis ahead of me for a showcase tournament at St. Louis University.  I'm just going to use one vacation day and I'll arrive Friday and stay the balance of the weekend.  It's always nice to go to St. Louis to play since we don't have to get hotel rooms and we also get to see our family and friends while there.

Meanwhile, the illegal immigration battle continued yesterday with 108 illegals found in a 1300 sq ft drop house in Phoenix.   Story Link     Thankfully, a concerned citizen reported the activity to local law enforcement and now the detainees are being held by DHS and ICE.  It sounds like they captured some of the smugglers as well.  Obama and Neopolitan (yes, spelled that way on purpose) continue to say our southern border is safer and more secure than ever.  Yeah, obviously.  They don't want to help the States stop the flow of illegals but they don't want the States to do it themselves either.  Ridiculous.  Go Sheriff Joe!

The latest press for JD in our local newspaper:  Liberty Tribune Article

 Last night we went to the Royals/Cardinals game.  The Royals came away with a 3-0 victory and JD and his two friends were on the Jumbotron four times!  It was one of the most fun and laugh filled nights we've had in quite some time as our child and his friends kept us entertained with their antics all evening.  As we left the stadium, people kept commenting to the boys, "Aren't you the guys that were on the Jumbotron all night?"  They were even getting text messages and phone calls from others they knew who were at the game and kept seeing them on the High Def scoreboard.  Even JD's summer team coach saw them and called.  The evening at the "K" ended with a pretty nice fireworks show.  Absolutely a fun night.

Here's a poster we did that will be given to the varsity coaches at the team banquet in a couple weeks.  The player photos were images I took at games this season.  Jodi and I came up with a design idea and she used Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator to create it.  We think it turned out great.  You can click on the image for a larger view.

On Wednesday evening, we received word that the girl JD dated for 15 months through the Fall of last year took her own life earlier that day.  It is tragic that someone that young, beautiful and talented would think that the solution to her temporary problems would be to end her life.  The news just made us sick and we could only imagine what her family was going through.  Our house became a gathering place for many of JD's friends and they all had a difficult time at school the following day.  A memorial service is scheduled for tomorrow.

3 Things

1.  Carlos Santana Sucks!!! (If you don't get it, Google Civil Rights game)
2.  513 illegals found in two semi's headed to U.S. Busted in trucks
3.  My wife is awesome.

So much going on

JD's concert was fantastic Friday evening.  The concert featured Pop songs that most people would know and you could see where they made changes to the arrangement if any.  They started with Hey Soul Sister by Train.  The girls group then sang Time after Time by Cyndi Lauper followed by the Chamber Choir singing Black Horse and the Cherry Tree.  The boys followed that with a funny and highly entertaining rendition of the theme song from Spiderman.  The Chamber Choir came back with Mr. Blue Sky by ELO and then a short break was taken to hand out awards.  The girls came back with Firework by Katy Perry before the final song which was Africa by Toto.  JD had found a Youtube video online where an acapella choir did a remake of the song complete with a storm at the beginning of the song.  His choir teacher liked it so much, they did the same thing.  It was very impressive.  Here's the video JD gave to his teacher.  As you can see, there is a man doing "mouth percussion" or beatboxing".  His teacher had JD do the drum fills the same way as part of their concert.



This weekend, we added a new addition to our household  A good friend of JD's has moved in with us for the time being.  It's a very long story but the bottom line is that right now his quality of life is much better than when he was at home and we're going to ensure that continues until he makes a decision to go elsewhere.  I'm not very popular with his dad and step mother at the moment but I'm not out to win popularity contests and I think most people that know me know that.  It's sad that it's come to this but it is what it is. 

Jodi will be putting in some extra hours this week and possibly beyond since they've had trouble finding some keepers in their recent hiring at work.  The last two hires have not gone well and now they are once again short staffed.  

We're all looking forward to going to the Royals/Cardinals game on Friday.  As an added bonus, it's FIREWORKS FRIDAY!!  WooooHoooo!!  :)

2011 Prom

JD went to prom last night with his girlfriend, Megan.  We took pictures prior to them going to dinner at B.D.'s Mongolian Grill.  From there, they headed to Bartle Hall for Liberty High's prom.  They returned home afterward to change into more casual clothes and then went to the after party at the high school until 2:30am.  Here's a few pics I took.



JD pitched a heckuva game today on a cold and windy day.  Game time temps were in the upper 40's with a windchill hovering around 40.  You certainly don't expect that type of weather in mid-May but you have to play on.  He went 7 innings, allowed 4 hits and 1 earned run.  Unfortunately, our offense struggled today and at the end of 7 innings, we were tied 2-2.  JD was pulled and in the bottom of the 9th, the opposing team got a single, walk, walk and a single which ended the Eagles season.

I know JD is looking forward to rejoining his summer team and traveling to the best college showcase events in the nation.  Let's hope he continues to do well.

Tonight he is taking his girlfriend to prom so I will be sure to post photos soon. 

Obumbles is back on his immigration reform kick.  He just doesn't get it and chooses to ignore the will of American citizens.  It's all about securing new votes. 

I keep hearing this call for immigration reform.  It's all about amnesty or a path to citizenship for the million who have entered our counrty illegally.  We have immigration policy and laws in place and they just need to be enforced.  Heavily fine the employers of illegals and deport them all, not just those who have commited crimes while here, which is apparently the new directive of the Obama Administration.

The good news is that this has no chance of passing with the Republicans holding a majority in the House.  I'm sure we'll see the illegal masses marching in our streets shortly making demands of our country.  They will be carrying Mexican flags and signs written in Spanish showing how much they want to come here and assimilate.  (I hope you can detect my sarcasm).

To all of the illegals who make demands of my country, go F$#! yourself you frickin' cockroaches!!!

Here's JD on the mound Friday night in his complete game against Kearney. 

On a cool night under the lights, JD pitched a complete game last night against Kearney and the Eagles brought home a 4-3 win.  JD struck out 10 while walking one and his defense made some nice plays behind him.  The Eagles redeemed themselves after an earlier loss this year to their conference opponent.  The Eagles finish third in their conference with a 6-4 record, one loss behind Kearney at 7-3.

Districts start next Saturday where JD will pitch against Park Hill at 10am.  The winner of that game will play in the district semi-final game against the winner of the Liberty - Platte County game. 

We've entered the final week of the high school baseball regular season and the Eagles have three conference games remaining, starting with Staley tonight.  JD will pitch Friday night and then the seedings for districts will be set.  Once you get into districts, a loss ends your season. 

Summer ball begins the first week in June and we're ready to hit the road.  Four of JD's teammates have already verbally committed to colleges (Oklahoma, Kansas State, Central Missouri & Nebraska-Omaha).  We expect that our other players will garner interest this summer and get offers to play ball in college as well.  It should be an exciting two months for the players and their families, not to mention a bit stressful.

JD is scheduled to pitch tonight in a home game versus Oak Park.  He was origianlly scheduled to throw against Grandview on Monday, which became Tuesday due to rain and then it was rained out again.  It has now been rescheduled for early May.  Due to the rain, JD hasn't thrown in 9 days so hopefully his arm is well rested and he shakes off any rust quickly.

I've spent some time recently writing bylaws for my fireworks group.  The intent is to organize as a non profit corporation and we'll be doing that over the summer it appears.  We'll also be holding elections for the Board of Directors and preparing for our annual fall shoot.  We have some local cities who are interested in having our shoot at some of their fall city events so that could tie in quite nicely and possibly save us some funds in regard to product purchases and insurance cost.

We're starting to see some activity at the plant in preparation for the re-tool of the passenger system.  There's a lot of work to be done but when finished, our plant will be able to produce pretty much any product the company would need.  We're also confident that we are getting a stamping plant and that is very good job security for our plant.  Not only would we stamp many of the parts we need locally, we would also stamp parts for other facilities as well.  The total investment at our facility would total over $1 Billion if this comes to fruition.

Our contract expires this fall and the anti-union turds are already proclaiming that the UAW will "greedily" seek to restore the lost wages and benefits that we we agreed to give up almost three years ago.  These clowns have nothing better to do but sit in their cubicle and post in online forums all day on subjects they know nothing about.  Somehow they think labor is strangling the company to the point that they can't compete with foreign competition.  Well, my company made $6.5 Billion last year, all the while providing good paying jobs to American citizens.  Does that look uncompetitive to you?  They've also made another $2.6 Billion in the first quarter of this year.  Yep, they are truly hurting by having to pay a decent living wage to their workers.  I'm not disillusioned and think that we'll get all of what we conceeded to back.  I wouldn't even attempt it, but iof they want equity is sacrifice, there must be equity in gain also.

Maybe we should listen to all of the "Dilbert" office types and lower the wages in this country to those of third world nations so we can "compete", after all, all we hear is that it's a "global economy".   I bet that they don't realize that if you lower one group's wages, everyone's will go down too, eventually.  I guess the cubicle dust has made it to their brains.

We enjoyed our trip back to St. Louis for Easter.  We drove in the night after the severe weather hit the area but fortunately, our families and friends were all safe and they had no damage.  We never made it to the area that was hardest hit but we did see a few downed trees.

JD's team made it to the semi-finals of the Northland Tournament and played Friday not but dropped the game to Staley who then lost the next day to Liberty in the championship.  Last night's conference game was rained out and was moved to today but things aren't looking any better than yesterday.  JD is to pitch, albeit on a tight 50 pitch limit as his coach wants him to pitch against Smithville on Saturday in the Smithville tournament the team is in this weekend.

Jodi is busy refreshing her Photoshop skills so that we can do some custom posters for the team to give to the coaches at the end of the season banquet.  We may try to do a little part time sports photography on the side starting this fall.  Football would be a good season to start with and I think our custom sports posters would be a good seller with the parents.  We'll see if we want to pursue that as time goes on.