wheels....vehicles...trucks...cars...daily drivers....hobby....enthusists...gas gusslers...hybrid....old...new...black...red...white...are all ways to describe vehicles. For some it is a passion and for others it might just be a way to get to work. For me, well at least in the case of my current vehicle, it has a little history. 

First let me start with my first memory. Remember the days of riding in the back of a pickup truck. Of course it was legal back then, but you could just jump in the back take a seat on the wheel well and off you go. Well, back in the late 70's and early 80's I remember jumping in the back of my dad's Ford Ranger and taking off for the nearest restaurant for lunch. This truck wasn't just any truck, it was a 1978, orange and white, two tone, long bed, crew cab, two wheel drive and a big 460 Ford engine with loud dual exhaust. For starters, the truck was as long as a short bus and was ranking right up there with the ugliest color available (by today's standards of course). But, the memories of riding in the back of that truck and taking trips to get lunch or parts were unforgettable. It wasn't so much the vehicle itself but the places we went, the moves we made and the time we spent driving in that truck that made it so special. We hauled nearly a whole baseball team to the ice cream store, drove a few trips to Florida and back when we moved down there, and used it to pull our first family boat to the lake. What great times we had with this ugly truck. Makes me realize why my dad still looks for another 78' whenever we are out.

Dad's next vehicle was a newer model, which I think was an 84' or 85' Ford F150. This was more of an influenced purchase, well sort of. I urged my dad to get a two door short bed. Granted this was a big step from the long extended bed that we had. So we ended up with a two door regular bed. This truck had a somewhat smaller engine, but had a few bells and whistles that I was able to add on later. I helped dad style his truck by adding window tint, Aluminum styled wheels, dual exhaust, and a upgraded stereo. Granted my dad really could care less about all these options, but hey, I was a teenager and had to have a cool truck to take on my weekly water ski trips. Besides it had to look good pulling our new fish/ski boat. And, it did. I loved driving this truck, I took it fishing, sking, on weekend trips, to friends houses, driving in the Ocala National Forest, to Daytona beach, running errands for mom, basically everywhere. It was much better to drive than my first car (Dodge 400) and it sounded much better too. Memories were made with this truck too, and little did I know how important they would be later in life.

Moving on, and since I now could drive myself I of course went through a few vehicles and tested all different types. I had a Dodge 400 two door, a 1989 Mustang Gt (another story here), a 92' Grand Prix Gt (of which the color drew a lot of attention), a Jeep Cherokee (2wd), Saturn SL2, 95 Mustang Gt (trying to recapture the 89' experience), Ford Explorer Sport, Hyundai Sonata (growing up) and finally the perfect vehicle.....a black Ford F150. Yes, I don't know what finally clicked inside or brought out the memories of all the great times I spent in trucks all my life.  I finally realized that of all the vehicles I had owned never matched the great times I had had in the trucks of my life. Even the trucks that my friends owned brought great times with them yet, I never owned my own truck. Now was the time.....

Moving on to 2005, I made a purchase. Not the most thought out purchase since my wife wasn't along. In fact she was in school taking classes for her Master's program. And, to make it better/worse it happened to be on our 13 year wedding anniversary. Yes the actual date, September 12th, 2005. However, I did call her and talk to her briefly while I was in the dealership and explain what a great vehicle it was and what a good deal I was about to get. But what I did gain from this experience was probably the best vehicle I have ever owned. Now I know gas prices are sky high and in a perfect world my truck would get 30 mpg. But it isn't the gas mileage that drew me to the truck in the lot. Let me share a little about my truck.

Walking around the lot I had a couple things in mind. I knew that I needed a truck that would hold all of our family. Three children, my wife and myself had to fit comfortably and it had to have a few options such as power windows, automatic, 4x4 (winter driving), and a CD Stereo. Well, I loved the look of the new 2004 and up F150's and looked at every truck on the lot. I saw a couple I liked and noticed a Dark Red one I wanted to test drive. Walking up to the dealership office my eye caught a black, 2005, F150, 4x4, extended cab, with chrome Roush wheels, Sunroof, and a 5.4 liter V-8. As soon as I seen this truck I new this was the one for me. After-all, I love black vehicles and the combination of the chrome wheels and the black truck was amazing. So, test drive it was. I remember it being parked up on a curb and the salesmen tossing me the keys and saying "drive it off the curb, it's a truck, it will be fine". I took it on a test drive and it felt much larger than my Hyundai and I honestly felt a little uncomfortable with parking it at first, but driving felt perfect. I loved it from the second I pulled out of the lot. Needless to say, I now am the owner of this  truck and love driving it as my daily driver. 

I hope that my children get to form as many memories as I did riding in my dad's F150's. Someday I hope to be pulling a boat behind and taking my wife and family on fishing/ski trips just as I did in Florida and share new wonderful times with them so that they can have some the same great memories.  

Now I have added a loud, Magna-Flow exhaust, upgraded stereo, Line-X bed liner, Extang tonneau cover, and a K + N filter charger. All of which are to personalize it even more and make it mine. I bet when my son Carter grows up someday and even my two girls grow up , they will remember dad's black F150 truck and all the places we went, things we hauled, trouble we caused, and fun we had while driving it everywhere. And that to me is a great reason to drive what I think is the world's finest truck. My Ford F150.......

Energy

How often have you went all week at work just waiting for the weekend so you could relax, get a few household projects done, and spend some time with the family? Does it ever happen that way? 

Not usually I bet. In fact for me it goes more like arrive home on Friday after waiting in endless traffic and hitting every red light. Then attempt to pull in the driveway counting how many bikes, scooters, skateboards, and other toys you will run over if you weren't looking. Okay, so I patiently smile at my three kids, roll down the window and point to the toys scattered across the drive. Most of the time they eagerly run to get there stuff moved out of the way before my smile turns to a frown and the polite "Hello" turns into "Get your stuff out of the way!" yell.....Well, after pulling in the driveway I am eagerly greeted by my youngest two children asking me about my day and telling me they are happy to see me. The oldest one, well if she is near she will say "hello" too as long as her friends aren't around and it wasn't too noticeable of course. Anyway, I gather my stuff (usually a empty drink cup, phone, and work folders) climb out of the truck and am surrounded by my kids and sometimes the neighbors kids too asking what seems like 50 questions. You would be surprised what questions are asked when you are just wanting to get inside to relax and clear your mind from a week of work. Mistakingly, my brain starts to slow down at the end of a day when actually it needs to do just the opposite. Every question in the book comes out...from "Will you play outside with me?", "Dad, how long is a Walking Stick Bug?", "Can I have a snack?", "Can we go to the park?", "Can I go to Maddie's (Kylie's best friends house)", "Can we have a sleep over?", "What are we having for dinner?", "Watch this Dad...."is on the table. You simply have to be ready for everything. No matter how many parenting books and conversations you have with your parents about raising children, nothing can prepare you for the amount of energy you need to keep up with your kids. Okay, even if the empty drink cup I spoke of earlier is from a cup of dark, caffeine loaded coffee (my latest secret to deal with the barrage of questions), I still have a difficult time taking the short walk from my truck to the garage door and making it in the house. Don't get me wrong, I love my kids dearly and they are the greatest part of my life. But, at the end of a long day you really have to prepare yourself mind and body for the relentless energy of your children. I'm sure some day as they are grown and leading their own lives, I will pull in the driveway and miss that interaction that once was.....so, for now, I'll continue to pick up my coffee and drive back those feelings of exhaustion. After-all, a smile, hug, and a warm greeting goes a long way with your kids and if you can gather up the energy to toss a frisbee or watch the newest trick on a scooter, even better. For now, the work will be on hold and the easy chair will have to wait.....I have to go play with my kids before they grow up. 

Chips

Ok....here is the picture. 5 year old son, sitting at the dining table, eating his lunch and taking part in family conversation. Well, sort of...if it wasn't for the fact that he was eating potato chips. Normally a routine thing, right? Well, not with my son. He has this way of eating chips unlike anyone I have ever seen. It actually is captivating and makes you wonder "have you ever seen someone eat chips that way before?".  The process is simple. Pick up a chip, take a bite, close your lips (preventing chips from falling out), chew and swallow right? Not so easy for a 5 year old boy. Of course it is easily mastered by my 4 year old daughter, but there is something about the process that makes it difficult for my son to master. 

His process goes as follows: pick up a big ol' potato chip, handle it a few times to determine the best spot to take a bite, move it to his mouth and take a very small bite of just the edge of the chip. Okay, here is the problem. When he does this, and every time he does this the same way, the entire chip cracks, crumbles, and falls to the table, chair, and surrounding area. Did I mention that I was a nut about messes and the failure to even follow the simplest instructions to close your lips around the chip to prevent it from breaking. Or, better yet, take a smaller chip and put the whole thing in your mouth. Break it in half if you must on your plate, I really don't care....whatever, just don't take the worlds smallest bite and cause your chips to endlessly crumble and fall to the floor. 

When our son eats chips we all sit around the table staring at him, wondering what step he is missing from the eating process, where did we fail as parents in the proper eating etiquette and training? Until we get this one figured out (which will be never-explanation coming up) we will continue search for other ideas and help for our son consume one of his favorite food items. 

So, now I bet your saying, don't worry he will eventually grow up and it is just a stage he is going through. Relax your being overly cautious parents and are caring too much about a simple little issue. Your right! But, the reason I can't get over the issue of the "Chips" is that I finally figured out why the whole thing is happening. In fact, I realized that it is useless to fight the fact that chip pieces will always be all over the floor, falling in an endless cascade each time my son eats his lunch. It is simply inevitable.....

All I had to do was go on a family visit to my in-laws and watch my Father-in-Law eat a few snacks in his overstuffed easy chair.....all, I could do was listen to that voice inside that said: It's inherited....it will never go away.....

Introduction

Welcome to my blog. First, let me explain why I even have a blog. Answering that question also explains the title to my blog..."Curveballs2007". Live is full of curve balls. Some just happen and are unexpected and some you can predict by subtle hints or changes in life. Sometimes its a family event or change of career. There are in fact many kinds of curve balls you experience in life and hopefully each one is an opportunity for growth and a way to enrich yourself. Some of mine for example, are probably the same or similar to what many others have gone through. This is why I started this blog and look forward to sharing my curve balls with you. So, let us begin this adventure and I welcome your comments and feedback.....