Yachts, Wood and Holland...

One of the many cool things about my job is the fact that I get to be around boats...I love boats, I love being on boats and I love seeing how boats are built. I think it's so cool that talented individuals can create something so cool...

Well, the past couple of days, I've been in Holland, Michigan meeting with a group of designers talking about new boats to build in the coming years. Great stuff...Great people. And I'm really looking forward to what the future holds for the stuff we are talking about. It's been a long term project that I've been working on for the past three years and it's cool to see some of it starting to come to fruition...

So the guy that I'm up here with, knows a guy that knows a guy that is the head sales dude at Tiara Yachts...Tiara just so happens to be in Holland, Michigan. Of course we had to go check it out. Absolutely amazing is all I have to say. By far the biggest and most impressive boat manufacturing facility I've ever been to. They build boats that our bosses boss buys. That's why there are called yachts and not boats. That was yesterday...

Today, while at lunch with head guy of the design company we're talking to, I asked him about the wooden boat company that he's done some work for. He said it was right down the road and asked if we wanted to check it out...We were like, ahh yeah we want to see some wooden boats...

And what a treat it was...totally different from yesterday...Small place (maybe 5,00o square feet)...No fiberglass, about 10 employees that build all 20 of their boats per year by hand. It was incredible to watch these craftsman at work. The company is called Grand Craft and they make replica boats of the past. Wood used to be the material of choice when building boats but manufacturers got away from it and starting using fiberglass...These guys are keeping it real. Something crazy...It takes about 90 days, start to finish to build a 58' Yacht with triple engines and it takes these dudes about 8 months to finish a 26ft boat with twin engines. You guys probably could care less but it's really cool stuff...

Anyway, that's been my last couple of days and I wanted to share because I thought it was so cool...

This is the Tiara's plant...Employs a lot of people...

And this is an example of what they build...


This is a grand craft...36 ft. Commuter...

Another...23 ft. Sport...

In Fuego...Week 6 Fantasy Style

I forgot to post last week about Fantasy Football but I will say the outcome was good...With that said, I was heading into week 6 in a two way tie for the top spot with Doche...

My team was phenom this week...Everybody contributed and it made for a dominating win...That would now place me in sole position of first place. I don't know how long it will last but I'm enjoying the moment.

My boy Romo is out but fortunately I never got any offers to take Peyton off my hands so I got him ready to roll...And by all looks of things, he's rollin' and should step in nicely while T. Ro is out with a broken pinky...Go chill with Jessica dude and rest up...

Wadded up!!!

This economy and election cycle has really gotten me wadded up lately. I feel so jaded and seem to get pissed so easily...I'm really glad that Amanda and I are on the same page politically for the most part...Otherwise, shoes would have been thrown at each other...

I hate that I'm being so consumed by this...Therefore, I'm instituting a no news weekend...I'm only gonna watch football and baseball on TV and I'm not getting on the internet the entire weekend...

It's on...

PS - I'm twittering now...Why, because I'm a one liner type of dude...Check me out here

Beware Vegetarians...

Amanda and I had a great weekend. There wasn't just one thing that was great about it, just the entire weekend was good...We got a lot of stuff done and spent a lot of time together. So to celebrate we decided to do something that we have never done since we've been together...Cook some meat...We always eat chicken or fish and have never got down with a nice piece of beef...

So we got two 20 ounce Ribeyes from Fresh Market...Beastly pieces of pure goodness...

Fortunately, our apartment complex just installed a BBQ down by the pool so Amanda and I had a nice candlelight dinner listening to music via Iphone...Great night...Great food...

Look at that goodness...20 ounces of pure joy...
That's a huge loaf of foraccia bread on the left that we dipped in some nice olive oil...
Finished product...Steak, portabello, salad with vinagarette, candles and some blue moon since we couldn't buy wine today...Sundays in Georgia I tell ya...The above picture doesn't show the mood because of the flash...This kind of does...

Not very happy right now....

Down 2 - 0 to the Red Sox and headed back to Fenway with Beckett on the mound...Not feel great about this at all...Plus the Dodgers are up 2 - 0 against the Cubbies and headed back to LA. And all my Dodger buddies have made sure that I know what's going on...

this sucks...Go Angels on Sunday night!!!!

Tonight's Debate...

Watched tonight's debate start to finish...Loved it...

I thought both sides were phenomenal. Much more exciting than the presidential debate. Both candidates seemed much better prepared and offered more specifics than rhetihoric. Palin to me was much stronger, sincere and specific in domestic policy. Biden was amazing in foreign policy. Dude knows what's up when it comes to stuff across the pond. Overall, toss up in my mind. Of course, CNN has Biden the winner and Fox goes to Palin...What do ya know...

Additionally, I want to say that I was very impressed with the moderator Gwen Ifils. She was incredibly impartial and fair. The only think I wish was that she would have pushed both candidates to answer the questions more directly...Both hey, it's politics...

Roland Martin (CNN) said before the debate, that people should vote on the issues and not on who they like more personally (something to that affect). And you know what, I agree with the guy. I typically don't. The only thing with that statement though was that it was clearly a jab at Palin voters who like Palin and the person she is. What strikes me as so ironic though, is that most people that are probably going to vote for Obama are clearly voting for him because of style and not substance. And that's totally fine. If you connect with a candidate on a personal level and could care less about his/her policies, by all means vote for them. But for Martin, who is obviously a huge Obama fan to make such a statement is so lame.

Personally, I'm undecided as of right now. I have some fundamental differences in opinion with Obama, Biden and the democratic platform (and they have nothing to do with conservative social issues). And some of the things they have said recently pushes me away even further. Yet despite that, there is a part of me that really likes Obama. I'm seriously going to have to pray a bunch on this one. It's a tough choice and I want to make a vote for someone and not against someone.

I haven't wrote very much here regarding this political season. I've done this because I'd rather have a conversation with someone that seeing a debate run rampid on a blog. If you do post a comment, please be coherent and not stupid and divisive...There's enough of that...

New Reading Material for You...

For those that are very observant, you've noticed several new blogs on the right hand side that are pretty cool...Well, at least to me they are. You should totally go check em' out.

But I wanted to highlight one that you should really go read. It's www.changetheworldwithlove.blogspot.com...And none other than the wee Burns of Shannon is the author. That's right, Shan is a blogger. And she is phenomenal. She started this thing because in December she is headed to South Africa for a couple of weeks on a mission trip.

Seriously, go read it. She's funny, she's eloquent and so transparent and sincere....You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll hug the person next to you...

Great stuff...Go here now!!!