She better not drive over 55!

I have not been to a driving test since I was 16. This one was as stressful as my own. I took my daughter to her drivers test a few weeks ago. It was a very stressful 20 minutes in the waiting room. Afterward, we met with the instructor while both of us were turning red with stress, we got great news! We have a new driver in the family. She passed on the first try! Our girl is getting older fast! The pictures are quite the before and after pics. Last pic is my daughter driving her younger brother to basketball practice ( I am in the backseat because I wanted to be there for this epic drive). 

Update: Wat's happenin' now?!? The "Solar" Bear Plunge

I started my 52 new things 7 years ago and finished it 6 years ago. It was a great adventure. I think of that year all the time. Skydiving, marathon running, superhero in the middle of summer, synchronized swimming and many more.  

I am going to try to do this again. I am busier than I was in 2009, so I will try to do something every couple weeks ( instead of every week). 

I started 2009 with my first polar bear swim. I finally convinced my whole family to join me in a "polar bear" swim on New Years Day! It wasn't as cold as I thought it would be. 

Quick Update on my 2010 year ... Official Recap of Goldie 52 Coming Soon.

I have had many friends ask me when am I going to recap my past year. I will do so very soon. I apologize for taking so long. Perhaps, not having a midnight every Sunday deadline has enabled me to put off my Goldie 52 conclusion. I will wrap this up shortly.


Unexpectedly, I have had many "new things" happen this year. All were unplanned. It makes me wonder if I should have continued this adventure.


This year has barely started, yet has been memorable. If these events happened before December 31, 2009, I would have been carrying my camera around to document these unplanned calamities.


My headlines would be ... #1:It is getting a little Nutty in here! ... Two squirrels were loose in my house trashing and defecating all over my place. (Last year I would have run to fetch the camera instead of the trap). My brother ended up with an epic water boarding, trap escaping, Mano-e-Mano fight to the death with this beast.

#2: I can't drive 105! ... I have never been driving over 85 mph before (not including going 125+ while jumping out of an airplane) let alone 105! Not even in a car, yet alone a snowmobile ... twice! Praying that a little stone or log doesn't show up to give me an unexpected lift. It was very dangerous and very exhilarating!!



#3: Get out of the water NOW!! ... Saving someone was new and unplanned this year. Snowshoeing in the U.P. with three friends from work turned dangerous. While inspecting a Beaver Lodge, my buddy fell through the ice and the current grabbed him. My friend Dave and I quickly got on our stomachs and formed a human chain to pull him out. "Stay calm, stop wailing away with your arms, slowly take my hand..." Crazy stuff! He made it out a little cold, but safe. (Ironically, this very same friend saved my life about a year ago by performing the Heimlich maneuver on me at an upscale restaurant in New York, very Pay It Forward if you ask me!)


#4: Where the Heck are We!?! ... Getting lost and running out of fuel in the north woods. Trying to get back to the cabin by 3:30-4:00 and arriving past 7:00p.m. we ran out of gas, had to siphon gas from one tank to another. Became lost over and over again on the interlocking lakes of Upper Peninsula Michigan. Seeing nothing but darkness on the pitch black frozen lakes. Very stressful, yet comedic at the same time. Finally making it back for a stress-reducing cocktail and many stories of our separate lost snowmobile stories.

Week #52 (Part II-Final Week): Honey, you stay home. I'll take the kids!

Late last year, I decided to attempt this endeavour. In November, 2008, I started going over potential "new things" for the upcoming year. My wife's first idea was "Why don't you go on a vacation with all the kids by yourself ?" I knew she was joking, but I thought it would be a good idea.

I have been alone with the kids before (either at home for a weekend,((while my wife was out of town)) or at my parents house), but I had never gone on a vacation with just me and the kids. Why not wrap up this crazy year with a little R & R with the young ones.

We spent a couple of days at The Landmark Hotel in Egg Harbor, Wisconsin. The only thing my kids cared about was if it had an indoor pool. It did! After we checked in, the kids loooved the fact that there was a loft in our room. They had a full-fledged upstairs kids floor!! They loved hanging out up there with their feet dangling over the ledge and watching kids shows on their own TV. We ended up swimming a couple times, making microwave popcorn, baking a pizza, and staying up late watching "Pirates of the Caribbean". I forgot to pack food for breakfast, so we had a "Daddy breakfast" of garlic bread sticks and Diet Rite (the only food left in the place). Then the batteries on my son's cochlear implants started flashing and I realized I left the batteries at my parent's house nearby. One last swim and it was time to go. Back at my parent's place, we realized my daughter's irreplaceable Blankie had been left in the room. Rivers of tears fell that night, but were replaced with sunshine and happiness the next day when I drove back and retrieved it. We had a great time while Mom hopefully had an even better time unwinding from the holidays rush, at home by herself.

It was a great way to end up the year. The kids had a fun time. While we soaked in the hot tub, my youngest said, "Hey Dad, our whole family is here ... except Momma :( ... " Well, don't worry buddy, Momma will be coming next time".

We all had fun this year and I thank everyone for helping out, especially my wife! I will recap my year in the next week. I want to thank everyone for their encouragement and also for giving me a hard time whenever possible.

Pictures: Checking in, pulling over on the side of the highway for a chilly picture of a farm with frozen Lake Michigan in the background, dinner, hangin' in the hotel, and my 10 year old daughter's blanket (which she forgot and I had to drive back to the hotel for), and checking out for good!

Video: Thanks to my oldest son for joining me, FULL CIRCLE- back to the Polar Bear-- This Time Only Observing ... Thank God!!

Week #52 (Part I): Joining the Army ... Salvation Army!

This is my second to last week. Since my weeks end on Sunday at midnight, I have one more task after this. As this year winds down, I am a conflicted soul. On one hand I can't wait for this weekly pressure to be off of me and on the other hand, I know I will miss this. ( I will write about this in further detail after my last post).

My mother came up with this week's idea. Hey! She said, "It is Christmas time, you should volunteer for the Salvation Army." Good idea, Mom. I thought, "Why not join the Army?" Be all that you can be! I talked with the family and everyone was all on board.

I signed up for my three-hour shift outside of Sears Dept. Store at one of our local malls. This task became a little more difficult due to my prior week injury. Standing on crutches for three straight hours became a little uncomfortable. I show up to relieve the lady before me and she asked if I have my own bell. I thought that they provided one. She exclaimed that they do... but nobody can hear it. She proceeded to give me one of her "sleigh" bells (which have a far better listening range). I start ringing away. A teenager came up to me and said "Sir, thank you for what you are doing." Someone else inquired if my crutches were real or am I just a good marketer. One hour in, my wife showed up with all the kids in their Santa hats and antlers. My wife noticed that kids and to some extent, dudes in crutches, have a lot more success with donations than adults. I spoke with a woman from Atlanta who also volunteers and she mentions they can't even ring a bell there. They actually hold up a sign that says "Ding Dong!" When my shift was over, it took a few minutes for the next family to relieve me. They also did not have their own bell. I thought since they were fellow members of the salvation army corp, I passed on the sleigh bells and wished them a Merry Christmas. One corp member to the other.

This was a rewarding holiday event for our entire family. My Mom and Aunts showed up to lend a hand. Our children learned to give back and we are all looking forward to continuing this new Holiday tradition every year.

Pictures: Ringing the bell with family, my Aunt Maureen lending a hand, the red bucket runneth over (thanks Ken).

Videos: Ringing away with my Mom giving away and the family joining in.

Week #51: Snowboarding - Goldie goes UP and Goldie goes DOWN!

One and done! That was my official first and last attempt at learning how to snowboard.

Too bad for me, because this was actually Plan B. Plan A was "Thiiiis close" to happening. I volunteered to be Santa Claus at PetSmart. The humane society lets you come in with your pets and sit on Santa's lap. For a nominal charge, your pet can have their picture taken with Jolly Old Saint Nick with all proceeds going to the Elmbrook Humane Society. Since I was too late for this year, I signed up for next year (thanks Ken and Pam).

I happen to ski a lot with my family and figured a little snowboarding could be a good time. Bad choice! I recruited my brother to lend a hand and witness this silly event. I had no teacher, no training, no idea, and no clue. And it showed! What a pain this was! Putting on the boots, clamping them into the binding and trying to stand upright is a difficult task. This doesn't even include the act of snowboarding itself. I did enjoy a second or two before "the fall" happened. I was not going fast and did not hit a tree, yet sustained a bone bruising injury. Apparently, old man bones bruise easily. My snowboarding adventure lasted only about 10-15 minutes, but gave me a lifetime of ... "Don't ever attempt this again!"

Part II of this week will explain what happened next.

Video: My brief snowboarding career.

Week #51 (Unexpected Part II): Taking it one step at a time.

So much for snowboarding! My wife mentioned that "I might be getting a little too old for this stuff"! Driving home that night, my left leg hurt like heck and I could not move it. Maybe she was right. After leaving the ski hill around 11:00 at night, my brother and I decided the ER was the place to go. We arrived at this deserted place in the underground parking lot. Only a few cars were in the lot. My brother got out to speak to the admissions area, while I waited in the car. He hurled an unmanned wheel chair across the parking lot for me. I hobbled to retrieve this before it hit one of the few cars in the lot. I saw the trajectory and limped forward to stop this racing beast, yet only managed to slow it down before it hit someone else's car. The nurse looked at my brother in disbelief. We entered and my brother noticed the nighttime ER nurse (who happens to be the wife of his best friend) and his comments become unleashed. They ask us to check in. He says ,"I'll do it for him." Question: What's your brother's last name? He speaks loudly: ASS! Then they ask, Well, then what is his first name? He answers: DUMB!! I still don't know how he came up with that one so quickly. I was cringing as usual. I had a few xrays and many discussions with the late night ER crew. They are all great people and treated me decently (which is saying a lot with the peanut gallery I came in with).

Next day, I am on crutches for the first time. I pick up my daughter at church and someone jokes, " Hey, Let the cripples go first!" You definitely get a lot of looks with the crutches, yet I discovered most people are very nice and open doors or hold elevators for you. My son sweetly said to me yesterday, " Dad, I don't want to be mean or something, but with that cane thing ... you look really, really old." Gotta love kids. They speak the truth.

P.S. My wife and colleague Jackie at work told me on Wednesday before I headed to the ski hill, that I better not come home on crutches the next day. Well, sorry I did. Lesson learned. :(

P.S. Don't take Vicodin on an empty stomach and go to work.

Week #50: Timberrrrrrr!! : A Norman Rockwell Christmas Scene

In our house, December rolls around and it begins to feel a lot like Christmas. Every holiday season, we traverse down the road a mile or two to select a tree from the pre-cut selection that is available. I thought that maybe this year, our family should get all "Norman Rockwell". Time to cut down our first Christmas tree. My wife's family had done this once before (about 25 years ago) and she still harbors bad memories of that event. Apparently the weather was horrible that day and her Dad was given a rusty ax to cut down their craggy tree. Everyone argued, then became tired and cranky after dragging this special tree to the car and eventually home. I was determined to change this memory for her. I am pushing 40 now, yet have never cut down a Christmas Tree of my own (nor has my family). This is the year to do it and if we are lucky, the family can change my wife's feeling towards Christmas tree cutting.

After many an Internet search, I found the closest tree farm to our house. It was about 30 minutes away and did not have any outdoor lighting. My children get off the bus after 3:20 and it gets dark around 4:00 this time of year. It was crunch time! Everyone got off the bus and we quickly shifted into the family car and moved on to "The tree farm".

Upon arriving, the owners explained the tree-cutting program to us. This is the Balsam Fir section, the Frasier Fir section, etc. We grabbed our tarp and saw and were on our way to a piece of forgotten Americana. We found our tree and began to cut away. It only took about a minute to cut down this beauty (about 20 minutes earlier than my wife's early teenage memories). On the way down, the tree almost hit my son. Fortunately, he was agile enough to escape harm. We brought our tree in and had it shook (for $1 dollar) free of leaves and animals. Then were given some twine, and my 7 year old helped me tie the tree to the top of the car. We all ended up having a great time.

When we brought the tree home, my biggest worry was that it would turn into a Clark Griswold Christmas tree. I was half expecting to see a squirrel flying out of it and onto my kids. Thankfully, this did not happen. The entire process went smoothly. My wife commented that there is usually a carpet of pine needles on the ground of our living room, but there were hardly any this year. Talk about fresh! I guess a little bit of sawing and elbow grease can make for a cleaner and more traditional Christmas for us this year! Merry Christmas!!

Pictures: Cutting down our tree before the sun sets (no lights available), kids dragging the tree, rudimentary twine cutting knife, my son tying the tree to the car, and the final result of our adventure.

Check out the first Video: my oldest son (in the background) almost gets hit by the tree

Week #49: NO WAY JOSE!!

Gutbuster! Who you gonna call? ... Jose!

Horrible challenge this week. A small back story - a little over a month ago, I received a phone call from my friend, Mark. He inquired if I had ever tried a competitive eating challenge. My lightening quick answer was no, and lets give this a try! When our spouses asked "Why are you doing this?" The only answer was "Why" is not a question one should ask when participating in a food challenge. All we had to do was coordinate a time and a place. He found the challenge at the restaurant Charro. They have a burrito that weighs in at 5-8 pounds called the "No Way Jose" Burrito. If you consume this beast, it is on the house. My friend Brian decided to join Mark and I on this adventure.

Thankfully, Mark has a competitive eater friend in the Minneapolis area. Advice was passed on to the three of us. There was a 3 day "workout" schedule. Day 1: Eat regularly until dinner. At dinner, gorge yourself until you can't anymore (then continue to eat afterwards). This will stretch out your stomach lining. Day 2: Eat regularly, but drink water from dawn to dusk. This will keep your stomach stretched out to capacity (Mark emailed me "Who could actually think that water can taste bad after awhile?). Also, you will be going to the restroom more times then you have ever gone before. Day 3: (or as I call it: Game Day) Eat a breakfast bar in the morning and nothing else. Then, proceed to work out harder than you usually do (if you don't exercise, do so on this day). This increases the metabolism and gets the body ready to go. On game day, Brian and I ran between 8-10 miles at the Pettit Olympic Ice Skating Center. Post-run shower, my stomach was growling like crazy. I think I heard it say "Let's get it on! 6 pound burritos are nothing!"

Mark, Brian and I discussed our challenge with each other. We quickly figured out it was a battle against Jose, not one another. Mark and I made a side bet with our favorite charity to whomever finished first or who ate the most.

On Wednesday, the clock struck four and sweat beads began to appear on my forehead. We decided to pass on the appetizers. Then, the waiter brought out the 5 to 8 pound (nice discrepancy BTW) burrito for Mark, then me, and finally for Brian. After witnessing this abomination, we knew Jose would defeat us all . Weight-wise, it was like eating a new born baby. We would have to finish this beast in under 1 hour. Basically, you are racing against your stomach. Finish before your belly says, "Hey, Knock it off!" Yet, we were famished and ready for the challenge! The first bite was delicious, the second o.k. then it turned ugly! I could hardly lift the fork ten minutes in. Twenty minutes passed and Mark peered over and spoke "I want to throw up before every bite." truer words could not be spoken. I became hot, sweaty, disorientated, grumpy, sleepy (pretty much all of the Disney Dwarfs, except for Happy.) Finally, my stomach was stretched to the limit. Four plus pounds of burrito later, I threw in the towel, Jose wins :( I did squeak by Mark and managed to raise a little money for my favorite charity http://www.cdhh.org/ (The Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing). A few days later, I seem normal again. Of all my adventures this year, this is definitely one that I will NOT do again any time soon!

P.S. Extra special very impressed with that Man vs. Food guy!

www.charrorestaurante.com/brookfield

Pictures above: "No way Jose" Burrito, running 8-9 miles one hour before the event, before and after shots. (Notice the difference in Mark (on the left) from before picture #3 and later-in-the-task picture #7, not as cheery)

Videos: Getting ready to go down! (Special thanks to Jan, my cinematographer)