Christmas Day 5 - Christmas Eve in Nashville

Christmas Eve morning, we woke up and went to the gym with Rachel's mom - More on that in "Reflections". That afternoon, Mrs. Hargis gave Rachel's dad his BIG present for Christmas - an XBOX 360. She gave it to him while I was there so I could help him hook it up on his big screen TV downstairs (Rachel also has a bunch of male cousins who were coming over for Christmas eve, so I think she wanted to contain them in the basement as much as possible).

In a single day, I learned that my father-in-law is more "hip" than me (I don't have an XBOX 360, and this was before my Wii), and that my mother-in-law can kick my butt in a gym (again, more on that in "Reflections").

It was Rachel's family's turn to host the rest of the Hargis's for Christmas Eve. Dr. Hargis's sister, Ginger (2nd from right), her husband Ricky and two sons Neil and Patrick, as well as Dr. Hargis's other sister Judy (far right) and her two sons Daniel and Jonathan came over for dinner and to play Dirty Santa. To clarify for pervs like Hennessy, that is where everyone draws numbers. The 1st person blindly selects a gift. The 2nd person can steal that gift or pick an unknown gift from the pile. You proceed until the last person has selected a gift. Most of the gifts are gags, but also include something of value. I got a $15 I-Tunes card and $5 cash (gifts are to be $20).

It was a good time. Rachel's cousins (clockwise from upper left - Patrick, Jonathan, Neil and Daniel) provide good entertainment. Patrick and Neil are musically talented and Daniel is a complete cornball. The four of them should go on the road with a comedy variety routine. After they left, we went to bed in anticipation of Christmas morning.



Reflections - The QUAD MILL
A picture does not do this diabolical machine justice. The Quad Mill is a new and innovative piece of work-out equipment. The U.S. Olympic Ski Team, the NY Giants and now the Tennessee Titans are using these machines for training world class athletes. The mill has front and back platforms that oscillate up and down. You stand on one or both platforms, depending on the exercise, and attempt to keep your eyes level with the horizon for 60 seconds, by doing repeated squat thrusts. The catch is that since this thing oscillates, the actual pressure of these thrusts is magnified many times over. If you are a Titan, you may last 5 minutes. The gym record was set by an Iron Man Triathlete, who managed 10 minutes on the device.

Proudly, Rachel and I both managed 5 sets on the Quad Mill, and were able to walk the next day. My mother-in-law, whose age shall not be revealed here, did 10 minutes. I would be humiliated, but she can also out-swim, out-run and out-bike me, so I had reasonable expectations.

Some little known facts about the Quad Mill:

1) Lance Armstrong used the Quad Mill to win his 15th Tour de France in a row.
2) St. Tebow uses the Quad Mill to help him walk on water.
3) Henry the VIII was said to favor the 'Torture Rack' because he considered it too inhumane to put people on the Quad Mill.
4) The Quad Mill once defeated Chuck Norris.
5) Count Dracula would have been known as Vlad the "Quad Miller" instead of Vlad the "Impaler" if the Quad Mill had been around.

Christmas Day 4 - Hanging out in Nashville

On Sunday, we hung out in Nashville. That morning, Rachel, Heather (Rachel's sister), Mrs. Hargis and I went out and fed Mrs. Hargis's horse, Secret. She is a three year old Tennessee Walking Horse that lives in the pasture behind their house. Their neighbors board and train several horses.


Sunday afternoon, we went to the Stadium formerly known as Adelphia (now LP Field) for the Titans game against the NY Jets. The Cleveland Browns lost earlier in the day opening a spot in the playoffs for the Titans should they win their last 2 games. The whole family went. Rachel and I sat with her dad (the gentleman in the picture who looks Russian), while her mom sat with friends (she has a regular gang that she goes to games with). Sister Heather was also there with friends.

Following the game, we stopped by and saw Kelly Birdwell Austin and her husband, Eric. It was the first opportunity that we had to meet their daugher Sienna, who looks like an 8 month old Kelly (I am sure DNA testing would support that Eric is the father).

Reflections - Reliance on the Blackberry

I am now one of millions of Americans that has become totally reliant on technology, specifically my cell phone. When traveling for work recently, my phone fell out of my pocket as I was leaving Phoenix. Unfortunately, I was not immediately returning home, as I had to visit some clients in California. Rachel called on my phone while I was on the way to the airport. I missed it once I got into the security line at the Phoenix airport. Therefore, I knew it was either in the shuttle or at the U.S. Airways check-in counter.

I cannot describe the feeling that fell upon me. I felt helpless. It was like I had lost all connectivity with the world. As I sat in the terminal, I could check no email, I could not pass the time surfing the net for football scores. Most importantly, I could not call my wife. Even worse... I did not know if I could call my wife once I landed, as I was unsure of her phone number; it was programmed in the lost Blackberry.

I had to pick up the Account Manager who was flying in from Atlanta Monday morning. She had no way to contact me when she landed. Luckily, I had her flight information and was circling the Ontario, CA airport. As she climbed into the car, she stated, "Hey, I just talked to John with the shuttle company in Phoenix. He has your phone and is going to mail it to your wife." After I finished laughing, I enjoyed the sense of relief of knowing that my phone was safe and coming back to me.

Christmas Day 3 - The Fesmires

On Saturday morning, Rachel and I woke up early and left Knoxville for her parents' house. After seeing her parents, we set out to pick up her sister in West Nashville and headed for Waverly to meet her Mom's family for a Christmas dinner.

There, we saw Rachel's Uncle Tommy (mom's brother), who was pictured on this blog previously at Gus's before a football game, and her mom's sister Janice and her family.



Caleb and Trey (pictured below) and Becca (pictured with "Grandma" Janice above) provided the entertainment. It was great to see Uncle Dan (Janice's husband) and Rachel's cousins Stewart and Amy (and her husband Charlie) as well.














Reflections - The Wii

I was extremely lucky this Christmas to be able to spend time with my family and to receive many wonderful presents that I did not deserve. The tops of these presents was our Nintendo Wii. This system is revolutionalizing how we play video games. The more I play with it, the more I am impressed by it. It is extremely interactive and can be played by children of all ages - 4-80. You can even get exercise while playing, as you stand and mimic the actions of the participants in most games. It is completely addictive!!!

In addition, it is compatible with Nintendo Game Cube games, so your old controllers and games can be plugged in. It is connective with Wireless Internet, and the Wii Nun-chuck can be turned sideways and used as an original Nintendo controller. With the wireless access, you can go to the Nintendo Store and download classics, such as Tecmo Bowl, Excitebike and Punchout for $5 each.

Finally, you can create "Mii's" that resemble you and/or friends. I have posted a poll at the top of the page to see who you think most resembles their Mii. Mine is not that good because we can't get the hair right, but I think Rachel's and Clark's look really good. We made one of our friend Sheralee that is a spitting image of her. She was not included in the poll, as many of you have not met her.

I highly recommend that you each go out and buy one, if you can find it.

Christmas Days 1 and 2

On Thursday afternoon December 20, Rachel and I set out from Lansdale, PA for Tennessee. The "Reflections" session below will detail why we left several hours late. Suffice it to say that we left the Philadelphia area around 4 PM.

We initially planned on getting a hotel somewhere in central Virginia, but were kindly offered a room at my Aunt Sae and Uncle Larry's in Abingdon, VA, even though we would not arrive until midnight. It was the first time that Rachel and I visited their new home, which they bought in August. It is a beautiful place out in the country. It was also the first time that we had been able to hang out with them in a couple of years, so it was a very nice evening.

The next morning, my parents picked us up, and we went to visit my grandmother in Grundy, VA. We had not seen her since last Christmas. She immediately told us that we needed to get started on "continuing the Kennedy name", as I am the last chance. She thought we should get started this winter, as she is tired of waiting around. Although she is in her early 90's and has emphysema, she certainly has kept her wit and sense of humor.

Laddy and Amy (for those who don't know, they are my cousin and his wife) came up to Aunt Sae's that evening, and we had the 1st Kennedy Christmas that evening. It was a very nice time. We headed for Knoxville at about 10:30 PM, as Rachel and I had to get up early Saturday morning to head for the Fesmire Christmas in Waverly, TN.

Rantflections - Enterprise Sucks!!!
As I mentioned above, Rachel and I did not leave Philadelphia until 4 PM. We planned to leave at 1 PM. We rent an SUV for our annual Christmas Trek to help us make it home despite winter weather and to provide cargo space for Christmas presents. Being a value shopper, I booked an Enterprise SUV through Expedia.com. 1) When I went to pick-up my car, the Enterprise place had a sign in the window stating that they had moved. I called and got directions to the new location. 2) When I got to the new location, I was informed that since I was over one hour past my reservation time that my full-sized SUV had been rented to someone else and that all they had was a smaller Ford Escape (not a problem; just the principal). I kindly informed the young lady that I had never heard of such a policy, even though I rent cars frequently. In addition, no where on my reservation did it say anything about such a policy. Further, I had spoken to one of their reps on the phone the day before, and she had not mentioned this policy nor the office's move to a new location to me. 3) I could not park my car at the rental car facility (STRIKE 3 - ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME!?!). "Enterprise - We'll Pick You Up" should read, "Enterprise, We'll pick you up because we won't let you park at our office, which has moved". So, the pick-up guy followed me back to my house with the rental car. I then rode back to the office with him. Finally I drove home. My favorite part... I had to make the guy dock an 1/8th tank of gas, or he was going to try to hold me to the amount of fuel in the car before transporting me and the pick-up guy all over northwest Philadelphia.

Disclaimer: I have been a very satisfied Enterprise renter in Kankakee and other locations. I think it is just poor management of this office. I received a phone survey from Enterprise following the rental. The lady asked me 3 multiple choice questions and did not give me the opportunity for additional comments. You got the benefit of those comments here. Blogging is therapeutic.

Travels for Fun

Along with traveling for work this fall, Rachel and I were able to make it to several UT football games. The California game is well-documented in earlier blogs, as was my ranting following the Florida game. We also made it to several games in Knoxville, including the home opener against Southern Miss, Arkansas St. (me only), the woodshedding of Georgia, and the South Carolina cliff-hanger.
At each of these games, we were able to catch up with friends and enjoy the atmosphere of Knoxville on game-day (Steve and Erin Rodgers win "most loyal tailgaters" this year, as Steve made all Kennedy tailgates, and Erin missed only one. Mark Clark was also present at each tailgate. Prior to the Southern Miss game, we bumped into Rachel's Uncle Tommy at Gus's. We also saw Pace and Marin at Gus's (pictured in "Reflections"). Lindsey and Shaggy also snuck into town for this game.

The Big Orange BANDitos, shown as the Main picture of this blog were present at the tailgates for the Georgia game. If you read this blog and are not a UT fan, or if you are somehow a UT fan who is not familiar with the work of the BANDitos, please ask me about them sometime. They are well worth the explanation. Larry and Kerry Wray, Larry's brother Steve and friend, Cooney (just like a Brazilian soccer star, she needs only one name), and my college roomates - Tharp, Bean, and Timey and their MUCH better halfs were all present for this tailgate.

The weather turned cold for the South Carolina game. Johnson's wife, Erin, is pictured here "freezing". It was nice to reunite with Johnson for a win, following the debacle that we last attended together at Cal. The Johnson's have settled into TX with Shell Oil.



REFLECTIONS - Follow-up to the "Liquor Pack Mule"

As I had hoped, my recount of the lady that used her 4 year old boy at the Georgia game to smuggle liquor into the stadium, generated quite a bit of debate and banter amongst my blog readers. I wanted to follow-up on this particular topic, as many of you have provided some nice additional insight. Pace, pictured with Rachel and I at Gus's is the daughter of one proud Reed Stephenson - fellow blogger. Reed will be glad to know that his best friend, Bill Langston, volunteered Pace as a pack mule. Pace is WAY too classy for that task, at least until she enters college herself.

Others offered up the question, "Exactly how much alcohol could you smuggle in on a kid?" That is a very good question. One could likely turn this into a successful entrepreneurial venture by using a Cub Scout Den to smuggle the goods through security and then sell and distribute to others once in the stadium.

Perhaps the most astute observation was made by Mark Jones, Esq., who commented that he was, "pretty sure I could get at least a fifth in if I was carrying an infant."

Travels for Work

Since moving into my new job, I have been traveling a lot more. While we were living in the friendly confines of the Residence Inn, this was a little more palatable, as I was just exchanging one hotel for another. However, now that we are in our place, I dread traveling a little more (mostly because I miss my wife).

Over the past 6 weeks, I have traveled for work to Atlanta, Providence, Rhode Island, New York City, Orange Co., CA and Phoenix, AZ. The Phoenix trip was the highlight of my travels. I got to stay at a very nice resort. While there, we arranged meals with our larger customers who were attending the show. We took two of our biggest customers to Elements, where Chef Beau MacMillan cooks some AMAZING steaks (his claim to fame is that he beat Bobby Flay in an Iron Chef American competition). I typically don't care for high-end food (most of you know I am a meat and potatoes kind of guy), but MacMillan prepared the best Ribeye steak I have ever eaten.

I laid over in Phoenix for the weekend and had the opportunity to catch up with Jeremy Graves. He came up and spent the night on Friday evening, and we joined the Phoenix Chapter of the UT Alumni Association to watch the UT vs. Arkansas game. If you are ever in the area, be sure to join them, as they are a great bunch to hang out with. Their Vice President is a riot.




Reflections - What is this bathroom doing in NYC?



Before Thanksgiving, I rode with one of our Account Managers and Research Chemists to see a customer on the outskirts of NYC. It is amazing to believe that we are so close to "The City" now. We drove through Staten Island, across the bridge into Brooklyn, through Queens and to our final destination, which brings me back to my question - "What is this bathroom doing in NYC?"

The fact is, I don't know. I included this for 3 reasons: 1) I am establishing a pattern. I hope to include at least one bathroom photo of some relevence in this blog every 6 months (you can search my history to find my last bathroom posting); 2) Rachel will not like it. She is fun to annoy; and 3) It is thought provoking. I really have no idea what this bathroom is doing in NYC. Feel free to leave your comments on why you think it may be there.

Sorry For the Absence

On Friday November 16, Rachel and I escaped from Captivity (the Residence Inn). We have finally moved into our place, and it is great to no longer be living out of a suitcase. Well that is not quite true, as I am still traveling quite a bit with work. However, we do have a place to call "home" again.

Now that we have internet access again at our house, I plan on writing several blogs over the next week or so to catch up on what has been going on for the past couple of months.

Mom and Dad came up for Thanksgiving and helped us unpack and situate furniture. Since we didn't have all of our kitchen stuff unpacked, we booked reservations at Maggiano's for Thanksgiving Day lunch. It was a massive amount of food, most of which, we ended up taking home with us for leftovers. We hung blinds, watched football and showed them around the area some. They agreed that the area outside Philadelphis is a little more rural than what they expected.