A Re-introduction

So seeing that I haven't written anything in a very very long time I'd write another introduction.

My name is Josh and I'm married to my best friend Katrina. We have a sweet little boy named Jack, who just turned 1! We're also expecting another baby in the spring.

First off I'm a Christian. That's my faith and it's my relationship with Jesus that makes me a son of God and secure in my future whatever it may bring.

I work as an aircraft mechanic and most days I love what I do others not so much. I find it really neat that I can work on something and then watch it fly away.

I have too many hobbies to count. My favorites to date are facial hair, beer brewing, kite making and flying, and fixing up this old motorcycle. My most recent is pipe smoking. Once a week I pull out my pipe and relax on my back porch and say good-bye to the week and hello to the weekend. I'm sure I'll be posting about all of these hobbies in the future.

Sports! I love hockey. Hockey season comes around and Katrina doesn't claim me as her husband. I'm am a Nashville Predators fan and a Blackhawks fan. Let me explain... as a military brat my teams came from my parents. My mom is from Chicago so my Baseball team and hockey team came from there. But the first hockey game I went to was a Nashville Predators game! The Blackhawks got their's now it's time for Smashville to get the coveted Cup! Baseball not much of a baseball fan cause I'm a Cubs fan and my baseball watching season ends pretty early in the summer.... My Dad's from Cincinnati so I also mildly support the Reds but still more of a Hockey fan.

My favorite movies are Star Wars, Boonedock Saints, Planet Earth, almost every recent comic book movie and a bunch of nerdy stuff.

I'm not much of a reader but the books that have stood out to me in my life are the Bible, The Boy Called 'IT', The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings, Run Silent Run Deep and Rainbow Six.

That's about it or at least all I want to share with you tonight. Not that I don't like you I just don't know you that well. I hope that give you a little insight about what I'll be bloging about and now that we've gotten re-acquainted I'm off to bed.

Goodnight.

Why Hockey Rules all.

It's no secret that Hockey is my favorite sport. I just felt like outlining why and show you all that Hockey is truly the best sport.

First reason is that it incorporates all of the best aspects of all other professional sports. You have the non-stop action of soccer and basketball. Seriously watch a game! Those players don't stop! There's the hard hitting often seen and most of the time exceeded in football. Just look at this video! As far as I can tell all of these hits are legal hits!



And unlike football these guys shake it off get back up and skate. And unlike football they allow sporadic fighting. Check this out.



Lastly it has requires the mental preparation of baseball for each game. Who's in goal? Who's on the DL? Who's on fire right now? If your a few minutes left and a delayed penalty is called and your team has the puck what do you do? (Give it to the other team get the penalty call and finish the period with a PP advantage.) All of those things will and have effected the out come of games.

Secondly besides basketball it's the only sport you can represent your team in the Olympics. Sure you have the World Baseball Classic but who (unless your a baseball fan) watches the Classic? Football plays one game a season outside the United States, one game! Yeah there's the European Football League but people in Europe follow that like we here in the States follow Major League Soccer. Yes there is an MLS in the United States in case you didn't know or care. Soccer does have the World Cup. But, like the question about the tree in the forest by itself, if nobody is watching are you really representing your country? I have a special place in my heart reserved for the hate of soccer.... And who was it that won the hearts of Americans in the 1980's Olympics? It was a Hockey team! Not curling not a ski team Hockey! Remember when we had the NBA Dream team? Jordan, Bird, Robinson, Pippen... Some of the best basketball players on the planet go and win the 92 Gold medal and yet nobody cares! Instead we write movies and books about the 1980 Olympic Hockey Team!


Lastly, like in most manly sports, there has to be a winner. There's a 5 minute over time and if there's no score within that period then there's a shootout. Soccer can end with a 0-0 and people are ok with that....? No wonder soccer is enjoyed more in third world and communistic countries where, 'everyone's a winner'. BALONEY! There are winners and losers in this world and if your a soccer fan your the later. Again I loath soccer.

So there's my reasons for why Hockey is and forever will be the best sport!

Crazy thought....

Ok I am not a fan of the birther movement but I see their point. They just don't have anybody who can logically present their argument. The people who are at the front of the movement, Glenn Beck and that lady that sounds like the villain from Duck Tales, take things way too personally and let the criticism get to them. Those are the main reasons I don't like the birther movements.

But I do see their point.

You and I have to produce a form of identification when asked by an official. Traffic stops, at the DMV, going on a flight..... I have to produce my A&P license when asked by a FAA representative. So why can't we ask our officials for their credentials? The Constitution has very specific regulations that are laid out for the executive, legislative and judicial branches. It even breaks down the different requirements for the House of Representatives and the Senate. It also has a provision written in for the Presidential office, allowing the President to be born under a foreign flag up to a certain year. (If you remember all of our founding fathers were born as British subjects so they aloud their generation and the next to run for that office.)

So why can't we get proof of Obama's birth? The easiest way to shut critics up is to show them the proof that they are asking for right? So why has his administration spent close to 200 thousand dollars keeping thing's quiet and fighting the birthers and other groups in court? Only raises more questions right?

Don't get me wrong I understand his need for a private life, but at the same time he did run for PUBLIC office. The media is still updating us on the spawn of Mr. and Mrs. Clinton and his administration ended over a decade ago. So there goes that argument.

Our REPRESENTATIVES should REPRESENT us. When we elect these people they should answer to us and we should be able to view and critique they're credentials. Call me crazy but that's what I believe.

What MEN want in their women.

I came across this article on Artofmanliness.com and it hit on a lot of really good points.

Original Article Here

"What Can Manly Men Expect of Women?
Posted: 20 Dec 2009 05:38 PM PST


Awhile back, Leo posted these delightfully nostalgic and funny “Marital Rating Scales” from 1939 in the Community:





After having a good laugh, what Kate and I both noticed after reading through these charts was that while we could imagine a modern day woman expecting her husband to live up to most of the standards on the Husband’s Chart, if a man expected a woman to adhere to the Wife’s Chart, he’d probably be met with the look of death.

Now obviously some of the expectations on both charts are just silly, and part of the reason that the Wife’s Chart seem even sillier is that a woman’s place in society has changed far more than a man’s during the last 70 years.

But it’s also indicative of a new double standard that has emerged in our modern age. Women are still free to flog men for their shortcomings and expect a lot from them, but if a man has any expectations for women, the conversation is bound to go something like this:



_________________________

It seems like men are catching onto to this movement to recover some of the good things of the past, while holding onto the progress we’ve made. I was just reading this interesting article in the NYT about how 20-something men are rejecting the whole casual, let it all hang out Baby Boomer vibe that’s dominated society for the last few decades and are starting to want to dress up and look sharp. This quote, from a college professor, particularly stood out to me:

“But the younger generation is looking at getting dressed up and making their mark,” Mr. Cohen continued. “It’s a real generation gap here. I teach at three different colleges, and I am amazed how dressed up some of the students are. Girls still come in their hoodies and pajamas, but boys come in their suits.”

In some ways, the new movement towards a return to traditional manliness needs women to be on board to be successful. After all, if you have men opening doors and asking women on real dates, and they’re just laughing in your face, that’s clearly not going to work out too well. And if you have men striving to be their best, but they feel like women aren’t even trying, you’ve got a recipe for creating strained relations between the sexes and bitter and disillusioned men who think all women are an unappealing mess who are not worth the trouble of dealing with (something you already see in certain online communities).

We often get emails from women who praise us up and down for the mission of the Art of Manliness. “This is just what men need!” they say. “I love the idea of bringing back traditional manliness!” they tell us. We love that women are on board with the movement, but it makes us wonder, “Okay, if men are manning up, what are women going to do to follow suit?”

After all, if women say they’re not in favor of a genderless society, and they want men to be men, then they have to be prepared for the flip side of that equation. A world where women are women.

Now don’t get me wrong. A man’s desire to man up should really have little to do with women and their opinion of him. Basing their lives around the opinions of women is exactly where men have gone wrong these last few decades. A man should want to seek true manliness out of his desire for confidence, honor, and self-respect.

But it’s also wrong-headed to think that womanliness has nothing to do with manliness. It would be hard to define manliness unless it was juxtaposed beside femininity, the way we wouldn’t be able to define dark, without the experience of light.

And it’s also indisputable that men used to be motivated to be honorable men because they felt they got something in return from the women in their lives. Manning up involves some sacrifice, but men didn’t feel like they were the only ones making an effort. Men dressed up, took women on dates and paid, brought home the bacon, took care of their wives, and acted as the rock in the family. In return, they could count on women to look classy and attractive, be charming, cook dinner, take care of the house and kids, and make her man feel like king of the castle.

But these days a new double standard has emerged where it’s okay to celebrate men manning up, but telling women they need to recover some of their femininity is offensive. To wit:

A woman telling a man to stop looking like a slob and dress up. Awesome!

A man telling a woman to stop looking like a slob and take care of herself. Sexist!

Saying that men should stop hooking up with women. Awesome!

Saying that women should stop sleeping around. Sexist!

Saying that men should get off the couch and go to work. Awesome!

Saying that a woman should be nurturing with kids. Sexist!

Saying that men should take the initiative in relationships. Awesome!

Saying that a woman should let the man lead (ever!). Sexist!

Well, you get the idea. The are a few reasons for the disparity. The first is that men spent most of world history in a position of privilege (although there were real downsides to being a man during this time, too). Then the women’s movement happened and they lost that position. So when it comes to recovering aspects of traditional manliness, men are excited to get on board (not because they want the exact same position back, but simply because they see the past fondly). Women, on the other hand, fought for the last few decades for the position that they now find themselves in. So even if they aren’t totally happy with it, looking back to recover what was good about the past makes them feel like they’re betraying what their sisters fought for. And if anyone suggests that bringing back some old school femininity might be a good idea, it’s been ingrained in them that they should be offended.

Second, women have historically been put on a pedestal, as the protectors of morality, while men have been disparaged as being baser in their nature. So it’s always been socially acceptable to castigate men but not women, because of the implicit understanding that women were just naturally pure and didn’t need much external encouragement to be “good.” Some feminists still seem to hold to this idea-that men and women are equal, but really-wink, wink- we all know that men are actually pigs. A real head scratcher to be sure.

But these days women say they don’t want to be on a pedestal, that putting them there is sexist! So now that we’re on equal footing, can we admit that today’s women need some work too?

Could we perhaps say that equality shouldn’t mean embracing and outdoing men in things that were traditionally considered masculine? That making out with other chicks for attention and lifting your shirt for beads and getting smashed and burping the alphabet and dressing in sweatsuits really has very little to do with being “liberated?”

That if men are going to know their way around a kitchen, that maybe women could, too? (I know lots of women my age who couldn’t cook to save their life.)

That you can’t insist on both being treated like a princess while also being a totally “independent woman?” (And that these dual impulses are driving men nuts?) And that a lot of relationships are falling apart not because there aren’t any good men to be found, but because women are so paranoid about “losing their identity” that they can’t settle down and give themselves over to being with a man? (Did you know that 2/3 of divorces are initiated by women?)

Now don’t get me wrong. We’re certainly not advocating a “Get back in the kitchen!” movement. Just like traditional manliness, recovering traditional womanliness will require sorting through which is the baby and which is the bathwater. And that sorting seems like an even more difficult task than it is for men. A veritable minefield where PC-ness, reality, history and progress collide."

Snow Days

We've gotten two pretty decent snow storms recently. Being stuck at work and working in a place with no windows has made it hard for me to enjoy the snow or get into the holiday spirit. I think I'm of the percentage of people who get depressed around the holiday seasons. Don't know why. Maybe it's my lack of a home town, being a military brat and all. Or maybe it's the fact that even though I have a very large extended family I don't really connect to any of them cause of distance, lack of contact, not knowing a lot of them on a personal level...... I don't know. I thought that with the birth of my son Jack that he'd help me get through the holidays. Something along the lines of seeing Christmas through the eyes of a child sort of thing. And I must admit it has helped but not as much as you think. Jack doesn't understand what's happening, so it's hard to take him to see Santa or put up the Christmas tree and get a reaction that you'd think would help. Next year he'll have more of a response so that will help.

What's really helped me this year came from a very unusual place. The internet. I'm an avid reader of the blog Art of Manliness and every once in a while they are spot on with the things that I need to hear. This week there was an article that caught my attention, 11 Ways to Get Into the Holiday Spirit. After reading the article I decided that I need to roll up my sleeves and get down to the business of getting into the Christmas swing -o-things.

So I got up this morning and shoveled our driveway off the rest of the way all the while blasting Relient K and Weezer Christmas albums. Came in the house to warm up and put water on to make Hot chocolate. Hung out with Katrina and Jack for a while. And got the idea in my head to make a snowman. I mentioned it to Katrina and she agreed that that was an awesome idea too! So guess what we did? Yep we built a sweet snowman complete with eyes nose mouth and a hat!


Our snowman!

Our snowman with a Santa hat.

Putting on the finishing touches.

Jack our snowman and me!

Jack Mommy and the snowman.

Needless to say I think I'm coming out of the Holiday funk and into the Christmas Spirit! So Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas!

Thanksgiving Weekend.

Thanksgiving weekend is officially over so I figured a recap was worth the time.

Fist up we got into Manteca on Wednesday night at around 6. We ended up going out for diner to celebrate my sister-in-law's birthday. We went to a place called the Elephant Bar. Very interesting place. It has an African theme decor and yet boasts a family style wok grill..... Needless to say I got a burger and fun was had by all.

Thursday, Turkey Day, was all I could hope for. I got to sleep-in till about 11:30 got dressed and in an hour we were stuffing our faces with grilled turkey, stuffing, Mashed potatoes and gravy, and pecan pie. By 4:30 I was in a turkey induced coma.

Black Friday was spent, again sleeping-in, and then we hit a few stores. Vicki my mother-in-law, bought me Season 1 of the Office. Unfortunately I have to wait till Christmas before I get to enjoy it...

Saturday was our lazy day. Not much happened.

Sunday, today we had Jack dedicated at Katrina's parent's church. It was a nice little prayer ceremony thing. We don't believe in baby baptism cause salvation is a personal choice and we as parents need to dedicate our lives to raise him according to our views and beliefs in the hopes that he chooses his own way to God (Jesus).

Anyway we had a fun filled weekend and now we are home relaxing.

Till next time. Josh Juice Welch

Almost a year.

It's been almost a year since I last posted anything and a lot has changed in that little bit of time.

First up I'm a Daddy! Jack David was born July 21 2009. 7lbs 9oz. Katrina and I couldn't be happier. As I'm writing this he's 4 and a half months old and it feels like he's been with us for a long time. I can't wait to start doing all the fun Daddy son stuff with him. Boy scouting, Bike riding, skateboarding, sledding, camping all that fun stuff. Right now I'm just enjoying the little things. Watching him grow up and learn his motor skills is all I could ask for right now.

Next up I'm growing a mustache! Not for Movember but just for me! I'm hoping for a handle bar mustache but we'll see what I get in a year. I'll have pictures to post to document my growth.

I'm not sure what else is new with me but I'm going to start posting more, so if I've failed to mention anything I'm sure it'll be posted soon.

Till next time! Josh Juice Welch