Massachusetts Chainsaw Massacre

This weekend we got some fall yard work done. Part of this included burning some branches that had fallen the past few months. Ben borrowed a small, electric chainsaw from a coworker and got to work while I got the fire started.

Jackson & I feed the fire while Ben hauls some more wood over

Ben decided that this little chainsaw was really cool and he had to use it on every branch he could...even when he didn't need it. There were several branches...or maybe small sticks...that I had to take away to easily break with my hands before someone got hurt.

Ben cutting a "branch" (just before it shoots across the yard)

In case you didn't know, if you use a chainsaw on a stick this small it will snap from the pressure about 6-12 inches behind the saw blade. Then the saw will send this piece flying 10-15 feet across the yard. That may not sound that dangerous, but when you're about 5 feet away it's a little unnerving no matter how funny it is.

"I feel like a man......or a bad serial killer"

I found the whole thing so entertaining I had to get a few pictures, and, as you can see from the shot above, Ben had a lot of fun. I don't think the pictures get across how tiny this chainsaw was though, and that was a big part of the humor.

Oh and we carved an awesome pumpkin together for Halloween! (It looks better in person.)

Becky Takes Boston

Apparently we left out a very important visit that happened this past spring. (You'll note it is not in the May-Oct timeframe that the previous post was updating everyone on so the complaint department could have chosen to ignore the request.)

In April Becky came to visit for a whole week. We didn't think we could handle her for that long, but somehow we did...

Casie spent most of the trip making up random history facts for no apparent reason. It was entertaining to see what we could get Becky to believe as they became increasingly outrageous.

We went into Boston a couple times, including a trip to the Boston Public Garden where Becky found herself a little follower. I guess when you're the cool kid everyone wants to be like you.

There were a couple brewery tours where Becky found her new love...Harpoon's Raspberry UFO. While it's probably a stretch to say Becky made a scene during the Samuel Adams tour, she was definitely the focus of the tour at one point. That point being when she, for some unknown reason, decided the best way to taste beer on the tip of her tongue would be to stick out her tongue while beer was in her mouth. If you can't picture how this would work...that's because it doesn't work. You just spit out beer...and some would say make a scene. :)

We met up with Alec & Michelle for Becky's birthday where she had her first Black & Tan before we headed to the North End for some dessert. There was a random street performer overdoing the Italian accordian player role that Becky found amusing and snapped a quick picture of. Since she neglected to offer any donation, the guy actually chased her down the street insisting she delete the picture. Note: There are no pictures of this for obvious reasons.

We also went to freeze our toesies off at a Red Sox game. It was so cold that they stopped trying to sell beer and simply offered hot chocolate, coffee, and clam chowder.

We caught the end of the Boston Marathon when Scott and Laura came into town for a day. For some reason the Puma store was giving away free beer. The unexpected nature of stumbling upon 12oz of free beer may have made this the highlight of the trip.

Then we met up with Alec, Michelle & Jason for dinner (Ben was traveling for work so he missed the family pic).

Becky also had her first Yuengling beer, ate her first Five Guys burger, and went to her first comic book store with Ben one afternoon.

Somehow we all survived an entire week and we only sent Jackson to wake Becky up once...okay maybe three times.

What's new...

Casie got her Master's. Casie & Michelle went sky diving. Ben got his Master's. Todd & Jacob came to visit us (and Beau & Michelle). Casie's parents came to visit. Casie went to Alabama for 5 weeks of training. Sam Adam's Octoberfest was released. Ben went out of town for work a lot. We went on a few hikes. Ben perfected the art of bringing Fat Tire beer home to New England. We celebrated our third anniversary. Casie ran a half marathon.

What have we learn since May? Life is busy...and you can't wash an iPod with your laundry.

Guess who's getting the new iPod nano!!!


http://www.canyouseethesunset.com/music/mumford_and_sons_little_lion_man.mp3

Best Show on TV

I'm not saying this is my opinion, although I will admit it is an extremely well done and entertaining show. Ben, however, LOVES Friday Night Lights.

Those of you who watch it may understand this a little better than others, but here is an example of my Saturday mornings when the show is on TV. I say Saturday morning because we DVR everything to skip over commercials and Ben can't make it past 10 AM the next morning before he has to see what's new in the world of Dillon, TX and the Taylor's.

This show starts with a fairly lengthy intro each week to set the stage for the drama that is soon to follow. That is just enough to get Ben geeked about the next 40-60 minutes of entertainment. Immediately after the intro the rhythmic piano of the theme song begins pounding as scenes of Texas, football, and the coming season flash across the screen. EVERY week at the exact same point in the song Ben says, "Best show on TV."

The show just started back up this season, and this soundtrack, including Ben's weekly comment, is already fixed in my mind. How do I know this? Ben downloaded the sound track for Friday Night Lights and included the theme song in my latest "Ben's Mix" iPod update. About 5 seconds into the song I thought, "Best show on TV."

I guess that makes it a fact right?

U-S-A, U-S-A, U-S-A

Honda expands their recall of faulty airbags just after Toyota announced their second accelerator recall. Is it because I'm from Michigan that this brings me a certain level of satisfaction? I feel like [name your new source] just told millions of people "told you so" for me. US auto companies aren't that bad after all.

Yet somehow these Honda and Toyota customers say they aren't concerned. After all, "Honda/Toyota still makes reliable vehicles so I will remain a loyal customer." (actual quote, regarding Toyota I think but clearly the sentiment with most owners) They're reliable alright, if you want to stop you will continue accelerating just like you...oh wait, that's not reliability. I guess the airbag is guaranteed to go off; you'll get pillow of air exploding at your face (as planned) along with shards of metal. Where I come from that's called shrapnel, but good luck with that loyal customers.

It didn't take much for everyone to decide Ford, GM, and Chrysler were unreliable and bail for foreign automakers, but uncontrollable acceleration and shrapnel flying at your face don't compare to the inflated negative reputation you've built for the US automakers, right? Continue killing an entire states economy (yes, a mistake to build an entire states economy on a single industry...not my point).

As I find myself wondering whether or not the Camry behind me is going to stop or accelerate into me while creeping through stop-and-go traffic, I then wander to questioning the positives of globalization. Maybe we (US citizens) just lack national pride when it comes to economics across state lines. I don't care what happens to Florida's economy as long Tropicana finds a way to continue feeding me orange juice so why would Texans care what happens to Michigan's economy?

Oh well, this family will go on loving Jeeps. Whether it's because we are from Michigan, know too many people who work (or used to) for a US automaker, or actually don't see any significant faults with their engineering.

And no I don't hate all Honda, Toyota, etc owners. I just find this latest batch of recalls amusing...and I really like the U-S-A, U-S-A punchline in the title. :)

Lyrics That Make Me Laugh

Lately I've been noticing the comedy of pop lyrics more for some reason. Whether it's just nonsense put together to rhyme or a pathetic attempt at depth or something poetic, these lyrics are laughable when you really think about what people are running around listening to or even singing along to without thinking about it.

One of my current favorites to laugh at is Jesse McCartney's Body Language where he says...

Parlez vous francais?

Konichiwa
Come and move in my way
Hey, little chica from Guadeloupe
That thing you got behind you is amazing

That is...

Do you speak French?

Hello (in Japanese)

Come over here

Hey small foreign girl from a Creole-speaking nation

Nice butt

The best part is, this is the chorus so you can laugh multiple times throughout the song AND the rest of the lyrics aren't much better so the comedy continues!