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The Making Of A ShotSki

March 4, 2012 by 6 Comments

What is a ShotSki you ask? If you don’t know what one is, chances are pretty good that skiing isn’t a big part of your life….or if it is, you are about to be awakened to the new possibilities for old skis. The concept is pretty darn simple: take one old ski, and turn it into a shot drinking device for four people (usually to be used at a ski hill, but available for the occasional home use event). You will find instructions and corresponding images below (but first, a friend’s completed ski during use a few years ago):

Step 1: Procure old ski from basement, having kept it many years for this singular opportunity. Make sure it’s long enough, generally around 200 cm.
Step 2: Get medieval on it. Remove bindings. Make sure to have some variation on the following tools: many screwdrivers of each type, a chisel, a hammer, a dremel tool, and a hack saw.


Step 3: Clean, and paint (if desired).
Step 4: Use a 1.25″ hole saw and drill out places for the shot glasses to go. Realize after you start each hole that you won’t be able to complete the hole because the ski is skinnier than the drill bit. Be satisfied with just creating targets for the shot glasses to end up.


Step 5: Secure the shot glasses on the ski – I used contact cement….still waiting to see if that will be the final answer.


Step 6: Find the stickers that you have been accumulating for years and do your best to NASCAR up the ski with cool stickers from the past. Adds instant credibility to the ShotSki.


Step 7: Trail run. Enjoy the success!


Filed Under: Life in General, Photos Included

An Ezra Update: Photos And Videos

February 24, 2012 by 2 Comments

Soon more updates on Ezra will be coming you way (potty training, school, bull-headedness, etc)….but here are some fun photos and videos from the past couple of weeks.

Necessary sentence to space out the two videos because WordPress wants to compress them together for some reason.

Filed Under: Ezra!, Life in General, Photos Included, Video Included

Liam’s Headstone

February 22, 2012 by 3 Comments

The word ‘headstone’ is one of those words that people don’t like to say and have a hard time hearing. There are other words that are used in it’s place, for example: stone, monument, or memorial. The place that we got Liam’s from only called it a ‘marker.’ But let’s call a spade a spade: it’s a headstone. It’s hard for me to say primarily because it conjures up all sorts of movie-like images of the finality of the process; but we decided a long time ago to use words and terminology that correctly and aptly describes what we are talking about. It doesn’t do anyone any good to beat around the bush and risk misunderstanding….even at the risk of being a little straightforward for the common conversation.

This turned out to be one of those tasks that just didn’t get done until it felt right to do. For months and months after Liam died, there was no true desire or strength to try to pick out and design a headstone. We had met with someone fairly early on, but ultimately didn’t act on anything until late last year. There did actually come a time that we both just nodded our heads and decided to get it done; and that organic arrival made the deed of picking and designing something like a headstone a lot more palatable. And trust me, it’s barely palatable.

We set off on the design idea that it needed to be something simple, meaningful, and appropriate. Prior to this experience, neither of us had any idea about the vastness of different possibilities that are there for the taking – and the selections are rather intimidating. One of the barriers that we ran into was that Liam was so young, meaning that he hadn’t developed favorite anythings that we could highlight. There is every possible TV character, cartoon, sport, etc to choose from, but none of that was part of his life. So we had to think through our time with him, and we arrived at a design that we thought fit the bill of simple, meaningful, and appropriate.

We worked with a local (Denver) place to secure the stone, complete the design work, and have it made and temporarily installed by the year anniversary of when he died (Temporary because the ground is too frozen to properly install it. They will come back in a month or two when the ground thaws out some and permanently set it in place). And you know what? It feels good to have it there. We were a little surprised by feeling ‘good’ to have the headstone in place, but it was needed. Prior to the headstone arriving, any gravesite just gets something that actually can be described as a marker; so having the headstone installed lends a certain indescribable comfort.

The stone itself has a beveled top, is about two feet long, and about a foot-ish high at it’s highest point. It sits on a foundation that is a few inches larger all the way around, providing a place for people to leave things when they visit. The top features an Aspen tree on the left side (anyone that knows Ahna and I understands the meaning and importance to us), and stars surrounding his name (taken from The Little Prince, a book that we read to him while in the hospital). You’ll see his name, and life entering and departing dates; and at the bottom are the words “in our hearts.”

So if your in the area, stop by – his spot is a lot easier to find now. Leave something: a rock, a toy, a photo, anything you like. Visitors are good, and it’s good to visit.

In one of the stars, I shall be living. In one of them, I shall be laughing. And so it will be as if all the stars were laughing when you look at the sky at night.
~ The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Filed Under: Ezra!, Photos Included

The Power Of Light

February 14, 2012 by 2 Comments

A few months ago, Ahna and Ezra were at a local store looking for a candle holder that we could use throughout the holidays in memory of Liam. Ezra picked out one that he like a lot, and that he thought Liam would like…..turns out that I’m not sure that there could possibly be a more perfect selection.

For dinners and gatherings surrounding the holidays, we would set out (or bring with) the star shaped candle holder and light it – especially during the meal time. It was a nice way to recognize Liam, and it was a way that we could do that while having something that is obvious and present, but not cumbersome. As the holidays came and went, we really felt that this was becoming a well intentioned and impactful part of our lives. For any of us, if we just want to feel like Liam is around, we can light the candle. If we just want to stop and think for a minute, we can light the candle. Needless to say, the candle burns a lot.

We know that ‘he is always with us’ – whatever that exactly means – but there is just something about a star…and a bright burning light…

Filed Under: Liam!, Photos Included

44 Months!

February 6, 2012 by 2 Comments

What the…another fisheye shot?! Wow, lucky you.

Filed Under: Ezra!, Photos Included

43 Months!

January 7, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Filed Under: Ezra!, Photos Included

Holidays

January 5, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Whew. Can’t say that I’m too disappointed that the holiday season is over. Sure, having family around and seeing Ezra enjoy himself has been a great experience, but there was a gigantic hole in this year’s celebrations that just couldn’t be filled with any amount of presents, decorations, cheer, or music. Being bombarded with a never ending barrage of “merry” or “happy” or “best wishes” or “2011 was awesome for us” or “joyous” or “new year” does take it’s toll – especially when feeling those things are a passing notion at best.

Another contributing factor to a less-than-stellar season was my work schedule: at work for the Thurs/Fri of Thanksgiving, for 4 of the days of Hanukkah, for the 23/25 of Christmas, and for New Year’s Eve. It certainly was my turn to be at work, and without the seniority to get it off, I had no problem being there….not complaining about that. It just makes it really difficult to celebrate with a family that operates within the schedule of the rest of society. Take an already off year, and compound it with a lot of ‘celebrating at the firehouse’ and things become even more subdued.

We did have some highlights of the season, and foremost was the inclusion of family. Without the ability to travel at all during that time period due to work, we were fortunate to have family come to us. Dave and Mary Jo spent the Christmas week here in Colorado, and we had the pleasure of spending 10 days with some of my family from Israel who were here on vacation (even got a day skiing in with them). The best thing about having family here was certainly the distraction that they provided, the need to focus on something else some of the time.

Despite everything, we were able to celebrate Thanksgiving together (a day early, and again at the firehouse), we did get to spend Christmas morning together (thanks Scott for holding over for a couple hours), we were able to light a few nights of the candles (thankfully that holiday is designed to last eight nights), and New Year’s was spent….well, who cares, it was New Year’s (2011 did have some good moments, but by and large, I hope that it has a wonderful existence in the past – never to be relived again).

A resolution for the new year? Not normally into those. Any day seems like a good day for a change…but here is one that I can think of: cry just a little less and smile just a little more. This year already hasn’t started off with a lot of reasons to believe that this will be easy, but one can always hope, right? That said, here is some help in that goal: pictures of Ezra almost always make me smile (you will notice the spot on the tree that Ezra decorated – everything facing the wrong way, as well as the different take on the Christmas tree photo – swirly).

Filed Under: Ezra!, Life in General, Photos Included

Photo Dump

January 4, 2012 by Leave a Comment

A selection of random images from the past two months that haven’t made it to the blog (but may have appeared elsewhere) in any other format (that I can remember).

Filed Under: Ezra!, Life in General, Photos Included Tagged With:

New York City – Updated With Video

January 3, 2012 by 3 Comments

As any of you who have been following this blog for more than a week or so know, I have been extremely fortunate to be involved with an amazing event: the 9/11 Memorial Stair Climbs. The climb started here in Denver in 2005 and two years ago, went national through the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation. The Foundation met with us and we devised a plan to take it to the masses, with 2011 ending with some 55+ climbs in four countries, and over 5,000 climbers participating. The purpose of the event is primarily a memorial event, and in Denver, we only allow 343 firefighters (the same number killed on 9-11) to climb the 110 stories (the same number as the WTC). As part of the Steering Committee for the Foundation, I had a very unique and special opportunity to attend a meeting in New York City earlier in December.

As part of the trip, I did build in about two days of photographic sightseeing (photos included below: Flatiron Building and the High Line Park are well worth your time) and found the chance to catch up with a long-time childhood friend whom I haven’t seen in probably almost 15 years. I also discovered that (at least in lower Manhattan), should you live there, you exist without the following items in your life: trees, babies, and the sun. But you do have access to these items in your life: great street food, vegetarian restaraunts a plenty, several million tourists, and a solo life lived behind iPod earphones.

And while all that is neat, the purpose of the trip was extraordinary. We were able to stay at a hotel that sat directly adjacent to Ground Zero, and my hotel room’s windows opened to reveal one of the memorial pools where a tower once stood. It was breathtaking each and every time I was witness to that sight. We did visit the 9/11 Memorial, and there really isn’t anything that I could write that would do it justice. Even though the museum isn’t open yet (and is behind schedule), just being there, seeing what they have been able to rebuild, and seeing how they have been able to remember, is an experience that you should not miss out upon. The pools are stunning in their simplicity, and the grounds are quiet amongst all the noise.

On the morning of the meeting, we all met at 6am to do an impromptu stair climb at the hotel. It meant that we would be climbing the building 6.5 times in order to achieve 110 flights, but it also meant that we would be able to do a tribute like that one only feet from where the firefighters actually died. It really was everything that you would imagine it to be, including very emotional. I’m not sure that anyone said anything to anyone else in the stair well, mostly because there wasn’t a need to say anything at all. And then once we got to the top of the building for the last time, walked onto the roof, and looked down onto Ground Zero…..wow.

The meeting itself was a true treat. I am again amazed at how I have found myself in the middle of a great group of people that have all stumbled on such a great project. In 2011, the stair climbs were able to raise $200,000 in total, and that money has already gone to the FDNY for use. The meeting was hosted by the FDNY at their training center, and we were greeted by the Commissioner of the FDNY for a few minutes as we started. He was able to share with us that the money that we were able to help raise will go towards the FDNY Counseling Unit – a unit that would have closed it’s doors without this influx of funding. The unit is responsible for family, relationship, career, and peer-to-peer counseling for the members/families of the FDNY, and will now be funded for another year with this money. To quote the Commissioner, “With the money that you have given us, you are saving lives and families with your work.”

Opportunities like this one don’t come along very often, and I am so thankful to be apart of something that is actually making a difference on many levels. There is no way that we would have been able to do something like this – that started in Denver – without the support of family (namely Ahna and Dad), friends, the department, and all the firefighters who have shown up each year to do the climb. It’s been a helluva trip so far, and I can’t wait to see where this goes in the future.

[ed note: lots of pictures in crazy order. because some are so darn good (ha!), please don’t steal them without asking]

Filed Under: Life in General, Photos Included Tagged With: , , ,

What Do Words Represent?

December 22, 2011 by 1 Comment

Ever look into the clouds? Well, I found a way to do a cloud with the blog (in Helvetica no less)….and below are the results of the first word cloud that has been generated through the postings on this site. I have stared and tried to figure it out, but mostly it’s just a reaction of ‘yup, seems about right.’

Filed Under: Life in General, Photos Included
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