March Madness!!

     This could be the best month of sports for the entire year in my opinion!  March Madness followed by the Masters, how does it get any better than that?!  Every year around the first week of April I find myself remembering all of the good times I had as a younger lad, I know there are a few readers of this blog who have attended one of the infamous JAG Jams!  For those of you who haven't let me fill you in, each year for I don't know how long, my parents put on a final four party at our house in Glendive and coined it the JAG Jam.  These parties were always a good time for everybody and I looked forward to them every year.  The best years were those where the final four and the Masters fell on the same weekend and Action would have three tv's going, two showing the basketball and one showing the golf.  Many times given the status of the golf tourney you would find a half a dozen men huddled around a small 19" tv setting on the work bench and I would weasel my way in between them and the bench, standing two inches from the tv made it feel like I was actually on the course!
     These get togethers would usually start long before the basketball games did and we would barbecue and socialize until the action started.  Long after all of the sporting action was over the cover to the hot tub came off and the socializing would continue long into the night.  Ironically the same hot tub is still in commission at the JAG residents, still going strong some 25+ years later!  I don't know exactly how many people were there, probably 20 or so, but when I think back it seems more like the entire town was in attendance!  
     I have so many fond memories of not only the JAG Jam's but all of the other get togethers we would host.  Those days are such an important part of my childhood, not only are they some of the fondest but I believe they helped mold me into the fun loving social butterfly I am today!  I don't know if I'll ever be able to pull off a gathering that will rival some of GG and Actions, the bar was set pretty high!  Kelli and I don't have anything major planned for this weekends final four, other than watching it here at home, but who knows maybe next year we'll be hosting the first annual KGK Classic:)  


Remember, quality time with family and friends will always create lasting memories!

Time for a change!

     For those of us who live in Griz nation yesterday brought shock with it as both the head football coach and the athletic directer were fired.  For the majority of this town there was a high level of confusion as to the reasoning behind terminating the core pieces of a program which has won the last two Big Sky Conference titles and went to the FCS semifinal game last fall.  For those of us who don't necessarily bleed enough Griz maroon to be completely oblivious to the reality of the situation the decision made perfect sense.
     Within the past two years, the same amount of time coach Pflugrad has been in Missoula, the number of off the field incidents has skyrocketed!  There have been numerous domestic disturbances, drinking violations, and worst of all rape cases!  With all of these infractions nearly no action was taken to reprimand the players involved.  I think one player didn't get to start one game but he was allowed to come in late in the first half!  
     Now even I know that at the collegiate level all of the discipline comes form not only the coach but also the athletic directer, so in my opinion they both share the blame in the lack of punishment for their teams actions.  If your reading this and your thinking, well they can't babysit the players every second, your right they can't.  However they can punish them for making stupid decisions in hopes that they will learn from their mistakes rather than simply brushing it under the rug!  At every level of college sports this type of stuff happens and far too often programs are more concerned with wins than kids futures and morals.  I think the action taken by the president of UM yesterday was exactly what was needed to remind this entire community that this town is far bigger than Griz football!
     Take this into consideration, five years ago MSU had players getting into trouble faster than the paper could keep up with, they made the appropriate changes and brought in a "no nonsense" head coach in Rob Ash.  Since then they have continued to rebuild their program and now are legitimate contenders every year.  Yes they still have issues, the trouble will always be there because these teams are made up of kids, but now when they have an issue it is resolved and the players are held responsible.
     I love Griz football as much as anybody but I would rather have our team lose with dignity than win with shame!  I applaud the powers that be of UM for making the right change in an attempt to correct the system before it becomes unrepairable.  I just hope that the replacements for these two positions bring with them the perfect balance of discipline and leadership.  


Remember, even the changes that appear harsh on the surface are usually a good thing! 

Could always be worse

     My weekend is officially over and Im heading out the door for another week of work across the divide.  Our sidewalk project did not go as well as we had hoped, the weather held out for us but it turns out my ability to make concrete and flat rocks blend is not as high as I'd hoped it would be.  Even though it didn't turn out like we had wanted it too it is better than the muddy soup hole we had before and it will work until we decide what to do with it.
     The majority of our weekend was spent outside as the weather was next to perfect!  We both love this time of year in Montana, Kelli says April and May are the only two months where it's not too cold or too hot it's just right!  I agree with her, the spring like temperatures get something flowing in all of us that gets us yearning to spend more time outdoors.  
     As good as our weekend was once again on Sunday I started to feel a little sorry for myself that I would be leaving soon.  With all the good weather it is harder to leave for the week knowing that I will be missing out on some of the best conditions of the year to spend with the one I love outdoors.  As I was going through the paper though my self pity was wiped away with the turn of a page.  In a good sized add in the sports section a stageline company who normally runs tour busses throughout the state is now offering roundtrip non stop tickets directly from Missoula to Williston.  I was shocked!!  I can tell you this, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out why they are offering this, you can bet it's not all of the wonderful sight seeing Williston has to offer!  As I looked at the ad and thought about all of the people who are leaving their families for much longer than four days and they are going to a far worse place than Bozeman, MT, I almost slapped myself for even thinking that I had it bad.  No one wants to travel for work but in the grand scheme of things I have it pretty darn good.  I can think of lots of people who have far more hectic travel schedules than I do and get to spend far less time with the ones they love!
     So after reading that I now eagerly head out the door for another week, ok maybe not eagerly, but at least I leave now with a little better perspective on just how bad things could actually be.  I consider myself lucky to not only be able to utilize my abilities in my career field but to also be able to come home every weekend.  Things truly could be much worse! 


Remember, time spent apart only makes you cherish time spent together that much more! 

Timing is everything!

     I have decided it's official, Mother Nature hates me!  After spending another week over in Bozeman working, I came home anticipating a weekend full of spring time activities.  Even though I drove over Monday morning in blizzard conditions, the sun returned quickly and the rest of the week was beautiful.  A quick check of the weekend forecast for Missoula led me to believe that I might finally be able to pour the concrete walkway in front of our house.  So this afternoon we headed into Home Depot and bought enough quick crete to get the job done.  As we drove home I thought, this might not be that bad of a project after all, i should have kept those pesky thoughts to myself because I no sooner began setting up forms and it started raining.
     Normally this on again off again rainy weather wouldn't be a big deal but I have to go back to Bozeman on Monday so my time is short.  I should be used to this by now, it seems as though every time I even think about the word concrete it begins to rain, if I could prove this theory I would be a very rich man to some farmers!  Like a trooper though I finished prepping the pathway in the torrential downpour, okay maybe it was just a drizzle, and now all I have to do is wait for a window of opportunity.  I just hope that window comes before Sunday evening!  Heres hoping Mother Natures plans for sunny weather start to match up with my days off.  


Remember, life is a garden, dig it:) 

Memories

     Kelli and I drove back over to Bozeman for half of our weekend to enjoy spending some time with her parents, we had a great dinner and hung out most of the day Saturday before we each went our separate ways.  We got home yesterday evening and today is planned on being a relaxing, watch it rain, kind of day!  
     I got the paper this morning and there was an article about the homes in our neighborhood which sparked my interest.  Kelli and I often talk about how we would like to pick our little house up and move it to some acreage somewhere as there are areas of our neighborhood which aren't very well kept.  The article talked about when the mill here in Bonner was busy and how the town was once coined as the nations "model company town".  There are several interviews of local residents who still remember their families moving here in the 30's and 40's and they talk of how it was like todays kids going to Disneyland for the first time.  For many of them the house the Anaconda Company provided for them here in Bonner was their first home with indoor plumbing.  They all talk of how the small town was alive with the beautiful colors of fresh flowers on porches and huge shade trees protecting the freshly cut lush green lawns.  Stories are shared of baseball games, dances in the town hall, and frequenting the soda fountain in the post office.
     Today as you drive through Bonner it is very difficult to see what these folks saw many years ago.  Some of the homes have been bought and remodeled to regain a portion of their former glory, others have remained vacant long enough to begin to slowly fall apart.  For someone who did not grow up on this end of the state it is hard for me to imagine what it was like back then.  Articles like this one today help me view the town I live in now at it's finest hour.  There are time when I wish I would win the lotto so that Kelli and i could buy and fix up each one of the vacant houses in an attempt to revive this quaint little town that at one time had so much of an impact on the success of this entire valley.  
     It is far too easy for us all to live in the present and completely forget about where we came from.  I hope each of you take time in your busy lives to reflect on the history that built your town, I know I will be.


Remember, the good ol' days really were that good!

All you can do is laugh

     Another week in Bozeman is in the books as I got home late last night, I had to stop at Wheat Montana on my way home and repipe a propane line for them, so I didn't get home until after midnight.  All in all it was a good week and I got to cap it off by stopping in and visiting with Curt and Jen for a bit which was fun.  I also got to see their personal Gremlin, Bandit, he is such a cute little ball of fur and he strikingly resembles the furry little creatures from the 80's movie!
     Erika and Nick have a small dog similar to Bandit, her name is Marly and she is equally as cute as Bandit, full of energy and eager to lick anyones face who comes within range.  Nick was in California for training all week so Erika and I, having coined ourselves as the oldest orphans in the state, were invited to one of their friends house for dinner on Monday.  Since the friends who were hosting our meal have two labs Marly got to go along for a play date.  So we hopped into Nicks SUV and headed over, Marly was riding in my lap fixated on the open road ahead of us.  About half way there, with her front paws up on the dash, I looked down and noticed something strange on my jacket.  I told Erika, "Um, I think your dog just shit on me!"  Erika quickly replied, "Oh no, Marly!  I'm sorry, she does that sometimes"  She directed Marly to the back seat and luckily the accident was not messy at all, I just opened the door and it rolled right out on the fly, no harm no fowl as far as I was concerned, except for the "she does that sometimes"!  Erika went on to explain how Marly had been doing this off and on for a while and she even asked her vet about it that same day and he really didn't have an answer.  The weirdest part of the whole thing is Marly doesn't even know she does it!  Erika said she bought her some different dog food in an attempt to change things up a bit since the vet didn't have any other suggestions so hopefully that works!  Marly went on with her evening like nothing had happened as her disorder, ghost poopy, left no signs of an issue.  
     These kind of things happen to us Gannon's enough for us to understand that all you can really do is laugh about it.  Besides, it's not like she did it on purpose, I just hope they get it figured out so Marly can get back to licking faces and barking at dogs on tv without leaving little nuggets around the house!  So the next time your having a really bad day and you find yourself in a state of self pity, cheer up, somebody out there is literally getting crapped on!  Things could always be worse!:)


Remember, you know you've had a good day if you've laughed until it hurts!

Keep trying

     Yesterday we got invited to take advantage of an early springlike temperature day and hit the Bitteroot river with our friends Bryant and Hailey.  We did not hesitate in our acceptance of their invite as the weather was simply perfect!  We loaded up our gear and the four of us headed down the valley to find a good spot.  We eventually ended up choosing to go to the Chief Looking Glass fishing access site were we had to wade across the shallow back channel to get to the main river.  This was a big test for Kelli's Coach rain boots and they succeeded in keeping her feet completely dry, even though she had to tip toe across some sections.
     Once we got out there and all set up the fishing was good, not a whole lot of action but fly fishing is always fun.  Bryant had our only catch of the day, a very nice sized cutthroat, and the girls spent the majority of the day soaking up some vitamin D.  I was unsuccessful once again in my efforts to land a fish on a fly rod.
     Since we moved to the western half of the state I have began fly fishing much more since we find ourselves surrounded by phenomenal trout streams.  Having grown up a bait fisherman on the mighty Yellowstone however, I have struggled with adjusting myself to this new type of fishing.  I compare my fly fishing adventures to my early years of golfing, I've given myself personal goals and each one becomes harder and harder to achieve.  In golf this was simply lower scores at first, breaking 100, breaking 80, breaking 70, then it progressed to the achievement of certain shots, a flop shot, a knock down mid iron, and many more that I am still trying to accomplish.  With fly fishing even though the goals are much smaller, they are proving to be extremely difficult to master!  It started with the numerous knots requires to rig up a pole, then moved onto casting which continues to be a work in progress!  Now that I have the ability to keep my line tangle free while placing it on the water the next big goal is presentation, there is so much more involved in the presentation of the fly to the fish than I ever thought there would be!  And finally the biggest goal of them all is to actually land a fish.  I don't know how long it will take for me to accomplish this one but I can tell you that when I do it will be one of the proudest days of my life!  
     Every one of my personal golf goals is just me against the golf course, in fly fishing though, it is me against an elusive trout.  Trust me when I say that a 12" rainbow is much smarter than a man made golf course!  In golf I simply have to master my own mechanics and thoughts to score well, with fishing this is only half the battle.  Once I've figured out my own mechanics then I have to figure out the mindset of the fish!

     One thing is for sure, wether I am fly fishing on of the many beautiful waterways that God has cut through my home state, or playing a round of golf on one of my favorite well manicured tracts, I am never more at peace.  I find that when I am forced to focus all of my thought process to the task at hand I am completely relaxed.  So it doesn't matter to me wether I ever catch a fish on a fly rod, I just enjoy trying.  


Remember, sometimes success is achievable simply through determination and effort.

Ah those were the days!

     The dim glow of the sun was slowly beginning to peer over the horizon as I got out of bed yesterday for what was my final day of work for the week.  As I forcibly sat myself up on the edge of the futon I have laid claim to at Erika and Nicks, every muscle in my body ached from the strain of their use all week.  I have come to notice a pattern as of late where Monday morning I am alert and refreshed, ready to tackle anything thrown in front of me, then slowly as the week progresses my tiring body catches up with me to the point of tying my boots is even exhausting!  Then by the time Thursday evening rolls around and I jump in the truck to come back home to my loving family, I have a 2 1/2 hour drive to give all of those muscles a good chances to stove up, leaving much of the trip spent thinking of ways to fund a hot tub!
     I don't know what happened!  I swear it seems like just the other day I was able to go to bed whenever I felt like it and jump right out of bed feeling like a million bucks!  I understand that I haven't exactly been kind to my body over the years, but it still feels like I am going downhill faster than I went uphill.  It wasn't long ago when a coworker would talk of tweaking something in his body and I would laugh at how it must suck to get old, guess what, it does!  I fully understand now how it is possible to do the right job from the wrong position and then pay for it the rest of the week.  These days the Red Bull in my lunch box has been replaced with some thing far more beneficial, Ibuprofrin.
     Holding true to my personality however I must remain optimistic and understand that all of these days are going towards a greater cause.  Years from now when Kelli and I are enjoying a fresh cup of Kona blend from our lanai overlooking the coast of Kauai, contemplating wether to surf or golf for the day, these aching muscles will be nowhere near my mind!  If I continue to feel like this at the end of my work week though we just might have to speed up the retirement bus and reach that sandy beach sooner than later!  


Remember, everything will be okay in the end, if it's not okay, it's not the end!

Sticker shock!

     Our weekend trip to Bozeman was tons of fun!  We had a great time with our friends Erika, Nick, and Janelle, they played fantastic tour guides as we had a nice lunch and took in all of the sites the big city has to offer.  We then had a nice little pizza party back at Erika and Nicks house and capped the evening off hanging out with some other friends of theirs.  All in all it was a really fun weekend and now I am heading right back for another week of work.  Erika and Nick have been letting me crash on their futon during my work week and we can't thank them enough for how generous that is!  A futon in a home far outweighs a hotel room in so many ways!
     While on our way back to Missoula Sunday Kelli and I decided to drive around a little more investigating some of the surrounding areas.  While doing this we found the perfect house for us to live in, it is a moderately sized two story home with a huge shop that is tucked into the heart of a group of cottonwoods and aspen trees on 16 acres with 1/4 mile of East Gallatin river frontage!  Both of us were wooed by it's charm and setting.  I immediately envisioned our 10 chickens, two goats, and both sets of driving range tee boxes!  So we called Kellis parents and had them look it up for us on the computer.  When they called back they let us know it might be a tad out of our price range.....2.6 million!!  Naturally when I asked Donna if they could spot us a little down payment she just laughed, understandably so since it would take roughly 700 years for us to pay off something like that!
     So I guess the search for our little farm will continue, it's out there somewhere, we just have to keep looking.  Either that or I better figure out the right kind of growing season for my money tree!  Just a heads up to you all, if you get onto a realtors website to check out one of their listings and he's got Dennis Quaids ranch on his home page for sale, save yourself the agony and just log off, he's more than likely out of your league!  I wonder if I should call anyway, after all they say it's a buyers market and everything's negotiable!:) 


Remember, wood, paint, and nails don't make a home, love does!

This girl makes me laugh!

    Kelli and I are getting ready to head over to Bozeman for the weekend to spend some time with friends and do some sight seeing of the Gallatin valley.  So last night while sitting on the couch we were caught up in one of HGTV's house hunters marathons, I know our Friday night sounds awesome, and while watching it we got into a little discussion about wether we would prefer to live in the country or in town.  This one's a no brainer for me as I grew up in the country so I will always feel drawn towards a similar setting, Kelli however grew up in town and for much of the time we've been together has been drawn towards the tree covered streets of a quaint little neighborhood.  
     So for as long as either of us can remember we've been on opposite sides of the spectrum meaning one of us was going to have to compromise.  Every house we've called home in the past seven years has been in town until we bought our current one which is about 8 miles from town yet still within a neighborhood setting.  This house is kind of a blend of both of our tastes, on a corner lot of a section of city like blocks yet far enough out of town to be extremely quiet and calm.  
     I would prefer some acreage for some really valid reasons, a goat to put milk in the fridge, chickens to put eggs in the fridge, and a driving range to put low scores on the board!  Understandably they may not all be practical reasons but never the less I have my reasons.  Surprisingly the longer we live on the outskirts of town, the more Kelli feels like we need some acreage as well.  She is becoming more drawn to the peacefulness and serenity of the country than she is the busyness of living in town.  Don't get me wrong, she still wants to own a condo downtown in the city as a getaway when we're older, but for now she agrees with me that a place in the country fits our needs better.
     I was delighted then last night as we talked about either buying an old farm house and fixing it up or building our dream house on some land, either one would be awesome in my book!  While we were talking about it Kelli says, "I'll live in the country but I'm not shucking any chickens!"  I looked at her funny and began to laugh as she asked, "what, did I get that wrong?"  I told her she can be in charge of plucking the corn then and I'll shuck the chickens, we both shared a good laugh once I told her you actually pluck chickens.  
     One thing is a guarantee, wherever we live we will always make each other laugh and theres no home setting in the world that can make up for that.  We have proven that we can be happy in nearly any living situation as long as we have each other.  I love this girl, she makes me laugh:)


Remember, a house becomes a home when it's filled with love!

Good to be home!

     Week number two is officially in the books and it was another good one.  This week also included a trip to the Bozeman urgent care like last week, however this trip was simply a follow up for more x-rays.  Everything looks the same in the elbow and the doctor's convinced it is just a severe contusion.  Hopefully the swelling will continue to go down and my range of motion will return, if it doesn't in a couple weeks he's going to have me do physical therapy which would not be very fun!  
     Now that your caught up on how my new job and bum elbow are doing I need to comment on what happened in the world of golf last week.  The tournament was the annual match play event which is part of the World Golf Championship series.  This is one of my favorite events of the year to watch simply because of the elevated level of pressure put on each player.  As the week moves on and the field becomes smaller you can see the added nervousness in each guys eyes.  Most of us amateurs will show these signs of pressure during a casual round with nothing more on the line than a personal best score.  These guys have to be 3 down with four to play and millions of dollars on the line before they show signs of mortality!
     This years championship match was historic for a very odd reason.  Rory Mcilroy and Hunter Mahan went head to head for the title and clearly both guys were fairly exhausted as the semifinal matches were played in the morning of the same day.  Now I'm sure even tour pros will play 36 holes in a day from time to time but this is the only tournament where they play this much so they had to be slightly drained.  During Hunter Mahans morning match, facing an approach shot from 135 yards, he cold shanked his pitching wedge straight right into the desert!  Roughly six hours later, he won the championship match and hoisted the trophy.  This marks what I believe to be the first time the winner of a tournament shanked a shot earlier in the day.  Obviously Hunter Mahan is at a totally different level than me, but something about watching him hit a shot like that reminds me of how even the best athletes in professional sports are human!
     What we can all learn from this event, wether your a golfer or not, is that sometimes during the game of life we will hit a bad shot.  When this happens we may loose focus of the bigger picture or maybe even want to quit.  Instead we should follow Hunters example, pick ourselves back up and keep on playing!  He could have very easily lost it mentally for the rest of his day after that one shot, instead he put it behind him and went on to win the tournament!  Proving that if you trust in yourself you can overcome any adverse situation!


Remember, great rewards await those willing to put forth the effort.