Pinball Wizard

There is a place in Las Vegas where the lights flash and bells ring, a place that is full of people ready to be the next big winner. It is off the strip, yet holds a whole different type of style. The Pinball Hall of Fame is where I am talking about. To be honest, I didn’t even know that this place existed until a week ago.

It is really a sight to be seen. My first thought driving up was that the parking lot was strikingly full. I suppose that I was thinking it would be a hole in the wall with a couple of troubled kids out front. What is it is an entire warehouse packed full of fun and during daylight hours there are a ton of people there.
They had mature machines and fresh ones. Things from my childhood like Elvira, Star Trek, and Frankenstein. I think the oldest games I played were back from the 50’s and those games were hard. No joke, if I were a greaser in 1959 I would have roughed up those machines too because they gave me a run for my money (i.e. they took my money really fast).

Not just pinball machines, there was Donkey Kong and the original Super Mario Brothers. I stayed away from that stuff though, I am a maniac at Mario Brothers and I would have been there all night, or at least I like to think I was that good and so there for I still am. Right? Sure. In the end, it was $5 of family fun that I never knew existed. The question is, would I go back? Darn right, it was awesome!

#7 "Airness"

What is airness you ask? Airness: the intangible quality of greatness much like charm, swagger, or charisma. Airness is the key for an air guitar gladiator, airness makes champions.

Friday was the Regional Air Guitar Championships, and it was without a doubt the very best $20 I have ever spent in Las Vegas.

YOU WANT TO VIEW THIS LINK: BrockMcRocksVegas.MP4

I laughed so hard I cried. Talk about an entire subculture that I never knew existed. I do want to point out this event is serious, funny as the Easter Bunny in Hammer pants but very serious.

The victor of the event in Las Vegas (Mean Melin) won the right to attend in the National Championships in New York, and the champion of that travels to Finland to represent the US in the Air Guitar World Championships.

Things I didn’t know going into this event:
1. Each person is judged by a live panel of judges on the following categories:
Technical merit
Stage presence
"Airness”
2. There are non props, you need to rock-on alone (no air-band aloud)
3. Costumes; wholly costumes! There were more men in platform boots than I have ever been witnessed (I have been in Las Vegas a long time so that is saying something). The word that comes to mind, flamboyance, literally peacocks, fuzzy boots, and socks (one sock on the foot- use your imagination where the other sock lived). It was over the top wacky.

If you get the chance to go see a competition, do it. This is not for the weak at heart, yet if you appreciation of the finer things in life, like Ram Jam, it is so worth it!

Official rules: http://www.usairguitar.com/rules/

#6 Generous donors

Today was an amazing day! Rapport Empowered Education (the organization I work for) received our first donations from the Ping Pong Championship Charity Fund and also donations courtesy of Team Deep-fry and you know what that means? It was my first time accepting a larger than life check! So cool! I think I get to work on my acceptance of the check; it was too high yet good to know I plan on receiving lots of big checks from generous donors!

What does this money go to? Glad you asked! RapportEducation.org Check out what I do each and every day and find out why it matters!

Simple things like ping pong and cooking can make a difference in a life!

#5 Graduation Celebration

I went home to Northern Nevada and attend my first college graduation since my own. It was really special because it was actually my mom’s graduation, yes after over 30 years of taking college courses and changing her major she attained her degree in Business.

It was interesting because there was a strange moment of pride when I saw my mom cross the stage I got teary-eyed and a little choked up. It is a feeling that I am sure that parents feel all the time, yet because I am an only child with no children I feel this way almost never. I was thoughtful about the experience because I know that the reason it took my mom so long to graduate is really because of me. The sacrifice a parent will give for a child.
I wonder if I will be that type of parent, the one who would put off my own goal or dream for 30 years because my child wanted me home.

I think that it is so important to be an engaged parent yet could I give that much? Can you?

#4 Egg on Pizza

So there is a theme going, my theme is food. I admit that I love food. I love everything about food, I love the smells, the way you can balance sweet and savory, food is something that is more than a life sustainer, it is a way to enjoy all that life offers. It is something that brings me joy and at the same time it inspires me. I admit it; I get inspired by a well executed meal. It takes effort, talent, execution, patience, tools, and at the end I can really enjoy it!

Last night I was in a mood, not the best thing yet I was in a Monday mood. So John and I opted to meet up with some good friends for a drink and appetizer. We ordered a pizza, a pizza with eggs over easy. I have to say that I was apprehensive yet it was delicious! It totally had the flavor of pizza yet it was reminiscent of the egg dish I loved the most as a little girl, egg in a frame. It was something about the egg and the bread combination. In any after I enjoyed the pizza my mood disappeared and I was in a great place (it could have helped that I had a NU cocktail as well though), if you are in town square in Las Vegas head over to NU Lounge it is worth a taste! http://www.nulounge.com/

#3 Where I go

Where I go

It has been a while, and I know off hand one may think that I abandoned my goal. No so! I have been working in Canada and now that I am back have decided that it is a great time to share what I actually do up there and where I really am. I actually spend my time in Chestermere, Alberta at Camp Chestermere. It is a really cute town and I spend my time in luxury cabins. Now you may laugh but the mattress makes all the difference in the world! My Home for 4 days at a time

So what really happens when I train and go to Calgary (Chestermere) is that I fly in and then I get to work with 40-44 teenagers for 48 hours. Basically work on their confidence, increase emotional intelligence and overall have a great time. I love that I get to travel and although the hours are long and the space isn’t the four seasons it is fulfilling and wonderful. I guess this really doesn’t count as something “new” yet it is important.

Does anyone have an idea of how sharing this will help me get to new thing #3 on my list?

#2. Meatballs

I know what you are thinking; there is nothing new about a meatball, except that I have never actually made one until today. They are fun little guys to make!

Now, I learned a few things that you may want to keep in mind. If you need a mix and egg in your balls (or anything for that matter) mix the eggs and then add them. There is nothing worse than mixing meat and then you get a paw full of egg yolk, yuck! Always make sure that your balls are the same size, otherwise you will have some over cooked balls and some raw balls. It is always more fun to make meatballs with a friend (tons of inappropriate conversation to be had)!

I didn't love the sause either, yet the meatballs were yummy!

http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/2010/01/spaghetti_and_meatballs_all_amatriciana

#1 The Coast Guard Band

On Friday night my husband and I went to the free Coast Guard Band performance in Henderson. I was excited because this is my first “task” yet when we were walking around I noticed very quickly that we were the youngest people present. The person who was the next closest in age was maybe 20 years, yet he was only there to sell hot dogs. Let’s just say that the crowd was older and I thought that this was the worst idea and that this whole blog idea that I was excited about was a bust right out of the gate.

Then the band started to play and I looked around and noticed that over half then men in the audience were wearing a hat, jacket, or some other emblem of the US Military branch they were in. When the band played the montage of each military song then men all stood and were recognized for their service.

Warning; tirade approaching

Were has our patriotism for America gone? I haven’t lived through anything compared to my grandparents yet I can’t help be feeling like we are all just apathetic and indifferent. Politically there is so much going on that you may or may not agree with yet does that mean we need to bash our country and those who serve? I am guilty; I didn’t start loving America until I moved to Canada. Now, I am not bashing Canada either, it is an awesome country, yet lets be honest no one has it all together but that doesn’t mean we can be proud. If Canadians are so proud they tattoo maple leaves on their bodies (trust me there are a lot a maple leaves on skin up there) then why is it that Americans wave the flag on Fourth of July and September 11? It just seems like where did the other 363 days of the year go?

Tirade completed.
There is something that is amazing about listening to a real band play real music. It is talent. I know that there are studies about the effects of classical music on the brain yet this is the first time in my adult life that I really felt differently (http://http//cognitive-psychology.suite101.com/article.cfm/psychology_of_classical_music). I really felt like my brain way firing differently.

Overall the band was a successful evening and on top of that, it was free (well except for the $10 in hot dogs and water, but that was great too). Would I go again, in a moment’s notice, it was fun, reminded me to think about life a little more, and my neurons were ignited!

The Plan

According to Wikipedia the term adventure is defined as “an activity that is perceived to involve risky, dangerous or exciting experiences.” Home as also defined by Wikipedia is a place of residence or refuge comfort. I use Wikipedia, yet I am convinced that high school students would be shocked to know that technically their “go-to” source isn’t actually considered academically credible.

So here is the “plan” over the course of the summer I will set out to do 100 things I’ve never done before. Now I am not talking about skydiving in the Swiss Alps, although that would be very new and exciting. I am talking about those little things that are here at my finger tips that I have never done, didn’t know about, or just haven’t found the time to do.

I was thinking of some great witty title to draw in readers yet lets be honest this is really for me to do something new (blog) and just see if it is something that fits. In any case yes, the first thing is starting a blog, it doesn’t really count to start one, and I get to finish it too. I am notorious for finishing anything for anyone, but me. That is really what the other piece of this whole blog thing is about, finishing something for no other reason than I want to.