Coming Down the Mountain

4:00am...Wake up time. Get ready head to Jason's.
5:00am...Met Jason at his house and packed up and went to John's house.
6:15am...Got to John's and had to go to someone else's house to pick a basket that was made to carry our stuff and attach it to Jason's jeep.
7:00am...We realize that we cannot attach the basket because we didn't have the tools t attach the basket to the trailer hitch
7:00am...Panicking we buy WD-40 to lube up the the metal so we can hopefully attach the basket and get going
7:10am...We frantically call to see if anyone is up and John gets ahold of a coworker and landlord to borrow tools to attach the basket safely. After using a block and banging the crap out of the basket it goes into the hitch and bulllllaaaaaaahhh
7:45am...Went to eat some Bogangle's and drank some coffee. We get back to John's house to load up, and realize we do not have any safe way of tieing down our gear to the newly installed basket and have to find a hardware store to get some tie down straps.
9:30am...Finally got to the hardware store and bought 7 tiedown straps to hold four backpacks loaded to an excess of 50pds a piece to the newly installed basket attach to Jason's jeep.
10:30am...Stop to get gas and finally got on the road for a four hour journey to Panthertown Valley.


In order to tell you how our trip went I had to give a detailed description of the events that took place before we left on Friday. We stopped several times to use the facilities and finally got to Panthertown about 3:30pm. The hike in was great. The sun faded quickly as we hiked to our destination for camping. We had to set up in the dark as night fell upon us very quickly. We had a collage of things for dinner and retired soon after.


Saturday John and I woke up early to enjoy the little bit of sun that we had that day. We started building the fire and enjoying conversation. Jason and Landon took the opportunity to sleep in a little late. We were soon greeted with rain that lasted the rest of the afternoon and evening. Getting a fire going and keeping it lit was very difficult but we managed to keep it going enough to eat dinner. Soon after we retired from the wet and played a couple of rounds of cards then settle in for the night.


Sunday morning was greeted with a very warming and well needed sun. John and I spent most of our early morning trying to lit a portable camp stove that only Jason seemed to be able to light. After about a good 30 minutes we went and woke Jason to give us a hand. As the morning went on we were able to built the best fire we could and enjoyed a steak and eggs breakfast cooked over the campfire. We were able to dry all that was wet in the warm sun on Sunday afternoon. We then packed up and made the journey back up the mountain to get back to were we started from late Friday afternoon.


It was a great time a good fellowship for all of us. We have talked about moving the camping trip to a new location next year. So thank you to Panthertown Valley and all your beauty. We truly enjoyed it.

The "What Do You Mean" Syndrome

Have you noticed lately that people are extremely sensitive? I seem to have noticed for the last 6 or 7 months. I have listened to many conversations among coworkers and friends and notice everyone seems to be on the edge of just ripping the other persons head off. I don't get it. Most of us in adulthood are able to get our point across without being hateful and mean(although for me it is difficult because my wife always tells me I don't get my point across very well without raising my voice and usually making a fool of myself). We sometimes are so worried about upsetting each other that we walk on egg shells around each other and you can sense that if you say one wrong thing that a bomb is going to explode and that person could burst into a fiery inferno. So comes to my point of "What Do You Mean." That seems to be the catch phrase for people who are extra sensitive and those who are on the verge of just having a complete melt down. And by the way I perceive people there are a lot of people who are on the verge of a nervous breakdown. I think someone spiked the local water sources with a stress virus. People just have forgotten to have fun. They worry about every little thing in the world and they don't talk about what's bothering them. I want to tell you all something: "Take a breath, let it out. Go to the person who you feel tense around and clear the air. And stop being hateful to one another."

And that is The World According to Thad.

Legitimate Biological Disorder

Depression. Attached to the refrigerator this morning was an article about the nasty and ugly disease depression. All of you know that Beth has been battling SAD(Severe Anxiety Disorder) and moderate depression. That is no new news. It has made things difficult between us at times. More so my lack of understanding of the matter. I do understand how it affects people of all ages and what it does to their lives. For years I listened to my father say how he was depressed and in his mind it justified his impulse behavior and how he reacted to my siblings and I. My brother also suffered from depression for years and now has become unbearable to be around. I was a young teenager the first time the phone rang when my brother attempted suicide the first time. Then the years following it rang many more times concerning the same matter. Years later when my dad and mom split up my dad took some sleeping pills and said it was a suicide attempt. Then a couple of years later when he remarried he had a flip out attempt and tried to hurdle himself of a balcony at Myrtle Beach which landed him in the South Carolina Mental Hospital. I have to apologize to my wife Beth about my ill feelings of when people say they are depressed. For years I heard my dad say it but he never received the help he needed.

Same for my brother. In men it can turn them into a raging fire ball. It can do the same I think in women plus you also have to throw in their hormones. My mom has battled anxiety from her current job. So to get to the point of the matter, I do understand that depression is an illness. I saw first hand growing up what it can do to a family. Keep Beth, Christian, and I in your prayers as we share in this fight together. Thank you to all who have supported Beth in her every day battle she has with this disease. And that is The World According to Thad.

A Newer Look

Once again Beth has come to the rescue. I wanted to update the picture of Christian and I and she not only updated the picture, she updated the whole blog site. Once again Bethie you amaze me with your skill and talent. Thank you for being patient and just booting me out of the way so I wouldn't get frustrated. I hope you all enjoy it.

November 20th

From sun up to sun down there is never enough time to get it all done. The past week was spent hustling and today was no different. I did some things around the house to help Beth out. She was pretty well spent when she woke up this morning. I had a lot of extra energy so I got busy making beds and doing laundry so that tomorrow she would be able to actually have a peaceful day. The rest of the afternoon was spent getting ready for this weekend's third annual trip to Panther Town Valley. I am so excited. I will miss Beth and Christian next weekend. I got some loner equipment from my friend Tim and his good friend Dan & Tia. I hung out with them Friday night playing the Xbox game Halo 2. They were nice enough to let me come over and play. Man I wish I had a Xbox. Anyhow, dinner is cooking right now. Beth told me I had some key ingredients: chicken, potatoes, celery, and carrots. So I went to the trusty old internet and typed in chicken and potatoes and BAM!!! the first recipe I came to was Homestyle Chicken. It is a Canadian recipe. So it is cooking right now. Tomorrow we will go to Papa and Nana's house for a early dinner. We wish Daryl and Linda well as they pay their final respects to their dear friend Larry Hall tomorrow afternoon. We wish the Hall family well. And that is The World According to Thad.

A Hard Days Work

I have been doing some session work with my bandmates this week. We had a long day today. After working on tracks for 8 hours we traveled to Raleigh to pick up a fretless bass for Friday's session. The man at the very bottom is CH. He told Jason, Landon, and I today that he would front the money for us to master and duplicate our first full length cd. P.S. To Jim G. and Papa D. CH has a warehouse full of items to build custom made golf clubs.



Thad warming up

John Landon"flop"Crane

Jason laying down some keyboard tracks

CH "The Boss"

Whats Happening

The month of November has been so busy. November has been filled with work, play, sorrow, and vacation. Recently I spent some time with my dad's dad. My grandfather. I call him Pop. My father's cousins wife past away unexpectedly last Wednesday. So I went last Friday night and Saturday to comfort my Pop and to attend the funeral services. My Pop at 84 years of age still got up and mad me breakfast on Saturday before the funeral. What a great man. The night before was spent talking about his younger years of being in the Navy. We talked about all his favorite places and the fact he was on two different ships during his service. He was in the Navy four days when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. He never went to the war zones. He had orders twice but was called back both times. He was a gunner captain on the USS Trenton shooting the 40mm and 20mm cannons. After that he joined the ship USS Antietam. It was an aircraft carrier. He was on the ship on her maiden voyage I couldn't tell you the year. He loved visiting the ports of Peru. And like a lot of young sailors he like to have a couple of drinks and flirt with the ladies. We had such a great visit.


I received some sad news this weekend. My mother's father my Grampa was told he had a lump in his lung and it was cancer. Those of you know that his body has taken a beating over the years. He is already battled gall bladder cancer. Survived 3 heartattacks. He has diabetes and is on dialysis now. He has congestive heart failure. And arthritis in his joints. He is what is so wonderful about his situation. Through it all he has always gave thanks to our Savior for all the mighty work He has done. My grandfather still ministers the Word inspite of all that he has gone through. He still manages to put out a news letter and record a message for a local radio station. He is all slower than he used to be. I think his time here is almost up. My guess is that if the doctor advises him to do treatment for his cancer that he may refuse being that he is 81. Please be in prayer for him.


I have been on vacation this week. A well needed vacation. Monday I stayed here as a new heating furnace was put in. YEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAH! Tuesday was a great day spent with my little buddy and loving son Christian. I volunteered at school with his class. He taught about his work cycle. His teacher gave me good instruction on what I could do to help him. He did so well and I am so proud of him. He showed me how to put together a skeleton of the human body. We wrote a journal entry about elephants. He is making so much progress on his writing. We had lunch. Then we had recess. All the kids would ask me to hang them on the high monkey bars. Then I made the mistake of letting on child zoom down the little zip line they have. Suddenly the entire play ground was lining up pushing and shoving just to get a chance to go down the zip line. The kids were awesome and I had a wonderful time. Yesterday I spent doing part time work with CH in Winston Salem. I am waiting on Jason to come and pick me up right now. We are going to do more work today and tomorrow. And finally the weekend I may get to do some yardwork. It has been a great week at home. I almost hate to go back to my real job as they call it. And that is The World According to Thad.

Wednesday

Who would of thought that writing could be so therapeutic. Never in my wildest dreams after keeping journals in high school English classes did I think I would start writing all over again in my 30's. This is very therapeutic for me. For months on end have I been frustrated about life and all of lives ups and down. The more I write the more I want to share about how I think and view things. Thanks to those who come and read for not being critical when I rant and rave about things I may or may not know about. My wife has really been an inspiration for keeping this blog. I used to watch her and could not understand how in the world she would sit for hours and hours just writing about Christian and what was going on with him. Many wonderful things have happened for her because of her blog. So hats of to you Bethie. Thanks for being an inspiration to all. Ofcourse we do share the cutest little boy in the whole world and he is worth writing about and fighting for. I love you Little D. And that is the World According to Thad.

Calling On Santa.......Come in Santa

I just got back from helping Bert and Izzy load up their moving van to go to Augusta. It was a little difficult leaving and saying goodbye. We shared a lot of laughs over the years with them. We have also shared some saddness with them as well. Thank you to both Bert, Isabella, and Gabriella for your friendship you have shard with Beth, Christian, and I. We will miss you.

In other news a note all grandparents. You will be receiving letters to Santa in the mail in the next two weeks. The list is not very long, however it includes much to do about Star Wars. You help with Santa would be well appreciated this year.

And that is The World According to Thad.

I Was Ready for Some Football

My first NFL experience was yesterday at the Bank of America Stadium watching the Carolina Panthers vs. Oakland Raiders. Wow. That place was rockin. I want to thank my father in law Daryl and Uncle Terry for being so kind and hooking me up with a ticket. I had a absolutely fabulous time. Football is a real American past time. All 5 branches of the military were represented. There was even a fly over by 4 F-16 fighter jets. They flew just a few hundred feet above the stadium and bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbooooooooooooooooommmmmmmmmm!! The sound was incredible. It was like sitting on the runway at Langley. The game was preceded by breakfast at Bob Evans and was followed by dinner at Joseph's Deli. Thanks Terry for both.


Today is Kristin and JD's big day. Welcome home to both of you and the new addition to your family Sophie Francis Moore. Yes a baby girl. P.S. The baby's room rock's. I really dig the screen door to keep the cats out. And wow what a fat cat Sadie Mae is. I don't know if I spelled that right. But Bert and Ernie aren't exactly small cats. T


Thanks again to Daryl and Terry for a wonderful Sunday football experience. Later

Poetry

The Warriors who fought so hard

Counting down the days to November's dawn

I think I am better, I think your not

So full of greed so full of lust

I would be a paid poet if I thought I could write

I could be the leader of the free world if I could convince them I was right

I believe in anyone who pays my dues

I was born a rich man raised and groomed

To make people believe that I am right

To have them not notice the trails of deceit I leave behind

So who would it be but the man from Texas the Conqueror of our century

"There's oil in them there hills lets kill em all and kill some of ours at the same time to"

So yell and shout and raise your glass high, it’s the wonderful days of politics the wonderful harvest time

A Message To All

Just to let you all know I did not vote today. I shouldn't have to explain myself and but just to clarify let me address a few things. This is a message to all who think it is a civic duty. This is a message to all of those who say you don't have the right to complain if you don't vote.

I made a decision days ago not to vote for the presidency. However I was going to cast a ballot for the governor's race and the senate, congress. I talk to my wife 2 times today and we discussed what we were going to do. We both came to a reality that there was not one candidate that was more impressive than the other. She and I decided together not to go to the polls. Here is the bottom line, if you decide to vote that is great. If I don't that is my constitutional right. I would rather feel peace in my heart about the person I vote for than be ashamed for the decision I made. We do not have enough choices of candidates. Why should it just be demorcrat or republican. Those assholes only care about 2 things, money and power. I care about my family. If more people cared about their families then the state of the nation would be a lot better than it is today. I am not about ego. I choose peace. And I don't appreciate when people who think they know what's best for me. I hope I made myself very clear.

I don't care for people talking trash about my family. My family issues are my issues no one else's. Its okay to voice your opinions, when you insult my family you insult me. Know the facts. If I speak about them it is to get it off my chest. I am not looking for consultation or opinion. It really hurts my feelings when people talk trash. So please stop. Thank you.

Good Day Everyone

Wow what a weekend. Poor Christian has a ear infection. Beth took him yesterday to the doctor. I felt really bad because the band was committed to play Sunday night and I wasn't able to be home all day. When I called Beth yesterday she was very drained and upset that the doctor had prescribed medicine that cost us $77. I don't have the best health insurance policy. And it seems recently the doctors are trying to help boost the pharmacy sells. One more reason I want to pull my hair out. I have made a choice for the presidency, my vote is that neither candidate is a better candidate than the other. So I have decided to not go to the polls tomorrow. I don't like John Kerry. And I am tired of the quietness of the Bush campaign. Bush lied to protect himself as did Bill Clinton did. I wish they would give me a few minutes of their time so I could explain to them what it is truly like to be poor, middle class, and white. They cannot begin to understand my problems because they both come from wealthy backgrounds. I would rather be happy and broke, than rich and lonely.



I have started creating a new blog site thanks to Ronnie's inspiration on Squarespace. I am starting an online journal titled The Chronicles of Travel (the online journal). This will be a temporary journal until our new website is designed.



In even better news my father in law surprised me last weekend with a ticket to go see the Carolina Panthers play the Oakland Raiders. Thanks DD. Yo Da Man. And that is The World According to Thad.