Jason's Thoughts and Views

A Christmas 'Diamond'

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 23:57:00 +0000

This year I am getting into the Christmas spirit more than I normally do during this time of the year. When I was younger I was really into the holiday as all kids are. As I have grown older, Christmas has become more and more just like any other day. This year though, that is not the case and I have Diamond Rio to thank for that.

The guys recently released their first-ever Christmas album, "The Star Still Shines: A Diamond Rio Christmas," on Word Records, their new record label. The guys have wanted to do a Christmas CD for more than 15 years and have finally gotten that opportunity.

I got my copy and it is great, but then again, I am pretty partial to them. The songs have really gotten me into the spirit this year.

For those that are interested, you can go to either diamondrio.com or rhapsody.com to take a listen. If you decide to take a listen, please drop me a comment and let me know what you think of it.

I recently found out that the guys of Diamond Rio will be featured on XM Radio this Christmas Eve. They were in Washington, DC this past month to record a special Christmas show for XM's Artist Confidential series. According to the official XM web site:

"Diamond Rio celebrates the Holidays with a special Christmas edition of Artist
Confidential. Flying in from Nashville, the boys deliver a holiday twist to
their brand of country music that raises the roof of the XM Performance Theater.
Hosted by XM's Jon Anthony, join us for a down-home musical celebration of the
season."

For those interested in listening to the show, it airs all day long on XMX, XM Ch. 2.

I am really looking forward to this show, although, I would have rather it had been about their entire career and not focus on the Christmas project. I do think that it will be great show and they are getting some more exposure. I
really don't think that Diamond Rio gets enough airplay and exposure on radio these days. Its a real shame that an outstanding act like Diamond Rio is be slighted now. I guess that is just part of the business and all.

I would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and hope that you enjoy the time with family and friends.

'Till next time.

Jason

Gary Allan in Concert

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 18:40:00 +0000

The Gary Allan concert this past Sunday at the Honeywell Center in Wabash was great and I had a lot of fun. I am going to do my best to give you a review of the night.

After stopping for dinner before the show, we arrived at the Honeywell Center at about 6:30 so we had to wait about an hour before showtime. In the lobby they had the Gary Allan merchandise stand open so we got in line to see what they had. I ended up getting a gray t-shirt that has a picture of Gary on it and the words Living Hard, the title of his brand new album, underneath it.

After waiting for a little bit, we were able to go into the Ford Theater to find our seats for the show. I must say that I was quite impressed with the venue. It is a very nice place and from the looks of it, there isn't a bad seat in the house. It is also not that big nor is it that small. Overall, its a great place to see a concert.

The show started with singer/songwriter Lee Brice as the opening act. He told us that he had just gotten to the venue. I guess the plane that he flew in on ran late and he got there in just the nick of time. He said that he was battling a cold, if we couldn't tell, and that he would do his best to do his songs. He sang a tune called "Upper-Middle Class White Trash." It was a hilarious song. He said that he had written the song from an experience that a friend had once. The friend, dressed like a typical guy from the south (IE, jeans, hat, etc), went into a fancy store and none of the people working there took him seriously. He pulled out a huge wad of cash and then they waited on him hand and foot. Lee said that reminded him of a scene in "Pretty Woman" and wrote the song. He did a few other songs that I don't remember much of. The last song he performed was the song that he had written that Garth Brooks recorded and that is now a #1 hit. I can't remember the name of the song though.

After the short intermission, it was time for Gary to take the stage. He came out and started the show off with "A Feelin' Like That" from his Greatest Hits CD. That really got the crowd into it and we were off and running.

Here is a list of the songs, in no particular order, that he did (and that I remember):

"A Feelin' Like That"
"Smoke Rings in the Dark"
"Tough All Over"
"Just Got Back From Hell"
"Life Ain't Always Beautiful"
"She So California"
"Watching Airplanes"
A medley that consisted of "Her Man," "Man to Man," "It Would Be You," and some others I don't remember
"Best I Ever Had"
"Drinkin' Dark Whiskey"
"Tough Little Boys"
"Breakdown" (Tom Petty cover, encore)
"The Joker" (Steve Miller Band cover, encore)
"Right Where I Need to Be" (Encore)

There may have been a few songs that I left out but this list is pretty much the jest of it.

Here is a slideshow from the pictures that my mom took. The quality of these shots are not the greatest. We had to turn the flash on the camera off so I think that has a lot to do with it.

Overall it was a great night and I had a great time. Gary does know how to party and I would defiantly go see him in concert again.

'Till next time.

Friends

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 23:53:00 +0000

Its been a while since my last entry and I thought that it was about time I update.

I was listening to the radio on the way to class earlier this week and heard an ad for a concert that will be near me in November. Gary Allan will be at the Honeywell Center in Wabash on November 4th. I ordered tickets on Wednsday and they came today. So I am amped and ready to go. It should be a good show and I am looking forward to it.

The same day that I heard a song on the radio that I had heard before but never listened to the lyrics. I really listened to the lyrics and was blown away. The message of the song was so spot on that I think it might have been the truest song that I have ever heard. The song is titled "Find Out Who Your Friends Are" by Tracy Lawrence.

Here are the lyrics to the song as well as the music video:

Run your car off the side of the road
Get stuck in a ditch way out in the middle of
nowhere
Or get yourself in a bind lose the shirt off your
back
Need a floor, need a couch, need a bus
fare

This is where the rubber meets the
road
This is where the cream is gonna rise
This is what you really didn't know
This is where the truth don't lie

{Chorus}
You find out who your friends are
Somebody's gonna drop everything
Run out and crank up their car
Hit the gas, get there fast
Never stop to think 'what's in it for me?' or 'it's
way too far'
They just show on up with their big old
heart
You find out who your friends are

Everybody wants to slap your back
wants to shake your hand
when you're up on top of that mountain
But let one of those rocks give way then you slide
back down look up and see who's around then
This ain't where the road comes to an
end
This ain't where the bandwagon stops
This is just one of those times when
A lot of folks jump off

{Chorus}

When the water's high
When the weather's not so fair
When the well runs dry
Who's gonna be there?

{Chorus}

You find out who your friends are
(yeah, yeah)
You find out who your friends are

Run your car off the side of the road
Get stuck in a ditch way out in the middle of
nowhere
(Well man, I've been there)
Or get yourself in a bind lose the shirt off your
back
Need a floor, need a couch, need a bus
fare
(Man, I've been there)

Man, I've been there
Oooh yeah.

I am sure that everyone has had situations where they found out who their friends were and I am sure that, maybe, we've all been there for one of our friend's. I think that really shows a lot about a person. I can honestly tell you that I would rather have just a handful of the friends mentioned in this song than a lot of those that aren't these kind of friends. I know that I do have a few of those and am very glad that they are my friends and that they always there for me when I need them. I hope that they all know that I am this kind of friend and that they can always count on me. Lord knows that its hard to find those kind of friends in this day and age.

To all those firends of mine out there, I thank you for your friendship and thank you for always being there. You guys (and gals) make me who I am.

'Till next time.

What a Day It Was: Diamond Rio & Martina McBride Concert

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Mon, 25 Jun 2007 00:52:00 +0000

For those that read my previous post, I promised a surprise in this entry. While I would love to keep you all in suspense a little longer, unfortunately I can't because the surprise comes at the beginning! So without further ado, here we go!

The evening starts off when we arrive in Ft. Wayne to the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum. We arrived at the arena at around 6:30. We went inside and I had to go to the Will Call window at the ticket office to pick up the surprise that I spoke of earlier (not a surprise to me because I knew what it was on Wednesday). I got to the window and told the attendant my name. I provided her with my photo ID and was given an envelop with my name and Diamond Rio's logo on it. Inside the envelop I found 4 Meet 'N Greet passes to meet Diamond Rio!

For those of you that wonder how this was possible, let me explain. I have been in communication with one of the band member's close friends for a few years now. I told him about this concert a few months back. I told him that I would love to meet the band but that it wasn't possible as I am not a member of the fan club. He told me not to lose my faith in that. When asked what he meant, he told me that he might have some pull, that he would see what he could do, and get back with me. It was Wednesday when I found out the news. So, without this person, this Meet 'N Greet wouldn't have happened so thank you to that person, you know who you are! It means more to me than words could express. I am forever grateful to you.

The Meet 'N Greet was scheduled to take place at 7:00 and by this time it was 6:45! Good thing that we got there when we did or I might have missed this once in a lifetime opportunity.

We went to where we were to meet to be taken back for the Meet 'N Greet. We were given the run-around for a little while as there was confusion as to where the meeting place was. That was finally figured out and we were taken back to the area where it was to take place. We waited around for a few minutes and then the band appeared.

Unfortunately, I cannot remember the order in which I met each member of the band. I did have the chance to chat with each member of the band for a few moments, have my picture taken with them, and have them sign the T-shirt that I was wearing. I told Gene, the tenor vocalist and mandolin player, that I had been a fan of theirs for many years and that my favorite Rio song was "Nowhere Bound." He seemed a little shocked that "Nowhere Bound" was my favorite, I guess because it went so far back, so far that it was on their first album and was their third single. He said that they love hearing from the fans what their favorite songs are and that it's always great to hear when fans mention songs from way back.

When I spoke to Dan, the keyboardist, I told him my name and that I was an acquaintance of his friend Ron Saltmarsh. He and Ron are involved in a project called This Way That, which I have mentioned in past entries. Dan then realized who I was. He asked if I was the one that was doing the MySpace page for This Way That and told him that I was. It was so great to be able to talk to Dan and talk about something that the both of us are involved with, me being involved in a roundabout way. It was great knowing that Dan was expecting me, so that made it all the more special.

When I spoke to Jimmy, the lead guitarist, I asked him about his niece. He asked if I knew her personally and I explained to him that I "knew" her through Facebook as she joined the group that I made for fans of Diamond Rio.

When I spoke to Dana, the bassist and baritone vocalist, I told him that I liked the shirt that he was wearing (A Tony Stewart shirt) and he thanked me and said that he thought that he was in a great place to wear it since Tony is an Indiana boy.
The other two members, Marty and Brian, thanked me for all the support, for going to the show, and hoped that I had a great time and to enjoy the show.

After the Meet 'N Greet, we found our way to our seats for the show. We had some really great seats. We waited for about 10 minutes and then the house lights went down and it was time to get started. The guys were introduced and hit the stage. I cannot seem to remember the order of the songs that they did so I will list them in no particular order:

"Beautiful Mess"
"I Believe"
"One More Day"
"God Only Cries"
"Norma Jean Riley"
"Redneck Love Gone Bad"
A medley of "Love a Little Stronger," "Nowhere Bound," "Walkin' Away," "Mama Don't Forget to Pray for Me," "That's What I Get for Lovin' You," "You're Gone," "In A Week or Two," and a few others that I cannot seem to remember.
"Meet in the Middle"
"That's How Your Love Makes Me Feel"

That's about it or that's about all that I can remember for sure.

Before performing "Redneck Love Gone Bad," Marty told the story of the girl that broke his heart and how bad it made him fell and yadda yadda yadda. He said that when he heard the song that he couldn't help but wonder if that song turned out to be the life story of that girl. They performed the song and then afterward, he went on to thank that girl for dumping him to allow him to meet the woman that he is married to today for over 20 years. Great, hilarious story.

The guys performed for about an hour and then it was time for intermission before Martina's show began. Intermission lasted about half an hour and then it was time for Martina!

Her show started off with her making her entrance. I was unable to see the entrance as everyone was standing and blocking my view. I was told that she came up through the stage. Once on stage the band began to play and the black curtains dropped to reveal and impress set of lights and stage.

Like the Diamond Rio show, I am unable to remember the order in which songs were performed so I will list then in no particular order:

"Anyway" (from her new CD titled "Waking Up Laughing")
"Blessed"
"Concrete Angel"
"This One's for the Girls"
"Happy Girl"
"Rose Garden"
"You Ain't Woman Enough"
"Help Me Make it Through the Night"
"Where Would You Be"
"Love's the Only House"
"When God-Fearin' Women Get the Blues"
"How I Feel" (Her new single)
"Tryin' to Find a Reason (from her new CD titled "Waking Up Laughing")
"Wild Angels"
"My Baby Loves Me"
"A Broken Wing"
"Independence Day"
Cover of "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" (Encore performance)

That's about it or all that I remember for sure.

All in all, it was a GREAT show and I loved every second of it. It was truly a night that I will never forget.
Here are the photos. So might not be the best in the way of quality, but it's the best we could get.

Meet 'n Greet Photos

Show Photos

What a Day It Was: Fire Chief for a Day

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 01:52:00 +0000

Today I was "Fire Chief for a Day" for the Kokomo Fire Department and what a day it was!

The day started off at 0900 hours (9:00 AM) when I was greeted by Deputy Chief of Operations, Dave King. He took me on a little tour of the administrative offices and introduced me to the administration. First I met EMS Director Brad Brey, then moved on to the Chief of the department, Dave Duncan. I sat and chatted with Chief Duncan for a few minutes after he explained how the day would run. Basically, it was up to me on what I wanted to do. Truth be told, hanging out with the firefighters was good enough for me. I asked and was granted Chief Duncan's permission to take photos as well as video of the happenings of the day so that I would be able to make a video to commemorate the day. I told him that I planned to create a department profile-type of video to promote the department. That video will be forthcoming, how soon I don't know. I am planning to take my time with this so that it turns out the best that it can. I then met Arson Investigator Pat O'Neill whom is also the handler for the department's arson dog, Tyson. Investigator O'Neill said that he would bring Tyson in to meet me a little later.

Chief King and I then made our way out to the apparatus floor. My friend, Captain Aaron Ashburn, then came downstairs to greet me. He and I spoke for a few minutes and it was determined that I would be tagging along with him throughout the morning.

Captain Ashburn and I then went back inside and went into the training room where we observed the newest KFD recruits during some classroom-type learning. The recruits were learning about different types of sprinkler systems that they may run into during the course of their careers. They were learning at what temperature each sprinkler head would melt away to release the sprinkler system to activate.

Next it was back out to the apparatus floor to get an up close and personal look at some of the department's newest trucks. The guys were kind enough to pull a few of the trucks out of their bays for a photo opportunity. It was great to see the rigs up close and to be able to have them photographed. I even had a few taken of me sitting next to them.

We then returned to the training room where the firefighters had to review the procedures on how to perform CPR. There were a few minor changes to the standards on performing CPR so they had to learn these new standards. Once they were finished with that, they had to test some of the newer hazmat suits that the department has. They had to inflate the suits with air to check for leaks. All of the suits passed the test and were put away.

During the hazmat suit tests, Investigator O'Neill return with Tyson. Tyson is a black Labrador Retriever. He was a rambunctious dog and was very enjoyable. Investigator O'Neill then gave me a little demonstration of what Tyson can do. He took some sort of accelerant that is commonly used to start fires and put half of a drop of it on a piece of paper and hid is somewhere in the room. He then brought Tyson back into the room and he began tracking. He found the accelerant in less than 30 seconds. When he found it, he sat to indicate to Investigator O'Neill that he had found it. As a reward, he was able to play a little game of tug-o-war with Investigator O'Neill. It is really neat what arson dogs can do.

Around noon it was lunchtime. A few of us went and had lunch out on the picnic tables. Firefighter Jeff "Coop" Cooper was kind enough to lend me a hand during lunch and assisted me when needed. The menu for lunch was spicy BBQ hamburgers and seasoned french fries. I tell ya what, firefighters sure know how to cook.

After lunch, the firefighters; with consent from Chief King, took the trucks out with lights and sirens wailing so that Captain Ashburn could get a "response" video of the trucks pulling out of their bays for my video. The great thing about it was that the trucks didn't have to go far. Once they pulled onto the road and "were off" they turned at the first corner past the station which happens to take them behind the station but from the video it looks as though they are really responding to a call. They pulled the trucks back into their bays from the rear of the station and were ready for their next run, when it came in.

I then accompanied the recruits and the Engine 1 crew to a large, empty lot that they sometimes use for training. This lot is great for doing hose training. When we got there, one of the recruits opened up the hydrant and hooked up a 5-inch hose, sometimes known as a supply line, to it. The supply line feeds water to the fire engine's pump that then pumps the water to the hoses that are attached to it. The recruits were working with 1.75 inch hand lines and 3 inch hoses known as masterstreams. They worked with these for a while. Once they had finished with those, the training instructor set up Engine 1's ladder that has a nozzle attached at the top, so that the recruits could ascend the ladder and get familiar with the controls and how to operate what I like to call The Stick. These types of trucks are called Quints. I, personally, hate the term quint and never use it but for the sake of information to those that aren't familiar with firefighting, I just did. Seeing the hose training was really great. I never really had a feeling for how hard it is to pull a charged hose until I saw it up close today.

Once training had been completed, the recruits spent the next forty-five minutes to an hour reloading the hoses back onto Engine 1. This chore is by far one of the most time consuming parts of the job. It's a lot easier and faster to set up to fight fire but it's harder and longer to pack it up when the job is done.

That wrapped up the day at around 1500 hours (3:00 PM). I thanked everyone for making the day a great one for me. I told them that I had a great time and would love the chance to be able to hang out with them again sometime but obviously it wouldn't be a "Fire Chief for a Day" as that was a once in a lifetime opportunity. Mom came and picked me up and we headed home.

Overall, I would say that it was one of the greatest days in my life to date. I had a really great time and its something that I will never forget.

Now it's onto Ft. Wayne tomorrow night for the Martina McBride and Diamond Rio concert. I am really looking forward to that. I am sure that it's going to be a great show. I will post a review of the show in detail along with photos. I must say that for those that don't know already, there will be a surprise in that entry that you will have to read to get. It's not one you will want to miss. Stay tuned for that.

Thanks for reading!

Until next time.

Brand New Random Ramblin'

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Sun, 20 May 2007 03:30:00 +0000

Hey folks.

It's been a while since I have posted a decent blog post and so I thought that I would attempt to do one now. I wasn't sure if I had one topic to write at a decent length about, so I figured a Random Ramblin' would be a good idea.

It is the middle of May so that means that baseball season is underway. The Cubs this year look a lot like the Cubs that everyone is used to. The team went out and spent over $300 million this offseason and it doesn't seem that way. This team has its ups and its downs. It seems that there are more downs than ups. The offense has been doing its job as of late with the bullpen stinking it up. It seems these days when its getting late in the game I find myself hoping that the starter can go a little longer. The bullpen is supposed to be there to help their starter but it seems as though they are the exact opposite. The last few games have been better and I sure hope that they continue to do so. Only time will tell and I am not holding my breath.

I am going to have a busy week in June from the 16th to the 22nd. On the 16th we are supposed to go to Middletown to spend some time with the family and to watch my cousin Debbie's softball games. We are going to come back on the 20th so that I can go and do the Fire Chief for a Day on the 21st. I am really looking forward to that. I am hoping that its a nice, sunny, warm day that day. It will be great getting to hang out, shoot the shit, and have lunch with my heroes. I know that I am going to have a great time. I will be sure to get some pictures throughout the day and post them on here in a later entry. Then on the 22nd, I will be going to Ft Wayne for the concert that I wrote about in my last entry. That is going to be a great night and one that I will never forget. I am really looking forward to that and cannot wait!

Season 4 of Rescue Me starts up on June 13th. Its been about nine months since we've had a new episode of the show. I am starting to get the itch for it again. I finished watching the first two seasons on DVD and am looking forward to the third season to come out on June 5th. I am hoping that I am able to buy it before season 4 starts. I would really like to re-watch the third season so that I can refresh my mind on what happened last season and to see and remember where it left off. It should be a great season. I really believe that Rescue Me is the best drama series on TV and not just because its about firemen. The writing on this show is superb and the music montages that they use make it all that much greater.

Well, that is going to about do it for this Random Ramblin'. Thanks for reading and I hope to start getting back to writing more often. Only time will tell.

Take care.

Until next time.

Diamond Rio & Martina McBride: June 22nd, 2007

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Tue, 20 Mar 2007 12:42:00 +0000

I am going to see Diamond Rio and Martina McBride on June 22nd in Fort Wayne, IN at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum!

We ordered the tickets this past Friday morning, the day they went on sale. I wasn't to confident that we could get tickets. I figured since the show was in Fort Wayne and that Martina McBride was the headliner that tickets would be merely impossible to get. I knew that I had to be on the phone right at 10 AM. Much to my surprise, I got in and wasn't on hold for to long at all. I told that lady what we needed and was able to get them!

The night of the show we will be in section 102. To get an idea as to where that is you can view the seating chart by clicking the following link:

http://www.memorialcoliseum.com/s_concerts180.asp

Needless to say, I am very excited and can hardly wait. It should be a great show!

Fire Chief for a Day

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Sun, 10 Dec 2006 02:21:00 +0000

Each year on the first weekend in December, the community of Kokomo tunes into the “We Care” radio telethon auction. All the money raised during the 48 hour telethon goes to help those in need during the Christmas season.

Each year the Kokomo Fire Department donates a “Fire Chief for a Day” where the highest bidder wins a real-deal, white, Fire Chief’s helmet and the opportunity to be Chief for a day with the department. When it is auctioned off, it’s always on a Continuous Bid lot that runs for two hours. Each year it goes for $500+.

This year I had told my mother how neat it would be if I were able to bid on it and be Chief for a day. I knew that we didn’t have the money to be able to do it and was okay with it. It was all just talk. She then said to me,

“Wouldn’t it be something if either someone you or we knew, bided on and won it and then gave it to you?”

I told her that it would be awesome but we both knew that it wasn’t going to happen. We didn’t expect it or anything, and was just talking/joking around, like people do about winning the lottery.

The last I knew, a Kokomo firefighter hada $500-something bid on it. I never heard what it finally went for or who got it. Then at around 5:30 on Sunday night, a fire truck pulls up in front of our house. I went into the front room to see and sure enough, there was a truck out front. The boys walked up to the door and we let them in. It was three guys that I knew from Station 4, the station down the street from our house. The guys and I chatted for a few minutes and then my buddy, Firefighter Kevin Cox, told me that they had a question to ask me. He said,

“We were wanting to know, if you’re interested, if you would like to be ‘Fire Chief for a Day?’”

I was absolutely thrown for a loop and was shocked. I told the guys that they were crazy. I told them that I had heard that a fellow firefighter of their’s had bided on it. They told me that they had to use someone’s name.

Yesterday, I went down to Station 4 so that the guys could present me with helmet and letter stating that I was going to be Chief for a day. The local newspapers were on hand to take pictures of the presentation. One was published in today’s Kokomo Tribune.

I will go and be “Chief for a Day” one day this spring or summer. They tell me that when I am “Chief for a Day” that I will be able to do anything that I want (within reason of course). They will also put me in a fire truck and take me for a ride around town.

I am really excited and cannot wait to spend a day with the guys and gals at the downtown fire station. It will be an unbelievable and unforgettable day.

9/11/01: 5 Years Later

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 15:39:00 +0000

Today the world remembers the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and Shanksville, PA.

It has been five years since that tragic day but it all still seems so unbelievable. I remember it as if it happened yesterday. I remember exactly where I was and what I was doing that day when I heard the news.

I was a junior in high school and was sitting in my first period class. Most of my class wasn’t in class as most of them were taking the ISTEP (Indiana’s subsidized test). Those that were in class, including myself, were watching a DVD so that the others wouldn’t fall behind on material. Our teacher came back in the classroom, turned off the DVD, and told us that we had to turn on the TV, that something bad was happening in New York City. As the TV came on what we saw was the first tower with the large, gapping hole with smoke and fire billowing out of it. After watching the news coverage for a short time, we then saw the second plane hit the second tower. It looked like something out of a movie. I was in disbelief to what was happening.

I then moved on to my second period class where we continued to watch the news coverage. The towers collapsed during second period. As the first tower start to fall my jaw dropped and the first words that came to my mind were “Oh my God.” The class sat in silence to what we had just witnessed.

The day moved on and we kept watching the coverage. At lunch my friends and I sat and watched as we ate. We sat and talked about what we were thinking and how shocked we were. Then our shock and disbelief turned to sadness then to anger.

In the end 343 firefighters, more than 100 police officers, and more than 3,000 innocent lives were ended because of the evil that perpetrated the attacks.

Please take a moment to remember and reflect on that day and those lives lost. It is very important that none of us ever forget. I know I never will.

God bless all those lost, God bless their family and friends, and God bless America.

Diamond Rio's 'Greatest'

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Thu, 04 May 2006 13:24:00 +0000

Wow! It sure has been a while since I posted. I have been meaning to update for quite some time but have been putting it off and putting it off. I am probably one of the biggest procrastinators on the planet but I am here now.
On May 9th, this coming Tuesday, Diamond Rio will release a new CD. The CD will be Greatest Hits, Vol. 2. The CD will feature some of the well known Rio songs and will include 4 new tracks. It promises to be a great CD.
The first single from the CD is titled "God Only Cries." "God Only Cries" is a song about a young man that lost his life. The song talks about how when someone dies that God only cries for the living. He cries for the living because the living are still here and not in Heaven.

The song was written after the songwriter had attended a funeral for a close friend's son. The man told those at the service that the night before that he had a vision of his son telling him not to cry and grieve, but to know that he was in a much better place. The son told his father that the ones that should be grieving were those in Heaven because their loved ones were still on Earth. The songwriter was so moved by this that he wrote "God Only Cries."

The song is starting to make its way up the charts as its at #43 this week on the Radio and Records Country singles chart. I urge you to call your local country radio station and request the song, its a really good song.

Jimmy and Brain of Diamond Rio are going to be on XM satellite radio's Highway 16 ShortCuts on Highway 16 (Channel 16) tomorrow at 6:00 PM ET. Brian and Jimmy will join host Jon Anthony as he plays each song from Greatest Hits, Vol. 2 and fans will hear the stories behind the songs and other things from the guys. I am sure that its going to be a must-listen. If ya miss it tomorrow, the show repeats Saturday, Sunday, and Monday at 6:00 PM ET. If you do not have XM, you can hear the show if you have AOL as AOL Radio has some XM stations, including Highway 16! Be sure to check it out.

Also, there is a full length listening party for Greatest Hits, Vol. 2 over at CMT.com. Here is a link Diamond Rio's artist page on CMT.com: http://www.cmt.com/artists/az/diamond_rio/artist.jhtml

If any of you listen to the listening party and/or the XM ShortCuts, be sure to drop me a comment about what ya think of the CD and/or the show. I would love to hear from ya.

'Till next time.

Jason

The Curse of the Irish?

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Sun, 19 Mar 2006 18:55:00 +0000

I just thought that I would share with you all the experience I had Friday.

It all started out when my mom came home from work. She came in and I had asked her about taking me to one of the local taverns to meet up with a friend. To my surprise, she said that she would. That news had me pretty excited. Little did I know, that excitement would later turn to pain, figuratively and physically.I had to go back in to the doctor's office today to have my results checked on my latest TB test and to have my completed MDA camp physical returned to me. I went in and everything went well. Test was negative and the paper was done.After leaving the doctor's office, we went and got something to eat. We picked it up and headed home.

We pulled into the driveway and was getting ready to unload. Mom opened the door with the remote control to the wheelchair lift. Once it was down and level for me to go onto it. I started toward it and it started going down. I didn't have enough time to react and kept going.

Thankfully, the lift had not gone all the down. I went down on to the lift and kept going. My foot got pinned between the safety flap of the lift and my wheelchair. I was in a world of pain! I thought that I would be okay but after 20 minutes, the pain wasn't easing up. It was decided that I should go to the ER and have it checked out.

We arrived at the ER and went through the usual paperwork, etc. We went back and the doctor came in and I had explained to him what had happed. He examined it and ordered X-rays.

That was fun. My foot had to be moved every which way but loose to get the proper angles.

That was very painful. Once they were done, I went back to my area and waited for the results.

Doctor comes in and informs me that I have a small fracture near the top of my foot, around ankle level. They wrapped me up and put me in a splint like wrapping. The doctor wrote me a script for some Vidocin. Unfortunately, the Vidocin has other meds in that I cannot take. So, I have been taking Aleeve as needed. It has been working.

The ER doctor told me that I needed to go see a orthopedist and have him evaluate me to see if I do, indeed, have a fracture and he will know how to treat me. The normal doctors have a hard time diagnosing and all that for someone who's anatomy isn't considered "normal" since I have muscular dystrophy. So we will see how that goes.

Needless to say, I didn't get to hang out with my friend. Instead, I sat around the house with my foot/leg hurting. I went to bed and didn't get up until today. It wasn't that bad staying in bed all day yesterday, it got the swelling to go down. My pain levels have gone done considerably since Friday. I am on the mend so that is a plus.

'Till next time.

Jason

The Ultimate Sacrifice

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Tue, 07 Mar 2006 21:43:00 +0000

Thought it was time for me to put something new in here. So here we go.

Yesterday my town laid to rest one of our soldiers. Sgt. Rickey Jones was killed in Iraq on Feb. 22.

I didn't know this solider, nor did I attend his funeral or anything associated with it. I would have, if I would have been able to. Anyway, I listened to the radio as the procession was going on. Some of the people from the radio station were stationed along the processional route and gave live reports on the air. The live reports came during a request show in which many listeners called in and dedicated patriotic songs in memory of Sgt. Jones and his family. I did so too by requesting "I Believe" by my favorite band, Diamond Rio. The outpouring of love and support for this solider and his family, along with the music being played on the radio, was all very overwhelming to the point that I became very emotional and sat and bawled.

There were supposed to be protesters to show up and protest the funeral. I am sure you have all heard about the Kansas based church group that has been going around protesting military funerals because THEY say that God is getting America back for supporting homosexuals. Anyway, they didn't show up after all. I am glad that they didn't because if they had, they wouldn't have like what they would have seen. They would have hated how our city came together to pay our respects to Sgt. Jones and his family for his sacrifice for this great country of ours. The country that gives those clowns from Kansas the right to be the jackasses they are. If it weren't for Sgt. Jones and the many before him, none of us would have the rights that we take for granted today. Our men and women should get the respect that they so deserve. If you want to protest the war or whatever, there is a time and a place for it, and at a military funeral, or any funeral for that matter, is not the place.

I would like to thank every man and women that has served, is currently serving, or have made the ultimate sacrifice while serving our great country. If not for you, we wouldn't be where we are today.

What A Night!

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 01:18:00 +0000

I went out and celebrated my 21st birthday last night and what a night it was.

Ryan, one of my best friends from MDA camp, came down from South Bend, IN to celebrate with me. It was really good to see him outside of camp, which has never happened before. So, it really meant a lot to me that he, his mother, and his sister came down to celebrate.

The night/party started off with dinner at Ned's Corner Pub, a locally, family owned restaurant. There were about 15 to 17 people at dinner. It was a good time for sure. After dinner, they brought out a surprise. The surprise, a birthday cake, but not just any birthday cake. It was a Boob Cake. That's right folks, a cake that looked like a girl's chest. It was totally awesome. After the cake had been cut, my mom took a piece of cake, that was mostly icing, and hit me in the face with it like it were a pie. It made for a great laugh.

Once we finished dinner and ate cake, it was time to hit the bars. Our first stop was to another locally, family owned restaurant/bar, Martino's. We stopped in at Martino's because my mother and I are friend's with the owners. Mike, the head owner, wanted to buy me my first drink. I had a drink called a Slow Screw. For those that aren't familiar with this particular alcoholic drink, its a mixed drink that is made up of slow gin and orange juice. At first taste, I wasn't sure if I was going to like it or if I was even going to finish it. I forced myself to keep drinking it since Mike bought it for me. By about the third or fourth swig, I was starting to like it. While still at Martino's, mom bought me five dollars worth of pull tabs and I didn't win a damn thing. Oh well, that is why its called a gamble. We hung out for about an hour or so at Martino's and headed to our next stop.

The next stop was Big Daddy's, a strip club. Let me go ahead and warn everyone now, I am about to go into more detail than some of you may want to know. I must advise you to keep reading this particular paragraph at your own discretion. This is your warning and I will not be held responsible for your reading on and the possibility of anyone being offended.....We went into Big Daddy's and got a table. The waitress came around and took our drink orders. I ordered another Slow Screw. Once the drink came, I got a drink of it and then Ryan and I went up to the stage for the entertainment. At first, I sort of felt a bit uncomfortable since it was my first time being in a strip club. The dancers were pretty good looking gals. When the first girl was going around for tips, she put on a show for Ryan by putting her, let's say, her goods in his face and doing some dancing for him. I couldn't help but start laughing and egging him and her on. Then it was my turn. I was kind of shy and slightly uncomfortable, but went with the flow. After the first one, I started feeling more comfortable. We hung out around there for a few hours. Before we decided to leave, Ryan wanted to get a lap dance. His mom asked if I was going to get one and I had told her that I didn't think so. She told me that she didn't come all the way from South Bend to have me back out from getting a lap dance. I told that I would then. Once Ryan had come back from his dance, it was my turn. My lap dance was pretty hot. She was all over me. Rubbing up on me and helping me rub her up. Whoo, it was hot, hot, hot, hot, hot. It was great. I must say, if all of that makes me a dirty old pervert, then I am and am damn proud of it!

Once we left the strip club, we decided that we were going to head to another bar called Scotty's. When we got to Scotty's we saw that the parking lot was jam packed. We figured that there was probably no way of getting Ryan and myself in. Ryan said that he was starting to get a little tired and was getting cold. So, we all made the decision to call it a night and headed home.

Over all it was great day and I had a blast. I didn't end up getting drunk or even buzzed for that matter as I only had a total of 2 drinks all night, those being the Slow Screws. To me, its really not a bad thing that I didn't get wasted because I, 1) didn't have to throw up and have a hang over, and 2) I am able to remember everything that went on. The fact that Ryan was able to come down and celebrate with me, made it that much better. I know that had Ryan not made it down, I would not have had nearly as good of a time as I did. Thanks a lot for coming Ryan. I really appreciate it. I love you brother. That birthday is a day that I certainly will not forget.

Thanks for reading.

'Till next time.

Jason

My Take on Valentine's Day

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Tue, 14 Feb 2006 13:38:00 +0000

Valentine's Day, a day full of love and a lot of other mushy crap. I think that Valentine's Day sucks and is a waste. I don't know, maybe I am just bitter because I do not have anyone to call my Valentine, but I just absolutely hate this damn day. The more that I sit and think about it, the more that I loath it.

It makes me sick when I see two people all so lovey dovey, kissing and a-hugging, get a room people! There is a time and a place for that crap and in front of me is not it.

On this day, I try to avoid anything that I can that deals with love and this stupid "holiday." The problem seems to be that it is EVERYWHERE and cannot be avoided.

Now don't get me wrong, I can be a romantic guy but you see, I have to be with a woman first and that ain't going to happen anytime soon. It seems that when I find someone that I am interested in and would like to have a relationship with, she either, a) has a boyfriend, b) doesn't want to be in a relationship at the time, or c) gives me that lame "I just want to be friends" line. Rejection is a real bitch folks, and quite frankly, I am damned sick and tired of it! My search for a "significant other" is over and will probably never resume. If there truly is someone out there for me, then ya know what, she can find me because I am fed up from trying to find her.

Anyway, enough of my rambling on and being on my soapbox. Hopefully next time I write, I won't be so damned hostile.

'Till next time.

Jason

[Insert Catchy Title Here]

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Sun, 12 Feb 2006 23:17:00 +0000

Hey all. I know I've been slacking, and that I needed to write something so here I am. This entry is probably going to end up being a hodgepodge of stuff.

Well, all of last week I was sick. I doubt that anyone really wants too many details on my illness so I will just say that it had to do with my bowels. Just use your imagination and I am sure you can figure out what I mean. It started on Saturday night and didn't get better until around Thursday. To say that it wasn't fun at all would be a huge understatement. I didn't think I was ever going to quit! Thankfully I have, for the time being, and am doing well again.

Super Bowl Sunday has come and gone. I admit that I rooted for Seattle to win the big game, but knew that Pittsburgh was more than likely going to come out the victor. Seattle put up a bigger fight than I had expected them to. They came out like a shark that smelled blood and was fighting with all they had. In the end though, the Steelers played better ball and won the game.

Now that football season is over, I must wait for baseball to start up. Spring Training is just around the corner as pitchers and catchers report to their spring training facilities in just a few days.

The NASCAR season gets underway next Sunday with the 2006 Daytona 500. Normally, I am a fair weather fan when it comes to Nascar, however, this year I am thinking that I might pay a little closer attention to it this year while its in season. My boy, Tony Stewart, its the defending Nextel Cup champion. Let's hope that he has a good season and as is able to make a run to defend that championship.

I meant to mention this a few entries back but never did. The last time I reported about the schooling front, I said that I was forced to take a semester off due to financial aid problems. Well, I am still having problems but the school is paying for my tuition for one class this semester, which I am taking online. So I am in another English class and its moving along. Its starting to require more and more time and effort, so its about to kill me. I am starting to get burned out and its a sucky feeling. Hopefully that will ease over time and I can get things done. One has to hope.
Well, that is about all I have this time around. I hope to updated again in the near future. Hopefully it won't be a month to month and a half before I do. We'll see how it goes. Thanks for reading and take care.

'Till next time.

Jason

::Tag:: I'm It!

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Sun, 15 Jan 2006 23:08:00 +0000

It's been a while since my last entry. I hope that everyone had a great holiday and are enjoying their new year. I have a few things to cover this time around, so let's get started.
My good online friend Sharon, has "tagged" me and I am now "it" to list five weird things about myself. This should be interesting.

1. Everything on my computer desk has to be in a certain spot or else I freak out. This fact also prevents me from allowing anyone else to use my desk or even the computer for that matter.

2. When typing instant messages, I almost always type with proper writing skills, i.e., capitalization, proper spelling, grammar, and punctuation. I VERY rarely use shorthand.

3. While taking a "walk" with someone, I always have that person walking on my left side. I cannot stand to have someone walking to my right side. Also, I would rather people walk in front of me when going into a building. Why all this, I have no idea!

4. Just recently, I have found that young pretty female firefighters dressed in bunker gear is really hot to me. I am sure a lot of you are now asking yourselves, "What the...?" and are probably now thinking that I am a pervert. Is that weird enough for you? LOL!

5. When wearing a hat, it must be on PERFECTLY. If not, whomever is helping me put it on
must keep taking it off and putting it back on until it is perfect. The hat can be crooked by a fraction of an inch, I know it, and it must be fixed.

So I am sure that you all are wondering what I am so frustrated about this time around. Well, my beloved Indianapolis Colts fell to the Pittsburgh Steelers this afternoon to end their great season.

Unfortunately today, I wasn't watching the same Colts team that I had been watching since this season began. The Colts came out in the first half and looked absolutely awful in the first half. The offense couldn't get a first down if their lives depended on it. Peyton Manning wasn't himself today. The offensive line was missing blocks and wasn't protecting Peyton like they had all season. The defense was just as bad, if not worse. They couldn't seem to stop the run and were giving up long passing yardage. They looked a little better in the second half. They made a valiant effort to mount a comeback. The game come down to a 46-yard field goal attempt by Mike Vanderjadt. Vandy is the most accurate kicker in the history of the NFL but missed the field goal miserably, and the Steelers beat us 21-18.

I thought we had what it took to not only beat Pittsburgh this week, but also what it was going to take to beat Denver to win our first AFC Championship and go on to our first Super Bowl appearance. I sure hope we can build on what we had this year and can make another run for it next year.

Now that football season is essentially over for me, I will now sit and wait for April to roll around for the 2006 baseball season. The Cubs are improving the team this off-season. With the additions that have been made thus far, we are looking like a better ball club for the upcoming season. We should be able to play a little better fundamental baseball this year. Only time will tell and the off-season is far from over, so we may see more upgrades before Opening Day. We'll have to wait and see.

That is going to wrap it up this time around. Take care everyone.

'Till next time.

Jason

Deuce on the Random Ramblin'

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Mon, 12 Dec 2005 20:58:00 +0000

Hello again everyone. This is kind of different, two Random Ramblin's in a row. I guess its not so bad doing so many of them, after all, it does make my entries a little bit longer. I have a few things to write about today so let's get started.

I know last time I said that Christmas had come and gone for me since I got my new Dell system, well it hadn't. A few week ago, mother let me order a new Dell DJ MP3 player.

I have to tell ya, after I ordered it, I thought I had made a huge mistake. You see, I am like a kid, I will mess with new gadgets for a while and then it will sit and collect dust. I considered sending it back and getting mom's money back. She told me that I shouldn't because once I got it and started using it, I might actually use it more than I expected. It is a pretty cool little "toy" and I love it. It is sure better than using a portable CD player. With a CD player, you have to carry CDs around with each CD holding up to 20 songs or so. With an MP3 player, you don't have to carry around CDs. MP3 players hold a LOT more than a CD. Basically, its a mini-computer with music and its all slim and compact. Much easier and more enjoyable to use. I am really enjoying it and I think that it just might be used quite often.

I am now going into my final week of classes for this semester. Tomorrow and Wed. I just take finals in my classes and I am done. It is quite a relief because I am starting to get burnt out on it all. It doesn't help that Indiana is seeing the winter weather now. Its hard enough for the ambulatory people to get around, let alone someone in a wheelchair like me. In the wintertime you have to worry about putting on a coat and things like that. it is so hard to get coats on me and still being able to operate my chair afterwards. Since that is the case, I am taking the Spring semester off since its all during most of the winter. The weather isn't the only reason that I am taking a semester off. Financial aid is still a problem. All of the resources that we have tired for financial aid are falling through. On top of that, Federal aid cannot be re-applied for until January and I have to be registered and paid for by then as classes start in January. Registering and putting a hold on paying tuition is to risky in the event that I am denied financial aid again and end up being stuck with the bill. So, I get to take a break and I am sure its going to be a good thing.

In the last few days, I have been listening to a song by the 1980's and 1990's country band, Restless Heart. The song is called Dancy's Dream and its a great song. Its about a man that has a dark secert that is haunting him many, many years later. For those interested, you can see the video by clicking here.

That is going to wrap it up this time around.

'Till next time.

Jason

A New Random Ramblin'

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Fri, 18 Nov 2005 15:35:00 +0000

Hello everyone. Can you believe it, two entries for the month of November? Whodathunkit? I decided to do a random ramblin' today because I have a variety of topics to discuss today.

Christmas has come early for me. Two weeks ago tomorrow I order a brand spankin' new Dell. It got here a week ago Thursday. It is one hell of a system. It has an 80 GB hard drive, 2.0 Ghz Pentium 4 processor, and 512 MB of RAM. It also has a CD/DVD-RW drive, a 19" flat panel, LCD monitor, and a 5.1 Surround Sound speaker system with subwoofer. I totally love this new system. The sound that the speakers put out is just as good, if not better than any stereo. I was surprised at how good they actually are. DVDs also look really good on this system. This covers my Christmas and birthday in February which is totally fine with me!

I just finished reading my book report book for my reading class. The book was a titled 3000 Degrees: The True Story of a Deadly Fire and The Men Who Fought It by Sean Flynn. The book is the a detailed look into the massive warehouse fire that took the lives of 6 firefighters in Worcester, Massachusetts on December 3, 1999. The book not only gave details about the horrible fire, but also gave a detailed looked into the lives of the six heroes that made the ultimate sacrifice. All in all, I thought the book was great and am glad that I chose to read it. All that is really left to do now is to write up the report on it and turn it in. I might get started on the report this weekend and get it turned in this coming Tuesday. The report isn't due until December 6th, but I want to turn it in early. I am sure that I can score a good grade on the report since that book really interested me.

I do have a bit of an update on the job shadowing at 911. I was supposed to go in and job shadow tomorrow but plans have since changed. The dispatcher that I am going to shadow has decided to take tomorrow off. So, we have decided to put it off for a few more weeks. At first I was a bit disappointed, but after I thought about it, she deserves it. She has been trying to balance work, school, and family. She has also been working weekends all month and most definitely deserves a Saturday off to catch up on some rest and spend time with her family. She and Ihave decided to go ahead and put it off for a few more weeks. We hope to do it sometime on a Saturday in December.

I think that is going to wrap it up this time around.

Thanks for reading.

'Till next time.

Jason

911, What Is Your Emergency?

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Thu, 03 Nov 2005 16:52:00 +0000

Wow, its almost been a month since my last entry. I really need to try to stop slacking off so much. LOL. Anyway, I have a rather interesting story to share with you all today. So, without further delay, let's get started.

Yesterday during a break in my English class, I noticed that one of the ladies in our class was wearing a KPD shirt. When she came back into the room, I asked one of my friends that had come back in with her if she was a police officer. He said no, that she was a 911 dispatcher for Kokomo. I couldn't believe it and I knew that I just had to talk to her after class.

When class wrapped up, I asked Andrea if I could talk to her for a few minutes. She said yes, that she wanted to talk to me anyway since I was doing my research paper on seat belts. She told me a story in which the use of a seat belt saved her live. The conversation turned to her being a 911 dispatcher. I told her that I knew someone with the same last name as her's. She said, "Let me guess, Don?" I said yes and she informed me that he was her ex-husband. I asked her if he had ever told her about a friend of his that was in a wheelchair, had MD, and was interested in becoming a dispatcher. She told me he had and I told her that it was me. She said that she figured I was. She said that the first day that I wore my FDNY hat and/or shirt and started talking about fire departments, that I was the kid that Don had told her about. Small world, huh?

I began to ask her questions about dispatching, what was all involved, and whether or not she thought that I would be able to do the job. She informed me that everything was run via CAD, better known as, Computer Aided Dispatch. She said that as long as I could type at a considerable rate, that I shouldn't have a problem.

She is going to talk to her supervisor and see if we can set up a day that I could go and job shadow her. The job shadowing would be a good way for me to see how they perform, at the rate in which they perform, to get a general feel of how 911 dispatching is, and to decide if it's something that I would still be interested in doing and to find out if I would be able to do it successfully as well.

Needless to say, I am pretty excited about this potential possibility. I have been wanting to do something like this for quite some time now. Until yesterday, I had no idea how I was going to go about looking into it. Thankfully I have found that I have a dispatcher in one my classes, and that she seems to be willing to take me under her proverbial wing, show me the ropes, and help me in my pursuit to becoming a dispatcher.

Here's to hoping this pursuit becomes a successful one.

'Till next time.

Jason

The World of Firefighting

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Mon, 10 Oct 2005 00:27:00 +0000

I have been meaning to post something new here for a few weeks and am just now getting around to it. I figured that since I have told everyone that I am a big Fire Buff that I would make an entry solely about firefighting related topics.

A few Saturdays ago, I had the opportunity to go out to the Russiaville Fire Department, which is one of the county fire departments in Howard County, and meet the guys out there. I was also able to sit in during the classroom portion of a R.I.T. class that RFD was taking.

For those that don't know what R.I.T. is, R.I.T. is an acronym for Rapid Intervention Team. The purpose of a R.I.T. is to standby outside a burning structure while the first crew is inside battling a fire. The R.I.T. is utilized when a member or multiple members of the crew that is fighting the fire becomes lost or incapacitated in some way. It is the R.I.T.'s job to go in and search for the lost of incapacitated firefighters and get them out of the building.

The R.I.T. class taught the firefighters how to utilize a R.I.T. and taught them the techniques necessary to perform R.I.T. successfully. It was a very interesting class to sit in on and I really enjoyed it and also learned a lot.

I would like to thank everyone at RFD for making me feel welcome and for allowing me to sit in on the class. I really enjoyed the time that I spent with them.

Early this morning, around 1:30, I was awaken by the county fire tones on my scanner. Harrison Twp. Fire was dispatched to a fully involved business structure fire. Dispatch informed Harrison Twp. that the structure was fully involved with flames shooting from the roof. Harrison Twp. requested that Taylor Twp. and Russiaville be toned out for manpower assistance with the fire.

Parts of the building had collapsed due to the heat of the fire and was a dangerous operation. From what I can remember, the Incident Commander told all the firefighters working that they needed to fight the fire from the outside because he thought that a flashover was possible. For those who don't know, flashover occurs when materials reach their ignition temperature at the same time. When this happens, everything bursts into flames at the same time. Flashover is very dangerous and if a firefighter is caught in one, there chances of survival are slim. So crews continued to fight the fire. In the end, it took roughly two hours for the fire to be put out.

Firefighting is a very interesting profession and I really enjoy learning anything that I can about it.

'Till next time.

Jason

Diamond Rio's New Single

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Sat, 24 Sep 2005 00:45:00 +0000

Diamond Rio has finally released a new single to country radio.

The song that was released is titled "In God We Still Trust." This song is a power, patriotic song. The song is kind of controversial in its message. The song calls for prayer in school and the Ten Commandments being back in our court houses. The song will certainly strike a nerve with folks all around the country.

The lyrics to the song are as follows:

In God We Still Trust
Written by Kim & Bill Nash and Rob LeClair

You place your hand on His Bible, when you swear to tell the Truth
His name is on our greatest Monuments, and all our money too,
And when we Pledge allegiance, there's no doubt where we stand,
There is no separation, we're one Nation under Him.

Chorus:
In God We Still Trust
Here in America
He's the one we turn to every time
The goin' gets rough
He is the source of all our Strength
The One who watches over us
Here in America
In God We Still Trust

Now there are those among us, who want to push Him out,
And erase His name from everything, this country's all about,
From the Schoolhouse to the Courthouse, they're Silencing His Word,
Now it's time for all Believers, to make our Voices heard.

In God We Still Trust,
Here in America
He's the one we turn to every time
The goin' gets rough
He is the source of all our Strength
The One who watches over us
Here in America
In God We Still Trust

Here in America, Here in America, Here in America,

In God We Still Trust
Here in America,

In God We Still Trust
Here in America

Now I am not a very religious person by any stretch of the imagination. I do, however, believe in God and that our country were based on Christian beliefs. I am one of those people that doesn't go to church and I do not like to have religion perched down my throat. I do though, really like this song and believe every word that this song is about.

I feel that this song is defiantly a song that is number one material. I do wonder how well its going to go over at country radio though. I am not sure if the radio program directors are going to be as eager to play this song due to the controversial parts of it. I think that if the country music fans like this song and request that it be played, it may have a better chance at making it to the #1 spot.

I can tell you that the song has been played in Diamond Rio concert for the past few months and was done at the concert I attended in August (see "What a Day" entry for details). The guys have received a standing ovation each time they have performed this song. That tells me that this is a song that most country music fans are going to like.

The song also has a video to go along with it. The video is a very patriotic and is a great video. Those of you that are interested in seeing the video can do so by looking for it on Great American Country (GAC) or can view it on Launch.com and you can click HERE for a direct link.

I am hoping that this song does go to number one and puts Diamond Rio back on track.

If any of you decide to give the song and/or video a listen, I would love to hear your thoughts about it. Please do not hesitate to leave me a comment here to let me know what you think. I really look forward to them.

'Till next time.

Jason

School & A Possibility

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Tue, 06 Sep 2005 22:13:00 +0000

I know, I know, I am a bad J-Lander. It has been just about a month since my last entry. There have been a few things that I have wanted to write about but none of them would have produced enough for a decent entry. Now I do have some things to write about. A majority of this entry will be dedicated to one subject. So without further ado, let's get started.

My first Fall college semester has begun and its going rather well. I am taking three courses this semester. I am taking two English classes and a Math class. I have one of my English classes on Tuesdays and then I have my other English class and my math class on Wednesdays. The class have been better than I thought they would be and they aren't bad at all. This will start my third week of the 16-week semester. I am hoping that the rest of the semester goes as smooth as the first two weeks have. Only time will tell.

One day this past weekend was a rather good day for me. I found out that someone that I have been talking to online for many years now, would be willing to consider going on a date with me. In fact, she has already said that she would go. Her name is Whitni and she is one of the nicest and most beautiful girls that I have met. It just blows me away that she is willing to go on a date with me. We still aren't sure when its going to take place but I hope to get things worked out soon.

It's kind of funny though, I am pretty happy about this possible date but at the same time, I am kind of worried about it. The reason that I am so worried about it is because I am a pretty self-conscious guy. Whitni and I have never met offline yet and with the way that I have to jerk and gyrate around to be able to move and to position myself in my wheelchair and the way that I have to feed myself, its something that I do not want Whitni to have to bare-witness to. Also, depending on the place that we go, there is a pretty good chance that I might need help eating. I do not want to go through that and I damn sure do not want Whitni to have to go through that. I am afraid that this would take away from the date and make it less enjoyable. She does know about my disability and knows that I am wheelchair-bound but I am not sure if she really knows the severity of my condition.

I think that I might have come up with a solution to my little worries. I think that it might be in our best interest to have her meet me before we make any plans to go do anything. I think that this will give us both a chance to get to know one another and be around each other. She and I can work out details and talk things over in person and that might make things easier.

I guess we will just have to wait and see what happens. I will keep you posted!

'Till next time.

Jason

What A Day

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Tue, 09 Aug 2005 12:31:00 +0000

Hello everyone. Here is a review the concert on Saturday that I promised. This same review along with the pictures appear on my Diamond Rio fan web site. If anyone decides to check out my Diamond Rio web site, please leave me a comment or two on here about the site and what you think of it. Thanks.

So without futher ado, onto the review.

'Till next time.

Jason

The Review

The guys of Diamond Rio took to the stage following qualifications for the 2005 Allstate 400 at the Brickyard NASCAR event. The show started off with drummer Brian Prout doing a nice drum solo. Following the solo, Brian was joined by the rest of the band: Marty Roe on lead vocals and acoustic guitar, Gene Johnson on tenor vocals and mandolin, Dana Williams on baritone vocals and bass guitar, Dan Truman on keyboards, and Jimmy Olander on lead guitar.

The guys started the show off with their number one hit and one of many crowd favorites, "How Your Love Makes Me Feel." They wrapped the show up on the account of an insisted encore with "Bubba Hyde."

I am not sure how much of the order of songs they did that I can remember, so I am going to list the songs, in no particular order.

"How Your Love Makes Me Feel"
"Mirror Mirror"
"Meet in the Middle"
"Beautiful Mess"
"Wrinkles"
"I Believe"
"One More Day"
"Redneck Love Gone Bad" (New Song)
"One Believer" (New Song)
"Got to Get Away" (also maybe called "State of Emergency") (New Song)
"In God We Still Trust" (New Song)
"Norma Jean Riley"
"Bluegrass Express"
"Unbelievable"
"Bubba Hyde"

Before the guys did the new song, "Redneck Love Gone Bad," Marty was telling us about a girl that he was in love with and dating in college. He told of how the girl broke his heart and how he was devastated at the time. He said that when he heard this song, it reminded him of that whole situation and how her life probably turned out. The song was a very amusing song that had the crowd laughing.

At some point in the middle of the show, the guys took a break from performing the hits and did "Bluegrass Express," which is a great instrumental which you can only hear at their concerts. Before they started playing "Bluegrass Express," Dana was telling the crowd that they were going to take a break from the hits to do some bluegrass. He was stumbling around with his words and blamed it on the fact that he could not believe that they were performing in Indianapolis at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. That got a big pop from the crowd. During the song, Gene did a nice vocal solo and showcased his fine tenor voice.

Before performing the new song, "In God We Still Trust," Marty was telling us that when they found this song, they all knew that it was a song that they wanted to do because it was a song that they truly believed in. Marty said that the song is politically charged and that they have never been into that kind of stuff. He said that they don't get into fights with chick bands and things like that. He said that they hope to release the song as a single, hopefully next month. He said that they have also shot a video for the song and hope that we will be seeing it on television soon. The song received a standing ovation and a huge reaction from those in attendance. Once the song was over, Marty asked the crowd: "Can I get an Amen!?" The crowd gave him what he wanted.

The show ended with Bubba Hyde and the crowd really got into it. As the guys left the stage, the crowd cheered in appreciation. The MCs of the concert came back on stage and thanked everyone for attending and the crowd dispersed and headed home.

My Thoughts and Other Notes

I had an awesome time at this show. I had a great view. They did not have seats for this show, it was just all standing room. I was lucky enough to park my wheelchair in the "front row," right up against the retaining wall/fence. I was to the left side of the stage. I was less than 25 feet away from the guys.

Before the show, probably 45 minutes before, Brian came out and tuned up his drums for the show. I had my eyes locked on what he was doing. It was so awesome getting to see him do that. Shortly after Brian had finished tuning his drums and had gone off stage, Jimmy came on to tune his guitars. They had the guitars stored underneath a tent on the stage to keep them protected. I was right in front of the tent. I kid you not, Jimmy O. was less than 10 feet away from me! I was in absolute awe.

When the show started, I was so into it and was having the time of my life. A few times during the show I almost started to cry as I thought about the sheer happiness that I was feeling at the fact I was finally seeing Diamond Rio in concert, a dream that was becoming a reality at that very moment in time. I had to keep telling myself not to cry because it might take away from this awesome experience.

I could almost swear that Marty and Gene looked right at me a few times during the show. Every time that I thought one of them was looking at me, I made sure they knew that I was having a great time.

The show was absolutely awesome and I will never forget this experience. It was truly one of, if not the greatest, days of my life.

Stormy Night

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Thu, 28 Jul 2005 15:28:00 +0000

It was a pretty stormy night on Tuesday evening and the end result of it wasn't pretty.

I was in bed when the storms started rolling in. I had gotten in bed early Tuesday night for a few reasons. The main reason I will not go into details cause I am sure a lot of you wouldn't want to know. The second reason was that "Rescue Me" was on that night.

Anyway, I was laying in bed and had the TV on the weather channels. At around 8:00 the National Weather Service had issued a Tornado Warning for our county because a funnel cloud had been spotted in one of our neighboring counties and they wanted to give us as much as advanced warning as possible and to just be safe.

Mom was on the phone with my cousin at the time the Tornado Warning had been issued. I told her that she needed to get off the phone because there was some potentially dangerous storms headed our way and that she needed to get me up and into my wheelchair. My bed is right next to a window so I was freaked out and wanted to be in my chair. There is nowhere in our house really that I can get away from windows but I can be back at least ten feet or more and not be right on top of them. For some reason, I just feel better and am not as scared of the storms if I am up in my chair.

Mom comes over and starts prepping me to get me up into my Hoyer lift (a piece of medical equipment that lifts and transfers me from my chair to my bed or vice versa). As soon as she was about to hook me up to the lift, the power went out! She had to grab a flashlight to give us some kind of light to see what we were doing. The power came back on and went out again. It kept doing this the entire time mom was getting me up. She finally got me up and I was good to go. The power went out once more and stayed out for good.

I sat in the living room with mom and we sat in the dark and listening to my scanner which, obviously, had to be run on battery power. We were listening to all the public safety (Fire, Police, and EMS) channels as well as the Ham radio/storm chasers, keeping updated with the storms, where they were, the damage they left behind, and whether or not there were any more storms behind those that had passed.

The wind with these storms were clocked at between 60-80 MPH, the rain was a torrential downpour, and the lighting was intense, vivid, and quite frequent. There was also hail involved with the storms.

After the storms had passed, there were tree limbs down everywhere in our neighborhood. We even had a medium sized branch on our back porch. It was a weeping willow limb from a house about, I'd have to say, 10 to 15 yards maybe. Judging by all the damage I had seen, it seemed to me that it might have been a very-low-on-the-F-scale tornado but the National Weather Service didn't have any confirmed tornado touchdowns in our county. The damage from these storms was some of the worst that I can ever remember our neighborhood having from a storm. Our power was out until 5:00 Wednesday morning. That is also the longest time that I can remember us not having power.

There was also a house fire down the road on the road that runs north and south from our house that was kind of storm related. The man that lived there didn't have power, like the rest of the people on our block and probably more, so he had lit a grill lighter and was looking around his house for some candles to burn for lighting. While he was conducting his search, he accidentally set a pile of clothing and even some of the clothing he was wearing on fire and the fire spread throughout his bedroom. The man suffered only minor injuries and will be OK.

Needless to say, it was a rather exciting and event-filled night. I am hoping that we don't have any more storms like those for the rest of the season at the very least.

'Till next time.

Jason

Diamond Rio & A Dream Come True

noreply@blogger.com (Jason) — Sun, 17 Jul 2005 20:36:00 +0000

The other day I was browsing the 'net. I went to Diamond Rio's web site and was looking through their tour calendar. I was wondering when they would be coming to the Indiana area, just for the heck of it. I looked at their schedule for the month of August. I was surprised to see that they are supposed to be in Indianapolis on the 6th of that month.

My initial reaction was that they'd be playing somewhere where I couldn't afford to go due to ticket prices, etc. Well, I found out that they are going to be at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on the day of qualifications for the Brickyard 400 (the name of the race is now technically, the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard. I hate that and will never say the new name. It has been and will always be the Brickyard 400 to me.) putting on a free show with paid admission to the track. The show is being sponsored by Allstate, the brand new Indianapolis country radio station; Hank-FM, and a few others.

I knew then that this was an opportunity of a lifetime for me because I have been to the Brickyard qualifications before. Ticket prices are affordable and worth it. I became so excited that I just knew I had to go this year. I told mom about it and she acted like she didn't want to go. I told her that I was going to talk to my cousin Jerry about going to see if he wanted to go. He said that he would and mom decided that she would go if my cousin Shannon would go. So come August 6th, my dream of seeing Diamond Rio LIVE and in concert will be coming true!

For anyone that is interested, here are two links to articles written about this upcoming show:

Allstate 400 At The Brickyard Fans Can Enjoy Diamond Rio, Hog Roast

97.1 Hank FM

I have wanted to see them live ever since I became a die-hard fan between 1998 and 2001. I have liked them since they began making records in 1991 but didn't become a big fan until I got their "Greatest Hits" CD. I went from being a big fan to a die-hard fan when I bought their "One More Day" CD. After having the two aforementioned CDs, I brought their other 5 CDs and then their 8th studio release, "Completely", when it came out in 2002.

I could sit here and go on all day about these guys but I don't think anyone wants to sit and read everything that I know or have to say about them, so I will go ahead and wrap this up. I am sure that I will discuss more about Diamond Rio in future entries, especially the entry after the concert.

I can't wait 'til August 6th!

'Till next time.

Jason