Can't Sleep?

I can't.

I have been up since 9 AM Central Time, Saturday. It's now after 3:30 AM, Sunday.   I am sleepy, but I cannot close my eyes a bit. So what have I done while awake?

I read Google Plus, my usual news sites, some Facebook, I went to Gig Finder, I even took time to redo this blog. I hope you enjoy the new look. I think it's full of pop and excitement. I have had the same design since it's inception..so I figured it was time for a change.

So, why must I go to sleep now?

I have church in the morning, first off. My fiancé has to work in the morning. Since we live so far apart, I usually call her to make sure she's awake. I don't know if it helps since I'm usually falling asleep on the phone haha.. She puts up with me.

After church, I need to do yard work. It's what I have been doing all day. The painting is going great. Time flies so fast..I really do enjoy it.

Let's see...I'm fed up with Obama because he is politicizing gun control. Fun fact (without going too deep): Oregon has the most strict gun laws in the country yet there was a shooting there. When was the last time you heard of a shooting in a gun filled area? All of these shootings are happening in gun free zones. So..how does control make people more safe exactly? I love Trump's idea of a nationwide open carry. I promise you, the deaths will go down. The amount of mass shootings will go down because the bad guys won't know who is armed and who isn't armed. I say do it. Let's give it a try. Why not?

Ok...I think I may go to sleep right now.

Oh, download City and Color's new album. It's freaking awesome. If I was still heavy into my album review blog, I would say it's brilliant. You won't regret it. I wouldn't lie.

Clint

#RWC2015

Boy oh boy was this an exciting evening (if you live in England, day/morning if you live in the US). The game literally just ended. Here are my thoughts on the game. 

What the heck is wrong with you Fiji? You had so many chances to score and keep it going. The defense wasn't that good, hence the high score against them, and I'm not sure why you guys can't kick. 

I think there were 4 missed opportunities in kicks alone. The game wouldn't have been as bad score wise. 

And about that score?

England: you did not deserve that try at the end. There was a leg in the way blocking the ball from going over the white line. I understand that you really wanted it but if you didn't cross the line, you didn't cross the line. The leg just happened to be in the way. 

Honestly though, I could not have done what happened here tonight. I'm not obese but I'm not athletic either. These guys played their heart and should out. I mean, one try that was made, a team member was laying the ground in agony because he has been running and tormenting his body for about 60 minutes. I mean, holy cow!

These guys in this tournament are the best when it comes to the game. Every player is better than anybody in the world. Having the chance to play in an event like this is a true dream come true. 

It's the first game of the month long tournament and let me tell you, I am super excited even as this sport has yet to really catch on here in the states. 

Speaking of which, in pretty excited to see how many viewers this game had in the US. I wonder if the syndication of Universal Sports and NBC has helped grow the sport to a broader audience. I think it can only help it. 

I don't have tv but I have Sling TV on my phone. With the help of Verizon's Unlimited data, I'm still golden. At least for now. 

If you have any time for an hour or so, or even time for a small glance at this event, take it. 

Rugby has changed my life, I know it will change yours. 

The U.S. Constitution

Today we celebrate a document. A document who is like that one kid in school who everybody knows, but decides not to go to his party for whatever reason. He's in all the lunchroom conversations. He's never looked at, talked to or really, truly, acknowledged though. 

Some people may look at this signature above as just another signature. It's only when you look closer, you realize the letters start to make sense.

In school, I've read about Paul Revere. I have read about Thomas Jefferson. I have read about George Washington. I have read about Samuel Adams. They were all just names to me. Names in a story. 

That changed when I took a trip to Boston, Massachusetts a few years back. 

Here I was, 21 years old (at the time) and I was walking down a road that wasn't fit for a car or a horse and carriage, for that matter, anymore. I look to my left and I see a sign saying Paul Revere's house. 

I now had a name and a location. 

I continue to walk down the old road and I see a church steeple over shadowing some trees. This is the church with the light. I realized at this moment why he was chosen to do the 'British are coming' ride. He lived so close. I had another location. I looked around at what he saw all those years back. 

After walking for a long while I saw a cemetery. That cemetery is where I saw a final resting place. The name written was Paul Revere. 

This guy wasn't a name in some story I've heard all my life. This was an actual guy who actually did something to change history. It was more than voting for the black guy so I could be part of history to elect a black president. Like, this guy actually did something. He actually lived. He actually did exist. 

I know it sounds silly, but when I saw that grave site, everything changed for me. It hit me at a deep level. 

That same feeling resonates with me today. I know that, since he existed, George Washington existed too. I know that James Madison existed too! It's so exciting!

That signature above is from the hand of George Washington. I look at that and I am frozen in its awesome sight. If this document could talk in more ways than it does..

If it had eyes to explain, in detail, what they looked like on that room. If it had ears to explain, in detail, or even just a slight bit, of what it heard when they walked up and grabbed that quill to score on its face. 

I look at this document and I see a perfect document who was designed by men from different backgrounds. But they all understood what the future of being an American meant. The idols and inspirations from all the men came together in it's simplest and complex forms. They created a document of checks and balances. They created a document that would be meant to be a living, breathing document that would stand the test of time. These men were smart. They new human history and how humans worked and realized the methodology of men ruling men and how it progressed. They new a people, United, would fight together to keep this going so they created ways to limit government while at the same time, empowering liberty to we the people. 

On this Constitution Day, read it. There's a constitution app with easy to read typography. There's even helpful historical references. 

Read the notes from the framers themselves. Read the federalist papers. Read the anti-federalist papers. Learn from history because I can tell you, the names that we've read all our lives actually did exist. They lived under the iron fist of tyranny.

They made sure to protect the future generations from such oppression so we would be blessed in not having to feel that fear. 

Thank you again and Happy Constitution Day.