Tread on Trafficking

Originating in the Love146 Boston Task Force, Tread on Trafficking is a virtual event that happens across the globe beginning May 1st, 2011.

Those who tread on trafficking put their foot down to raise awareness about child sex slavery and funds to care for survivors and those vulnerable to exploitation. Treaders ask sponsors to support them for the number of miles or hours they spend running, swimming, biking, or working out in some form over the eight week period of May and June.

Becoming a treader is really simple, anyone, anywhere can sign up. All proceeds raised by those treading benefit the work of Love146.

How can you help?

1. Sponsor me!  You can make a donation here
2. Join the Love146 Cincinnati Metro team here
3. Set a goal for the total number of miles or hours you’ll walk, bike, swim, etc... between May 1st and June 30th.  My personal goal is 120 walking miles (not in a row!!)
4. Find sponsors to pledge to support you financially, either for miles/hours completed, or in one time gifts.
5. Get your tee and use it to spread the word about your efforts to end child trafficking, pick up one here.
6. Start treading! By yourself, with friends, or a team - with every step you’ll be contributing to the protection and restoration of children.
7. Encourage others to join you! Even after the 8 weeks have begun it's never too late to start fighting injustice.
8. Join the Love146 Cincinnati Metro Task force.

Thanks for reading this, and thanks for your support.

Love Protects. Love Defends. Love Restores. Love Empowers.

We are Love146.

Price Hill Incline

The Price Hill Incline was a continuation of West Eighth Street up Price Hill

It's a little different today

P-p-p-pokerface

Gabe busting out some Lady GaGa at Refuge Coffee Bar's Family Friendly Karaoke Night.  You should come check it out sometime.

Opening Day

Hola!

Yes, it really has been 2 months since I last updated this blog.  I blame ennui.

Anyway... as anyone in or near Greater Cincinnati knows, yesterday was Opening Day.  I firmly believe Opening Day should be a paid holiday, since everybody and their brother was downtown yesterday.

Yes, that's me, everybody, and their brother. My twitter pal mojojacob snagged that pic while she was marching with the Hoxworth Blood Center.  If you're eligible, you can click here to sign up to donate. 

A few pics from the parade

The legendary #8, Joe Morgan

Freshly retired Cincinnati Chief of Police Tom Streicher

The Budweiser Clydesdales

The Trojan Goat

And finally, the unsung heroes of every parade...

The pooper-scooper guys.

Now, go donate some blood.  Save a life.  And Play Ball!

Go Jump In A Lake

So what did you do to celebrate the first day of the new year?

Nurse a hangover?

Watch some football?

Sit around the house in your jammies?

Or did you get together with some very cool people and do something totally insane?

Guess which one I did...

Video courtesy of Josh Emerson

36° water temp... Shrinkage was a real concern.  But afterward we went back to the Price's castle and had some hot soup and talked about next year's plunge.

Will you be there?

Redonkulous*

An interesting catalog showed up here the other day, and there were some truly insane things contained within.

First up, Disposable Bibs For Adults:

 

 Nothing says "Grandma, you're a slob" quite like a giant paper sheet covering her neck-to-waist. Why not just give her sponge and a bucket...

Next we have these beauties, Avivo Shower Sandal Footscrubber

 

"As seen on TV!"  This little gem stick to your tub with suction cups and has "1,000 gently stimulating bristles to massage and clean your feet all over from heel to toe"  Kinda like walking barefoot on the sidewalk.  At least that's free.

How about a handheld ECG? 

 

"Honey?  Does this look like paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia to you?"

I think Tammy Faye Bakker went through a case of these mascara shields every day.

  

Yeah, this looks like a good idea...  a cordless ear wax cleaner

 

Because sticking a vacuum in your ear is a fantastic idea.

I... what... I have nothing to say about these cosmetic teeth
 

But combine these with this neck traction thingy

And you'll be a lean, mean sex machine in no time.

Have fun shopping!

*redonkulous: re.donk'u.lous adj. Significantly more absurd than ridiculous to an almost impossible extreme; without possibility of serious consideration.

Time To Man Up

Jan 1st, 1300 hours, Hidden Valley Lake.  Time to seperate the wheat from the chaff.

Which are you?

Polar Bear Plunge Raw (And Cold) Video - Jan 1 2010 - Video - WLWT Cincinnati

I Was Going To Buy A Phone

I was going to buy a phone today.  I had been setting a little aside each payday, $10 here, $5 there, until I had enough.

I was going to buy a Samsung Epic.  I have an upgrade credit from Sprint, and that plus what I had saved would have covered the cost.  It's a beautiful phone; 4G, Android OS, full QWERTY keyboard and other goodies

It was going to be a Christmas present for myself.  But... something happened.

I got an email earlier today, about an hour or so before I was going to head out and purchase the phone.  Someone had taken a serious financial hit today, and now had nothing for food, let alone Christmas presents for their kids. 

Here I was, accessories all purchased ahead of time so I would have a case, screen shield, and car charger for my new toy, and as I read that email, I knew that I didn't need that phone.  I knew what I had to do.  I knew what God was showing me.  I didn't need the new, shiny toy.  My current phone is just fine, I just wanted something nicer.  I didn't need it, I wanted it.

I brought them the money.  I handed it over and I felt joy, true joy.  This was a far greater feeling than I would have had from a phone.  I was able to share some of what I've been blessed with.

That is better than any toy.

This family is still struggling, if anyone would like to help out, you can email me

Queen City Underground

I took a little stroll around Over-the-Rhine today



There was a friendly guide to show the way



This used to be a 1,000 seat theater back in the late 1800's. Now it's the Lackman bar and apartments.



The second floor of what used to be The Warehouse, it was once a grand beer hall known as "The Cosmopolitan"



George "Boss" Cox once ruled the city from here. One of his cronies, August Herrman, is known as the Father of the World Series. The idea was born right here.



The facade on what used to be the Kauffman Brewery. Those are hops, you can't have beer without hops.



The tunnels; they were blocked off in 1919 when the Kauffman Brewery closed because of Prohibition. They were a connection from the lager cellar to the brew house.







St. Francis Serpah



Underneath the old church is a crypt with 63 graves.







Next Saturday is the last tour of the year. If you can make it, do it! The history is fascinating.

Some People's Kids...

The Reds clinched the division Tuesday night, sweetness!

But get this - guess what's making the news today?

5 people called the health department and COMPLAINED ABOUT THE PLAYERS SMOKING CELEBRATORY CIGARS IN THE STADIUM!  Seriously,  5 people with way too much time on their hands and obviously missing the part of their brain that holds the common sense filed complaints.

Yes, there is an indoor smoking ban in Ohio, I'm glad there is. But to complain about this? C'mon!  Grow up. Or better yet, man up and tell us who you are instead of making an anonymous complaint.

Now, it's time to celebrate!

This is never ok

Never.  There is never any reason for a man to raise his hand to a woman. 

We're almost always bigger and stronger. 

There is no justifying this.

If you're in a abusive relationship, get out.  Abuse does not equal love.

Amazon Overdoes It...

Ok...  I love Amazon.com, let's get that out of the way. first.  If you look at my buying history there, you'll see my first purchase there was in 1998 and my most recent one was Friday.  Even better is my Prime membership, especially since I can share it with Carol.

A couple things bug me though;  number one being lack of customer pickup.  I work right near Amazon's distribution centers in Hebron.  I would love to be able to pick up my orders instead of having them shipped to me.  It would not only save time, but cut down on oil consumption.

Here's a more recent complaint.  Packaging.  They are really overdoing it with the packaging.  We recently got a back wedge for Carol to help with her GERD, and the box that it was packed in could have doubled as a rowboat.  To top it off, it had over a hundred feet of paper inside.  Check these out.

I am at one end of the hall in our condo building.  That's Carol at the other end.

Carol is standing on our balcony, I'm in the parking lot:

 

We're on the second floor...  Here's where I was in the lot.

X marks the spot...

Rapunzel!  Rapunzel!  Throw down your Amazon packing material!

So... Amazon.  Great stuff, great prices.  Can we do something about the packing?  And maybe add customer pickup?