Childrens Hospital Fundraiser August 31, 2008
Posted by manni379 in Family.Tags: children, Childrens Hospital, CHOC, medical care, Walk
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I am participating in the 17th Annual CHOC/Disneyland Resort Walk in the Park, and I need your help. As a walker, I’m trying to raise as much money as I can to help the children of CHOC. Children’s Hospital of Orange County (CHOC) is a very special place where any child can receive the medical attention they need, regardless of their ability to pay.
My 7 month old son, Kyle has spent much time in CHOC hospital for what we now know is epilepsy. The facilities, staff, and medical care that Kyle received was outstanding. We are so appreciative for all the genuine care that CHOC provided to us during our time of need. Kyle continues to see the CHOC neurologist and metabolic specialist because of the quality of medical care that he has received. It is now our turn to give back to this wonderful organization which is why we decided to participate in the 2008 CHOC Walk.
Last year, the CHOC Walk raised over $1 Million to help pay for this medical care and this year our goal is to raise even more! This is a unique opportunity to make a difference in the lives of the 150,000 children who visit CHOC each year. Any support you can offer is greatly appreciated.
For more information regarding the walk please visit the CHOC foundation’s website @ www.chocwalk.org. Please contact myself directly if you are interested in making a pledge and I will be more than happy to pick up the payment. All checks should be made out directly to CHOC Foundation. All sponsorships are tax deductible and information for tax purposes is as follows:
CHOC Foundation Federal Tax ID 95-6097416
CHOC Foundation
455 S. Main Street, Orange, CA 92868-3874
(714) 532.8690
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Monica & Baby Kyle Mueller
2008 Harley-Davidson Motorcycle Show August 24, 2008
Posted by emuleman in Work.Tags: Bike show, harley-davidson, Motorcycle
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Today at my work we held the 15Th Annual Los Angeles Harley-Davidson Motorcycle Show. This is our biggest yearly event, and has turned out to be a favorite of mine, as well as our customers. It always seems to attract hundreds of people interested in checking out some beautiful machines that have been customized by their owners. In addition to the motorcycles on display we also have a band, and of course free food for all to enjoy.
Many of you already know that owning a Harley-Davidson motorcycle almost guarantees that you will be modifying or customizing your machine in some way. Part of the attraction is that you do not have to be riding the exact motorcycle as anyone else. That is in part due to the huge amount of accessories that both Harley-Davidson and other companies sell to let owners customize their bikes to suit their personalities. This is very apparent as you walk around and see for yourself some of the motorcycles our customers have put their special touches on. Some of these bikes look so good that I would almost be afraid to ride because they are so beautiful, and I would be afraid that I would damage them in some way. Noticed that I said almost.
It was a great sunny southern California day, and everyone had a wonderful time listening to great music, eating good food, and checking out these gorgeous motorcycles. No wonder this event has become so popular over the last 15 years.
Kyle’s New Bouncer August 18, 2008
Posted by emuleman in Family.Tags: baby, bouncer, Family, happy
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We were lucky and happy to have Monica’s Grandparents buy Kyle a new bouncer. A bouncer is basically a device that Kyle can stand up in and bounce up and down. It also keeps him entertained, because there are several things mounted on it that Kyle can interact and play with. He seems to get excited once he realizes that he can control the movement. He also likes to grab and play with all the gadgets on the bouncer that flash lights or play music.
He is growing up so fast before our eyes. He turned 7 months old a few days ago, and you can tell he is getting more alert and is interacting with people more. He just started rolling over, and now can roll around in his crib. Monica and I are so happy that he is such a happy baby, and seldom cries. He does get irritated and fussy now and again, but generally speaking he is very good. We are both so happy!
This morning I filmed a minute of video of Kyle enjoying his bouncer. Something about me watching him having fun makes me talk like a little kid to him, as you will notice on the video. Enjoy.
Thank you Aunt Gail August 11, 2008
Posted by emuleman in Family.Tags: baby, Family, happy, personal
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Aunt Gail came by this week for another visit with Kyle. Kyle just loves her so much! Aunt Gail also loves to play and laugh with Kyle. This time she fed Kyle some food, and he enjoyed it very much!
Thanks Aunt Gail for sending those photos over so we all can enjoy them.
I just love Aunt Gail this much!
Opening Ceremony Beijing Olympics August 10, 2008
Posted by emuleman in Thoughts.Tags: Add new tag, Beijing, China, current events, Olympics, opening ceremony, sports
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Friday night Monica and I watched the opening ceremonies for the 2008 summer Olympics in Beijing, China. It was a very impressive opening, and it shows how much training and planning the Chinese people have spent on this. From what I have read they spent over $300 million dollars and had a cast of 15,000 people involved in the opening ceremonies, and you could tell by watching it. It was absolutely wonderful watching the amazing technology, great music, and risky acrobatics that was flawlessly executed. This was way better than I ever expected, and I think it will be very difficult for any other country in the future to top this. The Bird’s Nest Stadium where it all happened was specifically built for this, and it looked great. They had video that wrapped around the top of the stadium, and shot fireworks from the top opening. It was quite a site to see!
I wanted to post a few videos of the highlights from the ceremony, for people who missed it, but I cannot due to broadcast rights that were purchased for $800 million dollars by NBC. I searched the internet for some video only to find that most of it that was posted was already taken down. NBC is working with all of the biggest video sites on the Web to get them to take down video, and it is watermarking each second of video that comes out of the the International Olympic Committee’s feed, to make takedowns easier.
I totally understand that NBC wants to make sure that anyone who wants to watch the Olympics or anything to do with them has to be forced to watch hours and hours of commercials. It just seems odd in this technology age of the internet, and instant video feeds from around the world, that NBC can control Olympic footage posted on the internet. They even decided that the Opening Ceremonies would not be broadcasted live, but tape it to run the following evening so it would be in prime time, and they could run more commercials. I am sure they will probably run the opening ceremonies again on television, or I predict sell the whole opening along with highlights on a DVD after it is over. It you happened to miss it I would recommend trying to watch it if you get a opportunity. It was very impressive, and highly entertaining as well.
I did find some very nice photos from the opening ceremony. I have included them here in a slide show. I would recommend that you click on the “view all images” button to get a chance to see the photos bigger, and see the details.
For all you Olympic fans I also have a few links.
Overall Olympic Medal Standings
Official NBC Olympic site Only place to get live video feeds
Happy Birthday and the Dark Knight August 2, 2008
Posted by emuleman in Family, Thoughts.Tags: Batman, Birthday, Blockbuster, Entertainment, Movie, The dark Knight
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Well today was my birthday, and I wanted to thank everyone who called and sent me emails wishing me a happy one. Although I am perfectly alright with the concept of getting older, it seems time is just whizzing by the older I get. I am now 42 years old, and it is a strange feeling and concept to realize that I am probably near or over the half way mark. If I make it to 84 years old I will consider that a long and fulfilling life. Ask me that if and when I make it to that age and I probably won’t agree with you then. Who knows, hopefully medical technology will improve so I can live even longer. Now that I am a father it makes me realize how much I appreciate every day. I was fortunate enough to be able to take a vacation day from work, and spend the day with my wife and son.
We started the day going to lunch at one of my favorite restaurants, the Claim Jumper. We enjoy it very much and even had our wedding reception there several years ago. Both Monica and I have never been disappointed with the food or service. My Father surprised me with a gift certificate for there, so it tasted even better. (Always does when you don’t have to pay for it, doesn’t it?).
We then were lucky enough to have Monica’s Grandparents babysit Kyle while we went to see a movie. Now don’t get me wrong, I love my son Kyle, but it was nice to get away for a few hours, just Monica and I. I was a little concerned that Monica wasn’t going to enjoy herself that much. This was the longest time that we have left Kyle in the care of her Grandparents. I totally trust them, but I know Monica has a more difficult time being separated from him. She has become such a wonderful Mom. We hadn’t been away but 20 minutes and just found our seats in the movie theater when she asked me if she should call her Grandparents and check in. I convinced her that we just left, and that they are more than capable of caring for our son for a few hours. In fact I know they love having the opportunity spending some time with him. You can tell by how they both love interacting with him, and that makes me feel good.
The movie we went to see was the new Batman movie, The Dark Knight. Now you must not watch the news if you never heard of this film. It set a one-day box office record with $66.4 million on opening day, and took in a record $155.34 million in its first weekend. I believe the reason for this is because it was getting very good reviews, and because of Heath Ledger. He played The Joker in the movie shortly before his death on January 22, 2008, from an accidental prescription drug overdose at age 28.
Now I have always been a fan of Batman and even enjoyed watching the Batman television show growing up as a kid. Looking back at those shows today makes me realize how childish and cheesy that show was. I was only a very young child and watching those shows seemed so exciting and wonderful. I think that is also why most people my age also seem to like Batman, from the early childhood experiences.
This movie is completely different. It is not intended as a children’s movie at all. It is a very adult movie, and the most impressive movie about a comic book character that I have ever seen. The acting is outstanding by all the actors, including Christian Bale as Batman, Michael Caine, as the butler Alfred, and Heath Ledger, as the Joker, who add a level of depth to the film. Ledger’s portrayal of the Joker is a stand-out performance, and in my opinion he will be nominated for an Oscar, and win. Even hours after leaving the theater I am still remembering how wonderfully dark and twisted his performance was. It makes you realize how sad it is to lose such a young actor as he demonstrates in this movie his exceptional talent.
As you can probably already tell I really enjoyed the movie, and would recommend it highly. It dealt with many moral issues as well as being a blockbuster special effects movie. It is much deeper than your typical summer blockbuster that relies solely on explosions and car chases.
Overall this was a very good birthday and I enjoyed spending quality time with my family.
