Friday, July 31, 2009

Thursday, July 30th, 2009

Namaste,

Thursday was a very busy day.... Work was good. Typical Thursday, getting ready for the weekend. After work I came home and got Sherrie. We had been ask to Join the Board of Directors of the Oklahoma Epilepsy Association. This is a great group of folks, and think Sherrie and I can really do some good there. It is a place I feel we can give back! The meeting was catered by Applebee's. Applebee's is really getting into community service. If you are looking for somewhere to have lunch, or dinner, and want to support a great company.... Applebee's. Anyway home the bed early. Got up at 3:12am yesterday.... Very Tired. It's Friday... We have a very busy weekend. I want to get Trey's room done. We have 3 lawns to do. I tried to do ours earlier in the week, but the heavens opened up, then my buddy Jason's who is out of town, and mom's it is out of shape. God Bless!

Love you all!

Mat

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Wednesday, July 29th, 2009

Namaste,

Wednesday was a good day.... Kinda slow at work until 4:00. I was suppose to meet my friend Miriam at Louie's lakeside for a little planning meeting. Miriam is planning my send off party. She is a special person with a huge heart. I was suppose to be at the gym by 7:00 but I was 15 minutes late. When I got there Ben had it under control, so I went for a run. I ran four corners, at a really quick pace. After I ran the stairs at the Chase building Monday my legs were a little sore, but today they friggen hurt. I feel like someone is stabbing me in the thighs. Anyway after running they feel better. I did a small circuit, then a serious ab set. Then home for a shower, and a turkey pizza. I take a flour tortilla, put a little Jack Daniels Bar-B-Que sauce, and some shredded turkey. Throw it in the oven for a few minutes, and YUMMY! Anyway... Time for bed! I am meeting my good friend Chad Lovett in the morning at Starbucks for coffee before work. Good night and God Bless!

Mat

Monday and Tuesday, July 27th & 28th, 2009

Namaste,

Monday was good..... Work was fine, and as soon as I left work I headed straight down town Oklahoma City, to the Chase building. It's the tallest building in OKC. 35 stories tall.... I could not find the stair case so I ask the security guard. He showed me where it was hidden in a marble wall. I really didn't struggle with the stairs; However, two days later I am pretty sore! I may try something off the hook this weekend? Haven't decided yet. We are suppose to go to Dallas, but that is yet to be determined. Tuesday, was pretty slow at work. Our patient count is down a little, an our IV load is fairly low. After work I had a speaking engagement at Foundation Bariatric Hospital. I think it went really well, and every time I speak it gets easier and more fluid. Came home and Sherie had made this Parmesan crusted baked tilapia...... Mmmmmmmm good! Decided to clean the garage, and the weed eat the lawn and edge, before this crazy thunderstorm hit. Anyway... Been working a lot on my Itunes library. I finely found a good program that rips DVD's to MP4. I figure I will have 20 or so movies on my Ipod before I leave. I think it will help with the long flights and layovers. I talked to Naba yesterday. The other two climbers who had joined my trek, backed out. One of them has a serious illness. Anyway I'm on my own!

Love you all!

Mat

Sunday, July 26, 2009

Saturday, and Sunday, July 25th and 26th, 2009

Namaste,

Saturday morning I volunteered at Sidewalk VBX at Journey Church in Norman. It was really fun to do some serving for a while. They had moon bounces, and craft centers, and even and ice cones station. It was really fun. When I got home Sherrie and I went down town Edmond and did some crazy days shopping. We looked a lot but did no purchasing. We tried the new frozen yogurt place in Spring Creek. It was OFF THE SCHNIZZLE! Satanic! Anyway we came home and laid down for an hour, before meeting Mike and Marylin Isbell at Buffalo for a glass of tea, and a chicken wing. This morning I got up and worked in the parking lot at church. Immediately after that Sherrie and I did a photo shoot, of a pretty young lady in Brick town. Her name is Rosa, and she works with Sherrie's mom. It was nice. The weather was overcast which was perfect. After that we came home and changed and then date time at the grocerie store. We came home and I started editing pics. I have received 50 emails and 100's of text about my story on the news. Pretty exciting. I have heard from Australia, California, St. Louis, Clinton, OK... It's overwhelming. I want to throw a huge hug out to my friend Miriam Nida! She has stepped up and is doing so much to help with "The Quest!"

Love you all!

Mat

Friday, July 24, 2009

Thursday and Friday, July 23rd and 24th, 2009

Namaste,

Well Thursday was a great day. First thing in the morning my boss, called and told me that the executive counsel, agreed to pay me my salary while I am gone. This is a huge blessing, and I told Shawn on the phone I was about to cry. The rest of the day was pretty good. Sherrie, Jordan, Trey, and I, met Curtis and Lisa at Zio's by the airport for dinner. We were meeting to discuss the upcoming Poker Tournament, that will hopefully finish funding, "The Quest"! This morning I had to be at Wal-Mart at 5:45am. Sherrie was holding a bake sale for me, and I wanted to help her set it up. As soon as I got done with that I got on the phone with Continental Airlines and booked my ticket. I leave on September 15th at 7:10am, and get into Kathmandu on September 17th, at 9:20am. I have a 10 hour layover in Newark, NJ. I am going to take a Taxi to the Statue of Liberty, and maybe to Central Park. I also have a 15 hour lay over in Delhi. I am not sure what I will do with that. I have been told I can get a hotel room in the airport, and it may be a good idea to rest as much as I can before arriving in Nepal. The next morning, I fly from Delhi to Kathmandu. Then it's on like donkey kong twenty something days later I will head home. Total air miles 18,000! CRAZY!!!!!! The rest of the day was very busy. Sherrie, Jordan, and I went to Louie's and had an appetizer for dinner. Then ran some errands. Trey needs a new ceiling fan, and home depot had nothing! Going to bed now!

Love you all!

Mat

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Wednesday, July 22nd, 2009

Namaste,

Hello everyone! What an amazing day! Work was great, but that's not the great part! I had determined earlier in the day it was a really great day for a run. I came home changed into my running gear and took off. I ran from my house to the gym 7 miles. Crazy thing was... I could have kept going, but I needed to get to class. At 6:30 the story that Galen Culver did on me for is this a great state or what aired, and my phone started going crazy! I had 15 emails, and 20 text's! I heard from my best friend in junior highs parents, and tons of friends. I can't believe the impact that this story may have. Anyway... It should air several more times over the next week. I hope you have a chance to watch it. Love you all!

Mat

Tuesday, July 21st, 2009

Good Morning!

Well Tuesday was good. Middle of the day, my OKC Thunder season ticket representative Melissa Owumi, called and invited me to be a judge for the finals of the Thunder Girls dance team contest. How in the world could I say no! She told me I could invite Mike and Jason. There were eight season ticket holders that were going to be invited, so it was an honor. Mike jumped in immediately, Jason was reluctant due to the fact that his wife wears the pants in his house. Anyway... Mike and I went and watched 40 girls bounce around on the stage at Toby Keith's "I love this bar and grill!" Tough evening! I needed a good workout and didn't get one so I am heading straight to the gym after work!

Love you all!

Mat

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Sunday and Monday, July 19th & 20th, 2009

Namaste,

Sunday morning Trey and I worked in the parking lot at Peoples Church, then met Sherrie and Jordan for the service. It was awesome! It was the grand opening of the new building, and the message was great! As a matter of fact.... Pastor Cooper preached on the scripture that is part of my philosophy, about running a race. After church we ran home changed clothes, and headed to Moore to have some lunch, and go to a movie at the Warren theater. The movie was the second worst movie I have ever seen! It was also my first time in the Warren, and it was nice, but I see no reason why I would ever drive to Moore just to see a movie there. Trey and I went to mom's and did her lawn, while the girls went shopping. Monday was a good day! Work was fine, catching up from the weekend. After work I ran home and did my lawn, which if I may say.... Looks excellent! Then Sherrie, Trey, and I loaded up and headed to the gym. We had a great workout! We did speed stations, and then sparred. Everyone fought everyone! We were very tired when we got home. Shower, dinner, and bed!

Love you all!

Mat

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Saturday, July 18th, 2009

Namaste,

What a great day! Sherrie and I got up early to get to El Reno, for the Elk's Lodge Golf Tournament. Sherrie volunteers to do the registration every year, and I play. It is a four man scramble, and this year I played with, my Ambassador of Kwan Ricardo Villarreal, Matt Lowery, and Jay Jones. We started on the 17th hole and kicked some butt. We had a blast (and a few Bloody Mary's)! We finished at 11 under par, and won third place. Sherrie and I were going to stop at Eishen's on the way home but there were no parking places within a block so we just came home, and crashed on the couch for an hour, before heading over to Paul and Tammi Brunners to do pictures of their 1 year old Cash. He is a little cutie, and it was beautiful outside. We headed home, and had our leftovers from Friday night, then I took a Jacuzzi and went to bed! Getting ready for church right now, then we are suppose to go see a movie at 12:30! I'm not a big movie guy, I have to much to do..... But it's family day! Love you all!

Mat

Saturday, July 18, 2009

Thursday and Friday, July 16th and 17th, 2009

Namaste,

Thursday was a good day. After work I had to drop off the pictures from the American Cancer Society, Relay for Life Poker Run from last Sunday. Then we had to drop by the gym and drop off a shirt we had made for a gentleman who has been working out with us. He plays a sport that has an oblong shaped ball, made out of pig skin, and they wear pads, and helmets. The team he plays for kinda reminds me of well a crow! Anyway from there we went to Brick Town to do Senior pictures for my friend Carol's son. It was good and I really like the pictures. When We got home I started editing the pictures, and about 10:30 Cindy called and out automated Medication Machines were down. When I got to work I found the hard drive on our interface machine was down, and I went to Wal-Mart to get a new one. Our dispensing software company told me to get the hard drive installed and call them at 7:00am eastern time. So Home by 1:00am, back to work by 6:00am. Friday was a whirl..... I did get to work around 6:00 and started investigating the hardware problem. I noticed the system had dropped the whole network, so I started bypassing the interface machine, and re networking the system. After three hours of tracing cables, I got everything re networked, and up and running. Work was slow yesterday and that was a blessing. I left work at three and went to the gym, to straighten up, and get ready for my interview with channel 4! It was great. Mike and Ben showed up to work me out, and Galen taped me running, and running, and running. After that, I took Sherrie to Pearls and we shared some Talipia, and then date night ended with us coming home and cleaning the house for two hours. I took a shower and was asleep by 9:30. We are up and heading out to El Reno, to play in the Elk's golf tournament. Sherrie is running the registration, and I am playing with Ricardo Villarreal, Matt Lowery, and Jay Jones! We may not win.... But we will laugh our butts off!

Love you all!

Mat

Thursday, July 16, 2009

Tuesday and Wednesday, July 15th and 16th, 2009

Namaste,

Good morning everyone. Tuesday was great...Work was fine. We are still pretty busy, but more manageable than the last couple of weeks. After work I headed straight to the gym, and after a good cleaning, I took off for a good run. I ran down the Broadway extension access road to Hefner and back. I needed a good sweat, and since it was 105 outside, I got it. After warm ups... (HaHa) I went in the cage and rolled with Travis Chyzy. I believe a three minute round of MMA, gives you a better cardio workout than running five miles. Just my opinion! We went several rounds, and it was a blast! I had to jet home because DJ and Lindsay were coming over to order prints from their wedding. Wednesday, was busy as well. Work was fine, then home to change clothes, and to the gym to clean the mat's and get ready for class. We had 11 students show up, which is great for the heat... It is probably 115* inside the gym. Reminds me of the wrestling room in high school. After class I ran by Mike and Kim Van Sickles house to pick up a piece of equipment. It was great to see them. Yesterday.... Galen Culver called from News Channel 4. He wants to do a story on me for the news. We are going to shoot the interview at the gym Friday afternoon. How cool is that? We are sooooo close to finishing the fund raising efforts. This hopefully will put us over the top. I need eight more corporate sponsors. If you know anyone that might be interested please let me know. Love you all!

Mat

Monday, July 13, 2009

Sunday, and Monday, July 12th & 13th, 2009

Namaste,

Sunday we went to church, and had a great service. It was like the preacher was speaking directly to me. He was talking about slowing down, and not scheduling every minute of everyday. Anyway.... After church Sherrie and I had committed to photograph a poker run for the American Cancer Society. It was a blast even though it was hotter than the surface of the sun. Every stop was a different vineyard. Wine tasting, and cheese and.... More wine, and then more wine! You get the picture. I never knew how many vineyard's we had right here in central Oklahoma. After that we came home and I started editing pictures. Monday, was quite busy! After work we went straight to the gym and we had an awesome class. I am excited to get to the gym tomorrow night. I am going to fight one of our Pro-fighters T. Chyz! Today was an awesome day for the quest.... My Black Diamond Raven Pro Ice Axe came in! It is awesome only 11 ounces! Jordan chased Trey around the house with it! How cool!!!!!!

Love you all!

Mat

Saturday, July 11, 2009

Thursday, and Friday, July 9th, and 10th, 2009

Namaste,

Thursday was a blur.... Still very busy at work. Once home I laid down for about 45 minutes before Sherrie and I cooked dinner. We made chicken fajitas, however, I had an upset stomach. The fajitas looked great and smelled great, I didn't want to taste them two times... If you know what I mean! Sherrie had somewhere to be with her friend Michelle, so Trey and I went to Laser Quest. When we got there we were the only ones there so.... We played air hockey, and some video games, then I made him wash my car! Friday, got to work really early. I had an appointment with my Thunder season ticket representative Melissa Owumi. Melissa is awesome and we met at Louie's lake side. She brought me a few gifts from the Thunder, including an autographed 8 X 10 from Robert Swift! Awesome! We talked about the team, and the Ford Center, and travel. Then back to work where it was kinda slow for a Friday afternoon, until 4:45 when they told us we were getting an admit at 6:00 and by the way you get no information.... Oh well what are you gonna do? Got home at 6:15 and my wonderful wife, had planned a date night. Trey was at mom's and we dropped Jordan off (on her head) at her friend Kat's house. She took me to Red Rock Canyon Grille. I had an awesome Bloody Mary.... It was like a small buffet with all of the veggies they put in it. We had a stuffed poblano pepper, and only ate about a quarter of it. I think that's what we will have for lunch. Anyway, today we have a bunch of errands to run. We are going to Wally right now, then to the flea market, and then the 805 Cookout at the lake, then Buffalo Wild Wings for the fights tonight. It's gonna be 108 outside today should be fun! Love you all!

Mat

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Wednesday, July 8th, 2009

Namaste,

Good Morning everyone! Wednesday was quite busy. We had inventory at work, and after all of the prep work, it only took the crew a couple of hours to count. After work I came home and got ready for the gym. I took a few minutes to clean the gym real good, ran on the treadmill for 10 minutes. Mr. Crocker and I had a small meeting to discuss this weekends cookout. We were going to try and raise some money for improvements for the gym, but in all actuality, this is going to be an expense. Oh well! What are ya gonna do? Should be fun! Love you all!

Mat

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Tuesday, July 8th, 2009

Good Morning,

Tuesday's gone with the wind...... Early to work due to the fact that we have inventory today. After work I headed to the gym to do some office work. I needed to transfer our accounting spreadsheet to the computer at the gym. The only problem is that the computer at the gym is running Office 2000 and it would not convert the file. I had to recreate the wheel. At 6:30 one of our students showed up and started climbing the rope. When he was climbing up.... He broke his arm. Not a good start to class. We had a great workout going and I was holding pads, when one of our jujitsu fighters threw a knee, and I jammed my thumb into my left eye! OUCH! I drove home with one eye, and took a shower, ate some dinner, and went to bed. Today???? Inventory!

Love you all!

Mat

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Monday, July 7th, 2009

Namaste,

Wow! Yesterday kinda sucked! We left College Station at 7:30, after a stop at Rolf's. We made great time to Dallas, and after an hour and a half of shopping, we piled back in the car and headed North. It should have only taken us two and a half hours, but I 35 is a mess. It took two hours just to go 22 miles. We stopped in Ardmore to get some lunch at 3:00. When we got home it was time to get laundry done and straighten up the house before starting the week. Sherrie and I went to the gym for an hour and a half. We stopped at the market on the way home to get fruit and milk. Then home to get it together for today. Today will be better.... Inventory prep!

Love you all!

Mat

Monday, July 6, 2009

Saturday, and Sunday, July 4th, and 5th, 2009

Good Morning,

Saturday morning we went to the beach for a few hours before leaving Galveston. The waves were huge, and I got a great cardio workout just swimming out 500 yards. Sherrie, Trey, and Jordan stayed up on the Seawall due to their lobster like skin conditions. We went back to the hotel and got cleaned up, ate breakfast, and headed back to College Station. Just North of Houston their is an awesome outlet mall, and of course we had to stop there and look at shoes. They had a New Balance store and everything in there was an additional 25% off. I found a great pair of running shoes for $24.00. I love a good bargain. Once we got back to Bruce and Tracy's house we took an hour nap, while Bruce cooked dinner, then off to the George Bush library to watch the fireworks. We rode the shuttle from Reed arena to the library, and put our blankets out really close to where the shuttles would pick us up. The fireworks were OK..... We almost had to do a beat down on people trying to cut in the bus line, but that is a different story. Sunday morning we all got dressed up and went to A & M Church of Christ. It was very nice and I think it is a great idea to expose the kid's to several different styles of worship. We went to Texas Roadhouse for lunch where Sherrie and I shared some catfish. We were not really hungry, so guess what we had for dinner? Catfish! There is still some in the fridge too.... We went to research park and took a few pictures before a thunderstorm rolled in. We came back to the house and played some cards before heading to bed. Sherrie and I have been sharing a twin bed for the last few days and it has been fun. We are heading back to Oklahoma here in a few minutes, after a stop at Grapevine Mills mall! We will see you all soon!

Love you!

Mat

Saturday, July 4, 2009

Thursday, and Friday, July 2nd, and 3rd, 2009

Namaste,

Good Morning from the Beachcomber Inn in lovely Galveston, TX. Thursday morning I went to work really, really, early. It was just Gaymarie and I, we had a lot to get accomplished, but we did it. I was able to get out by 1:00. We left the house at 1:300 and headed to College Station. W e arrived at Sherries favorite restaurant, Fuddruckers just after 7:00. Bruce, Tracy, and her parents, met us there and we hung out for a couple of hours, before we headed back to their house. We crashed out pretty hard. I woke up at 5:00 and ran a couple of miles, before heading back to the house, to get ready for our 3 hour drive to Galveston. We left College Station at 8:15 and made great time, even though our GPS took us through the hood in Houston. We went to Joe's for lunch then straight to the beach, where the Jones Family got FRIED! We all wore sunblock but the saltwater washed it off pretty effectively. We stayed on the beach for about four hours, before heading back to our room. We showered, and rested for a few minutes before heading out to explore. We ended up at Fisherman's Wharf for dinner, a little cafe called Yaga's! It was really good and cheap! Trey and I shared a pizza, it was yummy! We went to the ferry, after dinner and caught it in perfect timing. This was the sunset cruise, and I took 100 pictures. We went back to the hotel, and everyone crashed hard, except me! I edited a couple of hundred pictures. As I was getting ready for bed, I stepped into the bathroom to find the toilet full, and had to get a plunger and become the plumber. My alarm clock went of at 6:00, and I drove over to East Beach to take sunrise pictures. Back to the hotel. The waves are huge, and we are heading to the beach now! Love you all!

Mat

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Wednesday, July 1st, 2009

Hello,

Very, very busy at work. Have not even taken a lunch break in the past two days. When I got home I didn't feel well. I was a little nauseous and so I laid down for a bit. I decided it was not a good night to go to the gym, so we packed our stuff to get ready for texas. It was an all evening chore, due to the fact that I have a 16 year old daughter. I have 3/4ths of our stuff in the car, and as soon as I get off work we will load the other things and head out! We are driving to College Station tonight, and Galveston in the morning. A few days at the beach with the family should be very refreshing! Anyway.... Have a great 4th of July!

Love you all!

Mat

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Tuesday, June 30th, 2009

Namaste,

Again work was very, very, busy. After work I came home for a few minutes, and changed clothes, then headed up to the gym. I met with Ben for a little while, we discussed a cookout at the lake to get everyone together, and do a little fund raising for the club. We cleaned the gym because it was a mess, then I took off for a good run. I got a mile away and the sky opened up. I sprinted back to the gym, and got ready for class. We had a small group. but it was good. I jetted home and got a shower, before one of Sherrie's friends came over. He is going to watch Boomer while we are gone. Anyway.... Have to go to Norman before work today, so I am off!

Love you all!

Mat