Miami

So after my work conference, Steve flew down to join me in Miami for the weekend.

We had a great time, starting with the Miami Zoo, dinner at the Rusty Pelican, Driving through the Florida Keys, Key West, The Everglades, and Key Biscayne. The one part that was not fun, was the humidity 92 degrees, plus humidity and afternoon thunderstorms led to some very hot days.

I Met Lynn Swann

For those of you who don't know who Lynn is, below is a short bio

Personal life
Swann was born in Alcoa, Tennessee. As a youth, Swann was raised in Foster City and attended Junípero Serra High School in San Mateo, California where in addition to playing football he was a track star, leaping 24' 10" in the long jump. He later attended the University of Southern California, and completed a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Public Relations from the USC Annenberg School for Communication in 1974.

Swann is married to Charena Swann, a psychologist, and they have two sons. Charena's sister is married to Sherman Douglas of Syracuse University fame.


College career
Swann was an All-American at the University of Southern California, and was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers with the 21st pick of the first round in the 1974 NFL Draft. He spent his entire NFL career with the Steelers and wore the number 88. He was part of what is considered one of the best drafts in NFL History with Hall of Famers John Stallworth, Mike Webster, and Jack Lambert all selected in the same year.


Class of 2001
Wide Receiver >>> 5-11, 180
(Southern California)
1974-1982 Pittsburgh Steelers

Lynn Curtis Swann. . .Steelers’ first-round draft pick, 1974. . .Caught game-winning touchdown in AFC championship as rookie. . .Became starting receiver second season, led NFL with 11 touchdown receptions. . . MVP, Super Bowl X. . . Graceful moves, tremendous leaping ability led to superlative catches that highlighted career. . .Career record: 336 receptions, 5,462 yards, 51 touchdowns. . .All-Pro, 1975, 1977, 1978. . .Played in three Pro Bowls. . . Born March 7, 1952, in Alcoa, Tennessee.
Link to more information http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynn_Swann

What isn't mentioned on either of these sites is that he is also on the Big Brothers Big Sisters of America Board of Directors, and tonight he hosted the annual meeting banquet. Well I have seen him host at three events and always wanted to meet him, tonight I mentioned that to my good buddy Suzanne and of course she said well let's go meet him. It is always good to have someone around that pushes you out of your comfort zone. Thanks Suzanne.

It has been a good week, four of us from my office flew down to Miami on Sunday for our National Conference, Steve is meeting me Thursday and we are going to spend the weekend. The week has been filled with lots of meeting and good learnings, along with a little bit of fun.

Pam and I playing the drums at Bongo's a local Cuban Restaurant (who knew that I would like Cuban food?)

Great Weekend

Two weekends ago, Steve and I both had pretty bad colds, and had spent most of Friday just lying around watching movies, trying to feel better. Saturday morning my dad called and asked if we would like to join him and my mom for the air show. We thought sure, that would be a nice way to spend a couple of hours this Saturday, it shouldn't involve much work, just relaxation.

Well, it was a little more work than we thought, who knew that over 200,000 people (according to the SL Tribune) would have the same idea for a Saturday afternoon. I remember going to the air show as a little kid, and it being a much simpler experience. Well to make a long story short, we went, we saw a lot of flying including the Thunderbirds pictured above, we waited in some very long lines (1+ hour to get through security), and we got some sunburns. But, all in all it was a great way to spend an afternoon.

That weekend we also watched 5 movies including: 1) Taken 2) Paul Blart Mall Cop 3) He's Just Not that into You 4) New in Town and 5) Two Weeks Notice. I believe it may have been a dream come true for Steve :)

Cleveland Rocks!!!

As Jill mentioned in her previous post, the two of us took a short trip to Cleveland, OH over the Memorial Day holiday. Why Cleveland? Well, the main purpose was to see one of my favorite musicians, Donnie Iris & The Cruisers, perform in concert. Donnie and the band were performing with the Contemporary Youth Orchestra. What a great show it was!!! We had so much fun. (You can click on this link to see a video of part of the concert.)

Other highlights from the trip include:

1) Going to Amish country to gawk at the Amish.

2) Visiting the first LDS Temple in Kirtland, OH.

3) Going to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

4) Driving up to Niagra Falls, NY and riding the Maid Of The Myst.

5) Visiting The William McKinley Presidential Library & Museum in Canton, OH.

and, 6) Visiting the NFL Hall of Fame (just the gift shop, we were a bit tired that day).

This was our second trip to the Cleveland area, and I'm pretty sure Jill would agree when I say that Cleveland Rocks! It really has become a place that we've grown to quite enjoy. I'm sure we'll be traveling there again at some point in the future.