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We all get them, we all delete them almost immediately, we all wish they would stop. Email forwards. Email forwards can take several forms. They typically are the little emails that friends and family receive and pass onto all their friends.

Titles range from:
Top ten reasons to…
Pray for [insert cause] please…
Chain letters, which end something like “pass this onto 5 friends now and you’ll have good luck for the next 10 days”…
Unbelievable photos…
Poems…
Etc…

Well, last week I received three which were absolutely great.

1. The first comes from my dear friend Dawn Brinkley. The email is titled How the Phone Should be Answered.

GOOD MORNING, WELCOME TO THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA .
Press “1″ for English.
Press “2″ to disconnect until you learn to speak English

And remember only two defining forces have ever offered to die for you, Jesus Christ and the American Soldier. One died for your soul, the other for your freedom.

If you agree…! …keep it going.

2. The second comes from my father. He sent me an email exchange we had nearly 10 years ago. (although I’m curious if my brother Matt actually did the forwarding.)

TIME
Always in a hurry, wanting to have some time.
Can’t keep up the flurry, but can’t stop to unwind.
The bill are there, and the deadlines too;
I pray to God, what can I do.
My wife, my kids, and others need me,
But most of all, my God and I,
Just need some time, for us, to be free.

3. The third one was a simple image sent to me by my buddy, Will Riney.
This made me chuckle.

Which made me think of this little image. This one actually hits too close to home when I’m visiting my folks.

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2006 was one for the books. I started this blog exactly one year ago today. Who knoew that it would grow into such a great outlet for myself and such a good means of communication for friends and family. I love that this blog allows me to document all the good and interesting points of my life, thoughts, ramblings, and finds.

Last January I wrote that I hoped to genuinly connect with more of my family and friends. I think this is something I still need to work on. But, I did make it a point to visit family and friends as much as I could. Here are the highlights.

In January I travelled to Palo Alto and San Francisco. There I met with several collegues from the domain industry, Hotkeys, Eloan, and Homegain.

The spring took me to Washington, DC to see my baby neice, Grace, be dedicated in church.

The summer kicked off with a bang, as I flew to Birmingham, AL to watch the July 4th fireworks with my brother, Matt. Then, I was off to San Diego to meet up with a few business collegues, and sneak off to visit some good friends.

The very next week, I flew back to San Francisco to attend the Inman conference. (Wow! Was the Isreali-Lebanon military campaign just this summer? Seems like years ago.)

In August, I snuck away for self-serving vacation through the Carolina country and mountains. It was awesome! I highly recommend taking the backroads throught the South Carolina upstate, and the North Carolina Blue Ridge Parkway. Maybe this year, I’ll take the trip during the fall foliage!

In Mid-August I attended my cousin Nikki’s wedding in Lake Tahoe, NV with my mom and dad. I also was lucky to spend time with them and Grace at the beach on Harbor Island.

Then in the fall I was off to Clemson homecoming with my brothers, Noah and Wesley. New York City for business. And this winter, we capped off the year with a trip of a lifetime to the Grand Canyon with all my brothers and my father.

It didn’t seem like a lot at the time. But looking back, I stayed pretty busy!

Here’s all the places I visited:

San Francisco, CA
Palo Alto, CA
San Diego, CA
Washington, DC
Birmingham, AL
Harbor Island, SC
Greenville, SC
Hendersonville, NC
Asheville, NC
Lake Tahoe, NV
Incline Village, NV
Clemson, SC
New York, NY
Las Vegas, NV
Grand Canyon, AZ

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Happy New Year to all my loved ones, family, and friends. May the Lord bless you with your heart’s desire and keep you safe, happy, and healthy this year.

God bless,
Andy

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Life is full of ups and downs. Tests and trials. Wins and losses. Challenges and successes. Highs and lows.

You gotta weather the storms brought on by the lows, and appreciate the sunny weather of the highs when they come your way.

After a year of playing poker every week with my friend, Greg, tonight was finally the night that I busted out. I’ve become a pretty good card player at our regular game (50-70 people play a Texas Hold-em tourney in town). After going out in two hands the first time Greg and I played, I now regularly make the final table. And I often do well at the final table. I think I have finished 2nd six times. I was wondering when or if I’d ever win one of these things.

Tonight was the night! I won! Finally.

The turning moment was at the final table when I had a modest stack. Brian (the town ringer) raised my small blind of 2000 to 16000. I had A-2. I took a while to think. It was a tough decision. There were only 4 players remaining and I knew that if I called no one else would. I’d be head’s up with an ace in hand. I had enough chips to call to see the flop, but not enough left to bet significantly to bluff if I missed. An ace fell on the flop. Brian pushed all in. I called. He had pocket J’s. My aces held up, and that gave me a significant lead. I felt bad calling Brian’s raise and winning, but the odds were worth it. And if I lost, I feel I’m a good enough short stack player to still have a shot. Man, did it feel good to win!

I guess that makes up for both Clemson and the Carolina Panthers losing this weekend.

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From the Ubertor blog comes a good find on the habits of bloggers.

This is actually what it would be like if my buddy Yerg owned his own business. Actually, to be honest, this is how he acts now with his current employer. Ha!

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