I was watching something on TV the other day and they showed a garage that I would call the ultimate man’s garage.  It was filled with awesome cabinets, long work benches and more tools then you could imagine.  The type of garage that I might possibly sell my kids to have, LOL.  Well maybe I wouldn’t go that far but it has been a dream of mine for a long time to have the ultimate man’s garage.

During the summer months I spend a good amount of time outside and in the garage doing different odds and ends and projects.  Currently I have an ok set up but it would be awesome if one day I was able to take it to the next level.  What I mean is maybe some nice stainless steel cabinets throughout the garage instead of $30 metal  shelving units from Home Depot.  I also would love a really nice workbench maybe 12-15 foot long so that I would have a nice space to not only work on different projects but a place to store my things.  Some new cabinet style tool boxes would be awesome because my current tool boxes are overflowing at the moment.  It is crazy how many tools I have accumulated over the years without even realizing it.  A lot of them I have purchased but some I have mean a lot to me because they came from my grandfather and using the same tools he used to me is just awesome.

My current garage would need so much work to make is just right.  I would have to start by looking at new steel garage doors to replace my current because why make the inside look so nice if the outside still looks like crap.  After I replace the garage door I would need to move inside and replace just about everything in order to have it just like I would want it.  Also, let’s not forget that a new garage takes times and money which I have neither of, LOL.

I am sure some day I will have the ultimate man’s garage but for now I need to make my current setup work which it has been for over ten years but man would it be nice to have a new set up.

Reading is one of those things that I can remember as a kid not liking to do at all. I am not 100% sure why but reading would literally throw me into a tail spin that would stop me dead in my tracks.  I can say that I don’t remember my mother ever reading to me so maybe that is why I hated reading so bad as a child and young adult.

I can remember how hard high school was due to my hatred for reading.  Any time I would get some sort of book report or anything that required in depth reading I would literally make myself sick worrying about how I was going to get it completed. Somehow I made it through high school and moved on to college but reading didn’t get easier for me but I did learn to get through it without getting myself sick.  It wasn’t until after college that I actually started to read for pleasure.  It took me a few years after I graduated college before I actually began reading just for the fun of it.  Now that I am an old man (LOL) I really do enjoy reading but now time is the reason I don’t read as much as I would like versus not liking it when I was younger.

Now that bad weather is here and snow will be here soon I have been on the hunt for the perfect books to read in winter.  I typically read non-fiction but lately I have been reading biographies as well as autobiographies.  Right now I am reading Goose: The Outrageous Life and Times of a Football Guy by Tony Siragusa who used to play in the NFL and so far I am really enjoying it.  I also like to read magazines which is a good thing because I have a stack of them that I need to read.

What I like most now about reading is that you can get books and magazine from many different sources such as the local library, Amazon, Kindle store, iTunes store and the list goes on a on.  I still like to read magazines and the newspaper the old fashion way which is in paper form but for books I like reading them in a digital format which I do on my iPad.  Not that I think books will ever go away like the VHS tape did but I can see it moving to a more digital format due to the ease of use and how simple getting content is.

I do still enjoy sitting down with my kids and reading a book in non-digital format.  Shaun is kind of past the reading to him stage but Shae loves being read to and I can remember when we use to read to Shaun and Sabreena when they were younger. Sabreena loves to read and Shaun doesn’t mind it and I think that is because we read to them as children which is what I lacked when I was young but I am glad that my kids don’t hate reading like I used to.  Reading can take you to places that you never thought possible.

Do you like to read books?  If so do you read books in digital or non-digital form?

With three children my life is full of surprises. From accomplishing baby development milestones to achieving honor roll in school to opening their wallets, toy boxes and closets to a family in need.

Last week I heard of a family that had lost every single thing they owned due to a home fire. The family of 6 were physically safe but were left with nothing. All of their memories were gone. All of their personal belongings were gone. The place they called home was gone. Our local community was rallying together to get them back on their feet. there were scheduled meeting places to make donations. I turned to my kids, told them what happened and within 20 minutes my minivan was loaded with clothing, toys, books and games. Sabreena appeared with a HUGE armload of clothing for the mother. The children affected ranged in ages 5-12 with the youngest being a girl. We were able to give each of them something very specific that they could call their own.

Leaving the donation spot Shaun turned to me and said, “I feel good”. He was proud that even though our contribution only made a small dent in everything that the family still needed he was proud that he was able to help.
We’ve raised three great children who surprise us all along the way.