Don Jr's Family Blog

Send Kelly to Maldova!

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 21:03:00 +0000

I thought about calling attention to this in my previous post, but honestly something this cool deserves it's very own entry. :-)

Kelly Arnold (Of the world famous Chris and Kelly Karnival) will be volunteering at an orphanage for disabled girls in the former Soviet Replublic of Moldova this May. The thing is, she's got to raise about $2400 for the charity. Want to throgh a few quid her way and help a great cause? Then Clicky: http://chrisandkellyontheroad.blogspot.com/2008/02/outreach-moldova.html

You Ever Get the Feeling...

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 20:05:00 +0000

Meh, I hate sick. This is a whole new kinda nasty though. Woke up the last couple of days dizzy and nauseous. I'm a little stuffed up, but nothing crazy. Why the heck am I dizzy? Makes it very difficult to focus and get any work done...

Anyway, been spending my spare moments running around town checking out apartments, schools, etc. I think we've narrowed it down to a few good ones, and now we just need to make a decision on which to go with. Thankfully we've got until the 12th in the temp place to decide.

My brother-in-law Brian and his girlfriend Emily have been staying here the last couple of weeks as well. She's from around this area, and he decided to move out and look for a new job out here in the PNW tech world. It's been nice having them around.

I got's to give some shout outs to my home-boi Chris back in Eire. I know I know, I was supposed to link up to your blog like months ago. You're right, I suck...

Honestly though, I check in on Chris and Kelly's blog at least once a week. It's like looking through some warped space-time continuum, where I can get updates about not only Chris, but Paddy, Tony, Mike (I missed The Kennedy birthday bash? damn.), and the whole rest of the crew. :-)

Alright, so back to the grind for a bit. Take care everyone!

Happy St. Paddy's Day!!

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 00:28:00 +0000

Not much going on here at the moment. I've been feeling pretty down all day just thinking of the wonderful folks back in Eire. I don't think I realised how much I've missed Dublin until today.. Big hugs to you to all. Tip one for me lads!

Checkin in

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 17:25:00 +0000

Sorry, I know I haven't posted much. Really busy here lately, but catching up slowly. I have a borrowed laptop to use at the apt finally, so I'll get to updating more often, promise.

Wanted to give a big shout out to my lads. I really miss these guys...

Vids!

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 19:03:00 +0000

As promised, here are the vids I took this weekend...

Going Gonzo

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 20:24:00 +0000

Had my first game with Coopers yesterday against Team Gonzo down in Kent. I felt much much better than last weekend's scrimmage. I felt a whole lot quicker and 'ready' for the shots. It must have just been some jetlag or something last week. I'm still playing with my shorty box shaft though, which makes the long passes pretty tough.

Drew played the first half, and I jumped in for the second. The team we were playing against is brand new to the league this year, so there's a lot of young guys. Still, I thought they did a great job. Give them a bit more time to gel and they'll be great. Drew and I each let in only one goal, and I think the final score was something like 13-2. They're great guys and everyone had a great time.

I've had a few folks asking about where I'm staying, etc. So I broke out the DV Cam and did a 5 minute tour of the place. I'll rip it to my work PC when I get in tomorrow and post the link.

(Posted via Windows Mobile 6!)

The Fun Never Ends

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 23:53:00 +0000

Busy busy busy yes..

So, not even a week back and it feels like so much longer. I was flat out all last week, only finally getting over the jet-lag on Saturday. Met up with my buddy Cedric during the week, as he's just over in the building next to mine. He didn't know when I'd be back here, so I thought I'd surprise him a bit. I just wish I had brought a camera. He was a 'tad' suprised to see me walking into his office. It was so great to see him and catch up a bit over some coffee.

Met up with Mike and Carrie over at CFES after work on Thursday, and was (happily) roped into helping with the Total WO they were doing on Friday night. Was great craic, and was also nice to meet up with them and the CFES folks again. I was really amazed at the amount of weight everyone was moving. Inspirational.

Headed over to Seattle on Saturday to meet up with the old Coopers lads and get some time in on cage. Was a lot of fun, but I was still a bit slow on the ball. I need to get myself back in shape and get my reaction time tuned back in. Took a real nice one on the foot that swelled it up to about double-size, which was real nice. :-)

Finally got all my clothes sorted out at the apt, and ran (well, limped) all the errands to get groceries, cleaners, etc on Sunday, as well as laundry and sorting out the cat's new litter arrangements. Then headed down to watch the last of the Dumbbell Cert at CFES and catch some dinner with the crew.

So, today is my first 'official' day in my new role. I still don't have a phone in the office or internet at the apt, but at least I have hardware setup at work and can get things started. Just need to work out the Medical and such sorted out, and close out all the old accounts and things back in Eire.

So, this morning I'm heading into work and driving along about 20mph when all the traffice suddely stops. Unfortunately I wasn't able to stop in time and bumped into the car in front of me. :-(

Neither of the cars took much damage, as the collision was very low speed. Just minor scratches and smudges on the bumpers. The lady whose car I bumped into though said her neck hurt a bit so she's going to see her GP today. I feel like a total muppet for bumping into her. It was just stupid. As I know what neck injuries are like I really hope that it's nothing serious.

What a way to start eh? And of course, as it's a rental car, there's no insurance information in the paperwork, so I've been calling around all day trying to figure out the info to give to her for her claim. At the same time I'm attending mandatory hire training and trying to sort out paperwork.
Ah well, a day at a time eh? As today's President's day (you did vote, right?) the banks were closed, so tomorrow I get to go and open accounts and be a real, live American again. :-)

Arrived

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 20:00:00 +0000

Phew, what a busy couple of days. The final result though is that I'm sitting here in an office in Redmond and getting started! Looong flights through Newark, with one of the bumpiest rides of my life from there. Made it in one piece though, and the cats as well. Really long day for them, but they're both happy and safe. Wiley was sneezing a bunch last night, but seemed to get over it by this morning. So, after flying 6000+ miles and being awake for 24 hours I'm finally here.

Up to me eyes in mail and such for the next couple of days and no computer at the apt, so if I'm slow to get back to you, not to worry. :-)

Adios Little Nicky

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 22:12:00 +0000

Yep, sold the wee FZR tonight. I had a few folks looking at her over the last couple of weeks, but all were kids with very little bike experience. I was having visions of her ending up in a ditch somewhere...

This afternoon I received an email from a fellow IBF member who came by and took her home. I was sad to see them ride away, remembering all the work I've put into her over the last year or so, and how well she's turned out. But, it was good to know that she'll be well looked after and will be making someone else just as happy as she made me.

Yes It's True

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 14:10:00 +0000

A BIG Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to eveveryone! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday!!

There have been some rumours going around, and I'm here to say that yes, it's true. I've accepted a new position back at the main campus in Seattle! This morning my official start date was confirmed for February 12th. Going to be plenty of busyness leading up to that date, so if ya don't hear from me, it's probably because I'm doing something.. ;-)

While I'm very excited to be starting this new role and moving back to where some of my best friends in the world are, it's with a bit of sadness that I'll be leaving the Emerald Isle. With so many wonderful people here, it's going to be hard to pack it all up and leave.

Now You See?

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 13:38:00 +0000

This is what I'm talking about. I'm so tired of the old stereotype of lacrosse being an upper-class east-coast only sport. The Starz Foundation is an excellent example of the enjoyment and opportunity that such a simple game can provide for any kid from any walk of life. Now you can see why I go on and on about how much I enjoy working with the young guys here in Ireland. The sense of fulfillment I get seeing the look in their eyes as they improve is simply amazing.

Oh yeah, and it's official, the Dublin Thunder are the 2007 DBLL Champs. :-)

Happily Knackered

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 09:55:00 +0000

Oh my goodness I'm tired. Last night it was decided that the playoffs would be cancelled due to nearly all teams being badly short of players. Everyone but the Dark Side I believe was down at least two players, and as the rules state you can't take on any fill players in the playoff, we all would have had to play with who we had. Instead, the captains took a vote and we instead had a Young Guns vs Riggers match, for 2 hours!

Was an awesome match though. I started in goal for my Riggers, and after a bit of a bumpy start, was feeling pretty good. About 1.5 seconds into the game Chris Arnold FINALLY scored on me, after an entire season of shutout. Then Gibby (playing in goal for the 'Guns) scored on me from the top. I was fuming! Settled in and got my groove going. Then, on a shot rebound the ball came all the way back to my side. I picked it up on the wing and saw out of the corner of my eye that nearly everyone was way back, so I took off for the goal. One player caught up to me as I was coming in for the shot, so I took it around the cage. I dove across the crease from the back side, and... Goal Baby! Back Side!! Where are the video cameras when ya need 'em?!?!

After the first period I switched over to the Young Guns to try and balance things out a bit, and boy did I get some shots. The Rigger boys had me dancing the jig out there. Not having my bigger pads made things tough as well. Quite a few 1 on 1's towards the end as well. It was excellent practice though, as every shot was a good one. Hardly any where 'easy'. I was completely exhausted after two straight hours of it, but I loved every minute of it. :-)

Final score I honestly don't remember, but I believe the Riggers came out on top by 2 or 3 goals.

Wanna See My Bells?

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 23:00:00 +0000

No, my KETTLEBELLS! Get your mind out of the gutter already... :-)

So yea, I heard from a guy, who heard from a guy that one of the local shops had started carrying kettlebells. I've wanted a set of these for years now, but the cost to have them shipped in (the only option) was ridiculously expensive. I stopped into the shop to have a look, and the price turned out to be less than I've seen anywhere, even without shipping!

Since I've stuck to my budget over the last couple of weeks, stopped smoking, and heck, it was my birthday.. why not! Only had them long enough to get two workouts in, but I couldn't be more happy with them. Ever since Mike first introduced me to the bells, I've been hooked. I honestly haven't found any other single piece of exercise equipment that matches the overall flexibility that these offer. After only a couple of workouts, which included swings and farmer's walks, my neck and shoulders feel ten times better. I'm finding myself looking forward to waking up in the morning to these lovely inanimate objects. :-)

How it's Made

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Fri, 23 Nov 2007 17:46:00 +0000

Only one of mine and Jay's favorite shows ever!

Stormin'

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Thu, 22 Nov 2007 10:36:00 +0000

There was a lot of talk this last week that the Thunder had lost it's drive. That we were vulnerable, and people where thinking that with that one loss, we'd be shut down.

Well, the critics were shut up pretty harsh last night when we came out to dominate against the Storm Troopers. 16-7 was the final, with us controlling from the get-go. I felt much more solid in goal this week after making some changes to my positioning and style. The shots they did get in were very good, so I'm pretty happy with that. I also stuffed the majority of 1on1's that came up, so I was stoked with that.

We were short Stuart this week as his parents had just arrived to visit that evening, and the 'Troopers were short two guys. Turned out that three (of five!) of George's brothers were in town to visit for a couple of days and they wanted to play. Mike asked for Zak in goal and two of George's brothers, and we took the other two. It made for a very interesting dynamic, having the bro's split up. Needless to say, there was a whole lot of 'brotherly love' going on (you should see John's ribs...).

George himself was on fire, racking up more than nine goals I believe. Mark was also on a mission again (goals, ground balls, rebound, everything!) after a quiet round last week (it might have helped a bit that he could actually pass with his stick again, after a bit of restringing work before the match). Dara and Gibby also stepped up on Defense and made it very difficult for the 'Troopers up and down the court. They had to work extremely hard for every shot.

All in all, a very good game for us. I'm actually pretty happy that we lost last week. I think it cleared any tightness in the lads and allowed them to have fun on the pitch. And when we're enjoying our game, it's very difficult to match us.

The Keeper

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 12:03:00 +0000

Man, folks are sending me all sorts of good vids lately...

UCD Highlights

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 06:41:00 +0000

The on-campus student video network at UCD, CTN posted a highlight reel of the second game (in a three game series) between UCD and Dublin Lacrosse. Not the most recent game, which was recorded by TG4, but still a very cool deal for the UCD boys. It's great to see how much the sport is growing out here. Paddy and the lads at UCD are doing an amazing job of promoting and growing their club.

http://www.ucdlacrosse.com/

Eliuk Interview

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 15:46:00 +0000

Nice little vid that was forwarded to me today. Gives you an idea of what a box goalie is (and the man is a legend as well):

Stung

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 14:07:00 +0000

(Apologies, I just now realized that I didn't hit Publish on this post last friday)

Well, it had to happen sometime I guess. We lost our first game on Wednesday night to the Darkside. Not much to it really. We played good Defense, allowing only 8 goals, but on Offense it just came down to not finishing. We only scored about half our average number of goals.

The game was close all the way through, with us picking up our rythm in the second period and pulling ahead by 1. Unfortunately, it seems that the period end stopped that momentum. The DS boys put up one heck of a fight and we ended up tied at 7 with 2 minutes left to play. Somehow Paddy got free of the defense and it was 1on1 right on the crease. The ball just barely, I mean barely, slipped past my arm to put them ahead. I felt pretty low after that, as I felt I lost the whole game.

Stepping back and evaluating things, we made some mistakes as a team, but not a ton. The DS came out very strong, and they earned the win. They simply wanted it more than we did on that night. I think this will be good for us as a team though. It should be in everyone's head that we are not invincible, and that we are going to have to continue to work very hard if we want to finish strong and take home the cup. We're now 6-1, with 2 games left in the season.

I'm happy that I've been able to keep my goals-against average pretty low, but also pretty angry with myself for not making the save when we really needed it. I feel I made improvements on the night though, not making any of the mistakes I have previously. So, if I can keep my focus and continue to improve, there's no reason we won't win it all.

Playing in field goal for my third time tonight when Dublin Lacrosse takes on UCD. We're 1-1 in the three games series, so tonight's the big night. The Irish national TV station, TG4 will be filming the game tonight as well, which is pretty cool.

Don't Stop Believin'

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 09:59:00 +0000

6 and 0. Yes, that's right, undefeated still!

The best thing about last night's game was that every single player scored!! Well, not me as I don't really count, but I did get an assist. ;-) Couldn't be more proud of these guys. There was a definite difference in play from Stuart, who had been playing a bit tentative so far this season. He had a break out game, taking a lot of quality looks and scoring two big goals. Mark and Dara also stepped up their games, with both getting a good amount of looks and good shots. Mark picked up two and Dara one. George has had a great impact on the Offense, not just by leading the league in scoring, but he's provided leadership for the rest of the team; setting up feeds and helping to build confidence. Gibby does the same thing on Defence, setting the standard for proper strong box play. It's amazing how fast everyone has gelled together to form a strong team from all angles.

We were short Gibby again due to him being grounded in Nova Scotia due to a hurricane (yea, weak excuse I know), but so again no subs. It was a tough and gritty game, with the score real close in the first two periods. As has been our trademark all season though, we found the winning rhythm in the third and pulled away to a 12-9 win. I'm a bit annoyed with myself though, as 8 points was the most any team had scored on me all season, and at least 2 of those goals were completely my own fault (two bad passes that resulted in easy shots). I really need to keep my head when clearing the ball.

You'd think that with winning consistently the lads would get a bit cocky and complacent. This hasn't happened though, with every player continually improving each week. It's a beautiful thing to be a part of.

Now, most of you will have no idea what this is all about, but I gotta give a shout out to my boyz:

5 and 0 Baby!

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 20:02:00 +0000

That's right, even heavily undermanned on Wednesday, we still pulled together for the win. As it was Halloween night, all teams were short, and the 'Troopers put on a heck of a fight, keeping it very close through the first two periods, with us down by 1 or 2 for most of the game. We held them goalless for the final period though to jump ahead and take the win. I can't say enough about Mark Colgan and the rest of the lads. Mark stepped up and had a huge game on both sides of the field. Just goes to show that you don't need to score all the goals to carry your team to a win! George pulled out some amazing shots on O as well, and Dara found his range, netting 3 goals from the point like a sniper.

I can't believe we're undefeated so far. Last season we won only our last game of the season. Needless to say I'm pretty stoked with the balance we have this season.

Check this out. I've been working on designing some shirts for the team and got my first one in the mail today. It's a place out of Germany that makes them to order.

The above one is in Irish (slick eh?). They're in English as well for all non-gaelige folks out there too. ;-) Want one? I knew ya did.. Well then, check out our Store!

14 years on..

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 12:35:00 +0000

I picked up my first lacrosse stick back in 1993, when by buddy Jeff dragged me to a practice, ensuring me that I "just have to try this". There I met a man named Mason Goodhand, who put a stick in my hands and threw me into the fire. I've been addicted ever since.

I look back now after 14 years. I've played Midfield, Defense, and Attack, but I pretty much stuck with Midfield. I never really set the world on fire as it were, but I was good with a stick, and always played with a bit of a bull-dog mentality. I focused on off-ball play, groundballs, and faceoffs, so I did 'okay' I think. I played half a game in goal once ages ago out of necessity, but never really got into it.

After all the problems with my neck recently, I thought I'd play in goal and see how I like it. Turns out that I completely missed my true calling all these years! Playing in Goal has been a revelation. Not only am I having more fun with the game than I've had in years, it turns out I'm not half bad at it.

In box I've had a breakout season, with my current save percent jumping to .78 after last night's tough win over the DarkSide (12-8, 4 and 0 baby!). In field, I'm still finding my feet a bit, but I feel like I'm making vast improvements in each game.

I guess the lesson here is that you're never too old to try something new; to put yourself out there. You never know, you just may find you've got what it takes to succeed. But you'll never find out if you never try...

Recently I came across a quote that has struck a deep cord within myself. I'll leave it with you to think on:

"Let me realize... that self-doubt and self-hate are defects of character that hinder my growth"

DBLL Update - Week 4

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Tue, 23 Oct 2007 16:43:00 +0000

Can you believe we're four weeks into the DBLL season already??

It's been a turn-around season for my boys in blue. I was elected captain of the 'Thunder' this year, and as such made some changes to the roster during the pre-season draft. It looks like I made some decent decisions as the team is nicely balanced, with a strong defense and great offense. We're going into the week 4 game tomorrow against our biggest season rivals so far, the Darkside. So far, we're 3-0, and if we play as I know we can tomorrow we'll keep an undefeated record.

You can check out the game write-ups and previews on the Dublin Lacrosse website, as well as have a squint at the stats via the DBLL League Stats subsite.

The neck's been feeling pretty good, although I took a big shot off the helmet on Friday playing in (field) goal for Dublin Lacrosse in our win over UCD (9-6). Shook me up a bit, and was feeling a tad light-headed the next day, but that could have just been due to not eating all day.. ;-) I've been fine since, and am planning on seeing the physio later this week for a regular checkup on things.

Summer Rerun?

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 12:57:00 +0000

The weather here has just been so odd. We had a beautiful spring, horribly wet summer, and now it's nice and warm again, like a second summer. What's going on?? I blame Global Warming, or Bertie Ahern (but that's another story)

Anyhoot, not a lot going on here at the moment. Still working my butt off. Thankfully I've got a new guy working with me now to help with the load, which has freed me up to close out a few projects that have been hanging around for a while. I've been doing a couple of interviews lately as well for a couple of very interesting opportunities back in Redmond. They've all gone quite well too, so I'm hoping for some good news within the next week or so..

The DBLL league's off to a great start for my team. I've been elected Captain of the Thunder this year, and was able to make some adjustments to the roster and pick up a couple of new guys in the draft. I think I made some good choices, as the team is really gelling together nicely. We won our first game of the season 9:8, but the real story was this week's 12:5 win over the Storm Troopers. The lads all stepped up, playing tenacious Defense and well-controlled and crisp Offense. I'm having a blast in goal as well, and feel like I'm improving each week. It's going to be a great season for us if we can keep our heads straight and continue the momentum.

Gibby's updated the Dublin Lacrosse site with a nice stats sub-site. Check it out here http://dbll.dublinlacrosse.com/

I attempted to take some pictures during last week's games, but my now-ancient digital camera doesn't handle low light and fast movement well, so they were all rubbish. One of these days I've got to upgrade...

Old Skool

noreply@blogger.com (DJ) — Tue, 18 Sep 2007 12:42:00 +0000

Came across this vid recently. Nice....