If you haven't yet voted in our poll ("Which of the Rohde brothers has the prettiest eyes?") to the right, you have until the end of Wednesday to do so (and I'm pretty sure that's local time... so if you're in California you might only have until about 11 o'clock on Wednesday night). After the poll closes I'll post the results and put a new poll up for you to consider.
If you have good poll ideas, we're totally open to hearing them!
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Friday, March 26, 2010
The Day Jase Tried to Murder Me
It was June17th, 1994. The day was an average Iowa summer day, 88 degrees and muggy. The four of us took a stroll down to the creek about a mile away from our country home...dun dun dun!!! Little did Joel, Jake, or I know Jase was maliciously scheming to take down the strongest, smartest, fastest, "Gaston" if you will, of the family.
It all started as a simple game of skipping stones. We all took turns seeing who could get the most skips out of a solitary stone. Harmlessly we all took turns hurling smooth, flat rocks at the waters surface. As Joel crept down stream looking for better stones Jase realized his opportunity.
He swiftly picked up a large stone and launched it in the direction of the creek. Coincidently, I happened to be bending over to pick up the perfect skipping stone between Jase and the creek. Jase timed it so the 13.643 lb. stone would strike me directly in the back of my head as I stood up.
Jase, however, failed to calculate the sheer muscle I have in my head...yes I bled but it was a small cut and it didn't hurt. Jake and I took off across the fields. We made it back to the house in three minutes.
We had to protect mom.
While We're on the Subject
So one time the four Rohde brothers were playing a game we called QuickTurn while dad was playing softball. It involved a slide, a softball, and dandelions. When it was Jaron's turn to roll the softball (part of the game) Jase was supposed to slide down the slide. Jase was wearing shorts and the sun had been out all day. It was an aluminum slide and had been baking. Jase sat down, then jumped up, then tripped and literally rolled down the slide head first. When he got to the bottom he just laid there as a pool of blood formed around his head. The other three of us just looked at each other. Lucky for us the ball field was just a few yards away and dad was fortunately in the outfield again. We yelled for him and he turned and saw Jase. He yelled, "Jase get up!" Then he noticed that Jase was dying. "Jase, get up!" he yelled. Then he said to the other three of us, "He'll just have to wait for the end of the inning. I'm sick and tired of his constant bleeding and dying and stuff." So we went back to playing, ignoring Jase, and playing around him. 10 minutes later Dad came out of the dugout and started walking toward us. Just then, the batter hit a foul ball that landed right on top of Jase's head. Jase immediately popped up like nothing happened and casually wiped the blood off his face. Dad was royally ticked off. To this day I haven't heard my dad curse. That day, he came closer than he ever had. After the game dad took us to Whitey's for ice cream and Jase didn't get any because he had faked death.
And then I found 20 dollars.
And then I found 20 dollars.
The day Jase almost died
Jase's post yesterday made me think of another story that happened while dad was playing softball.
During one of dad's church-league softball games when we were little the four of us were playing on some dirt piles a few hundred yards from the field. The dirt piles were the result of a big hole that had been dug that would eventually be used as the foundation for a new concession stand and bathroom facility. We ended up in a dirt-clod-throwing "game" (it was always a game until Jase -- I mean someone -- got hurt) with a kid we didn't know who was standing down in the hole. The dirt clods were, for the most part, just chunks of dirt that would break into dust if and when they hit you, so it was no big deal. At one point the kid in the hole threw one that was coming straight at my face. Since I have the reflexes of a jungle cat, I ducked. I turned around to see that the clod had hit Jase right in the head... and that this clod was apparently more of a rock covered in dirt that did NOT break into dust when it hit him. He started crying. I turned back to the kid that had thrown the rock. He had a horrified look on his face. I tried to reassure him that Jase would be fine. "Don't worry about it, he cries all the time," I said (which was true).
*The next sentence is a little gross, so if you have a weak stomach, skip down to the next italics.
I turned back to Jase to see blood like a geyser gushing from his head wound with every beat of his heart.
*If you skipped that sentence because you have a weak stomach, here's the jist: Jase was bleeding.
Joel grabbed Jase and I ran ahead toward the ball field to get dad's attention. Dad was playing left field, so we stood at the fence yelling his name (well, we were probably yelling "Dad!" which isn't his real name). He tried to wave us off (we knew we weren't supposed to bug him during the game unless it was an emergency), but then he glanced over and saw Jase. He did a double-take, yelled "Time out!" to his pitcher, and hurdled a 10-foot chain-link fence like it was 6 inches high (it was quite impressive), because we were all pretty sure that Jase was about to die before our very eyes.
Dad ended up borrowing an extra t-shirt from someone in the crowd (stealing is probably a better term, since I'm pretty sure they didn't want it back) and pressed it to Jase's head to stop the bleeding, which it did... eventually. It was a pretty heavy-duty head gash. Dad gave Jase the option of going to the hospital for stitches or driving out to camp where mom was working that day. Since our family's general rule is, "Who needs stitches? It'll eventually heal itself," Jase chose to go see mom.
Jase's head wound eventually healed (I think... can you confirm that, Jase?), and he didn't die that day. Mom made him feel better than stitches ever would have. And that's the end of my "the day Jase almost died" story.
During one of dad's church-league softball games when we were little the four of us were playing on some dirt piles a few hundred yards from the field. The dirt piles were the result of a big hole that had been dug that would eventually be used as the foundation for a new concession stand and bathroom facility. We ended up in a dirt-clod-throwing "game" (it was always a game until Jase -- I mean someone -- got hurt) with a kid we didn't know who was standing down in the hole. The dirt clods were, for the most part, just chunks of dirt that would break into dust if and when they hit you, so it was no big deal. At one point the kid in the hole threw one that was coming straight at my face. Since I have the reflexes of a jungle cat, I ducked. I turned around to see that the clod had hit Jase right in the head... and that this clod was apparently more of a rock covered in dirt that did NOT break into dust when it hit him. He started crying. I turned back to the kid that had thrown the rock. He had a horrified look on his face. I tried to reassure him that Jase would be fine. "Don't worry about it, he cries all the time," I said (which was true).
*The next sentence is a little gross, so if you have a weak stomach, skip down to the next italics.
I turned back to Jase to see blood like a geyser gushing from his head wound with every beat of his heart.
*If you skipped that sentence because you have a weak stomach, here's the jist: Jase was bleeding.
Joel grabbed Jase and I ran ahead toward the ball field to get dad's attention. Dad was playing left field, so we stood at the fence yelling his name (well, we were probably yelling "Dad!" which isn't his real name). He tried to wave us off (we knew we weren't supposed to bug him during the game unless it was an emergency), but then he glanced over and saw Jase. He did a double-take, yelled "Time out!" to his pitcher, and hurdled a 10-foot chain-link fence like it was 6 inches high (it was quite impressive), because we were all pretty sure that Jase was about to die before our very eyes.
Dad ended up borrowing an extra t-shirt from someone in the crowd (stealing is probably a better term, since I'm pretty sure they didn't want it back) and pressed it to Jase's head to stop the bleeding, which it did... eventually. It was a pretty heavy-duty head gash. Dad gave Jase the option of going to the hospital for stitches or driving out to camp where mom was working that day. Since our family's general rule is, "Who needs stitches? It'll eventually heal itself," Jase chose to go see mom.
Jase's head wound eventually healed (I think... can you confirm that, Jase?), and he didn't die that day. Mom made him feel better than stitches ever would have. And that's the end of my "the day Jase almost died" story.
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Don't mess with a Rohde brother
I had a dream a few nights ago that was remarkably similar to an actual Rohde brother experience from many many years ago. In the dream my brothers and I were on a dock by the ocean. Some punk kid decided to push Jaron in, so I immediately pushed the kid in. At that point, the kids friend tried to push me in, but Joel and Jake stepped up and took care of him for me. The kid was out of friends, but I was not out of brothers. I tend to have vague dreams, so I don't really remember much else, but the actual experience is more interesting.
When we were kids our dad played slow pitch softball in a city league. At one of his games my brothers and I were playing on the playground in the park. One of the other kids on the playground who was Joel's age decided to pick a fight with Joel. He was promptly taken over by all four Rohde brothers. His dad was mad, but our dad said, "If you pick on one, you pick on them all." That's the cool part of having 3 brothers. If you pick on one, you pick on us all. Don't mess with the Rohdes.
When we were kids our dad played slow pitch softball in a city league. At one of his games my brothers and I were playing on the playground in the park. One of the other kids on the playground who was Joel's age decided to pick a fight with Joel. He was promptly taken over by all four Rohde brothers. His dad was mad, but our dad said, "If you pick on one, you pick on them all." That's the cool part of having 3 brothers. If you pick on one, you pick on us all. Don't mess with the Rohdes.
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Contest
That's right. In honor of our new blog I thought I'd throw down a competition. I think it is important for friends to remain transparent with one another. I also think it is good for their computer screens to be transparent as well. That is why I would like to challenge the readers of this young blog to create the best transparent screen illusion.
To create a transparent screen:
1. Fold down your computer screen. (If you don't have a laptop, move your screen, but remember the angle and position that it was in.)
2. Take out your digital camera and take a picture of what is directly behind your screen. Try to zoom to the same relative size of your screen. It is also important to stay at the same angle you would look at your screen if it were there.
3. Put the picture on your computer.
4. Open up a picture editor of some sort and crop the picture. You are going to want the picture to look like it is framed by your screen, but shows what is directly behind it.
5. Save the picture and set it as your desktop background.
6. Take a picture of your screen with the illusion.
7. Send your picture to joel.rohde@gmail.com
All entries are due 1 week from today, Wednesday March 31st by 11:59 PM. Entries will be posted on April 1st (worry not, this is not an elaborate April fools joke). We will then have a 1 week voting period where readers will vote for their favorite. The winner will receive a regular sized candy bar of their choice, a free Christian music CD of MY choice and, the best prize of all, recognition as the first ever contest winner on our new blog.
Below is an example:
To create a transparent screen:
1. Fold down your computer screen. (If you don't have a laptop, move your screen, but remember the angle and position that it was in.)
2. Take out your digital camera and take a picture of what is directly behind your screen. Try to zoom to the same relative size of your screen. It is also important to stay at the same angle you would look at your screen if it were there.
3. Put the picture on your computer.
4. Open up a picture editor of some sort and crop the picture. You are going to want the picture to look like it is framed by your screen, but shows what is directly behind it.
5. Save the picture and set it as your desktop background.
6. Take a picture of your screen with the illusion.
7. Send your picture to joel.rohde@gmail.com
All entries are due 1 week from today, Wednesday March 31st by 11:59 PM. Entries will be posted on April 1st (worry not, this is not an elaborate April fools joke). We will then have a 1 week voting period where readers will vote for their favorite. The winner will receive a regular sized candy bar of their choice, a free Christian music CD of MY choice and, the best prize of all, recognition as the first ever contest winner on our new blog.
Below is an example:
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
The First Post
I'm guessing that as you read this blog you will discover rather quickly that our family isn't normal. We're weird, kooky, silly, serious (sometimes), and boisterous (that's a word I've been trying to use more frequently). But we're also fun. And funny. And we love each other. And not one of us likes the fact that we live far away from each other and don't get to be together very often.
If that first paragraph is news to you, then you must be one of the few people reading this who aren't related to or in close contact with the Rohde family. Welcome! Please peruse a little bit and leave us a lot of comments so that a) we know you're out there and b) we can interact! Blogging simply to have your own writing exist somewhere on the internet is stupid. There has to be some interaction from readers for it to be fun and not completely pointless.
So log in. Leave us comments. Vote in our polls on the left (they'll change periodically). Read our individual pages. Enjoy.
If that first paragraph is news to you, then you must be one of the few people reading this who aren't related to or in close contact with the Rohde family. Welcome! Please peruse a little bit and leave us a lot of comments so that a) we know you're out there and b) we can interact! Blogging simply to have your own writing exist somewhere on the internet is stupid. There has to be some interaction from readers for it to be fun and not completely pointless.
So log in. Leave us comments. Vote in our polls on the left (they'll change periodically). Read our individual pages. Enjoy.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)