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Defining My Legacy At 37

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You came here to see what I have coined my 37th year, huh? Oh, you don’t know what I am talking about? As I revealed last year, upon entering my late-30s it became apparent that my birthdays aren’t as exciting anymore. To cope with this, I have tried to spice them up by naming each year. When I turned 35 I called it my “Presidential Year” since I became eligible to run for the United States Presidency. Last year, I labeled my 36th year as my “6 (Squared) Year” because I am nerdy like that.

This year? Drum roll please…

It is my “Legacy Year.” This one might be a little bit of a stretch for some of you. The number “37” is very important at the University of Montana where I attended college and later worked in the athletic department. The #37 football jersey, since 1987, is presented to a student-athlete from Montana who epitomizes the spirit of the state. The graduating football player who wore the #37 jersey passes it on to a new student-athlete who hails from Montana and is an undeniably a hard-nosed and dedicated player. The #37 tradition is summarized as the “Grizzly Legacy.” So, to make a long story short, this is my legacy year.

Today I celebrate my 37th birthday.

Ha! You still with me? Well, enough about what I am calling this year, I am just blessed to still be on this earth. Reaching 37 is anything but a given and I am so thankful to have a vibrant and happy life that is filled with so many special family members and friends.

When I look back on my 36th year I find myself reflecting on some major milestone moments but I will save all that stuff for my 2023 recap in late December. I believe a birthday should be more about looking forward, regardless of how uncomfortable an additional candle on the birthday cake can make us feel.

As I have grown older and wiser (my wife might disagree about the latter), I have learned to accept and celebrate these annual “promotions” to a new age. To me, it just symbolizes another year to make an impact and grow as a person. When you begin a new trip around the sun it must be accepted as an opportunity.

Today has been great. I attended mass, celebrated with my Young Adult Catholic group, partied with my family (parents, siblings, etc.), and spent quality time with my wife and kids. I messed around and drank a couple beers and ate some cake, too. How do you beat that?

I am looking forward to life as a 37-year-old. If Day #1 is any indication of how this newest age of mine is going to go, I think I am in for a real treat. Don’t Blink.

Past Birthday Posts
Turning 36
Turning 35
Turning 34
Turning 33
Turning 32
Turning 31
Turning 30

Pastime Throwback Thursday

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It’s Boo Season! A grand month is here indeed as I hope your October is off to a great start. I have some topics to write about so let’s get started…

Grandpa Throwback – Last week I came across some photos of my grandpa doing what he loved more than anything…managing his restaurant. The Pastime Café was in my mom’s family for more than 80 years and my grandpa personally owned and operated it for 43 years. It was without a doubt the best (and most authentic) Italian food in Walla Walla and I have a treasure trove of memories from eating there and going on Sunday “runs” to the restaurant with grandpa when he would let us fill a brown sack with candy bars from the front counter.

My grandpa, Frank Fazzari, smokes a cigar inside the Pastime Cafe.

Scarywood – Every fall, Silverwood transforms its theme park into Scarywood. Up until this year I had never had the chance to go. That all changed this past Friday when the daughter of my friend Shauna, Elli, who works at Silverwood, scored us opening weekend passes. I am a big fan of haunted houses and Scarywood offered FOUR of them. Of course we went through each one. Although the zombie-themed haunt and the cannibal-themed haunt were both pretty good, my favorite was the 3-D clown funhouse (Chuckle’s 3D Sideshow). If you like a good scare, Scarywood is your jam.

In addition to the haunted houses Scarywood has cast members creeping around the whole park waiting to scare you. Here I am with one of them.

World Teachers’ Day – Although she might be “retired” now, I want to wish a happy World Teachers’ Day to the best educator I know…my wife! Sidney devoted six school years to the profession and was incredible at her craft. I also want to wish extend my best wishes on this day to the teachers of my children, Ms. Lunsford (Sloan’s first grade teacher) and Mrs. Shaurette (Beau’s Pre-K3 teacher), along with the rest of the St. Mary Catholic School staff.

Whether my wife was Miss Mathis or Mrs. Reser, she was a great teacher!

Current Energy Drink of Choice – Over the years I have updated this blog with the energy drink I was consuming at the time. I have switched from Xyience to Joker to Coke’s option to many others. But at this stage in my life I am very much content with Rockstar. It is cheap, the flavor variety is vast, and it packs 240MG of caffeine. As someone who doesn’t consume caffeine besides my once-per-week energy drink, it definitely gets the job done.

I am a big fan of Rockstar energy drinks.

Conceal Your Valuables – This meme shared by my friend Lindsi could also be from an account titled the Dad TruthBomb. Taking my kids to/from school and to their activities has definitely turned the inside of my car into a mini disaster zone. Sometimes grabbing a stray blanket or coat is the perfect way to cover up anything of value.

So true.

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Thanks for spending a few minutes on Don’t Blink. I am looking forward to the weekend and hoping the Cougs can improve to 5-0. Don’t Blink.

The Swift Season

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It is more than a month into the NFL season and I have not watched a game. In fact, I was perfectly content to not only miss all the live action but also refrain from following the division races from afar (except maybe for an occasional Seahawks score 😉). However, although my streak of not watching a minute of NFL competition during the 2023 season is still intact, I am no longer agnostic about the major storyline driving it.

Thank you, Taylor Swift.

Taylor Swift has taken the NFL by storm

(I don’t know if that is sarcastic or not).

Because of the massive, unprecedented appeal of every little thing that Swift does, it goes without saying that the ultra-powerful microscope focuses keenly on her dating life. The fact that she is now dating Kansas City Chiefs Travis Kelce has sent the media bonkers and thrusted even more attention on the ever-popular NFL. It is mania.

Whether the more traditional NFL fan likes it or not, this season is The Swift Season. Not only did NBC show Swift in her box a staggering 17 times during the Chiefs-Jets Sunday night game, the NFL also took it upon itself to update its Instagram bio to “Chiefs are 2-0 as swifties.” I’m not kidding.

The network cameras will be fixated on Taylor Swift at every Chiefs game she attends.

Yes, I think things are a little extreme. Am I surprised? Well, not with the way our society has reacted to the Taylor-Kelce relationship but perhaps a bit with Swift’s incredible ascension to the most popular person on the planet.

I was already blown away by Swift’s clout six years ago. In that blog post where I outlined my complicated history of following the performer, I never thought her star would continue to rise to reach the level it is at today.

By all means I wish Taylor and Travis well. I do hope that the NFL sets standards for its coverage, and, more generally, that “Swifties” can follow their beloved chart topper in a healthy, non-idolistic way. For those cranky football fans who are mad that the world’s most famous celebrity has entered the NFL narrative, they can shake it off. Don’t Blink.

Grocery Store Pumpkin Patches

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Back in my childhood, I remember becoming really excited when a certain something happened in early October. I would feel some type of way when we would pull into the parking lot of our local Albertson’s and see scores of bright orange pumpkins lining the front middle of the store between the two entrances. It mattered to me because, one, it meant Halloween was near, and, two, it was just a welcome sight because it was out of the norm.

When I was a kid, it was always a welcome sight to see the pumpkins outside of the grocery store. On Sunday, my kids played in the Safeway pumpkin patch.

Although most years we were also privileged enough to visit a pumpkin patch at Green Bluff, we always purchased our carving pumpkins at the grocery store. The hunt was always on to find that perfect gourd that was among all the other pumpkins sprawled out on the pavement. Oh, how I loved it.

These days, grocery stores still sell pumpkins outside their front doors but a couple things are different. First, why would these places even consider waiting until the actual month of the holiday to roll out their pumpkins? Now, much like the irrational rush to push Christmas products months in advance, the supermarket pumpkin patches pop up weeks before October arrives.

Second, the variety of pumpkin has exploded from the orange ones to a cornucopia of all shapes, sizes, and colors. White pumpkins, green pumpkins, multi-colored pumpkins, wart-covered pumpkins, and everything else you can think of abound in these displays. To each their own, I guess?

Beau holds a white pumpkin at the Safeway pumpkin patch. They come in all different colors these days.

I let Sloan and Beau play in the Safeway “pumpkin patch” the other day. Except for them trying to pick up pumpkins way too big for them, it was innocent and cheap fun. In fact, it is the perfect way to allow one parent to run inside and do the shopping in peace while the other parent monitors the children frolicking among the squashes, cardboard boxes, and imported hay bales.

Nothing like some cheap entertainment at a makeshift grocery store pumpkin patch.

Grocery store pumpkin patches are pretty cool. Although I would be content with the displays opening in October and the selection being solely orange, I can deal with their evolving nature. Don’t Blink.

HomeGoods Lukewarm Top 5

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As a kid living in north Spokane, our house was right next to a Shopko. We spent a lot of time there. Long story short: it shuttered several years ago and last week a new business finally opened its doors in the old space.

No, it wasn’t Spirit Halloween. 😂

Rather, it was a HomeGoods. The national chain arrived in north Spokane and immediately attracted countless shoppers…including me. Well, I don’t know if you could classify me as a shopper. You see, I was just really intrigued to go back inside the old Shopko building to see what it now looked like.

I visited this HomeGoods in north Spokane on Saturday.

Despite my lack of desire to buy a single item in the store, I did take some photos of items I would buy if a knife was held against my throat. To be completely honest, Hobby Lobby is 10X better than HomeGoods (but I digress)…

It was a family affair at HomeGoods as my brother, his wife, my sister, Sloan, and Sid (not pictured) all went together.

Pumpkin Spice Popcorn – You can find basically any food in pumpkin spice form so why not popcorn? Although I think it is a little weird, I would definitely still give it a try if I was willing to part with the $6.99.

If push came to shove, I would try this pumpkin spice popcorn.

Wifi Whiteboard – I have seen these at Airbnb and other places and actually appreciate them. But now is not the time for me to purchase one thanks to the eager hands of two young children who will mess with anything written in dry erase marker.

I think these whiteboards are pretty nifty.

Air Freshener – Coming from a guy who once ranked his top 5 favorite Glade air fresheners, I thought these boujee options were kind of interesting. I mean who doesn’t get excited about a “Snuggle Sweater” scent?

Some of these air freshener scents are pretty out there.

Pumpkin Pecan Hand Soap – Several years ago I offered a business plan that centered on some pretty wild hand soap scents. I think the “pumpkin pecan” scent gives my own ideas a run for their money.

What a combination!

Pint Glasses – I enjoy putting the few current pint glasses I own in the freezer to get them ice cold before pouring a beer into them. This set of four glasses was heavy duty, cost the same price as the popcorn, and could hold 20 ounces…wait, does that still make it a pint glass?

Raise your glass if you are in need of some new ones.

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I apologize for my lack of enthusiasm for HomeGoods. If there is something about the store I am overlooking, please let me know. If you do, I might send some pumpkin spice popcorn your way. Don’t Blink.

Getting So Old Thursday Rundown

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It is the last Thursday Rundown of September so that means I have to make it extra special. Wait, how would I do that? Never mind. Let’s just get started with tonight’s five topics…

All About Beau – For our son’s Pre-K3 class, he was sent home a little bit of homework. “He” was tasked with filling in an “All About Me” sheet. Sidney and I worked together to get this done. When it came to his favorite animal he answered with “koala” but Sidney decided to do some additional prodding because he was watching a show on koalas at the time. He reversed course and replied with “dog,” an answer that made his mama very happy since she desperately wants one. You can see below for the other answers he gave.

This was Beau’s “All About Me” sheet.

The Big 3 – From time to time I like to share updated photos of the grown up Reser kids together. This latest image comes from last weekend’s wedding in La Grande. There is no stopping Father Time…we keep getting older 😱

A photo of the three of us siblings on Saturday, September 23, 2023 (happy birthday, Glen!).

Mass at Our Lady of the Valley – No matter where we might be on any given weekend, our family makes it a priority above all else to attend mass. Before we left Oregon last weekend, we worshiped at Our Lady of the Valley in La Grande. The current church was built in 1915 and the 108-year old building is beautiful. A soothing blue color is the background for a magnificent altar. Thanks to Fr. Noby Thomas for welcoming us.

We attended mass at Our Lady of the Valley on September 24, 2023.

John Sutherland – Yesterday evening after work finished up for me in Pullman, I had the honor of attending the retirement reception of longtime WSU marketing professional John Sutherland. He devoted more than 30 years to Washington State and served under five different university presidents during that time. It was a privilege to sit with John on our University Marketing and Communications leadership team over the past couple years and soak in his knowledge. Our colleague Jon Bickelhaupt designed this pretty rad baseball card to commemorate his career. Wishing John and his wife plenty of happiness in retirement!

John Sutherland had a long and distinguished career in higher education.

College Gameday Memory – This week marks the ninth anniversary of when Sidney and I attended ESPN College Gameday on the University of South Carolina campus. It was an awesome experience to see a show in-person that I had watched for so long. I had the opportunity to hear Lee Corso go nuts, watch my favorite country artist perform live, and even take a photo with the guy who was waving Ol’ Crimson that day. As I look back on that Saturday morning nine years ago, I am satisfied that College Gameday has expanded its horizons. Since that day in Columbia, Gameday has since done shows at Coastal Carolina University, Washington State University, and in Bozeman for Griz-Cat. I am happy that many of my friends and colleagues have also had the chance to experience the magic of Gameday.

Follow the arrow…that is me during the 9-27-14 College Gameday broadcast.

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To be honest, I think I missed the mark when I said in the opening paragraph that I would make this post extra special. It seems like this Thursday Rundown was pretty much like all the others. But that is what you come for, right? Thanks for putting up with me. Don’t Blink.

Cookies and Cream

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So I have a question for you to ponder on this Wednesday night: What comes to your mind when you think of the flavor cookies and cream?

For me, the answer is easy. I immediately think of cookies and cream ice cream. My mind zeroes in on chunks of Oreo cookies lodged into fresh vanilla ice cream. Growing up, cookies and cream was the one non-neapolitan flavor of ice cream that you could sometimes find in our freezer. Besides the ice cream flavor, the only other cookies and cream product I remember from early childhood was the cookies and cream Twix. But you can’t find that anymore.

Cookies and cream ice cream that Sid and I ate at Sub Zero Ice Cream in Charleston

Thus, my mental construct of the cookies and cream flavor basically boiled down to Oreo cookies mixed with vanilla. Cookies and cream was synonymous with Oreos or at least some type of chocolate sandwich cookies.

The other day I purchased a 4-pack of cookies and cream protein shakes. Before opening the first shake, I had in my mind that the first sip would taste similar to an Oreo cookie. Did it? Heck no. It would be generous to say that it even resembled the taste of chocolate milk.

The Premier Protein cookies and cream shake had the imagery I would expect out of a cookies and cream product but not the taste.

The cookies and cream flavor is thrust upon everything these days. From froyo to candle scents to Pop-Tarts, there is seemingly no product that doesn’t have a version of it. But if my expectation of what the cookies and cream flavor should taste like (Oreos) isn’t the standard of everyone else, then what is it? Well, judging from the myriad of cookies and cream foods that I have tasted, the standard is all across the board.

Although I didn’t do much research before this post, my guess is that the cookies and cream flavor did in fact originate with ice cream. Marketers then took the pleasant memories that many of us hold of cookies and cream ice cream and applied it to other flavors, taking broad creative/taste liberties along the way.

Thankfully, the cookies and cream name still gives people at least a general idea of what the flavor should taste like, unlike something as mysterious and undescriptive as Tigers Blood (which I have written about before). But to say that cookies and cream is synonymous with an Oreo cookie is simply no longer the case. Don’t Blink.

Odd Man Out

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An unsettling and inexplicable moment occurred at work yesterday. A Zoom meeting that had been scheduled for a long time with various people from our department was to begin at 1:30 p.m. I logged in right before the start time to discover that I was the only one in the meeting. I thought it was a little strange because naturally you have some people who are always early. Oh well, I thought.

A couple moments passed and no one else had joined the meeting. It was now 1:32 p.m. I quickly logged in and logged out of the meeting but I was still the only one in the virtual room. Then the Slack messages started coming asking if I was going to join the meeting. I frantically started to log in/out several more times while double checking links, re-starting Zoom, and switching browsers. Nothing worked. It was now 1:35 p.m. In a last-ditch effort to come up with a solution, I tried to invite everyone to my meeting room. However, two people were logged into the meeting from inside a conference room and couldn’t access my link.

At 1:37 p.m. my boss made an entirely new Zoom invite, sent it out, and thankfully I was able to log in. I had absolutely no idea why this freak occurrence had transpired in that when I logged into a Zoom meeting with the same link as all attendees that I was separated from everyone else. I told my colleagues on the new call that it was better that it happen now instead of that day when I meet with our university president (which of course no future meeting exists 😂).

This experience touched on all the fears that a Type-A individual like me harbors, namely failing to be punctual and loss of all control. It wasn’t unlike the recurring theme that I chronicled four years ago of me wandering the halls of an unfamiliar high school, unable to find the classroom that I need to report to so I can take a test I am completely unprepared for. Only this instance was real.

Hopefully this Zoom anomaly doesn’t occur again. It is unnerving that I don’t know why it happened. Thankfully, despite my anxiety during the troubleshooting, I was able to attend the meeting and life did go on. Shout-out to my patient colleagues! Don’t Blink.

A Grand Time in La Grande

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It was a special final full September weekend for my family. We traveled to a place that was new to us all—La Grande, Oregon. On Friday night, the four of us hopped in the car and drove to the northeastern Oregon community to attend my cousin’s wedding.

My family of four had a great weekend in Oregon that consisted of a special wedding and family time.

When we pulled into the hotel parking lot at 11 p.m. that evening, we had people waiting for us. My parents, my brother and wife, and my sister’s family had all arrived prior to our mini contingent crossing into Oregon territory. To make our family affair even sweeter was the fact that we stayed in four rooms clustered together on the second floor of our Best Western.

Sloan, her cousins, and her Uncle Jay have fun in the pool during our weekend in La Grande,, Oregon.

We enjoyed spending time together over the weekend. Whether it was eating in the breakfast hall, splashing in the pool/hot tub, watching football, or playing cards in the lobby it was nice to hang with my gang of four, my parents, my siblings, and their families in a unique setting.

It was nice to spend the weekend with my wife, kids, parents, siblings, and their families in La Grande.

But of course the main highlight of this weekend was my cousin’s wedding. Abby married her longtime boyfriend/fiancé of eight years, Nate. It brought me immense joy to see Abby and Nate tie the knot after such a dedicated courtship. Those who know the large Reser clan are aware that we are a very close and supportive extended family who love and support our own (and those who are brought into it). Needless to say, there was a large crowd of happy and rowdy Resers at the Barn at Tamarack Springs and Aspen Meadows on Saturday night.

Abby and Nathan were married on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023 (photo courtesy of Diana Price)

Although I would have always described my dad, aunts, uncles, and cousins as an emotional group, Saturday’s wedding packed even more feelings than usual. Abby’s mother passed away in late January 2022, ripping a huge void in our proud family. After my Aunt Nancy’s sudden and unexpected death, I made an attempt to convey what an extremely special woman she was. So, as you can imagine, there were a lot of tears before, during, and after the ceremony—with many coming from the gorgeous brown eyes of Abby. But leave no doubt about it, the memory of my Aunt Nancy was honored throughout the whole day and despite her not being physically there, her presence was felt.

Abby and I during her reception.

As Nate and Abby marked their first couple hours as husband and wife with the backdrop of the Blue Mountains behind them, I felt content. My cousin was now married and staring at a life full of potential in front of her. I wish Mr. and Mrs. Sumerlin nothing but the best. Don’t Blink.

High Dive Thursday Rundown

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Have you walked outside in the early morning this week and felt it? By it, I mean the crispness in the air that is reminding us that autumn is on its way. Let’s take a look at tonight’s five topics…

House Blessing – Last night we had a special visitor as Fr. Jeff Lewis, our pastor at St. Mary Catholic Church in the Spokane Valley, came over for dinner. Well, the evening was about much more than just eating chicken bog with us. His primary reason for dropping by was to bless our house. He went to each room in our home and sprinkled it with holy water and applied sacramental oils. The house blessing is a way to protect our home from both internal and external forces while inviting the Holy Spirit into our residence to promote family life. You are the best, Fr. Jeff!

Fr. Jeff takes a photo with our family after he blessed our house.

Bishop Fleming With Pope Francis – This photo is everything. When I attended the University of Montana, the priest in charge of the Newman Center and pastor of the parish in the University District was Fr. Jeff Fleming. Since the many years after I graduated, we have kept touch via social media. I was ecstatic when Pope Francis appointed him as the Bishop of the Diocese of Great Falls-Billings last year. Recently, Bishop Fleming visited Rome for Bishops School and met with Pope Francis. I love how authentic and joyful this photo is. Please pray for Bishop Fleming as he continues his very important vocation.

Bishop Jeff Fleming greets Pope Francis in Rome. When I was in college, then-Fr. Jeff was the priest of the University of Montana Newman Center.

Diving Act – Our family visited the Spokane Interstate Fair last Friday and besides all the rides and food we enjoyed, something else stood out. We watched an extraordinary diving act presented by Milord Entertainment. The show was delivered via a police academy theme and we couldn’t believe some of the dives these performers were making. The most memorable moment was the grand finale when the emcee climbed up 80 feet and gracefully dove into the water tank below. We were amazed!

The Top Cop high dive show by Milord Entertainment at the Spokane Interstate Fair was awesome!

Donut vs. Doughnut Explanation – On Tuesday I wrote about the great “donut” vs. “doughnut” debate. I expressed my support for the former spelling and later that night I received some major firepower to back up my preference. Jon Fine is the owner of Retro Donuts in north Spokane, my favorite donut shop in the whole world. He gave a very technical and logical response about why our favorite morning treats should mostly be spelled as “donuts.”

I mean, how do you argue with this response?

Bad Lobster Chowder – Earlier this year, I mentioned I have only seen three movies more than once in the theater. “Jurassic Park” and “Rise of the Guardians” happen to be two of them. The third? Well, “Titanic” of course. Last night I learned an interesting tidbit from the filming of the movie. One evening the crew ordered some late-night lobster chowder but it didn’t exactly hit the spot. Someone had spiked it with PCP! Numerous people were hospitalized including director James Cameron. Those working on the movie didn’t allow the sabotage to sink their film—we all know that “Titanic” went on to become a box office smash.

James Cameron speaks with Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet. Look how young Leo is! (photo courtesy of @historyinmemes)

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That puts another Thursday Rundown in the books. A wedding weekend in Oregon awaits our family and perhaps I will have an experience or two to write about when I return. Take care, everyone. Don’t Blink.