Anniversary

It has been a long time coming, but next year, 10 years to the day you will get to relive the excitement. You've waited this long, just hold on a little longer... (you might want to pause the website's music)

This is Jess' preview:


This is a little something I made for myself:

Bond vs. Bourne

Often I run across articles or discussion boards pitting one fictional character against another. On this very blog, in fact, there has been discussion about which super hero is the greatest (the old Superman vs. Batman debate). Even on Facebook you can pick your side in the ongoing battle to see who is greatest, Pirates or Ninjas (last I saw, Ninjas were winning, as they should).

Today on the BBC web site there was this article [read it here], written as a comparison of James Bond (the double-ought agent) and Jason Bourne (whose sidekick is not Ben Afleck).



Of course it is fun to speculate on such battles of epic proportions, but come on! Everyone knows the outcome of all these battles... the person whose name is in the title of the movie wins!

Sometimes writers and directors are brave or daring or annoying enough to kill off the hero, but usually only after he has already killed the bad guy (think Gladiator). Who would win in a fight between Batman and Superman? Superman should win... not that I would want him to. But on the screen, they would probably both survive, maybe even become friends. The real question is who would win if you pitted a hero against a slightly modified version of himself: Superman vs. Ninja-double-o-Superman (with Iocane Immunity)?

For Peter:

Just thought you might want to buy a couple of these for emergencies.

Here it Goes Again

So I assume that, with over 20 million views, you've all seen this before. But I thought it was pretty cool so maybe you would like it too! Ok, go...

Destruction Of National Pastime Given Two-Minute Standing Ovation

I was gonna post this on the family blog, but I though Matt might get mad, so it's here instead.

Wedding Plans and Such

So planning my wedding has been a relatively well lit road so far. You could say Emily is finally following in her sisters footsteps for a change. Having just gone through the entire wedding process with Bekah (Errek was there too) Emily and I have seen the many steps that must be taken and have already begun to use this knowledge of dos and don'ts to plan our wedding. Location - check. Reception location - check. Honeymoon location - check. I guess this is where the phrase "location, location, location" must have come from. Caterer - check. Wedding dress (I went golfing on these days) - check. We've got the guest list together and have begun the long, and sometimes fun, task of registering for gifts. Of course there are still hundreds of things to do, and more things to check off our lists, but we're off to a good start and we still want to get married.
In other news, I lost my job when Macri's Deli up and closed unannounced on Aug. 2. It's kind of a mystery as to why but with the many rumors that had been in the stale, humid Deli air, I wasn't surprised - upset as to how it was handled, eager to find out if I and when to expect my final paycheck, but not surprised.
On the brighter side, did I mention I am still getting married, my final semester of school begins in a few weeks, and most importantly... I will be playing on TWO softball teams this Fall.
I now have the ability to offer my services to those in need having further enhanced my list of skills and abilities... be it pawning Macri's Deli specials off as my own or venturing into the realm of Wedding Planner, I am at your service.

Music Television

MTV was introduced the year I was born, but not having cable made it a channel we never watched. The first music video I remember seeing was Michael Jackson's Thriller which is also arguably the first modern music video. Music and television seem to go together, though I often wish that I hadn't seen a music video because it sticks in my head and I watched it over and over erery time I hear the song. MTV has changed, from what I can tell they don't actually play music anymore. That's why I think this new show (in the UK?) is such a good idea.

Live From Abbey Road will feature three artists or bands each night and each band will play three songs. No audience, no host introducing them, simply music with interviews between. And it looks like they have a great lineup too.

Josh Groban for mom, Muse for Matt, Ray LaMontagne for me, Iron Maiden for Edwardo, and so much more (Red Hot Chili Peppers, Dave Matthews, Paul Simon). You can check out some videos on the web site (under "Footage").

Ben is correctamundo!

Even at our worst, Crums are well above average in everything that matters. Just look how many there are of us, we already got everyone else beat, hands down. (Thanks Mom and Pop for that one). I've got to agree with Ben though; we've had better days. But, if we can just hunker down and acknowledge our current shortcomings, then perhaps tomorrow we can recapture some of our glory days. With that as my motivation, let's move on to the meat of my posting:

Peter and I were talking recently about how cool Macyver is. This is one of the few things that we agree totally on. I was remembering how Peter got his "Macgyver-watching-privileges" taken away for two weeks, after attempting to make a bomb that Macgyver made in the previous week's episode. Of course Peter is still bitter about missing those two episodes, but who wouldn't be? My point is that Macgyver was an inspirational character in Peter's life, perhaps even a hero. There aren't enough people worthy of being heros nowadays, isn't that a shame? We can always look to the past though to find people of integrity: Abraham Lincoln, Benjamin Franklin, Lou Gehrig, and of course Macgyver.

I somehow feel that I failed in bringing back the magic of the "Crum Family Blog". It's like riding a bike though; you fall off a lot, you fly over the handlebars and break you collarbone from time to time, but eventually you put it back in the front yard and come in for dinner.

Back in the Day

As I was looking back through posts on this blog I realized something: We use to have some really cool posts!

Nostalgia ensued as I read posts about MacGyver posted by the mysterious Edwardo and the subsequent attempts by Jess to ban him from posting on this site. There were posts about Mare Island, the Cheeses Factory and Gary Larson.

So Here's my idea... keep posting. With over a hundred and fifty posts already this is one happ'nin' blog. Nate, you use to write stories about Angelina Jolie; what happened? William, you use to send in pictures that would get scanned and posted; do you still draw? (I know you do!) and Jon, you use to post something serious every once in a while... any new deep thoughts?

I have also only gotten three requests for music, does anyone else have a request?

Hope to hear more from you all soon,

Ben

The Crum Family

Our Blog's Music

Does anyone have a song they would like to hear on this blog (sorry, Crums only!). Send me the title and artist or the MP3 via email.

He Ya

Go to this to see an awesome version of the Outkast hit - it's by Matt Weddle

Double Dog Dare

As some of the more nerdy members of the family may know, the new Harry Potter book comes out this Saturday (for those who didn't know, the movies are actually books too!).

Anyhow, here's the dare (and this is open to family members and non-members alike): stand in line at Border's or any other bookstore hosting a "Potter Party" on Friday night and as soon as you get your hands on the book, flip to the end read the last page and exclaim aloud (very loud) "HOLY CRAP... he _______ (insert "lives" or "dies")" and then begin reading the last line out loud! If you do this (and I do dare you) I will give you $10. That's right, ten bucks from the BC!

Chances are you can find some other people to match my $10, you could even end up getting a "free" copy of the ridiculously long book.

So who's in?



PS. You get another dollar if you post the ending on this blog before the book gets released on the West coast!

Summer Vacation Excitement

Seeing Daniel in person!
Seeing Matt, Ben, Michal, Jon, and Nate again!
Matt's engagement to Emily!
Soccer with the brothers (and Church of the Good Shepherd)!
Wyoming!
Seeing Peter, Jess, Jude, Ashley and Aravis again!
Pike's Peak by van and car!
Swimming at the Dodrills'!
The Good Shepherd reunion!
especially seeing old friends, and
the band concert
Ben's new job!
The Creation Museum!
Getting home again!

David and Stephen are exhausted from climbing Pike's
Peak!

A Date to Save

So I've posted about my engagement on my personal blog but thought that this would be a good location (more readership) to post about the date for the wedding. Emily and I have decided on March 8, 2008. This is the Saturday beginning Spring Break here in Bloomington. It was great to see the family here for a few days and I look forward to seeing them all again soon. Peter and family, I hope you all can make it out here. Nate, it would be great to see you here as well. Thomas, feel free to bring your girlfriend with you. As the plans progress I will be sure to post the latest info on this blog.
- Matt

Just What I Always Wanted

I Love Donuts.
A long time ago I told Mom that I wanted to have the van when I grew up (the old red van we got in St. Louis), build a donut machine (out of wood) and sell "van-made" donuts out of the back of the van. I would still like to do this one day, that's how much I love donuts.

Well, maybe I don't need to figure out how to build that Wooden Donut Machine anymore, here is a spiffy medal donut robot that would do the trick.



Thanks to: Derick at LiveJournal

Here We Come!

As I write, David is playing his final baseball game of the season (unless there's a rain delay). Stephen is watching the game. Thomas is at work. We've just finished supper at home and are polishing off the last of a delicious watermelon. All the bags are packed, but still need to be loaded in the van, and we're (almost) ready to go. Final checks need to be made. Are the windows all closed and locked? I need to give a house key to Amy who will be feeding Crumpet while we're gone.
Look out Indiana and Colorado---here we come!

On Top

I noticed that Ben recently posted his "ilike" score, so I thought it fitting to follow suit. They tell me that only two other people have achieved the rank of "Music Ninja", T-Bone Burnett and Quincy Jones. I guess that's not bad company to keep.

Happy Father's Day

All you fathers out there.

iLike

So I don't offen tell people that I am on Facebook, quite frankly, it's because I am embarrassed. However, they have put up two new things that make it worth talking about. One is the graffiti wall, this is really cool, and the second is the iLike Challenge. This game, previously played on the iPod, is really fun and really addicting (my goal is to get a higher ranking than Matt, I already passed David). Note in this picture that, even thought my percentage isn't that great (I have even missed Pearl Jam questions) my time is outstanding! 2.8 Second average... I rock!



For those of you who don't know, Facebook is an online "social" community... the embarrassing thing is that you have "friends" and the more "friends" you have the more "popular" you are (virtually speaking).

Vacation Schedule

Here is the present (and therefore still tentative) schedule for our upcoming vacation/sabbatical. If you have any suggestions or alterations please let me know.

Tuesday, June 19 Leave home after David's baseball game
at approximately 9 pm--drive through the night
(Pop, Mom, Thomas, David, Stephen, Elisabeth, William, Jesse)

Wednesday, June 20 Arrive in Indiana in the morning
Hold Daniel

Wednesday-Sunday Play and visit in Bloomington
June 20-24 Celebrate Matt and Emily's engagement
Mom and Pop attend Errek and Bekah's wedding on Saturday

Monday-Wednesday Travel in a leisurely manner to Colorado
June 25-27 via Wyoming
(all of the above, including Pop, plus Jonathan and Nathaniel)

Wednesday-Sunday Play and visit in Colorado Springs
June 27-July 1 Celebrate Jesse's birthday

Monday-Tuesday Return to Bloomington (minus Pop)
July 2, 3

Wednesday-Sunday 4th of July in Bloomington
July 4-8 Church of the Good Shepherd Reunion

We're bringing two tents, sleeping bags and pillows, a queen size air mattress, several folding chairs (if they fit), and our own towels. Anything else??? We can do the grocery shopping when we arrive, and I will do all the cooking--if that would help. We're looking forward to seeing you all soon.