Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! I would like to wish everyone a very Happy 2008! I'd also like to send wishes for a very successful 2008 to all of you!

New postings of my Christmas, 2008 Spring Schedule and New Year's Eve will be up later this week!

Happy Holidays

I wanted to with everyone a Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Chanukah, Happy Ramadan or any other Holiday you may be celebrating this Holiday Season. Currently I'm in New Mexico celebrating the holidays with Kelly's family. There are views of the mountains out of every window! The views motivated me to blog and thank everyone for reading my blog and leaving comments. I'll be sure to post lots of pictures over the next couple of days. Enjoy the time with your family and loved ones! ...........Frank

Beware of the Hot Tub

A friend of mine read my posting about using the hot tub after running and pointed out a very important point. After you run it is important to ice everything versus putting heat on your muscles and joints. You can actually injure yourself more by applying heat. I should have typed that after we finished running we iced everything down and later that night we got in the hot tub. Anyway I would like to thank Bridget for the input/advice. Thank you!

12 miles down 1.1 to go!

Sunday, December 16, 2007. Long Run training Day. Kelly and I have less than a month to go for our half marathon. Sunday's are the days we go out for out long runs to practice for the race. A half marathon is 13.1 miles. A few months ago that number seemed HUGE. To be honest, it looked HUGE on Sunday. Kelly saying we're going to run 12 miles sounded HUGE. Two hours later, 12 miles was complete! Wow, I could have run an extra mile yesterday, so I'm excited for race day to come. We're going to go out and run between 13 and 14 miles after Christmas just to get the milage in one time before the race on January 13th.

Quick Tip: Our condo complex has a pool and hot tub. I used to get in the hot tub after running. Over the last couple of long runs, I've been getting in to the tub before I run. I get in the tub, stretch, then go and run. The hot water helps to loosen up all of my joints and muscles. I've noticed less pain by the end of my runs. This will be continued pre race/run ritual.

Back in Ohio

Last week, i was back in Ohio. I was in the state to work with Rodger. We had jobs in Columbus and Athens. We were the keynote speakers at the kickoff luncheon for the OASFAA Conference (Ohio Financial Aid employees). We then headed to Ohio University to give two training/employee development seminars for college employees. There were about 400 people at the Financial Aid Luncheon. We spoke to about another 200 people at Ohio University.

Being back in Ohio gave me a chance to see a lot of my friends. I also got a chance to catch two division one Men's basketball games. The Ohio University staff took us to the game between Ohio University and St. Boniventure and my best friend Scott took me to the game between Cleveland St. and Youngstown State. Both games were blowout victories for the home schools.

So, one week lots of friends and lots of traveling. Phoenix to Cleveland; Cleveland to Columbus; Columbus to Athens; Athens to Cleveland; Cleveland to Phoenix!

Enjoy the pictures and the stories below!





Pictures from the OASFAA Conference. Rodger and I gave another great show. We had people in tears and on their feet when we closed the presentation. It was snowing outside, so we made up a song (about 5 minutes of planning) about financial aid to the music of "Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!" It was my first time ever singing solo infront of that many people.






Pictures from Athens, Ohio and Ohio University. It snowed both days we were in town; about 4 inches. The Ohio Bobcats won their basketball game 77-59. We stayed at a Holiday Inn Express and it was very nice! We now know why the commercial says people feel so smart for staying at the hotels.


My good friends Teresa and Brian welcomed twins boys to the world about two months ago. It was my first time seeing the twins, Cole and Caden. Cole is normally on the left in pictures and Caden is on the right.

It does rain in the desert!

A week ago I got to see something that rarely happens here in the desert. Two days of consistent rain! We got almost 2 inches of rain. There was a lot of flooding, just check out some of the pictures below. The one is of the courtyard outside of our condo!

Custom Orthotics

It's the holiday season and everyone is thinking of the perfect gift or item to buy. I got my gift a little early. I got two pairs of custom orthotics. I've had some issues with my knees, feet and lower back for years. After have a podiatrist and chiropractor look at me, I found out I needed orthotics. I figured I would considering I have flat feet, but I didn't know how much they would help out the rest of my body. After the exams, you start to learn a lot about your body and how everything is connected and effect each other.

I've been running a lot lately and I spend a lot of time on my feet when I'm speaking. It's only been about two weeks, but what a difference. It cost me a total of $350 for both pair of orthotics, but the money it will save me for doctors bills in the future is worth it. I've been running with Kelly and no complaints about my feet and knees. I wish I would have been examined years ago!

We spend tons of money on material items, but we don't spend enough on personal health. It's hard to enjoy the material things in life if we don't take care of ourselves first. So, with the Holiday Season upon us. Consider this for a gift for yourself or you loved ones. A book of healthy living or exercising, a massage, or something that will help you enjoy/be around to enjoy the gifts we get for the holidays. The #1 gift we all have is our lives. There's no price tag you can put on your health, but when it comes to taking care of our body, we'll go out and buy something we don't need, but complain how much it might cost to see the doctor or pay for a healthy meal. Take care of yourselves and the people close to you!

For more information on orthotics, click on this link The Orthotic Group

The Tree is up!

Picture of Kelly and I before Thanksgiving Dinner.


Our Christmas Tree! Yes it's fake/permanent! It still looks good!

The Christmas tree went up this weekend and it looks really good!

Ferrelli's Cinema Supper Club (click here)

A few weeks ago, Kelly and I were watching the Food Network and saw a cool idea for a restaurant. The place is called Ferrelli's Cinema Super Club. It's a restaurant/movie theater. It's similar to going to a comedy club. You show up ahead of time and you place your food order. The food arrives to your table before the movie starts and you have dinner while watching a flick. During the film they will bring "hot" butter popcorn to you if you order it and also dessert.

Kelly decided to take her parents there for a birthday gift. We watched "Michael Clayton." The movie was good and the food was even better. For more information on Ferrelli's, click on the link above!

Turkey Day Run!

When you are about to consume thousands of calories in one meal, what do you do? You go out and exercise! Go out for a morning jog to get the blood going. Sounds good right? How about your alarm clock going off of at 6 AM on Thanksgiving morning. You and your girlfriend get u; get your running gear on; stretch out a little bit ( I got in the hot tub to warm up my joints and muscles); you grab a light breakfast; and you head down the street to the local Spring Training Baseball Park to take part in the Annual 10 mile race for charity. Thats right 10 mile race on Thanksgiving morning! We weren't the only crazy ones there. There were at least 2,000 people there for the 10 mile race, 5K race and 1 mile walk. The race was raising money for the West Valley Child Crisis Center. They were also collecting toys.

A few weeks earlier, I thought Kelly was CRAZY to sign us up for the race. As the race got closer that changed and we were both excited. We're running our half marathon in about 2 months. The race started at 8 AM. We were off. Around mile four me and a few other runners almost got blown up by the group of 20 people launching bottle rockets and fire works in the park we were running in. Hmmmm, park, a couple thousand runners, wind.....hey kids lots go shoot off some rockets! The one rocket landed infront of me and a female runner, we scattered when we saw what it was, then it exploded. Crazy! Would I make it home to eat turkey?

I did the Gallway run and walk technique. Run a mile, walk for about two -minutes and repeat for the race. The course was hilly and by the time I got to the last two miles I had a lot of energy still. My knees didn't feel so good though. The finish line for the race is inside the ballpark the hosts the Seattle Mariners and the San Diego Padres. It was cool to run in the park and having people cheering in the stands as people crossed the finish line by the third base dugout. I had a lady sprint past me coming in the park. She had a great final kick. I wanted to catch her before the finish line, but that didn't happen. I was in a full sprint and the two of us probably passed about 10-15 runners on the way in. I crossed the finish line;my trip to the men's rooms; and went back out on the course to find Kelly. I got to her with about 3/4 of a mile to go. Her foot started to bother her at the 7 mile mark, so all she wanted to do was finish the race. We we got inside of the ballpark, she was ready for the race to be over, then we saw the clock. She was 5 minutes ahead of her goal and on pace to finish under two hours! She found enough energy for a final kick and she finished under two hours!

After the race it was off to the hot tub and a bottle of Aleeve! A bottle of wine for Kelly!

We'll have offical times next week. I finished around 1 hour and 35 minutes.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I spent my first Thanksgiving in Arizona with my girlfriend Kelly and her parents. It has been a really good time. Thanksgiving is Kelly's favorite holiday, so she's been planning this for a while. She's been searching cookbooks, the internet and under ever rock to find the perfect recipies. I think she did a great job.

I was "hired" to help prep foods and be the baker. I made my very first cherry pie from scratch and I impressed myself. We (Kelly, the family and I) did all the appatizers, side dishes and desserts. Her friends Kevin and Holly took care of the bird. We've all watched a little too much Food Network over the last couple of weeks and you could tell by our assortments of food and presentation of the food. Kevin did a great job with the Turkey.

So, you're probably wondering, what was on the menu. Here it is:

Squash Soup
Watercress Pear Salad
Turkey
Handmade Cranberry Sauce
Mashed Potatoes with leaks
Sausage Stuffing
Homemade cornbread
Glazed Sweet Potatoes with Pecans
Whole wheat rolls with poppy seeds
Turkey Gravy
New Miexican Chille (a spicy gravy)
Chocolate Tort
Sweet Potatoe Pie
Cherry Pie
Homemade Whip Cream
A couple of bottles of wine

Does that sound good or what? The best part will be all of the leftovers for the next week! Mmmmm!!!! I hope everyone enjoyed their Holiday! I did. Enjoy the pictures!

My cherry pie before before it went in the oven. Look at that lattice crust!
All of our pies! Are you hungry?
Kelly and her dad in the kitchen. They are having a little discussion over the stuffing being too dry.
Kelly with her table set up. She put a lot of time into making everything look right.
The Bird! The moistest (is that a word?) turkey I've had in a long time!

Scottsdale Artfest

Many of you know I moved to Arizona a couple of months ago. Arizona does feel like home, but I'm still getting settled in. I'm still trying to adjust to a few things. One of the things I'm adjusting too, but not complaining about is the weather. I'm used to being in cold weather the week before Thanksgiving. I'm liking the 80 degree temperatures herein Arizona. The temperatures are a little higher than normal, but I'm not complaining.

The wether here is similar to what I've experienced in Spring/Early Summer in Ohio. People are planting plants, the golf courses are busy, and there are tons of festivals and fairs. I feel like summer is about to start. It's doesn't feel like Holiday season until I go into the stores or watch TV. My body and mind are definately a little out of wack.

The weather has me out and about more. This weekend Kelly took me to the Scottsdale Artfest. We didn't make any purchases, but it was great to see all the different examples of art on display. I'm used to going to these types of shows in the summer, not at the end of the year. I love all the food, especially the Kettle Corn! MMMMMMMMMMM! Being at the Artfest was motivating for two reasons.

#1 It's great to be around crative people who are pursuing and accomplishing a dream or talent. Many of the vendors were from around the country and world. They were all passionate about what they were doing. You rarely see people passionate about what they do, because it's work. For the vendors, this is a way to make money and provide for themselves, but they all looked happy because they are passionate about what they do. I really loved all the photography vendors. Seeing all the photos from around the world inspires me to travel more and see all of the places in the photographs.

#2 The Artfest cost nothing. I was able to spend a lot of quality time with my girlfriend. We hung out with some of her friends for awhile, but we still had a nice relaxing day to ourselves. There was music, people watching, and good food (that did cost a few bucks). A lot of people complain that they can't do anything because they don't have money. Artfest, fairs, time with friends and more can be done without spending money. All you have to do is look around to see what's going on in your community/local area.

Enjoy the pictures!


You have to love this picture of the SPAM truck! Yes the truck is shaped like the SPAM can. They were giving out free SPAM sandwiches

Two LARGE swans kids were feeding at the Scottsdale Civic Center Park



A recreaton of the "LOVE" statue from Philadelphia

The Great Debaters

I was reading the entertainment section of a online newpaper and came accroos previews for holiday movies. I came across this preview for the movie "The Great Debaters." Definately looks like something I will have to go and see. It comes out Christmas Day.

Spokane, Washington

Riverside Park in Downtown Spokane. It's different seeing leaves falling off of trees and the change of seasons now that I live in Arizona.

The buildings of downtown Spokane. Spokane is the second largest city in the state of Washington and the farthest north I have ever been in the continental United States.

A view of the Spokane area from the window of my plane.

Last weekend I was in Spokane, Washington for the National Association for Campus Activities (NACA) West Regional Conference. What a GREAT time! I was invited to give/teach four workshops. I was also there with Rodger to sell ourselves/services as "The BAD BAD Apples." Between my workshops and Rodger's, the BAD BAD Apples and Coleman Productions (the agency the represents us) was well known. Two of the company's speakers performed during the lecture showcase. Another one of the companies speakers also taught two workshops. Between the five of us who were present, the company had two showcases and seven workshops. All the face time had our booth packed!

Rodger and I gave some of the best performances/workshops we've done all year. You know you're doing a great job when one of your workshops gets cancelled but people still show up and you fill the room! You also know you're doing good when people show up to your workshops not because of the subject you're talking about; they show up because they just want to hear you talk/perform. That's what several students told us. I was teaching one workshops for college staff and advisors and several students asked if they could sit in because they saw me in the room and knew they would learn something.

I have to plug one of the speakers. His name is Marcus Engel. He plugged Rodger and I on his website so I need to do the same for him. Marcus is a Insperational/Motivational Speaker and Author. I've read about his story, but it was more inspiring to hear in person. Marcus was hit by a drunk driver in 1993. The accident blinded him and broke everyone bone in his face. He barely survived. Years later, he is traveling the country speaking about his accident and inspiring people to live every day like it's your last, because it could be. For any of you who read this blog and constantly complain about what life brings you, read Marcus's Blog. I'm sure you'll have second thought about some of the "little things" you complain about. I was only around Marcus for a little bit, but I never heard him complain! Marcus Engel's blog

Something to add to the interesting facts was my conversation with a local taxi driver. People in the state of Washington have tried to split the state into two states sveral times. More people live in King County (Seattle) than the rest of the state combined. There are 39 counties in the state and the votes of 38 counties and be trumped by the vote of one. I guess there have been a lot of time when 38 counties will vote one way and King County will vote another. A lot of the people feel this leads to misrepresentation. I didn't know if this was true our not, so when I got home I looked up the subject on the internet. Turns our the taxi driver wasn't lying. Several times the people of Eastern Washington and the panhandle of Idaho have pushed to form a 51st state. The state would be called Lincoln or Eastern Washington. For more information go to this website. Eastern Washington Information

It's November already?

This has been a busy year for me. Time has flown by. I realized how fast has gown by when I got home and Kelly asked me if I could get rid of the pumpkin on the patio. In less than a week, our pumpkin went from cool to soft, moldy and deflated. What a clear sign of how fast time flies when you're having fun and how close the holidays are getting! Wow!

Phoenix Half Marathon (Click Here)

I'm going to run a Half Marathon! Kelly has beeen running 5K and 10K races this year. Her goal is to build up her indurance to run in a Marathon. I've had the same goal, so we are both in training for the PF Changs Rock N Roll Half Marathon. We've been training for a month now and this weekend we ran 7 miles. We'll run 8 miles on Sunday and Thanksgiving Morning we'll run in a 10 Mile Turkey Day run. The last time I tried training for a half marathon my knees and feet didn't hold up to well. Kelly normally has issues with her feet and ankles

This time Kelly and I have both been smart. We've had our feet examined, we've researched training techniques from books and other runners and most importantly we're eating good and hydrating properly. Our plan is to do the 1/2 marathon in January and sometime next year you should read about us running our first marathon. I've got bad knees, so my first marathon may be my first and last, but when I finish the race, I will have another one of my life time goals knocked off of my "to do list."

For more information on the race, please click on the title above.

Hartford, CT

Last Wednesday, I found myself being dropped off at the airport on Halloween Night. I was taking a "Red Eye" flight to Hartford, Connecticut for the National Association for Campus Activities (NACA) Northeast Regional Conference. Sounds like the perfect set-up for a Horror Movie! =0 ) The flighst to New York and and Hartford were very uneventful. I didn't see anything on the wing and there weren't any snakes on a plane. I did wake up around 3 AM to look out the window. I couldn't take a picture, but I'll describe what I saw. It was a clear cloudless night. I could see stars against the black sky. When I looked below the plane, everything was black except for the orange glow of street lights making up towns and cities. The sky and the ground ran together. The sky had white dots and the ground had orange dots and patterns that looked like spiderwebs when enough of the dots formed a town or city. It was a pretty amzaing view.

Here are some pictuers of Hartford, the state capitol of Connecticut. I had a break in my schedule so I walked around the downtown area and took some pictures.

Joy

A friend sent this to me in an e-mail today, so I thought I would share it with everyone. Thank you Maribel!

Each day is a new chance to find joy and to dance. If you let it pass or think it useless, the chance is gone and you'll never get it back. When was the last time you played? Or just did something for the sheer fun of it? Joy is not found in the world around you, it's within yourself. You can make your own joy, especially during those dark times when you need to really feel alive again. Fun and play are healthy antidotes to taking life--and ourselves--too seriously. They're proven boosters of immune systems and mental health and make life worth the trouble. So do the twist. Sing in the shower. Learn a magic trick. Watch a cartoon. Challenge some kids to a game. Don't let a single day go to waste.

Back to Sedona!

Kelly and I have been dating for a year! Our very first trip together was to Sedona last October. To celebrate our anniversary, we returned to Sedona last week. Sedona is a town in Northern Arizona known for it's great landscapes, tourist attractions and parks.

Kelly and I took a hike and checked out all the shops. Late on we had a nice dinner at the outdoor patio at the hotel next to a fire pit. Good times! Nice and relaxing!

If you ever visit Sedona, I definately recommend staying at the Hilton!

Here are a few pictures enjoy!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

October 31, 2007! Happy Halloween Everyone! Enjoy the day! Have fun! For the kids who read this, I hope you get lost of candy!

Here is a picture of our (Me and Kelly) Pumpkin! We carved it tonight! I love his tooth, but it fell out shortly after the picture, I wonded if the tooth ferry visits pumkins!

The Secret (Click Here)

A few years ago, a book called "The Secret" came out. It talks about the "secret" to a great life, being successful and being positive. The book was converted into a movie. A really good friend gave me the movie for a birthday gift and I finally got a chance to watch it. Trudy and her husband said watching the movie or reading the book would be life changing. They were right. Everyone who decides to read the book or watch the movie will get something different out of it. The book/movie defiantly backs up a lot of my personal beliefs and the beliefs of a lot of people I know.

If you're feeling a little down, you're looking to focus on the positives in life, or you just want to know what makes people successful, click on the link above for more information on "The Secret."

What's in your piggy bank? (Click here)

Like a lot of people I've been doing a lot to improve my finances. Increasing my net worth, is the way I like to describe it. I've been talking to financial advisers, reading books and just using some of my experiences from life. I was in the car and heard a commercial for a Feethepig.org. It's a cool website set up by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. There is a ton of free information to help people out no matter where you are in life. Click on the link above for more information. When you go to the site, be sure to click the link marked "www.360financialliteracy.org" at the top of the page!

Good Luck everyone!

Another video on Youtube!

New YouTube video for BAD BAD Apples. You can call this our infomercial. Everyone loves the blooper reel at the end! And yes I know I'm wearing white sox! lol

Skybus (click here)

One of my former students let me know about a new airline called "Skybus." The airline is based out of Columbus, Ohio and offers discount airfares around the country. The most interesting part of the airline is their $10 fares! Yep, if you're one of the first 10 people to book a given flight, you can get a seat for $10! There are taxes and fees for your bags and food, but if you live in Ohio or any of the cities the airline fly's too, check out the link above.

Where have you been Frank?

Where in the United States is Frank Kitchen?

I’m back to Blogging! I was out of town 11out of the last 14 days. Life on the road! Here’s how my traveling has gone in the last two weeks.
Phoenix to Denver/ Denver to Billings, Montana/ Billings, Montana to Powell, Wyoming (3 Day Leadership Conference/Speaking)/Powell to Billings/ Billings to Denver/ Denver to Phoenix (Home for 3 days)/ Phoenix to Chicago/ Chicago to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania/ Harrisburg to Lancaster, Pennsylvania (3 Day College entertainment conference/Speaking)/ Lancaster to Cleveland, Ohio (Employee training workshop)/ Cleveland to Dallas/ Dallas to Phoenix (home for 12 hours)/ Phoenix to Kansas City, Missouri/ Kansas City to Emporia, Kansas/ Emporia to Kansas City/ Kansas City to Phoenix! Wow! So, blogging has been a little difficult! =0 )

Life on the road! I think I will have to start rating airports in my blog. I've been in eight different airports in the last two weeks and at least 20+ so far this year. The new terminal in Dallas (Terminal D) is by far the nicest I've been in so far this year. Harrisburg International was the cleanest ( I love the rocking chairs). Kansas City, Harrisburg, Tampa and Phoenix have free internet!

I’ve had a lot of fun over the last two weeks. Last week I was in Lancaster, PA to give three workshops at the National Association for Campus Activities (NACA) Mid-Atlantic Conference. Over 900 students where in attendance. The purpose of the conference is to give colleges the opportunity to see/meet performers live before that book them. Rodger and I were scheduled to give three workshops. By the time Saturday rolled around for our last workshops, students were showing up at 9AM cheering that “Yeah Rodger and Frank are presenting!” That is great for the ego….errr confidence! We checked out the evaluations and all were Super Positive. We have several strong possibilities for work in 2008.

After the conference Rodger and I jumped in his car and drove to Cleveland. It was great to return to my former home. I was in town to work at a staff training retreat with Rodger. “Work” allowed me time to see lots of friends. I got to meet my best friend’s new girlfriend. I got to go back and visit my former job at Lakeland Community College. I got a chance also to enjoy some great weather. 94 degrees in Ohio in October was crazy!

As Rodger says, “They shoot, they score!” The training retreat went great! Everyone attending loved what we did. After that I got a chance to stay with my friend Brian. He and his wife are expecting twins in 2 weeks. I got to help him a little bit with the baby room he is painting. Earlier during the week I went to the hospital to visit his wife Teresa. She’s on bed rest until the babies are born. Brian and Teresa, thank you for letting me borrow your car to visit everyone in Cleveland.

I was preparing to return home after being on the road for a week, when my agent Brooke called and asked if I could “fill in” for one of the agency’s speakers. It was no ordinary speaker. It was the speaker the company is named after…..Dave Coleman….”The Dating Doctor” himself. 10 time National Speaker of the year. The guy the movie “Hitch” was based on. I was being called to “fill in” for him in Kansas the very next day because he was stuck in New York City! Wow! So I flew home and prepped for the show on the plane.

Wednesday night I get back to Phoenix. Kelly picks me up and we go to her friend’s 30th Birthday dinner. It was at a local Greek Restaurant. The food was great, but the entertainment stole the night. There was a belly dancer who I’m guessing was somewhere in her 50’s. She put quarters on her stomach and rolled them up and down her stomach in unison, one at a time, every other coin, etc.! It was crazy!

Thursday morning, I was at the airport again and on my way to Emporia State University. While I was driving to the show I got a call from a local radio station to interview me about “Dave’s/My show.” When I got to the hotel, the staff said they read about me in the local paper. No pressure at all! I arrived to the college to perform in front of over 200 people. Things went GREAT! The people in charge were happy. The audience cheered, laughed and clapped the entire time and my voice that I was losing came back before the show!

I finally got back on Friday afternoon. Kelly’s smiling face was waiting for me at the airport. It was great to finally get home. Kelly and I have been dating for a year, so we went to a great local restaurant for dinner. We sat out on the patio, enjoyed some good food, some wine from Germany and some great fall weather!

We finished off the crazy 2 plus weeks on Sunday! Kelly asked me to run the Phoenix Race for the Cure 5K. It was reported that over 40,000 people were signed up to particpate in the several runs and walk to raise money for Cancer Research. There were A LOT of people. Kelly and I ran the entire race together and crossed the finish line holding hands! That was a great way to finish a crazy 2 1/2 weeks! =0 )

American Airlines DC-3 at the Phoenix Airport
Downtown Chicago
Rodger and I with a student at NACA
Coleman Productions Booth at NACA
Wrigley Field Chicago
Brian and Teresa's Baby Room. Can you tell Brian is an artist?
The happy expecting parents
More baby room art
Downtown Cleveland from the Hospital
The Belly Dancer and her "quarter trick"
Emporia State University
Emporia State Student Union. Location of my Creative Dating Show
New Mexico from the air