Hey there. Just wanted to show off some hilarious photos from our friends Cathi and Paul's visit back in early November (seems like MUCH longer ago than that). Cathi emailed me some photos that really cracked me up, and reminded me of what a great time we all had.

First, the cast of characters:


That's Paul, Cathi, Elizabeth, and me, at our friend Clarke's new casa. I'm especially happy to see a decent photo of myself for a change, though it's odd seeing a photo of 4 people in which Elizabeth is the shortest -- she and Cathi are both about six feet tall, and it appears that Paul is 6'3" or so, that bastard. Yeah, we're competitive. More on that in a bit...

Next, we went to watch the Iowa Hawkeyes play at an area bar. Cathi and I are grads of the University of Iowa, where we became friends way back in '89 or so. Here was my suggested attire for the game:


Luckily, Lizzie didn't let me out of the house like that. Sometimes my school spirit, it just overwhelms me...

Toward the end of the game, as Iowa was rolling to victory, Paul and I -- like any red-blooded man watching football -- got hungry. So we went to Remington Grille next door. They had all you can eat RIBS. Ribs!


This is where things got... ugly. And the competition began. Who could eat the most pork? Mike? Paul? Who was the bigger man?

Don't ask Cathi:


That look on her face is priceless.

We had a kick-ass time. A bottle of Tums later, and I was like a new man. It's always great to see old friends, and get to know new friends better. And eat ribs. And drink beer. Later!