Being a sneaker wearing dad of two cute daughters I know I should be dishing out my best fatherly advice. Here are my guidelines every girl should know...

1. Boys Are Evil -
Really no explanation needed. Refer to #2.

2. Boys Only Want To See You Naked -
Do not under any circumstances find yourself alone with a boy until you are either in a very committed relationship or are married. Public places are fine. There is only one reason a boy would want to be alone with you - refer to #1.

3. Boys Do Not Love You -
If a boy tells you he loves you refer to #2. Boys lie, refer to #1.

4. Gossip Is Not As Important As Friendship -
Never say anything about a friend that you would not say to their face. No matter what, gossip will get out. Talk highly about your friends, talk sparingly about your enemies.

5. A True Friend Will Never Abandon You -
Short of murder and adultery, a true friend is one that sticks with you through thick and thin. If a friend abandons you, they most likely weren't a true friend in the first place. Don't abandon your friends when they need you most. A shoulder to cry on is a very special place.

6. Stay Educated -
You should always know who your politicians are, you should always know how to balance a checkbook, you should know how to cook at least one great meal, you should know the rules to at least one major sport, you should know how to change a flat, read whenever possible. Learn the game of golf or tennis.

7. Know How To Protect Yourself -
Refer to #2. Do not be paranoid but always be alert. Know the steps you would take to get out of any sticky situation. Knowledge will replace fear. Always be prepared.

8. The Borrower Is Slave To The Lender -
Stay out of debt whenever possible. Credit cards are almost as evil as boys. Learn to invest on your own. Create a budget and stick to it! Spend less than you earn. Save.

9. There's No Time Like The Present -
Do it now. Talking about things can be a waste of time. Take action. Start today and work out the details as you go along. Try things while you are young and get involved. On the other hand, you're never to old to start. Life is short, don't dilly-dally.

10. You Can Do Anything You Set Your Mind To -
If you want something bad enough, and you really make an effort to make it happen, the chances are that it will happen. Set goals and strive to meet them. Do not listen to naysayers. Dream big.

11. Giving Up Is Not An Option -
Don't give up and don't quit. The moment you are about to give up will be the moment that defines you. Avoid regret and give everything you do 110% effort.

12. Do -
Vote, Pray, Laugh, Share, Encourage, Exercise, Hug, Listen, Make Amends, Sacrifice, Forgive, Participate

13. Don't -
Lie, Cheat, Steal, Sulk, Belittle, Condemn, Overindulge, Smoke, Drink, Follow Blindly, Brag

This is a minor start. I will be adding more fatherly advice as my daughters grow older.

Labels: Daughters, Parenting

The hot wife and I were offered free tickets to see the #1 football team in the country. One of the couples in our tennis crew couldn't make the game. We accepted the deal and sped off to Norman, Oklahoma to watch a good old fashioned beating of TCU.

The photo above was taken with my iPhone and sent seconds later to this blog. Click on it for a bigger view.

Labels: Road Trips

Hey Guys! I know many of the surfers to this site are searching for cartoon tips, ideas and information. Since this blog leans more towards my family life and funny old memories I am moving most of my cartoon blogging to a new site.

I've been needing to do a cartoon blog anyway and the time is ripe to create one. If you are here for cartooning information hop over to my new cartoon blog at the Curtoons How To Cartoon Blog.

I'll keep you updated on the cartoon projects that I have going which include cartoon logo designs, my greeting card company, my clip art business, a cartoon character development site and my soon to be t-shirt empire.

Thanks for checking in! Make Life Happy and go buy some really cool sneakers.

Labels: blogging, Cartooning

The street that my friends and I lived along in the late 70's was a very wide avenue lined with older two story houses. Along every block there were very large elm trees that would cast great shadows over the bumpy sidewalks running along either side.

Each September would bring the beginning of Fall, the cooler air and the turning of the leaves on the huge trees standing in the front yards of most every home along the avenue. September also brought the beginning of the great cardboard box adventure.

I think I love Halloween so much because it brings back so many memories of my best friend and I and the adventures we had while building our own haunted maze inside his old, multi-room garage.

Our quest would begin with our carefree hunt for the biggest and best cardboard boxes in town. We were both in junior high and couldn't drive so we relied on our trusty old bicycles. You know the ones, bright colored paint, banana seats, chopper style handle bars, goofy white grips and chrome fenders. Real junior high nerd bikes straight out of the seventies.

My bike was multi-colored with reds, oranges and blues while my best friends was mostly green. We would ride these modes of monster transportation all over town searching out appliance stores, furniture stores, dumpsters and the most coveted place of all, the funeral homes. You see, couch boxes were good, refrigerator boxes were great, but coffin boxes were the piece de resistance of our haunted maze.

There was one slight problem when finding these magnificent boxes. Getting them back to the garage on our bikes became a small adventure in itself. Read more...

Labels: 70's, Curtis Tucker, funny moment, Halloween, Memories

I'm a pretty lucky guy. Not because I have an awesome wife, wonderful kids and my dream job. But because I pick up and collect lucky pennies, nickles, dimes, quarters and bills.

I began my lucky adventure somewhere around 1997 and have been collecting ever since. I now have one milk bottle full of lucky money and I'm beginning my second. I'm gathering up all of my luck for that one day when I'm really going to need it. When will it be? For what? Why? Who knows.

I'll keep picking up those lucky coins that most other people pass by and one of these days I'll put them to good use. I encourage you to spend a little time looking at the ground and you might be surprised at how many lucky coins you can find. I wish you all the best and good luck!

Labels: Curtis Tucker, hobbies, make money

Way back in the 70's the coolest thing about a phone was getting an extension for the coil cord connecting the hand receiver to the phone. Having that extension would allow you to walk all the way into the next room without having to carry the phone. Wow! What technology.

That wasn't the only cool thing to come along in the 70's in the way of telephone advancement. Remember when rotary phones were old school and the new technology was push buttons!! We were so advanced it wasn't even funny. And to think we didn't even know that slim line phones with push buttons on the receiver were just around the corner.

Fast forward to 2008 and the phone has evolved into the cell phone which has evolved into the most important piece of electronics in the modern world. You may be laughing and saying to yourself that the computer is the most important piece of electronics in the world today. Well, as all iPhones owners know, the iPhone is a computer!

The Tuckers should be known as the iFamily. At last count we had 10 iPods and 4 iPhones. We are definitely Apple Geeks and own four Mac computers.

The iPhone is the coolest piece of technology ever invented. It's a calendar, an address book, a camera, a photo album, a MP3 player, a video player, a text messenger, an email system, a weather forecaster, a calculator, a GPS system, an electronic map, an answering machine, a clock, an alarm, a stop watch, a notepad, an Internet browser and a phone! But that's not all! With the latest software, the iPhone has become thousands of more applications.

My newest favorite application, shown on my new iPhone in a photo taken by my old iPhone, is called iChoose. Have you been driving around trying to decide on where to eat? Can't decide if you should buy something or not? Are the kids unable to settle an argument?

iChoose solves all of those problems and more. Use the heads or tails coin or the yes/no button and instantly make life decisions that were once so hard to make. With the touch of your finger watch as the coin flips from heads to tails over and over again until it lands on the only probable choice. It is the ultimate decision maker, restaurant chooser, argument solver and all around fun application.

If you don't have iChoose get it for free. If you don't have an iPhone, call me, I have a slightly used 40 foot coil extension cord available for your handheld receiver.

Labels: 70's, Curtis Tucker, funny moment, Memories

I remember where I was when...

* The 1973 flood hit Enid
(Bailing water out of my great-grandma's basement on Johnson Street in Enid. She was kidsitting my sister and I when my mom went bowling.)
* I heard that Elvis had died
(Living on Broadway Street in Enid. My moms best friend called and told me to tell her that he had died.)
* President Reagan was shot
(In my house on Grant Street in Enid after school. I was sitting on a stool flipping between the channels because we didn't have remote controls.)
* The space shuttle Challenger exploded
(In my college rent house on Broadway Street in Edmond. Stood in the kitchen and watched it over and over on a tiny little TV with my roommates.)
* The Edmond post office shooting occurred
(Driving down Edmond Road in Edmond only five blocks from where it was happening on my way home. Got home and heard the helicopters buzzing overhead.)
* The OJ verdict was read
(Home for lunch at my house on Cherokee Street in Enid screaming guilty, guilty, guilty!)
* The OKC Murrah Building exploded
(In my office at Evans in Enid. Lillian Evans called and said there had been some type of explosion in downtown OKC.)
* The May 3rd F5 tornado hit OKC
(In my Honda Prelude with my wife driving right behind it as it lifted and left Del City/Midwest City.)
* I was told my Grandma had died
(At a seafood restaurant in Santa Barbara while driving up Highway 1 with my wife and her brothers family.)
* 9/11 happened
(Watching Fox News at my house in Enid. Went to work thinking a small plane had accidentally crashed into the World Trade Center.)

Labels: Curtis Tucker, Memories

As long as I can remember, going all the way back to junior high school, I have had a "thing" on my forehead. The first decade or so I didn't think much about it and always wrote it off as a growth, wart or birthmark. I've always been asked what it is and never really knew what to tell people.

It's never really grown much or changed. It never hurts. And it has kinda become my mascot. I did get annoyed with it a few years back and took the Compound W to it. I almost had it gone, when what'ya know, it came right back. That's when I figured I wasn't dealing with any ordinary wart.

The other day, hot wife and I were shopping with a couple from our tennis crew. He's a doctor, she's a shopper. He looked over at me and without much emotion asked, "What's that on your forehead?" I answered with my standard, "I don't know, it's been there as long as I can remember. I think it might be some kind of wart." He very casually stated, "That's basal cell carcinoma. You need to have that removed."

Wow! Needless to say I was a bit flabbergasted. I asked what that meant exactly. He told me I had skin cancer but not to worry, I wasn't going to die. Thank goodness! I just started my own blog and I've got lots more to say!

I'm now going to schedule surgery and have my little friend removed. I'll most likely replace my "thing" with a scar but at age 46 (I think) I'm too old to really give a hoot.

So let this be a warning to all parents and kids. Wear some sunscreen and when you have a growth you're not sure about, go see a doctor. I'll keep you informed on how things go.

Labels: Curtis Tucker, Getting Old, Memories

My littlest little crumb cruncher turned 5 this weekend and we threw her a glamour shots style party with many of her friends. This is her older sister playing reporter during the party...

Labels: Daughters, Memories, video

The pool is officially closed and the girls are back in school. Here they are showing off missing matching front toofs. There are many times lately that they look very much like twins.

If I remember correctly, I lost both of my front teeth at the same time. I believe I was in the first grade. My mom was helping me pull a shirt over my head and the neck of the shirt caught on my loose front teeth. One yank and my teeth went flying as the shirt came over my head.

I most likely got a couple of quarters, whereas today, our daughters rake in 5 dollar bills for each tooth. Even the tooth fairy is keeping up with inflation.

Labels: Daughters, funny moment, Memories