It's my time at the plate. I've been tagged in this silly little "100 things about me" game. I'll play along. Here you go.
100 Things about Ronzo
1. I was born Ronald Edward Philley, November 25, 1977, in Monroe, LA.
2. I lived in West Monroe, LA from birth until I was 15, @ which time my family moved to Birmingham (Hoover), AL, when my dad got transferred w/ his company (State Farm Ins.).
3. I grew up attending McClendon Baptist Church, and much of my childhood memories are from various church activities.
4. I became acutely aware of my sinful nature, and my need for Christ @ age 8, and I consider this my conversion.
5. My parents, Christine and Freddie, live in Jackson, MS
6. I have a sister, Rebekah, and brother-in-law Jeff who live in Montgomery, AL
7. I have a 2 ½ year old son named Samuel Frederick, we call him “Sam”
8. My wife is Penny Layne Philley, we met in Monroe, LA while both attending the school formerly known as Northeast Louisiana University (now The University of Louisiana @ Monroe).
9. I had seen Penny from a distance and thought she was attractive, but I knew she was dating some other guy. The first time I had a conversation with this “guy” about her, I broke a tooth on the hamburger I was eating.
10. I am a Physician Assistant (PA). I practice in Orthopaedic Spine Surgery. I’d love to explain to anyone interested what it is I do, there’s just not enough space here.
11. My first job as a PA was in neurosurgery. What I do now is very similar, minus the brain surgery. Brain surgery made me nervous. I was always worried the patient wouldn’t wake up…it happens.
12. I enjoy golf. My best round ever was 78 @ Goose Pond Colony. I’ve only broken 80 once, but have come close many times. I’m not a very good putter.
13. I am a runner.
14. I ran my first race @ 3 yrs old. It was a one mile fun run. My pediatrician scolded my mom and dad for letting me do it.
15. I played soccer and baseball growing up.
16. Around my 6th grade year of school I began to get chubby (from eating powdered donuts and drinking too much Brite and Early, a delicious orange drink, but no actual fruit juice).
17. I started running my 7th grade year of school, b/c: 1.I wanted to lose weight 2.My dad was a good runner and I thought I might have a shot @ being good as well.
18. My 7th grade home room teacher thought I had an eating disorder b/c I went from chubby to really lean in a matter of months. She actually approached my parents about it. Running was almost instantly successful for me.
19. I took piano lessons. I didn’t practice enough to do really well at it.
20. I started playing guitar 1994. Mostly b/c I wanted to be able to lead worship @ my church and play my favorite songs.
21. The first car I drove was a 1987 Ford Ranger extended cab. I got my license @ 15 b/c in LA that was the driving age, and although I was 15 when we moved to AL, I still got to drive legally. So I was the only person in my grade that drove to school.
22. Penny’s 7 months pregnant. We’re having another boy, Luke. I want to make his middle name Ronald.
23. I love my grandma deeply and was really close to my grandpa – we called him “Doc,” but his name was Ronald. Now you know where I got my name. He would take me hunting and I have really fond memories of those times with him.
24. Traveling from north to south you have to take a “duty ferry” to get to my grandparents house in Enterprise, LA. We traveled there a lot growing up.
25. I enjoy comedy in most of its forms, especially movies. The stupider the humor, the more I like it. Potty humor is not wasted on me. (insert fart noise here)
26. I didn’t get into trouble much in grade school, but 2 times stick out: 1. I threw a piece of chain and hit a boy in the head causing him to bleed (heavily) from the forehead. (1st grade) 2. A girl (whom I disliked) threw a big red rubber ball and hit me in the face, so I called her the bad name for a female dog that starts with a “B” (5th grade) – got a paddling for that one. I’m sure there were others, I guess I just don’t feel really bad for them.
27. Occasionally I’ll wake up from sleep remembering something I forgot to do for a patient. Fortunately I’ve not had the situation where this happens and it’s been “too late” – if you know what I mean.
28. I was a “Student Ambassador” @ Hoover High School, which meant that I gave tours of our new school (b/c it was innovative @ the time).
29. I was awarded a Track and Cross Country scholarship to NLU (ULM). I ran all 4 years. I was mediocre @ best, but I did manage to score in our conference meets a few times.
30. Despite being a mediocre runner, I managed to be named “Student Athlete of the year” my senior year.
31. I did a bunch of other extra-curricular stuff in college, BCM praise team, FCA, I was in a band, this kind of thing.
32. Before Penny and I got married, I lived in a cabin on the bayou that ran through our campus. Our rent was free as long as we cut the grass of the church who owned the property. The cabin was a complete dump, and frankly, should not have been occupied.
33. Other professions that I’ve considered: Teacher, Lawyer, private dancer – dancer for money
34. I got my B.S. from ULM in 2001 in Radiologic Technology
35. Before I was a PA, I was a radiologic technologist, (I took x-rays).
36. I went to PA (grad) school @ the University of South Alabama. I finished the Masters of Health Science degree in 2004. That (as a friend recently pointed out) makes me a scientist. As a scientist I recommend that you not hold in your flatulence, it will only create abdominal discomfort.
37. My soph. year of high school, I was given the nickname “All State” by the baseball team, b/c, after poking fun @ me about my running shorts, I told an upperclassmen that when he was named to the All State team in his sport (he was not, and I was) then he’d have room to poke fun.
38. During PA school, my good friend Hank lived with us for a few months. I enjoyed it. Penny would consider it a “difficult time in our marriage.”
39. In my first marathon, I finished second in 2:45. I led for 21 miles. It was heartbreaking to get passed, but I was hurting so bad, I just wanted to finish.
40. My worst teacher ever, Ms. Lay, 5th grade. She had it out for me. Don’t know why, maybe I intimidated her w/ my boyish good looks and charm.
41. The first girl I kissed: Nicki Colvin. She was in 6th grade and I was in 5th. What can I say, the older women can’t get enough of the Ronzo.
42. I was given the nickname Ronzo by a guy named Jeff Wallace. A church friend from Monroe
43. I never realized how selfish I was until I got married. I was reminded again when we had Sam. These are truly life-changing events. I expect to be reminded again when we have Luke.
44. Current favorite restaurant: Carraba’s
45. Recent favorite TV series: Scrubs, 30 Rock
46. Favorite Sports to watch on TV: Track and Field, golf, college football, cycling, NASCAR
47. I’m almost ashamed to admit it, but I’m more likely to watch a romantic comedy than any other genre of movie.
48. Favorite golf course ever played: Shoal Creek (aka golf heaven)
49. Foreign Country I would most like to live: Australia (never been there though)
50. If I had unlimited funds, I would have a home with a really high end studio and invite people to come record, no matter who they were. I would also have a pottery studio.
51. City outside of the South that I would most like to live: Eugene Oregon (track town USA)
52. Golf course I’d most like to play but will likely never get the chance: Augusta National
53. I would love to learn various trades i.e. carpentry, plumbing, wiring. I would then love to buy and flip homes for profit. I’ve discovered that this desire is fairly common among men in my age group.
54. My mom was a 4-H agent during my early childhood, so I was very active in 4-H. I won a few cooking competitions, my specialty…catfish nuggets.
55. My grandpa was a catfish farmer. We ate lots of catfish.
56. I ran for class president in junior high…didn’t win. I lost to the popular cheerleader (imagine that). We fell into a recession under her administration. I had big plans.
57. My parents owned a children’s clothing store in West Monroe which they sold when we moved. I had a baseball card stand in one corner of their store. I ran this with a friend of mine who had a ton of good cards. We made like $1.50. It was awesome.
58. I appreciate good singer/songwriter/musicians. It’s one thing to have someone write your song, play the music for you, make you sound good by manipulating your voice, and marketing you in a clever way. It’s quite another to write a good song, play it and sing it yourself and make it sound good. Now that, my friend, is talent. Unfortunately, these people aren’t the ones that get played on the radio.
59. I think politics suck. Government is necessary. It just sucks the way we do things. Sucks. I don’t use that word often, or lightly.
60. I use to go to 4-H camp and slow dance w/ all the chicks to REO Speedwagon songs (and I can’t fight this feeling anymore). They use to keep those bunkhouses soooo cold.
61. I almost had to catch my first-born. He just came out of nowhere, thank goodness for nurses with good hands.
62. I consider my job to be a mix between psychotherapist and plastic surgeon.
63. The two schools which I attended for high school (West Monroe & Hoover) have both been featured on television (MTV and ESPN) for their high profile football teams.
64. I hope to one day have another dog, maybe even dogs, when the time is right.
65. The theological truth that has most recently affected my thinking: the immutability of God.
66. The times that I find most precious with Sam is when we put him to bed and he wants me to lay in bed with him and sing. His favorite songs: twinkle twinkle, London bridge, Jesus loves me, zacheus. Love it.
67. Balancing providing as best you can for your family, while at the same time spending as much time with them as you can, in my opinion, is one of the biggest challenges a man faces.
68. In the back of my year book, senior year, my parents bought one of those ads where you have your picture and they say something like “good luck, don’t trip and fall at your wedding.” They put a quote from Rudyard Kipling: “If you can keep your head while all about you, others are losing theirs and blaming it on you, If you can fulfill the unforgiving minute with 60 seconds worth of distance run, yours is the world and all that’s in it, and what’s more, you’ll be a man, my son. I like that..still.
69. If I had a week off and it was b/n a paid vacation to the beach versus a trip to the mountains for which I had to pay….mountains…every time.
70. Things that I like the “idea of” more than I’d like actually doing: cycling up mountains, saving money, blogging, writing and recording songs, re-painting rooms, once again packing all our stuff in a moving truck, this list could get long.
71. Favorite Candy Bar: Zero
72. I use to throw papers in college for a short while. It’s tough, relentless work.
73. I often wonder how I will die. At this point, it’s not really fear or anxiety, just curiosity. There’s this Death Cab for Cutie song that asks “who’s gonna watch you die?” Interesting question.
74. Liberal media angers me.
75. My college roommate, Madison Flowers, once said about Penny, “She sounds very motherly..in a good way.” I thought this was a good thing, since she’d be mother to my children. Her gentle spirit was very attractive to me.
76. I remember this one time Penny drove down from Monroe to Ocean Springs to meet me at my parents house. I was outside when she drove up, and I specifically remember thinking how pretty she was, and how lucky I was to have her. I don’t know why, but that still sticks in my head. She’s still pretty, and I’m still lucky.
77. I sold shoes at McRae’s in the Riverchase Galleria while I was in high school.
78. On track trips, I use to pee in Gatorade bottles on the back of the bus. You’ve got to stay hydrated, and they wouldn’t stop often enough for me. I got pretty good at it and don’t ever recall spilling…or drinking out of the wrong bottle.
79. We had this bus driver @ ULM who was narcoleptic. I promise. It was the Freshmen duty to sit in the front of the bus and talk to him so he wouldn’t fall asleep.
80. Penny and I were married July 31, 1999 in West Monroe, LA @ Twin Cities Bible Church.
81. Our honeymoon: a cruise to the Bahamas.
82. There were a couple of movies I remember watching a lot as a child: Rad, and Goonies. Both classics!
83. I was never really good at Nintendo.
84. I played French Horn in junior high and high school, I also play trumpet. I loved being in band @ West Monroe High, but decided not to join the band @ Hoover. Ultimately, there are only so many hours in a day.
85. I was first chair all-district in 8th grade.
86. I still enjoy classical music, and I would love to have season tickets to the symphony, and probably will one day.
87. I don’t read much.
88. Favorite Color: Blue
89. Random Childhood Hero: Billy Mills (look it up)
90. I once scored a goal on the kickoff of a soccer game. Probably the only sporting achievement that could have made sportscenter.
91. Last movie I saw: Horton hears a Who
92. I sleep on my stomach
93. My favorite dish that Penny fixes: Crawfish Fettucine
94. Favorite Cookie: White chocolate macadamia nut – Otis spunkmeyer brand
95. I often get teary eyed at those athlete profile/documentaries they do during the Olympics and other major sporting events. I’m pretty sure that’s their goal, to get people to cry. Gets me every time. Suckers.
96. Favorite season: College Football…just kidding…Fall (but Spring’s pretty nice too)
97. I have had a lot of dental work done, mostly fillings, crowns, more fillings and crowns.
98. Yellow cake, chocolate icing and a glass of milk. Nuff said.
99. I was a child clothing model.
100. I’d rather go to the dentist than do another one of these lists. You stay classy.
This will be my last blog entry for awhile. I'm burnt out.
As you can see in this next picture his legs aren't quite long enough to pedal. He has to stretch big time just to touch.
So Pops, his engineer-granddad, decided to give Sam a better chance at pedaling. Two small wooden blocks were taped (with electrical tape) around the existing pedal. Good try Pops; but unfortunately it didn't work. For now I guess he'll just coast down the hill.
