February 15. 2008 by Keegan Hall.

This past Monday and Tuesday I was in Chicago for business meetings. Although the vast majority of my trip consisted of sit-downs with the largest advertising agencies in America, I did carve out some time to sample some of the most famous pizza in the world- Chicago style!

Two days, two pizza restaurants. I couldn’t get enough! The two world famous pizza parlor that I visited were Giordano’s and Pizzeria Uno. Although both were mouth-wateringly delicious, there was definitely a clear winner: Giordano’s.

If you ever have plans to visit downtown Chicago then you must visit Giordano’s. You can thank me later.

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February 7. 2008 by Keegan Hall.

Everyone experiences high stress at some point in their life. Often times stress stems from work or personal life. Generally speaking I have no problem coping with stressful situations; in fact, I am often at my best while amidst heavy stress.

However, over the past few months I’ve had to endure an extremely high amount of stress. As Vice President of Sales and Marketing for a multi-million dollar company I naturally have to deal with a variety of stresses that most people would never even think about. I understood this prior to accepting the position so I am able to relatively smoothly handle any work-related obstacles that comes my way.

Obviously my career causes me plenty of stress, however it doesn’t end there. A month ago my wife and I had our first child. Welcome to the world of ZERO sleep. Have you ever tried to function at a high level mentally with minimal sleep? Saying it’s “challenging” would be a severe understatement.

I’ve open a new chapter in my life. I have taken on an extremely challenging job while bearing the responsibly of adding a new member to my family. Quite the balancing act, huh? But I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’m learning so much about myself and my own limitation and, over these past few months, I’ve noticed that I am able to accomplish much more then I thought I could. I guess the cliche is true: “what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger”…and I feel like Hercules…

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February 5. 2008 by Keegan Hall.

Traveling has always been a passion of mine. While in college, I was fortunate to have the opportunity to live in Italy for over three months. During this time I enjoyed many adventures and accumulated numerous unforgettable experiences- many were certainly not accessible to the common tourist.

My apartment was located in Rome but I traveled extensively throughout the entire country. I became intimately knowledgeable about the city of Rome due to befriending a few Romans early into my adventure. They took me under their wing and personally guided me through the Eternal City while introducing me to sights and sounds that only locals would know.

Socializing is the glue of the Roman society so it’s no wonder that many evenings were spent out on the town amongst friends. One such night we ventured to a “hidden” nightclub. After navigating through a series of alleyways near the Campo de Fiori in downtown Rome we finally came to a single door. There were no markings to indicate this building was a club- or anything for that matter. At first glance it appeared to be an abandoned building. As I stood in the background, my Roman friends approach the door and knocked. Within a few seconds the door opened and we entered.

Wow! I couldn’t believe my eyes. Before me was a seemingly endless sea of people. Everyone was dancing, drinking and having the time of their lives. Describing this marvelous evening would simply take took long. Needless to say, we had an incredible night. This was certainly not a place that was accessible to tourists.

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February 4. 2008 by Keegan Hall.

Well, well, well. All those cocky New England fans are finally mute since their Pats were unthinkably defeated by the New York Giants on Sunday night. Too bad for the Patriots as the stage was set for them to become the unanimous selection for greatest football team of all time after coasting through the entire regular season. After all, they had strung together 18 impressive wins in a row. They need just one more with to achieve perfection, however the Giants had other plans as they stunned the Patriots - and the world - with a 17-14 victory and ruined the Pats quest for perfection.

At the center of this unimaginable upset was a single offensive play by the Giants that may go down in the history books as the “best catch ever”. It has already being referred to simply as “the play”. If you watch the game last night then you know exactly what I’m taking about. With time running down in the 4th quarter, Giants QB Eli Manning narrowly avoided a seemingly inevitable sack. He spun away from the Patriot defenders and wound up to launch the ball as far as his arm would allow. The ball drifted down the field with ease. Manning’s wide receiver, David Tyree, leapt into the air making an unthinkable catch as he trapped the ball again his helmet with one hand! Yes, he caught the ball with one hand and his helmet! The pass was completed for 32 yard and set up the game-winning touchdown. Simply amazing!

Super Bowl XLII seemed to have it all: the clear favorite in the Patriots, an unassuming underdog in Giants and all the suspense you could handle. In the end, the night belonged to the Giants as they completed arguably the biggest upset in Super Bowl history. So, was it the best Super Bowl ever? My vote is an emphatic “YES!”

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February 1. 2008 by Keegan Hall.

Art has alway been a major part of my life. Above are three pieces of my own art (you’ll have to excuse the glare on the pictures- I was too lazy to take the art out of their frames). The first is a pencil drawing I did of my wife for her birthday. The second is a self-portrait created using charcoal. The third is- you guessed it- Disney’s Sleeping Beauty that I made with colored pencils. Even as a small child I can remember drawing nearly every day. When I was in 6th grade I won an art contest to design our school yearbook (I drew a growling husky- our mascot). I’m not sure where I derived my passion for art. Neither of my parent have an ounce of artistic ability (they were both incredible athletes) although they have always been extremely supportive. I suppose they should get their share of credit for allowing me to develop my talent.

When I was in high school I began to take are more seriously although my true passion didn’t fully blossom until I began taking art classes at the University of Washington. All of a sudden I was surrounded by other artists who take their craft very seriously- maybe some too seriously. I have never been overly complex when it came to creating my art. I would draw a picture and, for the most part, what you see is what you get- there was no hidden, deeper meaning. I was completely astonished when I would hear my fellow art students speak about their work. If you’ve ever taken a college art class you know what I’m talking about. I think people just make things up as they talk. I mean really- if you could have heard some of my “peers” describe their artwork you would want to instantly commit them to a mental house. I guess that makes you “good artist”.

In the end, it’s all about the art. Although I have not been creating artwork as often as I would like- when I do it’s extremely relaxing. The feeling of “escaping reality” and being lost in your own creativity is very refreshing and invigorating. Not only do I get to administer my own form of self-solace but, in the end, I have a finished piece of artwork that I can be proud of. I think this is where my passion for art is fostered. And it is this same reason that I will continue to create art for a long as I live.

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January 31. 2008 by Keegan Hall.

I’ll admit it…I love sports. A lot. My wife can attest to this as virtually all of my tv time is spent consuming various sporting events. Although basketball is by far my favorite, I must say soccer is second. Yep, soccer. Not football or baseball. Soccer.

Soccer is by far the most popular sport in the world but, interestingly enough, the vast majority of Americans could care less. I cannot figure out why there is such apathy towards this amazing sport. Have most Americans not seen a pro soccer match? I’m not talking about the MLS (although the league is getting better every year). I’m referring to a pro match in Europe. The game is absolutely incredible! European soccer combines pure athleticism with uncanny finesse unlike any other sport in the world. These athletes are truly gifted.

While in college I had the opportunity to study abroad in Rome, Italy. Wanting to experience all that is Italian, I made my way to a Roma soccer match. Wow! That’s all it took. I was hooked and went back each weekend for more!

Sure, there are many dedicated sports fans here in the USA but the commitment of these fans pale in comparison to those in Europe. No contest. These Italian soccer fan would die for their team- literally. In fact, one of the matches I attend, Roma vs Juventus, I almost died. Well, I would have if the Juve fans had found out my allegiance to the Roma squad.

This was one of the biggest matches of the year and it was nearly impossible to get a ticket. Quickly running out of options, I had no choice but to purchase tickets from a scalper. This weaselly Italian assured me these seats were on the Roma side of the field. Of course, me being the naive American, I believed him. I went strolling in to the arena covered from head to toe in Roma apparel. When I got to the gate the ticket taker took once look at my seat location and replied “I can’t let you go in there dressed like that.” What? What’s the big deal? Apparently it was a big deal.

Luckily had an impartial jacket with me. I quickly threw the jacket on and zipped it up as high as a could. If you looked closely you could still see a glimmer of “Roma red” inside my collar. I literally had to hold my collar tightly closed for the entire game.

But holding my collar shut wasn’t the most difficult part- it was dodging the various debris that was flying through the air. The hatred between these two teams actually fuel fans to throw items (water bottles, coins, rocks, etc) and each other. Although I was riveted to the match, I had no choice but to keep one eye fixed on permantant look out.

Needless to say, this was quite an experience that left an everlasting impression on me. Soccer embodies competition in its purest form. This competition is not only felt by each player but also personified by each fan. Soccer is simply amazing and it’s about time that more sports fans in American take notice.

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January 30. 2008 by Keegan Hall.

On January 4th 2008 I became a first-time daddy to a baby girl we named Payton. Leading up to the big day I didn’t have much of a desire to watch the birth of the baby. “Are you crazy!” I heard from multiple friends and family members. “A birth of a child is the most amazing experience!” Yeah, sure. Let’s just say that I don’t do well in the presence of blood so, needless to say, they didn’t have much luck persuading me.

Leading up to the actual birth I stayed rather firm on my stance to not view the birth. Of course I fully intended to be by my wife’s side and offer any and all support that I could. My game plan was to simply drift back into the shadows of the delivery room once it became apparent that it’s “go time”.

My wife’s contractions quickly became increasingly intense. “It’s almost time” I thought to myself. As I stood there holding one of her legs up (the nurse had the other) I began to calculate the perfect time to make my exit. I soon realized that I wasn’t going to get an opportunity to leave. The baby is coming now!

Suddenly, from beneath a crisp white sheet, rose a screaming baby girl. Panic. Knowing that I had nowhere to run, I braced myself for the worse. However my apprehension was quickly subdued as I took my first glimpse of my child.

I cannot to begin to explain the feelings that rushed through my body at that moment. I was suddenly hit with in intense rush of unexpected emotion. Seeing your own child- your OWN child- is simply amazing. “Look at what we created” my wife said as we peered into each other’s glassy eyes.They were right, this is the most incredible experience and I am forever grateful that I didn’t miss it.

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January 29. 2008 by Keegan Hall.

I think I am the minority amongst my friends: I enjoy reading. I typically read books that pertain to business, success and personal development and occasionally mix in a variety of magazines. I recently finished a book called The 4 Hour Workweek.

As the title suggests, the author -Tim Ferriss- offers numerous antidotes for eliminating your 9-to-5 in hopes of ultimately joining the “New Rich”. I must say this book opened my mind in a variety of ways. Although a few of the tid-bits offered in the book are a little far-fetched, there were numerous chapters that really got the synapses in my brain firing.

I have an immense curiosity for languages and Tim Ferriss touches on this subject in this book. He boasts that he can speak numerous languages fluently and that anyone can learn a language within one hour. Yes, one hour. Although he claims that you will not “master” the language, it is certainly reasonable to be conversational within one hour.

Tim’s assertion stems from the fact that many languages are similar in grammatical structure. The key is to really breakdown that structure to uncover the root of the language. Be sure to take notice of the following relationship: is the sentence structured as “subject-object-verb” or “subject-verb-object”. Once you understand this relationship then the task of constructing a sentence in a foreign language is much more manageable.

I took Spanish during my high school days (didn’t everyone?) and had an opportunity to study abroad in Rome, Italy while in college. My wife is originally from Romania so, as you can see, there are a few different languages that regularly clunk around inside my head. I broke down the Romanian language (with the help of my wife, of course) and explored the relationship between SOV and SVO. We took a few basic sentences to use as examples. I must admit, once I really took notice to these relationship, the language seemed much more manageable to learn. Although I am nowhere near fluent, I certainly have a renewed enthusiasm for learning this language that I formerly deemed “impossible”.

I highly recommend this book as it full of extremely useful tips and tricks that anyone can implement today. Check it out.

Free Spanish Lessons!!

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January 28. 2008 by Keegan Hall.

Well, I finally did it. I got a blog. I think I have some interesting ideas that are worthy of you pondering. We’ll see if you agree. Stay tuned…

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