Breaking Away: Jeff Block's Blog

Found these while digging up pictures of Chris and Brad and company.  Thought you’d like to see them…

Chris and I met in college. We lived in the same dorm. I’ll always remember that it was the goal of both Chris and his roommate Mike (not my brother Mike) to ensure that when they left the University, there would be new rules in the dorm handbook because of them. Of course, they succeeded.  So now, if you stay in the dorms at the University of Illinois, you can no longer…

1. Ride a unicycle in the hallway, and
2. Install a ceiling fan in your dorm room

‘Nuff said.

Chris graduated two years after me. When he did, my roommate Reggie (below, being accosted by Chris with a MegaZooka) and I invited him to live with us. The three of us moved into a two-story penthouse apartment in Elmhurst, and had a great couple years. In our time there, Tim Allen (Chris) and I build a model railroad around the living room (about a foot below the ceiling), hoisted a 12′- and then the next year an 18′ live Christmas tree up the side of the building so we could have a tree that filled our vaulted living room, nearly killed ourselves at Fuddrucker’s first Fat Tuesday celebration eating 5lb cheeseburgers, and so on. When I finally moved out, Chris replaced me with a 125 gallon marine aquarium. I think you get the idea. Way too many stories in my life end, “… then I spent the night on Chris’ bathroom floor.” 

Chris and I used to eat a lot of 50pc buckets of McDonalds chicken McNuggets, sacks of 20 from White Castle, and other assorted bad-for-us food that comes in large quantities. And wisdom … we’ve sought a lot of wisdom.  No wonder we’re both large!  🙂

Because we’re such movie nuts, we’ve also talked on and off about starting a movie rating site. If it ever happens, I’m sure you’ll want to check it out (promises great humor), and I’m sure you’ll hear about it here.  Chris works hard (completed his MBA in 2006), loves to blow things up, is always ready for a great time, and is a terrific friend.

You’ll laugh at these…

My parents, Don and Carol Block were born in 1937 and 1941 respectively.  They have both lived all their lives in the St. Louis area, and live there to this day in the same house I grew up in.  They are both retired, but are still some very busy people.My mom was a computer scientist before there were computer scientists. She worked for 30 years (1963-1993) as a software analyst. She was a pioneer, and has seen some amazing things, not the least of which being her involvement with the early days of the space program. Pretty neat stories to be told — like when she watched them unload the first computer off the truck that actually had memory, or when the recruiter for her job told her that if there’d been any men around to hire, she wouldn’t have gotten the job, or when she worked on the F-18.  Amazing stuff.  Mom’s a book worm and a writer. Although she’s worked with computers all her life, she could easily have been an editor.  She now volunteers as the librarian for their church, and has a heart of service toward so many people around her.

My dad was a mailman, for about 25 years. In his life, he’s been a banker and the foreman at a steel mill, but was a mailman as long as I can remember. He was great at it to. My dad’s the kind of guy that’s never met a stranger. He seems to know everybody. Even when we went on out-of-state vacations as a family, he would always run into people he knew. Dad’s the hardest working person I’ve ever met. He loves spending time on his farm, planting trees, building bird houses, harvesting vast quantities of blackberries or peaces or whatever else his orchard is producing in a given day.  His arch nemesis:  the Japanese beetle. 

Key food-related information (gotta keep my priorities straight):  My mom makes the best pies I’ve ever had.  My dad’s famous for his pancake breakfast.  It’s no wonder I’m big.  🙂

My parents have always been my biggest fans.  They’ve never failed to be supportive of me, even when I’ve so often had no clue about anything.  And as I’ve grown up and become an old bald guy myself, we have become friends too.  I love that!

Here are some pictures, both of my parents, and of some of our extended family…

In the picture to the right, here’s everyone’s names… From left to right:  Don (my dad), Jeff (me), Phil (my mom’s dad), Mike (my brother), Carol (my mom), Marilyn (my dad’s sister).  This was before I was married and before grandpa died, when we surprised my parents for their 30th anniversary, in 2001.