Big E’s Big Adventures

06/15/2026

This sounds like fun! 🇺🇸

SAVE THE DATE…. We have a new event coming this year to celebrate America’s 250th. Save the date for Saturday, July 18th, in downtown Monticello, Kentucky.@@

06/12/2026

Happy Birthday to blink-182’s Take Off Your Pants and Jacket.

Twenty-five years ago was my last summer as a kid—the summer between my junior and senior years of high school. On June 12, 2001, this album was released in three different versions, each featuring two unique bonus tracks available for a limited time. Once that initial run was gone, those songs were essentially lost unless you owned the CDs or were friends with a pirate. I still have my yellow “Pants” version all these years later.

And in a fitting way to celebrate the album’s 25th anniversary, all six of those long-out-of-print bonus tracks finally arrived on streaming services today, allowing a whole new generation of fans to hear them without having to track down the original CDs.

This was the soundtrack of the summer of 2001 for me and so many of my friends. blink-182 was an essential part of my growing up, and every time I hear these songs, I’m instantly transported back to being 17 years old.

Through breakups, makeups, and everything in between over the past two decades, I’ve been fortunate enough to see blink with my oldest during each of the last three summers, in three different cities. Every show takes me back to the first time I saw them live on the Take Off Your Pants and Jacket tour in 2001 at Starwood Amphitheatre.

A salute to blink-182—another band that has been there through so many of life’s highs and lows. From being a 17-year-old kid in the summer of 2001 to seeing them with my boy 20+ years later, these songs have been part of the soundtrack to my life.
🫡🔴🟡🟢

06/09/2026

Happy Birthday to my #1 duck and all time favorite in general! 92 looks great on you Donald!

06/08/2026

I don’t think anything in popular culture has had a bigger impact on my life than KISS.

In a lot of ways, a Gene Simmons meet-and-greet in 2017 helped start my wife and I’s relationship and opened the door to this entire comic con world that has become such a big part of our lives. Over the years, I’ve had the privilege of spending time with Gene and several other members of the band, often with access that the average fan can only dream about.

Looking back at the photo on the left, a 17-year-old kid taking his senior pictures in a KISS shirt couldn’t have imagined where that passion would eventually lead. These days, being around celebrities has become a fairly common occurrence, but music has always hit differently for me. To spend time with the artists whose songs helped me through different chapters of life is something I’ll always appreciate and never take for granted.

Some moments still remind me just how wild the journey has been. 🤘🏻🎸🔥

06/08/2026

Did you know? The RCA/Hoosier Dome once stood where the Indiana Convention Center sits today. Hidden in Exhibit Hall I is a marker showing the exact location of the 50-yard line.

Today, fans were lining up to meet celebrities like Nicolas Cage at Indiana Comic Convention. Twenty years ago, in this very spot, Peyton Manning was firing touchdowns to Marvin Harrison in front of a packed house. A little piece of Colts history is still right there beneath your feet. 🏈📍

I watched the Colts play the Broncos here in 2001.

06/07/2026

Uncle Gene

06/07/2026

Day 2 with Gene Simmons 🤘🏻😝

06/07/2026

Fanboy Expo crew with Gene Simmons at Indiana Comic Convention . We are here tomorrow too. Come see Gene, come say hi to us.

06/05/2026

Hello, Indianapolis 👋🏻

06/02/2026

I’ve spent 3 of the last 4 weekends away from my own bed, and this weekend the road takes me to Indianapolis for Indiana Comic Con to help with the Gene Simmons meet-and-greet. (Apparently some guy named Nic Cage will be there too…)

It’s kind of surreal when I stop and think about it. Of all the places life could have taken me, finding myself involved in opportunities connected to KISS is something I never would have imagined growing up.

As silly as it may sound to some people, being a KISS fan has had a huge impact on my life. In a lot of ways, it helped shape who I am and even played a part in putting me where I am today.

I’m not rich. I’m not famous. I’m just a guy trying to enjoy life, chase experiences, and bring others along for the ride. To be even the tiniest part of something like this—.0001%—is absolutely mind-blowing to me.

Sometimes life takes you places you never expected, and I’m grateful for every mile of the journey. 🤘🎸🔥