August 20th, 2008

IKEA - My thoughts

Overpriced, trendy furniture designed by people with names that sounds like a spelled out sneeze that you have to put together yourself.   Awesome.  Does one really need a colander designed by Sven Bjortyzininaksinsialerisyd?  Just asking.  On the plus side, it was easy to put together.

August 1st, 2008

Long Live the Meat Coma

Wow.. So it's been a year and a half since I've written something.  Sorry about that, Lance.

Being of the lower end of the middle class income range, I have to pick and choose when my wife and I decide to eat "fancy-schmancy".  I don't want to be in the hole for 50-75 dollars for what in the end is a glorified Banquet TV dinner.  Not that there is anything wrong with the tv dinner, but it's a matter of perspective.  Paying a dollar for "rib-like" schmeat is ok, paying 40 bucks for "rib-like" schmeat with some garnish on the side, however,  is NOT ok.  Anyhoo.  The greatness of the Banquet Rib tv dinner can be the subject of a future writing.

I travel a lot for a living and have the glory of an expense account ($46 a day).  This allows me to experiment on someone else's dollar.  If the meal at (insert fancy restaurant with collared dress-code here) sucks, well, no big deal.  Wasn't my money. 

I was recently in Memphis and had the privilege to eat at Rendezvous Smoked Ribs.  If you are ever there, you have to go.  It's a hole in the wall on the outside, but quite nice and funky on the inside.  Rendezvous was right next to the Holiday Inn Select where I was staying.  Rendezvous had these 4 or 5 story exhaust pipes for the smoker and you could smell it on the 6th floor where I was.  Sooooo goooood.  I hurt myself that night. 

But that place wasn't expensive, but I'm getting to it.

My last day there, I was taken by the bank I was working for to Texas de Brazil.  Warning.. If you are a vegetarian or a vegan (or freak as I call them), do not enter Texas de Brazil.  Your head will instantly blow off your neck in glorious techno-color.  What this place is is a Brazilian steakhouse.  These Gauchos (waiters) walk around with the huge pieces of meat on a 2 1/2 feet skewer offering you meat. Chicken, Beef, Lamb, Pork.. GLORIOUS MEAT.  Not schmeat, but meat.  Artery clogging, heart attack inducing, cholesterol chocking glorious meat, fat packing meat.

They give you a little cardboard circle.. One side is green, one side is red.  Green is meat, red is no meat.  But here is how it works.  Greenside up....They bring you meat.  Red side up....They bring you meat.  The Gaucho knows best.

They do have a salad bar, but why bother.  It's set pricing, so a veggie freak would just be wasting their money.  But there is so much meat, the smell of dead animal should keep those freaks away.

The downside of eating all that meat is that it makes you sleepy and I was driving home right after lunch.  I thought I was going to go into a meat coma about an hour west of Little Rock.  Whheeoooo!  Man, those eyelids were getting heavy.

I did make it home.  And now, to take the wife.  It will probably run about 80 bucks or more when all said and done, but it's money well spent if I eat Ramen for the next week or so.

Feburary 7th, 2007

Chance of Showers


What is wrong with men? I know that doesn't exactly narrow it down as
there are many things that women can point out in answer to that
question. So allow me to narrow it down for you. Why can't men pee into
a toilet without it looking like they either suddenly contracted epilepsy
or got shot with a large caliber handgun? Is the bowl not big enough?
Are they pretending that they are putting out a forest fire? Are men
distracted during this relatively simple act? 

Maybe I just have an advantage since I am only 5'6 and I am relatively close to the bowl.

I work in an office that is filled with white collar professionals. Most
of these people are college educated and for the most part, reasonably
intelligent. Yet the toilets do their best to emulate the bathroom at a
rock concert or a low-end bar at closing time, where at least they have
the excuse of be it stoned, drunk or both.

I went to do the second most dirty of deeds and had to go into the
sit-down stall as there was a line at the standup. Somebody not only
partially missed the bowl ENTIRELY, but didn't even bother to raise the
seat. I've seen better restroom conditions at an interstate rest stop.

Heck, I even have the courtesy that if I do get a rouge splashup (which
can happen despite your best one-eyed aiming efforts), to get some toilet
paper and do a quick swipe of the seat. The thought that you can get a
urine sample of employee X off of my bottom just gives me the full-body shivers.

Maybe catheters should become mandatory for men in my state. I wouldn't be totally against it.

September 23, 2006

Gosh-Damned Steve Jobs 

I hate trendy crap!  Hate it! Hate it! Hate it!  I'm not a very trendy person.  Just ask my friends.  I like misfit cars from the 70's, like Pintos, Mavericks, Vegas and long nosed T-birds and Cougars, Atari 2600's and other out of date things.  Not "retro" out of date cool, just out of date. I wear just basically t-shirts, jeans and whatever tennis shoe was on sale.  Never owned a pair of parachute pants or one of those jackets with 500 pockets or a pair of Vans. Well, I did own a pair of British Knights once, but that was a long time ago and they fell apart so fast, it just reaffirmed that simple is better.  My television is still a tube, no home theater and my dvd player is nearly 6 years old. 

Starbucks....Krisky Kreme... Marc Echo.. Tommy Hilfiger, Hummers (the bloated SUV's that is..I'd pay for the other kind).. Plasma Screens..and, those little blue tooth headsets, and God-Damned IPOD's.  The things you have to be seen in public wearing, driving, drinking or eating to be known as cool, hip, trendy, spiffy, keen or as the kids say, dope, sick, phat.  Sigh.

Why do I hate these concepts?  You have to be associated with them to be "cool", it seems.  Most of the above are overpriced, over-hyped and just plain ol' overrated.

Well, Starbucks makes a kick ass cup of FruFru coffee.  I can't drink normal coffee.  Not man enough.  Have to "gay it up" with flavors, milk, whip cream and I'm not beyond getting sprinkles.. Sprinkles...UMMMM (drool)... Sprinkles...

Tommy Hilfiger... Ok Ok.. They make some pretty nice stuff.  Some of the shirts are really nice.  As the brand gets older and more established, it has gotten less trendy and wild.  Perfect.. But I'm still not about to part with 20 bucks for the logo to be on my socks or underwear.  Hanes works well, thank you very much.. But no "tightie whities" please..brrrr.. the horror.. Thank God and the good Militant Buddha for my wife pointing out the errors of my ways there.

Marc Echo wear... Don't understand it.. But then again, I'm 36.  I'm probably not supposed to "get it"....Otherwise the brand wouldn't be "hip" or "trendy" or "phat" or "sick" or whatever douchie-phrase is popular with the current spoiled generation (Generation Brat) these days.

Krispy Kreme.  I know my friend Kevin is going to flip me off, but I still don't get it.  A guy at work brings them in every Friday. Don't get me wrong.  Nobody is putting a gun to  a puppy's head to get me to eat them, but I like Southern Maid, Lonestar, or Dunkin' Donuts better.  There!  I said it.. Allow me to bask in my "uncoolness".  ahhhhhhhhhhh...

Plasma Televisions... Cool but they don't have a lifespan that justifies the cost.  Call me back when they can last 10 years.  Like I really want to pay $3,500 - $10,000 to see the Acne Scars on my newscasters face, anyway.

Ipods...Sigh... So popular that it's like a term for MP3 player in general.  Like "coke" is slang for anybrand of softdrink you want in the South.  What kind of coke (notice the small 'c') do you want? Dr. Pepper, please.

I digress...

I recently had an opprotunity to get a 30 gig video Ipod for a couple hundred dollars of Best Buy certificates I got from my numerous stays at Holiday Inn (I'm in the top 1 percentile.. how sad.  I think I have a wife, dog and a house, but it's fuzzy)  These things cost 300 bucks, so Ok..Why Not?  I can always sell it and recoup the cost on ebay or something.

Stupid fu%king Ipod has taken over my life.

I have spent the last 3 days sorting through my 105 gigs of music making my playlist.  A little Tom Jones, A little Metallica, a little Roy Orbison, a little Slayer, a little Roger Miller, a little Antrhax, a little Queensryche, a little Primus, a little Enya and so on.  ARRRGH!  God Help Me, but I love this thing so much.  It's one of the few things that lives up to the hype.  The fact that I can only use Itunes from one of my computer is the only thing that sucks ass, though.  It should be based on my account not what freaking computer I choose to download on. Maybe that will be a rambling for another day.

It's 1am as I download OkGo!'s latest album "Oh NO" off of Itunes.. Great band. Check them out.

Even use it in my truck with a cassette adapter.  No escape...

I'm getting to listen to music that I haven't really been able to listen to conveniently over the years and you can pack a crapload of tuneage into these things.  It's like a black hole of music.  But I only have a couple of videos on it at the moment.  Screen is nice, but I want to keep my 20/15 vision.

I have realized another thing.  I think you could get a good idea of what a person's pyche is about by checking out his playlist.  I have Tom T. Hall, Slayer and DCTalk (Christain Rap) all on the same machine.  Shouldn't my Ipod explode or something?  Maybe shot a stream of blood out the bottom or something?

Now, before you think that I have turned into "Mr. Trendy", I have my Ipod in a case that looks more or less like a cell phone and my earphones are the black ones. 

I partially blame me getting this Ipod on my friend Lance.  Some best friend he is! Letting me play with his black 60 gig Ipod.  Mine isn't as cool (30 gig and white), but it gets the job done. 

Well, I must go. It's time to download the latest “Daily Nut” and “Ticket Podcast” and get a Starbucks.  But my boxer-briefs are still Hanes.

July 21st, 2006

Call me Sparky. 

I had an interesting experience Tuesday, July the 18th. 

I nearly died. 

Working behind a server rack doing the “computer nerd” thing, I was plugging in a 3-prong twist type plug into its 200 volt junction box.  Evidently there was a bad ground wire and when I grabbed the plug in one hand and the junction box with the other (which I had done countless times before), my world went completely white.  The last thing I saw before my vision went completely white, were the big white balls of lights coming out of the plug junction box any my left hand.  There was a very loud "Pop" and then things slowly started to come back into focus.  When I became the ground wire, I blew the breaker for the entire rack and then some.  I always considered myself a fairly grounded (HA!) individual, but that’s a little extreme if you ask me. 

Life is short.  And I nearly shorted right out of it.  

I had to go to the doctor and have myself checked out.  My left arm was numb, my right arm hurt like sunburn and my neck and shoulders were extremely tight.  My left hand is still numb and can't pick anything up with a reasonable chance of holding it for long.  The doctor performed a grip test on me.  My right hand can grip at 120 lbs and my left grips are 20 lbs.  And that's making "porno face" trying to do that.  I can't hold a can of Dr. Pepper without concentrating on it.  Ugh.  Hopefully, my strength will return to that hand.  If not, there will be some financial compensation according to the percentage of usage I don't recover.  I am hoping on very little or no compensation for it.  But I AM not against getting paid, if I don’t fully recover.  

Did I say life is short?  What if that breaker had not blown out?  What if it took a couple more seconds to blow?  I could be heavily damaged or worse (depending on who you ask, I suppose). 

I'm more or less fully functional and consider myself EXTREMELY fortunate that I can at least use my hand.  Having a numb hand could have its own advantages, no?  Though I could hurt myself since I can't regulate how that hand works very well.  Oh well, I always liked it rough, anyway…  Is my mother reading this?   

Has this changed my outlook to life?  Carpe Diem and all that crap?  I’m not totally sure, yet.  I’ve been considering buying a used truck that costs a little more than I think that I may be comfortable buying and this has pushed me closer to that decision.  Just go out and just buy something I really want for once as opposed to the last 3 cars I have owned that were just convenient necessities, meaning inexpensive.  So maybe I should treat myself for once.  Maybe I’ll start a poll.  If I do buy the truck, I sure to Hell hope the battery is good.  I’m going to be leery of jumper cables for a while.

June 10, 2006

Separated at Birth?

Greetings.  Sorry I haven't written in a while.  I think my job is now trying to kill me.  I have been on the road for the past 8 weeks.  Hell, I'm in a "Brand X" motel in Thomasville, Alabama as we speak.  But it does have highspeed so not all is lost.

The biggest news to happen to me lately is Taylor Hicks winning American Idol.  I had no plan to watch American Idol. I really don't have time to devote 18 days a week watching IDOL. At the beginning of the season, I received a call from a friend of mine.  He was, like, "Dude, turn on Fox!  You are about to be on TV!  Right............

Well, low and behold, out comes a taller version of me.  A little chubby, extremely white headed and a tad homely.  Wow..Ok.. I'll watch it for a bit.  He sang and I like it.  Well, ok then.  I'll watch it until he gets kicked off. 

Well, he didn't get kicked off.  He won.  Against all odds, this goofy looking "everyman" with the dancing skills of an angry Palsy victim, but with this "voice" wins the whole enchilada.  Cool.

What is even cooler is the comparisons I'm now getting in public.  I have been asked for my (his) autograph several times.  Like I said earlier, I am in Alabama.  Taylor is from Alabama.  The bank I am at has been calling me Taylor the entire time.  What does all this mean for me?  Well...By default because he is now famous, he will become a sex symbol.  Maybe I will come one also!  Stop laughing.... Stranger things have happened.  I'm married to a hot chick so anything can happen.

Soul Patrol!!

Going....Going....Gone....    

May 9, 2006

This is a day that I thought I would never see.  A day I have waited for since 1995.

I HAVE NO CREDIT CARD DEBT!!!!!!!!!

None...El-Zilcho...Nada...Zero...Nothing..

I just pressed enter and online paid off my last payment to Target Visa.  Woo and or Hoo.

The credit card debt started in 1995 when I got married.  I took on my Ex-wife's (then new bride) credit card bills.  They weren't that much, but her cards were really high interest.  My cards had low interest so it just made sense.  Then in 1996, during a store set in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, I lost my job.  I couldn't find a job that paid more than I was making on unemployment, so I stayed unemployed for a bit, looking for a job.  The mistake me and my ex-wife made was not scaling back to that lack of income.  She kept getting her nails done, I kept buying my comic books and Super Nintendo games and we still went out every Friday or Saturday or both.....Well, guess what was paying for that? You got it..  Even took out a couple of other cards.  With my then very good credit rating, a couple of $5,000 limit cards were a snap to get.  Short on cash for the electric bill?  Just withdraw funds (at 18.9%) from the ATM... Stupid stupid young people.  Oh.. while we are at it, let's join a gym!! Yeah.. and lets only go 3 or 4 times!  Even better!

Eventually, I did get another job and we were able to make minimum payments on like 9 cards.  Eventually I stopped paying on some and then the calls started.  For 5 years I endured these calls and for 5 years I gave them excuses.  It's not a good thing when you are afraid to answer the phone (pre-caller I.D. days) .

Well, in 1999, my marriage hit a stone wall doing 200 m.p.h.  There were no survivors except for the debt, which still was compounding interest.  I would make a payment and the amount owed would still go up!  Bastards...

Anyway.. I'm single now and I find out my credit is like 300, which is basically no credit at all.  I'm 29, about 25,000-$30,000 in credit card debt and divorced.  Time to grow up, I suppose. 

I sell an old 64 Fairlane that I had had for years with the dream of fixing up (never happened. though I did get it running again).  I had a large garage sale and sold everything that wasn't nailed down.  Even offered the landlord to sell off many of her unwanted items for a 30% cut.  With the selling of the Ford and the garage sale, I raised close to $3,000.  Ok.. this is a good starting point.  I called a company that I owed $10,000 to.  This account was in serious collection, having been sold at least 3 times.  I told them that I would send them a Western Union for $2,500, if they would consider the account settled.  They jumped all over it.  Even made them fax and mail me documentation saying that the debt was satisfied and reported to the credit agencies as such.  Over the next 5 years I would track down accounts, offer a settlement and get my fax.  Each one went into a notebook for proof incase I ever tried to get collected on for a debt already paid.  This, in fact, did happen and I faxed my little form to them.  NATCH! 

I actually paid off my last "In Collection" account in late 2004.  Felt pretty good.  I had some new debt, but was well in hand.  I had to use some for immigrating my present wife, a set of tires, things like that.  When she immigrated back in 2001, it suddenly was back to one income for two people and immigration is very expensive if you take the time do it legally. 

Last year, we decided to look for a house.  I was very nervous as I had not checked my credit in quite a while. Come to find out, my credit was not only back, but was in pretty DAMN good shape.  Got low interest, no money down.  ahhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Like I said, my credit was well in hand, but it wasn't gone.  All my debt was on active cards and was overpaying,  I was as good as out of debt.. But not quite.  Well, today when I sent off the last payment (which I just got the email confirmation), I could feel a weight disappear.  It was amazing.. Plus Taylor Hicks just tore through Jail House Rock and I am a hero at the site I'm at today...  Life feels good today...

My only debt is my mortgage... and my wife's Mustang, which she is paying for.  She has no credit down here, but with her name on the title, she's now on her way and she has no credit cards and doesn't want any.  Talk about the near-perfect woman.  My 2001 Pontiac Grand Am is paid off, but it is starting to ail.. I deserve a truck.. Don't you think?

Anyway... I can't STRESS enough the importance of using your credit wisely.  Never use a card for gasoline, food, magazines, cd's, etc...  Over the past couple of years, we used mine to replace a TV that went out, a set of tires that I didn't have all the cash on-hand for and some Immigration crap.  If you can avoid using them, do.  These days, I use them when I don't have the cash in my pocket.  When I get home, I'll hop online and pay it then and there.  Anyway.. Enough preaching.. I was just so happy, I had to tell the 5's of people who read my site.

Man.. I'd never thought I'd see the day and I wonder what the statistic is of people with no credit card debt.  OH and one more thing.. If you have no debt, even my meager salary allows me to live what seems just outside of my means, even though I'm not.  I just never realized how much 30, 20, 40 bucks a month to different companies could add up.  All these years that I have been making these deals felt like I was throwing money into a burn barrel. I had nothing to show.. But it was shoring up my future, I suppose.. So now I am out of debt and now plan to take half of what I was paying and put it into savings account, the the other half put towards a damn good down payment on a future truck and extra on my house payment.  Since I am used to that amount going out, why spend it on junk, ya know?  This grown up stuff sucks. But I know I'm doing the right thing.

AND IF YOU ARE A COLLEGE STUDENT, FOR GOD'S SAKE YOU IGNORANT BASTARD, DON'T PICK UP ONE OF THOSE CREDIT CARD APPLICATIONS SCATTERED AROUND COLLEGES.  THAT'S THE REAL AL QAEDA THREAT.  DOMINO'S DUDE... CHARGE IT.....STUPID BASTARDS.

RANT DONE.. We now return to our regularly scheduled website.

Short People have no Reason.....(you know the words) and I agree

I'm short. Finally noticed that, did ya?

I wish I were at least 5’8, but since that I have short parents, I’m only 5’6.  Well, I assume the guy that snuck in the window and violated my short mother must have been short also.  
 
There has been a time or two that my height has been an inconvenience. The trick is NOT to have “LITTLE MAN SYNDROME”  Oh God, I hate the Short Man with their little Napoleon Complexes.

Now, I don’t think any girl wakes up in the morning, looking for a man that can still wear Granimals, but it’s how you carry yourself.  I am lucky that I don’t look that short until I roll up next to a tall guy.  I have confidence in my abilities as well.
 
My wife, who is 5’4 has never dated anyone as short as me, doesn’t even notice it now.  If she wears heels, I do also.  Just to keep it on the level.
 
Just don’t care that you’re short and remember that the Dirty parts looks bigger in comparison to your shorter legs.  When your 5’6, hanging halfway down to your knees may not be such a big deal, though.  Gotta think about that.  Sounds good on a bio at least.
 
If you aren’t confident in yourself and your abilities, you have no chance as a short man.  I did date a girl 6 foot once.  Man.. That was interesting.
 
I’ve accepted the fact that I will never be tall without heels and can’t wear tails on a tux without looking like a flightless aquatic bird.
 
Love you sweetly.

 

Two Tickets to Paradise?

I am in paradise...Or am I?  I'm currently on the Island of St. Lucia.  Look it up on the map, I'm pretty darn south of Puerto Rico.  It's part of the British Common Wealth.  Now we didn't come in on a cruise ship, like the one currently in the harbour (notice the way I spelled harbor the British way?  Like that?) behind us.  We are not in the tourist part of the island.  We are in the city of Castries, the capital of this island with a population of 60,000.  So we get to see, the day to day goings on of a dirty dirty city.  The open air fish markets, fruits and assorted meats and cell phone cards and one booth that seem solely dedicated to "Hello Kitty" merchandise.  Castries has some charms, when the con-people aren't trying to rip you off at every turn.

I was all fired up about coming down here and I think my wife was a little cheesed off that she couldn't make the trip.  But now?  Not so much...  Being that we are in the city proper, we are not around the tourist side of the island, it's a much dirtier and busier.  The cruise ship behind us is just for the duty free shops on the dock before it departs on the other side of the island where Hooters, Outback and the other real restaurants are.  We get funky little diners on the street and ALL of them are open air.  Which is kind of cool and most of them do take credit cards.

TAXIS....With a fleet of Toyota vans, the swarm the island like locusts.  They drive these little buggers hard.  Watch out for the Euro to American currency conversion.  They are much faster at converting and they talk so fast, they can con you out of a few extra dollars.

Experienced my first Earthquake Tuesday.  Felt like the building got nudged...TWICE!  After a comment from me of, "What the f#$K???"  I was told what it was.  Truthfully, it was just a tremor, but my mind went immediately to what I think would pass for building codes down here.  Im in a six-story semi-modern building, probably St. l figure they probably think that bamboo makes a swell foundation..maybe jelly beans.

Must get back to work now, will update more when I can.  I'm on a 33.6 dialup connection, so pictures will probably have to wait until I get back to the States.

August 17, 2005

The idea's in the brain, but it has no clear exit strategy....

Got a comment on my page the other day.  "Is this BLOG thing a one-hit wonder?”  To that, I say, "Thanks"!  That, at least to me, implies that a little of what I wrote was vaguely interesting.

The main problem is that I have the ideas swirling around in my brain, but when I attempt to articulate them, they fall apart as put them into words or paper.  I have visited other blog sites for ideas and for the most part they are nothing more than "Dear Diaries" and other wheels-off rantings.

Dear Diary,

Today, I woke up and went to the bathroom.  I didn’t think it was possible to urinate for 2 minutes. I shouldn't drink so many screwdrivers the night before. Hey!   Who's that weird man in my bed? I'm not gay? What are those weird stains on my bed?  Dang, I need to change the sheets again!

Dear Diary,

I hope they never find that shallow grave in East Texas I put that hobo I killed in just to see if I could. 

My life, as a whole, is as about as interesting as a nudist camp is to a blind man.  There's potential, but just out of sight.

There have been some very harrowing moments in my life.  Tales and girlfriends fathers and showers, tales of demented women performing exorcisms on me in the wee hours of the morning (maybe a future blog, no?)  An Encounter in a bathroom with a girl I didn't know at a Christmas party way past. Doors blowing off jet airliners on take off (which happened the same night as the exorcism, by the way).  And a few other things I can't recall offhand.

For the most part, however, my life has been pretty vanilla.  I'm ok with that.  Excitement can be nice, but it seems that when it happens to me, it's the heart-attack or stroke inducing kind.   Nothing wrong with vanilla, mind you.  My favorite ice is vanilla. (But with a little chocolate syrup for excitement). 

August 5, 2005

Gay or Not Gay...

My longtime childhood friend, Lance, has been my best friend since late 1984 (That's 147 dog years).

I had just moved to Lindale from Sulphur Springs halfway through my eighth grade year. I went from a school with 200 kids K-12 to a school that had 168 or so in the eighth grade alone. I went from class president and class favorite to absolute zero. Just some new kid with a bad country accent wearing those ignorant pearl buttoned country shirts (vomit) with a Peterbuilt belt buckle. Sad.

My first experience with Lance wasn't a pleasant one. Being the new guy, the kids in class enjoyed "testing" me.  (I refered to it as "torturing" me...But Tomato...Tomahtoe) You know..Snarfy comments behind my back, just barely loud enough to be heard, laughing at my East Texas Drawl whenever I would answer a question in class, poking fun at my shortness, etc. Life affirming complements. Lance and his merry band of cohorts put a piece of paper under my desk with a crudely drawn penis on it. Just to see if I would tell the teacher or not.  Oh my and mercy doodles, how happy I was to move to this God-forsaken Prep town.

I later had a class with Lance in our Freshman year. We met as misfits in a Physical Education class, and a friendship was born. We would walk halfway between our houses and walk to one or the other house from there. He introduced me to such greats as Motely Crue, Stevie Ray Vaughn, L.A. Guns and others. We were both raised middle class, though admittedly, my parents were less strict on me.

I remember, after we got our drivers licenses, Crusing up and down Broadway in my red 1974 Camaro LT or his mothers Caddy, looking for girls to annoy or holding their parking spot at the movie theater for some girls for a slice of pizza and a decent chance to be shot down.. Kind of sad, but good times.

We drifted apart our Junior year of high school a bit.. We still talked and hung out, but he was in advanced classes and theater, and it intimidated me a bit. But, we came back together. Friendships, just like marriages, ebb and flow. And a friendship is a bit like marriage. We both know basically what the other likes and dislikes and have enough dirt on each other to pretty much screw with each other pretty hard. :)

After High School Graduation, he left for college in Commerce and I stayed in Tyler and went to Junior College. I later moved in with him (and his truck driving father, Roger) in Greenville. Roger was always away so it was basically our place and treated it as such. From the Simpson's wall to the boxes of Hamburger helper in the pantry and all the unwashed dishes in the sink, we treated that place as our bachelor pad. Living in such close proximity with someone shows you what your friendship is made of. We would fight some *Just One More Thing!*, disagree some, but we stayed friends. He worked at the newspaper and I worked at a local grocery store. See an emerging pattern here? He seems to take the more challenging path.

As we have gotten older, we still hang out whenever possible and online game together multiple nights a week. Over the years, he has emerged as the more responsible of the two of us. Taking the path less traveled and over the past five years, I have tried to model some aspects of my life after his. Not his temper, mind you! And since then, my life has improved. I took a job that challenged me. Albeit, not near as challenging as his, but more so than the grocery store. I have gotten my finances in order and have since bought a house. He's like my brother, but he is also, in many ways, a role model. Whenever something big happens in my life, I'm usually calling him for his take or just to rant. Without his help, I probably wouldn't have made it through my divorce 5 years ago as well as I did. Kevin K and Eric K were big players too, but nobody knows me like Lance. Now his opinion are usually a little more liberal than mine, but are always pretty sound and always provide some good outlines.

The long and the short of it is this:  Whenever he needed me, I would haul ass to him.  He does the same for me to this day.  And I truly hope it stays this way.  He is, in my mind, a flesh and blood brother.  Period.

Sounds a little bit like a crush, doesn't it? Not in the "gay" sense, but I do admire him greatly.

Lord, as reading some of his blogs, I realize my writing talents are a mere Ford Pinto next to his Lincoln Continental. But, they will both get you to your destination with enough patience.

 

August 4th, 2005

Website starting to come together and head in a direction.  What that direction is, I'm taking it there anyway.  At least it makes me look busy at work.  Found a bunch of cool articles to help populate my Console Pages.  Wikipedia is an unbelievable site.  It's on online encyclopedia and I could not stump it.  Currently I'm sitting next to my wife, Katie, as she does a live online survey for $20.  Girl has an uncanny ability to find this crap on the internet.

I'm in shock that they killed off Nate on Six Feet Under.  I know he will be in the remaining 3 episodes as a ghost, but crap man!

August 3rd, 2005

Online Nothing...

Woo and or Hoo!  I'm online now.  So now there is one more very lame website out there with big hopes (not really) and will probably die from neglect and be deleted off the server in time.  But I am here now.

August 2nd, 2005

Here We Go....

    I sit here in my cubicle pretending that I'm working on some sort of support problem.  I'm actually messing around with FrontPage making myself a webpage.. (yeah yeah.. I don't know html by hand..).  I'm only a partial nerd, so cut me a tad o' slack.

This site may never get published.  It all depends if SBC YAHOO gives me space for such nonsense, I suppose.  I certainly can't see myself paying hard earned money on such egotistical ventures.  I'll do it for free, but that's about the limit of my self-love.  Well...not really.  But that will not be discussed here.