Life in Monkeyland

Holidays? Not for me

2009-12-23T19:58:00.000-08:00

Once again the holidays are upon us. I'm not a fan of the holidays and I haven't been for quite some time. There's a whole bunch that goes into my thought process. I just wish people would understand and let me do my thing. Part of it is that I don't like receiving gifts. That may sound crazy, but it's true. I can't afford to give gifts back and that bothers me. I ask (and then tell) people not to give me presents because I know that I can't reciprocate and that makes me feel guilty. People always tell me that they want to get me gifts because they want to and I understand that, but when does what I want come into play? I was talking to someone today who asked why my gift to people couldn't be accepting the gifts that they give me. Understandable, but why can't their gift to me be respecting my desire not to receive gifts?

The other part of it comes down to family. I love my family and always will, but we've grown apart. It's no one's fault, these things just happen. Everyone starts their own family, we move apart and it becomes harder to get together for the holidays. Of course things became even harder when Ellen passed away. That really took a lot out of me about wanting to celebrate the holidays. I miss my baby sister and sometimes it hurts really bad. Just when I thought that was getting better, mom passed away. That hit hard. I'm sorry, but I don't think the holidays are the same without them.

For years I have been telling my siblings not to get me anything for Christmas. For the most part they've listened. I tell them to take whatever money they would spend on me and spend it on their kids. Buy them another present, put the money in a savings account, do something, but don't buy me a gift. Let Christmas be about/for the kids.

To me the holidays are like my birthday... I'll start celebrating them again when I have kids. Until then, let it go people. I'm not trying to be a Scrooge because I want everyone to enjoy themselves. Celebrate all you want, just don't expect me to join in.

Replacing Senator Kennedy or What Works For You Today

2009-09-18T16:40:00.000-07:00

President Obama has recently spoken with Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick about filling Senator Kennedy's open Senate seat. The President wants Massachusetts to change their policy for succession. This is the same thing that Senator Kennedy was working on before he passed away. Current Massachusetts law states that the seat would remain open until a special election takes place. This election is to be held 145-160 days after a senator's death. This law has been in effect since 2004. That's when Senator Kennedy successfully fought to have the law changed. In 2004, Mitt Romney was Governor of Massachusetts and Senator Kerry was running for President. Leading up to 2004, Massachusetts law stated that if there was an open Senate seat, the sitting governor could appoint someone to the open seat. Kennedy was fearful that if Kerry became president, that Romney, a Republican, would appoint a Republican to replace him. Kennedy fought hard and Massachusetts changed their law, thus assuring that Democrats would not lose a Senate seat.

We find ourselves now, with a Democrat as governor of Massachusetts, with Kennedy (before he passed) and Obama trying to get Massachusetts to change their law once again to suit their needs. Why Obama is involved is beyond me as this is a state issue and he should keep his nose out of it. Okay, it's not really beyond me. Obama can't afford to lose a Democratic seat in the Senate, especially if he wants HIS health care reform bill passed. This is pure partisan politics and a textbook case of hypocrisy. Plenty of Democrats in Massachusetts argue that the law must be changed so the Commonwealth can continue to be represented by two voices in the Senate. Of course if they were so worried back in 2004, they wouldn't have changed the law to begin with.

This is being done to ensure that Democrats have 60 seats in the Senate. It's being done so the Democrats don't have to adopt anything the Republicans want. It's being done so President Obama can get his signature piece of legislation passed. The not so amazing thing is that the mainstream media is giving President Obama and Massachusetts a complete pass on this. If President Bush had tried something like this, it would be running nonstop on MSNBC and CNN, the New York Times and Washington Post would be going on and on and Keith Olberman and Chris Mathews would kill each trying to show who was more angry.

What this shows is that the Democrats, led by Obama, will do anything possible to jam health care reform through Congress regardless of who likes it. The fact that they can't even agree within their own party about what should be in the bill (and how to pay for it) should be a red flag that they shouldn't pass something just to pass it.

In 2004 the Democrats got what they wished for when Massachusetts changed their law. That's why you should always be careful what you wish for. If they (Kennedy) hadn't been so power hungry five years ago, they could have had what they wanted now.

History (updated)

2009-01-20T23:51:00.000-08:00

So Obama was sworn in as President today. I listened to his speech today and I thought it was okay. The one thing that struck me came very early in the speech. It was a few lines in when Obama said, "Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath."

I would have hoped that someone as intelligent as President Obama would do some research or at least read what his speech writers wrote before giving such an important speech. Anyone who has studied even a little bit about the history of the presidency would know that Grover Cleveland served as President on two different occasions meaning that 43 Americans had taken the oath.

I raised this earlier today and I was called bitter, a grouch and a goof ball and these were only the names that people were willing to post. I'm certain there were others who called me worse. I point out that the President's facts were incorrect and I'm the bad person. Contrary to what some people may think or believe, I would like to see the new President succeed. If he is successful, I hope that would mean that the country would be doing better and that is the most important thing. I don't hate Obama. I may not trust him, but in all fairness, I didn't trust McCain either.

The greatest part about all of this is that Obama is supposed to represent change. That he talks about the country as one and that we should all get along even if you don't agree, yet he gets grief for having Rev. Warren speak. Who gave him grief? His own party and people who voted for him. These same people, people who call themselves Democrats (they never call themselves liberals), are supposed to be the ones who are accepting of everyone. They are the ones who say everyone should be treated equally, yet these are the same people attack and name call. I'm the one who accepts the opposite opinion even if I don't agree with it, yet I'm the bitter one. I'm the one filled with hate. I'm the one who discriminates.

I just find it ironic that at a time when the country elects a black man to be President of the United States, that when the country does in fact seem to be moving in a new direction, it is the President's own party and those who voted for him (not all mind you) who seem to be the ones who judge and/or hate and can't move on.

UPDATE: I said back in the spring that whoever became President, they would be a one term President. I even made a bet before the general election with my friend Steve (he's been to Germany) for $100 and a steak dinner that it would be a one term presidency. I figure I win either way. If Obama is reelected, hopefully that means the country is better off which would hopefully mean that I'm better off and I would be able to afford the $100 and dinner. If Obama stinks up the joint and doesn't get reelected, then the country probably won't be in such good shape and I'll need the $100 and dinner.

Harry Reid

2009-01-04T18:00:00.001-08:00

I watched Meet The Press today and Harry Reid was on. David Gregory asked him about his comment several months ago that the war in Iraq was lost. Reid responded that that's a question to be answered by others in years to come and would not admit that he spoke to soon. He then compared his statement to General Petraeus who said that, according to Reid, the war could not be won militarily. Like those are the same thing.

David Gregory then raised Reid's comments that Bush was a liar, a loser and the worst President ever. His defense in making those statements is that he (Reid) is who he is. Just so I'm straight on this, he calls Bush the worst President ever, even though his presidency is not over? With any President, you can not fully judge their presidency until they have been out of office for some time. Trust me, I am not trying to defend Bush in any way. I don't think he'll ever be group with the greatest of all time, but to say he is the worst, at this time is a stretch. Just from my lifetime, one only needs to look at Carter.

What bothers me the most, is that Reid can't admit that there is some good happening in Iraq and wants to reserve judgment because it's not as bad as he thought it was, while he is quick to judgment on Bush.

Don't even get me started on him trying to rewrite rules on who gets to replace Obama in the Senate. So glad this guy is the Senate Majority Leader.

Big Brother live

2008-08-07T21:49:00.000-07:00

I got to go to the live taping of Big Brother today and it was awesome. I got there about 3:15 local time and waited with everyone else for a bit. We were just hanging around on a little service road until they led us down Gilligan's Island Way to Studio 18 on the lot. We were lead into the studio by groups of 10 as they carefully placed us in our seats. They didn't want people wearing the same colors sitting next to each other and things like that. We were all in our seats around 4:30. The Stage Manager, Eric, came out and let us know how things would go for the show. He was pretty funny telling us how he would make sure we would all look good.

Julie Chen came out and she looked good. She looked even better in person than she does on TV. They had a few people making sure Julie was ready to go live. They had people with hairspray, checking her makeup, adjusting her outfit and thinks like that.

We could all see the clocks on top of the cameras so we could count down to air time. I took a chance to look around the room and check everyone out. What really struck me was how stupid some people were. I received instructions on what to wear or more importantly, what not to wear.

The studio audience at our show may appear on camera and appropriate dress is required. Business/Casual dress - no shorts, t-shirts, ball caps, etc. Please do not wear any clothing with large words, photographs, or logos that may show up on camera. Avoid white, cream-colored, striped, or small-patterned clothing.

There were a number of people wearing white, had jeans on, clothing with logos and I think I saw a few wearing shorts. If I can iron a pair of slacks and clean up a bit, so can everyone else.

Eric gave us our instructions for the show. The big one was that we were not there to watch good TV, but that we were there to make good TV. Our sightline was to be on Julie and not the monitors or teleprompters. He reminded us that we would be able to go home later and watch the show. He told us that he would let us know when to applaud and when not to. He let us know when we could cheer and when we shouldn't. He let us know when we would be live and when they would be showing tape.

During commercials Eric would let us know how we were doing and give us a heads up as to what was coming next. Also during commercials Julie's "people" would check on her and make sure she still looked good (she did). It was as if they were treating her like a fragile doll. I don't mean that in a bad way, but they made sure nothing happened to her.

Once the vote took place and Jesse came through the door, he look spooked. He had a blank look on his face and looked white as a ghost. He really seemed out of it, but I couldn't blame him. He hadn't been out of the house for a month, had dealt with anyone other than his housemates and had just gotten a big surprise by being voted out. Once he was voted out, the woman sitting next to me kept saying that she hoped that he would take off his shirt. After hearing that I few times,I was starting to get annoyed, but I kept smiling for the cameras.

Once the show was over, they brought Jesse back out for his taped interview with Julie to be aired for tomorrow morning's Early Show. That was a nice little bonus. Once that was done they whisked Julie and Jesse away and we filed out. Overall it was really cool and I had a good time. I hope I get a chance to do it again, especially for the season finale.

who does this

2008-07-22T21:22:00.000-07:00

I went to the pool on Sunday for a quick workout and ending up leaving my suit at the pool. Once I realized this I called the pool and they said that if they found it, it would either be in the lost and found or at the front desk. When I went for my swim the next morning, less than 20 hours later, I checked for my suit. No luck. It was gone. Who takes someone else's suit? Are they going to wear it? I grew up at pools and and have been around them all my life. We all know that if you leave your goggles behind, they're as good as gone, but a suit? Now I wonder about some of the people there.

Thankfully I didn't get rid of my old suit when I got this one, but now I've had to order another one and have to wait a week for it.

I still can't figure out why someone would take someone else's suit.

Weekend in Toronto

2008-07-14T23:24:00.000-07:00

Trip and I spent the weekend in Toronto for the trip I won back in March. We were there for the Edgefest music festival. Headlining were Linkin Park and Stone Temple Pilots. There were a bunch of other bands, but I don't remember who they all were. The weekend started off by flying out of LAX on a direct flight to Toronto. I was finally going to get to use my passport. We had a 9:50 AM flight and an empty seat between us. That meant I got to stretch out a bit during the flight. The flight was uneventful and we arrived on time in Toronto. After a cab ride from the airport, we checked in to the Yorkdale Holiday Inn around 6:30 PM. We walked across the street to the Yorkdale Mall to get something to eat. We settled on Moxy's Grill. A nice little place with good foood. We had a few beers and martinis before heading back to our room around 11. We played a few games on on-line poker before turning in.

The festival started at noon on Saturday so that's when we got up. After grabbing lunch at the mall, we took a cab to Downsview Park where the festival was. We spent 40 minutes in line to get into the beer garden. Then it was 25 minutes in line to get tickets and then 25 minutes in line to get beer. You were allowed 2 beers per person, so we both got 2. We got back in line when it started to rain again. Then it started pouring. We found some relief under a table umbrella that some others were nice enough to share with us. Unfortunately only our fronts were protected and the rain was driving at our backs. We were getting soaked, but it didn't really matter.

After about 40-45 minutes, the rain stopped and the sun started to peek out. We talked with a few people, took some pictures and anxiously awaited Stone Temple Pilots. We met a random girl who wanted to take a picture with the back of my shirt (Smell My Face) and then had me kiss her beaver. We stood next to a guy in the beer line and watched as he did some coke. Saw a few people get kicked out for violating the beer rules and did some general people watching. STP finally went on sometime after 6 and it was well worth the wait. The put on one hell of a show. The crowd was completely into it.

After STP finished we got another beer and waited for Linkin Park. As I was in line to use the washroom (that's what the Canadians call it) some guy walked up and actually smelled my face. It caught me off guard, but it was pretty funny. We decided to walk around a bit and of course found some girls mud wrestling. This went on for a bit and the girls gave the standard bit of flashing. This all came to an end when a few guys decided they wanted to wrestle too. The crowd quickly disappeared. We found a good spot to watch Linkin Park and they finally went on after 10. The crowd was tired, wet and cold, but was enthusiastic. Linkin Park played until about 11:30 and it was time to head home. We caught a cab back to the hotel and got home around midnight and it was time for bed.

Checkout was noon on Sunday which meant getting up at 11 and getting ready. We checked out at noon and headed over to the mall for lunch (the same mall 3 days in a row). Our flight was at 6:30 which meant killing a few hours. We had lunch at some random grill and then walked around the mall for a bit. With way too much time to kill it was back to the hotel lounge for a beer. Around 2:30 we decided to catch a cab to the airport. While going through security, I almost got arrested. Okay, amybe that's an overstatement, but in today's age, you never know. After my bag went through the x-ray machine, one of the security guys asked if it was my bag and asked if he could search it. I was a little surprised, but of course said yes. After a quick search he found a small pocket knife that was in my bag. I had no idea it was there. He took it and let me go, but after thinking about it, I wondered why security at LAX didn't discover it.

We found a quiet spot at the far end of the terminal and started to play around on our computers killing the last 2 hours before our flight. I noticed that there were some guys who were randomly being led through a gate to a plane. There was no announcement for this gate or anything and I couldn't figure it out. Finally I saw a little boy go running up to one of the guys with his little baseball glove in one hand and a ball in the other. He asked the guy for his autograph. Then it clicked, the New York Yankees were in town and were filing right by me. I didn't recognize anyone until Joe Girardi walked by. I told Trip who it was, but he really wasn't interested. I sat patiently and then HE arrived, Derek Jeter. He had a police escort so I decided not to ask for a picture. How cool was that? We finally boarded our flight and this time we weren't so lucky with our seating. There was no empty seat and I was squished in the window seat. Our flight arrived back at LAX on time and I was glad to be home.

It was an amazing weekend. My first time to Canada. I've got to thank Star 98.7 for the trip. I can't wait to win another one.

Just like old times

2008-05-27T22:46:00.000-07:00

I recently started swimming again. It's not like I'm swimming miles and miles every day, but I'm swimming. I've started swimming at the Rose Bowl Aquatic Center and it's been great. I hate swimming indoors and the RBAC is a 50 meter outdoor pool. It takes me back to the days at good old McLean Pool and swim team. A chilly morning, slightly warmer water, and a good swim. It reminds me of getting up early, getting to the pool and having Stu, Tommy or Sally running practice. The great thing is that after I'm done swimming I get in the car, put the top down and it's just like riding around with Peter in his MG. I've even started trying to incorporate some of my old water exercise stuff into my workout. Hopefully I can keep this up. It feels good swimming again, but getting up early stinks.

Edgefest in Toronto

2008-03-28T18:57:00.001-07:00

Some may have thought tat just because I moved out west, that I may not win anything else off the radio, but that is not the case. I just won a trip to Toronto to see Edgefest with Linkin Park, Stone Temple Pilots, The Bravery and others. How cool is that?

March 4

2008-03-04T21:39:00.000-08:00

March 4, 1971, my baby sister was born and I was no longer the baby of my family. At any given point I felt a wide range of emotions towards her: love, anger, hate, jealousy, admiration. I looked up to my sister at times and also would want to protect her. Of course the one thing that I wanted to protect her from, I couldn't. I miss her every day. She would have been 37 today.

I know that as we get older, we expect our family to pass away. Your grandparents are supposed to go first because they're soooo old. As you get older you expect your parents to pass away as well. This is the reality. You of course expect any older siblings to go before you because you spent your whole life making fun of how old they were. The youngest of the family is not supposed to go first especially when they have so much to live for and they have battled through so much. I know losing a relative is never easy and sometimes it doesn't make sense, but we lean on our friends and family and we get by.

Remember to tell the people that you love and are close to you that you love them. You can never say it often enough.

New car

2008-03-04T16:58:00.002-08:00

I got a new car yesterday. I figured I owed it to myself after the last year. I went out and got myself a nice new 2008 Mustang GT Convertible. It's very nice and I love it. Who wants to go for a ride?

February

2008-03-04T16:58:00.001-08:00

February

It looks like I've reduced myself to posting one blog a month. I'm sure there are many will be disappointed at this, but I'll do my best to entertain the masses. February was an okay month. The upside was meeting some of the cast from The Office. Meeting Angela, Kate, Oscar and Ed was amazing. They are all such nice people. I also got to meet Mo Collins and Kate Walsh on the same night. Not a bad way to start the month.

The rest of the month was pretty quiet. MySpace worked its magic again and reconnected me with someone from long ago as I started chatting with Kathy who I haven't seen in many, many years. We used to ride the same school bus in elementary school and now we're on opposite sides of the country exchanging wonderful stories about what we have been up to. I seriously should have been a little more outgoing back in the day.

Work was slow for the beginning of the month, but it gave us a chance to get a little more settled in with our new building. Of course being slow is not always a good thing. The studios started getting busy towards the end of the month with the highlight being Heidi Klum coming in to record a McDonald's commercial in German. No pictures of her though. I guess she does that enough during her day.

March is here and we all know how much I love this month. As this month starts my thoughts and prayers are with my buddy Josh. As much as I hate March, he hates it even more. Stay strong buddy.

January

2008-02-02T15:13:00.000-08:00

I just got off the phone with my dad after calling him to let him know how I've been and I realized that I hadn't written a blog for over a month and I'm sure everyone has been wondering what has been going with me. The new year didn't start off too well as I started feeling sick on NYE. I decided to stay in and take it easy. Then, only a week into the new year, my Buckeyes lost badly, again, in the national championship game (at least they made it there).

Work was busy for most of January as we finished up all the projects we were working on for Sundance. We also finished moving out of the old Monkeyland building and started moving into out new edit building. It's a work in progress and I'm sure it will continue that way for a bit, but everyone has been pitching in and pulling their own weight. It definitely makes things easier (and better) when you work with people who are team players. I think 2008 is going to be a great year for MLA.

The big news for January was playing in my first real poker tournament. They were holding the L.A. Poker Classic down at the Commerce and Trip and I decided to go play. We headed down on the 24th to play in the big Hold'em tournament. Trip had already won entry into it, but we went a little early so I could play a satellite and try and win my way in. I played a $40 satellite that I ended up chopping with another guy (for those non-poker playing people, that means when it got down to me and another guy, we split the winnings). That paid for half of my $335 entry fee into the big tournament. We sat down to play at 3:30 in the afternoon. 11 hours later, at 2:30 in the morning, I was finally knocked out in 33rd place out of almost 1200 people. I won over $1800. It was so much fun and not a bad return on my investment.

Hopefully February will be more of the same.

the holidays, west coast style

2007-12-27T22:30:00.000-08:00

I just spent the first of what I'm sure will be many Christmases on the west coast. It stunk not being with my family and all of my east coast friends, but being able to spend Christmas day up at the rooftop tiki bar in the 70 degree, sunny weather, drinking beers and playing with my new iPhone, made it a little bit easier.

New Years is up next. No 8TJ this year for me and that's going to be a little weird, but I'm sure I'll manage.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and is enjoying their holidays.

Why things happen the way they do

2007-12-07T11:31:00.000-08:00

I got a call from my brother-in-law Jared last night and we were catching up on what's been going on in both of our lives. He told me that later this month that he is going in to the hospital to be a bone marrow donor. He had put himself down on the list when my sister was sick and hadn't really thought much about it, but had gotten a call recently that he was a match. The guy who he is donating to, if he hadn't found a donor, would have had a less than 5% chance of living 2 years. Now that he is receiving the transplant, his chances are going up to around 60%.

I don't know if Jared would have ever gotten on the national registry if Ellen hadn't been sick, but he was on it and that's the important thing. I can't think of a better gift to give or receive and knowing that one more good thing can come out of Ellen's sickness makes it that much easier to understand.

If you are not registered on the donor list please check out their site and sign up. You may just give someone a fighting chance.

Being thankful

2007-11-21T10:31:00.000-08:00

It's that time of the year when we talk about what we're thankful for. I'm thankful for a lot this year. As always I am thankful for my family and friends, but this year it means so much more. Things could have been really bad when I lost my job, but family and friends kept me grounded. Here is a list of what I'm thankful for over the last year. It's probably not complete and it's in no particular order. I'm thankful for:

My old roommate Amanda who not only rescued me having to live with that bitch Shelly years ago, but became a good friend that I could count on. She also didn't freak out when I lost my job.

My best friend Mike who keeps from doing anything really stupid and is always there when I need him.

The Clark family. Have you ever met a better family? They invite me into their home and treat me as family. You can never put a price on that or say thank you enough.

The 8 Track Jones family. They always entertained me and are great people (I'm sure some people are thankful that I won't be getting up on stage with them anytime soon to sing Sweet Home Alabama).

Trip, who gave me a job when I needed one and never gave up on trying to recruit me.

NVPools (surprising isn't it). Sure they terminated my employment a few months ago, but I did learn a number of things from them and I did enjoy my 12 years there.

My car. It's paid for and it got me out to California. Hopefully it will keep going a little longer.

Renewed friendships.

New friendships.

Monkeyland. It's not just a place to work, but a state of mind. It also comes with a bunch of cool people to work with.

My family. No matter what I do, what I say, how I act or what I think, they are always there for me. They show me unconditional love and never ending support and I will always love them for it.

That Ohio State beat Michigan, again.

The United States military. They are the greatest people around. I can never thank them enough for everything they do, not just for me and the United States, but for people all around the world.

more and more Californian

2007-10-30T12:04:00.000-07:00

Finally got California plates for my car and they are sending me my license in the mail. The DMV should have also register me to vote. Guess it's all official now. Now if I could just convince a few people to move out here with me I'd be golden.

I have furniture

2007-10-29T13:29:00.001-07:00

The movers came yesterday and I now have furniture. I haven't unpacked everything yet because we spent last night putting the TV stand and TV together. I can't set too much in my room yet since i haven't gotten my bed yet. I did however get a temporary bed to use until mine gets in so at least I'm not sleeping on the floor. As soon as the DirecTV guy gets here, I'll be good to go.

annoyed

2007-10-26T12:30:00.000-07:00

I called the movers yesterday to confirm that they were coming today and they told me the truck was in Vegas (Vegas baby!), they had one more stop before me and they would be here this weekend. Great, a few more days with no furniture and none of my stuff.

Got a call today from the mattress distributor who tells me that my mattress is on backorder and will be delivered on November 8th. Excuse me? Another 2 weeks? I don't think so. I called my sleep expert Caroline and she has a mattress, in stock, that she is holding for me so I can try it out and if I like it she says she'll have it on a truck tomorrow morning. It more expensive than the bed I ordered, but she'll try and work on that for me.

Hopefully by the end of next week we'll have everything set up.

It you a week?!?!?!

2007-10-24T20:21:00.000-07:00

I've been in Cali now for a week. It has been uneventful, but fun. The weather, needless to say, has been amazing. A little on the warm side, but I'll manage. The fires have been surreal. They haven't affected me at all, but I can't imagine being one of those people in San Diego. My prayers go out to them.

I went to the DMV this week. I had to take the written driving test. You are allowed to miss 6 so of course I missed 7 including the very last question. The lady wrote a big F on my test. I took it again and I only missed 2. They are sending me my license in the mail and I am now a California driver which allows me to legally do California stops. I needed to get a smog check (emissions) before getting my new plates so I will have to go back one more time. They told me I had to turn in my plates, but I told them there was no chance of that happening. After a few mintues of discussion, they said I could keep them.

I'm sleeping in longer now too. The first few mornings I was waking up at 5. Today I slept in until 6. It wouldn't be so much a problem, but I'm still going to bed at midnight. The movers are supposed to be here Thursday or Friday and seeing how they didn't call today, I'm guessing that they are coming on Friday. that means we will finally have furniture and I won't have to partly live out of a suitcase.

So I've been out here for a week and some of you might ask, "What took you so long?", but I won a pair of Maroon 5 tickets from one of the radio stations today. I guess maybe it is just me.

My first day

2007-10-18T20:08:00.001-07:00

I just spent my first full day in California. I woke up at 5 (damn time zones). I followed Trip into the office and then to Staples, then I was on my own. I went to Target which was right next to Staples and picked up a few things. I then spotted a mattress store and decided to check it out. There was a wonderful young lady who helped me out. She has got to be one of the least pushy salespeople I have ever met. We chatted for a bit before I finally bought a bed. I only have to wait about 10 days for it, but it's going to be worth it. I'm moving up to a queen. I haven't had a bed that big since my king sized waterbed.

I was able to find my way back to our place without incident. I unpacked the rest of my car and started putting some of my stuff away. I then found my way to the store and picked up a few things. The nice thing is that you can buy booze at the grocery store. It's kind of like one stop shopping. I came back and finished cleaning up my stuff best that I could.

It seems like it has been a really long day. I did discover that work is less than 3 miles away. My commute is even shorter than it was for NV. I know, you're jealous.

I'm here

2007-10-17T22:33:00.001-07:00

Sorry for not posting last night. Tuesday was another wonderful day on the road. The weather was once again perfect. I stopped in Winslow, Arizona, where I stood on the corner, but there was no girl in a flatbed Ford slowing down to take a look at me. I then drove around Phoenix where I got to see the Cardinals stadium. It was then on to Yuma to visit my good friend Jeanette and her family. Jeanette's husband, Jason, is in the Marines and that is where they are stationed. I spent the night with them which meant sleeping in a real bed and have a home cooked meal. I was able to sleep in a bit and spend some time with them in the morning before Jason ahd to go plan his next mission and Jeanette had to pick their son Andrew up from school.

I finally made it to California. After 5 days and a couple of thousand of miles (I'll do the math later) I am in California. The first thing was to head over to the new studios and get a tour of the place. The stories this place could tell are amazing. It used to be a studio for recording artists and Christina Aguilera actually went to the bathroom in a trashcan there because she didn't want to walk downstairs. Then it was to the new place to live. A couple of the guys from Monkeyland came over and we had a few beers and pizza up on our tiki bar. Not sure what the rest of the week holds, but I'm sure it will involve work, buying a bed and getting a new drivers license.

I'll write more about the last two days and post a few pictures soon, but I've got to get settled in and get to bed.

Day 4 on the road

2007-10-16T07:23:00.001-07:00

Getting ready to check out and get something to eat, then it's on the road towards Yuma, AZ. I will be making at least one scheduled stop along the way to actually do some sight seeing and no, I'm not planning on going to the Grand Canyon.

In less than 36 hours, assuming all goes well, I'll be at my new place.

Day 3 continued

2007-10-15T19:43:00.001-07:00

Got an early start today. Loaded up the car at 8:50 and was ready to pull out of the hotel except I had one small problem. Car wouldn't start. It was the same problem I had last Wednesday. I finally got it started and let it run for a few minutes and then got on the road. It ran fine the rest of the day.

Another beautiful day on the road. I left El Reno right around 9 and my first stop was around 10:30 in Sayre, Oklahoma for gas. Right back on the road and that lead to crossing into...

Texas wasn't too bad and I did get to see this...

It's the second largest cross in the western hemisphere. It apparently was #1, but now there is one in Illinois that is 8 feet bigger. I didn't stop in Texas and that means the next thing was to enter...

New Mexico really wasn't all that exciting. Here is some video to prove my point.

There is one cool thing about New Mexico though...

...a nice high speed limit. It really allows you to make good time. I checked in at 5:59 local time. I'm staying on Route 66 which is really cool. The down side is that there are railroad tracks right across the street and I have a feeling I'm going to hear trains all night.

Total miles: 671 miles
Total time on road: 10:09

Day 3 on the road

2007-10-15T09:18:00.000-07:00

Getting on the road shortly to head to Gallup, NM. It's a little town west of Albuquerque(no left turn needed). When I used to dream about driving across the country, this is not how I envisioned it. I had big dreams and of course it always started with winning the lottery. I would win the lottery, get a nice convertible, grab a buddy and hit the road. We would take our time, stay in little towns, maybe spend a day or two there talking to people and stuff like that. Just a little different from how I'm doing it right now.

Stayed in a Super 8 last night. The showers are about 5'3" high. That stunk. h better than having to basically get on your knees to wash your hair. I can also hear the guy in the next room snoring. I guess you get what you pay for.

Day 2 continued

2007-10-14T21:50:00.000-07:00

I met up with Amy, her husband and their boy, Teddy for breakfast. We went down the road from where I was staying to a Waffle House right off of I40. A perfect place to eat. It was great seeing Amy and meeting the rest of her family. We had plenty of catching up to do.

I got on I40 just before 11. The weather was perfect again today, upper 70's and sunny. A beautiful day to drive. I took a few pictures along the way. I got to see the Pyramid in Memphis

and The Mississippi River

I crossed into

and continued my drive. Arkansas was soooo boring. Thankfully my brother called me and we chatted for a bit. After driving through Arkansas I crossed into Oklahoma.

Oklahoma was exciting. I passed through Carrie Underwood's hometown, Checotah, and saw Toby Keith's "I Love This Bar" bar. It was after that that things got crazy. As I was approaching Oklahoma City I could see lightning in the distance. As soon as I was through Oklahoma City a monster thunderstorm broke out. There were 65 MPH wind gusts, small hail and it was pouring so hard that some people pulled off to the side of the road. It was unbelievable. Lightning was flashing all over the place and I could barely see the road. It took about 15 minutes to drive through the storm. By the time I got to where I was planning on staying, El Reno, the rain had stopped. I don't want to say I was scared, but I might have been white knuckling it for a bit.

Total miles: 715
Time on road: 10:38

Yes I noticed that I went farther today than I did yesterday in a shorter time. There are two reasons for that. First one is that I started the time when I got on I40 after breakfast even though I drove a number of miles from the hotel. Secondly I drove faster.

BTW, can someone tell me why the North Canadian River is in Oklahoma?

Day 2 on the road

2007-10-14T06:25:00.001-07:00

Last night, sleeping was a little weird. For the last 7 years I've been sleeping in the same double bed. Not the greatest thing, but I was used to it. I slept in that Wednesday night just like always, but had to break my bed down on Thursday which meant sleeping on the couch Thursday night. Nice couch, perfect length. Well, the movers took the couch on Friday which meant I slept in Amanda's oversized chair (the Aero Bed was already packed in the car). Great chair, but not as big as the couch or nearly as big as my bed. I went from a double bed to a couch to a big chair. Last night I slept in a king size bed. There was so much room. I haven't slept in anything like that since I had my waterbed.

Today's plan:

Have breakfast with Amy and her family somewhere near me and then get on the road. Today's joureny will take me through Memphiis, Little Rock and Oklahoma City. I'll probably stop just west of Oklahoma City for the night. This is a new drive for me. I've driven to Nashville once before, so yesterday wasn't nything too new. Hopefully today's drive will be as uneventful as yesterday's was, but there will be more cool things to look at.

Day 1 on the road

2007-10-13T20:18:00.001-07:00

I made it to Nashville. Last night was a quiet night, but this morning I was a mess. I had hoped to be on the road no later than 9, but didn't pull out until 10. Before I got on the highway I stopped by Becci's yard sale to give her the tickets I won to see The Cure. Becci, Gabe, Erin, Tina and BJ were there, so I got to say one last goodbye. I got gas at 10:35 in Centreville and then got on 66. I had a couple of stops along the way, but the drive was very boring. I've made the drive from NOVA to Virginia Tech a million times and that is the most boring drive in the world. Figuring this was my last time making that drive, I looked back on some of my more memorable drives along 66 and 81.

1. Driving down to VT for a basketball game and having a blowout just south of JMU. I'm really surprised I didn't wreck.

2. Driving back down to school and almost having my left rear wheel fall off. I had to wait for over an hour for George to come get me and bring me home. It took two days to get my car fixed and then George drove me back 50 miles to pick it up.

3. Picked my car up from the shop down at school ($500), got on the road to come home and after 30 miles on 81 my engine blew up.

4. My brother driving me back down to school after Ellen's wedding and running out of gas. Thankfully we ran out as we were going downhill and there was a gas station at the bottom of the hill.

81 was fun today. I saw 21 state troopers. That's about an average of one every 15-20 miles. Thankfully I was around the speed limit most of the time. Once I crossed into Tennessee the speed limit went up to 70 which meant that everyone started doing 80-85. I got a little scare on I40. I was cruising along doing about 72 in a 65 when I saw a Tennessee trooper on the median. As I passed him I saw his brake light come on and then his headlights. I looked in my rearview mirror and he was starting to pull onto the highway. No blue lights and traffic was flowing so he couldn't pull out. No ticket, but my heart was racing.

I pulled into the Red Roof Inn in Brentwood at 8:03 local time.

Total miles: 683
Total time on road: 11:03

so close

2007-10-12T16:05:00.001-07:00

The movers came today around 2:30 and by 4:30 they had taken everything I had set out. By about 5:30 I realized that I didn't send everything I wanted with them. I am so stupid. Now I'm just trying to figure out what to do.

It's my last night in NOVA. Who knows when I'll be back. I'm just trying to relax at this point. A nice queit evening at home alone (unless of course, I get a better offer). Up early tomorrow, pack the rest of the car and hit the road.

Thanks to everyone for their well wishes. I am blessed to knwo such good people. The next few days should be interesting and fun as I drive across the country.

I see how it is

2007-10-10T19:16:00.001-07:00

The movers will be here in less than 48 hours and 72 hours from now I'll be in some hotel around Nashville. I guess this is really happening and that's a good thing because I can't return to NV now. NV hired some one new. Not really to take my place, but to fill out the management team. They hired some one who has been a manager and supervisor there. They hired the person who completely disrespected me 2 years ago and at the time, everyone at NV wanted to beat the crap out of. They hired one of the two people (the other person already worked for NV. Oh and they're dating) who decided that leaving first thing on Labor Day, the last day of the season, was the best time to go on vacation. This is a good business decision.

car update

2007-10-10T15:17:00.000-07:00

Got my car back form the shop and they say nothing is wrong. They checked a few thing and it all came back normal. Here's hoping that the car starts up fine tomorrow and the next few days.

Like this is what I needed

2007-10-10T09:11:00.000-07:00

I got back form the beach last night after spending the weekend with my family. It was a lot of fun. I like being Uncle Rob. It was so nice that we were able to get a bunch of swimming in, which the kids loved.

My car had no issues. I got good gas mileage (for me) and everything ran smooth. So I got up this morning and I needed to run a few errands. I go out to my car and it doesn't want to start. It finally starts and then it died. Started back up and did not want to keep running. I think my battery is shot. I think the battery is about 3-4 years old, but I'm not 100% certain as I got it out of a old work vehicle that NV was getting rid of. It was a fairly new battery, but I don't remember how old it was or when I got it. Right now my car is in the shop and I'm waiting to hear back from them.

I know it's better that this happened now as opposed to some time during the next week, but it still frustrates me. Hopefully it is just the battery and not the alternator too or something else that is going to cost me an arm and a leg or I just migh be sleeping in my car on the way out west.

less than 2 weeks

2007-10-01T13:45:00.000-07:00

In less than 2 weeks I will be on my way to California. Actually, 2 weeks from right now I imagine I will be sitting in a hotel room somewhere around Albuquerque. This is becoming more and more of a reality and it's exciting as hell.

As it gets closer to the day I leave I know I need to start saying goodbye to everyone. I'm not real good with goodbyes so if I don't say goodbye to you or look you in the eye, don't take it personally. Besides, it's not really goodbye, but more of, "I'll see you later."

California update

2007-09-25T17:13:00.000-07:00

Everything is slowly coming together. I now have a place to live. I will be living in Studio City right around the corner from the Brady Bunch house. The place is going to be awesome.

Baywatch retires

2007-09-22T17:19:00.000-07:00

It’s been about 15 years in the making, but it’s finally become reality. After discussing it with my family and close friends, I am hanging up my rescue tube and am moving out to California. I kind of always knew I would, but getting fired sped up the process. This all happened very quickly, but it’s for the best. In less than a week I went from working at a job that I enjoyed and had been loyal to for 12 years, to being blindsided and fired, to having a job all the way across the country. I won’t be going right away, but I will be leaving in 3 weeks. It will be tough leaving Northern Virginia and a lot of my friends, but this is an amazing opportunity. I’m going to live and work in Monkeyland.

I got a job!

2007-09-21T18:00:00.001-07:00

I got a job! Details coming soon, but here's a hint:

I shake my head and shiver
They smile and they stab my back
As they shake my hand
Send out an S.O.S. please
I'm marooned in monkeyland.

I'm idly staring at the sky
Did anybody hear me cry
A billion stars are a moving sight
To all you out there reading this tonight
It's just a trick of the light

I have to know what is real and what is illusion
Tell me how does it feel beyond this confusion?
Is there anyone there?

Do I dismiss this with a sigh?
And let the answers pass me by?
Is my creator God or a man?
Does someone somewhere care and understand?
It's just a trick of the light.

I have to know what is real and what is illusion
(Rest of chorus)

Is there anyone there?
Life's an optical illusion like other optical illusions
Beware

more of Day 3

2007-09-20T20:05:00.001-07:00

Okay, I might have a job, but I don't want to jiinx anything. Stay tuned everyone.

Day 3 continued

2007-09-20T14:01:00.000-07:00

Day 3 continued
Good day today. Went to Target to pick up some fun The Office stuff for the girls of NV and then over to NV to drop it off and wish KB a Happy Birthday. Of course I had to be fired before her birthday and all the good food that she brings in. That's something I will definitely miss about NV, Mrs. Bryant's cooking. She always made the best stuff.

I got to talk to a few people whike I was there including the other owner. He saw me outside and came over to me. Here's how the conversation went:

NV: I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to talk to you the other day
Me: It's okay
(we shake hands)
NV: I bet you feel relieved...
Me: I feel blindsided
NV: What...
Me: and confused
NV: Well we felt we needed to go in a different direction
Me: That's what I heard. I don't agree with it, but it's not my decision
NV: Okay (gets back in car and drives off)

I guess I'm still a little bitter.

Day 3 ~ post NV

2007-09-20T13:35:00.001-07:00

Another exciting day yesterday and today is shaping up like a winner too. I came up with another idea for work. I think I'm going to head west and star in the Baywatch movie. Hasselhoff is too old and I think I would be perfect.

Day 2 ~ post NV

2007-09-19T11:36:00.000-07:00

Well here it is, day 2, and now I know why I never took vacations. I'm slightly bored. I've been thinking about this whole "dismissal" and it reminded me of something that happened a little over 9 years ago. My best friend Mike and I had work for NV the previous two summers and were getting ready for another summer with them. We had both applied and I had received my offer, but Mike hadn't heard anything. He finally called NV and was told that they didn't have a position for him. Actually what they told him was, "I'm actually surprised that you applied Mike." We were both surprised, but it ended up working out for Mike. He moved on and got himself a job and that has worked out well for him. Basically NV told him he wasn't welcome and he made the best of it. I'm seeing a little deja vu here.

My family has been extremely supportive. Of course they want me to come visit and I just might have to do that, but this week is for me. Back to looking for a job.

Day 1 ~ post NV

2007-09-18T15:34:00.000-07:00

Today was the first day since being fired from NVPools. It was kind of like just having a day off. I spent the day reading the paper, playing on the computer and watching my soaps. Of course I had one of the over 12,000 free pizzas I got for NV over the last few years for dinner. I love me a thin crust pizza.

Of course part of my day was spent trying to figure out what I'm going to do now for employment. My first thought was to pick up additional shifts at Worldgate even though I submitted my resigination there a few weeks ago. I've been there for 9 years and I think I'm well liked there. It's not a bad place to work and my boss there had mentioned trying to get me a raise. A raise would have been nice even though I had one less than a year ago (imagine that, two raises in less than a year w/o having to ask). The Assistant Director position there is available too. That's the position I started in at Worldgate. It's also the position I left to work my last summer as a manager with NV. I would hate to take a step back, but it's nice to know it's available.

I don't want to take a position just to take one and may just take some time for myself. I already have a trip to the beach that has been planned for a few weeks and I do want to go back out to California, so that's an option. I should do something though. Afterall, I only took two vacations in the last8 years since I started working at NV. For some, two vacations would be a normal summer, but I digress.

I guess the biggest decision I need to make is whether or not to stay in the pool business. Maybe this is the time to go back to school. I could get my degree and start teaching. The ironic thing is that if I started teaching, I would want to work during the summer. I wonder if NV would hire me for the summer. Hmmmmm

Maybe I can convince 8 Track Jones to start touring and I could get a job with them.

my work week

2007-09-01T19:32:00.000-07:00

What a fun week it's been. I know it's the end of the season, but still. I expect the 80+ hour work week, but the last 3 days have been unbelievable. Thursday was the best. I had to jump in after a 8 or 9 year old kid who jumped into the deepend of the pool even though he couldn't swim. Why did he do this? He thought the numbers on the side of the pool were age restrictions and not depth markers (it was 8 and 9 feet deep). On Friday I had a kid either crap in his bathing suit while in the pool and then take his suit off or took his suit off in the pool and then crapped. Either way I ended up with a naked boy standing in the middle of his own shit in the middle of the pool. Tonight I was at pool that had a birthday party for a group of prepubescent snot-nosed kids. Of the party went right up until the pool closed (9pm) and as we were cleaning up a white fox started walking the grounds. Of course some of the stupid kids wanted to go pet it.

2 days to go.

The Mac Store

2007-08-02T15:59:00.000-07:00

I went into the Mac store yesterday to buy an adapter for my Mac Book. I don't recall ever getting such good and quick service in a store. I walked in and the place was busy, but not packed. I found a sales associate that wasn't busy and told him what I needed and what I wanted to do. He took me over to the section, asked a few questions to make sure he was recommending the right adapter, and told me which one I needed. He also reminded me that if it wasn't the right one, I could return it and get the right one. He then asked if I needed to get anything else. When I replied no, he asked if I would be paying with credit. When I said yes, he pulled out his PDA and rang me up right there in the middle of the store. He then asked if I wanted a printed receipt or just to have one e-mailed to me. He verified my e-mail address and sent me on my way. Sure enough when I got home and checked my e-mail, the receipt was there and the adapter was the right one and it works great.

This makes me want to go back and buy more things. Let's just chalk it up as one more reason why Macs are better.

Stupidity

2007-07-30T17:42:00.000-07:00

I don't understand how some people can be so stupid. I won't be using real names so I can protect the guilty, but here goes.

An employee, we'll call Mitch, steals an iPod from a co-worker we'll call Steve. Mitch then brings it to work two weeks later and uses it in front of Steve. When questioned about the iPod, Mitch says he got it off of Craigslist. Steve, not convinced, waits until Mitch leaves the room and checks the serial number on the iPod and low and behold, it's his. The owner of the company gets involved at this point. The owner, Phil, confronts Mitch who still claims he bought the iPod on Craigslist. When Phil mentions the serial number, Mitch still denies stealing the iPod. Steve decides to call the police who take Mitch away in cuffs because the value of iPod made it a felony. Mitch lost his job, but that was the least of his problems.

Second one is even better, or worse depending on how you look at it. Employee, Stephanie, sleeps with someone that she works with indirectly at a second job and then tells her husband who she has been married to for about a year. Husband tells her to quit her job. The big question is, who is stupider the girl for cheating on her husband or the husband for only telling her to quit her job?

I just don't understand people sometimes.

How long am I going to live

2007-07-23T09:13:00.000-07:00

I just got a message from my dad that my aunt passed away this morning at 5:30 (or maybe it was 5:20). She had been battling cancer for quite some time now. She had breast cancer and had beat that (at least as much as one can beat breast cancer), but it had returned at the start of July. It had come back in her lungs and brain and was very severe. I was never really close with any of my relatives, but I was probably closest with Georgia. I remember going to her house when I was little and spending a few Christmases there. She was a great woman and will be severely missed.

Georgia is the third person that I have has lost to cancer. I already lost my Aunt Pat and my little sister. My brother had Hodgkin's, but he made a full recovery. Couple all this with the history of heart disease in my family (lost 3 grandparents and my mom to heart issues and my father has had at least 2 heart attacks and triple bypass), the fact that I grew up in a house full of smokers and that I'm left handed, I'll be lucky to make it to 45.

I realize that that is kind of morbid, but it is death. How are you supposed to deal with death?

Riddle me this

2007-07-20T16:15:00.000-07:00

In Virginia, law enforcement vehicles are marked "State Police", but Virgina is a Commonwealth and they're called Troopers. What's up with that?

The art of communication

2007-07-16T15:59:00.000-07:00

The art of communicating, for most people, is dead. People don't know how to talk to one another. We'll start with the basics. Everyone should be required to take a public speaking class before they graduate high school. It is amazing to me how many people incorporate the words like, um, you know, so, and okay, into every day conversations. It makes you look amazingly stupid and uneducated. If you are giving a presentation or instruction, the quickest way to lose your audience is to hem and haw your way through it. If you have to say "okay" after every sentence, that is the only word your audience will walk away with. Why use the word "like" constantly? Is something "like" something or is it actually something? It is mostly teenagers who have this issue, but it amazing to me the number of adults that have the same problem.

The second part of this is that with advancements in technology people have forgotten how to actually talk to one another. Write an actual letter or send a simple card. Before the broad use of e-mail, cell phones, IM and text messaging, people used to pick up a phone and use it to make an actual phone call when wishing to communicate with someone. Now, with cell phones, it seems that phones are only used to send text messages. I remember dating a girl while she was away at school. Knowing that I would want to talk to her on a regular basis, I got an AT&T calling card so I could make long distance phone calls from home without running up my parents phone bill. We would call each other every other day and have a (semi) intelligent conversation. We also wrote letters to each other on a regular basis. There was great anticipation waiting for my next letter from her to arrive. I would read over and over again. Seeing her handwriting and how she would actually write "I love you" would bring an all day smile to my face. There was also the occasional card too. A simple card saying "I miss you" or "I love you" was worth so much. Ask a college student how much it would mean to receive an actual card or letter and you'll see what I mean. Besides, who wouldn't want to get something other than bills or junk in the mail?

People actually have entire conversations via text messaging. It's one thing to exchange a few e-mails during the day while you're at work, but if you are going to plan your whole evening, pick up the phone and call the person. You'll save time and you just might even brighten someone's day with the sound of your voice.

No one says thank you any more either. My mom used to put a book of stamps in our stockings every Christmas so we could send thank you cards for all the gifts we received. Why would you not want to say thank you? If someone does something nice for you or gives you a gift, say thank you and/or send them a card. I sent someone a Thank You card and they were blown away that I would make the effort to do that. All the effort of buying a card, write a quick note, sign it, put it in an envelope, put a stamp on it and walk to the mailbox.

Let's talk about cell phones. I realize that they have become the standard in today's word, but I think it's a little over the top. I understand that some people actually need their phone for work or emergencies, but society used to work just fine without them. I remember how excited I was when I got my first pager. It was great, if someone called my house and I wasn't home, they could page me. Of course then I had to find a pay phone (don't see too many of those anymore) and then call them back. I should have realized that things were going downhill back then when people stopped calling my house and would just page me. Even my first cell phone was used mostly for emergencies (at $.29/min, can you blame me). Using the phone while you're driving annoys me as well. I hate being "that guy" who is always on the phone. I try and avoid using my phone in the car as much as possible. I even went out and got a new phone with Bluetooth so I can at least be hands free. What's even worse is texting while you drive. I actually heard one girl say that texting while driving was safer than talking on the phone because you could just look up and down to text. How screwed up is that?

Put down the cell phones people, give your thumbs a rest from texting and write someone a letter or send them a card. They'll appreciate the personal touch.