Desultory Dr.

It Just Got Longer

2006-09-15T12:52:00.000-05:00

Shannon got sent home from work today.

Apparently, she broke out in the same type of rash that Michael broke out in earlier this week. She wasn't feeling all that great when I talked to her on the phone earlier, either. :(

Thanks goodness she is a sick day camel and started this school year off with 51 available sick days.

A Long Week

2006-09-14T08:32:00.000-05:00

A Long Week So Far...

It has been a long week here at the Tidwell household. We've had our first bout with having a sick child.

I'm playing Mr. Mom today so that Shannon could go back to work after missing the first three days this week. My mom is going to watch Mike tomorrow. Hopefully, he will go back to daycare on Monday.

Mike apparently has contracted a virus that just has to finish running its course. Saturday night he was fussy, and then Sunday afternoon he started being very lethargic, running a fever and not eating very much. He initially scared us during his first visit to the doctor. We thought he might have an ear ache, because he didn't want to lay down, he only wanted to be held upright. When the doctor looked at him, his throat, eyes, ears, nose..everything was clear. So, they sent us to the ER to draw blood cultures and obtain a urine sample....and a spinal tap if needed. The mention of a spinal tap immediately makes us think that there is a chance he could have contracted Meningitis.

Long story short, he's going to be fine. He's got a lovely little rash that the doctor said was normal with viral fevers, so that is going to keep him out of daycare for the rest of the week.

Now to the aggrivating thing. We showed up at the doctor about 8:30 Monday morning with the receptionist inquiring about any change in employment with Shannon, because the insurance company told the doctor that coverage for Michael had been cancelled as of Sept. 1st. To make another long story short. We were admitted to a room 45 minutes later, after Shannon had gotten the district and the insurance company on the phone together to verify that coverage should still be in effect and the proper paperwork sent where it should, and for them both to tell the doctor's office that everything would work itself out. Like I said, 45 minutes later, and after three other people get in front of us that had later appointments, making it after 10:00 before the doctor finally got around to seeing Mike.

At the time we were still thinking it is probably an ear ache, it was just a source of aggrivation. Afterwards, however, when we are talking about spinal taps, it scared us and really majorly pissed us off. We are generally easy going people that don't want to cause a scene, but it slowly dawned on us that had it been Meningitis, that hour and a half could have been the difference between life and death.

We went back to the doctor on Wednesday so that his regular doctor could check him out because of a relapse of symptoms. (one of the other doctors in the office saw him on Monday). His regular doctor is a partner in the office, and we politely explained the situation to him. The answers he gave satisfied us, about how with a three month old, they should asked us if we minded paying out of pocket if necessary and taken him on back, and definitely should have made him a priority after the receptionist has talked with the insurance company that the problem wasn't our fault and would be worked out. He said the matter would be addressed at the next faculty meeting and apologized. That made us feel a little better.

The sad thing about it, was that they had a lot of problems, quite frequently, that parents are mad at them for treating their kid when they were sick and for what ever reason the insurace was lapsed at the time. The result is that the parents can get billed for as much as several thousand dollars and they expect the doctor to pay it because they feel it is his fault for treating the kid when they knew the insurance wasn't right.

So, yeah....that's been our week so far. Now, Mike is telling me that it is time for me to change his wet diaper and start getting a bottle ready.

Rodenator!

2006-09-09T16:19:00.000-05:00

Watch this video and tell me if you thought it was as funny as I did.

Hook 'Em!

Speechless

2006-09-07T07:40:00.000-05:00

summer move forward and stitch me the fabric of fall

wrap life in the brilliance of death to humble us all

how sweet is the day I'm craving a darkness

as I sit tucked away with my back to the wall

and the taste of dried-up hopes in my mouth

and the landscape of merry and desperate drought

how much longer dear angels let winterlight come

and spread your white sheets over my empty house

summer move forward and leave your heat anchored in dust

forgotten him, cheated him, painted illusions of lust

now language escape, fugitive of forgiveness

leaving as trace only circles of rust

and the taste of dried-up hopes in my mouth

and the landscape of merry and desperate drought

how much longer dear angels come break me with ice

let the water of calm trickle over my doubts

come let me drown

angels no fire no salt on the plow

carry me down

bury me down

and the taste of dried-up hopes in my mouth

and the landscape of merry and desperate drought

once I knew myself and with knowing came love

I would know love again if I had faith enough

too far is next spring and her jubilant shout

so angels, inside is the only way out

-Drought by Vienna Teng

I'm starting to remember why I stopped blogging as much. I get frustrated by the lack of content that I actually manage to share.

I don't want to be shallow and boring. I'm not. It just rarely translates into these the Internets for other to see very well.

I spend an entire day analyzing some deep introspection of my own personal darkness that I might like to share, only to find the words and feelings lost once I get in front of the keyboard? And the best I can muster at the time is, "Gee, aren't we all glad it isn't so hot anymore?", or "Wow, who else is glad football season is finally here."

There was a time when it wasn't this hard to share my innermost with those privileged few. Even the things that I manage to share with Shannon lately, are sparse and shallow enough. Is that secret chamber getting darker? Am I losing touch with who I really am? Is it just the poison of a monotonous daily life and lack of sleep? Is it the feeling that some of those you counted as good friends at one time aren't really there for you anymore, and don't really want you to be there for them?

Who's to say?

In the meantime, however, I am stoked about legitimate NFL football starting TONIGHT baby!

A Darker World

2006-09-04T08:42:00.000-05:00

I don't know about y'all, but my world is a little bit darker today.

CNN reported this morning that Mr. Steve "crocodile Hunter" Irwin, was killed today by a Sting Ray, while filming a documentary in Australia.

evidentially, the string ray thrashed at him and drove one of it's tail barbs through his chest and pierced his heart. I always knew we would hear about Mr. Irwin's untimely death, but I always thought a snake would get him, not a sting ray.

He had a great sense of humor. He recently filmed an ESPN commercial where he wrestled the Florida Gator's mascot to the ground in ESPN's offices.

Very sad.

Wow...

2006-09-01T08:06:00.000-05:00

Has it really been since May 12th since I have posted my last blog post?

Like I said...wow.

A LOT of stuff has happened around here since then. Most notably, Shannon and I have had a baby! And for all of y'all that posted little comments about my lack of blogging...I don't remember seeing a lot of stuff come out of y'all camp when you had a two month old baby you had to take care of in the house!

*kisses* I still love you, regardless.

Most (all probably) of you that would read this have seen my MySpace pictures of the baby. I'll try and spend an hour or so away from my gaming to post up some new picture we have lying about.

As Melanie said, I have been using MySpace for my brief blogging, mainly out of convenience.

Now that I am using it again, I have to say that I still like blogger quite a bit, so look for more entries here.

Lost: Season 1

2006-05-12T07:49:00.000-05:00

Shannon and I finished the first season of Lost on DVD last night. Overall, I'll give it a B+.

My biggest complaint, thus far, is that they don't give you even the faintest bit of even a hint of answers concerning the island. At the cliff hanger after season 1, they have done nothing but give you more and more clues.

Having talked with people that have kept up with it, this seems to be the M.O. for season two as well.

I really like the back story flashbacks, especially Hurley's. He seems like such a cool guy.

My favorites thus far are Locke, Kate, Jin, Charlie, Hurlye, and Sayid.

I wonder if anyone else didn't really feel bad that Arzt got himself blown up.

And if there is anyone reading this right now that has already rolled their eyes and thinking that they are so stinking tired of hearing about this stupid show that they didn't care to watch the first time....yeah, I thought the same thing. Stop fighting it! Go get the first season on DVD and just catch up. You can't beat them, so just go join them.

Lost

2006-05-04T09:34:00.000-05:00

We finally did it. We finally broke down and bought the first season of Lost on DVD and watched the first episode last night.

I have to say that it was pretty interesting. I really don't understand what keeps the stalking, mechanical sounding, predators that are deft enough to pull a man out of an airplane window but can't seem to avoid knocking over trees, from just walking out and taking everyone out at one time; but I guess that part of the whole mystery.

After first episode: thumbs up.

Rumblin...Bumblin...Stumblin

2006-05-02T09:15:00.000-05:00

/set cfg_chrisbermanreferences = 0

Shannon gave us all a big scare yesterday.

For those of you that don't see her everyday, she is now very much a full 8 months pregnant. And, she is starting to look it, in all of her radiant, I'm-with-child glamour that only beautiful pregnant women possess. And, unfortunately, she is also starting to walk like it.

Well, the walking like it got the best of her yesterday.

While walking back to her portable yesterday afternoon about 3:30 her feet decided that they were going to get tangled up on themselves and she took a little spill. A spill that ended with her head banging into one of the metal poles that support the awning of the walkways out by the portables. The result of the said head banging was what they feared was a slight concussion that left her a bit woosey and fighting off cobwebs in the head for a couple of hours.

She spent the next couple of hours in the ER for observations, and then they sent her home.

The good news is that she is fine and Michael is ok. She doesn't think that she feel on her tummy. Michael's heartbeat was good. She didn't have any abnormal abdominal pain. She just had a lingering headache for awhile. She even went in to school today, what a trooper.

The bad news, which is one of Shannon's fear about going into labor, was the fact that when she feel, I was in Fairfield, TX. So, I spend the better part of an hour and a half worrying about all of the possible worst case scenarios that could come from a blow to the head of an almost full term pregnant woman, while trying to get home as quickly and as safely as possible.

But like I said, everything is ok. Both mommy and baby and doing just fine. Daddy's heart, however, is still trying to calm down a bit.

The worst part, I think, is that Shannon feels bad and stupid about falling and scaring everyone. Here's to hoping that she realizes she shouldn't feel silly about falling over when your feet are sore and swollen and you have an additional and awkward weight slung around your mid section.

Where is everybody?

2006-04-28T23:08:00.000-05:00

The evening that I'm sitting at home with a really tired and sleepy 8 month pregnant wife, half watching the Starts game, and messing around on the computer...no one else in online.

How very sad for me.

I would really like to read, but with the game on I doubt I would get much done in that regards. For those that go in for the fantasy genre, George R. R. Martin thus far has been a wonderful read. He is very economical with his words. Meaning, he gets a lot said with the minimal amount of words possible. This results in a very consistent flow to the story.

Absolutely Disgusting

2006-04-27T10:45:00.000-05:00

For the second game in a row, the Dallas Stars cannot hang on to a late one goal lead. The Avs scored in the final minute of the 3rd to send it to OT, and again, the Stars gave up the game winner in OT in short fashion.

Add that to the lack luster game one on Saturday, and you have a 0-3 hole in a best of seven series. I feared that the Stars might have a rough go in the first couple of rounds, but I never thought that they could have been swept out of the first round.

This is bringing back painful memories of when they got beat out by the Mighty Ducks and the Avs two and three years ago in short fashion as well. Turco is starting to become an ugly word around town.

The year they won the Stanley Cup, back in 1999, the were down 1-3 to the Avs in the Western Conference finals. But that was a different day and age, and a different team, and most importantly, a different goalie.

They aren't done until the horns sounds on a 4th loss, but it sure did feel like it 1:09 into OT last night.

Let It Be Known!

2006-04-25T08:20:00.000-05:00

Forget the weather advisory. I've made the decision.

I'm back on blogger.

Wordpress may be more refined and cleaner looking at times, but I found it to be much more problematic. All you have to do is look at the fact that my link pictures just disappeared for no reason whatsoever, as just one of the problems I have never had with blogger. I'm sure some of you *HackcoughMelwhez*....Mmm, excuse me. As I was saying, I'm sure some of you don't mind that the pics have disappeared.

For those that may be interested in reading the wordpress blog, but fail to notice the link on the side, you can simply click HERE to check it out.

Attention Lycan Readers

2006-04-25T08:02:00.000-05:00

For those of you that may have stumbled across this site, please be aware that I have done all of my recent blogging at wordpress.

You can find that blog Here.

Be advised, however, that the national weather service has issued a 50% chance of scattered blogging through the end of the week, with a decent chance that the bulk of new postings will be moved back here by the beginning of the weekend.

That is all.

261,400

2006-01-29T06:52:00.000-06:00

That's my current high score on this new ebaumsworld arcade game.

Two Days, Two Shootouts.....Two Wins

2006-01-27T09:29:00.000-06:00

So the Stars came back to tie the game late in the third period...again. Survived a blistering stretch of the OT...again. And they brought their season record in shootouts to a league leading 7-0. The only bad thing about last night's shootout was the fact that Turco, the Star's goaltender, allowed his first ever goal in a shootout. It ended up not being a big deal, because Zubov and Jokinen were money...again, and Turco stoned the other two Colorado shooters like they were jr. high kids.

Is there anything better in sports than the shootout? Whether it be soccer or hockey, the shootout is something to behold.

Wordpress

2006-01-26T08:17:00.000-06:00

So, I followed Mel's link into Wordpress and signed up so that I could comment on her blog, and I have to say that I'm a bit impressed. It's not quite as versitile as I first though, but I do need to look around more and flesh out my options before I give it a final grade.

You can find my wordpress blog here.

Pokemon WTF

2006-01-24T08:05:00.000-06:00

Something tells me that there is a greater than zero chance this guy never intended for this video to ever be put on the Internet.

Rule #1 in role playing a Rock Star: If you hold a guitar, at least act like you are strumming the strings...sometimes.

Recut Greatness

2006-01-22T08:56:00.000-06:00

Ok, most of you know the deal. You take a movie, and make a trailer with scenes from the movie and make it appear that the movie is about something completely different that what the movie is actually about.

For you viewing pleasure, please check out the one for Seven.
And since the one known link for the Shining has disappeared, I give you another.

Rare Meme

2006-01-22T08:12:00.000-06:00

I usually don't do these that often, but since I was tagged, I'll be a good sport.

FOUR JOBS I’VE HAD:
– Driving Range Attendant
– PetsMart Stocker/Lead Cashier
– BestBuy Appliance Salesman
– Telephone Tech Support
FOUR MOVIES I’D WATCH ON REPEAT: (Only Four!)
– The Hunt for Red October
– The Royal Tenenbaums
– Tombstone
– Old School
FOUR TV SHOWS I LOVE:
– CSI (Las Vegas)
– Gray's Anatomy
– The Office
– Top Gear
FOUR VACATION LOCALES I’D LIKE TO HIT:
– Colorado Springs
– Ireland
– New Zealand
– NYC
FOUR WEBSITES I VISIT DAILY:
– mail.yahoo.com
– cnn.com
– myspace.com
– espn.com
FOUR FOODS I LUST AFTER:
– Shannon's Cornbread
– El Fenix
– Double Dave's buttery, chocolate chip dessert pizza
- Chili's chips and hot sauce
FOUR CHANGES I’D MAKE TO THE HOUSE:
– Two bathrooms
– Bigger kitchen, or at least W&D in their own room
– More closet space
– Extra bedroom or study
FOUR BEERS I LIKE:
– Two Row's Hefeweizen
– Paulaner Münchner Hell Leicht
– Miller Highlife
– Corona w/Lime
FOUR TAGS:
– Shannon
– Mel
– Amanda
– David, although he won't qualify for one catagory

Interesting...

2006-01-19T22:33:00.000-06:00

This was sent to me by my father through the miracle of email. It might be worth your time if you, like myself, are fascinated by those that have the talent for sketching.

It is a picture of a woman drawn in layers from the inside out.

Blonde Joke

2006-01-18T23:23:00.000-06:00

Best Blond joke ever. Thanks to Cinnabar for keeping the chain going!

Michael Ian Tidwell

2006-01-18T17:25:00.000-06:00

We found out today that Effie is a boy, so we get to stop calling him Effie and start calling him Michael. Pictures to come in a little while.

...

Ok, I finally got around to connecting the scanner my cousin gave me a long time ago. So, here are the new baby pics.

The clearest headshot - He's looking straight on, with the top of his head to the far right.

Little legs - His legs are crossed at the ankles and you can see his knee caps and the toes of his left foot.

It's a Boy!! - I like the caption the doctor included on this one.

Being Sick Sucks

2006-01-16T22:29:00.000-06:00

I've been sick more times in the past two months than I have in about the last five years. What's up with that.

I think I'm going to make it to work tomorrow. I could have been worse, but it sure wasn't fun.

F.E.A.R.

2006-01-14T00:54:00.000-06:00

First Encounter Assault Recon

I finished the game tonight/this morning. Give me a big C, a big R, and and big double E-P-Y.

CREEPY!!

It seems to be based on the general concept of The Grudge, or The Ring. A creepy little girl type figure running around killing people. Combine that will a beautifully detailed FPS and what could be better.

Shannon can attest that it invoked from me an audible sound of surprise multiple times during the game. It also elicited a sense of awe at just how incredible this game is. Everything from the graphics, to the effects, the environmental interaction, the enemy AI, to the big fat systems admin with the "RTFM" belt buckle. Top knotch! I recommend it to anyone who likes FPS and has the machine to run it.

Hour Glass Sands...

2006-01-11T21:06:00.000-06:00

They just keep pouring through, and there is nothing we can do about it.

My work travels carried me to Marshall, TX today. Being in Marshall is always a mixed bag for me. As many of you know, my freshman year, in terms of the whole college experience, was one of the best years of my life. I thoroughly enjoyed the time that I spent there, and made more friends that I still talk with to this day than any one years until and since that one year. But, it feels hollow in a way, because of the fact that I was only there one year. There are many things, and relationships that I feel were truncated and stifled in a way because of the fact I was not there for a longer amount of time. So, there is a regret and a 'what if' factor that plays through my mind whenever I think of the place. In many ways the place is haunting.

While there, I drove a lap around campus just to look around again. In doing so, I reaffirmed a notion that came to me several weeks ago. The last time that I was in town, I happened to drive through campus right at the top of the hour when classes were letting out and there were many students out and about. At a glance, it looked essentially the same as it did when I was a student there. Not an inordinate amount of things have changed since my time was there, so everything still appears cozy on the surface. The feel is much the same. You still sense the innocent, carefree attitude of the students as the biggest worry in there life is studying for one of Dr. Utley's tests or finishing a paper, or if the cute girl they've had an eye on might really like them back too.

Then, I looked more closely at the faces that held the smiles. Though familiar, they were completely unrecognizable. Everywhere I looked, I realized that I did not know any of these people. Then, like something that makes sense to you even though you have never fully realized it before, it started to dawn on me. This is not my school anymore. These people were not walking around on my old turf, it was their turf now. I was the foreigner. Like Steven King's saying in the Gunslinger, that world had moved on; like Sean Astin's character in Goonies, it's their time. What really made me feel old is the realization that not only is there no one around that I would know, there isn't anyone around that would know anyone else that might know me or know of me.

I'm reminded of the play Our Town, where it talks about why the dead don't go around the living. There's pain in trying to make things fit into what they used to be instead of accepting the way things are now.

Don't get me wrong, it's not like this ordeal is major ordeal for me. It just makes me feel lonely at how little time I got to spend with those that I counted among my friends at one time.

Scariest Article I've Read In A While...

2006-01-10T08:09:00.000-06:00

Bear in mind that the President of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, was allegedly a leader of the Iran Hostage Crisis in '79, and has recently said publically that Israel "must be wiped off the map", and that the new Palestinian opposition to Israel "will eliminate this disgraceful stain from the Islamic world."

http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/01/10/iran.nuclear/index.html

Not Much Going On...

2006-01-08T12:17:00.000-06:00

Just enjoying the relative quiet of a peaceful weekend.

I finally finished The Cardinal of the Kremlin. It ended up better than I feared it would at the onset. Ramius, from The Hunt for Red October made a cameo, as well as John Clark.

Onward to Clear and Present Danger, which I've heard is much, much different from the movie...thankfully. Patriot Games was pretty much spot on and a very good adaptation. Hopefully, it won't be the case with this one.

Football Hypothetical

2006-01-06T07:38:00.000-06:00

I have a hypothesis. I think that if Texas had not missed their field goal they would have lost the game. It seems crazy that not having points on the board can help you win, but think about this:

We all know how it played out. Down by five points, 4th down and 5 yds to go on the USC 7 yard line with 19 seconds left, Texas has to go for it, and Vince Young runs for a TD and an ensueing 2 pt conversion to go up 41-38.

If Texas had not missed the field goal earlier, that 4th down play by Vince Young would never have happened. Instead, with 4th down and 5 to go, Texas would have only been behind 38-36 and they would have lined up for a field goal to go up 39-38. Also, USC ended up using (quite stupidly mind you) their last time out trying to defend the 2 pt conversion, which would have never happened if Texas has just kicked a field goal.

So, let's give USC 7 more seconds on the game clock and a timeout; is their any doubt that Leinart would have connected with Jarrett over the middle into field goal range, called timeout, and had a chance to set up a game winning field goal to win 41-39.

One of the few times in football history in which a missed field goal by a team lead directly to that same team winning the game.

As Joe said.....Wow.

A Beautiful Texas Winter

2006-01-03T08:10:00.000-06:00

I think it was close to 80 yesterday. The last two weeks or so have been perfect Spring weather. No rain, not too cold, not overly hot. Except for the small little fact that we are officially in the middle of winter. I find myself not being able to enjoy it, because all I can think about is how cold it should be.

Nothing much going on. Pretty quiet start to the new year.

2006

2006-01-01T08:29:00.000-06:00

Wow, 'tis 2006.

This year will see 10 years since I graduated high school and started college.

We are officially in the latter part of these the aughts.

This year, God willing, will see the birth of my first child.

My brother is scheduled to graduate high school.

I will have been married for five years...and loved every second of it.

I start the year with my very own car, that is 100% mine, free and clear with title in hand; however dirty it might be.

I feel it is going to be a different type of year. It will be the year that I can look myself in the mirror and think beyond a shadow of a doubt, I have arrived into full manhood because of the new responsibility as a father. I no longer have the priveledge of making decisions based on what is in the best interest of myself. My and my wife's desires are now secondary. Something tells me that that is going to be just fine. <3

In the mean time... FOOTBALL BABY!! By kickoff tonight of the Cowboy's game, we will know if it is going to be the most important game of the season or practically a meaningless exhibition. In order to make the playoffs the Cowboys need some help. They need either the Washington Redskins or the Carolina Panthers to lose. If either one of them lose, and the Cowboys win, they are going to the post-season. If both Carolina and Washinton win, you might as well start Romo at QB, because it's meaningless. How important now are those four games that they lost by less than five points! If they could have just had one of them, all they would need to do is just win tonight.

And not to mention that Wednesday will bring the national title game between Texas and USC.

I hope everyone had a fun and safe New Year's Eve. Some things of note about last night:

There were no booze of any kind consumed last night. Shannon and I stayed in by ourselves and went to bed fairly soon after we watched the ball drop on the NYC rerun.

Regis Philbin SUCKED last night. And all of his little lackey's drove me absolutely up the wall with how silly and wheels off the whole broadcast ended up being. I never thought I would say this, but where's Dick Clark when you need him.

Happy New Year's!!

Merry Christmas

2005-12-25T08:51:00.000-06:00

It almost feels like I'm a child again. Eagerly awaiting gifts on Christmas morning with the exception that it has almost come full circle. I'm not eagerly awaiting my gifts, I'm waiting for Shannon to open the gifts I got for her. I can imagine how exciting it will be watching the kid open his gifts in a couple of years from now.

It's nothing uncommon for me to be up before Shannon. Whenever I wake up, I'm up...at least for a few hours. On non-work days I really start feeling a nap coming on around 11ish, but the moments immediately after, I can't just lay in the bed and go back to sleep unless I'm really tired. So, with that in mind, here I am typing on the computer, anxiously awaiting Shannon to wake up so that she can open her gifts.

I hope Santa was good for everyone!

Christmas Time Is Here...

2005-12-24T07:47:00.000-06:00

You don't have much time to finish shopping if you haven't already got it done.

Tonight, we are to be in Seagoville for Christmas at the Tidwell's. We never really have a set tradition as far as when we exchange gifts. We tend to mix it up a bit. This year we are doing the gift thing tonight on Christmas Eve. Regardless of when the gifts are opened, we usually have a big to do on Christmas Eve.

I doubt we are watching it this year, because we are opening gifts tonight, but one tradition we usually have is to watch Scrooge with Albert Finney. To me, this is the definitive Christmas carol on screen rendition.

Albert Finney was only 34 at the time! You can imagine how blown away I was as a child when I found out that Scrooge was the same man who played Daddy Warbucks in the definitive version of Annie. Way to go 1970 makeup dept.

Another bit of trivia concerning Scrooge is that they offered the part to Rex Harrison. Nothing against Rex, My Fair Lady is an excellent show, but it would have been utterly and tragically miscast after seeing what a wonderful job Mr. Finney does with the character.

Anyways, Merry Christmas Eve to everyone if I don't talk to any and all that may see this.

Sickness...bleh

2005-12-22T09:11:00.000-06:00

Yep, it looks like it is my turn. The thing that I fear is that since I was around my family yesterday, they might get sick just in time for Christmas.

Dreary Days...

2005-12-20T18:10:00.000-06:00

It's been cold, rainy, and cloudy here the last two days, and to make matters worse Invictus has come down sick. Not just being sick from the pregnancy, but seriously feverish stomach flu type sick. So if y'all would remember here, I would appreciate it.

Survery: Comments Wanted

2005-12-17T09:01:00.000-06:00

Concerning the How Boyish Are You? quiz:

Question 5, What will get your further? Looks or Brains.

Did you infer it to mean that it was asking you specifically what was going to get you further in life, your specific looks or your specific brains? Or did you infer that it was asking you all things being equal, will a good looking person get further in life than a really smart person?

...btw I got only 30% boyish.

Master Engineer

2005-12-16T08:05:00.000-06:00

Just wanted to give a shout out for my brother-in-law who will graduate today with a Master's in Geological Engineering from A&M.

Way to go Steve.

I have a feeling that he could definitely pass the 8th grade science test.

Easy Cheesy

2005-12-13T15:05:00.000-06:00

You Passed 8th Grade Science

Congratulations, you got 8/8 correct!

Could You Pass 8th Grade Science?

True Pizza buffet

2005-12-13T14:56:00.000-06:00

Yesterday something a bit unusual happened to me, that has never happened before.

I ended up going into a Double Dave's Pizza establishment around 1:30~1:45 for a late lunch. What I didn't know was that the buffet ended at 2:00, so come about 2:05 they gave me and the other two tables that were there large pizza boxes and told us that we could take as much of all that was left on the spread home with us. By law they have to throw away any unused food, and since the buffet was closed, it was going in the trash if we didn't take it home.

Apart from the pizza, I made off with almost an entire buttery chocolate chip dessert pizza thing. MMMMMmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Now you know when to go to the pizza buffet if you want to make a killing.

Insanity...

2005-12-10T09:36:00.000-06:00

Ok, here's the deal. As seen on Wynk's blog: Take the first sentence of the first post for every month, and combine them to make a new post.

Wow, the very first post from the very first blog of LycanJager. It appears after much ado, it really was about nothing. I didn't like it. Do you ever have those days where you feel like posting something, but you really have absolutely nothing to say or share that would have any value on any other living soul? Of all of the holiday's in all of the world, Halloween is my least favorite. Wow...I woke up this morning feeling like complete ass.

Suddenly Saturday

2005-12-10T07:01:00.000-06:00

It is amazing how fast the weekend can get here when you work out of the office on Tuesday, a half day on Wednesday, and the whole day on Thursday, and work out of the office half a day on Friday.

Snow Day!

2005-12-08T11:23:00.000-06:00

Well, Ice Day more like it.

The Ice came. It's cold. At least the dogs take care of their business outside fairly quickly with no distractions.

It's not even pretty. Just enough to make the roads slick.

Shannon gets to stay home because the district called off school.

I'm still home, but undecided about whether or not I'm going to try and risk it.

Awaiting the Ice

2005-12-07T13:43:00.000-06:00

According to the weather radar, it looks like it could start the whole sleet/mixed percipitation maybe within the hour.

We all went into work this morning without any problems. Around 11:00 it started to sleet, and the boss said for everyone that lives "far away", to go ahead and head home. I didn't need him to tell me twice.

I did run an errand for work for Pete, since I live fairly close to the store in question and now I sit at home, with my heat on and wait for the ice.

See, the deal with "winter weather", here in Dallas is that we are far enough North that it can get cold, but we are far enough South that it doesn't stay really cold for long. So, all of that combines into the fact that 90% of the time that we get percipitation when it's cold, it's Ice. I don't care what they think up North, you can't function or travel on ice. Most of the time up there it is cold enough to begin with that it just snows. And snow by itself isn't that big of a deal.

The last several years it seems that it has just snowed several times, and that is a world of difference to sleet and ice.

Today, if it does anything, it's going to be freezing rain and ice... and that my friends, is no bueno. I'm glad I'm already home.

Gray's Anatomy

2005-12-05T22:30:00.000-06:00

What a wonderful show. Have I said this before?

I honestly think this is one of the greatest shows on TV right now.

The actors do such a good job of making their characters so human, and all the more lovable because of their faults.

I can't wait until they come out on DVD.

Thank Goodness

2005-12-04T19:33:00.000-06:00

It looks like with the help of laying low for a three day weekend and the use of airborne several times, that the worst of being sick has past.

It was really afraid that this was going to be one of those things where you just coughing with a sore throat for about a week and a half, and you don't really feel really bad, but you never feel good either.

If the Cowboys could have won, it would have been a fairly decent weekend.

Sickness Creeps

2005-12-01T06:18:00.000-06:00

Wow...I woke up this morning feeling like complete ass. Not A ass mind you, just ass.

It feels like someone took a Brilla pad to the bad of my throat. And that's just when I breathe, much less cough.

Woo-Ah for December 1st. Can you feel my enthusiasm? -_-

Invictus and Lycan

2005-11-29T21:34:00.000-06:00

For those that wanted a picture of me and the wife together....

...I finally oblige.

Sudden Realization

2005-11-28T18:48:00.000-06:00

Invictus actually spotted this one. We just realized how much my brother looks like Ben Savage at about the same age.

Ben

Bro

Is it just me?

Movie List, Couldn't withstand the peer pressure any longer

2005-11-28T17:43:00.000-06:00

Ok, so I put a y on those that I've seen justifiable parts of but haven't seen the whole thing. It happens a lot with cable when you have movie channels. In all 233, counting the Ys. Before you bust my chops about some of these, remember that I'm married.

(x)Rocky Horror Picture show
(x) Grease
(x) Pirates of the Caribbean
( ) Boondock Saints
( ) The Mexican
(x) Fight Club
(x) Starsky and Hutch
(x) Neverending Story
(x) Blazing Saddles
(x) Airplane
(x) The Princess Bride
(x) Young Frankenstien
(x ) AnchorMan: The Legend of Ron Burgandy
(x) Napoleon Dynamite
(x) Saw
( ) White Noise
( ) White Oleander
(x) Anger Management
(x) 50 First Dates
( ) Jason X
(x) Scream
(x) Scream 2
(x) Scream 3
(x) Scary Movie
(x) Scary Movie 2
(x) Scary Movie 3
(x) American Pie
(x) American Pie 2
(x) American Wedding
(x) Harry Potter
(x) Harry Potter 2
(x) Harry Potter 3
(x) Resident Evil I
(x) Resident Evil 2
(x) The Wedding Singer
( ) Little Black Book
(x) The Village
(x) Donnie Darko
(x) Lilo & Stitch
(x) Finding Nemo
( ) Finding Neverland
(x)13Ghosts
(x) Signs
(x) The Grinch
(x) Texas Chainsaw Massacre
(x) White Chicks
(x) Butterfly Effect
(x) Thirteen going on 30
(x) I Robot
(x) Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
(x) Universal Soldier
( ) A Series Of Unfortunate Events
(x) Along Came A Spider
(x)Deep Impact
(x)KingPin
( ) Never Been Kissed
(x) Meet The Parents
( ) Meet the Fockers
( ) Eight Crazy Nights
( ) A Cinderella Story
(x) The Terminal
( ) The Lizzie McGuire Movie
( ) Passport to Paris
(x) Dumb & Dumber
(x) Dumb & Dumberer
(x) Final Destination
(x) Final Destination 2
(x) Halloween
(x) The Ring
( ) The Ring 2
( ) Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle
( ) Practical Magic
(x) Chicago
(x) Ghost Ship
( ) From Hell
(x) Hellboy
(x) Secret Window
(x) I Am Sam
(x) The Whole Nine Yards
( )The Whole Ten Yards
(x) The Day After Tomorrow
(x) Child's Play
(x) Bride of Chucky
(x) Ten Things I Hate About You
(x) Just Married
(x) Gothika
(x) Nightmare on Elm Street
(x) Sixteen Candles
( ) Coach Carter
(x)Bad Boys
(x)Bad Boys 2
(y) Joy Ride
(x) Seven
(x) Oceans Eleven
(x) Oceans Twelve
(x) Identity
(x) Lone Star
(x) Bedazzled
(x) Predator I
(x) Predator II
(x) Independence Day
(x) Cujo
( ) A Bronx Tale
(x) Darkness Falls
( ) Christine
(x) ET
(x) Children of the Corn
( ) My boss' daughter
( ) Maid in Manhattan
( ) Frailty
( ) Best Bet
(x) How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
(x) She's All That
(x) Calendar Girls
( ) Sideways
(y) Mars Attacks
(x) Event Horizon
( ) Ever after
(x) Forrest Gump
(x) Big Trouble in Little China
(x) X-men
(x) X-2: X-Men United
( ) Jeepers Creepers
( ) Jeepers Creepers 2
(x) Catch Me If You Can
(x) The Others
(x) The Original Freaky Friday
( ) Reign of Fire
(y) Cruel Intentions
(x) The Hot Chick
( ) Swimfan
(x) Miracle
(x) Old School
( ) Ray
( ) The Notebook
(x) K-Pax
(x) Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
(x)Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
(x) Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
(y) A Walk to Remember
( ) Boogeyman
(x) Hitch
(x)The Fifth Element
(x) Star Wars episode I The Phantom Menace
(x) Star Wars episode II Attack of The Clones
(x) Star Wars episode III Revenge of The Sith
(x) Star Wars episode IV A New Hope
(x) Star Wars episode V The Empire Strikes Back
(x) Star Wars episode VI Return of The Jedi
(y) Troop Beverly Hills
( ) Swimming with Sharks
(x) Air Force One
(x) For Richer or Poorer
( ) Trainspotting
(x) People Under the Stairs
( ) Blue Velvet
(x) Sound of music
(x) Parent Trap 1
(x) Parent Trap 2
(x) The Burbs
(x) The Terminator
( ) Empire Records
( ) SLC Punk
(x) Meet Joe Black
( ) Wild Girls
(x) A Clockwork Orange
(x) The Order
(x)Spiderman
(x) Spiderman 2
( ) Amelie
(x) Mean Girls
(x) Shrek
(x) Shrek 2
(x) The Incredibles
( )Collateral
( ) The Fast & The Furious
( ) 2 Fast 2 Furious
( ) Sky Captain & The World of Tomorrow
( ) Closer
(x) Titanic
( ) Saved
( ) Bowling For Columbine
( ) Farenheit 9/11
(x) The Sixth Sense
(x) AI: Artificial intelligence
( )Love Actually
( ) Shutter
(y) Ella Enchanted
(x) Princess Diaries
(x) Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement
(x) Constantine
( ) Million Dollar Baby
( ) Envy
(y) Eurotrip
(y) Malibu's Most Wanted
(y) Big Daddy
(x) Black Sheep
(x) The Breakfast Club
(x) West Side Story
(x) A Christmas Story
( ) Spanglish
(x) Pulp Fiction
( ) Sleepover
(x) The Evil Dead
(y) Killer Klowns From Outer Space
(x) Seed of Chucky
( ) Vanilla Sky
(y) The Nightmare Before Christmas
( ) Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind
(x) Interview With a Vampire
( ) The Crow
(y) Purple Rain
( ) Reservoir Dogs
(x) Wayne's World
(x) Wayne's World 2
( ) 21 Grams
( ) Honey
( ) Save the Last Dance
( ) Blow
(x) Edward Scissorhands
(x) Clerks
(x) Beauty and the Beast
( ) Guess Who
( ) Monster In-Law
(x) Elf
(y) Stuart Little
(y) Stuart Little 2
( ) Mall Rats
( ) Chasing Amy
( ) Dogma
(x) Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory
(x) Friday
(x) Next Friday
( ) Friday After Next
(y) Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
(x) Beetlejuice
(x) Last Samurai
( ) The Aviator
(x) Romeo and Juliet
( ) Beautyshop
(x) Legally Blonde
(x) Legally Blonde 2
(x) Forgotten
( ) Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen
(x) The Grudge
(x)Wimbledon
(x) Bring It On
( ) Bring It On Again
(x) Flight of the Phoenix
(x) Johnson's Family Vacation
(x) National Lampoon's Vacation
(x) National Lampoons Vegas Vacation
(x) 2001: A Space Odyssey
( ) Dr. Strangelove Or How I Came To Love the Bomb
(x) Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark
(x) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
(x) Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade
(x) Animal House
(x) Happy Gilmore
(x) Monty python and the holy grail
(x) Mondy Python's The Life of Brian
(x) CaddyShack
(x) Caddyshack 2
(x) Casablanca
(x) Austin Powers, International Man of Mystery
(x) Austin Powers, The Spy Who Shagged Me
(x) Austin Powers, Goldmember
( ) From Justin to Kelly
( ) Thirteen
(x) School of Rock
(x) Along Came Polly
(x) Kung Pow: Enter the Fist
(x) The Goonies
( ) State of Grace
(x) Clueless
(x) House of Sand and Fog
( ) Liberty Heights
( ) Brown Sugar
( )Love & Basketball
(x) Tombstone
(y) Mystic River
(x) Dead Man Walking
(x) Major League
( ) American History
(y) The Professional
(x) Garden State
(y) The Rookie
(x) My Girl
(x) My Girl 2
( ) Less than Zero
(x) The Barber Shop
(y) Serendipity
( ) Audition
(x) The Sandlot
(x) The Bad News Bears
( ) Harold and Maude
(x) Roxanne
(x) Fantastic Four
(y) Can't Hardly Wait
(x) Drop Dead Fred
(x) Pretty in Pink
( ) Natural Born Killers
( ) Rules of Attraction
(x) Thelma and Louise
(x) The Longest Yard
( ) Airheads
(x) Cool Runnings
(x) A League of Their Own
(x) Stand By Me
(x) Encino Man
(x) Underworld
(x) Super Troopers
(x) Spy Hard
(x) Black Hawk Down
( ) Formula 51
( ) Gone In 60 Seconds
( ) Batman begins
(x) Ghostbusters
(x) Hook
(x) Peter Pan (old disney version)
( ) Peter Pan (new version)
(x) Beauty and the beast
(x) Look Who's Talking
(x) Look Who's Talking 2

Post Thanksgiving Blahs

2005-11-27T00:37:00.000-06:00

It's always hard to come back to work from a holiday. I usually tend to err on the side of slacker rather than workaholic, so throw in a slack off short day on Friday, and I'm ready to take naps everyday until Christmas. :)

To make matters worse, tomorrow I am having to work on a Sunday for the first time in about five years. As it turns out, it seems that I have become the go-to guy when it comes to proctoring and administering a training class. So, when some manager of a new store decides that the best time to have us come out and train the servers on how to use our system is at the same exact time that the TABC guy is going to be there doing his training session, and by the way, that just happens to be on a Sunday afternoon, my number is the one that gets called. Thankfully, there won't be a Cowboy game on.

I really don't mind it. There is nothing that griping or complaining can do to change the situation, and it has been financially beneficial to me in the past. It just makes things more logistically complicated for tomorrow with seeing family off on one side, work, and dinner with the other side of the family; a bit of back-tracking is to be had.

Oh, I almost forgot...I have pictures.

This afternoon, I helped my dad and brother get the first wave of Christmas decorations down from the attic.

Invictus looking happy that it's Thanksgiving.

My response to a candid shot.

Dave putting up the Christmas tree.

Mr. Tubbs being forced into holiday cheer. Further Tubby torture. A close-up of the unhappy, but grudgingly cute creature.

Scrooge saves his buddy. Begging for further escape.

The unadorned tree.

Shannon and I holding hands over the baby.

El Bandito Lycan.

A Nativity scene older than I am.

Random shot of my father.

And last but definitely not least...iDave at the computer, on his blog, and NOT posting. Slacker.

Mmmmm

2005-11-24T09:33:00.000-06:00

One of my favorite feelings in the world comes at the moment when I first start to regain consciousness, and your brain is rebooting and you are trying to remember what day it is, and what you have to do, and then you realize that it is a day you don't have to go to work, or it is a day that you've been looking forward to.

Mmmm, Thanksgiving. Food, family, football.

I'm thinking good thoughts for all of those that read this regularly. I really sorry you are stuck away from those you love Amanda. But try and remember that we all are very jealous of where you are.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Meme time again...

2005-11-24T09:27:00.000-06:00

If I spent this much time on it, I've gotta post it.

1. Spell your first name backwards: Luap
2. Story behind your name: I was named after my grandfather
3. How old are you: 27
4. Where do you live: Dallas, Tx

DESCRIBE YOUR:

5. Wallet - Brown Bi-fold with a little flip over part for the Id.
6. Hair Brush - Squarish silver...regardless, what ever Shannon buys.
7. Toothbrush - green and white Oral B
8. Jewelry worn daily- The watch Shannon gave me.
9. Sheets - White
10. Pillow cover right now- Blue and white checkered
13. Sunglasses- Black
14. Favorite shirt- Just a cumfy, cheap, plain, dark blue, long sleeve T-shirt
15. Cologne/Perfume - Right now, Hugo. Others I've worn, Joop, Drakkar, Jovan
16. CD in stereo right now - None! iPod baby!
17. Piercings- None.
18. What you are wearing now- Long sleeve T-shirt and sweets
19. Wishing- I weighed only a 170 lbs again
20. Wanting- A bigger house for the new baby.
21. After this - Get ready for Thanksgiving dinner
22. If you could get away with it and murder anyone who would it be?: Abu Musab al-Zarkawi
23. Person you wish you could see right now: right now? My grandfather
24. Some of your favorite movies: The Hunt for Red October, Golden-Eye, Dave, Pirates of the Caribbean, Tombstone, Saving Private Ryan, The Fifth Element, LOTR, The Mummy, Christmas Vacation
25. Something you're looking forward to in the coming week: Watching football
26. The last thing you ate: Off of the cheese/sausage/cracker tray
27. Something you are deathly afraid of: The Ocean
28. Do you like candles: Yes
29. Do you like incense: Sometimes
30. Do you like the taste of blood? Sometimes.
31. Do you believe in love: Yes
32. Do you believe in soul mates: no, but to steal from Melissa, I do like the idea of kindred spirits
33. Do you believe in love at first sight: Yes
34. Do you believe in Heaven: Yes
35. Do you believe in God: Yes
36. Are you religious at all? Not in the usual sense, but yes we have religion
37. Do you believe in herbal treatments: Not for everything, but something yes.
38. What is the longest you've ever stayed up?: 2 days
39. Can you eat with chopsticks? You bet
40. What's your favorite coin: The half dollar
41. What are some of your favorite candies: Jr. mints or York peppermint paties; or Marzipan
42. What's something that you wish people would understand about you: If I love you, I love you for good regardless.
43. What's something you wish you could understand better: Any foreign language
44. Who is someone that you really wish was still around from your past? John Powell, I wish I knew what he was up to.

RELATIONSHIPS:

45. Who are your best friends?: Shannon, Jr & Mel, Joe & Amanda, Pete
46. How many people have you kissed?: 8
47. Are you shy around your crush?: Of course
48. Still have feelings for anyone you've been in a past relationship with: See #42, but nothing inappropriate
49. Do you know what it feels like to be in love?: Yes
50. Would you sacrifice your favorite possession for your best friends?: Absolutely

FASHION STUFF:

51. Where is your favorite place to shop? Barnes & Noble, Best Buy, Fry's
52. Have any tattoos?: Yeah, just one
53. What is your favorite thing to wear?: blue jeans and a T-shirt
54. What is a must have accessory?: A belt and my wallet
55. How much is the most you've ever spent in a single clothing store?: $700 which was the Men's Warehouse for a new suit, a sports coat, shirts, shoes, and ties.
56.. Who is the least fashionable person you know?: Jr, when he refuses to take his work shirt off even with PJ bottoms
57. Do you match your belt with your hair color?: I never seen a blonde belt, nor have I ever dyed my hair.
58.What is the worst thing you've ever thought looked good?: Jamz shorts
59.How many pairs of shoes do you own?: 10! Two pairs of tennis shoes - newer and old for yard work, work boots, Docs, Black dress, two pairs of cheap sandals, Doc sandals, house shoes, and golf cleats.
60. What is the worst trend you see today?: Wearing the low slung pant
61. Do you do drugs?: No
62.What kind of shampoo do you use?: Fructis
64. What are you listening to right now?: Jem's They
65. Who was the last person that called?: My father
66. Where do you want to get married?: I really didn't care
67. How many buddies are online right now?: Two, one is idle
68. What would you change about yourself?: My weight.
69. What are essentials in your life? : Other than family and friends, broadband
70. Do you send out holiday cards each year?: Not a chance, you all know I love you

CURRENT:

71. Hair: Two inches, maybe, closely trimmed around the sides and back
72. make-up: Nope
73. music: Now it's Crandberries Ode to My Family
74. mood: Relaxed, fat and happy

TEN FIRSTS

First Best Friend: John Powell
First Screen Name: Cotten
First Pet: Dog - a collie, don't remember the name
First Piercing: Not a chance
First Crush: Some cute blond girl in Kindergarten
First CD: I have no idea
First Car: A brown '85 Volkswagen....not a bug
First Stuffed animal: Honestly don't remember, I had several I didn't play with much
First Love: Amanda Hampton - Freshman in collegeFirst time: With my wife of course

NINE LASTS

Last Beverage: A&W Rootbeer
Last Car ride: Home from Shannon's Mom's
Last Movie Seen: Dave with Kevin KlineLast Phone Call: Shannon
Last Cd Played: A compilation that my brother madeLast Bubble Bath: Long time ago
Last time you Cried: Don't rememberLast thing you ate: Samples from the sausage/cheese/cracker tray
Last bad thing you did: Speeding I guess, I don't do bad things

EIGHT HAVE YOU EVERS

Have you ever dated one of your best friends: Yes
Have you ever been arrested: No
Have you ever skinny dipped: YesHave you ever been on TV: Yes
Have you ever kissed someone: Yes
Have you ever been in love: Yes
Have you ever been in a car accident: Yes

SEVEN THINGS YOU ARE WEARING RIGHT NOW

1. Long sleeve T-shirt
2. Boxers
3. Sweat pants
4. House Shoes
5. Eye glasses
6. Wedding ring
7. A deliciously mischevious smile

SIX THINGS YOU'VE DONE TODAY

1. Kissed my wife
2. Gone to the potty
3. Took the dogs to go potty
4. Checked email
5. Gave the wife a good gropin'6. Started this survey

FIVE FAVORITE THINGS IN NO ORDER

1. My wife's voice/laugh/smell
2. My animals
3. Sports
4. Movies
5. Showers

FOUR PEOPLE YOU CAN TELL ALMOST ANYTHING TO

1. Shannon
2. Jr
3. Joe
4. David

THREE CHOICES

1. Black or White: Black
2. Hot or Cold: Cold
3. Chocolate or Vanilla: Vanilla

TWO THINGS YOU WANT TO DO BEFORE YOU DIE

1. Travel by ship, see #27
2. See mountains again

I would like to have know what the missing numbers were.

Need a Jump Start

2005-11-22T08:36:00.000-06:00

I'm finding it really hard to get going this morning. This can happen when I don't go into the office.

I have to set up a new club outside of Longview at noon today, so I got everything I needed yesterday and I am just going to leave from my house. It's the whole having too much time in the morning usually makes me later that if I had hardly any time. If there is too much time to kill before I need to get ready, I'll start doing something else and loose track of time. Or like today, it just seems too much like a lazy Saturday, especially since Invictus is off of work for Thanksgiving holiday. It feels like it's about time to crawl back into bed.

Logic would dictate that I went ahead and get ready and then I could kill time until I had to leave...but come on, what's the fun in that!

To make matters worse, I've misplaced my little porfolio that I keep for work that has the phone number and directions of the place that I'm going to this morning. Worse case scenario, I think I have a spare number written down at the office, but it just such a disheartening feeling to know you've lost something or potentially screwed something up. That and the fact that I have no idea where that is.

...And I don't know where the camera is either, which is the main reason I didn't have pictures from this weekend. I hate losing things.

That's Gonna Leave a Stain

2005-11-19T18:54:00.000-06:00

LGF, my brother and my father came over and helped me paint some water sealant on my deck.

I didn't think to take pictures. I'm sure it was a sight. My deck looks tons different.

Thanks for the help!

New Favorite Song

2005-11-19T08:41:00.000-06:00

For the moment at least, is Hide and Seek by Imogen Heap.

I thank my brother for introducing me to this song.

Things of note about the song is that it is heavily effected electronically, has a great melody, and has no other instrumentation throughout.

All that I have heard from her other stuff is just the little 30 second snipits you get from iTunes, but I fear she may be a one hit wonder.

For those rare few that may not have iTunes yet, you can find a sample here.

The Texas Sun

2005-11-19T08:30:00.000-06:00

What's the only state that could have a 30 something wind chill, and because of the sun and the greenhouse effect through the windshield, you could still run the A/C in the car?

Out of defience I rolled the windows down for a bit. I'm getting sick of the non-season that is autumn in Texas.

Joke Time

2005-11-17T14:00:00.000-06:00

I know a few of you, especially my wife the elementary school teacher, are a fan of the "kiddie joke", so I thought I would share a few that were listed in the paper today.

1) If a butcher is 6 feet tall, wears size 9 shoes, and his waist is 38 inches, what does he weigh?

2) What do you call a vampire that lives in a kitchen?

3) Why don't seagulls fly over the bay?

4) What did the farmer use to count the cow's spots?

5) What do you call a dinosaur wearing a blindfold?

6) What washes up on very small beaches?

I hope you enjoy.

Triangle Football

2005-11-17T12:58:00.000-06:00

What was one thing that I learned at work today?

That I suck at triangle football. All my old skill is lost. :-(

Sneaky Harry Potter

2005-11-16T07:15:00.000-06:00

I knew this was coming out soon, but since I've had other things on my mind I totally forgot it was out this Friday.

At the time this was my favorite book, maybe still is. I've got good feelings about this movie. I think Radcliffe, Grint, and Watson are really growing into their characters, and you can tell a difference in the quality since Columbus isn't the director anymore.

Quiz of the day; can anyone tell me why I will be looking forward to April 15, 2008?

Suess meets Roddenberry

2005-11-15T23:19:00.000-06:00

http://www.seuss.org/seuss/seuss.sttng.html

How cool would it have been if they actually did an episode like this.

Worst Lunch In Awhile

2005-11-15T13:15:00.000-06:00

Pete and I went to the local Bennigan's in the Galleria for lunch today, and it was a big mistake. We are there about 11:30, there aren't any more than about 5 tables with people at them. The first thing that we notice is that they have changed the menu, and that they've gone up on the price (the Turkey O'Toole is still just $7 though), so that was a bit of a dampener. Second of all, over 5 minutes goes by and no one comes by to even take our drink order. So, with those two things in mind, Pete is ready to go somewhere else and I don't blame him. We don't get half way to the the door when a waitress intercepts us with, "I'm really sorry guys, your waiter probably doesn't know you are out here, tell me what y'all want to drink and I'll go ahead and get that out to y'all...I'm really sorry...blah blah blah", so we sit back down.

Come to find out, the waiter for that section is the bartender. Two factors here as well 1) This is my account and I talk to this guy all the time 2) the waitress has obviously told him that we've already tried to leave and that we probably aren't happy. *Insert power down sfx*

Now everyone is overly apologizing and giving us extra quick service, and that really annoys me. I'm not that guy to hold a grudge, but now I get the feeling that everyone else things that I'm THAT guy. ugh....

Several other things really top the lunch off to the point that neither one of us wants to ever set foot in the place again. First off, when the waitress bring out the food, not the bartender, she quips, "There, that didn't take that long, did it?" Secondly, even though there were apologies, there wasn't any offer for a free dessert, etc. I usually won't take them up on the offer because it isn't that big of a deal, but I like for them to at least offer; it let's me know they really care. And thirdly, we did order a dessert and when the bartender brings it and sets it on the table, he quips as he walks off, "There y'all should be fixed up good now", and there was a tone.

Pete and I felt a bit like the cavemen in the Geico commercial... "I don't think I have much of an appetite!"

I guess that's what I get for going to a place that I know my wife likes to eat for lunch when she's stuck eating lunch at school. ;-)

OMG! Did That Just Happen!!

2005-11-14T23:19:00.000-06:00

The Dallas Cowboys, after showing hardly any signs of life through the first 56 minutes of the game tonight get a quick touchdown strike to Terry Glenn, and an interception return for a touchdown by Roy Williams to go up 21-20 with very little time left. With McNabb hurt for the last drive, the Eagles do get the ball close enough to try for a 60 yard field goal, but the long attempt looks more like a lame duck and the Dallas Cowboys improve to 6-3 in a most improbable win.

This one makes the loss to the Redskins a little easier to bare. They probably should have lost this one, and they difinitely should have won the 'Skins game....so, the football world feels right again.

...Wow!

PayPal Phish Warning

2005-11-13T07:57:00.000-06:00

I got a Paypal phish this morning. For those of you that don't know what a phish is, it is a fake website that tries to get your personal info.

It came in the form of an email that told me jack_ass@scumbags.com (not the real addy, btw) had been added to my paypal as a alternate email address, and gave a link to go to if this was incorrect. When I clicked on the link, it sent me to a login screen for paypal that for some reason just didn't seem right to me. So, I opened a new explorer window and went to paypal.com and it was ever so slightly different, and the redirected page was a different addy that the one I went to in the email.

It was really, really close, but some of the buttons had different colors and there were some text boxes that were different and some small banners were different. When I loged into the legit paypal site, it told me that I only had one email addy assigned to my account. It was also on the legit page that had a little warning box that said to do exactly what I did, which was open up a new window and go directly to paypal.com, every time you want to access your acct.

So, I know all of you know this, but please be careful.

Birthday Wishes

2005-11-13T07:43:00.000-06:00

Yesterday, the 12th was my father's 52nd birthday.

Today, the 13th is Cumannai Speir's birthday.

Happy Birthday!

Bad Homeowner, Bad

2005-11-12T08:31:00.000-06:00

I've been a bad homeowner and allowed our deck in the back yard to come under some order of disrepair. It's become grey and mildewy in the abscense of any touch up weather treatment.

So, today is the day that if the rain will allow that I do something about it.

Eragon

2005-11-11T09:44:00.000-06:00

So, I finished reading Eragon this morning. It took me longer than it should have primarily due to the fact that I never had one large sitting. I read it here and there during lunches and before I went to bed. Add in the fact that I played two new computer games and that there has been football to watch, and it took me longer to read than it should have. Jr, on the other hand, has read both Eragon and Eldest at least twice each in the time it has taken me to read just Eragon.

Anyways, a number of factors weigh in on this book. It is undeniable that Mr. Paolini was heavily influenced namely by Tolkein and McCafferly (although I can't say exactly how much as I've yet to read any of the Pern series). I dare say that very little of his story is ground breaking and new. There are other worlds that are more elaborate and complex than that of Mr. Paolini's Alagaesia. But for some reason, you find yourself not really caring.

Some factors that weighed in on the contrary is that this book is found in the children's section, not the sci-fi. Also the fact that Christopher Paolini was 15 when he started writing this book (also the same year he graduated high school). Regardless of all the things that should be wrong with this book, you find yourself caring about the characters very much.

I enjoy the character traits that Paolini instictively gives Eragon, and the wisdom of his faithful dragon Saphira lends them to become good role models for young readers.

To make a long story short, though Eragon won't be the best fantasy book that you will ever read, it might end up being one of your favorites. I get the sense that there is bigger and better, more mature things ahead from Mr. Paolini, and I can't wait to start tackling Eldest.

I'll give it a thumbs up. Definitely worth a run through.

I've Lost That...Holiday Feelin'

2005-11-09T07:10:00.000-06:00

Why?

It was 88 degrees yesterday! Almost 90! And it's more than a week into November!

I'm starting to understand what Chirstmas in Australia must feel like.

IMDB Boy Claims Victory

2005-11-06T09:59:00.000-06:00

On a recent rerun of CSI, I spotted a one Ms. Kate Walsh who has recently been a recurring supporting actress on Grey's Anatomy as Addison Shepard, Dr. McDreamy's estranged wife that wants to get back with him.

It is a bit of a downer, however, to realize that she has been a pretty regular character that I do remember from the Drew Carey show, that I only now remember. I'm claiming an exemption on the basis that I haven't watch the Drew Carey show in YEARS, so...

The Holiday Spirit?

2005-11-06T09:27:00.000-06:00

I'm starting to get into the Holiday spirit. I can't feel that way because of the weather as it was in the 80s yesterday, so I listened to my first Christmas music this morning. Not just any Christmas music, but Jars of Clay's Drummer Boy album.

I recently downloaded Drummer Boy off of iTunes. I had bought it twice before, and misplaced it once and left it in a drive bay of a computer lab computer at school the other time. Then it went out of print for awhile, and no one had it or could order it. So, GO iTunes!

Yesterday could have been worse. It started with me going with Invictus up to her school for a work day. There was some minor painting done. Flowers were planted and some mulch was laid in some of the flower beds. I installed a new toilet paper dispensor in the Teacher's bathroom. *Tim Allen grunt* They had one of those cheap school dispensors that are ugly and is hard to get rolls in and out of the holders. Any time you use a drill, especially through tile, it makes for fun times.

Then we came home and lounged about. Shannon napped and I played the new trial version of Age of Empires III. It looks promising. At first I didn't like; I am just too used to Rise of Nations. Even though it is years older than AoEIII, RoN's hud is cleaner looking and easier to use. But, once I figured out how to turn on AoEIII's advanced controls it starting to grow on me. I think I'll still ask for it for Christmas. There are some interesting new gemics in it that interest me.

Later, we met up with Pete and met his new girlfriend for the first time. I must say that we approve. She is a lot of fun, and is someone that Shannon and I would sincerely like and not just someone we just don't mind hanging out with. Lutheran by birth, attended Baylor and didn't like the snobs that infest the campus, and discussed religious beliefs with a cigarrette in one hand and a vodka tonic in another. Nice! Went to Boston's bar area so that we could watch Miami plaster Virginia Tech 27-7 practically paving the way for Texas to go to the Rose bowl to play USC for the championship. Nice! And, watch the Mavericks beat the Spurs by 19! Nice!

All in all, not a bad day.

Fair Pictures

2005-11-01T21:44:00.000-06:00

I've had these pictures for several weeks now, I just haven't gotten around to posting them.

Amber, Nathan, and Jamie, and Jessica with her head cut off.

Picture of Shirley, Shannon's mom, taking pictures.

Shannon and her brother, Steven.

Pic of a nice ass.

Amber, Erin, and Jamie after coming out of a fun house with bubbles.

Amber waiting on one last drop of bubbles.

Scott, Shannon's dad, dreaming of a hot tub.

Amber playing in a hot tub.

Grandpa and the girls in with the big Budweiser horses.

Funnel Cake before and after the carnage.

An actual list of food units that was formulated for procurement.

Nathan wondering if he can get his bottle in Corny Dog flavor.

Picture of Erin and Amber on a ride. One is happy, and one it not happy.

Evidence that the ride operator was in fact being talked to while the ride was in motion, contrary to the signage right next to them.

Grandpa dreaming of a new outdoor grill setup.

Steve and Jes with Nathan.

Erin trying her hand at a Turkey Leg. It took all of us to finish off by this point.

Remnants of the second batch of Tater Twisters.

Me and Erin in a fun house mirror.

The largest chicken that I have ever seen in my life.

Jamie eating fruit snacks directly off of the picnic table.

Whenever we go out into public, Scott tends to wander off by himself. He has his own pace, and that pace usually doesn't include anyone else's. Well, this year, Steve procured a set of Cobra walkie-talkies in order to try and keep up with Scott. Here's Steven, trying to raise Scott, unsuccessfully I might add, on the walkie-talkie. If you look closely, you can see the level of put-outedness on his face. And here is Scott finding his way back, again, regardless claiming that he can't hear the w.t., with food units in tow.

And last, and maybe least as well, the junior high boy inside of us all will never fully die. All I can say in Wow. The funniest thing about this is at first, Shannon thought that they were funny looking udders on a cow.

Halloween

2005-11-01T07:54:00.000-06:00

Of all of the holiday's in all of the world, Halloween is my least favorite. I take that back; Kwanza is lower, but not by much.

I don't like Halloween. I've never really been a fan of playing dress-up. Just ask LGF about the LARP I went to with him. It just wasn't my thing.

Some may also remember the murder dress-up game that was played at the Dixon residence a couple of years ago. I don't dislike it per se, I'm just more comfortable being me.

Even as a kid, I didn't mind dressing up like a soldier or a star wars character, but you always had the element of having to parade around, and have people tell you how cute you were, and have to take pictures for grandma, etc. I've never really been a freak about candy either. So Halloween has always taken a back seat by default.

I think besides that, there are two factors that have played into the tainting of the All Saint's Day Eve ritual.

1) The diminishing sense of respect among the community as a whole.
2) The over protective Christian community

Considering the first: People seem to assume that because it's Halloween, they are entitle to receive candy from you. In years past, you would not believe how many people rang out door bell and knocked at the door, even though the porch light was off. Older kids who are obviously in high school, still out trick-or-treating trying to get candy. The the ratio to people who just run off after they get their hand out to those who actually say, "Thank You" and "Happy Halloween!" is pathetic.

And the second: I have never been a Ned Flanders. I take very seriously the scripture that Paul writes about being in the world but not of the world. Just because you are a Christian does not automatically make you better than every one else in the world and require that you elevate or shelter yourself to the point where you take personal offense every time you hear something that isn't appropriate for the Sunday School room. Being too far removed from the world in my book only causes estrangement between you and those that do not know Christ. Before anyone questions my ethics or morals or what type of Christian you think I am read 1 Corinthians 10:23-33.

With that in mind, the whole "Fall Festival" thing has never really sat well with me. Kids aren't stupid, they know what Halloween is. To be completely serious about a Fall Festival instead of a straight up Halloween Party is either helping to create kids that are a bit off in terms of dealing with the real world, or estranging those like myself to being completely committed to being active in the church community. The same peopel that initially wanted a "Fall Festival" instead of a "Halloween Party", are the same people that won't read Harry Potter.

I didn't mean to rant, but that being said, I'm very glad that November is finally here.

Happy All Saint's Day!!

Frappr!

2005-10-29T17:51:00.000-05:00

Frappr is a mapping program that will show the location and a picture of people in a group. I thought it might be cool to map the location of peeps that visit my little corner of the Internet.

So, take a few minutes to go here and place your own little thumb-tack into my map.

Finally...

2005-10-29T09:11:00.000-05:00

This morning is the first time that it has really felt like fall all year to me.

Whilst sitting in the back yard this morning, the air was crisp, and the leaves from our trees have finally started to fall.

My favorite time of the year has finally started, and it's almost Halloween.

Call of Duty 2....HO-LY COW!!

2005-10-27T07:51:00.000-05:00

In case you don't remember, I recently spent a pretty penny building myself a new computer. I essentially have one of the best gaming machine boxes that money could buy, save ungodly large amounts of RAM or Hdd space. One of the main reasons I did this was because of this game. And after my first session of staying up until 2:30 in the morning, I have to say that it did NOT disappoint. This is hands down not only the funnest FPS, it's also the prettiest game I've ever played. The rendering of the particle effects such as smoke and dirt kicked up from explosions, chunks of wall that come off from bullet holes, to snow flurries from both the programming and my next gen hardware is simply amazing. Another thing in this game that I have never noticed in a game before is heat shimmers. If you are in the desert on the British campaign or you look over a barrel that has a fire burning in it, the air shimmers with the heat mirages.

I've never really been tempted to call in to work so that I could stay at home and play a computer game until today.

Peanuts Meme

2005-10-25T19:44:00.000-05:00

I took this back when LGF first posted it, and I took it again tonight and got the same answer, so I guess it must be true.

You are Rerun!

Which Peanuts Character are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

Post for Postings Sake

2005-10-24T06:32:00.000-05:00

I feel like Pedro, "don't have much to say".

Not looking forward to a busy week. Not only is it our special Brinker week, we also have new Brinker stores possibly to be setup and multiple Olive Garden/Red Lobsters that want us to review their records and prepare them for possible upcoming audits. Fun, fun. All I can say is thank God, 7 out of 8 of the Plano Brinker stores got their mixed beverage permit this past month. Don't get me wrong, it sucks that we lost so much monies per month with those stores, but it makes our work days much, much easier with them gone.

I had better get going as I have to go to the office, 30 minutes in the wrong direction, before I can head towards Tyler and Longview, and make a pit stop at the doctor's office on the way. Yikes, it's going to be a long day today.

Equipment Cleaning

2005-10-18T07:03:00.000-05:00

One of the bad things about being in a small company is that there is no one person that is Trash Guy. We all have to take care of the little stuff as it needs doing. Well, when all of the acct reps are busy taking care of other stuff, some of the little things get neglected...stuff like cleaning equipment.

Well, this past week at work, the boss had had enough of the equipment problem that we had. He cleared everyone's schedule and basiscally told us that if we knew what was good for us, we had better be cleaning when he saw us.

This is what it looked like a month ago.

This is what it looked like last monday morning, October 10.

Tuesday morning, October 11.

And finally, this is what is looked like yesterday.

I really hate cleaning equipment, but I'm glad it's finally done

The Video Game Generation

2005-10-12T20:49:00.000-05:00

I turned 27 this past June. Since before I was born there have been video games. And almost as long as I can remember, I've played video games.

One of the earliest I can remember playing is Space Invaders on the Atari.

About 1986 my parents bought a Macintosh Mac Minus which, you can tell by the specs page, sported no hdd of any kind, and a whopping 8Mhz processor. If you pay close enough attention, a computer such as this can be seen on Jerry's desk in many episodes of Seinfeld. I love that thing. It rarely crashed, and some of the most entertaining video games I have played to date where on that machine. This was also the only computer my parent's household owned intil I went to college, I kid you not.

Around Christmas time 1996, my parent procured an IBM 200 MHz, 64 Mb RAM machine which served them until just about a year and a half ago. That machine was ok. It was what I first played Command and Conquer, Warcraft II, and Starcraft on. But I'm digressing from my intended point.

One thing that I like about video games is that you can always start over and try it again. This is something that has become so engrained into my thinking that I often don't realize that it is there. With computers and gaming machines, if you screw something up, you just restart and give it another try. Usually if your computer is acting up, you simply restart and a lot of times it's much better. Word processing tools have my accurate first time typing obsolete. If you screw up typing, you simply hit the backspace a few time, and type it again.

Even beyond computing. If you buy clothes that don't fit, you can take them back and exchange them. If you buy a computer part, and it craps out on you two days later, you can take it back a get a new one.

With all of this second chance options, it is sometimes hard to comprehend things that you can't change or don't get a second chance to make right. It's a enormous sense bearing on the future; a feeling that from this point forward, the effects of this descision is something that I won't be able to take back, ever.

Times in which I've felt feelings such as these are when I lost my virginity, when I got my tattoo, when I opted to transfer schools in college, and just after I got into my first wreck in my dad's car. No matter what, after those things happened, there was no going back or restarting. They were set in stone, finished, unchangable...forever.

Well, I've come across one of those feelings again this past weekend. A crossroad that after you chose your path and start walking, there is no going back and trying the other path if you don't like it; like being in a maze that once you turn the corner a wall seals behind you. You see, I felt one of those feelings again this weekend, because that is when Invictus and I discovered that we are to be expecting our first child!

That's right, boys and girls, I am to be a daddy! From this point forward, I can never say again that I have never been a father. I meet the expirence with a mixture of joy and sheer terror! The terror comes from the point of this post, that I only have one shot to get this right. From the first moments of my child's life, they are going to be a living and breathing infinite storage device with wicked recall of everything this he or she observes me doing and saying. I have an immense responsibility to raise this child the way that God and the my whole line of ancestors before me intended.

And even though I had some reservations about whether or not I wanted to start a family or not, now that there is no turning back, I can't wait until the little guy or gal, or both get here.

Since this discovery, my wife is infinitely more beautiful to me in more ways that I can hope to describe. I love you so much baby!

Dancing Through...Wicked

2005-10-07T20:09:00.000-05:00

I took some pics of last nights adventures.

This one is of Cinnabar driving. If you look closely enough you can see her in three different spots.

This is one of Cinnabar's husband, Vagary. (The name he had one his own long before Doom 3)

One of Invictus clapping her hands together because she was so nervous that we might be late. Which drove Vagary a little crazy, because he's crazy like that anyways.

A picture of the 'curtain' before the play.

Here's a douche that quite rudely cut between Invictus and I as we were waiting in line to pick up the car from valet.

And a group picture of Invictus, Cinnabar, and Vagary after the show.

Wicked, finally.

2005-10-06T13:58:00.000-05:00

I'm excited for my wife. As you can see here.

I like musicals, for the most part. Don't get me wrong, I'm not like some of our, how should I say...effeminately inclined brethern of society, and like musicals simply on the basis that it's art and not sports. They have to be interesting and have decent, catchy songs. But at the same time, I will be seen at a theatre with my head high, and may even be caught humming showtunes throughout the day.

So, it is with some excitement, at the mere notion of a night out on the town if nothing else, that we will be attending the musical Wicked at the Fair Park Music Hall tonight. I just hope that I don't fall asleep, per usual, during the performance since I haven't had much sleep lately.

WhichWich Imbroglio

2005-10-06T13:15:00.000-05:00

Pete and I decided that we would try the local WhichWich at the Galleria for lunch today. Upon arrival we discovered that they have a unique ordering process. They have brown paper sacks stamped with various meat selections at the top, and you pick which type of meat you want and then check off on the sack the extras that you want on the sandwich.

Well, Pete puts his in before mine, and a few minutes later I get my sandwich first. A minute or two later, Pete hasn't gotten his sandwich yet, so he goes up by the counter and waits. Sure enough, a few moments later they guy behind the counter yells out, "Peter", and he takes the sandwich and comes back to sit down. He unwraps the sandwich and takes a bite, and then a bit perplexed quips, "this doesn't have sauerkraut on it."

He had intended to order a Reuben. He looks down at the name section, which says Peter, and to which I can personally vouche that the writing on the bag looked like Pete's handwritting. He examines the top of the bag for the right meat selection, and I note that just under the meat section they have stamped the various types of sandwiches available for the particular meat and say, "Well, you didn't check the sauerkraut box on your sack."

We didn't think a lot about it because there was a lady complaining that they had messed up her childs order and started to dismiss it with some remark about going senile and how he could have sworn he had checked the right boxes. Not two seconds later we hear quite distinctly over the din of the restaurant, "It was a sandwich for 'Peter'. No, it wasn't this one, this one has sauerkraut. How can you lose a sandwich!"

We turn around to see a man that is SO huge, and SO pissed. He's about 6'5"~6'6", obviously a body builder by his very skinny waist, and massively buldging pectorals and biceps. He stomps back to the counter with the blank sacks, fills out another sack and takes it back to an apologizing sandwich builder. He then proceeds to pace the length of the shop, steaming and checking his watch while he is waiting on this order to be filled.

Pete and I slowly turn to each other knowingly and procede to scarf the rest of our sandwiches in order to get out of there ASAP just in case this guy puts 2 and 2 together and begins looking for his sack; he is pissed enough to reasonably expect this course of action.

What are the odds that someone with the same name, virtually the same handwriting, would order essentially the same sandwich minus sauerkraut, at almost the same time of day.

It wasn't that bad of a sandwich, btw. Maybe a little pricey for the size of what you got, but still good.

Moral of the story, look and make sure it's your sandwich before you bite into it. You really don't want to piss off a large man.

Hockey's Back

2005-10-05T22:18:00.000-05:00

And it's back with a vengence here in Dallas.

The new rules that go into effect this year that are supposed to increase scoring look like they are going to work.

Dallas has a very bad first period and goes down 0-4, only to shut the Kings out the rest of the game and score three in the second and two in the third to ultimately win 5-4.

So many games last year wouldn't have scored 4 goals in the whole game much less 4 in one period, and a total of 9 for the game.

Kudos to the NHL for seemingly taking a step forward in the entertainment department.

Go STARS!

Night of the Opossum

2005-10-05T09:27:00.000-05:00

Another night of poor sleep. I'm about to have a brain dead day here if I don't get some good sleep soon.

Last night I managed to get into bed at a decent hour. Our wonderful little canine darlings, however, chose this night/early morning to have an early potty break. And since it was turn, I did my best impersonation of a zombie out to the back yard at 4:30 in the morning.

Now, usually what happens in this instance is that one or both of them have to pee really badly, they go out and immediately do their business, and then they are just as ready to get back into the bed as I am.

This morning, however, we had an intruder. A most unwelcome intruder in the eyes of my little dachschunds. Mr. Opossum.

If you do an Internet search of opossum pictures, none of them look nearly as badly as the few that we have seen cornered under the deck and sheds of our back yard. And you've undoubtedly heard of the phrase playing opossum. Well, one thing I've learned is that when they are cornered in a confined space by a dog built for going into confined spaces and pulling out furry creatures, they don't play opossum. Instead, the go into last resort defense mode and bare all of their nice pointy teeth and growl.

One of my biggest fears is that one of these days my dogs aren't going to be as lucky as they have been and a opossum is really going to hurt them in a place that I can't easily get to them to help them. This would have been the case this morning if I han't been able to get to my, as Shannon calls it, "Opossum gettin stick" and interceded on behalf of live and let live and broke up the scuffle before any blood was shed.

I'm sure my neighbor across the alley just loves us.

To make matters worse, after the incident, I could not go back to sleep until about 45 minutes before we had to get up anyways. I just want a nap.

I guess this weekend we will finally break down and shore up the area around the sheds so nothing can get under then, be it dog or critter.

Why...

2005-10-03T02:10:00.000-05:00

Why am I sitting here at this hour instead of being in bed.

I'm completely wired right now.

The only thing I can think of is that the nicotine in my once every six months or so cigar that I partook of this evening really stoked me up.

Whatever it is, it sucks.

How's that for picture sizing, btw?

Separation Anxiety

2005-10-02T10:19:00.000-05:00

Just how badly does our Dachschund, Frankfurter, have it?

This much.

Shannon can't even sit on the computer for five minutes without him trying to make sure he is part of the pack.

...wow

2005-10-01T23:27:00.000-05:00

This is why I always have to shower in the morning regardless of whether or not I showered before I went to bed the night before or not.

I guess it's time for a hair cut, eh?

Nothing really...

2005-10-01T09:50:00.000-05:00

Do you ever have those days where you feel like posting something, but you really have absolutely nothing to say or share that would have any value on any other living soul?

Yeah, me neither.

Greatness of Video Games

2005-09-30T07:57:00.000-05:00

As any fan of Red vs. Blue knows, video game engines have the potential to be the next greatest animation medium for the creative genius of the masses.

http://files.filefront.com/mine/;4157978;;/fileinfo.html

If you have the time and patience, you need to navigate your browser to this site and download the video that was made using the game engine of Battlefied 2.

One of the funniest things I've seen in awhile.

Uh-Oh

2005-09-29T12:48:00.000-05:00

I can feel myself being sucked into this site.

B+

Your senses are pretty sharp (okay, most of the time)
And it takes something big to distract you!

How Observant Are You?

Pa-Sha!

2005-09-29T12:31:00.000-05:00

You Passed the US Citizenship Test

Congratulations - you got 10 out of 10 correct!

Could You Pass the US Citizenship Test?

Caveman

2005-09-29T12:09:00.000-05:00

I just now noticed that my good buddy Caveman has entered the world of the blogging community. You can find a new link for his site right here and also in my buddy section.

Caveman and I know each other from the gaming world as we were/are both members of .:{SiC}:., or Soldiers in Christ, which was/is a Christian gaming clan for Call of Duty.

How did he get the name caveman you ask? No, he isn't dumb, nor does he hate new technology. His real name is Kevin, and his inital gaming name was Kevman4Christ. Well, one of our other clan members had trouble saying Kevman, and would accidentally saying caveman. It stuck, and has been the same ever since.

He hails from Sacramento, CA. He plays the guitar and finds himself as new worship leader for his local church. One thing that I can be certain of is his passion for Jesus Christ and Christian fellowship.

So give Caveman some love and chime in on his blog. I'm sure he is going to have plenty of good tidbits for us to ponder in the days to come.

The Promise of Autumn

2005-09-29T07:00:00.000-05:00

Summer move forward and stitch me the fabric of fall
Wrap life in the brilliance of death to humble us all
...
Summer move forward and leave your heat anchored in dust

Exerpts from Vienna Teng's Drought

Vienna Teng, possible one of the great lycrical poets of this generation if she has interest enough to keep up the obvious talent she has. Her words ring with a depth and darkness uncommon with current popular music.

The first cold front has finally reached us here in North Texas. It's in the low 60s outside now with suspected highs to be in the low 70s. Just in time for the fair. Texas or not, you just can't have a good fair with 100 degree weather. I'm wouldn't bet against us not getting hot again before the fair ends, but at least for today it will be cool.

I know it doesn't get really cold here until usually the middle of October, but having high in the upper 90s to 100s is ridiculous for September. I, for one, am getting really tired of the heat. I don't know if it is because I'm older or fatter, but the heat just sapped me this year more than I can remember.

I love the cooler weather. I hope there is a night we can walk around the fair and have to wear a sweater this year.

Praise Be Unto God

2005-09-28T19:51:00.000-05:00

It looks like we are finally about to get some rain for the first time in quite awhile.

It's been so long since we had a really bad storm that is seems strange to be expirenceing thunder and lightning. It makes the enjoyment a little sweeter tonight.

Busy Day

2005-09-27T22:00:00.000-05:00

Well, I just did something stupid that I'm not sure exactly what it was.

I just had a fairly good sized post and I inadvertently navigated off of the page and lost it all.

Highlights:

I made it to Marshall today, ate at Gucci's. It was good.

I hate I-20 between Terrell and Louisiana.

Worked almost 12 hours, mostly driving; exasperated by the fact that I had to backtrack to Longview for an impromptu sales call.

Sorry it's so succinct, but I really don't feel like typing anymore tonight.

Obsolete Skills, See

2005-09-26T09:50:00.000-05:00

Stolen from Wynk

You are 'Gregg shorthand'. Originally designed to
enable people to write faster, it is also very
useful for writing things which one does not
want other people to read, inasmuch as almost
no one knows shorthand any more.

You know how important it is to do things
efficiently and on time. You also value your
privacy, and (unlike some people) you do not
pretend to be friends with just everyone; that
would be ridiculous. When you do make friends,
you take them seriously, and faithfully keep
what they confide in you to yourself.
Unfortunately, the work which you do (which is
very important, of course) sometimes keeps you
away from social activities, and you are often
lonely. Your problem is that Gregg shorthand
has been obsolete for a long time.

What obsolete skill are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

Back in the Day

2005-09-26T07:48:00.000-05:00

Here is a pic that is almost ten years old. Most of the people that find this site regularly will know some if not all of the people in this photo.

This is a singing group that both Wynk and I were apart of during our freshman year in college.

Good times and good people.

That Really Sux

2005-09-24T22:55:00.000-05:00

Not to make light of the damage and flooding caused by hurricane Rita, but it really sucks that we got lots of cloud cover and straight line winds that fell some limbs in our yards, but not one single drop of rain. Nothing! Not one drop!

I appeared to rain in Tyler pretty much all day, and even made it as far west as Canton or maybe even Terrell, but nothing in Dallas.

Stupid hurricane.

You Know It!

2005-09-23T22:08:00.000-05:00

Stolen from Wynk

Nocturnal Judo...is that what the kids are calling it these days? That coupled with accurate gratification, I'm unstoppable.

First Time For Everything

2005-09-22T22:17:00.000-05:00

I did something for the first time tonight. Here in Dallas, I actually had to wait in line for gasoline at the service station.

I can't imagine what it would be like to be one of those many, many people that are stuck in traffic trying to get out of the Houston area, and not only being stuck, but running out of gas along the way. Just goes to show you that despite all of our technological advances as a society, he are just a few small steps from being back in the dark ages as far as necessities and shelter.

Kudos to Wynk for being ahead of the game and getting out early. I don't know how you would have managed yourself and your livestock if you had been stuck by yourself in that mess today.

Prayer

2005-09-22T22:15:00.000-05:00

To any and all that I know that live or have family living in the areas affected by the coming storm, please know that I am keeping you in my prayers. If you need anything, please let me know.

Absolutely Sickening

2005-09-20T00:43:00.000-05:00

I'm literally sick at my stomach right now.

I just got through watching the Cowboy-Redskins game on Tivo. The Dallas defense was kicking major butt, and the Cowboys had what appeared to be a commanding 13-0 lead and a shutout in progress with 3:46 left in the game.

Then the impropable happened. Mark Brunell connected with Santana Moss twice for very long touchdown passes, to beat the Cowboys 14-13. It wouldn't be so bad, per se, if it weren't the hated Redskins. Salt in the wound. Insult to injury.

That missed field goal in the first quarter by Cortez ended up being huge.

....sickening.