I now live in Buckeye... with the cows.

Well, this week will be the third or fourth week that I have lived in Buckeye. I'm not going to lie, I have been really enjoying the move. It's a total different pace of life out there. It is a lot more laid back, and smelly. HAHA! I have had my own adventures in Buckeye though. There have been a lot of things that have happened that have been trying my patience and temper. I'm typically a very laid back guy, and things really don't bother me too much. But between stress and the things that have been happening, I'm at the end of my "nice" rope. Here is a couple of things that have happened as of late (I wrote this to Beau, so bear with me):

"Apparently the Lord has been looking out for me... the weekend that I was planning on moving everything into the Buckeye house, I had a feeling (and Dad mentioned too) that I should wait until the next week to move stuff into the house. I went to church on Sunday in Buckeye and then checked on the house after, everything was fine. Monday afternoon, I went to check on the house because APS had turned on the power... when I pulled up I didn't see anything, but after I switched on the breaker and was walking in to check the connections in the house I saw the front door open. I walked in and saw that all my brand new appliances had been stolen. I called the Sheriff's office and they took about 4 hours to show up (pretty ridiculous if you ask me). I had to call Bear to come board the door shut because they broke the door jamb so I couldn't latch the door shut or lock it. All said and done, I had put Homeowners insurance on the property about a week or so before the break in, so my insurance covered everything but the $500 deductible. So, the Lord was watching out for me... I would have been out about $30,000 if I had moved a trailer load of stuff into the house.

Well, the move to Buckeye has been long and there has been a lot more to do than I ever expected. Moving into a custom home on a road that you created definitely has some quirks. The first week or so I was there I was surrounded by bugs, spiders, frogs, ect. A lot of the bugs and spiders were inside. I had a pest guy come and spray good, then I went to a bug/weed store (no, not the kind you smoke) and bought my own professional strength bug spray. I'm trying to be frugal and smart in our crappy economy, so for me to spend $70 on bug spray was better than to have to have the bug guy come for probably another 5 times at $28 a pop to get rid of bugs. I now spray my own house, and they have gone down a lot. I've only been spraying outside, but I think I do need another inside treatment to get rid of what the initial treatment didn't get. Cobwebs are still popping up all over the place and I'm still finding bugs inside the house. So, the bugs will be all taken care of soon. At least the house doesn't feel dirty anymore and I don't have the fear of bugs crawling all over me. The Frogs are only outside and are really only there at night... They sit outside of my front door, don't croak or anything. Just scare the crap out of me when I am not paying attention. They will hop the opposite direction of me, and I jump because they blend in with the dirt at my house, so they aren't easy to see. I need to name them (I think there used to be 4 but I know I accidentally ran over one of them with the truck, so I'm guessing there is still 3 out there). There is only one that sits by the front door though, the big fatty of the group. I think I will call him Ned... That's hillbilly enough for Buckeye right?

When I moved in there was a lot of work that needed to be finished at the house, multiple lights didn't work and things just needed touched up. We are still working on things, but it's a much smaller list now. Now there are a couple of door handles to adjust and some paint to touch up... among other small things. I ended up having to get Satellite TV and internet (which is still really slow, but faster than dial-up I guess). The first day away from the house, the A/C stopped working in the main part of the house, so I had to call the A/C guy to fix it... turned out that the thermometer batteries were dead. GAY. I went home to a 90 degree house. That sucked, but the Thermometer that powered my bedroom was still working, so I just started unpacking things in there to stay out of the heat.

It's been amazing to see how much crap I have, it's ridiculous! It really is sad when a single guy has enough stuff to fill a 2,400 sqft house by himself... My 3 car garage is really a 2 car garage now, and since the Rhino and quads are at my house it's really a ½ garage... Haha. One full part of the garage is filled with my junk! Boxes, car parts, shelves, tires, ect. I really need to start putting stuff on craigslist and EBay. Maybe that will be my next weekend project. Cleaning stuff and taking pictures to sell them with.

Since I have been in the house we have installed a white vinyl fence, that looks awesome if I don't say so myself. We are working on getting the courtyard and driveway pavered as I type this they should be working on it. I'm really feeling what it's like to be a farmer, though I know I haven't even skimmed the top of it yet. Last week was one of those weeks that started bad and didn't get better until the end of the week. Here is what happened:

Monday - I get 3 loads of ABC (fill dirt) and 2 loads of sand for the pavers. The first load was dropped and as the second load was being delivered the dump truck driver ran over a piece of 4" PVC pipe that was sticking out of the ground, it was pushed down into my water line from the well. It cracked the pipe and started spewing all over the place. I went and got my neighbor Jerry (because of a lack of options and knowledge) and he started working on it. He dug up the pipe and found a coupler broken... I went and bought a new one for $1.08.

Tuesday - I thought I was finished with the water fiasco and thought "That was TOO easy", apparently I didn't knock on wood or something because that morning, the hole was filled with water again. So, day #2 showed that the T fitting that was next to the coupling was cracked too. So off to the store again. $50 later I came back with what we supposedly needed to fix the stupid truck driver's mistake. After a full day of me at work and Jerry working on the pipe, I come home to find all my neighbors standing around the pit that Jerry dug, and talking... I thought, "this isn't a good sign". I was right, after 8 hours of working on it Jerry didn't finish it and all the parts we needed was at a store that closed before I got home. We worked on the pipe trying to patch it so at least 5 of the 7 houses on that well could have water, but all our attempts were in vain. It didn't work and we all went without water that night. All my neighbors at that point were pissed because they have horses and other animals that need water. But there was nothing I could do. That night I called Joe Jobe (the builder that built my house) and had him send the plumber out so we could have water on Wednesday.

Wednesday - After a long day at work I got home and saw the Plumber had done his job and that we had water again. YAY! Earlier that day I got a call from the Post lady that delivers the mail to my house and asked if I was going to be putting up a mailbox so she could get my mail to her (Jokes on her, I had went into the post office and talked to them 2-3 weeks earlier and was waiting for her to call me and tell me where she wanted the mailbox placed). So, once finding out the mounting location I went and got the supplies. To match the fence I went with a vinyl post for the mailbox, but the actual mailbox I got was heavier than typical and apparently a lot bigger too. I just can't catch a break lately. So, I ran to Home Depot for the 2nd time that day to find things to make it work. Once I was home I worked on it until about 10pm, and finished putting up the temporarily set mailbox. The post came with a small stake to drive into the ground then you screw the post into that with 2 screws... I said eff that, and planned on reinforcing it with a better base post.

Thursday - Work (not so great day at the office) then went home and started filling in the huge hole that was sitting in front of my fence in the front yard from Jerry and the plumber. Since it was huge and there was pipe sticking out I had to fill in under the pipe by hand. I had to make sure the dirt was packed tight underneath so it didn't break again. I did all this by a shovel and my feet. HAHA. I didn't fill it all, I put a cover over the valve we put in so I could turn off my water if something breaks between the house and the main line, so I filled it up to the top of the box until I can find a PVC piece big enough to fit around it, then I can finish filling it in.

Friday - I was at work when Mom called me and needed to go to the bank and she didn't have a car (Travis' car was hit by his roommate and was in the shop, so he was/is driving your truck until he has his back, Jack's truck got broken into and was in the shop, so he had Mom's and my Fit was totaled so I had the Ford... My Supra was at Mom and Dad's house, but it's still finicky so, I told Mom if she needed to go anywhere to call me and I'd trade her cars) so I had the Supra. I left work and went to Mom's house to pick up the Truck because I had to go out to Tonopah to take pictures of a house for Dad. And since Tonopah is farther west then Buckeye, I figured that I would just stay out there and clean my house because my friend Brooke was coming to see the house for the first time. Once I got to Tonopah, I realized that my phone was sitting inside the Supra in Mom and Dad's garage. Since Brooke didn't know where I lived and my home phone isn't working yet, I had no way to get a hold of her. So I drove back from Tonopah and grabbed my phone, and then drove back to Buckeye... that was about a hour and a half of wasted time and gas. I didn't have time to really clean, but I did get to straighten up a little before Brooke came over.

Saturday - I was on a quest to fix the mailbox. I had the supplies and I was determined to do this without a hitch! When I got out to where the 4x4 was that I bought to put in the ground and I took the post that looked like the same size as a 4x4 post, I realized that the outer dimensions were the same size... so, I had to shave the part I wanted to slip into the post to screw it to. As I was shaving the post down I was taking breaks to dig a 12" by 15" hole to put the post into and concrete it in. I decided to get my circular saw to aid in the trimming of the post (because I didn't have a belt sander that I really needed) once I put the blade into the saw I realized why the batteries had REFURB marked on them. They worked well in the drill, but in the saw they would work well for about 20 seconds. That was about enough time to make one pass at the board about 12" long. And the blade only stuck out 2" so, I had to turn the post over and do it again. Since I have two batteries I had both charging, but since it took so long to charge, I had a hand saw working on trimming it by hand until the batteries finished charging. It was such a pain in the butt! Finally the post was shaved enough to slip into the vinyl counterpart. I put the post into the hole and surrounded it with cement (dry... you add water to this cement after you put it where it's supposed to be), watered it and made sure the post was level. Then I went to take a shower. Once done, the cement was cured enough to put the vinyl post with the mailbox on. The post leaned a little forward once I went in for a shower, so it's not completely level, but a lot better than my neighbor's mail boxes. :-) After that I went and ran some errands, ate lunch with Travis and Jesus and then came home and cleaned, cleaned, cleaned! I swept, vacuumed, and mopped. The house feels much better now. I was tired of walking barefoot in the house and having dirt everywhere.

Sunday - My first relaxing day at the house in about 2 weeks. It was nice.

That is only a little bit that we have had to put up with in this house (by we, I mean me). It's been an adventure, and one that has brought to my realization that I need work boots and water proof boots (galoshes). I need to be ready to play farmer 24/7 now... because it's part of Buckeye life!"

Since then a guy from Qwest installing a permanent phone line, ran over my irrigation valve and broke it all apart.

The paver courtyard and driveway are finally done and I will be able to park on it tonight when I get home.

Buckeye life is good as long as I don't have stupid people messing up things on the property ;-)

Crazy Days!

Last night after Travis and I enjoyed dinner at my parent's house, we decided to go grab some stuff from the house in Phx. We both had stuff that we needed to pick up, so we drove together. As we were turning onto 38th Drive we saw between 15-25 cop cars blocking off JUST my street. There was also a police helicopter hovering the area with it's spot light shining all around. The cops told me I couldn't get to my house and that I needed to leave.

This morning I went back to make sure my house was ok... The house was fine and the alarm was still set, so I was golden. That whole night previous I was worried I had a fugitive camped out in my empty house. One thing that I forgot to take (other than appliances and computer desks) was my two rifles and my shot gun with matching ammo. I had about 500+ rounds of shotgun shells sitting next to my shotgun. So after loading it all up in to the truck, I talked to one of my neighbors across the street I found out the skinny... And here it is from the news reporter's mouth:

"PHOENIX -- A barricade situation in north Phoenix ended late Sunday night with the arrest of a man suspected of shooting a tow truck operator.
Tow truck driver wounded

Police have identified the suspect as Jess Corman, 26. They have not, however, identifed the 40-year-old shooting victim. Police say that man's injuries do not appear to be life threatening.

The situation started when the tow truck driver delivered a vehicle to a residence in north Phoenix near 35th Avenue and Thunderbird Road Sunday evening.

Police say Corman came out of the residence to pay the tow bill. At one point, he went inside the house and when he returned, he had an assault rifle and shot multiple rounds at the victim, striking him several times in the legs.

Corman reportedly believed that the driver was taking too long to unload the car and had stolen the keys.

The wounded driver got into his truck and tried to leave the scene, but crashed into a home across the street.

Neighbors helped the driver until emergency crews arrived on the scene.

Corman, in the meantime, went back into the house and barricaded himself inside.

After officers got the victim to safety, a lengthy negotiation took place. Corman eventually came out and surrendered to police at about midnight.

During the standoff, Corman lit fireworks in the direction of the police helicopter, said Sgt. Tommy Thompson of the Phoenix Police Department. No damage was done with those fireworks.

Police say the investigation is ongoing.

Corman has been booked on charges of attempted second-degree murder, endangerment and unlawful discharge of a weapon.

The wounded tow truck driver is expected to recover."

It was definitely a crazy night by the way things are sounding. I'm glad I live in a nice little community in Buckeye now.!

Verizon rant...

So, I have had Verizon for a long long time, and have always been happy with them. Since September I have been having nothing but problems with them though. I travel a lot, and use my phone all the time. It is my work phone, so I need something that is going to work wherever I go and won't always drop calls and what not. In September of last year I got a Blackberry Pearl. I love Blackberry's! It's nice to get office emails to your phone for immediate checkage, and to be able to sync the phone to your computer to have all your contacts on both your phone and computer. However, since I have gotten a blackberry, my service has been annoying the heck out of me.

A lot of the time when I make a call the phone will ring 1, 2, maybe 3 times and then the call will end and the phone will go back to the home screen. Also, when people call me it will ring on their end, but never ring on my phone. They will go to voice mail then I will get it anywhere from 5 minutes to 3 hours later. Sometimes it will ring on my side and I'll leave a message and the person never gets it... I don't know how that happens, but it is annoying. There is only so much I will put up with. I have been dealing with it since September, and I'm at the end of my rope. There are borrowers that are getting frustrated that I never answer my phone and it's not that I don't answer it, it's that it doesn't ring.

I've been working with Verizon about the issue since it started happening. Nothing has worked that Verizon has tried. Every time I call in I have to re-explain to some person the problems that have happened, then they transfer me 2-3 more times having me explain it to each person I get sent to. I have had close to 10 blackberries and all have had the same problem. Finally, they opened a "trouble ticket" and are monitoring my phone calls to see when and if it will happen again.

At this point I'm ready to go back to a normal phone if it will fix the problem. I love getting my email right away, but I can also remotely log into my office from anywhere I have a Internet connection. So, I might be going back to a normal phone again.

Don't get me wrong, I still love Verizon's service and everyone I talk to tries to help, I just get frustrated with the problem not getting fixed. I would totally recommend Verizon to anyone that asks my opinion too. It's just a fluke thing with my account I think. My dad, brother in law, and sister have blackberries through Verizon and don't have the problem. I really think it is just the way my account is set up. And short of completely deleting me out of the system and re-signing up to Verizon, I think I'm going to have these problems with any blackberry or smart phone I get. I don't want them to totally cancel my service and reinstate it, so I'm going to just go back to a normal phone if they can't fix the problem soon.

Anyways, that is my rant. I still think that Verizon has the best service area and Customer Service in the industry. I am just the lucky guy that gets to have problems. I always find the kinks with phones and now with freak things in the network. Oh, well.

I can feel the wind in my hair already... almost

Well, I have decided to finally start the process of working towards my Pilot's license. I bought the manuals and have started slowly reading through them. I am going up soon with a friend to see if it is something I really want to be addicted to. I'm sure it is, but it's an excuse to go flying, so I'm all up for it.

My plan is to study through the summer so I can take the written test by the end of the summer. That way, the weather isn't that hot while I'm doing my hours of flying... seeing as alot of the planes don't have A/C. I can't wait to get up there and see things from a totally new perspective!

I am a sucker for anything that I can go fast in, and for adrenaline rushes. That is why I race cars, I love the feeling of progression and accomplishment. When I race cars I can feel the progression of my driving skills and I feel good that I am constantly improving my quality of driving. With flying, I will be able to do the same thing, but on a whole other level.

Hopefully I can stick to the plan and have the license soon! :-)

The watch fettish continues...

As the months pass, I realize that I truly have a problem... I need to check into a WBA meeting (Watch Buyers Annonymous). Seriously, I in the last month have bought 3 new watches. Now, to my credit... 2 of them were "cheaper" watches than I normally buy.

I bought two Vans watches and another Nixon watch. I think that brings me to 6-8 Nixon watches, 4-5 Fossil watches, 1 Swatch watch, and 2 Vans watches... I'm sure I'm missing some in there...

It has gotten so bad that I have had to buy my own watch working tools... I hate taking watches to a store to have sized, so now I have 4 different kinds of link removers and I'm starting to look at case removers (to replace batteries). It's gotten to a all new level, and I'm not sure I'm ready to have it there. I need to scale back on the watch purchases... but I already have at least 2 more watches that are on the next to be bought list. One is a Nixon and the other is a Michelle (nicer brand) watch.

It has gotten to the point that the watches have their own drawer in my dresser. And I know that Travis is right there behind me in the watch obsession. Well, the new purchases are the following:

I'm a 3 car man again!

Well, as sad as it is to say (or be ecstatic over)I am once again a man who owns 3 cars... That is down from a one time high of 6 vehicles in my stable. I have sold the Evo. It was hard to see it go, but it is nice to have that much less expense every month.

It's funny, sometimes when you own a car that you have had to scrimp and save to get... you go to sell it and the kids that surface to purchase the car don't seem to 1) Be old enough to drive 2) have a real sense of the car they are buying 3) Know their butt from a hole in the ground.

The kid who bought the Evo was 18 but looked like 14 years old. He apparently Valet parks cars for a hotel (which is a whole different hatred of mine as it is, but that's a rant for another day). He was purchasing his first car, (a 300hp car is not what I would call an optimal car for a first car) and had Grandpa co-sign the loan for him without seeing the car in person.

This is how stupid the kid was when buying the car... he never once asked me to test drive it or to get a ride in it. That is kind of a crucial part in purchasing a car in my opinion. What if there is something wrong with the transmission or suspension, or drive shaft, ect. It's important to at least get a ride in the car if nothing else.

If you have ever seen the movie or the preview for the movie Drillbit Taylor, you have seen the kid... he would be the fat curly haired kid in the movie. Looks almost identical to that putz. Here is a picture for reference.



Yes, he would be the fat kid with the curly hair... the one that get's caught sleeping naked.

Now imagine that kid driving this car:



Well, Farewell my fast friend (speaking to the car) your peppiness will be missed.

Cutting out the fat...

Well, I've been kinda in a slump with my weight loss. As most of you know, I have had a Lap-Band surgery, it has been wonderful and I have lost about 100lbs with it. It's a great way to help control portion sizes and not to feel hungry all the time.

Lately, I have been stressed... so as a creature of habit, I turned to my fail-safe... Food. I have been eating things that are horrible for me, and not only that, I've been over eating a lot too. Well, needless to say, I was hurting myself physically and mentally. Not only have I gained a little weight back on, I have been stretching out my stomach.

About 2 weeks ago I decided enough was enough, and I started looking for ways that I would be held accountable for what I put in my mouth and how much. I ended up joining Weight Watchers for the 2nd or 3rd time in my life.

This time seems like it's a lot easier to follow. I don't feel hungry after I eat what's alloted, and usually I have a lot of points left over that I could eat at the end of the day. It makes me eat a lot more fruit and vegetables and be very conscious of portion sizes and caloric/fat contents.

We will see how much this helps me, and if it can help me lose the last 60-70lbs that I feel needs to go bye bye. Keep your fingers crossed and junk food out of my way! Trudging on to the future I go!

The Honda Fit...

Well, I know in my New Year's Goals I said that my plan was to sell a car before I bought a new one. But I sold the Blazer a couple of days after... so I figure that was close enough.

Well, in the midst of high gas prices we are left with a decision... that is to A) pay the enormous gas bills and let the Saudi's get fat in their mansions or 2) Get gas saving cars to tool around in.

I chose #2, the Honda Fit is a cool little car. It's a 4 door, so I have a back seat and there is a decent sized trunk/cargo area. It gets about 28 +/- MPG in town and about 35 MPG on the highway. The Fit is a little taller of a car than the Civic so I "fit" into it better. HAHA! If the interior was the same size I would have spent a little more and got a Civic Hybrid... but the head room is a issue there.

The Fit is getting a remote start alarm put on it as we speak, so it will be cool in the summer months when I get ready to leave places. It's a black car, so it is pretty hot when you get into it right now.

I'm still working on selling the Evo and possibly the Supra, but I'm only going to sell the Supra only if I ABSOLUTELY have to. I want to be down to 2-3 cars by the end of the summer. We will see.

POOP FOR PEACE!

My great friend Brooke knows me more than most people... it is evident in the email she recently sent me. She thought I'd like a special event that is happening on April 18th. It is "Poop for Peace" day! I am excited about this! I'm going to be training and preparing for the glorious day. Taco Bell and Hormell Chili will be the main substances consumed this day by myself. The stinkier and the louder the better! Join in with me in celebrating and working toward our freedoms and peace!

http://www.poopreport.com/peace

I know I'm weird, but...

Well, it's a funny thing that I do... A long time ago I used to send little thoughts while I sat on the toilet. Lately Travis started them back up. We have officially termed them "Pooisms" And they are our thoughts sent via text messages to those who have the sence of humor to have potty talk. Well, to give you an example of a Pooism, here is one that I wrote not too long ago:

As is sit and think of the glorious day... The beast is being exhumed from my bowels, yes, the same beast that left his stench through burlington coat factory yea... The same beast that putrified the air in Travis' car. Low and behold the beast of my bowels are now laying in the hommage plate to the porcelain gods. Farewell my putrescent friend, I will miss thy stench making abilities... Until next time, fare the well good sir!

Or another one that I sent today was:

Sometimes when the inevitable is coming there are warning signs... Some washing machines will beep as the different parts of the cycle is completed... Other things might include a spike in the economy hints at a recession to follow, the look on someone's face after you have insulted someone dear to them could hint at a fist sammich coming to a face near you...

Today I realized a new warning technique that my body does every now and then. As the morning hiatus comes near, I have been getting warning gas. It is kinda like the timers on a bomb from the movies... It starts off slow, beep... Beep... Beep... Beep... And as it nears, it starts coming faster and faster beep..beep..beep..beep.. Then as the big #2 is coming it goes on red alert! BEEPBEEPBEEPBEEP then you know it is a matter of seconds before you have to get to the facilities or have a mess on your hands. As the timer starts ticking down, the warning signs get more and more intense in frequency and smell. And you can usually tell how much time someone has even if they have just walked in the room.

The smell warning is for the benefit of those around the person, though it seems otherwise. It may seem that their body is trying to punish you for being their friend, quite the opposite, their body is telling you, friend, if you want to stay my friend and keep clean in the process the you best give me room and show me to "stinky town"! So, when a friend comes in with a awful smell that could only be produced by something of an evil nature, do what their body is begging you, show them to the toilet.

This has been another POOISM brought to you by Skittles.

Skittles... Taste the Rainbow.

There have been others... and there will be a lot more to come!

Love, Peace, squirt a little smell for the odor of the beast!

Tough weekend...

Wow, this last weekend was a tough one! Yeah, I'm not going to go into great detail, but let's just say it was filled with rejection and heart ache. It was one of those weekends that you would rather have a debilitating sickness or get in a car accident... something other than what you had just been through.

You know, after these types of times, it really makes you appreciate the bland lives we lead. There are people who live everyday of their lives in these situations. I'm glad I only have to experience them every now and again.

One good thing that came from this weekend is that I sold one of my guns :-] That was a good thing.

The Supra is BIZZACK!

Well, after a long year in the shop, the supra is back in the stable! I'm so excited that I get to have it back! It's a new and improved car ;-]

After the whole Discount Tire fiasco (they tried to remote start my car while it was in gear, so the car drove into a ditch... doing about $10,000.00 of damage and then wouldn't own up to the responsibility to fix it). The supra is finally finished with a new single turbo and some other goodies that I upgraded as we needed to replace some things. It was actually cheaper for me to make my car faster that it would have cost me to put my car back to where it was before the "accident". I'm pleased with the results. My car is now making 521whp and about 500ftlbs of torque. It is definitely a fast fast car!

Now, there is still a long laundry list of things to do to the car to have it where I want it, but they are relatively small things in comparison. Some of the things include:

- Replace headlights
- Tweak the tuning
- Fix the stereo
- Bolt the passenger's seat down (apparently that could pose a problem)
- Fix the track on the driver's side window to roll up properly
- Replace the rear diff with a LSD (that's more for the safety aspect of things
- Replace the wheel bearings
- Put new carpet in it
- Put gauges in so I can monitor my engine better
- And a couple of other little things.

Yeah it seems like a long list, but it really is a tiny bit compared to the stuff I have already done to it. I'll have to post a picture in a little bit.

I made a book...

Yes, that's right... I made a book. It's pretty nifty if you ask me, it is a book of all the decent pictures I took when I went to Europe this summer. I wasn't too happy with the amount of pictures that I liked from the trip, but stretching a little bit got me to the point that I filled a small 20 page book with the photos. I ordered it tonight, and it should be here in about 8-10 business days. Now, I'm not saying it's a masterpiece, but I am saying that I am excited about it. I am also working on 1 other book of my own and then 2 more that I'm doing with my family (that will be longer than 20 pages).
How do I make a book you ask? Oh, that's the easy part. Go to www.apple.com and look at the mac section of the website, there you will find a tutorial on how to make a book through their iPhoto application. It's so easy a philanthropist could do it!
I am excited to see how it turns out. We will see if it is worth the $20 a book to have done.

It's getting cold outside!

Wow, this morning has been pretty frigid! I have been freezing! It is time that I pull out my secret weapon of the cold. Yes, that's right... Ducky FOOTED PAJAMAS! WOOOOOOOO! I love my pajamas! The only problem is that they are in my storage unit. And that means I have to go and find them. But, here is a picture or two of me in them.

It's funny how things change.

I was recently thinking back to one of my old websites... like http://pick_i_nicholas.tripod.com/. That was the original website I had created... It is there that my rantings and raving began. I used to have a lot to say back then, I think I have simmered down in the past 4 years.

I was once a kid with tons to say, now I'm a boring old man. But thinking about my old websites made me search them out again. I accidentally erased all the pictures on one. That sucks... but it's fun to look through there. Peep the sites!

Well, it was ok...

Yeah, I know, I blogged about how I hate birthdays and yadda yadda yadda... But my birthday was pretty dang good. Yes, I had to wake up at 6:15am to go to my parent's house to open presents before my dad had to go to a church meeting, and yeah I had to speak in church. But all in all I enjoyed myself. I have amazing friends and family, they keep me thinking positively and make me feel good about myself.

My talk went well I think... I do kinda feel bad that I made Sacrament go 25 minutes long, but honestly I didn't think some of my presidency (that spoke with me) were going to be able to last more than 5 minutes. They did a good job with their talks, and as I was getting up there with 5 minutes left in the meeting I was told by Brother Beazer (one of the Branch Presidency) to take as long as I needed. Apparently I needed 30 minutes, so we got out 25 minutes late. I didn't feel too bad though, because I was speaking on a very important topic (Personal Worthiness). It was important not to paraphrase or edit my talk to be shorter.

I'm glad I was able to have a good birthday.

Birthdays... BLAH!

Well, as you could probably tell, I'm not a big fan of my birthday. Really it has only been these last two years that I have been kinda bitter about turning older. The way I see it is that in the past I have always had a birthday that I have been looking forward to. When I was younger, turning 16 was the mecca of aging! Once I was 16 I was able to drive! When I turned 18 I was legal... I could buy cigarettes or cigars (as were my choice at that time). When I was 21 I could drink if I wanted to (though I never have). Once I turned 25 I was able to rent cars without having to pay extra, and my insurance dropped. Now what do I have to look forward to? When I turn 55 I guess I can get senior discounts... or when I'm 62 I can pull from Social Security if that's still around... I'm just not too thrilled to have to wait 20 some odd years to the next birthday to be excited about.

I know most people will tell me: Nick, It's another year to be alive! Be happy you have survived this far.

To answer that I say: I am glad to be alive another year, but surviving another year doesn't help the pressure the pocketbook feels, or the fact that I have successfully been a failure so far at any type of relationship. Maybe I'm just being too hard on myself, but when you see yourself growing older with out someone to grow older with you get kind of discouraged. All I want in life is to love someone with all my heart and have them love me back the same way.

I'm not really that bitter, I think that sometimes I just need to vent and get all of the negative thoughts out to make me feel better. I really think that (like New Years) birthdays are a retarded day to celebrate. I really don't see what is so special. When you have grown up, it's just another day in the life.

This year I get to give a talk in Church, and still have to go to all my meetings as a Elders Quorum President. Nothing really changes except a number I use to tell people how old I am.

Sorry for my negative attitude, Hopefully getting this out will let me enjoy the day a little more.