So, as I said in my previous post, I am going to try and write more in the new year. So I am starting a little early since it is really dead at work and I need something to do to pass the time. What little spare time I've had lately, I've spent reading. Plus, I've been spending most of my Sunday's reading since the Jets haven't exactly been giving my anything exciting to watch. So, I put the Jets game on in the background as I tear through page after page. Below is the list of books I've read recently and a short description or my thoughts on it. Of course, I recommend them all. Most of them may not interest most of you, but I found them to be good reads and interesting. So without further ado, here's my list:
Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army by Jeremy Scahill - Wow is all I have to say. Now you know me, i don't get into the whole political thing much and I actually bought and read this book before the whole scandal that came out recently. I knew nothing of Blackwater before I picked this book up, but geez, after reading it, it's pretty scary. Now everyone knows more about Blackwater and their "above the law" rules that they lived by over there, but it wasn't too apparent that long ago. And the amount of money that the government is giving them is absolutely insane. And that is only the amount that they are allowed to disclose. it doesn't count the millions in "black" contracts which are top secret and aren't disclosed. The fact that this far right wing guy has billions of dollars, his own personal army of thousands of people, and all the arms and military equipment to launch a full scale war is really pretty scary. All in all it was a pretty good read. I think the author was obviously to the left and may have exaggerated some, but still even if you take 50% of what he says to be true, it ain't a pretty picture. ok, enough political talk.
The Good Guy by Dean Koontz - You had to know at least one Koontz book was going to be on here. This was a standard Koontz book. Full of suspense and leaves you wanting to just keep going cause you want to know what happens next.
Batman: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller - This one was on my list of comic books, or graphic novels if you prefer, to read for quite a while, but I just never got around to it. So I finally borrowed it from my friend and read it. I really liked it. Well written, great story. Threw a little bit of Superman in there too.
Watchmen by Alan Moore - Again, another that was on my list to read and finally got around to it. i figured i better read it before the movie comes out, so I also borrowed it from my friend and gave it a read. Good story. I am definitely interested to see how the movie holds up. The part that really bothered me was the stupid comic book within a comic book about that guy at sea. That really annoyed me and after a while, i didn't even bother to read that part.
The Bancroft Strategy by Robert Ludlum - Man, I love me some Ludlum. The Tupac of author's as he has been dead for 6 or 7 years now, but continues to publish. What they say is that he left a bunch of story ideas and outlines and a ghost writer has been writing in his name following his style. Anywho, it was a good book. Obviously he wrote the Bourne series and all of his book are of that ilk. kinda spy type books, but he is very suspenseful and makes you want to keep reading to find what happens next. I've actually read quite a few of his books and they have all been great.
Tales from the Devil's Ice by Chico Resch - This is a book about the Devils written by one of their former players and current commentators, for those that don't know him. This was a quick read and pretty short, but it was quite interesting. He talks about the franchise from inception until now and gives a whole bunch of inside stories and tales from the locker room. it was quite interesting to read and find out little tidbits about the organisation and players.
The Last Night of the Yankee Dynasty: The Game, the Team, and the Cost of Greatness by Buster Olney - This was a recommendation by Shu and was fantastic. A must read for Yankee fans. Like the previous book, it had a lot of inside info and talks about all of the players on the 2001 team, giving insight into their past and what was going on with them at the time.
The Ice Man:Confessions of a Mafia Contract Killer by Philip Carlo - Ok, so you have to know who the Ice Man is right? Richard Kuklinski. He lived in Jersey and was a hitman for the mob. HBO did a few documentaries on him. This book was written with him before he died and he gave the author accounts of all the murders that he did. He claims to have killed over 200 people. That's right, 200. Most of them can't be corroborated as there is no evidence and he was quite good at getting rid of the bodies (he tells you how he got rid of each one and some are pretty gruesome). But there is a lot of detail about each which makes me think it is plausible. He talks about all the hits he did for the mob. He worked for all of the 5 NY families plus the 2 Jersey families, so he saw a lot of business. Plus, he had a really bad temper and would just kill people randomly if they pissed him off. He claims to have taken part in some famous hits like big Paul Castellano outside of Sparks, Jimmy Hoffa (and tells you exactly what happens to his body and why it will never be found), Roy DeMeo (another famous mob murder) and did many hits for Sammy the Bull and John Gotti. If this guy really did what he claims, it is insane. he chronicles from his first killing when he was in his young teens up until the time when planning his next 3 murders and was arrested. A great read if you like mafia books (which i love) or if you just want something suspenseful that you can't wait to see what he does next. The author could definitely improve his writing as he was very repetitive about little details that didn't have too much bearing on the real story but would bring them up in almost every other chapter. But all in all, definitely one of my favorite books.
And on to what I am currently reading:
Days of Valor: An Inside Account of the Bloodiest Six Months of the Vietnam War by Robert Tonsetic - Like mafia stuff this is another subject I like, Vietnam. Don't ask me why, but I can't get enough Vietnam TV shows, movies, video games, or books. I know everyone loves WW2, but Vietnam is my war of preference. Anyway, the title pretty much says what the book is about. It was written by someone who lived it and got back in touch with and found the other people in his battalion that were there to get their stories and views of what happened and piece it all together. It goes into great detail and really makes you realise what these guys had to go through. I'm almost half way through it, but it is great so far.
And up next in the queue are:
On the Run: A Mafia Childhood by Gregg and Gina Hill - That's right, you read the names right. Henry Hill's kids. Like I said I love mafia books, so i am interested to read this and kinda see where Goodfellas left off. I read the book Wiseguy, which Goodfellas is based on, a while ago and that had so much more info on Henry in it, as books usually do rather than movies, so I am definitely interested to continue his saga. We'll see how it is.
The Bourne Legacy by Robert Ludlum and Eric Van Lustbader - Again, Ludlum, Bourne, what's not to love?
The Darkest Evening of the Year by Dean Koontz - Koontz's newest book that was just released.
So I hope you found this interesting. Maybe you found something good to read. maybe it just killed some time reading all this. Depending whether or not I can keep this reading pace up or not, this may be a regular feature. We found a great book overstock warehouse place where you get all the newest hardcover books (I prefer hardcovers, but hey do have soft also) for like 6 bucks after they leave the stores. So if you can wait a month or two after it comes out to read the book you want, it's a great deal. If you actually made it all the way through this babbling, then Kudos to you.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Monday, December 3, 2007
Happy Birthday Moe
So it's been a while. I've just been too busy to write. A lot has gone on, but nothing earth-shattering that you would really care about. Jessica is getting big and so is Moe. It was actually his birthday the other day, so he is officially 1 year old now. One of my resolutions for the new year will be to try and write more, but we'll see how that goes. So here is the rest of my blog in picture form. P.S. - Congrats Kenisti!
Moe when we first got him:
And Moe now, 10 and a half months later:
And some recent jessica pictures:
Moe when we first got him:
And Moe now, 10 and a half months later:
And some recent jessica pictures:
Thursday, September 20, 2007
A Long Overdue Update
Ok,I finally have some time to sit and write and try to catch everyone up on the craziness that is our lives. I hope you have some time to dedicate to this because it's gonna be a long one.
Now where to start? I guess we'll start with the whole baby thing. So obviously, we had the baby. It will actually be a month tomorrow, but it seems like just the other day. I actually can't believe it's a month. So baby came out good. Lisa was good. She was actually doing so well afterwards that they let her come home a day early. She was up and walking around the next day. The whole thing went smoother than we could have hoped for. Jessica was born on Tuesday and they came home a day earlier than they were supposed to on Thursday.
We got home Thursday and got settled and then I had to go pick Lisa's mom up at the airport. We pretty much just hung around the house for the next week. I went and got a new tattoo, Jessica's name with her birthday and footprints. Got it on my ribs, which they say is supposed to be the most painful spot, but I didn't think it was that bad. Did some projects around the house like putting up a tile backsplash in the kitchen, and went to the shooting range a few times. nothing too exciting, just sitting around and getting fat. So Lisa's mom stayed for a week and a half and left on the 2nd and after she left, a few hours later, my parents arrived.
My parents were down for a week and we pretty much did the same thing, just hung around the house. I did some more projects like putting up shelves in my garage and thats about it. my parents left on saturday the 8th and we had a day and a half to ourselves to finally relax. it was great to see our parents and have them down, but after two weeks of nonstop action, it was nice to finally be able to sit back and relax.
So Monday comes around and I have to go back to work after having 3 weeks off. I was not looking forward to it. Waking up that morning was not fun, and I didn't think work was going to be either. So I get to work and get to my desk and my computers and all of my stuff are gone. So I ask my friend Ross what happened to all of my stuff and he shows me my nice, brand new, shinny office. While I was gone, they decided to move me into an office. So that makes the day a little better and maybe coming back to work won't be so bad. So i spend the next few hours getting settled in my office and then my boss, who is down from NY, comes in and wants to talk to me. So we talk and I find out that I got another promotion. Apparently I should take 3 weeks off more often. The day turns out to be pretty good after all. So basically I have spent the last 2 weeks trying to catch up on everything for the 3 weeks that I was out while also trying to take care of all the new stuff that was heaped on me. So I have had barely any time to do anything.
Jessica is doing really good, and she is actually sleeping pretty well. She usually sleeps about 4 hours at a time and is pretty content. We have been pretty lucky considering some of the horror stories that I have heard. Lisa is trying to adjust to her new life as a stay at home mom. The dogs are pretty indifferent to Jessica. Carl will sniff her and check her out once and a while, but they don't really show too much interest in her. We are finally getting around to sending out the official birth announcements, so you should see those in a week or so. Other than all that, there really isn't anything else going on. I might be up in Jersey the weekend of Oct 27th as Wilson and i are supposed to go to the Devils home opener at the new arena and Kenisti has graciously offer to have some people over and allow me to crash there, but that is not definite yet.
So seeing as it has taken me almost 3 hours to write this as I have had to go to meetings and deal with stuff and have to go to another in a few, I guess I will wrap this up. uh, not sure exactly how to close this so..........
Now where to start? I guess we'll start with the whole baby thing. So obviously, we had the baby. It will actually be a month tomorrow, but it seems like just the other day. I actually can't believe it's a month. So baby came out good. Lisa was good. She was actually doing so well afterwards that they let her come home a day early. She was up and walking around the next day. The whole thing went smoother than we could have hoped for. Jessica was born on Tuesday and they came home a day earlier than they were supposed to on Thursday.
We got home Thursday and got settled and then I had to go pick Lisa's mom up at the airport. We pretty much just hung around the house for the next week. I went and got a new tattoo, Jessica's name with her birthday and footprints. Got it on my ribs, which they say is supposed to be the most painful spot, but I didn't think it was that bad. Did some projects around the house like putting up a tile backsplash in the kitchen, and went to the shooting range a few times. nothing too exciting, just sitting around and getting fat. So Lisa's mom stayed for a week and a half and left on the 2nd and after she left, a few hours later, my parents arrived.
My parents were down for a week and we pretty much did the same thing, just hung around the house. I did some more projects like putting up shelves in my garage and thats about it. my parents left on saturday the 8th and we had a day and a half to ourselves to finally relax. it was great to see our parents and have them down, but after two weeks of nonstop action, it was nice to finally be able to sit back and relax.
So Monday comes around and I have to go back to work after having 3 weeks off. I was not looking forward to it. Waking up that morning was not fun, and I didn't think work was going to be either. So I get to work and get to my desk and my computers and all of my stuff are gone. So I ask my friend Ross what happened to all of my stuff and he shows me my nice, brand new, shinny office. While I was gone, they decided to move me into an office. So that makes the day a little better and maybe coming back to work won't be so bad. So i spend the next few hours getting settled in my office and then my boss, who is down from NY, comes in and wants to talk to me. So we talk and I find out that I got another promotion. Apparently I should take 3 weeks off more often. The day turns out to be pretty good after all. So basically I have spent the last 2 weeks trying to catch up on everything for the 3 weeks that I was out while also trying to take care of all the new stuff that was heaped on me. So I have had barely any time to do anything.
Jessica is doing really good, and she is actually sleeping pretty well. She usually sleeps about 4 hours at a time and is pretty content. We have been pretty lucky considering some of the horror stories that I have heard. Lisa is trying to adjust to her new life as a stay at home mom. The dogs are pretty indifferent to Jessica. Carl will sniff her and check her out once and a while, but they don't really show too much interest in her. We are finally getting around to sending out the official birth announcements, so you should see those in a week or so. Other than all that, there really isn't anything else going on. I might be up in Jersey the weekend of Oct 27th as Wilson and i are supposed to go to the Devils home opener at the new arena and Kenisti has graciously offer to have some people over and allow me to crash there, but that is not definite yet.
So seeing as it has taken me almost 3 hours to write this as I have had to go to meetings and deal with stuff and have to go to another in a few, I guess I will wrap this up. uh, not sure exactly how to close this so..........
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Pictures
Well, it's been a while. I 've been busy. Not too much time to write now. lots going on at home and work, so here's some pictures of Jessica.
Monday, August 6, 2007
Movie Reviews
Ok, so it has been a while since I last wrote, but between trips to Babies R Us and finishing up the babies room, we actually had time to see 2 movies. Now, we hardly ever go to the movies. Actually, I think the last time we went was to see Saw 3 and that was October of last year. So needless to say, us going to the movies 2 weekends in a row is a sign of the apocalypse, but there were 2 movies that I HAD to see. First, I am sure to no ones surprise was the Simpsons movie. Of course there was all the hoopla about that they made it too late and they should have done it in their prime and yada yada yada, but if you go into it expecting it to be like their prime, then of course you will not like it. I went in to it with no expectations and rather enjoyed it. The first half of the movie definitely carried it. the second half had some lulls, but overall it was pretty good. I haven't read any reviews on it so not sure if the fanboys are slamming it or not, but I would recommend seeing it, but as I said go with no expectations of what it used to be and i think you will enjoy it.
Now the second movie is an adaptation of a series of books by one of my favorite authors, the Tupac of authors (he's been dead for 6 or 7 years and still publishes books) Robert Ludlum. So if you haven't figured it out yet, the movie is the Bourne Ultimatum. Now I loved the first two, and was pretty sure i would love this one, and i was right. Just a great story. Great action scenes and realistic fight scenes (not the cheesy hollywood kung fu fighting, but the secret agent, i can kill you 800 different ways while using anything I can find and using it as a weapon kind). The question is, there is another book in the series, will they do a 4th? Either way, great movie, i would definitely recommend it. Good times.
Now on to another bit of information about movies that I figured out and must share with you. So Saturday morning we were sitting around being lazy and I was flipping through the channels and saw that The Lost Boys was on, so of course I stopped and watched it. then right after that on the same channel was The Princess Bride. Then I looked at the dates each movie was released and they were both released in 1987. So that got me thinking and then some internet research was needed to confirm my suspicion that 1987 might have been the greatest year for movies ever. Listen to these other movies that were release in '87 besides the 2 listed above: Can't Buy Me Love, Full metal Jacket, Lethal Weapon, Beverly Hills Cop 2, Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, Raising Arizona, Robocop, The Running Man, Spaceballs, Summer School, Throw Momma from the Train, The Untouchables, and Wall Street. Now that is only just some of the movies released that year, not even counting Over The Top. There is definitely a strong argument to be made for '87. Just thought I would share that with you.
15 days 'til baby.
Now the second movie is an adaptation of a series of books by one of my favorite authors, the Tupac of authors (he's been dead for 6 or 7 years and still publishes books) Robert Ludlum. So if you haven't figured it out yet, the movie is the Bourne Ultimatum. Now I loved the first two, and was pretty sure i would love this one, and i was right. Just a great story. Great action scenes and realistic fight scenes (not the cheesy hollywood kung fu fighting, but the secret agent, i can kill you 800 different ways while using anything I can find and using it as a weapon kind). The question is, there is another book in the series, will they do a 4th? Either way, great movie, i would definitely recommend it. Good times.
Now on to another bit of information about movies that I figured out and must share with you. So Saturday morning we were sitting around being lazy and I was flipping through the channels and saw that The Lost Boys was on, so of course I stopped and watched it. then right after that on the same channel was The Princess Bride. Then I looked at the dates each movie was released and they were both released in 1987. So that got me thinking and then some internet research was needed to confirm my suspicion that 1987 might have been the greatest year for movies ever. Listen to these other movies that were release in '87 besides the 2 listed above: Can't Buy Me Love, Full metal Jacket, Lethal Weapon, Beverly Hills Cop 2, Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, Raising Arizona, Robocop, The Running Man, Spaceballs, Summer School, Throw Momma from the Train, The Untouchables, and Wall Street. Now that is only just some of the movies released that year, not even counting Over The Top. There is definitely a strong argument to be made for '87. Just thought I would share that with you.
15 days 'til baby.
Monday, July 2, 2007
Weekend Update
So I haven't written for a while so I figured I would post something about this weekend. Saturday started off with car shopping for a new car for Lisa. We wound up getting her a Ford Explorer after sitting in the dealership for almost 4 hours. The picking out, negotiating, and paperwork all went through pretty smoothly as it only took about an hour and a half maybe, but then after all was done, we had to wait for them to reprogram some the remotes and stuff and get it cleaned up. So we sat there for a good while making fun of the other people that came in to pass the time. So after that we went out to dinner and found a pretty good seafood place, Rockfish Grill. After that we went home and since it was absolutely beautiful outside, we sat outside and played with the dogs while I drank a few beers and smoked what may or may not have been an illegally imported Cuban cigar. After that it was time to watch a slasher flick that Lisa wanted to see that we had DVRed. Please do not ever, I really mean ever, see the movie Black Christmas. Horrible is not even the appropriate word for it. Needless to say, this is why Lisa does not get to pick out movies that we watch more often.
So on to Sunday. Really just a boring day of sitting around the house. I played some video games. Lisa went shopping. I went to the range to go shoot, but found out that there was a 2 hour wait so I said screw it and turned around and went home and continued to sit around and do nothing for the rest of the day.
So now we are finalizing the last of our plans for the weekend that we go up to jersey. Too much to do and not enough time. Looks like Thursday will consist of driving up to Atlantic City, spending the night there gambling and drinking. Then Friday is returning Lisa's old car, driving the rest of the way up to the Monmouth County area, Lisa visiting her old work, seeing her family , and then spending the night hanging out and drinking and seeing everyone. Saturday morning is up early and driving down to my parent's house, getting changed for the wedding, driving to the wedding in PA and spending the night there drunk (me only of course). Sunday is driving back up to my parent's house, Lisa's shower, visiting with my family, and then leave Monday morning to drive home. there is still more people that I want to see and things to do. just trying to fit them in the schedule is a pain in the ass. Oh well.
So on to Sunday. Really just a boring day of sitting around the house. I played some video games. Lisa went shopping. I went to the range to go shoot, but found out that there was a 2 hour wait so I said screw it and turned around and went home and continued to sit around and do nothing for the rest of the day.
So now we are finalizing the last of our plans for the weekend that we go up to jersey. Too much to do and not enough time. Looks like Thursday will consist of driving up to Atlantic City, spending the night there gambling and drinking. Then Friday is returning Lisa's old car, driving the rest of the way up to the Monmouth County area, Lisa visiting her old work, seeing her family , and then spending the night hanging out and drinking and seeing everyone. Saturday morning is up early and driving down to my parent's house, getting changed for the wedding, driving to the wedding in PA and spending the night there drunk (me only of course). Sunday is driving back up to my parent's house, Lisa's shower, visiting with my family, and then leave Monday morning to drive home. there is still more people that I want to see and things to do. just trying to fit them in the schedule is a pain in the ass. Oh well.
Thursday, June 14, 2007
8 Months Gone
Well, not really 8 months, it's actually been a year, but wanted to throw an old reference out there, even though only probably Shu will get it. Anywho, tomorrow, July 15th will be officially one year since this whole crazy journey started. 1 year ago tomorrow is when I officially agreed to move down here. Of course, it doesn't even seem like a year, but soooo much has happened in this year, it's pretty crazy when I sit and think about it. I've accumulated more frequent flyer miles than I would really have cared to by flying between here and Jersey numerous times. I literally flew around the world and drank $14 beers in Singapore. Bought a brand new house and watched it be built. Finally sold my house in Jersey. Went to a 10 year high school reunion. Got another dog. Uh, the whole baby thing would also probably qualify as a major event. Got a new car. Made some new friends. Got some new tattoos. Missed a wedding that I really wanted to go to. Went to a gun show. Ate alligator. Memorized a new home phone number. Still don't remember my new cell phone number. Got drunk with friends a few times before we left. Probably talk to Rich more now that we don't live in the same state, as we are now bound by the Confederacy. Went to my first minor league baseball game. Went to my first Devils game not in Continental Airline Arena. Learned that first class is the only way to fly on long flights. Bought a gun and shot things. Learned that Ranch is the official dipping sauce of the south. And many, many more things that I just can't think of right now.
And you know what? I wouldn't trade it for the world. It's been great down here. Better than I even hoped. And I would have to say, there is probably no chance in hell that I would ever move back to Jersey. Jersey, we had our good times, but like my Spiderman under-roos, I've outgrown you and it was sadly time to move on. It's funny, I always thought "quality of life" was just one of those made up terms that didn't really exist. But, I can now definitely say that the "quality of life" is a bajillion times better here. So, year one completed, and absolutely no regrets.
And you know what? I wouldn't trade it for the world. It's been great down here. Better than I even hoped. And I would have to say, there is probably no chance in hell that I would ever move back to Jersey. Jersey, we had our good times, but like my Spiderman under-roos, I've outgrown you and it was sadly time to move on. It's funny, I always thought "quality of life" was just one of those made up terms that didn't really exist. But, I can now definitely say that the "quality of life" is a bajillion times better here. So, year one completed, and absolutely no regrets.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Missing Bubba
So Lisa and I are going to the Durham Bulls Athletic Park this Saturday night to catch a Durham Bulls game. As luck would have it, the Louisville Bats are in town. They are the AAA affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. So you know what that means right??? That's right, former Yankee fan favorite Bubba Crosby is going to be in town. However, it of course had to rain on my parade, as the Bats website lists Bubba on the 7 day DL. Will he be back for the game? Who knows. Unfortunately, the amount of injury updates is not as plethoric as the big leagues, so I don't know. Maybe we will get lucky and get to see Bubba. If not, we will have to settle for seeing Josh Hamilton, who is down on a rehab stint before returning to the big club. As well as other washed up MLBers and prospects like Homer Bailey, Kirk Saarloos, Mark Belhorn, and not to mention the Bulls own Jonny Gomes, Mitch Talbot, and Seth McClung. And the 2 time AL all-star and World Series Champion coaching the Bulls, Gary Gaetti.
So when the best seats in the house are $8 a pop, there is no shortage of beer, you get to see some MLBers, and of course you get to watch a good game, I guess you can't go wrong. I think I'd still trade it all to see Bubba though.
Monday, May 14, 2007
Virginia is for lovers
Well, at least that is what I am told. But my investigation into that theory would have to be put on hold, as this trip to Virginia was all about Bich.
So I hopped in the new ride and made the drive out on Saturday morning. Mapquest told me it was supposed to take 3 1/2 hours. I said mapquest be damned and did it in 2 1/2. Hitting 115 mph at one point obviously helped the cause. So at around 2:15PM, I arrived in Bichland. Got a quick pseudo tour of their very lovely apartment building and apartment and then we sat and shot the shit for a while.
Rich then embarked on his major home improvement project of hanging a dry erase calendar on his fridge. After looking up online where the nearest Home Depot was, we took a ride there and I introduced Rich to Home Depot and explained what exactly it and the merchandise inside was used for. After he got over his disgust at the idea of actually doing home improvement, we found the necessary items and were off. On the way back to the apt, Rich decided to introduce me to a local legend. There was a restaurant that he had heard about and people actually put stickers for it on their cars. With recommendations like that, it had to be good right? It reminded me a lot of Stewarts as they had the whole drive up, eat in your car thingy going with some inside seating also available. We went inside, sat down, and perused the menu. Our ever so charming (and by ever so charming, I mean bitchy) waitress came over and took our orders. I got a pork roll sandwich, a rarity down in the south I might add, and rich ordered a steak sandwich. A few minutes later, our plastic saran wrapped sandwiches were thrown our way (and yes, literally thrown, remember the bitch thing from a few sentences ago). I actually enjoyed my sandwich. Pork roll on a roll. Not too hard to screw up. Rich on the other hand, didn't have as much luck. They really shouldn't have called it a steak sandwich, a more appropriate name would have been a fat and ligament sandwich. On the bright side though, I got a cherry coke and they make it the old way by just dumping cherry juice in the coke. That rocked! So after that lovely experience, it was back to the apt to hang the board.
After completing the project and catching a horribly hacked and edited version of Dumb and Dumber on tv, it was time to start drinking. We went to a cool little bar/pizza place. They had a lot of beers on tap and it had a nice feel to it. The waitress was friendly and a very smart business woman, as she took her 2 best "assets" and shoved them together and pushed them up so that they were flowing out of her shirt. I am sure that works to get nice tips from a lot of guys, but not when a jew is at the table. So after a few beers, it was on to dinner.
Rich wanted to try a steak house that he had never tried before and heard was good. I should have known something was up after the lunch situation, but we went for it. It started out nice. Good salad bar, really good buffalo sauce, but then it was time for dinner. And like the aforementioned waitress, this place also had a sound business plan.....the customer cooks their own food. You know how much money you save by not paying cooks? That's right. You pick out your slab of meat that you want from the fridge, and you cook it. There was like a 50 foot long bed of charcoal in a room and you find some place and you add any spices that you want to it and slap your meat on the grill. In theory, this doesn't sound too bad, but when you are already 5 - 7 beers in to the night (i lost exact count, but around there) and when one person orders a thin sirloin which only takes a little while to cook and the other orders a thick t-bone which takes a while, and add extreme heat just standing by the grill, it doesn't make for fun. Oh, and there are just loaves of bread that you can butter and grill and such. Yeah, well again, not a great idea, as I would say that maybe 4 of the like 20 pieces we made weren't burnt. So after that agonizing ordeal, we sat down and ate. On the plus side, the meat was actually good quality stuff, so that redeemed it a little. And then it was off to a bar.
We then went to a spot in town where there were a few bars and ended up a sportsy kind of bar to watch the Yankee game, as luckily it was a west coast game. So we watched DeSalvo pitch a great game and get his first major league win. And then Brooke joined us after she got out of work for some more shit shooting and drinking. We sat and drank and talked the night away until the bouncer/closing time nazi was yelling at us to get out and literally took the beers out of our hands.
The next morning was filled with lots of sleeping and then a good breakfast at a little hole in the wall down the street from their apt. This place luckily saved any hope of me not bringing my own food next time and giving me a little faith in the areas food service industry. Although the service was pretty slow, but the omelet was great. Then it was off to make the drive back home to see my preggo and the boys, which by the way I did in 2 hours and 40 minutes.
Rich might blog about the weekend (and definitely craft better written story than I) and include anything that I forgot or just blatantly got wrong, but I figured I would let you know my experience of the weekend. I look forward to the next trip where i will hopefully not have to cook my own dinner.
So I hopped in the new ride and made the drive out on Saturday morning. Mapquest told me it was supposed to take 3 1/2 hours. I said mapquest be damned and did it in 2 1/2. Hitting 115 mph at one point obviously helped the cause. So at around 2:15PM, I arrived in Bichland. Got a quick pseudo tour of their very lovely apartment building and apartment and then we sat and shot the shit for a while.
Rich then embarked on his major home improvement project of hanging a dry erase calendar on his fridge. After looking up online where the nearest Home Depot was, we took a ride there and I introduced Rich to Home Depot and explained what exactly it and the merchandise inside was used for. After he got over his disgust at the idea of actually doing home improvement, we found the necessary items and were off. On the way back to the apt, Rich decided to introduce me to a local legend. There was a restaurant that he had heard about and people actually put stickers for it on their cars. With recommendations like that, it had to be good right? It reminded me a lot of Stewarts as they had the whole drive up, eat in your car thingy going with some inside seating also available. We went inside, sat down, and perused the menu. Our ever so charming (and by ever so charming, I mean bitchy) waitress came over and took our orders. I got a pork roll sandwich, a rarity down in the south I might add, and rich ordered a steak sandwich. A few minutes later, our plastic saran wrapped sandwiches were thrown our way (and yes, literally thrown, remember the bitch thing from a few sentences ago). I actually enjoyed my sandwich. Pork roll on a roll. Not too hard to screw up. Rich on the other hand, didn't have as much luck. They really shouldn't have called it a steak sandwich, a more appropriate name would have been a fat and ligament sandwich. On the bright side though, I got a cherry coke and they make it the old way by just dumping cherry juice in the coke. That rocked! So after that lovely experience, it was back to the apt to hang the board.
After completing the project and catching a horribly hacked and edited version of Dumb and Dumber on tv, it was time to start drinking. We went to a cool little bar/pizza place. They had a lot of beers on tap and it had a nice feel to it. The waitress was friendly and a very smart business woman, as she took her 2 best "assets" and shoved them together and pushed them up so that they were flowing out of her shirt. I am sure that works to get nice tips from a lot of guys, but not when a jew is at the table. So after a few beers, it was on to dinner.
Rich wanted to try a steak house that he had never tried before and heard was good. I should have known something was up after the lunch situation, but we went for it. It started out nice. Good salad bar, really good buffalo sauce, but then it was time for dinner. And like the aforementioned waitress, this place also had a sound business plan.....the customer cooks their own food. You know how much money you save by not paying cooks? That's right. You pick out your slab of meat that you want from the fridge, and you cook it. There was like a 50 foot long bed of charcoal in a room and you find some place and you add any spices that you want to it and slap your meat on the grill. In theory, this doesn't sound too bad, but when you are already 5 - 7 beers in to the night (i lost exact count, but around there) and when one person orders a thin sirloin which only takes a little while to cook and the other orders a thick t-bone which takes a while, and add extreme heat just standing by the grill, it doesn't make for fun. Oh, and there are just loaves of bread that you can butter and grill and such. Yeah, well again, not a great idea, as I would say that maybe 4 of the like 20 pieces we made weren't burnt. So after that agonizing ordeal, we sat down and ate. On the plus side, the meat was actually good quality stuff, so that redeemed it a little. And then it was off to a bar.
We then went to a spot in town where there were a few bars and ended up a sportsy kind of bar to watch the Yankee game, as luckily it was a west coast game. So we watched DeSalvo pitch a great game and get his first major league win. And then Brooke joined us after she got out of work for some more shit shooting and drinking. We sat and drank and talked the night away until the bouncer/closing time nazi was yelling at us to get out and literally took the beers out of our hands.
The next morning was filled with lots of sleeping and then a good breakfast at a little hole in the wall down the street from their apt. This place luckily saved any hope of me not bringing my own food next time and giving me a little faith in the areas food service industry. Although the service was pretty slow, but the omelet was great. Then it was off to make the drive back home to see my preggo and the boys, which by the way I did in 2 hours and 40 minutes.
Rich might blog about the weekend (and definitely craft better written story than I) and include anything that I forgot or just blatantly got wrong, but I figured I would let you know my experience of the weekend. I look forward to the next trip where i will hopefully not have to cook my own dinner.
Monday, May 7, 2007
Getting Around
So, we've finally started to explore some of the area down here. By ourselves and with the help of my friend and his wife, we have been slowly expanding our horizons and learning the area and the good places to go. So in no particular order, mainly because I can't remember which came in what order, here are some of the cool places we have discovered:
First, I'll start with this past weekend because it is the freshest in my mind and can probably remember most of the details. This weekend took us to the gun show at the NC State fairgrounds. At the same time as the very popular gun show, there was also a train show, a flea market, and a cheerleading competition going on at the same time. So we had to park a ways away, but we trekked through the sprawling fairgrounds and eventually found our way there. And yes, I bought my gun and a large amount of ammunition while I was there. So after the gun show, we met our friends at their place and went out for dinner. They took us to a little place right on the NC State campus and gave us a little tour of it as we drove through. The restaurant was a little too fancy and overpriced for my taste, and the food was mediocre, but at least we tried a new place and discovered a new section of the city. So after dinner it was off to Charlie Goodnights, the local comedy club as we had tickets to see Bill Burr. If you don't know who Bill is, he is on the Opie and Anthony show alot and is also known as "the white guy" from Chapelle's Show. The show was great and Bill was hilarious. I would definitely recommend to see him if you get the chance. So I think that about wraps it up for this weekend.
Here are some other places we have found.
- Blue Flame Tattoo - My new tattoo home. Really nice shop. Real cool guys.
- Streets at Southpoint - This is a whole complex which has a really nice mall, a million times nicer than freehold (not that that is saying much), plus movies, restaurants, and such
- The Durham Bulls - Our local AAA baseball team. They are affiliated with the Devil Rays, but they are still fun to watch. Plus the best seat in the house is only $8 so you cant go wrong to watch a game and drink. i haven't made it there just yet, but am going on Thursday night with some people from work. Plus I hear the stadium is really nice and it is only 15 minutes from our house.
- Tyler's Taproom - this is a restaurant and bar right outside of the Bulls stadium. there are a few restaurants and bars along the street that the stadium is on. We went to this one one night, again with the aforementioned friends, and I really liked it. The food was pretty good. Your standard kind of barish food and an overwhelming selection of beers on tap. They have 33 beers on tap on their beer menu. And this is all specialty beers. There are no really normal beers on tap. So if you want a Miller Lite or Bud, it is bottle only. Now you know me, I'm not really a fancy beer kind of guy, but i decided to try one and I actually liked it. I had the Ska Nut Brown Ale and it was pretty damn good. i would definitely get it again and would recommend it for anyone who has the chance to try it. You can read about it in the beer menu on the site linked above if you wish.
So I think that is about it. We've explored some other places that I am sure I am forgetting about and some that really don't need a whole breakdown, like the Benz dealer and the shooting range. So if anybody actually ever comes down to visit us, at least we will know some good places to go.
First, I'll start with this past weekend because it is the freshest in my mind and can probably remember most of the details. This weekend took us to the gun show at the NC State fairgrounds. At the same time as the very popular gun show, there was also a train show, a flea market, and a cheerleading competition going on at the same time. So we had to park a ways away, but we trekked through the sprawling fairgrounds and eventually found our way there. And yes, I bought my gun and a large amount of ammunition while I was there. So after the gun show, we met our friends at their place and went out for dinner. They took us to a little place right on the NC State campus and gave us a little tour of it as we drove through. The restaurant was a little too fancy and overpriced for my taste, and the food was mediocre, but at least we tried a new place and discovered a new section of the city. So after dinner it was off to Charlie Goodnights, the local comedy club as we had tickets to see Bill Burr. If you don't know who Bill is, he is on the Opie and Anthony show alot and is also known as "the white guy" from Chapelle's Show. The show was great and Bill was hilarious. I would definitely recommend to see him if you get the chance. So I think that about wraps it up for this weekend.
Here are some other places we have found.
- Blue Flame Tattoo - My new tattoo home. Really nice shop. Real cool guys.
- Streets at Southpoint - This is a whole complex which has a really nice mall, a million times nicer than freehold (not that that is saying much), plus movies, restaurants, and such
- The Durham Bulls - Our local AAA baseball team. They are affiliated with the Devil Rays, but they are still fun to watch. Plus the best seat in the house is only $8 so you cant go wrong to watch a game and drink. i haven't made it there just yet, but am going on Thursday night with some people from work. Plus I hear the stadium is really nice and it is only 15 minutes from our house.
- Tyler's Taproom - this is a restaurant and bar right outside of the Bulls stadium. there are a few restaurants and bars along the street that the stadium is on. We went to this one one night, again with the aforementioned friends, and I really liked it. The food was pretty good. Your standard kind of barish food and an overwhelming selection of beers on tap. They have 33 beers on tap on their beer menu. And this is all specialty beers. There are no really normal beers on tap. So if you want a Miller Lite or Bud, it is bottle only. Now you know me, I'm not really a fancy beer kind of guy, but i decided to try one and I actually liked it. I had the Ska Nut Brown Ale and it was pretty damn good. i would definitely get it again and would recommend it for anyone who has the chance to try it. You can read about it in the beer menu on the site linked above if you wish.
So I think that is about it. We've explored some other places that I am sure I am forgetting about and some that really don't need a whole breakdown, like the Benz dealer and the shooting range. So if anybody actually ever comes down to visit us, at least we will know some good places to go.
Monday, April 30, 2007
Rollin'
So I FINALLY got my new car. I've been impatiently waiting since we moved down here to get it. Obviously, I needed to get rid of that little thing called a Jersey-sized inflated mortgage for the house up there and then pay off some bills and such and then it would happen. Well, the stars finally aligned and it was time. So after much indecision, I finally drove off the lot with the new ride.
For the past few months I had been debating, 2-door coupe or 4-door sedan? I had originally wanted the coupe. Maybe it was the kid in me that wanted to hold on to the younger years and wasn't fully ready to venture into the "family car" area just yet. Who knows. But over the last few weeks, I was starting to actually lean towards the sedan. I mean 4 doors can't hurt right? It'll make it easier to get the kid in and out. So there it was. 4-door. I was doing the family car thing. So we went to the dealer on Saturday. The overly nice salesman met us at our car before we even got out of it. Had he of seen me before I got out of my car in my stunning attire of my shorts and raggedy t-shirt and all covered in tattoos, he may have thought differently, but it was too late. So I told him what I was interested in and he of course did not have any of them. He had said that the plant is on their annual hiatus and wont be making any more cars until they start making the 2008 and dealers only have their stock left to sell. So the good news was that it gave me some negotiating leverage, but the bad news was that they didn't have the model that I had wanted. So I asked about the coupe that I was originally interested in and they only had 2 in my standard car color of black. So we checked those out. We then decided to leave and try another dealer to see what they had. They didn't have the sedan I wanted and only 1 coupe, but it had tan leather interior, which i just wasn't feeling.
Sooo.....back to the original dealer it was. I decided that it would have to be the coupe, screw the sedan. It just wasn't meant to be family car time yet. It was a sign and I accepted it with open arms. So we looked at the 2 coupes they had. One had all fancy wood trim inside and a wood steering wheel. it was just a little too fancy for me. So we looked at the other one. It had black leather with black trim, some premium package, and some sports package to it. I liked it. So it was time for the test drive.....and boy was it sweet. I don't think the guy was too happy when I got it almost to 100 on the test drive, but if he wanted the sale, he knew to keep his mouth shut. And that was it. I fell in love. It was over. Deal done. We got back and we did the paperwork. And after a few hours, I rolled off the lot with this.
Man is it sweet. It does everything but drive for you. I love it. And i can't wait to take my first road trip in it. Rich and i are currently planning a trip for me to go up there. So it will be great to cruise at a very rapid speed on the open road. And then when I get there, Rich and I can cruise around Norfolk and pick up chicks(Note: Lisa and Brooke, please disregard that last sentence. Thank you.) Just two guys rollin' through Norfolk with the windows down and the sunroof open with the breeze blowing through what little hair we have left on the top of our heads.
For the past few months I had been debating, 2-door coupe or 4-door sedan? I had originally wanted the coupe. Maybe it was the kid in me that wanted to hold on to the younger years and wasn't fully ready to venture into the "family car" area just yet. Who knows. But over the last few weeks, I was starting to actually lean towards the sedan. I mean 4 doors can't hurt right? It'll make it easier to get the kid in and out. So there it was. 4-door. I was doing the family car thing. So we went to the dealer on Saturday. The overly nice salesman met us at our car before we even got out of it. Had he of seen me before I got out of my car in my stunning attire of my shorts and raggedy t-shirt and all covered in tattoos, he may have thought differently, but it was too late. So I told him what I was interested in and he of course did not have any of them. He had said that the plant is on their annual hiatus and wont be making any more cars until they start making the 2008 and dealers only have their stock left to sell. So the good news was that it gave me some negotiating leverage, but the bad news was that they didn't have the model that I had wanted. So I asked about the coupe that I was originally interested in and they only had 2 in my standard car color of black. So we checked those out. We then decided to leave and try another dealer to see what they had. They didn't have the sedan I wanted and only 1 coupe, but it had tan leather interior, which i just wasn't feeling.
Sooo.....back to the original dealer it was. I decided that it would have to be the coupe, screw the sedan. It just wasn't meant to be family car time yet. It was a sign and I accepted it with open arms. So we looked at the 2 coupes they had. One had all fancy wood trim inside and a wood steering wheel. it was just a little too fancy for me. So we looked at the other one. It had black leather with black trim, some premium package, and some sports package to it. I liked it. So it was time for the test drive.....and boy was it sweet. I don't think the guy was too happy when I got it almost to 100 on the test drive, but if he wanted the sale, he knew to keep his mouth shut. And that was it. I fell in love. It was over. Deal done. We got back and we did the paperwork. And after a few hours, I rolled off the lot with this.
Man is it sweet. It does everything but drive for you. I love it. And i can't wait to take my first road trip in it. Rich and i are currently planning a trip for me to go up there. So it will be great to cruise at a very rapid speed on the open road. And then when I get there, Rich and I can cruise around Norfolk and pick up chicks(Note: Lisa and Brooke, please disregard that last sentence. Thank you.) Just two guys rollin' through Norfolk with the windows down and the sunroof open with the breeze blowing through what little hair we have left on the top of our heads.
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
I'm Rich, Bitch
Well, not really, but I finally closed on the house in Jersey and got the check in the mail yesterday. After the last few weeks of nervousness of whether or not it was definitely going to happen and running around and trying to get all the paperwork in order and things notarized and overnighted, it's very nice to breathe a sigh of relief. It's finally over. I am officially no longer a part of Jersey.
So the next few weeks will probably be a spending spree where I hemorrhage cash left and right. I already have a long list of things to do and buy like paying off the credit cards, buying a desk so we can actually make our den a den and we don't have to sit on the floor to use the computer (and so Rich won't spill coffee on the floor anymore), a new car for myself, a new car for Lisa, some baby stuff, an xbox, and the list goes on and on. It is going to be really nice to only have to make one mortgage payment from now on. Especially since this mortgage payment is a lot cheaper that the one from Jersey.
Ahhh, Jersey and your horribly overpriced real estate market, I thank you for the cash, but I will not miss thee.
So the next few weeks will probably be a spending spree where I hemorrhage cash left and right. I already have a long list of things to do and buy like paying off the credit cards, buying a desk so we can actually make our den a den and we don't have to sit on the floor to use the computer (and so Rich won't spill coffee on the floor anymore), a new car for myself, a new car for Lisa, some baby stuff, an xbox, and the list goes on and on. It is going to be really nice to only have to make one mortgage payment from now on. Especially since this mortgage payment is a lot cheaper that the one from Jersey.
Ahhh, Jersey and your horribly overpriced real estate market, I thank you for the cash, but I will not miss thee.
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Guns a-blazin'
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
The Great Weekend Fiasco
Damn! I'm pissed that I missed the wedding and seeing everybody, and then I see Shu's recap of the wedding and it makes me even more pissed. So here will be my long winded recap of what exactly transpired to not allow Wilson and myself to make the wedding.
First, I will explain exactly how things were supposed to go. So Wilson and I came up with the grand plan that, if completed successfully, would have been a really great weekend. It was supposed to start with Wilson flying down on Wednesday night, then us hanging all day Thursday and then going to see the Devils play that Hurricanes and getting drunk while doing so. We were then supposed to be up bright and early and hop flights back to Jersey and Wilson's car so that he could drive us out to the wedding. Now we were supposed to be back in Jersey by noonish and would have been to Penn State by dinner time on Friday night. We would have gotten to see everyone and hang out and drink and have a good time. Then Saturday would come and we would do the wedding and imbibe a lot of alcohol and then on Sunday Wilson would drive back home and drop me off and I would spend the rest of the day with my family and see them and then spend the night at my parents house and then fly home on Monday afternoon. So that was the plan. it was going to be great.....hockey, beer, seeing friends, beer, seeing a nice wedding, beer, seeing family, and more beer. but, this is what actually transpired.......
So, Wednesday was fine. Wilson flew down and landed and we went back to the house and had a few beers. Thursday rolls around and it starts off good too. We go out and eat some burritos for lunch and then come back home and drink and play video games until Lisa gets home. Then this is where the first strike comes. About an hour before we are going to leave to go to the game i get a call that my 8:40Am flight on Friday has been cancelled and i need to rebook. So I call and the only flights she has available is either 3:45 Pm on Friday or I can leave Raleigh at 11ish and fly to Boston, hold over there for 2 hours and then fly from Boston to Newark and get there around 4:30Pm. So I mull my options and look at the weather and decide that Boston is out of the question because the weather is going to be worse up there. So I take the 3:45 and tell them to put me on standby for Wilson's flight at 11:20Am. we decide that if i can't get on Wilson's flight, he will take his 11:20 and get in and go home and pack and do stuff and then pick me up at 5:15 when my plane lands and we will leave right from there. So we figure we can still make it by 10ish as long as the roads aren't bad. So with that crisis narrowly averted, we set out to the hockey game. It was a great game, the Devils won. We had great seats, first row, on the glass, behind the Devils bench, we were actually only 2 feet from the players, and we drank a lot. So the night wrapped up and we went to sleep hoping that our flights the next day would not be cancelled and we would get there.
On to day 2.....So we get to the airport and Wilson checks in and the guy tells him that the flight is one of the only ones still on time. I go up to the counter and double check that I am on standby and the lady tells me that I am first on the list and that there looks to be a very good chance for me to get on because the flight was originally scheduled to be a model XXXX plane, but now it is a YYYY which apparently can hold a few more people. So we go through security and are thinking that things are looking up. We get through security and we hear an announcement over the PA that the 11:20 to Newark is in route and should be landing shortly and is still on time. Great news! We then take a walk over to the monitor wall to see what it says and all flights to LaGuardia and JFK have been cancelled and a few to Boston, Washington, Philly and so on have also been cancelled. Not good. So we wait around for a while and at about 11:10 or so the lady comes on the PA and says that the 11:20 flight is oversold and they need volunteers to give up their seats. So at this point, it doesn't look like i am getting on Wilson's flight. So now it's about 11:20 and they are still asking for people to give up their seats and the plane hasn't even landed to offload the people yet before it can turn around and go back to Jersey. So about 11:30 the plane lands and the people get off and we are thinking that maybe this can still happen. Once the plane is off loaded, here comes another announcement......"We are not going to board the plane just yet because of deteriorating conditions in Newark. Stand by and we will make another announcement when we have more info. unfortunately we do not have a time frame, hopefully we can tell you something around noon." Great. So we take a seat and sit and wait. Around 11:45 I decide for the hell of it to check the flight status on the website using my blackberry. So, I look up the flight info and on the website it says CANCELLED. I tell Wilson and he is none too happy. i decide to check my 3:45 to see what that says....CANCELLED. meanwhile, they still have not made any announcement over the PA about it being cancelled. So we sit and mull our options. If we can get the earliest flight on Sat morning, we can land by like 10:30 and drive out and still try to make the wedding, but at least make the reception at the worst. We talk about renting a car and just driving up. So they then make an announcement that all flights to the Northeast have been cancelled and everyone needs to rebook. So we get in line and wait. We finally get to the counter and Wilson gives the sob story that his car is parked in the hourly lot at Newark because he is retarded and he needs to get there as soon as possible. They take a good 15 minutes of making calls and looking things up in the computer and talking on the walkie talkie and they somehow get him a seat on the 8:40Am on Saturday. for me, no luck. earliest they had available was Sunday at 3:45 Pm. I said, "gee no thanks" and told them to cancel everything. So while Wilson was sucking the guy off to get the Saturday flight, i called a car rental place to see how much it would be and the availability. Wilson, got his flight and i told him about the car and he said that he spoke to someone and that portions of the turnpike and 95 were closed so we probably couldn't even make it there by car. So we scrapped that idea. We then went home and I looked online to see if there were any other airlines that had flights that i could get on and of course.......there was nothing. So at this point I resigned myself to the fact that i was not going to be able to make it to the wedding, but at least Wilson had a slim chance. So we went home and i called Rich and broke the news to him and apologized and wished them luck. I then cancelled the hotel reservations for that night and switched the ones for Sat night to Wilson's name since he still had a shot. So it was about 2ish once this was all done, so we decided to drink and play video games until Lisa came home. We went out to dinner, drank some more and then it was about midnight or so and i decided to check Wilson's flight status. So i punch it in and it says.......CANCELLED. So Wilson calls the people to rebook and the first available flight for him was Sunday at 7:00Pm. So needless to say, Wilson spent the weekend. There was much more beer and video games and food. And then Lisa made cookies on Sunday, which made it a little better.
So that is the tale of our weekend. i am sure i left some details and stories out (like the girl who was crying in line in front of us), but you get the gist. it really sucked. Such high hopes of seeing good friends get married, catching up with friends I haven't seen in a while, and even getting to spend some time with the family, but it was all down the drain. This is probably what happens when that god person sees a semite and a non-semite get married. (threw that last one in there for you Rich!)
First, I will explain exactly how things were supposed to go. So Wilson and I came up with the grand plan that, if completed successfully, would have been a really great weekend. It was supposed to start with Wilson flying down on Wednesday night, then us hanging all day Thursday and then going to see the Devils play that Hurricanes and getting drunk while doing so. We were then supposed to be up bright and early and hop flights back to Jersey and Wilson's car so that he could drive us out to the wedding. Now we were supposed to be back in Jersey by noonish and would have been to Penn State by dinner time on Friday night. We would have gotten to see everyone and hang out and drink and have a good time. Then Saturday would come and we would do the wedding and imbibe a lot of alcohol and then on Sunday Wilson would drive back home and drop me off and I would spend the rest of the day with my family and see them and then spend the night at my parents house and then fly home on Monday afternoon. So that was the plan. it was going to be great.....hockey, beer, seeing friends, beer, seeing a nice wedding, beer, seeing family, and more beer. but, this is what actually transpired.......
So, Wednesday was fine. Wilson flew down and landed and we went back to the house and had a few beers. Thursday rolls around and it starts off good too. We go out and eat some burritos for lunch and then come back home and drink and play video games until Lisa gets home. Then this is where the first strike comes. About an hour before we are going to leave to go to the game i get a call that my 8:40Am flight on Friday has been cancelled and i need to rebook. So I call and the only flights she has available is either 3:45 Pm on Friday or I can leave Raleigh at 11ish and fly to Boston, hold over there for 2 hours and then fly from Boston to Newark and get there around 4:30Pm. So I mull my options and look at the weather and decide that Boston is out of the question because the weather is going to be worse up there. So I take the 3:45 and tell them to put me on standby for Wilson's flight at 11:20Am. we decide that if i can't get on Wilson's flight, he will take his 11:20 and get in and go home and pack and do stuff and then pick me up at 5:15 when my plane lands and we will leave right from there. So we figure we can still make it by 10ish as long as the roads aren't bad. So with that crisis narrowly averted, we set out to the hockey game. It was a great game, the Devils won. We had great seats, first row, on the glass, behind the Devils bench, we were actually only 2 feet from the players, and we drank a lot. So the night wrapped up and we went to sleep hoping that our flights the next day would not be cancelled and we would get there.
On to day 2.....So we get to the airport and Wilson checks in and the guy tells him that the flight is one of the only ones still on time. I go up to the counter and double check that I am on standby and the lady tells me that I am first on the list and that there looks to be a very good chance for me to get on because the flight was originally scheduled to be a model XXXX plane, but now it is a YYYY which apparently can hold a few more people. So we go through security and are thinking that things are looking up. We get through security and we hear an announcement over the PA that the 11:20 to Newark is in route and should be landing shortly and is still on time. Great news! We then take a walk over to the monitor wall to see what it says and all flights to LaGuardia and JFK have been cancelled and a few to Boston, Washington, Philly and so on have also been cancelled. Not good. So we wait around for a while and at about 11:10 or so the lady comes on the PA and says that the 11:20 flight is oversold and they need volunteers to give up their seats. So at this point, it doesn't look like i am getting on Wilson's flight. So now it's about 11:20 and they are still asking for people to give up their seats and the plane hasn't even landed to offload the people yet before it can turn around and go back to Jersey. So about 11:30 the plane lands and the people get off and we are thinking that maybe this can still happen. Once the plane is off loaded, here comes another announcement......"We are not going to board the plane just yet because of deteriorating conditions in Newark. Stand by and we will make another announcement when we have more info. unfortunately we do not have a time frame, hopefully we can tell you something around noon." Great. So we take a seat and sit and wait. Around 11:45 I decide for the hell of it to check the flight status on the website using my blackberry. So, I look up the flight info and on the website it says CANCELLED. I tell Wilson and he is none too happy. i decide to check my 3:45 to see what that says....CANCELLED. meanwhile, they still have not made any announcement over the PA about it being cancelled. So we sit and mull our options. If we can get the earliest flight on Sat morning, we can land by like 10:30 and drive out and still try to make the wedding, but at least make the reception at the worst. We talk about renting a car and just driving up. So they then make an announcement that all flights to the Northeast have been cancelled and everyone needs to rebook. So we get in line and wait. We finally get to the counter and Wilson gives the sob story that his car is parked in the hourly lot at Newark because he is retarded and he needs to get there as soon as possible. They take a good 15 minutes of making calls and looking things up in the computer and talking on the walkie talkie and they somehow get him a seat on the 8:40Am on Saturday. for me, no luck. earliest they had available was Sunday at 3:45 Pm. I said, "gee no thanks" and told them to cancel everything. So while Wilson was sucking the guy off to get the Saturday flight, i called a car rental place to see how much it would be and the availability. Wilson, got his flight and i told him about the car and he said that he spoke to someone and that portions of the turnpike and 95 were closed so we probably couldn't even make it there by car. So we scrapped that idea. We then went home and I looked online to see if there were any other airlines that had flights that i could get on and of course.......there was nothing. So at this point I resigned myself to the fact that i was not going to be able to make it to the wedding, but at least Wilson had a slim chance. So we went home and i called Rich and broke the news to him and apologized and wished them luck. I then cancelled the hotel reservations for that night and switched the ones for Sat night to Wilson's name since he still had a shot. So it was about 2ish once this was all done, so we decided to drink and play video games until Lisa came home. We went out to dinner, drank some more and then it was about midnight or so and i decided to check Wilson's flight status. So i punch it in and it says.......CANCELLED. So Wilson calls the people to rebook and the first available flight for him was Sunday at 7:00Pm. So needless to say, Wilson spent the weekend. There was much more beer and video games and food. And then Lisa made cookies on Sunday, which made it a little better.
So that is the tale of our weekend. i am sure i left some details and stories out (like the girl who was crying in line in front of us), but you get the gist. it really sucked. Such high hopes of seeing good friends get married, catching up with friends I haven't seen in a while, and even getting to spend some time with the family, but it was all down the drain. This is probably what happens when that god person sees a semite and a non-semite get married. (threw that last one in there for you Rich!)
Sunday, March 11, 2007
Thursday, March 8, 2007
Under Contract
Ahh, 2 of the sweetest words in the English language. I finally got someone to buy my house. So now hopefully all will go well and then as of April 20th I will no longer be paying 2 mortgages....yay! Now I just have to sit back and wait for the even sweeter word...SOLD!
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Rich 2, Everyone Else 0
So Rich made his second visit. It was under the guise of doing "work", but we really know that he just couldn't stay away. It was a good time again. Well, other than the "Rich Quinn Memorial Coffee Stain" that is now in my rug, but he's forgiven for that. Apparently according to Rich, downtown Raleigh is really cool. Unfortuantely, we can't confirm because we still haven't made it down there yet, but one day.....
So even though Rich is pulling away in visitiations, there is rumored to be a challenger. Yes, there is highly speculative rumors that there will be a Wilson sighting in 2 weeks. Now, of course this is Wilson, so he said he was booking tickets to come down back in Jan and I still think he hasn't booked them yet, but we'll see.......
So even though Rich is pulling away in visitiations, there is rumored to be a challenger. Yes, there is highly speculative rumors that there will be a Wilson sighting in 2 weeks. Now, of course this is Wilson, so he said he was booking tickets to come down back in Jan and I still think he hasn't booked them yet, but we'll see.......
Friday, February 23, 2007
Hockey Greatness
Another great reason why I love hockey. Read This and watch the accompanying video. For those who are too lazy to read, here's a quick summary. 100 minutes in penalties handed out, one of the goalies got the most penalty minutes of anyone - 22, and of course, there was some blood that started it all. Oh, and yeah, they play each other again on Saturday. Yet another great feature of hockey, home and homes. For example, the Devils kicked the crap out of the Rangers on Tuesday at their place, and then went to MSG on Thurs and did it again. Good times.
Oh, and if you want some more goodness, checkout one of the greatest sites ever http://www.hockeyfights.com/
Oh, and if you want some more goodness, checkout one of the greatest sites ever http://www.hockeyfights.com/
Monday, February 5, 2007
Endless Meat
So we went to this Brazilian Steakhouse on Friday night with one of my guys from work and his wife and it was one of the greatest restaurants ever! If you ever have a chance to go to a Brazilian steakhouse, go and go hungry. Basically, there is one thing on the menu, meat. i think you can order a serving of the fish of the day, but why would you? You are only going there for one reason and that reason is to eat endless meat. So you go, you sit down, they offer you the obligatory fish of the day, but they know what you really want. So you tell them what you want and they give you a card. One side is green, one side red. But first, before you dive into the meat, there is an appetizer and salad bar that is also all you can eat which has a ton of stuff on it. I of course chose to pass on it, but Lisa took a shot at it and said it was pretty good stuff.
So on to the meat. Once you are ready, you flip your card over so that the green side is up and then it is a feeding frenzy. There are just guys walking around carrying skewers of all different kinds of meat. If they see your card is green, they stop by your table and tell you what they got. if you like it, they carve you off a piece. And they just keep going around. There is constantly meat available. When your plate is full or you just want to sample what you have without being bothered or even take a breather, you just flip your card over to the red side and they know not to bother you. And then when you are ready again, back to the green side.
It was fantastic. I think there were like 12 different cuts of meat in all. there was fillet mignion, top round, bottom round, pork, chicken, lamb, ribs, and a "house specialty". You would think that a Brazilian steakhouse where people just walk around with meat might not be the fanciest place in the world, but it was really nice, very clean, service was pretty good, nice ambiance. It was a little on the expensive side at $35 a head, but for all you can eat meat, I think it was well worth it. I definitely look forward to going back and if anyone ever comes to visit and is really hungry, we'll definitely take you there.
So on to the meat. Once you are ready, you flip your card over so that the green side is up and then it is a feeding frenzy. There are just guys walking around carrying skewers of all different kinds of meat. If they see your card is green, they stop by your table and tell you what they got. if you like it, they carve you off a piece. And they just keep going around. There is constantly meat available. When your plate is full or you just want to sample what you have without being bothered or even take a breather, you just flip your card over to the red side and they know not to bother you. And then when you are ready again, back to the green side.
It was fantastic. I think there were like 12 different cuts of meat in all. there was fillet mignion, top round, bottom round, pork, chicken, lamb, ribs, and a "house specialty". You would think that a Brazilian steakhouse where people just walk around with meat might not be the fanciest place in the world, but it was really nice, very clean, service was pretty good, nice ambiance. It was a little on the expensive side at $35 a head, but for all you can eat meat, I think it was well worth it. I definitely look forward to going back and if anyone ever comes to visit and is really hungry, we'll definitely take you there.
Monday, January 29, 2007
A familiar face
Well Rich came down for the weekend and it was good to see a familiar face and hang with one of the boys again. We had big plans for the weekend. On Saturday it was in the mid 60's and sunny and we had planned to hit the links or at least go to the driving range and soak in the sun. But, it turns out that we sat around and watched movies and played video games all day. It was cool just to hang out and shoot the shite again.
He came down on Friday night after work and we just hung out, had some drinks, stayed up late, and caught up and talked about life. Saturday brought the aforementioned movies and video games and then we went out to dinner and then hit an Irish pub. I think it was called O'Malleys, but it was my first time there and it was a pretty cool place. So we drank some beers and rocked some Golden Tee. They had a cover band rockin out and they were ok. The place had a few pool tables and video games and even a foosball table. And, it wasn't even that crowded for a Saturday night. I will definitely be visiting there again. The next day bought more laziness and sitting around and watching movies before going out to dinner. Soon after dinner, Rich set out on his trek home.
All in all it was a great time and was nice to hang again. We had some great conversations, caught up on each others lives, filled each other in on the lives of other friends, reminisced about the good old days, and even talked about the future. I don't know if Rich feels the same way, but it was a really great weekend. Even if we were really lazy.
He came down on Friday night after work and we just hung out, had some drinks, stayed up late, and caught up and talked about life. Saturday brought the aforementioned movies and video games and then we went out to dinner and then hit an Irish pub. I think it was called O'Malleys, but it was my first time there and it was a pretty cool place. So we drank some beers and rocked some Golden Tee. They had a cover band rockin out and they were ok. The place had a few pool tables and video games and even a foosball table. And, it wasn't even that crowded for a Saturday night. I will definitely be visiting there again. The next day bought more laziness and sitting around and watching movies before going out to dinner. Soon after dinner, Rich set out on his trek home.
All in all it was a great time and was nice to hang again. We had some great conversations, caught up on each others lives, filled each other in on the lives of other friends, reminisced about the good old days, and even talked about the future. I don't know if Rich feels the same way, but it was a really great weekend. Even if we were really lazy.
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
A Sad Day
So, I don't know if Shu would have covered this in his blog had he ever started "rolling" again, but I feel the need to now. Over the weekend Bam Bam Bigelow died. A sad day for the current and former residents of New Jersey. I don't know about you, but I was pretty big into wrestling when I was younger and then came this cool fat guy with tattoos on his head. He rocked! He was cool to start with, and then I found out that he was from Jersey. And even better, Asbury Park. At that young age, it was a place in Jersey that I had actually heard of and knew was kinda close. It made him even that much cooler. Bam Bam had a good career. Never reaching anythign like Hulk status, but he was still pretty cool. So add Bam Bam to the list of wrestlers from NJ that died at a young age like Big Dick Dudley and Chris Candido. They don't know what the cause of death is yet so don't ask me.
P.S. - If you couldn't tell, I've had the last few days off of work to housebreak Moe, so I've had plenty of time to think and write about this stuff.
P.S. - If you couldn't tell, I've had the last few days off of work to housebreak Moe, so I've had plenty of time to think and write about this stuff.
Sunday, January 21, 2007
Thursday, January 18, 2007
Hillbilly Beard
So, I haven't shaved since before Christmas and let me tell you that it is the greatest thing ever. Not having to shave everyday is fantastic. I emplore all the male readers to give it a try. Its great! I may never shave again. I figure I'm in the south anyway so might as well grow a big beard.
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Sneak Preview
See, one of the benefits of reading my blog is that you get information before it is released to the public. This is a special service for all of my regular readers (thats you, Rich and Brooke. I don't think anyone else actually reads this) So without further ado..........Lisa is pregnant! There will be a llumbus jr or llumbette joining us in the end of august. I'll write up and official email and send it to everyone tonight, but just figured I would put it out there now for the people that actuall read this. See what I do for you people.
Monday, January 8, 2007
Little Moe
So last weekend we went and picked out Moe. We went to the peoples house and there was a basket with 3 little puppies in it and we had to pick which one we wanted because we had pick of the litter. We wound up picking the biggest of the 3, so Moe should wind up being a pretty good size. The guy thinks he will end up being around 90 lbs. or so. We also had a chance to meet Moe's parents. His mom was pretty cool, but his dad was great. One of the nicest, well behaved dogs I have ever met. He also looked great. Hopefully Moe will get his looks and his disposition from his Dad. But who knows. We get to go pick him up on the 20th. So now we are just sitting back and counting the days until the arrival of the great Moe.
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