Back in the Saddle (hopefully)

It has been a real long time since I have written in this blog so I figured it was about time to start again.

I am sitting here at the Sands Entertainment Expo Center in Las Vegas Nevada at the AAPEX show

The new job is going great, I have been traveling like crazy... Sunnyvale, CA ; Charlotte, NC ; Ramsey, NJ; Vegas etc..

I am staying at the Rio this week, first time I have been to that hotel but it is so great to be in Vegas. The show has been super lame as only 7 people have left their info for us today. Southwest also lost my tripod so I don't have a great setup today. It finally arrived a few minutes ago to the airport.

The week should be good since I am staying till Sunday. SS is coming out tomorrow night to hang out and we are staying at the Rio until sat then staying at the Golden Nugget on Sat night. Should be a great time.

So Much to Say..

Lots going on.. since the last time I posted I saw DMB 3 more times.. that makes 57 shows. Went to my usual stop at Post Gazette Pavilion and then went to Alpine Valley.

I finally have a job, I will be working for my friend Jim Clark and Konica Minolta. I will be traveling a lot which will be tough, but the opportunity and money are too good to pass up.

I have been hanging out during my time off, playing xbox, messing around with my house, visiting Chicago and SS etc. It has been a nice break, but I a ready to get started back in mainly b/c I am going broke :)

I guess there wasn't as much to say as I thought, the usual banter about Dave Matthews Band kicking ass and my general life boringness.

WVU football starts on Sat.. and I can't wait!!

Happy b-day shout out to my fav. bald friend Jimmy Stancamp.

Recap of the last few weeks

So, I am officially unemployed (sort of). I am working a little at MAGLEV setting up a computer lab and a few friends have offered me some work so I am going to talk to them about that. Bombardier called and told me that it would be the end of the month before I would hear about the system engineer position but they just called yesterday to tell me that they want me to come in for a possible position in the Advanced Engineering group.. so that is tomorrow. Looks like I will be at Bombardier in one role or another so that should be good.

MAGLEV has been treating me well over the past couple weeks which is all I wanted for 6 years. I would have never left if I would have been treated this way the whole time.

SS was here for a week and even though I worked we had a good time.. saw some movies, went to Kennywood which was a real good time.

I went to a wedding a couple Saturdays ago and got to see so many people that I hadn't seen in years. It was so nice to see my "adopted family" (very close friends that I have always called cousin and aunt and uncle etc..). The wedding was at Ohio University so I got to see a little of the campus and hit a bar after the wedding with everyone. Had a real good time. It is really hard to see people out drinking and dancing etc.. when the last time you saw them they were 12. One of the girls has grown up to be probably the most beautiful african american woman I have ever seen.

It is weird not going to work every day, but really I have only been away from MAGLEV for one day since I came in Tue. and Wed. It should settle in more in a couple weeks.

SS and I have been fighting this week, actually just not even talking since Sat. and it is coming down to a difference in opinion which seems to be the same difference over and over again. It is tough and part of me just wants to back down and let her have her way, but I just don't feel I am wrong and that is one thing I don't get past easily. Who knows where this is going to go, right now it isn't down a good path.

DMB this Friday!!!! So excited to see the boys.

Bonds hit 756 last night and I enjoyed it. I am in the innocent until proven group with him and if he is found guilty I also want to see how many of the pitchers he hit the hrs off of were juicing.
I got pretty choked up last night when he thanks his dad and got upset. Dad loved baseball, he was one of the best little league coaches out there except when it came to me. He was always worried that it would look like he was showing me preferential treatment so he did the exact opposite. I was really good at baseball, but I just grew to hate it. I rode him forever about that and looking back at it I kinda understand why he was like that towards me, but it is still hard to swallow. I still miss him dearly and it really made me break down last night.

I am proud of myself that I am not freaking out about the job thing. I have a few moments on Friday where I was thinking what the fuck am I doing, but really I think it is all going to work out.

It better at least or my mom will jump off the bridge.

Maybe I will just win the powerball tonight and it won't be an issue... yea right

T minus 9

It is so very funny that I am now the most important person in the world around here. People are actually asking for my opinion and such not to mention there is already a TWO page list of things I have to teach people how to do. I think it is funny that they are coming to the realization of how much I did here. I think they are really going to shit when I am not around to do things that just got done that they didn't realize or took for granted.

No word yet from Bombardier but it has only been a couple days so I am not in freak out mode yet.

SS is coming for almost a week so that will be nice as I have been super bored and truthfully just sitting around my house playing video games and watching movies.

This weekend I watched Minority Report for the umpteenth time, Apocalypto (which I enjoyed), my normal Saturday morning 90210 marathon, The Kill Point (which is filmed here in the burgh), and Entourage.

Is it bad that I want to be Ari. Seriously, that would be unreal.

One of the kickball teams I umpire had cross dressing night last night. The guys actually wore dresses, I was dying laughing.

I talked with one of my Dell reps today and she cracks me up. She always has good stories about boys that she has gone out with etc.. she just got back from Italy. I am so jealous it is my dream vacation.

I am worried about my friend Dan. He continues to fight for this "marriage" of his that just makes him miserable. I don't think he is ever going to end it even though they break up for months on end (but continue to live together). He gets mad when I tell him to get rid of her, so I have backed off. I told him though he needs to decide if he is going to be all the way in, or all the way out.. because there can't be any "in between".

Well it finally stopped raining, I guess I didn't have to water my plants this morning. Maybe I will get outside to do something tonight... who I am kidding I will sit in my chair and do nothing, it is what I am best at.

D - Day

That's right folks... today is the day. My normal staff meeting went terrible as another employee decided to bring up something that has no business in the meeting. The VP said that he could talk about it, but when it was my turn to talk he told me I wasn't allowed to and had to talk about it outside of this meeting.

SO... I am resigning. I am so done with this place and have been for a while. I have an interview today, and a few things brewing on the back burner but I am putting in my resignation today.

2 more weeks, then I have another week of vacation left that they will pay me so I need to be in a new job in 3 weeks. So cross your fingers and hope for the best b/c I just can not work at this place anymore.

It is really sad to think 6 years ago I thought that I would actually get to build maglev and work at a great an innovative place for the rest of my life. Then I got to see why US Steel and Westinghouse didn't make it.. they let people be in management that are now management here. Tells everything.

Interview at 1pm today. Wish me luck!

A new milestone .. 1001

Yup that's right, Sunday I heard my 1001 DMB song live. It was my 54th show. Now mind you I have only heard 139 *Unique* songs but I think 1000+ is pretty cool. It was a good show @ Toyota Park which is where the Chicago Fire soccer team plays. I did get to hear a new song, first time ever played, called Falling off the Roof. As always there was drama during one of my fav. songs.

We had this interesting pair in front of us that did nothing but make out the whole show, I mean it was quite disgusting. Well this girl got pushed into us by a bunch of dudes and SS yelled at the dudes easy b/c she was getting the crap pushed out of her. Well the douche in front of us thought SS was talking to him and started turning around giving her the stare down and then called her a bitch to his GF. Well this is when I got mad. I tapped him on the shoulder and said excuse me is there a problem. He goes yes there is a problem. I said listen here buddy, we weren't talking to you when we said easy we were talking to..... and told him the rest. I said turn around and enjoy the show. His gf then told him see, I told you so.. which lead to a huge fight with them, she was crying, he left and punched me in the arm on the way out (but before this he shook my hand and apologized originally). He never came back b/c I was ready to throw him down the stairs when he punched me. Anyhow... drama as always during Seek Up, but I got to hear it and I'm happy.

So I have 2 more shows so far and hopefully 2 more but we shall see. I did enjoy it though, as always going to a DMB show just kinda takes me a way for 2 hours which is nice.

Whats been going on...

So a quick recap of the past week or so.

I was off work for a week... 2 days sick and then the 4th holiday -> the weekend which was nice (Except the sick part).

The 3rd SS and I went to AJ & Suzi's house for a picnic. It was a good time and rather calm compared to parties past.

The 4th started with the Pirates beating the Brewers and a concert by Big & Rich. Then SS, JS and I headed over to Calico Jack's Cantina. This place was pretty sweet. SS had a fish bowl drink and JS and I had these HUGE Margs that lasted us the whole night. We got a prime seat outside and had a great view of the fireworks. I finally checked something off my list (along with SS&JS) as we all rode the mechanical bull. Let me tell you did we pay for it. All of us have these huge bruises on our inner thighs. Mine is still nasty looking, but it was fun.

The 5th SS and I hung out at the house watched tv, movies etc..

The 6th We headed to Chi-town and went to dinner with Dick and V (her parents).

The 7th we went to a wedding

The 8th.. well that is what the next post is about :)

So not a bad little week if I do say so myself.

Help me find a new job

I am completely fed up with this hell hole. I have a potential deal lining up to sell a shit load of software that the company gets paid back 40% so we sell 1 mill we get paid 400k. Well if I do it i see ZERO dollars unless I switch to a commission only salary. How fucked up is that.

So, my resume is on my website http://www.bryanbond.com

Some of my skills

Degrees in Electrical Engineering and Computer Engineering
Microsoft Certified Engineer
IT - Can manage install etc.. any windows based network and some linux
Web Design
PHP programming
MYSQL, MS SQL databases.
Project Management

and so on... so if anyone sees anything out there.. hook a brother up.

Its on Bitch!

While I don't have time right now to do research, trust me my friend I will respond to this

Just a few comments my friend:

Listening to Heath Ledger talk history about West Virginia is like listening to Evgeni Malkin talk about the history of Pittsburgh.

Thats comment one, the rest is on the way.

oh and eat shit PITT :)

AHAHAHAHA - as if I needed more things to make fun of PITT about

What the fuck is that thing??? Looks like some sort of cat that got scalped!

That is just too funny, my buddy PUMA told PittGirl that it looked like a rabid golden retriever.

This is what I think whatever the hell that thing is would sound like :

Happy B-day West Virginia

(This is a reproduction of an article from a long time friend of mine Mike Swisher. I thought he did a nice job. )

Today is the 144th birthday of the Great State of West Virginia. It seems like only yesterday that West Virginia was just a little pup of a state, split from Virginia thanks to that little conflict known as the Civil War. Today, West Virginia is all grown up and Open for Business thanks to the governor. Let's look at a few historical facts about the great state, shall we? These are all supposedly true:

• The first brick street in the world was laid in Charleston, West Virginia, on October 3, 1870 on Summers Street between Kanawha Boulevard and Virginia Street.
• The first patent for a soda fountain was granted in 1833 to George Dulty of Wheeling, West Virginia.
• Mother's Day was originated in Grafton, West Virginia on May 10, 1908 by M. Anna Jarvis. In 1914, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed Mother's Day as a national holiday to be celebrated on the second Sunday in May.
• West Virginia has the second lowest cost of living rate in the United States.
• Bruce Hardwood Floors in Beverly, West Virginia has the world's largest hardwood flooring plant.
• The first spa open to the public was at Berkeley Springs, West Virginia (then Bath, Virginia) in 1756. Berkeley Springs has more massage therapists than lawyers and is the only place in the United States to boast, "George Washington bathed here."
• West Virginia University played the University of Pittsburgh in the first football game ever broadcast on the radio in 1921 on KDKA.
• The pepperoni roll was invented in the 1920s by Guiseppe Argiro, owner of the Country Club Bakery in Fairmont, WV. The first pepperoni rolls were sold to coal miners working near Fairmont.
• The first organized golf club in the U.S. was opened in 1884, when Oakhurst Links was constructed in White Sulphur Springs, WV.
• The first political speech broadcast over radio in the U.S. was given by the Democratic nominee for President, John W. Davis, in 1924. Davis broadcast his speech from the front yard of his home in Clarksburg, WV.
• On June 20, 1863, West Virginia became the 35th state in the union, the only state born out of the cauldron of the Civil War and formed as a result of a Presidential Proclamation.

Sopranos Spoofs

Here are 2 video's making the rounds at YouTube.. I saw the first at the Pirate game Sat. and from what I hear it is very popular.. the second is Hillary Clinton's (I love Bill.. thanks Kelly!!)

Even my XBOX has a blog!

Check it out here

... but ended good

Wednesday night was a lot of fun as the PSL Cornhole league started. Miss Bitch and I played against 2 good friends of mine and we had a really good time pulling out a 2-1 victory. All the games were close and it was a lot of fun.

Last night I got a phone call about the Pirates game that there might be tickets... well at 6pm Jimmy called me with HOME PLATE CLUB tickets. I have always wanted to sit in this section. We pigged out on the free buffet, sat 4 rows up from the field eye level with the catcher and had a great time. Guy and Jim and I were all in amazement with the seats. Nice thing was that Jim and I had been talking about just buying the tickets and doing it one time, but for Fox Sports to hook us up with them for free was unreal.

We went to Ugly afterwards and ran into AJ. So of course AJ bombs followed... He had a co worker with him that hooked me up with a parking pass at her place in Oakmont!!! I am stoked, I can park right beside the course and not have to take a 20 min bus ride on Sunday when I go to the open.

So this is officially hook up week.

I got free Home Plate club tickets
free ticket to the US Open on Sunday
Free parking

well almost hook up week -> no random sex hookups. I don't think SS would like that.

So hopefully the weekend turns out good.. another bucco game on Sat. with the WVU alumni.

I needed this after all that shit happened earlier... and I am ready for the weekend to start now!

Week started off bad...

So I had to put $400 in brakes and rotors on my car on Tuesday which killed me b/c I finally made a big payment on my CC and was hoping to do that for the next couple months but .. well next month is out for sure.

Then I got home and my washer broke. I couldn't find the paperwork on the warranty so .. I emailed Emily. She responded by calling me. I wasn't really prepared when I saw her number come up, (how could I be) so I answered. We talked, it was awkward but I learned that her Uncle has prostate cancer who I adore. That was pretty upsetting and it is hard to hear of news of former family illnesses whether we are "together or not". I was already upset about everything going wrong that day and it just pushed me further. The end of the convo is what kinda sticks out in my mind (the rest was just this is what is going on etc..) when she said don't be a stranger. I said I don't know if I can do that, which of course made her mad. I just don't think I can be friends with her after everything. I struggle with the obligation that I should be nice, we did have some good years together, but I always do that. Just like I am going to a party tonight just to not make waves within the circle even though I really don't want to go. I don't know why I do this to myself, but I guess in the end it will make things better. I really don't need another Fiona situation on my hands where I have to leave when she shows up places or people treat me differently when she is around (even though I did nothing wrong). I wish I could have less of a conscious or feel less guilt on these things. I make the decision not to talk to people or avoid them but I still feel bad about it...

Sid the Kid

Thats right... swept the awards!! Most Outstanding Player, League MVP, Scoring Leader, All League

Malkin won rookie of the year and him and Jordan Staal are on the all rookie team.

Next year should be a treat!

Reincarnation

So after watching the Sopranos I really was interested in the cat. Was it Christopher, Adrianna.. someone else? I thought it was a great metaphor for "life after death". So it made me think what would I want to be reincarnated as? Here is what I have come up with so far:

• Leotard (I love Pauly Shore so I stole that one from Bio Dome)
• Cicada (sp?) - Sleep for 17 years, get up, shed some skin, get laid, go back to sleep. not bad
• Squirrel - you know always trying to get a nut, sleeps in the winter (and I hate winter), can climb trees and stuff.. sounds like fun
• bra - boobs rule
• stripper pole? - nah that would be too nasty
• a woman? - multiple O's would be nice
  

I am sure I will come up with something else but that is all I have for now.

thoughts?

Weekend Recap

I headed out to my usual weekend away location, Chicago for a quick trip ...

Friday SS's dad got us sweet seats to the White Sox's game. I want to get to all the MLB parks in my lifetime so it was nice to check another one off the list. We sat 4 rows up from 3rd base right behind the dugout and had club access. It was pretty sweet. The Sox lost, but it was nice seeing a new stadium. Only downfall is it is interleague play and they were hosting the Astros, so I didn't get to see "American League" baseball since I see the damn Astros 16 times a year in Pittsburgh.

Friday was our "chosen" day for SS and my year anniversary. She came to Pittsburgh on June 9th of 06, but that was my wedding anniversary so I looked back and we met on June 7th of 05 originally so the date in between is what worked.

We went to a wedding on the 9th, ironically. The wedding was nice, finally got to meet some of her friends. The DJ was not good, but that is how it goes. I almost got into 2 fights this day also.

First was when a guy and his family got out of their car at Rock bottom and I was standing there waiting to get into SS's car along with her friend and her husband. I watched the one kid hit SS's car with the door, but it was a tap so I didn't say anything. All of sudden this douche bag goes, SIR I AM IN MY SPOT AND YOU ARE NOT. (which btw we were totally in between the lines). This guy is one of those guys that "backs in" to every spot. SO by backing in he got close to our car. Not to mention when he got out his wife says "you have lots of room over here honey".

So I respond to the guy I didn't say anything to you.

DB: I saw you staring at me
BB: how can you see me staring at you when I HAVE SUNGLASSES ON (everyone starts laughing)
DB: says something else I don't remember
BB: Not to mention your kid just hit our car with your door

now he comes walking back and I seriously wanted him to come up to me b/c I would have knocked the fuck out of him, I was in that mood.

He stops and stares.. I think he thought I was going to do something to his car. So I back out as he stares me down. I stop b/c at this point I am fuming and SS and her friends stop me from going after him.

On the way out we scream profanities at him and move on..

Now tell me please why people have to be assholes. I did nothing to this guy, he didn't park well at all b/c he had to back in (which took him 3 tries). Then he is going to start a fight with me? Man I wish I just would have punched him, I would have felt better.

The second fight came when this guy SS works with got drunk and started talking to SS about her losing her job and that he had her back (which isn't true) etc.. She told him to leave her alone, her friend pulled him away and said the same thing, then an hour later he came back for more which made SS start crying... that is when I got mad. I said listen go away and got very confrontational with him. So he left, but came back to apologize to me if he ruined the evening. UGH

Sunday I installed new locks in SS's house (long story) and we went and saw Knocked up.

My review is this:

Movie was ok, funny at times had some guys from a show I loved that got cancelled (Undeclared).

I was asked about the movie by a friend and I basically said this:

Besides the 2 hour hard on.. it was ok.

I also added:

you know someone is hot when they show a shot of the baby's head poking out of the vag and you don't go down

Katherine Heigl..... *drools*

so that's the weekend

FINALLY!!!!

After 15 freaking seasons I finally won a Pittsburgh Sports League Kickball Championship. We avenged our 2 losses this season and beat Orange 2-1 in 8 innings and beat Brown 2-0 (or 2-1 I can't remember) in the normal 7. It is nice to finally get that monkey off my back as I think I am the only one in my group of friends that does not have one.

Congrats Keg Kickers - PSL Spring 07 Rec Kickball Champs!!!

more NFL

Just as I suspected Mr. Commish handed down an 8 game suspension (which can be reduced to 6) to Tank Johnson yesterday. I think he just handed Pac Man a win in his appeal seeing that this guy spent 2 months in JAIL. Once again, I think Pac deserves a suspension, but he is correct that he has never been sentenced or found guilty of anything yet.. this db spent 2 months in JAIL. Nice to see the NFL is so consistent.

WVU Football - 9 uniform combos!!

From an article on MSNSportsnet.com

A version of West Virginia's new gold football jersey has already been circulating on web sites. The Mountaineers are planning an official unveiling of the nine different uniform combinations later this summer when all of them arrive.

9 uni's!!! Wow. I am semi upset b/c I just bought a jersey last year, but now I am pretty excited. I am assuming there will be a blue, gold and white jersey and the same in pants to get the 9 combos. Here is the gold jersey which I am digging.

Slaton is in the middle (Playboy Preseason All-American)

TV's Terrific Vacation

My buddy Tom Vesch has embarked on a trip around the US. He jumped in a van a few weeks ago and is driving his way around. I set up a blog for him so if you are interested here it is :

TV's Blog

quicky

Yes, I know.. I haven't written much lately. I have been stuck in training on how to use the new robotic gantry system and offline welding programming software last week all this week and all next week.

Work laid off 2 people, makes me worry... the only good thing is one of them is the guy I hate with a passion and vowed to get him fired, so yea!

Off to Chi town this weekend it will be nice to get away, see my girl and have a relaxing weekend.

Darts playoffs start tonight. We are the 1 seed. Hopefully I can win my first PSL championship. We also finished as the 2 seed for kickball so that is pretty exciting also.

May just doesn't bring flowers.....

Check out what the month of may is...

Dwight Supremacy

At least there is finally justification for home sports....

I'm Cancelling My Maxim Subscription

I mean seriously Maxim. I have depended on you for the better part of 8 years (or how ever long it has been out) to provide me spank material. Don't get me wrong, I don't run to the bathroom every time I get the mag, I actually do read the thing from cover to cover, it has some good stuff in there ... but have you lost your mind?

What I am referring to is Maxim's Hot 100, where they rate the top 100 hot women in the world or whatever. Granted I don't always agree with where they place people but usually they do a damn good job. This year... terrible.

I am sorry but I have never found Ms. Rehabbed, coke snorting slut hot and I never will. Here is the list, and of course my comments on the ones that I think matter

1. Lindsay Lohan :: not even with a dildo
2. Jessica Alba :: yes, hot
3. Scarlett Johansson :: maybe a little to high on the list
4. Christina Aguilera :: not for me
5. Jessica Biel :: over rated
6. Ali Larter :: yes, yes, yes... on my "friends" list
7. Eva Mendez :: mmmmmm latino
8. Rihanna :: ehhhh
9. Eva Longoria :: so 2005
10. Fergie :: hot bod, kinda fug, over rated
11. Sienna Miller :: FUCK NO... DIE
12. Angelina Jolie :: DSL
13. Beyonce Knowles :: Too much armpit... no more talent
14. Katherine Heigl :: Should be top 10, on my friends list
15. Avril Lavigne :: no, too much whining in her music
16. Ashlee Simpson :: lip.... sync anyone
17. Maria Sharapova :: she can play with MY racket and balls
18. Megan Fox :: (?) research required
19. Cameron Diaz :: yes, would do her
20. Keira Knightley :: she's ok, Natalie Portman much hotter
21. Kate Beckinsale :: eh
22. Nicole Scherzinger :: (?) research required
23. Hilary Duff :: coming of age
24. Sophia Bush :: (?) research required
25. Elisha Cuthbert :: yes yes and more yes, on the list
26. Nelly Furtado :: eh
27. Kate Hudson :: over rated
28. Carmen Electra :: debatable from someone that was with Rodman, but hot
29. Sarah Silverman :: She probably would make me laugh too much and affect performance
30. Rebecca Romijn :: too old
31. Amy Smart :: yup... bang bang
32. Lacey Chabert :: (?) research required
33. Roselyn Sanchez :: (?) research required
34. Vanessa Minnillo :: eh.. she is only here b/c she is dating Nick
35. Jennifer Garner :: Take me home country roads
36. Jamie King :: (?) research required
37. Ashley Olsen :: no twigs for me
38. Shakira :: her hips don't lie
39. Rachel Bilson :: gorgeous.. should be top 20
40. Moon Bloodgood :: (?) research required
41. Jessica Simpson :: starting to look like a man, great rack though
42. Minka Kelly :: (?) research required
43. Kate Mara :: (?) research required
44. Rose McGowan :: no.. a little to gothic looking for me
45. Bar Refaeli :: (?) research required
46. Kristen Bell :: (?) research required
47. Katharine McPhee :: she's hot.. but might throw up on you
48. Mandy Moore :: fo sho
49. Mischa Barton :: started out ok, losing her edge.. looks like she is turning 40
50. Miss Maxim :: i will just assume she is hot b/c they normally are
51. Alessandra Ambrosio :: (?) research required
52. Kate Walsh :: growing on me
53. Adriana Lima :: (?) research required
54. Missy Peregrym :: (?) research required
55. Halle Berry :: losing her way, still pretty hot just think Swordfish
56. Michele Merkin :: (?) research required
57. Tricia Helfer :: (?) research required
58. Penelope Cruz :: very nice
59. Jamie-Lynn Sigler :: I would bang her in a second as long as Tony Soprano didn't know
60. Jessica White :: (?) research required
61. Nadine Velazquez :: (?) research required
62. Danneel Harris :: (?) research required
63. Bianca Kajlich :: (?) research required
64. Lena Headey :: (?) research required
65. Autumn Reeser :: TOP 15... she is way under rated and super hot
66. Joanna Krupa :: (?) research required
67. Gabrielle Union :: I wouldn't mind adding chocolate to my diet
68. Evangeline Lilly :: bang bang
69. Danica Patrick :: Hell no, too much temper tantrum
70. Stacy Keibler :: please put me in the scissor head lock face first, thank you
71. Willa Ford :: no
72. Ciara :: eh
73. Mena Suvari :: Lose the bangs, and you are back on the list
74. Tara Conner :: (?) research required
75. April Scott :: (?) research required
76. Diora Baird :: (?) research required
77. Hilary Burton :: (?) research required
78. Joss Stone :: don't know yet.. undecided
79. Adrianne Palecki :: (?) research required
80. Abbie Cornish :: (?) research required
81. Emmanuelle Chriqui :: (?) research required
82. Dita Von Teese :: I will pass on anything that slept with Marilon Manson
83. Ivanka Trump :: nah
84. Hometown Hottie :: ok
85. Kelly Ripa :: dried up (sorry ss)
86. Michelle Trachtenberg :: eh
87. Padma Lakshmi :: (?) research required
88. Raquel Alessi :: (?) research required
89. Haylie Duff :: no
90. Salma Hayek :: MOTORBOAT
91. Isla Fisher :: firecrotch
92. Mary Elizabeth Winstead :: (?) research required
93. Christina Milian :: (?) research required
94. Kelly Carlson :: (?) research required
95. The Avatars of Second Life :: lame
96. Shanna Moakler :: megabitch
97. Kim Kardashian :: pass
98. Yunjin Kim :: my first asian..
99. Mia Maestro :: (?) research required
100. Noureen DeWolf :: (?) research required

So my current "list" consists of the following (it tends to change weekly)

1. Alicia Sliverstone :: permanently in the list
   
2. Ali Larter :: ahh whip cream bikini
   
3. Elisha Cuthbert :: the one look she gives in girl next door melts me every time
   
4. The new agent for Vince from Entourage (new addition) :: hot, great rack
   
5. Autumn Reeser (new addition) :: got the blood flowing in the last season of OC
   

bench players: Katherine Heigl, Rachel Bilson, the baby dr. from Lost, and probably 10 others I can't think of right now.

** 5/16 addtion: Sarah Chalke from Scrubs.

I've been back on an angry streak

and I really don't know why.. things are just pissing me off again. I guess I need another vacation.

Anyhow.. rant time.

Baseball is getting out of hand.

1. Roger Clemens + the Yankees = stupid. Something needs to be done about spending in MLB. It is ridiculous that some teams can just go out and buy whoever they want whenever they want. If the Pirates had hurt pitchers they would have to use their farm system or make a trade, not just go play some guy 28 million fucking dollars to work every 5 days for what.. 4 months?

2. The refs are just getting worse every day. They missed a blatant interference call against the Brewers which pretty much handed them 3 runs and that was the difference in the game. I understand making bad calls happens, but not when it changes the outlook of the game.

3. Adam LaRoche is a joke. Guy is supposed to be the next coming and give the Pirates the bat they need. He isn't even batting .150, then the night he gets 3 hits finally he makes the dumbest base running error I have seen in years and gets an error so a 3-4 run swing there

4. Matt Capps gets a 4 game suspension for a bunch of bullshit. He hit Prince Fielder after giving up a homer, but the thing is, he didn't hit him on the first pitch... if he was going after him why would he wait till the 2nd pitch? Fine he got thrown out of a game, I can deal with that but a 4 game suspension give me a break. Why wasn't Fielder thrown out of the game after yelling "Yea Mother Fucker Yea" 4 times at Capps after he scored a run the other night??

*** I read the Post Gazette after I wrote this, and funny this guy says the same damn things....
A sorry Situation

Football is even worse.

I already went on about the suspensions... but how about Michael Vick, king douche bag, only getting a slap on the hand from the commish after getting in trouble yet again. I guess if you are a "star" then you can get away with anything. Where is Tank Johnson's suspension?

This hell hole I work in IS the worst.

The CEO now will only listen to what the secretary has to say, he won't listen to the VP, me or anyone else. I really am getting fed up with it. While she is a nice person, she can't do the things he needs her to do and it is just making it worse around here. I had to write a letter b/c I changed my timesheet last pay period. Why? Because I took off the 2.5 hours of sick leave I had to go to the eye doctor b/c I had overtime to cover it. It has never been a problem in the 6 years I have been here, but SHE made it a problem and I can't stand that shit.

I just want to scream...

I made it 25 days... (post #100!!!)

The vacation to Mexico really calmed me down, put me in a not going off about everything mood. I even made it through all this shit with my car (so far) without pulling a usual Bryan and going off.

Well today that changed. I went back and counted the days, 25 of them ... and that is A LOT for me not to go off. See I am like Ari from Entourage, he just likes to get mad and go off and fire people and that is how I have been up until I went on the vacation. I truthfully like the new, calmer me. Part of me is worried that I am numb as I talked about before but at the same time I am glad I just don't flip.

Well it piled on real quick today before 10am and I snapped. The first event was the CEO's computer has been acting up. I fixed it again today but what makes me mad is he now goes to the secretary for everything. When LD left the company a while back, he decided that this person would be his right hand person, and pretty much escalated her from secretary to management. I don't mind him asking someone to work for him directly, I think it is a good thing b/c he can be a space cadet.. but in terms of what he is asking her to do it out of hand, especially when I can do them well (and still continue to do them when he thinks it is her). Now don't get me wrong, it isn't that I don't like the secretary just I think that some things he asks her to do she doesn't have the knowledge yet to do. Not to mention when he has her doing all this stuff no one is answer the g.d. phone. Well now he is going to her with his computer problems. She takes it upon herself to go in and try to fix the problems which in turn make the problems worse. Then of course I get the blame that the computer isn't work and they are all pissed. So that set me off that she had fucked with the computer.

Then another guy here at work that always tries to find things people do wrong and report them to management tried to get me in trouble. He did a search on the network and some accounting files came up. So he decides to send the following email (VP is who he sent it to, dickhead is him):

VP,

I was looking for information on which V-Groove Caster files we purchased and these files came up. It is probably sensitive and needs the permissions changed. I would recommend, that auditors and accounting get their own virtual drive, which only they can read.

-Dick Head

So instead of emailing me that he found a permission problem, he emails the VP and tells him it is wrong and how he thinks it should be fixed. Note he is a Mechanical Engineer not an IT person. Not to mention they put him in charge of software development and we had to take everything he did, scrap it and start over (long long story).

Well I went in to VP's office and pretty much blew up. Said this is ridiculous he is trying to make me look bad and get me in trouble. VP told me to calm down, I said that I would be calm if this wouldn't happen all the time, I go into stuff about secretary and CEO and he actually ends up agreeing with me which is a miracle. But, he says there is nothing he can do to fix it (at least the CEO thing).

So 25 days isn't bad... I am proud of myself, and of course I will end up going off on Dick Head b/c I just don't like him. I think what burns me more is yesterday I did some work for him b/c he was swamped. I offered to help, did it for him then he does this.. ARGGGGGHHHHHHH

Hopefully I can calm down soon, I have to teach tonight so it will be a long day.

Kinda fitting that post #100 involved me going off.. but then again isn't that expected?

Pittsburgh: America's Most Livable City

Check it aht n'at

Post Gazette Artice

Just call me Britney Spears

... as in hit me baby one more time. The hits just keep on coming. I went to get my snow tires taken off of my car and my summer tires put back on. The car drives so much better with the summers and the wheels are much better looking. Anyhow, we look and all 4 freaking tires need replaced. So I just got 4 new tires to the tune of $425 bucks.

On top of that the insurance isn't going to cover my car because they think the paint can be taken off with a solvent for $170 bucks.. well my deductible is $250..

Not to mention I will probably end up having to get new brakes or something when my car is inspected. It is due for its 60K maintenance and needs the other accident repaired so I am probably looking at 3 grand in car expenses ... gotta love it. Just when I was catching up $$ wise.

Can someone tell me why I have insurance? I mean I pay them 1400 a year and they won't cover 170 bucks? As Chris Rock said: insurance should be called in case shit and if shit don't happen shouldn't I get my money back??

It happened again

So I don't have a count of how many posts I say "why does this happen to me" but yet again it did. I had my car parked on a busy section of the south side (18th and carson). I was 4 or 5 cars up from carson, across from a parking lot and right beside a bank. I return to my car after the night out and this is what I find.



Yea, real nice isn't it? Someone spray painted my car. I don't understand why this shit happens to me constantly. I am a good person, don't do bad things... (next time I am keeping the $160 for this very reason). But this is why I continually question "religion and god".. why do I keep on getting this shit. Not only do I have to deal with it but it is going to cost me $250 b/c of my deductible. Some fucking punk decided to do this and now I have to pay for it. I have been very calm lately, trying not to let this stuff get to me, but I am at my melting point again. I didn't blow up, I didn't even react which really scares me. I feel I have become numb to the shit storm that I get 24/7 and that is not me at all. Part of me is glad I don't get as worked up but part of me is scared of the numbness. I feel like Ari did last night on Entourage. He went in and fired someone and got back to himself, I just hope I don't "blow up" on someone and get back to my old self. I need a good fight to focus on. Something hopefully political or community based where I don't have to be mad fighting but more fact fighting and working on something I believe in. Hopefully that will center me.

The weekend

I had a really great weekend (minus one thing that will be in the next post). SS came in and Friday night we hung out at home. I made taco's and we got some Corona and played Dance Dance Revolution for the evening. At first I thought the game would be lame, but I had a good time.. and burned 300 calories last night playing it!!

Saturday we headed down to Squirrel Hill and ate at Aladdin's. I hadn't been there in a long time and I totally dig Mediterranean food so I was really happy. I had a pita wrap with hummus and fallafel. Also some babba which was really good. After that we walked around SH then hit up dozen cupcakes. This is the new trendy thing I guess around here. They have a cupcake menu each day. We bought all 6 and took them with us to try later (I didn't think they were awesome, especially for $15 for 6). We then hit up Cold Stone for some ice cream. The weather was absolutely perfect so it was nice to walk around.

Later that night we headed to Dish. Now if you haven't been there, go. It is a jem. We had some great Riesling, salad, potato lentil soup, shrimp and then for the main course I had gnocchi in a lamb and beef ragu (freaking amazing) and she had a NY Strip Steak with the tastiest spinach I have ever had. We ended the meal with choc. bread pudding and some amazing Tiramisu.

We then headed over to Fat Heads for a beer, then to Nakama which was so packed we left, then finally over to Mario's for a beer and to watch the Pirate game.

---- next blog post fits here ----

Sunday we spent the day hanging out playing DDR etc. I made Club Grilled Cheeses (bacon, tomato on the grilled cheese) which were awesome (I am now hungry from talking about all this food). We watched Smoking Aces which wasn't bad, I need to watch it again b/c i fell asleep at the beginning. Finally we headed down to the Waterfront to catch Blades of Glory. SO FUNNY. After that we hit up Bar louie for a drink, then on to the airport for her flight back.

It was a very very nice weekend and nice to have SS with me. She even left me a card by the bed which I found last night when I headed upstairs around midnight. Very nice :)

Pens go down...

Well the Pens got whipped in their playoff series 4-1 with a 3-0 drubbing last night. Either way I am happy. They were exciting to watch and brought my love of hockey to a new level. I used to watch a game here and there, this season I watched 3/4 of the games at least.

So thanks Pens.. for a great season.

New Features!!

So I know all of you want to know my every move because I am so damn awesome. Well I am playing around with this new thing I found called groovr. I added the info over to the widget bar on the right side, right beside by sweet xbox live gamertag card.

Anyhow, something I am toying with that seems kinda neat.

Have you seen the Pictures?

All I have to say is wtf? The video is crazy, the media took the bait and are doing exactly what he wanted.. but the pictures.. OMG.. I had to laugh.

What is up with the posing with Hammers and knives?

What is he trying out to be in the next Tarantino movie??

I can see the headlines now...

Kill Bill 3 - Revenge of the {insert ethnic slur here}

I won't use the word I was going to use because I would just look like an asshole (more than usual).

Just as a disclaimer I have no problem with any ethnic decent... except those nappy headed ho's. They just bother me. :) Send a hot Asian my way though if you have one available!!

Mullet Ho Ho's?

Yes it is my attempt at a play on words at 9 am.. you know I just still laugh about the dude saying nappy headed hos.

So Breaking News from the 'burgh today - Another Pittsburgh Love Affair : Ho Ho's

---

According to Hostess' data, the company produces 100 million Ho Hos a year. Pittsburghers pound 1.51 Ho Hos per person per day.

The only cities that come close are Buffalo/Rochester (1.39), Cincinnati (1.37), and Cleveland (1.15).

Source : Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

---

Stand up and be proud Pittsburghers.

- NOT


ARE YOU SERIOUS????

1. SSIA (subject says it all) - I think the person that wrote that should be fired. Saying that Pittsburghers are in love with ho's. ;)
   
2. I love ho's (don't really like ho ho's SNACK CAKES that much)
   
3. This is not news worthy
4. The other story with this is how this is the best place for Baby Boomers to find love. Aren't they all dead yet? Do their packages even still work??? I mean come on.
5. I can just see the dude they snap on Channel 11 tonight buying a box of ho ho's with a sweet mullet and saying: Yea man I love these ho ho's ... anything for the burgh n'at.
6. Tonights Press conference from Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravensthal:
   
   I want to thank everyone in Pittsburgh for eating the most ho ho's of any city in the US. Your gorging will continue to help move us forward.
   
   On a second note to all you campaign contributors I mean baby boomers... this is the place to be. You have the best chance of finding love here in the 'burgh. With this great announcement the City of Pittsburgh will now be providing free Viagra to all Baby Boomers to assist them in their search for love and for helping Pittsburgh MOVE FORWARD.
   
7. How freaking lame...
   

GO PENS

More Random Thoughts

The Pens went down in a very exciting game last night. They are down 3-1 and it will be pretty damn hard for them to pull this one out. It has been an exciting year and win or lose I have really enjoyed watching them.

The Buccos are back up to .500 ball after taking 2 from the Cardinals. Hopefully they can keep rolling and LaRoche can actually consistently hit the damn ball. Batting less than you weigh for a guy with a big contract is unacceptable.

FINALLY!!! Saturday 68 degrees, Sunday 71!!!! I am so tired of cold dreary Pittsburgh.

I had to sit my interns down and talk to them because they were slacking and getting a bad attitude in general. 3 out of the 4 have responded well and I don't know what I am going to do about that last one. I think that person is having a lot of problems outside of school etc.. at home but I can't really dive in, as that person is a quiet person about that stuff. So I guess another lecture about being here on time etc.. is in order.

Time for lunch yea!

? + Religion + ? + Rambling

(?) - I really don't know what to say about the tragedy at VT yesterday.

(Rambling) - While I LOATHE them when it comes to sports and their backhanded traitor ways, I can not in any way understand this. So first and foremost, my condolences to all Hokies out there. Second I want to say I am proud of the WVU community as they have been in the forefront of condolences from what I have been able to see especially on the hokies sports (scout.com) message board.

(?) - Usually I get upset about stuff like this but it rarely brings me to tears and I still am not entirely sure why. I don't think it was 100% of loss of lives (probably 85% at least).. I think it is more of the shear fact that it happened at all. So unnecessary.. so wrong.

(Religion) - Now this is where it really comes down to for me. I struggle with religion, I always have. I wasn't brought up in a church, hell I didn't even start going until I was with my ex and the only reason I went is I enjoyed the minister, not really the lessons from the bible. I don't sit here as a scientologist (yet) or an uber-religious freak or an atheist .. but I sit here as a person that just doesn't understand.

Do I believe that there is a god.. yes. Do I walk the line on that belief, yes. When my Dad passed, I really questioned things. At that time I was still not understanding what I did wrong to deserve the divorce and then get hit with this. That was over a year ago, and today the feeling is this: I totally understand the divorce and am fine with it, it was the best thing for me.. my life is much better in that aspect where I see much more potential in my "love life" then I did before.. Dad I still don't understand and probably never will. I have talked about that devastation ad nauseum and won't go further into it.

Now this thing has made me start to question again. How can this sort of thing be allowed to happen. What did ANY of those kids in that classroom do to this guy? I don't know about the whole dorm room thing, if something spurred the problem but either way what he did was not necessary. He was wrong, and who knows if we will ever know his motive. Why didn't VT respond after the first shooting, why did "god" allow for 29 people to go after the first 2, why did he allow the first 2. I hope the thought of a plan for everyone is true, but damn... some of these plans suck.

So.. I walk the line again.

A Dreary Sunday

What awful weather we have had lately. I get back from Mexico it is 78 here and I am so damn excited that I didn't have to transition, then next thing you know, rain, snow, more rain and nothing about 43 since. I am really getting tired of all this crappy weather. They are calling for snow tonight which sucks.

I am getting ready to do my taxes, nothing like waiting till the last minute. I figured blogging would keep me a way from them for a few minutes longer *sigh*.

The Pens won and evened out the series 1-1 last night, lets hope for another win tonight.

Buccos got rained out 2 days in a row, and it is probably a good thing b/c they have been terrible lately. The question is if the games will be rescheduled. I would like to get to see Barry Bonds again this year, but who knows if they will be coming back. It is the only time they are in town all year.

I have done nothing this weekend. I put up my screen door did some dishes and went through the mail.. that was about it. I missed Stacey a lot this weekend, thank god she is coming next.

Well that's enough random thoughts for now... on to the taxes.. yea!

NFL Conduct Policy

Since I am on a roll and now completely fired up.. here it goes.

The NFL has suspended Adam Pac Man Jones for the entire season and Chris Henry for 8 games for their "conduct". Both being WVU grads I tend to get a little upset. Chris is a total douche and was kicked off the team so we knew he was a problem. I didn't hear much about Pac in college being a problem... anyhow HERE IS WHY I AM PISSED.

Pac has only been accused of things, never charged with anything and he gets a year. Henry has been arrested and only gets 8 months. Then you have Tank Johnson who is sitting in jail as we speak and gets nothing. Ray Lewis shoots someone, gets nothing. Jamal Lewis, spends 4 months in jail on drug charges gets nothing. Tom Brady knocks up a bunch of chicks (true or not) gets nothing. The 9 Bengals that got arrested this year... where were their suspensions??

I think it is quite unfair that the commish is singling out 2 players. The both deserve some suspension, but so do the other 100 + players that have been arrested, or charged or whatever. You can't just throw down the gauntlet on 2 people.. it has to be across the board. I would be saying the same exact thing if they did it to two other people and left these guys out.

29th b-day March 31st

My birthday wouldn't be one that I would have imagined spending the day like I did, or even enjoying it but here is the story:

We got to GW Bush (ugh) airport around 11am. Our flight was at 4:30p. So we ate some food and got a table to sit at while we waited for our flight. That flight ended up being delayed till 7:30p. So we spent the day playing Mexican train dominoes, screw your neighbor and Euchre. We taught SS's parents how to play Euchre and they kicked our ass. But anyhow... what amazed me was this.

As you have read from my musings and bitching that I tend to get really upset when this stuff happens and think why does this always happen to me.. I am a good person, I turn in 160 bucks when I find it etc.. but honestly I had a really nice day. I had a lot of fun playing games with SS's fam and just hanging out.

We finally got in the air around 8:30 to get to Chicago and not be able to land b/c of weather. First we are in a holding pattern, then we have to fly to Indy b/c we are out of gas!!! We finally get to Chicago at midnight... 4.5 hours late.

I have to say this vacation has done me well. I didn't get upset, I was totally calm and just kinda went with the flow.. and really enjoyed my birthday of just hanging out and playing games.. even though it was in that airport.

Lessons Learned (?)

I tend to be one of those people that "do the right thing" and usually I get hosed in some way by doing these things. Well, this happened again during the trip. SS, VS, DS and I were in the casino and I found $160 on the floor under a stool beside a slot machine that SS was playing. Me being the good person I am and with agreement from SS I turned in the money to the casino. They took my info, thanked me and said to check back to see if it is claimed or not... basically saying I could claim it.

Well I was glad I turned it in, granted 160 would have been a nice down payment on our huge bill but I would have felt bad.

Well I went back the last night of the cruise and they said no one had claimed it but they wouldn't give it to me b/c it wasn't "mine" and to check the reception desk before I left the next morning and they may give it to me there.

Well DS (SS's father) did a lot of the talking for me since for some reason I really didn't know what to say. Anyhow we went to the desk the next morning and they knew NOTHING about the money. So either the casino kept it or... someone there pocketed it.

I am a little disappointed that they kept the money seeing that they make a shit load off of people the way it is. VS (SS's mom) is writing a letter to see if we can get the money.

Part of me thinks that I should have just pocketed the money, but at the same time I would have felt bad. I am just the most upset that they lead me to believe that they would give me the money at the end of the week. I just wonder if I made the right decision...

Belize City, Belize

The final stop was in Belize. We headed out to go snorkeling on the 2nd largest barrier reef in the world. I was stoked b/c I have never snorkeled before. We got on a boat off of our ship and headed right to the reef. (SS, me and her parents). We spent about an hour in the water snorkeling which was great. Saw some amazing coral!! Then they took us to this "resort" on an island. This place was neat. No rooms or hotel it was just for people doing these kinds of trips. We hung out there for an hour an a half or so and I got to go kayaking which was sweet.



So after that we headed back to our ship, changed clothes and headed over to the port at Belize City. We hit this sweet bar called the Wet Lizard. It was really nice. Basically a deck overlooking the water where they let everyone write all over the bar and walls and sign their names and stuff. We met two of the crew members there which were great contacts. The one hooked us up with a nice private cocktail party! We ate some great local food, bought some of their hot sauce which kicked ass and then spent the rest of the time shopping... picked up some Pineapple wine made locally and had a Belikin beer which is a local beer. We also ate some taco's and a local app. that I can't remember the name of.

A very nice afternoon to close out our trip. I really enjoyed sitting at the bar and the nice thing about Belize is English is the official language so it made everything very easy. We wrapped it up buying some gifts for our folks and friends and headed back to the ship.

Cozumel / Playa Del Carmen

The second stop was in between Cozumel and Playa as the boat had to stay out in the sea and we had to take tender boats in to port. The tenders were terrible b/c they were so big, something like 300 people go on one, which means it takes forever to load and unload.


Anyhow, we headed to Playa Del Carmen to catch a bus to the Mayan Ruins of Tulum. Playa's coast line was awesome, shops, hotels, bars, restaurants and beaches. (Same for Cozumel also). The trip was a very long one to Tulum, and our tour guide was quite interesting. We stopped about half way and I bought a Mayan calendar carving... very cool.


We arrived at Tulum and it was everything I could have hoped for and more. It was gorgeous. Set on top of a hill with the blue ocean right below. Some interesting facts:

• They cut the hillside so that if a hurricane came through it would not hit the kings house it would blow down through the other side of the village
• It was one of the first "cities" to have a wall built around it
• the movie Blue Lagoon was taped on its beach
• One building had a window that the sun shined through perfectly on Dec. 22nd, that is how they new which day it was and that it was the end of their calendar year

We spent two hours walking around the ruins and it was just fantastic. It was very very hot that day and it was a long long trip to and from, but well worth it.



As we exited Tulum we had some time before the bus left and we hit up this little restaurant and had some margaritas, and some AWESOME guac and nachos. I would love to have some of that guac now.. SS and I killed the 2 plates worth in about 5 min.

Since we arrived late to port, we got some extra time to go from Playa over to Cozumel. SS and I headed over, most of the stores were closed (including the diamond international store.. SCORE!!) but we did get to visit heaven. That being a store with 300 kinds of tequila and a bunch of Cuban cigars. I bought some of both, then we headed out trying to find a stone Amulite or something like that for SS. We had no luck so stopped at Fat Tuesdays and got some frozen drinks in a Yard glass (very yummy). We got on the boat and SS got a guy to sell her a necklace for 8 bucks which everyone has complimented her on.

Had a great time and I really appreciated SS going to the ruins with me since I am so intrigued by the whole Mayan culture and historical stuff like that.

Progresso

Stop #1 took us to Progresso. We wanted to take a Jeep out and drive around the city and see some wilderness, Mayan ruins and stuff but the trip was booked... so we picked the "beach party". The port at Progresso was very sparse and no where near anything.. just a big concrete pier. All 4 of us boarded a bus that took us to the Reef Yucatan Resort. Upon arrival at 10am or so, there didn't seem to be much going on. Just the people that were on the trip. This place was an all-inclusive resort and we found out it is $79 / night and buy 3 get 1 night free. The place is gorgeous.. right on the ocean, 2 pools, tons of hammocks, bars, food etc.


So I spent the first hour in a hammock, relaxing and enjoying some mai tai's. The great thing about this place is the waiter didn't even let my drink get half way gone before there was a second. I then made my way over to the pool to swim a little and ended up playing some pool volleyball with some kids from Missouri U. We then started drinking some blue drink called Captain (I don't remember the rest). I was beginning to get a good buzz going but then we heard we had to leave. V Slad made a deal with the next tour coming from the boat and we got to stay a full 6 hours.

Well that was good and bad because after I heard we were staying, well I started hitting the tequila.

The short of the whole story is I basically swam and drank my ass off all day. Right before we left, SS and I walked up and down the beach which was really nice. The beach was very "shelly" and sharp from all of the shells that had washed up on shore.

We jumped on the bus and headed back for the boat (I did two shots of tequila back to back before we left). So on the bus I'm drunk, and SS is seeing me drunk for the first time. I turn around to see there is no bathroom on the bus... so for the first time in my life I had to go in a cup. Even worse is that I almost filled up the first cup and had to go to #2. Luckily I didn't, but had to hold the cups the rest of the ride back (3o min or so). In the seat across from us big boobs and her friend were sitting there and her friend puked out the window, on the person in front of her and pretty much everywhere else. Quite disgusting.

SS was a little drunk too and decided to yell out on the bus to the big boobed girl (mind you her parents are in front of us on the bus) hey can he fuck your tits. I was shocked, but drunk so it didn't matter... too bad she didn't say yes!! ;) SS and I could have had some fun with her. (yes I know.. dream on).

Something cool we learned on the way there was that houses go for about 100K down there, and they were gorgeous. The problem though is insuring them which its really pricey from what I understand. Could be a great retirement spot though!

So, it was a damn fun day and I actually got drunk for once (it took about 15 drinks at least and 3 shots of tequila, but I got there!)

Mexico Recap

Since it has been well over a week some of my trip details have become somewhat fuzzy, but I figure I will recap it the best I can. I will start here with the "non-port" days.

The trip down to Houston from Chicago was easy, no problems, got everywhere on time etc. My first impression of the boat, was damn this thing is huge, and man is our room small. Most of the time on the boat was spent doing the following: Eating, drinking, eating, eating, laying out, eating, drinking, playing domino's, eating... did I say eating?



The food was awesome. I had Steak 2 or 3 times, Lamb twice, Duck L'orange, Beef Wellington and Lobster tail (on the same night), lots of Caesar salads, cheese etc. The way the dining worked was called "Freestyle". You basically show up and sometimes have to wait to sit to eat, but there were 2 main dining rooms, an Italian a buffet and a specialty French Bistro. We ate at all of these but mostly the main dining rooms for dinner. You could order as much as you wanted which usually entailed us ordering an entree each (after the apps, soup and salad) and then SS and I splitting a main dish also. So needless to say I ate a ton.

The room was really really small, but it didn't matter b/c we weren't there much. I wasn't completely worried about being with her parents the whole week, but I hadn't spent a ton of time with them so it was still a don't know what to expect situation. I had a very very nice time with them and had no problems, issues etc.. I am very glad to spend some time with them.

As for the rest of the time on ship, we played Friends trivia (and got killed), spent some money in the casino (more on this later), watch a show, played bingo, hung out at the bar and kept on running into a girl with HUGE BOOBS as SS loved to remind me and a rather large girl with pink hair.. so we always marked our daily "sightings".

I was worried at first that 4 days on the boat would be boring as hell but honestly they flew by. We had a great housekeeper that knew our names right away. Everyone on the boat was so nice (except the night bartenders) and it was very very enjoyable. I was also really happy to spend 9 days with SS. She and I always have our ups and downs but we are both stubborn so it is something that is just going to happen. I really enjoyed having her there and it is really tough to not see her everyday now. I miss her a ton and am really looking forward to the next trip we go on. I totally hate to be out dressed but she kicked my ass all week and looked beautiful and super hot every night. I still have the black and pink polka dot dress lodged in my brain. I was terrible at telling her in the "moment" how great she looked and I regret that, but thinking back on it.... she looked gorgeous. This pic is after some drinks and a lot of sun... ironically taken by the big boobed girl. SS was telling her how I haven't asked her to marry me yet, so every day the girl asked me if I was engaged yet.

Nappy-Headed Hos

Now THIS is way too funny. I am not in any way an Imus fan, I actually loved when Stern bashed him but he really dropped his feelings the other day.

The flap began Wednesday, the day after Rutgers lost the NCAA women's title to Tennessee. Imus told listeners, "That's some rough girls from Rutgers."

"Man, they got tattoos," he said. "That's some nappy-headed hos there, I'm going to tell you that now."

So he got a 2 week suspension for saying this.. but damn it made me laugh. Good start out to the day :)

Hump Day Humor

A friend of mine used to be employed at the Pittsburgh Technology Council. Lately there has been a mass exodus of people from the council to other jobs. Today it was announced that the CEO has resigned. I sent my friend the info and it made his day and led to the following:

News Story 1: By another Friend:

April 4, 2007 - Pittsburgh Technology Center, Pittsburgh PA >>>

The Pittsburgh Technology Council would like to wish our very best to our outgoing CEO Steve Zylstra. Steve is leaving the PTC after years of loyal service to pursue his dream occupation as gang leader for The Butte Pirates, a motorcycle club from Butte,Montana. Steve has longed to wear the leather and chaps of the Pirates for as long as anyone at the PTC can remember. We wish him well in his new endeavors and only ask that he call, write, and send pictures often. He will be missed.




Zylstra Enjoys a Dance at 2004's Butte Pirates Sadie Hawkins Dance






News Story 2: By me (with a small shout out to the burgh blog)

Breaking News: We come to you live from 2nd Ave. at the Pittsburgh Technology Council, on site today is Dee Thompson. Since the announcement of the resignation of Mr. Zylstra, CEO of the Tech Council, the organization has received a record volume of calls from companies looking to join the association. Also just arrived on site is Mayor Luke Ravenstahl. Lets tune it to hear what he has to say

Lukey: I would like to first thank Mr. Zylstra and wish him good luck in his future. I would like to also announce that I will now be taking over the Tech Council and fold it into the Mayors office. It will now be knows as.. wait for it..

Luke's cool shit to help Pittsburgh Move Forward {and drink!!!}

Dee: Well there you have it folks, the Mayor continues to work to move Pittsburgh forward {drink again!!}.

Back to you...

Back to the Grind

I am back from beautiful Mexico and a very relaxing vacation. The vacation was good for me as I am much more calm about most thing, granted I still am bothered by some stuff but in general I haven't blown my lid yet. The Internet on the ship was pretty expensive so I didn't get to blog but I plan to chronicle the trip soon... right now my head is killing me so this is probably all I will have for today.

79 yesterday, 36 and snow by Friday.. what is up with that!

Mexico here I come

I am off to a week in the Caribbean ... I will try to blog a little from the boat but it is supposed to be pricey so it might be random. Can't wait for a week off!!

Local Politics

So it seems that Peduto will pull out of the mayor's race today unless he is pulling some huge stunt press conference. I am pretty disappointed in this for the simple fact that there should be some competition within politics. I am so tired of reading about people getting thrown off of ballots b/c of loop holes or whatever else is found as a problem. Win or Lose I wanted to see a real mayors race.

While Luke seems to be doing a fine job, I wanted to see how he would react under pressure. The simple fact that he became mayor after Bobby O died and now will get seat again handed to him just bothers me. I continue to believe that he will do a good job. I continue to believe that him going to NY with the Pens owner is not a problem (who gives a shit.. he went and had fun and hopefully got a lap dance).

I have a friend that works for him and him continuing as mayor keeps his job which is great, because he does a good job at it. It is also a huge bonus having a young person as a mayor in a city were young people have never been the focus.

So I guess Luke is it.. and we should all raise our glasses to the next 4 years of "Pittsburgh Moving Forward" (if you don't get the drinking reference check out the burgh blog).