Why is that? I haven't held up my end of the bargain and blogged like I'm supposed to. Right now I am going to give you a short update and then I'll be talking about some regular updates.
First of all, I left Tallahassee and I am now living with my Aunt Marj and Uncle Angel near Gainesville. I now work as a substitute teacher in the local school district and I am also a coordinator for a tutoring company. I hope to get back into teaching. I'm certified in Social Science, though I would like to teach Business at some point.
My other news: I am getting married! I told you all about Shannon, who is just an amazing woman. We not only share a deep spiritual connection, but we are very much alike and she gets me like nobody else has. With that said, she also loves and respects me, which I will talk about more in a later post.
With that said I am headed to bed; I am subbing in the morning. Two more days and three day weekend!
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Friday, May 7, 2010
Time to get back in the game...
It's been an entire month since I last posted, so an update is long overdue.
I said I decided to take the AAMCO job; I lied. I went with the DirecTV job instead. It's a good job selling a product I know intimately (I've been selling TV products for nearly three years now). It's working with one of those companies that promises that you'll be CEO within three weeks; normally I avoid those jobs like the plague, but thankfully I'm not a 1099 and I still get a paycheck if I have a crappy week. I'm also getting valuable job experience; I'm recruiting and interviewing potential employees as well as running my own stores. The plan for now is to hang out at this job until mid-July, then look at possibly moving to Tampa. Why Tampa, you ask? Read on...
A funny thing happened to me on my way to Florida; I fell head over heels with the most amazing woman. Her name is Shannon, and we have a rather odd tale as to how we got to where we are today. We talked for a bit about a year and a half ago, but nothing ever formulated; I think she said she had too much going on and wasn't looking for anything. My attitude at the time (remember this was the days of NNJ) was "fine, fuck you, I don't need you." Some time passes, and I see her again at Sticks at Willow Lawn. I didn't know it was her at first, but all I knew was that I was attracted to her. She was with a friend, and I was trying to find an opening in which to initiate conversation with her, but that never happened. Later, I came to find out it was Shannon, but she was in a relationship, to which I again said "fine, forget you, I don't need you (Note I didn't say "fuck you" this time; by this time I began to exorcise NNJ)." That summer I moved to Syracuse, and she actually broke up with her fiancee the same day I moved there.
I move to NY, finally get rid of that bat-shit crazy chick Katie and begin my new life. I periodically talk to Shannon; in a survey she took on Facebook, she admits that she thought I was cute and wished we got to at least hang out. Time passes, and my life goes in the shitter in Central New York, and I move to Tallahassee. Originally, I was planning on taking 81 to 77 then taking a bunch of back roads across Georgia, but then my friends Emily and Sonya wanted to hang out with me as I passed through. I then changed my route and went through Baltimore, DC, and Richmond. I met up with Shannon and we hung out at Capitol Ale House after being midlead to think they were having $1 burgers. Afterward we went back to my hotel room, and I'll leave it at that.
The next day I meet up with Emily for lunch then get on the road for Florida. Time goes by, and Shannon and I continue to talk. We find ourselves getting serious and beginning to make plans. The plan right now is to move to Tampa for her job, and I should have more luck finding a job by that time. By then, the economy should have recovered and I can hopefully find a job in which I can use my degree and expertise.
That's it for now. I am now sitting in the living room watching Avatar for the 50,000th time. Tune in this Sunday for my annual Mother's Day blog.
I said I decided to take the AAMCO job; I lied. I went with the DirecTV job instead. It's a good job selling a product I know intimately (I've been selling TV products for nearly three years now). It's working with one of those companies that promises that you'll be CEO within three weeks; normally I avoid those jobs like the plague, but thankfully I'm not a 1099 and I still get a paycheck if I have a crappy week. I'm also getting valuable job experience; I'm recruiting and interviewing potential employees as well as running my own stores. The plan for now is to hang out at this job until mid-July, then look at possibly moving to Tampa. Why Tampa, you ask? Read on...
A funny thing happened to me on my way to Florida; I fell head over heels with the most amazing woman. Her name is Shannon, and we have a rather odd tale as to how we got to where we are today. We talked for a bit about a year and a half ago, but nothing ever formulated; I think she said she had too much going on and wasn't looking for anything. My attitude at the time (remember this was the days of NNJ) was "fine, fuck you, I don't need you." Some time passes, and I see her again at Sticks at Willow Lawn. I didn't know it was her at first, but all I knew was that I was attracted to her. She was with a friend, and I was trying to find an opening in which to initiate conversation with her, but that never happened. Later, I came to find out it was Shannon, but she was in a relationship, to which I again said "fine, forget you, I don't need you (Note I didn't say "fuck you" this time; by this time I began to exorcise NNJ)." That summer I moved to Syracuse, and she actually broke up with her fiancee the same day I moved there.
I move to NY, finally get rid of that bat-shit crazy chick Katie and begin my new life. I periodically talk to Shannon; in a survey she took on Facebook, she admits that she thought I was cute and wished we got to at least hang out. Time passes, and my life goes in the shitter in Central New York, and I move to Tallahassee. Originally, I was planning on taking 81 to 77 then taking a bunch of back roads across Georgia, but then my friends Emily and Sonya wanted to hang out with me as I passed through. I then changed my route and went through Baltimore, DC, and Richmond. I met up with Shannon and we hung out at Capitol Ale House after being midlead to think they were having $1 burgers. Afterward we went back to my hotel room, and I'll leave it at that.
The next day I meet up with Emily for lunch then get on the road for Florida. Time goes by, and Shannon and I continue to talk. We find ourselves getting serious and beginning to make plans. The plan right now is to move to Tampa for her job, and I should have more luck finding a job by that time. By then, the economy should have recovered and I can hopefully find a job in which I can use my degree and expertise.
That's it for now. I am now sitting in the living room watching Avatar for the 50,000th time. Tune in this Sunday for my annual Mother's Day blog.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
One week later...
I've been in Florida for a week now, and so far things are developing swimmingly. I was offered two jobs today: one is going to retail outlets and selling DirecTV, the other is working for a local businessman doing outside sales for his repair shop and lawn care business. I knew things would work out for me here, but I had no idea things would turn around that quickly. The one roadblock I've encountered is finding out about coaching wrestling at Florida State; I've tried contacting just about everyone I could think of, but so far no response. It took me two tries to get in contact with Syracuse's club; I just e-mailed the director of rec sports, who then put me in contact with the club officers. My wrestlers are the #1 reason why I regret things not working in NY.
I began Couch to 5k this week. The first week of the program consists of a five minute walk, then alternating between jogging for 60 seconds and walking for 90 seconds. This is supposed to last 20 minutes. I stretch it out to 30 minutes by walking for an extra 10 minutes afterward simply since I need the extra time. It's annoying because I come back feeling the same as I did when I left. As a wrestling coach, I always told my wrestlers that they should feel dead at the end of practice and that's how they know they're improving. I hardly fancy myself a genius, but I think the designer of the program has you start out so lightly to keep people from getting discouraged. I think this is one of the reasons our country is so fat; nobody wants to go balls-to-the-wall and see results and look for the easy route instead.
After I came in working out, my cousin Gabrielle invited me to play Active Life Outdoor Challenge on Wii. For those of you that are not familiar with this game, it has a pad that looks like something from Dance Dance Revolution, and it has several physical challenges that each player must endure, including log jumping and sprinting. After 30 minutes of that game I was sweating like a pig. I've given the Wii a huge thumbs up years ago; it's great that we have a system in which kids can use their bodies and move around.
That's it for now. I'll be sure to keep everyone abreast of further developments.
I began Couch to 5k this week. The first week of the program consists of a five minute walk, then alternating between jogging for 60 seconds and walking for 90 seconds. This is supposed to last 20 minutes. I stretch it out to 30 minutes by walking for an extra 10 minutes afterward simply since I need the extra time. It's annoying because I come back feeling the same as I did when I left. As a wrestling coach, I always told my wrestlers that they should feel dead at the end of practice and that's how they know they're improving. I hardly fancy myself a genius, but I think the designer of the program has you start out so lightly to keep people from getting discouraged. I think this is one of the reasons our country is so fat; nobody wants to go balls-to-the-wall and see results and look for the easy route instead.
After I came in working out, my cousin Gabrielle invited me to play Active Life Outdoor Challenge on Wii. For those of you that are not familiar with this game, it has a pad that looks like something from Dance Dance Revolution, and it has several physical challenges that each player must endure, including log jumping and sprinting. After 30 minutes of that game I was sweating like a pig. I've given the Wii a huge thumbs up years ago; it's great that we have a system in which kids can use their bodies and move around.
That's it for now. I'll be sure to keep everyone abreast of further developments.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Finally here...
I finally made it to Tallahassee around 5:30 yesterday. I've spent some quality time with my cousins and my aunt. I met a couple of the nurses on my aunt's floor, and she already wants to fix me up with one of the nurses on her floor and her sister. This brings the tally of women that she wants to fix me up with up to three. I met one of them last year, and I thought she was very cute, and hopefully I'll get to go out with her soon.
I know I said I was going to post updates on here about my trip; unfortunately I was not able to. I did, however, post updates on Facebook, so here is what I posted since Sunday.
...is hitting the road in 45 minutes. I will periodically send updates. These updates will be brought to you by Verizon Wireless and the HTC Imagio. The HTC Imagio - it's an iPhone with Windows!
...is in Newberry, PA about 60 miles north of Baltimore. I should hopefully be in Richmond by 5-6.
Back in the 804, and having conflicting feelings.
I deviated a little from my planned route. I'm west of Durham, NC at a truck stop. What's that hole in the wall over there? Wait a minute...NOOOOO!!!
...is at a Jack in the Box outside of Charlotte ::grin::
...is in Commerce, GA for the night. Getting up early to navigate the ATL, then it's on to Tallahassee. Woot!
...enjoying some southern BBQ in High Falls, GA. I should be in FL in 4 hours.
...is in Tallahassee playing Band Hero with his cousins. I've been given strict orders to call it Band Hero and nothing else.
First question you are probably asking is what are the conflicting feelings for Richmond. First of all, I lived there for ten years, and the last couple of years were very unpleasant. Since that time that I left NNJ behind, I see things in a different light. I'm not going to say it was great to be back in Richmond, but it was nice being in familiar territory. I went to lunch with Em and had a good time. The other thing toying with my emotions was the night before when I went out with Shannon. We knew each other for a year and a half, but nothing ever formulated. We ran into each other about six months before I moved away, and she was engaged. She actually broke up with her fiance the same say I moved to NY. I was originally planning on forgoing Richmond, but then Shannon and Em wanted to get together, so I changed my route. Shannon and I went to dinner, went back to my hotel, and I will leave it at that.
We had an instant connection, and that scares me a little bit. Every time I had an instant connection in the past it backfired in my face. Therefore, we're going to take things slow. She might come down here to see me, or I may go up there to see her - we'll see what's around the pike.
That's really the only major highlight from my trip - unless you want to count going to Jack in the Box as a major highlight. As I begin to build my life here in FL, I will keep everyone posted. I'm heading down to Bell to see family for Easter, then it's back to the grind on Monday.
I know I said I was going to post updates on here about my trip; unfortunately I was not able to. I did, however, post updates on Facebook, so here is what I posted since Sunday.
...is hitting the road in 45 minutes. I will periodically send updates. These updates will be brought to you by Verizon Wireless and the HTC Imagio. The HTC Imagio - it's an iPhone with Windows!
...is in Newberry, PA about 60 miles north of Baltimore. I should hopefully be in Richmond by 5-6.
Back in the 804, and having conflicting feelings.
I deviated a little from my planned route. I'm west of Durham, NC at a truck stop. What's that hole in the wall over there? Wait a minute...NOOOOO!!!
...is at a Jack in the Box outside of Charlotte ::grin::
...is in Commerce, GA for the night. Getting up early to navigate the ATL, then it's on to Tallahassee. Woot!
...enjoying some southern BBQ in High Falls, GA. I should be in FL in 4 hours.
...is in Tallahassee playing Band Hero with his cousins. I've been given strict orders to call it Band Hero and nothing else.
First question you are probably asking is what are the conflicting feelings for Richmond. First of all, I lived there for ten years, and the last couple of years were very unpleasant. Since that time that I left NNJ behind, I see things in a different light. I'm not going to say it was great to be back in Richmond, but it was nice being in familiar territory. I went to lunch with Em and had a good time. The other thing toying with my emotions was the night before when I went out with Shannon. We knew each other for a year and a half, but nothing ever formulated. We ran into each other about six months before I moved away, and she was engaged. She actually broke up with her fiance the same say I moved to NY. I was originally planning on forgoing Richmond, but then Shannon and Em wanted to get together, so I changed my route. Shannon and I went to dinner, went back to my hotel, and I will leave it at that.
We had an instant connection, and that scares me a little bit. Every time I had an instant connection in the past it backfired in my face. Therefore, we're going to take things slow. She might come down here to see me, or I may go up there to see her - we'll see what's around the pike.
That's really the only major highlight from my trip - unless you want to count going to Jack in the Box as a major highlight. As I begin to build my life here in FL, I will keep everyone posted. I'm heading down to Bell to see family for Easter, then it's back to the grind on Monday.
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Syracuse: Why I'm going to miss it, Part 2
I know this is late, but I finally got my photo essay completed. Blogspot is being stupid and put all the photos out of order, and I don't feel like dealing with HTML, so I'm just going to run through the photos as they are. Here it is, why I am going to miss Syracuse in pictures:
The Seneca River as it runs through Baldwinsville.
The Seneca River Bridge. There are lights on the top of the bridge that change colors at night. Also, when it gets warmer this bridge will be consumed with anglers.
The Erie Canal Locks as it runs through Baldwinsville.
The Yellow Brick Road in Chittenango. Chittenango is the home town of L Frank Baum, the author of The Wizard of Oz.
Chittenango Falls
The Carrier Dome
The Museum of Science and Technology (MOST)
The shot clock in Armory Square. Since it's March Madness, it's appropriate to mention that the shot clock was invented in Syracuse. So was that thingy that measures your shoe size (it has a name, but I can't remember what it is).
In Central New York, they put antennas on the firehydrants so they can find them in the snow.
The NiMo building. Great use of Art Deco next to the Empire State Building.
Jerry Rescue Monument. Syracuse was a major stop on the Underground Railroad, and Central New York played major roles in abolitionism and woman's suffrage.
Clinton Square
Beautiful view from Onondaga Lake
The phone booths in front of Coleman's Irish Pub. The short one is for the Leprechauns. You mean to tell me Leprechauns don't have cell phones?
The famous Tipperary Hill traffic light. In the 1920's, when Syracuse was putting up traffic lights, the people of this Irish neighborhood were angry that city officials put the British Red over the Irish green, so the neighborhood people would keep knocking down the light. To keep people from continually knocking down the light, the city hung it upside down. I love this story; how often do my people get cool stories like that?
Carousel Center. Currently, the city wants to make this region the centerpiece of the city by expanding it into a region known as DestinyUSA. My nickname for Carousel is the "Big Fucking Thing" a la Lewis Black. The only reason I ever come here is for the Apple Store.
And last but not least, downtown Syracuse. For a medium-sized city I find this view to be breathtaking.
The Seneca River as it runs through Baldwinsville.
The Seneca River Bridge. There are lights on the top of the bridge that change colors at night. Also, when it gets warmer this bridge will be consumed with anglers.
The Erie Canal Locks as it runs through Baldwinsville.
The Yellow Brick Road in Chittenango. Chittenango is the home town of L Frank Baum, the author of The Wizard of Oz.
Chittenango Falls
The Carrier Dome
The Museum of Science and Technology (MOST)
The shot clock in Armory Square. Since it's March Madness, it's appropriate to mention that the shot clock was invented in Syracuse. So was that thingy that measures your shoe size (it has a name, but I can't remember what it is).
In Central New York, they put antennas on the firehydrants so they can find them in the snow.
The NiMo building. Great use of Art Deco next to the Empire State Building.
Jerry Rescue Monument. Syracuse was a major stop on the Underground Railroad, and Central New York played major roles in abolitionism and woman's suffrage.
Clinton Square
Beautiful view from Onondaga Lake
The phone booths in front of Coleman's Irish Pub. The short one is for the Leprechauns. You mean to tell me Leprechauns don't have cell phones?
The famous Tipperary Hill traffic light. In the 1920's, when Syracuse was putting up traffic lights, the people of this Irish neighborhood were angry that city officials put the British Red over the Irish green, so the neighborhood people would keep knocking down the light. To keep people from continually knocking down the light, the city hung it upside down. I love this story; how often do my people get cool stories like that?
Carousel Center. Currently, the city wants to make this region the centerpiece of the city by expanding it into a region known as DestinyUSA. My nickname for Carousel is the "Big Fucking Thing" a la Lewis Black. The only reason I ever come here is for the Apple Store.
And last but not least, downtown Syracuse. For a medium-sized city I find this view to be breathtaking.Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Syracuse: Why I'm going to miss it, Part 1
Happy Tuesday, everyone! I just had a wonderful piece of bacon and chicken white pizza at Cam's Pizzeria in Camillus, and now it's on to business. I have five days left here in Salt City, and as the days get closer I am both excited about the new opportunities that await me in Florida, but I am also remorseful that things did not work for me in Syracuse.
My intention for the past two days was to do a photo blog on why I'm going to miss Syracuse, but it has rained the past two days, and weather in the 40's hasn't helped either (and, despite this chilly weather there is a young woman walking around this restaurant in flip-flops). Hopefully, the weather will cooperate the rest of the week, and I'll be able to do that. In the meantime, I will talk about why I will miss Syracuse.
First, I have a new attitude that I didn't have in other cities. I talked about nasty, negative John (NNJ) earlier, and how I left him in Richmond. Don't get me wrong - there are things I miss about Detroit, Sacramento, Phoenix, Richmond, and Washington, but Syracuse got into my heart and left an indelible impression. What do I miss about these cities? Let me tell you the ways:
Detroit: I miss the food. You cannot find Detroit-style pizza anywhere else, and of course you have local fare like Tubby's Subs and National Coney Island. Also, I will forever be a fan of Detroit sports, and I hate that I can't go to The Joe, Ford Field, Comerica Park, or The Palace whenever I want. Interesting story - I went to a Pistons game last Christmas, and I purchased a beer. The vendor asked for my ID, and I showed him my New York license. He said, "I've seen a lot of out-of-state ID's today," to which I replied, "That's because those of us that can't find work in Michigan are in town for the holidays."
Sacramento: First and foremost, I miss my friends from high school. We talk on Facebook all the time, but now that we're all a little older, a little wiser, and we can drink legally, I would love to just hang out with them. And, of course, the food. There were a lot of great local spots. I also miss the weather; now that I've had a chance to compare, dry heat isn't that bad.
Phoenix: There was a ton of things to do in Phoenix, but I couldn't get past people's attitudes or the meth addicts that occupied our complex. When I reflect, I don't think I ever should've left; I would've gone to Arizona State, moved up the social hierarchy, and most importantly never met my ex-wife.
Richmond: As much as I complained about Richmond, there are some things that I will miss. I will miss the beauty of the city; anyone who's spent any time in the Fan, Byrd Park, or along the James River knows what I'm talking about. In the summertime Richmond is a beacon of activity. Even as I sit here, I try to keep NNJ at bay. He keeps telling me things like, "talk about how much your jobs sucked," and "talk about how much the people sucked." So I'm just going to move on.
Washington: I miss the potential to advance careerwise. The best job I ever had was at Primus in McLean. It was a 9-5 job, I moved up rapidly, and had great co-workers. I also had a very active social network that was very diverse and, most importantly, was in the same age group as me. There was Brian, the actor and singer; Federico, the son of Nicaraguan dignitaries; Rodger, the History/Linguistics major; Geoff, the journalism major-turned cafe manager, etc.
Now, on to Syracuse. What am I going to miss? First of all, the atmosphere. Syracuse, as many of your know, is a college town. I love going to Rosie's, Tully's, or pretty much any sports bar and the walls are covered with SU regalia; back in Richmond, home of the Richmond Spiders and VCU Rams, don't support their teams enough. Sticking with the atmosphere, my favorite part of my day is driving down 690 and seeing the Syracuse skyline.
What else am I going to miss? Of course, the food. I don't even want to think about how much weight I put on when I first moved here. Tully's claims to have the world's best tenders, and they are correct. We also have many locations with regional foods, including New York-sytle pizza and buffalo wings; Sardo's makes the best wings in the area. There are also great marinades for meats you can only find in New York. One of which is Cornell-Style barbecue sauce, which has paprika, oil and vinegar, and egg. There is also a dish called speidies (sp?), which is marinated chicken in a hot dog bun. Let's not forget my favorite dessert item: half-moon cookies, cookies with chocolate frosting on one side, and vanilla frosting on the other. Honorable mention goes to garbage plates, white hots, and salt potatoes.
Finally, I am going to miss my friends. Granted most of them are older, they are still wonderful people. Some of them have quirks I can't stand (we all have friends like that), but they're still good people. Last Wednesday, we celebrated St. Patrick's Day with them. I decided to go ahead and make it my last appearance. I got all my hug, kisses, and wishes of good luck from everyone. There was even talk of throwing me a goodbye party. Furthermore, they were seriously talking about renting a bus and driving down to Florida just to see me. They also insisted that I let them know when I'm back in town. I cannot begin to tell me how good this made me feel; I've never had this heartfelt of a farewell anywhere else I lived. Back in Richmond, I had to plan and throw my own graduation party after I finished my MBA (to which nobody showed). Needless to say I will miss this place and I will definitely be back to visit. I hope I can make friends half as wonderful as all of these folks once I get to Florida.
I checked the forecast at weather.com. It's supposed to be sunny with a high of 51, so hopfully I can get my photo essay done and bring that to you people tomorrow. Meanwhile, I'm going to finish listening to Mike O'Meara and head across the street to Wal-Mart. Until then, take care of yourself, Praise the Lord, and pass the ammunition.
-J
My intention for the past two days was to do a photo blog on why I'm going to miss Syracuse, but it has rained the past two days, and weather in the 40's hasn't helped either (and, despite this chilly weather there is a young woman walking around this restaurant in flip-flops). Hopefully, the weather will cooperate the rest of the week, and I'll be able to do that. In the meantime, I will talk about why I will miss Syracuse.
First, I have a new attitude that I didn't have in other cities. I talked about nasty, negative John (NNJ) earlier, and how I left him in Richmond. Don't get me wrong - there are things I miss about Detroit, Sacramento, Phoenix, Richmond, and Washington, but Syracuse got into my heart and left an indelible impression. What do I miss about these cities? Let me tell you the ways:
Detroit: I miss the food. You cannot find Detroit-style pizza anywhere else, and of course you have local fare like Tubby's Subs and National Coney Island. Also, I will forever be a fan of Detroit sports, and I hate that I can't go to The Joe, Ford Field, Comerica Park, or The Palace whenever I want. Interesting story - I went to a Pistons game last Christmas, and I purchased a beer. The vendor asked for my ID, and I showed him my New York license. He said, "I've seen a lot of out-of-state ID's today," to which I replied, "That's because those of us that can't find work in Michigan are in town for the holidays."
Sacramento: First and foremost, I miss my friends from high school. We talk on Facebook all the time, but now that we're all a little older, a little wiser, and we can drink legally, I would love to just hang out with them. And, of course, the food. There were a lot of great local spots. I also miss the weather; now that I've had a chance to compare, dry heat isn't that bad.
Phoenix: There was a ton of things to do in Phoenix, but I couldn't get past people's attitudes or the meth addicts that occupied our complex. When I reflect, I don't think I ever should've left; I would've gone to Arizona State, moved up the social hierarchy, and most importantly never met my ex-wife.
Richmond: As much as I complained about Richmond, there are some things that I will miss. I will miss the beauty of the city; anyone who's spent any time in the Fan, Byrd Park, or along the James River knows what I'm talking about. In the summertime Richmond is a beacon of activity. Even as I sit here, I try to keep NNJ at bay. He keeps telling me things like, "talk about how much your jobs sucked," and "talk about how much the people sucked." So I'm just going to move on.
Washington: I miss the potential to advance careerwise. The best job I ever had was at Primus in McLean. It was a 9-5 job, I moved up rapidly, and had great co-workers. I also had a very active social network that was very diverse and, most importantly, was in the same age group as me. There was Brian, the actor and singer; Federico, the son of Nicaraguan dignitaries; Rodger, the History/Linguistics major; Geoff, the journalism major-turned cafe manager, etc.
Now, on to Syracuse. What am I going to miss? First of all, the atmosphere. Syracuse, as many of your know, is a college town. I love going to Rosie's, Tully's, or pretty much any sports bar and the walls are covered with SU regalia; back in Richmond, home of the Richmond Spiders and VCU Rams, don't support their teams enough. Sticking with the atmosphere, my favorite part of my day is driving down 690 and seeing the Syracuse skyline.
What else am I going to miss? Of course, the food. I don't even want to think about how much weight I put on when I first moved here. Tully's claims to have the world's best tenders, and they are correct. We also have many locations with regional foods, including New York-sytle pizza and buffalo wings; Sardo's makes the best wings in the area. There are also great marinades for meats you can only find in New York. One of which is Cornell-Style barbecue sauce, which has paprika, oil and vinegar, and egg. There is also a dish called speidies (sp?), which is marinated chicken in a hot dog bun. Let's not forget my favorite dessert item: half-moon cookies, cookies with chocolate frosting on one side, and vanilla frosting on the other. Honorable mention goes to garbage plates, white hots, and salt potatoes.
Finally, I am going to miss my friends. Granted most of them are older, they are still wonderful people. Some of them have quirks I can't stand (we all have friends like that), but they're still good people. Last Wednesday, we celebrated St. Patrick's Day with them. I decided to go ahead and make it my last appearance. I got all my hug, kisses, and wishes of good luck from everyone. There was even talk of throwing me a goodbye party. Furthermore, they were seriously talking about renting a bus and driving down to Florida just to see me. They also insisted that I let them know when I'm back in town. I cannot begin to tell me how good this made me feel; I've never had this heartfelt of a farewell anywhere else I lived. Back in Richmond, I had to plan and throw my own graduation party after I finished my MBA (to which nobody showed). Needless to say I will miss this place and I will definitely be back to visit. I hope I can make friends half as wonderful as all of these folks once I get to Florida.
I checked the forecast at weather.com. It's supposed to be sunny with a high of 51, so hopfully I can get my photo essay done and bring that to you people tomorrow. Meanwhile, I'm going to finish listening to Mike O'Meara and head across the street to Wal-Mart. Until then, take care of yourself, Praise the Lord, and pass the ammunition.
-J
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Another Sleepless Saturday...
I got all of five hours of sleep this morning. This always happens to me when I work nights; I come home at 7am (though I got home at 8 today because I stopped at Wegmans to pick up some more boxes - apparently the trick to getting good boxes is to get there early), usually fiddle around the apartment because I can't fall asleep the minute I get home, then go to bed. Today I woke up around 12:30; I'm hoping I'll be able to get in a nap before I go in tonight.
I have one more week left here in the Cuse before I hit the road for Florida. I have my route pretty much planned out, and it takes me through Georgia, where I'll be passing some old friends from Richmond. Hopefully I'll be able to meet up with them (I'm confident I'll be able to meet up with at least one for reasons I won't disclose).
This will put me in my final destination sometime on Tuesday. One thing I need to do next week - along with finish packing - is get out more resumes. My aunt says she might be able to get me a job that pays rather well, but as we all know nothing is guaranteed in life.
Getting a job is one thing on my agenda. I'm doing other thing to get my life back on track. First of which is to lose weight. Virtually my entire family down there is skinny, and frankly I want to look (somewhat) like them. I know I'm not going to look like them mainly because I'm big boned (but I'll willfully admit there's a lot of meat wrapped around those bones, too). If I can get down to 275 I'll be happy, though I'm shooting for 250. I had a body fat test done, and if I have five percent body fat, the bare minimum allowed by the NCAA for wrestlers, I'd weigh 235. I learned a long time ago not to measure weight in terms of how much gravity is holding me to the earth, but in terms of body fat. According to the BMI scale I'm supposed to weigh between 148 and 185 (I'm 6'2"). The only way that's going to happen is to get to zero body fat and to cut off limbs. As far as my weight goal goes, I'm trying to get to "Vince Vaughn". Vince still has a little bit of chub on him, but he's still a good-looking guy. I don't think I'd look good as a skinny emo, and my large physique compliments my personality.
I already have a plan in place. Thankfully my family in FL eats very healthy and works out, so I hope that influence will rub off on me. I theorize that while I was growing up, my mother was trying to keep me fat. My mother was a larger woman, and she had no qualms about it. While I certainly applaud her for her confidence, she tried to create me in her image. As a child, I wanted to be active. I took an active interest in sports, but Mom would not let me play anything; her excuses to keep me from playing sports ranged from "your asthma will flare up and you'll die (in her eyes any action ranging from running in the sprinkler to watching TV flared my asthma)" to "You'll get hurt". I was shocked that she allowed me to wrestle in high school. When I was 17, I weighed 260 lbs. I decided that I wanted to drop a weight class for wrestling, so I was going to drop down to 215, which I exceeded; by the time leagues came around I was weighing 200, and was even considering cutting to 189. When I told my mom that I wanted to lose weight, she became upset and concerned for my health. When I look back, I think to myself, "what the hell are you worried about with my health? My blood pressure was high, my liver enzymes were off, and my cholesterol was elevated." I began to eat right and worked out. I lost 60 lbs like it was nothing. I managed to keep it off until I moved to Virginia in 1999.
Fast forward to 2005 - I just left my wife and I was ready to date again, so decided to join Weight Watchers. I was again very successful, losing 50 lbs, but Mom again chimed in with her objections. Her response was that I'm a "Chubby Cubby." My response was "yeah, a chubby cubby from a family with history of diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease". I have a plan in place. First, I found a tennis and yoga group on Meetup (I lettered in tennis in high school). I am also going to try out the Couch to 5k plan that was recommended to me by Em. I'm going to be serious about this; I want to feel good like I did when I was at a healthy weight at age 18.
I talked about how Mom tried to keep me fat. My mom passed away in 2008 at the age of 50. The last eight years of her life were in poor health, with the coup de grace being renal failure in 2004. She, of course, was put on dialysis, but she did not take it seriously. She would rather argue with the people in the clinic and get off the machine early than have her full session. When she went into the hospital for the last time, her phosphorus level was 8.2 (a healthy person has phosphorus levels of 0.8 to 1.4). I remember sitting by Mom's bed in the ER at Chippenham Hospital and hearing the doctor yell "holy crap!" when he read her blood work in the other room. Besides the dialysis issue, her diet was poor. Anyone who either has or knows someone with renal failure knows they have a closely regulated diet. Mom, unfortunately, did not follow those rules. Even before the renal failure, she did little to regulate her hypertension or diabetes, always eating sweets or other such foods that you're supposed to avoid. I often wonder how long Mom might have lived if she did live a healthier lifestyle of diet and exercise.
Third, I want to enter into a meaningful, healthy, long-term relationship. I eluded to my divorce earlier in this post. My ex-wife and I were together five years before I walked out on her. Ever since then, I've been unable to keep a relationship longer than two months. In all but one occasion, I'm the one that gets screwed, and only one of those occasions do I feel the other person was justified in their decision. A couple of times, the other person and I had instant chemistry, and we were ready to give our lives to one another, only to have it explode in my face. One ex, Katherine, was instantly infatuated with me, and I with her. We were very much in sync with each other, the sex was great, but when I look back on it, I realize we got together at the wrong time. I was fresh off my divorce, and she had just left her fiance. In a course of two weeks, she went from telling me how she'd put her hand on her stomach and try to imagine what being pregnant felt like to being annoyed by me because I was overweight, had a big head, wore flip-flops, and the list goes on. I used to be mad when this happened to me and I would be mad at that person quite often for years, but in recent years I decided it wasn't worth getting mad over. It's their loss - not mine, and they were getting in the way of me finding my soul mate.
Here's the thing: I'm 31, and most of my friends are getting married and having babies, and I see what they have and I long for what they have. I can pick up women without a problem. My friends and family all think I'm a player, but I don't want that label. Sure I've mastered the art of picking up women, but I do it in hopes that she's the one for me. The problem I have is being able to segue into a relationship. When is the right time? How do you know? I wish they'd offer these types of classes at the community college, or someone would tell me things. I want to be ready the day I see "Ms Right" at the grocery store while knocking on melons.
On a personal note, I started a new novel yesterday. I'm already 40 pages into it. I feel like this one flows much better than my first one, and I think that might be because the story is more linear and not jumping all over the place like my first book. I'm submitting the first chapter for review with my writing group. It'll be interesting see how this one goes.
That's it for now. Catch you on the flip-flop.
I have one more week left here in the Cuse before I hit the road for Florida. I have my route pretty much planned out, and it takes me through Georgia, where I'll be passing some old friends from Richmond. Hopefully I'll be able to meet up with them (I'm confident I'll be able to meet up with at least one for reasons I won't disclose).
This will put me in my final destination sometime on Tuesday. One thing I need to do next week - along with finish packing - is get out more resumes. My aunt says she might be able to get me a job that pays rather well, but as we all know nothing is guaranteed in life.
Getting a job is one thing on my agenda. I'm doing other thing to get my life back on track. First of which is to lose weight. Virtually my entire family down there is skinny, and frankly I want to look (somewhat) like them. I know I'm not going to look like them mainly because I'm big boned (but I'll willfully admit there's a lot of meat wrapped around those bones, too). If I can get down to 275 I'll be happy, though I'm shooting for 250. I had a body fat test done, and if I have five percent body fat, the bare minimum allowed by the NCAA for wrestlers, I'd weigh 235. I learned a long time ago not to measure weight in terms of how much gravity is holding me to the earth, but in terms of body fat. According to the BMI scale I'm supposed to weigh between 148 and 185 (I'm 6'2"). The only way that's going to happen is to get to zero body fat and to cut off limbs. As far as my weight goal goes, I'm trying to get to "Vince Vaughn". Vince still has a little bit of chub on him, but he's still a good-looking guy. I don't think I'd look good as a skinny emo, and my large physique compliments my personality.
I already have a plan in place. Thankfully my family in FL eats very healthy and works out, so I hope that influence will rub off on me. I theorize that while I was growing up, my mother was trying to keep me fat. My mother was a larger woman, and she had no qualms about it. While I certainly applaud her for her confidence, she tried to create me in her image. As a child, I wanted to be active. I took an active interest in sports, but Mom would not let me play anything; her excuses to keep me from playing sports ranged from "your asthma will flare up and you'll die (in her eyes any action ranging from running in the sprinkler to watching TV flared my asthma)" to "You'll get hurt". I was shocked that she allowed me to wrestle in high school. When I was 17, I weighed 260 lbs. I decided that I wanted to drop a weight class for wrestling, so I was going to drop down to 215, which I exceeded; by the time leagues came around I was weighing 200, and was even considering cutting to 189. When I told my mom that I wanted to lose weight, she became upset and concerned for my health. When I look back, I think to myself, "what the hell are you worried about with my health? My blood pressure was high, my liver enzymes were off, and my cholesterol was elevated." I began to eat right and worked out. I lost 60 lbs like it was nothing. I managed to keep it off until I moved to Virginia in 1999.
Fast forward to 2005 - I just left my wife and I was ready to date again, so decided to join Weight Watchers. I was again very successful, losing 50 lbs, but Mom again chimed in with her objections. Her response was that I'm a "Chubby Cubby." My response was "yeah, a chubby cubby from a family with history of diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease". I have a plan in place. First, I found a tennis and yoga group on Meetup (I lettered in tennis in high school). I am also going to try out the Couch to 5k plan that was recommended to me by Em. I'm going to be serious about this; I want to feel good like I did when I was at a healthy weight at age 18.
I talked about how Mom tried to keep me fat. My mom passed away in 2008 at the age of 50. The last eight years of her life were in poor health, with the coup de grace being renal failure in 2004. She, of course, was put on dialysis, but she did not take it seriously. She would rather argue with the people in the clinic and get off the machine early than have her full session. When she went into the hospital for the last time, her phosphorus level was 8.2 (a healthy person has phosphorus levels of 0.8 to 1.4). I remember sitting by Mom's bed in the ER at Chippenham Hospital and hearing the doctor yell "holy crap!" when he read her blood work in the other room. Besides the dialysis issue, her diet was poor. Anyone who either has or knows someone with renal failure knows they have a closely regulated diet. Mom, unfortunately, did not follow those rules. Even before the renal failure, she did little to regulate her hypertension or diabetes, always eating sweets or other such foods that you're supposed to avoid. I often wonder how long Mom might have lived if she did live a healthier lifestyle of diet and exercise.
Third, I want to enter into a meaningful, healthy, long-term relationship. I eluded to my divorce earlier in this post. My ex-wife and I were together five years before I walked out on her. Ever since then, I've been unable to keep a relationship longer than two months. In all but one occasion, I'm the one that gets screwed, and only one of those occasions do I feel the other person was justified in their decision. A couple of times, the other person and I had instant chemistry, and we were ready to give our lives to one another, only to have it explode in my face. One ex, Katherine, was instantly infatuated with me, and I with her. We were very much in sync with each other, the sex was great, but when I look back on it, I realize we got together at the wrong time. I was fresh off my divorce, and she had just left her fiance. In a course of two weeks, she went from telling me how she'd put her hand on her stomach and try to imagine what being pregnant felt like to being annoyed by me because I was overweight, had a big head, wore flip-flops, and the list goes on. I used to be mad when this happened to me and I would be mad at that person quite often for years, but in recent years I decided it wasn't worth getting mad over. It's their loss - not mine, and they were getting in the way of me finding my soul mate.
Here's the thing: I'm 31, and most of my friends are getting married and having babies, and I see what they have and I long for what they have. I can pick up women without a problem. My friends and family all think I'm a player, but I don't want that label. Sure I've mastered the art of picking up women, but I do it in hopes that she's the one for me. The problem I have is being able to segue into a relationship. When is the right time? How do you know? I wish they'd offer these types of classes at the community college, or someone would tell me things. I want to be ready the day I see "Ms Right" at the grocery store while knocking on melons.
On a personal note, I started a new novel yesterday. I'm already 40 pages into it. I feel like this one flows much better than my first one, and I think that might be because the story is more linear and not jumping all over the place like my first book. I'm submitting the first chapter for review with my writing group. It'll be interesting see how this one goes.
That's it for now. Catch you on the flip-flop.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
My first entry
Here it is, 2010, and I am just now entering the world of blogging. I'm never one to jump on bandwagon's right away; I just changed hair styles a few years ago, I get into TV shows months, or even years, after they debut, and I'm usually one or two steps behind the times when it comes to fashion trends (for example, UGG boots and aviator sunglasses still annoy me). A good friend of mine (who we'll call Em for the time being), began a blog of her own not too long ago, and she is gung ho about it; the other day she was excited because people she didn't know were leaving replies. She talks about her marriage, work, trying to lose weight, etc. I figure I would try the same thing, especially because I am in the midst of making a major change in my life.
I will start from the beginning. Last August, I moved to Syracuse, NY, from Richmond, VA, to begin life anew. I lived in Richmond for ten years, and I really needed a change; a change in attitude more than anything. You see, I was an angry, bitter, negative person when I living in Va, and 2008 was one of my worst years. In January, my mom died, than my grandmother died two weeks later. That May, my good friend Kevin died unexpectedly. Also that year, I got into a relationship for the first time in three years with someone I knew for a long time and thought she was the one; turns out I was wrong. I also focused too much on the negative aspects of my job that I let it eat me. I let all of these events fester up inside of me and it turned me into a person that nobody really wanted to associate with (and I can't say I blame them). My New Year's resolution in 2009 was to be a positive person. I also read The Secret, and while I am not the kind of person to run around saying a book changed my life, that book changed my life. If you have not read The Secret I highly recommend you do.
Getting back on track, in May of 2009, I completed my MBA and it was time to get a big boy job. I was hired by an insurance agency to work in their Syracuse office. I moved all of my crap up here, took the test, and before I could even get to work I was promptly get go (the only explanation I was ever given was something about part 22a of my contract). Luckily I was hired into another job the same day I was let go. It was doing business marketing for Verizon. FiOS TV was just launching in Syracuse, and they were really pushing to get the word out. It was a contract position, but they kept telling me if it was successful my contract would be renewed. Sure enough it wasn't. Luckily, my contacts in the residential end came through for me and got me a job; too bad I didn't have a fraction of the success as I did with B2B. People in Syracuse have a love affair with Time Warner I do not understand. I would offer this far superior product and people would begin to sing TWC's praises. It was the other way when I was in Va. working for Comcast - people were singing Verizon's praises. I then got hired to sell cars for all of two weeks; people that know me know that I own up to my mistakes and don't deflect blame, but I was setup for failure for this job. After losing that job, all I could find was a part-time job at Motel 6 for pretty much minimum wage.
That brings us to today. I am cutting my losses and heading to Tallahassee, FL, to stay with relatives and pick up the pieces. I am very hopeful for this change, as I am whenever I make a major change like this in my life. The purpose of this blog is to document how things are going from today on. I'll be interested to see what progresses.
I will start from the beginning. Last August, I moved to Syracuse, NY, from Richmond, VA, to begin life anew. I lived in Richmond for ten years, and I really needed a change; a change in attitude more than anything. You see, I was an angry, bitter, negative person when I living in Va, and 2008 was one of my worst years. In January, my mom died, than my grandmother died two weeks later. That May, my good friend Kevin died unexpectedly. Also that year, I got into a relationship for the first time in three years with someone I knew for a long time and thought she was the one; turns out I was wrong. I also focused too much on the negative aspects of my job that I let it eat me. I let all of these events fester up inside of me and it turned me into a person that nobody really wanted to associate with (and I can't say I blame them). My New Year's resolution in 2009 was to be a positive person. I also read The Secret, and while I am not the kind of person to run around saying a book changed my life, that book changed my life. If you have not read The Secret I highly recommend you do.
Getting back on track, in May of 2009, I completed my MBA and it was time to get a big boy job. I was hired by an insurance agency to work in their Syracuse office. I moved all of my crap up here, took the test, and before I could even get to work I was promptly get go (the only explanation I was ever given was something about part 22a of my contract). Luckily I was hired into another job the same day I was let go. It was doing business marketing for Verizon. FiOS TV was just launching in Syracuse, and they were really pushing to get the word out. It was a contract position, but they kept telling me if it was successful my contract would be renewed. Sure enough it wasn't. Luckily, my contacts in the residential end came through for me and got me a job; too bad I didn't have a fraction of the success as I did with B2B. People in Syracuse have a love affair with Time Warner I do not understand. I would offer this far superior product and people would begin to sing TWC's praises. It was the other way when I was in Va. working for Comcast - people were singing Verizon's praises. I then got hired to sell cars for all of two weeks; people that know me know that I own up to my mistakes and don't deflect blame, but I was setup for failure for this job. After losing that job, all I could find was a part-time job at Motel 6 for pretty much minimum wage.
That brings us to today. I am cutting my losses and heading to Tallahassee, FL, to stay with relatives and pick up the pieces. I am very hopeful for this change, as I am whenever I make a major change like this in my life. The purpose of this blog is to document how things are going from today on. I'll be interested to see what progresses.
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