"I.O.I.F."

“Hello sir, Welcome to Wachovia. How are you doing today?”

“Oh, I’m doing good. It’s Friday.”

Fuck yeah, it’s Friday random stranger guy at the bank. You’ve got the right idea. We should go and get rowdy at some dive bar right now if I didn’t have to go back to work.

I wrote a post sometime back with the idea that you can get away with anything you want on Friday. It’s true. Do whatever non-socially acceptable thing you want to do on Friday and when someone gives you a look of disgust, just smirk and say,

“It’s ok, it’s Friday.”

I have actually brought this philosophy over into my everyday life. I’ll say something crass or make a one-fingered hand gesture at work and they’ll look at me and say,

“Johnny, it’s not Friday.”

I simply reply with, “Everyday is Friday in my world Mother Fucker.”

Well, drop the mofo part and that’s the whole truth.

Since today is really Friday though, I’ve been pondering what I could possibly get away with. Granted, I did arrive 1.5 hours late for work today so I’ve got that going on.

This post was originally supposed to be about my good deed for the “Magazine Man - pay it forward for Haley Joel Osment (he looks like he has down syndrome now) because he died in the movie, because they wanted to fuck with our emotions - crap give away extravaganza fest 2005”

But then again, “It’s ok it’s Friday” will definitely work right about now because I’m drawing a blank about how I’m going to hook someone up. I don’t have a Mercedes to give away and I don’t pack heat in hospitals, so I’ll have to get creative.

Maybe I could do a give away of my own for retribution of what I am(might be) receiving, but then again most the people who read my blog are amazingly, glorious females for some reason and I really don’t have anything that great for such classy ladies. Plus, I don’t have the surplus of C.R.A.P. that Mag Man has acquired over the years.

Any ideas for a good deed, so Johnny C. can get his toy to finally complete his Star Wars Action Figure Collection (well, it’s not the complete set, but it would be the first 48 of the Episode III set, that’s pretty good right?)?

note: 7 weeks without smoking.

"How long...How long..."

I got into a slight argument with a co-worker this morning at work.

It went a little like this:

Co-Worker: (while looking through my Ipod) “You have bad taste in music?”

Johnny C.: “What are you talking about? You don’t even know who half the bands are on my Ipod.”

Co-Worker: “No, because you said U2 sucked.”

Johnny C.: “U2 used to be good, but Bono focuses too much on politics these days, which is a good thing.”

His phone rings and he has to go back to his desk. I make up derogatory lyrics that bash U2 and sing them to the tune of “Vertigo”.

In the 2000 cult classic film High Fidelity that stars John Cusack, Jack Black’s character, Barry says one of the greatest lines to Rob (Cusack) in music movie history.

“Rob, top five musical crimes perpetuated by Stevie Wonder in the '80s and '90s. Go. Sub-question: is it in fact unfair to criticize a formerly great artist for his latter day sins, is it better to burn out or fade away?”

I’ve been laughing at that line for the last 5 years.

So am I being unfair to U2 for their latter day sins? Some people would say so because they don’t believe that U2 can do any wrong. If Bono recorded himself in the bathroom with a case of explosive diarrhea they would purchase the album and go see that “shit” in concert, literally and figuratively speaking.

I need objective opinions in matters like these. I honestly think I am objective on the issue because I do like U2. I don’t think that any of their records are completely awful, but what a great height they have fallen from. Can you seriously compare How to dismantle an atomic bomb to The Joshua Tree, The Unforgettable Fire or even Rattle and Hum? See what I’m talking about?

Now I understand that when a band puts out a record that you need to have an open mind and appreciate their progress, but what about their digression? Am I supposed to sit back and smile pretty while a band goes down hill? I love the Rolling Stones, but do I own their 1995 album Stripped? No, I do not. Why do I not own it? Because it’s not The Rolling Stones to me. It’s old dudes who should’ve retired a long time ago having fun. I give them credit because they’re doing what they love and they’re having a good time doing it.

This is why I continue to support U2. I like them and I like what they used to do, but I’m just not going to pay $100 to go and see them play new material that doesn’t come close to what they were once capable of.

I’m going to go ahead and answer Barry’s question. I think it is unfair to criticize bands for their latter day sins because they’re doing what they love, but I think it is fair to criticize if they don’t know to quit while they’re ahead.

Note: I’d like to hear some opinions on this matter.

Geek Out 2005!

I've been the biggest geek lately, naturally.

A co-worker of mine loves Smallville. I loved Smallville, but was behind with the storyline since I never watch TV. He was gracious enough to lend me Season 3. I watched it over a couple of weekends. Now that season 4 is out I just need to go through those and I'll be good to go.

Since talking about Smallville we've started talking about comic books. Particularly the "Kingdom Come" series where Superman, the rest of The Justice League as well as a slew of other Super Heroes retire due to a new generation of Super Heroes gaining popularity through being ruthless and actually killing all of the bad guys. Along with being ruthless these characters are reckless and fuck up a bunch of shit over a 20 to 40 year period. Superman comes out of retirement and shit gets crazy! Anyway, with all of that said I've been buying comic books again lately. I actually bought the "Kingdom Come" graphic novel and a couple other comics that continue the series.

On top of reading comic books again, I also went to a toy convention on Sunday, by myself. I wanted to see if they had any Ninja Turtle paraphernalia that I didn't have. They didn't deliver. They had a lot of Star Wars and G.I. Joe crap, but most everything was over priced and not that great. I managed to buy my brother's birthday present early this year since they had some Evil Dead Action Figures.

Moving forward, I was recently given two old school handheld video game systems: The Sega Lynx which came out in '89 and a Game Boy Advance. I currently don't have any Game Boy Advance games, but I'm going to be looking on E-bay very soon for those. The Lynx came with about 15 games which include the likes of Rampage! That game used to rule my fucking life. If you're not familiar with this glorious invention of a game, you basically are scientists that turned themselves into monsters and you destroy city blocks! You smash buildings, eat people and destroy everything you can before the buildings come tumbling down. You ladies out there may not appreciate the gloriousness that is Rampage, but i'm sure the guys know what I'm talking about.

I've already covered at least three geeky areas, but it gets worse. Since buying my new Ipod last Friday it has been my mission in life to put as much music as possible on this device. I have managed to upload 9,393 songs thus far. I still have room for at least 5,000 more songs. The only problem with having so much music to listen to is that I never know what to listen to. It's very overwhelming so I usually end up putting it on shuffle and treat it like a radio.

I also bought the car connection for the Ipod so I won't have to listen to the radio anymore or carry CD's with me. The only problem with this is that I'm always fiddling with the damn thing. I learned how to drive in Atlanta so I'm already accustomed to eating, drinking, smoking, talking, exercising and playing shuffle board in the car with ease while I drive, but for some reason this action tends to take my focus off the road more than anything else. I might just need to put it on shuffle when I get in and leave it at that.

Here's to safe driving and rockin' out!

9-5

Holy Shnikes, I'm busy as a MoFo.

Work is kicking my ass and inviting it's friends and loved ones to do so as well. It's obvious I am not fond of my job, but I'm having a good time. I'm not letting BS get to me this week. I pretty much got hosed on a job opportunity, but ironically another one opened up. The manager of the Dept. is actively pursuing me on the position as well. I mentioned that I was interested today and she already spoke with my boss: He gave a thumbs way up recommendation. She also set up a meeting scheduled for tomorrow with the VP of the company to talk over the pro's and con's of me switching roles. She's not messing around.

Whatever may happen with this job, It's nice to finally get appreciated. I wasn't even looking for a new job. I kind of decided after being hated on in a round about way last Friday, that I wasn't going to actively pursue anything here on my own. I was actually inquiring about a position for my roommate when this other position was mentioned to me. I guess the good Lord has other plans for me.

I like not stressing and good things falling into my lap. It strengthens my faith in God and humanity.

A Mind Awake before 8AM.

Man, what's the deal?

During the work week I can barely manage to get myself out of bed before 8AM, but the last two days I've find myself wide awake as the girl goes to work. She leaves to be at work by 7AM and Johnny C. hops up and starts surfing the web shortly after. I was actually going before she left this morning.

I just need some coffee and I'll be good to go. I'm addicted to coffee now. I quit the sticks of certain death and illness and picked up darkness in a cup. I fucking love coffee. The wife(we're not married, but I still call her that) works at Starbucks and I didn't use to take full advantage of it, but now I hook it up like it's going out of business. Shit, I buy coffee anywhere. I don't discriminate.

So what's going on with Johnny C?

I had one of those Fridays where I just wanted to reach my arm out across my desk and with one quick swipe, throw everything to the floor in a crashing heap of destruction that would've only brought semi-relief to my headaches of the work place. I opted not to do that, but to just come home and get drunk at 6PM and play Halo 2 for an hour. Not only did I make the right decision, but it was glorious.

It got kind of weird though, because the next thing I remember The Wifey comes over and I wake up not knowing who she is or where I am. On top of that I'm naked. I quickly come to it and she's slightly amused at the fact that I'm passed out in my bed...naked...at 7PM. I recall getting naked, but not really laying down.

Moving on, we decided to go to Best Buy. I love that fucking store. Not to mention I have a Best Buy Credit Card which is bad news in and of itself, but I like to refer to it as my Club Card Membership. I almost feel like I have to buy something everytime I go there. Isn't it mandatory if you're a club member?

I love walking in and seeing all of my "friends" wearing their blue and yellow polo's. I know they've been waiting all day just to see how I was doing and if they can help me find anything. I let them find me all kinds of things. We talk about the specs of the newest lap top and they show me why HDTV is better than your regular ole' TV set. I don't know what I would do without them.

I made the decision though to upgarde my ipod. I had a 20g ipod, but came to the conclusion that it wasn't big enough for me. I managed to sell it to my part-time guy at work for $200. He wanted to buy an ipod nano for the same price. $200 for 1000 songs!?! Sounds like Bull Shit to me. I would much rather buy a used ipod from a friend for the same price, but get 5000 songs. I'm hooking him up on Monday.

I got the BAMF POD. They actually write that on the box of the new ones. The "Bad Ass Mother Fucker" 60g IPOD! The week I was in LA I was with my bestfriend who recently got a 60g and I realized what I was lacking in my life, only having a 20g. I knew I had to make the switch when I got home. So here I sit with 60g's of hard drive space in my face(I had to write that).

Who knows what I'll put on it. Shit, I can even put wacky pictures of Magazine Man playing with his kids on it if I want. That's right, it's a Goddamn photo album too. I might even start doing an ipod photo picture of the week.

Send me your pictures and i'll show the world. (I'm only partially joking).

Kevin, send me a picture with you and your ipod and other Mac products and it'll grace my page. Elaine, you and the diet soda could be on here as well. Sandra, a picture of you rocking out to the Beastie Boys would fit nicely. We could even have a caption that says, "The Sheriff is after me for what I did to his daughter". KFarmer, with the Half Naked Pictures you put on your site who knows what we could conjure up over here at A Mind Awake.

Anyway, I need some coffee.



note to self: Don't make blog entry's before 9AM. People might realize you're a little OOC sometimes. (OOC means fucking out of control. When you say OOC the F-word is silent.)

Smoke Free: Week 6

I can't believe it's been 6 weeks since my last cigarette.

Here are my pro's to kicking the habit:

-I can breathe
-My chest is not constantly hurting
-I'm saving some $$$
-I'm not constantly sick anymore, it really affected me in alot of ways
-I don't smell like a camp fire
-I can move at a fast pace without being winded
-I can drink more since my blood isn't so thin anymore
-My Hypoglycemia isn't as bad
-I don't have to prop up with a couple pillows to sleep at night
-Clear Sinuses
-I'm not killing myself on a daily basis

Here are the cons:

-Johnny Cash smoked - he's my hero
-James Dean smoked - he was the king of cool
-I don't have much to do while I play cards
-Most of my friends smoke
-No more cool lighter tricks
-I have to find a new stress reliever
-I can't ask cute girls for a light anymore
-I can't give cute girls a light anymore

Yeah, the cons are pretty fucking stupid.

I can't wait for it to be 6 years!

I think probably the strangest part about quitting the death sticks is the fact that I dream about smoking all the time. It's the oddest thing. I'll be hanging out with friends in a dream and i'll decide to start smoking again. When I wake up, I'll think about what happened and always be relieved because it was only a dream.

How sick is that to be dreaming about a bad habit?

At least I get to smoke in my dreams.

My dreams are smoking!

Yeah, sorry about that. I'll stop now.

Be cool.

Be cool.

These are two simple words that can change everything. They make the difference between Richie Cunningham and The Fonz on Happy Days. For some reason though, so many people have trouble “being cool”. There are two different types of cool though, but they are directly connected.

The Wikipedia definition of cool is my first example of what it means to “be cool”.

Cool has its roots in Middle English "cole", from Old English "col" and indicates aloofness, composure and absence of excitement in a person, especially in times of stress.

This hits the nail on the head! “Absence of excitement in times of stress”, Richie Cunningham was always over excited about most stressful situations. Whether he was going on a date with a girl or had gotten himself in some sort of bind with his parents or his peers. The legacy of his spastic mannerisms still lives on today through out a vast majority of men.

While The Fonz never had such issues, he saw situations for what they were and changed the reality of them through deep composure. I’m sure he wanted to flip out, but there was nothing to be gained by losing his head. Granted Happy Days was a TV show, but there are still lessons that we can learn from Henry Winkler’s character still to this day.

On Dictionary.com, found under the slang section, the word cool means “excellent” and “first rate”. People wear cool clothes and drive cool cars. In a lot of cases people who tend to “be cool” have “cool” possessions. Don’t be led astray though, you do not need to possess one form of cool to achieve the other. “Cool” can be purchased while “being cool” can only be acquired.

Some people find it very to difficult to “be cool”. Being cool is a very methodical process at first, but once learned it becomes second nature. Those who understand how to “be cool” take on a Zack Morris like quality, which is possibly supernatural. If you do not know who Zach Morris is, then uh, go here .

Zack Morris had the ability to stop time. He was not a super hero and he didn’t stop time the way Super Man did by flying around the earth at light speeds(He actually rewound time, but you get the idea.). He would merely say “time out” and everything would stop and he would think about what was taking place. He would then implement his action plan for “being cool” and fix the situation at hand by doing so. He was a modern day Fonzi.

Now you might be thinking that “being cool” only relates to getting girls/guys or getting out of scams and schemes that high school kids and those who still hang around with high school kids get them selves into. This is completely not true, but just a very large part of it. We know this because until you’re married a very large part of your life is focused on the opposite sex and how to make them (have sex with you) swoon and sway, which is usually why they were pulling these schemes and scams in the first place.


Impressing the opposite sex by being cool, calm and collected is only the ground floor of this state of mind. This is how you know that “being cool” is definitely more substantial than owning “cool” possessions.

The purest form of “being cool” is not actually even caring about impressing the opposite sex. It’s more spiritual than that. I would almost have to tie it in with Buddhism because it is Zen-like. It is being at peace with every thing around you and being able to control certain circumstances that aren’t even within your grasp to control. Yet you own them through your response and not your reaction.

If you haven’t caught on to what I’m talking about by now I’m going to give it one last try.


Here it is:

If “being cool” just to land hot girls is your motivation then your status is a Padawan Learner, but if your mind says “be cool” just for the sake of “being cool” then you’re fucking Yoda.

"You're fired!"

I quote the movie Office Space all the time as well as some other classic films that I feel I can relate too.

High Fidelity, Swingers and Old School are just a few of my quotable favorites. Most the time when quoting these films it’s for comic relief and satire, but rarely does it describe the almost exact truth to a situation that has occurred, until yesterday.

Here’s the quote from Office Space.

“Milt, we're gonna need to go ahead and move you downstairs into storage B. We have some new people coming in, and we need all the space we can get. So if you could go ahead and pack up your stuff and move it down there, that would be terrific, OK?”





Sick huh? My fellow co-worker wasn’t moved to the basement. Possibly even worse, he was moved into another office with another co-worker who will be leaving our company on the same day. The man with the office quit due to not being promoted to his rightful position. The other man was forced out of the company by the leadership that was put in place after we bought out their company because they just wanted to put one of their guys in his place.

Not only did he lose his job to someone less qualified to him, but he has to give the guy his office before he even is out the door. They couldn’t even wait two weeks?

That’s cold-blooded.

Yes my friends, we bought them. Now we are all being fired or demoted while they are being promoted into positions that we were once promised. The corporate world is a cruel one. I myself actually work for the other company now on paper.

I’m not upset or having any “going postal” type feelings regarding the latest events, but it’s just heart-breaking to work your ass off and have someone else take the glory or the position that you earned. I’ve always been a behind the scenes type of guy when it came to receiving credit for a job well done, but hey, at least let me work the position that I earned, right?

I’m bummed out for my co-workers who got the shaft though.

I know that everything happens for a reason. However you want to say it.

“You reap what you sow. “

“What goes around comes around.”

“Karma’s a bitch.”

Something we all learn though, life isn’t fair and politics will be apart of the big picture until we die.


And I thought it ended with high school basketball.

My ass got tagged!

KFarmer tagged me on this quite a while ago and this is the first time I can hook it up. So here it goes!


10 years ago: I was 14. Haha! How great! I was coming off of a fun filled summer where I had decided to become a Christian on my own accord. Man, I was beaming. I had a new lease on life and things were great. We had probably just started basketball practice at school and I was on JV and Varsity as a freshman. I started JV and was 6th man on Varsity. I ended up being the League MVP on JV and had a great time playing Varsity ball. I also landed my first girlfriend and we dated for 7 months. I kissed her once. I was afraid of girls back then.


5 years ago: I started off the year working my first professional/career type job doing marketing shipping for the same company I actually work for now. I closed the year doing sales for another company within the company. I was young and didn’t know what the hell I was doing, but was I blessed with people who believed in me and gave me some nice opportunities. I also dated my first redhead and played in a short lived rock n’ roll band.


1 Year ago: I was in California working the same conference I just got home from. I was dating the same girl I am now and things weren’t much different. I better make this year a little more memorable. I guess in the last year I have traveled some. I’ve gotten a lot better at poker and Halo 2 has come out. I think I’ve become a better reader though and hopefully a better writer. I’d like to move in a stronger direction career wise though. Those wheels are slowly turning as we speak though.


Yesterday: I woke up at 6:20AM and went to the airport in Palm Desert, CA. We flew to Salt Lake City and I met an ex-Mormon on the flight. We talked about business opportunities, how many times he’s been married and Casinos. A few of my co-workers and I played poker while waiting to board our flight to Atlanta. I won $30. Our flight back to Atlanta was quick and we watched Mr. and Mrs. Smith on the plane. They blew a lot of shit up, but it was boring at points and always predictable, but it was a great arena to showcase Brad and Angelina’s sexual relationship.


Five songs I know all the words to: Johnny Cash – Drive on, Johnny Cash – If I give my soul, Johnny Cash – Ring of Fire, Johnny Cash – Walk the line, Johnny Cash Folsom Prison Blues

5 Snacks: Keep in mind I can’t eat sugar. Fruit and juice. Almonds and other assorted nuts. Sugar-free Ice Cream. Chips and crackers are always good. Sugar Free Candy.

5 Things I'd do w/ $100 million dollars: Pay off the family farm. Just kidding. I would pay off all of our debts though. I would probably give everyone money yearly so that I could keep all the money together for interest purposes. I would travel a lot and donate a good portion to charities that I felt would make a positive difference.

5 places I would run away to: Ireland, England, Norway, Did I already say Ireland? Australia would rule.

5 things I would never wear: Lugz Boots – They’re for G-funks. A wind suit, Birkenstock sandals, Tapered jeans, khaki cargo shorts.

5 favorite TV shows: The Soprano’s, Scrubs, Curb Your Enthusiasm and Arrested Development.
5 greatest joys: Spiritual Connections, Friends and Family, Music, Books and beer/poker.

5 favorite toys: ipod, computer, Xbox, Ninja Turtles and Star Wars

I'm going to add one.

5 Favorite Movies: IT's hard toi pick just 5. I like to pick favorites from a category, but I'll just throw some in here that I like alot. Pulp Fiction, Fight Club,28 Days Later,American Pyscho,Sin City was pretty radical. I'll put that one on the list.

I guess I should tag some other people. I never do these things, but why not. Let's see if I can get some Blog respect here.

I pick Kevin Apgar,Sandra at internalmonoblog, Elaine who loves Diet Soda and Nicole at Notes from the Cave if she isn't too busy moving.

Don't feel obligated if you guys don't want to do it. Haha

Guess who's back?

I have been gone a long time. 12 days doesn't seem long, but when you're living out of your suitcase it gets tiring. I have no idea where to begin about this trip, but since I'm exhausted and I don't feel like telling stories i'll just fill you in on somethings i've done in the last 12 days.

I've been to L.A.,Palm Desert,Vegas and even Salt Lake City.

I played cards in Casino's.

I watched girls (kind of) strip badly.

I saw Dee Snider and Joe Walsh rock out.

I met a porn star.

I helped sell over $300K in sales training material.

I got kicked out of a swimming pool.

I went hiking.

I went swimming in a waterfall pool.

I drank too much and ate awesome food.

I met a mormon.

I ate at In n' Out Burger.

I got hit on in an elevator by skanky California girls.

I saw tumble weed.

I rocked harder than ever with my bestfriend.

I'm not going to get a day of rest after these 12 days. I have to be at work bright and early tomorrow unfortunately. I'll be back to blog reading soon.

It's good to be home!

Listed M.I.A.

Palm Desert California is hot, but I wouldn't know because i'm inside all day working a conference.

I'm sitting behind the product table typing this as I (type) speak.


I fly home on Sunday.

I'll have plenty to write about then.

For those of you commenting. I am drinking and it makes the 12 hour days more bearable.

MM, I know you didn' forget about me. I've waited this long. A couple more weeks won't hurt. Thanks again!

Vegas Baby, Vegas.

Yesterday afternoon my bestfriend Ray and I drove to Las Vegas. It was only about a 4 hour drive from LA. I enjoyed driving through the Mojave Desert. I've always wanted to drive through the desert at night listening to Johnny Cash and other old country favorites. I settled for driving through the day.

Once we got to Vegas we just walked around and checked out alot of the different casinos. I did a little research to see which Casino had the cheapest buy-in for a No Limit Hold Em' game. The MGM won me over with only a $40 buy-in.

It's true what they say, "What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas."

Do You know what "happens" in Vegas though? People turn their money into poker chips and you're money "stays" in Vegas.

$40 was the minimum buy-in. I came to the table the low stack and didn't last long. No sob story though. I was bothered about it, but I was just glad to see the place finally. We hung out a little longer after the loss and went stayed at a friends house for the night.

Las Vegas is such an interesting place though. People know the reputation and it draws them in. It is becoming more of a family place though. I guess that's good, right? Hookers, gambling and video games for the kiddies. Sounds like a good family vacation. They're only missing Mickey Mouse and they would be doing alright.

They're celebrating their 100th anniversary this year. Happy Birthday Sin City! I wonder what will become of you though? I wonder if people will look back in a couple hundred years and wonder what the point of Vegas was and why people flocked there?

Solomon said it best though, "There is nothing new under the sun."

I'm sure future generations will understand though and keep the place alive.

What the hell is my problem though? Why did I spend my time in Vegas over analyzing everything instead of getting wasted!?!

Maybe next time.

Anyway,I'm back in LA now. I'll make up for it tonight.

Cheers!

Born on the Bayou

When I hear the voice of John Fogerty I am catapulted back to my childhood. You might be thinking, “Johnny, you were born in 1981.” This is true, but my Dad raised my brother and I on CCR (John Fogerty), Bob Dylan and Paul Simon. I knew all of the lyrics to Paul Simon’s Graceland by the time I was 10. I can even make all of the African grunting and chanting noises that were on that record, my whole family can.

I bought that album on CD not to long ago and it still amazes people when they get in my car that I can make those noises. Every once in a while I come across another Paul Simon fan that’s my age and we grunt and chant together. If you know what i'm talking about, then you know what i'm talking about.

Back to CCR though, I was at work the other day listening to “Bad Moon” rising when I started thinking about the lyrics of this song. It really creeped me out, due to the recent events with the hurricane hitting New Orleans and the flooding it almost sounds like a prophetic message from the lips of John Fogerty.


I see the bad moon arising.
I see trouble on the way.
I see earthquakes and lightnin’.
I see bad times today.


Don’t go around tonight,
Well, it’s bound to take your life,
There’s a bad moon on the rise.

I hear hurricanes ablowing.
I know the end is coming soon.
I fear rivers over flowing.
I hear the voice of rage and ruin.

Now those lyrics sound very vague and general to every hurricane in a sense, but at the same time CCR was known for their swamp rock. So my mind makes the direct connection with New Orleans.

Who knows what will happen to New Orleans? Will it ever be the same again? Probably not, but I wouldn't write the city off as a total loss just yet. People are very good at making comebacks and with the heritage and history there I think it will come back strong, in time of course. They must first heal.

Maybe I'm just young, but it seems like disasters - natural and man made haven't been so few and far between lately.

I'm sure alot of people are freaking out and blaming it on end times. Maybe we are nearing the end, but maybe we're just not paying attention to the signs of life. There are warnings out there telling us to be cautious and pay attention. Maybe we have just gotten so lofty and prideful in our mindsets that we keep forgetting to check the oil every once in a while.

Hopefully, we can learn from these situations and signs about life and stop and think about what's going on around us from time to time, instead of having full blown chaos stop us in our tracks and do it for us.

City of Angels

I woke up this morning in Los Angeles. Yesterday was so long and exhausting that it was kind of a blur. I do this thing where when I'm in a situation that is hard or boring and I just imagine when I'll be in the future looking back at that moment thinking to myself,

"Man, remember that? I'm glad that's over."

The last couple of weeks have had a few days like that. Those days are over for a while though. now I'm on vacation in L.A. with my best friend. It doesn't get much better than this.

Well, it actually does. We're going to Vegas tomorrow. I've never been to Vegas before and now I get the chance. I like it when it's my turn to do things. I've had alot of turns to do things. I'm glad God has blessed me to be able to travel as much as I have in my short life. The greatest part about it is that I usually get to do everything for free whether it's for a mission based trip or for work.

The only thing I don't like about travelling is probably the travelling part. I really don't like to fly in airplanes. Everytime I get on one of those things I just fear that something is going to go wrong and i'm going to die. I kind of have a death complex. I think I'm getting better about it, but it's kind of sadistic and I need to lose it somewhere along the way. I also have a wandering mind so when I get in a situation where I'm afraid I fear the worst and my mind is pretty good at making up some outlandish scenarios to help further my fear. I do what I can though. I read books. I listen to music and I pray alot.

When I pray when i'm fearful I know God's listening. It makes me feel bad though because it's only in times like that that I really knuckle down and pray because I don't want to die. I think all of us have that in us somewhat. I was thinking to myself yesterday when I was praying so much for safety, "God sees right through this." I wonder how many false promises have been made to God when people fear death. I bet it's insane. God is good though and I think anytime He hears his people He gets excited. You have to start somewhere with God right? Why not in a piece of metal at 36,000 ft.? I know i'm thankful I got here safely. Now I just need to work on praying more when everything is just A-ok. I think He probably likes that the best.

The next five days look like they're going to be alot of fun. Ray, my best friend has to work today, but after that it's going to be 4 days of craziness. I'm not sure what the agenda even looks like other than Vegas and meeting up with another old friend this weekend, but Ray and I could have a good time anywhere. It doesn't really matter what we do, there will be plenty of jokes and smiles.

I met Ray back when we were little kids. In October of '89, I was 8 and he was 10. We've always been friends for the most part, but we got really close right before I moved to GA back in '97. We both grew up in KY and I think we realized that we had taken our relationship for granted when it was time for me to move. We haven't lived in the same state for over 8 years now, but I talk to him more than best friends I have in GA. For some reason or another the distance has made us better friends. You know you really have a good friend when you talk atleast 3 days a week and they live 2,000 miles away. It's good to have best friends.

My body is telling me it's 11:50 AM, but the clock only reads 8:50 AM. Is it too early for In n' Out burger?

Long Weekend.

It has truly felt like a long weekend. I wrote a post this weekend, but lost it by hitting control + V instead of control + C on accident. It made me so mad that I didn't even look at blogs for the next two days. Anyway, Katey and I had some fun with the camera this weekend. We're a bit ridiculous at times.

I leave for California in two days. I'm looking forward to spending time with my bestfriend. I think we're going to Vegas this weekend. We'll see how it goes.

Mean, Green, Fighting Machine!

I will get back to actually posting real content someday. Until then, enjoy Don and his Mac 10.

(cowabunga mother fucker!)