"What'd Ya Do This Weekend?....." "Ahh Nuthin, You?"

The past weekend was quite dull. A good one, but not much happened. A great one actually.

Friday night was the usual...went to the spot with my friend from work. Came home relatively early - his girlfriend was in from out of town. They weren't much into helping the place close down.

Saturday was great. I sat around and did absolutely nothing all day long. I laid on the couch and just relaxed - all day. Then Saturday night A and I went to a Mexican restaurant nearby to meet a couple of friends for dinner. The Mexican place had this damn draft beer that was as big as a house, and I drank one. After that we headed over to a local hamburger joint/bar for a drink. Then we went back to our place and played caps (beer game).

Sunday again I laid around and did absolutely nothing. Are you getting the picture? It was awesome. I took advantage of the Netflix program and watched two very mediocre movies. The first one was Sideways. It was terrible in my opinion, but A kind of liked it. One of the main stars was the guy who played the dumb mechanic on the USA sitcom Wings. After that we ate lunch, yes at a Mexican restaurant but not the same one. Sunday afternoon we came back here and continued our favorite weekend activity - nothing. During our nothingness, we watched another movie titled The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou. It was very quirky, too long, and was about mostly nothing - but for some reason I kind of liked it. I gave it three stars on the one to five Netflix rating scale. Anyway, after that it was back to doing nothing.

Weekend's like this one definitely reduce the amount of time one must spend at the water cooler. Now - back to getting more antioxidants.......

A Java Good Cup Of Joe

Coffee is good for you! ...like words from heaven raining down on my mug.

Wired reports a study was released Sunday revealing Americans get more antioxidants from coffee than any other food we eat. Joe A. Vinson, at the University of Scranton is one cool cat in my book. There have also been other related studies which hint at a link between reducing the risk of contracting diseases such as diabetes and cancer in people who drink coffee every day.

So all you coffee drinkers out there, myself included, get some water in the coffee maker, put in your favorite ground, and hit the on switch - it'll help you live longer - and get through the mornings.

The article can be found by clicking here

Ode To Ale

One of the presents I recently received - see my previous post - was a book titled "The Beer Drinker's Bible" by Gregg Smith and Carrie Getty. Upon getting home tonight I was browsing through the pages and looking at all sorts of neat stuff about my favorite liquid. A couple of quotes worth repeating...

Humphrey Bogart said "The problem with the world is that everybody is three drinks behind."

"Most people hate the taste of beer - to begin with. It is, however, a prejudice that many have been able to overcome." - Winston Churchill

"There are more old drunkards than there are old doctors." - Benjamin Franklin

"Ale...to Beef what Eve was to Adam." - George Meredith

"Work is the curse of the drinking classes." - Oscar Wilde

And finally as I draw a close to this silly post, "I think this would be a good time for a beer." Or so said FDR on the repeal of Prohibition in 1933.

One Trip Older

Well, another trip around the sun is under my belt. Each is different in every way except they all seem to go by faster than did the previous one. Go figure. Happy Birthday me!

At my age, now past all the 'exciting' birthdays, yes, even the one that supposedly reduces insurance rates, there really isn't that much exciting about a birthday. The best treat of the day was that I got to speak with my family and several friends all in one day. Oh hell, who am I kidding? The best part of the birthday will always be the presents! No offense family and friends, of course. So, let's try to sum up what all I have received from those wonderful family and friends...

My lovely Weaver-Cave-Mountain-Mom gave me two polo shirts from Land's End, a red one and a blue one - and another package is en route (one of the joys of living far off). These were awesome and fit perfectly. Thanks Mom. Then there was the "On Bullshit" book from my sister and brother-in-law. They sent it along with one titled "Conspiracy Of Fools" which is about the Enron scandal. Wonder if she's trying to send a message? They also got me a blue polo shirt. It's great and it fits perfectly too. Hey, you can never have enough work shirts. Grandmother and Dad both sent great cards - thanks guys. I also received a book in the mail at work today. I had no idea what it was as I rarely receive any packages at work. This one was from one of our other facilities, and came without any hint as to who it was from. However, given that I know who works where it came from, I think I know who sent it. At any rate, the name of the book is "The Leadership Challenge." It's supposed to be one of the leading (no pun intended) books on leadership. The ironic thing - the guy has no idea today was my birthday. Now to A. A is giving me a golf bag I am to pick out this weekend, and she made a collage with pictures of us at one of my alma mater's football games too. One of the pics we took while in the stands and it is absolutely cool - she had it blown up. Then tonight she also gave me a printout of some other things she and her parents - Dr. J and Miss P - are giving me. I say printout because they are en route. They are two Goose Creek Symphony CDs, one Little Feat CD, and a book titled "The Beer Drinker's Bible." Thanks so much guys - you're AWESOME! Let's see, who/what am I forgetting? I think that's it, but if I've left anyone out please don't be offended. Just send me another present and I'll be sure to blog it. (that was supposed to be funny)

Last weekend was a blur, but to sum up A and I went went to her home town to visit her family and friends. We met up wth the fam in a nearby bigger city and did some shopping and ate lunch. After which we split up and visited friends who lived in the city. Then off to her hometown to visit family and eat dinner. Then off to a hometown friend's lakehouse to play fun games and watch scary movies. Spent the night. Woke up early feeling absolutely wonderful. (P.S. don't try to do number two in a toilet with very little water pressure - it doesn't work very well) Then we headed back to A's house to visit family and then we all ate lunch at a great home-cooking style restaurant. After that we jumped in the car and made the drive back home. Sunday night we sat around and watched a Netflix movie - Million Dollar Baby, which I thought was great, but a bit sad for a Sunday nighter. Then I caught that program on the Discovery Channel they had been advertising called Amazon Abyss which was WAY cool. And that was about it. I fell asleep trying to stay up to finish it.

And now, the work week has begun, my birthday was today (or actually yesterday because it is 1 am Wednesday), and tomorrow is hump day. Like I said, it's been a blur the last few days, and once again I'm sitting here trying to recall the whole year.

18 Holes & Two Crappy Movies

The title pretty much sums up the weekend....

Saturday morning we just laid around the house and didn't do much at all. I played banjo while she made a scrapbook. Earlier, she had gone to the grocery store and bought all kinds of wonderful food - so we ate lunch here. At around 1 pm we were getting bored and I decided I wanted to play golf. She said it would be fun if she drove the cart - and that's what we did. Although A couldn't drive a golf cart on a straight line headed for the broad side of a parking lot, we made it off the course without hitting water or sand...I was pleased. :)

Saturday night we watched two of the Netflix movies we received this week. Alexander, and Guess Who.. I didn't like either one of them. Alexander was just too darned long and skipped around all over the place and the plot never really developed, he just died. Guess Who would have been a decent flick except for the fact that I'd already heard what was going to happen and about all the funny parts from those extremely annoying types of people who love to repeat every single scene of the movie they've just seen that you have not. Aarrgh. At any rate, on Netflix's 1 star to 5 rating system I gave Alexander a two star rating (didn't like it) and Guess Who a three star rating (liked it).

OH yeah, the title doesn't sum up the weekend. I left out Sunday afternoon's beer-drinking festivities. We of course headed downtown to the spot and had a great time watching all the people dressed up like you-know-who. Afterwards we headed for some great food on the strip and more people-watching, and then we came back home. So while Sunday's activities didn't win a spot in the title, we did have fun.

That's the weekend: 18 holes & two crappy movies - and a couple of three or four beers.

Beware Of The Penguins

Now this, is what I call humor. At first glance one would think it is just another office, probably that of some type of techie company. Then, you find out it is a Microsoft Office.

For those of you who aren't familiar with Linux, those three penguins up there are the Linux mascots. Making you smile yet?

The reality of this situation is that Microsoft has been studying Linux for some time now in another attempt to rip off someone else's good idea, put a half-assed version of it in their next OS, and then patent it to the point that the person/people who came up with the idea now have to pay to use it. (Yep, that pretty much sums up Microsoft - in my humble opinion.) This picture comes from the office of the people who are studying Linux for Microsoft - and can be found on CNET's news.com.

Busy In The A.M.

I guess it all started last night when I fell asleep watching my recorded Braves game - which they lost by the way.

At any rate, I didn't get into my real bed until after 3 am. At around 10 am A opens the door to the bedroom from getting ready to say she was about to leave. This in itself is quite odd because I am usually up by 9 am. So A goes down to her car and I hear a noise indicating the car wasn't in the mood to start.

I started to make my way down to the parking lot when she met me and said she thought she was out of gas. After several tries I finally ended up getting her car to start, and after debating for a minute whether or not to risk getting her car to a gas station, I decided we should try it. We did, she made it, and now I'm back home. All in a day's work, right? I find it ironic that A would ever run out of GAS!

When I got home I did my usual Web tour, got my fantasy baseball team squared away, read email, and then began to start reading my news feeds. I was reading one about the blogging on Iraq, and was drawn to follow one of the links. It happened to be a blog I already read ocassionally.

This one has an interesting story. The way I came to read this particular blog, Tell Me A Secret, was from another great blog about Baghdad named Baghdad Burning. The girl who writes Baghdad Burning is an acquaintance of the guy who writes Tell Me a Secret. She was informed he had been detained and posted it on her blog. When he was released, he posted the whole story on Tell Me a Secret. I'd encourage everyone to read it.

So, that's been my morning thus far and my work day hasn't even started! Good news....I just got a beep on my Nextel and someone from work was asking what I wanted from Rafferty's as they are bringing in food for the managment team. Now that is sweet.

Movies By Mail, The Duke Boys, And A New Set Of Clubs - Oh My

I like Netflix; Netflix, Netflix, Netflix.

I have a personal ban on the big bad blue and yellow movie rental empire whom I refuse to name here on this valuable Web space. Enter Netflix. The wonderful Web-based hassle free no late fee unlimited movie rental by mail service. It's great, what can I say - and at $18 a month you can't beat it.

No late fees? "Yes sir, we have done away with late fees. Now we charge you for the whole damn movie if its 20 minutes late, and we call it a re-stocking fee." If you really want to get a rise out of your local ballbuster movie clerk ask him or her if you get a 're-stocking' fee imposed on you if the movie is returned on time. When the clerk replies, "of course not, it's a re-stocking fee," ask them why they don't put movies back on the shelf when they are brought back on time. You'll get a funny look, to say the least. Then they'll get it, and try to impose an 'annoying customer' fee on you. At that point ask them what the hell a late fee is - and see if they can tell you the difference. It's amusing.

Speaking of movies, A and I saw The Dukes of Hazzard movie just released. Now, being a kid in the southern part of the country I grew up loving what I used to call "the Duke boys." Rosco was hilarious, J.D. Hogg was plain ol' bad, and the good ol' boys were unbeatable. And Daisy was, well...the one who invented Daisy Dukes. The new movie is a fun show. There are some great chase scenes, funny dialogues, and great get down and dirty fights. However, and this is a big however, there are some significant differences between the original show and the new movie. Namely the characters' personalities and the roles they play. Good movie, but no Bo and Luke Duke original. YeeHaw!

Also over the weekend I got a new set of irons - golf clubs that is. I've been saving up for a while now to get some newer irons than what I previously used. My old clubs are literally older than I am, and they don't call woods woods because they used to be made out of metal - they are actually wooden. So, I played my Nike Slingshot irons yesterday (Sunday) for the first time during a round with some work friends - and then I went to the driving range this morning in an attempt to further get used to them. If you're a golfer, I'd recommend this club to anyone. They feel great, are very forgiving, and the price on these babies is WAY below that of Calloway's irons. I'm finding that a new set of clubs is almost like a new car. You'll make up all kinds of excuses in order to get out and play with your new toy.

It's great to be a big kid....ain't it?

John Wayne, Sharks, & Mullets

This has thus far been a very challenging week. I am faced with quite a big decision as to what direction I want to go in my career.

Basically there were two options. The first was to stay here and wait for all the promises I keep receiving to come to fruition. This in itself is a gamble as the VP who is making these promises is rumored to be here only for a short while until the facility I work in gets up on its feet. Furthermore, the city this facility happens to be in is a place I am ready to leave, and I mean READY. On top of all that, A is leaving this city despite what promises get kept concerning my advancement here.

The second option was to take a shot at a different division of our company - in which I have another promising opportunity. The job will be 100% project based and I will have no direct reports, yet the company sees it as a higher job grade than what I am in now. Perfect, right? It will also require me to relocate to an area that looks quite appealing at this point.

It has been pretty difficult. I at first had my mind made up after speaking with a couple of people whom I trust and are aware of my situation. Then I took the plunge and spoke with my manager. He of course tried to talk me out of it and said the position I want to go to will "stagnate my career." (I know, but that's what he said) Then it just so happened that my VP was still in the office as well, and he 'just wanted to talk' to me about 20 minutes after I told my boss. He calls me in, says, "I just want you to know how impressed I am with your work." I asked if he had spoken with my boss in the last 20 minutes or so, his response was no....I am not fully convinced. At any rate, I told him my situation and that I planned to take a shot at this opportunity and he of course leveraged his position and said that he would take me places and that I would lose a good relationship with him and that it would be hard to get out of this other division at the end of my two year commitment.

Now this VP is a man I respect immensely. He is the sole reason back in college that I came to the company in the first place. This guy could write the book on motivation and he really makes people want to work for him. And let's face it, I enjoy the guy's company as well. So needless to say his statements threw a wrench in my easy decision. But, after a lot of headaches, heartaches, knotted stomachs, and antacid I've stuck to my guns and am going to give this new opportunity a shot.

I'm proud of myself, and I don't know if this is the right decision, but it is what I think is best right now and damn it, I'm going for it. How do we ever know if a decision is the right one? A guy who has been my mentor for some while made this exact move about 8 months ago. I told him my situation and after considering what the VP told me I called him the next evening. He told me he was proud of me and said there aren't many John Waynes left in this world, but it's good to know there are a few willing to sacrifice guaranteed success and ladder-climbing conformity for something not so guaranteed. A 'John Wayne' is the guy who gets in the saddle and takes off into an unknown wilderness despite others' better judgments and comes back beaten-down, tired, broken-ribbed, scathed.....and ready to do it all over again because that's what he does. He's good at it, and now he's even better because he's survived yet again.

A wise man recently told me that all the people in the world can be classified into two groups: Sharks and Mullets. Now we all know what a Shark is: a predator, aggressive, and free; he's the baddest dude in the deep blue. A Mullet is defined by the Oxford American Dictionary as being a "marine fish that is widely caught for food."

I know which one I am. Here's to John Wayne and all the Sharks out there.

I Must Be Missing Something...

Am I the only one who finds it questionable that the U.S. government is sponsoring teams in NASCAR?

What's a couple of million for a lap around the track when added to billions in defense spending?

The Weekend Highlight Reel & A Broke-Down Baseball Hero

You know, there wasn't much interesting that happened over the weekend, so I think I'll skip this one. Although, there are a few highlights worth mentioning:

-Got a new driver (golf club for those non-golfers out there)
-Got new golf shoes; hey, they were on sale
-Drank beer with a friend I haven't hung out with in a while
-Ate at P.F. Chang's with A - KUNG PAO
-Went to the spot on Friday night
-Heard an interesting tazer story from A (yes, I said tazer)
-Had to work for a couple of hours on Saturday

Quick enough? I thought so. I tell you though, If I could get A to post that damn tazer story we'd all get a laugh. But, I'll let her do it and we'll wait for it, O.K, A? Let's all keep checking QuesoSayso for the story.

Some bad news I read this morning about one of my long-time favorite baseball players, Rafael Palmeiro. I've enjoyed watching him play tirelessly since I was young, and have always admired him for his 'love of the game.' However, this morning I found out all that was just a mirage. He, despite having defiantly blasted out that he had indeed NOT taken steroids, was found to be taking them yesterday via the MLB drug testing. If you're not a baseball fan I guess it is hard to relate, but I am a fan and I've been one forever. When one of the 'good guys' falls it's kind of like finding out Luke Skywalker's dad is Darth Vader - hard to swallow.

The thing that makes this one seem so much worse than the others is that for a long time Palmeiro has been viewed as one of the game's greats, a guy that would never dream of harming the integrity of the game, and would speak out on topics such as these. He's the guy you'd see doing charity and whatnot.

I guess I expected too much out of the old ballplayer who appeared in the Viagra commercials. To hell with him, and to hell with any baseball player who inspires so many people on and off the field for his integrity and ability, and then goes off and cheats everything he is admired for.