I have just started to make my give-aways for camp this year. I have several good size bead projects that I am going to make. I just have so much to do every day between karate, give-aways, work, cleaning the house, and most importantly spending quality time with wife and kids.
I do love to do the bead work though. It is nice to just do some handwork instead of mind work. Still it is hard because I have to keep it away from Strider. He has a tendency to be able to spill the messiest of projects.
The bead projects are also good because each piece is for someone personally, and I think about them almost constantly while doing it. It is good to be able to put those positive memories in each piece, knowing that they come from my heart as well as my time.
I will post pictures when I finish each one.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Mel's birthday
Today is Mel's birthday, I let her sleep-in a little. Although it wasn't until I all my winter gear on and the dogs ready for their morning walk (it was -2 degrees!) that I remembered. I had planned on going back upstairs to make sure she was up before I left, but I thought a "Happy birthday, now get up and clean the closet and the craft room" might just not be a good way to start the day.
I was ice cold when I came back in so after I fed the dogs and took off my gear I went back upstairs and climbed into bed trying to warm up. In about 10 minutes the boys alarm went off and we listened to them get up and start getting ready.
I pulled out a bag from under the bed that contained her other presents. The first one I gave her at her party a week and a half ago. As she unwrapped the undies and bra from Victoria's Secret, I explained how embarrassed the boys were in the store when we were buying them. She said she may want to exchange the bra to get it in black instead of tan because she already has a tan, but she said she may just keep it and buy another. I guarantee that she won't exchange it and she would never go buy a new one. I have never known anyone who hates to spend money on herself as much as she does. I am so lucky, because she keeps my spending in check and spends close to zero on herself.
Monday, January 29, 2007
Starting a resolution a little late
Mel and I have come to the conclusion that we are lazy and unmotivated, that there are small things in our lives that can easily be controlled and are not. Therefore as of yesterday, we are going to be more organized!!
Starting off by getting up at 5am and not hitting the snooze button at all. This is a big step for me, I always have ambitious goals for the morning and am likely to hit the snooze button so many times that there is not enough time to do anything.
Going small at first I am going to run through my karate moves doing my combinations and forms one day and my kempos and grabs the next. After this, I will take two of our dogs for a walk, trying to get them under submission, and get some exercise. This is also tricky, yesterday was 10 degrees and snowing, and today was 15 degrees and a small but bitting wind. The dogs enjoy it none the less.
I am also trying to put a lot more in my PDA, just as reminders for what needs to be done. I work well when I have a list because I can see progress. I have put little things like pick out my clothes, and which exercises I am going to do.
I have to go so Reese can do his math practice, and so I can get stuff done instead of just writing about it. Hopefully we can keep this up and can get organized.
Starting off by getting up at 5am and not hitting the snooze button at all. This is a big step for me, I always have ambitious goals for the morning and am likely to hit the snooze button so many times that there is not enough time to do anything.
Going small at first I am going to run through my karate moves doing my combinations and forms one day and my kempos and grabs the next. After this, I will take two of our dogs for a walk, trying to get them under submission, and get some exercise. This is also tricky, yesterday was 10 degrees and snowing, and today was 15 degrees and a small but bitting wind. The dogs enjoy it none the less.
I am also trying to put a lot more in my PDA, just as reminders for what needs to be done. I work well when I have a list because I can see progress. I have put little things like pick out my clothes, and which exercises I am going to do.
I have to go so Reese can do his math practice, and so I can get stuff done instead of just writing about it. Hopefully we can keep this up and can get organized.
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Lessons at karate
Wednesday is karate day for us, I have every Wednesday off and there is an afternoon class that Mel and I go to. The older two boys are in school and the younger two boys entertain themselves by watching a movie or playing in the small kids area.
I love being able to do this together with my wife even though I know she doesn't care for it all that much. I started in order to help out Jaren because he was struggling at it and Reese was advancing really fast. I also didn't want the kids to be able to kick my butt when they got older.
Mel started because they were offering a three month free trial and several of the kids mom's that she hung around with while the kids were in class were going to join.
It is nice to have this in common, and to be able to practice together and go over moves together and dread getting beat up at class together. It is hectic for sure, with having to get the two little ones ready and settled.
Today made me a sad though. One of our better friends was in class with us and mentioned not wanting to go home after class because her husband was home. I just can't image living like that. Why live a lie? Why just hope things will get better? Do something about it! I hate to and won't but into friends lives, but if you are not happy, make a change.
Every day I can't believe how lucky I am to be where I am. I know my house is crazy, messy and loud, but how insignificant is that when you think about not even wanting to go home to the person you married and loved, the person you are raising your children with, and at least for me, the person who you want your children to grow up to be like. I love and respect my wife more than any person in the world and I don't know how she does all that she does. I can't imagine where I would be if I lost her. All that I do, I do just to try to be worthy of her.
Of course, as I am writing this I am in charge of not just three of my boys that are running around (Strider is upstairs sleeping) screaming, but also Jarens friend Mykenzy is over also.
I guess I had better go since I have rambled quite a bit from my original topic and Dean is now crying. (he bumped his knee)
Sunday, January 21, 2007
Mistaken birthday party!!
For Christmas my mother's boyfriend, Steve, gave my wife, Mel, a 2007 calender that he had made up with pictures of us in it and special dates written in. Unfortunately, the one date that was wrong was her birthday. Not a big deal, her birthday is January 30th and it was put in as January 20th.
So today we are celebrating Mel's party! It actually works out well, because next weekend I would have to work and the following weekend would be after her real birthday and it would be the day of the Superbowl!!! Which depending on the outcome of today's game against the Indianapolis Colts, my beloved New England Patriots will be playing in and trying for their fourth Superbowl title in six years. Go Pats!!!!
Anyway, back to the party, I came up with three new recipes that I made yesterday and today that will hopefully turn out well. I made a chocolate cookie bark which was simply melting white and regular chocolate, mixing in crushed Oreos and swirling them together. I also made some layered squares. The first layer is crushed Oreos and melted butter, followed by a layer of cream cheese mixed with sugar and Cool Whip, that is topped with a layer of chocolate pudding, and finally a layer of Cool Whip. For a birthday cake I mixed up a recipe that I found in a magazine. They used vanilla cake and I used chocolate since that is Mel's favorite. But basically it is a "poke" cake, where you make the cake, let it cool, poke holes in it with a fork and then I poured black cherry Jell-0 (before it solidifies obviously) over it. You let it set up, frosted it with chocolate frosting then topped the whole thing with a Cool Whip frosting. I'll let you know how all the recipes worked out and if I'll ever bother with them again.
Luckily I was able to get her 2 gifts from different places before we put on our "spending freeze". Of course she knows where I bought them from because she has been right on top of the bills and has seen the credit card statements and was here when one of the packages came from UPS. One I'm sure she knows what it is but hopefully one will be a surprise.
So today we are celebrating Mel's party! It actually works out well, because next weekend I would have to work and the following weekend would be after her real birthday and it would be the day of the Superbowl!!! Which depending on the outcome of today's game against the Indianapolis Colts, my beloved New England Patriots will be playing in and trying for their fourth Superbowl title in six years. Go Pats!!!!
Anyway, back to the party, I came up with three new recipes that I made yesterday and today that will hopefully turn out well. I made a chocolate cookie bark which was simply melting white and regular chocolate, mixing in crushed Oreos and swirling them together. I also made some layered squares. The first layer is crushed Oreos and melted butter, followed by a layer of cream cheese mixed with sugar and Cool Whip, that is topped with a layer of chocolate pudding, and finally a layer of Cool Whip. For a birthday cake I mixed up a recipe that I found in a magazine. They used vanilla cake and I used chocolate since that is Mel's favorite. But basically it is a "poke" cake, where you make the cake, let it cool, poke holes in it with a fork and then I poured black cherry Jell-0 (before it solidifies obviously) over it. You let it set up, frosted it with chocolate frosting then topped the whole thing with a Cool Whip frosting. I'll let you know how all the recipes worked out and if I'll ever bother with them again.
Luckily I was able to get her 2 gifts from different places before we put on our "spending freeze". Of course she knows where I bought them from because she has been right on top of the bills and has seen the credit card statements and was here when one of the packages came from UPS. One I'm sure she knows what it is but hopefully one will be a surprise.
Friday, January 19, 2007
mood music
I love music, all kinds of music. I use music to influence my mood, attitude, and surroundings. Nothing profound here, I know most everyone does it. I listen to punk, hardcore, alternative, country, classic rock, showtunes, comedy, or whatever turns me on at the time.
The lyrics and singer are what control how much I like or dislike the song. If it is profound, I will like it no matter the genre. The singer has to be able to express his feelings and emotions and to convey the lyrics on a level that is true. Someone can cover a great song and absolutely kill it because they can't put the feelings into the vocals. Whether the song is antigovernment, love, death, friendship, or lack there of; whether the music is grinding old school hardcore, melodic and dreamy, or good ol' country; if it is able to move me, I'll listen to it.
Sometimes you need to get the engery moving, drop in a hardcore disc, get the bass up, guitars blasting, vocallist screaming, and you have no option but to start crusing and getting done what needs to get done. Sometimes you just need to pick up the attitude or have some fun, pop in some country or folk (I love John Denver-brings back my childhood) it just lifts your spirits and makes you sing along.
Right now I am on a big Pink Floyd kick, somehow even the instramentals convey so much emotion. Floyd can make you angry, want to cry, sing-a-long, and laugh all on the same record.
I once told an older woman friend who was whining about some heavier hardcore music that I had on that music isn't supposed to make you feel good all the time. Sometimes you need to be angry, to hate, to just want to yell and want to hit something. I really feel that you can't try to run through life "even keel", you have to let your emotions ride the rollercoaster. By doing it in a controlled way, by choice, through music, you gain the upper hand and hopefully you can control yourself when you need to in other settings.
The lyrics and singer are what control how much I like or dislike the song. If it is profound, I will like it no matter the genre. The singer has to be able to express his feelings and emotions and to convey the lyrics on a level that is true. Someone can cover a great song and absolutely kill it because they can't put the feelings into the vocals. Whether the song is antigovernment, love, death, friendship, or lack there of; whether the music is grinding old school hardcore, melodic and dreamy, or good ol' country; if it is able to move me, I'll listen to it.
Sometimes you need to get the engery moving, drop in a hardcore disc, get the bass up, guitars blasting, vocallist screaming, and you have no option but to start crusing and getting done what needs to get done. Sometimes you just need to pick up the attitude or have some fun, pop in some country or folk (I love John Denver-brings back my childhood) it just lifts your spirits and makes you sing along.
Right now I am on a big Pink Floyd kick, somehow even the instramentals convey so much emotion. Floyd can make you angry, want to cry, sing-a-long, and laugh all on the same record.
I once told an older woman friend who was whining about some heavier hardcore music that I had on that music isn't supposed to make you feel good all the time. Sometimes you need to be angry, to hate, to just want to yell and want to hit something. I really feel that you can't try to run through life "even keel", you have to let your emotions ride the rollercoaster. By doing it in a controlled way, by choice, through music, you gain the upper hand and hopefully you can control yourself when you need to in other settings.
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Crappy post
With having four boys you think I would have seen this before, but up until my youngest started to walk it hadn't happened. Today was the third time in the past three months that I have had to actually remove the toilet to remove a foreign object that had been flushed.
Unfortunately, and there always seems to be an unfortunately around here, each time that this has happened, someone has decided to poop in the clogged toilet. Now this is a house that has four toilets. Two of the toilets have been clogged, the first time it was a section of a bug vacuum toy, the second time was an Eeyore block, and today it was an apple core that if someone had eaten more of it, it might have made it all the way down. None the less, each offensive item was quite offensive and covered in crap.
I am not a plumber and not really even that handy. Luckily removing a toilet is pretty easy. The only thing that is holding it down is two bolts, and a nut connecting where the water pipe flows into the back tank. You do need a wax ring to put the seat back on to make a water tight seal.
After this happened the second time my wife told me to buy 2 wax rings "just in case we need to do this again". Of course I just laughed it off and only bought one even though they cost less than $1.50. Today, however, I did buy two. So I can guarantee that this will never happen to us again. (Unless I just cursed us.)
Unfortunately, and there always seems to be an unfortunately around here, each time that this has happened, someone has decided to poop in the clogged toilet. Now this is a house that has four toilets. Two of the toilets have been clogged, the first time it was a section of a bug vacuum toy, the second time was an Eeyore block, and today it was an apple core that if someone had eaten more of it, it might have made it all the way down. None the less, each offensive item was quite offensive and covered in crap.
I am not a plumber and not really even that handy. Luckily removing a toilet is pretty easy. The only thing that is holding it down is two bolts, and a nut connecting where the water pipe flows into the back tank. You do need a wax ring to put the seat back on to make a water tight seal.
After this happened the second time my wife told me to buy 2 wax rings "just in case we need to do this again". Of course I just laughed it off and only bought one even though they cost less than $1.50. Today, however, I did buy two. So I can guarantee that this will never happen to us again. (Unless I just cursed us.)
Saturday, January 13, 2007
Hard to be happy at a job where everyone is miserable
I work in a pharmacy, and the majority of people I see are either in pain or are sick. Therefore the majority of the people I see are in a bad mood and don't care how many people where here before them, they just want there meds and to get home. Most people are also worried about the cost of their meds and why the insurance isn't paying for more of it.
Because of all this it is very hard to stay in a positive mood and keep everyone I work with happy. Always busy and surrounded by grumpy folks; not a great atmosphere. We have tried several moral boosting ideas over the past year and all of them have lasted about one week, if that.
I try to be polite as I can to people who ask me questions about laxatives, cold medicines, vitamins, foot care, and then not listen to my answer or choose something different because they already had something else in mind.
My daily goal at work is to make as many people as I can happy, and let the rest just roll of my shoulders and leave me unaffected. My karate master taught me, as things occur throughout the day ask yourself "how am I going to let that effect me today?" Keep the positive happy thoughts and just let the rest go. Don't let them win by dragging you down.
Because of all this it is very hard to stay in a positive mood and keep everyone I work with happy. Always busy and surrounded by grumpy folks; not a great atmosphere. We have tried several moral boosting ideas over the past year and all of them have lasted about one week, if that.
I try to be polite as I can to people who ask me questions about laxatives, cold medicines, vitamins, foot care, and then not listen to my answer or choose something different because they already had something else in mind.
My daily goal at work is to make as many people as I can happy, and let the rest just roll of my shoulders and leave me unaffected. My karate master taught me, as things occur throughout the day ask yourself "how am I going to let that effect me today?" Keep the positive happy thoughts and just let the rest go. Don't let them win by dragging you down.
Eye Toy
Looking for fun with family or friends? Well if you don't mind being embarassed while playing games/getting exercise then the Eye Toy for playstation 2 is for you. We have had so much fun laughing at each other while laughing at ourselves.
One of the kids got Eye Toy games 2 for Christmas and we had so much fun (there has to be about 15 or more games on it) my wife got the Kinetic games for her birthday. It is similar to the Wii that Nintendo just put out but you don't use a controller. You are constantly moving and punching and ducking and sweating and laughing and it can really wear you out, leaving you wanting to jump back in for another game.
I'm telling you, this is what all video games should be like.
One of the kids got Eye Toy games 2 for Christmas and we had so much fun (there has to be about 15 or more games on it) my wife got the Kinetic games for her birthday. It is similar to the Wii that Nintendo just put out but you don't use a controller. You are constantly moving and punching and ducking and sweating and laughing and it can really wear you out, leaving you wanting to jump back in for another game.
I'm telling you, this is what all video games should be like.
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Introduction-first report
Writing to you for all the world to read! It is hard to be a guy in this day and age. I think of myself as a fairly normal man, married, four boys (I guess that isn't too normal), two jobs to make some extra spending money, and a house in the country. What I just don't understand is why people are so miserable.
We all have our moments of anger/depression/irritation and usually for no good reason at all. I am extremely guilty of this, so I intend to write some examples as they come up with some personal insight mixed in.
For instance, why are we so nice to strangers, at work or at the store- we'll say "excuse me", hold the door for people, offer a seat on the subway, smile; then we get home, or are with the people we love and we snap at them for nothing, yell at the kids to be quiet, or try to do something to be away from them.
It doesn't make any sense but once it was mentioned to me I noticed how true it was. Since I have been aware I try to be nicer and not let the little things bother me. Take a look around your world and see if it is true for you, if it is I encourage you to try to change.
This is just one observation I have made, others will follow as they come up.
We all have our moments of anger/depression/irritation and usually for no good reason at all. I am extremely guilty of this, so I intend to write some examples as they come up with some personal insight mixed in.
For instance, why are we so nice to strangers, at work or at the store- we'll say "excuse me", hold the door for people, offer a seat on the subway, smile; then we get home, or are with the people we love and we snap at them for nothing, yell at the kids to be quiet, or try to do something to be away from them.
It doesn't make any sense but once it was mentioned to me I noticed how true it was. Since I have been aware I try to be nicer and not let the little things bother me. Take a look around your world and see if it is true for you, if it is I encourage you to try to change.
This is just one observation I have made, others will follow as they come up.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
