Long Freakin' Update

I am so sorry that I have not updated in so freakin' long. I guess I had better things to do. :) Let's see, last weekend I went to a couple of Christmas parties and directed the WJHS Alumni Band in a one hour outdoor concert. It was too freakin' cold. Then during this week I worked and finally got into 24. I am almost done with freakin' Season One. I still believe I can finish all 3 seasons before the new one premieres. We'll see. Then this past Friday night I had freakin' fun at a party playing Apples & Apples, then went and saw Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortuante Events. It was really freakin' good. It drew some stuff from the later books that happened during the first three but weren't explained until later (I think there will only be 1 movie :(), but It was good. I saw it again on Saturday. Then I directed the 3 hour WJHS Alumni Band concert at Flyer's, which was pretty freakin' fun. Then I went to Lisa & Michael's party, which was freakin' freakin' awesome!!! I got pretty drunk, but I had so much fun hanging out with all those people, including some I haven't seen in awhile. Then I sat here and added lots of freakin's to my journal entry just for fun. :)

I Hate My Dad

I do hate my dad. I thought about putting a big long rant on here about our conversation today, but what would the point be? It's not going to change anything, and it's just airing personal crap on the net, which I swore I would never let this blog turn into a place to air my personal emotional issues. Just things of public interest that tick people off :), as well as events of my life. So instead I added a subplot to my book (will be done with my editing by Christmas! Who wants to be my next editor?). Is that wrong? I mean, I used exact words and everything. You think if it gets published, and he reads it, he'll be angry? Ah, well. He's a jerk anyway. Ok, I guess that's all I have for today.

P.S. I am having a small gathering on New Year's Day about 9pm. I don't know why I'm doing it after New Year's Eve, but I am, so anyone that reads this is invited. Cool? Old Commons, IIF. BYOB (or A or just plain beverages because I'm poor) and I'll have some snacky food. Ciao.

Why We Should Only Talk Religion and Politics With People We Agree With

I always balked at the big no-no of talking religion and politics. I often talk with like minded people on these subjects, so of course that's fine. We share our information and beliefs, and get all excited about what we're saying. Recently I, as well as other people blogs I read on a regular basis, have disagreed about some things. I have nothing against these people, and even if I don't hang out with them as often as I would like, I like to consider them friends whom I care about. At first I wanted to talk about religion and politics with them, having a vain hope that I could sway them a bit, or at least educate them on why I think the way I do. This was a bad idea. When someone feels very strongly about a topic, and religion and politics evoke strong feelings, it is very unlikely they will change their minds. I try to keep and open mind and listen to opposing viewpoints with interest. I'm not saying any of my friends don't, because everyone has been very civil and unhostile while representing their sides. Yet I still feel hurt when my feelings are dismissed or someone thinks they can prove me wrong with a few quotes or facts for their side. Believe me, I have my own too. And I am not writing this to express my negative feelings. On the contrary, I understand that if I feel this way, it is very likely that people on the opposite side of the coin feel the same way too. So, to promote friendship and unity and love I have decided not to participate in any religious or political debates on blogs. That being said, I reserve the right to post whatever I want on my blog, nor will I get the least bit upset about what anyone else posts on theirs. I can choose not to read it if I wish. I hope this posting does not offend anyone because it's only point was to say I don't want to fight, I don't want to disagree, and I want people to get along. :) So boo on religious and political debate! Until the next time I want to use my blog to promote my own beliefs. :)

Scoring

Hmm. That title best sums up the topics I wanted to cover today, but get your mind out of the gutter. I'm not talking about scoring as in sex. Well not really, anyway. :)

Firstly, we had the annual Flyer's manager meeting / bowling tournament. West Jeff won this year, finally beating Galloway, who I believe has won every year up to this point. So like the last 3 years or so. Anyway, I ended up getting the second highest score for West Jeff in two rounds and third highest in the first game. Scott, my boss and owner, got first in all three. The Ulreys are all great bowlers. Anyway, it was close, but we scored and West Jeff won. Yay! I need to bowl more. I miss the every week trips with Timmy, Julie, Esther, Erin, Ivan, Nora, Scott, and assorted others. Aww.

Second, I watched Citizen Kane and RKO 281 this week. For those of you who don't know, Citizen Kane is widely considered to be the greatest American film ever made. Honestly, it's pretty boring, but that just means I need to watch it again because I didn't understand it enough. Basically it tells the story of William Randolph Hearst, one of the most powerful men in America when the film was made and basiclly owner of the entire national media. RKO 281 is the story behind the movie, and was made recently by HBO and stars a great cast. That movie is much more interesting. It's a good thing Orsen Wells made CK just before Hearst went backrupt, or it could have cost him his life, career, his everything. Yet it still cost him a lot. It's about figuring out the score of one's life. Very intriguing.

Thirdly, and this absurd notion just occured to me, and please don't read too much into it. Love stinks. You know that? I mean, I am just starting to date someone and am happy with the way things are going, but it occured to me what a raw deal love is. I mean, we've gone on two dates, I've spent like...um, I don't even know. Let's say around $75? They were pretty cheap dates, thank goodness because I'm poor right now. :) Then you talk about time, gas, etc. And we haven't even decided if this is just dating or if it'll ever be something more. How many other things do people just throw in tons of time, money, effort, energy, and souls to attain a goal they may or may not get? Don't get me wrong, I'm all for love. It is always totally worth it in the end. Even a bad relationship I had in the past, I wouldn't try to figure out how much I spent or keep score of how it turned out. And I'm not caring about money now. True love in the end, whether it be with the person I'm seeing now or someone I have yet to meet, only time will tell, is always well worth it. It's worth ten times what you end up paying. Yet from a logical standpoint, it seems really stupid and it stinks. Hmms. Well cynicism can kiss my ass because I love love. :)

Rip Van Jimmy

Wow. I have never slept so long in my life! But first maybe I should catch you up on my life. The first couple of days this week were pretty standard - work, dinner out with friends, and tv. Thursday I went out and bought a new car, since mine is dead. A 99 Dodge Intrepid. Whatever. It runs. :) Friday I had another wonderful date and I slept like 3 hours and headed off to alumni band saturday morning, totally exhausted, but it's hard to skip when you're the director. I got my hair cut, and then I came home, very tired. I crawled into my bed about 1pm. I was soon asleep. It is now 8am on Sunday and I just crawled out of my bed. What in the heck caused me to sleep 19 hours! That is insane! Now as soon as my contact resettle on my eyes, I think I'm going to go do something productive!