Going Private

I've been re-reading my post from the last year or so. They provide a quick glimpse into what I was doing, but lack any emotion, and fail to capture the scope of my thoughts on many levels. The reason for this I feel is that I was posting for an audience (a small one). I hold things back to avoid confusion, anger, whatever. I was trying to please everyone, and the result is that I don't really have anything to go back and see what kind of person I really was/am. So, I'm going to make sure I capture everything I have hear and save it off to disk, then I'm going to get rid of this site and just do a private journal on my laptop. I don't think a public forum is the right place for the type of writing I want to do. Farewell and you can always keep in touch via email.

Cheers!
Tim












...Oh, and I'm moving back to Michigan this summer...

Tired of the fake postings

I'm changing the ability to post to members only. I'll add the people who post regularly as members to my site when I get home tonight.

Cheers
Tim

No pics from Halloween

My camera was completely out of power. My friends Lori and Andres took some of the kids though, so I should have copies soon. In the mean time, here's some recent pics of Aidan...




Aidan doing warmups

A picture of me just after getting my t-shirt on

Aidan on the slide at the fall festival

A good pic of his smile...

Another of Aidan on the slide...

Soccer and Halloween

Finished off the soccer season tonight with a pizza party. We passed out trophies and had cake. The kids got me an engraved key chain that is very cool. I also got a team picture signed by all of the kids. Aidan loved that he got a trophy. I placed it on one of the book shelves in the living room and let him know it was "the place of honor".

We got our Halloween costumes tonight. Aidan is going as a Power Ranger. He didn't want to be any of the home made costumes I suggested. I'm going as Arthur Dent from the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Basically it means I'll be wearing my bathrobe and carrying a towel around. Aidan is doing a sleepover at the gymnastics place on Friday, and I'm going out with some friends. Should be a good time.

We're doing take two of the jack-o-lantern tomorrow night

Geek Hobbies

Starting two geek hobbies. First one is coin collecting with my son. We're starting small by getting all the currently available state coins. I'll probably get him a collecting kit for christmas.

Second hobby is going to be matting and framing. I'm going to order some equipment so I can do this at home. I think I've just finally reached an age where I need something to do in my spare time that doesn't involve being naked.

Saw some disturbing news piece last night that highlighted twin 12 year old girls who are home schooled and brainwashed. These girls travel around singing songs about how Hitler was a great man, and how they wish black people didn't exist...congrats to the mom for raising America's most fucked up kids. It was obvious from watching that the answers they provided were not their own opinion, just a repeat of what they've been told by those who have influence over them. At some point though I fear what they repeat may reach a level where it can't be undone, and become their actual way of thinking...

Open Office

For those of you who haven't tried it, or need free software that performs all of the functions of Microsoft Office, I suggest downloading a copy of Open Office

You can import and export all your documents easily, and it's an open source program so it's free. I've been using it for a while and I really like it.

French Onion Soup

I made this last week. It was awesome. Even Aidan liked it. The cheese is a little pricey, but worth it...

6 tablespoons butter
8 medium size onions, sliced thinly
4 thyme sprigs, leaves stripped
1/2 cup sherry
4 cups brown chicken broth
2 cups beef broth
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
French bread croutons
2 cups grated Gruyere cheese


In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, add butter and melt over medium heat. Add the onions and lower the heat to medium low. Add the thyme leaves and cook, stirring frequently, until the onions start to turn golden brown, about 25 minutes. Add the sherry and cook until the sherry is almost completely evaporated and the onions are brown, about 15 minutes.
Add the stocks and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer and simmer for 30 minutes. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Ladle the soup into 8 oven-proof soup bowls. Place the soup bowls on a sheet pan. Place the croutons on top of the soup, to cover. Top each bowl with 1/2 cup grated cheese. Place in the oven and cook until the cheese is golden brown and bubbly, about 10 minutes.


Good stuff...got the recipe off of Emeril except he used chicken and veal stock instead of broth...Aidan and I are going to start finding one new recipe a week that we make together. As I've given up McD's forever (really bad experience involving raw meat and what I think was mold), home cooked will work out fine. I just wish I had a good set of knives. Mine are a cheapo set called Chicago cutlery...don't ever buy that brand...the knives suck.

Birthday came and went...more of a big waste of time. Didn't do anything. Last year was really great. I had a Thai dinner with Jeff and Karen and then went to the movies, and then that weekend I flew out to see Amber and we went on a Blues music riverboat cruise.

That's all for now kids...

Cheers
Tim

Cancer N Stuff...

I'm working on the committee for the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life for Panama City Beach. I'm the Retention Chairperson. I'm also working on getting some new teams signed up this year so that we break our goal. I'm working with some good people, and I hope it turns out to be a rewarding experience.

It will be my birthday in a few days. I may get myself the new Fiona Apple and Depeche Mode albums, but other than that not really doing anything. Aidan has soccer game that morning, then we're going to a birthday party for my friend's son.

I'm going to start running again at lunch time, just so I have a reason to leave the office...

It was nice to see Bush and some military members deployed to Iraq get caught on tape scripting their "unrehearsed and unbiased" interview. He's such a dick. And the military people who get on there and agree to just say whatever they're told to say should hang their fucking heads in shame...no integrity any more...

Need some new books to read, so send me some suggestions...

Small chance I may end up asking for the Team Lead position at Ramstein... just a thought at this point, but I'll keep you posted.

My week without meat ended at lunchtime yesterday at Hardees... Going without meat makes you feel hungry all the time...I can't live like that.

No meat for a week

I'm trying to go the whole week without eating meat...more for morbid curiosity than any real health issue...I've stocked up on fruits, cheese and bread. I have normal food for Aidan, but he we could both stand to improve our diets.

One more week of class, then I'm done until Jan. Actually I'll be doing some DANTES test each month because some of my technical credits don't transfer over to my school. They suggested I just do the simple humanities and health type test just to cover credits I need to graduate. I'm not really too worried about it.

I'm finally turning in my application to CSC in the morning, and I should make the switch on the 10th. The raise equates to about an extra grand a month after taxes... This time next year I should only have my car payment left as a major bill.. I'm also glad I'll be able to put more away for Aidan.

Aidan has gotten A's on all of his spelling test this year. Still waiting to see if they move him to 2nd grade for his reading classes. He just needs to work on his handwriting, but after looking at my own, I know where he gets it...

Bought a new futon, now I just need to re-arrange the office so everything will fit when it arrives...

"BushClintonKatrinafund"...why the hell couldn't they leave their names off? This is why we can't have nice things...

Allergies have been killing me lately, but I think the heaviest of it is finally over...we're expecting rain for the next couple of days, so that should help....

Finally have some movies to take Aidan to. We're going to Corpse Bride, and then the new Wallace and Grommit, and then Chicken Little...and this Christmas his mom and I will take him to see The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe...

That's about all for now...I was really worn out for the last month or so because of work and school, but that seems to be ending now...I actually have energy right now and feel pretty good.

Football season et al...

I've been working weekends and long hours lately, so I haven't had time to post. Aidan and I are doing good. His teacher is looking into sending him to the 2nd grade class for his reading since he's ahead of the others in his class. He also has gotten all A's on his spelling test. He's getting better at soccer too.

It's football season again, but it doesn't feel like it yet. Too hot here. I need some fall weather soon. My allergies were really bad over the weekend, but seem ok now.

I finally get to get out and do some adult things Friday. Going to TGIF's for drinks with some of the other soccer coaches, while the kids are at fun night at the local gymnastics center. We've got a DD set up so everything should be cool.

That's about it for now...
Tim

I can't wait to see this!

I may be moving my blog...

http://www.myspace.com/subfloor05

Thinking about moving over to myspace, but not sure yet...I have to go back and save off everything I have here first...

First, Last and Others...

Got this off a friend's site...

FIRSTS
First Job: Delivered Newspapers (The Journal Courier and the New Haven Register)
First Screen Name: Kidchaos (back in 95)
First Kiss: Sherry Eldridge in kindergarten/1st grade time frame
First Purchased CD: Eric Clapton-Journeyman
First Funeral: Grandpa Reider's
First Piercing: I had 3 in my ears done at the same time when I first joined the AF
First True Love - N/A
First Big Trip- CT to TX after 7th grade
First Concert: I honestly can't remember any more...
First Musician/Musical Act you remember hearing in your house - Buddy Holly



LASTS
Last Long Car Ride - TX to Panama City Beach
Last Kiss: Amber
Last book purchased: For myself (Eldest), For my son (The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe)
Last Movie seen: The Quick and the Dead on DVD
Last beverage drank: Arizona Ice Tea
Last food consumed: Mashed potatoes
Last phone call: My ex called to talk to Aidan
Last CD played: Powderfinger in the car today
Last annoyance: All the sensationalism over of huricane Katrina
Last soda drank: Coke
Last ice cream flavor & when did you have it: Phish Food - about 2 months ago
Last website visited: myspace.com

What do your friends like about you? - humour I guess - they never say
What do your friends like least about you?- humour I guess - they never say
What do you like most about your best friends? that they're their when I need them
What do you like least about your best friends? everyone lives so damn far away

Videos

I added a link for music video's at the bottom...I'll post some of my favorites from time to time...The one you're listening to right now is American Jesus by Bad Religion.

Reading...

Aidan is still working on Cricket in Times Square. I'm reading 'Eragon', in preparation for 'Eldest', which I just ordered off of Amazon, along with most of the "Great Brain" series for Aidan. I loved those books, and others like 'Alvin's Swap Shop'(which I also ordered) when I was a kid. I'm hoping to pass that on to Aidan.

Aidan wants to join Cub Scouts. They're having a meeting tomorrow night. I'm still not sure if I want him doing it. I liked Boy Scouts as a kid. I just think that they put too much emphasis on religion, and exclusion of homosexuals. Kids don't need to learn hate at that age, and they don't need religion being forced by an outside organization...we'll see. Maybe this pack won't stress it as much.

From Moby

The following is off of Moby's blog. His view on this are pretty close to my own...

============
ok,
so now we all see that pat robertson is a belligerent lunatic.
so we can move on, right?
the right wing in america are nuts, but that unfortunately comes as no surprise.
they believe that the world was created in 6 days and that teletubbies are evil and that bare breasts on tv are more offensive than dead iraqi's and that kids reading 'harry potter' will end up as witches and that good christians support war and guns and assasinations and that pregnancies resulting from rapes should be rejoiced over.
so let's move on, ok?
the christian right wing in america are INSANE and, fyi, very dangerous, because currently they are running the country.
(as an aside: please, please, please, can we please re-instate the mason-dixon line? please? any sane and progressive southerners will be more than welcome to move north. we'll give you a donkey and 40 acres and it'll all work out swimmingly. and, in the process, we in the north can stop pouring our tax dollars into the 'christian' south, where the abortion and crime rates are considerably higher than they are in the 'godless' north. just fyi).
ok, we've moved on.
but, alas, there are tens of millions of people in america who still think that saddam hussein was behind 9-11 and that iraq had wmd's and that gw bush is not a liar and that the war in iraq is/was justified etc, etc.
so what do we do with the tens of millions of americans who are just fucking ignorant and ill-informed?
do we have to start administering voting tests?
question a: gw bush did knowingly lie about the cost of his medicare reform package to the tune of a few hundred billion dollars.
(hint: true).
question b: the bush administration did knowingly lie about and distort intelligence reports to justify the invasion of iraq.
(hint: true).
question c: the highest crime and abortion and illiteracy and infant-mortality rates occur in 'red' states that traditionally vote for republicans.
(um, hint: true).
question d: the bush administration has contained the highest number of convicted felons of any administration in the history of the united states.
(tautologically, hint: true).

well, and so on.
sorry if this is a nasty, political journal entry. but i'm sick and fucking tired of being associated with dim-witted americans who get all of their information from right wing news outlets and have no idea what's actually going on in the rest of the world, let alone their own country.
i still don't understand how the party of joe mccarthy, rush limbaugh, newt gingrich, trent lott, bob barr, james watt, etc, can maintain it's stranglehold on the u.s.

exasperatedly yours,
moby

Rained Out

Aidan's game on Saturday got cancelled half way through because of lightning in the area. Actually they kept playing in the rain, so I guess rained out was a bad choice for title.

He's doing good in school. Got an A+ on his first spelling test, and has been doing great on his math and reading.

I finished a database and application development course only to head right into a data mining and intelligent agents course...I'm almost done though....

The French are after Lance Armstrong again...they just won't give up. Unless Germans are knocking on the door that is...

I'm switching companies in October (same job, just getting hired on by the main contractor). The move comes with a nice raise, so I'm happy.

I need to get copies of all the Family Guy episodes. I accidentally errased the best one. It had Cookie Monster in rehab...great stuff.

more later
Tim

Soccer Pics

Aidan had his first game on Saturday. Luckily they don't actually keep score. His team is brand new, and played a team that has been playing together for more than a year. Everyone had fun though, so that's the good part. Some of the pics here are also from his first day of school. The one of him asleep was on the drive over to practice after his first day of school.

Aidan Logic

You don't go to the pool to cool off. You go to warm off, because the warm is on you and you want to get it off.

Research

Aidan and I did some research today on what type of rigging to use when we go fishing. I think we finally have everything down...we're going on Wednesday, so I'll let you (my many adoring fans) know how it turns out.

I added a link to show the weather here...now don't you feel special?

Argument for the day.... Intelligent Design is neither intelligent, nor a design...discuss

For those of you unfamiliar, Intelligent Design is creationism wrapped up in a catchy "scientific" sounding name...our wonderful president now thinks it should be introduced in schools...maybe in a contempory issues course, but please don't try and pass it off as science..our kids are far enough behind the rest of the world as it is....

Rainy Day

Couldn't go fishing today because of the weather. Instead, we went to Target and bought a new iron (Aidan knocked my other one over a couple of days ago), a wall clock, and alarm clocks for our bedrooms. Then we went to books-a-million to get some books for Aidan to read over the next couple of weeks. We have to read together every night and log what we've read and any comments. I think it's a great way for us to do something together. We read the 1st chapter of The Cricket in Times Square tonight. It was a favorite of mine, and I'm hoping it becomes one of Aidan's. We also bought The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, and Bunnicula (about a vampire bunny), and Kavik The Wolf Dog.

I want to go out and dance, or just have a couple of drinks or something...I need a sitter for Aidan, or I need him to age rapidly so he can stay home alone...Sigh.

First Day of School

Here's a couple of pics from this morning...

Aidan behind the camera

Here's some pics Aidan took of me today before we headed to soccer practice...unfortunately practice was rained out...

Drinks, food and frisbee on the beach...

Aidan and I had dinner at Schooner's tonight. They played beach music (Jimmy Buffet), and you can walk right out onto the beach from the bar/restaurant. After we ate, we went and played frisbee on the beach...it was a very good night.

Taking him for school clothes tomorrow. On Monday, he'll get a haircut. I'm working from home Monday-Wednesday so I should be able to squeeze in a little time at the pool during lunch...I think Aidan will also enjoy being able to sleep in a little and just veg out for a couple of days...We've been keeping pretty busy schedules with work, daycare, homework, and soccer...

Space Shuttle

It's about time.

Funny....or not...

I received a comment on my last blog from someone named "Danica"...I was curious, so I followed the link...it of course leads to a freakin sex site... so this is how they're now going to markert internet porn I guess... I'm thinking I'll need to write a little letter to blogger letting them know...

Tornado

We had a bad storm here on Saturday. Aidan and I were looking out the window wondering what the deal was, and he made the comment "It looks like a tornado"... I thought OK, he just has an active imagination... I get to work this morning, and notice my area is filled with equipment that we had out in the field with our tents... the reason for the moving of the equipment... a tornado had destroyed the system... These tents are(were) located with 1/2 mile of where I live...

Guess I was wrong...

Looks like the pics option did work...It errored out when I first tried it, but then the post showed up on my site...

Testing the blogger pic capability

Just testing...

PICS

I guess the blogger images thing doesn't work... you can view some new pics at: http://www.bebo.com/invitea/2257808a124440950b145

New Pics

Here's a couple of pics of Aidan...I put some more at the Bebo site: http://www.bebo.com/invitea/2257808a124440950b145

Pot Roast

Got a request for the pot roast recipe, so here it is, with added warning on how to avoid burning the place down..

This is a combo of a couple of recipe's, but it's the way I make mine....add or subtract ingredients as you see fit...

1 ( 3 to 4-pound) sirloin tip roast(or chuck roast), netted or tied at 1-inch intervals
10 cloves garlic, peeled and halved lengthwise, plus 4 to 6 garlic cloves, peeled
1 tablespoon Essence, plus 1 1/2 teaspoons
1 1/4 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 cup dry red wine
3 tablespoons tomato paste
4 large carrots, scrubbed
2 stalks celery, trimmed and cut in half crosswise
2 medium yellow onions, peeled and quartered
1 pound small new potatoes
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup beef stock, or canned low-sodium beef broth
2 bay leaves

With a small, sharp knife, make 30 (1 1/2-inch deep) slits around the outside of the roast. Insert the half cloves of garlic into the slits. Rub the roast with 1 tablespoon of the Essence, 1 teaspoon of the black pepper, and 1 teaspoon of the salt.
In a large roasting pan or Dutch oven, alternate the carrots and celery flat on the bottom of the pot. Place the bay leaves on the vegetables. Scatter the onions, potatoes, and garlic over the bottom. (The vegetables will form a "nest" on which the roast will be placed.)

Heat the oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add the roast and sear on all sides, about 4 minutes per side. Remove from the pan, and place on top of vegtables.

Deglaze the pan with the red wine (this is the part where I started the fire, so be careful), scraping up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon (it has a lot of flavor). In a mixing bowl, whisk together the tomato paste and 1 cup of water. Add the tomato paste mixture to the red wine and cook for 2 minutes.
Add the red wine mixture and the stock to the crock pot.

cook on low for about 6 hours and it should be just right...

Essence (Emeril's Creole Seasoning): Or you can buy it at the store...
2 1/2 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon dried leaf oregano
1 tablespoon dried thyme

The Streamers

Aidan had his first practice today. His team is called the Streamers. He really enjoyed himself, but got worn out pretty quick. He did good though. He's playing in a league where most of the other kids are 7 and 8. He ended up coming back and scarfing down his pot roast, so we could go swimming... I think he'll sleep pretty good tonight. His first game in on August 13th. They don't actually keep score, but the kids always know who won... The league makes sure each kid plays a minimum of half the game so that they get experience. I took some pics, but they didn't come out very well I'll take some more next practice and post them...

Almost done with the new Harry Potter...I'll post my comments once I finish. Did I mention I got an A in my last class? I rule! I also just got an A+ on a paper that I thought was terrible...

Now we're cooking with gas...

Almost burned down the apartment at lunch today. I was preparing a pot roast to do in the crock pot. I seared the pot roast and put it in the crock pot on top of the veggies...I then went back to the frying pan to add wine to deglaze it and make the sauce...one small problem...I now have a gas stove. The wine caught fire, and promptly blew up all over the kitchen.. so I was standing there with a fire going in the frying pan, covered in wine, and the smoke alarm going off...I think that qualifies as my worst cooking disaster ever. At least the pot roast ended up really good....

Killing time on a Friday afternoon

Finally have a phone and internet access in my new office at work. It's on a Navy run intranet, and it's not very fast. Oh well... Aidan and I have been swimming pretty regularly. He's getting pretty good. I'm hoping the exercise is doing me some good...

I stand by my earlier claim that 30 Days is the best show on TV. If you haven't seen it yet, it comes on Wednesday nights on FX.

I got an A in my last class. I'm in the process of trying to get all my GI Bill stuff worked out so that the school gets paid at some point. My current class is database design. It's the first time in a while I can sit there and read the text book and not fall asleep immediately.

I have a paper to write this weekend, but that may have to take a back seat to starting on the new Harry Potter when it gets here tomorrow.

Anyway, not much else going on right now. Got Aidan registered for school, and his physical done...He's in fine shape. I'm glad we're out of Wynne and Brian's because he no longer sneezes... I do need to get him tested at some point to find out if it was the dogs or their cat that did it too him...

more later...
Tim

On the run...

Aidan and I evacuated Panama City Beach at about 2 in the morning Saturday. Hopefully Denise won't do too much damage. We're at my parents in South Carolina. I forgot my power cord, so this will be my last post until I get back.

Weekend at the parents

Had a really great time at my parents over the weekend. Aidan loved swimming in the pool and playing with his cousin. He's getting better at swimming. Yesterday he swam across the pool (short way) at the apartments, without any floaties on his arm. He wants to be able to swim the long way, but right now I have him do it where he can still stand up if he needs to...

I'm going to try and take him fishing this weekend if the weather is good. We're suppose to get wind and rain today from tropical storm Cindi, and then Monday we're looking at getting hit by hurican Denise. Should be a fun time.

Eminent Domain

The latest supreme court decision on seizure of property for development is a step in the wrong direction. I understand the need of eminent domain for roads and other public projects, but to extend those rights to private developers is a bad choice. The problem is that the right contractor, with enough money and sway will now be able to have their say on what is "good" for the public, so that they can gain the rights to land etc for new development. I agree that a lot of this country could use some touching up, but not at the expense of people who make their lives in a community, only to be told they're losing their homes so a new hotel and riverfront development can go up....

Continuing on my earlier post... They're using Iggy Pop's "The Passenger" for the new show "30 Days"..although in this case I think it's a good match. The show looks like it's going to be very cool. The guy who did "Supersize Me" is doing the show. As for the song, I also like the Sioxie and the Banshee's version. It's weird, I've always like this song, and had it stuck in my head for years, but couldn't remember who the heck performed it, or what the name was...then one day it just hit me and I haven't forgotten since...

Selling out

Docker's uses a The The song in one of their latest commercials...When will it end? I guess when Old Navy uses the Smith's "Some girls are bigger than others" to advertise their new plus size line, then I'll know nothing is sacred...

Made a call to set up cable/internet at the new place...now I just realized that if I don't have power set up first, then I've wasted my time...I'm sure it will work itself out.

I'm seriously considering buying Wynne and Brian a new lawn mower as a gift for letting me stay there...or more I'm buying them a new lawn mower because the one they have sucks. I feel they would benefit from one the has that nice feature where it pulls itself along... It's just too damn hot in Florida to mess around pushing a lawn mower (even if it's a small one) up a hill (even if it's a small one). Anyway, I have a coupon for home depot so they may get lucky...

I saw an episode of Queer Eye where they used wicker furniture and blinds in this guys house. It actually looked pretty cool, so I'm considering it for my solarium area. Yes, I follow the theory that homosexuals are suppose to give fashion advice to heterosexuals. An idea the producers probably got from walking into the Gap. Anyway the room looked cool, and it had a white fur rug that was very similar to the one Amber got me for Christmas, so I have to incorporate it...

more later...
Tim

Shake your groove thing...

It seems that Aidan has a small problem with showing his butt while going to the bathroom at daycare. The problem is that he likes to just drop his pants and underwear to his ankles and then go. The other kids don't appreciate it. I've had a talk with him, and he seems to understand now.

I want a bike. A mountain bike actually. A good one that rides smooth and is light. Of course I live in Florida, so next I'll need a mountain. After I move into the new place I plan on getting a bike and riding to work whenever I can. I'll only be a mile away, so I may have to come up with a little longer route in order to get some exercise in.

Aidan and I are going bowling tonight. Our goal is a combined score over 100. He told me he got a 75 last time he went with daycare. I think I can make up the rest.

We're getting ready for the first tropical storm of the season here. I love big storms. I hope we get a lot of rain and thunder and lightning.

more later
Tim

I finished up in Miami about a week and a half ago. It was a good trip, but I don't think I would like to live there. Good place to party and eat, but that's it.

I flew from Miami to San Antonio to get Aidan. From there we drove up to Dallas to pick up his things. We stayed overnight in Dallas and then took off Saturday for Panama City. Didn't make the best time the first day, because we hit some really bad traffic before we even got out of Texas. I went 3 miles in 1 hour, and then spent another 20 minutes just sitting in park. Never really figured out what happened. Next day was much better. A little bit of rain here and there, but very little traffic. Aidan was fun to have as a travel companion. He took about 100 pictures of just the road or himself. I still can't beleive how big he is now. He liked travelling in a U-haul truck. He also had a portable DVD player to help him pass the time.

The first day or so at Wynne and Brian's was rough. Aidan was trying to adjust to being with me again, and at the same time trying to get aquainted with Zachary and Wynne and Brian and the dogs. He's doing better now. I can't wait for us to be in the apartment though. It takes about 2 hours in the afternoon to go over and get him and drive back. Once we move and he starts school, everything will be walking distance...I also can't wait to be in my own place...nothing against Wynne and Brian, they've been great. I'm just a private person and like my own space. I never really felt fully comfortable when I was living with Glenn either...

Class is going pretty good. It's pretty easy so far. I'll just be glad to finish these last couple and move onto my Master's in the next year or so....

Going to Mom and Dad's for 4th of July. Amber is suppose to visit at the end of July. I can't wait to see her again.

Aidan's B-day is in a couple of weeks. I'm going to get him salt and freshwater fishing poles and a tackle box...I'll get myself some stuff too so we can fish together...

I want a sea-doo. Once I move into the apartment I'm going to see about getting one, and where I can store it...

That's about all for now... Detroit is up in game 7 at the half.... another year with the Pistons in basketball and the Redsox in baseball as champs and I'll be in heaven. Now if Joe Gibbs can just get the skins together...

more later
Tim

Still in Miami...I've been putting in some long hours here. I do have the next couple of days off, so I hope to get out and have a little fun while I'm here. Amber came down the first weekend I was here. We had a great time. Got to eat good food, go to the beach and just relax.

I leave to get Aidan on Friday morning. I can't wait to see him again. I'm not really looking forward to the long drive from San Antonio to PC, but it's worth it. I wish I had a couple more days off with him before he starts daycare, but that's OK. I still can't beleive he's going to be in 1st grade in August.

Still haven't seen the new Star Wars movie, but I've heard it's really good. I may end up taking Aidan to see it, but need to read more about how violent it is...

I want a sea-doo or some other type of ride on jet ski. I love being on the water. I'll have to wait a while to see if I can budget for one...or I may see if I can rent one for a day or two to make sure it's something I want.

Started my classes again. It looks like this one will be pretty easy as well. It's a web development course...

I have a little bit of a cold right now. I was on night watch and it was pouring down rain. Part of the tent started to leak where it connected to a hum-v, so I went out to try and re-velcro everything down. Unfortunately our tent system is climate controlled, and it was freezing in there when I came back in...oh well...I'll get over it I'm sure.

I can't wait to get into my own apartment in June. I want to go through my cd's and burn them to dvd. I also want to start introducing Aidan to 20th century music. I think it will be very cool to share rock, jazz, hip-hop, reggae and more with him. I hope to discover some stuff I may have missed as well.

I bought Phil Lesh's new book. Only a few chapter's in right now, but it's a very good book. It's called "Searching for the Sound"....

OK, I have a meeting in a few minutes....

Cheers!
Tim

Destination Miami

I'm relaxing today...sort of. I have to start getting my stuff together for Miami. I leave on Wednesday. I think it will be a good thing for me. I'm looking forward to being in a place where I can come and go as I please, without having to worry about waking up other people or pets.

I'm going to try and make a road trip out to Key West while I'm down there. Not that Miami doesn't have enough to offer to keep me entertained. I'm looking forward to eating at Shula's while I'm there. If I'm lucky, Amber will be able to come and visit for a couple of days as well.

I start school again when I'm down there. It's all online, and I'm bringing my laptop so I should be fine. I think the first class is a web development class. Should be pretty easy. The laptop also has a DVD player, so I can watch movies down there as well...That should also come in handy when Aidan and I drive back from Texas at the end of the month.

I'm taking my camera with me and I'll post some pics when I get the chance. I should probably take some of Panama City at some point and put those out as well.

More later
Tim

First week of work is out of the way...I'm tired. The job is a lot like the stuff I did on Guam...in simple terms we go camping with our computers, sattelite and hum-v's... I've got a trip to Miami coming up, and then I go to Texas to get Aidan. I may be back in Texas at the end of the summer for work.

I'm taking a couple of hours off on Monday to check out some apartments and some schools for Aidan. I also need to get a hold of the post office and find out why my mail has not been forwarded yet...that's very frustrating...

Anyway, the only reason I'm posting right now is to see if the livefeed from my site is working...those of you who use firefox should see a little button in the lower right hand corner of the browser screen...when you click on it you will be subscribed to my site and can then view updates in your bookmarks as they happen...

OK, gotta go and find something to eat and then try to get some rest...

Cheers
Tim

Too many deaths lately. Terri Schiavo, Frank Purdue, Johnnie Cochran...It looks like Pope John Paul will not be with us much longer either. One that did get to me though was Mitch Hedberg. He was one of my favorite comedians for several years. He had an offbeat sense of humor that always appealed to me. It was intelligent yet weird enough to draw me in...Mitch passed away a couple of days ago of an apparent heart attack. He was 37. I've read some rumors that drugs may have played a part. I hope that's not the case. I didn't know his story well enough to substantiate that any further...I only knew he made me laugh and that is one trait I value very highly in a person.

As for John Paul. I'm not catholic, but he was the only Pope I have in memory. In fact one of my first memories is seeing him on TV and my mom trying to tell me who he was. The other two people religious/political people who are in my first memories are Ronald Reagan and the Ayatollah Kohmenhi. What a weird time I grew up in...

Told you things might change with the job. I have some more paperwork to fill out Monday, so my actual start date won't be until Tuesday. The good news is that I may end up getting overtime (and at $50 an hour I'll take it)in my first week. I'll work as much as they'll let me until I get Aidan back.

Watched The Notebook tonight. It was a chick flick. Enjoyable, but very predictable. I hope I didn't ruin it for Wynne and Brian when I blurted out what the plot would be like in the first five minutes of the movie...

I'm going to redo my blog site soon. I want to come up with my own template and also start including RSS feeds from other sites I visit regularly.

Suppose to be going to the Hard Rock in Destin tomorrow...should be fun.

more later

Tim

The Redneck Riviera

I'm here in Panama City...well actually I'm in Southport, Florida which is a couple of miles away. I like the weather...the people are very friendly, but a little too country for my taste. I guess it's something I'll have to get adjusted to. I still haven't started work. It's mostly just some paperwork stuff now. Unless something changes (and that is entirely possible) I'll be starting on Monday. I went and picked up some new work clothes today. I also got a military ID since they seem to think that I still owe them time as a member of the inactive reserves...oh well at least I can shop on base and save some money... I think tomorrow I'll try and actually head to the beach for a while and check out the spring breakers...

I miss Michigan...for more reasons than I care to write about right now... I think I'll be heading back there in a year or two if a position opens up there with my company.

I'll be in Miami for most of May, and then San Antonio in August or September. I'm hoping I don't have too many trips like that, because it will mess up Aidan's schedule.

Anyway...enough for now. I could comment on MJ or the TS or any of the other big news stories, but I'm a little tired of them all right now...

more later
Tim

I'm moving to Panama City Florida some time next week. I just need to get everything taken care of with the movers. I'm going to miss the Michigan area. I really wanted everything to work out here, but the jobs just didn't come. I'll be working at the Naval Surface Warfare Center as a contractor.

I'm going to Canada tonight...I've never been, so I'm pretty excited. It's only about 30 minutes away, so I should take advantage of the situation while I'm up here. We're going to have dinner and play some blackjack...

Strained my back the other day packing stuff up...it's still a little stiff, but should be fine by tomorrow...

Executives at Nintendo are considering hiring Michael Jackson as the new spokesperson for their DS handheld since they feel Jackson would be totally on board with the DS's slogan of "Touching is good"...Yes, I need help...

Anyway that's about all for me for now... I may not post again until I'm on down in Florida...

Take Care

Friday night at the Ann Arbor Comedy Showcase...

Emo Phillips to me.."Don't be scared,you don't come here to be made fun of... from the looks of you, you probably came here to get away from that sort of thing..."

And for some reason he kept calling me "Ken"...

No word on a job yet...Wynne and Brian seem pretty determined to get me a job with them though...Brian is putting in a call to the Gov POC in charge of the contracts down there to request they do a "by name" request for me...I'm very grateful for that kind of support...They also told the recruiter for their company to "get him down here at any cost"...we'll see how it works out...kinda running out of time/$$... Still no regrets over leaving the AF though...I know wherever I find a job, I'll be happier than I was...that does not mean that I regret my time in the AF either..it was just not for me any more...I think only people that have been through it understand that...

I paid a resume service to shotgun my info out to like a thousand companies..hopefully some of them are interested in me...I'm trying to work as many angles as possible at this point...

I'm hungy...I'm always hungry after going to the gym...that's why I don't make any progress...I can run 10K just fine, but then I go and eat the 700 or so calories I burned up... I do like going in the pool after working out though... I think if I do move to FL,I'll eventually end up buying a place with a pool...

I just spent the last 45 minutes writing a huge entry, and I go to spell check it and its gone...fuck, fuck, fuck! So here it is again in the condensed version...

- I know its been a while

- I don't have a job yet

- We're going to see Emo Phillips tomorrow

- I like burgers

- The moon is big

- I was once in Australia

- I'm going to have a beer

- I had a bird in my apartment

For details on anything listed above, email me...

Amber beat me at trivial pursuit!

She wanted me to openly admit that I've been beat as part of what we're calling "the healing process"...

OK, so why no post? I was going to wait until I had a job to post, but since I'm up, and I was pressured to update I'll do it now.

I finally had my interview for the position at the Defense Logistics Agency that I want. It went really well. I should know something by the end of the week.

Tomorrow I have an interview for a position at Chrysler. It pays less and is a further drive, so I'm hoping I get the first job. Only problem with the first job is that they may want me to work shift. I'm not going to borrow tomorrow's worries for today though...I'll just stick with first getting a job.

What else have I been up to? I've been spending time with Amber of course. I love doing that. We always have a great time together.

I've been re-reading the Pendragon Cycle by Stephen Lawhead

I was sick over the weekend...I seem to be better now.

I'm still going to the gym, although I skipped today because of the interview.

This weekend I'm going to see "Tony and Tina's Wedding" it's a dinner theatre thing where the audience is like guest at an Italian wedding...it should be fun.

I went to the autoshow...I'll put some pics up if I get any request...

Anyway, I recorded some shows on my DVR that I'm going to go and watch... A project for later is to use the USB port on the DVR and see if I can move recorded shows over to my computer and then put them in a format I can burn to DVD...

Happy Groundhog's Day everyone!

more later
Tim

Some photos from over the holidays...

It snowed again yesterday...suppose to be near 50 by Wednesday, and then struggle to get out of the teens by Friday...reminds me of New England.

Made a big pot roast for dinner yesterday. I like doing the big Sunday dinners. Amber does as well, so that works out good.

I'll be spending the week looking for a job. I'm actually waiting for a call for a contractor position with the Defense Logistics Agency...wish me luck...

I joined a gym today...It's really nice. I ran on the treadmill, worked out my arms, swam a few laps, went in the hot-tub and sauna...I feel realy good right now. Of course to prove that I'm still out of shape, I ordered a fruit smoothie on the way out, but had trouble getting the straw out of the wrapper.

Got Michigan plates for my jeep. My new license (first new picture in 10 years, should be here in a couple of weeks).

I had to put something about this... I read the other day about a sledding accident that involved 36 people. Apparently a church group had arranged for the kids (part of the Minot, ND Christ for kids organization) to meet up at 4am and go sledding using cardboard boxes as sleds. The piled as many kids as they could into the boxes and sent them down the hill. No one was seriously injured, but the sleds hit rocks, lampost and each other...A big sign stating "NO SLEDDING" was ingnored...Some of the church officials were said to be upset because they hadn't gotten the chance to molest any of the children before the accident...

OK, so I added the punchline but it was still funny to think about...

Update on the passport... I have it.

I can't find my passport. If you know where it is, please let me know. Thanks.

I'm back! Had a great time in Germany. I was sad to leave Aidan. Shanna and I even got along really well all week. The only bad part is that Aidan accidentally erased the pictures on my digital camera. Oh well...I have the memories.

Went to some friends of Amber for New Years. We had fun. Didn't get too drunk because we had to drive back that night.

A lot of things to do this week: contact school and find out when I can start classes again, start working out again, contact people about a job (I guess that's the important one). Wish me luck.

I quit drinking pop..well after I get rid of the stuff in the fridge. I hope it goes well.

I'm not sorry about the frequency of my post, as only 2 or 3 people ever read this site anyway...

I got a new computer desk today. It matches my entertainment center. I also got a chair to go with it... trying to do anything while the computer and keyboard are on the floor sucked. This is much better.

My apartment is starting to look more like a home...I'll post some pics soon. I want to find out how much space I get from Comcast, and maybe I'll put another web site out there...

That's about it for now. I'll try and put some stuff up about job hunting etc when I can...

Cheers
Tim