Randy's Blog

Hello old Blog friend,

It has been awhile since my last blog so I thought I would throw this out there. It is June now and I am enrolled in summer on-line classes with OTC and it is a little more difficult being in on-line classes than just going to class. My first on-line group project I found very frustrating as others in my group did not respond as soon as I thought they should. It took some of them three days to respond to a e-mail message that I sent to them which I thought was a little to long for a project that was due at the end of the week. I understand that people have lives but come on if you are in an on-line course you should be looking at your assignments at least every other day I would think. And if you are assigned into a group you should try to respond to others that you are that busy or something. Well at least the assignment got done and we got a good score. Week four is coming up now and I am glad it is only for 8 weeks, then maybe I can get back into going to classes instead of on-line it just seems so much easier to learn that way. Well that's all for now, maybe I won't wait so long to blog next time I seem to feel a little better getting that off my shoulders.

Well hello old friends just thought I would blog a little even though I don't have to. I kind of miss having to blog every day. Well today is my 9^th anniversary being married to my wonderful wife, I cannot believe it has been so long, seems like just yesterday we were having our first child together and here she is getting ready to go into the fifth grade next year. We sure have come a long way from first living in a mobile home park to owning our own home today. I am sure lucky to have such a beautiful wife, I know she will be reading this, so young and understanding she is amazing. I LOVE YOU Kendra. Well I have some homework to do and finals to study for so hopefully I will still find some more time to blog in the near future.

Looking back on my blogging, this has been a wonderful experience for me, as I have never been much of a writer. I have always held jobs that have been hands on and never had to really write. I have done construction work most of my life and coming to college has been a real experience for me. I was not sure when we were given this assignment if I was going to be able to blog every day but I set my mind to it and I did it. I did not think that I would have that much to say and that I would be able to blog about something for four weeks but the blogging journals helped me out a lot. When I could not come up with something to blog about I just went to the blog journal on the classroom site and found something that was interesting to me or that I thought I could write about and went with it. I hope that I can keep myself blogging as it has helped me relieve myself of some crazy thoughts going through my head at times. Some days I was able to just blog away and had to stop myself before I ended up with two or three pages. At first it was a little hard, never blogging before, but after the first week it became much easier for me to blog away. I have truly enjoyed this English class and I hope the rest of my classes are just as educational to me as this one was. I have never really liked English and maybe I just did not have the right teachers. Maybe someone out there will read my blog someday who felt the same way I did and this will inspire them to take an English class and get as much out of it as I did. Thank you.

Ah the last blog

Well here it is the fourth week of blogging and I am not sure what to say. It is Sunday and I have school tomorrow, only two more weeks, and it has been quite the experience for me. Like I probably blogged about before, I never in my life saw myself going to college let alone trying to learn something by going back to school. I never really liked school that much but this has been a very learning experience for me as I am on my way to getting an associate's degree in accounting to better my life and those I am close to. I have truly enjoyed this first semester as I have learned a lot of new things about myself and the skills I will need in my career. I have been using Microsoft works on my computer to handle our business that my wife has and this semester I was introduced to Microsoft word 2007 and that is a great program. In my Business class we had to build a business from the ground up, sort of, it could be anything and we had to write a plan to take to a bank for a loan. Our business was called The Gamepad and it was a gaming station where you could go to and we would have rooms setup with Wii's, x-boxes, and play station3's with the most recent games. You would be able to play against each other or online. My business math class has taught me about APR's, loans and how a lot of other mathematical situation that will be useful in my career opportunities. And I cannot forget my English class where I have probably discovered the most about myself. I never would have thought that I would have enough to say where I could blog for four weeks straight but I did it, although some of it was just gibberish, I did it.

Had a garage sale today and it turned out to be a pretty nice day for a garage sale. I wasn't sure if I was going to have one today or not after the rain storm we got yesterday but after I got up this morning and saw that the neighbor was having one I decided to go ahead with it. I had a garage sale Thursday and made around three hundred and fifty dollars thanks to the sale of my generator for three hundred so I figured it wouldn't hurt to set out there today for a few hours. I never really try to sell my stuff for to much money but people always try to talk you down anyways, which I can't blame them I do the same thing. I didn't really make that much money today as there wasn't really a lot of people out today, maybe the chance of rain scared them off but, it still wasn't to bad of a day. A garage sale always gives me time to just sit out and enjoy the peace and quiet in between people stopping by. Today I had the radio playing and it was quite relaxing and the weather wasn't too bad either. It did start to rain for a second which sent the neighbors running to get their stuff inside as they had it all along their driveway. This time I had all my stuff inside the garage to where all I had to do was pop open the door and I was all set for the buyers. Although I did not sale very much I am still set up for another garage sale that I will try to have next weekend. I don't really like to take up all my weekend time with having a garage sale so I'll give it one or two more tries and then it's off to the thrift store with it all.

One day after school I came into the house and I saw that there were three messages on the phone. After grabbing something to drink I played the messages as I sat on the couch the first message was some solicitor wanting me to give money, the second message was another solicitor wanting to give me a better rate on my credit cards and as I reached to delete the messages the third one was from the reader's digest telling me that I have just won ten million dollars and I froze right there in disbelief. I could not believe it until the twenty times I replayed the answering machine. I immediately started thinking of all the things I could do with that money that I have never been able to do like taking a cruise, going to Hawaii, Las Vegas, buying a new car or two, a new boat and the thoughts just kept rolling in. Then I realized that I had to wake up and be a little smarter with all that money or I would end up spending it all before I even got it. So I called my wife and told her what had happened that we just won ten million dollars and she thought I was kidding. I told her that she needed to come home right now and at that moment she knew I was not joking with her. When she got home she was so excited she was shaking like a leaf on a tree when the wind is blowing. After a while when it finally sunk in we sat down to discuss what we were going to do with all that money. We figured that we would donate ten percent of it to our church and we would invest fifty percent into some stocks and bonds and with the rest of the money we would pay off our bills and just live happily and not get crazy buying new things that we did not need.

Reading a book or reading a computer screen?

So I was asked question that if our books at school should be obsolete and go to computerized books. I have to say that I would still rather have a book than a computer to read. Are we becoming so lazy now that we can't even turn the page of a book? I know that it would be more efficient to go technical but what is that saying to our younger generation about us. When I was growing up we had to actually go outside and play with our friends if we wanted any excitement in our lives. Now a day's all a child wants to do is get on the computer to talk with their friends and play games. I love the computer but are we getting so wrapped up in it that we can't even pick up a phone and dial it anymore. I don't even know if I could remember someone's phone number anymore as they are all on speed dial in my cell phone. The times have changed so much in the past few years that you don't even have to go buy a book anymore you can just down load one online. What is going to happen in the future when everything is technological and somehow they lose a signal for the computer and no one knows how to do something manually? The whole world would come to a complete halt. I can just see myself sitting on the bed reading a good night story to my kids from a computerized book and my battery going dead half way through the story. I love technology but I believe that sometimes you just have to have a good book to snuggle up with next to the fireplace with.

Recovering or Recovered

This could be an argumentum subject for me as I am a recovering alcoholic. I myself believe that I will always be a recovering alcoholic. If I think that someday I have recovered from alcohol it could lead me to believe that I could be normal. When I say normal I mean that some people are able to just go out for a drink and leave a drink half empty and that was one thing I could never do unless I passed out with a drink in my hand, which when I woke up I would finish drinking no matter how warm it was. I have tried to think of myself as normal drinker but deep down inside I know that I am not. I have a disease that I will have to live with the rest of my life and I have to remember that or it could kill me. Alcoholism is a disease and I don't think you can truly be recovered from. I remember the first time I was court ordered to go to alcoholics anonymous and I thought it was a joke that they would send me there. I would go to meetings drunk and would just be there to get a signature on a piece of paper to satisfy the judge's order. I fooled them for six months by signing names to it and not even going. I was really only fooling myself though as I really did have a drinking problem. I was what they call a functioning alcoholic. I worked a full time job, drinking on most of my lunches, and made a living. Although my dad was a great crutch for me as he put up with me as I lived with him until I was 28. Then one day it all fell apart and I found myself in jail again. My senses started coming to me and I was sick and tired of living that kind of life and prayed to God to show me the way. And now I am here today to say that I am a recovering alcoholic and proud of it.

What a beautiful day it is today, the sun is shining and no rain in the forecast for the next few days. It is my day off from school but I still had to go to school to get registered for my summer classes. I never thought that I would be going to college yet here I am. It has been a great experience for me to go back to school and learn something different that what I am use to. I have worked most of my life doing mostly construction type work. I started working when I was about eighteen doing some construction landscaping which consist of plant trees and laying sod at new construction job sites which lasted about six months. Then I did some regular landscaping at an apartment complex where I mowed lawns, trimmed bushes and kept the maintenance up around the area. After that I got into doing insulation which was the longest job I kept until I moved to Missouri. I had that job for about four years and loved doing it, it was never in the same place and the pay was pretty good at the time. After I moved here I got a job at the turkey plant where I stayed for a little over ten years. I became pretty good at my job and progressed to a lead man after being there for about five years. I worked the night shift, which worked out pretty good at the time until I got married, but it wasn't too long before they closed down the second shift and we all went to days which didn't bother me to bad. Then my neighbor got me on where he worked at that worked out pretty good since the turkey plant I was working at closed about a year after I left. After working there almost three years is when the whole economy thing started to hit and I got laid off but that is where my whole schooling came into to so I am grateful for everything that has happened or I would not even be writing this blog today. It just has to be God leading the way; thank God it is not me leading the way anymore because I had no sense of direction.

So have you ever been sitting in the living room watching a movie or something and out of the corner of your eye you see a blur in another room? Every so often this happens at our house. I'll be sitting in the living room and out of the corner of my eye I sometimes see a shadow or something in the dark kitchen usually at night. It makes me wonder if there really is something out there. One night I was sitting at home by myself watching television and I heard this noise in the office like someone was sitting at the computer in the chair. The chair makes this noise when you sit in it and I thought it was just the cat up in the chair scratching herself but just after I heard the sound the cat came walking in from the kitchen. So I got up and went in to the office to see if there was anything there and the chair was empty. Maybe it was just me or maybe there really is an entity out there a ghost or spirit that hangs around I can't really be sure, I guess we will really never know. I watch a lot of shows like Ghost Hunters and Destination Truth that chase theories about ghost and Paranormal activities and I don't ever really see them catch any real footage but I do believe that there is something out there. I guess it is kind of how you believe in God, I mean you don't see him but you just know that he is there. I am not sure what happens to us after we die but I have to believe that when that time comes that there will be an angel here to lead me to where I am going and maybe that is the shadows we see out of the corner of our eyes that everyone has an angel with them their whole life.

Here it is Sunday night and school tomorrow, man I can't wait. It has been such a slow and boring weekend trapped inside the house. Well not really trapped but I might as well have been with the way the weather was going. Why do they tease us with all that beautiful weather right after winter and then turn it cold on us. I wish it could make up its mind it is like the price of gas they way it bounces around up and down up and down, hot then cold hot and then cold. At least were getting a little rain and no tornados like some of the states are getting. I guess we should be a little grateful for that but I am ready for some wonderful days in the eighties and being able to go do a little fishing. We love the summer time we go to the lake and take out the pontoon and just lay around in the water. I try to do some fishing but every time I throw out my line the kids start to move to that side of the boat until finally I just give up and jump in and join them. We sure are going to miss our wave runners this year they were a blast. Pulling the kids around on the tubes was so much fun last year and getting pulled around was just as much fun. Who knows maybe we can find another good deal on one. This year we are going to try to camp out down by the lake where we can do some all night fishing I hope. That should be a lot of fun with our new friends that we have met from church. Hot dogs and smores man I can't wait for summer.

What a dreary day it is today raining off and on and on a Saturday for that. I was planning on having a garage sale today, got the garage all set up the other day just for it to rain, oh well maybe it will be better tomorrow. Just hung around the house trying to entertain the kids, which can be a task in its self and then we went to church for a fantastic services. We go to North Point Church which we have found to be a wonderful experience for us. They have a truly amazing service and the kids love the kid's point they have for them. After the service the kids go to family theater where they put on plays for the kids. Today it was about friendship and how we spend time with someone we enjoy. It really gets you to thinking about what is going on in your own life as well and it got me to thinking do I really have any true friends in my life today? I am not really sure about that I mean I have my wife and my brother and his wife but I'm not sure if I really have any true friends. I have friends but I am not sure that I really have true friends. You know the type of person that you can talk with and tell anything to or they can tell you anything. That sounds kind of sad when I think about it but that is just the way I am I guess. I have a few friends that I go fishing with and stuff but when it comes to really opening up and having someone you can truly share your life with is something that takes a lot of trust in that person. I hope that I could be that person if someone was really having trouble in their life. Well enough of me going on about nothing hope the sun comes out tomorrow for a great garage sale day.

Not to sure what to blog about today so here it goes. Dropped my daughter, Hope, off for an overnight birthday party and on the way home we, my wife and I, asked Jake, our six year old son, what he wanted for diner and of course the first words out of his mouth was McDonalds. Why is it that whether its breakfast, lunch or dinner McDonalds is the first thing that comes to their minds. We asked him if he wanted to go to Ryan's, as that is what we had in mind, but no he was set on McDonalds. We tried the old talking it up how Ryan's had ice cream and shrimp, which he loves, but nothing was going to beat the thought of going to Mickey d's. So finally I asked him why he wanted to go there. I kind of already knew the reason which was because of the toy they get when they buy a happy meal, but he wouldn't really say, so I had to bribe him with by giving him two dollars and stopping by the Dollar General on the way home after we went to Ryan's and he was all for that. So we got to Ryan's and I not sure what it is but usually it is very busy there and there was like hardly anyone there tonight, Friday night, so we went in and maybe we just don't listen to our kids enough because the food was not really that great tonight. I mean they had the regular stuff on the bar but the thought of going there was more entertaining than the food that was actually there on the bar. So I don't know maybe some times we should just listen to what are kids are telling us because deep down inside their little heads maybe there is someone telling them what we need to hear.

Why did it get thrown in the trash can?

When I first moved out to Missouri from San Diego we all, my aunt, uncle and their kids, got together at my grandma's house for a great Thanksgiving Day diner. We had the traditional turkey mashed potatoes and gravy, corn green beans and other fixings that you usually have with a Thanksgiving Day dinner. It was the first time I had dinner with my aunts and uncles family in a long time and we had such a wonderful time together. After diner my grandma broke out the dominoes and taught us, or me, a few new games that I had never played before that were really fun like Mexican dominoes. I had never heard of it but we had a good time together. After that we all sat around and talked about the earlier times in our life and how things have really changed in our lives. Then we decided to dig into the desserts. My grandma made me a delicious rhubarb pie that I love, with some vanilla ice cream on top. We also had the old fashion pumpkin pie and my mom made a pumpkin dump cake that was to die for. After sitting around watching some football all full of food it was getting close to time to go so we started cleaning up throwing away all the trash when all of the sudden my grand ma screamed "hold it hold it stop cleaning" we asked her what was the mater and she said she had lost her teeth. That she had them wrapped up in a paper towel and that now she could not find them. So through the trash can we went looking for her teeth as she said "never mind here they are right here in my bra".

Whether to take a year off after school, and bowling

One day my friend Jake and I were getting ready to graduate from High school and we couldn't decide whether to take a year off before going to college. So that night while we were out bowling I was telling him how that taking a year off might not be such a good idea as we could lose focus on our future and not end up going to college all together. He thought that we should relax ourselves after spending 18 years in school and take a year off to travel around and enjoy the country. I told him how we would have to have money for all that and that we should really concentrate on our future if we wanted to retire at an early age. He did not agree with me and said that it would be far more important to us to enjoy a year off. So I came up with an idea that whoever bowled the best game would do what the other says and either take a year off of school or go straight to college. As we were bowling the frames of the game were pretty close, as were both excellent bowlers, first he would get a strike and then I would follow right behind him with a strike. This went on the whole game with strike after strike, unbelievable I know, then finally in the tenth frame Jake was up and bowled two strikes and a spare, the pressure was all on me, the first ball I threw was a strike, the second ball I threw was a strike, know I had the whole going to college thing on my shoulders. I knew I could send us both on our way to college with just one more strike, but in the back of my mind I really wanted to take a year off of school, as I started to through the ball I slipped on the floor and as the ball went down the floor it was headed straight for a strike and as I closed my eyes I heard the pins fall and when I opened them all the pins where down.

Using the words College student, crumpled, paper, train and laptop

Once I was going on a trip with another college student that I went to school with and we were trying to decide where we wanted to go. I always wanted to take a trip across the country in an motor home but my friend reminded me that we only had two weeks so we broke out a piece of paper and started to write down some ideas of where we would like to travel. My friend started with traveling to other countries like Egypt to see the pyramids, Paris to see the Eiffel Tower, China to see the Great Wall and South America to float on the Amazon River. I had to remind my friend that we didn't really have that much money and that traveling out of the country might be better for longer trips. So he crumpled up the piece of paper he was writing on and got out the laptop to see what was more convenient for our means. As he started to browse through the computer he came up with some things that we could probably afford like taking a trip to the Grand Canyon, going to the East Coast to see the ocean and visit New York, and going to Florida to Disneyland. I told my friend that all that stuff sound like it would be a lot of fun but that whatever we we would have to take a train as I do not like to fly. So as we live here in Missouri we decided to take a train trip to California, and travel up and down the coast from San Diego to San Francisco hitting the beaches along the way as we both love to surf and you just cannot do that much surfing in Missouri. So that was what we did for our two week vacation.

Well here it is April 19, 2010 and school is almost over for the semester. I wasn't sure how I was going to do while attending college for the first year but so far so good, I hope. I have only had to take some beginning classes to start but for not going to school for the past twenty five years I thought it would be a lot harder than it is. I guess we all, or maybe it's just me, think that something we have never done is more difficult than it really is. I have really learned a lot in the past four months in my computer class and the information that I have learned will really come in handy when I set out to further my job opportunities in the future. Learning how to use Microsoft Word 2007 has been well worth it. When I first started my classes I probably could type like ten words a minute and although I am not the fastest type I can already tell that my typing has probably doubled or more. I have never had to really do any typing or write any documents in the past jobs I have had, most of them being construction jobs, so this is all very new to me. I have never had to write an essay or do research or anything for that matter and now being in college I have started doing all of that. It is all a new experience for me and I can't wait to see where it takes me. I have truly enjoyed the experiences of blogging, I have never considered myself as a writer and to be able to sit down and jot down my thoughts for a day has been an inspiration to me. I truly have to thank my English teacher, Ms A, for all of this.

What kind of food do you like?

When it comes to food I love it all, but I would have to say being from California, down by the border, my favorite food would have to be Mexican food. Living in San Diego I grew up on tacos from the taco shops around the area. I would eat there at least twice a week. They have the best carne asada burritos in the world, to me, and chips with guacamole. When I had moved to Springfield, Missouri and found out the only Mexican food they had out here was ground beef I was pretty bummed. So every time someone in our family went on a vacation to or from San Diego there would always be an order for a few burritos to be brought out. I have been here for fifteen years now and I have tried every Mexican place I could find out here and nothing matches what I used to get out there. Then one day a few months ago my brother told me he found a place called "The Purple Burrito" and that the owners were from San Diego and that they had Mexican food just like home, so I stopped by there one day and he was right they had carne asada, chips and guacamole and they even had my favorite fish taco. I have to say that that is the best place in Springfield that I have been to. Now if they would just get a Jack in the Box out here everything would be perfect.

Dogs or Cats

I prefer cats over dogs as they seem to be easier to have around. We have had both a dog and a cat and as of today we only have a cat. Our children ages 6 & 9 swore that they would be responsible for the dog and begged us to get them one, so one year we did, but when it came time to mow the yard neither of them wanted the responsibility of cleaning up after the dog. One day our little Jack Russell mix was in the backyard all day by himself and when we returned home I had noticed that he had climbed on top of the hot tub cover and chewed up many holes in it. Needless to say I had to break the children's hearts the day we gave him away. Our cat on the other hand it the sweetest cat there is. She is house broken and loves to play. One day, on Christmas as a matter of fact, she did try to bring a present for us into the house though, I had let her outside in the morning as I do every day and when I opened the door to let her in she snuck by me with a mouse in her mouth, which was the only time that she had ever done that, I think she was just bringing us a Christmas present. She is just so self efficient and much easier to take care of than a dog. We love our Holly.

Bad Luck or Good Luck

Have you ever set out to do something and end up having to do a whole bunch of other things because of that one little thing you set out to do? Well yesterday, on my day off, I thought I would climb under the house and set out a couple of ant traps as the ants are bad this year. So off to Lowes to grab some tero traps and while I was there I figured I might as well get some formula to spray around the foundation too. So I get back home and spray ant killer around the foundation of the house and I figured that I might as well hook up the sprinkler while I go under the house to put out the traps. So I get the sprinkler set up and under the house I go, sure am glad there is like three feet of room under the house to stand, so while I'm under there I start setting out the traps and as I am making my way through the cob webs towards the front of the house I hear the water running from the sprinkler that I put out and as I look where the water line is for the outside water I see this spraying of water from where the pipe had a hole in it. I am not sure if it was bad luck or good luck as I would have never have noticed it was leaking unless I was under there with it running. I am not sure how long it has been like that but I am glad I seen it. So my little one job for the day ended up being a few more than I expected. I am just grateful that I was able to fix the leak without calling a plumber who would have charged me an arm and a leg.

Sobriety

Well here it is April 15, 2010 and I just celebrated my fifteenth year of sobriety. It doesn't seem like it has been that long but I guess time really does go by that fast. I can still remember that day when I was driving home from the bar and the police pulled me over, I was thinking to myself here we go again, this was like my fourth or fifth DWI and I just knew I was going to jail for good this time. I got pulled over right in front of the house where I was living at with my dad and as they put me in the back of the car I could see my dad standing out there on the sidewalk looking at me with regret in his eyes that I was getting arrested again and on my way back to jail for like the sixth time. I am not sure what was really going through my head at the time as I was pretty pumped up on drugs and a lot of alcohol. I remember when I finally got to jail and I called my dad to tell him that he couldn't bail me out this time, that I had really gotten myself into a situation this time. I was going to have to go to jail again. I was really living it up back then partying a lot and doing nothing with my life. God must have been there looking after me though because when I went to court to see the judge, that said he never wanted to see me in his court room again, he only gave me one year in county jail when as the district attorney fought to send me away for three to five in state prison. The judge must have been in a good mood that day as he told me he was going to give me one more chance and that i had better watch my step. I was so grateful, I am not sure how my life would have turned out if I were to have to go to prison for five years. While I was serving my time I checked myself into this stepping out program that the jail was providing and they really helped me to realize the problems i was having in my life. After talking with some of the counselors there they helped me realize that if I were to have a chance at life that I was going to have to change a few things in my life. So I talked with my dad and told him that I really needed to leave California. So he talked with my mom, who lives here in Missouri, and they got together and bought me a plane ticket so that I could stay with her and try to make a better life for myself. I am so grateful for my parents, although I had to leave my dad who was sick, I knew if I did not get out of that I would just refer back to the only life I knew. I still here from some of the people that I used to know out there and I know deep down that I my life would have never changed living the only way I knew how out there. Thanks mom, dad and the lord above for this second chance at life.

What if I were to

What if I were able to go back in time and change my past? All the things that I know now that I could have done than could change my life dramatically but would I be any happier than I am now. I could have invested my money in something besides drugs and alcohol and made lots of money but then I would not be where I am today because of those changes. I have been through a lot in my life but I am not sure I would want to go back in time and make any changes. I think God has a master plan for us all and we have to travel down those dark and dreary roads for a reason. I am not saying that those are the choices that we have to make but he gives us the opportunity to make those choices for us to decide. I am not proud of allot of those choices that I have made but I would probably not be here today where I am if I did not make the decisions I made in my life. I am very happy with my life today having a beautiful loving wife with three wonderful kids. I have came along way from where I was heading in my life and I have to believe that it was all do to the decisions I was able to make with the grace of God. I was going down a pretty dark street at one time until I came to a fork in the road where one way was still a dark and dreary street and the other was lit up with street lights. I am truly grateful for that fork in the road and that I was able to get my head up and see the light.

Well here it is Tuesday already and there is no one home but me, ah peace and quiet, so I told my wife before she left for work to take the car so I could try and get the wheel bearing fixed because it is getting ready to go out. So after she left I got on the phone to call around and get some prices and as I am on the phone with O'riellys the guy ask me what size wheel I have on the van, so I look out to see what size it is and long to behold the rear tire is really low. So I get off the phone and get dressed as I'm am off to Wal-Mart to get the tire repaired, I needed to get the oil changed anyways, and while I am there I decided I might as well pick-up some lawn seed while I'm here, the lawn has a few bare spots in it that need tending to, and I needed some ink for my printer also. So I am over looking at the ink cartridges and for the one I need it was going to cost me sixty bucks for the black & color so I look around the corner at the new printers I see one that is on sale for thirty-two dollars and I'm thinking to myself that it would be cheaper just to buy a new printer that comes with two new cartridges for cheaper than just buying new ones so I bought it instead of new cartridges. Well to make a long story short after going to wal-mart for a ten dollar tire change ended up costing me one hundred and thirty dollars. Now I know why Wal-Mart is a super store that offers everything, so they can make a lot of money.

My Idea of a Perfect Vacation

My idea of a perfect vacation would be to take a cruise to the Jamaican islands with my family. We would start out on a cruise ship, one that had the fun swimming pool and stuff on it, for 7 days and 7 nights. When we get to the island we would stay in a fabulous hotel with room service where we get waited on hand and foot. They would offer mud baths and full day salons for the wife and massages for me. They would also have some deep sea fishing boats you could go out for the whole day on and catch some big Marlon. They would have big pools with those giant slides for the kids to enjoy and I and the beaches would have that beautiful white sand that just squishes between the toes when you walk on it. The water would be the perfect temperature for swimming and scuba diving in and would be crystal clear so you could see the fish swimming around on the bottom as you look through your goggles at the oceans bottom. There would be the most fabulous food like lobster, shrimp, steak and anything else your heart could desire. They would have giant bon fires at night as you sat out on the beach star gazing with that wonderful sound of the waves breaking in the distance. There would be cultural music and dancing put on by the locals as you are thoroughly entertained the whole time you are there. Since this is an ideal vacation it would only allow a set number of people at a time so that it is not too overcrowded and you would be able to enjoy the whole experience of your vacation instead of being packed like a sardine. This would be the perfect vacation.

That First Mow

I hate to have to get outside and mow the yard, but it's got to be done, and I am too cheap to pay someone else to mow my own yard. It never fails that after you mow your yard that first time it always seems to grow twice as fast and the next thing you know you're mowing every week. I try to put off that first mow as long as I can but living in a homeowner's association neighborhood you can't let your yard get to tall or the association will send out a letter to you notifying you that you are in some kind of violation of the bylaws. I could not have asked for a better day to mow the sun was shining and it wasn't too hot outside. Now that I got all the yard work done we are going to take the kids up to the park and have a bar-b-queue with my brother and his family. We're going to bring our baseball gloves and toss a few balls around with the kids, some Frisbee and play a little tennis. That should pretty much wear them down for the day where they will get a good night's sleep or wear me down where I can get a good night's sleep whichever comes first. My kids love to go to the park and swing on the swing plat on the play ground. We really have to perish these times with our kids because I know they won't last long before we know it they won't even want to hang out with us anymore they'll have their own friends and want to do their own thing without their parents hanging around, I hope those days don't come too soon, I love to spend time with them they are so much fun. You have to enjoy every minute you can with them until that day comes though I guess.

If I won the Lottery

If I were to win the lottery today I would hope that it would not change my life too much. I mean I know that a few things would change but I would not want my outlook on life to change. I would pay off all my bills first for sure but then I am not sure what I would do. I would like to think that I wouldn't go crazy with the money and go out and by everything that I see but it is hard to say what the power of money does to people. I hope that I could have enough sense to be smart with my money and invest a good portion of it for mine and my kid's future. I would like to help others that are less fortunate to help them get back on their feet in some way. I have had this idea that I could start a car business like a rent to own that doesn't charger 20 to 30 percent finance charges. I think that people that actually have to go to them to get a car are just getting ripped off but what else can they do. So I would like to try and help those people buy just charging around 5%, that would seem fair and most people are really just trying to get back on their feet after some tough times and most of us have been going through them lately. Think people are just trying to take advantage of a lot of people now a days like the credit card companies that charge you 25% finance charges on a credit card that you pay on time and are never late with a payment. Those are just a few ideas I have about trying to help people with my money. Sure there is a lot of other ways to help but I just know what I have been going through and how I wish there were other alternatives out there for me.

Your life is a journey

My life has been a very interesting. From the time I was a little boy to being in college now has been quite the journey for me. It all started 44 years ago when I was born in San Diego, Ca. in 1966. I remember the good times I use to have as a young boy growing up when we as a family would go fishing to the river. It was a 3 hour drive from our house to the river, and we would usually go around the holidays, Easter, Thanksgiving or just in the summer time. It always seemed like a long drive in the back of the camper as we would have to travel through the mountains and across the desert to get there. We always knew when we were getting close by the smell of the cow manure as we pasted through the desert. We would go and spend a week just camping out on the river bank fishing and swimming the whole time we were there. Riding our bikes on journeys along the river to find clams to fish with and riding over the dam so we could look down at the water as it rushed out of the spillway. We would have a campfire every night and roast hotdogs and marshmallows as we fished from the banks. From being on the river to today with my own kids has been quite a wonderful journey for me as I can now use my experiences from when I was a youth to teach my kids and start some wonderful memories for them to enjoy. As I live in a different state now than when I was younger we will be able to explore some knew areas to begin our own journeys and build new memories with our kids to enjoy later in their lives.


 

When I was younger, in my twenties, I used to visit with my two friends at my house and we would drink a lot of beer all the time. My one friend Jeff would always be wearing his big gold jewelry and thought he was cool. We all thought he was a strange and told him he was not being real, but he didn't care he said you guys are just saying that because you have been drinking. One day we were at the liquor store watching the people go by like we always do and this guy walked by that looked kind of dirty, we said to him how are you doing today, he looked at us all strange and said not much bad guys. That is weird that guy has got to be at least fifty, wow my friend says, this way of talking has got to of been around for years. Are you kidding me Jeff, are you telling me that we weren't the first to come up with the words like wow, neat and cool. Randy, my friend says who do you think came up with "do you have any meat", I did. Jeff that saying has been around for years. Wow my other friend says you are really strange. That's nice John you are the smart. I know that my other friend says. Then all the sudden we turned and just then we seen the police so we did turned to run and all the sudden my friend turned to me and told me that he just did a fart that came out a little. Don't be a so weird I said to him. That's not right my other friend said as he ran by us.

When I was younger, in my twenties, I used to hang out with these dudes at my house and we would get hammered all the time. My one cracker jack friend would always be wearing his bling jewelry and thought he was the shiznit. We all thought he was a goober and told him he was trippin, but he didn't care he said y'all are just givin me smack because your hammered. One day we where at the liquor store watching the people go by like we always do and this guy walked by that looked real nappy, we said to him what's up dawg he looked at us all crappy and said not much homie. That is sick that guy has got to be at least fifty, shizzle my friend grunts, slangin has got to of been around for years. Hold your horses cuz, are you telling me that we weren't the first to come up with the words like fashizzle, noob and tubular. You schmuck, my friend says who do you think came up with "got beef", I did . Dude that saying has been around for years. Totally my other friend says you're such a fool. That's sweet bro you are the shiznit. I'm down with that my other friend says. Then all the sudden we turned and just then we seen the 5-O so we did the fake-bake as my friend turned to me and told me that he just did a shart. Don't be a hater gator he said to me like I was slippin. That's ill my other friend said as he faded by us.

National Fish Day

June 1, 2010 is the start of a new National Holiday in America; it's called National Fish Day where everyone gets to fish all lakes and rivers for free on this one day of the year. There will be free fishing, free campsites at your local lakes and free boat launching to start off the beginning of National Fish Day. There is no particular reason for this new holiday other than people just deserve another day off to appreciate the outdoors.

There will be a parade to start off the day with lots of carnival and game activities such as tossing a ping pong ball into a fish bowl to win a gold fish, fishing with a magnet to pull up a paper clip with a prize attached, ring toss and many others which will include a contest for the most fish caught and the biggest fish caught for the day. There will be giant fish, people fishing out of boats and many other floats in the parade. There will also be free fishing for all ages and free boat rides at all lakes.

As a family we will be at the lake every year at this time pitching our tents and camping out all weekend. We will invite the neighbors and all our friends and have a fish fry as we celebrate National Fish Day in America. It will be a ton of fun as we love fishing and taking out the pontoon. We would enjoy all the fun activities that the lake has to offer with jet skiing and canoeing and at night time we will cook smores and sing songs around the camp fire as we enjoy the wonderful family time. It will be a time to remember and the start of a new tradition for our family and many others families to remember.

Well it's Wednesday and another day of school. Test today in my Business 101, hope I'm ready, I hate to take test. Had to write a paper for my English class and that was hard. I had to use other peoples words and their meanings of what their words meant and some of them were pretty ridiculous but I wrote something whether it makes sense will be up to the teacher. The sun is peaking out today so maybe it will start warming up this week. I am so tired of the cold. I am ready for some shorts wearing weather where the kids can play outside, walks in the park and riding bicycles. I can't wait for the weather to get warm enough so we can start going fishing. We love to fish, the kids and I. Well I better go get ready for school now, man I hate test.

Well it's Monday and back to school for another week. It was a pretty good weekend although we didn't do much this weekend it was beautiful outside. Maybe the cold bitterness of winter is gone as we enjoyed sunshine all weekend, can't wait for some warmer weather. Well Jake, our son, had a friend from school sleep over and he had a great time. My friend Rick just got back from doing a year in Afghanistan and I can't wait to catch up with him after he gets some family time as I know his wife and kids have missed him dearly. He's only here for a month or so before he goes back to work over there as a civilian for awhile at a contract job. It's bad when you can go overseas and work for more money than you can make here. The economy is still so bad here. Hopefully we will come out of this bad economy soon as I know many of people are just struggling to get by and make ends meet. Well I am off to school to better my education so I too may find a more stability job as my job also was effected by the poor economy were in.

Well I watched the Superbowl on sunday, even though my Chargers were not in it again, and that was a prtty good game. I was kind of pulling for Drew and the Saints to pull it off but I was getting a little worried there. Then they pulled off that onside kick at the beginning of the second half which was a pretty gutsy call by the coach, I mean your in the superbowl,down by 4 and you go for a onside kick at the begining of the second half, usually you would just hope your defense picks it up a little,like they did at the end, but to make a call like that was just some incredible play calling. Of course if they would have not recovered the ball on the onside kick and would have lost everyone would have blamed the coach for making such a horrible call.But to rap it up I am happy for the Saints they deserved a win in the superbowl. Maybe next year my Chargers will be there.

Yeah, It's 5:00 in the morning and it has not started off very good. Woke up to smoke alarms going off, reason unknown,maybe just bad batteries. So we have one kid sick ,throwing up, and one that just wants to stay home. He thinks he is sick too,no signs of sickness YET. So fire alarms go off for some unknown reason, call the fire department,because carbon monoxides are going off also. Did I say it was 4:30 in the morning. Fire department shows up,axe in hand,look through the house and say we should call city utilities. Call city utilities,they said they would send a guy out within the hour,did i say it was 4:30 in the morning, city utility man shows up around 5:00 with carbon monoxide monitor in hand,walks through the house and tells us we are good.No carbon monoxide that it is probably just the batteries in the detectors. I mentioned to him that i replaced one battery last week and he informed me that if you replace one you need to replace all of them,who knew.So just for someone else who is going to replace a battery in one smoke alarm in your own home,if you don't want to get woke up at 4:30 in the morning,take the time to replace all batteries at one time.

Why do I even watch football? My team sucks every year. They play so good in the regular season but when it really matters the stink out loud. It's like they don't even want to get past the first round of the playoffs, 3 missed field goals from a kicker who made 20 straight field goals in a row. Just three third down conversions out of 14 it's like they didn't even take the game seriously. Why do I put myself through it year after year? It makes me so mad that I don't even want to watch football ever again, well until next year when I think they will do better. That's why I ask myself 'why do I even watch football"?