Losing badly

Well, my efforts to stave off this cold are not going very well. I have progressed from simple post-nasal drip to a runny nose and a cough as well. My house sounded like a TB ward last night with Amy and I hacking away. I took some DayQuil this morning, and that seemed to help, but I need to go get more. I'll do that after work.

Ick

I don't like getting sick. I've got a lot going on right now, and getting sick just isn't in the time budget. However, after Amy got sick and developed bronchitis, I figured it was only a matter of time. Well, yesterday, it started with my usual tell-tale sign - post-nasal drip. I started popping Airborne last night and am drinking more than my share of fluids in an effort to stave this off. I don't want to get sick. It isn't fun. I'll keep you posted.

Thanksgiving

This was one interesting Thanksgiving. I had known for some time that I wasn't going to be alone on Thanksgiving this year. Mom and Dad were planning to move out here as early as Thanksgiving last year. However, this year was not what I could have imagined. It was mine and Amy's first Thanksgiving, and I couldn't be happier. Her Mom was here, and that was pleasant. Amy invited my roommate and his girlfriend over, and that was great. Some of our friends that Amy works with. All in all, it was a very Happy Thanksgiving. If only I didn't have to work on Friday...oh well...Hope yours was happy as well.

Have I mentioned?

Disclaimer - I apologize on the front end if my blog and Amy's comment on this past weekend are very similar. When you do cool stuff, you want to tell everyone about it. We just doing a lot of cool stuff together.

This weekend was pretty cool. Amy and I went to San Diego for the weekend. The centerpiece event was going to see my favorite football team, the Buffalo Bills, play the San Diego Chargers. The Canisius Alumni association arranged to get a block of tickets together and plan some events. I got this notice months ago - before I started dating Amy. So I reserved two tickets figuring I could get someone to know. When the Bills played in Phoenix a few years back, Canisius did the same thing. What I forgot about was they booked the seats WAY UP in the nose bleed section. While you can see everything, you just can't see the ball. Oh yeah - and I'm afraid of heights.

So we get to the Stadium yesterday, pick up my tickets at Will Call, and see where the seats are located. The sections lists were in an earlier communication that I have long since disposed of. Guess what - they are in the top section of the stadium - 13 rows up. Needless to say, I wasn't real happy. We get to our level and seats, and I am petrified. I know I went pale. Add to that it was 80 degrees out, I was wearing jeans and a dark polo shirt, and I was very, very uncomfortable. Once we got up to our seats, all I could do was focus on the field. I calmed down some as the stadium filled up, but I never got comfortable.

The moral of this story - always check the seats before purchasing to ensure they are somewhere you can enjoy the game. Oh yeah - and the Bills got their butts handed to them. 48-10. The game ended up being the least fun part of the weekend.

The weekend was pretty cool otherwise. We went to the beach - twice and saw the sun set over the Pacific Ocean. We went into Old Town San Diego and had some great Mexican food. And I got to spend it all with Amy. Pretty cool. All in all, a pretty good weekend. Except for the heights.

Ugh

Today was just one of those days. First, I'm having client issues. One client is making it overly difficult to go live. While it's true that we aren't hit the targets we agreed to, it's just getting frustrating. Luckily, my boss keeps advocating our case. I just don't know how much longer he will.

Then there is my communication-friendly client. One individual is either from China or Taiwan. He is extremely difficult to understand on the phone. Plus, I don't think he is understanding what we are trying to communicate. Very frustrating. I feel like banging my head against the wall every time I'm done talking to him.

Finally, got a call from the mortgage company today. Maybe I've gotten lucky with my initial purchase and my refinance. I just feel like I'm going through a proctology exam. And while that can be fun enough, it's just one more stressor.

At least I can look ahead to a nice weekend in San Diego. Yay! San Diego!

Weekend Update

Well, another weekend is in the books. It was a pretty good weekend, with one really notable low point. This was the closest thing to a lazy weekend that we've had in a while. Friday was low-key, Saturday wasn't packed solid and neither was Sunday. We got to spend time with friends, see our house, tell our Pulte salesman that we got engaged, picked out our flooring for the new house and had some really good food. The best part was that I got to spend it with Amy.

The unfortunate piece came about on Saturday. I got a call from my roommate - who, by the way, is one of the nicest guys Amy or I have ever met - saying that his skanky stripper second ex-wife can't go back to her house until Monday. My assumption is that's code for either her utilities have been turned off again or she has neglected to pay her rent. He mentioned that he was going to watch her two girls until about 9 p.m. and then there was a pause. He asked if she could stay at the house. At this point, if I would have said no, I would have been a monster. So, against my better judgment I said yes. This woman has done quite a bit of evil things to Dave and other people in my life that I care about. I don't really want her in my house. In the end, she didn't end up staying over, which was good, but I didn't sleep very well on Saturday night when I thought we was coming by at any minute.

I feel really bad for her girls. The older girl is not a cute kid. I think she clearly knows that something isn't right, because she is sullen and not very talkative. The little girl is oblivious to what is going on. I have half a mind to call Child Protective Services next time I hear that their Mom has had utilities turned off or is on the verge of getting evicted. The kids need a stable environment while their Mom sorts out her life and gets herself back on track. While the foster system isn't necessarily the best place to be, it's got to be better than what's going on now.

Anyway, that's enough for now. I think I got it out of my system...

New Blog!

Good morning! Amy and I have set up a new blog for wedding related activities. I've linked to it at the side. Click this link to go to For Better or Worse.

War and Politics

OK. First, let me say that I realize this conversation took place at a bar and people had been drinking for quite some time before this conversation started. I should have known better than to get involved in this conversation, but I jumped right in. It started off with someone saying they don't believe in the Marines. That's just a ludicrous statement. The Marines exist. We were able (with an ex-Marine present) to get him to agree that yes, the Marines exists, but he doesn't see the need for a military. His point was that everyone should be able to get along. Unrealistic, but at least it's a defensible position - sort of.

That's where it got interesting. Someone said that the whole reason we have war today is because of religion. While I can see how you can come to that conclusion, I think it's just surface analysis. Judaism, Christianity and Islam all start from the same place. The real reason for war is economics, pure and simple. Look at many of the great conflicts in history - the Crusades, the 100 Years War, the Seven Years War, the American Revolution, World War I and II and the conflicts of today. They are all about land and money.

As much as we'd like to think that the American Revolution was all about freedom, it wasn't. The original line in the Declaration of Independence wasn't that all people are entitled to "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness" it was they were entitled to "Life, Liberty and Property."

I realize this is kind of a diatribe about a bar conversation, but I was annoyed. As my uncle used to tell me, just follow the money trail. That's the root cause of the war.

Aspen Update

For those of you out there that are concerned about my roommates cat Aspen, I thought I'd give you an update on how he's doing. Dave has been around a lot more often lately, so Aspen is much less mopey. While I think all the cats are a little attention-deprived when their respective owners aren't around, they all seem to be coping well. I think in Aspen's case though, he misses my folks' cat Minx. They got pretty friendly when Minx was boarding at my house.

A new chapter

Sunday night, Amy and I started a new chapter in our life together. Standing with her on "our dirt" I got down on one knee and asked her to be my wife. Suffice it to say, she said yes. We are both very, very excited.

Is that it?

While I travel for work frequently, I'm still somewhat of a nervous flier. I figured today was going to be my biggest test - Orange County's John Wayne Airport. I've heard that they don't let rookie pilots fly in and out of there. I've heard the descent is practically straight down, and finally that upon take off, they kill then engines and you feel the plane drop until they re-fire them over the ocean.

Well let me tell you. My OC experience was very disappointing. The landing was relatively smooth. The take off was not that big of a deal. Yes. They revved the engines as we started our take off. Yes, you can hear them cutting back on the engines, but they are still going. And there is no substantial drop. You feel the plane level off until you are over the ocean, and then the engines are brought back up, and you go on your merry way. I felt robbed...

Also, had a variety of work-related issues once I got off the plane tonight. I was looking forward to dinner at home with Amy and maybe Tom, Shawn and/or Dave. However, tonight we also had Dave's second ex-wife's two kids. Not exactly my ideal for a stressful day as my adrenaline level drops off, but I'll make do. If only I could find a way to get Spongebob Squarepants off the TV downstairs...