I got tagged

Agent Orange tagged me with a blog version of the chain mail. I think you have to add your own new four thing at the end, so if you play on add something new.


Four Jobs I’ve Had
Paint Specialist - Lowes
Line Worker - Kingport Book Bindery
Turbine Design Intern - G.E.
HVAC Sales Engineer - Hahn-Mason Air Systems (current)

Four Films I Can Watch Over and Over
Animal House
Feild of Dreams
Oceans Eleven
For Love of the Game

Four Places I’ve Lived
Stonega, VA
Kingsport, TN
Clemson, SC
Charlotte, NC

Four Current TV Shows I Enjoy
Boston Legal
The OC
Desperate Houswives
CSI-Miami

Four Foods I Like
Joey Bag of Donuts - Moes anywhere
Ribeye Steak - Straight off the Grille at home
Veal Parm - Guiseppi's in Kingsport
Anything my mom makes when I go home

Four Places I’ve Vacationed
Vail, CO
Hilton Head, SC
Venice, FL
San Fransisco, CA

Four Websites I Visit Daily
ESPN.com
Weather.com
Nailor.com
yahoo.com

Four Things I’d Like to Do Before I Die
Get My Pilots License
Be a good father/better grandfather
Run a company
Be admired for something good I do/have done for others

Four Things I Miss From College
Hall parties when I was on duty
Living at the Ridge
Greek Bowl
Homecoming Week

Four Living People I Want To Have Dinner With
Dubya
Warren Buffett
Ryne Sandberg
Alan Greenspan


Four People I am Tagging
Poot
Skippy
Everyone else has been tagged

Chicago

Well, I flew up, I ate, I drank (lots), I danced (with people wives mainly) , I partied, and I even did a little work. I stayed at the Talbot hotel, a couple blocks west of Michigan Ave and the top of the Magnificent Mile. Note to Agent, keep the Mrs. away at all cost. I recommend the digs and not because I lucked into a free room upgrade. Old school, nice, and not too expensive all things considered. I could go on and on about the trip and it was only 3.5 days. I will say one of the highlights was lunch on Sunday at Harry Caray's. It was walking distance to the hotel but most importantly to be the next best thing as he is essentially an icon and getting a trip to Wrigley in during the winter would have been tough and a little pointless other than some outside pics. Needless to say I had to order a hot dog and ice cold Budweiser. I was even wearinga white button down shirt. I didn't get any of the chili, mustard, relish, or cheese on me, which earned a ring of the bell from the barkeep. As you can see below it was a rather large dog and I loaded it out just out of principle. And when I saw Budweiser I mean it. Harry wouldn't be drinking that light stuff and neither was I. Email pics should circulate with a picture of me in action on that hotdog, or checkout my facebook gallery. It was agreat experience. Chalked full of Cubs memorabilia and soon to sport a display for the Chi-Sox success of this past fall (Harry broadcast 10 yrs for them prior to being a Cubby). A few sales people from other office were there with me and one actually recommended it prior to knowing about me beinga Cubs fan. I said hell yes and jumped onthe option needless to say. I think I was pretty much like a kid in a candy store until we finally had to report back to work meetings later that afternoon. Other details about the trip may get posted later but I had to get these two pics up and a blurb about it for those of you who catch a ride on the shortbus through Whatown every now and then.

Harry Caray's
Wha

Spicy Mustard and Relish
Wha

Helmet Time

As I have decided to run head on into the 21st century,I figure that shit better be strapped on tight. My laptop was purchased about 10 days ago and has been in my possession since this past Friday. Dell, pretty muchloaded out for any needs. Currently in the process of completing software installation. Finished it off, or so I hope, with Office tonight. I'm sure there will be a program or two at work but the major ones are on here I think. All the necessary home apps are loaded less Bit Torrent and AVG and as their uses are essentially one and the same, I don't know that I will be loading these seeing as this will be used at the office on a regular basis and logged into the network. The last great hurdle I see is getting all my email off my other computer moved to this one along with files 2 years old and less from the server and primarily C drive. All the networking stuff has been taken care and the XP Pro upgrade through Dell was a good call. Cheaper and necessary with server compatibility. The pertinents most of you are looking for: 80G, 500 MB RAM (expandable), 1.83 Ghz, 15.1" widescreen, internal wireless and ethernet, Radeon graphics card. As I add cool stuff, screw up software, or find it a handy toilet replica ala Hug-a-bunch, I'm sure you'll see it here first, especially considering I now have 3 computers that I am the primary on, though the upgrade is intended to knock out at least one of them. Of ocurse, should I really download Hooker 6.9 then I may be too dehydrated to type for a few days so if I am absent, you know why.

What's Your Password?

big boy. Please say your password. BIG BOY!


It just makes me laugh

CMS

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. They are a joke. They have a bussing program that hauls kids all over town so as to bust up the natural segregation that has occured. AKA they made someone else's problems mine too. Well, mine if I had kids and couldn't afford the 10-15K /yr to stick them in private schools. Anyway, the problems here have been documented for a while and areas such as Huntersville/Lake Norman have been trying to split off and start tehre own system supported by the local taxes in that area. Smart move lake people, you all have decent cash and none of the crap if bussing goes away. And it's not like they can hold light rail over you as an incentive to come back or finishing I-77 construction to the main exits. By the way bussing is shipping kids out side their home school district not the typical way most of us got to school at some points in our life.
Anyway, the point of this is that those days may be coming to an end. The Superintendent was thrown out on their ear last election, a few board members were replaced and the bonds failed so the cash for crap has at least been slowed for a while. The best part, the new super is bringing in business people to run the show and people like Coach Joe (yes this is a board member and the name he is often referred to by) will be slowly choked back into their place instead of coddling the "minorities" who are the majority in many schools with the mass exodus of well to do's to the realm of private education. Don't be surprised if you read about the CMS turn around in 5 years or so. The town has had enough and seems to have put it's foot down on BS. Should be fun. Hopefully things will be changed for the better by the time it matters to me beyond anything other than my property taxes.

Books, Who Needs 'Em?

While many of the readers of this blog have spent some of the holiday down time enjoying various forms of literature, I have done nothing of the such. A couple investment guides have been sorted through between the flights out west and the "library" and that's about it. I prefer to spend my time blowing shit up on a computer game or indulging in a fine beverage while dumbing down in front of whatever the screen may have upon it in the living room. I find those who expose their literature findings (not the books but he profound wisdom/enlightenment/BS) to typically be somewhat pompous or arrogant. Unless of course the exposing is in my belly from some cookbook that was read. Fortunately, most of the banter is simply "I liked/disliked for reason A,B, or C." and not the arrogance. A handy tid bit of trivia answer is always appreciated in random conversation as well. With my attention span anything that can be published in hardback probably isn't going to get finished anyway, regardless of my interest in the subject, just ask my professors. Wait, no, they haven't realized I'm getting by with class attendance/participation and reading the handouts only. None the less, I have assembled a few of my favorite titles and authors for you here this evening. Raise your glass of single malt and crumpet and enjoy!

Yellow River - I.P. Freely
Under the Bleachers - Seymour Butts
Trail in the Sand - Peter Dragon
Caught on the Fence - Wong Huang Lo
Below Me, Trebek - S. Connery
Crab Shack - Poo Ti Tang
Don't Stop the Lovin' - Balou Ball

Everyone's doin' it

Yes, that's right, everyone is posting their resolutions so I better do the same.

One, quit getting so smashed on nights I get to party. Yeah it's fun for the rest of you but it's starting to hurt hte next day and I know it's not helping that bottle of Jack getting opened.
Get healthier - Yeah, everyone says this one but I have a multi prong plan that if implemented a little in each section, may work. Eat less and healthier. Cut out the late night Wendy's ( I shouldn't need the hang over rememdy quite as much anyway) . Wild Wings shouldn't be a staple of the diet. Neither should Moes or Steak Escape.
Go to the gym and do something other than run. The abs need to have some shape other than one large circle.
Be more organized, inthe office and at home. I junk off my space too much. It's even starting to bother me, I would hate to know what it does to Skippy.
Ok, Happy Hour -that's the other one, less late nights out, more happy hours to meet people. No time like the present to start that one.

It's a 10!

Number 10 hit the top shelf tonight. Thanks Nobrainer. We have 11 and 12 in the wings waiting for consupmtion and winter grilling and no traveling planned for 2 of the 3 of us. This train may be picking up some steam.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year crackas. Here's to a happy and prosperous one for all of us.