Posts

Posted on

One and Done

With a heavy heart I am writing this to acknowledge the loss yesterday of the Tennessee Titans to the Baltimore Ravens. It was not a good game. The Titans made so many mistakes with penalties and bad decisions on the field that I was banging my head on the wall in frustration.

The worst moment in the game was when the kicker missed a 51 yard field goal attempt. We really needed that field goal to keep the game alive and it might have even won the game for us. But he missed with a wide swing to the left of the goal posts and we were crushed. Done.

Congrats to the Ravens for the win. I have to say that to be a good sport, but I also have to say that I will not be cheering for the Ravens in the next round of the playoffs. Whoever is playing against the Ravens will get my support. If I even watch that game at all.

Posted on

Go Titans!

This weekend is the sudden death playoffs for the NFL top teams. The Tennessee Titans are considered one of the best teams this year, with their 13 wins and only 3 losses in the entire regular season.

The game will be against the Baltimore Ravens. Now, the Titans don’t historically do well against the Ravens. Personally, I despise the Ravens team for being a bunch of low class thugs. But they do win football games.

Haven’t decided where I want to watch the game tomorrow. Have some invitations from friends and even a couple people from work. We’ll have to see which ones sound the best for serious football fans and not so much gossip and chatting during the game. Lots of cold beer is a must-have, too.

Posted on

Plans for Reading More

This year I’m working on a personal improvement goal of reading more books. I used to love to read in school. I could read all afternoon and finish off a book a day when I was in junior high school. Of course, I hardly ever had an afternoon dedicated to reading – I was always doing some kind of sports or lessons. But I did read a fair amount and I still like a good book. One of my favorite fiction writers is John Grisham and his series of novels about lawyers and legal cases.

In the world of non fiction I usually stay away from all those touchy feelie, self improvement types of books. I like books about history – especially the Civil War. I also like books about travel and places around the world that will make my “bucket list.”Haven’t been outside of the U. S. yet, but I plan to.

Right now I’m reading a book by Jimmy Buffett, of all people, called, “Tales From Margaritaville.” Although the collection of short stories is mostly fiction, some of them are based on the truth. It makes for interesting reading and stirs up the desire to head for a beach.

Posted on

No Hangover!

Last night really rocked and I’m amazed that I don’t have a hangover from all the fun.

The lodge was the perfect place for a New Year’s Eve party. We ate like pigs, drank like fish and partied like a room full of crazy but “smart enough to not do anything totally stupid” people. It was really nice to be able to totally relax and let loose.

We called a cab about 2:30 am and decided to just leave my car there for the morning. Much better to pay out $30 and not worry about DUI issues. I’ll catch a ride back over there with my brother to fetch the car later this afternoon and maybe we’ll share a late brunch. Don’t want to break my arm for patting myself on the back too much, but I think that was one of the smartest things I’ve ever done!

Here’s hoping you had a nice New Year’s celebration, too. Here’s also hoping that 2009 is good to you, and that we all see great things for America and our families.

Posted on

New Year’s Party

Heading out to the New Year’s party in a few minutes. We are going to the Lodge as guests of my brother and his wife. I know lots of the guys there although I’ve not joined the lodge. These are good people and the lodge is the perfect place for a private, adult party. They have booked a local band and a DJ so that when the band takes a break there will still be music playing. That’s a good idea, as the DJ can play some of the different types of music that the band might not be into.

It’s a BYOB party, which save some bucks. You buy the mixers there and the ticket price included a big buffet dinner with a prime rib carving station. It includes party hats, noise makers, and a glass of champagne for a group toast at midnight.

Sound like a really great deal for the price and the fact that you are among friends and family makes it even better. So let me get out of here and wish everyone a very happy and safe New Year.

Posted on

Beaches on My Mind

I get a weekly email from a travel destinations site with features of different places and vacation packages. This week the email features beaches, called “Seven affordable, under the radar, beach destinations.” Well, I was most interested in the “affordable” part but the “under the radar” part intrigued me, as well. So I gave it a look.

The first beach they featured is in Venezuela, called Los Roques. This is not really just one beach. Los Roques is an archipelago of 42 sandy islands and over 300 mangrove islets, located about 80 miles north of the Caracas coast. Most Los Roques islands are uninhabited, and the few that have hotels have very small, primitive accommodations.

They recommended the tiny, six-room hotel called “Posada Movida.” Their bed and breakfast rates start at $75 per person per night. Now that is a bargain. You can barely get a Red Roof Inn in Atlanta for $75 a night! After some investigation I found it’s a better deal to get the all inclusive rate of $120 per person, which covers all meals with wine at dinner, and an all day island boat tour.

Posted on

Thank you Santa

Hey Santa – you rock!

I got a new iPhone in my Christmas stocking. How cool is that?

It’s not activated yet – I have to take care of that on Monday so they will switch my number from my old Razr phone and assign it to my new iPhone. But I can read the instructions that come with it and be ready for Monday. Awesome present – wasn’t expecting this at all.

Also got a new video game for the Playstation 3 and tickets to a show downtown in a couple weeks. All in all, Santa was VERY good to me!

Posted on

Merry Christmas Everyone

This week has been record setting for bad weather and I know it has ruined a lot of people’s travel plans. I hope that if you going to be in the air or on the road for the holidays that you arrived safe and sound and can enjoy the time with your loved ones.

Merry Christmas, everyone.

Posted on

Ending the Catalog Madness

Was your mailbox crammed full of mail order catalogs this Christmas season like mine was? It was unbelievable how many off the wall subjects and whacky products are covered in mail order catalogs. I received dozens of catalogs pimping everything from massage stones to bird feeders to health food supplements to plus sized lingerie.

After a little digging, I found out that when you do buy something from a catalog, the transaction is reported to a company called “Abacus,” which is owned by DoubleClick Digital Advertising – and if you surf the internet you KNOW who these guys are! They sell, rent, and pretty much whore your personal information to other catalog companies and junk mail publishers based on what you just ordered from any of their other catalog companies.Your name and address and the fact that you’ve bought from a catalog is worth money to these guys and you get put on their sucker list for a very long time.

We can all stop getting these junk mail catalogs by sending an email to the “Abacus Catalog Alliance” at this address: optout@abacus-direct.com. Tell these guys, in no uncertain terms, that you want off their lists and never want to hear from them again. Make sure the email includes your first, middle, and last name and the same for anyone else in your household who receives mail in names other than yours, include your current address, and if you’ve moved in the past year, include your previous address, too.This will stop the catalog madness and save a lot of trees, too.

Posted on

Ready for Christmas

Finished my shopping today. I really didn’t want to be out in the stores on the Saturday before Christmas. It was horribly crowded, but then again there were bargains everywhere and it was hard to stop spedning money! I bought a gift for every one on the list plus a couple things for myself. Santa is going to be very generous this year.