The First Day of the Rest of My Life

Saturday, January 02, 2010

My girlfriend wants me to start blogging again. She says she likes how I write.

It's been a while. The past few months have been pretty interesting. Since I've blogged last, I've:

- gotten a girlfriend
- traveled out of state to see her several times
- quit my job
- started a new job

And those are just the most memorable items. If I ever get more time (and if I can get a computer that works), I'll be glad to share. But, for now, Happy New Year!

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Monday, May 18, 2009

Something to get me blogging again...

A gal I've been on a few dates with sent me a birthday survey. I'll share my answers to her with you; see if you can guess which answers I held back on...

What is your weakness? Pretty women
What are you fears? Being alone, dying
Describe your Perfect Pizza? Lotsa pepperoni, lotsa cheese
Tell me about your most missed memory? Times with my brother
Pepsi or Coke? I go both ways. ;)
McDonald’s or Burger King? McD's, usually, only because it's closer
Favorite thing from each place? McD- Big Mac BK- Texas Whopper
Favorite dessert? Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Fudge Brownie
Chocolate or Vanilla? Chocolate
Favorite food? Free
Favorite restaurant? Don't really have a favorite
have you gone Skinny Dipping? Not yet
What are you craving? *shrug*
Favorite Movie past, present or future? Rocky 10?
Favorite time of year? Summer
Favorite Color? Blue
Favorite part of living in San Antonio? People, food and sports
Favorite Part of living in Texas? People, food and sports
Describe your ideal date? One where her and I are both laughing it up
Favorite activity? Being lazy

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Tuesday, January 27, 2009

I've had a rough 24 hours. The next 24 don't look any better.

In place of an emo-type post, please enjoy the following musical selection.

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Monday, January 05, 2009

Four words that will make anybody's week.

READER OF THE DAY.

If you're here from Pop Candy, feel free to poke around. And say hello!

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Sunday, December 14, 2008

Yes, I realize I haven't posted in a while. Here's an update to my life in bullet points.

- The job I interviewed for? Never heard back from them. Might have something to do with all this bailout stuff, but I never even heard a "no." Tried emailing them a few weeks ago, but still nothing. Figure I shouldn't hold my breath.

- I am in the process (a little) in applying for another job. It's in a field I was in before. Less pay than what I get now, but hopefully there'd be more enjoyment.

- A girl is coming to visit me from out of town. No formal plans have been made, but she'll be flying in during early January. I'm excited to meet her in person after talking with her over the phone for the past few weeks.

- I'm in the middle of a weight-loss competition with my family. Whoever loses the highest percentage of body weight by the end of the year wins. Each of us put in $50, winner takes all. The scoreboard right now reads as follows:

  • Me: -1.06%
  • Mom: 0.0%
  • Dad: +3.9%

To be honest, I've not done much in the way of diet or exercise. I figure I can try to make a big push during these last few weeks.

- A friend is going through a tough time with her marriage. Without sharing too many details, she's undergoing an abusive relationship (emotional and physical). The only thing that keeps her going (according to her) is her son. If anyone out there has any ideas on how to help, please let me know.

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Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Had a doctor's appointment today. After shelling out about a hundred bucks to settle charges that weren't covered by my insurance, I found that the heart tests I had done showed nothing to be concerned about. The thing on my liver will be addressed by my gastroenterologist tomorrow, hopefully that's nothing major.

Still haven't heard anything about the job I interviewed for. After the last couple of days, I'm REALLY hoping I get it. And I'm REALLY worried what I may do if I don't get it.

Friday, November 07, 2008

Okay, so it's been a while. Here's what's going on with me...

- I've been going through a few doctor's appointments, first for some concerns with my heart. Now, I find that I have a lesion on my liver. It could be something, it might be nothing, I'll be going through some other tests with a gastroentorologist. Yet, I still had fast food the past few days.

- I had a date on Tuesday night. That's right, the same night history was made by electing Barack Obama, I went out with a girl. I had tickets to the Spurs/Mavs game that night, and asked out R. I met her at Theology on Tap. (Sound familiar?) Turns out she's an avid McCain supporter. (It's always fun and games until the word "baby-killer" is used.) But the non-political discussion was cool enough, thinking I'm gonna ask her to the game next week to see how she is when her candidate isn't giving a concession speech.

- By the way, not that it's any of your business, but I voted for Mr. Obama. Now I'm just hoping he doesn't screw it up.

- Heading to Cleveland next week as part of another meetup for the Pop Candy blog. If you're counting at home, that makes four such meetups this year, all out of town. Maybe I do need to start finding new friends in this town.

- Had a second interview last week for a new division at my current company. I've interviewed with them before, but this is the furthest I've gone in the process. Since I was off work this week, I haven't heard anything yet. Hopefully I will soon.

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Friday, October 17, 2008


(The following is taken from my blog on myspace. I may elaborate on some things later - specifically, the other characters in this story - but enjoy this for now.)




A few weeks ago, I announced plans for a meetup for readers of the USA Today blog "Pop Candy." The plan was to meet at a bar this past Friday, then hang out at the Texas State Fair on Saturday during the big Texas/OU game.

You know what they say about the best laid plans, don't you?


In the days leading up to the big event, only two people RSVP'ed: Andrea, aka Araiday, and Debbie, aka babybenrox, both to come into Dallas from Oklahoma City. At first, I thought we'd be hanging out the whole weekend. Then, it turned out that Andrea would come in on Friday, and Debbie would come in on Saturday. Unfortunately, due to a family emergency, Andrea then said she could only come in on Saturday. Later, she broke the news to me that she wouldn't be coming at all. So that left Debbie and I to hang out during the day on Saturday. Or so I thought.

My phone rang early Saturday morning. It was Debbie, telling me that she was having some car trouble, and that she probably wouldn't make it to Dallas. I floated the idea of me going up there.

"Not unless you like hanging out at Auto Zone," she said.

"Okay," I said, resigning myself to fate. I then went off in search of juice for my phone battery, since I left my plug-in charger at home. Turns out I was worrying about the wrong battery.

I got in my car to charge my phone, and to drive around looking for a place that sold phone chargers at 8 in the morning. During that time, I came upon a place that advertised $5 car washes. My car had been under attack from a swarm of migrating butterflies a few weeks ago, so my car was due to get cleaned. As my car got cleaned up, I was still fixated on getting that charger (as well as wondering who would win the big game). Those thoughts changed to something else as I tried to start my car after it was dried.

"Holy shit."

It would not start. My first instinct was to pop open the hood. Unfortunately, since nothing popped out at me (nothing was bubbling, nothing on fire), I didn't know what was going on. Fortunately, the staff at the car wash place had a device to give me a jump. They hooked it up, I turned my car on, and I began a new mission: to find a batter terminal cleaner. (This was also at the advice of my dad, who was the first person I got on my phone after the jump.) I ended up at a NAPA store. I got the brush, and asked the clerk if he could test my battery. After knocking off a lot of the corrosion, he asked me to try and start my car.

"Holy shit."

"Looks like you've got a bad cell," he told me while looking at his meter. It had been awhile since I got a battery, so if that was the only thing I needed to spend money on, I was fine with it. I also decided to get an air filter, remembering the dirty piece of plastic the guy at the oil change place showed me a couple months back. Confident in my limited skillz, I went to install my new purchases.

Five minutes later, I was back inside asking for help. I couldn't get the air filter cover to fit, and the bar that secured the battery couldn't screw into place. The same guy (an assistant manager, mind you), took one look, flipped the air filter over, locked the cover into place, then manuevered the battery bar into position. (Like I said, my skillz are limited.) I went back to my hotel to get cleaned up. After a well-deserved shower, I laid in my bed to rest for a bit before the game.

About three hours later, I awoke to find UT trailing OU in the second quarter. (I'd go over what happened in the game, but you probably know by now.) Toward the end of the game, I texted a proposition to the ladies.

"How do you feel about dinner tonight?"

My enjoyment of Saturday night came down to two choices: try to entertain myself in Dallas by myself, or make a quick 2-and-a-half hour drive to Oklahoma and meet up with some lovely Oklahomans. After a while, I ended up talking Debbie into my idea.

Our plan was to meet at a nice place called BJ's in a town just south of OKC. I couldn't resist a little bragging, so I put on my new UT t-shirt, white, with burnt orange lettering and an orange longhorn. I ended up beating her to the restaurant (driving 83 mph helps). But, after a few hours, a fill-up, and countless hours spent at auto parts stores, the Pop Candy Dallas meetup finally took place in Norman, Oklahoma.

Gifts were exchanged: a "boo bucket" of candy for me for my drive home, (carrying on a tradition first started during 4th of July weekend), shot glasses for her and Andrea (she was in Clinton, OK, an hour away, so I gave it to Debbie, since they actually live in the same area code), a UT football for Debbie's son, the world-famous Baby Ben, and crab hats for all of us, sent with TLC from Stacie, aka fressshies. Our night consisted of a lovely dinner, something called a "pi-zookie" (fo' shizzle), and a trip to a nearby Indian casino. Since most of the machines were penny slots, I didn't lose that much money, but I still had fun. Mix in trying to explain to someone how the 25 different paylines on a video slot machine work, a biker with a rattail staring down my friend, and a dance party set to the music of a slot machine, and it was definitely a night to remember.

I dropped her off at the restaurant, we took some more pictures with our crab hats on, and then I headed back to Dallas.

For those of you who may still think that "meeting people from the Internet" is code for "I have no social skills in real life," I say get over yourselves. Especially if you get to meet a Candy (or a Whitness, as they're sometimes referred). You will have a GREAT time.

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Sunday, September 21, 2008

Need to get this out of my head before I fall asleep (hopefully I fall asleep sometime soon...)

Earlier today, I concerned a few people with a status message on myspace: "Greg just took another name off the list."

I called up Johanna this afternoon after leaving work (I put in about three hours of OT). I left her a voicemail, asking if she wanted to get together for beer and Longhorn football. I met her during a physics class at UT. A few months ago, I found her on facebook. We started hanging out every few weeks, just for Mexican food and conversation. She's a med student who enjoys marathoning and windsurfing.

About an hour or so later, she called me back. During the span of our 94-second conversation, she informed me that:
  • she didn't have much time to talk
  • she moved to Corpus for her studies
  • she was in town for a string quartet performance, and
  • she met someone.

I took the news about as well as I've taken news like this in the past, treating myself to a large pepperoni from Little Caesar's (as well as some bad heartburn, apparently). I figure I'll get over this in a day or so (hopefully). But I guess one fact has become crystal clear: if you're a woman with a graduate or doctoral degree (or on the way to getting one), chances are you'll shoot me down.

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Sunday, September 14, 2008

Been sick the last few days with a really bad cough. Boss sent me home early on Friday. Gave me time to head to a clinic and get FOUR prescriptions. I think I've been taking more pills than my grandmother...

But now, I get to go to work tomorrow.

from the Wall Street Journal...
"Lehman faces the possibility of liquidation and Merrill Lynch sold itself to Bank of America on a day in which the U.S. financial system was shaken to its core. The federal government's refusal to provide support to potential Lehman buyers prompted Barclays and Bank of America to walk away from talks. AIG sought to raise cash and craft a survival plan amid investor pressure."

Yeah, work is gonna be REAL fun tomorrow.

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Tuesday, September 09, 2008

So I'm more than a bit paranoid about what may happen tomorrow when the Large Hadron Collider comes online. Explains why I had dinner with my folks tonight. The rest of my night was oddly uneventful, watching a lot of television. A chat with Maria helped calm me down.

"If there's a black hole, there's not much you can do about it, is there? So why worry about that which you have no control over?"

That's about the gist of what she said, and it seemed to help. So did me vocalizing my fears to help me realize how improbable they are.

Still, I'll be saying some extra prayers tonight.

See everyone tomorrow...

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Monday, September 08, 2008

By the way, I found out that I missed the Feast Day of St. Gregory the Great.

Maybe I should expect gifts... ;)

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I broke down and bought Rock Band on Saturday. I blame that purchase for my lame Saturday night.

I'm hosting a game night in a couple of weeks for the church group. I figured, instead of a trivia game where I'd pwn all comers, I decided to plunk down the $150 and join the masses who are becoming "musicians." Being a drummer myself, I immediately started practicing on the set. Truth be told, some of the songs are pretty difficult (and that's just on the easy and medium settings).

On the way to the registers at the front of the store, I ran into a couple of people I knew from high school. They were in the marching band with me, and got married to each other a few years ago. We chit-chatted for a bit. They're back in town after being in Houston for a while. He's an ER doctor, she works for a large tech firm, and they have an 11-month-old son. Truth be told, I was a bit embarassed at my purchase. (Then again, I wondered what married people buy at electronics stores.) We went our separate ways, and I checked out.

A few hours later, I got a text from another ex-band geek. A guy who graduated a year or two behind me was playing in town, and she wondered if I wanted to check it out. I said yes, figuring it wouldn't be that bad of a way to spend an evening. Turns out I was wrong.

Long story short, I ended up sitting at a table full of people I didn't really know. (I did bump into one person who recognized me, but she skipped out after I got a chance to chat her up.) I only ended up staying for about three or four songs before heading back home to catch the rest of the UT game.

One of these days, I'll learn to handle myself better in social situations. Until then, I guess I can always practice my guitar skills.

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Friday, September 05, 2008

Just some random thoughts to get out of my head...
  • I like Biden more than Palin.
  • McCain and Obama, however, are neck and neck.
  • Speaking of racing, anyone up for hitting the race track with me?
  • Speaking of sports, I may be going with Maria to the UT-Arkansas game next weekend! Hopefully no shenannigans will occur... (I told you that I kissed her a few weeks ago, right? No?)
  • Speaking of shenannigans, I'm planning a trip to Dallas to meet some Pop Candy readers. Should be fun.
  • Speaking of fun, I put together my first-ever public playlist on my myspace page. Sting, Led Zepplin, SRV, Jane Child, Jamie Cullum, Ugly Kid Joe, Extreme, Jonathan Coulton, Cameo and Joe Satriani. Discumbobulated? Yes. Awesome? You decide...
  • Speaking of being all over the place, I went to Austin to see how they do Theology on Tap, as well as to help promote a young adult conference here in October. 250 people, a few I knew from college, and quite a few attractive women... and Shy Greg turned up. I HATE that guy.
  • Speaking of hate, I don't like trying to end these sorts of posts on a high note.
  • Speaking of the end, according to a study, an atom smasher in Europe will NOT bring on the end of the world. Great. Now, I just have to worry about 2012 and the end of the Aztec calendar.

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Saturday, August 30, 2008

Had dinner with my folks tonight. As we left, my mom said, "We never see you." Nights like this seem to illustrate why.

Mom called me this afternoon, asking me to meet them at Chili's after they went to Mass. I got there about 6:10, with them waiting for me to get there and put in my order. Thankfully, they had a Miller Lite waiting for me. I wasn't in the best of moods; I was in another one of my "woe is me, no one will hang out tonight" phases. But soon after I got there, I got a bit of a smile on my face. (Seeing UT pull ahead of Florida Atlantic helped.) Then, my dad said something that I didn't quite expect.

"We're expecting to be grandparents when we turn 65."

During my twenties, I didn't hear any of this sort of talk. Maybe a little when I was dating the ex who shall not be named, but only because of lack of serious girlfriends I'd had up to that point. (They said that they gave her a cheap rate on rent because they thought she would become their daughter-in-law.) But these sorts of hints have been dropped more often. I joked that they were going to install a "24"-esque countdown timer in my condo.

I told them about how I ended things with the Cougar, they told me about how they wanted to intorduce me to a Bolivian (or Peruvian, or Venezualan, I'm not sure) woman who would "put her husband first." My dad also told me about his hobby of inquiring about the marital status of waitresses when my folks go out to eat.

"I see you marrying either someone quite a bit younger than you, or just a little older," he said. Good thing I live a stone's throw away from a college campus.

Now, all of a sudden, I have a biological clock. I only hope I don't go crazy about it like that countdown like I did the countdown to my thirties. (FYI- my folks turned 61 in June. 47 months to go...)

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