What’s going on….

Posted: July 17, 2010 in Schell's, Weight loss
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Long time, no post.

First of all, allow me to apologize for not posting anything new for a few days. There’s been a lot going on around here that’s required some attention and, well, I didn’t want to give you a substandard post. Let’s review the past few days, shall we?

Thursday was a beautiful day. Hardly a cloud in the sky, slightly warm, very sunny. We got an early start and went to Schell’s. Schell’s is a local tradition in Berks County, PA. Founded in 1952, Schell’s offers fast food type items (burgers, dogs, fried chicken, and the best hamburger BBQ on the planet). (author’s note: don’t call it a sloppy joe. This is what all sloppy joes aspire to be. This stuff is the Cristal of hamburger BBQ. It is the food of the gods. If this stuff would’ve been around in the 1930’s and 40’s, we could have airdropped it into Berlin and WWII would have never happened. It is that good. To call Schell’s BBQ a sloppy joe would be like referring to the Great Wall of China as a fence. And now, back to your regularly scheduled ramblings.) In addition, they have an ice cream building and 27 holes of mini golf. Laura and I took a friend of ours along who had never had the pleasure of hitting the ball over the lake, and the deal was that the loser had to buy the ice cream.

Everyone stayed under 100 on the course. I actually did well, shooting a 76 on a par 72. Laura had to forfeit, though, as her dodgy hip started to act up. So, she wound up buying the ice cream. As for lunch, our friend, who practices a vegetarian lifestyle, raved about the freshness of the salad and the wonders that are fried cheddar cheese cubes. Ahh, breaded, deep-fried bliss.

Later Thursday night, there was alcohol involved. We had to go out and celebrate Laura’s last night as Lancaster Newspapers’ sports agate wench. Most of the sports staff turned out and a good time was had by all.

Yesterday brought a haircut and the delayed trip to the Jerz. We went up through Kutztown, Allentown and Easton, crossed into Phillipsburg (seemed to be a happening place) and went on to Morris County. There was a place which had rooms to rent that we were looking at. We pulled up outside and well, it was scary. I could just picture this place as the location for a horror movie. We turned the car around and fled. Quickly.

Started checking out several hotels and we think we found one that will work in the short term until we can check out some rooms. I also got to see where Laura will be working. It’s an impressive structure. Must be a lot of printing going on there. One of the highlight was that I got to have White Castle for the first time. It’s pretty tasty, but I’ll still take Chick-Fil-A first.

Getting on with it, let’s look at the meat of the day’s post. The topic is doing what’s right. Now, before anyone jumps in and says, “How do you know what’s right?” let me say that I’m not talking what is morally or legally right, but what is right for each and every one of us in regards to the choices we make throughout our lives. We all make wrong decisions at least once or twice or hundreds of times, and how we react to the right and wrong decisions we make is what defines us as individuals. So many variables can be factored into the decision-making process. Opinions of friends, peer pressure (it still exists in adulthood), financial, etc. can all be a part of the process. I will say this, though. If you have a dream, don’t ever give it up. It might take months or years, but it’s worth holding on to. I’m going to include a video clip from one of the more inspiring movies I’ve ever seen. This is from Rudy, starring Sean Astin and Charles S. Dutton.

Basically, the point I’m trying to make is that whatever you do, don’t just do it because someone else thinks it’s the best choice of action for you. Value their opinion, but temper it with other opinions. We’ve all told our parents at one point or another, “But _______ is doing it!” Our parents would invariably reply, “And if _______ jumped off a cliff, would you do that, too?” I’m not saying don’t jump off a cliff, I’m saying go ahead and jump off that cliff… if it’s the right choice for you to make. Getting married to the stripper at your cousin Bubba’s bachelor party is a choice, but you might want to think about that one after you’ve sobered up because it might not be the best choice for you. Being able to make mistakes is perhaps one of the few freedoms still left to us. Don’t squander that freedom.

Tomorrow I’m going to take a look at cruising. Until then, enjoy the weekend!

Fatsploitation and other stuff

Posted: July 14, 2010 in Weight loss
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Greetings, gentle readers.

Today I’m going to talk about something that really pisses me off. The exploitation of fat, or, as I’m calling it, fatsploitation.  Mainly we’re talking about television shows like the Biggest Loser, or Celebrity Fit Club. Or, as a friend of mine currently in the UK has posted about, Big Meets Bigger. Check out her blog entry here.

It’s not that the shows are that bad. Lord knows I would watch Celebrity Fit Club (CFC) every week, although it was mainly to see train wrecks like Dustin Diamond (Screech) or Jeff Conway have complete meltdowns, rather than to hear about weight loss. That being said, I think CFC’s panel was much more about losing the weight and keeping it off than the Biggest Loser team. Harvey Walden, the former drill instructor, was tough and had very little tolerance for bulls**t, and Dr. Ian Smith’s diet plan actually did me some good when I tried it. I got the impression that it was less about the total loss and more about positive lifestyle changes.

Moving on to The Biggest Loser, well, where do we start? The weight loss numbers are astounding, but at what cost? After reading some of the statements by people who have come forward, well, I wouldn’t want to be a part of that. It seems like many of them dehydrate to shed weight and other questionable tactics. I understand that it’s entertainment first, but still, we are talking about people’s health.

So, the mini golf outing has been postponed due to the chance of rain which never materialized yesterday. Rain date is tomorrow. Wish me luck!

Today is bringing a trip up in the Jerz. As many of you may have heard, Mrs. T. has been offered and has accepted a position at the Bergen Record in north Jersey. It’s a place in the big kid sandbox and while we are not looking forward to a relocation, it’s a great step for her career. Have no fear, though, this blogger will be staying in PA for a while yet. There are many loose ends to tie up, ranging from my employment to selling a house. After spending the last three years sweating blood to get this place livable, I’ll get to start all over again. I won’t lie and say I’m not disappointed. I am. But we all make sacrifices for the greater good.

It’s not been a good food week overall. I feel myself backsliding a little bit. I’m lacking some of my motivation. I need to reaffirm my commitment to my goals and find my mojo again. I’ve stayed away from takeout and high sodium foods, but I haven’t been walking and that’s a bad thing. Lord GOMF, the Earl of Bunion has been complaint-free, but the air has been super-chewy. I don’t care for mall walking, either. Those tile floors are worse than concrete. I don’t know how women can shop all days wearing heels. But that could just be me.

Anyway, it’s a new day and I’m going to make it work. Thanks for making me accountable.

Today’s weight: 299.7

Monday, Monday

Posted: July 12, 2010 in Schell's, Weight loss
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Hey everyone!

Didn’t get a chance to do an entry yesterday. I really didn’t have anything to say, so why say anything? We went off to Reading for a family picnic. It was nice to see everyone and not at a funeral for a change, which seemed to be the pattern for a while.

Had to take two cars, as the missus had to work last night. There were plenty of good eats, but I didn’t have a crazy-bad food day. Yes, there were soft pretzels from the Philly Soft Pretzel Factory and they were very good. The highlight for me was actually having some mustard. My hate relationship with mustard goes back years and I guess my palate has changed, because I was putting it on the pretzel and loving it.

This was with the spicy horseradish mustard, too. When I had a hot dog later, I tried the spicy brown mustard and found I liked that as well. It’s always nice to discover a food you didn’t like is something you like now. I always hated broccoli as a kid, now it’s my favorite vegetable. There was a time I didn’t like pizza. Seriously. I know it’s hard to believe, but it’s true.

Other eats at the picnic included the main enemy (Muenster cheese), a nice fresh fruit tray (with kickass kiwi and pineapple), plus the standard picnic fare. I managed to have only three cubes of the enemy, one hot dog (with spicy brown mustard!), and stuck to drinking water and one can of diet Sierra Mist. As I said, not an abysmal food day by any stretch.

There was no watching of the World Cup finals, however. We were watching Formula One, then the World Cup was overruled in favor of watching the Phillies-Reds offensive suckfest. After watching Formula One, I can say that those guys have to be the best drivers on the planet, hands down. I think that I would love to attend an F-One race at some point as it returns to the US.

Having that much selection of stuff I like is a great test for our upcoming cruise vacation, or as I like to call it, “Can Brian withstand the temptation of the midnight buffet?” It’s going to be a challenge, I think, one that I can hopefully withstand.

Also in the food department, we had a lovely dinner with our friend on Saturday night. Our friend brought a very nice Carl Reh Riesling, whose website trumpets that they ARE the Riesling experts. I tend to agree. I’m not a wine drinker or connoisseur by any stretch, but I was perfectly willing to down this one. It was a perfect complement to the pasta ponzo and balsamic grilled asparagus that I made for the main event. Post dinner, there was angel food cake with fresh strawberries and good conversation lasting well into the morning.

Today will bring work around the house and a walk. Tomorrow morning, we are planning a friendly mini-golf round with a friend. Loser has to buy the ice cream, so maybe I should practice a little?

Hope you all have a great week and I’ll see you back here tomorrow.

Today’s weight: 296.2.

This post has no title

Posted: July 10, 2010 in Weight loss
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Hi everybody!

I wasn’t sure I would be able to get something posted today. However, doing dinner prep ahead of time allowed me a few extra minutes after the move.

Ah, the move. First of all, let me just say that when I’m involved in a move, it is usually the hottest day of the year. The move could be on February 10, in Alaska, and it would suddenly shoot up to about 90 degrees. Today was different in that the temperatures were at least bearable.  Granted, the rain kind of sucked, but we certainly needed it.

We all met at our friend’s storage unit, which is located way out in the middle of nowhere. Next to a cow pasture. I kid you not. It was hard not to watch the little calves be frisky and focus on heavy objects. Granted there wasn’t a lot of really heavy objects, but stuff still needed to be moved. We loaded up the caravan of cars and went to the new place, unloaded and left the unpacking to the professionals.

So, a lot of times, rainy weather like today makes me a little introspective. I’m going to impart something that I never told anybody up until today.  You see, when I was diagnosed as a diabetic several years ago, it came as a shock. I knew I wasn’t feeling good. I was lethargic, sleep apnea, the whole ball of wax. Basically, I was overwhelming my pancreas with too much sugar. As a result, the pancreas just kind of said, “The hell with this” and walked off the job.

I had read up on the disease and what I could expect if it were to go unchecked. The loss of limbs, the blindness, basically, fates worse than death. So, I really didn’t care if I lived or died. I wouldn’t go so far as to say I was suicidal, but I certainly didn’t give a damn.

Looking back, that was incredibly selfish of me to think that way. While I might not have cared, there are others who did and it wouldn’t be fair to them. That carried over into my work. I just didn’t care. I wondered why I should care about anything, after all, since I was just going to die a very unpleasant death and probably soon. I was having trouble feeling my feet, I still felt crappy and I had to inject myself twice a day in the gut.

One day the light just came on. I realized I wasn’t dead yet. That’s when I started this blog. Part of the reason for my awakening was a visit to the eye doctor. He was looking at my retinas, and last year I had a small hemorrhage in my right eye. This year he said it was still there but it seemed that my body was starting to reabsorb the bleeding. That got me thinking that maybe life is a good thing and I should stop treating my body like a tent. I’m not at the temple status, but I’m treating it like a slightly used 3 bedroom split-level with semi-detached garage. It’s an improvement. Improvements are a good thing.

Have a great rest of your weekend, everyone. We are headed to Reading tomorrow for a family gathering. If you travel, be safe.

Last night’s weight: 297.7 (the Muenster cheese is well and truly vanquished)

And in the latest news, a giant legume threatens Chicago…

Posted: July 9, 2010 in Giant legumes, Weight loss
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This just in… a giant legume has appeared in Chicago and is threatening to take over unless it is allowed to vote for Mayor Daley at least eight times. This highly reflective bean is currently ensconced in Millennium Park and was brought to my attention by avid reader Kristen.

Seriously, the giant legume is in fact a public outdoor sculpture called Cloud Gate by British sculptor Anish Kapoor. It might be a nice title and I’m sure the artist can explain his vision for a giant metal bean most eloquently. The fact remains that this looks like a highly polished, giant metal BEAN!  Let’s compare and contrast this with other notable sculptures.

While I can see the appeal of the bean’s ginormous size and the perfectly polished exterior, it doesn’t quite hold a candle to the other two examples, in this blogger’s humble opinion.

That being said, I think it’s time to move on to the meat of the day’s post.

Brian stumbles part way off the wagon.

Yesterday was not a good food day. I could make all sorts of excuses, but the bottom line is that no one took me to the fridge and forced me to eat the better part of a half-pound of cheese. Cheese is one of my big weaknesses. Muenster is probably my favorite cheese. I came home from the Country Store with the enemy in the bag. I put a couple of slices on a sandwich for lunch, and as the day progressed, I’d swing by the fridge and have another slice or two. Before I realized what had happened, most of that cheese was gone and I was feeling pretty pissed off at myself. This inevitably causes the gradual decline and the weight soars back up.

Not this time.

I talked a few entries ago about dealing with mistakes and moving on. It’s time to practice what I preach. I’m not going to let the fact that I ate too much Muenster cheese stop me from reaching my goal. I’m stronger than that. I’m also not going to allow my mind to give up on all the other progress I’ve made. This is a journey, not just to losing weight, but a journey to self-acceptance. I’m not going to change to be who everybody thinks I need to be… it’s hard to maintain that facade all the time.

Today starts a new phase. Getting back on track after a minor setback should prove to be within my capabilities. I know I can get back to it.

After the food debacle yesterday, I felt a drink was in order. I met up with friends Jed and Maureen, as well as Mrs. T. and enjoyed a very tasty Troegs Sunshine Pils at Annie Bailey’s. Only one, as they gave me the depth charge sized beer schooner and then the rains came. But, it’s a Friday and the weekend is coming. On tap for me? I will be helping a friend move tomorrow morning, after which I get to display some culinary skills. I will be making pasta ponza. I know, pasta’s not the best thing for a diet, but it’s not necessarily bad in moderation. I will discuss how the recipe turned out in a later post.

Today’s weight: 300.6 (cheese is not my friend)

Wow… just wow.

Posted: July 8, 2010 in family, Weight loss
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Hiya!

Wow. Today’s post just isn’t flowing too much. It wasn’t a bad food day, we didn’t do anything really exciting. I guess I will just start and see what winds up on the page.

So, anyone who read yesterday’s post is aware that my mother visited yesterday. That can usually be a great cause of stress in my life. As my wife can vouch, I’m usually pretty laid back, but something about her visits, however infrequent, can usually get me cranked up. I’m never 100% sure why this is.

In the good news department, the visit went well. My heart rate stayed calm and collected. We had lunch and the sewing project I thought I needed her for was superfluous. You see, I need a suit for an upcoming vacation. I have two (I usually only wear them for wedding and funerals), one is bigger than the other. I assumed I would not fit into the smaller suit, as I haven’t worn it for about three years. The bigger suit did not have any buttons to attack suspenders, so I wanted my mom to put buttons on the pants. Before we got started, I said, “Well, let’s see how tight this one is,” meaning my smaller suit. To my shock, it fit. The jacket might even be a little big. I guess I prefer it to be a little loose. Better than being stuffed in there like a giant sausage.

After that happy news, Mom went on to my aunt’s house, where she will be staying a few days. I went back to my CD ripping, because it was too hot to go out and accomplish anything useful. We went out a bit, had to meet up with some friends at BJ’s so they could get a few items, then we went to the beer distributor. Speaking of hot, I was surprised the beer wasn’t boiling. We wound up with a Pete’s Brewer’s Box. Three varieties, Original, Strawberry Blonde and Rally Cap. After a quick stop at Stauffer’s, it was home to chill down the beer, as the first guest of the bar was stopping by that evening after work. Luckily, the beer had chilled enough by the time our guest arrived and a good time was had.

So, my food lesson for today is that spices are free. No, don’t go to the supermarket and abscond with a giant jar of cumin. What I mean is that nutritionally, they don’t really count. So, if you say, “Oh, healthy food is so bland,” spice it up a little bit. With the proper application of spices, you can make any dish interesting, not to mention updating the flavor of an old standby. Be careful, though. Spice should enhance the flavor of what you are eating, not totally obliterate it. If you have something that has a mild flavor, like tilapia, think of it as a blank canvas for your taste buds. Keeping to fish, a fish with stronger flavor, like salmon, doesn’t need much enhancement. When I make salmon, I normally use sea salt, fresh ground pepper and a little olive oil. I then roast the fish on a plank of cedar wood. This gives the fish a wonderful, smoky taste that blends so well with the flavor of salmon.

Yet another food tip involves ground beef. You will always see advertising for 95%, 97%, 98% lean beef. That’s pretty much a crock if you ask me. There’s not a lot of difference between the three, but they will charge you a lot more. Secondly, and this really holds true for grilling, a little extra fat goes a long way. As you grill a burger, the drippings fall away. Most of those drippings are fat and we really don’t want to eat it. However, when the fat cooks out of the meat, it leaves some great juicy flavor behind. So, if you want to be healthy, buy 90% beef. It’s a great compromise between high fat and high price.

So, I wish you the best here on another hot day in the east. I will be helping a friend move on Saturday, so there might not be a new entry. I’ll let you know.

 Today’s weight, 298.4

Wednesday stress

Posted: July 7, 2010 in family, The Jerz, Weight loss
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Howdy!

Hope everyone is having a great morning. Today is fine, so far, but my stress level will increase exponentially as the time of my mother’s visit grows closer.

I don’t really have any reason why her visits stress me out so much. Usually if she stops over for dinner, I just become a bundle of raw nerves. I know she means well, but stay the hell out of my kitchen. If I need help, I will ask for it.

It should be an interesting visit. I’ve been keeping her posted as to how the weight loss has been going, but she hasn’t seen me since I weighed about 330. The other day, when I was only down a tenth, she was giving me crap, though about not going out for a walk for two days. Not that I’d need the giant blister (now named Lord GOMF, the Earl of Bunion) to heal up or anything. The funny thing is that she was previously on my case for losing it too fast. I just can’t win, I suppose. If you add that to the fact that she’s currently annoyed with us for something I’m not at liberty to discuss at this juncture, well, let’s just say it should be an interesting visit.

So yesterday was bloody hot, however, we still have our new friend… a dove who has made a nest in one of our hanging baskets of geraniums. She’s got to be the calmest bird I have ever seen.

I was actually able to water the basket without spooking the bird. I’m interested to see if the eggs hatch and when.

Yesterday I went to the dry cleaners to pick up my suits, a dress for the missus, a shirt and another sport jacket. When did dry cleaning get so expensive? It was $43! I’ve had suits that didn’t cost that much (just kidding). There was a lot of running around as well, out in the heat. I fixed some chicken and salsa in soft tortilla shells with a little cheese for dinner. Salsa is like the ultimate condiment. It’s very flavorful and reasonably healthy. It also goes well with pretty much anything. Highly recommend.

After that, threw a tape in the machine to get the premiere of Warehouse 13 on SyFy. Thought this looked like an interesting show last summer and we found we really enjoyed it. SyFy has come up with some of the better shows I’ve been watching. Eureka is a hoot, and the remake of Battlestar Galactica was first-rate. I still liked the original BSG, it was so campy, but the grittiness of the remake was very refreshing. I’m not a big fan of Caprica, though.

I finished importing a stack of CDs into iTunes, messed around on Facebook for a while and went to bed early. All in all, not a bad day.

I leave you with the following:

You must begin to think of yourself as becoming the person you want to be. – David Viscott

Today’s weight 298.7 (down 21.3 since 6/24)

Addendum: Visit with Mom went well and found out I could fit in my smaller suit. Now THAT’S closet shopping!

Post holidays…

Posted: July 6, 2010 in Earl of Bunion, home improvement, Weight loss
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Good morning campers!

Well, the middle installment of the so-called summer holidays is gone. Time to go back to work. Oh, wait. I don’t have to go back to work until next month. My employer offers what are called Voluntary Temporary Layoffs. Basically, I get a month off, collect unemployment and get to go back to work next month. The company even pays my health insurance. Not a bad gig. Gives me time to do some work on the house, decompress, and fight the food demons.

I was hesitant to take my layoff. I was afraid that I would be tempted to eat the lining off the fridge. After one day, I’m glad to say I didn’t. It wasn’t a great food day, but wasn’t bad, either. I also have taken two days off from walking to give a persistent blister a chance to heal up. One of the downsides (and there are many) to being diabetic is that any wounds to your feet have to be taken seriously. Otherwise you end up sans feet. That’s the funny thing. Any kind of upper body cut or bruise and it heals like nobody’s business. I managed to Dremel myself while cutting a bolt and that was healed in a week. The blister? Not so much. I figure as long as it will hang around, I should name it. Any suggestions?

It was a busy holiday weekend around the Haus of Thompson. Besides finishing the bar, I replaced the bathroom vanity top on Sunday. I might have mentioned that Mrs. T. likes themed rooms. The bathroom has a rubber ducky theme. The green counter did not go well with rubber duckies. It had to go. So, we found a replacement at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore. If you’re doing some home improvements and want quality material at a decent price, check them out. There might be one in your area as well. All profits go to Habitat, which is a favorite charity of mine.

Anyway, I disconnected the plumbing, pulled the top, staggered downstairs while carrying this beast, carried the old one upstairs and ran off to Lowes in search of compression hoses. It turns out that the builder  had the hot and cold feed lines reversed, so I needed longer hoses in order to make the crossover. This builder is apparently the main reason why West Hempfield Township has building codes in place. I could list all the construction issues, but I wouldn’t want to bore anyone. Let’s just say that wherever they could save a buck, they did.

Once I got the new faucet installed (a Moen… the only one still made in the US) I got my capable assistant to guide me in as I placed the top. The drain pipe was a little too long, so I had to break out the hacksaw, but I eventually got it lined up. I connected the plumbing and gave it a whirl. The feed lines were fine, the drain, however, was another story. Water pouring out of seams. I checked all the piping, and tried again. Leaking from a different spot. Again, still another spot. It was about that time when I realized I put the gasket on backwards. Whoops.

Anyway, the job is done, it looks nice, and that ugly green vanity and faucet that I hate are going to the Habitat ReStore today.

Yesterday I managed to add lighting to the bar. I picked up two LED puck lights to help visibility behind the bar. They are supposed to be adhesive, which is great. The only problem is that the adhesive doesn’t like plywood. After some modifications, I’m pleased to say that the lights aren’t going anywhere soon.

Today brings a visit from the in-laws, tomorrow a visit from my mom. I haven’t seen my mom since I started this little journey. Wonder what she will think? I should thank her. She hasn’t harped on me too much over the years about my ever-expanding fuel cell, but I know it concerned her. I just needed to do this at my own pace, on my own schedule.

Since I have a bunch of stuff to accomplish today, I’m going to leave you with something from one of my wife’s heroes:

You must do the thing you think you cannot do. – Eleanor Roosevelt

Today’s weight: 300.1 (guess I do need that walk after all!)

Ode to my friends

Posted: July 5, 2010 in friends, Weight loss
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“Friends are a liability.” – Karl Knosp

“I have no need of friendship; friendship causes pain.” – Paul Simon “I am a Rock”

Hello.

When I started this little avocation oh so long ago (9 days, maybe) I had no idea what my plan was. I figured I’d see where my mind led me, and if somebody took the time to read it, all the better. I had the plan that it would be about my journey to lose a supermodel (in terms of weight), and whatever else struck my fancy.

All I can really say is that I am so overwhelmed by the support of my friends that I feel inspired to take an entry and talk about friendship.

You see, I’m lucky or blessed, depending on how you see it. I have friends, and it came as a shock to find out that I had so many. Some of them I’ve known for 35 years. Others, maybe 35 days. I’d just like to throw a few things out there, some circumstances of how we met, some crazy situations we’ve been in, things like that. I will not name names, in order to protect the innocent (or not so innocent).

Let’s set the stage. It was February, 1988 at the Sheraton Washington Hotel. The setting was the North American Invitational Model United Nations. Dinner time was approaching and I had elected to dine solo so that I could review some things before the conference picked back up. In the interests of time, I chose the hotel restaurant. As I was waiting in line for a table, I heard a voice behind me ask if I was dining alone. I turned to find a group of smiling faces and replied that I had planned to, I had some work to do. The voice that had asked belonged to a rather attractive brunette and she said, “No, you’re eating with us.”

I agreed and had the time of my life. This group of strangers was from California. They hailed from a town called Sanger, located near Fresno. I don’t remember what country they were representing… the UK rings a bell, but I could be wrong. Anyway, after that delightful dinner, they introduced me to another member of their delegation who I wound up meeting again the following night at the delegate dance. I don’t remember everything, but for some reason we bonded over the abysmal music being played, to the point of having a sit-down strike on the dance floor during Will to Power’s “Baby I Love Your Way/Freebird” monstrosity.  We saw each other the next day, the final day of the conference, exchanged addresses and vague promises to catch up if we were ever in the same time zone. It’s been 22 years, we’ve not seen each other live in that span, but yet, she’s still my friend. I know that if we were to get together again, we wold pick up like those 20+ years have never happened. Probably still would sit out Freebird, too.

Then there was another case. My first college roomie, let’s call him Mr. Anthrax, and I didn’t work out too well. There were a couple of other guys with roomie issues as well, so a three-way swap was made. I wound up on the third floor of the dorm, where I met this guy. You see, I had an Ad-lib sound card for my PC at the time, along with a set of powered bookshelf speakers. The Ad-Lib was a VERY big deal. It made playing 688 Attack Sub that much cooler. The speakers were dead and my new roomie walked next door and brought back another engineering major. He took a look and realized I had a blown fuse. He said I should stop by his room tomorrow and he’d score a spare from the engineering lab. True to his word, there was a fuse. We fixed it and played some very cool games (for 1993). As the rest of the year moved on, we grew closer. Fast forward ten years and he was the best man at my wedding. Still the closest thing I ever had to a brother.

How about another case? Somone you didn’t really know from school, but attended your prom with some guy in your class. A few years later, you’re both working retail in the same department store. You strike up a conversation, but lose touch until one day you move to Baltimore and get a phone call out of the blue. Fast forward a few years and you reconnect again. This person has moved to another time zone, and we don’t see each other nearly as much as we would like to, but again, a sign of a true friend is being able to talk like the intervening months/years never happened.

I started the entry with some negative comments about friendship. I don’t subscribe to those points of view. There were times it might be easier to be a rock, but who wants easy? A lot of times you have to wonder if there’s some grand, cosmic plan in play. Is that really why we end up meeting the people who become our friends? Or is it just that we make the best of circumstances? I don’t know the answer. I know that I’m very lucky to have my friends and I wouldn’t trade them for the world. I love you guys.

Happy 4th of July

Posted: July 4, 2010 in Schell's
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Whazzzup?!?!?!

Did I ever mention just how annoying I thought those commercials were? What must have been happening at Anheuser-Busch during that pitch meeting? Here’s how I see it going down.

Advertising guy:
“We’re thinking of replacing the talking lizards that people actually like with a bunch of idiots doing an updated, simplified version of “The Telephone Hour” from Bye Bye Birdie, only it’ll be about beer.”

A-B exec:
“That sounds like a great idea!”

Who thinks of stuff like that? Gilbert Gottfried?

Anyway, moving right along….

The yard sale was moderately successful. Among the highlights was seeing a dead ringer for Santa Claus, wearing shorts and sandals. He bought a collectable holiday Cabbage Patch kid that was dressed as Santa. No kidding. I had to be kind of surreptitious taking the picture, I didn’t want to be rude to the guy. He might drop a lump of coal in my stocking and we have electric heat.

It was pretty funny, though.

After the dreaded yard sale was done, we packed up everything that didn’t sell and took it to the nearest Goodwill store. But not after the obligatory stop at Schell’s. Schell’s is a Berks County tradition. Located on the 5th Street Highway in Temple, it boasts a fast food restaurant, a dairy swirl and the best mini-golf in the area, IMHO. Among their offerings are a hamburger BBQ that is like nothing I have ever had. It starts with ground beef that is minced unbelievably fine. After that, it’s up to the sloppy joe sauce, which we’re pretty sure contains narcotics. They take a steamed bun, put a glop of this beefy goodness on it and it’s off to food nirvana. They also have cheddar cheese cubes on the menu. They take breaded cheese cubes and fry them. Yum! The other big selling point is the roller grill with Berks hot dogs. The downside is that the fries kind of suck. Very blah and need some serious salt and ketchup to be palatable. The Dairy Swirl has some great soft-serve flavors, including a chocolate malt that tastes like a Cho-cho. I tend to gravitate toward the orange-vanilla swirl. There was no ice cream consumed yesterday, so it was still a good food day. Sadly, we didn’t play a round of mini-golf, either. Would’ve been a great day for it, but had to get to Goodwill.

After Goodwill, we came home and I fixed my bar shelving problem. Transferred all the bottles and barware downstairs, put shelf protectors down, took a shower and we went out to the mall. Had to go to the AT&T store as the mother-in-law’s cell phone died. Managed to score a sweet Nokia, something very basic for her to use. I guess I need to visit the in-laws so I can swap out the SIM cards and go from there. Also stopped by the Apple Store and lusted after the new iPhone. Hopefully soon, ’cause FaceTime is wicked awesome.

Came home, took a good walk, even though trying to keep up with the pace of Joe Satriani’s Summer Song totally kicked my ass.

I should mention that after I took a shower, I finally got on the scale and found the following waiting for me:

The scale

I think that’s close enough to qualify for the “I did it!” for the first goal. It feels really really good to know that if I keep things up, the next time I step on that scale, the first number will be a 2. It’s been an awfully long time since I saw that and I’m so looking forward to it.

It’s been a helluva whirlwind journey so far. I’m closing the book on the first chapter. Who’s ready for Chapter 2? I hope I am.

Today, I’m going to leave you with the following tweet:

Funny Celebrity Tweets - Brett Erlich, Twilight
see more Lol Celebs

 Happy Independence Day, America.

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