First of all, Happy New Year!  I hope that everyone had a great new year.  I myself have spent the end of 2008 and the beginning of 2009 at my parents house.  It wasn’t a planned visit, but a necessary visit.  My dad had a heart attack.  At first the doctors were going to do a triple bypass, but there were some coplications and they said that the blockages  were in the wrong spot.  Then as time went on, they said that stints may be a possibility, which is truly what my dad wanted.  Then, very early one morning we got a phone call from the cardiologist asking if they could do the stints right away.  So he got stints.  it was really kind of a miracle actually.

You see, my dad didn’t want triple bypass.  Who would willingly want a triple bypass?  Even those that need it probably don’t really want it if there was another viable option.  It’s a very invasive procedure.  Even though my dad was doped up on so many medications and tubes and needles were everywhere, along with those annoying wires to various machines, I truly believe that him not being able to pass a stress test for them to be able to do the bypass was his way of getting what he wanted.  Whether you believe in fate, miracles, God, whatever…I truly believe this was not just a random event.

He was in the hospital for many, many days.  In the beginning it was for the surgery, which kept getting pushed further and further back.  It was so frustrating, but when I look back it now I’m so grateful that the doctors didn’t rush in and do something that ultimately was not necessary.  They said that the triple bypass was no longer needed and that the stints were doing a great job.

Therefore, my holidays will not be forgotten nor will the staff at Forsyth Medical Center.  Without them, we would have not gotten through this as well as we did, both physically and mentally.  Their Cardiac Intensive Care Unit and the Cardiac Unit were both awesome places to be if this had to happen.  Their nurses were some of the best I’ve dealt with and I cannot thanks them enough.

It’s great to know that people really do care about absolute strangers and that they take the time out of their own day to make sure that others feel better.  It’s too bad that an event such as this has to happen in order for me to find myself surrounded by people like this.

Wow, it’s been over a year since I have last written something in here.  So here’s a brief run-down of a few things:

1 – I’m still working at the school in Houston…moved up to Middle School Coordinator.

2 – Been doing a lot of travelling.  Went to Virginia Beach, Milwaukee, Chicago, Augusta, and Disney World.

3 – Have a lot of travelling coming up: Atlanta for the SEC Championship (in which Florida will prevail), Washington, D.C., San Diego, Orange County, Costa Rica, and hopefully another trip to Virginia Beach.

So it’s just work and hanging out.  there has been a lot of hanging out.  it’s been crazy.

More to come as it occurs or as I remember it’s important.

So this past weekend was really good. I got to see Jamie and hung out with the family. Two new babies in one family is just a recipe for too much cooing, attention, stupid voices, crying, diapers, and drool. It was funny none the less.

My car is making some stupid noise, so I had to take that in. I am now waiting for it to be finished. It is taking forever! Some bolt was completely off or something like that. Who knows…I just want my car back.

Got a new printer today! It came in the mail. It’s a HP color printer thing. I like it. It did some great print jobs at the store and the reviews I’ve read are really positive. So that’s all good.

I bought loads of DVDs this past weekend. Sams had the entire Friends series for 165 bucks, so I got that. I also got a season of the Dead Zone and Stargate SG-1. I am a closet sci-fi fan. I cannot wait to dig into taht stuff. I actually have already watched three episodes of Stargate last night.

So all in all, a great weekend. Oh, got the extra xbox 360 back! Yea!!! Network gaming is back!

Last night, some friends and I went to go see possibly the funniest movie that I could have cared less about seeing. Knocked Up is hilarious!!!!!!!!!!! The number of one-liners is just simply amazing. The language is terrible, but if you have any pregnant friends, such as a couple that I was with last night, it will all make PERFECT sense. The movie is just raw. There is plenty of talk about sex, drugs, and porn, but it’s done so that it’s really funny…I mean really really funny. I didn’t know much about it other than it was about being pregnant. By the time I walked out, it was a miracle my pants were dry because I was laughing so hard I should have peed. I highly recommend this to anyone who doesn’t mind a lot of cussing and frequent shots of marijuana useage.

I have had XM radio now for a year and haven’t really gotten into simply because I got it right when we were moving from Virginia and haven’t had a lot of time to play with it. I love it!!! Not only does it have Hear Music, the Starbucks music channel, it has Hear Music First from AOL. Hear Music First has some of the BEST musical performances, both acoustic and electronic. There are some fantastic artists on there that do some pretty incredible variations of their songs…it’s amazing. Now that they’re merging with Sirius in the future, that means even more great stations!!!

Since I’m teaching summer school, one of the perks is that I’m downtown more.  I have discovered this place that any trainer in a gym would just have a heart attack over.  It’s called the Chocolate Bar.  It’s homemade chocolate, ice cream, coffees, etc.  The best chocolate stuff that I’ve had in a good long time is there.  They have milk, dark, and white chocolate covered items.  There are rice crispy bars, various fruits and berries, various bars, the peanut butter and chocolate, toffees, and a wide variety of chocolate this and that.  It is soooooo good.  What’s even better, or worse depending on how you look at it, is that it’s right around the corner from where I work.  Literally, I go through a parking lot and down 50 feet and there it is.  Yum.  Thank God for summer school because if nothing else, I found a place where I can spend all of my money that I don’t make.

There is something very comforting in being able to stay within some sort of routine. While I appreciate structure and routine, I also appreciate just as much being able to go with the flow. The last few weeks I’ve been so out of a routine it’s not funny. So tonight, I’m getting back on track with at least one of the routines…back to they gym and spin class.

While I’ve enjoyed my random viewings of Drawn Together and Will & Grace with tubs of ice cream, it’s time to work the ice cream off. I have totally enjoyed being a couch potato and eating good ice cream though. Homemade Vanilla with Strawberries….mmmm.

As summer school rages on…well maybe not rages, rather it kind of drags and gets caught on something…the summer is flying by. It’s hard to believe that I’m only going to have six weeks before things start moving forward with the next year. I promise, next year I will not be teaching summer school or doing any other kind of work. I’m going to work on sleeping in late, staying up late, and going to great places on vacation.

On the plus side of teaching, I’m able to really connect with a couple that teaches at the school. She’s teaching the algebra half of last year’s screw up and he’s the technology teacher. Both of them are fantastic and she actually lived in Norfolk for a few years when she was in the Navy. So it’s really nice to be able to hit it off with other teachers from the high school side.

I am very much looking forward to teaching English 9. I don’t really read for pleasure and I didn’t really read what I was supposed to when I was in high school. I feel like I’m getting to relive my freshman honors English class. It’s kind of cool actually. For summer, they have to read the Red Badge of Courage. I’m actually looking forward to it. Who knew that reading old books like that would be something that I actually look forward to.

I want to be on a beach right now so bad I can just about hear the waves, feel the sand, smell the many different things (all of which are not that pleasant…aka sweat/water mix with no deoderant and no shower), and feel the warmth of the sun. There is nothing better to relax, unwind, and clear my head to. Texas, being that it’s not on an ocean, doesn’t really have that. I have come to the conclusion that I must make a more conserted effort to get to places that do. I miss the beach big time and just want to escape for a good long time.

When one does something that he/she isn’t proud of, it seems like the whole world comes crashing down and nothing is right nor will it ever get there. What’s worse is that control of the situation is completely lost and the world of the unknown is stepped into. I am one of those people. When I have no control over a situation and have to leave it in the hands of others, I feel helpless…and it’s not a good feeling.

I have come to the realization that I myself am one of those who, while not needing to have control of a situation necessarily, appreciates being able to help guide it or at least know what’s going on. I never have thought of myself as someone who has to control every little thing. I gave that up 10 years ago. However, now I find myself not knowing.

What I do know is that I have great friends that are very supportive, understanding, tolerant, and are able to help me when I need it. I also have friends that would do anything for me. While those who really know me know that while I say it’s all about me, it certainly isn’t. Those that know me know that my focus is on them…I put all I can into my friends because without them, the world would be lonely, cold, and unbearable. There have been times when I’ve been out with my friends where something would come our way that would benefit only one of us. Without thinking, I would push someone else towards whatever it was. I have always been very giving of my time, resources, etc. It’s a great feeling to be able to do so!!

While friendship is never guaranteed, it is with those I choose to be around. Regardless of what happens, I know that I can depend on those I call a friend without a doubt. I know if I were to call them and say I needed help, they’d be here. I have friends in various parts of the country and I know that I could call any of them and know that they would be here as soon as they could if not faster. That’s what is so great about friends.

At times, we can take our friends for granted. We overlook how important they are and how much they mean to us and how much they sacrifice for us. We get caught in a game of being comfortable and often times let our guards and manners down. So while we still call them friends, we’re not really upholding the sense of the word.

My friends are people that I know I can depend on and they know that they can depend on me. I have often had to get up in the middle of the night to talk to someone, go somewhere, or book a plane ticket. There are no questions asked. I have the best friends in the world. There is nothing that I wouldn’t do for them.

I trust my friends to the end of the Earth. While I believe that they have the same trust in me, it’s hard to always keep that in mind. There are times when I need reassurance or times when I don’t necessarily believe that. It’s not that I truly believe that deep down, but things happen where I can’t help but question it. It’s my nature…I like knowing where I stand…black and white…no gray area. It’s hard to comprehend that sometimes because everyone works differently. I have had the fortune of knowing people that understand my personality. They can’t help but not to, I wear my emotions on my sleeve…be it good or bad, it’s the way it is.

I can’t help putting so much into my friends. It’s something that has to do with my need for intimacy and for my own sense that the other person knows how much I value him/her. I know that some consider it a weakness to admit one’s flaws, but I figure that we all have them, so why not?

My friends mean the world…no, the universe…to me. I hope that they all know that and never forget it. If they should, all they need to do is call me at 3 in the morning and they can be reminded when I fly out to them, listen to them, go to them, etc.

So again I say, when one does something that he/she isn’t proud of, it seems like the whole world comes crashing down and nothing is right nor will it ever get there. At least there are friends to help you get through it.