Holiday parties and my upcoming travel

There's nothing worse than getting stuck at the airport... but at the same time there's nothing better than being stuck at the airport with your laptop, ipod and some coffee :D in other words, I'm not in the office working the day away - I'm headed somewhere fun. (can ya tell i'm excited to travel?)

In any case, I enjoyed my first of many tree decoratings at Marks house and my 6th holiday party at Mike's house. I enjoyed meeting new people at both parties and I'll be back at Marks on Christmas day. I really do like to learn about others by listening to their stories. Everyone has a unique story to tell or a different perspective. I digress... I spent a lot of time catching up with friends at Mike's Holiday party... i like the holidays.

So we'll be travelin' to Boston and NYC this weekend. I hope to get some excellent pics and upload them to my flickr photostream... but 4 now, check out these pics from my photostream:

Check 'em: xmas tree and holiday par-tay

The next time I write I may have just come from... Cheers!

Peas.

Chapter 5

I've grown as a person 4 times in my life... This is number 5. This move is something that feels good. I did it! I'm officially out!

I'm sitting here on Sunset Blvd, havin a burger and watchin traffic go by... I'm thinkin I won't be back here for awhile so I might as well eat what I wanna ;) and, now that I am out, I can concentrate on the next big thing in my life ... right after I finish unpacking!

Chapter 5: Let's get it on!

Moving sucks! (and celebrity responses)

Tick tock... tick tock...

I'm almost done w/ my move - why is it taking so long? For one, I own too much crap. For two, I procrastinate. I'm ready to be done moving. I have thrown away so much that I never thought I could - and it felt great - but I ask myself why haven't I cleaned house sooner? I'm ready to go home and just toss everything, well, everything that good will does not accept. I have already given them 9 bags of clothes and linens and I expect another bunch o' bags tonight. also, I'm selling a couch, a fridge and some other odds and ends. Ok, enough about the stupid moving.

I've been reading a lot of blogs lately, specifically, blogs by Robert Scoble and Tim Ferriss. Robert is a tech blogger and Tim is an entrepreneur: both are very well known and popular, I would call them celebrities. Well, Robert has responded to me via Twitter. It was great when I finally had dialog with him about the Kyte.tv platform. I love it and said so and he asked why. The short answer why is because it allows (as Robert said) a TV channel in my pocket (read: my telephone). If your phone can take pics or videos, you can upload them to your Kyte.tv channel as if you are your own producer. I like to use my imagination so you can bet ill have some pretty good use-case ideas for this service in the future. Tim is an entrepreneur and a social experimenter. Lately, he posted about using Match.com to find a date. I responded to his post and he replied back to me! I was so excited to see his reply that I had to write back immediately. Tim inspires me because he does things his way and documents what he does for others to reproduce. Tim has also written a NY Times best seller, The Four Hour Workweek. I'd love to be a best selling author. I will put it on my "doing" list (hint: read the book).

In my life I have moved 9 times. In my life I have had many jobs. It seems that a stable job will allow me to have an exciting, risky job and a stable job will allow me to have an exciting risky life. I've had the stable job for many moons now and its boring. I'm ready for the opposite. I'm ready for the stable life and the exciting, risky job. This is step 1 of my plan: secure my base.

What is step 2? Like, duh! You'll find out soon enough. Stay tuned.

Future Tasting

Santa Barbara County is a beautiful part of Southern California! I'm up here from LA to do a little bit of wine tasting with my mom while she is visiting from New Jersey. Yesterday, we got up here a bit late so we first went to Kalyra. I've been interested to visit this place since the "Sideways" movie and it was just as fun as I expected. Cassie, One of the girls who was working, provided us with her knowledge of the different types of wines and when to drink them for the best taste. I am now a fan of Riesling wines (Kalyra has a great Riesling, btw) and joined their wine club. We drove east on 246 and stopped at some more wineries before heading to Los Olivos where we tasted more wines before heading back to prep for dinner.

We ate dinner at The Hitching Post and it was good. I had the Filet and my mom had the chicken dish with rice pilaf and a salad... mmmm. We both enjoyed our evening and would most definitely go back. The town closes down early so a bit of reading then to bed. Today we're going to peruse the local stores before heading back to LA for the Halloween party on Santa Monica Blvd tonight.

The rural area up here is growing on me and I would like to (one day) move away from the city life. I dream of being able to enjoy my life without needing to be tied into the city for my career. For instance, my technology career doesn't need me to be in the office except maybe one time per week. I barely have to meet with clients and its a waste of time for me to drive in and spend 8hrs in a cubicle. I hope companies realize people will be more productive working when they feel best - not between 9 and 6. Also, I hope companies will realize that the overhead of housing a workforce can be cut by allowing telecommuting as the norm rather than a perk. Ugh, sometimes I feel as if I work in the Flintstones cartoon.

One step at a time - we'll get there... anyways, happy tasting :D

Jackpot!

Alright alright! Don't ya love it when you win big?, I do. And I was surprised to see the jackpot sign posted on the keno game, not as surprised as the woman who won, but i felt just as good. At the poker tournament earlier that day I made it into the final 40 out of 150. Not too bad but Chris made it further :) The live boxing matches rocked and that was the first time I've seen live boxing. Have you ever played craps? How about California craps? The difference is that craps, regular craps, is played with dice. California craps is played with cards: 2 shooters of about 40 decks, ace through six. The game isn't as fun as the original but keeps ya entertained nevertheless.

Well its t-minus 18 days and counting till I have to move out of here... 18 days! I'll be moving my big stuff this Sunday. I have many things to do still: give my clothes to the good-will place, turn off utilities, have supervisor walk-through, pack, move, entertain mom. Oh yea, the mothering unit arrives on Saturday. We always have fun hangin out... Santa Barbara here we come! Walt Disney Concert Hall here we come! Oh yea, did I mention that I'm moving this weekend. Rental truck and day laborers here we come. Good times. :)

So yea, I over extended myself with commitments during the end of October. But ya know what they say. Um... well, they say that change happens all at once and then nothing for awhile... or something like that. In any case, the point is that its coming fast and I better be quick on my feet. If we can make it a fortnight, we'll be all moved in and on cruise control to the Holidays. Two weeks! Two weeks isn't that much to ask... make it two weeks and its only four more weeks till Boston/NYC. I'm on a roll... Life is great. Jackpot!

G'night.

ps - read Tim's blog about bad things and watch the AK-47 video.

Leasing the Magic Castle

The Magic Castle is the coolest place I've visited in 2007!

So I had another surprise trip - this one successful - got an apartment and gave my 30 day notice... oh yea, I also lost my FFL game. I've got 1 win and 5 losses... I'm not happy. Regardless, my weekend rocked. Check it:

Laura surprised me with a trip to the Magic Castle on Friday night. The night was awesome. The Castle is setup with small rooms for some intimate magic sessions and big rooms for the night-ending explosions (btw, the final show was awesome!). The final magician, Joseph, was so good I didn't want to leave. He pulled 6 birds out of thin air! The Magic Castle tickets arent easy to get... She rules!

I watched college football and went to dinner at Sushiya with L on Saturday. On Sunday, I watched NFL football and drank beer. It was classic. Oh yea, btw, my fantasy team lost again. I suck with a craptastick record of 1-5.

To recap: my girlfriend kicks ass, my fantasy team sucks ass, and I've got twenty eight days to move out...

BTW, I'm throwing a Halloween party before I move out of here... word up!

Everyone's invited! Even You!

Twelve Days Later...

(these are our 'cool' faces)

Guess what, y'all?

Give up yet? C'mon, look at that pic...

Ok, here it goes: I'm moving in w/ the chick who dumped me last week. Am i stupid? No. Am i crazy? No. Am i working towards a meaningful relationship? Yes. Can I pack up and leave if need be? Yes. Will i be walking her pomeranian, peanut? Maybe :D

You have to be asking yourself, "what the f___ is he doing? he's moving in w/ a girl he met 3 months ago! not to mention, its the chick who dumped his ass in newport (see previous blog)!!" well, dont worry, thats been said to me more than "hello" this past week. regardless, i press on. i am ready for an awesome adventure with Laura. I AM READY.

so, we've looked for apartments in the surrounding neighborhoods, we've discussed our expectations, we've come up with solutions for many of the smaller probs (i.e. arguments, stressful times, etc...) and made lists of our furniture, appliances and other items that we're either keeping or tossing. fyi, she wants me to ditch my couch and i'm saying no! i want to keep my couch! so, veto something else babe, it aint happenin ;)

the apartment we saw today was nice. it had high ceilings, 2 bedrooms and 2 batchrooms. it had central air, it had a modern kitchen and a decent sized living room. i think we even have a spot for a dining room table - yay! i could live there for a year (or more)... just play it by ear and see what happens.

aside from this whole moving thing, and the living w/ my chick thing, im really excited about eliminating a lot of the crap ive accumulated over the years. i still have stuff that i had in college! stuff that dale and i created (read: the ho stick!); stuff i shoulda tossed away a long time ago (read: electronics) and some other random stuff that i picked up while living here in los angeles. ELIMINATION is necessary for me now... i have a need to get back to the basics.

In any case, I am happy. I would be happier w/ a cohab, and we'll see what we can work out b4 the final move-in date, but I am happy! Its been a long time since i've heard the L word (love) and got all tingly inside. Im following my gut here... and, like i used to say:

Fuhgeddabowdit

Homecoming

Wow, what a weekend!

I was taken to Newport on a 'surprise' getaway, got dumped during the getaway, and then won my first fantasy football game of the season! The good lord is tryin to tell me somethin, and he's sayin: be single and win FFL games! I mean, who believes in coincidence? Seriously, I'm single, I'm 1-3 (in FFL) and I'm happier than ever... How can that be? What's my secret? Ill tell ya: Things come full circle, always. If you can understand that and go with it, you'll always be happy.

Look, I was just dating a hot, sexy, smart chick and now I'm not... I'm aint sad that I'm no longer with her, because I had a great time while I was with her... In addition, i was just 0-3 in FFL. I'm not sad about that because now I've got a win! What more could I ask for without being greedy? Yea, I 'spose I could have had the girl and the win, but that was so 3 years ago and everyone knows I wasn't happy then... I could have had the girl and been 0-4... But I want to win so badly! I also could have had the win and, um... oh wait, nevermind ;p

The moral of this story: believe in the give and take, the ying and the yang, the power of karma! Its real. I know, from experience! If you take too much, or give too much, you'll be off balance and find yourself in an uncomfortable position when you don't want to be uncomfortable. If you can keep your life balanced, you'll be happy, even when you're sad.

Ya gotta love it, I know I do! Thanks for the victory, chapd... And thanks for the fun L, I'll miss ya!

It's time to wake up and...

... get dumped! Yea, can you believe it? I'm officially single.

Stunt double

James was out today so we called in his backup.

The weekend + M, T, W

Yo,

The weekend was OK - mostly b/c my jaw has been killing - but aside from that I had fun. the last thing ive wanted to do is write; however, for those of you concerned, its been feeling better. I stopped taking the vicodin Sunday afternoon so i would be able tell if there was still pain... and there is, but in it's place I have switched to a mix of Advil/Naproxen/Tylenol. In any case, im feeling about 80% today - only needed to take advil 2x. I hope to call the doc tomorrow and give him the all-clear.

Monday & Tuesday i was super busy doing chores i let go to hang out w/ L... she's just too much fun... i cant just say no to her :D Anyways, we're going somewheres this weekend but i dont know where! its a surprise! is that awesome or what? i think so... ok, more to come so stay tuned.

Later.

500 magnum

Holy shit look at this gun!

About squashed!

I almost stepped on this little guy... But, since I'm so nice, I took a pic instead!

The tooth ratchet

Dudes! I went to the dentist this AM to get the post portion of my implant installed. I had no idea how easy it would be, and as usual, I was a bit freaked out. What I didn't know was that the process was really simple:

Step 1) Drill a hole into my jaw bone. This sounds painful but was over in 10 mins. Nothin to it at all... No bad smells, no flyin bone parts, nothin.

Step 2) Measure the hole depth. The doc took this inch long, metal, yard stick and stuck it into the hole. Then took an x-ray to make sure he drilled deep enough. The image of this was too cool for words (and he wouldn't make me a copy of it for my blog) but lemme say it looked as if I had a mini yard stick jammed into my jaw - it was very surreal.

Step 3) Insert post. This was an easy step. He put the post in and hand tightened it... Just imagine the last time you put together some furniture and had to hand tighten the screws. Yup, just like that he had it in...

Step 4) Screw it in. I never knew that dentists had such cool tools until today... He pulled out a ratchet - yea, like the kind in your toolbox - and tightened that post till it wouldn't turn any further. The ratchet even made that clicking sound when he turned it backwards. If I had never used a socket set before today may not have been as cool... But I have and it was and I wish it was all on video.

Oh well, next time!

Window washers...

... Do it in the air!

9 o'clock

Wtf! Does everything start at nine but me? The dentist moved my appt to 9, Barnes and nobles don't open till 9... Ive been up for 3hrs already!

Olive and Verdugo

Holy shit, I just got away with .... Um, I'm takin the 5th!

What a weekend...

I'll be the first to say that my weekend fun has risen almost 200% in the last few weeks; this past weekend being no exception.

How can a weekend be so much fun? Well, let me tell you. My weekend started out w/ assembling a custom made poker table, playing some heads-up on it, and then losing. I then enjoyed one of the longest dates i have ever been on - starting Friday night and ending Saturday afternoon - it included kayaking, picking up trash (CA Clean Coast Day) and lots of R-Rated details that arent fit for posting here ;p Sunday I made breakfast for a friend (nothing special, just kept it simple), watched a lot of football and then developed some more product ideas. In the afternoon i went on another date, this time to IKEA! Sunday ended with some good ol' fashioned baseball (Go Yankees!) and a loss by me in my Fantasy Football League.

The two great dates and two Yankee wins over the Sox are enough to make up for the bad play by my FFL team (and my busted Aces [see previous blog]).

Anyways, ciao 4 now.

Peanut

Here's paces new friend... Peanut!

RBV

I like red bull vodka... Laura owes me something witty.

There's no wit here right now. Oh, btw, I'm going kayaking tomorrow...

Table top

Yea!

WTF!

Are you shittin me!!!

Flop

Doh!

Time to play

Heads up

Poker...

... In the front, lick her in the rear.

For those that like to...

... Get down (or work non-stop). Read the note written by one smart cookie.

Meow

This is my very special cat. He can meow and eat and really stink up the batchroom.

If he knew how to blog, I'm sure he'd write about me!

Peas.

Our little lounge

I love this little lounge area we got here... I make myself red eyes and chill for a bit. Its a nice break from the mind numbing dialog that occurs each day up in my cube area.

This place has some regular kitchen type tables and some nice recliner type chairs (which I'm sittin in now) that make the area comfy.

In any case, here's a pic to give you an idear (you can kinds see part of a recliner in the bottom right of the pic):

Girls II

Yea, they're complicated! ok, enuf already...

gotta get my FFL stuff going... go figure, i cant login to the NFL.com/fantasy site. Ill give it until manana then cry bloody hell...

Also, i need a (free) place to give a free 90 - 120 minute seminar. if anyone knows anyplace, speak up... im gonna give UCLA another try. it would be great to have a location where a lot of college kids are available. oh, i also need to get some content together (thatd help, eh? ;)

This is like the first time im writing from my box (computer) rather than my "handheld device" [read: crackberry]

Girls

I like girls but they're a pain in the ass! This one chick I'm seeing is esp complicated... yea, its sad but ill be ok!

I'm better than the next 1000 guys out there... cmon girl, if you think you'll find someone better me, obv you're not thinkin clearly!

(yea, I made that up!)

Stupid traffic

The drive home at 7 is worse than at 6. What gives?

Ps - I only type while NOT moving / driving

Work

Ugh, 4 hours sleep and I'm back in the office... Today is the first meeting of our new developer group. :D

Logos

imo, they all stunk but I picked one anyways so we can keep movin forward. If you dont have a clue what I'm talkin about, don't worry, I don't think my dev team does either (esp by the look of the logos)... Ha ha that was a joke! I'm havin a website built by an offshore dev team and we're not seein eye-to-eye on the logo design.

Oh well, live and learn.

Bloggin from coffee bean

Just wrote up a big one for my life experiment.

Time fo' me to get my ass back to work! I gotta choose a logo tonight. I should post the options for y'all to see...

The end of the NYG

This was the beginning of the end for the giants. The 'boys seem to handin them an asswhoppin!

Doh! What a pathetic start to the fantasy season. To add insult to injuret I still gotta send in my registration fees.

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Baloo the bear

He sings the 'bear necessities' song!
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El Cap

This is the organ! Hehe, I said organ.

This place is pretty cool, but the seats don't have much legroom.

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Nice lights

I like that a lot, says laura
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Before the jungle book

Here we are at dinner before the jungle book movie!

Were going to have fun.

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iron mike?

dudes! i stopped in to get a slice of pie after that coffee and i swear iron mike tyson was sitting at the table next to me - if not, someone else has the same tattoo on his face (and looks like he's 235lbs)

anyways, i said nada - sometimes, i wish id man up.

l8r.

FFL

3 points from my QB? 3 points? WTF!
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Got the joe...

I really got the joe... Oh did I mention that my fantasy QB sucks? Yea, he sucks. I cannot believe that he is bad, I mean, his last name is brees, first name drew! I think the colts are just that good. Ok, I'm ramblin and done for the night. Yea right, its 10am in bangalore!

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Need coffee

I love this sign... Walk pasrd it every day.

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Adam and Mike

These guys started it all...

Rock on!

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Bec and Rob

The couple who picked it up and moved across the country!

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Da boys

Mark and Adam
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Drunk and cheezy

Kim and I are gettin drunk....

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Adam and Bec

They are a'talkin ...

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The beginning

Ok, beginning of the evening!

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Intro

Yo,

Here i am... ready to moblog. The ensuing posts will be random and (hopefully) funny. My intention is to entertain but not offend. Please lemme know if i need to take something down.

Thanks.