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Sunday, January 30, 2005 Today is a really big day. A day which most of us Americans took for granted, but something historic happened today that may very well change the course of history itself! |
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Wednesday, January 26, 2005 I feels so ashamed. I had a nicotine relapse today. Me and Sioux were doing so good too! But I had a big slide backwards and smoked 3 cigarettes today. Aaarrgh! Damn you RJ Reynolds.......Damn you!!!! I feel dirty and ashamed. As many of you know, I'm a big fan of dialogue movies. I would just as soon enjoy watching a movie with conversation as one with cars blowing up. This penchant for movies with lotsa' chatter explains my love for all of the Kevin Smith films and others like Reality Bites and Before Sunrise. So being that connoiseur of colloquial quippings, I of course rented Before Sunset, the continuing saga of two people who are way more complex and interesting than any actual living people. But the first movie was so good that I HAD to watch the second. The story takes place 10 years after the first (before Sunrise) and the two star-crossed lovers have another brief chance encounter in Paris. It was a good show, although it fell short of the quality of the first movie. Any movie that can hold me attention while there is a seven minute scene of a couple walking down the street has got to be well written. If you've ever seen the first movie, its definitely worth renting the second one. But if you haven't ever seen the first movie, you'd be better off renting the original "Before Sunrise." |
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 Tuesday, January 25, 2005 Call me crazy but I think things may be getting a little out of hand at the candy factory. The above hearts were given to me from a person at work and have not been modified in any way. I can understand The "Hugs and Kisses" and even the "Kiss me Again," but "TEACH ME"???? C'mon, what sicko decided that would sound good on a candy heart?! Like I want my daughter to be handing something like that out! I wonder what else is in that bag of hearts? Probably something like "Lets Bang" , "Suck On This," or "Rub Me." I'm disgusted. |
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Monday, January 24, 2005 Today is a significant day because of two things. According to Her Majesty, it is the second day of my stupidity because of my haircut. Boy! I sure feel stupid. Look at me...... I'm stupid! Stooooopid! Hmmm...nope. I don't feel any less intelligent today. This is also the first day that Sioux and I have made a pact to quit the nicotine addiction for good! Lets hope we succeed this time since we have both been trying to quit off and on for almost 3 years. She quit when she got pregnant, but that doesn't count. Technically that wasn't quitting. That was just a little smoking hiatus. Hopefully we both will be strong enough to do it this time. It seems like we became each others crutch in the past. Like she'd quit for a week and then get really stressed out and there I would be, her Dr. Feelgood of nicotine, "C'mon Sioux! Smoke up! It'll make you feel good....feel good....feel good. But maybe that won't happen since we're both making a concerted effort at the same time. Geez..... I just realized. I'm trying to quit smoking while I'm into it with my wife. This ought to prove interesting. |
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Sunday, January 23, 2005 I got my hair cut today. Okay, more than cut. I got it buzzed to the point of being near bald. I like my hair short. I have worn it this way for the past 15 years and plan on keeping it this way until I grow tired of it. Did I say that I like my hair short, because I do. But Her Majesty hates it and got on my case about it. She always complains when I get it cut. Today was no different than the others, she hates it and got all pissed at me. Spouting off at her Royal Mouth about how stupid it looks, blah, blah, blah. Oh, did I mention that I like to have my hair cut short? Anyway, Her Majesty's rampage got me thinking. Why does it even matter to her? And after some thought, I think I know why....... Its funny how couples fight over stupid trivial things. Especially when you've been married for over fifteen years. Each partner has learned to accept the major flaws of the other and continue to make the marriage work. From incompatibilities of the social aspect, to trying to become accepted by the inlaws, to slight nuisances such as bed times and cover hogging. These are the things that make marriage fun. But what happens when you finally accept ALL of the flaws and eccentricities of your partner? What happens after the nuisances of your spouse no longer affect you? I think that once a couple truly accepts their other half, then they begin to look for other reasons to inject strife and chaos into the marriage. After all, no one would watch a movie that lacked any type of conflict, right? Who would want to spend time watching something that had no excitement, fever, or point? No one. And I think that when a couple have grown to the point where they are no longer affected by their spouse, they begin to search for new ways to create strife. Because chaos and strife create conflict, add drama, and make life worth living. And families need that drama to stay together. Whether it be a sexual tension, a heated argument, or a good laugh at someone else's expense, these emotions are what keep relationships exciting. And excitement builds a strong marriage. Ahhh, the joy and excitement that a single little haircut can inject into a marriage! It is beautiful. |
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Saturday, January 21, 2005 As some of you already know, I have this little issue with depression sometimes. When I'm feeling down I try to remember all of the good things in life and focus on the positive aspects of being who I am. So I am putting together a list of the small things that make life worth living. the list will be continually updated and I welcome any submissions that you guys might want to add. Like always, let me know if you don't want your name displayed, otherwise each entry will be identified by first name and last initial. Click here to see the list! Click here to submit some simple pleasures. |
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Wednesday, January 19, 2005 Apparently the Military.com site is the real deal because I have already been contacted by two of my of friends, Mike Fuller (pictured at right in the yellow t-shirt,), and Jake Cissarano (at the right being a hardcore devil-dog). Its really cool to here what these guys have been up to, but it makes me feel really, really old. |
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Saturday, January 15, 2005 C-130 rollin' down the strip.... I found a place on-line called Military.com. Its owned by monster.com and its a place where past veterans can get together and search for old friends and people that they served with. I was surprised to find that there were seven people who served in H 3/12 with me way back in the early 90's that belonged to the site also. So after about 2 hours of filling out crap to become a member it let me email three of my old friends. Two of them, Jake and Brian were members of my original gun-section, gun 2: "Whore's breath". Hopefully I'll here from them in a few days. |
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Friday, January 14, 2005 I had an epiphany today at work. I was in the bathroom and WHAM, it hit me like a ton of bricks! It was a life changing realization and very personal. Too personal to discuss here anyway..... |
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Wednesday, January 12, 2005 Just thought I would show off the redesign of the Soltis Inc. site. I spent the entire evening working on it yesterday and I think it paid off. I think the new look conveys a more professional image and has a modern, clean feeling to it. The old design appeared rather clunky and outdated to me. (Even though I originally designed it also.......) You can check out the live Soltis site here. Tale a look at it if you get time and let me know what you think about it. |
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Tuesday, January 11, 2005 Am I a Manual Spammer? I had a conversation with Ed Baumgarten the other day and was telling him about a little game that I like to do when I'm just sitting around with nothing to do. I go onto a browser and log into a website such as CNN.com, or Fox news.com and read the latest news. The fun part is that these sites always have an "email this article to a friend" button that anonymously forwards it to whatever address you give. So I make up addresses like amyp@yahoo.com, or papastan@hotmail.com and send them random articles. Thats all in good fun right? Sometimes I even get onto one of those free e-card sites and type out a really personal message like "Why don't you come over for sandwiches next week?" or "I really enjoyed the time that we had together last Thursday at the auction-house." Then I sign it with something like: your friend, Bumblebug. Anyway, Ed pointed out to me that I was basically acting like a spammer. A manual-spammer if you will. I was thrown for a loop. My crazy little messages were never intended to be annoying junk mail, but clever little web experiences. A sort of weird gift from an anonymous friend. But then I questioned myself. Was I spamming people? What seemed to be a little bit of humor to me is really annoying other people! Oh, I feel so low and dirty now. I feel like I have to take a shower now.... |
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Monday, January 10, 2005 Sioux's back was out today. I felt sorry for her at first, but then I remembered the time when mine was out and she tipped my chair backwards at work. Oooohhhh Yeah, she's gonna' git it tommorrow........heh, heh, heh. The Brat had her second basketball game tonight and me and Her Majesty left work early to make it. The schedule said that it was in Mattoon Jr. High School but when we got there, no one knew anything about the game. So we were directed to go to another place; Central School. And after about 20 minutes of road time to that school, we were shocked (and a little pissed-off) to find that it wasn't there either. So we went back to the Jr. High School and found someone who said that it was probably being played in the Lutheran Church (huh???). We found the church after another bout of "where the heck is it" and discovered that the game wasn't there either. So once again we made the perilous journey back to the Jr. High School. This time, there was a ball game going on and the lady at the ticket counter told us that "Yes, the girls game was scheduled to be here, but there was also a boys game so the girls had to be moved to Blah-blah-blah school." So off we went, searching for the elusive girls game amidst the thick fog. We finally arrived at the school, which was surrounded by fields and nestled gently in the billowing fog. Once we got in, we got to see The Brat play for approximately 3 minutes before the game was over. Grrrrrrrr.........rackem, frazzum, mixel, frizzle, mruzzle. |
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Sunday, January 9, 2005 Today , her Majesty and I decided to try out our new super powered vacuum cleaner that we bought at Lowes. We were hoping that it would help out with their allergies because it came with one of those HEPA filters that supposedly sucks in everything bad that lives in your carpets such as pollen, dust,, hair, micro biological animals, evil spirits, etc. It really works! It didn't take long for our new "Shark" (thats the brand name, not a nickname) to gross us out to the point of insanity. You wouldn't believe the crap that this sing sucked out of our carpet. It literally (yes -- LITERALLY) made us want to puke! The suction power of this thing must be astounding. The Brat is afraid of it now because it sucked up the dog and stuffed it into its little blue canister! Okay, not really, but it really sucks. And I don't mean sucks like "Waterworld," I mean sucks like Monica lewinski. This thing is powerful. Its good to know that this thing will really keep the carpet clean, but now I'm paranoid about the mattress, my pillow, and my all powerfull recliner. Blech! |
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Thursday, January 6, 2005 Just what does a creative mind do when it is waiting for something to download? Why, see how many steel clips that one can put in his hair of course! Amazingly, I found that I can put all of them on my outer epidermis. The final count was 78 of those pinchy little suckers! Owww! Oh....thats 80 of them if you count the two on my ears, by the way. |
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Wednesday, January 5, 2005 Nothing much going on today. Me and Sioux ate our lunches under "The Cross," just for a change. Damn! That is one big cross!!! For those of you who have never seen it, is probably a hundred feet tall, made of metal and towers over the interstate like an immense, monolithic, uhhhh.....well, cross. Its a symbol of peace and love that greets weary travelers by saying: "Welcome to Effingham, Illinois! You had better be a Protestant!" The picture of the cross on the right is a stolen image, so I'll take my own and put them here when I get a chance. The picture doesn't really do it justice anyway. I also got to thinking, the organization who put up the cross claims that they aren't trying to "push" their religion on anyone. Thats fine, 'cause I personally am a big fan of ol' Jesus, but I don't believe that they aren't pushing their religion with that monument. Hey, I could (and hope that) I am wrong. I just don't wanna hear all of the bitching and moaning when other religions start doing the same sort of things. What other religions, you ask, why look below and see what I an talking about. |
 This is the giant cross in Effingham. EXAMPLES OF THINGS TO COME NOW THAT THE PRECEDENT HAS BEEN SET:
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Monday, January 3, 2005 Today is our 16th Wedding Anniversary!!! Yep. Its amazing. Somehow Wendy has been able to put up with me for nearly half of her life. You gotta' give her credit. I haven't made it easy on her. Check out the "then and now" pics. Dig my rockin' Guns-n-Roses shirt! I was SOOO cool!! Ha-ha |
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| Sunday, January 2, 2005
We had dinner at El Rancherito ( a local Mexican restaurant) with my friend Sioux and her husband Stu. We had a good time and are talking about inviting Andra and Luke next time. Its kinda' cool to hang out with other married people once in a while. Hey, I thought in might be neat to do a "Whats on your desktop?" Feature to display what kind of stuff that my friends have on their 'puters. If you get a chance, send me a pic of how you dress up your screen and I'll post them here. |
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Saturday, January 1, 2005 Happy New Year! We try to always have something exciting going on at the Greenwood household. This time, we started the new year out right with a bang. Literally! At about 6 am, we were awoken by a loud "Thump-thump-THUMP!!" Above our heads. We knew the sound because it had happened to us once before a year of two ago. One of our nieghbor's tree limbs had fallen on our roof. Now, these aren't little trees mind you. This are gigantic old cottonwoods which are notorious for their weak limbs and soft wood. We've talked with our nieghbors about having them cut down, but at about $4,500, they decided that it wasn't worth it. Apparently they don't mind having our houses destroyed by fallen trees. It seems funny how they always leave their house and stay at a parents house whenever it storms though.......how peculiar. The last time, a branch fell straight through our roof above our bedroom. We tried to have their insurance cover it, but they considered it an "act of God" and we ended up having to turn it into OUR homeowners insurance. I wonder if it would be considered an "act of God" if the trees mysteriously caught on fire some night? The fist photo shows how enormous these trees are and how many of the limbs have already broken off and are dangling in the other branches, like big ugly missiles just waiting to impale people. I assume that those trees will eventually destroy our homes and possibly kill one of us before they are ever cut down. |
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