Man, my life really is that boring...

I had no idea until I started doing this blogging stuff just how boring I am. I mean, really, I work, I do school, I smoke cigars and I do karate. My kids are wonderful, but I know enough to know that stories of my kids are seriously going to lose something in the translation to print.

Hmmmm, something not boring...we're getting ready to start building a deck...nope, that's boring.

Let's see...maybe I'll start looking for really deep, meaningful stories to share...eh, no.

The World Cup Final is this weekend! We're going to have a party, if you're not into soccer, just skip this paragraph. Italy is playing France...go Italia! I bought a CAO Italia cigar today to smoke after Italy wins on Sunday. I've decided to start a new tradition, I'm going to pick a player from the world cup winner every World Cup and buy their jersey. I think that will be something cool to hand down to Connor (assuming he likes Soccer).

OK, non-soccer fans, it's over, you can come back now. Apparently I named this blog appropriately. Well, let me take a few days, see if I can think of something somewhat interesting, and I'll try to do better next time.

Ole`, ole` ole` ole`....Ole`...Ole`

That's right, it's world cup time again!

OK, so I started this posting a while ago, but at least I'm finishing before the World Cup is over, right?

I have made an observation (me and the rest of the known world) that the officiating in this Cup has over all been the most miserable I have ever seen. Those of you who know me know full well that in general I have nothing but kind, wonderful things to say about referees. Those of you who don't know me at all might actually beleive that! Well, in this case, I don't think it's all their fault. FIFA has created an environment of fear, with threats to send home ref's who they don't think are controlling the games.

While watching a game today between Portugual and Holland, this world cup, still in the second round, has already passed the record for red cards handed out in a world cup. The game today tied a record with 16 yellow cards! Four players were sent off, all for two yellow card offenses! Players like Deco, Figo and Koyt were consumed in a game with no flow, no beauty, nothing but the referee.

This has not been the case in all of the games, but I must say, it's been the case in far too many. Eric Cantona has been running the commercials for joga bonita, the beautiful game, but he was targeting the wrong audience. We don't need to convince the players, it's FIFA who needs to get the message.

Back to the Mat

For those who don't know, I had surgery on my foot almost six weeks ago to remove bone spurs and bone fragments from the ball joint. I truly missed my martial arts classes, and I have to say I am very excited to be back at it!

So, in coming back we have some new classes. There is a forms class (which I am helping to teach) that is a lot of fun. We are working on forms we've learned, and learning new forms from Kenpo and Shotokan Karate. It's very cool to study in a system that doesn't just focus on one style, but takes input from any and all styles.

We also have a kicking class. That's right, an hour straight of just kicking. Today, with only a couple of minutes left in the class we had to do 50 round kicks on each leg as quickly as we could. Man am I slow!

We also have grappling class and weapons class as specialized classes. I'll be honest, grappling is not my best thing, but I want to be a complete martial artist (at least for me, this isn't to say if you study something that doesn't have grappling you aren't complete) so I have to work on it.

My biggest challenge doesn't even occur in the dojo, it's finding time to do what I love. But if everything in life were easy, I think I wouldn't do anything at all.

Friends...

So, second wedding in a month, and I am thoroughly done with rented shoes.

I was in Travis' wedding, standing up with him as his best man I couldn't have been more proud standing next to him as he married Sara. Then it was TJ's wedding, and to stand there as a groomsman to support him as he supported me almost eight years ago was very special. But there was something that deeply warmed my heart, and that was seeing friends I hadn't seen in a long time. Too long.

I will be one of the first to say that I have done a very bad job at staying in touch with my friends as time and/or distance has come between us. For that matter I am going to throw family in there, too. I can't say I will immediately be calling, emailing and visiting everyone I know, but I will promise to do a better job, make a better effort than I have done. First I will publish here every few days or so, and I will re-email everyone about the revival of this blog. I will start tonight and start emailing people I haven't seen in a while, or talked to in a while. Be patient with me, and I will do my best.

This time with people I haven't seen in a while has been very humbling and I want to thank every one of you for helping me see what I've been missing.

What's in a wardrobe

So, I have a new position now at work, not a new title or new pay, I just have more responsibilities and I report to a new boss. I really wanted to feel like I was doing something new, or at least look like I was different now. I can't really explain it, I know some of it is pride, some of it is insecurity and some doubts about my new role. I think a lot of it is trying to make the point that I'm serious about my career and I want to be noticed and set apart. So anyway, I started wearing a tie to work everyday. I have been doing this now for two and a half weeks and I am still getting a lot of comments about it. Not really negative comments, but in IT nowdays people really don't wear ties very often anymore. In our organization our SVP, one Sr. Business Analyst and one director are the only people who consistantly wear a tie. And now me. Not that there's a lot of difference between us...other than stock options, parking spaces and tens of thousands of dollars in salary. But I have to say, I like wearing the tie. I like looking different and standing out. Will this lead to a big promotion and raise? Who knows? The reality is I really like my job, I like the people I work with and work for, and my family is healthy and happy. So for now it's ties to work. And once and for all, no, I don't have a job interview today!

OK, so I'm going to try this again, and see if I can put something here interesting and worth reading. No promises.

In trying to find something profound in my life, I find that I am slipping into a life that I have both wanted and feared. I am a regular guy. I have a wife, two kids, a nice house and a couple of cars. I have a few good friends, a few acquaintences and the people I work with. I don't have a dog anymore, but to be honest sometimes I'd like to have one again.

I used to fear and dread being 'like everyone else'. I still do things that make me unique, as we all do. I shave my head, I do martial arts and I love cigars. Alone these things are not really unique, but the combination isn't one I've seen yet. But the point isn't to be unique, it's just to be me. I have had a hard time (and I'm still working on it) accepting that a lot of me actually is just a regular guy, and that's OK.

For the Joy of the Smoke...

So, we were switching to new life insurance and I needed to not smoke for a while before the physical (we aren't being tricky, they know I smoke cigars, but they will still offer a non-smoker rate for cigar smokers if it's not in the blood sample). So, a couple of weeks off, no big deal, right? Then the work project hit me, and we missed the first physical, so I ended up over a month with no cigar.

Now for clarification, I didn't go through withdrawl or headaches or anything crazy like that. I really don't smoke that much. But I missed it. There are days when it's more of a comfort thing, and it's just relaxing to sit down with a nice smoke and drift off.

So, now I can smoke again, and things feel pretty good. I got to smoke some overpriced, yet well built cigars while in Vegas (Nevada has a 50% tax on tobacco!) in a wonderful atmosphere both in The Venetian and MGM Grand.

We went to The Venetian early for the purpose of sitting down with a drink and me with my cigar before seeing the Blueman Group. The first bar would not allow cigars, and after my patience for the previous month I was a little irritated. So I went next door (inside the same building) and asked the bartender at the China Bar if he allowed cigars. "Here's your answer" he replied, handing me a large, ceramic ashtray. I was so happy I looked right past the six dollar beer and nine dollar mixed drinks, cut my Fuente Reserve (purchased earlier at the Fuente store in Ceasars) and lit up. Ah, life was good.

The following night the whole group of us went down to a little martini bar in MGM Grand where the drinks were just as expensive, but they had a small humidor. I perused the list of smokes (all were actually very good cigars) and settled on a Montecristo Robusto. Playing acid jazz in the background, good beer and a cigar in hand, it was another wonderful evening. In the middle of a weekend packed with walking (and walking, and walking), sensory overload, a little poker and a lot of good food, I think I most cherish that evening in the martini bar in MGM grand, smoking my cigar and enjoying good conversation with family.

Even now as I sit in my smoking room (known as my garage) and enjoy my Punch Double Maduro, I know that I will have many more wonderful stories of terrific evenings (hopefully in equally exotic locales) to share with you, after I've shared them with a cigar.

Things are happening faster than I can write about...

So, here's a quick catch up on the last month or so...

Thanksgiving was wonderful, at least the part I wasn't working! My sister, Betty, and my half-sister, Sandy, came out (Sandy brought her family, Daniel, Brittany and new husband Chris) to spend the holiday with us. Betty and Brittany stayed at our house and Sandy and the gang stayed at my parents house. It was a lot of fun getting back together with everyone, and it prompts me to want to make a trip out to Reno soon.

Work continued to be hectic (on the verge of frenetic) up until last week. We are now fully in production mode, so no more project mode and project hours.

Last weekend Michelle's brother, Tom, and his wife, Connie, took us to Vegas for the weekend, what a blast! I got to play some hold 'em for the first time in a casino, and we saw the Blueman Group. Absolute sensory overload! Just what I needed after the last few months at work.

OK, so I know this sounds like a 'What I did for Summer' type post, but I needed to get caught up. I'm going to follow this one up quickly with a cigar post or martial arts post, maybe even still tonight.

TTFN