Better

I got my washer fixed! $200 to fix, not bad. I figure, hell, if I get another year out of it, I'll be happy. It's old and if I need to buy a new one next year, I will. Problem solved.
I did my taxes and Uncle Sam had to pay up big time so I decided to pay off all my loans and credit cards to free up some money. With the economy the way it is, I'd rather be safe than sorry. I'm in a pretty secure position at my job but you never know. I've seen a good number of people get laid off recently and I'd rather cover my bases.
I was looking at my blog and realized that I don't update too much. I'm not even sure why. I'm on my computer ever single day and have every opportunity to do so. Am I lazy? I have no clue. I think I'm afraid of boring people to death. Running out of things to say. Who knows. I'll try to do better.
I scanned over 300 pictures from old photo albums that my mom had and found some great pictures. Here's one of them.
That's me!
Was I freaking cute or what!
Funny thing is, my boys look identical to me!
Well, without the funky shirt and sweater.

2009..... A look ahead

OK, so here it is. 2009! The year of..... something.

I have made several commitments for the year. Let's see how well I keep up with them.

I am going to really get into this blogging thing. I'll review restaurants, pizza joints, bars, amusement parks, gas station bathrooms (trust me, I see alot of them), and anything else that tickles my fancy. Did I say that right? Sounds kinda kinky. Anyway.....

I'm going to spend more time with the important people in my life, particularly my kids.

I'm going to kiss my wife and tell her I love her everyday.

I'm going to be even more successful in my job, and I promise to post funny crap that happens to me in customers homes.

I'm going to be smarter financially while still enjoying life.

I'm going to be more postive and happier in general.

2009 will be a great year.

Oh yeah, I'm gonna mail out Christmas cards this year too!

As for the bigger picture, I hope Obama gets this country out of this economic nightmare that we are in. I know it won't be easy and won't happen overnight but, a positive outlook by all will help immensley. I hope this thing in Iraq comes to a true end. I know we can't just pull our troops out all at once but we need to start bring the troops home. I hope Governor Patterson wakes up and realises how stupid he sounds. New York state is bad enough, we don't need it worse. Does he really want to put an obesity tax on soda? What the hell is that? Ughh.

So, 2009, here I am. Bring it on!

2008.... A year in review

It's been a long time since I last posted on here so I wanted to do a little something to catch up or whatever you want to call it. I'll sum up the last 2 months of 2008 quickly then get on with the show.

As a family we had a wonderful Thanksgiving as we always do. It's a great Holiday for family to get together and enjoy each others company and that's exactly what we did. Lots of food and some good company is always pleasant. Did I mention that I'm allergic to that stuff in Turkey that makes ya sleepy? I eat it anyway. Too good to pass up.

My oldest son turned 15 on the 4th of December. He's a great kid and never complains about anything and does what is asked without hesitation. Knowing this I wanted to do some special stuff for him. I got him the rest of his paintball equipment and scheduled a huge outing for a bunch of us to go paint balling. It's gonna be a blast.

Christmas.... Usually the most stressful holiday of the year for me. I want my kids to be happy, not just with gifts but with us as a family. This year, they all gave me their list which were incredibly small. Granted, they are all older and their ideas are more expensive but it made me proud that they didn't expect a ton of things. They each had one large (expensive) gift and the rest were small, relatively inexpensive things. It took a load off my mind. All 3 of them told me that as long as we were together as a family on Christmas, they were happy. That was enough to make me cry. So far, we've raised good kids. I spent less money on gifts this year than I have since I only had 1 kid. Not so stressed anymore. Once again, Heather and I did not get each other anything. We have each other, our kids, and a beautiful home, that's all we need. Life is good.

OK, now for 2008.

My life has come to a point where I have all the right things in place to make it better. I received a massive raise at work while many places were laying people off. Heathers disability payments are in effect. Heather is working a part time job for some extra income. Our relationship has grown even more. Our kids continue to do well in school. I will look back on 2008 and know that it was the year that it all began to come together.

I learned who my friends really are.

I learned not to expect more from someone than they are willing to give.

I learned that when someone says something that upsets me, I need to walk away and settle down before I react.

I learned that little things mean a lot.

I learned that no matter what I want, my kids are still going to grow up.

Most of all, I learned.....

The glass is always half full!

Lesson

I learned a valuable lesson from a very good friend of mine. He told me that when someone in your life constantly disappoints you, change your expectations of that person and you won't be disappointed anymore. I know it sounds kinda weird but, I did it. The end result, I'm happier. I think this is advice everyone can use. There is no reason to go through life expecting something that won't happen and continuing to be miserable over it. One of the definitions of insanity is doing something over and over and expecting different results each time. I'm not insane. I'm done playing the games. I need to be happy for my own sake.

Thanks Mike!

Catch Up

Man, I need to get on here a tad more often to update. I get so much going on and so much I want to say, by the time I get around to posting I want to say a million things and can't remember it all. I'm just going to start in order of which is on my mind heaviest.

My brother. What a bonehead. My brother has been with the same girl for quite sometime. I think like 7 years. They always seem to have a good relationship although my brother can be very difficult and pig headed at times. They have a little boy together and on September 1st welcomed a new baby girl to the world. She had lots of complications with the pregnancy and ended up have an emergency c-section. She was overdue so I'm not sure emergency is the correct word but still. Yesterday, I get a text from him that simply says "in trouble, %#@$$ left" I was kinda shocked but in the same sense knew it was coming. My brother is addicted to his job and cannot get a break from it ever. Hell, we had a golf tournament and his phone rang on every hole. It was ridiculous. I called him up and spoke to him about it and I told him to find a different job. It was way too consuming and he hates it anyway.
I spoke to my wife about this and she called his wife to make sure she was OK and she found out the real reason. She didn't bash my brother but constantly asked what she did wrong. Turns out my brother was being a jerk and treating her like crap. Being a lazy husband basically. Not helping with chores, not taking the kids out, not spending time with them as a family. I guess the final straw was he called her lazy and said she wasn't crippled. This was an hour after she got home from the hospital.
I was pretty ticked off when my wife called me back. I don't usually get involved in other peoples relationships but I wasn't not going to say something. I vowed to meet up with my brother later on after work to talk. Well, that lasted about 2 hours. I ended up calling my brother and tried to pry out of him the issues, playing stupid at the same time. He first said they had nothing in common. What a line of BS that is. Suddenly after 7 years you have nothing in common. I told him to try again. He started making excuses so I went off. I yelled at him a bit. Told him to get his head out of his ass and be a father and a real husband, not just on on paper. I explained to him what good husbands do and how to treat his wife. I was ticked and on a mission. I told him to stop taking relationship advice from a guy that's been married 3 times, his best friend in particular. Hell, that's be like me taking financial advice from my father. Not really a good idea. I went off for about 20 minutes. The one thing I told him over and over was to get his head out of his ass because his family is the one thing he doesn't want to loose. When I was done, I told him I loved him and will always be here for him. He was crying, so I know I struck a nerve.
My wife went to see the baby last night and take some gifts we had gotten. She had a great conversation with his wife. She's a good person, he's just pig headed. His wives father went to my brothers apartment to pick up some stuff for the baby and her. When he came back, he said my brother was cleaning the apartment. Maybe he listened to me. I can only hope.

This November is very important for this country. I'm a big follower of politics and have my opinions on it all. I'm a registered Republican on paper but a registered American at heart. I'll vote who I feel is better for this country as a whole. I don't care what party they are from, what color their skin is or what kind of package they have in their pants. I want, as all Americans should, whoever is best for the future of this country. I think both candidates have excellent qualities and both candidates are idiots at the same time. I think Obama made a huge mistake for not putting Hillary on his ticket but, then again, does he really want someone that wants to be President more than anything in the world just a bullet away from her goal. I'm not saying, I'm just saying. Know what I mean.
The one thing that may keep me from voting against Obama is the fact that he throws the race card out there too much. I don't care that he's HALF black, which he fails to mention. I don't care if he was half purple. Color doesn't matter. I want to know what he can do for our country, to bring it back to greatness. What is he going to do for the economy, the war on terror, our illegal immigrant situation? What? That's what's important. I do like his lack of experience in the political world. I think that is a good thing only for the reason that he hasn't been corrupted by Washington as much as others. That may be his strongest point for me.
McCain, I'm not so sure about him. He had my vote until he started flip flopping. Make up your mind. Pick where you're going and go there. Don't change your mind on critical issues just because. He has no clue on the economy, at all. That part scares me. I know with him, the war on terror will not be forgotten, that's a given. Despite what others say, I like his choice for VP. She's smart and stands up for what she believes in. I watched an interview with her from about 4 months ago and she has an excellent head on her shoulders. As for her family issues. That's none of my business. Her daughter getting pregnant at 17 just goes to prove that she's more like the rest of us average citizens. That's not a bad trait.
So who will I vote for? I haven't got a clue. The next few months when I see the debates and where each person stands on issues, I'll make up my mind. As of right now, I wouldn't know what lever to pull.
To all the people that say harsh words to each other over their party status i say this..... Get a life! Quit your bitching and get a life. When it all comes down to it, we all belong to just one party and that is the AMERICAN Party.

My job here is done for now. Keep in touch with yourselves.

My First Post!

Hey, first thing I'll do is explain a little about myself. I'm 35 years old. Married with 3 awesome kids. Growing up I had a life that seemed to be typical up to a point. At least I always thought it was until I shared my story with a few people and they told me it wasn't typical. My parents separated when I was very young. Perhaps I was in Kindergraden when it happened for good because the one thing that sticks out in my mind is coming home from school one day and finding a note on the kitchen table. I have 3 older brothers and 1 older sister. Keep in mind that they are all half brothers and sister. My oldest brother, John has lived in Poughkeepsie most of his life. We have the same father but different mothers. My father was married previously, that didn't work out either. My second oldest brother, Ralph, has a different father but we share our mom. We are the closest. My other brother and sister, Don and Teri, have a different father but we share our mom. Isn't this great? At least the family tree has lots of branches. OK, back to the note. The 4 of us, minus my oldest brother John, cause he never lived with me, came home home from school to find a note on the kitchen table. It was from our mom. She stated that she was leaving and not coming back. It was blunt and to the point. We were all pretty shocked but I think Ralph took it the hardest. Our mom was leaving my 3 brothers and sister with a man that was not their father. To this day, Ralph holds that against her. I guess in a way, I do too. It would be 1 or 2 years before we saw her again.

My Dad did a pretty good job raising us. There were lots of questionable decisions made but overall it wasn't bad. We moved out of our very large house into a mobile home. We lived there for some time. Couple years I believe. I remember that is were I started loosing my hearing. Nothing particular happened. It just started to go. It was a pretty cool place to live. Lots of woods, no neighbors and sulfur water. Wait, it sucked, what the hell am I talking about! Then one day my dad came up with a brilliant idea of buying his own piece of land and putting the trailer there. It seemed like it was a good idea at first but we moved a half mile down the road into a corn field. No running water, no septic. Nothing! We went to the bathroom in a small port a potty for way too long. Trucked in 5 gallon jugs of water for too long. By now my mom was back around and we went to her place to shower. One good thing was I learned how to dig a well and build a septic system complete with a working leach field.

We lived here for quite some time. There are a ton of memories there. I started smoking cigarettes when I was 10. Took my first puff of dope when I was 11. It went pretty much downhill from there. I had my first girlfriend when I was 13, and lost my virginity to her at 14. By that time I was smoking pot everyday and drinking way too much. I never hung around the greatest of characters but some of them became the greatest friends I could ever have. They would give their right arm for me. Some of them almost got me killed but it was a hell of a ride. I did some pretty stupid things as a teenager. I experimented with way too many drugs, got addicted to most of them. I made a prediction that I would be dead by the time I was 21. All my friends knew it, my family knew it. I made it loud and clear.

This is me at about 15 or 16.

When I was actually in school, I did quite well. Problem was, I wasn't there much. If I wasn't skipping, I was suspended. When I turned 16, I dropped out. My hair was down to my ass, my ears were pierced, my nose was pierced, my eyebrow was pierced, and both my nipples were pierced. I was on the road to being dead at 21. I had my run ins with the cops. Been handcuffed too many times but never in jail. There is no sense of accomplishment greater than having the entire school applaud as you are being escorted out of school in handcuffs. That was a sure sign that I had no friends.

So here I was at 16, on drugs, no education, no job and a father that didn't give a shit about me. To prove that point, my dad used to go out to eat 3 times a day. He just made sure that there was 5 things at the house for me. Peanut butter, jelly, bread, Ramon Noodles and Pepsi. That's what I lived on. My dads life wasn't all that great either. He quit a great job because his girlfriend didn't like it, he was broke, very broke. By this time, I was the only one left in the house. My brothers and sister had left. 2 joined the service and one had a life. The only thing right in my life was my girlfriend. She was cool and had a good head on her shoulders. Not to mention she had a similar life to mine. She was a year younger but had been through some scary crap. She attempted suicide, and almost succeeded, just before we started dating. I'll never forget seeing her lying on the floor unconscious. After she recovered and got out of rehab we started officially dating and she moved in a week later.We had some rough times together, split up a few times but always seemed to recover. That's the story of all teenage romances isn't it? Only mine will last forever.

When I was 17 my father came home one day and said "moving to Vegas!" I was like great, when we going? I could use a fresh start somewhere far away. "No, just me" he said. "you're on your own." I was blown away! I'm not sure if he noticed or not but I was in no shape to be on my own. Drugs, no job, no car, hell, no license at this point. 21 was fast approaching. He gave me 2 weeks to figure it out. One good thing, he told me I could have everything in the apartment to start my new life. Then I came home about a week later and everything in the apartment was gone. He sold it all. Everything except my things in my bedroom. I was pissed. I was just abandoned for the second time.

I ended up moving in with my cousin on the north side of the city, which was really not too good of an idea. She had 3 kids and a husband I would soon find out was the biggest scum bag I'd ever meet. They were big in the drug department so it was an ideal situation for a person like me. I had some good times there, tried a few new drugs, lost too many memories. I was going no where fast. After all, 21 was quickly approaching. I finally got my license at 18, almost 19. On my 19 th birthday I went to my mothers place to visit, when I came home, all hell had broken loose. My cousin had come home from going to the store and walked in on her husband molesting her 7 year old daughter. He was arrested and eventually went to jail for 5 years or so but not before he tried to wreak further havoc on my cousin. We were all asleep one night and our downstairs neighbor started pounding on the door. Our house was on fire and we needed to get out. Someone had started a small fire in the basement, which had a door leading outside. We were never able to prove it, but we know who it was.

The next couple years were kinda fuzzy. I'm not sure how everything came about but I ended up cutting my hair and getting a job. My girlfriend, Heather, and I got an apartment together. Yes this is the same girl I mentioned the last time. I was still smoking pot but refrained from anything else due to a very scary incident at my cousins. OD'ing was not too fun. I started to think that I'd make it past 21 but not by much. Life was starting to get manageable. One day Heather came home and told me she was pregnant. This changed everything. Only problem was, I found out 2 days later that she had been having an affair for some time. I always knew something fishy was going on but never really paid attention. I was a pretty trustworthy person, even let her go on a bike trip with this guy for a weekend. Hell, he was much older. What was the harm. Man, was I wrong. Needless to say, all hell broke loose. Was this my kid, what should I do? This was a biker dude with connections and he wanted me dead. He told me he was going to come to my house and kill me. He wasn't messing around. I called the cops, they came and he showed up in the parking lot 10 minutes later. I never saw him again. He came into our lives one other time but, it was just a creepy phone call. Nothing more.

Well, I decided to stay with Heather under the condition that this kid was mine. No way I was gonna abandon my kid like my parents did me. On December 4 th, 1993, the greatest thing to ever happen to me happened. My son was born and I knew from that moment on, life was not just about me. I quit smoking pot, cigarettes everything. My life had to change. I had made it to 21 and I was more alive than ever.

Our life together has been full of challenges as is everyone. We've always made the best of it no matter how hard things have gotten. We now have 3 awesome children. Live in a very nice house in a great neighborhood. My wife had gotten sick about 4 years ago and was permanently pulled from work at Upstate Medical Center. Things got very rough at that point. Our income was cut in half and no disability was available. We lost our cars, our credit cards everything except our house and each other. I switched jobs thinking it would be better money. I was wrong. Dead wrong. The only good things to come out of the new job was 2 all expense paid cruises, great parties and my best friend. We filed for bankruptcy to ease the burden and it did. When my old job called me, I didn't even think twice about going back. It was the best decision I ever made. 6 months later, my old position opened up again and I was right back in the groove. Heather was able to go back to work for a short period of time, running a day care with our good friend. It was nice but took it's toll on Het and her doctor pulled her again. This time, he wasn't going to release her again. She finally earned enough credits to receive SSD and she got her first check in December. Just in time for me to have surgery to repair my neck. I had 3 disks fused together and a steel plate put in. All I could think was, why me? Why was all this happening to me? I was being tested and I was about to break.

These are my kids. The tall one on the left, the girl in the center and the short guy up front. The little one is their cousin and the girl on the right is my daughters best friend.

3 weeks after my surgery, my boss called me to have me come in for a meeting. She told me they needed to discuss my pay. Now I have been with this company for a total of 14 years, minus the 2 years I tried my hand elsewhere, and I knew that "discussing my pay" was never a good thing. I went to the meeting ready to fight to no end but what they presented to me, shocked me. They told me that I was the most under appreciated and underpaid person in the company and presented a new pay plan that almost doubled my income. I almost cried. I was speechless and had no idea what to think. I asked my boss what the catch was. Her response... "you can't work more than 40 hours a week."

I went back to work the first week in March after 3 months recovery time. The pay has been amazing and life is great! Bills are paid on time, money is in the bank. I now have the normal stresses of life and not much extra. I know I will always come across challenges in life, and I know that I will be able to handle them all. After all, I'm 35, which is a long way from 21.

I just have to thank my kids, my wife and my best friend. Without them I am nobody.