Kissing 2005 Goodbye

Time to kiss '05 goodbye and ring in 2006. The year of the horse huh? I'm still waiting for my year of the Dragon.

This year has been up and down. But you'll read that soon, but with no further adieu...2005, the year in review! From a 1-10 scale.

Finances-7.5 I saved cash this year and made more money at work too. I have a good cushion for emergencies, stayed out of debt, paid all bills on time, was able to splurge and save at the same time. Next year I need to continue on the same pace, but restructure my accounts to make more cash and invest in other things too. Save, save save...and spend a little too...

Work- 9 I love my job, as stressful as it is sometimes. It would have been a 10, but I did still spend 3 months of the year at the VINE in misery. Best thing I did was to leave that shithole. My job is so much better now. I make a lot more money, sometimes over $1000 cash a week, my co-workers are like my extended family, the customers are soooo much better, the atmosphere is funner, and my bosses and their families are some of the most genuine, honest and caring people I've met.

Social life- 7 I was relatively active in being social this year. I gain a lot of new contacts, lost some that I don't need to associate with anymore, gained a few new close friends and bolstered the good ones I already have. I had a friend come home from Iraq, safely and start his family. I lost one friend through miscommunication, but gained back another one recently. It's good to have Doug back around again, even though we don't hang out too much. Next year I'll continue to work on my networking skills, keep trying to avoid being too shy, and make more new friends.

Love Life- 7 I had 2 girlfriends this year. I learned a great deal from both of them. Granted, she had her moments, but it was mostly a long learning experience of me learning that I need to be myself. My second was maybe the more emotional one, where I learned that I need to do things that I think are the best for me, regardless of what others may think. Nothing bad to say about her at all, right girl, wrong time, wrong place. I don't know what 2006 will bring, and it will be foolish to make a prediction. You never know when the love bug is gonna get you. A watched pot never boils. I just think I have more clarity in terms of what I am looking for. Nothing absolutely clear yet, but at least I'm out of the fog with who I am.

Spiritual-4 Now, I know that you think that this is a shitty low number, but considering that last year and for many years before, the number was 0 or below 0. I not claiming a faith yet, but I've been doing a lot of research for my own self benefit in terms of finding myself. I've studier a lot of eastern religions, Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism all deal with oneness and guidance. Internal struggles are all solvable with thought. Throw in a touch of moral Christianity and a definite belief in fate, and KARMA!

Family-8 I got closer to my family this year. I spent a lot more time with MOM and DAD, more-so with Dad. They are getting up in years, and I regret now making an attempt at being closer when I should have been earlier. My cousins got closer and a few aunts and uncles. It would have been a little higher if not for an amplification at the end of the year with a current falling out of my Uncle Ty with the entire family. I won't go into details, but it involves an isolation of my last living grandparent via his actions and the rest of the family. He will pay for his transgressions and fully deserves any pain he endures in the future. Next year I want to get even closer to my Godparents, pay a visit to my Cousin Tina and her husband Jeff( who is more of a new brother than a cousin in law), visit my Mom's family in So-Cal, and hopefully spend more time with the 'rents-maybe even take a family vacation again for the first time in 11 years.

Health -7 I wasn't really sick this year at all. A few colds, but nothing major. No hospitalizations or chronic illness. I made a drastic improvement from the beginning of the year, losing a lot of weight and tuning my diet a lot. Smoking was still a crutch, and will be the hardest. This year I quit, started, quit again, started, quit, and started. It just needs to end. I won't give up my cigars though, for as infrequently I have them anyways. No thinning hair, no grey hairs yet. Allergies were bad this year, so much so that I got prescriptions for them again. Next year, continue on my goal to lose my weight, exercise more and lose the smokes for good, after all, I WILL be 30 in 2006.

All in all, this year was a 7.25, I set my goals for 2006 in a previous post and I'll try to stick to all of them. For all of you out there, thank you for being a part of my life. You have all had an impact in some shape or form and I wish you nothing but the best in 2006. May the sun shine on you, may the ground rise up to meet your feet and the wind be always at your back. Happy New year to you all! Mahalo!

Being methodical

While I was home in Cali for the holiday I did make time to think about who, what, how and why I am. What does my future hold? Can I predict the Fates? What of the spirit? And for what purpose? To aid me in my self discovery I went to Cafe Borrone the night I arrived, and after my mocha I strolled through Kepler's books (which is an awesome store BTW) I ended up picking up a couple of books, one huge one on dream interpretation, a copy of Aesop's Fables, 365 daily Taoism and a book on Buddha's teachings. All are incredibly interesting. I keep the dream interpretation and daily Taoism books by my bed so that it's the first thing I do when I wake up to get my brain working. It enables me to understand my dreams and their meanings of my subconscious and the daily Taoisms have started to give me some guidance to my days. Aesop's Fables are letting me learn some life lessons, and buddha's works are helping with further finding oneself. I think we all can agree that we need some inner peace, and this is definitely helping a bit. Above all else its really interesting stuff and it'll expand your brain and horizons. We'll see if anyone notices any changes in my behavior soon enough. I don't think I'll be joining a monastery soon or anything, but if it can help me be a better person as a whole, then looking within myself to find out more about me is a road I want to be on.

Homecoming

A festivus miracle Jerry! I got back from being home for the Christmas holiday somewhat rejuvenated. It was a massive pleasure and a breath of fresh air to spend a bunch of quality time with the family for a few days.
Everyone looked good, was in good health and in festive spirits. We all did have a bit of drama with a disowned uncle in the family which prevented us from seeing our grandmother...but that is not for this medium to discuss-we'll just say that he's a piece of shit and deserves to suffer, which his judgment day will come.
I had a really good visit with my parents, and even though they are getting up in age, they are in postitive spirits and their health has stabilized. Oh, by the way, in the picture here from left to right- my cousin Jenny, Tina's husband Jeff, my cousin Tina, myself and my dad.
Tina, Jeff and I got some quality time together and had a lot of fun. We went out one night as a family and had some cocktails and a great time. Tina is employed again and is eager to get back in the workplace and make a career for herself (as well as taking a load off Jeff's shoulders). In terms of presents, I did get a couple of cool things, money for one, and a kick ass model plane from Jeff. It's already in the cabinet in the living room. I took a lot of photos and posted a shitload on the net for most of youz guys to see.
I made it to the beach one day, spent some time there by myself sitting and thinking, doing a little reflecting and enjoying the beach. I met some of the goals on my trip too...visited the beach, had some good seafood, saw all my family, had a few long important talks with my parents, visited Cafe Barrone and had a mint mocha, visited my old high school and explored the old neighborhood for old times sake.
The only down side to the trip is that I had to come back home, and to add to that, go to work straight from the airport after arriving.

Bunch of Scrooges!

Alright, weeks ago...not days ago, but WEEKS ago, I sent out a stack of Christmas cards to all my family and friends. It's 4 days before Christmas and I've received 4 in return. Something about that ratio juuuust doesn't seem to be right there. Add to it that the cards I send out every year are custom cards that cost $25 per package...yeah, I think I learned my lesson this year on that one...Next year it'll be the cheap-o $2.99 piece of crap cards from Walmart to everyone. Sorry, just venting, I expected people to send cards like they always used to this year. I guess people are just too busy to do it anymore.

Karma pays in full

Ah karma...She can be either one hell of a bitch, or one heck of a great asset. Tonight karma kissed me with her good graces, at least financially. I cruised into work tonight expecting it to be a very, very slow night. Alas, I forgot that ASU had finals last week and school is now out for winter break. So, it was suprizingly busy. Busy enough (and drunk enough) that I had one really good show tonight that people were actually tipping my ass. I had a few guys tip $20, a few others pitch in $5 here and there, and some others dump some singles in my jar. In the span of 2 hours I was $75 dollars richer. Then it happened...Karma shown her good graces on my wallet. Some dude leans over to my stage and asks me if the envelope on the table behind me was mine. I said no. He said that there was a shitload of cash in it. I picked it up, and there was $175 sitting snugly inside. He looked at me kinda funny and then I offered him a truce. I told him that if nobody came to claim it in 20 minutes then we'd split the pot. 20 minutes came and left, and I was an additional $95 richer on top of the cash people were tipping. All in all, I made the easiest $165 dollars I had ever made. I figure I either cashed in some good karma points, or am getting ready for a streak of bad karma, or someone is paying for something bad by having their cash get lost. Either way, my bank account appreciates the extra bolstering for the xmas season.

Sometimes they hit back

Ah boys will be boys. At work we just got in this new game. A punching game to be precise. Put a dollar in, a bag drops down and you hit it for a punch strength score. I won't go into the liabilities of having such a machine in a bar full of drunken testosterone filled grunts, but so far its making money. At a cost though. My ex bartender broke his hand, my doorman broke a finger, a regular customer dislocated his thumb, and another doorman bloodied up his knuckles on it. Well, I am the latest and most interesting victim. I had last Thursday off, so Chris and I went up to Scottsdale to toss back a brew or two. We hit up my work, and I ordered my first drink, a vodka and soda water. This is important...my first drink. We met up with some of Chris' friends (the guy who dislocated his thumb, my broken fingered doorman, and a few of their friends) and we all started plugging money in the machine. I took a few hits, did alright, and then Buddy (my other doorman who bloodied up his knuckles) tells me I could get more power doing a right cross instead of doing my straight on hits. I say ok. I take a stance to the bag at 90' to it, wind up, strike and follow through. Well now...on my follow through, I punch through the bag and continue my spin, my left leg slipping from under me. I do a 360 in the air while going down and land on my freggin ass. Everybody, including me, laughs their asses off. You had to, I was slapstick in its purest form. No way could I pull it off like I meant to do it, so I laugh my ass off. Anyways, injuries sustained...an internal bruise on my left side from my hip to my knee, a bruised palm on my right hand, and a slight dislocation of my bottom right rib.
So yeah, if I ever get in a fight, I'll get one good fucking hit in and knock both of us down..but it should look pretty fucking good. That just justifies why I have never been and never will be in a fight...besides, I'll just stick to my trusty pistol or knife.

Burnout

Burnout. It's coming up quick if this pace keeps up. Tomorrow is my first day off after 9 consecutive days working, containing 11 shifts total. The paycheck will be a fat one, but at what cost? Not like I can fully enjoy my day off Thursday by going balls out at night, I do have to work in the morning on Friday. Friday night may be a better time to let loose. I may just have a day to myself on Thursday consisting of a whole lot of sleep and nothing else. The neighbors across the street invited me out to the bar across the street in the evening, so I may partake, or if I get a spur up my ass, I may go out with Chris for a couple. I just forgot what a day off feels like recently. After tomorrow, I work for another 6 days straight until I leave to go home for Christmas for 4 days. I get back on the 26th, and I still have to work that night after traveling...and then including 8 of the following 9 days through New Years. This sucks balls. Just freggin whitey keepin me down again. So if I look whipped if you see me out and about, now you know why.

A Calling

So, after my "episode" of last week, I have been thinking with a clearer head. It then struck me, nearly everyone that I talked to said just about the same thing. That is that I need to start doing things that are for me, what Marc thinks is right and what makes Marc happy. Its about time I get myself into that mindframe. One of those things is surfing. More so, the beach and the ocean in general, but surfing is right up there. I've determined that not only is it therapeutic to ones soul, but its something that clears the mind as well. A zen, a center, a sense of meditation and oneness. I couldn't tell you how many times I've been at a beach and just sat there, alone with my thoughts, feeling my heart and soul mending themselves. I'd be sad to leave, but when I did, there wasn't a care in the world.

I remember once, back in high school, my buddy Doug and I went to Half Moon Bay-in the summer mind you- grabbed a pair or boogie boards and paddled out to the middle of nowhere for a few hours in like 60 degree water, which is freggin cold man! We sat out there for hours, eventually not caring about catching a wave, but just bullshitting to eachother, floating out in the blue. I think we needed to come in after our arms and legs started looking like the color of the water. Shivering and numb, since we were stupid enough to go out without a wetsuit, we made it back to the car to be greeted by the blood and feeling coming back to our extremities...which sucked...imagine being covered with millions of pissed off, hungry fire ants, all of them armed with tiny cattle prods. It burned slightly. But you know what? We didn't give a fuck. We were in a moment, having fun, and there wasn't a care in the world.

I think that a lot of people still fall into the mentality that a "surfer" is nothing more than the stereotypical slacker. The guy that works part-time bagging groceries at the supermarket just so he can pay rent for a shack he lives in, with no spare cash to buy luxuries. Probably he owns a beater of a car, if a car at all, if not just a busted up ten speed. He sleeps all day, wakes up, throws on the same pair of shorts he wore yesterday to the beach, doesn't comb his hair or shave, steps out to grab his board and plays in the water all day.

And you know what? I could live like that. Why? Because that guy doesn't have to put up with all the bullshit that you or I have to deal with on a daily basis. He doesn't have to drive a fancy SUV, or be the CEO of some Internet provider company. He's happy eating taco bell bean burritos and scraping up enough cash to grab a sixer of miller to crack one with his friends on the beach. He is in control of his own universe instead of letting things control him. They don't care if they are stuck in traffic, or if the local sports team won or lost, or if they clocked in enough hours at work to afford the 10 cent hike in gas prices. A bad day for a surfer would be to banish him forever from the beach, or for the diehards, unsurfable weather conditions.

Here's the kicker though. Surfers aren't like that stereotype at all. Well, ok, maybe a handful. Most are successful in society, make a decent living, some have families, and maybe a few have the dreaded SUV. The point is that all surfing is, besides the love of the ocean, is a state of mind. We eliminate the bullshit. Once you do that, then your mind gets clear. It's a camaraderie, a mindset, a way of living. Its not that we don't care about anything, we care about everything...that is necessary to be happy-life, love, friends, family. Pretty much the basics. The ocean tends to put things into perspective really quickly if you let it. Something that big, that expansive makes you feel so small, powerless and insignificant, that it humbles you and makes you thankful for what you have and aware that there are things in this world bigger and more important than the trivial crap that "we have to put up with." Its simplicity in its finest form. If you can understand that, then you are in the surfer mindset.

What's ironic? I have never in my entire life...set foot on a surfboard. Mahalo and Aloha!

Stoopid People...Volume 3

Alright, before I delve into the third installment of stoopid people, I must first set the scene. At work we have what we affectionately call the wheel of booze.
This gianormous spinning wheel spins around on the wall (and probably effects the Earth's gravitational pull due to its size) and lands on various shots, drinks, crap, etc for the customers. 3 spins for $5, or 1 spin for $2. This wheel is run by our shot girl. Customers pay the shot girl, possibly tip her, get to spin and then bring the drink slips up to us. Bear in mind that for some strange reason, the shot girl is not required to tip out the bartenders at the end of the night. She may make over $250 in some cases, but we don't get a fucking dime for our work. Now, this wheel is a smokin deal. You basically get 3 drinks for $5. Usually they are not shitty shots or drinks, ranging from a kamikaze to jack Daniels. So these fuckers come up with a $20 and get 12 drinks for what would normally cost them over $50 easily. You can kinda tell where I'm going with this. This wheel drags in the cheapest fucking white trash drinking scum out there, who just cashed in their food stamps and is living fat on the town tonight.
ENTER THE STOOPID PEOPLE.....
It's midnight, the bar is fucking packed. This dipshit walks up with a stack...and I mean a fucking STACK of no less than 18 slips. He was like, "here ya go duuuuude." I looked at them, and then I looked at him and said, "shit man, you're fucking kidding me!" "sorry duuude!" It takes me a good 7 minutes to round up and make all 18 drinks for him and his cheap fucking buddies. I know that I aint gonna get shit out of it, because people never tip on the wheel, but sometimes they do so I gave him the benefit of the doubt. I make all his shots and drinks for his ass, look right at him and ask him if I can get anything else for him. He can't even look at me or respond to me, head down looking at the 18 drinks of joy I just slaved for him. I tell him "thanks duuuude!" and walk away. One minute later I walk down to that end of the bar to wash dishes and he's there pounding down shots in front of me and he yells out, "Hey thanks man, you hooked it up!" Then he turns to his buddies and says, "Make sure you say thanks to him man, he took care of us!" FUCK YOU- YOU FUCKING MORON!!!! Thanks are fine and dandy, but I can't survive on freggin compliments! You just had 18...fucking EIGHTEEN drinks for the price of FOUR !!!!! You can't even leave a fucking dollar for us??? I have never, never ever wanted to smack someone in the face more than that guy last night.
Here's some basic rules peeps.
*Tip a basis of a dollar a drink, except for soda, water or coffee- unless you get one of those three for free, which a lot of bars do.
*If a bartender is working hard for you, and you NOTICE it, saying thanks does help out and compliments are appreciated, but make sure you pad his wallet. The work won't be for nothing, and you will get faster service on your next trip up to the bar.
*If a bartender hooks you up by either making really potent drinks, or free drinks for you...Acknowledge it and take really good care of them for it. If you don't the first time they hook you up, you can guarantee that you will NEVER be hooked up again in there.
*If its super fucking busy, keep it simple. Simple 1-2 liquor shots, and basic drinks like vodka tonics or rum and cokes. None of this I need a couple of drinks that you have no idea how to make....with 6 different liquors, double tall, light ice and a cherry garnish on it. You WILL piss us off, as well as the 40 people waiting in line behind you just so you could have a drink that is "special"
*Be patient...A lot of us act like drones behind the bar when its busy. Impersonal robot drink making machines. We have zero time to talk to you about how the Vikings played this Sunday. Straight, to the point, get ALL your drinks ordered at once, pleeeease!!! Crack a quick quip at us to lighten our moods, smile, be polite and use some manners peeps. That, even if you don't hook us up with a shitload of money, will promise you a faster drink at anytime...oh and a nice set of tits too.
That's my rant, and I'm stickin to it!!!!

Looking to the 2006 list

I've been thinking of the upcoming new year, and of some of the things I want to get done, go do, buy, see and experience. I dunno if I can cram them all in here, but I'll give it a shot.
1) Continue with the positive weight loss I'm experiencing. I said a month and a half ago that I wanted to set a goal of losing 30 lbs during the next year, and I think I'm well on track to do so. I figure I have about 20-17 lbs left.
2) Get a new mountain bike. Mine is shot, and is nothing more than an old relic from my high school days. It's seen it's fair share of experiences, and needs to pass the torch.
3) Somewhere, sometime, travel to a beach and go vertical on a surfboard for the first time. Whether it be taking lessons or renting or buying a board on my own, I want to hang ten.
4) Travel somewhere I have not been to yet. Out of city, out of state, out of country, where-ever. I want to experience at least one great new place.
5) Continue to dump more cash into the bank, and re-invest the money I already have in other areas. I'm halfway to saving to a new truck or a spa, or one hell of a kick ass vacation.
6) Get closer to my family and friends.
7) Do some delayed home repairs, or just end up getting a new house for 2007.
8) Create one new piece of artwork. I haven't touched a paintbrush in years, and I need to try again.
9) Get that missing tooth fixed. Thankfully its not visible, goin white trash aint my style.
10) Go fishing with my Dad. Its something that I haven't done in like, a decade, and its definitely missed.
11) Have my parents go on a damn vacation. Or should I say, convince my Dad to go on a vacation. I'm not talking about coming here to visit me, or to San Diego to stay with my aunt, I'm talking about a vacation vacation! The last 2 (yes, two) vacations he went on was in 1994, when we went to Portugal, and 1982, when we went to Hawaii. There's just something wrong with that picture. Even if I have to buy the tickets myself, drag them onto the plane or boat, by golly, they need to go on one. It'll get my Dad out of his rut and me off his ass, and also stop Mom from always bitching about not going on one.

I think that's about it for now. I'm sure I can add or subtract from this thing.

Crossroads

There are times in a person's life when a person comes to a crossroads in terms of possibly making a life changing decision. A decision that bares a thought process that was beforehand seemingly inconceivable. The path is not set, nor the outcome foreseeable. Does one trust in faith and fate? Does one rationalize a decision in attempt to make sense of the situation? Or does one throw caution to the wind and let the decision make itself be known?
I am at such a crossroads, and I am lost. I have never been faced with such a possibly life altering dilemma in my personal life. The decision I must make is currently the hardest thing I have ever faced. Having fought through simpler battles such as moving away from home to come here for school, or to leave my job for a possible better one, or even the always arising decision of whether to buy nutter butters or oreos at the grocery store (I usually say screw it and get both) all pale in comparison to my current internal struggle.
It has been racking my mind for almost 2 weeks now, and the stress has been slowly accumulating. So much so that I feel that it has started to affect me physically. I was thinking all of my current weight loss had been through dieting and eating less, but now I may think that a portion of it has been stress. (Which in a way I guess may be a good thing)
I am sorry to all of you that may read this and have no clue as to what the hell I am talking about, but this is only known to a select few. I care not to air out my drama on public domain, but all I have to say to all of you is that if I come across as happy and normal one moment and then distant, or tuned out, preoccupied, stressed out or even all in all M.I.A. , I apologize, I just need to sort something out. I'm just feeling lost right now.

Last Day and zoolights

The last full day that Tina and Jeff was here in the valley was first spent nursing a nasti hangover which felt like someone beat the crap out of us with a baseball bat. But after all that had passed, we headed to the Phoenix Zoo for their annual zoolights program. Call it a holiday tradition, regardless of who goes with me. They had a few new displays, and extended a few more paths for displays. The walk did us all good to burn out the excess booze in our system, and the displays were really fun. They had the usual musical lighted trees that lighted in sync to classical xmas tunes, but suprizingly, that part of the zoolights actually seemed a bit bad. Last year's musical display was better. By the way, the above pic is of a porcupine. It was one of the better displays. Pictures DO NOT give it justice though...
After we left zoolights, we headed up north to Scottsdale to the Sandbar, and had a brew of Longboard ale, from the Kona brewing company. I highly recommend this brew, besides the great taste, its brewed in Hawaii. After only one there, we headed across the street to a biker bar called the Dirty Dogg Saloon. It was a busy one in there that night. If you get the chance, check it out, it puts Coyote Ugly to shame. All the bartenders are ex-strippers, and when they get on the bar to dance (or hang from the rafters while working a hula hoop) it shows they were...After that act of debauchery, we headed back south to Giligins, had a bucket of shrimp and a beer. We were still tired from the night before, so we headed home and relaxed, watching TV for a bit and then crashed out pretty early.
We got up the next morning, hung out in the afternoon and then I dropped Tina and Jeff off at the airport.
I was really happy that they made it out, they had a blast out here as well as a well needed vacation from the real world. It was a relief to see no stress on their faces and voices for 3 days. I'm pretty sure that I got them hooked on coming out here for vacation time and I expect them to come out here again soon. I do think though that I am due to go and stay with them for a change, I owe them that much for making the effort to come out here the past few times.
But now that everyone is back home, its back to the grindstone with work and the ever so loved diet. I got to work Sunday night after dropping them off at the airport and then do a double shift on Monday. I have tomorrow off only to do the exact same shift on Weds. Close Weds into a turnaround double Thurs, close Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday. Its the price I have to pay for asking for a shitload of days off, including the days off I have requested off for xmas to go back home. Fun has a price to pay.

Hello Mr. Hangover

Needless to say, the xmas party went off without a hitch and we all partied our asses off. It's been a really, REALLY long time since I got faced, let alone drank frequently, so my tolerance is shit now. I guess that is a good thing right? No more raging college alcoholic. Anyways, I did my fare share of boozing that night, and I paid dearly for it the next morning. Despite my body reacting to all the excess empty calories it was now not used to anymore from dieting, the alcohol took its toll. I crawled out of bed at 11 the next morning and needed to assess damage control. Tina and Jeff faired no better, not heavy drinkers anymore themselves, so we were all suffering. But like troopers, we arose and imbibed in a little hair of the dog to get us back on our feet. Bloody marys and screwdrivers got us feeling better and in the mood to clean up the warzone. We worked through a hangover for about 4 hours, cleaning and organizing and putting away all the weapons of our last night's debauchery. We spent the remaining afternoon just chilling and recuperating (and rehydrating), watching movies and napping. Props to Jeff, who got back on the horse and started pounding beers in the afternoon. Good job boy, git-R-done!
Needless to say, the end result of our 3 day partying spree cost us our immune system, which was weakened to the point of all of us catching a cold on the last day. I don't think I'll be partaking in this kind of drunkenness for a while, as it was a bit too much to handle. Fun does have it's price you know.

Goal Setter

Talk about a busy ass weekend. I finally got around to getting up to speed on my blog. First and foremost, I believe that I met, and surpassed my weight goal of losing 5 lbs before the xmas party. I estimate I lost about 8 lbs. However, I probably packed on 3 from Thursday through Sunday. I needed to splurge though, and it was well rewarded.
My other goal was met too, in that I achieved my most successful holiday party to date. No drama, everyone had a blast, and everything turned out perfect. No screw ups on the food, plenty of booze flowing, and lots of good pictures taken. The best was that I was able to spend the weekend with my cuz Tina and her husband Jeff, as seen flanking me in the above pic. We ended up going out the night before the party to the Improv and then to Giligins, where we met up with Chris, Vance, Jen, Ryan and a few other friends that were planning on coming to the party the next day. We all got a little tipsy Thursday, but had a great time. By the way, if you get the chance to see Pablo Francisco live, jump on it. We never laughed so hard at the comedy show, and our sides and cheeks were sore from laughing so hard. Tina had never been to a comedy club before, and I think we got her hooked.
Anyways, continue to part two....