What a Finish !!

Congrats to the Pistons on their last second heroics tonight. Richard Hamilton's jumper as time expired was quite amazing. Nice job guys. Ok goodnight everyone.

Update

My apartment now smells of clean linen not to be confused with hawaiian breeze which my sister likes to use...I'll be honest I'm just not a hawaiian breeze kinda guy, nothing against Hawaii but...their breeze is known to cause dizziness, headaches, typhoid fever, cholera, malaria, and attracts theives of indians (Ok so maybe that's just what you get when you play the very old Oregon Trail game.....and what's up with you only being allowed to take 50 pounds of meat back to the wagon? If I shoot a buffalo I want more than 50 pounds of it, geez). Anyways....back to reality....I didn't feel the need to buy Glade Plug-ins for the entire place. I strategically placed one by the door as you come into the apartment and one in my room. They had some "clean linen" powder stuff that you throw on the carpet and then vacuum, that looked interesting to me. I'll most likely buy that next and proceed to experiment.

I woke up at 6am this morning. I don't think I've been up that early since I was in Georgia. It's only 10 am and it feels like it could be 2pm to me. I had to get up to take my car into the shop to have some work done on it. Hopefully it will be all good to go for Winter.

Well happy Friday everyone and have a nice weekend !

P.S. Stay away from that Hawaiian breeze

Always Something To Do

That's one thing that's true about college, there is always something going on. Whether it be a game, going out with friends, doing homework......you're always busy. Last night a few of us went to Applebee's for half off appetizers and dollar beers. We were informed that it would be the last night for half off appetizers yet the beer deal still stands. We watched the Pistons while we were there and although I couldn't hear the sound they looked great.

Today I only had one class which didn't even last the whole time. I love it when that happens. I think I'm going to go back to my apartment and watch some golf over a nice lunch. Maybe go to Kroger's too. I went there Sunday night and bought some glade plug-in things to make my apartment smell like "clean linen" cause I really like that smell for some reason and when I got home I realized that I had only purchased the refill things you put inside the actual "Plug-in." I sure felt like a horses patoot. I guess that's the way it goes sometimes.

Tonight I think my friend Kalee is coming down for a visit. Her younger brother just started at Toledo this year so she said she'd come down and visit for a while. Also, The OC is back tonight and no I don't like the fact that I watch a prime time soap opera of sorts but that theme song sure is catchy. Anyways, I must continue on my clean linen quest. I will let you know how it turns out at a later date. Happy Thursday everyone !

Another Week in the books

Well it's Friday again and I'd like to wish my Uncle Dale a happy birthday. I'd also like to say congrats to the White Sox on winning the world series even though I was rooting against them the entire time.

This week was a busy one....lots of school stuff was going on this week and I'm glad it's done. Before I know it, it will be Christmas vacation. The weeks seem to be going by pretty fast right now. I guess that's what happens when you're busy. My back has been very cooperative lately and I couldn't be happier about that. It's nice to actually feel like I'm 21.

Last night was party night as is every Thursday here at Toledo but I decided to stay in because for some reason I was ready to fall asleep at about 8:30. So I drank one of those unhealthy energy drinks and felt like a million bucks. I then proceeded to watch the Red Wings win......AGAIN. They look pretty solid this year. After the game my friend Chris and I sat in my room and played guitar for about 6 hours. He has never played guitar but he seemed pretty interested in it so I was willing to teach him. He even helped me write a song. He had a bit of trouble playing because he just had surgery on his finger and it was all sore and wrapped up.
That darn energy drink kept me up til about 5 in the morning but that's the way it goes. I slept until noon and felt very lazy. That's normal for Friday's though. I cleaned the apartment a little bit and continued to play guitar for a few hours. Tonight I'm going to see a movie with my friend Crystal and then I'm going to come home and go to bed so I can head home tomorrow morning.

So that's my story and I'm sticking to it. Have a good weekend everyone.

Hey Y'all

Well it could be the drugs (anti-inflammatory) or maybe it was the beer but I woke up this morning without any soreness in my back. It was a great thing. That's the first thing that pops into my brain when I wake up everyday.....how sore will I be today? Today was the first day in a series of many (Lord willing) that I will feel no pain. Positive thinking can't hurt, right ?

Sometimes I wish I had a Friday class just so I could have a sense of obligation to get up and do something. I did wake up at 8:15 this morning which is quite early for a Friday but instead of being productive I sat around and watched one of those "Best Police Chases" shows.....oh yeah and some guys on the discovery channel getting flipped and poked by a very angry bull. Side note while we're on the topic of television....I don't know why but last night I looked at my watch and realized it was 7 O'clock and the only thing I could think was "Wheel of Fortune is on and I have to watch it." I don't think I've watched Wheel of Fortune once since I've been at school but I think I've sat down and watched it with Mom and Dad at least 378 gazillion times.....maybe not that many but you get my drift. I guess if you watch something for so many years and it's on at a constant time it becomes somewhat of an automatic response to think of it. Anyways....the bonus round was Living things and the word was "Begonias" and the guy won and got a Land Rover or something like that and everyone was merry.

Ok back to me being lazy today....I've done nothing except play my guitar, watch tv, and play on my computer. Does it count if I thought about doing my homework? I'm sure I'll do something productive later on since all my friends left the apartment. Most of them are going up north to hunt, even Nick who doesn't even hunt......he does sell knives though so I told him to go out and get a deer like a man and just use his knives. He said he's going to paint his face and be Rambo, maybe sew up his own wound if it comes to that.

What else? I had 2 tests last week and got them back this week. I received 107% on my interpersonal communications test and a 92% on my consumer behavior test. I thought I did better on the consumer behavior one but the teacher is a pretty tough grader. Oh well I'm pretty happy with both tests. I'll take A's whenever I can get them.

What would a blog entry be without a reference to baseball.....or sports in general for that matter. The teams for the world series are all set to rock and roll. Chicago White Sox and the Houston Astros. While I'm usually Pro American League I cannot bring myself to root for Chicago, especially after they swept my Red Sox. So I'll be rooting for Houston (Sorry Mike).

Well I think that shall be all for now, happy friday everybody.

Happy October 17th

Well what can I say for myself.....My first, second, and third choices for teams to win the world series are all eliminated. I carved a pumpkin of a team who didn't make the playoffs and I spent 27 hours with my sister this weekend. Currently I'm on fall break which is nice because I get two days off this week. That means I only have to go to class 2 days this week. I can't complain about that.

I'd like to fast forward to Christmas break as long as there is no snow. I'm also hoping for my back to fully heal by Thanksgiving, I would like to be able to at least walk the turkey trot. I know I won't be able to run but I enjoy going downtown every year.

Hmmm what else? Oh ! My new apartment is nice. It's much smaller than the house was but it gets the job done. We even have a balcony and I can walk to class if I so desire. It's nice to have fully functional internet there too. You'd think I'd be updating my blog left and right but I apologize for such delay. Between school work and 6 hour pumpkin carving sessions the blog somehow took a backseat in the priority wagon. Well that's all I can think of at the moment so Happy October 17th !

Finally

I have internet in my apartment. Yahoo !

Hi

Hello everyone. It's been 2 weeks.....I'm aware. I've been slightly busy the past few weeks and updating my blog wasn't at the top of my priority list. So what has happened with me lately? I was told I had to leave my house because of an eviction notice (turned out to be a blessing). Yesterday I had acupuncture with 10 needles in my back and 5 in my ear. My back doesn't know how it wants to feel. Somedays it wants to feel fine and other days it wants to hurt. I have a bad feeling it might be an injury that stays around for a long time. The Red Sox made the playoffs and lost their first game against the white sox 14-2...total embarassment. The Tigers fired Alan, sorry buddy. Lindsey Hunter of the Pistons is having surgery today. I turned in my sales portfolio I had to make for one of my classes today. I'm glad that's done.

My parents are leaving for Georgia tomorrow, I would like to go as well but I can't. I'll just stay home and watch baseball and do homework and be merry. I hope it doesn't get cold for at least a little while longer. Cold weather and I don't get along very well. Anyways, I think that's all I have for now. Hopefully it won't be another 2 weeks before I post. Have a nice day everyone.

Update

Hello everyone,
I was pleased to hear that Grandma Gall's surgery went well. Hopefully it will help. I myself have been doing EXCELLENT in terms of my back. I haven't felt this good in a long long time. I can roll out of bed with ease and get out of my car with no problems. My friend Jeff asked me if I could play golf yet and since I've made the mistake of golfing when I thought I was better about 3 or 4 times this summer I think I am going to have to pass. I think I'll put the clubs away for the year even though this is the perfect time to play golf.

School is going ok for now. I have deadlines coming up for big assignments though. Having big projects due is like being in debt with your professor. They always have something to hang over your head. I can't say I'm a fan of that feeling. Oh well, that's just the way it is.

Yesterday wasn't the best day in the baseball world.....the Yankees overtook Boston by a 1/2 game for the division lead. It might go back and forth like that until the end of season so I hope the right team ends up on top when it's all said and done.

On a happy note I found 70 dollars in my dream last night, sad news is I woke up and it definitely wasn't there anymore. Maybe it's under my pillow, I'll have to check when I get home. Heck, I'll be excited if there is milk in the fridge when I get back let alone the 70 bucks. Today is the day we are supposed to get internet at the house. I would really aprreciate that. I have to come to campus everytime I need to get work done and a lot of my assignments are posted on the internet and it would make life a bit easier to have access to them from my room.

Hmmm what else? I guess I don't really have anything so I'll leave you with the stupid joke of the past few weeks.....Did you hear about the pretzel that was attacked? He was asSALTed(assaulted) muahhahahahahahaha. I know I know, quite the knee slapper.

Well I don't think I can top that so have a nice day everyone.

On the run

Hello all. I can't blog for too long right now but I just wanted to renew my blogging license so here I go. I went to Cleveland with my friend Crystal to see the Indians play on Saturday. It was awesome. We even got on the big screen at Jacob's field! The tribe pulled out a 5-4 win over the royals.
My back is doing okay for the moment, I can walk without pain and that's good, yet when I sit in certain positions it still kills me. Some laying positions hurt and I can't sit on a flat floor. It's odd.
To say I'm busy with school work would be an understatement. I need my own personal secretary/assistant to keep track of assignments, deadlines, meetings, presentations, this, that, everything. Overwhelmed is a good way to put it. Well that's all I can give you for now....I have to type up a paper that's due for my 5:30 class. Such is the life a senior sales student.

P.S. We're supposed to get internet and cable at the house today. That will make life easier and harder all in one. With baseball playoffs coming up it will be very hard to get things done. Although the thought of doing homework while watcing basbeball playoffs with some beer sounds pretty nice. Alright well I hope everyone else is less busy than I am. BYE !

Saturday in the Park

Comerica Park that is....tonight I'm going to watch the struggling Tigers take on the worst team in baseball, the Kansas City Royals. This will be my 4th Tigers game this year and my total out of pocket expenses for the tickets will come to a grand total of 5 dollars......It's bad when I can see 4 baseball games for less than what a margirita/daiquiri costs at the ballpark....that sucker cost me $7.25 but it was extremely hot and I got to keep the glass.
My first game I saw the Tigers play the Giants (thanks to Aunt Joyce who received the tickets from Uncle Dale I believe).....it was a 4-0 loss but we had the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth so it was somewhat exciting and the seats were great!
My second game was an awesome experience. Tigers/Red Sox. Rachel bought me tickets to this game and somehow we managed to trade for even better tickets. 5th row right by the on deck circle! I thought the Red Sox had it wrapped up but this time the Tigers rallied to pull out a one run victory in the bottom of the ninth.
The third game I went to was just last Monday...Labor Day. Tigers/Indians. My friend Crystal is a die hard Indians fan so we decided to make a day of it. Her brother Curt and 4 of his friends joined us as well. While the games don't mean much to the Tigers in terms of the playoffs, every game is important to the Indians from here on out. It was all Indians for the better part of 8 and a 1/3 innings. It was 2-0 and the Tiger's were threatening in none other than what inning? Oh yes, the bottom of the ninth....I'm seeing a definite pattern in the games I attend with that. We had 2 men on with one out and Trammell decides to bring in Chris Shelton as a pinch hitter. Well Shelton was about 3 feet away from being the hero that day. He hit a shot down the right field line about 335 feet that JUST went foul. He then hit into a game ending double play and the game was over just like that.
As I mentioned before, tonight I'll be going to see the Tigers play the Royals. My friend Kalee said she had an extra ticket so somehow I managed to be invited. I think her friend Ryan and her Dad will also be in attendance. Anyone want to bet that the Tiger's will make it interesting in the bottom of the ninth ?
Next Saturday I'm venturing out of Comerica Park and visiting Cleveland to see what Jacob's Field looks like. Crystal and I decided to catch the Indians one more time before the regular season ends. We looked on Ebay for tickets and found two 45 dollar tickets and won them for 66 dollars (thanks to Mom the ebay pro). Not a bad deal.

In other news my back is still giving me some problems. Getting out of bed and in and out of the car seems to be to two worst things for me these days. Some days my back feels better than others and somedays it hurts more than I care to mention. Somedays it hurts in one spot then the next it will hurt in a different spot and then the real bad days it hurts in both spots. The doctor told me what the sydrome is called but I don't really know how to spell it. Thoracolumbar Junction Syndrome or something. I really look forward to feeling better. It's funny how I used to take certain movements for granted. The simple task of leaning forward when I wake up in the morning is now a bonus if I can accomplish it with minimal pain. Putting on a pair of jeans while standing up is also quite a task. Oh well, it will get better......someday. For now I'll keep on a steady diet of ice packs and pain medicine with a side of baseball. Well I think it's time to get some homework done so I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend. Bye Y'all !

Torn

Today is Thursday and I'm done with 3 weeks of classes already. Things go by so quickly after they've happened. That doesn't make sense but you know what I mean. I regret to inform everyone that last night was my last night working at UPS.....no I don't think I was there long enough to get a gold watch or anything. Two nights ago was probably one of the worst working experiences I've ever had. It ranked right up there with getting hit in the face with a golf ball. Instead of one quick pain, I was feeling a constant pain for about 4 hours. Just imagine someone taking a screwdriver and jabbing it into your lower back everytime you turned the wrong way....that's kind of how it felt. Somehow I made it through work without killing myself. So after thinking things through I decided my back is more important than the 20 hour paycheck I'd be getting. I decided I'd like to be able to walk later on in life than to make a few extra bucks during school. I feel bad about quitting so soon but every night I go in I make my back a little bit worse. So deep down I feel I made the right choice. Well I promise I'll post some good news next time. I just wanted to update y'all on what's going on.

Sunday in Toledo

First off I would like to thank my Mother for playing church songs in what I believe to be the correct way. After returning to the church I attend here at school I have to say it was a different experience. It was still a good service and all but I tried singing along to the songs and there is no time to sing them, the pianist plays exactly what is written and it's way too fast and all choppy. This morning we turned "Shine, Jesus Shine" into "ShiJesShine." Ok, moving on.....

I wasn't even sure I was going to make it to church this morning. Church starts at 11 and I'm getting ready at about 10:15 and I walk into the bathroom and boom.....bloody nose. Did I hit it on something ? No.....Did I get punched ? hmmm I don't think so......Just a random occurence I guess....not to gross everyone out but it's probably the worst bloody nose I've had, I don't get many and still don't know why I got this one. But long story short....it wouldn't stop and I was getting worried that I wouldn't be able to go to church but then I was standing in the bathroom and I told myself that if God wants me at church this morning than he'll make sure my nose stops in time....and what do you know, I made it. I was even early by a few minutes.

So now here I am, in the basement of the University of Toledo library. I have 13 assignments in which to complete, make that 14 assignments. I think I'll be spending about the next 5 hours buried in text books, papers, pencils, calculators, and other such items. I'm hoping to get most of my work done today because my plan is to go up to Comerica Park and watch the Tigers play the Indians tomorrow. Labor Day at the ball park......Maybe get a dog and a beer, throw a few friends in there........sounds good to me.

If I had more time off school I'd like to visit a few other ball parks around the country.....of course my first choice would be Fenway park. It's so old and has so much history and I think it would be a lot of fun. Next up would have to be Wrigley field. As a kid growing up in Michigan I took in way too many Cubs game thanks to access to cable and WGN Chicago. I remember being at my Grandma Gall's house during the summer and just sitting down and watching the Cubs as the late Harey Carey would call the game. Take me out to the ball game, take me out to the crowd.......ah yes, good ol' baseball.

Well I've done pretty well at avoiding my work so far but I think it's time to start checking things off the list. So Happy Sunday to all and have a safe and relaxing Labor Day !

Almost the Weekend

Normally at this time on a Thursday afternoon in college I'm excited because I know I don't have to go to school for the next few days but these days my once "early weekend" has to wait until about 3 am on Saturday morning to get started. I'm finding my shift at UPS to be getting a little better each day I go in. That's not to say that I don't splinter, cut, and bruise myself about 20 times a night because I definitely do......the rollers in the trailers that you slide the packages on always seem to pick a fight with my shin on my right leg and not once has my shin won. But the flow of the whole process seems to be improving. Today is payday, I'm thinking that might take some pain away.

What else.......I think my professors misunderstood "labor" day. I've always thought we had the day off but it seems that even though we don't have to attend classes I'll be locked in my room doing homework for most of the day.....only the second week of class and I've got more things to get done then.....(as Grandma Gall would say).....Carter's got liver pills. I think at one time I understood that analogy but somehow it has escaped my memory so if anyone would like to fill me in I would be glad to know.

Tonight is Toledo's first football game. Go Rockets ! I do believe we're playing Western Illinois......yeah....so I'm betting on Toledo. The score will prolly be like 56-3. Toledo doesn't play too many good teams. We did play Pittsburgh 2 years ago and they were ranked in the top 25 in the nation at the time and we beat them. That was by far the best game I have seen at Toledo. Usually Toledo just wins most of their games and loses a couple and then we play Bowling Green. No one really cares how the season goes up to that point just as long as we win that game.

Well I'm going to go do something productive.......Happy day before the weekend everyone.

Pause

Sometimes I wish I could pause things for a few hours at a time.....maybe just to fit a nice nap in or something. I have been extremely busy lately with too many things to name. I'm trying to learn my job at UPS to the best of my ability and keep up with schoolwork and so far I'm doing fine but my body hurts all over and I went to bed at 7am this morning only to wake up again at 8:30 am for class......not the lifestyle I would choose. I have another class at 2 so I can't talk very long but I thought I'd try and get a post in while I have a chance. I received a 24/25 on my first quiz of the year in one of my sales classes.......I had to leave some room for improvement, thus the 24. In my class at 2 we're have a guest speaker and the prof is making us wear professional dress so I have to go home and throw my suit on for one class only to go straight home and take it off. Well before I give you anymore scattered thoughts that don't really mean anything I think I'll just end the post right here. Have a nice day everyone and hopefully I can post when I'm not pressed for time. BYE

Thank You

I would like to thank everyone that helped make my 21st Birthday a special one. With as much stuff that's been going on with starting school and a new job I somehow was able to spend time with some family and friends and have a nice dinner and open presents AND watch the Tiger's game all at the same time.

I would also like to thank my friends who called me and wished me a happy 21st. I unlike many of my close friends did not end up puking on my 21st birthday. Sorry guys, the puking had to stop somewhere.

Yesterday was my 2nd day of training at UPS and we ended up watching some videos on proper lifting methods and what not. Tonight we have to take a safety test in which we have to pass with 100% or we have to keep retaking it. I really hope this job works out and that it won't be too much to handle.....leaving the house at 9:30 every night to go to work isn't much fun knowing you have school work left to do. That's life though and I'm sure I'll develop a nice schedule once I get into things a little more.

Well I'm off to study for my test tonight, thanks again to everyone who made my 21st a memorable one. Bye Bye !

Moving Day

Today I move back to Toledo for the final time. It shall prove to be an eventful year living in a house with 5 other guys.....all of whom I went to highschool with. I dread going back to class and sitting there just listening to things that don't interest me but that's school for ya. I also dislike the fact that textbooks cost so darn much. You can always count on those books to suck a few hundred dollars from your savings.

This semester I will have to learn to manage my time better than previous years. I just got hired at UPS and will be working midnights while also taking 17 credit hours of class. So we'll see if I can handle all that.

Well that's all for now. Bye !

Tigers/Red Sox

Tonight I'm going to see the Tigers play the Red Sox. I'm quite excited to see the reigning world champs in Comerica Park. They had such an amazing season last year. Hopefully Detroit will be able to put together some decent years sometime soon. If they could somehow manage to make the playoffs one year that would be great. It seems the Tigers are in a perpetual rebuilding year but I give Alan Trammell and Kirk Gibson some credit, the Tigers are trying very hard to stay close to .500. Anyways....I better get going. Have a nice day !

Georgia Pictures !

As promised here are some pictures from the recent trip south. http://andy82384.shutterfly.com


As for me, I haven't been doing anything that exciting lately. School starts in 10 days and I turn 21 in 11 days. That's depressing and fun all in 2 days. On a positive note I found an excellent Garth Brooks CD at a garage sale for a dollar.
I applied at UPS yesterday to hopefully get a job while also going to school. I have an appointment to meet with them next tuesday in Maumee, Ohio. The hours aren't the best but you can't expect much when you have classes that start at 9:30 am and don't get done until 7:15 pm. Anyways, we'll see how that all turns out at a later date. I think that's it for now. Happy Friday everyone.

Rollin' Home

Hello all, I post to y'all from somewhere just north of Cinncinati. We're staying at a pretty cool hotel that offers free internet, thus the post. I had an excellent time down in Georgia and the trip shall conclude sometime tomorrow. While on my trip I learned how to catch a bunch of catfish from off the dock at the house. I'd say I caught about 25 of those with a bluegill or two as well. I tried getting some sun and I succeeded somewhat but I didn't get burnt, always a plus. Anyways I'll post pictures from the trip at a later date.

Switching gears now: Today is my Mother's birthday.......HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM !

We just went out to dinner to Max and Erma's and had a nice meal. They ran out of one kind of wine so mom and dad got a better bottle for the same price as the lower one......a nice birthday special. Mom also received a free dessert, she chose banana creme pie and I had a small bite and it was quite tasty.

I think that does it for now. I'll catch y'all later.

P.S. I would like to note that I went on a 2 hour jet ski ride while on vacation and at no point whatsoever was I lost, turned around, confused, and/or anything else you can think of in those terms. I was just out enjoying myself while my parents were going for a boat ride. The fact that their boat ride lasted 30 minutes to my 2 hours was not my fault. So no worries. Ok I'm done, I promise.