Happy Turkey Day!

     So, I know it's pretty late in the day. In fact, it's technically already tomorrow, but that's besides the point. The point is that it's Thanksgiving! And with Thanksgiving comes the flooding of facebook posts and twitter updates on what people are really thankful for in life. So, in order to fall in with the rest of the people on the band wagon, I thought I would share a few of the things that I'm thankful for.
     This list actually was written in a journal I had to keep during my freshman year of college at the Webb. That particular journal , actually, was in part one of the reasons I began this very blog. But anyway, I was required to make an entry every week and this, of course, was the required topic for the week of Thanksgiving (thanks Abbie!) So here it is..

Things I am Thankful For:

1. My family. This includes both the people who live in my house and/or are actually related to me as well as those close friends who may as well be my brothers and sisters. These people are AH-mazing. So much so that I couldn't begin to explain to you the level of their collective amazingness.

2. The fire service. I know I talk about it a lot and people might get a little tired of it, but it's true. The world of firefighting (and EMS and Rescue, of course) has no doubt saved my life. That is all that I know and all that I really need to know.

3. Facebook. I mean really... If I ever need something to occupy my time while procrastinating on school work or anything else that may be considered productive, then facebook never fails to help me out. It's also there when I'm just bored and I feel like I need to live vicariously through other people. Oh and ps: that whole thing about facebook being blocked on campus is really chafing my bottom...

4. Cool Hwhip. This really needs no explanation, but I'll humor you and give you one anyway. What can't you do with cool Hwhip? It's good on any dessert as well as various other foods like cereal, fruit, pb&j samiches, you get the picture.. It's also great for pranks like smearing it on cars, putting it in the hands of sleeping people, and filling balloons with it. There really is nothing you can't do with cool Hwhip!
(ps: if you don't watch Family Guy then there is absolutely no way you would understand that one. Sorry)

5. Orange Gatorade. Again, this needs no explanation. It's simply amazing and I don't honestly know if I could live without it. It's my beverage of choice and has been for as long as I can remember and I'm pretty ok with that.

So there you have it. Those are some of the things I am thankful for.

HAPPY TURKEY DAY!!
K-rock

Sometimes I'm an idiot..

     Ok let's face it friends.. sometimes we're idiots. All by ourselves with no encouragement or poking or prodding from any outside source, we all seem to have a real knack for sometimes being pretty..well..dumb.  Of course for most of us this is a periodic occurrence, usually a single event or episode of verbal diarrhea. But for some more unlucky people, idiocy seems to just be a way of life...which is rather unfortunate. But I'm not really here to point the finger so let me just tell you, dear friends, about my own experience with being a space cadet.

     In the very recent past I have said and done some things I really shouldn't have said or done. We'll not get into those details.. I have also kept my mouth shut when I really should have spoken up. Those details aren't really important either. But what is very important is the fact that I have made mistakes. BIG ones. And not just recently, but throughout my young adulthood, and really my entire life. And I can promise you that as sure as I continue to breathe, I will continue to make mistakes. It's a given. But I have found that there is something of way greater importance than the fact that I will undoubtedly continue to mess things up. The reality is that every time I stick my foot in my big mouth or turn around and kick myself (go ahead and picture those acrobatics!) for whatever bone-headed thing I just said or did, I will hopefully learn a lesson.

     A very wise person (who probably stole this quote from someone else somewhere along the way) once told me that "Life is the hardest teacher for it gives the test first but the lesson second." Oh my goodness gracious were they right! It never ceases to amaze me how I can manage to completely foul something up but then turn around when it's all said and done and say, "Hey I really shouldn't have done that! I'll know better next time.." Isn't it cool how that works? Isn't it grand how hindsight is SO 20/20?

     Um.. actually no, it's not usually fun. But we all know that, right? We all know that actually having to look back at some unpleasant situation, in which we were at fault, often has a way of..say...hurting one's pride? Ripping one's guts out? Breaking one's heart and then running over it with a Mack Truck, throwing it in reverse and hitting it again? Ha! Ok, I got a little dramatic with that last one.. But you get the picture. Long story, short: it pretty much sucks.

     But there's good news, friends! The complete and total suckiness of the situation doesn't have to be the end all, be all! And here in lies the great part, my friends. The good Lord above has blessed us all with brains-- granted some are capable of more than others-- and along with those brains He gave us the ability to learn from our mistakes. And that is what we have to embrace. Not the total crappiness of the fact that we just messed up, but the fact that after messing up, we receive the gift of just a little bit more knowledge. We suddenly know a little bit more than we knew before. And that is a very, very good thing.

     So.. what are some of the most recent tidbits knowledge I have been blessed with? Well, I'll tell you.. 1.) If you've got something to say, say it. You might not get another chance. 2.) THINK about what you say BEFORE it actually leaves your mouth. Are the words you're fixin to share with everyone really going to help the situation or just muddle it up even more? Save yourself some heartache and figure that out before you grace your acquaintances with your thoughts and opinions. And 3.) DO NOT set your cruise control to 81mph in the 65mph zone of I-85/I-40 that passes through Alamance County. That's a really bad idea and should also be pretty self-explanatory.

     And I believe that's it for my life lesson tonight. Hope you were able to find something profound hidden somewhere in the words above. I didn't hide anything specific in there, so if you find something good, let me know. :)

Night friends!

K-rock

People Watching

     Ok, so I work in a mall. Sorry, I enjoy having a job so can't tell you which one. But let me tell you, friend, it is by far some of the best people watching I have participated in in quite a while (minus the state fair because people watching on that level is UNBEATABLE). But anywho.. you would not believe the kind of nonsense I see walking around this mall. There are children in shoes that squeak. Yes, you read right. They SQUEAK with each tiny little step! And you thought those light-up shoes your mom made you wear when you were 6 were bad. These kids couldn't escape if they tried because you can hear those dadgum shoes all over the place. I almost feel like these squeaky shoes are the new kiddie-leash, which I have nothing against by the way. I had a leash when I was little and people apparently gave my mom the stink face for it but I was a little rugrat who liked to get into things. Mom really had no choice. And there are children with at-ti-TUDES! Oh my goodness gracious. This evening I overheard a child who could not have been more than five say "woman, where the heck are we?!" to his mother! I don't know about you, friend, but if I had said that at that age, I would also have expected to get a butt whoopin' when I got home.
     **DISCLAIMER: I was NOT beaten as a child. I got tough love in the form of butt whoopin's and I can assure you I deserved every single one of them**
     And then you have the cool teenager crowd. There's the 14-year-olds who get their moms to drop them off so they can walk around with Hollister and American Eagle bags lookin fly like a G6. It's ok guys, I did that, too, when I was your age. And, of course, there's the older teens. The ones who walk around bearing a striking resemblance to Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman before Richard Gere took her to get all those fancy clothes. I think you know what I'm talking about.. They walk around holding hands with their boyfriends or girlfriends giggling as they whisper sweet nothings in each other's ear. Oh, to be young again.. Haha! My favorites, however, are the young ladies who strut their stuff in those sweet designer heels.  My hat's off to the few of you who can pull them off. I for sure couldn't do it. But what kills me are the girls who don't quite know how to walk in heels. Sure, you look smashing as you stand still talking on your Blueberry (or whatever the new phone is this week) waiting for the elevator, but the tragedy begins when you take those first few steps again. It is my firm belief that if you're going to wear those amazing shoes, you should work it--graceful like a gazelle and NOT like a tyranosaurus rex with a limp. You should really work on that.
     And speaking of shoes, what in the world is up with the "kitten heel?" That concept is still beyond me. Personally, I think if you're going to wear flats, wear flats. If you're going to wear heels, wear heels. You can't have it both ways, dear friend. But I'll just let that one go..
     And the highlight of the people watching this week has come with the arrival of the Christmas season and, of course, Santa Claus.  Being the kid at heart that I am, I have been wanting to have my picture taken with Santa for days now, but I've been doing my job so I haven't had time yet. Just sayin..  But the other night as I was taking the trash out after closing up I saw something that has completely and totally changed my view of Santa. No longer do picture jolly ol' St. Nick with his cheerful smile, his red hat and his boisterous laugh. Oh no, friends.. As I opened the door to the loading dock to put the trash in the dumpster (glamorous job, I know) who did I see but none other than Santa himself....with his snow white hair flowing into his tremendous beard. But this was not the Santa from my childhood dreams. This Santa had apparently forgotten his suspenders (and yes, crack kills) AND his traditional red coat. Let me just tell you that seeing an old fat guy in red hot pants half-way covering his rear end and a wife-beater has scarred my mind forever. I hope he's happy with himself...

So there you have it. That's what I see every day at work. And with that, I'm spent. Goodnight friends!
K-rock

Day 2. Look at me go!

     Ok, first off, this is my second blog post in a row. Check me out, friend! Second, eating Cookout at 10 o'clock at night was a bad idea. And third, I have to come to learn, with the assistance of such MTV shows as World of Jenks, Made, The Buried Life, and the soon to come Road Trip Adventures, that you can really figure a lot out about someone by the things they aspire to do in life. You've got the go-getters who want to base jump off a cliff in Brazil. And then you have those people who just want to make it into the Guinness Book of Records for the number of Cheetos they can fit in their nose. But anyway, I thought I'd share with you my bucket list...the things I want to do before I..well..kick the bucket. Might be funny, might give you some ideas, or... you might not care. But whatever. It's my blog.

And in no particular order...

1. Make a living doing something I love
2. Read something original at an open mic night
3. Read 200 legitimate books
4. Get Married
5. Have chil'ren
6. Go skydiving solo
7. Become fluent in Spanish
8. Dye my hair purple (done it!)
9. Have at least one friend that lasts a lifetime
10. Be able to truly support myself
11. Lead ten people to Christ
12. Go one whole day without saying the word "no" just to see what happens
13. See the birth of a litter of puppies
14. Learn to do a back handspring
15. Spend more than a week at the beach
16. Drive across the country
17. Get a motorcycle
18. Drive a Lamborghini
19. Make a difference to someone I don't know
20. Befriend someone out of the ordinary
21. Drink a gallon of milk in an hour
22. Speak in front of 500+ people (done it!)
23. Sing on a stage...in front of people...by myself (yikes!)
24. Swim with dolphins
25. Name a star
26. Chinese fire drill (done it! in the middle of I-85 in Charlotte, no less..)
27. Tell only one person a secret that nobody else knows (done it! thanks PostSecret..)

An eclectic mix, I know. But these are the kinds of things I care about. Oh yeah, and one day I'm going to save the world, but that one's just a given.

Night friends!
K-rock

Welcome to my adventure..

     Ok, so here goes nothin.. I've officially decided to jump in to a new adventure that could turn out to be completely rewarding. Or, let's face it friends, it could turn out to be a complete flop. But either way, I'm sure that by now you've figured out that this big exciting new endeavor I'm talking about is starting this very blog...which you're apparently already reading.
     So, "why a blog?" you may ask. Well, it could be the result of the quirky yet lovable English teacher I had the pleasure of learning from during my junior year of high school. Her name was Nancy Duffner and we were pretty much her little group of misfits. Our class affectionately became known as "Duffy's Day Care," which was eventually shortened to just "Duff Care." Anywho, Duffy told me I was a good writer, and while to this day I still appreciate her confidence in my abilities, I believe her encouragement may be similar to that given to those really unfortunate people who think it's a good idea to try out for American Idol. Someone told them they had some great singing chops and encouraged them to audition...then they found out they weren't quite as good as their friends and family led them to believe. So if this does in fact turn out to be a flop, you can blame Duffy.
     Or...I could be starting this blog because I just feel like it. In which case, if it's not that great, well, you can still blame Duffy.

     So welcome to my adventure, my dear friend. Tune in to see what sorts of shennanigans I can manage to get myself into.

Hope you enjoy!
K-rock