Thursday. My day off. Oops, scratch that. I was asked yesterday to work today, so I have to go in at 1, and I don't know when I can leave. Apparently, lots of things going down with employees or something. I wasn't too happy yesterday when I was asked, basically because it was 5:25 and I was supposed to leave at 5:30. Not the greatest way to end my shift. Anyway, I think the manager thought we'd have a big rush on our Halloween candy tonite. Enough about that.

NBA season is here and I'm not really into it yet. Keith VanHorn had 29 points for the Knicks, but they lost. I'm sick of hearing about Lebron James already. The Sixers are 1-0 and are on ESPN tomorrow nite at Sacramento. Other than that, I don't know what else is happening yet.

I had a bunch of things I wanted to get done today, but they'll have to wait. One thing was to get my car checked, but I can't because I'll be using it to get to work. I hope it holds out until next Thursday. On a positive note, I do get my first paycheck today, but I'm sure it will be a great disappointment after I take into account my bills.

Well, if I don't blog tomorrow, which I probably won't, then have a fun-filled weekend!

Damn, it's been a while since my last blog. Times have been busy for the new worker, so I've been a slackin'. The new job is pretty good so far. Still don't know what my daily duties will be, but the people are nice and it's a job. This weekend was full of many exciting events. I'll go in reverse order and work backwards from today. The Bengals are 3-4. They are in second place in their division, and already have one more win than they had all of last season, and without their "star" running back, Corey Dillon. More on him in a moment. Anyway, they defeated the previously 5-1 Seahawks 27-24. Their defense allowed only 7 points in the second half, and the TD came withing the first 6 minutes of the 3rd quarter. Two in a row, and next week they travel to Arizona. As for Corey Dillon, he got into a car accident before the game, and hopefully he's ok, which I think he is, but prior to that, he was being a total ass and complaining about not getting the ball enough. First of all, you have to play to get the ball. He's been injured every game! And second of all, the team has now won 3 games without you. They're playing really well and keeping games close, so shut your mouth and play like you're paid to. If not, then they have a perfectly capable backup in Rudi Johnson, who broke 100 yards today.

Last night was the Hey Mercedes show at Irving Plaza in NY. Just seeing the band was nice. I'll have more on that in a moment as well, because there were many ups and downs involved in the night. Upon arriving home, I was informed that the Marlins defeated the Yankees in the World Series. Wow. I'm not going to rub it in, because everyone who blogs is a Yankee fan, but that put a smile on my face before bed.

As for the HM show, here's the deal thru a list of pros and cons:


PRO: HM played a show CON: It was in NY
PRO: HM was headlining CON: There were 4 opening bands
PRO: Going with 2 cool people(Kim & Liz) CON: It was in NY
PRO: Not driving into city CON: Finding parking in Hoboken
PRO: Found parking in lot next to PATH CON: Parking cost $20
PRO: PATH station close to Irving Plaza CON: Forgot how to get to Irving Plaza from PATH
PRO: Found place pretty easily CON: It was still earlier than anticipated
PRO: Doors open at 7 pm CON: It was 7:10 and I really had to pee
PRO: Doors opened at 7:15 CON: First band started at 7:50
PRO: The bar had the Captain CON: Captain & Coke cost $7
PRO: Talked to Bix, the HM tech CON: He had no new t-shirts for sale
PRO: 1st band usually plays short set CON: 1st band sucked
PRO: 2nd band usually plays short set CON: 2nd band was Canadian and sucked
PRO: Saw people we knew(Kate, Dave) CON: Saw plenty of scenesters
PRO: 3rd band was Damone CON: There was another band after them
PRO: Talked to people we knew CON: Had to leave due to mild case of food poisoning
PRO: Returned feeling better CON: There was still another band to play
PRO: 4th band looked rock & roll CON: 4th band sucked
PRO: HM went on at 10:45 CON: Irving Plaza has a curfew
PRO: Found PATH station easily CON: It was 110 degrees in the station
PRO:Hit very little traffic on way home CON: My car sounded like it was going to fall apart
PRO:Turn back clocks, gain hour of sleep CON: It was still 1:30


So that's a short list of the show's experience. In other news, I'm working 2-11 tomorrow night. I'm wondering what I'll be doing since the managers usually leave at 5, and I have no idea how to do anything yet. Hmm. I'm going to see Dave's band on Wednesday at Just Jake's in Montclair. He plays the keyboard. Should be interesting.

Day one of my new job. I worked from 9-5:30 and will be tomorrow, Weds, and Friday. I still don't know what my job description is, or what I will be doing. My supposed job title is SIMS coordinator. It's like I'm going to be in charge of inventory-keeping supplies on hand, knowing when we have too much, etc. I'm supposed to find out more on Weds. Tomorrow is truck day, so I'll be busy with that all day. Today consisted of me moving boxes around in the stockroom in preparation for truck tomorrow and attempting to complete a display for Christmas, although it did not turn out well, since we didn' t have enough shelves to complete the task. The people I've me so far have seemed really nice, which is a plus, but I'm not used to working, so my stomach and rest of body are out of whack. I was hungry at 12, but didn't want to eat since I still had 5 and a half hours left. I'm also tired, because I had to do a lot of stupid errands when I got home, so I only got to sit down at 7:30. Anyway, I'm happy I'm working. The place seems nice, and I'm hoping once I find out what my job will be, I can learn that before worrying about every other possible job in the store.

Rob, your story was touching, but for some reason, I knew something was going to happen to ruin it. I'm sorry about that. Keep your head up. I ordered the book the other day, because I don't have anything else to read right now, so I'm supposed to receive it this week sometime.

Kev, The Matrix Reloaded was indeed a piece of crap. I liked the first movie, and thought the second one made no sense and had really only one scene I enjoyed, which was the last big action scene. I have no urge to see the new one either, but if I do, it will be with the gift certificate I have, so I technically won't be paying for it.

Tomorrow's day 2 of work. I gotta get to sleep early tonite, because I'm feeling a little weary and my nose is running. Hope to sleep it off and fight off any cold or such symptoms.

Holy Crap. As much as you all know I hate the Yankees, that game was, in the words of Dennis, Incredible. I'm not going to analyze it or complain about anything the Sox did. You'll hear plenty of that on Sportscenter, etc. I'm going to step aside and actually congratulate the Yankees for proving who the better team was. I'm also applauding MLB for an absolutely amazing post-season so far. Hopefully the World Series will go 7 games as well and continue the trend. The one thing I'll say is that I liked Aaron Boone when he was a Red(ask Kim for the validity of this), and was upset when he came to NY because I knew he was a damn good player. Now all the dumb Yankees fans around my area suddenly love the man. Patience, y'all. Oh by the way, Den's prediction was eerily close.

It's Friday! They're actually calling for a nice weekend after today for once. Sounds good to me.

Yesterday something strange happened. Here's a little background: My parents are planning on getting our front stairs replaced, as well as the small path to our side door. They are going down the shore for a few days for their anniversary(Sun-Tue). They called the mason to tell him to start the job when they got back from the shore, so he could do it all at once, instead of starting this week and waiting a few days, etc. Kim had been over yesterday afternoon for lunch before her night class. The doorbell rang about 3 pm, but I was in the restroom, so I didn't hear it. She looked, but didn't know who it was. When I returned, I went downstairs to see who it was. I hear loud banging and open my front door to find my front steps being demolished and the railing dismantled. The mason decided to start breaking down the stairs without telling us. So I called my mother to see if I missed something, but she didn't know either. She told them to go ahead and continue, so they could finish the stairs today. So today I heard jackhammering at 8 am, and they're working right now. Should be done with the stairs today, and will probably come back late next week to finish the side path. I guess it wasn't a big deal, but I was thinking about what would happen if we were getting our porch rebuilt. Would they just bring in a wrecking ball without telling us?

In other news, I've had a person-less house next door to me for about 8 months now. The previous neighbors just bolted one day. Finally, someone bought it late summer, but he's rebuilding the entire inside-walls, floors, electric-just about everything except the shell of the house. On the other side, we have a strange house. One guy's an Elvis impersonator, and the other guy is a fat, drunk, something. I don't know what he does for a living. But the fat guy's an asshole who parks his big red van on the street and insists on hitting every car while parallel parking. Needless to say, we hate him, and found out the house was recently sold, and I'm told they'll be gone by the end of the year. Woo-hoo! Remember that show Home Improvement? That Wilson guy was the neighbor. Where the hell is our Wilson?

Have a good weekend folks. Listen to Knapsack.

Congratulations to the Chicago Cubs for sucking. As long as their world series drought continues, I can no longer accept Bengals ridicule. HAHA! No, I was kinda rooting for them, but I'm totally fine with the Marlins, it just doesn't sound right. I also didn't want Kerry Wood to take the loss, but the whole team just collapsed after a 3-1 series lead. I'll wait for the Sox-Yanks tonite...

I'm officially starting my job Monday. I'm working Mon, Tue, Wed, and Fri from 9-5 for a total of 32 hours. It's my first week, so Monday I'll probably set up a fixed schedule for the weeks to follow and increase the hours up to 40. I'm technically going to be in a management position, so that's gonna be nice. I have to wear a shirt & tie, but as Kim said, I would have had to if I was teaching too. I'm happy because I'll be getting some money and benefits. Whew! I was starting to get nervous about the lack of insurance.

Well, it's Thursday, so I'm gonna meet Kim for lunch/dinner.
She's feeling a bit better, so I'm glad. I feel like celebrating my job, but I don't have money from the job to celebrate the job. Huh?

I decorated my house for Halloween yesterday. I still enjoy this holiday for some reason, even though I don't dress up or anything. I guess I'm still 10 in my mind.

Anyone recommend any good books, movies, or cds? I plan on buying one or more of each with my first paycheck. Especially movies and books. Let me know. Thanks.

Wow, it's a good thing I didn't jinx the Cubs last nite. What the hell was that all about?!

Today's my parents' anniversary, so Happy Anniversary! Not like they're going to read this, but maybe they'll get the message telepathically.

I watched Conan last nite, and Jim Carrey was his first guest. It was a rerun, but Carrey did In The Year 2000 with him and was frickin' crazy. Later, during his interview, he did this bit with Stephen Hawking. Very funny stuff, and apparently, I heard that Carrey actually went to visit Hawking for dinner a few weeks after the original show was recorded. I believe it was in June of this year.

Next Saturday is HM at Irving Plaza. All right! I hate the city.

My baby is sick. This sucks. I did my best to take care of her today. I'm sure I'll be getting sick soon. Probably the kid with the outbreak cough from Friday night passed it along...

Congratulations to Rob for guessing the lyric. It was indeed Skee-Lo from his song I Wish. You win!

I got my oil changed in my car today, and the guy tells me that my radiator is corroded a bit inside, and my coolant is dirty. That sucks, because I got a new radiator put in by my awful mechanic last November, and it had a year warranty. How does it wear down so quickly? Anyway, I now have to get it flushed out and get my tires rotated for the winter, so my car doesn't ice-skate, and my engine doesn't get frostbite.

The Sox are pretty much cooked. I don't see the Yanks losing to Burkett, especially with Pettite pitching...Cubbies look like they're wrapping it up. Six more outs for the Fish.

So I will be joining the workforce again on Thursday-filling out W-4s and I-9s and all that jazz. I am ecstatic to be employed again, well at least more than just every Saturday. Good times.

Oh yeah, yesterday was Columbus Day(the day it's observed). I remember always having off from school, at least until I reached college. Yesterday I noticed that my old elementary school was in session. What is this world coming to? First they condensed Washington & Lincoln's birthdays into one day, then they stopped observing Veteran's Day in school, and now Columbus day isn't a day off anymore. What's next? No more Christmas break!

Jeez, Den, you sound like a professional writer for Rolling Stone. I'll take it!

There's this house around the corner from mine which stations a small dog that I'd like to kick. It tends to poop on the sidewalk, and the owners don't ever clean it up. Today when I was walking by, I noticed, ironically, that their house had been tp'd. Well done!

Man am I bored. I'm literally counting down the hours until this party. I'm about to start drinking now. Whoops, too late.

"Every day would be a Friday, and we could even speed down the highway." If you know what song or artist this quote is from, then you win.

So I'm gonna speed down the highway today because it's Friday, and tonight I'm gonna exit that highway to go to Mr. Sides' house. Once there, we will be partaking in the imbibing of alcohol. Woo! And on top of that, it's pizza nite beforehand!

Tomorrow I work for GHT, so what usually happens when I work for them? Well, apparently it's not supposed to rain tomorrow. Ho-ly Crap. That's incredible. Unfortunately, the game doesn't begin until 2pm because of the kids taking SATs tomorrow. I won't be home until 7 probably. So no Saturday, but that's where tonite is important!

Sunday, Sunday, Sunday! I will be seeing about this job opportunity. Hopefully all goes well and I'd be able to start soon after. I have to fill out when of those apps on the computer, and then I gotta pee in a cup so they know I'm not addicted to meth.

Here's a story I'd like to share which highlights my job search experience. Last Friday I received a phone call from Belleville. The secretary says they're going to be interviewing for two 5th grade positions. I say I am interested and she says the interviews would be later next week, but she would call early in the week to schedule. So I wait, and she doesn't call. So yesterday(Thursday!) I call them. She says they didn't interview yet, and she's not sure when they will be. So I say, well will it be within the next few months? She says she doesn't know, but probably. So I ask will I still be on the interview list if they don't interview for another 3 months, and she says, "probably." OK, then why did you call me last week? This is just one of the many examples of ineptness in New Jersey's School Districts. Absolutely disorganized. Remember the movie Disorderlies? No one does. Never mind.

So this AIM thing is addictive. I don't even have many buddy names, and I'm thinking I'm on way too much. But it's quite fun, especially when you sign on at midnight last nite to check your email, and end up chatting with Liz until 1. Don't worry. Liz is Kim's friend, not some girl I met in a chatroom. Anyway, I'm currently talking to Kev while he's working. I feel kinda bad, but he says it's all good and he won't get in trouble.

Well folks, enjoy your weekend. Listen to The Appleseed Cast.

Whoa, what's going on here. You two can't fight on the blog. Consider yourselves banned until you both clean up your act. What the hell is wrong with these people?

Who let Morgan on here anyway?

Yarr!

That lootin' rummy thinks he won. Oh. Me takes his peg leg and shove it up hes ass. Bring it on ye mangy scoundrel.

That bloody fool McCallister will pay. Stupid sonofabitch screwed up me opportunity to find me a lass. I busted his nose good. There I was, drinking me spiced rum when I spotted a fine young lass who sat next to me. McCallister comes back from the head and stumbles upon me peg leg and knocks her down. Me lady left in a hurry and a slobberknocker broke out. McCallister got what he deserved, but needs more a hurtin'. He'll pay.

Dude, you'll never guess what happened last night. I was at the Town Pub watching the Cubs-Marlins game and noticed these two odd characters. One guy was dressed in this long coat with boots and had a fisherman-type hat on and the guy he was sitting next to had this pirate theme. He had this long mustache and goatee. Anyway, The pirate guy was mackin' on some chick. The fisherman guy comes back from the bathroom to sit down and trips on the pirates pegleg. The fisherman falls into the chick and she falls down with him on top of her. She hits him and pushes him away and stormed out onto Broad Street. The pirate guy is pissed and starts whaling on the fisherman and swearing about how he always prevents him from getting any box. More punches were exchanged before a big dude from the back came out to separate them. The bartender called for a cab to bring the fisherman home, and the pirate guy had to drive home. Chaos.

That was something you don't see every day, unless it was Halloween or something, but that's a few weeks away still. Anyway, the Cubs destroyed the fish. And the Sox were victorious as well. Their bullpen looked pretty sharp, at least Timlin and Williamson. Hope both series continue to be close, though.

You know what I had for breakfast this morning? Cinnamon Toast Crunch. I never had the stuff when I was a kid, but I'm eating it when I'm 24. I ate after mowing the lawn, which is especially fun when there's pieces of metal hidden in the yard from the guy next door's construction. It was like mowing over a mine field. Try not to get electrocuted or get a contusion on your shin.

So on Sunday, I may have a job. It's not a teaching job, but where has that profession gotten me, honestly? Kim's mom is hooking me up with a job full-time. She said it would be like an inventory dude and i'd be on the floor as well, but it's a job and I couldn't be happier. I just hope something stupid doesn't happen between now and Sunday. So I'm happy, and I'm sorry about all the nagging and depression I've emitted the last few months on the blog. I hope you understood a little of my feelings, but I think I was a little overboard, so things are looking up!

Oh, remember when I mentioned something positive happening with my brother? Well, he's gonna be working at WFAN, probably the biggest sports radio station in the US, on a patchy basis. He's happy as hell, and he's still gonna be at WCBS 880 as well. Good stuff. May blog again later. Peace out.

Me thinks me going to see me ol' friend Captain Morgan tonite. Drinking rum, singing pirate songs, lootin', and lookin' for some ass. I hope he can pick me up cuz I don't have a carrrrrr.

Well, politics is officially a joke in this country. Arnold Shwarzenegger is going to be governor of California, but strangely, I'm jealous. I think it's because he couldn't do any worse of a job than Gov. McGreevey has done for this state. Yeah that guy sucks. Don't pass it to that guy.

Did anyone see the game last night? Holy crap was that exciting. Cubbies have a must-win tonite...

Yeah, so I just downloaded aim, so if you have it, my name is stringmule. I have no job, folks, give me something to do.

Not like you care, but I'm going to write a brief synopsis of the new Hey Mercedes album entitled Loses Control. These are my interpretations of the songs so far, so they may not even be close to the real meanings! The artwork and photography are nice as well.

01 Quality Revenge At Last
Lyric: There's a phone call coming from a Romeo in Joliet
Catchy song with some "Yeah's" in the chorus-probably most radio friendly I guess
02 It's Been A Blast
Lyric: All the arguments are not the same without you
Most uptempo on CD in my opinion. About a past fling he is looking back on.
03 Playing Your Song
Lyric: The lies are piling up so high that he can't sleep at night
Third person story about a guy who is with a girl but loves another.
04 Knowing When To Stop
Lyric: There's nothing inspirational like watching angels drop
The downfall of frienship through lies and fights.
05 The Boy Destroyers
Lyric: All I know is I'm never gonna go the safe way home
Loneliness.
06 Unorchestrated
Lyric: The point in time when everything dies. It's over.
Sad song. Depression to realizing things are not so bad.
07 Lashing Out
Lyric: Smile and sing along to every single song
Singing along to some band at a show.
08 Police Police Me
Lyric: The stars are all smiling. It's disarming.
Media, cops, and criminals are all the same.
09 Oh Penny
Lyric: And my dear old sharona keeps em on the floor wanting more
Happiness with someone elsewhere, but Penny is here now.
10 The Switch
Lyric: I'm a nervous wreck. Hey I'm a tightrope.
Sex compared to a video game? Huh? High score...if it takes all night.
11 Absolute Zero Drive
Lyric: So wake up soldiers and take all your arms and leave
My favorite song. No fear, man.
12 Go On Drone
Lyric: Stop the press. Who is that mess?
Miserable person continues to mope.

Y'arr!

Hi everybody again. So I am bored and decided to blog again. I wrote three new songs today, so visit my site.
I received my copy of the new Hey Mercedes CD, and it is quite enjoyable, as expected. More on that perhaps tomorrow after a few more listens.

The first song is about the daily grind, and can be found here, while the second song, about the upcoming season, can be found here, and the final one, written mainly for Kim can be found here.

I think I'm going to stop making predictions before I realize how utterly ridiculous I feel. Does that even make sense? Anyway, I said the Bengals would win outright, but they lost in OT. I still don't think Buffalo is all that good though. All of Bledsoe's passing yards came after CB Jeff Burris left the field on a stretcher, and Eric Moulds was covered by a scrub. Yeah, it was the key time to start getting yards, but still, they were lucky because he had 102 yards midway thru the 4th quarter...

I said last week the Red Sox weak link in the lineup was the leadoff spot, which is Johnny Damon. I like Damon, but I just felt he'd been so inconsistent during the year, and yesterday he hits a 2 run homer. I really hope the Sox win because I want them to beat the Yankees. I know just about everyone here likes the Yankees, but I don't, and frankly I'm sick of them. After the game, they decide to interview Jeter surprisingly. Why? He hit a meaningless solo HR? How about naming Nick Johnson or Matsui player of the game when their 2-run hits mattered in the game, or maybe even fat David Wells for pitching [sigh] another important game in the postseason. Anyway, it's Pedro vs. Zito tonite, and the Sox need a big game from everyone, but it's time for Kevin Millar to step it up.

Tomorrow is the day!

Oh yeah, how about those Cubbies? Giants: check; Braves: check; Yankees: not yet. Hey 2 out of 3 gone from the playoffs is a great start. I think I'm going to root for the Cubs, but I will not be saddened if the Marlins win.

Hey Rob-what's the deal with New England? Their a strange team. Blown out by Buffalo. Blow out Philly. Eek by the Jets. Get eeked out by Washington. Out-gun Tennessee. What's the pattern here? Do they get out-gunned by the Giants next week? God I hope not. The Giants are so boring.

Big changes may be in the works for my brother. Good changes. Hopefully after tomorrow things will be fit to brag about.

I have an interview later this week here. They have two 5th grade openings, so we'll see what happens there.

Welcome, weekend. I'm still wondering where the end of summer went, but anyway, it's still nice out today. I got a haircut this morning from the lovely amateurs at Supercuts. The girl I had today is usually pretty good, but she always cuts the back crooked-like, so I have to fix it. It's fine if it's a little bit off, then I wouldn't care, but when it visibly slopes downward to the left, it looks sorta funny.

I went to the bank to attempt to cash my check from GHT, but there was a line out the door full of old people. It must be social security check day. Yup, it's the 3rd of the month, so I left because I probably would still be there since 10:30.

I'm listening to Cursive right now. This is a very strange but good cd. It has organs and cellos in abundance. Very eerie.

My Red Sox prediction was wrong. Boy do they suck. How can they not score with that lineup. Their lineup reminds me of an even better than the Jays of 93. They have really no weak link, except for maybe in leadoff. I guess pitching does win games, and their bullpen bites it big time.

Pizza night. Tomorrow it's supposed to rain because we have a game to do.

I realized even more that I hate the South. Folks in Richmond refused to name a street after tennis legend Arthur Ashe because of his skin color. Fucking muffs. Go buy a clue instead of a confederate flag.

Hey folks, sorry for the long absence on my part. My computer was diseased and being repaired for a few days, so I was without this piece of technology. Let's take a look back to my weekend predictions from last Thursday. The Bengals won, so that was nice, and Syracuse kicked Toledo's ass, which surprised me. Either the Cuse is much better this year, or Toledo got lucky beating Pitt. Anyway, Walter Reyes is one of the top backs in the nation, so I'm happy with their 3-1 start.
Did ya see my boy Shannon Stewart on Tuesday? I know you probably did, but I had to rub it in a bit to the Yankee fans. Also, I hope Arod doesn't win MVP because the (Texas) Rangers suck. I also don't want Tejada to even get mentioned because he can suck my ass too. If it's going to be a Yankee, then I hope it's Posada. As long as Halladay gets his hardware.

Let's look ahead to this weekend. Starting today, I hope they don't but I think the Yankees will win game 2, as well as the Sox. On Sunday, the Bengals are at Buffalo, which is not good. Takeo Spikes may decapitate anyone he tackles, and Corey Dillon is not playing. However, Travis Henry is questionable, and may not play. I'm gonna be bold and say the Bengals win again. Call me crazy, but I have renewed faith in Jon Kitna and his receivers. And I also don't think Buffalo is as good as I thought when the season started, especially after watching them the last 2 games.

I went on an interview yesterday for a teaching job, but couldn't tell you how I did, because the principal showed no emotion during the time I was there. I'm supposed to find out by Weds if I made the final 4.

I saw my professor yesterday for a reference for grad school, so now I am done with my application process. So now I wait to see if I get in.
I got a letter yesterday telling me I was denied for financial aid, but I don't know why there was no mention of loans. I have to call the financial aid office to figure out what the deal is.

On a delayed realization, I noticed it's October. It didn't gradually get cooler, like ease into the low 70s or hi 60s, but it just became 60 and dropped into the 40s overnight. What happened to the light jacket at night weather? It's already feeling like hoodie weather.

Hey Den, what gives the hotel the right to call itself a "historic bordello?" Was Lincoln a customer? How about those Scarlet Knights, huh? Putting up 30 a game. Oh by the way William Paterson lost last weekend 67-0.