Thursday, November 17, 2011

Happy Blogaversary

Hey Lifers...

I'm sure you've guessed by now, based on the title, that It's my Blogaversary. Well actually, my Blogaversary has come and gone to be honest. But close enough.

I started this blog, A Day in the Life, last year back on Oct. 21. At the time I really had no idea what I wanted or expected out of a blog.  I really didn't even know anything about blogs, or blogging. I was stalking, uhh, I mean checking Facebook one day, and a friend of mine posted a link to her blog. I clicked on it, read her ramblings and loved it.

Suddenly I was alive. I felt so close to this friend of my, whom I hadn't seen in years. But it was awesome. She was funny. Entertaining, and inspiring. So I thought.....Hey, I'm funny, and entertaining. I should start a blog.

Seemed like a perfect fit to me. And here we are.

So I've been blogging for a year now. Wow, where does the time go? Anyway, I think we've all learned a lot over this past year. We've learned that my neighbors are crazy. We've learned that I still don't like Sunday nights, and I scream like a little girl when I see a spider. What's that? Oh I hadn't mentioned that before? Well yeah now you know... Hate spiders.

We've learned that my clowns are smart, funny, and all around awesome. Oh and that they're ninjas that will karate chop ya. We've learned that I can't dance. Well I can, but it looks more like a moose walking on a frozen lake than dancing. So for arguments sake let's just say I can't. I'm ok with that. We've learned that I am way uncool. This too I'm ok with. I mean really, at my age isn't it just sad to try to be cool? And oh yeah, how could we forget when I pee'd in the ladies restroom. 

We've learned that my DW has a way of getting what she wants, loves Target, polls Facebook before making purchases, and when she loathes something it means I'm getting a new one.

I've also learned that I have 74 followers on my A Day in the Life Facebook page, yet only 21 blogger followers. And we've also learned how sensitive I am about having blogger followers, and how much it means to me. Now most bloggers will have some sort of give away for their blogaversary to help build followers and traffic to their blogs. You know something like IF YOU FOLLOW ME ON BLOGGER YOU'LL BE ENTERED TO WIN A FREE GIFT IN A RAFFLE. ALL YOU HAVE TO DO TO BE ELIGIBLE IS FOLLOW A DAY IN THE LIFE ON BLOGGER. CREATE A PROFILE AND FOLLOW. IT'S THAT EASY.

I'm just saying....


J-Tony

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Am I my Brothers Keeper???

Hey Lifers...

So today I had another opportunity to do some traveling. Now usually on these adventures I travel by myself. But this time I was meeting a lady and we pre-arranged to meet early this morning.

Which got me to thinking. Am I really my brothers keeper?

I mean, do we as a society, as a normal people, have an obligation to take care of one another, no matter how small the task?

Now I know that in the bible it says that yes we are. But the good book tells us lots of things, but how often do we listen?

So back to today. Once I reached my destination this morning I called the lady that I was meeting. Now keep in mind that I was in an unfamiliar town, and it was pouring rain. It was dark and I was literlly standing outside on a downtown street corner with my hands full of junk in preparation for our day. No hooker jokes please.

I asked her if she was at the event. To my surprise she said she was about ten minutes away. Now that really wasn't the big deal. The deal was the way she answered the phone. The way she spoke. The tone she used. I could tell she was frustrated. Angry. She mentioned how the rain had slowed he down this morning and yada, yada, yada.

I politely told her that I  was on the street corner about two blocks away, and would go ahead and go into the event, did I mention I was carrying a bunch of crap? Anyway, I told her to give me a ring when she got in.

About thirty minutes later she calls and says ok I'm here. Where do I go, what should I do now? Again it wasn't so much the questions she asked, but rather the way she asked them. As if it was my responsibility for getting her where she needed to be. My responsibility to tell her, her every step.

We talked for a while and I helped her get to where she needed to be, all the while lugging these heavy things through the event. I had to walk up a flight of stairs, then down a flight after I figured out I was on the right floor to begin with. I even lugged these thing around inside when I went to meet her so she wouldn't get lost once inside.

A little later we headed to breakfast. As we get to the dining hall we were asked to show our credentials. Her response. I'm just following him.

In the beginning I was slightly perturbed that here was this grown woman whom I'd never met was just following me. Again like it was my responsibility to take care of her? Look lady I've got three clowns at the house that I take care of. I don' t have time nor the desire to look after you.

Then I got to thinking. Am I my brothers keeper?

I've always said that we are all alike. Probably more than we really like to admit. So maybe she overslept this morning and didn't get her coffee. Maybe driving in the rain made her nervous and upset. Maybe the night before she got a disturbing phone call and she hadn't really come to terms with it yet. Maybe she has financial issues her and her husband are dealing with. Maybe she just wasn't comfortable meeting new people, and wasn't comfortable in her own skin. Whatever it was I realized, there at breakfast, that in a way, in this way today, I was my brother's keeper.

So for the rest of the day I did my part to help her out and make her feel comfortable, in hopes that the next time we meet she'll be friendly and at ease.

Unless of course she's just a bitch. In which case I wasted my day.


J-Tony

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Bag On

Hey Lifers...

So today I'm starting my Bag On edition. This is where I will dedicate an entire post to bagging on someone or some thing. In other words it's my gripe post.

I can't think of a better thing to bag on today then  Pennsylvania State University. Otherwise known as Penn St. But maybe more to the point, the Penn St. football program.

As I'm sure you all know by now, Penn St. has been the major headline the past week or so for a child sex scandal involving one of their assistant coaches. If you haven't heard then where the heck have you been?

In case you have no idea what I'm talking about let me break it down for ya.

Jerry Sandusky was a Penn State assistant football coach for most his career. He spent nearly 30 years at the University. He was an assistant and good friend to the winningest coach in Division I football, Joe Paterno. And he is now being charged with sexually assaulting little boys.

I'll spare you all the details because it's gross and pisses me off. But you can read the entire grand jury investigation online, just as I did. Just type in Jerry Sandusky Grand Jury in your search engine.

OK so now to my Bag On segment.

Jerry Sandusky obviously has issues. Let's take him out of the picture for now. If you've seen and heard the news, you know that over the years there were several people who witnessed these acts. And a few of them actually did the right thing and reported what they saw. The report states that another assistant coach witnessed Jerry Scumdusky with a minor and immediately called his father to tell him what he'd witnessed. After speaking with his father the assistant coach notified his boss, Joe Paterno.

On a few other occasions, the Grand Jury report states that other witnesses and a few parents notified campus police and the coaching staff about what they suspected was going on. Each and every time, nothing ever happened. Oh there were times when the University's Athletic Director and or School President told Scumdusky that he wasn't allowed to do that... Yeah No Shit.

How can this be? How is it that everybody turned away? How is it that this thing continued to get swept under the rug? This abuse went on for nearly 15 years with eight different minors. And here's the thing. I'm sure this creep didn't just decide in 1998 that he was going to start doing this. I'm sure this started long before then, and I'm sure there are many more victims out there.

But the most disturbing thing to me is how everyone covered it up. Coach Paterno, the AD, the President. And why?

To win football games..

Because surely when something like this gets out, that someone on your staff or in your organization, is a child molester then people will talk. Prized recruits won't come to your school. Boosters' checks will stop rolling in. T.V revenues will go down, and the head football coach might loose his job.

As it turns out people did loose their jobs this week including coach Joe Paterno, and at least one star recruit did state he's going to school somewhere else. The ax has fallen.

Now I see these moron Penn State fans on t.v expressing how they love Joe Pa. How they support their coach. How they feel it was wrong for the University to fire him. Paaalease.. This JackTard covered up a child molestation scandal for years..TO WIN FOOTBALL GAMES....

Now I'm sure there are people out there who say, well he told the AD, what more could he have done. Hello...He's Joe freakin' Paterno. He was Penn State. What he could have done was demand that this ass clown be investigated and or arrested immediately. We're talking about kids here people.

Joe Paterno, along with the entire football program, has an obligation to not stop. To not rest. And certainly not coach football until somebody does something to get this DB off the streets. I'm 100 percent certain that the same JoePa supporters would feel differently if it was their child.

I am a sports fan. I have my teams. Teams that I loyally follow through thick and thin.  But in the end, they are just that. Sports Teams. It saddens me that as a society we've chosen to trade football wins for children.

J-Tony

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Random Thought Thursday

Hey Lifers...

Just a few random thoughts for today's post...

Ever noticed that you could feed a family of four for the same price as a bag of Beef Jerky?

I rarely wear matching socks. I figure what's the point?

I hate the fact that it's pitch black out at 6 pm now.

I love having clowns old enough to blame my bodily noises on.

I still play video games, and love 'em.

Yeah, I'm that Dad at Chuck E. Cheese.


Seafood grosses me out.

I find my DW's facebook rants annoying, but don't know how to tell her nicely.

That is all for now....


J-Tony




Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Growing up....

Hey Lifers...

So you know how there are certain points in your life that make you feel old, or make you realize that they're clowns are not babies any more?

Well we had one of those days this week...

See this has been the year that my oldest clown has somewhat transitioned from clown to young lady. Although she still breaks out in a full-fleged laugh-out-loud, crack up session when she passes gas, so go figure.

Anyway, for the last month or so she's been asking for a cell phone. Riiiggghht? Sure that's just what I'm gonna to buy my 9 year old. And of course because the oldest wants one, now my 7 year old wants one too. Paa-lease. So a few weeks ago the oldest asked me if I could put a full length mirror in her room, and lately she's been asking the DW and I if she could get her ears pierced. 

So after a little beggin' we decided she could put holes in her head if she wanted to.....Boy it doesn't sound like a very good idea when you put it that way, does it?

Anyway, it didn't bother me that she wanted to get her ears pierced really, my only thing was that it's one of those signs that my baby is growing up.
I guess it's bound to happen right? I'm just not sure I'm ready for it....


J-Tony

Thursday, November 3, 2011

Happy Anniversary

Hey Lifers...

So today is a pretty special day for me. Back when I was younger, like most if us, I was a little wild. Its not like I was pulling a Frank The Tank and streaking down the street every Friday nights, but I wasn't exactly singin' in the choir on Sunday mornings either.

Anyway, I did a lot of stupid things back then and honestly didn't care much. I didn't care what people thought, or what people said. There was a time in my life that, looking back on it now, was pretty dark.

Then along came my DW...

I was given her phone number from a co-worker and decided to give her a call. We lived about an hour and a half away from each other at the time, so I guess we both figured it wouldn't hurt to just talk. We talked on the phone for a few months almost daily before finally meeting each other. I always tell everybody that we met on a blind date, but we did know each other a little by then.

We went out with that co-worker and her husband. We had dinner and saw a movie. Obviously we had a good time. We talked on the phone afterwards and spent weekends together. And eight months after we met, we were married.

That was ten years ago today.

I'm sure our family and friends thought we were crazy, and although they never said it, probably never thought we'd last ten weeks let alone ten years.

But the truth is we just fit. We don't always communicate well, and we don't always see eye to eye. Anyone whose read this blog knows that. But we make it work.

Marriage is hard sometimes there's no doubt about that. Lord knows she's not easy to live with. But its, she's, taught me so much.

So for all the grief I give her and through thick and thin, I'm so very grateful that things have unfolded like they have.

So today's post is a big fat Thank You to my DW for being the best DW I've ever had....

Love you babe...

J-Tony

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

What are Your Panties Worth???

Hey Lifers...

So I heard today that a pair of Queen Victoria's underwear were sold at an auction. Apparently these things went for $15,000.

What? That's a lot of coin for a pair of panties. I get pretty upset when a five pack of my whitie-tighties are twelve bucks. I can't imagine. Not to mention, what do you do with a pair of the Queens undies? And are they clean? Does that make them more or less valuable?

Here's another thing. It's not like they were a sexy pair or anything either.




Lets face it, it's Queen Victoria, not Victoria Secret, right? I mean c'mon, does anybody really think this lady is wearing a sexy pair of panties?

Yeah me either.....



J-Tony