"Jesus and Mary, what a great day"

Christmas Day is approaching quickly. Just a couple of last presents to wrap up, literally and figuratively (i.e., I still need to purchase a couple).

To think that God, the Creator, would humble himself to come to earth, live as a man, and sacrifice his life to redeem me. It truly is awesome.

Listening to: Sufjan Stevens - Songs for Christmas

"When the holy night is upon you"

I was flossing tonight and a crown fell off and dropped into my mouth...I've had either visions or actual dreams of teeth falling out recently and me chewing them. My body must have been warning me that this was coming. When combined with two flat tires last week, all this weird stuff is happening. In the meantime, Christmas is just around the corner now. A few days to gather a few last presents and wrap a few others... Just got to get through this Business Law test on Thursday.

"Smile below each nose"

Wow, I just stumbled across this post from almost exactly five years ago... And I'm again reading the book Good to Great. I never finished it the first time. This time it is on the list for my class C562: Developing Strategic Capabilities, so maybe I'll get a little further...I'm glad that I'll finish my MBA around with 5-6 years after undergrad. I think 5 years was my goal, so I'm only slightly behind schedule.

Caught up with fellow Hoosier's the Patries today. It's good to have them back in the Heartland...It's been too long.

"Come thou fount of every blessing"

Christmas time is here, and I'm looking forward to relaxing with loved ones and that warmth that only Christmas brings. 8 days out and I've got shopping to do, gifts to wrap, carols to sing and cookies to eat. But it will all get done!

On the train from O'Hare to downtown Chicago and listening to Sufjan's 5-volume Christmas album.

"Only to bring you peace"

The fifth annual Rosenberg Christmas newsletter is finally finished. If you're reading this, hopefully you'll be receiving your copy soon!

"Silent night for a change"

It's been awhile, and I'm watching a business law lecture, so it seems like a good time to update. School's been busy. November was OK. Thanksgiving was nice. Graduate school continues to plod along...I think I'm down to my last 7 classes.

My nephew Ezekiel Lyndon Spires was born last month, which was fantastic! More blogging coming soon, hopefully.

Currently listening to...Christmas version:
Boots - The Killers
Merry Merry Christmas Everyone - Jon McLaughlin
Christmas Lights - Coldplay
Happy Birthday Guadalupe - The Killers

"I was afraid I'd eat your brains"

The days leading up to Halloween did not disappoint. Rogers surprised me one Friday night and took me to the Trail of Terror on some farmland in Fishers. A nice little jaunt through the woods with ghoulish figures flying at you and jumping out from some decent hiding places. This preceeded us playing House of the Dead: Overkill, which is modeled after a Grindhouse movie and is pretty darn fun with arcade-style Zombie killing. Of course we watched a little Dawn of the Dead and played some Plants vs. Zombies on the iPhone over the weekend as well. It was a zombie-riffic Halloween. I snuck in The House on Sorority Row, Sleepwalkers and The Last Man on Earth over the past couple of weeks as well.

More importantly, Republicans picked up 60+ seats in Congress in yesterday's elections, so the Democrats will not be able to ram through socialistic balogna like Health Care Reform for the next two years.

Over the weekend, Rogers and I traveled up to Detroit for the first time in 18+ months to visit friends and our old church, eat at our favorite restaurants and watch a Redwings game with 9th row seats. Even though it was only for 36 hours it was nice to get away with Rogers for a day...Pretty sweet!

It's been a good couple of weeks!

"Like a million parachutes"

A few exciting things in the hopper for work. Hopefully, they will come to fruition. Making day trips to Warsaw occassionally, which makes for a nice drive up 37 through Marion and up 15 through Wabash.

Excited about Halloween...or at least the idea of Halloween. I've been wearing my various Halloween-type t-shirts and recording all the Friday 13ths on AMC, and moving all the streaming Netflix Horror movies into my queue so I can grab them through the Wii. And I'm strongly leaning toward purchasing a House of the Dead arcade-style shooter for the Wii...hopefully, I'll have the time to enjoy all of these morbid things over the next week...we'll see.

"Shine a new reflection to the sky"

Fall doldrums are settling in, I guess. I think it is primarily school that has me reeling. I'd rather be watching a horror movie every night to celebrate October. Instead, I'm studying economics and information technology. I'm ready for Jason Vorhees, and instead I learn about Enterprise Resource Programs. It's time for Mike Myers, and I am learning about the Fed and monetary policy. 13.5 credits of school every six months on top of a full-time job is no way to live. I need a change of pace.

Currently listening to: Mark Kano

"I know you put in the hours to keep me in sunglasses"

Exhausted...time for bed. School is keeping me more than busy these last few weeks. Global economics and information technology. Post 800 is right around the corner, but at the rate I'm going it will likely be 2013 before I reach number 1,000.

Movies watched over the last month of Fridays:
The Town
Wall Street 2
The Social Network
Easy A

"If she knows you're paper"

And so another week comes to a close...one more day to power through some homework tonight and a full day in the office tomorrow. Had lunch with an AU student today who's looking to network as he explores what type of job he wants to find when he graduates in the spring. Hit up Scotty's for lunch. Always a good place to eat, but the Mo' Fo Buffalo Chicken Wrap turned out to be a painful mistake.

The second episode of Running Wilde was disappointing. I had high hopes after the decent Pilot. Now those hopes are dwindling. I'll give it a few more episodes before it dies for good.

So that is that...the end of September 2010. Recap:

> Labor Day
> Trip to Cooperstown, NY
> Visit to Oil City, PA
> Grandma and Grandpa's house broken into
> Preston's soccer game where he scored 5 goals
> Diamond Dash
> Thai Smile 2 closing
> Saw Wall Street 2, The Crazies, Shawshank Redemption

Song of the Day: Mr. November - The National

"The new blue blood"

School is dragging me down right now...it seems I've found myself in the middle of two challenging classes. The next couple weeks look to be pretty jam packed with projects on Economics and IT. Sounds like a blast, right?

Fortunately, both classes have a lot of teamwork, so I'm not going it alone. Just trying to keep up...With lots of school work comes lots of opportunity to absorb new music. Here's what I've been listening to in the last week.

The National - Alligator (select songs 3x since Tuesday)
Gin Blossoms - No Chocolate Cake (2x since Monday)
Margot - Buzzard (5x since last week)
The Open Sea - (20x since Sept 14)

"Gone loose inside its shell"

Now I can drive in peace...We moved to Anderson in early June 2008...I waited the first nine months to confirm what our permanent address would be. There's just no excuse for the sixteen months after that. Having to take the written test scared me away, I guess. But today I conquered that fear, passed that test only missing one question and have a temporary Indiana driver's license in my wallet right now. The permanent is on its way in the next 10 days. For the last year, I've been concerned that I might be pulled over sometime, get issued a ticket for whatever reason I was pulled over (or not), but then get hammered for not updating my driver's license to Indiana. I've heard that could be a stiff penalty. And a full 9 months before my other license would have expired anyway!

"Lunatic, lunatic, lunatic"

On Thursday, my grandparents house was broken into and a small, flat screen TV was stolen from their kitchen while they were in the living room watching TV. The criminal broke and climbed through a window leaving blood and fingerprints as evidence. Very disturbing. My grandparents are in their 80s and it is horrible that someone would terrorize them for a TV that they may be able to pawn for $150. They have had their garage broken into twice. Now they will be moving out of the house they have lived in for 20 years in Anderson. Horrible.

"Get up, go on, get up"

It's always tough going back to work after a vacation. Today was exhausting, and it's time for bed. I almost took a nap at the office desk about 30 minutes ago...I was having flashbacks to college.

I joined Foursquare last week and started checked in to all of the places I listed on the trip. My goal is to be the Mayor of the Chase Tower and maybe the Fishers Qdoba and the Hamilton Town Center Pop-a-Shot game. I think I can make those things happen. I wonder how long Twitter and Foursquare will last. Sure seems like Facebook is going to stick around for a long long time.

"All in a day"

Places my Dad and I went on our Fantastic Americana Road Trip to Cleveland > Cooperstown > Oil City > Mansfield are listed below (in reverse order). It was a great few days full of shakes and burgers at diners, good conversation and music while driving, and appreciation and perspective while at the Rock & Roll and Baseball hall of fames.

Perhaps the most surprising moment...the wall of no-hitters at Cooperstown had about 100 baseballs from no-hitters, a few other pieces of memorabilia and one jersey. The jersey was from Terry Mulholland worn during his no-hitter on August 15, 1990. Amazingly, we were at this game 20 years ago! The one Philadelphia Phillies game I've been to in my life was with my family when I was 7 and happened to be a no hitter. 20 years later that happens to be the one jersey on display worn during a no-hitter now frozen in time in Cooperstown.

Coney Island Diner - Mansfield, Ohio
Arlington Hotel - Oil City, PA
Villa Italia - Oil City, PA
Cooperstown Diner - Cooperstown, NY
National Baseball Hall of Fame - Cooperstown, NY
New York Pizzeria - Richfield Springs, NY
Rock & Roll Hall of Fame & Museum - Cleveland, OH
Doubletree Hotel Cleveland Downtown - Cleveland, OH
Koral Hamburg - Waterville, OH

Currently listening to: The Open Sea

"A reason to get out of the city"

Upcoming and potential concerts - Fall 2010

September 19 - Toad the Wet Sprocket (unlikely due to The Manning Bowl)
October 2 - The National (definitely)
October 15 - Margot & The Nuclear So and Sos (maybe)
December 5 - Better Than Ezra (most likely)

I'm sure another show or two will weazler their way into the mix.

Movies I've seen with my free Hamilton Town Center - Oscar Winning Tickets
> The Last Song (with my sister)
> Kick-Ass (with Rogers)
> Iron Man 2 (with Wilbe & Brian)
> Get Him to the Greek (I think this was free with Rogers)
> Date Night (with Rogers)
> Scott Pilgrim Must Die (Par & Wilbe)
> Inception (Palmers, Brian, Wilbe & Par)

Time to read some Economics...

"Leaned on the wall and the wall leaned away"

Happy Labor Day 2010. The Rosenbergs had a cookout today and broke out a game of wiffle ball for the first time in a very long time...decades. I remember playing wiffle ball with friends as a kid. We have video of playing some baseball on a similar day when I was six. It was a good throwback to the 80s...or at least the early 90s. It always strikes me as odd that 20 years ago was 1990. A lot happened in the 90s. I grew from 6 to 16.

So fall begins and with it comes two new MBA classes. I took one class all summer, which was great. Two classes will probably have me hunkered down again this fall.

Currently watching: True Blood Season 3
Listening to: The National
Thinking about: Going to bed

I have some catching up to do this fall to rescue 2010 from my least productive year of blogging to date. We'll see how it turns out.

Friday begins the Fantastic Americana Road Trip (F.A.R.T.) with my Dad. The Rosenberg men will be driving to Cleveland's Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Cooperstown's Baseball Hall of Fame and Mansfield's Ohio State Reformatory between Friday and Tuesday. Hopefully, along the way, we'll enjoy some good food and a Colts Week 1 victory at a sports bar in Cooperstown.

"Through the slowest heaving night"

One 3-page paper to write by Thursday and another MBA class is complete. Two more start after Labor Day. I'm right at half way through...seems like I've been plugging away at this for quite some time. I'll get there.

I'm really procrastinating with this paper. If there's one thing that I'm glad I got past from college, it was my tendency to think naps around 11 p.m. or even Midnight were a good idea. Every once in awhile that worked, but generally it just sucked. I hated to wake up so I'd stretch those naps out and sometimes I'd just give up altogether. There were many good things about undergrad, but that was not one of them.

I wonder if I will ever again be involved in an 8-player game of Halo with friends. I miss basketball, but there is always the possibility of a basketball game...and I know there will be more basketball in my future. The odds of ever having a taste of those Halo games in the dorm again are much, much worse...

Song of the Day: Come Talk to Me - Bon Iver (originally by Peter Gabriel)

"Like rock & roll and the radio"

Yesterday I went camping with friends in the Bloomington area. A day filled with basketball, swimming, walking through the woods, hanging out by the river, eating lots of campfire food, and a really long game of Monopoly from Midnight to 3 a.m.

Conversations included, debating the merits of saying hi to celebrities when you run into them versus leaving them alone, Adam Sandler movies, reminiscing with Ricky of camping in Kentucky in 2005, and how long we should wait to use the basketball court before giving up and going to the pool.

It was a good day. I'm left a little sore from all the physical activity my body isn't used to.

Song of the Day: Like Rock & Roll & Radio by Ray LaMontagne...can't get enough of it.

"Just got to get me somewhere"

It is a rare and good day when two of your favorite artists release albums on the same day (Tuesday) and you get them both on the same day (Thursday). Ray LaMontagne and David Gray are both in my Top 10, so a very rare day indeed. As a brief aside, I remember getting two CDs a couple other times...when I was a kid, I picked up Sophie B. Hawkins and Hootie and the Blowfish (2nd album) on the same day. Then in high school one fall day I picked up Smashing Pumpkins greatest hits and Creed's 3rd album on the same day.

Of those four albums, I occassionally will listen to some good old Smashing Pumpkins, but the rest fell out of rotation long ago.

I've fallen into the chronic 1 a.m. bedtime routine, which isn't serving me too well. On that note, time to go use the elliptical for 20 min before bed. If I don't go now it will get too late!

"Like I thought she would"

Oddly, I was stuck on 777 posts for almost a full month. I just discovered that rock 'n roll band extraordinare Better Than Ezra will be playing the Vouge on December 5, 2010. If the Dallas vs. Colts game remains scheduled for 4:15 p.m. (rather than flexed to the night game), maybe Peyton will swing by for the show.

School continues to move along. Last week I was in Bloomington for the second year "in-residence" class. Not nearly as intense as the first year. All in all, not a bad week in Hoosier-land.

Fall...and football...season are right around the corner. I'm getting antsy!

Last show watched: True Blood
Last song listened to: Jolene by Ray LaMontagne

"Sitting up late on a school night"

Ten to fifteen years ago summers were endless. I'd move from one basketball camp to another, hang out with the guys or with Rogers almost every night, sleep in and workout. Now time flies by. I will be in Bloomington again for a week beginning July 31. It's right around the corner and will be another exhausting week.

Holiday World last week with the Spires and my folks. It was a good time to bond with my niece and nephew. I love those guys. They are good kids. My nephew Preston is 3.5 years old and his family was camping out for the week. One night we were hiking up a trail to the camp store and it was dark with only a lantern to light the trail. I asked Preston if he knew what he should have with him if he were ever lost in the woods, thinking I'd see if he was familiar with a compass. He thought about it...paused...and said "A parent." He's a smart kid.

Currently listening to: Andrew Belle, Aqualung, Chase Coy

"Can you hear him singing along?"

Quiet around here recently...summer has been off to a busy start. We traveled to San Diego, drove up the coast to L.A., returned to Indiana. My cousin Alex played in the US Open at Pebble Beach, and I went to back-to-back Dave Matthews concerts. It only rained hard one of the two nights. I'm in the middle of a business startegy class that is simulation driven. My stock price is down 20% after 4 years, and I can barely turn a profit, but I'm in the top 30 out of 140+ in the class right now. This next round is not looking quite as positive though.

A busy couple of weeks after the July 4th Holiday, too include: portions of Hutchapalooza, OAR concert, day trip to Chicago, a couple of days at Holiday World, potentially a Sleigh Bell concert, etc.

Current activities include watching Rain Man for the first time... putting the new elliptical machine to good use... helping Rogers pull weeds out of what we previously referred to as the forest in the corner of our backyard.

Listening to:
Magnetic North - Aqualung
Hope - Life Church

"Stay, stay, stay, stay, stay, for awhile"

It's been a busy month. A week in California including three free nights and parking at The Del Coronado. That's right. Free parking...I felt like I was in a game of Monopoly!

Two great nights of Dave, although yesterday's show was preceeded by a torrential downpour delaying the start until about 10:15. Here's the sets:

Friday Jun 18 2010
Verizon Wireless Music Center

JTR *
Squirm *
Seven *
Don’t Drink the Water *
Lying In the Hands of God *
Shake Me Like a Monkey *
Break For It *
Tripping Billies *
Corn Bread *+
Road *+
Gravedigger *
#41 *
Crash (Into Me) *
You Might Die Trying *
Two Step *
Ants Marching *
__________________

Needle And The Damage Done ~
So Damn Lucky *

Show Notes:
* Jeff Coffin
+ Danny Barnes
~ Dave Solo

Saturday Jun 19 2010
Verizon Wireless Music Center

Big Eyed Fish *
Bartender *
Stay Or Leave *
Sweet Up and Down *
Funny The Way It Is *
(Stand Up) *
(Recently) *
Sister +
Dancing Nancies *
Why I Am *
Spaceman *~
Warehouse *~
Grey Street *
You and Me *
Jimi Thing *
Stay (Wasting Time) *
__________________

Time Bomb *
All Along The Watchtower *

Show Notes:
* Jeff Coffin
+ Dave, Carter Rashawn and Tim
~ Danny Barnes

(song name) indicates a partial song

"Begins to change my mind"

In one week I turn 27. It wasn't too long ago where my older, experienced co-workers were 27. I've made some progress since 26. Started the MBA, work's been really going well, saw the dawn of the year of the High Ten, wrapped up LOST as mentioned earlier this week, went through about half of the Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University class, sprouted a few gray hairs.

One of my pet peeves: Running out of pizza at a party. I don't recall this happening recently, but growing up it was always the worst when you're just hitting your stride and could eat a few more pizzas, but for some reason it was pre-determined that everyone would eat two pieces. That was the worst. If you ever come to a Rosenberg party, you're probably going to have too much pizza. I usually think about everyone eating up to half a pizza then subtract a few pieces for the ladies who just don't eat that much and then add in a whole nother pizza after that.

Song of the Day: Anna Begins - Counting Crows

"I just got lost"

LOST finale last night was a good time. Two John Locke's a Hurley a Faraday and a Kate made for some good costumes. I think there have been three "event" finales that I was really geared up for...Seinfeld, Sopranos and LOST. Of the three, I think LOST was most satisfying.

My criticism of the last episode was the drama on the island, wasn't nearly as dramatic as any other season finale. Locke and Jack fighting wasn't too exciting and was anticlimatic. The stuff was just kind of happening and I didn't feel like I cared so much. Until Jack died at the end, which was pretty moving. Vincent coming up to lay with him was a nice touch.

My praise of the last episode was the sideways world scenes. The flashbacks were pretty moving throughout whether it was Charlie/Claire, Juliet/Sawyer or others, I had goosebumps during some of those. But most meaningful was tying those back together to the afterlife in the last couple of scenes. That the people had to let go and move on and find the ones they loved most in eternity. They did a nice job of making those flashback scenese powerful to the point where I was thinking about how impactful it would be to find Lisa in "another life" and have all of the happiest moments with her come rushing back in an instant. It would be stunning.

So all in all, I really enjoyed it. I look forward to watching the show again in the next few years, and then maybe again with my kids someday if I can get them interested in it.

I thought this person on the LOST message boards did a nice job of summarizing the ending. Here's what he or she wrote:

"The Great Divorce" by CS Lewis, I think that will play a huge part in explaining what ultimately happened. In that book people live in a purgatory-like world. One day a bus comes and takes them all to the outskirts of heaven where they were confronted by someone/something from their life. If they can let go of that person/thing and move on, they can go on to heaven and their whole life was leading them to heaven. If they cannot let go, then they return to purgatory/Hell and their whole life was leading them there.I think because of the trauma their souls went through on the island, they promised to meet up in the afterlife. And they couldn't move on to heaven, together, until they all let go and accepted/forgave themselves for what happened in their lives. If you noticed, their sideways/purgatory lives were all constructed around what they wanted/clung to on the island. Jack gave himself a son so that he could be the father that he never had. Locke gave himself a relationship with his father and Helen, but also blamed himself for the lack of relationship. Sayid could never forgive himself for what kind of person he once was, so his sideways world was set up to continue to punish himself for it. Sawyer had begun to see himself as a good person on the island, so his sideways world, he made himself a good guy, though he couldn't totally let go and thats why he was alone. Kate still saw herself in terms of her crime. They found their final redemption in one another and with the person who loved them for who they truly were. Kate loved Jack for Jack. Juliet and Sawyer truly loved each other. As much as Sayid always clung to the idea of Nadia, he could never accept that she might love him. It was only with Shannon that he found someone who loved him for who he truly was. If you noticed, except for Ben, they all had flashes of the happy moments of their lives, which is why they were so happy(even though they were dead) because they had accepted the full lives they lived and were ready to move on. Even Sayid, who could never forgive himself in life, found acceptance and could move on in death. That's why Ben couldn't move on; he didn't forgive himself.

The reason that I think that characters like Walt, Michael, Eko, Ana Lucia, and Ben weren't there because their redemption isn't tied specifically to the island, or at least not to those people. Ben's redemption would be tied to Alex and Rousseau. Michael's redemption is tied to Walt, but I don't think that Walt is tied to the island. Remember, he was only there for about two months when he was eleven years old. I think he went on to live a full life totally seperate from the island. Eko would be tied to his brother and life in Africa. Ana Lucia would be tied to her job in LA and the baby that she lost. And while Boone and Shannon weren't on the show that long, it was on the island that Boone let go of his love for Shannon (and died) and that Shannon found her true love (and died). Same thing with Miles, Lapides, and Faraday. Their most significant connections were off the island. That's what I think, anyway. I think what will throw people off is that they think everyone needed to die on the island. Obviously, they didn't. Christian even said that; there wasn't time there. Some of them when on to live long and happy lives off the island. They all just ended up there whenever they died in life, but returned to the people who had been most significant to them. The island stuff was all real.

Hmmmm, what else? The numbers were just the candidates. Polar bears were Dharma experiments. Women couldn't have babies if they were conceived on the island because Jacob made a rule about it. He had mother issues because of his relationship with his own mother. Am I missing anything?

"Your hair, it's everywhere"

School is going to be kicking my tail over the next two weeks. Within 10 days I have to develop a team case report, write a paper that I have no clue how to pick the right topic yet, complete a 300-point final exam, do a 50-point extra credit assignment to make up for the 300-point final exam and post a bunch of stuff on message boards. I also think I'm going to be in Richmond, Virgina for 24-36 hours next week. Not to mention a LOST finale party. I'm ready for a nap just thinking about all of this!

Godspeed Memorial Day...it will be a good day.

"At the end of the night"

KaiserCartel is good music for late nights...maybe best for those really late nights when it's all you can do to keep your head up. Maybe the sun's coming up soon. Maybe you're driving. Maybe you're sitting in a soft breeze. The whisp of summer camp when you're a teenager. Maybe you're with a loved one. Maybe the fire is dying down. Maybe there are fireflies. Stars. Whispers. Love. The drunken feeling of lack of sleep. Comfort.

"Do I have to say the words?"

Tonight: Bryan Adams at the Egyptian Room with my sister and Uncle David Andrew Martin. Great dinner at the Rathskeller and great acoustic show by Bryan Adams.

Robin Hood comes out on Friday. Two days before it's release, I saw Everything I Do I Do It For You live 19 years after the last Robin Hood movie made it a megahit. Classic.

Summary of Bryan Adams. The guy has a great voice, knows how to write a good hook, has some unbelievable songs and loves to write about sex. Case in point -- the last song before the encore: The Only Thing that Looks Good On Me is You

Summer of '69 one of my top 20 favorite songs of all time...maybe top 10.

"Peanuts and cracker jacks"

Things that were enjoyable about Friday's trip to watch Cubs v. Reds:

• Cubs victory
• Watching an MLB record being broken - Cubs called up Starlin Castro from Double A in Tennessee on Friday morning and on Friday night he set a new record for most RBI's in a debut with 6! His first at bat was a three-run homer
• Exchanging small pieces of pizza for a bigger one; La Rosa's tried to jip me the first time
• Jason throwing a cup full of soda at unsuspecting kids to the complete shock of everyone
• Enjoying a relaxing night with friends
• Trying to pronounce Kosuke Fukudome
• Finding out there's a Cubs pitcher named "Berg"
• A Grand Slam by the Cubbies
• Perkins for the first time in a long time

"Feel the water in between my toes"

Things I learned today:

Don't assume someone has the same perception as you, even if that perception is relatively common knowledge. Always level set. -Work

If your spouse is about to die anyway and you have a kid at home that you've never seen before, maybe try to save yourself to go home to raise your kid. -Jin Kwon

"Seems like the only way out's through the back"

Margot concert last week in Bloomington was a blast. It was good to see them rock out with some of the new Buzzard songs, but I got to say it was a relief that the old songs sounded almost as good as always.

Biggest lesson of the night was don't go to concerts in Bloomington on a Wednesday night. Margot didn't take the stage until about 10 p.m... thus we weren't back to Indy until about 1 a.m.

Second biggest lesson of the night is Wilbe's car is a pain to drive. That puppy is all over the road.

Time to go watch Up in the Air with a bowl of popcorn and a Vanilla Coke Zero. Looking forward to start this week off with a little relaxation.

Currently listening to: NYC Hotel Blues by Margot & the Nuclear so and sos

Last movie watched: Kick Ass

Last TV show watched: Amazing Race

What else did I do tonight: Financial Peace University at church
Most recent cool decoration in my office...A Fine Frenzy

"A chemist made us for each other"

Things I did in New York a couple of weeks ago:

• Ate New York style Pizza...I love folding my pizza in half
• Met up with Matt Whitesel and Dan Hoy and had a fantastic meal at Otto Pizzeria
• Walked from Times Square to the Guggenheim
• Wandered around Central Park along the way
• Walked about 8 miles that day
• Toured the Guggenheim
• Learned how to think on my feet - not because something crazy happened, but because that was the training I went to
• Junior's Cheesecake
• Vynl restaurant
• Talked to one of our clients in Laguardia while waiting to fly back
• Started writing a paper for school

Currently listening to: Pete Yorn - "Back and Fourth"
Last show I wateched: Tudors - Season 2, Episode 3
Dinner: Two bowls of cereal, chips with melted shredded cheese

"Better left unreconciled"

Who would have thought when we had our Rosi Golan house show last year that it would be the opening act, Chase Coy who's signed to a Major Label first? The kid's got rockets attached to his shoes. Good for him. He has a duet with Colbie Callet on his new album.

I've now taken 2.5 days off of school and boy do I feel guilty...I'm going to have to hit the books tomorrow night and do some reading for the week. I'm thinking of taking it a bit easier over the summer with one class instead of two during June and July. Otherwise, this whole thing gets to be a bit overwhelming. We'll see how that plays out.

I've also basically taken 2010 off from blogging, which is no good. I need to get back on the wagon.

Currently listening to: Peter Bradley Adams
Next show: Margot & the Nuclear So and Sos - April 28 Bluebird, Bloomington, IN

"Sometimes when I play that old six-string"

I don't think I'd ever heard wailing until Monday, when I walked into my Aunt Pat's house and my mother hugged her. My mother's brother, Greg Martin died suddenly last Thursday, April 1, 2010 of a heart attack. He was 54.

Despite the pain my Aunt, Cousin and the rest of the family is feeling, Greg's funeral flyer read "Victory Celebration." Christ's redemption of our souls, truly is a victory over sin and the wages of sin, death. Greg Martin is with his father Don Martin and more importantly walking streets of gold and rejoicing in the presence of God. Amen.

"The time we take"

Work...school...work...school...sleep...work...school...work...school...sleep. "No, I can't do [this]." "No, I can't do [that]." Lame.

"A secret world in the twilight"

I'm taking a break from a simulation on how to organize and operate a Benihana restaurant. Turns out that big room on the other side of the restaurant is supposed to be a big bar with lots of seating for waiting customers. Come to think of it why were we sitting on those uncomfortable benches last time we waited there?

• Currently listening to: M83, Beach House, Fanfarlo, David Gray
• Currently watching: The Middle, Modern Family, Survivor, Amazing Race, Lost
• Next movie: Wall Street is here on Netflix.
• Current project -- not school or work related: Framing and hanging concert memorabilia in the office
• Best find in the garage recently: Kill Bill 2 poster with Kiddo dressed as The Bride
• Quarter 1: Could be off to a bang if our office closes a few of the sales we're working on

"Dollars crumbled in my pocket"

This guy was wandering all around our yard a couple of Saturday's ago. What a nasty looking little animal. I'm enjoying my week off between classes...I can't wait to have no more classes in about...well 18 months. I'm a fourth of the way finished though, so that is a good thing. Slowly but surely. Here's to warmer weeks and months ahead.

"Winter howling at my face"

It was a great Valentine's Day weekend. We went to Matteo's and had a nice dinner, came back and listened to Dean Martin records, watched Yes Man and an all around nice evening. I had off of work today thanks to President's Day. But I have to be in by 7 a.m. tomorrow for a meeting.

David Gray is coming up in March...hopefully Jay Z too.

"I can't tell you that, can I?"

Madden says we lose even with Freeney?! Come on! I think the key words are: "Intangibles such as nerves and inexperience are not reflected."

That and the Saints are all going to be distracted by Kim Kardashian, right? I mean, yeah the Colts have Kendra Wilkinson cheering for us, but she's still losing some of that baby weight so she's not as distracting as she usually would be.

Saints Win Super Bowl, says Madden NFL - Plugged In - Yahoo! Games: "Saints Win Super Bowl, says Madden NFL
by Joe Dodson

And the winner is...Madden NFL popped into headlines today, predicting a sunny Super Bowl win for the New Orleans Saints, and eight months of winter for the Indianapolis Colts.
Every year, Electronic Arts runs a Super Bowl simulation within their video game, Madden NFL. And five out of the last six years, the game's results have predicted the Super Bowl winner correctly. The simulation's only miss was the Giants' Super Bowl XLII victory over the Patriots, and even Nostradamus couldn't have seen that one coming.
This year, Madden NFL predicts a close Saints victory, with a final score of 35 - 31 over the Colts. According to the game, Drew Brees will be named the MVP after passing for 299 yards and three touchdowns. Reggie Bush will account for two more touchdowns, one rushing, and one on a punt return.
On the other side of the football, Colts' QB Peyton Manning will throw for 322 yards and three touchdowns in a great-but-not-good-enough performance.
But before Saints fans start celebrating and Colts fans call for a new coach, it's important to note that the Madden simulation only takes into account the perceived skill levels of each player on the field. Intangibles such as nerves and inexperience are not reflected. And according to this G4 video of the simulation, neither is Dwight Freeney's questionable ankle, as the Colts' defensive superstar can clearly be seen running and jumping down the tunnel at the head of his team before the game.
But whether he plays in the real Super Bowl or not, Madden NFL sees the Colts limping home on Sunday, and all of New Orleans jumping for joy."

"The good sense to refrain"

• The week is off to a tiring start...trying to get a jump on upcoming MBA assignments. So it's time for bed, which will be nice.
• Tomorrow is the last season premier for Lost. Should be a good night!
• Rogers seems to be doing much better after staying home from work today.
• Been listening to Margot and the Nuclear... a lot the last few days. Man do I love their music.
• Looking forward to...David Gray in concert.

"Probably thinks he's cooler than you"

Maybe a quick post before the first month of 2010 is gone forever? January 2010 was full of:

• Colts fever -- SuperBowl next Sunday!
• Spending iTunes Gift Card from Christmas -- Fanfarlo, Beach House and a couple of songs from Kings of Leon and Josiah Leming so far.
• Playing Super Mario Bros. Wii with Rogers. We powered through that game.
• Spending the weekends trying to stay warm. Our downstairs is always cold. Our upstairs is extra hot. So typically the tempature is about 67 or 68 during the day and 65 or 66 at night.
• Studying for Midterms. 97 in Finance, 78 in Accounting (ouch!)
• Taking care of Rogers. She's been sickly this month. The weather disagrees with her.
• Planning a vacation. We're heading West for a few days this summer.
• Watching Noel and Preston for a day last weekend. A glimpse of our lives in 10 years?
• Flashforward. We watched the first half of the season in about three days at the beginning of the month. It's decent.
• Jennings -- Squatch is back on for 2010 in the Packers jersey. Last year he made it through a full quarter before Rogers and I pulled a pop in at their apartment. We'll see if he makes it further this year.
• Movies watched: The Boondock Saints -- I enjoyed it, but I'm not sure what all the fuss is about. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe with my niece and nephew -- already seen that a few times. Jennifer's Body -- dumb. Youth in Revolt -- thought it was hilarious.

Onward. To February.

"So I can have a happy new year"

A few things to do in 2010:

• Complete half of my MBA at Indiana University.
• Remember to say "Twenty-Ten" instead of "Two Thousand and Ten" (we never said "Nineteen Hundred and Ninety Nine" did we?) -- thanks for forwarding this suggestion, Ricker.
• Dish out High Tens when greeting others like there's no 2011.
• Finish reading the Bible. I only made it to Exodus in 2009. Pathetic.
• Not move from this house.
• Organize the office and hang my setlists.
• Take a vacation with Rogers.
• Lose the weight I gained during the holidays.
• Begin using a budget.

A decade begins...