The Song that brought you the blog...

This Weekend

I'm looking forward to a good weekend, although I'm gonna have to excuse myself from all money spending activities. :( My kuen is having a car wash to raise funds to send people to the international conference in Florida this coming August. It's too bad that it's during the same time I'll be at Gen Con. I plan on going next year, so hopefully the dates won't conflict with anything else I want to do. How cool would it be to be able to attend both!!! That would mean two things: 1. I'll be able to attend two large events involving my favorite hobbies and 2. I'd have a job that would allow me to afford both trips. Okay, so point 2. isn't conditional, but I have to think big.

The girlfriend is getting visitors this weekend. One is a mutual friend from college, while the other is an actor (grrr) she worked with on a show in Waukesha. Hopefully things won't get too crazy down there.

Happy Anniversary

Last evening was very enjoyable. I saw a baseball game and got to spend some time with my girlfriend's family. It was Mr. and Mrs. Simpson's 20 wedding anniversary yesterday, and that is always a reason to celebrate. God willing, I hope they enjoy 20 more.

Mrs. Simpson mentioned that having dinner with me brought her closer to her daughter. It sounded like an odd comment at first, but I've realized that's what really important. All the crap about flowers, money, dinner isn't really important when compared to love, family, and connecting with other people. All she wanted was to do something special for her parents, and I'm glad that I was able to help make that happen.

 

Some Words of Inspiration

Thank my friend for this little treasure. To put it in her words, "It's something that should be said to all of us when we are born."

 From The Lost Choice by Andy Andrews

By your hand, the people shall be fed.
By your hand, the people shall live
By your hand, the people shall be free.

The Translation:

I made you different from the others.

On the planet Earth, there has never been one like you... and there never will be again.

Your spirit, your thoughts and feelings, your ability to reason— all exist in no one else.

Your eyes are a masterpiece, incomparable, and windows to a soul that is also uniquely yours.

A single strand of your hair has been created especially for you. Of the multitudes who have come before you and the multitudes who may follow, not one of them duplicates the formula with which I made you.

I made you different from the others.

The blood that flows through your veins flows through the heart of one whom I have chosen. The rarities that make you one of a kind, my child, are no mere accident or quirk of fate.

I made you different in order that you might make a difference.

You have been created with the ability to change the world. Every single choice you make...every single action you take...matters. But remember, the converse is also true. Every choice you do not make...every action you do not take... matters just as much!

Your actions cannot be hoarded, saved for later, or used selectively. By your hand, millions of lives will be altered, caught up in a chain of events begun by you this very day. But the opposite is true as well. Millions of lives are also altered, caught up in an entirely different chain of events— if you choose to wait.

You possess the power of choice. Free will. You have been given everything you need to act, but the choice is yours alone. And beginning this very moment, you will choose wisely.

Now go. And never feel inadequate again. Do not dwell in thoughts of insignificance or wander aimlessly lost, like a sheep.

You are powerful. You matter. And you have been found.

You are my choice.

The Course of True Love

I woke up this morning to a phone call from my girlfriend. It was a pleasant surprise, up until the point when she asked me to buy her parents flowers for their anniversary. Now, normally this wouldn't be a problem. Dropping 20-40 bucks for a bouquet isn't that bad. However, with rent coming up and an ever bourgening energy bill looming in the horizion, I need to hold on to what I got. I hate having my parents bail me out again and again, so I'm trying to make what I have last as long as possible.

Skipping ahead a bit,  she gets upset and now I'm up with a somewhat crappy start to my day. I still have some porfolios to drop off, and I'll be damned if I don't get this last article done before I have to leave for Kyle's baseball game. But with the way I'm feeling now, it might be a little rough. Oh well, I'll just have to muddle throught I guess.

The course of true love never ran smooth.

Amazing Accuracy

K	Kind
N	Noisy
X	X-Rated
W	Whimsical
R	Rare
T	Talented
R	Rounded

Name / Username:

Name Acronym Generator
From Go-Quiz.com

Morning Thoughts

I convinced myself this morning that my girlfriend was lying next to me in bed. The illusion was so real that I could almost smell her hair and feel her hand on my hip as we slept next to each other. I stayed in bed an extra half and hour just holding on to that sensation. Needless to say, it was very hard to get out of bed this morning.

Drink Up!

How to make a knxwrtr

Ingredients: 3 parts competetiveness 3 parts courage 5 parts leadership

Method: Blend at a low speed for 30 seconds. Add a little wisdom if desired!

Username:

Personality cocktail
From Go-Quiz.com

This is only a Test.

 

This could be handy on my trip to Gen Con.

Back in the Hunt

The trip down to Bloomington did wonders for my spirit! Seeing the girlfriend and spending some appreciable time with her was just what I needed to get my energies going. I'm still hunting for a job, but for the first time in awhile, I'm beginning to think that there is a light at the end of this tunnel.

Today I got an email from a company called Penzy Spices. They are a retail chain that sell, you guessed it, spices and cooking related paraphenilia. It so happens that they are thinking of starting a magazine and they are looking for people with magazine experience. Enter your friendly neighborhood, Al. :) It's a welcome change that companies are starting to seek me out instead of vice versa. I guess it's true when they say that God rewards the faithful.

Still, I'm hedging my bets. I'm working on articles for CCN and hopefully tomorrow I'll be $150 dollars richer. Getting paid to go to Summerfest rocks!!! I might walk away with two more assignments as well. As much as I don't like working for that woman, at least this allows me to continue to write and not have to deal with the day to day office drama. God knows I don't need that in my life right now.

Anywho, I'm off for another shower (Geeze it's hot in here) and then I'm going to drop off applications and make photo copies for my writing portfolio. The Journal Sentinel is looking for reporters. :) Viva la journalism!!!

Disappointment

I didn't get the job. My parents decided not to come and visit, and it seems like I can do no right as of this moment. Not a very encouraging start to this weekend. At least my performance for my belt test is under my control. Maybe a trip down to Bloomington to see the girlfriend will help? We'll see.

Waiting, Waiting, Waiting

It's past lunch and still no call from the PR company. I'm starting to not like my chances here. Of course, waiting by the phone isn't going to make them call any sooner, or call at all. The waiting game is killing me though. I still have some work to do on my kung fu notebook, so I could work on that. But, I think I'm going to have some lunch first. God, waiting sucks.

Snatch the pebble from my hand!

I test for my orange sash this Saturday. Finally, I think I'm ready. All my kicks and punches are in order. The self defense techniques are memorized and polished and my forms are looking good. The only thing I have to finish is my notebook and I'm good to go. I am a little worried about my horse stance, however. I am able to do a good one for the two minutes, but my legs still hurt like hell from doing it this evening. I'll try it again once tomorrow, but after that I'm going to take it easy.
 
Passing this test will be really cool because it will make me eligible to attend the Thursday night weapons class. Imagine me swinging a sword around. It's a scary thought, but very cool!!! :) 

On the Bubble

I thought the job interview went really well today. The only bad thing is that this was only a preliminary phase. I won't know till tomorrow if I will be called back for an actual try out. It looks like I'm back to playing the waiting game. I'm not sure which is worse--knowing that one doesn't have a job or being led to believe that there might be an employment opportunity around the corner. Either way, I'm hoping for the best.

The Brass Ring

Finally, a break in my job search. Actually, I got two of them. This morning I phone interviewed with Milwaukeejobs.com. It's kinda funny since I have been using them all this time to find a job here, and I might actually wind up working for them. Anywho, I have another interview tomorrow morning with a PR firm in Waukesha. I hope this interview goes well. Being unemployed really, really sucks!!!