I was recently thinking about jobs I’ve had in the past. The first job I had upon passing the ivory towers of the university was a telemarketer for the Texas Department of Public Safety Officers Association (TDPSOA).
NOTE: If you receive a phone call from someone taking donations for the TDPSOA, hang up. If [...]

Continue reading " We need to talk about your flare "

Christmas of this year has come and gone. I just couldn’t get into the mood this year. Perhaps it snuck up on me. Perhaps I’m getting older and grumpier. Anyhow, it’s over and I wanted to write about it before I have to get up from here to run out and [...]

Continue reading " Christmas 2004 "

I had a dream yesterday morning that woke me up in fear of my life and unable to open my eyes.
It was 3:30 in the morning when the phone rang. I immediately woke up and answered it. The voice on the other end was my old boss. I said: “John, 1) why [...]

Continue reading " Didderen "

I’m officially on vacation. It hasn’t set in yet but when it does, I’m taking full advantage.
This year Elise and I are traveling to the artic village known as Des Moines, Iowa to celebrate Christmas with Elise’s family. I was informed today that it is currently 1 degree in Des Moines. It’s [...]

Continue reading " Getting ready for Christmas travel "

Elise and I went to Philip’s apartment on Friday night after not having seen Philip in months. Rob (Philip’s roommate) came home from work and we all stayed up and watched I, Robot, The Chronicles of Riddick and then we watched Rob play Grand Theft Auto and eat tortilla chips.
We didn’t get home until [...]

Continue reading " El Arroyo Christmas party "

Since Elise and I have been married, I have written an annual Christmas newsletter every year. I like to create something clever and witty that recounts the events of the past year. This year December snuck up on me and due mainly to work, haven’t been in the cleverest state of mind. [...]

Continue reading " Etiquette at its finest "

I have to preface this story by stating that I spent my formative years in a small town. I graduated from high school among a class of 83 other students.
That being said…
I commute from Austin to my job in the small town of Marble Falls, TX. The population is somewhere near 5,000. [...]

Continue reading " The Blue Bus is Calling Us "

I was searching one of my work folders on my computer this afternoon for a spreadsheet that I used back in August to analyze our company’s printing costs. I was very important that I find this spreadsheet because there was a new number that I needed to plug in to a formula.
I couldn’t find [...]

Continue reading " Spreadsheet lunch "

Ten days left until Christmas. It’s funny how years and years ago, I counted the days until Christmas dating back to somewhere around mid-October. Now Christmas just sort of sneaks up on me.
Most of the Christmas shopping has been taken care of. Elise and I collaborated on the annual newsletter and finished [...]

Continue reading " 37th Street lights "

Kids, here’s a surefire way to get your parents to buy you that PS2 for Christmas.

Continue reading " How to get a Playstation for Christmas "