More Damnits...

Sharks lost in OT last night to the Stars. They were leading at one point, and then gave up a bunch of goals. I think that has happened all three games this series.

For being one of the Stanley Cup favorites, they look like ass. It's beginning to look like Roenick is going to have come back for at least one more year.

Playoffs

Sharks play the Stars again tonight. They're down 2-0 and playing in Dallas. The game isn't on TV so hopefully they can finally win a damn game without me.

Damnit again...

Ehhhhh.....

Stars 5, Sharks 2.

Sharks playing like shit. Stars up in the series 2-0 heading to Dallas. Great...

Damnit...

Stars 3, Sharks 2.

Sharks down in the series 1-0 after an overtime loss. Shit.

Sharks Playoff Hockey

The San Jose Sharks won the first round of the playoffs in 7 games after a heroic performance from my favorite player of all time, Jeremy Roenick. They play Dallas tonight at 9:00 PM in San Jose to kick of the second round.

Tune into VS. and show some support...if you want to watch some hockey on a Friday night. I'm working on my playoff beard.

I'm Excellent...

At my work, they give this award called the "ShopperTrak Excellence Award" every quarter and I have been nominated for the last three quarters. The winner is picked by the execs here at the company. They make a big deal of it and give you a certificate and a trophy as well...which is nice.

Anyway, the point being, I love it because I've been able to say "I piss excellence." The problem is, I can't remember what movie that's from. If anyone knows who said that in what movie, please let me know because I will find it that much more funny to say.

Later, kids.

PS. Jordan 2/21 Countdown Pack this weekend. I'm totally getting it so I can get the 2's, but my buddy Ron is taking the 21's...he can have them. He'll actually get some use out of them anyway.

Engagement...

So I've been engaged now for two and a half days and it's still cool, but man is it weird too. Everyone asks when the date is, where is the wedding going to be, etc... The answer is, I have no idea but I am sure that Sarah has had it all figured out in her head for quite a long period of time. Thank god she's on top of it...

I have pretty much felt like nothing has changed since the engagement, and I guess nothing has, except there have been a few times where I've thought "man, I have to start thinking about a wedding." It's weird for me to think that I have that ball rolling now. It's all good, just strange. Growing up quickly...

Anyway, it's all been fun. The hype is dying down and everything is starting to get back to normal. My buddy Andy Dixon called me yesterday and told me that when he's back in town, Sarah and I will have to meet up with him and his wife. He says they have been married for ten months now and they are pros so they have a ton of great advice for us. If you know Andy at all, this is a funny statement. He's a great guy and has given me a lot of good advice over the years, but I am 98% sure he just meant it as a means of getting together and catching up.

Big Weekend...

So I'm coming of a pretty big weekend.

First and foremost, I got engaged.



Second, I got some new turtles. The two little ones are about 3-5 weeks old and are MAYBE an inch long, and the bigger one is about 7 months or so and around just under 2 inches. I already had to seperate them because the bigger one was trying to "do work" on the little ones and they are too fragile to get snapped at. Now I have to get another tank to put the bigger one in rather than its temporary set up...so if anyone knows anyone with a tank they want to get rid of, let me know.




And third, I got some new Air Max 95's. I bought them at the Nike Outlet just outside the Wisconsin Dells. I needed some shoes for outdoor activity in Wisconsin so I picked up some of the best shoes ever made...for cheap.

Absentstar "Sea Trials"

So three posts in one day is a bit ridiculous right? Well sorry, but I have to give these guys a post...

So I have been friends with three guys for quite some time now...about 8 years or so. I met Andy Dixon working at small guitar store in Lombard, IL and through him I met his buddies Derek Ingersoll and Heath Hamilton who played in his band Blue Nova which was an excellent band in itself. Anyways, Andy became a really good friend of mine as did Derek and Heath. These guys gave me some of the best life advice (scary if you know these guys:) ) during my "formative years" and/or high school.

So what does this have to do with anything? First some more history. Their band Blue Nova eventually evolved into what is now Absentstar and about two years ago or so they received a record deal from RCA Records and then moved over to Columbia records. Long story short, they made an album and it was produced by this guy Dan Wilson who many consider a genius, well, because he is. He won a Grammy for that last Dixie Chicks album that won like every award it was nominated for...yeah he wrote those songs. Most people probably know him as former (I think because I don't know if they work together anymore) frontman of Semisonic and writer of the song "Closing Time." "Closing Time" is a great tune but I really enjoyed "Secret Smile." But I digress, they wrote/made this album called "Sea Trials" and it is brilliant. This said album was officially released Tuesday April 15th, 2008 and distributed by Columbia all over the country. Go look it up on your Best Buy and do a Store Pickup. I bet a store near you has it. I went to the Downers Grove Best Buy to get mine rather than mooch one off the guys. I think there's something to be said about acquiring the record the traditional way.

The album is brilliant and I never seem to get sick of it, or at least the old recordings of most of the songs. There are a few tunes on the album I haven't heard until today. So go out and but this album. Even if it isn't your style, support a local Chicago band who was one of the rare fortunate bands to get a shot at a major label deal. Andy was telling me once that the labels receive about two million bands via their A&R guys (the guys who find the talent for the label) and about 3 to 5 of those will get deals and chances are only a couple of those will actually have an album released. These guys managed to get their album released and it couldn't happen to a more deserving group of guys. They are always appreciative of all the support they receive and all of their fans.

So again, the album is by Absentstar and it's called "Sea Trials." Go buy it. It's also available on iTunes.

Peace kids, I'm going to go listen to the album while I clean my damn turtle tank.

PS. I also bought AFI Live at Long Beach...should be a good listen as well.

Turtle Update

So everyone at work tells me I'm this kid...

People from the UK

So I went to dinner last night with three and a half guys from the UK last night. The half being someone who works in the company's Chicago office but was originally from Manchester. His name is Paul and as of last Monday, he is officially a US citizen...so congrats to him.

Anyway, dinner with the Englishmen... There was one major thing I picked up after spending a few hours with these guys outside of work and that's that they are way more fun than most people you will ever hang out with. They have a better sense of humor, better stories, higher tolerance of alcohol, and have seen a lot more of the world. I think the difference is that they live a different lifestyle over there that promotes "living life" (pardon the cheesy phrase, I just couldn't think of a better way to put it) rather than taking everything so damn serious all the time. Alright, that's as deep as I want to get. I hate people who write deep and preachy blogs.

That adventure got me back home to the suburbs around 9:40 PM. I sat down for five minutes, then packed up my hockey bag, walked my dog, and then drove to the rink for a 10:50 game. We won 10-4 and then I got home around 12:45 AM. I grabbed a shower, went to bed, woke up at 6:30 AM, left home around 7:00 AM and here we are. All in a two-day's work.

This is Filburt but I typically refer to her as Fil. She's the new turtle to carry on the late Buzz's legacy. She will never replace him, but will be the new addition to the family.

And it's a test photo.

Deep Thoughts?

Is there anything more beautiful than a beautiful, beautiful flamingo, flying across in front of a beautiful sunset? And he's carrying a beautiful rose in his beak, and also he's carrying a very beautiful painting with his feet. And also, you're drunk.