While we were reveling on Linwood, bad stuff still happens. I called my folks this morning to say Happy New Year. They live in the Harris Hill section of Clarence. After extending me an invite for dinner tonight, they told me about ringing in the new year by serving coffee to firemen. The house right next door to them caught fire last night. A family of four lives there, although not any more. It doesn't look like much from the outside, but the inside is a fucking mess and a total goner. The stories around the neighborhood are rampant but the guess is that a candle or two got forgotten about.

Even though the facade is still standing, the burned floor joists make gutting the place the next step. I don't really know the residents but I wouldn't wish this on anybody. Tbe husband was wrestling some former christmas trappings to the curb. I walked over to say hi and talk to him as opposed to stare at the house. Plenty of other rubbernecking jerks were doing that. He was telling me that he was talking to a barrage of insurance people already and they will be covered for everything. I asked if he mentioned that his place is on Spaulding Lake with indoor outdoor pools. He got a laugh out of the poor joke which I guess is the important thing.



Doesn't take much to make you a gypsy.

I wonder if the nonsense the other night at the Regal will send more people to the market arcade. Probably not, but it would be nice to see the movie theater survive as a movie theater. For all the supposed amenities, the Elmwood Regal is a bit of a dump. Kinda like the Quality Markets of movie theaters. Long as it's a money maker....

Sad really

Wow, a genuine three day weekend. I needed it. Christmas seems like we still aren't finished with it and years ago at the same time. My kids made out like bandits (spoiled ones, that is). I worked last Sunday at the Bills game and met up with them at my folks house for christmas with that half of the brood. Before they took over to the ex's parents on Monday, the ex and I had a brunch with the lot of them. I think it was my favorite part of the day. They got to show off their wares to a captive crowd. And I got to see what I get to assemble. Despite working Sunday, it was still pretty great.

It made up for what was to come. Due to staffing shortages and my manager being one taco short of a combo platter, I got farmed out to the Amherst Time Warner office last week. Thanks to an equipment shortage and the run on people getting HD for christmas, I had lines and lines of people all week to deal with. One person called in sick on Thursday so I got the double fun of an 11 1/2 hour day. It truly sucked and after a while, I think the customers were taking pity. It got a little easier as I got more HD boxes and I was able to tell people to that Fox isn't going anywhere. The topper was coming into Wilson Farms around 8:30 on thursday. I stupidly still had my Time Warner Tags around my neck so the Willie Farms cashier was giving me the third degree, Four straight nights of having the crap kicked out of you.

Didn't give me much of a chance to play with my new christmas stuff, chief of which was a new IPOD. I hipped my dad to Small Dog Electronics in New England (I forget where exactly). They are MAC store with pet affinity. He liked their pricing so much that I got a 60 gb photo ipod for the holiday. I asked for a phone, got an IPOD. My birthday is in February so I'll see if I can reverse that.

Here's a bit of irony. I buy cable and internet for the ex's house. No discount, just seems like a decent thing to do. I never got the bill for december, so Time Warner disconnected it briefly today. I got caught up and a Call Center person errantly told me it would be right back on. LIAR! We went over to the house and it wasn't. I call the call center back, noting the mistakes of the earlier operator to tonight's poor soul who got my call, along with how their bosses get their info from well, me. Suddenly a tech got freed up to get things connected. Nice to have a little juice in such matters. Never call the call center folks.

See yas at the party.

I've developed my own connection to Roswell now. My Dad has been volunteering with one of the labs doing computer help which is cool. On the not so cool side, my ex's Dad who's still a father in law to me if you know what I mean (and I think you do) has been battling bladder cancer for six months or so. He's been going through a therapy regimen for sometime. Yesterday, there was an exploratory surgery to determine where the cancer stood. He's got a mid january date for his prostrate, parts of his bladder and one kidney to get taken because of things have progressed at such a rate. Basically, he opens his mouth and you'll be able to hear an ego. It's set for middle to the end of next month and one of the physicians said something about not being able to get a room till then.

I being me couldn't help but ask "You only have the one?" A little humor to lighten the load. I have good feelings about it. Aside from successfully quitting smoking, Dad-in-law is one of those folks stuck in time. My daughter showed me a picture of him that she thought was recent. Turned out to be from 91. Dude hadn't changed. He kicked smoking, doesn't eat red meat or drink any alcohol, so the omens are on his side. I've learned not to bet against him.

Same day as that was going on, I managed to make an appearance on Channel 4. I was having a day from hell, getting pulled in 9 different directions at one. It flat out wasn't good. With the cable price increases, the local media was all over the place. I got yanked up to the front counter to wait on customers (there weren't any) just as Channel 4 finishes their interview with one of my bosses and decided they needed background. I wasn't happy about it, and tried to pay it no mind. The TV guys couldn't acknowledge us, they just shot their footage. I didn't think much about till my phone rang and it was my daughter exclaiming how pissed off she thought I looked. Lil bugger was right.

Things are better on that front. I built a space for them at my place and the effort went a long way toward the 12 year old's concerns.

Christmas shopping is done. The eldest is getting hockey tickets and pregame meal at Fat Bob's. The younger terror is receiving a new stereo and the aformentioned number one son is hip dip in batman legos. My parents yearly tell me not to buy them anything. So, this year I said, I won't if you can pass on giving me the speech about buying anything. Although, if they pony up with a Red Razor, I'd be a happy camper.

Had the day off today and feel pretty renewed. Slept in, got dressed by the crack of Noon. Greeted tea time with a Coco Moco (large) at Spot and Artvoice & the News. Felt almost civilized.

Saw Matthew's post about the PMT New Year's and I believe I can make it. Yee ha, think I'll walk to it though.

Enjoy the holiday, peeps!

Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Channukah, etc and mostly importantly, Good Festivus to us all.

Peace

Wanted to make my first link to youtube a worthy one. This has some miles on it now, but it made me smile anyway.

Everybody, snoopy dance!

Periodically, since my wife and I split, it's felt like I get turned into a human punching bag. Nobody did anything wrong yet the vicissitudes of life come down like bad plumbing.

I have daughters who asked my ex to ask me if they could pass on coming over for awhile. They want to hang, they just down want to sleep over. Ex also mentioned that her vibrator is missing and for the record I ain't got it. She (my ex) went to great pains to assure me I was doing okay on the Dad front. It's just the close surroundings were interfering with the kids being 15 and 12. Intellectually, I know all of this and understand it. I'd rather the girls pass then be here unhappy. But emotionally, it still reduced me to rubble. Your brain hears everything and is fine, but your heart stops listening after "We don't want to come over."

I kept it together as I went across the parking lot to my car. Once inside the lil red bus, I let it go. The pressures of doing 2 1/2 jobs at work and then hearing that from my girls managed to suck the fight right out of me. So, here I sits, man enough to mention I bawled most of the way home.

Sucks to try so hard only to get beat down again.

Knew it was coming, but you'd like a little praise for all the shit I've had to put up with in recent years.

I settled for the next best thing. Number 1 Son and I just repaired to Fowlers for shakes.

Chocolate malt to sooth the wounds.

Some different spins of Charlie Brown and a Christmas Story.



And a reprise of what if Outkast scored "A Charlie Brown Christmas."



Scroll down a little bit, it's on the right hand side.

Enjoy

A moment of parental pride to start with, dear reader, my lovely 8 year old had a "Belt Test" in his Tae Kwon Do class tonight. I raced out of work to see it and got there just in time to see him put his foot clean through a board. I know the board was made for that but it still gave a bit of a goosebump to see him nail it on the first try. Very cool.

Joshua was right. Imk and Jenks didn't need to try for sexy in the party photos. Ya'all nailed it.

I've been selected to dine with the president of Time Warner Cable on Monday. Don't know if I'm being tossed a bone or if it's just because I wear a suit well, but lunch at the Hyatt never disappoints.

My boss hollared at me today for not being present for an important assignment. What she forgot was that she was the one who sent me away on another fool's errand.

Sort of funny to see my previous job posted all over the place. The gratifying yet surreal thing is to see all the people from other departments who saw the same thing and are giving me the "Mike, see the Marketing opening....gonna apply?" Nice to be thought of, in that sense.

I was watching Sleepless in Seattle with the daughters on Friday night. We got to the scene where Rob Reiner and Tom Hanks were in the bar talking about how long it's been since Hanks had been on the market. When Hanks replied something about the 1980's, my eldest replied, "just like you, Dad." I couldn't help it, I laughed. Rotten kid, should have grounded her, but it sounded too much like a shot I'd take at somebody. Kid belongs on the stage, next one out of town.

Been about a week and half since I'd last had any kind of alcohol, but to come home and find a bottle of Molson Export to have with my pasta may have put me in a good mood. Comfort food is a good thing.

Sigh, onward and upward. Less than two weeks of shopping days left before the grand pagan ritual and three to the next PMT bash.

Who's my secret Santa, Imk?