Another weekend in the country and other random thoughts

Today at 5:00 officially marked the start of another weekend in the country. Friday nights are pretty routine at this point: do my laundry, work out, go to the store, and watch movies until I pass out. Besides that, there will be plenty of reading, sleep, and may even mix some running in. Speaking of which, the Race for the Cure was last week and, thanks to the efforts of the homie D-Shep, I finished the 5K with the best time I've ever had. The goal next year is to post an even better time.

Oh, and no sodas in weeks. They kinda just went away as 5K training started several weeks back, and since then, I just haven't had a desire to have another one. It's strictly juice, milk, and water over here.

It feels good to be working again. When I was unemployed, I had all the time in the world to think about everything and, best believe, that's exactly what I did. People made me mad, and it festered in my mind, because I didn't have shit to do!

Don't get me wrong; I had peace of mind even during that time, but it's even more apparent now because, for nothing else, people don't bother me anymore, because I simply have other ways to occupy my mind. It's a great feeling.

I miss "Jenkins." I think she's gonna come back soon, though, and when she does, I'll take her to get some ice cream.

Oh, and the nephew and I had Man Time at MacDonald's last weekend. This lil' dude didn't touch his food; he just wanted to play in the playhouse the entire time, but let me take some food home, and he wants to eat off my plate. Typical toddler.

That's all for now.

10/21/11 @ 6:11 P.M.

P.S. "Sweetness," by Jeff Pearland is really, really good so far.

Nothing went according to plan

So the last time I posted, my plan was to live it up, right?

The plan was to go party with old-school players and old-school girls. The plan was to go tailgate all day Saturday at a football game. The plan was to get a haircut, take my clothes to the cleaners, buy some sneakers, milk, and get a refrigerator to put in my office. Oh, and the plan was to go to Buffalo Wild Wings to watch the Cowboys.

Well, I didn't do any of those things. Nope, not one.

What I did do was run. A lot. I slept, too. A lot (well, when I wasn't at work.) Maybe this weekend, the fortunes will change. All of the elements are in place for that to occur. If so, then perhaps my next entry will be a lil' more live.

Until then, it's back to watching beisbol, and starting a new book.

10/10/11 @ 7:37 P.M.

D.C.C. Part Four

I wanna go party with old-school players and old-school girls tomorrow night.

I wanna tailgate, eat big-ass amounts of food off the girll, and watch college football until I drop.

I wanna get a haircut...and take my clothes to the cleaners...and pick up the ones that are already there.

I wanna buy some sneakers...and some NIKE tees...and milk...and water...and a refrigerator, so I can put the milk and water in the refrigerator in my office.

Oh, and I wanna watch the Cowboys at Buffalo Wild Wings on Sunday.

This weekend, I'm gonna do all of these things...and after I do, I'll blog all about it.

9/29/11 @ 7:53 P.M.

D.C.C. Part Three

If this man ever releases another studio album again, I will stop everything I'm doing to go catch one of his shows on tour.

A quiet night, a bag full of laundry, and in the midst of countri-ness, personified. That's how I spent my Friday last weekend.

It was so random, yet so...right. I haven't been to a Washerteria in so long that I forgot to go by the store and pick up some laundry detergent. I got in there, washed and dried my clothes, and had a blast doing so pretty much the entire damn time. The combination of moving to another city, wanting to sit still for a weekend, and the need for clean clothes all came together right on time.

There was enough random activity, with just enough country-ass shit, in there for me to be amused, despite the fact that anyone else probably didn't find anything amusing about a man in the Washerteria on a Friday night doing laundry. At the moment, this is my life.

More and more, I realize that it really doesn't take much to be happy. It truly is about the little things. This post isn't going to make sense; hell, I'm bound to look at it a month from now and wonder what the hell was going on in my head to make me write even this. It's all good, though. When you're at peace, it doesn't have to make sense. I just want peace to continue to reign above all and, at the moment, that's exactly what's going on.

D.C.C. Part Two

The revolution will be live. - Brother Gil Scott-Heron

It's okay to be your biggest fan. However, you should never take yourself too serious. At one time, I did and, after life kicked me in the balls for a couple of years, I learned to laugh and smile at just about any and everything. Now I believe in my ability to make things happen, but it's done with a sense of lightheartedness and a peace of mind that I hadn't possessed before.

I still reads the paper every morning, eat the same breakfast (two sausage biscuits from MacDonald's), and gets to work 40 minutes early. It's not because I'm some great employee; it's so I can get myself going, and if I do like I always have done, walking into work right before it's "GO TIME," I won't be worth a damn.

After this weekend, I think I'm gonna hang in Siberia for a while; it means I gotta get to Rudy's sometime today, and hopefully get to the barbershop. I wish there was more exciting things to share from the past week. With that said, God is love, God is good, and when you know that's the case, that's really all the excitement I need.

Oh, and I'll be picking up this book next. Gotta keep my mind at ease, right? Right.

9/10/11 @ 1:27 P.M.

D.C.C.

I had another title for this next series of posts, but I forgot what it was. I'll change it when I remember. For now though, we'll call them the Daily Commute Chronicles.

So today is Friday, aka the last day of the work week. As stated in my last entry, I got a new job at a junior college in Siberia (not really Siberia; people who know me know where it is; well, some who know me don't, but that's not important right now.) Anyway, the job is dope as hell and I really think I'm gonna love it here. Granted, it's only been a week, but I could tell you after a week at any other job I've had before if I would have an indication of what I would think of it. With that said, this one is cool.

I didn't take any Ls in the past week. I went out on Saturday night and kicked it with the homies and saw some more homies, homegirls, and other folks that I haven't seen in a while. That's one of the cool things about stepping out on occasion. Since I only go out once a month, it doesn't give me many opportunities to see folks and, in a way, it's a good thing.

I drive 55 miles one way every single day, and I get to work super-duper early; like 40 minutes early. At this rate, it's safe to say I'm gonna find an apartment sometime in the next few months that's in Siberia and not in Scandinavia where I drive from now. Roscoe (my car) isn't built to be driving up and down like this on a regular basis anymore. He's past his prime, and while he still gets the job done, I gotta take it easy on him, yaknow?

I miss KSOUL and KRNB like you wouldn't believe. D'Angelo's Voodoo helps make the drive fun every morning, but there's nothing like having TJMS and some old-school tunes to get the morning started right. Once I move into my office, I'll be able to get KSOUL and KRNB on the internet and best believe I'll be playing it in my office all damn day.

That's pretty much it for now. Be easy.

9/2/11 @ 12:14 P.M.

TOTU: Chapter Six

Last Thursday, my grandmother went on to be with God and her husband, my grandfather, in heaven. The cause was cancer. She went just like she asked ahead of time: with her kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids all around. She was 83 years old and full of life.

I didn't cry at all, because she was someone who knew where she was going and made sure to make me, and others, feel as okay as possible about what was going on with her. Instead, I celebrated her life and played the role of consoling family members who did grieve.

The funeral was last Sunday and it was a great service all-around. The family sang songs, told stories, and sent her home the best way possible. It was dope and it was great seeing some people I literally hadn't seen in years.

A friend of mine had a pool party the same day, which I promised I would attend weeks before. Luckily, the funeral home was literally right down the road from the party, so I showed up, dress clothes on and all. I hung around for close to an hour, and when she and others asked why I was dressed up, I simply told them I was coming back from a service, but not what type of service. They didn't need to know all that. Besides, in the words of a great man, "When Sinatra says he'll show, he'll show."

I did take another L recently, and this one came (somewhat) outta nowhere. Granted, we've been friends for a long time, and I think after the initial feeling wears off, everything will be cool. It serves as another example of no matter how good things can get, things have to progress, and at a pace for both parties, or things have to change.

On the bright side (yes, there is a bright side), after 750+ days of being unemployed, I start a new job on Monday at a college in Siberia---I mean, well, the people who need to know do know where it is. For everyone else, I'll stick with Siberia.

It's been so long since I've had a job that the first day or two are gonna be a serious adjustment. I'm used to staying up late and watching Sportscenter, movies, reading, writing, and shootin' the shit. Fortunately, that will change, and I'll start sleeping like a human being again.

I'm looking forward to working with students, faculty, and being a part of a community. It's something I've held out for, career-wise, and it's finally here. God knows what he's doing all the time, doesn't He?

Oh yeah, TOTU stands for Tales of the Unemployed. I'll see about coming up with a new title starting next week.

8/25/11 @ 2:21 P.M.