Status Report: Blog, Wedding, Life, and Thanksgiving

As Life As I Know It approaches its one-month anniversary (and no, in case you're wondering--there is no comparison to a high-school relationship here), I just wanted to say thanks to all of the support and feedback I've received thus far. At least some of you are enjoying reading this, so that is always very rewarding to hear!

Just so you know, I've set up the site to only include the seven most recent posts, so with the addition of this one you will see the "archives" officially kick in. These are located at the bottom of the menu to the right and allow posts to be accessed by month. So if you find yourself searching desperately for a gift for someone on Christmas Eve and wondering, "What the hell was that crazy guy saying about TiVo?", the archives are the place to go.

I know that most of the posts to this point have been based largely on humor (perhaps that is a good indication to how I see the world at times), but they won't all be that way. Some will serve more as updates, some may be dedicated to a friend, and some may convey the depression that can only follow fourteen consecutive days of rain. All I can promise is that they are 100% genuine, and they are 100% me. From there, only you can decide what to do with them.

Well, with that said, I'd like to pass on several wedding updates! Kel and I made some very good progress this weekend: we were able to finalize tuxedo rentals, register for gifts, reserve a location for the rehearsal dinner, and select wedding invitations. Not bad! All of this information does not pertain to everyone, so I will distribute it individually with the exception of the "bridal" registry...that will come soon from both of us. If you're wondering, I put "bridal" in quotation marks because the practice of every major store in the country seems to be to completely ignore the groom. There were forms that had "Groom's Name" almost listed as an afterthought, which shouldn't have surprised me, but I have to admit I was a little appalled. It seems we have a long way to go for equality of the sexes in this country. ;)

One bit of very unfortunate wedding news: Josh, my treasured Best Man and friend of almost fifteen years, will be unable to attend the wedding. This is due to a military obligation which he absolutely cannot escape from. It goes without saying that the two of us are extremely disappointed by this, but as there is nothing to be done, we will simply move forward and do the best we can. To clear up any misconceptions, I will not be naming another Best Man--this is a distinction that cannot be traded off, in my opinion--but will continue with my four outstanding groomsmen as-is. At least this way our DJ will not have any competition from Josh.

As far as a personal update goes, I will say that our team presentation (the one I mentioned a couple posts ago) went extremely well on the 18th. I could not have been prouder of my team and all of the effort they put in! The results will not be announced until February 12, but the good news there is that I (along with Lori and Jan, two other team members) will be flying out to Albuquerque, New Mexico to be present for the announcement. One of my co-workers, Michelle Fergus, quickly pointed out that this trip will be my last as a single guy...I found this quite humorous. :)

I continue to stay very busy with my day job as programmer, my night job as web designer, UG basketball (our first game/loss is Wednesday), wedding tasks, movie watching (see the new section in the right-hand menu!), and anything else that comes along. I'm also trying much harder to get back in shape for basketball, and that's not an easy thing. The sight of me running up five flights of stairs during the workday, only to come back to my desk totally out of breath, is certainly something to see.

As a final note, during this Thanksgiving holiday, I just wanted to offer a genuine thank you for the amazing group of friends and family that you are. There are so many times that we walk through life taking it for granted, but I try extremely hard to keep those times to a minimum...mostly because I honestly realize how great all of you are, and how fortunate I am. In return I try my best to offer something back to each of your lives, in whatever way I can. Even if that's just making an ass out of myself during your worst day, so that you'll have something to laugh at. :) Seriously, though, thank you for everything. All of you.

Have a great Sunday...a day which, as soon as noon hits, my Grandmother loves to call "Do Nothing Day." I couldn't agree more.