women!

I like being a good friend and husband. It gives me joy and I remain much more optimistic about life as a result. I just wish I could convince myself that trying this hard is enough. You can tell me I’m amazing. I’ll appreciate it. I’ll still feel pretty ordinary. I’ll still be puzzled why I don’t feel like I’m doing well enough.

Lord, I really need to be content with being average. Can I please just view some amount of competence in doing ordinary things well as a blessing? Is realizing this part of growing up? Thank you for helping us in so many ways.

Also, a quick request? You know I have three older sisters in my life right now that are in tears worrying over their little sisters. Help them, Father. Give them the peace that your Son purchased with his blood and name. And while I’m thinking about it, thank you for my sisters. thank you for reminding me over the past few months of how much I love and adore them. Let me love all of these women as you love them.

Thank you.

P.S. I wish there was another man I could talk to. A believer who isn’t a coworker. We could be friends and we’d care about what was going on in each others lives. That’d be nice.

Merry Christmas!

For christmas this year, I got:

• $100 @ Best Buy, and a bunch of fireworks (Fireworks on Christmas Eve may be a new tradition. It was fun.)
• Double-Six Dominoes with my name and the “Aggie Block T” on them, like the ones I bought for my groomsmen.
• Stephen Colbert’s I AM AMERICA (And So Can You!)
• New Chucks! (My first pair of lows ever. It’s strange, but I like them.  I always wore the hi tops because I liked the Blue Star.)
• A Whiskers & Paws Daily Inspiration Calendar (from my Grandma Harrold!)
• $20 (From my Grandma Mullens.) Ok, It was for both of us, so I suppose I should split it with Michelle, but I’m keeping it since it’s My grandma… and I’ll spend it all on Michelle anyway.

And From my AMAZING WIFE:

• TWO Giordano’s Original Deep-dish Pizzas mail-ordered from Chicago
• The New Hot Fuzz 3-Disc collector’s edition that I didn’t even know existed.

Merry Christmas!

Limited Hulu invites available

http://www.hulu.com/beta/mashable

Hulu streams NBC shows for free. Behind on Chuck? Want to watch Conan O’Brien from when the Writers were there? SNL from when it was funny?

Hulu is owned by NBC, so it’s free and, in some cases, hi-def.

It is about that time again.

Time for me to (again) tease both of the people still checking this from time to time by taunting you with a possible update. Perhaps I should resolve (before, after or near the New Year) to resume this blog at my previous intermittent and procrastinated pace.

EU threatens Trade Embargo on TX. TX gives EU the finger.

EU urges Perry to stop death penalty

The European Union on Tuesday urged Gov. Rick Perry to halt executions and introduce a moratorium on capital punishment in Texas, the state that executes the most inmates.

In an unusual direct appeal, the EU said Perry must “exercise all powers vested in his office” to halt the 400th execution, scheduled for tonight, since Texas resumed carrying out death sentences in 1982.

The death penalty is banned in the 27-nation EU, which also fights for global abolition of executions.

“The irreversibility of the punishment means that miscarriages of justice, which are inevitable in all legal systems, cannot be redressed,” the EU said in a statement.

Perry spokesman Robert Black said that although Texas “respects our friends in Europe” the state would not call for a moratorium. “The reason our forefathers fought a war 230 years ago was to throw off the yoke of a European monarch so that we may have the freedom of self-determination,” he said.

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As a peer recently quipped, “Texas needs ROPE, not Europe!”

Re: M. Vick

Don’t have time to post a long schpiel, but this is fantastic and should be forwarded on for others to read.

 http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=hill/070821

I’m Married.

So the Foo Fighters are releasing a new album next wee… You don’t want to hear about that?

Fine. Then go look at pictures.

Pre-Ceremony • Ceremony • Reception • Formals

The photographer is Kathlyn Dragna. She was affordable, amazing to work with, and, as you can see, very talented. She charged a fraction of other’s rates, arrived early, stayed late, kept folks calm, told Michelle she was beautiful, and produced an amazing album. Better yet, we own the rights to the digital negatives at no extra charge. This kind of deal is unheard of and you should use her. Seriously.

Sorry I haven’t been updating much since I started the job. Getting married probably won’t help since Michelle is so much fun.

Love y’all,
Daniel

an update of sorts

so I didn’t post that Sunday after all. I didn’t write all about the Ben Folds / John Mayer show. It was awesome. It was the most awesome that has ever awesomed, if you’re only counting summer concerts where the Lawn at Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion becomes one giant muddy slip-n-slide. There have likely been much better tours put together, but I only count the ones I’ve seen and this one is in a dead heat with Franz Ferdinand / Death Cab and the infamous Foo / Weezer tour from last year.

The Fourth was fun. We exploded about 30% more of my wallet than I budgeted. That’s right on par with all the most enjoyable 4ths and New Years in that regard. Fireworks are only really enjoyable for me if someone in my party is doing the lighting. There’s just a complete lack of adrenaline watching professional skyrockets above a mall parking lot.

Wedding plans are progressing. The Bed Bath and Beyond registry is slowly being fulfilled. the Target registry is lonely, but I’m not worried. I made it through the past decade (has it been almost a decade since high school!?) on hand-me-down plates and couches. Michelle and I will be blessed no matter what. Only thirty days!

There’s laundry to be done so I’m hitting “Publish” and you can just deal with my unrevised, atrocious grammar and spelling. (Something tells me it’ll still be readable, if not read-worthy.)

I’m not sore today.

I ran my first mile last night and climbed on a stair climber for about 5 minutes. I did this knowing I was going to be sore all over this morning.

Turns out I’m not. I actually feel pretty good. My right knee is a little tight and I have a paper-cut on my left thumb that hurts like the Dickens, but those are the worst complaints I have. I haven’t even taken anything for them and there are days were my everyday movement leaves my knee stiff enough that I have to take 750 ml of Motrin.

I’ll probably post again on Sunday to let y’all know how much fun we had shopping for wedding bands and at the Ben Folds & John Mayer concert .

I’m Back and Blogging.

I never really left WordPress. I’ve just been writing privately. I didn’t know how to pick up after I was sacked in Illinois and had to beg, borrow, and contemplate theft to get myself and my possessions back to Texas. Ive discovered a good way. Learn my lessons, take the lumps, and move on with all the blessings God provides.

What’s happened from March to June?

I got a job. Thank you to Marty Wysocki, who referred me to a guy who knew someone at Bartlett Cocke General Contractors, LP. They’re a large General Contractor based in San Antonio with offices in Austin and Houston. I am in my third week as an Estimator living in a hotel and working in San Antonio. I transfer to the Houston office permanently in August. I’ve never met a nicer group of people all in one company. Never. It’s about 50% Ags, 30% ‘Sips, and the other 20% from various other schools.
Because I know you’ll ask, my job consists of taking blueprints for partially completed building designs and a unit-cost price list then working out how much I think the various parts of a building will cost. It’s a blast.
Did I mention they offered me 12% more than I asked for? My salary is 180% of what I was making at the software company. I’m naturally thrilled. God Provides.

The Wedding Planning is on like Donkey Kong. I don’t even know what that mean, but we’re 45 days away and Michelle and I have finished about 80% of our list of tasks to get everything ready. the gifts are starting to roll in. I never thought I’d be addicted to bedbathandbeyond.com, but I am.

We have an Apartment reserved. Michelle and I arrive back from our super-secret honeymoon destination and get to move all of our stuff to the third floor of Stone Mist Apartments in Northwest Houston.

Just as important, Michelle started her career with HP. I know she’s an accountant/financial analyst, but everything else she says is a mish mash of financial jargon, three letter acronyms and gobbledegook.
It doesn’t matter. I’m still so proud of her I could bust my buttons.