My deepest apologies...

It occurs to me that I've been remiss, to you. My friends, my online readers, I sincerely apologize.

One of the things that I swore I'd do when I started this blog was that I would post, NO MATTER WHAT, and keep folks entertained.

However, I made that resolution to myself before things in my work and family life went haywire.

As such, I've been away FAR too long, and I've really missed the reading and comments from those of you who have been my faithful supporters.

I can't promise that I'll post often. Right now things are WAY too much in flux for me to be able to make that kind of promise.

But what I do promise is that when I get the time, you can be sure that I'll tickle these keyboard keys, and at least let you all know that I'm still here, and that the mind is still running overtime, ok?


Now, on to the real reason I'm posting:

Coming up next week, the wife and I are headed for Vegas for a few days.

Yup. Vegas. The adult playground. City of slot machines, booze, women (and men!) and gangsters..

The only real problem I can see in this trip is going to be how much time she and I actually spend together.

"How so?" you might ask. Well, here's the answer:

We're not going there alone. We're taking another couple-friend of ours along. My wife's best friend and her fiancee are coming along as well.

Don't get me wrong. I like these two. I just haven't found a happy medium for spending time with them and also spending time with my wife.

I mean, when my wife's friend is around, she tends to spend her time talking with her, gossiping with her, and watching reality TV shows. While this is going on, a remarkable change also comes over my wife, and she tends to envelop the views of her friend as well. That is when I become a lazy slob. One of those guys that is only good for going to work to help provide a bit of the paycheck, and doesn't do jack around the rest of the house.

Yeah. It blows.

Then, there's the husband. I like this guy. He actually reminds me of myself in my younger years. He's family oriented, and very personable. He loves video games.. Heck, he likes them even more than I do!

However, he's also still young enough that he wants to go out and raise hell each and every night. Me? I'm the old dog, and can't do that so much anymore. Heck, I can hardly drink to excess anymore!

Therein lies the problem:

I'm pretty sure that the wife and I will be spending some time together. However, is that time going to be painted with her nagging at me about things I should be doing, or things that I could get done when we get home, or is it actually going to be fun?

The time we spend apart is going to be interesting as well. Is he going to want to drag me off to various strip clubs? Am I going to be getting the 3rd degree from the wife about what we've done? How manageable is the wife going to be after spending a full day with her girlfriend?

Yeah, I know. Don't count the eggs until they've hatched.

Yet I'm torn.

I want to look forward to this vacation. I want to be excited about it.

But I can't also help but feel that somewhere along the line something's going to go badly, and the fallout is going to be horrendous.

Keep an eye out for me if you're in Vegas, and lay a bet down on the table! After all, it's my third trip there, and that's gotta mean something, doesn't it??

Have a great Father's Day weekend this coming week. I'll be spending it at the Blackjack tables!

A Personal Question...

Have you ever had one of those days where you'd really want to reach out and seriously SLAP the person you're dealing with in order to wake them up to reality?

Yeah. I've been dealing a LOT with anger issues lately..

Maybe it's male PMS kicking in, and I haven't noticed??

Or is it that my tolerance level for idiocy has just about reached it's max, and I'm brimming with angst and frustration?

I don't know.

All I do know is that there have been so many times lately that I've just wanted to reach out and bash someone's eyes out of their skull because of their idiotic views about things..

I mean, just because you CAN do something, does that mean that you NEED to do it?

No.

Plain and simply, NO.

Think about me this week, and hopefully I'll have the strength to battle on, and be (semi) sane to post again next week!

See you all later!

Thoughts..

Have you ever wondered how guys and gals can have a relationship, and NOT want to chop the other's head off at some point?



I mean, when you think about it, everything about a male and a female is diametrically opposed to the other.



Guys communicate more by doing than talking. We show our support by providing. We do things, and let our actions dictate our feelings.



Women? They talk. They talk about anything, and they talk about EVERYTHING. They talk about their hair, their clothes, their kids, their dreams, their job, their sex life, their therapist, yadda, yadda, yadda..



Granted, this is a generalization, and there are exceptions to this, but they are damned few and far between.



Let's talk about clothes!



For men, dressing up means wearing the jeans that DON'T have holes in them, a clean t-shirt with no witty sayings on it, and sneakers. Button-down shirt? Nah. Slacks? No way, this is a PARTY we're going to, not work! Loafers or Patent leather shoes? Only if the patent leather shines enough that we could possibly sneak a peek up a dress or skirt!



For ladies? Yeah, get two or three outfits out, ask the man his opinion, then ignore his suggestion, and wear what you were planning on wearing anyway. Then spend the next TWO HOURS applying makeup, hairspray, mousse, foundation, eyeliner, lipstick, mascara, hair curlers, hair straightener, perfume, etc. on. By the time you're done, the guy's gotta go wash his face, because he fell asleep in the easy chair, and has drool on the side of his face!



Shoes? For ladies, it's an addiction. What pair would look good with which outfit? Does this match the color of my eyes or handbag? Do they help to show off my pedicure and polish on my toenails?



For guys.. As long as they're comfortable, and we can wear the heck out of them, one or two pairs will do, thank you.



Food:



Yeah, I'm going there!



Girls, you totally confuse us on this one.



Let's start at the beginning. When a guy and girl date for the first time, she'll eat like a bird, hardly touch anything, and talk his ear off the entire time. He'll order what he usually would, and enjoy it. She'll take her leftovers home, and let them rot in the fridge, because she didn't really want the dish she ordered, but she doesn't want to seem ungrateful for the date.



Next, after getting to know each other better, a change happens. She'll actually start eating. However, this doesn't keep her from talking the entire time. So not only do us guys get to eat our food, but we get to see how yours looks too. The guy keeps up with the same thing. Order what you would normally, and try to keep the food pieces that could possibly fly from her mouth from landing on your plate.



Then they become an "item" or even get married. Then you find out this lady does something you never even considered: She eats ALL THE TIME. not big sit-down meals, but she's constantly snacking. Crackers here, a rice cake there, breakfast, a snack bar, a small doughnut, lunch, a candy bar, some Wheat Thins, a diet bar, Dinner, some ice cream, maybe a small slice of pie, a bag of popkorn.



It boggles the mind.



Shopping.



When I shop, I plan on what I'm going to get, know where I'm going, get in, get the stuff, and get out. Job done.



Girls?



Browse. Look over the price of this or that, this would look nice. Let's see what's in this store. I know we don't need anything here, but it would be nice to plan on a time when we might, so let's go in here and see what they've got. Try this on. Try that. What do you think that would look like in "x" room? Ad Nauseum. Can you tell that I HATE shopping? No? I'll tell you then. I HATE SHOPPING.



Yet for all of this, we are somehow able to look past this, and find someone that seems to match us. Our compliment. The other half of our being. The one who can finish your sentance before you even know you're talking about it. The Yin for your Yang.



I don't know how it happens, and I don't know WHY it happens. Yet the thing I find the most humorous about it all is this one simple fact:



The person we come to join with is one who you'd NEVER expect to deal with. They do each and every thing that you don't do, and yet somehow, instead of this being some kind of annoyance, it is something that you wind up cherishing that person for.

The same exact behavior that your brother does that can send you completely over the edge is something that you boast about to your friends because your wife did it..

The stuff that seems to melt your eyeballs to hear about is the stuff that you love when your girlfriend does it...

Nothing's as cute or as adorable when that significant other is at work. They could do something you've sworn you'd never deal with, and it becomes passable..

What is it about these unchecked emotions we've got that makes us more tolerant?

If we were to ever be able to harness the power of an emotion, then I'm sure quite a few of the "world problems" we've got going today would be taken care of.

The wars that we fight would cease, since we could promote tolerance for religious and racial differences.

The political arena would be less of a mess, since we'd be more tolerant of deciet and broken trust issues.

Wages would increase, and the cost of living would decrease, because we'd be wanting to help support and provide for each and every person we came into contact with...

The only real problem I have is that we'd also be wanting to screw each and every face we saw..

For some, that's not considered a "bad" thing.

For me, I'm just too old now to really enjoy it!

Have a great week, and a happy Mother's Day (early) for my lady readers!

And the next number for the Powerball jackpot is...

You.

Yeah. Little 'ol you sitting there reading this.

Can you honestly believe what is happening in this economy now?

First, we get to see the "big three" automakers apply and get denied Federal Bail-out money because they honestly show that they've got no clue about cash boundaries.

Then, they come back, after a nice long coaching session with some set actors, and get granted bailout cash that they so "desperately need" for their business.

Now?

Yeah, they're trying to get you to foot the bill.

How, do you ask?

I was listening to a radio commercial on my way home from work this evening, and Chevy was blaring an ad to it's listeners:

"If you lose your job, we'll make your payments for up to 9 months"

Wow.

Just incredible.

So now I've got this overwhelming urge to run out and buy a car that I can't afford, then lose my job so that I don't have to pay for it for nearly a year, then rinse and repeat!

Doesn't that sound like FUN??

Not only that, but I'm sure that my taxes on this are going to be helping those folks who could care less about keeping a stable job in a car far longer than they should be!

Is there really no sanity in finance with "big business" anymore?

Back, and with a new perspective!

Well, it's been a while since I've posted, and I'm not sure really where to begin here.

Things seem to be better at the house. We're not fighting, but yet there still seems to be a bit of tension running just under the surface. I don't know if this is just me, and I'm fooling myself, yet it really does feel like I'm playing with a tripwire I can't see, and the bomb it's connected to could go off at any moment.

However, until such time, I'll be willing to make things seem normal and stable if only for the sake of the kids, who were concerned about where things were going.

I'm also trying to see if taking more time to focus on my wife will help matters. Maybe I've been too self-absorbed, and haven't been spending enough time with her and tending to her needs.. Maybe we need to have personal getaway time each time the kids are at their mom's for the weekend.. Maybe I should focus more on what I love about her, instead of the things that irritate me..

Speaking of that, let me ask you all something.

As men, do you often wonder why ladies will complain about the things you do (and especially the things you DON'T do) when they get together? My wife and her two close girlfriends watch TV shows at our place on Tuesdays and Wednesdays on most weeks, and even though they try to be quiet, some of the conversation can be easily overheard, and I can hear them talk about such things. How he's doing this, and it bothers them. Or he's NOT doing this, and he really should. Why can't he do this, like she's seen other guys do? Et Cetera..

When I've been out with my guy friends, we will sometimes talk about our wives, but for the most part we avoid this. Why? Because we want to have a good time, and not have something possibly get back to the wife that we'll have to pay for later. Plain, simple, easy.

Ladies: Why do you feel the need to complain or compare your significant other to people? Why is it that just being a person isn't good enough? Are there times where you feel they just won't listen, and so talking about personal things with friends is going to better or help the situation?

Heh. Listen to me here. I'm complaining and asking for information from interweb folks about a subject that really kind of strikes me as being a bit oxymoronic...

Let's just say that I don't understand the need for comparison or complaint.

Yeah, there are times when I've found myself comparing my wife to other people. However, when I _do_ find myself doing this, I stop. I prefer to take my wife at face value. I appreciate the things she does, and I love her for the person she is, not the person she could become.

How about all of you? What are your thoughts?

Things that are bothering me..

Have you ever felt like even though you're married, you're just "playing house"?

I mean, you have a solid relationship, yet the passion and little things just aren't there. You're kind of running off a set script of things that "all married folks are supposed to do" and there's just no spontinaety or passion in the relationship just don't seem to be there. The spark seems to have died?

Yeah. Me too.

But I refuse to give up.

I love this person I'm with. I adore her, actually.

Not only that, but I made her a promise, and I'm going to stick to it.

You all might have heard it a couple of times before. You know the one I'm talking about..

"For better, for worse. For richer, for poorer. In sickness and in health. As long as we both shall live."

Yeah. That promise.

Sure, there are times where it seems like all we're really dealing with is the worse, and we wonder where the heck the better went to. Sometimes richer seems so far off, and we're stuck with the poorer. Some of us are stuck in the sickness part, and wonder if any health is on the way.

Yet I've got to be stubborn.

I made this woman a promise. Not only that, but I also told this to her parents, my parents, her friends, and my friends as well.

What kind of man could I consider myself if things got tough, and I just decided to quit?

What kind of father could I consider myself if I can't set an example for my boys about making commitments, and then not follow through on them?

What kind of example would I be giving my daughter if I were to jump from wife to wife? What kind of self-esteem issues will that make for her in her later years when she potentially decides to marry? Is she going to think that she's as expendable as the women I married?

Maybe I'm just not willing to see the big picture. Maybe in some way I'm being an egotistical bastard, and I'm not giving a damn about someone else's feelings.

However, I still have to be true to myself.

And the truth is that I love this person, and I'm willing to do whatever it takes to keep my promises and vows.

My hope is that each and every one of you feels the same way, and can possibly share this with your significant other or spouse.

The greatest gift each human being posesses is the ability to love. Don't squander it.

I'll talk with you all next week.

Like all good things...

Yes kiddies, I'm having to trim down the amount of time I spend blogging.

I've made a promise to myself to not post while at work. I've come to realize that my income is near and dear to my family, and for me to put that in jeopardy by writing about things that upset me for the enjoyment of others is irresponsible.

Now? Well, I've decided to post when I can while at home. It's not going to be as steady and as usual as it has been in the past, but there will be odd times when I'll be able to get free, and rant and rave about things that have set me off.

As a few of you know, I'm also dealing with some harsh and serious things on the home front as well, and right now one of my major focuses is going to be on resolving these issues once and for all.

So your thoughts and concerns are welcome, and I dearly hope that I won't lose your readership while I take time to clean house.

Have a great day, and I'll talk to you again soon.