Dave Kraemer's blog about things.

An All Star Employee

2011-12-02T07:57:00.005-05:00

I just want to take the time to write a message about one of my blog readers. Crystal works very hard, and does not always get the recognition she deserves. Well Crystal, even though people don't say it to you, I can guarantee that there are people who realize your dedication, and they appreciate it very very much. You are an All Star Renewal Specialist whether people tell you that or not. If it seems to get a little too stressful around there, just sit back and listen to the amazing musical deities from the 90's known as Smash Mouth.

Crystal, you are an All Star!

Back to Blogging With DENIM!

2011-08-21T21:51:00.005-04:00

Ok, so apparently people actually enjoyed this blog enough that they actually miss it. Some people go so far as to tell their co-workers to tell me to post again. Well your cries for more have been answered!! I won't be posting every day, and the posts probably won't be nearly as long as they used to be, but I will try to post more.

So my return to the blog will be done with my favorite commercial on TV.

This back to school commercial has been stuck in my head since I first saw it. I was singing it in a bar just the other day, I am putting it on my ipod so I can listen to it in my car, I randomly just call out "DENIM"... it is just amazing to me.

While finding the video of the most amazing commercial I also found this beautiful behind the scenes gem:

GOT MY DREAM JOB!!

2011-04-01T09:12:00.005-04:00

So, I started this blog just to have something to do during the day, and also to have some samples of my writing online. Granted some of the things I wrote about should probably not be used as samples for potential employers, but I was just having some fun blogging about various things. Well, all I can say is that this blog definitely paid off. I just received word that I got a new job. After more than 9 months of unemployment I will now once again be employed. Of course, if you say "my blog got me a job" you know it isn't to be a normal job, and you may be wondering what the job is...

I will be the Social Media Specialist for a farm in New Orleans, Louisiana. The farm specializes in raising hogs and growing medicinal marijuana. Oh yeah, and they are shooting a pilot for a new reality show called "Reefer Hog Wild". My post about not using drugs so I don't end up on the internet dancing in jorts brought my blog to their attention and they emailed me offering me the job. I will be blogging/tweeting/facebooking about the daily happenings on the farm, which they assure me will get pretty wacky. The premise of the show will be that they have a different famous pot smoking celebrity coming in each episode to work on the farm. The Dogg Father himself, Snoop, will be the guest star of the pilot. So not only do I get an amazing job as a Social Media Specialist, but I also get to meet Snoop. I am extremely happy and excited about this whole thing, and figured the best way to spread the word would be to use the blog that got me the job! I actually need to start packing and getting things ready for the big move, I will be flying down Monday to see where I will be living and to sign my contracts and stuff, then I come back home for a week and move down officially the following Monday! Wish me luck, and I'll post all the links for the new Blog, Twitter, and Facebook pages as soon as I start them. Thank you all for supporting my blog and helping me get this dream come true opportunity!

Drugs = Chubby in Jorts

2011-03-31T00:51:00.003-04:00

I will never do drugs because I am scared I may turn out like this guy.

It is not the psychedelic graphics and bug-eyed puppets that lead me to this conclusion. I just don't want a video of me on the internet sporting a moustache, wearing jorts (jean shorts), and a shirt that my belly hangs out of every time I lift my arms. The idea of a gravy rainbow intrigues me; imagine the pot of mashed potatoes found at the end of that rainbow. Mmmmmm...

Cartoons... What Happened?

2011-03-29T12:08:00.004-04:00

This post is probably gonna come off making me sound like a very bitter old man, but I don't care... I watch children's television more than any 26 year old male should. I have Wizards of Waverly Place on my DVR and will gladly admit I watched the Suite Life movie last night. However kids today are seriously lacking when it comes to good cartoons. Yeah, Phineas and Ferb is fantastic and one of my absolute favorite shows, but that is just one cartoon. What happened to all the others. Even Cartoon Network has taken an MTV like turn and started showing things that do not live up to its name. I don't even know the last time I saw an actual Bugs Bunny cartoon on the air, and those are timeless. I can remember all kinds of cartoons from my childhood. Fox on Saturday mornings was pretty much amazing with things like X-men, Eek the Cat, Life With Louie, and countless others. Shows like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Transformers, GI Joe, and and others have gotten modern day reboots, but they don't last. Kids today just don't seem to enjoy cartoons like we have in the past. What happened that made cartoons a dying trend? I think if there was a channel that basically showed cartoons made from 1984-1998 it would be one of the most watched networks on television. I better hire a team of detectives to discover what happened to cartoons:

Or maybe a super hero would be better suited to undo the evil of ruining childhood cartoons:

Well you know me and whenever I have a problem I turn to Dinosaurs:

If none of that works to bring back good cartoon shows, i guess I'll just have to move to some isolated island away from this cartoon-less society:

And while I would love to keep coming up with reasons to show some awesome Cartoon Introductions I think I need to stop at some point. I'll post one more and you can leave some of your favorite cartoons in the comments section!

Ok, ok, one more and then I'm done... Sorry I can't help it, once I started looking for some I kept thinking of others I wanted to share. this one isn't the intro, but it's an amazing clip on why I loved this show:

Just Because...

2011-03-27T23:39:00.001-04:00

How I Feel Today

2011-03-23T09:33:00.004-04:00

This is how I feel today, and why my blog post is so short:

Digital Vision Board

2011-03-22T11:59:00.005-04:00

Being in my 9th month of unemployment has led me to believe I may not be going about things in the best way. So to turn my life around I decided to create a Vision Board. I placed some goals on my Vision Board so that they will become a reality. If you are not familiar with a Vision Board here is a clip that can help explain it.

Hopefully after that explanation you can understand what I am doing. I'm posting my vision board on the internet for all the world to see because possibly some rich philanthropist will stumble upon this blog and help make those visions become a reality. If anyone would like to help any of my visions come true, or if you have any questions about my Vision Board please leave a comment. So here is my board (you can click the image for a larger view):

It's Friday Friday Gotta Get Down On Friday!

2011-03-18T09:26:00.003-04:00

For those of you who don't know today is Friday. This is my jam today. This video just cracks me up, because it appears as if Rebecca Black's daddy let her make her own music video for her Super Sweet 16. There are so many things I love about this. First being the lyrics. She quickly lists everything she does including getting a bowl and then getting her cereal. She then sings about going to the bus stop to catch her bus to school. However, this is where the song gets a little fishy... Instead of catching the bus and going to school like a well behaved member of society, her friends pull up and I guess she skips school and goes with them. Also she sings about not knowing which seat to take, but upon my review there was only 1 seat available. The seat in the middle of the back was the only choice and sure enough it is where she ended up. Now after skipping school she gets all dolled up and proceeds to very unsafely sit on top of the back seat of the convertible car. I am terrified for the day the news reports Grammy award winner Rebecca Black was decapitated in a terrible automobile accident because she was sitting atop the backseat of a convertible and there was a coke fueled accident (Coca-Cola, not cocaine... these kids get all hopped up on caffeine and just go crazy).
The kids who co-star in the video with her actually seem bored being there and I think her "friend to her right" is probably thinking she could do so much better than Rebecca, and should not be risking her life for her. Also the song seem to gets bored with Rebecca and cuts to some random black guy driving around singing about changing lanes and such. Possibly one of the most amazing things about this song is her description of the order of the days of the week. This song should be used in schools to teach kids the days. It's just fabulous!
I hope every "gets down on Friday" and has a wonderful weekend weekend.

The Return of the Rockcercisor

2011-03-15T10:01:00.005-04:00

Not too long ago I wrote about a man who was Rockin Out while Workin Out. I labelled his actions as Rockcercising. Well this past Friday at the gym he was back. Erica and I were basically alone in the cardio room. He walked in and instantly I recognized him. I tried to get Erica's attention and then used my eyes to point to him. She saw him and laughed because she knew who it was too. Luckily my program on the elliptical was just ending as he got onto his machine. I went back onto a treadmill behind him so I could get some footage.

Trying to secretly video someone is already a difficult task, but trying to do it on a cell phone while walking on a treadmill is extra difficult. I didn't want to be constantly holding my phone up so I took multiple videos in short spurts. I wish i could've gotten his full routine. I was only able to get a little bit of good footage, this is only like 10% of his energetic routine. Speaking of energy, at one point during our workouts he turns to me and Erica (who are both taking an easy walk on the treadmills after our elliptical runs) and he says "Where's your energy? Where's your f'n energy?" All we could do was laugh and he turned around to get back to his rockcercising. One of my favorite moments came when a woman walked into the room and witness this man dancing while running on the elliptical, and dripping sweat everywhere. She looked at him and her jaw dropped a little, then she looked at me with a "is this really happening" look on her face.

Without further ado here is the video I have pieced together of the Rockcercisor:

My First Time Skating

2011-03-14T15:09:00.002-04:00

Today for Monday Funday I went ice skating for the first time ever. Here is a video of me taking my first steps on the ice. I got a little better before we left, I'll write more about it later.

Busy Bee

2011-03-11T11:23:00.003-05:00

Another day went by where I did not blog. I apologize to my loyal reader(s). Yesterday I had some errands to run and some work to do, so I just didn't have time to sit down and blog. I had to run out to West Town Savings Bank and fix a computer issue. When I got out there the 1 employee left apparently was very bored and lonely because she kept talking to me and asking me to sit and stay. I guess I would be bored and lonely too if I was the only person who worked in my office. So I fixed the problem out there and chatted a bit, but I had other things to do so I had to leave.

My next stop was a Lumber Liquidators where I was picking up some flooring for my mother. We are putting a new floor in our dining room and kitchen. This seemed like it would be a very quick thing to do, just go to the store and pick up the floor she already purchased. That is not what happened. I arrived at the store during a torrential downpour. I went in and told them I was there to pick up an order. He thanked me for actually having the paper work with me, he said most people come in and just expect them to remember their order or something. Well he told me there were a few other people ahead of me getting stuff from the back to pull my car around and just wait. Little did I know that those people were ordering about 10 pallets of flooring. I went around back and in the pouring rain got out and put my seats down and got the car ready to be filled with flooring. I then walked over to the back door and stood there in the rain thinking it would just be a few minutes for each person to get what they want. After seeing the forklift go by about 4 times with pallets loaded on it for 1 man I decided to get back in my car. I sat there and listened to the end of the Pitt game and played Solitaire on my phone. After about 40 minutes of waiting and watching the forklift go by with more and more stacks of hardwood floor I finally got my order. I got out and loaded it into my car. I was drenched from just the few minutes this took.

After this I was starving, so I went to Qdoba for a delicious burrito. I went home, ate the burrito, did a survey online, and then it was time for me to go again. I had to get down to Tad's on East Carson because I was the cook. This job is pretty easy, the only thing is that it seems very very long. The kitchen is only open from 5-10, but not many people come in to eat there. There is A LOT of down time. So I spent my night sitting at a bar watching random basketball games, a little bit of the Pirate game, and sporadically cooking tater tots and other fried goodies.

I guess when I type it all up it doesnt seem like I did too much yesterday, but when my days are normally filled with sitting around and doing nothing, having multiple tasks in one day really seems like a busy day. Well today is going to be another day of nothing but, tomorrow is St. Patrick's Day Parade Day. Which is when most people, including myself, celebrate St. Patrick's Day. I won't be going down to Market Square this year. We decided that all you do is wait in lines down there. You wait in line for a beer and then once you get a beer you get in line for the bathroom because by the time you get to the front of the line you are gonna have to go. I actually haven't gone down to Market Square for a few years, I have gone to parties where groups have gone down there, but I've always stayed behind. I figure I can get a beer from the fridge/cooler whenever I was without a line, and I can go pee whenever I want, maybe waiting for like 1 person in the bathroom. I guess we are getting old when we decide that big celebration is just too crazy for us and we would rather just relax with a case of beer and party on our own. Here is a YouTube video to go with the St. Patty's Day vibe:

My Lenten Promise

2011-03-09T12:47:00.004-05:00

So Lent is upon us again. This year, just like last year I will be giving up eating after 9:00p.m. I gave this up last year and at times it was very difficult. Not only is this a sacrifice for me, but it will also be good for me. I will also be giving up drinking pop. I believe giving up these two things will be a difficult sacrifice and also help me be a better, healthier person in the long run.

I'm keeping this post short because I'm hoping more people will read it and reply to it. Leave me a comment about what you will be giving up for Lent. However, I will once again add a YouTube video, because I love adding them to my posts.

OUTrageous Bingo

2011-03-08T10:11:00.009-05:00

This past weekend The Gay and Lesbian Community Center of Pittsburgh, once again held OUTrageous Bingo. The tag line "This ain't your Grandma's bingo!" is the best way to describe this event. The bingo is held at Rodef Shalom in the Oakland/Shadyside part of town. This month was extremely crowded and seating was a big issue. You see you can call and reserve seats at the event, but the person you call has nothing to do with ticket sales. So some people call and reserve seats prior to actually having tickets, or they reserve more seats than they have people in their group, just in case they need more. Because of this there are many empty reserved seats. The doors to the event open at 6:30 and Bingo begins at 7:30 so at 7:00 reservations are no longer held. People who did not make a reservation are then allowed to find a seat. I believe this is fair, if you make a reservation you should be able to get there by 7:00 and claim your seats, if you cannot be there by then, you forfeit that reservation. Some people did not find that to be a fair practice and they complained about it.

By 7:30 it seemed as though any seating disputes were solved and we were ready to play Bingo. We had many first timers (or Bingo Virgins as they are called there) with us so we tried to explain how the things would work for the evening. I say "tried" because some concepts were difficult for some of the virgins to grasp. Before the games begin everyone in attendance stands up, holds their dauber in the air and recites an oath. The oath reminds all players that they are there to raise money for the Gay and Lesbian Community Center and that bingo is just a game. There is no reason to become upset or frustrated because it is just a stupid game. The games began and we were all excited to start playing. During the games we must frequently remind each other of the oath we took. It is very easy to begin to get frustrated when you need only 1 more number called and he calls every number around yours, but never says it. Just when you think he is about to say your number he calls something that sounds very close and some other person yells BINGO!

None of us won a game of Bingo all night long. That doesn't mean we didn't have a fun time though. During intermission the Drag Queens perform and it is always a good time. Frequent blog readers Jill, Lauren, and Alexis joined us for the first time and they all had a blast. Each of them have given me a quote to sum up their experience that night.

Jill- "That certainly was the most exhilarating night of bingo in my life, I can't wait to go back for more"

Lauren- "I have never been so excited about bingo before. I can't wait to go back!"

Alexis- "It was a lot of fun, but I am a little sad that i didn't win anything. I will definitely go back and hopefully win big."

Speaking of winning big, the 50/50 raffle from that night paid out over $1000. The winner was actually moved to tears and seemed to be in a state of shock after hearing his number called. It was very touching to see how happy he was to win the money. We may not have won any cash prizes, but I did walk home with a door prize. I am now the proud owner of some fancy clip on earrings. When I tried them on many people thought I was wearing them wrong, but they go up your ear, accenting the sexy natural curves of the human ear.
Everybody who went with us had a great time and said they can't wait to come back. I also know of many people who want to come along with us for a first visit too. We will certainly get a group together to go again next month. Not only is this a fun night out with a chance to win, it is also supporting a good cause. So even if you don't win you can still feel good about doing something nice for others!

Back At Flynn's Waiting Room

2011-03-04T09:39:00.003-05:00

So what seems like only a few days ago I was sitting in the waiting room at Flynn's getting tires installed on my car. I was blogging from my phone about Dr. Oz and things like that. I am here today with Erica's car because she needs new tires. Since she has a full time job and I do not, it was decided I would come to sit and wait while the tires are installed. Since this is my second time here I kind of knew what to expect, so today I was more prepared for the waiting room. I brought my computer to take advantage of the free WIFI for Flynn customers. I can now blog from the waiting room on my laptop. Dr. Oz isn't on so I can't talk about the wonderful things he is sharing with the world.

Following my visit to Flynn's I will be heading to Best Buy to possibly buy the adapter I need to get the radio to work in my car. November of 2009 I installed a new stereo in my car and when I did that the radio antenna did not fit into the new stereo. It never bothered me too much because I could use my iPod or CDs for music. The only times I really missed the radio was when a Pens or Steelers game was on and I could not listen to it. Erica took my car this morning and complained about not having a radio, and my mother has complained about it whenever she borrows my car because she doesn't know how the iPod works so she just drives in silence. Between them mentioning it multiple times and me wanting it every now and then I decided I should finally figure out what I need. After some quick research on Amazon and Best Buy it looks like I need an adapter that costs about $10 and just clicks right into place. So after about 16 months of no radio this simple fix should give me what I need.

Being March and at Flynn's surrounded by Leprechaun's I am really in the mood for St. Patrick's Day. Yesterday I actually wore a McFadden's St. Patrick's day 2010 shirt to the gym. I requested off work for the entire weekend of the parade so I can ensure a fun time. So to go along with this feeling I will add a YouTube clip that I find fitting:

I Pledged, You Can Too

2011-03-03T09:35:00.003-05:00

Yesterday was "SPREAD THE WORD TO END THE WORD DAY" but it is not too late to help. I went to http://www.r-word.org/ and pledged to help "Spread the Word to End the Word." It is a campaign to help stop the use of the words "retard/retarded." Today, I will not be writing a long silly blog post about random things, so you can take the time to check out the website and pledge to help Spread the Word to End the Word.

But of course I'd still be happy to share a YouTube clip with everyone:

My Weekend In Snowshoe

2011-03-02T09:26:00.008-05:00

This past weekend Erica and I spent the weekend on Snowshoe Mountain in West Virginia. It was a fun little trip that we were both looking forward to. Neither one of us really knew where Snowshoe was until after we began planning the trip. It was a little farther away than we both thought it was, but we both prepared for the 4 hour drive and knew a fun weekend away would be worth the time in the car. The drive was pretty rough though, snowy conditions made the curvy mountain roads even harder to navigate. Some of these roads had no lines painted anywhere on them, and no light of any kind, so it was very hard for us to see where the road was going sometimes. It took us a little longer than expected because we had to slow down quite a bit to follow some of the roads, but we found the Mountain Crest Villas relatively easily and entered our home for the weekend.

We got there pretty late Friday night, so after unpacking we just watched some television and then went to sleep. Saturday morning we woke up, had some cereal and just relaxed around the room for awhile. We watched television and basically vegged out for the morning. Our first plan for the day was to go tubing which was at a location a little lower on the mountain than we were staying. We drove down to the tubing area and found out that we actually timed it well because we only had a few minutes until the first tubing session of the day began. Sadly neither one of us thought to bring a camera with us to this part of the trip so we couldn't take any pictures of our tubing fun times. While tubing there were of course some very rude kids who just didn't understand how waiting in line works. They would just squeeze past people and get themselves as close to the front as they could, and of course there were no parents around to tell them that that isn't appropriate behavior. Another rude happening was while we were on the top of the hill waiting in line to go down the hill one West Virginia hick gets off to tow lift and yells for his friend at the front of the line to wait for a second. His adult friend waits and this young yokel proceeds to walk up and go down the hill cutting Erica and I and the other people who appropriately waited in line. His friend gladly lets him do this, then proceeds to wait until he is done and goes down the hill like nothing was wrong with this behavior. Even with this rude behavior we still had a fun time tubing down the hill repeatedly (on a side note, every time we raced I WON).
After tubing we decided to catch a bus and head to the top of the mountain and check out The Village, which is the majority of the resort. Everyone who we spoke to who had been there before told us the pizza shop had amazing pizza, so that is where we decided to go for lunch. The pizza certainly did not disappoint, it was very delicious. The price was exactly what you would expect for this type of location, but the pizza was much better than I expected. The location is right at the top of the mountain right off the lift, so of course it was full of people taking a lunch break from the slopes, and they were all certainly satisfied.

With our bellies stuffed with delicious pizza we decided next to explore The Village and see what we could do later that day. We walked around and found the other restaurants so we could know where we wanted to eat dinner, and we went to all the different shops to see what they had for sale. There was a lot of cool stuff there, and if we had more money we definitely would have done a lot more. After our exploration of the mountain we went back to our room. Once there we kicked back for some more relaxing. We watched some more television, then showered and got ready to head back up the mountain. We took a bus back up to The Village and went to Foxfire Grille for dinner. With so many people staying in the general area of course there was a wait for a table, but we used our waiting time to head down to the souvenir store and buy a few things. After our trip to the store there wasn't much more time to wait for our table. We ordered some fried pickles as an appetizer and they were crispy and delicious. Erica had a shredded BBQ chicken sandwich which she loved and I had a taste too and it was fantastic. I had a a burger with pulled pork and bacon on it. This was a fantastic selection. I absolutely loved the burger! I had a local micro-brew pale ale to wash it all down which was also awesome. The fries weren't that great, but everything else was good enough that I didn't really eat all my fries anyways. Possibly the best part of the restaurant was the 5 bottles of BBQ sauce they kept on the table to enjoy. They had some very different sauces to choose from, which added some flare to the food.

We were both feeling tired so after dinner we got back on the bus and went back to our room. We chilled on the couch watching television. Mostly we watched Pit Boss which seemed to be having a mini marathon. While watching Erica noticed some movement outside and when we went out we saw there were about 6 deer hanging out behind our building. We brought some bread because we were told to bring something to feed the deer. They walked up pretty close to eat the bread we had scattered outside our back deck. It was really cool to see them up so close, they were too frightened to eat the bread I was holding out in my hand, but they came a lot closer than any other deer I've ever seen.

The next morning we basically just took our time packing up and getting ready to leave, some more deer came back, but we had already given all our bread away so we had nothing to feed them. We loaded up the car and went back up the mountain one last time. We went past the village to one part of the resort a little higher up than the rest. Before our trip we found out that there was a bar there named Hoot's and since that is Erica's nickname we knew we had to check it out while we were there. So we went up the mountain and found Hoot's. We were a little disappointed with the food there, it was basic bar food. We were hoping they would have shirts or something for sale so Erica could get one, but they did not. Well after Hoot's we got in the car and began our drive back. It was much easier with the sun out and no snow. Being able to see the road ahead makes it a whole lot easier to drive on. I did the entire drive there and back, and for those of you who know me and my driving history that is a huge deal.
Overall it was a very fun weekend, with plenty of relaxing down time. I wish we could go back when we both have some more money and more time, it was a lot of fun and I recommend Snowshoe Mountain to anyone who enjoys Winter fun.

Packing Up For A Weekend Trip

2011-02-25T10:52:00.002-05:00

Today, as soon as Erica gets off of work, the two of us will be heading to Snowshoe Mountain in Wild, Wonderful, West Virginia. It will be about a four hour drive before we reach our destination, but then it will all be worth it. Now what are two people who don't ski going to do at a ski resort? Well we have been figuring that out all week. We do plan on hitting the slopes, but not on skis or snowboards, we are going to go tubing! Also there are plenty of bars, restaurants, and clubs for us to check out too.
I will get some pictures and stories to blog about when we come back. Maybe I will even blog on location posting some pictures or videos from down on the mountain. But I have to cut this blog short today because I need to pack, and go to the store, and if I'm not ready on time Erica may very well murder me.

Rocking Out At The Gym

2011-02-24T15:36:00.004-05:00

Alright so another day went by where I didn't blog, I'm sorry to my loyal reader(s) who may have expected something yesterday. I ended up taking an impromptu nap yesterday afternoon which pretty much took the place of my blogging. I try to do daily updates, but even being lazy and unemployed gets interrupted now and then. I have started something new in my life which also takes up some time, but it has also inspired me to blog today. You see I have recently joined a gym with Erica. We signed up for memberships at Wright's Gym which is basically in Erica's backyard so we figured it wouldn't be too hard to drag our butts over there and work off a few pounds. Yesterday while we were on the treadmills there was this AWESOME guy on an elliptical machine ROCKING OUT.

I couldn't help but watch this guy exercise, he was hilarious. He was very much into singing along with his iPod. Now he wasn't singing out loud, which may have made this even better. He was intensely lip syncing to what I could only imagine as some kind of 80's rock anthem. He didn't look like the picture on the left, but he certainly seemed to have the attitude of someone who would look like this. His face would twist and turn as he emotionally would lean back for the loud rock screams, and he would lean down and shake his head rhythmically for those more intimate parts of the song. If he had a microphone and was up on stage he definitely had the moves, attitude, and emotion of a rock singer. His lip syncing probably doubled the impact of his workout. Then when I thought it wast the most intense lip sync work out ever he turned it up to 11... with AIR GUITAR. That's right, while running on the elliptical he also started playing air guitar while still lip syncing like he was singing in front of a sold out crowd. He was so good at it that I would vote for him to win 1 man Air Band Contest, and he was this good while consistently exercising!
His workout may spawn an entire new trend, it would be better than Jazzercising. This man may be the inventor of Rockcercising, and judging by how sweaty he got and how intense it looked I'm sure it was a very effective workout. I wish I could have gotten video of this spectacle. If I ever see it happening again I may have to pull out my phone and get a short clip of it. I have no idea what he was listening too, but I could only imagine it was some kind of guitar heavy, rock classic like this...

Things To Do With Snowy Weather

2011-02-22T10:40:00.004-05:00

Last night we got some snow. "Some" may be an understatement, we got about 6 inches of snow. This morning I woke up and had to dig out a car and clean it off. Then i started thinking about some of the things people do when it snows. I decided that would be a perfect thing to blog about on this snowy day.
First thing I did when I came inside after digging out cars and shoveling snow was start cooking. I started making what I think is one of the absolute best meal for a cold day: chili. The name fits the weather, when its chilly outside you get some chili inside... your belly. Mixing all those wonderfully spicy ingredients into the crock pot makes me hungry all day long for some delicious chili. It makes the house smell fantastic slowly brewing all day long. Every time I go out into the kitchen I can't help but sneak a little taste for myself, its the perfect thing to add a little warmth.

The next thing to do is just curl up with a blanket and read, watch a movie, or even just relax in the warmth. If you had some chili to eat it may even be a little extra warm under the blanket (sorry that was gross). Maybe it would be a good time to watch one of those movies you like watching over and over again. Curl up on the couch and put on Apollo 13 and relax. It makes it a wonderful way to spend a snowy day. this works especially well when you are snowed in and can't go anywhere all day long. Just keep putting on more and more Tom Hanks classics until the snow melts and you can once again go outside.

During last year's snow storm which left us indoors for most of a week, Erica and I decided to devote our time to fulfilling a goal. We rented New Super Mario Bros. for Wii and played all week long until we finished it. It is the perfect time to work on your goals, plenty of free time and with the outside world also snowed in, there are very few distractions. Its truly a magical thing when you can set a goal, work to achieve it, and then complete that goal.

My final idea for what to do when the weather outside is frightful...GO OUTSIDE AND PLAY!!!

What do you do when its snowy outside? Leave some comments about some ideas for when there's blizzardy conditions.

Blog 'n Bowl

2011-02-21T13:54:00.001-05:00

Today's Monday Funday is being spent at Crafton-Ingram Bowling Lanes. Caroline, Leigh Anne (Gutter Mutter), Ricky (Boo-ling Ball), and I (Striking Dave) are bowling, while Charlotte runs around and gets into her own adventures. Caroline has developed her own style of bowling where she runs up, slides onto her knees, and releases the ball. It seems to be working because she is beating me. Yes, I may have the coolest bowling nickname here, but I am doing the worst.

Leigh Anne and I voted that we will not be inviting Boo anymore because he is actually good and making us look bad. He is making me look REALLY bad. Luckily there is only 1 older couple here so my terrible bowling skills are not being witnessed by many people... I may have blogged too soon, about 3 more families just came in, but I did start bowling a bit better. I have now pulled ahead of Caroline and within 20 points of Ricky and Leigh Anne. I would like to get over 100 points, but with 72 at the end of the 8th, I don't think its going to happen. The highlight of the event is Charlotte got 2 little dinosaur toys from the quarter machine. Ok I'm going to finish the game, then come finish this blog...

I finished with 94, Ricky won with 130, Leigh Anne came in second with 115, and Caroline gave me a run for my money with 75. We are going to bowl 1 more game, but my self esteem can't take the hit of blogging about it. Maybe if it is good I will post the results as a comment. You can leave comments too, tell us what you did for Monday Funday today!

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

More Commercials = More Fun

2011-02-18T14:24:00.004-05:00

Alright I didn't blog yesterday, I was busy running around doing work. I've been helping my Uncle out with some computer work for his office and yesterday I was just too busy doing that to sit down and write a blog (pictured right is a dog who I would like to get as a "guest blogger" on days when I am too busy, I would read his Dog Blog). Today I decided to go back to an idea I blogged about before and add to it. I didn't really want to take too much time with an original blog post because it is so nice out today. So today I will be posting some more commercials that I just can't seem to get out of my head.

The first commercial was suggested by Lauren and I definitely agree it deserves recognition. I frequently find myself singing out "FOUR TIMES THE STEAK" after this commercial is on.

The following is a very catchy song. Erica yells at me if I sing it because then it will be stuck in her head for hours. I was very excited that when searching for it on YouTube I actually found an extended version of the song. This is one that may get added onto the iPod because I love singing along with the song!

The next one is just a quick clip, but it is probably one of the best little jingles ever. I will always remember this phone number and business name because of the jingle. It may be one of the jingles that got me so obsessed with them in the first place. Whenever I hear this on the radio or television I smile and sing along with the joyous chorus.

The last one I'll be sharing today is such a fun commercial. I think its awesomely done and the guy is just hilarious in it. I want to smell like this man.

Once again please feel free to share your favorites in the comments section, I love hearing the favorites of my loyal reader(s).

Things I've Been Meaning to Write About

2011-02-16T10:09:00.004-05:00

Sometimes while I'm out and about something I do causes me to say "I think I'm going to blog about this tomorrow." However, most of the time I end up forgetting I said that and blog about something else instead. Last week this happened to me a few times, so I decided today I would blog about some of the stuff I've done that I meant to post, but never did.
Last week I attended my first Pittsburgh Penguins game at the Consol Energy Center. Now I have been there before as I wrote about in my Winter Classic post. I attended the Robert Morris University and Wilkes-Barre Scranton double header that took place during the week of the Winter Classic. That was fun, but this was a totally different experience. This is what the arena was truly built for. We sat higher up than we did for the other event, but these seats were still great (our view pictured left). We were behind the goal the pens shot against twice, and also at the end where 2 fights happened.

The game was against the L.A. Kings, and the Pens were not expected to win. Four players were called up from the Baby Pens team for this game to replace some injured Penguins players. Many jokes were made about the Baby Pens playing against the Kings that night, but the call-ups played fantastic. In fact, the first goal of the game was scored and assisted by all call-up players.
At the end of regulation the score was tied 1-1, so this game was headed to overtime. With less than 20 seconds left Jordan Staal scored, winning the game for the Penguins! It was an amazing game, and even though many star players were missing I still thoroughly enjoyed my first Penguins' game at the Consol.

This past Saturday I attended OUTrageous Bingo. "This ain't your grandmother's bingo" is the perfect tag line for this event, because it sums it up perfectly. The game raises money for the Gay & Lesbian Community Center and takes place at Rodef Shalom Temple in the Oakland/Shadyside area. Your ticket price ($15 at the door, or $12 if purchased in advance) gets you 12 games of bingo. There are also "Specials" that can be purchased for an extra price. The "Specials" are all given names which lead the imagination into some dirty thoughts like "Foreplay" (which is the 3 quick games before the main games begin), "Cover Your Ass" (in which you have to cover your entire bingo card to win), "Top or Bottom" (in which you have to have a horizontal line across the top of your card or the bottom) and other bingo related double entendres. Halfway through the night intermission takes place. This isn't a boring get up and go pee kind of intermission. This intermission is a Drag Queen Show. The Queens come out into the hall and lip sync and dance to some fun music. Dressed in some amazing outfits (which we recently learned they all create themselves), these queens get the room PUMPED! They dance around the entire room collecting money for the GLCC, and sure do entertain the crowd as they do it. Many times you will see them stop for a photo or maybe give a guest a surprise little shimmy. After the show ends they get back to bingo and the fun and excitement carries on through the games. After all the games are played Door Prizes are handed out by calling out ticket numbers. I have never won a game of bingo, or a door prize, but I still really do enjoy going to OUTrageous Bingo! The next event is March 5 and I plan on attending, and maybe this will be the day I finally win!

Restaurants I Like and Dislike

2011-02-15T10:04:00.006-05:00

Last night, like many other Monday nights, Erica and I went out for a weekly special meal. Almost every Monday Erica and I go out for burritos at Moe's Southwest Grill. For those of you unfamiliar with Moe's here is a video explaining all about Moe's (I don't know why it looks like it's from a 1994 corporate training seminar).

We go to the Moe's on Campbell's Run Road in Robinson. Monday nights, also known as Moe's Mondays, there is a special deal for ANY burrito, chips, and a drink for less than 6 bucks!! I typically get a burrito stuffed with so many additions the burrito builders have a hard time rolling it shut. We also normally get a cup of the queso dip on the side as it is a perfect addition to go with the freshly made chips. The burritos are quite big and very filling so it is a lot of bang for your buck. The staff is always very friendly, I smile every time I walk in and hear them all shout "Welcome to Moe's!" Which I'm sure gets really annoying to them, but they always seem happy to shout it. They always seem to be in good moods and chat with us as they create our burritos. While checking out last night, the guy working the register said I lose brownie points for having Erica pay for my meal on Valentines Day. I told him that was her V-day treat for me, a delicious burrito meal, which is much better than a crowded fancy restaurant on Valentine's Day.
I highly recommend checking out Moe's it definitely falls into the "Restaurants I Like" category. The burritos are great and the prices are good too. The staff is excellent. I have never had any problems with the food I've ordered since you get to watch them build it right in front of you, and you choose everything that goes in. If your hungry on a Monday night maybe give me a call and we can go enjoy some Moe's Monday burritos together!

Moe's Southwest grill is not to be confused with Flaming Moe's...

What Up Oprah

2011-02-11T17:29:00.004-05:00

Today I got my tax return. After seeing it's splendor for about 3 minutes, I paid off my credit card and it is gone. I would have loved to have that money for other things. It could have helped me with student loans for a few months (not many, but a few). It could have bought me some fun new toys. I could have bought more new dinosaur books and educated myself with that money. Having my tax return inflate my bank account briefly made me start thinking about what I could do if I actually had money. That, added with the fact that Erica was talking about what she would do if she hit the lottery really made me think about what I would do if I had tons and tons of money.After swimming in my fortune like Scrooge McDuck I would definitely pay off my debt. My huge black hole of student loans would be first to go, then paying off my car. Next I would probably help with the debt of some family and friends. I would be sure to save myself some of my fortune though because I would definitely want to get myself a boat. I don't know why, but I have always wanted a boat. I think I'd live in the boat, at least part of the year. Depending on how large this fortune is I receive I would buy a house down in North Carolina big enough to fit my extended family, so our vacation home would be ready for us every year.
So that is my plans for my tax refund, and my hypothetical instant fortune. What's your plan for your tax refund? What would you do with a gigantic fortune?
O ya, one more thing I'd love to do if I had billions: I'd buy an island like Ricky Martin!