That's Life.

Really?

2011-01-27T14:28:00.000-06:00

The other day, I was sitting at my computer when my stomach made a growl. Hungry I quickly looked for a way to temporarily satisfy my craving. I was at a client's office, so I headed to their break room. Luckily enough, they had a fully stocked vending machine.

I picked my victim, item E104. Everybody loves the 440 calorie snack, "The Big Texas Cinnamon Roll". I entered my $1.00 and went to punch the number when I noticed something odd. Underneath the numbers that select your delicious prize, there was braille. Now I'm all for assisting those in need, but c'mon You're going to put braille on a vending machine, without giving the blind a chance to know their options? Really?. Maybe the handicapped get to play a snack-roulette game that we know nothing of? Perhaps we should all participate in this game where we (some literally) *blindly* select a snack by entering random digits together without first viewing the options?

Grown Up, Take 2

2011-01-12T13:09:00.000-06:00

When I was younger, sometimes the only cereal we had left was Frosted Mini-Wheats. This was agonizing as I hated the dry wheat fibers that stuck to your teeth. This had to be a cereal made strictly for the oldest of the old. Those with dentures that could take them out and just gnaw on these bad boys for awhile.

Next thing you know, I'm 22. I open the cupboard to find what I might be eating for breakfast and I see the box (generic version). The 10 year old Brady would've been shocked by the reaction I had. I was excited. "I haven't had these in awhile!", I thought. The box was half empty and was gone by the next day. The next box lasted 3 days I think (I went to the store and got 2 more last night).

People have told me that my taste buds would change as I got older. I was afraid that might mean I'd have to eat more vegetables. I really don't mind adding to the plethora of breakfast options I have.

Merry Christmas, Pt 3

2011-01-06T12:45:00.001-06:00

We proceeded to watch from our seats for awhile until the majority of players made their way into the locker room. We decided that would be a good time to check out the rest of the stadium.

Tons of vendors for food and alcohol (no thanks, I don't like beer and I like to keep my $8). Saw the equivalent of a Colt's pep/jazz band. Tried our chance to make it into a money grab wind tunnel (no dice). We got to step into a fan video in one of the main hallways. Eventually we decided to head back to our seats as we were getting close to kick off.

Now the players came back out in their pads and it was time to start stretching. It was at this point that I realized these players are no different than me. If you exclude them being at least 5 inches taller, at least 60 pounds heavier and about twice as fast and strong, we're practically the same. What I mean to be getting at is it didn't feel like I was standing in the presence of greatness (not to say that they aren't fantastic athletes). Maybe if I was 7 years old, I would have had a different perspective. Don't get me wrong, I loved being there and seeing all of them so close. It just seemed like while I was watching them stretch like I was watching my cousin stretch. My cousin who also happens to be one of the fastest wide receivers around that happens to catch almost every pass thrown his way. That's right, good ol' cuz Reggie Wayne.

Grown Up

2011-01-05T18:20:00.000-06:00

Caught in Traffic on the way home...

I miss the days when I'd be home by 3:00PM at the latest. Oh yea, and the same days when my first
class/activity that I had to be at was at noon. What I would give to go back and time and live forever at college.

In other news, I'm back in Springfield working on another client. That means one more month of driving back and forth each day. Whoop. Then, when I get done out there, it's vacation time!!! I'm definitely looking forward to this one! Our first vacation away (apart from our amazing honeymoon).

Student Loan Payoff: Take One

2011-01-04T14:29:00.000-06:00

$330 Million

That's easily enough to pay off my student loans. The odds of winning? 1 in 175,711,536. While those are terrible odds, I'll invest my $10 anyways. I recognize that I'll probably lose, but the ability to instantly pay off my debt and any debt my family has is too appealing.

You bet I'll be waiting up till 10 PM tonight to watch this draw.

Your Mother Would Be So Proud

2011-01-03T17:39:00.000-06:00

Elizabeth and I spent the week leading up to Christmas with her family in Avon. One of the days we were there, we went with Elizabeth's mother to get some paint from Lowe's. While her and her mom were waiting for the paint to mix, I took a walk around the store. At our apartment complex, you can rent a washer & dryer for $50/month, or you can buy your own. We had done neither yet and have been just using those of our families. It seemed like way too much money wasted to rent a small stacked unit each month, and I didn't want to buy the small stacked unit that I wouldn't want to use elsewhere. So I walked around the appliance section , and found out that you could stack front loading machines. I also found this:

I came back to Elizabeth and told her I wanted to show her something. I figured she would shoot me down seeing as we don't really need a washer/dryer right now as we could continue using those of our families. To my surprise, her and her mom both seemed surprised and happy about what I found. We agreed that we would discuss this more once we got home.

Later that week, Elizabeth's family had a White Elephant Gift Exchange. I was able to scoop up and have the last steal on a $25 Lowe's Gift Card. Now the idea of a washer/dryer was really cooking. We came home and measured the closet where we might put the two, and I had to take the doors off to make enough room. I went to Lowe's here in Decatur, and they had the Washer/Dryer set at the original prices of $599 each. I told the salesman about the promotion I saw in Avon, and he looked it up and offered it too me ($898 total).

Here comes the nitty gritty part:

I asked the salesman if he could do any better on the price (I followed Dave Ramsey's advice and brought a wad of cash with me). He said that's the best he can do.
I asked if his manager could deal with me a little more. He said he is the manager.
We looked around a little more and told them we were going to check out other stores. We went to Menard's and they had the same set at the original price, $599 each. Asked Menard's if they'd price match, and they said they would, but we would have to basically buy it from Lowe's and then show them the receipt.
We went back to Lowe's and told them we would buy it there. Since we had just moved, we had a 10% discount from Lowe's (get one here). Had to buy a cord for the dryer and a stack kit. After using the $25 gift card, the total amount we paid came to $885.35 (not bad considering they should have been $599 each).
This past Saturday I was trying to look up if the Washer took a special kind of Laundry Detergent (Thanks to my Father-in-Law, I now know that High Efficiency Models take different soap). I come across the same Washer/Dryer set for $399 each. That's $50 less per machine (after the discount)!
I went to the store, they told me it was an online only price.
I went home and tried to buy it online (I would simply return the set I bought at the store before it was delivered). Unfortunately the 10% discount I used can only be used once. I could get another coupon at the Post Office, but they were closed as it was New Year's.
I called the store and asked for the store manager. He again stated that it was an online only price.
I came home and called Customer Support. They told me that it was an online only price, but they would try to help me get the 10% discount and order it online. They said that they could not actually make the discount, but maybe their sales team could (why would their sales team want to help if I already bought the set and it was scheduled to be delivered Monday)?
I filled out a customer satisfaction survey and checked the box to be contacted about the order.
I continued to go about my day, and while I was at Wal-Mart my phone rang. It was the same store manager, obviously not happy to be calling.

"Hi, is this Brady?"
"Yes, who is this"
"This is the store manager at Lowe's. What was your deal with the Washer/Dryer again?"
I explained it, again.
"When can you come in here?"
"I can be there in an hour."
"If you come on in, we'll take care of this" (He obviously had just gotten scorned or chewed out by his boss).

A long story very short... We got a Washer/Dryer set that should have cost about $1,300 with taxes for $781.

Resolution

2011-01-02T14:41:00.000-06:00

A new year brings new hype. I've been asked a couple of times already what my new year's resolution is. Obviously I'd like to do all of the cliches: a better relationship with God and family, be happier, Laugh More, love more, be nicer, not put on weight, eat healthier, blah blah (not meaning to degrade any of those, they are all very, very nice).

I'd like to take this chance to really stretch myself and my thoughts of what's possible. So here it goes, my resolution for 2011 is to Pay off all of our student loans by the end of the year. It was our choice to go to a private college, and we must pay for it. I know that it will be nearly impossible to pay off all of our loans this year, but I want to set the bar high. Even if I fail, I will have made hopefully decent progress towards it.

All encouragement and/or assistance should be mailed to:

Brady Oring
3959 Constant View Dr. Apt #7
Decatur, IL 62526

Some might say, Brady you are just asking for money on your blog. That's certainly not true. But if that's what you desire to send, great!

Merry Christmas, Pt. 2

2010-12-31T13:20:00.000-06:00

So now we walk through the typical hallway to something that was not so typical. It was beautiful. Simply beautiful. Then it hit me, we would have to walk DOWN to our seats. That alone got my heart thumping. People were rushing around us, hoping to stand near the field and get a few pre-game pictures before security drove them away. Being one for great sites, I too hurried down the steps.

I counted the rows as I walked down, 18, 17, 16, Wow, people are on the field already. 12, 11, 10, Is that, no way, that can't be Peyton! I must have floated across the last few rows, because I don't remember them. The next thing I know, I'm standing near the rail, taking this wonderful picture.

Everyone around was was excited to be so close to the field, taking pictures before security would inevitably come and make us move. Eventually Elizabeth and I decided to go up to our seats. Our tickets were for row 6, so we started heading up. Two rows up I couldn't believe my eyes. The seats said Row 5. I know I looked back and the first row was labeled row 4. I'm pretty good at math, but where were rows 1-3? I looked at the first section on the sideline, and they had 3 more rows down front than ours had. Our row 6 tickets were suddenly row 3!

Perspective

2010-12-30T13:45:00.001-06:00

Man, life never slows down. My philosophy is that our perspective on life is constantly changing. When I was 10 years old, a day seemed pretty long (1 out of approx. 3,650). Now at 22, days seem to fly by (1 out of approx 8,030). Each day passed adds to your perspective.

Things change in the blink of an eye. It seems like just last week I was a freshman in High School. I was the lowest among the ranks. Considering my size relative to everyone else at the time, that was probably fitting. I couldn't wait to start Driver's Training and have the massive amounts of freedom that should bring.

What seems like the next day, I'm a freshman in College. Not quite the lowest of the low feeling, but more like a new kid on the block feeling. Olivet furnished class competition games, in which I remember the Senior Class dogging all the other classes. We had plenty of ammo though as they obviously were about to graduate and would have to work for the foreseeable future.

Again, virtually the next morning my world's changed again. I've gotten married (awesome), graduated college (ok), worked 6 months at a real job (how many more years of this?) and started paying on the student loans (yippee....).

All throughout Life we set goals. I'd really like to accomplish . I can't wait until . When I'm , then I'll be old. Goals get replaced. Our take on age changes. And hopefully our centerpoint stays the same.

I'm thankful for my family, my apartment, my life and everything else God has placed in those. I'm excited and nervous for the changes to come. For now, I'll just try to notice the little things. Going asleep to a ground blanketed in white, and waking up to this.

Thank you God for another day, another year.

Merry Christmas, Pt. 1

2010-12-29T13:15:00.000-06:00

Elizabeth and I decided to give each other Colt's tickets for Christmas this year. We tried to take a picture with the stadium, but obviously failed.

I had never been to an NFL game before, so I didn't really know what to expect. We got to the stadium at about 10:45 (the game was to start at 1:00PM). Little did we realize the complete excitement that would ensue. We walked up to the stadium and found ourselves at the hhgregg entrance. We waited outside in the frigid wind for 20 minutes (the gates were supposed to open two hours before the game, a fact that is sparsely found on the internet). Once the gates opened, we were among the first to rush inside the stadium.

We had planned on walking around the stadium before we sat down just so we could experience it. Much to our satisfaction, we realized that we happened to enter right were our section was, Sec. 124. We decided to take go ahead and look at our seats, being that we were RIGHT THERE!

Impressions

2010-01-12T21:56:00.002-06:00

Is this really it? Am I really here? Is this seriously my last semester of college?

I keep trying to pinch myself, and I really can feel it. Thus, I press on. I do so with some interesting thoughts. I've been tossing around the idea lately of a "Last Impression". People always make such a big deal about first impressions, but who really focuses on their last impression? Not in the morbid "I may die tomorrow" sense. But in a realizing sense that my path may never cross that of a friend or peer again.

I think about who I'll remember, and why. Then there's the thoughts of wanting to be remembered as a nice guy, or wanting to be remembered as a funny guy. Then come the thoughts about who I actually care to remember me. Those few people that will remember me I want to leave with a good Last Impression, or a Lasting Impression.

I won't be a part of a "big prank" in the next few months, and I don't plan on kissing John Bowling when I walk across that stage in May. All I know is that I want the world to know that I love God foremost, who has blessed me richly, and I love my wife.

Tick Tock

2009-05-27T21:47:00.002-05:00

I haven't updated in awhile. but weekly updates should soon begin to take place.

Only 3 days left. Wow! One of the most important and happiest days of my life. Many things still to do before we get there, hopefully not forgetting anything significant. Pretty busy schedule coming up...

Here's the Count Down... In:

3 days: Getting Married
4 days: Leaving for Honeymoon
11 days: Returning from Honeymoon and packing up
12 days: Moving up to Olivet
14 days: Pre-employment Interview near Chicago
16 days: Leave for Michigan
18 days: Return to our new "Home" at Olivet
19 days: New Job officially starts. Leave wifey for first time. Training outside of Chicago until Wednesday
21 days: Back home to the wifey

It's a busy time in the life of Brady Oring. An exciting time, with many new experiences. If you can remember, I would appreciate your prayers.

An honest prayer...

2009-03-20T07:11:00.004-05:00

Dear God,

All that I have, I have because of you.
Thank you for the blessings in my life. The opportunity to go to College, the clothes that I wear, the food I eat, and the good health that I have. You have blessed me with a wonderful family, and an amazing fiancé.

Please help me not to worry.
With all of the changes I have coming up in my life, it's easy to get caught on the details. Housing, insurance, school and food all cost money, which we don't have a lot of. Please help us to secure summer jobs/internships. Please bless the resources we do have, and help us to be frugal. The thought of not being able to afford "life" scares me.

Please take care of my family.
I don't get to see my family much, but I still think of them everyday. Every time I'm with them, you show me aspects of them that I cherish, and I see reflections of them in myself. Please keep them (and their new families) safe.

Thank you for your son.
You made the greatest sacrifice of all. Thank you for saving the world and giving of your own. I pray we don't take that for granted.

You know me better than I know myself.
You created me, and you know who I am. You know my strengths and my weaknesses. You watch me stumble, and continue to pour out your love. I can never fully grasp your majesty, but you know every little detail about me. Thank you for your patience.

Please help guide the world.
We are living in troubled times. There are people in much worse circumstances than me. Please help those people. Please help everyone see how much they are blessed, and help us all to delight in the beauty of this world that you've created.

Help us to remember that it's not about us, and that you're the reason for every season.

Amen.

101 Days

2009-02-18T16:44:00.007-06:00

until I "get hitched." That's a nice thought. It seems a little easier to count days than spots... but that's another movie. As of next Friday, February 27th, I will have been with this wonderful woman 27 months. So to celebrate, I'm going to be taking her out to Friday's. (Yes, that's creative).

(Elizabeth is on the left, if you couldn't tell.)

Finally added some Twitter/Flickr features to my blog, so now I'm hip like that. I find it funny that I know more people out of high school/college that use both of those than I know in college using them. But who said technology is geared for the young anyways?

I've got bibliographies, papers, presentations, and a personal strategic plan all coming due in the next month or so. On top of that, I'm going to help prepare tax returns for some of the foreign students here at olivet (a little Extra Credit never hurt). Ahhh, the college life...

Change

2009-02-07T12:06:00.000-06:00

As I look out at the 55 degree weather, i'm reminded that like winter, everything changes. Soon it will be summer, the economy will eventually rebound (even if just a little bit), and I will be married. Some have described the current downturn of the economy as a "Black Swan". People only thought there were white swans on the earth until someone went to Australia and proved them wrong. Granted, they are very irregular, much like current conditions.

While some banks that gave out bad mortgages are having a wartime finding current cash, others are telling quite the different tale. Some bank managers are saying that people are putting money in their savings accounts at rates that they've never seen.

Being in college, I'm used to having empty pockets. It's nice to know that the money I do have saved from the summer goes even that much further.

Question

2009-02-04T21:49:00.001-06:00

Why does cheese sauce include "fish"?? Thank you fish for all that you gave up to help create this delicious sauce.

Charles Darwin

2009-01-18T13:50:00.002-06:00

is rolling over in his grave. Apparently survival of the fittest doesn't apply to the biggest of corporate America (GM, Ford, AIG, etc.). Not saying it absolutely should, but where do you draw the line? I'm all for helping out other people (especially those in need of essential resources), but there has to be a line somewhere right?

I still don't know quite a bit. But I do think that putting a majority of the second half of 700 billion towards preventing further home foreclosures would create a better deal. Would this tool for millions of Americans to keep their homes, and have some footing to build upon, help bolster the economy more than the sagging American auto industry?

If you're like me (nosey), then you like to see where your tax-dollars are going. For up-to-date information on the Troubled Assets Relief Program (T.A.R.P. = 700 billion bailout),

Go here: http://www.treasury.gov/initiatives/eesa/transactions.shtml

then click on the most recent date on the list. It will show you exactly how much money has been given to which bank/auto company.

On a different note, classes started today. I showed up to my very first class of the semester (8AM), to be met by the secretary of the business office. She handed me my syllabus and said my prof was in D.C. for the Federal Seminar trip the school offers. An email would have been nice. A good start to a fast semester. There are so many breaks in the spring semester that just fly by. Then it's May and time for a wedding.

Celebrating Christmas...

2008-12-21T16:51:00.003-06:00

Just a few more days and it's here. The day Jesus Christ was born.... errr sorta. It wasn't until A.D. 440 that the church officially proclaimed December 25 as the birth of Christ. But even then it wasn't the exact date of his birth. It just happens to be near the winter solstice. All of this to ask... when do you celebrate Christmas? My wish would be that I'd begin to celebrate the birth of the savior on a daily basis. Now that would make for a good New Year's Resolution.

On another note... I'm officially more than halfway done with my undergraduate degree. I officially added Accounting as my second major, and managed to stay on the Dean's List for the 5th consecutive semester (yes, that's all of them so far). I'm going to get to experience the fun-tivities that come with Christmas at Elizabeth's family's house. We've got a lot planned, and it all sounds like fun.

I made some peanut butter fudge last night. It turned out great. Some in the family here prefer chocolate, but I don't have that family recipe here. If you happen to have it, please post!

Wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas!

-Brady

Things I Love (Part 3)

2008-11-12T20:36:00.000-06:00

So here is something neat. There is a program here at ONU called Operation Christmas Child. What you do is fill up a shoe box with all kinds of gifts and little trinkets that you think a little boy or girl might like (you select the age group and boy/girl choice). I have never done it before, and my prof's have offered some extra credit for doing it in the past. I never needed it then, but now it will help my grade in a certain class. Anyways, I felt kind of bad about my reasoning for doing it, but after I started putting it together, I really began to feel good about it.

When thinking about it, I realized that I feel almost more confident about giving a shoe box full of small things than praying alone. Not that I think that my making a box is stronger than prayer, but actually taking a step to do something about poverished children in Africa (or wherever these end up) makes me feel like i'm helping out. I know that I'll be praying for whomever gets this box, and that it makes the boy smile and hopefully somehow make a connection with Jesus. church answer maybe, but I actually feel like this is something much bigger than me or extra credit.

Things I love (part 2)

2008-09-28T21:02:00.000-05:00

I love the feeling you get right after you get your hair cut. When you're taking a shower and you begin to lather the shampoo into your hair, suddenly it hits you. You no longer need to use so much shampoo!!! But for some reason, the extra buds flowing through your newly trimmed hair makes you feel great. You almost feel like royalty using this much shampoo in your hair. Even though you could always use more shampoo and it probably wouldn't make any difference, you just don't to be efficient and save yourself the money. The next time you get your "ears lowered" and you take a shower, enjoy that little extra amount of shampoo, you deserve it!

Things I love, part 1

2008-09-23T16:19:00.001-05:00

These pretzels have been a favorite snack of mine since I was an aid in the counselor's office in high school. unfortunately, I had forgotten about them until just last week. If you've never tried these, you should. Once It enters your mouth, the salty wheat pretzels contrasts with the sweet honey taste in a way that is just mesmerizing!! This is certainly something that I love.

Mobile blogging

2008-09-21T23:50:00.000-05:00

Ok, this is my third try at this. Hopefully it'll work this time. I've been working on an informative speech on day trading and I really want to start trading some. I found a website called sogotrade that would cost only $3 per trade with no other fees. Just need 500 to start and I don't really have that to throw around right now. If any of you want to donate with all proceeds going to you, let me know. I could use the experience ;).

This is it.

2008-09-16T16:17:00.003-05:00

I step on the scale for the first time in over a month.... 160! No more waiting. The years have finally paid off. Working so hard at something with no progress for so long was very discouraging. But that's finally changed. For the past like 5 years I have been just sitting at 155, never to gain or lose a pound. Friends around me gained the "Freshmen 15", some lost it. My roommate Tim gained 35 lbs freshman year, you couldn't tell though.

My first month at school as Freshman, I piled up my tray at lunch and dinner. I would always top off the regular course with an added double cheeseburger. After about 150 burgers, something had to change right? Wrong. No weight change, at all. I quickly gave up on trying to get "heftier", somewhat hoping it might come naturally.

A year went by, with no change. I then had to take the health & wellness class, and saw this as potential. I decided if I couldn't add weight by fat, I'd try to add muscle mass. I didn't see any change in myself, but Elizabeth said I looked somewhat bigger (biased opinion I think). After ending the year stronger in every area of my workouts, still no change in weight.

So, I gave up. I hung my head and threw in the towel. I'm not really self-conscious about being small, I just wanted to know that I can gain even a little bit of weight if I try. Everybody says "Eventually you'll wish you didn't say that." And that's probably true, but come on, a little change is nice.

My weight finally changed! I gained 5 pounds! Excited for such change, I bragged to Elizabeth and to my mom when she called. I was going nuts!

Long story short. I stepped back on the scale yesterday. Bad News Bears. Must be my stomach was full the other day. I'm back down to 154.

Back to School...

2008-09-01T00:04:00.003-05:00

Billy Madison keeps ringing in my head. Back at school. New classes, new responsibilities. Same great fun. Feeling a bit busy at times, and a bit on top of things at times. I have to give a speech tomorrow... a bit nervous, but I want to pretend not to be. Loving life and thankful for it!

Looking at where you're from, where you're at, and where you're headed... do you like what you see? Who have you surrounded yourself with? What things do you see yourself continuing to do? Sometimes I think we opt to have too much clutter in our lives because we feel we need it. Then again, only you know what you can handle and what's acceptable. I hope you're leaving some time to be quiet. Shutting out all the noise of our lives and being engulfed in silence every once in awhile is healthy for you.

Anyways, for those of you that don't know... an AWESOME online radio type program is http://www.pandora.com it creates a playlist off of an artist that you like, or a style or genre of music and it learns what you like & dislike. Also, if looking for a particular song, try http://www.playlist.com

Wedding Countdown..... 271 Days!!!!

Updates

2008-07-21T21:08:00.002-05:00

So once again I've fallen short in writing in here. Updates, the Fireworks store went well. I sold 41% more than they did last year, so I'll end up making more than I thought. Still waiting on the final commission check though.

Since the fireworks job is over, I've pretty much got the next month off. Probably the longest period of time I'll spend not working until I retire. That doesn't mean I'm not busy though. I've been and will continue helping Elizabeth get as many details to our wedding figured out before we head off to school in August. She'll be busy with her nursing courses, and I'll be busy with the RA, Office Manager Job, and other stuff, so we won't have a ton of time between us to focus.

Last week I went canoing with Elizabeth's family at Turkey Run (11 miles of river, sun, and fun!). We had a blast. Halfway through the trip however, I realized that I needed to reapply some suntan lotion. Empty suntan bottles means that I ended up fried. I was so pink the next day, but it didn't hurt too bad.

Anyways, I got a new cell phone and didn't like it, so now I'm going to get the BlackJack II by Samsung (refurbished). I've got unlimited texting, but I probably won't do any data packages

Anyways, I'll get to see most of the family at Addison's birthday party, so that'll be an exciting end to the summer. I hope everybody is enjoying their summer as much as I am.

God Bless