(9/14/08 - 8:13am - Missed Call)

(9/14/08 - 8:14am - Missed Call)

(9/14/08 - 8:15am - Missed Call)

(9/14/08 - 8:38am - Missed Call)

At 9:07 am I finally wake up and check my voicemail. There was a message stating that my brother was in a car accident and was flown by helicopter to the hospital. A million thoughts run through my mind and as optimistic as I am, I prepare for the worst. In the bathroom brushing my teeth, tears begin to roll down my face.

(pause - take a deep breath - must be strong)

At approximately 9:40 am I arrive at the hospital. Quick stop at the front desk, fast paced walk to the elevator, the adrenaline continues to build.

Now standing in front of the door, I do not want to walk in, but I must. Slowly opening I see him in the bed. His face is swollen, eyes slowly open, but there is no more than an IV connected to his arm. Confused I ask how he is doing. He states that he is OK, just really sore.

The doctor comes in to check on him and I walk outside with her. I ask for the “bad news”. She states that he is doing well and has no broken bones or severe injuries. Just scrapes, bruises, and a slight concussion.

(No way - they do not fly people to the hospital unless it is serious)

A few hours later he is released from the hospital. The doctor just stated that they would keep him overnight for observation. After talking with an “administrator” about his lack of insurance they decide to release him. He is still complaining of tightness in his chest so they must have missed something. After finding out he has no insurance the doctors and nurse did not seem too interested in helping him. My belief is with insurance they would definitely treat the situation different otherwise. We decide to take him to another hospital.

I call Mommy who is at another hospital with my stepfather. A few days prior it was discovered that he had a bad heart valve that needed to be repaired. She talks to a nurse at the hospital who says to bring him even though he does not have insurance. A few hours later he is released again and finally I am at ease. The doctors and nurses at Hospital #2 really took the time to explain what was happening, the tests they were running, and assuring us that he was OK. Everyone went above and beyond to help us.

Hospital #1 treated us as if we were criminals because of his lack of insurance. I thought people who worked in hospitals had a genuine interest in helping people. I guess for some it is just a job and nothing more.

(11:12pm - Finally arrive home)

The day has been exhausting but it has ended on a good note. Five missed calls and two hospital visits later I am ready to go to bed with a big smile on my face.

Back at work from a wonderful weekend I was not really looking forward to the day ahead of me yesterday. My mind was still consumed with New Orleans and the memories created and shared by the amazing people I met. After grabbing breakfast and discussing the plan for the day it was time to change into high gear. It was going to be necessary if I had planned on making it through the day.

(11:15am - SLIP, CRASH, BOOM…umm, is that blood?)

While working on a piece of equipment it began to fall and in my attempt to brace my body against it I ended up slicing a layer or two of skin off of my left middle finger and pinky. Ideally I should have let it fall as it would have been more easier replaced than had I lost my left pinky. As I went to pickup the equipment I noticed 1, then 2, then 5 drops of blood. Heading to the restroom I asked two of my coworkers to clean up the mess I had just made.

My manager sees me as I walk by, smiles, notices the blood, and then says “Ahh Sh#t!”. I smile as I continue to walk towards the bathroom. After cleaning the wounds with water my manager helps me bandage my fingers, but the blood is seeping through the bandaids. Fifteen minutes later I am in the “medical” facility that my employer uses for work-related injuries. All wrapped up I head back to work, fill out an injury report, and kick into slow gear as there was only so much I could do with one hand. (Hmm, maybe I should rewrite that last sentence.)

Back at work today with a fresh set of bandages after a stop at the “medical” facility all was well. Except for the fact that yesterday’s injury is remembered by today’s pain.

Note: This post was typed using one hand.

(Photo: Bandaid Bandage by Pam Roth)

(10:08am - Now Boarding Zone 6)

Me: Hey, what Zone are you in?

Coworker: Umm, I am not sure, let me see.

Me: I am in Zone 6…

Coworker: I am in Zone 1.

Me: Well they are boarding Zones 1-6 so we can get on the plane.

(a few moments later)

Coworker: Hey, I am in First Class (big smile)

If I had to describe my trip in one word it would be AMAZING! The people of New Orleans are amazing, the food is amazing, the city is amazing, and the group of people that I worked with over the weekend are amazing. Over the next few days I will provide a recap of the trip, my thoughts, and how I expect this experience to change my life.

(Photo: Airplane by Rodolfo Clix)

(1:50pm - Now Boarding Zone 1)

To her education meant a good job, working hard meant higher-paying jobs, and paying bills on time meant a good credit score. But without sound personal finance principles it could all mean very little.

On numerous occasions she has mentioned that math was her least favorite subject growing up and that possibly prevented her from learning more about managing her personal finances. On the other hand I have always been quite good at math and as I grow older continually seek to learn more about personal finance.

Much of my financial influence has surprisingly come from the FatWallet Finance forums. I initially stumbled upon the site while looking for deals on random stuff and later started browsing the finance section out of pure curiosity. There is some really sound advice given in that forum and it has had a positive impact on my life.

From there I started to read personal finance blogs recommended by others in the forum and began subscribing to financial magazines. Today I constantly give financial advice to family members and friends based on what I have learned and continue to learn. Financial issues burden many individuals, including myself, but it is amazing how knowing that you are in control puts your mind at ease.

(Image: Man Thinking by Paulo Correa)

The weekend was pretty busy, but not quite as crazy as past holiday weekends. Friday had a party that was a bust. It was thrown together at the last minute, location was bad, and just was not a good idea overall. But for certain reasons I had to show up. The restaurant where it was held was described as smelling like Pinesol and mildew.

With that said I still ended up having a good time due to the fact that I saw friends I have not spoken with in a while. Or maybe it was the fact that my friend called me after being slightly worried from eating tartar sauce that had expired over a year ago. As bad as the situation sounds his storytelling abilities made it quite comical.

Saturday consisted of lunch with friends, a party, and then another party. The parties were OK, but I probably could have had as much fun cutting my toenails at home. At some point over the weekend I was suppose to head to my mom’s to get food, but for some reason that did not happen. My mom is the greatest cook ever, no I mean she really is. Throughout life people have always wanted to come to my house to eat and still do! Somehow I need to convince Food Network to give her a TV show.

Sunday involved sleeping most of the day, meeting with a friend for lunch to discuss biz ideas, and then another party. This party ended up being great despite the fact that I really sucked at bowling. The 113 bowled was quite pathetic and I’ll chalk up the poor performance to my alcohol induced state.

Monday consisted of more sleep and the season premiere of Prison Break!

Today is the day after Labor Day and that means back to work, back to life, back to reality. And damn I really need to crack open that book!

(Image: Party Text by Shlomit Wolf)

(10:02am - cell phone vibrates during morning wake-up meeting)

The phone number looked familiar and after checking the voicemail it was a message from the recruiter I spoke with yesterday.  The recruiter discovered a job opening that is a “good fit” for me. Normally it is the same routine from most recruiters and you actually think a few of them would try a different approach. I returned the call but did not hear anything else. During our next conversation maybe I should explain that email is a very effective communication medium.

At about 2pm my body wanted to curl up in the closest corner and rest. One Red Bull later and I had enough energy to get through the day. The Red Bull did not give me wings but the company’s clever marketing campaigns convinced my mind otherwise.

The book continues to stare at me, screaming READ ME, READ ME!

(slight giggle)

That last sentence reminds me of the plant in Little Shop Of Horrors. While I continue to procrastinate be distracted, I did find an interesting post on one of my favorite blogs. Tomorrow I will read, not scan the post and actually learn how to read before cracking open that book.

READ ME, READ ME - hahahahaha.

This evening a friend and I who constantly talk about starting a business (but never really take action) had a good discussion about opportunities that we could pursue. We tentatively planned to meet Sunday, discuss the ideas further, and hopefully take 1 step forward which will put us a little bit closer.

In today’s random news, my coworkers and I ate at Panda Express for lunch. The cashier ended up giving her phone number to one of my coworkers. Not something that happens everyday and he seemed to be quite content with the situation. At least someone knows what they want and actually took action.

(Makes mental note)

Panda Express Fortune: You are a fun-loving person and will find much happiness.

That was much better than the fortune of my coworker which pretty much told him to settle for being mediocre - hahaha. And no, I still have not cracked open that book yet.

Work was not a place I wanted to be today. My manager is really cool, my coworkers are great, and the benefits aren’t too shabby. It is just that I do not enjoy what I am doing, nor the environment, which can be quite depressing due to it being extremely loud and cold.

A little over a year ago I left a well-paying (six-figure) job mainly because I no longer enjoyed it. Fast-forward to the present, making about 1/3 of what I made then and I am still searching for an answer to the question - What do you want to do?

The answer seems to change everyday, the same as when I was a kid. Umm, actually I think I am still a kid

(breaks from writing for 2 minutes as I do a search for Adult ADHD and take a quiz)

No surprise on the results although they seem quite conservative. Maybe I should signup for swimming lessons at the YMCA tomorrow.