Exploring Lakewood

Tonight I tried out a New York style Pizza restaurant. It was a nice place, Biorello brothers restaurant. The pizza is a good and the atmosphere is decent. I liked the food but it was not super filling. I will probably go back and try it again but more than anything I was glad to be out exploring the city & trying out restaurants.

My crazy thoughts

The other day while cleaning my room I was putting away my clothes. While folding them a Cheerio fell out of my pants and onto the floor. It was odd because I do not eat Cheerio's so I immediately began to wonder where the Cheerio came from. I do what most people do, I begin to make up a story but the only difference is my stories are always very silly and not practical nor do they make sense.

The story that first came to mind as an explanation for the Cheerio on the floor was that a group of small children had met to have breakfast in my room. While sitting on my clothing they were eating Cheerios. That is the first conscious thought I had and it sounds crazy. That idea is not possible nor is rational or logical and that is what I thought was a plausible explanation for the Cheerio on my floor.

Considering the crazy explanations I have for things that happen to me I realized it is a good thing I do not have children because I would fill their heads with nonsense. It is a good thing I do not have to manage people because I would tell them crazy stories. It is a good thing I am not a teacher because I would fill the minds of innocent children with facts & stories that do not make sense.

At least I have this blog where anyone who reads it will probably think something like; "Wow, that Duane guy is kind of funny. Creative but silly and his nonsense is some what original and some what entertaining."

Over due Movie Reviews

I will not get into too much detail with the movies below as I don't have time and I recommend them all. I am starting to work through movies recommended for awards and wanted to share my thoughts on a couple.

Lincoln
It follows Lincoln through a very small part of history which makes it easy to follow but for a small a part of history they packed much into this story. Amazing performances, wonderful cinematography, great sets, and the story is very interesting. This movie is a must see and I hope it wins some awards!

Silver Linings Playbook
An original story that starts of as a drama with romantic themes & comedy themes that sprout out of it. Cast was great and it is such a great story you don't want it to end. I will see this one twice & I hope it wins some awards!

Zero Dark Thirty
This movie is insanely heavy with intensity, with some drama and suspense mixed in so it comes off as real story & how it really happened. I have not done any research about this story but the movie is amazing! I recommend it if you like heavy drama & suspense.

Jack Reacher
This movie is based off a book, I was reading it a couple years ago, which is a great story with intriguing characters! The story translates to the film well but the character development is not great and we do not get the full effect for every character. It is nice to see Tom Cruise back in an entertaining action role & this is a fun feel good movie. Worth seeing on the big screen or renting.

Seattle

I was in Seattle for a wedding this last weekend. I realized it is the third time I was in Seattle and each time was for a wedding. Each time Seattle has been cloudy and I get to see more of the city & more of culture. I should go back some time just to visit coffee shops and hang out. Check out some restaurants maybe...eat some fish...that is about it. I did hangout at a local bar with the artist & grunge looking type and it was not fun for me. I am glad I had the opportunity to see that scene but it is not for me.

While I was not in the wedding I was friends of the family. I rent a room from Dave & Lori Pearsons and their son, Andrew was getting married. I am glad he is off the Market as many people think he looks like Paul Walker. I cannot compete with a Paul Walker look alike when it comes to talking with ladies. Lately I have been awful with the ladies...so never mind. Considering I have been so awful I should be watching Andrew & taking notes. After all he is married...and I am not.

The wedding was on a boat. I stayed in a hotel on the edge or very close to downtown Seattle. We drove to the boat which was a ferry boat converted into a form for events such as weddings & dinners and other festive events (First time I have been to a wedding on a boat).

I proudly admit and boast about all the parts I have played in weddings. I like to joke that I have been in every role in a wedding expect as a clergy member or official to marry a couple (which was offered to me once but I turned it down so a REAL member of the clergy could officiate the ceremony). I have been a groomsman, an usher, a bridesmaid, the maid of honor (I was not in a dress!! They called me the man of honor as I was standing up for the bride but I was in the maid of honor's place.), a D.J., and a bartender. At this wedding I held two new roles, I acted as a host and greeted wedding party members as they entered and I helped a relative use his video camera to take video. I was fumbling with the camera so I don't think I captured the shots he wanted but I did catch the ceremony and the vows (now is a good point to mention I almost minored in photography and apparently all those classes did not do me much good).

I met a bunch of interesting people and had a good time socializing with friends and Person family members. I am glad I got through the night without singing at the top of my lungs a couple lines from "I'm on a boat" by the Lonely Island Boys. A friend of mine mentioned he was thinking of that same song. Apparently horrible minds think a like and at least I had someone to laugh with about the idea (Disclaimer: If you are offended by harsh language & swearing, rap music, or music video's shot on boats then do not Google that song or the video for the song).

New learning & new adventure

Late last year i became more interested in eating healthy and having a well rounded diet. I learned how to cut, half & remove the seed of an avocado. I learned how to score & cut a pomegranate in a way so it opens easily and without breaking seeds. I also learned a couple different ways to cook Brussel sprouts.

I wanted to keep up my focus on a healthy diet in 2013!
My goals this year are to practice preparing nutritious meals!!
I want to make things I have never tried in the kitchen before!!!

I am pleased to announce the first food dish I created in 2013 is...dark chocolate brownies! I have never baked them before!! I have only baked twice in my life and it was to make cookies. It was last year that I baked cookies so in 2013 I have to take a step up to the big leagues and make something challenging, like brownies.

Brownies are easy to make and actually quite fun. I have been intimidated by them as I never know what the ingredients were and how they were put together. All I needed to do to get rid of my brownie making intimidation was look at the list of ingredients and learn how to make them. It is interesting how learning how to do anything takes away all the mystery that leads to fear, intimidation, and anxiety.

The hardest part of making them was knowing when to remove them from the pan after they had cooled and knowing how long to let them cool. I admit the brownies I made did not end up like the nice neat cut squares that are in the commercials or how other people make them. My brownies are gooey mounded humps of chocolate that despite having a good form, still taste good.

Since this is the first year I made brownies I will always remember 2013 as the year of the brownie. What a better way to celebrate then by eating them!!!

Weird thoughts in meetings

While in a meeting today all I could think about was eating a bowl of mash potatoes while being wrapped up in a blanket.

I am not sure why that thought was comforting but it was odd, slightly disturbing.

My year of procrastinating

It is sixteen days after Christmas and I am still setting up a Christmas gift I got myself. I pulled it out of the box this last weekend and have been playing with it. I ended up with food poisoning (According to my own professional medical opinion, not that of my doctor) this last weekend. I spent Sunday in bed and have no clue how I made it through work on Monday. I had sharp stabbing pains in my stomach and a ferocious migraine (Which is odd as I do not have migraines...usually I have tension head aches).

Tuesday I felt better so I thought I was recovering.
Wednesday I felt worse and considered leaving work early but I did not.
Today was half as bad as yesterday, I was not 100% throughout most of the day.

After a steady diet of bananas, apple sauce, yogurt, mashed potatoes, and rice; I am ready to feel better. I am ready to be productive and finish a few tasks and regain my sense of accomplishment.

Considering I am setting up Christmas gifts two weeks after Christmas the only thing I am accomplishing this year is procrastinating. Where are my new years resolutions...o never mind...I will get to those next week!

Kidding...maybe, maybe not.

Observations on giving up a promotion

I had the opportunity today to chat with a coworker who was promoted the same time I was promoted which was two years ago. In the last year I had stepped down from the promotion as the position was not a good fit for me. My coworker stayed in the position she had been promoted to and has weathered the storm of hard work, being over worked, and lack of training.

It was the first time since I had stepped down from a promotion (I was demoted) that we had the opportunity to talk and I could hear her reflections about working at the higher level. She could not believe how the time flew and lamented the days when work was easier, she could get all her work done, and did not stress about her unfinished work load.

I have often wondered if stepping down after being promoted was a good decision and after hearing her talk I realized it was a good decision for me. My coworker is more ambitious than I am and she is shrewd in dealing with people so she has some natural talents which allow her to function in the job she is in better than I would. She also has a family so working at a higher level with more pay is good for her family as well.

After talking with her I knew I made a good decision in stepping down and giving up the promotion I received. I enjoy getting my work done in an eight hour day, taking an hour for lunch where I do not stress about my work and then going home and not thinking about unfinished projects or what I tasks I have to accomplish the next few days. For me that is the ideal schedule and who knows how long I can keep it. In the future I may have to sacrifice some of my comfort to move on, move up, or move around in my career. In the mean time I am enjoying my hour lunch breaks while I can.

Those things that are tough to accept

While having lunch with a friend from church I started to tell him about my past. I started to talk about my life growing up and my mom. I was doing okay until I started to share some of the current events and one thing I was sharing shook me up. I could feel tears welling up and I had to fight hard to keep from crying while I was talking about my mom.

I was glad I was able to share a few things and get a few things off my chest with someone from church that I know and who happens to be on staff at church. He didn't have any great earth shaking facts or discoveries to share with me but he did listen. Sometimes that is all one really needs, someone to listen.

New Years beliefs

My news years belief is that how I spend new years is a reflection of things which will happen to me over the following year. For example, One year I stayed in fixing a vacuum cleaner and that year I did not go out often and stayed home doing many domestic chores for family; another year I got drunk while partying with friends and that year I spent lots of time with friends drinking.

So this brings us to this year...drum roll please...New years eve was spent house sitting for people with cats. It was cold so I did not go out I stayed in and watched movies while cooking for myself & enjoying a glass of wine. My prediction is this year will be spent not going out much while I stay in to watch movies and enjoy time to myself. Wow that is sad and depressing...

I am still figuring out my New Year's resolutions for 2013. My resolutions have varied each year, some years they are clear & easy to achieve goals, some years they are vague and not easy to achieve or measure. One year I created resolutions with various levels or fulfillment so I could track & rate my fulfillment of those goals by various degrees of success or failure. While reading articles about goals I became inspired to revamp how I create my resolutions and what they will be. Usually my goals are tied to reading more books, writing, thinking, eating healthy, staying active and achieving any number of endeavors or learning new things.

I may have to come up with new & silly goals. One year my resolution was to eat more chicken and I did. Another year my goal was to remember & use the names of waitresses who wait on me in restaurants and thank them. This year I should have a goals that push me to new heights like like golf naked at night or hike to the top of hill & watch the sunrise once every two months. Most likely it will be treat myself to a nice sushi dinner once a month or save up for a nice bottle of port every couple months. I will give myself a couple more days to create new goals and then if I do not have any...I may have to face 2013 without resolutions!! YIKES!

Winter traditions

This tradition is a winter tradition I have had for a couple years now. For the last couple years I ended up house sitting close to city park around Christmas or New Years. There is a Starbucks near by of 18th & Franklin so I usually spend a couple hours there reading & reflecting on my year. Usually I get antsy after a hour or two and want to get up for a walk. I head over to City Park and walk around the fountain or the paremeter of the park or half the park. On a sunny day it is beautiful with a clear sky, green foliage (although not this time of year), families & couples are out walking & enjoying the day.

This year I returned to City Park for my annual walk and then had a snack at Starbucks. I like that area of town and enjoy being outdoors over there. Of course it was cooler when I went out and there was still snow on the ground I do like the Park Hill neighborhood. Fun times!